By Lyn Wrankmore Snyder
For lovers of great stories, the life of Joseph has it all: intrigue, drama, villains, a hero, unparalleled adversity, astounding success, all iced with an emotional happy ending. But the thought that Joseph is a type of Jesus, the Messiah, is not what strikes the average reader. See if you can find the parallels as we review his story.
Joseph was born into a truly dysfunctional family. Four mothers bore to Jacob 12 sons and some daughters. The boys were wild, unruly, and most likely a source of constant anxiety and grief to their father—except for the two sons of Rachel, Jacob’s favorite wife, who had died in childbirth. The oldest of the two, Joseph, was not only physically attractive and intelligent, but obeyed his father’s instructions and loved God. Jacob unwisely favored Joseph. Gen. 37:3.
Jacob’s preference for Joseph elicited jealousy from the older brothers. His injudicious choice to make Joseph an expensive coat made the situation worse. Sadly, the pampering Joseph received from his father in no way prepared him for the unseen hardships that lay ahead.
Joseph also received and shared two puzzling dreams that implied that his father and brothers would one day bow down to him, further alienating them.
When Joseph was about 17, Jacob sent him to find his brothers who had gone with the flocks in search of new pastures and to bring back news of their safety. As they saw him approaching in his elaborate coat, their long-cherished anger finally erupted, and they vowed to kill him. The wisest and eldest, Reuben, convinced them not to do it, but suggested they throw Joseph into a pit instead. Reuben intended to secretly rescue him and send him home. But in his absence, a caravan of merchants bound for Egypt passed by, and the brothers sold Joseph to them as a slave.
The trip to Egypt would have been harrowing for anyone, let alone a pampered son. We can imagine that Joseph initially succumbed to uncontrolled grief and fear. But even this experience was allowed by Providence for a purpose. In his upbringing, certain traits of character had not been corrected. But although vulnerable and helpless, his thoughts turned to the God of his father, and “his soul thrilled with the high resolve to prove himself true to God—under all circumstances to act as became a subject of the King of heaven. He would serve the Lord with undivided heart; he would meet the trials of his lot with fortitude and perform every duty with fidelity. One day’s experience had been the turning point in Joseph’s life. Its terrible calamity had transformed him from a petted child to a man, thoughtful, courageous, and self-possessed.”1
In Egypt, one of Pharaoh’s high-ranking officers bought Joseph. Soon his master realized his caliber and promoted him to steward over all his possessions. “Faithful attention to duty in every station, from the lowliest to the most exalted, had been training every power for its highest service.”2
But Joseph’s moral character was soon to be tested. When the master’s wife set a trap for him, he chose the risk of his master’s displeasure rather than sin. Joseph’s words sparkled like bright stars amidst the dark immorality of his age: “How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” Gen. 39:9. This choice resulted in his imprisonment. It could have resulted in his death—yet God’s purposes for Joseph’s life were still unfolding.
The jailers treated the Hebrew slave harshly. But Joseph’s character shone through again, and he was promoted to a position of responsibility over the other prisoners. Two of his fellow inmates were former employees of the king. They both had dreams that they couldn’t interpret. God revealed their meanings to Joseph, and when both his interpretations came true, Joseph asked to be remembered.
Unfortunately, the promise was forgotten until two years later when the king had a dream no one in the land could explain. Pharaoh summoned Joseph and related his dream. God gave Joseph the meaning: there were to be seven good years of plenty followed by seven years of famine. Joseph suggested a plan of action—that someone be appointed to oversee the gathering of food into storage during the good years, to be dispensed during the bad years. Pharaoh decreed, “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.” Gen. 41:39–40.
What a remarkable ascendancy—from prisoner to prime minister! Pharaoh was obviously impressed enough with Joseph to entrust the future of his kingdom to a total stranger and a foreign slave—and for a crisis that hadn’t yet materialized!
What Joseph's brothers meant for evil,
God used to preserve two great nations
and the lineage of the promised Seed
When the great famine struck, it affected not only Egypt, but also the surrounding countries. Word soon spread that there was food for sale in Egypt, and Jacob in Canaan sent 10 of his sons to purchase grain. Upon their arrival in Egypt, they appeared before Joseph and “bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth.” Gen. 42:6. Joseph couldn’t help but remember the dreams of his childhood.
His brothers, however, did not recognize him, dressed in his expensive Egyptian clothes and speaking to them through an Egyptian interpreter. Joseph wanted to see if his brothers’ cruel characters had changed. He held one of them for ransom and refused to sell more grain unless they brought Benjamin, his full brother, when they returned to Egypt. Then he accused Benjamin of a grave crime as a test. The other brothers begged that one of them suffer the punishment, as it would kill their father to lose yet another of his beloved sons.
Joseph was now satisfied that there had been true repentance in his brothers, and he finally revealed who he was. At first the brothers froze in shock. But Joseph’s tears of joy and reassuring words quickly dissipated all tension and fear. “Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to…preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.” Gen. 45:5, 7. There was no bitterness, no resentment, no self-pitying on account of an abused childhood and harassed youth, no revenge therapy.
Instead, Joseph became the savior of his brothers and an illustration of the mission of Christ. Both knew the meaning of “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.” John 1:11. Both were falsely accused because of their virtue. Both faced injustice with patience and meekness, and readily forgave those who offended them. Both turned the most adverse circumstances into life-impacting victories: for Joseph, those of his family from whom Messiah would come; for Jesus, those of all humankind.
The drama ends with the beautiful reunion of father and son. “Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father…and wept on his neck a good while.” Gen. 46:29.
Image credit: © Sermonview.com
Lyn Wrankmore Snyder was a teacher at Hartland College when she wrote this article.