Remember Joseph, the dreamer? He's now in Egypt, and things are about to get really interesting. But not without some resistance. According to Ginzberg's retelling in Legends of the Jews, the chief butler—remember him, the one Joseph helped in prison?—describes Joseph contemptuously as a "slave." Why? To make it impossible for him to rise in the court. See, there was a law in Egypt: a slave could never be king, or even put his foot in a royal stirrup!
But Pharaoh, he's a different story. He's had this dream, this incredibly vivid dream, and none of his wise men can interpret it. He revokes the death sentence he’d initially issued against them and sends for Joseph. He even instructs his messengers to be gentle, to not "excite and confuse" Joseph so he can interpret the dream correctly.
So Joseph is brought hastily from the dungeon. But first, he shaves and puts on fresh clothes – raiment, the text says, brought to him by an angel from Paradise! Talk about a glow-up. Then he comes before Pharaoh.
Now, imagine this scene: Pharaoh on his royal throne, decked out in princely garments, a golden ephod (a type of priestly garment) sparkling on his chest, precious stones blazing like fire. The throne itself is covered in gold, silver, and onyx, with seventy steps leading up to it. Joseph must have been stunned!
There were all these customs surrounding the throne. A prince would ascend to the thirty-first step, and the king would descend thirty-six to meet him. An ordinary person would only go to the third step, with the king coming down four. And someone who knew all seventy languages could ascend all seventy steps. (Yes, seventy!)
When Joseph arrives, he bows low and ascends to the third step. Pharaoh, sitting on the fourth from the top, says, "O young man… tell me what events they are which the visions of my dreams foreshow. Tell me the truth, though it be sad and alarming."
But Joseph, ever wise, asks Pharaoh how he knows the interpretations of his wise men were false. Pharaoh's answer? "I saw the dream and its interpretation together, and therefore they cannot make a fool of me." Can you imagine the frustration?
Then, in a show of incredible humility, Joseph denies being an expert dream interpreter. "It is not in me," he says. "It is in the hand of God, and if it be the wish of God, He will permit me to announce tidings of peace to Pharaoh." And, the text points out, it was for this modesty that he was rewarded with sovereignty over Egypt. We see a similar sentiment in Daniel, who says his wisdom is not his own but comes from God.
Pharaoh then recounts his dream, but with omissions and inaccuracies, testing Joseph. But Joseph corrects him, piecing the dreams together perfectly! The text says this is because Joseph had the same dream at the same time.
Pharaoh, amazed, retells the dream in full detail, except he leaves out the word "Nile" when describing the seven lean cows because the Egyptians worshipped the Nile, and he didn't want to attribute anything evil to their god.
Joseph reveals the true interpretation: seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine. But originally, it was meant to be forty-two years of famine! As the story goes, God shortened it to two years because of Jacob's blessing when he came to Egypt. The other forty years fell upon the land during the time of the prophet Ezekiel, as we find in Midrash Rabbah.
Joseph doesn't just interpret; he provides signs. He predicts the birth of Pharaoh's son and the sudden death of his older son. And as Joseph leaves, the reports arrive, just as he said.
Pharaoh, convinced, asks his grandees and servants for advice on how to save the land. They all agree that Joseph's counsel is the only way. Pharaoh then proposes making Joseph ruler over the land.
The astrologers object. A slave? Over them? Pharaoh insists Joseph is not only free-born but of noble lineage. But the princes persist, reminding Pharaoh of the "immutable law" that a ruler must know all languages. This Hebrew only knows his own tongue!
Pharaoh relents, promising to examine Joseph. In the meantime, Joseph, fearing his master’s wife, has returned to his prison. Then, in a twist of fate, the angel Gabriel appears to Joseph in the night and teaches him all seventy languages, even changing his name to Jehoseph.
The next morning, Joseph, now fluent in every language, ascends all seventy steps of the throne. Pharaoh and his princes rejoice!
Pharaoh declares: "Thou shalt therefore be the second in the land after Pharaoh, and according unto thy word shall all my people go in and go out… only in the throne will I be greater than thou."
So, what do we take away from this story? It's a reminder that true wisdom and humility can open doors that seem impossible. It's a story about overcoming prejudice and rising above limitations. And it's a testament to the power of faith and the importance of listening to those who may seem unlikely sources of truth. It makes you wonder, doesn't it, what unexpected gifts might be waiting for us, just beyond the walls of our own perceived limitations?