“All things work together …”

Rom 8:28 does not say that all things are good but that all things will work together for good in the life of anyone who will trust God. He lets things happen to His children that look bad but in His hands are designed for good. Genesis 37–50 is a textbook case of how Rom 8:28 works in real life.

    It was bad that Jacob favored his son, Joseph. It was bad that Joseph’s brothers hated him. It was bad that they threw him in the pit. It was bad that they sold him to the Ishmaelites. It was bad that he was taken to Egypt in slavery. It was bad that after working his way into a position of authority he was thrown into prison for a crime he did not commit.

    One bad thing after another assaulted Joseph, but God intended every single thing for good. Joseph was able to keep perspective because at every “calamity” in his life, he trusted the God who stood ready to work the bad things together for the long-term good, not only of Joseph and his family and the nation of Israel, but for everyone who would hear his story.

    When Jacob died in Egypt, Joseph’s brothers were terrified: “What if Joseph should bear a grudge against us and pay us back in full for all the wrong which we did to him!” (Gen 50:15). But Joseph had too great an understanding of God’s providence and grace to blame his brothers for what he had suffered. “Do not be afraid,” he told them, “for am I in God’s place? And as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good …” (Gen 50:19–20).