Goshen was a fertile region in the eastern Nile Delta, in ancient Egypt, given to Jacob’s family during years of famine in Canaan.
At the invitation of Joseph, then governor of Egypt, Jacob went down with his twelve sons, their flocks, and all they possessed, settling there with Pharaoh’s permission.
Being pastureland, Goshen suited the pastoral habits of Jacob’s family, a people whom the Egyptians, farmers of the Nile valley, avoided, since they considered shepherds detestable.
There the descendants of Jacob lived for generations, acquired property, and multiplied, until they became a numerous people, which stirred the fear of the Egyptians and led to Israel’s enslavement.
Centuries later, when God sent plagues against Egypt through Moses, Goshen was spared from the flies and the hail, a visible sign that the Lord set his people apart in the midst of judgment on the nation.
Goshen reminds us that God prepares a refuge for his people even before hardship arrives, and that he sets apart those who are his even amid judgment.
