This Way To Genesis

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Genesis 48:15-16


● Gen 48:15a . .Then he blessed Joseph

All three men there that day were "Joseph" so the blessing wasn't really
directed to Mr. Joseph himself alone but rather to his tribe as a unity.

● Gen 48:15b . . saying: The god in whose ways my fathers Abraham
and Isaac walked, the god who has been my shepherd from my birth
to this day--

On the surface it might appear that God was Jacob's shepherd beginning at
chapter 28, when he was on the lamb from Esau; but in truth, God was
Jacob's shepherd from day one, beginning with Rachel's pregnancy in
chapter 25 when God decreed the elder would serve the younger.

That's an interesting note; because it indicates that God foreknew each and
every human being who would value spiritual things; and from eternity, he
began making sure they survived any and all misfortune in order to take
advantage of His salvation. (cf. Eph 1:4-5)

● Gen 48:16a . .The Angel

Referring to God as an angel may be unusual; but certainly not
disrespectful. The Old Testament patriarchs never once saw The True God in
person, nor heard Him speak; they encountered only representations and
apparitions either as voices, fire, wind, smoke, and human forms. Those
served as proxies for God, and as such, had to be revered as God.

The "angel of The Lord" appears many, many times in the Old Testament
and really means: the messenger of the Lord; which of course we know by
now at this point in Genesis was actually the rather curious divine being
whose name is his master's.

"No man has seen God at any time; the only-begotten, who is in the bosom
of the Father, he has declared Him." (John 1:18)

The only-begotten hasn't always been known as Jesus. In the dateless past,
he was known as The Word.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were
made; without him nothing was made that has been made." (John 1:1-3)

So right at the gun, from Genesis 1:1 on even till now; the only contact that
humanity has ever had with God has been by means of the Angel that Jacob
credited with protecting him all along his pilgrim journey just as was promised
at Gen 28:12-15.

● Gen 48:16b . . who has redeemed me from all evil--

The word "redemption" is often associated with salvation from the wrath of
God; but it primarily means to rescue, spare, and/or provide for and protect.
(e.g. Gen 38:6-10, Lev 25:25, Lev 25:47-49, and Ruth 3:1-4:12)

● Gen 48:16c . . may He bless the lads.

Jacob himself was blessed by The Angel in Gen 32:24-29.

Webster's defines "bless" as 1) to speak well of; viz: approve, 2) to confer
prosperity or happiness upon, 3) to protect, to preserve, 4) to endow, and
5) to favor.

I suppose there's a middle ground somewhere between blessing and cursing,
which could probably be labeled a zone of indifference: but in regards to
God, indifference is dangerously close to a curse because where there's
indifference, there's no blessing.

Some might consider indifference a blessing in itself, but personally I would
far rather be blessed than ignored. To be ignored is to be neglected, and in
regards to matters of eternal consequence; that can't be a good thing.

● Gen 48:16d . . And may my name live on in them, and the names of
my fathers Abraham and Isaac;

Jacob certainly got his wish. The Israelites have survived some pretty
extreme genocidal attempts on their existence, but they're still here, and in
them, the names of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob have remained famous; and
a perpetual reminder of the Bible's God.

What is the purpose of Yhvh's people anyway? To chafe and annoy the world
with their arrogance and their superiority complexes and their famous
master-race mentality? No, they hold the distinction of being the one
political body on earth who's sacred duty is to prevent the knowledge of God
from becoming lost forever; a virtual human depository of divine revelation.

"Moses was in the assembly in the desert, with The Angel who spoke to him
on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers; and he received living words to pass
on to us." (Acts 7:38)

"the Jews were entrusted with the whole revelation of God." (Rom 3:2)

What Jacob conferred upon Manasseh and Ephraim wasn't just the dubious
fortune to be identified with the world's most famous patriarchs, but rather,
the solemn duty of perpetuating the patriarchs' religion too. That's a heavy
responsibility; one that Esau himself scoffed, and finally traded for a
temporary pleasure.

Identification with Israel is not something to brag about; rather, it's
something to be frightened about.

"Hear this word, O people of Israel, that Yhvh has spoken concerning you,
concerning the whole family that I brought up from the land of Egypt: You
alone have I singled out of all the families of the earth-- that is why I will
call you to account for all your iniquities." (Amos 3:1-2)

In other words; people called to an association with the Bible's God are held
to a higher standard than outsiders.

● Gen 48:16e . . And may they grow into a multitude in the midst of
the earth.

The Hebrew word for "grow" is dagah (daw-gaw'); which means to spawn.

Webster's defines "spawn" as: to produce young; especially in large
numbers.

Curiously, this one verse is the only instance in the entire Old Testament
where dagah appears.

Increasing by spawning is quite a bit different than increasing by other
means like adoption or naturalizing; so the blessing of spawning that Jacob
conferred upon the two men is somewhat similar to the blessing of fertility
that God conferred upon Adam and his wife at the very beginning. (Gen
1:27-28)

Being fruitful just means being fertile, and doesn't automatically imply
generating a multitude, whereas spawning implies both fertility and massive
numbers of offspring together. As an example of the proliferation implied by
spawning; Coho salmon lay an average of 3,096 eggs per fish in just one run
upriver.
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Genesis 48:17-22


● Gen 48:17-19a . .When Joseph saw that his father was placing his
right hand on Ephraim's head, he thought it an error; so he took hold
of his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's.
Not so, Father; Joseph said to his father; for the other is the
firstborn; place your right hand on his head. But his father objected,
saying: I know, my son, I know.

Joseph himself was an inspired man; so you'd think he'd instantly perceive
that Jacob's prioritizing Ephraim over Manasseh was from God; but didn't.
That's curious, and tells me that inspired people aren't always 100% inspired
all the time. Inspiration is, after all, a Divine prerogative rather than a
personal talent. God is under no one's beck and call; and inspired people are
able to understand certain things only as God himself decides when, where,
and how to get in their heads and clear things up.

For example according to 1John 2:26-27 all believers are endowed with a
special anointing that enables them to grasp God's thoughts; but does that
mean they can get by on their own without Spirit-empowered Bible
teachers? No. It's via Spirit-empowered Bible teachers that God
communicates His thoughts. (Eph 4:11-15)

● Gen 48:19b . . He too shall become a people, and he too shall be
great. Yet his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his
offspring shall be plentiful enough for nations.

This is now the third instance in Genesis where the right of the firstborn is
seen transferred to a younger sibling. The first instance was Jacob and Esau,
and the second was Joseph and Reuben. The important lesson to be learned
from this is that in the Bible, the male born first isn't eo ipso the firstborn.
That may seem trivial but when its applied to Christ, it's a really big deal.

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation." (Col 1:14
15)

Was Christ the first human born in all creation? No; Adam was; and there
was a time when Adam was the creation's senior patriarch; but not any
more. That honor has been transferred to Christ so that there is not a man
on earth superior to that one. (Dan 7:13-14, Matt 28:18, Php 2:9-11)

● Gen 48:20-22 . . So he blessed them that day, saying: By you shall
Israel invoke blessings, saying: God make you like Ephraim and
Manasseh. Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh. Then Israel said
to Joseph: I am about to die; but God will be with you and bring you
back to the land of your fathers. And now, I assign to you one
portion more than to your brothers, which I wrested from the
Amorites with my sword and bow.

There exists no specific Biblical record of Jacob's own personal conquest of
Canaanite peoples; so what Jacob is doing here is apparently predicting
Joshua's conquest of Canaan as something so certain to take place that he
could speak of it as an historical fact already accomplished; similar to the
manner in which the apostle John reported many of his visions in the book of
Revelation as having taken place as he watched them.

Jacob was an inspired man, so it shouldn't surprise anyone if he was
permitted a vision of his offspring's future successes in Palestine. Whatever
Joshua was to conquer in later years, would certainly be credited to Jacob's
sword and bow just as surely as if he'd been there and led the attacks
himself because it was his own blood kin who eventually did all of it, which
would be in keeping with his prediction that "God will be with you and bring
you back to the land of your fathers."

Joseph's body returned to the land as a mummy. But the prediction is a
reality: Joseph will return to the land some day, not just to be buried, but to
take up residence. (Ezk 37:1-14, Dan 12:1-2, Heb 11:8-16)

The "one portion more than to your brothers" was in keeping with the
custom of the firstborn son inheriting a double portion of his father's estate.
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Genesis 49:1-7


● Gen 49:1-4 . . And Jacob summoned his sons and said: Come
together that I may tell you what is to befall you in days to come.
Assemble and hearken, O sons of Jacob; hearken to Israel your
father:

. . . Reuben, you are my first-born, my might and first fruit of my
vigor, exceeding in rank and exceeding in honor. Unstable as water,
you shall excel no longer; for when you mounted your father's bed,
you brought disgrace-- my couch he mounted!

Reuben was clearly a reckless, impetuous individual ruled by the passions
and impulses of human nature rather than better judgment. Compare Isa
57:20 where the ocean is depicted subject to the forces of nature rather
than under its own control.

The affair to which Jacob referred occurred in Gen 35:22. Even today in
modern industrial societies, it is not only unthinkable for a man to sleep with
one of his father's wives; but even with one of his girlfriends. True, Bilhah
and Jacob weren't officially married but still, she was the legal mother of two
Israeli tribal heads: Dan and Naphtali.

Because of his illicit tryst, Reuben lost the firstborn's position (1Chrn 5:1)
demonstrating once again that the biblical rank of firstborn isn't restricted to
the son born first, but is a transferable status that can be bestowed upon a
younger male sibling.

● Gen 49:5 . . Simeon and Levi are a pair; their weapons are tools of
lawlessness.

With Rueben demoted, Simeon would have been next in primogeniture, and
after him; Levi. But the two men are alike as peas in a pod and brothers in
arms-- they're both criminals who simply cannot be trusted to conduct
themselves in a manner befitting the honor and the dignity properly
associated with the position of Israel's firstborn. If Reuben was water, then
Simeon and Levi are leaky boats with no oars, no sail, no rudder, and no
compass.

Ironically, Levi produced Aaron, Israel's line of high priests; and the whole
tribe of Levi is exempt from war though they were sired by a bloody man. It
would appear then, that the office of Israel's firstborn is far more sacred
than any of the Levitical priests, including the Aaronic category.

NOTE: Moses descended from Levi. (Ex 2:1-10)

● Gen 49:6a . . Let not my person be included in their council, let not
my being be counted in their assembly.

Simeon and Levi were not the kind of people from whom a sensible person
would deem it wise to seek advice and counsel. In other words; they were a
bad influence.

Jacob's initial reaction to the murders committed by two of his eldest sons
back in chapter 34 was one of concern for his family's safety, and the effect
the deed had upon his reputation in those parts. Not till now does he
excoriate the two men for their conduct; and the denunciation is severe.

● Gen 49:6c . . For when angry they slay men, and when pleased
they maim oxen.

Simeon and Levi not only committed malicious murders; but also took
satisfaction in cruelty to animals. People like that always justify their cruelty
by saying they're teaching the animal a lesson and/or breaking it of a bad
habit. But in their case it's a lie. They're just heartless and violent; that's all.

One could almost excuse Cain for murdering his kid brother in a fit of rage
because in his day there were no divine prohibitions against murder and/or
manslaughter. But Simeon and Levi had no excuse. They didn't act upon a
sudden provocation, and both of those men knew full well God prohibited
murder and manslaughter because they lived many years after grandpa
Noah came off the ark. (cf. Gen 9:5-6)

By all rights, Jacob should have had those two sons of his executed for what
they did back in Shechem; but like they say: blood is thicker than water.
Jacob let them get away with murder because they're kin, which is the sin of
partiality; defined by Webster's as inclined to favor one party over another;
viz: bias.

● Gen 49:7 . . Cursed be their anger so fierce, and their wrath so
relentless. I will divide them in Jacob, scatter them in Israel.

Jacob was speaking for Yhvh in the last sentence; and the purpose of
dividing and scattering was apparently to make it all the more difficult for
the two tribes to unite in a dastardly cause.

Jacob cursed only his sons' anger rather than the sons-- actually, their
category of anger; which he described as fierce and relentless.

Webster's defines "fierce" as a behavior exhibited by humans and animals
that inspires terror because of the wild and menacing aspect of fury in
attack. Ferocity is an aspect commonly seen among roaring, snarling lions
savagely attacking prey. There's neither sportsmanship nor sympathy in
ferocity; only sheer terror, brutality, and blood lust.

Webster's defines "relentless" as: 1) not softening or yielding in
determination; viz: tough, hard, and stern, and 2) not letting up or
weakening in vigor or pace; viz: constant, persistent.

The wrath of God is depicted in much the same way. (Isa 13:9)
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Genesis 49:8-15


● Gen 49:8 . .You, O Judah, your brothers shall praise; your hand
shall be on the nape of your foes; your father's sons shall bow low to
you.

Reuben was the original ranking brother, then the position passed to Joseph,
and finally to the family of Judah's grandson David; and that's where it
remains to this day. (Ps 89:20-27)

● Gen 49:10a . .The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the
scepter from between his feet

Refer to: 2Sam 7:16, 2Sam 23:5, Ps 85:35-38, Ps 89:4 , and Ps 89:30

● Gen 49:10b . . And the homage of peoples be his.

The "peoples" of that verse are non Jews; viz: Gentiles. The jurisdiction of
Davidic monarchs is normally limited to their own country, among their
fellow Jews; but one is coming in Judah's family who will one day rule the
entire world. (Dan 7:13-14 and Ps 2:7-9)

This next prediction is the scariest one of all.

● Gen 49:11 . . He washes his garment in wine, his robe in blood of
grapes.

See: Isa 63:1-6, and Rev 19:15-16

● Gen 49:13 . . Zebulun shall dwell by the seashore; he shall be a
haven for ships, and his flank shall rest on Sidon.

Zebulun never did actually occupy a Mediterranean shore (Josh 19:10-16)
but their proximity to the coast, via the territory of Ashur, gave them
opportunity to earn their livings in sea related trades like stevedoring, ship
building, and possibly crews on fishing vessels and cargo ships owned and
operated by the Philistines and Phoenicians.

Zebulun's flank didn't extend to the coastal city named Sidon, but to a
region generally known as Sidonia-- which included the city of Trye --a
territory often labeled Sidon for short.

● Gen 49:14-15 . . Issachar is a strong-boned burro, crouching
among the sheepfolds. When he saw how good was security, and
how pleasant was the country, he bent his shoulder to the burden,
and became a toiling serf.

Men like Zebulun, and Issachar are the invisible people. They don't want
much out of life; and they're never really in the news as movers and
shakers; the paparazzi don't follow them around, nor are they among the
rich, famous, and powerful. Zebulun, and Issachar represent the blue collar
labor force, the non-professional working men and women who make a
country productive in goods and services.

Unfortunately, the two tribes, on the whole, believed in peace at any price,
and were wont to trade their independence for corvee labor in order to avoid
conflict with overlords and invaders-- the two notable exceptions being
Zebulun's response when mustered for duty with Gideon (Judg 6:35) and
the two tribes responses when mustered by Barak (Judg 5:14-15) but they
rarely took the initiative to go on the offensive.
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Genesis 49:16-21


● Gen 49:16 . . Dan shall govern his people, as one of the tribes of
Israel.

That prediction alludes to Dan's autonomous attitude towards the other
tribes. In point of fact, Dan's tribe didn't join forces with the others in the
north to help repel oppressors. (Judg 5:17)

A good example of Dan's autonomous attitude is Mr. Samson. During his
tenure as a Judge in Israel (Judg 13:1-16:31) Samson never mustered an
army nor led his own men in a charge up a San Juan hill. He fought alone,
and he died alone; and seemed to prefer it that way. Definitely neither a
commander nor a team player.

● Gen 49:17 . . Dan shall be a serpent by the road, a viper by the
path, that bites the horse's heels so that his rider is thrown
backward.

A number of poisonous snakes-- e.g. rattlesnakes --don't hunt for food by
chasing their prey in racy pursuit but choose rather to coil up and patiently
wait along the edges of paths for something to come along. They're typically
sluggish on the move but very speedy on the strike. Rattlers, especially, are
powerful strikers that don't even have to clamp down to bite. Their strike
inertia is powerful enough to drive their fangs into a target's flesh like
sewing needles.

When rattlers bite large animals like horses, it's not for food, but generally a
reflexive response to a perceived threat; which suggests that Dan's tribe
would have hair-trigger tempers that flair up at every provocation-- real or
imagined --totally surprising the objects of their fury. People like that are
extremely reactive: they're never rational and objective, no, they are
emotional, thin-skinned and easily insulted; they get mad over nothing, and
every disagreement is an act of war.

It's conceivable that the viper-ish nature of Dan's tribe reminded Jacob of
Gen 3:15's prediction to crush the head of the Serpent who caused Man's
ruin; and possibly prompted his next remark.

● Gen 49:18 . . I wait for your deliverance, O Lord!

Everyone becomes curious at one time or another how the Old Testament's
luminaries were saved prior to Christ's crucifixion. Well, the interesting thing
is: they were all aware that Christ was on the way.

"Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to
come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out
the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was
pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that
would follow." (1Pet 1:10-11)

A prophet is simply an inspired man-- the earliest known were Abel (Luke
11:50-51) Enoch (Jude 1:14) Noah (2Pet 2:5) and Abraham. (Gen 20:7)

In other words: pre-crucifixion believers looked forward to Christ, while
post-crucifixion believers look back.

"Your ancestor Abraham rejoiced as he looked forward to my coming. He
saw it and was glad." (John 8:56)

● Gen 49:19 . . Gad shall be raided by raiders, but he shall raid at
their heels.

Gad's tribe, along with Rueben and Manasseh, chose to settle on the wrong
side of the Jordan River instead of crossing over into Canaan (Num 32:1
32). Their decision effectively isolated them from the other nine tribes and
left their eastern flank vulnerable to desert marauders; which were more
nuisance than anything else as Gad's tribe were competent warriors and able
to hold their own. (cf. 1Chrn 5:18)

Though the major portion of Christ's ministry was confined within the
national borders of Israel, he crossed over the Jordan on occasion to visit
the three tribes on the east side (Matt 11:21, Mark 6:45). Gad was the
region of the famous swine-herd suicide. (Mark 5:1-13)

● Gen 49:20 . . Asher's bread shall be rich, and he shall yield royal
dainties.

Asher's tribe was apportioned land bordering Zebulun and Naphtali, along
the Mediterranean coastline in the region of ancient Tyre. The area was
famed for its fertility (Deut 33:24). Ashur was located in a Phoenician
stronghold of political and commercial activity. The phrase "he shall yield
royal dainties" possibly alludes to the tribe's best produce being sold to
supply the homes of Phoenician dignitaries.

NOTE: This chapter in Genesis wasn't recorded in prose, but rather, Hebrew
poetry, making it difficult, if not impossible, for translators to correctly
interpret some of Jacob's sayings. The poem contains tricky metaphors
rather than clear facts; which only complicates the section even more.

● Gen 49:21 . . Naphtali is a hind let loose, which yields lovely fawns.

A hind is a female of the red deer species-- males are harts. (e.g. Ps 42:1)

Red deer aren't a domestic breed; so the metaphor refers to a captured hind
being returned to the wild rather than butchered for its meat. Apparently,
this particular hind was pregnant when captured, and the hunter knew the
unborn would certainly die if he killed their mother. By returning the
expectant hind to the field, the hunter helped assure the survival of local
herds; and he no doubt intended to hunt the fawns as adults in the future.
That was not only humane, but also a very wise conservation measure too.

Exactly what Jacob meant to convey by this metaphor is difficult to ascertain
with confidence. It could be that Naphtali's people exhibited artifice, artistry,
intelligence, abilities and aptitudes that their enemies would recognize as far
too valuable to waste by just indiscriminately killing them off in wholesale
slaughter simply to seize their lands and goods.

As an example; some of Nazi Germany's scientists were brought to American
and became very useful in developing the USA's rocket science, and
subsequently NASA's space program. What if the US had executed those
scientists because they were responsible for the buzz bombs that devastated
London? No, sometimes human resources are well worth the restraint to
spare them.

NOTE: Barak, an ordinary man recruited by Deborah to become a military
commander, was of Naphtali. (Judg 4:4-5:31)
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Genesis 49:22-33


● 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
is like a tree planted beside streams of water, which yields its fruit in
season, whose foliage never fades, and whatever it produces thrives."

● Gen 49:23 . . Archers bitterly assailed him; they shot at him and
harried him.

The "archers" in that sentence are the kind who wait in ambush.

Well, that certainly happened to Joseph. He was totally ambushed by his
very own brothers, and then later on, ambushed by Potipher's wife. But he
escaped them all. They thought to ruin Joseph, but he prospered instead.

● Gen 49:24-25a . .Yet his bow stayed taut, and his arm were made
firm by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob-- there is the
Shepherd, the Rock of Israel --the God of your father who helps you,
and Shaddai who blesses you

It is so easy to admire Joseph's perseverance in the face of overwhelming
adversity while overlooking the real reason behind his success. It was Yhvh's
providence all the way. Left to himself, it's very likely Joseph would have
been dead before he was thirty years old; either by murder, execution, or
suicide.

● Gen 49:25 . .With blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep
that lurk below, blessings of the breast and womb.

Those blessings consist of rain, dew, and abundant water resources; all of
which depict fruitfulness of the soil and the fecundity of both man and beast.

● Gen 49:2 6. .Your father's blessings surpassed the blessings of my
ancestors, to the utmost bounds of the eternal hills. May they rest on
the head of Joseph, on the brow of the elect of his brothers.

Compare Deut 33:13-17 where Manasseh and Ephraim are indirect
recipients of Joseph's blessings, and will apparently conquer and colonize
quite a bit of the earth some day in the future.

Jacob pronounced Joseph the "elect" of his brothers not out of a spirit of
favoritism, but out of a spirit of prophecy. You can easily tell that Yhvh is
micro-managing the entire meeting.

Compared to man, the hills really are eternal; viz: perpetual from one
generation to another. Jacob's ancestors included Abel, Seth, and Noah.
They were good men but none of them inherited the promises God made to
Abraham; which are promises just as eternal as the hills; if not more so.

● Gen 49:27 . . Benjamin rends in pieces, like a wolf-- in the morning
he consumes the prey, and in the evening he apportions the booty.

That is hardly the picture of a peaceful, agrarian society. Israel used to be a
land of milk and honey (Ex 3:8) and you have to wonder what on earth
happened that caused the transformation of a tribe of herders and farmers
into human predators.

As a testament to the cruel nature of the tribe of Benjamin, Israel's first
king-- ego-driven, selfish Mr. Saul --came from there. (1Sam 9:1-2)

The nightmarish events of Judges 19 and 20 took place in Benjamin's
borders and led to the tribe's decimation in a brief civil war.

● Gen 49:28 . . All these were the tribes of Israel, twelve in number,
and this is what their father said to them as he bade them farewell,
addressing to each a parting word appropriate to him.

Numbering the tribes of Israel is tricky because Jacob has twelve birth sons,
and two adopted sons; which adds up to fourteen. But the tribes are always
listed so that the numbering comes out to twelve. Compare the list at Rev
7:5-8 where everybody but Dan and Ephraim are named so that the number
again comes out to twelve. The same strange numbering system was
employed in counting the Lord's apostles. Even after Judas was eliminated,
they were still referred to as the twelve. (1Cor 15:5)

● Gen 49:29-33 . .Then he instructed them, saying to them: I am
about to be gathered to my kin. Bury me with my fathers in the cave
which is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, the cave which is in the
field of Machpelah, facing Mamre, in the land of Canaan, the field
that Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite for a burial site-- there
Abraham and his wife Sarah were buried; there Isaac and his wife
Rebecca were buried; and there I buried Leah --the field and the
cave in it, bought from the Hittites.

. . .When Jacob finished his instructions to his sons, he drew his feet
into the bed and, breathing his last, he was gathered to his kin.

The phrase "gathered to his kin" is an action separate from being buried side
by side with kin in a cemetery. Jacob was gathered to his kin immediately
upon expiration, but wasn't buried with them till more than seventy days
after his demise.

According to Christ, though Jacob's flesh expired many centuries ago in
Egypt, he continues to exist somewhere else.

"But now, as to whether the dead will be raised-- even Moses proved this
when he wrote about the burning bush. Long after Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob had died, he referred to Yhvh as the God of Abraham, the God of
Isaac, and the God of Jacob. So He is the God of the living, not the dead.
They all live unto Him." (Luke 20:37-38)

There is a region in the netherworld where faithful Israelites were at one
time warehoused waiting for the resurrection of their bodies. (e.g. Luke
16:19-31, cf. Matt 17:1-9)
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Genesis 50:1-3


● 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 was terribly broken up
by his dad's passing.

The word for "wept" is bakah (baw-kaw') and means not just to weep, but to
bemoan; which Webster's defines as: to express deep grief and/or distress.
Deep grief is what people undergo when they experience loss.

If there is one salient characteristic of Jacob's family, I would have to say it
was a lack of affection. Joseph seemed the only one in the entire home who
was truly bonded with his dad. His siblings were somehow detached; and I
think that the multiplicity of their mothers might have something to do with
that.

When I found out that my own dad had two sons besides me by two other
women, it destroyed any notion I had of feeling special in my own home;
especially when the only son my dad was ever really proud of was one that
didn't even live with us; but with whom my dad stayed in contact over the
years without telling me.

● Gen 50:2 . .Then Joseph ordered the physicians in his service to
embalm his father, and the physicians embalmed Israel.

It is apparently well known that mummification, with all its elaborate ritual,
played a crucial role in Egyptian religion and was bound up with the cult of
Osiris and concepts of the afterlife. Survival of death was taken for granted
by the Egyptians. Central to this notion was the belief in the importance of
the physical preservation of the deceased's body. They took meticulous care
to prevent the putrefaction of the corpse in order to ensure the right of the
dead to immortality.

I seriously doubt Egypt's religion played a role in Joseph's decision to
embalm his dad. His reason was simply one of practicality. The body was to
be transported to Palestine for burial, and if care wasn't taken to preserve it,
poor old Jacob would be in a terrible state of decay by the time they arrived;
and very smelly too.

Joseph's own personal physicians performed the task rather than
professional morticians, thus assuring nobody would come around to defile
Jacob with pagan rituals, garments, and/or enchantments and spiritual
potions. Jacob's life, and afterlife, were fully consecrated to Yhvh; and no
pagan deities were permitted an attempt to claim a share of his future. (cf.
Jude 1:9)

● Gen 50:3 . . It required forty days, for such is the full period of
embalming. The Egyptians mourned him seventy days

I wouldn't be a bit surprised if the bewailing wasn't mandatory like that of
North Korea's when Kim Jong Il passed. Citizens of that country are not only
denied the freedom of speech, but they don't even have the freedom of
tears.

There exists no information about embalming procedures from Joseph's era
but there is some available from the fifth century BC and from the late
Hellenistic period. Herodotus (Histories 2.86) reports that bodies were
soaked in niter (potassium nitrate) for seventy days.

Diodorus of Sicily (Histories 1.91) describes a thirty-day dressing of the
corpse with oils and spices and seventy-two days of public mourning for a
king. That practice probably corresponds to the American flag being raised at
half mast for deceased dignitaries and notable personages.

Jacob was afforded royal honors no doubt brought about by Josephs'
influence, and his connections with Egypt's aristocrats; sort of like John F.
Kennedy Jr's burial at sea from the US Navy's Spruance class destroyer USS
Briscoe.

J.F.K. Jr. never served in the US military, nor in any Federal civil service
capacity whatsoever; ergo: he certainly did not merit burial at sea from a US
Navy vessel; but the Kennedy dynasty is very influential, and well
connected; and has been for a good many years beginning with patriarch
Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. That just goes to show that there's undue advantages
to being connected in this world.

Anyway, under his son Joseph's auspices, Jacob's was the most grandiose
funeral of any of Israel's primary patriarchs, including Abraham the
paterfamilias of the entire family.
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Genesis 50:4-9


● Gen 50:4a . . and when the mourning 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 simply
customary propriety is unknown.

● Gen 50:4b-5a . . saying; Do me this kindness, and lay this appeal
before Pharaoh: My father made me swear, saying "I am about to
die. Be sure to bury me in the grave which I made ready for myself
in the land of Canaan."

Apparently some time in the past, prior to his immigration to Egypt, Jacob
spent some time in Abraham's cemetery preparing a spot in it for his own
burial so that his surviving kin only had to take him there— no muss, no
fuss, no money problems, and no legal hassles. It's a good idea for people to
make arrangements for their own burials rather than leaving it all up to the
inconvenience of their kin.

● Gen 50:5b . . Now, therefore, let me go up and bury my father;
then I shall return.

It's quite probable that Joseph's assurance of his return anticipated
Pharaoh's anxiety that Joseph might stay back in the land with his brothers
if permitted to leave the country and thus The Man would lose the services
of not only his kingdom's best cattle ranchers but also the services of an
extraordinarily capable bureaucrat.

● Gen 5:6 . . And Pharaoh said: Go up and bury your father, as he
made you promise on oath.

Pharaoh's choice of words, though inadvertent, were quite appropriate.
Travel to Israel is to go "up" and to leave it is to go down. Israel is biblically
regarded as the top of the mountains. (Isa 2:2-3)

● Gen 50:7-8 . . So Joseph went up to bury his father; and with him
went up all the officials of Pharaoh, the senior members of his court,
and all of Egypt's dignitaries, together with all of Joseph's
household, his brothers, and his father's household; only their
children, their flocks, and their herds were left in the region of
Goshen.

Leaving the children and the flocks back in Egypt was not only a practical
consideration but served to reassure Pharaoh that Joseph and his family fully
intended to return as he had promised; which sort of reminds me of a scene
in Goodbye Girl when Richard Dreyfuss leaves his guitar behind when he
goes to a new acting job to assure Marsha Mason he'll be back.

When people pick up and move; lock, stock, and barrel; you pretty much
know they aren't coming back; which is probably why a later-to-come
Pharaoh wouldn't let Moses go to worship with everything his people
possessed. (Ex 10:24)

Precisely why Pharaoh's courtiers, and all of Egypt's dignitaries came along
is hard to understand unless protocol and custom demanded they pay their
respects because of Joseph's rank. Though he wasn't really a home boy,
Joseph's marriage to the daughter of the priest of On, and his Pharaoh-given
name of Tsophnath Pa'neach, made him a naturalized Egyptian; and he was
entitled to just as much of the nation's respect afforded its native sons.

NOTE: I've heard it said that the reason half of us go to funerals is to pay
our respects to people we couldn't be bothered with when they were alive.

● Gen 50:9 . . Chariots, too, and horsemen went up with him; it was
a very large troop.

The unit of fighting men was no doubt to safeguard all the dignitaries.
Palestine was a frontier in those days; and a caravan of aristocrats would be
a really tempting target for brigands.
_

 

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Genesis 50:10-21


● 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
places; e.g. threshing floors or any cleared space like a parade ground.
Judging by the size of Joseph's cortege, I'd have to say Gorena ha-Atad
comprised some appreciable acreage.

Seven days became a traditional period of Jewish mourning (e.g. 1Sam
31:13, Job 2:13)

● Gen 50:11 . . And when the Canaanite inhabitants of the land saw
the mourning at Goren ha-Atad, they said; This is a solemn mourning
on the part of the Egyptians. That is why it was named Abel-mizraim,
which is beyond the Jordan.

Abel-mizraim means Meadow of the Egyptians. Unfortunately, it's precise
location has been lost in antiquity.

● Gen 50:12-14 . .Thus his sons did for him as he had instructed
them. His sons carried him to the land of Canaan, and buried him in
the cave of the field of Machpelah, the field near Mamre, which
Abraham had bought for a burial site from Ephron the Hittite. After
burying his father, Joseph returned to Egypt, he and his brothers and
all who had gone up with him to bury his father.

If Joseph and his brothers were aware of the prediction Yhvh made to
Abraham back in Gen 15:13-14, then they probably returned to Egypt with
heaviness knowing in advance the slavery and the oppression in store for
their progeny.

● Gen 50:15 . .When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was
dead, they said: What if Joseph still bears a grudge against us and
pays us back for all the wrong that we did him?

Where did they get the idea that Joseph was bearing any grudge at all, let
alone "still" bearing a grudge? You know what they did? They did just what
Laban did to Jacob back in chapter 31 when he threatened Jacob with Divine
retribution if he abused Rachel and Leah or dumped them for other women.

Jacob had worked for Laban, on his ranch, up close and personal for twenty
years and never gave Laban one single reason to either believe, or suspect
that Jacob might do unkind things to his wives. In other words: Laban
projected; that is: he assumed everyone was like himself. Now that's an
ego!

Joseph's brothers had a wicked conscience. It wasn't beyond them to project
their own base motives upon everybody else and assume everybody else
would do the very same things they themselves would do in their place.
They totally brushed aside the gracious reception they received in Joseph's
house back in chapter 45 and replaced his hospitality with their own corrupt
imaginations; not to mention the seventeen years just past when they lived
a very good life in Egypt under Joseph's generous auspices.

Nobody's reputation is safe in the hands of people like that who fail to take
into consideration someone's impeccable track record.

● Gen 50:16-17a . . So they sent this message to Joseph: Before his
death your father left this instruction: So shall you say to Joseph;
Forgive, I urge you, the offense and guilt of your brothers who
treated you so harshly. Therefore, please forgive the offense of the
servants of the God of your father.

That is one of the most bold, bare-faced lies in the entire Bible. If Jacob had
desired Joseph to let his brothers off like they said, he would have met with
Joseph and said so himself in person rather than elect the brothers as his
messengers posthumously.

● Gen 50:17b . . And Joseph was in tears as they spoke to him.

The people referred to as "they" were not the brothers, but rather, the
messengers they sent. I've not doubt whatsoever that Joseph suspected the
message was a lie concocted by his brothers as a desperate measure to save
their own skins. His disappointment in them for not trusting him must have
been overwhelming. Joseph had never done even one single thing in his
entire life to deliberately injure his brothers and this is how they react?

● Gen 50:18-21 . . His brothers went to him themselves, flung
themselves before him, and said: We are prepared to be your slaves.
But Joseph said to them: Have no fear. Am I a substitute for God?
Besides, although you intended me harm, God intended it for good,
so as to bring about the present result-- the survival of many people.
And so, fear not. I will sustain you and your children. Thus he
reassured them, speaking kindly to them.

They say repetition is an effective teaching aid; and it's probably because
some people just don't pay attention. Joseph had already made a similar
speech to his brothers once before already in chapter 45 and here he is
having to do it all over again. Their lack of trust in his word as a man of
honor and integrity is just unforgivable.
_

 

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Genesis 50:22-26


● 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, and to Jacob. So
Joseph made the children of Israel swear, saying: When God has
taken notice of you, you shall carry up my bones from here.

. . . Joseph died at the age of one hundred and ten years; and he was
embalmed and placed in a coffin in Egypt.

Josephs' "coffin" was probably an ornate mummy case; and kept in storage
above ground in a special location sort of like a shrine or a memorial. As
they say: Out of sight, out of mind. Keeping Joseph's remains perpetually on
view would make it difficult for the people of Israel to forget him.

Did Joseph ever make it back home again? Yes; he finally did.

"Now the Israelites went up armed out of the land of Egypt. And Moses took
with him the bones of Joseph, who had exacted an oath from the children of
Israel, saying: God will be sure to take notice of you; then you shall carry up
my bones from here with you." (Ex 13:18-19)

"The bones of Joseph, which the Israelites had brought up from Egypt, were
buried at Shechem, in the piece of ground which Jacob had bought for a
hundred kesitahs from the children of Hamor, Shechem's father, and which
had become a heritage of Joseph's progeny." (Josh 24:32)

Genesis records Jacob purchasing the property (Gen 33:17-20). But Stephen
said it was Abraham's transaction (Acts 7:15-16) which strongly suggests
that the county recorder in the community of Shechem was a bit careless
with his paperwork and let Abraham's deed slip through a crack;
necessitating Jacob pay for the lot all over again; no doubt at a higher price
the second time around.

_ THE END _
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