Genesis 41

Genesis 41:42

What A Ring May Mean Pharaoh took off his signet ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand.—Genesis 41:42.Rings are the most old-fashioned things in the world. They were worn thousands and thousands of years ago, and yet they are as fashionable today as ever. Why? Perhaps the chief reason is that rings have generally been worn as the sign of something. There has generally been some special meaning attached to the wearing of them. Let us have a look at the meaning of some of these old rings this morning.1. A ring sometimes means authority. The first finger-ring mentioned in the Bible was a ring of authority.

It is the ring of our text.In ancient times, when very few could write, it was the custom for a man who was in any position of authority to wear a ring with some special badge or design. This signet ring was used to seal letters or documents. It was used to show that the person in authority really had given the orders contained in the letters or documents. If that person was a king and handed over his signet ring to another it meant that this other, when he used the ring, had all the power and authority of the king himself. So you see it was a tremendous honor for Joseph to be given Pharaoh’s own signet ring.In Egypt, in earliest times, signet rings such as that of Pharaoh were very much worn. You can see some of these old rings today, for they have been dug up out of the Egyptian tombs and ruins.

They are usually of pure gold. They are heavy and massive, but their design is simple.

What jewelers call the “bezel”—the flat bit which bears the design—is oblong, and on it are deeply graven the name and title of the owner.But it was not only in ancient Egypt that the ring of authority was known. It was worn also in ancient Rome. There only ambassadors were granted the right to wear a gold ring. This right was called the jus annuli aurei. Later it was extended to other officers of the state, and later the soldiers and the free citizens of the great republic were allowed to share the coveted privilege of wearing a gold ring.But we have rings of authority today. A Bishop’s ring is the sign of his authority as a Bishop. In early days the Bishop’s ring was of plain gold. Later it came to be set with a sapphire.

The early rings were very large, for they were intended to be worn on the fore-finger of the right hand over the glove. The Bishop’s ring was considered so much his that it was buried with him.Then the reigning Pope has a famous ring of authority. Its form is always the same. It is a ring with a device of the apostle Peter in a boat drawing a net from the water. So it is known as “the fisherman’s ring.” When a Pope dies his ring is broken. Then when a new Pope is elected a new ring with a blank for the name is brought into the Conclave (that is, the council which has just elected him). It is placed on the finger of the newly-made Pope. He then declares what name he intends to take, and hands back the ring that the name may be engraved on it.2.

A ring sometimes means slavery.During the days of the later Roman Empire an iron ring was the mark of a slave. It meant that he was not his own master, he was somebody’s property.Some of you have read Ivanhoe. Do you remember the serf’s ring there? Only it was not a ring for the finger. It was a brass ring like a dog’s collar soldered fast round the man’s neck. You remember that on it was the inscription, “Gurth, the son of Beowulph, is the born thrall of Cedric of Rotherwood.”And a ring can mean slavery still.

Some years ago a little Indian lady came to pay a visit to this country. She was married, and her hostess asked her why she did not wear a wedding ring. “I do,” she answered. “I will show it to you.” She raised her sari and showed, far up on her arm, what looked like a very strong golden hoop. “It is gold on the top,” said she, “but it is iron underneath.

When I was married this ring was welded on to my arm. It will never be taken off in this life; it will remain on when I am dead.”Boys and girls, do you know anything like that strange wedding ring? I do. Its name is sin. Sin generally seems so pleasant to begin with. It is the golden hoop. But it holds with the strength of iron. We cannot free ourselves from it.

God alone can break its band.3. But a ring oftenest means love.That is the meaning of your mother’s wedding ring. It signifies a pledge or promise that will not be broken, a love that hopes to be as endless as the ring itself. For you can go round and round a wedding ring, but you will never come to an end of it. And, because it means love, such a ring is the most sacred and beautiful and precious of all rings. The rarest of sapphires and diamonds and emeralds cannot compare with it in value, although it is only a little circlet of plain gold. An engagement ring means love too. So does the ring which we call a mourning ring, for it is worn in memory of someone loved and lost.Are there no rings of love in the Bible?

There is one in particular. Do you know where to find it? You will find it in the story of the Prodigal Son. You remember how the prodigal’s father welcomed him and called for the robe and the shoes and the ring. These were not necessary articles of clothing. They were special marks of honor. The young fellow had come back daring to hope only for the position of a servant. But the father gave him the best that was in the house.

He did more than merely forgive him. He showered on him the gifts of love.And that is God’s way still, boys and girls. We may be wearing the iron ring of slavery to sin. If we go to Him and ask Him to loose it, He will not only do so, He will not only forgive, He will welcome us with rejoicing and the golden ring of love.

Genesis 41:51

The Climbers God hath made me forget all my trouble.—Genesis 41:51.In the city of Edinburgh there are a great many very high houses. In one of these lives an old lady. To reach her little top apartment from one particular street you have to climb a stair of a 105 steps. You would probably run up all the way, sometimes taking two or three steps at a time, and at the top not feel one bit tired.One of her young friends, up for the first time, looked all round her room, then out at the window. “I like this,” he said—“a rare place for an airplane station!” Another—she was a girl—visited her one night after it was dark. There was no light in the room, but down below were the lights of the city, and they twinkled, twinkled, just like so many stars. “How lovely!” the girl said. “It makes me think of Peter Pan’s house up in the tree-tops.” But often the old lady’s grown-up friends arrive quite out of breath. They have to rest before beginning to talk.

While they are resting the old lady encourages them to look out at her windows, for then they are almost certain to say—“It’s worth the trouble of climbing up.” I must tell you that her “best” room has three windows, and each one looks in a different direction.You want to know, of course, what is to be seen from these windows. Well, just down below and all round is part of the north side of the city with its ups and downs—for Edinburgh is not flat; in the middle distance one can see the Forth and the coast of Fife; and beyond that are hills behind hills.

And then there is the sky, the glorious sky.It is a very long time ago since men discovered that hard work brought reward. “God hath made me forget all my trouble.” These were Joseph’s words. You know the wonderful story of his life, and how he climbed up, and up, until he became a very great man in Egypt. Yet, old though the story is, our text, “God hath made me forget all my trouble,” might have been recorded as among the fireside reflections of a great and God-fearing business man of today. And I believe that Joseph himself, when he was a boy like some of you, felt all the more determined to succeed with every rebuff that came to him. How many of you have learnt that lesson?I remember a little fellow—this happened before any of you were born—who competed for a prize in elementary Greek. His rival was very clever—much cleverer than he was—so he rose early and sat up late in his eagerness to come in first.

He gained the prize. When he saw it, for a moment his heart sank.

It was an old second-hand Greek New Testament. The boys then did not get such grand prizes as you do.But I think I see that boy’s face when his father stroked his hair and said, “Spur on, you’ll be a scholar yet, George.”George was in dead earnest. But there are those who climb—who work—for mere sport or, like the old lady’s “Peter Pan” visitor, in order that they may find pretty things. No happier boys are to be found than those who love good honest sport; and no happier girl than the girl who has begun to love pictures. But in your happiness, don’t forget For the great climb of your inner life—the one that is in our minds —needs your attention, not only every day, but every hour.When I decided on today’s text I said to myself, “I’ll tell the boys and girls how our brave soldiers won battles in World War I. It is a story of lads being confronted with danger and death and triumphing over them.

In their case climbing meant paying a great price for victory, but it was worth the trouble. They smiled at Death and refused to be afraid.

The words of the old hymn take a new meaning:A noble army, men and boys,The matron and the maid,Around the Savior’s throne rejoice,In robes of light arrayed;They climbed the steep ascent of heavenThrough peril, toil and pain.“God has made me forget all my trouble,” we can imagine them saying. “It was worth the trouble of climbing up.”