Re:Verse passage – Genesis 50:15-20 (day three)
“And now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father.”
Joseph’s brothers didn’t merely invoke God, but “the God of your father.” Their hopes hung on the appeal to their father Jacob as the last bulwark against disaster. Jacob had held the family together all these years, but he was gone. Now what? Death is an inflection point for families. How will life go on? Who will protect us from each other? Who will anchor the family? Will we just drift apart? Families will develop a delicate balance – often on the shoulders of one individual – so they can navigate the world with the least amount of agony. But the Bible reveals that families can learn a new way. Sometimes, one person’s risking tenderness, like Joseph did in his reply, will begin to move people from isolation to intimacy.
