创世记 47
Chinese New Version (Simplified)
约瑟的兄弟进见法老
47 约瑟进去禀告法老，说：“我的父亲和兄弟们，带着他们的牛羊和他们所有的一切，都从迦南地来了，现在就在歌珊地。” 2 约瑟从他所有的兄弟当中，挑选了五个人，把他们带到法老面前。 3 法老问约瑟的兄弟们说：“你们是作甚么的？”他们回答法老：“仆人们是牧羊人，我们和我们的祖先都是一样。” 4 他们又对法老说：“我们来是要在这地寄居，因为迦南地的饥荒严重，你仆人们的羊群没有草吃，所以，现在求你容许你仆人住在歌珊地。” 5 法老对约瑟说：“你的父亲和兄弟们到你这里来了； 6 埃及地都在你面前，你只管叫你的父亲和兄弟们住在这地最好的地方，他们可以住在歌珊地。你如果知道他们中间有能干的人，可以派他们看管我的牲畜。”
雅各进见法老
7 约瑟把他父亲雅各带到法老面前，雅各就给法老祝福。 8 法老问雅各：“你有多大年纪了？” 9 雅各回答法老：“我寄居在世的年日是一百三十岁。我一生的年日又少又苦，不及我祖先寄居在世的年日。” 10 雅各又给法老祝福，然后离开法老出去了。 11 约瑟照着法老的吩咐安置他的父亲和兄弟们，把兰塞地，就是埃及地最好的地方，给他们作产业。 12 约瑟照着孩子的数目，用粮食供养他的父亲、兄弟们，以及父亲的家人。
饥荒
13 那时，遍地都没有粮食，因为饥荒非常严重。埃及地和迦南地的人，因为饥荒的缘故都饿昏了。 14 约瑟收集了埃及地和迦南地所有的银子，就是众人买粮的银子；约瑟就把那些银子交到法老的王宫去。 15 埃及地和迦南地的银子都用尽了，埃及众人就来到约瑟那里，说：“银子已用完了。求你给我们粮食吧，我们为甚么要饿死在你面前呢？” 16 约瑟回答：“如果银子用完了，可以把你们的牲畜给我，我就把粮食给你们，交换你们的牲畜。” 17 于是，他们把牲畜带到约瑟那里，约瑟就把粮食给他们，交换他们的马匹、羊群、牛群和驴。那一年，约瑟就用粮食交换他们所有的牲畜，来养活他们。 18 那一年过后，第二年他们又来到约瑟那里，对他说：“我们不向我主隐瞒，我们的银子都用尽了，牲畜也归了我主；在我主面前，除了我们的身体和田地以外，甚么也没有剩下了。 19 为甚么我们和我们的田地要在你面前消灭呢？求你用粮食买我们和我们的田地，我们和田地就必为法老效劳了。又求你给我们谷种，使我们可以活着，不至死亡，田地也不至荒芜。”
20 于是，约瑟为法老买了埃及所有的田地，因为埃及人遭遇了严重的饥荒，各人都卖了自己的田地。这样，那地就都归法老所有。 21 至于人民，约瑟使他们作奴仆（按照《马索拉文本》，“使他们作奴仆”作“把他们迁到城市里去”；现参照其他抄本及古译本翻译），从埃及境内的一端，直到另一端。 22 只有祭司的田地，约瑟没有买，因为祭司有从法老所得的粮饷；他们可以吃法老所给的粮饷，所以没有卖自己的田地。 23 约瑟对人民说：“看哪，我今日为法老买了你们和你们的田地。这里有谷种给你们，你们可以种地。 24 到了收割的时候，你们要把五分之一给法老，其余四分可以归你们自己，作田里的种子，又作你们以及你们家人和孩子的食物。” 25 他们说：“你救了我们；愿我们在我主面前得蒙喜悦，我们就作法老的奴仆。” 26 于是，约瑟为埃及的田地立了一个法例，直到今日还有效，就是五分之一归给法老；只有祭司的田地不归给法老。
雅各向约瑟最后的要求
27 以色列人住在埃及国的歌珊地，他们在那里置业繁衍，人数非常众多。 28 雅各在埃及地住了十七年；他一生的寿数是一百四十七岁。 29 以色列的死期快到了，就把他儿子约瑟叫了来，对他说：“如果我在你面前蒙你喜悦，请你把手放在我的大腿底下起誓，要以慈爱和诚实对待我，不要把我埋葬在埃及。 30 我与我的祖先同睡的时候，你要把我从埃及带出去，埋葬在他们的墓地里。”约瑟说：“我必照着你的话去作。” 31 雅各说：“你要向我起誓。”约瑟就向他起了誓，于是以色列靠着床头（“靠着床头”有古译本作“倚着杖头”〔参来11:21〕）敬拜 神。
Genesis 47
Tree of Life Version
Jacob Blesses Pharaoh
47 Then Joseph came and informed Pharaoh, “My father and my brothers and their flocks and their cattle and everything that belongs to them have come from the land of Canaan, and behold, they are in the land of Goshen.”
2 From among his brothers he took five men and presented them before Pharaoh. 3 Pharaoh said to his brothers, “What is your occupation?”
So they said to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds, both we and our fathers.” 4 Then they said to Pharaoh, “We came to dwell temporarily in the land, since there is no pasture for the flocks that belong to your servants, for the famine is severe in the land of Canaan. So now, please let your servants live in the land of Goshen.”
5 Pharaoh said to Joseph saying, “Your father and your brothers came to you. 6 The land of Egypt is before you—settle your father and your brothers in the best part of the land. Let them live in the land of Goshen. If you know of any capable men among them, make them overseers of the livestock—over those that are mine.”
7 Then Joseph brought his father Jacob and presented him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. 8 Pharaoh asked Jacob, “How many days are the years of your life?”
9 Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The days of the years of my sojourn are 130 years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life. Moreover, the days of the years of my life have not attained the days of the years of the lives of my fathers, in the days of their sojourn.”
10 And Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from Pharaoh’s presence. 11 Joseph settled his father and his brothers and gave them property in the land of Egypt, in the best part of the land, in the land of Rameses, just as Pharaoh commanded. 12 And Joseph supported his father and his brothers and his father’s entire household with food for the mouths of the little ones.
Joseph’s Leadership in the Famine
13 Now there was no food in all the land because the famine was very severe. Both the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan languished because of the famine. 14 Joseph collected all the money that could be found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan for the grain that they bought, and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s house. 15 Then the money of the land of Egypt and of the land of Canaan ran out and all of Egypt came to Joseph saying, “Give us food. Why should we die in front of you because the money is gone?”
16 Joseph said, “Give your livestock and I’ll give it to you for your livestock, if the money is gone.” 17 So they brought their livestock to Joseph and Joseph gave them food in exchange for horses, for flocks of sheep, for herds of cattle and for donkeys. He provided them with food in exchange for all their livestock that year. 18 When that year came to an end, they came to him in the second year and said to him, “We won’t hide from my lord that the money has run out and the livestock and the domestic animals are my lord’s. There is nothing left in my lord’s sight except our bodies and our land. 19 Why should we die before your eyes—both we and our land? Buy us and our land for food—we and our land will become Pharaoh’s slaves. Provide seed so that we may live and not die, and the land won’t be deserted.”
20 So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh because the Egyptians, each one, sold his field, for the famine overcame them. Thus the land became Pharaoh’s. 21 He made the people slaves from one end of Egypt’s border to the other. 22 Only he did not buy the land belonging to the priests, because the priests had an allotment from Pharaoh, and they ate their allotment that Pharaoh gave them. Therefore they did not sell their land.
23 Then Joseph said to the people, “Behold, I have bought you and your land today for Pharaoh. Here is seed for you, so that you can sow the land. 24 During the harvest you must give a fifth part to Pharaoh and four-fifths will be for you, for seed for the field and for your food, and for those in your houses, and for food for your little ones.”
25 “You’ve saved our lives,” they said. “We find favor in the eyes of my lord, and we’ll be Pharaoh’s slaves.” 26 So Joseph set it as a statute until this very day concerning the land of Egypt: a fifth-part goes to Pharaoh. Only the priests’ land did not become Pharaoh’s.
27 Meanwhile, Israel settled in the land of Egypt in the land of Goshen, acquired property in it, and were fruitful and multiplied greatly.
Parashat Vayechi
Joseph’s Promise to Jacob
28 Now Jacob lived in the land of Egypt for 17 years, so the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were 147 years. 29 As the time of Israel’s death drew near, he called for his son Joseph and said to him, “If I have found favor in your eyes, please put your hand under my thigh and show me faithful kindness. Please do not bury me in Egypt. 30 When I lie down with my fathers, you must carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place.”
So he said, “I myself will do according to your word.”
31 “Swear to me,” he said. So he swore to him. Then Israel bowed down in worship on the head of his staff.[a]
Footnotes
- Genesis 47:31 Or, at the head of his bed.
Genesis 47
New English Translation
Joseph’s Wise Administration
47 Joseph went and told Pharaoh, “My father, my brothers, their flocks and herds, and all that they own have arrived from the land of Canaan. They are now[a] in the land of Goshen.” 2 He took five of his brothers and introduced them to Pharaoh.[b]
3 Pharaoh said to Joseph’s[c] brothers, “What is your occupation?” They said to Pharaoh, “Your servants take care of flocks, just as our ancestors did.”[d] 4 Then they said to Pharaoh, “We have come to live as temporary residents[e] in the land. There is no[f] pasture for your servants’ flocks because the famine is severe in the land of Canaan. So now, please let your servants live in the land of Goshen.”
5 Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 6 The land of Egypt is before you; settle your father and your brothers in the best region of the land. They may live in the land of Goshen. If you know of any highly capable men[g] among them, put them in charge[h] of my livestock.”
7 Then Joseph brought in his father Jacob and presented him[i] before Pharaoh. Jacob blessed[j] Pharaoh. 8 Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How long have you lived?”[k] 9 Jacob said to Pharaoh, “All[l] the years of my travels[m] are 130. All[n] the years of my life have been few and painful;[o] the years of my travels are not as long as those of my ancestors.”[p] 10 Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from his presence.[q]
11 So Joseph settled his father and his brothers. He gave them territory[r] in the land of Egypt, in the best region of the land, the land of Rameses,[s] just as Pharaoh had commanded. 12 Joseph also provided food for his father, his brothers, and all his father’s household, according to the number of their little children.
13 But there was no food in all the land because the famine was very severe; the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan wasted away[t] because of the famine. 14 Joseph collected all the money that could be found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan as payment[u] for the grain they were buying. Then Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s palace.[v] 15 When the money from the lands of Egypt and Canaan was used up, all the Egyptians[w] came to Joseph and said, “Give us food! Why should we die[x] before your very eyes because our money has run out?”
16 Then Joseph said, “If your money is gone, bring your livestock, and I will give you food[y] in exchange for[z] your livestock.” 17 So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them food in exchange for their horses, the livestock of their flocks and herds, and their donkeys.[aa] He got them through that year by giving them food in exchange for all their livestock.
18 When that year was over, they came to him the next year and said to him, “We cannot hide from our[ab] lord that the money is used up and the livestock and the animals belong to our lord. Nothing remains before our lord except our bodies and our land. 19 Why should we die before your very eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land in exchange for food, and we, with our land, will become[ac] Pharaoh’s slaves.[ad] Give us seed that we may live[ae] and not die. Then the land will not become desolate.”[af]
20 So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh. Each[ag] of the Egyptians sold his field, for the famine was severe.[ah] So the land became Pharaoh’s. 21 Joseph[ai] made all the people slaves[aj] from one end of Egypt’s border to the other end of it. 22 But he did not purchase the land of the priests because the priests had an allotment from Pharaoh and they ate from their allotment that Pharaoh gave them. That is why they did not sell their land.
23 Joseph said to the people, “Since I have bought you and your land today for Pharaoh, here is seed for you. Cultivate[ak] the land. 24 When the crop comes in, give[al] one-fifth of it to Pharaoh. The remaining four-fifths will be yours for seed for the fields and for you to eat, including those in your households and your little children.” 25 They replied, “You have saved our lives! You are showing us favor,[am] and we will be Pharaoh’s slaves.”[an]
26 So Joseph made it a statute,[ao] which is in effect[ap] to this day throughout the land of Egypt: One-fifth belongs to Pharaoh. Only the land of the priests did not become Pharaoh’s.
27 Israel settled in the land of Egypt, in the land of Goshen, and they owned land there. They were fruitful and increased rapidly in number.
28 Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years; the years[aq] of Jacob’s life were 147 in all. 29 The time[ar] for Israel to die approached, so he called for his son Joseph and said to him, “If now I have found favor in your sight, put your hand under my thigh[as] and show me kindness and faithfulness.[at] Do not bury me in Egypt, 30 but when I rest[au] with my fathers, carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place.” Joseph[av] said, “I will do as you say.”
31 Jacob[aw] said, “Swear to me that you will do so.”[ax] So Joseph[ay] gave him his word.[az] Then Israel bowed down[ba] at the head of his bed.[bb]
Footnotes
- Genesis 47:1 tn Heb “Look they [are] in the land of Goshen.” Joseph draws attention to the fact of their presence in Goshen.
- Genesis 47:2 tn Heb “and from the whole of his brothers he took five men and presented them before Pharaoh.”
- Genesis 47:3 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 47:3 tn Heb “both we and our fathers.”
- Genesis 47:4 tn Heb “to sojourn.”
- Genesis 47:4 tn Heb “for there is no.” The Hebrew uses a causal particle to connect what follows with what precedes. The translation divides the statement into two sentences for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 47:6 tn Heb “men of skill.”
- Genesis 47:6 tn Heb “make them rulers.”sn Put them in charge of my livestock. Pharaoh is, in effect, offering Joseph’s brothers jobs as royal keepers of livestock, a position mentioned often in Egyptian inscriptions, because the Pharaohs owned huge herds of cattle.
- Genesis 47:7 tn Heb “caused him to stand.”
- Genesis 47:7 sn The precise meaning of the Hebrew verb translated “blessed” is difficult in this passage, because the content of Jacob’s blessing is not given. The expression could simply mean that he greeted Pharaoh, but that seems insufficient in this setting. Jacob probably praised Pharaoh, for the verb is used this way for praising God. It is also possible that he pronounced a formal prayer of blessing, asking God to reward Pharaoh for his kindness.
- Genesis 47:8 tn Heb “How many are the days of the years of your life?”
- Genesis 47:9 tn Heb “the days of.”
- Genesis 47:9 tn Heb “sojournings.” Jacob uses a term that depicts him as one who has lived an unsettled life, temporarily residing in many different places.
- Genesis 47:9 tn Heb “the days of.”
- Genesis 47:9 tn The Hebrew word רַע (raʿ) can sometimes mean “evil,” but that would give the wrong connotation here, where it refers to pain, difficulty, and sorrow. Jacob is thinking back through all the troubles he had to endure to get to this point.
- Genesis 47:9 tn Heb “and they have not reached the days of the years of my fathers in the days of their sojournings.”
- Genesis 47:10 tn Heb “from before Pharaoh.”
- Genesis 47:11 tn Heb “a possession,” or “a holding.” Joseph gave them a plot of land with rights of ownership in the land of Goshen.
- Genesis 47:11 sn The land of Rameses is another designation for the region of Goshen. It is named Rameses because of a city in that region (Exod 1:11; 12:37). The use of this name may represent a modernization of the text for the understanding of the intended readers, substituting a later name for an earlier one. Alternatively, there may have been an earlier Rameses for which the region was named.
- Genesis 47:13 tn The verb לַהַה (lahah, = לָאָה, laʾah) means “to faint, to languish”; it figuratively describes the land as wasting away, drooping, being worn out.
- Genesis 47:14 tn Or “in exchange.” On the use of the preposition here see BDB 90 s.v. בְּ.
- Genesis 47:14 tn Heb “house.”
- Genesis 47:15 tn Heb “all Egypt.” The expression is a metonymy and refers to all the people of Egypt.
- Genesis 47:15 tn The imperfect verbal form has a deliberative force here.
- Genesis 47:16 tn The word “food” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 47:16 tn On the use of the preposition here see BDB 90 s.v. בְּ.
- Genesis 47:17 tn The definite article is translated here as a possessive pronoun.
- Genesis 47:18 tn Heb “my.” The expression “my lord” occurs twice more in this verse.
- Genesis 47:19 tn After the imperative, the prefixed verbal form with vav here indicates consequence.
- Genesis 47:19 sn Pharaoh’s slaves. The idea of slavery is not attractive to the modern mind, but in the ancient world it was the primary way of dealing with the poor and destitute. If the people became slaves of Pharaoh, it was Pharaoh’s responsibility to feed them and care for them. It was the best way for them to survive the famine.
- Genesis 47:19 tn After the imperative, the prefixed verbal form with vav here indicates purpose or result.
- Genesis 47:19 tn The disjunctive clause structure (vav plus subject plus negated verb) highlights the statement and brings their argument to a conclusion.
- Genesis 47:20 tn The Hebrew text connects this clause with the preceding one with a causal particle (כִּי, ki). The translation divides the clauses into two sentences for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 47:20 tn The Hebrew text adds “upon them.” This has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 47:21 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 47:21 tc The MT reads “and the people he removed to the cities,” which does not make a lot of sense in this context. Smr and the LXX read “he enslaved them as slaves.”
- Genesis 47:23 tn The perfect verbal form with the vav consecutive is equivalent to a command here.
- Genesis 47:24 tn The perfect form with the vav (ו) consecutive is equivalent to an imperfect of instruction here.
- Genesis 47:25 tn Heb “we find favor in the eyes of my lord.” Some interpret this as a request, “may we find favor in the eyes of my lord.”
- Genesis 47:25 sn Slaves. See the note on this word in v. 21.
- Genesis 47:26 tn On the term translated “statute” see P. Victor, “A Note on Hoq in the Old Testament,” VT 16 (1966): 358-61.
- Genesis 47:26 tn The words “which is in effect” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Genesis 47:28 tn Heb “the days of the years.”
- Genesis 47:29 tn Heb “days.”
- Genesis 47:29 sn On the expression put your hand under my thigh see Gen 24:2.
- Genesis 47:29 tn Or “deal with me in faithful love.”
- Genesis 47:30 tn Heb “lie down.” Here the expression “lie down” refers to death.
- Genesis 47:30 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 47:31 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 47:31 tn Heb “swear on oath to me.” The words “that you will do so” have been supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 47:31 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Genesis 47:31 tn Heb “swore on oath to him.”
- Genesis 47:31 sn The Hebrew verb normally means “bow down,” especially in worship or prayer. Here it might simply mean “bend low,” perhaps from weakness or approaching death. The narrative is ambiguous at this point and remains open to all these interpretations.
- Genesis 47:31 tc The MT reads מִטָּה (mittah, “bed, couch”). The LXX reads the word as מַטֶּה (matteh, “staff, rod”) and interprets this to mean that Jacob bowed down in worship while leaning on the top of his staff. The LXX reading was used in turn by the writer of the Letter to the Hebrews (Heb 11:21).
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