But now when Jerusalem became the capital of the kingdom, and the center of power and worship for the whole nation of Israel, Ephraim declined in influence. Israel Jacob made a prophetic blessing on Ephriam in Genesis excerpt :. Place your right hand on his head. However, his younger brother [Ephraim] shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations. Woe to the proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim, And to the fading flower of its glorious beauty, Which is at the head of the fertile valley Of those who are overcome with wine!
And these also reel with wine and stagger from strong drink : The priest and the prophet reel with strong drink, They are confused by wine , they stagger from strong drink ; They reel while having visions, They totter when rendering judgment.
Due to jealousies and sin in ancient times see King Jeroboam , the 12 tribes of Israel split into 2 separate kingdoms: The Kingdom of Israel the northern kindgom of 10 tribes and The Kingdom of Judah the southern kingdom of 2 tribes, with the Tribe of Judah being dominant. This prophecy says these tribes will return to the land of Israel in the days before and during The Great Tribulation.
And when the Messiah returns, these two groups of tribes will come to peace with each other. This movement resulted in the isolation of Manasseh and Ephraim Josh.
The southern boundaries of the portion of Joseph, which constituted also the southern frontier of Ephraim, are these: Starting from the Jordan, near Jericho and its springs on the east, and following the desert of Beth-aven, which rises from Jericho to the hill of Beth-el, the line passed from Beth-el to Luz; thence toward the boundary of the Archites 'Ain 'Arik to Ataroth, descending westward toward the frontier of the Japhletites to the border of the nether Beth-horon and to Gezer Tell Jezer , terminating at the sea Josh.
In Josh. These data are confusing and not always consistent; they prove that for many centuries the delimitations were uncertain and the traditions concerning them conflicting see Holzinger, "Joshua," pp. The district occupied by Ephraim was mountainous but very fertile Hosea ix. Its geographical position, midway between Dan, Benjamin, and Manasseh beyond the Jordan, contributed materially to making its possessor, Ephraim, the dominant factor in the political development of the northern tribes.
The mountains afforded protection; the Jordan and the sea were within easy reach; and the natural roads of communication between the north and the south passed through it. Within its borders were the old centers of the religio-political life, Shechem, Aruma, and Shiloh, the seat of the Sanctuary. The character imputed to Ephraim reflects the rugged configuration of its home district Gen. Ephraim is equipped with "the horns of the wild ox" Deut. The deeds of the tribe reported in the Book of Judges bear out this characterization.
It had a share in the expedition against Hazor and King Jabin Judges iv. Deborah is represented as residing in its borders Judges iv. In the Song of Deborah the tribe is commended as among the first to respond to the summons to arms Judges v. Ephraim, jealous of its rivals for the leadership, has a dispute with Gideon about being neglected at the outset of his campaign against the Midianites Judges vii.
Under Jephthah the men of Ephraim again resented a slight of this kind xii. The Gileadites, having an old grudge against them Judges xii. The episode is of linguistic interest, as in connection therewith the peculiar dialectic difference of theEphraimitic speech is recorded in the "s" pronunciation of the word "Shibboleth" ib. Abdon of Pirathon, an Ephraimite, is mentioned as one of the later judges xii.
Samuel sustained close connections with Ephraim I Sam. In his selection of Saul as king, the jealousies of the tribe were well considered, the new monarch being a Benjamite and therefore an ally of Ephraim.
Thenceforth the history of Ephraim is merged in that of the Northern Kingdom, in which it remained the dominant factor, so that, especially in figurative speech, its name came to be used for the state of the Ten Tribes Isa.
In II Chron. II Chron. Ephraim's rejection is spoken of in the Psalms lxxviii. I wrote a bit about this chapter in an answer to a different question here. See, I will bring them from the land of the north and gather them from the ends of the earth. Restore me, and I will return, because you are the Lord my God. In general, Ephraim is used as a synecdoche to refer to the whole Northern Kingdom of Israel. The tribe of Ephraim inhabited the northern part of Israel.
Jeroboam, the first king of the Northern Kingdom was from the tribe of Ephraim and the later prophets often refer to the Northern Kingdom by the name Ephraim eg: most of the prophecies in Hoshea are addressed to Ephraim.
Jeremiah functions as a prophet until after the destruction of the Southern Kingdom around the year BCE which means he was born well after the northern kingdom of Israel was destroyed and exiled in the year BCE years earlier.
So why is Jeremiah suddenly addressing himself to Ephraim? What is the signficance of this chapter? Is there an implicit message that the Southern Kingdom is supposed to take from this? Ephraim is Jacob's eldest son by 'adoption', replacing Reuben who he rejects :. According to Jacob's blessing he hopes for Ephraim to carry on his name despite Joseph's protestations that it should be his firstborn, Manassah who has the role :. You mention that 'Ephraim' becomes a name for the entire Northern Kingdom , which is also true of the name 'Israel' though unlike 'Ephraim', the latter is later used to refer to Judah after the northern Kingdom is destroyed.
I don't think it is 'addressed' to Ephraim, rather it is about the fulfilment of God's promises to Abraham - Jeremiah is looking forward to the future 'day' when God will gather together the remnant of his people who have been disciplined by him and scattered. Ephraim was the strongest tribe to the west of the tabernacle prior to the Israelites entering into the promise land.
There were only two that had the courage to lead the Israelites into God's promised land after the 40 years. One being Joshua, Moses' succeeder. Joshua was from the tribe of Ephraim. Once God's people finally entered into the promise land the tribe of Ephraim held in its boundaries the capital city of Shiloh. Shiloh is also where the Ark of the Covenant was placed. Most of the prophets address the northern kingdom as Ephraim because of this. I gathered most of my information through studying Tabernacle, Joshua, and the scriptures supporting Ephraim as the first land that was designated to the tribe of Ephraim, which supported the first capital city Shiloh , which held the first true temple to house The Ark in the promise land.
If you have ever done a study on the Ark of the Covenant then you know that this was the only way to be in God's presence. Hence the tearing of the veil when Jesus Christ died for our sins. I am not a scholar though.
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