Joseph Interprets Pharaoh’s Dream: Genesis 41.1-36
Joseph remains in jail two years after interpreting the baker’s and cupbearer’s dreams. Pharaoh has a couple of dreams one night that demand an interpreter.
In the first dream, Pharaoh is standing by the Nile, where seven sleek and fat cows are grazing in the reeds. Seven ugly thin cows come up from the Nile and eat the sleek fat cows. Pharaoh awakes, then falls back asleep. He dreams again. This time seven ears of thin and blighted corn swallow up seven ears of plump and full corn.
In the morning Pharaoh is troubled, so he sends for the magicians and wise men of Egypt to interpret his dream. No one can, though. Then the chief cupbearer remembers Joseph.
Joseph is brought out of the dungeon. After shaving and changing he appears before Pharaoh. Pharaoh tells Joseph that he has heard Joseph can interpret dreams. Joseph responds, “It is not I; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer” (Gen. 41.16). (Compare to Genesis 40.8, speaking to the prisoners: Do not interpretations belong to God?). Joseph simultaneously removes responsibility from himself in dream interpretation and displays his humility.
Pharaoh recites his dream, and Joseph gives the following interpretation: The dreams represent the same thing. There will be seven years of abundance in Egypt, followed by seven years of famine. Having interpreted the dream, Joseph gives Pharaoh a bit of practical advice: Pharaoh should appoint a wise and discerning man to ensure that Egypt does not suffer during the famine. Pharaoh should appoint men to oversee the land, taking one-fifth of the produce over the seven years of plenty, and saving it for the years of famine. These should be overseen by the wise and discerning man.
Joseph’s Rise to Power: Genesis 41.37-57
Someone wise and discerning… Who could possibly fit that description? Oh, wait. Joseph! So Joseph, who was overseer of Potiphar’s household and the jail, is now administrator of Pharaoh’s kingdom. Pharaoh tells Joseph: “All my people shall order themselves as you command; only with regard to the throne will I be greater than you” (Gen. 41.40).
Pharaoh gives Joseph his signet ring, arrays him in garments of fine linen, and give him a gold chair to wear. Joseph now gets to ride around in a chariot. People bow when they see him. Pharaoh bestows the name Zaphenath-paneah (a name having something to do with the concept of “life”) on Joseph and gives him a wife, Asenath, daughter of Potiphera, priest of On. Does that name sound familiar? It is just close enough to Potiphar to make you wonder…
So Joseph goes from city to city ensuring that each is storing grain to survive the impending famine. “So Joseph stored up grain in such abundance – like the sand of the sea – that he stopped measuring it; it was beyond measure” (Gen. 40.49). Joseph is an achiever. He excels at everything he does!
Joseph has two sons before the famine. The first is named Manasseh (making to forget) for Joseph says, “God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father’s house” (Gen. 40.51). The second is named Ephraim (to be fruitful) “for God has made me fruitful in the land of my misfortunes” (Gen. 41.53).
A the end of seven years of plenty comes, as God predicted, seven years of famine. The whole world is hungry. Egypt is hungry too, and when people complain to Pharaoh he directs them to Joseph. Joseph opens the storehouses and sells the grain to the people of Egypt. Then people in the rest of the world hear. Soon the whole world is flocking to Egypt for some of Josephs grain.
Interpretation
“Thus Joseph gained authority over the land of Egypt.”
(Gen. 41.45)
That is the gist of this story. Joseph thrives wherever he is, in whatever adversity there is. He is the man behind the scenes pulling the strings, but not in a malevolent sense. He is simply powerful and a shrewd politician and eloquent speaker. Joseph’s success as a leader in three different scenarios sets him up as a powerful and important figure. But his success is not the only formulaic aspect of his story.
Note that there are three sets of double dreams within the Joseph narrative. The first comes in Genesis 37 when Joseph has two dreams of people bowing down to him. These dreams exhibit intensification. The first has only Joseph’s brothers bowing down to him, but the second has his mother and father as well. The second is also laden with celestial, rather than worldly, imagery, a sign with supernatural significance and force.
The second set of dreams occurs in Genesis 40. Here the two prisoners’ dreams exhibit antithesis. Though the dreams are very similar in imagery, they have very different meanings.
The third set of dreams is Pharaoh’s dreams in Genesis 41. These dreams are synonymous. They mean the same thing. As Joseph notes, “And the doubling of Pharaoh’s dream means that the thing is fixed by God, and God will shortly bring it about” (Gen. 41.32).
It is Joseph’s power of channeling God’s interpretation that gives him authority over Egypt. He is not only his father’s favorite, but apparently a favorite of God as well.
Sweet dreams!
No comments:
Post a Comment