When it is said
A parent or grandparent can say it over children today, as Jacob did with his hands on the boys’ heads (Genesis 48:14).
Where it comes from
Author known
An old man’s blessing
Jacob was so old that he could not see when Joseph brought his two sons to him in Egypt. He kissed and embraced the boys before he blessed them. Although Manasseh was the firstborn, Jacob crossed his hands on purpose and laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, the younger. When Joseph tried to move his father’s hand, Jacob refused and said that the younger brother would be greater (Genesis 48:10-19).
A blessing for every child
Jacob said that Israel would bless with the words “May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh” (Genesis 48:20). Those words became the blessing Jewish parents give their children. Fathers have long blessed their sons with them on the eve of the Sabbath, on holy days and before they travel.
Counted as faith
The Letter to the Hebrews names this blessing among the things done by faith: “By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons” (Hebrews 11:21).
The Scripture in it
Then he blessed Joseph and said: “May 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 into a multitude upon the earth.”
Bible text: Berean Standard Bible, public domain.