Genesis 44 "Vicarious Atonement"

INTRO

Christianity can be summarized by one simple word. Those with strong affections might say that word is “love”. Those with strong convictions might say that word is “truth”. Those with strong resolve might say that word is “obedience”.

But there is one word which sums up the centrality of our faith better than any others (greater than love, greater than truth, greater than obedience), and that is the word: substitution. The gracious and mighty Creator sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to take the place of sinners, to perfectly fulfill the law, to die as our substitute.

To be more direct, the centerpiece of the Gospel is what is called: Penal Substitutionary Atonement.

Penal: a punishable offense

Substitutionary: borne by another

Atonement: to reconcile us to God

Many theologians and internet hacks have tried to caricature this glorious doctrine, to their shame. They villify the Father and call what Christ accomplished for us “divine child abuse”. But this couldn’t be further from the truth.

The power of this truth should not be relegated to the faraway land of doctrinal theory or seminarian study - this is truth for life, truth for you, for me, for us! There is no greater power, no greater joy, no greater relief - to know that penal substitutionary atonement is simply:

PSA: Christ’s Death for Me

He took my place. He bore the punishment, the wrath, that I deserved. By his blood, he brought me, who was far from God, near. Substitution is the heart of the Gospel!

To deny the great doctrine of atonement by the blood of Jesus Christ is to hamstring the gospel, and to cut the throat of Christianity. Is It Nothing To You?, Volume 27, Sermon #1620 - Lamentations 1:12

Charles Spurgeon

We begin with this truth today because in our text, Genesis 44 and the beginning of chapter 45, we finally have the big reveal we’ve all been waiting for. Joseph, the Egyptian ruler second only to Pharaoh, has welcomed his brothers into his home to enjoy a lavish feast. They have no idea he is their brother, whom they had sinned against over twenty years ago. They were astonished that this man had sat them in their exact birth order, from Reuben down to the youngest, Benjamin. He had brought out generous portions for all of them, but five times as much was given graciously to Benjamin.

Now, as they head back home to Canaan with sacks full of grain and money (again), they are going to be interrupted on their journey with horrifying news. The ruler’s treasured silver cup is missing, and whomever was carrying it is going to die. To all of their dismay, the cup is found in Benjamin’s sack. All of this is a test from Joseph, intended to draw out their confession and their repentance. And as we’ll see, it’s Judah who rises up and steps in and offers to become his brother’s substitute. A punishable offense, borne by another, to bring reconciliation.

The title of the sermon today is “Vicarious Atonement”.

We’ll see today

OUTLINE:

A Demand (44:1-17)

A Delegate (44:18-34)

A Declaration (45:1-3)

And It’s my prayer today that as we see Judah’s willingness to step in as a gracious substitute, that we rejoice in the Lion of the tribe of Judah who is also the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! Violating the law of God demands death, and we have all been found guilty as charged. But Christ, our Savior, became our Substitute, and took the place of punishment for us, bringing us into right relationship with the Father. So, though the last verse we read leaves the brothers dismayed in Joseph’s presence, my prayer for us this morning is that we would be left delighted in the presence of our Lord.

Let’s begin with:

EXPOSITION

A Demand (44:1-17)

Then he commanded the steward of his house, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money in the mouth of his sack, 2 and put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, with his money for the grain.” And he did as Joseph told him.

The last time the brothers were in Egypt, Joseph had filled their sacks with grain and secretly stashed the money they had used to buy the grain, most likely around a year prior to this. But now as they return home with newly purchased grain, he does the same thing but this time instructs his steward to place his own silver cup in Benjamin’s sack.

This silver cup was simply the cup that Joseph the prime minister of Egypt drank out of, but by planting the evidence in Benjamin’s sack he is going to use this to heap blame upon them and to draw out their repentance.

Some people believe Joseph is getting revenge on his brothers, but that is completely inconsistent with his character throughout the entire story in Genesis.

3 As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away with their donkeys. 4 They had gone only a short distance from the city. Now Joseph said to his steward, “Up, follow after the men, and when you overtake them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid evil for good? 5 Is it not from this that my lord drinks, and by this that he practices divination? You have done evil in doing this.’ ”

Now, there are a few different views of Joseph’s “divination” cup. Some people believe Joseph really did fall into the sinful occultic practices in Egypt, and did use the cup to practice divination. Certainly the Egyptian magicians in Exodus prove that men were caught up in mystical practices of idolatry and witchcraft. But if Joseph was guilty of this, this would be a great abomination. Later in the Mosaic law, we read:

Deuteronomy 18:9–14 (ESV)

“When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominable practices of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord.

And because of these abominations the Lord your God is driving them out before you. You shall be blameless before the Lord your God, for these nations, which you are about to dispossess, listen to fortune-tellers and to diviners. But as for you, the Lord your God has not allowed you to do this.

I don’t believe Joseph practiced divination. I believe this was part of his disguise. He wants his brothers to think that he is a powerful Egyptian who has consulted magical means to discover their secrets until they confess.

6 When he overtook them, he spoke to them these words. 7 They said to him, “Why does my lord speak such words as these? Far be it from your servants to do such a thing! 8 Behold, the money that we found in the mouths of our sacks we brought back to you from the land of Canaan. How then could we steal silver or gold from your lord’s house? 9 Whichever of your servants is found with it shall die, and we also will be my lord’s servants.”

Certainly, Joseph’s brothers here don’t believe any one of them had taken the silver cup. They most likely believe this is just an accident or oversight. That was what Israel their father had believed, when previously all their money had been found in each of their sacks. They are relaxed and no longer afraid, believing they are in the ruler’s good graces. How could any of us steal from you? Let the person who did this die, and we will all become slaves.

But the steward’s offer is a little different than their offer:

10 He said, “Let it be as you say: he who is found with it shall be my servant, and the rest of you shall be innocent.”

They had said whichever of us has it shall die, and we will all be servants. But the steward says just the man with the cup will stay as my servant, and the rest will be innocent. You’ll all be off the hook, free to go, no obligations. We’ll put the one brother into slavery, and the rest of you are free to go back to your father. Sound familiar?

This is a replay of Dothan.

11 Then each man quickly lowered his sack to the ground, and each man opened his sack. 12 And he searched, beginning with the eldest and ending with the youngest.

Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah - as each sack is emptied, their confidence, relief, and self-justification grew stronger. But then they come to Benjamin.

And the cup was found in Benjamin’s sack. 13 Then they tore their clothes, and every man loaded his donkey, and they returned to the city.

Tearing their clothes is an act of mourning, grief, loss, and shock, which we see through the Scriptures whenever there has been blasphemy, death, or despair. People would clothe themselves in sackcloth which physically represented the discomfort they were feeling internally. The torn clothes is also a little throwback to what Israel said when they brought Joseph’s bloody robe to him. He had said, “A fierce animal has devoured him. Joseph is without doubt torn to pieces”.

A replay of Dothan. Now it is their clothes that are torn apart, as they begin to feel the grief of the fate that awaits their brother, and their father.

14 When Judah and his brothers came to Joseph’s house, he was still there. They fell before him to the ground.

This is the actual fulfillment of Joseph’s first dream. They bow in humility before him, and he has the power not only to provide for them, but now also to destroy them.

15 Joseph said to them, “What deed is this that you have done? Do you not know that a man like me can indeed practice divination?” 16 And Judah said, “What shall we say to my lord? What shall we speak? Or how can we clear ourselves? God has found out the guilt of your servants; behold, we are my lord’s servants, both we and he also in whose hand the cup has been found.”

Judah is now the leader, the head, the representative for his brothers. He’s mentioned alone in verse 14, and he confesses their guilt here as their spokesman. He says we will now serve you - all ten of us including Benjamin.

I see in Judah’s confession an important Application Point for us this morning, which is:

Confession admits the truth about our condition.

Judah’s confession is three-fold:

We are guilty.

God has exposed us.

We will face our punishment.

There are plenty of (what I call) confession counterfeits:

“I’m sorry you took it that way”. (that’s not apologizing, that’s telling the other person they’re wrong!)

“I’m sorry I got caught”. (Crocodiles shed tears, when they are biting down. This is worldly sorrow, not godly sorrow.)

“Mistakes were made”. (This is how politicians deal with scandals. They don’t take ownership, they pass the buck.)

I remember listening to a pastor confess to his church that he had been in an inappropriate relationship with a woman who was not his wife. Instead of true confession, he said all the ministry work and the late hours and the constant pressure led me to do this. In other words, it’s your fault, church.

That’s not true confession! Judah here says “we are guilty, God has exposed us, and we will face our punishment”. Counterfeit confession doesn’t want to admit guilt. Counterfeit confession doesn’t want to be exposed, and wants the minimal consequences possible. But true confession admits the truth about our condition.

Though this is Judah’s offer, the prime minister has other plans:

17 But he said, “Far be it from me that I should do so! Only the man in whose hand the cup was found shall be my servant. But as for you, go up in peace to your father.”

Joseph is letting them all go free, but demands to keep Benjamin. This is the worse-case scenario for them, because (remember) Israel said if I lose Benjamin, you’ll be bringing down my gray hairs with sorrow to Sheol. Why did it have to be Benjamin? Why not Gad or Asher?

What are the brothers going to do? It is in this moment, that a delegate stands up - and it’s the last person you’d expect. Let’s look at our second section,

A Delegate (44:18-34)

18 Then Judah went up to him and said, “Oh, my lord, please let your servant speak a word in my lord’s ears, and let not your anger burn against your servant, for you are like Pharaoh himself.

Here we have the longest speech in the book of Genesis. Who is the one stepping up and stepping in to intercede on behalf of the condemned one? Judah.

Judah, the brother who was responsible for selling Joseph into slavery to begin with. Back in Genesis 37:25-27, we read:

Genesis 37:25–27 (ESV)

Then they sat down to eat. And looking up they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing gum, balm, and myrrh, on their way to carry it down to Egypt. Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers listened to him.

Let’s not kill him - but let’s make him a servant, a slave. When we come back to our father empty-handed, at least we will be innocent of taking his life, the life of our own flesh and blood.

Years later, Judah had three sons, and his wicked firstborn son Er had died, leaving his wife Tamar as a widow. Judah commanded Er’s next youngest brother Onan to perform the levirate act of providing a son for Tamar, but instead he selfishly wastes this opportunity. He too dies, and that leaves Shelah, Judah’s youngest son. Instead of offering him to Tamar, Judah selfishly fears for his son’s life and leaves Tamar unprovided for as an aging widow.

We saw there in that chapter how Tamar dressed up as a prostitute and how Judah slept with her, leaving his signet, cord, and staff as a pledge. When he finds out that she is pregnant, his cruel decision is to burn her. But she reveals his signet, cord, and staff, stating that these belong to the father. There he admits, “She is more righteous than I”. That confession was the first sign in Judah of any guilt, of any sinfulness.

He had been putting himself first at the expense of others his entire life - and now Joseph presents him with a final test. Will you offer your brother Benjamin to slavery so that you can go free - just like you did years ago? What will you do?

And Judah here takes the posture of the servant. With exact detail, he informs Joseph of all that has transpired. Down in verse 27, we learn some new information:

27 Then your servant my father said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons. 28 One left me, and I said, “Surely he has been torn to pieces,” and I have never seen him since. 29 If you take this one also from me, and harm happens to him, you will bring down my gray hairs in evil to Sheol.’

We studied this last week in chapter 43, but these are new details. It seems that from Israel’s perspective, his wife Rachel was his only wife, and his sons Joseph and Benjamin were his only two sons. He wasn’t that concerned about losing Simeon, but if Benjamin didn’t return, everything that connected him to his beloved wife would be lost forever, and he would die in sorrow. To lose Benjamin is to lose Israel. That’s what Judah says next:

30 “Now therefore, as soon as I come to your servant my father, and the boy is not with us, then, as his life is bound up in the boy’s life, 31 as soon as he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die, and your servants will bring down the gray hairs of your servant our father with sorrow to Sheol.

To lose Benjamin is essentially to lose Israel. If they don’t return with their brother, their father will die in sorrow. But then Judah reveals to Joseph that he had taken the responsibility for Benjamin:

32 For your servant became a pledge of safety for the boy to my father, saying, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, then I shall bear the blame before my father all my life.’

This is new information relayed to Joseph. Judah was beginning to show signs of repentance. With Tamar he failed to provide for her, protecting himself and his family out of self-preservation; now he’s putting himself in harm’s way to ensure others will be provided for and protected. But then listen to this offer of vicarious atonement:

33 Now therefore, please let your servant remain instead of the boy as a servant to my lord, and let the boy go back with his brothers.

I will take Benjamin’s place. I will be the substitute. Put me into chains, and let the guilty one go free. Not only has Judah taken the posture of a servant - now he literally becomes one, in place of his brother.

Verse 34 is the final demonstration of true repentance, as Judah says what he should have said twenty years ago:

34 For how can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? I fear to see the evil that would find my father.”

They had lived with their father’s grief, pain, loss, and sorrow all those years, and couldn’t bear to see him in that state any further. So Judah becomes the innocent offering for the guilty condemned.

Of course this is a picture of Christ, which we will unpack in a few moments, but it is also a picture of true servanthood.

Judah takes the nature of a servant, calling Joseph “my lord” and himself “your servant”

Judah pleads before the throne, making intercession for others

Judah asks for the ruler’s anger to be pacified

Though Joseph has risen to the greatest prominence and power, in this act Judah has shown himself to be the greatest among all of Israel’s sons. Which brings us to an important Application Point:

The greatest among us are the servants.

At one time, James and John (the sons of Zebedee) approached Jesus and wanted him to answer a prayer request: that they would be able to sit on thrones of influence and power, on the right and left hand of Jesus. In other words, they were asking to be put in the two most important, prominent seats in the Kingdom. Of course Jesus says you don’t know what you’re asking - are you able to drink the cup I am going to drink, and be baptized with my baptism? He wasn’t talking about a literal cup or baptism, but the cup of suffering and being baptized into death.

But then Mark tells us that the other ten disciples heard about it. Peter, and Bartholomew, and Thomas and the rest find this out, and it says they were ‘indignant’. In Greek this meant they were becoming incensed, offended, and irate. So Jesus called them to him and said:

Mark 10:42–45 ESV

And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Greatness in Christ’s kingdom is not measured by status, by influence, by exerting yourself over others. It is equated with those who lay down their lives, who are willing to be not the head but the tail, those who would serve and put others ahead of themselves.

That’s how Christ demonstrated his love for his disciples, and invited them to do just as he had done for them.

D.A. Carson: What work does Christ set his servants to do? The way that they serve him, he tells them, is by becoming the slaves of their fellow-servants and being willing to do literally anything, however costly, irksome, or undignified, in order to help them. This is what love means, as he himself showed at the Last supper when he played the slave's part and washed the disciples' feet.

Judah has demonstrated his greatness by becoming a servant. Now, at this point, his repentance has been displayed to Joseph, who erupts with emotion and then reveals himself to his brothers. Let’s look at these final three verses, and

A Declaration (45:1-3)

Then Joseph could not control himself before all those who stood by him. He cried, “Make everyone go out from me.” So no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers.

Joseph sees the humility, repentance, and sacrifice of his brothers, notably Judah (the one who had suggested they sell him into slavery in the first place), and is overcome with emotion. This was what he no doubt had prayed for. This was the reconcilation he dreamed of, the union and fellowship that had been marred because of sin, but now made right because of repentance. He sent all the other Egyptians out of the room, and began to weep so loud that the household of Pharaoh heard his weeping.

And then verse 3:

3 And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed at his presence.

The word “dismayed” actually means amazed, frightened, or even terrified. This would utterly shocked and astounded them. In one breath, they are astounded that the brother they thought was dead or enslaved is the most powerful man in the known world, only next to Pharaoh himself. How did he reach this position? What an amazing God to preserve him through all his suffering and raise him up to this exalted station!

But in the next breath, they are also terrified - for the one they had so grievously sinned against now had the power to enslave and put them to death. They are rightly in awe - moved with love but also greatly afraid.

As we think of our own lives, we know that

Perfect love casts out fear.

We learned this when we studied 1 John recently during our Wednesday midweek prayer and Bible study.

1 John 4:18 (ESV)

There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.

As we’ll see in Genesis 45, Joseph’s brothers’ fears are completely cast out once they understand that their brother doesn’t intend harm toward them, but love. That love casts out their fear. No longer afraid of punishment, their hearts are settled and at peace.

This morning as believers we uphold a reverent fear of God - an awe that intimately knows that God is terrifyingly just, righteous, true, and almighty - but also gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in loving faithfulness as he forgives us of great iniquity.

Knowing the love of God (that surpasses knowledge) is a ballast for us when our hearts condemn or betray us, when we question the assurance of our salvation, or when we fear death or judgment. We learn to rest in God’s perfect love for us, and this dismisses all accusations that satan or our hearts stack up against us.

Now we are ending today’s sermon on a bit of a cliffhanger, so I encourage you to read the rest of chapter 45 this week as I’m sure you will want to! But this will help prepare our hearts to open God’s word together and dig deeper.

As we consider these verses in light of the Gospel, we come to realize our own desperate condition.

GOSPEL

My sins demand the penalty of slavery, death, & separation from God.

Though the brothers were not sinning in this moment, they had still sinned twenty years ago by abandoning their brother, leaving him enslaved. They had not stolen the silver cup, but all those years ago, they had stolen Joseph’s colorful robe, given to him by his father, which represented his status. The cup in Benjamin’s bag disclosed their guilt. There was no hiding, no running, no squirming or talking their way out of this. This infraction demanded death.

Guzik: The brothers were innocent of the sin of stealing the cup, but were guilty of far greater sins. In the same way, we might take pride because we are innocent of some sin or another, yet we are guilty of far greater. You can’t hide from your sin. Time does not erase the guilt of your sin; only the blood of Jesus can.

You and I are guilty of a far greater sin and therefore a far greater penalty awaits us.

At this point, the self-righteous religious steps forward and says, “I’ll work my way out of this”.

What they don’t realize is that no amount of good deeds will ever satisfy the wrath of a holy God against sin.

Then the Roman Catholic steps forward and says, “I’ll do penance, and this will cover the debt”.

What they fail to understand is that no amount of penance will return us to right standing or impart righteousness to us.

The moralist steps forward and says, “You won’t find a cup in my bag!”

But the truth is, as F.B. Meyer says, “there is a stolen cup in your sack, my respectable, reputable, moral friend. You are just unaware of it”.

The Scripture says that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We must pay the price, and suffer the penalty of death, and there is nothing we can do under heaven to escape or satisfy the wrath of God.

But again, this is where the incredible good news comes in!

Jesus is my gracious Substitute.

Jesus takes the place of punishment! Jesus, Judah’s Lion, is also God’s Lamb. When John the Baptist announced this (behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!), those who heard would immediately hyperlink back to the sacrifices in the Mosaic covenant. The Day of Atonement, when the priest would lay his hands on the goat which represented the substitute, and the sins would be symbolically transferred away from the guilty and onto the sacrifice.

In his classic book “Redemption Accomplished and Applied”, John Murray points out:

“The sacrifice was the divinely instituted provision whereby the sin might be covered and the liability to divine wrath and curse removed. This is the pivot on which the transaction turned.”

This is what Christ fulfilled at Calvary for us! Christ’s death for me. Penal Substitutionary Atonement. Benjamin would not need to rise to his own defense - another had taken his place. Benjamin didn’t need to prove to Joseph why he was worthy of this, or stand and make his own speech. The hymn writer would say:

I need no other argument

I need no other plea

It is enough that Jesus died

and that he died for me!

Christ is our Passover Lamb. Christ is the true and greater Judah, our gracious Substitute.

By faith in Christ, I am declared righteous. (in right relationship with him)

As Joseph reveals himself to them, he makes a powerful declaration: I AM JOSEPH! Their status immediately changes from enemy to beloved, from condemned to companion.

It was through a declaration that these men were made right with the ruler - not because of what they had accomplished or done - and the Scriptures teach that it is through a declaration that we are also brought into right standing with our sovereign, holy God.

Romans 5:1-2 (CSB) Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Also through Him, we have obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Romans 5:1–2 (ESV)

Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Also through Him, we have obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

CLOSING

But as we close, what does all of this mean, for us?

I like what J.I. Packer says:

Packer: “Christ’s death for me calls and constrains me to trust, to worship, to love, and to serve”.

To trust: to put all of my hope not in my own works but in the One who took my place, he who loved me and gave himself for me.

To worship: to consecrate my heart, soul, mind, and strength to Judah’s Lion, to God’s precious Lamb.

To love: to love him, to love his Spirit, to love his Word, to love his people, to love our enemies.

To serve: to serve him wholeheartedly, to serve others humbly, to surrender my rights and my life in order to make much of my glorious Master.

Martin Luther once wrote to a friend, saying, "Learn to know Christ and him crucified. Learn to sing to him, and say, 'Lord Jesus, you are my righteousness, I am your sin. You have taken upon yourself what is mine and given me what is yours. You became what you were not, so that I might become what I was not.'"

What a great and wonderful exchange! Was there ever such love?

Your Father Loves You by James Packer, Harold Shaw Publishers, 1986, Page October 20.

Let’s stand together, and pray.

PRAY

KIDS HANDOUTS

The ___________ (44:1-17)

The ___________ (44:18-34)

The ___________ (45:1-3)

Who said, “To deny the great doctrine of atonement by the blood of Jesus Christ is to hamstring the gospel, and to cut the throat of Christianity”?

What type of metal was Joseph’s special cup?

Which one of Joseph’s brothers steps up to take Benjamin’s place?

Our sins of commission and omission demand __________.

Jesus, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, is our gracious ___________.

PSA can be summarized as “Christ’s ______ for _________”.

By ___________________, we are declared righteous.

Jesus is both the ______ of Judah and the ______ of God.