Genesis 50
You Meant It for Evil; God Meant It for Good
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The Passing of Israel
50:1Then Joseph fell upon his father’s face, wept over him, and kissed him.
50:2Joseph commanded his servants the embalmers to prepare his father for burial, and the embalmers prepared Israel for burial.
50:3They completed forty days for him, for this is how the days of burial preparation are reckoned, and Egypt mourned him seventy days.
50:4When the days of mourning ended, Joseph said to Pharaoh’s officials, “If I have found favor before you, speak on my behalf in Pharaoh’s ears, saying,”
50:5“‘My father made me swear, saying, “Bury me in the tomb I dug for myself in Canaan.” Now I will go up and bury my father, and then return.’”
50:6Pharaoh said, “Go up and bury your father, as he made you swear.”
50:7So Joseph went up to bury his father; and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his household, and all the elders of the land of Egypt.
50:8Joseph’s whole household, his brothers, and his whole paternal household went too. They left their kindred, sheep, and oxen in Gesem.
50:9Chariots and horsemen went up with him, and the company was very great.
50:10They came to the threshing floor of Atad beyond the Jordan and lamented him with great and grievous mourning. He mourned his father for seven days.
50:11The inhabitants of Canaan saw the mourning at Atad’s threshing floor and said, “This is great mourning for the Egyptians.” So the place was named Mourning of Egypt, beyond the Jordan.
50:12His sons did this for him and buried him there.
50:13His sons carried him to Canaan and buried him in the double cave, opposite Mamre, which Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite as a burial holding.
50:14Then Joseph returned to Egypt—he, his brothers, and all those who had gone up with him to bury his father.
The Brothers’ Forgiveness
50:15Now when Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph bears a grudge against us and fully repays us for all the evils we committed against him?”
50:16They came to Joseph, saying, “Your father gave an oath-bound charge before he died,”
50:17“‘Say to Joseph, “Forgive their injustice and sin, for they did evil to you.”’ Now pardon the injustice of the servants of your father’s God.” Joseph wept as they spoke to him.
50:18They came to him and said, “Here we are, your household slaves.”
50:19Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for I belong to God.”
50:20“You planned evil against me, but God planned good concerning me, to bring about what is happening today: feeding many people.”
50:21He said to them, “Do not fear. I will provide for you and your households.” He comforted them and spoke to their hearts.
The Exodus Promise
50:22Joseph lived in Egypt with his brothers and his father’s whole household. Joseph lived one hundred ten years.
50:23Joseph saw Ephraim’s children to the third generation. Machir’s sons, the sons of Manasseh’s son, were also born upon Joseph’s thighs.
50:24Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die. God will surely visit you and bring you up from this land to the land God swore to our fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”
50:25Joseph made the sons of Israel swear, saying, “When God visits you, you shall carry my bones up from here with you.”
50:26Joseph died at one hundred ten years of age. They performed his burial rites and placed him in a coffin in Egypt.
← Genesis 49 · Genesis: all chapters · Exodus 1 →
Saints Translation · Liturgical reading edition · V1 · working draft awaiting specialist review.