Genesis 37 begins with these words. “Now Jacob dwelt in the land where his Father was a stranger.” Yet, Joseph’s road to Egypt began with the words of Israel.
And Israel said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers feeding the flock in Shechem? Come, I will send you to them.” So he said to him, “Here I am.” (Gen 37:13)
Also I heard the voice of my Master, saying: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me!” (Isa 6:8)
Why was it Israel and not Jacob who sent Joseph to his brothers? I think it is because this journey is of Yehovah and today we will see His hand in every step in Joseph’s road to Egypt.
We saw last time in “Joseph and family rejection” that Yehovah even sent a messenger to Joseph at Shechem to get Joseph to his brothers. Genesis calls him “a certain man,” but Yasher calls him an angel of Yehovah, His messenger (a man).
Today we will see that the brothers saw the Ishmaelites coming from the north and decided to sell Joseph to them; but before they arrived some Midianite (מדינים – mid-ya-Nim) traders coming from the south rescued Joseph and planned on keeping him. But when the brothers saw that Joseph was safe, they threatened the Midianites, who called them on their lies, with violence. The sons of Jacob are scary guys.
Yasher 42:12 And behold Simeon rose up from his seat against them, and sprang upon the ground and drew his sword and approached the Midianites and he gave a terrible shout before them, so that his shouting was heard at a distance, and the earth shook at Simeon’s shouting.
13 And the Midianites were terrified on account of Simeon and the noise of his shouting, and they fell upon their faces, and were excessively alarmed.
Everyday, we who have come to understand more of Yehovah’s eternal and unchanging ways, experience rejection. And the deeper our understandings and the more our actions deviate from those around us, the greater that rejection becomes. Yehovah can harden the hearts of our family members just as he hardened the heart of Pharaoh and the hearts of Joseph’s brothers to accomplish His perfect will in our life. But the most hurtful, the most grievous rejection of all is family rejection.
Today we begin the story of Joseph, a less than perfect man who experienced family rejection in its fulness when his brothers decided to murder him. But he went on to become a man used by Elohim to save his family and many others.
Other than the birth of Joseph in Genesis 30:24, he is not mentioned until he is 17 years old. Joseph was only 14 when his brothers fought the 6 day war with the 7 Amorite cities 3 years before; and he is not mentioned there because he and Benjamin were too young and, I believe, too precious to Jacob to fight.
Yasher 41:5 And Joseph the son of Jacob, and his brother Benjamin, the sons of Rachel, the wife of Jacob, were yet young in those days, and did not go out with their brethren during their battles in all the cities of the Amorites.
6 And when Joseph saw the strength of his brethren, and their greatness, he praised them and extolled them, but he ranked himself greater than them, and extolled himself above them; and Jacob, his father, also loved him more than any of his sons, for he was a son of his old age, and through his love toward him, he made him a coat of many colors.
7 And when Joseph saw that his father loved him more than his brethren, he continued to exalt himself above his brethren, and he brought unto his father evil reports concerning them.
8 And the sons of Jacob seeing the whole of Joseph’s conduct toward them, and that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him all the days.
9 And Joseph was seventeen years old, and he was still magnifying himself above his brethren, and thought of raising himself above them.
Here is a time-line for the life of Joseph, just like the ones I did for Abraham and Jacob.
0 – Joseph born in Haran (Gen 30:24 & Yasher 31:21)
9 – Rachel dies at 45 & Benjamin is born (Yasher 36:11 & Gen_35:16-18)
14 – Joseph’s 10 older brothers fight the 6 day war with the 7 Amorite cities. (Yasher 37 – 39 & Yasher 41:5-6)
17 – sold in slavery (Gen_37:1 & Yasher 40 -42)
17 – In Potiphar’s house (Gen_39:1 & Yasher 42)
18 – Placed in prison for 12 years. (Jasher 44:77)
27 – Butler and the baker arrive at the prison (Yasher 46:5)
28 – Interprets the butler’s and the baker’s dreams (Yasher 46:19-20, Gen_40:23)
30 – Joseph interprets Pharaoh’s dream (Gen_41:46)
34 – Joseph’s twin sons are born (Yasher 50:15 & Gen_41:50-52)
37 – Famine begins (Genesis 41:54 & Yasher 50:18)
38 – Brothers come to Egypt the 1st time (Genesis 42:1 &Yasher 51:1-6)
39 – Brothers (39 – 45) come 2nd time w/ Benjamin (30) and go back for their father (130) and families (Yasher 53 & Gen_45:1 – Gen_47:9)
56 – Jacob, and then Esau (147) die (Gen_47:28 & Yasher 56:1-2)
71 – Pharaoh dies, and Magron (41) his son reigned in his place – Joseph acts as Magron’s father (Yasher 58:1-2) 71 – Joseph reigned over Egypt for 40 years (Yasher 58:11)
89 – Joseph and the sons of Jacob with 600 men killed 200,000 of 800,000 men sent by Esau. (Yasher 58:17)
This portion of the book of Yasher which we are covering today is one of my very favorites; it is a shadow picture of things to come. Yehovah is now raising up mighty men [a 144,000 ish, His servants, the good shepherds] who will serve only Him; mighty men whom He can use to take back all the earth for Himself in the coming last days. The mighty men found in these chapters are men that the world has not seen in a very long time. They are just like the mighty men described in Joel 2.
The Mighty Men Will Roar
They run like mighty men, they climb the wall like men of war; every one marches in formation, and they do not break ranks. They do not push one another; every one marches in his own column. Though they lunge between the weapons, they are not cut down. they run to and fro in the city, they run on the wall; they climb into the houses, they enter at the windows like a thief. (Joe 2:7-9)
These mighty men whom Yehovah is currently raising up seem quite the opposite right now. They look weak, lame and poor in their flesh but they are mighty men in their spirit. Yehovah says through Isaiah,
Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting Elohim (lawmaker and judge), Yehovah, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths [these are the young boys who never get tired] shall faint and be weary, and the young men [these are the mighty men in the flesh, the military men who serve other elohim]Â shall utterly fall. But those who wait on Yehovah shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. (Isa 40:28-31)
Jacob is now 105 years old and he has just moved his family from Hebron, where his dad Isaac lives, back to Shechem and his good and fat pasture which is there. But the Canaanites that live around the city of Shechem are not happy to see Jacob or his sons. Continue reading Mighty Men Begin To Roar On The Earth→
At our last meeting we read that Jacob’s 2 sons, Simeon (12) and Levi (11) saved their sister Dinah (8) from the house of Shechem when they killed all the men of that wicked city. In today’s lesson we will learn that even the Canaanites understand that Jacob and His sons Elohim is exceedingly fond of them.
When we had to stop last time we saw that 7 kings of Canaan had come with 10,000 men to destroy Jacob and his household. They seemed like the sands of the sea in number and Jacob was afraid. But the boys displayed great faith.
Yasher 34:59 And Judah said unto Simeon and Levi, and unto all his brothers, Strengthen yourselves and be sons of valor, for Yehovah our Elohim is with us, do not fear them.
60 Stand forth each man, girt with his weapons of war, his bow and his sword, and we will go and fight against these uncircumcised men; Yehovah is our Elohim, He will save us.
Oh – how I love the faith I see in these sons of Jacob! Both Jacob and his father Isaac then prayed to Yehovah for deliverance. Here is a portion of that prayer.
Yasher 34:66 Now therefore, O Yehovah Elohim, Elohim of the whole earth, pervert, I pray thee, the counsel of these kings that they may not fight against my sons.
67 And impress the hearts of these kings and their people with the terror of my sons and bring down their pride, and that they may turn away from my sons.
68 And with thy strong hand and outstretched arm deliver my sons and their servants from them, for power and might are in thy hands to do all this.
Their Elohim is exceedingly fond of them
Yasher 35:2 And Yehovah heard the prayers of Isaac and Jacob, and He filled the hearts of all these kings’ advisers with great fear and terror that they unanimously exclaimed,
3 Are you silly this day, or is there no understanding in you, that you will fight with the Hebrews, and why will you take a delight in your own destruction this day?
Jacob meets Esau today for the first time in over 20 years. Few people understand the hatred that exists between these two brothers; one a total man of the flesh, and the other a spiritual man who always seeks to follow only Yehovah.
Our story ended last time with Laban breaking his covenant with Jacob and sending his servants to rekindle Esau’s hatred toward Jacob and his desire to destroy him, and now, his whole household.
Yasher 31:64 And Esau heard all the words of Laban’s messengers, and his anger was greatly kindled against Jacob, and he remembered his hatred, and his anger burned within him.
65 And Esau hastened and took his sons and servants and the souls of his household, being sixty men, and he went and assembled all the sons of Seir the Horite and their people, being three hundred and forty men, and took all this number of four hundred men with drawn swords, and he went unto Jacob to smite him.
And just so there is no doubt as to Esau’s intent against Jacob, the servants of Laban who stirred up Esau have now gone to Rebekah in Canaan.
Yasher 31:69 And Laban’s messengers departed from Esau and went to the land of Canaan, and they came to the house of Rebekah the mother of Jacob and Esau.
70 And they told her saying, Behold thy son Esau has gone against his brother Jacob with four hundred men, for he heard that he was coming, and he is gone to make war with him, and to smite him and to take all that he has.
Relatively few people have ever heard that Esau killed Nimrod, and then despised his birthright. We are going to see today that Esau, like Nimrod, had a desire to rule the world; what would an extra portion over his brother matter to Esau in light of world domination?
Again, it is the book of Yasher that has provided “the rest of the story.”
Nimrod’s Dream
After Terah’s son [Abram] was born, Nimrod had a dream. Here is the interpretation.
Yasher 12:50 And the king was grieved at the sight, and he awoke out of his sleep and his spirit was agitated; and he felt a great terror.
51 And in the morning the king rose from his couch in fear, and he ordered all the wise men and magicians to come before him, when the king related his dream to them.
52 And a wise servant of the king, whose name was Anuki, answered the king, saying, This is nothing else but the evil of Abram and his seed which will spring up against my master and king in the latter days.
Esau Killed Nimrod!
And in fact one of Abram’s seed, a wicked seed, did spring up in Nimrod’s latter days and kill him.
Yasher 27:4 And on a certain day Esau went in the field to hunt, and he found Nimrod walking in the wilderness with his two men.
5 And all his mighty men and his people were with him in the wilderness, but they removed at a distance from him, and they went from him in different directions to hunt, and Esau concealed himself from Nimrod, and he lurked for him in the wilderness.
6 And Nimrod and his men that were with him did not know, and Nimrod and his men frequently walked about in the field at the cool of the day, and to know where his men were hunting in the field.
7 And Nimrod and two of his men that were with him came to the place where they were, when Esau started suddenly from his lurking place, and drew his sword, and hastened and ran to Nimrod and cut off his head.
8 And Esau fought a desperate fight with the two men that were with Nimrod, and when they called out to him, Esau turned to them and smote them to death with his sword.
Nimrod Ruled With The Garments Which Elohim Made For Adam And His Woman
Nimrod had the garments that Yehovah made for Adam and his woman; they had been handed down to him through Ham and made him strong. It was these garments that were coveted by Esau.
Yasher 7:24 And the garments of skin which God made for Adam and his woman, when they went out of the garden, were given to Cush.
25 For after the death of Adam and his woman, the garments were given to Enoch, the son of Jared, and when Enoch was taken up to God, he gave them to Methuselah, his son.
26 And at the death of Methuselah, Noah took them and brought them to the ark, and they were with him until he went out of the ark.
27 And in their going out, Ham stole those garments from Noah his father, and he took them and hid them from his brothers.
28 And when Ham begat his first-born Cush, he gave him the garments in secret, and they were with Cush many days.
29 And Cush also concealed them from his sons and brothers, and when Cush had begotten Nimrod, he gave him those garments through his love for him, and Nimrod grew up, and when he was twenty years old he put on those garments.
30 And Nimrod became strong when he put on the garments, …
Esau Stole The Garments
Yasher 27:10 And when Esau saw the mighty men of Nimrod coming at a distance, he fled, and thereby escaped; and Esau took the valuable garments of Nimrod, which Nimrod’s father had bequeathed to Nimrod, and with which Nimrod prevailed over the whole land, and he ran and concealed them in his house.
And Then Esau Despised His birthright
Now we know why Esau was so weary when he came from the field and met Jacob and was so nonchalant about his birthright.
Yasher 27:11 And Esau took those garments and ran into the city on account of Nimrod’s men, and he came unto his father’s house wearied and exhausted from fight, and he was ready to die through grief when he approached his brother Jacob and sat before him.
12 And he said unto his brother Jacob, Behold I shall die this day, and wherefore then do I want the birthright? And Jacob acted wisely with Esau in this matter, and Esau sold his birthright to Jacob, for it was so brought about by Yehovah.
13 And Esau’s portion in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham had bought from the sons of Heth for the possession of a burial ground, Esau also sold to Jacob, and Jacob bought all this from his brother Esau for value given.
Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. And Esau said to Jacob, “Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am weary.” Therefore his name was called Edom. But Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright as of this day.” And Esau said, “Look, I am about to die; so what is this birthright to me?” Then Jacob said, “Swear to me as of this day.” So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then he ate and drank, arose, and went his way, thus Esau despised his birthright. (Gen 25:29-34)
I wonder who currently has those garments. If it is the very fleshly descendants of Esau that rule the earth now, we (Israel’s seed) will fight with them again. I talk a lot about that in this portion. Please watch the video, listen to this audio or download it for your mp3 player and listen to it later.
Here are some other articles you might be interested in.
For more teachings like this one (beginning at Genesis 1), visit our Join Us for Sabbath page.
Please Contact Michael to help support his work in building Yehovah’s kingdom on the earth.
Providence Ministries is NOT incorporated with any kingdom of this world. Providence Ministries is an affiliate of the Director of Ecclesiastical Enterprises, a Washington State acknowledged corporation sole of the ecclesia on file with the Secretary of the State. This charitable ministry is not for profit and maintains its nontaxable status consistent with 26 USC 508(c)(1)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code with respect to 501 (c)(3) organizations special rules as a “mandatory exception.”
