⁸ But Joseph had recognized his brothers, although they did not recognize him. ⁹ Joseph remembered the dreams which he had about them, and said to them, “You are spies; you have come to look at the undefended parts of our land.” ¹⁰ Then they said to him, “No, my lord, but your servants have come to buy food. ¹¹ “We are all sons of one man; we are honest men, your servants are not spies.” ¹² Yet he said to them, “No, but you have come to look at the undefended parts of our land!” ¹³ But they said, “Your servants are twelve brothers in all, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and behold, the youngest is with our father today, and one is no longer alive.” ¹⁴ Joseph said to them, “It is as I said to you, you are spies; ¹⁵ by this you will be tested: by the life of Pharaoh, you shall not go from this place unless your youngest brother comes here! ¹⁶ “Send one of you that he may get your brother, while you remain confined, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you. But if not, by the life of Pharaoh, surely you are spies.” ¹⁷ So he put them all together in prison for three days.

At this point, it isn’t quite clear what Joseph is trying to accomplish, but it is likely that he wanted to see if their hearts had changed. By putting them in a dire situation, he wanted to see how they would react. God often allows us to be put into the fire to test and purify our hearts. How will you stand up to the testing?

¹ Now Jacob saw that there was grain in Egypt, and Jacob said to his sons, “Why are you staring at one another?” ² He said, “Behold, I have heard that there is grain in Egypt; go down there and buy some for us from that place, so that we may live and not die.” ³ Then ten brothers of Joseph went down to buy grain from Egypt. ⁴But Jacob did not send Joseph’s brother Benjamin with his brothers, for he said, “I am afraid that harm may befall him.” ⁵ So the sons of Israel came to buy grain among those who were coming, for the famine was in the land of Canaan also.

⁶ Now Joseph was the ruler over the land; he was the one who sold to all the people of the land. And Joseph’s brothers came and bowed down to him with their faces to the ground. ⁷ When Joseph saw his brothers he recognized them, but he disguised himself to them and spoke to them harshly. And he said to them, “Where have you come from?” And they said, “From the land of Canaan, to buy food.”

Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery because they were tired of his dreams, and the preferred treatment he received from their father, Jacob. The very thing they were trying to avoid was bowing before their younger brother. But by selling him into slavery, they enabled the plan of God to continue right along. Quite ironic. Don’t try and throw road blocks into God’s plan. He’ll make it happen whether you are willing or not.

⁵⁰ Now before the year of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of ³On, bore to him. ⁵¹ Joseph named the firstborn ⁴Manasseh, “For,” he said, “God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s household.” ⁵² He named the second ⁵Ephraim, “For,” he said, “God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”

⁵³ When the seven years of plenty which had been in the land of Egypt came to an end, ⁵⁴ and the seven years of famine began to come, just as Joseph had said, then there was famine in all the lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread. ⁵⁵ So when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried out to Pharaoh for bread; and Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph; whatever he says to you, you shall do.” ⁵⁶ When the famine was spread over all the face of the earth, then Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold to the Egyptians; and the famine was severe in the land of Egypt. ⁵⁷ The people of all the earth came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe in all the earth.

Even in the naming of his children, Joseph gives glory to God. He doesn’t think for a second that his success is of his own doing. He knows the source of his success, and so he gives God the thanks, and God continues to reward him.

³⁸ Then Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find a man like this, in whom is a divine spirit?” ³⁹ So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has informed you of all this, there is no one so discerning and wise as you are. ⁴⁰“You shall be over my house, and according to your command all my people shall do homage; only in the throne I will be greater than you.” ⁴¹ Pharaoh said to Joseph, “See, I have set you over all the land of Egypt.” ⁴² Then Pharaoh took off his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, and clothed him in garments of fine linen and put the gold necklace around his neck. ⁴³ He had him ride in his second chariot; and they proclaimed before him, “Bow the knee!” And he set him over all the land of Egypt. ⁴⁴ Moreover, Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Though I am Pharaoh, yet without your permission no one shall raise his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.”⁴⁵ Then Pharaoh named Joseph ¹Zaphenath-paneah; and he gave him Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, as his wife. And Joseph went forth over the land of Egypt.

⁴⁶ Now Joseph was thirty years old when he ²stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh and went through all the land of Egypt. ⁴⁷ During the seven years of plenty the land brought forth abundantly. ⁴⁸ So he gathered all the food of these seven years which occurred in the land of Egypt and placed the food in the cities; he placed in every city the food from its own surrounding fields. ⁴⁹ Thus Joseph stored up grain in great abundance like the sand of the sea, until he stopped measuring it, for it was beyond measure.

After Joseph gave the interpretation, even Pharaoh realized there was no way to compete with the knowledge and wisdom of God. Simply because God had revealed the interpretation to Joseph, Pharaoh made him ruler of all Egypt, second only to Pharaoh himself. Even in our lives, there is no substitute for the guidance of wisdom of God. Never take it for granted.

²⁵ Now Joseph said to Pharaoh, “Pharaoh’s dreams are one and the same; God has told to Pharaoh what He is about to do. ²⁶ “The seven good cows are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years; the dreams are one and the same. ²⁷ “The seven lean and ugly cows that came up after them are seven years, and the seven thin ears scorched by the east wind will be seven years of famine. ²⁸ “It is as I have spoken to Pharaoh: God has shown to Pharaoh what He is about to do. ²⁹ “Behold, seven years of great abundance are coming in all the land of Egypt; ³⁰ and after them seven years of famine will come, and all the abundance will be forgotten in the land of Egypt, and the famine will ravage the land. ³¹ “So the abundance will be unknown in the land because of that subsequent famine; for it will be very severe. ³² “Now as for the repeating of the dream to Pharaoh twice,it means that the matter is determined by God, and God will quickly bring it about. ³³ “Now let Pharaoh look for a man discerning and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt. ³⁴ “Let Pharaoh take action to appoint overseers in charge of the land, and let him exact a fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt in the seven years of abundance. ³⁵ “Then let them gather all the food of these good years that are coming, and store up the grain for food in the cities under Pharaoh’s authority, and let them guard it. ³⁶ “Let the food become as a reserve for the land for the seven years of famine which will occur in the land of Egypt, so that the land will not perish during the famine.”

³⁷ Now the proposal seemed good to Pharaoh and to all his servants.

Joseph keep giving credit to where credit is due. He doesn’t let Pharaoh think the dream was some happy accident of pizza and Mountain Dew (or whatever crazy-dream-inducing foods they had back then). Joseph keeps reminding Pharaoh that the dream is God’s revelation of what He is about to do in the land. Again, remember to give God credit for your successes. I must be needing to hear this one twice, just like the message to Pharaoh was repeated twice (the cows, and corn).

¹⁴ Then Pharaoh sent and called for Joseph, and they hurriedly brought him out of the dungeon; and when he had shaved himself and changed his clothes, he came to Pharaoh. ¹⁵ Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have had a dream, but no one can interpret it; and I have heard it said about you, that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.” ¹⁶ Joseph then answered Pharaoh, saying, “It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.” ¹⁷ So Pharaoh spoke to Joseph, “In my dream, behold, I was standing on the bank of the Nile; ¹⁸ and behold, seven cows, fat and sleek came up out of the Nile, and they grazed in the marsh grass. ¹⁹ “Lo, seven other cows came up after them, poor and very ugly and gaunt, such as I had never seen for ugliness in all the land of Egypt; ²⁰ and the lean and ugly cows ate up the first seven fat cows. ²¹ “Yet when they had devoured them, it could not be detected that they had devoured them, for they were just as ugly as before. Then I awoke.²² “I saw also in my dream, and behold, seven ears, full and good, came up on a single stalk; ²³ and lo, seven ears, withered, thin, and scorched by the east wind, sprouted up after them; ²⁴ and the thin ears swallowed the seven good ears. Then I told it to the magicians, but there was no one who could explain it to me.”

I love Joseph’s focus in verse sixteen. He gives all the glory to God, and trusts that God will give the answer, before he even knows the dream. He’s not worried about God not knowing something. He knows that God is faithful, and that nothing is too difficult for God. Here he has gone from a lowly slave in prison to being called upon to advise the mighty Pharaoh. With God, nothing is impossible. And remember, never forget the source of your talents.

¹ Now it happened at the end of two full years that Pharaoh had a dream, and behold, he was standing by the Nile. ² And lo, from the Nile there came up seven cows, sleek and fat; and they grazed in the marsh grass. ³Then behold, seven other cows came up after them from the Nile, ugly and gaunt, and they stood by the othercows on the bank of the Nile. ⁴ The ugly and gaunt cows ate up the seven sleek and fat cows. Then Pharaoh awoke. ⁵ He fell asleep and dreamed a second time; and behold, seven ears of grain came up on a single stalk, plump and good. ⁶ Then behold, seven ears, thin and scorched by the east wind, sprouted up after them. ⁷ The thin ears swallowed up the seven plump and full ears. Then Pharaoh awoke, and behold, it was a dream. ⁸ Now in the morning his spirit was troubled, so he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt, and all its wise men. And Pharaoh told them his dreams, but there was no one who could interpret them to Pharaoh.

⁹ Then the chief cupbearer spoke to Pharaoh, saying, “I would make mention today of my own offenses. ¹⁰“Pharaoh was furious with his servants, and he put me in confinement in the house of the captain of the bodyguard, both me and the chief baker. ¹¹ “We had a dream on the same night, he and I; each of us dreamed according to the interpretation of his own dream. ¹² “Now a Hebrew youth was with us there, a servant of the captain of the bodyguard, and we related them to him, and he interpreted our dreams for us. To each one he interpreted according to his own dream. ¹³ “And just as he interpreted for us, so it happened; he restored me in my office, but he hanged him.”

It’s funny that the cupbearer has forgotten the true source of the interpretation. Just verses earlier, we see how the dream stumps every magician and wise man in the country, and yet somehow the cupbearer still says it was Joseph that interpreted the dream. Perhaps it was so that Pharoah wouldn’t think he was crazy, but either way, he had his facts a little messed up. And this is just the type of situation that God uses to show His glory. When human knowledge and wisdom and might are insufficient to the task, just wait. God is about to show up.

⁹ So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, “In my dream, behold, there was a vine in front of me; ¹⁰ and on the vine were three branches. And as it was budding, its blossoms came out, and its clusters produced ripe grapes. ¹¹ “Now Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand; so I took the grapes and squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and I put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand.” ¹² Then Joseph said to him, “This is the interpretation of it: the three branches are three days; ¹³ within three more days Pharaoh will ¹lift up your head and restore you to your office; and you will put Pharaoh’s cup into his hand according to your former custom when you were his cupbearer. ¹⁴ “Only keep me in mind when it goes well with you, and please do me a kindness by mentioning me to Pharaoh and get me out of this house. ¹⁵ “For I was in fact kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing that they should have put me into the dungeon.”

¹⁶ When the chief baker saw that he had interpreted favorably, he said to Joseph, “I also saw in my dream, and behold, there were three baskets of white bread on my head; ¹⁷ and in the top basket there were some of all sorts of baked food for Pharaoh, and the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.” ¹⁸ Then Joseph answered and said, “This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days; ¹⁹ within three more days Pharaoh will lift up your head from you and will hang you on a tree, and the birds will eat your flesh off you.”

²⁰ Thus it came about on the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, that he made a feast for all his servants; and he lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants. ²¹ He restored the chief cupbearer to his office, and he put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand; ²² but he hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had interpreted to them. ²³ Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.

We could go on and talk about the dreams here, but the important part is that Joseph asked the cupbearer to remember him when he was restored. However, the cupbearer forgot Joseph, only three days later. Now, we could also talk about putting our trust in God, instead of people, because they will let us down. We won’t, because God had other plans here. The cupbearer would remember Joseph when God needed him too, and that was all that mattered in God’s plan. We may get impatient, and think everyone (including God) has forsaken us. But God has perfect timing, and if we will wait on Him, it will all work out for the best.

¹ Then it came about after these things, the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt offended their lord, the king of Egypt. ² Pharaoh was furious with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker. ³ So he put them in confinement in the house of the captain of the bodyguard, in the jail, the same place where Joseph was imprisoned. ⁴ The captain of the bodyguard put Joseph in charge of them, and he took care of them; and they were in confinement for some time. ⁵ Then the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt, who were confined in jail, both had a dream the same night, each man with his own dream and each dream with its own interpretation. ⁶ When Joseph came to them in the morning and observed them, behold, they were dejected. ⁷He asked Pharaoh’s officials who were with him in confinement in his master’s house, “Why are your faces so sad today?” ⁸ Then they said to him, “We have had a dream and there is no one to interpret it.” Then Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell it to me, please.”

As smart as we may be, we have to remember where all that knowledge comes from in the first place. Joseph knew that he could interpret the dreams for the cupbearer and baker, but he also knew where that knowledge came from. We should remember to give God credit when people try to praise us for our skills. We didn’t get them on our own, they came from Him.

¹⁹ Now when his master heard the words of his wife, which she spoke to him, saying, “This is what your slave did to me,” his anger burned. ²⁰ So Joseph’s master took him and put him into the jail, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined; and he was there in the jail. ²¹ But the LORD was with Joseph and extended kindness to him, and gave him favor in the sight of the chief jailer. ²² The chief jailer committed to Joseph’s charge all the prisoners who were in the jail; so that whatever was done there, he was responsible for it. ²³ The chief jailer did not supervise anything under Joseph’s charge because the LORD was with him; and whatever he did, the LORD made to prosper.

Obviously, this prison was very different from what we are used to seeing. At any rate, it still was not a nice place to be. But God was with Joseph even in prison, and blessed him and prospered everything he did. Even in prison, Joseph kept his focus on God, and God rewarded him for it. No matter where we are, God can use us, if we will only keep our eyes set on Him.