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Finally united with his father, Joseph now finds himself at a sad time in his life. Jacob is ill, and Joseph begins to wonder if this might be a final good-bye to his father.
Having great respect for the patriarch, Joseph brings his own two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, to receive a blessing from their grandfather, and Jacob complies. In fact, he bestows upon Joseph's sons an honour even higher than Joseph expected: "Then Jacob said to Joseph: 'God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me, 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." 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.'” (Genesis 48:3-5 NKJV).
This meant that they would receive the "son" blessing, and not the "grandson" blessing!
But then Jacob does something very strange in Joseph's eyes. He goes to bless the boys, but instead of putting his right hand on the head of Joseph's oldest son, Manasseh, he crossed his arms and put his right hand on the younger boy's head, and put his left hand on Manasseh: "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. 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. " (Genesis 48:13-14 NKJV).
Now this was something unheard of in Joseph's day. The first born always received the right hand of blessing. It was his right as a first-born child! And Joseph wasn't happy about this: "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. And Joseph said to his father, 'Not so, my father, for this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.'” (Genesis 48:17-18 NKJV). But Jacob would not be swayed: "But his father refused and said, 'I know, my son, I know.'" (Genesis 48:19a NKJV)
Why would Jacob make such a blatant error and then refuse to correct it?
Because God had shown him something that Joseph didn't know: "He (Manasseh) also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother (Ephraim) shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations.” (Genesis 48:19b NKJV)
But why would God tell Jacob to do such a thing? God knew that it was the right of the oldest son to receive the greater blessing! Why would God make such a "blatant error"?
Because God isn't tied down to human rules! He is faithful. He knows the end from the beginning, and He follows His own plans for the good of everyone (See Isaiah 55:8-9; 46:10; 1 Cor. 1:9)!
History records that Jacob's God-inspired prediction was correct. Not only did Ephraim became a larger and more significant tribe than Manasseh, but the prophets often referred to all of Israel after the nation split into Israel and Judah, as "Ephraim and Judah", with Ephraim often seen as the tribe that embodied the entire Northern Kingdom. In fact, the royal house of the Northern Kingdom would one day reside in Ephraim's territory, and Jeroboam, the first king of the Northern Kingdom after they split from Judah, was from the tribe of Ephraim!
Do God's ways sometimes seem a bit ... off? Like maybe He hasn't checked the latest cultural norms? Or maybe He didn't watch the latest news? The story of Jacob's blessing for Joseph's two children teaches us that no matter how strange God's commands may seem, He is always ... right! And we would do best to follow them without question.
Join us next Saturday for one final lesson from the story of Joseph.
In His love,
Lyn
Lynona Gordon Chaffart
Author, Moderator, Acting Director, Answers2Prayer Ministries
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