Out of a sense of blessedness that was with him from childhood, he remained completely faithful to God.
Attacked and sold into slavery by his jealous brothers (37:18-36), then buried and forgotten for years in prison on false charges deriving precisely from his moral rectitude (39:7-23), he remained sure of the goodness of his own life before God. Later on, after becoming the governor of all of Egypt, he could say to his brothers concerning their betrayal of him, “You intended to do evil to me, but God meant for it to achieve good” (Gen. 50:20).
It is confidence in the invariably overriding intention of God for our good, with respect to all the evil and suffering that may befall us on life’s journey, that secures us in peace and joy. We must be sure of that intention if we are to be free and able, like Joseph, to simply do what we know to be right.
This is an excerpt from the book The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard. If you would like to buy this book please click here.