Read the Passage: Genesis 48:1–49:28

Listen to the Redeemed Mind Podcast: Genesis 49:1-49:28

Illness of Jacob (48:1–7)

When Jacob first arrived in Egypt he was 130 years old (cf. Gen. 47:9), and he would die in Egypt at the age of 147 (cf. Gen. 47:28; 49:33). Earlier, at Gen. 47:29–31, Jacob made Joseph promise to bury him in the tomb of the patriarchs in Canaan. Although this was not an insignificant request, Joseph granted his father’s petition. Next, at Gen. 48:1, Joseph was told, “Your father is sick.” Evidently, Joseph did not reside with his family in Goshen. Indeed, given his role in the Egyptian government, it is likely that Joseph lived in the capital city of Memphis, which was several days’ journey from the land of Goshen. Since Joseph knew that his father was near the end of his life, when he learned about Jacob’s illness, Joseph quickly gathered his sons together and departed for Goshen. When Jacob was told about Joseph’s arrival, he strengthened himself and sat up on his bed.

When Joseph and his two sons arrived at Joseph’s bedside, Jacob summarized and spoke about God’s appearance to him when he had fled from his brother Esau. Recall that the account of Jacob’s flight is recorded at Gen. 28:10–22 (cf. Gen. 35:6–7). At that time Jacob was near the city of Luz, which he renamed Bethel after God appeared to him there in a dream. This account, which happened 70 years earlier, is important, for it was the first time that God revealed Himself to Jacob. Moreover, at that time God conveyed the Abrahamic Covenant to Jacob. Jacob’s declaration at Gen. 48:5 must have been surprising as he said, “Your two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine.” With this statement Jacob blessed Joseph by revealing that his sons would inherit land in Canaan, in fulfillment of aspects of the Abrahamic Covenant.

Blessing on Joseph (48:8–22)

After declaring that Ephraim and Manasseh belonged to him (cf. Gen. 48:5–6), at Gen. 48:8 Jacob saw Joseph’s sons and asked, “Who are these?” Over the seventeen years that Jacob was in Egypt, he’d surely met Ephraim and Manasseh. Therefore, his question was likely an indication that his eyesight was failing (cf. Gen. 48:10). Additionally, Jacob may have been reminded of his own deception of his father Isaac at Gen. 27:1–29. Next, Jacob asked for Joseph’s sons to be brought, so that he could bless them. Observe that Joseph positioned his sons with the belief that Jacob would bless Manasseh first, followed by Ephraim, for Manasseh was the firstborn son. Yet Jacob purposefully crossed his hands to favor Ephraim. Jacob then gave a blessing to Joseph, saying, “God . . . has redeemed me from all evil” (Gen. 48:16). This is the first reference to God as a Redeemer in Scripture.

When Joseph saw that Jacob had crossed his hands in favor of blessing Ephraim first, he was displeased. In one sense this is understandable, for family protocol dictated that the firstborn son was to receive the initial blessing among all of the offspring. Yet, Joseph should have been aware of God’s prior pattern of blessing second or later sons, such as Abel, Seth, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, and even himself. Note that after this time God would continue the pattern of blessing later sons, including David and Solomon, among many others. When Joseph tried to correct his father, Jacob said, “I know, my son, I know. [Manasseh] also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly [Ephraim] shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations” (Gen. 48:19). Indeed, over time Ephraim did become one of the largest and most dominant tribes in all of Israel.

Prophecy about Israel (49:1–28)

In Gen. 49:1–28, before his death, Jacob gathered his sons and prophesied about “what shall befall you in the later days” (Gen. 49:1). In this lengthy passage Jacob addressed all twelve of his sons. Note that Jacob’s words here are not equally distributed, as he said very little about Asher (cf. Gen. 49:20) and Naphtali (cf. Gen. 49:21), but spoke much about Judah (cf. Gen. 49:8–12) and Joseph (cf. Gen. 49:22–26). Yet, the prophecies that Jacob uttered here seem to have been in accord with his sons’ personal character up until that point in their lives. For example, Reuben was guilty of incest (cf. Gen. 35:22), and Jacob told him, “You shall not excel” (Gen. 49:4). A similar pattern of prophecy follows for all twelve sons. Many scholars have observed that parallels can be drawn between Jacob’s prophecy here in Gen. 49:1–28, and Moses’ last words of blessing upon Israel at Deut. 33:1–29.

Application Questions:

1. How important are one’s last words? If you knew that the time of your death was near, what would be your last words?
2. Why did Jacob desire to be buried in the land of Canaan? What is the significance of Jacob adopting Joseph’s two sons?
3. What is the significance of Jacob’s blessing on Joseph in Gen. 48:15–16? Can you testify to the reality of God’s blessing?
4. Given that Jesus was God’s firstborn Son, why does God oftentimes favor second or later sons in Scripture?
5. How do our past choices affect our future lives? What role does our internal character play in our external actions?