Chapter 3: Slave in a Foreign Land

Egypt was a world unlike anything Joseph had known. Towering monuments rose against the sky. The air smelled of incense and the Nile. The language was foreign, the gods were foreign, and Joseph was now property - a Hebrew slave with no name, no family, no future.

He was taken to the house of Potiphar, a powerful man who served as captain of Pharaoh's guard. There, Joseph was put to work among the servants.

But something set Joseph apart. Whatever task he was given, it prospered. Whatever he touched seemed to flourish. Potiphar noticed. The fields yielded more. The household ran smoothly. There was an unseen hand on this young Hebrew, and Potiphar was wise enough to recognize it.

POTIPHAR“I do not know what god you serve, but his favor rests on you. From this day, you will oversee my entire household. All that I have is in your hand.”

Joseph rose from slave to steward. He managed the servants, the livestock, the grain, the accounts. Potiphar entrusted everything to him and concerned himself with nothing except the food he ate.

The Lord was with Joseph. Even in exile, even in chains, the blessing followed him.

Joseph worked faithfully. He did not grow bitter. He did not curse the God of his fathers. In the silence of his heart, he remembered the dreams - the sheaves bowing, the stars bowing - and he held on.

He did not know how those dreams would come to pass. He only knew that the God who gave them had not abandoned him.

But favor in a foreign land is a dangerous thing. And not everyone in Potiphar's house looked upon Joseph with pure intentions.