*H And Israel taking his journey, with all that he had, came to the well of the oath, and killing victims there to the God of his father Isaac,
Ver. 1. The well of the oath. Bersabee.
*H God said to him: I am the most mighty God of thy father; fear not, go down into Egypt, for I will make a great nation of thee there.
Ver. 3. Fear not. He might be apprehensive, lest his children should be depraved, living among idolaters, or prefer Egypt before the promised land. He was also afraid to undertake this journey without consulting God. M.
*H I will go down with thee thither, and will bring thee back again from thence: Joseph also shall put his hands upon thy eyes.
Ver. 4. Thence; in thy posterity. Sept. add at last, or after a long time. Jacob's bones were brought back and buried in Chanaan. C. — Eyes, as he is the most dear to thee. Parents closed the eyes of their children in death. The Romans opened them again when the corpse was upon the funeral pile; thinking it a mark of disrespect for the eyes to be shut to heaven; "ut neque ab homine supremum eos spectari fas sit, & cœlo non ostendi, nefas." Plin. xi. 37.
* Footnote * Acts 7 : 15
So Jacob went down into Egypt. And he died, and our fathers.* Footnote * Josue 24 : 5
And I sent Moses and Aaron, and I struck Egypt with many signs and wonders.* Footnote * Psalms 104 : 23
And Israel went into Egypt: and Jacob was a sojourner in the land of Cham.* Footnote * Isaias 52 : 4
For thus saith the Lord God: My people went down into Egypt at the beginning to sojourn there: and the Assyrian hath oppressed them without any cause at all.*H His sons, and grandsons, daughters, and all his offspring together.
Ver. 7. Daughters. Dina, and grand-daughter Sara, (v. 17,) and his sons' wives, &c. C. — We may observe, that all here mentioned were not born at the time when Jacob went down into Egypt, but they were before he or Joseph died; that is, during the space of 17 or 71 years. See S. Aug. q. 151. 173. M. — The names of the Heb. and Sept. vary some little from the Vulgate, which may be attributed to the difference of pronunciation, or to the same person having many names. The number is also different in the Sept. as the authors of that version have, perhaps, inserted some names taken from other parts of Scripture, to remove any apparent contradiction. The genealogies of Juda, Joseph, and Benjamin, are carried farther than the rest, as those families were of greater consequence.
* Footnote * Exodus 1 : 2
Ruben, Simeon, Levi, Juda,* Footnote * Exodus 6 : 14
These are the heads of their houses by their families. The sons of Ruben the firstborn of Israel: Henoch and Phallu, Hesron and Charmi.* Footnote * 1_Paralipomenon 5 : 1
Now the sons of Ruben the firstborn of Israel, (for he was his firstborn: but forasmuch as he defiled his father's bed, his first birthright was given to the sons of Joseph the son of Israel, and he was not accounted for the firstborn.* Footnote * 1_Paralipomenon 5 : 3
The sons then of Ruben the firstborn of Israel were Enoch, and Phallu, Esron, and Charmi.*H The sons of Ruben: Henoch and Phallu, and Hesron and Charmi.
Ver. 9. Hesron and Charmi, were probably born in Egypt, as Ruben had only two sons. C. xlii. 37. Philo.
*H The sons of Simeon: Jamuel and Jamin and Ahod, and Jachin and Sohar, and Saul, the son of a woman of Chanaan.
Ver. 10. Jamuel. Num. xxvi. 12, he is called Namuel. — Jachin is Jarid. 1 Par. iv. 24. C.
* Footnote * Exodus 6 : 15
These are the kindreds of Ruben. The sons of Simeon, Jamuel and Jamin, and Ahod, and Jachin, and Soar, and Saul the son of a Chanaanitess: these are the families of Simeon.* Footnote * 1_Paralipomenon 4 : 24
The sons of Simeon: Namuel and Jamin, Jarib, Zara, Saul:* Footnote * 1_Paralipomenon 6 : 1
The sons of Levi were Gerson, Caath, and Merari.*H The sons of Juda: Her and Onan, and Sela, and Phares and Zara. And Her and Onan died in the land of Chanaan. And sons were born to Phares: Hesron and Hamul.
Ver. 12. Were born, afterwards. M.
* Footnote * 1_Paralipomenon 2 : 3
The sons of Juda: Her, Onan and Sela. These three were born to him of the Chanaanitess the daughter of Sue. And Her the firstborn of Juda, was wicked in the sight of the Lord, and he slew him.* Footnote * 1_Paralipomenon 4 : 21
The sons of Sela the son of Juda: Her the father of Lecha, and Laada the father of Maresa, and the families of the house of them that wrought fine linen in the House of oath.* Footnote * 1_Paralipomenon 7 : 1
Now the sons of Issachar were Thola, and Phua, Jasub and Simeron, four.*H These are the sons of Lia, whom she bore in Mesopotamia of Syria, with Dina, his daughter. All the souls of her sons and daughters, thirty-three.
Ver. 15. Syria. This must be restrained to her seven children. — Thirty-three, comprising Lia or Jacob; but without Her and Onan, who were dead. C.
* Footnote * 1_Paralipomenon 7 : 30
The children of Aser were Jemna, and Jesua, and Jessui, and Baria, and Sara their sister.*H And sons were born to Joseph, in the land of Egypt, whom Aseneth, the daughter of Putiphare, priest of Heliopolis, bore him: Manasses and Ephraim.
Ver. 20. Ephraim. The Sept. take in here the children of both. Num. xxvi. 29. 35.
*H The sons of Benjamin: Bela and Bechor, and Asbel and Gera, and Naaman and Echi, and Ross and Mophim, and Ophim and Ared.
Ver. 21. Benjamin. Ten in number; though the Sept. have only nine, and suppose that some of them were his grand-children. He was 33 (or 24, M.) years old. C. — Grotius thinks three names have been made out of two; Echi, Ros, and Mophim, out of Ahiram and Supham, as we read, Num. xxvi. 38.
* Footnote * 1_Paralipomenon 7 : 6
The sons of Benjamin were Bela, and Bechor, and Jadihel, three.* Footnote * 1_Paralipomenon 8 : 1
Now Benjamin begot Bale his firstborn, Asbel the second, Ahara the third,*H The sons of Dan: Husim.
Ver. 23. Sons. The Arab. has son. Husim is Suham, (Num. xxvi. 42,) by change and transposition of letters. Ken.
*H All the souls that went with Jacob into Egypt, and that came out of his thigh, besides his sons' wives, sixty-six.
Ver. 26. Sixty-six; not including Jacob, Joseph, and his two children, who make up 70, v. 27. Deut. x. 22. The Sept. taking in Joseph's grand-children, read 75; in which they are followed by S. Stephen. Acts vii. 14. See S. Jer. q. Heb. C. — S. Augustine cannot account for these grand-children and great grand-children of Joseph being mentioned as coming with Jacob into Egypt, since some of them were not born during his life-time. He suspects some hidden mystery. W. See v. 7. — Some think S. Stephen excludes Jacob, Joseph, and his sons; and includes the 64 men, with 11 wives. D.
* Footnote * Deuteronomy 10 : 22
In seventy souls thy fathers went down into Egypt: and behold now the Lord thy God hath multiplied thee as the stars of heaven.*H You shall answer: We, thy servants, are shepherds, from our infancy until now, both we and our fathers. And this you shall say, that you may dwell in the land of Gessen, because the Egyptians have all shepherds in abomination.
Ver. 34. Abomination. See C. xliii. 32. The source of this hatred against foreign shepherds, was probably because, about 100 years before Abraham, the shepherd-kings, Hycussos, had got possession of a great part of Egypt, and were at last expelled by the kings of Thebais. See Manetho ap. Eus. præp. x. 13. Another reason why they hated foreigners was, because they slew and eat sheep, &c. which they themselves adored. The Egyptians kept sheep for this purpose, and for the benefits to be derived from their wool, &c. C. xlvii. 17. C. — Joseph took advantage of this disposition of the inhabitants, to keep his brethren at a distance from them, that they might not be perverted. He does not introduce them at court, that no jealousy might be excited. He shews that he is not ashamed of his extraction. M.