Series Big Idea: "Showing how the early stories of Scripture establish God’s Plan of Salvation”

Sermon Big Idea: “Through Joseph’s pit of betrayal, God weaves His perfect plan of redemption”

Key Scripture (Genesis 37:12-24)

Have you ever felt like your life was spinning out of control? Maybe, like Joseph in our passage today, you were trying to do the right thing, but everything seemed to go wrong. Today's passage shows us how God works through trials to accomplish His greater purposes - just as He did with Joseph, and ultimately through Jesus Christ.

Let's turn to Genesis 37, beginning with verse 12. This is the third sermon in our series "The Blueprint of Redemption" as we journey through our chronological Bible reading plan together. While we often focus on Joseph's later years in Egypt, the seeds of God's redemptive plan were planted in these painful moments with his brothers.

(Genesis 37:12-24)

His brothers had gone to pasture their father’s flocks at Shechem. 13 Israel said to Joseph, “Your brothers, you know, are pasturing the flocks at Shechem. Get ready. I’m sending you to them.”“I’m ready,” Joseph replied.14 Then Israel said to him, “Go and see how your brothers and the flocks are doing, and bring word back to me.” So he sent him from the Hebron Valley, and he went to Shechem. 15 A man found him there, wandering in the field, and asked him, “What are you looking for?” 16“I’m looking for my brothers,” Joseph said. “Can you tell me where they are pasturing their flocks?” 17 “They’ve moved on from here,” the man said. “I heard them say, ‘Let’s go to Dothan.’ ” So Joseph set out after his brothers and found them at Dothan.18 They saw him in the distance, and before he had reached them, they plotted to kill him. 19 They said to one another, “Oh, look, here comes that dream expert! 20 So now, come on, let’s kill him and throw him into one of the pits. We can say that a vicious animal ate him. Then we’ll see what becomes of his dreams!” 21 When Reuben heard this, he tried to save him from them. He said, “Let’s not take his life.” 22 Reuben also said to them, “Don’t shed blood. Throw him into this pit in the wilderness, but don’t lay a hand on him”—intending to rescue him from them and return him to his father. 23 When Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped off Joseph’s robe, the long-sleeved robe that he had on. 24 Then they took him and threw him into the pit. The pit was empty, without water.

God’s Plans Often Begin with Pain

In verse 14, Jacob sends Joseph to check on his brothers' welfare. The Hebrew word used here is "shalom" - yes, the same word we know as "peace." But it means more than that - it encompasses total well-being, completeness, wholeness. How ironic that Joseph was sent to check on his brothers' shalom when they were about to completely shatter his peace.

In verse 15, we find Joseph "wandering" in the fields. The Hebrew word "ta'ah" suggests more than just physical lostness - it's the same word used throughout Scripture for spiritual wandering. Joseph's physical wandering foreshadows how he would soon be "lost" to his family yet found in God's greater purpose.

The Apostle Paul would later write words that could have encouraged Joseph that day: "For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory" (2 Corinthians 4:17). Think about Jesus, who like Joseph, was perfectly obedient to HIs Father’s will, even knowing it lead Him to the cross. Joseph went willingly to find his brothers, Jesus willingly came to seek and save the lost. While Joseph's obedience led him straight into danger, we're about to witness a profound truth: even the darkest human intentions can't derail divine providence.

Human Evil Cannot Override Divine Providence

When Joseph's brothers saw him coming, they plotted to kill him. But notice how God sovereignly worked through his brother Reuben to preserve Joseph's life. It's like a master weaver who uses even the dark threads to create a beautiful tapestry. Even the worst human evil cannot derail God's plans.

This truth finds its ultimate expression in Peter's words at Pentecost: "Though he was delivered up according to God's determined plan and foreknowledge, you used lawless people to nail him to a cross and kill him" (Acts 2:23). Just as God used the brothers' evil intentions for good, He used humanity's greatest evil - the crucifixion - to accomplish our salvation.

Some of you today might be facing betrayal from those who should love you most. Take heart - God can work even through others' evil intentions. Remember Joseph's own words in (Genesis 50:20). "You planned evil against me; God planned it for good." As Joseph's robe is stripped away and he descends into the pit, we discover a pattern that will echo throughout redemptive history - the pit is never the end of God's story.

The Pit is not the End of the Story

Look at verse 23 - they "stripped" Joseph of his robe. The Hebrew word "pashat" suggests violent action, the same word used for skinning sacrificial animals. This special robe, "ketonet" in Hebrew, wasn't just any garment. It's the same word used for the priestly garments and even the clothes God made for Adam and Eve. By stripping Joseph of this robe, his brothers were attempting to strip him of his identity and his father's favor.

They threw him into a "bor" - a pit or cistern. This word appears again when Joseph is thrown into prison in Egypt, and it's often used in the Psalms as a metaphor for the grave. Empty of water but full of significance, this pit points us to death and resurrection themes.

Paul understood this pattern of suffering and glory when he wrote, "My goal is to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings" (Philippians 3:10-11). Like Joseph, and ultimately like Christ, the path to resurrection power often leads through the pit of suffering. Jesus was stripped, betrayed by His brothers, and placed in a dark space. But just as God raised Joseph from the pit to save his people, He raised Jesus from the grave to save all people. As the dust settles around that empty cistern in Dothan, we're left with a truth that resonates from Joseph's day all the way to our own.

Conclusion:

Joseph's journey from the pit to the palace reminds us that God is working even in our darkest moments. Maybe today you feel stripped of your dignity, thrown into a pit of despair, betrayed by those you trusted. Remember - this is not the end of your story. The same God who worked through Joseph's trials to preserve His people, who raised Jesus from the dead to save the world, is working in your situation right now. Your current "pit" is not your final destination.

Pastor Beaver's thoughts and ideas are inspired by:

Holman Christian Standard Bible

English Standard Version Bible

King James Version Bible

Christian Standard Bible

Barton, Bruce et al. Life Application New Testament Commentary. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale, 2001. Print.

Walvoord, John F., and Roy B. Zuck, Dallas Theological Seminary. The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985. Print.

Walton, John H. Genesis Zondervan, 2001, p. 65.

Gangel, Kenneth O., and Stephen J. Bramer. Genesis. Edited by Max Anders, B&H Publishing Group, 2002, p. 9.

MacArthur, John F., Jr. The MacArthur Study Bible: New American Standard Bible. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2006. Print.

Robertson, A.T. Word Pictures in the New Testament. Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1933. Print.

Vincent, Marvin Richardson. Word Studies in the New Testament. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1887. Print.

Richards, Lawrence O. The Bible Reader’s Companion. electronic ed. Wheaton: Victor Books, 1991. Print.

Water, Mark, ed. Encyclopedia of Bible Facts. Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2004. WORDsearch CROSS e-book. 

NIV, Archaeological Study Bible, eBook: An Illustrated Walk Through Biblical History and Culture

Walter C. Kaiser Jr., Duane Garrett, and Walter C. Kaiser Jr.

NIV, First-Century Study Bible, eBook: Explore Scripture in Its Jewish and Early Christian Context

Zondervan, Kent Dobson, and Ed Dobson

Jamieson, Robert, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown. Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997.

Blum, Edwin A., and Trevin Wax, eds. CSB Study Bible: Notes. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017.

Barry, John D., Douglas Mangum, Derek R. Brown, Michael S. Heiser, Miles Custis, Elliot Ritzema, Matthew M. Whitehead, Michael R. Grigoni, and David Bomar. Faithlife Study Bible. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012, 2016.

Wilson, Neil S. The Handbook of Bible Application. Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2000.

Dockery, David S., ed. Holman Concise Bible Commentary. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1998.

Water, Mark. Key Word Commentary: Thoughts on Every Chapter of the Bible. AMG Publishers, 2003.

Brannan, Rick, and Israel Loken. The Lexham Textual Notes on the Bible. Lexham Bible Reference Series. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014.

Radmacher, Earl D., Ronald Barclay Allen, and H. Wayne House. Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1999.

Keener, Craig S. The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993.

Smith, Jerome H. The New Treasury of Scripture Knowledge: The Most Complete Listing of Cross References Available Anywhere- Every Verse, Every Theme, Every Important Word. Nashville TN: Thomas Nelson, 1992.

Hughes, Robert B., and J. Carl Laney. Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary. The Tyndale Reference Library. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2001.

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