Milestone 2: The Tribal Patriarchs of Israel Delivered from Death on the Third Day
(Likely centered on Genesis 42:17–18, in the Joseph narrative: Joseph’s brothers imprisoned for three days, then addressed by Joseph “on the third day.”)

Gage builds on his overarching theme here. He treats the Joseph story as a prophetic preview of Jesus (a common typology in evangelical circles, with Joseph as a “type” of Christ—betrayed by brothers, exalted to save many). In Genesis 42, the ten brothers (excluding Benjamin initially) come to Egypt during the famine to buy grain.

Joseph recognizes them, accuses them of being spies, imprisons them all together for three days (v. 17), and then, on the third day (v. 18), releases most of them with grain, while holding Simeon hostage and demanding that they bring Benjamin back.

Another Third Day: Addressing Christian Claims.

Gage interprets this as another “third day” deliverance. The brothers face a “decree of death” (imprisonment under threat, echoing their past guilt over selling Joseph). But on the third day, they are granted life and freedom (with conditions). This, for Gage, symbolizes resurrection from peril.

He likely ties this to the “suffering followed by glory” pattern. He sees Joseph’s testing as a shadow of Christ’s passion. The imprisonment is a death-like state, and the third-day release is resurrection-life granted to the “tribal patriarchs” (the future tribes of Israel). As a result, this fits Gage’s broader claim that the Tanach is filled with third-day motifs pointing to Jesus’ resurrection.

From a careful reading of the Tanach in its original context and within Jewish hermeneutical tradition, this milestone also fails to substantiate a direct prophecy of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection on the third day. Here’s a structured breakdown:

1. The “Third Day” Here Is a Short Imprisonment for Testing, Not a Death-and-Resurrection Sequence

• Genesis 42:17 explicitly states Joseph “put them all together in custody for three days” (וַיַּאֲסֹף אֹתָם אֶל־מִשְׁמָר שְׁלֹשֶׁת יָמִים). This is a brief detention period—common in ancient Near Eastern legal/customary practices for interrogation or reflection—not a burial or literal death.
• On the third day (v. 18), Joseph speaks: “Do this and live, for I fear God” (עֲשׂוּ זֹאת וִחְיוּ אֶת־הָאֱלֹהִים אֲנִי יָרֵא). The brothers are released to return home with grain (provision/life), but one (Simeon) remains bound as surety.
• No one dies, is buried, or is revived. The brothers are alive the whole time; the “death” threat is psychological and conditional (if they don’t comply, future consequences). It’s a test of character and repentance for their past sin against Joseph—not a resurrection event.
• Contrast with Jesus: literal death on the cross, burial in a tomb for three days, bodily resurrection. The parallel is forced; the numerical match (“three days”) is stretched to fit the template.

2. Context Is Reconciliation and Testing Within Family Dynamics, Not Messianic Prophecy

• The entire Joseph cycle (Genesis 37–50) focuses on themes of divine providence (“you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good” – Gen 50:20), forgiveness, family restoration, and survival during famine.
• The three-day imprisonment serves narrative purposes: it gives the brothers time to reflect on their guilt (they confess among themselves in v. 21–22, linking it to Joseph’s suffering), heightens tension, and allows Joseph to observe their honesty.
• Jewish exegesis (e.g., Rashi on Gen 42:18) emphasizes Joseph’s fear of God as motivation for mercy, and the brothers’ conscience awakening. Midrashim explore their remorse, but none frame the third day as a resurrection motif or link it to a future Messiah rising from death.
• No internal textual signal (like explicit language of “rising,” “life from death,” or prophetic foreshadowing) points beyond the immediate story.

3. Typology Overreach: Joseph as Type Is Valid in Some Ways, But Not for Third-Day Resurrection Here

• Joseph prefigures aspects of Jesus in Christian tradition (betrayed for silver, exalted to save, provides bread of life in a famine).
• But this specific “third day” episode doesn’t align with resurrection. Elsewhere in Joseph’s story, the three days are more prominent with the cupbearer and baker (Gen 40: the baker executed, cupbearer restored “on the third day” – v. 20). Some link this to crucifixion/resurrection duality. Gage may blend these, but Milestone 2 targets the brothers’ imprisonment.
• Even the cupbearer/baker parallel is about judgment and vindication (one to death, one to restoration), not collective deliverance from death on the third day.

4. Broader Pattern in Tanach: “Third Day” as Narrative Device, Not Unified Resurrection Doctrine

• As with Milestone 1, “third day” often marks completion, transition, or divine action (e.g., preparation periods, recoveries). It’s not inherently eschatological or resurrection-coded in the Tanach itself.
• Paul in 1 Cor 15:4 appeals to “the Scriptures” for the third-day rising, but Jewish interpreters (ancient and modern) see no such unified doctrine. The apostles’ reading is a post-resurrection, Spirit-guided christological lens—not the plain peshat meaning.

Conclusion on Milestone 2

This is another instance where an incidental “third day” reference (a three-day hold for interrogation and moral testing) is retrofitted into a resurrection typology. The text teaches about repentance, providence, and family healing—powerful themes in their own right. However, it does not prophesy or pattern a Messiah who dies for sins, is buried, and rises bodily on the third day.

The Joseph narrative is rich with messianic echoes in Jewish thought too (e.g., Messiah ben Joseph in some traditions). But those focus on suffering servant/redeemer roles, not specifically the third-day resurrection from this episode.

Gavriel, this continues the pattern we saw in Milestone 1—strong on creative typology, weak on textual warrant from the Tanach’s own voice. Therefore, it invites deeper reflection on how we approach “according to the Scriptures”: through an apostolic midrashic lens (valid for NT believers) or through the original Hebrew context (which doesn’t demand these connections).

Ready for Milestone 3 (The Faithful Spies of Jericho Delivered from Death on the Third Day – likely Joshua 2, Rahab hiding the spies for three days)?

Hazan Gavriel ben David YouTube Channel, Synagogue Beit Hashoavah – House of the Water Pouring.