If people knew what happened inside the walls of the prison, and they were asked if there was any hope for Yosef to be free, they would have instantly answered of course since he had a brother in the king’s palace, the cupbearer. Surely, the cupbearer would remember the good that Yosef had done for him and he would quickly repay the kindness since he was a respected officer of the king, and most likely Hashem bestowed on him intellect to understand that Yosef should be reinstated. Who knows if his interpretation eased his mind, and if he hears that he did nothing wrong, he will expedite his freedom, and advocate to Pharoah.
But in fact, he was in for a big surprise, the honorable officer hid from the whole thing. He returned to his exalted position, and he did not remember who stood by his side in his distress.
This was a great lesson for Yosef, that is, if HaKadosh Baruch Hu did not want him to be free, then it is impossible to take matters in his own hands, even though he deserved to be royalty. We must also learn from here that everything is the dependent on the hand of Heaven, and if HaKadosh Baruch Hu does not want a thing to happen, all the hishtadlus in the world will not help.
Two years passed with Yosef in prison, and if people considered Yosef’s situation, they would certainly not give Yosef any hope, since he was guilty of terrible sins, and there was no way to prove him innocent.
But now the time had come when HaKadosh Baruch Hu wanted Yosef to be freed, and since this was so, again the people would be proven wrong. From this we can learn something else in the ways of the Creator, that is, if the Creator wants something to happen, nothing can stand in its way, even if the person does not do any hishtadlus from his side, as there are many ways to stand to the right of the person. Even if there is no hope for his salvation.
This is what HaKadosh Baruch Hu demonstrated now, one day the king’s officers were waiting for him at the door of the prison to rush him from the pit, shave him, dress him, and stand him before the king in all his glory. Why? Because the king dreamed a dream! An even clearer explanation: Because HaKadosh Baruch Hu wanted it! Therefore, He worked it out that the king would dream a dream and everything worked out to rush him from prison, and elevate him from a deep pit to an exalted position. Everything in a supernatural way.
We have to apply all these teachings to ourselves, whether in a situation where we think that it is our own hishtadlus that bore fruit, or whether it seems that all hope is lost. We must always know that even after the hishtadlus we must daven and ask Hashem Yisbarach to send our salvation, and on the other hand, we must also know that even if the hishtadlus did not bear fruit, we must not give up hope. When the day comes when the Creator Baruch Hu wants to bring us salvation, He will bring it in His own ways.
הכל בידי שמים
Everything is in the hands of Heaven
וַיִּשְׁ לַח פַרְׁ עֹה וַיִּקְׁ רָא אֶת יוֹסֵף וַיְׁרִּ יצֻהוּ מִּן הַבּוֹר וַיְׁגַלַח וַיְׁחַלֵף שִּ מְׁלֹתָיו וַיָבֹא אֶל פַרְׁ עֹה: (מא:יד)
So Pharoah sent and summoned Yosef, and they rushed him from the pit. He shaved his hair and changed his clothes, and he came to Pharoah. (41:14)
From Yosef’s languishing in prison and from Pharoah’s dreams, we can see that only HaKadosh Baruch Hu runs the world, and He has the power and authority to lower and raise, and everything is only dependent on His decrees. Even though we know from seforim that the will of HaKadosh Baruch Hu is that for every salvation the person has to exert some effort [hishtadlus], and it is incumbent on him to know that in fact his hishtadlus does not help him unless it is the intent of his Creator. But if this is not the will of HaKadosh Baruch Hu, his hishtadlus will not bear fruit. In a situation like this, it is incumbent on him to accept the judgment of Heaven with love out of emunah that everything the Merciful One does is for the best.
Yosef was sitting in prison and his heart was broken to pieces. He knows that he did no sin to be thrown into a pit, and to his dismay he sees no way out to freedom.
Then one day, Pharoah’s couriers, the cupbearer and the baker, sinned to their master the king, and the king decreed that they be sent to prison.
The Egyptians who heard the word of the king assumed that these honorable officers were doomed and would not remain alive. All could understand that one who sins against the king, his blood is on his head, and even Pharoah’s officers knew this. Aside from the fear of death hanging over their heads, they had the additional suffering of spending their remaining days in prison. They felt that they fell from their high status to a deep pit, for until their master became angry with them, they had earned great honor because of their exalted positions. They were surrounded by the glory of serving the king. But once they were put on death row, no Egyptian was interested in their welfare nor sought to benefit them because the Egyptians already considered them as if they were gone. If this was so, then why should they do good for these officers if there was nothing in it for themselves... We can just imagine how dear Yosef was to them since he did harp on their downfall, rather, he saw fit to serve them and do good with them even in these very difficult days.
A few days later, the cupbearer was able to recognize the good traits of Yosef, adding anxiety to his anxiety, he had a dream and he understood that the dream was a hint to his future, but he could not interpret it properly. Of course, this bothered him very much, and he did not know where to turn for help. Just then Yosef appeared as a saving angel, and he interpreted the dream for him for good.
It is not possible to describe the joy that the cupbearer felt, just then Yosef realized he had a golden opportunity, did he not make the cupbearer’s time in prison easier, and even made him very happy that he would eventually be freed and return to his status as server? Since this was so, ‘the honorable officer’ should be grateful to him. If so – thought Yosef – how good it would be for him to tell the officer everything that had happened to him, and he was stuck in prison though he did nothing wrong. He should return the favor and speak to the king on his behalf because he was innocent. From thought to deed, he asked the officer to help him get out of prison.
