Genesis 46:8–27

This is God's register of Jacob and his house: "seventy" souls counting Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons; "sixty-six" without them… The time was near when they would exchange the life of one family — already grown in Genesis into twelve families — for the life of a people… Scripture shows the interest God took in recording what looks small to men. Human nature delights in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

If we truly want to avoid serious mistakes and understand Scripture rightly, we must read the genealogies by their own aim, not by modern ideas. It is plain on the face of them that they contain difficulties. No forger or compiler would have left these; he would have taken every care to avoid them. The writer, though, knew details that we may not. He states plainly what he knows to be true, without stopping to clear the difficulties up.

On the whole, the purpose of the statement in Genesis 46 is plainly to give Jacob's family. So it mentions some who did not go down to Egypt. Hezron and Hamul are brought into the verse on purpose — not in the list of sons, but as linked with them. The saying, "Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven," takes up the general fact to show the amazing increase.

The question is not really about truth, but about purpose and way of speaking. The original history itself speaks of 66 (verse 26) and 70 (verse 27). Even in verse 26 the Hebrew strictly means "belong to," not "with Jacob." The 70 are his house, and that takes in more. The old Greek translation, which Stephen quotes, adds five more, though they were born in Egypt. It follows the well known custom of treating parent and children as one.

Dinah is not counted in the thirty-three; Er and Onan are.

Here again we find the natural order, but arranged by the wives. God has the upper hand in everything that concerns the family of promise. At the same time, Leah and Rachel each reap the fruit of their own self-will.

The immediate cause of their going down to Egypt was the famine. But by the famine, as by the wickedness of Jacob's sons in selling their brother to the Ishmaelites (Gen. 37:28), God was simply carrying out His own purposes. Long before this He had said to Abram, "Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs… and afterward they shall come out with great possessions." (Gen. 15:13-14.) It fills us with wonder to think that whatever men do, even in wickedness and open rebellion, God bends it to establish His own counsels of grace and love.

Egypt was the nursery God provided for the chosen race while it grew from one great family — the sons and grandsons of one father — into a people meant for their inheritance. God sheltered them in mercy for a time, so that they would grow all the more under hardship when it came.

Even the slavery they were coming into had already been promised them. What seemed most against them was in fact the working out of promise for them.

It is God's register of Jacob and his house, "seventy" souls including Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons, "sixty-six" without these... The time was near when they would stop being one family and become a people. In Genesis that family had already grown into twelve families. Their growth is one of the opening facts of Exodus. Scripture reveals the interest God took in recording things little in man's eyes. Nature revels in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

Now we are told the names of everyone in Jacob's household who came with him. This shows that our great God is interested in people one by one, not only in nations or large groups. The total was 66 persons (v. 26), plus Joseph and his two sons. Jacob himself is the seventieth.

As the firstborn of Israel he had a prominent place. The firstborn, or the one who stands in that place, comes before the whole family. The main family line usually runs through him. But Reuben is set aside, and the high place that came with the birthright only sank him the lower when he lost it. When did the natural order ever hold up under God's righteous government? The order of nature is not God's order, and nothing can meet nature's waywardness except the sovereign mercy of God.

Hence the firstborns in the book of Genesis lose the place of blessing. Cain, what is he? Ishmael gives place to Isaac; Esau to Jacob; Reuben to Joseph. "That which is first is natural, and afterwards that which is spiritual."

Coming in at this point is a partial genealogy of the first three sons of Jacob. Reuben and Simeon each get only one verse... For Reuben speaks of the strength of the flesh (Gen. 49:3) which can have no place in the true service of God.

We have also looked briefly at his four sons in Ex. 6:14. Enoch means "dedicated," Phallu "separated," Hetzron "enclosed," Carmi "vine-dresser." All these can carry a good meaning, although all of them may be without fruit. They remain as permanent heads of families in the account before us...

Eldest son of Reuben, and founder of the HANOCHITES. Gen. 46:9; Ex. 6:14; Num. 26:5; 1 Chr. 5:3.

Second son of Reuben, and his descendants. Ex. 6:14; Num. 26:5, 8; 1 Chr. 5:3. He is called PHALLU in Gen. 46:9.

On the whole the purpose of the statement in Genesis 46 is to give Jacob's family... Then there is the saying, "Your fathers went down into Egypt with seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you as the stars of heaven for multitude." It takes up the general fact to show the marvellous increase.

It is God's register of Jacob and his house, "seventy" souls including Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons, "sixty-six" without these… The time was near when they would exchange the life of a family — already grown in Genesis into twelve families — for the life of a people. Scripture reveals the interest God took in recording things little in man's eyes. Nature revels in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

The first action of Levi recorded in the Scriptures is an act of cruelty. Levi was one of Jacob's twelve sons. Excessive anger drove that act, and he carried it out by deceit (read the account in Genesis 34): "Simeon and Levi … took their swords, came upon the city boldly, and killed all the males." … This is why the blessing of the tribe of Levi later turned into a curse: "Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will … scatter them."

Levi was scattered in Israel as a punishment for that terrible sin, committed centuries before at Shechem. But now, for our encouragement, see the grace of God. The very punishment, the scattering in Israel, becomes an unspeakable blessing. God chooses this tribe to come near to Him. He scatters them in Israel, and the result is that through them the knowledge of God and His Word is spread just as widely across Israel.

Levi had three sons: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari (Num. 3:17). Their respective families and descendants formed three different groups, each with different tasks. The Gershonites looked after the tabernacle, the tent and the coverings (v.25). The Kohathites were entrusted with the holy vessels of the sanctuary (v.32). The Merarites had the care of the boards, the bars, the pillars and sockets of the tabernacle (v. 37).

A true exile is someone who feels his exile, even if it lasts only a while, from the home of his heart. And this sense of being a stranger is what gives power for purity and freedom from defilement.

Last of Levi's three sons we find Merari, "bitter," with his two sons, Mahli, "sick," and Mushi, "yielding." … These families have charge of the boards of the tabernacle and its bars, its pillars and sockets… who has ever done this work without finding the bitterness that Merari's name expresses? Anyone who could not feel it would be poorly fitted for ministry.

How long were the Israelites in Egypt? In Gen. 15:13 and Acts 7:6, the period seems to be stated as four hundred years… Gen. 15:16 implies a much shorter period. It says of Israel in Egypt that "in the fourth generation they shall come back here again." If we turn to Ex. 6:16-20 we find exactly four generations: Jacob's son Levi. Levi's son Kohath. Kohath's son Amram. Amram's son Moses.

Genesis 46 is simply a record of the immediate descendants of Jacob who were with him in Egypt, giving his family. This twelfth verse is plainly genealogy. It does not say that everyone named in it went down into Egypt. Er and Onan are named because they are sons, though the text states plainly that they did not go down at all.

In verse 12 the word "were" is emphatic, and the phrase, I take it, is clearly meant to be supplementary. The verse does not run, "Er, and Onan, and Shelah, and Perez, and Zerah, and the sons of Perez, Hezron and Hamul." That is how it would read if they had all been among those going down into Egypt. The historian stops at Zerah and adds extra information. Er and Onan were on the list of sons, but they did not go down, for they had died before. And Perez's sons were Hezron and Hamul. They are seen as filling up the gap.

This table counts 32 from Leah, 16 from Zilpah, 11 from Rachel and 7 from Bilhah, making 66. But the head also goes with his house, so Jacob himself is counted in with Leah's children. That is why 33 are credited to her, though only 32 are named, counting Dinah and leaving out Er and Onan, who died in Canaan. Objectors have failed to notice the peculiar way verse 12 mentions Hezron and Hamul. The text says only — and says it of them alone — that the sons of Perez "were" Hezron and Hamul. It does not say they were born in Canaan, where the men they replaced had died. There was a weighty reason for picking out these two grandsons of Judah, when no other great-grandson of Jacob appears in the list. They alone stood in the place of others, as the verse itself implies, and one of them, Hezron, stands in the direct line of the Messiah.

Three sons were born to Shuah, the first one killed by the Lord because of wickedness. The second, Onan, agreed to take the widow of Er as his wife to have a child that would officially be his brother's. But he did not carry out his agreement honourably, and the Lord considered this serious enough to kill him also. The reason was his complete selfishness, for the child would not officially be his, though in fact it would. These two cases illustrate the degrading history of the tribe of Judah. Shelah, the youngest son, may mean "sprout," and points to at least a preserved remnant that promises a miraculous revival for the nation Israel.

If we turn to Genesis 46, we find a complete list of those who made up the sixty-six and went with Jacob into Egypt. The account is so accurate that two who had died are named only to show that they were not in the list.

It is God's register of Jacob and his house — "seventy" souls including Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons, "sixty-six" without them... Scripture reveals the interest God took in recording things that are little in man's eyes. Nature revels in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

Shelah is fruitful, but Tamar's seed much more so. From that seed comes Perez, the "breaker forth," who breaks out into abundant fruit that fills all the later history of Judah. From this line come Judah's kings, and her great King. Twin with Perez comes Zerah, or the sunrise, and from him come singers and warriors later on, stout defenders of the throne.

Is it not remarkable that this record should begin with Perez? That the elders and the people should take the house of Perez as a pattern of blessing for the house of Boaz? "May your house be like the house of Perez." Who was Perez? Let Genesis 38 answer. Why not begin with his father, Judah?... God led His line of promise through the base things of the world, and took up those whom man would spurn. This was to magnify His grace and exalt His name.

We are now told the names of all the household of Jacob who came with him. This shows that our great God is interested in people, not only in nations or large groups. The total was 66 persons (v. 26), plus Joseph and his two sons. Jacob himself is the seventieth.

It is God's register of Jacob and his house. The time was near when they would exchange the life of a family — already grown in Genesis into twelve families — for the life of a people… Scripture shows the interest God took in recording things that are little in man's eyes. Nature delights in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

Sered. Firstborn of Zebulun, and ancestor of the Sardites. Gen. 46:14; Num. 26:26.

Jahleel. Son of Zebulun, and his descendants. Gen. 46:14; Num. 26:26.

On the whole the purpose of the statement in Genesis 46 is to give Jacob's family. There is also the saying, "Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons in all, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven." It takes up the general fact to show the marvellous increase.

So the huge increase during the stay in Egypt became all the more striking. It came despite the cruel and murderous oppression that marked its later part.

If we turn to Genesis 46, we find a complete list of those who made up the sixty-six who went with Jacob into Egypt. The account is so accurate that it names two who had died, only to show they were not in the list. The next verse tells us that "all the persons of the house of Jacob who came into Egypt were seventy." This is the second list. How is it worked out? Because Joseph and his two sons, who were born to him in Egypt, were there already. If we look at the beginning of Exodus 1, we again find the list spoken of as seventy. In strict agreement with Genesis 46:27, it adds that "Joseph was already in Egypt."

The Septuagint translators, in their Greek version which Stephen quotes, include five more, though born in Egypt, following the well understood custom of treating parent and children as one.

She called him Zebulun (dwelling), saying, "This time my husband will dwell with me." The spiritual thought connected with Zebulun is dwelling in the relationship God has given us to Himself. That is the only true thought of consecration.

Zebulun should have been the dweller in relationship. Instead he had long since fulfilled Jacob's prophecy, and his "dwelling at the haven of the sea" had become the picture of Israel as a whole. Israel gave up its dwelling alone to mix in unfaithful trade with the nations… But the Saviour of sinners is not stopped by this. There in the darkness was the very place for light to spring up. And now there had come to Zebulun a Dweller, in whom God Himself could dwell with man.

We find the order of nature again here, but according to the wives. God has the upper hand in all that concerns the family of promise, but at the same time Leah and Rachel each reap the fruits of their own self-will. The order is as follows: 6 sons of Leah, 2 sons of Zilpah, 2 sons of Rachel, 2 sons of Bilhah.

A farmed district in Mesopotamia. The city of Nahor stood there. Terah and his family moved there from Ur of the Chaldees. From there came Rebekah, Leah, and Rachel, the wives of Isaac and Jacob. It is strictly Paddan-aram, meaning 'table land of Aram.'

Daughter of Jacob and Leah. Shechem, son of the chieftain Hamor, defiled her. That led to the massacre of the people of Shechem through the craftiness and cruelty of Simeon and Levi.

In Scripture "mortal" is never said of the soul, but of the body. "The soul that sins shall die" has a quite different force. It means the person, the living human being, because the individuality lies in the soul. This led to such common phrases as "all the souls," and so on, in Genesis 46:15, 18, 22, 25, 26, 27.

This table lists 32 of Leah, 16 of Zilpah, 11 of Rachel, 7 of Bilhah = 66. But the head also goes with his house. So in the larger list of Leah's children we see Jacob counted (verse 8). The 33 given to Leah confirms this, since the names come to no more than 32. That counts Dinah, and leaves out Er and Onan, who died in Canaan, as Scripture plainly tells us.

Dinah is not reckoned in the thirty-three; Er and Onan are.

Dinah is reckoned; Er and Onan are not — they were dead.

The differences in form between Genesis, Numbers and Chronicles come from the reason for placing each list where it stands. The difficulties spring from the design, in no way from error in the writer, but in fact from ignorance in readers who misunderstand them. Both the differences and the difficulties are the strongest evidence of their truth and inspired character. Nothing would have been easier than to make the various forms match and remove whatever sounds strange to western ears.

It is God's register of Jacob and his house... The time was approaching when they would exchange the life of one family — already enlarged in Genesis into twelve families — for the life of a people... Scripture reveals the interest God took in recording things little in man's eyes. Nature delights in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

This is God's register of Jacob and his house: "seventy" souls counting Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons; "sixty-six" without them… Scripture shows the interest God took in recording things that are small in man's eyes. Human nature delights in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

Now we learn the names of everyone in Jacob's household who came with him. This shows that our great God is interested in each person, not only in nations or great companies.

The seventh son of Jacob, and the first of Zilpah, Leah's maid. Very little is recorded of Gad, except that he had seven sons.

His name means "a troop." The prophecy uses that same word: a troop (armies of enemy nations) would trample Gad (representing Israel) underfoot… but Gad will in the end overcome the troop.

…they are listed here as the heads of future families. The list in Numbers 26 confirms this. It names the separate families of the tribes of Israel on the day when Moses and Eleazar received the order to count the whole assembly of Israel's sons from twenty years old and upward… So the huge increase during their stay in Egypt stands out all the more, in spite of the cruel and murderous oppression that marked its later part.

The time was near when they would leave the life of a family — already grown in Genesis into twelve families — for the life of a people. Their growth is one of the opening facts of Exodus.

Son of Gad and his descendants. Num. 26:16. Called EZBON in Gen. 46:16.

There are cases, common among the Jews, where a person had more than one name (see, for example, these well-known names: Benjamin and Benoni, Reuel and Jethro, Solomon and Jedidiah, etc.).

If we truly want to avoid serious mistakes and understand Scripture rightly, we must read the genealogies by their own aim, not by modern ideas. And anyone can see that they contain difficulties. No forger or compiler would have left them there; he would have taken great care to avoid them. The writer, on the other hand, knows details that we may not, and he simply states what he knows to be true.

On the whole, the purpose of the statement in Genesis 46 is clearly to give Jacob's family. So it mentions some who did not go down to Egypt… The saying, "Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven," takes up the general fact to show the amazing increase.

The Greek version quoted by Stephen speaks of seventy-five, because it adds Manasseh's son Machir and grandson Gilead, and Ephraim's two sons, Shuthelah and Tahan, with Shuthelah's son, Eran or Edom.

The firstborn of Asher, 1 Chronicles 7:30. He is called JIMNAH in Genesis 46:17 in the Authorised Version, and JIMNA in Numbers 26:41. Yet the Hebrew is the same in all three passages.

Daughter of Asher, Numbers 26:46. Called SERAH in Genesis 46:17 and 1 Chronicles 7:30.

If we truly want to avoid serious mistakes and understand Scripture rightly, we need to read the genealogies by their own aim, not by modern ideas. The difficulties are plain on the surface. No forger or compiler would have left them there; he would have taken care to avoid them. The writer, on the other hand, knew details that we might not. He states what he knows to be true, without stopping to clear the difficulties up.

Here we find the order of nature again, but according to the wives. God has the upper hand in all that concerns the family of promise. At the same time, Leah and Rachel each reap the fruits of their own self-will. The order is as follows: six sons of Leah, two sons of Zilpah, two sons of Rachel, two sons of Bilhah.

This table lists thirty-two from Leah, sixteen from Zilpah, eleven from Rachel, seven from Bilhah — sixty-six. But the head also goes with his house; and so with the larger list of Leah's children we see Jacob counted.

It is God's register of Jacob and his house: "seventy" souls including Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons, or "sixty-six" without these. The time was drawing near when they would exchange the life of a family — already grown in Genesis into twelve families — for the life of a people. Their growth is one of the opening facts of Exodus. Scripture reveals the interest God took in recording things that are little in man's eyes. Nature revels in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

We are told now the names of all the household of Jacob who came with him. This shows that our great God is interested in each person, and not only in nations or great companies.

Son of Beriah, a son of Asher, and head of the family of the HEBERITES, Genesis 46:17; Numbers 26:45; 1 Chronicles 7:31-32.

Asher was Zilpah's second son, his name meaning "happy." The prophecy about him points to the rich provision God will make for the nation Israel — even "royal delicacies" — when He restores them to their land in the millennium. What a wonderful contrast to their years of want and ruin!

Jacob's two wives gave their handmaids to their husband, and so he had four wives. God reckoned the twelve sons of these four women equally as sons of Jacob, and they became the heads of the twelve tribes. It might have been thought that God would not have blessed the children of such unions, but He did.

The names of Jacob's sons — Jacob is also called Israel — are listed, but not in birth order. The aim, I think, is to present them all to us without distinction, as objects of God's purposes in grace. So we find Leah's children first. Then come Rachel's children, listed between Dan and Naphtali, the sons of Bilhah. Last come Gad and Asher, the sons of Zilpah, Leah's servant.

It is also remarkable that the sons of the servant women do not take a separate or inferior place here. Unlike Ishmael in the story of Abraham, they are blessed together with the other sons of Jacob. Of Ishmael God said that the son of the servant woman should by no means be an heir with the son of the free woman. Jacob's twelve sons give a complete picture of God's earthly people. They are blessed together in keeping with God's government, because in Scripture the number twelve is always connected with God's rule over His people.

This table lists 32 of Leah, 16 of Zilpah, 11 of Rachel, 7 of Bilhah = 66. But the head of the house is counted with his house. So Jacob himself appears in the larger list of Leah's children (verse 8). The total of 33 given for Leah confirms it, since the text names only 32. That count includes Dinah and leaves out Er and Onan, who died in Canaan, as Scripture tells us plainly.

The listing of the family is moving at this point in the patriarchal story. No human being shall boast. Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord. Yet God takes pleasure in recording their names. He does it early and late in the Old Testament, and at last in the final book of the New Testament — though with instructive variations.

When Leah had no more children, she used the same tactics as Rachel had. She gave her servant Zilpah to Jacob. Zilpah bore him a son, whom Leah named Gad, and then another, whom she named Asher. Gad means "a troop" and Asher means "happy." So we find human support (a troop), and we try to make ourselves happy as we are, without reaching the state we want. But Leah is not satisfied with this.

Gad is overcome by a troop, but overcomes at last. The prophet Daniel tells us about the final massing of troops against Israel. But God will bring His earthly people out of that trouble. Then Asher is blessed with abundance and good cheer.

Here we see grace in its first workings. A nation had a small beginning in the seventy souls who came into Egypt with Jacob. Set that against their remarkable and unstoppable increase. God had already told them about the slavery they were entering. What seemed most against them was really the working out of the promise for them.

If we honestly want to avoid serious mistakes and understand Scripture rightly, we must read the genealogies by their aim, and not by modern ideas. Clearly they contain difficulties. No forger or compiler would have left those in. He would have taken every care to avoid them. The writer, though, knew details that we may not. He simply states what he knows to be true, without stopping to clear the difficulties up.

It appears that Rachel was the first wife Jacob loved, but in fact the last to enjoy the relationship and to bear its fruits. Those fruits were Joseph, rejected by his brothers and exalted in another sphere over Gentiles, and Benjamin, his mother's sorrow but son of his father's right hand. Leah before this is the mother of many sons, as there are before Israel comes into full and happy view.

Surely it is not for nothing that Joseph and Benjamin were full brothers, both of them Rachel's children and her only ones. This makes the link between the parts of the type that finally come together all the stronger. For Benjamin is no longer the "son of my sorrow," the name his dying mother sadly gave him. That sorrow was fully realised in Joseph's story. Now at last he is linked with Joseph in Joseph's own character: God's chosen man, the man of His right hand. This "son of the right hand" is, as we know, the meaning of the name Benjamin.

Joseph is, as we know, Christ once rejected and suffering, now exalted: this is the One whom Israel does not know. The Benjamin found among them is a Christ simply triumphant and reigning on earth. That holds both in the days of the Lord's rejection and in the last days. The conqueror they were ready for; the Sufferer — not knowing their own deep need — they have refused. Yet the two are really one. Even Benjamin was first Benoni. For them the Conqueror cannot come until they receive the Sufferer... Power lies with Joseph, not with Benjamin.

We find the order of nature again here, but according to the wives. God has the upper hand in all that concerns the family of promise, but at the same time Leah and Rachel each reap the fruits of their own self-will. The order is this: six sons of Leah, two sons of Zilpah, two sons of Rachel, two sons of Bilhah.

It is God's register of Jacob and his house: seventy souls including Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons; sixty-six without them. The Greek version quoted by Stephen speaks of seventy-five, because it adds Manasseh's son Machir and grandson Gilead, and Ephraim's two sons, Shuthelah and Tahan... The time was approaching when they would exchange the life of a family for that of a people. In Genesis that family had already grown into twelve families. Their growth is one of the opening facts of Exodus. Scripture reveals the interest God took in recording things that are little in man's eyes. Nature revels in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

It is God's register of Jacob and his house, "seventy" souls including Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons, "sixty-six" without these… The time was coming when they would stop living as a family — already grown in Genesis into twelve families — and live as a people… Scripture reveals the interest God took in recording things little in man's eyes. Nature revels in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

Asenath is the Gentile, the stranger to the promises of Israel. She gives a picture of the church as the bride that has come from among the Gentile nations and not from Israel exclusively.

On, or the city of the sun, Heliopolis, was the great seat of learning in Egypt and the place of its first college. Potipherah, the prince-priest of the sun and the father of Joseph's wife, lived there in earlier days… On, as its name implies, was devoted to the sun, and so to its worship.

During the seven years of plenty Asenath bore Joseph two sons. He named the first Manasseh, which means "forgetting," for, as he says, "God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father's house." This is typical of the truth of Christianity: it makes us forget the first creation with its natural relationships and its wearing trials. But this is because it brought in something better, the new creation, of which Christ is the Head. This is involved in the name of Joseph's second son, Ephraim, which means "fruitful," for only in new creation is there true fruitfulness for God. Manasseh therefore implies the negative side of the truth, Ephraim the positive.

No one can truly say that he forgets "his father's house" until his heart has found a treasure in a brighter scene. Then the place where he lives in body becomes a land of exile to him. Yet he has no desire to return to the past — he forgets it.

Born before the famine, and while Joseph's brothers are still strangers to his exaltation, he named the second son Ephraim, "For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction." Here, clearly, is our place and relationship with our blessed Lord… For His Church, His heavenly bride, He has been content to be as if He did not remember His relationship with His people of old. The thread of prophecy lies unwoven on the shuttle of time, as if its wheel had stopped forever. What does this forgetfulness mean in Him who neither slumbers nor sleeps? Surely no change, but the carrying out of eternal purposes.

He then adopts the sons of Joseph; for this was needed to give them the rights of children, since, in a very real legal sense, they were strangers to Abraham. Their mother was an Egyptian. They were a seed, therefore, whom the law would in its day have put away. But Jacob adopts them. He takes them into the family… He makes them part of the seed of Abraham and children of Jacob. Once that is done, Jacob at once sets them in the place of the firstborn.

We can see why Joseph had two sons and only two — so that he might have the double portion of the firstborn. So in the dividing of territory, each of Israel's sons (Levi excluded for obvious reasons) had a single portion — one tribe each. Joseph had the double portion: two tribes, Ephraim and Manasseh.

If we truly want to avoid serious mistakes and understand Scripture, we must read the genealogies by their own aim, and not by modern ideas. On their face they plainly present difficulties. No forger or compiler would have left such things standing; he would have taken every care to avoid them. The writer, on the other hand, knew details that we may not. He simply states what he knows to be true, without stopping to clear the difficulties up.

Benjamin could only have been two or three years old when Joseph went down… We must add twenty-two years for the gap between Joseph's going down and Jacob's. So Benjamin was at most twenty-four or twenty-five. That is why he is called a "lad" (nahar) in chapter 43:3, a "little one" (katan) in chapter 44:20, and a "lad" (nahar) again in verse 31. Even if we allow the fullest possible age of twenty-five — which those three words make very unlikely — it is very hard to believe that ten sons had been born to him.

The fact is that the sons of Jacob were even fewer than a modern census would count. The principle stated in Hebrews 7:9-10 seems to have been applied here to Judah's descendants, and to Benjamin's as well, as we may gather from the earlier history. They are put in the list as the heads of future families. The list in Numbers 26 of the separate families of the tribes of Israel confirms it… This is a solution suggested by men who know such genealogies well, and it is only one of several. It was no mistake. It was deliberate, however far it lies outside ordinary thinking.

On the whole the purpose of the statement in Genesis 46 is plainly to give Jacob's family. So it mentions some who did not go down to Egypt, and it brings Hezron and Hamul into an earlier verse on purpose — not with the list of sons, but as belonging with them. The words, "Your fathers went down into Egypt with seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you as the stars of heaven for multitude," take up the general fact to show the remarkable increase.

A son of Benjamin, perhaps his second son, but the first-born of one of his wives. The name means 'first-born.' Gen. 46:21; 1 Chr. 7:6, 8.

A son of Benjamin. Gen. 46:21. Perhaps the same person as AHIRAM in Num. 26:38, and AHARAH in 1 Chr. 8:1.

The youngest son of Jacob by his beloved wife Rachel. She died when he was born. She named him BEN-ONI, meaning 'son of my sorrow,' but his father named him BENJAMIN, 'son of the right hand.' Gen. 35:18, 24. He is a picture of Christ in both names: exalted at God's right hand (Benjamin), and, as rejected, the cause of Israel's suffering in the last days (Ben-oni)… Scripture records very little about Benjamin himself: he was the father of ten sons.

The time was near when they would exchange the life of a family — already grown in Genesis into twelve families — for the life of a people… Scripture shows the interest God took in recording things that look small in man's eyes. Human nature glories in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

It is God's register of Jacob and his house: "seventy" souls when you count Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons; "sixty-six" when you leave these out… The time was coming when they would trade the life of a family — already grown in Genesis into twelve families — for the life of a people… Scripture shows the interest God took in recording things that are small in the eyes of men. Human nature delights in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

Now we are told the names of everyone in Jacob's household who came with him. This shows that our great God is interested in people, not only in nations or great companies. The total was 66 persons (v. 26), plus Joseph and his two sons. Jacob himself is the seventieth.

The question is not really one of truth, but of purpose and way of speaking. The original history speaks of 66 (v. 26) and of 70 (v. 27). Even in verse 26 the Hebrew means "belong to" rather than "with Jacob." The 70 are his house, and that takes in more people. The Septuagint translators, in their Greek version, which Stephen quotes, include five more, though those five were born in Egypt. They follow this well-known way of counting parent and children as one.

Manasseh means "causing to forget," and Ephraim means "fruitfulnesses." They express their father's feelings while he was so remarkably raised up outside Israel, for blessing. The names Moses gave his sons do not express any forgetting of his brothers. They express his sense of being a stranger, separated from them, and of counting on "God my help." Both meet in perfection in our Lord Jesus.

The youngest son of Jacob by his beloved wife Rachel. She died at his birth and named him BEN-ONI, which means "son of my sorrow." But his father named him BENJAMIN, "son of the right hand." Gen. 35:18, 24. Scripture tells us very little about Benjamin himself: he was the father of ten sons. Gen. 46:21.

Joseph's brothers had rejected him, a picture of Israel's rejection of the Lord Jesus. Joseph is therefore a type of Christ in suffering before exaltation. Benjamin ("son of the right hand") is a type of Christ, the Messiah, reigning in glory.

It is surely not for nothing that Joseph and Benjamin were full brothers, both of them Rachel's children and her only ones. This makes the link stronger between the two parts of the picture, which come together in the end. For Benjamin is no longer the "son of my sorrow," the name his dying mother sadly gave him… Now at last he is joined to Joseph in Joseph's character as a picture of God's chosen man, the man of His right hand.

We are given a list of sons and grandsons, and told that their number was 70. Turn to Exodus 12:37, and we shall see how greatly they grew while they were in Egypt, and how God kept His word to make them a great nation.

Dan was the fifth son of Jacob, and the first son of Bilhah, Rachel's servant (Gen. 30:6, etc.). Scripture records little about him: Genesis 46:23 names only one son. The tribe of Dan, however, grew large. At the Exodus it had 62,700 fighting men, more than every tribe except Judah, and at the second census the number had risen to 64,400. Yet once they were in the land, the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the hills and would not let them come down to the valley (Judges 1:34). This showed a great lack of faith in the Danites, and Deborah in her song asked why Dan stayed with the ships while the Lord's enemies were being destroyed.

Sons of Dan (as if the name pointed to a tribe). Genesis 46:23. Perhaps the same as Shuham in Numbers 26:42.

This is God's register of Jacob and his house: "seventy" souls counting Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons; "sixty-six" without them… The time was coming when they would exchange the life of a family for the life of a people. Genesis had already enlarged that family into twelve families, and their growth is one of the opening facts of Exodus, the second book of the Bible. Scripture reveals the interest God took in recording things little in man's eyes. Nature revels in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

Now we learn the names of all the household of Jacob who came with him. This shows that our great God cares about each person, not only about nations or great companies.

Judah stands for the truth, which is the basis of all government among the people of God. In the same way, Dan stands for carrying that government out. Dan means judge, and he stands for that in Jacob's prophecy. Dan shall judge his people as one of the tribes of Israel.

This tribe was guilty of setting up idolatry in the land very early, and it lasted until the people were carried away into captivity (Judges 18:30-31). Jacob pictured Dan as an adder in the path that bites the horse's heels, and one naturally links that adder with the serpent that would bruise the heel of the woman's seed (Gen. 3:15). It seems to suggest that the Antichrist will arise out of the tribe of Dan, and this indeed has been the judgement of Christians from the earliest times. The absence of Dan's name confirms this thought. He is left out of 1 Chronicles 2 – 8, the book that records much of grace and blessing, and out of the list of tribes from which twelve thousand each will be sealed in a future day (Rev. 7:3-8). Still God will keep His promises to the twelve tribes, and the tribe of Dan will have its portion in the land as prophesied in Ezekiel 48:1-2, 32.

However low the people of God may sink in failure, nothing sets His purposes aside. As the apostle Paul wrote to the believers at Rome, "the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable." So Dan's place in final blessing is sure, in the words, "Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel."

It is God's register of Jacob and his house: "seventy" souls counting Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons; "sixty-six" without them… The time was near when they would exchange the life of a family for the life of a people. In Genesis that family had already grown into twelve families… Scripture shows the interest God took in recording things that are small in man's eyes. Man's nature delights in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

The listing of the family is a moving sight at this point in the story of Jacob's house. No human being can boast. Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord. Yet God takes pleasure in recording their names. He does it early and late in the Old Testament, and at last in the final book of the New Testament — but with variations that teach us something. For the Bible is not only God's word; it is a deeply moral book.

If we truly want to avoid serious mistakes and understand Scripture rightly, we must read the family lists by their own aim, not by modern ideas. On their face they plainly hold difficulties. No forger or compiler would have left them there; he would have taken great care to avoid them. The writer, on the other hand, knew details that we may not. He simply says what he knows to be true, without stopping to clear the difficulties up.

At the start of this chapter the names of the sons of Jacob, called Israel, are listed — and not in order. The aim, I think, is to present them all to us, with no distinction, as objects of God's purposes in grace.

Judah's offspring, and Benjamin's too, were inserted here as the heads of future families. We see this confirmed by the list in Numbers 26, which names the separate families of the tribes of Israel when Moses and Eleazar were told to count the whole assembly… So the huge increase during the stay in Egypt stood out all the more, despite the cruel and murderous oppression that marked its later part.

Bilhah also had a second son, and Rachel named him Naphtali, meaning "my wrestling," because of her wrestling with her sister Leah. All this struggle pictures the struggle of Romans 7. Trying to put down the evil passions of our hearts by our own effort only stirs them up.

Now it was only "the way of the sea," as if swallowed up in its waters. Naphtali, the struggler, sat struggling no more, in darkness that was truly the "shadow of death." But this does not stop the Saviour of sinners. There in the darkness was the very place for light to spring up. Now a Dweller had come to Zebulun, One in whom God Himself could dwell with man. And to Naphtali had come more than a struggler — a glorious Conqueror, the woman's Seed.

It is God's register of Jacob and his house. There are "seventy" souls including Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons; "sixty-six" without these… The time was near when they would stop living as a family — already grown in Genesis into twelve families — and live as a people… Scripture shows the interest God took in recording things that are little in man's eyes. Nature delights in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

We are told now the names of all the household of Jacob, who came with him, showing that our great God is interested in each person, not only in nations or great companies.

When a boy was born, Rachel said that God had given her a son. She named him Dan, meaning "judge." Bilhah had a second son too. Rachel named him Naphtali, meaning "my wrestling," because she was wrestling with her sister Leah.

The names Rachel gave the sons of Bilhah expressed the state of her soul, and her attitude toward her sister. Dan and Naphtali do not speak of grace, but of satisfaction at winning points in a quarrel… But God has a prerogative of His own. Every wrong has its effect among men and its judgment before Him. Even so, He causes all things to work together for good to those who love Him, the called according to purpose.

At the start of this chapter the names of the sons of Jacob, called Israel, appear — and not in order. The aim, I think, is to present them all to us, without distinction, as objects of God's purposes in grace.

It is also remarkable that the sons of the maids do not take a separate or inferior place here. Unlike Ishmael in the story of Abraham, they are blessed together with the other sons of Jacob. God said of Ishmael that the son of the servant woman must never be an heir with the son of the free woman… Jacob's twelve sons give a complete picture of God's earthly people.

Fifth son of Jacob, and first of Bilhah, Rachel's maid… Scripture records little about him: Genesis 46:23 names only one son. The tribe of Dan, however, grew large: at the exodus there were 62,700 fighting men, more than every tribe except Judah.

The natural inference is that Shuham and Hushim are the same name, with the letters swapped around. But the swap itself must have a meaning. The earlier name means "hastening," while the later one means "depression, humiliation."

Here we see grace in its first workings. A nation's small beginning lies in the seventy souls who came into Egypt with Jacob, set against their marvellous and unstoppable increase. Even the slavery they were heading into had already been promised to them. What seemed most against them was really the promise working out for them.

Soul is often used for the moral undying part of man's being. It is also used sometimes to mean the person: as in "all the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt," Gen. 46:26, and "eight souls" saved in the ark, 1 Peter 3:20.

There is really no question of truth here, but of purpose and manner of speech. The original history speaks of 66 (v. 26) and 70 (v. 27). Even in verse 26 the Hebrew strictly means "belong to," rather than with Jacob. The 70 are his house, including more.

It is God's register of Jacob and his house. It gives "seventy" souls including Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons, and "sixty-six" without these. The Septuagint quoted by Stephen speaks of seventy-five. That is because it adds Manasseh's son Machir and grandson Gilead, and Ephraim's two sons, Shuthelah and Tahan, with Shuthelah's son, Eran or Edom.

Notice, however, that in this count of seventy-five Joseph and his sons may not be included. If so, it leaves room for nine more of Jacob's "kindred." And kindred is certainly not the same thought as those who "came out of his loins." We do not offer any positive solution of the difficulty. Nor is it necessary to prove exactly how the list of seventy-five was made up. If we had been told that two of his sons' wives had died, it would be made clear, but we are not told, and must be silent.

If we turn to Genesis 46, we find a complete list of those who made up the sixty-six and went with Jacob into Egypt. The account is so accurate that it names two men who had died, only to show that they were not in the list.

If we honestly want to avoid serious mistakes and understand Scripture rightly, we must read the genealogies according to their aim. We must not read them by modern ideas. On the face of them they plainly present difficulties. No forger or compiler would have left such difficulties; he would have avoided them with all care. The writer, on the other hand, knew details that we might not. He simply states what he knows to be true, without stopping to clear them up.

On the whole the purpose of the statement in Genesis 46 is clearly to give Jacob's family. So some are mentioned who did not go down to Egypt... Take the saying, "Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons in all, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven." It takes up the general fact to show the marvellous increase.

Scripture reveals the interest God took in recording things little in man's eyes. Nature revels in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

Here we see grace in its first workings. A nation had a small beginning in the seventy souls that came into Egypt with Jacob. Set that against their remarkable and unstoppable increase. Even the bondage they come into had already been promised them. What seemed most against them was really the working out of promise for them.

We are now told the names of all the household of Jacob, who came with him. This shows that our great God is interested in people, not only in nations or great companies. The total was 66 persons (v. 26), plus Joseph and his two sons. Jacob himself is the seventieth.

This is God's register of Jacob and his house. Counting Jacob, and Joseph with his two sons, it gives "seventy" souls; without them, "sixty-six"... The time was approaching when they would exchange the life of a family for the life of a people. In Genesis that family had already grown into twelve families. Their growth is one of the opening facts of Exodus, the second book of the Bible. Scripture shows the interest God took in recording things that are little in man's eyes. Nature delights in what it counts great in its own eyes and before the world.

Scripture speaks of man as having a soul and as being a soul. The context shows which meaning the word carries. For instance, we read, "All the souls of the house of Jacob, which came into Egypt, were three score and ten" (Gen. 46:27), meaning seventy persons. We use the word the same way in ordinary speech when we say that a certain ship sank at sea and every soul perished.

The next verse tells us that "all the persons of the house of Jacob who came into Egypt were seventy." This is the second list. How is it worked out? Because Joseph and his two sons, who were born to him in Egypt, were there already. So these, with Jacob as stated, made up the number of seventy souls. Now where is the contradiction? Look further. At the beginning of Exodus 1 the list is given as seventy again. It names Jacob's eleven sons who went into Egypt with him, and then, in exact agreement with Genesis 46:27, it adds, "Joseph was already in Egypt." Where is there any contradiction? Read this chapter carefully and you cannot miss the care taken to avoid even the appearance of a discrepancy.

Notice that Stephen speaks of seventy-five souls, where the Hebrew has seventy. Here, as elsewhere, he quotes the Greek version of the Old Testament. Calvin thinks the difference did not come from the Greek translators themselves. He says it crept in through the fault of copyists, and that Stephen did not say seventy-five... But this seems an unreasonable way of explaining something simple enough... In fact both the Hebrew original and the Greek version may be true. The Greek counts in five sons of Manasseh and Ephraim born in Egypt (1 Chr. 7:14-27).

Verses 37-39 show us how greatly God had multiplied the people under the afflictions of Egypt. They went out about 600,000 men, whereas when Jacob went down there the number given in Genesis 46:27 is 70.

The first five verses of Exodus follow straight on from the book of Genesis. They confirm what Genesis 46:8-27 records in more detail. You would expect this small number of 70 to blend into the Egyptian nation. Instead they kept an identity totally distinct from them. Since that time Israel has been scattered for centuries among other nations. Even so, God has kept a clear distinction between them and all Gentile nations. He even gave them their land back in 1948.