Genesis 44 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Genesis 44.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/gen/44/1/s_44001

Meditate on verse 16a.

 

So Judah said, “What can we say to my lord?

What can we speak?  And how can we justify ourselves?

God has found out the iniquity of your servants…

 

Recall Judah devised the plan to sell Joseph into slavery then lie about an animal killing him (Genesis 37:26).  Judah slept with his daughter- in-law, Tamar, thinking she was a prostitute and fathered twin sons by her (Genesis 38).  Time changed Judah, and over the course of twenty-two years, Judah became a different man.  He promised his father to protect Benjamin.  When Joseph’s silver cup was discovered in Benjamin’s grain sack, Judah begged Joseph to let him take the punishment, offering his life for the life of his brother.

This sacrificial act on the part of Judah, brought the Joseph story to its climax, and sealed Judah’s place in history for the coming of Messiah.  Judah is a picture of Jesus Christ.  He was willing to be the substitutionary sacrifice for the life of Benjamin.  He was the lion protecting his little brother.  He was the father of the tribe from which King David and Jesus descended (Luke 2:1-7; 3:31-33).

Behold, the Lion that is from the

tribe of Judah, the Root of David,

 has overcome so as to open

 the book and its seven seals.

—Revelation 5:5

 

Jesus is the Lion of Judah, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29)!

As a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7), pray Genesis 44:16 as a prayer of confession to your LORD.

“What can I say, my LORD?  What can I
speak?

How can I justify myself?


You know my iniquities. Behold, I am Your bond-slave.

You give me Your cup of salvation.


Thank You, Lion of Judah, Lamb of God, Jesus.


In whose name, I pray~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

 

 

Genesis 43 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Genesis 43.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/gen/43/1/s_43001

Meditate on verse 26.

 

When Joseph came home,

they brought into the house to him the present

 which was in their hand and bowed to the ground before him.

 

After coming into the house, they saw the Child with Mary His mother;

 and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him. 

Then opening their treasure,

 they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

—Matthew 2:11

 

How incredible!  The brothers bringing presents and bowing to Joseph foreshadowed the wise men coming to worship Christ.

Every part of the Bible, perfectly written by God Himself, reveals Himself as Jesus Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  Jesus explained Himself as revealed in ALL the Old Testament Scriptures (Luke 24:27).  Philip began with the Old Testament passage the Ethiopian was reading and preached Jesus (Acts 8:35).  Paul reasoned with people from the Old Testament Scriptures, explaining and giving evidence that Jesus is the Messiah (Acts 17:2-3).

Knowing Jesus through the revelation of Himself on every page of the Bible makes you a wise person.  In that God-given wisdom, bow before your Savior giving Him the gift of your life.

Pray Genesis 43:26 over yourself and those for whom you stand guard as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).

“LORD, I give You everything I am holding in my hand.

Please let _________ do the same.


I bow before You, Jesus, today and for the rest of eternity.

Because of Your name, Jesus~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

 

Genesis 42 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Genesis 42.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/gen/42/1/s_42001

Meditate on this phrase from verse 19.

 

Confined in your prison …

 

It had been over 20 years since Joseph’s brothers last saw and heard him.  They had thrown him into a pit and callously sat down to eat a meal.  Their dinner music was a young Joseph crying in distress (Genesis 37:23-25; 42:21).

The next 20 years they lived a lie, telling their father, Jacob, a wild animal killed Joseph, when they actually sold him to some Ishmaelites (Genesis 37:28).  The truth had never been told, and Jacob still mourned for his beloved son.

Now, they saw and heard Joseph, the same boy they saw and heard every time they looked into their grieving father’s eyes.  However, they did not yet recognize him as their brother.

These brothers were in an emotional prison; now Joseph put them in a physical one. After three days, he released all but Simeon and sent the remaining nine home to return with the young brother they had mentioned.  (Benjamin is described as a little child and a lad in Genesis 44:20-22.  Genesis 42 is probably the first time Joseph knew he had a younger brother.)

When they told their father about their Egyptian adventures, he made a statement revealing he knew all along these older brothers were behind Joseph’s disappearance: “You have bereaved me of my children; Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and you would take Benjamin” (v. 36).

 

Think about your life.  Are you and those you influence in a spiritual and emotional prison?  Are you imprisoned by unforgiveness and bitterness?  Does anger imprison those around you in fear and insecurity?  Are lies keeping all of you in prisons of mistrust and deception?

The best present you could give is freedom from the prisons created by past sins.  Ask God for forgiveness, ask others to forgive you, then forgive like Christ forgives.

Pray Genesis 42:19 over yourself and those for whom you stand guard as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).

“LORD, ___________ and I are confined in our prisons.

Help us go and carry grain for the spiritual famine

 that has been in our household.


In Your name, Jesus~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

 

Genesis 41 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Genesis 41.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/gen/41/1/s_41001

Meditate on verse 1a.

 

Now it happened at the end of two full years

 that Pharaoh had a dream …

 

Joseph, forgotten by Pharaoh’s cupbearer, remained in prison for two more years. Although betrayed by his brothers, falsely accused by others, and forgotten by those who should have remembered, Joseph never forgot God, and God remembered Joseph, vindicating him when the time was perfect.

The cupbearer finally remembered to tell Pharaoh about Joseph.  Hurriedly brought out of the dungeon to meet the most powerful man in the world, Joseph shaved and changed clothes after his long imprisonment.  He responded to Pharaoh with clarity of mind, declaring God would answer Pharaoh’s puzzling dreams (Genesis 41:9-16).

Throughout the chapter, Joseph gave God glory and did not self-promote, which caused Pharaoh to give God glory, which pleased God.  God then caused Pharaoh to put Joseph in charge of the entire land of Egypt (vs. 39-43).  After waiting on God for 13 years, in one day, Joseph went from a dungeon to being in control of the most powerful country in the world!

Be encouraged by God’s Word.  Glorify the LORD no matter what is happening to you.

Do not let bitterness or depression control you, blinding you to God’s work in your life.  God determines the matters of your life, and He will quickly bring them about (v. 32).  Be ready!

Pray Genesis 41:32 and 39 over yourself and those for whom you stand guard as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).

“LORD, please determine this matter for _________ and me.

Quickly bring it about. Inform us, God.

 Make us wise and discerning.


For the glory of Your name, Jesus~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL ~ Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

Genesis 40 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Genesis 40.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/gen/40/1/s_40001

Meditate on verse 23.

 

Yet the chief cupbearer did

 not remember Joseph, but forgot him.

 

“Timing is everything” is certainly a theme in Genesis 40.  The cupbearer and baker offended Pharaoh after Joseph was in jail, so Joseph could be with them the morning after they had disturbing dreams, so he could interpret their dreams, so three days later they could—forget about Joseph!

The cupbearer forgot Joseph! How was that even possible?  It happened because it was not time for the cupbearer to remember Joseph.  God had much bigger plans for Joseph’s life than just whisking him out of prison and back home to his family.  In God’s timing, Joseph will ...

Well, you will learn more about God’s timing tomorrow; until then, ponder this:

While they were there, the days were

 completed for her to give birth.

 —Luke 2:6

 

Approximately 730,000 days were completed from the time of God’s first promise to Abraham of Messiah (Genesis 12:3) until Jesus was born.  The Old Testament faithful believed God would keep His Messianic promise (Hebrews 11).  God did keep His promise, and Jesus was born when God’s fullness of time came (Galatians 4:4).

Perhaps you or someone you love feels forgotten; perhaps it has been a long time of feeling forgotten.  Be encouraged by God’s planning and God’s timing.  Joseph was in prison for the perfect number of days according to God’s plan.  Jesus came to earth in the full, completed timing of God.

As a faithful, prayerful watchman use Genesis 40:23 to pray over those who feel forgotten.

“LORD, _________ feels forgotten.


They think no one remembers them.


Let them know that You and I remember them.

In Your name, Jesus~”

 

What can you do to encourage and spend time with them?

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

 

 

Genesis 39 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Genesis 39.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/gen/39/1/s_39001

Meditate on verse 23b.

 

The LORD was with him,

 and whatever he did the LORD made to prosper.

 

The LORD was with Joseph is repeated four times in Genesis 39.  In the midst of being sold into slavery, God was with Joseph.  When Joseph had favor with his bosses, God was with him.  As Joseph faced false accusations, God was with him.  When Joseph was confined to jail, God was with him.

 

Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son,

and they shall call His name “Immanuel,”

which translated means, “God with us.”

—Matthew 1:23

 

Jesus came to earth because He is “God with us.”  As a Christian, you have the Spirit of Jesus filling you.  When Jesus came into your life, He came with a promise: “I will never leave you, nor will I ever forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5b).

Joseph knew Immanuel.  Throughout his life, the LORD proved to Joseph He was with him and was not going to leave him.  The LORD was with him in prosperous times, and the LORD was with him when it appeared Joseph had favor with no one.

Jesus is your Immanuel.  He is with you when times are good and when times are really bad.  Your Savior is always with you; get to know Him even better today.

Pray Genesis 39:2-5 over yourself and those for whom you stand guard as a faithful, prayerful watchman (Isaiah 62:6-7).

“LORD, be with _________ and me.


As You are with us, make us

 successful where You have put us.

 Cause everything we do to prosper.


Give us favor in the sight of our bosses;


bless them and their homes as well.


In Your name, Immanuel~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL – Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell

 

 

Genesis 38 - Praying God's Word

 

Please read Genesis 38.

www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/gen/38/1/s_38001

Meditate on verse 7.

 

But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was

evil in the sight of the LORD,

 so the LORD took his life.

 

Joseph’s life story foreshadowed the coming of Jesus Christ.  Why would God include such scandal in the middle of it?  

Genesis 38 begins with God killing two men because they were evil and displeasing to Him (vs. 7, 10).  The story continues with Tamar, the wife of the dead men, tricking Judah, her father-in-law, into having a physical relationship with her.  He thought she was a prostitute, so he paid to have sex with her.  Amazingly, God did not kill Judah and Tamar for their wickedness.  In fact, God allowed Tamar to get pregnant by Judah.  She gave birth to twins and named them Perez and Zerah.

The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah ...

 Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar;

 Perez was the father of ...

—Matthew 1:1, 3

 

Genesis 38 is the graphic story about people in the lineage of Jesus, and it poignantly describes the reason we need the Savior.  Without Christ, we all are Er and Onan, Judah’s two sons struck dead by God because of their sin.  We, too, deserve to die because of our sin.  But God extends His mercy to us, even when we deserve it the least, just like He did to Judah and Tamar.  The LORD redeemed their hopeless situation, and they became the great, great, great ... grandparents of Jesus Christ.

Pray Genesis 38:7 and 26 over someone for whom you stand guard as a faithful, prayerful watchman, who needs the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

“LORD, please give ________ more time on

earth to turn from evil to You.


Make them righteous.

In Your name, Jesus~”

 

The WATCHMAN on the WALL, - Dr. Ron and Marsha Harvell