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Easy Reading Edition Date

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SABBATH—DATE

Easy Reading Edition December 23-2913

READ FOR THIS WEEK’S STUDY: Genesis 41:41–50:26.

MEMORY VERSE:“God sent me [Joseph] ahead of you [Joseph’s brothers]to keep some of you alive on earth. He sent me here to save your lives byan act of mighty power” (Genesis 45:7, NIrV).

“IN WORLD HISTORY, WE OFTEN SEE SOMETHING ELSE HAPPEN FROMTHE ACTIONS OF MEN THAT THEY DID NOT ORIGINALLY PLAN TO HAP-PEN. They may have succeeded in reaching their goal. But something else hap-pened that they did not knowingly plan on happening.”—Adapted from G. W. F.Hegel, “The Philosophy of History,” in The Philosophy of Hegel (New York: TheModern Library, 1954), pp. 16, 17.

This week we come to the end of the beginning. We will see something of theprinciple1 shown in the quote above. It does not matter what plans people make.It does not matter what disappointment, sin, or trouble may appear. We do see“something else happen from the actions of men that they did not originally planto happen.” That “something” is the Lord working out His plan in human history.

Most of us know the story and how it ends. For this reason, God’s leading asshown in Genesis does not surprise us. But, for those involved in the story itself,it took an unbelievable amount of faith to believe that God would work everythingout as promised. No wonder Hebrews 11 says “by faith Abraham,” “by faithIsaac,” “by faith Sarah,” “by faith Jacob.” They trusted in what they did not fullysee or understand. They depended fully on God’s promise and nothing else.

Sound familiar?

SABBATH—DECEMBER 23

The End of the Beginning

1principle—a basic rule of life upon which other rules and laws are based.

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Lesson 1 Lesson TitleLesson 13 The End of the Beginning

GOD IS FAITHFUL(Genesis 41:41–42:23)

Overnight, Joseph went from beingin prison to the second-highest leaderin Egypt. Now, he would face a wholenew set of challenges.

What great challenge did thisgive to Joseph’s faithfulness toGod? Genesis 41:45.

Genesis 41:50-52 pictures Josephsettling into his new life. The namesJoseph gave his two sons show hisown experience.The name Manassehcomes from the Hebrew verb2 “maketo forget” and shows the thought thathis firstborn boy helped Joseph forgetthe cruel past. Ephraim, the secondson’s name, means “twice fruitful.” Itshows Joseph’s joyous feelings andthe opening of a new chapter in hislife.

As we read the rest of Genesis 41and Genesis 42:1-17, we can seeGod’s leading opening up. We see thesteps leading to the fulfillment ofJacob’s dreams in Genesis 37.Jacob’s dreams (Genesis 37:19)were being fulfilled in a way only Godcould have arranged. This story is awonderful testimony to the power ofGod to fulfill what He says He will do.The famine3 driving his brothers intoJoseph’s hands was a clear exampleof God working out His will.

What words do the brothersspeak among themselves thatshow they still felt guilty even afterall these years?

The great suffering of their fatherover the loss of Joseph made thesebrothers see the seriousness of theirsin. Even worse was that they couldnot tell their father the truth, thatJoseph was not even dead. They didnot realize the grief that their actionswould bring upon themselves andtheir family.

If you need to make an importantdecision, take the time to carefullythink about all the possible resultsof your decision. Why is it soimportant to make sure any deci-sion you make does not break anyprinciples God has shown in theBible?

JOSEPH AND HIS BROTHERS(Genesis 42; Genesis 43)

Joseph’s plan for his brothersshowed he was trying to teach them alesson. And he wanted to learn moreabout his family.

Notice the brothers’ reaction atfinding the money in their sacks(Genesis 42:24-28). What does itshow about their faith and under-standing of God?

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SUNDAY—DECEMBER 24

2verb—a word that shows action.3famine—not having enough food over a long period of time.

Lesson 1 Lesson Title

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Lesson 13 The End of the Beginning

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What does Genesis 42:36-38 tellus about Reuben’s character?

“During the years since Joseph hadbeen separated from his brothers,Jacob’s sons had changed in charac-ter. At first, they were jealous, rebel-lious, dishonest, cruel, and revenge-ful.4 But now, they were shown to beunselfish, true to one another, faithfulto their father, and, themselves middle-aged men, under his authority.”5

—Adapted from Ellen G. White,Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 225.

Jacob’s answer to Reuben’s offerhelped show the pain he had sufferedat the loss of Joseph. But the faminewas so bad that he had no choice(Genesis 43:8). Only then, he agreedto let his youngest son go back withthem.

What was Joseph’s purpose inmaking the feast in Genesis 43:31-34?

Much to their surprise, Joseph sathis brothers down in the order of theirbirth. Joseph gave Benjamin the mostfood. Benjamin was the youngestbrother. Joseph did this in order to “seeif the other brothers would be jealousof Benjamin and cruel to him, as they had been with Joseph.”—Adaptedfrom Ellen G. White, Patriarchs andProphets, p. 228. Instead, the brothersate and drank with Benjamin (Genesis43:34). This showed Joseph that theyreally had changed.

No doubt a great deal of suffer-ing had changed those brothers.How has suffering changed you?How can God use suffering tobring about something positive insomeone?

FAMILY REUNION (Genesis 44–47)

Joseph still was not done. The finaltest came (Genesis 44). Judah’s con-fession6 and willingness to takeBenjamin’s place all for the good ofhis father was proof that Joseph’sbrothers were changed men. It wasonly then that Joseph told them whohe really was.

TUESDAY—DECEMBER 26

4revengeful—full of revenge. Revenge is doing or saying something bad to someone who has hurt you.5authority—influence that creates respect and trust; power.6confession—admitting you have sinned.

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Pix #50

Read Joseph’s words to hisbrothers in Genesis 45:1-13. Whatdoes he say to show that his faithhad remained strong?

Joseph’s faith in God during thedark years was now rewarded. Whathe could not see before suddenlybecame clear to him. God had workedit out in ways he could not have imag-ined. This is a good lesson for all ofus. If we always stay faithful, God willwork things out in the end, even if it isat the very end (Revelation 21:1).

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The rest of Genesis 45 is aboutgetting ready to put Joseph’s familytogether again. When Jacob hearsabout Joseph (Genesis 46), hebegins the long journey to Egypt. Onthe way, Jacob stops at Beersheba,where his grandfather Abraham hadworshiped and his father had built analtar. There God repeated Hiscovenant7 blessings (Genesis 21:33;Genesis 26:23-25). As Jacob re-newed his covenant promise to God,God told him again about thecovenant promises made at Bethel.God also added the promise thatJacob’s family would grow into anation in Egypt (Genesis 46:1-4).

After Jacob and his familyreached Egypt, a glad reunion tookplace (Genesis 45:29, 30). Why didJoseph want his family to tell theEgyptians they were shepherds, ajob that Egyptians did not like?(Genesis 46:31-34).

Genesis 46:31-34 does not explainclearly, but Joseph must have knownthe negative influence Egypt couldhave on his family. By keeping hisfamily separated from the Egyptians,Joseph tried to protect the spiritualpurity of his family. Clearly, Josephknew something of his family’s spirit-ual responsibility. No doubt, howJoseph and his family were togetheragain told him that this spiritualresponsibility was real.

Joseph put his brothers through one moretest.

“I am Joseph!” (See Genesis 45.)

7covenant—a promise or agreement between God and His people.


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FATHER JACOB’S BLESSINGS(Genesis 47:28-49:28)

After spending 17 happy years inEgypt with those dearest to him,Jacob felt death was near. He calledhis sons to him for a last farewell.

Read again the promises Godgave to Jacob over the years.Genesis 28:12-15; Genesis 35:9-15; Genesis 46:2-4. With the condi-tions and circumstances that sur-rounded Jacob now, why should ithave been easy for him to believethat God would fulfill these prom-ises? Also read Genesis 46:26;Genesis 47:27.

Jacob probably saw for the firsttime how God had been able to workout all that He promised. No doubtthis knowledge gave him peace andcomfort.

Before his death, Jacob foretold thefuture of his family (Genesis 49).God’s power led Jacob to declare thetruth, no matter how painful it was.Jacob withdrew the rights of the first-born from Reuben and announced acurse for the crime of Levi andSimeon. The later history of Levi’sfamily shows how a curse can turninto a blessing.

The Bible shows both the good andthe bad, the failures and successes ofhumans. The Bible does not hide thefaults or the victories of its most

respected heroes. The Bible picturesGod’s men and women as having thesame human feelings as we have(James 5:17; Acts 14:15).

Jacob showed the future to his fam-ily. This future included individualswith free will and free choice, espe-cially in their relationship with God. Inthe same way, each of us experi-ences free will. The prophecies Godmakes about nations and their futureare not the same as prophesying thatindividuals are to be saved or lost.God’s foreknowledge of our choice isnot the same as pre-deciding thosechoices. Those choices are only oursto make.

How do you understand the ideathat “character is destiny [futureend]”? How does your own char-acter influence the decisions youmake? What character changeswould you like to make in yourlife? How can you make thesechanges?

THE END OF THE BEGINNING(Genesis 49:29–50:26)

Genesis 50 is the end of the begin-ning. Genesis went from Creation, tothe Fall,8 to the Flood, to the covenantpromises God made to Abraham andto his seed (children). At first, it wasprobably difficult to see how thesepromises ever could be fulfilled. Butby the time Genesis ends, we can

WEDNESDAY—DECEMBER 27

THURSDAY—DECEMBER 28

8the Fall—when Adam and Eve first sinned.

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see the groundwork set for everythingGod had promised. The children ofAbraham as a great nation are livingas “a stranger in a land that is nottheirs” (Genesis 15:13). They are apeople who will one day be called outof Egypt in order that “all the nationsof the earth [shall] be blessed”(Genesis 22:18).

What very human feeling didJoseph’s brothers show? Genesis50.

Their plea for forgiveness was notnecessary. Clearly, Joseph had for-given them a long time ago. Now,finally, they could see just how truehis forgiveness was. We see hereagain another example of Joseph’scharacter and honesty. In this way,Joseph acts as a symbol of Christ.Joseph forgives people for whatmany would think is unforgivable.

Read Joseph’s answer to hisbrothers in Genesis 50:19, 20. Howis his answer a key theme of bothGenesis and the whole Bible?What great principle is shownhere? What hope should we getfrom it?

It is often difficult for us as humansto see it. In the same way, it was diffi-cult for Abraham on Mount Moriah orJoseph in prison. But God is workingout His plans to bring out “good” andto “save many lives” (Genesis 50:20,NIrV). Whoever we are, whatever oursituations are, we must remember

that the same God of Genesis is thesame God of Revelation. Revelationis a book about our times and ourstory (Revelation 12:17).

Finally, Genesis began with themiracle of Creation. It took a miracleto create this world. In the same way,it will take a miracle to save it. Wehave seen that miracle suggestedfirst in Genesis 3:15 and in Genesis22. It is the miracle of Jesus crucified,brought back to life, and comingagain.

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ADDITIONAL STUDY: Read Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets,pp. 224–240; The SDA Bible Com-mentary, vol. 1, comments on Genesis41:41–50:26.

“Jacob had sinned, and had deeplysuffered. He had suffered many yearsof hard work, worry, and sorrow sincethe day his great sin caused him to fleehis father’s tents. He was a homelessescapee, separated from his mother,whom he never saw again. He workedseven years for Rachel. But he wascheated and ended up working twenty

FRIDAY—DECEMBER 29


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years in the service of a cheating rela-tive. Jacob saw his wealth increasing.He saw his sons rising around him.But he found little joy in the dividedand quarreling fam-ily. He was dis-couraged by his daughter’s shame, byher brothers’ revenge, by Rachel’sdeath, by Reuben’s crime, by Judah’ssin, and by the cruel treatment ofJoseph. How long and dark is the listof evils spread out in his mind! Againand again Jacob reaped the fruit of hisfirst wrong action. Over and over hesaw his sons repeating his own sins.Jacob’s punishment was very bitter.But it did its work. The punishmentfinally brought forth ‘the peaceable fruitof righteousness [holiness].’ Hebrews12:11.”—Adapted from Ellen G. White,Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 237.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

• If there is one important themethat you could get from the book ofGenesis that you can use in your lifetoday, what would that theme be?

• Much of the suffering we haveseen in Genesis was caused by peo-ple’s own actions. It is the same withsuffering we see today. Does thatmake any difference in how weshould treat those people and try tohelp them? Be sure to defend youranswer.

• Ask people in class to choose astory from Genesis that gives themsome useful truth in helping themdeal with whatever personal situationthey are facing.

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