Genesis 42:21says, And they said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us. Joseph's brothers were not talking about what was happening at that time, but they were remembering when they sold Joseph into slavery. They acknowledged their guilt and their lack of compassion for Joseph. If we are guilty of sin, we may hide the fact from the world, but we can never hide it from our self. Verse twenty-two states, And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required. Reuben reminded his brothers that he had asked them not to sin against the child and they wouldn't listen. Still, Reuben could not exonerate himself, because he went along with them, even if his plan was to rescue Joseph later. We cannot excuse ourselves if we go along with sinful actions, even if we really believe that they are wrong. Of course, I believe that even if we act in a sinful way toward other people that we sin against God. Verse twenty-three declares, And they knew not that Joseph understood them; for he spake unto them by an interpreter. His brothers did not know that Joseph understood them, since he spoke to them through an interpreter. They truly did not recognize Joseph, but thought that he was simply an Egyptian in power over them. The brothers thought that what they were discussing was not known to Joseph, and we may think that we have hidden our sins today, but like Joseph with his brothers, God will always know our sins, whether we confess them to Him or not. Verse twenty-four adds, And he turned himself about from them, and wept; and returned to them again, and communed with them, and took from them Simeon, and bound him before their eyes. Joseph was not enjoying his position of power and wanting to see his brothers suffer. He turned away from them and wept. I don't believe that this was because of pity for himself, but because Joseph felt compassion for them. I don't believe that God ever takes joy in our suffering from our sins, unconfessed or otherwise, but that He weeps over our refusal to come to Him and ask forgiveness. Joseph had them leave Simeon behind. Verse twenty-five declares, Then Joseph commanded to fill their sacks with corn, and to restore every man’s money into his sack, and to give them provision for the way: and thus did he unto them. Joseph had his brother's sacks filled with grain, and put their money in as well. Joseph was not doing this so he could falsely accuse them of cheating him, but he was doing it to test their character. The question was since they had the corn and the money, would they return for Simeon or abandon him as they had Joseph. We can be certain that God will never attempt to trap us into sin, but He may allow our faith in Him to be tested. Verse twenty-six says, And they laded their asses with the corn, and departed thence. Having agreed to leave Simeon behind as a promise that they would return, the other brothers left. As followers of Christ, we have gotten out of a bad situation in God's eyes, but others are still left behind in sin. The question is how concerned are we for them. The brothers could have felt that sacrificing one was acceptable, since they got what they came for. We cannot believe that leaving other people lost is acceptable as long as we are saved ourselves. Verse twenty-seven states, And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the inn, he espied his money; for, behold, it was in his sack’s mouth. When the brothers stopped to feed the animals, one of them opened his sack and found the money. Verse twenty-eight adds, And he said unto his brethren, My money is restored; and, lo, it is even in my sack: and their heart failed them, and they were afraid, saying one to another, What is this that God hath done unto us? When he told his brothers that the money was in his sack, they were afraid. Their first reaction was to accuse God of causing their problem. We may also be quick to blame God with our problems, but we should instead look to God for help in understanding the situation. Whether they knew it or not, it was the unconfessed sin of the brothers that was causing their problem. We will never come out ahead through sin, even if it may seem so at the time.
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