Genesis 45:16-28. “Enough! My son Joseph is still alive. I must go and see him before I die.”
Wow! The verses from this chapter cover a multitude of gifts from God – redemption, reward, forgiveness, familial love, miracles. We recall from a previous chapter of Genesis that Joseph’s jealous brothers have sold him into the service of the Egyptian Pharaoh. Having risen to the position of chief steward in the Egyptian kingdom, Joseph’s expertise is rewarded handsomely by the Pharaoh who says in verse 18: “Take your father and your households and come to me, so that I may give you the best of the land…”. He then forgives his brothers and shares with them and his father Jacob, giving them garments, grain, bread and provision.
Thinking Joseph had perished in Egypt, Jacob was stunned to learn that he had survived and prospered – certainly this was a miracle to Jacob who says in verse 28: “Enough! My son Joseph is still alive. I must go and see him before I die.” This seems like a reverse version of the prodigal son. It certainly is interesting to wonder how Jacob processed this happening, having bought his brother Esau’s birthright and taken his blessing, but later achieving reconciliation and forgiveness from Esau. I would like to think that Jacob was mellowed by this event, especially in light of his previous dream of angels ascending and descending a ladder, and his encounter with God (aka: the stranger, angel, man) where he wrestled, won, and was blessed by God.
When I visited the Holy Land in 1995, I went as a determined skeptic – no “out-of-body” spiritual experiences for me! But that changed a few times without the help of my imagination. One day I sat down at the edge of an almost dry stream bed - The Jabbok River. While we were eating lunch our guide told us we were sitting at the place where Jacob had his dream of angels, and where he wrestled with God. The years between then and now dissolved for me and I said to myself: “Surely God is in this place.” I have felt more close to Jacob since that day, and for me it was a miracle.
— Dwight Russell
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