So when the famine had spread over all the land, Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold to the Egyptians, for the famine was severe 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 Famine Confirms the Word
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.
William KellyGreat 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.
Power in the Hands of the Man They Wronged
Joseph now controls the region's food. The men who put him in a pit and a prison are inside that region.
Hamilton SmithHis 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.
Hunger Makes the Ignored Man Necessary
During the good years nobody needed him. Hunger changed that, for the Gentiles and for his own family alike.
Hamilton SmithDuring 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 Opened Storehouses
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.
L. M. GrantJoseph 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.
A Picture of Days Still Ahead
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.
C. KnappThe 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.
Where Bread Is Found Now
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.
The Christian's FriendIn 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.
Summary
- 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.