The Torah · Old Testament

Genesis 48

Jacob counts Joseph's sons as his own and puts Ephraim first

General context

Joseph brings Manasseh and Ephraim to his sick father. Jacob recalls God's appearance and promise at Luz, then claims Joseph's two sons as his own, like Reuben and Simeon. He also recalls Rachel's death and roadside burial. His sight is dim from age. The boys are brought near to him, and he kisses and embraces them. He says he had not expected to see Joseph's face, yet God has also shown him Joseph's children. Joseph positions the firstborn Manasseh toward Jacob's right hand and Ephraim toward his left. Jacob deliberately crosses his hands, placing his right on the younger Ephraim. His blessing invokes the God who sustained him and the angel who redeemed him from evil, asking that the boys bear the family names and grow into a multitude. Joseph tries to move the right hand to Manasseh, but Jacob refuses. He says both will become great, with the younger greater, and places Ephraim first in the blessing. Jacob tells Joseph that God will bring the family back to their fathers' land and speaks of an extra portion he gives him.

Cited passages: Genesis 48:1, Genesis 48:2, Genesis 48:3, Genesis 48:4, Genesis 48:5, Genesis 48:6, Genesis 48:7, Genesis 48:8, Genesis 48:9, Genesis 48:10, Genesis 48:11, Genesis 48:12, Genesis 48:13, Genesis 48:14, Genesis 48:15, Genesis 48:16, Genesis 48:17, Genesis 48:18, Genesis 48:19, Genesis 48:20, Genesis 48:21, Genesis 48:22

Genesis 48 (KJV)

¹And it came to pass after these things, that one told Joseph, Behold, thy father is sick: and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.

²And one told Jacob, and said, Behold, thy son Joseph cometh unto thee: and Israel strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed.

³And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me,

⁴And 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.

⁵And 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.

⁶And thy issue, which thou begettest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheritance.

⁷And 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 Beth-lehem.

⁸And Israel beheld Joseph’s sons, and said, Who are these?

⁹And 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.

¹⁰Now 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.

¹¹And Israel said unto Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face: and, lo, God hath shewed me also thy seed.

¹²And Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth.

¹³And 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.

¹⁴And 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; for Manasseh was the firstborn.

¹⁵And 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,

¹⁶The 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.

¹⁷And 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.

¹⁸And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head.

¹⁹And 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.

²⁰And 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.

²¹And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers.

²²Moreover 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.

This page shows the King James Version. In the app, reading opens in the Berean Standard Bible unless you have chosen another translation. The reader includes five translations: the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), the King James Version (KJV), the World English Bible (WEB), the Bible in Basic English (BBE), and the American Standard Version (ASV). Search covers three of them: Berean Standard, King James, and World English. Basic English and American Standard readers search the King James words.

Historical context

The scene takes place at Jacob's sickbed. His recollection locates God's promise at Luz in Canaan and Rachel's burial on the road to Ephrath, identified as Bethlehem. He places Ephraim and Manasseh alongside Reuben and Simeon in family standing, while any later children of Joseph are to be reckoned under their brothers for inheritance. The text names Manasseh as firstborn and Ephraim as younger. Joseph arranges them to receive the expected hands, but Jacob's placement is deliberate despite his poor sight. In the cited King James wording, the final statement describes one additional portion taken from the Amorite with sword and bow. It is Jacob's statement; this chapter does not narrate the battle or identify its date.

Literary context

Memory and future expectation meet at the sickbed. Jacob recalls divine promise and Rachel's death before blessing the next generation. His dim eyesight might make the placement of his hands look mistaken, but his refusal of Joseph's correction explicitly makes it a knowing choice. Joseph's attempt to preserve the firstborn's position is answered with a prediction that both brothers will become peoples, while the younger will be greater. The naming formula puts Ephraim before Manasseh. Jacob's approaching death does not close the family's story: his final assurance looks toward God's presence and a return to the land of their fathers.

Cited passages: Genesis 48:1, Genesis 48:2, Genesis 48:3, Genesis 48:4, Genesis 48:5, Genesis 48:6, Genesis 48:7, Genesis 48:10, Genesis 48:11, Genesis 48:13, Genesis 48:14, Genesis 48:15, Genesis 48:16, Genesis 48:17, Genesis 48:18, Genesis 48:19, Genesis 48:20, Genesis 48:21, Genesis 48:22

Key moments

Jacob claims the two sons (Genesis 48:5). Jacob says Ephraim and Manasseh will be his, like Reuben and Simeon.
Jacob crosses his hands deliberately (Genesis 48:14). His right hand rests on younger Ephraim and his left on firstborn Manasseh.
Jacob refuses the correction (Genesis 48:19). He says he knows the birth order and predicts greatness for both, with the younger greater.
Jacob points toward return (Genesis 48:21). Jacob says he is dying but that God will be with the family and bring them back to their fathers' land.

For reflection

What does Jacob's answer to Joseph add to the meaning of the crossed hands?

People in this chapter

Also indexed here: