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Spiritual Gifts, Volume 3
After the death of Jacob, Joseph’s brethren were filled with gloom
and distress. They thought that Joseph had concealed his resentment,
out of respect for their father, and now that he was dead, he would be
revenged for the ill treatment he had suffered at their hands. “And when
Joseph’s brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will
peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which
we did unto him. And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying,
thy father did command before he died, saying, So shall ye say unto
Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their
sin, for they did unto thee evil; and now, we pray thee, forgive the
trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept
when they spake unto him. And his brethren also went and fell down
before his face, and they said, Behold, we be thy servants. And Joseph
said unto them, Fear not, for am I in the place of God? But as for you,
ye thought evil against me, but God meant it unto good, to bring to
pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye
not, I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them,
and spake kindly unto them.”
[174]
Joseph could not bear the thought that his brethren should think
that he harbored a spirit of revenge toward them whom he cordially
loved.
Joseph illustrates Christ. Jesus came to his own, but his own
received him not. He was rejected and despised, because his acts
were righteous, and his consistent, self-denying life was a continual
rebuke upon those who professed piety, but whose lives were corrupt.
Joseph’s integrity and virtue were fiercely assailed, and she who would
lead him astray could not prevail, therefore her hatred was strong
against the virtue and integrity which she could not corrupt, and she
testified falsely against him. The innocent suffered because of his
righteousness. He was cast into prison because of his virtue. Joseph
was sold to his enemies by his own brethren for a small sum of money.
The Son of God was sold to his bitterest enemies by one of his own
disciples. Jesus was meek and holy. His was a life of unexampled
self-denial, goodness and holiness. He was not guilty of any wrong.
Yet false witnesses were hired to testify against him. He was hated
because he had been a faithful reprover of sin and corruption. Joseph’s
brethren stripped him of his coat of many colors. The executioners of
Jesus cast lots for his seamless coat.