And the seven years of plenty that were in the land of Egypt were ended;
Genesis 41 ends at a turning point: the plenty Pharaoh dreamed of runs out on time, and the years of hunger begin. The rest of Joseph's story turns on two questions — who prepared, and what will the man in charge do now?
Pharaoh had dreamed the same message twice. One writer explains what the repeat meant.
Joseph explains that both dreams pointed to one event: seven years of plenty, followed by the same number of years of famine, worse than any before. Both were God's doing, for extraordinary ends. So was His making it all known to Pharaoh, which lay beyond what any man could know. The doubling of the dream showed not only that it was certain, but that it would come quickly. God does not deceive, and He is not mocked.
Good years feel permanent while they last. One writer applies the end of Egypt's plenty to the world at large.
It is when we face our need that we learn how truly nothing we are, and cry out to Him who then proves Himself the living God. But God's remedy is Christ alone. He has put all things into His hand, completely and without ever taking it back. He would have all men to be saved, but no other name is given by which we can be saved. What is true of one person is true of the world. The world at large will not turn to God in Christianity's years of plenty. So drought and famine come from the same hand that gave the blessing unrecognised.
Another writer brings this into the present day.
In this day of grace the world is passing through its "seven plentiful years," when the grace of God is handing out blessings by "handfuls." The people of the world may completely ignore the blessings that grace brings to their door, and go on their way with no thought for the future. It seems the men of Egypt made no use of the years of plenty to store up for the years of famine.
Egypt was not spared the famine. It was simply the one country that got ready for it.
The seven years of plenty come to an end, as God had warned through Joseph. The famine came, not only to Egypt, but to other countries also. But Egypt alone had prepared for the famine.
One writer boils Joseph's plan down to a single rule.
Joseph's advice is very simple. During the years of plenty, store up for the future. Yes — prepare for the future; that is the point.
The famine put Joseph in charge of the food. His brothers and the Egyptians who had wronged him now needed him to survive.
How will Joseph act in the years of famine? His brothers had thrown him into the pit; the Gentiles had thrown him into prison. Will Joseph seize the world's desperate need, and his brothers' need, as his chance to take revenge? Human nature might act that way, but grace takes another road. Joseph will use his place of supreme power to bless everyone. Yet while he shows grace he will uphold righteousness. So the Gentiles will be forced to cry out in need, and they must submit to Joseph before they receive the blessing.
While the storehouses filled, nobody cared about the man filling them. Hunger changed that.
During the days of plenty the world paid little attention to Joseph. We hear nothing of his brothers; they had no interest in him at all. But when the famine set in, need woke up… The need brings out a cry for bread, and the Gentiles have to learn, and his brothers discover, that no one can meet the need except the man they once despised and rejected.
Pharaoh sent the starving crowds to one man. One writer hears the gospel in that answer.
When the people cried to Pharaoh for help, his reply was simple: "Go to Joseph. What he says to you, do." This at once reminds us of the words spoken by the mother of our Lord at His first miracle: "Do whatever he tells you" (John 2:5). Does a sinner with a stricken conscience cry out today for salvation? The answer is three words: "Go to Jesus." All God's grace and generosity flows through Him.
- Warned — God doubled the dream to show it was certain and near. The plenty ended when He said it would.
- Wasted — Egypt's people enjoyed seven rich years and stored nothing. Only the man who believed the warning laid food up.
- Withdrawn — Comfort does not turn hearts to God, so the same hand that gave the abundance sends the famine.
- Wanted — Ignored while the barns were full, Joseph becomes the one name on every hungry lip once the food runs out.
- Welcomed — He could have used the crisis for revenge. Grace chose to bless everyone instead, and Pharaoh met the cry for bread with three words: go to Joseph.
and the seven years of the dearth began to come, according as Joseph had said. And there was dearth in all lands; but in all the land of Egypt there was bread.
The seven good years end, and the famine starts exactly on time, reaching far beyond Egypt. Only one country has bread, and only one man decides who gets it.
The famine did not arrive as a surprise. God gave the whole timetable in advance, and it left a foreign king in no doubt about who stood behind it.
When God sent drought into Egypt He laid His whole plan before Joseph in advance. This Joseph passed on to Pharaoh. There were to be seven years of plenty before the seven years of drought. This made the pagan king feel that the God of heaven was greater than all the gods of Egypt. They could not foretell what was coming, and they could not provide for it when it came (Gen. 41).
The shortage was worldwide; the supply was not. Egypt had prepared. One writer draws a line from that store of grain to Christ.
The seven years of plenty came to an end, as God had forewarned by Joseph. The famine came, not only to Egypt, but to other countries also. But Egypt alone had prepared for the famine (v. 54)… The Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world (1 John 4:14). Therefore He directs us all to the Lord Jesus as the One appointed to care for our needs. Joseph opened all the storehouses of Egypt (v. 56). In the same way, the Lord Jesus has opened the storehouses of heaven through His great sacrifice at Calvary, for the blessing of those who find themselves in spiritual poverty. There is one great difference: the Lord Jesus gives freely, "without money and without price."
The good years left Joseph forgotten. The famine changed that for two groups at once: the nations around, and his own brothers.
During the days of plenty the world paid little attention to Joseph. Of his brothers we hear nothing; they were completely indifferent to him. But when the famine set in, need woke up: "the land of Egypt was famished" (v. 55). Jacob and his sons faced starvation and death (Gen. 42:1-2). The need calls out a cry for bread. The Gentiles have to learn it, and the brothers discover it: no one can meet the need except the one they once scorned and rejected.
The same lesson reaches beyond grain. One writer traces both the plenty and the famine to the same hand.
So when God's judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. Face to face with our need, we learn that we are nothing. Then we cry out to Him, and He proves Himself the living God. But God's remedy is Christ alone. He has put all things in His hand, completely and with no going back… In the plentiful times of Christianity the world at large will not turn to God. So drought and famine come from the same hand that gave the blessing, though no one knew it.
Famine put absolute power in the hands of a man who had been badly wronged. The question is what he would do with it.
How will Joseph act in the years of famine? His brothers had put him in the pit, the Gentiles had thrown him into prison. Will Joseph use the world's desperation and his brothers' need as his chance for revenge? Nature might act that way, but grace will take another road. Joseph will use his place of supremacy and power for universal blessing. But while showing grace he will maintain righteousness. So a cry of need will be forced out of the Gentiles, and they must submit to Joseph before they receive the blessing.
The famine years also point forward. One writer sees in them a trial the world has not yet faced.
Pharaoh's dream foretold seven years of plenty, followed by seven years of famine that will swallow them up. Even now the world is enjoying its years of plenty, and it hardly believes the future plainly foretold for it. Still, the time of famine is not far off. It will show what He can supply. He will then be seen as the only one able to meet its terrible demands.
- Warned. God told Joseph the famine in advance; Egypt's wise men could neither predict it nor prepare for it.
- Stored. Egypt had bread in the famine for one reason: Joseph filled the stores in the good years, before anyone felt hungry.
- Ignored. While the plenty lasted, neither the nations nor Joseph's own brothers gave him a thought.
- Starved. Need is what taught them: face to face with our own nothingness we cry out, and God's remedy is Christ alone.
- Supplied. The man with every reason for revenge used his power to bless instead. But blessing came only to those who came and submitted.
And all the land of Egypt suffered from the dearth. And the people cried to Pharaoh for bread; and Pharaoh said to all the Egyptians, Go to Joseph what he says to you, that do.
Egypt's storehouses were full. But Pharaoh did not hand out grain at the palace door. When the people cried to him, he sent them all to one man. So a national food crisis becomes a personal question: who do you go to for bread?
For seven years nobody needed Joseph. One writer follows what hunger changed — for Egypt, and for the brothers who sold him.
During the days of plenty the world paid little heed to Joseph. Of his brothers we hear nothing; they were completely indifferent to him. When, however, the shortage set in, need is awakened. "All the land of Egypt was famished," and Jacob and his sons face starvation and death. The need calls out a cry for bread. The Gentiles have to learn it, and the brothers discover it: no one can meet the need except the one they once scorned and rejected.
One writer turns that on the reader: hunger, not comfort, is what sends a person to Christ.
Perhaps, my dear friends, you have held out against the famine. Do you know what brought the prodigal son back to his father in Luke 15? There was a famine. Do you know what brought me to Christ forty-three years ago? Famine in my heart. You have heard the gospel dozens of times. You say, I am not going to have Christ just now. But already you have begun to find that the world does not satisfy you. Yes, you have an empty heart.
Pharaoh does not describe a policy. He names a man, and tells the whole country to do what that man says. Commentators hear God's own answer to a hungry conscience in it.
The closing verses of Genesis 41 record the complete fulfilment of Pharaoh's dream. The famine that resulted was unusually severe, covering the whole inhabited earth. When the people cried to Pharaoh for relief, his reply was simple: "Go to Joseph. What he says to you, do." This at once reminds us of the words the mother of our Lord spoke at His first miracle: "Do whatever he tells you" (John 2:5). Does a conscience-stricken sinner cry out today for salvation? The answer in three words is, "Go to Jesus." All God's grace and generosity flows through Him.
The people took their hunger to the throne, not to Joseph. One writer says people still treat Christ that way.
"Go to Joseph," said Pharaoh, and that is what God is saying to you from glory — "Go to Jesus. Bow to Jesus." I think I can see them all ignoring Joseph and going to Pharaoh. People now ignore Jesus in the same way, yet think they may go to God direct. You must bow. He is given a name above every name, and God has declared that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow.
Another writer comes at the same point from God's side.
Face to face with our need, we learn our true nothingness. We cry out to Him, and He proves Himself the living God. But God's remedy is Christ alone. He has put all things in His hand, absolutely and without changing His mind. He would have all men to be saved, but there is no other name given by which we can be saved.
Joseph unlocked the stores he had spent seven years filling. One writer draws the parallel to Christ, then names the one great contrast.
Joseph opened all the storehouses of Egypt. In the same way the Lord Jesus has opened the storehouses of heaven, through His great sacrifice of Calvary, to bless those who find themselves reduced to spiritual poverty. There is one great contrast. The Lord Jesus gives free of charge, "without money and without price." People from all countries came to Egypt to buy food. The grace of God in Christ is available for all the nations today. The whole world is in a state of spiritual famine.
Pharaoh points the nation to Joseph; Joseph keeps pointing the nation back to Pharaoh. One writer sees the arrangement stretching far past Egypt.
Though exalted by Pharaoh, he hides himself, as it were, and binds the people in lasting obligation to the king. Pharaoh says, "Go to Joseph," and Joseph, in effect, says, "all you have and all you are belong to Pharaoh." This is a delight to see. It leads the soul on to that glorious time when the Son of Man will take the reins of government into His own hand, by divine appointment, and rule over the whole redeemed creation.
- Famine — plenty left people indifferent to Joseph; hunger produced the cry. Emptiness is what drives anyone to seek supply.
- Cry — the people appealed to the throne, and the throne redirected them. Going "direct" was the one thing Pharaoh would not allow.
- One man — all the grain sat in one pair of hands. Commentators read that as God putting all things in Christ's hand, with no other name that saves.
- Obey — the order was not only to go, but to do what he said, echoed in "Do whatever he tells you."
- World — Egypt, the nations around it, and the brothers who sold him all came to the same door. Joseph turned every benefit back to his king.
And the famine was on all the earth. And Joseph opened every place in which there was [provision], and sold grain to the Egyptians; and the famine was grievous in the land of Egypt.
Seven years of plenty have ended. The famine Joseph predicted now reaches far past Egypt's borders, and the storehouses he filled stand open. What he does with that power, and what he pictures, is the question.
The good years and the hungry years each proved that Joseph's reading of the dream came from God. One writer treats them as two separate seals on the same prophecy.
Great abundance leads most people into waste and extravagance. But he knew in Whom he believed. He took up wisely the duty that fell on him more than on anyone else in Egypt, and he provided for the years of extreme want. So everyone living on that soil was to benefit in the highest degree, from the sovereign down to every subject, and far beyond that land. The huge surplus set the first seal on the prophecy God gave and explained. The famine set the second seal. That one struck harder, because many had barely believed a change so damaging to comfort and more and more dangerous to life.
Joseph now controls the region's food. The men who put him in a pit and a prison are inside that region.
His brothers had put him in the pit; the Gentiles had thrown him into prison. Will Joseph seize the moment of the world's extremity and his brothers' need, and use his power to take revenge? Nature might act that way, but grace will take another path. Joseph will use his place of supremacy and power for universal blessing. But while showing grace he will still maintain righteousness. So need will wring a cry from the Gentiles, and they must submit themselves to Joseph before they receive the blessing.
During the good years nobody needed him. Hunger changed that, for the Gentiles and for his own family alike.
During the days of plenty the world paid little attention to Joseph. Of his brothers we hear nothing; they were completely indifferent to him. When the shortage set in, need awoke... The need calls out a cry for bread. The Gentiles have to learn, and the brothers discover, that no one can meet the need except the one they once scorned and rejected... The once rejected but now exalted man is the only resource, for the Gentile nations as much as for Jacob and his sons.
The verse says Joseph opened the stores and sold the grain. One writer draws the line from that act to Christ, and marks where the two part ways.
Joseph opened all the storehouses of Egypt (v. 56). In the same way the Lord Jesus has opened the storehouses of heaven, through His great sacrifice at Calvary, for the blessing of those who have found themselves reduced to spiritual poverty. There is one great contrast: the Lord Jesus gives freely, "without money and without price." People from all countries came to Egypt to buy food (v. 57). The grace of God in Christ is available for all the nations today, while the whole world lies in spiritual famine.
Commentators differ on where this scene points. Some apply it to the present offer of the gospel, as above. Others read the worldwide famine as a picture of a worldwide trial still to come.
The famine foretold by Joseph was not limited to the land of Egypt... This famine, we have seen, is a picture of "the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth" (Rev. 3:10)... Joseph opened all the storehouses to these starving peoples, just as Christ will open to the nations outside the Christian world the rich, full stores of the grace of God. Joseph's brothers passed through painful trials and experiences before he made himself known to them. All of that foreshadows the sorrows and repentance of the Jewish remnant before they accept Christ in the last days.
The same lesson presses on people who already believe. Bread existed in Egypt, but only for those who dealt with the man who held it.
In Joseph's day, only those who dealt with Joseph in their need had bread. It is the same now. Christ is the One who sustains our life. Many are faint, confused and unsure, because they do not go to Him to feed on His truth. In the old days the people came to Joseph and said, "Give us bread." In the same way, all believers have to learn that there is famine everywhere apart from the blessing of the One greater than Joseph.
- Word proved. The plenty sealed Joseph's prophecy once. The famine sealed it again, and harder.
- Stores filled. Wise use of the good years, not the emergency itself, is what put bread in the storehouses.
- Need felt. Plenty left the world indifferent to Joseph. Hunger made the rejected man the only resource, for Gentile and brother alike.
- Stores opened. Christ has opened heaven's stores through the cross. He gives without money and without price.
- Bread now. There is famine everywhere apart from the One greater than Joseph. Believers grow faint when they do not come to Him for food.
And all countries came into Egypt to Joseph, to buy [grain], because the famine was grievous on the whole earth.
Seven years of plenty end, and the famine spreads far past Egypt's borders. Commentators ask why God let hunger reach every land, and who this ruler with the grain points to.
Through the good years nobody needed Joseph. The famine changed that — for foreigners and for his own family alike.
During the days of plenty the world paid little heed to Joseph. Of his brothers we hear nothing, they were completely indifferent to him. When, however, the shortage set in, need is awakened... The need calls out a cry for bread. The Gentiles have to learn, and the brothers discover, that no one can meet the need except the one they once scorned and rejected. The Gentiles must "go to Joseph," and the brothers must bow before him with their faces to the ground. The once rejected but now exalted man is alone the resource, both for Gentile nations and for Jacob and his sons.
The world could come to Egypt only because one man had saved through the good years. His provision reached far beyond his own country.
The details that follow reveal the admirable administration of Joseph. For most people, huge plenty leads to reckless spending and waste. But he knew in Whom he believed. He wisely took up the duty that fell on him more than on anyone else in Egypt, and he provided for the years of extreme want. So everyone living on the land was to benefit to the highest degree, from the king down to every subject — and far beyond that land as well.
The hunger that pushed every nation toward Egypt was not an accident of weather. God sent it, and feeding hungry people was not His main aim.
Egypt is prepared for them; then God sends famine, and drives them there. Truly His hand is seen at every step. God could have fed them in the land despite the famine, as He did with both Abraham and Isaac. But principles had to be learned there which could be learned nowhere else... To provide food was not the main object. It was a smaller purpose serving a greater one: that in Joseph there might be a picture of one greater than himself, who suffered from a deeper hatred, and who is a greater Deliverer from a worse famine.
Hungry Egyptians appealed to Pharaoh, and Pharaoh sent them to Joseph. One writer sees the same pattern in the way God's blessing reaches people now.
As in the famine in Egypt all who came to Pharaoh were told to "Go to Joseph," so now all who come to God must come through the Lord Jesus... He has fought the fight, He has gained the victory, He has glorified God. Now He is raised and glorified. As the result of Christ's victory, God gives every blessing He has for man through Christ as Lord.
The comparison holds at every point but one — the price. The nations paid; the greater than Joseph does not charge.
Joseph opened all the storehouses of Egypt. In the same way, the Lord Jesus has opened the storehouses of heaven through His great sacrifice at Calvary, to bless those who have found themselves reduced to spiritual poverty. One great contrast, however, is that the Lord Jesus gives freely, "without money and without price." People from all countries came to Egypt to buy food (v. 57). The grace of God in Christ is available for all the nations today, at a time when the whole world is in a state of spiritual famine.
Commentators differ on where the picture lands. Grant applies it to the world's hunger today. Another writer reads the famine as a preview of a coming time of trial.
This famine, we have seen, is a picture of "the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth" (Rev. 3:10)... The nations flocking to Joseph to buy grain picture the great gospel movement among the nations that do not know God, after the removal of the Church. Joseph opened all the storehouses to these starving peoples. In the same way, Christ will open the rich, full stores of the grace of God to the nations outside of Christendom.
- Sent. The famine reached every land by God's hand, not by chance; His purpose ran deeper than feeding people.
- Stored. One man believed the warning and saved through the good years, so the benefit ran far beyond his own country.
- Scorned. In plenty the world ignored him. In want he was the only resource — for foreigners and for the brothers who rejected him.
- Sent onward. Pharaoh's answer to every plea was "Go to Joseph." All who come to God now come through the Lord Jesus, and God gives every blessing through Him.
- Free. The nations paid for their grain. Christ opens His storehouses "without money and without price" to a world in spiritual famine.