Honesty and Righteous

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

HONESTY AND RIGHTEOUS

Gen 44:1-13

44:1 Now Joseph gave these instructions to the steward of his house: "Fill the men's sacks with as much food as they can carry, and put each man's silver in the mouth of his sack. 2 Then put my cup, the silver one, in the mouth of the youngest one's sack, along with the silver for his grain." And he did as Joseph said. 3 As morning dawned, the men were sent on their way with their donkeys. 4 They had not gone far from the city when Joseph said to his steward, "Go after those men at once, and when you catch up with them, say to them, 'Why have you repaid good with evil? 5 Isn't this the cup my master drinks from and also uses for divination? This is a wicked thing you have done.'" 6 When he caught up with them, he repeated these words to them. 7 But they said to him, "Why does my lord say such things? Far be it from your servants to do anything like that! 8 We even brought back to you from the land of Canaan the silver we found inside the mouths of our sacks. So why would we steal silver or gold from your master's house? 9 If any of your servants is found to have it, he will die; and the rest of us will become my lord's slaves." 10 "Very well, then," he said, "let it be as you say. Whoever is found to have it will become my slave; the rest of you will be free from blame." 11 Each of them quickly lowered his sack to the ground and opened it. 12 Then the steward proceeded to search, beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest. And the cup was found in Benjamin's sack. 13 At this, they tore their clothes. Then they all loaded their donkeys and returned to the city.

NIV

Righteousness and honesty are in the hearts of the sons of Israel as they plead their innocence regarding doing anything wrong, and yet Joseph is having his revenge or truly has a motive to bring his whole family to Egypt. This wasn’t the first time Joseph had their silver returned to them, but it will be the last time, as we are going to finally see Joseph reveal himself to his brothers. But for now, our story is in the tearing of their clothes at the thought that Benjamin would be killed, accounting for their agreement with the steward. This may be a righteous act showing their passion for their brother, or their fear or compassion for their father if Benjamin is taken from them. But at least there appears to be some unity within the family. Those brothers did not concern themselves with the grief they would bring on their father when they got rid of Joseph, but it appears they are concerned now with the grief they would bring him or the guilt of breaking their word to him. However, their actions are righteous and they have been honest in their words to Joseph and the steward. There is no deception in them, but only now with Joseph. What is our lesson here? It cannot be what seems like revenge on the part of Joseph. It is indeed in the honesty and righteousness of the brothers, with their deep concern for their father, or how they could face him since they swore an oath of bringing Benjamin back to him. Honesty and righteousness will win in the end, which is the key to living for Christ today. Of course, we would think that all of us believers are true to our word and that we face forward and upright in all our dealings in the world and within the church. We certainly do not have any unrighteous, self-centered motives for our benefit within the church. Surely. We are always looking for the benefit of others and always speaking honestly with purity of heart. There is a unity of spirit within the body of Christ because we all seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. The families of the past serve us well, giving us examples of how not to be, and examples of how to be. Let us always be learning our path in honesty and righteousness, as we follow after Jesus.