Genesis 41:51-52

‘Manasseh’ sounds like ‘forget’. ‘Ephraim’ means ‘fruit’. Fruit is something that a plant produces.

‘God has made me forget my father’s house.’ Joseph thought that he would not see his father and his brothers again. He did not know God’s plan. God had put Joseph in *Pharaoh’s court so that he could help his father and his brothers. God seldom tells us his plans before they happen.

The *famine

v53 The 7 years of plenty in Egypt finished. v54 The 7 years when there was no food began. It happened as Joseph had said. There was a *famine in every country. But in all Egypt there was bread. v55 When all the inhabitants of Egypt were hungry, they cried for bread. They cried to *Pharaoh. And *Pharaoh said to all the inhabitants of Egypt, ‘Go to Joseph. Do what he tells you to do.’

v56 So when the whole country had a lack of food, Joseph opened all the stores. He sold grain to the inhabitants of Egypt. He did this because there was a *famine in all Egypt. v57 Moreover, people from all the earth came to Egypt. They came to Joseph in order to buy grain. They did this because the *famine was very bad in all the earth.