When Jacob finally addressed the question of Joseph's two sons in (Genesis 48:5), he did something startling. He said: "Ephraim and Menasheh, as Reuben and Shimon shall be reckoned unto me." The Targum Pseudo-Jonathan preserves the declaration in full. Joseph's two Egyptian-born boys were promoted, with a word, from grandsons to sons.

This is the first recorded adoption in Torah, and one of the most consequential. It reshaped the tribal map of Israel for all subsequent history.

Why Jacob Elevated Them

The practical reason is that Joseph, as firstborn of Rachel, was due a double portion of inheritance. In the laws of primogeniture, the firstborn received twice a normal share. Jacob delivered that double portion not as money but as tribal status — by counting Ephraim and Menasseh each as a full tribe. Joseph himself would not be a tribe; his two sons would be, giving Joseph effectively two tribes' worth of inheritance.

The deeper reason, the Targum implies, is theological. Ephraim and Menasseh had been born in Egypt, raised in Pharaoh's palace, educated as nobility. They had every reason to drift away from the family of Jacob. Jacob pulled them back by incorporating them directly into the patriarchal line, skipping a generation. They were no longer "Joseph's Egyptian sons." They were Israel's sons.

Reuben and Shimon: A Deliberate Choice

Notice which brothers Jacob names for the comparison. Reuben and Shimon were not random. They were the two oldest sons — the ones who would otherwise have received the greatest portions. By saying Ephraim and Menasseh rank like Reuben and Shimon, Jacob was quietly demoting his two eldest in favor of his two youngest grandsons.

Reuben had disqualified himself by an incident with Bilhah (Genesis 35:22). Shimon had disqualified himself in the massacre at Shechem (Genesis 34). Jacob was not only elevating Ephraim and Menasseh; he was acknowledging that leadership of the family had shifted. The <a href='/categories/midrash-rabbah.html'>Midrash Rabbah</a> tradition at Bereishit Rabbah 97 develops this point extensively.

Why This Still Matters on Friday Nights

Every Friday night, observant Jewish parents bless their sons with the words: "May God make you like Ephraim and Menasseh." The blessing comes from (Genesis 48:20), a few verses after this adoption. The reason Ephraim and Menasseh are the template, rather than Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob themselves, is precisely what the Targum emphasizes here. They were the first Jewish children born into exile who successfully retained their Jewish identity. They grew up in the most powerful empire on earth and still answered to their grandfather.

The Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, whose final form reached between the 4th and 8th centuries CE, treats this verse as the prototype for every Jewish parent raising children outside Israel. The takeaway is an invitation. Bless your children tonight with the names of two boys born in Egypt, who became whole tribes of the covenant anyway.