Show Don't Tell: Genesis 46:28-34

Imagine the sun dipping low over the horizon, casting a warm golden hue across the lush fields of Goshen. The air is thick with anticipation, heavy with the scent of ripened grain. In the distance, a plume of dust billows against the brilliant sky, announcing a figure racing towards the family encampment. It’s Joseph, the once-beloved son, now the second-most-powerful man in all of Egypt, driving his chariot with a fierce urgency.

As the chariot thunders closer, you can hear the rhythmic pounding of hooves against the earth, a heartbeat echoing the joy and pain of years gone by. Joseph’s heart races in tandem, a symphony of hope and fear. Twenty-two long years have passed since that fateful day when he was torn from his father’s loving embrace, cast into a pit, and sold into slavery. The memories flood his mind—each moment sharp and tender.

Then, he sees him. There stands Jacob, aged but unmistakably his father, a figure weathered by time yet still radiating the warmth of love. In an instant, Joseph leaps from his chariot, the dust settling as he rushes forward. He throws his arms around Jacob, and the floodgates open; tears flow freely, mingling joy and sorrow as they cling to one another.

“Now I am ready to die,” Jacob whispers, his voice cracking with emotion. “For I have seen your face, and you are still alive.” A lifetime of grief melts away in that embrace, the pain of loss transformed into the sweetness of reunion.

But even as they hold one another, Joseph’s mind races with practical matters. “Father,” he says, pulling back to look Jacob in the eyes, “we need to tell Pharaoh we are shepherds.” The Egyptians disdain shepherds, and this truth will protect their family, allowing them to maintain their identity in a foreign land. And so, even in this moment of profound joy, Joseph plans ahead, fully aware that their roads forward must be guided by both faith and wisdom.