Hey everybody. Welcome back to another edition of the daily Bible podcast. It is Tuesday, January 28th. And, uh, man, it's just been fascinating. It's been interesting. I'm sure you've been watching everything going on over the last week with president Trump's first week in office. And as I record this, it's only Saturday. So I don't know what's coming on Sunday, Monday, or even today on Tuesday as you listened to this, but. Ah, man, there's been a lot of good things happening over this last week that we, as believers should be thankful for even just the pardoning of the pro pro-life activists. The fact that he showed up at the March to life. Um, there's just good things happening and we need to be grateful for that. And again, it just seems to me that. Uh, God is, is positioning the church to, to. To have an opportunity. And almost as though he's saying to the American evangelical church at large right now. Okay. Here's another opportunity. Here's another chance. Uh, what are you going to do with it? Are you going to seize this? Is there going to be a season of revival that's going to come? Is there going to be a season where the church really steps up and is the church and fulfills her mission? Uh, or is this going to be a season where you're going to maybe waste this is, is this, maybe you are our last shot who knows? Uh, between now and in persecution and really paring down and disciplining the church. All that to say. We need to be grateful for what's going on right now and what's happening right now. And the fact that there's even a little bit more openness. I mentioned it on Sunday. Uh, in 2024 Bible sales shot up by 22% in the United States. Now. That doesn't mean that everybody that bought the Bible bought it for good reasons, but it does mean that that's a good trend. We should be thankful for that. The religious nuns, those that identify as, as unaffiliated, religiously, that number dropped. Uh, for the first time in a long time, that's something to be good to be grateful for. Uh, and so let's be thankful church not and sit back on our laurels and say, well, we get the rest now. But to say let's let's Excel still more. Let's let's seize the opportunity. Let's seize the day. Uh, when it seems that we've got a cultural shift. And I'm not going to say it's going to, it's a total reversal because it's not that the enemy is still very much at work, but man, we've got a cultural shift that's working in our favor. Let's let's ride that wave and let's seize the day. So let's be. The lampstand that God desires us to be that Christ exalting church, equipping culture, engaging lampstand, and, and do it all for the glory of God for the glory of God. Well, let's jump into our Bible reading today. Uh, Genesis 46 through 47. Uh, Genesis 46 opens up with Jacob coming down to Egypt. So. Uh, Joseph had said to his brothers, Hey, go get your father, go get our father, bring him down here and, and let's be together. And I'll take care of you during this famine that's taking place. So that's what happened, Jacob. Heads down to Egypt, but he stops first in a town or an area called beer Sheba or in the Hebrew Bert beer Shava. Um, and this would have been right on the borderline of the promised land now. Jacob knew the promises made to Isaac knew the promises made to Abraham of the promised land. And Jacob now is about to leave the promised land. And Jacob also knew that Egypt was not necessarily where God had always wanted his people to be in fact, had been prohibited from going to Egypt. And so now he's going to stop there at Beersheba. Right on the border of the promised land before leaving. And there's almost an uneasiness there. You can sense in him, but God shows up to him here and God confirms that it's okay. That it's good and says, Hey, go to Egypt for there. God says that he would bring part of the Abrahamic covenant to fulfillment by forming that nation from his descendants. And so that the remainder of the chapter and chapter 46 details, those descendants, the ones that go down with Jacob there. And, uh, and we find out at the end of it that there's 70 in all, according to the Hebrew text and magnetic text and that number there. Would have included Jacob and Joseph and his two sons already down there in Egypt. So it's either including Jacob or including Dinah perhaps, and maybe there were 71 if Dinah's included in this and Jacob is not counting himself either way. 70. People there with him down in Egypt, but God is going to turn that into a nation by the time that they leave. And we'll find that out as, as the book of Genesis turns into the book of Exodus and we see what God does through the growth of his people here, but. Uh, you may remember when we talked about this more in depth last year, I believe, but acts chapter seven 14. So in Stephen's defense that he's giving an acts chapter seven. Uh, there it listed, there were 75 people that went down to Egypt and that's based on the LX ex translation, which is the Septuagint. Okay. The Septuagint. And so the Greek Septuagint, the Greek translation of the old Testament reads 75 people, not 70 people. Um, This is not a gotcha scriptures, faulty scriptures erroneous here. Uh, it's possible that the Greek translation was not accurate on there. Their accounting methods there. It's also possible that the theoretic texts may have missed a couple of people, but 70 to 75 is, is a comfortable area there. Pastor rod has often talked about the fact that, uh, there are elements that point to the fact that scripture was not as concerned with absolute precision in every detail, the way that we are in our Western culture. Uh, we see that with time references sometimes. So whether it's 70, 70, 1, 75, Uh, we can be comfortable that, that, that was the general ballpark number that went down there to Egypt with Jacob. And so that's, what's going on here in chapter 46. Is he's going down to reunite with his son. And then in verses 28 through 34, that's the first 27 verses of chapter 46, at least. 28 through 34, then. This is the reunion and what a reunion it must have been to see, and we get a glimpse of it, but, but we can't really fully capture this. I mean, if it was emotional for. Uh, Joseph to see his brother Benjamin, how much more so to see his father, Jacob, remember. Jacob loved Joseph, Jacob and Joseph had a special relationship with special bonds, such as Jacob even gave him that coat of many colors. And so this was a close, this was an intimate relationship between a father and a son. And here, they're back together again. And Joseph thought, I'm sure I will never see my father again. And, and Jacob thought that he had died. And so the, the idea that they are back together again in verse 29, he presents himself to him and fell on his neck and wept on his neck. And just as a good while. I can imagine the tears and the joy and everything else there. And then after that, that just the time of, let me tell you everything that's happened. Let me tell you all that God has done. And, and Joseph is told by his father, Israel, verse 30. He says, now I can die. Now let me die. Since I've seen your face and know that you were still alive. In other words, Israel saying, now I am. Content I'm okay. And he's going to tell Pharaoh here shortly, he's going to say I've lived a hard life. Uh, but this is a glimpse in the fact that he's saying, okay, this is, this is good. Again, the parallels would Jobe and the restored fortunes at the end of job's life. Uh, if there's a little bit of a parallel there, here, this is the restored fortunate for Israel that he is back with his son, Joseph. And even just all of his children together there in Egypt, in the hope that would have been there to know that they were going to be cared for, they were going to be provided for, but this reunion in verses 23 through 34 is just a sweet reunion there between his father. Uh, and him, and he gives him some advice. He says, Hey, when Pharaoh calls you, because Pharaoh is going to want to meet you when he calls you, uh, let him know that your shepherds and you're going to. I'm going to set you up over and Goshen, Goshen, would've been a land that would have been great for pasturing flocks, and would have allowed his family to thrive there, which they're going to do. And again, I mentioned it a last episode of the episode before shepherds were an abomination to the Egyptians. So that would have been a land that would have allowed. Uh, Jay Jacobs. Uh, family. They're the descendants there and Joseph's brothers. That's what I'm trying to say to enjoy some, some Liberty, some freedom to, to not have a lot of interference from the Egyptians there. And it's true. I mean, they were shepherds, this is not deception, so it's going to set them up. Well, Uh, chapter 47, then verses one through 12. Uh, Joseph settled his family there in Goshen and Israel is summoned indeed to meet Pharaoh. And he has an interesting, just brief interaction with Pharaoh here. And Israel is the Fountainhead that the patriarch of the family. Would have blessed Pharaoh. So that's, that's part of that, that greeting between him and the king there as the family, patriarchy would have represented his family and blessed the ruler of the land, which would have been Pharaoh, obviously. Pharaoh asks this question in verses eight and nine, he says, how old are you? And Pharaoh's seems to be fascinated here. How many are the days of the years of your life? That's an interesting question. If you meet somebody. Uh, and it's appropriate to do so you should ask them that question. How many are the days of the years of your life? See what they do. Uh, but, but Pharaoh's fascinated because the average Egyptian lifespan at this time was 110 years old. Okay. Which is. Not, I guess. It's, it's not totally foreign for us to think of somebody living to 110. Now, what did we say that to the average lifespan? No, that that's, uh, a pretty well lived life. That's an old life, but. At this point, um, he's looking at, at Israel going, how old are you? And Israel says I'm 130 years old and he was going to live another 17 years beyond that point. And so this, this is Pharaoh is intrigued. He's fascinated by Jacob and he wants to know how old are you? And so this is inter. Interesting interaction between Pharaoh, this pagan king and, uh, and, and Jacob who was not a king, but is the, the, uh, one of the sons of promise. That's continuing the blessing through whom the king of Kings and Lord of Lords was going to come. And so you have a, uh, a paradox here. You have the most powerful man perhaps in the world at this time in Pharaoh, looking at a man who is, is very much not in a position of power. And yet the one that would rule all the one that would be the king of Kings and Lord of Lords. Who's not going to come from Pharaoh's line. But from the line here of Jacob? Well, from here, Uh, we get into more of Joseph's administration. Then in verses 13 through 21, the famine is still severe to the point that the Egyptians run out of money and they say, Hey, we don't have any money to buy food from you anymore, but we still need food. And so Joseph says, okay, well, I will buy your flocks and your herds for Pharaoh. And so they sell their flocks and their herds to Pharaoh. In exchange for food. And even that runs out and they come back and they say, I. We're out of money again, and we don't want any flocks or herds because you've got them all. He says, okay, I'll buy your land and I'll buy you. And so, uh, they give their land and they even sell themselves and slavery. Uh, to Pharaoh and in this way, Pharaoh's power in Egypt becomes unrivaled in unmatched. He literally owns everything in Egypt at this point, and that's going to impact what transpires after Joseph's death, because when a new Pharaoh arises, who doesn't remember. Uh, Israel or Joseph or any of the, the descendants they're in. We're going to find that that's going to be problematic for the Israelites in that in some ways it's traced back to this right now that that Pharaoh becomes. Inordinately powerful. You already was the ruler of the land, but even more. So he's going to own it all now. And it's a result of, uh, this administration that takes place under Joseph's leadership here. Uh, which you can't fault him for because he's doing his job and there needed to be a transaction there of goods for services, the services being food, but still this sets up something wherein, uh, this is going to be a situation where, uh, Pharaoh is going to rise to a level of power never before. And don't hear. Uh, and then in chapter 47, verse 27, it says thus Israel settled in the land of Egypt. In the land of Goshen and they gained possessions in it and they were fruitful and multiply greatly. And that's just a reminder to us. Uh, of the Abrahamic, Kevin and blessings to the people that they're fruitful and multiplying greatly that he is indeed going to turn him into the nation. These chapters here are just good reminders for us of God's faithfulness to his people and to us as individuals, uh, God was kind to allow Jacob to see Joseph again and spend last time with him before his death. He doesn't die. It's not as though. Even Jacob says, even though Jacob says. I've seen you now I can die. God gives him another 17 years with his family, with his sons there. And that's just a sweet grace of God. So what an encouragement that is to us, let me pray. And then we'll be done with this episode. God, we are grateful for the sweet kindnesses you give to us on a daily basis that we're not even aware of just to be able to see the smile of somebody. Uh, to be able to experience warmth, to be able to experience good food. Uh, and fellowship with brothers and sisters in Christ. Uh, those are, are, are sweet kindnesses and elements of your grace that you've given to us. And so we are grateful for them, help us to be a continually grateful people. We pray in Jesus name. Amen. And keeping your Bibles and tune in again tomorrow for another edition of the daily Bible podcast. But.