MENU

Where the world comes to study the Bible

Chronology & Synopsis of the Passion Week

Related Media

The following chart was developed for a series of lessons covering the major themes of the Passion Week in 2010. It is an attempt to place the critical events of the final weeks of Jesus' first advent in chronological order. It begins when Jesus begins to head toward Judea for his final attendance at the Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah).

These late ministry events are listed alongside the Galilean, Judean, and Modern (Gregorian) dating systems. The Gospel parallels are also available for reading and consideration. While there are events leading up to the Passion Week the majority of this chart is focused on the Passion Week (a.k.a. Holy Week). The events prior to the Passion Week sets the stage for Jesus' royal entry into Jerusalem, his death, burial and resurrection.

Dating the Life of Christ

The dating of this chronology utilized a 33 C.E./A.D. crucifixion date as argued for by a number of scholars. In particular, the conclusions of Harold W. Hoehner (Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ) and Darrell L. Bock (Studying the Historical Jesus: A Guide to Sources and Methods) informed my thinking regarding a 33 C.E./A.D. crucifixion. While I would respectfully vary somewhat from Hoehner's daily chronology during the Passion Week I do utilize his suggested solution to the problem of multiple Passovers (Jesus partakes of the Passover but also dies on Passover). Hoehner appeals to the Galilean (sunrise to sunrise) and Judean (sunset to sunset) calenders to resolve the apparent discrepencies in the Gospels. Namely, both days share the same lunar night.

Some events listed do not have dates but are still placed in chronological order.

Please note that I have included references to Acts and 1 Corinthians in the resurrection accounts for readings as well. Köstenberger's work (The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown: An Introduction to the New Testament) proved useful concerning the order of resurrection appearances.

Reading Chronologically

Reading the Gospel events chronologically should by no means usurp the Gospel writers themselves. Each Gospel writer wants to say something very important to the reader with what they have written. That should be respected. It is not my aim to dismiss a Gospel writer's intentions with his audience. I only hope this helps a user to think through the events as they happened each of those critical days.

The suggested start date to the readings would be the week before the Passion Week. The daily readings begin the Saturday before Palm Sunday which appears as Nisan 9 (Galilean), Nisan 8 (Judean), and Saturday, 28 March 33 C.E. on the chart below. The Chronology intentionally leaves off this year's dates for use across multiple years and to accomodate Eastern and Western church calendars. 

Further suggestions: If there is too much to read, try reading only one Gospel's portrayal of each day's events. The Wednesday of the Passion Week has very little reading. Consider using that day to either catch up on missed reading, or read ahead for Thursday, or both. There is a lot of material to read on Thursday.

Markers

The parallel passages in parentheses and brackets indicate that the material is a similar event, material closely associated to the event, the same event (though located differently in the Gospel for thematic purposes), or confirmatory evidence as indicated by a summary statement. 

The event titles are similar to or borrowed from titles in a number of books or Bibles. 

I wish to thank the NET Bible Tagger for making this chart even more user friendly online.

Chronology and Synopsis of the Passion Week

Galilean (Sunrise to Sunrise) Judean (Sunset to Sunset) Modern [Gregorian Dating (C.E.)] Event Matthew Mark Luke John
      To Judea Matt 19:1-2 Mark 10:1    
      On Divorce and KingdomEunuchs Matt 19:3-12 Mark 10:2-12    
      Jesus Blesses the Children Matt 19:13-15 Mark 10:13-16 Luke 18:15-17  
      The Rich Young Man Matt 19:16-22 Mark 10:17-22 Luke 18:18-23  
      Commenting on the Rich Man Incident Matt 19:23-30 Mark 10:23-31 Luke 18:24-30  
      The Parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard Matt 20:1-16      
Kislew 25? Kislew 25?   Jesus at the Feast of Dedication/Hanukkah       John 10:22-39
      Jesus Withdraws       John 10:40-42
      Jesus Recieves News of Lazarus's Death       John 11:1-16
      The Raising of Lazarus       John 11:17-44
      Conspiracy Council       John 11:45-53
      Jesus Retires to Ephraim       John 11:54-57
      Another Prediction of the Passion Matt 20:17-19 Mark 10:32-34 Luke 18:31-34  
      The Request by the Sons of Zebedee Matt 20:20-28 Mark 10:35-45 Luke 22:24-27  
      Healing of the Blind (Jericho) Matt 20:29-34 Mark 10:46-52 Luke 18:35-43  
      Zacchaeus (Jericho)     Luke 19:1-11  
      The Parable of the Pounds (Matt 25:14-30) (Mark 13:34) Luke 19:11-28  
Nisan 9 Nisan 8 Saturday, 28 March 33 The Anointing at Bethany by Mary Matt 26:6-13 Mark 14:3-9 (Luke 7:36-50)? John 12:1-8
Nisan 9 Nisan 8 Saturday, 28 March 33 The Plot to Kill Lazarus       John 12:9-11
Nisan 10 Nisan 9 Sunday, 29 March 33 Approaching Jerusalem On Colt (Hosanna!) Matt 21:1-9 Mark 11:1-10 Luke 19:28-40 John 12:12-19
Nisan 10 Nisan 9 Sunday, 29 March 33 Jesus Weeps for Jerusalem     Luke 19:41-44  
Nisan 10 Nisan 9 Sunday, 29 March 33 Jesus at the Temple Matt 21:10-17 Mark 11:11    
Nisan 10 Nisan 9 Sunday, 29 March 33 Return to Bethany Matt 21:17 Mark 11:11 (Luke 21:37)  
Nisan 11 Nisan 10 Monday, 30 March 33 The Cursing of the Fig Tree Matt 21:18-19 Mark 11:12-14    
Nisan 11 Nisan 10 Monday, 30 March 33 The Cleansing of the Temple Matt 21:12-13 Mark 11:15-17 Luke 19:45-46  
      Crowd's Reaction and Conspiracy Efforts   Mark 11:18-19 Luke 19:47-48  
Nisan 11 Nisan 10 Monday, March 30, 35 Left Jerusalem   Mark 11:19 (Luke 21:37)  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Fig Tree is Withered (Morning) Matt 21:20-22 Mark 11:20-26    
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Question about Authority Matt 21:23-27 Mark 11:27-33 Luke 20:1-8  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Parable of the Two Sons Matt 21:28-32      
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Parable of the Wicked Husbandmen Matt 21:33-46 Mark 12:1-12 Luke 20:9-19  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Parable of the Great Supper Matt 22:1-14   (Luke 14:15-24)  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 On Paying Tribute to Ceasar Matt 22:15-22 Mark 12:13-17 Luke 20:20-26  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Resurrection Debate with the Sadducees Matt 22:23-33 Mark 12:18-27 Luke 20:27-40  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Great Commandment Matt 22:34-40 Mark 12:28-34 (Luke 10:25-28)  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Question about David's Son Matt 22:41-46 Mark 12:35-37a Luke 20:41-44  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Woe to the Scribes and Pharisees Matt 23:1-36 Mark 12:37-40 Luke 20:45-47  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Jesus' Lament over Jerusalem Matt 23:37-39   (Luke 13:34-35)  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Widow's Mite   Mark 12:41-44 Luke 21:1-4  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Greeks Seek Jesus       John 12:20-36
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Unbelief of the People       John 12:37-43
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Judgment by the Word       John 12:44-50
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Olivet Discourse (Leaving Temple)        
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 (OD) Prediction of the Temple's Destruction Matt 24:1-2 Mark 13:1-2 Luke 21:5-6  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Signs before the End (Mount of Olives) Matt 24:3-8 Mark 13:3-8 Luke 21:7-11  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Persecutions Foretold Matt 24:9-14 (Matt 10:17-22; 24:24) Mark 13:9-13 Luke 21:12-19 (John 16:2;15:21;14:26)
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Desolation Matt 24:15-22 Mark 13:14-20 Luke 21:20-24 (Luke 19:43-44; 17:31)  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 False Christs and False Prophets Matt 24:23-28 (Matt 24:4-5, 11) Mark 13:21-23 (Mark 13:5-6) (Luke 17:23-24, Luke 17:37, Luke 21:8, Luke 17:20-21)  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Coming of the Son of Man Matt 24:29-31 Mark 13:24-27 Luke 21:25-28  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 The Time of the Coming: Fig Tree Parable Matt 24:32-36 Mark 13:28-32 Luke 21:29-33  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Conclusion: Take Heed and Watch (Matt 25:13-15; 24:42) Mark 13:33-37 Luke 21:34-36 (Luke 19:13-13; 12:40; 12:38)  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Conclusion: The Parable of the Flood Matt 24:37-44   (Luke 17:26-36; 12:39-40)  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Conclusion: The Parable of the Servants Matt 24:45-51 (Mark 12:41-46)    
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Conclusion: The Parable of the Ten Virgins Matt 25:1-13      
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Conclusion: The Parable of the Talents Matt 25:14-30 (Mark 13:34) (Luke 19:11-27)  
Nisan 12 Nisan 11 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Conclusion: Sheep and Goats/Last Judgment Matt 25:31-46      
Nisan 12 Nisan 12 Tuesday, 31 March 33 Lodged on Mt. Olives     Luke 21:37-39  
Nisan 13 Nisan 12 Wednesday, 1 April 33 The Plot to Kill Jesus Matt 26:1-5 Mark 14:1-2 Luke 22:1-2 (John 11:47-53)
Nisan 13 Nisan 12 Wednesday, 1 April 33 Judas's Betrayal Agreement Matt 26:14-16 Mark 14:10-11 Luke 22:3-6 (John 13:2;13:27;6:70-71)
Nisan 14 Nisan 13 Thursday, 2 April 33 Passover Preparations (3-5PM Slaying of Lamb) Matt 26:17-20 Mark 14:12-17 Luke 22:7-14  
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Washing the Disciples' Feet (SUNSET/During Supper)     [Luke 22:24-30] John 13:1-20
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Jesus Foretells his Betrayal Matt 26:21-22 Mark 14:18-19 Luke 22:21-23 John 13:21-22
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The Inquiry of Peter about Betrayer's Identity       John 13:23-25
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Jesus Identifies Betrayer Matt 26:23 Mark 14:20 Luke 22:21 John 13:26
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Jesus' Woe to the Btrayer Matt 26:24 Mark 14:21 Luke 22:22  
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Judas Iscariot's Response Matt 26:25   Luke 22:23  
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The Last Supper (SUNSET) Matt 26:26-29 Mark 14:22-25 Luke 22:15-20 1 Cor 11:23-25
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The Exit of Judas       John 13:26-30
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The New Commandment of Love     [Luke 22:24-30] John 13:31-35
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The Denial of Peter Predicted Matt 26:30-35 Mark 14:26-31 Luke 22:31-34 John 13:36-38
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The Two Swords     Luke 22:35-38  
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The Farwell/Upper Room Discourse        
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Let Not Your Hearts Be Troubled       John 14:1-14
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The Promise of the Helper       John 14:15-26
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The Gift of Peace       John 14:27-31
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Jesus the True Vine (On the Way to the Garden)       John 15:1-8
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Remaining in My Love       John 15:9-17
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The World's Hatred       John 15:18-25
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The Witness of the Helper       John 15:26-27
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 On Persecutions       John 16:1-4
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The Work of the Helper       John 16:5-15
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Sorrow Turned to Joy       John 16:16-22
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Prayer in the Name of Jesus       John 16:23-28
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Prediction of the Disciples's Flight       John 16:29-33
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Jesus' Intercessory Prayer       John 17:1-26
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Jesus' Prayer For Himself (Gethsemane) Matt 26:36-46 Mark 14:32-42 Luke 22:39-46 John 18:1
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Jesus' Betrayal and Arrest Matt 26:47-50 Mark 14:43-46 Luke 22:47-48 John 18:2-9
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 Peter Cuts Off Malchus's Ear Matt 26:51-55 Mark 14:47-49 Luke 22:49-53 John 18:10-12
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Thursday, 2 April 33 The Flight of the Disciples Matt 26:56-56 Mark 14:50-52    
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Preliminary Hearing Before Annas       John 18:13-14, John 18:19-24
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Peter's First Denial Matt 26:69-70 Mark 14:54, Mark 66-68 Luke 22:54-57 John 18:15-18
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Trial Before Caiaphas Matt 26:57-68 Mark 14:53-65 Luke 22:54, Luke 22:63-65 John 18:24
Nisan 14 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Peter's Second Denial Matt 26:71-72 Mark 14:69-70a Luke 22:58 John 18:25
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Trial Before Sanhedrin Matt 27:1 Mark 15:1 Luke 22:66-71  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Peter's Third Denial and Rooster's Crow Matt 26:73-75 Mark 14:70-72 Luke 22:59-62 John 18:26-27
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Trial Before Pilate Matt 27:1-2 Mark 15:1 Luke 23:1 John 18:28-38
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Judas Iscariot's Suicide Matt 27:3-10      
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Trial Before Pilate Matt 27:11-14 Mark 15:2-5 Luke 23:2-5 John 18:28-38
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Trial Before Herod     Luke 23:6-12  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Pilate Declares Jesus Innocent     Luke 23:13-16  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus or Barabbas? Matt 27:15-23 Mark 15:6-14 Luke 23:17-23 John 18:39-40
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Message From Pilate's Wife Matt 27:19      
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Choice to Release Barabbas Matt 27:24-26      
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus Condemned Matt 27:24      
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 "Behold the Man!" Matt 27:28-31a Mark 15:17-20a   John 19:1-15
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Pilate Delivers Jesus to be Crucified Matt 27:24-26 Mark 15:15 Luke 23:24-25 John 19:16
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus Mocked by the Soldiers Matt 27:27-31a Mark 15:16-20a   John 19:2-3
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Road to Golgatha Matt 27:31-32 Mark 15:20-21 Luke 23:26-32 John 19:17a
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Simon of Cyrene Carries the Cross Matt 27:32 Mark 15:21 Luke 23:26  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Followers to Golgatha     Luke 23:27-32  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Arrival at Golgatha Matt 27:33 Mark 15:22 Luke 23:33a John 19:17b
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus Rejects Wine and Myrrh Matt 27:34 Mark 15:23    
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus' Crucifixion (9AM) Matt 27:35a Mark 15:24-25 Luke 23:33b John 19:18a
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Criminals Crucified on Left & Right Matt 27:38 Mark 15:27 Luke 23:33b John 19:18b
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 (1)"Father Forgive Them…"     Luke 23:34a  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus Clothes Divided Matt 27:35b Mark 15:24b Luke 23:34b John 19:23-24
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Guard Sitting Matt 27:36      
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Posted Charges Matt 27:37 Mark 15:26 Luke 23:38 John 19:19-20
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Reaction to the Charges       John 19:21-22
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Mocking of Jesus on Cross by Passerbys Matt 27:39-40 Mark 15:29-30 Luke 23:35  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Mocking of Jesus on Cross by Jewish Leadership Matt 27:41-43 Mark 15:31-32a Luke 23:35  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Mocking of Jesus on Cross by Soldiers     Luke 23:36-37  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus Offered Wine and Vinegar     Luke 23:36  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Mocking of Jesus on Cross by Criminals Matt 27:44 Mark 15:32b Luke 23:39  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Repentant Criminal     Luke 23:40-42  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 (2)Jesus Responds to the Repentant Criminal     Luke 23:43  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 (3)Jesus Designates His Mother's Provision       John 19:25-27
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Darkness (12-3PM) Matt 27:45 Mark 15:33 Luke 23:44-45a  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 (4)"My God My God…" (3PM) Matt 27:46 Mark 15:34    
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Crowd's Reaction to Utterance Matt 27:47 Mark 15:35    
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 (4)"I am Thirsty" (3PM)       John 19:28
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus Offered Wine and Vinegar Matt 27:48 Mark 15:36a   John 19:29
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 "Let's See if Elijah Saves Him" Matt 27:49 Mark 15:36b    
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus Receives the Wine and Vinegar       John 19:30a
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus' Loud Cry Matt 27:50a Mark 15:37a Luke 23:46a  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 (5)"Father, into your hands I commit my Spirit"     Luke 23:46b  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 (5)"It is finished"       John 19:30b
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus' Death Matt 27:50b Mark 15:37b Luke 23:46c John 19:30c
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Temple Curtain is Torn Matt 27:51a Mark 15:38 Luke 23:45b  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Earthquake Matt 27:51b      
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Resurrection of Dead Matt 27:52-53      
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Centurion's Reaction Matt 27:54 Mark 15:39 Luke 23:47  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Beating of the Breast     Luke 23:48  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jews Request to Pilate       John 19:31
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Soldiers Break Legs of Criminals       John 19:32
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Soldier Pirces Side of Jesus with Spear       John 19:33-34
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 The Witnesses of the Death Matt 27:55-56 Mark 15:40-41 Luke 23:49 John 19:35-37
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Joseph of Arimathea Requests Body of Jesus Matt 27:57-58a Mark 15:42-43 Luke 23:50-52 John 19:38a
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Pilate's Surprise at Jesus' Quick Death   Mark 15:44a    
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Pilate's Confirmation Hearing of Jesus' Death   Mark 15:44-45a    
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Pilate Gives Permission to Joseph of Arimathea Matt 27:58b Mark 15:45b   John 19:38b
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Joseph Buys Linen Cloth   Mark 15:46a    
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Nicodemus Brings 75LBs of Myrrh and Aloes       John 19:39
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Joseph Removes Jesus' Body from the Cross   Mark 15:46b Luke 23:53a  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Jesus' Body is Wraped in Linen Cloth and Spices Matt 27:59 Mark 15:46c Luke 23:53b John 19:40
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Nicodemus and Joseph Place Jesus in Tomb Matt 27:60a Mark 15:46d Luke 23:53c John 19:41-42
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Female Witnesses Saw Jesus Laid in Tomb Matt 27:61 Mark 15:47 Luke 23:55  
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Stone Rolled in Front of Tomb Enterance Matt 27:60b Mark 15:46e    
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Joseph of Arimathea Leaves Matt 27:60c      
Nisan 15 Nisan 14 Friday, 3 April 33 Women Leave and Prepare Spices     Luke 23:56a  
Nisan 16 Nisan 15 Saturday 4 April 33 Women Rested on Sabbath     Luke 23:56b  
Nisan 16 Nisan 15 Saturday 4 April 33 Jewish Leaders Requests Guard from Pilate Matt 27:62-64      
Nisan 16 Nisan 15 Saturday 4 April 33 Pilate Orders Tomb Security Matt 27:65      
Nisan 16 Nisan 15 Saturday 4 April 33 Tomb is Sealed Matt 27:66a      
Nisan 16 Nisan 15 Saturday 4 April 33 Tomb Guard is Posted Matt 27:66b      
Nisan 17 Nisan 16 Sunday, 5 April 33 The Women at the Tomb Matt 28:1-8 Mark 16:1-8 Luke 24:1-12 John 20:1-13
Nisan 17 Nisan 16 Sunday, 5 April 33 Jesus Appears to the Women Matt 28:9-10   (Luke 24:10-11) John 20:14-18
Nisan 17 Nisan 16 Sunday, 5 April 33 The Report of the Guard Matt 28:11-15      
Nisan 17 Nisan 16 Sunday, 5 April 33 Jesus Appears to Simon Peter   1 Cor 15:5 Luke 24:34  
Nisan 17 Nisan 16 Sunday, 5 April 33 Jesus Appears on Emmaus Road     Luke 24:13-35  
Nisan 17 Nisan 17 Sunday, 5 April 33 Jesus Appears to his Disciples -Thomas Absent     Luke 24:36-43 John 20:19-23
Nisan 24 Nisan 23 Sunday, 12 April 33 Jesus Appears to his Disciples -Thomas Present   1 Cor 15:5   John 20:24-29
      Jesus Appears to Eleven on Galilean Mountain Matt 28:16-20      
      Jesus Appears to More Than 500   1 Cor 15:6    
      Jesus Appears to James   1 Cor 15:7    
    Thursday, 14 May 33 Jesus' Last Words and Ascension     Luke 24:44-53 Acts 1:1-11
    ? Judas's Replacement is Chosen     Acts 1:12-26
  Siwan 7 Sunday, 24 May 33 Pentecost: Helper Arrives     Acts 2
      Jesus Appears to Saul on Damascus Road   1 Cor 15:8 Acts 9:1-25

Related Topics: Ascension, Christology, Covenant, Crucifixion, Easter, Gospels, History, NET Bible, Resurrection, Temple

Scriptural Evaluation of Salvation Invitations

Related Media

by
AWANA Clubs International

Will you give your heart to Christ?

This invitation is misleading. The Scriptures never tell us to give our heart to Christ. Such an invitation implies some effort on our part. We are not saved by giving God anything, but rather by receiving His gift of eternal life (Eph. 2:8-9). Remember also that the human heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked (Jer. 17:9). Romans 10:10 tells us that with the heart man believes unto righteousness, but the nonbeliever is unable to give his heart to God. Some use this Scripture, however, with the idea that the unsaved person is making a decision of his will to accept Christ. Even so, this invitation contains very confusing terminology that does not clearly present the truth of the gospel.

Will you surrender your life to Christ?

Surrender implies "giving everything'' to the Lord, while salvation is accepting the work of Christ on our behalf as a free gift. This invitation is the reverse of scriptural teaching. We are saved by receiving rather than by giving (John 1:12). The appeal of surrender is fitting only for a believer to yield his life to obedient service to the Lord. Such an appeal cannot be used for salvation. The expression "yield" in Romans 6 and "present" in Romans 12, both of which apply to believers, are calls to obedience and the need for dedicating one's life to God's will. Do not confuse these expressions and concepts with accepting and believing for salvation.

Will you confess your sins and ask the Lord to forgive you?

This is an appeal for a believer who needs to renew fellowship with the Lord on the basis of 1 John 1:9. This is not a salvation verse. It is God's direction for a sinful believer to be restored to fellowship with Himself. The unsaved person is not asked to confess his sins to get saved (he couldn't remember all of them anyway). Rather he is asked to recognize his sinful condition and accept Christ's payment for him. The unsaved person is forgiven and cleansed of his guilt because of his acceptance of Christ's death for him (Rom. 3:24).

Will you come to Christ tonight and promise to serve Him from now on?

The promise to serve Christ has meaning only for the believer. No invitation for service could be given to the unsaved because he has no spiritual life (Eph. 2:1). Also, the idea of "coming to Christ" may give the thought of trying to make oneself acceptable to Christ. If "coming" means deciding to accept Christ and His finished work on the cross, however, such an invitation may be acceptable. This invitation contains vague terminology, though, and will very likely be misunderstood by the unsaved person. The promise to serve Him is unacceptable for salvation, because it gives the idea of works (Eph. 2:8-9). Serving the Lord is a result of being saved. Service has nothing to do with getting saved.

Will you come and "pray through" to Christ?

The whole idea of praying through, hanging on, letting go, etc., is entirely foreign to a salvation invitation. Such terms imply some kind of action on our part and do not apply to receiving Christ. All we need to do is believe the gospel and receive the gift of salvation. Christ promised to save us when we accept and believe (John 3:18). Never are we told that we must plead with God. The way to Christ is open. When we come to Him in faith, He accepts us as we are (John 6:37). Such invitations are often used by those who put great emphasis on emotions. They insist that a person must keep on praying until he has a feeling of being saved.

Right now ask Jesus to come into your heart.

We are not saved by Jesus coming into our heart, but rather by trusting in His death for us (Eph 1:7). When we believe, He does indwell us. Our body then becomes the temple of the Holy Spirit However. that is a result of salvation. It is not the method whereby we are saved. Children find it confusing because they wonder if Jesus can physically come into their hearts. The simplicity of believing and trusting is misunderstood. Revelation 3:20 is often the basis of this invitation. Yet this passage does not deal with salvation. It does not focus the attention on Christ dying in my place and my acceptance of His work for me.

Will you make your commitment for Christ tonight?

This is one of the most misleading, vague invitations imaginable. A "commitment to Christ" could mean any number of things, such as serving, breaking wicked habits, obeying. making greater effort to do right, changing friends. or changing my life-style. Committing or promising something to God is certainly a "work" on my part. The unsaved person who is dead in trespasses and sin is unable to make any kind of commitment whatsoever. We are not saved by our promises to God, but by believing Christ's work is for us (John 3:18). The unsaved person needs a new life in Christ. Only when he places his faith in the finished work of Christ will he receive that life in Christ (1 John 5:12).

Will you make Him Lord of your life?

This invitation deals with personal dedication and obedience by the believer (Rom. 6:11). It does not deal with salvation for the unsaved. The idea of "lordship salvation" is not scriptural. Jesus saves us from sin because of His work on the cross. There He took upon Himself the punishment for our guilt and died in our place (Rom. 5:8). The unsaved person cannot make Christ the Lord of his life. He has no spiritual life and no ability to obey the Lord. The work of Christ on the cross saves all who believe. His death and resurrection give spiritual life whereby the believer may obey and serve Him (1 Pet. 2:24).

Will you repent of your sins to get saved?

Repentance means a "change of mind" and is followed by a decision or action because of that change Genuine repentance is the result of the convicting work of the Holy Spirit and is often accompanied by sorrow. Repentance is more than just sorrow, however. It involves a change of mind about guilt and the penalty for sin, one's need of salvation, and the Savior's sacrificial provision for salvation on the cross. While it is associated with salvation, repentance alone is not salvation. Faith and trust in the work of Christ on Calvary is the needed result of repentance. It must be followed by faith in the Lord Jesus to save from sin and to give spiritual life (Acts 20:28, John 1:12). Emphasizing only repentance leaves the unsaved with an incomplete message that does not give clear understanding of salvation.

Just believe now and allow Jesus to touch you.

The idea of Jesus touching me appeals to my emotions and feelings. It doesn't say anything about receiving Christ as Savior The emphasis in this invitation is on feelings and some unusual experience that indicates I am saved. Nowhere in Scripture are we told that Jesus saves us by touching us nor are we told to seek or expect any particular feelings when we trust Christ as our Savior. Feelings of joy, cleansing, and relief may all come as a result of believing Our assurance of salvation, however, is based on the simple promise of the Word, not on how we feel (John 1:12). Even if there are no special feelings, the promise of God is to save everyone who believes the gospel. On this basis alone, salvation can be claimed by the believer (John 3:16).

Are you willing to forsake all your sins to obtain salvation?

As a person who is dead in transgressions and sins, the sinner has no ability to forsake his sins. Even if he could forsake his sins, it would only be self-reformation, not regeneration by the Holy Spirit. Scripture never tells us to forsake anything as a requirement for salvation. Rather Scripture commands us to believe the "Good News" that Christ died for us (Rom. 5:8). God saves us just as we are--lost and without hope outside of Christ. We cannot make ourselves more acceptable to God by trying to forsake our sins. This invitation puts the emphasis on something we cannot do. Rather, we must believe that Christ in His death and resurrection has done all we need to become saved. All God requires is that we believe and trust Him (Rom. 4:5). Once we are saved, it is a different matter. Then the believer should forsake sin with the power of the Holy Spirit and obey the commands of Christ to live a godly life (Gal. 5:16). This invitation confuses the results of salvation (godly conduct) with the method of salvation (to receive and believe).

Will you accept the Lord Jesus as your own personal Savior?

This invitation is biblically correct. Accepting (receiving) the Lord Jesus as my Savior is believing that He died for me and paid the penalty for my sin (Rom. 5:8). Because He loves me, He died for me. Placing my personal trust in His death for me is God's only requirement for salvation (Rom. 3:24). Trusting Christ is personal. Christ died for me, and I personally trust Him to save me from the penalty of my sin. "As many as received Him" (John 1:12) is the open invitation to anyone to be saved. "Receiving" results in an immediate salvation. Christ died for your sins. Believe it personally. That's all you need to get saved. This is the heart of the gospel (Rom. 5:8). The Bible uses believe as an absolute trust in the work of Christ for me (John 3:18). Christ died for my sins and demonstrated His victory over sin by His physical resurrection from the dead (Rom. 4:24-25). The work is all done! Our Savior lives to assure the believer that He can and will complete our salvation (Phil. 1:6). The payment is complete for the penalty of my sin (1 John 2:2). Knowing my guilt of sin, all that I can do is believe that He died for me and trust that payment to be all I need for salvation (Rom. 4:5; 6:23).

You can be saved right now by believing that Christ died for your sins.

This is a correct statement. It includes the immediate fact of salvation when we believe or trust in the work of Christ at Calvary. It also includes the substitutionary aspect that Christ died for me in my place (2 Cor. 5:21). Christ shed His blood for me; that is the payment for my sins (1 Pet. 1:18-19). His sacrifice fulfilled the Old Testament stipulation that "without the shedding of blood there is no remission" (Heb. 9:22). We have redemption and forgiveness through His blood (Eph. 1:7). His bodily resurrection assures us that He lives to keep the believer saved, to intercede for him, and to finally present him faultless before the throne (Heb. 7:25, Jude 24). Because He lives, the believer has the blessed assurance of the physical return of the Lord and the certainty of his place in heaven (1 Thes. 4:14-18).

Will you believe Jesus took your place on the cross?

This invitation is also true to the Word of God. All the penalty of our sins was laid on Christ (Isa. 53:6). He suffered the consequence of death for us (1 Pet 3:18). He took my place when He died for me. To believe is to trust Him completely to do all that is needed to remove my penalty of sin and impart spiritual life to me. The Bible usage of "believe'' is different than our common daily usage. Today "believe'' usually means "maybe"--something I think I may do or want. The Bible uses believe as an absolute trust in the work of Christ for me (John 3:18).

Right now believe that Christ paid the price in full for your sins.

Again, this is a correct statement that centers on the need for immediate action. The basis of salvation is also indicated. Christ paid the awful penalty for sin--death. Note the emphasis also that He paid the price in full. There is nothing left to pay, to do, to join, or to earn. We must only receive Him and trust in what He accomplished for us at Calvary. We are justified "freely by His grace" (Rom. 3:24). He loved us while we were yet sinners. His love was not based on any goodness on our part. He loved us because He wanted to save us and make our salvation possible by paying the price of our sin on the cross (1 Pet. 2:24). The urgency of our believing is important! There is no promise of tomorrow, or some future opportunity. Rather, "now" is the best time of all to receive Christ (II Cor. 6:2).

Related Topics: Bibliology (The Written Word), Soteriology (Salvation)

Q. Why Couldn’t King David Build the Temple?

I’m curious why God forbade David from building the temple? I know 2 Samuel says it’s because David had blood on his hands, but I also know David was following God’s will by purging the Promised Land of pagan worship. This seems contradictory to me. Any thoughts?

Answer

My sense is to let the biblical explanation be the explanation. David was a “man of blood.” No king of Israel was completely free of bloodshed, I suspect, but David did his share and then some.

Note these words of David to Solomon:

“But the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘You have shed much blood and have waged great wars; you shall not build a house to My name, because you have shed so much blood on the earth before Me. 9 ‘Behold, a son will be born to you, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side; for his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quiet to Israel in his days. 10 ‘He shall build a house for My name, and he shall be My son and I will be his father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever’” (1 Chronicles 22:8-10, NAU).

This seems entirely consistent with the purpose of the temple, as indicated in 1 Kings 8, Isaiah 56:7, and in our Lord’s summary in Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; and Luke 19:45-46:

45 Jesus entered the temple and began to drive out those who were selling, 46 saying to them, “It is written, ‘AND MY HOUSE SHALL BE A HOUSE OF PRAYER,’ but you have made it a ROBBERS’ DEN.” (Lk. 19:45-46 NAU)

David was a “man of blood” in that he killed many Gentiles. It would seem strange / unbecoming for him to build a house of prayer for all the nations. Solomon was much more a man of peace, and thus he could build a house of prayer for the nations without any inconsistency regarding God’s purpose for the temple.

I hope this helps,

Bob

The Greatest Chapter in the Bible: Romans 8

Related Media
This final preached sermon by Dr. Bill McRae was preached on September 2, 2017 at Muskoka Bible Centre in Canada.

Joseph: When Dreams Come True (Expository Sermons On O.T. Characters)

This series of sermons will cover some of the main O.T. characters, beginning in Genesis with Noah, Abraham, Jacob, and Joseph. These sermons will not cover every account or incident in the lives of each person, but are selected (1) to give an overview of how God worked in their lives to accomplish his purposes; and (2) to learn important lessons about character and conduct as it relates to the people of God.

Amongst many other lessons in this series, one thing becomes abundantly clear, that the human heart does not change: it remains deceitful above all things and desperately wicked (Jer. 17:9). Nonetheless, God in his grace continues to reveal himself, often in remarkable ways, to finite, frail, and failing human beings whom he uses to represent him, to communicate his instructions and plans, to provide leadership to others, and, generally, to carry out his purposes as the drama of redemption unfolds through the progress of salvation history.

We will study characters like Joseph, who was ridiculed, sold as a slave, falsely accused and imprisoned, yet, ultimately, he was vindicated and exalted. We admire him and aspire to emulate his faith, patience, and steadfast endurance despite the circumstances, and, more importantly, we grow in our understanding of God and his ways with us. Conversely, we will study characters whose behavior and responses may surprise us, but in whom God still displays his grace and through whom God still sovereignly acts.

I hope that this series will bless you as much as it has me. It was a pleasure to preach these sermons and it is now a pleasure to share them with you in written form. May the Lord use them to encourage and inspire you as you serve him and faithfully “preach the word.”

Related Topics: Character Study, Christian Life

1. The Favorite Son And Despised Brother (Genesis 37:1-11)

Related Media

Dysfunctional behavior occurs in many different places - in families, workplaces, and churches. Today we’re talking about dysfunctional families. Dysfunctional families seem to perpetuate themselves. Children learn from their parents. The children of alcoholics often become alcoholics. Children with abusive parents (whether physical or verbal, sexual, emotional, or psychological) often become abusers themselves. It’s hard sometimes to break the cycle and often when the cycle is broken, the hurt and memories linger.

I believe that we can overcome the cycle. We can break free from the negative influences of our upbringing or environment. In Christ, we can discover that we are precious to God, we are his sons and daughters, and he values us so much that he sent his Son to die for us. That is an incredible discovery and one that can and should set us free from the torment of our past.

When we realize that we are responsible before God for the way we live and not before our parents or colleagues or friends, that is a liberating discovery! When we discover that we cannot change our DNA or genetic make-up with which we were born but we can change our behavior, that is a liberating discovery! When we discover that through the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit and the life changing power of the Gospel we can live lives that are glorifying to God, that is a liberating discovery! We are set free. Set free from the negative criticism, abuse, ungodly thinking and behavior of others that once held us in its bondage. Set free to imitate Christ and live to please him. Set free because we have been born again into a brand new family with a brand new spiritual DNA. Set free because we are new creatures in Christ.

Abuse of alcohol can produce dysfunctional families. There are several reasons that I do not drink alcohol. At a logical level, I don’t drink alcohol because it is a highly addictive, mind-altering drug. At a pastoral level, I don’t drink alcohol because there are so many people in our churches who have been so badly hurt by alcohol. Many of them have lived horrible lives under the influence of alcoholic fathers or mothers. For them alcohol is a vicious and destructive enemy, a cycle that they want to break. To discover that their pastor drank alcohol would not only destroy the pastor’s credibility but also further hurt them, because someone they thought they could trust and with whom they were safe is a drinker, and alcohol is unsafe.

Favoritism can also produce dysfunctional families. Favoritism seems so benign but can cause so much damage. Often the youngest child is favored over the others, perhaps because the parents are older and don’t have the energy to carry out discipline any more. Perhaps because the parents have more money by the time the youngest child comes along and they lavish more things on him or her. But these acts of favoritism can destroy the child and the family unless they are stopped.

One of the things I like about the O.T. is its reality. These studies in O.T. characters are reality, unlike “reality” TV which is often totally unreal. The Spirit of God looks into the lives of these O.T. characters and paints a picture of them just as they really were in real life – no airbrushing, no cuts in the video footage, no tampering with the evidence. What we find is that they faced the same kind of challenges and temptations that we face (albeit in a different culture and at a different time period) and they had the same victories and failures that we do.

The point of these Bible narratives is not to entertain us but to reveal God to us in the real issues of life, for their God is our God, he has not changed. Not to be shocked by their flaws but to learn from them how to live (what to imitate and what to avoid).

Our subject in this study is: “The Dysfunctional Cycle of Favoritism” (Gen. 37:1-11). What we’re going to discover in this series on Joseph is that “dysfunctional family patterns can be broken by the power of God in a person’s life.”

Notice the first principle we learn here...

I. The Root Of Dysfunctional Behavior In The Family Can Go Back Generations (Gen. 37:1-4)

It’s important when starting a character study to understand the historical and literary background. So, let’s review some history for a moment - first, the literary background of this Scripture passage. Genesis is structured around certain “generations”: the creation of man (1:1-4:26); Adam (5:1-6:8); Noah (6:9-9:29); sons of Noah (10:1-11:9); Shem (11:10-26); Terah / Abraham (11:27-25:11); Ishmael (25:12-18); Isaac / Jacob (25:19-35:29); Esau (36:1-8; 36:43); Jacob / Joseph (37:1-50:26). These, then, are the “generations” around which the book of Genesis is structured. Our chapter begins with the “generations of Jacob” (37:2), which is primarily concerned with the account of his youngest son, Joseph.

Now, let’s review the family history that shapes Joseph’s family. Abraham (Joseph’s great grandfather) had two sons, the one (Ishmael) by his wife’s bondwoman (Hagar) and the other (Isaac) by his wife (Sarah). The day came when, in order to maintain harmony in the family, Abraham had to make a choice between the two wives and two sons. On God’s instruction, he chose Isaac and sent Ishmael and Hagar away. Perhaps that’s where the problem of favoritism began. Or, perhaps it began with Isaac (Joseph’s grandfather) and his wife Rebekah, who had two twin boys – Esau, whom Isaac favored and Jacob, whom Rebekah favored (25:28).

As we consider this background, we realize that this family history isn’t a pretty picture. Jacob’s family cycle of dysfunctional behavior began at an early age: “Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field; but Jacob was a mild man, dwelling in tents. Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game, but Rebekah loved Jacob” (Gen. 25:27-28). Evidently, the favoritism expressed by Isaac and Rebekah to their two sons was established very early on when the boys manifested their own unique dispositions. Jacob was a mother’s boy, who stayed indoors and loved cooking. Esau was an outdoorsman, a hunter, a meat-and-potatoes kind of man. From there on it was all down hill. Jacob, the cook, cheated Esau, the hunter, out of his birthright with a bowl of stew for a hungry, working man (25:29-34). Rebekah deceived her husband, Isaac, into giving Jacob, her favorite son, the family blessing when it was really due to Esau, the oldest brother. That made Esau angry. Then, Rebekah deceived Isaac again into sending Jacob to his Uncle Laban under the pretense of finding a wife, but really it was to escape Esau’s threat to kill Jacob (27:1-28:5).

During his time with Laban, Jacob obtained two wives, Leah and Rachel (Laban’s daughters). Jacob loved Rachel but despised Leah. You may remember that Jacob was tricked into marrying Leah; Rachel was his first love. So, you can understand how marriage problems arose. The two women shared one husband – this caused rivalry. And Leah could produce children but Rachel was barren – this caused jealousy. The result was a marriage filled with tension and animosity.

Leah produced four sons (Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah) while Rachel just couldn’t get pregnant. Following in Sarah’s footsteps, Rachel devised a scheme for Jacob to produce children through her maidservant, Bilhah. Does this scheme sound familiar? Jacob’s relationship with Bilhah produced two sons, Dan and Naphtali.

Later, when she became unable to bear more children, Leah adopted Rachel’s scheme for Jacob to produce more children through her maidservant, Zilpah. From this relationship two more boys were born, Gad and Asher. Then, lo and behold, Leah became fertile once again and produced two more boys and a girl, Issachar, Zebulun, Dinah. Then the unthinkable happened – a once-in-a-lifetime chance - Rachel got pregnant and gave birth to her first child, Joseph (30:22-24). Jacob’s household now consisted of one husband, 2 wives, 2 concubines, 4 mothers, 10 sons, and 1 daughter – in all, 11 men and 5 women. That’s a recipe for jealousy, argument, lust, deceit, competition, scheming, and secrecy.

At this point, Jacob had had enough of working for Laban, so he collected his family, his livestock and his possessions and left to go back to Canaan, where he had come from 20 years before (31:1-18). On the way home, they came to the city of Shechem where Dinah, his daughter, was raped (34:1-2). Though Jacob did nothing about it, his sons did. They concocted a scheme and killed all the men of that place and pillaged their goods (34:29). Jacob didn’t seem concerned about the rape of his daughter. He was only concerned about what his sons’ act of revenge would look like to others (34:30-31). Just as they moved on, Rachel died in giving birth to her second son, Benjamin, some 16 years after Joseph was born (35:16f).

Moving on again, another tragedy struck – Reuben, Jacob’s oldest son, committed incest with Bilhah, one of his father’s concubines (35:22). Again, Jacob did nothing – he just acted as though it was business as usual. To end this section of Jacob’s family history, just as he arrived back home in Canaan, Isaac, his father, died (35:27-29).

With this background in mind, we come to chapter 37, where our story of Joseph begins. Of all his sons, Jacob (Israel) favored Joseph over the other eleven. Israel loved Joseph more than all his children because he was the son of his old age (37:3a).” Rachel was the wife he loved and Joseph was the child born of that love relationship (unlike the children born to a merely physical relationship with Leah). Joseph was Rachel’s firstborn son, the answer to Rachel’s years of barrenness and sorrow. Joseph represented the blessing of God on Rachel, such that when Joseph was born she said, “God has taken away my reproach” (30:23).

When Rachel died about one year earlier while giving birth to Benjamin, Joseph was about 16 years old, an age when Jacob, his father, would naturally have turned to him for comfort and transfer to him his love for his mother, Rachel. All of this is conjured up in the sentence, Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his sons because he was the son of his old age” (37:3a).

Often parents favor a significantly younger child but it can create awful relationships between the siblings. Jacob’s favoritism toward Joseph was a repeat of what he had learned from his mother. Just as Rebekah had favored Jacob over Esau so Jacob now favors Joseph over his 11 other sons. Doting on Joseph may have made Jacob feel good, but it did no good for Joseph.

One of the evidences of favoritism to the youngest child is to lavish them with gifts that the others did not get as they grew up. Jacob demonstrated his favoritism to Joseph with “a robe of many colors” (37:3b). This was evidently a beautiful, luxurious long-sleeved tunic. It stood out. When you saw it, you would have noticed the extravagance of it. It was perhaps the kind of coat worn by royalty or nobility. We read that Tamar, King David’s daughter wore “a robe of many colors,” a coat suited to “the virgin daughter of the king” (2 Sam. 13:18).

Evidently this regal kind of coat was a symbol of purity. Tamar’s richly ornamented coat was evidence of her virginity. That’s why after she was raped by her brother Amnon, she “tore her robe of many colors that was on her” (2 Sam. 13:19). She no longer considered herself pure, because she was no longer a virgin. Even though she was raped, she blamed herself. It would seem, then, that Joseph’s multi-colored coat identified Joseph as a man who was morally pure and that his other brothers were not. This certainly is born out in the rest of the story as Joseph stands for moral purity even when tempted to act otherwise. So, Joseph’s coat was a symbol of purity.

And this kind of coat was a symbol of position. Just as it was the kind of coat worn by royalty so it was definitely not the kind of coat worn by shepherds. Shepherds wore clothes suited to their dirty work, whereas this was a coat you would wear on Sundays to church. So, this coat gave evidence to Joseph’s favored position. In his father’s eyes, he was not like his other brothers. The special coat flaunted this unequal treatment, threw it in his brothers’ faces.

This kind of coat was also a symbol of authority. Jacob was treating Joseph as the firstborn, which he was to Rachel (perhaps that was Jacob’s logic). The coat probably indicated that Joseph would receive all the rights and privileges of the firstborn, including a double portion of the inheritance and becoming the future head of the family. That’s authority.

So, you can see why his brothers hated Joseph. “They saw that their father loved Joseph more than all his brothers” (37:4). Perhaps it would have been more appropriate to take their feelings out on their father. But, it’s easy to understand why they would have despised Joseph and ultimately schemed to get rid of him.

Jacob is passing on to his sons a dysfunctional family model. He is showing how not to be a good, wise, responsible parent. Jacob is perpetuating the cycle of internal family squabbles that he had experienced in his own life, including favoritism, deception, anger, and guilt. He is passing on to Joseph and the 11 other sons a model of immature, unwise, deceptive, manipulative parenthood – hardly the kind of legacy that any rational, loving parent would want.

Let’s just pause here for a moment. What kind of legacy have you passed on to your children? How will they remember you? What will they say at your funeral? It’s always great to hear testimonies of children at their parent’s funeral, when they can say: “My Dad was my best friend.” Or, “My Dad taught me how to live for God.” Or, “My mom was a woman of faith.” Or, “My mom showed me how to love.” I sometimes wonder what my children will say about me when I’m gone.

At my mom’s memorial I said that my mom’s primary characteristics were her cheerfulness, contentedness, and her love for others. My mom had a lot of sadness in her life. She had every reason to be discontented with her lot in life. She could have turned into a bitter old woman. But she didn’t! And I was able to say at her memorial that if I can emulate her in some small way, I will be forever grateful for what she taught me.

I wonder what Jacob’s sons would say about their father and their mothers? What do you think? What kind of legacy will you leave, not only to your family but to everyone that you influence?

What’s of utmost interest in our story is that dysfunctional family cycles can stop by the power of God. In our story it stops eventually with Joseph. Though Joseph displays gross naivete, inexperience, and lack of wisdom in his early years, yet nonetheless, he breaks the cycle - he overcame the lying, cheating, immorality, and manipulation that had been so prevalent in his family previously.

If there was one person who had everything going against him, it was Joseph – his family background and genetics, the favoritism of his father (and mother), the bitterness and rejection by his siblings. All that could have led him to blame his father and mother and grandfather and grandmother, and great-grandfather and great-grandmother and turn out just like them, thus perpetuating the cycle. But he didn’t.

The truth is that God is able to change us and conform us into his own image by the power of the Holy Spirit, no matter who our parents and grandparents were or what they were like. You don’t have to be like them. It’s not legitimate to blame your parents for your behavior and thinking and attitudes and values. You’re responsible for who you are and how you behave. Self-pity isn’t acceptable and self-justification isn’t an excuse for perpetuating certain attitudes and actions and habits.

I’m not saying that our upbringing and environment don’t make an indelible impression on us – they do. If you’ve been sexually abused or physically beaten or constantly criticized and demeaned as a child that leaves emotional and psychological and perhaps physical scars. But you don’t have to be bound by them in the quagmire of despondency, wallowing in self-pity, spending your whole life searching for answers to: “Why me?”

Dysfunctional family cycles can stop, and they can stop with you! We can and should live in the joy and affirmation of God, that we are fully justified in Christ, that since God is for us no one can be against, that no one can condemn us (it is Christ who died), that no one can separate us from the love of Christ (Rom. 8:31-39).

That, then, in our story is the first principle we learn, that the root of dysfunctional behavior in the family can go back generations. Notice also that ...

II. The Result Of Dysfunctional Behaviour In The Family Can Be VIctimization (Gen. 37:4)

“When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him” (37:4). One irresponsible, unwise decision and act by Jacob produced a cycle of egregious sibling rivalry and victimization, all the result of family favoritism. By doing this, Jacob, perhaps unwittingly, produced dreadful family relationships – resentment, hatred, even attempted murder. Jacob, in one fell swoop, divided his family so that all the other brothers became united in their hate of Joseph – hardly a good cause to unite over!

Perhaps their attitude toward Joseph was not only initiated by their father’s unequal treatment of them but compounded by Joseph’s “bad report” (37:2b) of them. Perhaps this had led to their father’s chastisement of them – you know, “I hear from Joseph that you ...” A bad report to daddy plus the royal robes from daddy and Joseph was toast, he was going down, such is the power of revenge.

You can hardly blame Joseph. He was only seventeen! He had a long way to go to become the wise, mature leader that he ultimately became. He had a lot of experience yet to gain in life. There is no evidence whatsoever that Joseph held ill feelings towards his brothers or that he meant them any wrong. In fact, he probably brought a true report to his father. But he didn’t expect his father to turn around and say, “Joseph tells me that you boys are doing a bad job out there with the sheep.”

Joseph was the victim of his father’s poor judgement. On the one hand, Jacob loved Joseph more than all the others. And yet on the other hand, he does Joseph such harm. That’s often the product of dysfunctional parenting. Misplaced affection brings to the child undeserved hatred. He wanted to favor Joseph, but ultimately hurt him.

You can certainly see how this might develop. Perhaps all your children have been rebellious and hard to handle, except your youngest. He was born some years after the others and turns out to be sensitive, kind, co-operative, easy to handle. He does his homework on time and gets good grades. By now you have a bit more money and this youngest son has just got his driver’s license. He’s graduating from high school this year and going on to university (unlike the others who were always in trouble with the principal and only scraped through high school). So, at the graduation party, your graduation gift to your model son is his very own car. How would the other siblings react to that? Probably just like the elder brother in the story of the prodigal son. “You never gave me a party! You never cooked a fat goat for me! You never invited my friends to come and celebrate!” You know: “What about us? We grew up in this family during the hard times when penny’s were pinched. We couldn’t even take money to buy lunch at school – we had to take a sandwich from home. You wouldn’t even let us borrow your car on Saturday night let alone have one of our own. You said that gas was too expensive. ‘What do you think,’ you used to say, ‘money doesn’t grows on trees.’”

And these feelings of resentment and unfair treatment escalate into bitter relationships toward the very son whom you want to honour. You have, in fact, set up your youngest son for a life of unhappiness. The exact opposite of what you intended. You are the problem, not your son.

We move on, then, from the root of dysfunctional behavior and the result of dysfunctional behavior to...

III. The Repetition Of Dysfunctional Behaviour In The Family Can Simply Be Due To Indiscretion (Gen. 37:5-11)

To add insult to injury, Joseph tells his brothers about his two prophetic dreams and the family starts to swirl into a vortex of sibling rivalry. Probably due to youthful indiscretion on Joseph’s part, the repeated dysfunctionality of the family continues – things just go from bad to worse.

Dream #1: The sheaves of grain. In Joseph’s dream his sheaf of grain stood upright and all the other sheaves of grain, standing around, bowed down to his sheaf. The picture is clear – he will rule over the rest of his family; they will be subservient to him and bow down to him. Rehearsing this dream to his brothers only served to heighten their feelings of animosity so that “they hated him even more” (37:5b).

You can just imagine the picture. Joseph, the spoiled child, resplendent in his fancy coat, standing in front of his hard working brothers, seemingly bragging about a dream where they bowed down to him (37:5-7). They needed no one to interpret the dream. Their immediate response is, “Shall you indeed reign over us? Or shall you indeed have dominion over us?” (37:8). You can hear the irony in their voices, “Shall you indeed! We’ll see to that!” It’s like they’re saying, “Who do you think you are? Give your head a shake? We won’t bow down to you in a million years.”

The irony is that we know the rest of the story. They did in fact ultimately bow down to him (42:6). That’s why we know this is a prophetic dream from God. But the other irony is that the dream fits reality. The dream confirms what is happening in the family. He has been elevated above the others by virtue of his dress and his favorable treatment by his father. So, this dream brings together “the supernatural and natural factors in a way that only God can orchestrate” (Gene Getz, “Joseph, Overcoming Obstacles through Faithfulness,” 27).

The problem wasn’t the truthfulness or accuracy of the dream. The problem was with Joseph’s serious lack of judgement in sharing it with his brothers. He had already incurred their wrath because of his father’s special love for him, and the “bad report” hadn’t helped. Add that to the regal costume and you have the recipe for an explosion.

Perhaps Joseph told them the dream because, in his reasoning, that would prove to them that God was behind all this, not just his father. In other words, perhaps he thought that they would submit to God’s favor towards him where they would not submit to their father’s favor towards him. But it had the opposite effect.

It usually doesn’t help to preach at people this way. First, it usually doesn’t help to moralize to people who are thoroughly fleshly. Second, words of instruction and superiority from a younger sibling usually aren’t well received by the older ones, especially when he is trying to tell them that what is happening to him is predicted and ordered by God! “So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words” (37:8b).

Dream #2: The Sun, Moon, And Eleven Stars. In This Dream, The “Sun, Moon, And Eleven Stars Bowed Down To Me (Joseph)” (37:9). It Seems Almost Beyond The Realm Of Credibility That Joseph Would Actually Tell His Brothers This Second Dream After Their Adverse Reaction To The First Dream. This Time He Told His Brothers And His Father. The Symbolism Was Intuitively Obvious To Them All; No One Had To Interpret It. No Wonder That “His Father Rebuked Him” (37:10a). It’s Not Clear Whether His Father Rebuked Him For Being So Naive In Telling Them This Dream Or Whether He Was Somewhat Indignant At The Pompous Audacity Of His Son To Think That He Was Superior Even To His Father And Mother – “Shall Your Mother And I And Your Brothers Indeed Come To Bow Down To The Earth Before You?” (37:10).

But Jacob “Kept The Matter In Mind” (37:11a). So It Seems That He Took This Seriously. Something Told Him That This Dream Was A True VIsion Into The Future. No Wonder That The Resentment Of Joseph’s Brothers Was Raised To A Whole New Level – They “Envied Him” (37:11). Their Hearts Were Inflamed With Resentment That He Would Have The Gall To Claim Superiority Over Them. They Could Not Contemplate His Having This Kind Of Favor Rather Than Them.

In summary, it seems thus far in the narrative that Joseph lacked discernment, but the real culprit is Jacob. It would have been wiser for Joseph to have shared this dream with his father alone and not his brothers. But how much better it would have been if Jacob had not acted rashly, irresponsibly, and unwisely towards Joseph in the first place. He brought down the wrath of his brothers on Joseph in the first place.

Thus, Joseph was caught in a no-win situation. He was caught between two competing loyalties. On the one hand, he felt the approval of his father and wanted to nourish it, but, on the other hand, he felt the rejection of his brothers and he wanted to disarm that. Undoubtedly he probably thought that his dreams would justify to his brothers his father’s favoritism. Undoubtedly he wanted his brothers to understand the truth and change their attitude towards him, but it had the opposite effect. He probably thought that the second dream would clear things up for it included his father and mother along with his brothers. It’s as though Joseph is saying, “Don’t take this personally boys. Everyone is going to bow down to me, not just you – even my father and mother.” Of course, that comes off as pompous and arrogant and turns his brothers further against him.

As we have progressed through the narrative in this study so far, we have noticed many personal and relevant applications to our own lives…

1. When we are wrongly maligned, we need to leave it with God. It’s not unusual to keep trying to prove ourselves, to prove that we are right so that others change their attitude towards us. Especially when we are caught between two loyalties, and especially when we feel vulnerable and insecure. So, Joseph’s second attempt at self-justification through telling the second dream is not unusual.

But we need to leave that to God. That’s what’s missing in this passage, isn’t it? God isn’t there. It’s all about self and self-justification. Self-justification usually never works – it smacks of being self-serving, which it usually is, and the reaction to that is envy, hatred, distance, division. God alone is the one who justifies us. He alone can vindicate us. We just find it so hard to turn it over to God while others think poorly of us or criticize us or misunderstand us. So, we plough back in with more and more attempts at explaining ourselves, trying to convincing others to think well of us.

But if we have acted uprightly and forthrightly before God any resulting justification of what we did or said needs to be left to God. In due time he will set things right if we have been unjustly accused.

2. When we recognize dysfunctional behavior in ourselves, we need to stop it, whatever that may be – favoritism, or unduly harsh discipline, or personal criticism that demeans your child. Remember our thesis: Dysfunctional family patterns can be broken by the power of God in a person’s life.” Dysfunctional behaviors affect not only the family but all our relationships – our church, our workplace etc. As to family, all our children are different (even when they get older) and we need to treat them all as gifts from God, people made in the image of God, people who are precious to God.

Some of our children are easier to raise than others but we need to be sure not to favor them over others. Don’t forget that your children reflect who you are! They are often carbon copies of you, so if you don’t like what they are doing, look at yourself. They have your genes, they are raised under your roof, they learn from your habits, behavior, speech, attitudes etc.

I constantly look myself in the mirror. Sometimes I don’t like what I see. Sometimes I see inherited attitudes or behaviors that aren’t a proper reflection of who I am in Christ and how I should behave. That’s when I decide to change it – and that’s not easy. You constantly have to fight with yourself, but with God’s help and through prayer, you can do it.

One of the best ways to counteract negative behaviors and attitudes is to positively copy Christ, to be more like him, to act and react as he would, to love the things he loves, to hate the things he hates, to pursue the goals that he pursues etc.

3. Don’t ever underestimate the value of experience and maturity. There is no substitute for experience. That’s what Joseph lacked. You may have the very best and highest education in the world. You may be the smartest person on the block. You may have wonderful parents who taught you well. You may have a good job. But there is still no substitute for experience. Remember that you can’t get experience in a hurry. The very nature of experience is that is takes time. That’s why “elders” are called “elders”. They are men with experience and understanding, both of which come with time. The very title conveys age because as you grow older you gain wisdom and discernment. As you grow older you begin to realize how much you don’t know, while when you’re younger you think you know it all. I think we see this in Joseph.

But there is one caveat. Age doesn’t guarantee maturity. We see that in Jacob. Nor is age the only prerequisite for being an “elder”. I know men who are somewhat immature despite being 60 or 70, even 80 years old.

4. We need to be aware of our own insecurities and anxieties and we need to deal with them. Insecurity and anxiety often leads us to increased efforts to prove ourselves, leading to compulsive behaviors, focus on perfectionism, never admitting that we’re wrong etc. But insecurity really stems from a false understanding of who we are in Christ. Because if we understand who we are in Christ, it changes the way we view ourselves. And when we see ourselves as “servants” of Christ, as Paul did, we don’t look for any special recognition from others.

I trust that this introductory study of the fascinating life of Joseph has been a blessing to you. As we continue these studies, Lord willing, my prayer is that you will grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” (2 Pet. 3:18).

Related Topics: Character Study, Christian Life

2. The Pit Of Slavery (Genesis 37:12-36)

Related Media

Some parents and grandparents leave wonderful legacies. We often hear that in testimonies at funerals. You can see in some people the impact of their godly and wise parents and other family members stamped on their lives. But such is not the case with Joseph. As the story of Joseph unfolds, the Spirit of God draws a picture of a family that you would never dream could give rise to such an amazing man as Joseph. In fact, by now you might even be asking, “Can any good thing come out of the house of Israel?”

So far, we have learned very little about Joseph. The focus has been on his father and brothers and the role they played in Joseph’s early years as they unwittingly fulfilled the sovereign purposes and plans of God in Joseph’s life. In fact, we learn little about Joseph until he reaches Egypt.

The subject in our passage is: “The Bitter Emotions of Resentment and Betrayal”. In this unfolding picture of Joseph’s father and brothers we see that uncontrolled negative emotions lead from one sin to another. But despite the hatred and resentment displayed by Joseph’s brothers and the irresponsibility displayed by his father, the overall principle in Joseph’s life is that God is sovereign – what others intend for evil, God can use for good to achieve his purposes.

Last time we began to see how Joseph’s family background of favoritism, lying, and scheming formed a most improbable foundation for Joseph’s later achievements and character. And yet, as we noted before, such behavior does not need to be repeated generation after generation – it can stop. And it did ultimately stop with Joseph, despite being surrounded by a clueless father (couldn’t relate to his sons, didn’t pick up on their feelings, couldn’t express his own emotions properly) and resentful brothers (with all of their deep psychological and emotional problems). Certainly Jacob’s background, character, and personality help us understand why his sons acted as they did. “Like father; like son” was certainly a true maxim in Jacob’s family.

Jacob was clueless as a father but wealthy as a farmer. His wealth is clearly visible in the size of the gift he gave to Esau to placate his lingering anger when he came back home from Uncle Laban’s after 20 years (Gen. 32:14-15). This is an extremely wealthy man and now he is so wealthy that he has farming operations in Shechem, 50 miles away from where he now lives in Hebron. When you have assets where you can’t see them it’s always good to have someone you can trust looking after them. Just ask the thousands of investors who discovered in late 2008 that they had been defrauded out of billions of dollars by Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme.

Jacob employed his sons to look after his business operations in Shechem. After all, who better than your own flesh and blood to be trusted with your money? But evidently Jacob becomes concerned about what was happening when he wasn’t around. Perhaps he was concerned that “when the cat’s away the mice play!” Or, perhaps he thought that even his sons might be ripping him off when he wasn’t around. Knowing what we know about Jacob himself and his business ethics, he would have every reason to suspect that his sons had adopted the same practices that he had. Why wouldn’t they? Why wouldn’t they cheat and steal and lie and scheme? After all, they had several generations before them who had done it. It was a family tradition. So, it must surely have crossed his mind that they would have no compulsion about cheating their dear old dad. After all, he had done it once himself, hadn’t he (Gen. 25:29-34; 27:1-36)? Or, perhaps it was Joseph’s previous bad report about his brothers (Gen. 37:2) that caused Jacob to be concerned about what was going on over at the farm in Shechem. Or, to be charitable, perhaps Jacob was genuinely worried about his sons welfare. After all, working away from home isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, is it? There were long days and a hard commute and lots of distractions. Any father would want to know how his sons were getting along. Or, perhaps, Jacob couldn’t get out of his mind the sordid affair that took place in Shechem years before (Gen. 34) when his sons manifested…

I. The Overpowering Emotion Of Hate: The Shechem Atrocity (Gen. 34)

Jacob and his entourage were on their way back to Canaan from Uncle Laban’s and they came to Shechem (33:18-20). He must have liked the place, because he didn’t just pitch his tent there (he didn’t just get a motel room for the night), he actually bought the parcel of land where they camped from a man called Hamor. He even erected an altar there. This was going to be home, at least for a while.

One day, Dinah, Jacob’s daughter, went into the wrong part of town. It was innocent enough. She just wanted to get to know the other ladies of the area (34:1), albeit, they were idol-worshipping pagans - not the sort of women you’d really want your daughter hanging around with.

That’s when any father’s worst nightmare happened - his daughter, Dinah, was sexually violated by Shechem (34:2), Hamor’s son (after whom the city was named). Now it isn’t clear whether this means he had raped her or that he had defiled her sexual purity by having sex with her without being married to her. Actually, Shechem isn’t as bad a guy as at first you might think. We’re told that “He was more honorable than all the household of his father” (34:19). I hate to think what the rest were like!

Jacob’s reaction to this sordid affair was most bizarre. When he found out what had happened to Dinah, instead of exploding like a canon, guess what? He kept quiet until the boys came home from work that night (34:5). Can you believe that? He didn’t say a word! What kind of father was that?

In any event, Shechem professed to really love Dinah and wanted to marry her. So, according to the custom, his father, Hamor, tried to get Jacob’s approval for the marriage (34:6-11).

In contrast to their father, when the boys heard what had happened, they were like red hot pistols. They couldn’t see straight they were so mad. Hate overpowered them. And when someone is that angry, there’s no telling what they will do – reason, courtesy, honour, integrity all go out the window. Add to their anger the fact that they had a long history of dysfunctional role models in their family as to how to handle disputes and then you know there are going to be fireworks.

So, the boys took over the negotiations while Jacob is silent. Hamor must have thought his offer could not be refused. The terms of his offer were that (1) Jacob’s sons could marry the Shechemite women and (2) they could own property and run businesses there. In other words, Hamor is offering full residency status with the opportunity to become wealthy.

And Shechem’s offer was over the top (34:12). Shechem, the suitor, offered to pay any dowry that Jacob asked: “Just name your price! Money is no object!” So, now there is a lot of money on the table plus they could own land, buy and sell, and get wives there. They were made! But anger isn’t so easily assuaged. Revenge was smoldering in their hearts.

So, the boys made a counter offer. They told Shechem and his father that they couldn’t give their sister Dinah to Shechem because he was uncircumcised, but perhaps they could make a deal! If the men of Shechem underwent circumcision, then there could be intermarriage among them and they would become “one people” (34:16). Failing that, if they refused to be circumcised, then they would simply take their sister and leave. All offers were off. It was a “take-it-or-leave-it” offer.

Hamor and Shechem said, “Sounds good to us. You’ve got yourself a deal” (34:18). So they talked the other men of the city into it as well, reasoning that if Jacob’s family dwelled with them permanently, they would all benefit from their livestock, property, trading etc. Jacob’s business enterprise would increase their local economy and improve their standard of living. Little did they know that they had just been “had” by the master deceivers and schemers.

Thus, the men of Shechem were all circumcised. And while they were recovering and still in pain, on the third day Simeon and Levi took their swords and killed every man in the place, including Hamor and Shechem (34:25-26). Then, if that wasn’t enough, the rest of the brothers came and plundered the city, taking all their animals, their goods, their crops, and all their wealth, capturing their wives and children and all their household possessions as well (34:28-29)

Once again, Jacob’s reaction is bizarre to say the least. He didn’t care about the atrocity that they had committed. He only cared that his reputation had been marred and he had been put in danger: “You’ve troubled me by making me obnoxious among the inhabitants of the land ... and since I am few in number, they will gather themselves together against me and kill me. I shall be destroyed, my household and I” (34:30).

How self-focused can you get. The men have just been murdered by your sons and the city has been decimated by them. And all you care about is your reputation and safety! Self-focused people are like that. They don’t care about the morality of the circumstances. They don’t think about the atrocity just committed. They don’t worry about anyone else’s well-being. It’s all about them.

Well, perhaps this experience was on Jacob’s mind when he sent Joseph to check on his brothers in Shechem. If his sons could do that when he was right there, what might they be doing when he wasn’t looking? And what about the Shechemite people? They hadn’t forgotten the mass murder of their countrymen. Perhaps they would take revenge on his sons.

In any event, whatever the reason, back in our chapter 37, Jacob says to Joseph (the stay-at-home, favorite son), “Are not your brothers feeding the flock in Shechem? Come, I will send you to them... Please go and see if it is well with your brothers and well with the flocks, and bring back word to me.” So he sent him out of the valley of Hebron and he went to Shechem (37:13-14).

What we see unfold now is ...

II. The Lingering Influence Of Resentment (Gen. 37:18-36)

When Joseph was still in the distance, his brothers’ hatred was rekindled and they “conspired against him to kill him” (37:18). Resentment is a powerful emotion. It is often accompanied by revenge. Resentment is that insidious emotion that hides behind our thoughts and actions. It’s never usually out in the open but it whispers in our heart: “Remember what he / she did to you when ...? Remember what he / she said about you ...?” That’s the subtle power of an unforgiving memory.

The sight of his multicolored coat probably set them off. They were dressed in work clothes suited to shepherding sheep but Joseph was dressed in a robe suited to a king’s palace. And all their previous feelings of resentment against daddy’s favorite son were aroused again. “Look this dreamer is coming. Come, therefore, let us now kill him and cast him into some pit; and we shall say, ‘Some wild beast has devoured him.’ We shall see what will become of his dreams” (37:19-20).

The memory of his dreams and his previous “bad report” still obviously were a sore point with them. They resented him and desperately wanted revenge. The last people who had crossed them were all brutally murdered. Jacob’s sons aren’t exactly angels. They are thugs, who will stop at nothing to get revenge.

So, the plan is to kill Joseph. This would be an ideal place to do it without anyone seeing them. They would dump the body into a pit and then they would report to Jacob that a wild beast had devoured him. That’s the scheme – a cold blooded murder and a water tight lie. “Then let’s see what will become of his dreams,” they said. In other words, “We’ll make sure that his dreams don’t come true!”

But into this murderous plan comes a voice of moderation. Reuben, the oldest son, wants to change the plan just a bit. Reuben said, “‘Let us not kill him ... Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit which is in the wilderness, and do not lay a hand upon him’ – that he might deliver him out of their hands, and bring him back to his father” (37:21-22). Among the 11 brothers it seems that Reuben was the only one with any conscience at all. But he is still Jacob’s son with the family genes. He’s still a schemer. Now he is scheming against his brothers, but with good intentions. At least he wants to save Joseph’s life.

So, that’s what they did. “They stripped Joseph of his tunic, the tunic of many colors that was on him. Then they took him and cast him into a pit. And the pit was empty; there was no water in it” (37:23-24). This wasn’t exactly a happy family reunion. His dreams certainly didn’t look like they would come true – quite the opposite. Though it does not say so here, we know later that Joseph was scared to death and pleaded with his brothers for his life, but they would not listen (42:21).

But now they have a dilemma: What do they do with Joseph? They can’t leave him in the pit forever. Reuben, the one who had proposed the present course of action, is absent now and the rest of the brothers evidently don’t know how to move forward. So, now what?

Do you see how complicated sin is? Do you see how uncontrolled emotions lead from one sin to another? Hatred, resentment, and revenge make a tangled web that leads from one problem to another. You tell one lie and then you have to tell another to cover up that one and on and on it goes. If they weren’t going to take Joseph’s life, what were they to do with him? And what would they tell their father anyway? These were callous, cold-blooded killers. While their brother is in the pit wondering how this would all end, they “sat down to eat a meal” (37:25). When they looked up from eating, lo and behold, a caravan of Ishmaelite traders was coming from Gilead on their way to Egypt (37:25).

You can just see the wheels turning in Judah’s head. He was evidently a “profit-oriented” guy, the businessman of the bunch, a “bottom line” thinker. He sees an immediate solution to their dilemma: “What profit is there if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and let not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother and our flesh” (37:26-27). Judah’s reasoning is, “Look, it’s all well and good to kill Joseph, but that wouldn’t make us any money, would it? Much better that we sell him to these traders rather than kill him. And, listen, don’t forget he is our brother after all. Yes, it would be so much better to sell our brother rather than kill him. Killing him is a bit extreme and we wouldn’t gain anything by it. We might as well make money while we’re at it.”

Clearly, the idea of killing Joseph wasn’t dead yet. As they ate their lunch, they must have still been debating whether to go through with it, especially if Reuben, the moralizer, the voice of conscience, wasn’t around. So, this is a perfect way out of the dilemma, a great compromise. We won’t kill him, we’ll sell him. “So, the brothers pulled Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit and sold him to the Ishmaelites for 20 shekels of silver. And they took Joseph to Egypt” (37:28).

Hardly has the ink has dried on the contract, than Reuben returns for Joseph. No one is around, and when he looks into the pit – no Joseph! Deeply distressed, Reuben returns to his brothers and says, “The lad is no more; and I, where shall I go?” (37:30). It seems that Reuben’s concern is not so much for Joseph as it is for himself: “What am I going to do?” I wonder where he learned that from? Good old Dad, of course. “Poor me, what am I going to do?” Not, poor Joseph, what’s he going to do? No, it’s all about self.

The problem is that Reuben is the oldest son and as such would have to give account to Jacob for Joseph’s disappearance. Compared to his brothers, Reuben may not seem so bad. You know, he at least talked some sense into his brothers so that they did not kill Joseph, and he at least seemed to have a sense of accountability to his father. But, remember, Reuben is no angel either. He has a history. In fact, Reuben has a shocking past.

Some time previously, he had committed incest with Bilhah, Rachel’s maid servant and one of Jacob’s concubines (35:22), the mother of his two brothers, Dan and Naphtali. This is an extreme example of what can happen in blended, multiple-wife families. Again, as with the Dinah incident, Jacob remained silent again. We’re certainly getting a clear picture of Jacob and his philosophy of parenting. He seems to have the same kind of policy on parenting as the U.S. armed forces have on homosexuals: “Don’t ask; don’t tell.” At the time of Reuben’s incest, Jacob did nothing and said nothing but he evidently had a long memory, because, on his death bed, his last words to Reuben were, “Reuben, I’ve got good news and bad news. The good news is, “you are my firstborn, my might and the beginning of my strength, the excellence of dignity and the excellence of power.” But the bad news is, “unstable as water, you shall not excel, because you went up to your father’s bed; then you defiled it” (49:3-4).

This isn’t exactly what you want to hear from your father on his death bed, is it? Isn’t it sad that Jacob waited until that moment to get it off his chest and disapprove of Reuben’s behavior.

Anyway, Reuben is caught between a rock and a hard place. He has his brothers to deal with on one hand and his father on the other. He thought he would return and rescue Joseph from the pit, take him home, and all would be well; Joseph would be safe and Jacob wouldn’t know the difference. But now Joseph is missing and he needs another way out.

The web of deceit gets more and more complicated. Now they have to cook up another scheme (37:31). So, they dipped Joseph’s coat into blood and said to Jacob, “We have found this. Do you know whether it is your son’s tunic or not?” (37:32). Butter wouldn’t melt in their mouths! “We found this! How gross. What could have happened? Is it your son’s, by any chance?” Notice they don’t say, “Is this our brother Joseph’s?” But, “Is it your son’s, by chance?”

Of course Jacob recognized it right away. It was unique. And he drew the exact conclusion that they wanted him to, “A wild beast has devoured him” (37:33). Jacob immediately went into an extended period of deep mourning. He “tore his garments and put sackcloth on his waist and mourned for his son many days. All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted and said, ‘No, I shall go down into the grave to my son in mourning’” (37:34-35). It reminds us of David’s mourning for Absalom with such deep grief that he wished he had died in Absalom’s place. Probably Jacob kicked himself a hundred times for having sent Joseph out to check on his brothers.

Jacob doesn’t seem to have grasped the character of his sons. He evidently was not a reflective person. He didn’t sit around thinking much about life and morality and his family. He didn’t put 2 + 2 together – i.e. his sons were murderers + they hated Joseph = they will kill him. There is no evidence that Jacob suspected his boys at all. Their butchery, deceit, incest hadn’t registered in Jacob’s thinking that perhaps they had perpetrated this crime.

It’s amazing how blind we can be as parents. We don’t see the real character and behavior of our children. We can see it in other people’s children but not our own. The biblical truth is that we reap what we sow. This was certainly true in Jacob’s life. The law of the harvest is a universal principle and nowhere more so than in the family. If we do not train up our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, we will reap the consequences. If we do not spend time with our children, figuring out what makes them tick, where they are, who their friends are etc., we may be in for a nasty shock one day.

The chapter ends with a note of dramatic irony. While Jacob is mourning, we know the truth - Joseph is alive and has been sold by Midianite slave traders to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s officers (37:36). That statement sets us up for the rest of the story in which, despite all its twists and turns, God is sovereignly working out his purposes in Joseph’s life

In these stories about O.T. characters we learn so many lessons for our lives today. In this passage about Joseph and his family, the behavioral principles we have noticed is that…

1. Uncontrolled emotions lead from one sin to another. Joseph’s brothers suffered from the uncontrolled emotions of hate and resentment. Jacob resented what Reuben had done to Bilhah. Joseph’s brothers hated the men of Shechem because of what they had done to their sister, Dinah. And they resented Joseph because of his favored position, bad reports of them etc. Other negative emotions that often rage uncontrolled in people’s lives are envy and jealousy, bitterness and grudge, fear and worry, guilt and blame, shame and rejection.

Uncontrolled emotions all stem from a depraved heart. Jesus said, “Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies” (Matt. 15:19). “Hate” is the emotion which, when uncontrolled, leads to murder, whether psychological murder or physical. That’s how powerful emotions are.

Remember: Whoever hates his brother is a murderer: and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him” (1 Jn. 3:15). And, Eph. 4:31-32 says, Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake has forgiven you.”

This is the contrast between a redeemed heart and an unredeemed heart. Christians should live in the reality of who we are in Christ. We are his redeemed people. We are God’s children – His sons and daughters. We are precious to God. We are no longer dominated by sin but by righteousness (Rom. 6:11-14). We are members of Christ’s body. We are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ. We are holy and beloved.

So, the first behavioral principle we notice in our passage is that uncontrolled emotions lead from one sin to another. The second behavioral principle is that…

2. Self-absorption is irresponsible and immature. Jacob is an example of a father who is totally absorbed with himself and totally disconnected from his kids. He has no sensitivity to what’s going on in their lives, nor does he care until it’s too late on his death bed. When he should have spoken up and disciplined his kids he remained silent, even in the face of the most egregious crimes like the sexual violation of his daughter, murder, and incest! But in the meantime, he has modelled a lifestyle that they have followed perfectly. His character, values, ethics, lifestyle, self-focus are all adopted by his sons. Only Joseph broke out of that mold and how he ever turned out as he did is only attributable to God’s sovereign grace.

But you see, for example, in Reuben, the exact duplicate of his father’s self-absorbed thinking, “What about me. Poor me.” And you see in the others, their father’s ethics and character duplicated exactly.

Like Jacob, so many parents are more absorbed with themselves than their kids. They don’t spend time with them because they would rather be doing what they want to do - watching sports or socializing or earning more money or building a bigger house. So, the kids are shipped off to baby-sitters or sent to summer camp just to be rid of them for a while. Like Jacob, the only thing they care about is that their children don’t embarrass them or in any way negatively affect them.

Like Jacob, so many parents do not discipline their children. Why? Because they are absorbed with themselves and shirk their parental responsibility. Yet, discipline and order and standards are what children want. That’s the environment in which they thrive and become strong, responsible adults. They like teachers who keep order in the class room and they want parents who mean what they say because that gives them security and consistency and order. Children whose fathers don’t exercise discipline are often insecure and angry because they never knew where they stand. No one ever taught them the boundaries, so they are lost, trying to make their own way in life.

3. Whatever your values are will be passed on to your children. They are watching you every step of the way. Parents are their primary role models. How you handle your money will be passed on to them. How you spend your time will be passed on to them. Your standard of sexual morality will be passed on to them. Your commitment to the Lord will be passed on to them. Of course, God is sovereign, as in Joseph’s life, and He can and does change the pattern, but that does not let us off the hook.

All of this background serves to emphasize the amazing life of Joseph, who suddenly comes into focus when he reaches Egypt. And in Joseph we suddenly find not someone who harbors resentment (as you might expect), not someone who is irresponsible and immature, not someone who has uncontrolled emotions in his life, but someone who is clearly a beautiful picture of Christ - though he was reviled, he did not revile others in return; though he suffered, he did not threaten in return (2 Pet. 2:21-24).

Written across the entire story of Joseph’s life is this motto: God is sovereign – what others intend for evil, God can use for good to achieve his purposes.

Related Topics: Character Study, Christian Life

3. Overcoming Temptation: When Doing What’s Right Can Go So Wrong (Gen. 39:1-20)

Related Media

Sexual temptation is one of the most prevalent temptations in our society today. Sadly, so many Christian men and women are falling into it, such is the influence of the world’s sexual mores. While we must not create a hierarchy of sins (for all sins are equally heinous to God), nevertheless sexual sin has a particularly pungent odor since it destroys marriages, families, careers, churches etc., and it can destroy the work of the gospel.

This is an area of temptation to which we are all vulnerable. Rare is the person who can truly say: “This is not an area of life that has any hold on me. I never have illicit sexual thoughts or feelings.”

In this study, we will see how Joseph responded to an overt, powerful sexual temptation. Our subject is: “Standing for righteousness” – specifically in overcoming sexual temptation. The theological lesson that we learn here is that “being faithful in resisting temptation does not necessarily bring immediate reward.”

We’ll see that Joseph’s safeguard in this situation was his relationship with God, his understanding of sin, and his respect for his master. We’ll also see that Joseph paid a severe penalty for his choice - it cost him his job as the overseer in Potiphar’s household, it cost him his reputation, and it cost him his freedom - he went from a position of influence to the depths of prison.

The key phrase here is, “The Lord was with Joseph ... and the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand (39:2-3). Throughout all of Joseph’s experiences to date, God was with him. His brothers had forsaken him (and, to a certain extent his father had forsaken him) but God was with him. The inference here is that God was preparing Joseph through this experience for even greater things in the future.

Up to now, the focus has been on Joseph’s father, Jacob, and the brothers. We won’t hear about them again until a considerable period of time has elapsed. Now the focus shifts to Joseph directly. In other words, chapter 37 was background to the story that is now about to be told. But for the interim, Joseph continues to be a pawn in God’s providence. He does not know what is happening or why. Only later will he discover that God had a special role and position for him to play in a very stressful and unsettling time in the history of God’s people.

But, as with all positions of authority and responsibility such a role and position cannot be occupied by Joseph until he is fully prepared for it – spiritually, psychologically, practically, emotionally. God’s preparation of Joseph began when he was a teenager but the specific training for his ultimate position of Prime Minister takes place in Egypt.

Notice these three principles. First…

I. God Providentially Intervenes In Our Lives To Accomplish His Purposes (39:1-6a)

Despite the fact that Joseph had been taken to Egypt and that Potiphar had purchased him from the Ishmaelite slave traders like a chattel, a piece of goods, an asset, we see the Lord’s favor toward Joseph when the narrator of the story nonchalantly says, “The Lord was with Joseph” (39:2). The fact that Joseph became the property of a high ranking officer in Pharaoh’s elite guard is an indicator of God’s providential intervention in Joseph’s life and of the direction that Joseph’s life will take, albeit, with some twists and turns yet to come.

Potiphar was a man of high position and responsibility. He was probably in charge of Pharaoh’s personal bodyguards. He was also in charge of the executioners and, as such, he was responsible for carrying out the death penalty in Egypt. That Joseph is brought into this man’s household is evidence that “the Lord was with Joseph and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian” (39:2). He was “successful” precisely because “the Lord was with him.” We don’t know what earned Joseph the description of a “successful man.” My sense is that working in Potiphar’s household alone was a plum job. Even though Joseph had done nothing to acquire it, God made sure he got it.

Evidently Joseph’s character, skills, integrity, and work ethic were such that not only does the Spirit of God record that “the Lord was with him” (39:2) but his pagan, Egyptian master, Potiphar, also made the same observation: “His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand” (39:3). With such a testimony, no wonder “Joseph found favor in his (Potiphar’s) sight,” eventually being promoted to “overseer of (Potiphar’s) house and all that he had he put under his authority” (39:4). Joseph became Potiphar’s estate manager, responsible for all Potiphar’s servants, his assets, and his business activities.

Potiphar’s decision to give Joseph the most senior management position in his household was confirmed in that “from the time that he made him overseer of his house and all that he had, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had in the house and in the field” (39:5). The blessing of God was upon that household because of Joseph.

Do you see how God was providentially at work in Joseph’s life? Not only has He preserved Joseph’s life from the murderous intent of his brothers, but He has orchestrated every step of the way forward, such that Joseph ended up in the house of a senior government official who recognized the extraordinary nature of Joseph’s character and abilities, and the blessing of Joseph’s God upon his household. In fact, Joseph’s sphere of responsibility encompassed absolutely everything in Potiphar’s household such that “(Potiphar) left all that he had in Joseph’s hand and he did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate” (39:6a). This was the extent to which God was active in Joseph’s life. This was nothing short of miraculous. After all, it wasn’t as though Joseph had any specialized training for such a position. And yet, Potiphar’s entire estate and business activities prospered more than he could have ever imagined. Although he undoubtedly didn’t care about Joseph’s God, what he had earlier observed was absolutely true – “the Lord was with him” (39:3).

It’s funny how prosperity can override religious convictions. Potiphar was an idol worshipper, whereas Joseph worshipped the one true God of Israel. But so long as his bank account was growing and his business ventures were succeeding and his net worth was increasing Potiphar didn’t care about religion. For Potiphar, Joseph’s on-the-job performance was all that mattered. And Joseph’s on-the-job performance was entirely due to the Lord being with him – not to Joseph’s experience, training, qualifications, or connections. Thus, through God’s providential intervention in his life, Joseph enjoyed God’s favor and Potiphar’s favor, and Potiphar also benefitted from God’s blessing on him because of Joseph.

It’s amazing that Potiphar didn’t attribute Joseph’s success to his upbringing or previous training, but instead concluded that “the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand” (39:3b). Why would this pagan Egyptian come to that conclusion? Two possibilities come to mind. First, my guess is that Joseph’s testimony was as transparent as Daniel’s, so that everybody knew his faith in God. Second, Potiphar knew that Joseph was an Israelite and, somehow, he must have also known the reputation of the God of Israel as a powerful, living God, who acts on behalf of his people.

What a wonderful testimony to Joseph’s character and behavior, that even under these unsettling circumstances, even in a strange country working for a strange man, not knowing why his brothers had treated him as they had, and not knowing what the future held, nonetheless, Joseph’s conduct was of such a nature that even his unbelieving master attributed is to the Lord - “the Lord was with him.”

Evidently, Joseph’s attitude did not reflect his earlier experiences at the hands of his brothers or his pampered treatment by his father. Instead, he made the most of his situation. He didn’t think that the world owed him a living, as so many people do today. He clearly didn’t rebel or mope but worked hard. Joseph is an example of one whose faithfulness “in a few things” leads to being put in charge of “many things” (Matt. 25:21).

This is a principle for Christian living. This is an example of the Christian work ethic and attitude. Work hard for the glory of God, not to please men and, generally, your employer will reward you because they like the Christian work ethic and attitude.

This is what we all must strive for - a testimony in our workplace through words and deeds that the Lord is with us and prospering us. He is the one we serve and honor in our lives. His approbation is what we work for, “being obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ doing the will of God from the heat, with goodwill doing service as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free (Eph. 6:5-8).

How can employers become aware of this? By Christians who pray before eating their food. By Christians who treat others with dignity and respect. By Christians who stand for honesty no matter what. By Christians who speak with wholesome words. By Christians who go the extra mile without looking for recognition. What an impact that would have for the glory of God and the spread of the gospel!

The first principle we learn from this narrative is that God providentially intervenes in our lives to accomplish his purposes. Second…

II. In The Midst Of Success Satan Takes The Opportunity To Attack Us (39:6b-12)

Not only did Potiphar favor Joseph but his wife did as well, but for entirely different and wrong reasons. Potiphar favored Joseph because of his character and ability, but his wife favored Joseph because of his sexual attraction: “Now Joseph was handsome in from and appearance” (39:6b). Potiphar’s wife was motivated solely by sexual desire. Her demand of Joseph was neither discrete nor bashful: “And it came to pass after these things that his master’s wife cast longing eyes on Joseph and she said, ‘Lie with me’” (39:7).

Notice what Mrs. Potiphar was motivated by: Joseph’s body – “he was handsome in form” (39:6b), well built, a hunk of a man - and Joseph’s good looks - “he was handsome in…appearance” (39:6b). She made no bones about what she wanted. She didn’t beat around the bush. This was a woman who knew what she wanted and obviously, given her husband’s position, she was used to getting her wishes, no questions asked. History tells us that women in Egypt at this time were considerably more liberated than in other countries and cultures.

Aren’t these the same fleshly motivations for people today - physical, bodily form, facial features, appearance? Isn’t the entire emphasis of our society today on physical form rather than moral character, on superficial appearance rather than significant intellect, on the shape of the body rather than the function of the mind, on external impression rather than internal convictions? It’s the external looks with which advertisers sell cars and clothes. So, nothing really has changed, has it?

Potiphar was motivated by the financial gain of Joseph’s abilities and Potiphar’s wife was motivated by the sexual attraction of Joseph appearance. So, what now?

There were many reasons why Joseph might have succumbed to this temptation:

1. His brothers’ perverted sexual standards.

2. His father’s complex history with, and treatment of, women.

3. This woman’s superior position and power in comparison to his own. Joseph was in a no-win situation. If he refused her, he ran the risk of her wrath. If he complied, he ran the risk of being found out by Potiphar.

4. The pressure of his own natural sexual desires.

5. The promiscuous influence of the Egyptian society.

6. The persistent demands of this woman who wouldn’t take “no” for an answer. Even after his refusal, “she spoke to Joseph day by day ... to lie with her or to be with her” (39:10).

But, despite the possible consequences, Joseph still refused her. “He did not heed her” (39:10). Joseph’s reasons for resisting her seductive overtures tell us a lot about Joseph’s character and spirituality. The story gives us three reasons behind Joseph’s refusal of her:

1. The Trust Factor (39:8)

“But Joseph refused and said to his master’s wife, ‘Look, my master does not know what is with me in the house, and he has committed all that he has to my hand (39:8). Potiphar trusted Joseph implicitly. Potiphar had given over everything into Joseph’s care and control to the extent, Joseph explains, that “My master doesn’t even know what he owns and doesn’t own. He has no idea what goes on around the estate on a day-to-day basis. It would be really easy for me to do what you want, such is the independence that I enjoy here, but to do so would breach a fundamental relationship of trust.”

Potiphar left Joseph in the house all day every day alone with the other servants and his wife. That was the degree of his trust in, and relationship with, Joseph, and Joseph reciprocated that trust and that relationship.

So, there was the trust factor, and there was…

2. The Moral Factor (39:9a)

The trust relationship and duty to Potiphar extended even to his sexual fidelity with Potiphar’s wife. She was the only thing that Potiphar had “kept back” from him (39:9), such was the value and exclusivity of the marriage relationship. She was Potiphar’s woman exclusively. Joseph had no right or title to any compromising or illicit relationship with her. Joseph understood fully and clearly the exclusive nature of the marriage relationship. That in itself is amazing, given Joseph’s family background concerning sexual morality and marriage commitments.

The third motivation for Joseph’s refusal of her was…

3. The Spiritual Factor (39:9b)

For Joseph, the trust commitment to his boss was the product of his spiritual values before God. “How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” (39:9b).

First, notice that it is agreat wickedness.” That was Joseph’s estimation of what she was demanding of him – “a great wickedness”. It wasn’t an error in judgement. It wasn’t an addiction. It wasn’t a mistake or momentary slip. It was a “great wickedness” that stems from the depraved depths of the human heart. Remember back in Gen. 6: Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Gen. 6:5).

Second, notice that it is a “sin against God.” He doesn’t say, “How then I can I do this great wickedness and sin against your husband.” Any sin against Potiphar, in Joseph’s spiritual thinking, was a sin against God, as indeed it would be. We aren’t told how Joseph knew this. He certainly had not been taught this at home growing up. Perhaps it is part of the intrinsic structure of the human conscience that we all know intuitively that immoral sexual relations are a sin against God.

To engage in such immoral activity would have marred Joseph’s testimony and reflection of God. After all, Potiphar had already observed that “the Lord as with him.” If he succumbed to her sexual advances the reputation of God and Joseph’s reflection of that would go right down the drain. This perhaps is the most serious consequence of immorality – the reflection on God, the dishonor done to his name and testimony.

Joseph’s relationship with and understanding of God is greater than we perhaps give him credit. How he got this knowledge and why it was clearly displayed in him is a mystery, except that God was sovereignly working in his life.

Evidently, Joseph was already attributing to God, first, his master’s recognition of God and the favor that he extended to Joseph as a result, and, second, his new found position and power. To commit such “great wickedness” as this would have been disastrous to Joseph’s testimony and position, to Potiphar’s marriage, and to the moral character of the God of Israel in Potiphar’s eyes.

Thus we see that God providentially intervenes in our lives to accomplish his purposes, but in the midst of success Satan takes the opportunity to attack us. And, third…

III. The Results Of Acting Righteously Are Not Always What We Expect (39:10-20)

We expect to be rewarded for uprightness, integrity, loyalty, but such is not always the case. Joseph’s resistance was resolute, intransigent, unmoving. “She spoke to Joseph day after day ... and he did not heed her to lie with her or to be with her” (39:10). There was no chink in his armor. He didn’t compromise or say, “OK, just this once.” She didn’t wear him down with her persistent seduction. But there came a day when her verbal aggression changed to physical: “It happened about this time, when Joseph went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house was inside, that she caught him by his garment, saying, ‘Lie with me.’ But he left his garment in her hand and fled and ran outside” (39:11-12).

Perhaps this was the first time that all the circumstances were just right for her to play her last card. The house was empty; they were alone. There was no human reason why Joseph should not comply now. Instead of verbal persuasion, she switches to physical. She grabbed his cloak, presumably to remove it and to draw him towards her.

This, of course, is one of the deadliest of circumstances. To be caught alone in a building with a woman who has sexual designs is a trap straight from hell. In her insidious deceitfulness, she knew that this was her moment. She had probably planned this over several days, saying to herself, “If I can’t wear him down with my persistence, I’ll overcome him physically.”

Satan knows the power of the physical, the heat of the moment, the lust of the flesh, the overwhelming seduction of touch, the overpowering influence of physical contact, the appeal to a man of a woman’s passionate desire, the flood of pride that stems from a woman’s attention, the power over a man of the sight of a woman’s body (as David found out). All this is straight from Satan, going around seeking whom he may devour (1 Pet. 5:8), doing anything and everything to try and destroy our relationship with God and our testimony for God.

This is classic Satanic temptation. He wore Eve down with his subtle arguments and she fell for it. And here he is working on Joseph. The stakes were huge with Eve – it impacted the rest of human history. And the stakes were big with Joseph as well – if Satan could win he would impact an entire nation.

But Joseph didn’t hesitate for moment. He knew what was happening and responded instinctively. “He left his garment in her hand and fled outside”(39:12). Her grip was so strong that his cloak came right off in her hand as he ran away from her. No longer did Joseph use words to resist her temptations. No longer did he try to dissuade her from her proposal. She had become physically aggressive and so did he, by tearing himself from her grasp and running away. So, two intense actions collided with each other - her sexual, physical attack of Joseph in an attempt to physically dominate him and seduce him; and his physical response to get away, even though that meant tearing his cloak and leaving it hanging in her hand.

It isn’t hard to figure out what would happen next. As William Congreve expressed it in the play “The Mourning Bride,” “Hell has no fury like a woman scorned.” Potiphar’s wife began to scream and shout as Joseph’s refusal turned her sexual desire for him into personal hatred of him. “And so it was that when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand, and fled outside that she called to the men of her house and spoke to them, saying, ‘See, he has brought in to s a Hebrew to mock us. He came in to me to lie with me and I cried out with a loud voice. And it happened when he heard that I lifted my voice and cried out, that he left his garment with me, and fled and went outside’” (39:13-15).

It’s so devastating to be falsely accused. In retaliation, Joseph is falsely accused by this seductress who twists the truth of what happened. According to her, it was all Joseph’s fault - he was the aggressor, not her; he was the seducer, not her. In front of the servants she accuses Joseph of attempting to rape her! And cleverly, “she kept (Joseph’s) garment with her until his master came home. Then she spoke to him with words like these, saying, ‘The Hebrew servant whom you brought to us came in to me to mock me; so it happened, as I lifted my voice and cried out, that he left his garment with me and fled outside’” (39:16-18). She kept the evidence, false as it was. No wonder Solomon warns that a seductress tries to trap a man “as an ox goes to the slaughter or as a fool to the correction of the stocks... Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways, do not stray into her paths; for she has cast down many wounded, and all who were slain by her were strong men. Her house is the way to hell, descending to the chambers of death” (Prov. 7:25-27).

Of course, Potiphar was duped by his wife. “So it was, when his master heard the words which his wife spoke to him, saying, ‘Your servant did to me after this manner,’ that his anger was aroused. Then Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were confined. And he was there in the prison’” (39:19-20). Literally, Potiphar was livid. This begs the question: Livid at whom? His wife or Joseph? He could have had Joseph executed. After all Egyptian law provided that punishment for such a crime and particularly since it involved his wife. And it would have been so easy for Potiphar to order Joseph’s execution as Potiphar was the chief of the executioners. But, curiously, he didn’t. He merely threw him in prison along with the king’s prisoners.

Why would Potiphar have been so lenient? Perhaps Potiphar had suspicions about his wife’s truthfulness. After all, a woman like her doesn’t do this once out of the blue. Perhaps Potiphar trusted Joseph’s word more than his wife’s. Or, perhaps Potiphar had praised Joseph far and wide, telling his friends and colleagues what prosperity he was enjoying because of Joseph’s skills and Joseph’s God, and now, he had the embarrassment of taking action against him for supposedly attempting to rape his wife. Or, perhaps he was livid because he would lose the benefit of Joseph’s financial success. He probably didn’t want to lose Joseph’s management skills but he had to do something. So, perhaps the best compromise was a prison sentence.

But how could “doing what’s right go so wrong”? Why does being faithful in resisting temptation not necessarily bring immediate reward? Because there is a bigger story (a meta-narrative) going on here. The bigger story is that God is working out his purposes in Joseph’s life regardless of circumstances, dire as they may be. Remember the overall principle in Joseph’s life: “They” meant it for evil but “God” meant it for good (Gen. 50:20). God is in control even when it doesn’t appear to us that he is.

That’s why Potiphar did what he did. God’s favor was still on Joseph. God’s sovereign plans for Joseph’s life would be carried out through and in spite of this apparent setback. In fact, was it a setback at all? We would say “Yes.” But was not even this part of God’s sovereign care and control and favor in Joseph’s life?

How can “doing what’s right go so wrong”? This is was what Peter wrote about in his epistle. “It is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil” (1 Pet. 3:17). “For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God” (1 Pet. 2:20). There is such a thing as suffering for righteousness sake (1 Pet. 3:14) by which our accusers condemn us even when we have acted uprightly.

Concluding Remarks

This is a story about a woman tempting a man. But the opposite is just as true and possible, perhaps even more probable. The principles here apply to either gender. Sexual temptation is pervasive in our society. You don’t have to go looking for it, it comes looking for you. So, stay away from it, don’t go near it, don’t tip toe up to it, don’t be curious about it. Don’t be flattered by another person’s sexual interest in you, even though you may be old and flabby and not up to much anymore. Don’t allow yourself to be vulnerable. Don’t get caught in a compromising situation or what might become compromising. Don’t let yourself be isolated with someone of the opposite sex whom you find attractive or who might find you attractive. Don’t ever give someone else the “come-on” – i.e. don’t ever let someone else think that you are available sexually either in what you say or what you do.

And avoid looking at images that might excite you sexually - TV programs, the internet, magazines etc. That was the beginning of David’s downfall with Bathsheba. Walking on the roof of his house one day, “he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was beautiful to look at” (2 Sam. 11:2).

Our primary sexual stimuli come through sight and touch. Don’t think that you ever become immune to it. Sexual temptation is a potential trap for your lifetime, no matter who you are, or your position, your age, or your gender. Young people are tempted because they are young and virulent and because they are at the peak of hormonal activity and drive. But older people are tempted too, perhaps because their marriages have become dull, or perhaps because they are flattered by someone else’s apparent attraction to them. Don’t ever fall into the trap of thinking that you are immune to it. Don’t be deceived into thinking that you are too spiritual. The moment you think that, you are vulnerable. The moment you think that, you’re not very spiritual at all.

Resisting sexual temptation takes courage and spirituality. We must resolutely resist sexual temptation. But on what basis can we do that?

1. By having firm convictions before God about who God is, about what sin is and does, about our relationship to God, about our testimony for God and reflection of God.

2. By having biblical convictions about sexual morality, about the sanctity of marriage and the sexual relationship, about why God created marriage, about why he ordained that sex be exclusively for married partners.

So, what can we do practically in resisting sexual temptation?

1. Maintain a vibrant and regular prayer life. Did you know that it is impossible to pray if you are either engaged in a sinful habit or you are even entertaining sinful thoughts? You cannot pray to a holy God while at the same time engaging in sin. Make Robert Murray McCheyne’s prayer your prayer: “Lord, make me as holy as a saved sinner can be.” How about: “Lord, keep my mind clean, my heart pure, my conscience clear, and my will submissive”

2. Maintain a vibrant and regular Bible reading practice. You cannot sincerely engage in genuine Bible reading and study while at the same time engaging in sin or sinful thoughts.

3. Maintain a vibrant and regular church life. You will not be comfortable at church with other Christians and listening to Bible teaching if you are engaging in sinful practices or thoughts.

4. Maintain a vibrant and intimate circle of Christian friends. Keep each other on track spiritually. Watch out for each other. Take note when one person in the group seems to be losing interest or not mixing with you as they once did.

5. Maintain a vibrant and intimate relationship with God. This seems almost trite to say and a Christian truism. But, did you know that you can engage in prayer and Bible reading and church life, and yet not have a vibrant and intimate relationship with God? Intimacy with God is paramount in resisting temptation: “How can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?”

6. Maintain a ruthless sensitivity to sin. “Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You” (Ps. 119:11; cf. Ps. 51). Remember: If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn. 1:9).

But be warned: when you resist temptation, you may a price. The results may not be what you expect. It might cost you your job and your freedom. You may suffer in terms of rejection (by the other party) and lies about you, false accusations against you (for unrequited passion), spiritual ridicule (about your Christianity). But we must act for and live before God, not other people. We look for God’s approbation, not other people’s. And eventually, God will vindicate us, as he did Joseph. Satan is the accuser of the brethren, but God is our great defender and protector

Don’t ever forget the principle of this story: “Being faithful in resisting temptation is right but it does not necessarily bring immediate reward.” And remember the overall principle in the life of Joseph: God is sovereign – what others intend for evil, God can use for good to achieve his purposes.”

Related Topics: Character Study, Christian Life

4. Responding To Injustice (Gen. 39:20-40:23)

Related Media

There have been many examples of injustice in world history. Nelson Mandela was incarcerated unjustly for 27 years for his crusade against apartheid in South Africa. Alexander Solzhenitsyn was unjustly imprisoned and forgotten. In February 1945, Solzhenitsyn was arrested for writing derogatory comments about Stalin and the war. He was accused of anti-Soviet propaganda and of “founding a hostile organization.” After being beaten and interrogated, on July 7, 1945, he was sentenced in his absence to an 8 year term in a labor camp. Through his writings he helped to make the world aware of the Gulag, the Soviet Union‘s forced labor camp system. He was exiled in 1974 and didn’t return until 1994. For Solzhenitsyn this experience resulted in his spiritual conversion.

Elie Wiesel, the holocaust survivor, is another example. Unlike Solzhenitsyn, Wiesel’s experience, in his words, “consumed his faith forever.” This is what he writes:

“Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget that smoke. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky. Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever. Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence which deprived me, for all eternity, of the desire to live. Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God himself. Never.” (Elie Wiesel, Night, trans. Stella Rodway, N.Y.: Bantam Books, 1960, 32).

We know that in places like Cambodia and Mumbai, India, every day, women and children are stolen, sold, and abused. We know that in our own culture every day, men and women are battered by angry spouses and partners; men and women are abandoned and their lives left shattered by unfaithful spouses; people are injured and killed by drunk drivers.

Our subject in this study is: “Responding to injustice, false accusations, unfairness.” The lesson we learn from this narrative is that, When we are unjustly accused, perhaps even condemned, we must wait for God’s deliverance and vindication.

To be falsely accused is a painful experience. I have experienced it as have many of you, I’m sure. I have experienced it from my own father, which makes it even more painful than from others. But probably none of us has experienced it to the same degree as Joseph – at least we probably didn’t end up in prison because of it.

What makes false accusation particularly painful is when you are betrayed by those you trusted and served faithfully. Sometimes we need to defend ourselves, as Paul did (2 Cor). But our greatest defender is God, not self; He is our great advocate and vindicator.

Joseph was wrongly treated by his brothers. Even though his intentions in finding out how they were doing were honorable and sincere, they mistreated him and sold him as a slave into Egypt. Joseph was mistreated by Mrs. Potiphar. Again, even though his actions were honorable and sincere, he was falsely accused of attempted rape. This led to the loss of his job and a term in prison, where, as we will see now, Joseph was further mistreated, being forgotten by someone whom he had helped in prison.

Despite all Joseph’s mistreatment, we never read of him angry, depressed, bitter, rebellious against God, or self-pitying. Yet again, Joseph depicts supreme Christ-likeness even when, we might wonder, will the cycle ever stop? The cycle is obviously intended to portray the theme of his entire life that “God is sovereign – what others intend for evil, God can use for good to achieve his purposes.”

In previous studies in this series we have already seen this principle clearly displayed so far in Joseph’s story. Though he was mistreated by his brothers, the Lord was with him; the Lord did not forsake him nor leave him. Though he was mistrusted by his brothers, he was implicitly trusted by Potiphar and the prison keeper. Though he was misjudged by Potiphar due to Mrs. Potiphar’s false accusation, the Lord’s favor toward him ensured that his trust was regained by the prison keeper. Though he was misused as a slave, yet he rose to the highest ranks both in Potiphar’s house and the prison.

Notice these theological principles in our passage…

I. Faithfulness To God Does Not Exempt Us From Trouble (39:20-23)

Following the false accusation brought against Joseph by Potiphar’s wife, “Joseph’s master took him and put him into prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were confined. And he was there in the prison” (39:20). What a slap in the face for Joseph. What treatment after his faithful service to Potiphar! Surely this is not how someone as loyal and diligent as Joseph should be treated.

In fact, faithfulness to God may land us right in bad circumstances. Obedience to God may cause us all kinds of injustice, false accusations, loss of employment, or ridicule from others. You may be exactly where God wants you to be, living in obedience to His word, seeking to walk worthy of the gospel, bearing the name of the Lord boldly, and yet in spite of that you may be facing deeply troubling and difficult circumstances. That’s when you need to decide whether to live with and for the Lord (and perhaps face years of trouble), or turn your back on the Lord in your attempt to have an easier life.

That was the choice that Victor Frankl had to make. Frankl was a Viennese psychiatrist who survived the Nazi death camps at Auschwitz and Treblinka. He discovered that the imprisoned person who no longer had a goal, who no longer could find meaning and purpose in life, was unlikely to survive. Frankl concluded: “Everything can be taken away from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s way. The way in which a man accepts his fate and all the suffering that it entails, the way in which he takes up his cross, give him ample opportunity – even in the most difficult circumstances – to add deeper meaning to his life.” (Cited in John Ortberg, “If You Want to Walk on Water You’ve Got to Get out of the Boat,” 108-109),

Even though we read repeatedly that God’s favor rested upon Joseph, He did not preserve Joseph from going to prison. Nonetheless, the Lord was with Joseph in the prison. “The Lord was with Joseph and showed him mercy (steadfast love)” (39:21a). This means that Joseph would experience the favor of God even in prison. Joseph would experience God revealing himself even in prison. Joseph would know God’s presence in a powerfully, life-transforming way even in prison.

Just how did Joseph experience this? Well, one way was that the Lord “gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison” (39:21b). Though we may face bad circumstances, one thing we can count on is “the Lord is with us.” Sometimes our circumstances are such that it’s hard for us to appreciate or grasp that the Lord really is with us. But God does not limit the experience of his presence and power to mountaintops. In fact, we can experience God’s presence and power, perhaps in even greater ways, when we are facing the tough challenges of life.

I had Lyme disease for 18 years prior to a diagnosis. During those years there were some very dark periods, yet in them all, though I could not figure out and did not know how or when it would all end, nonetheless I was profoundly aware that “the Lord was with me.” Indeed, I learned more about God in those dark days than I ever did in the good, easier days. I learned about his fathomless grace, his unconditional love, his uncompromising faithfulness.

Now, notice these parallel cycles and phrases in Joseph’s life:

1. The favor of others toward Joseph

(1) “The Lord was with Joseph” (39:2, 21).

(2) “Joseph found favor in (Potiphar’s) sight” (39:4); “the Lord granted gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison” (39:21).

2. The appointment to a position of trust and responsibility

(1) Potiphar “made him overseer of his house and all that he had he put under his authority” (39:4). And, “the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners who were in the prison; whatever they did there, it was his doing” (39:22).

(2) Potiphar “left all that he had in Joseph’s hand, and did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate” (39:6). “The keeper of the prison did not look into anything that was under Joseph’s authority” (39:23).

3. Joseph’s success and prosperity

“His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord made all he did to prosper in his hand” (39:3). And, “The keeper of the prison saw that the Lord was with him; and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper” (39:23b).

4. The connection between God and Joseph’s performance

Both Potiphar and the prison keeper recognized the connection between Joseph’s God and Joseph’s character and success (39:3-4; 39:21-23).

But don’t think because God was with him that life was easy. His initial prison experience was anything but easy. Psalm 105:18 tells us about Joseph that, “They hurt his feet with fetters. He was laid in irons. Until the time that his word came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him.”

Eventually, however, Joseph was rewarded and vindicated. He was given a most unique position in the prison – he, a prisoner, was put in charge of the other prisoners (39:22). Like Potiphar, once the prison keeper had delegated this to Joseph, he didn’t think about it again: “He did not look into anything that was under Joseph’s authority.” Why? “Because the Lord was with him and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper” (39:23).

Faithfulness to God, then, does not exempt us from trouble. But notice also that…

II. In All Our Troubles, God Is Providentially At Work (40:1-22)

Joseph first experienced God’s providential intervention in his life through the prison keeper, who recognized in Joseph his honesty, reliability, loyalty. He recognized that Joseph was not a threat to others nor a potential escapee. Then one day, in a seemingly “natural occurrence”, two new prisoners arrive, two senior officers of Pharaoh’s household - the butler (cupbearer) and the baker. We don’t know what these two men had done, but it was serious enough to warrant prison. Interestingly, these two “special” prisoners were put into Joseph’s custody, and it would appear that the very person who consigned them to Joseph’s keeping was none other than Potiphar himself, “the captain of the guard” (40:3-4; cf. 39:1). If it was Potiphar, he must have known that Joseph did not try to rape his wife. Otherwise why would he give Joseph the responsibility for these two men in prison? If it was Potiphar, his influence over the prison keeper would explain why the prison keeper’s treatment of Joseph paralleled Potiphar’s treatment of him.

And notice this: these two prisoners were senior management from the royal household. Perhaps this was the connection that would lead to Joseph’s vindication. Perhaps this was a case of “it’s-not-what-you-know-but-who-you-know.” Was all of this coincidence? No! Was it God’s providence? Yes!

Like Joseph these men had held senior, trusted positions. In fact, they were closely related positions in that both men were responsible for the health and safety of Pharaoh. The baker was entrusted with all Pharaoh’s food preparation and the cupbearer was responsible for tasting the food and drink before Pharaoh – just to make sure there were no poisons in it! So, the cupbearer had to trust the baker or else he would pay for it with his life.

In prison, they were attended to by Joseph (40:4), and in prison they experience their remarkable dreams (40:5-19). Both men had a dream on the same night in prison. Both of their dreams related to their jobs in Pharaoh’s household. Instinctively, they knew that these were no ordinary dreams – they weren’t the product of eating garlic the night before! These dreams had special significance and implications, which, though they did not understand, caused them great anxiety. Noticing their downcast faces, Joseph asked them: “Why do you look so sad today?” (40:7). If you would expect anyone to be downcast, it would be Joseph. But he doesn’t focus on his own situation but on that of the others.

Don’t you so often find that in some people? Perhaps you go to visit someone who is in dire circumstances, sick or aged or unemployed, and instead of you encouraging them, they encourage you. I wonder in your own life, when you have passed through dark circumstance, if you have been used by God to bring light and hope to someone else. That’s what Joseph did in prison. Undoubtedly, God was using Joseph, perhaps even changing Joseph for greater tasks ahead. Before entering into the reality of his vision years before, he had to experience oppression, rejection, false treatment, and suffering. He had to be the sacrificial lamb, if you will, who would pay the penalty for his brothers’ sins in order that they could enter into the blessings that he would provide for them. Joseph was going to find out that before God uses us, he tests us. Someone in the church I pastored once said: “You’ll never know that God is enough until He’s all you’ve got.”

The two new prisoners explained to Joseph that the cause of their sadness was that they had both had dreams which they didn’t understand without an interpreter. To which Joseph replied, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell them to me please” (40:8).

Joseph knew that only God could interpret dreams. His invitation for them to tell the dreams to him indicates that he knew that God would help him interpret them; he was aware of his very special relationship with God. Isn’t it ironic that the dreamer himself is now the interpreter of other people’s dreams? And isn’t it ironic that we know the rest of the story – that Joseph’s boyhood dreams of dominating others would ultimately come true but in a very circuitous manner?

First, the chief butler’s dream (40:9-11). In his dream, he saw a vine with 3 branches which budded, bloomed, and bore grapes. Then he squeezed the juice out of the grapes into Pharaoh’s cup and gave the cup to Pharaoh. Joseph’s interpretation of the dream (40:12-13) was that within 3 days the chief butler would be reinstated to his position. This was great news! And Joseph seized this opportunity to make a request of the butler: “But remember me when it is well with you, and please show kindness to me; make mention of me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this house. For indeed I was stolen away from the land of the Hebrews; and also I have done nothing here that they should put me into the dungeon” (40:14-15).

Surely this was the least the butler could do for Joseph. After all, not only had Joseph given a favorable interpretation of the dream but now the butler knew why Joseph was in prison, and that Joseph himself had been unjustly treated by his brothers and unjustly accused by Mrs. Potiphar. Surely, there was sufficient affinity between Joseph’s and the butler’s situation that the butler would “remember” Joseph when he was restored to his position in the royal palace.

This was Joseph’s self-defense. There is a time when we need to speak up in our defense against false accusations. There is a time when we should ask for help from others, even though we know that ultimately our life is in God’s hands. There is no contradiction in this - we trust God and make the need known to others. But we must be sure of God’s timing. Joseph waited until this opportune time when he thought God was at work in his life.

But it’s so easy for us to get ahead of God, to push for answers, to try to open doors that God isn’t opening. So often what we want and try isn’t God’s timing or God’s way; he isn’t urging us to move forward at that time. And it’s so easy to defend ourselves at the wrong time. When we try to vindicate ourselves at the wrong time, it comes off as being defensive and self-serving, perhaps even insincere.

Then, the chief baker’s dream (40:16-17). Recognizing Joseph’s ability in interpreting dreams (and liking his interpretation of the butler’s dream), the chief baker now relates his dream to Joseph, hoping for a similar outcome. In his dream, the chief baker was carrying on his head 3 baskets of food for Pharaoh but, as he walked, the birds ate the food out of the baskets. Joseph’s interpretation of the dream (40:18-19) was that within 3 days, Pharaoh would execute the chief baker and hang him on a tree: “And the birds will eat your flesh from you” (40:19b). This was very bad news indeed, exactly what the baker did not want to hear.

The Outcome (40:20-22). Within 3 days, the outcome was just as Joseph had said. On his birthday, Pharaoh threw a feast for all his servants at which time the chief butler was reinstated to his previous position, but the chief baker was executed. Evidently, by this time Pharaoh has discovered the truth about what had happened as between the butler and baker. It would appear that the chief baker was guilty of whatever had happened that caused the two men to be thrown into prison in the first place, whereas the chief butler was declared innocent. That would explain the different outcomes and it would explain why the chief butler was reinstated to his position of trust again.

In any event, from a human perspective it looks like Joseph’s situation is going to improve. After all, he has connections now to the highest authority in the land. Surely this would be the ticket to Joseph’s release from prison. Finally there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel - at least, there is a glimmer of hope.

Faithfulness to God, then, does not exempt us from trouble. But in all our troubles, God is providentially at work. Nevertheless..

II. God Does Not Always Act As And When We Would Like (40:23)

An ironic twist intervenes in the progress of Joseph’s experience. Despite Joseph’s kindness to the chief butler and despite the similarity of their circumstances - both being falsely accused (Joseph by Mrs. Potiphar and the chief butler by Pharaoh); both being mistrusted and mistreated; both being innocent men in prison - nonetheless, “…the chief butler did not remember Joseph, but forgot him” (40:23).

Why did the chief butler forget? Don’t you think that would have been uppermost on his mind? Don’t you think he should have been so grateful to Joseph, that he would have attended to this matter immediately? Perhaps he purposely “forgot” in order to protect himself. After all, if he told Joseph’s story to the king, the king might be offended that the butler was raising the issue of false accusation again – this time as it pertained to Joseph rather than himself, which was probably a sore point for the king given that he had just falsely accused the butler. The king might also be offended that the butler was accusing one of the king’s senior officers (Potiphar) of mistreatment, injustice etc.

So, perhaps this was a matter of saving his own skin. Whatever the reason, he “did not remember Joseph but forgot him.” To “not remember” someone or something is probably a Hebraism for consciously not calling something to mind. You see this in, “For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more” (Heb. 8:12, 17) – i.e. God consciously chooses to not remember our sins. Whereas, to forget is perhaps an unconscious matter. So, in that sense, perhaps what the chief butler did to Joseph was either consciously choosing to put it out of his mind or unconsciously forgetting.

The irony here is that once again, Joseph is mistreated, this time by someone who “owed” him a favor, this time by someone who had experienced the same injustice that he had, and that makes it doubly unjust. In fact, Joseph remained in prison for two more long years.

But there is another dramatic irony here. We know what’s coming next – another opportunity that was far greater than the one that had just eluded Joseph. It would not come for another 2 years (41:1) but come it would. How disappointed Joseph must have been as time went by and he did not hear from the chief butler. Yet what he did not know is that, in God’s providence and sovereign direction of his life, the next opportunity would be far greater than the one that just passed him by.

Final Remarks

Perhaps you can think of a time in your life when you might have felt like Joseph, when you were unfairly treated. Perhaps at work you were passed over for a promotion that was given to the boss’ favorite who was less qualified and hadn’t been with the company as long as you had. When you were falsely accused, perhaps someone else implicated you in something that happened, in which you weren’t involved at all. Perhaps your supervisor at work jumped to conclusions and blamed you for something you didn’t do.

We all suffer from this at some point in our lives. Children suffer from it and come home in tears over some wrong done to them by their friends or teacher. Young people suffer from it when other students pass the blame on to them or lie about them. Adults suffer from it in their marriages and places of employment. Injustice can take many different forms, be it criticism, rumors, backstabbing, rejection, abuse (physical, emotional psychological, spiritual, sexual), personal condemnation, or the demeaning of your person. So…

1. What Do We Learn From Joseph About Injustice?

a) We must not allow injustice to control us emotionally. We must not allow the mistreatment and unfairness of our situation to take over our emotions. It’s so easy to allow “a root of bitterness to spring up and cause trouble, and by this many become defiled” (Heb. 12:15). We may not have control over our circumstances, but we can control how we respond to them. We can control our attitude to them.

We must not let the hurt degenerate into unchecked anger. I’m not suggesting that such treatment should not make us angry, for it often does. But we must keep a check on our emotions by not letting “the sun go down on our wrath nor give place to the devil” (Eph. 4:26-27), “not falling into reproach and the snare of the devil” (1 Tim. 3:7).

Anger can so easily degenerate into sinful behavior, “for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God” (James 1:20). Anger can consume us and become so destructive in our lives.

b) We must not allow injustice to control us psychologically. Don’t let others’ treatment of you to control your thinking. Otherwise you can become cynical, scornful, critical of everything and everyone, resentful, bent on revenge. In fact you can become paralyzed by bitterness and anger.

You may recall Corrie ten Boom’s own story. She stood strong, like Joseph, even when she was put into a Nazi concentration camp for hiding Jews during WWII. Her sister, Betsie, died there and Corrie certainly struggled with issues of forgiveness, especially when, after the war was over, she came face to face with one of the prison’s most cruel guards. Corrie ten Boom had just spoken to a crowd of people in Germany about forgiveness and no sooner was the meeting over than this guard confronted her. He didn’t know that she had been one of his prisoners whom he had cruelly treated with his leather whip. He told her that he had been a guard at Ravensbruck (where she had been a prisoner – although he didn’t recognize her) but that since then he had become a Christian. Then he thrust out his hand asking for her forgiveness. Corrie ten Boom recounts how her blood froze. She knew she had to forgive him. And she knew that since the war, those victims of Nazi brutality who were able to forgive their enemies were able to also rebuild their lives, but that those who nursed their bitterness remained invalids.

Corrie went on to say that when she finally summoned up enough strength to hold out her hand to the guard, that, in that moment as their hands clasped each other, she knew the love of God like never before (Cited from Gene Getz, “Men of Character, Joseph,” 80-83).

We must not allow mistreatment to control us emotionally or psychologically, and ...

c) We must not allow injustice to control us spiritually. So many people turn against God when they encounter injustice, unfairness, mistreatment, false accusations, betrayal. When things don’t go well it’s easy for us to blame God. We never read that Joseph blamed God for his circumstances. In fact, we don’t read that he blamed anyone – not his brothers, father, Potiphar, Mrs. Potiphar, the butler, the baker, or the prison keeper.

When bad things happen, so many Christians stop living like a Christian. When things go against them they stop going to church, stop reading their Bible, stop praying. If there was ever a time when we need to turn to God and deepen our spiritual lives, it’s when life deals us a body blow. Joseph seemed to grow in his spiritual life during this experience. Even in prison, he attributed the ability to interpret dreams to God.

d) We must not allow injustice make us impatient while we wait for God to open up the way before us, while we wait for God to vindicate us, while we wait for God to reward us openly.

Joseph spent a good portion of his time in Egypt in prison and, some of that time, he knew that one man on the outside could probably attain his freedom, but he forgot Joseph. The following 2 years must have been interminably long for Joseph as he must have despaired of ever getting out - that opportunity had passed; would there ever be another?

If he ever wondered where God was in all this we don’t read about it. Did he wonder if God had abandoned him? Did he ever doubt whether God actually existed at all? We hear of people all the time in the news who have been condemned to prison for crimes they have not committed. And I often wonder how they deal with that emotionally, psychologically, socially, spiritually. After 27 years in prison, Nelson Mandela went on to live a productive life.

As Christians, we have a divine resource that non-Christians do not have and yet that is the resource that Satan turns us against, just when we need the Lord the most. Only He can protect us from self-destructing under these circumstances.

2. What Do We Learn From Paul About Injustice?

Paul was mistreated, misunderstood, unfairly criticized, unjustly imprisoned, stoned, shipwrecked, starved etc. But he said, “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, along with all malice. And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ has forgiven you” (Eph. 4:31-32) . That’s the Christian principle for responding to false accusations, unfairness, and injustice. Paul reminds us: “If your enemy hunger feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in doing so you will heap coals of fire on his head. Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12:20). That’s hard when we’ve been mistreated but so necessary.

3. What Do We Learn From Peter About Injustice?

Peter writes to Christians who were suffering for their faith in Christ - unfairly, unjustly mistreated. He reminds us of a basic Christian principle: “For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God” (1 Pet. 2:20). Peter reminds us of the example of Jesus “who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in his mouth; who when he was reviled did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten but committed himself to him who judges righteously” (1 Pet. 2:22-23).

4. What Do We Learn From Jesus About Injustice?

All of this, of course, points us to One greater than Joseph, One who cast aside his royal robes, took upon him the form of a servant, One who came to his own but his own did not receive him, One who was given a purple robe of mockery by those who called for his death. But the One who was abased, God highly exalted to be a Prince and a Savior.

Jesus teaches us much about responding to injustice, both in the ways He responded to injustices perpetrated against Him, and in His teachings. Jesus said, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you” (Lk. 6:27). “To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either” (Lk. 6:29). The response of a Christian to the offenses of life (mistreatment, false accusation, injustice etc.) should be entirely different from that of a non-Christian, because we live according to a counter-cultural lifestyle. Our responses are turned on their head so that instead of revenge, we bless; instead of bitterness, we forgive.

The overall lesson that we learn from this study is that… When we are unjustly accused, perhaps even condemned, we must wait for God’s deliverance and vindication.

Related Topics: Character Study, Christian Life

5. Patience Is A Virtue (Gen. 41:1-36)

Related Media

Genesis chapter 40 ends with: “Yet the chief butler did not did not remember Joseph but forgot him” (Gen. 40:23). These are tragic words in a sense. To be forgotten by someone (for whom you have done a big favor and from whom you have asked only a little favor in return, only to be ignored), is very hurtful, especially when you add the whole episode of the false accusation and unjust imprisonment. It was bad enough that Joseph was mistreated, falsely accused, and unfairly imprisoned, but now it is all compounded by being forgotten.

The subject in this study is: “Trusting God when everything looks bleak.” The lesson in this passage is that “we can’t always rely on other people, but we can always rely on God.” While we would all agree with that premise, I think the challenge for us is waiting for God to act – waiting for his time and his ways. Or, to put it another way, the challenge for us is patience! Time can often seem so long under Joseph-type circumstances. Each day for the next 2 years must have seemed like eternity to him – it always does when you’re waiting for something.

Patience involves two things: (1) Trusting God, that he truly knows and cares about your situation; and (2) Waiting on God until he remedies the situation or shows you what course of action to take.

The last sentence of Genesis 40 conveys the pathos of Joseph’s situation – the absolute abandonment by any human advocates or friends; his complete aloneness and helplessness. But then chapter 41 opens with: “Then it came to pass, at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh had a dream” (41:1). Well, what a surprise after 2 full years! I think the storyteller wants us to hear the word “full” – 2 full years – for undoubtedly they were 2 full years for Joseph.

But now, after what must have seemed like an interminably long period of time, God is on the move. After Joseph had correctly interpreted the chief butler’s dream and after the chief butler was reinstated to his former position, surely, Joseph must have concluded that this was the answer to his prayers, that soon he would be vindicated and released. But it didn’t happen. What a surprise and disappointment that must have been.

We have to be so careful in interpreting circumstances, don’t we? We can be so wrong so easily. We can so easily connect the dots that God hasn’t connected. What looks to us like a slam dunk, a no brainer, so often turns out to be not so. And when that happens, we start to either question ourselves or God.

Two years is awfully long in anyone’s counting, especially in prison; especially when you’re there because of injustice and false accusations; and especially when you know you’re innocent and there is one person on the outside, who knows you’re innocent and on whom you are fully dependent to say a word for you to the right person at the right time. Talk about helplessness!

Isn’t it true, that God often works that way. He renders us completely incapable of helping ourselves - nothing we can do about it except wait and pray. From my own experiences with fluctuations in employment, I learned two things. First, waiting for any extended period of time seemed like forever. Second, the solution had nothing to do with me and everything to do with God. Even though one time the opportunity God provided seemed like it would never work, I knew it was from God!

So, first what a surprise after 2 full years. And second, what a surprise that the change of events involved another dream – this time, Pharaoh’s dream. The narrator simply says, “then after 2 full years, Pharaoh had a dream.” And we, as readers, say, “Aha! Here we go! God is on the move! Dreams are coming true again.”

Isn’t it ironic, that Joseph is enabled by God to foretell other people’s future through their dreams, but he doesn’t know his own future! So, what motivated Joseph to keep going when outwardly it looked like all was lost, hopeless, and helpless? It must have been his trust in God. This remarkable man, whose character is being beautifully portrayed in this account, had unfailing trust in God to deliver him, despite the circumstances, despite being “stolen away from the land of the Hebrews” (40:15) – being kidnapped by his brothers and sold as a slave - despite being wrongfully accused of rape, despite being unjustly condemned to prison, despite being “forgotten” by Pharaoh’s butler.

We may well ask: What kept him going? I think Joseph knew the reality of his youthful dreams. He knew they were a revelation from God that one day he would rule and others would bow down to him. And he trusted God that somehow he would bring this about.

Isn’t it true, that we need something to cling to, especially in difficult times? I remember at the beginning of my current ministry, telling someone about how God had clearly led me step by step into it. And that person replied, “Don’t ever forget how God has led you because there will come times when you need to cling onto that memory, that certainty.” That has turned out to be so true. And that applies to any trials and tests we face. We need to always go back to the solid foundation, the experiences with God that have brought us to this point. For Jacob it was Bethel where he met God in a vivid dream: “Surely the Lord is in this place... This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven” (Gen. 28:16-17). For Joshua it was Gilgal (Josh. 4:19-20). For Moses it was probably Sinai. We need to be rooted not only in the word of God but also in the works of God in our lives, so that we can go back there when things get tough. The Israelites were constantly reminded of what God had done – his mighty acts in creation and redemption – that’s what kept them going. And we need to be reminded that the God who delivered them can and does deliver us.

Remember this principle…

I. Just When Things Look Hopeless, God Steps In (41:1-13)

Now comes Joseph’s big break. God continues to work in Joseph’s life through dreams. That’s how this story began – by Joseph sharing with his brothers his dream of greatness. Joseph knew this wasn’t a pipe dream but a revelation from God. No wonder he was absolutely confident that he could interpret the butler’s and baker’s dreams. And now comes Joseph’s big break…

1. Pharaoh’s Two Dreams (41:1-8).

In his first dream, Pharaoh was standing by the river (41:1-4). In this dream, he saw seven well fed, fat cows coming up out of a river followed by seven hungry, thin cows. And the seven thin, hungry cows ate the seven fat, well fed cows. At the end of the dream, he woke up (as you sometimes do after a vivid dream), but promptly went back to sleep again.

In his second dream, Pharaoh sees heads of grain (41:5-8). He sees seven heads of plump, healthy grain on one stalk followed by seven thin, shriveled-up heads of grain. And the seven thin heads ate the seven plump heads. Again, at the end of the dream, Pharaoh woke up and in the morning, “his spirit was troubled” (41:8a). He couldn’t fail to see the repeated patterns in each dream:

a) Two sets of seven in each dream. The first set of seven painted a picture of prosperity while the second set of seven indicated poverty.

b) The second set in each dream devoured the first. Prosperity was eaten up by the poverty. Whatever gains were made by the first set of seven were taken away by the second set.

c) Both dreams were in an agricultural setting. First, came cows, then came grain. First came the herds, then came the crops. First came animals, then came plants.

When he saw the pattern in the two dreams Pharaoh rightly concluded that this spells T-R-O-U-B-L-E. There must be some deeper meaning here; this isn’t coincidence. So, “he sent for all the magicians of Egypt and all its wise men. And Pharaoh told them his dreams but there was no one who could interpret them for Pharaoh” (41:8b).

So, the first step in Joseph’s big break was Pharaoh’s two dreams. The second was ...

2. The Butler’s Memory Returns (41:9-13).

Upon hearing the king’s dreams and the inability of the wise men to interpret them, all of a sudden the chief butler’s memory suddenly returned. “Then the chief butler spoke to Pharaoh, saying: ‘I remember my faults this day. When Pharaoh was angry with his servants, and put me in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, both me and the chief baker, we each had a dream in one night, he and I. Each of us dreamed according to the interpretation of his own dream. Now there was a young Hebrew man with us there, a servant of the captain of the guard. And we told him, and he interpreted our dreams for us; to each man he interpreted according to his own dream. And it came to pass, just as he interpreted for us, so it happened. He restored me to my office, and he hanged him’” (41:9-13).

The chief butler seems to feel guilty, but about what? Was he feeling guilty for having forgotten Joseph? Or, was he feeling guilty for not having told Pharaoh earlier that Joseph could interpret his dreams and saved Pharaoh all his anxiety? Or, did his memory suddenly return because he saw a way to gain favor with Pharaoh? Whatever the reason, it seems strangely self-serving that he would forget about Joseph for two full years and then, suddenly, he says, “Oh, yes, there was this man in prison...”

In any event, the chief butler tells Pharaoh about his and the chief baker’s dreams in prison and how “a young Hebrew man with us there, a servant of the captain of the guard ... interpreted our dreams for us ... and it came to pass, just as he interpreted for us, so it happened” (41:10-13). And just what Joseph had hoped for two years earlier finally came to pass.

II. When God Steps In, He Acts Beyond Our Expectations (41:14-24).

The next step in Joseph’s big break is that…

1. Pharaoh Calls For Joseph.

Perhaps Joseph thought that he might be released and be reinstated to his position in Potiphar’s house or some similar position. But no, instead he is summoned by the Pharaoh himself, the head of state! On the one hand, this was probably beyond Joseph’s imagination that he would get such a break as this. But, on the other hand, is it? After all, he had dreamed of one day being the ruler and his family bowing down before him.

Well, now Joseph was in the right place at the right time, and he is just the right man that Pharaoh needed - someone who could interpret dreams with complete accuracy. So, Pharaoh sends for Joseph (41:14) and admits to him that no one else could interpret his dreams but that he had heard that, apparently, Joseph could (41:15).

Joseph could have seized this opportunity to take revenge against the chief butler. If he had, the conversation with Pharaoh might have gone something like this:

Pharaoh: “I have had two really curious and troubling dreams and no one among my wise men can interpret it for me, but I hear you can. Is that true, Joseph?”

Joseph: “Oh yes, sir. I can interpret dreams alright. In fact, I interpreted the dream of this good-for-nothing chief butler here, who promptly forgot all about me – even though my interpretation turned out in his favor exactly as I had predicted. What kind of person do you think he is? Is he really the kind of man you want to employ in such a security-sensitive position as chief butler? Is someone with such early onset of dementia the person you want in charge of your personal security? In fact, sir, when I get finished interpreting your dream, perhaps you would do me a favor.”

Pharaoh: “Of course. If you interpret my dream correctly, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you.”

Joseph: “Well, perhaps you would execute this scoundrel and do yourself a favor as well as me”

Pharaoh: “Of course. It’s a deal.”

Of course, it doesn’t go like that because Joseph is a spiritual man and doesn’t take revenge against his enemies – he leaves all of that to God.

Or, perhaps Joseph could have used this opportunity to bring credit to himself. If he had, I imagine a conversation like this:

Pharaoh: “I have had two really curious and troubling dreams and no one among my wise men can interpret it for me, but I hear you can. Is that true, Joseph?”

Joseph: “Oh yes, sir. I can interpret dreams alright. In fact, that’s my main line of work - been doing it for years with incredible accuracy. Let me give you a couple of references, sir, if I may. Two years ago, two of your senior officers, the chief baker and chief butler, were thrown in prison by you, sir – for very good reasons I have no doubt. I had charge over them because the prison warden and the captain of your guard recognized my superior character and ability, without even knowing about my ability to interpret dreams I might add. Anyway, while they were under my supervision, they both had very vivid dreams. And they were as scared as kittens – no kidding, sir. I’ve never seen two men so terrified in all my life. And all because of a silly dream! Can you imagine? So, I said to them, ‘What’s up, men? You look like your best friend just died. And they told me they had each had a bad dream. They sounded like two little school boys. Anyway, I said, speak on, men. Tell me your dreams and I will interpret them for you.”

“The meaning of each dream was as obvious as the nose on your face. So, I told them, ‘Look, in three days, the chief baker is going to be executed and this scoundrel here, the chief butler, will be restored to his position in Pharaoh’s household.’ And that’s exactly what happened, as you know sir.”

But of course, that’s not what Joseph said because he is a godly man without any sense of self importance or the need for recognition from anyone other than God. Instead, Joseph replied to Pharaoh: “It is not me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer” (41:16). No wonder Joseph had been given such responsibility in Potiphar’s household and in the prison! Joseph portrayed the character of God in every way – in his ethics, behavior, attitude, relationships etc. He gave all the credit to God and none for himself and that’s the kind of person God honors. Pharaoh is as impressed with Joseph as Potiphar and the prison warden were, so he relates his dreams to Joseph (41:17-24).

2. Joseph’s Interpretation Of Pharaoh’s Dreams (41:25-32).

Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams is succinct and immediate. “The dreams of Pharaoh are one; God has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do (41:25). Both sets of dreams convey the same message, that Egypt will experience seven years of prosperity followed by seven years of famine (41:26-28). In fact, the famine will be so bad that no one will remember the good years of plenty (41:29-31). The reason why the dream was repeated twice is to emphasize to Pharaoh that “this thing is established by God and God will bring it to pass” (41:32). In other words, “Don’t make any mistake about it, Pharaoh, this will be an act of God and He is going to make it happen.”

But Joseph doesn’t stop with just the interpretation. He follows it up with a whole plan for Pharaoh, even though he hadn’t asked for it.

3. Joseph’s Fourteen-Year Plan For Pharaoh (41:33-36).

Joseph now seizes the opportunity to give Pharaoh some advice. What better time than now when he had Pharaoh’s undivided attention. Pharaoh needed a means to deal with what was coming and who better to give him advice than the man who has told him the future. Joseph’s proposal consists of two steps ...

The first step is to establish a leadership structure. Firstly, Pharaoh should appoint a discerning and wise man and set him over the land of Egypt (41:33) as the prime minister. Did Joseph know that he would be the man? The text doesn’t say so but I suspect that as soon as Joseph knew the interpretation of the dream, all the lights went on. I think that he intuitively knew that this was his God-given destiny. Undoubtedly, his youthful dreams of greatness that he had dreamed about all these years (wondering how and when it would happen) all of a sudden became a reality. But even if Joseph did know in his heart that he was the man for the job, he didn’t say so directly to Pharaoh. Perhaps by now he had matured and realized that a more subtle approach than he had previously used with his brothers years before would work better. Secondly, Pharaoh should appoint officers over the various parts of the land of Egypt, a management team under the prime minister.

So, the first step of Joseph’s proposal is to appoint a leadership structure…

The second step is an action plan. Under the supervision of the officers, one-fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt in the seven years of plenty would be stored up in the cities for their future needs (41:34-35). This storage program would ensure that there would be a “reserve for the land for the seven years of famine which shall be in the land of Egypt” (41:36). It was simple and logical and Pharaoh knew it. This was a no-brainer proposal. And who better to be the prime minister than Joseph himself?

Final Remarks

So, when things look hopeless, God steps in. And when God steps in, he acts beyond our expectations.

Well, to follow the career of this remarkable man you will need to read our subsequent studies in this series on Joseph, this remarkable O.T. character. In the meantime, what do we learn from this experience of Joseph’s about patience?

1. Waiting Is A Matter Of Trusting God.

It seems that so far in Joseph’s life, his trust in God increased as the waiting stretched from days to weeks to months to years. When he was younger, his confidence seemed to be in self, not God; it was all about him - for example: “My sheaf arose and stood upright and your sheaves stood all around and bowed down to my sheaf” (37:7). “I have dreamed another dream. And this time, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me (37:9).

But after he had been taken down a peg or two by being sold as a slave to Egypt, Joseph’s attitude seemed to change. The wording and the tone of the story changes. It’s not about me anymore, but God. It’s no longer, “Look how handsome I am. Look how great I am. Look at how pretty my coat is.” But now it’s, “How can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” (Gen. 39:9). Now it’s, “The Lord was with Joseph ... and Joseph found favor in his sight” (Gen. 39:2-4). Now it’s, “It is not me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer”(Gen. 41:16). His life is now directed by his relationship with, and his honor of, God. God was in charge of his life. God was the one he serves. God is the one he trusts. He certainly has learned not to trust self or others, be it his own family, his boss (Potiphar), or senior government officials. The primary lessons we learn here is that “we can’t always rely on other people but we can always rely on God.”

And don’t we find that in our own lives? As we grow older we understand ourselves more. And as we understand ourselves more, we see our own inabilities and shortcomings. And as we see our own inabilities and shortcomings, our relationship with God and our trust in God deepens, so that we trust him more and ourselves and others less. This doesn’t lessen our own self-confidence but increases it as it changes from fleshly self-confidence to godly self-confidence. When Joseph entered Pharaoh’s presence, he didn’t exhibit the fleshly self-confidence of his youth, but godly self-confidence that with God’s enablement he could interpret Pharaoh’s dream. There was no doubt in his mind about it. That confidence comes from his relationship with and trust in God. That’s where true confidence comes from – our trust in God.

2. In Circumstances Beyond Our Control, We Learn How Strong And Faithful God Is.

God assured the apostle Paul that His (God’s) “strength is made perfect in (our) weakness.” And Paul’s response to that is: “Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Cor. 12:9-10).

Remember that the circumstances beyond our control, those (often) grievous and varied trials that come into our lives, are designed to test “the genuineness of your faith…though it is tested by fire” with the purpose that it “may be found to praise, honour, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:6-7). Paul said, “I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need” (i.e. “I have known hard times, difficult experiences, changing circumstances – sometimes good, sometime bad”), but in and through and because of those experiences, he says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:12-13). In other words, these circumstances and experiences that cause us pain are the very same circumstances and experiences that give us confidence in God.

The bottom line for the apostle Paul was this: “I have been crucified with Christ” – you can’t get much lower than that – but, he says, “it is no longer I who live but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me (Gal. 2:20). In other words, the lowest place with Christ is the strongest place for faith.

3. As Our Faith Grows, So God Helps Us To Display It.

Note that the opportunities to display our faith are often not comfortable or nice. As Joseph’s faith in God and his godly character matured so his circumstances grew steadily worse. How much worse could it get? His brothers hated him. Then they threatened to kill him. Then they sold him to slave traders. Then he was bought by a strange man in a strange country that spoke a strange language. Then he was given work as a slave. Then things began to look up for a while as he was promoted, but all of a sudden the wheels fell off when he is cast into prison for something he had not done. Then things in prison looked up for a while when he is given some authority and respect. Things looked even brighter when he interpreted the chief butler’s dream correctly and the butler was restored to his former position of influence in high places. Then all hopes were dashed when days stretched into weeks and weeks stretched into months and months stretched into years with no change, no word from God, no word from the butler.

But during this time, Joseph’s godly character matured and his faith in God deepened. And during this time he had numerous opportunities to display his faith. Until the time came, when God said, “Now, you’re ready! Now I can do something with you and through you.”

4. When We Wait On God, He Often Opens Up Opportunities We Could Never Have Dreamed Of.

Joseph eventually went from the pits of prison to the pinnacle of power in one giant step. We could never orchestrate that kind of opportunity. What prisoner would be promoted from a jail cell directly to prime minister, from prison to power? This could only be of God and that surely strengthened Joseph’s faith even more.

Joseph might have said (as Moses did), “I’m not able to do this job. I’ve had no training. I don’t know the culture. I don’t know the language that well. I have no contacts. I’ve never built a management team in my life. When I told my brothers that one day I would be great, they laughed at me and hated me so much they wanted to kill me.” But he didn’t because he had absolute confidence in God, that this was of God.

5. Through Difficult Experiences We Develop In Maturity.

In this 13 years of Joseph’s life that we have studied so far, we have seen Joseph progress from a naive, proud, favorite son (but hated brother) to a wise, discerning, faithful, humble but confident servant of God. What a wonderful perspective Joseph had on life and his own life experiences! He evidently saw false accusations, injustice, hatred, and abandonment as the means by which he could grow as a godly person.

I think our own experiences develop our spiritual maturity as well, as we see God faithfully act on our behalf. In a book by Gene Getz, I read this quote from Corrie ten Boom’s book, “Tramp for the Lord”, where she describes her feelings the day she was miraculously released from a Nazi concentration camp. Some of her experience was similar to Joseph’s. She wrote..

“When you are dying – when you stand at the gate of eternity – you see things from a different perspective than when you think you may live for a long time. I had been standing at that gate for many months, living in Barracks 28 in the shadow of the crematorium. Every time I saw the smoke pouring from the hideous smokestacks I knew it was the last remains of some poor woman who had been with me in Ravensbruck. Often I asked myself, ‘When will it be my time to be killed or die?’ But I was not afraid. Following Betsie’s death, God’s presence was even more real. Even though I was looking into the valley of the shadow of death, I was not afraid. It is here that Jesus comes closest, taking our hand and leading us through.

One week before the order came to kill all the women of my age, I was free. I still do not understand all the details of my release from Ravensbruck. All I know is, it was a miracle of God. I stood in the prison yard – waiting the final order. Beyond the walls with their strands of barbed wire stood the silent trees of the German forest, looking so much like the gray-green sets on the back of one of our theatre stagers in Holland.

Mimi, one of the fellow prisoners, came within whispering distance. ‘Tiny died this morning,’ she said without looking at me. ‘And Marie also.’ Tiny! ‘Oh, Lord, thank you for letting me point her to Jesus who has now ushered her safely into your presence.’ And Marie. I knew her well. She lived in my barracks and had attended my Bible talks. Like Tiny, Marie had also accepted Jesus as her Lord. I looked back at the long rows of barracks. ‘Lord, if it was only for Tiny and Marie – that they might come to know you before they died – then it was all worthwhile.’

A guard spoke harshly, telling Mimi to leave the yard. Then he said to me, ‘Face the gate. Do not turn around.’ The gate swung open and I glimpsed the lake front of the camp. I could smell freedom. ‘Follow me,’ a young girl in an officer’s uniform said to me. I walked slowly through the gate, never looking back. Behind me I heard the hinges squeak as the gate swung shut. I was free, and flooding through my mind were the words of Jesus to the church at Philadelphia: ‘Behold, I have set before you an open door, and no man can shut it ...’ (Rev. 3:8).”

May we wait for God to open doors and then follow where he leads with absolute confidence in God.

Related Topics: Character Study, Christian Life

Pages