Genesis 46

Israel Goes to Egypt

1So Israel set out with all that he had and came to Beersheba, and he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. 2And God spoke to Israel in visions of the night and said, “Jacob, Jacob.” And he said, “Here I am.” 3Then 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. 4I myself will go down with you to Egypt, and I myself will also bring you up again, and Joseph's hand shall close your eyes.”

5Then Jacob arose from Beersheba. And the sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, their little ones, and their wives in the wagons that Pharaoh had sent to carry him. 6They also took their livestock and their possessions, which they had acquired in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob and all his offspring with him, 7his sons and his sons’ sons with him, his daughters and his sons’ daughters. All his offspring he brought with him into Egypt.

The Descendants of Israel

8These are the names of the sons of Israel who came into Egypt, Jacob and his sons: Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn. 9The sons of Reuben: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi. 10The sons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman. 11The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 12The 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. 13The sons of Issachar: Tola, Puvah, Jashub, and Shimron. 14The sons of Zebulun: Sered, Elon, and Jahleel. 15These are the sons of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob in Paddan-aram, together with his daughter Dinah. All his sons and daughters numbered thirty-three.

16The sons of Gad: Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi, and Areli. 17The sons of Asher: Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah, and Serah their sister. And the sons of Beriah: Heber and Malchiel. 18These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter. These she bore to Jacob, sixteen persons.

19The sons of Rachel, Jacob’s wife: Joseph and Benjamin. 20To Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath the daughter of Potiphera priest of On bore to him. 21The sons of Benjamin: Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim, and Ard. 22These are the sons of Rachel, who were born to Jacob, fourteen persons in all.

23The son of Dan: Hushim. 24The sons of Naphtali: Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem. 25These are the sons of Bilhah, whom Laban gave to Rachel his daughter. These she bore to Jacob, seven persons in all.

26All the persons belonging to Jacob who came into Egypt, who were his own descendants, not counting the wives of Jacob’s sons, were sixty-six persons in all. 27And 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.

Joseph Meets Jacob

28He had sent Judah ahead of him to Joseph to show the way before him into Goshen. And they came into the land of Goshen. 29Then Joseph prepared his chariot and went up to meet Israel his father in Goshen. He presented himself to him and fell upon his neck and wept upon his neck a long time.

30Israel said to Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face and know that you are still alive.” 31Joseph said to his brothers and to his father’s household, “I will go up and tell Pharaoh and will say to him, ‘My brothers and my father’s household, who were in the land of Canaan, have come to me. 32The men are shepherds, for they have been keepers of livestock, and they have brought their flocks and their herds and all that they have.’ 33And when Pharaoh calls you and says, ‘What is your occupation?’ 34you shall say, ‘Your servants have been keepers of livestock from our youth even until now, both we and our fathers,’ so that you may dwell in the land of Goshen, for every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians.”