Genesis 50
v1-Joseph mourns
v2-3 –The embalming and mourning of Jacob
v4-5 –Joseph asks permission to bury his father in Canaan
v6-Permission is granted
v7-10 –They mourn for Jacob
v11-The Canaanites knew of it
v12-14 –Jacob is buried and his sons return to Egypt
v15-18 –A messenger is sent to ask Joseph to spare his brothers lives
v19-21 –Joseph answers kindly to them
v22-23 –Joseph lives to a good old age
v24-25 –The children of Israel will surely come out of Egypt
v26-They wait for that time
v1-The death of Jacob has Joseph mourning
v2-3 –Because of the charge of Jacob (see Genesis 49:29), he was embalmed to preserve the body until he could be brought to Canaan
v4-6 –Joseph was still the 2nd highest in command in Egypt and so he needed permission from the Pharaoh to be relieved of his duties temporarily to go and bury his father. Pharaoh is extremely kind and allows this.
v7-it is not only a family affair, but the elders of Egypt and many high ups in the land went with him. See how parents are honored? See what honor a father may have who may do no other great thing but raise a good son?
v8-It is interesting that they left their flocks and the young children in the land. Perhaps they had caretakers, or maybe they were old enough to take care of themselves but not old enough to understand what had happened. We need to remember that back in the older days, the concept of the teenager was not invented and it was a transition from childhood to adult at an early age.
v9-It was no small funeral
v10-11 –This is to the east of the Jordan River. Apparently the way to get to Canaan from Egypt would not be hugging the coast of the sea but rather by going up and east and then coming west. There must be some kind of physical barrier to them simply taking a journey hugging the coast.
v12-it is always good to do things your parents say to honor them (Exodus 20:12)
v15-his brothers felt fear still, they felt that maybe Joseph only spared them because of his father, now that he was dead, Joseph could do whatever he wanted, which could possibly mean their death
v16-18 –So his brothers sent a messenger telling something that Jacob supposedly said before he died. Then they go and humble themselves by bowing down to him. Evidently they feared that he really would kill them and they did to him what Jacob did to Esau. Jacob took both Esau’s birthright and blessing (Genesis 25:29-34 and Genesis 27:35-36). Esau was mad, and perhaps rightly so, so when he heard Jacob was coming back, he prepared 400 men with him (Genesis 32:6). Well Jacob humbled himself before God (Genesis 32:9-12) and before Esau (Genesis 33:3) and he was spared. So now, Joseph has every right to kill his brothers, but he doesn’t, he has mercy. He recognizes that all was meant for good (Genesis 50:20). Joseph was quite young when Jacob humbled himself before Esau, it could be that he remembered what his father did and felt the same kind of compassion that Esau had.
v19-21 –Joseph speaks kindly toward his brothers. He knew Romans 8:28. He was faithful to God, even when doing right meant more trouble than if he were to sin such as when he was tempted by Potiphar’s wife. Joseph also promised that he would take care of his family and provide for them.
v22-23 –Joseph grew old in Egypt and saw even his great great grandchildren.
v24-25 –Just as his father, he knew that Egypt was not home. He knew of the land promised to Abraham by God, and he knew that was where they would eventually return. So he asked for his body to be buried there as well.
v26-But until that time, he would be in a coffin in Egypt. Waiting until God would deliver the people out of Egypt. They are free and prosperous now, but it usually doesn’t stay that way.
So we see in this chapter the death of both Jacob and Joseph. Two men, remarkably different and yet both died as godly men. God had to deal with Jacob a lot to get him at the right place, but it happened. Joseph learned that all things work together for good to those that love God (Romans 8:28). Though it seemed rough at times, God took care of him throughout it all and throughout his life.
We have only gone through a very surface level reading and study of the book of Genesis. There is so much more we can learn. People have devoted entire ministries to the events that have taken place in the first 11 chapters of this book. Much has been written on simply the creation and the Flood itself. The lives of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob can provide us a rich study in which there are endless things to learn.