I know this is conceit. But I had not realized how often the terms ‘bread and wine’ were used in the Bible other than to talk about the Last Supper or Passover. But in our Proverb today, here it is again even though it is in the negative sense of wickedness and violence. This is clearly the OT version of ‘watch who you pick for friends’.
Barley and wheat were the first domesticated plants in the Fertile Crescent. They were cultivated approximately 10,000 years ago and this is what allowed the population to settle in one place rather than the nomadic people they had been. Even domesticated animals such as the herds of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob owe their existence to the domestication of wheat. It is the ability to overwinter herds in one area due to the growing of specific grasses and pastures that allowed them to accumulate the animals. Prior to this, mankind existed as a hunter/gatherer. Any society that was able to produce a surplus of grain was rich in that time period. Silos and grain storage houses were built in Egypt and in the larger cities in Mesopotamia. Smaller city-states or unattached tribes would suffer greatly in a drought.
Joseph, being the clever man that he was, extended Pharaoh’s power and wealth (and consequently his own) by taking all the people’s money, then their land and finally the people themselves as the famine progressed. I guess the 20% to Pharaoh was better than our current tax rate. This Joseph is in stark contrast to how he treated his family. Today in Sunday School, we also discussed Joseph and one of the members in my class said she had read that Joseph is as closer to Jesus in character than anyone else in the Bible is. Do you agree or disagree?
Even our NT passage refers to the ‘children’s bread’! It is everywhere in our reading today. But I am grateful that Jesus healed the daughter. Do you think that he would have healed the woman if she had been asking for herself? Or was it just that she was willing to be humbled?
At the end of our Psalm is the phrase I have heard hundreds of times from pastors before preaching. I knew it was from the Psalms but I had no idea which one. I am going to pray that before I start my blog each time for the next little while.
I do agree that Joseph was a lot like Jesus. He had great faith though he was misjudged and mistreated. He had divine abilities. He was tempted, betrayed. "So Pharaoh asked them, 'Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?' " Genesis 41:38
ReplyDeleteAnother good proverb for teens!
NT - What Jesus is talking about in Matthew is that a "tradition" started where people starting setting aside an offering to God and not using this money to take care of their parents in need and that this practice became acceptable. Giving to the church does not nullify the commandment to honor thy father and mother. Is our faith just well rehearsed tradition? Are we just going through the motions?
Joseph was obviously a man of extreme faith. I have never considered the comparison between Joseph and Jesus. Despite his faith, Joseph seemed to be continually absorbed in increasing his master's wealth. Whether his master was his Father, Potiphar, the Chief Jailer or Pharoah. Joseph was definitely a man of this world. Jesus on the other hand was not concerned with affairs of this world except as they affected God.
ReplyDeleteAnother thought on this issue, the Angel instructs Mary to name the baby Jesus which is the Aramic version of Joshua. It would have been natural to name him Joseph after his earthly father. It is like the angel wants Jesus associated more closely with Joshua than the Joseph of Genesis. When we get to the story of Joshua, maybe we can talk about it again.