Genesis 50:2 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel.

NIV: Then Joseph directed the physicians in his service to embalm his father Israel. So the physicians embalmed him,

NASB: Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel.

CSB: He commanded his servants who were physicians to embalm his father. So they embalmed Israel.

NLT: Then Joseph told the physicians who served him to embalm his father’s body; so Jacob was embalmed.

KJV: And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father: and the physicians embalmed Israel.

NKJV: And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel.

Jacob has died (Genesis 49:33). After kissing his father's face, Joseph commanded Egyptian physicians to embalm his father's body. Egyptian embalming was an extensive process resulting in what we now call mummification. It involved extracting the brain and internal organs, soaking the body in specific liquids, and wrapping it heavily in bandages. Only Jacob and, later, Joseph are described in the Old Testament as having been embalmed.

This level of attention was a sign of status in Egypt, something fitting to Joseph's position as the second in command in the nation (Genesis 41:44). Embalming would have kept Jacob's body from decomposing before Joseph and his brothers had the time to lay it to rest in the family burial tomb in Canaan (Genesis 47:29–30).

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 5/6/2024 3:40:03 AM