What is the meaning of Genesis 46?

Introduction to Genesis 46

Genesis 46 marks a pivotal moment in the narrative of God’s chosen people as Jacob (Israel) embarks on his journey to Egypt with his entire family. This chapter serves as a bridge between the patriarchal period in Canaan and the Egyptian sojourn that would ultimately lead to the Exodus. The detailed genealogical record embedded within this narrative demonstrates God’s faithfulness in fulfilling His promise to Abraham about making his descendants into a great nation.

The chapter beautifully weaves together themes of divine guidance, family reunion, and the sovereignty of God in preserving His people through times of crisis. It shows how God works through ordinary human circumstances – in this case, a famine – to accomplish His extraordinary purposes.

Context of Genesis 46

Within the immediate context of Genesis, this chapter follows the emotional reunion between Joseph and his brothers and precedes the settlement of Jacob’s family in Egypt. It serves as a crucial transition point, moving from the individual family narratives of the patriarchs to the beginning of Israel as a nation. The chapter falls within the larger Joseph narrative (Genesis 37-50) but shifts focus back to Jacob, demonstrating how personal and national destinies intertwine in God’s plan.

In the broader biblical narrative, Genesis 46 fulfills prophecies given to Abraham in Genesis 15:13-14, where God foretold that his descendants would be strangers in a foreign land. This Egyptian sojourn sets the stage for the Exodus story, which becomes foundational to Israel’s identity and understanding of redemption. The chapter also provides the genealogical foundation for understanding the growth of Israel from a family of 70 to a nation of millions by the time of the Exodus.

The positioning of this chapter within Scripture demonstrates God’s sovereign orchestration of events, showing how He uses circumstances – even challenging ones like famine and family separation – to fulfill His covenant promises and preserve His people.

Ancient Key Word Study

• “Visions of the night” (מַרְאֹ֣ת הַלַּ֗יְלָה, mar’ot ha-laylah): This phrase in verse 2 indicates divine revelation through dreams, a recurring theme in Genesis. The plural form “visions” suggests multiple divine communications, emphasizing God’s continued guidance of His people at crucial moments.
• “Do not be afraid” (אַל־תִּירָ֛א, al-tira): This divine reassurance in verse 3 uses a common phrase found throughout Scripture. The negative command with the imperfect tense implies both immediate and ongoing comfort, showing God’s awareness of Jacob’s natural hesitation about leaving the Promised Land.
• “Great nation” (לְג֥וֹי גָּד֖וֹל, le-goy gadol): This promise in verse 3 echoes God’s original covenant with Abraham, using identical terminology. The word גָּדוֹל (gadol) implies both numerical greatness and significant influence.
• “Bring you up again” (אָנֹכִ֖י אַֽעַלְךָ֣, anochi a’alcha): The verb עָלָה (alah) in verse 4 carries both physical and spiritual connotations, prophetically pointing to both the Exodus and the ultimate return to Canaan.
• “Wagons” (עֲגָל֔וֹת, agalot): Mentioned multiple times in the chapter, this word represents Egyptian technology and civilization, symbolizing the providence of God using a foreign power to preserve His people.
• “Place his hands on your eyes” (יָשִׁ֥ית יָד֖וֹ עַל־עֵינֶֽיךָ): This phrase in verse 4 refers to the ancient custom of closing the eyes of the deceased, promising Jacob that Joseph would be with him at his death, offering both comfort and closure.
• “Souls” (נֶ֗פֶשׁ, nefesh): Used repeatedly in the genealogical list, this word represents not just physical persons but the entire being, emphasizing the wholeness of Israel’s identity as it entered Egypt.
• “Little ones” (טַ֥ף, taf): This term in verse 5 specifically refers to small children, emphasizing the completeness of the migration and God’s care for all generations of His people.
• “Goshen” (גֹּ֑שֶׁנָה, goshnah): This location name represents God’s provision of the best land in Egypt for His people, demonstrating His care for their physical well-being even in exile.

Compare & Contrast

• Verse 2’s use of “Israel” (יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל) rather than “Jacob” is significant, as it emphasizes his spiritual identity at this crucial moment. The text could have used “Jacob” to focus on his human nature, but chose to highlight his covenant identity as he received divine reassurance.
• The phrase “I am God, the God of your father” (אָנֹכִ֥י הָאֵ֖ל אֱלֹהֵ֣י אָבִ֑יךָ) in verse 3 uses both אֵל (El) and אֱלֹהִים (Elohim), emphasizing both God’s power and His covenant faithfulness. This combination reinforces the personal nature of God’s relationship with the patriarchs.
• The promise “I will surely bring you up again” (אָנֹכִ֖י אַֽעַלְךָ֣) uses the emphatic infinitive absolute construction, underscoring the certainty of God’s promise. This grammatical choice conveys absolute assurance rather than mere possibility.
• The genealogical list’s organization by mothers rather than birth order reflects the importance of the matriarchs in Israel’s formation. This structure emphasizes the role of both fathers and mothers in God’s covenant plan.
• The number 70 (verse 27) is specifically chosen over other possible counts, as it represents completeness and divine order in Hebrew numerology. The text could have provided a simple head count but chose to emphasize this symbolic number.
• The meeting between Joseph and Jacob (verse 29) uses the verb “appeared” (נִרְאָ֤ה) rather than simply “came,” creating a parallel with divine appearances and emphasizing the providential nature of their reunion.
• The pastoral profession of Jacob’s family (verse 34) is specifically mentioned as “abomination to Egyptians,” using the strong term תּוֹעֵבָ֥ה (to’evah). This cultural detail serves to explain God’s strategy for keeping Israel separate and distinct in Egypt.

Genesis 46 Unique Insights

The chapter contains several layers of meaning that might not be immediately apparent to modern readers. The Midrash Rabbah notes that the divine communication to Jacob at Beer-sheba occurred at the same location where Abraham had planted a tamarisk tree and called upon the name of יהוה. This geographic connection suggests a spiritual continuity across generations, with each patriarch receiving divine guidance at crucial transition points.

The rabbinical tradition also observes that the repeated phrase “these are the names” (וְאֵ֤לֶּה שְׁמוֹת) in the genealogical list echoes the opening of Exodus, creating a literary bridge between Israel’s entry into and exodus from Egypt. The preservation of these names demonstrates that maintaining distinct identity was crucial to God’s plan for Israel’s eventual redemption.

The early church father Origen saw in this chapter a typological significance, viewing Jacob’s journey to Egypt as prefiguring the church’s journey through the world while maintaining its heavenly identity. He particularly noted how God’s promise to “bring you up again” pointed beyond mere physical return to Canaan toward the ultimate resurrection hope.

The chapter’s structure itself reveals a deeper meaning through its numbers: the 66 direct descendants plus Jacob, Joseph, and his two sons making 70 corresponds to the 70 nations listed in Genesis 10, suggesting Israel’s role in God’s universal plan of redemption. The Zohar draws attention to this numerical parallel, seeing it as evidence of Israel’s mission to be a light to all nations.

Genesis 46 Connections to Yeshua

This chapter prefigures several aspects of the Messiah’s work and person. Just as Jacob’s family found preservation from death through going down to Egypt, so humanity finds life through the Messiah’s own descent into our world. The promise “I will go down with you into Egypt” foreshadows the incarnation, where God in Yeshua literally came down to dwell among His people (John 1:14).

The theme of divine preservation through apparent disaster points to God’s pattern of bringing life from death, fully realized in Yeshua’s resurrection. Joseph’s role in preserving his family prefigures the Messiah’s role in saving both Israel and the nations. The chapter’s emphasis on maintaining distinct identity in Egypt parallels believers’ call to be “in the world but not of it” through their connection to Messiah (John 17:14-16).

Genesis 46 Scriptural Echoes

This chapter resonates with numerous biblical passages and themes. The divine appearance to Jacob recalls similar encounters throughout Genesis, creating a pattern of God’s guidance at crucial moments. The promise “I will make you into a great nation there” echoes the original covenant with Abraham in Genesis 12:2.

The theme of God’s presence in exile finds expression later in prophetic literature, particularly in Ezekiel’s visions of God’s glory going with Israel into exile (Ezekiel 1). The preservation of family lines in the genealogy connects to the ultimate purpose of maintaining the Messianic line, fulfilled in the genealogies of Yeshua (Matthew 1, Luke 3).

The motif of God bringing good from difficult circumstances echoes throughout Scripture, finding its ultimate expression in Romans 8:28. The theme of divine guidance and presence in foreign lands resonates with the later experiences of Daniel and his friends in Babylon.

Genesis 46 Devotional

This chapter challenges us to trust God’s guidance even when His direction seems to conflict with our expectations. Jacob might have questioned leaving the Promised Land, but God assured him of His presence and purpose. Similarly, we must trust God’s leading even when it appears to contradict our understanding of His will.

The detailed genealogy reminds us that God knows each person by name and has a place for everyone in His plan. In our own spiritual journeys, we can take comfort in knowing that God is intimately aware of our identity and circumstances, just as He was with each person named in this list.

The chapter also teaches us about family reconciliation and God’s power to heal broken relationships. The reunion of Jacob and Joseph demonstrates how God can restore what seems irreparably damaged, offering hope for our own relationships.

Did You Know

• The journey from Beer-sheba to Egypt would have taken approximately two weeks by wagon in ancient times, covering a distance of about 200 miles through challenging terrain.
• The term “wagons” (עֲגָל֔וֹת) mentioned in this chapter represents the first recorded instance in the Bible of wheeled vehicles being used for transportation.
• The region of Goshen, where Jacob’s family settled, was in the eastern Nile Delta and was known for its exceptional grazing lands, making it perfect for their pastoral lifestyle.
• The number 70, representing Jacob’s family, appears frequently in ancient Near Eastern texts as a number representing completeness and divine order.
• Archaeological evidence from Egypt confirms that Semitic peoples were often given administrative positions during the Middle Kingdom period, corresponding to Joseph’s rise to power.
• The custom of placing hands on the eyes of the deceased (verse 4) is attested in other ancient Near Eastern texts and was considered a crucial part of proper burial rights.
• The separation of shepherds from Egyptian society (verse 34) is confirmed by Egyptian historical records, which show that pastoral peoples were indeed considered culturally inferior.
• Biblical genealogies often served multiple purposes beyond mere record-keeping, including establishing legitimate claims to land and position, preserving tribal identities, and demonstrating God’s faithfulness to His promises.
• The journey to Egypt marked the beginning of the 430-year period mentioned in Exodus 12:40.
• The phrase “all the souls” (כָּל־הַנֶּ֜פֶשׁ) used in the genealogy emphasizes the wholeness of the person in Hebrew thought, contrasting with Greek dualistic concepts of body and soul.