(“The Old Testament Version of Romans 8:28”)

Genesis 50:15-21 (NASU)

“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.” (Genesis 50:20)

(A) DO WE REALLY BELIEVE ROMANS 8:28?

(1) Over the years, certain passages of Scripture have come to stand out in people’s minds. Maybe they do so because we’ve heard them quoted or preached numerous times. More likely it’s because these verses came to have special significance for us – because they’ve proven to be a source of personal comfort or encouragement – because they teach an important biblical truth we want to remember, or that we have found to be true in our own life.

One such passage is undoubtedly Psalm 23, which says in part: 1“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. 2He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. 3He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. 4Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me” (c.f. Psalm 23:1-4).

Another has to be John 3:16, which says: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life”.

(2) Obviously if every Christian made a list of their ten favorite Bible passages, those lists would not be exactly alike. But, I suspect many would include Romans 8:28, which says: “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose”.

That verse not only underscores God’s sovereignty over everything that happens in the world, its also a great source of comfort for us Christians when we find ourselves going through times that are especially traumatic or painful.

(3) This morning’s text (c.f. Genesis 50:20) is the Old Testament equivalent of Romans 8:28. In it Joseph acknowledges God’s sovereignty over all the events that have taken place in his own life – including the evil things his brothers did to him. It’s also clear Joseph has drawn a great deal of personal comfort from his understanding of God’s sovereignty – and that he uses it here to reassure his brothers (c.f. II Corinthians 1:4) he has no intention of paying them back for the evil they did to him. Hence he says: “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive” (c.f. Genesis 50:20).

(4) Those familiar with the story of Joseph in the Book of Genesis can easily see God’s sovereign hand at work in his life. What we sometimes fail to see, however, is God’s sovereignty at work in the lives of his brothers. As one writer said: “It is surely one of the most astounding examples of God’s control (over) all things to see a group like Jacob’s descendants and household preserved as an indirect result of (their own) treachery.”¹

The question is, can we see that same Hand at work in our own lives – both individually and corporately? If not (and sometimes we can’t!) do we still believe God is sovereignly working on our behalf, even though we can’t see the “how” or “why” of it at the moment? And, since Scripture says, “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things NOT seen” (c.f. Hebrews 11:1), are we able to draw some measure of hope or comfort from knowing “God is working all things together for our good”? In short, we know what Romans 8:28 says, but do we know what it means? We know what is says, but do we really believe it? We know what it says, but are we able to put it into practice in our own lives (c.f. James 1:22), or draw comfort from it the way Joseph did? (7:00)

(B) GOD HAS PLANNED IT, AND HE WILL DO IT

(1) The relationship between God’s sovereignty and human responsibility is not an easy one to figure out –especially when sin is involved, as it usually is, like in this morning’s text. Even Paul, who probably understood the correlation better than most, acknowledged as much when he posed the following rhetorical questions: “You will say to me then, ‘Why does (God) still find fault? For who resists His will?’” (c.f. Romans 9:19).

(a) A partial answer is, He “finds fault” because we’re guilty. And as for “resisting His will” (i.e. His sovereign will), the fact is we do resist – often times very hard! It’s just that the Lord never let’s anyone succeed in thwarting His sovereign purposes (c.f. Job 42:2; Daniel 4:35).

However, that fact doesn’t erase our blame, or relieve us of our responsibility. Do we not hold a thief accountable for his actions, even though his attempt to rob a bank is thwarted by police before he gets away? In a similar fashion, the Scripture says: “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails” (c.f. Proverbs 19:21, NIV) – and again: 10“The Lord nullifies the counsel of the nations; He frustrates the plans of the peoples. 11The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart from generation to generation” (c.f. Psalm 33:10-11).

(b) While Joseph doesn’t unravel the mystery between God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility, he does make an important inspired distinction between the evil men do, and the good God does – between what sinners set out to do, and what God actually brings to pass – between what John Calvin called, “the wicked counsels of men, and the admirable justice of God.”²

(2) The historical backdrop of this morning’s text is as follows – after Jacob’s death, an unrelieved sense of guilt drove Joseph’s brothers to fear he might be preparing to repay them for the evil they had done to him thirty years earlier. So rather than waiting for that to happen, they sent a message to Joseph, saying (in part): 6“… ‘Your father charged before he died, saying, 17“Thus you shall say to Joseph, ‘Please forgive, I beg you, the transgression of your brothers and their sin, for they did you wrong.’” And now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father’” (c.f. Genesis 50:16-17). A short time later they personally met with Joseph, at which time the Scripture says they “fell down before him and said, ‘Behold, we are your servants’” (c.f. Genesis 50:18).

(a) At this point we can’t help but recall two dreams Joseph had when he was seventeen. Regarding the first one, Joseph had said: “There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Then behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and indeed your sheaves stood all around and bowed down to my sheaf” – to which is brothers had angrily replied: “Shall you indeed reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over us?” (c.f. Genesis 37:6-8, NKJV). Since we know the rest of the story, the obvious answer is, “Yes, he will”!

Later, Joseph had a second dream. “Look,” he said, “I have dreamed another dream. And this time, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me.” This time his father Jacob rebuked him, saying: “Shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?” (c.f. Genesis 37:9-10, NKJV). And again, the answer is, “Yes, you will!

(b) By the time we get to Genesis chapter fifty, these dreams have been fulfilled several times over (c.f. Genesis 42:6-9; 43:26; 44:16). On all those previous occasions, however, Joseph’s brothers didn’t know who he really was. Now they do – and yet there they are, bowing down before him once again, freely and fully acknowledging his “dominion and reign” over them, just like those divinely inspired dreams said they would.

Herein, then, is an example of those doctrinal passages where God extols His sovereignty, saying: “just as I have intended so it has happened, and just as I have planned so it will stand” (c.f. Isaiah 14:24) – and again: 9“… I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, 10declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things which have not (yet) been done, saying, ‘My purpose will be established, and I will accomplish all My good pleasure’” (c.f. Isaiah 46:9b-10).

(C) WHATEVER POISON SATAN PRODUCES, GOD TURNS INTO MEDICINE FOR HIS ELECT³

(John Calvin)

(1) So there Joseph’s brothers are – essentially offering to make restitution for having sold him into slavery, by promising to be his slaves for the rest of their lives – whereupon Joseph utters one of the truly great declarations in Scripture⁴ ever made by any mortal man, beginning with these words: “Do not be afraid, for am I in God’s place?” (c.f. Genesis 50:19).

(a) In other words, Joseph refused to give in to the temptation to usurp God’s place by taking matters of personal revenge into his own hands. Some people never retaliate against those who have hurt them – not because they feel restrained by God’s commands – but because they don’t have the power to do it, or because the opportunity simply doesn’t present itself. Joseph had both – He had both the power, as well as multiple opportunities. Yet, he never took advantage of either because he knew matters of vengeance belong to God. Hence, he essentially told his brothers it was not his “place” (as it were) to repay them for the evil they did to him, even though his position in Egypt gave him the power to do so.

(b) But that’s only half the story. Joseph had learned that submitting to God not only meant refraining from taking matters of revenge into his own hands – but that it also meant “overcome(ing) evil with good” (c.f. Romans 12:21b), which was essentially what he had been doing the last seventeen years – first, by saving his brothers and their families from starving during seven years of famine, and then by continuing to provide for them in Egypt long after the famine was over. Hence, the phrase in verse twenty-one, “I will provide for you and your little ones” (c.f. Genesis 50:21b), is not just a promise regarding the future, it’s a summation of what he had been doing all along!

(2) And so, having assured his brothers he had no intention of repaying them for the evil they had done to him, Joseph went on to say in our text: “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive” (c.f. Genesis 50:20).

(a) It’s important to note that Joseph never sugar-coated his brothers’ sin – he never excused it – he never called it anything but what it was – i.e. “evil” (c.f. Genesis 50:20). Nor did he ever attribute anything but “evil” to their motives.

(b) He did, however, try and help them see the bigger picture. Hence, back in Genesis chapter forty-five he said (in part): 5“… you sold me here; (but) God sent me before you to preserve … 7for you a remnant on the earth, and to keep you alive by a great deliverance. 8Now, therefore, it was not you who sent me here, but God …” (c.f. Genesis 45:5-8).

In other words, Joseph’s brothers didn’t sell him into slavery so he could become their savior – they didn’t sell him into slavery hoping he could find a way to take care of them when the years of famine struck – they sold him into slavery because, at the time, they hated him with a jealous hatred – and Joseph never suggested otherwise.

What he wanted them to see, however, was that the Sovereign Ruler of heaven and earth had used their “evil” actions to accomplish His holy purpose – which, ironically, involved using Joseph to save their lives so the covenant promises made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (and to them!) would be fulfilled!

This should not be construed as an excuse for us to be lax about our behavior – to “continue in sin that grace may abound” (c.f. Romans 6:1, NKJV), as it were. Rather, it’s meant to encourage us when we are grieving over our sin, by reminding us God is able to make all things work together for our good – even the evil things we have done!

(3) John Calvin had some insightful thoughts on all this which I want to share with you, even though it’s a rather lengthy quote: “(Joseph) skillfully distinguishes between the wicked counsels of men, and the admirable justice of God, by ascribing the government of all things to God, (in a way that keeps Him) free from (being) stain(ed) (by) the vices of men. The selling of Joseph was a crime detestable for its cruelty and (treachery); yet he was not sold except by the decree of heaven. For neither did God merely remain at rest … for a time, (to) let loose the reins of human malice, (so) that afterwards He might make use of this occasion; but, at His own will, He appointed the order of acting which He intended to be fixed and certain. Thus we may say with truth and propriety, that Joseph was sold by the wicked consent of his (brothers), and by the secret providence of God. Yet it was not a work common to both, in (the) sense that God (approved) anything connected with or relating to their wicked(ness): because while they (were plotting) the destruction of their brother, God (was) effecting their deliverance from on high. Whence … this truly must be generally agreed, that nothing is done without His will; because He both governs the counsels of men … sways their wills … turns their efforts at His pleasure, and regulates all events: but if men undertake anything right and just, (it’s because He) moves them inwardly by His Spirit, (so) that whatever good is in them, may justly be said to (have come) from Him: but if Satan and ungodly men rage, He acts by their hands in such an (indescribable) manner, that the wickedness of the deed belongs to them, and the blame of it is imputed to them. For they are not (moved) to sin, as the faithful are to act aright, (i.e.) by the impulse of the Spirit, but they are the authors of their own evil, and follow Satan as their leader. Thus we see that the justice of God shines brightly in the midst of the darkness of our iniquity. For as God is never without a just cause for His actions, so men are held in the chains of guilt by their own perverse will. When we hear that God frustrates the wicked expectations, and the injurious desires of men, we derive … no common consolation. Let the impious busy themselves as they please, let them rage … yet they shall gain nothing by their (zeal) … not only shall their (recklessness) prove ineffectual, (it) shall be turned to … the reverse of (what) they intended, so that they shall promote our salvation, though they do it reluctantly. So that whatever poison Satan produces, God turns it into medicine for His elect … If human minds cannot reach these depths, let them rather … adore the mysteries they do not comprehend, than, as vessels of clay, (to) proudly exalt themselves against their Maker.”⁵

(4) Now it’s tempting to object (as some do) that even though Joseph seems to be saying God controls the circumstances of our lives, and overrules what happens to us to bring about good, surely His sovereignty doesn’t include every instance where people have deliberately sinned. But, as James Boice says, “this is precisely what the Bible does teach”!⁶ And as proof, we have only to consider what he calls “the example of the greatest evil in all history producing the greatest good imaginable”⁶ – namely, the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, and the salvation of sinners like ourselves that resulted from it.

(a) Consider two passages from the Book of Acts – the first from Acts chapter two, starting at verse twenty-two, where the Apostle Peter says: 22“Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know – 23this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, YOU nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and (YOU) put Him to death” (c.f. Acts 2:22-23). Here we see both God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility – the good God brought about, verses the evil men intended.

And then again, in Acts chapter four, starting at verse twenty-seven: “For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur” (c.f. Acts 4:27-28). Again, God’s sovereignty on the one hand, and man’s responsibility on the other – the good God brought about, verses the evil wicked men conspired to do.

(b) At no other time in the history of the world has a greater evil ever been done.⁶ What happened leading up to and including Jesus’ death on the cross exceeds the holocaust – it’s a greater evil than what happened on September 11^th. Not only was Jesus totally innocent, but unlike Joseph He was without any sin whatsoever (c.f. Luke 23:4; II Corinthians 5:21) – not to mention the fact He was God come in human flesh!

(c) At the same time, though, no greater good has ever come from evil than that which came as a result of Jesus’ death on the cross – an evil that parallels, but is infinitely greater than what Joseph endured – a good that parallels, but is also infinitely greater than that which God brought about through Joseph – for from (i.e. Jesus’ death on the cross), our Sovereign God and Father bought about the salvation of a vast company of people,⁶ including (I trust) you and me.

(d) James Boice writes: “As long as the cross stands in history, no one who knows its meaning will ever be able to pronounce a limitation on God’s providence. No Christian will ever be able to say, ‘I know some things (or even most things) in life are controlled by God and are good for me in some way, although I may not always see how.’ Instead they will say, “we know that God causes ALL things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (c.f. Romans 8:28)”⁷ – i.e. “We know that even when men mean evil, God means it for our good” (c.f. Genesis 50:20).

(e) Hence, if or when people conspire to harm us – if or when, by God’s sovereign hand, they actually inflict us with wounds motivated by hatred or indifference – we will not call their evil “good”. Evil is always “evil” – sin is always “sin” – but God is always God! And therefore, we can testify to all who will listen, that this world is ruled by a sovereign God who takes that evil and brings something good out of it for His elect people. We will say – both to those who seek our forgiveness, and those who do not – “you (may have) meant evil against me; but God (always means) it for good” (c.f. Genesis 50:20).⁸