SCRIPTURE:

Romans 8:18
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

Jeremiah 29:11
11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

DEVO:

On this, the last day we discuss Joseph’s life, I want to point your attention to a very obscure and yet extremely powerful moment in his story. In Genesis 41:51-53, Joseph has two sons. One he names Manassah and the other Ephraim. Now, we could merely gloss over these verses and remark, “just another set of names I should never put on my potential-names-for-baby list.” However, in doing so we would lose a massive dose of encouragement God wants to impart to us through Joseph’s story.

Names are a very significant part of the Hebrew heritage. Today we tend to choose names for our children from family names that have been passed down generationally, combinations that simply sound nice together, or ones that are unique to anyone else in our lives. Hebrew parents, however, would go through a much more intentional and prayerful process of choosing names for their children. This is why names in the Bible carry profound meaning and purpose. They stand as an identifier for that child and a prophetic prescription of the impact that child is going to make in their family and in the world.

For this reason we can’t merely gloss over Joseph’s two sons’ names. Upon naming these sons, Joseph is giving us an afterward to his story and communicating to all who come after him that God is good even in the midst of our grief.

The name Manassah means “making to forget.” In Genesis 41:51-52, Joseph makes an important statement when he says, "God has made me forget all my hardships and all my father's house." As his son Ephraim is being born, Joseph declares, "God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction." The name Ephraim literally means, "making fruitful" so it is fitting that Joseph chose this moniker for his youngest son.

God made Joseph forgetful. Not only did God fulfill the dream He had promised Joseph and establish him as the second in command of all the land, but he also brought him so much joy in the latter part of his life that he forgot the pain he had endured. This is astounding! Somehow, God’s restoration overshadowed Joseph’s affliction. In a similar way many moms have testified that the joy of holding their newborn overshadows the intense pain of birth—so much so that it makes them almost forget how painful childbirth was and even inspires them to want to undergo the torture all over again for the sweetness of having and holding another baby!

God’s work in Joseph’s life doesn’t stop with divine forgetfulness. God also made Joseph fruitful. He brings more and more abundance into his life despite the pain he endured. I recently learned something interesting about wine. The best wine apparently comes from the grapes that grow in dry, arid, rocky soil. This is counter to what I would have thought. I would have thought that a great crop grows in a fertile, soft, well-watered ground. Winemakers, connoisseurs, and sommeliers know, however, that the vine must struggle if the wine is going to be prolific. The degree of struggle determines the richness of the fruit.

Forgetful and Fruitful. I feel like I’m now beginning to experience these two things even as I type these words, and I’m asking God to bring about the same outcome for you despite your current trial. 

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION AND JOURNALING:

1. How does it make you feel to think that one day God could heal you such that you forget this pain you’re currently experiencing?

2. What kinds of joyous times are you desiring? What kinds of joyous times are you already experiencing? Begin asking God to produce joy even through the current trial you’re facing.

PRAYER:

Lord, what You did in Joseph’s life gives me such encouragement. Even though I may find myself in the pit or in Potiphar’s house or in the prison right now, I know that you have a destiny planned for me. I know that your plans are plans to prosper me, not harm me. Plans to give me hope and a future. I pray that you begin to heal me so that I forget the heaviness of this pain I’m dealing with and so that I’m fruitful for the next season of life and ministry.