Isaiah 11:10 - “And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, who shall stand as a banner to the people; for the Gentiles shall seek Him, and His resting place shall be glorious.”
We often view a tomb or a grave as something sad. An ending. They symbolize the loss of a friend or loved one. How would you feel if their grave was empty when you thought you had buried them, only to find out they were alive? How would you feel if the manner in which they supposedly died, although evil, was shadowed by the saving of life?
As we look throughout scripture, there is a parallel between what happened to Jesus, and the life of Joseph. One conquered challenges through the body and the other conquered challenges through body and spirit. Although there is a vast difference between Joseph and Jesus as people, one thing is clear: when people tried to do evil, good prevailed.
The Lord is With You: In each journey, the Lord was with them both and made sure that everything they did would prosper (Genesis 39:2, Luke 5:17).
Sparks of Jealousy - As Joseph shared his dream of not only his brothers but his father and mother bowing down to him, his brothers envied him. Before Joseph had even arrived at the field where they were, they were already plotting to kill him (Genesis 37:6-11). Jesus had just raised Lazarus from the dead. The Pharisees became jealous of his notoriety and fearful of the loss of power if they allowed Him to live (John 11:45-53).
No Blood on Our Hands - Both Joseph and Jesus were given over to others so that consciousness could be clean even though the intent of evil was still present. Innocent people could have been saved as there were those present who believed the victims didn’t deserve what was happening to them (Genesis 37:27, Matthew 27:24).
Bread to Live - These scenarios paint a picture of people who needed saving: one of physical hunger and the other of spiritual hunger. Joseph gave them bread for physical life in Genesis 47:16 and Jesus gives spiritual bread in John 6:35.
Done With Love - Joseph was not angry with his brothers when he finally revealed himself to them and forgave them for what they did because he understood God’s purpose was greater than the anger he could’ve had (Genesis 45:5). As Jesus was being crucified on the cross, in pain and agony, He asked God to forgive them for He knew what He was doing was the will of the Lord (Luke 23:34, John 3:16).
Ruined Plans - Imagine for almost 19 years believing your son was dead only to come face to face with the man who would save your family and was very much alive (Genesis 46:30). We can imagine the Pharisees, proud of themselves and celebrating that their nuisance was no longer alive, until two angels revealed that was not the case (Luke 24:5).
I like to think of these two as a beautiful parallel. Two prime examples of how evil cannot and will not win. The Pharisees thought they could do something evil to Jesus and punish Him for who He is. Jesus’ empty tomb is a reminder He conquered death and sin so that we could be free from sin. Joseph’s brothers also tried to punish him because of who he was. His rise to power in Egypt is a reminder that
In the end, for both, lives were saved. One story saves physical lives, and the other one saves spirituality. In each case, those that thought they had succeeded in doing evil, had failed. “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive” (Genesis 50:20).