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as a ruler. The secret of his success lies in the sentence, “And the Lord was with Joseph.” All the circumstances which sur rounded him were seemingly against him, but “He that was for him was more than they all that were against him.” In the midst of a fiery trial and a fierce fight Joseph conquered. He would not be un faithful to his master. He would not be untrue to God. Into such straits are God’s servants often brought. When David was in jeopardy and being hunted like a rabbit, he maintained his integrity, but when he was lifted to the throne he fell a victim to his lust. The elevation of Joseph in tensified his feeling of responsibility and loyalty. He suffered for his faithfulness but he maintained his character. Joseph’s life in prison was a hard one. His com pensation for his loyalty to truth was a dirty dungeon. His feet were bound with fetters. The oppression was terrible. “Iron entered his soul,” but his heart was right, and again, it is said, “God was with him.” Joseph’s captivity offered him an oppor tunity to witness a good confession. He took up his service in the prison with the same zeal to devotion that he did in Poti- phar’s house. God’s schools are strangely selected. We choose for our children places of greatest comfort. We want them re lieved of every trial. God puts His chil dren into testing places. He causes them to profit by experience in suffering. God burns the barriers to a holy, strong, peace ful life, by the fires of fierce persecution. Jacob had to be broken down. Moses had to be weaned from Egypt. David had to be driven into the secret place of the Most High. Daniel had to know a lions’ den, and the Hebrew children the furnace of Are. Joseph was learning how to rule men by submitting to. the rule of a Divine power. “It came to pass.” Something is sure to come to pass when God is in a man’s life. Two distinguished people are added to the number of prisoners. Joseph served them. The severity of his sentence is miti
gated by the privilege Of service. He finds joy in ministering to those who suffer. There is no way in which the rugged path of our life may be smoothed like that of ministering to those in need. Who could have thought that the introduction of those two characters would be the event which would become the stepping stone to the elevation of Joseph to the throne of Egypt. Often it is the commonplace happening in a daily life which becomes the turning point for the ascent or descent of a life, to the high and holy or to the deep and damn able. The turning point in Joseph’s life lies in a dream. He had himself been a dreamer and dreams influenced his whole life and he had learned that interpreta tions belong to God. “He revealeth the deep and secret things” (Dan. 2:22). Thirteen years have passed since the young soul of Joseph was stirred by those dreams which awakened him to a con sciousness of a great future in store for him. He is seemingly farther from the realization of them than he was when he was invested with boyish authority over some of his brethren. From the human standpoint all things are working together for ill to him. There had been the hatred of his brothers; the malice of Potiphar’s 'wife; and the unconcern of those to whom he had ministered. No ray of hope breaks the monotony of his daily servitude, but it always is darkest just before daylight. God’s grace had been sufficient; the temp tations were not beyond his power to en dure. God had enabled him to endure all and yet to stand. He had remained a loyal servant of God and of men for the Lord’s sake. The Scripture well says, “In due time we shall reap if we faint not,” and “To every purpose there is a time.” The scene shifts to the court of the king of Egypt. Again God moves in a mys terious way to accomplish His plan in the life of His chosen one. This time it is the king who dreams, a strange, weird, un- L esson VI— M ay 11, 1913. Golden Text—1 Pet. 5:5.
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