1 José veio à presença de Faraó e anunciou-lhe: Meu pai e meus irmãos chegaram de Canaã com os rebanhos, o gado e tudo quanto têm. Encontram-se, para já, instalados na terra de Gosen.

2 E tinha trazido consigo cinco dos seus irmãos, que apresentou a Faraó. Este perguntou-lhes: Qual é a vossa actividade? Somos pastores, tal como os nossos antepassados. Viemos viver aqui para o Egipto porque lá em Canaã não há pastagens para os rebanhos; a fome é muito maior do que cá. Nós queríamos pedir-te que nos deixasses viver na terra de Gosen.

5 Faraó disse a José: Escolhe tu onde queres que eles vivam. Dá-lhes mesmo a melhor terra do Egipto. Se querem a terra de Gosen está muito bem. E se houver dentre eles alguns que sejam bastante capazes, põe-nos como responsáveis dos meus rebanhos.

7 Então José trouxe o seu pai Jacob para o apresentar ao Faraó. E Jacob abençoou o rei. Qual é a tua idade?, perguntou-lhe o Faraó.

9 Tenho 130 anos, anos difíceis e de labutas, e não são tantos quantos os meus antepassados viveram. Antes de sair da presença do rei, Jacob abençoou-o de novo.

11 E assim José reservou a melhor terra do Egipto - a terra de Ramassés - para o seu pai e os irmãos viverem lá, tal como Faraó tinha indicado. E forneceu-lhes alimentos, de acordo com os seus agregados familiares.

13 A fome era cada vez maior. As pessoas morriam de miséria, tanto na terra de Canaã como no Egipto. José conseguiu arrecadar todo o dinheiro tanto do Egipto como de Canaã, em troca de trigo, e fê-lo depositar nos cofres reais. E quando já não havia mais moeda de troca, a população veio ter com José, chorando outra vez por mais comida.Já não temos dinheiro. Arranja-nos contudo maneira de termos de comer. Porque é que haveríamos de morrer?

16 Bom, então dêem-me o vosso gado. Recebê-lo-ei em troca de comida.

17 Trouxeram assim o gado a José para terem com que se alimentarem. E depressa toda a espécie de animais - cavalos, ovelhas, bois, jumentos, etc. - que havia no Egipto tornaram-se propriedade de Faraó.

18 No ano seguinte vieram de novo: Não temos dinheiro, os animais já são todos teus, só temos as nossas vidas e as terras. Não queremos morrer! Compra-nos a nós e às nossas terras para servirmos o rei. Se nos vendermos por alimento ao menos não morreremos e nem as terras ficarão abandonadas.

20 Dessa sorte José comprou toda a terra do Egipto para Faraó, e os egípcios venderam-se para o seu serviço. As únicas terras que ele não comprou foram as que pertenciam aos sacerdotes porque estes recebiam a alimentação de Faraó e não necessitaram de vender coisa nenhuma.

23 José disse ao povo: Comprei-vos, vocês e as vossas terras, para Faraó. Portanto aqui está o trigo. Agora vão e semeiem a terra. Quando fizerem as colheitas, um quinto de tudo o que obtiverem pertencerá a Faraó. Das quatro partes que ficam, terão de pôr de lado um tanto para semearem de novo em vistas do ano seguinte, e o resto é para se alimentarem - vocês, as vossas famílias, os vossos meninos.

25 Salvaste-nos a vida, disseram. De bom grado seremos servos do rei.

26 Foi dessa forma que José fez a lei, válida para todo o território do Egipto e que ainda hoje está em vigor, em como deve ser paga ao Faraó um imposto de um quinto de todos os cereais, excepto quanto ao que for produzido nas terras pertencentes aos templos.

27 E viveu Israel na terra de Gosen, no Egipto, tomando posse da terra e trabalhando-a, começando a prosperar e multiplicando-se muito.

28 Jacob viveu ainda dezassete anos depois que veio para o Egipto. Ao todo foram 147 os anos da sua vida.

29 Quando sentiu que se aproximava o fim, chamou José e disse-lhe: Quero pedir-te que dês solenemente a garantia em como respeitarás este último pedido que te vou fazer, e que mostrarás assim a tua afeição para comigo: quero que me enterres, não aqui no Egipto, mas que me leves daqui e que ponhas o meu corpo, depois de eu morrer, junto com os meus pais.José garantiu-lhe que faria assim. E Jacob insistiu: Mas jura-me. E ele jurou-lhe srael adorou, inclinando a cabeça sobre a cabeceira da cama.

1 So then Joseph went in, and told Pharaoh, and saidMy father and my brethren, and their flocks and their herds and all that they have, are come in from the land of Canaan,and, here they are, in the land of Goshen.

2 Moreover out of the whole number of his brethren, he took with him five men,and set them before Pharaoh.

3 And Pharaoh said unto the brethren of JosephWhat is your occupation? And they said unto PharaohFeeders of flocks, are thy servants, both we and our fathers.

4 And they said unto PharaohTo sojourn in the land, are we come in, for there is no pasture for the flocks which pertain to thy servants, for, severe, is the famine in the land of Canaan. Now, therefore, let thy servants dwell we pray thee in the land of Goshen.

5 Then spake Pharaoh unto Joseph saying,Thy father and thy brethren, are come in unto thee.

6 The land of Egypt, is, before thee, in the best of the land, cause thou thy father and thy brethren to dwell,let them dwell in the land of Goshen, And if thou knowest that there are among them men of ability, then shalt thou set them as chieftains of cattle over mine.

7 So Joseph brought in Jacob his father, and caused him to stand before Pharaoh,and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.

8 And Pharaoh said unto Jacob: About how many, have been the days of the years of thy life?

9 And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my sojournings, have been a hundred and thirty years,Few and evil, have been the days of the years of my life, neither have they attained unto the days of the years of the lives of my fathers, in the days of their sojournings.

10 And Jacob blessed Pharaoh,and came forth from the presence of Pharaoh.

11 So then Joseph fixed the dwelling of his father and his brethren, and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt in the best of the land. in the land of Rameses,as Pharaoh had commanded.

12 And Joseph nourished his father and his brethren, and all his fathers house,with bread, according to the need of their little ones.

13 But, bread, was there none in all the land,for the famine was, very severe,so that the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan fainted by reason of the famine,

14 So Joseph gathered up all the silver that was found in the land of Egypt. and in the land of Canaan, for the corn which, they, were buying,and Joseph brought the silver into the house of Pharaoh.

15 And the silver was spent out of the land of Egypt and out of the land of Canaan, so all the Egyptians came in unto Joseph, sayingDo give us bread, for why should we die before thee, although, silver, hath failed?

16 Then said Joseph: Give your cattle, and I will give you for your cattle,if silver hath failed.

17 So they brought in their cattle unto Joseph, and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for the horses and for the cattle of the flock and for the cattle of the herd, and for the asses,and he provided them with bread for all their cattle, throughout that year.

18 When that year was ended, then came they unto him in the second year and said to himWe will not hide from my lord, how that the silver and the herds of beasts for my lord are come to an end,there is nothing left before my lord, save only our bodies and our ground:

19 Wherefore should we die before thine eyes both we, and our ground? Buy thou us and our ground, for bread,and we and our ground will become servants to Pharaoh, and give seed, that we may live, and not die, and the ground, not lie waste.

20 So Joseph bought all the ground of the Egyptians for Pharaoh, for the Egyptians sold every man his field, because the famine had laid fast hold upon them,so the land became Pharaohs.

21 And as for the people, he brought them into bondage as servants,from one end of the boundary of Egypt unto the other end thereof.

22 Only, the ground of the priests, bought he not,for the priests had a statutory-portion, from Pharaoh and they had been eating their statutory-portion, which Pharaoh had given them, for which cause, they had not sold their ground.

23 And Joseph said unto the people, Lo! I have bought you this day, and your ground for Pharaoh,see, here is seed for you, so shall ye sow the ground;

24 and it shall come to pass that, of the yield, ye shall give a fifth to Pharaoh,but the four parts, shall be your ownfor seed for the field, and for your food and for them who are in your households and for food for your little ones.

25 And they saidThou hast saved our lives! let us find favour in the eyes of my lord, so will we become Pharaohs servants.

26 And Joseph appointed it for a statuteuntil this day, regarding the ground of Egypt, that Pharaoh, should take a fifth,only, the ground of the priests, was, theirs alone, it had not become Pharaohs.

27 Thus Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt in the land of Goshen,and gained possessions therein, and became fruitful and multiplied exceedingly.

28 And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years,so it came to pass that the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were a hundred and forty-seven years.

29 And the days of Israel drew near that he must die, so he called for his son for Joseph and said to himIf, I pray thee I have found favour in thine eyes, place, I pray thee thy hand under my thigh,so shalt thou deal with me in lovingkindness and faithfulnessDo not I pray thee, bury me in Egypt.

30 When I shall lie down with my fathers, then shalt thou carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their buryingplace. And he said: I, will do according to thy word.

31 Then he said: Come, swear to me! And he sware to him. Then did Israel how himself down on the head of the couch.