He instructed them, and said to them, “I am to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite as a burial place. There they buried Abraham and Sarah, his wife. There they buried Isaac and Rebekah, his wife, and there I buried Leah:
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Genesis 49:29-31 sits inside this longer paragraph.
All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them, and blessed them. He blessed everyone according to his own blessing. He instructed them, and said to them, “I am to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite as a burial place. There they buried Abraham and Sarah, his wife. There they buried Isaac and Rebekah, his wife, and there I buried Leah: the field and the cave that is therein, which was purchased from the children of Heth.” When Jacob finished charging his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, breathed his last breath, and was gathered to his people.
Parallel Translations
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He instructed them, and said to them, “I am to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite,
in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite as a burial place.
There they buried Abraham and Sarah, his wife. There they buried Isaac and Rebekah, his wife, and there I buried Leah:
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And he charged them, and said unto them, I am to be gathered unto my people: bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite,
In the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a buryingplace.
There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife; and there I buried Leah.
Show all 3 translations
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And he charged them, and said unto them: 'I am to be gathered unto my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite,
in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a burying-place.
There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife; and there I buried Leah.
Cross-references (18)
- Genesis 47:30 (vv29, 31) but when I sleep with my fathers, you shall carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their burying place.” Joseph said, “I will do as you have…
- Genesis 50:13 (vv29, 31) for his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham bought with the…
- Genesis 35:29 (vv29, 31) Isaac gave up the spirit and died, and was gathered to his people, old and full of days. Esau and Jacob, his sons, buried him.
- Genesis 25:9 (v31) Isaac and Ishmael, his sons, buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron, the son of Zohar the Hittite, which is near Mamre,
- Genesis 15:15 (v29) but you will go to your fathers in peace. You will be buried at a good old age.
Show all 15 cross-references
- Genesis 25:8-17 (v29) Abraham gave up his spirit, and died at a good old age, an old man, and full of years, and was gathered to his people. Isaac and Ishmael,…
- 2 Samuel 19:37 (v29) Please let your servant turn back again, that I may die in my own city, by the grave of my father and my mother. But behold, your servant…
- Genesis 23:3 (v31) Abraham rose up from before his dead and spoke to the children of Heth, saying,
- Genesis 23:8-9 (v30) He talked with them, saying, “If you agree that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me, and entreat for me to Ephron the son of…
- Genesis 23:16-18 (v30) Abraham listened to Ephron. Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver which he had named in the hearing of the children of Heth, four hundred…
- Genesis 23:16-20 (v31) Abraham listened to Ephron. Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver which he had named in the hearing of the children of Heth, four hundred…
- Genesis 23:20 (v30) The field, and the cave that is in it, were deeded to Abraham by the children of Heth as a possession for a burial place.
- Acts 7:16 (v31) and they were brought back to Shechem, and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a price in silver from the children of Hamor of Shechem.
- Romans 12:6-21 (v29) having gifts differing according to the grace that was given to us: if prophecy, let’s prophesy according to the proportion of our faith;…
- Hebrews 12:23 (v29) to the festal gathering and assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made…
15 distinct cross-references across this passage (18 total citations).
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (16 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On v29 29. And he charged them. We have seen before,…
29. And he charged them. We have seen before, that Jacob especially commanded his son Joseph to take care that his body should be buried in the land of Canaan. Moses now repeats that the same command was given to all his sons, in order that they might go to that country with one consent; and might mutually assist each other in performing this office. We have stated elsewhere why he made such a point of conscience of his sepulture; which we must always remember, lest the example of the holy man should be drawn injudiciously into a precedent for superstition. Truly he did not wish to be carried into the land of Canaan, as if he would be the nearer heaven for being buried there: but that, being dead, he might claim possession of a land which he had held during his life, only by a precarious tenure. Not that any advantage would hence accrue to him privately, seeing he had already fulfilled his course; but because it was profitable that the memory of the promise should be renewed, by this symbol, among his surviving sons, in order that they might aspire to it. Meanwhile, we gather that his mind did not cleave to the earth; because, unless he had been an heir of heaven, he would never have hoped that God, for the sake of one who was dead, would prove so bountiful towards his children. Now, to give the greater weight to his command, Jacob declares that this thing had not come first into his own mind, but that he had been thus taught by his forefathers. Abraham, he says, bought that sepulcher for himself and his family: hitherto, we have sacredly kept the law delivered to us by him. You must therefore take care not to violate it, in order that after my death also, some token of the favor of God may continue with us.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv29–31 Gen 49:29 And he charged them, and said unto…
Gen 49:29 And he charged them, and said unto them, I am to be gathered unto my people: bury me with my fathers in the cave that [is] in the field of Ephron the Hittite,
Ver. 29. I am to be gathered, &c.] That is, I am now going to heaven; whereof being so well assured, what wonder though he were so willing to die? "I know that my Redeemer liveth," saith Job; "I know whom I have trusted," saith Paul. And what shall become of my soul when I die, let him see to it, who laid down his life for it, saith Luther. {a} Death may kill me, but cannot hurt me, said another. {b} This assurance of heaven is, as Mr Latimer calls it, the deserts of the feast of a good conscience. There are other dainty dishes in this feast, but this is the banquet.
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{a} Ipse viderit, ubi anima mea mansura sit qui pro ea sic sollicitus fuit, ut vitam pro ea posuerit. - Luth.
{b} Occidere potest, laedere non potest.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv29–30 In Canaan. Whereby he designed to withdraw their minds…
In Canaan. Whereby he designed to withdraw their minds from Egypt, and fix them upon Canaan.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On v29 The purchase of the field, and of the cave…
The purchase of the field, and of the cave that is there, was from the children of Heth. Which is repeated for the certainty of it, and that it might be taken notice of, that both the field and cave were bought by Abraham of Ephron the Hittite, and that the children of Heth were witnesses of the bargain, and of the payment of the money, and by whom the estate was made sure to Abraham; all which might be urged, if any controversy should arise about it; see
Genesis 49:33
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On v29 I am to be gathered unto my people -…
I am to be gathered unto my people - Though death separate us from our children, and our people in this world, it gathers us to our fathers, and to our people in the other world. Perhaps Jacob useth this expression concerning death, as a reason why his sons should bury him in Canaan, for (saith he) I am to be gathered unto my people, my soul must be gone to the spirits of just men made perfect, and therefore bury me with my fathers Abraham and Isaac, and their wives.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On v29 Verse 29. Bury me with my fathers, c.] From…
Verse 29. Bury me with my fathers, c.] From this it appears that the cave at Machpelah was a common burying-place for Hebrews of distinction and indeed the first public burying-place mentioned in history. From Ge 49:31 we find that Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, and Leah, had been already deposited there, and among them Jacob wished to have his bones laid; and he left his dying charge with his children to bury him in this place, and this they conscientiously performed. See Ge 50:13.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On v29 Gen 49:29. I am to be gathered unto my…
Gen 49:29. I am to be gathered unto my people — Though death separate us from our children, and our people in this world, it gathers us to our fathers and to our people in the other world. Perhaps Jacob useth this expression concerning death, as a reason why his sons should bury him in Canaan: For (he saith) I am to be gathered unto my people — My soul must go to the spirits of just men made perfect, and therefore bury me with my fathers — Abraham and Isaac, and their wives.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On v29 To be gathered to my people. That is, I…
To be gathered to my people. That is, I am going to die, and so to follow my ancestors that are gone before me, and to join their company in another world. (Challoner) --- Jacob’s life was embittered with many afflictions, which he bore with admirable patience, and thus deserved to be considered as an excellent figure of Jesus Christ. --- The man of sorrows. His faith in the promises of God, made him contemplate the land of Chanaan as his own, and parcel it out among his children. (Calmet)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On v29 he charged them--The charge had already been given and…
he charged them--The charge had already been given and solemnly undertaken (Gen 47:31). But in mentioning his wishes now and rehearsing all the circumstances connected with the purchase of Machpelah, he wished to declare, with his latest breath, before all his family, that he died in the same faith as Abraham.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On v29 29. Bury me with my fathers — The great…
29. Bury me with my fathers — The great prophet has spoken his last oracle; his sons have received his dying benedictions; and now his heart turns to his fathers, to whom he is about to be gathered. There is a touching beauty and tenderness in the allusion to Machpelah (on which see notes at Gen_23:9; Gen_23:19) and Mamre — to Abraham and Sarah, and Isaac and Rebekah, and Leah. He would have his body repose along with theirs, as, also, he expected his immortal part would be “gathered unto his people” in Sheol. See on Gen_37:35; Gen_25:8.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv29–31 29. gathered unto my people] See note on Gen_25:8…
29. gathered unto my people] See note on Gen_25:8 (P).
bury me] Cf. Gen_47:29-31 (J).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On v29 Vers. 29, 30. And he charged them, and said…
Vers. 29, 30. And he charged them, and said unto them, I am to be gathered unto my people: (vide on Gen_15:15) bury me with my fathers thus laying on them the injunction he had previously, with the super-added solemnity of an oath, laid on Joseph (Gen_47:29-31) in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mature, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a burying-place. (vide Gen_23:16-20) Jacob had learnt from his father and had carefully preserved all the details relating to the purchase of their family sepulcher. There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife; and there I buried Leah. From this it would appear that Leah had not descended into Egypt.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v29 Bury me with my fathers
Gen_49:29
Bury me with my fathers
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Love in death
The patriarch Jacob, in his last request, says, Bury me with my fathers; and this feeling has illustration all along the ages in different races and climes.
What is it but the outward symbol of that which is deepest in the heart? What is it but an expression of the preciousness of these earthly relationships? Bury me with my fathers. Of course in the grave, with silence and darkness, there is no device or knowledge. So far as the perishing bodies are concerned, it cannot matter essentially where they repose when the spirit has fled. And yet they are the tenements of thought and will. They are associated with all that is most expressive in our being. With them are grouped the activities, the endearments, the acquirements, the possessions, that make up our estimate of life. When the patriarch said, Bury me with my fathers, he thought of those whom he revered and loved, whose remains were lying in the sepulchre of Machpelah; he thought of the holy friendships that had consecrated and sweetened his years; and those forms of parent and wife and kindred seemed endued with life and feeling in the strong ardour of his soul. He wished to continue the relationship, and would sleep with those from whom he descended and loved. How natural is this sentiment, and how largely is the custom observed throughout the world l When we think of death and our place of burial, it is with thoughts of others who have gone before us. A lonely grave, a burial away from friends and kindred--remote, unvisited, neglected--brings sad thoughts. We cannot help shrinking from the picture that we make of it. To die alone, to be buried by strangers, to lie afar from any dust that once was dear, is not what we would prefer. But there where our ancestors repose, where parents are entombed, where sleeps the companion of our journey, or child, or sister, or brother, or beloved friend--there, too, we would be borne by tender hands, when we can tell none how kind they are. It is the same feeling that prefers those who love us to minister to us in our last hours, and perform the last offices that friendship can render. The human cries out of the darkness of death for the beloved presence, the heart that was true and kind. And if we can feel that when we are gone there will be any to follow us with sorrow to the grave, and there to plant some symbol of affection, and, as the days and years pass, ¢o go aside sometimes and think of us as we were, with our friendship and faith, there comes a grateful emotion. There is something sweetly tranquilizing in the thought that we shall lie down with the family around us, the revered and good who closed their eyes long ago, and those who follow us out of the doors where we followed others who have gone; and that they shall bring the children one by one to sleep by our side. All this is grateful to our thought, I say; and why? What could it mean if the heart did not reach onward to everlasting attachments, to life with the beloved beyond the grave I And oh! how dark would it be, when we come to face the dread necessity of death, were it not for the light that comes from the broken sepulchre of Christi What would be our hope without this victorious and mighty Saviour, who has put death under His feet? Dear friends, here is an assurance, glorious and indubitable, that is given for everlasting comfort and strength. He who consecrated home while on earth, with all that could sanctify and sweeten it, prepares the heavenly home. (H. N. Powers.)
Jacobs dying charge:
I. AN EXPRESSION OF NATURAL FEELING. A natural feeling it is, a strong instinctive impulse of our humanity, this concern about the body, this concern about it to the last, this desire that, when the spirit has fled, it should not be neglected--should not be thrown carelessly into the ground anywhere, but should receive a respectful interment where its mouldering remains may mingle with the dust of our nearest relatives. How instinctive the thought that the dust in the family sepulchre has still some relationship to our material frame I How instinctive the desire that our bodies and those of our beloved friends should take the long, still sleep together I Not less natural is the wish to be remembered--to be remembered in connection with those who have been so near to us in kindred and kindly fellowship. Such feelings, my friends, are not unlawful; but neither are they unprofitable. If they be kept in their own place, if they be cherished in subordination to higher principles, if they be not permitted to overgrow and stifle the desires and expectations of that which is spiritual, they are neither unbecoming nor useless. We are the better of feeling that the body is a part of man, an integral part of our personal identity, and not lost, or unworthy of care, even in its dissolution. We are the better of feeling that beyond death there is still some tie of kindred between our dust and the dust of our beloved relatives, as well as between our souls and their souls. We are the better of feeling the wish to be remembered after we are no more seen in the world--to be remembered in association with those whom we esteem and reverence.
II. In their holier import, the words before us expressed THE PEACE AND FAITH OF THE DYING PATRIARCH. I am to be gathered unto my people--I am being gathered unto my people seems to be the proper force of the expression, pointing rather to a present than to a future event. It was the language of one who felt that the last short journey was already commenced, that his feet were already dipping into the swellings of Jordan. But there was no appearance of alarm, no token of anxiety, no struggling search as if he wanted something to rest upon, or as if the anchor of the soul were not holding firmly. All is quiet, untroubled, and peaceful. Thus he passed down--down into the dark valley--down into the rushing river--as you might speak of going home from your days work at evening. A similar inference may be drawn from the manner in which he conveyed to his sons the charge concerning his burial. Observe his careful, leisurely description of the place to which he referred, and its purchase by his grandfather: Bury me in the cave which is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, &c. That was no hurried glance at a secondary matter, amid the agony of an arduous and uncertain conflict--no snatching of a moment out of engrossing anxieties and apprehensions about his spiritual interests, to indicate his desire regarding the body which was about to be resolved into the dust from which it had been taken. If he had not been at rest in reference to his undying soul, if he bad not felt a quiet, holy confidence that it was safe, would he have been so deliberately careful in describing the situation and the purchase of the sepulchre? Let us not marvel, my friends, that saints about to depart can dwell upon the thought of some earthly and temporal matter; neither should we grieve to hear them then speaking with interest about other things besides the spiritual and heavenly. It may be the very strength and quiet assurance of their hope of immortality that permit them to give some special attention still to the body, or the household, or the world which they are leaving. Whence that peace, that terrorless tranquility of Jacob in the death-hour? Here he made no particular reference to the source of it. This was not necessary. He had indicated, by his religious profession, and by the consistent piety which adorned his life, especially the latter portion of it, that his trust was in the covenant mercy of Jehovah. In the prophetic blessing also, the sound of which had scarcely left the ears of his assembled children, he had spoken of the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel; he had named the Shiloh, to whom the gathering of the nations would be; and had concluded his prediction respecting one of the tribes with these words, I have waited for Thy salvation, O Lord. There was no need of further explanation there was no need for his declaring now that his peace was the fruit of faith, faith in the saving grace of that God who had given him the covenant with its blessings and promises, ratified by sacrifice and predictive of the Messiah. (W. Bruce, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v29 The Death of Jacob
The Death of Jacob
v. 29. And he charged them and said unto them, I am to be gathered unto my people, the time when his soul was to be added to those of his fathers was at hand; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron, the Hittite,
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v. 30. in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron, the Hittite, for a possession of a burying-place.
v. 31. There they buried Abraham and Sarah, his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah, his wife; and there I buried Leah.
v. 32. The purchase of the field and of the cave that is therein was from the children of Heth. Cf Genesis 23. What Jacob had charged Joseph to do in the event of his death, Gen 47:30-31, he here repeated to all his sons, giving them explicit directions regarding the burial-ground, lest they make any mistake about it or neglect the speedy execution of his dying wish.
v. 33. And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet in to the bed, for he had been sitting on his couch, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto his people, the expression which denotes also here the hope of a final glorious resurrection unto eternal life, a resurrection which will surely come to all that have waited for, and believed in, the salvation of the Lord.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v31 General Information:
General Information:
Jacob continues speaking to his sons.
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in it were purchased
The purchase can be made explicit. AT: "in it were purchased by Abraham" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
from the people of Heth
"from the Hittites"
finished these instructions to his sons
"finished instructing his sons" or "finished commanding his sons"
he pulled his feet into the bed
Jacob was sitting on the bed. Now, Jacob turns and puts his feet in the bed so he can lie down.
breathed his last
This is a polite way of saying a person died. (See: Euphemism)
went to his people
After Jacob died, his inner man went to the same place as his relatives who died before him. (See: Euphemism and Idiom)
translationWords
bury
Abraham
Sarah
Isaac
Rebekah
Leah
Jacob
people group
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v29 49:29-33 Bury me with my father: This grave in…
49:29-33 Bury me with my father: This grave in the land of Canaan represented hope for the future (cp. 47:29-30). Others buried at the cave of Machpelah near Hebron were Sarah (23:19), Abraham (25:7-9), Isaac (35:27-29), Rebekah, and Leah.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.