Genesis Chapter 48-49a– John Karmelich

1. If you knew you only had a few hours left to live, what message would you want to pass on to your children? Let’s say it was limited to one topic. What would that topic be? What would you’re last words be? (There’s an upbeat way to start a lesson! J)

a) The answer would have to do with whatever is most important to you. It probably won’t be a reminder to take out the trash. J It would probably be whatever values are most important to you.

2. These two chapters represent the end of Jacob’s life. He dies at the end of Chapter 49.

a) In a sense, this is Jacob’s “last will and testament”.

b) He gives final words to all 12 of his sons, plus some words to Joseph’s two sons.

c) A lot of what Jacob says is prophetic. It is not so much about the individuals as it is prophetic about what happens to the descendants of the 12 tribes of Israel.

d) In Chapter 48, most of the chapter is Jacob blessing the two sons of Joseph.

e) In Chapter 49, Jacob is pronouncing a blessing on each of his 12 sons.

f) Why Joseph’s sons get priority over Jacob’s sons will be discussed in a page or two!

i) In summary, Joseph gets a “double blessing” as if he was the first-born son.

ii) There are also lessons about certain people being “chosen” by God to have greater historical destinies than other.

3. I need to give some Jewish thoughts on the concept of “blessings”.

a) First of all, in Jewish thought, every person is a “father of a nation”. The same way each of the 12 brothers is the father of one of the tribes of Israel. There is a “thought” in Judaism that when you murder a person, you are murdering a nation as well. If you keep that in mind, you will understand that when Jacob is “blessing” each of the children, he is mainly talking about what will happen to the descendants.

b) Let’s think about this from the children’s perspective: A selfish child can think, “Yeah, yeah, my great, great great grandchildren will do this or that, who cares about them, what about me?

i) To answer that, one has to remember that many of the predictions tie to key events in the life of the brother. It is almost as if Jacob is saying, “You have this personality trait. That trait will be past down to your descendants and here are the long term effects of that personality trait.”

ii) The application is “actions have consequences”. When we sin, we may think, “OK, I’ve confessed it, I can move on.” In the aspect of forgiveness, it is true only if we have repented of that. Often there is a deep-rooted problem that repeats itself over and over again. The sin-of-the-day is that problem acting itself out. Until we get to the underlying problem and let God “root it out”, it is there.

a) Which leads back to the “blessings” over the 12 brothers. When you read them, some of them read like curses more than blessings. It is as if Jacob is saying, “Here is what you have done in the past, and here is how it will grow in the future”.

b) The application is to teach us to deal with those internal issues. If there is a particular sin that is popping up over and over again, ask God, “What is going on? Why is this happening over and over again? What is it in my life that needs to be “turned over” to God to make me more Christ like?”

iii) The blessings are also intended to be prophetic, especially those of Chapter 49.

a) We’ll discuss those when we get there. The important to thing to understand is that the blessings are intended to be predictions about what will happen to those 12 tribes. Some believe the predictions go “one step further” and lay out a prophetic history of the Nation of Israel.

c) The Jewish concept of “blessing” is something that never really caught on in the Christian world. At least not in the same aspect as for religious Jews.

i) As Christians, the word “blessing” has become a catchall phrase.

ii) We say “God bless you” one sneezes.

iii) Christians say, “God bless you” as a goodbye greeting without much thought.

iv) In the bible, a blessing is much more than a catchall phrase.

a) It is often used on deathbeds of a father to a son.

b) It is used to describe one’s “last will and testament”.

c) Further, from a children’s perspective, they want “daddy’s approval”.

(1) There is a need in all people that our lives are “approved” by our parents. It comes from a need to receive love from our parents. If God gave us the command to “honor your mother and father”, it implies that God gave us a need to honor them.

(2) Therefore for a parent on their deathbed to “bless” their child is a way of saying, “I love you” and “I approve of you”.

v) With that, let’s get back to my opening question of “What would you say to your children on your deathbed? My original answer is that your values come forth.

a) For example, if your primary issue is money, you may discuss how to take care of other members financially.

b) For example, if family is your primary issue, you may tell how much you love your children and enjoyed watching them grow up.

c) Both of these are fine. In the world of estate planning, I believe it is the moral responsibility of parents to plan for their children in case something happens to them. The question is not planning. The question is, “What is the most important values you want to pass on to your children?”

d) Part of my opening question asks, “If you were limited to one topic on your deathbed, what would it be?

(1) The answer I’m hoping for is that if God is the primary focus of your life, than those fear-of-God values should be emphasized on your deathbed as they have been emphasized all of your life.

(2) There is nothing wrong with family, money and a bunch of other similar things. The Christian life is God-first and everything else is second. That is the primary values to teach our children.

(3) Which leads me to Jacob. The last time I checked, this is about Jacob and Genesis. J The one thing I want you see through these two chapters is the God-centered comments that Jacob passes on to his kids. His final words aren’t about “take care of your kids” or even “I love you’s”, but they are prophetic messages. The idea is “God is on the throne of my life. God is in control whether you like it or not. Let God guide your life.” That underlying tone is through all of these final blessings.

vi) With all of that said, let’s jump in.

4. Chapter 48, Verse 1: Some time later Joseph was told, "Your father is ill." So he took his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim along with him. ² When Jacob was told, "Your son Joseph has come to you," Israel rallied his strength and sat up on the bed.

a) In Chapter 47, we read that from the time Joseph and his father Jacob had the long-lost reunion, Jacob was going to live another 17 years.

b) This means we have a 17-year gap in time between these Chapters 47 and 48. Chapter 49 ends with Jacob dying, and the events of these two chapters appear to go together.

c) It is assumed that Jacob went on with his job of “top administrator” in Egypt even after the seven years of famine were over. You can visualize Joseph going to work one day, when he gets a message his sick father. He drops everything, goes to find his two sons who are probably in their late teens or twenties by now and goes to his father.

d) This is now Jacob’s last big moment to say some final words to Joseph and his sons.

5. Verse 3: Jacob said to Joseph, "God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and there he blessed me ⁴ and said to me, `I am going to make you fruitful and will increase your numbers. I will make you a community of peoples, and I will give this land as an everlasting possession to your descendants after you.'

a) These verses tie to my opening theme of “What are your final words to your children?”

i) Notice there is no mention of “I was a schemer and conniver all of my life.” J

a) In a sense all of those sins are forgiven, so Jacob could forget those.

b) The emphasis is on “God God God”. God did this in my life…God did that….”

i) Specifically Jacob mentions the first time God spoke to him and the promises God made to Jacob. Jacob is stating how God has kept those promises despite the life long actions of Jacob himself.

ii) The lesson to pass on is, “God is faithful even when we are not.” God is going to keep His promises because His reputation is on the line, not ours”. It is not about being “good enough”. It never was and never is. If we commit our lives to serving God, then God makes promises to bless us all of our lives and God keeps those promises. That blessing is internal and eternal. It is not about how many children you have or your net worth. It is that peace one has of knowing we are forgiven of our sins and we have eternal rewards for that commitment to God.

c) There is another reason for Jacob to emphasize these promises to Joseph.

i) In case you forgot, they were all living in Egypt. Jacob hadn’t forgotten about the prediction of the 400 years of slavery. I believe he knew it was coming. Therefore it was essential that the promise of redemption be stated to the kids so that the promise can be passed on to future generations.

a) The application to us is to tell our children “This is not the end of my life or your life. It goes on. There is a God and you will live forever. How you choose to live here is a reflection of how you will live forever. Despite slavery (or pain or sorrow), it does not go on forever. There is redemption. For some, we get to see the redemption in our lifetime (like those who lived during the time of Moses) and some have to hope for a future day like those who lived during the 400 year time span.”

ii) The promise is that they will inherit the Promised Land (Israel) forever. That is stated in Verse 4 where it says, “I will give you this land…”

a) Notice the word “give”. It is not conditional. It does not say, “I will give you this land, unless of course you sin too much or reject the Messiah”.

b) This is why most Christians today emphasize the fact the Promised Land belongs to the descendants of Jacob. If we can’t trust God’s unconditional promises to Jacob, how can we trust His promises to us through Jesus?

6. Verse 5: "Now then, your two sons born to you in Egypt before I came to you here will be reckoned as mine; Ephraim and Manasseh will be mine, just as Reuben and Simeon are mine.
⁶ 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.

a) Jacob is saying to Joseph that Jacob’s two grandsons will be like sons to Jacob.

b) It is as if from an inheritance point of view: “I Joseph no longer have two sons, but two new brothers.”

c) Remember that Jacob is dying. This is about inheritance.

i) Jacob is saying, “Instead of splitting my inheritance 12 ways (12 brothers), it now gets split 13 ways.” Let’s pretend Jacob had a million dollar net worth to be passed on to the children. Before Jacob’s announcement, each of the 12 sons would get 1/12 of that inheritance. With Jacob announcing to his son Joseph “your two sons are mine”, he is saying, “We now split the inheritance 13 ways. You Joseph don’t get a share, but each of your two children get a share”.

ii) In summary, Joseph is getting a “double portion” of the inheritance. He will get twice as much as the brothers because each son will get something.

d) Ok, the big “why” question: Why did Jacob do this?

i) First of all, it is not a thank-you present for rescuing him from the famine.

ii) This has to do with the rights of the firstborn.

a) The ancient tradition is that when an inheritance is given to all the children, the firstborn child gets a double-portion. The practical aspect is that this is an “administration fee” for being the leader of the family.

b) If you remember, Joseph is not the oldest child.

c) Jacob had 12 sons from 4 women, plus Jacob had one daughter. The tradition is the daughter does not get part of the inheritance as she is to be married off to another family. (Hey, I don’t make the rules! J)

(1) In Jacob’s case, the firstborn son of the firstborn wife would have “first shot” at getting the double-portion of the “firstborn”.

(2) The firstborn son of the second born wife would be next in line, followed by the firstborn sons of the concubines.

(3) One can lose these rights if they either willfully give them away or if their father thinks they are not worthy or responsible.

d) The first wife was Leah. She had 4 sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah.

(1) Reuben was the one who had sexual relations with one of Jacob’s two concubines. That “ruled him out”.

(2) Here is the interesting part. Reuben is forgiven. He is not going to hell for their crime. Yet, he lost the double-blessing rights of the first born for their sins.

iii) How do I know all of this about the firstborn rules? The bible says so! J

a) “The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel (he was the firstborn, but when he defiled his father's marriage bed, his rights as firstborn were given to the sons of Joseph son of Israel; so he could not be listed in the genealogical record in accordance with his birthright, For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler; but the birthright was Joseph’s:)” (1^st Chronicles 5:1-2 NIV)

b) To paraphrase 1^st Chronicles: “Since son #1 of Jacob’s first wife Leah messed up, the birthright goes to son #1 of Jacob’s second wife Rachel”.

c) These two verses also state that Judah prevailed as the leader of the 12, but that is irrelevant to the fact that Joseph gets the right of the firstborn.

d) The rules imply that if there are multiple children of multiple wives and the first born of wife #1 messes up, the double blessing goes to the first born of wife #2. (Again, I don’t make up the rules, just interpret them! J)

e) All of this is also important as you study the “12 tribes of Israel” throughout the bible.

i) Because Joseph’s two children now “count” as part of the 12 tribes, there are technically “14” tribes of Israel. Sometimes the bible lists the 12 tribes and just lists Joseph. Sometimes another tribe is omitted and in order to have the “magic number 12”, Joseph is omitted and the two son’s tribes are listed instead.

ii) For example, there are times when the tribe of Levi is not counted. In the future, they don’t get a territory like the other tribes. The Levites were God’s priests and they were to be scattered through Israel. Therefore when the bible needed to “count to 12 tribes” and needed to exclude Levi, the tribe of Joseph was “split in two” counting both sons so the number “12” could still be used.

iii) The number “12” in the bible implies “God’s perfection for division”.

a) That is why there are always 12 tribes of Israel counted even though there were “14 brothers to choose from”. That is why Jesus picked 12 apostles when he had a larger following. That number 12 is symbolic.

b) It reminds me of a classic joke about an old English pastor. He was describing a monument in feet and inches and not meters. He stated, “If our Good Lord wanted us to use the metric system there would be only 10 apostles and only 10 tribes of Israel”. J

f) Meanwhile, back in Egypt with Jacob…

7. Verse 7: As I was returning from Paddan, to my sorrow Rachel died in the land of Canaan while we were still on the way, a little distance from Ephrath. So I buried her there beside the road to Ephrath" (that is, Bethlehem).

a) Remember that Jacob is only talking to his son Joseph. Jacob is telling Joseph about the double blessing. Joseph’s two sons are not in the room yet.

b) Jacob is recalling the events about how Rachel died. Rachel is the mother of Joseph.

c) This is Jacob on his deathbed. While he is looking at Joseph, he may be flashbacking to his memory of Joseph’s mother Rachel, who was Jacob’s favorite wife. To paraphrase, “Oh Joseph, when I look at you, I remember my sweet Rachel. I’ll always remember the day she died in Bethlehem.

d) These two verses are also prophetic, although it’s hard to see it that way.

i) Remember Jacob started this conversation about how God was going to redeem the Jewish people from Egypt. Later, Jacob is going to request that when those 400 years are over, Jacob wants to be buried next to his father and grandfather and his other wife Leah. Rachael is not in the family burial plot, but buried in Bethlehem.

ii) To all Christians, Bethlehem is the birthplace of Jesus. It was predicted in the Old Testament that this is the birthplace of the Messiah (Michah 5:2).

iii) That can’t be a coincidence that Jacob mentions his favorite wife’s burial place as part of his last words to Joseph. Somehow, this obscure reference to Rachel being buried in Bethlehem is a “clue” to the “redemption” subject at hand.

a) It is as if we are getting clues of “God will redeem his people from Egypt, but there is another redemption, through the Messiah through Bethlehem.”

8. Verse 8: When Israel saw the sons of Joseph, he asked, "Who are these?" ⁹ "They are the sons God has given me here," Joseph said to his father. Then Israel said, "Bring them to me so I may bless them." ¹⁰ Now Israel's eyes were failing because of old age, and he could hardly see. So Joseph brought his sons close to him, and his father kissed them and embraced them.

a) Verse 10 states that Jacob was going blind, which explains why he didn’t recognize Joseph’s two sons in Verse 8. This is a key point over the next few verses.

b) It is important to stop and state that these two sons get blessing over Jacob’s other sons.

i) It is not that these two sons are more special than Jacob’s other sons. It is simply a matter of establishing “the double blessing” prior to giving out the other blessings.

9. Verse 11: Israel said to Joseph, "I never expected to see your face again, and now God has allowed me to see your children too."

a) Here’s an example of God’ grace. Jacob listed as “Israel” (hint hint J) states how God has blessed him more than he expected. Jacob “let go, let God.” Jacob never expected to see his son again, and God allowed him to see him again as well as his grandchildren. It is a simple reminder of how God can bless us far greater than our expectations.

10. Verse 12: Then Joseph removed them from Israel's knees and bowed down with his face to the ground. ¹³ And Joseph took both of them, Ephraim on his right toward Israel's left hand and Manasseh on his left toward Israel's right hand, and brought them close to him. ¹⁴ But Israel reached out his right hand and put it on Ephraim's head, though he was the younger, and crossing his arms, he put his left hand on Manasseh's head, even though Manasseh was the firstborn.

a) Let me set the scene:

i) Joseph understood the adoption/double blessing scenario.

ii) He also understood his father was going blind and could not see well.

iii) In Jewish thought, the right hand is superior to the left (e.g., Exo. 15:6, Job 40:14).

iv) Therefore, Joseph placed his older son Manasseh close to Jacob’s right hand.

v) Joseph placed his younger son Ephraim close to Jacob’s left hand.

vi) Joseph thought, “Manasseh is the oldest and should get the greater/first blessing”.

vii) Jacob had other thoughts. He cross his arms and placed his right hand on the younger brother and the left hand on the older brother. Visualize an “X” being formed with Jacob’s arms as he held the two young men.

b) We’ll discuss the purpose of this in a few more verses.

i) I know Jacob knew what he was doing from the verses coming up.

ii) Jacob is called “Israel” in these verses. In previous lessons I’ve beaten to death the idea that when Jacob is called “Israel”, essentially, he is doing God’s will. It is as if God told Jacob/Israel to do the “cross-arms-bit” on purpose.

c) What is interesting to think about is the pattern of the second-born son getting a priority blessing over the firstborn son.

i) Remember that when Jacob was young, he was the younger of two brothers.

ii) His father Isaac was also going blind near his death. Jacob disguised himself as his older brother in order to get the blessing of the “firstborn”.

iii) Now, were two generations later, and again, the “second born” is getting special rights over the firstborn. Further, Joseph got the rights of the firstborn son, even though he is the son of the second born wife.

iv) Confused? Good. J Let me explain further. All I am saying is there is a pattern of the “second one getting a special blessing over the first one”. It has now happened over three generations. That pattern is significant.

a) The pattern is the reminder to us of the necessity of being born-again. The “flesh” man is born first, and the greater new man “born-again” is born second. Jesus said in order to be saved we must be born-again (John 3:3).

b) The point is when we are born, we are both with a sinful nature. That is the cliché term “born of the flesh”. When we turn our lives over to God, our second life begins as we are born again.

c) Here in Genesis, God is establishing a “prophetic word-picture” of the greater blessing to the second born. The real application is to our lives as when we become born-again and live for God.

d) The bible teaches that the “second born” is also tied to the fact the first man, as represented by Adam ties to our old human nature. The “second man” ties to Jesus. When we become saved, we become “born-again” and become like Him.

(1) “The first man (Adam) was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man (Jesus) is the Lord from heaven. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly.” And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.” (1^st Corinthians 15:47-49).

d) Meanwhile, back at Jacob’s deathbed. J

11. Verse 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 to this day, ¹⁶ the Angel who has delivered me from all harm --may he bless these boys. May they be called by my name and the names of my fathers Abraham and Isaac, and may they increase greatly upon the earth."

a) Notice that Verse 15 states, “He blessed Joseph”. If you read the rest of these two verses, the blessing is all focused on Joseph’s two sons.

b) To paraphrase, “he blessed Jacob”: “Joseph, I’m giving a special blessing to your two sons. You will be blessed because you are the father of these two young men.”

c) When we see “Sunday school lessons” on this topic, the two boys are usually young teenagers. Remember the “boys” are either older teenagers are in their late 20’s.

d) The point of this introduction to the blessing is Jacob saying, “God has protected me all the years of my life and he has fulfilled the promises made to my father and grandfather.”

i) These verses are a reminder to pass on the importance of our relationship with God to our children and our grandchildren when we have the chance.

ii) Remember my opening theme of “what would you say on your deathbed?” Children remember vividly your last words. Like Jacob, make those last words your testimony of how God has been faithful in your life and tell your children how God will be faithful in theirs.

12. Verse 17: When Joseph saw his father placing his right hand on Ephraim's head he was displeased; so he took hold of his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's head. ¹⁸ Joseph said to him, "No, my father, this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head."

a) Here Joseph tried to “help” his dad by uncrossing his father’s arms. Joseph wanted Jacob’s right hand to be on the oldest son.

i) Apparently, Joseph didn’t’ read my mini-sermon on the last page about the importance of the second-born being a word-picture of born again. J

ii) The main point of these two verses is to emphasize that Joseph understood that his father Jacob was purposely blessing the younger son and it’s not an accident.

b) Personally, I don’t see this action as a sin on Joseph’s part.

i) The bible does not say anything negative about Joseph.

ii) The “closest” we can see of any mistake made by Joseph is the time he was in jail and asked the wine steward to “put in a good word for him to Pharaoh (Genesis 40:14)”. You can argue that wasn’t a mistake, but the point is the wine steward forgot about Joseph and left him in jail.

iii) One can argue that this is a “mistake” on Joseph’s part, and of all the things we read of Joseph in the bible, this is the only negative aspect. Considering all that Joseph has been through, if this is the only mistake listed, it’s a good track record.