1 Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave my presence!” So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. 2 And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh’s household heard about it.

3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?” But his brothers were not able to answer him, because they were terrified at his presence.

4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! 5 And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. 6 For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. 7 But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

8 “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt. 9 Now hurry back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don’t delay. 10 You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me—you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have. 11 I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come. Otherwise you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.’

12 “You can see for yourselves, and so can my brother Benjamin, that it is really I who am speaking to you. 13 Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt and about everything you have seen. And bring my father down here quickly.”

14 Then he threw his arms around his brother Benjamin and wept, and Benjamin embraced him, weeping. 15 And he kissed all his brothers and wept over them. Afterward his brothers talked with him.

Dear God, I don’t know that I have ever read this story with the proper emotion because I have never read the entire story slowly and in context like I am now. I have always heard his proclamation in verse one as a shout of joy, but now that I read it more closely I see that he said it through weeping tears. You can almost see the emotion of all of the hurt he experienced through his first question of them: “Is my father still living?”

So Joseph was able to take the high ground and offer them grace, but that still didn’t mean he wasn’t hurt. The interesting thing is that, apparently, the hurt was part of your plan for Joseph. Whether it made him stronger, more humble, smarter, or whatever I don’t know, but the pain he experienced was every bit as much a part of this story as his maturation and growth.

Father, I have not experienced pain like this—yet. I have lost a child through miscarriage, and that was terrible, but it wasn’t over a prolonged period of time. But I see others around me who have experienced scarring pain. Usually it is through watching relatives slowly die. In fact, I was in the hospital yesterday visiting a man who is apparently dying. Frankly, it is probably the last time I will see him alive. The thing that struck me the most was that all of his family was around him. They had all been called because the end is near. No one told me that, but it wasn’t hard to figure out. This will add a new level of pain and suffering to all of their experiences, especially his wife. So I ask your protection over this family. Prepare them for your plan and give them your peace.