Forgiveness

One of the most famous characters in the Bible is Joseph. His character is impeccable, his devotion to God is inspiring, and his willingness to forgive his brothers for their evil actions against him is admirable. It is this subject of forgiveness that I would like to explore.

At the early age of seventeen, Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers. This means he was sentenced to a life of horror and difficulty. However, through a series of events, he ended up being second in command to Pharaoh at the early age of thirty (Acts 7:9-10).

Eventually, Joseph would see his brothers again, as a worldwide famine led them to come to Egypt in search of food. Again, after a series of events, Joseph revealed himself to his brothers. Eventually, his brothers and the entire extended family, including his father, moved to Egypt (Acts 7:11-14).

The culmination of the story shifts to Genesis 50:15-21, which gives us some helpful insights into forgiveness.

After the death of their father, Joseph’s brothers were afraid of what he might do to them in retribution for selling him into slavery, as he had the authority to do to them as he wished. It seems they thought that perhaps the only reason Joseph didn’t punish or even kill them was that their father was alive. However, upon the death of their father, they feared Joseph would now execute his vengeance (Genesis 50:15-17c, 19).

Therefore, Joseph’s brothers came to him and pleaded for mercy, reminding him that their father also asked for mercy on their behalf (Genesis 50:17). The reaction of Joseph is very poignant as verse seventeen states, “And Joseph wept when they spoke to him.”

Please do not miss this! Joseph didn’t just fill up with tears, or was a bit choked up. He wept. He wailed. The tears were freely flowing! Why? Probably because he was so tender-hearted that even hearing his brothers entertained the thought that he would seek revenge on them made him upset! Thus, we see that forgiveness is good for our souls as it not only helps in preventing our hearts from becoming hard and bitter, but also aids in keeping them tender, kind, and sensitive (Ephesians 4:31-32).

We also get insight into forgiveness from verse nineteen when Joseph said, “Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God?” By making this statement, Joseph gives us a good definition of forgiveness as it is ultimately releasing the person to God to judge them. Therefore, when we forgive someone, we are acknowledging that only God has the right to judge them. Conversely, if we do not forgive someone, releasing them to God, we are essentially trying to take the place of Him.

Another insight we get from this text is that forgiveness doesn’t diminish what the person did. In other words, when we forgive someone, we are not saying what they did to us, or a loved one, wasn’t really that bad, as Joseph told his brothers in verse twenty, “you meant evil against me.”

What Joseph’s brothers did to him was evil. If God did not intervene, they essentially sentenced their seventeen-year-old brother to a lifetime of misery, hardship, and abuse!

The final lesson we learn from this passage is that ultimately, the events that happened to Joseph were orchestrated by God! Although his brothers were responsible for their wicked actions, the Lord used their sinful actions to bring about his plan for Joseph’s life. This is clearly conveyed in verse twenty, which states, “God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.”

Therefore, a primary element of forgiveness is looking beyond people and circumstances, and seeing that a wise and loving God allowed events to happen in our lives for good! This will help us in detaching ourselves from personal hurt and blame, and embrace the trial as sent from a wise and loving father (Romans 8:28-29)!