| King James Bible | International Standard Version |
| 1And it came to pass after these things, that one told Joseph, Behold, thy father is sick: and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. | 1Some time later, somebody informed Joseph, "Your father is ill!" So he took his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim with him to visit Jacob. |
| 2And one told Jacob, and said, Behold, thy son Joseph cometh unto thee: and Israel strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed. | 2As soon as Jacob was informed, "Look! Your son Joseph has come to visit you," Israel rallied his strength and sat up in bed. |
| 3And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me, | 3Jacob reminded Joseph, "God Almighty revealed himself to me at Luz in Canaan and blessed me. |
| 4And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession. | 4He told me, 'Pay attention! I'm going to make you fruitful and numerous. I'm going to build you into a vast nation of people and then I'll give this land to your descendants for an eternal possession.' |
| 5And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, 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. | 5You have two sons who were born to you in Egypt before I came to be with you, whom I now take as my own. Ephraim and Manasseh are mine, just as Reuben and Simeon are. |
| 6And thy issue, which thou begettest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheritance. | 6Your descendants are to be reckoned as yours, but are to be referred to among the names of their brothers in their respective inheritances. |
| 7And as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died by me in the land of Canaan in the way, when yet there was but a little way to come unto Ephrath: and I buried her there in the way of Ephrath; the same is Bethlehem. | 7"Now as for me, Rachel died after I arrived in Canaan from Paddan, much to my sorrow. While I was on my journey to Ephrathah (also known as Bethlehem), I buried her there." |
| 8And Israel beheld Joseph's sons, and said, Who are these? | 8Just then, Israel saw Joseph's sons and asked, "Who are these?" |
| 9And Joseph said unto his father, They are my sons, whom God hath given me in this place. And he said, Bring them, I pray thee, unto me, and I will bless them. | 9"These are my sons," Joseph replied. "God gave them to me here in Egypt." "Please bring them close to me," Jacob said, "so I can bless them." |
| 10Now the eyes of Israel were dim for age, so that he could not see. And he brought them near unto him; and he kissed them, and embraced them. | 10Now Israel's eyesight had become poor from age. Because he couldn't see well, Joseph brought them close to him, and Israel kissed them both and embraced them. |
| 11And Israel said unto Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face: and, lo, God hath shewed me also thy seed. | 11Then he told Joseph, "I never thought I'd see you again, and now God has allowed me to see your children as well!" |
| 12And Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth. | 12Joseph took them off his knees and then bowed low with his face to the ground. |
| 13And 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. | 13Then he brought them both close to his father, placing Ephraim with his right hand toward Israel's left and Manasseh with his left hand toward Israel's right. |
| 14And 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 wittingly; for Manasseh was the firstborn. | 14But Israel stretched out his right hand, laying it on Ephraim's head (he was the younger son) and laying his left hand on Manasseh's head (even though Manasseh was the firstborn). |
| 15And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, | 15Then Israel blessed Joseph by saying: "May the God in whose presence my ancestors Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has continued shepherding me my whole life even until today, |
| 16The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; 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. | 16the angel who has been rescuing me from all sorts of evil, bless these young men. May my name continue to live on within them, including the names of my ancestors Abraham and Isaac, and may they grow into a vast multitude throughout the earth." |
| 17And when Joseph saw 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. | 17But Joseph observed that his father had laid his right hand on Ephraim's head. That displeased him, so he grabbed his father's hand and started to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's head. |
| 18And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head. | 18"No, father, this one is the firstborn. Place your right hand on his head." |
| 19And 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 nations. | 19But his father refused. "I know," he said. "I know. He's going to produce a large nation, and he's going to be very great. However, his younger brother will become even greater than he, and his descendants will become a multitude of nations." |
| 20And 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. | 20That very day, Jacob blessed them with this blessing: "By you Israel will extend this blessing: 'May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh!'" By doing this, he placed Ephraim before Manasseh. |
| 21And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers. | 21Then Israel told Joseph, "Pay attention! I'm about to die, but God will be with you. He'll bring you back to the land that belongs to your ancestors. |
| 22Moreover 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. | 22I'm assigning you one portion more than your brothers from the land that I confiscated from the control of the Amorites in battle." |
| King James Bible, text courtesy of BibleProtector.com. | The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. |
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