Genesis 47:7-10

GENESIS—NOTE ON Genesis 47:7 Joseph introduces his father Jacob to Pharaoh. Jacob blessed Pharaoh (vv. Genesis 47:7, Genesis 47:10). This could have been simply words of greeting and farewell. But it fits with the pattern of Abraham and his descendants mediating God’s blessing to others (Genesis 12:3). How many are the days of the years of your life? Pharaoh’s question may have been motivated by the belief that a long life was a sign of divine favor. Few and evil have been... the years of my life. Perhaps Jacob is referring to events such as his treatment of Esau or his sons’ deceiving him about Joseph. While Jacob is now 130 years old, Abraham and Isaac lived to be 175 and 180, respectively. The Hebrew term translated sojourning implies that Jacob and his fathers had no permanent home and perhaps anticipated something better to come. Compare Hebrews 11:10.