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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 to 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." 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." 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. 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. 22 Moreover I have given to you one portion above your brothers, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and my bow." ~ Genesis 48:17-22
Today, we conclude our study of Genesis 48 where Jacob has just blessed the two sons of Joseph. As we have seen, the names of these two sons are quite revealing because Manasseh means "to forget a debt" and Ephraim means "ashes made double fruitful." Jacob blessed the second-born Ephraim with his right hand and the firstborn Manasseh with his left hand. In doing that, Jacob pointed us to the cross of the Lord Jesus. The word "knowingly" was used by Moses to describe the crossing of Jacob's hands. Joseph misunderstood this detail because he did not understand that God was in the details, directing all who seek Him for the remedy of our "ashes to ashes" problem. This was not a mistake, but was the full intention of Jacob under the inspiration of God according to v.14.
In v.17-19 of today's passage we read, "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 to 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.' 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.'"
The order of the blessing upon the boys, from that time on, would affect all of redemptive history, for both Jew and Gentile. Ephraim is the name associated with the ten northern tribes of Israel. They rejected God's definition of things. And so, God rejected them and they were exiled from their homeland. But in their exile, God never forgot them and He was gracious to them later extending the possibility of them entering into a personal relationship with Him.
Jacob guided his hands knowingly, crossing them over so that the blessing would fall upon Ephraim, the younger son, instead of Manasseh, the older brother. Every detail of what occurred was given to picture the work of the Lord Jesus Christ in redemptive history. Where Adam failed and incurred a debt, the Lord Jesus Christ prevailed and His work on the cross has made it possible for all of Adam’s fallen sons to share in the grace and mercy of God. It is the same story being re-explained and repeated over and over again in the book of Genesis so that we don’t miss what God has done and that the Lord Jesus is understood to be the Messiah.
At that time however, Joseph didn’t understand. He thought his own father Jacob was confused about the placement of the sons and so he attempted to rectify it by intervening in the placing on of the hands. Joseph failed to recognize the hand of God’s Spirit upon Jacob as he prophesied and blessed his grandsons. It further says that he was displeased. What Joseph saw as an error, was a repetition of God’s continued selection of the second over the first. In this case, it would turn out to be one of the great moments in redemptive history.
Joseph's failure was his attaching God’s grace to the order of nature. It is the same failure that we all have made, we attempt to shove God into a box of our own choosing. We perceive that the world should work in a particular way and we think that God will act in that way. Jacob had the hand of God upon him for what would become the reality of the supremacy of Ephraim over Manasseh, and he had the hand of God upon him for what would become a picture of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The hidden wisdom of God cannot be limited by flimsy human understanding.
From Ephraim came Jeroboam who became the first leader of the Ten Tribes of Israel as they broke away from the southern kingdom of Judah. Because of this, the northern tribes are often called both Israel and Ephraim. The southern tribes were known as Judah. It was the ten northern tribes that was exiled by Sennacherib King of Assyria in 722 BC. From this exile, they were dispersed to the ends of the world, losing their identity and mixing in with the gentiles. This exile included both tribes, Ephraim and Manasseh. It doesn’t sound like greatness, unless one understands what occurred in their dispersion. The phrase translated "multitude of nations" in v.19 is best understood in the phrase used in the New Testament, "the fullness of the gentiles." The waywardness of the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh led to the possibility of the gentiles being allowed into God's family.
In v.20-22 of today's passage we read, "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. 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. 22 Moreover I have given to you one portion above your brothers, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and my bow.'"
While the Jewish people, represented by the tribe of Judah is currently under God's punishment according to the law, God has presently directed His attention to the Gentiles, represented by the dispersed tribe of Ephraim. And He is, in us, continuing on today with His remarkable plan of salvation. The Gentiles have been brought into the commonwealth of Israel because of the work of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross. Jacob’s words reveal the miracle of the church age which we are in at this current time.
The final words of blessing uttered by Jacob in today's passage were words of prophecy and faith. Not only would Joseph and his seed after him return to Canaan, but they would receive their inheritance as is now granted to them. The one requirement for receiving the blessing of forgiven sin and a personal relationship with God is that they receive their inheritance, the Lord Jesus Himself who was promised so long ago in the Garden of Eden just after the Fall.
