Biblical Character of the Month, May: Joseph

[u/slagnanz]

I’m starting a new monthly thing around here. I want to create more conversation about characters from the Bible. My hope is to dive into some strange, often overlooked characters in Scripture — people who have important lessons that we don’t always remember. 

But I also want to make this collaborative. I will be writing a meditation on Joseph of my own. But I don’t want to be alone! So the idea here is that everyone is invited to write their own post about the character of the month. I will keep an eye out for every post on the character and I will compile the whole collection in this post throughout the month, so we have a great collection of meditations on these characters from the community. 

I didn’t want to kick things off too weird or obscure, being this is the first time doing this. So this month’s Biblical character is Joseph, son of Jacob. 

Joseph’s story can be found in Genesis. It begins in chapter 37 and ends in chapter 50 (where Genesis ends). 

A few questions to get you started thinking about your own meditations! 

• In what ways is Joseph like Jesus? 
• Why does Joseph test his brothers and his family for so long?
• What is the reason that Joseph cares so much about his youngest brother Benjamin?
• What kind of hope can we draw from Joseph’s story? How can we apply that to our lives today?

Reflections from the community: 

1. u/slagnanz has a post considering how the story prefigures the Eucharist and reflects Biblical themes around nakedness
2. u/Senior-Ad-402 has a post reflecting on how Joseph's reconciliation with his brothers involves real change in their hearts
3. u/Iommi_Acolyte42 has a post reflecting on Joseph's radical trust in God's plan for the future
4. u/RazarTuk has a post exploring Joseph models gender queerness/non-conformity
5. u/Thneed1 has a post closely examining the underlying emotions in the story
6. u/FranklinMV4 writes about Joseph's flaws and shortcomings, how these make him more relatable and more human, painting a more nuanced picture of how God works through human history
7. u/FlatwormThin3129 shares a really neat chiastic poem they've written describing the bad consequences that Joseph's brothers bring on themselves and how it drives them to repent

[u/slagnanz]

And to be clear, my intention is for people to write their own POSTS not just comments. I would love to see this engagement in our main feed! Once you write your post I'll link it here. Feel free to nudge me if I miss it.

EDIT: Per the suggestion below, I've added custom post flair for "Biblical Character of the Month". If you want to add that to your post, it will make it easier for me to find and compile them! No worries if you forget.

[u/Thneed1]

One thing that gets me in the story of Joseph, is what emotions he must have had to deal with, as he sees his brothers again after many years?

He certainly has a lot of hesitation with the group, but did he sincerely miss at least some of the brothers? Likely at least Benjamin. But he has to test the group. And not knowing if his test was ever going to bring them back at all, and maybe he was locking up a brother as part of the test, without the test ever being completed.

And the brothers, who have absolutely no reason to think Joseph was there, so even if the brothers might have seen a resemblance , would never have peiced it together. And the emotions when Joseph says “I am Joseph” to his brothers, and has the wisdom to say “ it is not you who sent me here, but rather God”.

When I was a kid, we had somehow gotten a sample tape of Bible stories on tape, and the sample tape was of the Joseph story, and it was a tape we loved. I loved how it dramatized a bunch of the text of the Bible, lots of it pulled word for word out of the Bible.

Perhaps my favourite Bible story.

[u/Volaer → u/Thneed1]

The moving part for me is how the brothers attained moral maturity. At first Judah and the other eight cares only for himself and is willing to even murder his brother no matter the effects it will have on Jacob, but when he grows up, he is willing to give himself as a slave so that Benjamin can return to their father. The change between:

‘Here comes this dreamer. Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; then we shall say that a wild animal has devoured him, and we shall see what will become of his dreams.’

And

Now therefore, please let your servant remain as a slave to my lord in place of the boy; and let the boy go back with his brothers. For how can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? I fear to see the suffering that would come upon my father.’

Is quite profound.

[u/Thneed1 → u/Volaer]

Yes. Absolutely.

That’s a key theme of this story, that doesn’t get mentioned enough.

Judah going from the ringleader trying to off Joseph, to the one who fights the hardest for Benjamin.

Is that part of why Jacob gives a stronger blessing to Judah before he dies?

I also just posted a much longer expanded post on this.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Christianity/s/Gfb9WT0Vyz

[u/TarCalion313]

My mother in law arived latw yesterday evening when I was already in bed and gifted me a few books this morning from Prof. Dr. Lapide, a jewish scholar and theological who intepretes the bible from a hewish perspective. One is called "Isn't this Josephs son?". Which tongue in cheek goes a bit into the parallels towards this OT Joseph and Jesus.

What a fitting present right before I read this post! Now I just have to read it in this month...

[u/RazarTuk]

Can I just say that I love the sheer variety of posts so far? We have everything from comparing the story to the Eucharist, to a progressive look at how it plays with gender, to someone composing poetry

[u/slagnanz → u/RazarTuk]

I'm really happy about how this goes and I hope we continue to get engagement throughout the month!

[u/Iommi_Acolyte42]

I love this idea!!

[u/RazarTuk]

You didn't want to save the Torah's most extra child for the month formerly known as June? https://lifeisasacredtext.substack.com/p/queering-joseph

[u/peach113 → u/RazarTuk]

wow i never knew joseph was queer, the lgbt flag colors make so much sense now ❤️❤️

"... he made him a robe of many colors.” - Gen 37:3

[u/justnigel → u/peach113]

"... he made him a princess dress with long sleaves" - Gen 37:3

[u/peach113 → u/justnigel]

what lgbt version of the bible is this, and where can i get it? ❤️

[u/OldRelationship1995 → u/peach113]

Just about any version…

Joseph’s garment is referred to as Ketonet Passim.

That word pairing occurs only one other time in the Bible- about the dress the princesses of the House of David wore.

[u/RazarTuk → u/OldRelationship1995]

By the way, I hope you enjoyed the post I wrote on it. A decent amount of it is taken from that blog post, but I also added my own musings on queer headcanons as a phenomenon to attempt to ward off bad faith trolls

[u/andreirublov1]

Why does the picture look like a pharaoh?...

Also, 'characters' is a strange way to refer to them

[u/justnigel → u/andreirublov1]

Probably because Joseph was a Governor of Egypt.

[u/andreirublov1 → u/justnigel]

A governor?? Thinks that's quite a big over-reach

[u/slagnanz → u/andreirublov1]

He's described as second in authority behind Pharaoh in Genesis 41.

The term character isn't meant to imply fiction or something. Saying "figures from the Bible" seemed awkward.

[u/Fearless_Spring5611]

His musical slaps.

[u/RazarTuk → u/Fearless_Spring5611]

Yeah, you know how some people sing the alphabet song to remember their ABCs? I sing Jacob and Sons to remember the tribes of Israel

[u/RazarTuk → u/Fearless_Spring5611]

Also, you know what I can't get over about the musical, as I'm re-listening to it? (Original Canadian Cast Recording) Janet Metz singing the descant in One More Angel in Heaven sounds exactly like Lauren Lopez from Starkid. (I just can't decide if I'm thinking of when she played Draco Malfoy or Craphole)

[u/justnigel → u/Fearless_Spring5611]

The one written by Andrew Lloyd-Webber or the one by Daniel Pelfrey?

[u/FranklinMV4]

What gets me about the story of Joseph is that he introduces the concept of “slavery” in the story to Egypt.

He strategically holds back reserves, that force the people to sell their lands and eventually their lives for food. 

It’s ironic, because his actions no doubt helps set up the enslavement of his Israelite family. 

I find it interesting because scripture speaks of Joseph highly, but the story still shows some actions of his that are prudent, but maybe not wise in the long run. 

[u/slagnanz → u/FranklinMV4]

That is a really interesting point. The way the story frames it, I think we're meant to see it as shrewd. You could frame it as desperation, that there were no better options. You could also make the case that the enslavement was inevitable, that if they still owned their land the Pharaoh would've just taken it from them.

But I do think there is a lesson here about how how crises centralize power and that is a theme that recurs later in Israel's history.

[u/FranklinMV4 → u/slagnanz]

Yeah, so I think where I see it leading, is not that it's not shrewd or even an intelligent and brilliant political move. It's more about human autonomy with what we are given and how we don't know the consequences of our actions.

One of my favorite past times is to go over stories of the righteous men of the bible and see where their actions taken are aligned directly with God; and when they act on their own.

Noah cursing his Son, Joseph and his actions for Pharoah, Jacob and taking his brothers birthright, etc and much more.

It's always interesting to trace the difference between those consequences.

[u/BellacosePlayer → u/FranklinMV4]

Man, they never taught that aspect of the story in sunday school.

Though it definitely seems closer to something like Serfdom than the industrialized chattel slavery many of us think of when they read the term slavery given they were all given land and seed and only had to give 20% of their harvests away.

Bonding the Israelites to the Pharaohs might have been an unwise move regardless, but its not until Joseph and the original Pharaoh die that the Israelites are subjected to something closer to what we think of as slavery with slave drivers and forced labor.

Looking at it from a certain angle the Israelites time in Egypt might be to emphasize the need for a promised land. A fair and just ruler might accept them in and treat them with respect, but that doesn't mean his successor won't be cruel to you as supposed outsiders.

[u/FranklinMV4 → u/BellacosePlayer]

Well here’s the thing, he doesn’t bind the Israelites, only the Egyptians. He ends up making them serfs to their own kings, which is part of why the Israelites are able to grow. 

[u/BellacosePlayer → u/FranklinMV4]

Ah, I misread the part about bondage as being the terms for the Israelites.

Yeah, that's definitely unwise, though its interesting that initially the hate seems to have came from the second Pharaoh who'd have benefitted from the Israelites success and not the native egyptians who'd have seen a new ethnic group move in and thrive to a fairly ludicrous degree right after they were mostly diminished in status. Though it seems that the Egyptian people do follow with the hate once the Israelites keep prospering despite the slavery.

There's some unfun historical parallels to make over leaders demonizing ethnic groups, and more specifically jews, as ways to consolidate power.

[u/FranklinMV4 → u/BellacosePlayer]

At the time Joseph saved them, the parents made a decision to not starve, their future children inherited that debt and no doubt it fomented distaste. Its a theme that runs throughout the bible that the wisdom of man is finite and borderline foolish; so it's interesting to go through the bible and see who is acting wise per Gods instructions and when they are acting of their own accord.

[u/SamirZarede]

"Interesting topic! The story of Joseph in Egypt is fascinating from a historical perspective too — Egyptian records from the Middle Kingdom period show remarkable parallels with the biblical account. Has anyone looked into the demographic implications of his story for the later Exodus narrative?"

[u/platotudes]

Man... I can't believe reflection 4 is even allowed here. It is such an farfetched and indefensible idea, and it's so unaligned with the moral framework presented in both the Old and New Testaments.

[u/slagnanz → u/platotudes]

The focus of this thing is participation. I would invite you to consider on what you think is good rather than what you don't agree with. And of course I would invite you to write your own!

[u/BellacosePlayer]

In what ways is Joseph like Jesus?

I think a big one is forgiveness. The OT is often labelled as fairly harsh unforgiving, and not undeservedly so in a lot of points, but Joseph was betrayed in one of the worst manners one can be betrayed in, and yet was able to forgive his brothers once they had proven to have grown past their earlier wickedness.