“When Jacob learned that there was grain for sale in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why do you look at one another?” And he said, “Behold, I have heard that there is grain for sale in Egypt. Go down and buy grain for us there that we may live and not die.” Oh, there is so much we could talk about here about how this chapter fits in with so much of what we’ve seen before now in Genesis, things God said to Abraham and to Isaac, things will happen after this, not just in Genesis, but in Exodus when it comes to the people of God being slaves in Egypt eventually, and even how things got to this point with this famine where grain is for sale in Egypt and Joseph, one of Jacob’s sons, unbeknownst to Joseph is actually the one administering that grain.”
– Genesis 42:1–2
So much we could talk about in the way this story is being woven together. But I guess that’s the point I want to make and to lead us to pray according to. There is a story that is being woven here and God is the one who’s weaving it. And there’s a mystery to how this works because it’s a story that involves sinful people doing sinful things like selling a brother into slavery and wrongfully throwing someone into prison.
So many different things that we could walk through in this story in Genesis and what is to come and accidents that involve sin and evil and hurt and pain and suffering, famine here in Genesis 42:1–2. But over it all, get the picture. There is a holy, good, righteous, just God who is sovereignly weaving a story for the accomplishment of his purposes, and his purposes are good for all his people who trust in him.
God’s Sovereignty in Our Story
Let me say that another time and bring this out from just the story of Genesis and Exodus to the story of, well, not just the world, but the story of our lives in this world. In a sinful, evil, fallen world, filled with sinful, evil, fallen people doing all sorts of things, there is a holy, good, just, righteous God who is sovereignly weaving together a story for the accomplishment of his purposes, and his purposes are good for all of his people who trust in him. And this is a rock to stand on in your life. This is a rock to stand on in the world.
And you just look at a news app or news headlines a day of things going on in your country, things going on in the world, you just look around at circumstances in your life and your family and your work, isn’t it good to know that it’s not just random that things are not spinning out of control? That over and above it all, there is a sovereign, good, holy, just, righteous, loving, merciful God who is working all things toward the accomplishment of his purposes. And his purposes are sure, guaranteed. In other words, they will not fail. They will be accomplished.
Genesis 42:1–2 Promises the Return of Jesus
Ultimately, Jesus will return to this broken, fallen, sinful, evil world and he will redeem and restore. He will bring all who have trusted in him from every nation, tribe, and tongue to himself as a kingdom and priests to God. And we will reign with him in a new heaven and a new earth where we will enjoy him and his goodness and his justice and his righteousness and his mercy forever and ever and ever in perfect harmony with him, with each other, and with the world around us.
Yes, that’s a rock to stand on today. That’s a rock to stand on tomorrow and the next day and the next day. Until we breathe our last breath one day in this world, we can still stand on this rock because we will experience this reality for all of eternity. So we pray. Come Lord Jesus, come quickly.
Praying for God’s Grace and Mercy to be Proclaimed
We pray like you taught us to pray, Jesus, our father in heaven, hallowed be your name in all the earth. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on this earth as it is in heaven, we pray. God, bring in about, we look forward to a new heaven and a new earth. And we, until we experience that reality want to love and worship and follow you with all our heart, all our soul, all our mind, all our strength. We want to do justice, love, mercy, walk humbly with you.
We want to proclaim the gospel, the good news of your grace and your mercy so others might stand on this foundation. God, we pray for the Musahar in India. Over 3 million of them, no followers of Jesus. This dullard people group, outcast, looked down upon by everybody around them, worshiping hundreds of millions of little G gods. God may they know that you’re the one true God and that you are working all things together for the accomplishment of your purpose. And your purpose is every nation, tribe, and tongue gathered around your throne. So may the Musahar be there, oh God. Cross the gospel to go to the Musahar, we pray, and to every other people group in the world, we pray. And use our lives toward that end.
Genesis 42:1–2 Calls for Full Trust in God
We want to live for the accomplishment of your purposes. In our lives, our families that are in churches. Help us to live, we pray, for the accomplishment of your purposes among the nations. God help us and help us not to grow weary or downhearted, downcast as we look around us in a sinful, evil, fallen world. We put all our trust in you. And we know you’re working all things for the accomplishment of your purposes.
So use our lives as a part of this story to exalt your name in this world. To exalt your name among all the nations. To exalt your name right where we live as we await the day when we see your face. And this story enters a new chapter where C. S. Lewis said it, every page will be better than the one the day before. Standing on this foundation with this hope. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
