The Great Reversal: Providence and Forgiveness Text: Genesis 45:1-15
Introduction: The Grammar of God's Providence
We come now to one of the highest peaks in the entire narrative of Genesis. The story of Joseph is a masterful account of envy, betrayal, suffering, and exaltation, but it is more than that. It is a living, breathing illustration of the grammar of God's providence. We live in an age that wants to have a god, but not this God. Our generation wants a god who is a celestial bystander, a well-meaning but ultimately impotent deity who wrings his hands on the sidelines of human history, hoping we'll make the right choices. He's a god who is reactive, not sovereign.
But the God of Scripture, the God of Joseph, is nothing of the kind. He is the God who works all things according to the counsel of His will. He is the great playwright, and all of human history is His stage. This does not mean we are mindless puppets. As the Westminster Confession puts it, God ordains whatsoever comes to pass, yet in such a way that the liberty or contingency of second causes is not taken away, but rather established. This is a great mystery, but it is the bedrock of Christian comfort. God is in control, not just of the good things, not just of the pleasantries, but of the whole messy, sinful, glorious business.
The story of Joseph is a frontal assault on our modern sensibilities. It is a story where the wicked actions of sinful men, motivated by jealousy and hatred, are woven by a sovereign God into a tapestry of redemption and deliverance. The brothers' sin was real sin. Their guilt was real guilt. And yet, behind their malicious intent, underneath their wicked choices, was the hidden, sovereign hand of God, steering all of it toward His foreordained conclusion. This is the doctrine that separates the men from the boys. If you cannot stomach this, you cannot stomach the God of the Bible. For this is not just how God worked with Joseph; it is how He worked at the cross. Wicked men, with sinful hands, crucified the Lord of glory, and in doing so, they fulfilled the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God.
In this chapter, the dam of Joseph's restraint finally breaks. Twenty-two years of separation, of pain, of confusion, all come rushing out in a torrent of tears and revelation. And what we see here is not just a family reunion. We see a portrait of the gospel. We see the doctrine of providence made personal, and we see the kind of radical, God-centered forgiveness that flows directly from it.
The Text
Then Joseph could not restrain himself before all those who stood by him, and he called out, “Have everyone go out from me.” So there was no man with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. Then he wept loudly. And the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it. Then Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for they were terrified at his presence.
Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Please come near to me.” And they came near. And he said, “I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. So now do not be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are still five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. So God sent me before you to establish for you a remnant in the earth and to keep you alive for a great remnant of survivors. So now, it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has set me as a father to Pharaoh and lord of all his household and ruler over all the land of Egypt. Hurry and go up to my father, and say to him, ‘Thus says your son Joseph, “God has set me as lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay. And you shall live in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children’s children and your flocks and your herds and all that you have. There I will also provide for you, for there are still five years of famine to come, lest you and your household and all that you have be impoverished.” ’ And behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see, that it is my mouth which is speaking to you. So you must tell my father of all my glory in Egypt and all that you have seen; and you must hurry and bring my father down here.” Then he fell on his brother Benjamin’s neck and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck. He kissed all his brothers and wept on them, and afterward his brothers talked with him.
(Genesis 45:1-15 LSB)
The Unveiling (vv. 1-3)
We begin with the raw, unrestrained emotion of the moment.
"Then Joseph could not restrain himself before all those who stood by him, and he called out, “Have everyone go out from me.” So there was no man with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. Then he wept loudly. And the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it. Then Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for they were terrified at his presence." (Genesis 45:1-3)
For weeks, Joseph has been orchestrating this elaborate test. He has been speaking harshly, accusing his brothers, putting them through the emotional wringer. But it was all a test of their hearts. Judah's passionate plea for Benjamin, offering himself as a substitute, was the final piece of evidence. Joseph saw true repentance, true change, true love for their father and their brother. The dam breaks. He orders all the Egyptians out of the room. This is a family matter, a covenantal affair. The Egyptians can hear the noise, but they are not to be privy to the transaction itself.
Joseph weeps, and not quietly. He weeps with loud sobs that echo through the palace. This is not the weeping of a stoic philosopher; it is the weeping of a man whose heart has been pent up for two decades. It is the release of grief, of longing, of the pain of betrayal, and of the joy of reunion all at once. And then comes the stunning revelation: "I am Joseph!"
Imagine the shock. The great Egyptian lord, Zaphnath-paaneah, the man who holds their lives in his hands, is the brother they sold into slavery twenty-two years ago. The text says they were "terrified at his presence." The Hebrew word is stronger; it means they were dismayed, shattered, thrown into confusion. Their minds were reeling. The ghost from their past was not a ghost at all. He was standing before them, robed in power. All their carefully constructed lies, all their years of trying to forget, came crashing down in an instant. Their sin had found them out, and it was now the second most powerful man in the world.
Their terror is the proper response of a guilty conscience before a righteous judge. They have every reason to expect retribution, vengeance, and death. They stand before him speechless, not because they are in awe, but because they are paralyzed by fear. What can you say to the brother you sold for twenty pieces of silver when he now holds the power of life and death over you?
The Theological Reframe (vv. 4-8)
What Joseph does next is utterly remarkable. He does not lecture them. He does not say, "I told you so." He does not demand an apology. Instead, he gives them a theology lesson.
"Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Please come near to me.” And they came near. And he said, “I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into Egypt. So now do not be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life... So now, it was not you who sent me here, but God..." (Genesis 45:4-5, 8)
First, he invites them closer. This is an act of grace. He bridges the gap their sin created. Then he acknowledges the sin head-on: "whom you sold into Egypt." He does not minimize their crime. Forgiveness is not pretending a sin didn't happen. Forgiveness deals with sin honestly. But then, in the very next breath, he reframes the entire event. He lifts their eyes from the horizontal plane of their sin to the vertical plane of God's sovereignty.
Notice the repetition. Three times he says that God sent him. "God sent me before you to preserve life." "God sent me before you to establish for you a remnant." "It was not you who sent me here, but God." Is this a contradiction? Did they sell him, or did God send him? The biblical answer is a resounding "Yes." They sold him out of envy and malice. God sent him out of mercy and grace. Their motive was wicked. God's motive was glorious. This is the great biblical paradox of providence. God uses the sinful actions of men to accomplish His righteous purposes, without Himself being the author of sin.
This is the doctrine that fuels true forgiveness. Joseph is able to forgive his brothers so freely because he sees their sin, as heinous as it was, as a secondary cause. The primary cause, the ultimate reality, was God's good and sovereign plan to save the family of the covenant. Joseph is not saying their sin doesn't matter. He is saying that God's plan matters more. He tells them not to be grieved or angry with themselves, not because their sin was small, but because God's grace was so much bigger. He is teaching them to see their own lives through God's eyes.
This is the only way to deal with deep wounds. If you are the ultimate reality in your life, if your pain is the most important thing in the universe, then forgiveness is impossible. But if God is the ultimate reality, if His plan and His glory are the most important things, then you can absorb the blow, because you know that even this grievous sin is being used by a wise and loving Father for a greater good. Joseph had twenty years in the pit and the prison to learn this lesson. He learned that the universe was not about him. It was about God's covenant promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And because he learned that, he was free to forgive.
The Gracious Provision (vv. 9-13)
Having given them the theological foundation for their forgiveness, Joseph now pours out his practical provision for their future.
"Hurry and go up to my father, and say to him, ‘Thus says your son Joseph, “God has set me as lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay. And you shall live in theland of Goshen... There I will also provide for you..." (Genesis 45:9-11)
The man they tried to destroy is now the only man who can save them. This is a picture of Christ. We, by our sin, rejected and crucified the Son of God. And yet He is the only one who can save us from the famine of our sin. He is exalted to the right hand of the Father, made Lord of all, and from that position of glory, He invites us to come to Him. He doesn't just forgive; He provides. He gives us the fat of the land.
Joseph sends them back with a message for Jacob. Notice the message is not, "Guess what, Dad, the boys lied to you for twenty-two years." The message is, "God has set me as lord of all Egypt." He wants his father to see the hand of God in all of it. He wants him to rejoice in God's providence before he has to process his sons' treachery. This is pastoral wisdom.
He promises them Goshen, a fertile land perfect for shepherds, strategically separate from the Egyptians. He promises to provide for them through the remaining five years of famine. This is total, unreserved grace. He is not putting them on probation. He is not making them earn their keep. He is bringing them into his glory and providing for their every need. He tells them to look at him, to see that it is really him, and to go and tell their father about "all my glory in Egypt." This is not pride. This is for his father's comfort. The glory of Joseph is the evidence of the goodness of God.
Reconciliation and Restoration (vv. 14-15)
The scene concludes with the tangible expression of this restored relationship.
"Then he fell on his brother Benjamin’s neck and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck. He kissed all his brothers and wept on them, and afterward his brothers talked with him." (Genesis 45:14-15)
First, he embraces Benjamin, his only full brother, the one who shared his mother Rachel. This is a special bond, a tender moment. But then, he moves to the others. He "kissed all his brothers and wept on them." This is the kiss of peace, the kiss of forgiveness. He embraces the very men who threw him in a pit. He weeps over them, not in sorrow, but in a baptism of reconciling love.
And notice the result. "And afterward his brothers talked with him." For the first time, they are able to speak. Their terror has been washed away by his grace. His theological explanation calmed their minds, and his affectionate embrace calmed their hearts. Reconciliation has occurred. The relationship, shattered by sin, has been restored by sovereign grace.
The Gospel According to Joseph
This entire scene is a magnificent type of Christ and His work of redemption. We are the guilty brothers. We stood before God, terrified and speechless, with our sin exposed. We had sold the beloved Son for trifles, for the passing pleasures of sin. We deserved nothing but judgment.
But the one we betrayed meets us not with wrath, but with weeping. He is the greater Joseph. He invites us to draw near. He acknowledges our sin, "whom you crucified", but He immediately reframes it within the sovereign plan of God. "This was to preserve life." He tells us not to be grieved overmuch, not because our sin is insignificant, but because His grace is infinite. It was our sin, yes, but it was God's plan. "Him, being delivered by the determinate purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death" (Acts 2:23).
And having revealed Himself to us, He does not leave us in our spiritual famine. He says, "Come to me. I will provide for you. I will give you the best land. I will sustain you." He brings us into His glory, not because we deserve it, but because it was His plan all along. He embraces us, kisses us with the assurance of pardon, and for the first time, we are able to talk with Him. Fear is replaced by fellowship.
This is the gospel. It is the story of a great reversal, where the worst act of human sin becomes the very mechanism of God's greatest act of salvation. If you are here today and you feel the terror of your sin, if you feel like the brothers of Joseph, speechless and afraid, then listen to the words of the greater Joseph. "Come near to me. It was not you who sent me to the cross, but God. He sent me to preserve your life." See His glory, receive His provision, and enter into the joy of His reconciliation.