Genesis 50:12
ESV
Thus his sons did for him as he had commanded them,
NIV
So Jacob’s sons did as he had commanded them:
NASB
And so his sons did for him as he had commanded them;
CSB
So Jacob’s sons did for him what he had commanded them.
NLT
So Jacob’s sons did as he had commanded them.
KJV
And his sons did unto him according as he commanded them:
NKJV
So his sons did for him just as he had commanded them.
What does Genesis 50:12 mean?
In the moments before his death, Jacob gave his twelve sons an order: to return his body to Canaan (Genesis 49:29–32). He wanted to be buried with his ancestors in family tomb (Genesis 23:17–20). Earlier, Jacob even insisted Joseph take a solemn oath not to bury him in Egypt, but to lay him to rest with his fathers. Joseph had sworn to do exactly that (Genesis 47:29–31). Now Jacob's sons have fulfilled their father's wishes, as the following verses will describe in detail. They have carried him from Egypt to the cave in the field at Machpelah (Genesis 50:7–10).The large procession of Egyptians and Hebrews grieved Jacob for seven days, in the same location. Using wordplay—similarity between the words for "mourning" and "meadow"—locals came to call that place "Mourning / Meadow of Egypt" (Genesis 50:11).
