A Young Hebrew Was There with Us

We are studying the book of Genesis, and we are in Part 4 which is centered on the life of Joseph. Joseph was the favorite son of Jacob, loved by Jacob more than any of his brothers, which caused them to hate him and sell him into slavery. He was taken to Egypt where he prospered as the servant of Potiphar, one of Pharaoh’s top officials, until Potiphar’s wife got him falsely accused and thrown into prison. But even in prison he prospered, interpreting the dreams of two other officials of Pharaoh, only to be forgotten and left to languish in prison.

The ups and downs of Joseph’s life came to their lowest point in Genesis 40, so now we have come to the turning point in his story. Finally, a moment of hope, not just for Joseph, but if we are taking the Bible and the grand story it tells seriously, a moment of hope for the whole world.

And it all starts with a dream. A dream about salvation—what the world is hoping and longing for, what your neighbors and your friends, and you and I, are hoping for. I want to suggest to you from this episode in Joseph's story that God provides the salvation needed to survive the looming disaster. Disaster is coming, this story says, but God provides the way out. He provides the salvation needed to survive the looming disaster.

In this episode in Genesis 41, notice three portraits of Joseph that teach us about this salvation: Joseph in Pharaoh’s court, Joseph in Pharaoh’s ear, and Joseph in Pharaoh’s service.

Joseph in Pharaoh’s Court

First, we see in this chapter Joseph in Pharaoh’s court.

Pharaoh’s Dreams

So, Pharaoh has two dreams. In the first dream, seven fat cows were eaten by seven skinny cows. Then Pharaoh woke up; perhaps he didn’t think too much about that dreamy experience. But then he fell asleep and had a second dream in which seven blighted ears of grain swallow up seven good ears of grain. Verse 7 says that when Pharaoh woke up this time, “behold, it was a dream.” In other words, the dream was so vivid that it took him a minute to realize that he had been dreaming.[1]

The vividness of the dream had made an impression, and not a positive one. Later, when Pharaoh told his dreams to Joseph, he described the cannibalistic skinny cows as being “poor and very ugly and thin, such as I had never seen in all the land of Egypt” (v. 19). The dream was a nightmare for Pharaoh: these grotesque zombie cows ate up the best steaks in the country. And so, verse 8 says, “his spirit was troubled” (v. 8).

The vividness of the dream along with the repetition of it made Pharaoh suspect that there was meaning to the nightmare. He had to know what it meant. Could he know what it meant? Pharaoh called for his dream interpreters to explain the dream to him. These interpreters had access to “dream commentaries,” and they would research the commentaries to look for answers.[2]But on this occasion, “there was none who could interpret them to Pharaoh,” not to his satisfaction anyway.[3]

Remembering Joseph

That’s when “the chief cupbearer” suddenly remembered Joseph. He told Pharaoh about the time when he and the chief baker had been imprisoned, and both had had a dream on the same night, and “a young Hebrew was there with us” who had accurately interpreted their dreams. So. Pharaoh “sent and called Joseph,” verse 14 says, “and they quickly brought him out of the pit.”

Here, I think, the narrator of this story is signaling something important. It was a pit that Joseph’s brothers had thrown him into until those Midianite traders came along and his brothers sold him into slavery. And when Joseph was thrown into prison after the accusations of Potiphar’s wife, Joseph used that same word (pit) to refer to his place of imprisonment in Genesis 40:15. Joseph is once more, but also for the last time, being taken out of a pit, not to be sold into slavery, but to become the highest of Pharaoh’s officials in Egypt. Out of the pit, Joseph is about to become a prince of Egypt.

Notice also, in verse 14, that Joseph shaved and changed his clothes before he “came in before Pharaoh.” That can be explained historically, of course—one had to be presentable before coming into the king’s presence, and in the Ancient Near East only the Egyptians tended to be clean shaven. But we remember, don’t we, that every time Joseph descended into a pit he was stripped of his clothes? Now as Joseph ascends out of the pit we see him clothed in fresh garments.[4]The narrator wants us to see (and to enjoy) the beauty of this story. It is a significant moment in Joseph’s life, of course. But it is not just about Joseph, is it?

You see, this young Hebrew in Pharaoh’s court, this young Hebrew “there with us,” is there representing the only hope of rescue from the impending doom.

A Clear Word from God

So, see now Joseph in Pharaoh’s court. Can he interpret a dream when he hears it? Joseph, in verse 16, insists that if he is able to do this, it will only be because of divine revelation. Joseph insists that he does not possess this ability as some sort of natural gift. If the dream even has a meaning, then it is because it is a type of divine communication; consequently, its true meaning can only be because of divine revelation, too.

Old Testament scholar Gordon Wenham (who, sadly, died less than two weeks ago) observed that while Joseph is being humble in verse 16, he is also offering something better than his humble self to Pharaoh. Joseph is there in Pharaoh’s court to give him the assurance of divine revelation.[5] What has Joseph brought into Pharaoh’s court? Clarity. Clarity about what God is saying to Pharaoh. When Joseph says, in verse 16, “God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer,” he is not promising that the dream is not the nightmare that it seemed to be. The dream is a nightmare about what is about to come. But there is peace here—the word translated favorable in verse 16 is shalom—because, you see, once there is clarity about what God is saying, then there is the opportunity to properly respond to it.[6]

Clarity about what God says is just as necessary today. As Christians, our job is to pray and strive for understanding of the divine communication given to us in the Bible and then to pray and strive for clear articulation of what God has said to the troubled world around us. If we believe the Bible is God’s communication to us, then it is critical that we seek clarity about what it means. As anyone can see, people interpret the Bible in all sorts of ways. We cannot take shortcuts here. Clarity is essential, so let us strive for it together.

Joseph in Pharaoh’s Ear

Clarity is not enough, however. Now see Joseph, in verses 17-45, see him in Pharaoh’s ear.

What God Is About to Do: Disaster Coming

In verses 17-24, Pharaoh tells his dreams to Joseph and then waits for Joseph to do what Pharaoh’s dream interpreters could not do: give a satisfactory interpretation of the dreams. Joseph’s answer is that “the dreams of Pharaoh are one.” Together they mean one thing, one thing that God has made it known he is about to do. There will be “seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt, but after them there will arise seven years of famine” which will be so bad, so severe, it will cause the years of plenty to be forgotten (vv. 29-31).

So, in short, a God-ordained disaster is looming, just seven years in the future. And though the two dreams together mean one thing, the doubling of the dreams is a point of emphasis, Joseph says in verse 32, that “the thing is fixed by God.” There is no sense praying or hoping that what God said will not happen. God has determined to do it, and nothing is going to change his mind.

We might be tempted to stop and argue about the problem of evil—here, what is often called natural evil—about why a God who is sovereign enough to send a famine cannot seem to be sovereign enough, or good enough, to also stop it. But the story doesn’t go there. Philosophers and theologians can debate this from their ivory towers if they wish, but God is going to do what God is going to do.

And God has made it clear about one thing in the future he is going to do that we should all pay attention to.

The Apostle Paul insists that God “has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness” (Acts 17:31). The Psalmist looks to the day when God will come “to judge the earth” (Psa 96:13). Again, Paul states clearly that all of us will “stand before the judgment seat of God” and “give an account” of ourselves to him (Rom 14:10-12). And on that day God will judge even “the secrets of men” (Rom 2:16). Nothing will be hidden from his eyes.

Weathering the Storm: Salvation Offered

As terrifying as all that may sound, here’s an important point relayed to us in this story: God has made his plans known so that something can be done about it. There is hope here in light of the coming disaster. Notice how Joseph, in verse 33, doesn’t stop with the interpretation of the dream, announcing God’s intention about a coming disaster. That was bold of him, it seems, moving on without invitation to suggest to Pharaoh how he should respond to God’s word. But, evidently, God’s message to Pharaoh is not complete without this word of hope that comes in verses 33-36. God has made it plain what he is going to do, but God has made it known so that a plan can be put in place, so that neither the land nor the people who inhabit it will “perish through the famine” (v. 36).

Whatever we might want to conclude about God sending famine, disaster, and judgment, what this story (and the rest of the Bible) really tells us about God is that God wants people to be able to survive it. He does not want anyone to perish; he has also made provision so that everyone has hope of being saved.

Let me try to clarify something here that I think has gotten muddled in our evangelistic strategies. As Joseph concludes his advice to Pharaoh in verse 36, he says this about the overall goal of his counsel: “so that the land may not perish through the famine.” The advice Joseph gives is not just about saving people from death—obviously, that is included—but also includes the preservation of the entire Egyptian civilization and culture.

Discerning and Wise: Instruments of Salvation

You see, it is easy to spiritualize this story into a message of salvation from judgment that comes after death, but Joseph’s counsel is about something much more immediate and practical. Provisions need to be made so that people don’t die and civilization as we know it is all wiped out.

Joseph’s advice to Pharaoh is for someone “discerning and wise” to be put in charge of the mission for salvation from the coming disaster (v. 33). Such a person would then be given a “cadre of overseers” to implement a system of taxation and centralized food reserves.[7]Spiritualizing this story makes it difficult to know what to do with this sort of overt political strategy. “Come on now, let’s stick to religion and not get so political!” some might want to say. But,

What is theologically noteworthy is the way in which the strong predestinarian content of the speech is combined with a strong summons to action. The fact that God has determined the matter, that God hastens to bring it to pass, is precisely the reason for responsible leaders to take measures![8]

Verse 37 says that Joseph’s “proposal pleased Pharaoh and all his servants,” and who else could Pharaoh give the job to other than Joseph? “Since God has shown you all this, there is none so discerning and wise as you are,” Pharaoh says to Joseph in verse 39. I smile when I read this exchange between Joseph and Pharaoh, because while Joseph has taken the risk of appearing presumptuous, he no doubt saw here his “great moment of opportunity” had arrived.[9] At long last, what God was up to when Joseph’s own clear word from God in a dream had led to him being thrown into a pit was being revealed.

From the pit to the palace! Pharaoh made Joseph second in power over all the land of Egypt, clothing him in garments of fine linen, and requiring everyone to submit to Joseph’s commands. Joseph’s marriage into one of the leading families of Egypt “set a seal on Joseph’s promotion.”[10]

The story has clearly reached a turning point, but it has also now got our attention. What will happen next? What is God doing?

Joseph in Pharaoh’s Service

Finally, see Joseph in Pharaoh’s service.

The Exalted Jew

What does Joseph do now that he has finally reached the top, having been exalted to the highest place imaginable? I mean, what a story, yes? Joseph has been vindicated, his dreams have literally come true. Good for him, right?

Or is there more to this story? Does it have something good for us, too?

Bible scholars have long noted that the Joseph story is mirrored by the story of Daniel, that Daniel “saw himself as a new Joseph and interpreted his own experiences in the light of Joseph’s story.”[11] The parallels are uncanny. Here are nine of them. Both are Jews in exile, enlisted into governmental service, and the only two Jews in the Old Testament who are able to interpret dreams. Both are described as handsome in appearance, given new names by their captors, and are examples of faithfulness and piety. Both find favor with their superiors and are recognized for their great wisdom. Both serve in foreign courts for precisely ninety-three years.

From a biblical-theological perspective, these similarities are meant to “reveal a providentially ordered pattern within redemptive history.”[12] The exalted Jew in a foreign court function as a signpost “of God’s future redemptive work.”[13]When you see this signpost, you should respond as Pharaoh does in verse 55: “What he says to you, do.” Your salvation depends on it.

The Servant Jew

The application of this to our lives today is not that we should be looking for another Joseph figure, another Daniel figure, to appear on the scene in our news feeds and captivate our attention. So much Christian theology today is built on speculations about identifying the antichrist and making strange predictions about current events. Brothers and sisters, let’s get some clarity about God’s word: The one we are looking for has already come, and it is he who gives the pattern for our lives today.

Verse 46 says, “Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt.” Interestingly, Luke tells us that “Jesus, when he began his ministry, was about thirty years of age” (Lk 3:23). Coincidence? No. Luke is telling us that Jesus is the exalted Jew, the “young Hebrew there with us,” the one who has come to bring us salvation.

What kind of salvation? Let’s be clear again: the salvation Jesus came to achieve is not about the eternal destiny of immortal souls. Like Joseph, Jesus came to save human lives and human civilization and culture that come from those lives. Christian hope in Jesus and the salvation he wins for us is not found in the illusion of progress, that humans and the world can get better and better, but neither is it found in the belief that the world is getting worse and worse and that at least we can hope in a disembodied escape from it to a place called heaven. No, no, no! A thousand times, no! Christian hope in Jesus and his salvation is centered in the belief that God will one day do for the entire cosmos what he has already done for Jesus on Easter Sunday.[14]

The salvation that Jesus achieved for us is marked by death and resurrection, the cross and the empty tomb together. Jesus, like Joseph, used his exalted position, not to exalt himself further but to humbly and wisely serve, yes, to even give his life for us and our salvation. The Son of Man did not come “to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” Mark 10:45 says.

The Fruitful Jew

Did it work? Indeed it did. Through Joseph’s humble and wise service, though “there was famine in all lands . . . in all the land of Egypt there was bread,” bread enough in fact to save anyone who would come to Egypt to Joseph to buy grain (v. 57). The famine that came was so severe that it made the years of plenty that preceded it be forgotten; but as Joseph’s children’s names imply (see vv. 50-52), the salvation that God brought through him would bring a fruitfulness that would make him forget the hardship he had endured to this point.

Similarly, what Jesus sacrificed for us and for our salvation is sufficient to make all the sufferings endured for his sake and in his name be forgotten. God’s bounty found in Joseph as well as in Jesus, the fruitful Jew, is enough to swallow up every pain that we are called to endure in his name.

What the world needs today are more Christians, who pattern their lives after the humble, wise, and discerning lives of Joseph and Jesus and become instruments of salvation and blessing and hope to a world that is famished and dying.

How might we become those kinds of Christians? Only by first coming ourselves to Jesus to get some food. Only by doing what he says to do. Only by the divine enablement that comes to us, as it did to Joseph, by the Spirit of God who indwells us (v. 38). _____

[1] Gordon J. Wenham, Genesis 16–50, Word Biblical Commentary, vol. 2, ed. Bruce M. Metzger, David A. Hubbard, and Glenn W. Barker (Dallas: Word Books, 1994), 391.

[2] Tremper Longman III, Genesis, The Story of God Bible Commentary, ed. Tremper Longman III and Scot McKnight (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2016), 491.

[3] Wenham, Genesis 16–50, 391.

[4] Robert Alter, Genesis: Translation and Commentary (New York: W.W. Norton, 1997), 236.

[5] Wenham, Genesis 16–50, 392.

[6] Kenneth A. Mathews, Genesis 11:27–50:26, The New American Commentary, vol. 1B, ed. E. Ray Clendenen (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2005), 759.

[7] Victor P. Hamilton, The Book of Genesis, Chapters 18–50, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1995), 500.

[8] Gerhard von Rad, Genesis: A Commentary, revised edition, The Old Testament Library, ed. Peter Ackroyd et al. (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1972), 376.

[9]Alter, Genesis, 238.

[10] Wenham, Genesis 16–50, 397.

[11] Samuel Emadi, From Prisoner to Prince: The Joseph Story in Biblical Theology, New Studies in Biblical Theology, vol. 59, ed. D. A. Carson (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2022), 108. The following parallels are mentioned on pp. 108-109.

[12] Emadi, From Prisoner to Prince, 118.

[13] Emadi, From Prisoner to Prince, 119.

[14] Tom Wright, Surprised by Hope(London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2007), 104.