JUDAH ASSUMES LEADERSHIP

Genesis 43:1–15

Can people change? The answer has been debated for generations by philosophers, psychologists, and poets. Some argue we are born as blank slates to be shaped by our circumstances. Others claim we come into this world with our personalities and proclivities already determined. Christians believe that faith in God can transform anyone through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Joseph’s test of whether his brothers had changed from selfish vindictiveness ran into an obstacle. He would not provide any more food for the family unless they brought Benjamin with them—but Jacob refused to let him go. Reuben tried to convince his father by offering the lives of his own two sons as a guarantee that he would bring Benjamin back (42:37). Jacob would not listen.

Judah now stepped up to the challenge of leadership among his family. With food running out, Judah analyzed the situation and decides: “Send the boy along with me . . . so that we and you and our children may live and not die” (v. 8). Yes, it is a risk to send Benjamin. But if they do not take that risk, Benjamin will die of starvation.

Notice especially that Judah is no longer derailed by his father’s clear favoritism. As one commentator says, “Judah’s reference to Benjamin as ‘our brother’ (43:4) counters Jacob’s label (‘my son’) and the exclusivity (‘he alone is left’) with which he talks of Benjamin (42:38).”

Judah offered himself as a pledge of Benjamin’s safety (v. 9). The last time Judah offered a pledge, it was a foolish gift to a prostitute. The last time he made a convincing speech to his family, it was to sell Joseph to a traveling band of Ishmaelites. His priorities had been transformed.

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Ephesians 2 says, “You were dead in your transgressions and sins . . . But God . . . made us alive with Christ.” When God transforms us, it becomes possible to restore broken relationships. Do you have relationships that need God’s healing? Rejoice today that we worship a God that allows for and enables radical change in people’s lives.

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Family Reunion: Part 2

Genesis 42:18–38

In Shakespeare’s masterpiece Macbeth, the title character murders King Duncan to fulfill his own ambition of becoming king of Scotland. Wracked by guilt and the fear of being found out, he is unable to enjoy his royal position. Ultimately, he falls into madness.

After three days in prison, Joseph presented his brothers with their test. One of them must stay behind in prison while the rest bring food back to their households. Then they are to bring the youngest brother, Benjamin, to Egypt to prove that their story was true (v. 20).

This harsh treatment was not what Joseph’s brothers expected. Why were they being singled out? Their minds immediately went back to what they had done to Joseph. Verse 21 makes clear that they all felt responsibility for the crime they had committed: “They said to one another, ‘Surely we are being punished because of our brother. . . .’” They vividly recalled Joseph’s distress and his pleading with them from the pit. How often had those words and that image come into their minds in the last twenty years? They had been living in their own kind of prison created by the guilt from their sin.

Joseph had been communicating to his brothers through an interpreter, and they did not know he could understand their conversation. Though he was deeply moved by their words, he was still not ready to confront them directly. His test of their character must continue.

Now Joseph’s brothers faced another difficult conversation, this time with Jacob, who demonstrated little sympathy for their plight. He was too focused on his own grief and loss: “You have deprived me of my children . . . Everything is against me! . . . My son will not go down there with you” (vv. 36–38).

APPLY THE WORD

In Psalm 32, David describes what it was like for him to live with guilt: “When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long” (v. 3). But God has provided freedom from the prison of our guilt! “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

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Family Reunion: Part 1

Genesis 42:1–17

During World War II, Corrie ten Boom was arrested for hiding Jewish people from the Nazi regime. She was sent to the Ravensbrück concentration camp, where her sister Betsie died. After the war, she was speaking on forgiveness at a church in Munich where she saw a former prison guard. She later described seeing him: “Suddenly it was all there—the roomful of mocking men, the heaps of clothing, Betsie’s pain-blanched face.” What would she do when seeing this guard face to face?

Joseph finally came face to face with his brothers after twenty long years. Undoubtedly, the memory of how they treated him came to the surface. But Joseph also remembered something else: the dreams that God had given him (v. 9).

Joseph—and the reader—must wonder at this point whether his brothers have changed. This chapter opens with Jacob urging ten of the remaining brothers to go down to Egypt to buy food because of the famine. But Jacob did not want to send Joseph’s younger brother, Benjamin, with them because “he was afraid that harm might come to him” (v. 4). Jacob was still heartbroken with grief over the loss of Joseph. He still had a favorite son who received preferential treatment. Did the brothers harbor resentment against Benjamin like they did against Joseph?

Joseph is in an interesting position to test his brothers. He recognized them at once, but they do not recognize him (v. 8). He is dressed like an Egyptian official, and surely, it never occurred to them that their enslaved brother could possibly be an important leader. Joseph devised a test for his brothers’ honesty and character: he has all but one put in prison, and they must choose one brother to return with Benjamin to authenticate their story.

APPLY THE WORD

This passage illustrates the tension and difficulty of forgiveness and reconciliation. Can Joseph trust his brothers? What would it take for him to do so? Participating in God’s work of forgiveness and reconciliation might require us to walk slowly toward someone else, trusting that God will provide the answers and healing we need.

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Genesis 38:12–30

In the opening line of his Institutes of the Christian Religion, John Calvin observes, “Nearly all the wisdom we possess, that is to say, true and sound wisdom, consists of two parts: knowledge of God and of ourselves.” Our Scripture passage today is a story about recognition. Judah comes to know himself more truthfully, which leads to a significant change in his life.

Years passed since Tamar was dismissed by Judah to go back to her father’s house (v. 12). She realized Judah deceived her by not giving her his youngest son in marriage. Cast aside by Judah, she acted in desperation.

The time of shearing sheep was frequently accompanied by parties and social gatherings. When Tamar heard that Judah was coming to Timnah for this festival, she decided to act. She posed as a prostitute, and Judah took the bait. He propositioned her, and she took his seal, cord, and staff as a pledge until her payment arrived. Her scheme succeeded, and she became pregnant with Judah’s child (v. 18).

His lack of sexual restraint stands in sharp contrast to Joseph’s response to temptation in the next chapter.

When Judah discovered that Tamar was pregnant, he responded: “Bring her out and have her burned to death!” (v. 24). Tamar then played her trump card. She used the same words that Judah and his brothers said when showing the bloody garment of Joseph to Jacob: She asked Judah to “recognize” the seal, cord, and staff she had taken (v. 25).

The deceiver had been deceived. Judah’s response is a model of repentance and change. He acknowledged his wrongdoing, and as we’ll see later in the story, for the rest of his life he was a changed man.

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The sons of Tamar and Judah are Perez and Zerah. Perez is an ancestor of David (see Ruth 4:18). The Gospel of Matthew reminds us that Perez is also in the line of the Messiah, Jesus (see Matt. 1:3). God can use and redeem every part of our lives, even what we’ve deemed shameful or embarrassing. Praise Him for His redemption in your life!

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Isaiah 60, Isaiah 59–61

“If you build it, he will come.” In the movie Field of Dreams, Iowa corn farmer Ray Kinsella kept hearing a voice in his head repeat this phrase. Kinsella understood the voice to be directing him to build a baseball diamond on his farm—a place where eventually his father comes in order for father and son to be reconciled. In the final scene of the movie, one sees cars for miles lining the road to Kinsella’s field. Their coming fulfills the words of Kinsella’s friend, Terence Mann: “Ray, people will come, Ray. They’ll come to Iowa for reasons they can’t even fathom.”

Isaiah envisions a day when the people of the nations will come to Jerusalem. They are coming to the exalted city, made radiant by the glory of the Lord’s light resting upon the city. This is one picture of the glorification of God’s people. The shining city will point the way to God, even as it points the way to the glory of God’s work in His people. In fulfillment of God’s promises to Abraham, many will bring their riches from every country and will serve the people of Jerusalem.

The exaltation of Jerusalem means that the city and its inhabitants will be glorified. The Lord will place His character upon us, and for all eternity we will experience the fullness of all of His attributes, the fullness of Christ, and the fullness of the Spirit. We will know God fully and experience being fully known (see 1 Cor. 13:12; 15:28; Eph. 1:23; 3:19; 4:13; Gal. 4:9).

At that time, the Mighty One of Jacob will make the enemies of His people bow down (vv. 14–16). They will see His glory and be forced to submit to His perfect will.

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Ephesians 5:26–27 says that Christ will make His bride perfect in holiness, “a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.” All believers will be holy with the complete holiness of God. Revelation 21 describes the bride of Christ as a radiant city. Awesome is the God who will share His glory with us!

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Isaiah 42:1–9, Isaiah 42–43

The Book of Isaiah: Seeing the Glory of God

One of literature’s most memorable miscarriages of justice occurs in Fyodor Dostoevsky’s novel The Brothers Karamazov. After he makes several blunders on the witness stand, Dimitry, the protagonist, is found guilty of a murder he did not commit. Evidence that could exonerate him is withdrawn and destroyed. His attorney, Fetyukovich, makes powerful cross-examinations that are certain to discredit false witnesses and clear his client. In the end, however, Dimitry is convicted and sentenced.

The Lord’s people never need to fear the divine justice system. His justice on the earth rests in His character of holiness, and He has the power to enact His righteousness over creation.

Our text today continues the section of Isaiah often called the “Servant Songs.” This Servant (41:8; 43:10) is one on whom the Lord will set His Spirit. This Servant will be full of compassion and will have strength to be untiring in His pursuit of justice for Israel. The Lord will give this Servant as His sworn promise that He will act in righteousness on behalf of His people.

The New Testament writers identify Jesus as the Servant of whom Isaiah spoke. Luke’s Gospel says He is the “light for the Gentiles” and those in the prisons of darkness (Isa. 42:6–7; Luke 1:79; 2:32). All four Gospels say that He fulfills Isaiah’s prophecy to “open eyes that are blind” (Matt. 11:5; Mark 8:25; Luke 7:22; John 9:25). He is the One who comes to serve in order to bring about the righteousness required by God (Mark 10:45; Acts 3:14; Rom. 3:22).

Complete righteousness must come from outside of us; full justice must come from above. Thankfully, Christ brings both without fail.

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Second Corinthians 1:20 declares, “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ. And so through Him the ‘Amen’ is spoken by us to the glory of God.” Seeing how Jesus has fulfilled God’s promises can increase our faith and praise for Him. Thank Him for the light of salvation and His perfect righteousness.

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A MOUNT SWALLOWED IN JOY

Isaiah 25:1–12, Isaiah 25–26

In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel The Great Gatsby, the character Nick describes the Saturday evening parties he sees at Gatsby’s home: “The bar is in full swing, and floating rounds of cocktails permeate the garden outside. . . . The lights grow brighter as the earth lurches away from the sun, and now the orchestra is playing yellow cocktail music, and the opera of voices pitches a key higher. Laughter is easier minute by minute, spilled with prodigality, tipped out at a cheerful word.” So great are the parties that it takes eight house servants working all day each Monday to clean up the mess from the extravagant celebration.

Compared to the party that Judah will have on Mount Zion, Gatsby’s parties will seem like one insignificant candle flickering on a poorly made cake! The Lord Almighty Himself will make this festival for His people (v. 6). He will serve only the richest wine and best meats, swallowing up the mountain in His joy.

Four things will turn the day that the Lord saves Judah into a party like no other (v. 8). First, He will destroy death, the great enemy to life. No more will we feel the loss of the deterioration of a body. Second, the Lord will remove the sorrow we have experienced in this present world. Sadness from our own mistakes or from the wrongs of others will be wiped away.

Third, the guilt of our sin will be removed; no more will this weight plague us or destroy our fellowship with the Lord. Fourth, the pride of those who have exalted themselves against the Lord and His people will be brought low. Never again will believers be persecuted or hear someone mock our God. Instead we will hear, “Let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation” (v. 9)!

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These points can help guide our celebrations. Rather than debauched parties, we can have times of feasting and festival that remind us that our God delights in praise. Our times of celebration now on earth should celebrate life, encourage joy, resist sinfulness, and provide opportunities for God’s people to come together in worship and rejoicing.

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WELLS OF SALVATION

Isaiah 11–12

In recent decades a number of groups have focused efforts on digging and maintaining wells for access to fresh water throughout the developing world. One group in Burkina Faso, in West Africa, says that a single well that is 50 meters deep can provide clean water for 2,000 people. The ability to drink, wash, and cook with clean water is a life-saving and life-changing opportunity for many.

In a similar way, God’s people had a life-changing experience with the Lord’s wells—the “wells of salvation.” Isaiah uses the metaphor to speak of the depths or greatness of the Lord’s salvation toward His people. The prophet considers the outpouring of God’s Spirit and the subsequent peace on the earth and restoration of the remnant. He sees salvation as deep wells of water, representing many aspects of salvation. Christ will gather Israel from the distant lands to which they have fled and plant them back in Jerusalem, the holy mountain of the Lord. The Lord will destroy the enemies of God’s people.

In the day of the Lord, the celebrations of Israel will exalt the depths of the Lord’s salvation. Isaiah foretells a day when the Lord’s people will rejoice in Him with thanksgiving, remember His mercy, ascribe strength to Him, sing songs of gladness, declare His deeds to the earth, and exalt the Holy One. In that day, the Lord will fulfill His covenant promises to make the nations of the earth know His glory, and to dwell forever in the midst of His people. As Paul writes, “And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit” (Eph. 2:22).

APPLY THE WORD

Look at your life prior to salvation, and sing to the Lord a song of praise or thanksgiving for turning away His anger from you by pouring out His wrath on Christ. Think of the many things the Lord has changed for you since you became a Christian. Rejoice in these wells of God’s salvation!

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Silence and the Gospel: Jesus as the Logos

John 1:1–5

Aramaic was the lingua franca of the Middle East in the days of Jesus. Everyone spoke it. Parts of the Bible are written in it. Though Arabic replaced it as the key language for the region in the seventh century A.D., Aramaic endured through the centuries. But linguists now believe it is dying, with its last two generations of speakers driven from their homes by war and persecution now spread out around the world.

Human languages may die, but Jesus is the divine Word who has conquered death and given eternal life to all who believe on His name. Our month’s study now moves into its final section, “Silence and the Gospel.” In light of the fact that Jesus is God’s final Logos, what roles has silence played in the Gospel narrative?

John knew both the Jewish and Greek senses of the word Logos and clearly intended to signify both as well as to transcend both. To the Jewish mind, Logos meant God’s words, specifically the Law, and by extension God’s creation and governance of the world. To the Greek mind, Logos referred to both spoken and unspoken language and more importantly to an impersonal principle of reason or rationality.

The coming of Christ the Logos is like light in a dark place—the best Word humanity has ever heard! Just as God spoke light into creation, now comes His Son to speak life where there had been only death. Darkness and death have been overcome once and for all by the victorious Christ.

The theme of silence and the gospel must be situated within the context of Christ as the Divine Word. He broke four centuries of “prophetic silence” to accomplish God’s mission of redemption and bring hope to us all!

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The apostle John opened his Gospel with words that directly evoke Genesis 1. If you have time, we suggest you read Genesis 1 as part of your devotional time today. Set the two passages side-by-side in order to better examine the themes and parallels. Creation and Incarnation are inextricably intertwined and life-changing realities!

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Psalm 32

Augustine said about confession of sin: “Because I have sinned, I must declare my unrighteousness, confess my sins to the Lord, and stop trying to hide my guilt. The emphasis must be on that I did it myself. It was not fate, not my horoscope, not the devil. He did not force me to sin, but I consented to his persuasive temptations. And when I confess my rebellion to the Lord, I can say with the psalmist, ‘And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.’”

Psalm 32 is a beautiful poem about the blessing and beauty of God’s forgiveness (vv. 1–2, 11). David had at first resisted this blessing—His silence here is the silence of resisting God’s conviction of sin. His rebellious refusal to confess his sin brought about much inner suffering (vv. 3–4). In the end, God broke through and David repented and experienced the profound relief and blessing of forgiveness (v. 5).

The psalmist exhorted his fellow worshipers to do the same (vv. 6–8). God loves us. He can be trusted with our shameful secrets—in fact, He already knows them. He’s not waiting to ambush or punish us, but to forgive us. Sin interferes with closeness to God, so He also wants to teach us how to avoid sin and live righteously. To be under conviction of sin means God is graciously driving us to do what’s right and what’s good for us.

Why, then, would we act like a stubborn mule (vv. 9–10)? Don’t do what I did, David warns. Only an idiot would refuse to confess and repent! The “woes of the wicked” and the unrepentant are self-inflicted, but if we confess and repent, we can trade inner anguish for being immersed in God’s unfailing love (v. 10).

APPLY THE WORD

Confession of sin should be a regular habit. Our society doesn’t talk much about sin, preferring to say people make mistakes or are trapped in systems or “act out” and need therapy. But by repenting of sin and accepting God’s forgiveness, we demonstrate that repentance brings peace and joy in our relationship with God and brings glory to Him.

PRAY WITH US

Please pray for the ministry of Mollie Bond, who serves in Foundations and Corporate Relations, as she establishes relationships with various companies and organizations, involving interested partners in Moody’s ministries.

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Isaiah 64:8–12

In centuries past, a “cage of shame” was used for public punishments in many European towns and villages. The offender—who was deemed guilty of anything from adultery to public drunkenness to gossip—was placed inside a large metal cage and put on display in the town square, often during market days or festivals. He or she would often be spit upon or even pelted with rocks and rotten vegetables by the crowds.

Will you keep silent and punish us beyond measure?ISAIAH 64:12

Divine silence can make us feel as if God is punishing or shaming us like this. In today’s reading, the relationship between God and His people seems broken. At first, the relationship was close and trusting (v. 8). He was the Father, and the Israelites were His children. He was the Potter, they were the clay (cf. Isa. 29:16; 45:9). When they sinned against Him, Isaiah prayed for forgiveness (v. 9). His anger was just, but surely He would forgive, look on them again with favor, and restore the relationship.

Now the Promised Land has become a wasteland (v. 10). Solomon’s great temple has been burned to the ground. The people have been conquered and sent into exile. Will there be no end to God’s judgments? These events and feelings culminate in God’s silence as the most severe of all the punishments (v. 12). In light of all that had happened, would He really continue to hold out or withhold Himself? That is the real misery, the worst affliction, the most painful humiliation of all!

Isaiah’s faith and hope is revealed by the fact that all this is embedded in a prayer. He still cried out to the Lord. He did not believe that the relationship is over or that God will remain silent forever. God’s covenant with Israel is based not on Israel’s merit but on God’s faithful love (Isa. 65:1–3).

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In Scripture and elsewhere, language and silence are often relational metaphors: to speak indicates a strong relationship, presence, and blessing, while to be silent indicates an impaired relationship, absence, and judgment. To explore more, visit the Today in the Word website, todayintheword.com, and check out the October 2012 study.

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Psalm 28 DEVOTIONS

Rodrigues, a seventeenth-century missionary in Japan in the novel Silence by Shusaku Endo, wrestled with the silence of God. Where was God, he wondered, when His church was suffering? Where was He when powerful and godless authorities exploited the poor and insulted His name? Where was He when new converts and young believers were tortured and martyred for their faith?

For if you remain silent, I will be like those who go down to the pit.

PSALM 28:1

Despair is a natural feeling in response to the silence of God. As in Psalm 35 yesterday, Psalm 28 cries out to God not to be silent (v. 1). If the Rock turns a deaf ear, David feels he might as well be “like those who go down to the pit” (which is death)—or as it has been translated elsewhere, “I might as well give up and die.”

God’s silence is an absence not only of words but also of actions. So David prayed that the Lord would show mercy and rescue him, as well as repay the hypocritical evildoers what they deserved (vv. 2–4). The main reason they have earned His punishment is their disregard for the Lord (v. 5).

The psalm then turns from despair to joy (vv. 6–9). This shift in David’s emotional journey is raw, heartfelt, anguished—and full of faith. The psalms are emotionally honest, but they never wallow in self-centeredness. Despite his feelings, David still knows God to be his strength, shield, and shepherd. Though He seems silent now, He is a God who hears, speaks, saves, and blesses, and He will be true to His character.

Anticipating this, the psalmist trusts and sings praises to God. In fact, he “leaps for joy” (v. 7)! His knowledge of God goes deeper than his present circumstances, and so the joy of faith overcomes the despair he feels from God’s momentary silence.

APPLY THE WORD

Like the psalmist, we can take our feelings—any feelings—to the Lord. He can handle them. But also like the psalmist, we should not wallow in self-centeredness or turn our emotions into an idol. We should express our feelings in faith. In the end, the arc of faith, however long it takes, leads to the joy of the Lord. He is our Rock!

PRAY WITH US

Please join us in prayer for our Communications faculty, asking the Father that everything our students learn from David Fetzer, Karyn Hecht, Kelli Worrall, and Matthew Moore carry the message of God’s goodness, love, and salvation—to change lives!

Brad Baurain

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