Acts 7:9-16
9 “The patriarchs became jealous of Joseph and sold him into Egypt. Yet God was with him,
10 and rescued him from all his afflictions, and granted him favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he made him governor over Egypt and his entire household.
11 “Now a famine came over all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction with it, and our fathers could find no food.
12 But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers there the first time.
13 And on the second visit, Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family was revealed to Pharaoh.
14 Then Joseph sent word and invited his father Jacob and all his relatives to come to him, seventy-five people in all.
15 And Jacob went down to Egypt, and he and our fathers died there.
16 And they were brought back from there to Shechem and laid in the tomb which Abraham had purchased for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.
Stephen’s Defense (2)
Joseph: the one rejected became exalted and a savior
(1) The jealousy of the patriarchs toward Joseph was intense. They sold Joseph into Egypt, but God was with him. (2) As a result, Joseph was appointed “a governor over Egypt and his (Pharaoh’s) entire household.” Though rejected by his brothers, Joseph was exalted by God’s hand. (3) “But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers there the first time.” The background of their descent into Egypt was the great famine that struck Egypt and the land of Canaan. The patriarchs went to Egypt twice in search of food. During their first visit, they did not recognize Joseph, but on their second visit, they realized that Joseph had become the governor of Egypt. Thus, the people of Israel moved to Egypt. (4) In Genesis 46:27 and Exodus 1:5, the number is given as 70, but in the Septuagint, it is 75. Stephen adopts the Septuagint version. The number 75 is thought to be the 70 plus the 5 grandchildren of Joseph (1 Chron. 7:14-27). “And Jacob went down to Egypt, and he and our fathers died there. And they were brought back from there to Shechem and laid in the tomb which Abraham had purchased for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.” (1) Stephen states that Jacob and his children were buried in Shechem, but there is an issue with this account (the mention of Shechem here serves as a preparation to the next development, which is mission to the Samaritans). Jacob was buried in Hebron (Gen. 50:13), and Joseph was buried in Shechem (Josh. 24:32). (2) The part about “the tomb which Abraham had purchased for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem” is also problematic. Abraham bought a plot of land and a burial site in Hebron from the Hittites, but it was Jacob who bought the tomb in Shechem from the sons of Hamor. These two discrepancies can be resolved by considering that Stephen is combining two separate stories into one. Joseph is the most prominent type of the Messiah in the Old Testament. Stephen’s intention is to draw a parallel between Joseph and Jesus. (a) Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery out of jealousy. (b) Yet, Joseph became their savior. (c) God’s people rejected Jesus at His first coming. (d) They will accept Jesus as the Messiah at the end of the Great Tribulation. (e) The second coming of the Messiah will occur when God’s people accept Jesus as the Messiah.
Today's prayer
Heavenly Father, I will eagerly wait for the time when Your people accept Jesus as the Messiah. I trust in Your plan and walk in faith in the Savior Jesus. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.