Are you in Ephraim?

Scripture Verse that Caught my attention today: John 11:54 Jesus therefore no longer walked about openly among the Jews, but went from there to a town called Ephraim in the region near the wilderness; and he remained there with the disciples.

Observation: I hadn’t noticed Jesus going to “Ephraim” before. I looked it up on the concordance. Ephraim was first mentioned in the Bible in Genesis 41:52 as one of Joseph’s sons. From there the name shows up another 161 more times in the Bible though, interestingly, only once in the New Testament. In addition to refering Joseph’s son, it also refers to Joseph’s lineage, to the region where they lived and, as expressed in the New Testament example, a town.

Application: There are far more interesting story lines in these three chapters of John, but devotions are meant primarily to be personal and so, from a personal standpoint, I’d have to say that I simply don’t remember reading about Jesus visiting the town Ephraim before. I was also shocked by the sheer number of times that this name comes up in the Old Testament. Apparently I’ve largely glossed over it in the past.

Is this visit to Ephraim significant? I don’t know. But if nothing else, Jesus’ time in Ephraim served as a bridge between some very important times in his life. Perhaps he used his time there to reflect on what he had done and on what he had yet to do.

If so, perhaps many of us are in a form of Ephraim too. After all, we are nearing the end of yet another calendar year with, Lord willing, another around the corner. It’s a good and natural time to reflect.

Along those line, the other day there was a guy who submitted online a list of some 40 things he’s learned in the past year. Creating such a list might be a good idea for any of us. For who knows what the future might hold and how what we’ve learned from the past might crucial in helping us, by God’s grace, weave our way through.

Prayer: Lord, thanks for the experience of life and how you teach through it. And thanks for your little visit to Ephraim that, in itself, got me to thinking in ways that I had not thought so much before. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(Readings today included: John 9-11)