Good Morning.
And Joseph said to his brethren, “I am dying; but God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land to the land of which He swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” (Genesis 50:24-25)
Then Joseph took an oath from the children of Israel, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.”
At the age of 110 years old, Joseph died reassuring Israel that the LORD will “visit you” to deliver them from Egypt. Years later, Moses used these exact words when he spoke to the elders of Israel.
“Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, ‘The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt.’” (Exodus 3:16)
Jewish commentary considers this phrase to have been code words that spoke of Israel’s deliverance. After a long period had passed and it seemed He had forgotten them, He “visited them.” It is also suggested by Jewish commentators that, not only were the bones of Joseph carried out of Egypt, but those of his other brothers as well.
Once again, we must consider that what is recorded for us is not just a historical record but is a pattern and prophecy for the future. For instance, when Messiah came to Jerusalem just days before His crucifixion, the Bible said that it was His desire to gather His people “as a hen gathers her chicks” but they were not willing (Matthew 23:37). In conjunction with Matthew recorded, Luke said:
And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.” (Luke 19:41-44)
The point is this: it seems that discernment to recognize the time when “God visits you” is imperative to deliverance. Failure to recognize that time might lure God’s people into thinking that He has forgotten and abandoned them. Think of it this way: have you ever prayed, “God, where are You? Why are You allowing this to happen?” Thinking He’s abandoned His post is a dangerous place to be especially when things are looking dark and gloomy.
The reality is, He will never forsake us but will be with us, “even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). In fact, the pattern of history seems to suggest that, as things grow darker than we have ever known, the stage is being set for the time of our visitation. Let us, then, be vigilant, sober and in anticipation of God’s purposes to come to pass.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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