The land of Goshen holds a significant place in biblical history, particularly in the stories of the Israelites in Egypt. Mentioned in the Books of Genesis and Exodus, Goshen was the region where Jacob's family settled and prospered before the Exodus. This article delves into the location of Goshen, its characteristics, and its importance in the biblical narrative.
Map of Lower Egypt showing the Nile River Delta.
Biblical References to Goshen
Goshen is first mentioned in Genesis when Joseph instructs his brothers to bring their father, Jacob, and their families to settle there (Genesis 45:10):
"You shall dwell in the land of Goshen, and you will be near to me, you, your children, your children's children, your flocks, your herds, and all that you have."
Pharaoh himself consented and Joseph ensured they settled on the most fertile part of the land. Once they were granted the land, Israel became a very prosperous ethnic group. They acquired property and multiplied vastly.
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Other key mentions include:
- Genesis 46:28-29: Judah is sent ahead to show the way to Goshen, where Joseph meets his father, Israel.
- Genesis 47:1: Joseph informs Pharaoh that his family has arrived from Canaan and are in Goshen.
- Genesis 47:6: Pharaoh tells Joseph to settle his family in the best part of the land, Goshen.
- Genesis 47:27: The Israelites lived in Goshen, acquired possessions, and multiplied exceedingly.
- Exodus 8:22: God sets apart the land of Goshen during the plagues, so that no swarms of flies would be there.
- Exodus 9:26: During the plague of hail, only the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were, was spared.
Geographical Location of Goshen
It is generally agreed that Goshen was the region East of the Bubastic branch of the Nile. Goshen was a part of the ancient lower parts of Egypt that bordered the Promised Land that SoNiNi had given to Abraham and his descendants (Genesis 12,7). In Psalm 78:12, 43, it seems to be clearly identified with the "field (or pastoral plain) of Zoan," which was probably also the "land of Rameses" mentioned (Genesis 47:11) as possessed by Jacob's family. The region thus very clearly indicated was not of any great extent, having an area of only about 900 square miles, including two very different districts.
Map of Goshen and the surrounding area.
The western half, immediately East of the Bubastic branch of the Nile, stretches from Zoan to Bubastis (at both of which cities records of the Hyksos ruler Apepi have been found), or a distance of about 35 miles North and South. The region narrows from about 15 miles near the seashore to about 10 miles between Zagazig and Tell el Kebir on the Southeast of this, a sandy and gravelly desert lies between the Nile plain and the Suez Canal, broadening southward from near Daphnai (Tell Defeneh) to Wady Tumeilat, where it is 40 miles across East and West. This region is an irrigated plain which is still considered to include some of the best land in Egypt. The description of the land of Rameses shows its fertility.
In the second notice (Genesis 46:28 f), the boundary of the land of Goshen, where Joseph met his father, is called in the Septuagint Heroo(n)-polis, and also (Genesis 46:28) "the land of Ramesse(s)"; so that in the 3rd century B.C. Goshen seems to have been identified with the whole region of the Arabian nome, as far South as Heroopolis which lay in Wady Tumeilat.
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Thus, Wady Tumeilat, which is fertilized by the Nile waters, and contains villages and corn fields, is the only natural route for a people driving with their flocks and herds by which the vicinity of the Red Sea can be reached, the road leading from the South end of the "field of Zoan" near Bubastis, and 40 miles eastward to the "edge of the wilderness" and the head of the Bitter Lakes.
Characteristics of Goshen
Goshen was known for being suitable for livestock (Genesis 45:10, 46:34, 47:1, 4, 6, 27; 50:8). Joseph ensured they settled on the most fertile part of the land. In the 14th century B.C., the land of Rameses showed its fertility; Silvia says that the land of Goshen was 16 miles from Heroopolis, and that she traveled for two days in it "through vineyards, and balsam plantations, and orchards, and tilled fields, and gardens." Even artificial irrigation was practiced by the Israelites in the fertile Goshen.
Goshen and the Exodus
Goshen was still inhabited by the Hebrews at the time of the Exodus (Exodus 8:22; Exodus 9:26). The first project assigned to the new slaves was to construct two treasure cities for storing royal treasures. Both of these cities, Rameses and Pithom (Pittim) were in Goshen. Rameses was constructed on the most fertile area of the soil. From the fourth to the final plague, Goshen was unaffected by all the plagues. God protected Israel's territory to show that he was the mighty LORD of all Creation. Six-hundred thousand Israelite men (not including women, children and other residents who wanted the Israelites gone) exited from Egypt during that day, marching from the city of Rameses to a place called Sukkot.
Historical and Archaeological Perspectives
In 1885, Édouard Naville identified Goshen as the 20th nome of Egypt, located in the eastern Delta, and known as "Gesem" or "Kesem" during the Twenty-sixth dynasty of Egypt (672-525 BCE). Some scholars propose the biblical placename is related to the lake gsm mentioned in Papyrus Anastasi IV.
The two treasure cities of the Pharaoh were located there and many Egyptians lived int that area as well. Despite the majority of Goshen's population suddenly disappearing in a matter of one day it does not seem the region was desolate. The route directly east of Goshen would have allowed them to leave Egypt on dry ground. Therefore, the term Yam Suph does not only mean reeds and refer to the area east of Egypt.
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Part 1: Moses, Exodus Route, Red Sea Crossing, Mt. Sinai, 10 Commandments, Israel, Midian, Arabia
Goshen in Other Biblical Contexts
The name Goshen also applied to other places which were probably "cultivated" lands, including a region in the South of Palestine (Joshua 10:41; Joshua 11:16), "all the country of Goshen Septuagint Gosom), even unto Gibeon," and a city of Judah (Joshua 15:51) in the mountains near Beersheba. These notices seem to show that the word is not of Egyptian origin.
| Biblical Reference | Description |
|---|---|
| Genesis 45:10 | Promise of Goshen as a dwelling place for Jacob's family |
| Exodus 8:22 | Goshen spared from the plague of flies |
| Exodus 9:26 | Goshen spared from the plague of hail |
| Joshua 10:41; 11:16 | Goshen as a region in Southern Palestine |
| Joshua 15:51 | Goshen as a city of Judah |
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