Genesis 48

All 22 verses in the Clear Bible Translation. Tap a verse to compare the KJV and read what it means.

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1. 1Some time later, Joseph received word that his father was ill. So he went to him, bringing along his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.
2. 2When Jacob was told, "Your son Joseph has come to see you," Israel gathered his strength and sat up on the bed.
3. 3Jacob said to Joseph, "God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me."
4. 4He told me, 'I will make you fruitful and increase your numbers. I will make you into a great assembly of peoples, and I will give this land to your descendants after you as an everlasting possession.'
5. 5"Now your two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born to you in Egypt before I arrived here, will be counted as mine. Just as Reuben and Simeon are mine, so they will be mine."
6. 6"Any children you have after them will be yours, but for their inheritance they will be counted under the names of their brothers."
7. 7"As I was returning from Padan, Rachel died beside me in the land of Canaan while we were still some distance from Ephrath. I buried her there along the road to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem."
8. 8When Israel noticed Joseph's sons, he asked, "Who are these?"
9. 9Joseph replied, "These are my sons, whom God has given me here." Israel said, "Please bring them closer to me so I can bless them."
10. 10Israel's eyesight had grown poor because of his old age, and he could no longer see well. So Joseph brought the boys close, and Israel kissed them and held them in his arms.
11. 11Israel said to Joseph, "I never expected to see your face again, yet God has allowed me to see your children as well."
12. 12Joseph moved them back from between his father's knees and then bowed down with his face to the ground.
13. 13Joseph positioned both sons—Ephraim at his right hand, facing Israel's left, and Manasseh at his left hand, facing Israel's right—and brought them close to his father.
14. 14But Israel reached out his right hand and placed it on the head of Ephraim, the younger son, and his left hand on Manasseh's head. He crossed his hands deliberately, even though Manasseh was the firstborn.
15. 15Then he blessed Joseph, saying, "May the God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd throughout my entire life to this day,
16. 16The Angel who redeemed me from all evil, bless these boys. Let my name be named upon them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac, and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.
17. 17When Joseph saw that his father had placed his right hand on Ephraim's head, it displeased him. He grasped his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head over to Manasseh's head.
18. 18Joseph said to his father, "That's not right, father. This one is the firstborn—place your right hand on his head."
19. 19But his father refused and said, "I know, my son, I know. Manasseh will also become a people, and he too will be great. However, his younger brother will surpass him in greatness, and his descendants will become a multitude of nations."
20. 20So he blessed them that day, saying, "The people of Israel will use your names when they pronounce blessings, saying, 'May God make you like Ephraim and like Manasseh.'" In this way, he placed Ephraim ahead of Manasseh.
21. 21Then Israel said to Joseph, "I am about to die, but God will be with you and will bring you back to the land of your fathers."
22. 22"I am giving you one portion more than your brothers—the land I captured from the Amorites with my sword and my bow."