Joseph presents his father and five of his brothers before Pharaoh, 1-10. He gives them habitation and maintenance, 11, 12. He gets the Egyptians' money, 13-16; their cattle, 16, 17; and their lands, except the priests', for Pharaoh, 18-22. He restores the land for a fifth, 23-26. Jacob's age, 28. He swears Joseph to bury him with his fathers, 29-31.
1 Then Joseph came and told Pharaoh, and said, "My father and my brothers, their flocks, their herds, and all that they have, have come from the land of Canaan, and behold, they are in the land of Goshen." 2 And he took some of his brothers, even five men, and presented them to Pharaoh. 3 And Pharaoh said to his brothers, "What is your occupation?" And they said to Pharaoh, "Your servants are shepherds—both we and also our fathers." 4 They said moreover to Pharaoh, "We have come to sojourn in the land, for your servants have no pasture for their flocks, for the famine is severe in the land of Canaan. Now therefore, we pray you, let your servants dwell in the land of Goshen." 5 And Pharaoh spoke to Joseph, saying, "Your father and your brothers have come to you. 6 The land of Egypt is before you. In the best of the land make your father and brothers to dwell. In the land of Goshen let them dwell. And if you know any able men among them, then make them rulers over my cattle."
7 And Joseph brought in Jacob his father and set him before Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. 8 And Pharaoh said to Jacob, "How old are you?" 9 And Jacob said to Pharaoh, "The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, nor have they attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage." 10 And Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from before Pharaoh. 11 And Joseph placed his father and his brothers and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. 12 And Joseph nourished his father, his brothers, and all his father's household with bread, according to their families.
13 And there was no bread in all the land, for the famine was very distressing so that the land of Egypt and all the land of Canaan fainted by reason of the famine. 14 And Joseph gathered all the money that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan for the grain which they bought. And Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house. 15 And when money failed in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph and said, "Give us bread. For why should we die in your presence? For the money fails." 16 And Joseph said, "Give your cattle and I will give you food for your cattle, if money has failed." 17 And they brought their cattle to Joseph, and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for horses, for the flocks, for the cattle of the herds, and for the donkeys. And he fed them with bread for all their cattle for that year. 18 When that year had ended, they came to him the second year and said to him, "We will not hide from my lord how our money is spent. My lord also has our herds of cattle. There is not anything left in the sight of my lord but our bodies and our lands. 19 Why shall we die before your eyes—both we and our land? Buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants to Pharaoh. And give us seed so that we may live and not die, so that the land may not be desolate."
20 And Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh, for the Egyptians each sold his field because the famine prevailed over them. So the land became Pharaoh's. 21 And as for the people, he moved them to cities from one end of the borders of Egypt even to the other end thereof. 22 Only the land of the priests he did not buy, for the priests had a portion assigned to them by Pharaoh and ate their portion which Pharaoh gave them; therefore, they did not sell their lands. 23 Then Joseph said to the people, "Behold, I have bought you this day and your land for Pharaoh. Behold, here is seed for you, and you shall sow the land. 24 And it shall come to pass in the increase, that you shall give the fifth part to Pharaoh, and four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, for your food, for those of your households, and for food for your little ones." 25 And they said, "You have saved our lives. Let us find grace in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh's servants." 26 And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt to this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth part, except the land of the priests only, which did not become Pharaoh's.
27 And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen. And they had possessions in it and grew and multiplied exceedingly. 28 And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. So the whole age of Jacob was one hundred and forty-seven years.
29 And the time drew near that Israel must die. And he called his son Joseph and said to him, "If now I have found grace in your sight, put, I pray you, your hand under my thigh and deal kindly and truly with me. Do not bury me, I pray you, in Egypt. 30 But I will lie with my fathers. And you shall carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burying-place." And he said, "I will do as you have said." 31 And he said, "Swear to me." And he swore to him. And Israel bowed himself upon the bed's head.
Matthew Henry Commentary - Genesis, Chapter 47[➚]
[v.31] - Quoted in Hebrews 11:21.