After their lunch with Zaphnathpaaneah, for that
was Joseph's Egyptian name, the sons of Jacob found their sacks filled to full
quickly and they were sent on their way with all that they could handle. That
was easy, right? Well, not so fast. Brother Joe set them up with one last test.
He had his personal cup placed in Benjamin's sack.
After the men had gone only a short distance,
Joseph's steward caught them and accused them strongly of stealing his master's
cup. They were adamant. They had returned the money that had been mysteriously
present in their sacks before. Was that the behavior of thieves? They were so
confident of their innocence that they even offered the life of whoever was
guilty. So, when the steward searched
the sacks, the men were utterly horrified when Benjamin was the one who held
the cup.
When they stood before Joseph again, he tested
their sincerity strongly. He offered to let them all go home while Benjamin was
retained. They refused. Clearly something had changed since the day that they
had frivolously and casually sold Joseph into slavery.
Judah stepped up to the plate. Without realizing
that he was doing it, Judah gave the most persuasive argument possible to
Joseph as he implored him to spare them. He told "Zaphnathpaaneah"
that if he kept Benjamin, the loss would kill their father. Then he added that he would willingly stay in
Benjamin’s place.
Things had definitely changed. The brothers had
changed. God was gracious enough to give them a second chance... and they
passed the test!
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