Genesis 46
1 “And
offered sacrifices unto the God of his father
Isaac.” And
theocratic family) took his journey - literally, broke up his encampment (compare
ch.12:9) - with all that he had, and came -
from
where Abraham (ch. 21:33) and Isaac (ch. 26:25) had both sojourned for considerable
periods, and erected altars to Jehovah - and offered sacrifices unto the God (the Elohim)
of his father Isaac. Probably giving thanks to God for the tidings concerning Joseph
(Ainsworth); consulting God' about his journey to
pouring out before God his fear as well as gratitude and joy, more especially if he
thought about the stern prophecy (ch. 15:13) which had been given to Abraham
(Kalisch); perhaps commending himself and family to the care of his covenant
God (Keil), and certainly praying that God would confirm to him, and his, the
covenant which had been made with
his fathers (Calvin).
2 “And God spake unto
And he said, Here am I.” And God (Elohim)
spake unto
the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob - the name Jacob being employed probably to
remind Jacob of what he had been (Lawson, Bush, Wordsworth), and repeated
ut magis attentus reddatur (Calvin). And he said, Here am I - literally, behold me
(compare ch. 22:1).
3 “And He said, I am God, the God of thy father:
fear not to go down into
the God of thy father - literally, I am the El (the Mighty One), the Elohim of
thy father. Though in consequence of this phrase the section (vs. 1-7), indeed
the entire chapter, is usually assigned to the Elohist (Tuch, Bleek, Vaihinger),
yet the contents of this theophany are felt to be so substantially Jehovistic in
their import (Hengstenberg), that certain critics have been constrained to give
vs. 1-5 to the Jehovist (Colenso), or, omitting the last clause of v. 5, to the
redactor (Davidson). In ch. 28:13 the designation used is "I
am Jehovah,
the God of Abraham thy father." As on that former occasion when
setting
out for Padanaram, so now, when
departing for
comforting assurance. Fear not to go down into
for Jacob's apprehensions, since Abraham had been in peril in the land of the
Pharaohs (ch. 12:14-20), Isaac had been forbidden to go thither (ch. 26:2),
and
(ch. 15:13). מֵרְדָה is an irregular infinitive רֵדָה for רֶדֶת (compare דֵּעַה for דַּעַת,
Exodus 2:4), with מִן. prefixed after a verb of fearing (see Ewald's 'Hebrews
Synt.,' § 336). For I will there make of thee a great nation - literally, for to
a great nation will I put thee there (compare ch. 21:13). Jacob had previously
received the injunction, accompanied by the Divine benediction, to be fruitful
and multiply (ch. 28:3). Twice over had it previously been predicted that he
should develop into a multitudinous people (ch. 28:14; 35:11). The present
promise was an indication that the
fulfillment of the prophecy was at hand.
“I will go down with
thee into
again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes.” I will go down with thee
into
when they changed their abodes, and confined to the district in which they happened
for the time being to reside (Tuch, Bohlen), but simply a metaphorical expression
for the efficiency and completeness of the
Divine protection (Kalisch) - and I
will
also surely bring thee up again (literally, and I will bring thee up also, bringing
thee up; a double emphasis lying in the use of the infinitive absolute, with גַּם
preceding, as in ch. 31:15, meaning that God would assuredly recover his body
for interment in Canaan should he
die in
in the land of their inheritance): and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes –
i.e. will perform for thee the last offices of affection by closing thine eyes in death,
a service upon which the human heart in all ages and
countries has set the highest
value (vide Homer, ' I1 .' 11. 453; 'Odys.,' 24:294; Virg., 'AEn.,' 9:487; Ovid, ' Epist.,'
1:162). "A father at the point of death is always very desirous that his wife, children,
and grandchildren should be with him. Should there be one at a distance, he will
be immediately sent for, and until he arrive the father will mourn and complain,
'My son, will you not come? I
cannot die without you.' When he arrives, he will
take the hands of his son, and kiss them, and place them on
his eyes, his face,
and mouth, and say, ' Now I die.'" (Roberts' 'Oriental Illustrations,' p. 52).
Guidance (vs. 3-4)
Convinced that Joseph really lived, Jacob’s first impulse
was to hasten to
him.
But at
of God. The promise made him reminds of that at
occasion of leaving the land; each
revealing God’s protecting care. His
presence is the only pledge of safety (compare Exodus 33:14-15). It
was not
a
word for Jacob only. Had it been so it would have failed, for Jacob never
returned to
Hebrews 11:9-10). It was the assurance that God’s word would not
fail. Though he seemed to be leaving his inheritance, he was
being led in
the
way appointed for its more complete possession. God was with him in
all. This fully made known to us in Immanuel, without whom we
can do
nothing, but who by the Holy Spirit abides in His people (John
15:4; 16:14).
drew near to God (compare Nehemiah 2:4; II Corinthians 12:8).
Not even
to see Joseph would he go without inquiring of the Lord.
Christ by his
Holy Spirit is to His people
wisdom (I Corinthians 1:30). The habit of
prayer for guidance, or for wisdom to discern the right way, RESTS ON
SURE PROMISES! (Isaiah 30:21; Luke 11:13), and is a thoroughly
practical resource. We look not for visions or direct manifestations.
But guidance is given through channels infinitely varied, though our
way may seem strange; and it may be long ere we find that our
prayer
has been all along answered in the course of events. Why so much neglect
of this? so much uncertainty? Because often men do not really seek to
be guided by God. Their
real wish is to be led AS THEY THEMSELVES
WISH!
ON HIS GUIDANCE. They may seem to be led far from what they hoped for.
They would fain have great
spiritual elevation, and are kept low. They would
like to do great work, and are led through homely duties; to
have great
powers for God’s service, and are made weak. The cross must be
borne
(Revelation 3:19), and it is
sure to take a form they do not like. Otherwise
it would not be really a cross. Many would willingly endure
pain or poverty
if they might thereby gain fame.
The universe in its laws shows
power, wisdom, and love. But what inspires
trust is the confidence that
each one is remembered and cared for by God,
a confidence called forth by the human sympathy of Christ (Matthew
9:36;
Luke 7:13; John
11:35).
5 ”And Jacob rose up from
their father, and their little ones, and their
wives, in the wagons which
Pharaoh had sent to
carry him. 6
And they took their cattle, and their
goods, which they had gotten in the
Jacob, and all his
seed with him: 7
His sons, and his sons' sons with him,
his daughters, and his sons' daughters, and
all his seed brought he with
him into
vision (Calvin) - from
of more than a day or two's, perhaps only a night's, duration): “Unlike the heathen tribes around them, and Oriental nations generally, the family of
Jacob gave honor to the wife as to the weaker vessel"
(Lawson) - in the wagons
which Pharaoh had sent to carry him
(see ch. 45:19, 21). And they took their
cattle, and their goods (including
probably their servants), which they had
gotten in the
stuff, because the good of all the
not to take advantage of Pharaoh's goodness, or to owe greater obligations to
him than he found necessary"
(Lawson) - and came into
depicted on the tomb of Chumhotep, the near relative and successor of
Shemitic in their origin, entering
and children, borne upon asses. Without affirming that this was the Egyptian
version of the descent of
of that event (see Wilkinson, 'Ancient Egyptians,' vol. 1. p. 480, ed. 1878;
Brugsch, 'Histoire d'Egypte,' p. 63; Hengstenberg's
'
Moses,' p. 37) - Jacob, and all his seed (i.e. his
descendants) with him: his
sons, and his sons' sons with him, his daughters (this need not imply that
Jacob had more daughters than Dinah, but may include his sons wives,
who are not otherwise mentioned in
this enumeration), and his sons'
daughters, and all his seed brought he
with him into
this event was in the 130th year of Jacob's life (ch. 47:9), and 215 years
after the call of Abraham (ch. 12:4), i.e. B.C. 1728 (Usher), 1885 (Hales);
or A.M. 2276 (Usher), 3526 (Hales).
God Speaking in the Visions of the Night
(vs. 1-7)
While there were providential intimations which were clear
enough, still the
direct revelation of God was necessary for Jacob’s assurance. At
spirit, and receives in return the message of the covenant God: “I will make
of thee a
great nation.” “I will also surely bring thee up again,” i.e. in thy
descendants. The vision is not a mere personal matter for Jacob’s
consolation, it is another in the series of Divine revelations which
are
connected with the
development of the covenant.
8 “And these are the names of the children of
Jacob and his sons:
Reuben, Jacob's firstborn.” And these are the names of the
children of
must obviously be construed with some considerable latitude, since in the appended
list of seventy persons, "souls of the house of Jacob which came
into
reckoned Joseph, who undoubtedly
came into
and Hamul, the sons of Pharez, as well as the descendants of Benjamin, who
probably, and Ephraim and Manasseh, the children of Joseph, who certainly,
were born in
9 “And the sons of Reuben; Hanoch,
and Phallu, and Hezron, and
Carmi.
And the sons of Reuben; Hanoch, - "Initiated or Dedicated;" the name also of
Cain's firstborn (ch. 4:17), and of the son of Jared (ch. 5:19) - and Phallu, -
"Distingushed" (Gesenius) - and Hezron, - "Enclosed" (Gesenius), "Of the Court
or Village" (Murphy), "Blooming One" (Furst) - and Carmi, - "Vine-dresser"
(Gesenius, Murphy), "Noble One" (Furst).
10 “And the sons of Simeon; Jemuel,
and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jachin, and
Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanitish
woman.” And the sons of Simeon;
Jemuel, - "Day of El" (Gesenius, Murphy); in I Chronicles 4:24, Nemuel - and Jamin,
- "Right Hand" (Gesenius, Murphy) - and Ohad, - "Joined together" (Gesenius, Murphy)
- and Jachin, - "Whom God strengthens" (Gesenius), "He shall establish" (Murphy), or
Jarib (I Chronicles 4:24) - and Zohar, - "Whiteness" (Gesenius, Murphy); named
Zerah (ibid.) - and Shaul,
- "Asked for" (Gesenius) - the
son of a Canaanitish
woman. The wives of the other
sons, except
11 “And the sons of Levi; Gershon,
Kohath, and Merari.” And the
sons of Levi;
Gershon, - or Gershom, - "Expulsion" (Gesenins), - Kohath, or Kehath, - "Assembly"
(Gesenius) - and Merari, - "Bitter," "Unhappy" (Gesenius), Flowing" (Murphy),
Harsh One" (Lange).
12 “And the sons of Judah; Er,
and Onan, and Shelah, and Pharez, and Zerah:
but Er and Onan died in the
and Hamul.” And the
sons of
and Pharez,
and Zerah (ibid. v. 29; I Chronicles 2:4): but Er
and Onan died in the
and Hamul,
- "One who has experienced mercy" (Gesenius).
13 “And the sons of Issachar;
Tola, and Phuvah, and Job,
and Shimron.”
And the sons of Issachar; Tola, - "Worm, Scarlet" (Gesenius) - and Phuvah, -
"Mouth"? (Gesenius) - and Job, - perhaps an incorrect reading for Jashub
("Turning Oneself"), as in Numbers 26:24; I Chronicles 7:1 (Gesenius), which
the Septuagint adopts - and Shimron, - "Watch" (Gesenius).
14 “And the sons of Zebulun;
Sered, and Elon, and Jahleel.”
And the sons of Zebulun; Sered, - "Fear" (Gesenius) - and Elon, "Oak" –
and Jahleel, - "Whom God has made sick" (Gesenius).
15 “These be the sons of
Leah, which she bare unto Jacob in Padanaram,
with his daughter Dinah: all the souls of his
sons and his daughters were
thirty and three.” These
be the sons of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob in
Padanaram (i.e. the descendants of Leah's sons which were born in Padan-aram),
with his daughter Dinah (who probably had continued unmarried after her
misfortune in Shechem, and is here mentioned
as an independent member of
Jacob's family [what going “......out to see the daughters of the land” can do
for a young girl – in this case ruin her for life – ch. 34:1] – CY – 2019):
all the souls of his sons and his daughters (reckoning himself, and excluding
Er and Onan)
were
thirty and three.
16 “And the sons of Gad; Ziphion,
and Haggi, Shuni, and Ezbon, Eri, and Arodi,
and Areli.” And the sons of Gad; Ziphion, - "Expectation" (Gesenius); Zephon
(Numbers 26:15) - and Haggi, - " Festive" (Gesenius) - Shuni, - "Quiet" (Gesenius) –
and Ezbon, - "Toiling" (Murphy); named Ozni (Numbers 26:16) - Eri, - "Guarding"
(Gesenius) - and Arodi, - "Wild Ass" (Gesenius), "Rover" (Murphy), "Descendants"
(Lange); styled Arod (Numbers 26:17) - and Areli - "Lion of El" (Murphy), "Son of
a Hero" (Gesenius),
"Heroic" (Lange).
17 “And the sons of Asher; Jimnah,
and Ishuah, and Isui, and Beriah, and
Serah their sister: and the sons of Beriah; Heber, and Malchiel.”
And the sons of Asher; Jimnah, - "Prosperity" (Gesenius) - and Ishuah, -
"Even, Level" (Gesenius)
- and
Isui, - "Even," "Level" (Gesenius): they may
have been twins - and Beriah, - "Gift" (Gesenius), "In Evil" (Murphy) - and Serah –
"Abundance" (Gesenius),
"Over- flow" (Murphy) - their sister: and the sons of
Beriah; Heber, - "Fellowship" (Gesenius) - and Malchiel - "King of El" (Gesenius,
Murphy), "My king is El" (Lange). 18 “These
are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban
gave to Leah his daughter, and these she bare unto Jacob, even sixteen souls.”
19 “The sons of Rachel Jacob's wife; Joseph, and
Benjamin. 20 And unto
Joseph
in the
daughter of Potipherah priest of On bare unto him.” (see ch. 41:50). The
Septuagint, having probably transferred them from I Chronicles 7:14, append
the words, Ἐγένοντο δε υἱοὶ
Μανασσῆ οὕς ἔτεκεν
αὐτῶ ἡ παλλακὴ ἡ Συρα τὸν
Μαχίρ Μαχὶρ δὲ ἐγὲννησε
τὸν Γαλαάδ.
Υἱοὶ δὲ
Ἐφραι'μ ἀδελφοῦ Μανασσῆ
Σουταλαἀμ και Ταάμ Υἱοὶ
δε Σουταλαὰμ
Ἐδώμ – Egenonto de hioi Manassae hous
eteken auto hae pallakae hae
Sura ton Machir Machir de egennaese ton Galaad
Hioi de Ephraim adelphou Manassae Soutalaam kai Taam Hioi
de Soutalaam
- (proper nouns mentioned in above Greek text are
Ephraim, , Since they are not to be found in the Samaritan text, Rosenmüller thinks
they may have been originally written on the margin, and thence by some subsequent
copyist transferred to the text.
21 “And the sons of Benjamin were Belah, and Becher, and Ashbel,
Naaman, Ehi, and Rosh, Muppim,
and Huppim, and Ard.” And the sons of
Benjamin were Belah, - "Devouring (Gesenius); the ancient name of Zoar, one
of the cities in the
(Gesenius) - and Ashbol, - "Opinion of God" (Gesenius), "Sprout" (Lange),
"Short?" (Murphy) -
"Pleasantness" (Gesenius) - Ehi, - "Brotherly" (Lange, Murphy); = Ehud, "Joining
together" (Gesenius), I Chronicles 8:6; styled Ahiram (Numbers 26:38) - and Rosh, -
"Head" (Gesenius) - Muppim, - "Adorned One" (Lange); = Shupham (Numbers 26:38)
and Shephupham (1 Chronicles 8:5), "Serpent"? (Gesenius) - and Huppim, -
"Coverings" (Gesenius), or Hupham (Numbers 26:39) - and Ard - "Fugitive," "Rover"
(Murphy), "Ruler"? (Lange). In Numbers 26:40 Naaman and Ard are given as the
sons of Bela,
and the grandsons of Benjamin; a plausible explanation
of which
is that Benjamin's sons died early, and were replaced in the list of heads of
families by two of Bela's sons who had been named after them (Keil, Murphy,
Inglis, et alii). In the same table of mishpachoth the names of Becher, Gem, and
Rosh have been omitted, and that probably for a similar reason - that they died
either without issue, or without a number of descendants large enough to form
independent families.
22 “These are the sons of Rachel, which were born to
Jacob: all the souls were
fourteen.”
23 “And the sons of Dan; Hushim.” "Those who make haste" (Gesenius);
designated Shuham
in Numbers 26:42.
24 “And the sons of Naphtali;
Jahzeel, and Guni, and Jezer, and Shillem.”
And the sons of Naphtali; Jahzeel, - "Allotted by God" (Gesenius) - and Guni, -
"Painted" (Gesenius), "Dyed" (Murphy), "Protected" (Lange) - and Jezer, - "Image,"
"Form" (Gesenius, Lange, Murphy) - and Shillem - "Retribution" (Gesenius), "
Avenger" (Lange).
25 “These are the sons of Bilhah,
which Laban gave unto Rachel his daughter,
and she bare these unto Jacob: all the souls
were seven.”
26 “All the souls that came with Jacob into
besides Jacob's sons' wives, all the souls were
threescore and six; 27 And the
sons of Joseph, which were born him in
of the house of Jacob, which came into
According to the Septuagint the number of Joseph's sons was nine; and the
number of those who came with Jacob
into
by Stephen (Acts 7:14). The apparent confusion in these different numbers, sixty-six,
seventy, seventy- five, will disappear if it be observed that the first takes no account
of Jacob, Joseph, Manasseh, and Ephraim, while they are as palpably included in the
second computation, and that Stephen simply adds to the seventy of v. 27 the five
grandsons of Joseph who are mentioned in the Septuagint version, from which he
quoted, or to the sixty-six of v. 26 the nine mentioned above, consisting of Jacob,
Joseph, Manasseh, Ephraim, and Joseph's five grandsons, thus making seventy-five
in all. There is thus no irreconcilable contradiction between the Hebrew historian
and the Christian orator.
The Beginning of the Nation (vs. 8-27)
“The souls of the house of Jacob which came into
and ten.” The number seventy became afterwards a symbolic number
among the Israelites as in the seventy elders of Moses, the
seventy of the
Sanhedrim, the seventy of the Alexandrian version of the
Scriptures (Septuagint),
the
seventy disciples of the Lord, the seventy heathen nations of the world
according to the Jews. There may be something in the combination of
numbers. Seventy is 7 × 10. Ten is the symbol of the complete
development of humanity. Seven of perfection.
Therefore seventy may
symbolize the elect people of God as the hope of humanity —
foreshadowing of the Savior’s appointments in the beginning of the
Christian Church. The small number of
multitude of
the day of
small things?” (Zechariah 4:10)
28 “And he sent
and they came into the
Joseph (the noble qualities displayed by
certainly merited the affectionate admiration and hearty confidence of the aged
patriarch), to direct his face unto
the necessary instructions for conducting the pilgrims to their appointed settlement
(Dathius, Rosenmüller, Keil, Lange, Ainsworth, Murphy, 'Speaker's Commentary'),
rather than that Joseph might meet
him in
Kalisch) - and (having received
the necessary directions) they came into the
of
29 “And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up
to meet
to
on his neck a good while.” And Joseph
made ready his chariot, and went up to
meet
(i.e. Joseph) appeared (the niph. form of the verb, which is commonly used of the
appearance of God or His angels, being here employed to indicate the glory in
which Joseph came to meet his
father: Keil) unto him, viz., Jacob - and
he fell on
his neck, - i.e. Joseph fell upon Jacob s neck (Septuagint, Vulgate, Calvin, Dathe,
Keil, and commentators generally), though Maimonides regards Jacob as the subject
of the verb fell - and
wept on his neck a good while - in undoubted
transports of joy,
feeling his soul by those delicious moments abundantly
recompensed for all the
tears he had shed since he parted from his father in
years before.
30 “And
thou art yet alive.” And
he trembled in his son's embrace) said
unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen
thy face, because thou art still alive - literally, I will die this time, after I have seen
thy face, that (Keil, Kalisch), or since, thou art still alive; the meaning of the patriarch
being that, since with his own eyes he was now assured of Joseph's happiness, he had
nothing more to live for, the last earthly longing of his heart having been
completely
satisfied, and was perfectly prepared for the last
scene of all - ready,
whenever God
willed, to be gathered
to his fathers.
31 “And Joseph said unto his brethren, and unto his
father's house, I will go up,
and shew Pharaoh,
and say unto him, My brethren, and my father's house, which
were in the
for their trade hath been to feed cattle; and
they have brought their flocks,
and their herds, and all that they have.” And
Joseph said unto his brethren, and
unto his father's house, I will go up
(employed in v. 29 to describe a journey from
the interior of the country to the
desert, or
courtly sense to signify a visit to a sovereign or superior), and show Pharaoh (literally,
relate, or tell, to Pharaoh), and
say unto him, My brethren, and my father's house,
which were in the
(literally, keepers of flocks), for their trade hath been to feed cattle (literally, they
are men of cattle);
and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that
they have.
33 “And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall
call you, and shall say, What
is your occupation? 34 That ye
shall say, Thy servants' trade hath been about
cattle from our youth even until now, both we,
and also our fathers: that ye
may dwell in the
the Egyptians.” And it
shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and
shall say, What is your occupation? Pharaoh's inquiry was characteristically
Egyptian, being rendered necessary by the strict distinction of castes that then
prevailed. According to a law promulgated by Amasis, a monarch of the 26th dynasty,
every Egyptian was obliged to give a yearly account to the monarch or State governor
of how he lived, with the certification that if he failed to show that he possessed an
honorable calling (δικαίην ζόην – dikaiaen zoaen - ) he should be put to death
(Herod., 2:177). That ye shall say, Thy servants' trade hath been about cattle
(literally, men of cattle are thy
servants) from our youth even until now, both
we, and also our fathers: that ye
may dwell in the
probably desired his brethren to
settle in
(1) It was suitable for their flocks and herds;
(2) it would secure their isolation from the Egyptians; and
(3) it was contiguous to
arrived for their return.
For every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians. These are obviously
the words not of Joseph, but of the historian, and their accuracy is strikingly
corroborated by Herodotus (2. 47, 164), who affirms that the swine-herds,
one of the seven castes, classes, or guilds into which the Egyptians were
divided, were regarded with such abhorrence that they were not allowed to
enter a temple or contract marriage with any others of their countrymen; and
by existing monuments, which show that though the statement of Josephus
('
with the keeping of sheep,' yet those, who tended cattle were greatly despised,
Egyptian artists evincing the contempt in which they were held by frequently
representing them as either lame or deformed, dirty and unshaven, and sometimes
of a most ludicrous appearance (vide Wilkinson, 'Ancient Egyptians,' vol. 2. p. 444,
ed. 1878). It has been thought that the disrepute in which the shepherd guild was
held by the Egyptians was attributable partly to the nature of their occupation,
and partly to the feeling excited against them by the domination of the shepherd
kings (Wilkinson, Wordsworth, Murphy, and others); but
(1) while this might account for their dislike to foreign shepherds, it would not
explain their antipathy to native shepherds;
(2) if, as some think, Joseph's Pharaoh was one of the shepherd kings, it is not
likely that this rooted prejudice against shepherds would then be publicly
expressed, however violently it might afterwards explode;
(3) there is good reason for
believing that the descent into
period much earlier than the shepherd kings.
Hence the explanation of this singular antipathy to shepherds or wandering nomads
has been sought in the fact that the Egyptians were essentially an agricultural people,
who associated ideas of rudeness and barbarism with the very name of a shepherd
(Hengstenberg, Keil, Kurtz), perhaps because from a very early period they had
been exposed on their Eastern boundary to incursions from such nomadic
shepherds (Rosenmüller), and perhaps also because from their occupation
shepherds were accustomed to kill the animals held sacred by the other
classes of the community (Kalisch).
The
Descent of Jacob and His Family into
(vs. 1-34)
Ø The journey to Beersheba. Distant from
miles,
motive
for halting at “the well of the oath” consisted in the fact that it had
been, so
to speak, consecrated by the
previous encampments of Abraham
and Isaac, by the altars they had there
erected, and the revelations they had
there enjoyed. It is both pleasurable and profitable to
visit scenes and
places
that have been hallowed by the saints of former days; and though
now under
the Christian dispensation it is true that every place is holy
ground,
yet few there are who do not feel their religious emotions
quickened
when they stand upon some
sacred spot where
holy men have
walked
and prayed, or saintly martyrs bled and died.
Ø The stoppage at Beersheba.
o
The
solemn act of worship
— “Jacob
offered sacrifices unto the God
of his
father Isaac.” This
he did in obedience to Divine prescription,
which had appointed the presentation of
offerings as the only acceptable
mode of worship,
in imitation of the piety of his ancestors, in presence
of his assembled
household, in supplication of Divine direction with
regard to
his
contemplated journey:
o
The
midnight revelation. “I
said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye
me m
vain,” was Jehovah’s
word to
and certainly He never said so either to
Jacob’s ancestors or to Jacob
himself. As formerly He had appeared to
Abraham and to Isaac on
this very
spot, so now He appeared to their descendant:
§
solemnly, in the visions of the night;
§
audibly, speaking to him in a voice articulate and clear;
§
earnestly, saying, Jacob, Jacob, to which Jacob answered,
Here am I; and
§
graciously, discovering himself as the covenant God of his
father
Isaac.
o
The
encouraging exhortation
— “Fear not to go down to
Abraham had
been formerly reproved for going into
prevented
from following his example; but here Jacob is both permitted
and advised
to go. No saint can safely guide himself by following the
example of
another. What is God’s will concerning one man may be
the
opposite concerning another. It is best to imitate the patriarch,
and after
asking God’s counsel follow where He, His Spirit, word,
or providence, may lead.
o
The fourfold promise:
§
“I
will there make of thee a great nation”
§
“I
will surely go down with thee”
§
“I
will also surely bring thee up again” and,
§
“Joseph
shall put his hand upon thine eyes;”
a promise
of enlargement:
§
protection,
§
restoration,
§
consolation;
a
promise, like all God’s promises in the gospel, suited to the
needs
of His servant.”
Ø The advance from Beersheba. This took place with alacrity, for Jacob
“rose up;” with unanimity, for they all went, carrying with them their wives
and
little ones; and with comfort, since they rode in Pharaoh’s wagons; and
with
safety, for it is added that they “came into
Ø
Their character.
o
Descendants
of Jacob. They came
out of Jacob’s loins. In the entire
catalogue
there is no name that cannot be traced down in a direct line
from Jacob.
o
Immigrants
into
certain mount
of latitude, since Joseph’s sons were born in
and
probably all the family of Benjamin. But the accuracy of the
language
may be defended on the principle that the historian
represents
the entire family as having done what was done by its
head.
o
Ancestors
of
Jacob’s
grandsons of the families, that subsequently formed the nation.
Ø
Their number.
o
“All
the souls were threescore and six;”
o
“all
the souls of the house of Jacob were threescore and ten;”
o
according
to Stephen the total of Jacob’s kindred was “threescore and
fifteen
souls.”
For the reconciliation of these different
accounts, see the Exposition.
Ø
The mission of
that he (Joseph) “might direct his face unto
Ø The coming of Joseph.
o
Joseph
and his father.
Learning of Jacob’s arrival, Joseph “made
ready his
chariot and went up to meet
It was not ostentation,
but the impatience of love that caused Joseph
to drive
to
aged
parent, he falls upon his neck and weeps, unable for a good
while to
control his tears; while the old man is so overcome at
having
his long-lost Joseph once more in his embrace, that he is
quite
willing to depart: “Now let me die, since I have seen thy face,
because
thou art yet alive.”
o
Joseph
and his brethren.
Informing them of his intention to report
their rrival to Pharaoh, he explains to them that Pharaoh will
inquire
about
their occupation, and directs them how to answer so as to
secure
their residence in
according
to some, but rather a proof of the kindly and fraternal
interest
he took in his brothers’ welfare.
The Meeting of the Aged Jacob and His Lost
Son Joseph
(vs. 28-34)
of grace. Reminding us of Simeon, “Now lettest thou thy servant depart in
peace,” Luke 2:29 (
is placed upon the royal tribe).’ The meeting of father and
son takes place in
(John 17:15-17)
from the beginning. The policy of Joseph again is a mingling
together of:
Pharaoh the low caste of the
shepherds, but he trusts in God that what was
an abomination unto the Egyptians will be made by His grace
acceptable. It
was a preservation at
the same time from intermarriage with Egyptians, and
a security to the Israelites of the pastoral country of
to suffer reproach with the people of God than to be
received among the
highest in the heathen land, AT THE COST OF the sacredness of the
chosen people, a
lesson this on the importance of preserving ourselves
“unspotted from the world.”
(James
1:27)
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