†. Gen 41:37-38 . . Joseph's suggestions were well received by
Pharaoh and his advisers. And Pharaoh said to his courtiers: Could
we find another like him, a man in whom is the spirit of the gods?
If there was one thing those old-time pagans valued, it was a connection to
the spirit world, and they sensed that Joseph had it. I think they were not
only in awe of him, but maybe even just a bit afraid of him too.
The Hebrew word for "gods" is 'elohiym (el-o-heem') which is both plural
and ambiguous, so you could just as easily translate it gods as God; but in
the Egypt of that day and age, "gods" makes more sense.
Joseph is going to become very popular with Pharaoh, and it's all to
'elohiym's credit.
†. Acts 7:9-10 . . God was with him . . . and granted him favor and wisdom
in the sight of Pharaoh, king of Egypt
The ancient Greek word for "favor" in that verse is charis (khar'-ece) which
is the very word translated "grace" in English versions of the New
Testament. So then, you could say that Joseph found grace in the eyes of
Pharaoh just like Noah found grace in the eyes of God back in Gen 6:8.
Putting it all together, it says that Pharaoh was inclined to bless Joseph just
like God was inclined to bless Noah; viz: to do good for him; provide for him,
and protect him from harm. God trusted Noah, and assigned him the
Herculean task of building the ark. Pharaoh trusted Joseph, and assigned
him the Herculean task of implementing a plan to save his country from
certain ruin. Noah's ark kept the human race alive. Joseph's plan kept the
people of Israel alive (and the Egyptians). Quite a few parallels in Noah and
Joseph.
But in order for Joseph's plan to work, he had to have absolute power in the
country of Egypt. Everybody had to fear him so they'd be sure to cooperate.
†. Gen 41:39-43 . .Then Pharaoh said to Joseph; Since God has made
all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you.
You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit
to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than
you. So Pharaoh said to Joseph; I hereby put you in charge of the
whole land of Egypt.
. . .Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on
Joseph's finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold
chain around his neck. He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in
command, and men shouted before him, "Make way!" Thus he put
him in charge of the whole land of Egypt.
Pharaoh's signet ring was for signing documents and authorizing whatever
purchases and requisitions Joseph might need to fulfill his duties; and for
mustering and/or conscripting the necessary manpower to get it all done.
That signet ring was terrifying. With it, Joseph could actually order people
gibbeted if he wanted and nobody would question it. For all practical intents
and purposes then, Joseph was Pharaoh to Egypt.
†. Gen 41:44 . . 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.
Although Joseph was directly responsible to Pharaoh and to no one else, his
powers were limited. He couldn't wage war or set foreign policy. He had no
say in the balance of trade, or the colonization of foreign lands. There were
other people taking care of those operations. Joseph's jurisdiction for the
moment was related to the task he was assigned, sort of like the head of
homeland security, a drug czar, or a FEMA commander. Joseph's position
was in supreme oversight of Egypt's domestic product.
†. Gen 41:45a . . Pharaoh then gave Joseph the name Tsophnath
Pa'neach, and he gave him for a wife Asenath daughter of Poti
phera, priest of On.
Tsophnath Pa'neach was an Egyptian name, same as Moses is an Egyptian
name; which reflected Joseph's transition from Palestinian goat-herder to a
naturalized Egyptian citizen; which of course had the effect of emancipating
him from slavery (cf. Acts 22:27-28).
Poti-phera is essentially the same name as Joseph's original master:
Potiphar.
The city of On was possibly Heliopolis, a city dedicated to the worship of the
Sun god.
Priests were a highly respected caste in Egypt. Having a father-in-law in the
priesthood secured Joseph a privileged social status appropriate for a man in
his position, and no doubt landed some good connections right in his lap.
There's no record that Joseph protested the marriage, but likely saw it as an
advantage he could exploit.
Joseph's fortunes bring to mind the actor Arnold Schwarzenegger. For years
The Terminator was just a big clunky muscleman; an ex body builder from
Thal bei Graz Austria who made it good in Hollywood, and then one day
found himself Governor of Cah-lee-forn-yah. Mr. Schwarzenegger though, in
contrast to Joseph, is ambitious and worked hard for his success; it wasn't
handed to him on a silver platter like Joseph's, but you kind of get the idea.
Mr. Schwarzenegger, like Joseph, married well too: a Kennedy girl no less.
His marriage to Maria Shriver gave him an in with the Kennedy clan and
access to the speaking and writing skills of an intelligent, widely respected,
female journalist. A few political pundits are pretty sure that Maria's
"Women Joining Arnold" website was responsible for gaining her husband a
large block of female voters in the aftermath of his "groping" accusation.
Good connections are always an asset in the political world.
Everything Pharaoh did for Joseph worked in his favor towards giving him a
highly visible public profile.
†. Gen 41:45b-46a . .Thus Joseph emerged in charge of the land of
Egypt. Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of
Pharaoh king of Egypt.
Talk about climbing the ladder to success! Joseph went from slave to
aristocrat in just thirteen years; and with neither political, nor business
experience on his résumé whatsoever.
†. Gen 41:46b . . Leaving Pharaoh's presence, Joseph traveled
through all the land of Egypt.
That reminds me of how U.S. Presidents fly over disaster areas in a
helicopter to "assess" the situation. Well Joseph didn't have a whirlybird at
his disposal. If he was going to assess Egypt's agricultural assets first hand,
and decide where to strategically locate his granaries, then he would have to
do it in that spiffy government-provided conveyance that came with his job.
Joseph would actually get himself dirty down on the ground on Egypt's
highways, byways, townships, and farmlands, rather than cruising aloft in
the luxury and comfort of an Air Force One and delegating all the leg work to
a corps of go-fers and fact-finders.
Joseph hasn't seen his dad for 13 years now, and if there ever was a golden
opportunity for him to escape and get back to Canaan, this was it. But he
couldn't. Joseph was in a catch-22. If he went back home at this point, the
coming famine might destroy his own family. He had to stay and make sure
Egypt became the world's bread basket so his kin would have somewhere to
go and get food when those seven years of want finally came along.
Pharaoh could just appoint someone else to the task, but Joseph couldn't
take the chance his replacement wouldn't be a devil instead of a savior.
Sometimes, when you want the job done right, you just have to do it
yourself. Then too, taking off now might cause Pharaoh to lose confidence in
Joseph's predictions. He might suspect, and who wouldn't, that Joseph made
it all up just so's he could get out of jail. Then Pharaoh would probably
cancel any and all preparations for the years ahead. No, Joseph was stuck.
Cont.
/
Pharaoh and his advisers. And Pharaoh said to his courtiers: Could
we find another like him, a man in whom is the spirit of the gods?
If there was one thing those old-time pagans valued, it was a connection to
the spirit world, and they sensed that Joseph had it. I think they were not
only in awe of him, but maybe even just a bit afraid of him too.
The Hebrew word for "gods" is 'elohiym (el-o-heem') which is both plural
and ambiguous, so you could just as easily translate it gods as God; but in
the Egypt of that day and age, "gods" makes more sense.
Joseph is going to become very popular with Pharaoh, and it's all to
'elohiym's credit.
†. Acts 7:9-10 . . God was with him . . . and granted him favor and wisdom
in the sight of Pharaoh, king of Egypt
The ancient Greek word for "favor" in that verse is charis (khar'-ece) which
is the very word translated "grace" in English versions of the New
Testament. So then, you could say that Joseph found grace in the eyes of
Pharaoh just like Noah found grace in the eyes of God back in Gen 6:8.
Putting it all together, it says that Pharaoh was inclined to bless Joseph just
like God was inclined to bless Noah; viz: to do good for him; provide for him,
and protect him from harm. God trusted Noah, and assigned him the
Herculean task of building the ark. Pharaoh trusted Joseph, and assigned
him the Herculean task of implementing a plan to save his country from
certain ruin. Noah's ark kept the human race alive. Joseph's plan kept the
people of Israel alive (and the Egyptians). Quite a few parallels in Noah and
Joseph.
But in order for Joseph's plan to work, he had to have absolute power in the
country of Egypt. Everybody had to fear him so they'd be sure to cooperate.
†. Gen 41:39-43 . .Then Pharaoh said to Joseph; Since God has made
all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you.
You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit
to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than
you. So Pharaoh said to Joseph; I hereby put you in charge of the
whole land of Egypt.
. . .Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on
Joseph's finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold
chain around his neck. He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in
command, and men shouted before him, "Make way!" Thus he put
him in charge of the whole land of Egypt.
Pharaoh's signet ring was for signing documents and authorizing whatever
purchases and requisitions Joseph might need to fulfill his duties; and for
mustering and/or conscripting the necessary manpower to get it all done.
That signet ring was terrifying. With it, Joseph could actually order people
gibbeted if he wanted and nobody would question it. For all practical intents
and purposes then, Joseph was Pharaoh to Egypt.
†. Gen 41:44 . . 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.
Although Joseph was directly responsible to Pharaoh and to no one else, his
powers were limited. He couldn't wage war or set foreign policy. He had no
say in the balance of trade, or the colonization of foreign lands. There were
other people taking care of those operations. Joseph's jurisdiction for the
moment was related to the task he was assigned, sort of like the head of
homeland security, a drug czar, or a FEMA commander. Joseph's position
was in supreme oversight of Egypt's domestic product.
†. Gen 41:45a . . Pharaoh then gave Joseph the name Tsophnath
Pa'neach, and he gave him for a wife Asenath daughter of Poti
phera, priest of On.
Tsophnath Pa'neach was an Egyptian name, same as Moses is an Egyptian
name; which reflected Joseph's transition from Palestinian goat-herder to a
naturalized Egyptian citizen; which of course had the effect of emancipating
him from slavery (cf. Acts 22:27-28).
Poti-phera is essentially the same name as Joseph's original master:
Potiphar.
The city of On was possibly Heliopolis, a city dedicated to the worship of the
Sun god.
Priests were a highly respected caste in Egypt. Having a father-in-law in the
priesthood secured Joseph a privileged social status appropriate for a man in
his position, and no doubt landed some good connections right in his lap.
There's no record that Joseph protested the marriage, but likely saw it as an
advantage he could exploit.
Joseph's fortunes bring to mind the actor Arnold Schwarzenegger. For years
The Terminator was just a big clunky muscleman; an ex body builder from
Thal bei Graz Austria who made it good in Hollywood, and then one day
found himself Governor of Cah-lee-forn-yah. Mr. Schwarzenegger though, in
contrast to Joseph, is ambitious and worked hard for his success; it wasn't
handed to him on a silver platter like Joseph's, but you kind of get the idea.
Mr. Schwarzenegger, like Joseph, married well too: a Kennedy girl no less.
His marriage to Maria Shriver gave him an in with the Kennedy clan and
access to the speaking and writing skills of an intelligent, widely respected,
female journalist. A few political pundits are pretty sure that Maria's
"Women Joining Arnold" website was responsible for gaining her husband a
large block of female voters in the aftermath of his "groping" accusation.
Good connections are always an asset in the political world.
Everything Pharaoh did for Joseph worked in his favor towards giving him a
highly visible public profile.
†. Gen 41:45b-46a . .Thus Joseph emerged in charge of the land of
Egypt. Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of
Pharaoh king of Egypt.
Talk about climbing the ladder to success! Joseph went from slave to
aristocrat in just thirteen years; and with neither political, nor business
experience on his résumé whatsoever.
†. Gen 41:46b . . Leaving Pharaoh's presence, Joseph traveled
through all the land of Egypt.
That reminds me of how U.S. Presidents fly over disaster areas in a
helicopter to "assess" the situation. Well Joseph didn't have a whirlybird at
his disposal. If he was going to assess Egypt's agricultural assets first hand,
and decide where to strategically locate his granaries, then he would have to
do it in that spiffy government-provided conveyance that came with his job.
Joseph would actually get himself dirty down on the ground on Egypt's
highways, byways, townships, and farmlands, rather than cruising aloft in
the luxury and comfort of an Air Force One and delegating all the leg work to
a corps of go-fers and fact-finders.
Joseph hasn't seen his dad for 13 years now, and if there ever was a golden
opportunity for him to escape and get back to Canaan, this was it. But he
couldn't. Joseph was in a catch-22. If he went back home at this point, the
coming famine might destroy his own family. He had to stay and make sure
Egypt became the world's bread basket so his kin would have somewhere to
go and get food when those seven years of want finally came along.
Pharaoh could just appoint someone else to the task, but Joseph couldn't
take the chance his replacement wouldn't be a devil instead of a savior.
Sometimes, when you want the job done right, you just have to do it
yourself. Then too, taking off now might cause Pharaoh to lose confidence in
Joseph's predictions. He might suspect, and who wouldn't, that Joseph made
it all up just so's he could get out of jail. Then Pharaoh would probably
cancel any and all preparations for the years ahead. No, Joseph was stuck.
Cont.
/
