Read Gen. 42:18-38
In the three days Joseph had devised a plan. He told his brothers that one brother would stay in prison and the others could take the corn back but they had to bring the youngest brother back with them when they came back. Then he would release the other brother. They conversed together in Hebrew, not realizing that Joseph could understand since he had spoken Egyptian the whole time he was with them. They reasoned that all this was happening to them because of what they had done to Joseph years ago. They probably retold their part in it and their remorse. Their sin had finally caught up with them. Rueben, the oldest reminded them that he tried to stop them but they wouldn’t listen. Joseph couldn’t take it and finally had to excuse himself and find a place to cry. When he returned he took Simeon, probably because as the next oldest he was most responsible for what had happened to him. He bound Simeon and took him away then had their sack filled with corn and put each man’s money back in their sack and gave them food for their way home. On the way home they realized they had their own money in their sacks. I bet they thought they had just left the Twilight Zone. They were accused of being spies, sent to prison, mercifully brought out of prison, given food to make it home and now had all their money restored. And one of them was still in prison. How crazy does it get? When they told everything to their father all he could think about was Benjamin. There was no way he was sending Benjamin back to that crazy man. No telling what he would do being as unpredictable as he was. Rueben offered his two sons as collateral and Jacob still wouldn’t send Benjamin so Simeon had a long time to sit in prison and think about his sin.
God is not concerned as much about our comfort and our time as he is our character. He has our whole life to conform us to his image and will do whatever it takes to break us.
Lord, help us to repent, bend, give up, whatever we need to do to reach the place that we are abiding in you and you in us.
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