Day 4: From the Pit to the Palace
I know today’s reading is long, even when you’re just reading the highlights, but what a story! The story of Joseph begins in a pit in the desert and ends in Pharaoh’s palace!
Have you ever found yourself on the wrong end of the stick, so to speak? Feeling like your situation just isn’t fair, and that you didn’t do anything to deserve this? Well, that was Joseph’s life for years!
Scripture isn’t clear on this, but sometimes when I read Joseph’s story, I think he was a show off young punk who delighted in waving his favored position in front of his brothers’ noses. At other times, I think Joseph didn’t do anything wrong, and the fault for his brothers’ animosity lay solely at their father’s feet because of his obvious favoritism. Sometimes I’m somewhere in between, thinking how foolish and oblivious he was to his family’s feelings when he told them about his dreams.
Whatever the case, their jealousy led to horrific consequences! Joseph was sold off into slavery, and Jacob was devastated, never to be the same again, after believing that his favorite son was dead. I think the brothers all regretted what they had done when they saw how deeply their father grieved over the situation. Their family would be forever scarred by their act of treachery.
But God had His hand on Joseph all along. He took him from slavery to the royal court. This doesn’t mean that it was an easy road. In fact, it is a wonder that Joseph’s faith in God and His plans were so incredibly strong! Scholars suggest that he was sold into slavery around the tender age of 17. He was falsely accused of rape. He faced wrongful imprisonment, not just for a short time, but for years. He was forgotten by those who promised to help him.
Yet, Joseph trusted God to the point that when he did finally meet his brothers again years later, after all he had endured, Joseph was able to say, “But don’t be upset, and don’t be angry with yourselves for selling me to this place. It was God who sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives” (Genesis 45:5). His forgiveness was so complete that when his father Jacob finally died, Joseph sent this message to his brothers: “Don’t be afraid of me. Am I God that I can punish you? You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people” (Genesis 50: 20).
He was able to forgive and let go of the wrongs of the past. And not only that, but Joseph was able to see God’s hand throughout, molding and shaping him, preparing him for the destiny God had planned for him.
Do you find yourself feeling like you’ve been wronged, that
you’ve been treated unfairly? Are you
able to forgive those who have wronged you?
Are you able to take a step back and ask God to help you see the bigger
picture and trust Him that He knows exactly what He is doing, and that He has a
great plan for your life? His promise to
you parallels His promise to the exiled Israelites in Babylon: “‘For I know the
plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for
disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will
listen. If you look for me
wholeheartedly, you will find me” (Jeremiah 29:11-13).
Listen:
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