Old/New Testament
Jacob Goes to Egypt
46 So Jacob, also called Israel, took all he had and started his trip. He went to Beersheba. There he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. 2 During the night God spoke to Israel in a vision. He said, “Jacob, Jacob.”
And Jacob answered, “Here I am.”
3 Then God said, “I am God, the God of your father. Don’t be afraid to go to Egypt. I will make your descendants a great nation there. 4 I will go to Egypt with you. And I will bring you out of Egypt again. Joseph’s own hands will close your eyes when you die.”
5 Then Jacob left Beersheba. The sons of Israel loaded their father, their children and their wives. They put them in the wagons the king of Egypt had sent. 6 They also took their farm animals and everything they had gotten in Canaan. So Jacob went to Egypt with all his descendants. 7 He took his sons and grandsons, his daughters and granddaughters. He took all his family to Egypt with him.
Jacob’s Family
8 Now these are the names of the children of Israel who went into Egypt. (They are Jacob and his descendants.)
Reuben was Jacob’s first son. 9 Reuben’s sons were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron and Carmi.
10 Simeon’s sons were Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jakin, Zohar and Shaul. (Shaul was Simeon’s son by a Canaanite woman.)
11 Levi’s sons were Gershon, Kohath and Merari.
12 Judah’s sons were Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez and Zerah. (But Er and Onan had died in the land of Canaan.) Perez’s sons were Hezron and Hamul.
13 Issachar’s sons were Tola, Puah, Jashub and Shimron.
14 Zebulun’s sons were Sered, Elon and Jahleel.
15 These are the sons of Leah and Jacob born in Northwest Mesopotamia. His daughter Dinah was also born there. There were 33 persons in this part of Jacob’s family.
16 Gad’s sons were Zephon, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi and Areli.
17 Asher’s sons were Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi and Beriah. Their sister was Serah. Beriah’s sons were Heber and Malkiel.
18 These are Jacob’s sons by Zilpah. She was the slave girl whom Laban gave to his daughter Leah. There were 16 persons in this part of Jacob’s family.
19 The sons of Jacob’s wife Rachel were Joseph and Benjamin. 20 In Egypt, Joseph became the father of Manasseh and Ephraim by his wife Asenath. She was the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On.
21 Benjamin’s sons were Bela, Beker, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim and Ard.
22 These are the sons of Jacob by his wife Rachel. There were 14 persons in this part of Jacob’s family.
23 Dan’s son was Hushim.
24 Naphtali’s sons were Jahziel, Guni, Jezer and Shillem.
25 These are Jacob’s sons by Bilhah. She was the slave girl whom Laban gave to his daughter Rachel. There were 7 persons in this part of Jacob’s family.
26 So the total number of Jacob’s direct descendants who went to Egypt was 66. (The wives of Jacob’s sons were not counted in this number.) 27 Joseph had 2 sons born in Egypt. So the total number in the family of Jacob in Egypt was 70.
Jacob Arrives in Egypt
28 Jacob sent Judah ahead of him to see Joseph in Goshen. Then Jacob and his people came into the land of Goshen. 29 Joseph prepared his chariot and went to meet his father Israel in Goshen. As soon as Joseph saw his father, he hugged his neck. And he cried there for a long time.
30 Then Israel said to Joseph, “Now I am ready to die. I have seen your face. And I know that you are still alive.”
31 Joseph said to his brothers and his father’s family, “I will go and tell the king you are here. I will say, ‘My brothers and my father’s family have left the land of Canaan. They have come here to me. 32 They are shepherds and take care of farm animals. And they have brought their flocks and their herds and everything they own with them.’ 33 When the king calls you, he will ask, ‘What work do you do?’ 34 This is what you should tell him: ‘We, your servants, have taken care of farm animals all our lives. Our ancestors did the same thing.’ Then the king will allow you to settle in the land of Goshen. This is away from the Egyptians. They don’t like to be near shepherds.”
Jacob Settles in Goshen
47 Joseph went in to the king and said, “My father and my brothers have arrived from Canaan. They have their flocks and herds and everything they own with them. They are now in the land of Goshen.” 2 Joseph chose five of his brothers to introduce to the king.
3 The king said to the brothers, “What work do you do?”
And they said to him, “We, your servants, are shepherds. Our ancestors were also shepherds.” 4 They said to the king, “We have come to live in this land. There is no grass in the land of Canaan for our animals to eat. The hunger is very terrible there. So please allow us to live in the land of Goshen.”
5 Then the king said to Joseph, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 6 You may choose any place in Egypt for them to live. Give your father and your brothers the best land. Let them live in the land of Goshen. And if any of them are skilled shepherds, put them in charge of my sheep and cattle.”
7 Then Joseph brought in his father Jacob and introduced him to the king. And Jacob blessed the king.
8 Then the king said to Jacob, “How old are you?”
9 Jacob said to him, “My life has been spent wandering from place to place. It has been short, filled with trouble. I have lived only 130 years. My ancestors lived much longer than I.” 10 Then Jacob blessed the king and left.
11 Joseph obeyed the king. He gave his father and brothers the best land in Egypt. It was near the city of Rameses. 12 And Joseph gave his father, his brothers and everyone who lived with them the food they needed.
Joseph Buys Land for the King
13 The hunger became worse, and there was no food anywhere in the land. The land of Egypt and the land of Canaan became very poor because of this. 14 Joseph collected all the money that was to be found in Egypt and Canaan. People paid him this money for the grain they were buying. He brought that money to the king’s palace. 15 After some time, the people in Egypt and Canaan had no money left. So they went to Joseph and said, “Please give us food. Our money is gone. If we don’t eat, we will die here in front of you.”
16 Joseph answered, “Since you have no money, give me your farm animals. I will give you food in return.” 17 So people brought their farm animals to Joseph. And he gave them food in exchange for their horses, sheep, cattle and donkeys. So he kept them alive by trading food for their farm animals that year.
18 The next year the people came to Joseph and said, “You know we have no money left. And all our animals belong to you. We have nothing left except our bodies and our land. 19 Surely both we and our land will die here in front of you. Buy us and our land in exchange for food. And we will be slaves to the king, together with our land. Give us seed to plant. Then we will live and not die. And the land will not become a desert.”
20 So Joseph bought all the land in Egypt for the king. Every Egyptian sold Joseph his field, because the hunger was very great. So the land became the king’s. 21 And Joseph made the people slaves from one end of Egypt to the other. 22 The only land he did not buy was the land the priests owned. They did not need to sell their land because the king paid them for their work. So they had money to buy food.
23 Joseph said to the people, “Now I have bought you and your land for the king. So I will give you seed. And you can plant your fields. 24 At harvest time you must give one-fifth to the king. You may keep four-fifths for yourselves. Use it as seed for the field and as food for yourselves, your families and your children.”
25 The people said, “You have saved our lives. If you like, we will become slaves of the king.”
26 So Joseph made a law in Egypt, which continues today: One-fifth of everything from the land belongs to the king. The only land the king did not get was the priests’ land.
“Don’t Bury Me in Egypt”
27 The Israelites continued to live in the land of Goshen in Egypt. There they got possessions. They had many children and grew in number.
28 Jacob, also called Israel, lived in Egypt 17 years. So he lived to be 147 years old. 29 Israel knew he soon would die. So he called his son Joseph to him. He said to Joseph, “If you love me, put your hand under my leg.[a] Promise me you will not bury me in Egypt. 30 When I die, carry me out of Egypt. Bury me where my ancestors are buried.”
Joseph answered, “I will do as you say.”
31 Then Jacob said, “Promise me.” And Joseph promised him that he would do this. Then Israel worshiped as he leaned on the top of his walking stick.
Blessings for Manasseh and Ephraim
48 Some time later Joseph learned that his father was very sick. So he took his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim and went to his father. 2 When Joseph arrived, someone told Jacob, also called Israel, “Your son Joseph has come to see you.” Jacob was weak. So he used all his strength and sat up on his bed.
3 Then Jacob said to Joseph, “God All-Powerful appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan. God blessed me there. 4 He said to me, ‘I will give you many children. I will make you the father of many peoples. And I will give your descendants this land forever.’ 5 Your two sons were born here in Egypt before I came. They will be counted as my own sons. Ephraim and Manasseh will be my sons just as Reuben and Simeon are my sons. 6 But if you have other children, they will be your own. But their land will be part of the land given to Ephraim and Manasseh. 7 When I came from Northwest Mesopotamia, Rachel died in the land of Canaan. We were traveling toward Ephrath. This made me very sad. I buried her there beside the road to Ephrath.” (Today Ephrath is Bethlehem.)
8 Then Israel saw Joseph’s sons. He said, “Who are these boys?”
9 Joseph said to his father, “They are my sons. God has given them to me here in Egypt.”
Israel said, “Bring your sons to me so I may bless them.”
10 At this time Israel’s eyesight was bad because he was old. So Joseph brought the boys close to him. Israel kissed the boys and put his arms around them. 11 He said to Joseph, “I thought I would never see you alive again. And now God has let me see you and also your children.” 12 Then Joseph moved his sons off Israel’s lap. Joseph bowed facedown to the ground. 13 He put Ephraim on his right side and Manasseh on his left. (So Ephraim was near Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh was near Israel’s right hand.) Joseph brought the boys close to Israel. 14 But Israel crossed his arms. He put his right hand on the head of Ephraim, who was younger. He put his left hand on the head of Manasseh. But he was the firstborn son. 15 And Israel blessed Joseph and said,
“My ancestors Abraham and Isaac served our God.
And like a shepherd God has led me all my life.
16 He was the Angel who saved me from all my troubles.
Now I pray that he will bless these boys.
May my name be known through these boys.
And may the names of my ancestors Abraham and Isaac be known through them.
May they have many descendants on the earth.”
17 Joseph saw that his father put his right hand on Ephraim’s head. Joseph didn’t like it. So he took hold of his father’s hand. He wanted to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. 18 Joseph said to his father, “You are doing it wrong, Father. Manasseh is the firstborn son. Put your right hand on his head.”
19 But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. Manasseh will be great and have many descendants. But his younger brother will be greater. And his descendants will be enough to make a nation.”
20 So Israel blessed them that day. He said,
“When a blessing is given in Israel, they will say:
‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’”
In this way he made Ephraim greater than Manasseh.
21 Then Israel said to Joseph, “Look at me. I am about to die. But God will be with you. He will take you back to the land of your fathers. 22 I have given you something that I did not give your brothers. I have given you the land of Shechem that I took from the Amorite people. I took it with my sword and my bow.”
A Story About Planting Seed
13 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2 Large crowds gathered around him. So Jesus got into a boat and sat, while the people stayed on the shore. 3 Then Jesus used stories to teach them many things. He said: “A farmer went out to plant his seed. 4 While he was planting, some seed fell by the road. The birds came and ate all that seed. 5 Some seed fell on rocky ground, where there wasn’t enough dirt. That seed grew very fast, because the ground was not deep. 6 But when the sun rose, the plants dried up because they did not have deep roots. 7 Some other seed fell among thorny weeds. The weeds grew and choked the good plants. 8 Some other seed fell on good ground where it grew and became grain. Some plants made 100 times more grain. Other plants made 60 times more grain, and some made 30 times more grain. 9 Let those with ears use them and listen!”
Why Jesus Used Stories to Teach
10 The followers came to Jesus and asked, “Why do you use stories to teach the people?”
11 Jesus answered, “Only you can know the secret truths about the kingdom of heaven. Other people cannot know these secret truths. 12 The person who has something will be given more. And he will have all he needs. But the person who does not have much, even what he has will be taken from him. 13 This is why I use stories to teach the people: They see, but they don’t really see. They hear, but they don’t really understand. 14 So they show that the things Isaiah said about them are true:
‘You will listen and listen, but you will not understand.
You will look and look, but you will not learn.
15 For these people have become stubborn.
They do not hear with their ears.
And they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might really understand
what they see with their eyes
and hear with their ears.
They might really understand in their minds.
If they did this, they would come back to me and be forgiven.’ Isaiah 6:9-10
16 But you are blessed. You understand the things you see with your eyes. And you understand the things you hear with your ears. 17 I tell you the truth. Many prophets and good people wanted to see the things that you now see. But they did not see them. And many prophets and good people wanted to hear the things that you now hear. But they did not hear them.
Jesus Explains the Seed Story
18 “So listen to the meaning of that story about the farmer. 19 What is the seed that fell by the road? That seed is like the person who hears the teaching about the kingdom but does not understand it. The Evil One comes and takes away the things that were planted in that person’s heart. 20 And what is the seed that fell on rocky ground? That seed is like the person who hears the teaching and quickly accepts it with joy. 21 But he does not let the teaching go deep into his life. He keeps it only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the teaching he accepted, then he quickly gives up. 22 And what is the seed that fell among the thorny weeds? That seed is like the person who hears the teaching but lets worries about this life and love of money stop that teaching from growing. So the teaching does not produce fruit[a] in that person’s life. 23 But what is the seed that fell on the good ground? That seed is like the person who hears the teaching and understands it. That person grows and produces fruit, sometimes 100 times more, sometimes 60 times more, and sometimes 30 times more.”
A Story About Wheat and Weeds
24 Then Jesus told them another story. He said, “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who planted good seed in his field. 25 That night, when everyone was asleep, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat. Then the enemy went away. 26 Later, the wheat grew and heads of grain grew on the wheat plants. But at the same time the weeds also grew. 27 Then the man’s servants came to him and said, ‘You planted good seed in your field. Where did the weeds come from?’ 28 The man answered, ‘An enemy planted weeds.’ The servants asked, ‘Do you want us to pull up the weeds?’ 29 The man answered, ‘No, because when you pull up the weeds, you might also pull up the wheat. 30 Let the weeds and the wheat grow together until the harvest time. At harvest time I will tell the workers this: First gather the weeds and tie them together to be burned. Then gather the wheat and bring it to my barn.’”
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.