^{15 Ref} And he gave Joseph a blessing, saying, May the God to whom my fathers, Abraham and Isaac, gave worship, the God who has taken care of me all my life till this day,

^{16 Ref} The angel who has been my saviour from all evil, send his blessing on these children: and let my name and the name of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac, be given to them; and let them become a great nation in the earth.

^{17 Ref} Now when Joseph saw that his father had put his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it did not seem right to him; and lifting his father's hand he would have put it on the head of Manasseh.

^{18 Ref} And Joseph said to his father, Not so, my father, for this is the older; put your right hand on his head.

^{19 Ref} But his father would not, saying, I am doing it on purpose, my son; he will certainly become a nation and a great one; but his younger brother will be greater than he, and his seed will become a great family of nations.

^{20 Ref} So he gave them his blessing that day, saying, You will be the sign of blessing in Israel, for they will say, May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh; and he put Ephraim before Manasseh.

^{21 Ref} Then Israel said to Joseph, Now my death is near; but God will be with you, guiding you back to the land of your fathers.

^{22 Ref} And I have given you more than your brothers, even Shechem as your heritage, which I took from the Amorites with my sword and my bow.