Father’s don’t pronounce blessings on their children anymore….listening to these blessings, maybe it’s a good thing…
Significant to this reading is the adoption by Jacob of Joseph’s two sons. There are 12 tribes in Israel and the land is divided 12 ways. But catch this: they aren’t the same. The tribe of Levi receives no land, they are the priests, and “the Lord is their inheritance”. so that brings the number to 11. Joseph would be #12, but he doesn’t receive an inheritance either. That brings the number to 1o. Now, Jacob has added Joe’s two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, and that brings the total back to 12. So, there are 12 sons and there are 12 divisions of land…but they are slightly different.
Think of this to tease your brain: There clearly is a tribe of Levi, but the tribe doesn’t have any inheritance, and they aren’t listed as one of the “12 tribes”. Read Numbers 1:20-49. This shows us that Levi isn’t included, and neither is Joseph. The two sons round out the 12 tribes. I don’t why that might be significant, but it is interesting to note.
At the end of today’s reading we see that Ephraim has three generations of children at the time of Joseph’s death, while Manasseh only has one. This is pretty much just what Jacob said would happen.
When Jacob is blessing the family, not all of his blessings are benevolent. Some of them call attention to the stubbornness and violence that the boys are capable of, and how that behavior will affect them in the future. How sad to know in advance that you aren’t going to change and become better, and in the end it’s going to cost you dearly.
Joseph’s blessing to quadruple what the other brothers receive. He is given the lion’s share of what Jacob has to offer. And yet, Judah is the one who receives the highest honor….from Judah will come one who will rule forever. Jacob is calling attention to Jesus here. It just helps me understand that all of us are working together to see the same conclusion.
Joseph has a role to play, so does the tribe of Levi and so does the tribe of Judah. None of them can claim predominance, because all of them are equally important. And even if you could have counted Joseph as “the most influential” no one can claim to be part of his “tribe”, since his sons received his inheritance, not him.
Faithfully,
PR