Friends, it feels like we are leaping through the Old Testament this fall. We started a few weeks ago as we focused on the Covenant God made with Noah and the animals. Last week, we read about God’s call upon Abraham and Sarah to leave their homeland, travel to Canaan, and become the ancestors of countless people. Today, we read a portion of the story of the trials and tribulations of their great-grandson Joseph.
Each week, we are focusing on a few highlights from the Old Testament – each highlight reminding us of how God calls upon imperfect people to change the world for the better.
If you haven’t read through the saga of Joseph lately, I remind you that it shares many elements in common with telanovellas or soap operas.
Joseph was one of the youngest sons of Jacob and his wife Rachel….Jacob had 12 sons in all with his two “wives” and two “concubines.” Jacob favored Joseph and showered him with special attention – Joseph became prideful and bratty in response to his father’s favoritism. HIs older brothers were jealous of Joseph. They finally became so angry and jealous they threw him into a pit, sold him into slavery, and then lied to his father and said he was dead.
Today, we turn to what happened to Joseph while he was a slave. Turn with me to Genesis chapter 39 – we will read the whole chapter.
Listen now to the word of God….
The Scripture Genesis 39:1-23
1 Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh’s officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.
2 The LORD was with Joseph so that he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master.
3 When his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD gave him success in everything he did,
4 Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned.
5 From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the LORD blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the LORD was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field.
6 So Potiphar left everything he had in Joseph’s care; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome,
7 and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me!”
8 But he refused. “With me in charge,” he told her, “my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care.
9 No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?”
10 And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her.
11 One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside.
12 She caught him by his cloak and said, “Come to bed with me!” But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house.
13 When she saw that he had left his cloak in her hand and had run out of the house,
14 she called her household servants. “Look,” she said to them, “this Hebrew has been brought to us to make sport of us! He came in here to sleep with me, but I screamed.
15 When he heard me scream for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.”
16 She kept his cloak beside her until his master came home.
17 Then she told him this story: “That Hebrew slave you brought us came to me to make sport of me.
18 But as soon as I screamed for help, he left his cloak beside me and ran out of the house.”
19 When his master heard the story his wife told him, saying, “This is how your slave treated me,” he burned with anger.
20 Joseph’s master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined. But while Joseph was there in the prison,
21 the LORD was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden.
22 So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there.
23 The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.
Here ends this reading of the word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Let us pray…
The Message Joseph in Prison
Joseph didn’t stay in prison. You will notice that everywhere he landed, he ended up doing well. Joseph had a knack for interpreting dreams, or a knack in asking God to help him interpret dreams. While he was in prison, Joseph met the former cupbearer and baker of the Pharaoh. He correctly interpreted their dreams – one of them was put to death and the other was restored to his work in the King’s court. Eventually, the Pharaoh had some weird dreams no one could interpret. Joseph was remembered and brought to court to interpret the king’s dreams. His interpretation was correct.
After Joseph’s success, the Pharaoh freed Joseph and elevated him to the king’s second-in-command and advisor. There was a terrible famine. Joseph was put in charge of storing food before the famine and distributing it during the famine. Joseph’s brothers came to Egypt and asked for aid. After many twists and turns, Joseph forgave his brothers and his whole family resettled in Egypt.
After his adolescent bratty-ness, Joseph matured. I suspect the stress of being sold into slavery by your nearest relatives may have forced Joseph to grow up and re-evaluate his life. While he was a slave in Potiphar’s home, Joseph was loyal and faithful to his slave master.
After he was wrongly imprisoned because of a lie, Joseph became a model prisoner, working on behalf of the prison overseer to settle disputes and be a role model for the other prisoners.
Joseph was consistent – wherever he found himself, he worked to help the people he was with – other slaves, other prisoners, the people of Egypt, his family.
Sometimes, we find ourselves in unfortunate situations – a job we feel is beneath us; or assigned to a group project in school with unhelpful partners; or sitting in a seat in a chemo unit we never expected to sit in. We find ourselves in places we don’t want to be or expect to be….kind of like David who first found himself held in slavery and then found himself sitting in prison.
We could give up. We are tempted to give up. We are tempted to just curl up in a ball and cry.
But that is not what Joseph did. Wherever he found himself, he still had faith in God. He still trusted that God had a plan for his life. And, he was inspired by his faith to make the best of the situation he was in – When Joseph was captive in slavery, “Joseph found favor in his (master’s) eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned.” When Joseph was captive in prison, “…the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there.” When Joseph was in the court of the Pharaoh, the Pharaoh said: “You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders.”
We can be like Joseph, no matter what happens in our lives….we can trust in God. We can be faithful. We can remember that God has a plan for us even if we don’t understand it at the moment. We can look around at the people surrounding us, and be kind to them. We can work hard and try to lift other people’s spirits. We can take care of ourselves, and work to take care of others. Even if we are feeling grumpy, we can choose to not take it out on others. We can work to make the best of whatever situation we are in.
Joseph took things in stride. He was faithful to God when he was cast out from his family. He was faithful to God when he became a slave. He was faithful to God when he was thrown into prison. He was faithful to God when he became a leader in Egypt. He never forgot his faith in God.
Let us work to be like Joseph: Faithful, resilient, and accepting….today and all days to come. Amen.