My last article ended with Joseph languishing in prison. This despite accurately interpreting the dreams of Pharaoh’s cup bearer and baker. Although he asked the cup bearer to remember him (Gen 40:14–15), he forgot (Gen 40:23). Joseph was doomed to prison life for another two years (Gen 41:1).
Things suddenly changed. The Pharaoh had two troubling dreams. He turned to the court magicians and wise men (Gen 41:8). These experts were trained with a voluminous archive of interpretation material. They were of no use (Gen 41:8). This is when the cup bearer finally perked up.
There was with us there a young man, a Hebrew, servant to the captain of the guard, and we told him, and he interpreted to us our dreams (Gen 41:12).
Pharaoh was intrigued. He ordered his staff: “Bring this guy to me immediately.” And so they did. But first, Joseph had to be shaved and have a clothing change (Gen 41:14). Why shaved? Egypt had a lice problem. For this reason, people were completely shaved, especially prior to appearing before pharaoh. Not just the beard or hair trimmed; all hair gone. What about the change of clothes? Likely, he was dressed in a white linen robe, traditional Egyptian garb.
The first thing Joseph said when asked to interpret was: “It isn’t in me. God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace (Gen 41:16).” He learned his lesson. He was no longer the immature teen who antagonized his brothers. This reminds me of a New Testament verse when Jesus said:
“Apart from me, you can do nothing (John 15:5).”
Joseph then gave a correct interpretation, consistent with Egyptian dream interpretive technique. Throughout scripture, God often introduces himself using traditions known to the people at hand. Pharaoh’s two dreams and their interpretations follow:
Dream 1: There were seven fat cows that came out of the river feeding on marsh grass. Seven more came up, ugly and thin. They devoured the fat cows, yet they still appeared ugly and thin (Gen 41:18–21).
Consistent with Egyptian dream book methods, Joseph replied:
The two dreams are the same. The first seven cows/grain stalks are seven good years. The second seven are bad years that will follow. God has revealed what is coming (Gen 41:25–32).
Joseph then offered a solution. “Use the good years to store a portion of the crops. Then you’ll be able to cope with the following years of famine.” We don’t know exactly what was going through Pharaoh’s mind as he listened to Joseph’s explanation. We do know that he was impressed and so were his servants (Gen 41:37–41), so much so that Joseph was appointed to be the vizier over Egypt.
Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Behold, I have set you over all the land of Egypt.” Pharaoh took off his signet ring from his hand, and put it on Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in robes of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck.
chariot which he had. They cried before him, “Bow the knee!”
He set him over all the land of Egypt. Pharaoh said to Joseph,
The office of vizier (chancellor during the Hyksos era) is present throughout Egyptian history. One could roughly equate this with today’s titles of president or prime minister, though in ancient Egypt there was no parliament or congress to limit power. Only the pharaoh could do that.
Joseph was to be the sole vizier. In later periods (after the sixteenth century BCE), pharaohs appointed two separate viziers, one for upper Egypt and another for the lower region. This puts a limit on when Joseph could have lived.
The tomb of Tutu is another example. Tutu’s appointment as vizier by Akhenaten is shown with a sequence of four drawings (Tutu arms raised; gold collar presented; gifts nearby; riding away in a chariot).
Other similar scenes are common. Mery-Ra the High Priest of Aton appears in a temple courtyard receiving a gold neck chain under Amenhotep IV. The inscription tells us: “He filled the storehouse with spelt and barley,” He also was driven in a royal chariot through the streets with runners calling for attention in front of him.
Recipients wear white linen in these drawings. The golden necklace that sometimes appears is called the gold of praise . In modern terms, this is analogous to the congressional medal of honor. The presentation of a signet ring symbolizes the granting of authority to a newly appointed high state dignitary.
Viziers in Egypt issue all orders to carry out the will of the pharaoh. The tomb of Rekhmire (under Thutmose III and Amenhotep II) illustrates this well. His responsibilities extend even into the legal realm. In one scene, we see the vizier dispensing justice while the litigants wait outside. All this fits well with the Joseph narrative in Genesis.
Cup of Divination
Joseph instructs his servants to put a silver cup into Benjamin’s sack as the family prepares to return to Canaan. He then tells the servants to overtake Jacob’s brothers as they travel. After finding the cup among Benjamin’s belongings (no surprise here!), they charge:
Isn’t this that from which my lord drinks, and by which he indeed divines? You have done evil in so doing (Gen 44:5).”
Later, when his brothers are brought back, Joseph exclaims:
What deed is this that you have done? Don’t you know that such a man as I can indeed do divination (Gen 44:15)?
There is much to be said about this interchange. Divination to reveal the future (or past) is well documented throughout the ancient Middle East. Cup divination is one form. An object is dropped into the cup, and its behavior is observed. Which way does the object spin: where does it wind up? What kind of water ripples appear; what types of reflections?
Cup divination is common in Canaanite cultures, but till much later in time, not so much in Egypt. Because of this, some suggest that this is evidence that at least parts of the Joseph narrative were written much later, perhaps when Israel was exiled in Babylon or Persia. This however, does not necessarily follow. Joseph was certainly aware of cup divination from his youth. So would his brothers. It is entirely plausible that he used the silver cup as a ploy to carry out his plan.
Interpretation of Numbers
There are other subtle details contained in the Joseph narrative which reveal aspects of Egyptian culture. Consider the number five. The bible often uses ten to represent the expression many times (Gen 31:7, 41; Num 14:22; Neh 4:12; Job 19:3; Dan 1:20). Egyptians used the number five to convey this concept. This is illustrated when Joseph demonstrated favoritism towards his brother, Benjamin.
He sent portions to them from before him, but Benjamin’s portion was five times as much as any of theirs. They drank, and were merry with him (Gen 43:32).
five changes of clothing (Gen 45:22).
We do similar things today. If a man says, “She’s a ten,” we all know he is speaking symbolically. The Bible does not explain things that readers at the time understood and assumed.
The lifespan of one hundred ten is another similar detail. To ancient Egyptians, this represents an ideal life. There are many textual references in Egyptian literature that verify this point. Joseph lived the ideal Egyptian life (Gen 50:22, 26). It is interesting that Joshua’s lifespan is also one hundred ten (Josh 24:9; Judg 2:8). The Bible is telling us that Joseph (into Egypt) and Joshua (out of Egypt) both had ideal lives. The Bible is not concerned with modern literalism; it is speaking symbolically.
Sometimes numbers are just numbers in the modern sense. One of the hardest things for us living some three thousand years after the events is to distinguish the literal from the symbolic. Consider the passage describing Jacob (Israel)’s mummification.
Joseph commanded his servants, the physicians, to embalm his father; and the physicians embalmed Israel. Forty days were used for him, for that is how many the days it takes to embalm. The Egyptians wept for Israel for seventy days (Gen 50:2–30).
This passage contains two small details that we as modern readers tend to skip over: forty days for embalming and then thirty additional days. These things are consistent with Egyptian culture as documented in Egyptian literature. The funerary embalming process involves organ removal and covering the body with natron. Natron is a drying agent that inhibits decomposition and bacterial growth. Next, Egyptians wait forty days for the body to dry out. After this, the corpse is shrunken. It is then treated in oils and spices to restore the original contour. An additional thirty days are added. After the full seventy days the body is wrapped and finally buried. This is when Jacob (Israel) is transported to Canaan for burial and seven additional days of mourning. The context informs us that the forty and seventy in this passage are literal and consistent with Egyptian burial practices. This passage provides more evidence that the Joseph Genesis narrative properly is set within an authentic Egyptian setting.
Conclusion
Why all these details? Many modern scholars specialize in text criticism. They believe that Genesis perhaps has a kernel of historical accuracy. However, they insist, the version we have was redacted and composed much later, somewhere during the ninth or eighth century BCE or even later. Other scholars disagree and put forth arguments like those that I present in this article.
Lists of details can be boring. So let’s finish up with an application. After Jacob (Israel) died, the brothers were afraid. “This is the time for Joseph to get payback,” they thought. “He has the power to do whatever he wants. The seventeen-year-old dreamer’s dreams have come true.” Instead, and to their surprise, Joseph demonstrated grace and forgiveness.
Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for am I in the place of God? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to save many people alive, as is happening today (Gen 50:19–20).”
This reminds me of a central principle taught by Jesus in his beatitudes:
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God (Matt 4:9).
In a culture where revenge was the norm,
Joseph the vizier over Egypt, acted as a peacemaker.
Thanks for Listening.
References
James K. Hoff3meier, Israel in Egypt , Oxford (1996), Ch. 4.
A. S. Yahuda, The Accuracy of the Bible Nili Shupak, The Egyptian Background of the Joseph Story: Selected Issues Revisited ETP Team, “Ancient Egypt Vizier and the Machinery of Power Behind the Throne,” .
Suzanne Binder, “Joseph’s Rewarding and Investiture (Genesis 41:41–43) and the Gold of Honor in New Kingdom Egypt,” Egypt and Israel: History, Imperialism, Ideology and Literature, V. 52, Leiden: Brill (2011), 44–64, .
K. A. Kitchen, The Reliability of the Old Testament , Eerdmans (2003), 351 (Cup of Divination).
D. R. W. Wood, New Bible Dictionary Jozef Marie Antoon Janssen, “On the Ideal Lifespan of the Egyptians,” Rijksmuseum van Oudheden te Leiden 31 (1950), 33–41.
Sue D’Auria, Peter Lacovara, and Catherine Roehrig, “Mummies & Magic: The Funerary Arts of Ancient Egypt,” Boston: Museum of Fine Arts (1988), 14-19.
Dan Harvey, author of Wrestling with Faith,
secondlooknow.com
Dan, this , your hard work is perfection! From the beginning to this conclusion, you have clarified and explained these historical details!
Thankyou, Dan!
I not only appreciate the clarity of your hard work, I find encouragement with understanding these details that have been quite challenging to me!
VivHarvey
Dan, your research not only helps me grow in knowledge, but also helps me imform others and make the Bible much easier to explain in a mode4n context. Thank you!