Tag Archives: Joseph

JOSEPH, GOD’S MAN FOR THE HOUR – 6

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And the rest, they say, is history; Joseph found and reconnected; peace restored in Jacob’s family; all forgiven and forgotten as Jacob and his entourage head for Egypt, reassured that this was all in God’s plan.

Pharaoh welcomed the contingent with open arms and gave Jacob’s clan the best of Egypt’s land, the fertile area in the Nile delta where they flourished and multiplied rapidly. Pharaoh smiled on Jacob and his family because of Joseph. Nothing was too good for them.

Only one shadow remained in the family. Was Joseph nursing a secret grudge and what would happen when the old patriarch died? Despite Joseph’s reassurances of forgiveness and confidence in God’s providence, this lingering doubt clouded the family until…

‭Genesis‬ ‭49:33‬ ‭NLT‬
[33] “When Jacob had finished this charge to his sons, he drew his feet into the bed, breathed his last, and joined his ancestors in death.”

Now was the moment of truth.

‭Genesis‬ ‭50:14‭-‬21‬ ‭NLT‬
[14] “After burying Jacob, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had accompanied him to his father’s burial. [15] But now that their father was dead, Joseph’s brothers became fearful. “Now Joseph will show his anger and pay us back for all the wrong we did to him,” they said. [16] So they sent this message to Joseph: “Before your father died, he instructed us [17] to say to you: ‘Please forgive your brothers for the great wrong they did to you—for their sin in treating you so cruelly.’ So we, the servants of the God of your father, beg you to forgive our sin.” When Joseph received the message, he broke down and wept. [18] Then his brothers came and threw themselves down before Joseph. “Look, we are your slaves!” they said. [19] But Joseph replied, “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God, that I can punish you? [20] You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people. [21] No, don’t be afraid. I will continue to take care of you and your children.” So he reassured them by speaking kindly to them.”

So, Jacob’s family settled down in Egypt to multiply and flourish under both Pharaoh and Joseph’s protection until…

But that’s another story.

To be concluded…

JOSEPH, GOD’S MAN FOR THE HOUR – 3

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God’s “buts” always turn trouble into triumph! As Paul discovered in his many crises,

‭Romans‬ ‭8:28‬ ‭NLT‬
[28]… ‘God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.’

Joseph stood in line for God’s favour in his new situation as prisoner in Pharaoh’s prison because of his looks and integrity….and God’s purposes. The charge against him merited his execution but…

‭Genesis‬ ‭39:21‭-‬23‬ ‭NLT‬
[21] “The Lord was with Joseph in the prison and showed him his faithful love. And the Lord made Joseph a favorite with the prison warden. [22] Before long, the warden put Joseph in charge of all the other prisoners and over everything that happened in the prison. [23] The warden had no more worries, because Joseph took care of everything. The Lord was with him and caused everything he did to succeed.”

Once again, Joseph stood out among the other prisoners and was soon promoted to head prisoner. Imagine that! Head prisoner! What an honour!

His new position gave him access to all the other prisoners which was exactly what Joseph needed for the next phase of his journey from prison to palace.

What did Joseph think of his dreams at this point? Did the memory of his dreams guide him and keep his hope alive when all his experiences in Egypt pointed in the opposite direction? Did his faith in God grow or diminish during these years of testing?

‭Psalms‬ ‭105:16‭-‬19‬ ‭NLT‬
[16] “He (God) called for a famine on the land of Canaan, cutting off its food supply. [17] Then he sent someone to Egypt ahead of them— Joseph, who was sold as a slave. [18] They bruised his feet with fetters and placed his neck in an iron collar. [19] Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the Lord tested Joseph’s character.”

You can be sure that God is always up to something when He is dealing with His own people. From our perspective, our situation may look messy, impossible, beyond hope, and yet…when we dare to trust God and believe that He is working for our good, the present situation couldn’t be better!

So, Joseph works with all the prisoners, gets to know them, shares his stories with them, wins their trust until…

A crisis arises in the lives of two of Pharaoh’s employees.

‭Genesis‬ ‭40:1‭-‬4‬ ‭NLT‬
[1] “Some time later, Pharaoh’s chief cup-bearer and chief baker offended their royal master. [2] Pharaoh became angry with these two officials, [3] and he put them in the prison where Joseph was, in the palace of the captain of the guard. [4] They remained in prison for quite some time, and the captain of the guard assigned them to Joseph, who looked after them.”

They are both sent to prison and land up under Joseph’s care, right in line with God’s plan! Don’t you love it when a plan comes together? Eleven years have passed since Joseph’s ordeal began, eleven years of testing, waiting, hoping, but nothing seems to be happening… Yet, God is moving all the pieces into place for the perfect moment.

Dreams again, not his this time, but the dreams of Pharaoh’s officials.

‭Genesis‬ ‭40:5‭-‬8‬ ‭NLT‬
[5] While they were in prison, Pharaoh’s cup-bearer and baker each had a dream one night, and each dream had its own meaning. [6] When Joseph saw them the next morning, he noticed that they both looked upset. [7] “Why do you look so worried today?” he asked them. [8] And they replied, “We both had dreams last night, but no one can tell us what they mean.” “Interpreting dreams is God’s business,” Joseph replied. “Go ahead and tell me your dreams.”

Joseph’s divinely appointed moment!
He interprets their dreams and both, in turn, receive the fulfilment of their dreams, the butler reinstated and the baker executed.

‭Genesis‬ ‭40:13‭-‬15‬ ‭NLT‬
[13] “Within three days Pharaoh will lift you up and restore you to your position as his chief cup-bearer. [14] And please remember me and do me a favor when things go well for you. Mention me to Pharaoh, so he might let me out of this place. [15] For I was kidnapped from my homeland, the land of the Hebrews, and now I’m here in prison, but I did nothing to deserve it.”

‭Genesis‬ ‭40:20‭-‬21‬ ‭NLT‬
[20] Pharaoh’s birthday came three days later, and he prepared a banquet for all his officials and staff. He summoned his chief cup-bearer and chief baker to join the other officials. [21] He then restored the chief cup-bearer to his former position, so he could again hand Pharaoh his cup….
[23] Pharaoh’s chief cup-bearer, however, forgot all about Joseph, never giving him another thought.

In the flurry of his restoration, Joseph’s plea to be remembered is forgotten. Joseph must wait another two long years to complete his training before promotion comes… Another two years go by, bringing Joseph to the age of thirty…

Although God uses people of all ages to fulfil His will, significant people in the Bible began their ministry at age thirty; priests (Numbers 4:3), King Saul (1 Samuel 13:1), King David (2 Samuel 5:4), Ezekiel (Ezekiel 1:1), and even our Lord Jesus Himself (Luke 3:23).

To be continued..

JOSEPH – GOD’S MAN FOR THE HOUR – 2

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Meanwhile, back home, the brothers’ blatant lie that Joseph had probably been killed by a wild beast, had plunged Jacob, the old father whose life was bound up in the life of his son, into inconsolable mourning. Without conscience, Jacob’s sons saw his grief but felt nothing.

Joseph’s first break came when he was sold to Potiphar,

‭Genesis‬ ‭37:36‬ ‭NLT‬
[36] “Meanwhile, the Midianite traders arrived in Egypt, where they sold Joseph to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. Potiphar was captain of the palace guard.”

Potiphar was no racist, it seems. Joseph was a Hebrew but Potiphar recognised the value in this young man. In tandem with God’s plans, Joseph’s resolves, fashioned by his father’s teaching and honed by suffering, soon set him up for promotion.

‭Genesis‬ ‭39:3‭-‬6‬ ‭NLT‬
[3] “Potiphar noticed this and realized that the Lord was with Joseph, giving him success in everything he did. [4] This pleased Potiphar, so he soon made Joseph his personal attendant. He put him in charge of his entire household and everything he owned. [5] From the day Joseph was put in charge of his master’s household and property, the Lord began to bless Potiphar’s household for Joseph’s sake. All his household affairs ran smoothly, and his crops and livestock flourished. [6] So Potiphar gave Joseph complete administrative responsibility over everything he owned. With Joseph there, he didn’t worry about a thing—except what kind of food to eat!”

However, promotion is often accompanied by testing and can be dangerous without proof. The story of King Saul reveals what happens when an untested vessel faces temptation.

Joseph’s youthful physique and looks proved too much for Potiphar’s wife. She thought he would be an easy target but, in the fire of temptation, Joseph’s moral fibre held firm.

‭Genesis‬ ‭39:8‭-‬9‬ ‭NLT‬
[8] “But Joseph refused. “Look,” he told her, “my master trusts me with everything in his entire household. [9] No one here has more authority than I do. He has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God.”

As so often happens, “a woman scorned” hit back with false accusations. Her trump card was Joseph’s cloak!

‭Genesis‬ ‭39:11‭-‬12‬ ‭NLT‬
[11] “One day, however, no one else was around when he went in to do his work. [12] She came and grabbed him by his cloak, demanding, “Come on, sleep with me!” Joseph tore himself away, but he left his cloak in her hand as he ran from the house.”

‭Genesis‬ ‭39:16‭-‬18‬ ‭NLT‬
[16] She kept the cloak with her until her husband came home. [17] Then she told him her story. “That Hebrew slave you’ve brought into our house tried to come in and fool around with me,” she said. [18] “But when I screamed, he ran outside, leaving his cloak with me!”

Unfortunately for Joseph, Potiphar’s loyalty to his wife, her word against Joseph’s (if a slave had the right to defend himself) prevailed, and Joseph found himself summarily demoted to prisoner in the king’s prison despite his excellent track record.

‭Genesis‬ ‭39:19‭-‬20‬ ‭NLT‬
[19] “Potiphar was furious when he heard his wife’s story about how Joseph had treated her. [20] So he took Joseph and threw him into the prison where the king’s prisoners were held, and there he remained.”

So, Joseph the pampered, Joseph who prospered became Joseph the prisoner. Could he go any lower?

But…

To be continued…

JOSEPH, GOD’S MAN FOR THE HOUR

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Now we come to Joseph. Joseph! So revered by many! An outstanding man in the story of God’s people, yet his early years are the tale of a pampered, arrogant teenager who lorded it over his older brothers and paid dearly for his pompous attitude.

Joseph seen as a type of Jesus Christ in the sense that what happened to him and how he reacted was mirrored in many ways in Jesus’ life. For example, he was deeply loved by his father, he went into Egypt, he was hated by his brothers, he was unjustly treated, he served his people, he was exalted to a high position, to name a few similarities.

Let’s begin with Joseph, the teenager. Favourite of his father, Jacob, he took advantage of his privileges firstly by being a telltale to his dad about his brothers’ misdemeanours.

‭Genesis‬ ‭37:2‬ ‭NLT‬
[2] “This is the account of Jacob and his family. When Joseph was seventeen years old, he often tended his father’s flocks. He worked for his half brothers, the sons of his father’s wives Bilhah and Zilpah. But Joseph reported to his father some of the bad things his brothers were doing.”

Not only did Joseph tell tales on his half brothers but he also paraded the fancy coat his father had given him.

‭Genesis‬ ‭37:3‭-‬4‬ ‭NLT‬
[3]” Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his other children because Joseph had been born to him in his old age. So one day Jacob had a special gift made for Joseph—a beautiful robe. [4] But his brothers hated Joseph because their father loved him more than the rest of them. They couldn’t say a kind word to him.”

I’m sure that Joseph ofter swaggered in front of them in his “beautiful robe” just to tantalise them and anger them even more. It’s no wonder they looked for an opportunity to get even with him.

Joseph’s dreams, which were probably meant for him alone, but which he told them and his father, incensed them even more. It galled them to think that he might one day rule over them. The best way to put his dreams to sleep forever was to kill him.

The opportunity came inadvertantly through his own father, Jacob, when he was sent to check on his brothers who were away tending the sheep. The brothers’ plan was sparked into action when they recognised his figure in the distance, dressed of course in his grand cloak.

‭Genesis‬ ‭37:18‭-‬20‬ ‭NLT‬
[18] When Joseph’s brothers saw him coming, they recognized him in the distance. As he approached, they made plans to kill him. [19] “Here comes the dreamer!” they said. [20] “Come on, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns. We can tell our father, ‘A wild animal has eaten him.’ Then we’ll see what becomes of his dreams!”

Reuben, firstborn in the family, and responsible for all his siblings, scotched that plan by suggesting they throw him into an empty cistern to die. Then they would not be guilty of murder. He planned to rescue him when he had a chance.

‭Genesis‬ ‭37:21‭-‬22‬ ‭NLT‬
[21] “But when Reuben heard of their scheme, he came to Joseph’s rescue. “Let’s not kill him,” he said. [22] “Why should we shed any blood? Let’s just throw him into this empty cistern here in the wilderness. Then he’ll die without our laying a hand on him.” Reuben was secretly planning to rescue Joseph and return him to his father.”

Unfortunately for Reuben, his plan went awry when his brothers sold Joseph, in his absence, to passing Midianite traders on their way to Egypt.

So, Joseph descends, from beloved son of a wealthy nomad in Canaan to lonely Hebrew slave in Egypt. With his humiliation, to Joseph’s credit, came a new and sobering attitude to life. At seventeen, dad’s instructions had yet to become cemented into his life’s value system, but Joseph had time, as he stumbled behind the Midianite caravan of camels, to contemplate his situation and decide on a plan of action.

To be continued…

JACOB DECEIVER TURNED DEPENDENT – 6

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JACOB HEADS TO EGYPT

And so, Jacob, the deceiver was transformed into Israel, the dependent. The next few chapters in Genesis trace the latter years of Jacob’s life when his newfound trust in God was put the the test. His relationship with Esau, restored on the surface, but with Jacob’s misgivings still smouldering underneath, led him to settle in Canaan far from his brother.

His life in Canaan on his return was ordinary, but God’s promise to him and his descendants and God’s reassurance, became the guiding principle in his life.

‭Genesis‬ ‭35:6‭-‬7‬ ‭NIV‬
[6] “Jacob and all the people with him came to Luz (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan. [7] There he built an altar, and he called the place El Bethel, because it was there that God revealed himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother….
[9] After Jacob returned from Paddan Aram, God appeared to him again and blessed him. [10] God said to him, “Your name is Jacob, but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel.” So he named him Israel. [11] And God said to him, “I am God Almighty; be fruitful and increase in number. A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants. [12] The land I gave to Abraham and Isaac I also give to you, and I will give this land to your descendants after you.” [13] Then God went up from him at the place where he had talked with him.”

One by one, Jacob’s closest family members passed on, culminating in the death of his beloved Rachel in childbirth. So, all he had left of her was Joseph and his newborn son, Benjamin. His relationship with his ten older sons slowly soured as his love and attention centred on Rachel’s boys.

‭Genesis‬ ‭37:3‬ ‭NIV‬
[3] “Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate robe for him.”

Jacob’s story began to take a back seat as the focus shifted to Joseph. As I move into a study of Joseph’s life, I am struck by Joseph’s persistent integrity despite his suffering. How did he weather such compelling temptations without a Bible to guide him?

I believe the answer is Jacob. Obviously, Jacob’s dramatic encounters with God, initially at Bethel and again at Peniel, left indelible marks on his life. His bond with Joseph, as young as he was before he was ripped from his father’s side, fostered intimacy. Jacob must have spent time teaching his son the values he had learned through these experiences, and the promises given to him and his predecessors.

Joseph must have developed an awareness and a holy fear of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob from the lessons he learned from his father, as his father passed down to him the promises made to his ancestors.

So, Jacob, twister though he was, became Israel, a prince with God, and lived to see the next phase of God’s prophetic word to Abraham. He responded to God’s instruction to go to Egypt where Joseph was in charge, assured that God was at the helm of his life and the lives of his descendants.

‭Genesis‬ ‭15:13‭-‬16‬ ‭NLT‬
[13] “Then the Lord said to Abram, “You can be sure that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land, where they will be oppressed as slaves for 400 years. [14] But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and in the end they will come away with great wealth. [15] (As for you, you will die in peace and be buried at a ripe old age.) [16] After four generations your descendants will return here to this land, for the sins of the Amorites do not yet warrant their destruction.”

To be concluded…