Ge. 47: Settling in Goshen, Egypt Enslaved

Joseph reports to Pharaoh that Jacob and his family are now in Egypt, and living in Goshen. He takes five of his brothers and presents them to Pharaoh and they tell him that they are shepherds, moved to Egypt from Canaan, because of the severity of the famine. They had no pasture. They asked Pharaoh's permission to stay in Goshen. Pharaoh, because of his appreciation for what Joseph has meant to him, gives his blessing.

Then old man Jacob comes in. He's so old, Pharaoh can't help but be like, "How old are you old timer?" Jacob says "A buck thirty. But no where near as difficult as the years of my fathers."

Joseph settles them in Rameses, the Ada of Egypt, and provided them with land and food according to their children.

And there is much rejoicing.

But, all of Egypt didn't have any food. So big government takes over. First the people spent all their money on grain. Then the money was all gone. Joseph had it all.

The people came before Joseph in need, and since they had no money, Joseph suggested they trade their livestock. So the livestock becomes property of Pharaoh. Then all the livestock was gone.

The people came before Joseph in need, and since they had no livestock, Joseph bought them into servitude. So the people become property of Pharaoh. The only way they would not die is to become slaves.

Well that sucks. Joseph enslaved Egypt. Nice guy.

The priests were under a different system. Pharaoh paid for them. Apparently they had no separation of church and state. The clergy were government employees.

So not only were the people of Egypt slaves, they had to give back 1/5 of their crop yields to the Pharaoh. And it became law. So the Israelites settled in Egypt in the land of Goshen. They, as opposed to the Egyptians, acquired proprty and were fruitful. When Jacob was 147, he asked that Joseph take him out of Egypt and bury him in the land of his fathers. Joseph swore it to him.