Joseph
Joseph was Jacob's eleventh son, the first-born son of his wife Rachel. Jacob pampered Joseph; he made him a coat of many colors. This favoritism angered the other brothers. They hated him even more when Joseph revealed two dreams about the family bowing down to him. When Joseph was seventeen his father sent him to locate his older brothers who were away pasturing sheep. He found them near Dothan, and when they saw Joseph coming they conspired to get rid of him. His oldest brother Reuben persuaded the others not to kill Joseph, but put him in a pit. He planned to come back later and rescue him. While Reuben was away the other brothers sold him to a band of Midianite merchants for twenty pieces of silver. They took him to Egypt. The brothers dipped Joseph's coat in animal blood and later gave it to Jacob. This convinced him that a wild animal had killed his son.
In Egypt Joseph was bought by Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh's guard. Joseph was so diligent in his work that he was put in charge of Potiphar's household. Potiphar's wife tried to seduce him, but he refused. In spite she convinced her husband that the Hebrew slave had tried to violate her. Potiphar put Joseph in prison. In prison he gained the trust of the head warden who put him in charge of the other prisoners. While there he also interpreted the dreams of the Pharaoh's cupbearer and baker. Later Pharaoh had a disturbing dream; Joseph was called to interpret his dream about a famine to come and a solution. Joseph was then made governor of Egypt.
When the famine came it also included the land of Canaan where Joseph's family lived. The older brothers came to Egypt to get food not knowing that they would encounter Joseph. A series of tests by Joseph revealed the changed characters of his brothers. At Joseph's invitation Jacob and his family came to Egypt to live. Joseph died at 110 years, and centuries later when Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt they took the bones of Joseph with them in accordance with Joseph's deathbed wish, and later buried them at Shechem.
Lessons from the life of Joseph:
- How you respond to circumstances is more important than the event.
- God can use any situation for good.
- A positive approach can transform each setback into a step forward.
Joseph's story is told in Genesis 30 through 50. He is also mentioned in Hebrews 11:22
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