Genesis 47
47
Jacob [Israel] Meets Pharaoh
1Joseph went and told Pharaoh, “My father and my brothers have arrived from Canaan with their flocks, herds, and everything they have. Now they are in Goshen.” 2Since he had taken five of his brothers with him, he presented them to Pharaoh.
3Pharaoh asked the brothers, “What kind of work do you do?”
They answered Pharaoh, “We are shepherds, as were our ancestors. 4We have come to live in this land for a while. The famine is so severe in Canaan that there’s no pasture for our flocks. So please let us live in Goshen.”
5Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 6All of Egypt is available to you. Have your father and your brothers live in the best part of the land. Let them live in Goshen. If they are qualified, put them in charge of my livestock.”
7Then Joseph brought his father Jacob and had him stand in front of Pharaoh. Jacob blessed Pharaoh. 8Pharaoh asked him, “How old are you?”
9Jacob answered Pharaoh, “The length of my stay on earth has been 130 years. The years of my life have been few and difficult, fewer than my ancestors’ years.” 10Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh and left.
11As Pharaoh had ordered, Joseph had his father and his brothers live in the best part of Egypt, the region of Rameses. He gave them property there. 12Joseph also provided his father, his brothers, and all his father’s family with food based on the number of children they had.
Joseph Acquires All the Land in Egypt for Pharaoh
13The famine was so severe that there was no food anywhere. Neither Egypt nor Canaan were producing crops because of the famine. 14Joseph collected all the money that could be found in Egypt and in Canaan as payment for the grain people bought. Then he took it to Pharaoh’s palace. 15When the money in Egypt and Canaan was gone, all the Egyptians came to Joseph. “Give us food,” they said. “Do you want us to die right in front of you? We don’t have any more money!”
16Joseph replied, “If you don’t have any more money, give me your livestock, and I’ll give you food #47:16 Samaritan Pentateuch, Greek, Targum; Masoretic Text “I’ll give to you.” in exchange.” 17So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and he gave them food in exchange for their horses, sheep, goats, cattle, and donkeys. During that year he supplied them with food in exchange for all their livestock.
18When that year was over, they came to him the next year. “Sir,” they said to him, “you know that our money is gone, and you have all our livestock. There’s nothing left to bring you except our bodies and our land. 19Do you want us to die right in front of you? Do you want the land to be ruined? Take us and our land in exchange for food. Then we will be Pharaoh’s slaves and our land will be his property. But give us seed so that we won’t starve to death and the ground won’t become a desert.”
20Joseph bought all the land in Egypt for Pharaoh. Every Egyptian sold his fields because the famine was so severe. The land became Pharaoh’s. 21All over Egypt Joseph moved the people to the cities. 22But he didn’t buy the priests’ land because the priests received an income from Pharaoh, and they lived on that income. That’s why they didn’t sell their land.
23Joseph said to the people, “Now that I have bought you and your land for Pharaoh, here is seed for you. Plant crops in the land. 24Every time you harvest, give one-fifth of the produce to Pharaoh. Four-fifths will be yours to use as seed for your fields and as food for your households.”
25“You have saved our lives,” they said. “Please, sir, we are willing to be Pharaoh’s slaves.”
26Joseph made a law concerning the land in Egypt which is still in force today: One-fifth ⌞of the produce⌟ belongs to Pharaoh. Only the land of the priests didn’t belong to Pharaoh.
Jacob’s [Israel’s] Last Days in Egypt
27So the Israelites settled in Egypt in the region of Goshen. They acquired property there and had many children.
28Jacob lived in Egypt 17 years, so he lived a total of 147 years. 29Israel was about to die. He called for his son Joseph and said to him, “I want you to swear that you love me and are faithful to me. Please don’t bury me here. 30I want to rest with my ancestors. Take me out of Egypt, and bury me in their tomb.”
“I will do as you say,” Joseph answered.
31“Swear to me,” he said. So Joseph swore to him. Then Israel bowed down in prayer with his face at the head of his bed.
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Genesis 47: GW
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
Genesis 47
47
1-2Joseph took five of his brothers to the king and told him, “My father and my brothers have come from Canaan. They have brought their sheep, goats, cattle, and everything else they own to the region of Goshen.”
Then he introduced his brothers to the king, 3who asked them, “What do you do for a living?”
“Sir, we are shepherds,” was their answer. “Our families have always raised sheep. 4But in our country all the pastures are dried up, and our sheep have no grass to eat. So we, your servants, have come here. Please let us live in the region of Goshen.”
5The king said to Joseph, “It's good that your father and brothers have arrived. 6I will let them live anywhere they choose in the land of Egypt, but I suggest that they settle in Goshen, the best part of our land. I would also like your finest shepherds to look after my own sheep and goats.”
7Then Joseph brought his father Jacob and introduced him to the king. Jacob gave the king his blessing, 8and the king asked him, “How old are you?”
9Jacob answered, “I have lived only a hundred and thirty years, and I have had to move from place to place. My parents and my grandparents also had to move from place to place. But they lived much longer, and their life was not as hard as mine.” 10Then Jacob gave the king his blessing once again and left. 11Joseph obeyed the king's orders and gave his father and brothers some of the best land in Egypt near the city of Rameses. 12Joseph also provided food for their families.
A famine in Egypt
13The famine was bad everywhere in Egypt and Canaan, and the people were suffering terribly. 14So Joseph sold them the grain that had been stored up, and he put the money#47.14 money: See the note at 42.25. in the king's treasury. 15But when everyone had run out of money, the Egyptians came to Joseph and demanded, “Give us more grain! If you don't, we'll soon be dead, because our money's all gone.”
16“If you don't have any money,” Joseph answered, “give me your animals, and I'll let you have some grain.” 17From then on, they brought him their horses and donkeys and their sheep and goats in exchange for grain.
Within a year Joseph had collected every animal in Egypt. 18Then the people came to him and said:
Sir, there's no way we can hide the truth from you. We are broke, and we don't have any more animals. We have nothing left except ourselves and our land. 19Don't let us starve and our land be ruined. If you'll give us grain to eat and seed to plant, we'll sell ourselves and our land to the king.#47.19 the king: See the note at 12.15. We'll become his slaves.
20The famine became so severe that Joseph finally bought every piece of land in Egypt for the king 21and made everyone the king's slaves,#47.21 made…slaves: One ancient translation and the Samaritan Hebrew Text; the Standard Hebrew Text “made everyone move to the cities”. 22except the priests. The king gave the priests a regular food allowance, so they did not have to sell their land. 23Then Joseph said to the people, “You and your land now belong to the king. I'm giving you seed to plant, 24but one-fifth of your crops must go to the king. You can keep the rest as seed or as food for your families.”
25“Sir, you have saved our lives!” they answered. “We are glad to be slaves of the king.” 26Then Joseph made a law that one-fifth of the harvest would always belong to the king. Only the priests did not lose their land.
Jacob becomes an old man
27The people of Israel made their home in the land of Goshen, where they became prosperous and had large families. 28Jacob himself lived there for seventeen years, before dying at the age of one hundred and forty-seven. 29When Jacob knew he did not have long to live, he called in Joseph and said, “If you really love me, you must make a solemn promise not to bury me in Egypt.#Gn 49.29-32; 50.6. 30Instead, bury me in the place where my ancestors are buried.”
“I will do what you have asked,” Joseph answered.
31“Will you give me your word?” Jacob asked.
“Yes, I will,” Joseph promised. After this, Jacob bowed down and prayed at the head of his bed.
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