Both Hanukkah and Christmas were observed this past week in Israel. Hanukkah is an eight-day celebration which is still being observed and will conclude on Monday, December 30, 2019. Hanukkah remembers the rededication of the altar and Temple during the second century BC and Christmas remembers the birth of the Messiah with the current calendar revolving around his birth year (approximately).
Both Hanukkah and Christmas are joyous holidays filled with meaningful celebrations, however, they are also historical events that were surrounded with pain, sadness, and death. Although Hanukkah marks the rededication of the altar and Temple it followed years of occupation and oppression by the Seleucid Greeks who ruled over Jerusalem and its people while desecrating the altar of the Temple. And although Christmas remembers the birth of the Son of God, we also remember the baby boys who were killed in Bethlehem because of Herod’s jealousy and desire to crush the prophecy of the Jewish Messiah who was to be King (Matt. 2:1-23).
Why does God allow His people to go through such trying and difficult experiences in life? God could have protected the Jews of Judea from the Seleucid Greeks if He wanted to but He allowed His people to be oppressed for a time. God could have allowed the Messiah to be born in Bethlehem without any other children being killed, however, he allowed the slaughter of the baby boys of Bethlehem.
Why Does God Allow Suffering?
So much pain and suffering surround these two holidays yet we remember that ultimate good for the Jewish people and the world was produced through both of these events. The problem of human suffering is a very challenging subject to understand. There are many times in life when human suffering seems pointless and we are left wondering why. Is there a good reason for human suffering?
This subject of human suffering is often mysterious and it is difficult to know exactly why things happen in life, however, in this week’s Torah Portion we see a glimpse of why God allows suffering. As we continue to read the story of Joseph in the book of Genesis, we arrive at a pivotal point in Joseph’s life when circumstances began to change for the better:
Now it happened at the end of two full years that Pharaoh had a dream, and behold, he was standing by the Nile. – Gen. 41:1
Pharaoh had a series of dreams and none of his magicians were able to interpret these dreams for him. It was at that time that the chief cupbearer to Pharaoh remembered how Joseph was used to interpret his own dream and the cupbearer mentioned Joseph before Pharaoh. Joseph was brought up from the dungeon and released from prison in order to interpret Pharaoh’s dreams. Joseph was then appointed a ruler over Egypt, second only to Pharaoh.
Joseph had endured much suffering in his life. From the age of seventeen (Gen. 37:2) until the age of thirty (Gen. 41:46) Joseph was betrayed by his own brothers, sold into slavery, and falsely accused and imprisoned. Thirteen years of Joseph’s life were taken from him without warning. Joseph had no idea when his suffering and imprisonment was going to end but finally the day came and he was released from prison.
A Defining Moment In Time
We do not know exactly how many years Joseph was in prison during those first thirteen years in Egypt but we simply read in Genesis 41:1 ויהי מקץ שנתים ימים – Vayehi Miketz Shanatayim Yamim – “Now it happened at the end of two years of days…” The two years spoken of here could have been the total time that Joseph was in prison or simply the time that had elapsed since the cupbearer to Pharaoh had been released and restored to his position.
Since this phrase in Genesis 41:1 immediately follows after the verse that mentions how the chief cupbearer forgot about Joseph (Gen. 40:23), it makes the best contextual sense that it had been two years since Joseph interpreted the dreams for the chief baker and chief cupbearer. Either way, there was a particular night when Pharaoh had specific dreams and a particular day when Joseph was released from the prison, used as God’s instrument to interpret those dreams, and be appointed as a ruler in Egypt.
Joseph’s release from prison and promotion to second in command in the kingdom of Egypt was surely a great day of celebration for Joseph, however, why was Joseph in prison in the first place? Joseph had lived thirteen years of his life either as a slave or as a prisoner. Joseph did not choose either of these situations in life, rather these situations were forced upon him. Why did God allow Joseph to suffer for thirteen long years?
The Providence of God
We know from Joseph’s own account how he understood that God had sent him ahead of his brothers into Egypt in order to preserve life through the revelation that he was given regarding Pharaoh’s dreams (Gen. 45:5). We read further in the book of Psalms how the LORD had orchestrated the events of those years and had sent Joseph down to Egypt as a slave:
And He called for a famine upon the land; He broke the whole staff of bread. He sent a man before them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave. They afflicted his feet with fetters, he himself was laid in irons; until the time that his word came to pass, the Word of the LORD tested him. The king sent and released him, the ruler of peoples, and set him free. He made him lord of his house and ruler over all his possessions, to imprison his princes at will, that he might teach his elders wisdom. – Psalm 105:16-22
Although the brothers of Joseph had meant it for evil when they sold him into slavery, God had a plan for Joseph in Egypt that was far beyond the plans of man.
The wording of the verses above are very descriptive. In explaining Joseph’s enslavement and imprisonment, the Scriptures speak of his feet being in fetters and “…he himself was laid in irons;…” This phrase in Hebrew is ברזל באה נפשו – Barzel Ba’ah Nafsho, literally “his soul was brought into iron!” The words paint a picture beyond the physical confinement of slavery and imprisonment to illustrate how Joseph’s very soul was locked up in confinement throughout those thirteen years.
God’s Appointed Word
It seems strange to the natural mind why God would take an innocent man and send him to a foreign land in order to spend thirteen years of his life as a slave and a prisoner, however, God had a plan. We read in Psalm 105:19 how God used those years when Joseph’s soul was in iron to prepare him for a specific time: עד עת בוא דברו אמרת יהוה צפרתהו – Ad Et Bo Devaro Imrat Adonai Tsrafatehu – “…until the time that his word came to pass, the Word of the LORD tested him.” God had a very specific plan for Joseph with a specific time table which God Himself was working out.
We read in Psalm 105:19 how the Word of the LORD tested Joseph. The word for “tested” in this verse is the Hebrew root word צרף – Tsaraf which literally means to smelt, refine, or test. The Word of God was literally refining Jospeh during those thirteen years until the exact time that God was ready for him to move on to the next phase which He had prepared for Joseph as a leader in Egypt.
God’s Refining Word
Many of us try to plan the best we can for the future. We want to be wise and make the most of our days which is a good thing, however, the reality is that none of us know what the future will bring. The trials and sufferings in this life can be used to strengthen and prepare us for greater things in the future, if we will let the Word of God refine us through the difficult days of uncertainty.
The life of Joseph is a clear picture of how God uses the trials and struggles in this world to build our faith and refine us. We also read in the New Testament regarding the importance of responding to life’s trials with a spiritual mindset and a positive view toward the future:
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. – James 1:2-4
Without the knowledge of God and the indwelling Holy Spirit it is easy to become angry and frustrated when we face trials and suffering in this world, however, we are exhorted in the Scriptures to count it all joy and to press forward in faith knowing that God’s Word is refining us and He is working in us for His good pleasure.
Each year we celebrate Hanukkah and Christmas with the understanding that God brings beautiful redemption out of broken and difficult circumstances. We must always remember that God is still on His throne even during the challenges of life. As we look to God during times of trials and suffering, let us also allow His Word to refine us and perfect us so that God can complete His plans for our lives in this world.
Shabbat Shalom!
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*All Scripture take from NASB Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Torah Portion: Gen. 41:1-44:17
Haftara: 1 Kings 3:15 – 1 Kings 4:1
Shabbat Rosh Chodesh Hanukkah: Zech. 2:14-4:7
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