Joseph’s Bones

Dear lady sitting near me at Panera in Greensboro, North Carolina,

I can hear the conversation you are having right now over lunch with your five hundred lunch companions. I’m sorry to be listening in. It’s not that you’re being too loud; you’re using your appropriate inside voices. But I heard you say the word “church.” I’m a preacher. What am I supposed to do? I have to listen. Your next statements might give me an illustration to use someday in one of my messages. This is especially true if you’re funny and dead certain if you are both foolish and funny at the same time.

Anyway, you mentioned hearing a sermon recently where the preacher talked about Moses bringing Joseph’s bones back from Egypt. You said that this was the only thing about the sermon that you remember. I’m sorry to hear that. It makes me cringe to think about what people who hear me retain from my messages.

Where was I? Oh, you said the preacher mentioned that Moses had Joseph’s bones and buried them with Abraham. Now you’re questioning whether or not this is true. Is it true? The good news is that I’m going to answer you. If you ever use “The Google” to look up this question, you might find my answer. If not, you’ll never even know I wrote this because I’m not going to interrupt six people at lunch. Two people? Nah, I probably wouldn’t do that either. I’m either too polite or too big a wuss. Take your pick.

In Genesis 50:25, Joseph commanded his descendants to remove his remains and return them to the promised land. He made them promise on oath, meaning they would be cursed by God if they failed to do it. Hebrews 11:22 makes reference to this passage also, but adds nothing new to the discussion.

In Exodus 13:19, Moses fulfilled part of this oath, taking the bones with him when the Jews made their exodus from Egypt.

But here’s where your pastor made a couple of mistakes, if he really said what you’re saying he said. According to you, he said that Moses buried Joseph’s bones in Abraham’s tomb. Two big strikes there. Here’s why:

1. Moses never made it to the promised land. He died before he got there. Oops. See Deuteronomy 34:1-5, and Numbers 20:1-14 for the backstory.
2. Joshua did bury Joseph’s bones, but not in Abraham’s tomb. Rather, Joshua 24:32 says that he buried them “at Shechem in the tract of land that Jacob bought for a hundred pieces of silver from the sons of Hamor.” This is a place where Jacob built an altar to the Lord, according to Genesis 33:18-20. Abraham, by contrast, was buried with Sarah in the cave in the field of Machpelah, near Mamre. See Genesis 23:19 and 25:10.

Oooh, now two of your companions are talking about Calvinism. I want badly to listen in, but there’s too much ambient noise. I can’t make out what they’re saying. I can hear one of them saying that Calvinism-Arminianism is like a toilet paper roll: over or under, take your pick. Yikes! That’s bad theology, but you can be sure THIS WILL SHOW UP IN MY TEACHING OR PREACHING SOMEDAY. Probably repeatedly. For the rest of my life.

If you ever find this on the net, my apologies to you. I hope that this doesn’t creep you out too badly.

Grace,

Brian