17 You are to say to Joseph, Let the wrongdoing of your brothers be overlooked, and the evil they did to you: now, if it is your pleasure, let the sin of the servants of your father's God have forgiveness. And at these words, Joseph was overcome with weeping.
And whoever gives to one of these little ones a cup of cold water only, in the name of a disciple, truly I say to you, he will not go without his reward.
So then, make a statement of your sins to one another, and say prayers for one another so that you may be made well. The prayer of a good man is full of power in its working.
And so, though I might, in the name of Christ, give you orders to do what is right, Still, because of love, in place of an order, I make a request to you, I, Paul, an old man and now a prisoner of Christ Jesus: My request is for my child Onesimus, the child of my chains, Who in the past was of no profit to you, but now is of profit to you and to me: Whom I have sent back to you, him who is my very heart: Though my desire was to keep him with me, to be my servant in the chains of the good news, in your place: But without your approval I would do nothing; so that your good works might not be forced, but done freely from your heart. For it is possible that for this reason he was parted from you for a time, so that you might have him for ever; No longer as a servant, but more than a servant, a brother, very dear to me specially, but much more to you, in the flesh as well as in the Lord. If then you take me to be your friend and brother, take him in as myself. If he has done you any wrong or is in debt to you for anything, put it to my account. I, Paul, writing this myself, say, I will make payment to you: and I do not say to you that you are in debt to me even for your life. So brother, let me have joy of you in the Lord: give new life to my heart in Christ.
As saints of God, then, holy and dearly loved, let your behaviour be marked by pity and mercy, kind feeling, a low opinion of yourselves, gentle ways, and a power of undergoing all things; Being gentle to one another and having forgiveness for one another, if anyone has done wrong to his brother, even as the Lord had forgiveness for you:
And be kind to one another, full of pity, having forgiveness for one another, even as God in Christ had forgiveness for you.
So then, as we have the chance, let us do good to all men, and specially to those who are of the family of the faith.
Give attention to yourselves: if your brother does wrong, say a sharp word to him; and if he has sorrow for his sin, let him have forgiveness. And if he does you wrong seven times in a day, and seven times comes to you and says, I have regret for what I have done; let him have forgiveness.
And the King will make answer and say to them, Truly I say to you, Because you did it to the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.
So will my Father in heaven do to you, if you do not everyone, from your hearts, give forgiveness to his brother.
For if you let men have forgiveness for their sins, you will have forgiveness from your Father in heaven. But if you do not let men have forgiveness for their sins, you will not have forgiveness from your Father for your sins.
And make us free of our debts, as we have made those free who are in debt to us.
For their thoughts were bitter against you: they had an evil design in their minds, which they were not able to put into effect.
He makes a song, saying, I did wrong, turning from the straight way, but he did not give me the reward of my sin. He kept my soul from the underworld, and my life sees the light in full measure.
Even by the God of your father, who will be your help, and by the Ruler of all, who will make you full with blessings from heaven on high, blessings of the deep stretched out under the earth, blessings of the breasts and of the fertile body:
So now it was not you who sent me here, but God: and he has made me as a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
Then Joseph said to his brothers, Come near to me. And they came near, And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom you sent into Egypt. Now do not be troubled or angry with yourselves for sending me away, because God sent me before you to be the saviour of your lives.
And they said to one another, Truly, we did wrong to our brother, for we saw his grief of mind, and we did not give ear to his prayers; that is why this trouble has come on us. And Reuben said to them, Did I not say to you, Do the child no wrong? but you gave no attention; so now, punishment has come on us for his blood. They were not conscious that the sense of their words was clear to Joseph, for he had been talking to them through one who had knowledge of their language. And turning away from them, he was overcome with weeping; then he went on talking to them again and took Simeon and put chains on him before their eyes.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Genesis 50
Commentary on Genesis 50 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 50
Here is,
Thus the book of Genesis, which began with the origin of light and life, ends with nothing but death and darkness; so sad a change has sin made.
Gen 50:1-6
Joseph is here paying his last respects to his deceased father.
Gen 50:7-14
We have here an account of Jacob's funeral. Of the funerals of the kings of Judah, usually, no more is said than this, They were buried with their fathers in the city of David: but the funeral of the patriarch Jacob is more largely and fully described, to show how much better God was to him than he expected (he had spoken more than once of dying for grief, and going to the grave bereaved of his children, but, behold, he dies in honour, and is followed to the grave by all his children), and also because his orders concerning his burial were given and observed in faith, and in expectation both of the earthly and of the heavenly Canaan. Now,
Gen 50:15-21
We have here the settling of a good correspondence between Joseph and his brethren, now that their father was dead. Joseph was at court, in the royal city; his brethren were in Goshen, remote in the country; yet the keeping up of a good understanding, and a good affection, between them, would be both his honour and their interest. Note, When Providence has removed the parents by death, the best methods ought to be taken, not only for the preventing of quarrels among the children (which often happen about the dividing of the estate), but for the preserving of acquaintance and love, that unity may continue even when that centre of unity is taken away.
Gen 50:22-26
Here is,