20260104_IWillNotLeaveThee

[0:00] Joseph and his five, well, I better back up. Joseph has gone to, in chapter 46, Joseph has gone up.

[0:12] ! His father and all the household of Israel have come to what area of Egypt?! Goshen.

[0:23] Goshen. Not Indiana. Goshen, Egypt. Goshen. Goshen. Goshen.

[0:34] Goshen. It's the most fertile of the land. Goshen. Good for pasturing. How'd they get that?

[0:50] I mean, there's a famine throughout not only Egypt, but clear up into Canaan. That's why they came down, isn't it? He has power and authority?

[1:06] Yes. And the Pharaoh has already told him, settle them in the best stuff. Basically, put them where you want. Alright?

[1:17] So, Joseph has talked to his brethren and he said, hey, Pharaoh's probably going to interview you. What are you supposed to tell him?

[1:29] Okay. You're supposed to tell him that you're keepers of livestock.

[1:44] Shepherds. Shepherds. Shepherds. So that you can live where? In Goshen. Now, what is it that Egypt thinks about shepherds?

[1:57] They're detestable. They're detestable. Now, we don't know. Well, we're going to see that Egypt has livestock. It's not like they don't like to eat.

[2:13] Just, they, you know, those people. It's kind of like, don't talk to the help kind of stuff.

[2:26] You know, it, we like what they do for us, but we don't like them. So, that's kind of the impression I got.

[2:38] So, let's begin with verse 1 in chapter 47. Joseph is going to meet Pharaoh and he's going to tell him, hey, my family's here.

[2:54] So, he's going to take some of his brothers. How many? Five of his brothers. Which ones are they?

[3:08] I'm sorry? Well, then I should make it up. Okay. Well, now, I joke about this, but let's think about it.

[3:23] We just came through that period where we rejoice in the incarnation. We call that what? Christmas. Right?

[3:35] Yeah. Now, you're looking for a trick. Okay. How many, how many magi came to worship Jesus?

[3:50] Okay. How do we know there were three? It doesn't say.

[4:01] Now, wait a minute. There were, yeah, there were three gifts. So, I surmise there were three people, right? And in my crush, there are only three.

[4:21] Which brings me to the other one. So, since you mentioned that, what animals were present? He was born in a stable. What animals were there?

[4:35] How do I know? Because the song told me. How many, why do I know there were three wise men?

[4:47] The song told me. See, the scripture didn't say either one of those things. What did the, what did the angels sing?

[5:03] Doesn't say that they sang. It doesn't say they sang. I made that up. Now, that's all, that's all very well.

[5:19] And I'm not saying throw away all the carols. All I'm saying is, I do need to be careful when I look into God's word that I don't read something in that's not there. I do need to be careful of that.

[5:32] Because sometimes, well, you know someone who has attended a church or does attend a church or has gone something along this route.

[5:49] What is the greatest commandment did Jesus say? What did, when Jesus was confronted and asked, what is the greatest commandment?

[6:01] He was asked by the doctors of the law. What did he respond? Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, mind, soul and strength and, and your neighbor as yourself.

[6:16] Now, you know someone who has taken that verse and said, therefore, that's the only thing that God really cares about. You know someone.

[6:29] Therefore, I determine what it means to love God. And I determine what it means to love my neighbor.

[6:42] And I could throw the rest, I can just bypass the rest of it. You know someone who's doing that. You know, you may even know someone who's doing that this morning.

[6:57] Or is attending a church that does something very similar to that. So, I need to be careful that number one, I don't read in. Or number two, I don't read out.

[7:09] When I see the bracelet, what would Jesus do? What Jesus would do is say, read the rest of what I said.

[7:21] I didn't stop talking after Luke, right? I spoke through the apostle Paul too.

[7:35] So, that's a warning to me. So, we don't know how many went, or which ones went, because God didn't tell me.

[7:47] All right. All right. So, what does Pharaoh ask these guys? Joseph's brethren. What's your occupation?

[8:02] That's kind of what Joseph told them he would ask them. So, what do they respond?

[8:15] What? We're shepherds just like our fathers were. I mean, we've been shepherds for generations.

[8:26] Okay. What do they ask of Pharaoh? Because they're shepherds. Which ground do they ask?

[8:42] Goshen. Please, therefore, let us live in Goshen. Now, they're up in the corner of Egypt, right?

[8:56] Up on the Nile Delta. All right. All right. What does Joseph say to, or what does Pharaoh then say to Joseph? Egypt's under your control?

[9:16] Egypt's under your control? Okay. If you know, what's that verse actually say?

[9:31] Verse six, I think it is, isn't it? Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Verse six contains. Now, whose doing is this?

[9:55] This is God's doing. God has a plan. He's moving forward it with. God has a plan with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with it with My father, who was a briar, he used to say, we're not going to put the market milk in a leaky bucket.

[10:44] That's verse 6. What does Pharaoh say to him? If you have an energetic, a capable man, put him in charge of my livestock. The person, now not everyone who is diligent is going to be exalted or moved up the ladder, if you will.

[11:05] But you can be sure of this, the people who are not diligent won't be. Right? That's what dad meant when he said, I don't carry the market milk in a leaky bucket.

[11:17] If you have somebody who's not reliable, you don't trust them with important stuff. That's a practical application for verse 6 there.

[11:31] Be diligent. If you would be advanced in your work, be diligent. Okay. We're at verse 7. Joseph then brings his father to Pharaoh.

[11:51] You see that? What does Pharaoh ask of Israel? How old are you? And what does Jacob answer?

[12:13] I'm 130 years old. And what? Short and...

[12:26] I'm sorry, what? Unpleasant or evil is King James. Short and evil have been my pilgrimage on the earth.

[12:40] I've not attained to the pilgrimage of my fathers. Now, I hadn't planned this, but it puts me in mind of something. I think it's Hebrews chapter 11.

[12:54] Hebrews chapter 11. No.

[13:04] No. No. No, it didn't move. I'm just not seeing. Okay.

[13:23] About verse 8. By faith, Abraham, when he was called of God, obeyed by going out to a place he was able to receive for an inheritance.

[13:36] And he went out not knowing where he was going. By faith, he had lived as an alien in the land of promise. He was promised Canaan, but he didn't own it then.

[13:47] As in a foreign land dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise. That's that pilgrimage business. And he was, because he was looking, verse 10, for a city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

[14:05] By faith, even Sarah, and therefore there was born one man, him who was good as dead, his descendants. Verse 13. All these died in faith without having received the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance.

[14:23] And having confessed that they were strangers and aliens or exiles on the earth. They were pilgrims. By the way, verse 13.

[14:34] Having not seen them, but welcomed them from the distance. They believed God. Put you in mind of Romans 8, doesn't it?

[14:46] Why do I have confidence in my eternal destiny? Because God said it. Because God said it. That's why I can have confidence.

[15:00] So, they had confidence, even though they didn't see it then. And verse 14. For those who say such things make it clear they're seeking a country of their own.

[15:13] And indeed, if they had been thinking, they would have had opportunity to return to the other one. But as it is, they desire a better country, a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God.

[15:27] He's prepared a city for them. And they confess themselves to be aliens and strangers on the earth. That's why the old song goes, I am a pilgrim and a stranger, a wandering through this wearisome land.

[15:48] I don't know why Roy Acuff came to my head. But there you go. Anyway, so, Jacob tells Pharaoh, I'm only 130 years old.

[16:03] I haven't attained the age of my father's. 130. Okay, Jacob. So, then, Jacob, what did he do before he left Pharaoh?

[16:26] Jacob blessed Pharaoh. Now, Pharaoh's a pagan. But still, Jacob's going to bless him.

[16:40] And we'll see some of that coming here. Where did Joseph then settle his family? In the best of the land, which was in?

[16:55] Yeah, in the area of Ramses, that is the land of Goshen. So, that's exactly where they settled. And what did Joseph do for his family for the remaining years of the famine?

[17:17] He provided them with food. According to their families, it says. For the remaining years. Now, when Israel and his household, and from now, I'll usually say when Israel came, I mean the whole of them, all right?

[17:40] When Israel came to Goshen, how many years of famine yet remained? Do you remember? It's been a long time since we read it.

[17:51] It's in chapter 45. Chapter 45, verse 6. Five years.

[18:09] They came pretty early in the famine, as far as a seven-year famine goes. So, there are five years left when they arrive.

[18:22] As it progresses then, we're in chapter 47, verses 13 forward. What does Joseph do?

[18:36] Pardon me. He gathered up all the money that was in the land of Egypt. Now, that may be a little hyperbolic, but basically, who owns, who has all the money now?

[18:56] Pharaoh has it all. Okay. But there are years left of the famine, aren't there? There's a long time left.

[19:07] So, we're going to continue with this famine business. What did Joseph do when the silver was exhausted in Egypt?

[19:21] Or practically exhausted? Ah. Okay. Tell you what. I'll trade your herds for bread.

[19:41] What did they do? They brought their livestock. What good are they if they're going to die and we're going to die?

[19:53] So, they brought all the livestock. Now, Pharaoh has the money and he has the herds. But the famine's not over.

[20:06] Okay. It continues. Now, he has the money and the livestock. What's left? Okay. Nothing except the land and our bodies.

[20:26] Now, who's talking here? The people of Egypt. These are Egyptians. What are they offering to do?

[20:40] Sell the land and become slaves. We'll be servants of Pharaoh. Only, don't let us die.

[20:53] So, what's Joseph do? He bought the land and essentially he enslaved all of Egypt.

[21:12] We're going to get to that in a moment. We have a political statement to say. Anyway, anyway, so, now, Pharaoh has the money.

[21:24] He has the livestock and he has the land and the people. How did all those great works get done?

[21:35] Well, they had a rotational work period because the people now are conscripted to work. and these are Egyptians at this point, not just Israel.

[21:54] So, Israel will come later into that conscripted work and later on, you know how that's going to go.

[22:05] But, right now, Pharaoh has everything. this is, by the way, how he got everything. How did he get everything? Who orchestrated this?

[22:19] Okay. God using Joseph. Right. Well, there's going to be a reason why he did this.

[22:33] So, what Joseph then had instituted back in, during the years of plenty, I forget which chapter that is.

[22:51] But, what did Joseph institute during the years of plenty? 20%. Right.

[23:01] Okay. You have this bountiful harvest and you're going to give up what? Nope. 20%. A fifth.

[23:13] You're going to give up a fifth to Pharaoh. And we're going to store it. Well, now, he's going to make that permanent. You see that?

[23:23] Look at verses 23 on. I have bought you this day and your land for Pharaoh.

[23:34] By the way, did he buy all the land? The priests' land were exempt. And the priests are exempt from the taxing.

[23:47] Because they're going to, Pharaoh is giving the priests their food. They're not included in this.

[23:59] And the house of Israel is being maintained by Joseph. But everybody in Israel, or everybody in Israel, everybody in Egypt, all the Egyptians, now, Joseph says, I have bought you, I bought your land, I bought your cattle.

[24:17] Now, here's what's going to happen. What? I'm going to give you some seed. And then what? Oh, right.

[24:39] Okay. So, he institutes permanently in Egypt a 20% tax. Incidentally, a 20% tax is, he calls it slavery.

[24:55] Next time you vote, think about that. Just saying. But, anyhow, God's orchestrating this.

[25:12] Joseph is implementing it. Now, how long did Jacob live in Egypt?

[25:33] 17 years. Until he was how old? He's 147. When he speaks to Pharaoh, he's 130.

[25:47] Now he's 147. Well, he lives to 147 years. So, he lived in Egypt. He lived in Egypt, as a person, 17 years.

[26:00] The time drew nigh, then, that he must die. So, as that time drew nigh, what did he ask of Joseph?

[26:19] Okay. Okay. But what? Okay. To where? And where is that?

[26:37] Okay. it, it's close there too. To the field of, it's where Abraham bought from the sons of Heth.

[26:48] To the cave of Mephala. So, he says, bury me there. Incidentally, that's why it's an important place to the Jews, even to this day, although they cannot go to visit it.

[27:06] But, if you get on the, as I understand it, if you get in the right grouping, Christians can go visit it.

[27:29] But, or at least where they say it is. You know, it's, it's a shrine, now. So, it was the field that Abraham had purchased.

[27:42] Abraham's buried there. Who else? Sarah? Isaac? And Rebecca?

[28:00] And who else? Leah's buried there. Well, what happened to Rachel?

[28:15] Rachel's buried near Bethel. Or, Bethlehem. Near Bethlehem. She died on the way. Giving birth to?

[28:28] Benjamin. Okay. Thank you for refreshing. So, he wants to be buried back there. So, he asked, he asked that, that they do that.

[28:43] Now, what does Joseph say? I'll do it.

[28:56] And, I think we'll stop there with your leave, and pick up then, next week, God willing, we'll end here.

[29:11] yeah. Have a great week. Thank you. Thank you.