OUR HEBREW

FATHERS

The Betrayal of Joseph

IN THIS LECTURE:

1. The Dreamer’s Fate

2. Joseph in Potiphar’s House

3. Interpreting Dreams

The Dreamer’s

Fate

Jacob now lived in the land of Canaan (Gen 37:1), where his grandfather Abraham had sojourned before him. The story of Jacob’s son Joseph, the young dreamer, begins at this particular point in the life of the family of Israel. Joseph’s story connects to the larger picture of Jacob’s life.

The narrative states that young Joseph went with his older brothers (Dan, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher), possibly to learn the job of a shepherd. But he brought “evil reports” about them to his father (Gen. 37:2). Perhaps Joseph merely repeated bad things his brothers said to him; maybe he was reporting or tattling on their bad behavior. It’s hard to tell. Notably, however, we also learn that he was his father’s favorite.

וישראל אהב את־יוסף מכל־בניו כי־בן־זקנים הוא לו ועשה לו כתנת

פסים׃

“Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons, because he was a son [born] to him late in life, and he made a special tunic for him.״ (Gen. 37:3)

The text clearly states that Israel loved Joseph more than his brothers because he was born to him in his old age. Yet we cannot help but wonder why the narrator does not mention that Joseph was the son of Rachel, Jacob’s special love.

“Jacob gives Joseph a special coat,” Owen Jones, 1869.

Israel openly expressed his favoritism by giving Joseph a very special tunic, called in Hebrew פסיםכתנת (ketonetpassim). The traditional idea expressed in many English translations, as well as in folklore, is that this was some sort of multi-colored outer garment.

The exact meaning in Hebrew remains unclear, but it is safe to say that the rainbow robe is probably an exaggeration. This robe was likely of the kind worn by royalty and wealthy people. In Gen. 37:8, Joseph’s brothers asked him rhetorically if he was going to become king over them.

“Jacob gives Joseph a special coat,” Owen Jones, 1869.

Joseph's older brothers were very envious of their father’s love. The text notes that they could not even say “shalom” to him His .(ולא יכלו דברו לשלם)brothers truly lost control when Joseph began to share with them the details of his dreams. In one dream he related to his brothers, he saw himself as an upright sheaf, while his brothers’ sheaves bowed down before him (Gen. 37:5-8).

“Joseph Recounting His Dreams,” Rembrandt, ca. 17th century. In another dream, which

Joseph naively relayed to his brothers and his father, he saw the moon and the sun and eleven stars bowing before him. His father rebuked him for this dream. Yet while his brothers’ envy grew only more intense, Jacob kept this matter in his thoughts, wondering exactly what this might mean, given the obvious interpretation of the second dream (Gen. 37:9-11).

“Joseph Recounting His Dreams,” Rembrandt, ca. 17th century. Joseph’s brothers were

incensed by his behavior, perhaps fearing that such dreams could come true in light of their father’s favoritism. Joseph, for his part, may have been self-absorbed, naively assuming that everyone would be equally fascinated by the content of his dreams. The Hebrew text repeats the word הנה (hinneh) three times, arguably highlighting his own fascination with his dream (Gen. 37:7-9).

Besides this pair of dreams, the larger story of Joseph –which extends into his years in Egypt –features many other pairs or doublets.

“Joseph Recounting His Dreams,” Rembrandt, ca. 17th century.

“…Joseph and Pharaoh [both] have double dreams; the chief butler and the chief baker dream their pair of seemingly parallel, actually antithetical dreams. Joseph is first flung into a pit and later into the prison-house. The brothers make two trips down to Egypt, with one of their number seemingly at risk on each occasion. And their descent to Egypt with goods and silver mirrors the descent of the merchant caravan, bearing the same items that first brought Joseph down to Egypt”. (Robert Alter, Genesis) Robert Alter, Professor of Hebrew

and Comparative Literature at University of California, Berkley.

Jacob sent Joseph to check on his brothers, who were tending the flocks in the pasture. When the brothers saw Joseph from afar, they began to conspire how to get rid of this dreamer –this time for good.

Joseph is often called “the dreamer.” The Hebrew expression החלמותבעל (ba’alha-chalomot) conveys a strong, perhaps sarcastic, sense. This idiom uses the word “master,” meaning that Joseph is like a “master” or “lord” of dreams.

Perhaps in his brothers’ mind, Joseph had intentionally made up these dreams to agitate them. Or maybe they used the expression to mean that he had an abundance of colorful dreams. While these ancient texts are hard to interpret, it is clear the brothers had had enough.

באחד הברות ונשלכהוועתה לכו ונהרגהו מה־יהיו ונראה אכלתהוואמרנו חיה רעה

“Come now, let’s kill him, throw him into one of the cisterns, and then say that a wild animal ate him. Then we’ll see how his dreams turn out!” (Gen. 37:20)

יוסף כאשר־באויהי ויפשיטו אל־אחיואת־כתנתואת־יוסףהפסים אשר את־כתנת

אתו וישלכוויקחהועליו׃ הברה

“When Joseph reached his brothers, they stripped him of his tunic, the special tunic that he wore. Then they took him and threw him into the cistern.” (Gen. 37:23–24)

In attempting to save Joseph, Reuven convinced the other brothers simply to throw him in a pit while taking his robe. Then they sat down to break bread and to have a meal. The Hebrew לאכל־לחםוישבו(va-yeshvu le’ekhol lechem) literally means “they sat down to eat bread [or, food].” In the end, Joseph was not killed but sold into slavery, which usually meant a hard and dismal existence. He was taken by caravan to Egypt.

יוסף וישחטו את־כתנתויקחואת־הכתנתשעיר עזים ויטבלו

הפסים את־כתנתבדם׃ וישלחו ויאמרו זאת אל־אביהםויביאו בנך הוא הכתנתהכר־נאמצאנו

׃אם־לא

“So they took Joseph’s tunic, killed a young goat, and dipped the tunic in the blood. Then they brought the special tunic to their father and said: We found this. Determine now whether it is your son’s tunic or not.” (Gen. 37:31-32)

Jacob, who had deceived his own elderly father, is now the one being deceived in this story. He makes an assumption about Joseph’s death exactly as the conspiring brothers hoped he would. We read in Hebrew that חיה רעה

טרף טרף אכלתהו which literally ,יוסףmeans “a bad animal ate and tore Joseph.”

“Jacob and Joseph's Coat,” Ford Madox Brown, ca. 19th century.

The stories reveal an irony: as one deceived in the past, so too he becomes deceived. Jacob used a goat from their flock and his brother’s clothes in deceiving his father many years before. Then Laban switched sisters to trick Jacob at the moment when he lowered his guard. Now his sons mislead him about the fate of his beloved son Joseph.

Joseph in Potiphar's

House

After Joseph was sold into slavery, he ended up in the house of Potiphar, one of Pharaoh's court officials. Yet God was with Joseph even here, and he prospered even as a slave.

ויהי יהוה את־יוסף ויהי איש מצליח

“And the LORD was with Joseph, and he was a successful man.” (Gen. 39:2)

Potiphar recognized the success and excellence of Joseph’s efforts. He took notice of his new slave, and with time promoted Joseph to be a steward over everything he owned (Gen. 39:4).

ויהי מאז הפקיד אתו בביתו ועל כל־אשר יש־לו ויברך יהוה

המצרי בגלל יוסף ויהי את־ביתיש־לו בכל־אשרברכת יהוה

בבית ובשדה

“And from the time that the Egyptian put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the LORD blessed his house for Joseph’s sake, so that the blessing of the LORD was upon everything that he owned, in the house and outside.” (Gen. 39:5)

The Hebrew says that ויברך יהוה the“ ,את־בית המצרי בגלל יוסףLORD blessed the house of the Egyptian because of Joseph.” Earlier, in Gen. 30:27, we read that God blessed Laban because of Jacob’s presence in his house. The narrative thus deliberately parallels the stories of Jacob at Laban’s house and Joseph in Egypt. More precisely, these success both stem from God’s promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and their posterity. God prospered Abraham’s descendentsand anyone associated with them.

ולא־ידע ביד־יוסףכל־אשר־לוויעזבאשר־הואאתו מאומה כי אם־הלחם

אוכל

“He left all that he had in Joseph’s hands and, with him there, he paid attention to nothing save the food that he ate.” (Gen. 39:6a)

Perhaps Potiphar did not trust Joseph with food. For Egyptians, as for Israelites, food constituted a spiritual matter. Maybe this reveals the limit of his trust of the foreigner, or perhaps it relates to his service to Pharaoh.

His master, however, was not the only one who took a liking to Joseph. Potiphar's wife was attracted to him. She tried to seduce Joseph by forcing him to sleep with her, but when he rebuffed her attempts she ended up accusing him, a mere slave after all, of attempting to rape her. Yet Joseph guarded Potiphar’s honor just as he guarded everything else in Potiphar’s house.

“Joseph and Potiphar's Wife,”

Guido Reni, ca. 1630.

איננו גדול בבית הזה ממני ולא־חשך ממני מאומה כי אם־אותך באשר את־אשתו ואיך אעשה הרעה הגדלה

הזאת וחטאתי לאלהים

“He wields no more authority in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except yourself, since you are his wife. How then could I do this most wicked thing, and sin before God?” (Gen. 39:9)

The LORD was indeed with Joseph. God’s presence did not provide Joseph with some magic power to be righteous, but rather a moral compass for guidance. Joseph resisted the temptation of Potiphar’s wife and ran away, leaving his clothes behind. Though Joseph protected the honor of his master and avoided committing adultery before God, he ended up accused of attempted rape.

Potiphar's wife now had Joseph’s clothes. Who was Potiphar to believe: a slave or his own wife? Possibly he suspected something and did not want to kill Joseph, just in case he was innocent. Thus, Potiphar placed Joseph in prison (Gen. 39:11-20), where Pharaoh himself sentenced Egyptians indefinitely. In Gen. 39:21, we learn that the LORD was also with Joseph in prison.

Interpreting Dreams

While Joseph was in prison, two of Pharaoh’s chief servants ( שר ... שני סריסיו

שר האופים... המשקים ) were also jailed. Perhaps an investigation was pending about what really took place on their watch. Pharaoh had become displeased with hisשר המשקים (sar ha-mashkim) “cupbearer” and שר האופים (sar ha-ofim)“baker,” who had both served in his court. Joseph had found favor with the jailer and was given the duty of taking care of the prisoners.

“Egyptian Lotus Chalice”ca. 1300 B.C.E.

While Joseph cared for these two high profile prisoners, they both dreamt disturbing dreams one night. Since they were in prison, they had no access to priests or professional dream interpreters, who normally would provide explanations.

They were distressed that they did not understand their dreams. Yet they believed the dreams to be important.

“Egyptian Lotus Chalice”ca. 1300 B.C.E.

If the gods were trying to convey a message, it was essential to decipher the dream in order not to displease the gods. Angering deities would be an even more undesirable path for someone already in the dungeon. Grieved and perplexed, they shared their problems with Joseph. Joseph expressed confidence that God would provide the interpretation of their dreams.

“Isis goddess in Snake Form,” ca. 2nd century C.E.

והלוא לאלהים פתרנים ספרו־נא לי

“Surely God can interpret! Tell me.” (Gen. 40:8)

“In Egypt, the interpretation of dreams was regarded as a science, and formal instruction in techniques of dream interpretation was given in schools called ‘houses of life.’” (Robert Alter, Genesis)

“Joseph Interprets Dreams,” James Tissot, ca. 1900.

The chief cupbearer told Joseph the details of his dream. Joseph interpreted it to mean that in three days the Pharaoh would free him, restoring him to his service in the same honorable position.

The chief baker then told Joseph the details of his dream. Joseph interpreted this one to mean that in three days the chief baker would be executed by hanging.

“Joseph Interprets Dreams,” James Tissot, ca. 1900.

Both of Joseph’s dream interpretations came true. Joseph asked that when the cupbearer found himself free again, he would tell the Pharaoh about Joseph’s unfair fate (Gen. 40:14-15).

שר־המשקיםולא־זכר וישכחהואת־יוסף

“Yet the chief cupbearer did not think of Joseph; he forgot him.” (Gen. 40:23)

The story uses the phrases לא־זכר (lo zakhar),meaning “did not remember” and ישכחהו(yishkachehu), meaning “forgot him.”

Both phrases restate and reinforce the idea that Joseph was “not remembered”. This contrasts directly with the familiar idea of God “remembering Noah, Lot, and Rachel” in other stories. God acted on their behalf.

The chief cupbearer most likely remembered Joseph’s request, but for some reason he chose not to act upon it, never telling Pharaoh about Joseph. This action cost Joseph two more years of his life. The emphatic Hebrew phrase ימיםשנתים(shenataim yamim) literally means “two years of days,” which stresses the length of time that Joseph had to wait.

Then it happened that Pharaoh also dreamed two strange dreams. He too became distressed because their meaning was unclear (Gen. 41:8). Pharaoh called the magicians of Egypt and all his wise men. He told them his dreams, but none could interpret them.

Only then the chief cupbearer found the courage to speak to Pharaoh about a Hebrew slave locked up in his prison (Gen. 41:9-13).

Joseph was escorted out of prison and cleaned up before entering Pharoah’s presence. His head was shaved and new clothes were given to him (Gen. 41:14).

“In the ancient Near East, only the Egyptians were clean-shaven, and the verb used here can equally refer to shaving the head, or close-cropping it, another distinctive Egyptian practice.”(Robert Alter, Genesis)

The new garments were probably truly necessary for Joseph. But the hearers of the story are also meant to remember all the previous tales related to Joseph’s garments. A special garment got him into trouble with his brothers. That was eventually taken away and used to deceive his father. Potiphar’s wife used Joseph's garments to accuse him. Each time Joseph was mistreated his garment was taken from him. Now a garment is restored to him.

As Joseph stood before Pharaoh, the ruler of Egypt personally told him the dreams that distressed him so much. Pharaoh suspected that the dreams were important. After all, he was the ruler of many people and their well-being depended on him.

“Joseph Interprets Pharaoh’s Dreams,” James Tissot, ca. 1900.

חלום חלמתי ופתר אין אתו ואני שמעתי עליך

לאמר תשמע חלום לפתר אתו

“I dreamed a dream, but no one can interpret it. Now I have heard it said of you that for you to hear a dream is to tell its meaning.”(Gen. 41:15)“Joseph Interprets Pharaoh’s Dreams,”

James Tissot, ca. 1900.

בלעדי לאמראת־פרעהויען יוסף פרעהאת־שלוםיענה אלהים

“Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying: Not I! God will see to Pharaoh’s welfare.” (Gen. 41:16)

Joseph explained to the king that he was not the interpreter – “only God himself” ( אלהיםבלעדי ) would answer regarding the שלום(shalom) “well-being” of Pharaoh. As it turned out, the dreams conveyed the same message, merely repeated twice.

According to Joseph’s words, God had decided to show Pharaoh his plans for the next 14 years. There would be good harvests, then afterwards a terrible famine. The double dreaming was to confirm that this would surely come to pass (Gen. 41:25-32). While explaining the dreams, Joseph also suggested an economic plan to Pharaoh: over the next seven good harvest seasons extra grain should be collected and saved purposefully to insure future prosperity during the famine (Gen. 41:33-36).

The king was glad, not to mention impressed, to hear such a sensible explanation. Pharaoh took counsel with his royal advisors and decided that Joseph should be put in charge of this project of setting aside grain for the famine (Gen. 41:37-38).

Pharaoh appointed Joseph the second-in-command in Egypt, stating that only the throne would distinguish Pharaoh’s own authority from Joseph’s.