מִקֵּץ
Miketz/ At the End Of
Genesis 41:1-44:17
Zechariah 2:14-47               
1 Corinthians 2:1-5

     Miketz opens with time, ‘Then it came to pass, at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh had a dream…’ Genesis 41:1. For two years, Joseph remained in prison. It would appear that he was forgotten, but as always, it was God’s plan.
      He is released to interpret the dreams of Pharoah, where Joseph credits God in Genesis 41:16; ‘So Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, “It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.’ Joseph tells Pharoah that not only will God give him an answer, but an answer of ‘peace’.  
     In Genesis 42:18 Jospeh says this about God to his brothers after their altercation. ‘Then Joseph said to them the third day, “Do this and live, for I fear God…’
     Miketz ends with the deception of the silver cup hidden in the sack of Benjamin in Genesis 44:11-15.   The brothers will discover in the next parsha, that it was God who orchestrated the entire story of Joseph in Genesis 45:5-8.   
      In Genesis 41:32 Joseph says to Pharaoh, who has also had two dreams: “The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon.”  Only in retrospect do we realize that Joseph’s double dream was a sign that this too was no mere imagining. Joseph really was destined to be a leader to whom his family would bow to.
      Joseph also shows another gift given to him from Adonai, which is the ability to not only interpret Pharaoh’s dreams, but to suggest a solution, Genesis 41:33-36. ‘Now therefore, let Pharaoh select a discerning and wise man, and set him over the land of Egypt.  Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint officers over the land, to collect one-fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt in the seven plentiful years.  And let them gather all the food of those good years that are coming, and store up grain under the authority of Pharaoh, and let them keep food in the cities. Then that food shall be as a reserve for the land for the seven years of famine which shall be in the land of Egypt, that the land may not perish during the famine.’ 
     But it is Genesis 41:32 when Joseph tells Pharaoh - “And the dream was repeated to Pharaoh twice because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass” - that is what truly reveals the wisdom that God gave to Joseph.
     Twice is the key word;  פַּעֲמַיִם  pa'amayeem in Hebrew.  The two separate dreams, the two different circumstances, yet the same meaning and ending. This is the information, ‘repeated twice’ as in the two witnesses, that gave Joseph the wisdom that the dreams were established by God. 
       The last time the brothers saw Joseph, they had planned to kill him, but instead sold him as a slave, due to their anger at his arrogance, the favoritism and his dreams.  Joseph stated that he would be a ruler, but the brothers turned him into a slave.  Suddenly to the brothers, Joseph’s dreams become reality. The brothers do bow down to him, “their faces to the ground” stated in Genesis 42:6. But in this Torah portion, it is only one person, Joseph himself, who knows it will be a reunion.
     Again, in this parsha we see the use of a garment or garments to hide the truth. The brothers did not recognize Joseph for several reasons. Many years had passed. They did not know he was in Egypt as a viceroy but thought he was still a slave. Joseph also looked like an Egyptian, spoke Egyptian, and had an Egyptian name, Tsofnat Paaneach, and, he was wearing the garments of an Egyptian of high rank,  the sign of Joseph’s elevation at the hand of Pharaoh when he interpreted his dreams in Genesis 41:41-43.
     Garments play such an important role in Scripture. Jacob who dresses in Esau’s clothes while bringing his father a meal so that he can take his brother’s blessing in disguise. Joseph’s finely embroidered robe or “coat of many colors,” which the brothers bring back to their father stained in blood. Tamar taking off her widow’s dress, covering herself with a veil, and making herself look as if she were a prostitute. The garment Joseph leaves in the hands of Potiphar’s wife while escaping her attempt to seduce him. And the garments Miketz in which Pharaoh dresses Joseph as a high-ranking Egyptian, with clothes of linen, a gold chain, and the royal signet ring.
     What all five cases have in common is that they are about deception. In each case, they bring about a situation in which things are not as they seem. It says that Joseph recognized his brothers but they did not recognize him. 
     Their inability to truly recognize him began with the dream and the coat. The brothers took his vision/his dream as a direct insult to their life and their authority. But, the Pharoah, received the interpretation of his dreams as something to consider, to adjust his life to. The Pharoah of that time wasn’t jealous of Jospeh, as were the brothers. Instead, he used Jospeph’s wisdom to his advantage. 
      Dreams are used in Scripture as warnings, a sign of vision, peace, and knowledge. 
      In 1 Samuel 28:15 Saul disturbs Sameul, telling him that he no longer receives dreams from God. In Daniel 1:17 God gave Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.
     In Ecclesiastes 5:1-7 Scripture speaks of dreams in a different way, connecting them to vows.  In Jeremiah 23:32 God is against false dreams.  God gives Jospeh a dream about the Messiah in Matthew 1:20, Matthew 2:13 and Matthew 2:19. In Numbers 12:6 God is clear about who He gives dreams to.
     Joel 2:28 ‘And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.’ Is repeated in Acts 2:17 ‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams…’
     In Amos 3:7 God reveals things to His servants, as in Genesis 15:1 where God gives Abraham the vision. 
     Through God’s word, we gain insight into His thoughts, was and visions. God talks to His people through His word, and the convictions that we listen to.
     Most importantly, in John 16:8 Yeshua explains why and what of the world.  It is not a new spirit, or a new breath, or a new idea. But rather who He was and what exactly was sin. 
     1 John 1:1-4 ‘That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life— the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us— that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Yeshua Messiah. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.’
 

מִקֵּץ
Miketz/ At the End Of
Genesis 41:1-44:17
1 Kings 3:15-4:1                 
1 Corinthians 1:1-5

     When Joseph is young, he has the two dreams involving his brothers.  In VaYeshev, Genesis chapter 40, Joseph is given the ability to interpret the dreams of others. It is in this week’s parsha that there is an important piece of information that we don't see until now. Joseph says to Pharaoh, who has also had two dreams: “The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon.” Genesis 41:32. Only in retrospect do we realize that Joseph’s double dream was a sign that this too was no mere imagining. Joseph really was destined to be a leader to whom his family would bow to.      
      In Genesis 41:32 when Joseph tells Pharaoh - “And the dream was repeated to Pharaoh twice because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass” - that is what truly reveals the wisdom that God gave to Joseph.
     Twice is the key word;  פַּעֲמַיִם  pa'amayeem in Hebrew.  The two separate dreams, the two different circumstances, yet the same meaning and ending. This is the information, ‘repeated twice’ as in the two witnesses, that gave Joseph the wisdom that the dreams were established by God. We see two witnesses throughout the Scriptures, established by God.
     We see the importance of two witnesses throughout Scripture.
      Isaiah 37:16 ‘O LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, who is enthroned above the cherubim, You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth You have made heaven and earth.’
     Psalm 124:8 ‘Our help is in the name of the LORD, Who made heaven and earth.’
     Matthew 11:25 ‘At that time Jesus said, "I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants.’
     Deuteronomy 17:6 ‘Whoever is deserving of death shall be put to death on the testimony of two or three witnesses; he shall not be put to death on the testimony of one witness.’
     Deuteronomy 30:19 ‘I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live…’
    Luke 10:1 ‘After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.’
     2 Corinthians 13:1 ‘This will be the third time I am coming to you. “By the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall be established.”
    Ezekiel 37:18-19 is the key of the two witnesses completing the Kingdom of God. ‘“And when the children of your people speak to you, saying, ‘Will you not show us what you mean by these?’— 19 say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Surely I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions; and I will join them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand.” ’ 20 And the sticks on which you write will be in your hand before their eyes.’ These are the two witnesses that prove the Torah is true by them coming together.
       There is another verse in Revelation 11 that speaks of two witnesses. These two witnesses rule and represent the two olive trees and two menorahs. They represent the Kingdom of God.  Like Yeshua, they are eventually killed, and after three and a half days, they rise again by the breath of God.
     Revelation 11:1-6 - ‘I was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, with its worshipers. 2 But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months. 3 And I will appoint my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.” 4 They are “the two olive trees” and the two lampstands, and “they stand before the Lord of the earth.”5 If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies. This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die. 6 They have power to shut up the heavens so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying; and they have power to turn the waters into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want.’
     Notice where and what the Gentiles do. They are outside the court, the camp, the wedding, they trample on Jerusalem and they trample the Word of God -the Torah. They ignore and have ignored the two witnesses throughout Scripture, and the importance of their teachings.
     Do we know who these two witnesses are?  The wording in Revelation 11 is very similar to that of Zechariah 4. By calling the two witnesses “the two olive trees,” God is establishing a link between the two books. The two olive trees of Revelation 11:4 is a reference to the prophetic vision of Zechariah 4, which features two olive trees standing on either side of a golden candlestick with a golden bowl on top of it. In this vision, the two olive trees are emptying their oil into the golden bowl atop the candlestick via two branches, and the seven lamps of the golden candlestick are receiving the olive oil from seven golden pipes which are connected to the bowl.  The two olive trees are described as the “two anointed ones” (which in Hebrew are the “sons of oil”) that stand by the Lord of the whole earth” Zechariah 4:14.
     By describing the two witnesses as having the power to shut heaven, to withhold rain for three and a half years like Elijah did, and to turn waters to blood like Moses did; the prophecy of Revelation 11 is very clearly inferring that the two witnesses are none other than Moses and Elijah. It is also Moshe and Elijah who appear standing by Yeshua when He was transfigured on the Mount in Matthew 17:3.       
      Revelation 19:11-13 ‘I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. 12 His eyes are like blazing fire, and on His head are many crowns. He has a name written on Him that no one knows but He Himself. 13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and His name is the Word of God.’
     Do we listen to the witnesses of God, His Torah and His Son?
     John 8:16-18 ‘And yet if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent Me. 17 It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. 18 I am One who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me.’