Genesis 47 Lesson: The famine: Own nothing & be happy?

Bible Study Series: Joseph, Jesus and You

Genesis 47 Lesson: The famine: You'll own nothing & be happy?

by I Gordon

We looked last time at the journey of Israel and family, out of the Promised Land and down into Egypt. As we went through that story we looked at the personal applications that could be applied for our own lives. This time we'll be exploring the prophetic implications of the text. This lesson is from Genesis 47:13-25 and, well, it is interesting and a little bit different! There are parts of scripture that are prophetic in nature but they aren't really seen clearly until the time comes for their fulfillment. This is one of those passages. If I had studied this passage a few years ago I wouldn't have seen what I see today. And no, it isn't that I am now wiser or more in tune with God. It is simply that recent events show how this passage could well find fulfillment in the coming days. So this passage is about what happened in the seven year famine that hit in the days of Joseph when he ruled in Egypt. It shows:

• How the the food and crops failed
• How the people's money failed
• How they lost their land and possessions
• How they lost their freedom
• And yet, how they were apparently thankful that they hadn't lost their lives.

Hmmm... does this sound like 'you'll own nothing and be happy'? Anyway, like I said it is an interesting passage because it points prophetically to what will happen again.  We'll start by reading a good part of the passage, adding a little modern-day application, and then break the verses down in more detail. 

You will own nothing and be happy?

Gen 47:13-21,25 NKJV Now there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan languished because of the famine. (14) And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, for the grain which they bought; and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house. (15) So when the money failed in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph and said, "Give us bread, for why should we die in your presence? For the money has failed." (16) Then Joseph said, "Give your livestock, and I will give you bread for your livestock, if the money is gone." (17) So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the cattle of the herds, and for the donkeys. Thus he fed them with bread in exchange for all their livestock that year. (18) When that year had ended, they came to him the next year and said to him, "We will not hide from my lord that our money is gone; my lord also has our herds of livestock. There is nothing left in the sight of my lord but our bodies and our lands. (19) Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants of Pharaoh; give us seed, that we may live and not die, that the land may not be desolate." (20) Then Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for every man of the Egyptians sold his field, because the famine was severe upon them. So the land became Pharaoh's. (21) And as for the people, he moved them into the cities, from one end of the borders of Egypt to the other end...(25)  So they said, "You have saved our lives; let us find favor in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh's servants."

So that is the key passage describing that 7-year famine in the days of Joseph. You will note that it begins with the food failing, then the money and possessions failing, then the people become slaves and it ends with them simply being happy that they are still alive. Now before we delve into it, we need to note some modern day predicted parallels.

You have no doubt heard of the World Economic Forum (WEF). Founded by Klaus Schwab in 1971, it is a non-Governmental lobbying organization that has trained many of the world leaders and holds a convention in Davos, Switzerland each year. Here it discusses the apparent problems and solutions (as they see them) facing this planet amongst the world's so-called elite. In 2016 it put out its predictions for 2030, among which was the forecast that by 2030 you will own nothing and be happy. Now this is not a prophecy. It is a prediction of where they see the future going. And, quite possibly, where they want it to go. So here is what they predict again: By 2030, you will own nothing and be happy. Now bear in mind however that when they say 'you will own nothing' the emphasis is on the 'you'. They are not talking about themselves. The elites will own everything. 

Now if that were to occur, how would it come about? And let me be clear on something before we begin. I am not saying it is '2030'. This is simply a prediction by a worldly, though powerful, organization. Though the the UN also has similar goals for control with its '2030 Agenda'. But whenever these things occur, the Bible does tell us that in the last days there will be both a terrible famine and a powerful system of control over the people. And this passage before us in Genesis that speaks of this 7-year famine is a prophetic pointer to the last 7-year Tribulation period that will come and test the entire world. So it is useful for us to see the process of how it came about previously, and whether this gives any clues for how it will come about again.

Where it begins - Famine: When the food fails

Gen 47:13 Now there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan languished because of the famine.

So we see that it begins with the food failing. Joseph had told Pharaoh that this day would come and he had prepared for it. As we have read about in earlier lessons, after the 7 years of plenty comes the 7 years of famine. So what causes a famine? If you put 'what causes a famine' into a search engine you'll see a combination of factors such as:

• War and conflict destroying crops and disrupting food distribution
• Pestilence and plant disease
• Insect infestations causing large scale crop failure
• Climate impacts impacting food production such as floods and hail or droughts through excessive heat

The WEF says 'We’re on the brink of a ‘polycrisis’ - a term it uses to define multiple global crises all interrelated and occurring at the same time. 

It is interesting that all of these are said to occur in the last days and specifically in that last 7-year Tribulation period. Jesus spoke about many of these saying:

Mat 24:6-8 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. (7) For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. (8) All these are the beginning of sorrows.

When we look at the first judgments given in the book of Revelation we again see that all of these come. 

Rev 6:3-8 When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, "Come!" (4) Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other. To him was given a large sword. (5) When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, "Come!" I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. (6) Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, "A quart of wheat for a day's wages, and three quarts of barley for a day's wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!" (7) When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, "Come!" (8) I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.

We see that peace is taken from the earth in the second seal judgement and this is quickly followed by famine conditions in the third. Here the rider of this black horse is said to hold a pair of scales in his hand. The imagery of weighing food in the scales, indicates a scarcity of food. By the fourth seal it is said that power was given to kill a fourth of the earth by the sword, famine and plague/pestilence. Now food is power. Even today there are key families and corporations that control much of the food across the United States¹ and the world. Bill Gates has recently become the largest private landowner in the USA. One article² speaking about the pressure on family owned farms says:

"This is not just happening in America; it is happening all over the world. Gates and his globalist allies at the WEF are seeking to snuff out the family-owned competition by pressing for regulations and restrictions on the tried-and-true methods of producing food across the globe.  The farmer protests in countries such as the Netherlands, Canada, and Ireland (which recently announced the imminent slaughter of between 41,000 and 200,000 cows) demonstrate that the food industry takeover is a global problem." 

Add to that that there are a handful of corporations that control over 50% of the world's seeds³, thus controlling the global food supply. Simply put, if you can control food, you can control the people. Food production is big business and they want it controlled by the few. So always remember that it starts in Genesis with the food supply. "Control the food and you control the people." 

When money fails... A glimpse of things to come?

Gen 47:14-15 And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, for the grain which they bought; and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house. (15) So when the money failed in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph and said, "Give us bread, for why should we die in your presence? For the money has failed."

So what happened next in Joseph's famine? First the food failed and then the money failed. As food became scarce, its value rose and the people spent all that they had just to live. We see this also in the passage in Revelation 6 quoted earlier where we read: 'A quart of wheat for a day's wages, and three quarts of barley for a day's wages...' A quart of wheat was enough for one meal for one person. Thus it shows that people will work all day for enough to pay for one meal. And what about the other meals and the rest of your family?

So an interesting phrase is used here in scripture saying 'the money failed'. Can money fail? Oh yeah! You may have a large number next to your bank account but its purchasing power can be diminished, through inflation, to the point that it is basically worthless. It has been said that in the time of the worst hyperinflation in the Weimar Republic Germany in the 1920's, you were better off burning your cash to get some warmth than trying to buy coal or wood.⁴ Some other mind blowing facts⁵ of this time include:

• Prices ran out of control, for example a loaf of bread, which cost 250 marks in January 1923, had risen to 200,000 million marks in November 1923.
• By Autumn 1923 it cost more to print a note than the note was worth.
• During the crisis, workers were often paid twice per day because prices rose so fast their wages were virtually worthless by lunchtime.

And how did the Weimar Republic get to such a state? Well they thought they could just continue to print money to get out of their troubles. And yes, this is similar to what the Western world has been doing for some time.

You will note that last sentence - 'Ultimately, hyperinflation enabled Adolf Hitler to gain power.' The craziness and desperation of the day lead to the rise of a man who said he could fix it all... and most believed him. And so it shall be again. Now in the days of Joseph in ancient Egypt they couldn't just print more notes, nor could countries just run up large debts with the world bank (with little intention to ever pay it back). So when the money was gone, it was gone. Thus, the money failed. Food became too scarce, too expensive, and the people's money was all used up trying to survive. This didn't mean there was no money. It simply meant that the collective wealth of Canaan, Egypt and other countries went into Pharaoh’s treasury. So what came next?

When possessions fail

Gen 47:16-17 Then Joseph said, "Give your livestock, and I will give you bread for your livestock, if the money is gone." (17) So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the cattle of the herds, and for the donkeys. Thus he fed them with bread in exchange for all their livestock that year.

First the food failed, then the money failed, so what comes next? Well next their possessions failed. Once they ran out of money they turned to what they owned. Joseph gave the people bread in exchange for their horses, cattle and flocks. So they had food... 'that year'... but remember that this is a 7-year long famine and with their money and livestock now gone, what was left once the food ran out at the end of the year? Scripture tells us...

Gen 47:18-20 When that year had ended, they came to him the next year and said to him, "We will not hide from my lord that our money is gone; my lord also has our herds of livestock. There is nothing left in the sight of my lord but our bodies and our lands. (19) Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants of Pharaoh; give us seed, that we may live and not die, that the land may not be desolate." (20) Then Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for every man of the Egyptians sold his field, because the famine was severe upon them. So the land became Pharaoh's.

When the year ended they had to return to Joseph once again. They acknowledged that their money and livestock were now all gone. They had already exchanged that with Joseph for grain. What did they have left to sell? Only two things - their land and themselves. Their suggestion to Joseph is to 'buy us and our land for bread'. In other words they will own nothing, not even their own freedom. 

The introduction to the American Constitution begins with the famous words 'We the people...'. The US government was established to serve the people. Well what we have here in Genesis, again as a picture of the time of the end, is when the people have once again become the servants of the state. We know from other passages in Revelation that in the end, people will not even be able to buy and sell without first selling their own soul to the coming world dictator. That is how bad it will get. 

Urbanization - 15 minute cities anyone?

Gen 47:21 And as for the people, he moved them into the cities, from one end of the borders of Egypt to the other end.

So what happened next? With the people owning nothing and becoming servants of the state, they were now moved into cities so that they could be more easily managed. Now I should point out that Joseph did these things to save their lives. The conditions were terrible and he wanted to be able to manage and bring the Egyptians through it. He didn't have bad intentions. But it is a picture of what is coming with a leader who doesn't have such good intentions. So I couldn't help but notice that the people were all moved into cities at this time. There is certainly a big rural to urban push underway. To quote some statistics⁶:

"Notably, the United Nations has also recently projected that nearly all global population growth from 2017 to 2030 will be by cities, with about 1.1 billion new urbanites over the next 10 years 

'By 2050, 70 percent of the world’s population will live in cities, up from 54 percent in 2020'

And for the urbanites, the push is for '15 minute cities'. That is, they want to design cities to provide all the necessities of life within a 15 minute travel radius from your home. Now that doesn't sound bad does it? But with that comes other desires to control where you can go and how far and how often you can travel... all in the name of 'climate change' of course. Couple that with a global digital ID and the tracking of where you go and what you buy... and what you can buy... and you have the ultimate system of control.  

A new law and an elite exemption

Gen 47:22-26 Only the land of the priests he did not buy; for the priests had rations allotted to them by Pharaoh, and they ate their rations which Pharaoh gave them; therefore they did not sell their lands. (23) Then Joseph said to the people, "Indeed I have bought you and your land this day for Pharaoh. Look, here is seed for you, and you shall sow the land. (24) And it shall come to pass in the harvest that you shall give one-fifth to Pharaoh. Four-fifths shall be your own, as seed for the field and for your food, for those of your households and as food for your little ones." (25) So they said, "You have saved our lives; let us find favor in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh's servants." (26) And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt to this day, that Pharaoh should have one-fifth, except for the land of the priests only, which did not become Pharaoh's.

There are a few last points to note from this passage as we close out this study.

• Firstly, a priestly class was exempt - The 'priests' in Egypt were given special status by Pharaoh and were given the food to eat. Thus they did not have to sell their lands. And it is a little pointer to the fact that there will always be an elite that are exempt from the troubles. When I quoted earlier from the famine of the 3rd Seal of Revelation 6, you may remember that it said 'and do not damage the oil and the wine'. That is, there will still be the luxuries for the elite during this time, for those that control the food and have the power. 
• Secondly, a new tax was implemented - Having sold their property, the people did still get to work the land, but for someone else. They didn't own it anymore so they now had to pay a new tax of 20% of its produce back to Pharaoh. This is the first recorded tax system in scripture.
• Thirdly, the passage ends with the people owning nothing, yet seemingly happy. Why was that? Because they still had their lives. So they said, "You have saved our lives; let us find favor in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh's servants." Again, I am not saying that this was a bad system. As mentioned earlier, Joseph did this to save their lives and they were saved even in midst of the most extreme famine. The people lost everything but were still grateful to keep their life. But again, while Joseph was a godly leader, one will come that will be in the same position of power, and godly is not how you would describe him.    

Conclusion

So what have we seen? What is the order from prosperous living to owning nothing in the book of Genesis?

Stage

1. Famine causes the food to fail in the land (Gen 47:13)

2. The money then failed as food became scarce and prices increased (Gen 47:14-15)

3. Possessions were then lost as they were sold to survive (Gen 47:16-17)

4. The land was then sold and soon the people themselves became slaves to the state (Gen 47:18-20)

5. The people were then moved into cities to be managed more easily (Gen 47:21)

6. The people then work the land, though don't own it, and pay a tax to Pharaoh (Gen 47:22-24)

7. And the people are "happy" or at least grateful to still be alive (Gen 47:25)

So this has been a full on passage, especially when seen in the light of what is to come. Probably a lot of people would give financial advice right about now. There are obvious things like:

1. As much as possible, stay out of debt
2. Live within your means and try to purchase needs not wants
3. Diversify any savings and have physical assets and not just money in the bank that can be easily inflated away

But to be fair, financial advice is not my focus and never has been! While the Bible does have financial advice, its emphasis is on spiritual and eternal riches. And our hope should be on the heavenly city and eternal home to come. So here are a few things to note as we close this study lesson:

• Jesus was clear about where we should lay up treasures:
  Mat 6:19-21 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; (20) but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. (21) For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
• He also told us to watch our hearts when it comes to greed and possessions:
  Luke 12.15: “Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”
• James spoke about the loss of wealth in the last days:
  Jas 5:1-3 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! (2) Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. (3) Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days.
• Proverbs tells us that there is something far more important than wealth when judgment comes:
  Pro 11:4 Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death.
• The Lord through the Prophet Jeremiah told us what to ultimately put our hope and glory in:
  Jer 9:23-24 "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; (24) But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight," says the Lord.

And also always remember the promise of the Lord, for His true Church -  We don't know how many of the 'birth pains' we shall see, but we won't see His wrath and His promise for believers is this: Rev 3:10 Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.

And as things do become more difficult, the light and hope of heaven will grow all the stronger and more real. 

God Bless!

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FOOTNOTES