Manasseh Facts for 9-13 Year Olds

Categories: Joseph

• Manasseh is the eldest son of Joseph and Asenath.
• Manasseh is named by Joseph.
• His name means “forgetful.”
• Joseph takes his two sons to see his father.
• Jacob adopts Joseph’s son, Manasseh, as well as his second son.
• Jacob then asks to bless his sons.
• This means Manasseh will have an equal share with Jacob’s other sons.
• Manasseh is the ancestor of the Tribe of Manasseh.
• In the first census in Numbers, there are 32,2000 men of Manasseh who are over 20 years old.
• At that time, Gamaliel is head of the Tribe of Manasseh.
• After Moses finishes setting up the Tabernacle, all the tribes bring offerings. Gamaliel brings the offering from the Tribe of Manasseh on the eighth day.
• The daughters of Zelophehad, grandson of Gilead, are also descendants of Manasseh. Their father has no sons, so they go to Moses to ask for their father’s inheritance. Moses grants their request.
• Later on, in order to keep the land within the tribe, they are told to marry within the tribe. They do.
• In the second census, the men number 52,700 - an increase of more than 20,000 men.
• Around 1200 BCE, Joshua allocates land among the tribes.
• Manasseh occupies land on both sides of the Jordan River.
• The two sides are almost completely disconnected.
• The western half is immediately north of Ephraim, centrally located in Canaan.
• The eastern half is where the northernmost tribe lives - on the east side of the Jordan River.
• Both territories have abundant water supplies, which makes them very valuable to the northern kingdom.
• Their locations also allow them to defend two major mountain passes.
• In 732 BCE, the eastern territory is taken captive by the Assyrians.
• The western territory is annexed in 723 BCE.
• All the inhabitants are conquered and resettled in Assyria.
• Some believe that the Samaritans are descendants from this tribe.