You don’t want to cite Joseph and the years of abundance as an argument for central planning. It’s actually an example of coercive government power leading to slavery of the people.
An article in the Times of Israel, “The road to Egypt: job creators in the Ancient World”, has the subtitle Joseph’s rise to power is no blueprint for good government but rather a profoundly cautionary tale.
I’ve not studied the issues mentioned in the article, but want to put up a post as a marker for future reference. I’ll try to come back to these ideas, but in case that doesn’t happen, or it is a long time until I do, the discussion will be here.
As a Christian, I don’t spend much time in the Torah. Okay, make that zero time.
Having spent a bit of study effort in the book of Genesis, I am familiar with the story of how Joseph used his God-provided experiences and abilities to care for his family.
Imagine my surprise to learn that during the famine years Joseph sold wheat in exchange for cattle and other livestock. When grain ran out a year later and people needed more food, they sold their land to Joseph, i.e. the government. When the famine ended, they had neither land to raise grain nor livestock to produce cash or food. They were slaves. They knowingly went into slavery.
