Read with Me
Genesis 47:13-17 (HCSB)
But there was no food in that entire region, for the famine was very severe. The land of Egypt and the land of Canaan were exhausted by the famine. Joseph collected all the money to be found in the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan in exchange for the grain they were purchasing, and he brought the money to Pharaoh’s palace. When the money from the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan was gone, all the Egyptians came to Joseph and said, “Give us food. Why should we die here in front of you? The money is gone!”
But Joseph said, “Give me your livestock. Since the money is gone, I will give you food in exchange for your livestock.” So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and he gave them food in exchange for the horses, the herds of sheep, the herds of cattle, and the donkeys. That year he provided them with food in exchange for all their livestock.
Listen with Me
Some people feel that Joseph was treating the people of the land unfairly by taking all their money and then all their livestock in exchange for the grain which they themselves had produced and “donated” to the government during the seven years of plenty. But he was actually not being unfair at all.
To begin with, Joseph was not serving in a democracy of any type. Egypt was an absolute monarchy, often considering the king a demigod to whom absolute obedience was due. As such, the grain that had been given to the government was not considered a donation but a levy.
Second, it was not kept secret that the reason for the levy was the approaching seven years of famine. That should have prompted the people to set aside a portion of what was produced during the fat years to see them through the approaching lean years. The fact that a mere 20% of what was grown in the good years was more than could be measured, that it was able to supply not only the Egyptians but all the surrounding nations with food for the entire seven years of famine, shows that it would have been quite possible for each family to have saved up enough to survive the lean times that they knew were on the way. But they had set aside nothing, eating, selling, or even wasting the excess grain instead, and willingly putting their future in the hands of the government.
To Joseph’s credit, he did not refuse to supply the people with the food they needed, nor did he shame them. He simply conducted the business of the government, selling them what they needed for what they could afford. When their money was gone, he traded them the food they needed for their livestock. This enabled the people to live, and at the same time increased the wealth and power of his boss, the Pharaoh.
Pray with Me
Father, this is definitely a different way of looking at the situation. It is so easy for us to look at these people and their circumstances as if they were the same as our own, without thinking through how very different they actually were. By your own estimation, Joseph was not a scoundrel, but a godly man, a man of deep compassion and high character. And in the end, we know that he listened well to Your voice as he did his work. So, we must be careful not to misjudge him based on our own subjective feelings of right or fairness. Help me, Lord, to see others the way that You see them, so that I can judge rightly. Amen.