A Prophecy of Esau and Jacob

Who is Ephraim and who is Manasseh? Why did Jacob prefer Ephraim over Manasseh? Both should have a significant role to play in our current world affairs. Genesis 48

Joseph, upon learning that his father is on his deathbed, brings his two sons to visit him (Genesis 48:1) and that when Jacob sees them he proceeds to bless them (Gen 48:9).

Manasseh, the firstborn, was favored by Joseph to be the more prominent of the two and was groomed to succeed him. But when Jacob fell ill, it was Ephraim who went to inform Joseph, as he was more accustomed to studying the Torah with Jacob in the land of Goshen (Rashi Gen 48:1). 

Although Joseph positions Manasseh on Jacob’s right (Gen 48:13), Jacob crosses his hands, placing his right hand upon the head of the younger son, Ephraim (Gen 48:14). Joseph attempts to correct his father (Gen 48:18), but Jacob insists that he is acting deliberately and that Ephraim will be the greater of the two (Gen 48:19).

So Jacob blessed them that day, saying, “In thee shall Israel bless, saying, ‘God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh.’” And he placed Ephraim before Manasseh (Genesis 48:20).

After King Solomon, the kingdom was divided into the Northern Kingdom, ruled by Jeroboam, who was an Ephraimite, and the Southern Kingdom, ruled by Rehoboam. Jeroboam sinned further by setting up Bethel and Dan as places of worship, instead of going to Jerusalem.

King Sennacherib of Assyria came and took the northern Israelites into captivity. These Israelites became known as the Lost Ten Tribes. They lost their Hebrew tongue, they lost the law of God, they lost the Sabbath and they lost their itentity; identifying themseves as among the Gentiles.

Still, we wonder: Who are Ephraim and who are Manasseh? Surely they are present, for God had ordained them to receive the birthright with which Jacob had blessed them.

They’re actually hiding in plain sight, right there in their national Seals, Crests and Coats of Arms.

More from Moses’ blessing on the identification of Ephraim and Manasseh by the indication of the Ox and the Unicorn:

Let the blessing come upon the head of Joseph, and upon the top of the head of him that was separated from his brethren. His glory is like the firstling of his ox (bullock), and his horns are like the horns of unicorns. With them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth; and they are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh,” Deuteronomy 33:16-17.

In the above blessing, the Ox and Ephraim are named first, the firstborn of his (Joseph’s) “bullock is his glory,” the reference being to Ephraim; followed by Unicorn and Manasseh.

Although Manasseh was the firstborn, Joseph the father crossed his hands and placed Ephraim as firstborn, hence Ephraim, often known as the thirteenth tribe, represents not just the house of Joseph, but more often the house of the 10-tribes Northern Kingdom.

Today, the identities of Ephraim and Manasseh are proudly enshrined in their respective national Crests, Seals and Coats of Arms. They are all over the place, but the Poor, Blind and Naked couldn’t see, Revelation 3:17. Of course as being Laodiceans and being blinded they wouldn’t be able to see their own wretchedness and nakedness.

The thirteenth tribe arrived the latest, after all the other twelve tribes had been established and settled! Starting with thirteen states, the United States gained its independence in July 4, 1776 and, claiming Manifest Destiny, pushing westward and gaining additional states, it emerged into what is now the United States of America.

It also pushes southward with its hegemonic imperialism, known as the Monroe Doctrine; and this Doctrine is revealed by the Targum Jonathan as the flame unto the house of Esau:

“And it was, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said by the Holy Spirit: ‘The House of Joseph is destined to be like a flame to consume those of the House of Esau.’ He said:

“‘From now on, I am not afraid of Esau and his legions.’ And he said to Laban: ‘Send me away, that I may go to my place and to my land'” Genesis 30:25 Jonathan

From Rashi and Rabbinic teachings: the myriads (ten thousands) slain by Joshua; and these are the ten thousands descended from Ephraim. Joshua, their leader, was of the tribe of Ephraim;

— and the thousands of Manasseh: these are the thousands slain by Gideon, who was of the tribe of Manasseh. These thousands descended from Manasseh are obviously far less than those descended from Ephraim.

In his blessings Moses ascribes to Ephraim ten thousands, and to Manasseh only thousands; thus foreshadowing, that Ephraim the younger was to be the more numerous of the two, as Moses had before prophesied of them, Deuteronomy 33:16-17

The combined population of Great Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand are far less than those of the United States of America.

And here comes an Amazing Prophecy

A deeper Study of Genesis 30 regarding Joseph’s birth provides further insight:

And it came to pass, when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban, “Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place and to my country” Genesis 30:25

The Targum of Jonathan reveals how, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, the posterity of Joseph, the birthright holder, not the posterity of Judah, the sceptre holder, were to be a yoke (Genesis 27:40) and a flame unto the house of Esau, saying

“Now the . . . birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph . . . For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and from him came the chief ruler, but the birthright was Joseph’s” 1 Chronicles 5:1-2

The Yoke of Esau unto the house of Jacob; but more specifically to the House of Joseph

“And by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck” Genesis 27:40

“And it was, when Rachel had given birth to Joseph, that Jacob said through the Holy Spirit that the House of Joseph is destined to be like a flame to consume the House of Esau. He said: ‘From now on, I am not afraid of Esau and his legions.’ And he said to Laban: ‘Send me away, that I may go to my own place and to my own land’” Genesis 30:25 Jonathan

Thus the burning Flame of Joseph had been prophecised to be the heavy Yoke unto the long-suffering House of Esau right in the book of Genesis.

Jacob was afraid to return to Canaan because of his brother Esau; but this Jonathan version reveals through the Holy Spirit that Jacob knew Esau (the “stubble”) could only be defeated by the “flame” of Joseph. And so when Joseph was born, Jacob asked Laban to be sent back to his own country.

A prophecy of Esau, Edom: the Targum identifies the Southland, Sepharad, as Spain, Obadiah 1:20. This prophecy is now playing a critical role in our modern era.

For an in-depth Study of Spain as Esau in prophecy, see Obadiah; but below is a gist of it

When Philip II became the Spanish king in January 1556, he controlled an established empire with territory across the globe. Spain was rich from the influx of gold from the New World, wielded one of the world’s most powerful militaries. Being passionate about promoting Catholicism, King Philip planned to seize the English throne and dismantle the Protestant Church of England.

When Elizabeth I took the throne upon her half-sister’s death, King Philip attempted to marry her. After all, he was technically the king of England already, but Elizabeth was not interested in giving either herself to King Philip, or her throne to Spain, or her country to the Catholics.

Queen Elizabeth I ruling the then Protestant nation, left England’s relationships with Europe’s Catholics tense. Not only were the treasure ships returning from the New World to Spain regularly plundered by the Royal Navy, but Elizabeth commissioned privateersa nd pirates to do the same.

Under King Philip of Spain, the Spanish Armada, with 130 ships and 30,000 men on board, set sail from Spain in July 1588, intending to overthrow the Protestant Queen and restore Catholic rule over England. But, met with a devastating Divine Wind, the Spanish Armada were destroyed by the British Navy, which were lighter, faster and more maneuverable commander by Sir Francis Drake.

Then came the Monroe Doctrine over two centuries later, when the then President James Monroe of the nascent United States, issued a foreign policy statement on December 2, 1823 that all foreign powers in the New World would be an hostile act against the United States. It is an imperial ambition to hold all nations in the Western Hemisphere to the American grand strategy when this Monroe Doctrine was first articulated.

All foreign powers in the New World except the United Kingdom. In fact, when this Monroe doctrine was proclaimed, it was met with approval from Britain, who enforced it tactically as part of the wider Pax Britannica, claiming it to enforcing the freedom of the seas. And for many years after the doctrine was issued, the British Royal Navy was the sole nation enforcing it, as the United States Navy was then a small force.

From then on, these two nations, the United Kingdom and the United States, are the only two naval powers in the world, who would not permit that the New World to be given back to imperial Spain.

The Monroe Doctrine is more than just an United States foreign policy position that opposes European colonialism against all the Latin Countries in the Western Hemisphere; it is an excertion of the house of Joseph as start of a flame burning over the house of Esau.

How has the flame of Joseph inflicted the house of Esau, and that’s a great mystery.

It turned out that the Monroe Doctrine gradually evolved into a Big Stick policy. Originally aimed at freeing Latin Americans from European colonization, the United States soon found it expedient to impose its own policies on these nations.

Theodore Roosevelt Jr., the 26th president of the United States from 1901 to 1909, is best known for expanding the US Navy and sending the Great White Fleet on a world tour to demonstrate American naval power.

In foreign policy, Theodore Roosevelt focused on Central and South America and began the construction of the Panama Canal. The African proverb “speak softly but carry a big stick,” was adopted by him, which he popularized in American politics to describe his diplomatic philosophy.

Theodore’s strategy, which started as the foundation for the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, later evolved into what became known as the Big Stick Policy—favoring firm negotiation bolstered by trade and financial sanctions and reinforced by the ever-present threat of military force.

The policy emphasized that the United States should pursue peaceful negotiations while maintaining a strong military, comparable to gunboat diplomacy, to enforce its interests if necessary. It was a Yoke that all Latin countries have a bear, and it was indeed a flame of Joseph imposed a Yoke and a Flame on the house of Esau as prophecised in Genesis

First, it was Joseph who would be blessed with the birthright, bestowed by Jacob, which had been taken from Reuben, the firstborn (Genesis 49:3 Jonathan).

Second, there’s again the revelation that Joseph, a son of Jacob and Rachel, who was bestowed with the Yoke of Jacob (Genesis 27:40-41) and a Flame (Genesis 30:25 Jonathan) against the house of Esau, the firstborn, who had forfeited his birthright.

“And it was, when Rachel had given birth to Joseph, that Jacob said through the Holy Spirit that the House of Joseph is destined to be like a flame to consume the House of Esau. He said: ‘From now on, I am not afraid of Esau and his legions.’ And he said to Laban: ‘Send me away, that I may go to my own place and to my own land.’” Genesis 30:25 Jonathan

The rest is history; only that the Blind couldn’t see, for more, see

The “Monroe Doctrine” Is the Yoke of Jacob
Ephraim as the Thirteenth Tribe

For understanding who the modern tribes of Judah and Joseph are, the best book to have expounded this subject is “Judah’s Sceptre and Joseph’s Birthright” by J.H. Allen.

~ by Joel on April 30, 2026.

Posted in Ephraim, Manasseh, US, UK