And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, in exchange for the grain that they bought. And Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house.
The famine has taken every coin in Egypt and Canaan. All of it ends up in Joseph's hands, and from there in Pharaoh's house. Two questions shape the rest of the chapter: why does Joseph take everything, and who does he take it for?
The order of surrender
The money is only the first stage. Commentators trace how the people give up one thing after another until they have nothing left.
L. M. GrantThe famine hit Egypt and Canaan hard, just as Joseph had predicted. The people continued to buy food from Joseph as long as they had money (vv. 13–14). But they spent it all and still needed food. So Joseph told them to bring their livestock to trade for food. This lasted a year. Then the people came to Joseph again. They told him they had nothing left except their bodies and their lands. Now they ask Joseph to take their land and to make them Pharaoh's property. Are we not to learn from this that it is good for us to be brought down to nothing?
Claims no ruler has matched
The verse says Joseph gathered all the money. One writer shows how far that word "all" reaches, and how rare such a claim is in history.
Hamilton SmithSo everything passes under Joseph's absolute control — money, cattle, the land, and at last the people themselves. Pharaoh's words come true to the letter: "without your consent no one shall lift up hand or foot in all the land of Egypt" (Gen. 41:44). Joseph uses his power to bring all into subjection. No earthly king, before or since, has made such claims. Many a ruler has made crushing demands, but not one has ever dared to claim everything the way Joseph did. Other rulers who claimed much from their people could not make the claim stick, and some who tried stirred up rebellion and revolution. Joseph makes unheard-of claims, and he makes them good. Not one voice rises in rebellion.
The money goes to Pharaoh's house
Joseph could have kept the wealth. Instead the verse names where it went, and the chapter repeats that pattern.
Hamilton SmithA second great fact stands out: Joseph claims everything, and he claims it for Pharaoh. He gathers up all the money, and we read that he "brought the money into Pharaoh's house" (v. 14). The land comes under Joseph's control, and we read that he "bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh" (v. 20). Of the people too Joseph can say, "I have bought you this day and your land for Pharaoh." So Joseph uses his supreme power for Pharaoh's glory, not for his own advancement.
What it pictures
Many readers find Joseph's handling of Egypt harsh. Commentators note the difficulty and still see something beyond it.
F. B. HoleJoseph's action strikes us as harsh. Even so, we cannot help thinking it is a picture. It shows how fully he was "lord of all Egypt," and so a figure of Christ. The Lordship of Christ is absolute. If He is not Lord of all and of every detail, He is not Lord at all. As Lord He subdues everything to God and orders everything according to the Divine mind. A time will come "when all things are subjected to him" (1 Cor. 15:28), and as a result God will be all in all.
Subjection and blessing together
The stripping is not the end of the story. Joseph's power serves two ends at once.
Hamilton SmithFinally, a third striking fact stands out. On the one hand, Joseph uses his power to subdue everything for Pharaoh. On the other hand, he uses his supremacy over everything to bless the people. Pharaoh's glory is kept, and the people's blessing is secured — but only as they submit to Joseph without holding anything back.
Hunger that brings a person to Christ
One writer turns the scene on the reader. Hunger emptied Egypt's purses, and hunger of soul is what drives a person to Christ.
W. T. P. WolstonThere is nothing that brings a man down like hunger. Neither a man's pride nor his parentage can fill him in the day of hunger and need. The prodigal son would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods the pigs ate, but he could not. Nothing brings a man down like soul-hunger. It is a great thing when that hunger takes command — when a man feels he is a sinner, needs Christ, and must have Christ. Pharaoh sent the needy of his day to Joseph. They had to admit his importance, and from him they got what met their need, while Joseph acquired everything for his master.
Summary
- All given. Money first, then livestock, then land, then their own persons. The famine strips Egypt and Canaan stage by stage.
- All claimed. No ruler before or since has claimed everything as Joseph did — or made the claim good without one voice raised against him.
- All for the throne. The money goes into Pharaoh's house, the land is bought for Pharaoh, the people are bought for Pharaoh; Joseph keeps none of it for himself.
- All subdued to God. Commentators see a figure of Christ here. His lordship covers every detail, until all things are subjected to Him and God is all in all.
- All blessed. The same power that takes everything is also used to bless the people. Blessing comes only to those who submit without reserve, and hunger is what brings them there.