They told him, "Joseph is still alive! In fact, he is ruler of all Egypt." Jacob was stunned; he did not believe them. – Genesis 45:26

Today's Scripture Reading (September 12, 2021): Genesis 45

Some things are too big for us to understand. Or maybe the idea violates our belief system, so we refuse to believe. I recently saw a cartoon directed at those who believe in a flat earth. The comic was a relatively traditional model of our solar system, with a ball-shaped sun and round planets, except for the Earth, which was flat. And the caption for the cartoon read, "This is embarrassing." Of course, for those who believe in a flat earth, there is an explanation that is in keeping with their understanding.

Several years ago, I had a conversation with someone who believed that the Earth was flat and that this clump, it is not a ball, of clay was the center of the universe. And his argument was based on the Bible. A flat earth at the center of the universe is the best way to interpret the biblical descriptions of our planet. But accepting or rejecting this premise comes with some other necessary adjustments. For me, as a believer that the world is round and is not at the center of the universe, it is the understanding that the descriptions contained within the Bible reflect the understanding of the people who wrote down these descriptions in their writings, and it does not necessarily reflect the way that the world really is. For my friend, his adjustment was to believe that the space projects conducted by the scientists, including any of the journeys to the moon and moon landings, and any pictures of the Earth as a ball, are fakes. They can't be true because they violate what my friend understood to be true.

As far as why the Earth was flat, that too has an explanation. Of all of the celestial bodies, the Earth is unique because it is our home. So, a solar system with one flat planet among many round ones is not all that unusual. The Earth is unique and necessarily different because it is our home.

Jacob believed that his son, Joseph, was dead. He had never seen the body of Joseph, but the evidence for his death was still overwhelming. Jacob had seen his coat of many colors, covered with blood. He had heard the testimony of ten of his brothers (it doesn't appear the Benjamin had anything to do with the deception) that Joseph was dead. But more importantly, Joseph had disappeared. After that day, there was nothing to be heard from Joseph, nor was he ever seen again. There wasn't even a communication, passed on through some weary traveler, to say Joseph was alive. After almost thirty years, there was no evidence that Joseph had survived his battle with the wild animal when he was only seventeen years of age. Therefore, Joseph was dead; that had to be the truth.

And when his brothers come to Jacob with the news that Joseph was alive and is ruling in Egypt, there is no set of facts available to Jacob that would allow that to be true. It was going to take him some time to make the necessary adjustments to what he believed before he could accept the truth of the situation. It wouldn't happen quickly, but the brothers begin to convince their father that everything he had come to believe about Joseph was false. And while Joseph had never really died, for Jacob, it was like his son had risen from the dead.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Genesis 46