Friday, 28 March

“Let us have no bloodshed,” he said. “Throw him into this cistern, in the wilderness, but do him no injury.” Reuben meant to rescue him (Joseph) from their clutches in order to restore him to his father. Genesis 37:22

See to it that no one pays back wrong for wrong, but always aim at what is best for each other and for all. 1 Thessalonians 5:15

Joseph was his father’s favourite son, he had also had a dream in which he saw his brothers, in the sheaves of wheat, bowing down before him. Joseph’s brothers, motivated by jealousy and hate, planned to kill him. Rueben persuaded them to put him in a pit in the wilderness, intending to rescue him later. In the end, this plan backfired, and Joseph was discovered by merchants, who sold him as a slave in Egypt. Joseph eventually became rich and a trusted advisor of Egypt’s Ruler, where he was eventually able to rescue his whole family from famine, though not before punishing his brothers a little first.  He did not choose to pay back wrong for wrong, instead he set his family up in the finest lands of Egypt and took care of them.

How many times do we hear today of people taking revenge on others? Wars, genocide, all forms of conflict are often motivated by paying back wrong for wrong. I was quite concerned to see that on a well-known quiz show this week 70% of the audience thought that Revenge was a good idea. Yet, what can it lead to? History books are full of stories of clan warfare, and rivalry between countries, and today we have the same ideas with gangs on the street, and between individuals. Retaliation can be a constant motivational force. Violence is perpetuated and nothing is resolved. How much better would life be for all if we could live by aiming at what is best for each other and for all. It is not always easy to do this when we feel hurt by others, and even more difficult when our children or vulnerable members of society may be victims of crime, bullying or injury. In these circumstances it is hard not to feel angry and wish to “pay back”, but I always feel heartened by, and truly respect those remarkable people who have turned their hurt and loss into forgiveness and positive action to help others in society.

Father, help me, too, to find the strength to live by your word, to continue to find the good in others to try to forgive those who do wrong to me and those about me and, in understanding their motivations, to strive to find a better way forward for all. Amen

Ella Burton

Wilbraham St Ninian URC