EPHRAIM. – 1. Aseneth (v.). Born in Egypt “before the year of famine came” (Gen. 41:50), he was given the name E. (a Hebrew dual form meaning “double fruitfulness”), an allusion to Giuseppe’s words: “God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.” Giacobbe adopted Manasse and E. and blessed them as his true sons, so that they might become the heads of two distinct tribes, assigning, despite Giuseppe’s protests, the first place to E.: “his younger brother shall become greater than Manasse and his offspring shall become a multitude of peoples” (Gen. 48:17–22). Giuseppe saw the third generation of E. (Gen. 50:22 [23]).
Of E.’s life we know that two of his sons (Ezer and Elad) were killed by the men of Geth (I Par. 7:20 ff.). E. mourned his sons’ death for a long time, and then begot another son, whom he named Beria, because he had been born amid the misfortunes of his household (I Par. 7:23). Among his descendants, the most celebrated is Giosuè, son of Nun (I Par. 7:27).
2. Tribe of which the patriarch E. was the head. This tribe occupied an extensive territory between Dan and Beniamin to the south, western Manasse to the north, the Mediterranean to the west, and the Giordano to the east.
Its boundaries are indicated in Jos. 16:1–8; 17:7–10, but with considerable obscurity.
The characteristic feature is undoubtedly E.’s restriction on the eastern side as far as the mountainous region bordering the valley of the Giordano, thereby excluding Gerico, the Gōr, and the riverbank (cf. Jude. 3:27 ff.; 7:24). The principal cities of this tribe are: Sichem, Bethel, Silo, Thamnath Sare, the burial place of Giosuè
(Int. Attent.) EPHRAIM – Birth of E., son of Giuseppe (13th century). Detail of the mosaic of a vault in the atrium of S. Marco – Venesi.
(= Hirbet Tibneh), Lebona, Baalhasor (Tell ‘Asār), Baalsalisa, Aphee, Bethoren, Ophora, Pharaton, Taphua.
The tribe of E. occupied the central part of Palestine. Dotted with olive groves, the hills of E. were covered with numerous villages, separated by fertile valleys. The beauty of this land was praised by Giacobbe (Gen. 49:22) and by Mosè (Deut. 33:12–16). Added to the fertility of the region was its protection from enemy incursions.
Historically, the central position in Palestine, the routes of communication with the north and south, with the Giordano and the sea, and the political and religious importance of Sichem and Silo contributed to the importance of this tribe.
The tribe of E. held one of the foremost places in the history of Israel and was surpassed in power and authority only by Giuda. In the second year of the exodus, the tribe had as its leader Elisama, son of Ammiud (Num. 1:10), and numbered 40,500 warriors around Sinai and 32,500 in the plains of Moab. Among the twelve explorers of Palestine, Osea, son of Nun, Giosuè (v.), stands out. When the Hebrews arrived in Palestine, Giuseppe (= E. and Manasse), together with other tribes, pronounced the blessing on Mount Garizim. The Levites of Caath were granted in E.: Sichem, a city of refuge, Gezer, Jezmaan, Bethoren.
From the beginning, the Efraimites engaged in bloody struggles with the Canaanites (Jos. 17:14–18), who were confined to Gezer as tributaries. Aod (v.), Debora (Jude. 4:5; 5:14), Gedeone (7:24), and Thola (10:1) displayed great strength. They had the audacity to resist Gedeone (8:1–3; 9:1–5) and Iephe (ibid., 12:1–6) when they felt neglected. Under Samuele they held command over Israel. After the death of Saul, E., like the other tribes, initially recognized his son Isboseth; then it submitted to David, to whom it provided officers. When a revolt broke out at Salomone’s death, the Efraimites, eager for command, knew how to take advantage of it: IEROBOAM I (v.) was one of their leaders. Sichem was chosen as the national centre. The new kingdom of Israel came into being, with the ensuing schism: from this moment the history of E. becomes confused with that of the northern kingdom. But although the tribe fell into idolatry, many of its members remained faithful to Jahweh (cf. II Par. 13:8–11; 30:1, 10, 18). In the time of Ezechia, the multitude of the faithful, after fulfilling their religious duties in the temple of Jerusalem, invaded the two southern provinces (Beniamin and E.) from the kingdom in order to destroy the idolatrous objects (II Par. 31:1; cf. II Par. 34:6, 9).