（创46）歌珊地 Goshen (Genesis 46)

（创46）歌珊地 Goshen (Genesis 46)

(ChatGPT translation from Chinese, edited by Mijiale, 中文在后面）

When the house of Israel went down to Egypt during famine, one of Israel’s sons, Joseph, had already gone ahead to Egypt and served as a ruler there. Joseph suggested that his newly arrived family live in the land of Goshen. The house of Israel believed in the Creator, but Egypt was a land filled with superstition and idols. Because of the necessities of life, the house of Israel needed to live in Egypt, and Joseph chose Goshen for their dwelling. This might hold lessons for modern Christians who, for their livelihood, might also need to “sojourn” in workplaces or societies where most people do not believe in God.

Characteristics of the Land of Goshen

  1. Goshen was suitable for shepherding, and the Egyptians would dislike living there.
    Joseph advised his family to tell Pharaoh (Genesis 46:34):
    “… Your servants have tended livestock from our youth until now, both we and our ancestors—this way you may settle in the land of Goshen, for all shepherds are detestable to the Egyptians.”
  2. Goshen was the best part of Egypt.
    Pharaoh said to Joseph (Genesis 47:6):
    “The land of Egypt is before you; settle your father and brothers in the best part of the land. Let them live in Goshen. …”

From these verses, we see that although Egypt was a place filled with superstition, Goshen was a region suitable for shepherding, and the Egyptians would dislike living there. (Rashi explains this was because sheep were idols to the Egyptians.) Shepherding was precisely the ancestral occupation of Israel’s household. Goshen, therefore, could offer them better conditions for livelihood and a relatively less corrupt spiritual environment, allowing them to maintain a degree of separation from idolatrous influences. This was a provision from the Creator.

The Outcome of Living in Goshen

  1. Material prosperity:
    “Now the Israelites settled in Egypt in the region of Goshen. They acquired property there and were fruitful and increased greatly in number” (Genesis 47:27).
  2. Divine protection:
    Many years later, when God brought plagues upon the whole land of Egypt, He protected the Israelites living in Goshen:

    • “But on that day I will deal differently with the land of Goshen, where my people live; no swarms of flies will be there, so that you will know that I, the Lord, am in this land” (Exodus 8:22).
    • “The only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were” (Exodus 9:26).

Connections to Christ

Living in Goshen was not only about avoiding assimilation into idolatrous practices but perhaps also about drawing closer to God. This is reflected subtly in the Hebrew text:

  • The name “Goshen” (גשנה) carries the idea of “drawing near.”
  • The Torah portion for this section (Vayigash, “he drew near”) shares the same root (Genesis 44:18-47:27).

Drawing Near to Whom? At the surface level, it refers to drawing near to Joseph, but there are some subtle connections to Christ.

  1. Goshen was close to Joseph, and this allowed him to care for and lead the family of Israel. Joseph told his brothers (Genesis 45:10):
    “You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me—you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have.”
    Joseph, a leader who loved God, is often seen as a type of Christ.
  2. Related to this, Genesis 46:28 says:
    “Now Jacob sent Judah ahead of him to Joseph to get directions to Goshen, and they came to the land of Goshen.”
    The Hebrew phrase for “to Goshen” (גשנה) has a numerical value of 358, which is the same as the value of Mashiach (the Hebrew of Christ, משיח).

Connection to Hanukkah

This Torah portion (Vayigash, “he drew near,” Genesis 44:18–47:27) is read every year around the time of Hanukkah, which usually occurs in December (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vayigash).

Even more remarkably, the phrase “to Goshen” (geshnah, גשנה) in Genesis 46 contains the same four Hebrew letters as those engraved on the dreidel used during Hanukkah, though in a different order. During Hanukkah, Jewish people play a dreidel-spinning game, which carries a story of love for the Scriptures.

During the Greek Empire, Jews were prohibited from studying the Scriptures, but they secretly gathered to study them. If anyone came to check on them, they pretended to be gambling with dreidels. Later, the Jews achieved victory over the Greek Empire against all odds and sought to restore worship of the Creator in the Temple. When they lit the Temple’s menorah, the supply of pure olive oil was only enough for one day, but it miraculously lasted for eight days until new pure oil was prepared. To commemorate this miracle, the Jewish people established the festival of Hanukkah.

During Hanukkah, they often play the dreidel game, with the dreidel bearing the letters נ, ג, ה, ש (nun, gimel, hey, shin). These letters are the initials of the phrase nes gadol haya sham (“A great miracle happened there”). Amazingly, due to historical reasons, the same letters later engraved on the dreidel match those in the Hebrew phrase “to Goshen” (geshnah, גשנה) from Genesis 46.

Spinning the dreidel during Hanukkah serves as a reminder of past hardships and a celebration of the freedom to study Scripture today. Likewise, reading this portion of Genesis each year during this season, according to the traditional Torah reading cycle, reflects the love for God’s Word. This love, perhaps, mirrors that of the Jews who studied Scripture in secret under the guise of dreidel games and was already subtly hinted at in the phrase “to Goshen” (geshnah, גשנה) in Genesis 46.

（创46）歌珊地

以色列家躲避饥荒下埃及的时候，以色列的一个儿子约瑟已经先去了埃及在那里作了宰相。约瑟建议他新来的家人们住在歌珊地。以色列家是信仰造物主的，埃及地是迷信各种假神的地方。但因为生活的需要，以色列家需要住在埃及地，而约瑟为他们选择了埃及的歌珊地寄居。这很可能对现代基督徒有教导意义，因为他们为了生计，可能也需要“寄居”在多数人不信主的职场或社会。

歌珊地的特点

1.  歌珊地适合以色列人牧羊, 但埃及人不喜欢住那里。 约瑟建议家人们对埃及法老说（参见创46:34） “… 你 的 仆 人 ， 从 幼 年 直 到 如 今 ， 都 以 养 牲 畜 为 业 ， 连 我 们 的 祖 宗 也 都 以 此 为 业 。 这 样 ， 你 们 可 以 住 在 歌 珊 地 ， 因 为 凡 牧 羊 的 都 被 埃 及 人 所 厌 恶。”

2. 歌珊地是埃及最好的地。法老对约瑟说过， （创47:6） “埃 及 地 都 在 你 面 前 ， 只 管 叫 你 父 亲 和 你 弟 兄 住 在 国 中 最 好 的 地 。 他 们 可 以 住 在 歌 珊 地 。…”

从这些经文看，虽然埃及地是迷信横行的地方，歌珊地却因为适合牧羊而埃及人不喜欢住那里 （Rashi解释这是因为羊是埃及人的假神）。而牧羊正好是以色列家世世代代的职业，所以歌珊地对以色利家来说是谋生条件比较好的地方。而且信仰环境相对来说又不那么恶劣，可以与迷信的人保持一定距离，不被他们同化。这是造物主给他们的预备。

住歌珊地的结果

1 物质上的繁荣： （创47:27）以 色 列 人 住 在 埃 及 的 歌 珊 地 。 他 们 在 那 里 置 了 产 业 ， 并 且 生 育 甚 多 。

2 受到神的保护：后来在以色列人出埃及前，主降灾于埃及全地时, 祂保护以色列人居住的歌珊地不受影响：

（出8:22） 当 那 日 ， 我 必 分 别 我 百 姓 所 住 的 歌 珊 地 ， 使 那 里 没 有 成 群 的 苍 蝇 ， 好 叫 你 知 道 我 是 天 下 的 耶 和 华 。

（出9:26）惟 独 以 色 列 人 所 住 的 歌 珊 地 没 有 冰 雹 。

与基督的关联

住在歌珊地，除了不被同化这个被动的因素，可能还有靠近主的主动因素。这些在圣经里的反映是比较隐含的。歌珊这个词有挨近的意思https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h1657/kjv/wlc/0-1/。这一段创世记的读经进度的名字里也有同样的词根(vayigash“挨近” 创世记44:18-47:27)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vayigash

。挨近谁？从表面意思看, 挨近的是约瑟, 但也有一些隐含的与基督的关联。

1 歌珊地离约瑟近，可能便于得到他的照顾和带领。参见创45:10约瑟对他兄弟们说的 “… 可 以 住 在 歌 珊 地 ， 与 我 相 近 。”  约瑟是爱主的领袖，而且常被认为预表基督。

2 与此相关，创世记46:28 说，“雅 各 打 发 犹 大 先 去 见 约 瑟 ， 请 派 人 引 路 往 歌 珊 去 。 于 是 他 们 来 到 歌 珊 地 。”

这里的“往 歌 珊 去” גשנה， 希伯来文的字母数值为358，与弥赛亚משיח（即希伯来语的基督）数值相等。

与光明节的关联

这一段创世记的读经进度(vayigash“挨近” 创世记44:18-47:27)，每年都正好在秋末冬初的光明节附近阅读https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vayigash。

更奇妙的是，创世记46章里的“往 歌 珊 去” גשנה， 这四个希伯来语字母恰好与一千多年后光明节的陀螺上刻的四个字母一样，只是顺序不同。在光明节，犹太人玩转投螺的游戏，这背后有一个热爱圣经的故事：希腊帝国时期，犹太人被禁止学圣经，但他们仍然聚在一起秘密学习圣经，如有人来检查，他们就假装转陀螺赌博。后来犹太人以少胜多战胜了希腊帝国，想恢复圣殿里对造物主的敬拜。他们在圣殿里点灯时，洁净的橄榄油只剩一天的量，却点了八天，一直等到新的洁净的橄榄油来到。为了纪念这个神迹，犹太人设立了光明节，他们在光明节常常玩转陀螺的游戏，并在陀螺四面刻上נ,ג,ה,ש四个字母，是四个希伯来语单词的字首，表示נס גדול היה שם “那里有过一个大神迹”。结果，因为这些后来的历史原因而刻在陀螺上的这四个字母，正好就是创世记46章里“往 歌 珊 去” גשנה 所用的字母。

每年在光明节的季节玩陀螺，可以忆苦思甜，珍惜现在学圣经的自由。每年在这个季节按传统的读经进度阅读创世记的这个读经进度，  也可以表达信徒们对主的话语的热爱，这种热爱，也许与当年在陀螺游戏伪装下学圣经的犹太人的一样，都是被创世记46的“往 歌 珊 去” גשנה一语所早就暗示了的。