If you haven’t read the whole story of Joseph (Genesis 41-50), you might want to. It’s pretty entertaining! I’m not going to go through the whole story, but I want to touch on just a couple of more points before we leave him.
When we left Joseph, he was about to successfully interpret the Pharaoh’s dream. Then look what Pharaoh does for Joseph:
Genesis 41:40-44
40 "You shall be
over my house, and according to your command all my people shall do homage;
only in the throne I will be greater than you."
41 Pharaoh said to
Joseph, "See, I have set you over all the
42 Then Pharaoh took
off his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph's hand, and clothed him
in garments of fine linen and put the gold necklace around his neck.
43 He had him ride in
his second chariot; and they proclaimed before him, "Bow the knee!"
And he set him over all the
44 Moreover, Pharaoh
said to Joseph, "Though I am Pharaoh, yet without your permission no one
shall raise his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt."
To put this in historical perspective, it would be like Bill
Gates giving you his credit card. This
is what happens to people who wait on the timing of God. Now, because of Joseph’s faith in God, the
entire nation of
I guarantee there is one person in the
Genesis 41:51
51 Joseph named the
firstborn Manasseh, "For," he said, "God has made me
forget all my trouble and all my father's
household."
If you read chapters 42 through 49, you will see how Joseph
ends up bringing his father and all his brothers and their families into
But the brothers have learned nothing from the life of Joseph. When their father died, they started worrying that Joseph was going to get them back.
Genesis 50:15-18
15 When Joseph's
brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "What if Joseph
bears a grudge against us and pays us back in full for all the wrong which
we did to him!"
16 So they sent a
message to Joseph, saying, "Your father charged before he died, saying,
17 "Thus you
shall say to Joseph, "Please forgive, I beg you, the transgression of your
brothers and their sin, for they did you wrong." (Now they are lying to him to protect themselves)'. And now, please forgive the transgression
of the servants of the God of your father." And Joseph wept when they
spoke to him. (He’s weeping because
they still don’t understand!)
18 Then his brothers
also came and fell down before him and said, "Behold, we are your
servants."
Here is the fulfillment of the dream that Joseph had way back when he was 17!
Now Joseph answers them:
Genesis 50:19-21
19 But Joseph said to
them, "Do not be afraid, for am I in God's place? (He leaves it up to God
to punish them)
20 "As for
you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring
about this present result, to preserve many people alive.
21 "So
therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones."
So he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.
Think about how easily Joseph could have gotten some sweet revenge on his brothers (not to mention Potipher and his lying wife!).
But Joseph has realized that God has perfect timing. Even though the brothers were certainly not looking out for Joseph’s best interest, GOD WAS! A mature believer NEVER reacts with bitterness, or tries to get revenge when people mistreat him.
Joseph has the faith now to recognize that no matter how bad someone treats you, if God allows it, then it has a purpose in His plan for your life.
God has overlooked NOTHING in your life. He has a perfect plan, and a perfect time to accomplish it. When you think that things are not going your way, or when someone mistreats you, recognize this same principle in the life of Joseph. They might mean it for evil against you, but God means it for good.