{"id":4230,"date":"2023-08-02T07:05:43","date_gmt":"2023-08-02T11:05:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hannahscupboard.com\/?p=4230"},"modified":"2023-07-31T12:27:58","modified_gmt":"2023-07-31T16:27:58","slug":"character-joseph","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hannahscupboard.com\/character-joseph\/","title":{"rendered":"Character Study: Joseph – Vision (Genesis 37 to 45)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Joseph\u2019s story in Genesis is gripping and dramatic. It has all the elements of a riveting soap opera or a page turning novel. The difference of course, is that it actually happened. It\u2019s a true story, and that makes it eminently fascinating. Joseph is a hero worthy of the name. He successfully overcame more obstacles than most people would encounter in three lifetimes. He lived to see good triumph over evil, the real storybook ending we all want and love.<\/p>\n

If Joseph had made different decisions at strategic junctures along the way I don\u2019t think we would still hale him a Bible hero extraordinaire. If he had made different decisions he would have been just an ordinary Joe. So what was at the core of Joseph\u2019s character guiding each decision and seeing him through such severe trials?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>To me, one telltale verse says it all. It is the answer he gives his boss\u2019s wife when Joseph explains why he won\u2019t sleep with her even after her constant pestering. He says: \u201cThere is no one greater in this house than I, and he<\/strong> (Potiphar, his Egyptian master) has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great evil and sin against God<\/em>?\u201d<\/strong> \u2013 Genesis 39: 9.<\/p>\n

Sin against God<\/h3>\n

Interesting. You would think he would say, \u201cand sin against my master\u201d<\/em> because going to bed with another man\u2019s wife, especially your boss\u2019s wife, would be a great offense by itself. Joseph didn\u2019t see it that way. He saw correctly that sin, all<\/em> sin, is ultimately really against God. It is additionally interesting because anyone other than Joseph might not have cared about offending God. Where was God when his brothers threw him into a pit and then sold him off to a passing caravan of Ishmaelites? Where was God when he was sold as a slave in Egypt?<\/p>\n

Joseph didn\u2019t play the blame game with God, a common reaction; one I\u2019ve certainly had a time or two. \u201cWhy did you allow such and such Lord? You are sovereign and you could have stopped it.\u201d<\/em> The fact that Joseph never saw it that way is pretty remarkable, and launched the success he wouldn\u2019t see till very much later. Yes, Joseph knew up front that God is sovereign, and could have arranged his life in a different way. But He also knew that because God is sovereign, His vantage point is higher than his human creation. Joseph trusted that God\u2019s vantage point is the right one, and would produce the best results. Even though he was in the dark now, Joseph trusted that God saw everything with perfect clarity.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a good thing his character was set from the get-go because Joseph\u2019s troubles didn\u2019t end with Potiphar\u2019s wife. She lied (and got away with it) by telling her husband that Joseph tried to rape her. Potiphar had Joseph thrown into prison. There he languished until two officials of Pharaoh were also imprisoned, and sought Joseph to interpret an unusual dream they each had. Both the chief baker and the chief cupbearer recognized Joseph\u2019s gift for interpretation, so Joseph pleaded, \u201cOnly keep me in mind when it goes well with you, and please do me a kindness by mentioning me to Pharaoh and get me out of this house\u201d <\/strong>\u2013 Genesis 40:14.<\/p>\n

Waiting on vindication<\/h3>\n

Would this be his out? His vindication? Perhaps he watched everyday for a good long while for the prison door to open. Alas, no. Instead, \u201cYet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him\u201d<\/strong> \u2013 Genesis 40:23. Two more years passed before Pharaoh had dreams for which he needed interpretation, and the cupbearer remembered Joseph. Finally the prison door opened and Joseph stood before Pharaoh to tell him the meaning of his dreams.<\/p>\n

A great seven-year famine was coming upon the earth, and a strategy to manage it was woven into the dreams. Joseph not only told Pharaoh the meaning of each dream, but what to do so that Egypt would survive. This is the beginning of the turnaround. Pharaoh knew a gifted administrator when he saw one. \u201cSo Pharaoh said to Joseph, \u2018Since God has informed you of all this, there is no one so discerning and wise as you are. You shall be over my house, and according to your command all my people shall do homage; only in the throne I will be greater than you\u2019\u201d<\/strong> \u2013 Genesis 41:39-40.<\/p>\n

That could have been enough for a great turnaround story for Joseph. At thirty years old he was now second in command in a vast kingdom. He did well. Pharaoh gave him a prominent wife and he had two sons. What he names the sons tells us that he didn\u2019t expect more out of life. The first son was Manasseh, meaning, \u201cGod has made me forget all my trouble and all my father\u2019s household\u201d<\/strong> \u2013 Genesis 41:51. The second son was Ephraim, \u201cFor, he said, God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction\u201d<\/strong> \u2013 Genesis 41:52.<\/p>\n

Trust in the dark<\/h3>\n

Wait! Remember the Sovereign One with the clear vantage point? Remember the One who produces ultimate right results? Joseph was smart to trust God in the dark because the light was going to switch on in a much greater way than Joseph could have anticipated. Yet one more time Joseph would call upon the character he displayed in the beginning with Potiphar\u2019s wife. God\u2019s plan was to bring Joseph\u2019s family back to him and to heal both sides of the deep wounds caused by his brother\u2019s sins. AND God wanted to provide for the survival of his people Israel. He did it all at this juncture of history through Joseph.<\/p>\n

When the famine forced Joseph\u2019s brothers to seek help from Egypt Joseph came face to face with them. They didn\u2019t recognize him, but he recognized them. When he revealed himself they were dismayed, and I\u2019m sure their guilty hearts were terror filled. What was Joseph\u2019s response? He said, \u201cNow do not be grieved or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life\u201d<\/strong> \u2013 Genesis 45:5.<\/p>\n

Joseph has often been admired for his ability to forgive, but I don\u2019t think forgiveness was ever an issue for him. Why? Because his core character trusted God\u2019s plans over his own limited vision. He made that decision early on. Then when he got to see how the plan finally unfolded he was overwhelmed with joy, not struggling with how to forgive. He tells his brothers, \u201cGod sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant in the earth, and to keep you alive by a great deliverance. Now, therefore, it was not you who sent me here, but God\u201d<\/strong> \u2013 Genesis 45:7-8.<\/p>\n

I admire Joseph greatly for a number of reasons, but none more than his vision in trusting God\u2019s plan over his own. When events in life are confusing, or when evil seems to prevail it\u2019s easy to complain, moan, and question or doubt God\u2019s goodness. That\u2019s because our thinking is from below while God\u2019s is from above. The Lord reminds us of this in Isaiah 55:9, \u201cFor as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.\u201d<\/strong> Joseph knew this without being reminded. I\u2019m glad his story is there to remind me too.<\/p>\n

Return to Insights to Scripture<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Joseph\u2019s story in Genesis is gripping and dramatic. It has all the elements of a riveting soap opera or a page turning novel. The difference of course, is that it actually happened. It\u2019s a true story, and that makes it eminently fascinating. Joseph is a hero worthy of the name. He successfully overcame more obstacles […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":28,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[70],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nCharacter Study: Joseph - Vision (Genesis 37 to 45) - Hannah's Cupboard<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hannahscupboard.com\/character-joseph\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Character Study: Joseph - Vision (Genesis 37 to 45) - Hannah's Cupboard\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Joseph\u2019s story in Genesis is gripping and dramatic. 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