Ephraim in the Bible

Meaning: fruitful; increasing

Exact Match

And unto Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, which Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On bare unto him.

And it came to pass after these things, that one told Joseph, Behold, thy father is sick: and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.

And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine.

And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel's left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel's right hand, and brought them near unto him.

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 when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he held up his father's hand, to remove it from Ephraim's head unto Manasseh's head.

And he blessed them that day, saying, In thee shall Israel bless, saying, God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh: and he set Ephraim before Manasseh.

By doing this, he placed Ephraim before Manasseh. Then Israel told Joseph, "Pay attention! I'm about to die, but God will be with you. He'll bring you back to the land that belongs to your ancestors.

And Joseph saw Ephraim's children of the third generation: the children also of Machir the son of Manasseh were brought up upon Joseph's knees.

Thematic Bible



The Ephraimite archers turned back
on the day of battle.


At that time Joshua built an altar on Mount Ebal to the Lord, the God of Israel,


Then he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, as well as those from the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who had settled among them, for they had defected to him from Israel in great numbers when they saw that Yahweh his God was with him.

The men of Ephraim said to him, “Why have you done this to us, not calling us when you went to fight against the Midianites?” And they argued with him violently.

His firstborn bull has splendor,
and horns like those of a wild ox;
he gores all the peoples with them
to the ends of the earth.
Such are the ten thousands of Ephraim,
and such are the thousands of Manasseh.

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

This was the territory of the descendants of Ephraim by their clans:

The border of their inheritance went from Ataroth-addar on the east of Upper Beth-horon.

An Ephraimite warrior named Zichri killed the king’s son Maaseiah, Azrikam governor of the palace, and Elkanah who was second to the king.

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

The house of Joseph also attacked Bethel, and the Lord was with them.

The men of Ephraim were called together and crossed the Jordan to Zaphon. They said to Jephthah, “Why have you crossed over to fight against the Ammonites but didn’t call us to go with you? We will burn your house down with you in it!”

Ephraim’s envy will cease;
Judah’s harassment will end.
Ephraim will no longer be envious of Judah,
and Judah will not harass Ephraim.


Isn’t Ephraim a precious son to Me,
a delightful child?
Whenever I speak against him,
I certainly still think about him.
Therefore, My inner being yearns for him;
I will truly have compassion on him.
This is the Lord’s declaration.

I have heard Ephraim moaning,
“You disciplined me, and I have been disciplined
like an untrained calf.
Restore me, and I will return,
for you, Lord, are my God.

Ephraim is attached to idols;
leave him alone!

When Ephraim multiplied his altars for sin,
they became his altars for sinning.

What am I going to do with you, Ephraim?
What am I going to do with you, Judah?
Your loyalty is like the morning mist
and like the early dew that vanishes.

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

Then for 7,500 pounds of silver he hired 100,000 brave warriors from Israel. However, a man of God came to him and said, "King, do not let Israel's army go with you, for the Lord is not with Israel-all the Ephraimites.

The head of Aram is Damascus, the head of Damascus is Rezin (within 65 years Ephraim will be too shattered to be 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.

He will lift up a banner for the nations and gather the dispersed of Israel; He will collect the scattered of Judah from the four corners of the earth. Ephraim's envy will cease; Judah's harassment will end. Ephraim will no longer be envious of Judah, and Judah will not harass Ephraim.

The fortress disappears from Ephraim,
and a kingdom from Damascus.
The remnant of Aram will be
like the splendor of the Israelites.
This is the declaration of the Lord of Hosts.

I know Ephraim,
and Israel is not hidden from Me.
For now, Ephraim,
you have acted promiscuously;
Israel is defiled.

Israel’s arrogance testifies against them.
Both Israel and Ephraim stumble
because of their wickedness;
even Judah will stumble with them.

I have seen something horrible in the house of Israel:
Ephraim’s promiscuity is there; Israel is defiled.

Ephraim has provoked bitter anger,
so his Lord will leave his bloodguilt on him
and repay him for his contempt.


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Woe to the majestic crown of Ephraim’s drunkards,
and to the fading flower of its beautiful splendor,
which is on the summit above the rich valley.
Woe to those overcome with wine.

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

Ephraim’s envy will cease;
Judah’s harassment will end.
Ephraim will no longer be envious of Judah,
and Judah will not harass Ephraim.

by the God of your father who helps you, and by the Almighty who blesses you with blessings of the heavens above, blessings of the deep that lies below, and blessings of the breasts and the womb. The blessings of your father excel the blessings of my ancestors and the bounty of the eternal hills. May they rest on the head of Joseph, on the crown of the prince of his brothers.

For wickedness burns like a fire that consumes thorns and briers and kindles the forest thickets so that they go up in a column of smoke. The land is scorched by the wrath of the Lord of Hosts, and the people are like fuel for the fire. No one has compassion on his brother. They carve [meat] on the right, but they are [still] hungry; they have eaten on the left, but they are [still] not satisfied. Each one eats the flesh of his own arm. read more.
Manasseh is with Ephraim, and Ephraim with Manasseh; together, both are against Judah. In all this, His anger is not removed, and His hand is still raised [to strike].

For I am like a lion to Ephraim
and like a young lion to the house of Judah.
Yes, I will tear them to pieces and depart.
I will carry them off,
and no one can rescue them.

Ephraim will be like a warrior,
and their hearts will be glad as if with wine.
Their children will see it and be glad;
their hearts will rejoice in Yahweh.


Your two sons born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt are now mine. Ephraim and Manasseh belong to me just as Reuben and Simeon do.

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

Ephraim’s sons: Shuthelah, and his son Bered,
his son Tahath, his son Eleadah,
his son Tahath,

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


Two years later, Absalom’s sheepshearers were at Baal-hazor near Ephraim, and Absalom invited all the king’s sons.

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

Therefore Jesus no longer walked openly among the Jews but departed from there to the countryside near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim. And He stayed there with the disciples.


King Jehoash of Israel captured Judah’s King Amaziah son of Joash, son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh. Then Jehoash went to Jerusalem and broke down 200 yards of Jerusalem’s wall from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate.

The people went out, brought back branches, and made booths for themselves on each of their rooftops, and courtyards, the court of the house of God, the square by the Water Gate, and the square by the Gate of Ephraim.

above the Gate of Ephraim, and by the Old Gate, the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, and the Tower of the Hundred, to the Sheep Gate. They stopped at the Gate of the Guard.


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

Ephraim’s envy will cease;
Judah’s harassment will end.
Ephraim will no longer be envious of Judah,
and Judah will not harass Ephraim.

I will drive you from My presence, just as I drove out all of your brothers, all the descendants of Ephraim.

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

tell them: This is what the Lord God says: I am going to take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel associated with him, and put them together with the stick of Judah. I will make them into a single stick so that they become one in My hand.


This was the territory of the descendants of Ephraim by their clans: The border of their inheritance went from Ataroth-addar on the east of Upper Beth-horon. In the north the border went westward from Michmethath; it turned eastward from Taanath-shiloh and passed it east of Janoah. From Janoah it descended to Ataroth and Naarah, and then reached Jericho and went to the Jordan. read more.
From Tappuah the border went westward along the Brook of Kanah and ended at the Mediterranean Sea. This was the inheritance of the tribe of the descendants of Ephraim by their clans, together with the cities set apart for the descendants of Ephraim within the inheritance of the descendants of Manasseh-all these cities with their villages.

From there the border descended to the Brook of Kanah; south of the brook, cities belonged to Ephraim among Manasseh's cities. Manasseh's border was on the north side of the brook and ended at the Mediterranean Sea. Ephraim's [territory] was to the south and Manasseh's to the north, with the Sea as its border. They reached Asher on the north and Issachar on the east.

"If you have so many people," Joshua replied to them, "go to the forest and clear [an area] for yourselves there in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, because Ephraim's hill country is too small for you." But the descendants of Joseph said, "The hill country is not enough for us, and all the Canaanites who inhabit the valley area have iron chariots, both at Beth-shean with its towns and in the Jezreel Valley." So Joshua replied to Joseph's family (that is, Ephraim and Manasseh), "You have many people and great strength. You will not have just one lot, read more.
because the hill country will be yours also. It is a forest; clear it and its outlying areas will be yours. You can also drive out the Canaanites, even though they have iron chariots and are strong."

Their holdings and settlements were Bethel and its villages; Naaran to the east, Gezer and its villages to the west, and Shechem and its villages as far as Ayyah and its villages, and along the borders of the sons of Manasseh, Beth-shean and its villages, Taanach and its villages, Megiddo and its villages, and Dor and its villages. The sons of Joseph son of Israel lived in these towns.


King Jehoash of Israel captured Judah’s King Amaziah son of Joash, son of Jehoahaz, at Beth-shemesh. Then Jehoash took him to Jerusalem and broke down 200 yards of Jerusalem’s wall from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate.

King Jehoash of Israel captured Judah’s King Amaziah son of Joash, son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh. Then Jehoash went to Jerusalem and broke down 200 yards of Jerusalem’s wall from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate.

The people went out, brought back branches, and made booths for themselves on each of their rooftops, and courtyards, the court of the house of God, the square by the Water Gate, and the square by the Gate of Ephraim.

above the Gate of Ephraim, and by the Old Gate, the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel, and the Tower of the Hundred, to the Sheep Gate. They stopped at the Gate of the Guard.


These were Ephraim's descendants by their clans: the Shuthelahite clan from Shuthelah; the Becherite clan from Becher; the Tahanite clan from Tahan. These were Shuthelah's descendants: the Eranite clan from Eran. These were the Ephraimite clans [numbered] by their registered men: 32,500. These were Joseph's descendants by their clans.

Ephraim's sons: Shuthelah, and his son Bered, his son Tahath, his son Eleadah, his son Tahath, his son Zabad, his son Shuthelah, Ezer, and Elead. The men of Gath who were born in the land killed Ezer and Elead because they went down to raid their cattle. Their father Ephraim mourned a long time, and his relatives came to comfort him. read more.
He slept with his wife, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. So he named him Beriah, because there had been misfortune in his home. His daughter was Sheerah, who built Lower and Upper Beth-horon and Uzzen-sheerah, his son Rephah, his son Resheph, his son Telah, his son Tahan, his son Ladan, his son Ammihud, his son Elishama, his son Nun, and his son Joshua.


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

When all Israel saw that the king had not listened to them, the people answered the king:

What portion do we have in David?
We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse.
Israel, each man to your tent;
David, look after your own house now!


So all Israel went to their tents.


Ephraim’s military divisions will camp on the west side under their banner. The leader of the Ephraimites is Elishama son of Ammihud.

Next the military divisions of the camp of Ephraim with their banner set out, and Elishama son of Ammihud was over Ephraim’s division.

The total in their military divisions who belong to Ephraim’s encampment number 108,100; they will move out third.


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

These were the Ephraimite clans numbered by their registered men: 32,500.
These were Joseph’s descendants by their clans.


"If you have so many people," Joshua replied to them, "go to the forest and clear [an area] for yourselves there in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, because Ephraim's hill country is too small for you." But the descendants of Joseph said, "The hill country is not enough for us, and all the Canaanites who inhabit the valley area have iron chariots, both at Beth-shean with its towns and in the Jezreel Valley." So Joshua replied to Joseph's family (that is, Ephraim and Manasseh), "You have many people and great strength. You will not have just one lot, read more.
because the hill country will be yours also. It is a forest; clear it and its outlying areas will be yours. You can also drive out the Canaanites, even though they have iron chariots and are strong."


But Israel stretched out his right hand and put it on the head of Ephraim, the younger, and crossing his hands, put his left on Manasseh's head, although Manasseh was the firstborn. Then he blessed Joseph and said: The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day, the Angel who has redeemed me from all harm- may He bless these boys. And may they be called by my name and the names of my fathers Abraham and Isaac, and may they grow to be numerous within the land. read more.
When Joseph saw that his father had placed his right hand on Ephraim's head, he thought it was a mistake and took his father's hand to move it from Ephraim's head to Manasseh's. Joseph said to his father, "Not that way, my father! This one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head." But his father refused and said, "I know, my son, I know! He too will become a tribe, and he too will be great; nevertheless, his younger brother will be greater than he, and his offspring will become a populous nation." So he blessed them that day with these words: Israel will invoke blessings by you, saying, "May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh," putting Ephraim before Manasseh.


his son Zabad, his son Shuthelah, Ezer, and Elead. The men of Gath who were born in the land killed Ezer and Elead because they went down to raid their cattle. Their father Ephraim mourned a long time, and his relatives came to comfort him.


He said about Joseph: May his land be blessed by the Lord with the dew of heaven's bounty and the watery depths that lie beneath; with the bountiful harvest from the sun and the abundant yield of the seasons; with the best products of the ancient mountains and the bounty of the eternal hills; read more.
with the choice gifts of the land and everything in it; and with the favor of Him who appeared in the [burning] bush. May these rest on the head of Joseph, on the crown of the prince of his brothers. His firstborn bull has splendor, and horns like those of a wild ox; he gores all the peoples with them to the ends of the earth. Such are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and such are the thousands of Manasseh.


Then David's forces marched into the field to engage Israel in battle, which took place in the forest of Ephraim. The people of Israel were defeated by David's soldiers, and the slaughter there was vast that day-20,000 [casualties]. The battle spread over the entire region, and that day the forest claimed more people than the sword. read more.
Absalom was riding on his mule when he happened to meet David's soldiers. When the mule went under the tangled branches of a large oak tree, Absalom's head was caught fast in the tree. The mule under him kept going, so he was suspended in midair. One of the men saw [him] and informed Joab. He said, "I just saw Absalom hanging in an oak tree!" "You just saw [him]!" Joab exclaimed. "Why didn't you strike him to the ground right there? I would have given you 10 silver pieces and a belt!" The man replied to Joab, "Even if I had the weight of 1,000 pieces of silver in my hand, I would not raise my hand against the king's son. For we heard the king command you, Abishai, and Ittai, 'Protect the young man Absalom for me.' If I had jeopardized my own life-and nothing is hidden from the king-you would have abandoned me." Joab said, "I'm not going to waste time with you!" He then took three spears in his hand and thrust them into Absalom's heart while he was still alive in the oak tree, and 10 young men who were Joab's armor-bearers surrounded Absalom, struck him, and killed him. Afterwards, Joab blew the ram's horn, and the troops broke off their pursuit of Israel because Joab restrained them. They took Absalom, threw him into a large pit in the forest, and piled a huge mound of stones over him. And all Israel fled, each to his tent.


Gideon sent messengers throughout the hill country of Ephraim with this message: "Come down to intercept the Midianites and take control of the watercourses ahead of them as far as Beth-barah and the Jordan." So all the men of Ephraim were called out, and they took control of the watercourses as far as Beth-barah and the Jordan. They captured Oreb and Zeeb, the two princes of Midian; they killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb and Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb, while they were pursuing the Midianites. They brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon across the Jordan.


Josiah was eight years old when he became king; he reigned 31 years in Jerusalem. He did what was right in the Lord's sight and walked in the ways of his ancestor David; he did not turn aside to the right or the left. In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still a youth, Josiah began to seek the God of his ancestor David, and in the twelfth year he began to cleanse Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the Asherah poles, the carved images, and the cast images. read more.
Then in his presence the altars of the Baals were torn down, and the incense altars that were above them he chopped down. The Asherah poles, the carved images, and the cast images he shattered, crushed to dust, and scattered over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. He burned the bones of the priests on their altars. So he cleansed Judah and Jerusalem. [He did the same] in the cities of Manasseh, Ephraim, and Simeon, and as far as Naphtali [and] on their surrounding mountain shrines.


The house of Joseph also attacked Bethel, and the Lord was with them. They sent spies to Bethel (the town was formerly named Luz). The spies saw a man coming out of the town and said to him, "Please show us how to get into town, and we will treat you well." read more.
When he showed them the way into the town, they put the town to the sword but released the man and his entire family.


A large number of the people—many from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun—were ritually unclean, yet they had eaten the Passover contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah had interceded for them, saying, “May the good Lord provide atonement on behalf of


He set up one in Bethel, and put the other in Dan.


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


Then Jephthah gathered all of the men of Gilead. They fought and defeated Ephraim, because Ephraim had said, "You Gileadites are Ephraimite fugitives in [the territories of] Ephraim and Manasseh." The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan leading to Ephraim. Whenever a fugitive from Ephraim said, "Let me cross over," the Gileadites asked 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. At that time, 42,000 from Ephraim died.


When all the Israelite men who had been hiding in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines were fleeing, they also joined Saul and Jonathan in the battle.


I will return Israel to his grazing land,
and he will feed on Carmel and Bashan;
he will be satisfied
in the hill country of Ephraim and of Gilead.


That is not my intention. There is a man named Sheba son of Bichri, from the hill country of Ephraim, who has rebelled against King David. Deliver this one man, and I will withdraw from the city.”

The woman replied to Joab, “All right. His head will be thrown over the wall to you.”


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

Therefore Jesus no longer walked openly among the Jews but departed from there to the countryside near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim. And He stayed there with the disciples.


When all this was completed, all Israel who had attended 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, to the last one. Then all the Israelites returned to their cities, each to his own possession.


Next to the territory of Manasseh, from the east side to the west, will be Ephraim—one portion.


Then he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, as well as those from the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who had settled among them, for they had defected to him from Israel in great numbers when they saw that Yahweh his God was with him.


Ephraim’s guilt is preserved;
his sin is stored up.


An Ephraimite warrior named Zichri killed the king’s son Maaseiah, Azrikam governor of the palace, and Elkanah who was second to the king.


For there will be a day when watchmen will call out
in the hill country of Ephraim,
“Get up, let’s go up to Zion,
to Yahweh our God!”


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


Your two sons born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt are now mine. Ephraim and Manasseh belong to me just as Reuben and Simeon do.


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


The men of Ephraim were called together and crossed the Jordan to Zaphon. They said to Jephthah, “Why have you crossed over to fight against the Ammonites but didn’t call us to go with you? We will burn your house down with you in it!”


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


The man left the town of Bethlehem in Judah to settle wherever he could find a place. On his way he came to Micah’s home in the hill country of Ephraim.


The men of Ephraim said to him, “Why have you done this to us, not calling us when you went to fight against the Midianites?” And they argued with him violently.


12,000 from the tribe of Zebulun,
12,000 from the tribe of Joseph,
12,000 sealed from the tribe of Benjamin.


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


These were Shuthelah’s descendants:
the Eranite clan from Eran.


Then David’s forces marched into the field to engage Israel in battle, which took place in the forest of Ephraim.

The battle spread over the entire region, and that day the forest claimed more people than the sword.


Therefore Jesus no longer walked openly among the Jews but departed from there to the countryside near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim. And He stayed there with the disciples.


From Tappuah the border went westward along the Brook of Kanah and ended at the Mediterranean Sea.

This was the inheritance of the tribe of the descendants of Ephraim by their clans, together with

From there the border descended to the Brook of Kanah; south of the brook, cities belonged to Ephraim among Manasseh’s cities. Manasseh’s border was on the north side of the brook and ended at the Mediterranean Sea.


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

“If you have so many people,” Joshua replied to them, “go to the forest and clear an area for yourselves there in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, because Ephraim’s hill country is too small for you.”


Their holdings and settlements were Bethel and its villages; Naaran to the east, Gezer and its villages to the west, and Shechem and its villages as far as Ayyah and its villages,


his son Rephah, his son Resheph,
his son Telah, his son Tahan,


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