Genesis - The Old Testament

¹ So Israel set out with all his possessions. Arriving at Beersheba, he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac.

² God spoke to Israel in a vision at night, 'Jacob, Jacob,' he said. 'Here I am,' he replied.

³ 'I am El, God of your father,' he said. 'Do not be afraid of going down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there.

⁴ I shall go down to Egypt with you and I myself shall bring you back again, and Joseph's hand will close your eyes.'

⁵ So Jacob left Beersheba. Israel's sons conveyed their father Jacob, their little children and their wives in the waggons Pharaoh had sent to fetch him.

⁶ Taking their livestock and all that they had acquired in Canaan, they arrived in Egypt -- Jacob and all his offspring.

⁷ With him to Egypt, he brought his sons and grandsons, his daughters and granddaughters -- all his offspring.

⁸ These were the names of the Israelites, Jacob and his descendants, who arrived in Egypt: Reuben, Jacob's first-born,

⁹ and the sons of Reuben: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron and Carmi.

¹⁰ The sons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul the son of the Canaanite woman.

¹¹ The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath and Merari.

¹² The sons of Judah: Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah (Er and Onan had died in Canaan), and Hezron and Hamul sons of Perez.

¹³ The sons of Issachar: Tola, Puvah, Jashub and Shimron.

¹⁴ The sons of Zebulun: Sered, Elon and Jahleel.

¹⁵ These were the sons that Leah had borne to Jacob in Paddan-Aram, besides his daughter Dinah; in all, his sons and daughters numbered thirty-three.

¹⁶ The sons of Gad: Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi and Areli.

¹⁷ The sons of Asher: Jimnah, Jishvah, Jishvi, Beriah, with their sister Serah; the sons of Beriah: Heber and Malchiel.

¹⁸ These were the sons of Zilpah whom Laban gave to his daughter Leah; she bore these to Jacob -- sixteen persons.

¹⁹ The sons of Rachel wife of Jacob: Joseph and Benjamin.

²⁰ Born to Joseph in Egypt were: Manasseh and Ephraim sons of Asenath, daughter of Potiphera priest of On.

²¹ The sons of Benjamin: Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim and Ard.

²² These were the sons that Rachel bore to Jacob -- fourteen persons in all.

²³ The sons of Dan: Hushim.

²⁴ The sons of Naphtali: Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer and Shillem.

²⁵ These were the sons of Bilhah whom Laban gave to his daughter Rachel; she bore these to Jacob -- seven persons in all.

²⁶ Altogether, the members of Jacob's family who arrived with him in Egypt -- his own issue, not counting the wives of Jacob's sons -- numbered sixty-six all told.

²⁷ With Joseph's sons born to him in Egypt -- two persons -- the members of Jacob's family who went to Egypt totalled seventy.

²⁸ Israel sent Judah ahead to Joseph, so that Judah might present himself to Joseph in Goshen. When they arrived in Goshen,

²⁹ Joseph had his chariot made ready and went up to Goshen to meet his father Israel. As soon as he appeared he threw his arms round his neck and for a long time wept on his shoulder.

³⁰ Israel said to Joseph, 'Now I can die, now that I have seen you in person and seen you still alive.'

³¹ Then Joseph said to his brothers and his father's family, 'I shall go back and break the news to Pharaoh. I shall tell him, "My brothers and my father's family who were in Canaan have come to me.

³² The men are shepherds and look after livestock, and they have brought their flocks and cattle and all their possessions."

³³ Thus, when Pharaoh summons you and asks, "What is your occupation?",

³⁴ you are to say, "Ever since our boyhood your servants have looked after livestock, we and our fathers before us," so that you can stay in the Goshen region -- for the Egyptians have a horror of all shepherds.'