Upon what ground did Joseph tell his brothers that they should not blame themselves for selling him into Egypt? Upon the ground that God had brought good out of the evil they had done. Is he quite right in telling them that they should not be grieved for the wrong they did him? They were free agents; God did not will that they should sin, though He brought good out of it. From this point of view Joseph is wrong. But he doubtless sees that his brothers have long ago repented their action and does not wish them to continue to blame themselves. His assurance is no doubt prompted by a noble generosity induced, to some extent, by Judah's appeal. What seems to be Joseph's dominating motive? His love for his father. His repeated references to him show this. We can understand his desire to provide for his father and Benjamin, but why for his brothers who had wronged him? Partly for his father's sake, perhaps. It was natural, in those patriarchal days, that Jacob, if he migrated to Egypt, should wish his family to do the same. Besides, Joseph sees that his brothers are changed men. What inducements does he hold out to them? He shows them that his own power in Egypt is sufficient to protect them; he promises them the fertile land of Goshen, with sufficient food for themselves and their flocks and herds; and he points out that five years of famine are yet to be in the land, and that they must inevitably suffer if the invitation is rejected. Joseph frequently draws attention to his power in Egypt. Is he at all vain-glorious? No, he does this to assure his brothers that the wrong done him years before has had, through the goodness of God, a beneficent result; to show them that it has not been all suffering in his long exile; and to induce his father to come down to Egypt. "After that his brethren talked with him." About what would they probably talk? No doubt Joseph would ask many things about what had occurred in Canaan since he left, and would give his brothers an account of his own experiences in Egypt. Does it not seem strange that Joseph, during all these years, should never have taken measures to find out how his kindred fared, or to assure them that he was still alive? He was probably ever looking forward to such a situation as this, confident that the dreams of his boyhood would still be realized. It was, perhaps, this belief in the ultimate fulfilment of his dreams that had kept him silent during these years.