Joseph

I study the Bible to get a better idea of how God handles abuse situations.  One of the outstanding stories is Joseph sold into Egypt.  (This is a summation of my understanding.  Anybody and everybody can probably spot errors in my interpretation.  That's ok.  This is just my perspective on how this whole mess went down.) The first lesson learned is the jealousy and problems aroused when a parent favors one child over another, especially a younger one.  Joseph received a coat of many colors a clear indication that he was the favored younger son.  His brothers took him hunting with them and a plot was hatched.  The first plan was to kill him and say that an animal did it.  Being the enterprising souls that they were, they decided to make a few bucks by selling him.  They smeared blood over Joe's coat of many colors and concocted the wild animal killing him story.  They promptly forgot all about him while their father went into deep mourning.  However, Joseph's life changed rapidly from beloved son to lowly slave...he didn't even rate servant status.  He was bought like a piece of furniture to be kept or discarded at the whim of his owner.  He found favor with the owner and was moving up in the world when the owner's wife decided she wanted a new play thing and Joseph was the object of her attention.  Young Joe refused her offer and ran with her still clutching his coat.  She, of course, blamed him and he was thrown into prison.  This is not the cushy type prison, this is down in a hole depths of ugliness type prison.  Starvation and beatings were quite probably daily happenings.  This was his middle years.  Not exactly the kind of place you write home about even if you could.  Then Joe interpreted dreams for a couple of the inmates.  Both dreams were answered just as he said.  The prisoner that was set free promised to help get Joseph released.  But once on the outside, his promise was rapidly forgotten.  The freed man got a job in the palace and worked their for sometime....not sure how long but in prison conditions Joseph must have felt like he was once again abandoned and discarded.  However, the king had a strange dream and none of the wise men could interpret its meaning.  Well, the freed prisoner remembered how Joseph had interpreted his dream.  Since he left him rotting in prison he knew just where to find him.  Joseph was summoned and he interpreted the kings dream of 7 bountiful years followed by 7 lean years of drought and starvation.  The king trusted Joseph and put him in charge of the granaries to store food for the coming 7 years.  I wonder how many people felt that Joseph was spinning a story to his own advantage during those first seven years?  Then the famine hit.....Joseph continued as the overseer to feed the hungry masses including those in other countries also plagued by drought....Guess who comes begging for grain?...none other than Joseph's brothers.  Of course, they do not recognize the overseer for the king as their own brother that they sold all those years ago.  He was a bit older and no longer the cringing younger brother that they sold into slavery.  Joseph tests his brothers....wanted to see what kind of men they had become.  They proved that they had changed enough that Joseph revealed who he was and asked them to bring their father so he could see him during his ailing, older years.  They came to live on the land Joseph owned.  After their father died, they feared that Joseph would exact his revenge.  Joseph saw that their choice to sell him all those years before put him in the position to be able to help them and their families much later down the road.  God took a beloved younger son in a far away country and took the abuse heaped upon him and changed it around to bless nations.  I don't believe that Joseph wished that he could go back to before what happened to him.  He was thankful where life took him.  He sorrowed at the attitude of his family but he rejoiced in the strength and goodness God brought him to do.  As always, God's way is not man's way.