1 Joseph went and told Pharaoh, “My father and brothers with their sheep and cattle and all their possessions have come from the land of Canaan to Goshen.”
2 He then presented five of his brothers to Pharaoh.
3 Pharaoh asked, “What are your occupations?” and they replied, “Your servants are shepherds as were our fathers before us.
4 We have come to settle in the land for there is no more pasture for our sheep, so severe is the famine in the land of Canaan. And now we pray you, may we stay in the land of Goshen?”
5 Pharaoh then spoke to Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you.
6 The land of Egypt is before you; let your father and brothers settle in the best part; let them settle in Goshen, and if among them there are capable men, put them in charge of my cattle.”
The sons of Jacob in Egypt
7 Joseph brought in Jacob his father and presented him to Pharaoh
8 who then asked him, “How old are you?” ［Gen 47,28 Job 14,1 Ps 90,9 Eph 5,16］
9 Jacob replied, “The years of my wanderings are one hundred and thirty. Brief and difficult have been the years of my life, and not as many as those of my fathers.”
10 Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh and withdrew from his presence.
11 So Joseph had his father and brothers settled, giving them property in the best part of Egypt, in the land of Rameses as Pharaoh had commanded.
12 Joseph pro vided his father, his brothers and his fa ther’s entire household with food accord ing to the number of their dependents.
13 Now so severe was the famine that no bread was to be had in all the land. Both Egypt and Canaan were exhausted because of the famine.
14 Joseph then collected all the money that had been given to buy bread in the lands of Egypt and Canaan. All this money Joseph took to Pharaoh’s house.
15 When all the money of the people of Egypt and Canaan was gone, all Egypt came to Joseph saying, “Give us bread! Why must we die before your eyes, for want of money?”
16 Joseph told them, “Give me your cattle to pay for bread since you have no money.”
17 So they brought their livestock and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for their horses, sheep and cattle and even their donkeys. In that way he supplied them with food for that year.
18 The following year they came to him again and said, “We will not hide from our lord that all our money is gone and that our cattle now belong to you. All that is left to us are our persons and our land. ［Lm 1,11 Ne 5,3］
19 Why should we die while you look on, ourselves and our land? So buy us and our land for bread; we shall be in bondage to you and Pharaoh. Give us grain that we may live and not die and our land remain desolate.”
20 So it was that Joseph acquired all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; all the Egyptians sold their fields, so cruelly hard-pressed were they by the famine. Pharaoh became owner of the land
21 and Joseph reduced the people to servitude from one end of Egypt to the other.
22 Only the land of the priests he did not buy, because by a decree of Pharaoh they lived on what had been given to them by Pharaoh. For that reason they did not sell the land that belonged to them.
23 Then Joseph said to the people, “Now that I have bought you and your land for Pharaoh, here is seed for you to sow the land.
24 At harvest time you will give a fifth to Pharaoh, and four fifths will be yours for seed for sowing, for food for yourselves and your families.”
25 They said, “You have saved our lives. If it please my lord, we shall be Pharaoh’s serfs.”
26 So Joseph introduced a statute that remains to this day, whereby a fifth of the produce goes to Pharaoh. Only the land of the priests did not become Pharaoh’s.
27 So Israel lived in Egypt in the land of Goshen. They became owners of this land; they had many children and greatly increased in number.
28 Jacob lived for one hundred and forty-seven years, seventeen of them in the land of Egypt.
29 When his life was drawing to a close he called for his son Joseph and said to him, “If you wish to be faithful and kind to me, place your hand under my thigh and promise me that you will not bury me in Egypt!
30 But when I rest with my fathers, carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their tomb.” Joseph said, “I will do as you say.”
31 Jacob insisted, “Swear to it!” He swore to him and Israel fell back on his pillow.
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Comments Genesis, Chapter 47
• 47.13 In Egypt, the land belonged to the Pharaoh: a very strict administration allowed him to require part of the crop from all the farmers. Here this administration is attributed to Joseph.