50 YEARS OF GREAT PLENTY IN EGYPT
Yoseph goes to help the Ishmaelites against their Enemies. Great Plenty prevails in Egypt as Yoseph predicted. Yoseph's Two Sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. Yoseph stores up Food throughout Egypt. That stored by the Egyptians is spoiled. The Famine prevails over all the Land and Yoseph sells corn to all the Egyptians and the surrounding Nations. Knowing that his Brethren will have to come to Egypt for Corn, he arranges to meet them when they come.
1 At that time the children of Tarshish came against the sons of Ishmael, and made war with them, and the children of Tarshish spoiled the Ishmaelites for a long time.
2 And the children of Ishmael were small in number in those days, and they could not prevail over the children of Tarshish, and they were sorely oppressed.
3 And the old men of the Ishmaelites sent a record to the king of Egypt, saying, Send I pray you unto your servants officers and hosts to help us to fight against the children of Tarshish, for we have been consuming away for a long time.
4 And Pharaoh sent Yoseph with the mighty men and host which were with him, and also his mighty men from the king's house.
5 And they went to the land of Havilah to the children of Ishmael, to assist them against the children of Tarshish, and the children of Ishmael fought with the children of Tarshish, and Yoseph smote the Tarshishites and he subdued all their land, and the children of Ishmael dwell therein unto this day.
6 And when the land of Tarshish was subdued, all the Tarshishites ran away, and came on the border of their brethren the children of Javan, and Yoseph with all his mighty men and host returned to Egypt, not one man of them missing.
7 And at the revolution of the year, in the second year of Yoseph's reigning over Egypt, YAHWEH gave great plenty throughout the land for seven years as Yoseph had spoken, for YAHWEH blessed all the produce of the earth in those days for seven years, and they ate and were greatly satisfied.
8 And Yoseph at that time had officers under him, and they collected all the food of the good years, and heaped corn year by year, and they placed it in the treasuries of Yoseph.
9 And at any time when they gathered the food Yoseph commanded that they should bring the corn in the ears, and also bring with it some of the soil of the field, that it should not spoil.
10 And Yoseph did according to this year by year, and he heaped up corn like the sand of the sea for abundance, for his stores were immense and could not be numbered for abundance.
11 And also all the inhabitants of Egypt gathered all sorts of food in their stores in great abundance during the seven good years, but they did not do unto it as Yoseph did.
12 And all the food which Yoseph and the Egyptians had gathered during the seven years of plenty, was secured for the land in stores for the seven years of famine, for the support of the whole land.
13 And the inhabitants of Egypt filled each man his store and his concealed place with corn, to be for support during the famine.
14 And Yoseph placed all the food that he had gathered in all the cities of Egypt, and he closed all the stores and placed sentinels over them.
15 And Yoseph's wife Osnath the daughter of Potiphera bare him two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, and Yoseph was thirty-four years old when he begat them.
16 And the lads grew up and they went in his ways and in his instructions, they did not deviate from the way which their father taught them, either to the right or left.
17 And YAHWEH was with the lads, and they grew up and had understanding and skill in all wisdom and in all the affairs of government, and all the king's officers and his great men of the inhabitants of Egypt exalted the lads, and they were brought up among the king's children.
18 And the seven years of plenty that were throughout the land were at an end, and the seven years of famine came after them as Yoseph had spoken, and the famine was throughout the land.
19 And all the people of Egypt saw that the famine had commenced in the land of Egypt, and all the people of Egypt opened their stores of corn for the famine prevailed over them.
20 And they found all the food that was in their stores, full of vermin and not fit to eat, and the famine prevailed throughout the land, and all the inhabitants of Egypt came and cried before Pharaoh, for the famine was heavy upon them.
21 And they said unto Pharaoh, Give food unto your servants, and wherefore shall we die through hunger before your eyes, even we and our little ones?
22 And Pharaoh answered them, saying, And wherefore do you cry unto me? did not Yoseph command that the corn should be laid up during the seven years of plenty for the years of famine? and wherefore did you not hearken to his voice?
23 And the people of Egypt answered the king, saying, As your soul lives, our lord, your servants have done all that Yoseph ordered, for your servants also gathered in all the produce of their fields during the seven years of plenty and laid it in the stores unto this day.
24 And when the famine prevailed over your servants we opened our stores, and behold all our produce was filled with vermin and was not fit for food.
25 And when the king heard all that had befallen the inhabitants of Egypt, the king was greatly afraid on account of the famine, and he was much terrified; and the king answered the people of Egypt, saying, Since all this has happened unto you, go unto Yoseph, do whatever he shall say unto you, transgress not his commands.
26 And all the people of Egypt went forth and came unto Yoseph, and said unto him, Give unto us food, and wherefore shall we die before you through hunger? for we gathered in our produce during the seven years as you did command, and we put it in store, and thus has it befallen us.
27 And when Yoseph heard all the words of the people of Egypt and what had befallen them, Yoseph opened all his stores of the produce and he sold it unto the people of Egypt.
28 And the famine prevailed throughout the land, and the famine was in all countries, but in the land of Egypt there was produce for sale.
29 And all the inhabitants of Egypt came unto Yoseph to buy corn, for the famine prevailed over them, and all their corn was spoiled, and Yoseph daily sold it to all the people of Egypt.
30 And all the inhabitants of the land of Canaan and the Philistines, and those beyond the Jordan, and the children of the east and all the cities of the lands far and nigh heard that there was corn in Egypt, and they all came to Egypt to buy corn, for the famine prevailed over them.
31 And Yoseph opened the stores of corn and placed officers over them, and they daily stood and sold to all that came.
32 And Yoseph knew that his brethren also would come to Egypt to buy corn, for the famine prevailed throughout the earth. And Yoseph commanded all his people that they should cause it to be proclaimed throughout the land of Egypt, saying,
33 It is the pleasure of the king, of his second and of their great men, that any person who wishes to buy corn in Egypt shall not send his servants to Egypt to purchase, but his sons, and also any Egyptian or Canaanite, who shall come from any of the stores from buying corn in Egypt, and shall go and sell it throughout the land, he shall die, for no one shall buy but for the support of his household.
34 And any man leading two or three beasts shall die, for a man shall only lead his own beast.
35 And Yoseph placed sentinels at the gates of Egypt, and commanded them, saying, Any person who may come to buy corn, suffer him not to enter until his name, and the name of his father, and the name of his father's father be written down, and whatever is written by day, send their names unto me in the evening that I may know their names.
36 And Yoseph placed officers throughout the land of Egypt, and he commanded them to do all these things.
37 And Yoseph did all these things, and made these statutes, in order that he might know when his brethren should come to Egypt to buy corn; and Yoseph's people caused it daily to be proclaimed in Egypt according to these words and statutes which Yoseph had commanded.
38 And all the inhabitants of the east and west country, and of all the earth, heard of the statutes and regulations which Yoseph had enacted in Egypt, and the inhabitants of the extreme parts of the earth came and they bought corn in Egypt day after day, and then went away.
39 And all the officers of Egypt did as Yoseph had commanded, and all that came to Egypt to buy corn, the gate keepers would write their names, and their fathers' names, and daily bring them in the evening before Yoseph.