| New King James Version | International Standard Version |
| 1Now it came to pass after these things that Joseph was told, “Indeed your 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 Jacob was told, “Look, your son Joseph is coming to you”; and Israel strengthened himself and sat up on 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. |
| 3Then Jacob said to Joseph: “God Almighty appeared to 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 to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will make of you a multitude of people, and give this land to your descendants after you as 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 your two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in 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. |
| 6Your offspring whom you beget after them shall be yours; they will be called by the name of their brothers 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. |
| 7But as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died beside me in the land of Canaan on the way, when there was but a little distance to go to Ephrath; and I buried her there on the way to Ephrath (that 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." |
| 8Then Israel saw Joseph’s sons, and said, “Who are these?” | 8Just then, Israel saw Joseph's sons and asked, "Who are these?" |
| 9Joseph said to his father, “They are my sons, whom God has given me in this place.” And he said, “Please bring them to 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 with age, so that he could not see. Then Joseph brought them near 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 to Joseph, “I had not thought to see your face; but in fact, God has also shown me your offspring!” | 11Then he told Joseph, "I never thought I'd see you again, and now God has allowed me to see your children as well!" |
| 12So Joseph brought them from beside his knees, and he bowed down 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 with his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh with his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near 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. |
| 14Then Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands knowingly, 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 walked, The God who has fed me all my life long to 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 who has redeemed me from all evil, Bless the lads; Let my name be named upon 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." |
| 17Now when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him; so he took hold of his father’s hand to remove it from Ephraim’s head to 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 to his father, “Not so, my father, for this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.” | 18"No, father, this one is the firstborn. Place your right hand on his head." |
| 19But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants 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." |
| 20So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you Israel will bless, saying, ‘May God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh!’ ” And thus 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. |
| 21Then Israel said to Joseph, “Behold, I am dying, but God will be with you and bring you back to 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 you one portion above your brothers, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and 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." |
| The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. |
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