Genesis 50:1 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then Joseph fell on his father’s face and wept over him and kissed him.

NIV: Joseph threw himself on his father and wept over him and kissed him.

NASB: Then Joseph fell on his father’s face, and wept over him and kissed him.

CSB: Then Joseph, leaning over his father's face, wept and kissed him.

NLT: Joseph threw himself on his father and wept over him and kissed him.

KJV: And Joseph fell upon his father's face, and wept upon him, and kissed him.

NKJV: Then Joseph fell on his father’s face, and wept over him, and kissed him.

The previous chapter closed with Jacob's death (Genesis 49:33). Joseph responds with weeping. Though parted for many years, he and Jacob had become close once more after their reunion (Genesis 46:29–30). Hit hard by Jacob's death, Joseph responds in dramatic fashion. Joseph has often cried openly during emotional moments with his family (Genesis 43:30; 45:15).

The fact that Joseph was present at his father's death fulfilled God's promise to Jacob. As he left Canaan to move his family to Egypt, God told Jacob, "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" (Genesis 46:4).

Genesis 50:1–14 begins with Joseph weeping by his father's deathbed. Jacob is embalmed and an official period of mourning is observed in Egypt. With Pharaoh's blessing and a large company of Egyptian mourners, Jacob's sons travel to Canaan. There, as requested, they bury their father in the family tomb, alongside Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, and Jacob's wife Leah. Then they all return to Egypt.

Genesis 50 begins with Joseph's weeping over his father's body, followed by the embalming of Jacob, a 70–day period of state mourning, and a trip to Canaan to bury Jacob with his fathers. Joseph's brothers, worried that he would take his revenge on them for selling him into slavery, seek Joseph's forgiveness. He assures them he will not harm them. The chapter skips to the end of Joseph's life. After assuring his people that God will return them to Canaan one day, Joseph dies and is embalmed.

After settling in Egypt, under his son's protection (Genesis 47—49), Jacob dies (Genesis 49:33). He is embalmed and all of Egypt mourns. Joseph buries his father in the family tomb in Canaan, then returns to Egypt. He asks that his body be taken back to Canaan someday. This sets up the events of the book of Exodus. Over centuries, Israel will grow into a prosperous people, only to be enslaved by a jealous Egyptian monarchy. This provides a context for God to rescue Israel and demonstrate His power.

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.

Accessed 4/29/2024 3:53:19 PM