Sup Juggalos,
We left our homie Joseph at a big table eating with his brothers and making sure that his brother Benjamin who was the youngest, coming from his mother's side. As a reminder, Joseph's brothers still don't know who Joseph's real identity is. So Joseph is being like a ninja, hiding in plain view. Joseph pulls his steward aside and tells him that he wants him to load up his brothers with as much food as they can carry, give them back their money and then hide his silver cup (that he uses for divination, kind of like a crystal ball) and put it at the top of Benjamin's knapsack.
His brothers get on their way and start making their trek back to Israel, their father. Joseph tells his steward, go chase them down and accuse them of stealing. So the steward comes with a small contingent of soldiers and stops them. He asks why have they repaid kindness with evil. Why did they steal from Joseph? Now the brothers were confused, in their minds they didn't steal anything. So one of them says "If there is a thief among us let them be put to death." The steward searches their bags from oldest to youngest and finally gets to Benjamin and finds the silver cup. The brothers are frantic. They freak out and begin to plead with the steward 'take me instead as your slave instead of Benjamin'. The steward takes them in front of Joseph to receive his judgment.
Before Joseph, the brothers make their plea. They tell Joseph that their father had lost one of his youngest sons years ago and that Benjamin was the youngest and if he takes Joseph from them their father would die. At this point Joseph can take no more. He bursts out, it's me I'm Joseph. At first his brothers were like DAMN this ninja is going to kill us now. I mean they sold him into slavery and told their father he was dead. But Joseph knew that they were worried and he said hey it's all good, yeah you guys did some crappy stuff to me, but the Lord was with me the whole time. The Lord saw fit to put me into this situation so that I can shine, so that I can become the man and take care of people during the famine. The whole place erupts with crying and happy tears. Their lost brother had come back to them and they were almost a family again. Joseph tells them to go bring Israel to him and share with him the good news.
The Pharaoh finds out the men that Joseph had been screwing with were his brothers and he decrees let Joseph family come here and live in Egypt and send them camels so that they can bring their goods and their wives and children and let Joseph's family live in the choicest spot and live off the fat of the land. Israel and Joseph are re-united with great joy and Israel lived out his years with all of his children.
When Israel was old and sick and about to die he sends for Joseph. He makes Joseph swear that he will bury him back where his Father had bought the land from the Amorites. For there was a cave set aside specifically for the Family burial plot. Joseph had brought with him his two sons and Israel was overjoyed. The Lord had saw fit that Israel should see Joseph again and now he has blessed him to see Joseph's sons. He blessed the children with the youngest taking favor just as Joseph had taken favor. When it was Israel's time to die he blessed his children in accordance to how he had known them.
Joseph lived out his days as Pharaoh right hand man. His family was provided for and had increased in number. His brothers families were provided for and they increased in number. Eventually Joseph died at a ripe old age and was given a funeral fit for a Pharaoh, fore he was revered throughout the land. And thus ends Genesis…
REV'S TAKE:
Here we see that Joseph had revealed himself to his brothers after messing with their heads. When he revealed himself his brothers were scared. They were scared that Joseph would take vengeance upon them for what they did to him as a child. But instead of being angry and instead of seeking revenge Joseph accredited his predicament to God's will. That it was God's will that Joseph would be sold into slavery and that it was God's will that Joseph would rise and overcome so that he can provide for the masses who would have surely starved had it not been for the visions given to him by God. You know sometimes we are put into situations just to see if we can overcome them. Whether it be by Man's Hand or by Divine Intervention, truly when humans are put into extreme circumstances it is their time to shine. We hold in ourselves the potential to succeed and overcome adversity like a ninja does. Through trial upon trial and bullshit from bullshit each of us holds the ability to overcome or cower like a frightened child. The ninja stares into the face of death and says I shall defeat you and if I do not then today is a good day to die. While the frightened child when faced with problems hides and cries and shuts down. The frightened child allows their past and their present to overpower them and finds themselves crawling into a ball and waits for the fear to pass. Take this with you and never forget "As one door closes, another shall be opened."
