TG Dreams 7 - Genesis 42

Verse 9 gives us another way that the heavily symbolic dreams of type 2 and 3 can be understood – hindsight.  When Joseph saw his brothers bow before him in his role as viceroy of Egypt “he remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them.”  The light begins to dawn, the meaning of the dream begins to become clear.  Through further pondering, and doubtless personal revelation, Joseph sees that the dreams are telling him that the whole sequence of events that brought them here was meant.  God’s purposes were being carried out by his slavery and imprisonment.  With that “wisdom and discretion” that comes from the Spirit of God he sees that not only was he blessed personally but as he explains to his brethren in chapter 45, “be not grieved nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither; for God did send me before you to preserve life….And God sent me before you to preserve you posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.”

The inspired insight from the dream, understood in hindsight, helps Joseph avoid the natural temptation to resent and to take revenge on his brothers.  Part of the dream’s purpose is to help him see that God foresaw and worked through events that might have appeared disastrous.  It surely helped to enable him to be in a position to bless his family where he might have otherwise taken vengeance upon them –

“But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.  Now therefore fear ye not:  I will nourish you and your little ones.” (Genesis 50:20-1)

TG Dreams 6 - Genesis 41

             Pharaoh’s Dreams are also Type 3, heavily symbolic and requiring inspiration to interpret.  It is not just skill and experience with dreams –

            “And Pharaoh said unto Joseph…I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it.  And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, it is not in me:  God shall give Pharaoh an answer…”  Joseph’s interpretive power comes because he is one “in who the Spirit of God is.” (v. 15, 16, 38)

            All of the dreams reported in Genesis before Joseph’s story are messages from God giving commandments or making offers.  All of the dreams in the Joseph sequence foretell the future.  Explicitly, in Pharaoh’s case, offering an opportunity to adjust behavior to take advantage of one’s foreknowledge.

TG Mortality 19 – Mosiah 16

            We find another echo of Paul in Abinidi who speaks of the resurrection when “this mortal shall put on immortality and this corruption shall put on incorruption.”  Chapter 16 of Mosiah is the last chapter of Abinidi’s final testimony.  The resurrection here is a prelude to the judgement, which has a place in Abinidi’s summary of what life is all about.

            First, since the Fall of our first parents (v.3), “all mankind” are in a “lost and fallen state” (v.4).  They are “carnal, sensual, devilish, knowing evil from good, subjecting themselves to the devil” (v.3).  No one can escape from this condition unaided (v. 13).

            Second, the Atonement offers us a way out.  “God redeemed his people from their lost and fallen state,” a redemption that “cometh through Christ the Lord,” who is the life and light of the world and is the only way man can be saved (v. 4, 9, 13, 15).

            Third, the atonement is an offer, not an irresistible force.  The Lord extends his “arms of mercy,” warns of our iniquities, and commands us to repent (v. 12).  To accept the atonement means to “hearken unto the voice of the Lord” (v. 2), “tremble and repent of [our] sins” (v. 12), “depart from them” (v. 12) and “[call] upon the Lord” (v. 12).

            If we fail to take advantage of the offer, it is for us “as though there was no redemption made” (v. 5).  If we will not hearken (v. 2), persist in our carnal nature, go on in the ways of sin and rebellion against God (v. 5), go according to our own carnal wills and desires, not calling upon the Lord, if we will not to accept the arms of mercy extended towards us, and will no repent and depart from our sins (v. 12) the consequences are horrific.  We are carnal and devilish and the devil has power over us (v. 3), we are an enemy to God (v. 5) just like the being who now rules over us, and at the resurrection we are delivered up to the devil who has subjected us (v. 11).  We experience damnation – a stoppage of our divine potential to progress.

            

TG Dream 5 - Genesis 40.

The Chief Butler's and the Chief Baker's fit into another category yet. 

The content is symbolic, but initially unintelligible.  The dream requires a divine interpretation, from a divinely gifted interpreter:

"We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter of it.  And Joseph said unto them, Do not interpretations belong to God?  Tell me them, I pray you."  (v. 8)

We will call this type Type 3.

Hebrew for interpreter (poter) from a root meaning to interpret or explain.

פֹתֵר

Hebrew for interpretation (pitronim)

פִּתְרֹנִים

TG Mortality 18 - Enos 1

Paul's phrase "mortality putting on immortality" is echoed many times in scripture.  Enos uses it when he pictures his resurrection in verse 27. 

The chapter gives the background of his anticipation.  The word of God, delivered by his father, had "sunk deep" into his heart (v. 3) and caused his soul to hunger (v. 4).  His faith in Christ (v. 8) resulted in mighty prayer (v. 4), and a wrestle (v.2) that resulted in a remission of his sins and a change that filled his heart with a desire to bless those around him (v. 9, 11) and bore fruit in prayer, labor, diligence, strugglings and seekings in God's service (v. 11 -12, 14, 20).  He spent his life declaring the word of God (v. 26).

Enos' redeemed life allowed him to face death and the resurrection with anticipation.  In death he would go to his rest in Christ.  In the resurrection his "mortal shall put on immortality" and he would physically see the face of the Savior.  Having his calling and election sure, Enos knew that Christ would invite him to take his place prepared among the mansions of the Father.

TG Dream 4 - Genesis 37

With Joseph we have another kind of dream entirely.  The content is symbolic and the meaning is an interpretation - in this case given spontaneously by those to whom Joseph related his dreams, his immediate family.

"Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us?

"Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?"

We will call this type of dream, Type 3

TG Mortality 17 - I Corinthians 15:33

I Corinthians 15 is a difficult chapter.  Paul preaches the reality of the resurrection in words that have mystified Christians for centuries.  Modern revelation has elucidated such concepts as baptism for the dead and bodies with the glory of the sun and the moon and the stars, but much in his argument still remains clouded.

        corruption                 incorruption
        weakness                  power
        natural body             spiritual body
        living soul                quickened spirit
        natural                      spiritual
        of the earth/earthy    from heaven
        bear the image          bear the image
           of the earthy             of the heavenly
        mortal                       immortal

If Corinthians 15 were the only chapter on the topic available to us it would be extremely difficult to get a clear picture of what the resurrection really is.  Reading this chapter in terms of the resurrection being a physical resurrection of the body with spirit in its veins and not blood, with all corruption and mortality removed from it, is certainly no wresting of the text, but it's also not the only possible reading of the text.  Plain and precious things are missing here.