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Genesis 50 · a question people ask

Does "God meant it for good" apply to everything that happens to us?

Interpretation

Joseph says of his own story, "you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to save many people alive" (50:20). Paul later writes, "We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, for those who are called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28). Paul doesn't quote Genesis 50:20, and Protestants relate the two in different ways.

How Christians read it

Where Christians differ, Favor sets out the main views side by side and doesn't pick one.

A pattern for every believer

Those who hold this view see Joseph's words as a picture of what Romans 8:28 promises every believer: God can work even the evil done to them for good.

Genesis 50:20 · Romans 8:28

Joseph's own story

Those who hold this view stress that 50:20 is Joseph speaking about what he could see God had done in his own life, "as is happening today", and that it shouldn't be used to explain every hardship. They read Romans 8:28 as its own promise, "for those who love God", with its own context.

Genesis 50:20 · Romans 8:28

The verses

“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to save many people alive, as is happening today.”
Genesis 50:20 · World English Bible
“We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Romans 8:28 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of Genesis 50

Genesis 50: God meant it for good

Jacob's sons carried him home to Machpelah. Afraid, the brothers asked forgiveness, and Joseph said, "You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to save many people alive." He comforted them. Dying, he said, "God will surely visit you... carry up my bones from here." Genesis ends with a coffin in Egypt and a promise.

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Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions