Why the Story of Joseph the Dreamer Never Fails to Move and Inspire

The story of Joseph the Dreamer is a story that never fails to inspire, to strengthen faith, and to move its hearers and readers.  It is a story that can be appreciated by all – whether Christians or not. His story, though, is definitely known and loved by Jews, Muslims, and Christians, since it is found in the very first book of the Old Testament: the book of Genesis, chapters 37 to 50. It is a story that many of us are quite familiar with because it is one of the most touching stories in the Old Testament. The Church where I belong is currently studying the story of Joseph, which prompted me to re-read the chapters of the book of Genesis where the full story of Joseph is found, from the time he started to have dreams to the time he died at the age of 110.

The story of Joseph, son of Jacob (whom God renamed Israel), never fails to inspire and warm the heart because it was a story of God’s work in a man destined to suffer first before becoming next in power to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. His story shows that God indeed has plans for our lives, and it was clearly manifested in the life of Joseph. His dreams as a young lad foretold his future authority and power in the land of Egypt and his elevation of status above that of his brothers.

Sold at the age of 17 by his half-brothers who hated him for being Jacob’s favorite and for dreaming dreams that elevated him above his brothers, Joseph had to endure the pain of separation from his father and only full brother Benjamin for long years in a different land.  It must be recalled that he also lost his mother Rachel when she gave birth to Benjamin, and this, too, must have been given him much sorrow. How he must have wept from being sold as a slave by his very own brothers and from being wrenched away from home, away from everything that is familiar to him to a land, culture, and people who are quite different from his own.

Accused falsely for wanting to make love with Potiphar’s wife, he was put into a dungeon for some years (some say it was 12 years; others 2 years only). We can only imagine the anguish and the loneliness of a man who did nothing wrong but who was betrayed first by his brothers and second, by the wife of the master he faithfully served.

But as he was released from the dungeon and made by the Pharaoh as next to him in power and authority due to his God-given ability to interpret dreams, particularly the baffling dreams of the Pharaoh, Joseph’s story is clearly a testimony to the unfailing plan of God in his life, which strengthens my faith that God has a plan for me, too, and for each person He has given life to. His ability to interpret dreams was an indication that the spirit of God was with him, and the Pharaoh and his officials saw this.

All his pent-up suffering from his separation from his family was revealed when he wept aloud as he revealed himself to his brothers who came to buy grains in Egypt during the seven years of famine. He did not take revenge on his brothers but rather, after testing and disciplining them first, he told them not to be distressed and not to be angry with themselves for selling him as a slave for it was to save lives that God sent him ahead of his brothers to Egypt. “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt.” (Genesis 45: 8). He wept loudly when he revealed himself to his brothers, whom he has forgiven from his heart because being close to the God of his fathers and his God, he knew that it was the plan of God that brought him to Egypt. It was also the plan of God for his people to live and multiply in Egypt as Joseph sent for his father and all who were left behind in Canaan for God’s power to be revealed later in the book of Exodus.

The story of Joseph tells us that God is sovereign in human history and that He directs it according to his plans vis-à-vis the free will he has given to humans. He has raised up people like Joseph whose story never fails to move, to inspire, to strengthen faith, and to warm the heart. If Joseph’s story is considered just a product of human imagination, it would still be a wonderful story to tell and re-tell. But if the story of Joseph is a true story, it tells a lot about the existence of a faithful and sovereign God, of His plans and special purposes for His people, and of a man’s example of keeping close to Him all his life long.

We can only be thankful for the inspiring story of Joseph the dreamer. May God’s dreams for us come true, and may our dreams be the same as God’s dreams for us.