How much time passed between Abraham and Jacob's move to Egypt?
Several hundred years elapsed between Abraham and Jacob’s move to Egypt. By the time Jacob journeyed there, Abraham and Isaac had already come and gone, and Jacob was filling the scene with his twelve sons while Joseph was in Egypt during the famine.
Les explains that by the time Genesis 46 is reached, several hundred years have already lapsed. Abraham has come and gone; Isaac has come and gone; Jacob is now filling the scene with his 12 sons, and Joseph is down in Egypt. Famine had hit Canaan and the rest of the world, but Joseph had the remedy because he had piled up grain in the good years. God had constantly told them to stay in Canaan and not go down into Egypt, but now He sovereignly tells Jacob to go down to Egypt for His reason. At Beersheba God speaks to Jacob, saying, “Jacob, Jacob,” and tells him not to fear to go down into Egypt.