The Lord bless you and keep you
Make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you
The Lord turn His face toward you
And give you peace

Amen, amen, amen
Amen, amen, amen
Amen, amen, amen
Amen, amen, amen

May His favor be upon you
And a thousand generations
And your family and your children
And their children, and their children

This beautiful song of praise, seeking God’s blessings of provision and protection for all who love and trust Him plays in the background of my mind as Jacob (Israel) speaks his last words to his son and Joseph’s sons.  Jacob thought he would never see his beloved son again but God intervened in Joseph’s life and protected him, nurtured his heart, mind, and soul while placing him in a powerful leadership position that would later rescue and provide for Jacob’s entire family.  Imagine the scene as an ailing father rises from his death bed to bless his son and his sons. 

The blessing God gave to Jacob is now passed on to the succeeding generations.

Genesis 48

Manasseh and Ephraim

Some time later Joseph was told, “Your father is ill.” So he took his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim along with him. ² When Jacob was told, “Your son Joseph has come to you,” Israel rallied his strength and sat up on the bed.

³ Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and there he blessed me ⁴ and said to me, ‘I am going to make you fruitful and increase your numbers. I will make you a community of peoples, and I will give this land as an everlasting possession to your descendants after you.’

⁵ “Now then, your two sons born to you in Egypt before I came to you here will be reckoned as mine; Ephraim and Manasseh will be mine, just as Reuben and Simeon are mine. ⁶ Any children born to you after them will be yours; in the territory they inherit they will be reckoned under the names of their brothers. ⁷ As I was returning from Paddan, to my sorrow Rachel died in the land of Canaan while we were still on the way, a little distance from Ephrath. So I buried her there beside the road to Ephrath” (that is, Bethlehem).

⁸ When Israel saw the sons of Joseph, he asked, “Who are these?”

⁹ “They are the sons God has given me here,” Joseph said to his father.

Then Israel said, “Bring them to me so I may bless them.”

¹⁰ Now Israel’s eyes were failing because of old age, and he could hardly see. So Joseph brought his sons close to him, and his father kissed them and embraced them.

¹¹ Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected to see your face again, and now God has allowed me to see your children too.”

¹² Then Joseph removed them from Israel’s knees and bowed down with his face to the ground. ¹³ And Joseph took both of them, Ephraim on his right toward Israel’s left hand and Manasseh on his left toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them close to him. ¹⁴ But Israel reached out his right hand and put it on Ephraim’s head, though he was the younger, and crossing his arms, he put his left hand on Manasseh’s head, even though Manasseh was the firstborn.

¹⁵ Then he blessed Joseph and said,

“May the God before whom my fathers
    Abraham and Isaac walked faithfully,
the God who has been my shepherd
    all my life to this day,
¹⁶ the Angel who has delivered me from all harm
    —may he bless these boys.
May they be called by my name
    and the names of my fathers Abraham and Isaac,
and may they increase greatly
    on the earth.”

¹⁷ When Joseph saw his father placing his right hand on Ephraim’s head he was displeased; so he took hold of his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. ¹⁸ Joseph said to him, “No, my father, this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.”

¹⁹ But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He too will become a people, and he too will become great. Nevertheless, his younger brother will be greater than he, and his descendants will become a group of nations.” ²⁰ He blessed them that day and said,

“In your name will Israel pronounce this blessing:
    ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’”

So he put Ephraim ahead of Manasseh.

²¹ Then Israel said to Joseph, “I am about to die, but God will be with you and take you back to the land of your fathers. ²² And to you I give one more ridge of landthan to your brothers, the ridge I took from the Amorites with my sword and my bow.”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

The legacy that Jacob passes on to his son and his sons is God’s blessing to him.  Yes, Jacob closes with giving Joseph more land, but don’t miss what is most important to Jacob—God’s blessing and promise.

So, what will be our legacy?  Are we stacking up things to leave behind?  Are we seeking position and wealth to be the measurement of our lives lived so the next generation will be proud of us?  Or do we leave behind what God has done in us and will do for them—the blessing of God in us and with us with the promise of eternal life for all who believe in Jesus? What do we want our children and their children and their children to know? 

Casting Crowns offers a song that speaks to our hearts about who, not what, to pass on to our children…

“ONLY JESUS”

 … Make it count, leave a mark, build a name for yourself
Dream your dreams, chase your heart, above all else
Make a name the world remembers
But all an empty world can sell is empty dreams
I got lost in the light when it was up to me
To make a name the world remembers
But Jesus is the only name to remember

… And I, I don’t want to leave a legacy
I don’t care if they remember me
Only Jesus
And I, I’ve only got one life to live
I’ll let every second point to Him
Only Jesus

… All the kingdoms built, all the trophies won
Will crumble into dust when it’s said and done
‘Cause all that really mattered
Did I live the truth to the ones I love?
Was my life the proof that there is only One
Whose name will last forever?

… And I, I don’t want to leave a legacy
I don’t care if they remember me
Only Jesus
And I, I’ve only got one life to live
I’ll let every second point to Him
Only Jesus

… Jesus is the only name
Jesus is the only name
Jesus is the only name to remember, oh
Jesus is the only name
Jesus is the only name
Jesus is the only name to remember

… I don’t want to leave a legacy
I don’t care if they remember me
Only Jesus

(Songwriters: Bernie Herms / John Mark Mark Hall / Matthew Joseph West)

Lord,

This is my story, this is my song.  You are mine and I am yours.  I pray for our children and their children to know, believe, and follow you, too.

In Jesus Name, Amen

Given the significance of the blessing in Jewish homes, consider how you could extend the blessing to your children—and their children—so that they grow up convinced of God’s steadfast love that rescues us from sin’s demise. 

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17

THIS is our legacy from God, through us, to our children and their children and their children…