Jacob Blesses Ephraim and Manasseh

48:1 After these things Joseph was told, “Your father is weakening.” So he took his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim with him. 48:2 When Jacob was told, “Your son Joseph has just come to you,” Israel regained strength and sat up on his bed. 48:3 Jacob said to Joseph, “The sovereign God appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me. 48:4 He said to me, ‘I am going to make you fruitful and will multiply you. I will make you into a group of nations, and I will give this land to your descendants as an everlasting possession.’ 48:5 “Now, as for your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, they will be mine. Ephraim and Manasseh will be mine just as Reuben and Simeon are. 48:6 Any children that you father after them will be yours; they will be listed under the names of their brothers in their inheritance. 48:7 But as for me, when I was returning from Paddan, Rachel died – to my sorrow – in the land of Canaan. It happened along the way, some distance from Ephrath. So I buried her there on the way to Ephrath” (that is, Bethlehem). 48:8 When Israel saw Joseph’s sons, he asked, “Who are these?” 48:9 Joseph said to his father, “They are the sons God has given me in this place.” His father said, “Bring them to me so I may bless them.” 48:10 Now Israel’s eyes were failing because of his age; he was not able to see well. So Joseph brought his sons near to him, and his father kissed them and embraced them. 48:11 Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected to see you again, but now God has allowed me to see your children too.” 48:12 So Joseph moved them from Israel’s knees and bowed down with his face to the ground. 48:13 Joseph positioned them; he put Ephraim on his right hand across from Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh on his left hand across from Israel’s right hand. Then Joseph brought them closer to his father. 48:14 Israel stretched out his right hand and placed it on Ephraim’s head, although he was the younger. Crossing his hands, he put his left hand on Manasseh’s head, for Manasseh was the firstborn. 48:15 Then he blessed Joseph and said, “May the God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked – the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day, 48:16 the Angel who has protected me from all harm – bless these boys. May my name be named in them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac. May they grow into a multitude on the earth.” 48:17 When Joseph saw that his father placed his right hand on Ephraim’s head, it displeased him. So he took his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. 48:18 Joseph said to his father, “Not so, my father, for this is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head.” 48:19 But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He too will become a nation and he too will become great. In spite of this, his younger brother will be even greater and his descendants will become a multitude of nations.” 48:20 So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you will Israel bless, saying, ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’” So he put Ephraim before Manasseh. 48:21 Then Israel said to Joseph, “I am about to die, but God will be with you and will bring you back to the land of your fathers. 48:22 As one who is above your brothers, I give to you the mountain slope, which I took from the Amorites with my sword and my bow.”

Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible®, copyright ©1996, 2019 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Jacob is near death, but he remembers God’s covenant promise. He adopts Joseph’s two sons as his own and blesses them. He gives the greater blessing to Ephraim, the younger son, showing that God’s choice is not controlled by birth order. Jacob then tells Joseph that God will be with him and will bring his family back to the promised land.

Joseph brings his sons to Jacob because Jacob is weak and near death. But when Jacob hears that Joseph has come, he gathers his strength for this final act. He first remembers the promise God gave him at Luz. God said he would make Jacob fruitful, multiply him, and give the land to his descendants forever. Jacob stands on that promise, not on his own feelings.

Then Jacob does something important. He takes Ephraim and Manasseh as his own sons. This means they will stand among Israel’s tribes like Reuben and Simeon. Joseph will receive a double share through them. Jacob also remembers Rachel’s death on the road back to the land, which shows how deeply he still belongs to Canaan and not to Egypt.

When Joseph brings the boys near, Jacob cannot see well because of his age. Joseph carefully places the boys so that the right hand will go on Manasseh, the firstborn. But Jacob crosses his hands and puts the greater blessing on Ephraim, the younger son. Joseph objects, but Jacob says he knows what he is doing. Manasseh will also become great, but Ephraim will be greater.

Jacob blesses the boys by calling on the God who has led his fathers, cared for him like a shepherd, and protected him from harm. He asks that the boys carry the names of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and grow into a great people on the earth. This blessing is not magic. It is a covenant blessing rooted in God’s own promise.

The chapter ends with Jacob telling Joseph that he is about to die, but God will be with him and will bring him back to the land of his fathers. Jacob also gives Joseph a special share of land. The main message is clear: God rules over blessing, inheritance, and the future of his people.

• God’s promises stand even when Jacob is weak and dying.
• Jacob ties the blessing of the next generation to the covenant promise given at Luz.
• Ephraim and Manasseh are adopted into Jacob’s own family and receive tribal standing in Israel.
• God is free to give greater honor to the younger son.
• Jacob confesses that God has been his shepherd and protector all his life.
• Joseph’s family is still bound to the promised land, not to Egypt.
• God will be with Joseph and will bring his line back to the land of his fathers.

• Promise: God will make Jacob fruitful and give the land to his descendants.
• Promise: God will be with Joseph and bring him back to the land.
• Warning: Do not treat blessing as a fixed rule that human custom controls.
• Warning: Do not turn the crossed hands into a mystical technique.
• Command: Remember and trust God’s covenant promises.
• Command: Bless and speak in line with God’s purposes, not merely with human expectation.

This passage stands in the patriarchal covenant line. Jacob passes the Abrahamic promise to the next generation by adopting Joseph’s sons and blessing them. The younger receiving the greater blessing fits a pattern already seen in Genesis, where God works according to his own choice. The chapter also keeps the land promise central and looks ahead to Israel’s future return to Canaan.

When life is near its end or when plans seem uncertain, God’s promises still stand. Believers should trust God’s choice rather than human status or custom. Parents and leaders should speak with faith, remembering that God controls the future of the family and the people of God.

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