Joseph Settles the Israelites in Egypt

God had promised the land of Canaan to His chosen people, and He would ultimately keep His promise about the Promised Land. However, by His design the Israelites would live as foreigners in Egypt for four hundred years (Genesis 15:13-14). One reason for this extended absence from Canaan had to do with God’s grace in allowing the inhabitants of Canaan, the Amorites, to turn from their sin rather than attain a level of sin that demanded God’s judgment (Genesis 15:16). Another reason was that God chose to prosper His people, both in number and wealth, within the land of Egypt (Genesis 46:3). Egypt would be able to sustain the growing number of Israelites. For these reasons, and probably others, God led His people to Egypt. Joseph was the instrument in God’s hand to settle the Israelites in the best region of Egypt, the Land of Goshen. By settling the Israelites in Egypt, Joseph was both preserving the lives of his family and advancing the grand covenant of God. God directs the times and places in which we live to fulfill His purpose in our lives.