Genesis 44: Yosef slips his silver cup to Ben-Yamin

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In Genesis 43, Yosef (Joseph) hosted a large banquet for his brothers and household staff. At the time of the account in Genesis 44, Yosef was still hidden from his brothers. He is the second in command of Mitsraim (Egypt), one of the world’s most powerful nations of the period. This account of the actions of Pharaoh and Yosef is a parable of what the Father and the Son planned to do to and through a group of believers in God, a group called Israel.

The entire Bible is a story of God’s deeds and actions, not just about the actions of mankind. The people mentioned are the tools God uses to tell His story and reveal His glory. Everyone from Abraham, Yitskhak (Isaac), Ya’akov, Yosef, Moshe (Moses), Yehoshua (Joshua), Ruth and onward are the instruments of His revelation.

Yosef was known as a revealer of dreams. He did not practice divination in communication with evil spirits but with the Creator of the Universe. 

Yosef is about 40 years old at this time which is an important year. 

I want to introduce you to a new word as a side note. The Hebrew word for grain in Gen. 44:2 is שֶׁבֶר sheber (Strong’s lexicon H7668). This word comes from שָׁבַר shabar (H7665), which means broken into pieces. This grain that Yosef sent with the brothers was not raw grain but milled grain. 

Why did God put Yosef through this life from slavery at age 17 to prime minster at age 30 to the present time? Pharaoh gave Yosef the power of life and death over the entire nation and the brothers were right to fear him. He was the one appointed to save the world. This Hebrew’s real mission was revealed to the “foreigners” before he was revealed to his fellow Hebrews. 

This is the same with Yeshua. He was a Hebrew, a Jew but He was revealed more fully to Gentiles than Hebrew people. But just like Yosef eventually reveals himself in full to his fellow Hebrews, Yeshua will reveal Himself fully to His fellow Hebrews/Jews too. 

Don’t believe for a second that the reason you believe in Yeshua was because you’re so smart. The truth is that the reason you know Yeshua is God drew you to Yeshua. You did not leave your old church or old congregation to walk a Messianic walk because of your own choice but because God drew you away from there to follow Him more closely. 

It was God’s plan to draw Jacob and his family out of the promised land into the land of the Gentiles, just as Yeshua lived in the land of the Gentiles, aka Galilee. 

God does not dream, He gives dreams. He just does what He is going to do. 

Yosef sends the brothers away with sacks of milled grain and their money. However, he asks his steward to put his gold cup into the sack of Ben-Yamin (Benjamin) . The steward went along with Yosef’s plan and did exactly as Yosef said. The brothers are rounded up and hauled back into Yosef’s presence and accused of theft. 

The steward starts with the eldest and goes down to the youngest to search for the “stolen” cup. It is found in Benjamin’s sack, just as Yosef had wanted. 

Yosef rebuked the brothers:

“What is this deed that you have done? Do you not know that such a man as I can indeed practice divination?” (Gen. 44:15)

This time, it is not Reuben who takes the lead in speaking to the prime minister of Egypt, but Yehudah (Judah). When Yosef was 17 and had his second dream of the sun, moon and stars bowing to him, this was a prediction of him having complete authority over his family, yet he is still second in command to Pharaoh. 

The prime minister of Egypt threatened to seize Benjamin and take him into slavery, but the others would be free to go back home. Yehudah asked to speak to the prime minister in private:

“Oh my lord, may your servant please speak a word in my lord’s ears, and do not be angry with your servant….” (Gen. 44:18)

Yehudah needed to repent of his iniquity. Since Yosef was still masquerading as an Mitsraiman who didn’t know any Hebrew, the translator is probably with them. Yehudah understood that the person he was speaking to was “equal to Pharaoh.”

Yosef wore three robes of authority in his life. The first robe was the robe his father gave him. The second was the robe of Potiphar. The third robe was the robe of Pharaoh.

Yosef’s three robes have a parallel in the life of Yeshua the Messiah. His first robe was the robe of death. Messiah’s second robe was the grave. The Messiah’s third robe was His resurrection and authority as having all power and authority over Earth. 

Yehudah laid down his life for his brother, while unbeknownst to him he was in front of his father.

“For your servant became surety for the lad to my father, saying, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, then let me bear the blame before my father forever.’ Now, therefore, please let your servant remain instead of the lad a slave to my lord, and let the lad go up with his brothers.” (Gen. 44:32–33)

The record of Yosef’s taking away Yehudah’s blame is in Genesis 45. 

Reader: Jeff. Speaker: Richard Agee. Summary: Tammy.