Gen. 41:6 The east wind: A scorching wind that blows from the desert.
Gen. 41:8 Dreams were supposed to communicate messages from GOD (see Job 7:14). The ancient Egyptians left many heiroglyphic writings with detailed instructions about how to interpret the dreams; which is why he hoped that the magicians and the wise men might have guessed what GOD was saying to Pharaoh. It was assumed that the magicians were experts in using the ritual books of magic.
Gen. 41:9 My faults refers to his ingratitude toward Joseph.
Gen. 41:14-57 See section 6 of "TRUTH IN ACTION" at the end of Genesis.
Gen. 41:14 According to Egyptian custom, as opposed to the Semitic, Joseph had to be presented perfectly clean before Pharaoh. This also represented his transformation from a slave into a governor.
Gen. 41:16 Suitable answer: An appropriate message that would be directed to Pharaoh.
Gen. 41:31 Nothing indicates that the famine was a direct punishment; on the contrary, it was part of GOD's action by subjecting nature to vanity (Rom. 8:20).
Gen. 41:32The two dreams were considered manifestations of one single message from GOD; their repetition foretold their imminence, which confirmed their certainty at the time.
Gen. 41:37 If the Pharaoh had been impressed only by Joseph's ability to interpret dreams, he would have attributed it to magic, but Joseph's wisdom underlined it more.
Gen. 41:38 In whom the Spirit of GOD is: Coming from Pharaoh's lips, it could be an unconscious allusion to divine providence (see John 11:49-52), or the phrase could be translated, "the spirit of a god". The opinions of the experts are divided.
Gen. 41:42 His ring: He handed the highest position in the financial sphere to Joseph; the Egyptians called a functionary as prominent as this "royal sealbearer". Some inscriptions speak of Asiatic slave as high Egyptian functionaries, one of whom may have been Joseph. Literally, Joseph rose in one day from misery to riches.
 KINGDOM DYNAMICS |
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Gen. 41:42,43 The anticipated restoration, RESTORATION. The outline of God's restorative work is vividly demonstrated in Joseph's life. Joseph was abandoned, falsely accused, forgotten. But he finally became favored by God and restored to the role God assigned him.
2. Falsely accused. God prospered Joseph, even as a slave, to the point that his master put him in charge of his belongings. But the master's wife falsely accused him of assaulting her, and he was sent to prison. 3. Forgotten. Being in prison, Joseph interpreted the dreams of Pharaoh's cupbearer and baker. The cupbearer rejoiced to know he would be freed, and Joseph asked him to intercede for him before Pharaoh. But, once out of prison, the cupbearer forgot about Joseph. 4. Favored. God didn't forget him, however. Two years later Pharaoh had a dream. The cupbearer remembered Joseph and spoke of him to Pharaoh. Joseph interpreted the dream, announcing seven years of famine to him. Pleased with the warning, Pharaoh put Joseph in charge of all the riches of Egypt. not only was Joseph restored by this action, but when the drought came, he was in a position to save his people. (Gen. 6:5/Jer. 8:8,9) J.R. |
Gen. 41:50-52 The names of the sons of Joseph would be immortalized later in a blessing established by Joseph to be used from the times of antiquity to the times of the Church (see the note for 48:20).
Gen. 41:53-55 Joseph's interpretation was faithfully fulfilled.
Gen. 41:56 Over all the face of the land: Some catastrophes of great dimensions must have occurred, because Egypt received almost all the water that comes, by the Nile River, from the seasonal rains that fall in the deepest parts of East Africa. Not only were the rains scarce there, but the Nile River, which floods every year, apparently didn't leave its channel for several seasons, perhaps in the entire course of those seven years. Without the overflow of the waters of the Nile, very little would be able to be harvested in Egypt.
Gen. 42:1-24 The reconciliation between Joseph and his brothers began with the need for food that affected Jacob. This also represented the providential beginning of the Israelite emigration to Egypt (15:13,14).
Gen. 42:6 Joseph's first dream had already occurred (see 37:5-8).
Gen. 42:7,8 The story doesn't say why Joseph's brothers don't recognize him, nor does it make reference to the accent with which he speaks. Perhaps it was due to twenty years having elapsed.
Gen. 42:9 Although Joseph was somewhat harsh in his treatment, as any Egyptian would have been toward the Canaanites, there's no sign of vengeance or reprisal in the story. On the contrary, Joseph showed affection (v.24) and condescension (verses 16-19). (Condescension needs to be understood here as a willingness to step down from one's high position to the level of an inferior to deal as equals. It's not the negative sense of the word that is understood in our culture.) To see and discover the land means to get involved in Egypt's internal affairs.
Gen. 42:11 All...are one man's sons: A group of ten spies wouldn't be likely to belong to only one family.
Gen. 42:15 The life of Pharaoh: As Pharaoh was considered a god, Joseph used an Egyptian expression similar to "As the LORD lives", later used in Israel.
Gen. 42:18 Joseph has proved his authority; now he's expressing his care and submission to GOD.
Gen. 42:22 His blood: Surprisingly, Jacob's sons associate the conditions imposed by Joseph with the sin they committed twenty years earlier.
Gen. 42:24 Undoubtedly, Joseph wasn't vengeful; he only gave way to his extremely suppressed emotions. However, GOD still had lessons to give Joseph's brothers, which is why he kept his identity secret.
Gen. 42:25-28 Joseph continues instructing his brothers through a type of shock therapy. Their sense of culpability leads them to declare that GOD should punish them; they could be accused of serious robbery and be made slaves (43:18).
Gen. 42:38 Jacob would allow Simeon to languish in prison before daring to send Benjamin, the only son of Rachel who remained, to Egypt. Sheol (KJV-grave) is gravedom, a gloomy, obscure place where people are separated from GOD.
Gen. 43:2,3 Go back: Jacob kept closing his eyes to reality. Joseph (and Simeon) must be asking why the brothers delayed, because he had trusted in Simeon's value as a hostage. With determined spirit: "Energetically".
Gen. 43:6 See the note for 35:9-15
Gen. 43:11 Then it is so: Israel accepted the inevitable, because everything was GOD's will. Balm: of Gilead (see Jer. 8:22). Wild honey, aromas and myrrh were much esteemed in Egypt to make cosmetics, perfume, incense, and to embalm their dead. Walnuts were a rare delicacy, and almonds grew wild in Canaan. All the gifts came from Canaan. See the article, "Plants of the Bible".
Gen. 43:14 Almighty GOD: See the note for 17:1,2.
Gen. 43:21 In its right weight: The payment was usually made by weight. There wasn't much for coins yet.
Gen. 43:28 Your servant was an expression of humility in the Middle East before the presence of a superior. Joseph was accomplishing his purpose of instructing his brothers.
Gen. 43:32-34 Ancient inscriptions show this hostile attitude of the Egyptians toward Asiatic peoples. The Egyptians were a Hamitic people with dark skin; the Hebrews were Semites. It's possible that an invading tribe, the "Hyksos", were the Semitic governors of Egypt in this period, but v.32 indicates that there were marked differences between the Egyptian governors and the Semitic Hebrews, which confirms the fact that Pharaoh and his administration belonged to a dynasty native to Egypt. The brothers were astonished at having been seated according to their ages. How could Joseph have known the order of precedence among them?
Since his skin color might have made them discover his Asiatic origin, allowing the sons of Jacob to recognize him, Joseph maintained a prudent distance.
Gen. 44:1-12 Joseph continued with his plan of instructing and correcting his brothers according to his dream (37:5-8).
Gen. 44:5 Which he used to divine: Either Joseph practiced something later prohibited in Israel (Deut. 18:10), or the Hebrew text should be translated, "Certainly he has divined about this matter".
Gen. 44:15 See the note for verse 5.
Gen. 44:27-29 See the notes for 42:38 and 43:11.
Gen. 41:45 On was a famous religious center dedicated to the worship of the sun-god. The promotion of Joseph unfortunately was accompanied by a pagan marriage. No allusion is made, however, that Joseph abandoned his faith in Jehovah.
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