The sojourn of God's people to Egypt for 400 years was part of God's covenant conversation to Abram all the way back in Genesis 15.  We pick up the story with Joseph, the eleventh and most favored son of Jacob (a nice list of Jacob's 12 sons is in Genesis 35:22b-26), as he goes to meet his older brothers who are tending their flocks far away from home.

Points to consider:

• In what ways does Joseph's story typify Christ's (try here for an explanation on typology as a study tool)?