Genesis 46:4 - Printer Friendly

ESV: I myself will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you up again, and Joseph’s hand shall close your eyes.”

NIV: I will go down to Egypt with you, and I will surely bring you back again. And Joseph's own hand will close your eyes.'

NASB: I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also assuredly bring you up again; and Joseph will close your eyes.'

CSB: I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you back. Joseph will close your eyes when you die."

NLT: I will go with you down to Egypt, and I will bring you back again. You will die in Egypt, but Joseph will be with you to close your eyes.'

KJV: 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.

NKJV: I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also surely bring you up again; and Joseph will put his hand on your eyes.”

God is speaking to Jacob in a night vision in Beersheba (Genesis 46:1–3). Beersheba is at the southern end of the land the Lord promised to Jacob, and his grandfather Abraham, and his father Isaac (Genesis 13:14–16). God has assured Jacob not to be afraid to leave behind the land and settle in Egypt. The promise still holds. In fact, God has said He will make Jacob's people into a great nation in the land of Egypt (Exodus 1:7).

God wants Jacob to know that His ability to keep His promises is not restricted by borders. He will do all He has promised. Now He insists that He will go with Jacob down to Egypt. This is like the promise God made to Jacob when he left behind Canaan the first time when running from Esau: "Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you." (Genesis 28:15).

God again promises Jacob that He will bring him back to the Promised Land. God uses emphatic language. This is a statement of fact. It is not a promise that Jacob will not die in Egypt. Jacob will soon pass away and be buried by Joseph in the family burial tomb in Canaan (Genesis 50). God's meaning is that Israel, the nation of Jacob's offspring, will return to their Promised Land. God also includes the tender promise that Jacob's beloved son Joseph, whom he thought to be dead, will be the one to close Jacob's eyes after his own peaceful death.

This is God's final revelation to the patriarchs of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He will keep all His promises, but he will not appear again until centuries later when He speaks to Moses from the burning bush (Exodus 3).

Genesis 46:1–7 begins with the journey of Jacob's large family from Canaan to Egypt. First is a stop in Beersheba (Genesis 26:33). Jacob offers sacrifices to God. God responds, telling Jacob not to be afraid to settle in Egypt. God assures Jacob that He will continue to be with him and will still make a great nation of his offspring. After this, Genesis tallies all the direct descendants of Israel, before returning to a narrative form.

Genesis 46 includes three basic sections. First, Jacob and his large family begin their journey with all their possessions towards their new home in Egypt. Jacob stops in Beersheba and offers sacrifices to God. God responds by assuring Jacob He will continue to be with him and multiply his people. The narrative pauses to count the current descendants of Jacob, then resumes with Jacob's arrival in the Goshen region of Egypt. Joseph meets him there for an emotional reunion. Then Joseph prepares the family to meet Pharaoh.

Joseph has just been dramatically reunited with his estranged brothers (Genesis 45). Following Joseph's revelation of his identity Genesis 46 describes the large family's move out of Canaan. Jacob stops in Beersheba to offer sacrifices to God and receive renewed promises from Him. Then the story pauses to provide a count of Joseph's descendants by each of his four wives. Jacob is reunited with Joseph, who prepares his family to meet with Pharaoh. Chapter 47 describes Jacob's meeting with Pharaoh and the family's settlement in Goshen.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.