Genesis 43: Family Reunited

²⁹ As he looked about and saw his brother Benjamin, his own mother’s son, he asked, “Is this your youngest brother, the one you told me about?” And he said, “God be gracious to you, my son.” ³⁰ Deeply moved at the sight of his brother, Joseph hurried out and looked for a place to weep. He went into his private room and wept there. -Genesis 43:29-30

Joseph’s brothers returned to Egypt, this time with Joseph’s younger brother Benjamin. At the sight of the little guy he played with as a child, he could no longer control his emotion. Joseph hurried out to weep.

Family reunited is one of the most powerful stories in our world. Family divided is one of the most difficult stories in our world. Whether orphan care and adoption, healing after a divorce or separation, the death of a family member, or another of the many other complications that strike at families, we often long for family reunited. It doesn’t always happen, but in Joseph’s case it did. Reading the story is a cause for rejoicing. God had brought together brothers divided by space and time.

This account even foreshadows what is seen later in the gospel story with Jesus. We are portrayed as people with broken relationships, in need of restoration to the Father. Jesus came to make a way for us to be united with our heavenly Father. Through faith in Christ, we can experience what Joseph experienced that day and much more. We are given a new relationship with God that will empower us in this life and extend through all eternity.

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Dillon Burroughs is the author and coauthor of numerous books and is handwriting a copy of all 31,173 verses of the Bible at HolyWritProject.com. Find out more about Dillon at Facebook.com/readdB or readdB.com.