Gen 43:23, And he said, "Be at ease, do not be afraid. Your God and the God of your father has given you treasure in your sacks; I had your money." Then he brought Simeon out to them. 
	In our reading, we have the brothers of Joseph returning to Egypt to get food. Their family was starving during this extremely severe drought and the only available food supply as that which Joseph so wisely stored for the Pharaoh. The brothers were afraid of the return to Egypt because they did not know who this man was who had given them food on their first trip. They had returned home and found all their money in the food bags and now had to bring back, not only that money but more as well as gifts in order to try to allay the anger that they feared awaited them as thieves and scoundrels. 
As well, they had to bring their youngest brother as per the request of the Egyptian official. This was at the great displeasure and anguish of their father, Israel. This whole passage is overlaid with the anxiety and the terror of what awaited them in the only place to which they could turn for food.
	What a sad and mournful picture is presented to us as these brothers struggled against the dread and the fright of returning again to Egypt to face the possible wrath of this administrator. It flowed back to the conscious remembrance of what they had done to their brother Joseph and was seen as the punishment for their vile deceit and treatment of him. As we have recorded in the account of their first journey into Egypt, Gen 42:21, Then they said to one another, "Truly we are guilty concerning our brother, because we saw the distress of his soul when he pleaded with us, yet we would not listen; therefore this distress has come upon us." 
	The fact was that they had to go back, regardless of their fear, for they had left their brother, Simeon, in Egypt as a guarantee that they would return with their youngest brother Benjamin. However, as they pleaded with their father to allow them to return to get their imprisoned brother out of the bondage of that promise, Israel refused. It came to the point that Reuben was willing to place the very lives of his two sons on the line in order to rescue Simeon and fulfill the oath to bring Benjamin before this Egyptian official. 
But Israel was adamant that they could not take his youngest son since he had already lost Joseph, the son of his beloved wife, Rachel. Gen 42:36+37, And their father Jacob said to them, "You have bereaved me of my children: Joseph is no more, and Simeon is no more, and you would take Benjamin; all these things are against me." Then Reuben spoke to his father, saying, "You may put my two sons to death if I do not bring him back to you; put him in my care, and I will return him to you." 
	The offer of the lives of Rueben’s two boys was not sufficient to allay the fear of Israel for the possible loss of his youngest son. It wasn’t until Judah made the following oath that Israel finally consented for the rest of his sons to return to Egypt for more food and to obtain the release of Simeon. Gen 43:8+9, And Judah said to his father Israel, "Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go, that we may live and not die, we as well as you and our little ones. I myself will be surety for him; you may hold me responsible for him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame before you forever. 
	Keep in mind that Judah was the one who had talked his brothers out of killing Joseph and rather selling him to the Ishmaelites. While Rueben had planned on rescuing Joseph, it was Judah who had actually convinced the rest of the brothers that Joseph should not be killed. We see a pattern here that is important in our consideration of the heritage of the blessing of the Children of Israel. 
Rueben tried twice to intervene and to make things right, but each time he was thwarted in that effort. At the same time, Judah accomplished both the task of saving his brother’s life and convincing Israel to allow the brothers to rescue not only Simeon, but the entire family by getting the provisions from Egypt. In this second matter, he placed himself as the guarantee for the safety of Benjamin. He put his own life on the line and took the responsibility and the blame forever if anything were to happen to Benjamin. 
	It wasn’t until this promise of personal accountability on the part of Judah that Israel was willing to allow Benjamin to accompany the rest of the brothers on the trip back to Egypt. For whatever reason, it was Judah’s word that made the difference in the heart of Israel. 
This is a key fact in that it would be Judah who would receive the blessing of God upon his lineage. It would be from the tribe of Judah that the Christ would be born and the blessing fulfilled. 
It is this same heart that establishes our salvation as the redeemed of the Lord as Jesus Christ laid down His very life for you and for me. The heritage of the promise of our surety of salvation is seen in this very statement made with the view of the salvation of his family from death as we hear Judah emphatically state …"Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go, that we may live and not die, we as well as you and our little ones. I myself will be surety for him; you may hold me responsible for him. 
	Jesus Christ, the Lion of Judah, is our surety of life evermore. He did not just take the oath upon Himself, but He did all that was necessary and required to make our salvation a reality. In His death and resurrection, we have the certainty and the absolute manifestation of the Love of God made to be lavished upon us and into us by the Lord God Almighty. All that ever could be done has been entirely and wholly and eternally satisfied by our Surety, Our Savior, Jesus Christ.
	Jesus is the only perfect priest to guarantee our standing in God’s presence in the very righteousness and holiness of Himself. Please turn to Heb 7:18-28 so we can rejoice in this truth together. Heb 7:18-28, For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former commandment because of its weakness and uselessness (for the Law made nothing perfect), and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God. And inasmuch as it was not without an oath (for they indeed became priests without an oath, but He with an oath through the One who said to Him, "The Lord has sworn And will not change His mind, 'Thou art a priest forever'"); so much the more also Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant. And the former priests, on the one hand, existed in greater numbers, because they were prevented by death from continuing, but He, on the other hand, because He abides forever, holds His priesthood permanently. Hence, also, He is able to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. For it was fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins, and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. For the Law appoints men as high priests who are weak, but the word of the oath, which came after the Law, appoints a Son, made perfect forever. 
	This then brings us to our next course of deliberation of this passage in that the brothers were greeted, not with hostility and accusations upon their return to Egypt, but were greeted with the admonition to not be afraid. In the various other texts, it reads Peace be with you or Peace be upon you or Peace to you. We find that they were met with the salutation which was to calm their fears and terror. As well, Simeon was restored to them. And he said, "Be at ease, do not be afraid. Your God and the God of your father has given you treasure in your sacks; I had your money." Then he brought Simeon out to them.
	The fact is that the surety of our salvation brings peace to our minds and hearts and spirits. There is an absolute serenity and calmness that floods our beings as we contemplate and rejoice and lose ourselves in the eternal joy of our salvation. Nothing can compare with the knowledge that our sins have been removed far far from us and that we are now in right-standing with the very Lord God Almighty. As the steward so stated and as is so very true in our lives …Your God and the God of your father has given you treasure in your sacks…
For us, that treasure is our living relationship with Jesus Christ. We know peace as the portion of our inheritance in Him and fully are to not fear anymore the terrors of the night: death and its minion, sin. 1 Cor 15:55-58, "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord. 
	Just as these brothers were comforted from their fear of the treatment they might receive at the hand of the Egyptian official, so are we comforted and soothed by the peace that we have in Christ. As we walk on this earth, we are to be at peace withini our hearts and minds as we become ever more aware of the fact that we have nothing to fear in terms of dread or anguish or terror. We are forever secure in our eternal life through Christ, Our Lord, Our Savior, and Our Peace. 
As we look ahead, to the judges of Israel, we find that this was something that Gideon discovered in the treatment that he received directly from the Lord. Remember, that we have dealt rather extensively with the fear of God, and Gideon in his experience of seeing the Angel of the Lord face-to-face was so brought to the fact of his unworthiness and mortality before the Lord God Almighty. He was certain that to see the face of God meant instant death because of Gideon’s utter unholiness. 
Yet, when he did meet God, and God directly spoke with him, Gideon realized that God was the embodiment and the core essence of peace. Judg 6:22-24a, When Gideon saw that he was the angel of the Lord, he said, "Alas, O Lord God! For now I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face." And the Lord said to him, "Peace to you, do not fear; you shall not die." Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and named it The Lord is Peace… 
	It is one thing to know that we have peace with God. But the full impact and realization of why we are so blessed comes to the forefront as we come to know the very person of God Who is peace. That is the character which those who have come to Him, washed in the blood of Christ, standing before Him clothed in Christ’s righteousness witness. He is our Peace, as we so often sing. It is not the peace that this world freely gives and then removes when it is no longer convenient to practice. He is the very essence of eternal peace infusing the lives of all His saints with a living manifestation of Himself.
	Christ declared this as He was instructing His disciples how to go forth and preach the gospel. Please turn to the commission given in Luke 10:2-9. Luke 10:2-9, And He was saying to them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. "Go your ways; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. "Carry no purse, no bag, no shoes; and greet no one on the way. "And whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace be to this house.' "And if a man of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him; but if not, it will return to you. "And stay in that house, eating and drinking what they give you; for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not keep moving from house to house. "And whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat what is set before you; and heal those in it who are sick, and say to them,' The kingdom of God has come near to you.' 
	Please note that the peace would rest upon those who were receptive to the offering of the Gospel. That peace would be in evidence in the manner in which the disciples would be sheltered and cared for and accepted within the home being visited. It was not a matter of running here and there in frantic desperation. It was a coming together into the shared communal joy of the Lord’s Word and teaching and fellowship as the Kingdom of God was preached and received in the living operation and expression of the peace of God. 
	Then again, as the Lord was instructing and encouraging His disciples in John 14:23, we hear the fact that He was making every provision for them through the troubling time that was to come. "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful. He was giving them the promise of the peace that comes through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit as He makes known the reality and the truth of the Living Lord Jesus Christ. 
	Everything is completely tied together and centered in the fact that as God is peace, so are we the recipients of the living peace that will see us through every trial and tribulation and dilemma and circumstance and earthly hardship. Many of us face the day-to-day adversities of this life, much like those brothers of Joseph. We quake with fear and tremble at the thought that someone is out to get us. What needs to be established is the fact that we are to become settled in the peace of God that is the very Person of Jesus Christ. He is alive and triumphant as we honor and obey and proceed forth in the declaration of His glorious kingdom on this earth. 
	When we next consider this passage, the week after Easter, Lord willing, we will give an even deeper look in to this peace of God that is our heritage as the redeemed of the Lord. So be it. 
And he said, "Be at ease, do not be afraid. Your God and the God of your father has given you treasure in your sacks… Amen.

	This morning’s benediction is 1 Tim 1:17. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.