يعقوب يـبارك ابني يوسف
1 ومَرَّتِ الأيّامُ فقيلَ لِـيوسُفَ: «أبوكَ مرِيضٌ». فأخذَ معَه ابنَيهِ منَسَّى وأفرايمَ. 2 ولمَّا قِـيلَ لِـيعقوبَ: «ها ابنُكَ يوسُفُ قادِمٌ إِليكَ»، جمَعَ قِواهُ وجلَسَ على فِراشِهِ.
3 وقالَ يَعقوبُ لِـيوسُفَ: «اللهُ القديرُ ظهَرَ لي في لُوزَ، في أرضِ كنعانَ، وبارَكني 4 وقالَ لي: سأُنْميكَ وأُكَثِّرُكَ وأجعَلُكَ عِدَّةَ شُعوبٍ وأُعطي نسلَكَ هذِهِ الأرضَ مِنْ بَعدِكَ مُلْكا أبديًّا. 5 ثُمَّ قالَ يعقوبُ: «والآنَ يا يوسُفُ، فابناكَ منَسَّى وأفرايمُ اللَّذانِ وُلِدا لكَ في أرضِ مِصْرَ، قَبلَ مَجيئي إليكَ، يكونانِ لي مِثْلَ رَأوبـينَ وشِمعونَ. 6 ومَنْ يُولَدُ لكَ بَعدَهُما مِنَ البَنينِ فلا يكونُ لي، بل يكونُ لكَ ويَنالُ نصيـبَهُ مِنَ الميراثِ على قَدْرِ أخوَيْه منَسَّى وأفرايِمَ.
7 وأمَّا أنا فلمَّا رجَعْتُ مِن سَهلِ أرامَ فُجِعْتُ بِموتِ أُمِّكَ راحيلَ في أرضِ كنعانَ. في الطَّريقِ على مَقرُبَةٍ مِنْ أفراتَةَ، فدَفَنتُها هُناكَ في طريقِ أفراتَةَ وهيَ بَيتُ لَحمٍ.
8 ورأى يعقوبُ ابْنَيْ يوسُفَ فقالَ: «مَنْ هذانِ؟» 9 فقالَ لَه يوسُفُ: «هُما ابنايَ اللَّذانِ رَزَقَني إيَّاهما اللهُ هُنا». قالَ: «قَرِّبْهُما إليَّ لأُبارِكَهُما». 10 وكانَت عَينا يعقوبَ كَليلَتَينِ مِنَ الشَّيخوخةِ، ولم يَكُنْ يَقدِرُ أنْ يُبصِرَ. فقَرَّبَهُما إليهِ، فقَبَّلَهُما واحتَضَنَهُما 11 وقالَ ليوسُفَ: «ما كُنتُ أظُنُّ أنِّي أرى وجهَكَ، فأراني اللهُ نسلَكَ أيضا». 12 ثُمَّ أخرَجَهُما يوسُفُ مِنْ بَينِ رُكبتَي أبـيهِ وسجَدَ على وجهِهِ إلى الأرضِ.
13 وأخذَ يوسُفُ ابنَيهِ الاثنينِ، فَقَرَّبَ أفرايمَ بِيمينِه إلى يَسارِ يعقوبَ وقَرَّبَ منَسَّى بِيسارِهِ إلى يَمينِ يعقوبَ، 14 فَمَدَّ يعقوبُ يَدَيه مُخالِفا. فوضَعَ يَمينَه على رأسِ أفرايمَ وهوَ الأصغَرُ ويَسَارَه على رأسِ منَسَّى مَعَ أنَّهُ البِكرُ. 15 وبارَكَ يوسُفَ وقالَ:
«اللهُ الّذي سَلَكَ أبواي إبراهيمُ وإسحَقُ أمامَهُ،
اللهُ الّذي رعاني طُولَ حياتي إلى اليومِ،
16 اللهُ الَّذي نجَّاني مِنْ كُلِّ سوءٍ
يُبارِكُ هذَينِ الصَّبـيَّينِ.
يتسمَّيانِ بإسمي وإسمِ أبوَيَّ إبراهيمَ وإسحَقَ
ويكثُرانِ جدًّا في الأرضِ».
17 فلمَّا رأى يوسُفُ أنَّ أباهُ وضَعَ يدَهُ اليُمنى على رأسِ أفرايمَ ساءَهُ ذلِكَ. فأمسَكَ بِيَدِ أبـيهِ ليَنقُلَها عَنْ رأسِ أفرايمَ إلى رأسِ منَسَّى. 18 وقالَ يوسُفُ لأِبـيهِ: «ما هكذا يا أبـي، لأنَّ هذا هوَ البِكْرُ وعلى رأسِهِ تضَعُ يَمينَكَ». 19 فرَفَضَ أبوهُ وقالَ لَه: «عرَفْتُ يا ابني عرَفْتُ. منَسَّى أيضا يكونُ شعبا، وهوَ أيضا يصيرُ عظيما. ولكنَّ أخاهُ الأصغرَ يصيرُ أعظمَ مِنه. ويكونُ نَسلُه عِدَّةَ أُمَمٍ».
20 وبارَكَهُما يعقوبُ في ذلِكَ اليومِ، وقالَ: «تكونانِ بَرَكَةً في بَني إِسرائيلَ، فَيُقالُ: يجعَلُكَ اللهُ مِثْلَ أفرايمَ ومِثلَ منَسَّى». وهكذا قَدَّمَ يعقوبُ أفرايِمَ على منَسَّى.
21 وقالَ يعقوبُ ليوسُفَ ابنهِ: «دَنَت ساعةُ موتي، وسيكونُ اللهُ معَكُم ويرُدُّكُم إلى أرضِ آبائِكُم. 22 وأنا أَعطيتُكَ شكيمَ عَلاوةً على إخوتِكَ، وهيَ الّتي أخَذْتُها مِنْ يَدِ الأموريِّينَ بِسَيفي وقَوسي».
Jacob Blesses Ephraim and Manasseh
1 Some time later Joseph was told that his father was ill. So he took his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, and went to see Jacob. 2 When Jacob was told that his son Joseph had come to see him, he gathered his strength and sat up in bed. 3 Jacob said to Joseph, “Almighty God appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me. 4 He said to me, ‘I will give you many children, so that your descendants will become many nations; I will give this land to your descendants as their possession forever.’”
5 Jacob continued, “Joseph, your two sons, who were born to you in Egypt before I came here, belong to me; Ephraim and Manasseh are just as much my sons as Reuben and Simeon. 6 If you have any more sons, they will not be considered mine; the inheritance they get will come through Ephraim and Manasseh. 7 I am doing this because of your mother Rachel. To my great sorrow she died in the land of Canaan, not far from Ephrath, as I was returning from Mesopotamia. I buried her there beside the road to Ephrath.” (Ephrath is now known as Bethlehem.)
8 When Jacob saw Joseph's sons, he asked, “Who are these boys?”
9 Joseph answered, “These are my sons, whom God has given me here in Egypt.”
Jacob said, “Bring them to me so that I may bless them.” 10 Jacob's eyesight was failing because of his age, and he could not see very well. Joseph brought the boys to him, and he hugged them and kissed them. 11 Jacob said to Joseph, “I never expected to see you again, and now God has even let me see your children.” 12 Then Joseph took them from Jacob's lap and bowed down before him with his face to the ground.
13 Joseph put Ephraim at Jacob's left and Manasseh at his right. 14 But Jacob crossed his hands, and put his right hand on the head of Ephraim, even though he was the younger, and his left hand on the head of Manasseh, who was the older. 15 Then he blessed Joseph:
“May God, whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac served, bless these boys!
May God, who has led me to this very day, bless them!
16 May the angel, who has rescued me from all harm, bless them!
May my name and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac live on through these boys!
May they have many children, many descendants!”
17 Joseph was upset when he saw that his father had put his right hand on Ephraim's head; so he took his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to the head of Manasseh. 18 He said to his father, “Not that way, father. This is the older boy; put your right hand on his head.”
19 His father refused, saying, “I know, son, I know. Manasseh's descendants will also become a great people. But his younger brother will be greater than he, and his descendants will become great nations.”
20 So he blessed them that day, saying, “The Israelites will use your names when they pronounce blessings. They will say, ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’” In this way Jacob put Ephraim before Manasseh.
21 Then Jacob said to Joseph, “As you see, I am about to die, but God will be with you and will take you back to the land of your ancestors. 22 It is to you and not to your brothers that I am giving Shechem, that fertile region which I took from the Amorites with my sword and my bow.”