Genesis 37: 1-11
Yes, the years flew by, and "Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan." (vs. 1) During that time, he had many children, including young Joseph, who by this time, is now 17 years old. This huge family would grow into all of the tribes of Israel, and therefore, a very great people of God. The problem at this time, however, is that Joseph was Jacob's favorite, which he shows to the entire family by giving him a very special coat—a coat of many colors. It evidently was a very brightly colored cloak, possibly made like a patch-work quilt. His brothers were less than thrilled—"And when [they] saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him." (vs.4)
I wonder if maybe this coat of many colors would be a constant reminder of the many colors of God's mercy and grace that He would use to grow Joseph into a mighty man of God. At about this time, Joseph had a dream about sheaves of wheat, each one standing for one of the family. And all the sheaves bowed down to the one that represented him. Once again, the brothers were not thrilled. But there was another dream, besides—"Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the son and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me." (vs.9) Wow! Now the whole clan was upset, including Jacob—how dare this young boy suggest that they would all bow down to him! Well, this set a whole series of events in motion. First, the brothers threw him into a pit—that would keep him until they decided what to do next. I know that our first thought would be to lower a rope and get him out of the mess. But, you see, God had a far bigger plan. We often want to fix things for people, when God is trying to use their problems. He was going to use that pit to get him into a palace! What? How could that be? Well, here is how it all laid out—he was sold to a caravan heading for Egypt, while his Dad was convinced he had been killed by wild animals, since the brothers had smeared blood all over the fancy coat. Once in Egypt, he was made a servant in Potiphar's house. Falsely accused of immorality, he was thrown into a dungeon for quite some time.
To make a long story short, God grew him and strengthened him to only want to be loyal to God and God alone. When it was found that God had given him the ability to interpret the Pharaoh's dream, he was put in charge of a coming famine. The whole world had to come and bow down to Joseph in order to get food—including Joseph's whole family, just like the dream said! This would actually preserve the Jewish people for hundreds of years, and for what purpose? You guessed it—the coming of Jesus! Praise God—now the whole world—people of every color, like a patch-work—can come and bow to Him, declaring Him to be Lord of all! Before we can go on in Him, will we let our circumstances grow us?
~ Nancy Faust
