And he said, “Swear to me.” So he swore to him. Then Israel bowed in worship at the head of the bed.
Parallel translations
- WEB He said, “Swear to me,” and he swore to him. Israel bowed himself on the bed’s head.
- KJV And he said, Swear unto me. And he sware unto him. And Israel bowed himself upon the bed’s head.
- BSB “Swear to me,” Jacob said. So Joseph swore to him, and Israel bowed in worship at the head of his bed.
- NKJV Then he said, “Swear to me.” And he swore to him. So Israel bowed himself on the head of the bed.
- NLT “Swear that you will do it,” Jacob insisted. So Joseph gave his oath, and Jacob bowed humbly at the head of his bed.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Joseph swears the oath, and Israel bows in worship at the head of his bed. The patriarch responds to God's faithfulness with reverence.
Overview
With Joseph's oath secured, Jacob worships, leaning on the head of his bed (or staff, as Hebrews 11 reads, following the ancient Greek). His act of worship expresses gratitude and faith as he nears death. Hebrews holds up this very moment as an example of dying faith, trusting God's promises to the end.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- 1 Kgs 1:47Moreover the king’s servants came to bless our lord king David, saying, ‘May your God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and make his throne greater than your throne;’ and the king bowed himself on the bed.
- Gen 24:3I will make you swear by Yahweh, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that you shall not take a wife for my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live.
- Heb 11:21By faith, Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.
- Gen 47:29The time came near that Israel must die, and he called his son Joseph, and said to him, “If now I have found favor in your sight, please put your hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me. Please don’t bury me in Egypt,
- Gen 24:26The man bowed his head, and worshiped Yahweh.
- Gen 48:1–2After these things, someone said to Joseph, “Behold, your father is sick.” He took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.
- Gen 21:23Now, therefore, swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son’s son. But according to the kindness that I have done to you, you shall do to me, and to the land in which you have lived as a foreigner.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
From the first promise that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent (3:15), through Abraham's blessing to all nations and Judah's coming ruler, Genesis sows every seed that flowers in Christ — the true offspring, the better Adam, the ram caught for Isaac.
How Genesis 47:31 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.