And Jacob said unto Joseph, GOD Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me, 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. And 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.
And Israel said unto Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face: and, lo, GOD hath shewed me also thy seed. And Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth. And 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.
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 Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head. 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 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. (Gen 48:3-5, 11-13, 17-20)
Though it distressed Joseph to see it, Israel promoted Ephraim above Manasseh, and gave him the greater blessing. He also blessed both the sons of Joseph as his own, with a double portion to Joseph so that each son received a blessing from GOD, and inheritance from Israel, and from Joseph. This was indeed an honor, for it elevated the sons of Joseph to the same equivalent as the other sons of Israel. This blessing was carried out, not only in material inheritance, but in governing of the nation of Israel, and counting of the peoples. Whenever the tribes are counted and recorded, Ephraim and Manasseh are always listed as equal tribes with Judah and the rest, other than Levi because they were the priests.
GOD has a place for His people, and will put them and bless them where He wants them to be. Since His ways are above our ways, and His thoughts above our thoughts, our plans often don't line up with His, as Joseph observed here with his sons. But, we are to trust GOD, and when things aren't lining up, we are the ones who need to shift and realign our thinking with the Word of GOD. Nothing He says to us will ever contradict what He has already said, for He cannot lie, and He doesn't change. We have no inheritance in this world, but are blessed with grace by our Heavenly Father.
Just as He blessed the uneven horns of these two sons, so He will bless His own, according to His will and purposes. We are blessed in Christ. The main purpose He has for His people today, is for us to bless others so that they may see Him in us, the hope of Glory. We are to bless them in ministry to the hurting as He gives the increase. We are to disciple one another so that we may grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord through His Word. Most of all, we are to, as we go, proclaim the Good News of Salvation through faith in His finished and perfect work on the Cross of Calvary, so that those who hear might believe and believing have life in His Name.
For GOD is not willing that any should perish, but that all would come to repentance and the knowledge of the Truth. Jesus loves you and wants to establish a covenant relationship with you that is real and personal. Surrender to Him on His terms and He will give you a brand new life of discipleship and fellowship with Him that is abundant and everlasting. GOD took your place, and you must trust what He has already done for you to pay your sIn debt. Just as He provided for Israel and Egypt through Joseph, He has provided the only way of reconciliation with GOD with forgiveness and Salvation through Jesus Christ, the Son of GOD who is GOD the Son, to give you a new heart in Christ. Turn away from yourself and your sIn and turn to Him alone for eternal Life.
In Christ,
Jefferson Sweet
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