Matthew 1:22-25

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22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” 24 Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, 25 and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus. ~ Matthew 1:22-25

Today, we complete our study of Matthew 1. In our previous study, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and told him to name the child to be born to his fiancee Mary, Jesus because He would save His people from their sins. The virgin birth paved the way for God to be born a man and yet not be tainted by sin. He had to be a man in order to save man from his sin. The virgin birth made it so God’s mercy and grace wouldn’t compromise His justice. God’s mercy and grace creates within is a profound degree of gratitude. It also produces in us a greater degree of dependency because God does not take dependent people and make us independent. Our need for His grace and mercy will never end, even into eternity.

In v.22-23 of today's passage we read, "22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23 'Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,' which is translated, 'God with us.'"

Here, Matthew employed an Old Testament prophecy found in Isaiah 7 to explain the virgin birth. In Isaiah 7:10-14 we read, "10 Moreover the Lord spoke again to Ahaz, saying, 11 'Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord your God; ask it either in the depth or in the height above.' 12 But Ahaz said, 'I will not ask, nor will I test the Lord!' 13 Then he said, 'Hear now, O house of David! Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will you weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.'"

The Lord invited King Ahaz to pray, to request of Him a sign. King Ahaz refused to do so. Despite the King's refusal, the Lord, gave a sign to the "house of David." The sign was about the virgin birth of the Messiah who was to come. This sign was elaborated upon by two of the four Gospel writers, Matthew and Luke. While Luke shared his gospel through Mary’s eyes, Matthew presented his through the eyes of Joseph. Both stories are about the same miraculous birth. 

When Mary was found to be with child, Joseph was completely blindsided. Horrified by what Mary had undoubtedly done, Joseph planned to divorce her quietly. He did this because he didn’t want to expose her to public disgrace. He still cared for Mary, but he couldn’t have her as his wife. The girl that he thought he knew and loved turned out to be somebody that he thought he didn’t know. Joseph’s life had taken a very unexpected turn, in the blink of an eye, and he really wasn’t sure how to proceed. He was stunned! Joseph later discovered God had a plan for him the whole time. It wasn’t Joseph’s plan, but it was much better which is always the case with the Lord. When life takes us on a detour, it is very comforting to remember that God always has a plan that cannot in the end be thwarted. And when we believe that, and trust that, there is almost no detour too great to cause us to lose our way in our faith in the God of the Bible. 

"Immanuel" means, “God is with us.” As Immanuel, the Lord Jesus is the "with us God." This idea of God in the flesh with us shows up throughout the entirety of the Book of Matthew. It shows up here at the beginning, it shows up in the middle and then in the end. Here in the beginning, we read that Jesus is Immanuel, God with us. In the middle, in Matthew 18:20, the Lord Jesus reminded His disciples, "For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them." Then, the final words of the Lord Jesus are found in Matthew 28:20 which reads, "Behold, I am with you always to the end of the age."

No matter what unpredictable event takes place in our lives, the Lord Jesus promises to be with us, guiding us into the truth. In Joseph’s case, God guided him by an angel appearing to him in a dream. God in many ways appears to us, and He guides us in this life. It might be through a Bible verse that we come across at just the right time. It might be a well-timed phone call or a visit from a friend. It might be a verse of a hymn that we had not noticed before. It might be in some completely unexpected and surprising way. But when we have the eyes of faith, and when we trust that God is with us, we will recognize His leading. 

We are reminded of this promise in a very powerful way at the very end of Matthew’s gospel. After the Lord Jesus had been arrested, crucified, and raised from the dead, He again gathered His disciples together to send them out to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Before He sent them out, He reminded them of this promise. The last words spoken by the Lord Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel would echo the words spoken by the angel to Joseph before the Lord Jesus was even born. Words which are at the heart of the Gospel, "And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age." This also is His promise to you and me. 

Joseph and Mary were confronted with circumstances beyond their control. They were undoubtedly confused, frustrated, and scared. And, to their utter surprise, God was right in the middle with them. God became like one of us to be with us. Our preoccupation everyday should be to look for Him in everything. In the Lord Jesus, God became fully man while remaining fully God. This is the most extraordinary miracle in the whole Bible. The truthfulness of Christianity hinges upon this miracle. And, since this miracle is true, everything else in the Gospel accounts make total sense. We do not find it strange that the Lord Jesus walked on water or that He fed over 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish. It’s not strange to see Him healing the sick and commanding demons to leave the possessed. It’s not strange that He conquered sin and death as He rose from the grave. In the incarnation of the Lord Jesus, God Himself came to be with His people, never to leave us. Since our sin separated us from Him He became known as YHWH who saves the willing from the penalty of our sin.

In v.24-25 of today's passage we read, "24 Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, 25 and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus."

God's goal in becoming a man was to remedy our sin problem and thus enable us to enjoy His personal presence in our lives. Most think we enter into His kingdom through our goodness. But no one enters the kingdom of heaven because of their excellent moral resume. There is no such thing. Matthew makes it clear that those who come into the kingdom of the Lord Jesus have to be "saved" into His kingdom. The Lord Jesus came to bring us back to the Father by taking the penalty for our sin upon Himself while on the cross of Calvary.  

The Lord Jesus secured the kingdom for us by dying on that cross where He took our wages for us. In the Lord Jesus, God has done the unthinkable. The Lord Jesus died to save us from a life being defined by the self. To put it another way, the Lord Jesus died to save us to God’s definitions of life. I close with a quote from Charles Haddon Spurgeon who said, "The way to grow strong in Christ is to become weak in yourself. God poureth no power into man’s heart till man’s power is all poured out."

Matthew 1:19-21

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19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. 20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." ~ Matthew 1:19-21

Today, we return to our study of Matthew 1 where we discover that the mother of the Lord Jesus, Mary, was betrothed to Joseph. To be "betrothed" in the first century meant that they were married but they had not yet consummated the marriage. The consummation would come at the end of the year long betrothal period or their engagement period. Their betrothal was tantamount to a legally binding marriage without consummation. But, Mary was with child.

In v.19 of today's passage we read, "Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly."

Mary was with child, and Joseph was not the father. Joseph was a righteous man who loved Mary and wanted to protect her from public embarrassment. So then, he quietly sought a way to  divorce Mary. Since Mary’s actions were to result in stoning as required by Deuteronomy 22, Joseph determined to put her away secretly. 

In v.20 of today's passage we read, "But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.'"

The timing, location, and circumstances of how to divorce Mary weighed heavily on Joseph’s mind. But while he was considering these things, it was then that he fell asleep and had a dream. In that dream "an angel of the Lord appeared to him." The word, dream, here is found in the Bible only six times, and all six usages are found in Matthew’s gospel. In his dream, the angel appeared, "saying, 'Joseph, son of David.'"

It was Joseph’s relationship to King David that precipitated the events that transpired. In order to establish the male line of ancestry leading back to David for the rights of inheritance, Joseph's betrothed wife was selected by God to be the one through whom the Messiah would come into this world. No one else could have fit the bill and because of presumption, Mary was almost disqualified. Through the virgin birth, God went to great lengths to rescue us. He went to great lengths to redeem our broken lives. He went to great lengths to forgive our sins and to bring us back to Himself.  

To Joseph the angel said, "do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife." For first-century Jews, betrothal was a legally binding pledge between a man and a woman that they would be married. Once they were betrothed, they were legally bound to one another, so to call the wedding off would be the equivalent to divorce. Their engagement was supposed to last for a year. At the end of the year, Mary was supposed to move into Joseph’s home and the marriage would be consummated at that time. Joseph was not to fear to complete their union, because Mary was already set apart to be Joseph's wife. This is obvious because Joseph was planning on divorcing Mary, something one can only do with a wife. The angel gave unto Joseph the absolute assurance that Mary’s pregnancy was not of adultery but of God.

In v.21 of today's passage we read, "And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins."

The angel’s explanation of the purpose of God entering the world as a baby came in these words: "He will save His people from their sins." God entered human existence in order to save His people from their sins. But wait! The Jews thought that their adherence to the Law of Moses saved them. They believed their obedience to God earned them just enough favor with God to get them into heaven. To this day, observant Jews look at the law as fully capable of saving them. But no amount of human goodness bridges the gap created by our sin. God's standard is perfection and our goodness is far from perfect. When man first sinned all humans were separated from God. This is what is known as "spiritual death." This is why God Himself had to enter into human existence in order to rescue His people. He was born without sin. As He was born to Mary, the espoused bride of Joseph, He was born under the law. The law that He gave to Israel, and which no person under that law had ever been able to fulfill. This is why the burden had to be placed upon Him.

As He was born without sin, He did what no human could do, obey the law perfectly. The Lord Jesus obeyed and substantiated the entire law without erring. This is the ultimate message of the four gospels which were written to give testimony to the life of the sinless perfection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Entrance into the New Covenant is what brings freedom from sin, and it can only be obtained through  the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is why Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." 

Our sin separated us from God, so, the Lord Jesus Himself ransomed us. In 1 Corinthians 15:3-5 we read, "3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve."

Genesis ends with Joseph’s death. Deuteronomy ends with Moses’ death. Joshua ends with Joshua’s death. The Gospels end with Jesus’ resurrection. And that changed everything. Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. He was then buried. Then, He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures. This is the message that we proclaim. God in Christ has done it. He alone prevailed over sin because He had no sin. And He offers His sinless perfection to anyone who will come to Him by faith. 

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of our Christian faith. During the 40 days following His resurrection, the Lord Jesus showed Himself alive from the dead to as many as 500 at one time. He appeared many times and places to many people who told others what they had seen and no one refuted it. I close with a great quote from the late C.S. Lewis who once said, "I believe in Christ, like I believe in the sun — not because I can see it, but by it I can see everything else."

Matthew 1:18

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Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. ~ Matthew 1:18

Today, we continue our study of the gospel according to Matthew who was the seventh disciple called by the Lord Jesus. The first three Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, are known as the Synoptic Gospels, because they follow a synopsis. The synoptic gospels all have basically the same material and basic layout. In his gospel, the Apostle John departed from the approach of the other three gospel writers. Each of the four gospels all have a particular emphasis to them. Matthew emphasizes the Lord Jesus as the sovereign King predicted in the Old Testament. Mark portrays the Lord Jesus as the Servant of God while Luke portrays Him as the Son of Man. In his gospel, John places the spotlight on the Son of God.

It was 700 years before the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ to this earth that we were given Isaiah 7:14 which reads, "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel." Long before the Lord Jesus came, God told us that a young girl who had never had sex with a man would deliver the Son of God into this world. A virgin simply cannot be with child, this had to be a miracle of God. Interestingly, we were first told of this in Genesis 3:15 which reads, "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel." These words were spoken by God to the fallen Lucifer after he deceived man to take of the forbidden fruit. Without a doubt we have here a most remarkable prophecy of the virgin birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. This prophecy cannot be explained in any other way other than that it is the fulfillment of the virgin birth. This concept of the seed of the woman is unique. Nowhere else in the Bible do we find such an expression. 

Everywhere else in Scripture descent is reckoned through the male line. It is the seed of the man that is the line of descent and all the genealogies of the Bible trace the line of descent through the male. The father's name is given and when the mother's name is given it is only incidental, as referring to the wife of some man. This is the first Messianic prophesy in the Bible right here in Genesis 3:15. Here, right after the Fall of man into sin, God stated that the woman will have a male Seed, an offspring who will eventually crush the devil.

There are those who argue that Isaiah used a word which could mean young girl. However, Matthew’s use of this word demands it be translated “virgin.” When speaking of genealogies, it is always the seed of man referenced. Never is it the seed of the woman because we know the woman has no seed. But in Genesis 3:15, we read of "the Seed of the woman." A careful consideration of that passage reveals it was the Seed of God. Due to this, we believe the Lord Jesus to be fully God & fully Man. 

In Matthew 1:18 we further read, “She was found with Child through the Holy Spirit.” Mary was a human and this Child was the product of her womb, and thus this Child was human. The Holy Spirit is God, not a human. If one then accepts the obvious interpretation of Scripture, then Mary’s Child is the Son of God. Humanly speaking there was no seed involved because Mary and Joseph had not yet consummated their marriage. The seed was of our heavenly Father and it was that Seed that determined Mary’s Child to be the Son of God.

What we have here is the most incredible occurrence which has ever come to pass in all of time. The creation of the universe pales in comparison to everything else. When God created, He created everything ex-nihilo or “out of nothing.” By the power of His spoken word, time, space and matter came into being. Everything that we see, even to the farthest reaches of the universe, came into existence at that one moment. It is an incredible thing to contemplate, but it is of far less significance to the enormity of what occurred in the womb of the teen named Mary.

In a flash as brief as the utterance of the word of creation itself, life sprung into existence in her womb. The Lord Jesus had always existed, even before creation, He had no beginning. What a paradox & yet what an event on the greatest scale. God united with His creation in that teenage womb. Amazingly, it was at the very moment of conception that a bright flash of life marked this incredible event. For Mary, there was darkness in her womb, and then there was the Light. The Light of the world had come. God stepped into our darkness and began to reveal Himself!

The God who brought all things into existence by a mere utterance limited Himself in the womb of a teen. The light of ten trillions suns combined are not as bright as the Light who created them. This same Light sparked in the womb of Mary as 

“She was found with Child through the Holy Spirit.” In this Light, there is no darkness, thus there is no fear. And yet, the temple of God, pure and undefiled, was prepared in a human body of a young teenage girl. How vulnerable of God to do this.

The Light stepped into His creation in order to restore all that had gone astray. What a marvel occurred in the dark recesses of that virgin womb! The Deliverer came to set captives free! 

The Light of the world had come as God’s divine beacon to rescue man from himself. The Lord God Almighty condescended in order to be among us. While I prepared for this message, I thought, “Is it that we are in darkness that we choose the darkness?” Then I thought, "No, wait… that can’t be it. In the perfection of the Garden of Eden Adam was surrounded by light and he chose the darkness. Only after making the choice did he want the light once again and that wasn’t immediate. That must be it then, without knowing one from the other we can’t know which one we want. That must be why God allowed it all to happen, and then to step in and give us a choice as to which we would choose. The genius of the Almighty!

The Light of the world came to show us the contrast. We can love the Light, or we can love darkness. The choice is ours. And sure enough, this is what the Light Himself said in John 3:18-21, while talking at night with Nicodemus, the Lord Jesus said to him, “18 He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

The distinction can be seen, the choice must be made, and all will pursue only one of two paths: to pursue the Light or to remain in the darkness. God created all things out of nothing. 

He created something separate from Himself and yet which is contained within His omnipresence. And then He joined together with that which He created, all for the sake of frail, fallible, rebellious beings who otherwise had no hope at all.

In that stupendously marvelous act, God has given us a choice. We can continue on in the darkness, or we can come to the Light. The perfection of the Lord Jesus Christ is seen from His moment of conception, through His birth in a lowly manger, in each step He ever took, and in each word He ever spoke. The perfection of the Lord Jesus Christ is seen in His ability to stand up under a torturous death on a wooden cross.

Yes, I know He died, He had to in order to defeat death because only life overcomes death. This is why His blood had to be shed and it was through His perfect blood that our sin was carried away as far as the east is from the west. And, through His resurrection do we see the victory which He has now shared with us who believe. The Child in the womb, the Baby in the manger, the Teacher on the mountain, the lifeless Body on the cross, is the God-Man who now stands victorious over death. 

Matthew 1:2-17

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2 Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram. 4 Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon. 5 Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, 6 and Jesse begot David the king. David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah. 7 Solomon begot Rehoboam, Rehoboam begot Abijah, and Abijah begot Asa. 8 Asa begot Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat begot Joram, and Joram begot Uzziah. 9 Uzziah begot Jotham, Jotham begot Ahaz, and Ahaz begot Hezekiah. 10 Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Amon, and Amon begot Josiah. 11 Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon. 12 And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel. 13 Zerubbabel begot Abiud, Abiud begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor. 14 Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Achim, and Achim begot Eliud. 15 Eliud begot Eleazar, Eleazar begot Matthan, and Matthan begot Jacob. 16 And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations. ~ Matthew 1:2-17

Today, we continue our study of the gospel according to Matthew who was led to provide us with a descending genealogy of the Lord Jesus Christ which means he started with the beginning and ended with the Lord Jesus.  Whereas in Matthew the genealogy of the Lord Jesus led up to Mary's husband Joseph, Luke's gospel starts with the Lord Jesus through his mother Mary and goes back to Adam. The genealogy that Matthew employed reveals the legal descent of the Lord Jesus as the King of Israel, whereas Luke shows us the blood line. The royal line always passes through the father but the Lord Jesus had no human father. So, in order to have the blood line, he had to be a descendant of David through his mother. Through Mary the Lord Jesus had the blood of David, and through Joseph he has the right to reign as King through King David.  

In v.16 of today's passage we read, "And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ."

Matthew did not say he was the father of the Lord Jesus, he said that Joseph was the husband of Mary. The Bible never calls Joseph the father of the Lord Jesus. The prepositional phrase "of whom" was written in the feminine gender, meaning the Lord Jesus was born not of the seed of Joseph. The Lord Jesus was Joseph’s child legally because He was adopted into Joseph's family. And, since the father was the one who granted the royal line, in every way possible Jesus Christ had the right to be the King of Kings.   

When the Lord Jesus was born most people thought, at least at the time of His birth, that He was the son of an illicit affair. They called him the son of Joseph because Joseph was constituted his legal father but Joseph was not His biological father.

In v.11 of today's passage we read, "Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon."

Josiah begot Jeconiah. Here, Matthew  provides Joseph’s lineage leading up to the birth of the Lord Jesus. This is some very interesting and important information. In Jeremiah 22:30 we read, "Thus says the Lord: 'Write this man down as childless, a man who shall not prosper in his days; for none of his descendants shall prosper, sitting on the throne of David, and ruling anymore in Judah." 

The man to whom this refers is Jeconiah, the son of Josiah. God had said through the prophet, "None of Jeconiah’s offspring will ever sit on the throne of David." God said these words because a curse had been placed on Jeconiah due to his evil choices. The problem with this curse is it seems to invalidate the right of the Lord Jesus to the throne of David. The Davidic Covenant promised that the Messiah, "the Son of David," would reign forever on Jerusalem’s throne. If the Lord Jesus were a descendant of Jeconiah, then how could He be the Messiah, since the curse keeps any of Jeconiah’s descendants from assuming David’s throne? That is, if the Lord Jesus had been the real son of Joseph, but He wasn't the descendent of Joseph. God devised a plan by which the Lord Jesus could be the legal heir to the throne through Mary. The plan that God devised was the virgin birth. The purpose for Matthew's genealogy is to present the fact that the Lord Jesus is the One who has the right to reign.  

Once again, in v.16 of today's passage we read, "And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ."

Mary was unknown before this. She was also a sinner who needed a savior and the Lord Jesus Christ had to be her savior.  

In v.17 of today's passage we read, "So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon are fourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations."

Here, Matthew provided three sections of 14 generations. There are 42 generations listed from Abraham to Christ. The first period began with Abraham and ended with David, the period of the great patriarchs and the great judges. The second period is the period from David to the carrying away of the people to Babylon, which was a period of spiritual decline. The first was a period of ascendency, as Israel grew as a people group. The second period was the period of the monarchy. And as soon as the monarchy came things started to go downhill because the people began to look to man for direction and meaning rather than from God.

From David following, we were given the glory days of Solomon. But after Solomon, tragedy upon tragedy came. It was a period of apostasy that ultimately ended up in the destruction of Israel and their captivity in Babylon. The third period was from their captivity in Babylon to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. This was a period shrouded in darkness. It was 600 years of datelessness. We don’t even know the names involved. The story of Israel is the story of three eras. And, even though the whole nation went down the tubes, it is nevertheless through that nation that the Messiah came to redeem us. 

The odds that the Lord Jesus Christ overcame in order to fulfill the predictions made in the OT are overwhelming. The odds that the Lord Jesus would fulfill just 8 of the 300 Old Testament prophecies was one and ten to the 17th power. If we were to take the entire State of Texas and fill it with silver dollars two feet thick.  If we were to pre-marked one silver dollar and blind-fold a man and send him throughout the state of Texas to find the silver dollar we marked, the odds would be one and ten to the 17th power, the same odds of the Lord Jesus fulfilling just eight Old Testament prophecies. Staggering! And most interesting, this provides us a peek into the greatness of our God. We should never doubt Him. His track record speaks for itself.

Matthew 1:1

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"The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham." ~ Matthew 1:1

Today, we begin a new study of the Gospel according to Matthew. Four hundred years separated the Old Testament from the New Testament. This is why that period of time is called the 400 silent years. God didn't say anything to man during those 400 years. He sent no angels, no prophets or no message. After the last Old Testament prophet, Malachi, God pushed the pause button on special revelation. God did this anticipating the forerunner John the Baptist. 

In Malachi 3:1 we read, "'Behold, I send My messenger, and he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,' says the Lord of hosts." The last prophecy in the Old Testament was that someone would come heralding the coming of the Messiah. And that Herald was the cousin of the Lord Jesus, John the Baptist.

The New Testament is in the Old Testament contained while the Old Testament is in the New Testament explained. The first four books of the New Testament are all called gospels. Gospel means good news. The good news is that God sent His Son to this earth to die in the place of sinful man on the cross of Calvary. Our problem is that we do not understand the enormity of that which has been done to us by Lucifer. Sin is often seen as "something bad" but that view limits our understanding. Until we see sin as a fatal illness that causes terrible side effects or utter wickedness, we will not appreciate our salvation through the cross of the Lord Jesus. 

Sin begets sin, evil spreads through evil. Think of all the cyclical expressions of evil in this world, everything from physical abuse to murder to drug abuse which all morph themselves into the most horrid sins. This is the nature of sin, it progressively becomes more and more raunchy. The Bible directs our attention to the source of this progression and the source is the powers and principalities of darkness actively fighting for rule over all. Sadly, even though they gain more and more control they will never be satisfied in their pursuits because sin never satisfies. 

So when we look at the four Gospels, it is as if the Holy Spirit was the producer of the film of the life of the Lord Jesus, and He filmed through four different camera angles. The first three Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, are called Synoptic Gospels, because they follow a synopsis. The synoptic gospels all have basically the same material. In his gospel, John departed from the synoptic approach. 

Each of the four have a particular emphasis. Matthew emphasizes the Lord Jesus as the sovereign King, Mark presents Him as the Servant of God. Luke portrays the Lord Jesus as the Son of Man. And, John places the spotlight on the Lord Jesus as the Son of God. Mark wrote to the Roman mind while Luke wrote to the Greeks. While John wrote his gospel to all mankind, Matthew, wrote his to the Jews.  

There is one particular sentence that Matthew penned 16 times in his gospel. That sentence is "This was done so that it might be fulfilled what was written by a prophet." Matthew proves the Lord Jesus fulfilled many Old Testament prophecies. Also, Matthew emphasizes the words the Lord Jesus employed as He communicated with all of mankind. This is why in his gospel Matthew included the long sermons of the Lord Jesus like the Sermon on the Mount and the Upper Room Discourse.    

Matthew was a Tax Collector who worked for the Roman version of the IRS. This meant everybody hated Matthew. In those days, the Jews hated the IRS in Rome because the Romans occupied their land and they took advantage of their people financially. Matthew collected taxes for Rome from his countrymen and they saw him as their sworn enemy.   

The book of Matthew begins with a genealogical record of the lineage of the Lord Jesus Christ. Interestingly, women were included which was not something done in those days. People claim that the Bible represses women. The reality is that the Bible is a document that was way ahead of its time. The fact that women were included in the genealogy of the Lord Jesus was counter cultural because in that day no one valued women. In Matthew 1:3, we see "Tamar" mentioned. In v.5, both "Rahab" and "Ruth" are mentioned. Bathsheba or the woman known as "the wife of Uriah" is mentioned in v.6. "Mary," the mother of the Lord Jesus is mentioned in v.16. These are all in the genealogy of the Savior of the world. That speaks volumes about God's mercy and grace.

Throughout the Old Testament, the Jews meticulously maintained their genealogical records from Adam until the Lord Jesus Christ, ensuring to us that the Messiah could be absolutely identified when He appeared. In AD 70, all of the genealogical records of Israel were destroyed when the temple was burned by the Romans. As this is so, the only source for the genealogies of the world are maintained in the pages of the Bible. And the full genealogical record of only one Jew remains to this day, the Lord Jesus Christ who alone can be identified as the Savior who has come to take away the sin of the world.  

Matthew’s Gospel account specifically notes that the Lord Jesus Christ is the true promised Messiah of Israel and the Christ of the world. To further establish this, he identified the Lord Jesus as "The Son of David." David means "beloved." Matthew purposefully highlighted that the Lord Jesus came through the genealogy of King David to begin his narrative in order to establish that the Lord Jesus is fully entitled to the rights of the Davidic throne as promised in 2 Samuel 7. 

Matthew then identifies the Lord Jesus Christ as "the Son of Abraham." When the disciples were disheartened and thought that all was lost because of the crucifixion of the Lord, they were gathered together. At that time, just after hearing from two men on the road to Emmaus who had seen the risen Lord, Luke records in Luke 24:36-39 these words, "Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, ‘Peace to you.' 37 But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit. 38 And He said to them, 'Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.'"

Doubts arise in every heart regarding these matters. The words of reality speak to our hearts at this very moment. Given the state of our world, we naturally wonder if God is there. So many things in this world seem out of control. We naturally find ourselves discouraged as the world spins into chaos all around us. One of the main reasons the Lord has given us His Word is to ensure that He is aware of everything that is happening and that there are many purposes that are coming to fruition even through calamity. Our problem is that we do not have His vantage point. This is why our faith in Him is so important. 

These carefully recorded words of Matthew 1:1 should fill us with the most joyous hope. We don’t need to wonder, worry, or wobble in our faith. We also do not need signs or wonders to convince us that God is here with us. Rather, God has given us His word and He asks us to believe in Him. Christianity is a person. If it were just a teaching or a philosophy then historical events in the Bible would not matter. If Christianity was merely a new outlook on life, then dates would be of concern. Since Christianity is based upon and concerned with the person of Christ, one can recall that there was a given day when He was born. If we were to take away Christ, there would be no Christianity. In God’s covenant with King David, He established that it would be through his posterity that His universal kingdom would be fulfilled. And, through the Lord Jesus it has been.

Genesis 50:22-26

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22 So Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he and his father’s household. And Joseph lived one hundred and ten years. 23 Joseph saw Ephraim’s children to the third generation. The children of Machir, the son of Manasseh, were also brought up on Joseph’s knees. 24 And Joseph said to his brethren, “I am dying; but God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land to the land of which He swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” 25 Then Joseph took an oath from the children of Israel, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.” 26 So Joseph died, being one hundred and ten years old; and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt. ~ Genesis 50:22-26

Today, we conclude our long study of the book of beginnings, the book of Genesis. This book of Genesis gives us the first of everything including the beginning of all creation, the beginning of sin, the beginning of sacrifices, the beginning of redemption, and the beginning of eternal life. As we have noted before, in this final chapter there are three burials: the burial of Jacob, the burial of Joseph's brothers' sin, and finally the burial of Joseph. Today, we will close out our study of this great book by considering what God has to say about Joseph's death. 

In v.22 of today's passage we read, "So Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he and his father's household. And Joseph lived one hundred and ten years."

Joseph was born right around the year 2260 BC. He lived 110 years and he died in the year 2370 BC. Joseph lived 54 years after the death of his father, Jacob. He remained in Egypt for the remainder of his days. When he was 17 years old he was sold into slavery by his brothers to Ishmaelite traders from Midian who took him to Egypt. As a result, Joseph lived in Egypt for 93 years. The remainder of his days were spent outside of the Land of Promise. The only time Joseph left Egypt was when he went to bury his father in Canaan. In all, Joseph was the second most powerful man in Egypt for 80 years.  

In v.23 of today's passage we read, "Joseph saw Ephraim’s children to the third generation. The children of Machir, the son of Manasseh, were also brought up on Joseph’s knees."

Joseph lived long enough to see his great-great grandchildren. In all, there were five generations of Joseph’s family living at the same time which was in fulfillment of Jacob’s blessing of Ephraim over Manasseh before his death. In the line of Manasseh, only his grandchildren are noted during his life. Being "brought up on his knees" means Joseph's grandchildren enjoyed a close relationship with their grandpa involving the passing on of his wisdom and God's blessings from one generation to the next.

In v.24 of today's passage we read, "And Joseph said to his brethren, 'I am dying; but God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land to the land of which He swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.'"

With the sure knowledge of his soon death, Joseph repeated the promise of God to his brothers. In doing so, Joseph emphasized our absolute need to be defined by the Lord on a day by day basis. While the world and our flesh tells us to be self-confident, the Bible reminds us to find our confidence only in the Lord GOD. Confidence in ourselves is circumstantial. It is often based on our pant size, how much money we make, or whether we fit in to the context we find ourselves. If our confidence is in God, we will grow to be the most secure people in the world. As a result of knowing God and His will for our lives, we will have the courage to take the risks that He calls us to take. We will love others, dream big, and think and do the unbelievable by His grace.

In v.25 of today's passage we read, "Then Joseph took an oath from the children of Israel, saying, 'God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.'"

Joseph knew what he believed and he subsequently belonged. His disposition was rarely determined by anything outside of his faith in the God of the Bible. These are the last recorded words of Joseph. Just like his father before him, Joseph now required an oath from the sons of Israel. Despite bearing an Egyptian name, having an Egyptian wife, and being the second ruler of the land, Joseph remained always and forever an Israelite. His desires for his people and His land never faded and his devotion to the God of the Bible never wavered. And so once again, he repeated the promise of God’s presence among his people and his desire to have his bones buried in Canaan.

In Hebrews 11:22 we read, "By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones."

Despite all of the many things Joseph did and the faithful patience he exhibited towards his circumstances and those around him who afflicted him, Joseph was above all noted for his faith in the unseen God. His was a testimony that God simply desires and requires of us simple faith. For many, faith is based on creeds, doctrine, and head knowledge. It's about mastering the "facts" and making sure we give the "right" answer when any spiritual question is asked. But biblical faith is not about mastery but about mystery, and that living in that mystery allows us to focus on our relationship with the God who created us and who is recreating us.

Joseph's request was fulfilled by the Israelites as they marched out of Egypt approximately 286 years later. We are told in Exodus 13 which specifically says that they carried Joseph’s bones out with them. And eventually another generation of Israelites carried them into the land of promise and buried him as is recorded in Joshua 24. And so the narrative of the immediate family of Israel ends with the promise of redemption from Egypt which is based on the oath made first by God to Abraham. 

In v.26 of today's passage we read, "So Joseph died, being one hundred and ten years old; and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt."

Upon Joseph's death, he became the second and last person noted in the Bible as being embalmed. After this, his remains were placed in a "coffin." This is the first usage of word "coffin" in the Bible. The next time this word is used will be to describe the Ark of the Covenant. Everything associated with the Ark of the Covenant points us to the Lord Jesus Christ, especially the MERCY SEAT where God sees us as forgiven through the blood of His Son. Joseph’s coffin was probably made of the same wood as the Ark, acacia wood which is incorruptible. 

The book of Genesis began with creation, including the creation man. No sooner had man been created did he rebel against God and spiritual death came to be his norm. Since that time, the premise of the Bible is that man is born to die and physical death has become a scary reality for us all. The book of Genesis ends without the fulfillment of the promise of the savior. But God's promise of our savior and His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ has been fulfilled through the cross of Calvary. The Lord Jesus overcame sin and death by laying down His life. When this gospel is met by our faith, we will have similar faith to that of Joseph, bold and confident.

Genesis 50:15-21

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15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “Perhaps Joseph will hate us, and may actually repay us for all the evil which we did to him.” 16 So they sent messengers to Joseph, saying, “Before your father died he commanded, saying, 17 ‘Thus you shall say to Joseph: “I beg you, please forgive the trespass of your brothers and their sin; for they did evil to you.” ’ Now, please, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of your father.” And Joseph wept when they spoke to him. 18 Then his brothers also went and fell down before his face, and they said, “Behold, we are your servants.” 19 Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? 20 But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. 21 Now therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones.” And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them. ~ Genesis 50:15-21

Today, we continue our study of Genesis 50 which has in it three burials: the burial of Jacob, the burial of Joseph's brothers' sin, and the burial of Joseph. Having considered Jacob's burial, today, we will consider the burial of the sin of Joseph's brothers.

In v.15-18 of today's passage we read, "15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, 'Perhaps Joseph will hate us, and may actually repay us for all the evil which we did to him.' 16 So they sent messengers to Joseph, saying, 'Before your father died he commanded, saying, 17 Thus you shall say to Joseph: 'I beg you, please forgive the trespass of your brothers and their sin; for they did evil to you. Now, please, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of your father.' And Joseph wept when they spoke to him. 18 Then his brothers also went and fell down before his face, and they said, 'Behold, we are your servants.'"

This reconciliation between once estranged brothers pictures the story which this life is all about: Our reconciliation to God through the Lord Jesus Christ. However, Joseph's brothers were worried that Joseph might seek his revenge. Joseph's brothers projected their way of thinking upon Joseph although he never considered their way of thinking that comes as a result of feeding the flesh. This entire story is pregnant with the sin of the brothers who resisted being defined by God. This explains why they had a hard time understanding Joseph's forgiveness.

As we have mentioned before, there are three parts to forgiveness: the injury, the debt created by the injury and the cancellation of the debt. The brothers of Joseph who refer to themselves as the servants of God confessed their sin and asked Joseph for his forgiveness. In doing so, Joseph's brothers got religious with Joseph. Religion requests that we earn the favor of the one to whom we appeal for forgiveness. This is the way of the self life. Oh, it is good to confess our sin to God and to anyone whom we have injured. But, confession doesn't earn anything from the one who decides according to his character whether to forgive or not. 

Joseph's brothers failed to realize that Joseph had placed his fate and his life in the hands of the Lord from his earliest days. He accepted his lot at Potiphar’s house. He also accepted it when he was thrown into prison, just as he accepted it when he was elevated to the highest position in Egypt. Everything in Joseph’s life revealed his utter trust in God who was directing his every move. He was assured that what his brothers intended for evil, God intended for good. And because of this, when he received their words, he broke down and wept. His brothers didn’t comprehend God’s hand in all of what occurred and how it would affect them. This was all due to their lack of trust in the Lord, even after his many demonstrations of care for them over their lives. They desired forgiveness from a brother who had long ago forgiven them. 

In v.19-21 of today's passage we read, "19 Joseph said to them, 'Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? 20 But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. 21 Now therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones.' And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them."

What is down in the well will always come up in the bucket. Joseph was a godly man because he was being defined by God. Unlike his brothers, he did not even think of usurping God's position as the Supreme Being in his life. This is why Joseph brought attention to it with this question that he asked his brothers. His question proved that he had a very big view of God. When we do not allow God to be the Supreme Being in our lives, we welcome a puny view of Him into our souls.

It was then that Joseph sought to soothe his brothers' consciences. He did not want them to be riddled with guilt or to be estranged from him. Joseph desired complete reconciliation with his brothers. He wanted them to be completely comfortable being around him. He didn’t want anything to separate them. He wanted to make sure that they knew that they were forgiven. Then, to prove his forgiveness, Joseph promised to take care of them and their children as well.   

He then comforted his brothers and spoke kindly to them. There was no bitterness held against them. Joseph had no ill feelings against his brothers who had treated him so poorly. He did not withhold anything from them or hope that something bad would happen to them. He sought to develop the relationship and put on actions in keeping with his forgiveness.

Genesis 50:7-14

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7 So Joseph went up to bury his father; and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt, 8 as well as all the house of Joseph, his brothers, and his father’s house. Only their little ones, their flocks, and their herds they left in the land of Goshen. 9 And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen, and it was a very great gathering. 10 Then they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, and they mourned there with a great and very solemn lamentation. He observed seven days of mourning for his father. 11 And when the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, "This is a deep mourning of the Egyptians." Therefore its name was called Abel Mizraim, which is beyond the Jordan. 12 So his sons did for him just as he had commanded them. 13 For his sons carried him to the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, before Mamre, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite as property for a burial place. 14 And after he had buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt, he and his brothers and all who went up with him to bury his father. ~ Genesis 50:7-14

Today, we continue our study of the last chapter of the book of Genesis where Joseph was traveling with his brothers back to their homeland, Canaan, to bury their father. As we mentioned yesterday, there are three burials in this chapter: the burial of Jacob, the burial of Joseph's brothers' sin, and Joseph's burial. In today's passage, we will continue to consider the people's mourning of Jacob's death.

In v.7-9 of today's passage we read, "7 So Joseph went up to bury his father; and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt, 8 as well as all the house of Joseph, his brothers, and his father’s house. Only their little ones, their flocks, and their herds they left in the land of Goshen. 9 And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen, and it was a very great gathering."

Grief is the emotional suffering we feel when something or someone we love dies. This pain should prompt us to seek the Lord who is truly the only one who can provide healing for our broken hearts. In Psalm 63:1-3 we are reminded that when we find ourselves in a "dry and exhausted land where there is no water," we do well to cry out to the Lord and His comforting presence. In these moments we do well to bring all of our pain and all of our emptiness to Him, asking Him to remind us once again that His  "love  is  better  than  life." He is sufficient to fill the deepest yearnings of our soul. And so, in the end, grief and lamenting is a call to worship.

Seven times the word "up" is used in this chapter, subtly reminding us from where our hope comes. Yes, I know that "up" describes the direction they travelled to get back to the promised land, however, they were returning to the land that God had promised them and they were smack dab in the center of God's will for them. Ironically, God used the death of Jacob to get them back there. Often this is the case where God uses an unwanted experience to get us to where we should be for His glory.

In his book, The Problem of Pain,  C.S. Lewis wrote, "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world." The roar of pain itself can prove deafening. Due to this, we often have trouble discerning its words. Turning down the distortion enough to hear the message requires a response of faith in the God of the Bible on our part. When we seek the Lord’s sufficiency through prayer and the reading of His word, asking Him to calm our souls, we will hear what pain screams into our souls.

Interestingly, the cabinet of Pharaoh traveled with Joseph and his family back to Canaan to mourn the passing of Jacob even though the journey was some 300 miles. The journey was so far that the children and the animals remained back in Goshen. This is the last time that Goshen is mentioned in Genesis. The only time it is mentioned beyond Genesis will be two more times in the book of Exodus. Goshen means "drawing near" and is a great reminder of our need to draw near to the Lord especially when we are in pain.

Along with the many mourners went a multitude of charioteers and horsemen to guard the procession. Because of the arrangement of those in procession, it would not be considered a military threat under normal circumstances, but because of the large number, there could have been a misunderstanding by the people in Canaan. So sending along the chariots and horsemen was a sign of military honor.

In v.10-11 of today's passage we read, "10 Then they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, and they mourned there with a great and very solemn lamentation. He observed seven days of mourning for his father. 11 And when the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, 'This is a deep mourning of the Egyptians.' Therefore its name was called Abel Mizraim, which is beyond the Jordan."

Eventually, the procession arrived at the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan River. This is only the fourth time the Jordan has been mentioned in the Bible. Jordan means "to descend" or "death." It was there at the threshing floor that the procession stopped to collectively mourn the honored patriarch one last time. In all, another seven days of mourning were observed before Jacob's body was moved to its final resting place. The Canaanites saw the great mourning going on and they certainly heard it as well. The middle eastern funeral was and is an exceptionally loud experience. The Egyptians stayed on the other side of the Jordan River while Joseph and his brothers took the body of Jacob across to his resting place.

In v.12-14 of today's passage we read, "12 So his sons did for him just as he had commanded them. 13 For his sons carried him to the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, before Mamre, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite as property for a burial place. 14 And after he had buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt, he and his brothers and all who went up with him to bury his father."

More detail has been given to Jacob's burial than almost every other burial in Genesis combined. Jacob is one of two embalmed in the Bible, the other was Joseph. The patriarchs came into the world with nothing and they left with nothing. They owned only two plots of land including the cave in the field of Machpelah where the patriarchs were buried. The fact that the patriarchs only owned two plots of land reveals where their true home was located. They saw themselves as mere travelers through the earth. 

In Hebrews 11:13 we read, "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth."

Biblical faith reminds us of a greater future hope that we often see from a distance. It is this faith in the God of the Bible that reminds us that nothing in this world will satisfy us and we must be careful to avoid the lie that it will. When we begin to believe the lie that this world can satisfy us, we are positioned to have our hearts captured by the enemy of our souls. Living as foreigners and strangers in this world frees us to enjoy the father heart of God and His culture instead of being enslaved by chasing the empty promises of this world. It is quite helpful to remember that this world is under the control of Satan himself, and he is not out to lead us to wholesomeness.

Genesis 50:1-6

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1 Then Joseph fell on his father’s face and wept over him, and kissed him. 2 And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel. 3 Forty days were required for him, for such are the days required for those who are embalmed; and the Egyptians mourned for him seventy days. 4 Now when the days of his mourning were past, Joseph spoke to the household of Pharaoh, saying, "If now I have found favor in your eyes, please speak in the hearing of Pharaoh, saying, 5 'My father made me swear, saying, "Behold, I am dying; in my grave which I dug for myself in the land of Canaan, there you shall bury me." Now therefore, please let me go up and bury my father, and I will come back.'" 6 And Pharaoh said, "Go up and bury your father, as he made you swear." ~ Genesis 50:1-6

Today, we transition into the last chapter of the book of Genesis where three burials are evident: the burial of Jacob, the burial of Joseph's brothers sin exacted upon Joseph, and Joseph's burial. Death is an inevitable part of life. While rituals conducted around death vary from culture to culture, most of them are grounded in a hope which transcends the grave. 

Through Jacob, God had spoken to the sons of Israel and told them that they would be judged according to their ways. The determinant for them would be whether they would be defined by Him or by themselves. He promised them a new heart and a new spirit but only if they would simply turn to Him for salvation from self. Israel went from life to death. But in Christ, there is the hope of new life and even the resurrection to life from the dead.

In v.1-3 of today's passage we read, "1 Then Joseph fell on his father’s face and wept over him, and kissed him. 2 And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel. 3 Forty days were required for him, for such are the days required for those who are embalmed; and the Egyptians mourned for him seventy days."

After Jacob died, Joseph showed his emotions by weeping over him and kissing him. This is the sixth time that we’ve seen Joseph weep in the book of Genesis. Throughout our lives, we all have been forced to deal with grief. And, all of us deal with our grief differently. The effects of our losses are often numbing and sometimes debilitating even to our faith in the God of the Bible. We all do well to have a process that allows us to come to terms with the death of a loved one. When we do not process our grief the emotions can become monstrous in our lives. This happens because feelings that are buried are always buried alive. When it comes to our grief, out of sight is not out of mind, they will come back to haunt us if we do not somehow deal with them. This is why the Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 5, "Do not let the sun go down on your anger."

"The physicians" mentioned in v.2 of today's passage were also called "healers." This word is used 67 times in the Old Testament and the most memorable use of this word is found in Isaiah 53:5 which reads, "But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed."

The word translated physicians implies healing, like a physician would provide after an operation. Since we know that while the human body is alive, it is inextricably connected to our soul. Our soul animates our body. When that which animates departs, the body ceases and it dies. The Egyptians wrongly believed the soul after mummification would return to inhabit the body at some point after death. 

In 1 Peter 2:24 we read, "(Christ) who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed." 

Although this verse is very often incorrectly used to imply physical healing, in context the Apostle Peter spoke of healing from our sin. It is through the cross of the Lord Jesus that we have been spiritually healed and by the Lord's work believers are restored into a personal relationship with God. This is what the embalmers of Egypt had hoped for, but it was never to be because their sin problem had not been remedied. The sin problem is only reversed after we have come to trust that the Lord Jesus Christ paid the penalty for our sin.

Joseph had the physicians embalm his father because he knew the process of embalming would cover up the foul smell that would surely come, especially since Jacob's dead body would not be buried for quite some time. The need for embalming is a testimony to the lowly state of our bodies that when the soul departs, it immediately begins to break down and smell really bad, and become offensive to everyone near. It is from this world of corruption, not to this world of corruption, that the believer in the Lord Jesus looks.

In v.4-6 of today's passage we read, "4 Now when the days of his mourning were past, Joseph spoke to the household of Pharaoh, saying, 'If now I have found favor in your eyes, please speak in the hearing of Pharaoh, saying, 5 'My father made me swear, saying, Behold, I am dying; in my grave which I dug for myself in the land of Canaan, there you shall bury me. Now therefore, please let me go up and bury my father, and I will come back.' 6 And Pharaoh said, 'Go up and bury your father, as he made you swear.'"

After 70 days of mourning, Joseph made a request of the Pharaoh that he be allowed to go back to Canaan to bury his dad there in the cave that was in the field of Machpelah. Instead of speaking directly to Pharaoh, Joseph spoke to the "household of Pharaoh" in anticipation of them then going to speak directly to Pharaoh on his behalf. By going through them, Joseph respected their authority in the matter and he was extending a courtesy that they would know in advance of his desires and intentions. In response, the Pharaoh gave his approval that Joseph could travel back to Canaan to bury his father.

Joseph was a man who understood the value of being submissive under authority. Submission is not a popular term in our world. Sadly, all degrees of sin come from our unwillingness to submit to the authority and rule of God. God has placed a system of authority in our world that requires faith to operate under its boundaries. These authority structures God has placed in our lives to protect and to guide us to His will. God created all authority to bless and to give life, but through our rebellion against His authority, we have allowed the process to become twisted. Authority no longer works as intended. Rather than acting as a skeletal structure for our good, authority can be misdirected to empower evil. There is only one limitation to the believer’s submission to human authority: namely, any law that would require disobedience to God’s Word.

Genesis 49:29-33

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29 Then he charged them and said to them: "I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30 in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite as a possession for a burial place. 31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife, there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah. 32 The field and the cave that is there were purchased from the sons of Heth." 33 And when Jacob had finished commanding his sons, he drew his feet up into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people. ~ Genesis 49:29-33

Today, we conclude our study of Genesis 49 where we will witness the final words and moments of the life of Jacob. These are the last moments of a man who had finally come to live in anticipation of the great promises of God. These promises had guaranteed great things to come in Jacob's future, even after his death. Jacob's life and his hopes had transcended his earthly reality that was a civil war in his soul between the deceiver and the prince with God or the believer and the unbeliever. The hope of Jacob was his sure hope of the coming Messiah and His eventual victory over sin through His death on the cross. 

In this passage we see the names Abraham, Isaac and Jacob known as the patriarchs of the nation of Israel. These three are never used in the Bible in reference to the Church, only in reference to Israel. One's understanding that Israel and the Church are two separate entities is very important when it comes to one's interpretation of the Bible. Throughout the Bible, these three names are used by God to identify Himself with the nation of Israel and His commitment to them.

In v.29-30 of today's passage we read, "29 Then he charged them and said to them: 'I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30 in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite as a possession for a burial place.'"

These final words of Jacob are proof of his undying faith in the God of the Bible. Admittedly, there were moments in his life when it was not as obvious, but his faith in the God of the Bible endured to the end. When Jacob said, "I am gathered to my people" it meant that he was well aware of what God had promised his father and grandfather and subsequently to him. When Jacob mentioned the purchase of this cave and this field by Abraham so long ago proves he was anticipating the coming of the Messiah. He knew that all of the sons of Israel were to participate in ushering into the world the Messiah who would conquer sin and death. 

Hidden in all of this is the fact that Abraham also believed in the resurrection from the dead. In Hebrews 11:19 we read of Abraham, "... concluding that God was able to raise him (Isaac) up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense." This is the only explanation that makes sense of the scene in Genesis 22 when God ordered Abraham to slay his son as a sacrifice. It was the hope of the resurrection that caused Abraham to be within inches of thrusting the knife through his son. In fact, Abraham had told his servants that he and his son would return from the mountain. When Abraham tied up his son and raised the knife high over him, it was all because he believed God would raise Isaac from the dead. When the angel stopped Abraham and God provided a substitute for Isaac, there was still a sense in which Isaac had been raised from the dead, if only figuratively.

Jacob then identified the field of Machpelah as being before Mamre in the land of Canaan. The word "before" means "in the face of." Literally, it was "in the face of Mamre." He then noted that the field was bought from Ephron the Hittite as a possession. Ephron means "of the dust." His name reminds us of the fact that God created man from the dust of the ground.  Man is a unique combination of earthly, natural material and life-giving power from God Himself. In addition, the word Hittite means "terror." Jacob's reference to Ephron the Hittite provides for us a picture of Adam who chose Lucifer's definition of himself rather than God's. This resulted in Mankind being brought to a state of terror. From Ephron, a fallen man, Abraham bought the cave of Machpelah. Machpelah means "double." It signifies the double delivery from death which the Lord Jesus procured for all who would believe in Him. The Lord Jesus came to purchase the title deed for the Jews and also for the Gentiles. His death filled this double role.

The cave that was in the field of Machpelah is symbolic of the earth, the repository for the dead. This is seen time and time again in the Bible. Jacob knew his body was going to that repository to be buried with his people. Instead of saying the cave bought by Abraham, he first said, "the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite." Then, he called it "the cave that is in the field of Machpelah." With the addition of the word Machpelah reveals it was a double cave. It contained Jew and Gentile, male and female, all who are redeemed by the Lord.

The next word mentioned in v.30 is Mamre which means "bitter." It represents the bitter, fallen world which the Lord Jesus came to redeem and to reclaim. After this, Canaan is mentioned. Canaan means "humbled" or "subdued." Only those who have been ravaged by sin and broken and thus "humbled" are qualified for Christ's redemption. Once qualified and we have turned to the Lord for help are we "subdued" by the Holy Spirit.

In v.31-32 of today's passage we read, "31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife, there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah. 32 The field and the cave that is there were purchased from the sons of Heth."

Buried in this cave which was bought from Ephron the Hittite were Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, and Leah. With the addition of Jacob in the cave, there will be the three great patriarchs and their wives, each of which was an ancestor of the Lord Jesus. That is six people, male and female, who then represent all humans with six being the number for incomplete man. And then, as a final follow up, Jacob mentioned one more time that the field and the cave were purchased. They had a new owner. The old owners were "the sons of Heth" or the sons of fear. Again, the name Heth comes from the word Hittite which means fear. These words provide for us a picture of all the people of the world who are in Adam and who live in fear of death because we cannot meet God’s standard of perfection.

In v.33 of today's passage we read, "And when Jacob had finished commanding his sons, he drew his feet up into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people."

Jacob’s words were a command which looked forward to the wondrous day when the world of terrified, fallen man would be bought back by the Lord. And now, at the end of a long life filled with blessings and trials, joys and sorrows, Jacob was ready to receive his final reward. Jacob lived 147 full years and finally expired in the year 2316 BC. The most recorded and detailed life in the book of Genesis finally came to an end in a most peaceful way. Jacob "drew his feet up into the bed and breathed his last." Having blessed his sons from a sitting position, sustained by God Himself, Jacob laid down and breathed his last breath picturing the condition of all who have been forgiven of their sin.