Episode 320 -"Jacob nears the end of his life" - Genesis 45:29-48:22

Gen. 47:29 And when the time drew near that Israel must die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, “If now I have found favor in your sight, put your hand under my thigh and promise to deal kindly and truly with me. Do not bury me in Egypt, 30 but let me lie with my fathers. Carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burying place.” He answered, “I will do as you have said.” 31 And he said, “Swear to me”; and he swore to him. Then Israel bowed himself upon the head of his bed.

Gen. 48:1 After this, Joseph was told, “Behold, your father is ill.” So he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. 2 And it was told to Jacob, “Your son Joseph has come to you.” Then Israel summoned his strength and sat up in bed. 3 And Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me, 4 and said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will make of you a company of peoples and will give this land to your offspring after you for an everlasting possession.’ 5 And now your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine, as Reuben and Simeon are. 6 And the children that you fathered after them shall be yours. They shall be called by the name of their brothers in their inheritance. 7 As for me, when I came from Paddan, to my sorrow Rachel died in the land of Canaan on the way, when there was still some distance to go to Ephrath, and I buried her there on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).”

Gen. 48:8 When Israel saw Joseph’s sons, he said, “Who are these?” 9 Joseph said to his father, “They are my sons, whom God has given me here.” And he said, “Bring them to me, please, that I may bless them.” 10 Now the eyes of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. So Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them. 11 And Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected to see your face; and behold, God has let me see your offspring also.” 12 Then Joseph removed them from his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth. 13 And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him. 14 And Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on the head of Ephraim, who was the younger, and his left hand on the head of Manasseh, crossing his hands (for Manasseh was the firstborn). 15 And he blessed Joseph and said,

“The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked,

the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day,

16 the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys;

and in them let my name be carried on, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac;

and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.”

Gen. 48:17 When Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him, and he took his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. 18 And Joseph said to his father, “Not this way, my father; since this one is the firstborn, put your right hand on his head.” 19 But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great. Nevertheless, his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his offspring shall become a multitude of nations.” 20 So he blessed them that day, saying,

“By you Israel will pronounce blessings, saying,

‘God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh.’”

Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh. 21 Then Israel said to Joseph, “Behold, I am about to die, but God will be with you and will bring you again to the land of your fathers. 22 Moreover, I have given to you rather than to your brothers one mountain slope that I took from the hand of the Amorites with my sword and with my bow.”

Do you recall what Jacob said when he saw Joseph for the first time in Egypt, after believing Joseph had died long ago? He said, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face and know that you are still alive” (Gen 46:30). I argued that Jacob didn’t have a death wish. His statement was just an expression that he could rest in peace knowing that his beloved son was ok.

What we find out in our text for this week is that Jacob lived another 17 years in the land of Egypt after he arrived. The famine has been over for quite some time, and Jacob and his family have continued to enjoy the blessings God provided for them in Egypt. Now, it is clear that Jacob’s time is short. It’s not uncommon for people, who’ve lived a long life and know that they do not have much time left, to express what is important to them.

Jacob makes Joseph promise not to leave him buried in Egypt, but to take his body back to the land of Canaan to be buried with his ancestors, Abraham and Isaac. Why? Of what value is that to Jacob or anyone else? The text doesn’t clearly reveal the purpose for this. But when we consider the covenant God made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and remember that the promise included land, I think it’s safe to say that Jacob values God’s promise more than he ever has. Even though neither he nor Abraham nor Isaac received the full promise, they still trusted that God would fulfill that promise entirely. The New Testament book of Hebrews offers us some insight into this. In Hebrews 11:1-16, the author writes about the faith of Abraham and Sarah and suggests that they understood that God would provide them with an eternal home, a heavenly one. I think Jacob understood this as well, and he is effectively passing down that hope to Joseph. Even though Joseph has spent much of his life in Egypt, married an Egyptian, and had children in Egypt, they were descendants and recipients of the promise.

As Jacob continues to speak with Joseph, he tells him that Manasseh and Ephraim would be as his own sons, and each would receive a portion of the land when God would lead them back into it.

What I find interesting is that Joseph has been the one to receive and interpret dreams. The LORD has been with him. But now it’s Jacob’s turn to give God’s revelation to Joseph, and it is all based upon the covenant promises and Jacob’s testimony of how faithful the LORD has been to him throughout his life. Jacob’s early life was characterized by a scheming and self-serving approach to life. At the end of his life, he blessed Ephraim and Manasseh in the name of “the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day” (Gen 48:15).

What an example for us! Regardless of our past, may we recognize the goodness of God and point others to trust in the LORD.