1. So Israel set out on the journey with everything he owned. He arrived at Beersheba and worshiped, offering sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac.
2. God spoke to Israel in a vision that night: “Jacob! Jacob!”“Yes?” he said. “I’m listening.”
3-4. God said, “I am the God of your father. Don’t be afraid of going down to Egypt. I’m going to make you a great nation there. I’ll go with you down to Egypt; I’ll also bring you back here. And when you die, Joseph will be with you; with his own hand he’ll close your eyes.”
5-7. Then Jacob left Beersheba. Israel’s sons loaded their father and their little ones and their wives on the wagons Pharaoh had sent to carry him. They arrived in Egypt with the livestock and the wealth they had accumulated in Canaan. Jacob brought everyone in his family with him—sons and grandsons, daughters and granddaughters. Everyone.
8. These are the names of the Israelites, Jacob and his descendants, who went to Egypt:Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn.
9. Reuben’s sons: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.
10. Simeon’s sons: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jakin, Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanite woman.
11. Levi’s sons: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
12. Judah’s sons: Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah (Er and Onan had already died in the land of Canaan). The sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul.
13. Issachar’s sons: Tola, Puah, Jashub, and Shimron.
14. Zebulun’s sons: Sered, Elon, and Jahleel.