1 And Israel took his journey with all that he had and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices unto the God of his father Isaac.

2 And God spoke unto Israel in the visions of the night and said, “Jacob, Jacob.” And he said, “Here am I.”

3 And He said, “I am God, the God of thy father. Fear not to go down into Egypt, for I will there make of thee a great nation.

4 I will go down with thee into Egypt, and I will also surely bring thee up again; and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes.”

5 And Jacob rose up from Beersheba; and the sons of Israel carried Jacob 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 land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, 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 Egypt.

8 And these are the names of the children of Israel who came into Egypt, Jacob and his sons: Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn.

9 And the sons of Reuben: Hanoch and Pallu, and Hezron and Carmi.

10 And the sons of Simeon: Jemuel and Jamin and Ohad and Jachin and Zohar and Shaul the son of a Canaanite woman.

11 And the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

12 And the sons of Judah: Er and Onan, and Shelah and Perez and Zerah (but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan). And the sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul.

13 And the sons of Issachar: Tola, and Puvah and Job, and Shimron.

14 And the sons of Zebulun: Sered and Elon and Jahleel.

15 These are the sons of Leah, whom she bore unto Jacob in Padanaram, with his daughter Dinah. All the souls of his sons and his daughters were thirty and three.

16 And the sons of Gad: Ziphion and Haggi, Shuni, and Ezbon, Eri, and Arodi, and Areli.

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.

18 These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter, and these she bore unto Jacob, even sixteen souls.

19 The sons of Rachel, Jacob’s wife: Joseph and Benjamin.

20 And unto Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath the daughter of Potipherah, priest of On, bore unto him.

21 And the sons of Benjamin were Belah and Becher and Ashbel, Gera and Naaman, Ehi and Rosh, Muppim and Huppim and Ard.

22 These are the sons of Rachel, who were born to Jacob; all the souls were fourteen.

23 And the son of Dan: Hushim.

24 And the sons of Naphtali: Jahzeel and Guni, and Jezer and Shillem.

25 These are the sons of Bilhah, whom Laban gave unto Rachel his daughter, and she bore these unto Jacob; all the souls were seven.

26 All the souls who came with Jacob into Egypt, who came out of his loins, besides Jacob’s sons’ wives, all the souls were threescore and six.

27 And the sons of Joseph who were born to him in Egypt were two souls; all the souls of the house of Jacob who came into Egypt, were threescore and ten.

28 And he sent Judah before him unto Joseph to direct his face unto Goshen, and they came into the land of Goshen.

29 And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father in Goshen, and presented himself unto him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while.

30 And Israel said unto Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive.”

31 And Joseph said unto his brethren and unto his father’s house, “I will go up and show Pharaoh, and say unto him, ‘My brethren and my father’s house, who were in the land of Canaan, have come unto me.

32 And the men are shepherds, for their trade hath been to feed 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 land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians.”

And Israel tooke his iourney with all that hee had, and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices vnto the God of his father Isaac.

2And God spake vnto Israel in the visions of the night, and said, Iacob, Iacob. And he said, Here am I.

3And he said, I am God, the God of thy father, feare not to goe downe into Egypt: for I will there make of thee a great nation.

4 I will goe downe with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee vp againe: and Ioseph shall put his hand vpon thine eyes.

5And Iacob rose vp from Beersheba: and the sonnes of Israel caried Iacob their father, and their litle ones, and their wiues, in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to cary him.

6And they tooke their cattell, and their goods which they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Iacob, and all his seed with him:

7His sonnes, and his sonnes sonnes with him, his daughters, and his sonnes daughters, and all his seed brought he with him into Egypt.

8 And these are the names of the children of Israel, which came into Egypt, Iacob and his sonnes: Reuben Iacobs first borne;

9And the sonnes of Reuben, Hanoch, and Phallu, and Hezron, and Carmi.

10 And the sonnes of Simeon: Iemuel, and Iamin, and Ohad, and Iachin, and Zohar, and Shaul the sonne of a Canaanitish woman.

11 And the sonnes of Leui: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

12 And the sonnes of Iudah: Er, and Onan, and Shelah, and Pharez, and Zerah: But Er & Onan died in the land of Canaan. And the sonnes of Pharez, were Hezron, and Hamul.

13 And the sonnes of Issachar: Tola, and Phuuah, and Iob, and Shimron.

14 And the sonnes of Zebulun: Sered, and Elon, and Iahleel.

15These bee the sonnes of Leah, which she bare vnto Iacob in Padan-Aram, with his daughter Dinah: all the soules of his sonnes and his daughters, were thirtie and three.

16 And the sonnes of Gad: Ziphion, and Haggi, Shuni, and Ezbon, Eri, and Arodi, and Areli.

17 And the sonnes of Asher: Iimnah, and Ishuah, and Isui, and Beriah, and Serah their sister: And the sonnes of Beriah: Heber, and Malchiel.

18These are the sonnes of Zilpah, whome Laban gaue to Leah his daughter: and these she bare vnto Iacob, euen sixteene soules.

19The sonnes of Rachel Iacobs wife: Ioseph, and Beniamin.

20 And vnto Ioseph in the lande of Egypt, were borne Manasseh and Ephraim, which Asenath the daughter of Poti-pherah Priest of On bare vnto him.

21 And the sonnes of Beniamin were Belah, and Becher, and Ashbel, Gera, and Naaman, Ehi and Rosh, Muppim, and Huppim, and Ard.

22These are the sonnes of Rachel which were borne to Iacob: all the soules were fourteene.

23 And the sonnes of Dan: Hushim.

24 And the sonnes of Naphtali: Iahzeel, and Guni, and Iezer, and Shillem.

25These are the sonnes of Bilhah, which Laban gaue vnto Rachel his daughter, and she bare these vnto Iacob: all the soules were seuen.

26All the soules that came with Iacob into Egypt, which came out of his loines, besides Iacobs sonnes wiues, all the soules were threescore and sixe.

27And the sonnes of Ioseph, which were borne him in Egypt, were two soules: all the soules of the house of Iacob, which came into Egypt, were threescore and ten.

28 And he sent Iudah before him vnto Ioseph, to direct his face vnto Goshen, and they came into the lande of Goshen.

29And Ioseph made ready his charet, and went vp to meet Israel his father, to Goshen, and presented himselfe vnto him: and he fell on his necke, and wept on his necke a good while.

30And Israel saide vnto Ioseph, Now let me die, since I haue seene thy face, because thou art yet aliue.

31And Ioseph said vnto his brethren, and vnto his fathers house, I will goe vp, and shew Pharaoh, and say vnto him, My brethren, & my fathers house, which were in the land of Canaan, are come vnto me.

32And the men are sheapheards, for their trade hath bene to feed cattell: and they haue brought their flocks, and their heards, and all that they haue.

33And it shall come to passe when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What is your occupation?

34That ye shall say, Thy seruants trade hath bene about cattell, from our youth euen vntill now, both we, and also our fathers: that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen; for euery shepheard is an abomination vnto the Egyptians.

I == Gen 21:31 , 33 ; 26:24-25 ; 28:10 , 13 ; 31:42

II == Gen 15:1 ; Job 33:14-15

 

III == Gen 12:2 ; 28:13 ; Deut 26:5

 

IV == Gen 15:16 ; 28:15 ; 48:21 ; 50:1 , 13 , 24-25 ; Ex 3:8

 

V == Gen 45:19 , 21 ; Acts 7:15

 

 

 

VI == Deut 26:5 Josh 24:4 ; Ps 105:23 ; Isa 52:4

 

 

 

 

 

VIII ==Ex 1:1 ; 6:14 ; Num 26:5 ; 1st Chr 5:1

 

 

 

X == Ex 6:15 ; 1st Chr 4:24

 

XI == 1st Chr 6:1 , 16

XII == Gen 42:23

 

 

XIII == Acts 7:14

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

XVI == Gen 41:33

 

XVIII == Gen 27:28 ; Num 18:12 ; 29

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

XXI == Num 3:16

 

 

XXII == Gen 43:34

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

XXVI == Job 19:24 ; Ps 126:1 ; Luke 24:11 , 41

1 Israel set out with all that was his. When he arrived at Beer-sheba, he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac.

2 There God, speaking to Israel in a vision by night, called, "Jacob! Jacob!" "Here I am," he answered.

3 Then he said: "I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for there I will make you a great nation.

4 Not only will I go down to Egypt with you; I will also bring you back here, after Joseph has closed your eyes."

5 So Jacob departed from Beer-sheba, and the sons of Israel put their father and their wives and children on the wagons that Pharaoh had sent for his transport.

6 They took with them their livestock and the possessions they had acquired in the land of Canaan. Thus Jacob and all his descendants migrated to Egypt.

7 His sons and his grandsons, his daughters and his granddaughters - all his descendants - he took with him to Egypt.

8 These are the names of the Israelites, Jacob and his descendants, who migrated to Egypt. Reuben, Jacob's first-born,

9 and the sons of Reuben: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.

10 The sons of Simeon: Nemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, son of a Canaanite woman.

11 The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

12 The sons of Judah: Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah - but Er and Onan had died in the land of Canaan; and the sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul.

13 The sons of Issachar: Tola, Puah, Jashub, and Shimron.

14 The sons of Zebulun: Sered, Elon, and Jahleel.

15 These were the sons whom Leah bore to Jacob in Paddan-aram, along with his daughter Dinah - thirty-three persons in all, male and female.

16 The sons of Gad: Zephon, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arod, and Areli.

17 The sons of Asher: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, and Beriah, with their sister Serah; and the sons of Beriah: Heber and Malchiel.

18 These were the descendants of Zilpah, whom Laban had given to his daughter Leah; these she bore to Jacob - sixteen persons in all.

19 The sons of Jacob's wife Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin.

20 In the land of Egypt Joseph became the father of Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath, daughter of Potiphera, priest of Heliopolis, bore to him.

21 The sons of Benjamin: Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ahiram, Shupham, Hupham, and Ard.

22 These were the sons whom Rachel bore to Jacob - fourteen persons in all.

23 The sons of Dan: Hushim.

24 The sons of Naphtali: Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem.

25 These were the sons of Bilhah, whom Laban had given to his daughter Rachel; these she bore to Jacob - seven persons in all.

26 Jacob's people who migrated to Egypt - his direct descendants, not counting the wives of Jacob's sons - numbered sixty-six persons in all.

27 Together with Joseph's sons who were born to him in Egypt - two persons - all the people comprising Jacob's family who had come to Egypt amounted to seventy persons in all.

28 Israel had sent Judah ahead to Joseph, so that he might meet him in Goshen. On his arrival in the region of Goshen,

29 Joseph hitched the horses to his chariot and rode to meet his father Israel in Goshen. As soon as he saw him, he flung himself on his neck and wept a long time in his arms.

30 And Israel said to Joseph, "At last I can die, now that I have seen for myself that Joseph is still alive."

31 Joseph then said to his brothers and his father's household: "I will go and inform Pharaoh, telling him: 'My brothers and my father's household, whose home is in the land of Canaan, have come to me.

32 The men are shepherds, having long been keepers of livestock; and they have brought with them their flocks and herds, as well as everything else they own.'

33 So when Pharaoh summons you and asks what your occupation is,

34 you must answer, 'We your servants, like our ancestors, have been keepers of livestock from the beginning until now,' in order that you may stay in the region of Goshen, since all shepherds are abhorrent to the Egyptians."

v 1. “Israel”, as God is going to be dealing with a complete family instead of the individuals of the past, Isaac, Abraham, etc. Beer-sheba was prominent: Abraham vs Abimelech, Isaac and Abimelech’s covenant, Isaac built an altar and dwelt there, Jacob left there to go to Haran, and now it is at the beginning of his exit route to Egypt. He probably sacrificed in praise to God for preservation of Joseph, and concern about the previous warning to Isaac not to go there, 26:2. Also knew of Abraham’s problem. Jacob had never made a major move without God telling him first, so he fears to go without word from God.

 

v 2. God gives that word as He appears to him for the eighth and last time. “Jacob, Jacob”, God is still dealing with him as an individual.
The people of Israel were not to intermarry with the people of Canaan, because of their extreme wickedness. The people of Egypt were just as wicked, but to them, the shepherd people were an abomination, so for the most part they would not intermarry with them. Thus Israel could grow into a large nation without being corrupted through pagan mates.

 

v 3,4. God allays his fear about going there and tells three things God will do for him. a. Make him there a great nation. b. Go down with thee into Egypt. c. Surely bring thee up (although it would be his bones, his descendants would be brought out.) Also promised that Joseph would be at his bed to close his eyes at death.

 

v 5-7. Shepherds packed things on camels and donkeys, so riding in wagons was a big deal to them. Jacob was still head of the clan and all the family went.

 

v 10-27. These verses are a register of all the clan chiefs going to Egypt, but not the wives, girls and servants. Of course Joseph and his two sons were already there. Benjamin would have been only about 28, so some of his sons may have been recorded in retrospect. Regarding discrepancies, 66 in v 21, Joseph and his two sons made 69, and Jacob made 70. In Acts 7:14, the ”kindred” would include the wives of Jacob’s sons. There are various other explanations, but these satisfy me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

v 28-30. Judah was sent ahead to have Joseph direct them to Goshen, and Joseph went to meet, particularly his father. This was a very emotional meeting, and Jacob had such ultimate joy, he was willing to die, because he had seen Joseph alive.

 

 

 

 

v 31-34. Joseph was not ashamed of his shepherd background, but in wisdom had them make clear their occupation to Pharaoh. Their abomination to the shepherds is clarified in Ex. 8:26. Egyptians held cows to be sacred and did not permit them to be slain. If they saw Hebrews sacrificing them, the Hebrews would be stoned. Thus Goshen provided separation to God and from the sins of Egypt.