Tribe of Ephraim
According to the Hebrew Bible, the Tribe of Ephraim (Hebrew: אֶפְרַיִם / אֶפְרָיִם, Modern Efrayim, Tiberian ʾEp̄ráyim / ʾEp̄rā́yim ; "double fruitfulness") was one of the Tribes of Israel. The Tribe of Manasseh together with Ephraim also formed the House of Joseph.
The descendants of Joseph formed two of the tribes of Israel, whereas each of the other sons of Jacob was the founder of only one tribe.
From the end of the conquest of Canaan by Joshua, who himself was a descendant of Ephraim (1 Chronicles 7:20-27), in c. 1200 BCE, to the formation of the first Kingdom of Israel in c. 1050 BCE, the Tribe of Ephraim was a part of a loose confederation of Israelite tribes. No central government existed, and in times of crisis the people were led by ad hoc leaders known as Judges. (see the Book of Judges) With the growth of the threat from Philistine incursions, the Israelite tribes decided to form a strong centralised monarchy to meet the challenge, and the Tribe of Ephraim joined the new kingdom with Saul as the first king. After the death of Saul, all the tribes other than Judah remained loyal to the House of Saul, but after the death of Ish-bosheth, Saul's son and successor to the throne of Israel, the Tribe of Ephraim joined the other northern Israelite tribes in making David, who was then the king of Judah, king of a re-united Kingdom of Israel.