Genesis - Joseph

Genesis
Joseph (Genesis 37:1 – 50:26)
● Joseph was the first-born son of Rachel (Jacob's favorite wife) and Jacob definitely played favorites. (Gen. 37:3)
 Because Jacob loved Joseph more than the others he gave him a very nice robe that was of many colors. This caused his brothers to hate him.
 This problem was made even worse by the fact that Joseph had dreams that told him that he was going to rule over all of his brothers. He shared these a little too freely and the gap between himself and his brothers widened. (Genesis 37:5-8)
 His dreams even earned him a rebuke from his father in Genesis 37:10
● Family Troubles
 All of this couldn't go on for long without causing a problem, and it shows us what a danger it is for parents to play favorites amongst their children. It will only increase animosity within the family.
 Joseph's brothers plotted against him, kidnapped him and sold him into slavery. 
 After selling him into slavery they took his robe dipped it in blood and brought it to Jacob saying that they found it and that he was killed by a wild animal. 
 Jacob was heartbroken. (Genesis 37:34)
● Success in Egypt
 Joseph was sold to a wealthy Egyptian named Potiphar. 
 The Lord was faithful to the dreams that he had given Joseph in choosing him. Joseph succeeded at everything that he did.
 Joseph showed great strength of character and faith in the Lord as he did not quit, give up, whine and pout. But must have shown a great amount of faith and security. He rather did his best with the situation that he had been given and glorified God, and Potiphar took notice!
■ We have so great a reason for hope in our lives as well. Paul would say, many years later: “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted , but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body.” 2 Corinthians 4:7-11
 Potiphar chose, as a result, to put him in charge of everything. Life was looking pretty good for Joseph at last.
● Fighting with Temptation
 Joseph was in charge of the entire household of Potiphar and everything seemed to be going well until Potiphar's wife decided that she like Joseph and wanted him to be with her even though it would be dishonoring Potiphar.
 Genesis 39 tells us that Potiphar's wife came to him day after day trying to get him to go to bed with her, and every time he tells her that he will not.
 At last she tries to force him. She grabbed his cloak and tried to drag him to the bed, if he ever wanted an excuse to just let sin happen this was it!
 Though he was being actively tempted he actively chose to fight it. He slipped out of his cloak and ran for the hills.
 Having been denied for the last time Potiphar's wife told everybody that Joseph had tried to take advantage of her and left his cloak when she screamed for help. Potiphar believed this and had Joseph put into prison.
■ Again Joseph is getting into trouble that he did not cause, nor did he deserve. But we see the key phrase the typified Joseph's life again: “the LORD was with him...” (Genesis 39:21a)
■ This is similar to something that happened to with Jesus' disciples. Mark 4:35-41 tells about a time when Jesus and his disciples were out in a boat and the water began to get really stormy. The wind was blowing and the waves were crashing over the boat. All the while Jesus was with them, asleep on a pillow at the front of the boat. The disciples woke him in a panic, asking him how he could sleep when they were all going to die! Jesus calmly stood up and commanded the storm to stop, then turned around and rebuked them saying, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” God was with them, their fear and panicking was pure foolishness.
■ “What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31
● Success in Prison
 Just like at Potiphar's house God gave Joseph favor with the prison warden and Joseph was put in charge of the prison
 While he was working there he met the royal baker and the royal cupbearer. They had both been put into prison by Pharoh
 They were sad because they had had dreams that they knew were prophetic, but had no one who could tell them what the dreams meant.
 Joseph answers them: “Do not all interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams”
■ Joseph understood that God's take is the only take. He did not try to interpret the dreams himself, but rather trusted in God to interpret them. God's revelation isn't a matter of “I feel like it means this, what do you feel like it means?” God's Word is a message that we can all understand and agree on it's meaning if we study it prayerfully and faithfully.
■ “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” 2 Peter 1:20-21
■ “Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” Acts 17:11
 Joseph interpreted their dreams which told the cupbearer that he would be reinstated and the baker that he would be executed. Joseph told the cupbearer to remember him and tell pharaoh about him when the time came. 
 The dreams were exactly as God had foretold through Joseph, however the cupbearer forgot about his promise to Joseph for two full years. Joseph faithfully waited for those two full years.
● Moving into the Egyptian Government
 Before long God gave pharaoh a dream that he could not interpret. Neither could any of the magicians, wisemen, or sages that were around pharoah's court.
 This caused the cupbearer to remember Joseph at last.
 Joseph interpreted pharaohs dream and gave all the glory to God for the interpretation. Through the dream God told him that there would be 7 years of great crops followed immediately by seven years of sever famine, and Joseph told pharaoh how Egypt could survive by saving up. Thus, the pharaoh put Joseph in charge of everything!
● A Strange Family Reunion
 The famine was awful but because of God's warning Egypt was still surviving fairly well. 
 The household of Jacob was not, however, doing quite so well. Starving of famine Jacob sent his sons to go and buy grain from Egypt. 
 They met with Joseph but did not know that it was him. He treated them harshly and asked all sorts of questions to find out about his family but did not reveal himself to them.
 He sent them off with their food and put their money back into their packs and told them not to come back until the youngest brother Benjamin (the only other one born by Joseph's mother Rachel)
 Eventually the whole family comes and Joseph reveals himself to them. Rather than being bitter and angry at the terrible things that his brothers had done to him Joseph responds by saying: “And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will no be plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.” Genesis 45:5-7
 Pharaoh hears about this and insists that all of his family be welcomed into Egypt and taken care of. God used all of the hardships of Joseph to keep the nation of Israel alive and blessed for his purpose.

Take Home
Joseph is, for us, an Old Testament picture of Jesus. Just as Joseph died a symbolic death and was spend years in Egypt in order to save the family of Israel, so Jesus came down as God in the flesh and died on a cross so that we could be reconciled to God and know Him. Even though it was our sins and our hands that put him on the cross he does not say “They better pay me back for this!” or “I'll pay them out big time when I'm resurrected!” But endured the shame for “for the JOY set before Him” Hebrews 12:2

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! For if, when we were God' enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!
Romans 5:8-10