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†. Gen 50:22-26 . . So Joseph and his father's household remained in
Egypt. Joseph lived one hundred and ten years. Joseph lived to see
children of the third generation of Ephraim: the children of Machir,
son of Manasseh, were likewise born upon Joseph's knees.
. . . At length, Joseph said to his kin: I am about to die. God will
surely take notice of you and bring you up from this land to the land
that He promised on oath to Abraham, to Isaac,
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†. Gen 50:10 . .When they came to Gorena ha-Atad, which is beyond
the Jordan, they held there a very great and solemn lamentation;
and he observed a mourning period of seven days for his father.
A geographic location described as "beyond the Jordan" suggests the east
side of the river but the term is ambiguous and can just as easily mean west
(e.g. Deut 3:18-20).
The Hebrew word for Gorena is goren (go'-ren) which identifies smooth
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†. Gen 50:4a . . and when the wailing period was over, Joseph spoke
to Pharaoh's court
It's curious that Joseph didn't meet with Pharaoh in person; I mean, after
all, Joseph was second in command over the entire country of Egypt, and
certainly outranked all of Pharaoh's courtiers. It's guessed by some that in
the Egypt of Joseph's day, a dead man's close kin were deemed unfit to
approach a Pharaoh. Whether it was for religious reasons, or just
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†. Gen 50:1 . . Joseph threw himself upon his father's face and wept
over him and kissed him.
It almost looks like Joseph smothered his dad; but in reality that scene was
probably a bit difficult to put in writing because there's so much emotion. I
think what we're actually looking at there is a one last cheek-to-cheek
farewell with Joseph clutching his father's hand; and I would not have liked
to be in the room when it took place because Joseph
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†. Gen 49:22 . . Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine near a spring,
whose branches climb over a wall.
Jacob's assessment of Joseph is similar to the assessment of a blessed man
in the very first Psalm.
"Blessed is the man who has not followed the counsel of the wicked, nor
taken the path of sinners, nor joined the company of the insolent; rather,
Yhvh's teaching is his delight, and he studies that teaching day and night. He
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