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Bible History of the Old Testament |
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No. 27 Departure of Jacob and His Family Into Egypt His Interview With Pharaoh - Last Illness and Burial in Canaan Adoption of Ephraim and Manasseh among the Sons of Israel
Jacob had a difficult decision to make, because he did not have any direct revelation from God that he should move his whole family with everything they owned to Egypt. On the other hand, though, God had dealt with Joseph, Pharaoh had sent them an invitation, and the famine in Canaan must have made him remember what God had spoken to Abram in Genesis 15:13, when his seed should leave Canaan, and become strangers and slaves in a land that was not theirs. He also knew that two things had to take place before Israel could return to take their final possession of the promised land. 1. "The iniquity of the Amorites must be full", and 2. the family of Israel must have grown into a nation. The first requirement was still in the future, and certainly a family of 70 couldn't be considered a nation. He must have also reasoned that if they didn't leave, they would all starve and could never become a nation that way. At this time Canaan was divided among numerous independent tribes. As the families of the sons of Jacob grew, there would probably have been much conflict between them and the people who already lived there. Also, there was the great chance that living among the heathen people would do great harm to their religion. This would not have been the case in Egypt. They went their as sojourners, knowing that their stay would only be temporary. The fact that they were shepherds also kept them separate from the Egyptians, because the Egyptians thought that shepherds were an abomination and would not dare to go around any of them. This caused them to be placed in a whole district by themselves. As it turned out, though, the land of Goshen was the very best land they could have had for the increase of their flocks and herds. God had his own plan for keeping them separated from the heathen peoples around them, even though they might not could see what was going on. Jacob received the assurance that he was doing the right thing when he reached Beersheba, the southern boundary of the promised land. There he offered sacrifices unto God, and God spoke to him in a vision. His words gave Jacob the following four-fold assurance: that God was the covenant-God; that he did not need to fear going down into Egypt; that God would make a great nation of him in Egypt; that God would go down with him and would surely bring him back up again. Each of the four assurances was introduced by an emphatic I, to indicate the personal and direct source of all these blessings. This strengthened him greatly and he pursued the journey with confidence. As so often is the case in Scripture, a very important lesson is conveyed to us in this connection, though it is in a manner that escapes superficial observation. The Bible does not furnish the history of individuals as such, but gives the history of the Kingdom of God. This appears most clearly in the list, which is introduced at this stage as "the names of the children of Israel which came into Egypt." We must remember, though, that the Bible is concerned only with those things that concern the Kingdom of God. When you think of it that way, many things make sense that wouldn't ordinarily. This list can be considered a genealogical table that was drawn up with a special object in view. That special object was to enumerate the ancestors of the tribes of Israel, and then to list the descendants of each that belonged to the separate and distinct "families" in each tribe. Accordingly, this genealogical table contains the "heads of houses" listed along with the names of the descendants that literally went with Jacob into Egypt. Hundreds of years before, God had told Abraham what would happen to this great nation. He knew that they would be great, but then be led into slavery for their sin, and then would be brought out of it victorious again. There is no future where God is concerned. He has already seen the end before the beginning even starts. On his journey Jacob sent Judah in advance, to inform Joseph of his arrival. Joseph started immediately to meet his father in the land of Goshen. Their meeting was most affectionate and touching after being apart for so long. The Hebrew expression "Joseph ... presented himself unto him," implies extraordinary splendor of appearance. But when he was in the presence of his father, Joseph felt once more just like a son and "fell on his neck and wept on his neck a good while." It was now the duty of Joseph to inform Pharaoh of the actual arrival of his family in Egypt. He wanted to remind him of his promise of giving the land of Goshen for a place for them to live. He first went alone to have an audience with the king. Then he introduced five of his brothers to him. They all told the king that the whole family were shepherds. By doing this, it would secure their stay in Goshen, as the land was perfect for their many herds. At the same time, it was very remote and isolated from the bulk of the people that lived in Egypt. The Egyptian monuments show that shepherds were considered as the lowest class of people because of their nomadic habits. Another point that they brought out to Pharaoh was that they had only come to sojourn here, and did not come to settle in the land. This way they would be able to freely depart when the time came for them to go back. The king gave Joseph everything that he asked for. Pharaoh gave them a dwelling-place in almost the only district in Egypt that would have been suitable for pasture for their flocks. This land was on the very border between Canaan and Egypt. It was the land of Goshen, or Rameses, as it is sometimes called from the city by that name. One scholar talked about Goshen in Smith's Bible Dictionary as follows: "The land of Goshen lay between the eastern part of the ancient Delta, and the western border of Palestine; it was scarcely a part of Egypt Proper, was inhabited by other foreigners besides the Israelites, and was in its geographical names rather Semitic than Egyptian; it was a pasture-land, especially suited to a shepherd people, and sufficient for the Israelites, who there prospered, and were separate from the main body of the Egyptians." Joseph presented his father to Pharaoh before he took him to the land where he would settle. Naturally, the Eastern monarch received him with extraordinary extravagance and courtesy. Jacob's age far exceeded the ordinary term of life in Egypt at that time, and Pharaoh was in awe of him. In acknowledgement of the Pharaoh's kindness, "Jacob blessed" him. Abraham had lived 175 years, and Isaac 180 years. Since Jacob had only lived 130 years, and he felt that he was approaching death, he compared his days to theirs as not only being "few", but "evil", and full of trial, sorrow, and care, ever since his flight from his father's house. Even though their lives differed outwardly, their essential character was the same. They were each on a pilgrimage. For "these all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country, ... a better country, that is, an-heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for He hath prepared for them a city" (Hebrews 11: 13,14,16). In the same way, each Christian's life is also a pilgrimage that waits for Heaven, no matter what our outwardly history is. Even though Jacob thought he was near death, he was granted 17 more years to live a quiet retirement in Goshen. When he felt that the time of his departure was really close at hand, he sent for Joseph. As Israel had held fast to promises that he had received and not seen all these years concerning Canaan and everything that was connected with it, he made Joseph promise to bury him with Abraham and Isaac in the cave of Machpelah. As of yet, the sons of Joseph had not been formally adopted into the family of Israel. The two oldest of them, Manasseh and Ephraim, were to become head of separate tribes. This was because Joseph was to have the right of the firstborn, which was two portions in Israel. Shortly afterwards, he was called to Goshen again because his father was getting much weaker. He brought Ephraim and Manasseh with him to Goshen. They were to be installed as co-heirs with the other sons of Jacob. In doing this, Joseph showed his faith in the Promise of God. Instead of seeking honor from the court of Egypt, he renounced all of it so that they could obtain their rightful place. For the first time, here the blessing is accompanied with the laying on of hands. This laying of hands also formed an essential part in offering sacrifices. The offerer laid his hands on the victim, and confessed his sins - thus transferring them, and constituting the sacrifice his substitute. Jacob's eyes had grown dim by this time. Joseph brought both of his sons and placed Manasseh close to his right hand and Ephraim close to his left, since Manasseh was the oldest child. Israel, though, crossed his hands when he blessed the boys. Joseph thought it was an error, but God had done it prophetically through Jacob (Israel). The truth of the prophecy was shown, because at the time of Moses, Manasseh counted 20,000 more than Ephraim. Forever afterwards, though, the tribe of Ephraim started to grow and became the 2nd most powerful tribe of Israel, next to Judah. Jacob's dying days were extremely intertwined with his religion. He no longer talked about the "evil" days of his past, but now only thought about the gentleness and goodness of God, who had been faithful and true to lead him all the way through. His feelings come out most fully in the words of blessing which he spoke: "The God, before Whose face walked my fathers, Abraham and Isaac; the God Who pastured me from my existence on unto this day; THE ANGEL Who redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name, and the name of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac, be named upon them, and let them increase to a multitude in the midst of the land." Jacob also gave to Joseph a special gift of the parcel of ground by Sychar (John 4:5), the ancient Shechem, which he had originally bought of "the children of Heth" in Genesis 33:19. He also prophesied, though, that his descendants would have to take the land back from the Amorites with a sword and bow. Jacob's last confession to all of his children as a whole, was one of assurance which repeated his confession of faith: "Behold I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers." Men pass away, but the word and purpose of the Lord abide for ever ! After this, he proceeded to give the blessing for each of his sons individually. This will be covered in the next text. For more information from this book, go to the Archives Page at my site www.cathydeaton.com There are other articles of interest there also. This text is taken from the book Bible History Old Testament written by Alfred Edersheim. This book has been used by permission.
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