Genesis 45:18–20

The reconciliation waited only for their repentance. Now it was complete, and everything was ready to load the brothers with blessing without limit. Pharaoh's goodwill is to be fully toward them, as well as Joseph's. They were Joseph's brothers; that was enough for Pharaoh. And Pharaoh will have their aged father brought down. He will settle him, with his households and his flocks, in the richest and choicest part of the land.

Joseph in his glory and in such a high position wanted his father and his brothers to be with him... Here Joseph is a picture of the Lord Jesus, and Pharaoh of God the Father. God the Father's heart is the same as the heart of our Lord Jesus. Pharaoh said, "Come to me!" just as Joseph said, "Come to me!" And so the Father and the Son both call us to "Come!"

Here again we find words which strongly remind us of New Testament language: "Come to me; and I will give you …" Surely that reminds us all of Matthew 11:28: "Come to me … and I will give you rest." Joseph's word was to be, "I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and you shall eat the fat of the land." But that "good" would mean rest for them — rest from their fear of famine, and rest from the wearying search for food through the famine years. Coming to Joseph, they would find rest indeed.

But now that such power was in his hands, what use did he make of it? His word to his father, and brothers, and all their households was, "Come to me: and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and you shall eat the fat of the land" (Gen. 45:18). As exalted, he was the minister of their blessing.

What an inducement! "The good of the land of Egypt" and "the fat of the land." This is what God has to offer souls that come to Him. No such terms were ever offered by any government to encourage settlers. Transportation is provided too. "Wagons" were sent to carry the weak and helpless. And what answers to the wagons in this picture is the Holy Spirit sent by the Father to bring helpless sinners to Christ.

They were told that they might leave all their own stuff behind them, for all the good of the land of Egypt was before them. And so it proved to be. Their empty sacks had come down to Egypt at first to be filled. They were still to prove that there was a heart and a hand there, both able and ready to give without measure. The emptier they came down, the fuller they would learn this.

Even if they did not surpass fable, they were true. They bear the clear stamp of God's ordering, because they picture in advance what the prophets pledge in Jehovah's name. A greater than Joseph, rejected by His brothers, was exalted to sit at God's right hand with richer supplies for a famished world. He is about to make Himself known "the second time" to His brothers, whose hearts are broken with deep repentance.

Of course Pharaoh realized that he owed Joseph a great deal, and he was glad to show his appreciation in this way. More than that, he orders them to take wagons with them from Egypt to bring their wives and children and their father.

Even in the world as it is now, how rare it is to find a king and his servants united by respect for a foreign governor, giving his foreign father and brothers a warm and wholehearted welcome! And Egypt had strong prejudices then, as everyone knows it had for ages afterwards. Egypt would be opposed most of all to people who confessed God — a God the Egyptians did not know — and who denied the gods of Egypt.

Joseph not only desires his brothers to be near him, but he also provides the means to bring them to himself. No exhausting march lay before Jacob in his weakness and old age. There was no long journey for the little ones and their mothers. No; they were carried every step of the journey in the wagons. In other words, the power that carried them to Joseph came from Joseph.

Transportation is provided too. "Wagons" were sent to carry the weak and helpless. In this picture the Holy Spirit matches the wagons. The Father sends Him to bring helpless sinners to Christ.

It was the word and the wagons. And since we take the wagons as a figure of the Holy Spirit, the meaning is beyond question. Sinners are convinced not by the word of the gospel alone, but by the Word and the Spirit.

Neither the king nor the people of Egypt could deny how warm a welcome the whole family of Israel received for Joseph's sake. The king suggested the wagons and left Joseph to supply them. They played their part in persuading the father to believe the report that Joseph was still alive — a report which at first made his heart fail. "Jews demand signs;" and there was the sign: the means of going down into Egypt, which his sons could not have provided.

It is not enough to be entrusted with a message; the messenger must be fully equipped to deliver the message. The disciples whom the Lord commissioned to preach had to wait until power from on high clothed them. The power in which they serve comes from the Person who gave them their commission, and from the place of exaltation where that Person now is. They were given a new power for their journey. And the power that took them back to Canaan was the power in which they were to bring their father to Joseph.

As to their possessions, he tells them not to be concerned. He would give them everything they needed in Egypt (v. 20). Of course they would bring their flocks and herds. No doubt there would be many things they would not want to leave behind. But Pharaoh wanted them to know that he would supply whatever goods they needed.

How much regard for "stuff" there is among God's people today! How much anxiety and unnecessary concern the heirs of glory show over owning or piling up a little of this world's goods! At best it is only "stuff." It is not wrong to own it; it is the regard for it that does the damage... Pharaoh adds weight to his words about their "stuff": "For the good of all the land of Egypt is yours." What an answer to anxiety!

Pharaoh said, "The good of all the land of Egypt is yours." But our Lord Jesus tells us the inheritance given to us is in heaven. It is incorruptible and undefiled and it does not fade (1 Peter 1:4). Dear believers, the good of all heaven is yours. Do not regard your stuff; you have better things. Your own things can only weigh you down; you cannot take them with you.

If the glories of our heavenly Joseph filled our souls, things here would not hold us back. Our hearts are where our treasure is. I suppose the translators used the plain old-fashioned English word "stuff" in the usual way. But I cannot help giving the word a touch of irony: "Also regard not your stuff." After all, it is only "stuff" that our hearts get taken up with down here. There is more room for the heart in a full purse than in an empty one. Whether it is money or land, family name or achievements, the word comes home to our souls with cutting force.

Further, Joseph can say, "Regard not your stuff," or according to a better translation, "Let not your eye regret your stuff" (v. 20). Some things belong to us by nature — human eloquence and human wisdom. There are also worldly means and methods that appeal to the natural man. But the apostle says, "my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power"... In the service of the Lord, what is merely natural is neither to be regarded nor regretted.

Had the brothers fallen back on their own "stuff" to support them in their service, they would have slighted Joseph's provision. Their action would have said, "Joseph's provision is not enough for Joseph's commission." Joseph, however, can say, "The good of the land of Egypt is yours," and in line with this he "gave them provision for the way" (vv. 20, 21). In carrying out their service for Joseph they were supported by the good of the land they came from, received from the hand of the one who sent them.

But they took their livestock also, and their goods which they had acquired in Canaan, and came into Egypt. Jacob and his sons had no thought of entering that land as mere dependants on its ruler. It made no difference that he wanted to show every honour to Joseph, or that he had promised them the good of all the land of Egypt. So they took their "stuff" along with them and came into Egypt.