The Reward Of Pharaoh To Joseph For Interpreting His Dream
Rebecca Donnelly
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Many at times, we get hurt by the fact that people whom we have helped had turned their backs or betrayed us. We forget that when we do good to others, it can only be remembered and rewarded by God at the right time. When we show kindness in either financial or material way, is to let others praise God Almighty for providing in times of their needs. The Bible states in Matthew 5:16 - "Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven". This shows that when we do good in the form of giving money, advice, praying for others and even training people to be better than us, we are doing it so that God's glory can be seen in others as well. Therefore, good deeds are the fruits we bear today and reap or harvest at a later time which can be today or tomorrow depending on the seed you have sown for God.
Jesus came to this earth to only perform good deeds and never asked anything in return but for us to show the same kindness unto others (Ephesians 4:32 - "And be you kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven you"). Some of the works he did for mankind that you and I are benefitting today is paying the ultimate price for our sins by allowing himself to be killed on the cross. It is written that because of what Jesus Christ did (good deeds), he was given the power both in heaven, on earth and under the earth as a reward from God (Philippians 2:9-11). This shows that when we do good unto others, we must do it for God so that we will receive our reward from the Father when the time comes.
The Bible states that because of the kindness that Jonathan showed unto David, his son, Mephibosheth received a blessing as a reward from God through David (2 Samuel 9:3 - " The king then asked him, "Is anyone still alive from Saul's family? If so, I want to show God's kindness to them." Ziba replied, "Yes, one of Jonathan's sons is still alive. He is crippled in both feet."). This indicates that David was not the one that showed kindness to the house of Saul but God did and David acknowledged it in his statement. What I want to say is that good deeds comes along with generational blessings and that when you do not receive any reward for what you have done for others today, your children or great grandchildren can benefit. Let's not forget that the Gibeonites asked David to deliver seven sons from the house of Saul before they bless the inheritance of the Lord (2 Samuel 21:3-4). David spared the life of Mephibosheth again, because of the kindness the father showed to David (2 Samuel 21: 7 - " But the King spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of the LORD'S oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul").
All the Holy Spirit wants us to know is that good deeds are indeed only rewarded by God not man but God still uses man to accomplish his purposes. When we show kindness to people, we should not boast or throw in the face of those we help, if we do that, God instead of rewarding us, will rather bring us pain and misery. You are therefore advised to give in humility so that glory will still go to the Father. Mathew 6:1-4 - "Take heed that you give not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise you have no reward of your Father who is in heaven. Therefore when you give your alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward .............".
The good deeds of our Saviour, Jesus Christ shows that doing good never cuts your blessings. I want to assure you that your kindness to people will never go unrewarded by God, only if you did it for the Father's glory. We must also learn the act of listening to the Holy Spirit in our giving so that we do not give wrongly to miss what God has for us. Our good deeds must be done with wisdom from the Holy Spirit so that when you are paid back with evil, God will take over your pain and fight.
Another hero in the Bible was Joseph (Genesis 40), who used the talent God gave him wisely and at the right time, God rewarded him as a leader in Egypt. The Bible said that Joseph was gifted in interpreting of dreams. As part of Joseph's trails and building up by God, he was lied against and thrown in prison where he interpreted the dreams of the baker and the cup bearer of the King of Egypt. They were in prison because they committed an offense against their King. The interpretation of their dreams favoured only the Cup bearer and Joseph told him to remember him when he leaves the prison (Genesis 40:14 - "Only remember me, when it is well with you, and please do me the kindness to mention me to Pharaoh, and so get me out of this house"). I want to state that because it is not man who remembers and reward your kindness, the cup bearer forgot Joseph when he was called back again by the King (Genesis 40:20-23). When the time came God rewarded Joseph for his faithfulness and kindness to people through Pharaoh's dream and the cup bearer because God was the one who has remembered him (Genesis 41).
Let me also refresh your memory with the story of Dorcas in the Bible who was always showing kindness to the widows in the city of Joppa (Acts 9:36-42). The Bible states that when Dorcas became sick and died, Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ raised her up from the dead. Peter prayed to God and she was remembered and rewarded with life once again. The widows who were weeping could not do anything because they did not have the power to reward her for all the clothes she had made for them until Peter came in and prayed to God for him to remember the kindness of Dorcas to the people of Joppa.
The Holy Spirit wants you to know that do good for God because he alone has the power to reward you. Do not also help people financially because you have but because your heart genuinely wants to do so. I hear people say a lot that, when you do good, witches and demons will attack you especially when you do not know the background of the person you are helping. I agree that principalities, witches and demons exist because we are not to be ignorant of the devices of the devil, but we must also know that when we give in direction of the Holy Spirit, God who created all these evil spirits, would preserve your going in and coming out.
The fact that we give does not mean that we will not go through trials, that is part of God testing your faith. Giving is other aspect of pleasing God. We should never say in our heart that I will never forgive this person because he/she showed me ingratitude for my kindness, if you do that, instead of receiving reward from God, you will rather endure pain. We should know that we as humans shows ingratitude to God, yet he still forgives us and blesses us beyond our imagination. Today, I pray this word will touch your heart to forgive those that have offended you by being ungrateful. If you forgive them, God will also forgive your sins and deal with those who have paid you back with evil. As to what punishment God gives to people who have been ungrateful to you, is not your concern, yours is to guide your heart so that bitters towards another person does not stay in your heart.
Finally, am saying that the Holy Spirit wants you to know that man will always disappoint himself and so how much more others and therefore no one is to hold grudge against any that he or she has done good for. We must do good for God and He alone in his infinite mercy and divine wisdom will help you in time of need and trouble, Amen.
Here's an example from of the popular Bible versions of the different words used. The Bibles are the Christian Standard Bible (CSB), English Standard Version (ESV), New International Version (NIV), Authorized Standard Version (ASV), and the Revised Standard Version (RSV).
The root from which the word comes signifies to cut or scratch and was used for engraving or writing with a stylus. It seems to describe persons who wrote with a stylus on clay tablets, in this case the religious scribes or sacred writers who recorded and preserved the materials used in the Babylonian religious activities.
Sorcerer - is a rendering of the Hebrew mĕkaššĕpm and likely refers to the religious group known from Akkadian texts as kashshapu. The Hebrew term is an Akkadian loan word, and the Akkadian root kasapu means to practice sorcery or witchcraft.
These sorcerers employed their services for the benefit of the king and the kingdom. Sorcery or witchcraft of all kinds (benevolent or sinister) was widespread in the ancient world and was severely denounced in the Old Testament.
The word is used to delineate a class of priests, astrologers, magicians, soothsayers, or wise men. Study of the movements of the heavenly bodies was not performed primarily as a scientific enterprise, but this led the Chaldeans to record carefully the movements of the moon, stars, planets, and comets, an exercise that did have scientific value.
So, it seems this is the reason the term Chaldeans was used to describe all the different categories in verses 4, 5, and 10. The term wise men is also used to describe the different categories in six different verses.
But looking at verses 1 through 11. What is it that even the Chaldeans said that no mortal man could provide the king? The ability to not just interpret the dream but to tell the king what dreams he had.
If only the gods knew the dream, whoever revealed the dream must be in touch with the gods. Nebuchadnezzar probably thought, and rightly so, that since these astrologers claimed to be able to communicate with the spirit world, they should be able to discover the dream and its interpretation from the gods.
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