Shabbat Midrash (Teaching) Outlines

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December 30, 2005

Parashah 10: Mikketz (At The End)

B’resheet 41:1-44:17

Joseph’s Life - Part II

• Last week’s Parashah ended with Joseph being forgotten by the cupbearer and having to face two more years in prison. Joseph was seventeen when he was sent to Egypt and put into slavery against his wishes. Remember that the reason he is here is because he related his dreams to his father and brothers. He served in Potiphar’s house, which allowed him some freedom. Then he was thrust into a dungeon, which brought Joseph to one of the lowest levels of life one could have. Joseph was able to handle these hardships that came his way because of the strong background and foundation in Torah and parental nurturing that was characteristic of Jewish life.

• Many of us today have never known strong nurturing parents who taught us the scriptural applications of Torah in our lives. The opposite is most likely the case where Torah was not taught and most definitely not practiced. From childhood we have been given incorrect teaching and as a result, we have ended up as adults not able to properly handle our own family situations based on scripture rather than Freudian exploits. Many of us bring our ‘old baggage’ with us into our new family where the cycle begins all over again with strongholds from the bad instruction forming the foundation of what is now known as a dysfunctional family.

• Joseph knew to take refuge in Yahweh and this is what made it possible for him to make it through his trials and be refined into the man after Yah’s heart. The trials and testings are there in our lives to help deliver us and reveal Yah’s mighty hand of redemption. Letting go of self until only Yahweh exists is our ultimate challenge and leads us down a pathway toward holiness and prepares us to put on our priestly garments.

• When Pharaoh had two dreams that no one could interpret, the cupbearer remembered Joseph and told Pharaoh about his abilities. Joseph is taken from prison, cleaned up, shaven and given fresh clothes to wear to appear before Pharaoh. Joseph is now thirty years old. In Torah, a priest begins his duties at age 30. This was the same age at which Yeshua began his ministry.

• Joseph had been in Egypt thirteen years. Imagine a man who had been a shepherd and living in prison situations now coming to stand before Pharaoh! We should not be surprised because if we have truly surrendered our body, soul, and spirit to Yah and emptied our idols of self-reliance, self-centeredness, and pride and truly desire to serve a holy G-d, then we too will stand before kings, not in our own righteousness, but in His! Nothing of ourselves, everything of HIM! When we arrive at the place where Joseph was, it is no problem to stand before Pharaoh.

• Pharaoh said, “I have heard it said that you can interpret dreams”. “No!”, said Joseph boldly. “Yahweh will give Pharaoh the answer he desires”. Pharaoh then related to Joseph his two dreams. Joseph told Pharaoh that Yah had given the dream in two forms and that Yah had revealed to Pharaoh what was about to happen in Egypt very soon.

• Both Pharaoh and Joseph beheld the future in their dreams, but with significant differences. To Pharaoh, life is a river, with himself standing on the riverbank, outside of its flow, a passive bystander to what transpires. To Joseph, life is a field within which he toils, laboring at “binding sheaves”; gathering its diverse stalks and binding them into an integral whole. Many are seduced by the enticements of the Pharaoic life. “We remember the fish that we ate in Egypt for free,” the children of Israel grumbled when G-d stripped them of the shackles and security of their slavery. Life is a free lunch in Pharaoh’s Egypt; you don’t have to make any choices in your life. You simply stand on the riverbank and watch the cows and years follow and consume one another. However, there is little satisfaction and no fulfillment in his free fish. It is only in the toilsome labor in the field of life that the most important freedom of all is to be found: the freedom to achieve and create.

• After Joseph went into detail of what would be needed and how to go about accumulating the food from seven years to augment the seven years of famine that lay ahead, Pharaoh was so impressed with Joseph’s aptitude for administration that he selected him for job of Viceroy of all Egypt, a position second only to Pharaoh himself. Pharaoh took off his signet ring and placed it on Joseph’s finger, dressed him in robes of fine linen and placed a gold chain around his neck. This is symbolic of our Heavenly Father bestowing the honor entitled to his Son, Yeshua. Pharaoh then gave Joseph a new name; Zaphenath-Paneah, which means ‘he who explains what is hidden’. When Yeshua was among us in the flesh, he spent his time explaining what was hidden in the Torah to his disciples. Words once hidden were now being heard, understood, and seen through Yeshua’s actions and works.

• Pharaoh also gave to Joseph a wife, Asenath, the daughter of Potiphar, Joseph’s former master. According to a Midsrashic account, Asenath was actually the daughter of Dinah from Shechem. Banished from Jacob’s house, Asenath wandered to Egypt and was raised by Potiphar and his wife. When the daughters of Egypt threw their jewelry at Joseph as he passed among them, Asenath threw a golden amulet which identified her as a granddaughter of Jacob, and he took her as his wife.

• The Hebrew word, galut (exile), means that a person is deprived of his “home”, of the environment that preserves his faith, nourishes his growth and spurs his achievements. But precisely because it deprives him of the support of his natural environment, the state of galut compels the person to turn to the inner reaches of his soul and extract from there reserves of commitment and determination never tapped in more tranquil times. This is one reason why Joseph had to be totally dependent on Yah to sustain him.

• During the seven years of abundance, two sons were born to Joseph by Asenath. The firstborn was named Manasseh (Forgetting), Joseph referred to his struggles in an environment intent on eradicating all memory of home and roots, and how his battle against forgetting and disconnection uncovered his deepest potentials.

• The second son, Ephraim, so named (because G-d has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction) represents the manner in which the “land of affliction” itself is exploited as a source of growth and productivity.

• When the famine in Egypt became severe, the Egyptians went to Joseph, crying, “Give us bread.” Joseph responds, “Woe to me that I must feed the uncircumcised,” he exclaimed; “Go and circumcise yourselves,” he said to them. They went to Pharaoh and cried out before him. Pharaoh told them “Go to Joseph”. They responded that they had gone to him and that he had commanded them to circumcise themselves. They then reminded Pharaoh that they had told him originally that Joseph was a Hebrew and that it was not fitting for a Hebrew to wield authority over them.

• “Fools”, Pharaoh said. “Didn’t a herald proclaim before him during the seven years of plenty, ‘A famine is coming, a famine is coming!’ Why then did you not keep in reserve the produce of a year or two?” They burst into tears before Pharaoh and related to him that even the grain that they had left had rotted. “Even the bread in our baskets has gone moldy”, they said.

• “Fools”, Pharaoh says again. “If the grain rots at his decree, what if he decrees against us and we die! Go rather to him and do all that he bids you.”

• Eventually, things get really bad for Israel and his sons. They hear that grain is available in Egypt and make preparations to go and buy. The story of the returning House of Israel today is reflected here as it still remains hidden to its brothers, the House of Judah. Judah cannot see their brother, House of Israel yet, as many look too Egyptian or Greek to them. The House of Israel still reflects the countries they have been living in. They still reek of the smell of unclean foods and still reflect the Babylonian feasts of Christmas and Easter.

• As House of Israel is taking off its contamination and making themselves clean before Yahweh, they remain hidden in the Messiah until the time of the fullness of the Gentiles. (Romans 11:12)

• Today, as it was then, Joseph was the only one who had bread. Yeshua, the Bread of Life, will be revealed to his brothers by Joseph. Even though Judah had been given the Torah, and were the keepers of the Torah, Judah does not understand its fullness as they have no life sustaining food from it and need to buy food. They cannot see Messiah in the Torah. Only Messiah in the Torah is life-sustaining food. Without Him, Torah has no life of its own. They were not seeking the Messiah in the Torah, thus they found no life. It was Joseph who had been in the wilderness and hidden for so long, who had searched diligently for the HEART of Torah, Yeshua the Messiah. He circumcised his heart and now Torah became a life-giving source to him. The Messiah is seen when we rent the veil of our heart and only then can we have life. Joseph treasured this in his heart and it will be Joseph who reveals Torah to his brothers, the keepers of Torah, in the future. The House of Israel came to Joseph to buy food. Joseph is a type and shadow of Yeshua the Messiah. Yeshua is the Bread of Life and we come to Him, the Living Manna, for our life. Amen!

• Joseph’s brothers embark on their homeward journey after leaving Simeon as collateral until they return home with Benjamin. On route they discover the silver coins still in their bags and fear falls on them driven by the guilt they carry for having sold their brother Joseph.

• At home Jacob was grieved with the loss of his sons. First, Joseph, then Simeon, and now this Egyptian Viceroy wanted Benjamin. Time passes and the need for more grain urges Jacob to consider Egypt again. Judah reminds Jacob of the conditions for their return, unless Benjamin is with them, they will not see Joseph’s face again. This is prophetic Jewish wedding language: Unless all 12 tribes are together again you will not see the Bridegroom (Yeshua). In Luke 13:35 Yeshua said, “Look, your house is left to you desolate. I tell you that you will not see me again until you say, Baruk Haba, B’shem Adonai, Blessed is He who comes in the name of Yahweh.” (Psalm 118:26)

• They return, this time with Benjamin, their youngest brother, which Judah has taken full responsibility for. They come bearing gifts from the land for Joseph and double the silver for purchase of grain for both trips. Joseph received them and gave orders to take these men to his house, slaughter an animal and prepare dinner so that they will dine with him at noon. This is prophetic of all twelve tribes of Israel coming together in the Father’s house and eating at the Feasts of Yahweh, the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.

• When the time came for them to leave, Joseph instructed each man to be given as much grain as possible and to return each man’s silver to him. Redemption cannot be purchased; it is a gift from Yahweh. Before their departure, Joseph also gave instructions for his cup, the silver one, to be placed inside Benjamin’s sack hidden along with his grain. This is symbolic of the cup Yeshua drank on our behalf to bring redemption for the whole house of Israel.

• As the story closes, Joseph’s steward follows the brothers and declares that they have stolen the silver cup. When accused, the brothers deny they have stolen it and decree in whomever’s sack it is found must die and the remaining brothers will be the slaves of Joseph. With this Joseph’s cup is found in Benjamin’s sack.

• They tear their garments and return to Joseph. Twenty-two years after having made their father go into mourning because of a falsehood, they now were falsely accused of a crime and are forced to go through deep anguish. Together they all fall prostrate before Joseph in mercy. All eleven brothers now bow before him fulfilling the dream given Joseph many years before. This is prophetic of the day when every knee will bow to the King of Kings, Yeshua!

Amen!

posted by Chris Phillips, Congregational Leader  # 12/30/2005

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