sying one to another, What is this that God hath done unto us? 29 And they came unto Jacob their father unto the land of Canaan, and told him all that befell unto them; saying, 3 The man, who is the lord of the land, spake roughly to us, and took us for spies of the country. 31 And we said unto him, We are true men; we are no spies. 32 We be twelve brethren, sons of our father: one is not, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Canaan. 23 And the man, the lord of the country, said unto us, Hereby shall I know that ye are true men; leave one of your brethren here with me, aud take food for the famine of your households, and be gone; 34 And bring your youngest brother unto me: then shall I know that ye are no spies, but that ye are true men: so wil! I deliver you your brother, and ye shall traffick in the land. 35 And it came to pass, as they emptied their sacks, that, behold, every man's bundle of money was in his sack: and when both they and their father saw the bundles of money, they were afraid. 36 And Jacob their father said unto them, Me have ye bereaved of my children: Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away. All these things are against me. 37 And Reuben spake unto his father, saying, Slay my two sous, if I bring him not to thee: deliver him into my hand, and I will bring him to thee again. 38 And he said, My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he is left alone: if mischief befall him by the way in the which ye go, then shall ye bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. CHAPTER XLIII. AND the famine was sore in the land. 2 And it came to pass, when they had eaten up the corn which they had brought out of Egypt, their father said unto them, Go again, buy us a little food. 3 And Judah spake unto him, saying, The man did solemnly protest unto us, saying, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be with you. 4 If thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go down and buy thee food: 5 But if thou wilt not send him, we will not go down: for the man said unto us, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be with 6 And Israel said, Wherefore dealt ye so ill with me, as to tell the man whether ye had yet a brother? 7 And they said, The man asked us straitly of our state, and of our kindred, saying, Is your father yet alive? have ye another brother? Ver. 1. The famine must now have been fearfully severe, or Jacob would not have applied to his sons to seek relief from Egypt, knowing as he did what were the conditions on which alone they could safely trust themselves in that country. Ver. 27. How exquisitely beautiful and tender is this passage! The Laelings of the son and of the and we told him according to the 8 And Judah said unto Israel his 9 I will be surety for him; of my hand shalt thou require him if I bring him not unto thee, and set him before thee, then let me bear, the blame for ever: 10 For except we had lingered, surely now we had returned this second time. 11 And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; Take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balin, and a little honey, spices and myrrh, nuts and almonds. 12 And take double money in your hand: and the money that was brought again in the mouth of your sacks, carry it again in your hand; peradventure it was an oversight. 13 Take also your brother, and arise, go again unto the man: 14 And God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may send away your other brother, and Benjamin. If I be bereaved of my children, I am bereaved. 15 And the men took that present, and they took double money in their hand, and Benjamin; and rose up, and went down to Egypt, and stood before Joseph. 16 And when Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the ruler of his house, Bring these men home, and slay, and make ready: for these men shall dine with me at noon. 17 And the man did as Joseph bade: and the man brought the men into Joseph's house. 18 And the men were afraid, time are we brought in; that he 19 And they came near to the 20 And said, O sir, we came indeed down at the first time to buy food: 21 And it came to pass, when we came to the inn, that we opened our sacks, and, behold, every man's money was in the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight; and we have brought it again in our hand. 22 And other money have we brought down in our hands to buy food: we cannot tell who put our money in our sacks. 23 And he said, Peace be to you, fear not; your God, and the God of your father, hath given you treasure in your sacks: I had your money. And he brought Simeon out unto them. brother were impatient of restraint, Ver. 5 Whereby he divineth. 24 And the man brought the men into Joseph's house, and gave them water, and they washed their feet and he gave their asses provender. 25 And they made ready the present against Joseph came at noon: for they heard that they should eat bread there. 26 And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth. 27 And he asked them of their welfare, and said, Is your father well, the old man of whom ye spake? is he yet alive? 28 And they answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is yet alive and they bowed down their heads, and made obci. sance. 29 And he lifted up his eyes, and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother's son, and said, Is this your younger brother, of whom ye spake unto me? And he said, God be gracious unto thee, my son. 30 And Joseph made haste; for his bowels did yearn upon his brother: and he sought where to weep; and he entered into his chamber, and wept there. 31 And he washed his face, and went out, and refrained himself, and said, Set on bread. 32 And they set on for him by himself, and for them by themselves, and for the Egyptians which did eat with him by themselves: because the Egyptians might not eat bread with the Hebrews; for that is an abomination unto the Egyptians. 33 And they sat before him, the first-born according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his youth: and the men marvelled one at another. 34 And he took and sent messes unto them from before him: but Benjamin's mess was five times so much as any of theirs. And they drank, and were merry with him. CHAPTER XLIV. AND he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man's money in his sack's mouth. 2 And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack's mouth of the youngest, and his corn-money. And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken. 3 As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their asses. 4 And when they were gone out of the city, and not yet far off, Joseph said unto his steward, Up.. follow after the men; and when thou dost overtake them, say unto them, Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good? 5 Is not this if in which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth? Ye have done evil in so doing. 6 And he overtook them, and he spake unto them these same words. the sack to try the character or honesty of the men. Ver. 15. From this it would appear, that Joseph really used the cup for the purposes of divination; but he might only adapt his expressions to the notions of the Egyptions, and their mode of speech. It is scarcely to be supposed that, having 7 And they said unto him, Wherefore saith my lord these words? God forbid that thy servants should do according to this thing. 8 Behold, the money which we found in our sacks' mouths we brought again unto thee out of the land of Canaan: how then should we steal out of thy lord's house silver or gold? 9 With whomsoever of thy servants it be found, both let him die, and we also will be my lord's bond-men. 10 And he said, Now also let it be according unto your words: he with whom it is found shall be my servant; and ye shall be blameless. 11 Then they speedily took down every man his sack to the ground, and opened every man his sack. 12 And he searched, and began at the eldest, and left at the young est; and the cup was found in Benjamin's sack. 13 Then they rent their clothes, and laded every man his ass, and returned to the city. 14 And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph's house; (for he was yet there ;) and they fell before him on the ground. 15 And Joseph said unto them, What deed is this that ye have done? wot ye net that such a man as I can certainly divine? 16 And Judah said, What shall we say unto my lord? what shall we speak or how shall we clear ourselves? God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants: behold, we are my lord's servants, both we, and he also with whom the cup is found. 17 And he said, God forbid that I should do so: but the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; and as for you, get you up in peace unto your father. 18 Then Judah came near unto him, and said, Oh my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord's ears, and let not thine anger burn against thy servant: for thou art even as Pharaoh. 19 My lord asked his servants, saying, Have ye a father, or a brother? 20 And we said unto my lord, We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him. 21 And thou saidst unto thy servants, Bring him down unto me, that I may set mine eyes upon him. 22 And we said unto my lord, The lad cannot leave his father: for if he should leave his father, his father would die. 23 And thou saidst unto thy servants, Except your youngest brother come down with you, ye shall see my face no more. 24 And it came to pass, when we came up unto thy servant my in his earliest youth ascribed all his knowledge to God, he would now practise the superstitious arts of a people so much inferior to himself in the acquirements of truth. Ver. 5. The doctrine of the constant and particular superintendence of God over the affairs of his people is here clearly ascertained. It may also be seen, from the history of Joseph, how impossible it would be for the Deity to carry on the government of the father, we told him the words of my lord. 25 And our father said, Go again, and buy us a little food. 26 And we said, We cannot go down: if our youngest brother be with us, then will we go down for we may not see the man's face, except our youngest brother be with us. 27 And thy servant my father said unto us, Ye know that my wife bare me two sons: 28 And the one went out from me, and I said, Surely he is torn in pieces; and I saw him not since: 29 And if ye take this also from me, and mischief befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. 30 Now therefore, when I come to thy servant my father, and the lad be not with us; (seeing that his life is bound up in the lad's life ;) 31 It shall come to pass, when he seeth that the lad is not with us, that he will die: and thy servants shall bring the gray hairs of thy servant our father with sorrow to the grave. 32 For thy servant became surety for the lad unto my father, saying, If I bring him not unto thee, then I shall bear the blame to my father for ever. 33 Now therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant abide instead of the lad a bond-man to my lord; and let the lad go up with his brethren. 34 For how shall I go up to my father, and the lad be not with me? lest peradventure I see the evil that shall come on my father. CHAPTER XLV. THEN Joseph could not refrain himself before all them that stood by him; and he cried, Cause every man to go out from me. And there stood no man with him while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren. 2 And he wept aloud: and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard. 3 And Joseph said unto his brethren, I am Joseph: doth my father yet live? And his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled at his presence. 4 And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. 5 Now therefore be not grieved nor angry with yourselves that ye sold me hither; for God did send me before you to preserve life. For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest. 7 And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. 8 So now, it was not you that sent me hither, but God and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. 9 Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt; come down unto me, tarry not: 10 And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children's chil dren, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast : 11 And there will I nourish thee, (for yet there are five years of famine,) lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast, come to poverty. 12 And, behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benja min, that it is my mouth that speaketh unto you. 18 And ye shall tell my father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that ye have seen; and ye shall haste and bring down my father hither. 14 And he fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck. 15 Moreover, he kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them: and after that his brethren talked with him. 16 And the fame thereof was heard in Pharaoh's house, saying, Joseph's brethren are come. And it pleased Pharaoh well, and his servants. 17 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Say unto thy brethren, This do ye; lade your beasts, and go, get you unto the land of Canaan; 18 And take your father, and your households, and come unto me and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the land. 19 Now thou art commanded, this do ye; Take you waggons out of the land of Egypt for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring your father, and come. 20 Also regard not your stuff: for the good of all the land of Egypt is yours. 21 And the children of Israel did so, and Joseph gave them waggons, according to the commandment of Pharaoh, and gave them provision for the way. 22 To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of raiment. 23 And to his father he sent after this manner: ten asses laden with the good things of Egypt, and ten she-asses laden with corn and bread and meat for his father by the way. 24 So he sent his brethren away, and they departed: and he said unto them, See that ye fall not out by the way. were in reality of the highest imworld, or bring his particular pur-portance to the whole human race; poses into effect, had he not an entire and immediate control over every species of agent and circumstance by which mankind are borne forward in their course. The enmity of Joseph's brethren, their attempt to destroy him, and his sale as a bondsman, were all apparently most insignificant occur rences, when considered in reference to the world at large; but they and had the sons of Judah, and not God, had the disposal of their issue, the scheme of salvation itself might have been hindered. It is only to those who cannot see its connection with other occurrences, forming the great chain of causes, that any event can appear too insignificant for the especial observance of the Almighty. - Ver. 10. See chaps. xlvi. 34; xlvii. 25And they went up out of Egypt, and came into the land of Canaan unto Jacob their father, 26 And told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive, and he is governor over all the land of Egypt. And Jacob's heart fainted, for he believed them not. 27 And they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said unto them: and when he saw the waggons, which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father revived. 28 And Israel said, It is enough; Joseph my son is yet alive: I will go and see him before I die. CHAPTER XLVI. A 2 And God spake unto Israet in the visions of the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am 1. 3 And he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I will there make of tlice a great nation. 41 will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon thine eyes. 5 And Jacob rose up from Beer-sheba: and the sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the waggons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. 6 And they took their cattle, and their goods, which they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob, and all bis seed with him: 7 His sons, and his sons' sons with him, his daughters, and his sons' daughters, and all his seed, brought he with him into Egypt. 8 And these are the names of the children of Israel which came into Egypt, Jacob and his sons: Reuben, Jacob's first-born. 9 And the sons of Reuben; Hanoch, and Phallu, and Hezron, and Carmi. 10 And the sons of Simeon; Jemuel, and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jachin, and Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanitish woman. 11 And the sons of Levi; Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 12 And the sons of Judah; Er, and Onan, and Shelah, and Pharez, and Zarah: but Er and Quan died in the land of Canaan. And the sous of Pharez were Hezron and Hamul. 13 And the sons of Issachar; Tala, and Phuvah, and Job, and Shimron. 14 And the sons of Zebulun; Sered, and Elon, and Jahleel. 15 These be the sons of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob in Padan-aram, with his daughter Dinah all the souls of his sons and his daughters were thirty and three. 16 And the sons of Gad; Ziphion, and Haggi, Shuni, and Ezbon, Eri, and Arodi, and Areli. 17 And the sons of Asher; Goshen was a well watered and pastoral district in the neighbourhood of Arabia and Palestine. Ver. 4. Shall put his hand upon thine eyes: that is, shall close thine eyes when thou art dying.-Ver. 27. Deut. x. 22; Acts, vii. 14. The threescore and six mentioned Jinnah, and Ishuah, and Isui, and Beriah, and Serah their sister. And the sons of Beriah; Heber, and Malchiel. 18 These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter; and these she bare unto Jacob, even sixteen souls. 19The sons of Rachel, Jacob's wife; Joseph, and Benjamin. 20 And unto Joseph, in the land of Egypt, were born Manasseh and Ephraim, which Asenath, the daughter of Poti-pherah, priest of On, bare unto him. 21 And the sons of Benjamin were Belah, and Becher, and Ashbel, Gera, and Naaman, Ehi, and Rosh, Muppim, and Huppim, and Ard. 22 These are the sons of Rachel, which were born to Jacob: all the souls were fourteen. 23 And the sons of Dan; Hushim. 24 And the sons of Naphtali; Jahzeel, and Guni, and Jezer, and Shillem. 25 These are the sons of Bilhah, which Laban gave unto Rachel his daughter; and she bare these unto Jacob: all the souls were seven. 26 All the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob's sons' wives, all the souls were threescore and six. 27 And the sons of Joseph, which were born him in Egypt, were two souls: all the souls of the house of Jacob, which came into Egypt, were threescore and ten. 28 And he sent Judah before him unto Joseph, to direct his face unto Goshen; and they came into the land of Goshen. 29 And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen, and presented himself unto him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while. 30 And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive. 31 And Joseph said unto his brethren, and unto his father's house, I will go up, and shew Pharaoh, and say unto him, My brethren, and my father's house, which were in the land of Canaan, are come unto me: 32 And the men are shepherds, for their trade hath been to feed cattle; and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have. 33 And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What is your occupation? 34 That ye shall say, Thy servants' trade hath been about cattle from our youth even until now, both we and also our fathers; that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen : for every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians. CHAPTER XLVII. THEN Joseph came and told Pharaoh, and said, My father, and my brethren, and their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have, are come out of the land of in the preceding verse did not include Jacob, Joseph, and the two sons of the latter, which are here added. In the Acts, as above cited, threescore and fifteen are named; and it is supposed that either the wives of some of the sons of Jacob, or other connections of the family. Canaan; and, behold, they are in the land of Goshen. 2 And he took some of his brethren, even five men, and presented them unto Pharaoh. 3 And Pharaoh said unto his brethren, What is your occupation? And they said unto Pharaoh, Thy servants are shepherds, both we, and also our fathers. 4 They said, moreover, unto Pharaoh, For to sojourn in the land are we come; for thy servants have no pasture for their flocks; for the famine is sore in the land of Canaan : now therefore, we pray thee, let thy servants dwell in the land of Goshen. 5 And Pharaoh spake unto Joseph, saying, Thy father and thy brethren are come unto thee: 6 The land of Egypt is before thee in the best of the land make thy father and brethren to dwell; in the land of Goshen let them dwell and if thou knowest any men of activity among them, then make them rulers over my cattle. 7 And Joseph brought in Jacob his father, and set him before Pharaoh : and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. S And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How old art thou? 9 And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my pilgriinage are an hundred and thirty years: few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage. 10 And Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from before Pharaoh. J1 And Joseph placed his father and his brethren, and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. 12 And Joseph nourished his father, and his brethren, and all his father's household, with bread, according to their families, 13 And there was no bread in all the land: for the famine was very sore, so that the land of Egypt, and all the land of Canaan, fainted by reason of the famine. 14 And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, for the corn which they bought and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house. 15 And when money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth. 16 And Joseph said, Give your cattle; and I will give you for your cattle, if money fail. 17 And they brought their cattle unto Joseph: and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for horses, and for the flocks, and for the cattle of the herds, and for the asses; and he fed them with bread for all their cattle for that year. 18 When that year was ended. they came unto him the second year, and said unto him, We will not enumerated in this calculation, are there alluded to. Ver. 9. Jacob lived seventeen years after this. His father Isaac died at the age of a hundred and fourscore years, and Abraham at that of a hundred and seventy-five. The life of Jarob was far less not hide it from my lord, how that our money is spent; my lord also hath our herds of cattle: there is not ought left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies and our lands: 19 Wherefore shall we die before thine eyes, both we and our land? buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants unto Pharaoh; and give us seed, that we may live, and not die, that the land be not desolate. 20 And Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for the Egyptians sold every man his field, because the famine prevailed over them: so the land became Pharaoh's. 21 And as for the people, he removed them to cities from one end of the borders of Egypt even to the other end thereof. 22 Only the land of the priests bought he not for the priests had a portion assigned them of Pharaoh, and did eat their portion which Pharaoh gave them; wherefore they sold not their lands. 23 Then Joseph said unto the people, Behold, I have bought you this day, and your land, for Pharaoh: lo, here is seed for you, and ye shall sow the land. 24 And it shall come to pass, in the increase, that ye shall give the fifth part unto Pharaoh; and four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, and for your food, and for them of your households, and for food for your little ones. 25 And they said, Thou hast saved our lives: let us find grace in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh's servants. 26 And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt unto this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth part; except the land of the priests only, which became not of Pharaoh's. 27 And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions therein, and grew, and multiplied exceedingly. 28 And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years: so the whole age of Jacob was an hundred forty and seven years. 29 And the time drew nigh that Israel must die: and he called his son Joseph, and said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and deal kindly uniformly happy than that of the former patriarchs.-Ver. 20. The precise object of Joseph's policy in this measure is matter of conjecture. That the people, however, would be brought thereby under the stricter rule of the monarch, is evident. and truly with me: bury me not, I 30 But I will lie with my fathers; 31 And he said, Swear unto me. And he sware unto him. And Israel bowed himself upon the bed's head. CHAPTER XLVIII. AND it came to pass after these 2 And one told Jacob, and said, 3 And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me, 4 And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession. 5 And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt, before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine: as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine. 6 And thy issue, which thou begettest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheritance. 7 And as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died by me in the land of Canaan in the way, when yet there was but a little way to come unto Ephrath: and I buried her there in the way of Ephrath; the same is Beth-lehem. 8 And Israel beheld Joseph's sons, and said, Who are these? 9 And Joseph said unto his father, They are my sons, whom God hath given me in this place. And he said, Bring them, I pray thee, unto me, and I will bless them. 10 (Now the eyes of Israel were dim for age, so that he could not see.) And he brought them near unto him; and he kissed them, and embraced them. 11 And Israel said unto Joseph, decline of feudalism, and the com- 12 And Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth. 13 And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel's left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel's right hand, and brought them near unto him. 14 And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh's head, guiding his hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the first-born. 15 And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, 16 The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth. 17 And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him and he held up his father's hand, to remove it from Ephraim's head unto Manasseh's head. 18 And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the first-born; put thy right hand upon his head." 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. 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. 21 And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die; but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers. 22 Moreover, I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow. CHAPTER XLIX. AND Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that the wealth and power of many. In respect to Jacob's giving his chief blessing to the younger, it may be observed, that he did so under the guidance of the Almighty, for Ephraim did in reality become much greater than Manasseh. This is, therefore, another instance of election; but as it was in the adoption. Through this it was number and wealth of his posterity that Ephraim and Manasseh be- that the glory of Ephraim was came numbered with the real sons chiefly seen, it was the election of of Jacob in the division of the a people rather than of an individual. Ver. 22. The portion family into twelve tribes.-Ver. 14. Wittingly: that is, intentionally, here mentioned was the district of for he knew Manasseh to be the Sychem, which Jacob bought of first-born, but purposed to give the the sons of Hamor, the father of Commentators have chief blessing to Ephraim.-Ver. Shechem. " 16. See chap. xxviii. 15; xxxi. 11. given very different expositions of Ver. 19. Num. i. 33-35; Deut. the passage; some supposing that xxxiii. 17; Rev. vii. 6-8. The he confirmed himself in the possesexpression, shall become a multi-sion of the district by force; others, tude of nations, is not to be under- that the sword and the bow" stood as meaning that his family was an expression made use of, as should multiply and branch into a in other languages, simply to indivariety of people, but that it should cate the wealth he had expended be numerous as a multitude of in the purchase. nations, and comprehend in itself Ver. 1. After these things: that is, after a certain interval of time. The ancient historical-Ver. 5. Are mine: that is, by traditions respecting Egypt, represent it as subject to frequent revolutions; and the design, most probably, which Joseph had in view, was to suppress the tendency to licentious freedom among the people, by thus strengthening the authority of the state. Whatever was his object, he was evidently one of the most skilful men of his age in the management of public affairs. The landholders were, it seems, before strictly independent occupiers of the soil. By making them the tenants of the sovereign, a change of the most important kind was introduced, and a system became established similar to that which prevailed in Europe at the 30 Ver. 1. There is great grandeur which shall befall you in the last da vs. Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father. 3 Reuben, thou art my first born, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power: 4 Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch. 5 Simeon and Levi are brethren; instruments of cruelty are in their habitations. 6 O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united! for in their anger they slew a man, and in their self-will they digged down a wall. 7 Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel. 8 Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father's children shall bow down before thee. 9 Judah is a lion's whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? 10 The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be 11 Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; be washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: 12 His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk. and solemnity in this account of Jacob's death. He blesses, exhorts, rebukes, and prophesies, and his words bring under one view those various elements of character which stamped the nation of Israel with its peculiar lineaments. His sons might see in his strong and severe delineations both the judgments and the glory which would attend their posterity. The spirit of prophecy connected their history with the fulfilment of God's eternal counsels; and in the obscure intimations then given of a deliverer unto whom the gathering of the people" should be, we now read, by the light of the gospel, the distinct promise of salvation by Christ, and the submission of the world to his power and government.-Ver. 4. Unstable as water: that is, unsettled and licentious in disposition, or unsettled because exposed, on account of his sin, to continual danger and calamity.Ver. 5. Chap. xxix. 33, 34; xxxiv. 25. Digged down a wall: metaphorically spoken of their violence, by which they ruined a whole city. -Ver. 7. The Simeonites received their portion of the promised land in the middle of the tribe of Judah. See Josh. xix. 1-9. The Levites were divided among the different tribes by their call to the priesthood.-Ver. 8. This prophecy was fulfilled, first by the election of David to rule over the nation, and then, and in a more eminent mauner, by the birth of the Messiah 27 Benjamin shall raven as a 14 Issachar is a strong ass wolf: in the morning he shall de couching down between two bur-vour the prey, and at night he shall dens : divide the spoil. 15 And he saw that rest was good, and the land that it was pleasant; and bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant unto tribute. 16 Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel. 17 Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall fall backward. 18 I have waited for thy salvation, O LORD. 19 Gad, a troop shall overcome him but he shall overcome at the last. 20 Out of Asher his bread shall be fat, and he shall yield royal dainties. 21 Naphtali is a hind let loose: he giveth goodly words. 22 Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well, whose branches run over the wall. 23 The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him: 24 But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob: (from thence is the Shepherd, the stone of Israel :) 25 Even by the God of thy father, who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lieth under, blessings of the breasts and of the womb: 26 The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills: they 28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them. 29 And he charged them, and said unto them, I am to be gathered unto my people: bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite; 30 In the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of Ephron the Hittite, for a possession of a burying-place. 31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife; and there I buried Leah. 32 The purchase of the field, and of the cave that is therein, was from the children of Heth. 33 And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto his people. CHAPTER L. AND Joseph fell upon his father's face, and wept upon him, and kissed him. 2 And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father: and the physicians einbalmed Israel. 3 And forty days were fulfilled for him; (for so are fulfilled the days of those which were embalmed :) and the Egyptians mourned. for him threescore and ten days. 4 And when the days of his mourning were past, Joseph spake allusion to the cunningness of the serpent in the following verse, is supposed to refer to the acts of the same distinguished Danite when opposing his enemies. - Ver. 19. Spoken, it seems, in reference to the warlike character of the tribe. of Gad. Ver. 20. The portion of land allotted to Asher was singu larly fruitful, and especially favourable to the cultivation of the vine and the olive.-Ver. 21. This is one of the most obscure sentences in the chapter. It most probably alludes to the ease and prosperity, and corresponding peacefulness of character, which distinguished this tribe. See Deut. xxxiii. 23.-Ver. 22. The dying patriarch here refers both to the history of Joseph himself, and to the events which would take place among his posterity. Ver. 24. The shepherd, the stone of Israel: this either refers to Joseph himself, by whose care the chosen family was preserved, or to the tribe at large, from which sprung many of the most illustrious of the prophets and teachers of the nation.-Ver. 27. This is spoken in allusion to the bold and warlike character of the tribe of Benjamin, an instance of which is recorded in Judges, xx. 21-25.- Ver. 30. Chap. xxiii. 3. from the same line.- Ver. 10. The sovereign power remained in the tribe of Judah till the coming of Christ-the Shiloh, or one to be sent, as the word signifies. It was this tribe, with that of Benjamin only, which returned from the Babylonish captivity; and though the government ceased to be administered by kings, the sceptre, the sovereign and the legislative power, was continued to it till the time of our Saviour, when Herod the Great obtained supreme authority, but at his death left the nation to be ruled by Roman governors. Thus was this prophecy of Jacob fulfilled in the most remarkable manner, and a striking illustration given of the truth, that known unto God are all things from the beginning. Ver. 11. This seems to be spoken in allusion to the riches which Judah should enjoy through the fertility of the land of promise. - Ver. 13. The tribe of Zebulun had its allotment on the coast of the Mediterranean, and near the Sea of Galilee.-Ver. 14. The children of Issachar were an agricultural people: hence the allusion to their labour and their payment of tribute. By the position of their territory they had the Phoenicians on one side of them, and the Samaritans on another. Ver. 3. Seventy days is the period These were probably the two bur-mentioned by the Grecian historian Herodotus as the time employed by dens mentioned by Jacob.-Ver. 16. Samson was of the tribe of Dan, the Egyptians in embalming bodies. and "he judged Israel twenty It appears here that in the primiyears;" see Judges, xvi. 31. The tive ages forty days were spent in 81 |