Good evening.  I know some of you are too busy to read this but it is of great interest to me and I pass it along to you.  You see, in my daily Bible reading for January the 17^th I am reading Genesis chapter 37, the story of Joseph.  It is one of my favorite stories because up until this point most of the characters introduced from Adam through Jacob have some serious character flaws (like us or at least me).  One can't help but notice this as you scan through the first 36 chapters.  For instance:

 

1. Adam and Eve-no need to explain this
2. Cain kills Abel and is cursed
3. Lamech confesses killing another man
4. Mankind is so wicked God floods the earth
5. Noah gets drunk
6. Noah's son Ham disrespects Noah and is cursed
7. Tower of Babel
8. Abram (Abraham) lies; laughs at God
9. Sarai (Sarah) laughs at God
10. Sodomites demand sex with angels
11. Lot offers his daughters
12. Sodom and Gomorrah destroyed
13. Lot's wife disobeys-turned into pillar of salt
14. Lot's daughters impregnated by their father
15. Abraham lies again
16. Esau sells his birthright
17. Isaac lies about Rebekah
18. Esau marries heathen wives
19. Rebekah and Jacob conspire
20. Jacob deceives Isaac
21. Laban tricks Jacob concerning Rachel
22. Laban deceives Jacob
23. Jacob deceives Laban
24. Rachel steals her father's gods
25. Rachel lies to her father
26. Shechem rapes Dinah
27. Sons of Jacob deceive and kill men of Shechem
28. Jacobs household have foreign gods
29. Son of Jacob, Ruben has sex with his father's concubine
30. Joseph's brothers conspire to kill/then decide to sell Joseph

 

As you can see the early years of man on the earth seemed to be very similar to today.  Somewhere in this timeframe the story of Job is thought to have been recorded, which is promising.  And then we come upon the story of Joseph.  Like I said earlier, I really like the story of the young man who lives his life for God selflessly amidst all kinds of tribulation.  Never once are we told that he questions God or why he is in his circumstances.  For 17 years more or less he is in one bad situation after another, from being taken captive and sold as a slave, to falsely accused of rape and sentenced to prison where he is forgotten Joseph maintains his trust and confidence in God.  And at the end he is second in command of the most powerful empire of its time, and lord over his family.  And when it is all said and done he tells his brothers that what they intended for harm God intended for good, that many lives might be saved.  Joseph really was special!  But that is not what I wanted to write you about.

 

As I said earlier, while I was reading chapter 37 I noticed something a little strange.  I had read the section on chapter 37 several times today and it escaped my attention.  But tonight as I read it one last time I noticed verses 15, 16 and 17.  Prior to these verses we learn that Joseph's brothers hate him because he is his father's favorite.  His brothers have been sent to Shechem to care for the flock some distance from where his father and he are living and his father requests that he go check on them and bring him back a status report.  Joseph leaves and arrives in Shechem and we take up at verse 15:

 

Ge 37:15 And a certain man found him, and, behold, he was wandering in the field: and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou?

 16 And he said, I seek my brethren: tell me, I pray thee, where they feed their flocks.

 17 And the man said, They are departed hence; for I heard them say, Let us go to Dothan. And Joseph went after his brethren, and found them in Dothan.

 

When I first read this in the text I didn't think about it.  But as I reread it I wondered why it was told to us.  It doesn't seem necessary for the story as this man is not talked about before or after these three verses.  Look at verse 14 and verse 18:

 

Ge 37:14 And he said to him, Go, I pray thee, see whether it be well with thy brethren, and well with the flocks; and bring me word again. So he sent him out of the Valley of Hebron, and he came to Shechem….

18 And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him.

 

You see what I mean?  We don't need to know these three verses (15-17) as they add nothing to the story (or do they?).  Ask yourself that question: why are these three verses here?

 

As I pondered this I thought and still think that everything in the Bible is there for a reason, for our edification when God chooses to reveal it to us (in his time).  And I think this is one of those things that at first glance don't make sense.  But note several things:

 

It was a certain man who found Joseph as he was wandering in the field.  It wasn't just any man.  And Joseph didn't find this man to ask for help even though he was wandering in the field.  It was a certain man who found Joseph as he was wandering.  But was it a man?  Did he just happen to be there?  Doubtful.  Maybe he was…

 

An angel of the Lord.  Sent from God to ensure that Joseph finds his brothers.  Because if he doesn't find his brothers none of those things happen to him as discussed above.  So was it an angel or just someone God chose to use to accomplish his will?  Does it matter?  No, what matters is that God sent him, he found Joseph while Joseph was wandering and he asked Joseph a question, "What are you seeking?"  And that Joseph didn't say thanks anyway I don't need your help or otherwise fail to answer the stranger.

 

When we do God's will and walk with him, Proverbs 3:6 tells us "He will direct thy paths."  How does he do that?  Just like it happened to Joseph.  But note that Joseph had to accept the help, hear the voice and answer his question.

 

How many times in our lives has God sent us help when we needed it?  Maybe you were lost and needed directions and someone was right there to help you or maybe you were thinking about a friend at the exact moment that friend chose to call you with just the right words you needed for comfort.  Or just possibly at a time when all seemed impossible, someone showed up that made it all better.  Like when our truck broke down last year on the dark road in the middle of nowhere late at night and suddenly headlights approach and driving is the pastor of a church we are going to and he takes us all home and then turns out to be a mechanic who also fixes our truck and is now our good friend and on and on and on.  Sent by God to take care of us.

 

If you stop to think about it, I know you can think of times like this as well, situations you can't explain where help came from places you didn't expect and people you didn't know.

 

Thank you Lord for watching over me.

 

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