Genesis 41:42 – 57

⁴² Then Pharaoh removed his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand, and clothed him in outfits of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck.

⁴³ And he authorized him to ride in his second chariot. And they called out before him, “Bow the knee!” This is how he set him over all the land of Egypt.

⁴⁴ Also, Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, and without your consent no one shall lift up hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.”

⁴⁵ And Pharaoh called Joseph’s name Zaphenath-paneah. And he gave him in marriage Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On. So Joseph went out over the land of Egypt.

⁴⁶ Joseph was thirty years old when he began standing before Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph regularly went out from the presence of Pharaoh and went through all the land of Egypt.

⁴⁷ During the seven full years the earth produced abundantly,

⁴⁸ and he gathered up all the food of these seven years, which was produced in the land of Egypt, and stored the food in the cities. He put in every city the food from the fields around it.

⁴⁹ And Joseph stored up grain in great abundance, like the sand of the sea, until he stopped measuring it, because it could not be measured.

⁵⁰ Before the first year of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph. Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, gave birth to them for him.

⁵¹ Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh. “Because,” he said, “God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father’s family.”

⁵² The name of the second he called Ephraim, “For God has made me fruitful in the land where I was afflicted.”

⁵³ The seven years of fullness that occurred in the land of Egypt came to an end,

⁵⁴ and the seven years of famine began to occur, as Joseph had predicted. There was famine in all lands, but in all the land of Egypt there was bread.

⁵⁵ When all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to Pharaoh for bread. Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, “Go to Joseph. Do what he says to you.”

⁵⁶ So when the famine had spread over all the land, Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold the grain to the Egyptians, because the famine was severe in the land of Egypt.

⁵⁷ Also, all the land came to Egypt to Joseph to buy grain, because the famine was severe over all the land.

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pit or prosperity?

After so many years of slavery and poverty – Joseph finally gets to be free. The true test of his character begins. He talked about God a lot while he was down in the pit. What does he say about God now that he is vice-Pharaoh? We get a clue from what he names his two sons. Manasseh means “making to forget” and witnesses to the Egyptians that the LORD is able to bring us out of bondage, and make us forget its pain and humiliation. Ephraim means “making fruitful” and witnesses to the Egyptians that the LORD rewards faithfulness with fruitfulness.

Are you in the pit or in prosperity? Regardless, you can testify of the goodness of the LORD.

LORD, help us to testify of your greatness and goodness wherever we are.