David Mapugilo
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JACOB
MODULE 3: SESSION 14: Laban Deceives Jacob
Human favoritism is a distorted version of God’s love and favor for the chosen one, which is bestowed for the blessing of the many. Yaaqov, with his four wives, is the furthest yet from the Eden ideal for marriage. God institutes laws protecting the firstborn’s rights against favoritism, but God…
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JACOB
MODULE 3: SESSION 13: Deception in the House of Laban
Lavan’s deception with his daughters is paralleled by his deception with his flocks, providing an implicit critique of the way these men are using women as objects in their power games. How we interpret passages depicting the mistreatment of women in the Bible can either illuminate…
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JOSEPH
MODULE 6: Jacob’s Song of Blessing
SESSION 21: Jacob Blesses Joseph’s Sons
As Genesis draws to a close, the narrative revisits the question of how God’s blessing of Abraham will carry forward, with an intensification of blessing vocabulary not seen for many chapters. Yaaqov blessing his sons in Genesis 48-49 is matched by Moses blessing…
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JOSEPH
MODULE 5: SESSION 20: Joseph Leads Egypt Through a Famine
Yaaqov blesses Pharaoh. This is the first time Abraham’s family explicitly blesses the nations as promised by God in Genesis 12:3. Yoseph rescues the people and animals of the land from the flood-like famine, once again cast as a new Noah. Yoseph’s wise administration of the land…
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JOSEPH
MODULE 5: SESSION 19: From Canaan to Goshen
Yaaqov assigns Yehudah with the role of instructing the family, charting his character transformation into a humble leader. Yehudah is the fourth son, continuing a pattern of three-plus-one surprise bonuses in Genesis. The wilderness is outside the land of promise, but it is also the place where…
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JOSEPH
MODULE 5: Joseph Rescues Egypt and His Family
SESSION 18: Jacob’s Journey to Egypt
Averting crisis with the family moving to Egypt, the final third of the Yoseph story highlights the tension of temporary safety outside the land of promise. Upon hearing the news that Yoseph is alive, Yaaqov metaphorically dies, coming back to life when…
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JOSEPH
MODULE 4: SESSION 17: Reconciliation of the Brothers
Returning to the flood melody, Yoseph’s offer of refuge in Egypt echoes the safety of the ark during the de-creation of the cosmos. The name Goshen is a wordplay on the Hebrew word for “garden” (gan), representing an abundance of God’s provision in the midst of famine. God rescuing…
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JOSEPH
MODULE 4: SESSION 16: Judah’s Offering
The Hebrew words for “divination” and “snake,” nakhash, are spelled with the same letters. Yoseph’s cup of divination identifies him as the disguised tester, but instead of a trap, his test provides an opportunity for his brothers to do the right thing. Throughout Genesis, when the son is lost through…
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JOSEPH
MODULE 4: SESSION 15: The Brothers Return to Egypt
The phrase “see my face” (Genesis 43:3, 5) links Yoseph and his brothers to the reconciliation of Yaaqov and Esau, which points to the larger reality of reconciliation with God. Yehudah offers his own life as a substitute for the beloved son. This is what rescues the family from death and…
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JOSEPH
MODULE 4: SESSION 14: Jacob’s Lost Sons
Reuven laments that their brother’s blood is required of them, activating a pattern of innocent blood crying out to God for justice that stretches all the way back to Cain and Abel in Genesis 4. Yoseph’s translator is called a “mediator,” the same word used to describe the prophets who stand in the…
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God will always raise other men to stand the gap for their fellow men but Christ is now our ultimate mediator!!
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