ToC | Reading the Old Testament. . . Chapter 2. Genesis 12-50 | ToC

B. Israel in Egypt (46-50)

When Jacob heard the news about Joseph he eagerly packed up the family's belongings and traveled to Egypt. The family received royal permission to settle in Goshen.

Asiatic Semites Arrive in Egypt

Dating to the 19th century B.C.E., this tomb painting from Beni Hasan depicts a group of Asiatics arriving in Egypt. In a similar manner the clan of Jacob traveled from Canaan and settled in the Goshen region of the Nile Delta. Being from Sinai or southern Canaan, the ancestors of Israel may have looked like this.
Middle portion of the original cave painting of panel 2

Lepsius (1849-59) III, 40

    The themes of blessing and growth are most obvious in these chapters. The family of Jacob prospered in Egypt, and he lavished the patriarchal blessing on each of his sons (Genesis 49), as well as on his favored grandsons (Genesis 48), before he died. This latter episode, the account of Jacob blessing Joseph's sons Manasseh and Ephraim, demonstrates that Jacob had lost none of his trickery. Joseph had positioned his sons before Jacob in such a way that the preferred right hand of blessing would fall on Manasseh's head, the firstborn. But true to form, Jacob defied expectations, crossed his arms, and gave the younger Ephraim the better blessing.

Jacob's Blessing, by Rembrandt (1609-1669)

1656, Staatliche Museen, Berlin -- CGFA

    Yet the richness of blessing was tempered by Israel's family being in Egypt. Even as the blessings of fertility and benefit were coming to fruition, the promise of land was still elusive. While the family was fruitful and multiplied, they were exiles from the land of promise because of the famine there.
    Lastly, we should note that the Joseph cycle is important because it gave the explanation of how and why the Israelites ended up in Egypt. Looking ahead to the book of Exodus, where the Israelites are in bondage, we need to know how they got there. The Joseph cycle explains this, and points ahead in anticipation of how God will rescue his people in the great exodus from Egypt.
ToC | Reading the Old Testament. . . Chapter 2. Genesis 12-50 | ToC