With 30 years of grinding and
shaping by the tough circumstances of life, Joseph had become a thoroughly God-centered
man. He knew in his heart of hearts that the two God-given dreams that he had
when he was a young lad, would be fulfilled in God’s time. Despite the
disappointments, he endured and trusted God absolutely. Yahweh remained very central
in his life and vision. He now stood at the threshold of the moment where his God-
given dreams would soon become a reality. He was ready for that moment.
From the time the cupbearer was
released, Joseph spent two more years in prison. He was 30 years old now and
half of his youth was spent in Egypt. In that year Pharaoh had a pair of inexplicable
dreams, more likely nightmares. In the first dream he saw himself standing by
the River Nile, thought to be a sacred river. “And lo, from
the Nile there came up seven cows, sleek and fat; and they grazed in the marsh
grass. Then behold, seven other
cows came up after them from the Nile, ugly and gaunt, and they stood by
the other cows on the bank of
the Nile.” What Pharaoh saw in the dream so startled him that he
woke up disturbed. Then he dosed off again and had a second episode of
nightmare. In this second episode, he saw, “…seven ears of
grain came up on a single stalk, plump and good. Then behold, seven ears, thin and scorched by the east wind,
sprouted up after them. The thin ears swallowed up the seven plump and full ears.”
He was awakened the second time troubled.
Pharaohs
regarded themselves as gods. They placed great credence on the dreams they had
and often suggest some sort of divine indications or omens. This Pharaoh’s
dreams came in pair, asserting the certainty of the message. Both had similar features
of seven and had some element of violence. So shaken was Pharaoh that he quickly
assembled “…all the magicians of Egypt, and all its wise
men.” He then told them his dreams but none of them could provide an answer
to his two weird dreams. We who are familiar with the story know what happened
next but not Pharaoh. Despite believing that he was divine, yet the king was clueless
concerning what he saw in the dreams.
Without a doubt God’s hand was engineering the moment for Joseph. Proverbs
21:1 is so true. It says, “The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of
the Lord; He turns it wherever He wishes.” God is
sovereign over everyone, whether one be a king or a peasant. He is at liberty
to work through us to fulfill His purpose. The inability of the magicians and
wise council of Pharaoh tells us that the secret things belong to God. But for
us believers, God will reveal to us through His Spirit. For He said assuredly in
1 Corinthians 2:9 that, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard,
and which have not yet entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for
those who love Him.” Praise be our glorious Lord!
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