When the money was all spent 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 our money fails.”
Parallel Translations
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When the money was all spent 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 our money fails.”
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And when money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth.
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And when the money was all spent in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said: 'Give us bread; for why should we die in thy presence? for our money faileth.'
Cross-references (9)
Passages linked to Genesis 47:15 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Genesis 47:18-19 When that year was ended, they came to him the second year, and said to him, “We will not hide from my lord how our money is all spent, and the herds of livestock are my lord’s. There is nothing left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies, and our lands. Why should 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. Give us seed, that we may live, and not die, and that the land won’t be desolate.”
- Genesis 47:24 It will happen at the harvests, that you shall give a fifth to Pharaoh, and four parts will be your own, for seed of the field, for your food, for them of your households, and for food for your little ones.”
- Judges 8:5 He said to the men of Succoth, “Please give loaves of bread to the people who follow me; for they are faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.”
- Judges 8:8 He went up there to Penuel, and spoke to them in the same way; and the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered.
- 1 Samuel 21:3 Now therefore what is under your hand? Please give me five loaves of bread in my hand, or whatever is available.”
- 1 Samuel 25:8 Ask your young men, and they will tell you. Therefore let the young men find favor in your eyes; for we come on a good day. Please give whatever comes to your hand, to your servants, and to your son David.’ ”
- Psalms 37:3 Trust in Yahweh, and do good. Dwell in the land, and enjoy safe pasture.
- Matthew 6:11 Give us today our daily bread.
- Isaiah 33:16 he will dwell on high. His place of defense will be the fortress of rocks. His bread will be supplied. His waters will be sure.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (9 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 15. And when money failed. Moses does not mean…
15. And when money failed. Moses does not mean that all the money in Egypt had been brought into the royal treasury; for there were many of the nobles of the court free from the effects of the famine; but the simple meaning of the expression is that nearly all had been exhausted; that now the common people had not money enough to buy corn; and that, at length, extreme necessity had driven the Egyptians to the second remedy of which he is about to speak. Moreover, although, like persons driven to desperation, they might seem arrogantly to rise up against Joseph; yet the context shows that nothing was farther from their minds than to terrify, by their boldness, the man whose compassion they suppliantly implore. Wherefore the question, Why should we die in thy presence? has no other signification than that they felt themselves ruined, unless his clemency should afford them relief. But it may be asked how the Canaanites supported their lives. There is indeed no doubt that a grievous pestilence, the attendant on famine, would carry off many, unless they received assistance from other regions, or were miserally fed on herbs and roots. And perhaps the barrenness was not there so great, but that they might gather half, or a third part of their food, from the fields,
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Gen 47:15 And when money failed in the land…
Gen 47:15 And when money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth.
Ver. 15. Why should we die in thy presence?] When it is in thy power to save us alive in this our extreme indigency? Qui non cum potest, iuvat, occidit, saith the proverb. And, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good, or to do evil? to save, or to destroy a life?" {Mar 3:4} - intimating that not to save when we may, is to destroy. The Egyptians, therefore, put Joseph to it. Money they had none, but must have answered, if now it had been required of them, as those inhabitants of Andros did Themistocles. He being sent by the Athenians for tribute money, told them that he came on that errand accompanied with two goddesses; eloquence to persuade, and violence to enforce them. Whereunto the Andraeans made this answer; that they had on their side, also, two goddesses as strong; necessity, {a} they had it not, and impossibility, whereby they could not part with that which they possessed not. {b}
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{a} Ingens telum, necessitas.
{b} Plutarch.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Why shouldst thou see and suffer us to perish…
1702
Why shouldst thou see and suffer us to perish for our want of money, when thou canst relieve us?
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And Joseph said, give your cattle,.... Oxen, sheep, horses,…
And Joseph said, give your cattle,.... Oxen, sheep, horses, asses, as follows:
and I will give you for your cattle, if money fail; that is, corn for cattle, if they had no money to give.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Wanted. Or "failed both in Egypt and Chanaan," as…
Wanted. Or "failed both in Egypt and Chanaan," as the Hebrew insinuates. (Haydock)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 15. All the Egyptians came — Came by their…
15. All the Egyptians came — Came by their representatives. Observe the three stages of impoverishment through which they passed in becoming the dependents of Pharaoh. First they used up all their money; then they delivered up all their cattle for bread; and finally they surrendered all title and claim to their lands, and thus became serfs unto Pharaoh.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 15. And when the money] The inhabitants of Egypt,…
15. And when the money] The inhabitants of Egypt, finding that their money was expended, voluntarily proposed the surrender, firstly, of their cattle, and secondly, in the following year (Gen_47:18-19), of their persons and their land. There is no mention of murmuring or uprising among the people. Private ownership, except in the case of the priests (Gen_47:22), was surrendered. The whole people became Pharaoh’s servants, practically serfs, paying him a land tax of 20 per cent. annually (Gen_47:26).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain And when money failed (literally, and the silver was…
And when money failed (literally, and the silver was consumed, or spent) in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all (literally, and all) the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth (literally, and why should we die in thy presence because silver faileth? i.e. seeing that thou art able to support us).
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 When all the money of the lands of Egypt…
When all the money of the lands of Egypt and Canaan was spent
Here "lands" stands for the people who live in the lands. This can be stated in active form. AT: "When the people of Egypt and Canaan used up all their money" (See: Metonymy and Active or Passive)
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of the lands of Egypt and Canaan
"from the land of Egypt and from the land of Canaan"
Why should we die in your presence because our money is gone?
The people used a question to emphasize how desperate they are to buy food. This question can be translated as a statement. AT: "Please, do not let us die because we have used up all of our money!" (See: Rhetorical Question)
He fed them with bread
Here "bread" stands for food in general. AT: "He gave them food" or "He provided them with food" (See: Synecdoche)
translationWords
Egypt
Canaan
livestock
horse
flocks
donkey
bread
year
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.