1 Now Joseph was taken down to Egypt, and Poti-phar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there.
Joseph being brought down into Egypt signifies the imagination's becoming active in the body consciousness and in the subconscious. Imagination usually reaches out into the unseen world about us and forms substance according to the pattern of our thoughts. But its first duty is to go down into the Egyptian darkness of our material and sense thoughts and, under the law, lift the body consciousness to a higher plane. Body, Soul, and Spirit are unified as one, and the Truth student cannot afford to lose sight of the fact that all three are to be lifted up. Unless he is careful in this regard, the body consciousness may be left far behind the Soul and Spirit and some unfavorable reaction become manifest in the body or affairs.
The word Pharaoh means "the sun," "the Ra." Joseph was sold to Potiphar, an executive officer of Pharaoh's court, who represents one of the ruling ideas in the state of consciousness symbolized by Pharaoh, "the sun." Egypt symbolizes the material body consciousness ruled by the "sun" or solar plexus, which is the center in the subconscious. Pharaoh rules in obscurity or darkness because the great sun of the body, the solar plexus, is obscured or unknown to the conscious mind. The light of the sun of righteousness is veiled by our conscious living on the low plane of physicality.
2 YHVH was with Joseph, and he became a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian,
3 and his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that YHVH caused all that he did to prosper in his hands.
YHVH prospers us when we give the best that is in us and do all things unto Him, acknowledging Him in all our affairs. This is a sure way to success, and when success does come we should realize that it resulted from the work of Spirit in us, because we made ourselves channels through which the Divine Mind could bring its ideas into manifestation. The true Christian never boasts that he is a self-made man, for he well knows that all that he is and has, together with all that he can ever hope to be or to have, is but YHVH finding expression through him as life.
4 So Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him, and he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had.
5 From the time that he made him overseer in his house and over all that he had, YHVH blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; the blessing of YHVH was upon all that he had, in house and field.
6 So he left all that he had in Joseph's charge; and having him he had no concern for anything but the food which he ate. Now Joseph was handsome and good-looking.
Joseph was a spiritual character and worked from principle, hence he found favor in Potiphar's house and brought added blessings to it. This Scripture proves the simple outworking of the law.
7 And after a time his master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph, and said, "Lie with me."
8 But he refused and said to his master's wife, "Lo, having me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my hand;
9 he is not greater in this house than I am; nor has he kept back anything from me except yourself, because you are his wife; how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against Gods?"
10 And although she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not listen to her, to lie with her or to be with her.
The imagination is liable to get into trouble because it is so little understood. The sense consciousness of the animal soul (Potiphar's wife) tempts us through the imagination to gratify its sense desires.
11 But one day, when he went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house was there in the house,
12 she caught him by his garment, saying, "Lie with me." But he left his garment in her hand, and fled and got out of the house.
13 And when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand, and had fled out of the house,
14 she called to the men of her household and said to them, "See, he has brought among us a Hebrew to insult us; he came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice;
15 and when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, he left his garment with me, and fled and got out of the house."
16 Then she laid up his garment by her until his master came home,
17 and she told him the same story, saying, "The Hebrew servant, whom you have brought among us, came in to me to insult me;
18 but as soon as I lifted up my voice and cried, he left his garment with me, and fled out of the house."
19 When his master heard the words which his wife spoke to him, "This is the way your servant treated me," his anger was kindled.
20 And Joseph's master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king's prisoners were confined, and he was there in prison.
When we refuse it expression there is a reaction, and we seem for a time to be imprisoned or limited in making progress. But if we patiently bide our time, knowing that only good can come to us, the seemingly imprisoned image making faculty (Joseph) will prove its divine power.
21 But YHVH was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love, and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison.
Although physically imprisoned, Joseph (imagination) expresses himself spiritually, for YHVH (Spirit) is with him, and in due time he will come into his rightful place as one of the important faculties in the consciousness.
22 And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph's care all the prisoners who were in the prison; and whatever was done there, he was the doer of it;
23 the keeper of the prison paid no heed to anything that was in Joseph's care, because YHVH was with him; and whatever he did, YHVH made it prosper.
By faithfully performing the routine duties entrusted to one, even in a prison, one is certain to be advanced to a better and more remunerative position. However, faithfulness has an even greater reward than this, for all the while the faithful one is building a firmer, truer, and more Godlike character in himself, which is an enduring recompense; for thus he enters into the possession of the true riches, the spiritual consciousness.