Forgiveness and reconciliation are deeply countercultural. Instead of forgiveness, we tend to prefer revenge or bringing people to justice, to make them pay for what they did.

The final chapters of Genesis recount the death of Jacob. Joseph and his brothers grieved deeply for their father. They also honored his desire to be buried in the land of Canaan as Isaac and Abraham had been (50:5). Joseph arranged with Pharaoh to grant this request (50:4–6). By asking for this burial location, Jacob demonstrated his belief in and faithfulness to God’s promises to Abraham.

Joseph’s brothers had an additional worry. With the death of their father, they knew they were completely in Joseph’s power. They thought that perhaps Joseph had treated them kindly because of their father. They worried that Joseph might exact revenge. So, they concocted a plan to tell Joseph that their father’s dying wish was for Joseph to forgive them (v. 17). They had such a hard time believing that Joseph would actually forgive them that they used their father’s memory to manipulate him.

Joseph responded to their plea with weeping (50:17). Instead of gloating over them, he comforted his brothers with the most important message he had learned in his life. He once again reminded them: “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives” (50:19). Joseph was able to forgive his brothers because of his rock-solid belief in God’s sovereignty. He knew they would ultimately stand before God (50:19). He also knew that God was able to redeem their evil and use it for His own purposes. Forgiveness was (and is) possible because of the character of the God we worship.

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