Genesis 50:20, commentary and pictures

Joseph's brothers meant evil when they plotted to kill him and then sold him as a slave to keep him from becoming greater than they were and to stop his dreams from coming true, but God meant it for good by raising him to power in Egypt as a saviour to preserve his father's family and keep many people alive from death. He spoke these words after Jacob died, when his brothers feared he had only held back revenge for their father's sake and begged forgiveness offering themselves as servants, and he wept, refused to take the place of God, forgave them freely without resentment, and promised to nourish them and their little ones with kindness. God overruled the very course they took to prevent his exaltation so that it fulfilled the dreams and brought dominion and deliverance for many, for He does not stop the plottings and false charges of wicked men but makes them work for good to His faithful servants, yet this purpose never excuses the heinous guilt of the wrongdoers. As Joseph's suffering through revenge and humiliation prepared him and led to his becoming a saviour, so the chief priests and rulers sought to keep Christ from becoming king by condemning and murdering Him, yet by that murder brought about His becoming the Redeemer of the fallen race and ruler over the whole world. The verse therefore calls for forgiving with benevolence and caring even for those who confessed cruel wrongs, as Jesus pardons the repentant, and for trusting fully in God rather than looking to men for sympathy when trusted supports fail and all seems dark.

Context and Outcome

The verse belongs to the famine that drove the brothers down to Egypt, where they bowed before Joseph without knowing him, and their bowing recalled his earlier dreams. The evil they meant was first to kill him and then to sell him as a slave, in order to keep him from becoming greater than themselves and to put an end to his dreams so they would never come true. What God meant for good was Joseph's place and dominion in Egypt as a saviour to his father's family, by which many people were kept alive and saved from death. He overruled the very course taken against Joseph to bring about dominion over the brothers and preservation of the father's house, to save much people alive.

It was spoken after Jacob died, when the brothers feared Joseph had only hidden resentment out of respect for their father and would now repay the evil done to him. In that fear they begged his forgiveness and offered themselves to him as servants. Joseph wept at their words, told them not to fear, and asked whether he was in the place of God. He then told them they had thought evil against him but God had meant it unto good, to bring to pass as it was that day, to save much people alive. He promised to nourish them and their little ones, comforting them and speaking kindly to them. Jacob himself had not suspected his sons of such cruelty until they made humiliating confession and asked forgiveness, and when he saw that God had turned their evil to good he forgave his erring sons and blessed them.

Providence Over Human Evil

God overruled the very course the brothers pursued to bring about what they designed should never take place. They acted cruelly to prevent Joseph from becoming greater than themselves and to put an end to his dreams so they would not come true. Yet God controlled events and made their cruel course fulfill the very dreams they were working to frustrate, bringing Joseph to dominion over them and making him a saviour to his father's family as a means of saving many lives.

God does not prevent the plottings and devices of wicked men against His servants, but causes those devices to work for good to those servants. This includes false accusations and calumny turned to good for the one accused. The turning to good comes when amid trial and conflict they preserve faith and loyalty. This same dealing is repeated for others who face the same kind of trial, as seen in the histories of Joseph and of Daniel.

Joseph's suffering through wicked revenge, humiliation, temptation, adversity, and hardship did not prevent God from later exalting him. Providence turned the enemy's devices to deliverance and benefit for many in God's own time. Those temptations, adversities, and hardships also prepared him for the position he would later fill.

God's providential purpose in turning the act toward good did not excuse or lessen the brothers' guilt. Their wrongdoing and crime in intending evil and selling him remained evil, guilty, and heinous even though God overruled its outcome to bring Joseph to a position where he could keep many people alive and save them from death.

Christ, Forgiveness, and Trust

Joseph freely forgave his brothers when they acknowledged and confessed their sin, holding no spirit of revenge or resentment for their cruel treatment but loving them with benevolence. After Jacob died they feared he had only hidden resentment out of respect for their father and would now repay the evil they had done to him, so they begged forgiveness and offered themselves as servants, and Joseph wept and told them not to fear. He asked if he were in the place of God, spoke that they had thought evil against him but God had meant it unto good to bring to pass as it was that day to save much people alive, and promised to nourish them and their little ones, comforting them and speaking kindly to them. His loving actions and care and provision for them and their children showed he cherished no resentful feelings.

As the brothers sold Joseph to prevent his becoming greater than themselves, yet his suffering led to his becoming a saviour, so his story illustrates Christ. The chief priests and elders and Jews sought to prevent Christ from becoming king and exercising authority by hiring false witnesses and condemning and murdering him, yet by murdering the Son of God they brought about the very thing they sought to prevent. By that death he was made the Redeemer of mankind, the Saviour of the fallen race and of the world, and ruler over the whole world, while their crime remains just as heinous though God's providential hand controlled events for His own glory and the good of man. As Joseph with benevolence and love nourished those who acknowledged their sin, so Jesus meekly forgave while suffering cruel torture and freely pardons all who come repentant and confessing their sins.

God does not prevent the plottings and devices of men against His servants, but causes those devices to work for good to those who preserve faith and loyalty amid trial and conflict, as seen in Joseph and in Daniel. The verse therefore teaches not to look to fellow men for sympathy and uplifting, but to learn the folly of trusting in man and making flesh an arm when those trusted fail. It calls for trusting fully, humbly, and unselfishly in God, who knows sorrows felt to the depths of being that cannot be expressed. When all things seem dark and unexplainable, it teaches to remember that what He does will be known hereafter.