Page "Tribe of Ephraim" Paragraph 12

Though the biblical descriptions of the geographic boundary of the House of Joseph are fairly consistent, the descriptions of the boundaries between Manasseh and Ephraim are not, and each is portrayed as having exclaves within the territory of the other.

Furthermore, in the Blessing of Jacob, and elsewhere ascribed by textual scholars to a similar or earlier time period, Ephraim and Manasseh are treated as a single tribe, with Joseph appearing in their place.

From this it is regarded as obvious that originally Ephraim and Manasseh were considered one tribe — that of Joseph.

According to several biblical scholars, Benjamin was also originally part of the house of Joseph, but the biblical account of this became lost ; Benjamin being differentiated by being that part of Ephraim which joined the Kingdom of Judah rather than that of Israel.