Welcome back to our “Faces of the Kingdom” series! Today we meet a young man whose colorful coat would lead to the darkest betrayal, and one of the most stunning examples of God’s providence in the Bible.
These mocking words from Joseph’s brothers set in motion a journey from a pit to a prison to a palace…a journey that would reveal God’s faithfulness in the darkest circumstances.
Who was Joseph?
Joseph was the eleventh son of Jacob (Yisrael) and the first son of Jacob’s beloved wife, Rachel. He became a pivotal figure in God’s plan to preserve the family line that would eventually lead to the nation of Israel, and eventually Yeshua Himself.
Joseph is well-known for his prophetic dreams, his colorful coat, his suffering at the hands of his brothers, and his remarkable rise to power in Egypt. However, his journey begins not with triumph, but with tension in a family torn apart by favoritism.
At seventeen, Joseph was already marked as different and not just because of the special coat his father gave him…Due to their father’s favoritism towards Joseph, there was a chasm of jealousy and hatred that would soon prove to be an extremely dangerous divide.
When Everything Changed
The Setup: Dreams and Hatred
Young Joseph’s issues first arose with his father, Jacob’s gift of an ornate and colorful robe. This was an extremely apparent sign of his favoritism which did not settle well with Joseph’s other brothers…
“When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak to him in shalom.”
Genesis 37:4 TLV
Then came the dreams. Joseph dreamed that his brothers’ sheaves of grain bowed down to his sheaf, and then that the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed down to him. Rather than keeping these dreams to himself, which would have been the wise decision, our naive Joseph shared them with his family. “So his brothers were jealous of him,” (Genesis 37:11 TLV).
Throughout these early moments, we see Joseph’s main flaw—a youthful ignorance and lack of wisdom. He was insensitive to how his privileged position and prophetic dreams would affect his brothers who already resented him.
The Betrayal
Later on in our story, Jacob sent Joseph on a fifty-mile journey to check on his brothers who were tending the flocks near Shechem. Joseph obediently followed his father’s wishes and made the journey to go check on his brothers, but when the brothers saw him coming, they conspired together:
“Come on now! Let’s kill him and throw him into one of those pits, so we can say that an evil animal devoured him. Then let’s see what becomes of his dreams.”
Genesis 37:20 TLV
His brother Reuben intervened partially, suggesting they throw Joseph into an empty pit instead of killing him outright. And so, they stripped Joseph of his colorful coat and threw him into the cistern while he cried for mercy. But they did not hear these pleas, ignoring him and sitting down to eat.
When a caravan of Ishmaelite traders appeared, Judah proposed selling Joseph instead, “What profit is there if we kill our brother?” (Genesis 37:26 TLV). To which the group agreed and they sold him for twenty pieces of silver—a slave’s price. To cover up what they had done, the brothers killed a goat, dipped Joseph’s coat in blood, and sent it to their father as an explanation for Joseph’s disappearance. Jacob’s grief was inconsolable, as you can imagine, but the brothers maintained this deception for over twenty years while Joseph was sold to Potiphar in Egypt.
Joseph’s dreams seemed dead. But God was working…
From Pit to Palace
We see how Joseph’s journey reveals God’s faithfulness at every turn. In his master, Potiphar’s house, Joseph served with such integrity that he was promoted to oversee the entire household. Later Potiphar’s wife falsely accused him after he refused her advances and Joseph was thrown into prison, but even then, His strength of character shone—he remained pure and faithful to God.
In prison, Joseph interpreted dreams for Pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker. Though the cupbearer forgot him for two years, God’s timing was perfect. When Pharaoh had troubling dreams, the cupbearer did remember Joseph. Joseph interpreted the Pharaoh’s dreams—seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine—and Pharaoh elevated him to second-in-command over all Egypt.
The famine Joseph predicted came to pass, affecting not just Egypt but Canaan as well. This led to Joseph’s brothers coming to Egypt to buy grain, where they bowed before him without recognizing him—fulfilling the very dreams they had tried to destroy long ago.
Joseph tested his brothers to see if they had changed, particularly watching how they treated Benjamin, the new favorite son. Finally, Joseph could bear it no longer and revealed himself. His brothers were terrified, but Joseph showed remarkable grace, “So now, don’t be grieved and don’t be angry in your own eyes that you sold me here—” (Genesis 45:5 TLV).
The entire family was reunited, but years later, after Jacob’s death, the brothers still feared Joseph would finally take revenge. However, Joseph continued to show grace and gave them the key to understanding his entire story:
“Yes, you yourselves planned evil against me. God planned it for good, in order to bring about what it is this day–to preserve the lives of many people.”
Genesis 50:20 TLV
What Joseph’s Story Teaches Us
Joseph’s journey is a beautiful revelation of both human weakness and divine strength. His flaws included a youthful naiveté in sharing his dreams, pride and insensitivity about his privileged position, and being a “tattletale” to his father.
Yet Joseph’s strengths far outweighed his weaknesses: His unwavering integrity even in slavery and prison, obedience to his father, purity and moral courage in resisting Potiphar’s wife, wisdom in leadership and administration, extraordinary forgiveness toward those who wronged him, and unshakeable faith in God’s sovereignty.
It is important to also note the transformation we see in Joseph’s brothers…Their initial jealousy escalated into hatred, conspiracy, and attempted murder, and yet when they returned to Egypt years later, they showed genuine change—willing to sacrifice themselves for Benjamin. This is a beautiful picture of how unresolved sin escalates, but repentance and time can transform even the hardest hearts.
One Central Message
The brothers mockingly asked, “We shall see what will become of his dreams.” Standing in Pharaoh’s palace, wearing royal robes, with his brothers bowing before him, Joseph’s dreams came true—not because Joseph was perfect (he wasn’t), not because his brothers had a change of heart initially (they didn’t), but because God is always faithful to His purposes.
For Messianic Jewish believers, Joseph’s life is a stunning foreshadowing of Yeshua our Messiah. Both Joseph and Yeshua were beloved by their fathers, both were sent to their brothers, both were rejected by their own ‘families’, both were sold for silver (Joseph for twenty pieces by Judah and Yeshua for thirty by Judas—who was from the tribe of Judah), both suffered unjustly though innocent, both descended into darkness and were raised up, both became saviors, and both were recognized by their brothers.
Living This Truth Today
When God seems silent, He is working. In the pit and prison, Joseph couldn’t see the full picture, and neither can we, but God was orchestrating events all along—using even the brothers’ evil for the ultimate good. Our suffering may position us for purposes we cannot yet see. Just how Joseph’s trials prepared him to save nations, what if your current hardship is preparation for your future purpose? What if the pit is the pathway to the palace?
Forgiveness reflects God’s true heart and as believers, we should strive to emulate the heart of God. It would’ve been very understandable if Joseph had sought vengeance, but he instead chose forgiveness because he saw God’s redeeming hand even throughout his suffering. This is the same heart that Yeshua showed us, forgiving those who crucified Him and interceding for His enemies.
The evil of humanity cannot thwart divine purposes. Joseph’s brothers tried to destroy his dreams, but in reality they actually fulfilled them. What was meant for evil, God meant for good. This is our hope when facing opposition—God’s plans cannot be stopped by human schemes.
Conclusion
Joseph’s story isn’t just about one man’s journey from pit to palace. It’s about God’s relentless faithfulness to His promises, His ability to transform the worst evil into the greatest good, and His plan to save not just one family but all of humanity through the line of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—a plan that would culminate in Yeshua the Messiah.
Your Pit May Be Your Preparation
When you face betrayal, when your dreams seem dead, when God seems silent—remember Joseph. Remember that the God who turned a pit into a palace, slavery into salvation, and evil into good is the same God who works in your life today.
“Now we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to His purpose.”
Romans 8:28 TLV
The question echoes from that pit in Dothan: “What will become of his dreams?” The answer resounds through history: God’s dreams never fail. His purposes cannot be thwarted, and the same God who was faithful to Joseph is faithful to you.
Will we trust in Him, even in the pit?
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