When they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, they lamented there with a very great and grievous lamentation, and he made a mourning for his father seven days.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The verse highlights the unusual detail that the lamentation for Jacob, led by Joseph, was so intense that it gave a new name to the location: "the threshing floor of Atad," which became known as Abel-Mishraim, meaning "the mourning of the Egyptians." This emphasizes how profoundly the death of Jacob impacted not just his family, but also the Egyptians who witnessed the profound grief.
When they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, they lamented there with a very great and grievous lamentation, and he made a mourning for his father seven days.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Following Jacob's death and Joseph's assurance to his brothers, the funeral procession begins its long journey from Egypt to Canaan. This solemn procession, including Egyptians and Israelites, stops at a threshing floor named Atad beyond the Jordan River, where they pause for a period of deep mourning. This mourning signifies the gravity of their loss and marks the transition before the final burial in the cave of Machpelah.
Why did Joseph and the Egyptians mourn for seven days with such intense grief? Was it all genuine sorrow, or was there more at play?
The passage describes a "great and very sore lamentation" at the threshing floor of Atad. This intense outward expression of grief was characteristic of ancient Near Eastern cultures, including Egypt and Canaan.
The location 'beyond the Jordan' causes a stir among scholars. What does this seemingly simple phrase reveal about their journey and its significance?
The phrase 'beyond the Jordan' in relation to the threshing floor of Atad creates a geographical puzzle. The traditional burial site of Jacob was in Canaan, west of the Jordan River. The placement of this mourning site creates a dilemma for understanding their travel route.
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Why a specific period of seven days for mourning? What does this number signify in the context of ancient Israel and Egypt?
The text specifies that Joseph 'made a mourning for his father seven days.' This seven-day period for mourning was significant in both Hebrew and Egyptian customs, though for slightly different reasons.
Understand the original words
goren · Hebrew Noun
A place where harvested grain was beaten to separate the wheat from the chaff. It was often a large, elevated open-air location, frequently serving as a significant geographical or ritual landmark.
misped · Hebrew Noun
To express deep sorrow, grief, or mourning, often through outward signs such as weeping or formal ritual. Lamentation is a significant cultural response to death and judgment in the biblical narrative.
'ebel · Hebrew Noun
The practice of outward expressions of grief following a death. Biblical mourning is characterized by formal rites, the display of humility, and the recognition of the finality of life under the sovereignty of God.
This solemn procession and burial highlight the respect Egyptians held for Jacob, a stark contrast to their later oppression of his descendants. The prolonged mourning and journey underscore the significance of ancestral ties and the nomadic heritage of the Israelites, even as they lived in Egypt.
c. 1800 BC
Abraham purchases burial plot
Abraham purchased the cave of Machpelah and the surrounding field from Ephron the Hittite to serve as a family burial site.
c. 1700 BC
Jacob's family settles in Goshen
Jacob and his large family migrated to Egypt and were given the land of Goshen to settle, beginning their sojourn.
c. 1650 BC
Jacob's death and embalming
Jacob dies in Egypt. Joseph commands his physicians to embalm his father, a process that took forty days, followed by a period of Egyptian mourning.
c. 1650 BC
Joseph seeks permission to travel
Joseph requests permission from the Pharaoh to travel to Canaan to bury his father, highlighting the Pharaoh's authority and Egyptian customs.
c. 1650 BC— this verse
Funeral procession departs Egypt
A large procession, including Pharaoh's officials, Egyptian elders, and Jacob's sons, sets out from Egypt to bury Jacob in Canaan.
c. 1650 BC
Mourning at the Threshing Floor of Atad
The procession halts at the threshing floor of Atad, beyond the Jordan, where a profound and extended mourning ceremony is held for Jacob.
c. 1650 BC
Burial at Machpelah
After the mourning period, Jacob's sons carry his body to the cave of Machpelah and bury him in the ancestral tomb.
This passage describes God calling for professional mourners to lament for the destruction of Israel, highlighting the deep sorrow and outward expressions of grief that characterized ancient mourning practices, similar to the 'great and very sore lamentation' described for Jacob.
1 Samuel 31:13The mourning period of seven days observed by Saul's followers for their fallen leaders echoes the seven-day mourning period for Jacob, illustrating a customary duration for deep grief before final burial among the Israelites.
Luke 7:12-15The account of Jesus raising the widow's son at Nain shows a similar scene of great lamentation accompanying a funeral procession. The description of the 'great crowd' and the sorrow of the mother resonates with the profound grief expressed for Jacob, emphasizing the shared sense of loss.
Genesis 23:2Sarah's death and Abraham's subsequent mourning for her at Hebron before purchasing the cave of Machpelah sets a precedent for solemn lamentations preceding burial in Canaan, connecting Jacob's burial to the patriarchal traditions of mourning and final resting places.
Romans 12:15This verse instructs believers to 'weep with those who weep,' a principle reflected in the profound lamentation for Jacob. It calls for empathy and shared sorrow, a sentiment evident in the deep grief shown by Joseph, his brothers, and even the Egyptians for the patriarch.
calvinGenesis 50:1-26: "And Joseph fell upon his father's face, and wept upon him, and kissed him."
- Et viderunt habitatores terrae Chenaaneaei luctum in area Atad, et dixerunt, Luctus gravis est iste Aegyptiis: idcirco vocatum fuit nomen ejus Abel -- Misraim, (id est luctus Aegyptorum,) qui est trand Jordanem.
12 And his sons did unto him according as he commanded them:
- Fecerunt ergo filii ejus ei sic, quemadmodum praeceperat eis.
13 For his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, and bu…
bensonGenesis 50:10: "And they came to the threshingfloor of Atad, which is beyond Jordan, and there they mourned with a great and very sore lamentation: and he made a mourning for his father seven days."
Genesis 50:10 . They mourned with a very great and sore lamentation — “This,” says Sir John Chardin, quoted by Harmer, (vol. 2. p. 136,) “is exactly the genius of the people of Asia, especially of the women. Their sentiments of joy or grief are properly transports; and their transports are ungoverne…
The verse highlights the unusual detail that the lamentation for Jacob, led by Joseph, was so intense that it gave a new name to the location: "the threshing floor of Atad," which became known as Abel-Mishraim, meaning "the mourning of the Egyptians." This emphasizes how profoundly the death of Jacob impacted not just his family, but also the Egyptians who witnessed the profound grief.
Following Jacob's death and Joseph's assurance to his brothers, the funeral procession begins its long journey from Egypt to Canaan. This solemn procession, including Egyptians and Israelites, stops at a threshing floor named Atad beyond the Jordan River, where they pause for a period of deep mourning. This mourning signifies the gravity of their loss and marks the transition before the final burial in the cave of Machpelah.
Following Jacob's death and Joseph's assurance to his brothers, the funeral procession begins its long journey from Egypt to Canaan. This solemn procession, including Egyptians and Israelites, stops at a threshing floor named Atad beyond the Jordan River, where they pause for a period of deep mourning. This mourning signifies the gravity of their loss and marks the transition before the final burial in the cave of Machpelah.
"When they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, they lamented there with a very great and grievous lamentation, and he made a mourning for his father seven days." — The verse highlights the unusual detail that the lamentation for Jacob, led by Joseph, was so intense that it gave a new name to the location: "the threshing floor of Atad," which became known as Abe…
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Last reviewed October 2026