Genesis · Young's Literal Translation
Genesis 48 Young's Literal Translation
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
1 And it cometh to pass, after these things, that [one] saith to Joseph, 'Lo, thy father is sick;' and he taketh his two sons with him, Manasseh and Ephraim.
1 After these things, someone said to Joseph, “Behold, your father is sick.” He took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.
2 And [one] declareth to Jacob, and saith, 'Lo, thy son Joseph is coming unto thee;' and Israel doth strengthen himself, and sit upon the bed.
2 Someone told Jacob, and said, “Behold, your son Joseph comes to you,” and Israel strengthened himself, and sat on the bed.
3 And Jacob saith unto Joseph, 'God Almighty hath appeared unto me, in Luz, in the land of Canaan, and blesseth me,
3 Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me,
4 and saith unto me, Lo, I am making thee fruitful, and have multiplied thee, and given thee for an assembly of peoples, and given this land to thy seed after thee, a possession age-during.
4 and said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful, and multiply you, and I will make of you a company of peoples, and will give this land to your offspring after you for an everlasting possession.’
5 'And now, thy two sons, who are born to thee in the land of Egypt, before my coming unto thee to Egypt, mine they [are]; Ephraim and Manasseh, as Reuben and Simeon they are mine;
5 Now your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you into Egypt, are mine; Ephraim and Manasseh, even as Reuben and Simeon, will be mine.
6 and thy family which thou hast begotten after them are thine; by the name of their brethren they are called in their inheritance.
6 Your offspring, whom you become the father of after them, will be yours. They will be called after the name of their brothers in their inheritance.
7 'And I — in my coming in from Padan-Aram Rachel hath died by me in the land of Canaan, in the way, while yet a kibrath of land to enter Ephrata, and I bury her there in the way of Ephrata, which [is] Bethlehem.'
7 As for me, when I came from Paddan, Rachel died beside me in the land of Canaan on the way, when there was still some distance to come to Ephrath, and I buried her there on the way to Ephrath (also called Bethlehem).”
8 And Israel seeth the sons of Joseph, and saith, 'Who [are] these?'
8 Israel saw Joseph’s sons, and said, “Who are these?”
9 and Joseph saith unto his father, 'They [are] my sons, whom God hath given to me in this [place];' and he saith, 'Bring them, I pray thee, unto me, and I bless them.'
9 Joseph said to his father, “They are my sons, whom God has given me here.” He said, “Please bring them to me, and I will bless them.”
10 And the eyes of Israel have been heavy from age, he is unable to see; and he bringeth them nigh unto him, and he kisseth them, and cleaveth to them;
10 Now the eyes of Israel were dim for age, so that he couldn’t see well. Joseph brought them near to him; and he kissed them, and embraced them.
11 and Israel saith unto Joseph, 'To see thy face I had not thought, and lo, God hath shewed me also thy seed.'
11 Israel said to Joseph, “I didn’t think I would see your face, and behold, God has let me see your offspring also.”
12 And Joseph bringeth them out from between his knees, and boweth himself on his face to the earth;
12 Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth.
13 and Joseph taketh them both, Ephraim in his right hand towards Israel's left, and Manasseh in his left towards Israel's right, and bringeth [them] nigh to him.
13 Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near to him.
14 And Israel putteth out his right hand, and placeth [it] upon the head of Ephraim, who [is] the younger, and his left hand upon the head of Manasseh; he hath guided his hands wisely, for Manasseh [is] the first-born.
14 Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it on Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands knowingly, for Manasseh was the firstborn.
15 And he blesseth Joseph, and saith, 'God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked habitually: God who is feeding me from my being unto this day:
15 He blessed Joseph, and said, “The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has fed me all my life long to this day,
16 the Messenger who is redeeming me from all evil doth bless the youths, and my name is called upon them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and they increase into a multitude in the midst of the land.'
16 the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads, and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac. Let them grow into a multitude upon the earth.”
17 And Joseph seeth that his father setteth his right hand on the head of Ephraim, and it is wrong in his eyes, and he supporteth the hand of his father to turn it aside from off the head of Ephraim to the head of Manasseh;
17 When Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him. He held up his father’s hand, to remove it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head.
18 and Joseph saith unto his father, 'Not so, my father, for this [is] the first-born; set thy right hand on his head.'
18 Joseph said to his father, “Not so, my father, for this is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head.”
19 And his father refuseth, and saith, 'I have known, my son, I have known; he also becometh a people, and he also is great, and yet, his young brother is greater than he, and his seed is the fulness of the nations;'
19 His father refused, and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also will become a people, and he also will be great. However, his younger brother will be greater than he, and his offspring will become a multitude of nations.”
20 and he blesseth them in that day, saying, 'By thee doth Israel bless, saying, God set thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh;' and he setteth Ephraim before Manasseh.
20 He blessed them that day, saying, “Israel will bless in your name, saying, ‘God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh’” He set Ephraim before Manasseh.
21 And Israel saith unto Joseph, 'Lo, I am dying, and God hath been with you, and hath brought you back unto the land of your fathers;
21 Israel said to Joseph, “Behold, I am dying, but God will be with you, and bring you again to the land of your fathers.
22 and I — I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I have taken out of the hand of the Amorite by my sword and by my bow.'
22 Moreover I have given to you one portion above your brothers, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow.”
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Ephraim
Joseph's younger son, given the greater blessing by Jacob.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 41:52; 48
Jacob
He wrestled with God through the night and rose as Israel, father of twelve tribes.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 25–35; 46–49
Joseph
Betrayed and enslaved, he rose to rule Egypt and saved his family from famine.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 37; 39–50
Manasseh
Joseph's elder son, whose descendants formed a tribe on both sides of the Jordan.
Cited in the guide: Genesis 41:51; 48
Cross references (20)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Genesis 46:20; Genesis 41:50–52; Genesis 50:23; Psalm 128:6; John 11:3
- 2 1 Samuel 23:16; Deuteronomy 3:28; Ephesians 6:10; Proverbs 23:15; Psalm 41:3
- 3 Genesis 35:9–12; Genesis 17:1; Exodus 6:3; Genesis 28:3; Genesis 28:12–19
- 4 Genesis 17:8; Genesis 35:11; Genesis 28:3; Genesis 28:13–15; Amos 9:14–15
- 5 Genesis 41:50–52; Genesis 46:20; Joshua 14:4; 1 Chronicles 5:1–2; Joshua 13:7
- 6 Joshua 14:4
- 7 Matthew 2:18; Genesis 35:16–19; Genesis 35:9; Genesis 25:20; Ruth 1:2
- 9 Genesis 27:4; Genesis 33:5; Hebrews 11:21; 1 Samuel 1:27; Genesis 49:28
- 10 Genesis 27:1; Genesis 27:27; Isaiah 6:10; Isaiah 59:1; 1 Samuel 3:2
- 11 Ephesians 3:20; Genesis 45:26; Genesis 37:35; Genesis 42:36; Genesis 37:33
- 12 Genesis 42:6; Genesis 33:3; 1 Kings 2:19; Ephesians 6:1; Exodus 34:8
- 14 Genesis 41:51; Numbers 8:10; Deuteronomy 34:9; Acts 6:6; Genesis 48:18
- 15 Genesis 17:1; Genesis 48:16; Colossians 2:6; Matthew 6:25–34; Hebrews 11:21
- 16 Psalm 34:22; 2 Timothy 4:18; Genesis 28:13–15; Genesis 49:22; Genesis 48:5
- 17 Genesis 48:14; Romans 9:7–8; 1 Kings 16:25; 1 Chronicles 21:7; 1 Samuel 16:7
- 18 Genesis 49:3; Genesis 27:15; Acts 11:8; Matthew 25:9; Genesis 19:18
- 19 Numbers 1:33–35; Deuteronomy 33:17; Genesis 25:28; Genesis 48:14; Genesis 17:20–21
- 20 Ruth 4:11–12; Genesis 28:3; Genesis 24:60; Numbers 7:48; Numbers 2:18–21
- 21 Genesis 46:4; Genesis 50:24; Genesis 28:15; Genesis 26:3; Hebrews 7:23–25
- 22 John 4:5; Joshua 24:32; 1 Chronicles 5:2; Judges 11:23; Genesis 34:28
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
… heart, in the persons of his own sons, threw light upon the races of the future people, presignified in them; and laid his hands, mystically crossed, upon his grandchildren by Joseph, not as their father, looking outwardly, corrected them, but as he himself distinguished them. This is the light, the only one, and all those who see and love it …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 1 (1886)
He also shall become a people, and he also shall be exalted; but his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations." And these two promises show the same thing.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 2 (1887)
… Jacob even, the father of so many children, made his grandchildren, the sons of Joseph, his own children, in these words: "These too shall be mine, and they shall receive the land with their brethren, and those which thou begettest after them shall be thine." But it will be said, perhaps, that this word "adoption" is not found in the …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 6 (1888)