The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Genesis 49:28,
"All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said to them when he blessed them, giving each the blessing appropriate to him."
The twelve tribes of Israel comprise the chosen nation of Israel. A very important part of the blessing for the chosen nation would be the distribution of the promised land. Jacob's blessings here allude to some of that, even if somewhat vaguely.
Jacob adopted (appropriated?) Joseph's two sons that were born to him prior to Jacob coming to Egypt. We read, "Now then, your [Joseph's] two sons born to you in Egypt before I [Jacob] came to you here will be reckoned as mine; Ephraim and Manasseh will be mine, just as Reuben and Simeon are mine. Any children born to you after them will be yours; in the territory they inherit they will be reckoned under the names of their brothers." Genesis 48:5-6.
However, in the gathering of Jacob's sons for their blessings from him and to hear his last words, there is no mention of Ephraim and Manasseh. Perhaps it is due to the blessings they received from Jacob earlier as we read in Genesis 48. Chapter 49 begins with Jacob calling for his sons to gather around him, "Gather around so I can tell you what will happen to you in days to come."
All twelve of Jacob's sons are represented in this setting but not Ephraim and Manasseh. However, we do see Ephraim and Manasseh represented in the distribution of the promised land 400 years later following Israel's exodus from Egypt.
When the land was divided, twelve tribes were given land. Ten of Jacob's original sons were represented. Levi did not receive any land as they were chosen for the priesthood and were to live in various areas that belonged to the other tribes. Joseph, as a tribe, was represented by both Ephraim and Manasseh, resulting in twelve tribes being granted in the distribution of the promised land. In this way Jacob's adoption of Ephraim and Manasseh was fulfilled.
Jacob's sons:
Reuben
Simeon
Levi
Judah
Zebulun
Issachar
Dan
Gad
Asher
Naphtali
Joseph
Benjamin
The tribes receiving portions in the promised land:
Reuben
Simeon
Judah
Zebulun
Issachar
Dan
Gad
Asher
Naphtali
Ephraim
"All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father said to them when he blessed them, giving each the blessing appropriate to him."
The twelve tribes of Israel comprise the chosen nation of Israel. A very important part of the blessing for the chosen nation would be the distribution of the promised land. Jacob's blessings here allude to some of that, even if somewhat vaguely.
Jacob adopted (appropriated?) Joseph's two sons that were born to him prior to Jacob coming to Egypt. We read, "Now then, your [Joseph's] two sons born to you in Egypt before I [Jacob] came to you here will be reckoned as mine; Ephraim and Manasseh will be mine, just as Reuben and Simeon are mine. Any children born to you after them will be yours; in the territory they inherit they will be reckoned under the names of their brothers." Genesis 48:5-6.
However, in the gathering of Jacob's sons for their blessings from him and to hear his last words, there is no mention of Ephraim and Manasseh. Perhaps it is due to the blessings they received from Jacob earlier as we read in Genesis 48. Chapter 49 begins with Jacob calling for his sons to gather around him, "Gather around so I can tell you what will happen to you in days to come."
All twelve of Jacob's sons are represented in this setting but not Ephraim and Manasseh. However, we do see Ephraim and Manasseh represented in the distribution of the promised land 400 years later following Israel's exodus from Egypt.
When the land was divided, twelve tribes were given land. Ten of Jacob's original sons were represented. Levi did not receive any land as they were chosen for the priesthood and were to live in various areas that belonged to the other tribes. Joseph, as a tribe, was represented by both Ephraim and Manasseh, resulting in twelve tribes being granted in the distribution of the promised land. In this way Jacob's adoption of Ephraim and Manasseh was fulfilled.
Jacob's sons:
Reuben
Simeon
Levi
Judah
Zebulun
Issachar
Dan
Gad
Asher
Naphtali
Joseph
Benjamin
The tribes receiving portions in the promised land:
Reuben
Simeon
Judah
Zebulun
Issachar
Dan
Gad
Asher
Naphtali
Ephraim
Manasseh
Benjamin
Benjamin
It is interesting to me that as view the various maps of the distribution of the promised land, Joseph's two sons received more than any of the others (almost half of the total!).
Just some observations here.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here: http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know. A blog with all my posts can be found here: http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/
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