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Genesis 48
1 And it came to pass after these things, that one told Joseph, Behold, thy father is sick (i.e. weak): and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh (= forgetful) and Ephraim (= fruitful).
2 And one told Jacob, and said, Behold, thy son Joseph cometh unto thee: and Israel strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed.
3 And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty (= El Shaddai) appeared unto me at Luz (= almond tree, later changed to Bethel [= house of GOD]) in the land of Canaan, and blessed me,
4 And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.
And so it is, that everlasting possession will continue into the third world age (the eternity), and regardless of your race/skin color, if you're a believer and follower of CHRIST, this applies to you, so don't ever believe anyone who would try to tell you otherwise. "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise (Galatians 3:26-29)".
5 And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine.
In other words, Israel (Jacob) is adopting Ephraim and Manasseh as his sons, which will share in his inheritance, as they have become equal status amongst Israel's (Jacob's) other sons.
6 And thy issue, which thou begettest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheritance.
7 And as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died by me in the land of Canaan in the way, when yet there was but a little way to come unto Ephrath: and I buried her there in the way of Ephrath; the same is Bethlehem (= house of bread, the same place CHRIST was eventually born in, who is our BREAD of LIFE).
8 And Israel beheld Joseph's sons, and said, Who are these?
9 And Joseph said unto his father, They are my sons, whom God hath given me in this place. And he said, Bring them, I pray thee, unto me, and I will bless them.
10 Now the eyes of Israel were dim for age, so that he could not see. And he brought them near unto him; and he kissed them, and embraced them.
11 And Israel said unto Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face: and, lo, God hath shewed me also thy seed.
Remember, Israel (Jacob) for a long time had thought Joseph was dead because his sons (Joseph's brothers) had brought unto him Joseph's coat, which had been dipped in animal blood (Genesis 37:31). Last thing he expected was to find Joseph being the governor of Egypt, with two children of his own.
12 And Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth.
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 unto him.
Joseph did this whereby the firstborn would be a Israel's (Jacob's) right hand.
14 And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh's head, guiding his hands wittingly (i.e. knowingly); for Manasseh was the firstborn.
In other words, he crossed his arms, putting his right hand upon Ephraim and his left hand upon Manasseh. What happened here was no accident as Israel (Jacob) did in which GOD had revealed to him. Something that's interesting to think about, is how many of the nations in which would come through Ephraim, have crosses on their flags today, that if you dig deep enough in research, you'll see trace back to this.
15 And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day,
16 The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.
In other words, what we see here is Israel (Jacob) legally passing on the promises in which GOD gave to Abraham, concerning his covenant (the Abrahamic covenant), onto Ephraim and Manasseh (the next generation), as they have been adopted as his own sons. The "Angel" mentioned of here, is in reference to the ONE (GOD) who wrestled with Jacob back in Genesis 32, which is the Angel of the LORD/presence of the LORD, that changed Jacob's name to Israel. So as we can see, Israel (Jacob) is calling upon HIM to pass his name and blessing onto Ephraim and Manasseh. Compare to Hosea 12:4.
17 And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he held up his father's hand, to remove it from Ephraim's head unto Manasseh's head.
I.e. Joseph was trying to uncross Israel's (Jacob's) arms.
18 And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head.
19 And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations.
20 And he blessed them that day, saying, In thee shall Israel bless, saying, God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh: and he set Ephraim before Manasseh.
And so it would be, Ephraim's descendants would go on to form the United Kingdom and the British common wealth nations, whereas Manasseh's descendants would go on to form the United States, and through these nations, is the rest of the world indeed blessed in many ways today.
21 And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers.
22 Moreover I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow.
And so it was, Joseph was given a double portion as he earned it, as he helped save his whole family through the seven years of intense famine, even after all that he had went through, concerning his harsh treatment from his brothers, which sold him into slavery and threatened to end his life. Compare with Deuteronomy 21:17, 1 Chronicles 5:2, Ezekiel 47:13. Note that this word "portion" in Hebrew is shᵉkem and this quote "which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow." perhaps is in reference to what happened in the land of Shechem, when Shechem raped Israel's (Jacob's) daughter (Dinah), and Simeon and Levi slew him and the rest of the males in that land, as they were a threat, who also tried to take advantage of their family.
2 And one told Jacob, and said, Behold, thy son Joseph cometh unto thee: and Israel strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed.
3 And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty (= El Shaddai) appeared unto me at Luz (= almond tree, later changed to Bethel [= house of GOD]) in the land of Canaan, and blessed me,
4 And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.
And so it is, that everlasting possession will continue into the third world age (the eternity), and regardless of your race/skin color, if you're a believer and follower of CHRIST, this applies to you, so don't ever believe anyone who would try to tell you otherwise. "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise (Galatians 3:26-29)".
5 And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine.
In other words, Israel (Jacob) is adopting Ephraim and Manasseh as his sons, which will share in his inheritance, as they have become equal status amongst Israel's (Jacob's) other sons.
6 And thy issue, which thou begettest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheritance.
7 And as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died by me in the land of Canaan in the way, when yet there was but a little way to come unto Ephrath: and I buried her there in the way of Ephrath; the same is Bethlehem (= house of bread, the same place CHRIST was eventually born in, who is our BREAD of LIFE).
8 And Israel beheld Joseph's sons, and said, Who are these?
9 And Joseph said unto his father, They are my sons, whom God hath given me in this place. And he said, Bring them, I pray thee, unto me, and I will bless them.
10 Now the eyes of Israel were dim for age, so that he could not see. And he brought them near unto him; and he kissed them, and embraced them.
11 And Israel said unto Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face: and, lo, God hath shewed me also thy seed.
Remember, Israel (Jacob) for a long time had thought Joseph was dead because his sons (Joseph's brothers) had brought unto him Joseph's coat, which had been dipped in animal blood (Genesis 37:31). Last thing he expected was to find Joseph being the governor of Egypt, with two children of his own.
12 And Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth.
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 unto him.
Joseph did this whereby the firstborn would be a Israel's (Jacob's) right hand.
14 And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh's head, guiding his hands wittingly (i.e. knowingly); for Manasseh was the firstborn.
In other words, he crossed his arms, putting his right hand upon Ephraim and his left hand upon Manasseh. What happened here was no accident as Israel (Jacob) did in which GOD had revealed to him. Something that's interesting to think about, is how many of the nations in which would come through Ephraim, have crosses on their flags today, that if you dig deep enough in research, you'll see trace back to this.
15 And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day,
16 The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.
In other words, what we see here is Israel (Jacob) legally passing on the promises in which GOD gave to Abraham, concerning his covenant (the Abrahamic covenant), onto Ephraim and Manasseh (the next generation), as they have been adopted as his own sons. The "Angel" mentioned of here, is in reference to the ONE (GOD) who wrestled with Jacob back in Genesis 32, which is the Angel of the LORD/presence of the LORD, that changed Jacob's name to Israel. So as we can see, Israel (Jacob) is calling upon HIM to pass his name and blessing onto Ephraim and Manasseh. Compare to Hosea 12:4.
17 And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he held up his father's hand, to remove it from Ephraim's head unto Manasseh's head.
I.e. Joseph was trying to uncross Israel's (Jacob's) arms.
18 And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head.
19 And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations.
20 And he blessed them that day, saying, In thee shall Israel bless, saying, God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh: and he set Ephraim before Manasseh.
And so it would be, Ephraim's descendants would go on to form the United Kingdom and the British common wealth nations, whereas Manasseh's descendants would go on to form the United States, and through these nations, is the rest of the world indeed blessed in many ways today.
21 And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers.
22 Moreover I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow.
And so it was, Joseph was given a double portion as he earned it, as he helped save his whole family through the seven years of intense famine, even after all that he had went through, concerning his harsh treatment from his brothers, which sold him into slavery and threatened to end his life. Compare with Deuteronomy 21:17, 1 Chronicles 5:2, Ezekiel 47:13. Note that this word "portion" in Hebrew is shᵉkem and this quote "which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow." perhaps is in reference to what happened in the land of Shechem, when Shechem raped Israel's (Jacob's) daughter (Dinah), and Simeon and Levi slew him and the rest of the males in that land, as they were a threat, who also tried to take advantage of their family.