Daily Devotion for Lent 2018 - Day 33, Friday

Scripture Reading: Genesis 41 (NRSV)

As a child, I always felt sorry for the seven healthy

cows eaten by the sickly ones in the dream.

Joseph has a real advantage in today's reading.  God is in charge of the universe and God is willing to give Joseph some advanced knowledge on what will happen.

After two long, long years, Joseph is finally remembered by the cupbearer.  He successfully interprets Pharaoh's dream and is rewarded by being put in charge of everything in Egypt not named Pharaoh.  Joseph must come across as very sincere as it would take many years before you could begin to judge the accuracy of his interpretation.  Although Genesis is silent about it, maybe God nudges Pharaoh to accept Joseph's words as valid.

It is a bit like insider trading.  Joseph allows Egypt to prosper due to their (literal) foresight and planning.  All the known world comes to Egypt for food.  Grain being stored up "like the sand of the sea" reminds the reader of God's promise of offspring to Abraham.  Joseph claims an Egyptian wife which may not be ideal, but it was consistent with family tradition as Abraham's first concubine, Hagar, was also Egyptian.  Joseph's marriage to the daughter of a local priest is similar to Moses marrying Zipporah who was the daughter of a Midianite priest.  However, this event is still about 400 years away.

Joseph certainly has a wisdom about how to take advantage of circumstance.  I'm reminded of the how Jesus ends the Sermon on the Mount:

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.  The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock.  And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand.  The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!”

The wise prepare for the worst while the foolish look for the easy way out.  As we think of individual prosperity or suffering, I wonder how often I store up grain for myself when things are going well?  Am I remaining in prayer during these times or do I only bow down when things are faltering?


O God, by whom the meek are guided in judgment,
and light rises up in darkness for the godly;
give us, in all our doubts and uncertainties
the grace to ask what you would have us to do;
that the spirit of wisdom may save us from all false choices,
and that in your light we may see light
and in your straight path may not stumble;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.


Prayer by William Bright, Anglican priest, 19th Century

Photo by MICOLO J Thanx via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.