On the Way to Zion... Egypt

Life Forevermore

(Genesis 46:1-27, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, September 20, 2015)

[46:1] So Israel took his journey with all that he had and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. [2] And God spoke to Israel in visions of the night and said, “Jacob, Jacob.” And he said, “Here I am.” [3] Then he said, “I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for there I will make you into a great nation. [4] I myself will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you up again, and Joseph's hand shall close your eyes.”

(1-4) The Lord reassured Jacob concerning the future.

[5] Then Jacob set out from Beersheba. The sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons that Pharaoh had sent to carry him. [6] They also took their livestock and their goods, which they had gained in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob and all his offspring with him, [7] his sons, and his sons' sons with him, his daughters, and his sons' daughters. All his offspring he brought with him into Egypt.
[8] Now these are the names of the descendants of Israel, who came into Egypt, Jacob and his sons. Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, [9] and the sons of Reuben: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi. [10] The sons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman. [11] The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. [12] The sons of Judah: Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah (but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan); and the sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul. [13] The sons of Issachar: Tola, Puvah, Yob, and Shimron. [14] The sons of Zebulun: Sered, Elon, and Jahleel. [15] These are the sons of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob in Paddan-aram, together with his daughter Dinah; altogether his sons and his daughters numbered thirty-three.
[16] The sons of Gad: Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi, and Areli. [17] The sons of Asher: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah, with Serah their sister. And the sons of Beriah: Heber and Malchiel. [18] These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter; and these she bore to Jacob—sixteen persons.
[19] The sons of Rachel, Jacob's wife: Joseph and Benjamin. [20] And to Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera the priest of On, bore to him. [21] And the sons of Benjamin: Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim, and Ard. [22] These are the sons of Rachel, who were born to Jacob—fourteen persons in all.
[23] The son of Dan: Hushim. [24] The sons of Naphtali: Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem. [25] These are the sons of Bilhah, whom Laban gave to Rachel his daughter, and these she bore to Jacob—seven persons in all.
[26] All the persons belonging to Jacob who came into Egypt, who were his own descendants, not including Jacob's sons' wives, were sixty-six persons in all. [27] And the sons of Joseph, who were born to him in Egypt, were two. All the persons of the house of Jacob who came into Egypt were seventy.

(5-27) So all Israel went into Egypt, trusting God, and knowing the Lord would bring Israel out of Egypt, and even more importantly, that He would bring all of His people to a better land (Hebrews 11:10).

Old Testament Reading—Psalm 133:1-3

Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.

Gospel Reading—Matthew 26:1-5 – The plot to kill Jesus

(1-4) The Lord reassured Jacob concerning the future.

Jacob traveled through Beersheba on his way to see Joseph in Egypt. That city was a place where his father Isaac and grandfather Abraham had lived. It was at Beersheba that God had given strong encouragement to Isaac which would now be repeated again to Jacob. In this place of holy remembrance, God's care for those who have gone before Jacob was remembered, and His sure promises for future generations were heard and believed.

Here the Lord identified Himself as the God of Jacob's fathers (Abraham and Isaac). He reassured Jacob that leaving the Promised Land and going to Egypt was not a mistake. God would make Israel into a great nation there. The Lord would be with him, and He would bring him back to Canaan at the right time. Jacob would die in the presence of his beloved son Joseph. His body would be buried in Canaan, but more than that, at just the right time his progeny would take possession of the land that God had promised to them.

We can read again the ancient words spoken to Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3, we can remember the covenant Word of the Lord in Genesis 15:13-14, and we can believe with Jacob that the Lord will bring to pass all of His holy will.

(5-27) So all Israel went into Egypt, trusting God, and knowing the Lord would bring Israel out of Egypt, and even more importantly, that He would bring all of His people to a better land (Hebrews 11:10).

With this confidence Jacob set out for Egypt according to the Word of the Lord. He took with him everyone and everything.

What does the New Testament tell us about the faith of Jacob. Like Abraham and Isaac, “he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God.”

Our future eternal blessings have been secured for us by the coming of a King who has all power and authority in heaven and on earth.

Jacob went to Egypt as a man without a country. One of his descendants would one day come to earth in order to suffer and die, and then to lead captivity captive into the land of life. Through His righteous life, His death on the cross, and His resurrection, Jesus would take His place as the true King of an everlasting kingdom.

All of the family of God will one day be with Jesus in the fullest expression of His kingdom. Until then, we may suffer for a little while, as exiles in “Egypt.” But God has not forgotten His promises. He has commanded the blessing: a homeland, and “life forevermore.” (Psalm 133:3)

One suffering Christian writes from prison, “The narrow way that I am passing through I see as a cup my Beloved has given me, and I will drink it to the end, whatever that end might be. What really matters is that I am my Beloved's and my Beloved is mine. This possibly is the sweetest truth of my life that I am His and He is mine.” (Rev. Dave Furman, Tabletalk, August, 2015, 19)

As the Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, “[16] So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. [17] For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, [18] as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)