• Well thank you for checking out this Bible study podcast, I’m Randy Duncan, and we are making our way through the book of Genesis,
• In the last episode we covered chapter 46, which saw Jacob, now called Israel, embark on a journey to Egypt, marking the end of the patriarchal era. Despite initial concerns, a divine vision reassures him, emphasizing God’s promise of nationhood. We discussed Jacob’s very emotional reunion with Joseph, and then Joseph’s strategic plans as they begin to unfold for settling in Egypt. Our episode concluded by mentioning parallels and resurrection themes, as both Abraham and Jacob figuratively receive their sons back from the dead, echoing the disciples’ stunned joy at Christ’s resurrection.
• Which leads us now to chapter 47, which picks up the action with the first 6 verses reading, “So Joseph went in and told Pharaoh, “My father and my brothers, with their flocks and herds and all that they possess, have come from the land of Canaan. They are now in the land of Goshen.” 2 And from among his brothers he took five men and presented them to Pharaoh. 3 Pharaoh said to his brothers, “What is your occupation?” And they said to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds, as our fathers were.” 4 They said to Pharaoh, “We have come to sojourn in the land, for there is no pasture for your servants’ flocks, for the famine is severe in the land of Canaan. And now, please let your servants dwell in the land of Goshen.” 5 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 6 The land of Egypt is before you. Settle your father and your brothers in the best of the land. Let them settle in the land of Goshen, and if you know any able men among them, put them in charge of my livestock.”
• So, Jacob and his family are now in Egypt, and Joseph wants to present them before Pharoah. He wants to take every precaution to make sure Pharoah assigns his family the area of Goshen to settle in. In the last episode, we discussed the reasons why he wants them in the area of Goshen. And remember, he has even rehearsed this scene with his brothers. Telling them what to say and how to respond to Pharoah’s questions.
• So, Joseph tells Pharoah that his family is now in Egypt, having moved from Canaan. He needs to personally inform Pharoah that they have arrived, because Pharoah is the one who had originally extended the invitation to them. And so, he tells Pharoah, “My father and my brothers, with their flocks and herds and all that they possess, have come from the land of Canaan. They are now in the land of Goshen”.
• One of the reasons Joseph may include the details that they have moved with all their flocks and herds, is to emphasize once again that his family are shepherds, and so they don’t have any social or political ambitions. And then also, to get them assigned to live in the area of Goshen, where they would be shielded from the alien way of life, insulated somewhat from the Egyptian secular way of life, and intermarriage, and so forth. And so, by telling Pharoah that they are currently in Goshen, Joseph sort of plants the seed that this would be a good place for them.
• And it says that Joseph selected five of his brothers and presented them to Pharoah. The Hebrew construction used here implies that he chose five at random, but it is also possible that five is used here as a round number for several.
• But either way, just as Joseph told them ahead of time, Pharoah questions them, asking them “What is your occupation?” And just as Joseph had rehearsed with them, they told him the truth, that they were shepherds, just like their fathers were, even though Joseph had told them that shepherds were an abomination to the Egyptians.
• The brothers continue, telling Pharoah that they have come to sojourn in the land because there is no pasture for their flocks in Canaan, due to the famine. Now, one thing to note here, is their use of the word “sojourn”, “to live here a while”. The Hebrew term is glossed as “will be strangers”. In other words, Jacob only intended to stay in Egypt temporarily. But the way the Hebrew is constructed here, connects this migration down to Egypt with God’s prophecy to Abraham, where God told him “Know well that your offspring shall be strangers in a land that is not theirs”.
• And so, the brothers here identified themselves as resident strangers, or what we might say today ‘resident aliens”. They are residents, but not citizens of Egypt.
• And it’s interesting to see that in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy, you read repeated ethical instructions regarding the treatment of strangers, such as “You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt”, and “You shall not oppress a stranger, for you know the feelings of the stranger, having yourselves been strangers in the land of Egypt”.
• And so, we see that even after the Exodus from Egypt, this “being a stranger” left a deep imprint on their consciousness, and God would also not allow them to forget it.
• But notice Pharoah doesn’t respond directly to the brothers, but to Joseph. This may be simply because Pharoah is welcoming Joseph’s family based on his appreciation for all Joseph has done for him and his country. But it could also be that the brothers would need an interpreter anyway since they would not have understood his words. However, the way his response is constructed suggests that Pharoah responds with a certain superiority, an aloofness, as he uses very few words, only the amount necessary, emphasizing the absolute authority of Pharoah.
• But Pharoah tells Joseph that “all of the land of Egypt is before them, bring them, and settle them in the best of the land. Have them settle in Goshen”. And so, Pharaoh is true to his earlier word to Joseph, and Joseph gets what he wants for his family.
• Pharaoh also tells Joseph that if he has any capable men, men of ability, to place them in charge of his livestock. The Hebrew here literally means “officers of cattle”, which means “superintendents of the royal cattle”. Now this position is mentioned often in Egyptian inscriptions since the King owned vast herds of cattle. Ramses III, for example, is said to have employed over 3200 men, mostly foreigners, to take care of his herds.
• And so, this appointment of some of Joseph’s own brothers to supervise Pharoah’s herds means that they are to be officers of the crown, and so will enjoy legal protection not usually afforded to aliens. And so, within their own trade, the brothers can advance themselves in Pharoah’s administration.
• Verses 7 -10 continue….7 Then Joseph brought in Jacob his father and stood him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. 8 And Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How many are the days of the years of your life?” 9 And Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years. Few and difficult have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojourning.” 10 And Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from the presence of Pharaoh.
• So, after Joseph presented five of his brothers to Pharoah, he then brings in his father Jacob, and presents him to Pharoah. He probably didn’t bring in Jacob at the same time as his brothers because he felt like it would be undignified for Jacob, the aged patriarch of the family, to appear to be asking for mercy from Pharoah, and to do so in front of his children. Because he is now completely dependent upon Pharoah’s goodwill.
• And so, what we see here is the juxtaposition of two worlds and two completely different ways of life, meeting and coming face-to-face. Jacob, who holds the promise from God to become a great nation, standing before the lord of Egypt, which is already a great nation.
• But Pharoah asks Jacob, “How many are the days of the years of your life?” In other words, ‘How old are you”? Jacob’s response is interesting. We know Jacob is 130 years old at this time, and so he could have simply said, “I’m 130 years old”. But that not all he says. He says, “I’m 130 years old”, but also says “Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojourning.”
• So, a couple of points here. First, the Egyptians had a preoccupation with death. The Pharoah’s were believed to be eternal, and they sought to have their bodies immortalized. And so, Jacob’s age must have impressed Pharoah. But Jacob also adds a couple of comments. He tells Pharoah that his years have been “few and difficult”. When he says his years have been “few”, he is saying that in comparison to how long his fathers Abraham and Isaac lived, who lived to be 175 and 180 years old.
• And then with great humility and honesty, he also says his years have been difficult. And by this, he is alluding to his very turbulent and troublesome life. And as we have seen, Jacob has had a tough go of it for much of his life. And it started in his mother’s womb, wrestling with his twin brother Esau, then tricking his brother out of his father’s blessing, fleeing his home for 20 years because his brother wanted to kill him. Then he gets tricked by his uncle Laban and ends up having to work for him for 20 years. On his way back home, he wrestles with God, receiving a permanent injury. His wife dies in childbirth, and just when all seemed to finally be settling down for him, his favorite son, Joseph, is taken from him, and he spends the next 22 years grieving the son he believed was dead.
• And think about this. Jacob has actually achieved everything that he sought to accomplish. He got the family birthright, he received the blessing from his father Isaac, he married the woman he was in love with, he was wealthy, he had many children and grandchildren. But even though he got everything he wanted, he did not get it in the way he wanted. It came at a cost. And the consequences were many times far more pain than happiness. Now of course, Jacob doesn’t go into any specifics with Pharoah here. He simply says, the years of my life have been…difficult.
• But it also says that before he left Pharoah’s presence, “Jacob blessed Pharaoh.” Just an observation, but notice that although Jacob doesn’t exalt himself above Pharoah, he also doesn’t refer to himself as Pharoah’s servant like the brothers did three times. In fact, it would normally be the case that the superior would bless the lesser, but in this case, it is actually Jacob who blesses Pharoah. Now, there are some commentators who have pointed out that this “blessing” could also be translated as he simply bade farewell to Pharaoh. But either way, with this, Jacob ends the interview.
• We continue with verses 11 and 12…11 Then Joseph settled his father and his brothers and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. 12 And Joseph provided his father, his brothers, and all his father’s household with food, according to the number of their dependents.
• So, these two verses sort of serve as a transition to what we will see next, which is Joseph’s administration of the ongoing famine. But it tells us that Joseph settles his family in the land of Ramses, which is another name for Goshen.
• Notice that it says he gave them a possession in the land. He gave them property. And this refers to a possession received from someone who has the authority to give it. This is actually more than they asked for, and it certainly differentiates the family from what the Egyptians are about to experience
• Now, in the Hebrew, it says that Joseph supplied them with food “down to the little ones”. This term lefi- ha-taf, normally means “by the mouth of” or “according to the children”. It is similar to what we would nowadays refer to as “according to their number of dependents”
• But we now shift gears, and the focus returns to the issue at hand, which is the ongoing famine. And the next several verses describe Joseph’s administration of the food supply in the midst of this famine. And so, we continue with verses 13-17 which read…13 Now there was no food in all the land, for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan languished by reason of the famine. 14 And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, in exchange for the grain that they bought. And Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s house. 15 And when 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. Why should we die before your eyes? For our money is gone.” 16 And Joseph answered, “Give your livestock, and I will give you food in exchange for your livestock, if your money is gone.” 17 So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them food in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the herds, and the donkeys. He supplied them with food in exchange for all their livestock that year.
• Now, what we are going to see with these verses, and with the verses that follow, is that the severity of the famine is so bad that the people become completely dependent upon the state for their survival. And we see Joseph rising to the occasion, avoiding a humanitarian disaster, through a series of drastic measures that, in effect, nationalizes both the land and the livestock, which in the end, turns the people into tenant farmers of the state.
• Notice also as we go through this section, the great benefit that Joseph brings to the Egyptian crown, which only amplifies the level of ingratitude that will be demonstrated by a later Pharaoh in Exodus “who did not know Joseph”. This is the Pharaoh that will meet a man named Moses prior to the Exodus from Egypt, and who will experience the 10 plagues.
• But it says that “there was no food in all the land, for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan languished by reason of the famine”. Now that word “languished” in Hebrew means to be weary or helpless. But pay attention, that not only was the famine severe in Egypt, but also in the land of Canaan, which was Jacob’s home. And it reminds us of what Jacob, Israel’s fate would have been if not for Joseph. If they had not migrated to where the son was, they would have perished.
• And so, it presents a picture of the son, figuratively dead, but now alive. And not only living, but now ruler over all. And just like Israel, what would be our fate if not for the Son?
• Verse 14 then tells us that “And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, in exchange for the grain that they bought”. Now this grain is referring to threshed grain, or corn or cereal used for food. It is not seed. And so, Joseph begins selling the people the grain that he had saved during the years of plenty. He brings all of the money into Pharoah’s palace. He doesn’t take anything for himself.
• But at some point, the money was all spent and the Egyptians came to Joseph and said, “Give us food. Why should we die before your eyes? For our money is gone.” So, the Egyptians are now at a point where they still need food, they still need grain, but now they are out of money. When you’re out of money, how then are you going to purchase more?
• Well, Joseph answers them by saying “Give your livestock, and I will give you food in exchange for your livestock, if your money is gone.” 17 So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them food in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the herds, and the donkeys. He supplied them with food in exchange for all their livestock that year.
• So, in short, Joseph says he will provide them food in exchange for their livestock. Incidentally, this is the first time in the Bible where horses are mentioned. And horses being the first animal mentioned in this list is indicative of their high value.
• And it says that they did this, and that Joseph “supplied” them through that year. That Hebrew word for supplied means to “escort through distress to safety”. So, it is conveying more than the fact that Joseph provided them food, but that he saved them from the danger of starvation, and safely escorted them throughout the year.
• But we continue with verses 18 and 19…18 And when that year was ended, they came to him the following year and said to him, “We will not hide from my lord that our money is all spent. The herds of livestock are my lord’s. There is nothing left in the sight of my lord but our bodies and our land. 19 Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food, and we with our land will be servants to Pharaoh. And give us seed that we may live and not die, and that the land may not be desolate.”
• So, after that year had ended, it says the people came to Joseph and told him their money was all gone, and now their livestock has been used up as well. IOW, they are not only broke, but they have no more livestock either, as they have traded it for grain over the course of the last year.
• They tell Joseph that all they have left is their land and their bodies. The Hebrew term used for bodies here often means “corpse”, and so it characterizes a person in weakness, or oppression, or trouble.
• But they come to Joseph and say, “Why should we die before your eyes? Buy us and our land for food, and we with our land will be servants to Pharaoh.” Notice that in the previous year, it was Joseph who proposed the sale of their livestock in exchange for food. But it is the Egyptians themselves who propose the greater sacrifice of their bodies and their land, and offering to be servants to Pharaoh. It is the Egyptians themselves who are offering to voluntarily surrender their land and become serfs of Pharaoh
• But in addition to asking for food, they also ask for seed “that we may live and not die, and that the land may not be desolate.” So, this tells us that this was during the last year of the famine. They ask for the seed because they know they will need to plant for when the famine is over in preparation for next year’s harvest.
• And so, what does Joseph do? Verses 20-22 tell us…20 So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh, for all the Egyptians sold their fields, because the famine was severe on them. The land became Pharaoh’s. 21 As for the people, he made servants of them from one end of Egypt to the other. 22 Only the land of the priests he did not buy, for the priests had a fixed allowance from Pharaoh and lived on the allowance that Pharaoh gave them; therefore, they did not sell their land.
• So, Joseph does as the Egyptians asked, he bought all the land of Egypt for Pharoah. All the Egyptians sell their land to Pharoah. And just as they asked, he made them servants. The only land he didn’t buy was the land of the priests. Remember, the temple received a royal endowment from Pharaoh, so the priests would have not been forced to sell their land for food, as they could have simply continued to buy it.
• And so only the Egyptian priests and Israel, which would later become a kingdom of priests, escape the serfdom. And I say that’s interesting because Joseph is related to both of them. He is related to Israel by blood, and to the priests by marriage. And so once again, we sort of see this prefigure of Jesus Christ, who, like Joseph, was also a Jew by blood and birth. And just as Joseph was related to the priests through marriage, don’t we refer to the church, us believers, as being the bride of Christ, and that we will enjoy the “marriage” supper with him? And so, both Joseph and Jesus are born Jews, but are united to non-Jews through marriage.
• But verses 23-26 continue…23 Then Joseph said to the people, “Behold, I have this day bought you and your land for Pharaoh. Now here is seed for you, and you shall sow the land. 24 And at the harvests you shall give a fifth to Pharaoh, and four fifths shall be your own, as seed for the field and as food for yourselves and your households, and as food for your little ones.” 25 And they said, “You have saved our lives; may it please my lord, we will be servants to Pharaoh.” 26 So Joseph made it a statute concerning the land of Egypt, and it stands to this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth; the land of the priests alone did not become Pharaoh’s.
• So again, Joseph does as they ask, and he buys their land in exchange for food and seed for the upcoming year. And so, in essence, they are reduced to tenant farmers on state land. Joseph also tells them that come harvest time, they will give Pharaoh a fifth, and they shall keep 4/5ths. IOW, he imposes a 20% tax on them for the privilege to farm the land and for the seed allotment he gave them. They are allowed to keep 80% for themselves.
• Now, 20% was not considered a heavy tax in the ancient Near East, as a more common tax rate was 33%. In fact, 20% was the typical interest rate on money loans, but loans on produce was usually 33.3%.
• And we see by the Egyptians’ response here that they don’t regard Joseph as some tyrant, or greedy overlord. Rather, they say “You have saved our lives”. And they also tell him, ‘May it please my lord, we will be servants to Pharaoh.” And at the time this was written, it remained in place that Pharaoh would receive a 20% tax. Only the land of the priests was exempt.
• And this sort of highlights one difference between Egypt and Israel. The Egyptians agree to and say “we will be in bondage to Pharaoh”. In fact, it was the peasants themselves who initiated the idea of their own enslavement, and then even express gratitude when it was implemented!
• But in Israel, the Lord gave each family a portion of the Promised Land, and forbade anyone, including the King, from taking it. It highlights the difference between private ownership versus state control. And this argument, or debate, still rages on today, even here in America, the supposed “Land of the Free”. As many of our institutions advocate, and many younger adults, are more open to some form of socialism or totalitarianism. But that is not the format God implemented in Israel. I think it was Benjamin Franklin who said, “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
• But we continue with verses 27-28, which leaves behind Joseph’s administration of the famine, and returns to the narrative concerning Jacob. These two verses read…”27 Thus Israel settled in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen. And they gained possessions in it, and were fruitful and multiplied greatly. 28 And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. So, the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were 147 years.
• And so, we see Jacob and his family are settled in Egypt, and they are fruitful, they are prosperous, demonstrating that God’s promise is being fulfilled. And all of this begins to happen during the last part of the famine, while the Egyptians are selling everything they have to Pharaoh, their money, their livestock, their land, and even themselves as servants. And so, this prosperity that we see occurring with the Israelites stands in stark contrast to what we see happening to the Egyptians
• And it tells us that Jacob lived there for 17 years. Now, I know I touched on it in the last episode, but I think it bears repeating. Jacob had lost Joseph when Joseph was 17 years old. So, he lived with him for 17 years. Now, he will live with him for the remaining 17 years of his life. The difference this time, however, is that Joseph spent his first 17 years under the care of Jacob, and now Jacob will spend the last 17 years of his life under the care of Joseph.
• Now, I hesitate to try this on a podcast with no visuals, but I’m going to try anyway. Verse 28 tells us that Jacob lived to be 147 years old. Now normally you would just read that and move on. But I want to point out something. If you look at the lifespans of the three patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, there is something really interesting here. Their lifespans of 175 years for Abraham, 180 for Isaac, and now 147 years for Jacob, lend themselves to factorization.
• In other words, and try to picture this in your head, Abraham’s lifespan of 175 equals 5x5x7, Isaac’s lifespan of 180 equals 6x6x5, and Jacob’s lifespan of 147 equals 7x7x3. And when you look at those numbers, you see that the squared number increases by one each time, and the coefficient decreases by two each time. In other words, 5×5, then 6×6, then 7×7 for the first two numbers, and then 7, 5, 3 for the last numbers. Now do you see why I hesitated to try this on a podcast?
• Furthermore, if you add the three numbers for each of the patriarchs, it equals 17 for each of them. 5+5+7 equals 17, 6+6+5 equals 17, and 7+7+3 equals 17. Now, what are the odds that all of this is just a weird coincidence? Now I’m not going to try a statistics formula over audio, but suffice it to say, the odds are extremely low that this is a mere coincidence. And so, it leaves you to wonder. Could it be that this factorial pattern found in the chronology of the patriarchs, is God trying to communicate that the formation of Israel was not just a result of some haphazard and random events, but was the result of a series of events ordered and orchestrated by God.
• But we close out this chapter with the last three verses, beginning with verse 29 which reads…29 And when the time drew near that Israel must die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, “If now I have found favor in your sight, put your hand under my thigh and promise to deal kindly and truly with me. Do not bury me in Egypt, 30 but let me lie with my fathers. Carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burying place.” He answered, “I will do as you have said.” 31 And he said, “Swear to me”; and he swore to him. Then Israel bowed himself upon the head of his bed.
• And so, we see now that it is time for Jacob to die. And he knows this. So, he calls his son Joseph, and begins by saying. “If I have found favor in your eyes…”. Now this is typically said by a subordinate to a superior. But Jacob uses this expression here because it is Joseph who holds the official power. The dying Jacob is dependent upon Joseph’s favor.
• But Jacob asks him to deal kindly and truly with him. He doesn’t want to be buried in Egypt, but wants Joseph to carry his body back and be buried alongside his fathers. Jacob doesn’t regard this alien land as his home. He isn’t living in it like it’s his permanent home. Unfortunately, many times today we live and view this world like it’s our permanent home, sometimes needing to be reminded that what we are told in Hebrews 13, that “this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come.
• And in asking this of Joseph, he asks him to place his hand under his thigh, which sounds a little strange. But if you remember, we covered this expression in more detail back in chapter 24, when Abraham asked Eliezer to do the same regarding finding a wife for his son Isaac. But in short, this was an act that was sometimes used in the ancient world when men made an oath to one another
• But the important thing here is that Joseph says he will do as Jacob requested. Jacob makes him swear, and Joseph swears that he will honor Jacob’s request. And with that, it tells us that “Israel bowed himself upon the head of his bed.” Now, this is sometimes translated that he “bowed or leaned himself upon the top of his staff”. Keep in mind, Jacob is about to die, he is old and feeble, and he may not be physically capable of bowing to the ground in full prostration. And so, this is a symbolic gesture of prostration by Jacob. And this gesture could either be a token of gratitude to Joseph, or an expression of thanks and praise to God.
• And so, as we close out this chapter, we see the death of Jacob. It’s interesting that there are only four verses about the death of Abraham, and only two devoted to the death of Isaac. But for Jacob there’s a lot of detail. Maybe because there is so much going on and special circumstances surrounding his situation. And the fact that Jacob is the only one of the patriarchs to die on alien soil.
• But as we close out this chapter, I’ll leave you with a couple of observations. First, consider that Joseph enriches Pharaoh, and Jacob blesses Pharaoh. And likewise, Pharaoh honors both Joseph and Jacob, or Israel. This mutual blessing anticipates the exact opposite situation that will exist 430 later, when another Pharaoh curses Israel, and is then cursed himself.
• It reminds me of God’s promise to Abraham, that he would make him into a great nation, and he says to him, “I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse”.
• Second, what became of the land and all the splendor of the Pharaohs? Their cities are buried beneath the sands of the desert. Their temples, their palaces, their treasures, all gone or in ruins. Ironically, only the pyramids, their great tombs, have endured. But as for Jacob? His name shines on and continues to endure after 4000 years
• But lastly, and most importantly, think about how Joseph saved the Egyptians and the Israelites by providing them food. But still, the food Joseph provided was perishable, and those who ate it still died at their appointed time.
• But the true Joseph, the true Savior, gives us food that is incorruptible. In the words of Jesus himself, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”