GENESIS
Lesson 37 - Chapters 42 and 43
At the end of our last lesson, the 7 years of abundant crops and livestock had passed, and the
great 7-year famine of Pharaoh’s dream had begun. Joseph was now in charge of Egypt…and
this food program….. and was 2nd in Command of the nation with only Pharaoh above him.
Joseph was one of the most powerful men on earth at this time in history.
This famine of Genesis 41 was caused by low rainfall; a drought. This drought that apparently
affected Northern Africa, where Egypt lay, also affected much of the Middle East.
Let’s talk a little about the geography because it helps to understand the overall situation of
this section of the Torah, and explains why many things happened in the way they did.
First: the regional designations of Egypt are virtually backwards of what we would normally
think. Egypt was spoken of as Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt; interestingly UPPER Egypt is to
the south, and LOWER Egypt is to the north. Further, this is because the Nile River flows from
south to north……it flows from Upper Egypt to Lower Egypt. And, this helps to explain just why
southern Egypt is called Upper. Obviously, water flows downhill. As it turns out, the southern
end of Egypt is a slightly higher elevation than the northern end; therefore, as anyone knows
that a River flows from UP to DOWN, the southern end of River is called upper, and the
northern end is called Lower.
The southern end of the Nile…….Upper Egypt……is where the Nile begins and there are two
enormous geographical basins where the rainfall occurs, and where the water from that rainfall
naturally funnels towards the Nile to fill it. From one basin flows what is called the White Nile,
and from the other the Blue Nile. Around the city of Khartoum the White Nile and Blue Nile
come together to form the Great Nile River…..which we typically just call the Nile River.
The Great Nile then flows UP (in our way of thinking), north, towards the Mediterranean Sea.
As it approaches the Land of Goshen in Lower Egypt, it encounters what is called the Delta
Region, and the River dissipates into a number of natural fingers that all eventually find their
way to the Sea. Even though the Delta Region (as is most of Lower Egypt) is a virtually
rainless desert, due to the abundant waters of the Nile, and the marsh lands that are created
by all those fingers spreading out in the Land of Goshen area allowing the water to flow across
the lands much like the Florida Everglades, the area is fertile and great for growing crops and
grazing animals.
The bottom line here is that the ONLY thing that makes Egypt inhabitable is the Nile. And, the
only thing that creates the Nile is rainfall from these two great basins far to the south, in Upper
Egypt.
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Even though the Egyptians very early on began digging canals to channel water from the Nile
to water crops, it was the annual rising and falling of the water levels of the Nile that
determined feast or famine. It is crucial that the Nile overflow its banks during the 3 summer
months; an overflow caused by monsoon type rains that occurred far to the south, in the two
southern river basins that formed the headwaters of the Nile. The overflow not only watered
the land, but it brought silt, rich in nutrients necessary to grow crops all along the Nile. But, it
takes only a few inches of rainfall deficit in but one of the two great southern river basins to
destroy the delicate balance and prevent sufficient water flow to cause the necessary
downriver flooding.
So, it’s not that the Nile dried up in Joseph’s time, nor that people didn’t have sufficient water
to drink; it’s simply that for a several year period, the Nile did NOT overflow, and the
marshlands of the Delta receded, and therefore sufficient crops were not produced to feed the
citizens of the Egypt. To be clear: all food production did NOT cease. But, it was dramatically
reduced and there was not enough to sustain the people.
Now, just so we understand the supernatural nature of this widespread famine: the weather
systems that govern rainfall in southern Egypt, and those that govern rainfall in the Middle East
are totally separate. That very low rainfall occurred for several years in southern Egypt during
the same time there was a drought for several years in Canaan was a God thing; that does not
normally occur.
One of the reasons that Egypt and the people of Canaan knew each other so well, and had
since time immemorial established trade, was because usually when there was crop failure in
Egypt due to low levels of the Nile, Egypt could count on going up to Canaan to buy extra
food……and vice-versa. But, this time it was different. Had God not given Pharaoh the prophetic
dream, and then given him Joseph to interpret it, there would have been widespread death in
both Egypt and Canaan because of low food supplies in both lands. But, God warned Egypt,
and Egypt prepared because it was ABLE to prepare. God FIRST gave them Supernatural
abundance that they would have hefty surpluses for 7 straight years; Joseph planned and used
this so they could build up enormous stores of grain for the coming 7 bad years.
Later, upon the onset of the drought, Egypt, partly from a sense of compassion but primarily
from a sense of self-interest, made food available from its warehouses to people of other
nations. This was not welfare. The price for those stored grains was VERY high. We see from
the upcoming story of Genesis 42 and 43 that several BAGS of silver was required to buy food
from Egypt for the clan of Jacob; food would normally not have required a sum of money that
would be spoken of in terms of “bagfuls” of silver.
Rather, Egypt was going to make a huge profit on its adept handling of this extended and
extensive food crisis. But, make no mistake, these high prices were not only for foreigners;
Egyptian citizens also were required to purchase their food from Pharaoh….or better,
Joseph…….a supplement to be sure, usually not their sole source of food. But, for those who
were poorer, and did not have access to other more commercially available food sources, this
famine wound up costing hundreds of thousands of Egyptians….. possibly a million or
more…..their liberty. For, as these lower-class Egyptians ran out of money to buy food, they had
no choice but to sell themselves and their families into bond service to the Pharaoh in
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exchange for grain. But, from their standpoint, it was this Semite foreigner……Joseph……who was
to blame for this travesty and humiliation; because Joseph was the front man, the visible
symbol, for the entire food program; getting both credit and blame.
This was not something Egypt would soon forget; after Joseph’s death, and a long period of
social upheaval, the Egyptians would blame Joseph’s kin……the tribes of Israel… for their
condition. This would eventually lead to the Egyptians turning the tables on Israel; the peasant
Egyptians would enslave the more well-to-do, and free, Israelites, beginning a cycle of
persecution of the Hebrew people in foreign lands that we read of throughout the Bible, have
witnessed ourselves in the last century, and will continue to witness until Messiah comes.
READ GEN. 42 all
If we can but grasp that Israel was the tool that God would use to bring about His divine
purposes from this point forward in history, until time comes to an end sometime in the near
future, then perhaps we can begin to comprehend the significance of what is about to happen
in this Biblical narrative.
We have now moved from Egypt and Joseph, back to Canaan and Jacob. The great famine
having now affected an enormous area, Jacob’s clan is in a bad way. And, the first verse of
this chapter we see Jacob, Israel, in a rather sarcastic mood, as he says to his sons: “Why are
you STARING at each other?” In other words, you KNOW we’re in dire straits, you KNOW
that there is grain available in Egypt, so why are you all sitting here waiting for SOMEBODY
else to do something. Let’s remember, he was not speaking to children. These men were all
middle aged and beyond, most with their own families children by now.
While I wish I could find some good and lovely things to say about Jacob’s sons, the tribes of
Israel, the Bible doesn’t offer much about their character that is admirable at this point. God
didn’t choose Israel because they were great men……He chose them because He is a great
God and uses ordinary people to carry out His will. And, by the way, we’re not told to stand
with Israel because they’re a specially good or extraordinary or sympathetic race (which
they’re not), we’re to stand with them because that’s what God has instructed all the people
of this planet to do……with dire consequences for those who do not heed Him. So, brace
yourselves America: our president has now put his desire for a legacy of peace in the Middle
East, regardless of the cost, ahead of his God-commanded concern for Israel. We are going to
pay an awful price……every one of us.
So, Jacob, unable to wait any longer for these sons to do (on their own volition) what is right
and necessary, orders all of them, except for Benjamin, to go to Egypt, to buy grain. Was
Benjamin not old enough to go? Certainly he was. But, Benjamin had taken the place of
Joseph in Jacob’s heart, because Benjamin and Joseph were his two sons through the wife
Jacob loved the most…..Rachel, now deceased. He simply wasn’t going to risk Benjamin, after
having lost Joseph. As the sons of Israel arrive in Egypt, they join in with many more tribes and
peoples from other nations, all in need of being saved from starvation. And, who is it they must
go to for their salvation? Joseph.
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Verse 6 makes it clear that it was common knowledge that it was this great Vizier of
Egypt…..who was now going not by the name Joseph, but by the EGYPTIAN name the
Pharaoh had given him, Zaphenath-Panea…. that everyone must go to in order to by grain.
Joseph must have had an immense organization to deal with the millions who needed food,
and certainly it would have been rare for Joseph himself to deal directly with those who sought
to buy grain.
But, of course, Joseph’s brothers didn’t recognize him. It’s not just that 20 years had passed
since they had last seen their little brother, and his boyish features had become manly; it was
that he now looked Egyptian. He was clean shaven (Hebrews, by tradition, always wore
beards); he wore his hair in Egyptian fashion and would have used certain cosmetics that
Egyptian royalty typically applied to their faces…..he also spoke Egyptian. And, the mannerisms
of that former tent-dwelling boy with all of his teenage gawkiness had been exchanged for the
refined and confident regal bearing that was now Joseph. But…he recognized them right
away.
And, we can only imagine what must have flashed through his mind upon seeing his brothers:
deep pain, from being so long ago torn from his family at the hands of these same men. But, in
a nano-second, it says in V9 that he remembered those dreams of his youth…..of the 11
sheaves of grain bowing down to his; and of the 11 stars, the moon, and the sun paying
homage to him. And, it must also have been at that moment, with all the preparation so
carefully guided by the invisible God, that those dreams that his brothers AND his own father,
Jacob, had chastised him for……were TRUE! Joseph realized for the first time that Divine
Providence had been at work all along. He now knew with certainty why God had allowed to
happen all that had happened to him. Yet, some testing was needed to see if his brothers had
also been prepared by El Shaddai.
Joseph, knowing otherwise, accuses them of being spies. The brothers are utterly taken aback
by this, for the accusation doesn’t even make sense……it borders the irrational. But, they are
afraid, for they are totally at this ruler’s arbitrary mercy. Truth and justice matter not at all at
this point, and they know it. For a ruler of Joseph’s stature can decide matters summarily, and
order whatever punishment he deems appropriate. They are helpless and powerless to control
their fate….just as Joseph found himself helpless, so long ago, lying at the bottom of a dry well;
begging and crying for mercy that would not come from these same pitiless brothers, now
standing before him hat-in-hand.
He questions them, and finds out his father is still alive, as is his little brother Benjamin, and so
orders that one brother was to go and bring back the youngest brother, Benjamin, to prove
their assertion that they were not spies…..that they were truthful. But, this would not happen
until all 10 were to be put into prison for 3 days. Of course, the reason behind Joseph’s
decision to jail them was to separate his brothers from the myriads of Egyptian citizens and
foreigners who daily came hoping to buy from Egypt’s reserve grain supplies. He wanted, and
needed, to deal with his family separately and not under the gaze of everyone else.
At the end of the 3 days, he now gave a different order. Nine brothers were to return with the
grain they needed to feed their clan. One, Simeon, was to remain in custody, as surety for the
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rest. And, if they did not bring back Benjamin, Simeon would forfeit his life (or so was the
implication).
The brothers discussed their plight among themselves in front of Joseph……assuming he was an
Egyptian and would not be understanding what they were speaking in Hebrew. And, Joseph
kept up the ruse by using an interpreter as a go-between during his dealings with his brothers.
What he heard made him weep; the guilt of over 2 decades overcame them, and they knew
that this was the day of reckoning for what they had wrongly done to their little brother, Joseph.
But, he also heard Rueben try to absolve himself, with apparently no disagreement as to his
position of innocence. And, Joseph must have believed him. For, rather than keeping the all-
important first-born, Rueben, as a prisoner, Joseph ordered Simeon, the 2nd son of Jacob, to
be held hostage.
Now, Joseph REALLY messes with their heads. He orders that the money the brothers paid for
the grain be hidden in the necks of the grain sacks. The very first night on their way back
home, one of them went to get some grain for his donkey, and there was the money! Oh my
gosh. What in the world was going on here?! They quickly decided that God was giving them
their just desserts.
One wonders what must have gone through their minds on that many day journey back to face
their father. Who would be the spokesman among them to tell their fragile father that not only
had they come back one short in their number, but that now they were to take Benjamin,
Jacob’s most beloved child, back to Egypt with them, or Simeon would die, along with the rest
of them when Pharaoh’s men caught up with them.
Jacob’s reply is obvious: you’ve taken 2 of my children away from me, and now you want to
take a 3rd? Rueben then gives Jacob the guarantee that he will bring Benjamin back. But, if he
fails, Jacob can kill Rueben’s two sons as punishment. Though we’re not given Jacob’s reply
to this offer, one can only imagine the unbelieving look on Jacob’s face. I think his stunned
reply would have been something like,“Brilliant!" Only you would figure that after I had lost 3
sons, I should now kill my own grandchildren as retribution?! Are you insane?!”
More and more we see the wisdom in Rueben being denied his firstborn birthright. Rueben is a
politician…a wind bag. He is always making these grandiose, unwise statements and promises
that are worthless and designed to do little but elicit an emotional response. In fact, we won’t
hear from Rueben any more. He is set aside, and we’ll hear Judah’s voice more than any
other brother from here forward.
For the time being, though, Jacob simply is paralyzed and cannot fathom what to do. All he
knows is that should Benjamin be taken from him, he could not survive it. He doesn’t really
trust those sons of his anymore, so he’s not about to entrust Benjamin to them. Yet……how are
they going to survive without more grain?
READ GEN 43 all
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A little time passes, and the famine does not let up. The grain supply purchased and brought
back from Egypt is exhausted. Apparently, the 9 sons of Jacob (Simeon is still back in Egypt
held hostage) who had earlier sat in a depressed state and did nothing to try and save their
clan from starvation are once again completely passive. So, Jacob tells them to go back to
Egypt and get more grain. Of course, Jacob is reminded by his sons that they cannot go
without Benjamin. Jacob is still unconvinced to hand over Benjamin to his treacherous sons.
Then, Judah speaks. Judah, humbled by life, humbled by his daughter-in-law Tamar’s bold act
when Judah failed to respond to her plight appropriately, now offers HIMSELF as the surety
bond for Benjamin. Now, one might ask, just exactly what penalty could Jacob extract from
Judah should he fail on his mission to take Benjamin to Egypt and return him safely home?
Well, as we discussed a while back, Judah almost certainly saw himself as the likely inheritor
of the wealth and authority of the clan of Israel. He apparently knew that Rueben was no
longer going to receive the first-born blessing for he had defiled his father’s bed. And, of
course, Jacob’s 2nd and 3rd sons were the ones who led the raid of revenge upon Shechem,
killing every male and then leading the plundering of the remaining inhabitants……this would
have disqualified them. So, with Joseph, formerly Jacob’s favorite, now thought to be dead,
Judah, 4th in line, must have seen himself as that person who would soon be the leader of the
tribes of Israel. Judah, by agreeing to accept all blame if something were to happen to
Benjamin, had much to lose. He, too, could have been disinherited. Jacob knew that, too, and
must have felt that if it were at all possible for Benjamin to be spared, Judah would do all that
could humanly be done to see to it. Here, finally, was a son who could be trusted…..Jacob could
trust Judah in this matter. But, even more, Jacob would trust God. If he was to lose all of his
sons, then so be it. It is in God’s hands.
So, taking the money that had mysteriously found its way into their grain bags upon return from
the first trip, and an equal amount to buy new grain, the brothers, including Benjamin,
journeyed back down to Egypt.
Joseph sees that his brothers have returned, and with them is Benjamin. So he orders a
banquet to be prepared and served at noon. He orders his servants to bring his brothers inside
his house for this banquet; but the brothers think this is a trap. That they are going to be taken
as slaves (as they had arranged to happen to Joseph), in retribution for the incident with the
money found in their packs. Joseph’s house manager assures them that that is not the case.
Joseph arrives at his home, and the brothers present him with the gifts they had brought with
them from Canaan. Joseph inquires about their, his, father’s well being, and they tell him he’s
fine; then Joseph spots Benjamin. He is overwhelmed with emotion, and must leave them for a
few moments to weep bittersweet tears in private.
Now composed, Joseph returns and the meal is served. What we see in these verses is a
completely accurate account of the way a meal of this sort would have been served in Egypt:
Joseph eats alone. The brothers eat together as a group, and the Egyptian house servants eat
separately from both the brothers and from Joseph. It is well-documented Egyptian custom that
the head of the house never eats with the servants. But, why didn’t the servants eat with the
Israelite brothers? Well, we’re told in V32 that it was “abhorrent to Egyptians to eat with
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Hebrews”.
This is interesting stuff. You see Hebrews, as were many Semite tribes and people groups in
this era, shepherds. The Egyptians saw shepherds as the lowest class of people, and their
mere presence was offensive. An Egyptian would NEVER eat with a shepherd. Egyptians
valued cattle, not sheep. That’s one of the reasons that the Egyptian’s highest deity, Isis, was
represented by a Bull. But, soon, another aspect of this Egyptian tradition would come into
play: the Israelites were going to be given the land of Goshen to live in. A land where they
would be away from the bulk of Egyptian society, to grow their sheep and not offend Egyptian
sensibility.
As the brothers sat down to eat, each carefully seated by a servant in a place reserved
specifically for each brother, they were stunned to see that they had been arranged from oldest
to youngest, in perfect order of their birth. What could this mean? Even more, Benjamin was
given a portion of food 5 times everyone else’s. Scholars have debated the meaning of this 5
fold blessing of food upon Benjamin, and the general consensus is that in Egypt, a prince or a
ruler was given 5 times as much as everyone else as a sign of royalty. Of course, that also
raises the question, what was Joseph signifying with this? My personal opinion is that Joseph
was honoring the brother he would have had the most affinity to, the one with which he shared
a common mother. And, the one who, of the 11 brothers, was completely innocent of any
wrong doing in connection with Joseph being sold into slavery. But, we should also not
overlook that the very first King of Israel would be a descendant of Benjamin
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