Genesis 50:2

Modern

And Joseph directed the physicians in his service to embalm his father Israel. So they embalmed him,

Traditional

And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father: and the physicians embalmed Israel.

Literal

And Joseph commanded his servants, the physicians, to embalm his father. And the physicians embalmed Israel.

Latin

Præcepitque servis suis medicis ut aromatibus condirent patrem.

Hebrew

English

And Joseph directed the physicians in his service to embalm his father Israel. So they embalmed him,

Jacob’s body was embalmed for burial in typical Egyptian fashion. Embalming is the process of preserving a body after death.

Like his father and his grandfather, Jacob’s death marked the end of an important time in Israel’s history.

Theme notes and profiles

2 Chronicles 16:14
And he was buried in the tomb that he had cut out for himself in the City of David. They laid him on a bier that was full of spices and various blended perfumes; then they made a great fire in his honor.
Genesis 50:26
So Joseph died at the age of 110. And they embalmed his body and placed it in a coffin in Egypt.
John 19:39–40
Nicodemus, who had previously come to Jesus at night, also brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds.
Mark 16:1
When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so they could go and anoint the body of Jesus.
Matthew 26:12
By pouring this perfume on Me, she has prepared My body for burial.
John 12:7
“Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “She has kept this perfume in preparation for the day of My burial.
Luke 24:1
On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women came to the tomb, bringing the spices they had prepared.
Mark 14:8
She has done what she could to anoint My body in advance of My burial.

Israel: Patriarch, son of Isaac, father of twelve tribes Joseph: Son of Jacob, ruler in Egypt