1. Now it came to pass after these things that Joseph was told, “Indeed your father is sick”; and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. 41:50-52 2. And Jacob was told, “Look, your son Joseph is coming to you”; and Israel strengthened himself and sat upon the bed.
Seventeen years have now passed since Jacob first came into the land of Egypt, and he is now one hundred and forty seven years old. Joseph is the first son to appear before Jacob, and he brings his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim with him so they could be blessed by him before his death. “And the old man Jacob, before his name was changed, is used here in the beginning of verse two, to distinguish between what he once was: supplanter, deceiver (H3290), to how far he has come now. to be called Israel (H3478), the one who wrestled with both man and God and prevailed to become the spiritual man he is this day, who strengthens himself on his staff to bless the sons of Joseph’s in worship of the one true God (Heb. 11:21), we in the church upon our baptism kill the old man of the flesh, as we rise out of the water we put on the new man, the spiritual man, and walk in the newness of life, (Rom. 6:4). the days of the life of Jacob and his pilgrimage have been one hundred and forty seven years, and now upon his death bed, the old man, sown in corruption will be raised up incorruptible ( 1 Cor. 15:42),and his name… is Israel.
3. Then 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 multitude of people, and give this land to your descendants after you as an everlasting possession.’ 28:13; 35:6-12
Leaning upon the top of his staff in worship (Heb. 1:27), he reflects back upon the dream he had as he was running from his brother, where the Lord first appeared to him as he saw angels ascending and descending upon a ladder that was set on the earth, it’s top reached heaven, and the Lord stood above it (Gen. 28:10-14), it was at this moment that God told him he would be fruitful and multiply, and give the land of Canaan to his descendants.
5. “And now your two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine. Josh.14:4
Jacob in essence adopts Joseph’s sons Manasseh and Ephraim. They are to be sons to Jacob just as Rueben and Simeon are his sons, and therefore they each will be included as heads of their own tribe in the nation of Israel. by this adoption Joseph is given a double portion of the inheritance than his brothers, meaning that Joseph is receiving the birthright blessing from Jacob, by tradition it is the firstborn to whom the birthright blessing is given, and part of the birthright blessing is that the firstborn gets a double portion of the fathers inheritance as well as also having authority and superiority over the family, this according to Adam Clarke’s commentary. Typically with this birthright also comes the listing of the genealogy of the promised seed in which all nations of the earth would be blessed. However as it is explained in 1 Chronicles 5:1-2 that the genealogy is not to be counted in the birthright blessing given to Joseph, but instead to be passed down to Judah because he prevailed over his other brothers, so the promised seed will be handed down to Judah, yet Joseph gets all the other blessings that go with the birthright as explained in Adam Clarke’s commentary above. (1 Chr. 5:1-2). I would like to add my opinion as to why Joseph was given the birthright blessing that was not explained in 1 Chronicles. 5:1,2: or anywhere else in the scriptures. Jacob had four wives, but it was Rachel who he loved the most, and Joseph was the firstborn son of Rachel and Jacob, just as Isaac was the firstborn and only son of Abraham and Sarah. And I believe that God honored Jacob in his love of Rachel in this way, by given Joseph the birthright blessings of everything but the promised seed in which all nations of the earth will be blessed. Notice to that Jacob identifies Manasseh and Ephraim as being like his two firstborn sons Reuben and Simeon. In the following verses we will see that the blessings Jacob gives to Manasseh and Ephraim are the blessings of the first and second born sons traditionally.
6. “Your offspring whom you beget after them shall be yours; they will be called by the name of their brothers in their inheritance.
There is no mention in the bible that Joseph had any other sons than Manasseh and Ephraim, but Jacob, supposing if he did, then those sons would be Josephs, and their names, as far as any inheritance is considered will be included in the names of Manasseh and Ephraim.
7. “But as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died beside me in the land of Canaan on the way, when there was but a little distance to go to Ephrath; and I buried her there on the way to Ephrath (that is Bethlehem).” 35:9, 16-20
Whose name does Jacob call out to in memory? None other than the woman he loved the most, Rachel, the woman who stole his heart over a hundred years ago, she may have been dead for a long time, but she has never been far from Jacobs heart. All of Jacob’s wives have since passed, how, when, and where? The scriptures do not say. This is a testament to the legacy of Rachel, not only in the heart of Jacob but also of God, who I believe honors Jacob by honoring his wife: memorializing her passing at the time of her death (Gen. 35: 16-20), over the deaths of all of Jacob’s other wives, and then again now at the end of Jacob’s life. Rachel is also honored thru the sons she bare to Jacob (Mainly Joseph), by the blessings Jacob gives to the sons of Joseph. In the book of Jeremiah God calls Ephraim his firstborn son (Jer. 31:9), Rachel died in what is believed to be on the outskirts of Bethlehem. she died giving birth to Benjamin (Jacobs last son). In this honor God has bestowed to Rachel we see that the land inheritance given to the descendants of Benjamin are in the same area in which Rachel died and was buried. It is also in the area of Israel where the Lord Messiah was born of a virgin mother. These two mothers are blessed women in the scriptures, who both bore sons that became the salvation to the world, one..(Joseph), the type of the One to come, saved the then known world from a great famine, and the other who also saves the whole world from eternal death through His sacrifice, from the famine of the Holy Spirit. By his death the spirit is now offered to all who believe and accept Jesus as Saviour thru His precious blood. Rachel is honored to this day by two of the three major religions: Christianity and Judaism, her tomb is carefully guarded to this day. Joseph like Jesus was born almost miraculously himself, for Rachel was barren for years before she finally gave birth, and then of course the immaculate conception of Jesus Christ born of a virgin.
8. Then Israel saw Joseph’s sons, and said, “Who are these?” 9. And Joseph said to his father, “They are my sons, whom God has given me in this place.” And he said, “Please bring them to me, and I will bless them.” 27:4 10. Now the eyes of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. Then Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them. 27:1 11. And Israel said to Joseph, “I had not thought to see your face; but in fact, God has also shown me your offspring!” 12 So Joseph brought them from beside his knees, and he bowed down with his face to the earth. 37: 9-11
Joseph has brought his sons to see Jacob and to receive the blessings of Israel. In previous verses Jacob has already declared the Manasseh and Ephraim have been adopted by him equal to all his other sons. Jacob is one hundred and forty seven years of age now and his eyesight has become so poor that he doesn’t recognize Josephs s sons in front of him. Undoubtedly this isn’t the first time Jacob has seen Manasseh and Ephraim, because he has been living in Egypt for seventeen years now. these sons of Jacob were born before the famine during the times of plenty (Gen. 41:50-53), by the time that Jacob and his family entered the land Joseph’s sons were between the ages of one to six years old. Jacob was one hundred and forty years of age when he entered into Egypt, and he is now one hundred and forty seven years old. This would make Ephraim and Manasseh between the ages of eight and fourteen years of age. Joseph presents his sons to his father, and Jacob embraces his adopted sons and gives them a kiss, during this time Jacob reflects back to the past and remembers when he mourned for his son Joseph, thinking he was dead and unable to look upon his face in this lifetime ever again. But now his sorrow has turned to gladness, for not only was he able to once again see Joseph and embrace him, but he acknowledges to both Joseph and his sons that it is the most High God who has also blessed him to also see the children of Joseph before he die. Joseph in turn backs away from his sons and father just far enough to bow himself before his father out of reverence towards him.
13. And Joseph took them both, Ephraim with his right hand towards Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh with his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him.
Manasseh is the eldest of the two sons, and it is customary that the eldest son get the higher degree of blessing from the father. as we read in verse five Jacob has declared that Joseph’s sons Manasseh and Ephraim are as his firstborn sons Reuben and Simeon. In my opinion: because of Reuben and Simeon s past sins they have lost the blessings of the first and second born sons of Israel, to the sons of Joseph. However there is one blessing that is not handed down to Manasseh and Ephraim, and that is the birthright blessing of the promised seed in which all nations of the earth are blessed. As we will see in the following chapter this birthright blessing belongs, and is given to Judah.
14. Then Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head guiding his hands knowingly, for Manasseh was firstborn. v.19
Israel may be of old age and his eyes dim, but it is the Spirit of the Almighty One who guides his hands, and gives him sight that he may see what the future holds for the sons of Joseph and their descendants. For prophecy does not come to man by their own thoughts, or interpretations, but given to holy men of God who spoke being borne along by the Holy Spirit. (2 Pet. 1: 20-21), Jacob, once the supplanter, deceiver, Whose name was changed to Israel has God’s name (El), included in his new name given by God Himself, and with this name bares witness of the Holy Spirit in Israel. The Spirit of God who has guided him all his life now guides him in the blessings of Joseph and his sons Manasseh and Ephraim.
15. And he blessed Joseph, and said: “God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, The God who has fed me all my life long to this day, 16. The Angel who has redeemed me from all evil, Bless the lads; Let my name be named upon them, And the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; And let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.” 13:16; 26:24
In blessing Manasseh and Ephraim Jacob is also blessing Joseph by proxy. In the next chapter the blessings given in this chapter to the sons of Joseph are expounded in greater detail. Jacob calls out to the God of his fathers Abraham and Isaac, acknowledging that their God is his God, just as he promised many years ago to the Lord; that if He would be with him, clothe him, feed him, and protect him, then the God of his fathers would be his God (Gen. 28:13; 20-21),
I have to go out of the box for a minute and share God’s presence here, right now this very moment: As I meditate on the verses above and the words from Genesis 28 20-21, Lauren Daigle’s song “Everything” is playing in the background, and it is so fitting, so much so that I felt God’s presence with me at this very moment, talking to me as only He can. But I digress. The Angel that redeemed Israel from all evil is none other than Jesus Christ. For God is the Almighty God, and not to ever be spoken of as anything lower than His divinity. even though the Father and the son are one, or as one if you will, Jesus always submitted to the will of God and pointed to the Father above him ( Matt. 19:16-17; Luke. 22: 41-42). “Let my name be named upon them, And the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac;”
In this blessing to the the sons of Joseph (Guided by the Spirit), Israel declares that these sons would inherit all the blessings of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, when it comes to the birthright blessings of great wealth, the fruits of the land inheritance of milk and honey, protection from all enemies, blessings of the womb of many descendants numbering as the sands of the sea, authority over all the other nations of the world who will serve and bow down to them. These are the blessings that God promised to Abraham Isaac and Jacob, (Gen. 22:17; 26: 3-4, 24; 27: 28-29; 28: 3-4, 14), Which Israel declares let my name be named upon them and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac.” The only blessing that is not given to Manasseh and Ephraim is that of the promised seed in which all nations would be blessed. That promise is reserved to Judah (Israel’s fourth born son of Jacob and Leah), as we will see in the blessings of Judah, and the rest of Israel’s sons in chapter forty nine. If we follow the descendants of Manasseh and Ephraim, as recorded in the bible, we will see that they do in fact become greater than all the other sons of Israel, but they never reached their full blessings while living in the land of Canaan, (or Israel if you will). Neither sons descendants ever multiplied their seed throughout the midst of the earth, nor did all nations bow down to them or serve them, or did they possess all the gates of their enemies. This said, these blessings are meant not only for the time that they lived in the land of Canaan, and on the other side of the Jordan river, but also a much later fulfillment a few thousand years later up until the end of the age, and the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. If we follow the history of the descendants of the sons of Joseph we can see that this blessing has also been fulfilled through the two greatest countries the world has ever known: Great Britain, and the United States (which are the descendants of Manasseh and Ephraim). I will discuss this history of the two sons of Joseph, and all sons of Israel in greater detail in my prophecy section of my web page (Which is a work in progress).
17. Now when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him; so he took hold of his father’s hand to remove it from Ephraim’s head the Manasseh’s head. 18. And Joseph said to his father, “Not so, my father, for this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.” v.14
Joseph had placed Manasseh to Jacobs right arm so that Israel would bless him with his right hand, and Ephraim being the younger son would be blessed with Israel s left hand. When blessings are given, it is the right hand which is used. the use of the right hand signifies the greater blessing when there are more than one person who is being blessed. This person will be blessed in riches, authority, the fruit of the womb, and of power and strength over the other. The right hand also represents strength and power. (Gen. 48: 19-20; Exo. 15:6, 12; 1 kings. 2:19; Psalms. 16:8; 17:7; 18:35; 1 Pet. 3:21-22), Even as our Lord and savior sits at the right hand of God to this day. Seeing that his father placed his right hand on the younger son Joseph went to correct him, thinking that Israel was to blind to see where his hands were laid.
19. But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations.” 25:23 Israel was being guided by the Spirit of God who was showing him what would become of these two sons descendants, and by faith he blessed the lads according to the Spirit (Heb. 11: 21). The younger son Ephraim will one day become Great Britain who colonized most of the world and thus became a multitude of nations. Manasseh’s descendants would become the United States, which has become a great people, founded on the Judeo Christian values. See The United States and Britain in bible Prophecy published by the United church of God. for more understanding on how these two countries are the descendants of Ephraim and Manasseh.
20. So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you Israel will bless, saying, ‘May God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh!” And thus he set Ephraim before Manasseh.
In the beginning of this chapter the sons of Joseph were listed in order of the oldest first then the younger. But in the blessings Israel gave to the two lads he puts the younger (Ephraim), before his older brother Manasseh.
21. Then Israel said to Joseph, :Behold, I am dying, but God will be with you and bring you back to the land of your fathers. 28:15; 46:4
In chapter forty seven Jacob makes Joseph swear to him that when he (Jacob), dies that Joseph will take him back to the land of Canaan and bury him with his fathers Abraham and Isaac (Gen. 47: 30-31), in Hebrews we are told that after Israel blesses the lads he leaned his head upon the top of his staff and he worshiped. In this worship (while still guided by the Spirit), Israel tells Joseph that God will be with him, and that one day he will be reunited with his fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In my opinion this is done to help comfort Joseph that he will one day be with his fathers, in the land of promise. Upon his own death bed, by faith, Joseph brought the descendants of Israel and took an oath to them saying,” God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.”(Gen. 50: 25; Exo. 13:19). In my humble opinion I believe this blessing of Joseph is a duel prophecy: In the resurrection the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, will be resurrected in the land of promise, and Joseph will be reunited with his fathers, what a glorious! day that will be.
22. “Moreover I have given to you one portion above your brothers, which I took from the hand of of the Amorite with my sword and bow.”
Joseph received his land inheritance through his sons Manasseh and Ephraim, this is the double portion above his brothers that Israel spoke of. Ephraim would be the son that would inherit the land in which Jacob describes as being taken “from the hand of the Amorite.” Most Scholars agree the land Jacob is referring to is the parcel of land that Jacob purchased from Shechem (Gen. 33: 18-19) upon returning from Padan Aram after meeting his brother Esau and reconciling with him. However the full sentence, ” Took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and bow,” is not as conclusive amongst the commentators and scholars. Some say this is referring to the two sons of Jacob (Simeon, and Levi), when they killed all the males of Shechem and took all the cattle, and wealth, took captive the little ones and women with the sword by deception after their sister dinah was defiled by Shechem, son of Hamor (Gen. 34:26-29), but Jacob said it was taken by his sword and bow, not that of his sons. Another conjecture is that after Simeon and Levi killed the people of Shechem, all the people from around the country took the land back from Israel, and Jacob had to fight them off. However this cannot be so either because it is written that the terror of God fell upon all the land around the area and they did not pursue Jacob (Gen. 35:5). I myself lean towards the argument that Israel is speaking about the time his two sons Levi and Simeon killed all the male and their cattle, and took the women captive. Even though Israel had no part in the slaughter, it’s as if he did because it was his flesh and blood who committed this act, Israel being the patriarch is responsible for the acts of his sons and therefore is to blame as well. I would venture to guess that all the surrounding peoples and cities looked towards Israel and not his sons as the aggressor.