This year I switched from using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible reading to the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net”. I have now done this long enough to say that I am glad I made the change. I am firmly convinced that the One Year Bible Online is a great way to read through the Bible in a year. It breaks the parts of the Bible which can be a struggle to read into manageable portions. However, I think that the Daily Bible Reading Schedule I am using now is a better format for doing a daily Bible study.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Genesis 48-50.

    It is worth noting that Joseph attempted to guide his elder son, Manasseh, to Jacob’s right hand and his younger, Ephraim, to Jacob’s left hand. He did this because Jacob’s eye sight was poor. However, Jacob reached across his body to put his right hand on Ephraim and his left on Manasseh. When Joseph tried to correct him, Jacob explained that he knew what he was doing. It seems to me that there is an intentional parallel between this blessing and Isaac’s blessings of Jacob and Esau, but, other than the younger receiving the primary blessing, I do not understand that parallel.

    In the burial of Jacob we have evidence that the prominence of the descendants of Jacob in Egypt at the time of Joseph extended beyond just Joseph. The entire family were people of prominence in Egypt, which reflects how far they fell to arrive at their position when Moses was born. During their time in Egypt the descendants of Jacob maintained their separation from the people of Egypt. As long as those who controlled the country viewed them as important supporters, they prospered.