The Book of Exodus, being written in continuation of the history recorded in Genesis, is carefully connected with it by a recapitulation. The recapitulation involves three points:—
1. The names of Jacob's children;
2. The number of Jacob's descendants who went down into Egypt; and
3. The death of Joseph.
Exodus 1:1-4 are a recapitulation of Genesis 35:22-26; Genesis 35:5, of Genesis 46:27; and Genesis 46:6, of Genesis 1:26. In no case, however, is the recapitulation exact, or (so to speak) mechanical. The "households" of Genesis 1:1 had not been mentioned previously; Joseph had not in Genesis been separated off from his brethren, as he is in Exodus 1:5; nor had the deaths of "his brethren" been recorded, much less of "all that generation." Thus there is here no "vain repetition." New facts come out in the course of the recapitulation; and the narrative advances while aiming especially at maintaining its continuity.