A friend of mine recently told me about their struggles with a situation they are in. There are some legal matters involved but the gist is that they are being falsely accused. The accusations are not of criminal issues but the stresses still weigh on them. There are a lot of unknowns in the near future for my friend, but one thing is for sure: God is with them and is in control. Regardless of the situation anyone may be in, no matter how dire the circumstances, God is with His people and is working in their lives. We are going to look at one of my favorite passages in all of Scripture: Genesis 50:20.
It reads:
“But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.”
To give some context to this verse, at this point in Genesis Joseph the son of Jacob had been betrayed brutally by his brothers. They were jealous of him, threw him in a well that he may die, sold him into slavery, staged his death in the hopes that their father Jacob would forget about him, they deceived Joseph and Jacob, and other things. Nasty, evil stuff. They wanted Joseph gone even if that meant killing him and trying to cover the whole thing up.
After years of separation, Joseph had befriended the pharaoh of the time in Egypt. He was able to prevent a mass famine and helped lead essentially as Pharaoh’s second-in-command over Egypt.
Through God’s providence, Joseph’s brothers had come to Egypt for food because of the great famine and encountered Joseph, but didn’t even recognize him. Joseph immediately knew who they were and set up a meeting. He could’ve exacted revenge on them; had them thrown in prison; enslaved; or even killed (considering the ruling power he had). Instead, Joseph revealed who he was to them and delivers one of the most gut-punching statements in all of scripture:
“But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.”
Genesis 50:20 NKJV
His brother’s actions derived from an evil disposition. They were so consumed with themselves and what they wanted, that they devised vile plans against Joseph. Their goal was evil.
Consider Joseph’s perspective for a moment. His older brothers became envious of how their father treated him. He was given a beautiful coat. His dreams caused his brothers to hate him. His brothers staged his death and sold him into slavery. He was accused of rape and thrown in prison. Can you imagine the mental anguish he may have been going through facing one beat-down after another?
But what happened after Joseph found himself in prison? He found favor with the pharaoh. Joseph was elevated to the position of Vizier – Chief Steward to the King. Basically, Joseph was the number two guy over Egypt. In the grander scheme, God was using Joseph’s situations it for good. God didn’t just elevate Joseph. He also used Joseph to save the entire nation of Egypt from famine! It was the Lord who took that evil and turned it for good.
Wicked people plot against us and in many cases they ACT against us. It destabilizes us and causes us doubt and fear. But the Apostle Paul tells us something really important about how God works:
“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”
Romans 8:28 NKJV
God doesn’t just work all things together for good. He works all things together for the good of those who love Him. Do you love the Lord? Then He is working things together for your good. It doesn’t mean there won’t be obstacles or difficulties or pain. Joseph was faithful to the Lord and yet still found himself in less-than-great situations. But God worked in the way that only God can: taking evil and decimating it with good.
Something to note especially in your situation, is that even in the worst situations Joseph experienced God was still there with him. Joseph was not alone. And neither are you.
