Kejadian 41:51

41:51 Joseph named the firstborn Manasseh, ¹  saying, ²  “Certainly ³  God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s house.”

Kejadian 46:19-20

46:19 The sons of Rachel the wife of Jacob:

Joseph and Benjamin.

46:20 Manasseh and Ephraim were born to Joseph in the land of Egypt. Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, ⁴  bore them to him.

Kejadian 48:1

Manasseh and Ephraim

48:1 After these things Joseph was told, ⁵  “Your father is weakening.” So he took his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim with him.

Kejadian 48:5-6

48:5 “Now, as for your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, they will be mine. ⁶  Ephraim and Manasseh will be mine just as Reuben and Simeon are. 48:6 Any children that you father ⁷  after them will be yours; they will be listed ⁸  under the names of their brothers in their inheritance. ⁹ 

Kejadian 48:12-14

48:12 So Joseph moved them from Israel’s knees ¹⁰  and bowed down with his face to the ground. 48:13 Joseph positioned them; ¹¹  he put Ephraim on his right hand across from Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh on his left hand across from Israel’s right hand. Then Joseph brought them closer to his father. ¹²  48:14 Israel stretched out his right hand and placed it on Ephraim’s head, although he was the younger. ¹³  Crossing his hands, he put his left hand on Manasseh’s head, for Manasseh was the firstborn.

Kejadian 48:17

48:17 When Joseph saw that his father placed his right hand on Ephraim’s head, it displeased him. ¹⁴  So he took his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head.

Kejadian 48:19-20

48:19 But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He too will become a nation and he too will become great. In spite of this, his younger brother will be even greater and his descendants will become a multitude ¹⁵  of nations.” 48:20 So he blessed them that day, saying,

“By you ¹⁶  will Israel bless, ¹⁷  saying,

‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’”

So he put Ephraim before Manasseh. ¹⁸ 

Kejadian 50:23

50:23 Joseph saw the descendants of Ephraim to the third generation. ¹⁹  He also saw the children of Makir the son of Manasseh; they were given special inheritance rights by Joseph. ²⁰ 

[41:51]  ¹ sn The name Manasseh (מְנַשֶּׁה, mÿnasheh) describes God’s activity on behalf of Joseph, explaining in general the significance of his change of fortune. The name is a Piel participle, suggesting the meaning “he who brings about forgetfulness.” The Hebrew verb נַשַּׁנִי (nashani) may have been used instead of the normal נִשַּׁנִי (nishani) to provide a closer sound play with the name. The giving of this Hebrew name to his son shows that Joseph retained his heritage and faith; and it shows that a brighter future was in store for him.

[41:51]  ² tn The word “saying” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[41:51]  ³ tn Or “for.”

[46:20]  ⁴ sn On is another name for the city of Heliopolis.

[48:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “and one said.” With no expressed subject in the Hebrew text, the verb can be translated with the passive voice.

[48:5]  ⁶ sn They will be mine. Jacob is here adopting his two grandsons Manasseh and Ephraim as his sons, and so they will have equal share with the other brothers. They will be in the place of Joseph and Levi (who will become a priestly tribe) in the settlement of the land. See I. Mendelsohn, “A Ugaritic Parallel to the Adoption of Ephraim and Manasseh,” IEJ (1959): 180-83.

[48:6]  ⁷ tn Or “you fathered.”

[48:6]  ⁸ tn Heb “called” or “named.”

[48:6]  ⁹ sn Listed under the names of their brothers in their inheritance. This means that any subsequent children of Joseph will be incorporated into the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh.

[48:12]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and Joseph brought them out from with his knees.” The two boys had probably been standing by Israel’s knees when being adopted and blessed. The referent of the pronoun “his” (Israel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[48:13]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and Joseph took the two of them.”

[48:13]  ¹² tn Heb “and he brought near to him.” The referents of the pronouns “he” and “him” (Joseph and his father respectively) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[48:14]  ¹³ tn The disjunctive clause is circumstantial-concessive here.

[48:17]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “it was bad in his eyes.”

[48:19]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “fullness.”

[48:20]  ¹⁶ tn The pronoun is singular in the Hebrew text, apparently elevating Ephraim as the more prominent of the two. Note, however, that both are named in the blessing formula that follows.

[48:20]  ¹⁷ tn Or “pronounce a blessing.”

[48:20]  ¹⁸ sn On the elevation of Ephraim over Manasseh see E. C. Kingsbury, “He Set Ephraim Before Manasseh,” HUCA 38 (1967): 129-36; H. Mowvley, “The Concept and Content of ‘Blessing’ in the Old Testament,” BT 16 (1965): 74-80; and I. Mendelsohn, “On the Preferential Status of the Eldest Son,” BASOR 156 (1959): 38-40.

[50:23]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “saw Ephraim, the children of the third.”

[50:23]  ²⁰ tn Heb “they were born on the knees of Joseph.” This expression implies their adoption by Joseph, which meant that they received an inheritance from him.