Parasha: Genesis 44:18 - 47:27

Vayigash - "And came near"

Haftarah Ezekiel 37:15 - 28

Genesis 44:

18 Then Ye-hudah (Judah) came near to him and said: "O my lord, please let your servant speak a word in my lord's hearing, and do not let your anger burn against your servant; for you are even like Pharaoh.

19 "My lord asked his servants, saying, `Have you a father or a brother?'

20 "And we said to my lord, `We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, who is young; his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother's children, and his father loves him.'

21 "Then you said to your servants, `Bring him down to me, that I may set my eyes on him.'

22 "And we said to my lord, `The lad cannot leave his father, for if he should leave his father, his father would die.'

23 "But you said to your servants, `Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you shall see my face no more.' (& he reminds Yosef (Joseph) and tells him of the past events & fears)

24 "So it was, when we went up to your servant my father, that we told him the words of my lord.

25 "And our father said, `Go back and buy us a little food.'

26 "But we said, `We cannot go down; if our youngest brother is with us, then we will go down; for we may not see the man's face unless our youngest brother is with us.'

27 "Then your servant my father said to us, `You know that my wife bore me two sons;

28 `and the one went out from me, and I said, "Surely he is torn to pieces"; and I have not seen him since.

29 `But if you take this one also from me, and calamity befalls him, you shall bring down my gray hair with sorrow to the grave.'

30 "Now therefore, when I come to your servant my father, and the lad is not with us, since his life is bound up in the lad's life,

31 "it will happen, when he sees that the lad is not with us, that he will die. So your servants will bring down the gray hair of your servant our father with sorrow to the grave.

32 "For your servant became surety for the lad to my father, saying, `If I do not bring him back to you, then I shall bear the blame before my father forever.'

33 "Now therefore, please let your servant remain instead of the lad as a slave to my lord, and let the lad go up with his brothers.

34 "For how shall I go up to my father if the lad is not with me, lest perhaps I see the evil that would come upon my father?" (He's pleading for Ben-yamin, Has there been a change?)

Genesis 45:

1 Then Yosef could not restrain himself before all those who stood by him, and he cried out, "Make everyone go out from me!" So no one stood with him while Yosef made himself known to his brothers.

2 And he wept aloud, and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard it.

3 Then Yosef said to his brothers, "I am Yosef; does my father still live?" But his brothers could not answer him, for they were dismayed in his presence.

4 And Yosef said to his brothers, "Please come near to me." So they came near. Then he said: "I am Yosef your brother, whom you sold into Mits-raim.

5 "But now, do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for Elohim sent me before you to preserve life.

6 "For these two years the famine has been in the land, and there are still five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. (22 years later he revels himself to his brothers)

7 "And Elohim sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

8 "So now it was not you who sent me here, but Elohim; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Mits-raim.

9 "Hurry and go up to my father, and say to him, `Thus says your son Yosef: "Elohim has made me lord of all Mits-raim; come down to me, do not tarry.

10 "You shall dwell in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near to me, you and your children, your children's children, your flocks and your herds, and all that you have.

11 "There I will provide for you, lest you and your household, and all that you have, come to poverty; for there are still five years of famine."'

12 "And behold, your eyes and the eyes of my brother Ben-yamin (Benjamin) (Nymiy!n4Bi Son of my right hand) see that it is my mouth that speaks to you.

13 "So you shall tell my father of all my glory in Mits-raim, and of all that you have seen; and you shall hurry and bring my father down here."

14 Then he fell on his brother Ben-yamin's neck and wept, and Ben-yamin wept on his neck.

15 Moreover he kissed all his brothers and wept over them, and after that his brothers talked with him. (Zec.13:6 "What are these wounds in your arms?' Received them in Israel's house)

16 Now the report of it was heard in Pharaoh's house, saying, "Yosef's brothers have come." So it pleased Pharaoh and his servants well.

17 And Pharaoh said to Yosef, "Say to your brothers, `Do this: Load your animals and depart; go to the land of Ce-na-an (Canaan.)

18 `Bring your father and your households and come to me; I will give you the best of the land of Mits-raim, and you will eat the fat of the land.

19 `Now you are commanded--do this: Take carts out of the land of Mits-raim for your little ones and your wives; bring your father and come.

20 `Also do not be concerned about your goods, for the best of all the land of Mits-raim is yours.'"

21 Then the sons of Yisrael did so; and Yosef gave them carts, according to the command of Pharaoh, and he gave them provisions for the journey.

22 He gave to all of them, to each man, changes of garments; but to Ben-yamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver and five changes of garments.

23 And he sent to his father these things: ten donkeys loaded with the good things of Mits-raim, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and food for his father for the journey.

24 So he sent his brothers away, and they departed; and he said to them, "See that you do not become troubled along the way."

25 Then they went up out of Mits-raim, and came to the land of Ce-na-an to Ya'acov their father.

26 And they told him, saying, "Yosef is still alive, and he is governor over all the land of Mits-raim." And Ya'acov's heart stood still, because he did not believe them.

27 But when they told him all the words which Yosef had said to them, and when he saw the carts which Yosef had sent to carry him, the spirit of Ya'acov their father revived.

28 Then Yisrael said, "It is enough. Yosef my son is still alive. I will go and see him before I die."

Genesis 46:

1 So Yisrael took his journey with all that he had, and came to ¹Beer-Sheva, and offered sacrifices to the Elohim of his father Isaac. (Notice, not @ Bet-el)

(NOTE: Dug by Abraham. On re-opening by Isaac. From Dan to Beersheba, about 144 miles, became the usual way of designating the whole Promised Land, and passed into a proverb.)

2 Then Elohim spoke to Yisrael in the visions of the night, and said, "Ya'acov, Ya'acov!" And he said, "Here I am." (Joel 2:28 "Old men will dream, young men shall see visions." He's 130)

3 So He said, "I am El (lxe), the Elohim of your father; do not fear to go down to Mits-raim, for I will make of you a great nation there. (Before Elohim didn't want him going, but now. .)

4 "I will go down with you to Mits-raim, and I will also surely bring you up again; and Yosef will put his hand on your eyes."

5 Then Ya'acov arose from Beer-Sheva; and the sons of Yisrael carried their father Ya'acov, their little ones, and their wives, in the carts which Pharaoh had sent to carry him.

6 So they took their livestock and their goods, which they had acquired in the land of Ce-na-an, and went to Mits-raim, Ya'acov and all his descendants with him.

7 His sons and his sons' sons, his daughters and his sons' daughters, and all his descendants he brought with him to Mits-raim.

8 Now these were the names of the children of Yisrael, Ya'acov and his sons, who went to Mits-raim: Reuven was Ya'acov's firstborn.

9 The sons of Reuben were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi. (1+4= 5)

10 The sons of Simeon were Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Ce-na-anite woman. (1+6= 7)

11 The sons of Levi were Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. (1+3= 4)

12 The sons of Judah were Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah (but Er and Onan died in the land of Ce-na-an). (1+2= 3) The sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul. (1+2= 3)

13 The sons of Issachar were Tola, Puvah, Job, and Shimron. (1+4= 5)

14 The sons of Zebulun were Sered, Elon, and Jahleel. (1+3+ 4) {Total of 31)

15 These were the sons of Leah, whom she bore to Ya'acov in Pad-dan Aram, with his daughter Dinah. All the persons, his sons and his daughters, were thirty-three.

16 The sons of Gad were Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi, and Areli.(1+7= 8)

17 The sons of Asher were Jimnah, Ishuah, Isui, Beriah, and Serah, their sister. (1+4= 5)

And the sons of Beriah were Heber and Malchiel. (1+2= 3) (Total of 16)

18 These were the sons of Zil-pah, whom La-van gave to Leah his daughter; and these she bore to Ya'acov: sixteen persons. (33 + 16 = 49)

19 The sons of Rachel, Ya'acov's wife, were Yosef and Ben-yamin. (2)

* 20 And to Yosef in the land of Mits-raim were born Me-nash-sheh and Eph-raim, whom Ase-nat, the daughter of Po-ti - Phe-ra priest of On, bore to him. (2)

21 The sons of Ben-yamin were Belah, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim, and Ard. (10) (Total of 14)

22 These were the sons of Rachel, who were born to Ya'acov: fourteen persons in all. (49 + 14 = 63)

23 The son of Dan was Hushim. (1+1= 2)

24 The sons of Naphtali were Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem. (1+4= 5) (Total of 7)

25 These were the sons of Bil-hah, whom La-van gave to Rachel his daughter, and she bore these to Ya'acov: seven persons in all. (14 + 7 = 21) (1/3^rd) (63 + 7 = 70) (Septuagint LXX)

26 All the persons who went with Ya'acov to Mits-raim, who came from his body, besides Ya'acov's sons' wives, were sixty-six persons in all.

27 And the sons of Yosef who were born to him in Mits-raim were two persons. All the persons of the house of Ya'acov who went to Mits-raim were seventy. *(66 + 4 = 70) (4?)

NOTE: Who were the other 4? Ya'acov, Leah, Zil-pha & Bil-hah. PLUS 11 wives & Tarmar + Dinah and Serah = 14 women. 14+70= 84, not counting Ase-nat, Yosef's wife = 85.

28 Then he sent Ye-hudah before him to Yosef, to point out before him the way to Goshen. And they came to the land of Goshen.(Nw,G - Gshen, located in lower Egypt. Not mentioned anywhere else except the bible. The word must be of Egyptian origin. )

29 So Yosef made ready his chariot and went up to Goshen to meet his father Yisrael; and he presented himself to him, and fell on his neck and wept on his neck a good while.

30 And Yisrael said to Yosef, "Now let me die, since I have seen your face, because you are still alive."

31 Then Yosef said to his brothers and to his father's household, "I will go up and tell Pharaoh, and say to him, `My brothers and those of my father's house, who were in the land of Ce-na-an, have come to me.

32 `And the men are shepherds, for their occupation has been to feed livestock; and they have brought their flocks, their herds, and all that they have.'

33 "So it shall be, when Pharaoh calls you and says, `What is your occupation?'

34 "that you shall say, `Your servants' occupation has been with livestock from our youth even till now, both we and also our fathers,' that you may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians."

Genesis 47:

1 Then Yosef went and told Pharaoh, and said, "My father and my brothers, their flocks and their herds and all that they possess, have come from the land of Ce-na-an; and indeed they are in the land of Goshen."

2 And he took five men from among his brothers and presented them to Pharaoh.

3 Then Pharaoh said to his brothers, "What is your occupation?" And they said to Pharaoh, "Your servants are shepherds, both we and also our fathers."

4 And they said to Pharaoh, "We have come to dwell in the land, because your servants have no pasture for their flocks, for the famine is severe in the land of Ce-na-an. Now therefore, please let your servants dwell in the land of Goshen."

5 Then Pharaoh spoke to Yosef, saying, "Your father and your brothers have come to you.

6 "The land of Mits-raim is before you. Have your father and brothers dwell in the best of the land; let them dwell in the land of Goshen. And if you know any competent men among them, then make them chief herdsmen over my livestock."

7 Then Yosef brought in his father Ya'acov and set him before Pharaoh; and Ya'acov blessed Pharaoh.

8 Pharaoh said to Ya'acov, "How old are you?"

9 And Ya'acov said to Pharaoh, "The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years; few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage."

10 So Ya'acov blessed Pharaoh, and went out from before Pharaoh. (Isaac 180, Abraham 175)

11 And Yosef situated his father and his brothers, and gave them a possession in the land of Mits-raim, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded.

NOTE: ( SSem;f4r1 = Rae-me-ses; Egyptian origin "Son of Ra/sun") (An area in lower Egypt).

(Ramses II 1290 - 1224 66 yrs)

12 Then Yosef provided his father, his brothers, and all his father's household with bread, according to the number in their families.

13 Now there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Mits-raim and the land of Ce-na-an languished because of the famine.

14 And Yosef gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Mits-raim and in the land of Ce-na-an, for the grain which they bought; and Yosef brought the money into Pharaoh's house.

15 So when the money failed in the land of Mits-raim and in the land of Ce-na-an, all the Egyptians came to Yosef and said, "Give us bread, for why should we die in your presence? For the money has failed."

16 Then Yosef said, "Give your livestock, and I will give you bread for your livestock, if the money is gone."

17 So they brought their livestock to Yosef, and Yosef gave them bread in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the cattle of the herds, and for the donkeys. Thus he fed them with bread in exchange for all their livestock that year.

18 When that year had ended, they came to him the next year and said to him, "We will not hide from my lord that our money is gone; my lord also has our herds of livestock. There is nothing left in the sight of my lord but our bodies and our lands.

19 "Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants of Pharaoh; give us seed, that we may live and not die, that the land may not be desolate."

20 Then Yosef bought all the land of Mits-raim for Pharaoh; for every man of the Egyptians sold his field, because the famine was severe upon them. So the land became Pharaoh's.

21 And as for the people, he moved them into the cities, from one end of the borders of Mits-raim to the other end. (Do think resentment was beginning to fester over the Hebrews?)

22 Only the land of the priests he did not buy; for the priests had rations allotted to them by Pharaoh, and they ate their rations which Pharaoh gave them; therefore they did not sell their lands. (King Thutmose III, 1490 - 1436 BCE, 54 years; 200 years later Ramses would rule)

23 Then Yosef said to the people, "Indeed I have bought you and your land this day for Pharaoh. Look, here is seed for you, and you shall sow the land.

24 "And it shall come to pass in the harvest that you shall give one-fifth to Pharaoh. Four-fifths shall be your own, as seed for the field and for your food, for those of your households and as food for your little ones."

25 So they said, "You have saved our lives; let us find favor in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh's servants."

26 And Yosef made it a law over the land of Mits-raim to this day, that Pharaoh should have one-fifth, except for the land of the priests only, which did not become Pharaoh's.

27 So Yisrael dwelt in the land of Mits-raim, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions there and grew and multiplied exceedingly.