Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the Israelites swear an oath. He had said, God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up with you from this place. The bones of Joseph are one of the most moving details in the Exodus narrative. Joseph made the Israelites swear four hundred years earlier, in Genesis 50:25, that they would carry his bones out of Egypt when God came to their aid. Moses fulfills this oath. The action is an act of covenant memory: Joseph believed in the promise of the land and wanted his bones to rest there rather than in Egypt. Hebrews 11:22 specifically commends Joseph for this — by faith, Joseph spoke about the Exodus and gave instructions concerning his bones. Carrying the bones is carrying a four-century-old promise made in faith, honored in faith, finally fulfilled when the sea parts and the bones cross over with the living.

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