29. And the time drew nigh that Ifrael muft die and be called : 29. Under my thigh: See the Note on ch. his fon Jofeph, and faid unto him, 24. 2. If now I have found grace in thy fight, put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me; bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt. 30. But I will lie with my fa thers, and thou shalt carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their burying-place. And he faid, I will do as thou haft faid. might be mindfull of their 31. And he faid, Swear unto me; And he fware unto him. And Ifrael bowed himself upon the bed's bead. 30. With my far thers: i. e. In the Land of Canaan, Land of where Abraham and Ifaac were buried; That the Ifraelites return thither. 31. Swear unto me: Jacob requires an Oath, not because he diftrufted Jofeph, but that he might furnish him with an argument to prevail with Pharaoh; and accordingly we find fofeph making ufe of it, ch. 50. 5. Ifrael bowed himself upon the bed's head: i. e. He worshipped God, raifing himself upon the head of his Bed. And poffibly he might alfo lean upon the top of his Staff, as the Greek hath it. See Heb. 11.21. CHA P. XLVIII. The ARGUMENT. Jofeph, with his two Sons, vifits his Father in his fucknefs. Jacob puts him in mind of God's promife, and taketh Ephraim and Manaffeh for his own Sons. He bleffeth them, and preferrs Ephraim before Manaffeh He fore tells the Ifraelites return into Canaan; Aud gives Jofeph a portion of Land. ND it came to pass after these things, that one told Jofeph, Behold, thy father is fick: and he took with him his two fons, Manaffeh and Ephraim.... 2. And one told Jacob, and faid, Behold, thy Son Jofeph cometh unto thee: and Ifrael strengthened himSelf, and fat upon the bed. ftrength; and poffibly when he had 2. One told: It was told as the La tin and Greek have it. Strengthened himself: i.e. He put forth his raised himself, he fup ported himself by leaning upon his Staff, Heb. 11.21. Bed: Ch. 47-31. 3. And Jacob faid unto Jofeph, 3. At Luz: Which, God Almighty appeared unto me from God's appearing at Luz in the land of Canaan, and to him, he called Bethel, ch. 28. 19. God bleffed me, appeared to Jacob twice in that place, at his going from, and returning to Canaan, ch. 28. 13. and 35. 6, 9. This Land: Ch. 28. 13. ch. 35.12. For an everlasting poffeffion: Ch. 13. 15. This Jacob puts Jofeph in mind of both to affure him of his right to the Land of Canaan; and also, that his Pofterity might not be unmindfull of returning thither. 4. And faid unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitfull, and multiply thee; and I will make of thee a multitude of people, and will give this land to thy feed after thee, for an everlasting poffeffion. 5. And now thy two fons, Ephraim and Manaffeh, which 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. 5. Are mine: They fhall be reputed as my immediate Sons, and fhall be Heads of Tribes, and,as fuch, inherit as Reuben and Simeon my two eldest Sons. Thus Jofeph had a double portion, (1 Chron.5.1.) the priviledge of the first-born. 6. And. 240 6. And thy iffue which thou begetteft after them, fhall be thine, and fhall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheri 8. And Ifrael beheld Jofeph's fons, and faid, Who are these? 9. And Jofeph faid unto his father, They are my fons, whom God hath given me in this place. And be faid, Bring them, I pray thee, unto me, and I will bless them. 10. (Now the eyes of Ifrael were dim for age, fo that be could not fee :) And he brought them near unto him; and he kiffed them, and embraced them. 11. And Ifrael faid unto Jofeph, I had not though; to fee thy face and lo, God hath fhewed me alfo thy feed. 12. And Jofeph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth. 13. And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand towards Ifrael's left hand, and Manaffeh in his left hand towards Ifrael's right hand, and brought them near unto him. 12. His knees: ic Facob's. See v. 10. 13. Toward Ifra el's right hand: Jo Seph to placed them, his right hand on that Ifrael might lay Manalleh the eldeft. The The right hand being esteemed a token of the greater honour, 1 Kings 2. 19. Matt. 25. 33. 14. And Ifrael ftretched out his right hand; and laid it upon E phraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manajeb's head: guiding his bands wittingly; for Manaffeh was the first-born. of choice, not by chance. For: Or, brew Particle fignifies. 14. Laid it upon : Impofition of hands was used in Bleffing. Compare Matt. 19. Guiding his hands 13.with Mark 10.16. wittingly: He did it although, as the He 15. And be bleffed Jofeph, and faid, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Ifaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, 16. The Angelwhich redeemed, &c. i. e. Chrift, the Angel of the Covenant, Mal. raelites, and whom 3.1. who led the Ithey tempted, Exod. 14. 19. and ch.23.20. and 1 Cor. 10. 19. To whom the Title of Redeemer belongs, Ifa.59.20. Who is called the Angel of God, (ch. 31. 11.) and the God of Bethel, (v. 13.) Grow into a multitude: As Fishes do encreafe, Numb. 26. 34, 37. Josh. 17.17. : 17. And when Jofeph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it difpleafed him and be held up his father's hand, to remove it from Ephraim's head unto Manaffeb's head. 18. And Jofeph said unto his father, Not fo, my father for this is the first born; put thy right hand upon bis head. 19. And his father refused, and faid, I know it, my fon, I know it; be alfo fhall become a people, and he alfo fhall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than 19. Greater: In number, Numb.1.33, 35. Deut.33.17. In dignity: This is called the Tribe of Jofeph, R Numb, 1 21. And Ifrael faid unto Jofeph, God fhall be with you, and bring you of your fathers. 22. Moreover, I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow. Numb.1.32,34. Rev. 7.8. and put for the whole Kingdom of Ifrael, Ifa. 7.2. 20. Ifrael blefs: i. e. The Ifraelites fhall ufe this form of bleffing one ano- TC 22. Which I took out of the hand of the Amorite, &c. A vey probable opinion there is that Jacob bought this part, which here he gives to Jofeph, of Shechem's Father, (ch. 33. 19.) and that upon Jacob's removal, after the Shechemites were deftroyed, (ch. 35. 1.) the Amorite took poffeffion of it, whom Jacob upon his return difpoffeffed by force of Arms, and recovered his unquestionable Right. That he did fo, is indeed no-where elfe mentioned; But that is no objection against this sense of the place, which is here fo fairly intimated. We have to this purpofe fundry Examples, where things are by the by related or fairly intimated to have been faid or done before, which yet were never mentioned before that time. E. g. What is faid of Anah, ch. 36. 24. and what God had faid to Mofes concerning the Moabites, Deut. 2. 9. Of the Men of Jericho, Josh. 24. 11. And the words of Jefus, Acts 20. 35. I offer, for the farther clearing of this difficult place, the following particulars to be confidered: [I.] That the Amorites, being fignal for their Idolatry, are spoken of as comprehending the Hivites, and other Nations under them. Thus we read: The iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full, Gen. 15. 16. Fear not the Gods of the Amorites, Judg. 6. 10. Thus |