Eating on the Road to Egypt: Meals in the Joseph Narrative

Abstract Food is complicated. Sharing food can create bonds of friendship between former strangers or exclude and isolate those unwelcome at our tables. The work of producing food can create relationships of interdependence or foster exploitation and fear. The morally complex nature of food is on full display in the narratives about Joseph recounted in Gen 37–50. On at least three occasions, meals allow the narrator to put issues of identity and belonging, inclusion and exclusion, squarely “on the table.” Furthermore, these same issues are also on display in Joseph’s food politics in Gen 47:11–27. This article draws on interdisciplinary accounts of feasts and food to explore both the meals of the Joseph story and certain aspects of Joseph’s food politics. In the conclusion, the article reflects on how these depictions of food invite belated reflection on the COVID-19 pandemic.