Joseph arrived in Egypt as a slave. Far from home, far from his father, without his colorful tunic. Everything he knew had been left behind. But there was one thing his brothers could not take from him: God was with Joseph.

The Midianites sold Joseph to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh and captain of the royal guard. Potiphar was a rich and powerful man, and Joseph became a slave in his great house.

At first, Joseph was just one slave among many. But Potiphar soon noticed there was something different about that young Hebrew. Everything Joseph did turned out well, as if a blessing followed him.

Potiphar saw that the Lord was with Joseph and made everything he began prosper. Joseph won his master's trust, and Potiphar made him steward of his house and put everything he owned into his hands.

From the moment Joseph was set over the house and all its goods, the Lord blessed the Egyptian's household for his sake. The Lord's blessing rested on everything, both in the house and in the fields. Potiphar trusted Joseph so completely that he worried about nothing except the food he ate. Joseph looked after everything: the servants, the fields, the cattle, the money. And everything prospered under his care.

Joseph was a handsome young man, fine in appearance. In time, Potiphar's wife set her eyes on him and called him to lie with her.

But Joseph refused, and said to his master's wife:

"My master has entrusted me with everything he owns, and worries about nothing in this house. No one here is greater than I am, and nothing has been kept from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a great wickedness and sin against God?"

Joseph knew it would be wrong in three ways: it would betray his master's trust, it would stain her marriage, and above all, it would be a sin against God. Even as a slave, Joseph chose to do what was right.

Day after day, she insisted, but Joseph would not listen to her, and he even avoided being alone in the house when she was there.

One day, Joseph went in to do his work, and none of the servants were around. She grabbed him by his garment, calling him once more. Joseph left the garment in her hands and fled outside. It was better to lose a garment than to sin against God. For the second time in his life, Joseph lost a garment for doing what was right.

When she saw that Joseph had fled, leaving his garment in her hands, she was furious. A proud and powerful woman was not used to being refused, and her passion turned to hatred.

She called the servants of the house and said:

"See, they have brought a Hebrew here to mock us. He came into my room, but I cried out with a loud voice. When he heard me scream, he left his garment beside me and ran outside."

She kept Joseph's garment until her husband came home. When Potiphar arrived, she told him the same false story, accusing Joseph of what he had not done. Potiphar burned with anger at his wife's words, and he believed her instead of Joseph.

Joseph's master had him arrested and thrown into the prison where the king's prisoners were kept. And there Joseph stayed.

Once again, Joseph had lost everything. First, his brothers had sold him as a slave. Now, for doing what was right, he was in prison. It would have been easy to grow bitter, to complain against God, to give up doing good. But Joseph did not give up. Even in prison, he kept trusting God. And God did not abandon him.

The Lord was with Joseph in the prison and showed him His kindness. The keeper of the prison came to trust him, and gave Joseph charge over all the prisoners; everything that was done there passed through his hands.

Some time later, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker of the king of Egypt displeased their master. Pharaoh was angry with the two officials and had them locked up in the house of the captain of the guard, in the same prison where Joseph was. The captain of the guard placed them in Joseph's care, and he looked after them. And they stayed in prison for a while.

One night, the cupbearer and the baker each had a dream. When Joseph came to see them in the morning, he noticed they looked downcast, and he asked:

"Why do you look so sad today?"

They answered:

"We each had a dream, and there is no one to interpret it."

"Do not interpretations come from God?" said Joseph. "Tell me your dreams."

The chief cupbearer told his:

"In my dream, there was a vine before me, with three branches. As soon as it budded, it blossomed, and its clusters ripened into grapes. I had Pharaoh's cup in my hand. I took the grapes, pressed them into the cup, and placed the cup in Pharaoh's hand."

Joseph said:

"This is the interpretation: the three branches are three days. Within three days, Pharaoh will restore you to your position, and you will put the cup in his hand, just as you did before, when you were his cupbearer."

Then Joseph made a request of the cupbearer:

"When all is well with you, remember me. Speak of me to Pharaoh and get me out of this house. I was stolen away from the land of the Hebrews, and here too I have done nothing to deserve the dungeon."

When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said to Joseph:

"I had a dream too. There were three baskets of white bread on my head. In the top basket were all kinds of baked delicacies for Pharaoh, and the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head."

Joseph answered:

"This is the interpretation: the three baskets are three days. Within three days, Pharaoh will take your life, and the birds will eat your flesh."

It was a terrible interpretation, but Joseph spoke the truth God had shown him.

On the third day, which was Pharaoh's birthday, he gave a feast for all his servants. Before everyone, he summoned the chief cupbearer and the chief baker.

He restored the chief cupbearer to his position, and the man placed the cup in Pharaoh's hand once more. But the chief baker was condemned, exactly as Joseph had interpreted. God had given Joseph the gift of understanding dreams, and his words came true.

But the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph. He forgot him completely.

Joseph stayed in prison. Time went by: days, weeks, months. Two whole years passed, and Joseph was still there, forgotten by the cupbearer.

But God had not forgotten Joseph. God's time was coming. The dreams Joseph had dreamed as a boy would still come true, in a way no one could imagine.