In the previous
chapter, we saw that Jacob lived seventeen more years, after his reencounter
with Joseph (Gen. 47:28). Now in his
last days, Jacob got sick, so before something happened Joseph took his two
sons before his father so that he could bless them.
(Genesis 48:1-2) After this, Joseph was told, “Behold, your father
is ill.” So he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. (2) And
it was told to Jacob, “Your son Joseph has come to you.” Then Israel summoned
his strength and sat up in bed.
In the last moments of their lives, people tend to speak of
what has been most important in their lives. What came out of Jacob’s heart was
about the promise God had made to Abraham and Isaac, and later confirmed to
Jacob. That promise consisted in giving the Promised Land to their descendents.
(Gen. 48:3-4) And Jacob said
to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and
blessed me, (4) and said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful and
multiply you, and I will make of you a company of peoples and will give this
land to your offspring after you for an everlasting possession.’
Although his entire family was in Egypt, Jacob had not
forgotten his birth land. In that moment they were in a foreign land, but he
knew that the purpose of his life and of his descendents was not in this place,
but in Canaan, the Land God had promised them.
ADOPTING JOSEPH’S
SONS
After mentioning the divine
promise, Jacob did something that could seem surprising…
(Gen. 48:5-6) And
now your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to
you in Egypt, are mine; Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine, as Reuben and
Simeon are. (6) And the children that you fathered after them shall be
yours. They shall be called by the name of their brothers in their inheritance.
What happened in that moment was very important: Jacob
adopted Ephraim and Manasseh as his own sons. He compares them with Reuben and
Simeon, the two sons that were born first. Why did he do this? Joseph’s sons,
Manasseh and Ephraim, had been born in Egypt, from an Egyptian mother. But when
he adopted them, he was tying them to the destiny of Israel’s family. Besides,
he was giving them a higher rank, from grandchildren to sons. The adoption of
Joseph’s two oldest sons was part of the double inheritance that he would
receive as the firstborn of Jacob’s family. Manasseh and Ephraim would be
counted as two of the tribes of Israel.
Joseph made the most out of the visit to his father by
asking him to bless his sons. In the beginning, Jacob did not recognize them,
since he was losing his sight because of his age, just as it had happened to
his father Isaac.
(Gen. 48:8-11) When Israel saw
Joseph’s sons, he said, “Who are these?” (9) Joseph said to his father,
“They are my sons, whom God has given me here.” And he said, “Bring them to me,
please, that I may bless them.” (10) Now the eyes of Israel were dim with
age, so that he could not see. So Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed
them and embraced them. (11) And Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected
to see your face; and behold, God has let me see your offspring also.”
As he was getting his sons ready to receive Jacob’s
blessing, Joseph placed them before him in their birth order.
(Gen. 48:13) And Joseph took
them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh in
his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him.
Joseph placed them that way for a reason. The older one has
to be on the right hand, and the younger one on the left. But to Joseph’s
surprise, Jacob crossed his arms to bless the younger one as the firstborn.
Joseph thought that his father had made a mistake since he couldn’t see well,
but it was obvious that this had not been a mistake…
(Gen. 48:14-18) And Israel
stretched out his right hand and laid it on the head of Ephraim, who was the
younger, and his left hand on the head of Manasseh, crossing his hands (for
Manasseh was the firstborn). (15) And he blessed Joseph and said, “The God
before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my
shepherd all my life long to this day, (16) the angel who has redeemed me from
all evil, bless the boys; and in them let my name be carried on, and the name
of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the
midst of the earth.” (17) When Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand
on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him, and he took his father’s hand to
move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. (18) And Joseph said to his
father, “Not this way, my father; since this one is the firstborn, put your
right hand on his head.”
Jacob made it clear that when he crossed his hands, he did
it on purpose, it was not a mistake.
(Gen. 48:19-20) But his father
refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and
he also shall be great. Nevertheless, his younger brother shall be greater than
he, and his offspring shall become a multitude of nations.” (20) So he
blessed them that day, saying, “By you Israel will pronounce blessings, saying,
‘God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh.’” Thus he put Ephraim before
Manasseh.
With this blessing, Jacob prophesied about the leadership
role that the tribe of Ephraim would have. This tribe grew in power and in
number, and had leadership amongst the Israelites. When Israel became two
kingdoms, the 10 tribes of the north had for a king someone from the tribe of
Ephraim. Since Ephraim received the firstborn blessing, he received the name of
Israel. That is why the ten tribes of the north are known in the Bible as the
“House of Israel”, and the two tribes of the south, leaded by the tribe of
Judah, are known as the “House of Judah” [to study about this further, I
suggest you read the study on “The Two houses of Israel”].
JOSEPH AS A FIRSTBORN
When he adopted Joseph’s two sons and included them as part
of the tribes of Israel, Jacob declared that he had chosen Joseph as a
firstborn with his right of double inheritance. Jacob needed to make sure that
Joseph and his descendents would not stay in Egypt, but eventually come back to
the Promised Land, where their divine destiny was.
(Gen. 48:21-22) Then Israel
said to Joseph, “Behold, I am about to die, but God will be with you and will
bring you again to the land of your fathers. (22) Moreover, I have given to you rather than to your brothers one mountain
slope that I took from the hand
of the Amorites with my sword and with my bow.”
Jacob spoke these words in a prophetic way, since he had not
conquered the land with his sword and bow, but he saw prophetically that his
descendents would.
In the next chapter we will see the blessing that Jacob
gives to each one of his twelve sons…
Comments
Post a Comment