Genesis 47
47
1#Ge 46:31; 45:10Then Joseph went and told Pharaoh, “My father and my brothers and their flocks and their herds and all that they possess have come from the land of Canaan and are now in the land of Goshen.” 2#Ac 7:13He took five men from among his brothers and presented them before Pharaoh.
3#Ge 46:33–34Pharaoh asked his brothers, “What is your occupation?”
And they said to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds, both we and also our fathers.” 4#Ge 15:13; 46:34They said to Pharaoh, “We have come to sojourn in the land, for your servants have no pasture for their flocks, because the famine is severe in the land of Canaan. Now therefore, please allow your servants to dwell in the land of Goshen.”
5Pharaoh spoke to Joseph, saying, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 6#Ge 47:11; Ex 18:21The land of Egypt is before you. Have your father and your brothers dwell in the best of the land. Have them dwell in the land of Goshen, and if you know any capable men among them, then put them in charge over my livestock.”
7#Ge 47:10Then Joseph brought in Jacob his father and presented him to Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. 8Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How old are you?”
9#Ge 35:28; 1Ch 29:15And Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years. My days of the years of my life have been few and evil, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the lives of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage.” 10#Ge 47:7And Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from his presence.
11#Ex 1:11; 12:37So Joseph settled his father and his brothers and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best part of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. 12#Ge 45:11Joseph provided food for his father, his brothers, and his father’s entire household, according to the number of their children.
Joseph and the Famine
13#Ac 7:11There was no food in all the land, for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Egypt and all the land of Canaan languished because of the famine. 14#Ge 41:56Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan for the grain that they bought, and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s house. 15When the money was all spent in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph and said, “Give us food, for why should we die in your presence? For our money is gone.”
16Joseph said, “Give your livestock, and I will give you food for your livestock, if your money is gone.” 17They brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them food in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the herds, and the donkeys; and he fed them with food in exchange for all their livestock for that year.
18When that year was ended, they came to him the second year and said to him, “We will not hide it from our lord, that our money is all spent. Our lord also has our herds of livestock. There is nothing left in the sight of my lord but our bodies and our lands. 19#Ne 5:2–3Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food, and we and our land will be slaves to Pharaoh. Also give us seed, so that we may live and not die, so that the land will not be desolate.”
20So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh, for every Egyptian man sold his field because the famine was severe on them. So the land became Pharaoh’s. 21As for the people, he removed them to cities from one end of the borders of Egypt to the other end. 22#Ezr 7:24Only the land of the priests he did not buy; for the priests had an allotment from Pharaoh, and they lived off their allotment that Pharaoh gave them. Therefore they did not sell their lands.
23Then Joseph said to the people, “I have bought you and your land today for Pharaoh; here is seed for you so you may sow the land. 24#Ge 41:34At the harvest, you must give a fifth part to Pharaoh and four parts will be your own, as seed for the field and for your food and for those of your households and for food for your little ones.”
25#Ge 33:15They said, “You have saved our lives. Let us find grace in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s slaves.”
26#Ge 47:22So Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt to this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth part, except from the land of the priests, which did not become Pharaoh’s.
Jacob’s Request of Joseph
27#Ge 46:3; Ex 1:7Israel lived in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen, and they had possessions there and grew and became very numerous.
28And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years, so the years of Jacob’s life were one hundred and forty-seven years. 29#Ge 24:2; 24:49When the time drew near when Israel would die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, “If now I have found grace in your sight, please put your hand under my thigh and deal kindly and truly with me. Please do not bury me in Egypt, 30#Ge 49:29–32; 23:19but let me lie with my fathers. Carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place.”
And he said, “I will do as you have said.”
31#1Ki 1:47; Ge 24:3And he said, “Swear to me,” and he swore to him. Then Israel bowed himself at the head of his bed.
Military Bible Association
Genesis 47
47
Jacob Blesses Pharaoh
1Then Joseph went to see Pharaoh and told him, “My father and my brothers have arrived from the land of Canaan. They have come with all their flocks and herds and possessions, and they are now in the region of Goshen.”
2Joseph took five of his brothers with him and presented them to Pharaoh. 3And Pharaoh asked the brothers, “What is your occupation?”
They replied, “We, your servants, are shepherds, just like our ancestors. 4We have come to live here in Egypt for a while, for there is no pasture for our flocks in Canaan. The famine is very severe there. So please, we request permission to live in the region of Goshen.”
5Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Now that your father and brothers have joined you here, 6choose any place in the entire land of Egypt for them to live. Give them the best land of Egypt. Let them live in the region of Goshen. And if any of them have special skills, put them in charge of my livestock, too.”
7Then Joseph brought in his father, Jacob, and presented him to Pharaoh. And Jacob blessed Pharaoh.
8“How old are you?” Pharaoh asked him.
9Jacob replied, “I have traveled this earth for 130 hard years. But my life has been short compared to the lives of my ancestors.” 10Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh again before leaving his court.
11So Joseph assigned the best land of Egypt—the region of Rameses—to his father and his brothers, and he settled them there, just as Pharaoh had commanded. 12And Joseph provided food for his father and his brothers in amounts appropriate to the number of their dependents, including the smallest children.
Joseph’s Leadership in the Famine
13Meanwhile, the famine became so severe that all the food was used up, and people were starving throughout the lands of Egypt and Canaan. 14By selling grain to the people, Joseph eventually collected all the money in Egypt and Canaan, and he put the money in Pharaoh’s treasury. 15When the people of Egypt and Canaan ran out of money, all the Egyptians came to Joseph. “Our money is gone!” they cried. “But please give us food, or we will die before your very eyes!”
16Joseph replied, “Since your money is gone, bring me your livestock. I will give you food in exchange for your livestock.” 17So they brought their livestock to Joseph in exchange for food. In exchange for their horses, flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle, and donkeys, Joseph provided them with food for another year.
18But that year ended, and the next year they came again and said, “We cannot hide the truth from you, my lord. Our money is gone, and all our livestock and cattle are yours. We have nothing left to give but our bodies and our land. 19Why should we die before your very eyes? Buy us and our land in exchange for food; we offer our land and ourselves as slaves for Pharaoh. Just give us grain so we may live and not die, and so the land does not become empty and desolate.”
20So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh. All the Egyptians sold him their fields because the famine was so severe, and soon all the land belonged to Pharaoh. 21As for the people, he made them all slaves,#47:21 As in Greek version and Samaritan Pentateuch; Hebrew reads he moved them all into the towns. from one end of Egypt to the other. 22The only land he did not buy was the land belonging to the priests. They received an allotment of food directly from Pharaoh, so they didn’t need to sell their land.
23Then Joseph said to the people, “Look, today I have bought you and your land for Pharaoh. I will provide you with seed so you can plant the fields. 24Then when you harvest it, one-fifth of your crop will belong to Pharaoh. You may keep the remaining four-fifths as seed for your fields and as food for you, your households, and your little ones.”
25“You have saved our lives!” they exclaimed. “May it please you, my lord, to let us be Pharaoh’s servants.” 26Joseph then issued a decree still in effect in the land of Egypt, that Pharaoh should receive one-fifth of all the crops grown on his land. Only the land belonging to the priests was not given to Pharaoh.
27Meanwhile, the people of Israel settled in the region of Goshen in Egypt. There they acquired property, and they were fruitful, and their population grew rapidly. 28Jacob lived for seventeen years after his arrival in Egypt, so he lived 147 years in all.
29As the time of his death drew near, Jacob#47:29 Hebrew Israel; also in 47:31b. See note on 35:21. called for his son Joseph and said to him, “Please do me this favor. Put your hand under my thigh and swear that you will treat me with unfailing love by honoring this last request: Do not bury me in Egypt. 30When I die, please take my body out of Egypt and bury me with my ancestors.”
So Joseph promised, “I will do as you ask.”
31“Swear that you will do it,” Jacob insisted. So Joseph gave his oath, and Jacob bowed humbly at the head of his bed.#47:31 Greek version reads and Israel bowed in worship as he leaned on his staff. Compare Heb 11:21.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
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