Genesis 45:16-28

¹⁶ Then the report was heard in Pharaoh’s house, “Joseph’s brothers have come,” and it delighted Pharaoh and his servants.

¹⁷ And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Tell your brothers, ‘Do this: load your donkeys and go back to the land of Canaan,

¹⁸ and bring your father and your families, and come to me, and I will give you the best of the land of Egypt, and you will eat from the fat of the land.’

¹⁹ And you, Joseph, are commanded to say, ‘Do this: take wagons from the land of Egypt for your little ones and for your wives, and bring your father, and come.

²⁰ Have no concern for your goods there, for the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.'”

²¹ The sons of Israel did so: and Joseph gave them wagons, at to the command of Pharaoh, and gave them provisions for the journey.

²² To each and all of them he gave sets of clothing, but to Benjamin he gave three hundred shekels of silver and five sets of clothing.

²³ To his father he sent these: ten donkeys loaded with the best things of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and provisions for his father on the journey.

²⁴ Then he sent his brothers away, and as they left, he said to them, “Do not argue on the way.”

²⁵ And they left Egypt and came to the land of Canaan to their father Jacob.

²⁶ And they told him, “Joseph is still alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt.” And his heart went numb, for he did not believe them.

²⁷ But when they told him all the words that Joseph said to them, and when he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived.

²⁸ And Israel said, “This is too much; Joseph my son is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”

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this is too much

Jacob had trained himself not to expect too much from life. He had suffered great loss, and he had built up a barrier in his life that shielded him from further hurt. But when he found out that his son Joseph was still alive, AND that he was ruler in the superpower land of Egypt, AND that he was inviting the whole clan to come live in Egypt’s luxury… well, it was too much. The barrier came down.

Jacob probably laughed a lot on his way to Egypt, and even more when he finally arrived. Maybe he pinched himself to make sure he was not dreaming.

Have you grown old and cold, shutting down your capacity for wonder and faith in the impossible? Maybe you have been hurt, disappointed at life and it has deadened you to the joys of surprise. Maybe you have prayed and prayed, and things just stay the same. Perhaps no one can blame you for feeling discouraged, because life can be hard and it is often unfair. But don’t count God out. Even now, he may have a message from Egypt for you.

LORD, open our eyes to the wonder of reality that you control. Give us the courage to keep praying for miracles, long after others have given up.