Psalm 105:19 Until the time that his word came: the word of the LORD tried him. I. THE SEVERITY OF HIS SUFFERINGS. Confined in a stifling, foetid prison, his feet bound by fetters. His religious notions added greatly to his distress. What had he gained by his integrity? Could there be any truth in what his father had taught him of good coming to the good, and evil to the bad? Was there a God who judged righteously on the earth? You who have been misunderstood, who have sown seeds of holiness and love to reap nothing but disappointment, loss, suffering, and hate, you know something of what Joseph felt in that wretched dungeon hole. Then, too, disappointment poured her bitter drops into the bitter cup. What had become of those early dreams, those dreams of coming greatness, which had filled his young brain with splendid phantasmagoria? Were these not from God? He had thought so — yes, and his venerable father had thought so too, and he should have known, for he had talked with God many a time. Were they the delusions of a fevered brain, or mocking lies? Was there no truth, no fidelity, in heaven or earth? II. THESE SUFFERINGS WROUGHT VERY BENEFICIALLY. Iron entered into his soul. The iron crown of suffering precedes the golden crown of glory. I may be asked, Why does God sometimes fill a whole life with discipline, and give few opportunities for showing the iron quality of the soul? Why give iron to the soul, and then keep it from active service? Ah, that is a question which goes far to prove our glorious destiny. "There is service in the sky." And it may be that, God counts a human life of seventy years of suffering not too long an education for a soul which may serve Him through the eternities. III. JOSEPH'S COMFORT IN THE MIDST OF THESE SUFFERINGS. 1. "He was there in the prison, but the Lord was with him." The Lord was with him in the palace of Potiphar; but when Joseph went to prison, the Lord-went there too. The only thing that severs us from God is sin; so long as we walk with God, God will walk with us; and if our path dips down from the sunny upland lawns into the valley with its clinging mists, He will go at our side. 2. Moreover, the Lord showed him mercy. That prison cell was the mount of vision, from the height of which he saw, as he had never seen before, the panorama of Divine lovingkindness. It were well worth his while to go to prison to learn that. It was in prison that Bunyan saw his wondrous allegory, and St. Paul met the Lord, and St. John looked through heaven's open door, and Joseph saw God's mercy. God has no chance to show His mercy to some of us except when we are in some sore sorrow. 3. God can also raise up friends for His servants in most unlikely places, and of most unlikely people. "The Lord gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison." All hearts are open to our King; at His girdle swing the keys by which the most unlikely door can be unlocked. 4. There is always alleviation for our troubles in ministry to others. Joseph found it so. A new interest came into his life, and he almost forgot the heavy pressure of his own troubles amid the interest of listening to the tales of those who were more unfortunate than himself. (F. B. Meyer, B.A.) Parallel Verses KJV: Until the time that his word came: the word of the LORD tried him.WEB: until the time that his word happened, and Yahweh's word proved him true. |
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