Transcript Bible History Overview

Week Seven - Joseph
Bible History Overview
PREPARED
BY
KELLY
BOYD
BeeP SLoWly, JaKe CaRRieS CoCoa!
If we remove the vowels, the consonants form the first letter of each period.
BeeP SLoWly, JaKe CaRRieS CoCoa!
 B eginnings
 C aptivity
 P atriarchs
 R eturn
 S lavery
 R estoration
 L aw
 S ilence
 W anderings
 C hrist
 J udges
 C onsummation
 K ings
Genesis 37-50
THE LIFE OF JOSEPH
Joseph
 The remainder of the book of Genesis, chapters 37-
50, basically tells us of the life of a great man of faith,
Joseph. Unlike his father, Joseph’s faith was firmly
established at a young age, and continued
throughout his lifetime. Here we see a man who
would not give in to temptation no matter how much
personal gain he might get from it, or even to save
his own neck. Joseph definitely knew “That in all
things God works for the good of those who love
Him” and “If God be for us, who can be against us?”
Romans 8:28,31
Joseph’s Early Years in Canaan
 Joseph was definitely Jacob’s favorite son, and he
made this quite clear to his brothers. He made them
angry by giving a bad report about them to their
father, and then there were the dreams! Even Jacob
was irritated by the suggestion that the whole family
would someday bow down to Joseph, and his
brothers were filled with hatred for him.
Joseph’s Early Years in Canaan
 This all came to a head when Jacob sent Joseph to
“check up on” his brothers near Dothan, and they
saw the opportunity to get even. They knew that
their father would never find out what they had
done, but Reuben, the oldest, talked them out of
killing him. They stripped him of his robe and threw
him into a cistern.
Joseph’s Early Years in Canaan
 But while Reuben was away, Judah hatched a plan to
sell Joseph to some Midiannite traders, so at the age
of 17 Joseph became a slave in Egypt. To cover up
their act, the brothers dipped Joseph’s coat in goats
blood and told their father that he had been killed by
a lion. “In all things God works for the good of those
who love him”.
Joseph in Potiphar’s Household
 Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh’s palace guard,
bought Joseph from the Midiannites when they
arrived in Egypt. Potiphar soon saw that God was
with Joseph and blessed everything that he did, so he
put him in charge of his whole house and entrusted
to him everything he owned. Everything, of course,
except his wife.
Joseph in Potiphar’s Household
 But she had other ideas. She noticed this rising
young man’s handsome features and tried to entice
him into bed with her. He refused, saying “How
could I do this wicked thing and sin against God?”
39:9. She, however, didn’t give up, and one day when
they were alone in the house she made her move. She
grabbed Joseph by his cloak and said “Lie with me!”.
Joseph in Potiphar’s Household
 This time he ran, and she was humiliated. She told
Potiphar that Joseph had assaulted her, and he had
him arrested and imprisoned. “If God is for us, who
can be against us?”
Joseph in Prison
 The conditions in this prison were no doubt
disgusting. But, the Lord was still with Joseph, and
showed him kindness and granted him favor in the
eyes of the jailor. The warden put him in charge of all
the prisoners, and he had full responsibility for
everything.
Joseph in Prison
 While in prison, Joseph interpreted the dreams of
two of Pharaoh’s servants who were there. As a
result, one of these men was to receive his position
back as chief cup bearer to Pharaoh. Joseph asked
this man to remember him and tell Pharaoh of the
injustice he had suffered, but he forgot. “In all things
God works for the good of those who love Him.”
Joseph Becomes High Egyptian Official
 Some 2 years later, when Joseph was still in prison,
Pharaoh had dreams that no one could interpret.
Suddenly the cup bearer remembered Joseph.
Quickly Joseph was cleaned up and brought from the
dungeon. Joseph interpreted the dream but was
careful to give God the credit. There would be seven
years of plenty followed by seven years of famine.
Joseph Becomes High Egyptian Official
 But Joseph didn’t stop there! In the boldness of the
Spirit he declared what ought to be done about it!
Pharaoh was so impressed with the wisdom of this
prisoner that he put him in charge of the
preparations, gave him his daughter as a wife, and
made him second only to Pharaoh in the kingdom.
“If God is for us, who can be against us?”
Joseph Supervises the Famine Relief
 During the seven years of abundance, Joseph
collected and stored the extra grain in each of the
towns from the surrounding fields. These
underground granaries have been found by
archaeologists.
 Once the famine came, the people came to Joseph to
buy grain, from all over the world. First, they used
their money, then they traded their livestock, and
finally they sold themselves and their land to
Pharaoh.
Joseph Supervises the Famine Relief
 We can see here that it was God who made Egypt the
richest and most powerful nation on earth. He had a
plan to pass that wealth on to his chosen people
someday. We’ll see the fulfillment of that plan in the
book of Exodus. “In all things God works for the
good of those who love Him.”
The Israelites Move to Egypt
 During the famine, the only place that had food was
Egypt. Jacob and his family in Canaan also ran out of
food, and he sent his sons to Egypt to buy some.
When they arrived in Egypt, Joseph immediately
recognized his brothers, but because of his clothing
and manner, they didn’t know him.
 After some testing on his part, to see if they had
changed, he revealed himself to them. He had
forgiven them. He said, “it was to save lives that God
sent me ahead of you.”.
The Israelites Move to Egypt
 Joseph longed to see his father, so he sent them back
to fetch the rest of the family. When Jacob (now
Israel) found out that his son Joseph was alive, he
was overwhelmed, and decided to go to Egypt to be
with his son. After the wonderful reunion, they were
given the best of the land to settle in and raise their
children and flocks. They lived there peacefully for
hundreds of years. “If God is for us, who can be
against us?”
Jacob Adopts Joseph’s Sons
 Joseph was still Jacob’s favorite son, and so when he
was about to die, he adopted Joseph’s sons
Manasseh and Ephraim. This was so that Joseph
would receive a double portion in place of Reuben,
the first born, who defiled his father’s bed (Gen.
35:22).
 Later when the Israelites entered the Promised Land,
the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh received
portions along with the tribes of Jacob’s other sons.
They became part of the 12 tribes of Israel. “In all
things God works for the good of those who love
Him.”
Jacob Blesses His Sons
 Before Jacob died, he called his sons to him and said,
“Gather ‘round so I can tell you what will happen in
the days ahead.” As Isaac had blessed Jacob, so
Jacob now does for his sons. One important verse to
remember is 49:28, where it says “giving each the
blessing appropriate to him”.
 These prophesies were a direct result of the lives that
each of them had lived. The first three received
negative blessings, which they deserved for the lives
they had led.
Jacob Blesses His Sons
 The next son, Judah, received a good blessing. Not
only physically, but also spiritually, because his line
would be the Messianic line. The rest of his sons
received the blessing they deserved as well. “If God
be for us, who can be against us?”.
Conclusion to Genesis
 In Genesis 49:29 to 50:26 we see the deaths of both
Jacob and Joseph. Jacob’s body was taken back to
Canaan and buried in the cave of Machpelah with
Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah and Leah. The
covenant with the patriarchs was still in full force,
because Joseph said “God will surely come to your
aid and take you up out of this land to the land He
promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob”.
(50:24)
Looking at Joseph’s Faith
 “How could I do such a wicked thing, and sin against
God?” How are we doing at resisting the pressure in
our culture to sin? What is your focus?
 Joseph’s focus was on God, not himself. He had good
reason to hate his brothers, and plenty of
opportunity for revenge. But he forgave them.
 As Potiphar’s steward, Joseph could have easily
stolen, and likely gotten away with it. But he
wouldn’t do it, it was wrong. How about you?
Looking at Joseph’s Faith
 How do you handle your disappointments? Imagine
being sold as a slave, falsely imprisoned, languishing
for years while you waited for God to deliver you.
Would you have given up? Joseph didn’t!
 Finally, Joseph is out of prison and second only to
Pharaoh, the most powerful ruler in the world of that
day. Time to look out for number one, right? Settle
old scores, firm up the power base? Instead, he sets
out to save the nation, not himself. And look at the
success he became in the process.
Looking at Joseph’s Faith
 Why did God not intervene in all of Joseph’s
troubles? Simply because God doesn’t always work
this way. It is possible that a decision honoring God
will turn into catastrophe. We know this by studying
great men of faith throughout history, like John the
Baptist, Stephen, and the apostle Paul. As we “walk
with God”, we may be slandered, reviled and
persecuted. Focused on God, these things actually
can be seen as great honors! (Acts 5:41). They don’t
defeat us, but rather are a source of joy and great
reward.
Seeing Christ in This Passage
 Joseph’s life in many ways parallels the life of Christ.
 Sent into Egypt to prepare the coming of the 12 tribes
Jesus was sent to Egypt to escape Herod
 He has gone ahead to heaven to prepare a place for us
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Beloved of his father
Rejected by his brethren
Sold for pieces of silver
In Jacob’s mind, he was dead and brought back to life
Suffering servant changed to triumphant king
Forgave his brothers and saved them from death
 Genesis 49:10 refers to Christ being of Judah’s line
Next Week
 Read Exodus chapters 1-3 and 12.