Monday, December 28, 2015

Jacob and Pharaoh: Thoughts on Their Interview

(Transcription of a three-part message preached at Bible Believers' Baptist Church, Madison, AL, on Nov. 29, 2015.)

Text: Gen. 47:7-10


This interview takes place after Jacob’s arrival in Egypt to dwell in Goshen. Because it’s so brief and surrounded by other text, it’s easy to read over. I’ve read it numerous times, and what usually stood out to me was Jacob’s age. In more recent readings, however, I’ve noticed some doctrinal and practical truths that I decided to gather and present to you. My outline is fairly simple and will span our three meetings today:

·         Define and survey “pilgrimage” in scripture and provide some examples from history
·         Introduce the three characters present at this interview
·         Consider practical truth we can glean from this interview as members of the body of Christ


PILGRIMAGE IN SCRIPTURE AND HISTORY

In the first part of my message, I’d like to define pilgrimage, which Jacob mentions twice in his brief response to Pharaoh, and survey it in scripture and history. I see it as one of the two main points he makes to Pharaoh, besides the brevity of life, which I’ll deal with this afternoon in the practical applications of this passage.

Definition
First, let’s consider the six occurrences of the word “pilgrims” (2) and “pilgrimage” (4) to note their context and define them.

Occurrences
·         Gen. 47:8—my pilgrimage…my life…my fathers…their pilgrimage
·         Ex. 6:4—the land of their pilgrimage, wherein they were strangers
·         Ps. 119:54—Thy statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage.
·         Heb. 11:13—confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth
·         1 Pt. 2:11—strangers and pilgrims

Definition
·         Strangers and foreigners: someone from a certain country dwelling in another
o   Many cases of that in scripture: e.g. Moses (Ex. 2:21-22)
·         Pilgrim is something different—someone seeking another country (Heb. 11:14-16)
o   Strangers—from somewhere else
o   Pilgrims—headed somewhere else

Application to Israel
·         Patriarchs
o   From Ur and Haran, so strangers in Canaan (Ex. 6:4)
o   Seeking what? Another country (Heb. 11:14)
o   It wasn’t just Canaan—that was theirs forever, as well as the earth (Gen. 17:8; Deut. 4:40)

·         What were they seeking?
o   Something heavenly…a city (Heb. 11:14-15)
o   Heb. 12:22 provides the identity of this city: the heavenly Jerusalem, referred to as new Jerusalem in Rev. 3, 21-22
o   At some point, God told them about this city; we get the details later, as is often the case in scripture
o   Since it’s a matter of prophecy, though, I looked for it in the old testament, and I think that It was Ps. 48 may describe it in part, along with the earthly Jerusalem
o   Ps. 48:1-2, “in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness…mount Zion on the sides of the north, the city of the great king.” A key phrase, I think, to tie this to the heavenly Jerusalem, is “the sides of the north.” The “north” is mentioned in a heavenly context in Job 26:7 and Is. 14:13, and I’m confident that David knew about it, if the patriarchs did. It’s something that the Hebrews looked for since the patriarchs, the first Hebrews.
o   Jacob had come to Canaan and then to Egypt (until death), but he still considered himself on pilgrimage. There was something yet to come, out beyond this Satanic world system headed by Pharaoh, the heavenly Jerusalem.

Paul’s Silence
·         Paul does not use this term, and it’s no coincidence. It pertains to the Jews and their kingdom, not the church, as the verses we’ve looked at attest.
·         It’s true that we’re on our way to heaven physically, but we’re already in heavenly positionally, so it wouldn’t be correct to call us pilgrims, since we’re already home.
·         Paul does tell us to “Seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God” and “Set your affection on things above, and not on things above” (Col. 3:1-2), but that’s to align our practice with our position. “For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God” (v. 3). You’re already there. “For our conversation [where we live] is in heaven” (Phil. 3:20), where we “sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:6).
·         So we may consider ourselves pilgrims in a practical sense, but we mustn’t forget that we’re already home and live accordingly. That’s why Paul’s authority and doctrine is so critical in this age; if you ignore it, which most have, you’ll end up with false concepts of your position before God.
·         Pilgrimage is a part of heathen religions, Judaism, Catholicism, and even Protestantism. Muslims, for example are required to travel to Mecca once in their lifetime, many Catholics travel to Rome, Anglicans used to go to Canterbury (Canterbury Tales), and one of the most popular books after the Bible is Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress. But none of these groups, including the early Protestants, really understood their heavenly position as revealed to Paul in his epistles. That understanding came later through Darby, Bullinger, and others.
·         Do you see the issue here? If you don’t get your position straight by following Paul, it will affect your life. You’ll make pilgrimages to “holy places” needlessly, since your own body, if you’re saved, is the temple of the Holy Ghost (1 Cor. 6:19), and you’ll see yourself as on your way to heaven and not there already. Again, you’re on your way to heaven physically, but spiritually you’re already there, so act like it!
·         We’ll talk more about that after lunch, when we look closely at practical applications of this passage.
THREE CHARACTERS IN THE INTERVIEW
At face value, this interview may not seem that significant. An extremely aged Hebrew shepherd hobbles in to meet the king of the country he’s come to sojourn in. The interview is arranged by his beloved son, Joseph, who has become the deputy of the king in spite of his captivity. But there’s much more than meets the eye here, and that’s what I’d like to explore and prove that this seemingly unimportant meeting was a meeting of the three most powerful men in the entire world and changed the course of human history. You’ll see what I mean as we move forward.

1.      Pharaoh
·         A title, like Caesar (and maybe Abimelech):
o   Four are named in scripture: Shishak (1 Kings 15:26); So (2 Kings 17:4), Necho (2 Kings 23:29), and Hophra (Jer. 44:30)
·         Easily interpreted as the king of Egypt (Ex. 1:18-19)
·         Most powerful kingdom in the world: when famine hits, the world comes to Egypt, not Babylon or Canaan (Gen. 41:53-57)
·         Based on Noah’s prophecy (Gen. 9:25-27), that dominion was temporary, just as Nimrod’s was (Nimrod’s power broken by Babel, Egypt’s by plagues)
·         But until Exodus, Egypt is on top, but never thereafter (Israel, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, then Rome)
·         What a fabulous empire it was: (1) enslaved an entire nation; (2) built treasure cities; (3) laded all the Jews with treasure; and (4) still fielded a large army after their population was literally decimated by the 10 plagues
·         At the head of this empire was Pharaoh, king of the world in one sense
·         Character of Pharaohs, just like character of U.S. presidents, varied widely
o   Pharaoh in Joseph’s day acknowledged God and his Spirit and was cordial to the Hebrews, despite their abominable profession (shepherding)
o   Pharaoh reigning when Moses returned from Midian was an impenitent reprobate
o   Shishak loots the temple (1 Kings 15:26)
o   Necho tells Josiah not to meddle with God (2 Chron. 34)
·         Broad cross-section of character, but all appointed by Satan (Luke 4:5-6); so whatever his personal spiritual inclinations be, he is the secular head of Egypt and the nations, with Satan’s approval. Ultimately instated by God (Dan. 2:21), but screened by Satan, in a sense.

2.      Joseph
·         At this right hand is a clean-shaven Hebrew man in the garb of an Egyptian prince (Gen. 41:14, 42).
·         Originally the steward of Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh’s guard, he became Pharaoh’s deputy after interpreting the dreams of two of Pharaoh’s servants in prison and then the dreams of Pharaoh himself.
·         Pharaoh refers to him as Zaphnath-Paaneah (41:45), the man to whom secrets are revealed, and he is second to Pharaoh “only in the throne” (41:40), just like his antitype, Jesus Christ.
·         He’s been quite busy for a few years gathering grain in preparation for the global famine that God revealed to Pharaoh as imminent.
·         A local famine in Canaan constrained his brothers to seek grain in Egypt, bringing them into contact with him and reuniting them upon Joseph’s self-revelation to them.
·         Joseph, with Pharaoh’s permission, encourages his entire family to relocate to Egypt to weather the coming famine, and Jacob agrees, leading to this meeting.

3.      Jacob
·         The third man, though, is the most significant and, I would assert, the most powerful
·         In hobbles a 137-year-old Hebrew shepherd with flowing white hair and beard, leaning on a staff from age and a thigh out of joint for several decades
·         Ladies and gentlemen, Jacob, king of the world!
·         Now, I doubt that’s how Joseph introduced him, but that’s who he was, as humble as he may have looked
·         Something about his great, abnormal age and his presence commanded Pharaoh’s respect, since he allows Jacob to bless him twice, and Heb. 7:7 says that “the less is blessed of the better”
·         Rom. 4:13 shows us that when God called Abram out of Ur, he was making him the king of the world. Abram, Isaac, Jacob were not only prophets, but also kings.
o   Gen. 12:1-3; whoever they blessed was blessed, and whoever they cursed was cursed; doesn’t that put them at the top of the nations?
o   Prophets: Gen. 20:7; 27:27-29, 39-40; 48:15-49:33
o   Num. 23:9; Israel dwells alone, separate from the other nations, since they are the head of them
o   Ps. 106:8-15; God reproved secular kings since Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were superior to them
§  “Touch not mine anointed” elsewhere refers to what? A king, right (1 Sam. 24:6; 26:9-11)
§  So I think that it’s more than their prophetic office that made them anointed, but also their political status, though they were kings without thrones, you might say
o   Mt. 1:1: the right to the crown not just connected with David but also Judah (1:2) and Abraham
·         So here stands God’s anointed king of the world before Satan’s imposter, if you will
o   A new testament glimpse of this is Joseph and Herod: Herod sits on the throne, but God speaks to Joseph, the son of David, and preserves his life, not Herod’s (Mt. 1-2)
o   Although this interview is brief, there’s an exchange here that affects the course of human history: Jacob blesses Pharaoh, and this is highly significant, for what follows this interview is a terrible famine that Egypt survives, I think because of Jacob’s blessing (remember Gen. 12:1-3)
o   If Egypt had gone under, the whole world would have, at least the near eastern world
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS OF THE INTERVIEW
Our study wouldn’t be complete without considering the practical applications of the interview for members of the body of Christ. Paul reminds us in Rom. 15:4 that whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.” So there are some things here for us to learn and draw comfort from, praise the Lord.

Easiest way to do this is go through the interview piece by piece and note the themes.

1.      Honouring authority
·         Pharaoh had already met five of Joseph’s brothers (47:1-5), but Joseph wanted Jacob to meet Pharaoh. I think that it was a mutual honour.
·         Joseph honoured his father by letting him meet his host, Pharaoh, through the connection Joseph had with Pharaoh. Joseph also honoured Pharaoh by letting him meet the leader of the people coming to dwell in his dominion.
·         So it was proper and true to form for Joseph, who always respected authority, just like his antitype Jesus Christ. Joseph obeys his father in Canaan, Potiphar in slavery, the keeper of the prison, and Pharaoh himself.
·         Not that it was always easy. Ps. 106:17-19 informs us what a struggle it was for Joseph to submit to God’s ordering in his life. It was a trial for him (v. 19), not effortless. Remind you of someone else? When Christ was in the garden, it was such an intense struggle that Luke called it “agony” (Luke 22:44). That’s the only use of that word in scripture, and it’s associated with intercession. Now you see why there’s so few intercessors—true intercession can lead to agony, if you allow it (Rom. 9:1-3; Col. 4:12-13).
·         So Joseph honours all God-ordained authority in his life; even when he disagrees with Jacob about putting Ephraim before Manasseh (48:18-22), he assents and is blessed for it (v. 22).

2.      Saints have a higher position than earthly sovereigns, but still owe them obedience
·         I mentioned Jacob’s superiority to Pharaoh earlier, but here I’d like to emphasize that all saints have a higher position than earthly sovereigns…spiritually.
·         Eph. 1:19-23 shows that we now sit in heavenly places “Far above all…power…not only in this world, but also in that which is to come” (v. 20). That would include political power and spiritual power, like that described in Eph. 6:12, “spiritual wickedness in high places.”
·         Does that mean we can do as we please politically? By no means. Remember when the publicans asked Peter whether Jesus paid tribute or not (Mt. 17:24-27)? He explained to Peter that even though the Jews were the true rulers of the world, they still had to pay tribute for conscience sake, just like Paul told us in Rom. 13:5-7. “Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute, custom to whom custom…”
·         We have a higher position than our earthly sovereigns in one sense, but they have a higher position than us in another, requiring our obedience by God’s command. Jacob was certainly higher than Pharaoh in his spiritual standing before God, but his physical superiority would come later, since God had ordained other powers in the present world system until it’s replaced in the world to come. Same is true for us, as we saw in Eph. 1:19-23.

3.      Honour of old age
Pharaoh is immediately impressed with Jacob’s great age. He may have been older himself, but he knew at first sight that there was something special about his guest. You can sense the amazement in his abrupt question. This is no ordinary old man. The fact that Pharaoh let Jacob bless him twice shows that Pharaoh respected Jacob’s seniority, which is really natural. It is unnatural to disrespect the aged.

·         Lev. 18:32, Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honour the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the LORD your God. I picture Pharaoh rising from his throne as Joseph brought Jacob into his presence, out of respect for this ancient man, even if he was a shepherd.

·         Is. 3:5, …the child shall behave himself proudly against the ancient, and the base against the honourable. The aged deserve honour, especially if they’re saints.
o   Prov. 20:29, The glory of young men is their strength: and the beauty of old men is the grey head.
o   Prov. 16:31, The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness.

·         Paul upholds proper respect for the aged under grace, making it something trans-dispensational; 1 Tim. 5:1-3, Rebuke not an elder, but intreat him as a father…Honour widows that are widows indeed [at least sixty years old; cf. vv. 9-10]

·         We owe the aged our respect in any age, whether they’re saved or lost, but especially if they’re saved and living godly. And it’s very wise if you actively minister to the aged, since you may be there yourself one day (Phile. 9).

4.      Brevity of life, even where exceptionally long
Methuselah made it 969 years, just shy of one day in God’s time (Ps. 90:4; 2 Pt. 3:8). Jacob, at 137, had lived over 49,320 days and eaten around 147,960 meals (48:15). All that said…

·         The older you get, the shorter you realize life is. Jacob said, “few…have the days of the years of my life been…”
·         Aging is also humbling: “…and have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers.” You’ve outlived so many, by God’s grace, and so many outlive you
·         Be thankful for the time God has given you and, if he pleases, will give.
·         Upon hearing of Lady Macbeth’s untimely death, Macbeth says this: “Out, out brief candle!/Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player/That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,/And then is heard no more.”
·         Our outlook: “Redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:16) and “Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time” (Col. 4:5). Fill up the brief time you’ve got with good works for Christ. Someone said: Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.”

5.      Life is a journey (
To the next. Jacob says “my pilgrimage” and “their pilgrimage.” Paul said the following:

·         Our life in this world is “but for a moment” (2 Cor. 4:17), so we should “look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen” (v. 18).
·         We should exercise ourselves unto godliness, since it has “promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come” (1 Tim. 4:8).
·         We should “lay hold on eternal life” (6:12, 19)—understand it and live accordingly: ministry and giving.
o   Ministry is fleeing, following, and fighting—these things help us lay hold on eternal life
o   What else? Giving! 6:17-19 aimed at rich saints, who can lay hold on eternal life as well as ministers. It’s something all saints should do and can do…by giving. Ministers and flocks have the same basic Christian duties, and this is one of them—experiencing eternal life now by godly living and giving.
o   Michael Card wrote a good song called “Joy in the Journey.”
§  There is a joy in the journey/There’s a light we can love on the way/There is a wonder and wildness to life/And freedom for all who obey.
Life is indeed a journey for us, but we can have joy all the way home, praise the Lord.

6.      Life is a battle
Jacob said, “…few and evil have the days of the years of my life been,” and if you’re familiar with his troubled life, you know that he spoke the truth.
·         From Esau’s threats to Laban’s deceit to Dinah’s fall to Joseph’s disappearance, Jacob saw much evil in life, much of it self-inflicted, but not all.
·         Everyone, including saints, has to deal with evil in life
o   We live in an evil world (Gal. 1:4) and evil days (Eph. 5:16), so life is indeed a battle.
·         Leland Ryken, an English professor at Wheaton College, wrote about the classics from a Christian perspective, and he said that the Iliad and the Odyssey teach us two great truths: life is a battle and life is a journey.
·         We see both of those truths in Jacob: his life was a journey and a battle, but God carried him through, and he’ll carry you through too. “the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, The Angel which redeemed me from all evil” (48:15-16) is the same God who will take care of you in the age of grace. Paul said, “And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom, to whom be glory for ever and ever” (2 Tim. 4:18), and that’s a promise that all of us can claim, hallelujah.

7.      The world has no approbation for negative truth
·         Jacob’s admittedly negative testimony was not likely what Pharaoh was used to.
·         Remember the Persian kings? No one could be sad in their presence, like Nehemiah or Mordecai (Neh. 2:1-3; Esth. 4:1-2)
·         No doubt it’s what Pharaoh needed to hear: that life is short, the world is evil, and another life is coming. Isn’t that part of our gospel? Man is fallen and doomed to die; yet he will live again, in heaven or hell.
·         So Jacob’s brief, negative speech packed a punch for lofty Pharaoh.
·         And what is Pharaoh’s reaction? Seems like he just blinked at Jacob, for no response is recorded.
·         I wonder if he was and speechless like the wedding guest who had no garment, or if the negative truth just rolled over him, since he didn’t have a heart to hear it. God knows, but he certainly didn’t slap Jacob on the back and say, “Thanks for that word of testimony, buddy.”
·         I think that he felt the difference between him and this saint here, and realized that they were not on the same ground, so he says nothing.

8.      Light hath no communion with darkness
·         This response, or lack thereof, leads me to my final point: the interview goes nowhere.
·         Why? Paul answers for us, in 2 Cor. 6:14, “…for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?”
·         These two men represent two different worlds, and just like Kipling said about east and west, “never the twain shall meet.”
·         Jacob goes out, respectfully, but neither man has changed. A mentor of mine told me years ago, “Daniel didn’t change Babylon, but Babylon didn’t change Daniel.” It was a stalemate there, and it’s a stalemate here, so Jacob leaves and goes where he can be helpful.
·         We’re called to testify to everyone, but just as “interpretations belong to God” (Gen. 40:8), so do conversions, and Pharaoh is not interested in the truth, any more than Pilate was, I think.
·         It’s hard to accept this truth sometimes, especially when it’s your loved ones who are the darkness. But make no mistake: they will corrupt you, if you try to unite with them (2 Cor. 6:17), so don’t do it.
·         Give them the truth, including the negative, and leave them with God, like Jacob did.


That concludes my thoughts on this interview. I hope it’s evident how significant it was, and how loaded a simple conversation in the word of God can be, especially one between the two most powerful men in the world. God help us remember the doctrinal and practical truths from this encounter and keep the right view of this life and the next. 


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