for Genesis: Jacob to Joseph · Part 8 · Genesis 47–50
Settled in Goshen: Blessings and Burial
8 Adventures40 min
What Happens in Part 8
Genesis 47 opens with Joseph presenting his father and brothers to Pharaoh, who grants them the land of Goshen for their flocks. As the famine deepens, Egyptians spend their money, then their livestock, then their land itself in exchange for grain, until nearly all of Egypt's land belongs to Pharaoh except the priests' land, which is never sold. Jacob lives his final seventeen years in Egypt and, nearing death, makes Joseph swear to bury him in Canaan rather than Egypt. Genesis 48 shows Jacob blessing Joseph's two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh; he deliberately crosses his hands to place his right hand on younger Ephraim instead of older Manasseh, despite Joseph's objection. Genesis 49 gathers all twelve sons so Jacob can bless each before he dies; Judah's blessing promises that the ruler's staff will not depart from his line, and Joseph's blessing promises fruitfulness and God's continued help. Genesis 50 closes the book: Jacob is embalmed by Egyptian physicians over forty days, and Egypt mourns him for seventy days, after which he is carried back to Canaan for burial as he requested. Afterward, Joseph's brothers fear he will finally take revenge now that their father is gone, but Joseph reassures them, saying that what they intended for evil, God intended for good, to preserve many lives. Joseph himself dies in Egypt at one hundred ten, is embalmed, and is placed in a coffin, asking that his own bones be carried out of Egypt when God eventually brings the family back to the land.
What We Will Learn
Section
What you will practice
Word Study
Words for settling, blessing, and provision: settled, famine, blessed, birthright, embalmed, mourned, swear
Bible Study
How a story's very last scene can answer a question the story raised many chapters earlier
Scripture Discovery
Documented Semitic settlement in the eastern delta region, and a careful look at Egypt's embalming and mourning custom
Chapter Summary
Ch.
What happens
47
Settled in Goshen — Pharaoh grants Jacob's family the land of Goshen. As the famine worsens, Egyptians trade their money, livestock, and land for grain. Jacob, nearing death, makes Joseph swear to bury him in Canaan.
48
Ephraim Before Manasseh — Jacob blesses Joseph's two sons, deliberately placing his right hand on younger Ephraim instead of older Manasseh.
49
Jacob Blesses His Sons — Jacob gathers his twelve sons to bless each before he dies. Judah's blessing promises a lasting ruling line, and Joseph's promises fruitfulness and God's continued help.
50
Burial and Faithfulness — Jacob is embalmed, mourned, and carried to Canaan for burial. Joseph reassures his fearful brothers and later dies in Egypt, asking that his bones be carried out when God brings the family back.
Part 1
Word Study
Study 7 key words from Genesis 47–50, then answer each question.
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💎 Treasure Wisdom · a true fact behind the storyA Documented Settlement in the Delta
Word Study · Ancient Egyptian GeographyWhen Pharaoh settles Jacob's family in the land of Goshen, most scholars place the region Genesis names in the eastern Nile Delta. Archaeologists excavating a site called Tell el-Dab'a, in that part of the delta, have uncovered a large ancient settlement of Semitic-speaking people: houses built in a Levantine style distinct from typical Egyptian architecture, donkey burials matching a known Amorite and Syrian custom, and seals and scarabs carved with Semitic names. The site cannot be proven to be the exact Goshen of Genesis, but it documents something real: Semitic families did live, in large numbers, in this part of Egypt across a broad span of centuries overlapping the era Genesis describes — not an invented setting.
settledv.Gen 47:27
Made a home in a place
“Israel settled in the land of Goshen.”
faminen.Gen 47:20
A time when there is not enough food
“The famine grows so severe that Egyptians sell their own land.”
blessedv.Gen 49:28
Given words of favor and future good, especially by a father or God
“Jacob blessed each of his twelve sons before he died.”
birthrightn.Gen 48:5–6
The special privilege normally belonging to an oldest son
“Jacob treats Ephraim and Manasseh as if they share in Joseph's own place among his sons.”
embalmedv.Gen 50:2
Preserved a body after death using a careful process
“Egyptian physicians embalmed Jacob's body.”
mournedv.Gen 50:3
Showed deep sorrow, especially over a death
“The Egyptians mourned Jacob for seventy days.”
swearv.Gen 50:25
To make a solemn promise
“Joseph made his brothers swear to carry his bones out of Egypt.”
ⓘ The vocabulary words in this list are selected to help you understand and complete this workbook. Some may not appear word-for-word in your Bible.
1To make a home in a place is to ___ there.Gen 47:27
2In Genesis 47, the famine grows so severe that Egyptians eventually sell their own land for grain.Gen 47:20
3Write your answer in the blank, then click Check.Gen 49:28
Word choices:blessedsettledmournedswore- some words will not be used
Jacob each of his twelve sons before he died.
4The special privilege normally belonging to an oldest son is called a ___.Gen 48:5–6
5In Genesis 50, Jacob's body is embalmed by Egyptian physicians.Gen 50:2
6In Genesis 50, Joseph takes revenge on his brothers once Jacob has died.Gen 50:19–21
7Write your answer in the blank, then click Check.Gen 50:25
Word choices:swearsettleblessembalm- some words will not be used
Before he died, Joseph made his brothers an oath to carry his bones out of Egypt.
Part 2
Understanding
Show you understood what happens in Genesis 47–50.
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💎 Treasure Wisdom · a true fact behind the storyA Question the Story Answers at the Very End
Close Reading · A Pattern Across the BookBack in Genesis 37, Joseph's brothers throw him into a pit and sell him into slavery, meaning him harm. At the very end of the book, in Genesis 50, those same brothers stand before Joseph again, afraid he will finally punish them now that Jacob is dead. Instead, Joseph gives the story's own answer to a question it raised fifty chapters earlier: what they intended for evil, God intended for good. A careful reader who remembers Genesis 37 hears this line land differently than a reader who does not — it directly answers the very first wrong done in the book. Watching for where a story circles back to answer its own earliest question is part of following a long book's real shape.
1What happens to Egyptian land as the famine deepens in Genesis 47?Gen 47:13–20
2What does Jacob make Joseph swear to do in Genesis 47?Gen 47:29–31
3What does Jacob do when he blesses Ephraim and Manasseh?Gen 48:13–14
4What does Joseph tell his brothers when they fear his revenge?Gen 50:19–20
5Write the numbers 1–5 in the boxes to show the correct order across Genesis 47–50. Number 1 = what happens first.Gen 47–50
Jacob makes Joseph swear to bury him in Canaan.
Jacob blesses all twelve of his sons before he dies.
Jacob is embalmed, mourned, and carried to Canaan for burial.
Jacob blesses Ephraim ahead of Manasseh.
Pharaoh grants Jacob's family the land of Goshen.
6Jacob's blessing on Judah promises that the ruler's staff will not depart from his line.Gen 49:10
7Joseph asks that his bones be carried out of Egypt when God eventually brings the family back to the land.Gen 50:25
Part 3
Literary Craft
Understanding HOW and WHY Genesis tells the story across Genesis 47–50.
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💎 Treasure Wisdom · a true fact behind the storyThe Last Link in a Long Chain
Literary Craft · ResolutionA resolution is the point where a story's main tensions are finally settled, usually near the very end. Genesis 50 resolves a tension that began all the way back in Genesis 37: will Joseph's brothers ever answer for what they did to him? Genesis does not rush this moment; it lets the brothers voice their fear plainly before Joseph answers it. A satisfying resolution does not need to be a plot twist — it can simply be the clearest possible answer to the story's oldest open question, delivered by the one character who has earned the right to answer it.
Resolution
The point where a story's main tensions are finally settled, usually near the end. Genesis 50 resolves the tension left open since Joseph's brothers sold him into slavery in Genesis 37.
Full circle
When an earlier detail, dream, or event is answered or fulfilled precisely later in the story, closing a loop that began much earlier. Joseph's forgiveness in Genesis 50 answers the wrong done to him in Genesis 37.
Farewell scene
A scene near a story's end where a dying or departing character speaks final words, often blessings or instructions that shape what happens afterward. Jacob's blessings in Genesis 49 are a farewell scene.
1What is a resolution, as a literary term?Gen 50
2Fill in the blank with the correct word.Gen 50
Word choices:resolutionfarewellcirclereversal- some words will not be used
The point where a story's main tensions are finally settled is called its .
3What earlier tension from Genesis 37 does Genesis 50 resolve?Gen 37, 50
4Genesis has the brothers voice their fear before Joseph answers it.Gen 50:15–18
5A farewell scene never includes blessings or instructions for the future.Gen 49
6Fill in the blank with the correct word.Gen 49
Word choices:farewellresolutioncirclereversal- some words will not be used
A scene where a dying character gives final blessings is called a scene.
7Why does Joseph's answer in Genesis 50 count as a strong resolution?Gen 50:19–21
Part 4
Wisdom
Four deeper challenges — no single-word recall. Read, weigh the evidence, and reason it out.
⚱️
💎 Treasure Wisdom · a true fact behind the storyTwo Different Numbers, Two Different Things
Archaeology · Ancient Egyptian Burial PracticeGenesis 50 gives two different numbers for two different things: physicians spend forty days embalming Jacob's body, and Egypt then observes seventy days of mourning before the burial journey to Canaan. The most detailed ancient description of Egyptian embalming comes from the Greek historian Herodotus, writing centuries after Joseph's lifetime, who describes a careful process: removing certain organs, drying the body with a natural salt called natron, then wrapping it. Herodotus is describing the embalming procedure itself, not a separate mourning period, so his account should not be read as confirming either number in Genesis 50 directly. Because he wrote so long after Genesis is set, his account cannot describe the exact procedure used for Jacob himself; it shows how Egyptian embalming worked across a long span of history. Even so, Genesis 50's basic pattern — a lengthy, multi-day embalming process followed by a separate period of formal mourning — matches the general shape of Egyptian funerary custom described by other ancient sources, grounding this scene in how Egypt actually handled death.
Read Genesis 47–50 in your Bible first. In Genesis 47, notice exactly what Egyptians give up, in order, as the famine grows worse. In Genesis 48–49, watch which son Jacob favors with his right hand, and which two sons' blessings receive the most attention. Finally, in Genesis 50, notice what the brothers fear right after Jacob's death, and exactly how Joseph answers that fear.
Original passage written for this workbook — not a quotation from Scripture.
1Claim: “Genesis 47–50 shows the story resolving its oldest tension: God using painful events, even ones caused by evil, to preserve life.” — choose the three details that best support it.Claim & Evidence
2Stated in Genesis 47–50, or Not stated there? Tap each detail to send it left or right.Sort into two
◄ Stated in Genesis 47–50Not stated there ►
3Match each first detail with the detail paired with it.Match the Pairs
Pharaoh→
Jacob→
Ephraim→
Joseph→
The Egyptians→
4Fill both blanks to complete the reasoning.Build the Argument
Genesis has Joseph directly answer his brothers' fear in Genesis 50 rather than leaving it unaddressed because , which shows that .
Part 5
World Discovery (SAT/TOEFL)
Reading passage · Two Different Numbers · Ancient Egyptian Custom and Careful Evidence · practices the same reading-comprehension skills tested on the SAT and TOEFL: main idea, detail, vocabulary in context, inference and synthesis.
📖 Read the passage below (the highlighted words are tested), then answer the questions. Tap an answer to select it, tap again to confirm — you get one chance to change it before it's final.
Original passage written for this workbook — not a quotation from Scripture.
Two Different Numbers
When Genesis records that Jacob's body was embalmed over forty days, then separately notes seventy days of Egyptian mourning, it is naming two different things, not one figure repeated twice. The most detailed ancient description of Egyptian embalming comes from the Greek historian Herodotus, writing centuries after Joseph's lifetime. Herodotus describes a careful, multi-step process: removing organs, drying the body with a natural salt called natron, and finally wrapping it. Herodotus is describing the embalming procedure itself, and his account should not be conflated with Genesis's separate number for the mourning period, since the two describe different stages. Because Herodotus wrote so long after Genesis is set, his account cannot describe the exact procedure used in Jacob's own burial; it shows how the custom worked across a long span of Egyptian history. Preserved bodies examined by modern researchers do confirm many of the embalming steps ancient writers described, giving historians physical evidence alongside the written accounts. Genesis does not describe the embalming procedure in any detail, but its basic pattern — a lengthy embalming period, then a separate, longer mourning period — matches the general shape of documented Egyptian funerary custom rather than a detail invented for the story.
1What is the passage mostly about?SAT/TOEFL Reading · Main Idea
2According to the passage, who gives the most detailed ancient description of Egyptian embalming?SAT/TOEFL Reading · Detail
3In this passage, “conflated” most nearly means ___.SAT/TOEFL Reading · Vocabulary in Context
4What does the passage say Herodotus is actually describing?SAT/TOEFL Reading · Detail
5What does the passage say actual preserved bodies show?SAT/TOEFL Reading · Inference
6What kind of evidence does the passage combine to make its point?SAT/TOEFL Reading · Evidence
7What is the passage careful to say about Genesis's two numbers?SAT/TOEFL Reading · Synthesis
Part 6
Writing
A print-only writing prompt — not part of your online score.
Writing Task — Part 8 “Turning It for Good”
In Genesis 50, Joseph tells his brothers that what they intended for evil, God intended for good. Think of a hard or unfair situation in your own life. How did things turn out better than you expected, or how do you hope they might? 4–6 sentences. End by saying what you learned.
You can start with: “One hard situation that turned out better than I expected was…”
Write your response on paper or in a notebook. This section is for print and take-home use; it is not scored online.
Part 8 Complete!
You finished Genesis 47–50 of Genesis: Jacob to Joseph.
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Teach it to someone
The best last step is to teach it. In your own words, explain what happened — retell a favorite scene, teach a character’s big choice, or sum up the main idea for a parent, friend, or classmate. When you can teach it clearly, you truly own it.
