Genesis 47:29

29 and the days of Israel drew nigh for him to die: and he called his son Joseph, and said to him, If I have found favour before thee, put thy hand under my thigh, and thou shalt execute mercy and truth toward me, so as not to bury me in Egypt.

Genesis 47:29 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 47:29

And the time drew nigh that Israel must die
As all men must, by the appointment of God, even good men, the Israel of God; though they shall not die a spiritual death, nor an eternal one, yet a corporeal one, which is for their good, and is a blessing to them; the sting being removed, and so not a penal evil, which is owing to Christ's dying for them, who has abolished death as such; and there is a time fixed for their death, beyond which they must not live, and before which they must not die, but when the time comes there is no avoiding it; the time of Jacob's death was drawing on, as he perceived by the great decline of his natural strength, and perhaps by a divine impulse on his mind:

and he called his son Joseph;
sent for him, by a messenger, to come to him:

and said unto him;
when he was come:

if now I have found grace in thy sight;
which is not spoken in a way of submission, as from an inferior to a superior, as the phrase is sometimes used; or as signifying what would be esteemed as a favour should it be granted, but it is as if he should say, if thou hast any filial affection for me as a parent, and art willing to show love and respect to me, do as follows:

put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh:
a gesture in swearing, as Jarchi observes, ( Genesis 24:2 Genesis 24:3 ) ; adding, for explanation's sake,

and deal kindly and truly with me;
"kindly", by promising and swearing to do what he after desires; and "truly", by observing his oath, and fulfilling his promise:

bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt;
not choosing to lie among idolaters at death, with whom he cared not to have any fellowship in life.

Genesis 47:29 In-Context

27 And Israel dwelt in Egypt, in the land of Gesem, and they gained an inheritance upon it; and they increased and multiplied very greatly.

28 And Jacob survived seventeen years in the land of Egypt; and Jacob's days of the years of his life were a hundred and forty-seven years.

29 and the days of Israel drew nigh for him to die: and he called his son Joseph, and said to him, If I have found favour before thee, put thy hand under my thigh, and thou shalt execute mercy and truth toward me, so as not to bury me in Egypt.

30 But I will sleep with my fathers, and thou shalt carry me up out of Egypt, and bury me in their sepulchre. And he said, I will do according to thy word.

31 And he said, Swear to me; and he swore to him. And Israel did reverence, leaning on the top of his staff.