Genesis 47:18-20 Meaning: When You Have Nothing Left to Give
18When 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.
19Why 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.”
20So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh, for every man of the Egyptians sold his field, because the famine was severe on them, and the land became Pharaoh’s.
18When that year was ended, they came unto him the second year, and said unto him, We will not hide it from my lord, how that our money is spent; my lord also hath our herds of cattle; there is not ought left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies, and our lands:
19Wherefore shall we die before thine eyes, both we and our land? buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants unto Pharaoh: and give us seed, that we may live, and not die, that the land be not desolate.
20And Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for the Egyptians sold every man his field, because the famine prevailed over them: so the land became Pharaoh’s.
18And when that year was ended, they came unto him the second year, and said unto him, We will not hide from my lord, how that our money is all spent; and the herds of cattle are my lord’s; there is nought left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies, and our lands:
19wherefore should we die before thine eyes, both we and our land? buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants unto Pharaoh: and give us seed, that we may live, and not die, and that the land be not desolate.
20So Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for the Egyptians sold every man his field, because the famine was sore upon them: and the land became Pharaoh’s.
18And that year is finished, and they come in unto him on the second year, and say to him, `We do not hide from my lord, that since the money hath been finished, and possession of the cattle is unto my lord, there hath not been left before my lord save our bodies, and our ground;
19why do we die before thine eyes, both we and our ground? buy us and our ground for bread, and we and our ground are servants to Pharaoh; and give seed, and we live, and die not, and the ground is not desolate.'
20And Joseph buyeth all the ground of Egypt for Pharaoh, for the Egyptians have sold each his field, for the famine hath been severe upon them, and the land becometh Pharaoh's;
18And that year ended; and they came to him the second year, and said to him, We will not hide [it] from my lord that since [our] money is come to an end, and the herds of cattle are in the possession of my lord, nothing is left before my lord but our bodies and our land.
19Why should we die before thine eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be bondmen to Pharaoh; and give seed, that we may live, and not die, and that the land be not desolate.
20And Joseph bought all the soil of Egypt for Pharaoh; for the Egyptians sold every man his field, because the famine prevailed over them; and the land became Pharaoh's.
Meaning in one sentence
Learn the meaning of 'the second year' in Genesis 47:18-20 and how desperation drove the Egyptians to sell everything. See God's provision through Joseph.
Context
Seven years of plenty had filled Egypt's storehouses. Now the famine was deep into its second half, and the people had already spent all their money and traded their livestock for bread. Genesis 47 records the final stage of their desperation. They come to Joseph with hands empty, nothing left but their own bodies and the land that fed them. The famine had stripped away every possession, one layer at a time. This meeting is not Joseph's scheme; the people themselves propose selling their freedom and their fields for seed to survive. Joseph carries out the king's business, and land that belonged to many families becomes Pharaoh's. The whole transaction is grim and honest about what people will do to keep breathing.
Key Words
Three words hold the weight here. The first is tam, “finished,” from verse 18 where the people say their money is spent. The same Hebrew word appears when God completes creation (Genesis 2:1). Here it means entirely consumed, nothing left, like a candle burned to its end. The people do not hold back one coin; they are empty.
The second word is qanah, “buy,” used three times in verse 19 and once in verse 20. It can mean to get or acquire, and even to create. In Exodus 15:16 God qanahs His people, He buys them, redeems them. Joseph is not a slave trader; he is the agent of rescue, acquiring the people so they won't starve.
The third word is zera, “seed” in verse 19. It means seed for sowing, but in Hebrew it also carries the sense of offspring, of future. The people are not asking for today only. They are asking for a tomorrow. They want to live and sow so the land does not become shemamah (desolate). They want the ground to stay alive, even if it no longer belongs to them.
How Christians Read This Verse
The passage has been read with some unease across traditions. Matthew Henry (Reformed) sees Joseph acting wisely and faithfully for Pharaoh, and the people grateful for their lives. John Calvin defends Joseph against charges of greed: he did not trick or force the Egyptians; the proposal came from them during an impossible crisis. The Cambridge Bible (Anglican) notes that an ancient Oriental audience would likely have heard this as a clever administrative stroke, while a modern reader might call it tyranny. Most Christians agree: the famine left no good options, and God used Joseph to keep human beings alive even when the cost was everything they owned. The people themselves said, “You have saved our lives” (v.25). That remains the point.
A common misunderstanding
Living This Out
There may come a week when you have exhausted every resource you had. Maybe the savings account is gone. Maybe your health has failed, or a relationship you leaned on has broken. The people in this passage did not hide their situation: “We will not hide from my lord,” they said. They named their emptiness plainly. You can do the same. You can bring your empty hands to God and say, “There is nothing left but me and this patch of ground I stand on.” That kind of honesty is not weakness; it is the beginning of survival. Joseph gave them seed, not just bread. God may do the same for you, not only get you through today, but give you something to plant for tomorrow.
Main takeaway: When you have nothing left, you can offer your whole self to the One who provides, and He will give you what you need to live.
For Families
For ages 5, 8
The people were very hungry and had no more money. They gave Joseph everything they had, even their land and themselves. But Joseph gave them food and seed to plant. God always makes sure we have what we need.
For ages 9, 12
The Egyptians came to Joseph with empty pockets and no animals left. They offered their own bodies and their land just so they could eat and get seed for planting. It was a desperate moment, but Joseph didn't let them die. He bought them and their land, and gave them a way to survive. Sometimes we have to let go of everything we hold onto before God can give us a fresh start.
Questions People Ask
What does 'the second year' refer to in Genesis 47:18?
It is the second year after the people's money was exhausted, not the second year of the seven-year famine. Most commentators believe this was the seventh and final year of the famine, when the people needed seed to sow for the coming harvest.
Did Joseph do something wrong by buying the land and making the Egyptians slaves?
Christians are divided on whether this was good policy. John Calvin and Matthew Henry defend Joseph, pointing out that the proposal came from the people themselves and that Joseph was simply managing Pharaoh's business during an unprecedented crisis. The Cambridge Bible notes that ancient readers would have seen it as clever, while modern readers often find it troubling. The people themselves thanked Joseph for saving their lives.
Why did the Egyptians offer to sell themselves instead of just asking for food?
They had no money and no livestock left, the only things they still had were their own bodies and their land. In a desperate bid to survive, they proposed selling these last assets in exchange for bread and seed. It was a radical act of trust, putting their whole future into Joseph's hands.
What happened to the land after Joseph bought it for Pharaoh?
The land became the property of Pharaoh. Later in the chapter (verse 23-24), Joseph gives the people seed and tells them they can keep four-fifths of the harvest for themselves and their families, giving one-fifth to Pharaoh. They became tenant farmers rather than landowners, but they stayed alive.
Why were the priests exempt from selling their land?
Verse 22 explains that the priests had a fixed portion of food from Pharaoh, so they did not need to sell their fields during the famine. This may reflect the special status of the priestly class in ancient Egypt.
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