Old Testament # 12
“Fruitful
in the Land of My Affliction”
Genesis 40–45; Joseph Smith Translation of Genesis 50:24–38
Last week’s Challenge—how do your
trials either in the past or some you are undergoing now turn to your good? And
I’d add, can you make them?
Introduction
Well we left Joseph in jail. Completely innocent in
thought, word, and deed. Do you wonder what Potiphar thought of all this. And
was his wife just trying to get rid of this troublesome Hebrew who was probably
getting more attention from her husband than she was? We hear nothing more of
these two, but you have to wonder if they are still around when Joseph is made
second in command in the Egyptian empire.
Last week I mentioned the Dreamworks movie, Prince of Egypt.
S. Kent Brown who was one of my bosses at the BYU Maxwell Institute was a
consultant for this film, and he produced a study guide. I will try to get hold
of it. Totally unrelated, but my mother was raised in the Jewish religion which
she rejected in her teens. Then she married my father—a Gentile–during the war.
She eventually converted to the Church of England, but her knowledge of the
scriptures was sketchy. She, like a lot of people, learned a lot about Joseph
from Prince of Egypt. (And incidentally she learned most of what she
knew about Mormon history from Gerald Lund’s Work and Glory series which she
loved). We really didn’t talk about religion in our family—it was a very
personal subject and yet here I am a member of the Church for 38 years and my
brother a vicar in the Church of England for about the same time.
So how long was Joseph incarcerated? We only know that he
was about 17 when he was sold into slavery and around 30 when he was released
from jail. And it was two years after he interpreted the baker’s and butler’s
dreams that Pharaoh sent for him to interpret his dream. At any rate a very
long time. And I wonder at the symbolism of the first two dreams involving
bread and wine. And what happened to Joseph’s own visions. Surely there were
more than two. We know so little really, but are so grateful for what we do
have.
1. Joseph interprets the dreams of the butler, the baker,
and Pharaoh. Pharaoh makes Joseph ruler over all Egypt. Genesis
40–41
One doesn’t necessarily think of Joseph as a missionary,
but surely this is what he was while he was in prison. In Genesis 40:8 we read
that the first thing he said to the butler and the baker was “Do not interpretations
belong to God?” In Genesis 37, when Joseph is telling his two dreams to his
brothers and then his father, notice that he didn’t interpret them. It was his
brothers and his fathers that offered what might seem an obvious interpretation
and thereby took offense.
So Joseph has a position of responsibility in the jail
(see Genesis 40:4)—at least that is how I choose to interpret that verse, and
he serves these two high-powered prisoners. Was Pharaoh that capricious that he
summarily threw people into jail who displeased him? (tongue in cheek, but he
seems to be a bit of a Darth Vader character, before Luke converted him). Egypt
was not a safe place to gain power! We know the story—Joseph correctly
interprets the dreams and asks the butler to put in a good word for him when
the butler is back in Pharaoh’s good books. If we are looking for parallels
again, it reminds me of the ten lepers who were healed by the Savior, and nine
of them just left and didn’t come back to be one of His disciples.
Two years later, though, when Pharaoh is totally
frustrated with his so-called wise men’s inability to interpret his dreams—again
prefiguring a future Pharaoh’s dilemma when faced with natural disasters as a result
of effectively imprisoning Covenant Israel—the butler suddenly remembers Joseph’s
ability to interpret dreams. Notice Genesis 41:16, Joseph immediately says it
is God who interprets, not him. Not only that, Joseph lays out a plan to combat
the famine and is rewarded with the responsibility. And an Egyptian wife,
Asenath, mother of Ephraim and Manasseh.
2. Joseph makes himself known to his brothers and
forgives them. Genesis
42–45.
There is a lot of to and fro in this part of the
narrative and some seemingly capricious actions on Joseph’s part. But here,
perhaps unknowingly, Joseph is cast in the role of Savior of the Lord’s covenant
people as his Hebrew family is now destitute because of the famine and they
hear that there is corn in Egypt.
I recently looked up an old school friend on Facebook and
she was instantly recognizable, even though it has been 40 odd years since I
last saw her. So how did his brothers not recognize Joseph. The Institute
manual tells us that although they might have seen a resemblance, they thought
they were looking at a high-ranking Egyptian. Not a Hebrew slave.
Surprisingly, I haven’t found a lot of quotes about this
period, but here is one from Elder David Sorenson:
Joseph’s brothers jealously hated him.
They plotted to take his life and finally sold him as a slave. Joseph was
carried into Egypt and struggled for years to rise from slavery. During these
challenging times, Joseph might have condemned his brothers and sworn revenge.
He might have soothed his pain by scheming to get even someday. But he did not.
In time, Joseph became ruler over all of Egypt, second in command only to
Pharaoh. During a devastating famine, Joseph’s brothers traveled to Egypt for
food. Not recognizing Joseph, they bowed down to him because of his high
position. Surely at that moment Joseph had the power to exact revenge. He might
have put his brethren in prison or sentenced them to death. Instead he
confirmed his forgiveness. He said: “I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold
into Egypt. Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye
sold me hither. … And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity … and
to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you that sent me
hither, but God.” Joseph’s will to forgive changed bitterness to love.[1]
In conclusion, I want to include something we will no
doubt not be able to get to—the JST of Genesis 50 which gives us a small
inkling of the legacy that Joseph Smith inherited, lived up to, and fulfilled.
- One of Joseph’s descendants
would be a “choice seer” (Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 50:26; 2 Nephi 3:6).
- This seer would be greatly
respected by the other descendants of Joseph (Joseph Smith Translation,
Genesis 50:27; 2 Nephi 3:7).
- He would teach them of the
covenants that God had made with their ancestors (Joseph Smith
Translation, Genesis 50:28; 2 Nephi 3:7).
- He would be obedient to God
(Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 50:28; 2 Nephi 3:8).
- He would be a great prophet,
like Moses
(Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 50:29; 2 Nephi 3:9).
- He would be the means for
bringing forth new scripture (the Book of Mormon) that would support and
work with existing scripture (the Bible) (Joseph
Smith Translation, Genesis 50:30–31; 2 Nephi 3:11–12).
- Although he would be weak,
the Lord would make him strong (Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 50:32; 2 Nephi 3:13).
- Both he and his father would
be named Joseph (Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 50:33; 2 Nephi 3:15).
Writing on this on Palm Sunday, what the Christian world
regards as Holy Week is ahead of us. With Easter and General Conference the
same weekend, no doubt we will hear things that will help us understand Joseph
of Egypt better. I look forward to talking to you about the impressions you
have had on 8th April.
I am adding two quotes from General Conference that I think go well with this lesson. Elder Bednar on meekness, and Elder Echohawk on forgiveness.
Elder Bednar: “The Christlike quality of meekness often is misunderstood in our contemporary world. Meekness is strong, not weak; active, not passive; courageous, not timid; restrained, not excessive; modest, not self-aggrandizing; and gracious, not brash. A meek person is not easily provoked, pretentious, or overbearing and readily acknowledges the accomplishments of others. Whereas humilitygenerally denotes dependence upon God and the constant need for His guidance and support, a distinguishing characteristic of meeknessis a particular spiritual receptivity to learning both from the Holy Ghost and from people who may seem less capable, experienced, or educated, who may not hold important positions, or who otherwise may not appear to have much to contribute.”[1]
I am adding two quotes from General Conference that I think go well with this lesson. Elder Bednar on meekness, and Elder Echohawk on forgiveness.
Elder Bednar: “The Christlike quality of meekness often is misunderstood in our contemporary world. Meekness is strong, not weak; active, not passive; courageous, not timid; restrained, not excessive; modest, not self-aggrandizing; and gracious, not brash. A meek person is not easily provoked, pretentious, or overbearing and readily acknowledges the accomplishments of others. Whereas humilitygenerally denotes dependence upon God and the constant need for His guidance and support, a distinguishing characteristic of meeknessis a particular spiritual receptivity to learning both from the Holy Ghost and from people who may seem less capable, experienced, or educated, who may not hold important positions, or who otherwise may not appear to have much to contribute.”[1]
Elder EchoHawk on forgiveness
We can all receive unspeakable peace and partnering with our Savior as we learn to freely forgive those who have trespassed against us. This partnering brings the Savior’s power into our lives in an unmistakable and never-to-be-forgotten way.[1]
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