Joseph's Journey

"JOSEPH'S JOURNEY: Vengeance or Forgiveness?"

Genesis: 37 - 50

Joseph, the favored son of Jacob, was not only treated with more love by his father but also given a specially made "coat of many colors'. To add insult to injury, he had dreams of his brothers bowing down to him, which infuriated them. Goaded by jealous rage, they threw Joseph into a pit, at first intending to kill him. Then they had a chance to sell him into slavery. Talk about sibling rivalry!

Joseph suffered more hardship in Egypt until he gradually rose in status in Potiphar's house. Then Potiphar's wife ruined everything by crying rape and sending him to prison. Three years later, Pharoah had his famous dream about the seven healthy cows and seven sick ones, the seven ripe corn and the seven withered ones. Joseph's brilliant interpretation of the dreams led to his saving thousands of people from starvation as Pharoah's second-in-command. His fortune had finally changed for the better.

Picture a handsome, dignified man in Egyptian clothes, well-loved and happy with a beautiful wife and two sons. He lives in a magnificent palace and whenever he goes out, people shout his name with joy. He has stored grain ahead of time for seven years of famine, and personally disburses it to all who come.

Along comes a group of weary travelers in sandals and dusty robes, primitive tent-dwellers from Canaan. Joseph recognizes them instantly, but they don't recognize him. How could they? After all, they remember a somewhat arrogant and spoiled boy full of dreams of lording it over them someday. Now they're facing a mature man wearing Egyptian eye paint and wig, speaking to them only through an interpreter because he is too overcome with emotion to speak directly.

Joseph treated his brothers roughly at first. They seemed as greedy as ever, begging for food from someone they thought was a stranger. First he pried out the fact that Jacob was still alive and still mourned for his lost son. Yet Joseph must felt angry at his father for blindly favoring him without realizing or caring what it did to the other brothers.

So Joseph also treated his father roughly, knowing it would hurt the old man to part with Benjamin, his last precious son, even for one short trip to a foreign Egyptian ruler. He made everyone jump hurdles to prove they weren't spies (a flimsy excuse) but mostly to prove they regretted what they'd done to him. And he wanted to see if they had learned from what he was doing, forcing them to choose between Benjamin's fortune and food.

After the trial of the supposedly stolen cup, Joseph couldn't harden his heart against them anymore. He must have been a very tender-hearted man. From the moment he said "I am Joseph" to his baffled, guilty brothers, every other line seems to be "And Joseph wept." He must have been emotionally exhausted after all the trials they'd all been through.

After Jacob's death, the brothers were afraid Joseph would break his word and take revenge on them, and again he wept, saddened at how little his brothers trusted him. Again and again he had to reassure them that he held no grudge, telling them that what they had done to him was all part of God's plan.

How was he able to forgive them? How was he able to break the cycle of violence and vengeance? I think it was not only his faith in God but also the love he had received from both parents and from people who helped him during his journey from pit to Potiphar to prison to Pharaoh's second in command. How's that for alliteration? We read that even in slavery, God was with Joseph and in prison later on, God made sure that Joseph would prosper-- as much as anyone can behind bars.

God couldn't keep Joseph from the pit, nor protect him from false accusations of rape but He watched over Joseph. In return, Joseph kept faith. He grew from an arrogant youth to a kind, generous man, able to forgive his abusers. Not all of us can do that.

Children who are sexually molested or abused in various ways might never heal as Joseph did. Nor should they necessarily forgive their abuser. The price is too high. For Joseph, forgiveness brought peace of mind in realizing his brothers' cruelty had been part of God's plan. Most of us can't see any cruelty that's meant to be". How many of us end up second highest in the country and riding golden chariots while people bow down to us? Raise your hands. I didn't think so. None.

Finally, I can't resist talking about Joseph and Potiphar's wife. It's the juiciest part of the story. She's the temptress who nearly derails the handsome young slave from his path of purity and devotion to his master. She doesn't even have a first name! She's just there, easy to hate. You automatically root for Joseph to escape her clutches.

Thomas Mann gives her a more sympathetic image as a young frustrated wife trapped in a sterile marriage. Meanwhile there's this delicious man bringing her breakfast in bed every day. Can you blame her for wanting him to lie with her, in those famous words? He refuses but just barely. Somehow she's gotten close enough to grab his "garment", forcing him to run for his life. His excuse is that he doesn't want to betray his master.

Outwardly it's a comic, almost slapstick scene as Joseph runs away in his underwear in front of the servants he's in charge of. But actually it was no laughing matter. The frustrated woman lashed out by screaming rape and almost succeeded in getting Joseph executed. As he was thrown into prison, he must have felt betrayed by everyone, including God, for doing the right thing.

You could even say Potiphar's wife almost got away with raping Joseph. Male rape isn't often taken seriously but any time one person in a position of power forces another into sexual submission, that's rape. So it's ironic that Joseph went to prison for attempted rape. It's a miracle he didn't come out of it bitter, angry, and seeking revenge for more abuse in his life.

That's probably one of our biggest challenges today--teaching our youth not to use vengeance for the wrongs done to them. It's almost impossible, though. TV shows and movies are full of it. Your friend gets shot--no problem, pick up a gun and blow away his murderer. Sitting and watching a dance show with Maya these days, we see a commercial for some dumb show coming up. There's a guy aiming a gun at someone we can't see, and he says "This is for Sara." Blam.

An eye for an eye. They say too much eye for an eye leaves everyone blind.

To forgive doesn't mean to forget. Joseph tried to forget his hardship by naming his first son Manesseh, which means 'to forget." It didn't quite work. As soon as he saw his brothers, twenty three years after they'd tried to kill him, the painful memories welled up and he knew he had never forgotten them. The miracle is that he forgave them.

In ending, I think Joseph's long journey of hardship allowed him to fulfill God's mission. God saw Joseph's potential and trusted in him. The rest was up to Joseph. He is truly one of the most amazing figures of the Old Testament.

We need to follow Joseph's example of forgiveness, but before reaching that point, we need to be proactive with young people. Don't give them a reason for vengeance in the first place. We need to give them hope and something to live for. We need to give them dreams. Amen