Genesis Lesson 28 Genesis 41:1-42:24 In lesson 27 we returned to the story of Joseph. We saw how Joseph had been taken into the household of Potiphar, the chief of security in the Kingdom of Egypt. Joseph had been educated to lead standing at the right hand of his father Jacob, who himself ran an establishment of over a thousand people. He was not only sharp, but very good looking. Potiphar had been impressed with him from the first and had taken him on as his personal attendant. Over the course of about eight or nine years, Potiphar learned to entrust more and more responsibility to Joseph until he was leaving to Joseph the entire running of his household. That left him free to concentrate entirely on his responsibilities at Pharaoh's court. That also left his wife at home alone. Before long she cast her eyes on Joseph and tried to entice him into an affair. She kept trying, but finally when she made a particularly aggressive move, Joseph had to flee through the house leaving behind his cloak. That meant that Potiphar's wife had to come up with an explanation of what the servants had seen. She chose to accuse Joseph of sexual advances. It is almost certain from what followed that Potiphar did not believe his wife's story, but he was unwilling to accept the consequences of publicly disbelieving her. Instead he chose to put Joseph in the wing of his castle that served as a political prison. Though he was imprisoned there, the prison warden, who worked for Potiphar, actually put Joseph in charge of the prison. Early on, while he was fulfilling these duties there were two very important prisoners put in his charge. One was the Cupbearer of Pharaoh and one was the Chief Steward of Pharaoh. The two men held two of the four or five most important positions in Egypt under Pharaoh and had to be handled with the utmost care until their cases were resolved. We are not told what their offenses against Pharaoh were, or whether or not either of them was guilty. Joseph was given special charge of the two men by Potiphar. One night they both had dreams, and Joseph was asked to interpret their dreams. The dream of the Cupbearer of Pharaoh involved being restored after three days to the right hand of the King and bringing him wine. The dream of the Chief Steward involved being hung on a tree after three days and giving bread to the birds of the air. We pointed out how both of these were unmistakable shadows of the work of Jesus Christ, who three days after his death was raised again to be at the right hand of His Father, and who three days after he made his triumphant entry into Jerusalem was hung on tree before the demons of Satan. The interpretations of the dreams came to pass just as Joseph had said. Joseph had been sure God was going to deliver him at that time through the promise of the Chief Cupbearer. However, as the last lesson concluded: Genesis 40:23 "The chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot him." 1 / 23
Genesis 41:1a When two full years had passed, According to a Biblical chronology, this event occurred about 1887 BC. According to most historical chronologies that would have put it during the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt (1991 BC to 1802 BC). The Pharaoh at that time was Senusret 2. Genesis 41:1b-4 Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing by the Nile, when out of the river there came up seven cows, [a] sleek and fat, and they grazed among the reeds. After them, seven other cows, ugly and gaunt, came up out of the Nile and stood beside those on the riverbank. And the cows that were ugly and gaunt ate up the seven sleek, fat cows. Then Pharaoh woke up. It is only fitting that these cows, symbolizing prosperity, were seen to come out of the Nile. The annual prosperity of Egypt has for millennia come from the annual flooding of the Nile River and originates in the highlands of Ethiopia during the monsoon of the summer months. When the floods were high the crops were bountiful. When they were lacking, the farmlands of Egypt had to depend on manual irrigation, which was very inefficient in the ancient world. Annual rainfall in Egypt is very low. Along the coast, the annual rainfall is about 8 inches per year, but inland at Cairo, the rainfall is less than ½ an inch. By contrast, the annual rainfall of Houston is 54 inches. 2 / 23
Genesis 41:5-7 He fell asleep again and had a second dream: Seven heads of grain, healthy and good, were growing on a single stalk. After them, seven other heads of grain sprouted--thin and scorched by the east wind. The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven healthy, full heads. Then Pharaoh woke up; it had been a dream. Wheat was the staple crop of Egypt and the main food supply. Seven is the number of completion and grace. Genesis 41:8 In the morning his mind was troubled, so he sent for all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him. This verse always troubled me. The dreams were simple, and yet the magicians and wise men of Egypt could not even come up with a phony guess. We see the same thing in the book of Daniel when he interpreted Nebuchadnezzar's dream. Since I believe the Bible is accurate in both cases I can only conclude that the LORD either confused or terrified the minds of the Egyptian wise men and magicians so that they could not come up with a plausible interpretation. This is not a detail that the Bible reveals, but we do know it was the LORD's plan for Joseph to give the interpretation. 3 / 23
Genesis 41:9 Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, "Today I am reminded of my shortcomings offenses. Remember, as we studied last time, the chief cupbearer was one of Pharaoh's chief officials, and normally at his side during affairs of state. He would have witnessed this questioning of the magicians and wise men. The Hebrew word here for "offenses" is from the same root as the word which was used to describe the cupbearer's "offenses" against Pharaoh in Genesis 40:1. These are the "offenses" he is talking about here, not his failing to bring up Joseph's plight. This reference would have brought Pharaoh into immediate understanding of the time he was talking about. Genesis 41:10 Pharaoh was once angry with his servants, and he imprisoned me and the chief baker in the house of the captain prince of the guards. Each of us had a dream the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own. He recounts his story with which we are familiar. Genesis 41:12a Now a young Hebrew was there with us, a servant of the captain prince of the guard 4 / 23
s. [b] Notice that he doesn't describe Joseph as a prisoner, but as a servant of Potiphar who was probably also standing there in Pharaoh's presence. Genesis 41:12b-13 We told him our dreams, and he interpreted them for us, giving each man the interpretation of his dream. And things turned out exactly as he interpreted them to us: I was restored to my position, and the other man was hanged." He recounts the accuracy of Joseph's interpretation. Genesis 41:14 So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon. When he had shaved and changed his clothes, he came before Pharaoh. 5 / 23
The fact that he was "quickly brought" points out that Potiphar's castle was probably next door to Pharaoh's palace. While it may seem that the use of the word "dungeon" here meant Joseph's position had deteriorated from when he had been in the "castle keep" of which he had been in charge, it does not. It was one of the words used to describe the place of imprisonment of the cupbearer in Genesis 40:15. It is likely that all the prisoners had to wear some kind of prison clothing that denoted their status. Since the custom among Egyptians at that time was to shave their heads and faces, it would not be unlikely that prisoners were forbidden that practice to further mark them against escape. Thus before Joseph was sent before Pharaoh, he had to shave and change clothes. Genesis 41:15 Pharaoh said to Joseph, "I had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it." Joseph had been the spectacularly successful steward of Pharaoh's chief of security, and then had been involved in, what must have been, a notorious palace scandal given the time it would have taken to bring Joseph, I do not believe that it is possible that Pharaoh could have been ignorant of the history of Joseph. Particularly, since Potiphar was probably standing there. Genesis 41:16 "I cannot do it," Joseph replied to Pharaoh, "but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires." 6 / 23
Notice Joseph's humility and submission to God's providence. He was standing before the man who could free him, but he refused to bargain or even take partial credit for the gift God had given him. Genesis 41:17-21 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "In my dream I was standing on the bank of the Nile, when out of the river there came up seven cows, fat and sleek, and they grazed among the reeds. After them, seven other cows came up--scrawny and very ugly and lean. I had never seen such ugly cows in all the land of Egypt. The lean, ugly cows ate up the seven fat cows that came up first. But even after they ate them, no one could tell that they had done so; they looked just as ugly as before. Then I woke up. Pharaoh recounted the first part of the dream. Genesis 41:22-24 "In my dreams I also saw seven heads of grain, full and good, growing on a single stalk. After them, seven other heads sprouted--withered and thin and scorched by the east wind. The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven good heads. I told this to the magicians, but none could explain it to me." Then Pharaoh recounted the second part of the dream. 7 / 23
Genesis 41:25-27 Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, "The dreams of Pharaoh are one and the same. God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads of grain are seven years; it is one and the same dream. The seven lean, ugly cows that came up afterward are seven years, and so are the seven worthless heads of grain scorched by the east wind: They are seven years of famine. Joseph gave his interpretation. There would be seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine. Among other things this tells us that God controls the weather. A Christian should not ever be worried about climate change. They are under God's sovereign control. Genesis 41:28 "It is just as I said to Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do. Here Joseph reiterates what he said at the first. God had revealed the dream to Pharaoh, not Joseph. Genesis 41:29-32 Seven years of great abundance are coming throughout the land of Egypt, 8 / 23
but seven years of famine will follow them. Then all the abundance in Egypt will be forgotten, and the famine will ravage the land. The abundance in the land will not be remembered, because the famine that follows it will be so severe. The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon. Joseph then expanded on his interpretation. Genesis 41:33-34 "And now let Pharaoh look for a discerning and wise man and put him in charge of the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh appoint commissioners over the land to take a fifth of the harvest of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. Joseph then gave a recommendation to action. From what followed, in seems that after Joseph's explanation, everyone's eyes were opened and could see the simple truth of it. They must have accepted it and wondered that they hadn't understood it before. Genesis 41:35-36 They should collect all the food of these good years that are coming and store up the grain under the authority of Pharaoh, to be kept in the cities for food. This food should be held in reserve for the country, to be used during the seven years of famine that will come upon Egypt, so that the country may not be ruined by the famine." 9 / 23
I cannot help but believe that the wisdom of Joseph's recommendations was backed up by a full awareness of Joseph's acumen that he displayed while he was the manager of Potiphar's estate. Genesis 41:37-39 The plan seemed good to Pharaoh and to all his officials. So Pharaoh asked them, "Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?" Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. I have to believe that this reaction in a roomful of ambitious politicians was because God struck them dumb. Perhaps some of them reasoned that they would rather a low born foreigner get the job than one of their rivals. Genesis 41:40-42 You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you." So Pharaoh said to Joseph, "I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt." Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on Joseph's finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. 10 / 23
As I have suggested, Pharaoh must have been well aware of Joseph's demonstrated abilities as an administrator to have appointed him to this very complex and difficult job. He was probably also aware of Joseph's innocence of actually tampering with Potiphar's wife. Genesis 41:43-44 He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in-command, and men shouted before him, "Make way!" Thus he put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "I am Pharaoh, but without your word no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt." From what we find in the rest of Genesis, it seems that after Pharaoh got to know Joseph, they became fast friends. He had found someone who was not ambitious and had his back. He made Joseph the second-in-command in Egypt with plenary powers over the economy of Egypt. Genesis 41:45a Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphenath-Paneah The name Pharaoh gave Joseph means "god speaks and he lives." This was obviously Pharaoh's response to Joseph's interpretation. We won't find out until heaven whether Pharaoh had a personal response to his experience with God. 11 / 23
Genesis 41:45b and gave him Asenath [c] daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, to be his wife. And Joseph went throughout the land of Egypt. Although the meaning of the name Potiphera [rp yf/p is the same as that of Potiphar rpyf/p, "he whom Ra gives," the spelling even in the ancient Hebrew (without consonants) is slightly different. These are evidently two different men, although one wonders if they might not have been related. Perhaps Joseph had met Asenath while living in the palace of Potiphar. Certainly, it seems unlikely that Pharaoh would have forced on Joseph a bride he did not want. Considering the Bible's usual paucity of words, we should pause to consider exactly why we are given the lineage of this wife, and the background of her father (priest of On). Perhaps it is to add another story of a righteous woman in the history of Israel who is remembered in spite of her background, like Tamar, Ruth and Rahab. Genesis 41:46 Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from Pharaoh's presence and traveled throughout Egypt. Like David (2 Samuel 5:4) and Jesus Christ (Luke 3:23), Joseph was thirty years old before he began to exercise the ministry God had given him. 12 / 23
Genesis 41:47-49 During the seven years of abundance the land produced plentifully. Joseph collected all the food produced in those seven years of abundance in Egypt and stored it in the cities. In each city he put the food grown in the fields surrounding it. Joseph stored up huge quantities of grain, like the sand of the sea; it was so much that he stopped keeping records because it was beyond measure. The economics would have meant that during the seven years of plenty, there was a huge oversupply of grain. This would have meant that the surplus could have been purchased for next to nothing. While originally Joseph had recommended 1/5 th be stored, to meet Egypt's needs, it seems like it became so plentiful and cheap that he quit counting and just stored the surplus. Although the Pharaoh believed in the prophecy of the dreams it is evident that no one else did (Genesis 47:13-26), otherwise the rest of the Egyptians would have stored grain themselves. They didn't. During this first seven years, people must have wondered about Pharaoh giving this foreigner all this power. However, after the seven years of famine started, Joseph's prestige must have soared. Genesis 41:50-51 Before the years of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On. Joseph named his firstborn Manasseh and said, "It is because God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household." During the next seven years he had two sons. The eldest was Manasseh (in Hebrew hv,n&qu ot;m] {m 13 / 23
en ash sheh'} which means "one who forgets" or "one who makes to forget." The name tells us that Joseph appreciated God's blessing in raising him from the dungeon to the throne, but that he figured that his family was lost to him. By the end of the seven years, he had been away from his family for twenty years. Genesis 41:52 The second son he named Ephraim and said, "It is because God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering." The youngest was Ephraim (in Hebrew µyir&"p]a, {ef rah' yim} which means "doubly fruitful" (it is in the plural). This name also records Joseph's appreciation that it was God (not himself or Pharaoh) who had prospered him. Genesis 41:53-54 The seven years of abundance in Egypt came to an end, and the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. There was famine in all the other lands, but in the whole land of Egypt there was food. Finally, the years of drought arrived, and they not only arrived for Egypt, but to some extent, for most of the middle east. Egypt, however was prepared with vast stores of grain, but the grain belonged to Pharaoh. 14 / 23
Genesis 41:55 When all Egypt began to feel the famine, the people cried to Pharaoh for food. Then Pharaoh told all the Egyptians, "Go to Joseph and do what he tells you." Of course, anyone who had believed and acted on Joseph's interpretation of the dream would have bought the abundant grain cheap and stored it up for themselves for the coming famine. Instead, until it was too late, they just figured that Pharaoh was wasting his money. Genesis 41:56-57 When the famine had spread over the whole country, Joseph opened the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe throughout Egypt. And all the countries came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe in all the world. Pharaoh now sold the grain that he had bought cheaply, back to the Egyptian landowners who had sold it to him for next to nothing. He also sold it to anyone else who had the money. 15 / 23
Genesis 42:1 When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, "Why do you just keep looking at each other?" This is a curious statement. It sounds like the brothers were all disturbed by the thought of going down to Egypt for help because they figured Joseph was probably still alive there. From Genesis 45:6 we know this occurred during the first year of the famine. Genesis 42:2 He continued, "I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us, so that we may live and not die." It is interesting that in all the years Joseph has been out of slavery, and in a position of power, he has not sent a message to Jacob to tell him he was alive. Perhaps, he feared the consequences of his message if he was not there to shape its outcome. In any case, his job in Egypt would have prevented any personal visit to Hebron. Genesis 42:3-4 Then ten of Joseph's brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt. 16 / 23
Now might be a good time to consider the nature of this caravan. As the leaders, each of the ten brothers rode on donkeys. The caravan was to bring back food for a camp of over a thousand people. When Jacob had sent a peace offering to Esau more than twenty years before, it had included thirty donkeys. I have to believe that by the time of this story Jacob owned hundreds of donkeys. This caravan would have included several hundred donkeys to bring back enough grain to keep his many people from starvation for the year until the next season. [d] The caravan would also have included at least a hundred of Jacob's servants. [e] Genesis 42:4 But Jacob did not send Benjamin, Joseph's brother, with the others, because he was afraid that harm might come to him. Benjamin, who would have been over twenty by now, would have been isolated from his brothers growing up because, besides being the youngest, and Joseph's brother, he was the only one who did not share the guilty secret of what had really happened to Joseph. Genesis 42:36 along with this verse seems to indicate that, although Jacob had no proof of foul play in the death of Joseph, he did not trust his sons with the life of Benjamin. Genesis 42:5-6 So Israel's sons were among those who went to buy grain, for the famine was in the land of Canaan also. Now Joseph was the governor of the land, the one who sold grain to all its people. So when Joseph's brothers arrived, they bowed down to him with their faces to the ground. 17 / 23
The fact that they were brought before Joseph himself indicates the size of their caravan. This was to be a major transaction. Genesis 42:7 As soon as Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he pretended to be a stranger and spoke harshly to them. "Where do you come from?" he asked. "From the land of Canaan," they replied, "to buy food." This was a total shock to Joseph, and instead of disclosing himself immediately, he kept his identity hidden. It seems like he realized that God was behind this and he needed time to think about what he needed to do. Genesis 42:8 Although Joseph recognized his brothers, they did not recognize him. It should be remembered, that as an Egyptian, Joseph would have been clean shaven instead of bearded like a Hebrew. Also, they had not seen Joseph in over 20 years, since he was 17. 18 / 23
Genesis 42:9 Then he remembered his dreams about them and said to them, "You are spies! You have come to see where our land is unprotected." These were the dreams in Genesis 37:5,9 where they bowed down before him. Here Joseph began to see what God was doing. He began to understand that everything that had happened to him had been toward this end, to save his people. He also may have recognized the beginning of the fulfillment of the prophecy to Abraham in Genesis. [f] However, first he needed to find out more about them and the rest of his family. Genesis 42:10-12 "No, my lord," they answered. "Your servants have come to buy food. We are all the sons of one man. Your servants are honest men, not spies." "No!" he said to them. "You have come to see where our land is unprotected." Joseph accuses them falsely to get them to offer up true information without suspecting why he was interested. Genesis 42:13-15 But they replied, "Your servants were twelve brothers, the sons of one man, who lives in the land of Canaan. The youngest is now with our father, and one is no more." Joseph said to them, "It is just as I told you: You are spies! And this is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless 19 / 23
your youngest brother comes here. Joseph's first plan is to demand that Benjamin must come to ransom his brothers. Genesis 42:16-17 Send one of your number to get your brother; the rest of you will be kept in prison, so that your words may be tested to see if you are telling the truth. If you are not, then as surely as Pharaoh lives, you are spies!" And he put them all in custody for three days. Then he put them in prison for three days to try their character. Genesis 42:18-19 On the third day, [g] Joseph said to them, "Do this and you will live, for I fear God: If you are honest men, let one of your brothers stay here in prison, while the rest of you go and take grain back for your starving households. 20 / 23
After three days, Joseph has amended his offer to keeping just one of the brothers until Benjamin came. Genesis 42:20 But you must bring your youngest brother to me, so that your words may be verified and that you may not die." This they proceeded to do. They agreed to this. Genesis 42:21-22 They said to one another, "Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw how distressed he was when he pleaded with us for his life, but we would not listen; that's why this distress has come upon us." Reuben replied, "Didn't I tell you not to sin against the boy? But you wouldn't listen! Now we must give an accounting for his blood." They had three days to think about this injustice that was happening to them. It seems to have brought all of them to think about the injustice they had visited on their brother. Now standing in front of their judge, it spilled out. 21 / 23
Genesis 42:23-24 They did not realize that Joseph could understand them, since he was using an interpreter. He turned away from them and began to weep, but then turned back and spoke to them again. He had Simeon [h] taken from them and bound before their eyes. Evidently, through all the interviews Joseph had been provided with a interpreter. His brothers were unaware that he heard them acknowledge their guilt. He thus found out about them that all of them acknowledged in their souls what they had done was a sin. This was important information for what he would do next. [a] These are cows (female cattle) as opposed to bulls (male cattle). [b] Potiphar [c] Of uncertain meaning. [d] The donkeys of the ancient world were ridden by men, so it is likely they could carry 200 to 300 pounds. [e] The presence of all these servants of Jacob in Egypt would have been an additional concern to the brothers. What if they happened to see Joseph or Joseph saw them? [f] Genesis 15:13-14 "Then the LORD said to him, "Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions." 22 / 23
[g] This is another example of the way the Hebrews spoke of days. If they were in custody for three days, by our modern way of speaking, it would have been on the fourth day that they were released. Yet here it is speaking of the third day. This same pattern is repeated many times in the Gospels concerning the resurrection of Jesus. Although we know He was in the tomb for three days and three nights (Matthew 12:40), He is often described to have been resurrected the third day (Matthew 16:20, 17:23, 20:19, 27:63-64). [h] Simeon was the eldest son of Jacob after Reuben, who as the eldest would normally take the responsibility as leader. However, perhaps because Joseph had just learned that Rueben had stood up for him twenty years before, instead he took the next oldest, Simeon. 23 / 23