50 Joseph threw himself on his father and wept over him and kissed him.(A) Then Joseph directed the physicians in his service to embalm his father Israel. So the physicians embalmed him,(B) taking a full forty days, for that was the time required for embalming. And the Egyptians mourned for him seventy days.(C)

When the days of mourning(D) had passed, Joseph said to Pharaoh’s court,(E) “If I have found favor in your eyes,(F) speak to Pharaoh for me. Tell him, ‘My father made me swear an oath(G) and said, “I am about to die;(H) bury me in the tomb I dug for myself(I) in the land of Canaan.”(J) Now let me go up and bury my father;(K) then I will return.’”

Pharaoh said, “Go up and bury your father, as he made you swear to do.”

So Joseph went up to bury his father. All Pharaoh’s officials(L) accompanied him—the dignitaries of his court(M) and all the dignitaries of Egypt— besides all the members of Joseph’s household and his brothers and those belonging to his father’s household.(N) Only their children and their flocks and herds were left in Goshen.(O) Chariots(P) and horsemen[a] also went up with him. It was a very large company.

10 When they reached the threshing floor(Q) of Atad, near the Jordan, they lamented loudly and bitterly;(R) and there Joseph observed a seven-day period(S) of mourning(T) for his father.(U) 11 When the Canaanites(V) who lived there saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, “The Egyptians are holding a solemn ceremony of mourning.”(W) That is why that place near the Jordan is called Abel Mizraim.[b]

12 So Jacob’s sons did as he had commanded them:(X) 13 They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave in the field of Machpelah,(Y) near Mamre,(Z) which Abraham had bought along with the field(AA) as a burial place from Ephron the Hittite.(AB) 14 After burying his father, Joseph returned to Egypt, together with his brothers and all the others who had gone with him to bury his father.(AC)

Joseph Reassures His Brothers

15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph holds a grudge(AD) against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?”(AE) 16 So they sent word to Joseph, saying, “Your father left these instructions(AF) before he died: 17 ‘This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins(AG) and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.’(AH) Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father.(AI)” When their message came to him, Joseph wept.(AJ)

18 His brothers then came and threw themselves down before him.(AK) “We are your slaves,”(AL) they said.

19 But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God?(AM) 20 You intended to harm me,(AN) but God intended(AO) it for good(AP) to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.(AQ) 21 So then, don’t be afraid. I will provide for you and your children.(AR)” And he reassured them and spoke kindly(AS) to them.

The Death of Joseph

22 Joseph stayed in Egypt, along with all his father’s family. He lived a hundred and ten years(AT) 23 and saw the third generation(AU) of Ephraim’s(AV) children.(AW) Also the children of Makir(AX) son of Manasseh(AY) were placed at birth on Joseph’s knees.[c](AZ)

24 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die.(BA) But God will surely come to your aid(BB) and take you up out of this land to the land(BC) he promised on oath to Abraham,(BD) Isaac(BE) and Jacob.”(BF) 25 And Joseph made the Israelites swear an oath(BG) and said, “God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones(BH) up from this place.”(BI)

26 So Joseph died(BJ) at the age of a hundred and ten.(BK) And after they embalmed him,(BL) he was placed in a coffin in Egypt.

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 50:9 Or charioteers
  2. Genesis 50:11 Abel Mizraim means mourning of the Egyptians.
  3. Genesis 50:23 That is, were counted as his

50 As his father passed on, Joseph threw himself onto his father’s face, crying and kissing him. Then Joseph told the physicians in his service to embalm his father and prepare him for the journey. So the physicians embalmed Israel. It took 40 days to embalm him because that’s how long it takes to embalm a body properly. And the Egyptians paid their respects by mourning and weeping for him for 70 days.

When the time of mourning had passed, Joseph addressed Pharaoh’s household.

Joseph: If I have found favor with you, please speak to Pharaoh on my behalf. My father made me swear an oath. He said, “I am about to die. I want you to bury me in the tomb I made for myself in the land of Canaan.” So I ask that you allow me to go out of Egypt to bury my father. When I have honored his request, I will return to Egypt.

Pharaoh: Go up to Canaan, and bury your father as he made you swear to do.

So Joseph went up to Canaan to bury his father. And all of Pharaoh’s servants went with him in a long procession that included the elders of Pharaoh’s household and the land of Egypt. Joseph’s own household, his brothers, and his father’s household joined in the solemn march. Only their children, flocks, and herds were left in the land of Goshen. Both chariots and charioteers accompanied him as well. It was a grand procession. 10 When they came to the threshing floor of Atad near Canaan but still beyond the Jordan River, the great company of mourners paused to observe seven days of mourning for Joseph’s father. The weeping and lamentation grew so loud that 11 the people who lived there, the Canaanites, could not help but notice the profound grief expressed on the threshing floor of Atad.

Canaanites: The Egyptians must have experienced a terrible loss to mourn so deeply.

This is why this place of mourning that lies beyond the Jordan was renamed Abel-mizraim.

12 So Jacob’s sons carried out his last instructions as he had directed. 13 They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave of the field at Machpelah near Mamre, which Abraham had bought along with the field from Ephron the Hittite so he could have a place to bury his family. 14 After he had buried his father, Joseph gathered his brothers and the vast company of mourners who had journeyed with him to bury his father, and they all returned to Egypt.

15 When Joseph’s brothers began to realize the implications of their father’s death, Joseph’s brothers began to worry.

Joseph’s Brothers: What if Joseph still bears a grudge in some way against us and decides to pay us back in full for all of the wrong we did to him?

16 So they sent a message to Joseph.

Joseph’s Brothers’ Message: Your father gave us this instruction before he died. 17 He told us to say to you, “Please, I beg you. Forgive the crime of your brothers and the sins they committed against you. They were wrong to treat you so badly.” So please do what your father asked and forgive the crime that we, the servants of the God of your father, committed against you.

Joseph cried when they spoke these words to him. 18 And his brothers approached and fell at his feet.

Joseph’s Brothers: Look! We are your slaves.

Joseph: 19 Don’t be afraid. Am I to judge instead of God? It is not my place. 20 Even though you intended to harm me, God intended it only for good, and through me, He preserved the lives of countless people, as He is still doing today. 21 So don’t worry. I will provide for you myself—for you and your children.

This same sentiment is expressed in Paul’s letter to the Romans (8:28). God can take even the meanest intention and make it work for good for His devoted followers.

So Joseph reassured them and continued to speak kindly to them.

22 Now Joseph remained in Egypt for the rest of his life—he and all of his father’s household. He lived to be 110 years old, 23 long enough to see Ephraim’s children down to the third generation. Joseph adopted the children of Machir (Manasseh’s son) and brought them up as his own. 24 One day, Joseph told his brothers,

Joseph (to his brothers): I am about to die, but God will someday come to you, lead you out of this land, and bring you back to the land He swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

25 At that, Joseph made the rest of Israel’s sons swear to him an oath.

Joseph: When God comes to you, you must take my bones along with you out of this place and back to our homeland.

26 Then Joseph died. He was 110 years old, and he was embalmed and placed in a coffin in Egypt.

The story of Joseph ends with the children of Israel living in Egypt. They live there in peace and security through many generations knowing that their future is not in Egypt; their future is in another land, a land of promise, a land most of them have never seen.

Burial of Jacob

50 Then Joseph (A)fell on his father’s face and (B)wept over him, and kissed him. And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to (C)embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel. Forty days were required for him, for such are the days required for those who are embalmed; and the Egyptians (D)mourned[a] for him seventy days.

Now when the days of his mourning were past, Joseph spoke to (E)the household of Pharaoh, saying, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, please speak in the hearing of Pharaoh, saying, (F)‘My father made me swear, saying, “Behold, I am dying; in my grave (G)which I dug for myself in the land of Canaan, there you shall bury me.” Now therefore, please let me go up and bury my father, and I will come back.’ ”

And Pharaoh said, “Go up and bury your father, as he made you swear.”

So Joseph went up to bury his father; and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt, as well as all the house of Joseph, his brothers, and his father’s house. Only their little ones, their flocks, and their herds they left in the land of Goshen. And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen, and it was a very great gathering.

10 Then they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, and they (H)mourned there with a great and very solemn lamentation. (I)He observed seven days of mourning for his father. 11 And when the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, “This is a deep mourning of the Egyptians.” Therefore its name was called [b]Abel Mizraim, which is beyond the Jordan.

12 So his sons did for him just as he had commanded them. 13 For (J)his sons carried him to the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, before Mamre, which Abraham (K)bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite as property for a burial place. 14 And after he had buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt, he and his brothers and all who went up with him to bury his father.

Joseph Reassures His Brothers

15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, (L)they said, “Perhaps Joseph will hate us, and may [c]actually repay us for all the evil which we did to him.” 16 So they sent messengers to Joseph, saying, “Before your father died he commanded, saying, 17 ‘Thus you shall say to Joseph: “I beg you, please forgive the trespass of your brothers and their sin; (M)for they did evil to you.” ’ Now, please, forgive the trespass of the servants of (N)the God of your father.” And Joseph wept when they spoke to him.

18 Then his brothers also went and (O)fell down before his face, and they said, “Behold, we are your servants.”

19 Joseph said to them, (P)“Do not be afraid, (Q)for am I in the place of God? 20 (R)But as for you, you meant evil against me; but (S)God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. 21 Now therefore, do not be afraid; (T)I will provide for you and your little ones.” And he comforted them and spoke [d]kindly to them.

Death of Joseph(U)

22 So Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he and his father’s household. And Joseph lived one hundred and ten years. 23 Joseph saw Ephraim’s children (V)to the third generation. (W)The children of Machir, the son of Manasseh, (X)were also brought up on Joseph’s knees.

24 And Joseph said to his brethren, “I am dying; but (Y)God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land to the land (Z)of which He swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” 25 Then (AA)Joseph took an oath from the children of Israel, saying, “God will surely [e]visit you, and (AB)you shall carry up my (AC)bones from here.” 26 So Joseph died, being one hundred and ten years old; and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.

Footnotes

  1. Genesis 50:3 Lit. wept
  2. Genesis 50:11 Lit. Mourning of Egypt
  3. Genesis 50:15 fully
  4. Genesis 50:21 Lit. to their hearts
  5. Genesis 50:25 give attention to