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Genesis 41:1-36, “The Wise Counsel of Joseph”
Introduction
In the Old Testament, before the scriptures were written, God gave the kings of the various countries dreams in order to warn them of danger to the country and in matters of other importance. In this passage, God gave Pharaoh two dreams.
In the first dream, Genesis 41:1-4, Pharaoh dreamed about 7 fat fleshed cows and 7 ill favoured cows. The 7 ill favoured cows ate up the 7 good cows. It was a strange dream. Pharaoh awoke.
In the second dream, Genesis 41:5-7, Pharaoh saw 7 good ears of corn. And then 7 bad ears of corn that were eaten up by the west wind. Again, it was a strange dream and then Pharaoh awoke.
In those days, the kings knew that God gave them dreams to warn them. But, Pharaoh did not know how to interpret the dreams.
Pharaoh asked the magicians and the wise men to interpret the dream but they could not: Genesis 41:8. Even though a person can be wise in the ways of the world; he may not be wise in the things of God.1 Corinthians 1:21, “For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.”
Previously, in Genesis 40:8 Joseph correctly stated, “Do not interpretations belong to God?” It would behoove every saint to understand that if a prophecy is not according to biblical interpretation than it is a false interpretation. If an individual teaches a false prophecy, even a saint, than one day he, or she, will stand before the Lord and give a personal account for his foolishness.
The chief butler heard of the dreams of Pharaoh and remembered that Joseph had correctly interpreted his dream and the dream of the baker, Genesis 41:9-13
Verse 14-16 Joseph gave God the glory
Pharaoh knew that the two dreams were important, so, he had Joseph taken out of the prison and cleaned up. Pharaoh asked Joseph a question, “I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it.” Genesis 41:15b
"And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace." Genesis 41:16 In the presence of a heathen king, an idolatrous Court, a Court full of sorcerers and magicians, Joseph made a clear statement of faith in his belief in God. God gives every man talents. Our talents come from God. Our health comes from God and God sits on His throne in heaven controlling the affairs of men. We need to be like Joseph and give God, the Lord Jesus, the glory for our health, our jobs, our lives and the blessings of life.1 Corinthians 1:31, “That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.”
God can give peace. Even though Joseph had tribulations in his life, and imprisonment, he had peace in his heart. John 16:33 “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” Joseph believed that God could give Pharaoh peace.
God is willing to give peace to those people who sincerely trust in Him.
Verse 17-24 The Two Dreams of Pharaoh
Pharaoh relates the two dreams to Joseph. Pharaoh also said that the magicians could not tell the interpretation of the dreams. The false prophet, the false teacher, and the false religions, cannot tell correct interpretations of prophecy in the Bible.
Verse 25 God is in full control of all things
Genesis 41:25, “And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do.” God is the creator of the universe and He is the one who controls the world. Nahum 1:3, “The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.”
In the church age, God does not use dreams to warn us: He uses the scriptures. The scriptures are the complete words of God. 1 Corinthians 13:10, “But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.”
Verse 26-32 Seven Years of Plenty and 7 Years of Famine
Joseph gave the correct interpretation of the two dreams. Joseph emphasized four things: 1. The 7 years of plenty will precede the 7 years of famine. 2. The famine will be very grievous. 3. The famine is established by God. 4. God will bring it to pass.
Also, the 7 years of famine, after a brief false peace from the anti-Christ, is a type of the grievous famine that will occur over all of the world during the entire 7 Year Tribulation Period throughout the whole earth. Revelation 6:8, “And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.” God gave us the book of Revelation so we can know what God will do in the end times and to warn the people of the earth to escape the wrath to come.
If a saint desires to know how to correctly interpret the end times of the book of Revelation, “The Time of Jacob’s Trouble,” specifically Revelation chapter 6, 7, 11, 12, and 19:16, it would be wise to study the interpretations of Joseph, the dreams of Joseph, and the wise counsel of Joseph.
Verse 33-36 “The Counsel of Joseph”
Joseph gave Pharaoh wise counsel. God warned Pharaoh because God was going to bring a grievous famine in the land of Egypt and the surrounding area. God is starting to raise up Joseph to save the land of Egypt from destruction, save his kinsmen, Jacob, his brothers, and their extended families.
Joseph is a type of Christ. God is going to bring a grievous famine upon the whole earth in order to save the remnant of the kinsmen of the Lord Jesus, His brethren, the Jewish race, and save as many as will repent of their sins during the reign of the anti-Christ during, “The Time of Jacob's Trouble.”
Furthermore, God gave us the Bible to let mankind know the truth of eternal life, heaven and hell, the Lord Jesus and things to come. In the spiritual battle, Ephesians 6:11-17 and 2 Timothy 2:1-5 and 4:1-8, that every saint faces, we need wise counsel to direct our paths. Proverbs 24:6, “For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counselors there is safety.” And, Proverbs 11:14, “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.”
Joseph is a type of Christ. The Lord Jesus, as we read the scriptures, can give us good counsel. Proverbs 8:14, “Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom: I am understanding; I have strength.” Good counsel for our work, our family, and our lives. A mature Christian will listen to the counsel of the Lord Jesus as recorded in the scriptures.
 
 

In this message we review what the purpose of Soulwinning is and why it is important, when possible, to emphasize the whole Commission in our soul winning presentations. Not only to save the souls from hell but to also to help sanctify them. We show how salvation (not just from Hell but for all aspects of our lives) is by believing on the LORD Jesus Christ and the Gospel is what we preach in order to led them (through the power of the Holy Spirit) to accepting Jesus as such. We take note of the fact that "Repentance" is not a physical action of turning or stopping any sin but rather turning from a state of Pride and rebellion before God to a state of Humble submission before God. We also show the four points that should make up any gospel presentation and the Biblical reason for each point. Then we finish up with the importance of each believer accepting and modeling each point in their own lives in order to be a proper witness of the LORD Jesus Christ. (Preached: Sunday Afternoon 6-30-2019, Green Meadow Bible Baptist Church, Pastor Steven Zantjer, Kalamazoo, MI)
 
 

Hello Family of God,
(Parentheses) within Bible passages cited are used to expound on the word/s in [brackets] which precede the parentheses. ALL CAPS are used for double emphasis; this is my way of saying, "It says what it says, and it means what it means." The Bible is self-explanatory (i.e., "the best defense of Scripture is Scripture itself") in its interpretation (i.e., "the perspicuity of Scripture"), but even to this day, we find unnecessary criticism from Biblical "scholars" and theologians alike. According to these "brilliant" minded men and women, they ask, "hath God said?" (cf. Gen. 3:1-5; Lev. 18:22; Isa. 66:1-2; Rom. 1:26-27; 1 Cor. 6:9-11; 15:3-4; 2 Cor. 5:17-21; Gal. 5:19-21; Eph. 5:3-5; 1 Tim. 1:9-10; 2 Pet. 1:3; Jude 7).
"And without controversy great is [the mystery of godliness] (Grk. to tes eusebeias musterion; i.e., "The Revelation of God in Christ disclosed within the pages of Holy Scripture"): God was [manifest] (Grk. phaneroo; i.e., "The Incarnation of the Eternal Son of God") in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory." (1 Timothy 3:16)
The Doctrine of the Trinity (i.e., "The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit" as ONE in BEING; He is the One True and Living God) has been slandered by the unregenerate as polytheistic, heretical, an invention of man, and even stated as being demonic in origin. I will first begin by explaining in a nutshell what the Trinity is NOT; I will also be providing Irrefutable arguments to destroy every argument that raises itself against the knowledge of God; and we are all obligated to defend its Truth from all false teachings that raises itself against the knowledge of God, and to do so with the right spirit (cf. 2 Cor. 10:4-5; 2 Tim. 2:15, 24-25; 3:16; 4:1-5; Tit. 1:9; 1 Pet. 3:15). Below are a list of false doctrines and heresies that have been taught throughout church history in Christendom.

Hello Family of God,
"Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; But in the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed." (Luke 17:28-30)
There is rise in sexual immorality in today's world, and its rapid increase is unprecedented; but should we be surprised? that is, should Genuine and Discerning Christians be caught "off-guard" by this wickedness? What are most Christians doing today? Most of them are warming the pews at their local churches just waiting to leave as soon as the "worship" service is over; they are too cowardly to defend Biblical Morality and expose the wickedness and perversion of sexually immoral acts, why? Because the fear of imprisonment and retaliation from LGBTQ activists who give "hearty approval" of their rebellion to God's Moral Laws (Rom. 1:32). 
Romans Chapter One discusses what happens when God abandons a nation or society; their hearts become darkened with impurity, and they receive the "due penalty" for their sins (e.g., "AIDS, STD's, etc." v.26-27). These acts of Sodomy are so disgusting and perverse, that the mere mention of it is shameful (cf. Eph. 5:12); such unabashed men and women have abandoned the Moral Laws of God set in stone, and suppress the Truth; therefore, God abandons them and gives them over to the depravity of their sexually promiscuous acts to dishonor their bodies (v.28; "Pornography, Pedophilia, Homosexuality, Lesbianism, Sadomasochism, Bestiality, etc."). 

Genesis 37:5-11, “Joseph and his Jewish Dreams”
 
Joseph had faith and loved the Lord God. In the Old Testament, before the Bible was written, God spoke to men in dreams. God had given Joseph dreams. As we read the story of Joseph, we can see that Joseph was like the Lord Jesus. Joseph was a type of Christ. Joseph walked with God and had the characteristics of the Lord Jesus.
 
Also, Joseph is a good example for the Christian. God gave the examples of the Old Testament men and women for us. 1 Corinthians 10:11, “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.” The wise Christian will look at the examples of the saints of the Old Testament and use these examples to learn how to walk in the Spirit (not in the Flesh), and please the Lord Jesus. Romans 15;4, “For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.” The stories of the Old Testament saints can give the Christian hope and comfort our hearts.
 
Joseph walked in the Holy Spirit and had the fruits of the Spirit.Galatians 5:22 and 23, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
Joseph and his brothers
Genesis 37:1-4, “And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan. These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives: and Joseph brought unto his father their evil report.”
 
Joseph was hated by his eleven brothers for two reasons:
 
Joseph told his father, Jacob, or Israel, the evil things that his brothers did. Amos 5;10, “They hate him that rebuketh in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.”
 
Most people do not like it when you rebuke them. When the pastor rebukes a sin, and people do not want to repent, then some people get mad, criticize the pastor, the church. A wise person will repent when you rebuke him. Like Joseph, and the Lord Jesus, it is the responsibility of the man of God to rebuke people’s sins. 2 Timothy 4:1 and 2, “I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.” A faithful pastor will rebuke the sins of the people. A false pastor will not rebuke the sins of the people.
 
Proverbs 28:23, “He that rebuketh a man afterwards shall find more favour than he that flattereth with the tongue.” A faithful pastor will find good results but a false pastor will flatter people.
 
Proverbs 13:1 says, “A wise son heareth his father’s instruction: but a scorner heareth not rebuke.” A wise Christian will hear the rebuke of the faithful pastor. A scorner will not listen to the rebuke of the pastor.
 
Jacob, or Israel, his father loved him more than the other 11 brothers because Joseph was the son of his old age.
 
The eleven brothers of Joseph were all walking in the flesh and had the fruits of the flesh. Galatians 5:19-21, “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.”
The Dream of the Sheaves that did Obeisance
Genesis 37:5-8, “And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf. And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? Or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.”
 
Both dreams came from God and God will fulfill both dreams in the life of Joseph and in the life of Christ. In the first dream, the brothers were binding sheaves in the field and Joseph’s sheaf stood upright and the sheaves of the brothers stood up and did obeisance. The brothers hated this dream and the interpretation. The brothers of Joseph rejected the words of Joseph.
 
The brothers did not like the dreams that God gave Joseph. They did not want Joseph to reign over them. The brothers did not want to make obeisance to Joseph. Therefore, the brothers hated the words of Joseph and questioned the dreams of Joseph. When a person does not agree with the pastor who faithfully preaches the scriptures, they will question the scriptures and the pastor.
 
Joseph’s brothers are like the nation of Israel. When the Lord Jesus came and dwelt among the nation of Israel, His brethren, the Jews rejected Him. John 1:11, “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.”And, in the church Age, most of the Jews hate Jesus and his words.
 
When the Lord Jesus came the first time, the Jews also did not want Jesus to be their king. John 19:14 & 15, “And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he [Pilate] saith unto the Jews, Behold your King! But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar.”
 
This dream was fulfilled in the life of Joseph. Genesis 42:6, “And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all the people of the land: and Joseph’s brethren came, and bowed down themselves before him with their faces to the earth.”
 
And, this dream will be also fulfilled in the life of Christ when the 12 tribes of Israel recognize the Lord Jesus as Saviour and serve the Lord Jesus as KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. tells us that 12,000 Jews from each tribe of Israel become the servants of the Lord Jesus in the 7 Year Tribulation Period.
 
Joseph is like the Christian who walks in the Spirit. The Christian who walks in the spirit will be persecuted, talked against, scorned, maligned, and despised by those who walk in the flesh. & Galatians 4:28 & 29, “Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now.”
 
The Dream of the Sun and the Moon
Genesis 37: 9 & 10, “And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren,and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. And he told it to his father and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?”
 
This dream is almost the same; but slightly different. In the first dream, only the other brothers did obeisance and in the second dream the Sun and the Moon, and eleven stars made obeisance. The sun represents Jacob, the Moon represents Rachel, and the eleven stars represent the eleven brothers. Rachel is already dead (Genesis 35:16-20). As with Job, and the other saints in the Old Testament, Jacob believed that one day that God would raise the saints from the dead.
 
So, this represents all of the children of Israel, Jacob, and Rachel. This dream was fulfilled in Joseph's lifetime, among his own family (minus Rachel). The second time the brothers of Joseph came to Egypt they bowed before him the second time and said that their father (Jacob), was his servant. Genesis 43:28, “And they answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance.”
 
The second dream, along with the first dream, represents the whole nation of Israel bowing down to the Lord Jesus. Genesis 37:9 & 10 is the interpretation of . Revelation 12:1-17. Revelation 12:1, “And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars.”
 
The fulfillment of the second dream is when the nation of Israel gets saved and bows down to the Lord Jesus. Romans 11:26, “And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob.”
Jacob observed Joseph’s sayings
Genesis 37:11, “And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.” Jacob did not question the dreams of Joseph. Jacob did not fully understand them; but, he did not question them. Jacob observed them.
 
Joseph’s brothers did not care for the words of Joseph. The brothers walked in the flesh. Envy is a one of the fruits of the flesh as listed in Galatians 5:19-21The father, Jacob, loved the Lord. So, he observed these sayings. We need to observe the saying’s in the scriptures. Psalm 107:43, “Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the LORD.”
 
A wise Christian will walk in the Spirit and will observe the life of Joseph.