Thematic Bible: The tribe of Ephraim


Thematic Bible



They will come weeping,
but I will bring them back with consolation.
I will lead them to wadis filled with water
by a smooth way where they will not stumble,
for I am Israel’s Father,
and Ephraim is My firstborn.

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.

When it became known to the house of David that Aram had occupied Ephraim, the heart of Ahaz and the hearts of his people trembled like trees of a forest shaking in a wind. Then the Lord said to Isaiah, "Go out with your son Shear-jashub to meet Ahaz at the end of the conduit of the upper pool, by the road to the Fuller's Field. Say to him: Calm down and be quiet. Don't be afraid or fainthearted because of these two smoldering stubs of firebrands, Rezin of Aram, and the son of Remaliah. read more.
For Aram, along with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has plotted harm against you. They say: Let us go up against Judah, terrorize it, and conquer it for ourselves. Then we can install Tabeel's son as king in it." This is what the Lord God says: It will not happen; it will not occur. 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. Then the Lord spoke again to Ahaz: "Ask for a sign from the Lord your God-from the depths of Sheol to the heights of heaven." But Ahaz replied, "I will not ask. I will not test the Lord." Isaiah said, "Listen, house of David! Is it not enough for you to try the patience of men? Will you also try the patience of my God? Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive, have a son, and name him Immanuel. By the time he learns to reject what is bad and choose what is good, he will be eating butter and honey. For before the boy knows to reject what is bad and choose what is good, the land of the two kings you dread will be abandoned. The Lord will bring on you, your people, and the house of your father, such a time as has never been since Ephraim separated from Judah-the king of Assyria [is coming].


for the Ephraimites, Hoshea son of Azaziah;
for half the tribe of Manasseh, Joel son of Pedaiah;

The seventh, for the seventh month, was Helez the Pelonite from the sons of Ephraim; 24,000 were in his division.


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.

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 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.

So he blessed them that day with these words:

The nation Israel will invoke blessings by you, saying,
“May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh,”
putting Ephraim before Manasseh.


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.

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


The entire Israelite community assembled at Shiloh where it set up the tent of meeting there; the land had been subdued by them.

These were the portions that Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the families distributed to the Israelite tribes by lot at Shiloh in the Lord’s presence at the entrance to the tent of meeting. So they finished dividing up the land.


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.

At that time Ephraim failed to drive out the Canaanites who were living in Gezer, so the Canaanites have lived among them in Gezer.


Hoshea son of Nun from the tribe of Ephraim;

After the death of Moses the Lord’s servant, the Lord spoke to Joshua son of Nun, who had served Moses:


From the Ephraimites: 20,800 brave warriors who were famous men in their ancestral houses.


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


“When you have crossed the Jordan, these tribes will stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin.


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.


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.


After Elon, Abdon son of Hillel, who was from Pirathon, judged Israel. He had 40 sons and 30 grandsons, who rode on 70 donkeys. Abdon judged Israel eight years, and when he died, he was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the hill country of the Amalekites.


On the seventh day Elishama son of Ammihud, leader of the Ephraimites, [presented an offering]. His offering was one silver dish weighing three and a quarter pounds and one silver basin weighing one and three-quarter pounds, [measured] by the standard sanctuary shekel, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; one gold bowl weighing four ounces, full of incense; read more.
one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering; one male goat for a sin offering; and two bulls, five rams, five male breeding goats, and five male lambs a year old, for the fellowship sacrifice. This was the offering of Elishama son of Ammihud.


The descendants of Joseph: The descendants of Ephraim: according to their family records by their clans and their ancestral houses, counting the names of those 20 years old or more, everyone who could serve in the army, those registered for the tribe of Ephraim numbered 40,500.


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.


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.


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


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]!" Then Jephthah said to them, "My people and I had a serious conflict with the Ammonites. So I called for you, but you didn't deliver me from their power. When I saw that you weren't going to deliver me, I took my life in my own hands and crossed over to the Ammonites, and the Lord handed them over to me. Why then have you come today to fight against me?" read more.
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."


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


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 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.


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


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


Hoshea son of Nun from the tribe 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. So he said to them, "What have I done now compared to you? Is not the gleaning of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abiezer? God handed over to you Oreb and Zeeb, the two princes of Midian. What was I able to do compared to you?" When he said this, their anger against him subsided.


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


Those with their roots in Amalek came from Ephraim;
Benjamin came with your people after you.
The leaders came down from Machir,
and those who carry a marshal’s staff came from Zebulun.


Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers.