JOSEPH
Genesis 37 – 50
Key Verses
37:2-11 At the age of seventeen, Joseph often when out in the fields to help his half-brothers herd the family’s livestock. While Joseph was there with his siblings, sons of his father’s concubines, he would see their bad behavior and report it to his father. …Now Joseph was his father Israel’s favorite son. …So Israel fashioned a very ornate robe for him as a special gift. His brothers knew what was going on and felt jealous and resentful toward Joseph. …In addition, Joseph had dreams in which he ruled over his brothers—dreams which he had the audacity to tell them. It all made his brothers so jealous they hated him. But Israel kept his eye on the situation so things wouldn’t get out of control.
37:12-28 Now Joseph’s brothers had taken their father’s sheep to graze near Shechem, some distance to the north. Curious as to their status after they were gone a few days, Israel sent Joseph to check up on things and bring back a report. …When the brothers saw Joseph approaching in the distance, they quickly designed a plan to kill the young lad and throw his body into an empty well. …Upon reaching them, Joseph was immediately mugged and the brothers violently tore off his ornate robe. …Thinking better of killing him, the brothers threw Joseph into an empty well nearby. Afterward, as they sat down to eat together, the brothers spotted an approaching caravan of Ishmaelites (a tribal group distantly related to them through Abraham). The travelers were on a journey to Egypt to sell the highly valued herbs, oils and spices borne upon their camels. …Suddenly Judah had an idea, “Let’s sell Joseph to these Ishmaelites as a slave…and all the brothers agreed. …After retrieving Joseph from the well, the brothers convinced the merchants to buy him for twenty shekels worth of silver coins. Sure of a profit, the Ishmaelites bound Joseph and took him with them to Egypt.
37:31-35 The brothers then butchered one of the goats and smeared Joseph’s robe with its blood. …When they returned home with the flocks, the brothers took the blood-encrusted robe to their father and lied to him: “In the fields we came across this robe. You don’t think it belongs to Joseph, do you?” Without hesitation, Jacob knew whose robe it was and cried out in dread, “It’s Joseph’s robe!—some wild animal has attacked and eaten him!” Completely overcome with anguish, Jacob ripped his clothes off and put on sackcloth to mourn his son’s death. He mourned Joseph for many days on end, with no one able to console him.
39:1-6 Soon after the Ismaelites reached Egypt, they sold Joseph as a domestic slave to Potiphar, an official in Pharaoh’s court. …Yet the Lord was present with Joseph and he was successful in all his duties as Potiphar’s household servant. Potiphar was pleased with Joseph and his work and soon promoted him to become his personal attendant. Because of Joseph, God blessed Potiphar’s household and he prospered in all his endeavors. Finally, recognizing that God’s hand of blessing followed Joseph in whatever he did, Potiphar turned all his personal belongings and affairs over to Joseph to manage. And all went very well for the Egyptian official.
39:7-23 As the days passed, however, Potiphar’s wife became smitten with Joseph. One day she could control herself no longer and demanded Joseph sleep with her. But Joseph refused …saying, “If I did that I would betray my master’s trust in me, and I would also betray the God whom I trust. I cannot.” But Potiphar’s wife was insistent and not a day went by without her making advances toward Joseph. …Finally, one day she reached out and grabbed Joseph by his tunic, saying, “I must have you now!” Terrified, Joseph pulled away and fled out the door, leaving his tunic in her lusty grasp. …Potiphar’s wife shouted for her domestic servants, saying “Can you believe it? This Hebrew servant is trying to mock us all. He tried to rape me but I screamed and made him run away. Here’s the proof; he left his tunic here beside me.” …The wife then recounted the very same story to Potiphar, who reacted with great anger. He threw Joseph into the royal prison. Confined there, however, Joseph continued to know the Lord’s presence and blessing. …God saw to it that the warden took a liking to Joseph, who was given liberties extended to no other prisoner. In fact, the warden so trusted Joseph that he put him in charge of the other prisoners and gave him full responsibility for their care. And so the Lord gave Joseph success wherever he went, even in prison.
41:1-14 After Joseph had been in prison a full two years, Pharaoh had two very vivid dreams. … He summoned magicians and wise men from every corner of Egypt and recounted his dreams to them all. But not one person among the illustrious gathering could interpret the dreams as they were full of poignant symbolism. …That’s when the head of Pharaoh’s dinner service remembered his own days of confinement in the royal prison for offending his master. He bravely spoke up, saying, “Mighty Pharaoh, once when the chief baker and I were in prison together…I met a young Hebrew servant who was also confined there. …He had a divine gift of interpreting dreams and had no trouble telling us exactly what ours meant. …Hearing the report, Pharaoh did not hesitate even a moment. He ordered his men to bring Joseph out of prison and straight into his presence.
41:15-46 Pharaoh addressed the startled Hebrew slave, saying, “I have had an unusual dream that none of my seers or sages can interpret for me. But I’ve been told that you have a gift for such things and can interpret any dream you hear.” Joseph was quick to reply. “I cannot, Oh Pharaoh, but the God I serve can. He will provide the answer you seek.” [After hearing the dreams] Joseph calmly gave Pharaoh this interpretation: “For seven years the kingdom of Egypt will prosper greatly. But those years will be followed by seven long years of drought and famine. …Pharaoh would be well advised to appoint a high commissioner over the whole country—someone with wisdom and skill to organize and store the bumper crops you will harvest, for many years of famine are certain to follow. If Pharaoh does that, the country will do well in the future. Pharaoh was so delighted with the interpretation and the plan that he looked straight at Joseph and declared, “You are that man! For the spirit of God is obviously with you. …I therefore decree that from this day forward you are head over of all Egypt’s affairs. All other officials will be under your command. Only I, as Pharaoh, remain over you for I am king over all.” …So at the age of thirty Joseph was elevated into Pharaoh’s royal service and assumed his official duties as Egypt’s prime minister.
41:47-57 For seven years following Joseph’s appointment there were bumper crops throughout Egypt. Following his plan, Joseph collected and stored the enormous quantities of excess grain in cities scattered about different parts of the country. And true to his prophesy, the first seven years of plenty were followed by seven years of severe drought and famine. …Countries all over the region were hard hit by the famine, and only Egypt among them had grain set aside to deal with it. …When the effects of the famine began to be felt countrywide, the people began to beseech Pharaoh for assistance. That’s when Joseph dipped into the storehouses of grain stocks and began selling the surplus to Egypt’s citizenry. Their relief, however, did not impact the nations and peoples elsewhere. But non-Egyptians everywhere heard of the surpluses in Egypt and soon began pouring into the country desperate to buy grain.
42:1-17 When news reached Jacob that Egypt had food in the midst of the widespread famine, he gathered his sons and said to them, “You must set off for Egypt at once and buy the grain we need there to get by.” So off went all the brothers save Benjamin, whom his father kept behind fearing he was too young. …Upon their arrival, the brothers encountered Joseph who was governing the whole country. They bowed in reverence before their own brother, whom they did not recognize. Joseph, however, knew exactly who they were from the moment he laid eyes on them. But he pretended otherwise and spoke to them sternly, saying …“I think you have come here to spy on us for a future invasion.” Though they vehemently denied the charge, Joseph nonetheless put them all in prison for the next three days.
42:18-38 After three days Joseph spoke to the brothers, saying, “I am a God-fearing and honest man, so I’ll make you a deal. Return to your country and take the grain you need to feed your hungry households, but one of you must stay here in prison as collateral. I understand that your youngest brother is still in Canaan. Bring him back here to show me that your word is truthful and then all will be well. Otherwise, someone will pay the penalty for spying, which is death.” …Reluctantly the brothers agreed and turned Simeon over to the guards to be bound and taken away. Joseph then gave the order to fill all their bags with grain and secretly stow inside all the money the brothers had brought to purchase emergency rations. In addition, they were all given adequate supplies to sustain them on the journey home. And so off they went, their donkey’s loaded down. …Along the way, the brothers discovered the money and grew fearful that they might be accused of stealing it. However, there was nothing they could do but go on. Back in Canaan, the brothers recounted to their father Jacob everything that had transpired on the trip. …But when he heard of the requirement to send Benjamin to Egypt, Jacob became worried and refused. … “There is just no way I will send Benjamin down to Egypt,” he emphatically declared.
43:1-15 As the famine raged, all the grain the brothers had brought up from Egypt dwindled to nothing. No longer able to hold out, Israel summonsed his sons and said, “You must return to Egypt to buy yet more food.” …It took Judah a long time to finally convince Israel that the trip was worthless until Benjamin was with them. “All of us are going to starve to death if you do not allow him to leave with us,” he reasoned with this father, “and then what good is Benjamin to you? I will personally vouch for his safety with my own life.” …So Israel reluctantly agreed, saying, “I have no choice left. I guess it is meant to be. Take the boy and go at once. But take gifts with you and return double all the money that Egyptian governor sent back. I just pray that God Almighty will soften that man’s heart so he will be gracious and compassionate toward you, and send my Benjamin back to me.” …So with their father’s hard-won blessing, the brothers returned to Egypt with Benjamin to seek out Joseph.
43:16-34 When Joseph saw that Benjamin had come to Egypt with his brothers, he was delighted. He ordered his steward to “Lead these travelers to my house and prepare a noon-time meal that we all can celebrate together.” …Simeon was brought in to join the group. …When Joseph arrived later that morning, the brothers humbly presented to him the gifts they had brought from Canaan in hopes he would show them favor. And then they bowed in deference to him, heads to the ground. …Joseph became very emotional when he saw Benjamin and had to hurriedly leave the room in order not to show it. He cried in secret with tears of joy and longing. After he had gotten control of himself, he cleaned up his face and came back to join the brothers, announcing, “Time to eat!” …And for the first time in a very long while, all the brothers were once again together sharing a scrumptious meal with plenty of good wine.
44:1-33 After all were satisfied, Joseph gave a confidential order to his steward: “I want you to fill with grain all the bags these men have brought…and early the next morning the group was sent off toward Canaan. [But Joseph tricked the brothers by placing a chalice in Benjamin’s food bag and had his steward catch up to them and uncover it. He brought them back to Joseph, who said] … “I will only hold responsible the person who stole my chalice. He must now be my slave. The rest of you can return to Canaan.” That’s when Judah intervened. Remembering his promise to his father, he said to Joseph … “I cannot return without the boy or my father will certainly die from grief. …I beg you to take me in his place to be your servant. Just please let the lad return to our elderly father.”
45:1-11 With those words, Joseph broke down and wept in front of his brothers and all his attendants. And he tearfully confessed to his brothers his true identity …“Haven’t you recognized me by now? I am your very own brother, Joseph, whom you sold to the Ishmaelites bound for Egypt those many years ago. But don’t think I’m telling you this to make you feel guilty. I don’t even blame you for what you have done. So please don’t blame yourselves. I know now that God was directing the whole affair. He had you send me here so I could save your lives during this time of famine in order that our family heritage might continue. …Now you must go straight back to my father and give him this message, “God has preserved your son Joseph and made him leader over all of Egypt. I want you to come here as quickly as possible so we can all be together again. Five more years of drought and famine are still to come. But here the whole family can be safe and well cared for.”
45:16-46:4 Soon enough the news of the brothers’ reunion spread to Pharaoh and all his court. …And Pharaoh encouraged Joseph with an offer, saying, “Send for your father and the whole extended family. Bring them here and I will permit them to live in the most productive area of the country.” …So Joseph arranged for donkey-drawn carts to be filled with gifts and supplies for the brothers’ return to Canaan and for them to transport their families and belongings back to Egypt. …Back in Canaan, Israel was shocked at the news his sons brought him about Joseph…but it gave him new energy and determination. “If Joseph is really alive and in charge of the whole country of Egypt,” Israel said, “I must see him with my own eyes before I die.” …Israel then collected all his extended family and their possessions and left for Egypt. …Along the route, at Beersheba …God gave Israel a vision during the night. …God’s words to Israel were, “There is no need to be anxious about moving to Egypt, for it is there I will fulfill my promise to make a great nation of your descendents. I will be with you along the journey and will one day bring you back to Canaan. And you will be with your beloved son Joseph until the day you die.”
46:28-30 When the caravan approached the Province of Goshen in Egypt, Joseph left in his chariot to intercept them there. …As soon as he laid eyes on his father, Joseph ran to embrace him. He flooded his father’s neck with tears of happiness at seeing him again after so many long years. His father Israel was so happy himself that he declared, “Now that I have seen you again —that you really are alive and well—I can’t imagine greater happiness. I am ready to die.”
47:5-10 Later Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Now that your father and extended family are here, I insist that they settle on the very best land in Egypt, which is Goshen. And because they are shepherds, whoever is especially talented among them can be in charge of the royal livestock.” …Pharaoh was so well disposed toward the family that Joseph brought Israel in to meet him. And when he did, the elder Israel proclaimed a blessing on Pharaoh. Then Pharaoh asked Israel how old he was and received this reply, “I have been a pilgrim in this life for one hundred and thirty years. They have been short and difficult years and nothing compared to the length of my forefathers.” And with those words Israel once again blessed Pharaoh and then took his leave.
47:27-48:21 Israel and his sons settled into life in Egypt, obtaining productive land and thriving to the point that many grandchildren were born to him there. …Finally, at the age of one hundred and forty-seven, Israel recognized that his time was near. He summoned Joseph and gave him this message: “The day is almost here when I will leave this world to join my fathers. I want you to promise that one day you will take my body back to my homeland in Canaan and bury me alongside my father and mother, my grandparents, and Leah.” And Joseph replied, “I give you my promise, father.” …Days later Israel took ill and Joseph returned to see him. …Israel said to him, “Although I am about to die, you can be sure that God will be right here with you. And one day he will also take you back to Canaan, the land of our fathers.”
49:10-50:13 Jacob gathered his sons around him to give his blessing to each. …“Jacob,” he said, “You are like a young lion…And from your hand the ruler’s scepter will never depart…until that day when the anointed one receives it; for he will rule the nations.” …After blessing all his sons and instructing them once again to take him back to Canaan for burial, Israel drew his last breath and died. …According to Joseph’s instructions, Egypt’s physicians embalmed Israel. It was a forty-day process that was followed by seventy full days of official mourning all over Egypt. …Then Joseph made a request of Pharaoh, “Please allow me to take my father’s body back to Canaan to bury him at the site he requested. Afterward, I will return and resume my duties.” Pharaoh replied, “But of course you may go and bury your father.” …And when the time came to depart, all manner of high-ranking Egyptian officials accompanied Joseph and his extended family on the trip to Canaan. …There were horsemen, chariots, and a virtual army of mourners forming a long procession that made the long journey. …Upon reaching Canaan, Israel was buried with great ceremony in the cave near Mamre that Abraham bought decades earlier to bury his wife Sarah.
50:14-21 After the funeral, Joseph, his brothers, and the entire company of Egyptians returned to Egypt. But without their father around, Joseph’s brothers began to worry that Joseph would be free to take revenge on them for their evil deed of so long ago. …They discussed their concern with one another and sent a message to Joseph. “Before he died, our father told us that he had one final request to make of you. Tell your brother Joseph, ‘I want you to forgive the sins of your brothers who wronged you by selling you off as a slave.’” …Upon hearing the message, Joseph was so emotional he burst into tears. But the brothers wanted to demonstrate the sincerity of their remorse and prostrated themselves before Joseph, stating, “We now consider ourselves your personal slaves.” Joseph, however, comforted them with these words: “You have no need to fear me, brothers. After all, I am not God but just a man like you. Although you planned for my demise, God used it all to bring about good not only for me but for you and your families. So don’t worry. I will make sure you and your families are well cared for here.”
50:22-26 The entire extended family lived well in Egypt until the day finally came when Joseph’s health began to fail. …Joseph called them together and said, “Brothers, I know that my life will soon come to an end. Although I will not see it, the day will certainly come when God will take you all away from this land and lead you back to the country he promised our forefathers.” And he made his brothers take a solemn oath, saying “On the day God visits our people to lead us back to Canaan, promise me you will take my bones back with you.” And then Joseph passed away. He was one hundred and ten years of age. The brothers arranged for Joseph to be embalmed and placed in a coffin, which remained with them in Egypt.
Basic Message
Jacob favored Joseph over his half-brothers, who were jealous of him. When they got the chance, they abducted him and sold him to traders on their way to Egypt and helped convince Jacob that a wild animal had killed Joseph. Sold to one of Pharaoh’s officials in Egypt, Joseph prospered because God was with him. The official’s wife, however, made sexual advances toward Joseph, who repeatedly refused her. Frustrated, she accused Joseph of sexual misconduct to her husband, who had him thrown into jail.
In jail God continued to bless Joseph, who was given special liberties by the head jailer. While there, Joseph rightly interpreted the dream of Pharaoh’s head of dining service regarding his imminent release and reinstatement to Pharaoh’s court. After Joseph had spent two years in jail, Pharaoh had vivid dreams that no one could interpret. Remembering his own dream experience, the dinning service head informed Pharaoh of Joseph’s skill at dream interpretation. Pharaoh immediately sent for Joseph, who interpreted his dreams to mean that seven years of plentiful harvest were to come, followed by seven years of famine.
Joseph advised Pharaoh to prepare for the coming years of famine by appointing a wise leader who would store the bumper harvests for the impending years of need. Pharaoh appointed Joseph, who set about his duties as second in charge of the whole country. Joseph saw to it that over the next seven years every city in Egypt stored up grain. When the seven years of famine came, Joseph began to release the grain to sustain the Egyptian people. The famine affected Canaan also, and Jacob sent his sons to Egypt to buy grain.
Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him. He accused them of being spies and threw them in prison. Having heard that their youngest brother Benjamin was in Canaan with their father, Jacob sent all the brothers back except one, whom he held as ransom. It was agreed that when the brothers brought Benjamin to Egypt, the remaining brother would be released. At first Jacob refused to send Benjamin but as the famine worsened he gave in, allowing all his remaining sons to go to Egypt for more grain.
Upon seeing his brother Benjamin, Joseph became very emotional; but still he hid his identity. Again he tricked his brothers, sending them back to Canaan laden with grain, but with a chalice hidden in Benjamin’s bag. Joseph had the chalice uncovered and proclaimed that Benjamin would be his slave. Judah, the eldest, begged to take Benjamin's place as Joseph’s slave in order to spare his father grief, whereupon Joseph broke down and finally revealed his identity.
Hearing that the men were Joseph's brothers, Pharaoh sent for Jacob and his extended family. When they arrived in Egypt, Pharaoh offered to settle them in the most productive area, Goshen. Eventually Jacob died and was taken back to Canaan to be buried, but Joseph and his brothers returned to Egypt to settle down again. They continued to prosper and their descendents became very numerous. Before his death, Joseph made his brothers promise to take his bones back to Canaan when God visited the Israelites to take them out of Egypt for good. And so he died there.
Comments
* The story of Joseph is a prime example of God’s ability to use the evil intents of human beings not only to accomplish his purposes, but to bless his followers in the process. God’s blessing of Joseph, whether in jail or as the highest official in Pharaoh’s court, was irrepressible—encompassing everyone around him. Those who tried to do ill to Joseph, as in the case of his half-brothers and the official’s wife, ended up recipients of God’s blessing as well—an indication of the all-encompassing scope of God’s grace. Though Joseph was wise, diligent, and faithful, it was God who saw to it that Joseph gained favor in the eyes of others. God had a plan to bless the whole world through the events that transpired through Joseph in Egypt, where the story could very easily have ended with an abandoned Hebrew slave left to rot in a foreign prison.
* It is interesting to note that the elder Jacob blessed Pharaoh and not the other way around. Pharaoh recognized that God's blessing came through Jacob to Joseph and so accepted the blessing of a peasant Hebrew shepherd despite the fact that Egyptians despised those who pursued such a vocation. The urbane, god-like leader of the world’s most advanced civilization accepted the blessing of a powerless, nomadic sheepherder because Pharaoh knew God was working through Jacob’s family.
* Jacob described his life as a hard and short one. God's blessing did not entail an easy life for him, although God always blessed him and met his needs. Jacob, in fact, wrestled with God to get his blessing, earning the name Israel (God-wrestler) in the process. (The need to wrestle a blessing out of God was, no doubt, an indication of Jacob’s insecurity rather than one of God’s reluctance.) Though Jacob’s life was not easy, it was nonetheless extremely full and meaningful. He knew that the blessing of God upon him was not meant merely for him and his family, but for the whole world. And as such, he knew that the prosperity he enjoyed in both Canaan and Egypt was of little importance in the larger scheme of things. He thus described his life to Pharaoh as that of a sojourner—one who looked beyond the trappings of this life to a better one beyond. It is only by recognizing that God is present with us in our humble circumstances that we can have the security to eschew the superficial things of this world for the richness of a Kingdom still to come.
* Jacob’s final blessing to his sons highlighted the role Judah was to play in God’s plans for redemption. He acknowledges Judah’s role as central because through his line would come the One who would eventually “rule the nations”—Jesus, the “young lion” of Jacob’s prophetic blessing and the “Lion of Judah” described in Revelation 5:5.
Biblical Themes
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15
