Genesis 50
Berean Standard Bible · Compare translations · 1859 BC – 1805 BC · The patriarchs · Tap a verse to copy, share or highlight ·
26 verses · 627 words · ~3 min read · ~4 min listen
Mourning and Burial for Jacob
1Then Joseph fell upon his fatherʼs face, wept over him, and kissed him.
2And Joseph directed the physicians in his service to embalm his father Israel. So they embalmed him, 3taking the forty days required to complete the embalming. And the Egyptians mourned for him seventy days.
4When the days of mourning had passed, Joseph said to Pharaohʼs court, “If I have found favor in your eyes, please tell Pharaoh that 5my father made me swear an oath when he said, ‘I am about to die. You must bury me in the tomb that I dug for myself in the land of Canaan.’ Now let me go and bury my father, and then return.”
6Pharaoh replied, “Go up and bury your father, as he made you swear to do.”
7Then Joseph went to bury his father, and all the servants of Pharaoh accompanied him—the elders of Pharaohʼs household and all the elders of the land of Egypt— 8along with all of Josephʼs household, and his brothers, and his fatherʼs household. Only their children and flocks and herds were left in Goshen.
9Chariots and horsemen alike went up with him, and it was an exceedingly large procession. 10When they reached the threshing floor of Atad, which is across the Jordan, they lamented and wailed loudly, and Joseph mourned for his father seven days.
11When the Canaanites of the land saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, “This is a solemn ceremony of mourning by the Egyptians.” Thus the place across the Jordan is called Abel-mizraim.
12So Jacobʼs sons did as he had charged them. 13They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave at Machpelah in the field near Mamre, which Abraham had purchased from Ephron the Hittite as a burial site.
14After Joseph had buried his father, he returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had gone with him to bury his father.
Joseph Comforts His Brothers
15When Josephʼs brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph bears a grudge? Then he will surely repay us for all the evil that we did to him.”
16So they sent word to Joseph, saying, “Before he died, your father commanded, 17‘This is what you are to say to Joseph: I beg you, please forgive the transgression and sin of your brothers, for they did you wrong.’ So now, Joseph, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father.”
When their message came to him, Joseph wept. 18His brothers also came to him, bowed down before him, and said, “We are your slaves!”
19But Joseph replied, “Do not be afraid. Am I in the place of God? 20As for you, what you intended against me for evil, God intended for good, in order to accomplish a day like this—to preserve the lives of many people. 21Therefore do not be afraid. I will provide for you and your little ones.” So Joseph reassured his brothers and spoke kindly to them.
The Death of Joseph
22Now Joseph and his fatherʼs household remained in Egypt, and Joseph lived to the age of 110. 23He saw Ephraimʼs sons to the third generation, and indeed the sons of Machir son of Manasseh were brought up on Josephʼs knees.
24Then Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die, but God will surely visit you and bring you up from this land to the land He promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” 25And Joseph made the sons of Israel take an oath and said, “God will surely attend to you, and then you must carry my bones up from this place.”
26So Joseph died at the age of 110. And they embalmed his body and placed it in a coffin in Egypt.
Footnotes (2)
- a v11 Abel-mizraim means mourning of the Egyptians.
- b v23 Or born or placed at birth
Study notes on this chapter · 1
Joseph: rejected by his brothers, exalted to save them
Joseph is hated and sold by his brothers, is falsely accused, then raised to rule Egypt and to save the very brothers who betrayed him. Stephen highlights part of this story in Acts 7, and Christian tradition has often seen Joseph as a pattern for Jesus. The New Testament does not make the link explicit.
When: Genesis (traditionally c. 1900–1800 BC); Stephen's speech, c. AD 31–35.
Ways people read this (3)
- Joseph's story is a typological foreshadowing of Christ's rejection and exaltation.
- The Genesis narrative stresses God's providence in turning evil to good (Genesis 50:20); it does not claim to be prophecy.
- Jewish tradition sees Joseph as a model of righteousness (the tzaddik).
Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.