Joseph: A Portrait Of The Messiah; Genesis 37
The Bible is all about the Messiah; from the beginning to the end; from Genesis to revelation, He is the main subject. In the O.T. we scores of prophecies foretelling the fact, manner, circumstances, and even the miraculous nature of His birth. Many prophecies spoke of His ministry. Others revealed how He would die. Still others pointed to His resurrection and His ascension.
When Jesus met the two on the road to Emmaus after His resurrection, He gave them a Bible lesson; Luke 24:27… “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” So all the prophets, and all the scriptures were prophetic of Christ. Literally hundreds of messianic types and foreshadows were scattered throughout the O.T. But nowhere in the Bible is there a more compelling portrait of the Messiah than in the story of Joseph.
So let us examine the many parallels between Joseph & Jesus. They provide compelling evidence that Jesus is exactly who He claimed to be.
I. Both Were Loved by their Fathers
A. Genesis 37:3… Jacob’s loved him dearly, no wonder he was grief stricken when he heard the news that Joseph had been attacked and killed by wild beasts – Genesis 37:34… I couldn’t imagine the pain & sorrow that he went through. No one could console him, because he loved Joseph…
B. Matthew 3:16-17, “And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” How it must have grieved the heart of God to allow His only begotten Son to die.
But Jesus had the power to stop the crucifixion at any time, so why didn’t He? Why was He willing to endure the pain and suffering of the cross. Hebrews 12:2, “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Why did God allow Him to Die? John 3:16, “For God so loved the world…”
II. Both Were Shepherds
A. Genesis 37:2… Some of the most prominent characters in the O.T. were shepherds (Abel, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and many more), they were not kings, or noblemen, they were simple hard working men.
When the fullness of time had come, God sent an angel and the heavenly host to announce the birth of the Messiah, but to whom were they sent? Not to kings, politicians, or the social elite, but to shepherds.
B. Jesus is the “Good Shepherd”. John 10:11, “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth His life for the Sheep.”
III. Both Were Sent BY Their Fathers TO Their Brothers
A. Genesis 37:12-13… Jacob said go, Joseph said “Here Am I” indicating his willingness.
But when He arrived his brothers were not there… So Joseph sought for them, once he found them they did not receive him as a brother. Instead they conspired to kill him. Why? Because of his claims of preeminence as revealed in his dreams Vs.19.
B. Now watch this, Jesus was also sent by His Father to His brethren. But when He arrived, His brothers, in a spiritual sense were not where they were supposed to be. Instead of being wholly consecrated unto the Lord, they had become corrupt and worldly.
So Jesus sought them – Luke 19:10, “For the Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost.” But when He found them, they did not receive Him – John 1:11, “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.”
IN FACT they conspired to kill Him – Matthew 26:1-4, “And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said unto his disciples, Ye know that after two days is the feast of the passover, and the Son of man is betrayed to be crucified. Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas, And consulted that they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill him.”
Why did they want to kill Him? Because of His claims of preeminence. He said He was the Messiah, the Son of the Living God, and that one day the leaders of Israel would see Him “Sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.”
IV. Both Had Personal Robes that were Taken Away From Them
A. Genesis 37:23…
B. John 19:23-24… “Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did.”
However Jesus gave up so much more than His physical garments Philippians 2:5-8, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”
Jesus set aside His royal garb, His eternal deity so that He could come in the likeness of man, Why? Matthew 20:28 says, “The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister and give His life a ransom for many.”
But His death was only temporary… Jesus was the only man to ever borrow a tomb.
V. Both Were Sent To Egypt In Their Youth
A. Genesis 37:28… B. Matthew 2:13-15… “And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt: And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.”
VI. Both Were Sold for the Price of a Slave
A. Genesis 37:28… B. Matthew 26:14-15 “Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.”
Leviticus 27:5; Exodus 21:32
VII. Both Were Falsely Accused
A. Genesis 39:17-18… B. Matthew 26:59-61, “Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put him to death; But found none: yea, though many false witnesses came, yet found they none. At the last came two false witnesses, And said, This fellow said, I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to build it in three days.”
VIII. Both Were Delivered Over to the Gentiles
A. Genesis 37:28… B. Matthew 27:2… “And when they had bound him, they led him away, and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor.”
They wanted to keep their hands clean, but when Pilate wanted to release “”
IX. Both Were Placed with Two Prisoners, One of whom was Saved, the Other Lost
A. Genesis 40:1-20 A Cupbearer & a Baker
B. Luke 23:39-43 “And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.”
X. Both Were Exalted By God After A Season Of Suffering
A. Genesis 41:41-43
B. Philippians 2:9-11, “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
XI. Both Forgave Those Who Wronged Them
A. Genesis 45:4-5 B. As Jesus hung on the cross He said, “Father forgive…”
XII. Both Were Sent By God To Save His People
A. Genesis 45:7… B. Matthew 1:21 “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.”
XIII. Both Were Link in a Way That Demonstrates the Sovereignty of God
If Jacob had not loved Joseph so dearly, then his brothers would not have been jealous of him, Would not have sold him to the Middianites, would not have gone to Egypt, would not have been sold to Potiphar, would not have been falsely accused by Potiphars wife, would not have been thrown in prison.
Would not have met the cupbearer & baker, would not have interpreted their dreams, would not have been called upon to interpret Pharaohs dreams, would not have been made 2nd in power over Egypt, would not have implemented his food conservation plan, his family in Canaan might have perished, The genealogical line of the Messiah would have been destroyed.
Jesus would not have been born, Would not have died, would not have been resurrected, we would all be dead in our sins and without hope in the world. Romans 11:33, O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out.”
Conclusion: I believe in the sovereignty of God, and I believe that Jesus is the Messiah, I believe it because the Bible is all about the Messiah from beginning to end, and the scriptures are fulfilled in Jesus and only in Jesus.
