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8 Then Israel saw Joseph’s sons, and said, "Who are these?" 9 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." 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. 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. 13 And Joseph took them both, Ephraim with his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh with his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him. 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 the firstborn. 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." ~ Genesis 48:8-16
Today, we continue our study of Genesis 48 where we find Joseph and his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim before Jacob awaiting his blessing. Throughout the Bible it is revealed that that which pleases God is not our actions but our heart. It is clear in the Bible that the only thing that pleases God is our faith in Him. Faith in the God of the Bible is trust in Him, trust that is based upon a true understanding of who He is, as revealed in the Bible.
In v.8-9 of today's passage we read, "8 Then Israel saw Joseph’s sons, and said, 'Who are these?' 9 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.'"
Before even noticing his two grandsons, Manasseh and Ephraim, Jacob was engaged in a lengthy conversation with his son Joseph. Jacob's eyesight was so bad that he could not tell that his two grandsons were present with their father. After having explained to Joseph why he wanted to adopt his sons into the family, he asked about the two who came with him.
These were the sons born to Joseph in Egypt before Jacob and his family had arrived. In the words of Joseph, these were the sons God gave him. From the very beginning of his life Joseph had a very high and sovereign view of God. Everything that happened to him had been a result of God’s direction and somehow from the beginning, Joseph understood this. The broader our view of God and His sovereignty, the more we will be in submission to Him and the authority He has set up in our lives.
According to Hebrews 11:21 the highest act of the life of Jacob was that he blessed the sons of Joseph and then worshiped God. Jacob's greatness credited to him by God was due to his faith in God alone. Of course, his faith enabled him to be defined by God as evidenced by the fact that he sometimes obeyed Him, but Jacob was noted as a man of faith in God who is pleased most by the vulnerability of those who trust Him without knowing the outcome in advance. As was the case with all biblical figures, our faith in the God of the Bible is of the greatest value in his sight.
In v.10-13 of today's passage we read, "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. 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. 13 And Joseph took them both, Ephraim with his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh with his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him."
It was at the end of his life on earth and Jacob's eyesight was so poor that he found it difficult to see. The two sons of Joseph were around 19 and 20 years old respectively. They weren’t little children, and yet they allowed their father to direct them, and guide them. Jacob kissed Manasseh and Ephraim which is something he only did three times during his life. The first time was when he deceived Isaac and kissed his father before receiving his blessing. The second time was when he first met his wife Rachel and kissed her. And now the third in today's passage. It isn’t coincidence that only these three instances are recorded. These moments tie the life of Jacob together into a picture of God’s sovereignty and grace.
Then Joseph positioned his sons to be blessed by their grandfather. This is the first time in the Bible the position of the right hand is noted as the preeminent position. It will be noted many times after this. Only one blessing is given, but a distinction is made between the right and the left. The phrase "he’s my right hand man" comes from the Bible. The words "right hand" occurs 166 times in the Bible. In Isaiah 41:13 we read, "For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, 'Fear not, I am the one who helps you.'" God is able to do this because as He said in Mark 16:19, "So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God." And now we read, Luke 22:69, "From now on the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God." This is why the right hand is so important in the Bible because this is where the Lord Jesus is reigning at the right hand of the Father.
Joseph bowed down with his face to the earth. Even though Joseph encountered many setbacks in his life, he knew a great amount of success. Success is not a goal to be attained; it is a state of being. If we need something outward to validate us as a success, then we will not be a success. One of God’s main methods of developing us to our greatest potential is to influence us to become successful on the inside when we do not appear successful on the outside.
In v.14-16 of today's passage we read, "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 the firstborn. 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.'"
Despite Joseph’s care, Israel did the unexpected when he pronounced his blessing. He guided his hands knowingly to cross over to the opposite son. The word translated as "knowingly" means "to cross." By doing so, he placed younger Ephraim above older Manasseh. This is not the first time this has happened in the Bible. In fact, this is something that has happened repeatedly and which will continue through the rest of it. God took us to this theme to show us the foundational work of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary making it possible for us to be at the right hand of the Father.
Joseph named the first Manasseh whose name means "to forget." The Bible’s idea of forgetting is active. It paints for us the taking away of something. And so Joseph, by taking away the memory of his past, named his son Manasseh because he forgot, even though he hadn’t really forgotten. But, there is more to the name Manasseh which is the same word which also means "a debt." The name Manasseh pictured the work of the Lord Jesus: "to forget a debt."
Ephraim means "double fruitful." It also carries with it the idea for "ashes." Ashes are emblematic of grief or sorrow, especially for judgment on sin. Ephraim means "one made from the dust, deserving of the judgment of being reduced to ashes." And so the double play on this name wasn’t just that Joseph was doubly fruitful in the land of his affliction, but that he remained filled with grief over being separated from his father and his home in the land of his affliction. Manasseh meant Joseph was twice fruitful in the land of His affliction, prevailing over the law and thus becoming the Savior of Jew and Gentile, but his work also meant that sin was judged in Him, thus the ashes.
This account of Jacob blessing Ephraim over Manasseh is given to us to specifically show the work of Christ replacing the fallen state of Adam. This is why such minute care was given concerning the placement of the sons by Joseph and then the knowing movement of Jacob’s hands to override the decision. This passage ends with Jacob referring to the Lord as "goel" meaning "the Angel of the Lord who is the Redeemer of man." This is the first use of the word goel in the Bible. This word will be translated in two main ways: the first one "avenger of blood" and the other is "kinsman redeemer." Both of these are ascribed to the Lord Jesus who is the One who avenges the blood of His saints and the One who redeems us from our sin.
