Bible

The biblical Joseph was, like Mozart, a child prodigy, but the fate he met was much different from that of the celebrated composer.

Joseph was a child prodigy but he lived in a world where he was favored as a boy by his father and he knew it – and his brothers knew it. Joseph the man is a formidable force in Egypt and his family. The narrative continues in a complex series of events that lead to a reunion of Jacob’s sons. But of greater interest is that the son of Jacob, unlike in his early years, proclaimed he was speaking in the name of God. As viceroy, appointed by Pharaoh, Joseph is in charge of managing Egypt and the severe situation. IN FACT, Joseph was young and arrogant and did not even acknowledge the source of his genius. The “Hebrew youth” interpreted the royal officials’ dreams and “as he interpreted for us, so it came to pass. The son of Jacob appeared in the royal court. It is not clear what his relationship was with the sons of Leah and the handmaidens provided by the sisters. As an imprisoned Hebrew among the majority Egyptians, he realizes that his skill in interpreting dreams is powered by God. Repeating his father’s mistake of loving one child, “the child of his old age” to the detriment of the others, Jacob favored Joseph and spoiled him rotten. His father’s deep love for him – a reflection of Jacob’s love for Rachel who had died giving birth to Benjamin – was all Joseph had that could prove his superiority over his older brothers.