Ephraim

And the second son he named Ephraim, saying, “God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”

Manasseh and Ephraim were born to Joseph in the land of Egypt by Asenath daughter of Potiphera, priest of On.

Some time later Joseph was told, “Your father is ill.” So he set out with his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.

And now your two sons born to you in Egypt before I came to you here shall be reckoned as mine; Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine, just as Reuben and Simeon are mine.

And Joseph took both of them—with Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel’s right hand—and brought them close to him.

But Israel stretched out his right hand and put it on the head of Ephraim, the younger; and crossing his hands, he put his left on Manasseh’s head, although Manasseh was the firstborn.

When Joseph saw that his father had placed his right hand on Ephraim’s head, he was displeased and took his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s.

So that day Jacob blessed them and said: “By you shall Israel pronounce this blessing: ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.’” So he put Ephraim before Manasseh.

He saw Ephraim’s sons to the third generation, and indeed the sons of Machir son of Manasseh were brought up on Joseph’s knees.

from the sons of Joseph: from Ephraim, Elishama son of Ammihud, and from Manasseh, Gamaliel son of Pedahzur;

From the sons of Joseph: From the sons of Ephraim, according to the records of their clans and families, counting the names of all those twenty years of age or older who could serve in the army,

those registered to the tribe of Ephraim numbered 40,500.

On the west side, the divisions of Ephraim are to camp under their standard: The leader of the Ephraimites is Elishama son of Ammihud,

The total number of men in the divisions of the camp of Ephraim is 108,100; they shall set out third.

On the seventh day Elishama son of Ammihud, the leader of the Ephraimites, drew near.

Next, the divisions of the camp of Ephraim set out under their standard, with Elishama son of Ammihud in command.

from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea son of Nun;

The descendants of Joseph included the clans of Manasseh and Ephraim.

These were the descendants of Ephraim by their clans: The Shuthelahite clan from Shuthelah, the Becherite clan from Becher, and the Tahanite clan from Tahan.

These were the clans of Ephraim, and their registration numbered 32,500. These clans were the descendants of Joseph.

Kemuel son of Shiphtan, a leader from the tribe of Ephraim;

His majesty is like a firstborn bull, and his horns are like those of a wild ox. With them he will gore the nations, even to the ends of the earth. Such are the myriads of Ephraim, and such are the thousands of Manasseh.”

all of Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea,

The descendants of Joseph became two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. And no portion of the land was given to the Levites, except for cities in which to live, along with pasturelands for their flocks and herds.

So Ephraim and Manasseh, the sons of Joseph, received their inheritance.

This was the territory of the descendants of Ephraim by their clans: The border of their inheritance went from Ataroth-addar in the east to Upper Beth-horon

From Tappuah the border went westward to the Brook of Kanah and ended at the Sea. This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Ephraim,

along with all the cities and villages set apart for the descendants of Ephraim within the inheritance of Manasseh.

But they did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer. So the Canaanites dwell among the Ephraimites to this day, but they are forced laborers.

The region of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but Tappuah itself, on the border of Manasseh, belonged to Ephraim.

From there the border continued southward to the Brook of Kanah. There were cities belonging to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh, but the border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook and ended at the Sea.

Ephraim’s territory was to the south, and Manasseh’s was to the north, having the Sea as its border and adjoining Asher on the north and Issachar on the east.

Joshua answered them, “If you have so many people that the hill country of Ephraim is too small for you, go to the forest and clear for yourself an area in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim.”

So Joshua said to the house of Joseph—to Ephraim and Manasseh—“You have many people and great strength. You shall not have just one allotment,

as the LORD had commanded. They gave him the city of Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, as he requested. He rebuilt the city and settled in it.

So they set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali, Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the hill country of Judah.

The remaining descendants of Kohath received ten cities by lot from the tribes of Ephraim, Dan, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.

The remaining Kohathite clans of the Levites were allotted these cities: From the tribe of Ephraim

they were given Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim (a city of refuge for the manslayer), Gezer,

And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath-serah in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.

Eleazar son of Aaron also died, and they buried him at Gibeah, which had been given to his son Phinehas in the hill country of Ephraim.

Ephraim also failed to drive out the Canaanites living in Gezer; so the Canaanites continued to dwell among them in Gezer.

They buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath-heres in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.

On arriving in Seirah, he blew the ram’s horn throughout the hill country of Ephraim. The Israelites came down with him from the hills, and he became their leader.

And she would sit under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, where the Israelites would go up to her for judgment.

Some came from Ephraim, with their roots in Amalek; Benjamin came with your people after you. The commanders came down from Machir, the bearers of the marshal’s staff from Zebulun.

Gideon sent messengers throughout the hill country of Ephraim to say, “Come down against the Midianites and seize the waters of the Jordan ahead of them as far as Beth-barah.” So all the men of Ephraim were called out, and they captured the waters of the Jordan as far as Beth-barah.

Then the men of Ephraim said to Gideon, “Why have you done this to us? Why did you fail to call us when you went to fight against Midian?” And they contended with him violently.

But Gideon answered them, “Now what have I accomplished compared to you? Are not the gleanings of Ephraim better than the grape harvest of Abiezer?

After the time of Abimelech, a man of Issachar, Tola son of Puah, the son of Dodo, rose up to save Israel. He lived in Shamir, in the hill country of Ephraim.

The Ammonites also crossed the Jordan to fight against Judah, Benjamin, and the house of Ephraim, and Israel was in deep distress.

Then the men of Ephraim assembled and crossed the Jordan to Zaphon. They said to Jephthah, “Why have you crossed over to fight the Ammonites without calling us to go with you? We will burn your house down with you inside!”

Jephthah then gathered all the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim. And the men of Gilead struck them down because the Ephraimites had said, “You Gileadites are fugitives in Ephraim, living in the territories of Ephraim and Manasseh.”

The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan leading to Ephraim, and whenever a fugitive from Ephraim would say, “Let me cross over,” the Gileadites would ask him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” If he answered, “No,”

they told him, “Please say Shibboleth.” If he said, “Sibboleth,” because he could not pronounce it correctly, they seized him and killed him at the fords of the Jordan. So at that time 42,000 Ephraimites were killed.

Then Abdon son of Hillel, from Pirathon, died, and he was buried at Pirathon in Ephraim, in the hill country of the Amalekites.

Now a man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim

This man left the city of Bethlehem in Judah to settle where he could find a place. And as he traveled, he came to Micah’s house in the hill country of Ephraim.

So the Danites sent out five men from their clans, men of valor from Zorah and Eshtaol, to spy out the land and explore it. “Go and explore the land,” they told them. The men entered the hill country of Ephraim and came to the house of Micah, where they spent the night.

And from there they traveled to the hill country of Ephraim and came to Micah’s house.

Now in those days, when there was no king in Israel, a Levite who lived in the remote hill country of Ephraim took for himself a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah.

That evening an old man from the hill country of Ephraim, who was residing in Gibeah (the men of that place were Benjamites), came in from his work in the field.

The Levite replied, “We are traveling from Bethlehem in Judah to the remote hill country of Ephraim, where I am from. I went to Bethlehem in Judah, and now I am going to the house of the LORD; but no one has taken me into his home,

Now there was a man named Elkanah who was from Ramathaim-zophim in the hill country of Ephraim. He was the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.

So Saul passed through the hill country of Ephraim and then through the land of Shalishah, but they did not find the donkeys. He and the servant went through the region of Shaalim, but they were not there. Then they went through the land of Benjamin, and still they did not find them.

When all the Israelites who had been hiding in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines were fleeing, they also joined the battle in close pursuit.

and made him king over Gilead, Asher, Jezreel, Ephraim, and Benjamin—over all Israel.

That is not the case. But a man named Sheba son of Bichri, from the hill country of Ephraim, has lifted up his hand against the king, against David. Deliver him alone, and I will depart from the city.” “Look,” the woman replied, “his head will be thrown to you over the wall.”

and these were their names: Ben-hur in the hill country of Ephraim;

Now Jeroboam son of Nebat was an Ephraimite from Zeredah whose mother was a widow named Zeruah. Jeroboam was a servant of Solomon, but he rebelled against the king,

Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. And from there he went out and built Penuel.

“Everything is all right,” Gehazi replied. “My master has sent me to say, ‘Look, two young men from the sons of the prophets have just now come to me from the hill country of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and two sets of clothing.’”

Bukki his son, Uzzi his son, Zerahiah his son,

Meraioth his son, Amariah his son, Ahitub his son,

The descendants of Ephraim: Shuthelah, Bered his son, Tahath his son, Eleadah his son, Tahath his son,

Their father Ephraim mourned for many days, and his relatives came to comfort him.

Some of the descendants of Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh lived in Jerusalem:

From the half-tribe of Manasseh: 18,000 designated by name to come and make David king.

The seventh, for the seventh month, was Helez the Pelonite, an Ephraimite. There were 24,000 men in his division.

The eleventh, for the eleventh month, was Benaiah the Pirathonite, an Ephraimite. There were 24,000 men in his division.

over the Ephraimites was Hoshea son of Azaziah; over one of the half-tribes of Manasseh was Joel son of Pedaiah;

Then Abijah stood on Mount Zemaraim in the hill country of Ephraim and said, “Hear me, O Jeroboam and all Israel!

Abijah pursued Jeroboam and captured some cities from him: Bethel, Jeshanah, and Ephron, along with their villages.

When Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Azariah son of Oded the prophet, he took courage and removed the detestable idols from the whole land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He then restored the altar of the LORD that was in front of the portico of the LORD’s temple.

And he assembled all Judah and Benjamin, along with those from the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who had settled among them, for great numbers had come over to him from Israel when they saw that the LORD his God was with him.

He stationed troops in every fortified city of Judah and put garrisons in the land of Judah and in the cities of Ephraim that his father Asa had captured.

Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem, and once again he went out among the people from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim and turned them back to the LORD, the God of their fathers.

But a man of God came to him and said, “O king, do not let the army of Israel go with you, for the LORD is not with Israel—not with any of the Ephraimites.

So Amaziah dismissed the troops who had come to him from Ephraim and sent them home. And they were furious with Judah and returned home in great anger.

Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah the son of the king, Azrikam the governor of the palace, and Elkanah the second to the king.

Then some of the leaders of the Ephraimites—Azariah son of Jehohanan, Berechiah son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah son of Shallum, and Amasa son of Hadlai—stood in opposition to those arriving from the war.

Then Hezekiah sent word throughout all Israel and Judah, and he also wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh inviting them to come to the house of the LORD in Jerusalem to keep the Passover of the LORD, the God of Israel.

And the couriers traveled from city to city through the land of Ephraim and Manasseh as far as Zebulun, but the people scorned and mocked them.

A large number of the people—many from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun—had not purified themselves, yet they ate the Passover, contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah interceded for them, saying, “May the LORD, who is good, provide atonement for everyone

When all this had ended, the Israelites in attendance went out to the cities of Judah and broke up the sacred pillars, chopped down the Asherah poles, and tore down the high places and altars throughout Judah and Benjamin, as well as in Ephraim and Manasseh, until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the Israelites returned to their cities, each to his own property.

Josiah did the same in the cities of Manasseh, Ephraim, and Simeon, as far as Naphtali, and in the ruins around them.

So they went to Hilkiah the high priest and gave him the money that had been brought into the house of God, which the Levites who guarded the doors had collected from the people of Manasseh and Ephraim, from all the remnant of Israel, from all Judah and Benjamin, and from the people of Jerusalem.

Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom?

The archers of Ephraim turned back on the day of battle.

He rejected the tent of Joseph and refused the tribe of Ephraim.

Restore us, O God, and cause Your face to shine upon us, that we may be saved.

Moab is My washbasin; upon Edom I toss My sandal; over Philistia I shout in triumph.”

When it was reported to the house of David that Aram was in league with Ephraim, the hearts of Ahaz and his people trembled like trees in the forest shaken by the wind.

For Aram, along with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has plotted your ruin, saying:

For the head of Aram is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin. Within sixty-five years Ephraim will be shattered as a people.

The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah. If you do not stand firm in your faith, then you will not stand at all.’”

The LORD will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since the day Ephraim separated from Judah—He will bring the king of Assyria.”

The Lord has sent a message against Jacob, and it has fallen upon Israel.

They carve out what is on the right, but they are still hungry; they eat what is on the left, but they are still not satisfied. Each one devours the flesh of his own offspring.

Then the jealousy of Ephraim will depart, and the adversaries of Judah will be cut off. Ephraim will no longer envy Judah, nor will Judah harass Ephraim.

The fortress will disappear from Ephraim, and the sovereignty from Damascus. The remnant of Aram will be like the splendor of the Israelites,” declares the LORD of Hosts.

Woe to the majestic crown of Ephraim’s drunkards, to the fading flower of his glorious splendor, set on the summit above the fertile valley, the pride of those overcome by wine.

The majestic crown of Ephraim’s drunkards will be trampled underfoot.

And I will cast you out of My presence, just as I have cast out all your brothers, all the descendants of Ephraim.

For there will be a day when watchmen will call out on the hills of Ephraim, ‘Arise, let us go up to Zion, to the LORD our God!’”

They will come with weeping, and by their supplication I will lead them; I will make them walk beside streams of waters, on a level path where they will not stumble. For I am Israel’s Father, and Ephraim is My firstborn.”

I have surely heard Ephraim’s moaning: ‘You disciplined me severely, like an untrained calf. Restore me, that I may return, for You are the LORD my God.

Is not Ephraim a precious son to Me, a delightful child? Though I often speak against him, I still remember him. Therefore My heart yearns for him; I have great compassion for him,” declares the LORD.

I will return Israel to his pasture, and he will graze on Carmel and Bashan; his soul will be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and Gilead.

“And you, son of man, take a single stick and write on it: ‘Belonging to Judah and to the Israelites associated with him.’ Then take another stick and write on it: ‘Belonging to Joseph—the stick of Ephraim—and to all the house of Israel associated with him.’

you are to tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel associated with him, and I will put them together with the stick of Judah. I will make them into a single stick, and they will become one in My hand.’

Ephraim will have one portion bordering the territory of Manasseh from east to west.

Reuben will have one portion bordering the territory of Ephraim from east to west.

Ephraim is joined to idols; leave him alone!

I know all about Ephraim, and Israel is not hidden from Me. For now, O Ephraim, you have turned to prostitution; Israel is defiled.

Israel’s arrogance testifies against them; Israel and Ephraim stumble in their iniquity; even Judah stumbles with them.

Ephraim will be laid waste on the day of rebuke. Among the tribes of Israel I proclaim what is certain.

Ephraim is oppressed, crushed in judgment, for he is determined to follow worthless idols.

So I am like a moth to Ephraim, and like decay to the house of Judah.

When Ephraim saw his sickness and Judah his wound, then Ephraim turned to Assyria and sent to the great king. But he cannot cure you or heal your wound.

For I am like a lion to Ephraim and like a young lion to the house of Judah. I, even I, will tear them to pieces and then go away. I will carry them off where no one can rescue them.

What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah? For your loyalty is like a morning mist, like the early dew that vanishes.

In the house of Israel I have seen a horrible thing: Ephraim practices prostitution there, and Israel is defiled.

When I heal Israel, the iniquity of Ephraim will be exposed, as well as the crimes of Samaria. For they practice deceit and thieves break in; bandits raid in the streets.

Ephraim mixes with the nations; Ephraim is an unturned cake.

So Ephraim has become like a silly, senseless dove—calling out to Egypt, then turning to Assyria.

For they have gone up to Assyria like a wild donkey on its own. Ephraim has hired lovers.

Though Ephraim multiplied the altars for sin, they became his altars for sinning.

They will not remain in the land of the LORD; Ephraim will return to Egypt and eat unclean food in Assyria.

The prophet is Ephraim’s watchman, along with my God, yet the snare of the fowler lies on all his paths. Hostility is in the house of his God!

Ephraim’s glory will fly away like a bird, with no birth, no pregnancy, and no conception.

I have seen Ephraim, like Tyre, planted in a meadow. But Ephraim will bring out his children for slaughter.

Ephraim is struck down; their root is withered; they cannot bear fruit. Even if they bear children, I will slay the darlings of their wombs.

Yes, it will be carried to Assyria as tribute to the great king. Ephraim will be seized with shame; Israel will be ashamed of its wooden idols.

Ephraim is a well-trained heifer that loves to thresh; but I will place a yoke on her fair neck. I will harness Ephraim, Judah will plow, and Jacob will break the hard ground.

It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms, but they never realized that it was I who healed them.

How could I give you up, O Ephraim? How could I surrender you, O Israel? How could I make you like Admah? How could I treat you like Zeboiim? My heart is turned within Me; My compassion is stirred!

I will not execute the full fury of My anger; I will not destroy Ephraim again. For I am God and not man—the Holy One among you—and I will not come in wrath.

Ephraim feeds on the wind and pursues the east wind all day long; he multiplies lies and violence; he makes a covenant with Assyria and sends olive oil to Egypt.

The LORD has a charge to bring against Judah. He will punish Jacob according to his ways and repay him according to his deeds.

But I am the LORD your God ever since the land of Egypt. I will again make you dwell in tents, as in the days of the appointed feast.

When Ephraim spoke, there was trembling; he was exalted in Israel. But he incurred guilt through Baal, and he died.

The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is stored up.

Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; whoever is discerning, let him know them. For the ways of the LORD are right, and the righteous walk in them but the rebellious stumble in them.

Those from the Negev will possess the mountains of Esau; those from the foothills will possess the land of the Philistines. They will occupy the fields of Ephraim and Samaria, and Benjamin will possess Gilead.

And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem, and the bow of war will be broken. Then He will proclaim peace to the nations. His dominion will extend from sea to sea, and from the Euphrates to the ends of the earth.

For I will bend Judah as My bow and fit it with Ephraim. I will rouse your sons, O Zion, against the sons of Greece. I will make you like the sword of a mighty man.

Ephraim will be like a mighty man, and their hearts will be glad as with wine. Their children will see it and be joyful; their hearts will rejoice in the LORD.