What oath did Joseph make the children of Israel swear about his bones?
Joseph required the children of Israel to swear an oath that when God surely visited them and brought them out of Egypt, they would carry his bones up from there, back to Canaan, not leave them in Egypt. This oath concerned his remains after his death.
Les explains that in Genesis 50:25, Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from hence.” The context shows Joseph had already told his brethren that God would surely visit them and bring them out of Egypt into the land He swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. So the oath was that when God visited them, they would carry Joseph’s bones from Egypt back to Canaan. Joseph then died at 110, was embalmed, and was put in a coffin in Egypt. Les notes that Genesis, the book of beginnings, ends with a coffin, but God buries His servants, never His program.
And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence.
More Questions
Why did Moses take Joseph's bones with him out of Egypt?
Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the children of Israel swear that God would surely visit them and that they should carry his bones up with them.