Genesis 50: “You Meant Evil Against Me, but God Meant It for Good”
1. The Mourning of a Son
“Then Joseph fell on his father’s face, and wept over him, and kissed him.” (Gen 50:1)
The book that began with the breath of life now opens its final chapter with the breath of death.
Joseph’s tears sanctify filial love — sorrow ennobled by faith.
St Bede the Venerable writes:
“The patriarch dies, but not unloved; for he who dies blessed leaves peace even in tears.”
(Commentary on Genesis, 50)
Grief is not rebellion but reverence — the soul’s final act of love toward the departed.
2. Honour in Burial
“And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel.” (v. 2)
Egyptian custom becomes instrument of piety.
Joseph does not reject cultural practice, but sanctifies it — love using the means of the age to express honour.
St Ambrose comments:
“The faith of the just sanctifies the customs of men, turning earthly rites into tokens of spiritual hope.”
(On the Duties of the Clergy II.11)
For Christians, burial and honour of the body express belief in the resurrection of the flesh.
3. Seventy Days of Mourning
“The Egyptians wept for him seventy days.” (v. 3)
A pagan nation mourns a Hebrew saint.
The holiness of Jacob has radiated beyond the covenant people; his virtue converts even strangers to reverence.
St Augustine remarks:
“When the just die, even the unbelieving honour them, for truth compels admiration where it has not yet begotten faith.”
(City of God XIX.1)
Thus holiness evangelises even in death.
4. The Appeal to Pharaoh
“Joseph spoke to the household of Pharaoh, saying, ‘If now I have found favour in your eyes… let me go up, I pray you, to bury my father.’” (vv. 4–5)
Joseph requests permission — humility before authority.
The greatest in Egypt remains servant of both king and father.
St Bede observes:
“Power does not release from obedience; for he who rules well must first know how to serve.”
(Commentary on Genesis, 50)
Christian leadership imitates Joseph’s courtesy: reverence within authority, fidelity within freedom.
5. The Great Procession
“So Joseph went up to bury his father; with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh… It was a very great company.” (vv. 7–9)
A vast procession crosses the desert — Egyptian nobles and Hebrew shepherds united in grief.
In this public honouring of the patriarch, the Fathers saw a foreshadowing of the universality of the Church.
St Ambrose writes:
“Both Jew and Gentile walk together to the tomb, for in the just man the nations are already reconciled.”
(On the Mysteries 28)
Grace gathers mourners into communion before the true reconciliation to come in Christ.
6. The Threshing Floor of Atad
“They came to the threshing floor of Atad… and there they lamented with a very great and sorrowful lamentation.” (vv. 10–11)
Atad means thornbush — sorrow in a place of sharpness.
The Fathers read this as symbol of the Passion: mourning at a field of thorns foreshadows the Cross.
St Bede the Venerable remarks:
“The mourning at Atad prefigures the lamentation at Calvary; for through thorns we enter the joy of resurrection.”
(Commentary on Genesis, 50)
Suffering sanctified becomes harvest ground for joy — a threshing floor indeed.
7. Burial in the Promised Land
“Thus his sons did for him as he commanded… for they carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave of Machpelah.” (vv. 12–13)
The command of faith is fulfilled.
Jacob rests where Abraham and Isaac lie — the grave that is also a pledge of resurrection.
St Augustine comments:
“To be buried with the fathers is to confess one faith with them; for the place of the body witnesses the hope of the soul.”
(City of God XIX.1)
Even death proclaims continuity of covenant.
8. Return to Egypt
“After he had buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers.” (v. 14)
The journey home signifies the believer’s life after mourning — returning to duty, not despair.
Faith neither denies sorrow nor dwells within it endlessly.
St Ambrose writes:
“He who truly believes buries grief with the body; he returns to labour, for hope forbids idleness.”
(On the Duties of the Clergy II.11)
Love resumes work because trust knows reunion awaits.
9. The Brothers’ Fear
“When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, ‘It may be that Joseph will hate us, and pay us back for all the evil which we did to him.’” (v. 15)
Fear returns — the old guilt reawakens.
Sin long forgiven still torments memory unless grace renews it continually.
St Bede observes:
“The mind that doubts mercy confesses guilt without peace; faith alone perfects repentance.”
(Commentary on Genesis, 50)
Even forgiven sinners must learn to rest in forgiveness.
10. The Plea for Mercy
“So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, ‘Your father gave this command before he died… forgive, we pray you, the transgression of your brothers.’” (vv. 16–17)
Whether Jacob truly spoke these words or not, the message reveals their longing for peace.
They appeal to Joseph’s reverence for their father — an image of the sinner appealing to Christ’s love for the Father.
St Ambrose comments:
“They plead by the name of their father; we plead by the name of the Son’s Father — ‘Our Father who art in heaven.’”
(On the Mysteries 28)
Joseph’s tears at their words show that mercy grieves at unbelief.
11. Joseph’s Reply: Providence Declared
“Do not fear, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive.” (vv. 19–20)
These are among the most luminous words in all of Scripture — the heart of Genesis and of divine providence.
Joseph recognises that behind every human intention lies God’s saving plan.
St Augustine writes:
“The words of Joseph are the sum of all the Scriptures: men will evil, God works good; the same act punished the wicked and crowned the just.”
(City of God XIV.27)
Joseph’s humility — “Am I in the place of God?” — reveals perfect faith. He forgives not from weakness but from worship.
12. Consolation and Kindness
“So he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.” (v. 21)
Mercy is not merely the absence of revenge, but the presence of consolation.
Forgiveness must heal as well as absolve.
St Bede comments:
“The just man not only spares but soothes; for mercy imitates the tenderness of God.”
(Commentary on Genesis, 50)
Thus Genesis ends not with judgement, but with gentleness.
13. Joseph’s Last Years
“So Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he and his father’s house; and Joseph lived a hundred and ten years.” (v. 22)
His longevity symbolises the fruitfulness of virtue.
Unlike his forefathers, Joseph finds peace in a foreign land — holiness flourishing amid exile.
St Ambrose writes:
“Long life is not in years but in fruit; for he who multiplies good works lives long before God.”
(On Joseph the Patriarch 20)
14. The Promise Renewed
“And Joseph said to his brothers, ‘I am about to die; but God will visit you, and bring you up out of this land to the land which he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.’” (v. 24)
Joseph dies with prophecy on his lips.
He believes in the future Exodus long before Moses is born.
Faith, once tested in suffering, now sees beyond death.
St Augustine comments:
“He who once was sold in Egypt dies proclaiming deliverance from Egypt; the type is completed in him who dies proclaiming resurrection from death.”
(City of God XVI.58)
“God will visit you” — the Gospel in embryo. Divine visitation means redemption.
15. The Oath and the Bones
“Then Joseph took an oath of the sons of Israel, saying, ‘God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.’” (v. 25)
Even his bones become a pledge of hope. When Israel leaves Egypt, the relics of Joseph will go with them (Ex 13:19).
St Bede the Venerable writes:
“Joseph’s bones are the faith of the saints carried through the desert of the world; they rest not till they reach the Promised Land of heaven.”
(Commentary on Genesis, 50)
The saints’ bodies, like his bones, remain signs of resurrection.
16. The Final Verse
“So Joseph died, being a hundred and ten years old; they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.” (v. 26)
Genesis closes not in despair but in expectation.
The coffin in Egypt is not an end but a seed — awaiting the dawn of Exodus.
St Ambrose observes:
“The book of beginnings ends with a tomb, that faith may learn to wait for resurrection.”
(On the Mysteries 28)
Creation, covenant, and providence converge in one quiet certainty: God’s promises stand.
17. Theological Summary
| Theme | Revelation |
| Mourning of Jacob | Holiness honoured by the world |
| Joseph’s mercy | Image of Christ’s forgiveness |
| Providence | God turns evil into salvation |
| Faith at death | Hope of resurrection |
| Joseph’s bones | The Church’s memory of promise |
St Augustine summarises:
“Genesis begins with creation and ends with redemption foreshadowed; the world made by the Word is ruled by the same Wisdom that saves.”
(City of God XVI.58)
18. Moral and Spiritual Application
Grieve with faith. Christian mourning expresses love, not despair.
Honour authority with humility. Joseph shows reverence both upward and downward.
Forgive completely. Speak kindly after forgiving, not merely abstain from revenge.
Trust providence. God’s plan includes even the wounds inflicted by others.
Die in hope. Like Joseph, let our last words be of God’s visitation and our true homeland.
19. Christ the True Joseph
| Joseph | Christ |
| Wept over his father | Wept over Jerusalem |
| Forgave his betrayers | Forgave His crucifiers |
| Turned evil to good | Made the Cross the source of salvation |
| Said, “God will visit you” | Fulfilled: “The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us” |
| Bones carried to the promised land | Body raised to heavenly glory |
St Ambrose concludes:
“Joseph’s tomb in Egypt foretells the sepulchre in the garden; for both proclaim the same truth — that death cannot bind the righteous.”
(On the Mysteries 28)
20. Closing Prayer
God of all providence and mercy,
who turned Joseph’s sorrow into salvation
and brought Your servant Jacob to rest in peace,
teach us to see Your hand in every trial.
Give us hearts that forgive, lips that comfort,
and hope that outlives the grave.
May we, like Joseph, speak kindly to those who wrong us
and die trusting in Your visitation.
Through Jesus Christ, the true Joseph,
who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever. Amen.
St. Mary's, St. John Bosco and St. Edward's 