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Genesis 48:18

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18 Joseph said to him, “No, my father, this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.”
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Genesis 48:18 in Other Translations

KJV
18 And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head.
ESV
18 And Joseph said to his father, "Not this way, my father; since this one is the firstborn, put your right hand on his head."
NLT
18 “No, my father,” he said. “This one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head.”
MSG
18 saying, "That's the wrong head, Father; the other one is the firstborn; place your right hand on his head."
CSB
18 Joseph said to his father, "Not that way, my father! This one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head."

Genesis 48:18 Meaning and Commentary

Genesis 48:18

And Joseph said unto his father, not so, my father
It is not right, it should not so be, that the right hand should be put on the youngest, and the left hand on the eldest; for this [is] the firstborn;
directing him to Manasseh, and seeking to guide his hand towards him: put thy right hand upon his head;
Joseph was for proceeding according to the order of birthright, but Jacob was directed by a spirit of prophecy, as follows.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Genesis 48:18 In-Context

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.

Cross References 1

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