Here is the case— not of determinism, but of free will and judgment based on deeds. Reuben had sexual relations with Bilhah, his father's concubine (Gen 35:22). At Jacob's pronouncement of blessing on his sons, “Reuben is declared unstable and his birthright forfeited (Gen 49:3-4)." (Tyndale Bible Dictionary) Moreover, the next candidates— Simeon and Levi— were cursed by Jacob for their revengeful and deceitful murder of the men of Shechem. And an even more explicit prophesy was announced against Dan— “Dan shall be a serpent in the way, a horned snake in the path, that bites the horse's heels, so that his rider falls backward.” (Gen 49:17) So, though "Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the Prince, yet the birthright was Joseph’s" (1 Chron 5:2)— the first-born of beloved Rachel. And he wore the infamous coat of many colors that is thought to be a gift that Jacob gave him for accepting responsibilities of the birthright.
Yet Joseph was sold as a slave and he was reported dead by his brethern— and considered so by Jacob, but he rose to prominence in Egypt. In like manner, Benjamin rose to prominence in Israel— as firstborn. Thus we better understand Jacob’s protection of little Benjamin and his reluctance to allow him to go to Egypt. But alas, Jacob learned that Joseph is alive! Jacob then determines “to bring his clan of seventy souls down into Egypt to sojourn demonstrated his desire to place his family under the blessings of Joseph until the fulfillment of God's promises.” (Gary H. Everett)
“By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph;” (Heb 11:21a) He strengthened himself and sat up upon the bed and said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan”— “the original Canaanite name of the city of Bethel (Gn 28:19; 35:6).” (Tyndale)— “and blessed me, and said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will make of you a multitude of people, and give this land to your descendants after you as an everlasting possession.’” (Gen 48:4)
So now Joseph was recognized as the firstborn and he had two sons in Egypt— Ephraim and Manasseh. And so Jacob adopted them as his own sons(Gen 48:1-5), as if to say, so then “each of them shall have an equal share both in my present property, and in the future inheritance of Canaan with the rest of my children. Thus Jacob transfers the double portion, which was the right of the firstborn, [back] upon Joseph….” (Joseph Benson) We see the wisdom of God in this move for there were twelve princes but “Levi was given no distinctive inheritance among the tribes (Num 1:47-53) because that tribe was separated in order to do the service of God in the tabernacle and among all the tribes. Thus the 12 tribes were each given their distinct inheritance in the land of Canaan, while the Levites were dispersed among the tribes.” (L. M. Grant)
Moreover by this act: “He thus, by this declaration, invites all of Joseph’s descendants into covenant relations. And further, by his example in the case of the death of his beloved Rachel, he describes the circumstances of Rachel's burial in Canaan- how he would not bury her at Bethdehem among infidels (Gen 48:7). This he tells Joseph, to teach him and the rest not to set up their rest anywhere but in the land.” (John Trapp)
And, as with Issac concerning Jacob and Esau, Jacob “blessed each of the sons of Joseph,”— “Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands knowingly, for Manasseh was the firstborn.— And he blessed Joseph [and these sons in him], and said: ‘God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has fed me all my life long to this day, the Angel who has redeemed me from all evil, [which] must be understood to be Christ, as in (Gen 31:13) , (Gen 32:1) (Geneva Study Bible)—“Let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers...” etc. considering it "as a privilege, that he should take the lads out of the family of Joseph, though that family was then one of the noblest in Egypt, and transplant them into his own, though it had no outward distinction but what it derived from its connection with the other. Faith gave him this consciousness of superiority; he knew that his posterity were to constitute a peculiar people, from which would at length arise the Redeemer. He felt it far more of an advantage for Ephraim and Manasseh to be counted with the tribes than numbered among the princes of Egypt.” (H. Melvill)
“This was the fourth consecutive generation of Abraham’s descendants in which the normal pattern of the firstborn assuming prominence over the second born was reversed: Isaac over Ishmael, Jacob over Esau, Joseph over Reuben, and Ephraim over Manasseh.” (Thomas Constable) As was the pattern, “Joseph expected the blessing to be regulated by the age of his sons, and is therefore, careful to present them so that the right hand of his dim-sighted parent may, without any effort, rest on the head of his first-born. But the venerable patriarch, guided by the Spirit of him who doth according to his own will, designedly lays his right hand on the head of the younger, and thereby attributes to him the greater blessing.” (Albert Barnes) — ”But his father refused saying, ‘I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great; but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his descendants shall become a multitude of nations.’ Though Jacob's natural eyesight was dim, his spiritual discernment was not. Deliberately, Jacob crossed his hands ‘guiding his hands wittingly’, or, as the Hebrew reads, literally, ‘he made his hands to understand.’ Note it is expressly said that ‘Israel’ did this: it was the new man that was acting, not the old man, ‘Jacob.’” (A. W. Pink) "The tribe of Ephriam was so superior to the rest, that they in a manner did lie down under its shade; for the Scripture often includes the ten tribes under this name." (John Calvin)
The final act of Jacob's was that he ”’worshiped, leaning upon the top of his staff’ (Heb 11:21b)— the signet of rule in theland of Israel— “in thankfulness for His continual providence in the gradual accomplishment of His promise to the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." (Matthew Poole) Thus he showed forth his great faith. "What has a dying man to do with worshipping, unless he is a believer in another state? He leans upon the top of his staff as if he would acknowledge the goodness of his heavenly Father, remind himself of the troubles through which he had been brought and of the Hand which alone had been his guardian and guide.” (H. Melvill)
“By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones." (Heb 11:22) Take 'em with you to the land of Canaan. “Joseph‘s eminent position in Egypt did not make him regard it as his home: in faith he looked to God‘s promise of Canaan being fulfilled and desired that his bones should rest there: testifying thus: (1) that he had no doubt of his posterity obtaining the promised land: and (2) that he believed in the resurrection of the body, and the enjoyment in it of the heavenly Canaan. His wish was fulfilled (Josh 24:32; Acts 4:16).” (Jamieson, Fausset, Brown)