Abraham had workers that looked after everything he owned. One of those workers was older than all the other workers, and he was in charge of all the other workers too. One day, Abraham talked to that oldest worker. He said, “I want you to make me a strong promise. So come here and put your hand under my leg.” You see, in Abraham’s culture, people sometimes made promises to each other that way. The person that made the promise, they put their hand under the other person’s leg, and that showed that they had to keep their promise.
Genesis 47:29Plain English VersionThis story is about some things that happened before Jacob died. Jacob knew that he was going to die soon, so he sent somebody to get his son Joseph. Then Jacob said to Joseph, “I am going to ask you to put your hand under my leg, and make me a strong promise.” You see, in that culture, people sometimes made promises to each other that way. The person that made the promise put their hand under the other person’s leg, and that showed that they had to keep their promise. Then Jacob said to Joseph, “I know that you love me, so I want you to promise that you will be good to me, and do the right thing. When I die, don’t bury my body here in Egypt country. See the chapter |
28 Cross References
Abraham’s worker kept on talking to Rebekah’s family. He said, “Now I’m asking you to be very good and fair to my boss Abraham. Will you let me take Rebekah to Canaan country, so that she can marry Abraham’s son? Please tell me if you will say yes or no. Then I will know what I have to do after this.”
And Jacob said to Pharaoh, “I am 130 years old. All my life, I’ve lived on country that belongs to other people. I never had my own land, just like my grand-fathers never had their own land. You know, my grand-fathers lived for a long time, and they died when they were very old. But my life has been short, and I had a lot of trouble in my life.”
Then Joseph and his brothers took their father’s coffin to the place in Canaan country that their father told them about. They put his coffin in the cave there, just like he told them to. Jacob’s family owned that cave and the land around it. You see, a long time before this, Abraham bought that land and that cave from a man from the Heth tribe. That man’s name was Efron. Abraham bought that cave to use it as a grave. It was at a place called Makpelah, to the east of Mamreh.
‘My father talked to me before he died. He said, “I am going to die very soon. After I die, I want you to take my body to Canaan country, and put it in that grave that I got ready for myself.” And my father got me to promise that I will do that. So now, please let me go to Canaan country, so that I can bury my father there, just like he said. Then I will come back here.’ ”
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