#olive branch bc that’s Roman???? i think

[kurt-nightcrawler]

Julius Caesar was reborn as my father 🗡🫒🌱

[leavesfromthemind]

yes, religion is important. yes, historical context is deeply important. yes to all of the disclaimers that are required to have opinions. please let everything melt away and think with me.

what would you pray, hope, wish, manifest, do anything, for your great great great great²⁰ grandchild to do ? what would Your great²³ grandchild want You to do? as mahmoud darwish said, if the hands that saw the olive tree planted saw who reaps the fruit now, they would weep.

let all time melt like sand, like sand does. tell me, what do you want? justice? mercy? mercy for who? mercy for what? mercy when and where? what does mercy mean? think. just think, you'll be fine as long as everybody else has the heart to think too.

[chironshorseass]

mari where is the essay about annabeth not being cursed where is the essay

she’s an interesting one alright. so actually annabeth is the savior. i mean. u think abt it and she rly is. she’s elpis in pandora’s jar she’s the anchor she’s the olive branch she’s the daughter of wisdom!!! leo and piper and jason all go on a quest to free hera and coincidentally jason is the lost hero, but so is piper and leo bc they were old enough to have been claimed years before but they weren’t. they’re just as misplaced as jason and blah blah blah they find their purpose and their true selves thru tlh. then there’s percy (in this version he’s keeping the curse of achilles) and hazel and frank. three people with curses. one was raised from the death and is haunted by it + she summons cursed jewels that eventually take those she loves away (they die lol), and the other 2 interestingly have their mortality tied to one thing. the difference is that one fears death (frank) bc he feels it so incredibly close and the other (percy) has lost sight of his mortality—which is what makes the curse of achilles a curse rly. and ANNABETH is the only one who can ground him. ANNABETH was the only one who could ground luke as well. in hoo she is now the seven’s only hope. like there’s the group who has an identity crisis 24/7 (is jason roman/greek? does piper want to embrace her mother’s side of herself/does she embrace her father’s heritage? what is leo’s place as a member of the seven?) and the other group is quite literally cursed and in some way it has to do with death and while one half of the seven is on a path of discovery the other half is on a path to freedom of their binds. annabeth stands in the crossfire since the very beginning. she plays the role of the mediator since pjo and she didn’t realize this until tlo—when she broke thru luke’s shield when she convinced percy to give him the knife. annabeth understands perfectly who she is. she knows her place as a leader and she isn’t held back by death. there isn’t anything like that stopping her per se….even if she doesn’t have any flashy powers at her disposal. all she depends on r her wits and intelligence but there’s something else that people forget:

annabeth’s so good at understanding people. she’s very in-tune with her emotions, despite what others say. she has this impact on people, this mark of wisdom that rly makes her stand out, and maybe that’s part of why luke and percy saw her in the river styx. bc she’s so so human and one of the best examples of a moral compass they can see and touch. like all she does is see the good in things and she follows her heart and she understands herself so deeply that she wasn’t even surprised when the sirens revealed to her that her fatal flaw is pride. she’s the true hero of pjo, and arguably of hoo, bc she saved everyone’s asses tbh. i mean without her they wouldn’t have gotten the athena parthenos and without the athena parthenos there was no hope, AT ALL, that gaia would be defeated. same with luke and a single choice shall end his days. some could say that she is “the seventh wheel” but truly what she is is the one who has to rise even higher than the rest of the seven. there’s a reason why she had to look for the mark of athena alone. there’s a reason why the seven would always look to her immediately for help. while percy and jason have an alpha male conflict annabeth is the one who mediates and annabeth is the one who can steer the ship besides leo and annabeth is the one to help frank figure out the chinese handcuffs and annabeth is the one to make hazel and piper feel right at home. and while she can be the seven’s biggest strength, given she doesn’t fit into the two trios of demigods, she can still be their downfall. bc if percy still has the curse and if she holds his life in her hands and if she is his anchor to his mortality and if percy loses sight of that too late and if she carries the actual weight of what they must do to succeed on her shoulders and if she fails….the pillars can all fall apart very very quickly. in a way, they all depend ENTIRELY on her.

[whyiask]

Just a Stupid Dare (Ch.10)

Masterpost Ao3 Link tw/cw: mm not any that I can think of? lmk if i need to add any. Note: Hi. Remember when I abandoned this fic for literal months? I panicked bc I didn't know how it was going to end and that stressed me out but it's all good now bc I finally have a completed plotted out story. This also means that when I say 'regular updates', I'm not lying, because I write much better with an outline and so :D (i have BIG things planned ;) )

---

Virgil was busy during lunch on Monday, and Roman didn’t know whether Logan would want to see him, so he brought his lunch to the garden behind the school to eat. It was surprisingly nice weather outside, peaceful, if not a bit isolating. It gave him plenty of time to hear the footsteps approaching before he turned around.

Patton stood by the entrance, hands waving by his sides like an idle video game character. He was, as usual, decked out in stylish pastels and way-too-large square glasses perched on his nose. His blondish brown curls spilled out around his face.

“Hi Ro,” he said softly, and Roman patted the bench next to him, a silent invitation to come in. Patton accepted the olive branch enthusiastically, situating himself on the bench and crossing his legs underneath him.

“Logan wanted to say sorry,” he said. Roman nearly spit out his bite of food. He swallowed hastily.

“What?” he asked, because Logan didn’t often apologize.

“He knows he overreacted and he’s super sorry, but to be fair, you know his history with Virgil and he probably felt betrayed that you would willingly spend time around him, even if he has,” Patton hesitated, “...changed for the better.”

Roman perked up. “You believe me?”

Patton hesitated again, fingers absently tracing the pen doodles on his arms. “...I still don’t trust him, but I trust you and if you say he’s trying, then I’ll believe you. I don’t think Logan can, not now, maybe not ever, but I do trust your judgement on this one.”

Patton offered a small smile and patted Roman’s shoulder. “Want to come sit with us instead of being alone out here? Or I could stay with you if you want.”

“You can stay,” Roman said, giving a slight smile in return.

---

Virgil caught up with Roman in between classes. He raced up, out of breath, and held up a hand. Roman paused and smiled.

"Hey!" he chirped. Virgil smirked and gave a small nod of his head.

"Hi," Virgil breathed. "Sorry about yesterday, I had no idea they were coming over. I've given them a fake explanation and they seem to buy it for now."

"That's good," Roman agreed. "Remus was being a dick about it so I popped one of his tires."

Virgil let out a shocked laugh. So that's why Remus was in such an irritable mood today.

"Ohoho, looks like someone's got a bit of a rebellious streak. Didn't expect it from the nerdy theater kid, not gonna lie."

Roman rolled his eyes good naturedly. "Glad I could surprise you, the emo nightmare himself, with my heroic feats. I suppose sometimes miracles do come true."

Virgil paused for a moment, thinking. "Since you're clearly not afraid of being a bit criminal," he began.

"I don't know if I like where this is going-"

"How do you feel about going vandalizing later tonight?"

Roman's protest came to a halt, and his eyes opened wider. "...I'm listening."

"Me. You. 10:00 at the skatepark. It'll be a date," Virgil joked.

"You're on," Roman grinned. "See you tonight. Now, if you don't mind, I have a class to attend."

---

Virgil had been waiting at the park for about 15 minutes, clad in his black hoodie, before Roman arrived.

“You’re late,” Virgil noted absently, taking in the two skateboards tucked under Roman’s arm. He too was dressed with a hoodie, fraying and dark red, a golden crown stitched onto the front. It suited him.

“Time is a social construct,” Roman said, throwing down one of the skateboard and hopping on, gliding the last few feet over to Virgil before stopping himself with his foot.

Virgil watched him, wide eyed. “...I didn’t know you know how to skateboard.”

Roman snorted. “You don’t?” He paused at the look on Virgil’s face. “Oh, uh- I can teach you if you want?” he offered. “I mean, I did bring two.”

“That would be pretty chill, I think,” Virgil said. He hefted up his bag of spray paints and supplies for Roman to see. “I’ve brought my paints.” He pulled out a pair of disposable gloves and tossed them to Roman. He snapped on his own pair and shook out his arms.

“Come, take whichever ones you want. Feel free to paint wherever, but try not to go over the top of any big and detailed designs.”

“I wasn’t planning on it,” Roman said, shuffling around in the bag. He eventually picked out a gold and a red and puttered off to a blank area. Virgil lifted the whole bag over his shoulder and found a spot near to Roman’s.

He got to work making a storm cloud design, quickly mapping it out and pulling out a few purples and grays. Roman finished his pretty soon and came to sit behind Virgil, watching him work in silence.

When he finally finished and stepped away, Roman spoke.

“That’s so cool, wow.”

Virgil turned around and smirked at Roman’s slightly awed expression, and nudged him up. “Come on, show me what you did.”

Roman laughed, a bright sound in the shadows of the night.

“It’s not nearly as good as yours,” Roman said, leading Virgil to his small design. It was a crown, similar to the one on his hoodie.

“Fancy yourself a prince, hmm?” Virgil teased. “Honestly though, this is really good for your first time ever. I can come back later and touch it up, make it a little more dynamic if you want?”

Roman beamed. Once again, Virgil marveled at how he could emit such a brightness in the gloom of the lonely park.

“Well, come on Princey, I do believe I am owed a lesson in skateboarding.”

Roman might’ve flushed at the nickname, but it was hard to tell in the bleary lighting.

“Still can’t believe that you regularly come to this park to graffiti and yet never learned how to skateboard,” Roman laughed. Virgil half-grimaced, half-grinned, because really, what do you say to that?

“I’m just special that way.”

“Keep telling yourself that, maybe one day it’ll be true.”

“Oh, just you wait, Princey,” Virgil said. “Just you wait,” he repeated, a little sadder than before. “There’s a lot of things you don’t know about me.”

[ariihen]

can you write some hcs about nico and frank’s little brother/older brother dynamic because we were ROBBED of it in the books 🥺🥺

i got u anon

it's been a while since frank has played mythomagic but he picks it up again when he found out about how nico played it too. he's still kind of unnerved by nico but he knows how much nico means to hazel so mythomagic is kinda his olive branch in his attempts to get to know his future brother-in-law best friend's brother.

the fact that it’s frank that offers this is also the only reason why nico reigns in the automatic defensive snap when he thinks someone’s teasing him. it’s been a very long time since he really touched mythomagic since it holds a lot of bitter memories, but he understand frank’s gesture for what it is and this is how he ends up picking up the game again after all these years.

i can see frank integrating mythomagic more in camp jupiter bc it's actually super helpful in teaching demigods about monsters, and he has nico assist him in teaching people how to play it. nico is kind of embarrassed at first, but when people are looking at him so earnestly he can push down the initial fear that people are making fun of him and lets himself get into it when it's clear that they're actually interested in learning.

the more nico's dorky side comes out, the more comfortable frank gets around him too. because for the first time, he's seeing a part of nico beyond the dangerous child of hades persona and passion temporarily lifts away the ghosts in his eyes.

frank is also kinda uneasy about the ares cabin, so he's very grateful that the cabin is actually fairly intimidated of nico because he helps keep them from involving frank in their shenanigans.

reyna and hazel are always ensuring that nico has had something to eat whenever they’re around him, so frank gets in on that too and tends to keep snacks on hand for nico to munch on. even if nico doesn’t eat it right there and then,the fact that nico accepts it to eat later is better than nothing.

they defs spar together and frank rly respects nico for how much he keeps him on his toes. the way nico fights isn't quite greek or roman; it's a patchwork of many styles that nico picked up from fighting against the dead, and he's not afraid to fight dirty. 

i think frank is probably one of the people nico feels comfortable joking around with? he playfully brings up being the flower boy in frazel's wedding.

[numbersbythebook]

Am I Ephraim?

written by Will Schumaker

A brief history of Israel. When God took Israel out of Egypt, Israel consisted of all 12 tribes forming one unified Israel.  After the reign of Solomon Israel was divided into 2 houses, the northern kingdom and the southern kingdom. 

The Southern kingdom became known as the house of Judah and consisted of the tribe of Judah and Benjamin as well as some of the Levites. The northern kingdom became known as the house of Ephraim and was the remaining 10 tribes.  The northern kingdom was taken over by Assyria in about 722 bc.  They were scattered among the nations and never returned.  They are known as the lost 10 tribes.

The Southern kingdom was taken over by Babylon and lived there 70 years before returning back to the land of Israel.  They rebuilt the temple and maintained their jewish identity as the people of God.  They were the jewish people of Jesus’ time and are the jewish people of today.  Jewish because they are from the house of Judah.

God’s goal is to reunify the 2 houses into one. Eze 37:16  Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions:

Eze 37:17  And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand. Eze 37:18  And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these? Eze 37:19  Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand. Eze 37:20  And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes. Eze 37:21  And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: Eze 37:22  And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all:

I always thought the 2 houses being unified were the jewish people and the gentiles, not the jewish people and their brethren, the lost 10 tribes.  After all, Paul says in Romans: Rom 11:17  And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree; Rom 11:18  Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee. Rom 11:19  Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be graffed in. Rom 11:20  Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear: Rom 11:21  For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee. Rom 11:22  Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off. Rom 11:23  And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be graffed in: for God is able to graff them in again. Rom 11:24  For if thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be graffed into their own olive tree? Rom 11:25  For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.

What is further interesting is that the “sticks” that God is telling Ezekiel to put together to become one is H6086 which is translated as “tree” 162 times.  So what Ezekiel is putting together is 2 trees just as Paul is saying 2 trees are coming together as one. So who is being joined to the house of Judah, the gentiles or the house of Ephraim? As I will point out, the bible prophesies that Ephraim will become the “fullness of the gentiles”-his seed is scattered into the gentiles and then God promises to gather the seed of Ephraim back to Him which are the gentiles now. Is there a drop of the house of Ephraim’s bloodline in each of us gentiles?  That would be pretty cool.

So ... The prophecy of Ephraim becoming “the fullness of the gentiles”.  “multitude of nations” can be translated as “fullness of gentiles”. Gen 48:19 And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations.

This is verse 1471 and H1471=nations or gentiles.  This perfect match seems to emphasize this prophecy.

The book of Hosea tells the story of Ephraim. He is to take a wife of whoredoms, symbolizing the house of Ephraim. Hos 1:2  The beginning of the word of the LORD by Hosea. And the LORD said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from the LORD. They have 3 children all depicting what God will do to the house of Ephraim. It will cease to exist. Hos 1:4  And the LORD said unto him, Call his name Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel. Hos 1:6  And she conceived again, and bare a daughter. And God said unto him, Call her name Loruhamah: for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel; but I will utterly take them away. Hos 1:9  Then said God, Call his name Loammi: for ye are not my people, and I will not be your God. However at a future time God will call them back to Him and call them “Sons of the living God” Hos 1:10  Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the living God And God will bring the House of Judah and the House of Ephraim back together as one. Hos 1:11  Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come up out of the land: for great shall be the day of Jezreel.

Of note: Paul repeats Hosea 1:10 when talking of the gentiles.  Paul knows this is a prophecy of the house of Ephraim, so in Paul’s mind he must be thinking the gentiles are his lost brothers.

Rom 9:24  Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles? Rom 9:25  As he saith also in Osee, I will call them my people, which were not my people; and her beloved, which was not beloved. Rom 9:26  And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God.

Peter also quotes Hosea’s prophecy of the house of Ephraim coming back to God.  Surely he must have understood it just as Paul did. 1Pe 2:10  Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. Hos 2:23  And I will sow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art my God.

A few other items to point out The capital of the northern tribes (Ephraim) was Samaria.  In the NT Jesus states he must bring in His other sheep and He must be in Samaria. Joh 10:16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. Joh 4:4  And he must needs go through Samaria. Joh 4:5  Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. He spent 2 days in Samaria which many see as the 2000 years of the fullness of the gentiles coming in before His return. Acts 10 begins the gospel going to the gentiles or Ephraim.  It begins with Cornelius of Caesarea. Act 10:1 There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,...

Cornelius means “of a horn” and Caesarea means severed .  Severed means “rent” and a horn symbolizes a nation.  So it is going to a nation that was “rent”.  This brings to mind how God “rent” the united kingdom of Israel. 1Ki 11:30  And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: 1Ki 11:31  And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee:

My favorite parable has always been the prodigal son.  If you were to reread that seeing the eldest son as the house of Judah and the youngest son as the house of Ephraim it actually makes more sense. This whole idea that God allowed the “lost 10 tribes” to assimilate into the gentiles and then He would call them back to Him, thus calling the gentiles to Him is really quite mind blowing to me.  Of course with all “hidden” truths in the bible, I believe God leaves a trail numerically that can validate it.

So ... The prophecy that Ephraim becomes the fullness of the gentiles is verse 1471.  H1471=gentiles. Gen 48:19 And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations. The gematria of this verse is 2675. G2675 means to perfect, repair or mend. When God brings the 2 houses back together isn’t he repairing or mending the breach?  This concept matches. G2675 is used in this verse of being one. 1Co 1:10 Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. Ephraim is born in verse 1248 with a gematria of 2638. G2638=”attain” used in this verse which is the same section that Paul quotes Hosea in. Rom 9:30 What shall we say then? That the Gentiles, which followed not after righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness which is of faith.

In the OT H6662=righteousness and it is the gematria of this verse of the 2 sticks or trees becoming one in Christ in verse 21417. Eze 37:19 Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand. Paul talks of the 2 trees becoming one in romans in verse 28234. Rom 11:24 For if thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be graffed into their own olive tree? These are separated be 6817 verses. (28234-21417)

There is 1 verse in the bible with a gematria of 6817. Deu 22:3 In like manner shalt thou do with his ass; and so shalt thou do with his raiment; and with all lost thing of thy brother's, which he hath lost, and thou hast found, shalt thou do likewise: thou mayest not hide thyself. Notice what the verse says-You must return your brother’s raiment if he loses it. In the bible our raiment is our righteousness. Rev 19:8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints Luk 24:49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued (clothed) with power from on high

So God is saying to the house of Judah “you must return to your brother Ephraim His lost righteousness”. The House of Judah through Christ accomplished this.  Then through Peter the Holy Spirit was given to the gentiles in Acts 10.

Act 10:44 While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. This began with Cornelius of Ceaserea which means “the horn that was severed”

This is the only mention of Ephraim in the NT.  It is symbolic. Joh 11:54 Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his disciples. It is verse 26578 so it is 4525 verses from the end. H 4525=”prison” is used in this verse Isa 42:7 To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house. Notice the previous verse is about the gentiles or the house of Ephraim. Isa 42:6 I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles; Paul quotes Isa 42:6 in Acts Acts 26:17  Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, Act 26:18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. Acts 26:18 is verse 3261 from the end. This verse has a gematria of 3261 and is about Ephraim lusting after the world and therefore falling into “prison”. Eze 23:6 Which were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding upon horses In the same chapter this verse has a gematria of 2187 matching Ephraim’s NT strongs number G2187. Eze 23:26  They shall also strip thee out of thy clothes, and take away thy fair jewels.

Because of their adultery God took away their clothes and jewels.  In the prodigal son parable the son was given back his clothes and jewels. Luk 15:22 But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: These 2 verses were separated by 4577.

This verse has a gematria of 4577. Gen 48:20 And he blessed them that day, saying, In thee shall Israel bless, saying, God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh: and he set Ephraim before Manasseh This verse also has a gematria of 4577 Luk 15:3 And he spake this parable unto them, saying, Luke 15:3 begins 3 consecutive parables about the lost sheep, lost coin, and prodigal son. What really started me looking at this was that I had been studying Rachel and Rebekah and how they are perfectly placed in the NT.  They are only used 1 time each.  Ephraim is only used 1 time.  I noticed this: Rachel’s only use +3390 verses=Ephraim + 1588 verses=Rebekah. G1588=elect G3390= Jerusalem.  3390 is also the gematria of the 12 tribes in Numbers placed around the tabernacle and is a picture of Revelation 4. These numbers seemed to indicate something very important about Ephraim. Recall Rebekah is mentioned in verse 2937 from the end.  G 2937=creation as in this verse 2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new Rachel is verse 7915 from the end.  This verse has a gematria of 7915 and is about Ephraim - Rom 9:25 As he saith also in Osee, I will call them my people, which were not my people; and her beloved, which was not beloved. This is the verse Rachel is mentioned in. Mat 2:18 In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not. She is weeping in Ramah and is from the old testament Jer 31:15  Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not God answers don’t weep, they will return. Jer 31:16  Thus saith the LORD; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come again from the land of the enemy. God is speaking of Ephraim and Judah Jer 31:18  I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus; Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the LORD my God. Jer 31:19  Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh: I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth.   Jer 31:20  Is Ephraim my dear son? is he a pleasant child? for since I spake against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my bowels are troubled for him; I will surely have mercy upon him, saith the LORD Jer 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah

This helps me understand Rachel more.  She symbolizes redemption.  She is constantly tied to Christ. She gives birth to Joseph which means “God will add”.  So because of Joseph she get Benjamin.  Jesus came as the Messiah as the type of Joseph at His first coming.  Because of His redemptive work Benjamin can be born.  Benjamin did not sell Joseph like his brothers and was the only one born in the promised land.  Joseph gave him the silver cup meaning redemption.   Jesus drank the 3rd cup of Passover with His disciples saying  “this is the covenant of my blood”.  The third cup of Passover is called the cup of redemption.  Rachel means”ewe” or lamb and died giving birth to Benjamin.

Joseph then gives birth to 2 sons while he is 2nd in charge in Egypt.  Manasseh means “God has helped me forget my toil”  I believe he is a picture of the early church that was all jewish.  Ephraim means “fruitful”.  The root is H6509. It is the word used in the promise of Abraham that he would be a father of many nations. Gen 17:6 And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. The gematria of this verse is 2542.  G2542=Ceaserea as in Cornelius of Ceaseria in Acts 10 when the Holy Spirit was given to the gentiles or Ephraim.

Interesting also is that Rachel is mentioned first in verse 802.  Ephraim is H669.  802 +669 =1471.  So the prophecy of Ephraim becoming the fullness of the gentiles in verse 1471 is separated from the first use of Rachel by 669 verses which is Ephraim.