Genesis
48
1 “And 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.” And it came
to pass after these things (i.e. the events recorded in the preceding chapter, and in
particular after the arrangements
which had been made for Jacob s funeral), that
one told Joseph, - the verb וַלֺיּאמֶר is here used impersonally, or passively, for
"one told," or "it
was told," to Joseph (Septuagint, ἀπεγγέλη – apeggelae – someone
said; Vulgate, munciatum est; Rosenmüller, Keil, Kalisch, Murphy, et alii); or
probably emphatically, by way of calling attention to the circumstance - denoting
perhaps a special messenger (Tayler Lewis). Behold, thy father is sick. The word
in the original conveys the idea of being worn down or becoming infirm through
age or disease, and may suggest the notion that Jacob was now regarded as
rapidly approaching dissolution. And
he took with him his two sons, Manasseh
and Ephraim - who at this time must have been about eighteen or twenty years
of age (Keil), and who appear to have accompanied their father from respectful
affection to their aged relative (Murphy), or to have been taken in the hope
that "the words of their blessed grandfather would make an indelible
impression on their hearts (Lawson), rather than in order to obtain from
Jacob "a pledge of their unqualified admission as members of his house,"
of their exclusion from which Joseph was not altogether groundlessly
apprehensive, in consequence of their being the children of an Egyptian
mother (Kalisch).
1 “And one told Jacob, and said, Behold, thy son
Joseph cometh unto thee:
and
(וַיַּגֵּד, also used impersonally, like וַלֺיּאמֶר
in v. 1), and said, Behold, thy son
Joseph cometh unto thee: and
it is impossible to overlook (compare ch. 45:27-28) - strengthened himself
(for the work which, as head of the theocratic family, he now felt himself
inwardly moved to perform), and sat upon the bed - i.e. he raised himself
up to a sitting posture.
3 “And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared
unto me at Luz in
the
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.”
And Jacob said unto Joseph, - recalling the experiences of
early days –
God Almighty - El Shaddai (see ch. 17:1) - appeared unto me at Luz - i.e.
and 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. It is obvious that Jacob
principally has in his mind the theophany at
Padan-aram.
5 “And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which
were born unto
thee in the
Reuben and Simeon,
they shall be mine. 6 And
thy issue, which thou
begettest
after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after
the name
of their brethren in their inheritance.” And now
thy two sons, Ephraim
and Manasseh, which were born unto
thee in the
before I came unto thee into
Jacob knew of Joseph's having had sons born to him since his (Jacob's) arrival
at
an equal place with the other
members of my family); as Reuben and Simeon,
they shall be mine - literally, Ephraim and Manasseh, as Reuben and Simeon,
shall be mine. The double portion thus conferred upon Joseph in the persons
of his son? was
a practical investiture of him with the birthright of
which
Reuben had been deprived (I Chronicles 5:1), in respect at least of the
inheritance; in respect of the honor of being the next connecting link in the
chain of redemption, leading on and down to the coming of the Savior,
the birthright appears to have been
transferred to
And thy issue, which thou begettest after them, shall be thine (i.e. shall
be reckoned in thine
own family), and shall be called after the name of
their brethren in their inheritance. They should not form heads of separate
tribes, but be ranked under the banners of Ephraim and Manasseh. It is
uncertain whether Joseph had more sons than two; if he had, they were
included in the families of their brethren, as here directed (compare
Numbers 26:28-37; I Chronicles 7:14-29).
7 “And as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died by me in the land
of
Ephrath: and I buried her there in the way of Ephrath; the same is
And as for me (literally, and I, the pronoun being emphatic), when
I came from
Padan, - literally, in my coming, i.e. while on my journey, from Padam, or
Padan-aram. This is the only place where the shorter designation is employed
(compare ch. 25:20) - Rachel - the mention to Joseph of his beloved mother
could not fail to kindle emotion in his breast, as obviously it had revived a
pang of sorrow in that of the old man - " the remembrance of the never-to-be-
forgotten one' causing a sudden spasm of feeling" (Delitzsch) - died by me –
not for me in the sense of sharing with me my toils and perils, and so bringing
on herself the deadly travail which cut her off (Lunge), which is too subtle
and metaphysical in its refinement; but either upon me, i.e. as an heavy
affliction falling on me (Rosenmüller, Gesenius, Murphy, et alii); or at my
side, i.e. near me (Keil, Wordsworth, 'Speaker's Commentary'); or perhaps
to me, meaning, This happened to me, or, I saw Rachel die (Kalisch); or
possibly with a touch of tender emotion, Rachel to me, i.e. my Rachel died
(Tayler Lewis) - in the
a little way - literally,
a length of ground; the Septuagint add ἱππόδρομος –
ippodromos - , meaning probably such a distance as a horse can go without
being over-worked (see ch. 35:16) - to come unto Ephrath:
and I buried her
there in the way of Ephrath; the same is
8 “And
The failing sight of the patriarch (v. 10) probably was the reason why he did
not sooner recognize his grandchildren, and the fact that he did not at first
discern their presence shows that his adoption of them into the number of the
theocratic family was prompted not by the accidental impulse of a natural
affection excited through beholding
the youths, but by the inward promptings
of the Spirit of God.
9 “And 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.” And Joseph said unto his father, They are my sons
(of whom you have just spoken), whom God hath given me in this place.
It speaks highly in Joseph's favor that, after listening to Jacob s promise
regarding Ephraim and Manasseh, he did not seek to draw his aged father's
attention to the young men before him, but quietly waited for Jacob to take
the initiative in any further communications of a personal nature that he
might wish to address to them. And
he (i.e. Jacob) said Bring them, I pray
thee, unto me, and I will bless them.
10 “Now the eyes of
he brought them near unto him; and he kissed
them, and embraced them.”
Now (literally, and) the eyes of
that he could not see. This explains why he did not earlier recognize his
grandchildren, and why he asked them to be set close by his bed. And he
(their father) brought them near unto him; and he (their old grandfather)
kissed them, and embraced them (compare Isaac's blessing of Jacob,
ch. 27:26-27).
11
God
(Elohim)
hath shewed me
also thy seed.” The first half of
utterance is rendered by the
Septuagint. "Ιδοὺ
τοῦ ῞προωσ´που σου οὐκ
ἐστερήθην
– Idou tou proos’pou
sou ouk esteraethaen
– I didn’t think
I would see your face.
12 “And Joseph brought them out from between his
knees, and he bowed
himself with his face to the earth.” And
Joseph brought them out from
between his knees (literally, from near his knees, i.e. the knees of his father,
who while in the act of embracing had drawn them into that position), and he
(viz. Joseph) bowed himself with his face to the earth. The reading "and they
bowed themselves," i.e. Ephraim and Manasseh (Samaritan, Michaelis), and
the rendering καὶ προσκύνησαν
αὐτῴ - kai proskunaesan auto – and he
bowed himself (Septuagint), are incorrect.
13 “And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right
hand toward
left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward
brought them near unto him.” Joseph naturally expected that Jacob s right
hand would fall upon the head of Manasseh, as the firstborn, although with
regard to even this a doubt might have been suggested if he had remembered
how Isaac had been preferred to
Ishmael, and Jacob to Esau.
14 “And
who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh's
head, guiding his
hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the
firstborn.” And
his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim's head, - the first instance of the
imposition of hands being used as a symbol of blessing. Though not necessarily
connected with the form of benediction, it is not without a natural fitness to
suggest the transmission of spiritual benefit. Accordingly it afterwards became
the recognized mode of conveying to another some supernatural power or gift,
and was employed in the Old Testament Church in the dedication of priests
(Numbers 27:18, 23; Deuteronomy 34:9), and in the New in the ordination of
Christian office-bearers (Acts 6:6; 8:17; I Timothy 4:14; II Timothy 1:6),
as well as by the Savior and His apostles in the performance of many of their
miracles (Matthew 19:13; Mark 8:23,
25; Acts 9:17; 19:6; 28:8) - who was the
younger (literally, and he
the little one, i.e. the younger), and his left hand upon
Manasseh's head, guiding his hands wittingly; - literally, he placed his hands,
prudently, i.e. of set purpose, the piel of שָׂכַל, to look at, conveying the intensive
signification of acting with prudence and deliberation (Gesenius, Furst);
intelligere fecit manus suas hoc est, docte, scite, et petite imposuit eis manus
(Vatablus, see Glass. 'Phil Tract.,' p. 761); a rendering of the words which has
been adopted by the best scholars (Calvin, Dathe, Rosenmüller, Keil, Kalisch,
Murphy, Taylor Lewis, and others), though the translation, "he crossed his hands,"
which regards שִׂכֵּל
as the pile of an unused root signifying to intertwine, ἐναλλὰξ
τὰς χεῖρας – enallax tas cheiras – was the firstborn (Septuagint), commutans marius
(Vulgate), is not entirely destitute of learned supporters (Targums of Jonathan and
the firstborn.
15 “And 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, 16 The 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. And he blessed Joseph (i.e. in his sons), and said, God,
- literally, the Elohim. The use of Elohim in a passage (vs. 15-19) which is
undoubtedly Jehovistic in its import, and is by advanced critics (Davidson,
Colenso) assigned to that writer, has been explained (Hengstenberg) as an
indication that "the great spiritual Sun, Jehovah, was at that time," viz., at
the entrance of the captivity, "concealed behind a cloud from the chosen race;"
but, without resorting to any such doubtful hypothesis, it is sufficient to observe
that Jacob practically identities the Elohim spoken of with Jehovah, while by
using the former expression he conveys the thought that the blessing about to
be pronounced proceeded forth, not from Deity in general, but from the
particular Elohim who had graciously manifested Himself in the manner
after described - before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, -
(compare ch. 17:1; 24:40) the God here referred to was one who had "a face,"
or manifested presence; in other words, was Jehovah - the God which fed me –
literally, the Elohim shepherding me (compare Psalm 23:1; 28:9) - all my life long –
literally, from as yet (I was), i.e. from the beginning of my existence, ἐξ νεότητος –
ex neotaetos - (Septuagint) - unto this day, the Angel - the Maleach here spoken
of cannot possibly be a creature, since He is explicitly identified with Elohim,
but must have been the Jehovah Angel with whom Jacob wrestled at the ford
of Jabbok (ch. 32:23-29). The reading of the Samaritan codex, הַמֶּלֶך, the king,
is open to suspicion - which redeemed me from all evil, - literally, the (angel)
redeeming me; the first use of the term goel, from גָּאַל, to buy back or redeem
(Gesenius), to separate or untie (Furst), or to stain as with blood, hence to be
stained or polluted, as one who suffers a kinsman's blood to go unavenged,
hence to remove the stain of blood by taking vengeance on the murderer
(Taylor Lewis). Applied under the law to the next of kin (Leviticus 25:25;
27:13, 15, 19, &c., &c.), it is also
used of God redeeming men, and especially
by Jacob (compare v.16 with ch. 49:18) and by Job (Job 19:21) to describe the
Divine Rescuer who had delivered them from
ill both temporal and spiritual,
and who was to complete His emancipating work by ultimately
ransoming
them FROM THE POWER OF THE GRAVE! The Goel to whom both Jacob
and Job looked forward, and of whom both Moses and the prophets testified, was
Christ (Galatians 3:11; Titus 2:14; I Peter 1:18) - bless the lads. The singular verb
suggests to Luther the reflection
that the writer "conjungit
in uno opere benedicendi
tres personas, Deum Patrem, Deum Pastorem, et Angelum," from which he draws
the obvious conclusion, "aunt igitur
hi tres unus Deus et unus benedictor." And
let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac;
literally, and my name and the name of my fathers shall be named in them, i.e.
they shall be counted my sons and the children of my ancestors, though born of
thee (Calvin, Rosenmüller, Lawson, Murphy, Wordsworth, and others); or, May
this name be preserved by them, and the race of Abraham propagated by them?
may the fathers and I live in them! (Gerlach, Kalisch); or, what seems more
appropriate than either, May the grace and salvation enjoyed by my fathers
and myself be renewed in them! (Keil, Lange) - and let
them grow into a
multitude in the midst of the earth. The original conveys the sense of swarming
like the fishes of the sea, the ἀπαξ λεγόμενον – apax legomenon – one time use,
דָּגָה (from which comes the term דָּג, a fish, from being so wonderfully prolific),
signifying to cover over with a multitude.
The Threefold Blessing (vs. 15-16)
Though the doctrine of the Trinity is not
revealed in the Old Testament
with the same clearness as in the New Testament,
the light of the gospel
reveals many indications of it. In Numbers 6:24, 27,
the “name”
of God
is put upon the children of
we know of the person named. The “name”
of God is what He has revealed
concerning Himself (compare Exodus 34:5-7; Psalm 20:1).
The threefold
benediction of Numbers 6:24 (compare Isaiah 6:3; Revelation
4:8) answers to
the apostolic benediction of II Corinthians 13:14.
And Jacob’s solemn blessing
of his grandsons in a threefold name of God, answers
to the formula of Christian
baptism (Matthew 28:19) into (εἰς – eis - into) the name of the Trinity; while the
word “bless,” being in the singular, points
to the unity of the Godhead. Whether
the distinction of the Persons was known to Jacob
matters little to us, if we believe that
“these things were written for our learning.” (I Corinthians 10:11 – which adds
“upon whom the ends of the world are come.” - CY – 2019)
His prophetic
blessing speaks to us of:
the blessings which we refer to the three Persons.
The order of the two last is
different from that which we usually observe; but
compare I Corinthians 1:30.
“God
before whom my fathers did walk.” The
well-spring of all grace and source
of all blessing. Of His own inherent love, caring for us (I
Peter 5:7). His purpose,
that we should
rejoice
in hope (Romans 12:12); having communion with
Him HERE (Philippians 4:6-7), the
foretaste of ETERNAL JOY! Creation is the
proof of this good will (Psalm 19:1). The infinity of His power, and
minuteness of His care. The application of this to
us (Matthew 10:29-31).
The Bible and nature agree in
declaring GOD’S FATHERHOOD! On this
rests the call to walk before Him (Genesis 17:1; Malachi 1:6), which
can be obeyed only through belief of His
fatherhood and love (Romans 8:3).
Therefore He gives the spirit of adoption (ibid. v.15), the personal application
of the general truth of His love, whereby we
realize our position as children
by grace (Titus 3:5). “The
God which fed me.” The Holy Ghost imparts
to men the bread of life:
flesh as the living bread.
conscience (John 16:14); we receive the food of our
souls. This is the
way of sanctification.
It cannot be enforced by rules or penalties. However
these may constrain outward observance, they cannot
bring about the
surrender of the will, the desire “Thy will be done,” is the principle
of HOLINESS!
“The angel which redeemed me from
all evil.” Reminds
us of Psalm 91:11, and probably some such idea
was in Jacob’s mind. But
there is a foresight of
Christ, the Angel of the covenant (Malachi 3:1),
in whom God’s name is (Exodus 23:20); of a redemption going far
beyond earthly danger; “all
evil” From sin and all
its fruits of sorrow
CHRIST REDEEMED US (Romans 6:14; Galatians
3:18). Jacob, from
his
own experience, knew that “God is faithful.” (Have you experienced
His
faithfulness? CY – 2019) To us, a wider view of deliverance
is
given. And the
pledge of God’s faithfulness is “He that spared not
His
own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with
Him
also freely give us ALL THINGS?” Romans 8:32; and the assurance
that it gives us.
17 “And 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.” And when (literally, and)
Joseph saw that his father laid (or was laying) his right
hand upon the head
of Ephraim, it displeased him: - literally, and it was evil in his eyes (compare
ch. 28:8) - and (supposing his father had made a mistake) he held up (or took
hold of) his father's hand, to remove it
from Ephraim's head unto Manasseh's
head.
18 “And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn;
put thy right hand upon his head.” "From Joseph's behavior we cannot certainly
infer that, like Isaac, he loved the firstborn better than the youngest; but he was
sorry that an honor was not given to the eldest which he would naturally expect,
and bestowed on the youngest, who did not expect it, and who would not have
been hurt by the want of it" (Lawson).
19 “And 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.”
And 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 (literally,
and over against that; אוּלָם, the strongly adversative particle, signifying that
which stands in front of, or
opposite to, another thing) his younger brother
shall be greater than he (compare Numbers 1:33 with Numbers 1:35; 2:19
with Numbers 2:21), and his seed shall become a multitude of nations –
literally, shall be a fullness of nations. In the time of Moses this prediction
began to realize itself. In the first census which took place in the wilderness
the tribe of Ephraim had 40,500 men, while that of Manasseh could only
reckon 32,200; in the second the numbers received a temporary alteration,
Ephraim counting only 32,500, and Manasseh 52,700; but after the conquest
the ascendancy of Ephraim was restored, so that she easily assumed the lead
among the ten northern tribes, and acquired a name and an influence only
second to that of
20 “And he blessed them that day, saying, In thee shall
God make thee as
Ephraim and as Manasseh: and he set Ephraim before
Manasseh.” And he (i.e. Jacob) blessed them that day, saying, In thee (i.e. in
Joseph, who is still identified with his sons) shall
God (Elohim, the supreme source of all blessing) make
thee as Ephraim and
as Manasseh: and he set Ephraim before Manasseh - "in the position of his
hands, and the terms of the
blessing" (Keil).
21 “And
with you, and bring you again unto the land of
your fathers.”
For Joseph and his children this was a great promise and dispensation.
22 “Moreover 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.” Moreover
(literally, and) I have given - or, I give (Keil), I will give (Kalisch), the preterit
being used prophetically as a future, or even as a present, the event being regarded,
from its certainty, as already accomplished. It is thus not absolutely clear that Jacob
here alludes to any past transaction in his own personal history - to thee one portion –
literally, one shoulder, or ridge, or elevated tract of land, שְׁכֶם; unam pattern (Vulgate),
with which
agree several of the ancient versions (Onkelos, Syriac) - above thy brethren,
which I took - or take (Keil), or shall take (Kalisch) - out of the hand of the Amorite –
a general
name for the inhabitants of
with my bow. As Scripture has preserved no account of any military exploit in
the history of Jacob such as is here described, the patriarch's language has been
understood as referring to the plot of ground at Shechem which Jacob purchased
of Hamor the father of Shechem (ch. 33:19), and as signifying either that he had
captured it by sword and bow, in the sense that his sons at the head of his armed
retainers had put the inhabitants of the town to the sword, and so taken possession
of the entire district (Calvin, Rosenmüller, Murphy); or that, though he had
peacefully paid for it, he yet required at a subsequent period to recover it by
force of arms from the Canaanites (Lawson, Bush, Wordsworth); or that after
the terrible tragedy at Shechem, when God put a fear upon the surrounding
cities, Jacob and his sons stood in the gate of Shechem in the armed expectation
of a hostile attack, and so may be said to have taken it by sword and bow
(Rabbi Solomon, Lyra, Willet). It seems, however, better to regard the words
as a
prophetic utterance pointing forward to the conquest of
Jacob here represents himself, in the persons of his descendants, as taking from
the Amorites by means of sword and bow, and as intimating that the tribes of
Ephraim and Manasseh would receive a double portion of the inheritance,
the word שְׁכֶם being probably designed to convey a hint that the tract to be
in future assigned to Joseph's descendants would be the region round about
the ancient city Shechem (Ainsworth, Keil, Kalisch, Lunge, &c.).
Jacob’s Dying Utterances (vs. 1-22)
one told Joseph, Behold, thy father is sick.” In this the venerable patriarch:
Ø
Suffered an experience that is common to all. For nearly a century and
a half had this weather-beaten pilgrim been able to
maintain himself
erect amid the numberless vicissitudes of life. Strong,
healthy, vigorous,
and active too, he appears to have been until now, notwithstanding
the
peculiarly trying and checkered career through which he had
passed. But
all the while, the rolling years, as
they glided softly by, had been touching
him with their invisible fingers,
and leaving on him their ineffaceable
impressions, imperceptibly
but surely relaxing his corded muscles,
whitening and diminishing
his manly locks, loosening his joints, making his
step less lithe and
firm, and generally draining away his strength. And now,
at length, he had arrived where all men must, sooner or later, come, if they
have a death-bed at all, no
matter how bright may be their eye, or how
ruddy their countenance, or how stalwart
their frame, or how Herculean
their strength, to that period of infirmity and sickness that precedes
dissolution.
Ø
Enjoyed a
privilege accorded to few. Immediately that he had fallen
sick, a messenger, dispatched from
viceregal palace in the great
metropolis, and Joseph, his beloved son,
accompanied by his two boys, Ephraim and Manasseh, at once
descended
to express his sympathy and lend his aid. Not to many is it granted, in this
world of separations and bereavements, to have all their
family around
them when they breathe their last, or to have their
Josephs even, to put
their hands upon the sinking eyelids, and gently close them
in the sleep of
death. Venerable pilgrim! Much afflicted in thy riper
years, thou wast
greatly comforted in thy latter days.
arrival, the aged father musters his rapidly failing
strength, and, recognizing
within his withered bosom the stirrings of the old
prophetic spirit, prepares
himself, by sitting upright in his bed, for delivering
whatever
communication should be put into his trembling lips. Casting his thoughts
back upon the past with that fond delight with which the aged recall the
story of their younger years, he relates to Joseph:
Ø
How El Shaddai had appeared to him at Luz, or
Canaan,
as he returned from
Ø
What God had promised him on that memorable
occasion, that he
should grow into a multitude of people, who should
eventually possess the
land, adding by way of parenthesis, at this stage, that in
view of that
inheritance to come he intended to adopt the sons of Joseph as
his own;
and:
Ø
The great affliction that had happened to him almost
immediately after
in the loss of Rachel, Joseph’s mother, to whose
premature death and
affecting burial “in the way of Ephrath”
the old man, even at that long
distance of time, cannot refer without emotion. “As for me, Rachel died
upon me in the
already referred to Joseph’s sons, he had not yet been
conscious of their
presence, for “the eyes of
see.” At length, however, discerning unfamiliar forms in the chamber, and
ascertaining they were Ephraim and Manasseh, he proceeds to
give them
his patriarchal benediction.
Ø
The actions of the patriarch.
o
Requesting his grandchildren to be brought to his bedside, he
tenderlyembraces them, and kisses them with
all an old man’s
affection, at the same time giving
special thanks to Elohim
for His
superabundant mercy in permitting him to see Joseph’s
sons, and his
beloved Rachel’s offspring.
o
Guiding his hands wittingly, he sets them crosswise upon his
grandsons’ heads, the right hand upon that of Ephraim, the
younger, and the left hand upon that of Manasseh, the elder.
Supposing
that the patriarch had erred, Joseph endeavors,
by changing his father’s hands, to rectify the mistake,
saying,
“Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right
hand upon his head.” But the old man replies, thinking perhaps
at the moment of himself and Esau, when they came before
Isaac
for his blessing, “I know it, my son, I know it,” but
refuses to
comply with his son’s suggestion.
Ø
The contents of the blessing.
o
The blessing
upon Ephraim.
This was the heirship of the theocratic
blessing, the right of primogemture,
the place and power of the
firstborn. “Truly his younger brother shall be greater
than he,
and his seed shall become a multitude of nations.”
o
The blessing
upon Manasseh.
“He
also shall become a people,
and he also shall be great.”
o
The blessing
upon both. “The
angel who redeemed me from all evil
bless the lads” — a promise of spiritual blessing for themselves; and
“In thee shall
with others.
o
The blessing
upon Joseph.
Joseph was blessed in the blessing of his
sons, by their adoption into Jacob s family, — “My
name shall be
named upon them, and the name of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac;”
and by their reception of a double portion of
the inheritance, —
“Moreover, 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.”
be with you, and bring you again into the land of
your fathers.”
Ø
The time when it was uttered. When Jacob was on the eve of death.
It
is not at all improbable that the soul’s vision of unseen (celestial
and future) things becomes clearer as the obscuring veil
of this mortal
flesh wears thin; but the power of apprehending things to
come, which
Jacob
in this instance displayed, was not due to such intensified spiritual
penetration. Neither is it necessary to suppose that he received
at this
moment any special supernatural communication. Simply, he directed
his dying gaze to THE SURE WORD OF
PROMISE!
Ø
The substance of what it said. It announced nothing more than God
already promised, viz., that He
would continue with Jacob’s descendants
in
Ø
The guarantee to
which it pointed. This was implicitly contained in the
expression, “the land of your fathers.”
to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob; and hence of necessity
it would
ultimately be restored to their seed according to
the terms of the covenant.
We have been admitted into the inner chamber of
the patriarch’s departing life, and
we see there the presence of
Jehovah with him. He is:
purposes which have been swaying him all his life.
grandchildren. The blessing passes on to the third and
fourth generation.
Yet the human
blessing is only the type of the Divine.
“The angel which
redeemed me from all evil bless the lads.” Jacob made a
cross with his hands over the heads of the boys. It
displeased Joseph, but it
pleased God. The imposition of hands is also here. The
name of Jacob is
named upon them, the symbol of the covenant. Their
prosperity is
predicted, but it is connected immediately with their
covenant standing.
The elevated state of mind in the patriarch is a testimony to the sustaining
power of religion in fleshly weakness. It points on too to the survival of the
soul after the death of the body. The preference of
Ephraim reminds us that
ALL IS ASCRIBED TO THE GRACE OF GOD!
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