Journey of Blessings and Burdens: Israel's Move to Egypt

Bible Passage: Genesis 44:18-47:27

Summary: The story of Israel's migration to Egypt, driven by famine and the reconciliation with Joseph, illustrates a complex interplay of divine blessing amidst the challenges brought by change and the foreboding consequences of their initial success.

Teaching: The sermon teaches about the nuances of faithfulness during transitions, the reality of blessings mixed with trials, and the importance of maintaining hope in God’s purpose amid circumstances that may lead toward bondage.

Big Idea: In times of transition, God’s providence guides us, offering blessings and challenges that prepare us for His purposes, teaching us to trust in His eternal plan even when present circumstances shift.

1. Judah's Just Account

Genesis 44:18-45:15

2. Israel's Intentional Journey

Genesis 45:16-46:7

3. Names Noted by God

Genesis 46:8-46:27

4. Goshen's Godly Governance

Genesis 47:1-12

5. Blessings Turn to Bondage

Genesis 47:13-27

In this Law portion you find Joseph standing before his brothers in Egypt. It’s a moment filled with tension and emotion. Years earlier, they had sold him into slavery out of jealousy and hatred. Now, unknowingly, they stand before the very man they betrayed, pleading for their lives and the life of their youngest brother. It’s a powerful story, but to fully understand its significance, we need to go back in time—to Hagar, Sarah, and Abraham—and trace the threads of mistreatment, betrayal, and God’s sovereign plan that run through these stories. There is a “motif” at play here.

Hagar was an Egyptian servant in Abraham’s household, and her story begins in Genesis 16. God had promised Abraham and Sarah a son, but when the years passed and no child came, they decided to take matters into their own hands. Sarah gave Hagar to Abraham to conceive a child, believing this would fulfill God’s promise. It seemed practical, even logical—but it wasn’t God’s plan.

Hagar became pregnant, and as tension rose between her and Sarah, Sarah began to mistreat her. Hagar fled into the wilderness, carrying the weight of rejection and oppression. Yet, in her suffering, God met her. He spoke to her, reassured her, and gave her a promise about her son, Ishmael. God heard her cries, showing His compassion even when humans failed to act justly. 

This story will play out again only this time in Israel’s sojourning in Egypt. The mistreatment of Hagar foreshadowed Israel’s future, and it reveals a profound truth: what we sow, we often reap. When we rely on human plans rather than trusting God’s promises, we set in motion consequences that ripple far beyond what we can see.

The divisions within Abraham’s family—between Sarah and Hagar, Isaac and Ishmael—didn’t end there. They carried on into Jacob’s family, where favoritism and jealousy tore the family apart. Jacob, who was renamed Israel, had twelve sons. But he loved Joseph the most, and he didn’t hide it. He gave Joseph a special coat, a symbol of his favoritism, and it fueled his brothers’ resentment. They hated Joseph, and when the opportunity came, firstly they had planned to kill him but in the end they sold him into slavery and told their father he was dead.

Joseph’s betrayal didn’t happen in a vacuum. It was the result of generations of division and strife, starting with Abraham’s household. Just as Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and Esau had been divided, Joseph and his brothers were torn apart by jealousy and hatred. But even in the midst of betrayal, God was at work.

Years later, when famine struck the land, Joseph’s brothers traveled to Egypt in search of food. By this time, Joseph had risen to power, second only to Pharaoh, after having served thirteen years in prison! Through a series of dramatic events, Joseph revealed his identity to his brothers and forgave them. He said something remarkable in Genesis 45:7: “God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.”

Joseph didn’t excuse his brothers’ betrayal, but he saw how God had used it for good. Their sin could not thwart God’s plan. In fact, God used their betrayal to save their family and ensure the survival of the future nation of Israel. This reminds us that even when humans fail, God is still in control. He can take what was meant for evil and turn it into something good. Joseph was the suffering servant and triumphant ruler. Joseph was better than his brothers and his prophetic dreams came to be reality. He however served 13 years in prison and exile from his home land — betrayed by his own brothers. This too, is a motif.

As we continue the story, we see Jacob and his family move to Egypt to escape the famine. Pharaoh gives them the best land in Goshen, and they prosper there. It’s a time of blessing and abundance. Joseph in God’s wisdom made Pharaoh wealthy and God blessed the land and the people as the surrounding area experienced the dread of famine, Pharoah’s coffers grew and the people of Israel found a safe place. They became comfortable in the land of Hagar… they became servants of a foreign master just as Hagar did to Abraham and Sarah.