Day 66 – Genesis 43:1-7
When the Corn Was Spent
Scripture Reading – Genesis 43:1-7
And the famine was sore in the land.
Genesis 43:1 KJV
And it came to pass, when they had eaten up the corn which they had brought out of Egypt, their father said unto them, Go again, buy us a little food.
Genesis 43:2 KJV
And Judah spake unto him, saying, The man did solemnly protest unto us, saying, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be with you.
Genesis 43:3 KJV
If thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go down and buy thee food:
Genesis 43:4 KJV
But if thou wilt not send him, we will not go down: for the man said unto us, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be with you.
Genesis 43:5 KJV
And Israel said, Wherefore dealt ye so ill with me, as to tell the man whether ye had yet a brother?
Genesis 43:6 KJV
And they said, The man asked us straitly of our state, and of our kindred, saying, Is your father yet alive? have ye another brother? and we told him according to the tenor of these words: could we certainly know that he would say, Bring your brother down?
Genesis 43:7 KJV
Scripture Review
The famine remains sore, and the corn from Egypt is eaten. Jacob tells his sons to return for a little food, but Judah reminds him that the ruler solemnly required Benjamin. Hunger brings the postponed decision back. The family cannot live forever on the provision from the first trip while refusing the condition attached to the next one.
Jacob asks why they told the man about Benjamin. That question comes from grief, but it cannot change the conversation already held in Egypt. Fear often attacks the messenger or reopens an irreversible detail because it does not want to face the present choice. The brothers answer that the governor asked specifically about their family. They could not know where the questions would lead.
Jacob meant to obtain food without risking Benjamin, while Judah meant to make clear that no return to Egypt was possible unless the condition was honored.
God meant to use continued need to move Jacob beyond postponement and bring Benjamin into the encounter required for the family’s restoration.
What this asks of me
Temporary relief can allow me to postpone a necessary act, but eventually the corn is spent. I need courage to face the decision as it now stands instead of blaming yesterday’s conversation. When God has made the next faithful step plain, repeating why I dislike it will not feed the household.
Consider
- What necessary decision have I postponed because temporary relief made delay possible?
- Am I blaming an earlier conversation to avoid the faithful choice now in front of me?