the-harvest
Explanation
The Joke
A man named Raymond is sitting on his couch eating snacks when Death (the Grim Reaper) appears. Raymond asks if Death is there because of his unhealthy and sedentary lifestyle. Death says "No. Well, sorta." Death then explains that he wants Raymond to become a prophet, spreading his "cheese-centric way of living" around the world. Death says Raymond is "like the seed of a great harvest" -- he will be spared so that his descendants can be "culled en masse."
Raymond is understandably disturbed by this proposition, saying he does not want to be the cause of mass worldwide death. Death offers the alternative: "Or I could just kill you now." Faced with this lose-lose scenario, Raymond decides, "I'm gonna start drinking heavily," to which Death cheerfully replies, "That's the spirit!"
The Humor
The comic plays on the idea of religious prophets and "chosen ones" by making the selection criteria hilariously unflattering -- Death does not choose Raymond for his virtue or wisdom, but because his unhealthy cheese-obsessed lifestyle will produce descendants ripe for harvesting. The phrase "the seed of a great harvest" sounds grand and biblical, but it literally means Death is farming humans for future mass death. Raymond is trapped between two terrible options: die now or become the unwitting founder of a doomed civilization. His decision to start drinking heavily is the perfect nihilistic response, and Death's reply "That's the spirit!" works as both encouragement and a pun ("spirit" being slang for alcohol, and also what Raymond will become when he dies).