DAY 11: Joseph’s Dream
“And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name Immanuel”
(which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.” – Matthew 1: 19-25 ESV
The Dream of Saint Joseph by Anton Raphael Mengs, 1773
My Thoughts:
In the painting The Dream of Saint Joseph we see a man who is so tired and burdened that he has dozed off at his workbench. His blanket weighs on his shoulders, much as his sleep is heavy with the burden of a hard decision—over a girl pregnant with child. But into his dark and heavy sleep enters the light of an angel who illuminates the scene with a lightness to her whole being. Her finger points boldly into the darkest corner of the scene as if to say: ‘Do not be afraid. You need not worry, because a savior is to be born to your betrothed.’ And with her other hand the angel offers him help.
Joseph would also be given other dreams from God, besides the dream to take Mary as his wife. In the dreams, he will be told to flee with Mary and the child to Egypt to escape Herod (Matthew 2:13), to return to Israel (v.19), but not to go to Judea (v.22). God has used dreams as a means of communicating with us in many stories of the Bible. For instance, God speaks to Abimelech (Genesis 20:3), Jacob (Genesis 31:11), Laban (Genesis 31:24), Joseph (Genesis 37:5), Solomon (1 Kings 3:5), Daniel (Daniel 7:1), and the Wise Men (Matthew 2:12) in dreams. God usually used dreams to give a warning, to reveal a prophecy, and to encourage.
Prayer:
Almighty God, giver of every good and perfect gift,
teach us to render to you all that we have and all that we are,
that we may praise you, not with our lips only, but with our whole lives,
turning the duties, the sorrows, and the joys of all our days
into a living sacrifice to you,
through our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
*Banner artwork based on Dream of St Joseph by Antonio Ciseri
