The Sovereign Hand: From the Pit to the Purpose

Genesis 37:3-4, 12-16, 18-28

Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his other children because Joseph had been born to him in his old age. So one day Jacob had a special gift made for Joseph—a beautiful robe. But his brothers hated Joseph because their father loved him more than the rest of them. They couldn’t say a kind word to him.

Soon after this, Joseph’s brothers went to pasture their father’s flocks at Shechem. When they had been gone for some time, Jacob said to Joseph, “Your brothers are pasturing the sheep at Shechem. Get ready, and I will send you to them.” “I’m ready to go,” Joseph replied. “Go and see how your brothers and the flocks are getting along,” Jacob said. “Then come back and bring me a report.” So Jacob sent him on his way, and Joseph traveled to Shechem from their home in the valley of Hebron.

When he arrived there, a man from the area noticed him wandering around the countryside. “What are you looking for?” he asked. “I’m looking for my brothers,” Joseph replied. “Do you know where they are pasturing their sheep?”

When Joseph’s brothers saw him coming, they recognized him in the distance. As he approached, they made plans to kill him. “Here comes the dreamer!” they said. “Come on, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns. We can tell our father, ‘A wild animal has eaten him.’ Then we’ll see what becomes of his dreams!”

But when Reuben heard of their scheme, he came to Joseph’s rescue. “Let’s not kill him,” he said. “Why should we shed any blood? Let’s just throw him into this empty cistern here in the wilderness. Then he’ll die without our laying a hand on him.” Reuben was secretly planning to rescue Joseph and return him to his father.

So when Joseph arrived, his brothers ripped off the beautiful robe he was wearing. Then they grabbed him and threw him into the cistern. Now the cistern was empty; there was no water in it. Then, just as they were sitting down to eat, they looked up and saw a caravan of camels in the distance coming toward them. It was a group of Ishmaelite traders taking a load of gum, balm, and aromatic resin from Gilead down to Egypt.

Judah said to his brothers, “What will we gain by killing our brother? We’d have to cover up the crime. Instead of hurting him, let’s sell him to those Ishmaelite traders. After all, he is our brother—our own flesh and blood!” And his brothers agreed. So when the Ishmaelites, who were Midianite traders, came by, Joseph’s brothers pulled him out of the cistern and sold him to them for twenty pieces of silver. And the traders took him to Egypt.

Psalms 105:16-22

He called for a famine on the land of Canaan, cutting off its food supply. Then he sent someone to Egypt ahead of them—Joseph, who was sold as a slave. They bruised his feet with fetters and placed his neck in an iron collar. Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the Lord tested Joseph’s character.

Then Pharaoh sent for him and set him free; the ruler of the nation opened his prison door. Joseph was put in charge of all the king’s household; he became ruler over all the king’s possessions. He could instruct the king’s aides as he pleased and teach the king’s advisers.

Matthew 21:33-46

Now listen to another story. A certain landowner planted a vineyard, built a wall around it, dug a pit for pressing out the grape juice, and built a lookout tower. Then he leased the vineyard to tenant farmers and moved to another country. At the time of the grape harvest, he sent his servants to collect his share of the crop. But the farmers grabbed his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. So the landowner sent a larger group of his servants to collect for him, but the results were the same.

Finally, the owner sent his son, thinking, ‘Surely they will respect my son.’ But when the tenant farmers saw his son coming, they said to one another, ‘Here comes the heir to this estate. Come on, let’s kill him and get the estate for ourselves!’ So they grabbed him, dragged him out of the vineyard, and murdered him.

“When the owner of the vineyard returns,” Jesus asked, “what do you think he will do to those farmers?” The religious leaders replied, “He will put the wicked men to a horrible death and lease the vineyard to others who will give him his share of the crop after each harvest.”

Then Jesus asked them, “Didn’t you ever read this in the Scriptures? ‘The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone. This is the Lord’s doing, and it is wonderful to see.’ I tell you, the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a nation that will produce the proper fruit. Anyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on.”

When the leading priests and Pharisees heard this parable, they realized he was telling the story against them—they were the wicked farmers. They wanted to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowds, who considered Jesus to be a prophet.

Reflections: The Patterns of Providence

1. The Chosen Son: Favor and Friction

In Genesis, Joseph is the favored son, marked by a robe that symbolized his father's love. This favor sparked "outright hatred" among his brothers, who eventually stripped him of that robe and sold him for silver. This mirrors Matthew 21, where the landowner (God) sends his "beloved son" (Jesus). Both Joseph and Jesus were rejected because of their relationship with the Father and the authority that relationship implied.

2. The Testing of the Word

Psalm 105 gives us the "behind-the-scenes" truth: God "sent a man before them." Joseph wasn’t just a victim; he was an envoy on a divine mission. The Psalmist notes that "the word of the LORD tested him." The years of suffering were a refining fire. Suffering is often the "rugged road" that makes us fit for service. The iron that fettered Joseph's feet eventually "entered his soul," building the character necessary to lead.

3. The Cornerstone from the Rubbish

Jesus identifies Himself as the "stone the builders rejected" who has become the "cornerstone." Just as Joseph was lifted from a pit to Pharaoh’s palace to save those who betrayed him, Jesus was raised from the grave to offer salvation to the world. God doesn’t just "fix" human evil; He often uses that very evil as the vehicle for His greatest works.

My Journey: From the Pit to Patten

Once again, I see the parallel between these scriptures and our own lives. At one time, we devoted everything to God. If the church was open, we were there—Sundays twice, Wednesdays for youth group, cleaning, yard work. We were all in.

Then came the separation. We were told we could no longer lead the youth group because our daughter was pregnant. We were deeply hurt and left, not knowing then that it was a smokescreen. The Pastor was living a double life, and he used our situation to deflect attention from his own sin. It was a classic "look over here" tactic.

That hurt kept us away from the church for a long time. We still prayed, but I began to wonder if God had taken a "vacation" from human affairs.

Then came the fire. Two and a half years of homelessness. You do a lot of praying when you're in the pit. But God was moving us. We found home in Patten, Maine. Two acres and a camper. That first winter was brutal—minus 6 degrees inside, ice on our pillows—but we kept praying.

Through a local food cupboard, we found a community. We began to volunteer, just as we had since the 1980s. Eventually, we started attending the church where the cupboard was located. Six months later, we became members.

We may have felt like Jacob or Joseph during the fire—especially when the town our fire was in offered us nothing but a bus ticket out. No compassion. Yet, all of this brought us back to God. Once here we dove in like it was our lifeline, because God is the only reason we are here! And All I want is to be His hands and feet and help those he puts in our lives.

All God asks is that we love Him and love each other. Life becomes so much less complicated when you realize that. What was intended to harm us, God transformed into a stepping stone.

Confitemini Domino — Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His mercy endures forever. Quoniam bonus, quoniam in saeculum misericordia ejus" ("...for he is good, for his mercy endures forever").

A Prayer for the Journey

Heavenly Father, thank You that no pit is too deep for Your reach and no fire is too hot for Your protection. Thank You for using the "stones" that others threw at us to build a new foundation in our lives. Help us to trust Your timing when we are being "tested by the Word," knowing that You are preparing us for a palace we cannot yet see. Help us to live our lives dedicated to you that we may live eternally with you.

In Jesus ' precious name we pray! Amen!

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

BELIEVE, OBEY, BE BLESSED. AMEN.

BOBBA

Love, Penny 💛

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