Joseph is one of my favorite Bible persons, not because I relate with him, but because he is an archetype of Yeshua.  Joseph was loved by his father and was given a multi-colored coat.  Joseph had communication with God and was able to interpret God’s messages to others – He heard and understood God.  Yeshua said He only did and said what Father God did and said. (John 5:19; 8:28).  Yeshua was loved and anointed by Father God with the Holy Spirit that descended as a dove. (Luke 3:22).  Joseph was misunderstood by his family, as was Yeshua.  Joseph suffered unjustly at the hands of his brothers, and by Potiphar as a consequence of his wife’s lies regarding Joseph’s propriety. (Gen. 39: 7-19). Yeshua was probably more unjustly treated than any human in history; betrayed by his friend; falsely accused, mistreated, slandered; rejected without cause; denied by one of his closest disciples, killed for no reason, yet innocent of all charges.

Joseph was exalted by God’s Sovereignty from spending years in prison to ruler of all Egypt and as such he was able to save all Israel from a devasting famine.  Yeshua was exalted to the right hand of God after His resurrection from the dead.  He is the one and only Savior for all who believe in Him. (John 3:16).  Joseph’s brothers and father came and bowed down to him, as ruler of Egypt.   He revealed Himself to them and welcomed them and their brother, forgiving all the evil they had brought upon him, as he knew it was God’s plan and purpose for his life. (Gen 45: 5-8).  In the judgment every knee will bow and confess Yeshua Messiah is Lord. (Phil. 2: 10-11).  To those who believe and trust in Him, Yeshua will forgive all their sin and welcome them into eternal life. (John 8:28). He laid down His life to bring salvation and He knew this was his purpose, to pay the ransom for sin. (Matt. 20:28).

Joseph is not equal with Yeshua to any degree, but God does foreshadow through his life how the Messiah would save His people.  At least one other similarity is that the two sons of Joseph were of Gentile mothers, Manasseh and Ephraim, and they became the largest tribes in Israel.  In the same way Gentile believers in Yeshua will also have an inheritance in the family of God through Yeshua. (Col. 1:12-14, 27).