Today I want to make one point: “A person who has seen the beauty of Christ, tasted His goodness, and has come to the end of themselves and found new life in Christ…then becomes something new and altogether different. No longer will this person only seek to take care of what is theirs, no. This person who has been so blessed by God, then seeks to become a blessing to others in life.”
This is what Genesis 47 is all about. Let’s turn to it now.
See our first heading…
Settling in Egypt (v1-12)
“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.” And from among his brothers he took five men and presented them to Pharaoh. Pharaoh said to his brothers, “What is your occupation?” And they said to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds, as our fathers were.” 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.” Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 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.” Then Joseph brought in Jacob his father and stood him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How many are the days of the years of your life?” And Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years. 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.” And Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from the presence of Pharaoh. 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. And Joseph provided his father, his brothers, and all his father’s household with food, according to the number of their dependents.”
In the end of chapter 46 we see Joseph tell his brothers and father of his plans about coming before Pharaoh and what he and they should tell him, to ensure they can indeed settle in the land of Goshen. Now, here in chapter 47 we see Joseph putting this plan into action in v1-6.
He goes in first to see Pharaoh and he clearly states, not that his wish is for his family to settle in Goshen, but that his family has arrived, and is currently in Goshen. He then chose five brothers (curiosity wonders which brothers he chooses) and they come before Pharaoh and continue to reaffirm their shepherding occupation, stating that their family has always done this work, that they desire to continue this work, and that they are now staying in Goshen. Pharaoh hears this and responds to Joseph in the affirmative. That Joseph’s family not only can settle in at Goshen and make a home for themselves there, but also that the ablest shepherds among them can come and take over charge of Pharaoh’s own livestock. This was no small request. Historians cite that some ancient Pharaoh’s had over 3,000 servants in their employ to care for their vast herds (Wenham, 446). We’re not told here how large Pharaoh’s collection of livestock was, but I think we’re safe to say it was sizeable, which would mean that as Joseph was, many of his family would now be in the service of Pharaoh as well.
After this, Joseph’s brothers presumably leave and Joseph brings in his father Jacob to meet Pharaoh. This is in v7-10 and while the former discussion between the brothers and Pharaoh was very formal and proper, the discussion that follows between Jacob and Pharaoh is far more relaxed and intimate (Wenham, 446). As soon as Jacob comes into Pharaoh’s presence v7 tells us that Jacob blessed Pharaoh. We see the same thing in v10 too, that Jacob blessed Pharaoh as he leaves his presence. It is worth noting that there is no mention of the brothers doing any kind of blessing as they entered or left Pharaoh’s presence. I think this shows us two things. First, it shows us that Jacob’s blessings are far more than a simple greeting, because that’s something the brothers would’ve done too. And second, it shows how Jacob is the head of the family and as such is the suitable one to give blessing to others (Waltke, 587). That Jacob is the one doing the blessing here is ironic because in his early life it was Jacob who was always keen to cheat others out of their blessing, now though, he is the source of blessing to others (Wenham, 446-447). It also shows us the continuation of the covenant. God had told Abraham that He would bless all the earth through his family, and here that is indeed occurring as another nation is being blessed by a son of Abraham.
During their time together Pharaoh kindly asks Jacob how old he is, and Jacob’s response in v9 is, “The days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years. 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.” Now before you conclude Jacob to be suffering from a kind of gloomy disposition or Eor kind of mentality…I would say that Jacob is largely correct in what he says here. His life has been hard. He had to run away from home, he was forced to work for his uncle for many years, his daughter was raped, his favorite wife died young, he endured many of the sins of his sons, and he believed his favorite son to be dead for over 20 years. Abraham lived to be 175, Isaac 180, and yet he is only at 130 and is feeling near the end already (Hughes, 533). So yes, his days have been short and full of trouble. But, let’s not forget that much of his trouble has been of his own making from his former scheming and plotting. Yet, Jacob does seem to be blinded by the hardness of his life and suffering to what God is doing through him. Through him, God is preserving His people and being faithful to the promises of old. Jacob is part of this, is being used in this, but doesn’t see this.
How like us is this? God is up to a million things, and we are often blind to it all because of the hardness or severity of our experiences. Church, allow me to remind you that God is up to a million things in your life right now in His grand plan and glorious purpose. Your suffering and your trials are not and will not be the sum total of your life or the final sentence on your life. This fact alone might make us far happier and holier people.
Well, Jacob leaves Pharaoh’s presence and in v11-12 we finally see them settle down in Goshen. But it’s not called that is it? In these verses Goshen is called the land of Rameses. This is not an error, no. This label is most likely here because the current audience Moses is writing to called this portion of land by this name instead of the name Goshen (Kidner, 222).
So now they’re settled, and all will be well for God’s people in Egypt, right? Wrong. See now…
Surviving in Egypt (v13-27)
“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. 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. 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.” And Joseph answered, “Give your livestock, and I will give you food in exchange for your livestock, if your money is gone.” 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. 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. 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 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. As for the people, he made servants of them from one end of Egypt to the other. 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. 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. 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.” And they said, “You have saved our lives; may it please my lord, we will be servants to Pharaoh.” 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. 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.”
The famine is raging in Egypt and in Canaan. We see that clearly here. The contrast between v12 and v13 is apparent for us to see. In v12 we see how Joseph provided food for all those in his father’s household…yet in v13 what do we see? There was no food. It even mentions it three times in v13-15 that throughout all Egypt and all Canaan there was nothing but lack and emptiness. If it weren’t for Joseph, Jacob and all his family would starve. And this is being felt in the whole population. v13-27 shows us this in three stages.
First, in v13-14 we see the initial stage of severity. There is no food so the people do what we’ve seen them do so far. They come and pay Joseph for the grain that’s been stored up. Joseph keeps up this practice and as the people come in they give him money, he gives them grain, and he gives all the money to Pharaoh. That’s the first stage.
Second, in v15-17 we come to the next stage of severity. The people bring their money into Joseph up until the point that Joseph acquires all the money of all the people in Egypt. So now the people not only have no food, but they also now have no money to buy more food from Joseph. So what does he do? He says he will accept their livestock as payment for food. And that’s what the people do. They bring in their livestock, he gives them grain, and he gives their livestock to Pharaoh. That’s the second stage.
Third, in v18-26 we come to the third and most dire stage of severity. The people brought in all their livestock up until the point that Joseph acquires all the livestock of all the people in Egypt. So now the people not only have no food and no money, but they also now have no livestock to trade for more food from Joseph. So what does he do? He says he will accept their land and their own selves as payment for food. And that’s what the people do. They willingly give over their land and become servants of Pharaoh, in order to get food. And more, in v23-26 Joseph sets up a new law. That all the people will work the land for Pharaoh and as they do they will give to Pharaoh a fifth of all their harvest every year. How do the people respond to this? In v25 they rejoice and call Joseph their savior (Waltke, 591).
Is this hard for you to read (Wenham, 449)? The more the people suffer from the famine, the more the government steps in to help, the bigger and more powerful the government in Egypt becomes, even up the point where the people no longer own anything themselves and become slaves to that government? And to add on top of it…this isn’t Pharaoh coming up with this plan, it’s Joseph. Beloved Joseph, a hero of redemptive history, seemingly creating a dictatorial regime! Shouldn’t Joseph just have given food to all the people instead of taking everything they had (Sproul, 167)?? This might be difficult for modern Western independent Americans like us to see. Of course, this kind of system can be exploited in many ways to oppress the masses, but Joseph isn’t doing that, not at all. Even compared to the standards of their own day to pay an annual fifth to Pharaoh was far below what other nations required of their citizens (Waltke, 591 / Currid, 357). Joseph is ruling well and the people love him for doing so.
I would encourage you to see in Joseph a kind, charitable, wise ruler. Joseph’s wisdom here is actually a very good example of what Jesus Himself meant when He said we should be wise as serpents and innocent as doves (Matthew 10:16). I think we understand what He means when He says we should be innocent as doves. In light of all that is worldly, sinful, and wicked Christians ought to be innocent, or not wise in the ways of the world. But I think we have trouble with the call to be wise as serpents. It’s understandable of course, the image of a serpent isn’t a very positive one. It easily brings thoughts of the temptation in Eden to mind. But how wonderfully surprising of Jesus to use this image in a positive way. So what does it mean to be wise as a serpent? It means there ought to be a godly shrewdness to all Christians. Shrewdness is not always a bad thing. It simply refers to being wise and quick enough in mind to be able to understand a situation and then be able to turn that situation toward our favor. If we’re doing that in a godly manner, shrewdness can be of great benefit for you…as it is for Joseph and his family here.
Or perhaps we could say this. Joseph has been blessed by God himself, and so now he wisely creates a plan to become a blessing to many others. More on this in a moment…
See the result of his work in v27. Under the wise rule of Joseph Israel was fruitful and multiplied greatly. Those words remind anyone of anything you’ve heard before? Genesis 1:28, the dominion mandate, the original charge of God to man after being created, “Be fruitful and multiply…” That this phrase occurs here shows us how the shrewd measures of Joseph actually help to fulfill, not frustrate, God’s original plans and design for man (Wenham, 452).
Perhaps most of all we should see daunting irony in all of this. Here in this moment all of Egypt becomes slaves at the word of a Hebrew. Yet, very soon all of Israel will become slaves at the word of a new Egyptian (Waltke, 589).
Let’s finish out the chapter now. See…
Dying at Home (v28-31)
“And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. So the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were 147 years. 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, 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.” And he said, “Swear to me”; and he swore to him. Then Israel bowed himself upon the head of his bed.”
As Joseph enjoyed the first 17 years of his life with Jacob in Canaan, now we see that Jacob gets to enjoy the last 17 years of his life with Joseph in Egypt (Waltke, 591). He just makes one request as he nears the end. That he be buried in the cave of Machpelah that Abraham is also buried in. Joseph agrees, and they enjoy another sweet moment of affection together.
Conclusion:
As we conclude, lets linger on Joseph’s wise work. Joseph has been blessed by God himself, and he wisely and shrewdly creates a plan to become a blessing to many others. In this we see much of the gospel and the life the gospel creates.
In the gospel we have been greatly blessed. The work of Christ in our behalf has provided us with everything we need. By becoming fully man Christ is able to be our representative in His life, death, and resurrection. And by being fully God Christ is able to save us from our sins and fully reconcile us to the Father. In Him we are truly blessed. Christ is to us the greater Joseph has bountiful storehouses of goodness, from which He continually provides for us in all of life.
A person who has seen the beauty of Christ, tasted His goodness, and has come to the end of themselves and found new life in Christ…then becomes something new and altogether different. No longer will this person only seek to take care of what is theirs, no. This person who has been so blessed by God, then seeks to become a blessing to others in life.
We Protestants have an issue with the reality of good works, but our new life in Christ has everything to do with good works. True, God doesn’t need our works. His work alone saves us. But you know who does need our good works? Our neighbors. Our co-workers. Our family. And our friends. So church, learn from Joseph here. We who are infinitely blessed by God in the gospel, let’s make it our aim to be a blessing to others, so that countless others would see our good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven.
