Hebrews 11:17-22
By faith Joseph, at the end of his life, made mention of the exodus of the Israelites and gave directions concerning his bones.
After Joseph reunited with his family in Egypt, Jacob invoked blessings over his sons, including the sons of Joseph. Joseph is an excellent example of true faith from the Old Testament. In our verses today, we see an episode from Joseph’s life that teaches us about authentic trust in God’s promises. Joseph has spent 13 years in “exile” from his family, sometimes enslaved, sometimes jailed. But God brought good out of Joseph’s sufferings and Joseph became the Prime Minister of Egypt over all but Pharaoh himself. In his position, he was over Potiphar who had enslaved him, Potiphar’s wife who had lied about him, Pharaoh’s valet whose dream he had interpreted and the man left Joseph 2 more years in jail, Joseph’s brothers who hated him for his arrogantly telling of his dream to be head over them, and his parents who pooh-poohed Joseph’s claim that they would bow down to him. Yet, Joseph took no vengeance on any of these. Joseph was given Pharaoh’s daughter as a wife and she bore him 2 sons. Joseph settled his family in the rich land of Goshen in Egypt and they flourished over the centuries. Any of these episodes from Joseph’s life could have been chosen as examples of what faith looks like. But the author of Hebrews chooses an illustration of Joseph’s faith in his request for Israel to take his bones back to Canaan when God redeemed His people from Egypt. Again, Joseph’s future-oriented character of faith is revealed. The exodus was yet four hundred years in the future for Joseph, but he believed that it would happen even though he would not see it in his lifetime. Also, Joseph’s request reveals where his true hope lay, that the Lord had promised the exodus to Abraham, and Joseph believed God would take Israel up out of Egypt and back to Canaan. He understood that he belonged to Israel and had to be with Israel wherever Israel was. Though he would die before the exodus, Joseph wanted to be a part of the exodus that was sure to happen even if it was only his bones that would make the journey. Joseph’s hope was not ultimately in being buried in Canaan but in dwelling in God’s presence in the new heaven and earth. Joseph understood that God is not the God of the dead but of the living. God has promised that He will be our God and will ultimately raise our bodies to life in the new creation. Christians are still waiting for the new creation to come. There, we will enjoy resurrected bodies free from all sickness, pain, and sorrow. Let us look forward to that great day.
Source: S C Ball April 18, 2024
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