Genesis 41
 

Joseph, the favorite son of Jacob, was hated by his brothers.  They sold Joseph to a caravan of slavetraders who took him from his home in Palestine to the land of Egypt .  There Potiphar, an official in the Egyptian government, purchased him.  After Potiphar’s wife falsely accused Joseph of attempting to commit adultery with her, he was thrown into prison.  God, however, did not forget Joseph.  After thirteen years of injustice, slavery, and imprisonment, God would change Joseph’s life forever. 
 

1. Why couldn’t the magicians and wise men interpret the dreams God had sent to Pharaoh? 
   
    
2. What application does this have for our world today? 
   
    
3. How did Joseph glorify God and display a God-pleasing character? 
   
    
4. For what reason(s) did Pharaoh suddenly elevate the slave Joseph to the number two position in the kingdom (see especially verse 38)? 
   
      
5. What does this say to us? 
   
      
6. As a powerful ruler, Joseph could have thought about seeking revenge on any number of people.  Who might some of them be? 
   
      
7. Do you know what Joseph did when he met his brothers again?  The story begins in Genesis 42. 
   
      
8. What can we learn from this? 
   
      
9. We often interpret Joseph’s life in view of how it turned out.  However, remember, he was nothing more than a Hebrew slave living in a foreign land.  What might have been going through his mind during those years? 
   
      
10. Does God always make the course of your life clear to you? 
    
       
11. Pharaoh gave Joseph the daughter of the priest of On as his wife.  How do you think Joseph handled being married to a wife who served idols? 
    
       
12. How do you think Potiphar’s wife felt when she heard that Joseph was second in command in ?