Metaphysical Bible Interpretation of Genesis Chapter 46
Metaphysically Interpreting Genesis 46:1-27
46:1And Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beer-sheba, and offered sacrifices unto the God of his father Isaac. 46:2And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I. 46:3And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of thee a great nation: 46:4I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes.
46:5And Jacob rose up from Beer-sheba: and the sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. 46:6And they took their cattle, and their goods, which they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob, and all his seed with him: 46:7his sons, and his sons' sons with him, his daughters, and his sons's daughters, and all his seed brought he with him into Egypt.
46:8And these are the names of the children of Israel, who came into Egypt, Jacob and his sons: Reuben, Jacob's first-born. 46:9And the sons of Reuben: Hanoch, and Pallu, and Hezron, and Carmi. 46:10And the sons of Simeon: Jemuel, and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jachin, and Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanitish woman. 46:11And the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 46:12And the sons of Judah: Er, and Onan, and Shelah, and Perez, and Zerah; but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. And the sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul. 46:13And the sons of Issachar: Tola, and Puvah, and Iob, and Shimron. 46:14And the sons of Zebulun: Sered, and Elon, and Jahleel. 46:15These are the sons of Leah, whom she bare unto Jacob in Paddan-aram, with his daughter Dinah: all the souls of his sons and his daughters were thirty and three. 46:16And the sons of Gad: Ziphion, and Haggi, Shuni, and Ezbon, Eri, and Arodi, and Areli. 46:17And the sons of Asher: Imnah, and Ishvah, and Ishvi, and Beriah, and Serah their sister; and the sons of Beriah: Heber, and Malchiel. 46:18These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter; and these she bare unto Jacob, even sixteen souls. 46:19The sons of Rachel Jacob's wife: Joseph and Benjamin. 46:20And unto Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath, the daughter of Poti-phera priest of On, bare unto him. 46:21And the sons of Benjamin: Bela, and Becher, and Ashbel, Gera, and Naaman, Ehi, and Rosh, Muppim, and Huppim, and Ard. 46:22These are the sons of Rachel, who were born to Jacob: all the souls were fourteen.46:23And the sons of Dan: Hushim. 46:24And the sons of Naphtali: Jahzeel, and Guni, and Jezer, and Shillem. 46:25These are the sons of Bilhah, whom Laban gave unto Rachel his daughter, and these she bare unto Jacob: all the souls were seven. 46:26All the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, that came out of his loins, besides Jacob's sons' wives, all the souls were threescore and six; 46:27and the sons of Joseph, who were born to him in Egypt, were two souls: all the souls of the house of Jacob, that came into Egypt, were threescore and ten.
June 19, 1932: Genesis 46:1-7
In soul evolution, what is found in the study of the life of Jacob? Those who understand the subtle working of the soul in spiritual evolution find help and inspiration from a study of the life of Jacob, who, thorough steadfast striving to achieve his goal, gained the name of Israel.
Jacob was led largely by his dreams and visions. To the Hebrew mind what did the repetition of a vision of the night signify? Such a repetition was an absolute confirmation of the dream’s verity. God appears in a night vision to him who dreams of God by day, who holds God in the background of all his conscious thought.
What does Jacob's descent with his family into Egypt signify? Jacob and his sons with their families and their flocks in the descent into the land of Egypt symbolize the unification of the I AM (Israel) with all the faculties of the mind, the life energies and the substance of the whole man, through the power of the imaging faculty. They dwelt in the land of Goshen (unity).
June 20, 1937: Genesis 46:1-7
What do we learn of the principle of identity in this lesson? We find that when we claim and exercise imagination or intuitive insight in connection with our other faculties, affirming, “I am wise,” “I am strong,” “I am faithful,” or a similar statement of Truth, life takes on new meaning, and is filled with deeper joy for us. Jacob (the I AM) with his eleven sons is reunited with Joseph in Egypt.
Why was not Jacob able to discern in a dream at the time of his son’s disappearance that Joseph was alive in Egypt, and so spare himself more than twenty years of grief and uncertainty? The subconscious mind is the source of dreams, but it takes its impressions largely from the convictions of the conscious mind. Jacob had accepted as true the implications of Joseph's blood-stained coat, and therefore he could not receive a subconscious impression that was contrary to his conscious conviction.
Explain verse 3. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, “the God of thy father.” He is the same in the subconsciousness (Egypt) as in the consciousness (Canaan). The transformation of the former brings a deep and full understanding of life and increases our joy in it, as surely as the transformation of the latter. “I will there [in Egypt] make of thee a great nation.”
“Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes.” What does this mean? When the imagination becomes constructively active in the subconsciousness, the other faculties of man are touched by its power and show new strength. Imagination imparts new life to the whole consciousness (Jacob).
Why did Jacob offer sacrifices in Beersheba on his way to Egypt? Beersheba (“well of the oath”) represents the place of the realization of life and Truth in the subconsciousness. It is right for us to dedicate this obscure realm within ourselves to God before beginning the work of transforming it.
Metaphysically Interpreting Genesis 46:28-34
46:28And he sent Judah before him unto Joseph, to show the way before him unto Goshen; and they came into the land of Goshen. 46:29And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen; and he presented himself unto him, and fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while. 46:30And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, that thou art yet alive. 46:31And Joseph said unto his brethren, and unto his father's house, I will go up, and tell Pharaoh, and will say unto him, My brethren, and my father's house, who were in the land of Canaan, are come unto me; 46:32and the men are shepherds, for they have been keepers of cattle; and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have. 46:33And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What is your occupation? 46:34that ye shall say, Thy servants have been keepers of cattle from our youth even until now, both we, and our fathers: that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians.
June 19, 1932: Genesis 46:28-30
“And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father; to Goshen; and he presented himself unto him, and fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while.” Explain this metaphysically. Chariots represent the body's activities. The imagination (Joseph), when it is trained along constructive lines until it becomes powerful in right action, controls the body's functions and unifies all expressions of the I AM with the Father (Israel). Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel, his father, to Goshen.
Which one is the most highly prized of all the faculties of man? The imagination ranks foremost among all the mental or soul faculties of man. Without its touch life becomes flat, stale, and meaningless, but once it awakes to vigorous action, man is filled with a great content.
June 20, 1937: Genesis 46:28-30
What is suggested by verse 30: “And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, that thou art yet alive”? A lively imagination is a source of great satisfaction to the one possessing it. To say that one is ready to die is to use a figure of speech confessing that one's supreme desire is now gratified, and that life has bestowed upon one its greatest gift.
Transcribed by Lloyd Kinder on 01-07-2014
