Genesis (2011) 41B. After a brief break, we re back to studying the story of Joseph s rise. He is now at the lowest point of his life

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1 Genesis (2011) 41B After a brief break, we re back t studying the stry f Jseph s rise He is nw at the lwest pint f his life Jseph is languishing in Egypt having spent 13 years in slavery and nw prisn But tw years ag, he encuntered a man wh Gd will use t change Jseph s life That man was the cupbearer, whm Jseph helped by interpreting his dream As we learned in that prir week, Jseph has been gifted by Gd t interpret dreams, which is a rare gift in scripture And Jseph has used the gift whenever the Lrd gives pprtunity And the Lrd is abut t give Jseph anther pprtunity, in keeping with His purpses The Lrd has given the Pharah a dream that the black arts cannt discern Of curse, Gd is at wrk here t bring Jseph and Pharah tgether He has gifted Jseph with a spiritual ability t serve Gd thrugh interpretatin f dreams And the Lrd has brught a need int Pharah s life that nly Jseph s divine ability can satisfy What a simple and beautiful picture f hw the Lrd wrks thrugh spiritual gifts In a sense, they are divine slutins t divine prblems Gd places spiritual gifts in the bdy f Christ specifically t address spiritual needs These gifts serve t build up believers and strengthen fr further ministry 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

2 Genesis 41B 2 f 13 And at ther times they serve t direct an unbeliever in the plan f Gd Whether that cnnectin is intended t bring saving faith Or ther times it merely directs the unbeliever s steps in accrdance with Gd s plans That s what we see happening with Pharah here S having received the dream, Pharah nw seeks fr an interpretatin And this gives pprtunity fr that cupbearer t step frward with a Gd-inspired slutin Gen. 41:8 Nw in the mrning his spirit was trubled, s he sent and called fr all the magicians f Egypt, and all its wise men. And Pharah tld them his dreams, but there was n ne wh culd interpret them t Pharah. Gen. 41:9 Then the chief cupbearer spke t Pharah, saying, I wuld make mentin tday f my wn ffenses. Gen. 41:10 Pharah was furius with his servants, and he put me in cnfinement in the huse f the captain f the bdyguard, bth me and the chief baker. Gen. 41:11 We had a dream n the same night, he and I; each f us dreamed accrding t the interpretatin f his wn dream. Gen. 41:12 Nw a Hebrew yuth was with us there, a servant f the captain f the bdyguard, and we related them t him, and he interpreted ur dreams fr us. T each ne he interpreted accrding t his wn dream. Gen. 41:13 And just as he interpreted fr us, s it happened; he restred me in my ffice, but he hanged him. Pharah appeals t his wise men, which wuld have included diviners and magicians, but nne culd give the interpretatin These wise men relied n the black arts t btain their spiritual insight Diviners seek t predict the future, while magicians seek t cntrl the future And the enemy has pwer t a degree t give these pwers t men wh seek them frm him But his pwer is limited t insight and pwer related t Satan s wn plans and wrks The enemy can nly share with men his wn plans and activity 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

3 Genesis 41B 3 f 13 And t the extent the Lrd permits the enemy t act accrding t his desires, then Satan can empwer men t predict the future, s t speak But that pwer cannt extend t predicting Gd s plans Because Satan can t knw what Gd will d S that s where Pharah s men cme up shrt It s been tw years since the cupbearer met Jseph, but nly nw he remembers Jseph s ability t interpret dreams That makes sense, since nce the cupbearer had been restred, the last thing he wuld have wanted t d was remind Pharah f his past displeasure In fact, ntice that the cupbearer begins his testimny by making an aplgy fr bringing up that unpleasant episde S this was the first lgical pprtunity fr the cupbearer t make mentin f Jseph, since it was spken in an effrt t help Pharah The mre imprtant questin we shuld cnsider is why the Lrd waited tw years t bring this dream t Pharah The Lrd culd have initiated this next phase f His plan at any pint after the cupbearer left the prisn Jseph s additinal tw years in the prisn was made necessary entirely because the Lrd waited that lng t bring the dream t Pharah Hw d we explain Jseph s additinal waiting in prisn? Glance ahead t v.46 in this chapter Gen. 41:46 Nw Jseph was thirty years ld when he std befre Pharah, king f Egypt. And Jseph went ut frm the presence f Pharah and went thrugh all the land f Egypt. Gd s plan was fr Jseph t wait until he had reached the age f thirty befre he culd stand befre Pharah and begin t rule This age is anther picture cnnecting Jseph and Jesus 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

4 Genesis 41B 4 f 13 Jesus was thirty years f age when He began his public ministry And this was als the age in the Law when a priest f Gd was t begin serving in the tabernacle S Jseph is elevated int a place f ruling at this same age Frm this psitin he will rule ver nt nly Egypt but als Israel In ther wrds, Jseph will becme a ruler fr bth Jew and Gentile, the picture f Christ It s lessns like this that help us maintain perspective in the experiences f ur lives Have yu been required t wait fr smething t change in yur life? Yu wanted release frm a burden Yu wanted relief frm an illness r a trial Yu asked Gd t slve a prblem, bring a blessing, intervene in sme way But the answer didn t cme, at least nt at first, and perhaps never in ur understanding Hw d we relate t these disappintments? Jseph s stry teaches that men can t see enugh f Gd s wrk nr fully understand Gd s purpses apart frm what He reveals t us S we dn t have enugh data t make cnclusins Like Jseph suffering in prisn, we wait and wait wndering where Gd has gne S where d we turn when ur knwledge and understanding fails? When are data is incmplete and ur insight is lacking? We stp fcusing n the data, n ur experiences and emtins and ignrance We turn t Gd s wrd and we rest in what He says 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

5 Genesis 41B 5 f 13 We knw He says He never leaves us nr frsakes us We knw that it testifies that even if the Lrd takes ur life, there is glry t be fund in it Gen. 41:14 Then Pharah sent and called fr Jseph, and they hurriedly brught him ut f the dungen; and when he had shaved himself and changed his clthes, he came t Pharah. Gen. 41:15 Pharah said t Jseph, I have had a dream, but n ne can interpret it; and I have heard it said abut yu, that when yu hear a dream yu can interpret it. Gen. 41:16 Jseph then answered Pharah, saying, It is nt in me; Gd will give Pharah a favrable answer. Gen. 41:17 S Pharah spke t Jseph, In my dream, behld, I was standing n the bank f the Nile; Gen. 41:18 and behld, seven cws, fat and sleek came up ut f the Nile, and they grazed in the marsh grass. Gen. 41:19 L, seven ther cws came up after them, pr and very ugly and gaunt, such as I had never seen fr ugliness in all the land f Egypt; Gen. 41:20 and the lean and ugly cws ate up the first seven fat cws. Gen. 41:21 Yet when they had devured them, it culd nt be detected that they had devured them, fr they were just as ugly as befre. Then I awke. Gen. 41:22 I saw als in my dream, and behld, seven ears, full and gd, came up n a single stalk; Gen. 41:23 and l, seven ears, withered, thin, and scrched by the east wind, spruted up after them; Gen. 41:24 and the thin ears swallwed the seven gd ears. Then I tld it t the magicians, but there was n ne wh culd explain it t me. S the Pharah, having heard abut Jseph s amazing abilities, calls fr Jseph t be brught befre him The ancient histrian Herdtus reprts that the Egyptians were renwn fr cleanliness They assciated bdy hair with uncleanliness S men wuld shave all bdy hair Accrdingly, we can be sure that Jseph didn t appear befre Pharah with any bdy hair shwing And the Egyptians prbably didn t have the Schick super smth clse razrs f tday 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

6 Genesis 41B 6 f 13 T make matters wrse, the scripture says they hurriedly brught him befre Pharah, since the king was impatient t receive an answer N dubt the prcess wuld have been uncmfrtable fr Jseph, t say the least They dressed in fitting apparel and put him befre Pharah As Jseph appears befre Pharah, the king reveals he wants Jseph t interpret a dream Even befre Jseph hears the dream unfld, he declares that he is nt the ne interpreting, but it will be Gd ding the wrk Anther shining mment fr Jseph We can t verstate the hw awesme it wuld have been t appear befre Pharah in that mment Jseph was standing befre the mst imprtant man n the entire earth The arma f pwer and pulence wuld have been verwhelming, especially t a man plucked up frm prisn And the king is turning t him fr answers Jseph s knws he can interpret dreams, s he answers the king in cnfidence But his respnse makes n attempt t claim any credit fr himself His mdesty is simply hnesty, as we knw, but it s still a remarkable shw f humility and strength He culd have laid claim t the glry fr himself assuming it wuld lead t smething gd fr Jseph But instead, Jseph gives all credit t the Lrd Let s all emulate this example In the way the Lrd gifts us, we seek t serve Him But as we serve, let s never allw the results t be credited t us 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

7 Genesis 41B 7 f 13 Let s tell peple at every pprtunity that ur service and any gd results it btains are the direct result f the Lrd at wrk thrugh us Like Jseph, we are vessels but Gd is the supply Then Jseph hears Pharah s dream again Of the seven fat cws and the seven lean cws Of the gd ears and the scrched ears f grain There are a cuple f new pieces f infrmatin nt previus revealed t us The think cws were the wrst the Pharah had ever seen And the thin ears f grain cnsumed the fat but still lking gaunt even after the cnsumptin S then Jseph ffers the interpretatin Gen. 41:25 Nw Jseph said t Pharah, Pharah s dreams are ne and the same; Gd has tld t Pharah what He is abut t d. Gen. 41:26 The seven gd cws are seven years; and the seven gd ears are seven years; the dreams are ne and the same. Gen. 41:27 The seven lean and ugly cws that came up after them are seven years, and the seven thin ears scrched by the east wind will be seven years f famine. Gen. 41:28 It is as I have spken t Pharah: Gd has shwn t Pharah what He is abut t d. Gen. 41:29 Behld, seven years f great abundance are cming in all the land f Egypt; Gen. 41:30 and after them seven years f famine will cme, and all the abundance will be frgtten in the land f Egypt, and the famine will ravage the land. Gen. 41:31 S the abundance will be unknwn in the land because f that subsequent famine; fr it will be very severe. Gen. 41:32 Nw as fr the repeating f the dream t Pharah twice, it means that the matter is determined by Gd, and Gd will quickly bring it abut. Gen. 41:33 Nw let Pharah lk fr a man discerning and wise, and set him ver the land f Egypt. Gen. 41:34 Let Pharah take actin t appint verseers in charge f the land, and let him exact a fifth f the prduce f the land f Egypt in the seven years f abundance. Gen. 41:35 Then let them gather all the fd f these gd years that are cming, and stre up the grain fr fd in the cities under Pharah s authrity, and let them guard it Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

8 Genesis 41B 8 f 13 Gen. 41:36 Let the fd becme as a reserve fr the land fr the seven years f famine which will ccur in the land f Egypt, s that the land will nt perish during the famine. Jseph begins the interpretatin by annuncing that the tw dreams are speaking abut the same thing, s he need nly prvide a single interpretatin These dreams were given t Pharah because the Lrd wants t reveal t him what is cming t Egypt There will be seven years f severe famine in the land f Egypt But befre that time, there will be seven years f abundance In fact, the Lrd gave the dream in a repetitin t Pharah t ensure that he knew it was frm Gd and it wuld be cming quickly And knwing the famine is cming, Jseph says the Pharah must use the seven years f plenty t prepare The abundance must be a time f string fr the future need But this famine will be s severe that it will cnsume the entire strage f the years f plenty S Jseph tells Pharah that it will be imprtant that smene manage this strage prcess carefully The abundance must be husbanded with great care if the natin is ging t survive the famine I find Jseph s stry helpful t remember when making decisins abut ur wn persnal resurces and the way we make plans fr the future Scripture teaches that the Lrd will als make a prvisin fr His children, as Jesus taught in the sermn n the munt But Gd s willingness t prvide desn t eliminate ur respnsibility t take pprtunity in times f plenty t stre up Gd s prvisin fr a future lean year may have been prvided t us in an earlier year f plenty Jseph gives Pharah a specific plan f actin that wuld take advantage f Gd s advanced warning He tells Pharah nw is the time t act 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

9 Genesis 41B 9 f 13 Appint a leader and empwer that persn with the authrity t tax, and stre up and prtect the abundance Then nce the hard times cme, the natin will have a reserve it can draw upn Ntice that these suggestins d nt fllw autmatically frm the dream The dream said nthing abut hw t respnd t the cming situatin Nevertheless, Jseph knew what t d because he was drawing upn a secnd spiritual gift Gd had given him Jseph has always demnstrated tw gifts wrking in unisn He has the ability t interpret dreams and thereby demnstrate great insight and wisdm And he has always demnstrated an ability t lead thers and thereby becme their ruler And he s putting bth f these gifts tgether in his appearance befre Pharah And these tw qualities prvide yet anther picture f Christ in the stry f Jseph In His first cming, Jesus demnstrates the pwer f Gd in His teaching and wisdm Jesus speaks f spiritual truths and gives knwledge cncerning the future He acts as a prphet speaking truth But in His secnd cming, the Lrd will demnstrate His authrity and pwer t rule ver the earth The reemergence f Jseph s ability t lead is the clue we need t recgnize that the stry is turning tward pictures f Jesus Secnd Cming Just as Jesus reign at the right hand f the Father begins after Jesus is resurrected frm the grave 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

10 Genesis 41B 10 f 13 Nw Jseph s rise frm prisn leads him t be elevated t secnd in charge under Pharah Gen. 41:37 Nw the prpsal seemed gd t Pharah and t all his servants. Gen. 41:38 Then Pharah said t his servants, Can we find a man like this, in whm is a divine spirit? Gen. 41:39 S Pharah said t Jseph, Since Gd has infrmed yu f all this, there is n ne s discerning and wise as yu are. Gen. 41:40 Yu shall be ver my huse, and accrding t yur cmmand all my peple shall d hmage; nly in the thrne I will be greater than yu. Gen. 41:41 Pharah said t Jseph, See, I have set yu ver all the land f Egypt. Gen. 41:42 Then Pharah tk ff his signet ring frm his hand and put it n Jseph s hand, and clthed him in garments f fine linen and put the gld necklace arund his neck. Gen. 41:43 He had him ride in his secnd charit; and they prclaimed befre him, Bw the knee! And he set him ver all the land f Egypt. Gen. 41:44 Mrever, Pharah said t Jseph, Thugh I am Pharah, yet withut yur permissin n ne shall raise his hand r ft in all the land f Egypt. Gen. 41:45 Then Pharah named Jseph Zaphenath-paneah; and he gave him Asenath, the daughter f Ptiphera priest f On, as his wife. And Jseph went frth ver the land f Egypt. Gen. 41:46 Nw Jseph was thirty years ld when he std befre Pharah, king f Egypt. And Jseph went ut frm the presence f Pharah and went thrugh all the land f Egypt. Pharah shws his wn wisdm as he immediately decides that Jseph spke truth Mrever, the Pharah decides that Jseph is the man fr the jb He declares that n ne culd be as well suited fr the rle he himself defined He says Jseph has a divine spirit, which was a pagan pint f view But it pictures the way Jesus had the Spirit cme upn Him at the time He came int public ministry And Pharah places Jseph at his right hand, secnd nly t the Pharah Here again, a picture f Christ seated at the right hand f the Father 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

11 Genesis 41B 11 f 13 Ruling all creatin under the authrity f the Father Why wuld the Pharah suddenly have s much cnfidence in Jseph? It ges back t the issue f the Hykss ruling ver a Hamite peple The Pharah was a Hykss, a semite peple freign t the Egyptian Hamite culture But Jseph is a semite like the Pharah, s he naturally feels mre trusting f smene like Jseph than any Hamite Here again is anther piece f evidence f hw the Lrd has laid all the necessary grund wrk t bring Jseph the success Gd wanted in the day In the thirteen years Jseph spent in Egypt, he wuld have learned the language, hw t right the Egyptian hierglyphics He wuld have learned the culture, the gvernment (frm Ptiphar), and the custms He als wuld have been very familiar with Pharah s elite guard and curt fficials Withut these skills, he never culd have succeeded in his new rle Thirteen years may have felt like Gd delaying, but it was actually Gd preparing Never lse hpe in Gd s pwer t accmplish great things thrugh yur patience and bedience Instead, take hpe in understanding that the Lrd has been at wrk making preparatins fr yu t serve Him in sme way even befre yu were brn The details will cme tgether in His timing Just stay the curse, remain bedient and faithful Let s finish this mrning by lking at all that Pharah did in elevating Jseph We already mentined that Jseph was elevated t the right hand f the king 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

12 Genesis 41B 12 f 13 He is given the rle f vizier, which means prime minister And in that psitin f pwer, Jseph will represent the Pharah t the natin and wrld Jseph receives the Pharah s ring, which allwed Jseph t issue decrees sealed with the Pharah s seal Then he receives a rbe typical f the kind f garment traditinally wrn by men in Jseph s psitin Third, he receives a gld chain and ryal charit in which t take a victry lap arund the natin The Hykss intrduced charits int Egypt, and it was the mst advanced weapn f cmbat in its day And everywhere Jseph wuld g, every knee in Egypt will bw And even thugh Pharah is the reigning authrity, nthing in the land can be dne apart frm Jseph s wrd Then, Jseph s name changed t an Egyptian wrd meaning Gd has spken and he shall live The sense is that the wrd f Jseph brings life Finally, Jseph is given an Egyptian wife By marrying an Egyptian, Jseph effectively becmes a naturalized citizen in Egypt, which was the purpse in this gesture The girl was daughter f a prminent priest Jseph s marrying f a Gentile wasn t a prblem, as Gd had bviusly brught abut these circumstances This was different than marrying the Canaanites, a peple t be destryed In these last details are ne mre picture f Christ Like Jseph, Christ has earned His right t rule ver the Creatin by His righteusness and sacrifice in bedience t the Father He was exalted and has been given all authrity by the Father He will reign ver all Creatin 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

13 Genesis 41B 13 f 13 And in that day, every knee will bw As Paul wrte Phil. 2:5 Have this attitude in yurselves which was als in Christ Jesus, Phil. 2:6 wh, althugh He existed in the frm f Gd, did nt regard equality with Gd a thing t be grasped, Phil. 2:7 but emptied Himself, taking the frm f a bnd-servant, and being made in the likeness f men. Phil. 2:8 Being fund in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becming bedient t the pint f death, even death n a crss. Phil. 2:9 Fr this reasn als, Gd highly exalted Him, and bestwed n Him the name which is abve every name, Phil. 2:10 s that at the name f Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, f thse wh are in heaven and n earth and under the earth, Phil. 2:11 and that every tngue will cnfess that Jesus Christ is Lrd, t the glry f Gd the Father. And in that day, Jesus will nt be alne He will bring His Gentile bride with Him, a bride that His Father will have given Him The NT church f saints will accmpany Christ in that rule Yu and I wh have been jined t Christ by ur faith We can lk frward t that cming day every bit as much as Christ Himself des 2013 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.