THE TRIBE OF EPHRAIM
And the name of the second he called Ephraim: “For God has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.” Gen 41.52
Ephraim was Joseph’s second son by his Egyptian wife Asenath. Ephraim means: two fold increase; very fruitful; doubly fruitful.
Asenath means: “Who belongs to Neith (a goddess of Egypt)”; she who is of Neith. She was the daughter of Potiphera, the priest of the Egyptian sun god On.
The city of On, was later named Heliopolis, in honor of the Greek word for the sun, helios. On was the seat of the worship of the Egyptian sun god Ra.
The worship of the sun god includes the use of obelisks (sometimes referred to as “Baal’s Shaft). Obelisks erected by Thutmos III: one stands on the Thames River in London, and another is in Central Park, NYC. The largest obelisk taken out of Egypt stands in St. Peter’s Square, the Vatican, in the middle of a circle representing the sun!
It is probable that as Joseph’s sons, Ephraim and Manasseh grew up, they were told tales of the sun god by their mother. This would explain their propensity as a tribe to follow after idols in their later history throughout the Bible. As we will see Ephraim became the capital state of the Northern Kingdom. It was here that the Ephraimite rebel Jeroboam was crowned king of Israel after the ten tribes broke away from Solomon’s son Rehoboam.
Jeroboam would later set up two golden calves for the northern tribes to worship. One was in Bethel and the other in Dan. The history of the northern kingdom and reason for being taken captive by the Assyrians was connected to their worship of idols rather than the one true God YHVH.
In the Bible Ephraim is often used as the name for the northern ten tribes as they were the seat of government of the Northern Kingdom.
Symbol: The symbol of Ephraim is a bull or ox. Sometimes they are represented by a cluster of grapes but the Ox is most common. A fruitful ox can be very valuable in an agricultural society.
When the spies returned from Canaan they brought back a cluster of grapes to show the Israelites how fruitful the land was. God wants His people to be fruitful and that is his promise to Ephraim--to make them fruitful in every way. Some scripture references for fruitful:
Gen 1.22, 28; Gen 9.1, 7; Gen 17.6; Gen 26.22; Gen 35.11; Deut 28.1-14; Col 1.10.
Ephraim has this promise of fruitfulness from God but must be aware of his weaknesses. Their mother Asenath and grandfather were both dedicated to idolatry. Isn’t it interesting that the image for God used in idolatry by the northern kingdom was that of an Ox. Ephraim must keep guard of their hearts at all times in order maintain their inheritance and focus on the Lord.
PROPHECIES
And 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 unto him. Then Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it upon Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands with understanding; for Manasseh was the firstborn. And he blessed Joseph and said, “God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has fed me all my life long unto this day, the Angel who frees me from all evil, bless these young men, and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.” Genesis 48.13-16
Joseph’s father Jacob blessed both of Joseph’s sons with the identical same blessing. Only after Joseph interrupted and said something to Jacob did he add to the blessing he had just given:
Then Joseph seeing that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him; and he held up his father’s hand, to remove it from Ephraim’s head unto Manasseh’s head. And Joseph said unto his father, “Not so, my father, for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head.” And his father refused and said, “I know it, my son, I know it; he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of Gentiles (nations).” And he blessed them that day, saying, “In thee shall Israel bless, saying, God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh.” And he set Ephraim before Manasseh. Genesis 48.17-20
In Genesis 48.5 we see Jacob taking Ephraim and Manasseh unto himself, as his own children. This was key to their inheritance. Now they were part of the clan replacing Joseph in the tribal order:
“And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine.”Their blessing was the same at first indicating these two tribes would be linked together in power and government. The Hebrew word greater in Ephraim’s blessing is: gadal = “to advance, boast, bring up, exceed, excellent, make great, increase, lift up, magnify, promote.”
In Biblical history we see Jeroboam, an Ephraimite, lifting up his hand against Solomon’s son and establishing the Northern Kingdom known as Israel. (1 Kings 11.26; 13.26-33). The ten tribes became know as Ephraim. The book of Hosea refers to Ephraim ten times. The other books of the prophets often refer to the ten tribes as Ephraim. Ephraim and Manasseh (who received a double portion in territory) in Biblical history are linked together in the promised land and were governmental leaders of the Northern Kingdom.
In world history we see two nations who fit the profile of Ephraim and Manasseh--Great Britain and the United States of America. To Ephraim the prophecy is: “…truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of Gentiles (nations).”
The promise of God to Abraham was that his descendants would be greater that the stars of heaven and that he would be the father of many nations (Gen 17.4-6; Gen 12, 17, 22). God was speaking to Abraham far into the future.
The nation of Great Britain became a “Commonwealth of Nations” including Australia, New Zealand, and many other colonies including the thirteen North American colonies which later became the United States of America. The British people were responsible for taking the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the far ends of the earth. In every way they fit the prophecy given to Ephraim through both Abraham and Jacob. The symbol of Great Britain is “John Bull” which is interesting when realizing the symbol for Ephraim is an Ox. The word British in Hebrew consists of two words: Brit = covenant and Ish = man. British = Covenant Man
The United States of America (Manasseh) became a great nation that came forth from the peoples of Great Britain. They could be considered as brothers of Great Britain. They too were responsible for taking the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the far ends of the earth. Read for yourself the prophecies to Abraham and from Jacob to Ephraim and Manasseh and consider the big picture.
The prophecies to these two sons of Joseph are key to understanding the history of the Old Testament. They are key to what God is doing in these end times. When you begin to understand these ancient prophecies given by God the words of the prophets in the O.T. begin to open up in a fresh way. Truth is hidden in plain sight! To dig even deeper we must look at the prophecies given by Jacob and Moses to Joseph, Ephraim and Manasseh’s father. These words are key to understanding both the historical Bible and the latter days or end times.
JACOB’S PROPHECY TO JOSEPH HIS BELOVED SON, FATHER OF EPHRAIM AND MANASSEH“Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well, whose (branches) = daughters run over the wall. The arches have sorely grieved him and shot at him and hated him; but his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the Mighty one of Jacob; (from there is the shepherd, the stone of Israel), by the God of thy father, who shall help thee, and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of the heaven above, with blessings of the deep that lies under, with blessings of the breasts and of the womb. The blessings of thy father were greater than the blessings of my progenitors; unto the borders of the eternal hills they shall be upon the head of Joseph and on the crown of the him that was separate from his brethren.” Genesis 49.22-26
“Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well, whose (branches) = daughters run over the wall. In Bible history this is true of the daughters of Joseph as many of them were leaders and have interesting histories. Hannah the mother of the prophet and priest Samuel was an Ephraimite. In Numbers 27.1-11 we see daughters of the tribe of Manasseh demanding their inheritance when their father died without a son and getting it!
Women are called into ministry just as men in the Kingdom of Yeshua. If the men hold back many times a woman will step forward and take the lead. Deborah and Barak are a great example of that truth (Judges 4).
“The archers have sorely grieved him and shot at him and hated him…"
The word archers in Hebrew = chets = “a piercer, i.e. an arrow, a wound, the shaft of a spear.” It is through wounding and being pierced in life that we become like Yeshua. In Joseph both Ephraim and Manasseh are one. They go through many of the same trials and tribulations. They represent the two fold power and suffering the Apostle Paul spoke of:
“That I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death…” Philippians 3.10
“…but his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the Mighty one of Jacob; (from there is the shepherd, the stone of Israel)…”Joseph (Ephraim and Manasseh) are defending themselves with a bow. This is the same weapon that is attacking him. In Zechariah 9.13 we see the Lord using Judah (Southern Kingdom) and Ephraim (Northern Kingdom) as his bow and arrows!
This is an end time word. In Ezekiel 37.15-28 we see Judah (Jews) and Ephraim (Gentiles, believers who have been grafted in) joined together at the end of the age. This is God re-gathering His people together. We must be strong and contend with the enemy in spiritual warfare! We will be God’s bow’s and arrows.
Jacob saw the coming Good Shepherd, Yeshua, the rock of Israel. Yeshua replaces the evil shepherd’s that lead the people astray (Zechariah 10.3). Ephraim and Manasseh led the tribes astray in biblical history, but at the end of the age they will be God’s warriors.
“by the God of thy father, who shall help thee, and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, with blessings of the deep that lies under, with blessings of the breasts and of the womb.”
This is a complete and total blessing... Blessing of heaven is like rain that comes down, like the morning dew. This represents the word or instruction of God--Torah.
Blessings of the deep--beneath the earth--gold, oil, fertile ground. We dig through the scriptures to find gold and the oil of anointing. These can be physical blessing too.
Blessing of the womb--children, they are our inheritance. They give us joy. This includes spiritual children. The word for “Almighty” = the breasted one in Hebrew. The female side of God. Nourishing and cherishing us.
Looking from a world perspective have not Great Britain and the United States been a great blessing to the world? Have they not taken the word to the ends of the earth. All those who have lived in these two Ephraim and Manasseh nations been incredibly blessed? Have not the words of Genesis 17 and 22 to Abraham been fulfilled through these two nations in our day? Think Big--Look at the Big Perspective from His-story.
“The blessings of thy father were greater than the blessings of my progenitors; unto the borders of the eternal hills they shall be upon the head of Joseph and on the crown of the him that was separate from his brethren.” Jacob is saying that these blessing from him to Joseph are greater that the blessing he received from his own forefathers! Greater than the blessings from Abraham and Isaac that Jacob received.
Jacob is blessing Joseph as Israel the Prince of God--not as Jacob the supplanter. This is very powerful!
…shall be upon the head of Joseph and on the crown of him…is revealing that Joseph’s descendants would also have a royal line. We see this in the Biblical history of the northern kingdom as many kings came from the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh.
In world history Great Britain and the USA have been the leading governmental powers for centuries when you include all of Britain’s history. They have the blessings of these two tribes through Joseph. (They are now in the process of losing these blessings as they fall away from the laws of God.)
…of him that was separate from his brethren…The word separate comes from the Hebrew nazir = “to separate, consecrated” which is the same word used for the Nazarite.
These tribes were always more powerful that the other ten tribes of the northern kingdom. They were more consecrated, in a negative way, to worshipping idols and leading the nation astray. When they align themselves with our Elohim then they are powerful indeed. God is spiritually reuniting and consecrating these two tribes.
To be separate means to be different. In world history Britain was the first nation to abolish slavery. It took a civil war to achieve that in America, but it happened. Both these great countries were different from the rest of the world and people flocked to them to achieve their dreams of freedom.
MOSES PROPHECY TO JOSEPH WHICH INCLUDES EPHRAIM AND MANASSEH...And of Joseph he said: “Blessed of the Lord is his land, with the precious things of heaven, with the dew, and the deep lying beneath, with the precious fruits of the sun, with the precious produce of the months, with the best things of the ancient mountains, with the precious things of the everlasting hills, with the precious things of the earth and its fullness, and the favor of Him who dwelt in the bush. Let the blessing come ‘on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brothers. His glory is like a firstborn bull, and his horns like the horns of the wild ox; Together with them he shall push the peoples to the ends of the earth; They are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh.” Deut 33.13-17
This prophecy that Moses gives to Joseph and his children is very similar to that which Jacob gave. We’ll just go over that added information Moses gives. This is a blessing on both Ephraim and Manasseh.
with the precious produce of the moon (months)…Most translations say moons, as moons were indicator of the beginning of a new month (new moon).
In an agricultural sense this is a blessing on the work of Joseph’s tribes…they are blessed in the monthly work they do to make their living. In a world history sense isn’t it interesting that as of this time no nation has put a man on the moon except for the United States of America which is represented by Manasseh.
…and the favor of Him who dwelt in the bush…This word bush is ceneh in the Hebrew and is the same word as used in Exodus 3.2. Moses is referring to his encounter with God when he saw the burning bush. From there he was commissioned to deliver the Children of Israel from slavery in Egypt.
Moses and Joseph had a lot in common. Moses was sent to the back of the desert for forty years of lonely waiting on the Lord. Joseph was separated from his family and spent many years in prison being prepared by God for his mission.
God often takes us to a place of loneliness and separation as He prepares us for our destiny in Him. If you haven’t suffered through trials and loneliness then your ministry will be very shallow. Those He uses greatly must pay a price and let the work of the cross change their inner person. God wants to visit us in the same way He visited Moses and Joseph so that we can be used mightily by Him.
His glory is like a firstborn bull…The first born bull is sacrificed to the Lord. It is laid upon the altar as a complete offering to the Lord. This is the honor of Joseph’s children (which represent the nations/gentiles) as we follow after Yeshua. God wants our complete dedication towards Him.
…and his horns like the horns of the wild ox…The ox is a powerful and sometimes violent animal. In Hebrew the first letter of the Aleph-bet is Aleph. This letter is an ancient picture of the ox and represents our Father and Creator God in Hebrew. Yeshua was our sacrificial ox burned on the fire of the altar.
Horns are a symbol of power and government. Yeshua is the King and He is coming to rule the nations with a rod of iron. He will destroy the horns of power spoken of in the Book of Revelation.
Together with them (horns) he shall push the peoples to the ends of the earth…The horns which protect the ox will be used to push the people to the ends of the earth and establish the Millennial Kingdom.
You could say these horns represent the countless missionaries that have come out of Britain and America to push the peoples of the earth to salvation through Jesus Christ.
“They are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh.” This is Ephraim and Manasseh who together make up the tribe of Joseph. When the Bible speaks of Joseph in the books of the prophets it is usually speaking about the northern kingdom. Joseph and Ephraim are interchangeable in this way in the books of the prophets. They are representative of the ten lost tribes--the northern kingdom--who today through many millennia have lost their identity as they were scattered among the nations/gentiles. Hosea 7.8; Ps 106.35; Hosea 9.3 are some witnesses to this truth.
In Revelation 7 when it speaks of the 144,000 it mentions Manasseh but not Ephraim. Joseph is mentioned in place of Ephraim as both Manasseh and Ephraim can be represented separately or together by Joseph. I believe in the New Jerusalem they will be called Joseph.
One final point as you mediate and seek the Lord on these prophecies. They were the last recorded words of both Jacob and Moses (Gen 49.33; Deut 34.1-5). They are important to be understood in both a Bible history and end of the age context. They are worthy of your time in waiting before the Lord and seeking His meaning of them to you.
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