What Role Does Joseph Play In The Book Of Genesis
Genesis is the first book of the Pentateuch, which means “five vessels,” these are the first five books of the Bible whose authorship is accredited to Moses. Genesis literally means the origin, we can see in the book of Genesis that there are the first mention of many biblical principles including creation, life, man, marriage, evil, language, government, culture, nations, and many more. (Morris 11-12) Genesis is quite arguable the most influential book of the bible and in many ways a foundation for the rest of the books that follow it.1 The book of Genesis can be divided into three main categories; chapters one through eleven explaining the creation of all things as well as the fall of man and separation from God, in chapters twelve through
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thirty-six the redemption plan of God as well as the establishing of His nation Israel, and in chapters thirty-seven through fifty God’s protection and blessing over his children as well as His sovereignty in their lives. (Smith) However these three categories can be expounded upon greatly as many events take place that shape the course of human history. Within these three categories several stories are told revealing God’s loving and protective nature. We see the line from Adam all the way to Abraham who God makes His covenant with, from there we see the lines of Abraham blessed as well as the promises of God true. Throughout Genesis we find a few different representations of Christ and God’s redemptive plan for man kind in Christophanies, types, and shadows of Christ. A Christophany is a manifestation of Jesus Christ in the Old Testament period; these manifestations are tangible to the senses. A type, or shadow of Christ, could be a person, event, or even sentence, which demonstrates aspects of Christ or his revelation revealed in the New Testament. We find three separate Christophanies in Genesis, however it cannot be proved that Christ was actually involved in these events; when Abram encounters Melchizedek, (Genesis 14) when Abram speaks with The LORD at his home, (Genesis 18) and when Jacob gets in a all-night long brawl with God. (Genesis 32) I believe a few types of Christ found in Genesis are Adam, Noah, and Joseph.
The first Christophany that appears in the book of Genesis can be found in chapter fourteen. This is a fascinating encounter with a man named Melchizedek, the king of Salem and priest of the Most High God. There is no mention of Melchizedek actually being a God, however I chose to place this meeting in the category of Christophany because I personally want to believe that he is. Melchizedek possesses strikingly similar characteristics to Christ, which leads me to believe this biblical character may have been a Christophany in Genesis. His title, king of Salem means that he is the king of peace, not only this, but the name Melchizedek, can be translated, king of righteousness. (Morris 330) He is the first mentioned priest of the bible also this situation being the first to mention peace. He was without father, without mother, without genealogy, and had neither beginning of days nor an end of life. (Hebrews 7:3) From the sound of this it seems that Melchizedek was eternal, not only this but in his encounter with Abram he offered bread and wine as a sign of love. We know from Hebrews that the greater being blesses the lesser and that’s exactly what we find Melchizedek doing here in chapter fourteen of Genesis. All these things lead me to believe that Melchizedek is a Christophany found in the book of Genesis, however I cannot be certain, the main reason I hold to this belief is that he did not have a beginning nor end.
The next Christophany found in Genesis is recorded in chapter eighteen, The LORD appeared to Abraham as he sat in the doorway of his home. The first verse clearly indicates that this was an appearance of God, whereas the second verse indicates that He came in the appearance of man. (Morris 350) Abraham realized that these were no normal men and immediately ran to greet them; he bowed before them, and showed them hospitality. (Krell) Abraham not only hosted them speedily but he did so with the best available food for his guests. We cannot be certain whether or not Abraham realized this man before him was God, however by the text we can be certain. God told Abraham that his wife Sarah would give birth to son and through him the nations would be blessed as well as the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. We are specifically told this character is God but on top of that we see his omniscience.
The last Christophany found in Genesis takes place in chapter thirty-two, right before his encounter with his brother Esau. Jacob and his family are traveling back home and he is fearful his brother is harboring bitterness towards him. He stops for the night and was left alone; it was here that he rested with a man all night till the break of day. It became clear to the man that Jacob would not relent, so he touched his thigh and it came out of joint. Jacob still not letting the man go, not without a blessing that is. The man blatantly tells Jacob he has wrestled with God and gives him a new name, Israel. After the whole even Jacob, now called Israel, names the place Peniel, because he saw God face to face and his life was preserved. (Genesis 32:30) Just reading this portion of scripture it becomes clear that Jacob met with God. Here we can see again the greater blessing the lesser as God had blessed Jacob for his persistence. (Morris 512) John chapter one, verse eighteen says that no man has seen God at any time. Clearly Jacob said however that he saw God face to face, similarly, Abraham spoke face to face with God in his home. Is this a blatant contradiction? I believe that it is possible to deduce that these two men were both Jesus, which intern would make them God. It is also confirmed that Jesus did have a physical form, therefore is possible that these two incidents were Jesus Christ revealing Himself in the book of Genesis.
This concludes the various Christophanies found in Genesis, however there a numbers types and shadows of Christ and his redemptive plan. I will cover only a few of them that sparked special interest in me. First we have Adam, the first man. It makes sense that Adam would be a type of Christ by contrast rather than comparison, in that he was the first man and Jesus is called the “last Adam.” (Wight 1) All men come from Adam and therefore men associate with Adam being a sinful creature, whereas all saved men can and should reflect Christ. First Corinthians chapter fifteen verse twenty-two says that we were dead in Adam but we are alive in Christ. While Adam’s one act had great and terrible consequences upon creation Jesus’ one act granted a tremendous gift of grace and salvation to creation. This act that Adam performed was sinful, Jesus Christ performed an act that was righteous. Also this act was out of direct disobedience to God, Jesus acted in obedience, in dying on the cross. There are also some striking similarities between the two, Adam was in a way a unique son of God, because he was created without sin his character would have resembled that of Jesus’. Adam was also the husband to eve, just as Jesus was the husband to the church. Adam was the head of humanity, so-to-speak, being the first man it was up to him to teach his kids and the human race that followed, likewise Jesus is the head of the church, as Christians we look to Jesus as our model and strive to be like Him. Adam is a type of Christ because his story points the way to Christ; even through his failures he contrasts Jesus perfect nature. We are able to see from Adam there was only death, judgment, and condemnation. Jesus, being similar, but yet so different brought life, grace, justification, and righteousness. It would be difficult to realize Adam’s pointing to Jesus without being conscious of the New Testament, however looking over everything we see this character clearly showing the need for Jesus in Genesis.
Jesus was the savior and redeemer of all men, much like Noah and his ark, another type of Christ found in Genesis. This type of Christ is more than just the man; it includes the ark as well. Clearly the ark and Jesus had the same purpose. “I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall go into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you.” (Genesis 6:18) This verse reveals God’s plan in the ark, the ark can be a representation of Christ in that both their purposes were to save God’s people. Just as the ark only contained one door, there is only one door into heaven. Not only is Jesus the only way but He specifically calls Himself the door as well, “Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.” (John 10:7-8) We also find that there is security both in the ark and in Jesus, the ark refused to sink, it sheltered those inside, bringing a means to save God’s chose people. Countless times in the bible we hear of Jesus being the truth, His words, are true, and there is security in His promise, we are guaranteed inheritance in Jesus Christ. Like the ark Noah represents a type of Christ in that he, walked in close communion with the Father all his life (Genesis 6:9), he was a just man (Genesis 6:9), he found grace in the eyes of the Lord, (Genesis 6:8). Even Moses name means, “rest” foreshadowing the savior bringing rest to God’s people. Genesis five verse twenty-nine says that Lamech named his son Noah and that he will comfort us in the labor and painful toil of our hands cause by the ground the Lord has cursed. In all these similarities it I believe it is apparent that Noah and the ark are a type of Christ. Just like Jesus they saved man from a fallen and sinful world.
The last type of Christ I want to cover is Joseph, the son of Jacob.
Right from the start it seems that the Lord showed Joseph favor. Among all his brothers his father loved Joseph because he was from Rachel, his beloved wife. Joseph is noted as a being a successful man because the Lord was with him. (Genesis 39:2) Joseph lived a pretty extraordinary life and too me best fits the role than the other types mentioned before. His own brothers sold him out, because he was favored by his father, they plotted to kill young Joseph. Joseph never acted out towards his brothers, when the decision was made to sell him, he was sold for the wage of slave, just like Jesus. He was sold to Potiphar, an Egyptian, and captain of the Pharaoh’s guard. Again we see the Lord’s hand on Joseph because it wasn’t before very long that he was set over Potiphar’s entire house. Potiphar did not do this for just any reason; he saw that the Lord was with Joseph. Joseph was given an easy opportunity to slip into sin when Potiphar’s wife tried to sleep with him. Even when it was likely that no one would know, Joseph fled from sin. Joseph eventually became ruler over Egypt, next to the Pharaoh he was over all that Pharaoh had. When Joseph’s family came to him during the famine, Joseph showed unmerited favor towards them. He gave them all the food they could eat and eventually brought them to Egypt where they could live in the land. In every aspect of Joseph’s life he represents Christ. Christ too was rejected, elevated to a position over all things, a redeemer, savior, and forgiver. They both possessed a character of great integrity I believe Jesus and Joseph were very much
alike.
Looking at all these different types, shadows, and Christophanies we see that God always had a redemptive place. God is love and within that love, there is always protection, provision, and help. He did not leave man alone to his own devices; He is always encouraging man to get on the right path, even when chastisement is necessary. In Adam we see the contrast of Christ, in Noah and the ark we see a savior, and in Joseph we see forgiveness and redemption. It is also possible that Jesus Himself has been working being the scenes in the Old Testament as Melchizedek, the angels that appeared to Abraham, and the man who wrestled with Jacob. I believe that even without Jesus and His work on the cross that we have many events and people that point us to God and salvation. Even within the genealogy of Adam we see God’s redemptive plan. When you place the names of Adams line one after another, father to son it reads Adam, Seth, Enosh, Henan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, and Noah. If we replace the names with the meaning of the word it reads, “man appointed mortal sorrow the blessed God shall come down teaching his death shall bring despairing comfort and rest.” There it is, the very Gospel of Jesus written in the names of the decedents of Adam. We can see from all these things that God is sovereign; we can see He is in control and He loves us. What do we need to worry about when the God of all comfort is on our side?
Bibliography
1. Morris, Henry M. The Genesis Record: A Scientific and Devotional Commentary on the Book of Beginnings. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1976. PDF.
2. Smith, Jay. "Bible Summary." Bible Summary. Ultimate Bible Summary Collection, n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2014. .
3. MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Study Bible: NKJV: New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997. Print.
4. Krell, Keith. ""A Divine Encounter" | Bible.org." Bible.org. THE BOOK OF BEGINNINGS: GENESIS, 14 Nov. 2006. Web. 11 Apr. 2014. .
5. Wight, Fred. Devotional Studies of Old Testament Types. Chicago: Moody, 1956. PDF.
thirty-six the redemption plan of God as well as the establishing of His nation Israel, and in chapters thirty-seven through fifty God’s protection and blessing over his children as well as His sovereignty in their lives. (Smith) However these three categories can be expounded upon greatly as many events take place that shape the course of human history. Within these three categories several stories are told revealing God’s loving and protective nature. We see the line from Adam all the way to Abraham who God makes His covenant with, from there we see the lines of Abraham blessed as well as the promises of God true. Throughout Genesis we find a few different representations of Christ and God’s redemptive plan for man kind in Christophanies, types, and shadows of Christ. A Christophany is a manifestation of Jesus Christ in the Old Testament period; these manifestations are tangible to the senses. A type, or shadow of Christ, could be a person, event, or even sentence, which demonstrates aspects of Christ or his revelation revealed in the New Testament. We find three separate Christophanies in Genesis, however it cannot be proved that Christ was actually involved in these events; when Abram encounters Melchizedek, (Genesis 14) when Abram speaks with The LORD at his home, (Genesis 18) and when Jacob gets in a all-night long brawl with God. (Genesis 32) I believe a few types of Christ found in Genesis are Adam, Noah, and Joseph.
The first Christophany that appears in the book of Genesis can be found in chapter fourteen. This is a fascinating encounter with a man named Melchizedek, the king of Salem and priest of the Most High God. There is no mention of Melchizedek actually being a God, however I chose to place this meeting in the category of Christophany because I personally want to believe that he is. Melchizedek possesses strikingly similar characteristics to Christ, which leads me to believe this biblical character may have been a Christophany in Genesis. His title, king of Salem means that he is the king of peace, not only this, but the name Melchizedek, can be translated, king of righteousness. (Morris 330) He is the first mentioned priest of the bible also this situation being the first to mention peace. He was without father, without mother, without genealogy, and had neither beginning of days nor an end of life. (Hebrews 7:3) From the sound of this it seems that Melchizedek was eternal, not only this but in his encounter with Abram he offered bread and wine as a sign of love. We know from Hebrews that the greater being blesses the lesser and that’s exactly what we find Melchizedek doing here in chapter fourteen of Genesis. All these things lead me to believe that Melchizedek is a Christophany found in the book of Genesis, however I cannot be certain, the main reason I hold to this belief is that he did not have a beginning nor end.
The next Christophany found in Genesis is recorded in chapter eighteen, The LORD appeared to Abraham as he sat in the doorway of his home. The first verse clearly indicates that this was an appearance of God, whereas the second verse indicates that He came in the appearance of man. (Morris 350) Abraham realized that these were no normal men and immediately ran to greet them; he bowed before them, and showed them hospitality. (Krell) Abraham not only hosted them speedily but he did so with the best available food for his guests. We cannot be certain whether or not Abraham realized this man before him was God, however by the text we can be certain. God told Abraham that his wife Sarah would give birth to son and through him the nations would be blessed as well as the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. We are specifically told this character is God but on top of that we see his omniscience.
The last Christophany found in Genesis takes place in chapter thirty-two, right before his encounter with his brother Esau. Jacob and his family are traveling back home and he is fearful his brother is harboring bitterness towards him. He stops for the night and was left alone; it was here that he rested with a man all night till the break of day. It became clear to the man that Jacob would not relent, so he touched his thigh and it came out of joint. Jacob still not letting the man go, not without a blessing that is. The man blatantly tells Jacob he has wrestled with God and gives him a new name, Israel. After the whole even Jacob, now called Israel, names the place Peniel, because he saw God face to face and his life was preserved. (Genesis 32:30) Just reading this portion of scripture it becomes clear that Jacob met with God. Here we can see again the greater blessing the lesser as God had blessed Jacob for his persistence. (Morris 512) John chapter one, verse eighteen says that no man has seen God at any time. Clearly Jacob said however that he saw God face to face, similarly, Abraham spoke face to face with God in his home. Is this a blatant contradiction? I believe that it is possible to deduce that these two men were both Jesus, which intern would make them God. It is also confirmed that Jesus did have a physical form, therefore is possible that these two incidents were Jesus Christ revealing Himself in the book of Genesis.
This concludes the various Christophanies found in Genesis, however there a numbers types and shadows of Christ and his redemptive plan. I will cover only a few of them that sparked special interest in me. First we have Adam, the first man. It makes sense that Adam would be a type of Christ by contrast rather than comparison, in that he was the first man and Jesus is called the “last Adam.” (Wight 1) All men come from Adam and therefore men associate with Adam being a sinful creature, whereas all saved men can and should reflect Christ. First Corinthians chapter fifteen verse twenty-two says that we were dead in Adam but we are alive in Christ. While Adam’s one act had great and terrible consequences upon creation Jesus’ one act granted a tremendous gift of grace and salvation to creation. This act that Adam performed was sinful, Jesus Christ performed an act that was righteous. Also this act was out of direct disobedience to God, Jesus acted in obedience, in dying on the cross. There are also some striking similarities between the two, Adam was in a way a unique son of God, because he was created without sin his character would have resembled that of Jesus’. Adam was also the husband to eve, just as Jesus was the husband to the church. Adam was the head of humanity, so-to-speak, being the first man it was up to him to teach his kids and the human race that followed, likewise Jesus is the head of the church, as Christians we look to Jesus as our model and strive to be like Him. Adam is a type of Christ because his story points the way to Christ; even through his failures he contrasts Jesus perfect nature. We are able to see from Adam there was only death, judgment, and condemnation. Jesus, being similar, but yet so different brought life, grace, justification, and righteousness. It would be difficult to realize Adam’s pointing to Jesus without being conscious of the New Testament, however looking over everything we see this character clearly showing the need for Jesus in Genesis.
Jesus was the savior and redeemer of all men, much like Noah and his ark, another type of Christ found in Genesis. This type of Christ is more than just the man; it includes the ark as well. Clearly the ark and Jesus had the same purpose. “I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall go into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you.” (Genesis 6:18) This verse reveals God’s plan in the ark, the ark can be a representation of Christ in that both their purposes were to save God’s people. Just as the ark only contained one door, there is only one door into heaven. Not only is Jesus the only way but He specifically calls Himself the door as well, “Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.” (John 10:7-8) We also find that there is security both in the ark and in Jesus, the ark refused to sink, it sheltered those inside, bringing a means to save God’s chose people. Countless times in the bible we hear of Jesus being the truth, His words, are true, and there is security in His promise, we are guaranteed inheritance in Jesus Christ. Like the ark Noah represents a type of Christ in that he, walked in close communion with the Father all his life (Genesis 6:9), he was a just man (Genesis 6:9), he found grace in the eyes of the Lord, (Genesis 6:8). Even Moses name means, “rest” foreshadowing the savior bringing rest to God’s people. Genesis five verse twenty-nine says that Lamech named his son Noah and that he will comfort us in the labor and painful toil of our hands cause by the ground the Lord has cursed. In all these similarities it I believe it is apparent that Noah and the ark are a type of Christ. Just like Jesus they saved man from a fallen and sinful world.
The last type of Christ I want to cover is Joseph, the son of Jacob.
Right from the start it seems that the Lord showed Joseph favor. Among all his brothers his father loved Joseph because he was from Rachel, his beloved wife. Joseph is noted as a being a successful man because the Lord was with him. (Genesis 39:2) Joseph lived a pretty extraordinary life and too me best fits the role than the other types mentioned before. His own brothers sold him out, because he was favored by his father, they plotted to kill young Joseph. Joseph never acted out towards his brothers, when the decision was made to sell him, he was sold for the wage of slave, just like Jesus. He was sold to Potiphar, an Egyptian, and captain of the Pharaoh’s guard. Again we see the Lord’s hand on Joseph because it wasn’t before very long that he was set over Potiphar’s entire house. Potiphar did not do this for just any reason; he saw that the Lord was with Joseph. Joseph was given an easy opportunity to slip into sin when Potiphar’s wife tried to sleep with him. Even when it was likely that no one would know, Joseph fled from sin. Joseph eventually became ruler over Egypt, next to the Pharaoh he was over all that Pharaoh had. When Joseph’s family came to him during the famine, Joseph showed unmerited favor towards them. He gave them all the food they could eat and eventually brought them to Egypt where they could live in the land. In every aspect of Joseph’s life he represents Christ. Christ too was rejected, elevated to a position over all things, a redeemer, savior, and forgiver. They both possessed a character of great integrity I believe Jesus and Joseph were very much
alike.
Looking at all these different types, shadows, and Christophanies we see that God always had a redemptive place. God is love and within that love, there is always protection, provision, and help. He did not leave man alone to his own devices; He is always encouraging man to get on the right path, even when chastisement is necessary. In Adam we see the contrast of Christ, in Noah and the ark we see a savior, and in Joseph we see forgiveness and redemption. It is also possible that Jesus Himself has been working being the scenes in the Old Testament as Melchizedek, the angels that appeared to Abraham, and the man who wrestled with Jacob. I believe that even without Jesus and His work on the cross that we have many events and people that point us to God and salvation. Even within the genealogy of Adam we see God’s redemptive plan. When you place the names of Adams line one after another, father to son it reads Adam, Seth, Enosh, Henan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, and Noah. If we replace the names with the meaning of the word it reads, “man appointed mortal sorrow the blessed God shall come down teaching his death shall bring despairing comfort and rest.” There it is, the very Gospel of Jesus written in the names of the decedents of Adam. We can see from all these things that God is sovereign; we can see He is in control and He loves us. What do we need to worry about when the God of all comfort is on our side?
Bibliography
1. Morris, Henry M. The Genesis Record: A Scientific and Devotional Commentary on the Book of Beginnings. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1976. PDF.
2. Smith, Jay. "Bible Summary." Bible Summary. Ultimate Bible Summary Collection, n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2014. .
3. MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Study Bible: NKJV: New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997. Print.
4. Krell, Keith. ""A Divine Encounter" | Bible.org." Bible.org. THE BOOK OF BEGINNINGS: GENESIS, 14 Nov. 2006. Web. 11 Apr. 2014. .
5. Wight, Fred. Devotional Studies of Old Testament Types. Chicago: Moody, 1956. PDF.