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Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?" But his brothers could not answer him, so dismayed were they at his presence.
Then Joseph said to his brothers, "Come closer to me." And they came closer. He said, "I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for elohim sent me before you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years; and there are five more years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. elohim sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. So it was not you who sent me here, but ha-elohim; he has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt. Hurry and go up to my father and say to him, 'Thus says your son Joseph, elohim has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay. You shall settle in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children's children, as well as your flocks, your herds, and all that you have. I will provide for you there--since there are five more years of famine to come--so that you and your household, and all that you have, will not come to poverty.'"
And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them; and after that his brothers talked with him.
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This is the Old Testament selection to be read aloud on the seventh Sunday after the Epiphany, Year C, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. It will precede a singing of selected verses from Psalm 37, where David wrote: “Refrain from anger, leave rage alone; do not fret yourself; it leads only to evil.” That pair will then be followed by the Epistle selection from First Corinthians, where Paul wrote, “What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body.” All will accompany the Gospel reading from Luke, where it is written: “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.”
In this selection of verses, four times the NRSV translated a form of “elohim” as “God.” In all of the forty-fifth chapter of Genesis those are the only four such references. In this, it highlights the fact that the name Yahweh was not yet known, as that name was told to Moses at the burning bush. While it has to be grasped that Jacob was taught his ‘religious beliefs’ by his father Isaac, with his taught to him by Abraham, those Patriarchs knew the voice of Yahweh, but not by name. The Hebrew word “elohim” is clearly the plural form of “el,” which states “gods.” To say someone wrote the word for “gods,” while meaning the singular is a lie and is man playing a god [be that man a Jewish rabbinical scholar or a master of the Hebrew language], so to say “gods” means “God” is flat out wrong.
The ”elohim” must be understood as being the “angels” created by Yahweh to serve Him on earth. Some of those “elohim” refuse to help mankind, whom they made in their likeness for Yahweh [day six of the Creation]. That means there are fallen “elohim” and there are guardian “elohim,” which watch over souls in human flesh. In this regard, one needs to know the history of Joseph.
Joseph was born in Genesis 30. Jacob wrestled with his demon “elohim” [or “el”] in Genesis 32. It was at that time that Jacob became a Yahweh elohim, because that was when he received the title “Israel.” That presence in Jacob did not pass on to his children. In Genesis 37 we are told of Joseph’s dreams, which he told his family. Joseph was then seventeen years old; and, we are told he was Jacob’s favorite son. That led his brothers to sell him into slavery, after an attempt to kill him failed. Here, one must realize that Joseph is not wrestling with his demon, because he has received the guardianship of Yahweh’s elohim, knowing the heart and soul of Joseph, so Joseph becomes an extension of Yahweh to a son of Jacob’s [Israel’s]. So, Joseph sees visions as a prophet, which are brought to him via “elohim.” Thus, Joseph was taught by his father Jacob [then a Yahweh elohim as Israel] about the “gods” that watch over souls in flesh on earth.
This makes the important elements to grasp from this reading be the concepts of “brothers” and “father,” as being relative to “elohim.” This story, other than being something that becomes ‘ho-hum history’ to souls in human flesh walking the earth in the year 2022, be pointless. One has to ask oneself, “Why does this history lesson matter to me?”
Brothers by another mother.
The name “Joseph” means “Increaser” or “May He Add.” This means that is the importance that has to come from this lesson, because the name Joseph is stated five times. The verses skipped over in today's selection [12-14] all state the name Benjamin; so, that name is avoided in the meaning of this lesson. None of the other brothers of Joseph are named. Only "Joseph" becomes important to grasp. This means the story is about “brothers” being “increased” to the level of being that state of "Israel" that was the “father” [Israel, elevated from Jacob] needs to be caught. This means the “addition” to the “brothers” is the presence of guardianship by the “elohim.”
This reading then makes Joseph be metaphor for Jesus. Sinful brothers have had a 'come to Jesus meeting.' Their sins are known; and, they feel deep, inner guilt.
When the reason the brothers have come to Joseph is realized to be famine, which is said to be still “five more years of famine to come,” that can only be something a prophet can forecast accurately, because he is led by the “elohim.” Ordinary humans cannot be fully accurate in predicting the weather the next day, much less five years from today. By seeing this as more than a story telling one to believe in something that happened a long time ago, to people modern Christians have no real relationship with (physically, via blood), the higher element of famine needs to be seen on a spiritual level. More than a scarcity of physical food, Biblical famine means souls are starved and very thin.
The “father” [Jacob] of the “brothers” [the twelve sons, with Joseph and Benjamin] has had no effect on anyone else's spiritual transformation, meaning he only led Joseph to seek spiritual nourishment from his own encounter with “elohim.” This means that Joseph is more of a spiritual influence on his family, in the same way Mary’s husband Joseph was not how the soul of Jesus became an “elohim.” Each soul must be starved or famished spiritually to seek the help of Yahweh [which comes in the name of Jesus]; and, this is the deeper implication of this story: the lost souls were led by desperation to find their redemption, and through realizing their guilts they were saved.
As an Old Testament reading for the seventh Sunday after the Epiphany, the point to see here is the theme that runs through all the selections for this day. It is we who … all of us … are from sinful pasts, so we all have been blessed by Yahweh when our souls have become His elohim on earth. The “brothers” of Joseph were the past that had to be and then it had to be released, so the past no longer had any holds on the present and future. The future always holds spiritual famine; and, the only way to be saved from spiritual death is change. A soul must move to "Goshen," where an inundation of Spirit makes one's soul fertile and well-nourished. The “brothers” of Joseph reflect the brotherhood of mankind, where that which connects us all is sin. The call to stand before Jesus is then a call to become divinely elevated “brothers,” where a soul has wrestled with its demons and freed itself to be possessed by Yahweh and His Son Jesus. This theme needs to be seen as the test or one’s merit as a potential bride to Yahweh, when one can be guarded by an inner elohim.