Two Biblical characters: Jesus, the son of God, and Joseph, the son of Jacob – did you know that, at some point, they have something in common?
Yes. Joseph had the Christlikeness kind of character.
There’s a Joseph-Jesus kind of pattern in the Bible when we study both the Old and New Testament thoroughly.
Joseph’s story can be found in the Old Testament (particularly in Genesis; it started from Genesis 37), and the life of Jesus has been told in the four books of the New Testament, namely: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
The Bible is filled with surprising nuggets of wisdom! Some patterns, like this Joseph-Jesus pattern, make the Old and New Testament connect. Therefore, these two can’t be separated from one another!
A bible without the Old Testament is not a bible at all.
And God is always true to His word.
Who is Joseph
Joseph is the son of Jacob and Rachel (Jacob’s most beloved wife). Thus, Jacob’s grandfather is Isaac, and his great grandfather is Abraham. He lived in the land of Canaan with his ten half-brothers, one full brother, and a half-sister.
He is a man of great character, an individual who is discreet and wise. He would listen to his father’s instructions and would fear the Lord.
Among all children, Joseph is the most preferred son of Jacob. Jacob loved Joseph more than all his children, but this caused trouble and attracted jealousy among his other sons.
How Joseph Is Connected to Jesus
Jesus is connected to Joseph when Jacob (Joseph’s father) is included in the genealogy of Christ as stated in Matthew 1:1-17.
Therefore, Joseph is related to Jesus through Jacob. Although Judah was next to Jacob in the lineage of Christ, still, Joseph is associated with Jacob by blood.
Joseph’s Life In A Nutshell
Joseph was Rachel’s firstborn and Jacob’s eleventh son. He honored his parents, listened to his father’s instructions, and feared the Lord.
There’s a reason why Joseph is the most loved son of any of his brothers. He was more obedient to his father’s moral teachings than any of his brethren. Of all the sons, he was so favored by his father that he was given a long coat of many colors.
When he was 17, he had two dreams that made his brothers grow in anger because both of the dreams represent his supremacy, and it made his brothers so furious.
Because Joseph’s half brothers are so envious, most of them plotted to kill him, except for Reuben. Jacob was so anxious that he can’t see his children where they went, so he sent Joseph to look after his brothers.
Although Joseph loves his brothers, his brothers didn’t treat him the same. Instead, he was thrown into an empty pit. Then, his brothers saw a group of merchants with their camels about to go to Egypt, and Judah sold Joseph to these merchants.
Joseph was sold to Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh’s guard. Later, Joseph became Potiphar’s servant and his household’s superintendent.
There came a time when Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce Joseph, which he refused. Angered when Joseph chose to run away from her, she made a false accusation of rape, which made Joseph end up in prison.
In prison, he met a cup-bearer and chief baker. He was able to interpret his inmates’ dreams. Two years after, the cup-bearer remembered Joseph for interpreting the dream. Thus, it paved the way for Joseph to become a vizier when he solved the Pharaoh’s dream, signifying seven years of gain and seven years of famine.
When the same famine happened in Canaan, Joseph’s brother went from Canaan to Egypt to obtain food. They bow themselves before Joseph but do not recognize him.
After Joseph achieves reconciliation with all of his brothers, he invited Jacob’s whole household to come to Goshen in Egypt, where a settlement was provided for the entire family.
Things That Jesus and Joseph Have In Common
Joseph had many things in common with Christ. He is a man of great character, an individual who would always listen to his father’s instructions and would fear the Lord.
Here’s the list of things Jesus and Joseph have in common:
| Joseph | Jesus |
| Joseph is the most beloved son of his father, Jacob. It’s also because he’s the firstborn son of Rachel, Jacob’s most beloved wife, other than being the kindest son of Jacob. | Jesus is the beloved Son of God, the Father. Remember when Jesus let Himself be baptized by John the Baptist in the water, the Lord said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” |
| Joseph can interpret dreams and tell what will happen in the future according to those dreams. | Jesus can tell and prophesy what will happen in the future. |
| Joseph was sent to his brethren by his father. | Jesus was sent to us by the Almighty Father. |
| Joseph was being envied and criticized by his brothers. | Jesus was being envied and criticized by the Pharisees and the Scribes, the High Priests, or the religious leaders during His time. |
| Joseph was betrayed by his Jewish brothers at the hands of the Gentiles. | Jesus was also betrayed by one of His Jewish brethren at the hands of the Gentiles. |
| Joseph has been sold by his half-brother, Judah, for twenty pieces of silver. | Judas has sold Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. |
| Joseph has been stripped of his robe. | Jesus has been stripped of his robe. |
| Joseph’s clothes, which were drenched by goat’s blood, was taken as proof that he’s no longer in the pit. | Jesus’ clothes, which were drenched by His blood, was taken as proof that He’s no longer in the tomb. |
| Joseph successfully resisted temptation by choosing to run away from Potiphar’s wife. | Jesus successfully resisted the temptation when He was in the wilderness. |
| Joseph was condemned with two criminals – one who lived (cup-bearer) while the other died (chief baker). | Jesus was condemned with two criminals – one who lived (the one brought by Christ to paradise) while the other died. |
Lessons We Can Learn From Joseph
We all know that all the trouble that Joseph had been through started from his brothers’ jealousy. But in the end, he was able to forgive his brothers and reconcile with them.
God, with His infinite wisdom, let such things happen to Joseph for some profound reason. By being sold by his brethren into Egypt, Joseph became a savior to his father’s family.
Like Joseph, we should also walk with God and obtain that Christlike character: to have a forgiving heart, to be obedient to parents, to be compassionate for others’ needs, and to live according to the will of the Lord.
About the author
Chasing Hope is an inspiring podcast about the Christian life where it talks about faith, hope, and some Christian history. Besides spiritual life topics, the podcast also talks about career, family, and plenty of areas that concern the listener.
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