Genesis 46
Welcome! Today
we continue our deep dive into the Biblical account of Joseph, as presented to
us in the book of Genesis. Today we focus on Chapter 46. Joseph is now the
number two person in authority in all of Egypt, second only to Pharaoh himself.
The entire land is in a severe famine, and Joseph’s brothers have come up – now
a second time – to receive food. Joseph’s brothers had not recognized him, due
to all the years that have passed since they had betrayed him, selling him to
traders who sold him to Egypt as a slave. They had heard nothing of Joseph
since and assumed they would never see him again. They had manipulated their
father into believing that Joseph had been torn apart by wild animals, and so
the father had all this time believed that Joseph was dead. But in this second visit, Joseph revealed,
amidst much emotion, that he was in fact their long-lost brother. He convinced
them to go back to Canaan one more time and this time bring back his father
Jacob as well as all of the wives and children and animals, and to make their
home in Egypt, where, thanks to God and to Joseph’s following God’s plan, there
was adequate food, plus, once more, the entire family could be reunited. This
brings us to today’s passage.
So Israel
set out with all that was his, and when he reached Beersheba, he offered
sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. And God spoke to Israel in a vision
at night and said, “Jacob! Jacob!” “Here I am,” he replied. “I am God, the God
of your father,” he said. “Do not be afraid to go down
to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there. I will go down to
Egypt with you, and I will surely bring you back again. And Joseph’s own
hand will close your eyes.” – Genesis 46:1-4
Beersheba was a
place with a lot of connections and history for Jacob, his father Isaac, and
his grandfather Abraham. According to Genesis 21, Abraham had lived there for
an extended time, including the time of Isaac’s childhood. Then, after Abraham
had passed away, according to Genesis 26, Isaac moved back there for a time, a
time when his sons Esau and Jacob were probably young men. Importantly,
Beersheba was a place where both Abraham and Isaac had connected with God.
Genesis 21 tells us that Abraham regularly sacrificed to the Lord there. And
shortly after Isaac returned there years later (after Abraham had passed away),
God appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be
afraid, for I am with you; I will bless you and will increase the number of your
descendants for the sake of My servant Abraham.” And we are told that Isaac,
Jacob’s father, built an altar there and called on the name of the Lord. When
this occurred, Jacob and his twin brother, Esau, were young men. So Jacob was
undoubtedly strongly impacted by the events at Beersheba, both through what he
had seen, and through his father’s accounts of his grandfather.
I think it is
also significant to note that it was while he was in Beersheba that Jacob
deceived his father, getting the blessing that Isaac had meant for Esau. After
this, Jacob fled from Beersheba. With the news that Joseph was in fact alive,
Jacob was undoubtedly shaken to his core. That his sons could do such an action
and then so deceive him! This is conjecture on my part, but I wonder if this
made Jacob think back again on his past actions. Jacob had long since
reconciled with his brother, but as we have seen, Jacob had taken what he
believed to be the loss of Joseph very hard, and it had seemingly affected him
profoundly for all the years since the event had happened. So, again this is conjecture
on my part, but perhaps Jacob’s desire to go back to Beersheba was in part a
desire to reconnect freshly with God, to more fully repent of everything in his
life that had not been done by faith.
It should be noted
that it was in an earlier famine that God spoke to Jacob’s father, while in the
area around Beersheba, and told him specifically not to go to Egypt, but
instead to stay in the area there. And Grandfather Abraham had gone to
Egypt, in a famine, and many challenges came to him because of it. And so Jacob
may have had misgivings about going to Egypt with his entire family. Perhaps
this was not God’s will at all. And so, by going to Beersheba, which
geographically was on the way to Egypt anyway, Jacob gave God the opportunity
to direct him just as, years ago, He had directed his father.
And indeed, God
did speak to him there. It is interesting to me that God called Jacob by his
“former name,” not by the name Israel, which God had since given to him. It may
mean nothing, but I wonder if God called him Jacob because he had regressed
spiritually. And it is also interesting that God does not introduce Himself
saying, “I am your God,” but “I am the God of your father.” But equally God may
have done this just to solidify to Jacob the idea that God had been guiding his
family now for generations, and would continue to do so into the far future,
bringing to fruition the incredible promises He had given Abraham and his
descendants.
And God first
tells Jacob not to be afraid, such a common opening of God and angels in
Scripture, and also tells Jacob he should in fact go to Egypt.
Additionally, He shows Jacob that the incredible promises given to Abraham and
Isaac are still in force. “Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will
make you into a great nation there. I will go down to Egypt with you, and I
will surely bring you back again.” The “you” here really has a double meaning.
It refers to the nation of Israel, the nation of Jacob – remember that Israel
is both the name of the nation and the name of Jacob. God Himself will go down
to Egypt with them. They will be there for many generations, and it will be at
the time of Moses that they will be brought back.
As for making
Israel a great nation, I personally believe that the move down to Egypt was necessary
for this to happen. Even among Jacob’s children, we see examples of
intermixing with the peoples around them, of adopting their sinful beliefs. If
Jacob’s descendants had remained where they were, I believe they would have
eventually completely fallen away from God and simply adopted the cultures of
the people groups around them. But as we will see, God’s arrangements for them
in Egypt will actually isolate them culturally. This will enable them,
weak and fickle as they are, to hold on to their identity and more importantly,
to hold on to some measure of their faith in the living God. When, generations
later, they are overtaken and become slaves to the Egyptians, there will still
be some measure of faith in God in them, something to fan into flames when they
are rescued from Egypt and ultimately brought back to the land promised them
long ago.
And the most
important reason for them to be preserved is that it is out of them that the
Messiah will come, the Savior, the One who will eternally save anyone who comes
to Him in faith. In this way God will fully fulfill His promises through
the ages, including the promises given to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
So the “you” in
the passage refers to the nation of Israel. But it also refers to Jacob
personally, although it will be Jacob’s bones that will be brought back. And
indeed, God makes it clear that Jacob will die in Egypt – Joseph’s own hand
will close his eyes. To you younger folks, hearing a promise about your death
may make you uncomfortable, because perhaps you kind of think that you will
never die. But as one ages, one becomes more accepting of the end of their
current life, and for Jacob, who seemed to have the singular goal of simply
seeing Joseph again, I think the idea of having Joseph close his eyes after he
died was comforting rather than upsetting.
Then Jacob
left Beersheba, and Israel’s sons took their father Jacob and their children
and their wives in the carts that Pharaoh had sent to transport him. So Jacob and
all his offspring went to Egypt, taking with them their livestock and the
possessions they had acquired in Canaan. Jacob brought with him to Egypt his
sons and grandsons and his daughters and granddaughters—all his offspring. –
Genesis 46:5-7
And so this was
a move meant to last a significant amount of time – of course, with the famine,
this was also the only way to ensure that his livestock and even his family
could survive. As we have mentioned multiple times in this series, how amazing
it is that God could use Joseph’s brothers’ great sin as a means to ensure that
God’s promises to Abraham would be fulfilled, that Abraham’s descendants would
quickly multiply into a nation while living in Egypt.
Now the next
several verses detail out all of the people who went to Egypt, including Jacob,
his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. I am going to read all
the verses about this together, and then make some general comments.
These are
the names of the sons of Israel (Jacob and his descendants) who went to Egypt:
Reuben the firstborn of Jacob. The sons of Reuben: Hanok, Pallu, Hezron and
Karmi. The sons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jakin, Zohar and Shaul the son
of a Canaanite woman. The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath and Merari. The sons of
Judah: Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez and Zerah (but Er and Onan had died in the land
of Canaan). The sons of Perez: Hezron and Hamul. The sons of Issachar: Tola,
Puah, Jashub and Shimron. The sons of Zebulun: Sered, Elon and Jahleel. These
were the sons Leah bore to Jacob in Paddan Aram, besides his daughter Dinah.
These sons and daughters of his were thirty-three in all. – Genesis 46:8-15
The sons of
Gad: Zephon, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi and Areli. The sons of Asher:
Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi and Beriah. Their sister was Serah. The sons of Beriah:
Heber and Malkiel. These were the children born to Jacob by Zilpah, whom Laban
had given to his daughter Leah—sixteen in all. – Genesis 46:16-18
The sons of
Jacob’s wife Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. In Egypt, Manasseh and Ephraim were
born to Joseph by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On. The sons of
Benjamin: Bela, Beker, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim and Ard.
These were the sons of Rachel who were born to Jacob—fourteen in all. – Genesis
46:19-22
The son of
Dan: Hushim. The sons of Naphtali: Jahziel, Guni, Jezer and Shillem. These were
the sons born to Jacob by Bilhah, whom Laban had given to his daughter
Rachel—seven in all. – Genesis 46:23-25
All those
who went to Egypt with Jacob—those who were his direct descendants, not
counting his sons’ wives—numbered sixty-six persons. With the two sons who had
been born to Joseph in Egypt, the members of Jacob’s family, which went to
Egypt, were seventy in all. – Genesis 46:26-27
I know that
passages listing people can sometimes feel dry, or even without meaning, but
let me make a few comments. First, this level of detail gives credibility to
the account. If you are going to make something up, you are not going to go to
this level of detail. Note too that the passage gives uncomfortable details. It
even groups people by mother, which is something you don’t really want to draw
attention to, given the history of the birth of Jacob’s children – in
particular, the fact that two of the women were servants of Jacob’s wives. It
also highlights one child as the son of a Canaanite woman. Why bring this up,
especially since it is earlier mentioned that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
specifically avoided marrying them? Also the fact that the youngest child of
Jacob, Benjamin, has the most children is not something you would make up. In
fact, it is hard to see how Benjamin could already have 10 children. And then
there is the issue of Judah’s sons, which I will mention briefly in a minute.
My point is that all of this lends a strong air of credibility to the account.
They seem to be like any modern family – not everything is all roses and
sunshine.
Is the number
of 70 significant? Perhaps. In Genesis 10, the descendants of Noah are listed,
and there are 70 names here as well. Some have suggested that it is almost like
God is starting over again with Jacob’s family as He did with Noah’s family
(except of course there is no flood to destroy all the wicked this time). I
think there may be something to this. Surely it is no coincidence that there
are 12 sons of Jacob and also 12 disciples of Jesus.
Now Jacob
sent Judah ahead of him to Joseph to get directions to Goshen. When they
arrived in the region of Goshen, Joseph had his chariot made ready and went to
Goshen to meet his father Israel. As soon as Joseph appeared before him, he
threw his arms around his father and wept for a long time. Israel said to
Joseph, “Now I am ready to die, since I have seen for myself that you are still
alive.” – Genesis 46:28-30
I do want to
say something about Judah. Judah has come a long way. Back when Joseph’s
brothers were ready to kill Joseph, it was Judah who suggested that they sell
him instead. Now this action did save Joseph’s life, and perhaps it was all
Judah could do to avert his brothers’ bloodthirsty goals. But perhaps he could
have also convinced them to abandon this evil plan entirely. Perhaps he should
have tried, even if there was a risk of his brothers killing them both. Later,
Judah married a Canaanite woman who later died but who did give Judah three
sons. Without going into details, let’s
just say that Judah acted immorally, and this led to Judah marrying Tamar, the
widow of two of Judah’s sons. Tamar was the mother of Judah’s fourth and fifth
sons. (All five sons are mentioned in the earlier passage, but the reader is
also reminded that the first two sons died before the journey to Egypt, and
earlier in Genesis it is made clear that they died because of the magnitude of
their sins against God.)
But the account
of Judah does not end here. In the brothers’ first journey to Egypt, Jacob
insisted that Benjamin (clearly his favorite now after the “loss” of Joseph)
stay behind. Some “complications” arranged by Joseph meant that Simeon was held
as a hostage until they returned with Benjamin – with the stated reason being
that it was to verify if what they had told him previously was true – and to
punish them if not, by causing them to lose their brother. Back at home Jacob
did not want to send them back with Benjamin, because he feared losing him as
well. But Judah stepped up and promised that he would be personally responsible
for Benjamin. The full implications of this are not stated, but it surely
included the idea that, if he wanted to, Jacob could completely cut him off
from the family, a sentence almost as severe as death. Jacob finally agreed to
this when the food had again run out.
When they came
to Egypt a second time, Joseph again orchestrated some “complications” and
threatened to keep Benjamin forever as a slave. But Judah stepped up and gave
an impassioned plea, offering to take the place of Benjamin. It was at this
point that Joseph could no longer continue hiding his identity from them, and
at last let them know who he really was.
Judah’s
willingness to die for someone else has clear hintings of the gospel, and it is
interesting to me that it is from the line of Judah that the Messiah ultimately
comes. It certainly seems like God sees something good in Judah, but it is also
encouraging to know where Judah started and to know that we too, through faith
in God, can also overcome our past.
Here, it seems
that Jacob’s strained relationship with Judah has been restored – he has Judah
be the one who goes ahead to meet Joseph to get directions to Goshen, where they
are supposed to go. From an honor standpoint, this would normally be a role
given to the oldest brother. So it really shows that Jacob has also seen
“something good” in Judah.
What happens
next reminds me strongly of the Jesus’ parable of the prodigal son. A quick
reminder of the parable: A son rebels, demands his inheritance early from his
father, and then goes away and spends it all foolishly. Eventually he realizes
his sinfulness, he “comes to his senses” and decides to come back to his father
to see if he will hire him as a servant. But when the father sees him still a
long way off, he runs to him, not caring if he looks undignified doing so, and
embraces him when they meet. The parable is a beautiful picture of how God
Himself feels about those who repent and come to Him in faith.
Here, Joseph,
who has repeatedly been a picture of the Messiah Jesus in his actions, acts
like the father in the parable. Once his father is in Goshen, he does not wait
until a convenient time to come out to see him – undoubtedly, as the practical
leader of Egypt, in the middle of a horrendous drought no less, he is
incredibly busy. No, instead, he rushes out in his chariot to meet him as
quickly as possible, embracing him when he gets there. Apparently, buckets of
tears are shed, from both parties. I guess here we see where Joseph gets it
from.
Let me say, as
I make light of the reunion, I am sure that there will be buckets of tears on
my part when at last I see Jesus face to face. And I dare say that you will
shed buckets of tears too. But Jesus will wipe away every tear.
Returning to
the passage, we see Jacob, interestingly again described by the God-given name
of Israel, saying, “Now I am ready to die, for I have seen for myself that you
are still alive.” Jacob’s statement reminds me of a different passage in the
gospels:
Now there
was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was
waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. It had
been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had
seen the Lord’s Messiah. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts.
When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for Him what the custom of
the Law required, Simeon took Him in his arms and praised God, saying:
“Sovereign Lord, as You have promised, You may now dismiss Your servant in
peace. For my eyes have seen Your salvation, which You have prepared in the
sight of all nations: a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of
Your people Israel.” – Luke 2:25-32
And so we see
yet again how the wonderful story of Joseph points to a much more wonderful
story, the story of our Savior.
Once again, we
see a wonderful illustration in Joseph of Christ. Joseph serves as Jacob’s
family’s representative and advocate. If it were not for Joseph, the Egyptians
would probably demand that they leave, or perhaps even enslave them. But they
are under the protection of Joseph, who is second only to Pharaoh himself. And
Pharaoh trusts Joseph completely, so that whatever Joseph suggests, Pharaoh
also goes along with.
In the same
way, Jesus is our representative and advocate. Here are some verses that speak
to this:
My dear
children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does
sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is
the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins
of the whole world. – I John 2:1-2
Therefore He
is able to save completely those who come to God through Him, because He always
lives to intercede for them. – Hebrews 7:25
With regards to
that second verse, we see an important contrast between Joseph and Jesus.
Joseph did not always live. And generations later, we are told about the
following:
Then a new
king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt. “Look,” he said to
his people, “the Israelites have become far too numerous for us. Come, we must
deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war
breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country.” So
they put slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labor, and they
built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh. – Exodus 1:9-11
This is of
course not true for Jesus. Jesus will never (again) die. He will always be
our advocate with the Father. And of course the analogy breaks down in other
ways – Jesus and the Father are one. There will never be a “new” Father to come
along – and so on. And our Father is not evil, or irrational. He is good.
Now, returning
to the passage:
Then Joseph
said to his brothers and to his father’s household, “I will go up and speak to
Pharaoh and will say to him, ‘My brothers and my father’s household, who were
living in the land of Canaan, have come to me. The men are shepherds; they tend
livestock, and they have brought along their flocks and herds and everything
they own.’ When Pharaoh calls you in and asks, ‘What is your occupation?’ you
should answer, ‘Your servants have tended livestock from our boyhood on, just
as our fathers did.’ Then you will be allowed to settle in the region of
Goshen, for all shepherds are detestable to the Egyptians.” – Genesis 46:31-34
Joseph’s plan –
which was really God’s plan – allowed the Israelites to be left completely
alone for many years. Free from interference, and free from being tempted by
the Egyptians to abandon the true God for their idols. And as well, free from
being tempted by the Egyptians to perform their various evil practices.
Now we don’t
really know what is meant by the statement that “all shepherds are detestable
to the Egyptians.” The Egyptians themselves were certainly shepherds. Probably
the meaning is that shepherding was considered an extremely lowly, dishonorable
profession. We see the same opinion throughout Scripture times. And because God
loves to make the first last and the last first, we see throughout Scripture
events where God elevates the lowly shepherd. We see it for example in the
selection of David as king of Israel, and we see it with the angelic visitation
to the shepherds when Christ was born. And we also see it in how Jesus Himself
identifies as a shepherd, as the Good Shepherd.
And what do
shepherds do? I am reminded of Jesus’ own response:
“I am the
good shepherd; I know my sheep and My sheep know Me—just as the Father knows Me
and I know the Father—and I lay down My life for the sheep. I have other sheep
that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to
My voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. – John 10:14-16
A good shepherd
leads the sheep, keeps them safe, brings them home. And so it strikes me that
Joseph is a foreshadowing of Christ in how he too is a good shepherd. He has
brought his family to a new home, one where they will be safe and have all that
they need, one where they can thrive. But God has elevated him not just to be
the shepherd of his family, but of the entire land of Egypt. He too has other
sheep that are not of this sheep pen. And he brings them to safety also. They
too listen to his voice, and there is effectively one flock and one shepherd.
But there is
also a stark difference between Joseph and Jesus – listen to the next verses
that Jesus gives in John 10:
The reason
My Father loves Me is that I lay down My life—only to take it up again. No one
takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay
it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from My
Father.” – John 10:17-18
Now God’s love
for us is unconditional – in that while we were still sinners, God loved us and
sent His Son for us. But on top of that unconditional love is an additional
kind of love that rejoices in us when we obey Him. And Jesus obeyed His Father
perfectly. But it was a choice for Jesus to obey His Father just as it is a
choice for us. There is a sense in which it would have been impossible for
Jesus to disobey, given His very nature as God. But it was still a choice.
Otherwise, it would not make sense to say that Jesus was tempted just like us,
and yet did not sin. And Jesus’ choice was to lay down His life for the sheep –
that is, us – because the Father asked it of Him.
And this is
where the situation with Joseph is quite different. Joseph never had a choice
about going through what he went through. He did have countless choices during
those events, and mostly he chose the path of obedience and faith. But being
human, of the seed of Adam, he also had his failings. Jesus, however, never had
to go through any of what He went through. He could have done anything,
anything at all, at any time. And that, combined with being God Himself, is
why, although Joseph is worthy of praise, Jesus alone is worthy of worship.
And Jesus too
has gone to prepare a place for us. Being the Good, the Perfect, Shepherd, He
too will lead us out of the desert into a beautiful place, a place where we are
safe and can thrive, and unlike Joseph, He will be with us forever.
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