One Coherent Story. The Bible is one coherent story with the Christ of God as the hero. God’s hero does what all true heroes do–he endures immense sufferings, trials, betrayals, and evils. Here’s what I mean.

Today I was again reading the last 15 chapters of Genesis. The main character is Joseph in these chapters. Joseph was one of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel. He was also Jacob’s/Israel’s favorite: “Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his sons . . .” (Gen 37:3, ESV).

But here’s what I mean about the Bible being one coherent story and what I mean about Joseph being a foreshadowing of Jesus, the Christ of God.

Here are several ways Joseph is a forerunner and foreshadowing of Jesus, the Christ of God:

1. He is the seeker of rebels: “I am seeking my brothers,” he said. “Tell me, please, where they are pasturing the flock” (Gen 37:16, ESV).
2. He was conspired against by those who should have loved him: “They saw him from afar, and before he came near to them they conspired against him to kill him” (Gen 37:18, ESV).
3. He was cast down into the pit: “Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits” (Gen 37:20, ESV).
4. He was publicly stripped of his clothing: “So when Joseph came to his brother, they stripped him of his robe . . .” (Gen 37:23, ESV).
5. He was sold for shekels: “And they drew Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels of silver” (Gen 37:28, ESV).
6. A goat/lamb was slaughtered and blood applied to a robe as a picture of sacrifice: “Then they took Joseph’s robe and slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood” (Gen 37:31, ESV).

Anyone who has eyes to see and ears to hear and has read the New Testament, or at least the gospels, should grapple with these foreshadowings of the Christ of God, and marvel at the Bible’s coherence. It is one coherent story wherein every detail is significant because it is crucial to the whole.

Encouragement/takeaway: God is a God of details. He knows the fine print of every atom. Why? Because it’s his world. He made it. He knows our every thought, our every prayer, our every song, our every tear, our every everything. If you feel persecuted today by the machinations of schemers, be encouraged. Why? Just because of some silly psychological pep-talk? No. But because God knows all. Because God is good. Because God ordained Joseph’s sufferings as part of his education in what it means to be God’s man rather than a man who is in love with the applause of sinners. Seek to please the Lord, because it is to the Lord we will all answer. It is all part of God’s one coherent story of redeeming sinners for his glory and our good.