Genesis 48:1-7 – Adopted as God’s children to inherit His blessing.

Amazingly when Jacob drew closer to his death, his perspective concerning the future of his descendants became clearer. He knew within his heart that his people would one day return to Canaan and claim that land. That was why he made Joseph pledged to take his bones back to Canaan. We surmise that by faith he foresaw his people returning to Canaan one day. In verse 1 we learn that when Joseph heard that Jacob, his father was sick, he quickly brought his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim to visit their grandfather. They came in expectation to receive a blessing from the old patriarch. And when Jacob heard that Joseph had come to visit him he mustered some strength and sat up in bed.

Remember, the two sons of Joseph were half-Egyptians. In coming to Jacob with his two sons, Joseph was identifying them with the people of God. Their association with Israel would eventually cut them from their Egyptian inheritance. In reality, they had made a stand to identify with shepherds whom the Egyptian loathed. As Joseph and his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim stood before Jacob, the patriarch then began to recall the promise God made to him. The promise was first made to him at Luz, the old name for Bethel. There the Lord said to him, “Behold, I will make you fruitful and numerous, and I will make you a company of peoples, and will give this land to your descendants after you for an everlasting possession.”

God had actually appeared to Jacob twice at Luz. The first time, recorded in Genesis 28:12-14, was when he was running away from Esau. God appeared to him in a dream where he saw a ladder reaching up from earth to heaven with the angels of God ascending and descending. And standing on top of the ladder was the Lord. It was at this first encounter, God also promised that his descendants will be as numerous as dusts of the earth and that He would be with him in his journey. The second time God appeared to him at Luz recorded in Genesis 35:11-15 was twenty-years later. In this second encounter at Bethel his name was changed from Jacob to Israel. And God reiterated the promise saying:

“I am God Almighty;
Be fruitful and multiply;
A nation and a company of nations shall come from you,
And kings shall come forth from you.
“The land which I gave to Abraham and Isaac,
I will give it to you,
And I will give the land to your descendants after you.”

The whole purpose of Jacob recalling this promise was to indicate that as heir to that promise, he had the right to decide who to perpetuate that blessing. He was establishing his authority to bestow the blessing. With that in mind, Israel then made known his intention in verse 5.  He said to Joseph, “Now your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine, as Reuben and Simeon are.” What did he mean? He was literally making Ephraim and Manasseh, his grandsons, his very own sons. And in mentioning Reuben and Simeon, he was literally displacing them as son number one and son number two in preference to Ephraim and Manasseh. The reasons were briefly explained in 1 Chronicles 5:1-2 “Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel (for he was the firstborn, but because he defiled his father’s bed, his birth-right was given to the sons of Joseph the son of Israel; so that he is not enrolled in the genealogy according to the birth-right. Though Judah prevailed over his brothers, and from him came the leader, yet the birth-right belonged to Joseph).”  Verse 6 then suggests that Jacob anticipated what Joseph would ask, so he made known that his other children will be apportioned their inheritance with Ephraim and Manasseh. So he said, “But your offspring that have been born after them shall be yours; they shall be called by the names of their brothers in their inheritance.” In other words, Joseph’s other children would be incorporated into the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh.

Joseph as we know was the son of Rachel, the wife whom Jacob loved most. In some way Joseph was very much like his mother, and this caused Jacob to recount a painful memory in verse 7. He recalled the death of Rachel, saying, “Now as for me, when I came from Paddan, Rachel died, to my sorrow, in the land of Canaan on the journey, when there was still some distance to go to Ephrath; and I buried her there on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).” Rachel was deeply loved by Jacob and to marry her, he had worked 14 years for Laban. Her death was untimely and was not buried in the family tomb. So Joseph, Rachel’s firstborn, could extend her line by giving his sons to Jacob as direct heirs.

For Ephraim and Manasseh to fully inherit the blessings, they had to identify with God and His people. Jacob knew that. So he formally adopted them so that they could share in the full inheritance as his sons. Similarly, God knew that for us to inherit His blessing, we need to become his sons and daughters. And He adopted us as His children through the works of Christ the Lord. We are told in Ephesians 1:5 that “In love He (God) predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will.” And this adoption places us with rights and privileges to obtain God’s glorious inheritance.  As children of God we need not entertain fear any more. We can be brave and live boldly for God daily!