Following God’s Leading
Genesis 46
Have you experienced life-altering changes in following God’s will for your life? Maybe these changes involved new places to live, new employment, new ministry opportunities, new relationships, new blessings, new trials. Maybe these changes involved leaving some things behind, leaving family, leaving comfort, leaving friends. How did you arrive at the conviction to make such a drastic change in your circumstances?
Kathy and I have experienced this kind of change several times over the years. One, when I separated from the Air Force, changed my career, left our church family, and moved over 1700 miles to Kansas City to go to seminary in obedience to God’s call for me to be a pastor. Almost 13 years ago we again left our home, two of our grown children, our church family of 19 years, and many friends to move to Grand Junction and New Covenant Baptist Church. I know Pastor Shockley made even more drastic moves in following God’s call for him to be a missionary.
In Genesis 46:1-30, Jacob moves his whole extended family down to Egypt. I imagine that this was not an easy thing for a 130-year-old man to do! There was a famine in Canaan and his son Joseph had promised them the best of Egypt. Jacob desperately wanted to see Joseph, whom for 22 years, he had thought was dead. But Jacob knew that his grandfather, Abraham, had gotten into trouble in Egypt (Gen. 12). God had forbidden his father, Isaac, to go there during a previous famine (Gen. 26:2). Jacob knew that God’s covenant promises to his family involved Canaan, not Egypt. In going, Jacob had to leave all that was familiar to him, go to a foreign land, and live among people whose culture and language were different and whose attitude was hostile to Hebrews (Gen. 43:32; 46:34).
Jacob was fearful and anxious. Was this the Lord’s will? So, Jacob stopped in Beersheba before leaving the promised land to seek the Lord and did not move on to Egypt until God gave him a green light. One of the main reasons Moses included this section was to show how this move out of the Promised Land fit in with the covenant plan of God.[1]
Genesis 46–47 belong together. They tell the story of the third and final journey of the family of Joseph down into Egypt. This time it was not only a portion of the family that went but all of Israel. Jacob all his offspring picked up and moved. And this time the covenant family would not quickly return, but they and their descendants would remain in Egypt for centuries.
In the narrative of Genesis, Moses has made it abundantly clear that this was the will of the LORD. Years before, the LORD God had told Jacob’s grandfather Abraham, “Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions.” (Gen. 15:13-14). It was in Egypt that God would fulfill His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that He would make of them a great nation and a people too numerous to count (Gen. 12:2; 18:18; 26:4; 28:14; 35:11).
Genesis 46 text falls into three sections: the relocation from Canaan to Egypt which features Jacob’s encounter with God at Beersheba (Genesis 46:1-7); a genealogy which shows the relationships of the children of Israel (Genesis 46:8-27); and the joyful reunion of Joseph and Jacob (Genesis 46:28-34).
1. Relocation of Israel to Egypt (Genesis 46:1-7).
1 So Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. 2 Then God spoke to Israel in the visions of the night, and said, “Jacob, Jacob!” And he said, “Here I am.” 3 So He said, “I am God, the God of your father; do not fear to go down to Egypt, for I will make of you a great nation there. 4 I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also surely bring you up again; and Joseph will put his hand on your eyes.” (Gen. 46:1-4).
Having heard from his other sons that “Joseph is still alive, and he is governor over all the land of Egypt” (Gen. 45:26), and having seen the evidence of all the wealth that Joseph sent back with his brothers (Gen. 45:21-23; 27), Jacob resolved to go to Egypt to see Joseph. He said in Genesis 45:28, “It is enough. Joseph my son is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”
Jacob had hastily packed his belongings (Gen. 46:1), gathered his family, and begun the long trek to Egypt, just as Joseph had urged (Gen. 45:9). Beersheba was on the way to Egypt, but more than that, it was a place rich in the history of God’s covenant family. Abraham had called upon the name of the Lord at Beersheba (Gen. 21:33) and had settled in this place after offering up Isaac on Mt. Moriah (Gen. 22:19). At Beersheba God had visited Isaac and reiterated the covenant He made with Abraham (Gen. 26:23-25). It was from Beersheba that Jacob had fled from Esau and departed to Haran (Gen. 28:10).
Beersheba was also at the southern extremity of the land of Canaan. Once Jacob left Beersheba, traveling south, he would be leaving the land of promise, which was the land that God had promised Abraham (Gen. 12:1-3; 15:7,18-21), Isaac (Gen. 26:2-4), and Jacob (Gen. 28:13; 35:12). How could Jacob leave Canaan to enter Egypt without stepping outside the will of God? How could Jacob be assured of God’s blessing if he was leaving the land of promise?
Therefore, at Beersheba Jacob “offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac” (Gen. 46:1). This expression, “offered sacrifices,” is used frequently in the Pentateuch for sacrifices of various kinds. Only the context clearly indicates the precise nature of the sacrifice. Here it seems most natural that by this sacrifice Jacob is seeking divine guidance concerning his journey down to Egypt. God’s response in Genesis 46:2-4 supports this conclusion because there God gives Jacob assurance and alleviates his fear.
God calls Jacob by name, “Jacob, Jacob!” and identifies Himself as “God,” Ha’el (הָאֵל), meaning “the Strong One.” With the definite article, it means the one who especially deserves that name, “The True God.” Then God reveals Himself as “the God of your father,” ’elohey ‘abhî’kha (אָבִיךָ אֱלֹהֵי), reminding Jacob that God will deal as faithfully with him as He did with his father Isaac.[2]
God told Jacob “do not fear to go down to Egypt,” (Gen. 46:3). Then God gave Jacob four assurances, four promises, to confirm His approval of Jacob’s move to Egypt.
First, He promised Jacob “for I will make of you a great nation there” (Gen. 46:3). That is where God will fulfill His promise to Abraham in Genesis 12:2. Strangely, it would be in Egypt that Jacob’s offspring would multiply into a great nation (Gen. 46:3). God would fulfill His covenant promises to make Israel a great nation in Egypt, not Canaan. That is where He will make Israel a great nation.
Second, God promised, “I will go down with you to Egypt” (Gen. 46:4). Many years before, God had assured Jacob at Bethel that He would be with him as he journeyed north and east to Haran (Gen. 28:15). Now God would be with him as he traveled south to Egypt.
Third, God promised, “I will also surely bring you up again” (Gen. 46:4). That is, God would bring him back to Canaan, the land of promise. Jacob himself will only return to be buried after his death (Gen. 50:13-14). But here, Jacob represents all his descendants, the nation. Israel will return to Canaan, for there all of God’s promises would be fulfilled concerning the land (Gen. 35:12).
Fourth, God gave a very precious personal promise: “and Joseph will put his hand on your eyes” (Gen. 46:4). His son Joseph would give Jacob comfort in his time of death. Joseph would be there to close his eyes at the moment of his death—what a great comfort to this old man!
God would go with Jacob to Egypt and greatly multiply him there. He would comfort him in his moment of death through the presence of Joseph. And He would bring Israel back to Canaan as a mighty nation. With this assurance, Jacob could enthusiastically proceed to Egypt. The entire family now made their way to Egypt with Jacob the patriarch.
5 Then Jacob arose from Beersheba; and the sons of Israel carried their father Jacob, their little ones, and their wives, in the carts which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. 6 So they took their livestock and their goods, which they had acquired in the land of Canaan, and went to Egypt, Jacob and all his descendants with him. 7 His sons and his sons’ sons, his daughters and his sons’ daughters, and all his descendants he brought with him to Egypt.
So Jacob trusted God and obediently responded to God’s command and promises. Importantly, Genesis 46:5 calls Jacob’s sons, “the sons of Israel,” Beney Jisra’el (בְנֵֽי־ יִשְׂרָאֵל), a designation that will be used over six hundred times in the Old Testament and usually translated, “the children of Israel”. It becomes a technical phrase for the people of God, the people that the LORD God has chosen for Himself. When Jacob went down into Egypt, all of Israel went with him. They were the complete nation of Israel in miniature, ready to grow as God had ordained. God is forming the sons of Israel into His people, His nation—the nation through whom God will bless all the nations of the earth (Gen. 12:3; 28:14).
2. Relationships of the children of Israel (Genesis 46:8-27).
The second section of our text (Gen. 46:8-27) is a long list of names of people we know little about. It’s not even useful if you’re looking for names for your baby unless you want something like Muppim, Huppim or Ard. But God saw fit to include it in Scripture and we need to think about why.
8 Now these were the names of the children of Israel, Jacob and his sons, who went to Egypt: Reuben was Jacob’s firstborn. 9 The sons of Reuben were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi. 10 The sons of Simeon were Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman. 11 The sons of Levi were Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 12 The sons of Judah were Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah (but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan). The sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul. 13 The sons of Issachar were Tola, Puvah, Job, and Shimron. 14 The sons of Zebulun were Sered, Elon, and Jahleel. 15 These were the sons of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob in Padan Aram, with his daughter Dinah. All the persons, his sons and his daughters, were thirty-three. 16 The sons of Gad were Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi, and Areli. 17 The sons of Asher were Jimnah, Ishuah, Isui, Beriah, and Serah, their sister. And the sons of Beriah were Heber and Malchiel. 18 These were the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter; and these she bore to Jacob: sixteen persons. 19 The sons of Rachel, Jacob’s wife, were Joseph and Benjamin. 20 And to Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On, bore to him.21 The sons of Benjamin were Belah, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim, and Ard. 22 These were the sons of Rachel, who were born to Jacob: fourteen persons in all. 23 The son of Dan was Hushim. 24 The sons of Naphtali were Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem. 25 These were the sons of Bilhah, whom Laban gave to Rachel his daughter, and she bore these to Jacob: seven persons in all. 26 All the persons who went with Jacob to Egypt, who came from his body, besides Jacob’s sons’ wives, were sixty-six persons in all. 27 And the sons of Joseph who were born to him in Egypt were two persons. All the persons of the house of Jacob who went to Egypt were seventy.
We need to remember that to the first readers of this book, these names meant something. This is a list of every tribe that later formed the nation Israel and every major family group within those tribes. Every Hebrew knew his family ancestry. The division of labor, the organization of the army, and the parceling of the land all were based on the tribes. Even the coming of the Messiah was through the particular tribe of Judah.[3]
These lists of boring names meant something to Moses’s readers because this was family. Their identity was tied up in being of a certain tribe, of the nation descended from Israel. They saw themselves as a distinct people, set apart unto God. That’s why Genesis 46:10 singles out a son of Simeon whose mother was a Canaanite woman. That was both unusual and wrong. God’s people were not to intermarry with the Canaanites. They were to be distinct. This is part of the reason that God moved them to Egypt for 400 years.
As you can imagine, there are different ways to count this clan. The total number of people in Jacob’s household who went down into Egypt was probably much larger than 70 if you count all of the wives and servants of Jacob. But 70 is the number of Jacob’s physical descendants who moved from Canaan to Egypt, including Joseph who went down earlier, and his sons.
In the Bible, the number 70 is a number of completion. It communicates symbolically that all of Israel went down into Egypt. It is also significant that in Genesis 10, in the table of the nations descended from Shem, Ham, and Japheth, the sons of Noah, there are 70 sons. There are 70 nations from whom all the nations of the earth come.[4]
So, when Jacob went down into Egypt with 70 of his descendants, we are to understand that a nation would come from them, and from this nation, a new humanity would spring forth. From this 70 God would provide a Savior for the 70 nations who descended from the sons of Noah.
3. Reunion of Israel (Genesis 46:28-34).
Finally, in Genesis 46:28-34, we see the reunion of Joseph and Israel, in the preparation for the audience with Pharaoh, we see Israel beholding Joseph’s greatness.
28 Then he sent Judah before him to Joseph, to point out before him the way to Goshen. And they came to the land of Goshen. 29 So Joseph made ready his chariot and went up to Goshen to meet his father Israel; and he presented himself to him, and fell on his neck and wept on his neck a good while. 30 And Israel said to Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face, because you are still alive.” 31 Then Joseph said to his brothers and to his father’s household, “I will go up and tell Pharaoh, and say to him, “My brothers and those of my father’s house, who were in the land of Canaan, have come to me. 32 And the men are shepherds, for their occupation has been to feed livestock; and they have brought their flocks, their herds, and all that they have.’ 33 So it shall be, when Pharaoh calls you and says, “What is your occupation?’ 34 that you shall say, “Your servants’ occupation has been with livestock from our youth even till now, both we and also our fathers,’ that you may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians.”
Just notice four quick things in this section. One, notice that Judah again takes the lead. He went before the others to prepare the way into the land of Goshen. And in this respect, he is also a type of the Christ who would descend from him. Christ lived, died and rose again. The New Testament refers to him as “the first-fruits” of the resurrection. He rose from the dead and has ascended into the heavenly places in glory, leading the way for his brethren.
Two, notice Joseph’s love for Jacob. He loved his father and missed him very much, having been separated from him for all of those years. Three, notice Jacob’s relief. Genesis 46:30, And Israel said to Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face, because you are still alive.” Jacob would not die for many more years, but now he was at peace regarding his son Joseph.
Finally, Joseph gives instructions to his brothers for their appearance before Pharaoh. His desire was for his family to settle in Goshen. The reasons for this were probably threefold. One, the land was good for grazing sheep which was the occupation of the sons of Jacob. Two, the land was set off a bit from the population of Egypt. This would have protected Israel from racial discrimination. And three, the land was near the border of Canaan which would have allowed Israel to return at the appointed time more easily.
God has a plan…for Himself and His people. Sometimes that plan requires us to experience drastic changes in our lives. It is those who are willing to humble themselves by submitting their plans to God’s plan who are truly blessed by God and will be a blessing to others. No one other than you and God knows where you truly stand in your relationship with the Lord today, but one thing is certain…you were made and exist for God’s purposes, not just your own.
Remember what God said to Jacob at Beersheba. He is God (Gen. 46:3). His plan is sufficient (Gen. 46:3). His presence is promised (Gen. 46:4). And He will complete His purposes (Gen. 46:4).[5] Then respond as Jacob did: he obeyed the word of God; he submitted himself to God’s plan; he worshiped by offering a sacrifice to God; and he rested in the peace that God gave him—even in death.
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[1] Steven Cole, Should I Move, Should I Stay? (Genesis 46:1-30), https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-77-should-i-move-should-i-stay-genesis-461-30
[2] H. C. Leupold, Exposition of Genesis, https://ccel.org/ccel/leupold/genesis/genesis.xlvii.html
[3] Cole. Ibid.
[4] Joe Anady, Genesis 46:5 – 47:31: Sojourners In Egypt. https://emmausrbc.org/2020/02/23/sermon-genesis-465-4731-sojourners-in-egypt/
[5] Deron J. Biles. GENESIS 45:16-46:30. https://preachingsource.com/sermon-structure/genesis-45-16-46-30/
