Ephraim and Manasseh Adopted

Joseph’s Visit

Some time later, Joseph was told his father was ill. So he went with his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. When Jacob heard his son Joseph had come to see him, he gathered his strength to sit up on the bed.

Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz, in the land of Canaan. He blessed me there. ‘I will make you fruitful and increase your numbers into a fellowship of peoples. Then I will give this land to your offspring after you as an eternal possession.’”

Edited from Image by Moondance from Pixabay

At some point toward the end of Jacob’s life, he fell ill and became bedridden. Joseph, who stilled lived in the city, was informed of his father’s illness. So he traveled to Goshen with Manasseh and Ephraim. At this point, Joseph’s sons were around twenty years old.

The illness had weakened Jacob, but when he heard Joseph had come, he managed to gather his strength to sit up. Though it seems Jacob had not asked Joseph to come, he took advantage of the visit to talk about inheritance rights. During the famine, Jacob and his household had become dependent on Joseph and his powerful position. Jacob would leave behind nothing that compared in value to what Joseph already had. Except the covenant promises.

Jacob began by restating the promises God made to him when he returned to fulfill his vow at Bethel (originally called Luz).¹ He reminded Joseph of God’s promises of offspring and land. But one promise is glaringly absent—the promise of kings from Jacob’s descendants. That promise was not for Joseph. Jacob’s favorite son would inherit a special blessing related to offspring and land. But he would not inherit the leadership of the family. Jacob understood and accepted that God had chosen Judah for that role.²

The Double Portion

[Jacob said to Joseph,] “So from now on your two sons born in the land of Egypt before I came are mine. Ephraim and Manasseh are just like Reuben and Simeon. They belong to me. Any children you have after them will belong to you. They’ll receive their inheritance under their brothers’ names. When I returned from Paddan, because of me Rachel died in the land of Canaan while we traveled and were still some distance from Ephrathah. I buried her there near the road.” (Ephrathah is now called Bethlehem.)

In the ancient Near East, the rights of the firstborn son included leadership of the family and a double portion of the inheritance. When Jacob’s firstborn, Reuben, forfeited his rights, it became unclear which of his brothers would replace him.³ Both Leah’s fourth son, Judah, and Rachel’s firstborn, Joseph, proved themselves worthy. So in an unexpected twist, Jacob split the inheritance rights between them. Judah would lead the family after Jacob’s death. But Joseph would receive the double portion.⁴

Jacob explained to Joseph that he intended to legally adopt Joseph’s two sons, making Ephraim and Manasseh equal to Reuben and Simeon. Jacob would elevate them from grandsons to sons so they would inherit directly from him. Through them, Joseph would receive two portions of the inheritance. If Joseph had anymore sons later, they would remain Jacob’s grandsons and inherit through Ephraim and Manasseh.

Jacob then described Rachel’s death on the road from Bethel to Ephrathah, a tragedy he blamed himself for.⁵ Rachel died giving birth to Benjamin, so Jacob likely regretted risking travel when she was far along in her pregnancy.⁶ Her premature death prevented her from having more children. By adopting Ephraim and Manasseh, Jacob gave his beloved Rachel two more sons.⁷

The Ceremony

Then Israel saw Joseph’s sons and asked, “Who are they?”

“These are my sons God has given me here,” Joseph replied.

“Bring them to me so I can bless them.” Israel’s eyesight was failing because of his old age. Since his father couldn’t see well, Joseph brought his sons close. Then Israel kissed them and embraced them.

“I never thought I’d see you again,” Israel said to Joseph. “Now look! God has even shown me your offspring.” Joseph moved his sons away from his father’s knees and bowed down.

Image by Fuzzy Rescue from Pixabay

After Jacob explained his reasons for adopting Joseph’s sons, he began the adoption process. First Joseph formally introduced his sons. Either this was part of the ceremony or Jacob couldn’t see his grandsons clearly because of his poor eyesight. Joseph then brought the boys close to his Jacob. Small children were placed on an adoptive parent’s knees to symbolize childbirth. But since Ephraim and Manasseh were too big to sit on their grandfather’s lap, they stood beside him while he sat on the bed.

The next step in the adoption ceremony involved Jacob blessing Ephraim and Manasseh. But instead, Jacob focused on how God had blessed him. With Ephraim and Manasseh standing so closely, Jacob could see them. This caused a wave of emotion to wash over him. He remembered the long years of mourning when he thought Joseph had died.⁸ He never thought he’d see Joseph again, yet God had allowed him to see Joseph’s children and hold them in his arms.

Joseph responded to Jacob’s words of praise by pulling his sons back and bowing down. He paused the ceremony so they could all thank God for reuniting them. For a moment the family worshiped together.

Two Tribes

Then Joseph took both his sons and brought them near his father again. He took Ephraim on his right and led him to Israel’s left side, and he took Manasseh on his left and led him to Israel’s right side. But Israel reached out to place his right hand on Ephraim’s head, though he was younger. He crossed his arms and placed his left hand on Manasseh’s head, though he was the firstborn.

Then he blessed Joseph. “The God my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked before is the God who has shepherded me throughout my life and the messenger who has rescued me from all harm. May he bless these boys! May they be called by my name and the names of my fathers Abraham and Isaac. May they increase abundantly in the midst of the land.”

Image by David P. Barrett/Biblemapper.com from Free Bible Images, CC BY-NC 4.0

When Joseph returned his sons to his father’s side, he made sure to place them in the correct order. He placed his firstborn, Manasseh, on Jacob’s right side, the position of honor.⁶ But Jacob intended to give Ephraim the primary blessing. So he crossed his arms to place his right hand on Ephraim’s head and his left hand on Manasseh’s head.

In blessing the boys, Jacob called on the God Abraham and Isaac had served. Like a shepherd, God had guided Jacob his entire life, even when Jacob tended to wander astray. The reference to the “messenger” who protected Jacob from harm recalls Jacob’s dream in Genesis 31:11–13. There God’s messenger identified himself as the God of Bethel who thwarted Laban’s schemes against Jacob. The messenger is God, not an angel.⁹

Jacob prayed Ephraim and Manasseh would carry on the names of their ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He prayed they would increase with numerous descendants living “in the midst of the land,” meaning Canaan. Ephraim and Manasseh would inherit the covenant promises alongside Jacob’s other sons. As a result, they would inherit land in Canaan, where their descendants would grow to become full tribes.

While the descendants of each of Joseph’s brothers became a tribe, Joseph’s descendants became two tribes. Later, the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh restored the number of tribes to twelve when God commanded Moses not to include the priestly tribe of Levi when counting the Israelites.¹⁰

Great and Greater

When Joseph saw his father put his right hand on Ephraim’s head, it upset him. He grabbed his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. “Not like that, father! This one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head.”

But his father refused. “I know, my son. I know. He will also become a people and will be great. Yet his younger brother will be even greater, and his offspring will be numerous enough to fill nations.”

That day he blessed them, “By you Israel will bless each other. They will say, ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’” So he put Ephraim ahead of Manasseh.

Image by prabha karan from Pixabay

When Joseph saw Jacob give the greater blessing to Ephraim, it upset him. Joseph thought Jacob had made a mistake, so he tried to switch his hands. But Jacob resisted. He knew exactly what he was doing. Jacob assured Joseph that Manasseh would become great. The Israelites would refer to the prosperity of both boys when blessing each other. Yet Ephraim would be greater.

Manasseh joined Cain, Ishmael, Esau, Reuben, and Er as firstborn sons surpassed by a younger brother. But Scripture gives no explanation for why Manasseh was passed over, and Joseph clearly felt his firstborn should receive the greater blessing. Given Joseph’s spiritual insight, the reason probably had nothing to do with Manasseh himself. Jacob simply foresaw the importance of the tribe of Ephraim in the history of Israel.

Though Manasseh’s descendants became a large and important tribe, their influence paled in comparison to the tribe of Ephraim. Ephraim’s descendants included Joshua, who led the Israelites into the promised land, and Jeroboam, the first king of the Northern Kingdom.¹¹ Even after the throne passed to other kings, Ephraim remained the most influential tribe. Eventually the name Ephraim became synonymous with the Northern Kingdom.¹²

The Allocation of Shechem

Israel told Joseph, “I will die soon, but God will be with you. He will take you back to the land of your fathers. But first I give Shechem, which I took from the Amorites with my sword and my bow, to you instead of your brothers.

Jacob began the adoption of Ephraim and Manasseh by reminding Joseph of God’s promise to give Jacob and his descendants the land of Canaan. He ended the ceremony by assuring Joseph and his sons that God would be with them after his death. Jacob would not live to see his descendants take possession of the promised land. But he trusted God to lead them back there one day.

Despite the promise, only once did any of the patriarchs fight against the Canaanites. Jacob’s sons Simeon and Levi killed the men of Shechem to avenge the rape of their sister, Dinah.¹³ Jacob didn’t participate in the massacre and strongly disapproved of it.¹⁴ Yet his household had conquered Shechem, so as the head of the household, he had conquered Shechem.¹⁵ This gave Jacob the authority to ensure Simeon and Levi wouldn’t profit from their crime. Instead, Jacob allotted Shechem to Joseph.

After the Israelites returned to Canaan, Joshua and the leaders of Israel assigned Shechem to the tribe of Ephraim, and they buried Joseph there.¹⁶ Initially, the Ephraimites shared Shechem with the Levites.¹⁷ But when the kingdom divided, King Jeroboam made Shechem the capital of the Northern Kingdom, and he removed the Levites’ special status as priests.¹⁸

← Genesis 47:1–31

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Genesis 49:1–28 →

Genesis 35:11–12.
See Judah’s Leadership.
See The Fall of Reuben.
1 Chronicles 5:1–2.
The Hebrew word ʿalay (literally “on me”) is usually translated “to my sorrow,” though there’s no evidence it can mean that. On the other hand, the meaning “because of me” is well established and explains why Jacob suddenly brought up Rachel’s death.
See Benjamin.
Hamilton, Book of Genesis: Chapters 18–50, 630.
See Mourning for Joseph; Alive!
See Yahweh’s Messenger.
Numbers 2:18–20, 33; Joshua 14:4.
Numbers 13:8, 16; 1 Kings 11:26–31.
2 Chronicles 25:7; Isaiah 7:1–17; 11:13; Jeremiah 7:15; Hosea 5:3.
See Vengeance.
See Rebuked.
Kidner, Genesis, 226.
Joshua 20:7; 24:32.
Joshua 21:20–21.
1 Kings 12:25–31.