Genesis 46:26
All the persons belonging to Jacob who came into Egypt, who were his own descendants, not including Jacob’s sons’ wives, were sixty-six persons in all.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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While the verse lists 66 individuals who came from Jacob's "loins," it specifically excludes the wives of Jacob's sons. This highlights the focus on direct patrilineal descent within the narrative, emphasizing the continuation of Jacob's lineage above marital connections.
Jacob and his entire household are making their long-awaited move to Egypt to escape the famine in Canaan, fulfilling God's promises and Joseph's reunion with his family. This verse provides a specific count of Jacob's direct descendants who are making the journey, excluding their wives, to establish the precise number of the "house of Jacob" as they enter Egypt. This precise accounting sets the stage for the dramatic increase of this family into a nation while in Egypt, as predicted by God.
Ever feel like the Bible numbers just don't add up? This verse is a perfect example, sparking questions about how we count and what's included.
Genesis 46:26 gives us a specific count of Jacob's descendants who entered Egypt: sixty-six. But the very next verse states the total house of Jacob was seventy. What's going on here?
This seemingly simple count isn't just about family history. It's deeply connected to God's promises and the future of His people.
The meticulous listing of Jacob's descendants, even down to specific numbers, underscores the theme of God's faithfulness to His covenant promises.
Understand the original words
Ya‘aqov · Hebrew Proper Noun
A personal name meaning 'he grasps the heel' or 'supplanter,' later changed by God to Israel. It refers to the patriarch himself and, by extension, the covenant people descended from him.
This precise count highlights the small beginnings of the Israelite nation, emphasizing that God's promises are fulfilled through His power, not human numbers or might, setting the stage for their future growth into a great nation as promised.
c. 1885 BC
Joseph sold into slavery
Joseph's jealous brothers sell him to traders, leading to his eventual rise to power in Egypt.
c. 1875 BC
Jacob's sons go to Egypt for grain
A severe famine strikes Canaan, forcing Jacob's sons to travel to Egypt to buy food, where they encounter a powerful Joseph they do not recognize.
c. 1875 BC
Joseph reveals himself to his brothers
After testing his brothers, Joseph reveals his identity, leading to reconciliation and the invitation for the family to settle in Egypt.
c. 1875 BC— this verse
Jacob journeys to Egypt
Jacob, reassured by God and invited by Pharaoh, leads his family from Canaan to the land of Goshen in Egypt.
c. 1875 BC
This passage shows God's initial promise to Abraham to make him a great nation, setting the stage for the growth and significance of his descendants, a promise that Jacob's family is now fulfilling in Egypt.
Exodus 1:1-5This passage directly follows the narrative of Jacob's family entering Egypt, detailing the growth of their descendants into a vast multitude, underscoring the fulfillment of God's promise and the significance of the seventy souls mentioned.
Deuteronomy 10:22This verse explicitly states that Jacob's descendants who went to Egypt numbered seventy souls, providing a clear, direct confirmation of the total count mentioned in Genesis 46.
Acts 7:14Stephen's speech recounts the same event, mentioning that Joseph sent for Jacob and all his kindred, numbering seventy-five souls, offering a slightly different but related total that highlights the importance of this migration and lineage.
Romans 11:12Paul uses the concept of the 'fulness' of Israel to speak about salvation, and the foundational gathering of Jacob's family into Egypt can be seen as the initial 'fullness' from which God's chosen people would grow and be preserved.
calvinGenesis 46:1-34: "And Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices unto the God of his father Isaac."
- Et dixit Deus ad Israel in visi onibus noctis, dixit inquam, Jahacob Jahacob. Ille respondit, Ecce, adsum.
3 And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation:
- Et dixit, Ego sum Deus, Deus patris tui: ne timeas descendere in Aegyptum: quia in gentem magnam ponam to ibi…
pooleGenesis 46:26: "All the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob's sons' wives, all the souls were threescore and six;"
Loins, Heb. thigh, which is here put for the secret parts between the thighs, which are called sometimes the feet, as Genesis 49:10 Deu 28:57 Ezekiel 16:25 , for the like reason, because they are between the feet. From this eastern manner of speech came that passage in the Greek fables, concerning Bacchus being born out of Jupiter’s thi…
While the verse lists 66 individuals who came from Jacob's "loins," it specifically excludes the wives of Jacob's sons. This highlights the focus on direct patrilineal descent within the narrative, emphasizing the continuation of Jacob's lineage above marital connections.
Jacob and his entire household are making their long-awaited move to Egypt to escape the famine in Canaan, fulfilling God's promises and Joseph's reunion with his family. This verse provides a specific count of Jacob's direct descendants who are making the journey, excluding their wives, to establish the precise number of the "house of Jacob" as they enter Egypt. This precise accounting sets the stage for the dramatic increase of this family into a nation while in Egypt, as predicted by God.
Jacob and his entire household are making their long-awaited move to Egypt to escape the famine in Canaan, fulfilling God's promises and Joseph's reunion with his family. This verse provides a specific count of Jacob's direct descendants who are making the journey, excluding their wives, to establish the precise number of the "house of Jacob" as they enter Egypt. This precise accounting sets the stage for the dramatic increase of this family into a nation while in Egypt, as predicted by God.
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Jacob's family settles in Goshen
Jacob's descendants are given the fertile region of Goshen to live in, separate from the Egyptians who detested shepherds.
"All the persons belonging to Jacob who came into Egypt, who were his own descendants, not including Jacob’s sons’ wives, were sixty-six persons in all." — While the verse lists 66 individuals who came from Jacob's "loins," it specifically excludes the wives of Jacob's sons. This highlights the focus on direct patrilineal descent within the narrative,…
