His Discernment

by P.L Hickling, Cromer, England | Category: The Life Of Joseph | Jul 1995

What is to be:

Scripture uses the expression 'the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God' (Acts 2:23), relating to the delivering up of the Lord Jesus Christ. It emphasizes the fact that in an event such as this, where the evil acts of the Lord's enemies were to the fore, God determined what was to happen, taking knowledge beforehand of ail those involved.

He does, of course, know what people are going to do, because He is not Himself constricted by time, which is a created thing; but He does not base His actions on theirs. It is not the purpose of this article to discuss the fascinating relationships between divine election and human foreknowledge, but the subject has been introduced to stress the fact that accurate prediction of the future must derive from God, either because He has determined what shall happen, or because He knows what will.

Dreams and the future:

In Joseph's life, dreams (both his own and those of others), and their interpretation had a crucial part. Each of them, those of the sheaves and the sun, moon and stars in Genesis 37, those of the butler and baker in Genesis 40, and those of Pharaoh in Genesis 41, related to future events. Many other instances can be found throughout Scripture where this was the case. It does not follow, of course, that all dreams have this significance. Our dreams usually result from unconscious mental activity centred on our hopes and fears. Because of this, they can be almost embarrassingly revealing if they are openly told to others, but they are not real predictions of the future. The only satisfactory criterion for judging dreams as predictors is 'Does it happen?' Some of the dreams in Joseph's life, particularly those of the butler and baker, may have been connected with the men's hopes and fears, but the specific nature of the predictions, based on the details of the dreams, must mean that the dreams were given to the men by God, who alone knew what was going to happen. As in so many other instances of the interaction between man's mind and God's will, there is much that we cannot explain.

Joseph and the interpretation of dreams:

When the puzzled butler and baker told their dreams to Joseph his response was characteristic: 'Do not interpretations belong to God?' (Gen. 40:8). A student of the psychology of dreams might have given quite convincing interpretations, but be could not have been so specific. In each case Joseph predicted both the fate of the man and the three days after which it would be evident. Obviously, when prediction was given in such an unequivocal way, falsehood would be immediately apparent. Joseph's confidence in his interpretation was due to the fact that God, fully knowing the future, had revealed it to him.

When Pharaoh dreamed of the seven fat cattle and the seven lean cattle he had no idea of the significance of these dreams; it was not anything which could have arisen from his daily concerns. He was glad to turn to Joseph, seeing him as a seer or wise man, but Joseph again rejected any suggestion of merit in himself, telling Pharaoh 'It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace' (Gen. 41:16). Once again Joseph acknowledged the source of his ability: he knew the purposes of God, because God had revealed them to him. This was not a question of God's knowing what men were to do; they could have no control over the weather or the fertility of the land. Joseph said 'What God is about to do He hath declared unto Pharaoh' and 'the thing is 'established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass'.

The source of Joseph's knowledge:

How did Joseph know? The clue is given by what Pharaoh said to his servants; 'Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?' (Gen. 41:38). Pharaoh's knowledge of God was limited, and it is significant that He did not use the name of Jehovah, the true God who had revealed Himself to Moses (Ex. 6:2,3). It seems clear that the Spirit of God really was the source of Joseph's powers of interpretation, and his able administration of the affairs of the Egyptian kingdom when Pharaoh gave him authority. For in the case of the interpretation of Pharaoh's dream Joseph had not only to make the prediction, but also to know what to do, and have the resolution to stick to his plan for fourteen years. Thus discernment in Joseph's case extended not only to understanding dreams as indicators of God's purposes in the future, but also to perceiving the things which he should do which were consonant with them. This revelation of God's purposes has always been the Holy Spirit's work, as the Lord Jesus said to His disciples: 'When He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He shall guide you into all the truth ... He shall declare unto you the things that are to come. He shall glorify Me: for He shall take of Mine, and shall declare it unto you' (John 16:13,14). Joseph truly was a Spirit-filled man, a condition which was maintained despite the vicissitudes of his life in Egypt.

Joseph and the Lord Jesus:

Throughout this series, writers have sought to draw parallels between the life of Joseph and that of Christ. In this instance, we examine particularly Joseph's ability to reveal the meaning of dreams, and compare it with Christ's ability to discern men's thoughts. In one important respect, of course, there is a contrast, rather than a similarity. Joseph took the reports of dreams from the men who had had them, and interpreted them by the Spirit. Christ was able to discern what people were thinking, without any word from them. For instance, when He forgave the sins of the paralysed man (Mat. 9:1-7), He knew the thoughts of those who mentally accused Him of blasphemy. In every context, 'He Himself knew what was in man' (John 2:25). This even extended to people who were not present, e.g. Nathanael in John 1:4549, discounting any idea that it was mere interpretation of their appearance.

The similarity arises from the source of the powers. At the Lord's baptism the Holy Spirit descended on Him (Luke 3:22), and afterwards He was 'full of the Holy Spirit' (Luke 4:1). There is still the difference, of course, that Jesus was the Son of God incarnate, whereas Joseph was only a man. The Lord had power in Himself, but it was God's purpose that He should use the power of the Holy Spirit, for instance in casting out demons (Mat. 12:28). Like Joseph, but to an infinitely greater degree, the Lord 'knew the purposes of God. This was due to His involvement in them from the beginning. Scripture says 'all things were made by Him' (John 1:3) and 'in Him were all things created all things have been created through Him, and unto Him...and in Him all things consist' (Col. 1:16,17). We cannot precisely define the relationships between the Persons of the Godhead or understand how anything could be unknown to the Son (cf. Mat. 24:36), but it is clear that the Lord Jesus understood God's plan both for the world and for individuals, and in the Holy Spirit He was able to teach, speak and act with authority and perception. Thus in His life and work He was able to exceed by far the foreshadowings of His life in the life of Joseph, for His words reach beyond His immediate hearers right down to us.

One who knows:

The woman the Lord spoke to at the well in Samaria (John 4:142) had much in her life that she would have preferred to have remained hidden, but when she spoke to the Lord Jesus there was no possibility of that. He was able, gently but firmly, to cut through her generalities and her religiosity to touch her real needs, and her amazed response was to fly back to the city and say 'Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: can this be the Christ?' Such perspicacity still remains: 'all things are naked and laid open before the eyes of Him with whom we have to do' (Heb. 4:13). This should not be thought of as a reason for fear, on the lines of 'Big Brother is watching you'.

The One who knows us thoroughly, even the parts we would like to keep hidden, is our Saviour, who died for us and has a continuous care and love for us. His knowledge of our decisions, good and bad,' and our future, is used to our good: 'We know that to them that love God all things work together for good, even to them that are called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also foreordained to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren: and whom He foreordained, them He also called: and whom He called, them He also justified: and whom He justified, them He also glorified' (Rom. 8:28-30). Today our Lord knows our thoughts, our hopes and our fears, and He plans for us in love.

P.L Hickling, Cromer, England | Jul 1995
The Life Of Joseph