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Originally Posted by countmeworthy
Btw, in Revelation 7, Dan son of Jacob is not mentioned. He is replaced by Manasseh, Joseph’s son.
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Additionally, the "tribe of Joseph" is also mentioned instead of Ephraim. It is not clear if this is synonymous (Joseph == Ephraim) or if Ephraim is not mentioned for another reason. In Genesis 48, just after Jacob claims Ephraim and Manasseh has his own there is an interesting verse.
I have assumed (maybe erroneously) that the tribe of Joseph is used here as a reference to the tribe of Ephraim.
Genesis 48:5-6
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5*And now, your two sons who were born to you in the land of Egypt before my coming to you in Egypt, are mine. Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine as Reuben and Simeon are. 6 And your children whom you father after them shall be yours. By the name of their brothers they shall be called, with respect to their inheritance.
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He is basically saying that any other lineal descendants of Joseph would be Joseph's, but what does "By the name of their brothers they shall be called, with respect to their inheritance" mean? It sounds like other descendants of Joseph would be Joseph's children (not adopted), but they would share the inheritance of Ephraim and Manasseh.
We don't know of any other children of Joseph recorded in the Bible, but it seems they would fall under Ephraim and/or Manasseh for future generations (at least from an inheritance perspective which is a lot). This seems to exclude the need for a "tribe of Joseph" to be mentioned as a separate audience from Ephraim or Manasseh.
I look at all of these excruciating details primarily for understanding
audiences and
prophetic speaking in the Bible. They are very fine-grained and can be difficult to sort out, but in my head I am predisposed to deal with all these little details.
Matt