February 6

Joseph has his silver cup placed in Benjamin (his brother’s) sack to make it look like he had stolen it in Genesis 44:1-2. In the previous chapter however, it was made clear that Joseph had no resentment towards his brother. In Genesis 43, when Benjamin arrived and had a meal with Joseph, the text states that “Joseph hurried out and looked for a place to weep. He went into his private room and wept there…After he had washed his face, he came out and, controlling himself, said, “Serve the food.” When portions were served to them from Joseph’s table, Benjamin’s portion was five times as much as anyone else’s. So they feasted and drank freely with him.” If Joseph missed his brother that much, why would he possibly frame his brother? I believe that Joseph was testing his brothers, the ones who had treated him horrible and sold him into slavery. If his brothers abandoned Benjamin and allowed him to face the consequences of “stealing” then Joseph knew that his brother’s attitudes had still not changed from when they sold him into slavery. Joseph went through so many hardships with his brothers, and overcame them. The story of Joseph is one of my favorites, especially since we see so many parallels to Christ’s story. As stated in “Joseph and the Passion of Our Lord” by Gary Anderson, “The story of Joseph in Genesis 37-50 is not only the longest and most intricate Israelite exemplar of the narrative of the death and resurrection of the beloved son, but also the most explicit.” In his story, the son who was loved and cherished by his father, was faced with the jealousy and hatred of his brothers just as Jesus was faced with the envy of the high priests. Just as Joseph was stripped of his striped coat and sold into slavery, Jesus was also stripped of his garments and sold into prison by Judas for silver coins. Just as Jesus tested people’s trust in him, Joseph tests his brothers in order to judge who they truly have become.