Jacob’s Death and Burial

49:29-50:14

29 Then he commanded them and said to them, “I am being gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30 in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah that is in front of Mamre in the land of Canaan, that Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite as property for a burial place. 31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife, there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I buried Leah. 32 The purchase of the field and the cave that is in it was from the sons of Heth.” 33 Then Jacob finished commanding his sons, and he drew his feet into the bed and exhaled and was gathered to his people.

50 Then Joseph fell on the face of his father, and he wept over him and kissed him. 2 Then Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel, 3 and they completed forty days for him, for so they complete the days of embalmings. And the Egyptians wept for him seventy days.

4 And the days of his mourning passed, then Joseph spoke to the house of Pharaoh, saying, “Please, if I have found favor in your eyes, please speak in the ears of Pharaoh, saying, 5 ‘My father made me swear, saying, “Behold, I am dying. In my grave that I dug for myself in the land of Canaan, there you must bury me.” So now, please let me go up there and bury my father, then I will return.’ ” 6 And Pharaoh said, “Go up and bury your father just as he made you swear.”

7 So Joseph went up to bury his father, and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house and all elders of the land of Egypt 8 and all of the house of Joseph and his brothers and the house of his father. Only their little ones and their flocks and their herds they left in the land of Goshen. 9 And with him went up both chariots and horsemen, and the company was very great.

10 Then they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, and they lamented there with a very great and heavy lamentation. And he did seven days of mourning for his father. 11 And the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, and they said, “This is a heavy mourning for the Egyptians!” For that reason they called its name Abel Mizraim, which is beyond the Jordan.

12 And his sons did for him just as he had commanded them: 13 And his sons carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham had bought with the field as property for a burial place from Ephron the Hittite, in front of Mamre. 14 Then after he buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt, he and his brothers and all who had gone up with him to bury his father.