Topic: God Never Forgets
Genesis 47:5-6 says, “Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘Your father and your brothers have come to you. The land of Egypt is at your disposal; settle your father and your brothers in the best of the land, let them live in the land of Goshen; and if you know any capable men among them, then put them in charge of my livestock.’”
God provided for Israel by preparing Joseph for leadership and favor in the Pharaoh’s presence. While evil was meant to harm Joseph, God turned the circumstances for His good. Canaan is indeed the Promised Land; but to survive physically, Israel must go down to Egypt for a period of time. God was working amid the sinful actions of Joseph's brothers to prepare the way for Israel to move his entire household to the best part of Egypt–the land of Goshen.
Exodus 1:8 says, “Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.”
Many years later, the new Egyptian king, who did not know Joseph (Exodus 1:8), made the Israelites slaves so that they wouldn’t subdue the Egyptians (Exodus 1:8-11). They subjected them to great toil, thinking their spirits would be crushed, but God intervened and overruled this.
The hand of the Lord was on the Israelites, and they grew exponentially despite their affliction. It is obvious that if the contest had been merely between Pharaoh and Israel, the Egyptian king could have used his power and policy to defeat the sons of Jacob and reduce them to slaves.
The God of Israel fought for Israel. He saw through all Pharaoh’s plots. Job 5:12-13, "He (God) frustrates the devices of the crafty, so that their hands cannot carry out their plans. He catches the wise in their own craftiness, and the counsel of the cunning comes quickly upon them.”
The Land of Goshen had so many mysteries that only God could unravel. "The more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied." (Exodus 1:12). Had it been another people, the tactics would have been successful, but they were God’s people, encompassed with His favor as with a shield. No conspiracy formed against them could thrive, just like the plot against Prophet Jeremiah that was outrun by the judgment of God (Jeremiah 18:18–23).
The glory of God shines forth in the persecution to move the hearts of Israel to cry to God for help (Exodus 3:7). Once again God will bring a deliverer. As Joseph was used as a deliverer, Moses will be the next deliverer. Both are types of Christ, the final deliverer, who will atone once for all the sin of humanity. Through Christ all have the invitation to come to the Father and be saved.
See you Sunday!
Dr. Scott Kallem