Bible Commentaries
Genesis 46

Verse 1

And Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices unto the God of his father Isaac.

And Israel came to Beer-sheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac - He chose that place in remembrance of the communion which his father and grandfather had with God in that place. In his devotion he had an eye to God as the God of his father Isaac, that is, a God in covenant with him, for by Isaac the covenant was entailed upon him. He offered sacrifices, extraordinary sacrifices, besides those at his stated times. These sacrifices were offered, 1. By way of thanksgiving for the late blessed change of the face of his family, for the good news he had received concerning Joseph, and the hopes he had of seeing him — 2. By way of petition for the presence of God with him in his intended journey — 3. By way of consultation. Jacob would not go on ’till he had asked God’s leave.

Verse 2

And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I.

And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night — (Probably the next night after he had offered his sacrifices.) Those who desire to keep up communion with God, shall find that it never fails on his side. If we speak to him as we ought, he will not fail to speak to us. God called him by his name, by his old name, Jacob, Jacob, to mind him of his low estate. Jacob, like one well acquainted with the visions of the Almighty, answers, Here am I - Ready to receive orders. And what has God to say to him?

Verse 3

And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation:

I am God, the God of thy father — That is, I am what thou ownest me to be: thou shalt find me a God of divine wisdom and power engaged for thee: and thou shalt find me the God of thy father, true to the covenant made with him.

Fear not to go down into Egypt — It seems though Jacob, upon the first intelligence of Joseph’s life and glory in Egypt, resolved without any hesitation I will go and see him, yet upon second thoughts he saw difficulties in it — 1. He was old, 130 years old; it was a long journey, and he was unfit to travel — 2. He feared lest his sons should be tainted with the idolatry of Egypt, and forget the God of their fathers — 3. Probably he thought of what God had said to Abraham concerning the bondage and affliction of his seed — 4. He could not think of laying his bones in Egypt. But whatever his discouragements were, this was enough to answer them all, Fear not to go down into Egypt.

Verse 4

I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes.

I will go down with thee into Egypt — Those that go where God sends them shall certainly have God with them.

And I will surely bring thee up again — Tho’ Jacob died in Egypt, yet this promise was fulfilled, 1. In the bringing up of his body to be buried in Canaan — 2. In the bringing up of his seed to be settled in Canaan. Whatever low and darksome valley we are called into, we may be confident if God go down with us, he will surely bring us up again. If he go with us down to death, he will surely bring us up again to glory.

And Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes — That is a promise that Joseph should live as long as he lived, that he should be with him at his death, and close his eyes with all possible tenderness. Probably Jacob, in the multitude of his thoughts within him, had been wishing that Joseph might do this last office of love for him; and God thus answered him in the letter of his desire. Thus God sometimes gratifies the innocent wishes of his people, and makes not only their death happy, but the very circumstances of it agreeable.

Verse 7

His sons, and his sons’ sons with him, his daughters, and his sons’ daughters, and all his seed brought he with him into Egypt.

All his seed — ’Tis probable they continued to live together in common with their father, and therefore when he went they all went; which perhaps they were the more willing to do, because, tho’ they had heard that the land of Canaan was promised them, yet to this day they had none of it in possession. We have here a particular account of the names of Jacob’s family; his sons sons, most of which are afterwards mentioned, as heads of houses in the several tribes. See Numbers 26:5, etc. Issachar called his eldest son Tola, which signifies a worm, probably because when he was born he was a little weak child, not likely to live, and yet there sprang from him a very numerous off-spring, 1 Chronicles 7:2. The whole number that went down into Egypt were sixty-six, to which add Joseph and his two sons, who were there before, and Jacob himself, the head of the family, and you have the number of seventy. ’Twas now215 years since God had promised Abraham to make of him a great nation, Genesis 12:2, and yet that branch of his seed, on which the promise was entailed, was as yet increased but to seventy, of which this particular account is kept, that the power of God in multiplying these seventy to so vast a multitude, even in Egypt, may be the more illustrious. When he pleases, A little one shall become a thousand.

Verse 30

And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive.

Now let me die — Not but that it was farther desirable to live with Joseph, and to see his honour and usefulness; but he had so much satisfaction in this first meeting, that he thought it too much to desire or expect any more in this world.