Humble Thyself in the Sight of the Lord (Genesis 41:15-45)

We have a long scripture passage today, so brace yourselves. But I feel that it’s important to read this passage in its entirety in order to get the full thrust of it.

In the first part of this passage (vv. 15-36), Joseph gives glory to God over and over again, saying “It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer” (v.16), and “God has shown to Pharaoh what He is about to do” (v. 25, 28). Joseph humbles himself in the sight of the Lord and makes sure that God is the one who gets all the glory.

Then, in the second part of this passage (vv. 37-45), God lifts Joseph up so high that “only as regards the throne” will Pharaoh be considered greater than Joseph (v. 40).

This is perhaps the second greatest example in Scripture of someone humbling themselves in the sight of the Lord and God lifting them up. Jesus is of course the greatest example! Other examples include David, Paul, Abraham, Isaiah, Mary, Ruth, Solomon, and many more.

Please read Genesis 41:15-45.

Pharaoh is the most powerful person in the world, but he cannot interpret this dream, and none of his advisors can help. So he calls a prisoner before him in desperation and asks for his help.

Joseph has a God-given gift—he can interpret dreams. He has already done this with the cupbearer and the baker, and he probably had the right interpretation of his own dreams as a child, which is why his brothers hated him. A selfish person in this position would boast, “yes Pharaoh, I will interpret your dreams.” But Joseph gives all the glory to God. If Joseph can do anything, it’s because God has given him that gift. Such humility before the Lord is rare, which is unfortunate because God greatly blesses it!

Joseph goes from a lowly prisoner to the second-most powerful person in the known world. And given that Pharaoh doesn’t really concern himself much with the running of the kingdom, Joseph is basically acting as king of the strongest nation in the world. How did he get here? God raised him up because he humbled himself before the Lord.

This is a promise found throughout Scripture, but popularly articulated in Bob Hudson’s classic worship song, “Humble Thyself in the Sight of the Lord and He Shall Lift You Up.”

This simple refrain was true for Joseph, just as it was true for David, Paul, Abraham, Isaiah, Mary, Ruth, Solomon, and many others. It can be true for you as well.