创世记50:15-21

恩惠、平安从父神和救主耶稣基督归于你们时常信靠祂美善旨意的人。阿们。

圣经中的约瑟我们应该都比较熟悉，关于他的事迹有很多，他如何被父亲雅各宠爱，被弟兄们嫉妒，被神应许要作头——服侍他的哥哥们，被弟兄们卖为奴隶带到埃及，被老板赏识，被老板的妻子波提乏勾引和陷害以至于坐牢，后来因着神的怜悯被法老重用，管理埃及全地，对付饥荒，后面如何跟到埃及求粮食的哥哥们相认，让全家搬到埃及定居在歌珊地，供养所有人等等。创世记的后半部分大部分都在讲约瑟和他全家人的故事，非常精彩。

今天的旧约经文是创世记的末尾，记载约瑟的父亲雅各去世了以及随后发生的事情。本来老父亲去世是一家人哀哭悼念的时刻，但是就像好多家庭一样，老人的去世也让儿女们聚在一起，商量后事，当然并不都是顺利的，有些为着家产争吵不休，甚至彼此怨恨，闹到法院的也有。但是约瑟和哥哥们之间，有一件特别的事情需要面对，因为这件事影响了所有人的人生轨迹和情感世界，那就是他们曾经恶待约瑟，出于嫉妒要害他性命，最后退而求其次，把他卖到埃及为奴隶。弟兄姐妹们，我们能够想象吗？他们也不是为了钱，就是出于嫉妒，恨他；最不可思议的是，或者说，对于罪人来说，最理所当然的认识是，约瑟应该也恨他们吧，那怕约瑟已经跟他们相认，供应他们全家吃喝许多年了，直到如今，老父亲去世了。

老父亲的去世让这个事情暴露出来，因为约瑟的哥哥们一直以来认为约瑟并没有原谅他们，在他们看来，约瑟是不可能原谅他们的，之所以对他们这么好，没有任何报复的行为，都是看在活着的老父亲雅各的情面。如今，老父亲死了，他们想，那约瑟岂不开始报复的行动？他们说：“或者约瑟怀恨我们，照着我们从前待他一切的恶足足地报复我们。”（创50:15）罪人的思维就是这样，这个世界的法则也是如此：睚眦必报，以牙还牙，以眼还眼，不是不报时候未到。他们并不真正认识约瑟，也没有完全认识到神的怜悯和信实，如何祝福他们一家人，甚至藉着他们所嫉恨的弟兄约瑟来拯救祝福他们。

也因此，老父亲一死，他们想我们要怎么办呢？得想个法子面对这个危机啊。他们不是坦诚地面对约瑟，而是撒了个谎，假借死去的父亲雅各来命令约瑟不许报复，只要饶恕。这里我们说下，雅各其实是明白约瑟的为人的，他知道约瑟一直以来如何善待哥哥们，而且雅各在临死之前是一个一个地祝福他们的，包括约瑟和约瑟在埃及生的两个儿子。这个口信是哥哥们捏造的——当然不是出于恶意，而是出于恐惧，可以说是善意的谎言：“你父亲未死以先吩咐说：‘你们要对约瑟这样说：“从前你哥哥恶待你，求你饶恕他们的过犯和罪恶。”’”（创50:16-17）

这话我们想象一下，如果是出于雅各的口，他怎能不亲口告诉约瑟呢？雅各临终前跟约瑟畅谈了许久，而且创世记49章开头还说，雅各叫上所有的儿子聚集在自己面前；虽然眼睛昏花，但雅各头脑非常清醒，后事交代的明明白白，不可能不亲自告诉他。很显然这是哥哥们捏造的。换句话说，雅各对自己的儿子们非常了解，他知道这件事情已经过去了，至少对约瑟来说。如果要说有雅各预料不到的事，那就是没想到约瑟的哥哥们从心里来说从来没有过去这个坎，内心一直充满罪疚和自责，活在过去这罪的阴影之下。事实上，这就是撒但最拿手的伎俩，让圣徒活在过去，活在罪的权势之下，被罪所继续奴役，没有释放，没有平安，没有盼望。

相反呢？约瑟早已经打心底饶恕了哥哥们，我们可以想象，约瑟早些年在埃及的时候，在重新跟哥哥们团聚之前，就已经饶恕他们了，已经放下了，这件事已经不能再影响他了，生活仍要继续，而不是活在过去和受害者的处境当中。我们怎么知道？其实有一个细节可以给我们足够的线索，那就是约瑟有了第一个儿子的时候给他起的名字。创世记41:50-51“荒年未到以前，安城的祭司波提非拉的女儿亚西纳给约瑟生了两个儿子。约瑟给长子起名叫玛拿西，因为他说：‘神使我忘了一切的困苦和我父的全家。’”

所以，许多年之后，当他们的父亲去世的时候，没想到哥哥们旧事重提而且错误地以为约瑟仍然换恨在心，甚至可能会冤冤相报。约瑟这位一心敬畏神，信靠神，善待那些恶待他之人的，听到哥哥们的谎言、鬼话，就哭了。约瑟不是为自己哀哭，而是出于对哥哥们的怜悯和爱惜，没想到啊，没想到这么多年他们都没有从罪的枷锁中释放出来，没有得到被饶恕的平安，仍然活在恐惧当中。约瑟的哭泣是出于对哥哥们的爱，单纯无瑕的爱。

我们在这里想一下，这跟我们有什么关系？有很大的关系，我们需要反思一下，我们在神面前是怀着什么样的心态？是跟约瑟的哥哥们一样，不确定是不是被神饶恕了呢？我们是不是仍然觉得神怎么也不会饶恕我们曾经犯下的这罪或者那罪？我们是不是常常让魔鬼称王，容许魔鬼在我们的良心里面随意搅扰，让罪疚和自责占据我们的心灵，不去信靠神的饶恕和怜悯的应许，不让基督我们的救赎主，祂的宝血和十字架，以及其所带来的一切平安在我们心中作王呢？我们是不是仍然努力靠自己的善行来驱赶这种罪疚，来赢得心灵的安息和平安呢？如果是这样，我们要记得，主耶稣在为我们哭泣，就像祂面对不信的犹太人和怀疑复活的主能力的马利亚——因为拉撒路的死，而哭泣一样。主耶稣怜悯马利亚和犹太人，主耶稣也怜悯我们，要我们完全认识祂，信靠祂的能力和良善。

弟兄姐妹们，我们所信所传的福音就是主耶稣已经在十字架上成就的赦罪大功，是确实无疑的，也是取之不尽用之不竭的，只要我们带着悔改的心来寻求主的怜悯，主随时预备好赦免我们，释放我们，赐给我们属天的平安，与神和好蒙宠爱的平安。

我们今天明白了，领受了，当时的约瑟也明白并且实实在在地向他的邻舍，尤其是最亲近的、也是伤害他最深的哥哥们实践出这份神的大爱和怜悯。他对哥哥们说恩言：“不要害怕，我岂能代替神呢？从前你们的意思是要害我，但神的意思原是好的，要保全许多人的性命，成就今日的光景。”（创50:19-20）这不是一句空话，约瑟是对着他们的心说话，和合本翻译说：“约瑟用亲爱的话安慰他们。”这里的原文就是指约瑟向着他们的心说话，要让他们的心重新苏醒过来，能够坦然面对彼此。

约瑟的思维是伟大的，因为这是以基督的十字架为中心的神学。我们生活的一切经历都可以而且需要围绕基督的十字架阐释和解读。我们如何看待自己所遭遇的不幸和迫害，尤其是因着信仰的缘故；因为信基督而遭受无缘无故的谩骂和欺负。这一点非常重要，因为基督我们的主正是如此被交给人，交给罪人，在罪人手中受唾弃、鞭打和钉死，但神的意思原是好的，要拯救许多人的性命，包括你我的性命、灵魂，成就今日的光景。我们所受的恩典是何等的大，何等的不配。因着十字架，我们也领受了约瑟和基督的这种十字架思维，十字架态度，十字架信心，十字架依靠，十字架的坚忍，十字架的美善。那本为羞耻的十字架刑罚，在神确为祂至善至美的旨意成就的工具，也是神大爱的彰显。

若我们真的明白我们所得着的，怎能不快快地将神的怜悯和赦罪带给需要的人呢？我们怎会仍然怀恨在心，甚至试图报复恶待我们的人呢？我们怎能不先打心底里饶恕得罪我们的人，那怕对方还没有悔改呢？要把你的一切处境都完全交托给信实良善的主，祂是公义的，我们不是神，而神自己必要审判一切恶人，我们要“听凭主怒，不要自己伸冤”，我们要做的恰恰是“免了人的债”，并且时常满怀信心祈求主的怜悯，天上的父啊，“免我们的债”。奉基督的名。阿们。

Genesis 50:15–21

Grace and peace be to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior, who grant these gifts to all who continually trust in His good and gracious will. Amen.

Most of us are quite familiar with Joseph in the Holy Scriptures. There are many accounts of his life: how he was favored by his father Jacob; how he was envied by his brothers; how God promised that he would be the head/leader—whom his brothers would serve; how he was sold by his brothers as a slave and taken to Egypt; how he was valued by his master, yet enticed and framed by his master Potiphar’s wife, ultimately ending up in prison; how, by God’s mercy, he was later elevated by Pharaoh to govern all the land of Egypt and manage the famine; and how he subsequently revealed his identity to his brothers who came to Egypt seeking grain, bringing the whole family to settle in the land of Goshen and providing for them all. Indeed, the latter portion of Genesis is largely devoted to the grand and wonderful story of Joseph and his family.

Today’s Old Testament lesson comes at the very end of Genesis, recording the death of Joseph’s father, Jacob, and the events that followed. Naturally, the passing of an aged father is a time for the family to weep and mourn. Yet, as so often happens in many families, the death of a parent brings the children together to handle final affairs, which does not always go smoothly. Some argue endlessly over the inheritance, harboring resentment toward one another, and some even go so far as to drag each other to court.

Between Joseph and his brothers, however, there was a uniquely grave matter to face—one that had profoundly affected everyone’s life path and emotional world. They had once treated Joseph evilly: out of envy, they plotted to take his life, and finally, settling for a compromise, they sold him into Egypt as a slave. Dear brothers and sisters, can we even imagine this? They did not do it for money; they did it out of envy and hatred. What is most incredible—or rather, what seems most natural to a fallen sinner—is the assumption that Joseph must surely hate them in return. Even though Joseph had already reunited with them and provided for their entire family’s sustenance for many years, now the old father had passed away.

The death of their old father exposed this deeply rooted issue, for Joseph’s brothers had believed all along that Joseph never truly forgave them. In their eyes, it was simply impossible for Joseph to forgive them. They assumed that his kindness toward them and his restraint from retribution were solely out of respect for their living father, Jacob. Now that their father was dead, they thought, would Joseph not begin his revenge? They said: "What if Joseph bears a grudge against us and pays us back in full for all the wrong which we did to him?" (Gen 50:15).

This is precisely how the sinful mind thinks, and it is the law of this world: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, and strict retaliation—if vengeance has not arrived, it is merely a matter of time. They did not truly know Joseph, nor had they fully grasped God’s mercy and faithfulness—how God had blessed their whole family and brought about salvation and blessing even through the brother whom they had envied and hated.

Therefore, as soon as their father died, they panicked and thought, “What shall we do? We must find a way to face this crisis.” Instead of coming to Joseph openly and candidly, they fabricated a lie. They used their deceased father Jacob’s authority to command Joseph not to retaliate, but to grant forgiveness.

Here, let us clarify: Jacob understood Joseph’s character. He knew how Joseph had consistently shown kindness to his brothers, and before he died, Jacob had blessed each of them individually, including Joseph and Joseph’s two sons born in Egypt. This message was fabricated by the brothers—not out of malice, but out of fear. It was what we might call a "white lie": "So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, 'Your father charged before he died, saying, "Thus you shall say to Joseph: 'Please forgive, the transgression of your brothers and their sin, for they did you wrong.'"' " (Gen 50:16–17).

If these words had truly come from Jacob's mouth, how could he not have spoken them directly to Joseph? Jacob had conversed with Joseph at great length before his death. Furthermore, Genesis 49 tells us that Jacob gathered all his sons before him. Though his eyes were dim, Jacob’s mind was clear, and he laid out his final charges explicitly; he would never have omitted telling Joseph himself. It is evident that the brothers made this up.

In truth, Jacob knew his sons well; he knew this matter was in the past—at least for Joseph. If there was anything Jacob might not have anticipated, it was that the brothers had never truly gotten over it in their own hearts. They were continuously plagued by guilt and self-condemnation, living beneath the long shadow of past sin. In fact, this is Satan’s favorite scheme: to keep the saints living in the past, under the power and tyranny of sin, continually enslaved, devoid of deliverance, peace, and hope.

What about Joseph? Quite the contrary. Joseph had forgiven his brothers from the bottom of his heart long ago. We can well imagine that during his early years in Egypt, long before reuniting with his brothers, he had already forgiven them and let it go. The past could no longer control him; life had to move forward, rather than being bound to the past and a victim mentality. How do we know this? A small detail gives us a sufficient clue: the name Joseph gave to his firstborn son. Genesis 41:50–51 states: "Now before the year of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore to him. Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh, 'For,' he said, 'God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household.' "

Thus, many years later, when their father passed away, the brothers unexpectedly brought up the old matter again, falsely assuming that Joseph still harbored bitterness and might seek revenge. When Joseph—a man who feared God, trusted Him, and treated those who mistreated him with kindness—heard his brothers' lies and desperate talk, he wept.

Joseph did not weep for himself, but out of compassion and tender love for his brothers. He was overwhelmed to realize that after all these years, they had never been set free from the shackles of their sin, had never received the peace of forgiveness, and were still living in fear. Joseph’s weeping flowed from a pure, unblemished love for his brothers.

Let us reflect here: What does this have to do with us? It has everything to do with us. We must ask ourselves: What is our attitude before God? Are we like Joseph’s brothers, uncertain whether we have truly been forgiven by God? Do we still feel that God could never forgive us for this or that past sin? Do we frequently allow the devil to reign, permitting him to torment our conscience at will with guilt and self-condemnation, rather than trusting in God’s promises of forgiveness and mercy? Do we fail to let Christ, our Redeemer—through His precious blood, His cross, and the peace it brings—rule in our hearts? Are we still trying to drive away this guilt and earn peace of mind through our own good works?

If so, remember that the Lord Jesus weeps for us—just as He wept over the unbelieving Jews and over Mary, who doubted the power of the resurrected Lord at the death of Lazarus. The Lord Jesus had compassion on Mary and the Jews, and He has compassion on us today, desiring that we know Him fully and trust in His power and goodness.

Dear brothers and sisters, the Gospel we believe and proclaim is this: the great work of forgiveness has already been fully accomplished by the Lord Jesus on the cross. It is certain, infallible, and inexhaustible. Whenever we come with a penitent heart to seek the Lord’s mercy, He is always ready to forgive us, release us, grant us heavenly peace, and restore us to the favor of reconciliation with God.

Joseph understood this truth in his day, and he tangibly practiced this divine love and mercy toward his neighbors—especially toward his closest kin who had hurt him the most. He spoke comforting words to his brothers: "Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive." (Gen 50:19–20). This was no empty talk. Joseph spoke directly to their hearts; as the text literally notes, Joseph spoke to their hearts to comfort them, desiring that their hearts might be revived and that they could face one another with confidence and peace.

Joseph’s mindset was profound because it was a theology centered on the Cross of Christ. All of our life experiences can and must be interpreted around the Cross. How do we view our own misfortunes and persecutions, especially those suffered for the sake of faith—when we endure baseless abuse and mistreatment simply because we believe in Christ? This is vital, for Christ our Lord was likewise handed over to sinful men, spat upon, scourged, and crucified at their hands. Yet God meant it for good—to save the lives and souls of many, including you and me, bringing about the present state of salvation. How great and undeserved is the grace we have received!

Through the Cross, we are given this same Cross-centered mindset, attitude, faith, trust, perseverance, and goodness that Joseph and Christ displayed. The punishment of the cross, though inherently shameful, was chosen by God as the tool to accomplish His supreme and perfect will, and as the ultimate revelation of His great love.

If we truly grasp what we have received, how can we not hasten to bring God’s mercy and forgiveness to those in need? How could we continue to harbor resentment or seek revenge against those who mistreat us? How could we fail to forgive from the heart those who trespass against us, even before they repent?

Commit your every circumstance entirely into the hands of our faithful and good Lord. He is righteous; we are not God. God Himself will judge all wickedness. Let us "leave room for the wrath of God; do not avenge yourselves." What we are called to do is precisely to "forgive our debtors," constantly praying in faith for the Lord’s mercy: Our Father in heaven, "forgive us our debts."

In Jesus' name. Amen.