Transcript

A French engineer was traveling on board a ship in the Mediterranean Ocean when a fellow passenger contracted a contagious disease. This resulted in the passengers of the ship being quarantined. The confinement frustrated the engineer.

To pass the time he read the memoirs of Charles le Pere, who had done a feasibility study on constructing a canal linking the Red Sea to the Mediterranean.

As he read the autobiography, he began to devise a detailed plan for the construction of the Suez Canal, which was completed under his leadership in 1869.

For Ferdinand de Lesseps, that ship’s quarantine, that experience of having his life put on hold turned out to be immensely valuable to the world.

So it was with Joseph, that after having his life being put on hold, and being confined to prison for two years, this also turned out to be valuable for the whole world.

Joseph had been forgotten in prison by the royal cupbearer for 2 full years. It was 2 years of continual difficulty, discouragement, and solitude.

It may have seemed that nothing happened during those 2 years, but in reality a lot happened. It was 2 years of preparation and development of Joseph’s faith.

Joseph’s heart had been broken, and his pride had been drained. He’s had no one and nothing on which he could depend, except God. And he’s grown to trust Him more, and he’s drawn closer to Him.

But now the time for which Joseph had been prepared by God had arrived. And Genesis 41 records how, in God’s perfect time and according to His perfect plan, the prisoner Joseph is promoted to incredible heights in Egypt.

Genesis 41:1-7: “And it came to pass at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh dreamed: and, behold, he stood by the river. And, behold, there came up out of the river seven well favoured kine and fatfleshed; and they fed in a meadow.

“And, behold, seven other kine came up after them out of the river, ill favoured and leanfleshed; and stood by the other kine upon the brink of the river. And the ill favoured and leanfleshed kine did eat up the seven well favoured and fat kine. So Pharaoh awoke.

“And he slept and dreamed the second time: and, behold, seven ears of corn came up upon one stalk, rank and good. And, behold, seven thin ears and blasted with the east wind sprung up after them.

“And the seven thin ears devoured the seven rank and full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and, behold, it was a dream.”

After two “full years” in prison, Joseph experienced a turning point. For Joseph it was just another day in prison, except for one thing that Joseph knew nothing about: that night Pharaoh had had a dream.

In Pharaoh’s dream “he stood by the river.” The “river” is the river Nile, which was so important to Egypt, and even worshipped as a god at that time.

Coming up out of the Nile, Pharaoh saw seven, “well-favoured” or fine-looking, fat cows, and then they went and grazed “in a meadow,” which denotes the reeds and marsh grass along the banks of the Nile.

As Pharaoh watched these seven grazing, healthy, good-looking cows, which likely spoke to him of the great prosperity of the land over which he ruled, he then saw seven “illfavoured,” or ugly, “lean-fleshed,” or gaunt, skinny, cows emerge from the Nile River.

These 7 skinny cows went and stood beside the 7 fat cows along the bank of the river. And then strangely and unexpectedly the thin cows turned and ate up the fat cows. And to me, now you had a ready-made double-cheeseburger: one lean patty, and one thick!

But the dream was so startling and disturbing that it jolted Pharaoh awake from his sleep. After laying there for a while, wondering what it might have meant, he became drowsy and fell back asleep. Then he dreamt another dream as strange as the first.

The dreams in the account of Joseph’s life came in pairs. First, Joseph had two dreams himself: the sheaves of grain dream and the sun, moon, and stars dream. Then two different dreams were related to him, one by the butler and the other by the baker.

Now, Pharaoh had TWO dreams, which occurred TWO full years after Joseph’s interpretation of the dreams of the TWO men, the butler and the baker.

In this second dream, Pharaoh was out gazing at a grain field, the type of field which was common throughout the fertile plains of Egypt. As he was overlooking the field, he saw a certain single stalk of grain.

On that stalk, seven ears, or heads, of grain grew “rank,” or plump, full, healthy, and “good” both to look at and for eating.

But then “seven thin ears” of grain, which were “blasted” or scorched and withered by Egypt’s harsh east desert wind came up and “sprung up after them.” These heads of grain were hardened and thin and inedible.

Then a sight just as strange as cannibal cows eating each other occurs before Pharaoh, as the thin ears “devoured,” or engulfed and swallowed up the plump ears.

So the same fate that had overtaken the fat cattle in his earlier dream happened to the plump, full ears of grain.

And again Pharaoh suddenly jolted awake. The dreams were so vivid and seemed so real he had to sit there a minute to make sure it was a dream. But then he realized that “behold” or indeed, “it was a dream” only.

Genesis 41:8-14: “And it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt, and all the wise men thereof: and Pharaoh told them his dream; but there was none that could interpret them unto Pharaoh.

“Then spake the chief butler unto Pharaoh, saying, I do remember my faults this day: Pharaoh was wroth with his servants, and put me in ward in the captain of the guard’s house, both me and the chief baker:

“And we dreamed a dream in one night, I and he; we dreamed each man according to the interpretation of his dream. And there was there with us a young man, an Hebrew,

servant to the captain of the guard; and we told him, and he interpreted to us our dreams; to each man according to his dream he did interpret.

“And it came to pass, as he interpreted to us, so it was; me he restored unto mine office, and him he hanged.

“Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon: and he shaved himself, and changed his raiment, and came in unto Pharaoh.”

The repetition of the same theme with different figures troubled Pharaoh. And he tossed and turned on his bed, wondering what these dreams meant. Symbols of the gods of Egypt and its prosperity were destroyed before his eyes in his dreams and this troubled him.

So in the morning, Pharaoh sent for the magicians and wise men of Egypt to interpret his dreams. These magicians and wise men were well-read, knowledgeable people who spent their time deciphering everything from Egyptian hieroglyphic texts to studying the movement of the stars. They knew history, mathematics, philosophy and languages.

But as wise as they were and for all their learning, they admit to Pharaoh that they didn’t have a clue what the dreams meant.

Then, after Pharaoh’s chief butler, his cupbearer, heard about Pharaoh’s dreams and that none of his wise men could interpret them, all of a sudden, bang, the light goes on and a memory from 2 years previous hits him.

Remembering how remarkably and how precisely Joseph was able to interpret his own dream and that of the chief baker, the cupbearer finally remembers Joseph.

And he tells Pharaoh about him, explaining that he remembered his “faults” on this day and that he should long ago have called Pharaoh’s attention to this young man. He admits that he had not done right by Joseph in forgetting him.

And he recounted the two year old story and how Joseph’s interpretations of their dreams had been spot-on, and that just as Joseph had said, the cupbearer had been restored to his office and the chief baker was executed. And Pharaoh probably remembered this.

The cupbearer told Pharaoh this because if Pharaoh really wanted to know the meaning of his dreams, he should certainly send for this young man. Because he trusted his cupbearer, Pharaoh instructed that Joseph be brought before him.

And when the king commands, people move. And “they brought him hastily” it says. Joseph had no idea this was coming. But all of a sudden the prison doors are ripped opened and they grab him and pull him out of that dungeon.

The guards rushed to go get Joseph, but instead of then rushing him into Pharaoh’s presence, they slowed down, and realized that he needed a shave. So before entering the king’s presence, Joseph first shaved and washed up and changed and put on a nice set of clothes which were suitable for an appearance in the court of the Pharaoh.

Genesis 41:15-16: “And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it. And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.”

Joseph, a foreigner, a slave of 11 years, and a prisoner for two, stood in the presence of the most powerful monarch in the world. But Joseph was there because of the working of God and His loving providence.

Pharaoh told Joseph his problem, that he had dreamed a dream that no one could interpret, and that he had heard that Joseph had a reputation as one who could interpret dreams.

Now, Joseph could’ve bargained with Pharaoh. He could have requested a promise for his freedom in return for granting Pharaoh’s request.

Instead, Joseph was quick to confess to Pharaoh that he had no ability at all to interpret dreams, telling him, “It is not in me.” He didn’t have the answers or ability in himself.

It was all because of God that he understood or interpreted dreams. The glory was all due to Him. Joseph gave full credit to the Lord. Joseph assured Pharaoh that God had the answer and God would grant Pharaoh the meaning of the dreams.

He said that God intended to give Pharaoh an “answer of peace,” or give him the dream’s interpretation so he wouldn’t have to be troubled anymore and he could be at peace.

In verses 17-24, Pharaoh then retold the dreams of the seven cows and the stalk of grain with seven heads, but he added a couple details. First, he stated that the thin cattle were worse than any Pharaoh had ever seen in Egypt (v. 19).

And second, he added that after the thin cows had eaten the fattened cows they looked no better than before, they still looked as bad as ever.

Generally, if you eat a great deal at one time, others can tell, because your stomach becomes a bit inflated, sort of like when you go to a restaurant with an “all-you-can-eat” buffet.

But it disturbed Pharaoh that this didn’t happen to these thin cows who ate a lot in eating those fat-fleshed cows, and that it didn’t change their appearance or help out their ugliness or thinness at all.

The dreams of the cows and the grain stalk had left a deep and fearful impression on Pharaoh. And Pharaoh told Joseph that no one could explain the dreams to him.

Genesis 41:25-36: “And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven good kine are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years: the dream is one.

“And the seven thin and ill favoured kine that came up after them are seven years; and the seven empty ears blasted with the east wind shall be seven years of famine.

“This is the thing which I have spoken unto Pharaoh: What God is about to do he sheweth unto Pharaoh. Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt: And there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land;

“And the plenty shall not be known in the land by reason of that famine following; for it shall be very grievous. And for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice; it is because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.

“Now therefore let Pharaoh look out a man discreet and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint officers over the land, and take up the fifth part of the land of Egypt in the seven plenteous years.

“And let them gather all the food of those good years that come, and lay up corn under the hand of Pharaoh, and let them keep food in the cities.

“And that food shall be for store to the land against the seven years of famine, which shall be in the land of Egypt; that the land perish not through the famine.”

After Joseph heard the dreams, he said that God had showed Pharaoh what He is about to do for the next 14 years. Then he proceeded to interpret the dream. He told him that both dreams mean the same thing, “the dream is one,” it has one meaning.

The 7 healthy cattle as well as the seven full ears of grain represented 7 years of productivity and prosperity that were coming on the land of Egypt.

Egypt was going to have seven years of bumper crops, each year. Since the fat-fleshed cows and full heads of grain came first in each dream, these years would happen first.

The seven ugly cows which came out of the Nile second and stood beside the fat cows, and the seven thin heads which sprang up after the 7 good heads, represented 7 bitter years of famine that would follow and come after the years of plenty.

The 7 ugly cows eating up the 7 healthy ones and not looking any different meant that the 7 years of famine would be so intense that the 7 years of prosperity would be swallowed up and completely forgotten by the people, as he says, “all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land…and the plenty shall not be known in the land.”

The famine would be severe and “consume the land,” and “be very grievous.”

Joseph explained in verse 32 how the fact that the dream had been given to Pharaoh twice was to give assurance that God would absolutely fulfill its predictions, it was a sure thing, and it was all to be brought to pass very soon.

Joseph’s response all the way through the interpretation was “God, God, God, God, God” in verses 16,25,28,32.

All this had come from God. It was about what God was going to do. God had sent the dream, God had given the interpretation, and God would bring it all to pass.

Instead of calling attention to himself, Joseph pointed Pharaoh to God. He was showing Pharaoh that it wasn’t about him, it was all about God and what He was doing.

And we see by this that Joseph had not lost his faith in God during his trial, but had humbled himself under the mighty hand of God and he trusted Him implicitly.

Joseph then gave some wise advice for Pharaoh. Egypt was going to need to implement a strict, well-organized rationing system for grain.

Because when you have plenty, you eat plenty and spend plenty and you don’t save. But Egypt needed to save the plenty during the 7 years of abundance to survive the 7 years of scarceness and famine. The need was going to be so great that nothing less than a centrally administered plan could really be effective on a national basis.

Joseph recommended a man “discreet [or discerning] and wise.” The key to the success of such a plan for the survival of the nation would be a chief administrator, to take responsibility for managing those 7 years of fruitfulness.

Joseph’s recommendation was for Pharaoh to find the right man who possessed both discernment and wisdom, who, with Pharaoh’s confidence, could be placed over the whole land to oversee its food production and make certain that a portion of the grain is continually put into storage during the next 7 years.

The chief administrator would need a corps of capable officers and commissioners to administer his plan, who would oversee different parts of the land.

And it would be necessary to levy a 1/5 or 20% tax of grain to the king, something that probably would be resisted, because nobody likes taxes. But the 80% that people had left would be more than adequate to meet their needs during the years of plenty.

Joseph advised that the food that was gathered by the officers, should then be preserved in large storehouses and granaries built for this purpose in key cities throughout the land.

Then when the famine struck 7 years from then and wiped everything out, Egypt would have food available and be able to live off those rations so they would not perish.

Genesis 41:37-44: “And the thing was good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of all his servants. And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?

“And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art: Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou.

“And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck;

“And he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt.

“And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.”

Needless to say, Pharaoh and his advisors were impressed, not only with Joseph’s ability to interpret the dreams but also his wise counsel. They saw that Joseph’s plan was exactly what was needed to implement.

Joseph was not trying to suggest himself as this administrator. He never said he’d like the job or that he deserved the position. He didn’t try to promote himself.

Such a thought probably never crossed his mind being a foreigner, a slave, and a prisoner, and being one who had never held a political office of any kind. He had no training or experience for such a position and was only 30 years old.

But with no hesitation, Pharaoh acknowledged that none other than Joseph was truly qualified to fill the post he’d just described, especially since the Spirit of God was with him. God had prepared Joseph for this moment, but Joseph had no inkling of it.

And when Pharaoh said “Thou shalt be over my house,” I picture Joseph’s jaw hitting the ground in shock!

Pharaoh said that since God had showed him all this, there was obviously no one as discerning or as wise as Joseph.

And extraordinarily, Pharaoh immediately placed Joseph over, not only the famine relief project, he appointed Joseph as a ruler over his entire kingdom and made him second in command only to Pharaoh. The only person greater than Joseph was the king himself.

He now had authority and power to carry out his plan, and to enact all necessary policies. He set him “over all the land of Egypt,” and obedience to Joseph was then required of all Pharaoh’s subjects.

The necessity of Joseph’s period of affliction and humility, learning patience and trust in God is now clearly seen. Any other man so suddenly exalted would certainly have been filled with pride, and sooner or later been ruined by such a high exaltation. But Joseph had been prepared by God for this role.

One author wrote this, “Joseph learned that a broken heart is not the end, but the beginning. Bruised and crushed by the blows of disappointment and unrealized dreams, he discovered that God had never left his side. When the affliction ended, he had been refined and he came forth as gold.

“He had become a person of greater stability, of deeper quality, of profound character…[God’s] grace is still at work. His tender mercies accompany us from the pit to the pinnacle.”

Pharaoh then immediately set in motion his formal installment into his office. First, Pharaoh took his own signet ring from “his hand,” and put it on Joseph’s hand, which enabled Joseph to place Pharaoh’s seal on official documents. This gave Joseph the delegated power of the king.

And it’s been said that “this was like having a corporate platinum charge card of that day.” This gave Joseph unlimited resources. It was the keys to the treasury and all the authority to use that wealth.

With the signet ring the king stamped the invoices, laws or anything else he wanted to verify or validate with his seal. Now Joseph had that ring on his hand, placed there by Pharaoh himself, wearing the authority of the king’s imprint.

Pharaoh also gave him a new wardrobe befitting his position, arraying him in the finest garments and robes in all Egypt, and putting some on him at that moment.

Thirteen years earlier, Joseph’s brothers had violently ripped off his ornamented coat, but now Pharaoh placed on him another very special robe of great significance.

He also put a golden chain around his neck which was emblematic of his authority and the office he held.

Earlier that same day, Joseph was a scruffy, ragged, lonely, forgotten prisoner. Now he was royally garbed, with a gold necklace around his neck, having Pharaoh’s signet ring on his finger, with power, position, prestige, second in authority over all Egypt.

A royal procession was then organized with Joseph riding immediately behind Pharaoh in a royal, ornate chariot of his own, thus indicating and symbolizing to Egypt that Joseph was now second in command in the kingdom.

As he rode, men went before the procession crying out to the people along the way to “Bow the knee,” “Bow the knee,” to Joseph, and they did.

Joseph’s promotion is a Cinderella-like promotion. And it’s amazing because God did it. And He did it in His timing according to His good plan.

Joseph’s experiences are a picture of the suffering, humility and exaltation of Christ. Like Joseph suffered and then glory followed, Peter wrote of “the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow” (1 Pet. 1:11).

Like all those bowed the knee before Joseph in Egypt, one day in Christ’s earthly kingdom, Christ will be exalted and Isaiah 45:23 says “every knee shall bow” before Him.