Joseph - the Third Test of Darkness

 

So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph and said to him, “In my dream there was a vine before me, and on the vine there were three branches. As soon as it budded, its blossoms shot forth, and the clusters ripened into grapes. Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes and pressed them into Pharaoh’s cup and placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand.” Then Joseph said to him, “This is its interpretation: the three branches are three days. In three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your office, and you shall place Pharaoh’s cup in his hand as formerly, when you were his cupbearer. Only remember me, when it is well with you, and please do me the kindness to mention me to Pharaoh, and so get me out of this house. For I was indeed stolen out of the land of the Hebrews, and here also I have done nothing that they should put me into the pit.” (Genesis 40:9–15 ESV).

 

Look at Joseph’s life now. The once-favorite son became a slave and was honored for a while but is now in prison. Even though the warden has put him in charge of other prisoners, it’s still prison. We get a sense of the despair Joseph is fighting when we hear that he calls his “home” a “dungeon.” Dungeons are murky and miserable, with little light and even less hope. But Joseph knows that God is with him even in prison.

 

One day two of the king’s officials become prisoners, and they later tell Joseph they have had dreams they do not understand. Joseph explains that God can interpret any dream, so he urges them to tell him about their dreams. With God’s help he explains the dreams, giving the cupbearer an interpretation full of hope. With that, Joseph asks the man to plead his case to Pharaoh. This gives Joseph a ray of hope. Though the interpretations are fulfilled precisely, the cupbearer forgets all about Joseph. So, Joseph remains in prison, waiting in darkness.

 

Joseph continues waiting for a long time. But although the cupbearer has forgotten him, the Lord has not. In the next few chapters of this story we will see that God has an important role in store for Joseph. One of the principles we may learn in this portion of Joseph’s story is that God does not count time quantitatively; God’s timing is always qualitative. That is near impossible for us to understand, especially when our circumstances are so difficult and painful. However, we must look to God as the God of our eternity. What may seem to be unbearable now, is a mere blink of the eye in comparison to what He has in store for us. His plans for us are must bigger than our trials. The Apostle Paul says it this way:

 

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison. (2 Corinthians 4:16–17 ESV).

 

Trust in that promise!