1 Israel traveled with all that he had, and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father, Isaac.
2 God spoke to Israel in the visions of the night, and said, “Jacob, Jacob !” He said, “Here I am.”
3 He said, “I am God, the God of your father. Don’t be afraid to go down into Egypt, for there I will make of you a great nation.
4 I will go down with you into Egypt. I will also surely bring you up again. Joseph’s hand will close your eyes.”
5 Jacob rose up from Beersheba, and the sons of Israel carried Jacob, their father, their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him.
6 They took their livestock, and their goods, which they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt—Jacob, and all his offspring with him,
7 his sons, and his sons’ sons with him, his daughters, and his sons’ daughters, and he brought all his offspring with him into Egypt.
Note · Genèse 46.1–7
Une présence pour le voyage et au-delà
Jacob s’arrête à Beer-Schéba et reçoit une parole de consolation. L’annonce du retour ne doit pas nécessairement être réduite à son seul retour personnel vivant : la fin du livre racontera sa sépulture en Canaan et l’Exode développera la sortie de sa descendance.
8 These are the names of the children of Israel, who came into Egypt, Jacob and his sons : Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn.
9 The sons of Reuben : Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.
10 The sons of Simeon : Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanite woman.
11 The sons of Levi : Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
12 The sons of Judah : Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah ; but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. The sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul.
13 The sons of Issachar : Tola, Puvah, Iob, and Shimron.
14 The sons of Zebulun : Sered, Elon, and Jahleel.
15 These are the sons of Leah, whom she bore to Jacob in Paddan Aram, with his daughter Dinah. All the souls of his sons and his daughters were thirty-three.
16 The sons of Gad : Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi, and Areli.
17 The sons of Asher : Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah, and Serah their sister. The sons of Beriah : Heber and Malchiel.
18 These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah, his daughter, and these she bore to Jacob, even sixteen souls.
19 The sons of Rachel, Jacob’s wife : Joseph and Benjamin.
20 To Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, bore to him.
21 The sons of Benjamin : Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim, and Ard.
22 These are the sons of Rachel, who were born to Jacob : all the souls were fourteen.
23 The son of Dan : Hushim.
24 The sons of Naphtali : Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem.
25 These are the sons of Bilhah, whom Laban gave to Rachel, his daughter, and these she bore to Jacob : all the souls were seven.
26 All the souls who came with Jacob into Egypt, who were his direct offspring, in addition to Jacob’s sons’ wives, all the souls were sixty-six.
27 The sons of Joseph, who were born to him in Egypt, were two souls. All the souls of the house of Jacob, who came into Egypt, were seventy.
Note · Genèse 46.8–27
Compter des personnes, transmettre une mémoire
Les listes donnent une place aux branches de la maison et distinguent les membres déjà en Égypte. Les nombres dépendent de la manière de compter et des traditions textuelles. Ils ne doivent pas être forcés en un calcul unique sans examiner qui est inclus dans chaque total.
28 Jacob sent Judah before him to Joseph, to show the way before him to Goshen, and they came into the land of Goshen.
29 Joseph prepared his chariot, and went up to meet Israel, his father, in Goshen. He presented himself to him, and fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while.
30 Israel said to Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face, that you are still alive.”
Note · Genèse 46.28–30
Les retrouvailles ne se réduisent pas à une information
Juda est envoyé en avant et Joseph vient à la rencontre de son père. Les larmes prolongées donnent à la reconnaissance une durée. La survie annoncée devient présence retrouvée ; le lecteur mesure ainsi ce que la vente de Joseph avait retiré à la relation entre le père et le fils.
31 Joseph said to his brothers, and to his father’s house, “I will go up, and speak with Pharaoh, and will tell him, ‘My brothers, and my father’s house, who were in the land of Canaan, have come to me.
32 These men are shepherds, for they have been keepers of livestock, and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have.’
33 It will happen, when Pharaoh summons you, and will say, ‘What is your occupation ?’
34 that you shall say, ‘Your servants have been keepers of livestock from our youth even until now, both we, and our fathers :’ that you may dwell in the land of Goshen ; for every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians.”
Note · Genèse 46.31–34
Préparer une place dans une société différente
Joseph organise la présentation de la famille selon son activité de bergers. Le récit décrit des distinctions propres au cadre égyptien qu’il met en scène. Il n’érige pas la séparation des groupes en idéal universel, mais montre les conditions concrètes d’une installation en terre étrangère.