Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Genesis 47:15 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 15. 15And 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.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
When money is exhausted, the Egyptians come to Joseph and ask for bread so they will not die in front of him. Their plea exposes immediate need and the failure of money as an access mechanism once people have none left.
Read It With
- Genesis 47:13–26
Read verses 13–17. Severe famine leads to grain purchases, the purchases drain money, and the people's appeal opens the next exchange involving livestock.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Once money is exhausted, the people make survival—not purchasing capacity—the explicit issue before Joseph.
Read Genesis 47:15–17 together
Why these verses belong together: Money exhaustion prompts the people's plea, Joseph's livestock terms, and year-long food provision in exchange for productive assets.
Verse 15. 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.
Verse 16. 16 And Joseph said, Give your cattle; and I will give you for your cattle, if money fail.
Verse 17. 17 And they brought their cattle unto Joseph: and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for horses, and for the flocks, and for the cattle of the herds, and for the asses: and he fed them with bread for all their cattle for that year.
Follow the Context
- Severe famine leaves Egypt and Canaan languishing; Joseph gathers the money paid for grain and brings it into Pharaoh's house (47:13–14).
- When money is exhausted, the Egyptians ask why they should die; Joseph exchanges food for horses, flocks, herds, and donkeys and sustains them through that year (47:15–17).
- In the next year the people say only their bodies and land remain, offer both for bread and seed, and Joseph acquires the land for Pharaoh because famine presses every fieldholder (47:18–20).
- The received Hebrew text says Joseph moves the people to cities across Egypt, while the Samaritan Pentateuch and Greek tradition read that he makes them servants; priestly land remains exempt because Pharaoh supplies the priests (47:21–22).
- Joseph states that he has acquired the people and land for Pharaoh, gives seed, assigns one-fifth to Pharaoh and four-fifths for seed and households, receives the people's life-saving acknowledgment, and establishes the arrangement as an enduring statute with the priestly exception (47:23–26).
Phrase-by-Phrase Explanation
“the money faileth”
In plain language: Money is exhausted or comes to an end.
Egypt and Canaan can no longer continue buying grain with silver.
Why it matters: The next stage is driven by depleted purchasing power, not reduced hunger.
How certain? very strong“give us bread”
In plain language: The people ask Joseph for food.
Stored grain is controlled through Joseph's administration.
Why it matters: Control of a necessity creates an unequal power relationship.
How certain? very strong“wherefore should we die”
In plain language: They ask why death should occur before Joseph when food exists.
Their speech makes survival the moral urgency of the exchange.
Why it matters: The plea should not be reduced to an abstract market transaction.
How certain? very strongWhat This Verse Is Not Saying
The verse does not teach that people without money deserve to die or lose access to food.
The people's approach does not prove they bargain with Joseph from equal power or abundant alternatives.
Joseph's possession of grain does not authorize withholding necessities until desperate people surrender anything demanded.
The verse does not provide a modern entitlement formula, price regulation, or complete public-aid policy.
What Remains True
A person's inability to pay does not remove the reality of need, and those controlling necessities bear responsibility for how they respond.
How It Can Shape Life
- If someone cannot pay for essential food, medicine, or shelter, do not treat the empty account as proof the need disappeared; seek a non-exploitative way to preserve life.
Teach It Back
Explain Genesis 47:15's contribution to Genesis 47:13–26. Include why the nearby verses are required, what the verse clearly says, and one conclusion it does not justify.
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Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Genesis 47:13–26 — Joseph Restructures Egypt During the FamineSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? very strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Displayed text, famine sequence, prior storage and family provision, following contrast, later royal oppression, and canonical resource-justice comparisons.
Exact location: Genesis 47:13–26 with 41:25–57; 47:1–12, 27–31; Exodus 1:1–14; Leviticus 25; 1 Samuel 8; and Nehemiah 5 in the pinned standardized 1769 KJV
Open source ↗hebrew text morphology and lemma data
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible — Genesis
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project
Open Scriptures, Version 2.2 released 2021; repository inspected 2026
Supports: Exact Hebrew crisis, depletion, livestock, sustenance, person, land, service, acquisition, relocation, allowance, fifth, and statute language.
Exact location: WLC Genesis 47:13–26, especially vattelah in verse 13; vayyittom, mikne, and vaynahalem in 15–17; geviyyatenu, admatenu, avadim, and qanah in 18–23; he'evir oto le'arim in verse 21; hoq in 22 and 26; and hamishit/homesh in 24 and 26
Open source ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — Genesis with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, Digital edition accessed 2026
Supports: Translation, syntax, KJV-language, and material textual-variant cross-checks.
Exact location: NET Genesis 47:13–26 translator and textual notes, especially languishing, exchange, deliberative speech, service, verse 21's Masoretic/Samaritan/Septuagint difference, one-fifth, favor, and statute
Open NET Genesis 47 ↗