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What the Bible says about Blessings to Jacob's Descendants
(From Forerunner Commentary)

Genesis 27:28-29

Notably, this blessing includes wealth and power. Israel would be served by peoples and nations, and Israel's posterity would have a preeminent place among the nations.

However, there is something else. Jacob's mother had only two sons, Jacob himself, of course, and Esau. Yet, Isaac, speaking to Jacob, uses the word "sons," plural, as if Jacob had more than one brother. In fact, God's Word says nothing of Rebekah having three or more sons. This perplexes us as much as it must have perplexed Jacob when he heard these words. Why does Isaac use the language he does?

Clearly, Isaac is speaking of Abraham's extended family. The word "brethren," which is an old form of the plural of "brother," refers to all the descendants of Abraham, those through Hagar and Keturah, as well as the descendants of Esau himself. Jacob's "mother's sons" refers to all the progeny of Rebekah, falling through Jacob himself and Esau. "The blessing here raises to the idea of universal domination" (Keil and Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch, p. 177).

Therefore, the blessing points to future generations, not just to the lifetime of Jacob himself. Its thrust is for the Israel of a future time.

Charles Whitaker
Searching for Israel (Part Two): Blessings in Faith

Genesis 48:14-20

Israel did not bless his grandsons in this way simply because they were "nice boys." Rather, he had come to understand the substance of the promises God had given him, his father Isaac, and his grandfather Abraham. Accordingly, he blessed the boys, as Hebrews 11:21 states, "by faith." His conviction that those promises were sure led him to bless his grandsons as he did.

It is important to understand the first part of the blessing. Israel granted none of his own sons the birthright blessing. That went to Joseph's sons instead. That is why he goes out of his way to inform Joseph, "Your two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born to you in the land of Egypt . . . are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine" (verse 5). As part of the blessing itself, he makes his wishes clear; the brothers are to bear the name of Israel: "Let my name be named upon them" (verse 16). This is important: Ephraim and Manasseh were born in Egypt (Genesis 41:50-52). Jacob wants to establish legally that they were not Egyptians, but were of the family of Abraham and therefore part of the structure of promises given by God to the patriarchs.

With that important legality out of the way, Jacob continues to bless his grandsons. He blesses Manasseh, the firstborn, with greatness; he blesses Ephraim, the younger boy, by saying that he would be still greater, not only a people but a multitude of nations (Genesis 48:16, 19).

Much to the consternation of Joseph, Jacob crosses his hands, placing his right hand on the head of the younger boy, Ephraim, and his left hand on the head of the older boy, Manasseh (verse 14). This was unusual, as the right hand, signifying the greater blessing, generally was placed on the head of the older son. Jacob refuses to realign his hands, telling the concerned Joseph that his actions were no mistake. He had "guid[ed] his hands knowingly" (verse 14) when he placed them on the boys' heads. Jacob knowingly bestows the greater blessing on the younger son, Ephraim, reserving a lesser blessing for Manasseh, the firstborn.

Charles Whitaker
Searching for Israel (Part Two): Blessings in Faith

Genesis 48:19

Jacob's prophecy in Genesis 48:19 foresees two major world powers, one of which - Manasseh - is a single great nation while the other - Ephraim - is "a multitude of nations." The United States of America is without doubt the greatest single nation in terms of both wealth and power that the world has ever seen. Similarly, the British Empire, upon which the sun never set, it was once said, was in its time even greater, especially in terms of its scope and control of the world politically and economically. These brother nations, bound by more than just a common language but also a common ancestry, have worked together for over two centuries to dominate world affairs.

God weaves clues to the character of these nations in His Word. One of the Bible's most consistent hints concerning peoples and nations arises from the meaning of their names. Genesis contains numerous references to the births of progenitors of nations and, interestingly, their parents' reasons for naming them as they did. Joseph's sons' births are mentioned in Genesis 41:50-52, along with their father's explanations of their names:

And to Joseph were born two sons before the years of famine came, whom Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On, bore to him. Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: "For God has made me forget all my toil and all my father's house." And the name of the second he called Ephraim: "For God has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction."

Thus, Manasseh means "forgetful" or "making forgetful," while Ephraim means "fruitful" or "productive." Joseph, by the way, means "He [the LORD] will add," implying blessing from God (see Genesis 30:22-24). Joseph, through Jacob's blessing of his sons, received the firstborn's portion of Israel's inheritance, and it was mainly upon Joseph that God's physical promises of wealth and power that he made to Abraham were fulfilled. God certainly added to Joseph by blessing his descendants.

The people of Ephraim have certainly been fruitful and productive, far out of proportion to their numbers and the size of their homeland. From the little isle of England, they sent ships and armies that seized and governed far-flung lands and peoples for generations. They used the resources of those lands to build a vast trade and industrial empire that is the envy of nations and would-be empires. They are a people who have lived up to their prophetic naming.

In this way, Manasseh does not disappoint either. From its founding in early colonial days, its people have tended, if not desired, to forget the past and plunge into the future. Its first colonists left Europe to put behind them both religious and governmental persecution and economic disadvantage. Leaving behind family and fatherland, they came to these shores to exorcise the old ways and to forge a new life in the wilderness of America. What had happened before and in other lands was of little concern to them; what was important was what lay ahead. What Joseph said in naming Manasseh could have been said by many of those colonists: "For God has made me forget all my toil and all my father's house."

That America was removed from Europe by a wide and often tempestuous ocean encouraged the formation and solidification of forgetfulness in our national character. By the time the colonists decided to rebel against their British overlords in London, most Americans had little interest in the goings-on in Europe to the point that, though they were just a generation or so removed from the Continent, Americans considered themselves a distinct and unique people. "American" was its own brand, having left its European origins behind.

American forgetfulness is enshrined in its founding documents, in which European forms of government are rejected and a totally new form, American republicanism, is adopted. George Washington advised America not to become involved in foreign disputes and wars, fearing that the fledgling nation would be swallowed up in the perennial game of nations in Europe. Later, ideas like the Monroe Doctrine - written by Secretary of State John Quincy Adams during President James Monroe's administration, warning other nations, particularly European ones, that America would not stand by should they attempt to interfere in the Western Hemisphere - isolated the U.S. even further. As this self-enforced isolation continued, America readily forgot the old ways and became famous for "can-do" ingenuity, inventiveness, and innovation.

But Manassite forgetfulness has a downside: It tends to repeat the same lessons because it refuses to remember what previous generations learned through rough experience. Thus, American history tends to progress in very similar cycles, in which one generation repeats the mistakes of former ones, and succeeding generations must make the best of the pieces that remain and move on. So, it appears that the American government never seems to make any progress in its various "wars": on poverty, on drugs, on crime, on illegitimacy, on terrorism, on illiteracy, etc. All of the same old programs keep being tried time and again, and we wonder why the nation's problems never get solved! As wise Solomon said, "There is nothing new under the sun" - and certainly not in forgetful America!

Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Sorry, I Forgot


 




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