Joseph

Reflections on Joseph…

Jacob’s sons are as follows (mothers in parentheses):

1.       Rueben (Leah)

2.       Simeon (Leah)

3.       Levi (Leah)

4.       Judah (Leah)

5.       Dan (Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid)

6.       Naphtali (Bilhah)

7.       Gad (Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid)

8.       Asher (Zilpah)

9.       Issachar (Leah)

10.   Zebulun (Leah)

11.   Joseph (Rachel)

12.   Benjamin (Rachel)

So Joseph was one of Jacob’s four “firstborn” sons. In regards to his coat of “many colors,” it appears that this could have been some indication of him being Jacob’s birthright son. As the LDS institute manual explains it, there were several brothers who may have felt they had a legitimate right to the birthright inheritance of Jacob:

Reuben. He was the firstborn of all the sons. Although he had lost the right (see Reading 7-28), he may not have accepted that fact.

Simeon. Since he was the second son of Leah and next in line following Reuben, he could have assumed the birthright would come to him after Reuben lost his right to it.

Judah. He could have argued that not only Reuben had lost the right, but so had Simeon and Levi, through the massacre of the Shechemites (see Genesis 34). The disqualification of these sons would make him the rightful legal heir.

Dan. Because his mother, Bilhah, was considered Rachel’s property, he could argue that he was Rachel’s firstborn, not Joseph, and therefore should have received the birthright when Reuben lost it.

Gad. He was the firstborn son of Zilpah and therefore could easily have thought he should have taken the birthright after Reuben forfeited it.

The question of birthright would have been incendiary enough; but remember that Joseph also reported having some dreams that would have been very upsetting to hear about from your spoiled baby brother. The net meaning of the symbolism in the dreams, was that Joseph’s brothers would one day kneel down to him (Gen. 37:5-10). Ouch. That would be a lot to take. In addition to that, we know of one instance when Joseph tattled on his brothers, giving an “evil report” of them to their father (Gen. 37:2). 

So, Joseph had a troubled relationship with his older brothers. 

He was despised because his father doted on him, possibly openly acknowledging him as his birthright son, he was maybe coddled and a bit immature (in Gen. 37 we see him being sent to check on his brothers, who were out with the flocks, so we might guess that the hard work was delegated to them, not him). So as we can imagine, this set the scene for what was going to happen next.

Joseph’s brothers bind him, throw him into a pit, and sell him to a passing caravan for 20 pieces of silver (which, according to the LDS Institute manual, was the going price for a slave his age), eventually ending up in Egypt.

I can only imagine what Joseph must have been feeling. He had been betrayed by his brothers, ripped from his home and the only life he had known, and his status had changed—in an instant—from favored son to slave. I don’t have anything in my life to compare to this, but I have had several singular life-changing moments in my life, when I realized that things had gone very wrong, and I knew that nothing would be the same again. They have been slow, surreal moments that produced shock and stupor. I wonder if that was how Joseph felt, if he woke up in the morning sometimes for a long time after that, disoriented, followed by the sinking feeling that came as he remembered what had happened, and that he wasn’t in his mother’s tent.

But the Lord had a plan for Joseph. In Genesis 39, we see several verses with very similar phrases.

Verses 2-3 say:

“And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.

 And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand.”

In 21:

“But the Lord was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.”

And in verse 23:

“The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was under his hand; because the Lord was with him, and that which he did, the Lord made it to prosper.”

Genesis 39 recounts Joseph’s service Potiphar’s house. He proves himself to be a worthy and industrious servant, and he rises in rank and responsibility in the household. He also is cast in prison after his master’s wife fails to seduce him, and cooks up a story about a would-be assault. Once in prison, he is again given leadership responsibilities, and is tasked by the keeper of the prison with stewardship over all of the other prisoners.

How was Joseph able to keep the Lord with him, as we read in chapter 39? I think through humility and hard work, and choosing righteousness continually, he was able to keep his faith strong. If he had succumbed to Potiphar’s wife, he would no longer have had the Lord with him. He also had to have been able to forgive his brothers, in order to have been able to move on and accomplish anything. Holding on to bitterness is one of the best ways to keep yourself from making any kind of spiritual or emotional progress, and probably the best way to achieve unhappiness.

How can we get through our life experiences with our faith intact, like Joseph?

I think maybe it be summed up like this:

1.      Have faith that the Lord has a plan for you. Joseph’s string of personal tragedies put him the position God needed him to be in to save the house of Israel. He has a plan for you too.

2.      Keep praying. Pray all the time. Seriously. Tell the Lord what’s going on, He knows, but tell Him anyway. Ask for what you need. Be sure to ask for comfort, peace, and strength.

3.      Be in good places, surrounded by good people. Go to church.

4.       Read the scriptures. Sometimes the answers aren’t in the words you’re reading; sometimes they are. It gives you the opportunity and quiet to hear answers to prayer. Really.

5.      Hold on. Don’t give up.

6.      Repeat.