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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | why are the twelve tribes of isreal diff | Bible general Archive 4 | phil2011 | 225844 | ||
why are the twelve tribes of isreal different in genesis 48:3-28 verses revelation7:4-8 | ||||||
2 | why are the twelve tribes of isreal diff | Bible general Archive 4 | Makarios | 225845 | ||
Greetings Phil2011! Welcome to StudyBibleForum.com. The sons of Jacob (Israel) that are mentioned in Genesis 48:3-28 are: Reuben, Simeon, and the two sons of Joseph who are Jacob's (see verse 5): Ephraim and Manasseh. A complete picture of the twelve tribes of Israel are in Chapter 49. The major difference between the list of the twelve tribes in Genesis 49 and the list in Revelation 7:4-8 is that the tribe of Dan is omitted in Revelation and the two Joseph tribes are mentioned separately (and together in Genesis 49). Here is a note on that: (Revelation) "7:6 Manasseh. One of the two Joseph tribes (Ephraim and Manasseh), yet mentioned separately, probably to make up 12 tribes since Dan is omitted. This omission is due perhaps to Dan's early connection with idolatry (Judg 18:30), or to a tradition that the antichrist was to come from that tribe." (pg. 1857, Zondervan NASB Study Bible, 1999 Zondervan Corp) Blessings to you, Makarios |
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3 | why are the twelve tribes of isreal diff | Bible general Archive 4 | ariel levin | 225846 | ||
Makarios, Wouldn't another reason for the differences be that after Mt Sinai, the Levites were no longer counted among Israel as a "tribe" because they had been placed apart as to God? Therefore, aside from the prophecy of double portion going to Joseph, i.e. Manasseh and Ephraim, these two were counted as 2 tribes then brought back together as one single tribe to make room for the tribe of Joseph (or is Ephraim counted among Joseph's tribe? Never thought of this before?), and also the Levites were restored and counted among Israel. |
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4 | why are the twelve tribes of isreal diff | Bible general Archive 4 | Makarios | 225883 | ||
Greetings Ariel Levin! Yes, I apologize: I should re-examine the differences between these two passages more thoroughly. First of all, the context couldn't be more different: in Genesis 49, Jacob (Israel) is giving the blessing to each of his sons before he dies, and foretelling with a bit of prophesy as to how it will go with them in the generations to come. In Revelation 7:4-8, the apostle John is relating to us the vision that he received regarding the sealing of the 144,000, stating that 12,000 are from each tribe listed. Since the context in both passages is so drastically different, a person could not look at both passages seriously and come to a conclusion of contradiction with any supporting logic. Who is to say that each tribe necessarily needs to be mentioned in Revelation 7? Secondly, why is studying the Bible within the context so important? In Kay Arthur's book "How to Study Your Bible" (page 18), she writes, "The word context means "that which goes with the text." In general, then, context is the environment in which something dwells, the setting in which something exists or occurs. Remember the tadpole in the creek? Context is the creek!" David L. Thompson in his book "Bible Study That Works" (page 32) writes the following, "So, assuming a context of prayer, the first step in good Bible study is observation. And one must see two things. First, one must see what is there; a matter of the contents. What is the book or unit at hand actually about: sin or grace, prayer or faith, Abraham or David, creation or second coming? These are matters of content, of observing what was said." Therefore, context is determined by carefully observing what is repeated in the text and seeing how it all relates. On a side note: this 128 page book, "Bible Study That Works" was actually the textbook as specified by the syllabus in my 'Methods in Bible Study' course at Indiana Wesleyan University more than a decade or so ago. Perhaps a good online resource that would explain context would be: http://www.spiritandtruth.org/teaching/Bible_Interpretation/03_Context/03_Context_Notes.pdf. In conclusion, you can understand why a narrative listing of the tribes of Israel (Genesis 49) would be different from an apocalyptic listing (Revelation 7:4-8) of the tribes of Israel without coming to a conclusion that there is a contradiction. Good observation in regards to the tribe of Levi: in Genesis 49, this tribe had clearly not been as yet 'set apart' for their special service to God. I hope that this helps! Blessings to you, Makarios |
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