,,joseph ,,and ,,his ,,brethren ,,by ,w4 ,k4 ,,tweedie1 ,d4,d41 ,,author ,,of 8,,seed-,,time ,,and ,,harvest10 8,,the ,,early ,,choice10 8,,parables ,,of ,,our ,,lord10 ,,etc4 ,see the wan victim of his brethren's scorn1 ,in ,pharaoh's dungeon1 drooping1 abject1 lone6 ,but ,god is there1 the friend of the forlorn1 ,and ,joseph's prison opes beside the throne4 ,,london3 ,t4 ,,nelson ,,and ,,sons1 ,,paternoster ,,row2 ,,edinburgh2 ,,and ,,new ,,york4 #ahgb4 ,,preface4 ,the story of ,joseph is at once so simple that childhood is arrested and rivetted by it1 and so profound that sages may deepen their wisdom by meditating on the truths which it embodies4 ,an attempt is here made to point out some of the more important lessons which the narrative teaches1--to manifest the wisdom and the watchfulness of ,providence1--and show how ,god on high exercises his prerogative of educing good from what we are often tempted to regard as only and hopelessly evil4 ,while man displays his wickedness by committing sin1 the ,holy ,one displays his goodness by restraining it2 and though his ways are confessedly 8a great deep10 we get glimpses through the gloom1--we catch echoes amid the silence1 which enable us to know1 that when the tangled web of providence shall have been unrolled in light1 it will be seen that he 8has done all things well40 ,as the bones of ,joseph were carried before the ,hebrews during all their wanderings1 from ,egypt to ,canaan1 till they found a resting-place in that land of promise1 the truth of ,god here goes before us still1 a very pillar of cloud and of fire4 ,,contents4 ,i4 ,,joseph ,,cast ,,into ,,the ,,pit1 #i ,,ii4 ,,joseph ,,sold ,,to ,,the ,,ishmaelites1 #ae ,,iii4 ,,joseph ,,in ,,prison1 #ba ,,iv4 ,,joseph ,,interpreting ,,pharaoh',s ,,dreams1 #ca ,v4 ,,joseph',s ,,advancement1 #da ,,vi4 8,,ye ,,are ,,spies10 #dh ,,vii4 ,,the ,,cup ,,in ,,benjamin',s ,,sack1 #eg ,,viii4 ,,the ,,meeting ,,of ,,joseph ,,and ,,benjamin1 #fe ,,ix4 ,,the ,,meeting ,,of ,,jacob ,,and ,,joseph1 #gc ,x4 ,,jacob ,,in ,,the ,,presence ,,of ,,pharaoh1 #gi ,,xi4 ,,the ,,death ,,of ,,jacob1 #he ,,joseph ,,and ,,his ,,brethren4 ,,chapter ,i4 ,,joseph ,,cast ,,into ,,the ,,pit4 ,when ,jesus would inculcate some of the deepest lessons which he ever taught1 he took a little child and set him in the midst of his disciples 7,matt4 xviii4 #b-d71 and made that child his text4 ,truth thus found an inlet into the mind which even the ,great ,teacher might have attempted in vain to impress1 without some material illustration of his spiritual lessons4--,let us endeavour to imitate the ,saviour's wisdom1 and seek some lessons to guide us in the touching history of ,joseph4 ,it is well known1 then1 that on a certain occasion that youth obtained permission to visit his brothers at a part of ,canaan somewhat distant from their father's home4 ,but1 previous to that time1 he had given them great offence2 and their anger only waited for a fit occasion to break forth in violence against him4 ,and we should not fail to notice what caused that anger4 ,first1 ,joseph was a great favourite with his father1 who testified his partiality to the boy by the gift of a coat of many colours1 and thus unwisely laid a foundation for feuds and divisions in his family 7,gen4 xxxvii4 #c1 #d74 ,moreover1 ,joseph had dreamed certain dreams which gave great offence to his brothers2 for they indicated that the time would come when the other children of ,jacob would do homage to ,joseph1 who was one of the youngest 7,gen4 xxxvii4 #e-aa74 ,the feelings which rankled in the bosoms of his brothers before1 now rankled more and more1 and were ripened by irritation for a violent outbreak at last4 ,it appears1 further1 that ,joseph had1 at least on one occasion 7ver4 #b71 complained to his father regarding the misdeeds of his brothers2 and all these things made him 8hated by them1 so that they could not speak peaceably to him40--,all this suggests to us the strange lesson1 that there are some men who 8hate him that rebuketh them1 and abhor him that speaketh uprightly0 7,amos v4 #aj74 ,men are so wedded to their own ways1 even when they lead down to death1 that we become their enemy if we tell them the truth4 ,how often did scribe1 ,pharisee1 priest1 and people break out in violence against ,jesus for his truthful warnings6 ,no sooner1 then1 did they see ,joseph approaching ,dothan1 where they fed their flocks1 than his brothers thought the time had come at length for humbling their father's favourite4 ,the first proposal was to put him instantly to death2 but ,reuben interposed1 and their sentence was1 to throw ,joseph into a pit1 and leave him to perish unpitied there6 ,blinded by envy1 or goaded by rage1 they trampled on every tender feeling1 and evil became their chief good4 ,in the good providence of ,god1 however1 the youth was taken from that pit1 in which he was to have been buried alive1 and sent to a distant country1 there to be the saviour of not a few1 in a temporal sense4 ,to cover their wickedness1 his brothers next resolved to show to their father ,joseph's coat of tartan1 dipped in the blood of a kid1 as if he had been devoured by ravenous beasts4--,their brother might become a slave2 their father's heart might be torn with anguish2 their own souls might be deeply stained with sin piled above sin2--but what of all these1 when men are bent on indulging their evil and malignant passions8 ,let misery be heaped upon misery1 yet men will not be diverted from their iniquity4 ,but wicked as their deeds were1 and an outrage at once against a father and a brother1 and1 above all1 against their ,god1 he who makes the wrath of man to praise him employed that wrath remarkably to work out his purposes in this case4 ,and he is doing the same at this hour4 ,think of the miseries1 spread over many years of agony1 inflicted by fierce persecutors on the ,christians of ,madagascar in our day1 and then mark how they increase in number notwithstanding4 ,think of the bloody massacres in ,india1 the martyrdoms of native ,christians there1 with the butchery of all who wear the ,christian name2 and yet mark how that is overruled to rouse the churches to spread the truth in that dark-souled land4 ,think1 above all1 of the ,cross of ,jesus1--of the woes which were there endured1 with all the malignant passions which nailed the ,redeemer to the tree2 and then see how ,god can make our wickedness promote his own glory1--can bring joy out of anguish1 and life out of death1 and blessings unutterable out of the very curse 7,gal4 iii4 #ac74 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,joseph ,,sold ,,to ,,the ,,ishmaelites4 ,we have just seen that ,joseph's brethren1 moved by envy1 sold him to some ,ishmaelite merchants1 by whom he was carried into ,egypt1 and there sold as a slave4 ,regardless of their brother's cries1 and deaf to all that affection might whisper1 the future patriarchs would make him the victim of their hatred2 and it is deeply instructive to notice how many sins are contained in this one transaction4 #a4 ,there was a sin committed by brothers against a brother4 ,the ties of nature were outraged4 ,affection was trampled in the dust1--it was in truth cast into the pit beside ,joseph1--it had no power in the hearts of those hating and hateful men4 ,surely such a case occurring in the ,bible so soon after the murder of ,abel by his brother ,cain1 was designed by ,god to show us the terrible ravages wrought by sin in the soul4 ,just as war1 with its bloody work1 has often deflowered the fairest regions of the earth1 does fierce passion waste the soul of man4 #b4 ,there was sin committed against their father4 ,what although the patriarch should suffer uttermost woe when bereft of his favourite son6 or what although his heart should break when the tidings reached him that ,joseph had been cruelly devoured by a wild beast6 ,it was not to such things that those men would listen3 it was to their own malicious hearts2 and1 cost what it might to their father1 their brother must either die or become a slave4 ,you may assure the sinner that the wages of sin is death1--you may tell him that agony for ever is attached to guilt by ,god's decree2 but all that will not turn the wicked from his way4 ,god must turn us1 or we rush unchecked upon ruin4 #c4 ,in the sin of ,joseph's brethren there was falsehood1 and that to a parent4 ,those men deliberately plotted to deceive ,jacob1 by showing him the coat of ,joseph dipped in the blood of a kid4 ,they utterly forgot that ,god saw them2 they listened only to their own hearts2 and sin was added to sin1 that their passion might be indulged4 ,to the crime of murder--the murder of a brother--which some of them were willing to perpetrate1 they added that of deception1 deep in itself and sad in all its results4 ,now in all this they were just showing us more and more clearly what iniquity lurks or reigns in the heart of man1 till the ,almighty ,spirit make all things new4 #d4 ,in that sin there was spite1 and that against a brother4 ,we have seen that there is reason to believe 7,gen4 xxxvii4 #b7 that ,joseph had formerly blamed some of the practices in which his brethren indulged while they were from under their parent's eye1 and that had provoked their antipathy3 8,they hated him0 when they saw that his father loved him4 ,and here again we see one reason why men have always ranked envy among the vilest and the meanest of the sins4 #e4 ,it need scarcely be added that there was cruelty in that crime4 ,those brothers were deaf to the cries of the stripling2 the majority of them were not unwilling to put him to death amid lingering agonies1--that is1 to leave him to die of hunger in a pit1 unheeded and unrelieved4 ,when we see fools making a mock at sin1 and multitudes seeking in it the only pleasure or the only gratification which they know1 surely that is because they do not know the dark depths into which it sinks them6 #f4 ,and1 to name no more1 there was in that sin the love of money1 which is the root of all evil4 ,those unnatural brothers1 blinded by hatred1 and eager to get the offender out of the way1 actually sold him for a slave4 ,they valued gold or silver more than their brother's life1 his happiness1 or his affection4 ,he might have to wear chains1 or carry burdens heavier than he could bear2 but what of all that1 if their hatred was indulged1 and ,joseph put out of their sight6 ,till then they could not be at ease4 ,his deportment was a rebuke to them4 ,he seemed holier than they1 and because of that he must suffer2 they must contract guilt upon guilt4 ,now1 is not this1 in spirit1 the very same kind of sin as that which led ,satan to tempt and ruin man8 ,such are some of the views suggested by this sad transaction--the selling of ,joseph4 ,but little did his brothers know that these sins would find them out4 ,little did they expect that even upon earth they would see in ,joseph all that his dreams had predicted1--themselves at his feet1 and doing him obeisance with all their heart4 ,and little did they know that ,god was to be with their brother of a truth1 to bless him and make him a blessing4 ,but so it was2 and ,joseph became a type of ,jesus1 persecuted by his brothers1 but exalted by his ,god2 buried out of sight1 yet raised to a throne2 the victim of malignity at man's hand1 but beloved of ,god1 and therefore set on high4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,,joseph ,,in ,,prison4 ,god has1 in his holy providence1 made great use of his people in prison4 ,jeremiah1 ,daniel1 ,paul1 ,silas1 and ,peter1 were all honoured by him in such a place4 ,luther1 while a captive in ,wartburg ,castle1 translated a large portion of ,scripture1 and promoted the spiritual emancipation of millions in ,christendom4 ,bunyan in his prison1 where blinded persecutors had immured him1 wrote a book1 second to no human production in its knowledge of the heart and its delineations of truth4 ,and so of many more4 ,joseph's name is to be added to this list4 ,having been basely accused of a foul crime which he refused to commit1 he was cast into prison1 and pined there for years1 the victim of malignity1--or apparently forgotten4 ,now this seemed the completion and the cope-stone of the machinations of ,joseph's brethren4 ,when he was immured in that dungeon at ,on1 in ,memphis1 in ,thebes1 or some other of the royal cities of ancient ,egypt1 it might appear as if all hope concerning him were gone3 his aspirations1 whatever they were1 now seemed to be blighted for ever4 ,it was with him1 to mortal eye1 as it was with ,jesus when he was crucified1 dead1 and buried1--when a stone was rolled to the door of the sepulchre1--when the entrance was sealed with a seal1 and a guard of ,roman soldiers set1 as if they could baffle ,omnipotence1 and make all escape hopeless4 ,in truth1 however1 the imprisonment of ,joseph was meant and used by ,god as a step to his exaltation4 ,if he was for a season like one entombed1 he had a resurrection at last by the mighty power of ,him who sees the end from the beginning4 ,it was like the planting of an acorn soon to become an oak1 or like the bubbling up of a little stream from the depths of the earth soon to become a mighty river1 while all around exclaimed1-- 8,the gloomy mantle of the night1 ,which on my sinking spirit steals1 ,will vanish at the morning light ,which ,god1 my ,east1 my ,sun1 reveals40 ,his ,god was with ,joseph1 then1 as his sun and shield1 even in the prison-house of ,pharaoh1 and friends were soon raised up to the ,hebrew lad2 he was even advanced to a degree of honour akin to royalty itself4 ,there was no ,bible then to embody the mind of ,god to man1 such as it is now our most blessed privilege to enjoy2 and in the absence of such a book1 knowledge was sometimes mysteriously imparted by dreams4 ,we are not able to explain how that took place2 but ,he who made the mind can impress it as he wills1 and he often impressed it by dreams1 by visions1 or by voices4 ,for his companions in prison1 ,joseph had the chief butler and the chief baker of ,pharaoh's household2 and as they dreamed dreams which he was enabled to interpret1 that1 in the providence of ,god1 led to his liberation4 ,the chief butler was restored to his former place in the royal household1 as ,joseph had foretold2 and though he forgot for a time his companion in prison1 yet when the king in his turn was troubled by certain dreams1 the butler remembered ,joseph1 pointed him out to ,pharaoh1 and the captive slave was summoned into the monarch's presence4 ,there for the present we leave him1 and observe that ,joseph is now on the high road to dignity and honour4 ,by one of those sudden transitions far from being uncommon in the ,east1 where impulse often takes the place of principle1 or where what appears to be caprice does the work of system1 the prison door is shut behind ,joseph1 and that of the palace is opened3 he is soon to become the grand vizier of an ,oriental potentate4 ,his brethren had sought to bury him out of sight2 for1 to their mind1 selling him into ,egypt was equivalent to that doom4 ,they had no design but to get rid of a troublesome or an offensive brother2 but as ,god had restrained the remainder of their wrath1 and in his providence prevented the perpetration of fratricide1 so he had further purposes to serve by that remarkable youth2 and ,jehovah accordingly hid him in the hollow of his hand2 he was with ,joseph when he went out1 and when he came in4 ,from this time forward1 then1 all went well with ,joseph4 ,he had refused to yield to temptation to sin4 ,by the help of ,god1 he was steadfast and immovable2 he became1 as we shall see1 the recognized benefactor of millions4 ,and what was the secret of all this8 ,the ,bible explains it1 in one brief clause3 8,the ,lord was with ,joseph1 and he was a prosperous man0 7,gen4 xxxix4 #b74 ,that is the basis of all true prosperity4 ,with that1 we need not fear the face of man4 8,the ,lord will provide10 may then become our assured confidence4 ,in youth and in age1 in sorrow and in joy1 in temptation and in safety1 in life and at death1 all will be well1 all will prosper1 if 8the ,lord be with us40 ,some1 indeed1 try to prosper without the ,lord's guidance4 ,they attempt by fraud what they can accomplish only by the ,lord's blessing upon honesty4 ,deception is systematized1 and iniquity is drawn 8as with a cart rope40 ,but all is like a building upon the sand1 or worse1--upon a sea-wave1 unless the ,lord be with us4 ,the whole is found at last to be a mockery1 like the mirage of the desert4 ,but what were ,joseph's prison thoughts8 ,perhaps hope deferred made the heart sick4 ,perhaps he sometimes desponded1 and because the chief butler long forgot his promise1 the prisoner might fear that ,god had also forgotten to be gracious4 ,as year passed after year1 till about thirteen had rolled away1 who will wonder though his heart sometimes failed6 ,but after all the ,lord is not slack concerning his promise4 ,a thousand years are with him as one day4 ,joseph was liberated precisely at the moment best for him and for all ,egypt2 and it is ever so with those who wait upon the ,lord4 ,now1 in connection with these events1 it may be observed that we often hear of representative men--these are men who represent some great interest1 or who are the champions of some great cause4 ,one man1 for example1 is the representative of great learning2 and we cannot hear him named without thinking of great scholarship1 or all varied lore4 ,another man represents the cause of the people--not as a demagogue does1 for selfish or for turbulent ends1 but for man's social improvement or social elevation--for man's happiness1 in short1 in time and for ever4 ,knox1 for example1 or ,chalmers--what intelligent ,christian1 with the open ,bible for his standard1 can hear these names without feeling that these were representative men8 ,or a third man represents the martial spirit4 ,we cannot hear his name without thinking of wars1 and battles1 and victory1 and fame--that poor shadow which men pursue1 and blindly speak of as glory4 ,or a fourth man is the representative of science2 his name almost means science itself4 ,and yet another may be the representative of ferocity unmatched--of blood-thirstiness which only a ,feejee cannibal could surpass4 ,now we find the same thing in the ,bible1--it is there in singular prominence and vigour4 ,abraham was one representative man2 ,david was another2 ,isaiah1 and ,paul1 and ,john1 were others2 and we need not scruple to place ,joseph among the rest4 ,he was the representative of a class upon whom ,jehovah smiles while mortals frown--whom the ,most ,high exalts1 while his creatures persecute1 imprison1 or destroy them--whom he crowns with prosperity1 while men would plunge them in misery here1 and doom them to endless endurance hereafter4 ,by ,joseph's case we are taught that there is a ,god that judgeth in the earth1 and encouraged to commit ourselves in well-doing to him1 assured that1 though villany may seem to prosper1 there is a curse in it--though ,god's people be cast down1 they cannot be destroyed3 ,his right hand will lift them up4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,,joseph ,,interpreting ,,pharaoh's ,,dreams4 8,seest thou a man diligent in business8 he shall stand before kings3 he shall not stand before mean men0 7,prov4 xxii4 #bi74 ,such is one of the sayings of the wisest man1 and we see it fulfilled to the letter in ,joseph's case4 ,in the house of ,potiphar1 in the prison where he was unjustly immured1 and everywhere1 he did what was just and right1 and now we see him 7in our ,engraving7 literally standing before a king4 ,in many a passage of ,scripture ,god is urgent with us to do with diligence what he appoints us to do2 and he makes it plain that in every case--without exception1 in every case--the path to true honour1 true promotion and prosperity1 is the path of duty4 ,for a time1 men may get success in iniquity2 but their fall and their crash are the greater4 ,witness the penury and the shame of the fraudulent bankrupt--the lordly oppressor--the unjust dealer of every name4 ,the history before us illustrates all this4 ,pharaoh's rest had been troubled by dreams1 and when summoned1 as we have just seen1 into the royal presence1 ,joseph was able to read them--his ,god was with him1 and he prospered even in that4 ,he foretold seven years of plenty1 to be followed by seven years of scarcity1 according to a twofold emblem seen in the royal visions2 and counselled the king to provide for the evil of famine by treasuring up the produce of the years of abundance4 ,the lean kine and the well-favoured1 the good ears of corn and the bad1 helped him to avert a dire calamity4 ,he became the benefactor of millions2 and1 according to some1 ,joseph introduced a practice into ,egypt regarding the tenure of land of which there are vestiges to this day4 ,but be that as it may1 we see here how ,joseph's advancement begins1 and is promoted4 ,he had honoured ,god1 and is honoured by him4 ,he had held fast his integrity1 and now found that to be the path of peace as well as of prosperity2 his equity is brought forth as the noon-day4 ,his ways pleased the ,lord1 and even ,joseph's enemies were all at peace with him4 ,he had been in the furnace1 and came forth pure4 ,he had been tempted1 bribed1 allured to sin2 but his ,god made him steadfast and immovable2 and we are now to see the result4 ,let us1 then1 look at some details4 ,it seems to be a law in ,god's world1 that wherever good is to be done1 it must be accomplished by woe4 ,think again of the highest good ever wrought out upon earth--the redemption of man by ,jesus ,christ--and how was that accomplished8 ,by tears1 by agonies1 and cries2 by a death whose horrors have never yet been told6 ,or1 when ,paul would spread the blessings of redemption1 how was that accomplished8 ,by endurance at every step1 by buffetings1 stripes1 and persecutions6 ,and when ,luther would sweep away some part of the rubbish which had been heaped upon the truth1 had he not to take his life in his hand1 and clear his way amid a thousand obstructions and tens of thousands of enemies1 ere he could advance that work8 ,or1 once more1 when ,god would make known his truth in heathen lands1 how is it done8 ,as we have already seen1 it is amid throes1 and persecutions1 massacres1 mutinies1 and fiendish cruelties4 ,now1 ,joseph's case comes under this general rule4 ,he was to become in ,god's hand the instrument of preserving millions from a terrible death2 but1 to achieve that result1 he must surmount obstruction after obstruction1 and rise from a pit into which his brothers threw him1 and a dungeon to which false accusation led4 ,he was to turn famine into plenty1 and dearth into comparative cheapness2 and how was it done8 ,he must first be hated by his brethren2 and then he must be sold as a slave2 then he must be cast into a prison1 and disciplined there for thirteen years2 and only after all these things is he permitted to work the work which ,god had given him to do4 ,satan's malice1 and man's waywardness1 impeded ,joseph's way2 and only because the ,lord was with him did he prosper in the end against such combined opponents4 ,now1 just in proportion to the difficulties encountered and surmounted by him1 are we called to recognize the hand of ,god in what befell4 ,when he has a work to do1 none can hinder2 instruments will be found1 and his purposes on earth will be promoted1 in spite of all that can resist or gainsay4 ,as well may we expect to roll back the flowing tide by a word1 or make some mighty river like the ,amazon or the ,st4 ,lawrence run upward to its fountain1 as check1 divert1 or even retard the purposes of the ,eternal4 ,he will work1 and none can hinder3 and the grand moral of ,joseph's touching story is just this1--,man and devils may combine to oppose the cause of ,god1 but on that cause advances1 resistless because he is the ,almighty4 ,but while we glance at ,joseph's promotion thus far1 we cannot help adverting to the state of his unnatural brothers4 ,no doubt they thought that their wicked device had succeeded2 they tried to be at peace1 and rejoice in their form of prosperity4 ,they might see their aged father pining nearer and nearer to the grave from day to day1 on account of the loss of ,joseph4 ,they might have some compunctions1 and we can scarcely suppose that conscience would be altogether silent2 it would be a rare case1 indeed1 had they succeeded in stifling entirely the voice within4 ,but we are told of no repentance1 no confession of sin1 no humiliation for murder designed1 for falsehood told1 for a brother hated1 and a father1 reduced to life-long anguish1 passing on unsoothed to the grave6 ,oh1 the power of sin6 ,how it perverts man's nature6 how it hardens his heart into stone6 how surely is the power of an ,almighty ,spirit needed to renew it6 and how blessed when that ,spirit has come to make us one spirit with that ,living ,one of whom ,joseph was a type--,jesus1 the ,son of ,god6 ,we say ,joseph was a type of ,jesus2 at least the life of the one strangely resembled that of the other4 ,such resemblances are sometimes fanciful1 and pushed further than sober judgment can sanction1 yet in many respects they are striking4 ,was ,joseph1 for example1 hated by his brethren8 ,jesus also came to his own1 and his own received him not4 ,was ,joseph the favourite of his father8 ,in like manner ,jehovah proclaimed concerning ,jesus1 8,this is my beloved ,son40 ,was ,joseph sold by his brethren8 ,so was ,jesus4 ,was the former falsely accused8 ,so was the latter4 ,was ,joseph the saviour of many from death by starvation8 ,jesus was the saviour of a multitude1 whom no man can number1 from sin4 ,was ,joseph first degraded or dishonoured1 and then highly exalted8 ,the history of the ,redeemer's earthly sojourn tells how wicked men dishonoured or derided him2 but the ,scriptures also tell that ,god highly exalted him1 and gave him a name which is above every name4 ,was it a proclamation made before ,joseph1 8,bow the knee08 7,gen4 xli4 #dc74 ,in like manner1 8at the name of ,jesus every knee shall bow40 ,did ,joseph feed multitudes8 ,in like manner ,jesus gives us the bread which comes down from heaven4 ,did ,joseph forgive his unnatural brethren at last8 ,the dying ,saviour prayed for his crucifiers3 8,father1 forgive them2 for they know not what they do40 ,we would not carry out this parallel1 we repeat1 to any fanciful extent2 but the coincidences now mentioned1 and many more1 are often pointed out4 ,in the estimation of some1 they furnish a proof that the sufferings of the ,saviour were prefigured1 or predicted1 by those of ,joseph2 which at least show this--that he that will live righteously must suffer persecution1 whether he be one of the sons of men1 or the only ,son of ,god4 ,,chapter ,v4 ,,joseph',s ,,advancement4 ,it is instructive to notice how many things were combined1 by the providential care of ,god1 to promote the advancement of ,joseph3 #a4 ,he dreamed2 #b4 ,he told his dreams to his brethren2 #c4 ,he went and visited them at a distance from their father's home--and1 prior to that1 he had been envied by them on account of his father's partiality2 #d4 ,reuben and ,judah interposed to prevent his being murdered2 #e4 ,the ,ishmaelites passed opportunely through ,dothan2 #f4 ,they bought him2 #g4 ,they carried him into ,egypt1 and sold him to ,potiphar--not a person of minor influence2 #h4 ,joseph was tempted to sin1 but resisted the temptation1 and was thrown into prison on a false accusation2 #i4 ,he had for his fellow-prisoners two of ,pharaoh's household2 #aj4 ,they dreamed dreams2 #aa4 ,pharaoh did the same2 #ab4 ,a former fellow-prisoner of the ,hebrew lad was at hand1 to remind the troubled king of that lad's power4 ,and only at the end of this long chain--to which still other links might have been added--was ,joseph raised from his degradation2 only then did it appear that he who chooses weak things to confound the mighty had a great work to accomplish in ,egypt by the instrumentality of that man4 ,it seemed darkness without one ray of light when ,joseph was torn from his father and his father's country1 and made not merely a slave1 but a close prisoner for several years4 ,but he who makes the wrath of man to praise him1 needed ,joseph in ,egypt2 and by terrible things in righteousness the purposes of the ,eternal were wrought out4 ,now this finely illustrates the exquisite adaptations of the providence of ,god to accomplish his designs4 ,the links1 how delicate and manifold1 yet how firm6 ,the agents1 how free1 yet how perfectly controlled6 ,the devices1 how deep in some cases1 how simple in others2 yet how beautifully all conspire to promote the desired end6 ,is not this the finger of ,god8 ,does he not vivify all1 or restrain all1 ever one in purpose as he is one in essence2 and making all advance his glory8 ,contemplate ,joseph now1 then4 ,he is at the right hand of ,pharaoh2 for that monarch has said to him1 8,see1 ,i have set thee over all the land of ,egypt4 ,thou shalt be over my house1 and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled2 only in the throne will ,i be greater than thou40 ,joseph had power now to 8bind even princes at his pleasure20 and we cannot help contrasting the recent slave and prisoner with the friend and counsellor of royalty1 united in the same person4 ,he is adorned with ,pharaoh's ring1 and with a chain of gold4 ,if he has lost his coat of many colours1 he wears the royal raiment of ,egypt in its stead4 ,he rides1 moreover1 in a chariot of state2 and men1 as we have seen1 now cry before him1 8,bow the knee40 ,joseph is1 in truth1 all but royal2 and though such things would not much affect him1 if he was what we believe him to have been--that is1 righteous before ,god--yet they do furnish a vivid contrast to ,joseph's recent condition4 ,they show us that when ,god over all has work to do1 he will both find agents and gift them with the means of accomplishing his purposes4 ,man seeks to withdraw himself and his affairs entirely from the control of the ,supreme2 but he bridles1 fetters1 or gives liberty1 according to his pleasure2 and blessed are they who are his willing people4 ,and who could not quote a hundred such examples as that of ,joseph from the history of the past8 ,nay1 may not every man who has had wisdom to watch the ways of ,god in dealing with his own soul1 single out examples of similar wisdom in the providence of the ,holy ,one8 ,it may be for retribution on the guilty1 or for encouragement to the men who fear ,god2 but whatever be the design1 many signal examples are recorded1 to show that ,god watches over all human plans1 guiding and controlling them1 so as to promote the good pleasure of his will4 ,man proposes1 but ,god disposes2 and he that is wise to mark the wisdom of the ,supreme in such things1 will not want for proof of the loving-kindness of the ,lord4 ,during a recent memorable siege in the ,east1 for example1 it was the design of hordes of dark-souled men to explode a mine1 and blow their beleaguered victims into the air2 but that mine was prematurely fired1 and destroyed only those emissaries of evil who dug it4 ,now1 this is only a specimen of what takes place in the providence of ,god2 at least that mine at ,lucknow was morally anticipated in the selling of ,joseph by his brethren1 and his exaltation to the right hand of ,pharaoh by ,god1 compared with their humiliation before him at last4 ,further3 we need only to look forward to the closing scene of all1 the last and great ,assize1 to see examples countless of this general law6 ,what multitudes then will be seen to have been caught in their own pitfall6 ,how manifest will it then become that ,god was over all1 even when men were asking1 like ,pharaoh of old1 8,who is the ,lord1 that ,i should fear him80 ,now1 this may well supply strength to every tried one4 ,god may permit sorrow to assail2 but do we1 in godly sincerity1 commit our way to him8 ,then glory will emerge from that threatened shame2 and grief1 as in ,joseph's case1 will be found the precursor of joy everlasting4 ,,chapter ,,vi4 8,,ye ,,are ,,spies40 ,the history of ,joseph now becomes more and more a history of the triumph of faith over sight1 or holiness over sin4 ,hitherto transgressors have seemed to prosper in their way1 and only the godly were depressed4 ,but now we are to see the ,holy ,one vindicating the rights of injured innocence1 and more and more plainly proclaiming that the ,judge of all the earth will do right4 ,may we not exclaim1 then1-- 8,stern daughter of the voice of ,god6 ,o ,duty6 if that name thou love1 ,who art a light to guide1 a rod ,to check the erring1 and reprove2 ,thou who art victory and law1 ,when empty terrors overawe2 ,from vain temptations dost set free1 ,and calm'st the weary strife of frail humanity40 8,be sure your sins will find you out10 is the fixed decree of ,god2 and in the case of ,joseph's brethren the day of retribution now begins to dawn4 ,if hitherto conscience had been at ease1 or oblivious of their brother1 it is now to be roused1 and to speak out for the ,holy ,one who is the ,lord of conscience--the just ,judge of the skies4 ,the great white throne and its work are now to be anticipated4 ,from the narrative in ,genesis we know that a famine had arisen in ,egypt1 as ,joseph had predicted4 ,its influence spread from that land into the adjacent countries1 and the sons of ,jacob went thither to profit by the stores which the wisdom of that brother whom they had hated and sold had amassed4 8,all countries came into ,egypt to ,joseph1 for to buy corn2 because that the famine was so sore in all lands30 and among the rest1 the future patriarchs came1 and 8bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth40 ,in other words1 ,joseph's dream is now fulfilled1--his brethren do obeisance to him--they are prostrate in the ,oriental manner at his footstool6 ,all their machinations could not turn aside the purposes of ,jehovah2 and neither their projected murder of ,joseph1 nor his being sold into ,egypt1 nor his being a prisoner for years1 could interfere with the onward march or the ceaseless flow of purposes formed in heaven4 ,it cannot be too strenuously enforced1 for it is the burden of the whole ,bible1 that every wish of man1 every word and deed of the creature1 must bend before the will of ,god4 ,joseph's whole history is a proof2 and the history of the whole world1 when read in the light of eternity1 will further demonstrate the same truth4 8,be still1 and know that ,i am ,god10 is the profound but simple lesson which all must learn1--on earth1 or in agony hereafter for ever4 ,all obstructions1 then1 are made to promote the designs of the ,eternal2 and the sons of ,jacob are therefore now at the feet of their hated younger brother4 ,for their trial1 he spoke roughly unto them1 and said1 8,ye are spies40 ,they were thus compelled to defend themselves in the presence of him whom they had thrown into a pit1 and plead for their lives before one for whom they had no better portion than slavery and exile4 ,again and again was the charge1 8,ye are spies10 produced against them2 and again and again had they to declare that they were true men1 though ,joseph knew that they were not4 ,in short1 they begin to discover that the way of transgressors is hard2 and to be assured that though hand join in hand1 sin shall not escape under the government of the ,holy ,one4 ,it is sometimes not easy to speak or to act towards sinners under the influence of that pity which their sad case requires4 ,the cutting sarcasm of ,elijah to the priests of ,baal1 and the irony of ,isaiah to the idolaters of his day1 appear to be the right weapons to be used in such a case4 ,oh1 how has reason been dethroned by sin6 how has even conscience been warped and blinded1 when men can hope to cope with ,omnipotence and triumph--to plot against ,omniscience and escape--to rebel against ,love and be happy6 ,and the scriptural narrative is full upon this point1 for it is one of the main designs of the ,bible to restore conscience to its place of power4 ,when tribulation came upon those men--when their sins began to compass them about with sorrows--it was then that conscience spoke out3 8,they said one to another1 ,we are verily guilty concerning our brother1 in that we saw the anguish of his soul1 when he besought us1 and we would not hear2 therefore is this distress come upon us4 ,and ,reuben answered them1 saying1 ,spake ,i not unto you1 saying1 ,do not sin against the child2 and ye would not hear8 therefore1 behold1 also his blood is required0 7,gen4 xlii4 #ba1 #bb74 ,their injured brother wept aside while they thus conferred2 but1 meanwhile1 conviction of sin has been wrought2 and1 in one point of view1 these guilty men are twice in the dust2--once before ,god1 as detected in their iniquity2 and again before their brother1 fulfilling the word of ,god upon their very knees4 ,and this may vividly remind us of what awaits the guilty at the last4 ,self-detected1 they will also be self-condemned4 ,they will anticipate the verdict of the ,judge1 and call on the mountains to fall on them ere ever his sentence be uttered4 ,but were it not well to anticipate all this at an earlier stage8 ,were it not well to write bitter things against ourselves now1 and not wait to be condemned with the wicked--to listen to the voice of a condemning conscience1 and so escape the condemnation of ,god8 8,his blood is required of us10 then1--such was the confession of those men2 and1 in confessing that fact1 they bowed before the majesty of conscience1 as the trees of the forest bow before the storm4 ,now1 it were well could the men of every name1 and class1 and age1 be brought to recognize that majesty1 and in time to do obeisance before it4 ,it were well were it written up in every place of business1 in every church1 in every home1 nay1 in every heart1--8,there is a ,god that judgeth in the earth20 8,he will bring every work into judgment1 with every secret thought40 ,were that remembered1 surely it would tend to check man's proneness to sin1 unless he were prepared openly to conflict with ,omnipotence4 ,true1 nothing but ,god's almighty grace can subdue our wayward hearts1 or make his will our law2 yet could we remember ,joseph's brethren1 as we are directed to remember ,lot's wife1 it would be well with us3 the ,spirit of ,god would bless it for our good2 and both young and old--both viceroys like ,joseph and shepherds like his brethren--would be wiser and happier men4 ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,,the ,,cup ,,in ,,benjamin',s ,,sack4 ,there can be little doubt that the events recorded in ,scripture are designed to illustrate its moral maxims and its religious principles4 ,distinguishing aright between what the ,god of the ,bible approves and what he condemns1 we find much light shed upon his truth by the conduct of those whose lives are recorded there4 ,truth is never presented in abstract forms1 such as only the studious or the learned can comprehend4 ,on the contrary1 it is embodied in life1 now to awe us1 and anon to allure2 at one time a beacon to warn1 at another a signal to encourage or guide4 ,but there are many facts mentioned1 or customs referred to1 in ,scripture1 with which we are now but little acquainted4 ,the next incident in ,joseph's history to which we refer belongs to this class4 ,his brethren were returning the second time from ,egypt with sacks of corn2 but in order to stay1 or to test them further1 he ordered the cup 8whereby he divined0 7,gen4 xliv4 #e7 to be privately deposited in the sack of ,benjamin1 who had been sent by his father with extreme reluctance to ,egypt1 at the imperative demand of ,joseph4 ,his steward was then ordered to follow them1 and seize the party in whose sack the drinking-cup was found4 ,it was discovered1 of course1 in ,benjamin's2 and now began consternation to the uttermost among the sons of ,jacob4 8,they rent their clothes1 and laded every man his ass1 and returned to the city40 ,they had hoped to escape from the effects of a sin committed many years ago1 but now they must suffer and be in great trepidation for a sin which they did not commit at all4 ,if conscience has hitherto been dormant or dead1 it is about to be roused to a terrible activity4 ,it is soon to be with them as with the thief who 8dreads an officer in every bush40 ,the first thing that the guilty brothers did1 when they reached the abode of ,joseph1 was to 8fall before him on the ground10 and so fulfil once more that prediction concerning them and their doing obeisance which had at first excited their enmity or their envy4 ,they had to plead their cause with all the force of ,eastern pathos before ,pharaoh's viceroy--their own brother2 and their pleading contains some exquisitely tender appeals1 thoroughly ,eastern in their style1 but as thoroughly human in their nature4 ,their father's grief now occupied their thoughts3 they were not heartless as before2 for when the conscience was once roused it began to stir the better feelings of the heart4 ,days of adversity and trial have at length accomplished some favourable results4 ,as the great ,i ,,am had work for ,joseph in the world1 he had also work for his brethren to do1 and they are reclaimed from their self-inflicted degradation4 ,but what is meant by ,joseph's divining cup8 ,when his brethren appeared before him to answer for the theft alleged against them1 the ruler of ,egypt said1 8,know ye not that such a man as ,i am can certainly divine80 ,and does that mean that ,joseph had adopted the practices of heathen priests1 pretending to forecast the future1 and so far usurp the prerogative of ,god8 ,without going further1 the margin of our ,bibles may help us to reply to that question4 ,the word 8divine10 in ,gen4 xliv4 #e and #ae1 is translated on the margin 8make trial20 and we are thus1 perhaps1 referred to some method adopted in ,egypt for testing doubtful cases1 by some peculiar use of a cup4 ,according to others1 the word means no more than that ,joseph would make strict scrutiny upon such a point4 ,he would sift and test the character of the men before him4 ,he would not let them go as innocent1 when he had tried them and found them criminal4 ,by such an announcement ,joseph would re-enforce the claims of conscience2 he would deepen the alarms that had already risen in their minds2 he was in ,god's hands to work out ,god's purposes in those long dormant hearts2 for if ,joseph could make strict inquiry1 those men knew of ,one who could make stricter still--the ,god who looks upon the heart1 whose eyes are as a flame of fire1 and who cannot look on sin without abhorrence4 ,but however we may interpret what our ,bible calls ,joseph's power to divine1 we have no difficulty in understanding the moral lessons of such events1 or tracing the hand of heavenly wisdom1 8from seeming evil still educing good40 ,when ,joseph demanded ,benjamin to be brought down1 and when that was reported to his father1 we know how he was affected4 ,joseph1 he believed1 was lost2 ,simeon was detained in ,egypt as an hostage2 ,benjamin is now demanded2 and the patriarch exclaimed1 8,me have ye bereaved of my children2 ,joseph is not1 and ,simeon is not1 and ye will take ,benjamin away4 ,all these things are against me0 7,gen4 xlii4 #cf74 ,now1 little did the man who made that sore complaint understand the ways of ,god1 even after all the experience he had had3 he judged like a short-sighted mortal1 as we are ever prone to do1 and not as a believer in 8the mighty ,god of ,jacob40 ,he took counsel of flesh and blood1 and not of the ,god of all grace4 ,he listened to the whispers of his own heart2 and what can follow such a course but woe8 ,the patriarch would have been nearer the truth--he would have uttered the very truth--had he said the reverse of what he here declares4 ,and the same is true of us all4 ,we are ever prone to misinterpret the ways of ,god4 ,we put false constructions upon his most wise and loving providences3 we judge by sense1 and not by faith4 ,when he chastens for our profit1 we think that it is for our ruin2 we conclude that we are to be destroyed1 when we are only corrected3 and thus live in misery when we might joy in ,god1 as ,david did when he said1 8,in very faithfulness doth he afflict me40 ,conscience whispers to many a soul what we deserve from ,god2 and when sorrows come1 conscience generally concludes that they are the first drops of the vials of wrath4 ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,,the ,,meeting ,,of ,,joseph ,,and ,,benjamin4 8,joseph fell upon his brother ,benjamin's neck and wept2 and ,benjamin wept upon his neck0 7,gen4 xlv4 #ad74 ,such is the word-picture of which one of our ,engravings is a copy4 ,there is much that is lovely and of good report as between man and man in our natures1 notwithstanding of the fall1 and one of the fountains of the heart is here broken open4 ,we see how brother loves brother1 and1 by contrast with that scene1 are enabled to understand how far the minds of ,joseph's brethren must have been warped and deadened by hatred or envy1 when they could trample as they did upon the affection which should knit brother to brother4 ,such beautiful displays of brotherly love were perhaps made in this case just to show more clearly by contrast the hateful nature of envy in every case1 but most of all among brothers4 ,prior to this stage of these proceedings1 indeed1 ,joseph had given some manifestations of his affection to ,benjamin4 ,he showed that his elevation to the right hand of a throne had neither alienated nor chilled his love2 and the fivefold mess which he sent to ,benjamin 7,gen4 xliii4 #cd71 according to the ,eastern mode of showing affection1 made it plain that the external change in ,joseph's position had not altered his heart4 ,when he first set eyes on ,benjamin1 he could not refrain his tears1 but 8sought where to weep2 and he entered into his chamber1 and wept there0 7verses #bi-ca74 ,according to the calmer temperament of ,western nations1 where self-command in such cases is more studied1 such affection may appear excessive in a high and mighty ruler2 it may seem weak or womanish thus to dissolve into tears1 even in the retirement of one's chamber4 ,but in less phlegmatic temperaments1 and especially among ,orientals1 nature takes its own mode of expression--at once the most pathetic and the most powerful2 and the gushings of natural affection1 its tenderness1 its beauty1 and its force1 rank among the finest portions of the ,word of ,god4 ,jesus wept because ,jerusalem would none of him3 it would rather rush upon ruin4 ,the deep yearnings of his loving heart were outraged1 and he wept in anguish there1 as in ,gethsemane his sweat was as it were great drops of blood4 ,again1 ,paul could tell1 even weeping1 of some who were the enemies of the cross of ,christ1 who gloried in their shame1 and drew forth pity for men who had no pity on themselves4 ,in short1 wherever man is not hardened into callousness by the power of the world1 or chilled by conventional usage1 he will be as prompt to weep with them that weep as to rejoice with them that rejoice4 ,it is true1 whether poetry record it or not1 that-- 8,not the bright stars which night's blue arch adorn1 ,nor rising sun which gilds the vernal morn1 ,shines with such lustre as the tears that break1 ,for other's woes1 down ,virtue's manly cheek40 ,but the scene at which ,joseph made himself known to his brethren deserves our closer attention4 ,he wept sore1 and so loudly that the ,egyptians heard him4 ,a strange thing that day had happened in their land2 and it is not easy to conceive of the feelings of those brethren when the ruler1 so royal-like1 beside them1 exclaimed1 8,i am ,joseph60 ,surely no lightning flash ever startled more4 ,the words of ,nathan to ,david1 8,thou art the man60 could produce no profounder emotion4 ,in that one clause the memory of years long past was awakened2 and surely the consciences of those men were busier now than they had ever been before3 surely the blush of confusion might well crimson their cheeks1 and the recollection of all their baseness--their cruelty to their father1 their brother1 and their own souls--would rush upon their minds with the vividness of a yesterday's event4 8,they were troubled at his presence0--the margin says 8terrified40 ,and well they might2 it was as if one had risen from the dead1 or as if a miracle had been wrought to confront them with their sin4 ,when he said1 8,i am ,joseph your brother1 whom ye sold into ,egypt60 would not the words sound like the first portion of a sentence of death and execution8 ,but he hastened to relieve their fears4 8,be not grieved10 he said1 8nor angry with yourselves1 that ye sold me hither2 for ,god did send me before you to preserve life40 ,and when he 8kissed all his brethren1 and wept over them10 they no doubt felt a mountain-load lifted from their minds4 ,joseph had forgiven them2 nay1 more1 he had found an excuse or palliation for their sin4 ,but could they forgive themselves8 ,if they were not utterly abandoned to guilt--and we know that they were not--could they find rest anywhere but in the dust at that solemn1 searching moment8 ,oh1 how would many1 now undone and beyond hope for ever1 rejoice could such an hour of contrition be granted to them here6 ,here1 then1 we may contemplate the state of these detected men1 when their sin was pressed upon their notice by their brother1 all kind and forgiving as were his words4 ,the chief sin of all--the sale into slavery--had been committed many years before3 it seemed over and forgotten1 like a thing buried and out of sight4 ,but no2 sin has a vitality in it which defies alike oblivion and death2 it is enduring1 as the nature of ,god is unchanging2 and the guilty brothers are thus confronted with their sin1 fresh and vigorous1 as if yesterday had seen it perpetrated4 ,and is not this but a rehearsal or a foreshadowing of the great and final day1 when the ,judge of the quick and the dead is to set our sins in array against us1 or when it will seem a relief if the mountains would fall on us and cover us from the wrath of the ,lamb8 ,happy the man who has his soul washed in the ,lamb's blood preparatory to that day6 ,we should never forget that there is to be a resurrection of our deeds as well as of our bodies1 and should live so as to be ready to render our account with joy4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,,the ,,meeting ,,of ,,jacob ,,and ,,joseph4 ,if we have witnessed one scene of affection when ,joseph embraced his brother ,benjamin1 we are now to behold another1 when the patriarch ,jacob meets with his long lost son4 ,we are often permitted1 even in this life1 to see joy and gladness according to the days in which we have seen grief2 and an example of that is at hand4 ,after the interview between ,joseph and his brethren1 matters were soon arranged for transferring them and all their retinue to ,egypt1--another important stage in the development of ,god's plans with our world4 ,pharaoh confirmed the request of his viceroy to that effect1 so that the patriarchs and their father with them were invited to settle in one of the richest portions of ,egypt4 ,among these migratory tribes of herdsmen--who literally had no continuing city--such a removal was not so remarkable as a similar thing would be in our country of more fixed habits2 and the whole house of ,jacob was accordingly soon in motion toward ,egypt4 8,it is enough10 he exclaimed1 when the invitation reached him2 8,joseph my son is yet alive3 ,i will go and see him before ,i die20 and the threescore and six souls1 who composed his household1 of course followed in his train4 ,now1 had we been there to witness that migration1 it would never have occurred to us to think that the future history of the sons of men would be largely affected by the movement2 yet it was so4 ,that was no ordinary change of abode3 ,god was in it of a truth2 and1 blind or dark as man might be1 ,god was there in the act of 8calling things that are not as though they were40 ,as he journeyed toward ,egypt1 ,jacob met with much to gladden him by the way4 ,in a vision of the night1 he was encouraged from on high to go fearlessly forward1 for blessings great and manifold awaited him and his descendants in the future4 ,but our present topic leads us past the different stages of the journey1 to the meeting of the father and the son4 ,when ,joseph learned that his parent was approaching1 he hastened forth to meet him1 and1 with the ardent affection1 as well as the profound respect1 of the ,east1 welcomed the aged man to ,egypt4 ,he did not think it beneath his dignity1 as vice-king of that country1 to offer lowly reverence to his father1 shepherd or husbandman as he was1 and following a profession which made him 8an abomination unto the ,egyptians40 ,nay1 when ,joseph met his father in the land of ,goshen1 we read that 8he fell on his neck1 and wept on his neck a good while0 7,gen4 xlvi4 #bi72 while the father exclaimed1 8,now1 let me die1 since ,i have seen thy face1 because thou art still alive40--,it was an interview and an hour which compensated1 in a great measure1 for the sorrows and separation of years2 it was one of the scenes by which ,god1 in his holy providence1 foreshows how intense will be the joy when the great family are all gathered home1 from every country1 and tribe1 and tongue1 to their ,father's house on high4 ,the exile returning to the home of his fathers1 or the soldier revisiting the scenes of his boyhood after many a bloody field1 may understand such emotions in some degree4 ,they are green spots in the desert of life--a ,tadmor in the wilderness--a lily among thorns4 ,yet there1 also1 the feelings would be of a mixed nature1 like all things human4 ,scarcely any of the parties present--,jacob1 ,joseph1 or his brethren--could fail to glance in thought at the strange proceedings which had separated them so long4 ,there might be neither envy nor hatred now--neither spite upon the one side1 nor a desire of retaliation on the other4 ,the dealings of ,providence had been too remarkable to admit of such feelings2 and we rather suppose that they were all suppressed1 as much as possible1 amid the general joy4 ,but be that as it may1 we see the patriarch happy for a season4 ,his children1 who were really the hope of the world 7strange as the remark may seem when applied to such men71 were now gathered around him2 and as it then appeared that he had little to do but to die1 he might at length put a different construction on his own words3 8,all these things are against me40 ,he had providence now interpreted to him by its ,god1 and saw with his bodily eyes1 as all the ransomed will yet see in glory1 that 8all things work together for good to them that love ,god1 and that are the called according to his purpose40 ,flesh and blood may fear and quake under trial1 but faith rises to a higher level1 and walks with a firmer step1--it can endure as seeing him who is invisible4 ,,chapter ,x4 ,,jacob ,,in ,,the ,,presence ,,of ,,pharaoh4 ,we have seen that the son stood before kings1 and the father is now to do the same4 ,if we have beheld not a little in former scenes to commend ,joseph to our love1 we are here to see yet more4 ,as soon as he met his father1 he communicated his purpose to apply to ,pharaoh to sanction the sojourn of the patriarch and his tribe in ,egypt4 ,this was easily arranged2 and at the close of the proceedings1 ,joseph 8brought in ,jacob his father1 and set him before ,pharaoh3 and ,jacob blessed ,pharaoh0 7,gen4 xlvii4 #g74 ,when this was accomplished1 we can suppose that the highest wishes of one so affectionate as ,joseph were gratified4 ,for about seventeen years his parent lived to bless him with his company and his counsel2 and though we have not many details of their intercourse during that period1 we may easily imagine that the tenderness of those seventeen years largely compensated for the long and violent separation which had kept the father and the son so far apart1 and even made them the citizens of different kingdoms4 ,but we may notice here1 in passing1 the question of ,pharaoh1 and the answer of ,jacob1 at their interview4 8,how old art thou80 was the monarch's inquiry2 and ,jacob's reply was a picture in words of the weary life of man3 8,the days of the years of my pilgrimage are an hundred and thirty years3 few and evil have the days of the years of my life been1 and have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers1 in the days of their pilgrimage0 7,gen4 xlvii4 #i74 ,few and evil6 ,behold the history of a life whose days were protracted even beyond the ordinary span6 ,few and evil1 because man is born to trouble as the sparks fly upward4 ,few and evil1 because it is written1 8,dust thou art1 and unto dust shalt thou return40 ,few and evil1 because1 in this special case1 there had been more than common grief endured1 where those who should have been a solace or a stay were transformed by sin into causes of anguish1 first to their aged parent1 and at last also to themselves4 ,and how sad must the reply of ,jacob have sounded in the ears of the king6 ,it rarely happens that monarchs are permitted to hear unpleasant truths4 ,everything around them seems to proclaim or to whisper that to-morrow will be as to-day2 or if different1 only more joyous and more thoughtless still6 ,for once1 however1 the hoary-headed patriarch tells the monarch the truth1 and indirectly reminds him1 ,thou1 too1 must die4 ,there was another king1 the ,king of ,terrors1 mightier than ,pharaoh1 and slowly approaching to lay him in the dust4 ,and perhaps there is nothing in all the history or the life of man which shows more clearly the effects of sin1 or the ruin of the fall1 than his wilful ignorance1 or at least his want of feeling1 on the great subject of his mortality4 ,of no truth is it possible for man to be more convinced than this--,i must die4 ,it is not so absolutely certain that the sun will rise on any given day1 as that man may die any moment or any breath4 ,yet who is moved by that conviction to prepare for dying8 ,who is stirred up by all the funerals which he sees1 or all the open graves which he visits1 to prepare for meeting ,god8 ,not one4 ,it is not that kind of influence3 it is the grace and the ,spirit of ,god that make man wise to consider his latter end4 ,for example1 the plaintive sentiment1 8,few and evil10 uttered by the patriarch1 most probably passed through the monarch's mind like water through a sieve4 ,a sigh1 or a wish1 or a hope1 perhaps1 and all was over6 ,the thought was dashed aside as an unwelcome intruder amid the gorgeous scenes of a palace4 ,and if that was the case1 ,pharaoh was only a specimen of the universal race of man4 ,the fleeting nature of life is forgotten amid its cares1 its engrossments1 and trifles4 ,but happy they whom the ,spirit of ,god makes wise in this and other respects6 ,happy they who cling1 as ,jacob did1 to ,him who is the life1 and over whom death has no power for ever6 ,in the ,african desert there is a bird1 known as the honey-guide1 which often conducts the traveller to some hive1 whose sweet stores form a staple article of food in those dreary parts4 ,by a peculiar instinct1 provision is thus made to supply the wayfarer's wants2 or1 in some cases1 to rescue him from death4 ,now ,god has yet more wisely and surely provided for our escape from the second death1 if we listen to the warnings of his ,word or the guidance of his ,spirit2 and happy are they who are thus guided6 ,they are led to a portion sweeter far than honey from the honey-comb4 ,the few and weary days of our earthly pilgrimage then conduct us to the house of the ,lord--the city of the ,great ,king--the abode to which the palace of ,pharaoh was as a dungeon or a cell4 ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,,the ,,death ,,of ,,jacob4 ,we have now reached the closing stage of all4 ,for about seventeen years ,jacob sojourned in ,egypt1 and about one hundred and forty-seven here below2 but the 8evil0 of which he complained to ,pharaoh is drawing to an end4 ,the patriarch is about to die4 ,joseph was summoned into his father's presence1 along with his two sons1 ,manasseh and ,ephraim1 who were adopted as his own by the dying patriarch2 they received his blessing along with their father 7,gen4 xlviii472 and after the aged man had prophetically sketched the history or character of each of the future patriarchs1 8he gathered up his feet into the bed1 and yielded up the ghost1 and was gathered unto his people40 ,and in concluding these sketches1 we may glance again at the mode in which the mighty ,god brought good to all nations and all times out of the misdeeds of the sons of ,jacob4 ,in our world there is much to perplex and bewilder us in studying the ways of ,providence1 and it is not always easy--for us1 at least--to 8justify the ways of ,god to man20 but he will sooner or later justify them himself1 and make it plain to all that his ways1 like his ,word1 are pure4 ,for example1 we have already seen what benefits accrued to ,joseph himself from the cruelty of his brethren1 and how fully he recognized the hand of ,god in all that had befallen him4 ,just as ,jehovah will make it plain at last1 before the assembled world1 that the very wrath of man has praised him1 in the present instance he made the evil passions of those brothers remarkably advance the eternal purposes of the ,god of heaven4 ,the promises made to ,adam and to ,abraham are here helped a stage forward to their fulfilment in spite of all that seems to oppose4 ,somehow or other1 though we cannot see it1 or explain it at all1 even sin--the abominable thing which ,god hates--will be made to promote his glory2 and of that result we have a specimen in the events of this remarkable family4 ,to ,jacob1 also1 as well as to the land of ,egypt1 we see what benefits resulted from the sin of his sons4 ,all the guilt of that sin lay upon them1 and was not in the least jot mitigated by the manner in which ,god overruled it for good2 but it is full of encouragement to a child of ,god1 to see it working out the purposes of his ,father4 ,jacob was saved from death by starvation2 his family1 and myriads besides1 were the same3 and thus he who sought only to do evil by stirring up the envy of ,joseph's brethren1 was compelled to do good thereby again and again4 ,,the ,,end