Does Birth Order Really Matter: Genesis 48:12-22
When we have God’s Spirit within, we are truly alive. He created us. He makes us whole. His Spirit gives us new life – and that life is given to us abundantly.
When Jacob reaches out to bless his grandsons, he crosses his hands to bless Ephraim ahead of Manasseh. Jacob continues the pattern of elevating the younger over the elder even unto Joseph’s children. This pattern is so important to Jacob, he removes Joseph’s ability to decide for himself. In fact, when Joseph goes to fix Jacob’s hands, Jacob doesn’t allow them to be fixed.
It makes sense for why Joseph would try to fix Jacob’s hands. All the cultures around Joseph lifted the first-born as the dominant heir. The only people who are not highlighting birth-order dominance are the descendants of Abraham. When Joseph sees Jacob cross his hands, he likely thinks Jacob is old, his eyesight is failing, and he has made an honest mistake. Joseph doesn’t realize Jacob is being intentional and God is being intentional through him.
What is the point of the birth order significance throughout Genesis? Honestly, this birth order question continues to come up after Genesis. It keeps happening throughout the Biblical narrative. For example, David, the greatest Hebrew king, was not the oldest son of Jesse. Why does this theme of elevating the younger over the elder keep returning?
This trend draws a distinction between God and mankind. Humankind orders itself based on external characteristics. We evaluate people on how tall they are, how much they can bench press, how far they can run, or even what order they were born. God, on the other hand, orders things differently. God orders us by the quality of our heart. This theme of elevating the younger asserts God’s desire for us to understand that His ways of evaluating importance are different.
There is a deeper point to which we can carry this thought. With God, we often talk about a second birth. We are born into this world, but then we are also born into God’s family. Our physical birth bring life to the flesh; being reborn into God’s family bring new life to our soul. It is not our first birth that is the most significant, but rather our second birth involving the Holy Spirit where we truly find genuine significance to our life. This birth-order arrangement established in Genesis where the first-born is replaced in importance by a later-born child, God indicates that the first birth is significant but not as significant as births yet-to-come.
When Jacob intentionally blesses Ephraim over Manasseh, we receive a huge preimage of the work of the Holy Spirit and the importance of being born in God’s Spirit. As God seeks relationship with us, He sends the Holy Spirit to us to call us back to Him. He desires us to understand our rebirth in His Spirit. When we have God’s Spirit within, we are truly alive.
