The Brothers Fear For Their Lives on the Death of Jacob (50:14-21).
The prime purpose of this section is not so much to deal with the brothers' fears with respect to Joseph as to stress that all that has happened has happened in the sovereign purpose of God. He it was who was behind all that happened and Whose sovereign control brought good out of evil.
‘And Joseph returned to Egypt, he and his brothers, and all who went up with him to bury his father, after he had buried his father. And when Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “It may be that Joseph will hate us and will fully repay us for all the evil which we did to him.” And they sent a message to Joseph saying, “Your father gave a command before he died, “So shall you say to Joseph. Forgive, I pray you now, the transgression of your brothers, and their sin, in that they did evil to you.” And now, we pray you, forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father. And Joseph wept when they spoke to him.'
The whole entourage now return to Egypt, and it is then that the brothers' fears begin to emerge. They have lived for years with this dread in their hearts and now it has to be faced.
It is not surprising to find that the brothers are still carrying a heavy burden of conscience about what they had done to Joseph, for it had been unmentionably cruel. And now that their father was dead they feared that the obstacle which had prevented their being punished had been removed. Sin, even forgiven sin, can demand of us a heavy price, and so it was with the brothers. It had lain hidden underneath but it had never gone. And now it had resurfaced. They now had to face the great Vizier alone. And they did not know what he would do. Thus their next contact with him was by messenger. They were afraid to see him face to face.
And they had prepared for this day. In their fears they had discussed the matter with their father and he had advised them what to do. He had told them to pass on his dying wish that Joseph should forgive them for their general transgression against him and the specific evil that they had done. So this is what they do and add to it their own plea as ‘the servants of the God of your father.' They not only plead their father's words but the fact that they are a part of the covenant community and servants of the God of Jacob. And when Joseph receives their message he weeps. He cannot believe that they are still afraid of him and his heart goes out to them. It was probably the news of this weeping that makes them pluck up courage to face him.