Joseph and the Count of Monte Cristo

Reflecting further on today's reading it occurred to me that there are a lot of parallels and perpendiculars between the story of Joseph and his brothers and the story of The Count of Monte Cristo. I guess you could say that the story of Joseph and his brothers is something of an anti-The Count of Monte Cristo. Or, really I guess the story of The Count of Monte Cristo is an anti-Joseph, since Joseph came well before.

In The Count of Monte Cristo, the protagonist, Edmond Dantes (sorry, I can't do that cool accent thing over the e - I'm not cool like that), is falsely imprisoned and reported as dead to his loved ones. Through a quirk in the way that he is imprisoned he acquires a great power, in this case a treasure, which he then uses against his enemies to seek vengeance. While restoration to his loved ones is a goal, it is secondary to ruining his enemies and exacting revenge. In fact, the vengeance almost dooms the restoration.

I have always like the Count of Monte Cristo because I can identify with Edmond Dantes and understand what drives him. He has been wronged. A great injustice has been done. And he has a single minded determination to right it and be avenged. I envy Edmond his power to pursue this goal.

When I read stories, especially in the Bible, I ask myself if I would do what the protagonist did. It is easy for me to see Abraham give away his wife not once but twice and say that I would never do that. It is easy for me to see him offer his son as an offering to God and say that I would never do that, audible voice of God or no. It is easy for me to see the dysfunction that comes from Isaac, Rebekah, and even Jacob playing favorites with their sons and say that I would never do that. But when I look at Joseph and how he uses the power that he is given I can also say that I could never use it the way that he did, either. I have too much Dantes in me.

Joseph is sold into slavery by his brothers. He is then falsely imprisoned by his master's wife. While imprisoned God is with Joseph and everything that he does. He interprets dreams so well that this gets to Pharaoh, who is in dire need of having a dream interpreted. Joseph correctly interprets a message from God to Pharaoh telling of seven years of plenty and then seven years of famine. Joseph is so wise in this matter that he is given power over Egypt second to only Pharaoh.

With the power that he has through a quirk in the way that events played out in his imprisonment Joseph can do anything. His brothers encounter him and, like Edmond Dantes's enemies not realizing he was the Count, Joseph's brothers have no idea the man they seek the grain they need to live from is their brother whom they have wronged. Joseph literally has the power of life and death over these who should be his enemies. And does he seek vengeance?

No. Joseph seeks restoration. Sure, he messes with them some, but that is in order to get information from them that ultimately leads towards the goal of restoration. So when I ask myself if I could or would use that power that way I can honestly say no.

That is what amazes me about Joseph. It seems as though the universal position would be to seek justice and that justice would come in the form of vengeance. Wrongs must be righted. Lives of those who destroy lives must in turn be destroyed. An eye for an eye.

And yet Joseph, almost foreshadowing Jesus, refuses to do that. He sees the work of God in taking a horrible situation and redeeming it. He sees the work of God in taking broken relationships and restoring them. I need a lot less Edmond Dantes in my life and a lot more Joseph.