Jacob had twelve sons with four women. His favourite sons were the one’s born to him
by the woman he loved the most, his wife Rachel. Rachel had two sons, Joseph and Benjamin. The bible calls Joseph his father’s favourite
son in Genesis 27:3. He was the one his
father sent to spy on his brothers and to come and report back to him what they
did. He made a special coat of many
colours for Joseph and did not even try to hide the fact that he loved Joseph
more than the other eleven.
But God had plans for Joseph and he started showing those
plans to Joseph; Joseph being the spoilt and pampered son he was, came and
told everyone that in his dreams, his father, mother and brothers were
bowing to him. The bible said in Genesis
37:11 that his father kept all these dreams in his heart even though he rebuked
his son for being so bold.
His brothers got angry and jealous of Joseph and decided to
kill him, but by the intervention of Judah, they ended up selling Joseph
instead. They then took the coat his
father had made for him, killed an animal and smeared the blood of the animal
on the coat and took it home to their father and told him that Joseph had been
killed by a wild animal. The father wept and wept and nothing anybody did or
said would comfort him.
Years went by and Joseph ended up in Egypt and became a ruler there. Then came a great famine, and by God's intervention through Joseph, Egypt had food, so Jacob sent his sons to go buy food from Egypt.
Years went by and Joseph ended up in Egypt and became a ruler there. Then came a great famine, and by God's intervention through Joseph, Egypt had food, so Jacob sent his sons to go buy food from Egypt.
The brothers went, and Joseph recognised them but they
didn’t recognise their brother because almost 17 years had passed. Joseph
pretended not to know them. A series of
events happened that I will talk about tomorrow but eventually Joseph revealed
himself to his brothers and asked that his father be brought to him.
Here is the part that I find interesting. Jacob knew the dreams that Joseph had, he
kept them in his heart and he cried when his son died. But when the brothers went back to him and
told him Joseph was alive in Genesis 45:25-28, the bible says at first he did
not believe them, but when they told him everything that had happened and how
Joseph was now ruler over Egypt, the bible said, Jacob said, ‘now I am
convinced that Joseph is alive.’
In my opinion, Jacob still remembered the dream and it was the dream and its fulfilment that convinced him that his son was still alive. A father will do that for a son, he will watch over a son’s dream and keep it in his heart and believe in them even when it sounds absurd.
In my opinion, Jacob still remembered the dream and it was the dream and its fulfilment that convinced him that his son was still alive. A father will do that for a son, he will watch over a son’s dream and keep it in his heart and believe in them even when it sounds absurd.
Genesis 46 says that when Jacob heard that his son was
alive, he did not get angry with the rest of the sons when they told him what
happened, he did not go back and query the sons on why they sold their brother;
instead he got ready to meet his lost son.
Jesus said a parable that a shepherd will leave the rest of the 99 sheep just to look for the one that was missing. A father is a shepherd, his heart was beating for the one sheep that was missing and now found. Father’s heart will never leave a son that is lost; he will keep watching and waiting till the son comes home.
He hurried to Egypt and when the father and son met, Genesis 46:28-30, I cried and thought, that is how a father should be. The rest of the 10 that sold their brother were there, but the father did not hate them or punish them, he was just happy that the lost one had come back. He was grateful and content. He said now ‘I can die since I can see for myself that you are alive’
Jesus said a parable that a shepherd will leave the rest of the 99 sheep just to look for the one that was missing. A father is a shepherd, his heart was beating for the one sheep that was missing and now found. Father’s heart will never leave a son that is lost; he will keep watching and waiting till the son comes home.
He hurried to Egypt and when the father and son met, Genesis 46:28-30, I cried and thought, that is how a father should be. The rest of the 10 that sold their brother were there, but the father did not hate them or punish them, he was just happy that the lost one had come back. He was grateful and content. He said now ‘I can die since I can see for myself that you are alive’
Children make mistakes and act wickedly but a father will be
patient and forgiving as Jacob did with his son’s. I believe it was that same heart that Joseph
learnt from, for if his father hadn’t been a forgiving man, Joseph wouldn’t have
known how to forgive either.
A father will never give up on his children and will wait
for them even if it takes 17 years to be reunited with their sons again.
As parents, it’s my prayer that we don’t give up on our
children that we encourage, forgive and love them unconditionally. Remember,
love has a long spirit and is patient.
Written by Aba Dadson
Written by Aba Dadson
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