The great level of serving Hashem was achieved by Yosef.
Hashem was with Yosef, and he was a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master. (39:2)
Apparently, this verse is not understood at all! Is it not because Yosef was in the house of his Egyptian master that he was a successful man? Why, then, is the Posuk not written in order? Another question can be asked: Why does the Posuk have to say that Hashem was with Yosef? Another difficulty is asked in the heilige Sefer Kedushas Levi written by Rebbi Levi Yitzchok of Barditchov that in Posuk 20 20 ... So Yosef's master took him and put him into prison, the place where the king's prisoners were imprisoned, and he was there in the house of prison. Why does the Torah have to repeat the words "And he was in the house of prison," which is apparently superfluous, when it says in the beginning of the Posuk? Yosef's master took him and put him into prison, so we already know he was in prison? And the Rebbi answers a powerful point: when Hashem sends something to a person that he does not see as being good, he should not do physical actions, but he should have strong confidence in Hashem, and of course Hashem will help him.
We find in Sefas Emes Gur Chayei Sarah 26 to explain the Midrash Bereishis 58:1 ... Rashi explains "All the years of Sarah were good." This is what the Chovas Halevavos calls zEe ©Y §y ¦d z ©c ¦n Whatever happens to a person, he accepts it wholeheartedly, knowing that everything that happens is the will of Hashem. Therefore, for Sarah, everything she went through was good for her. This is called zeninz. The Tzemach Tzaddik of Viznitz explains the Posuk by Noach, where Rashi says on the Posuk 6:9 ... These are the generations of Noach. Noach was a righteous man; he was perfect in his generations. Noach walked with God. Some of our Sages interpret Noach favorably; others interpret Noach derogatorily. However, Noach was a righteous man; he was perfect in his generation; this means it didn’t bother Noach how he was perceived. He had zEe ©Y §y ¦d z ©c ¦n and the reason was ... he always went and knew that Hashem meant the best for him. That is how Noach was able to cope with 120 years of building the Ark and being harassed and mocked by the people.
Yosef Hatzadik achieved the level of zEe ©Y §y ¦d z ©c ¦n and therefore he was very successful in all his dealings. He eventually became the feeder of the world when there was great hunger in Egypt and all over. He was able to cope with his brothers; even though they disliked him, he wasn't afraid of them, knowing that he was with Hashem constantly, and he would find comfort in Hashem.
When Yosef was brought to his master in the home of Pharaoh, the Torah reveals that Hashem was with Yosef, therefore the fact that he was a successful man, or the fact that he was in the house of his Egyptian master: didn’t matter to Yosef at all. It was the same for him. He was with Hashem. Therefore, it says three times in the Posuk the word "he was," since this only mattered to him to be with Hashem.
Hence, when the Torah states later “And he was in the house of prison," the Torah is telling us that he was with Hashem in the prison and served Hashem with the same fervor.
Another level that is achieved is that Hashem guides the person's actions. Therefore, when Yosef interprets the dream of the Minister in charge of drinking, Yosef asks the Minister to remember him and help him get out of prison. Yet the Torah states that the minister didn’t help Yosef, and he totally forgot that Yosef existed. However, Yosef wasn’t bothered by that, as Hashem guided him to ask, and Hashem wanted the Minister to forget. Everything is good for him.
Now we understand why Yosef didn't escape from prison. He had a terrific relationship with the master of Egypt, and he was very smart and easily escaped. But Yosef knew that Hashem was his guide, and Hashem wanted him in prison. When Hashem wanted him out, he would be out. Therefore, whatever went on, Yosef knew that Hashem was with him and was guiding him in the right direction. He was always happy! The same we find in the famous sage Nachum Ish Gam Zu, who always stated that everything that happened to him was always good and for his benefit, and that he was always helped by Hashem in every instance.
(Yehuda Z. Klitnick)
