I Dreamed A Dream

Turn to the book of Genesis. We're continuing our series through the book of Genesis. If you don't have a Bible, you can use a pew Bible that's in front of you. Genesis is the first book in the Bible. If you don't own a Bible, we would love for you to be able to just keep that Bible; consider that a gift from us to you. We would love for you to be able to have a copy of God's word that you can have for yourself, that you can use and read for yourself and let the Lord speak to you through his word.

We're looking at the first book of the Bible, we're looking at chapters 40 and 41. Now, we've been continuing our series through the book of Genesis. One of the things that you'll notice as you go through the book of Genesis is that as you get further into the book, the sections get larger. You may have noticed that for the last couple of times that we've been in Genesis, we've been reading through entire chapters of Scripture. This Sunday is our first Sunday that we're doing multiple chapters in kind of one sweep. Today we'll be doing 40 to 41, and next week we'll be doing 42 all the way through 45 as we try to capture all the things that are happening in the narrative.

And I know what you're thinking. Is he really going to read all two chapters before we pray? And I'm not. I'm not because of time. But I will read kind of one of the central verses here in the first chapter. Let me just read you Genesis chapter 40 verse 8, and then we'll pray. This is the cupbearer and the baker in prison speaking to Joseph.

“We had dreams,” they said to him, “but there is no one to interpret them.” Then Joseph said to them, “Don’t interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.”

— Genesis 40:8 (CSB)

Let's pray. We pray for us even this morning as we think about your word in light of what you have declared and what you have determined. That you would help us to be able to trust in your reliability and your authority as we think about our own lives. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.

The Pit of Powerlessness

I missed my flight on Friday. I arrived at the airport 2 hours early. I locked in because chapter 40 to 41 is a really difficult passage. I put on my earphones and I sat down and began to work, and the next time I looked up, my plane had left 15 minutes prior. I was not intending to go to Newark, New Jersey. I went up to the desk, and despite my words and my pleas and conversation, I was completely at the mercy of the desk worker in front of me. And I don't know if you know this, but Delta doesn't care about you. There's no choice but to pay the extra $400 because you paid basic economy—whatever that means—and arrive 4 hours later to your destination than you hoped.

I don't know if you've ever had reminders like that, the cold sweats of realizing that 15 minutes is all it takes for your day to get permanently altered, to remember that you are in utter powerlessness before fate in front of you. I imagine that's exactly how Joseph felt at this point in the story in the book of Genesis. He is absolutely powerless in prison. And despite his faithfulness to the Lord, doing everything that God had commanded him to do, not giving into sin, not giving into temptation, he still finds himself in a pit.

And what we find as we walk through the narrative this morning is that despite the dismal circumstances he finds himself in, despite the fact that he did everything right—unlike myself—God is in the background, still accomplishing his plans. When you find yourself in the pits of this life, you should be reminded that your hope isn't ultimately in what you can accomplish or in what you do, but that the only security that you can have in this life is found in the words of our Almighty God.

This is the main idea for us this morning: to trust in God who declares and determines the future. Trusting God who declares and determines the future. As we walk through this narrative, we'll see multiple examples of God revealing and speaking certain things and those things coming to pass. First, we'll look at the foil of the cupbearer and the baker as we see God give restoration and condemnation. And second, we'll see Joseph's interpretation and exaltation.

Restoration and Condemnation

We'll start with point one, restoration and condemnation. Read with me from the top of chapter 40, verse 1:

After this, the king of Egypt’s cupbearer and baker offended their master, the king of Egypt. Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, and put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guards in the prison where Joseph was confined. The captain of the guards assigned Joseph to them as their personal attendant, and they were in custody for some time.

— Genesis 40:1-4 (CSB)

The camera cuts to these two new characters. You have the king's chief cupbearer and the king's chief baker. These men both come from prominent, chiefly positions in the kingdom, and they both have angered the king. And we don't know why. Some suspect a murder attempt against Pharaoh. Maybe they tried to poison the cup or poison his food, or there was some kind of revolt against him, but the story doesn't say anything about what they did. All the story tells us is that they invoked the anger and the judgment of the king.

Because regardless of how high they rank as a cupbearer or baker, they're still in service to the king. It doesn't matter how chief they are. It's like being the best recorder player in fourth-grade elementary school. Like, I'm super proud of you, it's a great job, but at the end of the day, you're a large guppy in a very tiny pond. No matter how high you rank, it's all relative and can't compare to the majesty of the king. He's the one that matters. And because the king has determined that he was offended by their service, they find themselves in prison. They can't avoid the king's wrath.

So, they go from serving the king to being trapped, and they're assigned to Joseph under his custody. And when they're in chains, they begin to dream dreams. You can see that in verse 5:

The king of Egypt’s cupbearer and baker, who were confined in the prison, each had a dream. Both had a dream on the same night, and each dream had its own meaning. When Joseph came to them in the morning, he saw that they looked distraught. So he asked Pharaoh’s officers who were in custody with him in his master’s house, “Why do you look so sad today?” “We had dreams,” they said to him, “but there is no one to interpret them.” Then Joseph said to them, “Don’t interpretations belong to God? Tell me your dreams.”

— Genesis 40:5-8 (CSB)

So, both of them have these dreams. They're distraught. You may almost imagine that they think they're nightmares. And the reason why they're distraught is because they have no idea what these dreams mean for them. So, they tell Joseph. Joseph tells them that only God interprets dreams and asks to hear about them.

Now, sometimes what people do is they will read a passage like this in verses 5 through 8, and they will use examples of dreams like this to give a presentation of how they think God chooses to speak to people. They may wonder if God speaks to you in your own dreams. They will point to texts like Joel and Acts where God says that old men will dream dreams and use these subconscious experiences as these surreal tea leaves that you read in order to be able to interpret the future.

And I just want to encourage you, don't do that. Not that dreams can't point out things in your life. Let's say you have a dream and it makes you reflect on your own soul or your own circumstances, and it makes you ponder and think deeply about your life and maybe consider doing something different. I think that's totally fine. The Lord can absolutely use all sorts of instances like that. What I mean is using dreams as though they are a direct receiver to whatever the Lord is sending you. Because if you treat dreams like that, you will miss the point of what Joseph said.

This passage is not about you interpreting your dreams. It's about who your dreams belong to. Notice what Joseph said. He says that these dreams belong to God, not you. These interpretations belong to Him. There are things in life that only God knows that you don't get to know about. Deuteronomy 29:29 says that the hidden things belong to the Lord our God, but the revealed things have been given to us and our children forever, so that we may obey the words of this law.

Here's what that verse means in a nutshell: you don't get to know everything God is doing. You don't get to know the particularities of every nook and cranny of your life. What you do get is what God has spoken to you about in this book. He has given you enough clarity to know what principles you need to have to be able to obey Him in your life. That's what your focus ought to be.

But the cupbearer and the baker do have an interpreter in front of them. And so, the cupbearer begins to tell Joseph his dream in verse 9:

So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph: “In my dream there was a vine in front of me. On the vine were three branches. As soon as it budded, its blossoms came out and its clusters ripened into grapes. Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand, and I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand.” “This is its interpretation,” Joseph said to him. “The three branches are three days. In just three days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your position. You will put Pharaoh’s cup in his hand the way you used to when you were his cupbearer. But when all goes well for you, remember that I was with you. Please show kindness to me by mentioning me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this prison. For I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing that they should put me in the dungeon.”

— Genesis 40:9-15 (CSB)

The cupbearer has a dream that results in a good interpretation. The VCR fast-forwards as the three branches grow from bud to blossom to grapes that then get squeezed into Pharaoh's cup, and the vision results in a full restoration of the cupbearer. But Joseph asks for a favor. He asks the cupbearer, "Remember me. Remember me." In light of the restoration that he will receive, to remember the plight that Joseph has been through.

In fact, he doesn't just ask the cupbearer to remember him, though he certainly uses that language. He asks the cupbearer to show him kindness. You notice that word there? To show him kindness—the covenant love towards him. The cupbearer should show Joseph the same kindness that chapter 39 says the Lord showed Joseph. Joseph, in the midst of his chains, while being stuck behind bars, is asking the cupbearer, "Can you please do something for me? Can you please care for me?"

And his need of covenant love or kindness goes deeper than just himself getting out of prison. It's deeper than just him being falsely accused. He says, "I've been kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews." When Joseph looks back at the narrative of his life that has led him up to chapter 40, all he's seen is injustice. He is begging for mercy. I wonder if you have ever felt that way, where you look back at the last few years, the last few decades, and you feel like you've been dealt a wrong hand. So he begs the cupbearer, "Can you please remember me? Remember, be kind towards me. Show that faithful, steadfast, covenant love towards me." And he hopes that the cupbearer would be able to help him get there. We'll talk more about that in chapter 41.

But there's a second dream that shows up in verse 16. Notice the way that the chief baker talks here:

When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was positive, he said to Joseph, “I also had a dream. Three baskets of white bread were on my head. In the top basket were all sorts of baked goods for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.”

— Genesis 40:16-17 (CSB)

The chief baker hears Joseph's interpretation of the cupbearer's dream, and he begins to get hopeful. It's actually when he sees that the interpretation Joseph gave to the cupbearer was positive that he himself chooses to speak. I don't know if you've ever done that. Maybe you came into church today hoping that you'd hear a positive, encouraging message, or hopeful that you'd gain some reassurance that God loves you enough to overlook your shortcomings or to help you get through the week. I'm sure all of us have had moments like this where we get enticed with the opportunity that we might get some kind of hope, something that can help us through the darkness, or that we can maybe even trigger certain responses from God to be able to conjure up certain results. Like, maybe if I just pray this prayer in this way for this amount of time, God will listen to me.

But God doesn't work like that. God's word doesn't function like a fortune cookie, no matter how many times you open it to random spots in the Bible. And while His words certainly apply to our world and us living in it, they don't revolve around us. In fact, 2 Timothy chapter 4 warns us against words that just exist to itch our ears, that tell us what we want to hear. I want you to beware of going to God to try to manipulate a positive outcome or going just to find some kind of selfish reassurance that things in your life are going to pan out. That's what the baker was doing. He was hoping that maybe in light of what the cupbearer heard, he might hear something good, too. And he gets the exact opposite in verse 18:

“This is its interpretation,” Joseph replied. “The three baskets are three days. In just three days Pharaoh will lift up your head—from off you—and hang you on a tree. Then the birds will eat the flesh from your body.” On the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, he gave a feast for all his servants. He elevated the chief cupbearer and the chief baker among his servants. Pharaoh restored the chief cupbearer to his position as cupbearer, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand. But Pharaoh hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had explained to them. Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph; he forgot him.

— Genesis 40:18-23 (CSB)

The chief baker's dream doesn't lead to prosperity, but leads to destruction. In fact, you see the parallels between the two guys. Both are lifted up—it's the same language. One is lifted up to his former position, and the other one is hung to death. Not only will the chief baker not be restored, the only kind of lifting he gets is from a noose off of a tree, and vultures would eat from his body.

Two men, both angered the king, both end up in prison, and one is promoted while the other is punished. Why does this happen? Why do you have such drastic, differing results for two guys that are in the exact same situation? I would love to be able to tell you that it was something that one of the two guys did. I would love to be able to tell you that wicked men get their just results, or that there was something unique about the baker that resulted in an alternative kind of result as opposed to the cupbearer. I wish I could even tell you that the cupbearer was more holy than the other guy, but it's clear that he's not. Not only does he not implement any strategies from Joseph in order to obtain a greater result, he doesn't even remember Joseph after he ends up out of prison.

All we get to know in the story is that the cupbearer is lifted up and the baker is hung. And all you and I get to know is that all of that happened exactly the way that God said that it would. Joseph says that interpretations belong to God, and God, in his providence, brings about the exact result that he said would happen. The same is true for you and me. We can try to live our lives with spiritual superstitions. We can do the Christian equivalent of not stepping on a crack lest we break our mother's back. You can try to do things that you think will get you on God's good side, or be good enough, or engender a positive outcome, but at the end of the day, you and I know that what God says will happen will always happen regardless of what you and I do. You may not always trust your dreams, but you can always trust what God says will happen in His word.

And I want to plead with you this morning to care about what He says. To care about what He says will happen in light of His power, that whatever God declares will always come to pass. Do you believe what the Word says? I mean, can you imagine why this would be an important illustration for you to know if you're a Hebrew wandering through the wilderness? As Moses recounts this story of Joseph in prison, while they are continuing to wait for the Lord's promises to pass and it seems like they're suffering between Egypt and the Promised Land, the Lord is reminding them that regardless of the circumstances, all of it is under His hands. Everything God says will happen will happen exactly the way that He said it would.

And the same is true for you and me. Our problem isn't just that we've angered some king in Egypt, but that we've angered the King of the universe. With our sin and rebellion, we deserve to be punished and executed. God's word tells us with absolute certainty that Jesus Christ will come back to judge the living and the dead. I wonder if you live in light of that day. There is no amount of distraction you can find to avoid God's judgment. It is an absolute certainty. Your present might deceive you, but the cupbearer and the baker were in the same predicament, and yet Joseph tells them of two very different outcomes, and everything happens exactly the way God said it would.

I imagine that would serve as a good reminder for Joseph while he's in prison: what God revealed to these two men happened exactly as God said it would, which means that whatever God told Joseph would also happen exactly the way that God intended. Even though Joseph dreamed a dream chapters earlier and over a decade had passed in his life, God will always accomplish His purposes according to His timing. And yet for Joseph, despite the immediate response to what God said would happen to those two men, Joseph is still stuck in chains because the cupbearer forgot. And so he's still stuck in prison until the time comes two whole years later.

Interpretation and Exaltation

This brings us to point two, interpretation and exaltation. I just want you to see how chapter 41 opens here:

At the end of two years Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing beside the Nile, when seven healthy-looking, well-fed cows came up from the Nile and began to graze among the reeds. After them, seven other cows, sickly and thin, came up from the Nile and stood beside those cows along the bank of the Nile. The sickly, thin cows ate the healthy, well-fed cows. Then Pharaoh woke up. He fell asleep and dreamed a second time: Seven heads of grain, plump and good, came up on one stalk. After them, seven heads of grain, thin and scorched by the east wind, sprouted up. The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven plump, full ones. Then Pharaoh woke up, and it was only a dream. When morning came, he was troubled, so he summoned all the magicians of Egypt and all its wise men. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no one could interpret them for him. Then the chief cupbearer said to Pharaoh, “Today I remember my faults. Pharaoh was angry with his servants, and he put me and the chief baker in the custody of the captain of the guards. He and I had dreams on the same night; each dream had its own meaning. Now a young Hebrew, a slave of the captain of the guards, was with us there. We told him our dreams, he interpreted our dreams for us, and each had its own interpretation. It turned out just the way he interpreted them to us: I was restored to my position, and the other man was hanged.” Then Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and they quickly brought him from the dungeon. He shaved, changed his clothes, and went to Pharaoh. Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I have had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said about you that you can hear a dream and interpret it.” “I am not able to,” Joseph answered Pharaoh. “It is God who will give Pharaoh a favorable answer.”

— Genesis 41:1-16 (CSB)

Two whole years go by without anything. I wonder if you have that kind of patience. Whether you'd be willing to wait another two years in your life where nothing noteworthy happens that's worth writing down in a book. Where there is no response to the problems that have been suspended in your life, hanging over your head. Days, months, years waiting for the Lord to do something—and yet not a second is wasted. Because God's timing works slow, and yet God's plans are still unfolding according to His purposes.

Pharaoh has two dreams, one with cows, another with grains of wheat. The cows and grain are healthy, and then there are sickly ones that come up and eat the plump ones. This happens over and over again. It happens with the cows, and it happens with the grain. Pharaoh wakes up, he's troubled by this, and he calls all of his magicians and his wise men, and none of them are able to interpret his dream.

Though Pharaoh might have been a king who can execute those who challenge him in chapter 40, in chapter 41, he's not capable of figuring out what his dreams mean. In fact, his magicians and wise men—the spiritualists of the nation, those that would be considered the top of spirituality in the entire nation of Egypt—aren't able to tell this king what his dreams mean. And then the cupbearer goes from forgetting to remembering that there was this guy in prison who was able to interpret dreams. So, Pharaoh sends for Joseph, and Joseph tells Pharaoh that God is the one who can interpret those dreams.

Pharaoh goes over his dreams again in verse 17:

So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “In my dream I was standing on the bank of the Nile, when seven well-fed, healthy-looking cows came up from the Nile and grazed among the reeds. After them, seven other cows—weak, very sickly, and thin—came up. I’ve never seen such sickly ones as these in all the land of Egypt. Then the thin, sickly cows ate the first seven well-fed cows. When they had devoured them, you could not tell that they had devoured them; their appearance was as bad as it had been before. Then I woke up. In my dream I also saw seven heads of grain, full and good, coming up on one stalk. After them, seven heads of grain—withered, thin, and scorched by the east wind—sprouted up. The thin heads of grain swallowed the seven good ones. I told this to the magicians, but no one can tell me what it means.” Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “Pharaoh’s dreams mean the same thing. God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads are seven years. The dreams mean the same thing. The seven thin, sickly cows that came up after them are seven years, and the seven worthless heads of grain scorched by the east wind are seven years of famine. It is just as I told Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do. Seven years of great abundance are coming throughout the land of Egypt. After them, seven years of famine will take place, and all the abundance in the land of Egypt will be forgotten. The famine will devastate the land. The abundance in the land will not be remembered because of the famine that follows it, for the famine will be very severe. Since the dream was given twice to Pharaoh, it means that the matter has been determined by God, and he will carry it out soon. So now, let Pharaoh look for a discerning and wise man and set him over the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh do this: Let him appoint overseers over the land and take a fifth of the harvest of the land of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. Let them gather all the excess food during these good years that are coming. Under Pharaoh’s authority, store the grain in the cities, so they may preserve it as food. The food will be a reserve for the land during the seven years of famine that will take place in the land of Egypt. Then the country will not be wiped out by the famine.”

— Genesis 41:17-36 (CSB)

Joseph responds with crystal clarity. Notice that his interpretation of the dream doesn't wade in ambiguities. He's not going off of vibes. He's not asking how Pharaoh's heart feels in terms of particular leanings. He's telling him exactly what is going to happen because this is what the Lord has declared. He tells him, "You're going to have seven years of good harvest, and then you're going to have seven years of bad harvest." And he tells Pharaoh what he's supposed to do in light of that: "You want to store up a bunch of grain, and then use those reserves to help those who are in need when famine comes."

And the reason why they can plan for what's going to happen is because of what Joseph declares in verse 32: this dream was given twice, which means that the matter has been determined by God. The future, even the circumstances of harvest in this land of Egypt, has been predetermined by God. The future has already been decided by the God who declared that it will happen.

But it's not just that God declares that it will happen. A weatherman is able to declare the weather, but he can't change it, can't control it. In verse 32, Joseph doesn't just say that God declares what will happen; he says that God determines it. He is the one who carries it out. Even though Pharaoh can't control what's going to happen in the coming years, God can. Not only can God do it, He told Pharaoh how it's going to happen.

The same is true for you and me. We can try with all our might to will and change what tomorrow may bring, but you and I have no control over our lives. You have no ability to determine what tomorrow will bring. All you can do is go off of the information that you've received today. Pharaoh is told what will happen, and he has no choice but to respond to the information he has received, or to die. Because God is the one who has determined it.

You can see his response there in verse 37. The proposal pleased Pharaoh and all his servants, and he said to them, "Can we find anyone like this, a man who has God's spirit within him?" I love this dynamic because you have a Hebrew slave boldly declaring to the most powerful person in the Middle East about what will happen for the next 14 years, and Pharaoh isn't offended. He's not offended by the statements. In fact, he's pleased. Isn't that interesting, that he would be happy to hear about these circumstances that are out of his control?

The reason why Pharaoh is pleased isn't because he heard what he wanted to hear, the way that the baker was hoping for a positive outcome. The reason why Pharaoh is pleased is because the news that he hears is true. He's able to recognize that even though he may be able to rule his kingdom, even though he may be able to determine the fate of those who are under his authority, Pharaoh can't control the future, and he's pleased at the relief of news from a higher power.

Friends, if you haven't paid attention to what the Lord has to say to you, if you've never stopped to consider what the Maker of the universe has to say in His word, I promise you that you will be just as troubled as Pharaoh was. In a day where we live more comfortably, with more advanced technology, with more comforts and assurances, even predictability, than any other period of time in human history, we are clinically the most anxious. Because no amount of control that we accrue for ourselves is able to change the fact that when you are the one who is ultimately trying to control your life, you will always have stuff to be worried about.

But the good news of the gospel isn't that you have an opportunity to control your future, but that the God who controls all things has revealed to you what will happen. Even though we are like the cupbearer and the baker, even though you and I have angered this almighty God and rebelled against His commands, God has revealed Himself to you and told you exactly what will happen depending on how you respond to Him. There is grace available for you on the cross. If you humble yourself before the almighty God who controls both the world and its future, you have the opportunity to be assured of what will happen. You can turn from your sin and trust in Christ.

Despite the inevitabilities of what the future may hold—whether it's years of famine or blessing, whether it's eternal paradise or eternal suffering—the Lord has revealed to you and determined what will occur in such a way that you can be assured of your future. Friend, are you willing to turn from your sin and trust in this Jesus? Are you willing to let go of the mirage of your own control and be able to respond to what the Lord reveals to you in His word? Even a pagan king in Egypt is able to recognize what a privilege and gift that kind of revelation is. And he, in response to this good news, gives Joseph blessing.

The Greater Joseph

Let's finish out the rest of this chapter from verse 39:

So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one as discerning and wise as you are. You will be over my house, and all my people will obey your commands. Only I, as king, will be greater than you.” Pharaoh also said to Joseph, “See, I am placing you over all the land of Egypt.” Pharaoh removed his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, clothed him with fine linen garments, and placed a gold chain around his neck. He had Joseph ride in his second chariot, and servants called out before him, “Make way!” So he placed him over all the land of Egypt. Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh and no one will be able to raise his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt without your permission.” Pharaoh gave Joseph the name Zaphenath-paneah and gave him a wife, Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest at On. And Joseph went throughout the land of Egypt. Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Joseph left Pharaoh’s presence and traveled throughout the land of Egypt. During the seven years of abundance the land produced outstanding harvests. Joseph gathered all the excess food in the land of Egypt during the seven years and put it in the cities. He put the food in every city from the fields around it. So Joseph stored up grain in such abundance—like the sand of the sea—that he stopped measuring it because it was beyond measure. Two sons were born to Joseph before the years of famine arrived. Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest at On, bore them to him. Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh and said, “God has made me forget all my hardship and my whole family.” And the second son he named Ephraim and said, “God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.” Then the seven years of abundance in the land of Egypt came to an end, and the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. There was famine in every land, but in the whole land of Egypt there was food. When the whole land of Egypt was stricken with famine, the people cried out to Pharaoh for food. Pharaoh told all Egypt, “Go to Joseph and do whatever he tells you.” Now the famine had spread across the whole region, so Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe in the land of Egypt. Every land came to Joseph in Egypt to buy grain, for the famine was severe in every land.

— Genesis 41:39-57 (CSB)

Joseph is blessed by Pharaoh and appointed second-in-command. He receives a new identity, a new signet ring—you may remember that imagery from chapter 38 with Judah. He even receives a new name. He's appointed second-in-command over the entire land of Egypt, and everything went the way that Joseph said that it would. They stored the grain in plenty, they distributed it in famine, and because of Joseph's work, people from all over come to buy grain and survive.

And Joseph is almost completely restored. Everything that he lost, he gains back. He gets a new robe, he gets a new family, and he gets a new place in a prominent position. In fact, he's in such command that Pharaoh declares that everyone will submit themselves to him. There is not a single word that Joseph says that can be disobeyed by the Egyptian people. He is so restored that his children's names reveal how he feels about his predicament. The first kid, Manasseh, means "God has made me forget all of my troubles." His restoration is so vivid, warm, and comforting to him that he has forgotten his hardship; the wounds of his past are starting to heal. And the second son, Ephraim, means "God has made me fruitful in this land of affliction."

I'm sure there are many of us here that wish we could have that kind of cleansing. It sounds like an amazing circumstance to have: to be able to pull yourself out of the pit and find yourself as second-in-command, to live a life where your wounds don't feel like they sting anymore, where you're able to explain exactly how God was able to produce fruit out of your desolation to create some kind of redemptive arc for yourself. Joseph experiences true renewal.

But it only comes after he waits. It may have taken the cupbearer three days before his dreams blossomed into reality, but it says here that Joseph was 30 years old before he received his exaltation. That is 13 years of slavery. 13 years of suffering before his 14 years of rule. And to be honest, it's still not complete. While the narrative picks up by showing just how awesome all the stuff Joseph receives is, it also has the underbelly of something being off. He's in command, but he's in command underneath a pagan king. He's still in the land of affliction. The idea of getting an Egyptian name should not sound right to you if you've read Genesis at all.

And yet, God was in charge of all of it. All of it is purposeful. Even if the cupbearer had forgotten Joseph while he was in chains, his God never did. Not only did God not forget, all of His work is purposeful because it points somewhere deeper. Do you know who's coming to Egypt to receive sustenance here at the end of this chapter? It says that every people of every land come to Egypt. All the nations are coming to Egypt to be blessed through Joseph. What God is accomplishing here in chapter 41 is more than just some kind of redemptive arc for one individual person. What God has been doing over the course of 29 chapters of Genesis, after Abraham's promise of the nations being blessed through his seed, is starting to come to pass through Joseph. All nations are being blessed through this Hebrew. They're able to receive food and be saved through famine.

But it goes deeper than that. You have Joseph, who was betrayed by his brothers, the sons of Israel. You have Joseph, who suffered in the pit of death. You have Joseph, who was exalted at the king's right hand. Joseph points to a greater, deeper reality—one that's greater than himself, one that doesn't sit under the authority of a pagan Pharaoh, but sits at God's mighty right hand. One who doesn't just feed nations for seven years, but was able to feed 5,000 Jews and 4,000 Gentiles without any storage or any prior planning. One who saves people from more than just hungry bellies, but saves them from the depths of eternal judgment in hell.

Jesus is a true Joseph who reigns over the entire universe. As we follow Christ, as we see His example of suffering and then glory, as you see Joseph enduring for decades of his life in order to seek this restoration, I hope that you can see that's the exact same pattern that God calls you and me to follow. Whether you are able to connect those dots or not, I can guarantee you that you will suffer in this life, and in the new heavens and the new earth, you will be completely restored.

But all of this will only happen after you wait. After you suffer and endure. Even Joseph, with the limited restoration he has here, still has to wait even longer before he's able to be fully restored back to his family. In light of all of that difficulty and darkness that you and I will experience in this life, we need more than just tips on what to do. We need more than just methods to endure. What you and I need is confidence. Confidence in the pit. Confidence to be able to wait on God when you feel like you're stuck. Confidence to be able to wait on the Lord to accomplish what He has declared will happen. Confidence to be able to trust in the Lord's timing over our own abilities.

And when you and I are stuck in this broken world, we can trust completely in what our Joseph says. Not because he merely says God's words, but because He is the Word. The one who said that until heaven and earth pass away, not one of the smallest letters or one stroke of any letter will pass away from the law until all things are accomplished. Jesus will accomplish every single thing that He promised.

The God that you and I worship is a God who will always pull through—whether it's the cupbearer's dream, whether it's the baker's nightmare, whether it's Pharaoh's dreams, or whether it's Joseph's dreams. There is not one box of providence that God will leave unchecked in light of His promises. If you fear the noose, if you feel like your current life is a nightmare, or if you fear the impending future of having to stand before the judgment seat of your almighty God, you can remember what the Lord has declared to you. Unlike a cupbearer, unlike anything that you could place your hope in in this life, your God will never forget you.

Remember what He has said. Remember what He has promised. Remember and say with your heart that you need no other argument, you need no other plea; it is enough that Jesus died, and that He died for me.

Let's pray. We do pray, Lord, that you would help us to be able to trust in your providence, even in this example of Joseph going through such incredible suffering and then seeing that your word comes to pass. We pray that you would help us to be able to trust your word in this life, and that your Spirit would give us the grace to be able to do it. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.