`And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon

Manasseh's head, guiding his hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the firstborn ... and he set Ephraim before

Manasseh' (Gen. 48:14-20).

It is not our object to attempt an exposition here of these two blessings, which include within their terms

practically all that belongs to the purpose of God for the earth until the end of the Millennium. Our purpose is rather

to gather the lesson that may be learned for ourselves, and to see how it is related to the need of the Hebrew believer

and the theme of the epistle.

This would be but one more blow at the passing system of law and Jewish privilege. Already the Aaronic and

Levitical priesthood had given place to that after the order of Melchisedec. Already the sacrifices of bulls and goats

had passed away in view of the one great Sacrifice for sin. Already the old Covenant had been set aside for the new.

We have read of a better Covenant, better sacrifices, a better hope, and now we are to realize that there are `better

promises' than those of the law. When the twelfth chapter is concluded we shall find a better `Firstborn' connected

with Mount Sion, than was connected with Mount Sinai (Heb. 12:18-23), and we shall perhaps believe that it is not

accident but design that places Hebrews 12:16,17 immediately before these verses, and introduces Esau, as a profane

person, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. With all Jacob's manifold faults, and we are not called upon

to gloss them over, Jacob schemed and plotted for the blessing. He did not, like his profane brother, hold it cheap

and barter it away. Jacob, though the younger, was the recipient of blessing; who, when he was most blessed, halted

upon his thigh. His blessing at the end was deliberately contrary to law and expectation, and this, together with

Jacob's crosshand blessing and Isaac's previous blessing, bring forward one more important feature in the

constitution of faith, namely, that it sets aside the flesh. This is but another way of saying that faith is ever

associated with resurrection, as we have already seen. May we rejoice that `all spiritual blessings' are not given as

deserts, but in pure grace, and that the highest of all inheritances has been bestowed upon those who by nature and

practice seemed the least likely. A blessing of crossed hands indeed!

`Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed' (Rom. 4:16).

Among the characters of the Old Testament that are outstanding types of Christ, Joseph takes a prominent place.

His separate position in the family of Jacob, his betrayal, his imprisonment, his exaltation to the throne, all provide

food for holy wonder as we see the Messiah, Who was to come after many years, so clearly anticipated by God and

recorded in His Word. Hebrews 11:22, however, is not so much concerned with Joseph as a type, as with Joseph as

the man of faith. Moreover we must never lose sight of the fact that the apostle, when writing this chapter, had the

Hebrews in mind, and was guided in the selection of his examples so as to afford to these saints all the help possible

in their difficult path.

`By faith Joseph, when he died, made mention of the departing of the children of Israel; and gave commandment

concerning his bones' (Heb. 11:22).

The expression `when he died' is the rendering of the Greek verb teleutao, which suggests the end or close of

life. Earlier on we have found that one of the key words of Hebrews is the word `perfect' and its variants. We have:

teleios in 9:11,

the `more perfect tabernacle';

teleiotes (6:1),

`let us go on unto perfection';

`perfected for ever';

`if ... perfection were by the Levitical priesthood';

`the Author and Finisher (Perfecter) of faith';

`Joseph when he died';

`hope unto the end'.

It would not be true to say that teleutao necessarily carries with it the idea of perfecting, for it is used of the death of

Herod (Matt. 2:19), and the punishment of the law-breaker (Matt. 15:4), as well as of the death of David (Acts 2:29),