Genesis 48:18 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And Joseph said to his father, “Not this way, my father; since this one is the firstborn, put your right hand on his head.”

NIV: Joseph said to him, 'No, my father, this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.'

NASB: And Joseph said to his father, 'Not so, my father, for this one is the firstborn. Place your right hand on his head.'

CSB: Joseph said to his father, "Not that way, my father! This one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head."

NLT: No, my father,' he said. 'This one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head.'

KJV: And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head.

NKJV: And Joseph said to his father, “Not so, my father, for this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.”

In what should be a happy moment, Joseph is apparently angry. His dying father Jacob seems to have made a very significant mistake while blessing Joseph's two oldest boys in prayer. Jacob has placed his left hand on the oldest boy's head and his right on that of the younger one. Throughout the Bible and the world of this time, the right hand or right side was that of the greatest honor. Custom demanded that the greatest honor be given to the oldest male heir (Genesis 48:1–16).

In the previous verse, Joseph grabbed Jacob's right hand to move it over to his oldest son's head. Now he tells Jacob "not this way." He instructs his father to put his right hand on the firstborn's head (Genesis 48:17). Unfortunately, most of the blessing had already happened, and the giving of the family blessing seems to be irreversible in Genesis, no matter the circumstances (Genesis 27:34–36).

The other problem is that Jacob had known exactly what he was doing in placing his right hand on the head of the younger son. He did it intentionally, as the following verses will reveal (Genesis 48:19).

Genesis 48:1–22 describes the blessing Jacob pronounces over Joseph's oldest two sons. Significantly, Jacob claims Joseph's two oldest sons as his own, ensuring that each will receive a full portion of his inheritance. This means Joseph's family will receive a double portion. Jacob blesses the pair with a prayer for God's blessing in their lives as he himself has experienced it.

Genesis 48 describes Jacob's deathbed blessing of Joseph's sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. In a surprising move, Jacob claims Joseph's two oldest boys as his own. This makes each a full heir. The result is that Joseph's family will receive a double portion of the inheritance. Jacob prays for them to receive many of the blessings God has given to him during his long life. In another twist, Jacob gives greater blessing to the younger of his two grandsons.

Despite a long, difficult life, Jacob survives another 17 years after moving to Egypt. The suffering of his son, Joseph, resulted in the salvation of his family line. Now truly at the end of his days, Jacob claims Joseph's oldest two sons as his own—giving them full rights to a portion of his inheritance. The following chapters will include Jacob's remaining blessings for his sons, and a description of the death and burials of both Jacob and Joseph.

The book of Genesis establishes fundamental truths about God. Among these are His role as the Creator, His holiness, His hatred of sin, His love for mankind, and His willingness to provide for our redemption. We learn not only where mankind has come from, but why the world is in its present form. The book also presents the establishment of Israel, God's chosen people. Many of the principles given in other parts of Scripture depend on the basic ideas presented here in the book of Genesis. Within the framework of the Bible, Genesis explains the bare-bones history of the universe leading up to the captivity of Israel in Egypt, setting the stage for the book of Exodus.

Accessed 4/29/2024 11:04:59 AM