11 And Joseph made a place for his father and his brothers, and gave them a heritage in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had given orders.
12 And Joseph took care of his father and his brothers and all his father's people, giving them food for the needs of their families.
13 Now there was no food to be had in all the land, so that all Egypt and Canaan were wasted from need of food.
14 And all the money in Egypt and in the land of Canaan which had been given for grain, came into the hands of Joseph: and he put it in Pharaoh's house.
15 And when all the money in Egypt and Canaan was gone, the Egyptians came to Joseph, and said, Give us bread; would you have us come to destruction before your eyes? for we have no more money.
16 And Joseph said, Give me your cattle; I will give you grain in exchange for your cattle if your money is all gone.
17 So they took their cattle to Joseph and he gave them bread in exchange for their horses and flocks and herds and asses, so all that year he gave them food in exchange for their cattle.
18 And when that year was ended, they came to him in the second year, and said, We may not keep it from our lord's knowledge that all our money is gone, and all the herds of cattle are my lord's; there is nothing more to give my lord but our bodies and our land;
19 Are we to come to destruction before your eyes, we and our land? take us and our land and give us bread; and we and our land will be servants to Pharaoh; and give us seed so that we may have life and the land may not become waste.
20 So Joseph got all the land in Egypt for Pharaoh; for every Egyptian gave up his land in exchange for food, because of their great need; so all the land became Pharaoh's.
21 And as for the people, he made servants of them, town by town, from one end of Egypt to the other.
22 Only he did not take the land of the priests, for the priests had their food given them by Pharaoh, and having what Pharaoh gave them, they had no need to give up their land.
23 Then Joseph said to the people, I have made you and your land this day the property of Pharaoh; here is seed for you to put in your fields.
24 And when the grain is cut, you are to give a fifth part to Pharaoh, and four parts will be yours for seed and food, and for your families and your little ones.
25 And they said to him, Truly you have kept us from death; may we have grace in your eyes, and we will be Pharaoh's servants.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Genesis 47
Commentary on Genesis 47 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 47
In this chapter we have instances,
Gen 47:1-12
Here is,
Gen 47:13-26
Care being taken of Jacob and his family, the preservation of which was especially designed by Providence in Joseph's advancement, an account is now given of the saving of the kingdom of Egypt too from ruin; for God is King of nations as well as King of saints, and provideth food for all flesh. Joseph now returns to the management of that great trust which Pharaoh had lodged in his hand. It would have been pleasing enough to him to have gone and lived with his father and brethren in Goshen; but his employment would not permit it. When he had seen his father, and seen him well settled, he applied himself as closely as ever to the execution of his office. Note, Even natural affection must give way to necessary business. Parents and children must be content to be absent one from another, when it is necessary, on either side, for the service of God or their generation. In Joseph's transactions with the Egyptians observe,
Gen 47:27-31
Observe,