Chiasmus in Gen50

Literary Analysis of Genesis 50:1-26
In characteristic fashion of the Joseph Narrative, Genesis 50:1-26 forms a

tight chiastic structure, displaying as its literary center (X) the deep and profound
mourning over Jacob/Israel’s death. Genesis 50 contains a number of word and
thematic chiastic elements building to a climax, which then follows a series where
matching units in reverse order bringing the entire Joseph Narrative to resolution
and fulfillment. The following chiastic structure of Genesis 50:1-26 is an excellent
example of Moses’ artistic literary ability.
A Burial arrangements for Israel (1-3)

B Joseph’s petition to Pharaoh (4-6)
C Preparation to bury Israel (7-9)
X MOURNING OVER ISRAEL’S DEATH (10-12)
C’ Burial of Israel (13-14)
B’ Brothers’ petition to Joseph (15-21)
A’ Burial arrangements and death of Joseph (22-26)
Panels A through C have been structured to underscore Joseph’s

faithfulness to his father; just as he was always faithful to his father in life (cf. Gen.
37:2, 13), so he is now also faithful to him in death (cf. Gen. 47:29-31 compared to
Gen. 50:4-8). Panels C’ through A’ is a final resolution, not only to this episode, but
also to the entire Joseph Narrative. Israel is buried in the ancestral burial plot,
Joseph brothers’ petition, and finally, the embalmment of Joseph himself.
Each panel in this episode is chiastically structured to underscore the

importance of this episode. A and A’ act as the introduction and conclusion to
Genesis 50 and are framed in the context of death and promises. After Jacob had
blessed his twelve sons, he told them that he was about to join his ancestors in
death. He made Joseph and his others sons swear to bury him in the cave of
Machpelah where the other patriarchs and their wives (Gen. 47:27-31), as well as his
own wife Leah (but notably not Rachel) had been buried (Gen. 49:29-32). Having
given his sons his final command, Jacob died at the ripe old age of 147 years old
(Gen. 47:28).
The action of A is repeated in A’ in two significant ways. In both panels the

process of embalmment is mentioned; first with Jacob and then with Joseph. Also in
A and A’, there is a point-counterpoint: Joseph prepares to keep his promise to his
father by preparing for the long journey to Canaan by having him embalmed; then we
LITERARY ANALYSIS OF GENESIS 50 Page 2
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have Joseph extracting a promise from his brothers (their progeny) to carry his
bones up from Egypt and into Canaan when God will deliver them, and thus they
embalm his body for safe keeping until such time (otherwise, the bones would have
turned to dust).
Before continuing with the remaining panels, observe the internal structure
of each panel:
A Burial arrangements for Israel (1-3)

a Joseph weeps (1)
x Joseph’s command (2-3a)
a’ Egyptians weep (3b)
B Joseph’s petition to Pharaoh (4-6)

a Joseph petitions Pharaoh’s court (4a)
x Joseph’s petition (4b-5)
a’ Pharaoh grants Joseph’s petition (6)
C Preparation to bury Israel (7-9)

a Joseph’s entourage assent to Canaan (7a-8)
x The people who stayed behind in Egypt (8b)
a’ Additional details of entourage to Canaan (9)
X MOURNING OVER ISRAEL’S DEATH (10-12)

a Place and duration of mourning (10)
x The Canaanites observe the lamentation (11a-b)
a’ Place renamed to reflect the duration of mourning (11c)
C’ Burial of Israel (12-14)

a Descent to Canaan (12-13a)
x Israel is buried in Canaan (13b-c)
a’ Ascent to Egypt (14)
B’ Joseph brothers’ petition (15-21)

a Joseph’s brothers fear (15)
x Joseph’s brothers petition and dream fulfilled (16-18)
a’ Joseph reassures his brothers (19-21)
A’ Burial arrangements and death of Joseph (22-26)

a Joseph’s age (22)
x Promises remembered and made (23-25)
a’ Joseph’s age (26)
B and B’ function to unite several thematic concepts in the Joseph Narrative.

Joseph petitions Pharaoh to bury his father, but only indirectly (v. 4). Likewise,
Joseph’s brothers petition him indirectly concerning their past guilt (v. 16).
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A large entourage of relatives and dignitaries, including Jacob’s household

and many prominent Egyptians, make the trip in C (vv. 7-9). The specific purpose of
this entourage was to bury Jacob (v. 7a); however, it is not until C’ (vv. 13-14) that
Jacob is actually buried.
The pivotal point of the chiastic structure comes in X (vv. 10-12), which
describe at length the people’s mourning over Jacob’s death. This in itself is ironic
because it was Jacob who was going to mourn (cf. Gen. 37:33-35; 42:36; 43:14);
however now, Jacob dies in peace because Joseph is alive (cf. Gen. 46:30) and
those around him mourn!
Over half of Genesis 50:1-26 is occupied with a description of the mourning

and burial of Jacob. Joseph himself mourned (v. 1), and then the Egyptians (v. 3).
Great preparations were made by both Joseph and the Egyptians (v. 2). A special
request was granted by Pharaoh to bury Jacob in his homeland (vv. 4-5), and a large
entourage (lit. “a very large company”) was provided by Pharaoh as a burial
processional to carry Jacob’s body back to Canaan. “All Pharaoh’s officials . . . and
all the dignitaries of Egypt” (v. 7), along with Pharaoh’s chariots and horsemen,
accompanied Joseph on his journey back to Canaan. Even the Canaanites
recognized this as “a very large ceremony of mourning” (v. 11). Our author seems to
go out of his way to emphasize in detail the magnitude of the ceremony of mourning.
The Age of Joseph’s Death
The Joseph Narrative concludes with the account of Joseph’s death. Twice
within the span of five verses we are told that he was 110 years old when he died
(vv. 22, 26). Significant? Absolutely!
Joseph’s age may be a play on the life spans of Abraham (175 years; Gen.
25:7), Isaac (180 years; Gen. 35:28), and Jacob (147 years; Gen. 47:28). The
pattern of the patriarchs’ ages strikingly follows a succession of square numbers:
Abraham 175 = 7 x 52 or 7 x 5 x 5 (sum of factors = 17)

Isaac 180 = 5 x 62 or 5 x 6 x 6 (sum of factors = 17)
Jacob 147 = 3 x 72 or 3 x 7 x 7 (sum of factors = 17)
____
110 = sum of the succession of squared #s (5, 6, 7)
The above numerical pattern could be coincidence, but the data when analyzed has
cumulative weight.
In each case, the squared number increases by one, while the coefficient
decreases by two. In addition, in each instance the sum of the factors is 17, thus
forming a inclusio with Genesis 37:2 where Joseph is introduced at the age of 17!
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Incidentally, although the English versions translate Genesis 50:22 and 50:26
identically, the idiomatic “son-of-such and such age” is reserved until Genesis 50:26
(with verse 22 literally reading as “Joseph [was] one-hundred and-ten years”), thus
finding an exact correspondence with Genesis 37:2.
Whether by coincidence or not, 110 is the sum of the succession of the

squared numbers (52 + 62 + 72 = 110). Because Joseph’s age can be factored as 1 x
52 + 62 + 72, it is perhaps the intention of our narrator to underscore Joseph’s age of
death in order to express his significance at the end of the Genesis Narrative.
Joseph is not only the successor in the pattern (7 – 5 – 3 – 1), but also the sum of
his predecessors (52 + 62 + 72 = 110). Moreover, it can be demonstrated that Jacob
was 110 when Joseph was born in Padan-aram.
Thus, at the end of Genesis, the life span of Joseph symbolically brings the
ancestral narratives to a completion. In this way, Joseph embodies the coincidence
of opposites and points to the archetype, the Coming One who is the Successor and
the Sum of all things, Jesus, the Messiah (Col. 1:15-19; 2:2-3). This is reflected in
the above factorial patterns, making the patriarchal chronologies constituting a
rhetorical device expressing the profound biblical conviction that Israel’s formative
age was not a concatenation of haphazard incidents, but a series of events ordered
according to God’s sovereign design to reflect the coming Messiah (cf. Gen. 47:28).
(c) July 1997 by William D. Ramey

Christian Publishers’ Bookhouse
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Fair Use Copying Notice: These pages may be reproduced and used, without
alteration, addition, or deletion, for any nonpecuniary or nonpublishing purpose
without permission.

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Literary Analysis of Genesis 50:1-26

In characteristic fashion of the Joseph Narrative, Genesis 50:1-26 forms a

A Burial arrangements for Israel (1-3)

Panels A through C have been structured to underscore Joseph’s

Each panel in this episode is chiastically structured to underscore the

The action of A is repeated in A’ in two significant ways. In both panels the

A Burial arrangements for Israel (1-3)

B Joseph’s petition to Pharaoh (4-6)

C Preparation to bury Israel (7-9)

X MOURNING OVER ISRAEL’S DEATH (10-12)

C’ Burial of Israel (12-14)

B’ Joseph brothers’ petition (15-21)

A’ Burial arrangements and death of Joseph (22-26)

B and B’ function to unite several thematic concepts in the Joseph Narrative.

A large entourage of relatives and dignitaries, including Jacob’s household

Over half of Genesis 50:1-26 is occupied with a description of the mourning

The Age of Joseph’s Death

Abraham 175 = 7 x 52 or 7 x 5 x 5 (sum of factors = 17)

Whether by coincidence or not, 110 is the sum of the succession of the

(c) July 1997 by William D. Ramey

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