Moreover, Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I am Pharaoh, and without your consent no one shall lift up hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.”
Pharaoh's last word to Joseph settles the shape of the whole kingdom. The throne stays where it is. But every hand and every foot in Egypt now moves at the word of a former prisoner. Commentators read it two ways: as a claim no other king has matched, and as a picture of the authority Christ now holds.
Authority given, throne kept
Pharaoh opens by naming his own rank: "I am Pharaoh." Then he hands the running of Egypt to someone else.
L. M. GrantPharaoh would of course not give his throne to Joseph. But he would depend on Joseph to run all his affairs. The dignity of Pharaoh's position remained, but he gave authority into Joseph's hand. There is an analogy here. God always remains in the dignity of eternal glory. Yet He has given His beloved Son the place of supreme authority over His creation.
Hand and foot
The two words Pharaoh chooses are not decoration. They cover everything a person does.
L. M. GrantThis was an imperial decree. In the same way, God has decreed by the honor of His own name that without Christ there is no true work (the hand) or walk (the foot) in all the world.
A claim actually made good
Rulers have made sweeping demands before. What makes this one stand out is what happened later, when famine drove the whole nation to Joseph's door and he took money, cattle, land and finally the people themselves.
Hamilton SmithThe words of Pharaoh are literally fulfilled: "Without your consent no one shall lift up hand or foot in all the land of Egypt." Joseph uses his power to bring all into subjection. No earthly king before or since has made such claims... Others who have made large claims on their subjects have not been able to make them good. Or, in trying to do so, they have provoked rebellion and revolution. Joseph, however, not only makes unheard of claims. He makes them good, and no one raises a voice in rebellion.
The road to the throne
Where Joseph rose from matters as much as where he rose to.
C. H. MackintoshThe envy of his brothers and the false judgement of the Gentile put Joseph in the pit and the dungeon. From there he was taken to be ruler over the whole land of Egypt. And not only that: he became the channel of blessing and the sustainer of life to Israel and the whole earth. This is all typical of Christ; indeed, a type could hardly be more perfect. We see a man laid in the place of death, for all practical purposes, by the hand of man. Then the hand of God raised him up and set him in dignity and glory.
There is also the question of why the honour fell to Joseph at all.
C KnappJoseph received his high place in Egypt on one ground only: his personal worth and the real service he did for the country and kingdom of Egypt. And Philippians 2 shows that God has exalted Jesus (as a man) only because of personal worthiness and obedience to death.
Submission now or submission later
If one man holds all authority, everyone else must bow. And that call is not only for a future day.
Hamilton SmithBecause Joseph is exalted and clothed with glory, all are called to "bow the knee" to him, and no one is to act without him... If Joseph is supreme, all are called to submit. And so today, if God has exalted the Lord Jesus and given Him a Name above every name, it is "that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow." The Christian delights to bow during the plentiful years of grace. The world will have to bow in the years of famine.
Living under the decree
If no work or walk counts apart from Christ, then ability is not the deciding factor in a believer's life.
Hamilton SmithWe may be gifted. We may have all knowledge and zeal and long experience. But it still remains true that without Christ we can do nothing. Gift, and knowledge, and zeal, are not power. All these things will not enable us to overcome the flesh, to refuse the world, or escape the snares of the devil.
Summary
- Pit first. Joseph reached the top through envy, false accusation and a prison cell. That is the pattern of a Man laid in the place of death by human hands, then raised up by God.
- Worth, not rank. Joseph rose for what he was worth and what he had done. Philippians 2 gives the same reason for the exaltation of Jesus.
- Throne kept, authority given. Pharaoh stayed Pharaoh; God stays in eternal glory. Both hand the running of everything to another.
- Hand and foot. The decree covers work and walk, so no corner of life is left out. And no gift, knowledge or zeal replaces dependence on Christ.
- Bow now or bow later. Joseph made his claim good over a whole nation without one voice of rebellion. Believers bow now, in the years of plenty; the world will bow in the years of famine.