Egypt: Israel in Joseph Unjustly Cast Into Prison
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Background and Context

The narrative of Joseph, one of the twelve sons of Jacob (Israel), is a significant episode in the biblical account of the Israelites' early history. Joseph's account is primarily found in the Book of Genesis, chapters 37-50. His journey from favored son to a slave, and eventually to a powerful leader in Egypt, is marked by divine providence and personal integrity. Joseph's unjust imprisonment is a pivotal moment that demonstrates his unwavering faith and God's sovereign plan.

Joseph's Arrival in Egypt

Joseph's journey to Egypt began with betrayal by his brothers, who, out of jealousy, sold him to Ishmaelite traders. These traders brought Joseph to Egypt, where he was sold to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the guard (Genesis 37:28, 36). Despite his circumstances, Joseph found favor in Potiphar's house due to his diligence and the Lord's blessing upon him (Genesis 39:2-4).

The Incident with Potiphar's Wife

Joseph's integrity was tested when Potiphar's wife attempted to seduce him. Joseph refused her advances, declaring, "How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" (Genesis 39:9). His steadfastness in maintaining his moral and spiritual convictions, even in a foreign land, highlights his character and faithfulness to God.

Unjust Imprisonment

Despite his innocence, Joseph was falsely accused by Potiphar's wife after she orchestrated a situation to make it appear as though Joseph had attempted to assault her. Potiphar, in anger, placed Joseph in the prison where the king's prisoners were confined (Genesis 39:19-20). This unjust imprisonment was a severe trial for Joseph, yet it was also a crucial step in God's plan for his life and the future of Israel.

Joseph's Faithfulness in Prison

Even in prison, Joseph's character and God's favor did not go unnoticed. The Lord was with Joseph, granting him favor in the eyes of the prison warden, who entrusted him with significant responsibilities (Genesis 39:21-23). Joseph's ability to interpret dreams, a gift from God, would soon become instrumental in his rise to power.

Divine Providence and Preparation

Joseph's time in prison was not wasted; it was a period of preparation for the role he would eventually play in saving Egypt and his own family from famine. His interpretation of the dreams of Pharaoh's cupbearer and baker (Genesis 40) set the stage for his introduction to Pharaoh, leading to his eventual elevation to a position of authority in Egypt.

Significance in the Biblical Narrative

Joseph's unjust imprisonment is a testament to the themes of suffering, perseverance, and divine providence. It underscores the belief that God can use even the most adverse circumstances to fulfill His purposes. Joseph's account is a powerful reminder of the importance of faithfulness and integrity, regardless of one's situation, and it foreshadows the deliverance and preservation of the Israelite people through God's sovereign plan.
Torrey's Topical Textbook
Genesis 39:7-20
And it came to pass after these things, that his master's wife cast her eyes on Joseph; and she said, Lie with me.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

The Sovereignty of God in Operation
... of the descendants of Jacob in the land of Egypt when, after ... arose up a new king
who knew not Joseph"; and in his days the children of Israel had "increased ...
/.../pink/the sovereignty of god/chapter six the sovereignty of.htm

The Treasure Cave
... days was not more vigilantly, jealously fanatical than Egypt. ... not fear the dead whom,
living, Joseph rebuked. ... If thou art successful, Israel will rise up and ...
//christianbookshelf.org/miller/the yoke/chapter xx the treasure cave.htm

Appendix iv. An Abstract of Jewish History from the Reign of ...
... xii.5.1), as the adherents of Joseph were called ... When checked in his advance against
Egypt, by the ... earlier' Chasidim represented the pious' in Israel - of course ...
/.../the life and times of jesus the messiah/appendix iv an abstract of.htm

Appeal to the Christian Women of the South
... after Judah's, and seventy years after Israel's captivity, when ... he made willing to
acknowledge, as Joseph's brethren did ... not as the King of Egypt commanded them ...
/.../an appeal to the christian women of the south/appeal to the christian women.htm

Matt. Ii. 16
... Joseph therefore comes to Nazareth, partly to avoid the danger ... and that then they
should go down to Egypt. ... are not all Israel, which are of Israel; neither they ...
/.../chrysostom/homilies on the gospel of saint matthew/homily ix matt ii 16.htm

"Jesus or Barabbas. "
... Oh, how otherwise once 'fore the Egyptian folk Joseph! ... said, "We will keep this Passover
with joy, as did our fathers in Egypt.". ... Now joy will return to Israel! ...
/.../stead/king of the jews/chapter viii jesus or barabbas.htm

Psalm LXII.
... men are tortured: now that spiritual Joseph, after his ... after his removal from his
home into Egypt as though ... City Jerusalem, of which the people Israel was a ...
/.../augustine/exposition on the book of psalms/psalm lxii.htm

Period iii. The Critical Period: AD 140 to AD 200
... but as having been the son of Joseph and Mary ... Valentinus himself was a native of
Egypt, and probably educated at ... it was not permitted them to cast forth their ...
/.../a source book for ancient church history/period iii the critical period .htm

Period iv. The Age of the Consolidation of the Church: 200 to 324 ...
... in North Africa, there occurred in Egypt and Palestine ... key; you see what key: "Men
of Israel, let what ... free from the accident of being angry unjustly and after ...
/.../ayer/a source book for ancient church history/period iv the age of.htm

A Defence of the Doctrine of Justification, by Faith in Jesus ...
... blasphemy (such as endangereth the souls of thousands) I had cast by this ... It brings
into due subjection ... p.8).2. 'Because it is a base thing to do unjustly' (p.11 ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/a defence of the doctrine.htm

Resources
Is there extra-biblical evidence of the ten plagues in Egypt? | GotQuestions.org

Why did God send the Israelites to Egypt for 400 years (Genesis 15:13)? | GotQuestions.org

Is “out of Egypt I called my son” in Hosea 11:1 a Messianic prophecy? | GotQuestions.org

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Subtopics

Aegypt

Egypt

Egypt: A Small Stream Flowing Into the Mediterranean Sea

Egypt: As a Power Was: Ambitious of Conquests

Egypt: As a Power Was: Mighty

Egypt: As a Power Was: Pompous

Egypt: As a Power Was: Proud and Arrogant

Egypt: As a Power Was: Treacherous

Egypt: Boundaries of

Egypt: Called: House of Bondmen

Egypt: Called: Rahab

Egypt: Called: Sihor

Egypt: Called: The Land of Ham

Egypt: Called: The South

Egypt: Celebrated For: Commerce

Egypt: Celebrated For: Fertility

Egypt: Celebrated For: Fine Horses

Egypt: Celebrated For: Fine Linen

Egypt: Celebrated For: Literature

Egypt: Celebrated For: Wealth

Egypt: Diet Used In

Egypt: Dry Climate of

Egypt: had Princes and Counsellors

Egypt: Idolatry of, Followed by Israel

Egypt: Inhabitants of Abhorred Shepherds

Egypt: Inhabitants of Abhorred the Sacrifice of Oxen

Egypt: Inhabitants of Hospitable

Egypt: Inhabitants of Might be Received Into the Congregation in the Third

Egypt: Inhabitants of not to be Abhorred by Israel

Egypt: Inhabitants of Often Intermarried With Strangers

Egypt: Inhabitants of Superstitious

Egypt: Inundations of, Alluded To

Egypt: Israel in Benjamin Brought

Egypt: Israel in Date of the Exodus

Egypt: Israel in Destruction of the First-Born

Egypt: Israel in Egypt is Plagued for Pharaoh's Obstinacy

Egypt: Israel in Israel Driven out of

Egypt: Israel in Israel Increases and are Oppressed

Egypt: Israel in Israel Placed in the Land of Goshen

Egypt: Israel in Israel Spoils the Egyptians

Egypt: Israel in Jacob Presented to Pharaoh

Egypt: Israel in Jacob's Death and Burial

Egypt: Israel in Jacob's Journey

Egypt: Israel in Joseph Counsels Pharaoh

Egypt: Israel in Joseph Enriches the King

Egypt: Israel in Joseph Interprets Pharaoh's Dreams

Egypt: Israel in Joseph Interprets the Chief Baker's and the Chief Butler's

Egypt: Israel in Joseph Made Governor

Egypt: Israel in Joseph Makes Himself Known to his Brethren

Egypt: Israel in Joseph Recognizes his Brethren

Egypt: Israel in Joseph Sends for his Father

Egypt: Israel in Joseph Sold Into

Egypt: Israel in Joseph Unjustly Cast Into Prison

Egypt: Israel in Joseph's Successful Provision Against the Years of Famine

Egypt: Israel in Joseph's Ten Brethren Arrive

Egypt: Israel in Male Children Destroyed

Egypt: Israel in Moses Adopted and Brought up by Pharaoh's Daughter

Egypt: Israel in Moses Born and Hid for Three Months

Egypt: Israel in Moses Exposed on the Nile

Egypt: Israel in Moses Flies to Midian

Egypt: Israel in Moses Proves his Divine Mission by Miracles

Egypt: Israel in Moses Sent to Pharaoh

Egypt: Israel in Moses Slays an Egyptian

Egypt: Israel in Pharaoh Increases Their Affliction

Egypt: Israel in Pharaoh Invites Jacob Into

Egypt: Israel in Pharaoh Pursues Israel and is Miraculously Destroyed

Egypt: Israel in Potiphar Blessed for Joseph's Sake

Egypt: Israel in The Passover Instituted

Egypt: Israel in Their Sojourn in It, Foretold

Egypt: Magic Practised In

Egypt: Mode of Embalming In

Egypt: Mode of Entertaining In

Egypt: Often a Refuge to Strangers

Egypt: Peopled by Mizraim's Posterity

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Allies to Share Its Misfortunes

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Armies Destroyed by Babylon

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Captivity of Its People

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Christ to be Called out of

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Civil War and Domestic Strife

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Conversion of

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Destruction of Its Cities

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Destruction of Its Idols

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Destruction of Its Power

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Dismay of Its Inhabitants

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Ever to be a Base Kingdom

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Failure of Internal Resources

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Infatuation of Its Princes

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Invasion by Babylon

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Prophetic Illustration of Its Destruction

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Spoil of, a Reward to Babylon for Services Against Tyre

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Terror Occasioned by Its Fall

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: The Jews Who Practised Its Idolatry to Share Its

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: To be Numbered and Blessed Along With Israel

Egypt: Prophecies Respecting: Utter Desolation of, for Forty Years

Egypt: Religion of, Idolatrous

Egypt: Ruled by Kings Who Assumed the Name of Pharaoh

Egypt: Sometimes Visited by Famine

Egypt: Subject to Plague

Egypt: The Armies of Assistance of, Sought by Judah Against the Chaldees

Egypt: The Armies of Besieged and Plundered Jerusalem in Rehoboam's Time

Egypt: The Armies of Captured and Burned Gezer

Egypt: The Armies of Deposed Jehoahaz and Made Judea Tributary

Egypt: The Armies of Described

Egypt: The Armies of Destroyed in the Red Sea

Egypt: The Armies of Invaded Assyria and Killed Josiah Who Assisted It

Egypt: The Country of: Abraham Lives In

Egypt: The Country of: Armies of

Egypt: The Country of: Army of Destroyed in the Red Sea

Egypt: The Country of: Called Rahab

Egypt: The Country of: Civil War In

Egypt: The Country of: Exports of

Egypt: The Country of: Famine In

Egypt: The Country of: Fertility of

Egypt: The Country of: Idols of

Egypt: The Country of: Imports of

Egypt: The Country of: Irrigation Employed In

Egypt: The Country of: Joseph Takes Jesus To

Egypt: The Country of: Land of Ham

Egypt: The Country of: Limits of

Egypt: The Country of: Magi of

Egypt: The Country of: of Horses

Egypt: The Country of: Overflowed by the Nile River

Egypt: The Country of: Priests of

Egypt: The Country of: Productions of

Egypt: The Country of: Prophecies Against

Egypt: The Country of: Symbolical

Egypt: The Country of: The King Acquires Title to Land of

Egypt: Under a Governor

Egypt: Watered by the Nile

Related Terms

Egypt's (13 Occurrences)

Shihor (5 Occurrences)

Shur (6 Occurrences)

Shishak (6 Occurrences)

Africa (1 Occurrence)

Zoan (7 Occurrences)

Canals (5 Occurrences)

Stretcheth (33 Occurrences)

Serpent (40 Occurrences)

Ashurbanipal (1 Occurrence)

Assyrians (15 Occurrences)

Assyrian (18 Occurrences)

Abel-mizraim (1 Occurrence)

Abelmizraim (1 Occurrence)

Syene (4 Occurrences)

Swarm (26 Occurrences)

Sihor (3 Occurrences)

Corrupted (28 Occurrences)

Sojourners (37 Occurrences)

Zerah (22 Occurrences)

Sojourn (51 Occurrences)

Sennacherib (13 Occurrences)

Aliens (53 Occurrences)

Severe (53 Occurrences)

Quick-moving (2 Occurrences)

Zo'an (7 Occurrences)

Chushanrishathaim (2 Occurrences)

Cup-bearer (5 Occurrences)

Coptic

Chushan-rishathaim (2 Occurrences)

Caravan (8 Occurrences)

Awesome (47 Occurrences)

Almond (7 Occurrences)

Appeareth (31 Occurrences)

Seba (4 Occurrences)

Splintered (4 Occurrences)

Sorrows (37 Occurrences)

Sidon (35 Occurrences)

Sojourning (35 Occurrences)

Stopping (22 Occurrences)

Stretched-out (21 Occurrences)

Animal (163 Occurrences)

Antiochus

Covereth (61 Occurrences)

Smitten (215 Occurrences)

Yeast (48 Occurrences)

Strangers (95 Occurrences)

Changing (31 Occurrences)

Amalekites (36 Occurrences)

Camest (27 Occurrences)

Alliance (12 Occurrences)

Amalekite (12 Occurrences)

Seveneh (2 Occurrences)

Smote (281 Occurrences)

Shatter (26 Occurrences)

Cyrene (7 Occurrences)

Victuals (32 Occurrences)

Swift (35 Occurrences)

Ashdod (21 Occurrences)

Settled (112 Occurrences)

Amalek (35 Occurrences)

Yarn (37 Occurrences)

Sold (92 Occurrences)

Slew (206 Occurrences)

Seal (47 Occurrences)

Carchemish (3 Occurrences)

Victual (6 Occurrences)

Cushim (8 Occurrences)

Covenanted (7 Occurrences)

Car'chemish (3 Occurrences)

Collected (55 Occurrences)

Achbor (7 Occurrences)

Abib (5 Occurrences)

Hagar (15 Occurrences)

Sores (16 Occurrences)

Selfsame (18 Occurrences)

Sojourned (20 Occurrences)

Sanballat (10 Occurrences)

Egypt: Israel in Joseph Sold Into
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