So Judah instructed Onan, "You are to have sexual relations with your dead brother's wife, performing the duty of a brother-in-law with her, and have offspring for your brother."

But Onan knew that the offspring wouldn't be his own heir, so whenever he had sexual relations with his brother's wife, he would spill his semen on the ground to avoid fathering offspring for his brother.

The LORD considered what Onan was doing to be evil, so he put him to death, too.

After this, Judah told his daughter-in-law Tamar, "Go live as a widow in your father's house until my son Shelah grows up." But he was really thinking, ""otherwise, Shelah might die like his brothers." So Tamar left and lived in her father's house.

"Look!" somebody reported to Tamar, "Your father-in-law is going to Timnah to shear his sheep."

So she took off her mourning apparel, covered herself with a shawl, and concealed her outward appearance. Then she went out and sat at the entrance of Enaim, which is on the way to Timnah, because she knew that even though Shelah had grown up, she wasn't being given to him as his wife.

So on the way, he turned aside, approached her, and said, "Come on! Let's have some sex!" But he didn't realize that he was talking to his own daughter-in-law. "What will you give me," she asked, "in order to have sex with me?"

Then he asked, "What pledge do you want me to give you?"

"Your signet ring, cord, and the staff in your hand," she suggested. So he gave them to her, had sex with her, and she became pregnant by him. Then she got up and left. Later, she took off her shawl and put on her mourning clothes.

Later on, Judah sent his Adullamite friend to take her a young goat, intending to retrieve what he had put up as security from the woman, but he could not find her.

So he returned to Judah and said, "I haven't found her. Also, the men who are from there said, "There's been no prostitute here.'"

Then Judah said, "Let her have those things. Otherwise, we'll become contemptible. I sent this young goat, but you didn't find her."

Three months later, it was reported to Judah, "Your daughter-in-law Tamar has turned to prostitution! And look! She's pregnant because of it!" "Bring her out," Judah responded. "Let's burn her to death!"

While they were bringing her out, she sent this message to her father-in-law: "I am pregnant by the man to whom these things belong. Furthermore," she added, "tell me to whom this signet ring, cord, and staff belongs."

Later, when it was time for Tamar to give birth, she was carrying twins in her womb!

Meanwhile, Joseph had been delivered to Egypt and turned over to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh's court officials and the Commander-in-Chief of the imperial guards. An Egyptian, he bought Joseph from the Ishmaelites, who had brought him down there.

From the time he appointed Joseph to be overseer over his entire household and everything that he owned, the LORD blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The LORD's blessing rested on Joseph, whether in Potiphar's household or in Potiphar's fields.

But he refused, telling his master's wife, "Look! My master doesn't have to worry about anything in the house with me in charge, and he has entrusted everything into my care.

No one has more authority in this house than I do. He has withheld nothing from me, except you, and that's because you're his wife. So how can I commit such a horrible evil? How can I sin against God?"

She kept on talking to him like this day after day, but he wouldn't listen to her. Not only would he refuse to have sex with her, he refused even to stay around her.

One day, though, he went into the house to do his work. None of the household servants were inside,

and yelled for her household servants. "Look!" she cried out. "My husband brought in a Hebrew man to humiliate us. He came in here to have sex with me, but I screamed out loud!

When he heard me starting to scream, he left his outer garment with me and fled outside."

and then this is what she told him: "That Hebrew slave whom you brought to us came in here to rape me.

But when I started to scream, he left his outer garment with me and ran outside."

When Joseph's master heard his wife's claim to the effect that "This is how your servant treated me," he flew into a rage,

But the LORD was with Joseph. He extended gracious love to him, causing the prison warden to be pleased with Joseph.

The prison warden did not have to worry about anything under Joseph's care, because the LORD was with him. That's why Joseph prospered in everything he did.

Some time later, both the senior security advisor to the king of Egypt and his head chef offended their master, Egypt's king.

Pharaoh was so angry with his two officers his senior security advisor and his head chef

The captain of the guard entrusted them to Joseph's custody, who took care of them, since they were to remain there in custody for a number of days.

Then the two of them each had a dream. They both had their dreams the same night, and there were separate interpretations for each dream the senior security advisor and the head chef to the king of Egypt, who had confined them in prison.

When Joseph came to see them in the morning, he noticed how downcast they looked! They were both very sad.

"We had a dream," they replied, "but there's no one to interpret it." "Interpretations belong to God," Joseph told them, "so please tell me your stories."

So the senior security advisor related his dream to Joseph. "In my dream," he said, "all of a sudden there was a vine in front of me!

Then, with Pharaoh's cup in my hand, I took the grapes, squeezed them into Pharaoh's cup, then handed the cup directly to Pharaoh."

Within three days, Pharaoh will encourage you and return you to your responsibilities. You'll attend to Pharaoh's personal wine cup, just as you did when you were his senior security advisor.

But keep me in mind when things go well for you. Be sure to extend kindness to me by remembering me to Pharaoh. Bring me out of this prison,

because I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews. Not only that, I haven't done anything that deserves me being confined to this pit."

On the third day, which just happened to be Pharaoh's birthday, he threw a party for all his servants. He lifted the head of both his senior security advisor and of his head chef in front of his servants

that is, he restored his senior security advisor to his former responsibilities, including attending to Pharaoh's personal wine cup,

Despite all of this, the senior security advisor not only didn't remember Joseph, he deliberately forgot him.

Two years later to the day Pharaoh dreamed that he was standing by the Nile River,

when all of a sudden seven healthy, plump cows emerged from the Nile to graze in the grass that grew in the reeds that lined the bank.

Right after that, seven more cows came up out of the Nile. Ugly and gaunt, they stood next to the other cows on the bank of the Nile River.

After he had fallen back to sleep, he had a second dream, in which seven ears of plump, fruit-filled grain grew up on a single stalk.

The very next morning, he was frustrated about the dream, so he sent word to summon all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them what he had dreamed, but no one could interpret them.

There was a Hebrew young man incarcerated with us, who was also working as a servant to the captain of the bodyguard.

"We each related our dreams, and then he interpreted them for us. He provided specific meanings for each of our dreams. And what he interpreted for each of us came true! Pharaoh restored me to my responsibilities, but he executed the other man."

Pharoah sent word to summon Joseph quickly from the dungeon, so they shaved his beard, changed his clothes, and then sent him straight to Pharaoh.

"I can't do that," Joseph replied, "but God is concerned about Pharaoh's well-being."

and all of a sudden seven healthy, plump, beautiful cows emerged from the Nile and began to graze among the reeds that line the bank.

But the thin ears gobbled up the seven good ears. I told all this to my advisors, but nobody was able to explain it to me."

"Pharaoh's dreams are identical," Joseph replied. "God has told Pharaoh what he is getting ready to do.

The seven healthy cows represent seven years, as do the seven healthy ears. The dreams are identical.

So the message that I have for Pharaoh is that God is telling Pharaoh what he is getting ready to do.

there will be no surplus in the land due to the coming famine, because it will be very severe.

"Now since Pharaoh had that dream twice, it means that this event has been scheduled by God, and God will bring it to pass very soon.

Therefore let Pharaoh select a wise, discerning person to place in charge over the land of Egypt.

Also, let Pharaoh immediately proceed to appoint supervisors over the land of Egypt, who will collect one fifth of its agricultural production during the coming seven years of abundance.

Let the food be kept in reserve to feed the land for the seven years of famine that will occur throughout Egypt, so the people don't die during the famine."

Since God has revealed all of this to you," Pharaoh told Joseph, "there is no one so wise and discerning as you.

So you are to be appointed in charge over my palace, and all of my people are to do whatever you command them to do. Only the throne will have greater authority than you."

"Look!" Pharaoh confirmed to Joseph, "I've put you in charge of the entire land of Egypt!"

Pharaoh also changed Joseph's name to Zaphenath-paneah and gave Asenath, daughter of Potiphera, the priest of On, to him as his wife. And that's how Joseph gained authority over the land of Egypt.

Joseph was 30 years old when he began to serve Pharaoh, king of Egypt, by traveling throughout the land of Egypt, independent from Pharaoh's oversight.

Joseph stored up so much grain like sand on the seashore in so much abundance! that he stopped keeping records because it was proving to be impossible to measure how much they were gathering.

Before the years of famine arrived, Joseph fathered two sons with Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, the priest of On.

Eventually, the land of Egypt began to feel the effects of the famine, so the people cried out to Pharaoh for food. "Go see Joseph," Pharaoh announced to all the Egyptians, "and do whatever he tells you to do."

Joseph opened all of the storehouses and sold grain to the Egyptians, because the famine was beginning to be severe throughout the land of Egypt.

In addition, all of the surrounding nations came to Joseph to buy grain from Egypt, because the famine had become severe throughout the world.

Eventually, Jacob observed that there was grain in Egypt, so he asked his sons, "Why do you keep on staring at one another?

So ten of Joseph's brothers left to buy grain from Egypt.

Jacob would not send Joseph's brother Benjamin to accompany them, because he was saying, "I'm afraid that he'll come to some kind of harm."

Israel's sons went in a caravan that included others who were going to Egypt to buy grain, because the famine pervaded the land of Canaan, too.

Meanwhile, Joseph continued to be ruler over the land, in charge of selling to everyone in the land. Joseph's brothers appeared and bowed down to him, face down.

As soon as Joseph saw his brothers, he knew who they were, but he remained disguised and asked them gruffly, "Where are you from?" "From the land of Canaan," they replied. "We're here to buy food."

Furthermore, Joseph remembered the dreams that he had about them. So he accused them, "You're spies! You've come here to spy on our undefended territories!"

"No, your majesty," they replied. "Your servants have come here to buy food.

But Joseph kept insisting, "It's just as I've said you've come here to spy on our unguarded territories!"

One of you is to be sent back so he can get your brother while the rest of you remain in custody. That way, we'll test whether or not you're telling the truth. If you're not, as surely as the Pharaoh lives, you're spies!"

Three days later, Joseph told them, "I fear God, so do this and you'll live.

If you're honest men, leave one of your brothers here in custody, then the rest of you can leave and take some grain with you to alleviate the famine that's affecting your households.

Just be sure to bring your youngest brother back to me so what you've claimed can be verified. That way, you won't die."

"We're all guilty because of what we did to our brother!" they told each other. "We kept on watching his suffering while he pleaded with us! We're in this mess because we wouldn't listen!"

"Didn't I tell you!" Reuben replied. ""Don't wrong the kid!' I said, but would you listen? No! Now it's payback time!"

Meanwhile, they had no idea that Joseph could understand them, since he was talking to them through an interpreter.

He turned away from them and began to weep.

When he returned, he spoke with them, but then he took Simeon away from them and had him placed under arrest right in front of them. After this, Joseph gave orders to fill up their sacks with grain, to return each man's money to his own sack, and to supply each of them with provisions for their return journey. All of this was done for them.

Later on, one of them opened up his sack to give his donkey some fodder after they had stopped at the place where they intended to lodge for the night. There, in the mouth of his sack, was all of his money!

He reported to his brothers, "My money has been returned! It's right here in my sack!" Trembling with mounting consternation, each of them asked one another, "What is God doing to us?"

As soon as they had returned to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they told him everything that had happened to them.

"The man who was in charge of the land spoke harshly to us," they said. "He accused us of being spies!

Our father has twelve sons, but one of us isn't alive anymore, and our youngest brother is with our father today back home in Canaan.'

But the man who was in charge of the land responded, "I'm going to test your honesty. Leave one of your brothers with me, take some grain for the famine that's afflicting your households, and leave.

But bring your youngest brother back to me so I can be sure that you're honest men, and not spies. Then I'll return your brother to you, and you'll be allowed to trade anywhere in the land.'"

Their father Jacob told them, "You're causing me to lose my children! Joseph is gone. Now Simeon is gone, and you're planning to take Benjamin, too. Everything's going against me!"

"Feel free to put my own two sons to death," Reuben responded to his father, "if I don't bring him back to you. Trust me I'll bring him back to you."

But Jacob replied, "My son isn't going back with you, since his brother is dead and he's the only one left. If something should harm him as you travel, then it'll be death for me and my sad, gray hair!"

As a result, when Jacob's family was beginning to eat the last of the grain that they had brought back from Egypt, their father Jacob told his sons, "Go back to Egypt and buy us some food."