Cross Pointe Women

The Lord was with Joseph ~ Genesis 39:2, 39:21

Really? 

Have you ever considered the life of Joseph? His story is told in Genesis; from chapters 30 through 50 and he is referenced throughout the pages of scripture. His story is one of the most significant in all of the Bible. Few lives have been chronicled as Joseph’s and have been given such focus so there must be much for us to learn from his life. 

What do we know of Joseph? 

In Genesis 30:24 we are told that Joseph was the eleventh son of Jacob, who was called Israel, and the eldest son of two sons by Jacob’s beloved wife, Rachel. He was Jacob’s favorite son. Joseph’s story begins in Gen. 37:2 at the tender age of seventeen. We learn that he is a shepherd, a good son who is unwilling to participate in the misconduct he observes in his ten older brothers, is compelled to reveal that misconduct to their father and that he is highly favored in his father’s eyes. He is so highly favored that Jacob made him a varicolored garment commonly referred to as a coat of many colors. 

This all sounds good doesn’t it? To be so favored in a father’s eyes and the recipient of such an outpouring of love must have been wonderful. However, all was not wonderful with his older brothers. To complicate their relationship, Joseph was a dreamer (Gen. 37:5 and 9) and oblivious to the impact of sharing his dreams with his brothers. His brothers already disliked him (Gen. 37:4) because he was their father’s favorite but dislike turned to hatred when they understood that Joseph believed he would rule over them because of what he believed his dreams meant for the future (Gen. 37:9) Joseph even provoked the wrath of his father when he told him about his dreams of ruling over not just his brothers but his parents as well (Gen. 37:10). 

His brothers hated him; Hated him passionately! They plotted to kill him and would have if his older brother Rueben had not experienced a moment of conscience in Gen. 37:21. Rueben didn’t want to kill him outright but was fine with dumping him alive in a pit and allowing him to die a slow death in Gen. 37:24. With their little brother in the pit with no food or water, the ten older brothers could enjoy a meal and as they were doing so, a caravan of the sons of Ishmael were passing by which birthed an alternate plan. Brother Judah devised a way to make a little money for the trouble their brother had caused them. Gen. 37: 26 reveals Judah’s plan to sell Joseph rather than let him die in the pit. The ten older brothers all agreed to sell him as a slave to a band of Midianite traders and then lie to their father - saying they had found his special coat bloodied and tattered Gen. 37:32.

It sounds pretty dismal doesn’t it? Do you see in scripture any details that would lead you to believe that Joseph deserved to be treated so badly? At the whim and sin of his brothers, Joseph went from being a beloved son of his father to a slave of strangers in a foreign land. 

Theologians teach that the Bible uses character’s stories as symbols or metaphors which point us to Jesus. These stories are intended to resemble Jesus and provide food for thought on God’s plan for salvation. Joseph is often referred to as a “Type of Christ”. 

We know that Joseph was loved by his father - Jesus, the Son of God, was and is loved by God the Father.

Joseph was hated by his brothers - rejected and betrayed by them as well. Jesus was hated by the very people He came to dwell among. Jesus was rejected by those whom He came to save and they betrayed Him and plotted to kill Him. 

Money was exchanged as part of the betrayals of both Joseph and Jesus.

Joseph found acceptance in the the land of strangers; Egypt. The message, the blessings,  the salvation of Jesus as Messiah would be and has been embraced and accepted by gentiles in every foreign land since His coming up to this very day. 

As referenced, the Bible clearly states that the Lord was with Joseph. The Lord was with Joseph as a favored 17 year old shepherd. The Lord was with Joseph when he was hated by those who should have loved him. The Lord was with Joseph in the bottom of that pit too. 

Have you ever been hated? Have you ever been treated unfairly? Betrayed? Pushed out of the life, the relationships that were rightfully yours and forced to start a new life among strangers in a foreign land? 

This is life! It isn’t a fabrication or just a story pulled from the pages of scripture - This is as real to us as it was for Joseph… and yet the Lord was with Joseph - just as He is with each of us. 

Joseph’s life can almost be divided into 5 seasons - please come back and read the next season of a remarkable man whose entire life speaks of complete faith and trust in His God regardless of his circumstances.