“Genesis 47:27-31”

Tuesday, April 28, 2020

“Now Israel lived in the land of Egypt, in Goshen, and they acquired property in it and were fruitful and became very numerous. Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years; so the length of Jacob’s life was one hundred and forty-seven years. When the time for Israel to die drew near, he called his son Joseph and said to him, ‘Please, if I have found favor in your sight, place now your hand under my thigh and deal with me in kindness and faithfulness. Please do not bury me in Egypt, but when I lie down with my fathers, you shall carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place.’ And he said, ‘I will do as you have said.’ He said, ‘Swear to me.’ So he swore to him. Then Israel bowed in worship at the head of the bed.”

---End of Scripture verses---

“Now Israel lived in the land of Egypt, in Goshen, and they acquired property in it and were fruitful and became very numerous.” (verse 27) The narrative now returns to the account of Israel and his descendants. The Lord had promised Jacob that “Your descendants will also be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south…” (Genesis 28:14). We see in this verse this promise playing itself out both in the immediate timeframe and projecting into proceeding decades and centuries when His people “were fruitful and increased greatly, and multiplied, and became exceedingly mighty, so that the land was filled with them” (Exodus 1:7).

“Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years; so the length of Jacob’s life was one hundred and forty-seven years.” (verse 28) When Jacob was reunited with the son he adored after over twenty painful years of believing him to be dead, he felt his life was thus complete and he could be satisfied with death (Genesis 45:28). He did not know then that the Lord would grant him the satisfaction of celebrating seventeen more of his favorite son’s birthdays. “This is precisely as many years as Joseph had lived with his father in Canaan (37:2). There is a similar pattern for Abraham, who lived exactly as many years in his father’s home (12:4) as in the lifetime of his son Isaac (21:5; 25:7).” (Nahum Sarna)

“Place now your hand under my thigh and deal with me in kindness and faithfulness.” (verse 29) This calls to mind a time when Abraham was advanced in age like Jacob, and he made his servant swear an oath before sending him to his relatives to select a wife for Isaac: “Now Abraham was old, advanced in age; and the Lord had blessed Abraham in every way. Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his household, who had charge of all that he owned, ‘Please place your hand under my thigh, and I will make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live, but you will go to my country and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son Isaac.’” (Genesis 24:1-4) This sacred oath involved holding the “thigh,” which was likely a euphemism for the “organs of generation,” possibly swearing upon the sacred covenant of circumcision. People have been known to make interesting gestures such as crossing hearts or touching pinky fingers together when they swear. This one gets a little more intimate and personal to say the least.

“Please do not bury me in Egypt.” (verse 29) As good as Egypt had been to Jacob and as thrilling as it had been to witness his beloved son rise to the pinnacle of power and prosperity in the land of his exile, there was still no place like home where his heart and the promises of God resided. Joseph would make a similar request of his own sons in Genesis 50:24-25 to bury him in the land of his fathers: “Joseph said to his brothers, ‘I am about to die, but God will surely take care of you and bring you up from this land to the land which He promised on oath to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob.’ Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear, saying, ‘God will surely take care of you, and you shall carry my bones up from here.’”

“Then Israel bowed in worship at the head of the bed.” (verse 31) When Joseph swore to his dying father that he would entomb him in the burial place of his fathers, Jacob worshiped the Lord in humble gratification and gratitude. As turbulent as his life had been and as flawed and sometimes foolish as he was, Jacob was a man of worship who always recognized and reverenced the Lord. He gave God the credit and glory for every good thing in his life, and he cherished His presence and prominence over his personal affairs. This is the picture of a godly man who remained faithful to the Lord unto death and was prepared to receive the eternal crown of life (Revelation 2:10). “The picture of the aged patriarch leaning back upon his bed, content and happy in his son’s promise, and giving thanks to God for the peace of his approaching end, is one full of pathos and dignity.” (Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers)

Please read Genesis 48:1-7 for tomorrow.

Have a blessed day!

-Louie Taylor

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