So Joseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.” And they came near. And he said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt.
In this verse the ruler of Egypt drops his disguise. He speaks to the men who sold him, and two things stand out: he invites them close, and he names the sin between them.
The climax of grace
Their crime and his grace meet in one room.
W. T. P. WolstonIn Genesis 45 the story reaches its wonderful climax. Joseph reveals himself to them. "I am Joseph." The Joseph they had sold as a slave stood before them as ruler over all the land. Yet he met them in all the grace of his heart. He made everyone else leave, and the guilty stood alone in the presence of the saviour.
Why he waited so long
Joseph could have said "I am Joseph" at their first visit. He waited. Commentators point to what had to happen inside the brothers first.
C. E. StuartJoseph, when he saw them, knew them, but they did not know him. He had purposes of grace towards them, as his conduct throughout proved. They had treated him cruelly, yet he held no bitterness and no wish for revenge. He wanted them at ease before him, and at home with him; but first he had to work repentance in them. How did he bring this about? They had to judge themselves for the past.
The pattern holds beyond Joseph's story:
W. T. P. WolstonOnce conscience has done its work, the Lord can come near and reveal Himself. He never comes and reveals Himself until the sinner takes his true place — is angry with himself.
Alone with him
Before he says a word about himself, Joseph clears the room. Commentators draw two things from that empty room. One is that this scene fits no audience:
C. H. MackintoshJoseph allowed no stranger to watch this sacred scene. What stranger could understand or value it? Here we watch, as it were, conviction worked by God in the presence of the grace of God. When these two come together, they settle every question with ease.
The other is that no one needs to stand between the guilty and the one they wronged:
C. KnappWhen Jesus reveals Himself to sinners, He too says, as it were, "Make everyone go out from Me!" He is the one Mediator. Every pretender must step aside before Him... "This Man receives sinners." "Come to Me," He says to them. And more: He says, "Whoever comes to Me I will never cast out."
"Come near" — and the sin named
They had just heard who he was, and could not answer a word. His invitation breaks that silence. His next words name their crime and still claim them as family.
Hamilton SmithThey were afraid; we read that "they were dismayed at his presence" (verse 3). Joseph, however, draws them to himself with the cords of love. "Come near to me," he says. "And they came near." Having drawn them close, he seeks to remove every fear by reminding them that he is still their brother: "I am Joseph your brother." He says, as it were: "I know full well how you treated me in the past. You hated me, you spurned me, you sold me. But do not be afraid — I am Joseph your brother."
They were owed nothing. What they get instead is an invitation:
C. StanleyWhat would their thoughts have been when he said, "I am Joseph"? Can you imagine their astonishment?... Justice could have demanded their lives. But in grace, "Joseph said, Come near to me, please." And Jesus says, "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
Forgiven — and wanted
Pardon and welcome are not the same thing. This verse gives both.
Hamilton SmithIt is not only that Joseph is ready to forgive; he desires the company of those he forgives. We rejoice in the grace that meets our need. But how slow we are to see that the One who has removed our guilt wants our company! Christ has come near to us so that we might come near to Him... If love makes us suited to His company, love will not be content without our company.
A picture of Israel's future
Writers read this scene as a preview of a day still to come for Israel.
F. B. HoleIn all this we see a picture of the national repentance of Israel, predicted in Zechariah 12:10-14... They will discover that the One whom they pierced is the LORD Himself. In the same way, the repentance of the brothers here reaches its climax. They discover that the great lord of Egypt is Joseph himself — the one they had pierced with so many sorrows.
Summary
- Conscience first. Joseph stayed hidden until his brothers judged themselves. The revealing came after the repenting.
- Room cleared. Joseph sent every stranger out. Conviction and grace settled the matter, with no go-between in the way.
- Come near. Love drew the men who could not speak. Justice could have taken their lives; grace called them close.
- Still your brother. He names what they did, and in the same breath calls himself their brother. They face the sin without fear.
- Company, not just pardon. Forgiveness is only the start. The one who removed their guilt wanted them near him. The whole scene points to the day Israel will recognise the One they pierced.