Primary Bible Passages: Genesis 37, 39, 40

Key Verse: Genesis 41:38

Memory Verse: Genesis 50:20

Lesson Aim: To show that the correct response of Joseph to adversity resulted in a spirit of beauty rather than ugliness within him.

Preparatory Daily Bible Readings:

• Monday: Genesis 37; Genesis 4:10-11; Genesis 41:38; Genesis 50:20
• Tuesday: Genesis 30-40; Hebrews 12:15; Song of Solomon 8:6
• Wednesday: John 1:9-11; II Timothy 3:12; I Peter 2:19-23
• Thursday: I Corinthians 6:18; Ephesians 5:3; Colossians 3:5-6; I Thessalonians 4:3-5; Proverbs 6:32-33; Hebrews 13:4; II Timothy 2:22; Proverbs 5:3-5; Proverbs 7:5-23
• Friday: I Timothy 4:15; I Thessalonians 5:18; Ephesians 5:20; Psalm 100:4; Colossians 3:15
• Saturday: II Chronicles 26:5; Job 1:21; Job 9:4; Genesis 41:32; Genesis 45:5
• Sunday: Hebrews 12:1-3; Proverbs 3:5-8; Romans 8:28; I Peter 1:6-8; II Corinthians 12:8-10; I Corinthians 10:13; Matthew 28:20; Philippians 4:11

I. THE JEALOUSY AND HATRED OF JOSEPH’S BROTHERS. (Genesis 37:2-11)

A. Joseph was an unusually gifted young man.

1. In his old age, through Rachel, Jacob fathered a son whom he named Joseph. (Genesis 37:3) Prior to Joseph, Rachel, who was Jacob’s preferred wife, had been unable to have children. (Genesis 30:1) The birth of Joseph had been especially precious to Jacob and Joseph became his favorite son. (Genesis 37:3)

2. Even at an early age, Joseph manifested exceptional qualities. His was a most outgoing and aggressive personality. He possessed a high intellect and he was very perceptive, particularly to advantages. His life is characterized by purity, transparency, and a lack of hypocrisy. His personality was warm, yet one of noble dignity and self-control.1 While still a teenager, his spiritual interest, perception, and uninhibited honesty was evidenced by his dreams and the reporting of them. Though the reporting of the dreams suggests some measure of youthful pride and a lack of wisdom,2 at no point in his life can Joseph’s integrity be legitimately questioned. From his youth to his death, Joseph was a man of sterling character.

B. Three major factors led to a deep resentment of Joseph’s brothers against him.

1. The glaring contrast of their weak character against his, coupled with Joseph’s reporting of some of their wrongdoing to Jacob, produced strong resentment in them. (Genesis 37:2)

It is common for those whose behavior is sub-par to resent those whose behavior is exemplary, particularly if such a model person reports unfit conduct to one in authority. Employees of integrity intimidate slothful workers and are often resented as a result of the good they do.3 II Timothy 3:12 says, "Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." Those who would stand out for righteousness’ sake should expect reactions similar to those experienced by Joseph. The very existence and presence of such ones is a thorn in the side of those whose lives are not right.

2. Joseph was also Jacob’s favorite son as evidenced by the "coat of many colors." (Genesis 37:3) Though Joseph was younger than all his brothers except Benjamin, the special coat was clearly a symbol of his authority and favored position. Under the customs of that day, a garment of this type was worn only by royalty and the affluent.4 Jacob’s favoritism to Joseph compounded the resentment of Joseph’s brethren against him. (Genesis 37:4)

3. Adding to their disaffection to the point of bitterness, hatred, and vengeance was Joseph’s dreams, which he openly shared with them.

a. He first dreamed that while he and the brothers were binding sheaves, their sheaves bowed down to his. (Genesis 37:6-7) They were incensed and filled with more hatred at the suggesting that Joseph would have such pre-eminence over them. (Genesis 37:8)

b. Joseph dreamed again. In the second dream, he saw eleven stars, along with the sun and moon, bowing down to him. (Genesis 37:9) This dream suggested that Joseph’s parents and his brothers would be subjected to him, a prospect which incensed the brothers even more. (Genesis 37:10)

c. In actuality, these dreams were prophetic. A few years later, the whole family came and bowed down in subjection to him in Egypt where he had ascended to the second highest position of authority. (Genesis 44:14)

II. THE CRUEL INJUSTICE OF JOSEPH’S BROTHERS TOWARD HIM. (Genesis 37:12-36)

A. In the year 1699 B.C.,5 Joseph was 17 years old.

1. By this time in his life, the hatred of his brothers for him had developed to the point of violence against him.

2. The extent of their injustice was great. Considering his age, their actions could have filled Joseph with hatred and resentment to the ruin of his life.

B. From Hebron where Jacob and his family resided, Joseph was dispatched to check on the welfare of his brothers, who had taken the flocks for grazing to the Shechem area. (Genesis 37:13-14)

1. These mountains and deep valleys were about 50 miles to the north. (Genesis 37:12) They had wandered even farther north to Dothan where Joseph overtook them. (Genesis 37:17)

2. These brothers, who had been seething in their growing hatred for Joseph, saw him coming and recognized this as their chance to destroy him. They determined to kill him. (Genesis 37:18-20) Reuben being the oldest, knowing the vengeance of God against those who shed a brother’s blood, (Genesis 4:10-11) sought to deliver Joseph. He had him put into one of the underground pits or demijohn shaped cisterns in that area. These cisterns had a small hole at ground level and smooth inner sides. Escape was impossible.6 While the brothers thought Joseph would starve and die there without their having to actually kill him, Reuben planned to return and rescue Joseph. (Genesis 37:21-22)

3. Almost all other evils also require lying and deception to cover and hide them. If these brothers were to bring about the death of Joseph, they must invent some lie by which they could explain the matter to their father, Jacob. They thus stripped off Joseph’s coat of many colors and dipped it in the blood of a young goat. Later they presented the coat to Jacob allowing him to jump to the conclusion that Joseph had been devoured by some wild beast. (Genesis 37:23,31-33)

4. After casting Joseph into the pit, these cruel brothers sat down and began to eat of the very provisions which he had delivered to them. "Jealousy is cruel as the grave." (The Song of Solomon 8:6) As they were eating, a trading party of Ishmaelites headed for Egypt (Medianites and Ishmaelites were both descendants of Abraham and often banded together in trading parties7) passed where they were. One of the Mesopotamia-Egypt trade routes passed through Dothan. Judah also sought to deliver Joseph from death and was able to persuade the brothers that it was better to sell Joseph to the traders as a slave for material gain than to murder him. (Genesis 37:25-28)

As the brothers talked, first of his death and then of selling him into slavery, Joseph could hear from the pit. In terrible anguish of soul, he plead with the brothers not to do it. They coldly disregarded the feelings and anguish of Joseph and obliviously hardened themselves to the mean impact of what they were doing. (Genesis 42:21)

5. What a cruel and terrible injustice! Joseph, at 17, was mercilessly snatched from his homeland, sold into slavery, and sent to a faraway people whose language and customs he did not know. All hope of seeing his father and mother and a future in his homeland among his people was dashed. Furthermore, this crime was propagated against him by his own flesh and blood brothers, who showed no compassion nor concern for his welfare or his feelings. He came to them and they rejected him. Joseph is a picture of Jesus Christ, and his brothers in rejecting him are a picture of the Jewish nation. (John 1:9-11)

III. CONTINUED HARDSHIPS AND INJUSTICES AGAINST JOSEPH IN EGYPT. (Genesis 39-40)

A. Genesis 37 ends by reporting the sale of Joseph as a slave to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh.

1. The term Pharaoh is a title used as the general designation of the sovereign of Egypt.8

2. Potiphar was Pharaoh’s "captain of the guard." (Genesis 37:36) Potiphar means "dedicated to Ra" or "the sun." He was a priest of the pagan religion of the Egyptians as well as "chief of the executioners." He was Pharaoh’s bodyguard and the head over his prison system.9

3. The industry and competence of Joseph quickly gained him great favor with Potiphar. It was obvious to Potiphar that God was with Joseph; (I Timothy 4:15) he made him his chief overseerer, an arrangement which was richly blessed of God. (Genesis 39:1-6) It is sobering to realize that God has full power to make one prosperous (II Chronicles 26:5) or materially depressed. (Job 1:21; Job 9:4)

B. As was the prosperity he knew in his favored position with his father, Joseph’s rich success in Potiphar’s house had a short life and ended abruptly with more hurt and injustice.

1. Potiphar’s wife lusted after Joseph and desired to reduce him to immorality. (Genesis 39:7) Joseph recognized sex outside of marriage to be the great "wickedness" it is, and he refused. (Genesis 39:8-9) Consider I Corinthians 6:18; Ephesians 5:3; Colossians 3:5-6; I Thessalonians 4:3-5; Proverbs 6:32-33; and Hebrews 13:4.

2. Potiphar’s evil-hearted wife routinely continued her efforts to seduce Joseph, efforts which he staunchly rejected. After a while, she became so consumed in her lust that she physically sought to force sex upon him. Joseph ran. What a good example to all Godly people who find themselves in a compromising situation! Get away, quickly. Do not hesitate, nor seek to negotiate. (II Timothy 2:22) Passion is strong. (Proverbs 5:3-5; Proverbs 7:5-23)

3. As Joseph turned to flee, Potiphar’s wife clung to his garment which he left behind. Oh, the rage of a spurned woman! To Potiphar she accused Joseph of attempting to rape her and produced his garment as supposed proof. The reverse was true, but truth does not always prevail in the short-run. Many who do right and stand for truth suffer unjustly. (I Peter 2:19-23)

Potiphar listened to her false report and cast Joseph into prison without even a trial. (Genesis 39:13-20)

4. Once again, Joseph found himself suffering unjustly. The charges against him were without foundation. It surely seemed that he was forgotten of man and God, and that all of his efforts in holy and righteous living were in vain. Incarceration in an Egyptian jail was no easy experience. None of the amenities of modern prisons were known there. Joseph was unjustly in a miserable bondage with no reasonable hope of relief or deliverance. How many professing people of God have become angry and bitter at much less adversity and have responded by turning against man and God!

C. Rather than turn against God, Joseph accommodated himself to his state of affairs and attempted to make the most of the situation. (Philippians 4:11)

1. Even in prison, God was with Joseph and showed him favor. (Genesis 39:21-23) God’s people should rejoice in this insight from scripture which testifies of the fact that God will never allow one of His own into any place where His grace is not sufficient. (Matthew 28:20; I Corinthians 10:13; II Corinthians 12:8-10)

2. Even though Joseph was given the most trusted and favored position in the prison, he was still a prisoner, incarcerated, in bondage, without freedom. In this condition, he experienced a new kind of emotional pressure. Two of the Pharaoh’s servants were locked up there too, one a baker and the other a butler. In time, each dreamed strange dreams. In those days, dreams were taken very seriously. Joseph interpreted each man’s dream, interpretations which proved to be fully accurate. He predicted that both men would be soon released from the prison. The chief butler would be restored to his former office as Pharaoh’s cup-bearer and the chief baker would be executed. Joseph explained the injustice of his imprisonment to the butler and asked that upon his restoration, the butler plead his case to Pharaoh. (Genesis 40:1-22) Such would seem a small favor for Joseph’s help with the dream, yet Genesis 40:23 records the ingratitude of the chief butler upon restoration. "Yet did not the chief butler remember Joseph, but forgat him."

3. Ingratitude hurts. It is another form of rejection. Its silence says the favor received was unimportant and that the giver is not appreciated. The way of God is thankfulness. (I Thessalonians 5:18; Ephesians 5:20; Psalm 100:4; Colossians 3:15)

IV. JOSEPH’S SPIRIT IN SPITE OF LONG-TERM ADVERSITIES.

A. The adversities of Joseph continued with only brief interruptions for over 13 years.

1. He was 17 years old when his brothers sold him into slavery. (Genesis 37:2) He was 30 when he was exalted to power in Egypt. (Genesis 41:46)

2. His repeated mistreatment at the hands of evil and cruel men is the kind of thing which turns many people bitter and hateful. (Hebrews 12:15) Rejection and betrayal by family and those close to us, accusations and serious suffering when we are truly innocent, and nothing but trouble and adversity when our spirit and walk is righteous and good are hard to take. The natural response to such things is negativism. Generally it takes less than 13 years to turn one against God and man.

B. After all the trouble and injustice Joseph had suffered, his beautiful, positive spirit was immediately perceivable to all who encountered him.

1. Suddenly, without any warning, Joseph was brought before Pharaoh. Joseph did not know that he would soon be standing before Pharaoh and did not fake a false spirit or front before him. He simply entered the Pharaoh’s presence and conducted himself in the manner and with the spirit which was real and natural to him, the same vibrant, transparent, unassuming, uninhibited, positive spirit which he had as a boy at home, and as a slave both in Potiphar’s house and in prison.

2. Pharaoh and his court was flabbergasted, not only at Joseph’s ability to interpret the dream and the soundness of his advice about how to deal with the coming crisis, but at his beautiful spirit. What a tribute to Joseph Pharaoh’s observation and statement was! "Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is!" (Genesis 41:38) After all he’s been through, Joseph’s spirit was undaunted, beautiful, free of bitterness and malice, and everybody could see it.

C. The testimony of Joseph is a great example and lesson for every man, especially for those who are Christians.

1. Adversity and injustice does not have to turn men ugly, bitter, and negative. The spirit can stay beautiful in spite of a hostile environment. The success of our attitude does not depend upon our circumstances; it depends upon our response to whatever we face. If we, like Joseph, keep our eyes on the Lord, accepting His direction of our lives even through negative providential activity which involves cruel men, we can face life with a confidence that He will use us to His advantage. (Hebrews 12:1-3; Proverbs 3:5-8; Romans 8:28; I Peter 1:6-8; II Corinthians 12:8-10)

2. Joseph’s life was characterized by factors necessary to a continuing good spirit.

a. Throughout his life was a consistency in outlook. He was always honest and upright, and he was always a man of humility. He did not hesitate, even before Pharaoh, to humbly and honestly give credit to God. (Genesis 41:16)

b. Joseph was ever a man of compassion as evidenced in his help to the baker and butler.

c. Joseph also was a man of great confidence in God. He had a remarkable grasp of God’s control of all providence and he had faith that God would work all things out in the best possible way. (Genesis 41:32; Genesis 45:5) His eyes were on the Lord and what He was doing, not on man and what he was doing.

d. His confidence in God produced in him a great flexibility, and the ability to roll with the punch and accept whatever God allowed.

e. His healthy and wonderful view of God also marked his life with contentment. He did the best he could, then left things beyond his control up to God. He left divine management to God and refused to worry about things outside of his power.

2. Morris, Henry, The Genesis Record, Grand Rapids: Baker, 1976, pages 534-537.

3. Maclaren, Alexander, D.D.,Litt.D., Expositions of Holy Scripture, Genesis, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1978, pages 235-236.

4. Peloubet and Wells, page 336.

5. Reese, Edward, The Chronological Bible, Nashville: E.E. Gaddy & Associates, 1977, pages 95-96.

6. Peloubet and Wells, page 340.

7. Morris, page 543.

8. Davis, J.D., Illustrated Davis Dictionary of the Bible, Nashville, Tennessee: Royal Publishers, Inc., 1973, page 627.

9. Edersheim, Alfred, Bible History Old Testament, Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1992, vol. I, pages 148-149.

He was born to Rachel, Jacob’s favorite wife. From childhood, his sharp intellect, perceptive spirit, and interest in spiritual things were obvious. He was a most personable and uninhibited person.

It was no secret that Joseph was Jacob’s favorite son, yet his brothers hated him. His pure and wholesome character made them look bad. They were deceitful, shifty, self-serving people. As has been the case all throughout history, those who live right and are diligent intimidate those who don’t and aren’t.

Adding to the hatred of Joseph’s brothers against him was the obvious favoritism of his father, who gave him a "coat of many colors." This act of favoritism thoroughly incensed them. Furthermore, Joseph was a dreamer. His dreams, which he unwisely shared openly, showed his brothers and his parents bowing down in submission to him. Joseph’s dreams were prophetically accurate, although the brothers refused to accept such a possibility.

Their hatred of Joseph grew to the point of serious violence against him. They were eager for a way to destroy him. Even though he was younger than they were, Jacob had placed Joseph in a role of supervision over his brothers. When they took flocks to graze in the Samaritan mountains which were about 50 miles north of where Jacob was residing, Joseph was sent to check on their welfare. He found them at Dothan, a place on the Mesopotamia to Egypt trade route. When they saw him coming, they concluded this to be their opportunity to destroy him. They seized him and cast him into one of the demijohn shaped underground pits in that area. The majority thought to simply let him die of starvation in this natural grave, although Reuben, the firstborn, thought to return later to rescue him.

In the excitement of these events, a band of traders passed by on their way to Egypt. Judah persuaded the others that it was better to sell Joseph for money than to kill him. Joseph was sold to the traders, who in turn sold him to Potiphar in Egypt. The cruel injustice was devastating to 17 year-old Joseph. He begged and plead with them not to do it, but they ignored his anguish. They dipped Joseph’s coat in goat blood to deceive Jacob into thinking he had been devoured by some wild beast.

Potiphar was Pharaoh’s prison keeper, while Pharaoh was the supreme sovereign of Egypt. Because Joseph was so likeable, industrious, and competent, he quickly gained Potiphar’s respect and favor. It is so refreshing to see one who simply without malice and complaint does what he can where he is. Joseph was a captive, a slave without reasonable hope of deliverance, ever, yet he took care of his business in the best way he could. So many quit and meet only what is required when faced with far less adversity and disappointment than Joseph. Not Joseph; he gave his best as though he were a free man back home. He’s the kind of man whom God so often elevates to a higher position. Joseph became overseer of Potiphar's household operation.

Potiphar’s wife was also highly attracted to Joseph, but for other reasons. So often people with serious character deficits see in good people what they would like to be. Too often, they find a glamour there and set out to conquer that person as some sort of trophy. Potiphar’s wife sexually lusted for Joseph and expressed to him her desires, which he staunchly rejected. Though a slave, away from family and friends, Joseph’s moral purity and general integrity remained pure and unblemished. The affection of Joseph was on God. His conduct was controlled by God’s standards, not by circumstances and opportunities. He knew that sex outside of marriage is wrong before God. After being repeatedly refused by Joseph over a long period of time, Potiphar’s wife attempted to physically seduce Joseph. What a glorious example Joseph gave us when he simply fled from her presence! That’s what every person should do when faced with similar situations.

Upon being spurned, Potiphar’s wife attempted to destroy Joseph another way. Often those with impure motives seek to destroy what they cannot have. She falsely accused Joseph of attempting to rape her. Without a trial, Potiphar cast Joseph into prison.

In prison, Joseph again manifested such exemplary actions and spirit that he was given a favored position with the warden, yet there was no real reason to believe that he would not remain a captive, imprisoned slave until the day of his death. In the prison he met Pharaoh’s butler and his baker. Each dreamed strange dreams, which Joseph interpreted precisely. The baker’s dream foretold that in three days Pharaoh would bring him out of prison and hang him, which he did. The butler’s dream foretold that within three days Pharaoh would restore him to his former position. Joseph asked the butler to plead his case to Pharaoh, but for two years after his release, the ungrateful butler forgot Joseph.

What a life of cruel disappointments and injustices Joseph faced! For 13 years he met with one bitter disappointment and heartache after another. The trials he faced were not small and insignificant. Being a man with a free will, he could have become resentful and bitter, but he didn’t. He committed himself to the providence of God’s care and rested in the knowledge that God is good and that He will always give sufficient grace to meet any need to those who trust Him. With Joseph the issue was response, not circumstances. He realized that real victory is not in easy circumstances; it is in responding properly to God regardless of the circumstances.

Suddenly, without warning, Joseph was called into the presence of the Pharaoh, the most powerful man on earth at that time. He was asked to interpret a strange dream which the Pharaoh had dreamed, a dream which announced one of the most spectacular events in the history of the natural world. As though he had never faced a day of trouble in his life, Joseph with a spirit of meekness and joy stepped right up and told Pharaoh exactly what the dream meant and what should be done to meet the coming crisis.

The thing which is so amazing about Joseph is not his ability to interpret dreams. He openly accredited that power to God. It is not his intellect nor his tremendous industry and organizational skills. The thing which stood out about Joseph, even to Pharaoh and the pagan Egyptians, was his beautiful spirit. It was free of resentments, malice, and bitterness. None of the hurts and injustices had fermented within him. His was a wholesomeness, a purity, an unpolluted balance in life that was obvious to all. What a glorious testimony to Joseph Pharaoh’s statement in Genesis 41:38 is! He said, "Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?" Joseph is a sparkling testimony to the fact that adversity and injustice does not have to turn one bitter, ugly, and negative.

2. Contrast Joseph’s character with that of his brothers.

3. How do people of weak character normally react to those of strong character?

4. Explain the significance of Joseph’s "coat of many colors."

5. Explain Joseph’s lack of wisdom in the reporting of his early dreams.

6. Discuss the depth of the hatred of Joseph’s brothers.

7. In what way did Joseph’s brothers view his arrival at Dothan?

8. Discuss the cruelty and deceit in the episode at Dothan?

9. Discuss Pharaoh and his officer Potiphar.

10. Explain the hand of God in Joseph’s stay in Potiphar’s house.

11. Give a character sketch of Potiphar’s wife.

12. What have you learned from Joseph’s reaction to the advances of Potiphar’s wife?

13. Scripturally define God’s position on sex outside of marriage.

14. How did Joseph innocently find himself in an Egyptian jail?

15. How did God stand by Joseph in the Egyptian jail?

16. Discuss ingratitude and its impact on others.

17. Prove Biblically that Joseph experienced 13 years of almost continual adversity and injustice.

18. Describe Joseph’s spirit throughout his adversity.

19. Compare your circumstances and spirit to that of Joseph.