Faith in Troubled Times (Pt. 5)

 

Now Joseph had been brought down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, had bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there. The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master. His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands. So Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him, and he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had. From the time that he made him overseer in his house and over all that he had, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had, in house and field. So he left all that he had in Joseph’s charge, and because of him he had no concern about anything but the food he ate. (Genesis 39:1-6 ESV).

 

Well, our look at the life of Joseph so far has taken some unexpected turns. All of Genesis demonstrates that with Abraham and Isaac, as well as with Jacob and his twelve sons, God began fulfilling His promise to use the woman’s seed to defeat Satan (cf. Genesis 3:15). Up to this point, Jacob’s sons have not exactly shown themselves to be paragons of righteousness. Yet in Christ these men (along with all other believers) make up the seed of the woman (cf. Romans 16:20). Returning to the focus in Joseph’s life we can see important our reading is in our journey.

 

Jacob’s favorite son, betrayed and sold into slavery by his brothers (cf. 37:12–36), is now a servant in Potiphar’s house (v. 1). However, Joseph’s situation is not as bad as it seems. At first, Jacob’s son is only a menial slave for Pharaoh’s captain of the guard, but soon he is given a more respectable status as an indoor servant (v. 2), before becoming Potiphar’s personal attendant (v. 4). This is a position of great honor and indicates a close, personal relationship between the two men. The Hebrew root (sharat) used for Joseph’s position is the same one used for Joshua’s relationship to Moses (cf. Exodus 24:13). Joseph is so beloved and trustworthy that he is left in charge of all of Potiphar’s financial matters so that the captain need only worry himself with his personal affairs (v. 6). 

 

Joseph’s success is due wholly to the Lord’s presence with him, but we must not think he is a passive player in these events. Joseph has worked hard to achieve his position; this is clearly made plain in the original Hebrew text. Nevertheless, Joseph would not have gotten so far if God was absent from his life. So great is Joseph’s success that even his pagan master can see the blessing on his life (v. 3). Indeed, God has been good to Joseph in his travails. Matthew Henry comments: “Good men are the blessings of the places where they live.” Joseph, a good man, brought much blessing to Potiphar not only because the Lord was with him, but also because he was faithful and trustworthy. The old adage “bloom where you are planted” comes to mind. Often we find ourselves so caught up in our trial, we forget that God has directed us to this moment to flourish. Trust Him for that!