Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Genesis 47:24 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 24. 24And it shall come to pass in the increase, that ye shall give the fifth part unto Pharaoh, and four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, and for your food, and for them of your households, and for food for your little ones.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Joseph sets the harvest terms: one-fifth goes to Pharaoh, while four-fifths remain for field seed and food for the people, their households, and children. The arrangement enables cultivation and sustenance while making royal revenue permanent.
Read It With
- Genesis 47:13–26
Read verses 23–26 with 41:34. Joseph gives seed, defines the crop shares, the people respond, and the fifth becomes a statute. The earlier abundance-stage fifth and this continuing famine-era share belong to related but distinct settings.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Seed distribution leads to the recurring harvest terms that balance royal revenue with future planting and household food.
Read Genesis 47:23–26 together
Why these verses belong together: Joseph supplies seed, defines Pharaoh's fifth and the household's four-fifths, receives the people's response, and establishes the arrangement as continuing law.
Verse 23. 23 Then Joseph said unto the people, Behold, I have bought you this day and your land for Pharaoh: lo, here is seed for you, and ye shall sow the land.
Verse 24. 24 And it shall come to pass in the increase, that ye shall give the fifth part unto Pharaoh, and four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, and for your food, and for them of your households, and for food for your little ones.
Verse 25. 25 And they said, Thou hast saved our lives: let us find grace in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s servants.
Verse 26. 26 And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt unto this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth part; except the land of the priests only, which became not Pharaoh’s.
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 fifth part unto Pharaoh”
In plain language: One of five shares of produce belongs to Pharaoh.
Royal ownership produces an ongoing claim on harvests.
Why it matters: The emergency episode results in durable revenue.
How certain? very strong“four parts shall be your own”
In plain language: Four of five shares remain with the cultivators.
The people retain most produce for agriculture and life.
Why it matters: Their retained share distinguishes the arrangement from confiscation of the entire harvest without making the power relation equal.
How certain? very strong“seed ... food ... little ones”
In plain language: The remaining produce serves planting, workers, households, and children.
The policy explicitly recognizes both future crops and present dependents.
Why it matters: Any application must account for production and vulnerable household members together.
How certain? very strongWhat This Verse Is Not Saying
The one-fifth does not establish a universal biblical tax, rent, tithe, or church-giving rate.
Keeping four-fifths does not by itself prove the arrangement was voluntary, equitable, or sufficient in every harvest.
The verse does not identify other obligations, crop-failure protections, debt release, or appeal rights.
The provision for children does not erase the land and service transfer that precedes it.
What Remains True
A policy must be evaluated by both the share collected and whether the remainder can actually sustain production, workers, households, and vulnerable dependents.
How It Can Shape Life
- When setting repayment, rent, or tax terms, calculate what remains for future production and basic household needs instead of considering only institutional revenue.
Teach It Back
Explain Genesis 47:24'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 ↗