Yosef's Economic Policies/2

Yosef's Economic Policies

Exegetical Approaches

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Development of Yosef's Character

The details of Yosef's economic policies help the reader better appreciate the character of Yosef, revealing both his intense care for his family and his wisdom in dealing with the Egyptian crisis.

Sources:PhiloOn Joseph, 43About Philo, Talmud BavliChulin 60bAbout the Bavli, RashiBereshit 47:17,19,21About R. Shelomo Yitzchaki, RadakBereshit 46:3-4Bereshit 47:14,15,21About R. David Kimchi, RambanBereshit 47:14-19About R. Moshe Nachmanides, RalbagBereshit 47:21-27Bereshit 47Toalot 6-8About R. Levi b. Gershon, Maasei Hashem, Keli YekarBereshit 47:21,27About Keli Yekar, Or HaChayyimBereshit 47:15,23,25About R. Chayyim b. Atar, Shadal, R. S"R HirschBereshit 47:21,22,26About R. Samson Raphael Hirsch, Netziv

What's special about Yosef? These commentators differ regarding which attributes of Yosef they think emerge from the episode:

• Honesty - Many commentators¹ suggest that the story highlights Yosef's honesty and loyalty to Paroh.  The verse emphasizes that "וַיָּבֵא יוֹסֵף אֶת הַכֶּסֶף בֵּיתָה פַרְעֹה" to show that he took nothing for himself.²  All he did was aimed at enriching Paroh, not increasing his own power.³
• Concern for family – Bavli Chulin, Rashi, Keli Yakar and Or HaChayyim suggest that Yosef's policy of population displacement served to help his family.  It ensured that they were not singled out as foreigners⁴ since the entire country had similarly been displaced and impoverished.⁵  Maasei Hashem and Neziv add that it freed up Goshen, providing the family with a sheltered place to live that might prevent their assimilation.
• Concern for Egyptians –  Yosef's measures were harsh, but necessary in order to ensure an adequate food supply without the raiding, corruption, and anarchy which often accompany the stress of famine.⁶  Yosef, though, tried to ease the necessary hardship in several ways:

• R. Shemuel b. Chofni Gaon maintains that Yosef's offered to buy the Egyptian's cattle so they would no longer have to find food to feed them.
• Shadal, R. Hirsch and Neziv assert that, when displacing the people, Yosef made sure to move the Egyptians as groups together (city by city) so they could still maintain social ties.
• According to Ramban, even though the people offered themselves as slaves, Yosef did not accept their offer and bought their land but not their bodies.⁷

Did Yosef enslave the Egyptians? Ramban asserts that Yosef did not take the Egyptians as slaves but rather as tenant farmers.⁸  Moreover, he suggests that the terms were better than expected, for only a fifth was to go to the landlord.

"וְאֶת הָעָם הֶעֱבִיר אֹתוֹ לֶעָרִים" - why?

• According to many of these exegetes⁹ the the population transfer served to concretize the fact that all land belonged to Paroh.¹⁰

• The others suggest that making everyone foreigners meant that the Israelites would not be treated as such.  In addition, the exodus from Goshen opened it for settlement by Yosef's family.

"וַיִּקְבֹּץ אֶת כָּל אֹכֶל שֶׁבַע שָׁנִים" - for payment? Ramban raises the possibility that when Ysoef initially "gathered" food during the years of plenty, he did so by buying it.  if so, Yosef emerges as a crafty business man, buying cheaply when demand is low and selling it at a vast profit when demand was high. It also meansthat Yosef did not expect the people to pay exorbitantly for what was rightfully theirs to begin with.

"יָּבֹאוּ אֵלָיו בַּשָּׁנָה הַשֵּׁנִית " - Second year of what? These commentators differ regarding the timing of the episode::

• Second year of famine - Rashi, Maasei Hashem and Neziv assume that the Egyptian's request takes place in the second year of the famine.¹¹ This position is consistent with these commentators' assumption that some of Yosef's policies were aimed at easing his family's move to Egypt.
• Seventh year of famine - Radak, Ramban,and Shadal assert that the verse refers to the second year after the Egyptian's money ran out, which was in the seventh year of the famine.¹² The later dating is compatible with these exegetes' understanding that the story focuses on Yosef's honesty and success of his policies.

Two-fold mention of priestly exemption

• According to Ralbag the "כהנים" are not cultic priests but important officers.  Their exemption was an effort to keep the elite pleased so as to prevent rebellion.  Ralbag sees this as another example of Yosef's wise strategies.¹³
• Others might suggest that the verses are purposefully drawing a parallel between the priests and Isarelites to show how Yosef suceeded in rasing his faily to that level of importance.

What happened to Canaan? This position does not address the repeated mention of the impoverishment of Canaan and do not comment on the level of its devastation.¹⁴

Was Yaakov's family originally intending to stay ?

Evaluation of Yosef's actions – This position views Yosef's actions favorably, trying to see the positive intentions in all his actions.

Backdrop to Israelite Bondage

The story lays the background for the Egyptian enslavement of the Israelites.  Yosef's enslaving of the Egyptians later led to a backlash against his family who had been spared the severe policy.

Sources:R. Yosef Bekhor ShorBereshit 47:21Shemot 1:11About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor, Modern Scholars¹⁵

Did Yosef enslave the Egyptians?

"וְאֶת הָעָם הֶעֱבִיר אֹתוֹ לֶעָרִים" - why?

"וַיִּקְבֹּץ אֶת כָּל אֹכֶל שֶׁבַע שָׁנִים" - for payment?

When does the episode take place?

Two-fold mention of priestly exemption

What happened to Canaan?

Was Yaakov's family originally intending to stay ?

Evaluation of Yosef's actions

Cause of Prolonged Stay

The harsh conditions of the famine, highlighted in this episode, explain why Yaakov's family did not simply return to Canaan immediately, but rather stayed on foreign soil.

¹ See Philo, R. Avraham b. HaRambam, Radak, Ramban, Ibn Kaspi, Ralbag and Neziv.

² By bringing all the income to Paroh' house rather than storing it by him, Yosef ensured that no one could even suspect him of taking anything for personal gain.

³ Ralbag adds that Yosef also made sure to feed his family, "לֶחֶם לְפִי הַטָּף" but no more.  He did not take advantage of his position to give them above and beyond their needs.

⁴ The Keli Yakar suggests that after being foreigners themselves, the Egyptians would be able to empathize with real foeigners and treat the Israelites accordingly.

⁵ Or HaChayyim adds that Yosef's impoverishing of the Egyptians ensured that his family would seem wealthy in contrast and thus be honored by their neighbors.

⁶ See Or HaChayyim who suggests that for this reason Yosef opened the storehouses of grain (Bereshit 41:56) to show the people how much there was and calm their nerves.  See also, Alex Israel, "Joseph's Economic Strategy" who elaborates on this idea (available here).

⁷ Neziv explains that this would have been for the benefit of both Paroh and the people.  Had they actually become slaves to Paroh, he would have been responsible for their food, whether or not they actually worked the land.  In becoming tenant farmers, they needed to work for their own food.

⁸ As evidence Ramban points to Yosef's response to the nation's request that he buy them as slaves.  The verse states, , mentioning only that Yosef bought the egyptians land, but not their ohysical bodies.  Later, though,

⁹ See Rashi, R. Shemuel b. Chofni Gaon, Radak, Ralbag, and R. Hirsch.

¹⁰ As long as people still lived on and worked their land, they would feel attached to it and not be readily cognizant of the fact that it no longer was theirs.  Moreover, they would be likely to desire and demand it back.  R. Shemuel b. Chofni Gaon compares the policy to Sancheriv similar population transfers, the point of which was to sever a nation's ties to their  land to prevent rebellions.

¹¹ According to them, the Biblical text portrays the same time period from two perspectives, first focusing on Yosef and his family and then on Yosef and the Egyptians.  

¹² Radak and Ramban question how all the money could have run out in only two years of famine, leading them to this alternative chronology.  Shadal is instead motivated by the fact that Yosef gives the nation seed to sow, which would only make sense if the famine was ending.
According to this reading of the story, the Biblical text is totally chronological and this story does not overlap with the previous chapters but instead follows them.  This is consitent with ramban's general tendency to claim that Tanakh is written chronologically.

¹³ It is still not clear, though, why this point needed to be so emphasized.

¹⁴ Radak mentions in passing that they managed to go to other places besides Egypt to get food, but does not elaborate.

¹⁵ See D. Sabato, "", Megadim 42, Prof. U. Simon, "יוסף משעבד את המצרים לפרעה"  available here, and Tamir Garnot, "מנהיגותו של יוסף במצרים" available here.