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NASB | Genesis 47:19 "Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food, and we and our land will be slaves to Pharaoh. So give us seed, that we may live and not die, and that the land may not be desolate." |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Genesis 47:19 "Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land in exchange for food, and we and our land will be servants to Pharaoh. And give us seed [to plant], that we may live and not die, and that the land may not be desolate." |
Bible Question:
Please read this verse in context. We tend to leave this part of the story out, when we think of Joseph's role in Egypt. We recognize his brilliant leadership in preparing for the famine, but leave out the fact that he bankrupted the people. He collected the grain from the people, then sold it back to them at a rate they could not afford. Since he had created a monopoly, he could set whatever price he wished. Perhaps devastating the people was a good thing, because he was then able to install a system of universal taxation? (v. 24) --- but surely that could have been done without enslaving the people first. Perhaps there is a kind of justice to how the Israelites found themselves enslaved in Egypt? JRM |
Bible Answer: Hi, JRM! I think that you are missing two points: Point 1: Joseph did not represent Israel (Jacob had not come to Egypt with his family); Joseph represented the Egyptian king (Faraoh) and all his interests... the people subjected to the rule had to grow most of the produce for storage... had there not been a system in place, how many people would have starved to death due to the greed of their compatriots? Have you notice in America how many companies are ransacked by their CEO's and accomplices? Have you noticed how much effort is placed on restitution? That sweet lady, to some not so sweet, Martha Stewart (hope I spelled it correctly) moved some of her own money and government and media has moved to make an example of her (she must have forgotten her place)... yet the billions of dollars siphoned into Lala Land by the male execs, do not even require their names and faces to be plastered all over the media... now, turn the tides over to Joseph's Egypt and allow the power hoarders the ability to control the production of grains... mass starvation for the populous! Point 2: It was God who placed Joseph in such a position and it was God who enabled him to: a) decipher the dreams, b) have the abilities necessary to manage the Egypcian kingdom. God Bless! Angel |