Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I had a dream, and no one can interpret it. But I have heard it said of you that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.”
“I cannot do it,” Joseph replied to Pharaoh, “but God will give Pharaoh the answer he desires.”
Genesis 41:15-16 NIV
This is giving God the glory. If you have ever wondered how to give God the glory, there you have it.
After Pharaoh told Joseph his dreams, Joseph explains the meaning. He didn't put on a show, he didn't make a spectacle of seeking the Lord for the interpretation, he just listened and spoke with the wisdom and authority God had given him.
Now, we must remember the hardship and discipline the Lord had worked in Joseph's life up to this point. He was thrown in a cistern by his brothers and sold into slavery. As a slave he was falsely accused and further imprisoned. He went from a his father's favorite to servant, to prisoner serving other prisoners. When he was younger he had dreams of his family bowing down to him. In chapter 41 he listens to Pharaoh's dream and bows to God by as the one who gives the dreams, firmly decides the matter, and gives the answers Pharaoh wants to hear.
I think he became humble. Joseph learned that the gifts and abilities he had were given by God and the wisdom he was given was God working in and through him. Joseph knew exactly who he was before God. Knowing who he was before God enabled him to stand before Pharaoh and boldly speak the truth. We may not be called to speak before Pharaoh, a president or king, but, when we are called upon to speak the wisdom God has given us, we can speak it in humility and confidence, giving God the glory.
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