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THE GREATEST TYPE OF CHRIST Genesis 37: Genesis chapter thirty-seven introduces Joseph as the greatest type of Christ in the Bible. For a more detailed study of this subject, we recommend Arthur Pink’s "Gleanings in Genesis." In this effort, we will point out some of the stronger points only.Genesis 37:3: “Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children...” This is obviously a type of the Father’s love for His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Genesis 37:4-5: “And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him . . . he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. and could not speak peaceably unto him.” The Jews were “the brethren” of Jesus, yet the more he spoke the more they hated Him. Genesis 37:24: “And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it.” So Jesus was placed in a tomb. Yet, like Joseph, he didn’t remain there (vs. 28). The fact that there was “no water” in the pit points us Christ’s suffering in such passages as John 19:28 and Psalm 16:10. Genesis 37:28: “They . . . sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites.” So Christ was sold for thirty pieces of silver (Mat. 26:15, Zch. 11:12-13). Genesis 39:4: “And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand.” So it is with Jesus; the Father has placed all into his hands. Genesis 39:17-20: “And she spake unto him according to these words, saying, The Hebrew servant, which thou hast brought unto us, came in unto me to mock me . . . And Joseph's master took him, and put him into the prison,” Like Christ, Joseph was falsely accused and arrested. Also, like Christ, he was “numbered among the transgressors” (Isa. 53:12) Genesis 41:40: “Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou” Christ the King of Kings is here pictured as the ruler over the Father’s house. Also, Pharoah’s words about his throne point to Christ’s coming Lordship over the world while maintaining the right relationship with the Heavenly Father (Rev. 3:21, 12:15). Genesis 41:43: “And he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt.” Joseph riding in the second chariot reminds us of Christ being the second member of the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, Holy Spirit. Also, as with Christ, men had to “bow the knee” before him. Philippians 2:10 says, “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth.” Genesis 41:46: The fact that Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharoah reminds us of the age of Christ when he began his public ministry: “And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age . . .” (Luke 3:23) Genesis 42:1-2: “Now when Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt, Jacob said unto his sons, Why do ye look one upon another? And he said, Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Egypt: get you down thither, and buy for us from thence; that we may live, and not die.” Just as a sinner today must hear the Gospel of Christ (Rom. 10:17, Jacob “heard” that there was corn in Egypt. But hearing wasn’t enough. It would be necessary to go down to Egypt to get the corn. This speaks of the humility, the broken spirit that the sinner must experience before receiving Christ, the “corn” that fell to the ground and then brought forth much fruit (John 12:24). Genesis 42:6: “. . . Joseph's brethren came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth.” In addition to being a fulfillment of the prophetic dream of Genesis 37:9-10, this event also foreshadows the day when our Lord’s brethren the Jews will turn to him and bow before him. Genesis 42:25: “Then Joseph commanded to fill their sacks with corn, and to restore every man's money into his sack, and to give them provision for the way: and thus did he unto them.” Joseph’s refusal to accept money from his brethren pictures Christ’s refusal to accept Israel in her self righteousness. Salvation is a free gift.Genesis 43:28: “. . . And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance.” As pointed out in 42:6, the Jews will one day bow before Christ. Genesis 45:3: “And his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled at his presence.” So men will be troubled at the presence of Jesus Christ when they meet him in judgment (Rev. 20:11-15) Genesis 45:5: “. . . God did send me before you to preserve life.” As mentioned earlier, this pictures Christ, the one who gives eternal life and preserves those who receive it. Genesis 46:3-4: “. . . fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation: I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes.” Like the sinner who hesitates to receive Christ, Jacob hears the good news, but he’s afraid to act on it. So he is assured that it’s the right thing to do and that God will go with him. Genesis 47:25: “ . . . Thou hast saved our lives . . .” Jesus Christ saves lives today. Genesis 49:8-12: “Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father's children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion's whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.” The whole prophecy has reference to Christ, the “lion of the tribe of Judah” (Rev. 5:5), the rightful heir to God’s scepter. “Shiloh” points to Christ as the peaceful one, or, as Isaiah 9:6 states it, the “Prince of Peace.” The “colt” is found in Matthew 21:5, and “his clothes in the blood of grapes” points to Isaiah 63:1-6 and Revelation 19:13, both of which speak of Christ at the Second Coming. Genesis 50:17-20: “And Joseph wept when they spake unto him . . . his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants. And Joseph said unto them, Fear not . . . ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.” All of this matches Christ and the Jews perfectly. Like Joseph, Jesus wept because of the unbelief of his brethren (John 11:35). Eventually, they do fully trust him and become his servants. On a number of occasions Jesus uttered the words “fear not,” and he was used of God to “save much people alive.”