 1 After these things, one told Joseph, Behold, your father is sick. And he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. 2 And one spoke to Jacob and said, Behold, your son Joseph comes to you. And Israel strengthened himself, and sat on the bed. 3 Jacob said to Joseph, God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me. 4 He said to me, Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you. And I will make of you a multitude of people, and will give this land to your descendants after you for an everlasting possession. 5 Now your two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who are born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you into Egypt, are mine. Like Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine. 6 Your children that you father after them will be yours and will be called by the same name as their brothers in their inheritance. 7 As for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died beside me in the land of Canaan on the way, when there was still but a little way to go to Ephrath. I buried her there on the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem. 8 Israel beheld Joseph's sons and said, Who are these? 9 Joseph said to his father, They are my sons, whom God has given me in this place. He said, please bring them to me, and I will bless them. 10 The eyes of Israel were dim for age. He could not see. And he brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them. 11 Israel said to Joseph, I had not thought I would see your face, but God has shown me your descendants. 12 Joseph brought them out from between his knees and he bowed his face to the earth. 13 Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel's left and Manasseh in his left toward Israel's right hand, and he brought them near to him. 14 Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim's head, who was the younger. Then his left on Manasseh's head, crossing his hands, for Manasseh was the firstborn. 15 He blessed Joseph and said, May God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who fed me all my life to this day, 16 the angel who redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads. Let my name be named on them and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac. Let them grow like the fish into a multitude throughout+ the earth. 17 Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, and it was evil in his eyes. So he lifted up his father's hand to remove it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's head. 18 Joseph said to his father, Not so, my father. For this is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head. 19 His father refused and said, I know, my son, I know. He also will become a people and he also will be great. But truly his younger brother will be greater, and his descendants will become a multitude of nations. 20 He blessed them that day saying, In you, Israel will bless saying, God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh. So he put Ephraim before Manasseh. 21 Israel said to Joseph, Behold, I die. But God will be with you and bring you into the land of your fathers again. 22 I have given to you one portion more than your brothers that I took from the Amorite with my sword and with my bow.
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