Genesis 45 Study Notes

45:16-20 Affirming the commands Joseph had given, Pharaoh told him to have his brothers load their animals with food, go on back to Jacob in Canaan, and then return with their families. New to the set of instructions was Pharaoh’s provision of wagons from the land of Egypt to transport the weaker members of the clan down to Egypt, the promise that Joseph’s family could live in the best of the land of Egypt, and that they would be permitted to eat from the richness (“the fat”) of the land.

45:21-24 Joseph supplied his brothers with generous provisions for the journey back to Canaan, as well as items for the clan’s return to Egypt. The translation of Joseph’s final command (Don’t argue) is uncertain and may also mean “Don’t fear” or “Don’t take undue risks.”

45:25-28 Jacob experienced a storm of emotion when the group returned from Egypt. Initially he experienced relief, as all eleven brothers came back to him. His “heart went numb” (was stunned) when he was told that Joseph was still alive and he realized his other sons had maintained a deception for twenty years. Jacob agreed to go to see him before he died. God’s promise of blessing to Jacob (32:29; 35:9) had proven true.