Genesis 37-41

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Let me begin by saying that I’m not necessarily going to follow the manual’s split in these chapters of the Joseph of Egypt story perfectly. So rather than calling these videos Genesis 37-41, and Genesis 42-50, I think I would instead call them Joseph of Egypt Part 1, and Joseph of Egypt Part 2. I like to take Joseph’s life as a whole and examine all the various lessons his life teaches us from both the big picture perspective and the specific. That being said, I will try to focus more attention on the initial chapters today, and the later chapters next week. The story of Joseph of Egypt just happens to be one of the best, most principle dense stories of all scripture and I absolutely love it. It has so much to offer us. It’s almost Shakespearean in its plot. There’s intrigue, rivalry, seduction, jealousy, mistaken identity, triumph, and redemption. It has to be one of the greatest stories of all time, in my book.

STORY SUMMARY ACTIVITY

Now as we study Joseph’s life, I’m going to assume that you already know the story, the basic plotline. So I’m not going to present it necessarily in order or try to narrate you through it verse by verse or chapter by chapter and I’m not going to stick to chronological order. That would make for a very long video. So, if you’ve never read Genesis 37-50 before, I encourage you to do so first, then come and study with me. As a teacher, you may want to encourage your students to do the same, or take 5-10 minutes to go through the basic outline of what happens in Joseph’s life. To help with that though, if you like, I do have this short activity that might help them to review at least the first half of the Joseph of Egypt story. All they need to do is place the following pictures from the life of Joseph in chronological order. And what this activity will allow you to do, is summarize the basic elements of what happens as you correct it with them.

And here’s the correct order of the story. First you have:

B-Joseph’s father gives him a coat of many colors which makes his brothers jealous of him

G-Eventually, the brothers throw Joseph into a pit and tell his father Jacob that he’s been killed

J-Really, instead of killing him they sell him as a slave into Egypt

I-While in Egypt, Joseph ends up working for an Egyptian officer by the name of Potiphar who puts him in charge of his entire household.

C-All seems to be going well until Potiphar’s wife attempts to seduce Joseph, who of course, refuses and runs from her.

F- But she lies about it, and says that Joseph was the aggressor, and Joseph is sent to prison.

A-While in prison, Joseph interprets the dreams of his fellow prisoners, the chief butler and baker.

H-When the butler returns to his post, as Joseph has prophesied, eventually he tells the Pharoah about Joseph when the Pharoah also has dreams that he can’t understand, and Joseph interprets those dreams.

D-Because of this, He is released from prison and praised by the Pharoah

E-He is promoted to a high position of authority under the Pharoah.

Now that’s a great oversimplification of the story but that can at least serve as a bit of a review for your students.

JOSEPH’S LIFE

ICEBREAKER

But to begin teaching the lessons of Joseph’s life, as an icebreaker, I like to begin by showing my classes a number of optical illusions. These are all over the internet, so you can go ahead and select your favorites. Here are some of mine. These two lines are actually the same length. The lines are actually parallel in this one and not crooked. This is crazy. This is not an animated picture. If you look at it, it appears that the circles are moving, but they’re not. And then here, it appears as if there is a second triangle superimposed on another, but really, there is only space that appears as a triangle. Anyway, the moral of the story is that things are not always as they seem. Joseph’s life, to me, is a kind of scriptural optical illusion. His life appears to be one thing for much of the story, when, with some time and a perspective shift, it turns out to be completely another. As we study his life, keep your eyes peeled for the optical illusion of Joseph of Egypt’s life.

SEARCH

The first thing I want to draw your attention to are all the negatives of Joseph’s life. As you know, he experiences a great deal of hardship for much of his early life. A great way to summarize and cover this would be through a crossword puzzle activity. This activity will help to highlight the struggles Joseph faces and will set up the rest of the truths and principles his life can teach us. Have your students fill in the blanks to these questions and you’ll get a good idea of exactly what his early life was really like. And you’ll see that I didn’t divide the questions up into Across and Down, because I like to maintain the chronological flow of Joseph’s life, and to do that, I had to mix up the order of the clues. So I suggest you correct it with them in that order. So first, Joseph’s early life.

1 Down 37:4 Joseph's brothers ___________ him. HATED

5 Down 37:4 Joseph's brothers couldn't speak ___________ to him. PEACEABLY

Can you imagine what that must have been like for him? Yes, his father loved him and praised him, but he just had a miserable time with his brothers. His home life was not ideal. Have any of you experienced that same trial? Do you sometimes look with longing at other families in your ward that seem to have everything going for them and wonder why you got the short end of the stick? Do you come from a troubled home? Remember there was a bit of a rivalry between the sisters Rachel and Leah. Joseph and Benjamin are the only two children that Jacob bears directly with Rachel, his beloved wife. Leah seemed to despise Rachel’s position as the preferred wife and that same attitude is reflected in her children. Joseph represents something they also despise. And, to be fair, it does sound as if Jacob favors him. Perhaps, we don’t know, too much. Prophets aren’t perfect and therefore Jacob may have also contributed to this problem. So the brothers hate him. They don’t speak nicely to him. I’m sure there were plenty of cutdowns and rolled eyes and snide remarks going around. When you’re the little brother, it’s only natural to look up to your older brothers and desire their acceptance and approval. This must have been painful and troubling to Joseph. And his dreams don’t help either. And I don’t know how you look at those. Is Joseph bragging here? Is he rubbing his position in their faces? Is he boasting that one day he’ll be in charge? I don’t think so. Remember, he’s just a kid! The word I would choose to describe his sharing of his dreams with them is “guileless”. He’s naïve. He's had this amazing dream and he wants to share it with his family, thinking that they’ll be excited too. Maybe he’s a little clueless about the effect the telling of his dreams is going to have. It kind of reminds me of Joseph Smith telling the local preacher about the First Vision. And then when the preacher doesn’t react well, Joseph says he is surprised at his reaction. And the rest of us are like, “Uh, really Joseph? You were surprised? What did you expect? You just told him his church wasn’t true. Of course he’s not going to like that. But Joseph is guileless. He's young. There’s nothing negative or deceitful in him at all. He’s had a wonderful vision that was incredibly positive for him and wonders why everyone else is refusing to rejoice with him. Instead, he’s persecuted, and so is Joseph of Egypt.

7 Across 37:23-24 His coat was taken and he was thrown into one of these by his brothers. PIT

So it finally comes to the point where Joseph’s brothers have had it with him, and they are going to take action. Can you imagine how terrible that must have been for him? They throw him down into a pit. This is more than just your average sibling rivalry. They are ready and willing to do physical violence to him. And we get a distressing detail that comes later in the story.

8 Across 42:21-22 While he was in the pit, he called out to his brothers in ___________

but his brothers ignored him. ANGUISH

And isn’t that just heartbreaking? You can almost hear him calling out in anguish from the pit. Let me go my brothers, what are you doing? There was fear and anxiety in his voice. What a terrifying prospect. What are you going to do to me, my brothers? Please, let me go! Remember, he’s just a kid.

3 Across 37:28 Joseph was _____ into slavery to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver. SOLD

Now they don’t kill him. Thank heavens. But they do sell him to the Ishmaelites. Now this is not your average family problem, right? Not many of you are going to be able to relate to being sold into slavery, but perhaps some of you may have faced abandonment or neglect or disregard from family members as Joseph does. That can be incredibly painful and traumatic. His family wants to get rid of him. What effect must that have had on his soul? And we know, based on how he reacts to his brothers later that this experience cuts deep to his heart. There’s a lot weeping later in the story that indicates the distress and pain he’s carried with him for years because of this thing.

4 Across 37:36 He was sold to a government official named Potiphar in this country. EGYPT

You know the story. This is where Joseph ends up. That’s why he’s later known as Joseph of Egypt. AND the reason Moses will need to lead the children out of Egypt eventually. If you’ve never made that connection, this is how they get there initially. Through this story. So there he is serving as a servant in Egypt in the house of a government official by the name of Potiphar. And he’s very loyal to Potiphar. He works hard for him. He’s a very good slave. BUT . . .

7 Down 39:19-20 After working for Potiphar for some time, Joseph was falsely accused of improper relations with his master's wife. Therefore, Potiphar had Joseph sent here. PRISON. And then, Joseph uses a different, more troubling word to describe where he is sent.

6 Down 40:15 Joseph had done nothing to deserve being placed in the _________. DUNGEON

So he’s kept in a very miserable place. The dungeon doesn’t sound like your average prison cell. This is a terrible, terrible location to be kept. As you can probably imagine, a foreigner that is accused of adultery with an Egyptian officials wife is probably not going to be kept in the greatest of conditions. Which leads us to our final clue

2 Down 40:23 Joseph did a great service to the chief butler while in prison. After helping this man he asked him to make mention of him to Pharaoh. Unfortunately, once the man left prison, he ___________ about Joseph. FORGOT, or FORGAT

Imagine that hardship. Joseph finally thinks that he may have found his ticket out. He’s helped the chief butler and hopes for a return of the favor. So, “Remember me when you get out.” BUT, he doesn’t. Who knows how much time passes between the release of the butler and Joseph’s encounter with the Pharoah. Can you relate to that one? Have you ever had your hopes lifted, only to have them dashed later on the rocks of reality? That often makes hard trials even harder. It’s like, come on. It would have been better just to have no hope at all. But to anticipate a release, and then not have it come to pass, that, that’s torturous.

Now. This activity can help to serve as the backdrop for the truths Joseph’s life can teach us. Compare what we just learned about Joseph’s life with this next set of verses. All I want you to do is compare them and see if you can identify any truths that his life can teach us.

After being sold as a slave to Potiphar:

Genesis 39:2-6

2 And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.

3 And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand.

4 And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand.

5 And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the Lord was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field.

6 And he left all that he had in Joseph's hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured.

And then, after being thrown into prison:

Genesis 39:21-23

21 But the Lord was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.

22 And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph's hand all the prisoners that were in the prison; and whatsoever they did there, he was the doer of it.

23 The keeper of the prison looked not to anything that was under his hand; because the Lord was with him, and that which he did, the Lord made it to prosper.

What principles can this teach us? Have your students share their thoughts. And they’ll come up with them. Here are a few things that I see that may come up.

Principle #1 The Lord is with us in our sufferings. Do you see how many times it said that the Lord was with Joseph? At least four different times. Sometimes it’s easy, when bad things happen, to come to the conclusion that we’re being punished, or that God’s not there, or that He’s not listening, or that He doesn’t care about us. The story of Joseph proves to us that that’s not the case. Hardship is not an indicator of God’s disapproval of us. It’s simply a necessary part of our mortal test. But God will not abandon us to endure our trials alone if we turn to Him. He may not remove the trial, but he will join us and support us throughout. It’s much easier to endure hardship when you have a member of the Godhead standing with you. Joseph continued to maintain his faith and trust in God even during his darkest times. Joseph does not equate his adversity with Godly displeasure or disregard. And God responds to his faith and prayers. I believe that, in our darkest times, that God mourns, and weeps, and suffers alongside us. We saw that in the vision of Enoch as he witnesses the laughing of Satan, but the weeping of God. We see it in the weeping of Jesus at the funeral of Lazarus. He weeps even though he knows that he’s just about to raise Lazarus from the dead and that all that sadness is going to turn to joy in just moments. But their sadness, causes him sadness. Jesus truly lived up to the covenant of mourning with those that mourn. He’ll do the same with us. I think it helps to keep this in mind when we face the difficulties of life that God isn’t usually responsible for those hardships. Life is. For example, I don’t believe that God gave my Mom cancer, who then passed away. I believe that life, mortality gave my Mom cancer, and that God was with us during the entire ordeal. This idea leads us to the next principle I see here.

Principle #2 When you find yourself living the unexpected life, make the best of it, and don’t be mad at God. Joseph is definitely living an unexpected life here. I imagine that many of you can relate. You may be living a life that you never anticipated, wanted, or asked for. Accidents, disease, divorce, death of a loved one, challenges in your career can all come unexpectedly. Maybe some of you thought you would be married be now. Have children. You thought you would be further on in your education or work. You thought that your present financial success would make you happy. You never expected to be a divorcee, a widower, unemployed, handicapped, sick. Well, I’m pretty sure Joseph never anticipated as he walked towards his brothers in the field that day that he would shortly end up as a slave in Egypt. As a slave in Egypt, I doubt Joseph ever anticipated as he walked by Potiphar’s wife’s room that he would shortly end up languishing in prison. However, Joseph’s attitude towards his unexpected life, is what is inspiring to me. He makes the best of it. It’s almost as if, when he becomes a slave, he says to himself, “Well, if I have to be a slave, I am going to be the best darn slave I can be. I’m going to be loyal to my master. I’m going to work hard. I’m going to do everything I can to help my master prosper. I’m going to take good care of what has been placed in my charge, even if though it’s not really mine. And, I’m going to continue to rely on God and trust in Him. And then, what does he get for all his loyalty and hard work? Hmmm. He gets thrown into prison for it. So, you’d think that at that point, Joseph would get pretty bitter, pretty upset with life or with God. Anger, resentment, bitterness, depression, despair would be an understandable and more likely reaction. He might say to himself “All I ever do is try to choose the right, and this is what I get? Are you kidding me God? I don’t deserve this!” And he would be right. He doesn’t deserve it. But that’s not his attitude. As he languishes in prison, he says to himself. “Ok, If I have to be a prisoner, I’m going to be the best darn prisoner I can be. I’m going to help the jailer out as best I can. I’m going to be the most trustworthy prisoner. I’m not going to get angry at God or abandon my hope. Joseph was the kind of man that was able to accept the hand that he’s dealt and run with it. He makes the best out of a bad situation. He takes lemons and makes lemonade. He’s, to borrow a cliché yet still powerful term from corporate America, proactive. He focuses on the things that are under his control and disregards the rest. He lives the spirit of the serenity prayer”

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.

(Reinhold Niebuhr)

Maybe we can apply that same attitude to our situation in life, whatever it is. If I have to be a widower, I’m going to be the best darn widower I can be, and trust in God. If I have to be a single parent, I’m going to be the best darn single parent I can, and trust in God. If I have to be disabled? I’m going to be the best darn disabled person I can be, and trust in God. If I have to be a cancer patient, I’m going to be the best darn cancer patient I can be, and trust in God. And on and on in whatever difficult circumstance you may find yourself in, in life. Have you ever met anybody like that? People who can maintain their enthusiasm for life in less-than-ideal circumstances? I have. And it’s inspiring! These are Josephs.

Principle #3 Look at this for just a second. As a prisoner, when he sees the butler and baker looking puzzled and dejected, what does Joseph do?

6 And Joseph came in unto them in the morning, and looked upon them, and, behold, they were sad.

7 And he asked Pharaoh's officers that were with him in the ward of his lord's house, saying, Wherefore look ye so sadly to day?

I love that! Joseph cares about people. Even these fellow prisoners. He wants to cheer them up! He was not self-centered in his suffering. And it’s so easy to be. It’s very natural to turn inward when we suffer—to wallow in self-pity. But Joseph doesn’t. He turns outward even in the worst of circumstances. Perhaps that illustrates a third related principle. Sometimes the best way to alleviate your own suffering, is to seek to alleviate the suffering of others. Jesus is a great example of that principle as he hangs on the cross. While in the midst of his great agony, by what he says, we know he’s thinking about others. His mother, a thief hanging next to him, and the very people who are crucifying him. He focuses his attention outward, just like Joseph here. Joseph was a very good person.

And that leads us to a fourth principle.

Principle #4 God does in fact allow bad things to happen to good people. Notice I didn’t say “cause”, but “allow”. That’s a hard truth for us to accept. When we see good, innocent, worthy people suffer, it can be a real test of our faith. This fact of life will even drive many people to abandon their faith in God or to believe terrible things about him. It’s called the problem of pain. Many struggle to come to grips with a God that allows tragedy and pain in people’s lives. Not just the people that we might think deserve it, but the people that don’t deserve it. The innocent, the pure, the righteous, the defenseless, the weak. It’s hard to come to terms with a God that allows things like war, disease, exploitation, poverty, abuse, cruelty, and oppression occur. Hopefully we can be like Joseph though in response to these kinds of things. He doesn’t attribute these problems to God. He attributes them to life and the agency of others. The next principle we take a look at, though, I feel can help us to better understand this more troubling one.

THE JOSEPH OF EGYPT PRINCIPLE

For this last principle, I want you to take a look at the crossword puzzle one more time and compare it to these verses. I’m spotlighting this one on its own because I feel it’s probably the greatest principle of Joseph’s life. I even refer to it as “THE Joseph of Egypt principle”. It’s the principle that, I feel if understood, can really help us to get through our most difficult times. It’s a principle we saw last year in the Doctrine and Covenants as another Joseph, Joseph Smith, was imprisoned in Liberty Jail. And here in the Old Testament, we really get to FEEL that principle and experience it along with Joseph of Egypt.

Compare the crossword puzzle with these verses. They come immediately after Joseph interprets Pharoah’s dream and offers his solution for the fourteen coming years of feast then famine. What does Joseph’s life teach us?

Genesis 41:37-45

37 And the thing was good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of all his servants.

38 And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?

39 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art:

40 Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou.

41 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt.

42 And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph's hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck;

43 And he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt.

44 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.

45 And Pharaoh called Joseph's name Zaphnathpaaneah; and he gave him to wife Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On. And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt.

What a turn of events! What a transformation. He goes from Prisoner to Prince. Just think of what got him there! If he had never been sent to prison, he would have never met the chief butler. If he had never met the chief butler, he would have never met the Pharoah. If he had never met the Pharoah, he would never have had the opportunity to bless and save his brothers and family back in Canaan. So, when it seems that one door has closed in your life, remember that God is the kind of God that can open another. And perhaps that opening will lead to something even greater and better in the future.

And look at what Joseph names his two sons in Genesis 41:50-52. What does he call them? Manasseh and Ephraim. Now go to the Bible Dictionary really quick. Remember that names mean something in the Old Testament. Parents often chose specific names for their children to remind them of certain things. We saw that with Isaac, and the children of Rachel and Leah, and here with Joseph’s two sons. What do those names mean?

Manasseh means “Forgetting”, and Ephraim means “Fruitful”. He names his boys after the great principle of his life. Read those verses again and you’ll see it.

50 And unto Joseph were born two sons before the years of famine came, which Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On bare unto him.

51 And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: For God, said he, hath made me forget all my toil, and all my father's house.

52 And the name of the second called he Ephraim: For God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.

In our adversities, in our trials, in our tests of faith, if we can just remember that at some point in the future, if we remain faithful, that God will bless us in such a way that we will forget all our troubles, and he will make us fruitful even in the land of our affliction. And I believe that is true for ALL problems and trials. And even if that blessing doesn’t come in this life, it is certain to come in the next. One of my favorite verses of all scripture is found in Revelation 21:4 which speaks of the millennium.

4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

You see, God can turn all negatives into positives, with time and perspective.

Perhaps Romans 8:28 sums up this principle best.

28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

All trials have an end for those that love God. God can take even the hardest or worst of our struggles and make something good come of them. What was it that God said to Joseph Smith in HIS dungeon after listing all the terrible things that had or could happen to him?

“know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.” D&C 122:7

This is God’s power. The ability to make all things good in the end. Even the worst of things.

I believe it’s interesting how Joseph explains his life to his brothers later in the story who are being eaten up by the guilt of what they did to him all those years ago. Here’s his perspective on the trials of his life. He says in Genesis 45:5-8

5 Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.

6 For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest.

7 And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

8 So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

Now, do you think he’s saying that God inspired his brothers to hate him, and persecute him and sell him into Egypt? No. Is he saying that God inspired Potiphar’s wife to try and seduce him which would lead to his imprisonment? No. Was it God that made the butler forget about him? No. I don’t think that at all. What do I think he means here? One, I just think he’s being nice. He’s trying to comfort his brothers because he can see how badly they’re feeling. So, it’s maybe his way of saying, “Don’t beat yourselves up over this. Look what has happened. I’m OK! And not only that, I’m in a position to help and bless you!” What I really think Joseph is saying here is that God was able to take this terrible situation, caused by the ill use of the agency of others, and make it into something good. That’s what God did with Joseph’s life. I don’t just think that all these events were “meant to be”. Or, “this HAD to happen, so that later things would happen”. They are just a description of what DID happen, and how God made it good. Joseph’s life could very well have turned out differently. And if it had, because of his attitude, God would have blessed him in that also. Because ultimately, it’s not what happens to us that defines us, it’s how we react to it. And because Joseph maintained his faith in God, God made it all good. The same can be true with us. God has the power to do this kind of thing. He can take anything, anything, no matter how negative, no matter how painful, and turn it into something good. Just as long as we’re willing to put it into his hands. He can do that with our trials. He can do that with our mistakes. He can do that with our sins. He can do that with our tragedies.

This principle is taught again through Jacob in this story. He says something very ironic in Genesis 42:36. Let’s look at this same principle here. And, for some background: Joseph’s brothers, at this point, have met him as they’re coming to buy food during the famine, but they don’t recognize him, and Joseph hasn’t revealed who he is to them yet. And you can probably suspect why he doesn’t just run up to them and say, “Look! It’s me Joseph! Your long-lost brother!” Why wouldn’t he do that? Well, what was the last interaction he had with these brothers? They were plotting to kill him and then sold him into Egypt. What would make him think that they want to see him at all? But as Joseph overhears them speaking in Hebrew, he begins to suspect that perhaps they are sorry about what they had done. And so we have these testing chapters. Don’t for a second think that Joseph, as he puts the money back in their sacks, and imprisons Simeon, and later when he frames Benjamin, that he’s doing this out of a spirit of revenge. Like “Ha ha, I’m going to get them back. Now I’m going to make THEM suffer!” That’s not his character. He’s testing them. He’s doing some detective work. He’s trying to see how they feel about things. Have they changed? Would they, perhaps, be excited to see him? Could he return to his Father and see him again? So first, Joseph wants to know for sure if his blood brother, Benjamin, is really still alive. Because in Joseph’s eyes, he counts ten brothers, not eleven. Have they done the same thing to Benjamin as they did to him? Have they finally gotten rid of all of Rachel’s children now? Are they lying about him being alive? It’s possible. So he gives them food, then demands that they bring back Benjamin. And to make sure that they do in fact come back again, he takes Simeon prisoner, as collateral. (Brief interjection. Why Simeon and not Reuben the oldest of the brothers? Maybe, because of what Joseph finally learns about Reuben here. Reuben did not want to kill him or sell him. Genesis 42:22 22 And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required. After all those years, Joseph learns here that his big brother Reuben was not in on it. That he was trying to save him. And it’s at that point, that Joseph turns and weeps. So instead of taking Reuben, he takes Simeon. Perhaps trusting in the fact that Reuben will take good care of Benjamin and assure his safety if they bring him back) AND, as the boys return, Joseph has put all their money back into their sacks. And when they discover this as they get home, they are really concerned and tell Jacob all about what has happened to them while in Egypt. Now, read Genesis 42:36 and tell me what’s ironic here.

36 And Jacob their father said unto them, Me have ye bereaved of my children: Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away: all these things are against me.

Now, is that true? Are all these things against him? They sure seem like it. But are they in reality? No. It’s just the opposite. All of these things are for him! In fact, in just a short amount of time, not only is Simeon going to be returned to him, and Benjamin, but Joseph too! The son that he thinks is dead, will be returned to him. AND, bonus blessing, their famine problems are going to be solved too. They won’t have to worry about the next five years of famine. God is actually setting things up for Jacob’s success and blessing! Sometimes, that’s how God works in our lives. I think that sometimes in my life I’ve thought, “All these things are against me!” Have you ever wanted to shout that out? But in reality, If I could just pull back a little bit and look at that same situation, there will be a time when I will say, “All these things are FOR me!”

I know of a man in my ward once who felt great anxiety when he lost his job. Months went by with no prospects and things became quite difficult financially for them. But he kept his faith, and he ended up being hired for a better position, with better pay, in a better location than he had before. The trial, the difficulty, was only a steppingstone to something much better in the end. That interim time was difficult and discouraging but it all worked out to be better in the end. The end of one relationship may signal the beginning of a better one. The trial of faith you face today, may provide you with a stronger more powerful faith tomorrow.

Remember that things that may seem to be against you, may actually be working for you! With time and perspective things can change. All things work together for good, to them that love God. Trial becomes triumph. Misfortune becomes marvel. Suffering becomes success and adversity becomes advantage. C.S. Lewis taught this truth powerfully in one of my favorite quotes from him that I know I’ve shared before. He said:

"ye cannot in your present state understand eternity: . . . But ye can get some likeness of it if ye say that both good and evil, when they are full grown, become retrospective. . .. all this earthly past will have been Heaven to those who are saved. . .. all their life on earth too, will then be seen by the damned to have been Hell. That is what mortals misunderstand. They say of some temporal suffering, `No future bliss can make up for it,' not knowing that Heaven, once attained, will work backwards and turn even that agony into a glory. And of some sinful pleasure they say `Let me but have this and I'll take the consequences': little dreaming how damnation will spread back and back into their past and contaminate the pleasure of the sin. Both processes begin even before death. The good man's past begins to change so that his forgiven sins and remembered sorrows take on the quality of Heaven: the bad man's past already conforms to his badness and is filled only with dreariness. And that is why, at the end of all things, when the sun rises here and the twilight turns to blackness down there, the Blessed will say, `We have never lived anywhere except in Heaven,' and the Lost, `We were always in Hell.' And both will speak truly." "Ah, the Saved . . . what happens to them is best described as the opposite of a mirage. What seemed, when they entered it, to be the value of misery turns out, when they look back, to have been a well; and where present experience saw only salt deserts memory truthfully records that the pools were full of water."

(C.S. Lewis "The Great Divorce: 67-68)

It’s the optical illusion principle or truth.

TRUTH

All things work together for good to those who love God. We believe in a God that has the power to take all the negatives of our lives. And we may have many. We could probably all sit down and list our negatives. And what God can and will do for those that love him, is he will come and take each and every one of them and cross them—and he will turn all our negatives into positives.

LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES

Have you ever seen the Joseph principle in your life or the life of someone you know? What happened?

Have you ever seen God make something good out of something difficult or challenging?

When have you felt the Lord “with you” in one of your trials?

CONCLUSION

Now if you’ll forgive me for this reference, I’ll admit that I do enjoy the Lord of the Rings movies. And there’s a very memorable speech given by Sam at a very dark moment in the story. Frodo says: I can't do this, Sam. And Sam responds with: I know. It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even be here. (I can imagine Joseph of Egypt feeling the same way in prison), But we are. It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy. How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something. Even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back only they didn't. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.

And Frodo asks: What are we holding on to, Sam?

That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo. And it's worth fighting for.

Well, I believe the story of Joseph of Egypt is one of those stories that really matters. That stays with you. We believe in a God of happy endings. It doesn’t matter how dark, how discouraging, how tragic the circumstances, if we remain true and faithful and fight for what’s good in this world—then, like Joseph, one day, I’m confident, God will turn all of our negatives into positives. Our lives will turn out to be like optical illusions, like the reverse of a mirage. What appears to be one thing will actually turn out to be another. I’m sure there will be times in all of our lives when it seems that all is dark, that everything is falling apart, and that God has abandoned us. But, one day, I believe we will all discover that God was with us all along, and all will work together for good. So, if you’re going through one of those Genesis 37-40 times of your life, keep in mind that YOUR Genesis 41 may be waiting just around the corner. And may that give you hope! And when that triumph comes, I believe that you too will “Manasseh” and “Ephraim”. You will forget the pain and enjoy the fruitfulness of God’s deliverance and blessing.

NOTE RE: GENESIS 38

Well, I’m not going to spend time covering the events of Genesis chapter 38 in this video, and probably wouldn’t in my class either. It does seem to interrupt the Joseph narrative, but I do believe that there is a deliberate purpose for that chapter. Besides revealing the hypocrisy of the double standard, the story in that chapter about Judah and Tamar serves as a contrast between Judah’s approach to sexual purity and Joseph’s. Where Judah is casual and indulgent, Joseph is careful and diligent. I think that’s why chapter 38 is in there—to serve as a backdrop and a contrast to what Joseph does in chapter 39. And that’s where we’ll turn our attention now.

RUN!

ICEBREAKER

And for an icebreaker, I like to remind students of a certain principle of nature which I’m sure they’ve heard of before. When animals, or humans are faced with danger, they react in one of two ways. And to make it more memorable, those two words both begin with the letter f, and they rhyme. What are those two words? What are the two ways to react to danger? Fight or flight. Now as humans, we oftentimes don’t admire that second strategy. We feel it’s so much more admirable to fight danger. Flight seems cowardly or weak. But, let’s use an example here, an object lesson. And at that point I pull out a mousetrap, or even better, one of those giant rat traps. And I say, which is the better option for the mouse in this instance? Fight or flight? Is the mouse going to win in a fight against this? No. There’s no way. And I’ll usually, very carefully, trip the trap with a pencil or a long nail or something. The mouses best option, in this case, is to run from it. Flee it. And the same is true with us. When we face the danger or the traps of temptation, oftentimes the best option we have will be to run from it. Yes, there are times that we will need to fight temptation and evil, but sometimes fleeing, rather than being a sign of weakness or cowardice, may be the bravest thing we ever do. We can “bravely run away”.

Well, Joseph of Egypt is going to teach us some great principles on resisting temptation in Genesis chapter 39.

SEARCH

The big question of the lesson is: How is Joseph a great example of what we can do when we encounter any temptation in general, and sexual temptation in particular? That can be fornication, adultery, pornography, inappropriate touching, or any sin of a sexual nature. How can these verses help us?

Genesis 39:7-12

And here, there’s a teaching activity that I’d like to share with you that makes this kind of question particularly effective and engaging. If you can, project the actual image of the scriptures up on a whiteboard and supply a marker for your students to use. You then invite them to read the circled verses and come to the front and mark any phrases or words that they see that answer our question. The only catch, is that they have to explain why they marked that particular thing. And sometimes I’ll even offer them a treat if they are willing to put themselves out there and share something with the class. I’ve found that students tend to enjoy interacting with the scriptures in this way. If this method isn’t possible for you, you can have them do the same kind of thing in their own scriptures and share their ideas with the class.

Here are some of the things they might mark or you might discuss.

:8 He refused. And that’s the simple answer to how you deal with temptation. Refuse. Refuse to give in. Refuse to listen to tempting voices. Reject them. And it sounds like this reaction comes fairly quickly and automatically from Joseph. It’s as if he’s already decided beforehand how he’s going to react in tempting circumstances. He’s committed to God, and obedience. I suggest we do the same. Don’t wait until the moment of temptation to decide how you’re going to react. Choose your side now, so that when the time comes, you can “refuse” swiftly and instinctively. I don’t do that! I don’t look at that kind of stuff. I don’t entertain those possibilities. Make that obedient spirit a part of your identity and character. You can say, “I’m proud to be sexually pure. I’m loyal to my spouse, no matter what. I don’t push boundaries. I will not look at pornography.” A commitment to refusal will make those moments of temptation much easier to handle.

In verse 9, we see that part of Joseph’s motivation for refusing Potiphar’s wife, is because of his loyalty to two individuals. Who are they? Potiphar, and God. First Potiphar.

:9 There is none greater in this house than I, neither hath he kept back anything from me but thee, because thou art his wife.

Perhaps that thought can help us when we’re tempted. We can ask ourselves, who will this hurt, besides me? Who would I be betraying or wounding by doing this thing. My children? My spouse? My Parents? My future spouse and children? Friends or associates around me that look to me as an example? Little brothers and sisters? We would do well to consider the collateral damage that might be done by our immoral actions.

But more importantly, Joseph adds somebody else he’s concerned about offending.

“How then, can I do this great wickedness and sin against God.”

Joseph also considers offending God in his decision. He says, “I don’t want to offend my Father in Heaven.” He’s responsible for all that I have and am. I don’t want to betray my faith in Him. And I feel that Joseph’s current situation adds to the power of his refusal here. Just consider the nature of his life again. He’s always done what’s right and look where it’s gotten him. He very easily could have said to himself. “Well what good has honoring God done for me. Why should I worry about offending Him in this? My life has been nothing but hard. Why not indulge in this affair? Something pleasurable has presented itself to me. Enjoy this little liaison.” But he doesn’t. He trusts in and is obedient to his Father in Heaven, even when the blessings of heaven don’t appear to be forthcoming in his life at that time. Instead he says, “I’m not going to offend God. Who cares what worldly consequences that may bring (and it will bring major consequences). But I don’t do this, come what may.” And he doesn’t. His devotion to God gave him the strength necessary to resist temptation.

There’s another principle in verse 9 that I feel is noteworthy. What does he call sexual sin? This great wickedness. Truth: Sexual sin is great wickedness. It’s serious. In a world that glorifies casual sex, that revels in sensuality, that demeans marriage, that mocks sexual purity, this is an important principle. It is serious. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the 10 commandments say: “Thou shalt not kill”, and then immediately follow it with, “Thou shalt not commit adultery”. The world isn’t going to agree with that. They’re not going to place sexual sin next to murder, so why does God? I think it’s because “life” is a serious thing to our Father in Heaven. The worth of souls is great in the sight of God. So his laws concerning the ending of life, as well as his laws concerning the creating of life are serious and not to be trifled with.

Verse 10. And it came to pass, as she spake to Joseph day by day, that he hearkened not unto her to lie by her or to be with her.

A couple of things we have going on here. One, we have to be persistent and diligent in refusing temptation. It’s not the kind of thing that you can say “NO” to once and expect to be done with it. It requires constant vigilance and steady carefulness. Potiphar’s wife is the living embodiment of the nature of lust. It is not easily dissuaded and can often show up when we least expect it. We have to watch ourselves day by day, because it will not give up on tempting us. Remember that, to overcome the adversary, we will be required to endure to the end.

Also, Joseph does everything in his power to stay away from her, to avoid being even close to that temptation. I suggest we do the same. Stay as far away from the sin as humanly possible. Don’t put yourself into tempting situations. Don’t be alone with that person if you know it could lead to tempting or inappropriate actions. Don’t be alone with unfiltered access to the internet. Make yourself accountable. Sometimes, to avoid sin, we need constraints, as well as restraint. A person should go where they won’t be tempted.

However, no matter how hard you try to avoid tempting situations, sooner or later, you are probably going to find yourself in one. As careful as Joseph is, eventually in verse 11 we find out that he is alone with her in the house. And I believe that situation was probably carefully orchestrated by Potiphar’s wife. Satan is equally as clever, and nowadays, has made it possible for us to be tempted in this way at any time and anywhere. Pornography certainly existed when I was a teenager, but, was definitely less pervasive and available. Nowadays, that temptation can always be with us on our mobile devices and laptops. So in those cases, restraint must be exercised.

I also like the phrase that Joseph was “doing his business” at the time. Staying busy, staying occupied, doing what we know we should be doing can also help us to avoid temptation. Idleness is the devil’s workshop. I’ll often counsel those who are struggling with pornography to not only eliminate that negative practice from their life, but to also add something positive to fill the space it leaves behind. Find something else that keeps you enthused and motivated. Work. Stay busy. Adopt a new habit that is fulfilling and constructive to take the place of the sin.

And then we have verse 12. So good. When he is actually facing the situation, how does he respond to it. I love how it’s worded: he “fled, and got him out”. He ran from it. He bravely ran away. He didn’t stop to think about it. He didn’t mull it over in his mind. He didn’t hesitate. He just ran. Paul put it this way: “Flee fornication”. (1 Corinthians 6:18) So, when all your careful planning and avoiding and deciding and staying busy has failed to keep you from the face of temptation, the last course of defense is to run. No matter how it looks to those around you. No matter what the consequences may be, they are sure to be less severe than giving in. Less eternal and damaging in nature.

Sometimes, for fun, I like to pair this technique for avoiding sin up with what I call the Alma 11:23 method. And I tell them that if anybody ever tries to push them into doing something they are not comfortable with, if somebody attempts to coerce them into going too far morally, then they should point their finger at the other person, shout ALMA 11:23 and then pull a Joseph on them—turn around and run away as fast as they can, screaming. And then the other person will be so curious that they’ll look up that verse, and they’ll get the message. And, I’ll let you check that one out on your own. And as embarrassing as that may be, better to be embarrassed than make a decision that could lead to such serious repercussions. Or, if somebody tries to get them to watch or look at something sleazy or pornographic, to do the same thing. Or if a temptation appears on their phone, I challenge them to shout “Alma 11:23” at it, throw it as far away from themselves as possible, then turn around and run away screaming. And they laugh at that a little. But then I ask, “Seriously though. What is worse? A broken phone? Or a destructive addiction. The choice is ours”

TRUTH

Sexual sin is serious. Do everything in your power to avoid it and when it presents itself to you, run from it!

LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES

How can the example of Joseph of Egypt help YOU to resist temptation in general, and sexual temptation in particular?

CONCLUSION

So, to summarize, if we wish to be successful in resisting temptation, we can: decide now that we are going to refuse it, we can consider how our actions will affect others and offend God, we can recognize the seriousness of sin, we can be persistent and consistent in our strength, we can avoid placing ourselves in tempting circumstances, we can stay busy. And perhaps most importantly of all, when the mousetrap of sin appears in our path, offering its enticing baits, I hope that we will turn around and run! We will “flight” and not “fight”. We will “get us out!” of that situation. Be a smart mouse and live!