Genesis 46 Footnotes

46:28–47:6 Joseph played off the Egyptians’ sense of ethnic superiority in order to gain favor for his family. Knowing that Egyptians considered shepherds “abhorrent” (46:34), Joseph emphasized this so that Pharaoh would send his people to Goshen, keeping them separate from the other peoples of Egypt. While they were in Canaan, the temptation to intermarry had threatened both the bloodline and the faith of God’s people. Living in Goshen would make it easier to preserve their distinctiveness.