Genesis 41.50-52-The Birth of Joseph's Sons-Manasseh and Ephraim
Wednesday January 24, 2007
Genesis: Genesis 41:50-52-The Birth of Joseph’s Sons-Manasseh and Ephraim
Lesson # 269
Please turn in your Bibles to Genesis 41:50.
This evening we will continue with our studies of Genesis 41.
By way of review, we have noted the following in this chapter:
In Genesis 41:1-7, we read where Pharaoh of Egypt had two dreams and in Genesis 41:8, we read the account of Pharaoh summoning the priests who were skilled in the occult sciences in order to interpret his dreams but there were none that could.
Then we saw that Pharaoh’s cupbearer whose dream Joseph interpreted two years before made Pharaoh aware of Joseph and his ability to interpret dreams and this is recorded in Genesis 41:9-13.
This was followed by the Lord delivering Joseph from prison by causing Pharaoh to summon Joseph from prison to interpret his dream, which is recorded in Genesis 41:14.
In Genesis 41:15-16, we read where in response to Pharaoh’s flattery, Joseph ascribes to God his ability to interpret dreams, which demonstrates his great humility.
Then, we read where Pharaoh recounts his dreams to Joseph, which is recorded in Genesis 41:17-24 and this was followed by Joseph interpreting Pharaoh’s dreams, which is recorded in Genesis 41:25-32.
This was followed by Joseph making recommendations to Pharaoh in light of his interpretation, and this is recorded in Genesis 41:33-37.
Next, we noted that in response to Joseph’s recommendations, Pharaoh promotes Joseph to prime minister of Egypt to administrate the government of Egypt over the next fourteen years and this is recorded in Genesis 41:38-40.
Then, Pharaoh publicly installed Joseph as prime minister of Egypt through four ceremonial acts and this is recorded in Genesis 41:41-43.
In Genesis 41:44-45, we studied Joseph becoming a part of Egyptian aristocracy by Pharaoh giving him in marriage, Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On as well as bestowing him with a new name.
On Tuesday evening we studied Genesis 41:46-49, which presented to us the record of Joseph’s wise administration during the seven years of prosperity.
This evening we will note Genesis 41:50-52, and read of the birth of Joseph’s sons who he named “Manasseh” and “Ephraim.”
Genesis 41:50, “Now before the year of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore to him.”
Genesis 41:51, “Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh, ‘For,’ he said, ‘God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household.’”
Genesis 41:52, “He named the second Ephraim, ‘For,’ he said, ‘God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.’”
The account of the birth of Joseph’s sons forms the pivot in the story of Joseph’s wise administration during the seven years of abundant harvests and the seven years of famine, which are recorded in Genesis 41:53-57.
It is pivotal since it shows how and when these two progenitors or fathers of future tribes in Israel cane into existence and also to reveal Joseph’s viewpoint towards the gift of these two sons.
The name of their mother is recorded again demonstrating that Joseph was monogamous like his grandfather Isaac but unlike his great grandfather Abraham and his father Israel, both of whom had concubines.
The birth of Joseph’s sons took place before the years of famine and thus during the seven years of abundance.
In the prepositional phrase “before the year of famine” that appears in Genesis 41:50, the word for “famine” in the Hebrew is in the singular to designate the seven years of famine as a single unit.
Joseph’s sons were a gift from the Lord.
Psalm 127:3, “Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, the fruit of the womb is a reward.”
The birth of children and good crops were marks of divine blessing in the Old Testament.
Deuteronomy 28:4, “Blessed shall be the offspring of your body and the produce of your ground and the offspring of your beasts, the increase of your herd and the young of your flock.”
“Asenath” is the proper noun `asnath (tn^s+a*) (aw-se-nath) and literally means, “the servant of the goddess Neith” and whose father’s name was “Potiphera,” which is the proper noun poti phera (ur^p# yf!w)P) (po-tee-feh-rah), and means, “he whom Ra (the sun-god) has given.”
The fact that Joseph marries an Egyptian woman was not against the will of God.
Remember, Joseph’s family could not go to Laban to get wives and Joseph could not go back to his family and get a bride so God provided one for Joseph among the Egyptians.
The Israelites such as Joseph were prohibited from marrying Canaanite women unless of course, they accepted Jesus Christ as their God and Savior as Rahab and Tamar did.
The Egyptians were not descendants of Ham’s son, Canaan but rather of his son Mizraim and thus they were not Canaanites.
In Joseph’s day, God had not yet given any commandments regarding marriage, but later in the Mosaic Law, God did “not” forbid a marriage to Gentiles (See Deuteronomy 21:10-13) but only a specific group of Gentiles, the Canaanites (See Genesis 9:24-27; Deuteronomy 20:17-18).
Therefore, we must conclude that Joseph did not sin by taking this Egyptian woman to be his wife and the fact that she was the daughter of an Egyptian priest does not necessarily indicate otherwise.
I doubt very much that Pharaoh would have given Joseph a wife who would have been an offense to him.
Furthermore Joseph never would have taken her as his wife if she would have been a detriment to his spiritual life since if he could say “no” to Potiphar’s wife because of his love for the Lord, then he would surely have declined Potiphera’s daughter if she would hinder his walk with the Lord.
The fact that the Holy Spirit saw fit to have Moses’ record the name of Joseph’s Egyptian wife also implies that she accepted by faith the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph unlike Judah’s first wife whose name was not recorded except in 1 Chronicles 2:3 and for only historical purposes.
Asenath’s father was “Potiphera” who was a priest of the sun god Ra at “On,” which was situated seven miles northwest of modern Cairo and was a famous place for the worship of the sun-god Ra, thus it was called by the Greeks, “Heliopolis,” which means, “sun-city.”
Genesis 41:50, “Now before the year of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore to him.”
Genesis 41:51, “Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh, ‘For,’ he said, ‘God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father's household.’”
The names of both of Joseph’s sons praise and thank God, first for His preservation and for His blessing.
Praising and thanking God is the “recognition” and “response” in the believer’s soul, which expresses itself in love and appreciation for who and what God is and what He has done for the believer through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and for other believers.
Psalm 100:4-5, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. For the LORD is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting and His faithfulness to all generations.”
By these names, Joseph was also giving testimony to his faith in the Lord’s promises and for His faithfulness.
Psalm 91:2, “I will say to the LORD, ‘My refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom I trust!’”
Lamentations 3:22-23, “The LORD'S lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.”
These names also reveal that Joseph understood that God had permitted him to suffer undeservedly for fourteen years in order to train him.
They also acknowledged that the Lord was indeed with him.
Also, the names of his children are not Egyptian but rather Hebrew in origin indicating he has not forgotten his family in Canaan and that he was maintaining his covenant relationship with the God of his father, Israel.
Joseph’s firstborn was “Manasseh” (menashsheh) (hv#n^m+) (men-ash-sheh) whose name means, “He who causes to forget” as indicated by Joseph’s statement “For God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s household.”
The name “Manasseh” is derived from the verb nashah (hv#n^m+) (naw-shaw), which means, “to forget” and appears also in Genesis 41:51 and is translated “forget.”
The verb nashah, “forget” does “not” mean the loss of memory of his adversities related to his brothers selling him into slavery but rather it means the hurt or the sting has gone out of the memory since God has blessed him greatly in Egypt.
In fact, the mere mention of his father’s household reveals that Joseph has not forgotten his father or brothers.
The phrase “all my trouble and all my father's household” is a “hendiadys” meaning that even though there are two different expressions one idea is intended, thus it can be translated “all my trouble associated with my father’s household.”
The name of Joseph’s firstborn praises God for delivering him from all the adversities and heartbreak inflicted upon him by his brothers for selling him into slavery in Canaan.
The name “Manasseh” signifies that God had healed Joseph of the bitter memories of being sold into slavery by his brothers by blessing Joseph while in Egypt.
This name indicates that God had healed him of the bitterness caused by his brothers’ mistreatment of him and that he had forgiven them as a result of the Lord blessing him in Egypt.
Job 5:18, “For He inflicts pain, and gives relief; He wounds, and His hands also heal.”
Psalm 147:3, “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”
Later on Manasseh would be adopted by his grandfather Jacob along with his brother Ephraim according to Genesis 48:5.
This act elevated these two boys of Joseph to the status of their uncles and father.
The elevation of grandchildren to the status of children is an ancient Near Eastern practice, which is primarily used in the context of inheritance.
Thus, the descendants of Manasseh regarded him as their patriarch.
This partitioning of Joseph’s line is tantamount to declaring him to hold the status of the firstborn, as not only did he receive a share of his father’s estate upon Jacob’s death, but also these sons each received a share of Jacob’s inheritance.
The tribe that descended from Manasseh eventually settled in the heartland of what would become the northern kingdom of Israel.
Its territory west of the Jordan extended from the Mediterranean to the Jordan Valley to the Wadi Qanah.
The Trans-jordanian region stretched between, and at times, beyond the area between the Yarmuk and the Jabbok rivers.
Manasseh possessed the most significant east-west road connecting the Via Maris with the Trans-jordanian King’s Highway, following the Wadi Farah to the Jordan River ford at Adam, then following the Jabbok Valley to where it intersected the King’s Highway.
The desire to control this route partially explains the expansion of this tribe into the Trans-jordan, which was paved by the Romans centuries later.
Genesis 41:52, “He named the second Ephraim, ‘For,’ he said, ‘God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.’”
The second son that Asenath bore to Joseph was named “Ephraim” (`ephrayim) (<y!r^p+a#) (ef-rah-yim) whose name means, “He has made me fruitful,” as indicated by Joseph’s statement “For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”
The name “Ephraim” is derived from the verb parah (hrP) (paw-raw), which means, “to be fruitful” and appears also in Genesis 41:52 and is translated “has made me fruitful.”
The verb parah refers to abundant posterity (See Genesis 17:6, 20; 28:3; 48:4; Psalm 105:23-24), which is unusual that it should be used by Joseph after the birth of only his second child.
Therefore, we can see that the verb parah along with the proper noun `ephrayim, “Ephraim” forms a prophecy related to the tribe that would descend from Joseph’s second son Ephraim.
In fact, Moses in his farewell address recorded in Deuteronomy 33:13-17 bestows a fertility blessing upon Joseph and explicitly refers to the “ten thousands of Ephraim” and the “thousands of Manasseh.”
Before Jacob died, Joseph presented his older son Manasseh next to Jacob’s right hand, but Jacob crossed his arms to Jacob’s right hand in blessing on the head of Ephraim as a prediction that the tribe of Ephraim would have the leadership.
However, Jacob’s final blessing was on Joseph without distinguishing between Ephraim and Manasseh (See Genesis 49:22-26).
When the land of Canaan was divided among the tribes of Israel under Joshua, Ephraim was given territory in the central part of the promised land extending from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea with the territory of the western half of Manasseh to the north and the territories of Benjamin and Dan to the south (See Joshua 16:5-8).
Most of the territory was hill country and the Old Testament speaks of the hill country of Ephraim 31 times and was very fertile and had more rainfall than Judah to the south, so it was fruitful.
“The land of my affliction” refers to Joseph’s experiences of suffering bondage in Egypt, which anticipates that of his descendants (See Exodus 3:7; 17; 4:31; Deuteronomy 26:7).
Manasseh and Ephraim would be the progenitors of two tribes in Israel that would bear their names.
They were a gift from the Lord to Joseph and brought him joy and happiness and help take the sting out of the bitter memories of being sold into slavery by his brothers.
The birth of these boys also caused Joseph to worship the Lord by giving thanks and praise for His faithfulness to him while suffering undeservedly in Egypt.
Since Joseph persevered through fourteen years of undeserved suffering, the Lord rewarded him by promoting him to prime minister, giving him a wife and two sons.
This reminds us that we too as church age believers will be rewarded by the Lord at the Bema Seat if we persevere.
James 1:12, “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.”
It also encourages us to not grow weary since in due time we will reap rewards.
Galatians 6:9, “Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.”