Thursday Night Bible Study

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Genesis 47:13-Genesis 48 

"Joseph Buys The Farm!" • 8.19.10 • Calvary Christian Fellowship, Thursday Night Bible Study

Intro.

- Joseph's family has successfully been relocated to Egypt. They are dwelling in a good place, in the land of Goshen.

- They have everything that they could want, including government level jobs and access through Joseph

- Moses now turns our attention back to Joseph, who continues his work as Egypt's prime minister, the second in command to Pharaoh.

- But the section ends with a reminder that must resonate within our souls on a daily basis. We'll see if it comes to your mind before we get there.

Text

• Genesis 47:13 : "Now there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan languished because of the famine." : Our last time stamp came in Genesis 45, verses 6 and 11. Joseph commanded his family to come into Egypt two years into the famine.

- For our purposes, let's just say that this is the beginning of the third year.

- This famine was unique in that it was now affecting Egypt, which usually remained immune due to the annual overflow of the Nile river.

- This famine was strong enough to bring even Egypt to it's knees.

- Moses tells us that both lands, Canaan and Egypt "languished." Literally, they were faint. The picture behind the original is of a person with his tongue out, as one who is thirsty and faint.

• Genesis 47:14-17 : "And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, for the grain which they bought; and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s house. So when the money failed in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph and said, 'Give us bread, for why should we die in your presence? For the money has failed.' Then Joseph said, 'Give your livestock, and I will give you bread for your livestock, if the money is gone.' So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the cattle of the herds, and for the donkeys. Thus he fed them with bread in exchange for all their livestock that year." : The famine was outlasting the resource of the people of Egypt and Canaan. The money in both lands was now completely spent.

- All of it was brought into the Pharaoh's house. The combined wealth of both countries was now consolidated into Pharaoh's bank account.

- When that resource was entirely spent, the people were forced to bring out their livestock in exchange for food.

- There is an objection here among some who would think, "Why didn't Joseph just give it all away? Why put a value on it at all?"

- We need to value things in order to live with them conservatively. When you pay for something, it makes you value it. The people would use what they had been given well.

- All of the money and livestock was, by the third year, in the hands of the Pharaoh, leaving the people with bread, but very little else. The people of Egypt are in a very tenuous position.

• Genesis 47:18-22 : "When that year had ended, they came to him the next year and said to him, 'We will not hide from my lord that our money is gone; my lord also has our herds of livestock. There is nothing left in the sight of my lord but our bodies and our lands. Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants of Pharaoh; give us seed, that we may live and not die, that the land may not be desolate.' Then Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for every man of the Egyptians sold his field, because the famine was severe upon them. So the land became Pharaoh’s. And as for the people, he moved them into the cities, from one end of the borders of Egypt to the other end. Only the land of the priests he did not buy; for the priests had rations allotted to them by Pharaoh, and they ate their rations which Pharaoh gave them; therefore they did not sell their lands." : This would be year number 4 of 7. Everything has been depleted, save the lands and the lives of the Egyptians.

- They come to Joseph and they say, as we might say today, "I'm not even going to lie: We're in trouble!" They had nothing with which to barter any longer. They agree to become slaves.

- This agreement comes from complete desperation, as they save their lives by selling their lands and their lives to Pharaoh.

- The people of Egypt are now indentured servants of the Pharaoh. The Pharaoh, because of the genius of Joseph, has become the richest King of all time. He literally has everything!

- The money, land, grain, and the people have all come under Pharaoh. Now, Joseph moves all of his people into the cities for direct access to the grain storage.

- Joseph had an eye on the land of the priests, but since they already had rations, there was no need for them to come for grain.

• Genesis 47:23-26 : "Then Joseph said to the people, 'Indeed I have bought you and your land this day for Pharaoh. Look, here is seed for you, and you shall sow the land. And it shall come to pass in the harvest that you shall give one-fifth to Pharaoh. Four-fifths shall be your own, as seed for the field and for your food, for those of your households and as food for your little ones.' So they said, 'You have saved our lives; let us find favor in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s servants.' And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt to this day, that Pharaoh should have one-fifth, except for the land of the priests only, which did not become Pharaoh’s." : This last section of this chapter shows the response of the people to Joseph's dealings. One might think that the people would have disliked this agreement.

- Joseph had bought all of them, their land and now decreed that a fifth of whatever they grew was to be given to Pharaoh. 20% was to come into Pharaoh's home perpetually.

- You'd think that there would be public outrcry! However, the response was overwhelmingly positive. "You have saved our lives!"

- This section provides us with another beautiful picture or type of what Christ would ultimately do for His redeemed.

- The people of Egypt were penniless, having nothing but their own lives to offer. They were desperately lost, destined for ruin.

- That's when Joseph redeemed them. He bought them and gave them life. That is what Jesus Christ will do for any person who will give themselves completely to Him.

- He redeems and then gives us gifts to sow with in the world that we live in! He saves us and makes us useful, a blessing in the world.

• Genesis 47:27-31 : "So Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions there and grew and multiplied exceedingly. And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. So the length of Jacob’s life was one hundred and forty-seven years. When the time drew near that Israel must die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, 'Now if I have found favor in your sight, please put your hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me. Please do not bury me in Egypt, but let me lie with my fathers; you shall carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place.' And he said, 'I will do as you have said.' Then he said, 'Swear to me.' And he swore to him. So Israel bowed himself on the head of the bed." : Moses fast forwards us to the end of Jacob's life. They came into the land with their posessions and then grew from there.

- The multiplied and multiplied exceedingly. God blessed Jacob, His people Israel during this time. Soon their multiplication will be the source of problems.

- Jacob knew that while they were doing well there in the land, that his proper place was back in Canaan. In preparation for his death, he makes Joseph swear to take him back.

- The oath, which we have seen before, was a fairly severe one, which is not intended as a stab against Joseph's integrity, but as a sign of Jacob's intention.

- Things had gone good in the world, but this was not his family's home!

• Genesis 48:1-4 : "Now it came to pass after these things that Joseph was told, 'Indeed your father is sick'; and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. And Jacob was told, 'Look, your son Joseph is coming to you'; and Israel strengthened himself and sat up on the bed. Then Jacob said to Joseph: 'God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me, and said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will make of you a multitude of people, and give this land to your descendants after you as an everlasting possession.’" : Jacob is now about to end his pilgimage on Earth. When Joseph came before him, what did he share with him? The covenant promise that God had made to Jacob.

- Yes, things were good for Jacob/Israel in the land of Egypt. They had multiplied and were being taken care of. As for Joseph, things were going better than he could've imagined.

- He was a national hero, second in command, with all honor and prestige. He had a family, a house, a few custom made chariots! It would be tempting to forsake ever going back!

- Jacob brings Joseph into to understand that none of what they were experiencing compared to what God had promised to their family.

- Don't get caught up here in Egypt. Don't let your heart get entangled in the world. God has made me a promise and that promise includes you.

- Joseph had not been out of Egypt for over 40 years. He had spent the majority of his life in Egypt, experiencing a true "rags to riches" story.

- While that was the case and while God used his life in a miraculous way, the promise was still more important. Jacob needed to impress that upon him.

• Genesis 48:5-7 : "And now your two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine. Your offspring whom you beget after them shall be yours; they will be called by the name of their brothers in their inheritance. But as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died beside me in the land of Canaan on the way, when there was but a little distance to go to Ephrath; and I buried her there on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).'" : In these verses, Jacob adopts Ephraim and Manasseh. They would receive an inheritance from Jacob.

- This is how these two became half tribes of Jacob. They came in under the same banner.

- He speaks of them as being His own. He wants them to come into this blessedness. He wants Joseph's children, kids who knew of nothing except Egypt, to get caught up in the Lord.

- That's every Grandparent's dream. Their inheritance would now be in Canaan.

- But as for Jacob, he takes a whistful moment to consider their grandmother Rachel, who never got to see her grandchildren.

- It seems that he gives this information, so that they might see how deep their roots go in the land. After all, their grandmother is buried there.

• Genesis 48:8-16 : "Then Israel saw Joseph’s sons, and said, 'Who are these?' Joseph said to his father, 'They are my sons, whom God has given me in this place.' And he said, 'Please bring them to me, and I will bless them.' Now the eyes of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. Then Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them. And Israel said to Joseph, 'I had not thought to see your face; but in fact, God has also shown me your offspring!' So Joseph brought them from beside his knees, and he bowed down with his face to the earth. And Joseph took them both, Ephraim with his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh with his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him. Then Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands knowingly, for Manasseh was the firstborn. And he blessed Joseph, and said: 'God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, The God who has fed me all my life long to this day, The Angel who has redeemed me from all evil, Bless the lads; Let my name be named upon them, And the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; And let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.'" : Israel, Jacob had come into the same issue that his father Isaac had. At the end of his life, he also was blinded or near blind.

- This is a beautiful scene just in that fact. Here he is, in about the same condition as his Father, but now about to bless his sons. There is no more deception. This is a scene of peace.

- Jacob, in the eyes of some religious systems, should be on the receiving end of some deception here. That's not the case with God. Our negative past does not need to color our future!

- It's possible that Jacob had not seen Joseph's sons for many years and that they had now grown into late teenagers. Maybe it's just that grandpa, cheek squeezing moment!

- Joseph presents his boys in order of birth, putting them in the place where they would receive their blessing, the right hand for the older Manasseh and the left hand for Ephraim.

- This was the natural way to consider blessing, the older being blessed above the younger. Jacob responds by crossing his hands and putting the hand of blessing on the younger.

- Before dealing with that, Jacob wants to bless his son Joseph. His blessing reflects his families history. This is the God that Abraham and Isaac walked before.

- But this is not just a God of history. He is Jacob's God as well. Jacob knows that in all of his days, God had provided for him, even to that very day.

- That is a testimony for every believer. He has fed me to this very day. Literally, God had shepherded Him. God had been His provision physically and spiritually.

- He has protected me, which is represented by the Angel who redeemed him from evil.

- Now in thes last verses, Jacob adopts Joseph's boys into the line of God's servants.

• Genesis 48:17-19 : "Now when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him; so he took hold of his father’s hand to remove it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. And Joseph said to his father, 'Not so, my father, for this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.' But his father refused and said, 'I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations.'" : Joseph was displeased that Jacob took his hands and crossed them in order to lay the right hand of blessing on the younger.

- The sense is that Joseph trembled at the thought of what was happening here. It disturbed him as Jacob did this. It was not what he thought that it should be and he moved in to correct it.

- But Jacob knew, God had directed his heart, that this was the way it was supposed to be. God had again made it clear that the older would not have the younger man's blessing.

- We have seen this over and over again, first with Isaac and Ishmael, then with Jacob and Esau, now we have Ephraim and Manasseh.

- What is God trying to show us? God is not anti-firstborn. But He is showing over and over again that His choices are not going to be dictated by what we would call "natural order."

- God chooses people who according to a different standard. We don't know what He sees or why He chooses the way that He does. We are just grateful that He does that work.

• Genesis 48:20-22 : "So he blessed them that day, saying, 'By you Israel will bless, saying, ‘May God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh!’ And thus he set Ephraim before Manasseh. Then Israel said to Joseph, 'Behold, I am dying, but God will be with you and bring you back to the land of your fathers. Moreover I have given to you one portion above your brothers, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and my bow.'" : Joseph was not the first born, but he is given a double portion and the leadership of the family nonetheless.

- God had been with Jacob and was with Him that very day. Soon, God would be with Joseph's family to bring them back to the land of promise.

- Joseph portion would be from an unknown battle, but would not be claimed for 400 years.

Conclusion

- We are in the world tonight. God has given us blessing, places to flourish, people to reach. But this is not our home.

- There is a place where our eyes are to be, where we must be if we are to be recipients of God's promise to us. Let us keep our eyes there.