Chapter 48:
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Introduction 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 Revelation Exodus
Genesis 48
In this chapter Jacob's dying words are recorded, because
he speaks by a spirit of prophecy; Abraham's and Isaac's are not.
God's gifts and graces shine forth much more in some than in
others upon their death-beds. Here is,
I. Joseph hearing of his father's sickness goes to visit him, and
takes his two sons with him, ver. 1-2.
II. Jacob solemnly adopts his two sons, and takes them for his
own, ver. 3-7.
III. He blesseth them, ver. 8-16.
IV. He explains and justifies the crossing of his hands in blessing
them, ver. 17-20.
V. He leaves a particular legacy to Joseph, ver. 21-22.
Verse 3. God blessed me - And let that blessing be entailed upon them.
God had promised him two things, a numerous issue, and Canaan
for an inheritance. And Joseph's sons, pursuant hereunto, should
each of them multiply into a tribe, and each of them have a
distinct lot in Canaan, equal with Jacob's own sons. See how he
blessed them by faith in that which God had said to him Heb. xi,
21.
Verse
7. Mention is made of the death and burial of Rachel, Joseph's
mother, and Jacob's best beloved wife. The removal of dear
relations from us is an affliction, the remembrance of which
cannot but abide with us a great while. Strong affections in the
enjoyment cause long afflictions in the loss.
Verse
11. I had not thought to see thy face, (having many years given
him up for lost) and lo God hath shewed me also thy seed? - See
here, How these two good men own God in their comforts. Joseph
saith, They are my sons whom God has given me - And to
magnify the favour he adds, in this place of my banishment,
slavery and imprisonment. Jacob saith here, God hath shewed me
thy seed - Our comforts are then doubly sweet to us, when we see
them coming from God's hand.
Verse
15. The God who fed me all my life long unto this day - As long
as we have lived in this world we have had continual experience
of God's goodness to us in providing for the support of our natural
life. Our bodies have called for daily food, and we have never
wanted food convenient. He that has fed us all our life long will
not fail us at last.
Verse
16. The angel who redeemed me from all evil - A great deal of
hardship he had known in his time, but God had graciously kept
him from the evil of his troubles. Christ, the angel of the covenant
is he that redeems us from all evil. It becomes the servants of
God, when they are old and dying, to witness for our God that
they have found him gracious. Joseph had placed his children so,
as that Jacob's right-hand should be put on the head of Manasseh
the eldest, ver. 12, 13, but Jacob would put it on the head of
Ephraim the youngest, ver. 14. This displeased Joseph, who was
willing to support the reputation of his first-born and would
therefore have removed his father's hands, ver. 17, 18, but Jacob
gave him to understand that he knew what he did, and that he did
it neither by mistake nor in a humour, nor from a partial affection
to one more than the other, but from a spirit of prophecy.
Verse
19. Ephraim shall he greater - When the tribes were mustered in
the wilderness Ephraim was more numerous than Manasseh, and
had the standard of that squadron, Num. i, 32, 33, 35-ii, 18, 20,
and is named first, Psalm lxxx, 2. Joshua was of that tribe. The
tribe of Manasseh was divided, one half on one side Jordan, the
other half on the other side, which made it the less powerful and
considerable. God, in bestowing his blessings upon his people,
gives more to some than to others, more gifts, graces and
comforts, and more of the good things of this life. And he often
gives most to those that are least likely: he chuseth the weak
things of the world, raiseth the poor out of the dust. Grace
observes not the order of nature, nor doth God prefer those whom
we think fittest to be preferred but as it pleaseth him.
Verse
21. I die, but God shall be with you, and bring you again - This
assurance was given them, and carefully preserved among them,
that they might neither love Egypt too much when it favoured
them, nor fear it too much when it frowned upon them. These
words of Jacob furnish us with comfort in reference to the death
of our friends: But God shall be with us, and his gracious presence
is sufficient to make up the loss. They leave us, but he will never
fail us. He will bring us to the land of our fathers, the heavenly
Canaan, whither our godly fathers are gone before us. If God be
with us while we stay behind in this world, and will receive us
shortly to be with them that are gone before to a better world, we
ought not to sorrow as those that have no hope.
Verse
22. He bestowed one portion upon him above his brethren. The
lands bequeathed are described to be those which he took out of
the hand of the Amorite with his sword and with his bow. He
purchased them first, Josh. xxiv, 32, and it seems was afterwards
disseized of them by the Amorites, but retook them by the sword,
repelling force by force, and recovering his right by violence
when he could not otherwise recover it. These lands he settled
upon Joseph. Mention is made of this grant, John iv, 5. Pursuant
to it, this parcel of ground was given to the tribe of Ephraim as
their right, and the lot was never cast upon it: and in it Joseph's
bones were buried, which perhaps Jacob had an eye to as much as
to any thing in this settlement. It may sometimes be both just and
prudent to give some children portions above the rest: but a grave
is that which we can most count upon as our own in this earth.
Chapter 48:
| Calvin
| Darby
| Geneva
| Gill
| Jamieson Faussett Brown
| Matthew Henry
| Matthew Henry Concise
| Wesley
| Index
| Bible Gateway |
Introduction 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 Revelation Exodus
This version of Wesley's Notes on the Bible is a derivative of an electronic version, Copyright 1997, by Sulu D. Kelley. All rights reserved. Used by permission. It may not be modified or used commercially without permission of Wesleyan Heritage Publishing and Sulu Kelley. A special thanks to Mr. Kelley and Wesleyan Heritage Publishing for permission to create and post this version of Wesley's Notes on the Bible.
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