"Now a certain man found him, and there he was, wandering in the field. And the man asked him, saying, 'What are you seeking?" Genesis 37:12-36 NKJV
Jacob sent Joseph out one day to find his brothers who were feeding the flocks in the fields of Shechem. Now this is some distance from where Joseph set out and it must have taken him a considerable time. We don't know if he walked or went by horse or donkey. However, he set off and eventually met up with a 'certain man' who asked him what he was seeking. He did this because Joseph was wandering around in the field, apparently lost.
Joseph told him that he was seeking his brothers. The man told him they had gone to Dothan, which was between 12 - 15 miles further on. He told Joseph that he had heard them discussing this. Now, who was this man? Joseph met him in the middle of nowhere and he knew all about his brothers. Did the man know his brothers? Was it someone who knew the family or was it an angel? It was an anomaly, one of the strange things that appear Impossible to work out. It may well have been the angel of the Lord - a theophany, which is an appearance of God or a god to a human being. In other words, a divine manifestation. This would have been similar to what happened to Moses with the burning bush, (Exodus 3). I favour this explanation as there doesn't appear to be any other explanation that is feasible.
Joseph went on his additional journey to Dothan and as he approached, the brothers saw him coming. 'Here comes the dreamer'. Now ordinarily within family, one would welcome another member happily. Not so here; they plotted to kill him and throw him in a pit. There was no limit to the evil that was in their hearts. They were scheming. Now, there is only one who plots evil and schemes and that is Satan. We're beginning to see who was pulling their strings.
Reuben stood in the gap, attempting to protect his brother. He suggested that Joseph not be harmed, but thrown into a pit instead. It was in his mind to come back and rescue him later. His brothers, at first thought it was a good idea as he could then be left to die there. After this was completed, they sat down and ate a meal. How could they do this? They appeared hard-hearted and full of hatred. The thought of it is beyond belief.
Just then, Judah had a thought, 'let's sell him, we can make money this way.' This was prompted by some travellers who happened to be passing by. They all agreed and Joseph was hoisted out of the pit and sold into slavery for 20 shekels of silver, which is roughly about £4.36 GBP today. This day, Joseph became a slave, sold by his own brothers. It is not unlike Judas betraying Jesus for 30 pieces of silver, which was about £6.55 today. there are some similarities in their deeds. Both were acts of betrayal and a total disregard for a human life.
The only touch of love that was shown here, was from Reuben. He planned to rescue him and take him back home. We need to be aware of hard-heartedness. It can creep up on us so easily; especially when we have been hurt, wronged, feel left out and jealous of someone else's success and generally mistreated. Ensure that you keep your eyes on Jesus every moment of every day.
Copyriight 2021 Grahame Howard
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