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NASB | Genesis 15:13 God said to Abram, "Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Genesis 15:13 God said to Abram, "Know for sure that your descendants will be strangers [living temporarily] in a land (Egypt) that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years. [Ex 12:40] |
Subject: What do these 430 years mean? |
Bible Note: Hi Bruce, Thank you for a very thoughtful response and my apology for taking so long to answer back. You are correct that Ephraim could have been alive to mourn 7th generation grandchildren. His great-grandfather Isaac did live to 180 years. However, life spans were declining after the flood. Jacob lived to about 147 years and Joseph to 110 years. While possible that Ephraim lived to be 160, it is very doubtful. Plus, this still does not alter the fact that the scripture states that Ephraim was their father. Galatians 16 is clearly referring to God’s promise to Abraham that “in your Seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.” It does not mention Jacob or is there a promise made to Jacob using this language. This covenant was made at the time of the Passover of Isaac. Even by your calculations, the Sons of Israel would have been in Canaan 33 years and Egypt 397 years, not 30 years and 400 years. The interpretation of the Israelites being in Egypt for 400 years cannot be correct because it is in direct conflict with other scriptures, i.e. the genealogy of Moses. I think the correct interpretation would be that the Sons of Israel left Egypt exactly 430 years after the Passover of Isaac. It draws the connection between the 3 Passovers and is consistent with other scriptures. Another conflict that must be resolved is the one of Joseph being 30 years old when he began the service to Pharaoh. This would be just 13 years after his arrival and 9 years before his family arrived. I think when the Bible states "Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt" (Gen 41:46) it represents the 30 years from Joseph's calling by God. This would indicate that Joseph was 56 years old (17 plus 30 plus 7 plus 2) when Jacob arrived at age 130. Jacob was therefore 74 years old when Joseph was born. This would mean that Jacob was 60 years old when his parents sent him to Padan Aram, as opposed to 77 years old. A clear example of this type of calling is encountered in 1 Samuel 13:1 talking about King Saul. A literal translation reads as follows; 1Sam 13:1 A son of a year Saul when he became king .... The text makes it clear Saul was not one year old, yet on the surface this verse appears to be stating he was. This verse is actually stating that Saul was crowned king in the first year since being called by God. Saul became king in the same year he was anointed by God as commander over God's inheritance (1 Sam 10:1). How can we determine if Joseph was in Egypt for 22 years or 39 years before Jacob and his brothers arrived? We need to look at what the Bible records as happening during those years while Joseph was in Egypt. Joseph was 17 years old when he was sold into slavery by his brothers. His younger brother Benjamin was an infant or very young child. Joseph was born shortly after his half-sister, Dinah (Gen 30:21-25), at the end of Jacob's 14 years of service to Laban. Jacob then worked an additional 6 years (Gen 31:41). After that Jacob moved his family to Shechem. At Shechem Dinah was defiled (Gen 34). She was of an age to be married, 14-16 years old. Then Jacob was told by God to go up to Bethel and dwell (Gen 35:1). On this journey Benjamin was born (Gen 35:18-19). When Benjamin arrived in Egypt he would have been about 22-24 years old or 39-41 years old. Benjamin is recorded as having ten sons upon his arrival in Egypt (Gen 46:21). So Benjamin either married very young or it was 30 years from Joseph’s calling when he stood before Pharaoh. Also, after Joseph was sold into slavery, his brother Judah married a Canaanite woman (Gen 38). They had three sons who all grew to be adults. This would take at least 20 years. Then Judah had twin sons by Tamar. Their names were Perez and Zerah (Gen 38:27-30). When Perez arrived in Egypt, he had two sons. This would not be possible within 22 years, but is possible in 39 years. Therefore, the amount of time Jacob and his sons were actually in Canaan was 50 years, not 33. I enjoyed your website. You made some good points which I had not thought about previously. Yours in Christ, Jim Estes |