Genesi 48

1 Dopo queste cose, fu riferito a Giuseppe: «Ecco, tuo padre è malato!». Allora egli condusse con sé i due figli Manasse ed Efraim.

Some time later, someone told Joseph, “[Hey, ] your father is ill.” When Joseph heard that, he took his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim, to see his father.

2 Fu riferita la cosa a Giacobbe: «Ecco, tuo figlio Giuseppe è venuto da te». Allora Israele raccolse le forze e si mise a sedere sul letto.

When someone told Jacob, “Look, your son Joseph has come to see you!” Jacob sat up on the bed, even though it was difficult for him to do that.

3 Giacobbe disse a Giuseppe: «Dio onnipotente mi apparve a Luz, nel paese di Canaan, e mi benedisse

He said to Joseph, “When I was at Luz in Canaan, God Almighty appeared to me. He blessed me

4 dicendomi: Ecco, io ti rendo fecondo: ti moltiplicherò e ti farò diventare un insieme di popoli e darò questo paese alla tua discendenza dopo di te in possesso perenne.

and said to me, ‘I am going to enable you to become the father of many children. You will have many descendants, and they will become [the ancestors of] many people-groups. And I will give this land to your descendants to possess forever.’

5 Ora i due figli che ti sono nati nel paese d'Egitto prima del mio arrivo presso di te in Egitto, sono miei: Efraim e Manasse saranno miei come Ruben e Simeone.

“And now I will consider that your two sons, who were born to you here in Egypt before I came here, will (belong to me/be as though they are my sons). Ephraim and Manasseh will be [as though they were] my sons, and they will inherit my possessions, just like my sons Reuben and Simeon [and the others] will.

6 Invece i figli che tu avrai generati dopo di essi, saranno tuoi: saranno chiamati con il nome dei loro fratelli nella loro eredità.

If you later become the father of any more children, they will not be considered to be my children, but as my grandchildren, and [in Canaan] they will receive as part of what they inherit some of the same land that is in the territory that their brothers [Ephraim and Manasseh] will inherit.

7 Quanto a me, mentre giungevo da Paddan, Rachele, tua madre, mi morì nel paese di Canaan durante il viaggio, quando mancava un tratto di cammino per arrivare a Efrata, e l'ho sepolta là lungo la strada di Efrata, cioè Betlemme».

Many years ago, as I was returning from Paddan-Aram/Mesopotamia, your mother Rachel died in the Canaan region, while we were still traveling, not far from Ephrath [town]. So I buried her body there alongside the road to Ephrath [which is now called Bethlehem].”

8 Poi Israele vide i figli di Giuseppe e disse: «Chi sono questi?».

When Jacob saw Joseph’s sons, he asked, “Who are these boys?”

9 Giuseppe disse al padre: «Sono i figli che Dio mi ha dati qui». Riprese: «Portameli perché io li benedica!».

Joseph replied, “They are the sons that God has given to me here in Egypt.” Jacob said, “Bring them close to me so that I can bless them.”

10 Ora gli occhi di Israele erano offuscati dalla vecchiaia: non poteva più distinguere. Giuseppe li avvicinò a lui, che li baciò e li abbracciò.

Jacob was almost blind because he was very old. He could not recognize the boys. So Joseph brought his sons close to his father, and Jacob kissed them and hugged them.

11 Israele disse a Giuseppe: «Io non pensavo più di vedere la tua faccia ed ecco, Dio mi ha concesso di vedere anche la tua prole!».

Jacob said to Joseph, “I did not expect to see you again, but look at this! God has allowed me to see not only you, but he has allowed me to see your children, too!”

12 Allora Giuseppe li ritirò dalle sue ginocchia e si prostrò con la faccia a terra.

Joseph took the boys from alongside Jacob’s knees. Then he bowed down with his face to the ground.

13 Poi li prese tutti e due, Efraim con la sua destra, alla sinistra di Israele, e Manasse con la sua sinistra, alla destra di Israele, e li avvicinò a lui.

Then Joseph took both of the boys, putting Ephraim on his right side toward Jacob’s left hand, and putting Manasseh on his left side toward Jacob’s right hand, and brought them close to Jacob.

14 Ma Israele stese la mano destra e la pose sul capo di Efraim, che pure era il più giovane, e la sua sinistra sul capo di Manasse, incrociando le braccia, benché Manasse fosse il primogenito.

But Jacob [did not do what Joseph wanted him to do. Instead], he reached out his right hand and put it on Ephraim’s head, even though he was the younger son. He crossed his arms and put his left hand on Manasseh’s head, even though Manasseh was the older son.

15 «Il Dio, davanti al quale hanno camminato i miei padri Abramo e Isacco, il Dio che è stato il mio pastore da quando esisto fino ad oggi, E così benedisse Giuseppe:

Then he (blessed/asked God to bless) Joseph and his sons, saying, “My grandfather Abraham and my father Isaac conducted their lives as God desired, and to this very day God has led me and taken care of me as a shepherd leads and cares for his sheep [MET].

16 l'angelo che mi ha liberato da ogni male, benedica questi giovinetti! Sia ricordato in essi il mio nome e il nome dei miei padri Abramo e Isacco e si moltiplichino in gran numero in mezzo alla terra!».

The angel whom he sent has kept me from being harmed in any way. I pray that God will bless these boys. I pray that people will never forget about me and about Abraham and Isaac because of what God does for these boys. I pray that they will have many descendants who will live all over the earth.”

17 Giuseppe notò che il padre aveva posato la destra sul capo di Efraim e ciò gli spiacque. Prese dunque la mano del padre per toglierla dal capo di Efraim e porla sul capo di Manasse.

When Joseph saw that his father had placed his right hand on Ephraim’s head and not on Manasseh’s head, he was distressed/displeased. So he took his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head.

18 Disse al padre: «Non così, padre mio: è questo il primogenito, posa la destra sul suo capo!».

Joseph said to him, “My father, that is not right! The one on whom you put your left hand is my older son. Put your right hand on his head.”

19 Ma il padre ricusò e disse: «Lo so, figlio mio, lo so: anch'egli diventerà un popolo, anch'egli sarà grande, ma il suo fratello minore sarà più grande di lui e la sua discendenza diventerà una moltitudine di nazioni».

But his father refused, saying, “I know that, my son, I know what I am doing. Manasseh’s descendants will also become a people-group, and they will become important. But his younger brother’s descendants will become greater than his will. His descendants will become several nations.”

20 «Di voi si servirà Israele per benedire, dicendo: Dio ti renda come Efraim e come Manasse!». E li benedisse in quel giorno: Così pose Efraim prima di Manasse.

So he blessed them both on that day, saying, “The people in Israel will use your names when they bless people. They will say, ‘We pray that God will help you as he helped Ephraim and Manasseh.’” In that way, Jacob said that Ephraim would become more important than Manasseh.

21 Poi Israele disse a Giuseppe: «Ecco, io sto per morire, ma Dio sarà con voi e vi farà tornare al paese dei vostri padri.

Then Jacob said to Joseph, “I am about to die. But I know that God will help/protect you. And some day he will take your descendants back to the land of their ancestors.

22 Quanto a me, io do a te, più che ai tuoi fratelli, un dorso di monte, che io ho conquistato dalle mani degli Amorrei con la spada e l'arco».

And it is to you, not to your brothers, that I will give the fertile hill in the Shechem area. I captured that land from the Amor people-group, fighting them with my sword and my bow and arrows.”