Genesis 40 Prison Dreams

 

We’re back into the story of Joseph and his family. Joseph is in prison after being falsely accused of trying to sleep with Potiphar’s wife. He’s in a prison that’s run by Potiphar as captain of Pharaoh's prisons, and because Potiphar knows just how talented Joseph’s administration skills are, Joseph’s put in charge of all that goes on in the prison by the warden. No matter where Joseph ends up, his skill and training keep putting him in positions of responsibility, even if it’s only in prison. Moses, writing Joseph’s story, reminds us that the Lord is with Joseph and giving him success in whatever he does.

This explains why Joseph is trusted with serving two very important political prisoners: Pharaoh’s chief cupbearer and chief baker. To be a chief cupbearer or baker meant that you had Pharaoh’s ear and trust and were often asked to give your thoughts and advice to the most powerful and important person in Egypt. We get a glimpse of what these relationships looked like in Nehemiah, “In the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought for him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before, so the king asked me, “Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness of heart.” I was very much afraid, but I said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?” The king said to me, “What is it you want?”

Because of the trust these positions carried, close relationships often grew between the king or Pharaoh and those who prepared the food they ate, trusting them with their lives. This is why the cupbearer and chief baker are still given respect in prison. Because Joseph’s gifted in making sure things get done well, he’s assigned to attend to the cupbearer and baker, to take care of their needs. Joseph’s now a servant of other prisoners. He’s now so far away from his dreams of ruling, that he must have given up on them.

Time passes and we start to wonder where Joseph’s story is heading. It’s been all downhill so far. Then a glimmer of hope appears. Moses writes, “After they had been in custody for some time, each of the two men—the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were being held in prison—had a dream the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own.” Dreams re-enter Joseph’s life and we know this isn’t coincidence, God’s at work, but how? Are these dreams somehow connected to Joseph’s dreams? Moses then reveals that both dreams have meaning and, as part of Joseph’s story, we listen in because we know they’ll impact Joseph’s life, as his original dreams have.

Joseph comes in the next morning and notices that the two men are looking a little dejected. He asks them, “Why do you look so sad today?” Joseph has learned compassion and empathy for others, so unlike when he was younger. Joseph’s able to see past his own wants and needs and see the needs and hurts of others. He’s grown in compassion. When you stop to think about this, this is pretty amazing. Joseph’s been sold into slavery by his brothers, he’s been lied about and thrown into prison, and now he’s the main servant of other prisoners. Most people would be moaning about how unfair life is, and how they never get a break and deserve so much better, but Joseph has matured in his walk with God, and learned to serve wherever he is, and to care about others. Lessons so many of us need to be reminded of at times. These lessons, looking ahead in Joseph’s story, are going to be really important in his closest relationships later on.

The cupbearer and baker decide to share their dreams with Joseph, even though they believe “there’s no one to interpret them.” Joseph responds in a way that kind of surprises us, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.” Joseph has developed humility, turning to God for the wisdom to interpret their dreams. Moses never tells us if Joseph went to God to interpret his own dreams, but Joseph turns to God now for wisdom and insight. This is Joseph’s second confession of faith in God; his first confession of God was when he told Potiphar’s wife that he wouldn’t sleep with her because “it was a wicked thing and a sin against God.” We see Joseph’s growing relationship and dependence in God even though his life is more down than up, more sad than happy, more negative than positive.

I’ve discovered in life and through the Bible, that the closer our walk with Jesus is, the more our faith grows, but also the bigger the challenges we’re given, and often the more suffering that we go through. When Joseph was young, there was no suffering, then in Potiphar’s house, while it wasn’t ideal, life wasn’t so bad and the suffering was easier, but as Joseph grows in his faithfulness to God, he unfairly finds himself in prison serving other prisoners. Jesus constantly challenges our loves, our assumptions, our true values and beliefs, and then calls us to give him control over our entire life, our entire heart, soul and mind and follow him into deep committed servanthood and service. Jesus asks for both our identity and life style.

When suffering and injustice come, we can turn to our Lord who understands injustice. Jesus was sentenced unjustly to death on a cross, but that injustice provided for the forgiveness of our sin. Jesus humbled himself to the injustice, turning to his Father in prayer for another way in the Garden of Gethsemane, but accepting his Father’s plan. Through Jesus’ obedience, we receive forgiveness of our sin. John Calvin tells us to do something similar in his discussion on unjust government in his Institutes, calling the people to obedience rather than rebellion in times of injustice, to examining our own sins to gain humility, and to pray for our ruler and the peace of the city.

We hear Joseph’s suffering as he interprets the dream of the cupbearer. The cupbearer’s dream is of a vine with three branches of grapes. He makes wine out of the grapes and serves it to the Pharaoh. Joseph tells the cupbearer that in three days he will once again serve the Pharaoh, but then we hear the cry of his heart, “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 was forcibly carried off from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing to deserve being put in a dungeon.” Joseph’s faith in God may be growing, but he still dreams of being free again one day as he cries out against the unfairness of what’s happened to him.

The baker hears Joseph’s interpretation of the cupbearer’s dream and he eagerly shares his dream of three baskets of bread, but the birds come and eat the bread. He’s got to be thinking, “I like this guy, hopefully he gives me a good interpretation too.” Obviously, he didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to Joseph’s warning that interpretations come from God, not from him. Joseph’s interpretation isn’t so great for the baker. “This is what it means,” Joseph said. “The three baskets are three days. Within three days Pharaoh will lift off your head and impale your body on a pole. And the birds will eat away your flesh.” Definitely not what the baker was looking for! Sure enough, after three days the cupbearer is given his old position back and the baker is executed.

I wonder if Joseph’s hopes were raised when the cupbearer was raised up to his old position, but considering the way Joseph’s life has already gone, a life filled with injustice against him, Joseph should have known the cupbearer would forget. That’s what happens, once he’s free, the cupbearer forgets Joseph. Paul’s words of reassurance to the Roman church comes to mind, “But we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

I will freely admit that I never look forward to suffering, but I have also learned that those are the times I grow most in my faith; in patience, perseverance, character and hope. As we rest here in Joseph’s story until next Sunday as he remains a servant in prison, we wonder what and who God is shaping Joseph into, what God’s plans for Joseph are. At the same time, in our own times of suffering, stress and experiences of injustice and unfairness, we know that God is always in control and that he will use these times to grow us. We know that Jesus knows suffering and will give us what we need when we ask him. Don’t fear suffering, know that God is with us through it all and he has a plan we can trust.