Exodus 1:5 - Printer Friendly

ESV: All the descendants of Jacob were seventy persons; Joseph was already in Egypt.

NIV: The descendants of Jacob numbered seventy in all; Joseph was already in Egypt.

NASB: All the people who descended from Jacob were seventy people, but Joseph was already in Egypt.

CSB: The total number of Jacob's descendants was seventy; Joseph was already in Egypt.

NLT: In all, Jacob had seventy descendants in Egypt, including Joseph, who was already there.

KJV: And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already.

NKJV: All those who were descendants of Jacob were seventy persons (for Joseph was in Egypt already).

Moses, the author of the book of Exodus, notes that the descendants of Jacob were "seventy persons." This seems to be a deliberately round number, rather than an exact count of the family. The extended family would have been well over seventy at this time, especially including servants. The same number seventy is also recorded in Genesis 46:27. This included Joseph, Joseph's wife, and his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim, though they were "already in Egypt."

The emphasis of the number seventy in this verse is primarily focused on the contrast between the small number of people in Jacob's family when they entered Egypt versus the size of the nation of Israel 400 years later (Exodus 12:40). By the time of Moses, the "sons of Israel" included hundreds of thousands of men. Scholars estimate the entire nation at over two million people at the time of the Exodus. God had fulfilled His promise to turn Abraham into a nation (Genesis 12:1–3).

Exodus 1:1–14 describes the explosive growth of the nation of Israel and the erosion of their relationship to Egypt. Joseph's efforts in the past saved Egypt from ruin, and his family was welcomed into the land. Generations later, the drastic increase in their population is seen as a threat to the Egyptian people. Motivated by a combination of fear and disgust, the king of Egypt brutally enslaves the people of Israel in an attempt to reduce their numbers. This effort fails, and the following passage shows Pharaoh resorting to infanticide in an effort to control the Hebrews.

The children of Abraham and Jacob grow rapidly, forming a prosperous nation made up of twelve tribes, one for each son of Jacob. This inspires fear and hate from the Egyptians. Their king first tries to slow down the Hebrews' growth by enslaving them. Next, he increases the brutality of their work. Then, he tries to command Jewish midwives to kill their own people's newborn baby boys. When these all fail, he openly orders the murder of all Jewish infant boys. Inadvertently, this creates the very situation which leads to the rise of Israel's eventual leader, Moses.

Exodus chapter 1 establishes the difficult reality faced by the nation of Israel. At the end of Genesis, Abraham's descendants were finally safe. In this passage, they become prosperous and expand rapidly. This, however, results in fear and hatred from the native Egyptians, who enact a program of slavery and infanticide against the Hebrews. This sets the scene for the arrival of Israel's greatest leader, the prophet Moses, who will speak for God during this time of Israel's rescue. The next chapter explains Moses' dangerous childhood and exile in the desert.

The book of Exodus establishes God's covenant relationship with the full-fledged nation of Israel. The descendants of Abraham prosper after settling in Egypt, only to be enslaved by a fearful, hateful Egyptian Pharaoh. God appoints Moses to lead the people out of this bondage. Moses serves as God's spokesman, as the Lord brings plagues and judgments on Egypt, leading to the release of Israel.

Accessed 5/2/2024 7:56:37 AM