There is no doubt that Joseph could be accused of being an overly confident teenager. He is the favorite son of his father, who gives him a colorful robe to wear, an act that infuriates his older brothers. Joseph is also a dreamer, as he has a series of dreams in which he is always the hero. In one dream, the sheaves of his brothers bow down to his sheaf. In another, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bow down to him. Joseph’s brothers despise him as a result. Sibling rivalry goes too far, and Joseph is thrown into a pit by his brothers and sold into slavery. They tell their father that Joseph has been killed by a wild animal. Jealousy turns to hatred, over offenses that certainly do not deserve such.
To make matters worse, Joseph continues to be punished for crimes he does not commit. People recognize that there is something different about Joseph, that he carries with him God’s anointing. The right-hand man of Pharaoh, Potiphar, as he is called, promotes Joseph to the highest position there is. Perhaps justice has prevailed. Yet Potiphar’s wife reverses such justice, as she tries to seduce Joseph into becoming her lover. Joseph resists her advances and Potiphar’s wife gives up. Not wanting to be found out, she accuses Joseph of trying to seduce her instead. Joseph ends up in prison, in a dungeon to be exact, again for a crime he does not commit. Punishment that is not worthy or just. Joseph is an innocent man, but he is not being treated like it.
And yet, Joseph, the dreamer, keeps on dreaming. Two fellow prisoners recognize Joseph’s ability to interpret dreams and seize on the opportunity. The cupbearer and the baker of Pharaoh. Joseph reveals the fates of each. The cupbearer will be restored to his position, while the baker will be killed. The only thing Joseph asks in return for the interpretation is to be remembered. “But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison . . . I have done nothing to deserve being put in a dungeon” (Genesis 40:14-15). There likely should be several English exclamation points here. I imagine that Joseph is screaming this statement with a face that is red. Injustice creates such a response.
Joseph is not remembered though. He is forgotten. And he continues to suffer in prison for crimes he has not committed. He continues to be treated unfairly. He has been abandoned by those he loves, enslaved, falsely accused and imprisoned, and he has done nothing wrong. In return for his desire to be righteous, he has reaped the punishment of the unrighteous. Does any of this sound familiar? Might there be a foreshadowing of Jesus here? A pointing ahead to the cross? Just an observation.
Finally, things begin to get better for Joseph. The cupbearer remembers him when Pharaoh begins having disturbing dreams of his own. When this happens, the cupbearer tells Pharaoh to go and get him, and Joseph saves the day. Interpretation of dreams belongs to God, he tells him, and the interpretation God gives him is that famine is coming, famine that must be prepared for. Recognizing Joseph as a wise and discerning young man, Pharaoh makes him his right-hand man. He puts Joseph in charge of all of Egypt. And Joseph sees to it that Egypt is prepared for this famine by storing up sufficient grain. Pharaoh has been wise in his decision.
Countless individuals from Egypt and other lands come to Joseph for grain during this famine. As a wise steward, Joseph distributes grain to those in need. And all goes well until he looks up and sees the faces of those he is not prepared to see. Faces he has thought about, there can be no doubt. Faces he has associated with severe emotional pain and injustice, faces of those whose actions caused him slavery and prison. Joseph sees his brothers. And the only thing he can do is weep. He has struggled so long to understand the “whys” behind their actions. Why did they go so far? Why did they not come back and rescue him? Why did they choose to hate him for such ridiculous reasons? How could family treat family this way?
If you read the end of Genesis, Joseph’s famous words to his brothers are, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives” (Genesis 50:20). Joseph forgives his brothers and recognizes God’s providential hand in the process, that God was using these events for a greater purpose, to preserve people’s lives all throughout the world, but also to preserve the lives of his brothers, of those who had treated him so badly.
Joseph chooses to forgive the hatred of his brothers in the end. He recognizes how God can bring good out of bad. He makes the hard choice to forgive as he cannot deny the hand of God in this process, but not just that. He chooses to forgive because he is a righteous person, someone who can be likened to David, an individual who possesses the heart of God. His love for his brothers never turned to hatred. Though he suffered and struggled with the temptation, bitterness never won the day with Joseph. His love for his brothers remained, despite their actions that caused him relentless emotional pain.
Sound familiar? “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). These words uttered from the only man who had done nothing wrong his entire life, who had committed no sin, the Son of God who chose to overlook the hurt, the pain, and the sin of those punishing him so that a greater good would result. Joseph is a type of Jesus, there can be no doubt. He points ahead to the forgiving nature of our Lord.
Why forgive others when they hurt us? Because the Lord forgave us. Why forgive when we do not understand how in good conscience they could disregard us, abandon us, and force us down paths of emotional pain and injustice? Because Jesus commands us to. Because the same has happened to our Lord. Because greater good can be the result of our decision to forgive, his greater good, a greater purpose made possible because an innocent man willingly suffered for sinners like you and me, suffered to love us despite our weakness, selfishness, and sinfulness. I love the story of Joseph because his life points ahead to Jesus, to his love and forgiveness, love and forgiveness we do not deserve.