Luke 15:22, Another Side of the Prodigal Son

Posted on Saturday, January 3, 2015 in Bible Commentary | 0 comments

But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet.

//Yesterday, I suggested that the apology in the mind of the prodigal son stemmed from the words of Pharaoh in the time of Moses. Today we uncover another strange connection to the Pharaohs in this same parable. Compare today’s verse with this one:

And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck; –Genesis 41:42

So now the prodigal is being compared not to an unrepentant Pharaoh but to a favored son who endured an undeserved hardship. I’m talking about Joseph, of course, who was sold into a foreign land, rather than chasing after riotous living. Is this yet another side of the prodigal?

Think, now, about these words from the father of the prodigal, and see if they don’t also ring a bell as you remember the father of Joseph:

For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. –Luke 15:24

I confess, I don’t know how all these Old Testament echoes are meant to be understood when Jesus told his story of the prodigal, but there are too many to be considered coincidence.