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Faithful in the Prison - The Book of Genesis · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: The captain of the guard charged Joseph with them, and
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  Speaker 1: he served them, and they continued a season in ward. God,
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  Speaker 1: as I reflect on Genesis 40, I ask that you
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  Speaker 1: give me the ability to give divine solutions and walk
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  Speaker 1: in divine understanding. I will not allow circumstances in my
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  Speaker 1: life to determine whether or not I use my gifts
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  Speaker 1: to help the lives of others. Even when I feel
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  Speaker 1: overlooked and imprisoned like Joseph, I will hold fast to
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  Speaker 1: my calling, and I will continue to be faithful in
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  Speaker 1: the midst of my prison. I declare that I will
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  Speaker 1: not lose hope, for I know that once you make
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  Speaker 1: a promise, God, nothing on earth can stop it. Today,
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  Speaker 1: I choose to be a resource to fuel the dreams
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  Speaker 1: of others. My power flows in abundance when my back
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  Speaker 1: is against the ropes. I decree and declare that in
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  Speaker 1: all seasons you can use me, God. And because I'm
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  Speaker 1: willing to be used, I know my deliverance is just
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  Speaker 1: around the corner. In Jesus' name, amen. Thanks for making
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  Speaker 1: prayer a priority in your life. To hear the Bible
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  Speaker 1: come to life, Stay tuned for The Bible in a Year,
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  Speaker 1: brought to you by Bibleinayear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Faithful in the prison. Before this story, we learned of
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  Speaker 2: Joseph's success as a slave. Everything Joseph put his hand
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  Speaker 2: to succeeded and thrived, so much so that he became
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  Speaker 2: the overseer of Potiphar's household. Yet Potiphar's wife's lust towards
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  Speaker 2: Joseph would not cease, and eventually she lured him in
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  Speaker 2: to sleep with her. Joseph ran from her, but she
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  Speaker 2: still claimed Joseph attacked her. Joseph was thrown into prison,
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  Speaker 2: but God blessed him, and he became the overseer of
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  Speaker 2: all prisoners. Now we learn about Joseph's interpretation of dreams,
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  Speaker 2: and how he ascended from prison to the palace of Pharaoh,
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  Speaker 2: inspired by the book of Genesis.
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  Speaker 3: Hello, I'm Jack Graham with today's episode of the Bible
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  Speaker 3: in a Year podcast. When we last saw Joseph, he
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  Speaker 3: was standing firm in his convictions and resisting the advances
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  Speaker 3: of Potiphar's wife. It was the God-honoring thing to do,
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  Speaker 3: the only thing to do, but there was a price
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  Speaker 3: to pay. He found himself once again in chains, this
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  Speaker 3: time in the palace prison. He again became a trusted
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  Speaker 3: man and was placed in charge of the other captives.
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  Speaker 3: He had a most excellent spirit about him. God remained
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  Speaker 3: faithful to Joseph, of course, and likewise Joseph was faithful
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  Speaker 3: to God. In today's reading, we'll hear as Joseph has
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  Speaker 3: an opportunity to interpret dreams again. Only this time, it's
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  Speaker 3: not his own dreams, but those of two other inmates.
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  Speaker 3: The dreams tell us the fate of the men who
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  Speaker 3: are in prison with Joseph. Rather than using his gift
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  Speaker 3: of decoding dreams to exalt himself as he did when
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  Speaker 3: he was a young boy, Joseph will use the gift
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  Speaker 3: that God had given him to help and serve others.
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  Speaker 3: But listen very carefully to the primary message of this passage,
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  Speaker 3: that Joseph credits God for what he does. Joseph has integrity,
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  Speaker 3: and that integrity actually got him put in prison, but
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  Speaker 3: it will be ultimately his way out. So here's today's reading.
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  Speaker 3: and the story of Joseph.
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  Speaker 2: Joseph had become a great blessing to the prison. Out
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  Speaker 2: of darkness and despair, God blessed Joseph in everything he did.
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  Speaker 2: He worked with care and diligence, becoming loved and respected
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  Speaker 2: by the prisoners and guards. During this time, Pharaoh's cupbearer
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  Speaker 2: and baker had committed an offense against him, so he
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  Speaker 2: sent them to prison to rot until death. The captain
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  Speaker 2: of the guard appointed Joseph to be with them and
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  Speaker 2: attend to them. One night, tossing and turning could be
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  Speaker 2: heard in the darkness of the prison cells. Groans and
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  Speaker 2: a few screams echoed in the middle of the night,
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  Speaker 2: for the cup-bearer and baker were bothered all night with
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  Speaker 2: confusing dreams. That morning they were discussing what their dreams
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  Speaker 2: might mean, and Joseph came to them when he saw
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  Speaker 2: they were troubled. Why are you two so downcast this morning?
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  Speaker 2: Joseph asked with compassion in his voice. We have had dreams,
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  Speaker 2: and have no one to say what they might mean,
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  Speaker 2: They said, tired from the night before. Joseph grinned, remembering
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  Speaker 2: the dreams he once had as a boy. He looked
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  Speaker 2: at the two of them with a shepherd's heart. Do
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  Speaker 2: not dreams belong to God? Joseph said. Tell them to me.
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  Speaker 2: The cupbearer told his dream first. He spoke of the
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  Speaker 2: mixture of joy, confusion, and anxiety. In my dream there
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  Speaker 2: was a beautiful vine before me with three branches. As
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  Speaker 2: soon as the branches budded, blossoms shot forth and ripened
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  Speaker 2: into grapes. The cup-bearer looked at Joseph intently as he continued.
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  Speaker 2: I took the grapes and pressed them into Pharaoh's cup
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  Speaker 2: and handed it to him. Then I awoke. Joseph grinned,
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  Speaker 2: eyes never leaving the cup-bearer's. He said to him, The
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  Speaker 2: three branches represent three days. In three days, Pharaoh will
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  Speaker 2: restore you to his side and you will be his
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  Speaker 2: cupbearer once again. The cupbearer gleamed with joy. Joseph grabbed
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  Speaker 2: his shoulder and spoke intently. Please, remember me when you
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  Speaker 2: are back with Pharaoh. Tell him about me, my gifts,
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  Speaker 2: and my story. The cupbearer nodded and agreed. The baker
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  Speaker 2: was pleased to hear such a positive interpretation. Excited, he
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  Speaker 2: caught Joseph's attention to tell him his dream. In my dream,
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  Speaker 2: There were three cake baskets balancing on my head. On
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  Speaker 2: the top basket was food for Pharaoh, but the birds
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  Speaker 2: flocked around me and ate the food in the basket.
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  Speaker 2: What does this mean? Joseph's eyes did not meet the baker's.
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  Speaker 2: You do not need to know, Joseph said. The baker,
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  Speaker 2: now worried, was intent on hearing. Joseph sighed and spoke somberly, saying,
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  Speaker 2: The three baskets also represent three days. In three days...
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  Speaker 2: Pharaoh will take you as well, but he will have
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  Speaker 2: you hung on a tree, and the birds will eat
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  Speaker 2: your flesh. Angry and scared, the baker left. Three days
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  Speaker 2: had passed, and it was Pharaoh's birthday. A great festival
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  Speaker 2: had taken place throughout the land, and a great feast
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  Speaker 2: was prepared for all his servants. In need of his services,
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  Speaker 2: Pharaoh sent for his cupbearer and restored him to his position.
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  Speaker 2: Yet the baker was not as fortunate.
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  Speaker 3: He was hung that day.
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  Speaker 2: Just as Joseph had predicted, caught up in the festivities,
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  Speaker 2: the cupbearer forgot the kindness Joseph had shown him. Forgotten,
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  Speaker 2: Joseph remained in prison, wondering if his father and brothers
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  Speaker 2: had forgotten about him too. Joseph's heart grew heavy, but
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  Speaker 2: his hope in God did not wane. He pressed on,
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  Speaker 2: praying to see the sun once again.
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  Speaker 3: What an incredible story. Joseph is imprisoned, and it was
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  Speaker 3: because he did the right thing, not the wrong thing,
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  Speaker 3: but he was falsely accused by his master's wife. But
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  Speaker 3: rather than sink into bitterness and sulk in misery or
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  Speaker 3: resign himself to a lost cause, helpless, hopeless confinement, Joseph
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  Speaker 3: continued to work hard, and he demonstrated his integrity every
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  Speaker 3: single day. This has earned him a high position as
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  Speaker 3: head over all the other prisoners. And in the providence
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  Speaker 3: of God, he is a prisoner in Pharaoh's palace. Things
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  Speaker 3: could have been worse, but God used this situation in
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  Speaker 3: his life. This detail will prove very important soon enough
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  Speaker 3: as one day two new prisoners are placed in the
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  Speaker 3: cell with Joseph, two servants of Pharaoh himself, a cupbearer
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  Speaker 3: and a baker. One night in their cell, each man
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  Speaker 3: has a dream, and the following morning Joseph notices their
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  Speaker 3: sad faces. And so he comes to their assistance. He's
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  Speaker 3: seeking to comfort them and extend kindness. In those days,
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  Speaker 3: dreams had incredible importance. So Joseph offers to interpret their dreams.
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  Speaker 3: After all, Joseph had been understanding dreams since he was
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  Speaker 3: a young man. Only now he's matured and he's walking
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  Speaker 3: in step with God, seeking to honor him in all things.
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  Speaker 3: He's not the arrogant teen who used his gift to
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  Speaker 3: make his brothers jealous. His response to these men is
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  Speaker 3: very important. Listen to what he says in Genesis 40
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  Speaker 3: and verse 8. Then they said to him, we have
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  Speaker 3: had a dream and there is no one to interpret it.
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  Speaker 3: Then Joseph said to them, do not interpretations belong to God.
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  Speaker 3: Tell it to me, please. Now, you see it? It's
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  Speaker 3: hard to miss. He doesn't say, here's what I can
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  Speaker 3: do for you. I'm Joseph, a gifted interpreter of dreams,
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  Speaker 3: a dreamer and a dream interpreter. No, he acknowledges that
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  Speaker 3: God is the one who helps him, enables him to
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  Speaker 3: understand the dreams. It's not his own power, but the
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  Speaker 3: power of God. God gives us great gifts. In fact,
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  Speaker 3: the Bible says every good and perfect gift comes from God.
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  Speaker 3: But we must always be willing to give God the
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  Speaker 3: credit and the glory for the gifts that he has
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  Speaker 3: given to us. Joseph hears the dreams and then gives
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  Speaker 3: the answer. For the cupbearer, the news is well, it's joyous.
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  Speaker 3: It's happy news. He will soon be released. Joseph asks
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  Speaker 3: that the cupbearer speak up for him and help him
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  Speaker 3: attain his freedom when he's out. And the grateful, happy
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  Speaker 3: man agrees. The baker also wants to know the meaning
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  Speaker 3: of his dream. But for him, the news isn't good.
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  Speaker 3: He will soon leave the prison too, but not to
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  Speaker 3: be free, he will be hanged. And just as Joseph
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  Speaker 3: told each man, in three days they met their foretold fates. Sadly,
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  Speaker 3: the cupbearer forgot all about his promise to Joseph to
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  Speaker 3: help him get out of prison. So it was not
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  Speaker 3: a happy ending for Joseph. But his trust was not
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  Speaker 3: in man. It was always in Almighty God. Now, there's
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  Speaker 3: a great lesson here. When we trust in men, they
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  Speaker 3: can fail us, disappoint us, even betray us. True freedom
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  Speaker 3: is not found in what others can do for us,
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  Speaker 3: but in trusting God fully, just like Joseph did. When
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  Speaker 3: we trust in God, not men, even when others fail
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  Speaker 3: us or disappoint us, we can persevere. We know that
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  Speaker 3: not all hope is lost because God has it, and
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  Speaker 3: God has each one of us. The same God who
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  Speaker 3: is faithful to Joseph is faithful to us as well.
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  Speaker 3: Joseph would not yet taste freedom, but the cupbearer was
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  Speaker 3: right where God put him. Back in Pharaoh's household, next
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  Speaker 3: to the most powerful man in the known world. Soon enough,
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  Speaker 3: Pharaoh will have a troubling dream. Will the cupbearer then
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  Speaker 3: remember the Hebrew man who helped him understand the vision?
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  Speaker 3: This is what we're going to find out the next time.
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  Speaker 3: Dear Lord, thank you for teaching us your word today.
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  Speaker 3: Your word allows us to understand who you are and
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  Speaker 3: how we can know you and the gifts that you
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  Speaker 3: so graciously give to each one of us. Thank you
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  Speaker 3: for the reminder that even when people forget us and
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  Speaker 3: fail us, you continue to be faithful, just as you
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  Speaker 3: were to Joseph. Help us always to trust in you
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  Speaker 3: and to wait on your perfect plan. Amen. Thank you
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  Speaker 3: for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast. I'm
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  Speaker 3: Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. Download the Pray.com app
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  Speaker 3: how to discover God's perfect plan and power for your life,
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  Speaker 3: be sure to visit jackgraham.org.
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  Speaker 2: This episode is sponsored by MediShare, an innovative healthcare solution
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  Speaker 2: for Christians to save money without sacrificing quality.