Genesis 47
47
1 And so Joseph entered and reported to Pharaoh, saying: "My father and brothers, their sheep and herds, and everything that they possess, have arrived from the land of Canaan. And behold, they stand together in the land of Goshen."
2 Likewise, he stood in the sight of the king five men, the last of his brothers.
3 And he questioned them, "What do you have for work?" They responded: "Your servants are pastors of sheep, both we and our fathers.
4 We came to sojourn in your land, because there is no grass for the flocks of your servants, the famine being very grievous in the land of Canaan. And we petition you that you may order us, your servants, to be in the land of Goshen."
5 And so the king said to Joseph: "Your father and brothers have come to you.
6 The land of Egypt is in your sight. Cause them to live in the best place, and deliver to them the land of Goshen. And if you know there to be industrious men among them, appoint these as foremen over my cattle."
7 After this, Joseph brought in his father to the king, and he stood him in his sight. He blessed him,
8 and he questioned him: "How many are the days of the years of your life?"
9 He responded, "The days of my sojourn are one hundred and thirty years, few and unworthy, and they do not reach even to the days of the sojourning of my fathers."
10 And blessing the king, he went outside.
11 Truly, Joseph gave his father and brothers a possession in Egypt, in the best place of the land, in Rameses, as Pharaoh had instructed.
12 And he fed them, along with all his father's house, providing portions of food to each one.
13 For in the whole world there was a lack of bread, and a famine had oppressed the land, most of all Egypt and Canaan,
14 from which he gathered together all the money for the grain that they bought, and he took it into the treasury of the king.
15 And when the buyers had run out of money, all Egypt came to Joseph, saying: "Give us bread. Why should we die in your sight, lacking money?"
16 And he responded to them: "Bring me your cattle, and I will give food to you in exchange for them, if you do not have money."
17 And when they had brought them, he gave them food for their horses, and sheep, and oxen, and donkeys. And he sustained them in that year in exchange for their cattle.
18 Likewise, they came the second year, and they said to him: "We will not conceal from our lord that our money is gone; likewise our cattle are gone. Neither are you unaware that we have nothing left but our bodies and our land.
19 Therefore, why should you watch us die? Both we and our land will be yours. Buy us into royal servitude, but provide seed, lest by the dying off of cultivators the land be reduced to a wilderness."
20 Therefore, Joseph bought all the land of Egypt, each one selling his possessions because of the magnitude of the famine. And he subjected it to Pharaoh,
21 along with all of its people, from the newest borders of Egypt, even to its furthest limits,
22 except the land of the priests, which had been delivered to them by the king. To these also a portion of food was supplied out of the public storehouses, and, for this reason, they were not compelled to sell their possessions.
23 Therefore, Joseph said to the people: "So, as you discern, both you and your lands are possessed by Pharaoh; take seed and sow the fields,
24 so that you may be able to have grain. One fifth part you will give to the king; the remaining four I permit to you, as seed and as food for your families and children.
25 And they responded: "Our health is in your hand; only let our lord look kindly upon us, and we will serve the king with gladness."
26 From that time, even to the present day, in the entire land of Egypt, the fifth part is turned over to the kings, and it has become like a law, except in the land of the priests, which was free from this condition.
27 And so, Israel lived in Egypt, that is, in the land of Goshen, and he possessed it. And he increased and was multiplied exceedingly.
28 And he lived in it seventeen years. And all the days of his life that passed were one hundred and forty-seven years.
29 And when he discerned that the day of his death was approaching, he called his son Joseph, and he said to him: "If I have found favor in your sight, place your hand under my thigh. And you shall show me mercy and truth, not to bury me in Egypt.
30 But I shall sleep with my fathers, and you will carry me from this land and bury me in the sepulcher of my ancestors." And Joseph answered him, "I will do what you have ordered."
31 And he said, "Then swear it to me." And as he was swearing, Israel adored God, turning to the head of his resting place.
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Genesis 47
47
Israel Settles in Goshen
1Joseph went in to Pharaoh and said, “My father and my brothers and all their families are here. They have all their animals and everything they own from the land of Canaan with them. They are now in the land of Goshen.” 2Joseph chose five of his brothers to be with him before the Pharaoh.
3Pharaoh said to the brothers, “What work do you do?”
The brothers said to Pharaoh, “Sir, we are shepherds, just as our ancestors were shepherds before us.” 4They said to Pharaoh, “The famine is very bad in Canaan. There are no fields left with grass for our animals, so we have come to live in this land. We ask you to please let us live in Goshen.”
5Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 6You can choose any place in Egypt for them to live. Give your father and your brothers the best land. Let them live in the land of Goshen. And if they are skilled shepherds, they can also care for my cattle.”
7Then Joseph called his father Jacob to come in to meet Pharaoh. Jacob blessed Pharaoh.
8Then Pharaoh said to him, “How old are you?”
9Jacob said to Pharaoh, “I have had a short life with many troubles. I am only 130 years old. My father and his ancestors lived to be much older than I am.”
10Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh and left from his meeting with him.
11Joseph did what Pharaoh said and gave his father and brothers land in Egypt. It was the best land in Egypt, in the eastern part of the country, around Rameses. 12Joseph also gave his father, his brothers, and all their people the food they needed.
Joseph Buys Land for Pharaoh
13The famine got worse; there was no food anywhere in the land. Egypt and Canaan became very poor because of this bad time. 14People in the land bought more and more grain. Joseph saved the money and brought it to Pharaoh’s house. 15After some time, the people in Egypt and Canaan had no money left. They had spent all their money to buy grain. So the people of Egypt went to Joseph and said, “Please give us food. Our money is gone. If we don’t eat, we will die while you are watching.”
16But Joseph answered, “Give me your cattle, and I will give you food.” 17So the people used their cattle and horses and all their other animals to buy food. And that year, Joseph gave them food and took their animals.
18But the next year the people had no animals and nothing to buy food with. So they went to Joseph and said, “You know that we have no money left, and all our animals belong to you. So we have nothing left—only what you see—our bodies and our land. 19Surely we will die while you are watching. But if you give us food, we will give Pharaoh our land, and we will be his slaves. Give us seed so that we can plant. Then we will live and not die, and the land will grow food for us again.”
20So Joseph bought all the land in Egypt for Pharaoh. All the people in Egypt sold Joseph their fields. They did this because they were very hungry. 21And everywhere in Egypt all the people became Pharaoh’s slaves. 22The only land Joseph didn’t buy was the land that the priests owned. The priests didn’t need to sell their land because Pharaoh paid them for their work. So they used this money to buy food to eat.
23Joseph said to the people, “Now I have bought you and your land for Pharaoh. So I will give you seed, and you can plant your fields. 24At harvest time, you must give one-fifth of your crops to Pharaoh. You can keep four-fifths for yourselves. You can use the seed you keep for food and planting the next year. Now you can feed your families and your children.”
25The people said, “You have saved our lives. We are happy to be slaves to Pharaoh.”
26So Joseph made a law at that time in the land, and that law continues today. The law says that one-fifth of everything from the land belongs to the Pharaoh who owns all the land. The only land he does not own is the land of the priests.
Don’t Bury Me in Egypt
27Israel stayed in Egypt. He lived in the land of Goshen. His family grew and became very large. They became landowners there and did very well.
28Jacob lived in Egypt 17 years, so he was 147 years old. 29The time came when Israel knew he would soon die, so he called his son Joseph to him. He said, “If you love me, put your hand under my leg and make a promise.#47:29 put your hand … make a promise This was a sign of a very important promise that Jacob trusted Joseph to keep. Promise that you will do what I say and that you will be truthful with me. When I die, don’t bury me in Egypt. 30Bury me in the place where my ancestors are buried. Carry me out of Egypt and bury me in our family grave.”
Joseph answered, “I promise that I will do what you say.”
31Then Jacob said, “Make a vow to me.” And Joseph vowed to him that he would do this. Then Israel laid his head back down on the bed.#47:31 Then Israel … on the bed Or “Then Israel bowed down at the head of his bed” or “Then Israel worshiped on the head of the staff.”
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