(Deuteronomy 4:2 [KJV]) Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I
command you.
(Proverbs 30:5, 6 [KJV]) Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.
(Isaiah 28:10 [KJV])
For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:
(Isaiah 28:13 [KJV])
But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.
(2 Peter 1:20 [KJV])
Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
All of the studies, book or topical, found here, are done with research with mainly two things: The KING JAMES BIBLE and a plain old, 1828 Webster's Dictionary. Why? Outside of actually studying secular and Jewish history, archaeology, one needs nothing more. You do not need foreign, dead languages that no one speaks, lexicons, concordances or commentaries, because they differ not only with one another and with the KING JAMES BIBLE, but they create division, confusion, debate, and unbelief. We do not need them. That Word of God written and preserved for us in our own language is supposed to be enough, like the Old Testament was for the Jews, and the New Testament for the early Christians in Greek, Latin, Italian, Spanish, German, etc. There are studies within as tangents on words, subjects found within the two testaments, as to broaden the scope of the study, to learn more, deeper truths. This is not an intellectual site with PhDs, theologians, and no worldly wisdom.. Check everything out, everything. Not just here, but with everything you read and see and hear. Be Bereans:
(Acts 17:11 [KJV])
These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.
Always research for yourself, use all of the context, and never privately interpret!
Genesis Chapter 47: ISRAEL: MY PEOPLE ARE FAVORED BY PROVIDENCE!
(Acts 17:26 [KJV])
And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
This was a promise made, a prophecy made, about the great nation Israel, God's chosen people, that Israel would enter Egypt, for four hundred years, grow into a great nation in size, loot the Egyptians, begin their journey to the Promised Land. Egypt was not that promised land, but this is the beginning of the actual nation here, the seed about to be planted, about to grow. The most likely pharaoh at this time according to ancient Egyptian (not in God's Word named) records would have been Pharaoh Sesostris I, perhaps Pharaoh Sesostris III being the one that later oppressed the Israelites during their time of slavery, but this is in now way certain, conclusive. Pharaoh gives them the land of Goshen, a separate place where God will protect them from the plagues hudreds of years later, apart from the land of the Egyptians themselves. Egypt represents as a symbol, a type of the world in Scripture, throughout, and God will one day remove Israel from the world of Egypt before judging them, separting them with a flood of water to wipe out their army. This is one of the secular world's problems, an instant disappearance of a great empire. They did not crumble slowly like Rome, they wwere not conquered like the Babylonians and the rest, no they were gone from prominence immediately, in biblical time, because any ancient empire that had no defense from its enemies was gone in a heartbeat, which is how the empires grew into prominence in the first place-conquering their neighbors, looting, hiring slaves, building a larger army. God is sovereign over the affairs of men, and decides their times appointed, so this Egyptian empire is, for now, safer than ever, untouched by enemies, because God put His people there and will protect them like he promised Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph
(Genesis 47:1 [KJV])
Then Joseph came and told Pharaoh, and said, My father and my brethren, and their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have, are come out of the land of Canaan; and, behold, they [are] in the land of Goshen.
No fear now, as Joseph has favor, the ear of Pharaoh, grace, mercy from God
Joseph mentions the flocks as well as the herds, so he himself wanted to precede that fact, that truth, to Pharaoh first, to prepare the way once again for them, this time to let Pharaoh know that they have sheep before they tell him when he asks
It must be said and always remembered that this favor comes from God, not from men, because god only turns hearts toward or away from us and Himself
(Genesis 47:2-3 [KJV])
And he took some of his brethren, [even] five men, and presented them unto Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said unto his brethren, What [is] your occupation? And they said unto Pharaoh, Thy servants [are] shepherds, both we, [and] also our fathers.
Not what Joseph told them to say at all!
This was something that, in the minds of men, was a risk to say to a pharaoh
It must be that, since they saw the authority Joseph had and the fact that they were directly related, that they felt that they could merely tell the truth without fear of consequences, as any other strangers would be told to leave immediately
(Genesis 46:33-34 [KJV])
And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What [is] your occupation? That ye shall say, Thy servants' trade hath been about cattle from our youth even until now, both we, [and] also our fathers: that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd [is] an abomination unto the Egyptians.
(Genesis 47:4 [KJV])
They said moreover unto Pharaoh, For to sojourn in the land are we come; for thy servants have no pasture for their flocks; for the famine [is] sore in the land of Canaan: now therefore, we pray thee, let thy servants dwell in the land of Goshen.
Again, flocks are of sheep, herds are of cattle, and they mention neither herds nor cattle here to Pharaoh
It was here that God would protect Israel one day from the ten plagues he put upon Egypt, in order for Israel to leave
GOSHEN: FUTURE HAVEN FOR ISRAEL
(Genesis 45:10 [KJV])
And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children's children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast:
(Genesis 46:28 [KJV])
And he sent Judah before him unto Joseph, to direct his face unto Goshen; and they came into the land of Goshen.
(Genesis 46:29 [KJV])
And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen, and presented himself unto him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while.
(Genesis 46:34 [KJV])
That ye shall say, Thy servants' trade hath been about cattle from our youth even until now, both we, [and] also our fathers: that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd [is] an abomination unto the Egyptians.
(Genesis 47:1 [KJV])
Then Joseph came and told Pharaoh, and said, My father and my brethren, and their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have, are come out of the land of Canaan; and, behold, they [are] in the land of Goshen.
(Genesis 47:4 [KJV])
They said moreover unto Pharaoh, For to sojourn in the land are we come; for thy servants have no pasture for their flocks; for the famine [is] sore in the land of Canaan: now therefore, we pray thee, let thy servants dwell in the land of Goshen.
(Genesis 47:6 [KJV])
The land of Egypt [is] before thee; in the best of the land make thy father and brethren to dwell; in the land of Goshen let them dwell: and if thou knowest [any] men of activity among them, then make them rulers over my cattle.
(Genesis 47:27 [KJV])
And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions therein, and grew, and multiplied exceedingly.
(Genesis 50:8 [KJV])
And all the house of Joseph, and his brethren, and his father's house: only their little ones, and their flocks, and their herds, they left in the land of Goshen.
(Exodus 8:22 [KJV])
And I will sever in that day the land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no swarms [of flies] shall be there; to the end thou mayest know that I [am] the LORD in the midst of the earth.
(Exodus 9:26 [KJV])
Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel [were], was there no hail.
(Joshua 10:41 [KJV])
And Joshua smote them from Kadeshbarnea even unto Gaza, and all the country of Goshen, even unto Gibeon.
(Joshua 11:16 [KJV])
So Joshua took all that land, the hills, and all the south country, and all the land of Goshen, and the valley, and the plain, and the mountain of Israel, and the valley of the same;
(Joshua 15:51 [KJV])
And Goshen, and Holon, and Giloh; eleven cities with their villages:
(Genesis 47:5-6 [KJV])
And Pharaoh spake unto Joseph, saying, Thy father and thy brethren are come unto thee: The land of Egypt [is] before thee; in the best of the land make thy father and brethren to dwell; in the land of Goshen let them dwell: and if thou knowest [any] men of activity among them, then make them rulers over my cattle.
Why the best of the land? Why putt hem in charge over the cattle, beef and milk?For those who keep flocks of sheep, an abomination? For those the Egyptians had no dealings?
This is the ultimate favor from God, because the future of Israel and Egypt will become rocky, stormy,
(Exodus 1:8 [KJV])
Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.
(Acts 7:17-18 [KJV])
But when the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt, Till another king arose, which knew not Joseph.
(Genesis 43:32 [KJV])
And they set on for him by himself, and for them by themselves, and for the Egyptians, which did eat with him, by themselves: because the Egyptians might not eat bread with the Hebrews; for that [is] an abomination unto the Egyptians.
(Genesis 47:7 [KJV])
And Joseph brought in Jacob his father, and set him before Pharaoh: and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.
Any time Israel as a nation or any Jew as an individual, is in a land, working, dwelling, that land will be blessed in some way, more so if they are walking with the LORD, but even despite it, because God blesses Israel, no matter what, as this promise to the fathers was unconditional, depending solely on God, even to this day and into the future
(Genesis 47:8-9 [KJV])
And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How old [art] thou? And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my pilgrimage [are] an hundred and thirty years: few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage.
Jacob had earlier, before entering, decided that, once he saw Joseph, he could peacefully die
God then gave him an additional seventeen years to live
(Genesis 47:10 [KJV])
And Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from before Pharaoh.
Upon arrival and upon leaving, Jacob, Israel the man blesses Egypt
Upon arrival Jacob. Israel the nation blesses Egypt; upon leaving, Israel leaves, God curses Egypt and then destroys Egypt
(Genesis 47:11 [KJV])
And Joseph placed his father and his brethren, and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded.
All of this favor is because Joseph, through God, interpreted the dreams to prepare Egypt for the famine, now upon them
"In the best of the land", not just any land
(Genesis 47:12 [KJV])
And Joseph nourished his father, and his brethren, and all his father's household, with bread, according to [their] families.
Reunion celebrations over, time to get to work to survive and use the preparations
this is the time to use the provisions stored for this famine
(Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 [KJV])
To every [thing there is] a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up [that which is] planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.
(Genesis 47:13 [KJV])
And [there was] no bread in all the land; for the famine [was] very sore, so that the land of Egypt and [all] the land of Canaan fainted by reason of the famine.
Fainting here means to be weak, feeble, languid and or exhausted, from fatigue or, in this case, from extreme hunger or thirst
(Genesis 47:14 [KJV])
And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, for the corn which they bought: and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house.
Joseph had been and still is entrusted with the money of Pharaoh's kingdom, and he is faithful as a good steward once again, which got him this position originally
Today, greed makes many pocket that money, or a part of it, embezzling it, but Joseph was not spoken against one time in Scripture, and this is precisely why
(Genesis 47:15 [KJV])
And when money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth.
One thing most with money do not know in this country is that money cannot buy food when there is no food
Money can buy land and seed but, that same money, no matter how much of it, cannot buy rain, nor sunshine to make the crops grow, nor make that soil fertile, nor make that seed sprout, grow all of the way into food, during a drought
(Genesis 47:16-17 [KJV])
And Joseph said, Give your cattle; and I will give you for your cattle, if money fail. And they brought their cattle unto Joseph: and Joseph gave them bread [in exchange] for horses, and for the flocks, and for the cattle of the herds, and for the asses: and he fed them with bread for all their cattle for that year.
Cattle for stored grain, stored corn
God is using Joseph and the wisdom, power and authority He gave Joseph to accumulate wealth in the form of herds and flocks, which also need that same stored food to eat in a drought
This means that this time of abundance the previous seven years must have been amazingly abundant, the amount that could fill many, many silos, barns, etc.
Had God not had a plan for Israel, Egypt would have never interpreted the dream He gave Pharaoh, nor used Joseph to gather the abundance in preparation, and Egypt would have slowly, tortuously died in this drought, and never would have been heard from again
(Genesis 47:18-19 [KJV])
When that year was ended, they came unto him the second year, and said unto him, We will not hide [it] from my lord, how that our money is spent; my lord also hath our herds of cattle; there is not ought left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies, and our lands: Wherefore shall we die before thine eyes, both we and our land? buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants unto Pharaoh: and give [us] seed, that we may live, and not die, that the land be not desolate.
This trade is due to the fulfillment dream of the lean kine, because there is a drought and the fields are not green with grass, but dead without water, living water
This is no longer a dream, this is reality, and a true nightmare coming to pass
Joseph had not just food stored, but seed to grow more food, perhaps being watered by river water hauled in by man or beast of burden
THE DREAM OF PHARAOH
(Genesis 41:17 [KJV])
And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, In my dream, behold, I stood upon the bank of the river: And, behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, fatfleshed and well favoured; and they fed in a meadow: And, behold, seven other kine came up after them, poor and very ill favoured and leanfleshed, such as I never saw in all the land of Egypt for badness: And the lean and the ill favoured kine did eat up the first seven fat kine: And when they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; but they [were] still ill favoured, as at the beginning. So I awoke.
(Genesis 47:20 [KJV])
And Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for the Egyptians sold every man his field, because the famine prevailed over them: so the land became Pharaoh's.
"for Pharaoh", not for himself, meaning Joseph is a great steward over things that are not his, taking care over things for others
(Genesis 47:21 [KJV])
And as for the people, he removed them to cities from [one] end of the borders of Egypt even to the [other] end thereof.
Well, there was nothing that grew, no food for herds and flocks, so gathering together away from useless farms, ranches without animals and crops was called for here, in order to save life
Cities do not have farms, ranches, large gardens, but are whwre the crops and the harvest are brought to store, to be distributed
This is the case today as well, with people being forced into cities, b3ecause wealth has bought all of the land fo farming, ranching, animals and crops
This makes people dependent on a centralized power
(Genesis 47:22 [KJV])
Only the land of the priests bought he not; for the priests had a portion [assigned them] of Pharaoh, and did eat their portion which Pharaoh gave them: wherefore they sold not their lands.
This is most likely a special request of Pharaoh, as the Egyptians were pagans, their priests being therefore pagan priests
(Genesis 47:23-24 [KJV])
Then Joseph said unto the people, Behold, I have bought you this day and your land for Pharaoh: lo, [here is] seed for you, and ye shall sow the land. And it shall come to pass in the increase, that ye shall give the fifth [part] unto Pharaoh, and four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, and for your food, and for them of your households, and for food for your little ones.
Continuing his great stewardship, Joseph gives twenty percent, twice a tithe (a tenth part), to his boss Pharaoh
In order to get seed to plant to get more crops and more seeds, some crop must "come to seed"; that is, mature enough to produce seed so, hungry or not, it must not be taken until after that to get more
This is by God's design with all of His creation, mankind, animals, plants
(Genesis 1:11-12 [AKJV/PCE])
And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
(Genesis 47:25 [KJV])
And they said, Thou hast saved our lives: let us find grace in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh's servants.
Desperate times call for measures in abject desperation
(Genesis 47:26 [KJV])
And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt unto this day, [that] Pharaoh should have the fifth [part]; except the land of the priests only, [which] became not Pharaoh's.
This is a demonstration of the Sovereignty of God here towards Joseph, allowing Joseph to make laws for Egypt
(Genesis 47:27 [KJV])
And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions therein, and grew, and multiplied exceedingly.
Again, more fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham
ABRAHAM
(Genesis 22:17 [AKJV/PCE])
That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;
ISAAC
(Genesis 26:24 [AKJV/PCE])
And the LORD appeared unto him the same night, and said, I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham's sake.
JACOB
(Genesis 46:3 [AKJV/PCE])
And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation:
(Genesis 47:28 [KJV])
And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years: so the whole age of Jacob was an hundred forty and seven years.
He had previously said, at age a hundred and thirty years, that all he needed to do is see Joseph and then he could die
God gave him thirteen more years by grace, in His Sovereignty, to see Joseph, but the start of the nation growing large, by that time maybe many tens, maybe many hundreds of thousands of Jews in Egypt
The plagues lasted only a few more years and then it was over, a time of abundant rain, crops, harvest, which he was allowed to witness
(Genesis 45:28 [AKJV/PCE])
And Israel said, It is enough; Joseph my son is yet alive: I will go and see him before I die.
(Genesis 47:29 [KJV])
And the time drew nigh that Israel must die: and he called his son Joseph, and said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me; bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt: But I will lie with my fathers, and thou shalt carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their buryingplace. And he said, I will do as thou hast said.
Putting ne's hand under the other's thigh was to perform a solemn oath, to swear to perform a sworn duty
Not that this would affect Jacob in Heaven, but rather the others of the nation, knowing where their forefathers of their nation were to be memorialized, all at one spot
He is called Israel here, not Jacob
(Genesis 47:31 [KJV])
And he said, Swear unto me. And he sware unto him. And Israel bowed himself upon the bed's head.
Old, feeble ,near death now, things have to be taken care of
All that Jacob had was his wealth in Egypt, now under Joseph's care, so nothing to give to his offspring, who would literally profit as it is
He is called Israel here again, not Jacob
nation of Israel in, being blessed, multiplying, in a strange land, GOD fulfilling His prophecy
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