When Jacob learned that there was grain in Egypt, he said to his sons, "Why do you just keep looking at each other?" He continued, "I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy some for us, so that we may live and not die."
- Genesis 42:1-2
Points of Interest:
All cultures have numbers of significance. In the Bible, some of the numbers of significance are 3, 7, any multiples of 7, 12 and 40.
These numbers are used to indicate completeness, perfection, the fullness of time, a long period of time etc.
The world was created in 7 days
In the Noah story it rains 40 days and 40 nights
In today's reading, Egypt has 7 years of plenty and 7 years of famine
When the Biblical authors use these numbers, they may or may not be literal. The 40 days of rain in the Noah story could just mean "a long time" or a "perfectly complete amount of time".
The 7 years of plenty and 7 years of famine could be the author's way of saying "a perfect amount of time for God's purposes"
You will see these significant numbers over and over as you read through the Bible. Sometimes they may be meant to be read literally, sometimes they are the author's way of conveying a truth that is deeper than a mere period of time.
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