/T.^S^WJ". 
 
 
 PRINCETON, N, J. 
 
 % 
 
 5/4f^. 
 
 Diviiion X^^Z) 
 Section .^.\.\ 
 Number 
 
Hcnr, D,. Mor 
 
 -J) 
 
 Practical Reflections 
 
 C/PON EVERY VERSE OF THE 
 
 BOOK OF GENESIS 
 
 Wi'\t\ a Preface 
 By the Rt. Rev. EDWARD KING, D.D. 
 
 LORD BISHOP OF LINCOLN 
 
 LONDON 
 LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. 
 
 AND NEW YORK : 15 EAST i6th STREET 
 1892 
 
 \,All rights reserved] 
 
'/« Libris Sanctis intueri oportet guee ibi aterna intimentur, quer facta nar- 
 rentur, quep futura pranuntientur, guie agenda pmcipiantur vel moneantur. 
 — S. Aug. Dc Genesi ad Litterant, Lib. 1. c. i. 
 
 ' Cum Divinos Libras legimus, in tanta multitudine verorutn intellectuum qui 
 de paucis x<erbis eruuntur et sanitate Catholica- Jidei tiiuniuntur, id potissimum 
 deligainus quod certtun apparuerit euni sensisse quern leginius : si autem hoc latet, 
 id certe quod circumstantia ScripturtE non itiipcdii et cutn sana Jide concordat : si 
 autcin et Scrif<turce circumstantia pertractari et discuti non potest, saltern id 
 solum quod Jides sana pmscribit.' — S. Aug. De Genesi ad Litteram, Lib. L c. 2i. 
 
 ' Une critique sqavante et cxacte de la lettre de t Ecriture a ton usage dans les 
 occasions — »tais il est utile et n^cessaire en tout temps, en tous lieux, et a toutes 
 sortes de perscnncs den etudier et den conncitre r esprit, la piet^, et les mys teres.' — 
 QuESNEL 0)1 1st Cor. xiv. 5. 
 
THESE 
 
 REFLECTIONS UPON THE BOOK OF GENESIS 
 
 are dedicated by the author to 
 
 Dr. LIDDON'S dear and sacred memory 
 
 with the gratitude of 
 
 earlier and of latter days 
 
Preface 
 
 It would seem to the writer of this preface to be enough 
 to say that the author of these ' Reflections on the Book 
 of Genesis ' is the same as the author of those similar 
 works on the Psalms and the New Testament, to which Dr. 
 Liddon gave in each case his imprimatur. To those who 
 had the rare and responsible delight of Dr. Liddon's friend- 
 ship, or who knew his writings, that former approval of his 
 would surely be sufificient. But as this book may come into 
 the hands of some who have not yet seen the other ' Prac- 
 tical Reflections,' it may be well to mention shortly some 
 of the chief characteristics of the present volume. 
 
 Those who take up the book with a view to obtaining 
 specific information on the discoveries made or the theories 
 suggested by modern criticism will be disappointed. The 
 author puts all such alluring questions aside with a firm 
 hand. Not that he would wish to disparage knowledge of 
 any kind, or fear the conclusions to which the right use ot 
 man's reason might lead him. He would glatlly and grate- 
 fully acknowledge the many benefits gained for the study 
 of the Scriptures by the labours of scholars and historians, 
 
viii Preface 
 
 and of those who have searched into the religions of other 
 nations and ages. At the same time he would, we appre- 
 hend, desire to remind us that all such studies should be 
 subordinate to the real object for which the Holy Scrip- 
 tures should be read ; and to recall to our mind those brave 
 and lofty words of Bishop Butler, ' Revelation indeed con- 
 siders the common affairs of this world, and what is going 
 on in it, as a mere scene of distraction, and cannot be 
 supposed to concern itself with foretelling at what time 
 Rome, or Babylon, or Greece, or any particular place, 
 should be the most conspicuous seat of that tyranny 
 and dissoluteness which all places equally aspire to be ; 
 cannot, I say, be supposed to give any account of this wild 
 scene for its own sake.'^ Lofty words which may have 
 influenced the mind of the keen though gentle author of 
 The Christian Year when he wrote — 
 
 ' The giant forms of empires on their way 
 To ruin : one by one 
 They tower and they are gone.'- 
 
 Indeed, when we think of some of the theories which have 
 been suggested of late years with regard to the Old Testa- 
 ment history, we cannot refrain from quoting Bishop Butler's 
 words once more : ' It is to be added, that the most 
 
 1 Butler's Analogy, Part li. ch. vii. § 30, p. 260, Oxford Edition, 1849. 
 
 2 The Christian Year — Second Sunday after Easter. 
 
Preface ix 
 
 obvious, the most easy and direct account of this history, 
 how it came to be written and to be received in the world 
 as a true history, is that // really is so.''^ 
 
 If we turn to the more positive characteristics of these 
 'Reflections,' we might take S. Luke xxiv. 45 and 27, as 
 our guide : ' Then opened He their understanding, that 
 they might understand the Scriptures,' ' And beginning at 
 Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in 
 all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.' 
 
 These passages imply the need of supernatural assistance 
 to understand the Scriptures rightly. ' He opened their 
 understanding.' ' No man can say that Jesus is the Lord, 
 but by the Holy Ghost.' ^ And they show that the Saviour's 
 own way of expounding the Old Testament was to point out 
 in it ' the things concerning Himself.' This was the way in 
 which ' those wonderful interpreters of Holy Scripture, the 
 ancient Fathers and teachers of the Church,' ^ explained it. 
 This was S. Augustine's principle of interpretation : ' The 
 New Testament lies enfolded in the Old, the Old Testa- 
 ment is unfolded in the New.' 
 
 It was in this spirit that my saintly and learned prede- 
 cessor in this See commenced and carried through his won- 
 derful undertaking of commenting on the whole Bible. 
 Whatever may be thought of the exegetical merits of that 
 
 1 Analogy, Part ir. ch. vii. § 5, p. 239. - i Cor. xii. 3. 
 
 ' Milman's Love of the Ato7iement, Preface, p. iii. 
 
X Preface 
 
 work in relation to the difficulties of particular texts, the 
 value of the spirit of the interpretation, and of the general 
 effect of the teaching in the Prolegomena to the several 
 Books, read together, is beyond words ; as maintaining 
 the cardinal truth ' that both Testaments are from one and 
 the same Divine Hand, and form one harmonious whole." 
 A precious truth, indeed, which I am thankful to find thus 
 recognised by a learned writer of the modern school. ' No 
 other literature,' says Professor Kirkpatrick, ' is linked into 
 one whole like this, instinct with one spirit and purpose.'^ 
 ' For what is the Old Testament from the Christian point 
 of view — and from no other point of view can it be 
 rightly understood — but the record of God's gradual re- 
 velation of Himself to Israel, in His purpose of re- 
 deeming love, with a view to the establishment of His 
 universal kingdom? The Incarnation was to be the 
 culminating point of that revelation and that purpose.'^ 
 That the above expresses the mind and purpose of the 
 writer of these ' Reflections ' we may certainly gather 
 from his own words on Gen. xxvi. 32: * In traversing 
 Genesis I move amidst deep wells and springs of truth, 
 many of them half choked up by men's ignorance or rash 
 conjectures. Be it given to me to reverently open up the 
 old truths, find Christ hidden under figures, draw lessons 
 
 1 Bishop Chr. Wordsworth, Genesis and Exodus, Preface, p. v. 
 
 - The Divine Library of the Old Testament, p. 92. ' P. 93. 
 
Preface xi 
 
 and comforts from the old histories. In this world's dry, 
 thirsty journey how welcome to us is Holy Scripture with 
 its openings into thoughts of comfort I'^ 
 
 It is obvious that in attempting to draw out the spiritual 
 and figurative teaching of the Old Testament some explan- 
 ations may seem forcible to one mind which to another 
 will appear weak or fanciful. But this does not to any 
 serious extent detract from the merits of this present 
 volume, which is pervaded throughout by a sound and 
 sober spirit. 
 
 The writer purposes rather to select from approved sources 
 than to offer anything of his own ; but so far as his mental 
 bias appears, it is in the direction of Bishop Butler, Dr. 
 Mozley, and Dr. Mansel, giving a marked place, among 
 the things which we should take into account in our search 
 for Truth, to human ignorance. His theological teaching 
 is heartily loyal to the Church of England, and might be 
 characterised as Augustinian : showing a great practical 
 knowledge of the moral difficulties of our present life, 
 and the consequent need of supernatural grace; with an 
 especial sympathy for the dangers of the young. The 
 references to the Holy Eucharist, as the Divinely appointed 
 channel of grace, and as the Memorial of the One Sacri- 
 fice of Calvary, are such as might be expected from his 
 Patristic point of view. It is to be hoped that this volume 
 1 P. 147. 
 
xii Preface 
 
 may induce some persons, especially among the young, 
 to make the Bible again what it was to so many in former 
 times, their daily companion and guide. We feel convinced 
 that a more careful study of the Holy Scriptures as the 
 revealed method of educating man would be richly 
 rewarded. 
 
 In Africa, and other parts of the heathen world, where 
 man is still found in a confessedly rudimentary condition, 
 its value under this aspect is being more and more felt ; 
 and the same would apply to us at home. The book of 
 Leviticus, as well as the Sermon on the Mount, has still 
 a practical value in perfecting the moral life of Africa, and 
 England too. 
 
 Perhaps, also, we may learn a practical lesson from one 
 of the results of recent" criticism. The 'composite' char- 
 acter, as it is called, of many of the books of the Bible 
 might suggest to us to confine our reading (at least, for 
 certain periods) to definite portions of the Great Book ; as, 
 for example, the ' Code of holiness,' Leviticus xvii.-xxvi., 
 following on the directions for the great day of Atonement ; 
 or one group of the Psalms, such as the Gradual Psalms ; 
 or the chapters collected together in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and 
 Ezekiel, bearing on the heathen nations ; or the Sermon 
 on the Mount ; or the Epistles to the Seven Churches of 
 Asia. Such portions may be definitely studied for a con 
 
Preface xiii 
 
 siderable time, with untold advantage, if they are studied 
 with prayer for Divine assistance, and with due reference 
 to the three Commentaries which are within the reach of 
 most of us : — 
 
 1. The Commentary of the Book itself; comparing 
 
 Scripture with Scripture ; 
 
 2. The Commentary of the Creeds, as the exposition of 
 
 fundamental doctrine ; 
 
 3. The ever freshly edited Commentary of our own 
 
 experience. 
 
 One lesson of great importance in these days, when 
 the power of worldliness seems to be on the increase, the 
 author of these Reflections continues to teach us : he con- 
 ceals his name. Those of us who enjoy the fruit of his 
 labour should not forget to remember him in our prayers ; 
 that he may be blessed in himself, and be made through 
 his works a blessing to others. Perhaps the reward which 
 he would desire as much as any would be, that the question 
 of the Psalmist might be raised in many a youthful heart, 
 and answered as the Psalmist answers it : — 
 
 ' Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way ? 
 
 Even by ruling himself after Thy Word ! ' 
 
 E. LINCOLN. 
 Old Palace, Lincoln, 
 Ascensiontide 1892. 
 
PRACTICAL REFLECTIONS ON 
 GENESIS 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 1. The creation of heaven and earth, 3. of the light, 6. of the firmament, 
 g. of the earth separated from the waters, 11. and made fruitful, 
 14. of the sun, moon, and stars, 20. of fish and fowl, 24. of beasts 
 and cattle, 26. of man in the image of God. 29. Also the appoint- 
 ment of food. 
 
 I 
 
 N the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 
 
 God, Who is in Himself perfectly happy and blessed, slept forth 
 from His eternal rest, and called into being this universe ; and 
 this out of His goodness, not that He needed creatures, but that 
 He desired to impart life and happiness. Here I am amidst great 
 depths, great mysteries. Who God is I only dimly apprehend. 
 What is meant by the act of Creation I know not — how should I 
 conceive the passage from nothing into being? In what far-distant 
 ages was this ' beginning ' I cannot reckon ; but I am deeply 
 persuaded that I move in the presence of a Divine Power, upon 
 Whom I entirely depend, and into Whose great plans my feeble 
 existence comes. Let me steady myself amidst this world's changes 
 by recalling Whose I am, Who made and sustains me. 
 
 2. And the earth was without form, and void ; and dark- 
 ness tvas upon the face of the deep : and the Spirit of God 
 moved upon the face of the xvaters. 
 
 O dark, gloomy, and desolate world — no creatures swam in that sea 
 
 or breathed in that darkness. All was a prey to great elementary 
 
 forces that contended there, and created life as yet was not. But 
 
 God's Spirit brooded over that deep and began to bring light, life, 
 
 A 
 
Hail, Holy Lighl / [Gen. I. 
 
 and order from it. In this ancient condition of our globe, ravaged 
 by storms, overhung by gloom, destitute of all life, I see a picture 
 of the sinner's heart all darkened and convulsed by evil passions ; 
 and that same Spirit Who moved upon Chaos can bring into peace 
 all that is so amiss in the moral world. He is the Giver of life to 
 each soul, as He was to the whole globe. Whence life comes, how 
 it comes, I cannot fully trace ; but God is its Author and Giver. 
 
 3. And God said, Let there be light : and there was light. 
 
 Here is the first and most beautiful of God's works. By it we discern 
 all the rest. All colours, all beauties depend upon it ; it is a living 
 image of His own perfections. Yet natural light is but a figure of 
 that inward light of Truth which illuminates the heart's darkness 
 and reveals Christ's glorious Face, full of radiance. O God, all is 
 light before Thee. I cannot hide any corner of my life or character 
 from Thy sight. Let me so live that I may not be confounded at 
 the Judgment Day, when all my doings will be clearly manifested. 
 That will be a dread light, after the long confusion of this dark 
 world. 
 
 4. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God 
 divided the light from the darkness. 5. And God called the 
 light Day, and the darkness He called Night. And the evening 
 and the mornhig ivere the first day. 
 
 The division of light from darkness in the natural world was God's 
 work. So it is m the world of grace. He illumines one heart, one 
 nation, one age, and lets darkness overwhelm another ; nor can I 
 wholly tell the reasons of His dispensations ; but I know this, that 
 He bids me strive after light and live in the light. This first day, 
 on which light was made, received greater glory under the Gospel, 
 when upon it Jesus rose to life, and again when upon that day the 
 Spirit brought His new light of grace. Let me honour that good 
 day by praise and rest ; it should be to me a token and foretaste of 
 heaven, where all will be light. 
 
 6. And God said. Let there be a firmament in the midst of 
 the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 
 
 This is our air or atmosphere which surrounds the globe, and by a 
 constant circulation draws up, holds, and dispenses moisture to the 
 earth. Thus alone our globe becomes habitable for living creatures 
 — thus are tempered the fierce extremes of heat and cold which 
 would otherwise forbid created life. My eyes, indeed, reach up- 
 ward to the stars and discern not this soft invisible curtain of air 
 which God has disposctl between, but I feel its benefits every 
 moment. So may my spirit draw breath and life from God as my 
 bodily frame does from the literal air. 
 
Ver. II.] Heaven, Earth, and Seas appear 3 
 
 7. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters 
 which tvere under the firmament from the waters which were 
 above the firmament: and it was so. 8. And God called the 
 firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were 
 the second day. 
 
 Augustine compares Scripture to this firmament. He says God has 
 set it to overshadow all our life. It contains refreshing and necessary 
 truths for all. All men may look up and learn from it to live a 
 heavenly life. In it God has set His bright lights or examples and 
 words of grace. There are indeed 'waters above the firmament,' 
 ranks of heavenly beings who need no Scripture, but behold God's 
 Truth directly, are set near to His throne ; but we all who are on 
 earth look up with gratitude to His revealed word and discern His 
 mercy and goodness there. This second day is memorable to me 
 by the creation of the firmament or atmosphere. I begin to recog- 
 nise a gradual progress in God's works, and I learn to await their 
 ssue in patience. 
 
 9. And God said, Let the ivaters under the heaven be 
 gathered together tinto one ])lace, and let the dry land appear: 
 and it tvas so. 10. And God called the dry land Earth ; and 
 the gathering together of the icaters called He seas : and God 
 saw that it tvas good. 
 
 Here is man's dwelling-place emerging above the waters. God be- 
 gan in ages long past to prepare the earth for our abode ; it was not 
 yet that beautiful earth which we know now, adorned with varied 
 colours, rich in innumerable creatures. No, all was as yet barren 
 and lifeless, but earth and sea were preparing to receive and cherish 
 created life. When I think of the primitive rocks emerging from 
 the floods, I am reminded of the stormy tide of human affairs and 
 of a true Christian character rising firmly and securely above them. 
 Yet this soil too, O Lord, cannot receive good seed and produce 
 fruit unless of Thy gift. 
 
 II. And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb 
 yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, 
 luhose seed is in itself , upon the earth : and it was so. 
 
 Here is the marvellous gift of life : whence could it come except 
 from God ? He alone is the mysterious source of it. Vegetable 
 life began, how I know not, and developed into the beauty, the 
 delicacy, the variety of the plants and lierbs which I see around 
 me. I marvel at the effect of their combined colours, much more 
 at those which I examine closely. I see that each plant preserves 
 its own nature, has its own dwelling-place and nourishment, repro- 
 
4 Marks to measure Time [Gen. I 
 
 duces its kind. Words fail me to express the wonders which each 
 flower and each herb can disclose. I remember my Master's words 
 when he said the flowers were more admirable than ' Solomon in 
 all his glory.' 
 
 12. And the earth brought furth grass, and herb yielding 
 seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, luhose seed loas 
 in itself, after his kind : and God saiu that it ivas good. 
 13. Aiid the evening and the morning were the third day. 
 
 Then all these plants which God made in infinite variety and beauty 
 have power to reproduce themselves. He who made them at first 
 gave them the gift of continuance. We too in our brief life 
 
 ' Scatter seeds with careless hand, 
 
 And deem we ne'er shall see them more ; 
 But for a thousand years 
 Their fruit appears ' 
 
 in good or bad results. May I be firmly rooted in grace, nourished 
 by heavenly dews, ready to bring forth good fruit in acknowledg- 
 ment of all the mercies that the Giver of all good has showered 
 upon me. He stores the earth richly with what I should need, so 
 may I lay up in the children's minds some seeds of faith, reverence, 
 and duty, to spring up in their after life. 
 
 14. And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of 
 the heaven to divide the day from the night ; and let them be 
 for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: 15. and 
 let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give 
 light tipon the earth : and it ivas so. 
 
 In this stage of Creation the heavenly bodies appear. Occupations 
 and pursuits of all creatures on earth are measured and arranged 
 according to the times marked by the revolution of the heavens. 
 Will not redeemed mankind so order their hours as to find due time 
 and fitting place for intercourse with God ? For this end seasons, 
 days, and years were appointed, not only for the afi'airs of earth. 
 
 ' Thus nature, saved from disarray, 
 Is free to wait on grace." 
 
 But a whole flood of thoughts come into my mind when I consider 
 how many devout souls have been stirred to prayer by considering 
 the sun ' coming forth as a bridegroom out of his chamber,' or 'the 
 moon and the stars which God has ordained.' I should like to 
 join my meditations to theirs. I behold in this mighty, marvellous, 
 infinitely bountiful sun a figure of my Saviour's dignity and mercy ; 
 in the moon I see figured the light of Holy Scripture which, 
 though not perfectly clear, yet consoles and guides us in our dark- 
 ness ; stars remind nic of those noble souls who * turn many to 
 riijhteousness ' and ' shine as the stars for ever and ever.' 
 
Ver. 20.] The Starry Host 
 
 16. And God made two great lights ; the greater light to 
 rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night : He made 
 the stars also. 
 
 ' The Royal Sun begins his state,' and all other light is swallowed up ; 
 again night comes and the moon lights up the face of heaven ; 
 then, when she withdraws, innumerable stars come out over the 
 sky : their brilliancy is the same as when the \/orld was made, 
 their number uncountable, the source of their light beyond my 
 reach. I am confounded when I try to reckon their size or their 
 distance. The day concealed these marvels from me, but the 
 darkness discloses them. So, O Lord, Thou- hast stored in dark 
 hours new sources of light, new comforts of grace which I missed 
 in the gaudy day. 
 
 17. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to 
 give light U2wn the earth. 
 
 I cannot count the stars, but they are known to their Creator ; He 
 made and set them on high. So each soul is known to Him, He 
 marks them all— none of their good deeds, their prayers, their 
 victories are lost. I discern some rays from such as God has set 
 in my firmament, within my reach. They are a guide and help to 
 me, but how great will be the splendour of that happy region 
 where all goodness will be seen and known ? 
 
 18. And to rule over the day and over the night, and to 
 divide the light from the dai'hness : and God saw that it was 
 good. 19. Aiid the evening and the morning ivere the fourth 
 day. 
 
 We are children of the light and of the day ; let us not fall back into 
 despairing thoughts or ways of evil. The literal sun may cease to 
 shine, the moon be darkened, but God's eternal promises remain. 
 Nothing can obscure them. He has set us, for our short earthly 
 course, amidst this temporal world, where all things pass swiftly, 
 and we with them, but He designs us to adorn His eternal home. 
 When lights of earth are extinguished, I will the more firmly cling 
 to God, Who is the undying Source of light. 
 
 20. And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly 
 the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly 
 above the earth in the 02:>en firmament of heaven. 
 
 Here is a new world of life, infinitely varied, far different from the 
 life of plants or of stars, for the waters have begun to swarm with 
 every variety of fish and reptiles, and the air is full of birds. I am 
 amazed when I study either of these two spheres of being. Who 
 has taught, O Lord, to fish their swift graceful movements, their 
 periodical returns to land or depths of ocean, their precautions 
 
6 Go(rs Blessifig on Creatures [Gen. I. 
 
 against enemies, the way to provide for themselves? Who has 
 shown the birds how to dart through the air, to sing, to build each 
 kind their own nests, to hatch their young, to move from land to 
 land as the seasons change ? When wise men survey the mysteries 
 of the world of life, even in these its humbler specimens, they are 
 filled with delight and wonder at the spectacle. Here are the 
 innumerable nations of sea and air, in ordered ranks, in settled 
 habits, unerringly obeying instincts which have sway over millions 
 at once. Such a sight gives me lofty thoughts of creative wisdom. 
 
 2 1. And God created great whales, and every living creature 
 that moveth, which the waters hrotight forth abundantly, after 
 their hind, and every winged fowl after his hind : and God 
 saio that it was good. 
 
 Good indeed, and marvellous, nor has man's eye yet scrutinised all its 
 marvels. Till the end of time there will always be fresh subjects 
 for study and for admiration in the living things which God has made 
 in such rich variety. When I observe that some of these creatures 
 are confined to the sea or to the shore, while others rise up and 
 move heavenwards in swift flight, I am reminded of the difference 
 in human beings. Some are wholly of this earth, they have no 
 thoughts beyond ; others are uplifted by wings of faith and love, 
 seek their God, live for unselfish ends. May I experience God's 
 grace within, triumphing over my earthly tendencies and raising me 
 in heavenward flight. 
 
 2 2. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multi- 
 ply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in 
 the earth. 23. And the evening and the morning were the 
 fifth day. 
 
 God addressed these creatures who possessed conscious life, though 
 not able to recognise their Maker. He promised by this blessing 
 to perpetuate the creatures which He had made, to provide for 
 them, to endow them with so great fertility that they should not 
 be extirpated by all their enemies. In this verse I behold Divine 
 Providence providing and maintaining those astonishing balances 
 and compensations whereby one kind of creature influences an- 
 other, and all alike contribute towards the general well-being of 
 the world. In that fifth day I see a great stage is passed in the 
 upward movement of all things towards perfection. 
 
 24. And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living 
 creature after his hind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of 
 the earth after his hind: and it toas so. 
 
 An attentive mind beholds here God in His wisdom and mercy be- 
 stowing wonderful gifts on the animal creation. Some are destined 
 
Ver. 26.] Alan made in God^s Likeness 7 
 
 for man's use ; they are his willing, laborious servants, or supply 
 him with food or clothing, or at least wait on his footsteps with 
 dutiful affection. Some again live a wild, independent life ; their 
 habits and needs are less known to us. Some are fierce and terrible 
 to man. Still, in all alike, great and infinitely small, as far as my 
 feeble senses can reach, I behold a wealth of wisdom displayed, I 
 see each rank of being depending on another, I see contrivances 
 and adaptations beyond words to express. My feeling is, ' Lord, 
 how manifold are Thy works ; in wisdom hast Thou made them 
 all ; the earth is full of Thy riches. ' 
 
 25. Amd God made the beast of the earth after his kind, 
 and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth %ipon 
 the earth after his kind : and God saio that it ivas good. 
 
 The world of animals is only known to me by its exterior. I can 
 only guess by imperfect indications what passes within. The 
 animals move around me, depend on me, and I on them ; yet I 
 cannot understand their language or their destiny, or God's full 
 purpose in making them. They seem so near, yet far from me. 
 Such thoughts make me more inclined to await patiently the un- 
 folding of God's providences over myself. It is but little I can 
 discern of His marvellous order in nature, and even that perplexes 
 as well as enlightens me. So much the more readily let me turn 
 inward and address myself to the due ordering of my own little 
 world of mind and heart : there too all is good in God's intention 
 and in the view of Redeeming Grace, but I have spoilt what He 
 has made and remade. 
 
 26. And God said. Let Us make man in Our Lmage, after 
 Our Likeness : and let them have dominion over the fish of the 
 sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over 
 all the earth, and over every creephig thing that creepeth upon 
 the earth. 
 
 Now that all things are ready, now tliat man's dwelling-place is pre- 
 pared and furnished, God brings him upon the scene at last. Here 
 is a master for the world ; one who can interpret its nreaning, act 
 as its priest : he is indeed a weak and dependent creature, in need 
 of all the rest, but still having in him something which they have 
 not. God appears to deliberate, to take counsel before He forms 
 this His last and noblest creature, and He forms him after His 
 own Image. God, Who is invisible, has sent man to be His viceroy 
 over the world of sense, and represent to the other creatures some- 
 thing of His own goodness, wisdom, and power. Indeed ' we see 
 not yet all things put under him.' Man has lost his glory, but I 
 know of one Perfect Man Who has undertaken to restore mankind 
 to their due place, and that by humbling Himself to the lowest 
 place and pains. 
 
8 Mans first created Glory [Gen. II. 
 
 27. So God created man in His own Image, in the Irnage 
 of God created He him; male and female created He them. 
 
 In what consists this Image of God ? and do I and my brethren 
 retain any trace of it, amidst our follies, corruptions, and miseries? 
 Indeed my soul is free, it can choose or reject as it wills ; it has 
 an ineradicable admiration for goodness ; it longs for what is 
 eternal and groans under the weight of corruption. Thoughts of 
 compassion, of prayer, of self-sacrifice, are relics of God's Image 
 in me. I am indeed assailed by impulses that drag me down to 
 the level of beasts, but God when He created me set in my nature 
 a spark of heavenly fire. His Spirit has kindled this again when 
 it was almost extinguished. His Son has traced afresh fhc Divine 
 Pattern which was almost blotted out. 
 
 28. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be 
 fniitful, and multiply, and re2)lenish the earth, and subdue it : 
 and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over thefoivl of 
 the air, and over every living thing that moveth tqjon the 
 earth. 
 
 Man has to subdue the earth — this is his work, his battle. But he 
 has first to bring himself again into subjection to the Divine Law 
 whence he has fallen ; thus only will he be able to rule over the 
 world without. God's blessing is given in this verse to married 
 life. He has so ordered that a great part of our life is passed in 
 infancy and childhood, imder our parents' control, depending on 
 them, and we in our turn exercise the same function towards the 
 next generation. For great ends did God put dear children in our 
 care, trust their being, their growth, their instruction, to us. They 
 are God's heirs whom He lends to us to cherish. God's purpose 
 for man is not that he should lead a slothful life, but should apply 
 his energy to setting the world in order and preparing a home for 
 himself and his posterity. 
 
 29. And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb 
 bearing seed, ivhich is xipon the face of all the earth, and every 
 tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you 
 it shall be for meat. 30. And to every beast of the earth, and 
 to every foivl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon 
 the earth, ivherein there is life, I have given every green herb 
 for meat : and it was so. 
 
 God has filled the world with riches and beauty, and this is for our 
 service. The commencement of life He has wrapt in mystery, has 
 reserved to Himself, but we see its bountiful increase, we see the 
 immortality of the race continued from age to age, though each 
 individual perishes. Dear Lord, hast not Thou for Thy servants 
 
Ver. I.] God's Work in Creation, Good 9 
 
 something better than this ? Thou art the God of each soul, and 
 it can establish an undying communion with Thee. Thou hast 
 settled man as lord over the visible world, with power to use the 
 creatures for his food or service, but he himself is something 
 different from them, more precious than they; he appeals to Thy 
 eternity, and not in vain. 
 
 31. And God saw everything that He had made, and behold, 
 it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the 
 sixth day. 
 
 Attend to God's works and you will admire them. God himself 
 took pleasure in His fair creation, and we certainly may do the 
 same. Here is a notice of the great universe now complete — it 
 contains a wealth of beauty — it is a subject worthy of delight ; we 
 may indeed say with the Psalmist, * The works of the Lord are 
 great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein.' Human 
 works are roughly adjusted, coarsely finished, but God's works in 
 nature are of an extreme delicacy, an excellence beyond our 
 imitation. There are still in them depths undiscovered which 
 future generations will find out and admire. Just as I see in the 
 new world of grace, in the Passion of Christ, in the gifts of the 
 Spirit, a wealth of marvels, wisely and beautifully wrought, so I 
 feel in considering Creation ; both come from one Author and 
 unite to declare His perfections to us. 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 I. The first sabbath. 4. The manner of the creation. 8. The planting 
 of the garden of Eden, 10. and the river thereof. 17. The tree of 
 knowledge only forbidden, ig, 20. The naming of the creatures. 
 21. The making of woman, and institution of marriage. 
 
 THUS the heavens and the earth ivere finished, and all the 
 host of them. 
 
 Then and thus was the great world set in order and perfected ; by a 
 gradual growth to perfection through long periods of time, and 
 at the bidding of a mighty disposing Intelligence, and in tender 
 provident mercy, and as preparing a dwelling for rational creatures, 
 who should in God's Image rule and cultivate His fair world. 
 Thus, O Lord, and no otherwise — and if I cannot in my feeble 
 intelligence trace every detail of the work, yet I am sure that it 
 was well and wisely wrought, I learn to put confidence in Thy 
 power and goodness. 
 
lo God's glorious Rest [Gen. II. 
 
 2. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He 
 had made ; and He rested on the seventh day from all His 
 work which He had made. 
 
 Yet our Lord says, ' My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.' Yes, 
 though God rested from creating, He never ceased to govern, to 
 guide, to quicken the world He made. Were He to withdraw 
 His hand it would return to nothingness again. When I am told 
 that God 'rested,' does that mean that He created no longer but 
 lei the world continue in that path which He had set for it ? Shall 
 I understand that the world's birthday was over and the time of 
 common, ordinary life had begun ? Am I taught here that the 
 great forces which had been employed to produce the world we 
 know subsided into the beneficent activity of God's daily working? 
 Let me at least draw a homely lesson for myself. Why should I 
 be ashamed of work ? My God Himself set His hand to create. 
 He worked at preparing my dwelling-place, and my existence — 
 then afterwards He rested. So may I too work here and rest in 
 eternity. 
 
 3. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: 
 because that in it He had rested from all His work which God 
 created and made. 
 
 This first Sabbath, the sanctification of the seventh day, its being 
 made a day of rest for mankind, a memorial of creation to all 
 ages, reminds me of another Sabbath when Jesus Christ rested in 
 the grave. He too had done His work and rested from it. He 
 had wrought out our Redemption in His working-day of labour 
 and pain. Then He entered into the unseen world to apply to us 
 the fruits of His work. The Church of Christ, filled with the 
 thoughts of her Lord's triumph, transferred the day of rest and 
 worship from the seventh to the first day of the week. This is a 
 good day, a day on which the weary earth has breathing-time ; 
 let me always reverence it and maintain its liberty for my hard- 
 worked brethren. God has given it me that my soul may find 
 leisure to remember His good works in nature and in grace. I 
 myself and all that I enjoy have been made by His power and 
 love ; but in the Holy Gospel and the gifts of the Spirit I recog- 
 nise another and greater work, deserving of more thanks and 
 praise than I can pay. 
 
 4. These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth 
 ivhen they xvere created, in the day that the Lord God made 
 the earth and the heavens, 
 
 Here begins a new paragraph of the Creation history — we are 
 coming now to the fortunes of man — we view the earth as man's 
 dwelling-place, man's trial scene; other orders of creatures pass 
 
PRACTICAL REFLECTIONS UPON EVERY 
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BY THE SAME AUTHOR. 
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 Vol. I. — The Holy Gospels. 45. 6d. 
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 PRACTICAL REFLECTIONS ON EVERY 
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Ver. 9.] The original State of Man 
 
 out of sight. What their trial, their destiny is, we know not ; 
 but God has given man a probation, a law of progress. This we 
 are about to trace. Further, we notice in the verse a new name 
 of God. He is called the Lord God, not only an unseen Almighty 
 Power, but Jehovah, the Eternal Ever-living One, Who enters into 
 covenant with His servants, and is the same from age to age— they 
 know that Pie is true. 
 
 5. And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, 
 and every herb of the field before it grew : for the Lord God 
 had not caused it to rain upo7i the earth, and there was not a 
 man to till the ground. 6. Biit there went up a mist from 
 the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. 
 
 What we call the order of nature, the periodical course of the 
 seasons, year by year, which we are familiar with, had once no 
 existence. It fills our senses and seems to us almost divine, yet 
 God has no need of it, and can alter it or abolish it if He pleases. 
 Let me cling fast to One Who is distinct from and above nature, 
 and will be the same when nature (as we understand it) has passed 
 away. I observe too that man did not appear till the earth had 
 become fit for his dwelling-place. God disposed all things for 
 man, and man for Himself. 
 
 7. And the Lord God formed man of the diist of the 
 ground, ami breathed into his nostrils the breath of life ; and 
 man became a living soul. 
 
 I am then made of dust, of the same material as the lower creatures, 
 on the same plan as they ; my body is nourished by earthly food, 
 I am subject to the same accidents that befall the animal world ; 
 soon my body will return to the dust again ; and yet God has put 
 in me a spark of Divine fire, a breath from on high. In the long 
 series of creatures that had come into being up to this epoch of 
 creation there lacked a ruler for the world, a guiding intelligence. 
 Now God has formed His best work, constituted His viceroy over 
 things of sense. Glory be to God for this twofold nature in which 
 He has made me ! May I live according to the higher life, and so 
 subdue my frail body that it may be one day remade by Divine 
 immortalising power, and become a fit tabernacle for the glorified 
 spirit. The wonderful things amidst which He has set me here 
 hint to me of greater marvels to come. 
 
 8. And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden , 
 and there lie put the man whom He had formed. 9. And 
 out of the ground made the Lord God to groio every tree that 
 is pleasant to the sight, and good for food ; the tree of life also 
 
1 2 The sacred Garden [Gen. II. 
 
 in the, midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good 
 
 and evil. 
 
 Here are all beauty, all wonder, all delight. Here was a summary 
 of all that God had wrought so variously in His fair creation, yet 
 one thing was lacking, that was security ; all tliis peace, all this 
 joy, rested on the frail tenure of man's persevering in good. O 
 Lord, I know that when things smile most and are brightest, then 
 danger is near. Fallen man certainly is not fit to be placed 
 amidst joys and satisfactions without any drawback ; and even 
 unfallen man, though innocent and pure, was capable of tempta- 
 tion through his senses. In Eden there were fruits fit to sustain 
 natural life, also the fruit of immortality whence man was to 
 derive the gift of eternal life, also the fruit of the tree of know- 
 ledge in keeping from which consisted man's probation. God has 
 set us in His Church, which is like Paradise restored, surrounded 
 by fruits of grace, having Jesus Christ Himself in our midst 
 for our Living Bread, but with a condition laid upon us of 
 obeying, of refraining from sin, of submitting to His holy law, 
 if we would keep our felicity. He would have this Paradise 
 brighten at last into life everlasting, where all will be secure for 
 ever. 
 
 10. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; 
 and from thence it ivas parted, and became into four heads. 
 
 As from this one perfectly clear and beautiful stream, which brought 
 life to the garden, parted the four rivers to water the earth, so 
 should all our human affections flow from the love of God. Him 
 we should love with heart, and mind, and soul, and strength, and 
 then from this supreme love will flow in life-giving succession 
 all duties, all kindnesses, all charities. The river which flowed 
 forth from Eden reminds me of the ' living water,' 'the water of 
 life,' mentioned elsewhere in Scripture, that stream which is repre- 
 sented as flowing throui^h the restored Temple or the Golden City, 
 as proceeding from God's Altar or God's Throne, or as being 
 Christ's special gift. Mankind in this dry dusty world have longed 
 for a draught from it. 
 
 1 1 . The name of the first is Fison : that is it tvhich com- 
 passeth the ivhole land of JIavilah, where there is gold. 
 
 12. And the gold of that land is good : there is bdellium and 
 the onyx stone. 13. And the name of the second river is 
 Gihon: the same is it that compasseih the ivhole land of 
 Ethiojna. 14. A nd the name of the third river is Iliddehel : 
 that is it which goeth toivard the east of Assyria. And the 
 fourth river is Eiiphrates. 
 
 I have no certain knowledge of these four rivers. Perhaps two of 
 their names might be those of Indus or of Nile, certainly two 
 
Ver. I?-] Our Probation assigned 13 
 
 stand for Tigris and Euphrates ; but I cannot identify their course 
 nor trace them, as they now are, to one source. I see figured 
 herein the life-giving streams of Christian truth which the Apostles 
 and Missionaries of the Gospel brought into heathen lands from 
 their one source in Christ crucified and risen. How widely they 
 flowed forth, and still flow ! The four Gospels are so many 
 channels of this truth to refresh hearts in every age. 
 
 15. And the Lord God took the man, and jmt him into the 
 
 garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. 
 
 God said to man, * Behold your dwelling ; I have abundantly pro- 
 vided it with all things needful and beautiful. Behold your 
 occupation ; it will be happy, peaceful, varied ; it will furnish 
 you with infinite material for heavenly reflections ; it will enable 
 you to concur with my Providence in the operations of nature ; it 
 will teach you that humanity is itself 'God's husbandry.' And 
 not only dress the garden but keep it ; watch against foes ; watch 
 against the weakness of your own will ; remember to lift up your 
 heart for help to Me, Who am ever near. All this beauty, all this 
 peace, is held by you on terms of watching, of working, of pray- 
 ing.' O Lord, if mankind in their first created mnocence needed a 
 daily task, a careful walk, how much more do I who have so often 
 fallen? Into what depths of ruin may not an idle, careless temper 
 plunge me ! The productions of nature can be improved by man's 
 care. So too in my own heart, that garden or plantation of God, 
 is much that needs to be tended, trained, raised to higher growths. 
 
 16. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of 
 every tree of the garden thou may est freely eat. 
 
 Life is to be maintained by taking food ; and God has annexed 
 pleasure to this act, made our nourishment agreeable to us. Our 
 bodies fail and perish unless sustained from without ; but our 
 inward life, that which is in the Divine Image, equally needs to 
 be supported. What will best strengthen and refresh the im- 
 mortal spirit? Are there not poisons which would destroy it, 
 harmful food that weakens instead of strengthening its powers ? 
 O Thou Whose mercy has supplied me with earthly food, grant 
 that I may joyfully receive, inwardly digest, live in the strength 
 of Heavenly Bread. Thus by Thy mercy I shall grow up into 
 fitness for a blessed immortality. 
 
 17. But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou 
 shall not eat of it : for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou 
 shall surely die. 
 
 Was not this restraint a warning given to our first parents to call 
 them from earthly to heavenly life ? Did it not teach them that 
 their true happiness lay not in mere enjoyment but in obedience 
 
14 A Help meet needed [Gen. II. 
 
 to a Divine Command? This warning did not only restrain their 
 bodily appetite but also that desire to know all that can be known 
 which is so fatal to purity and simplicity of heart. The tree of 
 knowledge afforded a probation to man, which if he had borne 
 rightly he would after a while have been confirmed for ever in 
 good, and raised from an earthly to a heavenly paradise. Death 
 was to be the penalty of transgression. The soul once become 
 unfaithful would lose its hold on the body, and then dissolution 
 would follow. The tree of life with its heavenly remedy would be 
 no longer in man's reach. I too have heard this grave warning 
 that sin brings death ; would that I had heeded it more. 
 
 1 8. And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man 
 should he alone ; I loill make him an help meet for him. 
 
 What, none such in earth or air — not angels, nor stars, nor beasts 
 made for sport or service, none of the varied and wonderful crea- 
 tures among whom man was set ? No, none could be to him ihe 
 help, the companion he needed. God framed man so as to need 
 another heart to lean on ; one destined for the same end, having 
 the same duties and hopes, able to unite in prayer and praise with 
 him. Therefore God provided him with this companion, and 
 fixed his heart's desire upon her. But if it is not good for man 
 always to be alone, neither is it good for him never to be alone. 
 To be alone with God and our own soul is a wholesome experi- 
 ence ; but we must soon return to daily duties, daily cares, to the 
 task of giving solace and help to our brethren. Thus knit in 
 heart and service with those whom God has given us, and yet 
 choosing times to be alone and think of our last end, we shall pass 
 on safely through this world to a better. 
 
 19. And out of ihe ground the Lord God formed every 
 beast of the field, and every fowl of the air ; and brought them 
 unto Adam to see ivhat he would call them : and whatsoever 
 Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. 
 
 This spectacle awoke in Adam's mind a sense of wonder at the 
 marvels of the brute creation, a sense of God's glory and wisdom 
 displayed in their structure and properties, a sense, too, of his own 
 loneliness, set here among all these varieties of being, yet with no 
 mate. lie surveyed his dominion, yet desired something more. 
 Lord, Who hast put in man's heart this unsatisfied longing which 
 even the awakening of human love could not wholly meet, do 
 Thou in Thine own time complete and fill it with Thine own Self. 
 Nothing on earth can be to us all that we want. 
 
Ver. 23.] Woma7i created 15 
 
 20. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the foiul of 
 the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there 
 was not found an help meet for him. 
 
 So man had power of speech, and a sense of the fitness of things, 
 and of the kind of name eacli animal ought to have — either its 
 colour, or movement, or cry, or some other peculiarity about it, 
 fixed a name upon it, so that man was able henceforth to indicate 
 or summon it by such or such a sound. How wonderful is this 
 gift of speech, whereby we commune with God and with our 
 brethren, and indicate our will to the animals. It has grown up 
 from simple beginnings into fully ordered and perfected language. 
 O what an instrument to govern, to enlighten, to comfort, or, 
 alas, to do mischief ! 
 
 21. And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon 
 Adam, and he slept : and He took one of his ribs, and closed 
 up the flesh instead thereof. 
 
 In this deep mysterious sleep which came on Adam after he had 
 surveyed the world and found no fit companion for himself, and 
 during which God formed his bride out of his own side, I discern 
 a figure of Christ Jesus sleeping the sleep of death upon the Cross, 
 and the spear opening His holy side, so that out of it streams of 
 grace might flow to us, and the life of the Catholic Church begin. 
 S. Paul says (Eph. v. 32) that all this history concerns Christ and 
 the Church. He is our Second Adam, His Church our Mother. 
 He gave Himself to die that our souls might be new-born through 
 grace. 
 
 2 2, And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, 
 made He a woman, and brought her tmto the man. 
 
 Thus women's highest beauty, their choicest grace, was built up by 
 God. He is their Maker and Perfecter. Let them remember 
 that His hands gave them whatever glory they have. He has 
 willed that all mankind, male and female, should spring from one 
 root — the man whom He had made in His own Image. Adam 
 is the common father of all, and the world to come will (our Lord 
 teaches us, S. Mark xii. 25) unite again in one celestial life what 
 has been separated in sexual differences here. Meanwhile we see 
 how the woman completes the man, supplies his defects, leads 
 him to higher thoughts, teaches him patience and tenderness, — 
 to her is committed the birth, the care, the training of each gene- 
 ration. 
 
 23. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and 
 flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was 
 taken out of Man. 
 
 Plere is another self more closely knit to man than any other creature 
 could be — here is a partner of his life, a sharer in his cares and 
 
1 6 The first Marriage [Gen. III. 
 
 joys ; yet this close and intimate union, life-long, most absorbing, 
 most tender as it is, represents to us another and higher tie — ' we 
 are members of Christ's Body, of His flesh, and of His bones.' 
 He is pleased to take to Himself the believer's soul in a close and 
 tender relation of love and trust ; sacramental grace unites us to 
 Him ; all our spiritual life, all that is good in us, flows from the 
 heavenly union. We are not always conscious of the presence of 
 the heavenly Bridegroom, even when we are truly His and He 
 ours ; yet sometimes 
 
 ' Haply, as at Eucharist we knelt, 
 Something that thrilled us more than touch or speech, 
 Has made His presence felt.' 
 
 24. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, 
 and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. 
 
 This word is repeated at each marriage. The two hearts whom God 
 joins together leave their former life to enter on a new one. They 
 obtain grace to serve God together, to bear with each other's 
 infirmities, help each other along the road of life, bring up dear 
 children for God's service. Yes ; it is He who brings bridegroom 
 and bride to each other, blesses their union, associates them in an 
 eternal hope. Yet men's sin and selfishness will often defile this 
 Divine plan and turn into lifelong misery what He meant for our 
 sanctification. If I were to live alone, I should miss much help 
 in serving God ; yet if it be His will that a solitary life is appointed 
 me, I will remember that many devout souls have been united to 
 no answering soul on earth but to their Heavenly Spouse alone, 
 and have found all they needed in Him. 
 
 25. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and 
 were not ashamed. 
 
 Thus men were meant to live an angelic life, where no evil thoughts 
 came in. The life of fallen creatures seeks for shadow, cannot bear 
 the full light of day, but in our first innocence there was no need to 
 be ashamed. It is hard for me, who l)ear about me a fallen nature, 
 even to imagine a sinless condition ; but I sec that that flesh which 
 Christ took of His Virgin Mother is perfectly holy and pure, and 
 that He desires to bless and consecrate even my frail liody, so as 
 at last to bring it forth from the grave purified after His likeness. 
 Thus ends the history of our first created innocence ; if man had 
 remained in it, he would have been prepared for a blessed immor- 
 tality, led onvi^ard as God's child to higher things, without passing 
 through the evils which we endure. Man, in his first estate of 
 childlike innocence, had all that he needed, but on the condition 
 of watching. May I, who have been restored to God's favour 
 through Christ Jesus, be on my guard lest I lose all irremediably. 
 
Ver. 3. 1 The Process of Temptation 17 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 I. The serpent deceiveth Eve. 6. Man's shameful fall. 9. God ar- 
 raigneth them. 14. The serpent is cursed. 15. The promised seed. 
 16. The punishment of mankind. 21. Their first clothing. 23. Their 
 casting out of paradise. 
 
 "VTOW the $erpent was more subtil than any beast of the field 
 J_i ivliich the Lord God had made. And he said unto the 
 ivoman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of 
 the garden ? 
 
 Here the history of our troubles begins. It would seem that the 
 actual serpent was but the instrument of an unseen miglity power 
 of evil who employed him to deceive Eve, and still continues to 
 deceive us by other means. If danger is so near, I must beware 
 lest poison lurk in simple things, in actions that seem easy and 
 natural. Here in the beautiful garden where all was bright, all 
 things subject to man, yet Satan entered and brought ruin. It is 
 just when all things smile on me that I need be on my guard. 
 Christ the Lord was tempted in the wilderness and overcame ; if 
 it is God's will that life's garden should become for me a lonely 
 wilderness as the years go on, yet I may gain thereby a strength 
 against temptation which I lacked in prosperous days. In this 
 temptation the evil one began by infusing discontent. 'Yea, hath 
 God said ? ' — as if asking ' why should you be so poorly off? why 
 are you thus hedged in and restrained ? what are all your glories 
 and capacities worth if you are forbidden this or that ? ' Lord, I 
 recognise that voice. I have heard it often. I know its great 
 power, its hateful persuasiveness. Let me counteract it by a 
 humble and thankful temper. God has given me so much that 
 I may freely enjoy, let me be grateful for that and content with 
 it. I submit cheerfully to the wise restraints He has provided. 
 
 2. And the tuoman said %mto the se7'2:>ent, We may eat of the 
 fruit of the trees of the garden. 3. But of the fruit of the 
 tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye 
 shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 
 
 It is rash to enter into discussion with any temptation. Far better 
 to stir up our faith and recall what God has mercifully said, and 
 that our happiness lies in obedience. If we are allowed to taste 
 freely of many innocent pleasures which God has set round our 
 path, yet let it be with a feeling that we are servants set over His 
 tasks, or travellers journeying rapidly towards His Presence ; if 
 B 
 
r8 Conflict and Defeat in Eden [Gen. III. 
 
 we sit down too long or too carelessly beneath the trees of per- 
 mitted fruit, may not the Tempter insensibly lead us on to partake 
 of what is unlawful ? True love for God, and a sincere faith that 
 He is near, are weapons able to confound Satan. 
 
 4. And the serpent said unto the ivoman, Ye shall not surely 
 die. 
 
 Is God true or not ? Here is His assurance that sin brings death 
 plainly contradicted by the Tempter. Eve, when in Paradise, 
 first doubted whether God was true, and then was persuaded that 
 He was not. We who have had more experience since her day, 
 and have learnt the ruin that sin causes, and have had God mani- 
 fest in the flesh speaking and telling us just the same, yet still 
 inquire doubtingly and wonder whether sin will bring us death. 
 Let me, O Lord, form a just idea of Thee, experience devout 
 communion with Thee, learn to know Thy voice well, so that I 
 may stand up for Thy truth against a world in arms, and declare 
 that what Thou sayest will certainly be done. As regards the 
 effect of sin, as regards Christ's Presence in the Holy Sacrament, 
 as regards prayer being answered, I know what God has said, and 
 I am firmly convinced that He is right, doubt or contradict who 
 will. 
 
 5. For God doth Icnoxo that in the day ye eat thereof, then 
 your eyes shall he opened, and ye shall he as gods, knowing 
 good and evil. 
 
 This is the way that temptation has run ever since. The Evil One 
 bids us seek for freedom, emancipate ourselves from the restraints 
 of childhood, not be afraid of doing what others do. He exagge- 
 rates the burdens of our j^resent condition, and promises interesting 
 experiences, sweet and pleasant opportunities. Eve was beguiled 
 by the serpent's craft, which was new to her, but we have had 
 warnings enough of the misery to which trying and tasting evil 
 leads. It is a poor exchange to get knowledge and lose duty, love, 
 and peace. I should desire to be like God — yes, but like God in 
 His humiliation ; like God in the Person of the Holy Jesus, pure, 
 compassionate, diligent, patient — that is a Divine Pattern suited 
 to my fallen condition. 
 
 6. And when the tuoman saio that the tree tvas good for 
 food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to he 
 desired to make one ivise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did 
 eat, and gave also imto her husband with her ; and he did 
 eat. 
 
 This first sin pleased the appetite, delighted the sight, gratified pride. 
 Alas, so it does now ! I have senses that cry out to be satisfied. 
 
Ver. 8.] The Voice of the Lord God 19 
 
 I like to look and judge for myself, I love to look down on others 
 from the elevation of a wider experience. Indeed, in my baptism 
 I promised to ' fight manfully against sin, the world, and the devil'; 
 nor did my Master set me any other example when He overcame 
 the three temptations in the wilderness. But I feel my own appal- 
 ling weakness in the presence of evil ; indeed, I have so often 
 fallen, that I scarcely have strength to resist now. Yet courage, 
 frail soul ! did not Christ shed His Blood, send His Spirit, provide 
 sacramental food, inspire countless weak and frail mortals with a 
 noble purity, a bravery that trampled down strong allurements 
 and fierce threats ? What would true Christians have said of thee 
 who art so easily led astray ? 
 
 7. And the eyes of them, both were opened, and they knew 
 that they were naked ; and they seived fig leaves together, and 
 made themselves aprons. 
 
 After sin comes shame : the conscience wakes, the soul realises its 
 loss and misses its former peace. Our first parents felt that they 
 had lost an invisible spiritual garment, the purity which had clothed 
 them formerly ; ihey felt that they were not the same, now that 
 God's grace was gone. Therefore their whole desire was to pro- 
 vide a covering for their nakedness. This they hastened to do, 
 and yet found themselves still ill at ease — they had but hidden 
 what gave them shame, but no thought was theirs as yet of con- 
 fessing their fault or making their peace with God. O my God, 
 I too know well the rebellion of the body against the soul. I carry 
 about with me a body of death ; but I know that Thou didst take 
 flesh like mine, in order to sanctify and purify my body and make 
 it fit to rise one day in perfect innocence. 
 
 8. And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the 
 garden in the cool of the day : and Adam and his wife hid 
 themselves from the pr'esence of the Lord God amotigst the trees 
 of the garden. 
 
 Then God had been wont in the happy garden to manifest His 
 Presence to sight and hearing. He condescended to have inter- 
 course with man ; and this had been man's dearest delight while 
 he was innocent ; he rejoiced to meet his Maker ; he welcomed 
 the light or the sound which told of God's approach. How differ- 
 ent now ! He could not bear to meet God's eye ; he sought 
 vainly to put a barrier between himself and the All-seeing. This 
 verse exactly represents the feeling with which a guilty conscience 
 regards religious truth. ' It is unbearable, intolerable, ' says the evil 
 heart, 'that God should see me ; that He should be my Judge, my 
 Redeemer. His Holy Sacrament, His Word, the hour of prayer, 
 such things are now hateful to me. I would fain put them right 
 away and be rid of them once for all. ' 
 
20 00(^5 merciful Call to Simiers [Gen. III. 
 
 9. And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto 
 him, Where art thou 1 
 
 This is a word in mercy. God condescends to pursue us, to awaken 
 us, not to leave us to ourselves. In our darkness He followed us; 
 
 • when we were in a far country His mercy awoke in us deep dissatis- 
 faction and unrest. I desire exceedingly that if I am so unhappy 
 as to fall into deadly sin God's mercy would not leave me there. 
 Far better to be asked, ' Wliere art thou ?' to be confounded, to be 
 overtaken, to be brought to shame, than to be left to the deadly 
 slumber of indifference. Indeed I may ask myself, ' Where am I ? 
 into what condition has my folly plunged me ? ' 
 
 10. And he said, I heard Thy voice in the garden, and I 
 was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. 
 
 Adam came forth and stood trembling ; but he had not yet any 
 penitence, only fear of God's wrath. In his answer one may note 
 what a change had come on him ; he says that he could not bear 
 God's voice or his own nakedness, and so that he was obliged to 
 hide ; yet up to this time that voice had been a sound of comfort 
 and joy, that nakedness a robe of innocence ; now all has changed 
 without, because of change in the inward life. Let us never seek 
 to conceal ourselves from God or from our own shame, but rather 
 avow plainly our unworthiness, seeing ourselves as He sees us, 
 and yet seeking for mercy. We fear Him, and yet have cause to 
 trust His Love. 
 
 11. And He said, Who told thee that thou ivast naked? 
 Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that 
 thou shouldest not eat 1 
 
 We stand before our Judge, and He desires to awaken our conscience, 
 to lead us to repentance. He points out to us the real cause of 
 our wretchedness. I learn here that evil desire is the punishment 
 of sin as well as the cause of it. My own folly in bygone days is 
 the cause that I am so easily tempted, so constantly led astray 
 now. I am what my own sins have made me. Yet, dear Lord, 
 Thy victorious grace has a remedy even for such as I am. Thou 
 pointcst to a heavenly food which can counteract the forbidden 
 fruit and work entire restoration. My foulness can all be washed 
 away in the stream of Thy mercy, and I myself rendered fit to 
 stand in Thy Presence and praise Thee for ever. 
 
 12. And the man said, The woman vjhom Thou gavest to he 
 with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. 
 
 So with sin there came on the desire to excuse ourselves and throw the 
 blame on another. What had become of our first parents' mutual 
 love? What of Adam's protecting care for her who was 'flesh 
 of his flesh, bone of his bone ' ? Sin had altered all this and turned 
 
Ver. 15.] The promised Conqueror 21 
 
 it to suspicion and mutual accusation. Let me rather discern my 
 own guilt and confess it. It was not circumstance, nor friends, 
 nor persuasions, but my own folly, O Lord, that led me away from 
 Thee. I wilfully put forth my hand and plucked the fruit, which 
 has caused me many bitter regrets since. 
 
 13. And the. Lord God said wito the ivoman, What is this 
 that thou hast done ? And the tvoman said, The serpent 
 ber/uiled me, and I did eat. 
 
 Oh for prudence not to be beguiled ! Oh for steadfast resolution not to 
 touch and taste ! It avails not to throw the blame on the Tempter 
 when we are ourselves guilty. I thought sin was a trifle, and that 
 I might well serve both God and my own passions. I thought 
 that innocence was too simple and too childish. I thought that 
 sin was glorious. Indeed I was thoroughly deceived in all this — 
 no doubt about that ; but, O my soul, hadst thou not many warn- 
 ings : the voice of conscience, the authority of the good, the 
 restraints of grace ? 
 
 14. Ajid the Lord God said unto the ser2yent, Because thou 
 hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every 
 beast of the field ; iqMn thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt 
 thoii eat all the days of thy life : 
 
 The words of doom refer literally to the serpent, but the reality of 
 them to the Tempter who had employed the serpent for his instru- 
 ment. They express the abhorrence which man would feel for the 
 spirit of evil, the vileness and hatefulness of the means which he 
 •would employ to harm us, the futility of his efforts against God's 
 elect. This verse tells in figurative speech of the degradation of 
 • that glorious spirit who was once like God, but chose evil for his 
 portion instead of good. To him was said — 
 
 ' Think not thy shape the same, 
 Nor undiminished brightness to be known, 
 As when thou stoodst in heaven upright and pure.' 
 
 15. And I ivill put enmity between thee and the ivoman, and 
 betiveen thy seed and her seed ; it shall bruise thy head, and 
 thou shalt bruise his heel. 
 
 The woman's Seed should engage in conflict with the serpent, a con- 
 flict hard and grievous, yet in which the former would overcome. 
 Such is the first dim promise of the Redeemer, like a ray to lighten 
 the darkness of man's downfall. Mary's Son should repair the 
 folly that sin has wrought. Indeed I see that my Lord came to 
 fight, to tjruise, to be bruised. His was no easy victory, no mere 
 show of strife. His members too must resolve to be bold if they 
 would have God ' bruise Satan beneath their feet.' The victory is 
 wholly of our God, but we must bring the arms of constant patience, 
 of unswerving trust, in Him who bled for us. 
 
2 2 Labour and Sorrow [Gen. III. 
 
 1 6. Unto the vjoman He said, I will greatly multiply thy 
 
 sorroiv and thy conception ; in sorroio thou shall bring forth 
 children ; and thy desire shall he to thy hxishand, and lie shall 
 rule over thee. 
 
 Here is a doom of sorrow, pain, and subjection. Even sacred 
 motherhood, the great glory of woman, should come with danger 
 and anguish; even the holy union of matrimony should be a bond- 
 age to the soul, a hindrance to the Divine life. Yet all this 
 sentence was given in mercy. God would have woman work out 
 her salvation by submission, by duty, by care for husband and 
 children, by waiting on the needy and infirm. Instead of the 
 Tempter's bait of independence and fancied glory God offers the 
 remedy of obedience, the bitter draught of pain. Glory be to God, 
 Who was pleased to raise up our race again from its fall, and in 
 due time to come to us Himself by the instrumentality of a human 
 Mother. 
 
 17. And unto Adam He said, Becaiise thou hast hearkened 
 unto the voice of thy ivife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which 
 I commanded thee, saying, Thou shall not eat of it: cwsed is 
 the ground for thy sake ; in sorrow shall thou eat of it all the 
 days of thy life ; 
 
 God sent the curse on the earth, not on man ; for us, indeed, there 
 was ordained exile, labour, and pain ; but all this has a re- 
 medial aspect — it is God's method of restoring us to fitness for 
 Paradise again. This verse contains the sentence of labour. Woe 
 to those who try to withdraw themselves from it : they will only 
 run in danger of many evils and miseries — 'Thou shalt eat in 
 travail,' such is God's sentence. What place then has self-indul- 
 gent idleness in this world of work ? Lord, give me grace to re- 
 member this sentence of Thine, and to abhor idleness, which will 
 ruin me in body or else in soul. If I am ever tempted to lead a 
 lazy, selfish life, let me call to mind that Thy dear Son took on 
 Him a humble place, a laborious life. 
 
 18. Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; 
 and thou shalt eat the herb of the field ; 
 
 In cultivating the ground I see how easily weeds and thorns grow, 
 how much labour and care it needs to produce what is useful to 
 man; and herein I see a figure of my mind wherein all good dis- 
 positions are planted with difficulty, and need constant watching 
 over, while evil thoughts and follies grow with rank luxuriance. 
 God has given me a certain space of earth to cultivate, a certain 
 sphere of work, duties towards myself, my friends, those round me. 
 He would have me turn this little plot into a garden, where peace 
 and truth may grow ; yet without His constant grace how shall 
 any good thing flourish ? 
 
Ver. 2 2.] Dust to Dust 23 
 
 19. In the siveat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, fill thou 
 return unto the ground ; for 02it of it ivast thou taken: for 
 dust thou art, and mito dust shalt thou return. 
 
 'Dust to dust.' How often I have heard those words; let their 
 salutary sound never be effaced from my memory. Here is the 
 end of the longest and the grandest life. Grant me, Lord, a sober, 
 diligent, and patient mind, abhorring self-indulgent dreams, and 
 'serving Thee duly in my vocation with thanksgiving.' Thus I 
 shall tread the downward road with some fear and yet more hope. 
 The reality of death is plain to me, its aspect grave and terrible, 
 but I know that my Lord does not forget His servants. They live 
 with Him though they have passed away from sight and sense. 
 
 20. And Adam called his luife's name Eve ; because sheivas 
 the mother of all living. 
 
 Adam then knew that his race would continue to live, though under 
 the sentence of mortality ; he regarded his wife as the mother of 
 generations to come. Did he have a vision of that Holy Mother, 
 to spring in due time from his line, who should conceive and bear 
 in her virgin womb the world's salvation? She indeed was to 
 regain by her faith and obedience the blessings of which Eve had 
 been deprived. This only we can say, that this verse expresses 
 hope. Even in the midst of trouble and desolation a great hope 
 filled Adam's breast. God's judgments had become to him tokens 
 of mercy, means of recovery, 
 
 21. Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God 
 make coats of skins, and clothed them. 
 
 Here again is forgiving mercy, concealing our shame. Man had be- 
 come subject to mortality, the heir of sorrow, liable to suffer from 
 the weather and from disease ; therefore God provides him with 
 clothing as a remedy for his weakness, a covering for his infirmity. 
 Ah, dear Lord, how much vanity, how much luxury has crept into 
 our dress ! how we exalt ourselves above our brethren by splendour 
 or delicacy in apparel ! and yet death will soon strip off these dis- 
 guises and make us all alike — a little dust will be our covering 
 then. 
 
 2 2. And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as 
 one of Us, to know good and evil : and now, lest he put forth 
 his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live 
 for ever : 
 
 Here is the consequence of sin. The Tempter promised we should 
 be as God, and indeed our knowledge is increased thereby ; we 
 
24 Paradise lost [Gen. IV. 
 
 have gained new experiences, but at how great a cost ? We have lost 
 that better likeness of God which consisted in truth and peace. God 
 seems in this verse to ridicule our fancied glory and show us that 
 we have lost the substance and gained only the deceiving shadow. 
 Divine Wisdom thus mocks at us, shows us what we really are, 
 exposes the vain pretensions which we make to intellectual superi- 
 ority. Not thus, indeed, not thus, can we win heaven and partake 
 of immortality. Now that the Tree of life is restored to me on 
 Christ's Cross, I would sit humbly at its feet and rest under its 
 branches rather than follow the Tempter into glowing fields of 
 fancied independence. The Second Adam came to assume our 
 fallen condition that lie might lead us gently home again by the 
 way of sorrows. 
 
 23. Therefore the Lord God sent hivi forth from the garden 
 of Eden, to till the ground from whence he tvas taken. 
 
 Here is Adam fallen from his high estate. Pie has lost his crown of 
 glory, his happiness, his peace. Now he is no longer fit to live 
 in the beautiful garden ; he must go forth into the workaday 
 world and suffer his punishment in patience. In him we may see 
 ourselves : we too have lost Paradise, but retain confused remem- 
 brances of good, thoughts which lead us upward, a standard of 
 right which we fitfully strive to regain. We still retain God's 
 Image and cannot be as the beasts, and yet there lies on us a hea\'y 
 doom of labour and sorrow, with death to end the prospect. But 
 in Adam the remembrance of glory was most vivid, and the sense 
 of loss greatest. God's mercy did not indeed forsake him. God 
 led him through long years of penitence to a peaceful end. God 
 inspired him with hopes of a deliverer to come. God turned his 
 punishment into a remedy for his sin. 
 
 24. So he drove out the man ; and He 2^laced at the east of 
 the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a Jiaming sivord, lohich 
 turned every way, to Tceep the way of the tree of life. 
 
 These are the same winged forms that appear in Scripture as watch- 
 ing over the ark of the covenant, as bearing up or surrounding 
 God's throne. This fiery whirling sword is the constant figure of 
 God's wrath. We see here the approach to God's Presence strictly 
 interdicted to man. How shall it be restored again ? Who will 
 open the way into Paradise or bring man near to the life-giving 
 fruit ? Ah ! we know Who came to make peace between God and 
 man, to open a way into the holiest place. We know Who promised 
 to believers the tree of life and the water of life. I read in the 
 account of Christ's Passion that He, when dying, took charge of a 
 dying person and promised to introduce him into Paradise that 
 day. I rejoice in my Lord's victoiy, and I lay hold on His merciful 
 Hand that He may conduct me home. I do not fear the fiery 
 sword if my Lord is with me. 
 
\ 
 
 Ver. 3.] Different Ways of offering Sacrifice 25 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 I. The birth, trade, and religion of Cain and Abel. 8. The murder of 
 Abel. II. The curse of Cain. 17. Enoch the first city. 19. Lamech 
 and his two wives. 25. The birth of Seth, 26. and Enos. 
 
 AND Adam hieiv Eve his wife ; and she conceived^ and 
 bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the 
 Lord. 
 
 Eve, in her exile and penitence, rejoiced over her first-born son. 
 ' Here,' she said, ' is a gift of God, a sign of His continuing mercy 
 to me. This consoles me for my mortality ; I shall live on in my 
 child. This is a work of God's own power, God's own wisdom ; 
 He has so wonderfully framed it.' Did her thoughts run on to 
 that Holy Infant one day to be born who should regain for us what 
 Eve lost ? Alas for her hopes, Cain disappointed his mother, he 
 brought her misery and loss ; but yet she was right in feeling joy 
 and hope at her son's birth — it seemed to her a pledge of God's 
 forgiving mercy. 
 
 2. And she again hare his brother Abel. And Abel was a 
 keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 
 
 The name of Abel means 'vanity.' It seems to express the dis- 
 appointment of his parents at man's frailty and nothingness, com- 
 pared with the immortality which they had lost. Cain and Abel 
 both grew up to work — idleness was not yet known in the world. 
 God grant that I may live diligently during my short tenancy of 
 life, and leave behind me the remembrance of some work done for 
 my Master. What if the tending and rearing flocks, the breaking 
 up the ungrateful soil, was hard and disappointing work, yet in 
 obeying God's command to labour man found peace. 
 
 3. And in 2)rocess of time it came to pass, that Cain brought 
 of the fruit of the grotmd an offering unto the Lord. And 
 Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat 
 thereof And the Lord had res])ect unto Abel and to his offer- 
 ing. 
 
 Here we find God honoured by sacrifices. Sacrifice expressed man's 
 dependence upon God, man's need of Divine mercy, man's grati- 
 tude to the Giver of all good. It was no chance instinct, but 
 implanted from above, which taught us to return in sacrifice to the 
 Giver the choicest of His gifts. Vet in Abel's sacrifice of the slain 
 animals of his flock we may discern something further. Here is 
 
26 A timely Wartiing [Gen. IV. 
 
 an acknowledgment of sin, here is an effort after the restoration of 
 heavenly communion. By such sacrifices men expressed their 
 longing to expiate sin, to kill what was evil in themselves, to give 
 up their life and all they had to be wholly consecrated to their 
 heavenly Father. All these thoughts about sacrifice are summed 
 up and applied in the unbloody offering which the Church of Christ 
 makes in remembrance of the slain Lamb of God. 
 
 5. But rinto Cain and to his offering He had not respect. 
 And Cain ivas very wroth, and his countenance fell. 
 
 It was not so much the gifts as the giver that God regarded. In 
 Abel's offering there was faith, devotion, gratitude. In Cain's 
 something was lacking ; he paid the outward sacrifice alone, but 
 the inward offering of a loving and contrite heart was not there. 
 It is not said by what outward sign God showed His acceptance of 
 Abel's gifts. Perhaps by fire sent from heaven upon them ; but 
 the same difference exists now, though no sign appears. Many 
 priests, many communicants, offer the sacrifice of praise at God's 
 altar, and yet are not accepted. 
 
 6. And the Lord said tmto Cain, Why art thou ivroth? 
 and tvhy is thy countenance fallen? 7. // thou doest tvell, 
 shall thou not he accepted ? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth 
 at the door. And tmto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt 
 ride over him. 
 
 God pleaded with Cain, gave him many warnings against his jealous 
 temper. God reminded him of past mercies, bade him rejoice in 
 present blessings, instead of brooding over the one annoyance. 
 ' If thou doest well, thou shalt have joy in thy heart and favour 
 with Me. Do not doubt it ; but beware of the crouching wild 
 beast of jealousy ; it approaches thy door and tries to seize on 
 thee— up and chain it while you can.' God spoke to him in some 
 unmistakable way. The voice warned him of approaching 
 danger, stirred him up to overcome his fault ; yet in vain. O 
 God, how often hast Thou pleaded in my heart, bidden me submit 
 my will to Thine, warned me of my own weakness ! Let me take 
 to heait, before it is too late. Thy grave and tender warnings. 
 Alas ! when once sin has established a hold on the heart, how 
 hard it is to shake it off. 
 
 8. And Cain talked tvith Abel his brother: and it m?«e to 
 pass, when they ivere in the field, that Cain rose up against 
 Abel his brother, and sleiv him. 
 
 Then God stood aside and let the first murder be wrought. The 
 innocent brother was slain by the wicked, who lived long and 
 wrought mighty deeds, while Abel's life and work were pre- 
 maturely ended. Here begin the mysteries of God's Providence, 
 
Ver. II.] The Blood of Abel 2 7 
 
 why it is He should often interpose to warn us, yet let us at last 
 work out our own choice ; why it is He should subject the 
 innocent to the guilty ; why He should let pure and hopeful lives 
 be early extinguished, while wickedness lives on and triumphs. 
 All these questions are beyond my power to answer ; yet I know 
 that death does not end all. Those who have committed them- 
 selves to God will not be deceived. Abel was put to death on 
 account of his devotion and the favour shown to him by God. 
 Thus he stands at the head of the noble army of martyrs who have 
 by their blood overcome the world and converted the unbelieving. 
 They wrought more by their death than their life. 
 
 9. And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy 
 brother ? And he said, I hnow not : am I my brothers 
 Tcee])er ? 
 
 'Yes, indeed, thou art responsible for thy brother. If thou hast 
 harmed him by violence, or by deceit ; if thou hast suffered him 
 to want or be in misery ; still more, if thou hast led him into 
 evil by thine example or persuasion. In all these cases thou art 
 his keeper, and hast betrayed thy trust.' It is impossible forme 
 to disengage myself from responsibility for others — in vain I 
 answer that such an one is not my concern. A voice I cannot 
 stifle assures me that I have a share in all the evil that I have not 
 striven to prevent. O terrible voice of most just judgment, which 
 warns me that there are some who curse the day they knew me, 
 who have to thank me for nothing but harm, who will preserve to 
 all eternity the trace of the evil I did them ! Against such a 
 voice I can but fly to the Blood of another Sufferer which has 
 infinite power to blot out the past. 
 
 10. And He said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy 
 brother s blood crieth unto Me from the ground. 
 
 O Judge of mankind, appease the voice which cries so loud ; make 
 me acknowledge with a contrite heart the harm I have done to 
 others. It is true, I know their souls speak against me. I know 
 that Thy justice has a heavy and bitter record of my treatment of 
 them. Yet I do not lose hope. I am confident that Divine 
 mercy is able to do away with the stain, to hush the cry, to make 
 the barren ground bring forth afresh good and hopeful thoughts. 
 Abel, though he is dead, yet speaks ; he tells us of faith, of 
 patience, of purity ; he tells us it is better to die in innocence than 
 live on in vileness. 
 
 11. And now art thou c2irsed from the earth, which hath 
 opened her mouth to receive thy brother s blood from thy hand. 
 
 All things would be linked against the murderer ; all things would 
 bring him a curse instead of a blessing. Adam and Eve, when 
 
28 The Dootn of Cain [Gen. IV. 
 
 they sinned and lost Paradise, had no curse pronounced on them, 
 but only on their tempter and on the ground. They had a life 
 of penitence to lead, and hopes of a coming Redeemer to cherish ; 
 but Cain missed all this salutary discipline. Remember, earth 
 will one day reveal the innocent blood ; it may hide that blood 
 for a while, but will at last let its cry be heard before God and 
 angels. Those who have ruined, despised, oppressed their 
 brethren may be sure that God remembers. 
 
 12. When iho\i tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth 
 yield imto thee her strength ; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt 
 thou be in the earth. 
 
 Yet Cain's family became mighty and rich, built cities, invented 
 arts, lorded it over the earth ; was then this menace all in vain? 
 Do not think so. It has a deeper meaning than appears in the 
 letter. Cain lost God's Presence and experienced no more com- 
 munications from Him. Cain devoted himself to this world, as if 
 there was no other ; he set his hopes wholly on this fleeting scene, 
 despising eternity. What is earth in faith's view but the pre- 
 paration, the threshold, the antechamber of a more lasting Home? 
 Of itself it is but vanity, has no true satisfaction ; a life spent for 
 the earth only is thrown away. 
 
 13. And Cain said unto the Lord^ My punishment is 
 greater than I can bear. 
 
 Before committing sin, it seems a trifle, a thing of no importance. 
 After we have done the evil, it appears so great as to be un- 
 pardonable. That is the way with our Tempter^he would have 
 us pass from despising sin to despairing of pardon. Teach me, 
 Lord, after all downfalls to remember the power of Thy precious 
 Blood, the might of Thy grace. No iniquity is too foul, too deep, 
 too heavy for Thy mercy. Whatever Thou scndest by way of 
 punishment may I receive with a humble but hopeful heart, and 
 join it to Thy Cross in patience. 
 
 14. Behold, Thou, hast driven me 07it this day from the face 
 of the earth ; and from Thy face shall I be hid : and I shall 
 be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth ; and it shall come 
 to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. 
 
 Crime bears often a vengeance in itself, even though no thunderbolt 
 fall on the guilty one. The loss of God's Presence, the loss of 
 peace, the fear of judgment, the sense of shame and of ruin 
 wrought, are the very constituents of hell. Cain felt no con- 
 trition, but he greatly feared punishment. May I, O Lord, in 
 Thy dear mercy learn to take all punishment patiently, so long as 
 I do not lose a hope of forgiveness. If Thy face is still shining 
 on me, I can bear all else that comes. 
 
Ver. i8.] The first City 29 
 
 15. And the Lord said unto him, Therefore ivhosoever 
 slayeth Cain, vengeance shall he taken oti him sevenfold. And 
 the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him shoidd 
 kill him. 
 
 If the Lord set a sign on Cain to protect him, and this was so 
 efficacious that his life was safe wherever he went, much more 
 will His grace protect the innocent who trust in Him alone. 
 Cain had what he desired, protection from vengeance. All his 
 punishment was from within ; there he felt sharper pain than 
 weapons of avenging justice could inflict. I would wipe out by 
 repentance the dread sign or mark of other souls ruined, if it has 
 ever been on my brow. Christ's Blood, which was shed for me, 
 is able to efface it utterly. 
 
 1 6. And Cain loent out from the presence of the Lord, and 
 dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden. 
 
 Cain left Adam and his family (no doubt already multiplying) among 
 whom the worship of the True God, the tradition of Paradise, 
 the hope of a Mediator, were preserved for a while. He left all 
 this and began an irreligious life, devoted only to success in this 
 world. Soon among his descendants all such thoughts as those 
 were counted as dreams. Such is Cain's race ; they have left God 
 and fixed all their thoughts and hopes on this transitory, deceiving 
 world. 
 
 17. And Cain knew his wife ; and she conceived, and hare 
 Enoch : and he huilded a city, and called the name of the city, 
 after the name of his son, Enoch. 
 
 Here is this world's city raised ; it soon attached to it those seeking 
 for riches, or for slaves, or for glory ; it rose in opposition to the 
 society of believers. In Cain's city there was wealth and display 
 but no inward peace, no light of truth, no care for the poor. Let 
 us be faithful citizens of the heavenly Jerusalem, keep its laws, 
 serve its King, promote its welfare ; thus our dwelling will be 
 safe, our heart in God's keeping. This world's city will all be 
 swept away soon — woe to them who have all their hopes centred 
 on it. 
 
 18. And unto Enoch was horn Irad: and Irad begat 
 Mehujael : and Mehujael hegat Methusael : and Methusael 
 begat Lantech. 
 
 The names of these descendants of Cain, who were the first in- 
 habitants of this world's city, founded its maxims, and began to 
 
30 Arts and Crafts found out [Gen. IV. 
 
 spread its corruptions, nearly resemble the names of Seth's de- 
 scendants in the next chapter, who carried on the tradition of 
 worship and the knowledge of God ; yet there was a difference in 
 their character, in their hopes and aims. The former had forgotten 
 the memories of innocence, the hopes of a Redeemer, the warnings 
 and promises which God had given to man. 
 
 19. And Laviech took unto him two wives : the name of the 
 one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah. 
 
 Lamech began polygamy, which was afterwards practised by the 
 Patriarchs, and has been the custom in many ages and nations. 
 Nor was it without benefit in peopling the world and protecting 
 helpless women in rough days. Yet it was treason to the true 
 idea of marriage. God's law of wedded love was heart for heart, 
 true and entire devotion on both sides, and this cannot be if a 
 plurality of wives is allowed — to say nothing of the jealousy, the 
 strife, the ruin of home life which such a relation has in practice 
 introduced. O Lord, whether I am wedded or single, keep my 
 heart faithful to Thee alone, Thee above all. Let it love, honour, 
 and obey Thee first, Thee most, and then my earthly affections 
 will fall into their right place. 
 
 20. And Adah bare Jabal : he was the father of such as 
 dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle. 
 
 Farm life has its advantages and its dangers. How many faithful 
 souls like David on Jesse's farm, or the shepherds in those same 
 fields a thousand years later, have discerned patterns in it of God's 
 watchful care in feeding, tending, guarding, themselves. ' Lord, 
 Thou hast been my Shepherd,' was the burden of their song ; they 
 heard heavenly voices at night, read God's message in stars. 
 And yet in others this same life has fostered brutal ignorance, 
 neglect of all religious duties, a character enslaved to self. 
 
 21. And his brother's name was Jtcbal: he was the father 
 of all such as handle the harp and organ. 
 
 Music when invented became the solace of sorrow, the employment 
 of vacant hours, a means to 
 
 ' chase 
 Anguish and doubt and fear and sorrow and pain 
 From mortal or immortal minds.' 
 
 Nay more, it lifted up God's praises, spoke of His perfections, 
 figured what the Blessed do in heaven. God herein provided 
 us with a wonderful language, beyond language, one that has 
 more power to influence for good or evil than spoken sounds 
 have. 
 
Ver. 26.] LamecKs Revenge 31 
 
 22. And Zillah, she also hare Tubal-cain, an instructor of 
 every artificer in brass and iron : and the sister of Tiihal-cain 
 was Naamah. 
 
 Consider with what far-reaching purpose God stored the earth with 
 metals. His Hand framed them through the convulsions, floods, 
 and fires of past ages. His wisdom laid them up within the soil 
 for man in due time to discover and use. They serve to awaken 
 man's powers, to put within his reach all manner of grand designs 
 and wonderful achievements. How great is Thy wisdom, O Lord, 
 in preparing and opening to us, as we need them, these bright 
 and hard metals by the use of which we perform our work or adorn 
 our life. 
 
 23. And Lamech said unto his solves, Adah and Zillah, 
 Hear my voice ; Ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech : 
 For I have slain a man to my wounding , and a young man 
 to my hurt. 24. If Cain shall he avenged sevenfold. Truly 
 Lamech seventy and sevenfold. 
 
 Then iron had been turned to uses of war as well as of peace. 
 Lamech rejoiced in his new instrument of destruction ; he exulted 
 in being terrible to his enemies. God's vengeance upon Cain's 
 slayer was to be sevenfold, but Lamech felt himself greater than 
 God, and he would punish seventy-fold any one who injured him. 
 Here we note a warning against the lust for vengeance which is 
 so natural to us. 
 
 25. And Adam knew his ivife again; a7id she hare a son, 
 and called his name Seth .• For God, said she, hath ax>pointed 
 m.e another seed instead of Ahel, whom Cain sleiv. 
 
 Eve was consoled for Abel's death by Seth's birth. In Seth she 
 recognised a type of the promised Deliverer, one from whom that 
 Deliverer should descend. Abel, by dying, had taught of Christ's 
 death ; Seth by his paternity of the faithful seed represented 
 Christ's spiritual fatherhood of innumerable ransomed souls. Eve 
 thought of Paradise and its lost joys, and yet she felt in her 
 mcjtherhood joy that men were born into the world to fill it and 
 to bring on the promised long-expected good. 
 
 26. And to Seth, to him also there tvas horn a son ; and he 
 called his name Enos ; then began men to call iqjon the Name 
 of the Lord. 
 
 Here is the God of our salvation made known, the covenant name 
 used wherein God's eternity, God's unchangeableness are hinted 
 at. Here is worship begun and a company ot worshippers formed. 
 
32 Adayn' s prolonged Penitence [Gen. V. 
 
 O God, Thou didst not desert Thy creatures, but didst leave them 
 in this unsettled world the anchor of Divine Truth, of sacred 
 worship, of heavenly promises ; to this true hearts clung, though 
 all began to grow dark around them. 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 I. The genealogy, age, and death of the patriarchs from Adam unto 
 Noah. 24. The godliness and translation of Enoch. 
 
 THIS h the hook of the generations of Adam. In the day 
 that God created man, in the likeness of God made He 
 him ; 2. Male and female created He them : and blessed 
 them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were 
 created. 
 
 Here begins the history of the holy seed, of that family in the earth 
 in whom alone remained something of true faith and the fear of 
 God, that family from which Abraham was to be born, that family 
 from whom Christ should one day spring. When God made man. 
 He made him in His own Image, with immortal hopes, with a 
 capacity for heaven. Man resembles the other creatures in his 
 body, but in mind he reflects his Maker. He received a blessing 
 which still abides, a nature wonderfully made up of glory and 
 frailty, somewhat to lift him up towards God, something to bow 
 him down earthwards. Thus he was set midway between earth 
 and heaven, having indeed to learn about himself and his surround- 
 ings, having to frame and order the world's history, but with a 
 haunting remembrance that this world is not his abiding home. 
 
 3. And Adam lived an Mmdred and thirty years, and begat 
 a son in his oivn likeness, after his image; and called his 
 name Seth: 4. And the days of Adam after he had begotten 
 Seth were eight hundred years : and he begat sons and 
 daughters : 
 
 Alas ! Adam's children reproduced their father's fallen nature. He 
 had had and wasted treasures of grace. He had corrupted the 
 root from which life was to spring, the vessel in which the soul of 
 man was to be shrined. As the race of man spread, so evil spread 
 with them. What is called original sin, the natural frailty of man, 
 his inclination to evil, his sense of corruption, that something in 
 us which baffles the wisdom of philosophers, the hopes of philan- 
 thropists, all this is indeed a mystery to my reason but a plain 
 
Ver, 20.] Long Lives ^ yet ending as ours do 33 
 
 enough fact to my experience. Why or how it is, I scarcely know ; 
 but I find it to be so around me and within. I see that I have 
 inherited a doom of sorrow, an inclination to evil. I need Christ's 
 Divine cleansing grace to renew my nature. 
 
 5. And, all the days that Adam lived ivere nine hundred 
 and thirty years : and he died. 
 
 Adam's long life made him to many generations a witness of the 
 Creation history, of man's fall, of the hope of a Redeemer. He 
 and those who listened to him served to restrain evil for a while, 
 to inculcate faith in God. Their words were like those of the 
 Evangelist, ' That which we have seen and heard declare we unto 
 you. ' For this purpose they remained alive so long. Adam had 
 heard the sentence, 'Thou shalt surely die,' but he waited long 
 centuries for its fulfilment ; then he passed away in penitence and 
 hope, trusting that Divine mercy would create a fairer and securer 
 Paradise than that which he fondly remembered. 
 
 6. And Seth lived an hundred and jive years, and begat 
 Unas: 7. And Seth lived after he hegat Enos eight himdred 
 and seven years, and hegat sons and daiighters : 8. And all 
 the days of Seth tvere nine hundred and twelve years : and he 
 died. 9. And Enos lived ninety years, and hegat Cainan: 
 10. And Enos lived after he hegat Caiiian eight hxindred and 
 fifteen years, and hegat sons and daughters : 11. And all the 
 days of .Enos ivere nine hundred and five years : and he died. 
 
 12. And Cainan lived seventy years, and hegat Mahalaleel: 
 
 13. And Cainan lived after he hegat Mahalaleel eight hundred 
 and forty years, and hegat sons and daughters : 14. And all 
 the days of Cainan were 7iine hundred and ten years : and he 
 died. 15. And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and 
 hegat Jared : 16. And Mahalaleel lived after he hegat Jared 
 eight hundred and thirty years, and hegat sons and daughters: 
 17. And all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred ninety 
 and five years : and he died. 18. And Jared lived an hun- 
 dred sixty and two years, and he hegat Enoch: 19. And 
 Jared lived after he hegat Enoch eight hxindred years, and 
 hegat sons and daughters : 20. And all the days of Jared 
 ivere nine hundred sixty and two years : and he died. 
 
 Of these long lives we know nought but this, they ended at last ; 
 these lives were far beyond the lengtli that we can hope to reach, 
 but they all conclude as ours do. It is certainly a great mercy of 
 God to have abridged man's days; if we were sure of livin;^ for 
 
34 Enoch's Walk ivith God [Gen. VI, 
 
 eight hundred or nine hundred years, into what licence we should 
 fall, how we should forget our Maker and our Home ! Glory be 
 to God for having put our frailty before our eyes, given us re- 
 minders of death in a decaying body, in the daily sight of pre- 
 mature ends round us ! Glory to God that He has abridged the 
 length of our trial-scene, and made our journey homewards so 
 much the shorter and safer ! This long list of ancient patriarchs 
 is a memorial of the men who preserved something of the tradition 
 of Adam's faith, and formed the line whence Christ should spring 
 — all else of them but their names and years has perished. 
 
 2 1. And Enoch lived sixty and jive years, and begat 
 Methuselah: 22. And Enoch walked with God after he 
 hegat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and 
 daughters: 23. And all the days of Enoch ivere three 
 hunared sixty and five years : 24. And Enoch walked with 
 God : and he ivas not ; for God took him. 
 
 Enoch ' walked with God.' In a world where evil was spreading and 
 increasing, he retained a living faith in God's Providence, a care- 
 ful ready obedience to God's Law ; he worshipped God in all 
 appointed ways ; he ever looked to Him as to a friend. And he 
 is traditionally described as a preacher of judgment (Jude 14), 
 proclaiming the truth of recompense, saying, ' God is Judge, God 
 will surely repay.' Thus living, thus teaching, he was removed 
 from the world suddenly and peacefully into another and a better 
 condition, and, it would seem, without encountering death or, at 
 least, the stroke or terror of death. His was another way into 
 the kingdom, a way different from the dark valley which ordinary 
 mortals tread. Still, our God is the same as his. God is our 
 Friend. We do not refuse to die, since Christ has been by that 
 i-oad. 
 
 25. And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven 
 years, and begat Laviech: 26. And Methuselah lived after 
 lie begat Lamecli seven hundred eighty and tivo years, and 
 brgat sons and daughters: 27. And all the days of 
 Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he 
 died. 
 
 This was the longest life of man ; in what actions and surroundings 
 did it pass? was it not a heavy burden, lasting so long? It must 
 have endfd in the dark days immediately preceding the Flood, 
 when evil had corrupted the whole world. What thoughts, what 
 hopes, what memories did this longest lived am<mg men retain to 
 cheer him in that long decay? Be sure of this, that faith, and 
 
Ver. 2.] A Token of Comfort 35 
 
 the fear of God, and the performance of duty, and the practice of 
 patience, were sufficient to employ even such a long life ; it was 
 but a preparation, a portal, in which man got ready for somewhat 
 to come. 
 
 28. And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, 
 and begat a son: 29. And he called his name Noah, saying, 
 This same shall comfort iis co7icerning our ivork and toil of 
 our hands, because of the ground which the Lord hath cursed. 
 30. And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety 
 and five years, and begat sons and daughters: 31. And all 
 the days of Lamech tvere seven hundred seventy and seven 
 years : and he died. 32. And Noah was five hundred years 
 old : and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Jajiheth. 
 
 Here is a gleam of hope, a promise of comfort. Religion was waning 
 from the earth, troubles and sins were increasing. The family of 
 Cain rejoiced over the inventions and discoveries whereby they 
 ruled the world ; but the family of Seth sighed over God's wrath 
 and the signs of it which they noted about them. Lamech trusted 
 that his son would introduce a blessing, obtain a fuller promise, 
 become the herald of hope ; and this he actually did, after he had 
 first been the herald of judgment. He received a new covenant, 
 became the lord of a purified earth. In looking back on the 
 chapter, I see that it spans a long period, but gives next to no 
 details ; that it records lives of immense length, yet all ending at 
 last ; that it gives hints of faith and worship and hope among 
 primitive men. His servants of old time are still living in God's 
 sight. He whom they served has not forgotten them. 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 X. The wickedness of the world, which provoked God's wrath, and 
 caused the flood. 8. Noah findeth grace. 14. The order, form, 
 and end of the ark. 
 
 AND it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the 
 face of the earth, and daiighfers ivere horn unto them, 
 2. That the sons of God saio the daughters of men that they 
 were fcir ; and they took them wives of all which they chose. 
 
 Whatever is meant by this mysterious statement, I see this plainly, 
 that all the evils which destroyed the primitive world came from 
 unnatural and ill-assorted marriage. Carnal appetite drew these 
 
36 Wearing out God's Long-suffering [Gen. VI. 
 
 'sons of God' to desire these 'daughters of men,' and from this 
 union sprang families who lived without God, and threw off the 
 restraints of Divine Law. Do Thou, dear Lord, direct the hearts 
 of believing lads and girls that they may make their great choice 
 of a helpmate for life with serious thought and according to Thy 
 will and favour. It is thus Thou wouldest have a people raised 
 up to serve and praise Thee ; thus Thy mercy will watch over 
 their married life with its changes and chances. 
 
 3. And the Lord said, My Spirit shall not alivays strive 
 with man, for that he also is flesh : yet his days shall he an 
 himdred and tiventy years. 
 
 Man had become flesh, therefore he offered no home for Divine in- 
 dwelling, no sphere for God's Spirit to influence him ; therefore 
 the very breath of life which God had given him should be now 
 withdrawn ; therefore his days should diminish, his end draw near. 
 There are certain sins which turn the soul or spirit of man to flesh, 
 and expel all higher desires and thoughts. When a thought of 
 good, a call from on high, enters the mind of those who live for 
 tieshly.sins, there is no answering emotion, no power to welcome 
 the Divine inspiration. The intelligence, indeed, discusses, ap- 
 preciates, takes interest ; but the power of choice is gone, the soul 
 can no longer decide, cannot be moved to fruitful repentance. 
 After a while the heavenly visitor retires with no good done, and 
 the sotil returns to its vile slavery. O Lord, from such bondage 
 set me free and keep me free ! 
 
 4. There were giants in the earth in those days ; and also 
 after that, tvhen the sons of God came in unto the daughters of 
 men, and they hare children to them, the same hecame mighty 
 men which were of old, men of renotvn. 
 
 These giants were heroes of the old time, were mighty in strength, 
 fierce and terrible to their fees, they prided themselves on renowned 
 feats of valour ; but they had no thought for justice, mercy, truth ; 
 they had lost hold of true religion. Where now is their fame 
 gone? Not even their names remain. A little act of mercy, a 
 venture of faith, a brave stand made for Christ by some humble 
 soul, will last and win praise, when all the glory of giants and 
 heroes has vanished. 
 
 5. And God saiv that the wickedness of man tvas great in 
 the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his 
 heart ivas only evil continually. 6. And it re2iented the Lord 
 that lie had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him at 
 llis heart. 
 
 Our God is the living God. He feels wrath at our sins ; He changes 
 His purpose if we change our ways ; He is pleased with obedience. 
 
Ver. 12.] NoaKs History begins 37 
 
 is influenced by prayer. But am I not thus importing human 
 frailty into the notion of the all-perfect, unchangeable, all-knowing 
 God ? Am I right in saying that God repents, or grieves, or is 
 made angry? Indeed, these are human phrases and modelled on 
 our infirmities ; but yet they express a truth in God's nature. I 
 cannot know Him as He is, nor comprehend His whole Being ; 
 but I am sure that He hates evil, compassionates sorrow, is able 
 to punish or to forgive. The vision of His Divine Son in the 
 Holy Gospel confirms this representation to me. I behold in the 
 Lord Jesus One Who hates hypocrisy, Who welcomes duty, Who 
 foretells judgments and mercies, forgives the penitent, shows a 
 pattern of love — in that portrait my God is visibly made known. 
 
 7. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have 
 created from the face of the earth ; both man, and beast, and 
 the creejying thing, and the foivls of the air ; for it repenteth 
 Me that I have made them. 8. But Noah found grace in the 
 eyes of the Lord. 
 
 This is the prediction of that great catastrophe wherein ' the world 
 that then was, being overflowed with water, perished ' ; and I 
 know that a like sentence has gone out foretelling the destruction 
 of the present world by fire, though I know not the time of its 
 fulfilment. And as surely as Noah and his family found grace in 
 that old-time judgment, so surely will Christ's family^=— those who 
 bear His Name, cling to His Cross, trust His promise — be pre- 
 served safe through whatever convulsions may await the present 
 world. I do not fear the coming wrath, so long as Christ is my 
 Friend, and I hidden and purified in Him. 
 
 9. These are the generations of Noah : Noah was a just 
 man and perfect in his generations, and Noah ivalked with 
 God. 10. And Noah begat three sons, Shem, Ham and 
 Japheth. 
 
 Here begins the history of the Flood. Many nations of East and 
 West had traditions of this great judgment, and of the escape of 
 one family from it, with the creatures they preserved along with 
 them. Even the details in these accounts have a wonderful re- 
 semblance to that preserved in Scripture. Abraham, who was 
 brought up in Mesopotamia, had learnt this history and trans- 
 mitted it to his descendants. It begins with a notice of Noah's 
 uprightness and piety, and of the names of his three sons. It goes 
 
 ' on to tell both of judgments and of mercies. 
 
 II. The earth also was corriqjt before God, and the earth 
 was filled with violence. 12. And God looked iipon the earth, 
 
38 Plan of the Ark [Gen. VI. 
 
 and hehold, it was corrupt ; for all fiesh had corrtipted his 
 way upon the earth. 
 
 How different an aspect had the world in the eyes of man and in the 
 eyes of God. Men 'did eat and drink; they bought, they sold ; 
 they married, they gave in marriage ' ; all seemed to go on in 
 perfect security ; the fair earth yielded her fruit ; the race of Cain 
 had invented arts and crafts. But in God's sight the earth appeared 
 as before the Creation — formless and desolate, a heap of confusion, 
 a realm of darkness. Where was natural religion gone ? what had 
 become of the witness which man's inward nature bears to purity 
 and mercy ? Alas ! all the inward fabric of natural duty and 
 reverence had been swallowed up by a flood of sin. 
 
 13. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is cane 
 before Me ; for the earth is filled ivith violence through them : 
 and behold, I tvill destroy them with the earth. 
 
 Just as unalterably is God's judgment fixed to destroy this present 
 world in which I live ; just as unalterable is His decree that I 
 must die ; but yet His promises are as fundamental as His wrath. 
 I know that my sins deserve death, my frailty assures me of it ; 
 but now that manhood is joined to Godhead, I cling to the sym- 
 pathy of that One Man, my Redeemer, Who intercedes for man's 
 faults, Who preserves His servants through convulsions of nature, 
 through experiences of decay. Because He lives, we shall live 
 also. 
 
 14. MaTce thee an arh of gopher wood: rooms shalt thou 
 make in the arh, and shalt pitch it within and ivithout with 
 pitch. 15. And this is the fashion ivhich tltoiv shalt make it 
 of : the length of the arh shall be three hundred cubits, the 
 breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits. 
 16. -4 luindow shalt thou, mahe to the ark, and in a cubit shalt 
 thou finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in 
 the side thereof ; loith loiver, second, and third stories shalt 
 thou make it. 
 
 Here are the outlines of that saving Wood which was to convey 
 redeemed mankind over the waters of judgment into a new and 
 purified world ; here is sketched out the City of God about to float 
 on the turbid waves of life— the ark of Christ's Church into which 
 our Baptism admits us. I see, in this sacred ship into which man 
 and animals are admitted for refuge, a figure of the union of 
 l)elievcrs with Christ and with each other. Its timbers are stout 
 and incorruptible, like the patience of a Christian; its breadth is 
 great, like all-embracing charity ; its great length tells of the long 
 
Ver. 2 2.] A Refuge offered from Wrath to come 39 
 
 perseverance of prayer ; its height suggests heavenward desires ; — 
 all is order there, each soul has its due place, each feeling and 
 capacity can be utilised and turned to good. Christ presides over 
 all and makes all acceptable to His Father. 
 
 1 7. And behold, I, even /, do bring a flood of ivaters iipon 
 the earth to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from 
 under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die. 
 18. But ivith thee ivill I establish My covetiant : and thou 
 shall come into the arlc, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and 
 thy sons' wives with thee. 
 
 From the universal doom one man is exempted : he alone is pure 
 and righteous ; for his merits mercy is extended to his family. 
 He builds the avk in which the sacred society is contained. He 
 links together two ages — the old and the new world. For him 
 wild beasts forget their natural fierceness and become tractable ; 
 unclean and clean find a home with him. He receives and shares 
 with his children God's promises of unchanging mercy ; for him 
 wrath is put away and love shines forth. Whom does faith discern 
 figured here? Who is it Who consecrated the saving Wood and 
 made it become our refuge from floods of evil ? 
 
 19. And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort 
 shalt thou bring into the arh, to keep them alive with thee: they 
 shall be male and female. 20. Of fouis after their kind, and 
 of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth 
 after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep 
 them alive. 21. And take thou unto thee of all food that is 
 eaten, and thou shalt gather it to thee : and it shall be for 
 food for thee, and for them. 22. Thus did Noah ; according 
 to all that God commanded him, so did he. 
 
 Noah obeyed by faith. Natural reason would not have told him of 
 any such preceding catastrophe, or would have made him doubt 
 the possibility of collecting and jjreserving so many creatures. 
 All those among whom he lived mocked at the tidings of coming 
 destruction ; but he continued strong in faith and made all pre- 
 paration, nor did he cease to warn men of the approaching judg- 
 ment of God. He is an example of a believer committing all 
 things to God's hands, and careful only to obey and do the best, 
 sure that Omnipotence will turn all things to good, whether our 
 human prevision succeeds or fails. Into Thy hands, O Lord, I 
 commend the issue of my care and forethought ; be it mine only 
 to obey and trust. 
 
40 The Days of Noah [Gen. VII. 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 I. Noah, with his family, and the living creatures, enter into the ark. 
 17. The beginning, increase, and continuance of the flood. 
 
 AND the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy 
 house into the ark ; for thee have I seen righteotis before 
 Me in this generation. 
 
 The same dread voice which had long before bidden him plan and 
 construct this ark told him that now the time was come to use it. 
 God had found him righteous, and therefore saved him, and his 
 family for his sake. God says : ' Here is your shelter and your 
 safeguard ; here is the home prepared, whose walls will keep you 
 safe from the coming ruin ! ' O Lord, the ark of the Church which 
 Thou hast prepared for my rescue from ' this troublesome world ' 
 differs from that of Noah in that it is wholly of Thy preparing, 
 not mine. The saving Wood of the Cross that is honoured there 
 has efficacy by Thy sole appointment and the virtue of Thy Sacri- 
 fice ; nor have I, as Noah had, any merits that claim an entrance. 
 I bring nought but vileness and folly ; but I obey Thy command 
 to enter and trust. 
 
 2. Of every dean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the 
 male and his female : and of beasts that are not clean by tivo, 
 the male and his female. 3. Of fowls also of the air by 
 sevens, the inale and the female ; to keep seed alive 2ipon the 
 face of all the earth. - 
 
 Then there were already some creatures distinguished as clean, and 
 so fit to be offered in sacrifice, others as unclean, and the ark was 
 open to receive both. So it is with the Visible Church, of which the 
 ark was a figure. There all manner of characters are found, true 
 and false, devout and imlevout. Let us keep ourselves for a 
 'living sacrifice' to God, holy and undefiled. He made us, and 
 He would receive us as a living and reasonable sacrifice, daily 
 offered with the fire of love and in union with the all-prevailing 
 merits of Christ. What there has been unclean in us He can 
 purge away. 
 
 4. For yet seven days, and I toill ca^ise it to rain upon tJie 
 earth forty days and forty nights : and every living substance 
 that I have made ivill I destroy from of the face of the earth, 
 5. And Noah did according unto all that the Lord commanded 
 
Vkr. 12.] ' Shut in, or shut out 41 
 
 him. 6. And Noah tvas six hundred years old when the flood 
 of tvaiers ivas iipon the earth. 
 
 Our Lord has taught us that 'as the days of Noah were, so shall also 
 the coming of the Son of Man be.' We are bidden, therefore, 
 to take that judc^ment as a type of the Last Day ; to take heed 
 of warnings as Noah did, not despise them as did the ungodly ; 
 to watch, to obey, and so find safety. That ancient destruction 
 began at the appointed time after the seven days' warning ; but the 
 end of the world, or my own death, which ends the world to me, 
 are unrevealed as to their date. All I know is that the hour of 
 death and the day of judgment are grave realities : that all I see 
 will pass away and I with it. What folly, then, to act and live 
 as if this world were my eternal mansion ! 
 
 7. And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his 
 sons' ivives with him, into the ark, because of the tvaters of the 
 flood. 8. Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, 
 and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth, 
 9. There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the 
 male and the female, as God had commanded Noah. 
 
 During this seven days' respite, Noah received and settled those 
 creatures who were to share his refuge. Once all the creatures 
 had come to Adam to be named, in the days of his innocence, 
 when he was lord of all ; but now they came to Noah, Adam's 
 descendant, and more faithful than he, to require his service in 
 their preservation. Adam ruled and lost the rule. Noah had to 
 provide, to minister, to humbly wait on the creatures ; he ' came 
 not to be ministered unto, but to minister,' and this is a safer way. 
 
 10. And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of 
 the flood were tqwn the earth. 11. In the six hundredth year 
 of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the 
 month, the same day ivere all the foimtains of the great deep 
 broken up), and the windows of heaven were opened. 12. And 
 the rain ivas upon the earth forty days and forty nights. 
 
 Here are the laws reversed which God made at the Creation : the 
 dry land disappears, the seas break from their bed. ThenGcd 
 can, when lie pleases, change the conditions which prevail around 
 us, and under which the life of man and creatures goes on. Yes, 
 indeed, if my experience were wider, if I had eyes to survey other 
 ages or other worlds than this, what marvellous variations of 
 existence might I not behold ! All I know is, that God exists 
 unchanged, and so does the soul that trusts Him. Fire nor 
 water, rending sky nor dissolving globe, can altogether destroy 
 
42 The Door of Safety opened [Gen. VIII. 
 
 love. If my God is mine and I am His, I shall view the ruin of 
 
 visible things without tenor. 
 
 13. In the selfsame day entered Noah, and Shem, and 
 Ham, and Ja2~>heth, the so7is of Noah, and Noah's wife, and 
 the three ivives of Ids sons with them, into the ark ; 14. They, 
 and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their 
 kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth 
 after his kind, and every foivl after his kind, every bird of 
 every sort. 15. And they went in unto Noah into the ark, tivo 
 and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life. 16. And 
 they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God 
 had commanded him : and the Lord sMU Jam in. 
 
 As these entered the ark, so do I enter God's House ; it rises up for 
 me as a refuge amidst the threatening storms of life. The Font 
 reminds me of those who ' were saved by water ' in the old days ; 
 the Altar tells me of the nourishment God has prepared to sustain 
 me ; from the pulpit come proclamations of mercy and judgment. 
 If I leave the shadow of these sacred walls and let my Sundays 
 be wholly swallowed up by the ungodly world, then my peace, 
 my character, my hope, will be endangered too. Glory to Thee, 
 O Lord, Who hast prepared this refuge for me ! Let me bring to 
 it and take from it thoughts of peace, encouragements to do well 
 in the coming week. 
 
 17. And the flood was forty days upon the earth ; and the 
 waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it ivas lift up above 
 the earth. 18. And the ivaters jj^'evailed, and ivere increased 
 greatly upon the earth ; and the ark tuent upon the face of the 
 waters, ig. And the ivaters prevailed exceedingly up)on the 
 earth : and all the high hills, that were under the rchole heaven, 
 were covered. 20. Fifteen ctibits iipward did the toaters pre- 
 vail: and the mountains ivere covered. 
 
 The increase of the terrible Flood served but to uphold the ark. The 
 fiercest winds and currents only drifted it on its appointed way. 
 When all without was blank desolation, hope prevailed within. 
 So it is with the great aflliclions that God sends upon His Church 
 or upon the believing soul, — all these are overruled to good, — all 
 these are designed to overwhelm what is evil in us antl exalt us 
 heavenward. When all that I leant on is blighted or is swallowed 
 up, I will cling the closer to my God, will be all the more at home 
 in the ark which He has provided for my soul. One day my body 
 will turn to corruption, one day all this earth on which I live will 
 perish, but I am safe in my Father's hand. 
 
Ver. I.] A general Ruin 43 
 
 21. And all jlesh died that moved %ipon the earth, both of 
 foivl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing 
 that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: 22. All in 
 whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry 
 land, died. 23. And every living siibstance was destroyed 
 which was iipo7i the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, 
 and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven ; and they 
 were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, 
 and they that tvere with him in the ark. 24. And the waters 
 ptrevailed upon the earth an hundred and fifty days. 
 
 This was a general and indiscriminate ruin ; but in the judgment to 
 come each one will be called to account by himself. This over- 
 whelmed many who had not themselves directly deserved God's 
 wrath ; they perished as to their bodies in the Flood, which swept 
 away a world of unrighteousness ; but in that great day to come, 
 each will receive his own deserts — each will be saved or lost 
 according to his heart's choice of good or evil. As the deluge of 
 water in old time consumed all the settlements of men, so will a 
 deluge of fire one day overtake the whole world. I stand between 
 the one and the other. It would be folly for me to gaze idly on 
 approaching destruction ; nay, I seek the ark of safety, I rejoice 
 to find myself sheltered within its walls, I trust to my God to keep 
 me safe there. As the waters of the Flood prevailed, so unrighteous- 
 ness seems to prevail now ; yet God's servants look forward to 
 His vindication of His truth. They know that He is righteous, 
 and is pleased with blameless souls. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 I. The waters asswage. 4. The ark resteth on Ararat. 7. The raven 
 and the dove. 15. Noah, being commanded, 18. goeth forth of the 
 ark. 20. He buildeth an altar, and offereth sacrifice, 21. which 
 God accepteth, and promiseth to curse the earth no more. 
 
 AND God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and 
 all the cattle that was with him in the ark : and God 
 made a wind to pass over the earth, and the ivaters asswaged ; 
 
 I am within the ark, thank God for it. I carry with me the remem- 
 brance of past mercies, the hope of good things to come. Every 
 day God's Church becomes more precit)us. I delight in the order, 
 the praises, the instructions of God's sanctuary. Christ is my 
 
44 The decreashig Flood [Gen. VIIL 
 
 Noah, the Captain of my salvation, the Head of the believing 
 family. Leaning on Him, I fear not the storms which rage out- 
 side ; God will assuage them in His good time. He regards me 
 as united to His Son, and well pleasing to Him for His Son's sake. 
 
 2. The fountains also of the dee}) and the windacs of 
 heaven were stopped^ and the rain from heaven was restrained : 
 3. And the tvaters returned from off the earth continualli/ : 
 and after the end of the h\indred and fifty days the waters 
 were abated. 4. Aiid the ark rested in the seventh monih^ on 
 the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of 
 Ararat. 5. And the ivaters decreased continually until the 
 tenth month: in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, 
 tvere the top of the moimtains seen. 
 
 Here is a Columbus seeking for a new world ; here is a voyager 
 freighted with a precious cargo, with a unique burden of memories 
 and hopes. Noah kept a record of all that passed ; he noted the 
 time as it passed by, watched for the signs of the lessening flood. 
 In the New Testament I have read (Acts xxvii. ) of St. Paul's 
 voyage and shipwreck as he bore gospel tidings from East to West. 
 I find there the details of his voyage, the fluctuations of the weather, 
 the shipwreck at last on the shore of Malta. He, too, had a special 
 treasure of truth to cherish, was upheld by a special promise of 
 protection. 
 
 6. And it came to pass at the end of forty days, thai Noah 
 opened the window of the ark which he had made: 7. And 
 he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the 
 toaters were dried upi from off the earth. 8. Also he sent forth 
 a dove from him, to see if the ivaters were abated from off the 
 face of the ground ; 9. But the dove found no rest for the 
 sole of her foot, and she returned unto liim into the ark, for 
 the toaters were on the face of the whole earth : then he put 
 forth his hand, and took her, and pidhd her in unto him into 
 the ark. 
 
 Noah had with him the raven and the dove ; he sent forth first the 
 one and then the other. Ancient writers see in these two birds, 
 preserved in the ark, a figure of two different sorts of Christians 
 who exist in God's Church. The raven, with its black colour, its 
 harsh voice, its love for carrion, differs from the gentle dove, the 
 pet and friend of man. So, in the Church, there are Christians 
 who are but Christians in name, who disturb the harmony of the 
 prayers, who attach themselves to the world's corruptions — their 
 
Ver. ly.] The Dovis Return 45 
 
 real home is not in the ark, they are glad to be free from its 
 restraint. But there are other souls who rejoice in God's mercies, 
 wlio live in simplicity and peace, who find themselves at home in 
 God's House, who feel that they are strangers and pilgrims in the 
 world — these are figured by the dove. 
 
 10. And lie stayed yet other seven days: and again he sent 
 forth the dove out of the ark ; 11. And the dove came in to 
 him in the evening : and lo, in her moxith was an olive leaf 
 plucked off: so Noah knew that the waters ivere abated from 
 off the earth. 12. And he stayed yet other seven days: and 
 sent forth the dove : which returned not again unto him any 
 more. 
 
 The olive leaf was a sign of reconciliation, a proof that God had 
 made peace with His creatures. The dove bearing the olive leaf 
 reminds me of that Holy Spirit of peace. Who tells us of hope, 
 Who ]ioints us towards the heavenly country. The dove came back 
 no more, because the ark is but meant for our sojourn. Our rest 
 is not here : there is a land beyond the sea — a new life that dawns 
 on us now, and will one day shine forth in all its beauty. Wlien 
 that is revealed, the Church and its ordinances will have passed 
 away and heavenly realities come instead. 
 
 13. And it came to pass in the six hundredth and first 
 year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the tvaters 
 ivere dried up from off' the earth : and Noah removed the 
 covering of the ark, and looked, and behold, the face of the 
 ground was dry. 14. And in the second month, on the seven 
 and tioentieth day of the month, was the earth dried. 
 
 During the year and ten days that had passed, Noah and his family 
 had been alone with thoughts of God, with fear and awe of His 
 judgments, with growing hopes of new life and fresh mercies. He 
 was not quite the same as he had been, such a season had left deep 
 traces on his heart ; he remembered the days and events v\ hich 
 had marked different stages in his sojourn. So I desire, when 
 sickness and danger are over, when trials have passed, to recall 
 what I felt then, to remember those hours when I prayed from 
 my heart, when I leant only on God for succour. The Flood has 
 passed, but God remains an unchanging Friend. He is my Refuge 
 in time and eternity, 
 
 15. A /id God spake unto Noah, saying, 16. Go forth of 
 the ark, tho^i, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons' tvives 
 with thee. 17. liring forth tvith thee every living thing that 
 
46 A new Earth [Gen. IX. 
 
 is with thee, of all flesh, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of 
 every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they 
 may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and 
 multiply upon the earth. 
 
 The voice which had bade him take refuge speaks now and bids 
 him leave it. He had been faithful to this heavenly Guide, and 
 would not take a fresh step without the same direction. No doubt 
 some apprehension held him back — was the judgment really past ? 
 would earth resume her wonted garb, yield her produce as of old? 
 He recalled those days when he had gazed round the horizon 
 vainly seeking for some landmark, some trace of life, and feared 
 lest they should recur ; but no, God bade him venture forth in 
 trust and peace. When He calls, a new pursuit, a new home, a 
 new life beyond the grave become familiar to the soul ; we venture 
 forth and lay aside fear ; warnings turn for us into blessings. 
 
 1 8. And Noah ivent forth, and his sons, and his tvife, and 
 his sons' wives with him: 19. Every beast, every creeping 
 thing, and every fowl, and ivhatsoever creepeth upon the earth, 
 after their hinds, ivent forth out of the ark. 
 
 ' How joyful from the imprisoning ark 
 Oa the green earth they spring.' 
 
 Noah rejoiced to feel, as did the Good Shepherd (St. John xviii. 9), 
 ' Of those which Thou gavest Me have I lost none. ' He was as' 
 careful over the meanest as the greatest creatures. This occasion 
 seemed to him like a fresh Creation ; like that moment of which 
 he had heard by tradition from Paradise, when all the creatures 
 were first marshalled in the perfected world. He had foreshadow- 
 ings of a new heaven and new earth, which should come when all 
 this world shall have passed away. 
 
 20. And Noah builded an altar unto the Lord ; and took 
 of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt 
 offerings on the altar. 
 
 An altar is the first erection in the restored and purified world. By 
 it Noah dedicated afresh to God himself and all that he had ; he 
 expressed in this sacrifice his gratitude, his submission, his desire 
 to give up himself to God's good pleasure all his days. Had he 
 some dim thoughts of a better offering — a blood-shedding more 
 efficacious — which time and grace should bring? The animals fit 
 for sacrifice were spared from the Flood, but only to be immolated 
 at its conclusion. 'I'heir greater excellence brouglit them death ; 
 they were chosen to express man's self-oblation. Why do God's 
 
Ver. 2.] Human Frailty and Divine Mercy 47 
 
 servants murmur when He chooses them out for suffering and 
 seems to spare the profane ? Is it not a glory to suffer for Him, 
 and in dependence on His will? 
 
 21. And the Lord smelled a sweet savour ; and the Lord 
 said in His heart, I will not again curse the ground any more 
 for man's sake: for the imagination of mail's heart is evil 
 from his youth : neither will I again smite any more every 
 thing living, as I have done. 22, While the earth remaineth, 
 seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and 
 winter, and day and night shall not cease. 
 
 In the prevailing virtue of this sacrifice of praise which penetrated 
 heaven, and drew down a favouring answer, I see shadowed forth 
 the power of Christ's own offering, which is ever living and 
 miglity. 
 
 ' The offering smokes through earth and skies. 
 Diffusing Hfe and joy and peace; 
 To these His lower courts it comes, 
 And fills them with Divine perfumes.' 
 
 It reverses the doom of justice, turns wrath into love, obtains ever- 
 lasting life. What Noah won was a promise of temporal Provid- 
 ence, that the fair earth should go on its way as heretofore, should 
 produce and nourish creatures ; but what I receive in Christ is the 
 assurance of an everlasting Love, an unfailing Righteousness. 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 1. God blesseth Noah. 4. Blood and murder are forbidden. 8. God's 
 
 covenant, 13. signified by the rainbow. 18. Noah replenisheth the 
 world, 20. planteth a vineyard, 21. is drunken, and mocked of 
 his son, 25. curseth Canaan, 26. blesseth Shem, 27. prayeth for 
 Japheth, 29. and dieth. 
 
 AND God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, 
 Be fruitful, and midtiply, and replenish the earth. 
 
 2. And the fear of yoxi and the dread of you shall be upon 
 every beast of the earth, and vj^on every foivl of the air, upon 
 all that moveth upon the earth, and uioon all the Jishes of the 
 sea : into yotir hand are they delivered. 
 
 Here is Gods primal blessing renewed to man ; here is given again 
 the command to increase and fill the earth, and the position of 
 
The Sanctity of Human Life [Gen. IX. 
 
 sovereignty over all the other creatures of God. God mercifully 
 restores man to that level whence he had fallen by sin, gives him 
 confidence to go forth and turn the world to his purposes. By 
 these words man is encouraged to subdue nature, is bidden to 
 baffle her wiles and turn her treasures to his use. If I do not yet 
 see all things put under him, yet it is in Christ that man is per- 
 fected. He, when He appeared, walked through the world as its 
 Lord ; in Him I claim my right ; to Him I look for an eternal 
 inheritance. The promises made to man find their full realisation 
 in Him Who is pure and perfect man, yet Divine. 
 
 3. Every moving thing that liveth shall he meat for you : 
 even as the green herb have I given you all things. 4. But 
 flesh ivith the life thereof, ivhich is the hlood thereof, shall ye 
 not eat. 
 
 This precept, not to eat of blood, and therefore not of any meat from 
 which the blood has not been let out, was strictly renewed under 
 the Law (Lev. xvii. 10-12) ; and the Apostles, in like manner, 
 enjoined it on their Gentile converts (Acts xv. 29), so that they 
 should not vex Jewish Christians by doing what was abominable 
 in their eyes. Yet it has always been held to be a precept of 
 positive appointment only, and not permanently binding on 
 Christians. It was enjoined because under the Law atonement 
 was made by shedding of blood — blood spoke of expiation. But 
 now that Christ has paid our ransom once for all, there is no 
 further need of propitiation by blood ; saving only this, that at 
 the Christian altar Christ's Atoning Blood, of infinite virtue, is in 
 a mystery presented to God and partaken of by us, that our souls 
 may be cleansed from sin. 
 
 5. And surely your hlood of your lives tvill I require: at 
 the hand of every beast toill I require it, and at the hand of 
 man : at the hand of every man's brother ivill I reqtiire the 
 life of man. 6. Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his 
 blood be shed : for in the image of God made He man. 
 7. A7id you, be ye fruitful, and mxdtiply : bring forth 
 abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein. 
 
 If human life is of such awful sanctity, and to be guarded and avenged 
 so strictly, what shall we say of those causeless and cruel wars 
 which have cut life down by the thousand ? what of those blood- 
 thirsty penal laws which sacrificed life for a trifle of property ? what 
 of the preventil)le scourges of disease and misery which rage among 
 the destitute? Does not God, who made man's body and soul so 
 wonderfully that in man He might be visibly represented, look 
 upon each human being with love and bid us reverence His Image? 
 
Ver. 15.] Tokens of a pai'doniitg God 49 
 
 In a child, in a poor destitute person, in one who has gone griev- 
 ously astray, in one who is aged and childish, I yet behold the 
 likeness of my God — a creature to be honoured and ser\'ed for 
 God's sake. 
 
 8. And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons ivith him, 
 saying, 9. And I, behold I establish My covenant with yo%i 
 and with your seed after you ; 10. And with every living 
 creature that is xvith yoxi, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of 
 every beast of the earth with you ; from all that go out of the 
 ark, to every beast of the earth. 11. And I tvill establish My 
 covenant with you ; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more 
 by the tvaters of a flood ; neither shall there any more be a 
 flood to destroy the earth. 
 
 Here is a promise made by God, freely and mercifully, and not 
 depending on the merits of man. Whatever faults Noah's pos- 
 terity should commit, yet still the promise shall stand sure. Nor 
 does it depend on those who benefit by it knowing about it ; no, 
 many have not learnt at all about their God and His promised 
 mercy, and yet the covenant stands sure with them. Here I 
 behold God making a promise to man, standing forth and promis- 
 ing him safety from any recurrence of the devouring Flood. Here 
 I discern a figure of the wider, deeper, more blessed promise which 
 He has exhibited to me in Christ Jesus, and which pledges me 
 deliverance from eternal loss. 
 
 12. A7id God said, This is the token of the covenant which 
 I make betiveen Me and you, and every living creature that is 
 with you, for iKvpetual generations : 13. / rfo set My boiv in 
 the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant betiveen Me 
 and the earth. 
 
 Here is ' the faithful witness in heaven ' ; here is the bow which 
 clothes in symbolic representation the throne of God as Ezekiel 
 and St. John saw it ; here is a token that lasts on till the end of 
 the world. This is the first sacrament of God's Love; the 'out- 
 ward and visible sign ' of God's mercy, ordained by Him to have 
 that meaning. It is a work of God alone, not wrought by human 
 skill. It rests on a dark background of cloud ; when all is fair, 
 we do not see it ; so God's mercy is realised by us out of trouble 
 and remorse. Blessed be God for thus linking this familiar and 
 beautiful sight with thoughts of His faithfulness. His mercy! 
 
 14. And it shall come to pass, ivhen I bring a cloud over the 
 earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: 15. And I 
 tvill remember My covenant, tvhich is betiveen Me and you and 
 
 D 
 
5© The Rainbo7ti Sign [Gen. IX. 
 
 every living creature of all flesh ; and the waters shall no more 
 become a flood to destroy all flesh. i6. A7id the boiv shall he 
 in the cloud ; and I will look upon it, that I may remember 
 the everlasting covenant between God and every living creat%ire 
 of all flesh that is upon the earth. 
 
 Jesus is to us what the rainbow was to believers in early days. He 
 tempers the dazzling rays of Godhead by the clouds of His Sacred 
 Humanity. He pledges God's Love to us. He testifies God's 
 Truth. He represents to God and to us the eternal promise of 
 pardon. How high is He, yet touching earth ! How bright, yet 
 to be gazed on by our weak sight ! How connected with thoughts 
 of judgment, yet of mercy too ! How able to propitiate God and 
 to encourage us ! I delight in the rays of this ' soft undazzling 
 light,' wherein is all my security and peace. 
 
 17. And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the 
 covenant, ivhich I have established between Me and all flesh 
 that is upon the earth. 
 
 Yet the rainbow is formed by natural laws of light : it is but the pro- 
 duct of the beams of light broken by the fallmg raia True ; but 
 nature is God's appointment, and shows forth His wisdom and 
 power. By taking this natural phenomenon, so beautiful and so 
 common, for His token of covenant, God pledges Himself that the 
 natural order shall continue. In nature God's Face is veiled from 
 us, or but dimly seen amidst many dark clouds ; but in Gospel 
 mysteries He is more clearly revealed. Still even here there are 
 clouds, though with bright beams glancing through them. I wait 
 in patience till the clouds pass away, 
 
 18. And the sons of Noah, that went forth of the ark, were 
 Shem, and Ham, and Japheth : and Ham is the father of 
 Canaan. 19. These are the three sons of Noah : and of them 
 was the whole earth overspread. 
 
 From hence mankind started afresh. All the great histories, great 
 dynasties, great works of the post-diluvian world, which man's vain 
 traditions have clothed with divinity, made to extend over imme- 
 morial ages, must be brought down within five thousand years 
 before Christ. The earth itself has existed for ages beyond count- 
 ing. Creatures, too, of all sorts have been born and have perished 
 during countless ages ; but our race is a much more modern pro- 
 duction, our history much shorter than that of the beasts. Behold 
 man started afresh after his great catastrophe, dispersed abroad 
 and resettling the earth, carrying with him everywhere the same 
 hopes, thoughts, joys, and fears, the same upward look, the same 
 frailty and mortality. He sets forth to perform his Maker's bid- 
 ding, and conquer a home and livelihood for himself. 
 
Ver. 25.] Filial Respect or Disrespect 51 
 
 20. And Noah began to he an husbandman, and he jylantedj 
 a vineyard: 
 
 Noah's great age and his dignity as the new head of mankind did 
 not dispense him from labour. lie returned to it with zeal after 
 his deliverance. He regarded it as God's appointment for him ; 
 he passed readily from worship to work, and from work to worship 
 again. Even while his hands were busy, his heart was often 
 uplifted to God. 
 
 21. And he drank of the ivine, and was drunken; and he 
 was uncovered within his tent. 22. And Ham, the father of 
 Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two 
 brethren without. 
 
 In Noah, naked and helpless, overcome by this new, sweet, potent 
 gift, subject to the mockery of his profane son, I behold Christ 
 Jesus hanging on the Cross, stripped and forsaken, ridiculed by 
 His enemies, treated with inextinguishable scorn as a detected 
 impostor. He had drunk deeply of the cup of humiliation, so 
 that for our sakes He appeared in utter abasement. Nor has the 
 scandal of the Cross ceased yet : to how many is it too hard a 
 lesson, too confounding an experience ! — they cannot discern God 
 there. 
 
 23. And Shem and Ja,pheth took a garment, and laid it 
 upon both their shoulders, and went backtvard, and covered the 
 nakedness of their father ; and their faces ivere backward, and 
 they saiv not their father's nakedness. 
 
 Here is the attitude of Faith. Faith adores the humiliation of the 
 Incarnate Son, reverences all the particulars of His abasement ; 
 but does not attempt to comprehend or explain anything there. 
 Faith has its own modesty, leaves mysteries veiled, submits and 
 obeys rather than lays down the law. Give me. Lord, the prompt 
 reverence and dutifulness which these two good sons showed ; let 
 me, in dealing with truths of religion, behave reverently as I would 
 towards persons whom age or duty bids me reverence. I would 
 come into Thy House with adoration, behave there with respect 
 and gravity, speak of mysteries with humble submission. 
 
 24. And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his 
 younger son had done unto him. 25. And he said. Cursed be 
 Canaan ; a servant of servants shall he he unto his brethren. 
 
 What this signified in Noah's malediction was the low and mean 
 condition, the subject state to which Ham's descendants should fall. 
 
52 JVoah^s latter Years [Gen. X. 
 
 They should be set beneath the descendants of Shem and of Japheth, 
 should supply them with slaves, fall beneath them in endowments. 
 But do not think that it remains unrevoked. Oh no ! Abraham's 
 promised Seed has brought a blessing to all nations, which has 
 more than done away with the curse. Do not think it justifies 
 slavery and slave-dealing. Oh no ! Christ Jesus has taken humanity 
 into oneness with Hmiself and glorified it. Canaan's descendants 
 are His brethren. He has revived the Image of God in which they 
 were made. 
 
 26. And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem ; and 
 Canaan shall be his servant. 27. God shall enlarge Jajiheth, 
 and he shall divell in the tents of Shem ; and. Canann shall be 
 his servant. 
 
 Out of the descendants of Shem came Abraham's family, among 
 whom the True God was revealed and worshipped. The descend- 
 ants of Japheth have become the leading nations of Europe and 
 America, in whom humanity has reached its highest intellectual 
 range, and who have subdued the earth before them. To Shem 
 fell the religious leadership of the world ; to Japheth the royalty 
 of art, learning, government. Ham and his posterity have fallen 
 behind both these. When the fulness of time was come the sons 
 of Japheth passed over and occupied that revelation which God 
 had made to the race of Shem ; they entered it and dwelt there as 
 in their own. 
 
 28. And Noah lived after the Jiood three hundred and fifty 
 years. 29. And all the days of Noah were nine hundred and 
 fifty years : and he died. 
 
 In this prolonged life Noah handed down memories of the old world, 
 thoughts of God's mercy, instructions how to serve Him, hopes of 
 a Redeemer to come. He lived so long that the great Flood re- 
 ceded into the dim past, and he could scarcely think that it was 
 he who had experienced it. But both he and I have yet to pass 
 through another catastrophe which exceeds that in terror and 
 in universality. He will rise from his grave, I from mine, when the 
 Last Day comes. He will give account for his nine hundred and 
 fifty years, I for my span, whatever it be. 
 
Ver. 5.] Japheth^s Line 53 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 / 
 
 I. The generations of Noah. 2. The sons of Japheth. 6. The sons of 
 Ham. 8. Nimrod the first monarch. 21. The sons of Shem. 
 
 "VTOW these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, 
 Xl Ham, and Japheth : and imto them ivere sons born 
 after the flood. 
 
 Does this chapter merely contain a dry and formal register of nations, 
 a category of the tribes who settled in this or that part of the 
 known world ? No. There is here a pervading sense of the 
 oneness of mankind — men are brethren, descended from one stock, 
 have common sympathies, a common interest in Divine Mercy. 
 Do not think that any nations, however far distant, ignorant, 
 superstitious, in darkness, are outside God's mercy. His Son was 
 incarnate for all ; His Spirit breathes in all. This document 
 gives us a brief account of the tribes who dwelt within the writer's 
 horizon, and traces their descent to one or other of Noah's sons. 
 Thoughts about judgment, about mercy, about one God, about 
 prayer, went with them in their dispersion. Not all nations that 
 dwell on the globe are mentioned in this chapter ; not the Indians 
 (Esther i. i), nor the Chinese (Isaiah xlix. 12), nor the negroes, 
 nor the Malayan or American tribes ; but we infer from what is 
 told us here, and from what science and reason tell us, that men 
 are all of one stock and have a common capacity for apprehending 
 God's truth. 
 
 2. The sons of Japheth ; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, 
 and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. 3. And 
 the sons of Gomer ; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah. 
 4. And the sons of Javan; Elishah, and, Tarshish, Kittim, 
 and Dodanim. 5. By these were the isles of the Gentiles 
 divided in their lands ; every one after his tongue, after their 
 families, in their nations. 
 
 The children of Japheth went towards north and west ; they filled 
 Central Asia, Armenia, Asia Minor, the coasts of the Black Sea 
 and the /Egean ; they gradually settled the countries of Europe; 
 it is likely that they occupied India also. For these races God 
 had a great future in reserve — He stored up for them triumphs of 
 intellect, of government ; He reserved the distant future for them ; 
 He bade them succeed, later on, to the inheritance of the earth, 
 when the ancient Eastern empires had passed away. The Prophets 
 tell me that it is God Who gives or takes away empires, that it is 
 
54 Ham^s Line [Gen. X. 
 
 not our mere initiative but His Providence that settles the world's 
 destinies. To what nation I belong, what hereditary gifts or 
 tendencies I have, is His ordering, but yet I have my own tongue 
 and hand to rule, my own character to mould. He Who has made 
 and governs all is yet my Friend. v 
 
 6. And the sons of Ham ; Ciish, and Mizraim, and Phut, 
 and Canaan. 7. And the sons of Gush ; Seba, and Havilah, 
 and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtechah : and the sons of 
 Raamah ; Sheba, and Dedan. 
 
 The children of Ham peopled Egypt, North Africa, Phoenicia, parts 
 of Arabia and Mesopotamia. To them God gave the earliest 
 empires, the first developments of civilisation. Among them 
 sprang up early marvels of art and grandeur ; the time for the 
 sons of Japheth and the sons of Shem to influence the world was 
 not yet come. God bade them wait for the appointed season. 
 In Ilis sight nations grow and decay ; they spring up and flourish 
 in youth and energy like individual men ; He sees their mature 
 years, their dissolution, and yet deals with each soul of whom 
 they are made up. 
 
 8. And Cush begat Nimrod : he ber/an to be a might?/ one 
 in the earth. 9. He ivas a m,ighty htinter before the Lord : 
 wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before 
 the Lord. 10. And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, 
 and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. 
 II. Out of that land tvent forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh, 
 and the city Rehoboth, and Calah, 12. And Resen between 
 Nineveh and Calah : the same is a great city. 
 
 In these verses is noted the first beginning of the mighty empires of 
 Babylon and Assyria, which grew to a great height, 
 
 'hiding the glorious sky 
 from half the nations.' 
 
 Babylon began first, then Assyria was founded from it and grew 
 greater than it ; then Assyria's turn came to pass away, while 
 Babylon remained for a while ; finally Babylon too fell and became 
 desolate. Of all the many centuries that rolled over those two 
 empires, the mighty cities, gorgeous palaces, successful wars, 
 trains of prisoners and spoil, there remain but few relics. Yet 
 our own day has seen disinterred figures, inscriptions, ornaments, 
 ruins, which tell of that old-world grandeur, built in tears and 
 blood. Contrast Nimrod with Abraham, whose history begins in 
 the next chapter ; they both came from the same region ; the one 
 was a mighty hunter, warrior, spoiler, and enslaver of men ; he 
 heaped up plunder and glory. The other lived a life of oeace, 
 
Ver. 26.] Origin of the Cana unites 55 
 
 of humble industry, of communing with God. On whose side are 
 we ranked ? which of the two could claim us as his ? 
 
 1 3. And Mizraim hegat Ludim, and Anamin, and Lehabim, 
 and Naphtuhim, 14. Aifid Pathrusim, and Casluhim {out of 
 whom came Philistim) and Ca2'>htorim. 
 
 These are difTerent tribes of Egypt or the countries bordering on 
 Egypt. Among them rapidly sprang up luxury and scientific skill. 
 Already in Egypt, four thousand years before Christ, there was a 
 great monarch, display of wealth, great builders, great artists. 
 This world's culture rapidly ripened there. It was reserved for 
 humble souls who regarded themselves as strangers and sojourners, 
 on whose history we shall enter at the end of the next chapter, to 
 lay the foundations of our heavenward knowledge ; but this is the 
 most important to us. 
 
 15. And Canaan hegat Sidon his firstborn, and Ileth, 
 
 16. And the Jebicsite, and the Amorite, and the Girgasite, 
 
 17. And the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite, 18. And 
 the Arvadite, and the Zemarite, and the Hamathite : and 
 afierivard ivere the families of the Canaanites sp^-ead abroad. 
 
 19. And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon, as thou 
 comest to Gerar, unto Gaza; as thou goest unto Sodom, and 
 Gomorrah, and Admah, and Zeboim, even unto Lasha. 
 
 20. These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after 
 their tongues, in their countries, and in their nations. 
 
 When I read this list of the Phoenician, Hittite, Canaanite tribes, 
 my minil dwells not on the mercantile glory of Tyre and Sidon 
 (Ezekiel xxvii.), not on the sins and doom of the Canaanites, 
 but on that Syrophoenician or Canaanite woman whose marvellous 
 faith and perseverance won a blessing from the Lord, or on those 
 devout Tyrians (Acts xxi. 5), or hospitable Sidonians (Acts xxvii. 
 3), who loved and welcomed the great Apostle of the Gentiles • 
 in such persons grace overcame the defects of nature. 
 
 21. Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eher, 
 the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him ivere children 
 bom. 22. The children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and, 
 Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram. 23. And the children of 
 Aram; Uz, and Hid, and Gethcr, and Mash. 24. And 
 Arphaxad begat Scdah ; and Sal ah begat Eber. 25. And 
 unto Eber luere born tivo sons : and the name of one ivas Peleg; 
 for in his days u'cis the earth divided ; and his brothei''s name 
 was Joktan. 26. And Joktan begat Almodad, and Sheleph, 
 
56 Shem's Line [Gen. XI. 
 
 and Uazarmaveth, and Jerah, 2 7. And Hadoram, and Uzal, 
 and Dihlah, 28. And Obal, and Abimael, and Sheba, 
 29. And Ophir, and Havilah, and Jobah : ail these ivere the 
 sons of Joktan. 30. And their dwelling ivas from Mesha, as 
 thou goest tmto Sephar, a mount of the east. 31. These are 
 the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongiies, in 
 their lands, after their nations. 
 
 The children of Shem formed the stock whence were drawn the 
 chosen seed ; but besides Abraham's family they sent forth the 
 dwellers in many regions, eastward, northward, and southward. 
 Among them were reckoned the founders of Persian, Syrian, 
 Lydian, and Arabian nations — nay, they colonised Indian and 
 African coasts. God, Who made all nations and spread them 
 abroad, gave to each people its national characteristics, its capaci- 
 ties, its fortunes in history. He set them ' that they might feel 
 after Him and find Him,' that they mi-lit live according to His 
 law. When His due time came, He revealed to them the power- 
 ful and saving remedy of His Holy Gospel. 
 
 32. These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their 
 generations, in their nations: and by these tvere the nations 
 divided in the earth after the flood. 
 
 Why has God set some nations with so many more advantages of 
 position, of culture, of strength than others ? Nay, why has He 
 given me such blessings of parentage, education, evangelical 
 truth? Why has His partial mercy brought me back to Him, 
 while others seem left to their own wanderings ? Indeed I know 
 not ; but I adore that Providence which is above my under- 
 standing. I am persuaded that He deals wisely and justly with 
 all, no less where I cannot trace His dealings than where I can. 
 I set my life and destiny in His hands, and prepare to give account 
 to Him for all. 
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 One language in the world. 3. The building of Babel. 5. The con- 
 fusion of tongues. 10. The generations of Shem. 27. The genera- 
 tions of Terah the father of Abram. 51. Terah goeth from Ur to 
 Haran. 
 
 A 
 
 Nlj) the tvhole earth tvas of one language, and of one 
 
 spieecli. 
 
 What was that earliest language? We know not — nor how it was 
 framed, — but God had endowed man with this gift that he could 
 
Ver. 6.] Heaven-assailing Cries 57 
 
 speak, could name things, could communicate his ideas. In that 
 earliest tongue words were found to preserve the tradition of a 
 Creator, a Fall, a Deluge, words expressing love, duty, com- 
 passion, the common toils and objects of life. Nations of the 
 earth, however widely dispersed, however ignorant and degraded, 
 were not left without some traces of a common ancient inheritance 
 of thought. Glory be to God for the great gift of speech ! It is 
 now perfected and enriched so as to be a fit vehicle for conveying 
 His truth to hearts. 
 
 2. And it came to pass, as they jotimeyed from the east, 
 that they found a 'plain in the land of Shinar ; and they 
 dwelt there. 3. And they said one to another, Go to, let tts 
 make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick 
 for stone, and slime had they for morter. 4. And they said, 
 Go to, let us build us a city and a toiuer, lohose top may reach 
 unto heaven ; and let tis make tis a name, lest we be scattered 
 abroad upon the face of the whole earth. 
 
 Here we find the origin of the earthly Babylon, the city of confusion, 
 the type of this world's glory. Towards the end of this same 
 chapter we find first mentioned the name of him whom God 
 called to found the heavenly city, the community of believers. 
 The city of this world has infinite glory, numbers, splendour, 
 renown. The fellowship of true believers which Abraham founded 
 looks poor and humble in comparison ; and yet it lasts on, nay, 
 will outlast the other. The city and tower of the ambitious 
 builders which rose on the Chaldean plain is but a heap of ruins 
 now ; but faith and patience can climb to God's throne. 
 
 5. And the Lord came dotvn to see the city and the tower, 
 which the children of men builded. 
 
 God had to come down to see it, — it was a trifle after all when viewed 
 from heaven ; but He did come, — that is, He visited and judged 
 the design. The builders did not know of that Psalm which says 
 * Except the Lord build the house, their labour is but lost that 
 build it.' They did not consider Him Who was considering them. 
 Many of our ambitious schemes so take up our mind that they 
 obscure the thought of the All-seeing God ; but we who build are 
 only 'children of men,' frail and feeble, not able to give to our 
 undertakings a permanent abiding character. 
 
 6. And the Lord said. Behold, the j)eople is one, and they 
 have all one lawiuage ; and, this they begin to do: and now 
 nothing will be restrained from them, tvhich they have imagined 
 
58 The City of Confusion [Gen. XI. 
 
 to do. 7. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their 
 language, that they may not understand one another's speech. 
 
 Man had said, 'Come, let us build,' God said, 'Come, let us overthrow.' 
 How different from this tower and city of confusion are the 
 schemes which find favour in God's sight ! I should reckon 
 that a plan had God's favour which was begun with prayer, and 
 with a deep distrust of self, and in a spirit of charity to others, 
 and with a pervading submission to Him Who disposes all things 
 well. Such plans, such hopes, even if they fail, are not over- 
 thrown but overruled and directed to other good ends. Out of 
 the ruins of our attempts God can frame the walls of the ever- 
 lasting city. 
 
 8. So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the 
 face of all the earth : and they left off to build the city. 
 9. Therefore is the name of it called Babel ; because the Lord 
 did there confound the language of all the earth : and from 
 thence did the Lord scatter them abroad tipon the face of all 
 Vie earth. 
 
 O Lord, reverse for believers this judgment ; make them to under- 
 stand the needs of others, the wants and aspirations of men, and 
 so sup[)ly the truths and gifts which our confused age needs. 
 Thou Who knowest all men's hearts, impart this knowledge in its 
 degree to those who profess Thy Name, that they may be able to 
 aid their brethren to believe. This strange mar\-el of the con- 
 fused dialects and broken hopes of the Babel builders makes me 
 think of the day of Pentecost and its gift of tongues. That made 
 dift'erent languages serve, in ecstasy, for union not confusion — 
 made them declare the wonderful works and glorious praises of 
 God, made them a sign of the Spirit's unifying, healing work. 
 After this verse the history leaves other races and limits itself to 
 that family only to whom the treasure of faith and the hope of 
 Redemption are committed ; other races are a prey to confusion ; 
 in this alone is some hope of peace. 
 
 10. These are the generations of Shem: Shem was an 
 hundred years old, and begat Arphaxad tivo years after the 
 flood: II. And Shem lived after he begat Arphaxad five 
 hundred years, and begat sons and daughters. 12. And 
 Arphaxad lived five and thirty years, and begat Salah: 
 13. And Arphaxad lived after he begat Salah four hundred 
 and three years, and begat sons and daughters. 14. And 
 Salah lived thirty years, and begat Eber : 15. And Salah 
 lived after he begat Eber four hundred and three years, and 
 begat sons and daugJiters. 16. And Eber lived four and 
 
Ver. 32.] The holy Seed 59 
 
 thirty years, and begat Peleg : 17. And Eber lived after he 
 begat Peleg four hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and 
 daughters. 18. jhid Peleg lived thirty years, and begat Reu : 
 19. And Peleg lived after he begat Reu tivo hundred and nine 
 years, and begat sons and daughters. 20. And Reu lived tivo 
 and thirty years, and begat Serug : 21. And Reu lived after 
 he begat Serug two hundred and seven years, and begat sons 
 and daughters. 22. And Serug lived thirty years, and begat 
 Nahor : 23. And Serug lived after he begat Nahor tivo 
 hundred years, and begat sons and daxighters. 24. And 
 Nahor lived nine and twenty years, and begat Terah : 
 25. And Nahor lived after he begat Terah an hundred and 
 nineteen years, and begat sons and daughters. 26. And 
 Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and 
 Haran. 
 
 Here we leave the history of great empires, and confine ourselves to 
 that line from which the Redeemer should spring ; and yet of this 
 we have no more than the succession of names and the age of 
 each. We observe that life is continually growing shorter in the 
 centuries after the Flood till it comes down at last to the same 
 limit at which we find it now. We observe that the earlier 
 Patriarchs, such as Noah and Shem, must have lived a long while 
 with their descendants, must have preserved for them many 
 traditions of primeval days. Having observed these things we 
 hasten on to the birth of Abraham, through whom God was about 
 to reveal Himself again to men. 
 
 27. Noio these are the generations of Terah : Terah begat 
 Abram, Nahor, and Ilaran ; and Haran begat Lot. 
 28. And Haran died before his father Terah in the land of 
 his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldees. 29. And Abram and 
 Nahor took them tvives : the name of Abram' s loife ivas Sarai ; 
 and the name of Nahor's tvife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, 
 the father of Milcah, and the father oflscah. 30. Biit Sarai 
 was barren ; she had no child. 31. And Terah took Abram 
 his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai 
 his daughter-in-laiv, his son Abram' s wife; and they ivent 
 forth ivith them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land 
 of Canaan ; and they came unto Haran, and dw^lt there. 
 32. A7id the days of Terah tvere tioo hundred and five years : 
 and Terah died in Haran. 
 
 God's call found the cliosen family in Chaldea, the very centre of 
 idolatry ; the seat of Nimrod's first world-empire ; the place where 
 
6o The Call of Abram [Gen. XII. 
 
 the profane builders had left their unfinished tower. What an 
 ordinary event it seemed that a family of shepherds should pass 
 with their household and flocks up the course of the Euphrates, 
 sojourn a while at Haran, then cross the Euphrates and travel 
 westward, seeking for a new home ! And yet among these 
 unnoticed few were ears awake to listen to God's call, hearts 
 receptive, ready for His revelation. Be sure that He had pre- 
 pared listeners before He spoke. Gracious Lord, Who hast 
 brought me now to the threshold of Abraham's history, wherein 
 Thou wast made known again to men, may I learn to feel Thee 
 near, true, righteous and merciful, as Abraham did. This God is 
 my God. I too have been called out of the world to follow and 
 serve Him. 
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 1. God calleth Abram, and blesseth him with a promise of Christ. 
 4. He departeth with Lot from Haran. 6. He journeyeth through 
 Canaan, 7. which is promised him in a vision. 10. He is driven 
 by a famine into Egypt. 11. Fear maketh him feign his wife to be 
 his sister. 14. Pharaoh, having taken her from him, by plagues is 
 compelled to restore her. 
 
 "VTOW the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy 
 Xi country, and from thy Idndred, and. from thy father s 
 house, unto a land that I will shew thee : 
 
 This voice came to Abraham without outward sound ; his heart it 
 was that heard. It came from an unknown Divine Friend, Who 
 bade him trust and venture, bade him reach out into the unseen 
 and believe that One W^ho loved him was near. Those among 
 whom Abraham lived worshipped idols, but he could not be 
 content with such worship as that, he sought for something which 
 could satisfy his longings for Divine Communion. His fcc'ing 
 was ' My soul is athirst for God, yea even for the Living God ' ; 
 and that God Whom he was feeling for, met and answered him. 
 
 2. And I tvill make of thee a great nation, and I tvill bless 
 thee, and mahe thy name great ; and thou shalt be a blessing : 
 
 Here the future begins to open upon him ; he looks onward, and 
 lives by faith in what is yet far distant ; he learns to put aside the 
 present and prepare himself for great things to come. A great 
 nation descended literally from him, and a still greater one 
 spiritually, — that is, the innmnerable company of those who share 
 
Ver. 5-] Venturing Faith 6i 
 
 his faith. Does not God recompense Hberally those who venture 
 at His call and trust in His promise? Abraham gave up much, 
 but received infinitely more. He obtained undying honour, as 
 our guide in the way of faith. 
 
 3. And I will bless them, that bless thee, and curse him that 
 curseth thee : and in thee shall all families of the earth he 
 blessed. 
 
 O great and wide blessing, stretching far and lasting long ! It could 
 not be spent merely upon Abraham's own personal fortunes, nor 
 those of his descendants, the Jews. No, it extends to all who 
 will accept it, and implies true peace, true joy, true freedom ; 
 and it is the Lord Jesus Who gives this blessing. He was born of 
 Abraham's line 'after the flesh,' and yet came to bring 'good 
 tidings of great joy' to all true hearts of every nation. God's 
 blessing makes home prosperous and happy, crowns hearth and 
 fold with plenty : and yet it is not perfect until it has set us at 
 peace with our Maker, done away with the curse of sin. 
 
 4. So Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him ; 
 and Lot went with him: and Abram ivas seventy and five 
 years old when he departed out of Haran. 
 
 Here is prompt obedience. Here is a congregation of faithful 
 persons, united together in common submission to God's will, 
 and faith in His everlasting promises. No doubt Abraham 
 imparted to his family his own conviction that idols were vain, 
 that it was needful to make a change and serve the true God 
 elsewhere, and that this God had great things in store for His 
 servants. May I, Lord, be ever joined to the company of those 
 who obey Thee, though the world ignore or despise them. 
 
 5. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's 
 son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the 
 soids that they had gotten in Haran ; and they went forth to 
 go into the land of Canaan ; and into the land of Canaan 
 they came. 
 
 Here first appears the Holy Land, the scene of many wonderful acts 
 of God in old time, tJie place where God was served by saints of 
 the old covenant, where our Divine Lord Himself passed the 
 years of His mortal life, where the seed of the Gospel was first 
 sown. Yet when Abraham visited it, he was a stranger there, and 
 the land was possessed by idolaters and defiled by hideous crimes. 
 Wherever Abraham came, he found God was there, the God Who 
 had called him thither, and he paid worship to Him. His own 
 tent was as a sanctuary amidst the surrounding floods of evil. 
 
62 Altars built in the Holy Land [Gen. XII. 
 
 6. And Abram passed throxigh the land mito the place of. 
 Sichem, vnto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite ivas 
 then in the land. 
 
 The holy household, wandering as strangers in a land which was to 
 be their own, protected by an unseen Hand, guided without their 
 own knowledge, remind us of the condition of Christians here 
 below. We are strangers and sojourners, surrounded by the 
 world's temptations, often bewildered and disappointed, yet we 
 trust that God guides us to a good end, keeps us from being 
 utterly lost. O God, bring us safely home at last ! 
 
 7. And the Lord appeared unto Ahram, and said, Unto 
 thy seed will I give this land : and there huilded he an altar 
 unto the Lord, Who ajypeared unto him. 
 
 Since the loss of Eden this is the first recorded Vision of God to the 
 sight of fallen man. How gracious is He to restore to us oppor- 
 tunities of Divine Communion, so as to fit us at the end for the 
 uninterrupted sight of Him! This is the first altar erected in the 
 Holy Land to the true God, whereon man could lay acceptable 
 offerings in gratitude for Divine mercies. What mattered the 
 enticements or threats of Canaanites to one who had learnt to 
 look out for God's appearing ? Here begins the worship of God 
 in His own land, which Abraham takes possession of and con- 
 secrates to the Most High. From that one altar and act of 
 worship have come our churches for the worship of God in every 
 land. 
 
 8. And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east 
 of Beth-el, and pitched his tent, having Beth-el on the ivest, 
 and, Hai on the east : and there he huilded an altar unto the 
 Lord, and called %ipon the Name of the Lord. 
 
 On this mountain Abraham stood, and looked over that fair land 
 which was one day to be his. Not far from this very place it 
 must have been that Jacob lay down to sleep and saw the glorious 
 vision. It was a sanctuary to the patriarchs. Yet Abraham did 
 not remain there, he had to pass on ; his motto was, 
 
 'I nightly pitch my moving tent 
 A day's march nearer home.' 
 
 He lived in that ancient world, yet not of it, for his thoughts were 
 set on things to come. 
 
 9. And Ahram journeyed, going on still toioard the south. 
 
 So we too journey, O Lord. Sometimes our tent is pitched in a 
 green valley, by a clear stream, under overshadowing boughs ; 
 
Ver. 15.] Abram visits Egypt 63 
 
 all smiles on us, but we have to rise up and resume our march. 
 Soon we come into dry places, have the desert round us. Glory 
 be to Thee for the refreshments which we find by the way, for 
 consolations found even in the desert, but what will not our home 
 be, when we reach it ! 
 
 10. And there was a famine in the land : and Abram went 
 down into Egypt to sojourn there ; for the famine was grievous 
 in the land. 
 
 Egypt was rich in corn. It was a great and settled state, the earliest 
 in the ancient world. Its palaces, its temples, its great works, 
 struck wonder to the traveller's mind. Yet, after all, we know 
 that Pharaoh is not God ; he but represents, imperfectly, a greater 
 majesty than his own. God's people remain undazzled before him, 
 for they are accustomed to commune with the Most High. 
 
 11. And it came to pass, when he ivas come near to enter 
 into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I 
 know that thou art a fair woman to look upon: 12. There- 
 fore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, 
 that they shall say, This is his wife : and they ivill kill me, 
 hut they will save thee alive. 13. Say, I pray thee, thou art 
 my sister : that it may he loell ivith me for thy sake ; and my 
 soul shall live hecause of thee. 
 
 If Abraham lost courage when he thought of the power of sinful 
 passion and the dangers of Egypt, if his faith faltered for a while, 
 and he forgot the protection and promises of his heavenly Guide, 
 we must not blame him overmuch. Indeed we, as we move 
 amidst temptations, have to consider how to keep our soul safe, 
 our heart pure, our life free from sin's bondage. If we are obliged 
 to live and work for a while in Egypt, yet let our heart be fixed 
 on a better place. 
 
 14. And it came to p>ass, that, when Abram ivas come into 
 EgypA, the Egyptians beheld the xooman that she ivas very fair. 
 15. The princes also of Pharaoh saiu her, and commended her 
 before Pharaoh: and the ivoman was taken into Pharaoh! s 
 house. 
 
 Courtiers who ministered to their master's pleasure, a land where 
 beauty was a snare, vhere power was above right, where a believer 
 dared not speak the truth, what was Abraham doing among these? 
 Better for him to have remained in the desert. Pharaoh's house 
 
64 Pharaoh chastened by God [Gen. XIII. 
 
 was full of praise for Sarah's beauty and envy of her good fortune. 
 But she herself looked to God for rescue ; she had no other friend, 
 and He did not forsake her. 
 
 16. And he entreated Ahram ivell for her sake : and he had 
 sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and me^iservants, and viaid- 
 servants, and she asses, and camels. 
 
 Abraham was enriched with costly presents ; Sarah honoured in the 
 king's palace : who could not have thought them happy? And yet 
 this outward prosperity covered aching hearts. How different is 
 men's real condition from that which strikes the outward eye ! 
 God hears the cries of pain that go up to Him from many who live 
 in splendour and are envied by the multitude. He does not forget 
 the sorrows of those who trust Him. 
 
 17. And the Lord plagued Pharaoh and his house ivith 
 great plagues because of Sarai, Abram's wife. 
 
 So dear were God's elect to Him that ' He suffered no man to do them 
 wrong, but reproved even kings for their sake.' He sent pain and 
 danger upon king and court ; then they examined their ways and 
 learnt what was amiss. So do thou, O Teacher of men, teach 
 me. 
 
 18. And Pharaoh called Abram, and said, What is this that 
 thou hast done unto me ? why didst thou, not tell me that she 
 was thy v)ife? 19. Why saidst thou. She is my sister? so I 
 might have taken her to me to wife : now therefore behold thy 
 loife, take her, and go thy way. 
 
 I notice, with admiration, how heathen monarchs in the plenitude of 
 their power had still great respect for the law which forbade the 
 taking of another man's wife. Christians may well learn this 
 lesson from them, now that such sins prevail and are treated 
 lightly. I see how God dealt with Pharaoh by chastisements 
 and warnings, and I too desire to profit by His grave and severe 
 dealings with me. Pharaoh, in all his glory, was not above 
 learning and acknowledging his fault. 
 
 20. And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him : 
 and they sent him away, and his wife, and all that he had. 
 
 Here is an exodus from Egypt, a figure of that of Abraham's 
 descendants which took place long afterwards. Abraham breathed 
 freely again, when the desert was round him and he had left 
 behind the splendours and dangers of Pharaoh's court. In going 
 down into Egypt, he had thought more of schemes for his own 
 
Ver. 4.] Abram's Wealth 65 
 
 advantage than of the duty of sincerity, yet God had turned evil 
 to good and brought him safely through, for His Name's sake, for 
 His promise's sake. With such thoughts, he felt himself more than 
 ever the instrument of a Divine Power Who was guiding all things 
 to a good end. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 Abram and Lot return out of Egypt. 7. By disagreement they part 
 asunder. 10, Lot goeth to wicked Sodom. 14. God reneweth the 
 promise to Abram. 18. He removeth to Hebron, and there buildeth 
 an altar. 
 
 AND Ah'am ivent tip out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and 
 all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south. 
 2. And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold. 
 
 It is well to be safe out of Egypt, and started on our road heaven- 
 wards, but the world's possessions cling round our heart and put 
 us in danger of forgetting heavenly promises. Here we find the 
 first mention in Scripture of silver and gold. They are but 
 counters, yet such as carry with them a great value by the common 
 consent of mankind. Many have sold their souls to get store of 
 these precious metals. We do not find that Abraham allowed his 
 riches to make him forget God or the inheritance of promise. No, 
 all that he possessed did not make him value less the treasures of 
 faith, the blessing to come ; he knew those were the best riches. 
 
 3. And he ivent on his journeys from the south even to Beth-el, 
 unto the place xohere his tent had been at the beginning, 
 between Beth-el and Hai ; 4. Unto the place of the altar, 
 which he had made there at the first: and there Abram called 
 on the Name of the Lord. 
 
 This second altar which was erected to the true God became for the 
 Patriarchs a sacred place, dear to them by holy memories. Let 
 me so avail myself of God's House that I may return to it with joy, 
 remembering what I have learnt there, what I have felt there. O 
 God of Bethel, be Thou my God always ; let me hear from Thee a 
 word of promise, let me devote myself to serve Thee faithfully, let 
 me trust in Thy protecting care. 
 
66 Parling 7ieedful to preserve Love [Gen. XIII. 
 
 5. And Lot also, which went with Abram, had flocks, and 
 herds, and tents. 
 
 Lot had shared Abraham's wanderings, had learnt from him how to 
 worship and serve God, had joined with him in prayer and good 
 deeds. Now there came a trial upon him which proved what 
 manner of man he was : whether he valued most his abundant 
 flocks, or the possession of religious privileges, the right to God's 
 future blessing. Lot, while he lived with Abraham, enjoyed the 
 protection and the mercy which God bestowed on Abraham. 
 When he threw up that society and took Sodom in exchange, he 
 made a bad bargain. 
 
 6. And the land ivas not able to bear them, that they might 
 dwell together : for their substance was great, so that they could 
 not divell together, 7. And there was a strife between the herd- 
 men of Abram^s cattle and the herdmen of Lois cattle : and 
 the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land. 
 
 What, in the presence of the Canaanites, who douljtless scoffed, 
 should God's household be divided. His servants at strife? Here 
 are sad consequences of too much wealth. When Lot was poor 
 and dependent on his uncle, no such troubles had appeared, but 
 they came with prosperous days. Thus the servants of Abraham 
 and Lot, who joined together to worship the one true God, could 
 not bear each other, and got to variance, almost to blows ! 
 
 8. And Abram said ujito Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray 
 thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy 
 herdmen; for we be brethren. 
 
 Brethren, both in blood and in faith ; we have common blood in our 
 veins, and are joined together yet more closely as servants of the 
 one true God and heirs of the promise ; we must not strive about 
 this world's advantages, lest we lose substance for shadow. If 
 believers had always stopped the beginning of strife, after 
 Abraham's method, this would be a happier world than it is. In 
 many families bretliren have been divided and made enemies by 
 some question of profit or division of wealth. God's children hate 
 and revile each other, and all for some trifle. 
 
 9. Is not the whole land before thee ? separate thyself, I 
 pray thee, from me : if thou ivilt take the left hand, then I ivill 
 go to the right ; or if thoti, dep)art to the right hand, then I 
 will go to the left. 
 
 •Choose,' he said, 'let us only remain friends. Let us part for a 
 while, in order to be still joined in heart. I give the choice 
 
Ver. 13.] A worldly Choice 67 
 
 wholly into your bauds, and am quite content with what you leave.' 
 In this we see that Abraham's great wealth left him an unworldly 
 heart. He was <liuch more set on remaining in love and goodwill 
 than on living where he could get richer. North or south, hill or 
 valley, was all one to him so tliat he could live at peace and obey 
 the leading of his Heavenly Friend. 
 
 10. And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the ])lain of 
 Jordan, that it teas ivell luatered every where, before the Lord 
 destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the 
 Lord, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar. 
 
 Lot forgot what he owed to Abraham. He forgot the knowledge of 
 Divine Truth, the promise of protection, the hope of blessedness 
 to come. He was guided by earthly sight alone. He left him in 
 whom all nations were to be blessed, and went to live among the 
 accursed, just because of the rich returns of the fertile soil. 
 
 1 1 . Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan ; and Lot 
 jo^irneyed east : and they separated themselves the ojie from the 
 other. 12. Abrani divelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot 
 divelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward 
 Sodom. 
 
 Here is the holy household parted. Abraham remained on the hills 
 of Canaan, without changing his life or plans. He was true to the 
 Voice of his unseen Guide, loyalty to God was his first care. Lot 
 meanwhile was wholly intent on the prospects which opened before 
 him as he settled in the (then) rich valley. Abraham was now 
 weakened in numbers, left more alone, he felt the desertion of one 
 who had so far shared his hopes, yet he continued in the same line 
 without altering. 
 
 13. But the men of Sodom were tvicked and sinners before 
 the Lord exceedingly. 
 
 Such are Lot's new surroundings ; perhaps he went there with the hope 
 of doing some good. If so, he was much mistaken, for when he 
 left Sodom he could not count one convert, one religious friend. 
 Alas, how contagious is vice ! Here it has spread throughout a 
 whole community. Deadly sins were reckoned as trifles. "No one 
 feared offending God ; no one noticed the terrible results of evil in 
 the withering of all holy affections. Keep me, O God, from 
 sharing such vileness. Let me by Thy all-powerful grace cherish 
 a pure heart, wherever I go. 
 
68 The Eternal Promises [Gen. XIV. 
 
 14. And the Lord said unto Abram, after that Lot was 
 separated from him. Lift up noiv thine eyes, and look from the 
 place li'here thou art northioard, and soitthivard, and eastward, 
 and ivestivard : 15. For all the land which thou seest, to thee 
 zdll I give it, and to thy seed for ever. 
 
 He had lost a friend, but God would recompense him. He was shut 
 out from rich lands, but not from heavenly blessings. This pro- 
 mise comes to us. We are Abraham's seed, and inherit, not the 
 literal Canaan, but that which was figured by it — the blessings of 
 God's Church now and of the heavenly Jerusalem hereafter. This 
 look of faith which Abraham took reminds us of Moses' vision 
 before his death. He too did not literally inherit the land, but 
 obtained somewhat better and more lasting. What we crave is an 
 Eternal Home ; all things here below are disappointing. 
 
 16. And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so 
 that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy 
 seed also be numbered. 
 
 Stars and sand could not equal the number of Abraham's descendants, 
 and as yet he had no son. Scarcely any one in that ancient world 
 shared his faith or hope, and yet now innumerable believers have 
 learnt the lesson. It is Abraham's faith, Abraham's God, that has 
 triumphed, and the false gods of the heathen that have vanished 
 away. If we are grateful to those who have discovered truth and 
 found out gains for humanity, here is a benefactor to whom we 
 owe much. 
 
 17. Arise, ivalk through the land in the length of it and in 
 the breadth of it ; for I tvill give it unto thee. 
 
 'Walk through the land,' said the Voice, 'as its owner, look on it 
 as thine through faith and trust; let faith triumph over sense.' 
 Oh may this sure trust be mine ! May I, as I go throiigli this world, 
 understand that it is wholly my God's, and therefore mine ! I am 
 His child, and therefore all things are ordered by Ilim for my 
 good. Men are but instruments in His Hands, to work out those 
 wise ends which He designs for my everlasting profit. 
 
 18. Then Abram removed his tent, and came and dwelt in 
 the plain of Mamre, ivhich is in Hebron, and. built there an 
 altar unto the Lord. 
 
 Here is a longer stay made ; here is a third altar built ; here is the 
 true heir settling among strangers, and keeping to himself his 
 
Ver. 4.] Fo^ir mighty Empires 69 
 
 lofty destiny. I am somewhat reminded when I read these verses 
 of the world's true Lord and King when He came at last to 
 Bethlehem or to Nazareth and lived among his subjects, disguised 
 in human infancy. There ' He was in the world, yet the world 
 knew Him not. He came unto His own, and His own received 
 Him not.' 
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 I. The battle of four kings against five. 12. Lot is taken prisoner. 
 14. Abram rescusth him. 18. Melchizedek blesseth Abram. 
 20. Abram giveth him tithe. 22, The rest of the spoil, his partners 
 having had their portions, he restoreth to the king of Sodom. 
 
 AND it came to pass in the days of Amraphel king of 
 Skinar, Arioch king of Mlasar, Chedorlaomer king of 
 Elam, and Tidal king of nations ; 2. That these made war 
 with Bera king of Sodom, and tvith Birsha king of Gomorrah, 
 Shinah king of Admah, and Shemeher king of Zehoiim, and 
 the king of Beta, which is Zoar. 
 
 This chapter is a bit of ancient history let into the life of Abraham, 
 and disclosing many details about the nations and events of that 
 long-forgotten time. It is the first record we have of war, and of 
 the confederation of princes. Here we see great oppressors 
 exercising power and punishing disobedience. The great king- 
 doms of the East are already formed and begin to weigh down 
 the free earth and enslave men. We know too well that war, 
 which began so long ago, still rages, still devours. The coming 
 of the Prince of Peace has not yet established the empire of 
 peace on earth, but yet it has given promises and thoughts of 
 peace. 
 
 3. All these were joined together in the vale of Siddim, 
 which is the salt sea. 4. Tivelve years they served Chedorlaomer, 
 and in the thirteenth year they rebelled. 
 
 Then their rich lands were coveted by enemies, had to pay tribute, 
 were in danger of invasion. Abraham on his barren hills was 
 safe from the troubles in which Lot found himself involved on 
 the fertile plain. These five kings shook off their master's yoke 
 and rejoiced for a while in their fancied freedom, yet all the while 
 they were slaves to the worse despotism of sin ; none of them made 
 any eflbrt to abolish that yoke. 
 
70 Caught in Pits of Slime [Gen. XIV. 
 
 5. And in the fourteenth year came Chedorlaomer, and the 
 kings that ivere ivith him, and smote the Rephaims in Ashteroth 
 Karnaim, and the Zuzims in Ham, and the Emims in Shaveh 
 Kiriathaim, 6. And the Ilorites in their mount Seir, unto 
 El-paran, ivhich is by the wilderness. 7. And they returned, 
 and came to En-mishpat, ivhich is Kadesh, and smote all the 
 country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites, that dwelt 
 in Hazezon-tamar. 
 
 The confederate armies from the East went round the country east 
 and south of Jordan, overthrowing and destroying the ancient 
 inhabitants. Not their great height, nor their strength, nor their 
 walled cities could protect them. All the country of Bashan, and 
 that where the Ammonites and Moabites lived afterwards, and 
 the desert valley down as far as the Red Sea, felt the blow. 
 Then the invaders turned northward again and came up by the 
 western side of the Dead Sea. 
 
 8. And there went out the king of Sodom, and the king of 
 Gomori-ah, and the king of Admah, and the king of Zehoiim, 
 and the king of Bela {the same is Zoar) ; and they joined 
 battle with them in the vale of Siddim ; 9. With Chedorlaomer 
 the king of Elam, and with Tidal king of nations, and 
 Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar ; four 
 kings with five. 
 
 The kings of Sodom and its neighbourhood made a stand against 
 their enemies. Now that danger was so near, they put aside the 
 idle habits of that luxurious land and went forth to fight, but it 
 was too late. Lot found himself amidst the terrors of the 
 approaching foe and the cries and lamentations of the people, 
 lie must have regretted the peace he had on the hillside with 
 Abraham's tent near his. 
 
 10. And the vale of Siddim was full of slimepits ; and the 
 kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and fell there ; and they 
 that remained fled to the mountain. 11. And they took all 
 the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their victuals, and 
 went their ivay : 12. And they took Lot, Abram's brothe7''s 
 son, who divelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed. 
 
 These pits of bitumen showed a danger underlying the land. On 
 the day of the defeat they clogged the steps of the flying soldiers, 
 
Ver. 1 6.] The Three hu7idred and eighteen 71 
 
 but they presaged a much greater disaster. They were a token 
 of forces hid in the earth which might one day come to light and 
 spread ruin around. Here all Lot's goods, on which he set so 
 much store, are plundered, and he himself made captive. He has 
 to leave his home with hopeless tears, not expecting any rescue, 
 any helper. 
 
 13. And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram 
 the Hebrew ; for he diuelt in the flain of Mamre the Amorite, 
 brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner : and these were con- 
 federate with Abram. 14. And when Abram hear-d that his 
 brother tvas taken captive, he armed his trained servants, bom 
 in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued 
 them unto Dan. 
 
 Abraham heard this bad news, that his friend had been carried off 
 into hopeless captivity. He might have said, ' How foolish of Lot 
 to choose Sodom for a dwelling-place !' He might have lamented 
 the calamity as being past mending. He might have folded his 
 hands and regretted his own weakness in men and resources ; but 
 no, he did what he could, and did it at once. He gathered 
 together his own household who shared with him the knowledge 
 of a protecting Heavenly Father, encouraged them to fight, 
 counselled them how to make the best of their small army ; nor 
 did he refuse the help of the three Amorites who were his 
 neighbours. Thus Abraham's visions, hopes, religious commun- 
 ings had not robbed him of practical energy in this sudden crisis. 
 
 15. And he divided himself against them, he and his 
 servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto 
 Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus. 
 
 This was a night attack (like that of Gideon in Judges vii.), in which 
 a few resolute men surprised and threw into confusion a great 
 host. Thus the spoilers were overthrown and scattered, and the 
 tears of the captives were turned to joy. But Aliraham felt, as 
 Melchizedek reminded him (v. 20), that it was to God, not to his 
 own skill or courage, that he owed this unexpected victory. 
 
 16. And he brought bach all the goods, and also brought 
 again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and 
 the people. 
 
 We do not read that Abraham boasted of his achievement, or went 
 on with his victorious soldiers to other fields of renown . Rather he 
 
72 Melchizedek's Offering [Gen. XIV. 
 
 withdrew again into his peaceful and contemplative life, resolving 
 that as little as possible of the profit or glory of the victory should 
 be his. But Lot did not lay to heart the terrible lesson he had 
 received ; he rejoiced at recovering his freedom and his property, 
 and went back to live in Sodom, just as he had lived before. No 
 doubt he thanked Abraham warmly for the moment, but how 
 much better it would have been had he left Sodom now and taken 
 to Abraham's companionship, a sadder and a wiser man. 
 
 17. And the king of Sodom tuent out to meet him after his 
 return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer, and of the hings 
 that were with him, at the valley of Shaveh, which is the king^s 
 dale. 
 
 This ' king's dale,' where Abraham received congratulations on his 
 victory, was no doubt the same place where Prince Absalom, 
 long afterwards, erected a pillar to keep his own name in re- 
 membrance (2 Sam. xviii. 18) ; but in Absalom's case the pillar 
 tells not of victory, but of defeat, of one who was defeated and 
 ruined by his own ambition, his own passion, his own wickedness. 
 Abraham, on the contrary, came there as conqueror, and not only 
 over his enemies, but over covetousness and pride also. 
 
 18. And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread 
 and wine : and he was the priest of the Most High God. 
 
 Here is a Priest of the Most High God long before Aaron's Priest- 
 hood was thought of. Here is a king of Peace, a king of Right- 
 eousness, who comes forth from a heathen world to bless Abraham 
 in God's Name. If the Bread and Wine which Melchizedek 
 brought forth was his offering to God, we are reminded of the 
 Christian offering of Bread and Wine presented in memory of 
 Christ's Death. If it served also to refresh Abraham and his 
 army, we learn of that same Sacrament as designed to strengthen 
 and refresh our souls. But to profit by that heavenly food, we 
 too must resemble Abraham, must be good soldiers, winning 
 victories over evil. 
 
 19. And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abrani of the 
 Most High God, Possessor of heaven and earth: 20. And 
 blessed be the Most High God Which hath delivered thine 
 enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all. 
 
 Here are blessings bestowed on man, and also sent up to God. 
 Abraham, in whom all nations are blessed, bows down humbly 
 to receive a blessing from one who sjioke on God's behalf and 
 as a figure of the coming Redeemer. He acknowledged that his 
 
Ver. 24.] SodoJtH s King speaks God's Words 73 
 
 victory was due not to his own prudence or courage, but to 
 Divine Love and Might. He recognised how constant had been 
 God's protecting care over him. He gave Melchizedek a tenth 
 of the spoil to express these thoughts by an actual offering. Oh 
 may we, like Abraham, join courage in the hour of danger with 
 gratitude and bounty in our prosperity ! God still blesses us, still 
 seeks a blessing from us — nay, Ilis poor and His Church plead on 
 His behalf. 
 
 21. And the king of Sodom said unto Ahram, Give me the 
 persons, and take the goods to thyself. 
 
 The King of Sodom expected to get back nothing but the captives 
 rescued, nay, he considered them too as Abraham's property, 
 which he had rights over, and could transfer, if he pleased, back 
 to the king. The wealth he was sure Abraham meant to keep. 
 He judged Abraham by himself, and could not imagine he had 
 won the victory with disinterested aims. But what this king said 
 blindly, God says to us designedly. God asks us for souls. He 
 values persons and despises gold. Offer to God what He requires 
 most, — souls converted, hearts strengthened in good, persons 
 rescued from Satan's slavery. He cares more for this than for 
 gifts of costly jewels or gold. 
 
 2 2. And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up 
 mine hand unto the Lord, the Most High God, the Possessor of 
 heaven and earth, 23. That I will not take from a thread 
 even to a shoelatchet, and that I luill not take any thing that 
 is thine, lest thou shoxddest say, I have made Ahram rich: 
 
 Abraham's solemn adjuration, his wholesome pride and independ- 
 ence, remind us of his great descendant St. Paul, who went through 
 the world winning victories, storming strongholds, bringing hearts 
 under Christ's yoke, and yet refused to take any payment for his 
 work. This was his boast, his joy, as it had been the Patriarch's. 
 How wise was Abraham not to put himself under any obligation 
 to the King of Sodom. He knew too well how great was the 
 corruption of that sovereign and his people. Abraham would 
 fight for them, would set them free, but he could never accept 
 gifts at their hands. 
 
 24. Save only that tvhich the young men have eaten, and 
 the portion of the men which xoent with me, Ener, Eshcol, and 
 Mamre ; let them take their portion. 
 
 Abraham was just and grateful to his servants and his allies. These 
 Canaanites who had come forward to help him, had fought and 
 
74 The Saints' Shield and Reward [Gen. XV. 
 
 conquered by his side, were not sharers in his faith or in the 
 inheritance of promise ; but he was scrupulously just, and did 
 not forget their temporal reward. Let us, when we have to do 
 with heathens or unbelievers, recommend our faith to them by 
 careful attention to all duties, by showing them that true religion 
 brings with it trustworthiness and fairness. What keeps heathen 
 back from the Gospel is, most of all, the evil treatment which 
 Christians bestow on them. Thus Aljraham's public appearance 
 and warlike demeanour are over, and he returns again to meditate 
 on God's dealings and mysterious promises. 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 I. God encourageth Abram. 2. Abram complaineth for want of an heir. 
 4. God promiseth him a son, and a multiplying of his seed. 
 6. Abram is justified by faith. 7. Canaan is promised again, and 
 confirmed by a sign, 12. and a vision. 
 
 AFTER these things the Word of the Lord came unto Abram 
 in a vision, saying, Fear not, A bram : I am thy shield, 
 and thy exceeding great reward. 
 
 Abraham had provoked the wrath of mighty kings by his rescue of 
 Lot ; but he need not fear, for God was his shield. He had 
 renounced all the spoils of his victory and so missed the chance 
 of greatly enriching himself; but he had not really been a loser, 
 for God was his reward. God's servants fear Him most, seek Him 
 most. He is their living Dread, their lifelong Friend, and so 
 this world's dazzling glories do not wholly fascinate them. 
 
 2. And Abram said. Lord God, what ivilt Thou give me, 
 seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this 
 Eliezer of Damascus ? 3. And Abram, said. Behold, to me 
 Thou hast given no seed : and lo, one born in my house is mine 
 heir. 
 
 How should the promised blessing come ? Devout souls longed for 
 the repairer of fallen humanity, for a blessing to replace the curse 
 — and it had been told to Abraham that this Restorer should 
 spring from his family. Do not suppose that he merely longed 
 for a natural heir ; no, his hopes were greater, his prospect wider 
 than that. He grieved to think that he himself should not be the 
 stem from which the seed of promise should spring. 
 
Ver. 7.] Faith counted for Righteousness 75 
 
 4. And behold, the luord of the Lord came xmto him, 
 saying, This shall not he thine heir ; but he that shall come 
 forth out of thine oxen hoioels shcdl he thine heir. 
 
 God's promise is sure, though human expectation fails. His word 
 to Abraham came true ; let us not put less confidence in Him now. 
 He who blessed Abraham's bed, so that there came from him one 
 who should inherit and transmit the promise, is still mighty to 
 protect those who are in danger, to restore what seems altogether 
 fallen, to fulfil promises that seem to us inconceivable. Let us 
 bring our anxieties to that Divine Friend and be at rest. 
 
 5. And He brought him, forth abroad, and said. Look now 
 toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou he able to member 
 them : and He said nnto him, So shall thy seed be. 
 
 These innumerable stars, which bewilder our sight or overpass our 
 keenest instruments, are all known to their Creator. Their 
 formation, their order, their movements are all appointed by 
 Him. They each have their place wherein to serve Him. So 
 with the countless multitude of His elect. Man may ignore or 
 misjudge them, but they shine and move in the sight of God. 
 Remember ' they that turn many to righteousness shall shine as 
 the stars ' ; that is a worthier object for which to live than the 
 foundation of kingdoms or of fortunes. That glory is made up 
 of the gratitude of rescued souls. 
 
 6. And he believed in the Lord ; and He cou7ited it to him 
 for righteousness. 
 
 Like Abraham, rest on God. Commit all things to His wise 
 ordering. Let your own vileness, folly, distrust, be lost in the 
 might of Divine Grace. Expect righteousness and peace with a 
 trustful heart, yet not for your own worthiness, but only as being a 
 member of Christ — a lamb of His flock. Lord, I will trust Thee, 
 for none else in earth or heaven can claim my full trust. I will 
 expect from Thee alone all that my soul needs. Thy gift of Christ 
 means all other gifts. I rest not on my own changeful feelings, 
 but on Thy sure Word. 
 
 7. And He said unto him, I am the Lord, that brought 
 thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit 
 it. 
 
 So it was said afterwards : * I am the Lord thy God, Who brought 
 thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.' So 
 God desires us still to represent to Him His mercies whereby He 
 has redeemed and blest us, as grounds for further hopes. All 
 
76 Abram and the ravenous Birds [Gen. XV. 
 
 things come of Thee, O Lord, and we but repay Thee Thine own 
 when we give back thanks and praise. It was not Abraham who 
 sought for and found God so much as God Who found him. For 
 us also His plans are sure, reach far, and root deep. He is our 
 Eternal Friend. 
 
 8. And he said, Lord God, whereby shall I know that 1 
 shall inherit it ? 
 
 This question is like Mary's to the Angel, 'How shall this be?' It 
 implies not disbelief, but a reverent inquiry. Like her, too, 
 Abraham pondered over God's promises, desired to know more of 
 the coming salvation. Abraham's whole heart was set on the 
 future. The present was to him of little importance. He longed 
 to realise, to appropriate, to prepare for things which lay far 
 beyond his own span of mortal life. 
 
 9. And He said unto him, Tahe Me an heifer of three years 
 old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three 
 years old, and a turtle-dove, and a young 'pigeon. 10. And 
 he took unto Him all these, and divided them in the midst, and 
 laid each piece one against another : btit the birds divided he 
 not. 
 
 These are the five clean sacrificial animals which were to be used in 
 the Jewish sacrifices, and they are slain and divided according to 
 the universal custom of the ancient world in making a solemn 
 contract. The sacrifices were offered, slain and divided, and the 
 contracting parties passed between them, and this signified that 
 death should be the penalty of breaking the promise made. But 
 in all this ceremony I observe a figure of the Mosaic Law to come, 
 its sacrifices, its contract between God and His people, its coming 
 in after and beside the promises once made to Faith. God here 
 seems to represent the whole method of His dealing with His 
 ancient people by figures and shadows. 
 
 II. And when the fowls came down upon the carcases, 
 Ahratn drove them aivay. 
 
 These sacrifices were but the carcases of slain beasts. How different 
 is our case, who enjoy a covenant won by the precious offering of 
 Christ Himself once made, and confirmed afresh to us by the 
 spiritual renewal of that offering at each Eucharist ! Yet Abraham 
 cherished and watched over his sacrifices as being pledges and 
 tokens of some great good. 
 
Ver. 1 6.] The Promise of a good old Age 7 7 
 
 12. And when the sun ivas going down, a deep sleep fell 
 upon Ahram ; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell tipon 
 him. 
 
 God puts the present out of sight, that we may look onward into the 
 future. Darkness hides our sight, but yet He sends an inward 
 light. The troubles of his posterity unrolled themselves before 
 Abraham's eye. He passed with them into the black shadow of 
 Egyptian captivity, and yet discerned an exit from it. But, alas ! 
 many of his seed, when the true Deliverer came at last, remained 
 in their darkness, in their spiritual sleep, and would not let Him 
 rouse them. 
 
 13. And He said unto Ahram, Know of a surety that thy 
 seed shall he a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall 
 serve them ; and they shall afflict them four hundred years ; 
 14. And also that nation, tvhom they shall serve, will I Judge: 
 and afterward shall they come out luith great substance. 
 
 Here is the history of the Exodus told long beforehand. It was this 
 revelation which father handed over to son, repeating ' God shall 
 surely visit you.' Will there not be vouchsafed to God's ancient 
 people another and better deliverance, the discovery of a richer 
 treasure, the entry on a truer Canaan ? ' During the long captivity 
 in Egypt, their God did not forsake them, though He hid His face 
 for a while. His gifts and His calling are ' without repentance. ' 
 
 15. And tho2c shalt go to thy fathers in peace ; thou shalt 
 he huried in a good old age. 
 
 ' In peace.' So may I die. May I be laid in the grave at peace with 
 God and with men ; not unwilling to go ; not cherishing any 
 bitter memories, any discontent ; ready to commit my soul into my 
 Creator's merciful Hands. If I die in old age, I am thankful to 
 Him for granting me a full and perfect life. Oh that I had used it 
 better ! But if my end is premature, yet He can supply defects, 
 ripen what is cut off suddenly. 
 
 16. But in the fourth generation they shcdl come hither 
 again : for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full, 
 
 O great mercies and great judgments of God ! He waits patiently 
 both in love and in wrath. His rich promises. His awful judg- 
 ments, are long in maturing. Let me so live as not to call down 
 His judgment on my ini([iiities. As for the past, I know that His 
 mercy revealed in Christ Jesus is fuller and deeper than all my 
 transgressions. If I had my deserts, I could look for nothii.g but 
 wrath ; only I trust Him to pardon mc. 
 
78 The Covenant attested by Fire [Gen. XVI. 
 
 17. And it came to pass, that, tvhen the sun ivent down, and 
 it ivas darJc, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp 
 that passed betzveen those j)ieces. 
 
 So amidst the darkness of the Law God appeared on Mount Sinai 
 with cloud and flame, and entered into a covenant with the Jewish 
 people. That manifestation had darkness mingled with light, 
 some bright flashes only, but the rest obscure. God passed 
 between the pieces of the slain animals, after the fashion of men 
 in those days when they made a solemn covenant, that He might 
 bring home to Abraham's mind the absolute certainty of what was 
 promised. Let me learn to lean on God's truth and promises now. 
 Let me be persuaded that what He says will be surely done. 
 
 18. In the same day the Lord made a covenant toith Ahram, 
 saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of 
 Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates : 1 9. The 
 Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites, 20. And 
 the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaivis, 21. And 
 the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgasites, and the 
 Jehtsites. 
 
 This was the earthly Canaan, then possessed by these ten nations, 
 and out of which the Israelites were to expel them. On the hills 
 of this land God's people were to dwell, 
 
 'Where Abraham fed his flock of yore, 
 Among their fathers' tombs.' 
 
 Here was to be raised up a nation of pure and upright servants of 
 the Most High. But observe two things. One is, they had to 
 fight and conquer in order to carry out the promise ; it did not 
 come to pass without their own co-operation. And another, the 
 Jews by their sins diminished the promise, missed a good deal of 
 it, and finally lost it. All God's gifts imply that we do our part 
 and are steadfast. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 I. Sarai, being barren, giveth Hagar to Abram. 4. Hagar, being 
 afflicted for despising her mistress, runneth away. 7. An angel 
 sendeth her back to submit herself, 11. and telleth her of her child. 
 15. Ishmael is born. 
 
 "VTOW Sarai Abrani's wife hare him no children : and she 
 JAI had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name ivas 
 Hagar. 2. And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the 
 
Ver. 6.] Hagars Presinnption 79 
 
 Lord hath restj'ained me from hearing : I pray thee, go in 
 unto my maid ; it may he that I may obtain children hy her. 
 And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai. 
 
 Sarai desired that the promises should come true, but would not 
 wait for God to fulfil them. She desired that Abraham should 
 gain in his posterity the promised honours and blessings; therefore 
 she, in her impatience, introduced into the holy household the 
 custom of polygamy, lawful indeed in the ancient world, yet which 
 brought with it endless misery, strife, and degradation. All this, 
 however, was overruled by God to the fulfilment of His wise plans 
 and the prefiguring of things to come. 
 
 3. And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the 
 Egyi-ytian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of 
 Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to he his wife. 
 
 Sarai seems almost to appear like Eve in Paradise, choosing to leave 
 faith's ways, as wearied of them, and persuading her husband to 
 join with her. Ten years had now passed since Abraham's 
 arrival in the land. Ten years with many mercies, and yet dangers 
 and divisions also ; and still there was no prospect of that son on 
 whom such high hopes were to centre. The question was, coulii 
 the household of believers keep steadfast to that which is, after all, 
 nature's plan and God's plan, the union of one husband with one 
 wife ? 
 
 4. And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived: and 
 ivhen she saiv that she had conceived, her mistress was despised 
 in her eyes. 
 
 Hagar thought she might take her mistress's place. She despised her 
 and forgot her own servile condition. St. Paul sees in Hagar a 
 type of the Jewish synagogue living in bondage to the ceremonial 
 law, and despising those whom God had set free through Christ. 
 He bids us remember that the Church of God, our spiritual mother, 
 is free and has brought us forth in the condition of God's children, 
 having liberty of heart and grace to draw near to Him. 
 
 5. And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong he upon thee: 
 I have given my maid into thy bosom ; and when she saio that 
 she had conceived, I ivas despised in her eyes : the Lord judge 
 between me and thee. 6. But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, 
 thy maid is in thy hand ; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And 
 when Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face. 
 
 Sarai's plan had brought trouble into her household, and she 
 requited it on the offender. She appealed to God's judgment 
 
8o The Counsel of Suhniission [Gen. XVI. 
 
 and claimed her rights as the Patriarch's wife, and he bade her 
 exercise her authority and vindicate herself from Hagar's contempt, 
 for so right and justice required. Then God allowed among His 
 servants polygamy and slave-owning with their consequent evils ? 
 Yes, for so the customs and needs of those ancient days required ; 
 but He would not have us go backward to such practices now, but 
 rather go forward always in seeking all that is good and casting off 
 evil. 
 
 7. And the Angel of the Lord found her hy a fountain of 
 water in the wilderness, hy the fountain in the way to Shur. 
 8. And He said, Hagar, Sarai's maid, ivhence earnest thou ? 
 and u'hither ivilt thou go 1 And she said, I flee from the face 
 of my mistress Sarai. 
 
 Here, for the first time in Scripture, God sends His Angel, speaks 
 by an Angel. The time of the covenant which was 'ordained 
 through angels ' has now come. God was pleased to employ the 
 ministry of blessed spirits, through whom He spoke, who represented 
 Him. His compassion was thus manifested, fie showed that 
 He cared for the suffering and forsaken. Now that God has been 
 manifested to me in Jesus Christ, I am content with that manifest- 
 ation and need no created mediate r. 
 
 9. And the Angel of the Lord said unto her. Return to thy 
 mistress, and submit thyself tmder her hands. 
 
 Abraham's house and a servant's place there are better than the 
 
 heathen world ; submission and patience better than a flight to 
 
 Egypt. God often inculcates this lesson ; it was the first He 
 taught when He came visibly on earth, 
 
 'Soon He sorrowed, soon He suffered, 
 We must meek and gentle be.' 
 
 If He is our Father, then to submit patiently to Him when He 
 afflicts us will bring joy at last. 
 
 10. And the Angel of the Lord said unto her, I tvill 
 midtiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not he numbered for 
 multitude. 
 
 Hagar now belonged to the household of faith. She had her own 
 share in the promises. Her posterity were to be the great Arab race 
 whose conquests and great works should be known in every land. 
 She was to forget her present troubles in the thought of a great 
 future which lay before her children. 
 
Ver. i6.] The All-seeing Eye 
 
 II. And the Angel of the Lord said unto her, Behold, thou 
 art ivith child, and shalt hear a son, and shalt call his name 
 Ishmael ; because the Lord hath heard thy affliction. 1 2. And 
 he will be a wild man ; his hand luill be against every man, 
 and every man^s hand against him ; and he shall dwell in the 
 presence of all his brethren. 
 
 Here is foretold the freedom of the Arab race, their independence of 
 civilised life, their constant warfare, their invincible bravery. But, 
 besides this literal fulfilment of the prediction, St. Paul would have 
 us see in Hagar's posterity the unconverted Jews who refused to 
 accept the promise when it came, but remained separate, and 
 would not form one society with the Gentile believers. They 
 stood out for their privileges being confined to themselves alone, 
 and so forfeited them. Yet they remain on from age to age as a 
 wonder and a si^n. 
 
 13. And she called the Name of the Lord that spake unto 
 her, Thnu God seest me : for she said. Have I also here looked 
 after Him that seeth me 1 
 
 He saw me when I thought not of Him. He thought of me when 
 I had forgotten Him. He was attentive to my case when I 
 seemed forsaken of all. Let this salutary verse remain in our 
 memories for our comfort in lonely hours, for our restraint when 
 tempted. No, God sees me, I will not faint or fall. 
 
 14. Wherefore the well ivas called Beer-lahai-roi ; behold, it 
 is between Kadesh and Bered. 
 
 Hagar had learnt in Abraham's family to mark mercies by thankful 
 commemoration. This well was turned for her into a sanctuary 
 where she worshipped God as the All-seeing One. She learnt 
 about the Living God, One able to hear prayer. Who cares for 
 His servants, with Whom they can enter into intimate communion. 
 Such is our God, and every church is a token to remind us that 
 He is near. 
 
 15. And Hagar bare Ahram a son: and Abram called his 
 son's name, ivhich Hagar bare, Ishmael. 16. And Abram was 
 foursco7-e and six years old, ivhen Hagar bare Ishmael to 
 Ahram. 
 
 Thus Abraham's son was born, but not yet the child of promise. 
 Ishmael and his descendants had their own task in the world. 
 Their persevering national life, their strong hold upon the doctrine 
 F 
 
The Walk and Triumph of Faith [Gen. XVII. 
 
 of the unity of God, these distinguished them from age to age. 
 But it was to Isaac that the hope of a Divine Mediator was com- 
 mitted ; to his family alone were made known the types and figures 
 of salvation. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 I. God reneweth the covenant. 5. Abram his name is changed in token 
 of a greater blessing. 10. Circumcision isjinstituted. 15. Sarai 
 her name is changed, and she blessed. 17. Isaac is promised. 
 23. Abraham and Ishmael are circumcised. 
 
 AND when Abram tvas ninety years old and nine, the Lord 
 appeared to Ahram, and. said unto him, I am the 
 Almighty God; walk before Me, and be thou perfect. 
 
 O God Almighty, Who hast power to overcome nature and quicken 
 the dead, I beseech Thee let not my cold, dull, lifeless heart remain 
 as it is, but let it put forth new life and become a source of good to 
 others also ! Thou didst bid Abraham walk in Thy Presence, and 
 be perfect. Long ago he had left his own country at Thy call, next 
 he learnt confidence in Thy all-powerful protection (xv. i), here he 
 learnt to devote himself entirely to Thy love and service. By these 
 successive steps, of separation from the world, of confidence, and of 
 love, many souls have passed towards heaven. 
 
 2. And I will make My covenant between Me and thee, and 
 will nudtiply thee exceedingly. 
 
 How good is God to enter into covenant with man ! Man alone of 
 creatures is made in God's Image, with a capacity to enter into 
 communion with the Eternal, to acknowledge mercies with 
 gratitude, to receive and obey Divine commands. Let me never 
 forget or despise the mercies which God has bestowed on me. His 
 covenant with me in Christ implies greater blessings than I can 
 comprehend as yet. 
 
 3. And Ahram fell on his face: and God talked with him, 
 saying, 4. As for Me, behold, My covenant is tvith thee, and 
 thou shcdt be a father of many nations. 
 
 Keep me. Lord, from an irreverent and distracted mind. Let me, 
 like the father of the faithful, adore Thee with due reverence. If 
 
Ver. 8.] A new Natne ajid new Promises 83 
 
 Abraham, God's friend, behaved with such humble adoration, ought 
 not our worship to be carefully ordered and exactly paid? It is 
 not true friendsliip with God but a base pretext and sham that 
 would assume a garb of familiarity and degrade religion by foolish, 
 boastful words. In prayer I address my awful and eternal Lord, 
 on Whom I entirely depend, to Whom I owe all, Who is ever 
 present with me though unseen. How should I behave most 
 suitably to such a Presence ? 
 
 5. Neither shall thy name any more he called Ahram, but 
 thy name shall be Abraham ; for a father of many nations 
 have I made thee. 
 
 On this great occasion a new name is given, or the old one is altered, 
 to be a token of new hopes and new life. So Saul l^ecame Paul 
 (Act xiii. 9) when the prospect of Gentile converts without number 
 began to open upon him. He too was to be a spiritual father of 
 many nations. Abraham's promised children are not only the 
 Jews, but all believers in Christ. Many multitudes of believing 
 hearts look to him as their father, recognise his faith as the source 
 . from which theirs has flowed. 
 
 6. And I will malce thee exceeding fruitful, and I ivill 
 make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. 
 
 From the Patriarch's lonely tent nations should grow, from that small 
 company of strangers mighty princes. So from a little spark of 
 faith, a single movement of grace, come great results in homes and 
 hearts. Let us but do our little piece of work in our day in full 
 reliance on the Almighty, Who is able to prosper it beyond all our 
 hopes. 
 
 7. And I tvill establish My covenant between Me and thee 
 and thy seed after thee in their geiierations for an everlasting 
 covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. 
 8. And I ivill give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the 
 land ivherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for 
 an everlasting possession ; and I will be their God. 
 
 God, Who hast made such a covenant with Thy servant in old days, 
 grant me a share, not in the letter, but in the inner meaning and 
 spirit of this covenant. I am of Abraham's family by spiritual 
 affinity, not natural. I look for a country that this world knows not 
 of. I know that Thy promises are not limited to this world's 
 narrow scene. After all my wanderings let me find Thy home 
 ready for me. 
 
84 The Seal of the Covenant [Gen. XVII. 
 
 9. And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep My 
 covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their gener- 
 ations. I o. This is My covenant, which ye shall keep, between 
 Me and you and thy seed after thee ; Every man child among 
 you shall be circumcised. 11. And ye shall circumcise the 
 flesh of your foreskin ; and it shall be a token of the covenant 
 betivixt Me and you. 
 
 This is the outward and visible sign of the Covenant. It set forth 
 two truths, one the impurity of our fallen nature, and a second the 
 power of God to remedy that impurity. It was no sacrament in 
 the strict sense of the word, but a witness to man's sense of sinful- 
 ness and his need of a Divine cleansing. I must not think that 
 there was any virtue in it to pardon sin or confer new life. No, 
 that could not come till Christ Himself shed His Blood. Jews 
 were circumcised to declare their membership in that nation which 
 looked for Redemption, and to signify lessons of self-restraint and 
 purity. Holy Baptism is for me all and much more than all that 
 circumcision was to Jews. 
 
 12. And he that is eight days old shall be circuvicised 
 among you, every man child in your generations, he that is 
 born in the house, or bought loith money of any stranger, which 
 is not of thy seed. 13. He that is born in thy house, and he 
 that is bought toith thy money, must needs be circumcised : and 
 My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. 
 
 God puts son and slave on the same level here. Both alike shared 
 in that rite which declared them members of God's family. The 
 purpose of this Divine order was to raise the slave by incorporating 
 him with his master's family in their worship. Thus he might 
 learn with them to obey God's Law and look for His promised 
 salvation. Sharers of a common covenant, a common hope, would 
 not these privileges tend to mitigate a slave's lot and lead towards 
 his enfranchisement in due time ? 
 
 14. Aiid the uncircumcised matt child xvhose flesh of his 
 foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his 
 people ; he hath broken My covenant. 
 
 This was the penalty on wilful disobedience to God's Law : Divine 
 Judgment should fmd out the offender. It is a precise and clear 
 rule which is here imposed, and yet St. Paul, under Divine guid- 
 ance, declares that circumcision ' availed nothing,' and that the 
 necessity for it has been removed. He allowed of it as a thing 
 indifferent, but fought successfully to free us from its obligation as 
 
Ver. 19.] Sarah, not Sarai 85 
 
 a rule. This remarkable alteration in God's precepts shows us 
 how His Word changes from time to time according to man's 
 changing needs, and that the time may come for certain rules or 
 ceremonies to be laid aside which were once approved or even 
 commanded. Oh for the Spirit's guidance to see our way between 
 old and new, to distinguish what is essential and permanent from 
 what is transitory! 
 
 15. And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, 
 thou shalt not call her name Sarai, hut Sarah shall her name 
 he. 16. And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her : 
 yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; 
 kings of people shall be of her. 
 
 If Sarai's name is altered to Sarah, meaning ' princess ' ; and this in 
 token of her honour as the mother of the son of promise, who 
 came, long waited for, to vindicate God's faithfulness, shall not 
 we find typified here a holier mother and a better offspring ? What 
 is Sarah's honour and dignity compared with that which Mary 
 obtained as the Virgin Mother of the Divine Redeemer ? What is 
 the royal dignity of Judah compared with Christ's sway over true 
 hearts in every age ? 
 
 17. Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and 
 said in his heart. Shall a child be born unto him that is an 
 hundred years old ? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, 
 bear? 18. And Abraham said u7ito God, that Ishmael 
 might live before Thee ! 
 
 This was ' good tidings of great joy ' to Aliraham, to hear of the near 
 fulfilment of his hopes. So good, so great news he dared not fully 
 believe, and therefore pleaded again for his son Ishmael, as having 
 obtained in his birth all that he dared to ask. Yet Abraham does 
 not doubt God's power or goodness ; he had had long experience of 
 both. All that he felt was his own nothingness, his own unworthi- 
 ness of Divine favours. And, this temper of his God largely blest 
 and recompensed. 
 
 ig. And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son 
 indeed ; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will estab- 
 lish My covenant tvith him for an everlasting covenant, and 
 with his seed after him. 
 
 To Isaac was to be limited the covenant promise, the prospect of a 
 future blessing for mankind, the possession of God's Truth and 
 
86 Ishmael's Portion [Gen. XVIII. 
 
 worship ; was not this the best treasure of all ? God is pleased to 
 enter into covenant with man. Thus He uplifts our frailty, gives 
 permanence to our transitoriness. The great God ol heaven and 
 earth makes a covenant with me, bids me depend on Him, look 
 up to Him. Thus I learn to live for higher ends than mere nature 
 tells of. 
 
 20. And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee : Behold, I have 
 blessed him, and tvill mahe him fruitful, and ivill multiply 
 him exceedingly ; twelve princes shall he beget, and I tvill mahe 
 him a great nation. 21. But my covenant tvill I establish 
 with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time 
 in the next year. 
 
 Ishmael was to have power, leave twelve sons who should be mighty 
 chiefs, be the ancestor of a warlike people. Meanwhile, Isaac's 
 family were strangers and sojourners, had a long time of bondage 
 to pass through ; far more appearance, for many hundred years, of 
 God's blessing being with the former than with the latter. Nay, if 
 we regard the Mohammedan nations as the descendants of Ishmael, 
 their power and empire have lasted on till now over the fairest 
 portion of the earth. But God has for His servants something 
 better. He is their God now and for ever. He is better than 
 richest gifts or greatest names. 
 
 2 2. And He left off talking ivith him, and God ivent up 
 from Abraham. 
 
 Then God had descended to speak with him. God Whose dwelling 
 is above, Who had not been manifested to earthly sight since man's 
 fall, had yet chosen Abraham to be His friend, with whom He 
 should hold communion. How great an honour for our mortal 
 nature ! What purity of heart and life befitted him with wliom 
 God held intercourse ! But yet God is present with us now in a 
 closer manner still. By His Holy Sacrament He tarries among 
 men, by His Holy Spirit He enters into our hearts. O Lord, 
 abide there ; we pray Thee, leave us not ! 
 
 23. And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that loere 
 born in his house, and all that xvere bought ivith his money, 
 every male among the men of Abraham'' s house; and circum- 
 cised thejiesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day, as God had 
 said unto him. 
 
 Lord, circumcise our hearts, that we may love Thee more than self; 
 our imaginations, that we may put away idle fancies ; our ears, 
 
Ver. I.] The Sign of Circumcision 87 
 
 that we may hear and understand Thy truth ; our lips, that we 
 may speak the right word in its season. Do Thou work in us 
 that purity and obedience which this rite of the old law 
 signified. 
 
 24. And Abraham was ninety years old and nine, ivhen he 
 was circu7ncised in the flesh of his foreskin. 25. And Ishmael 
 his son was thirteen years old, when he was circumcised in the 
 flesh of his foreskin. 26. In the self same day was Abraham 
 circumcised, and Ishmael his son. 27. And all the men of his 
 house, born in the house, and bought with money of the stranger, 
 toere circtimcised with him. 
 
 This household was united by a common faith. The God of Abraham 
 was known to and worshipped by all Abraham's family. God's 
 commands were obeyed, His promises trusted, by all alike. 
 Abraham and his household lived and worked together, shared the 
 dangers of the desert, the toils of the flock. No thought of pride 
 on his part, or of slavish falsehood or recklessness on theirs, 
 separated master and slave. In the world, as it then was, these 
 slaves were happy who were born or bought into that holy 
 household. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 Abraham entertaineth three angels, g. Sarah is reproved for laughing 
 at the strange promise. 17. The destruction of Sodom is revealed 
 to Abraham. 23. Abraham maketh intercession for the men 
 thereof. 
 
 A 
 
 ND the Lord a'ppeared unto him in the plains of Mamre : 
 and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day ; 
 
 God's promises are in themselves certain, yet He cliooses our willing 
 obedience, our performance of duty, as means whereby to carry 
 them out. Abraham sat looking out for travellers, desirous to 
 exercise hospitality, and thereby he ' entertained angels un- 
 awares ' and received the announcement that his hopes were near 
 fulfilment. Let me be equally ready to show kindness to all, and 
 especially prompt to honour and succour Christ in His suft'ering 
 members. 
 
The sacred Three [Gen. XVIII. 
 
 2. And lie lift %qy his eyes and looked, and to, three men 
 stood by him: and when he saiv them, he ran to meet them 
 from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground, 
 
 In these three wayfarers whom Abraham discerned, greeted, enter- 
 tained, God was present, God was manifested. Abraham desired 
 to show honour to human guests, but the attention was received 
 by those who were more than man. That great God, of Himself 
 invisible to man, Who was manifested to Moses in the unconsum- 
 ing fire or the transitory glory, Whom the Prophets beheld as a 
 majestic King, was pleased to put His Name on these three Angels, 
 so that they spoke as from God ; listened, promised, warned with 
 Divine power and mercy. How shall I apprehend this great 
 mystery of God's manifestation by angelic messengers? It is 
 certain that mortal eyes cannot see God, and yet He has taken 
 visible form and conversed with men ; He has shown Himself 
 accessible to our prayers and tears. These visions were anticipa- 
 tions of the Holy Incarnation, whereby He marvellously took to 
 Himself a dwelling-place in our humanity, never to quit it. Oh 
 may I have eyes to discern His Presence, and behave accordingly ! 
 
 3. And said, My lord, if noio I have found favour in Thy 
 sight, 2yass not away, I pray Thee, from Thy servant : 4. Let 
 a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and 
 rest yourselves under the tree: 5. And I ivill fetch a morsel 
 of bread, and comfort ye your hearts ; after that ye shall pass 
 on : for therefore are ye come to your servant. And they said, 
 So do, as tho2i hast said. 
 
 Abraham makes light of his offers and himself. Having much 
 wealth and many servants, he yet takes on himself the entire care 
 of the guests — he will not put off this sacred duty on any one else 
 — he regards it as a special ])rovidence of God that has given him 
 the chance of being hospitable. Break up, Lord, my selfishness, 
 that I may recall the many who lack those comforts and advantages 
 which Thou hast freely placed at my door ; let me be ready to 
 show them any kindness that is in my power. 
 
 6. And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and 
 said. Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead 
 it, and make cakes upon the hearth. 7. Aiid Abraham ran 
 unto the herd, and fetched a calf tender and good, and gave it 
 unto a young man ; and he hasted to dress it. 
 
 Sarah was to share in this gracious task of hospitality. She did not 
 pride herself on her dignity, but acted as the ancestress of Him 
 
Ver. 12.] Angels entertained 89 
 
 Who ' came not to be ministered unto but to minister.' Abraham's 
 family had learnt from him how to care for guests ; all were 
 anxious to do their part. Thus by exercising bounty to men they 
 received it again from on high ; thus they drew down new favours 
 from their gracious God. This is the way to prevail with God ; 
 we must show bounty and mercy, thus our prayer will find wings 
 to soar. 
 
 8. And he took hutter, and milk, and the calf ivhich he had 
 dressed, and set it before them ; and he stood hy them under 
 the tree, and they did eat. 
 
 In this scene of grace and kindness, Divine messengers visible on 
 earth and sharing earthly food, while Abraham stands by 
 reverently, as already discerning who his guests are, I see pre- 
 figured that astonishing condescension whereby God's Son sojourned 
 with us, man with man, for thirty-three years, and with which He 
 instituted a holy meal as an abiding memorial of His work, and a 
 means to strengthen and refresh us wayfarers. 
 
 9. And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy ivife? 
 And he said. Behold, in the tent. 10. And He said, I will 
 certainly return unto thee according to the time of life ; and 
 lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it %n 
 the tent door, which ivas behind him. 
 
 For this the heavenly visitors had come, to repeat the promise of an 
 heir to Abraham, to tell him that its fulfilment was near, to 
 awaken in his and Sarah's hearts faith to accept the gift which God 
 designed for them. It was thus that God sent messengers to 
 Zacharias and to the Blessed Virgin herself to tell them that they 
 were in the immediate path of great Divine dispensations, and 
 bid them behave accordingly. There too was a difference, Mary 
 believed and obeyed at once, so did Abraham ; with Zacharias 
 and with Sarah doubt came before faith. 
 
 II. Nolo Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken 
 in Ojcje ; and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of 
 women. 12. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, 
 After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being 
 old also ? 
 
 This laugh of Sarah's, invisible to men, was yet perceived and 
 known by the Angels ; they knew that she disbelieved their 
 message. Hers is not a question like Mary's (St. Luke i. 34), as 
 to the manner in which God will bring about this work ; but 
 rather like that of Zacharias (St. Luke i. 18), an expression of 
 disbelief in a thing as naturally impossible. Let me rather fix my 
 
90 SaraJis Lmighter reproved [Gen. XVIII. 
 
 faith on God's Word than on the apparent permanence of nature. 
 All that looks so fixed, so settled, or unchanging in nature is yet 
 at His service and constructed to do His will ; what He says will 
 come true. 
 
 13. And the Lord said imto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah 
 laxKjh, saying. Shall I of a sxirety hear a child, which am old ? 
 14. 7s any thing too hard for the Lord? At the time 
 appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, 
 and Sarah shall have a son. 
 
 God would return, not in any visible form, but by the operation of 
 His power, He would return to do what He had promised ; then 
 all the long years of waiting would issue in a joyful fulfilment. 
 His purpose was to create in Abraham, the father of the faithful, 
 a character of entire reliance on the Unseen. All these long years 
 of waiting were not thrown away, in that they brought Abraham 
 to live on the promises of his Divine Friend. Is not Abraham's 
 God our God ? Has He not for us too dispensations of mercy that 
 take long to unfold and require from us a patient, dutiful heart? 
 
 15. Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not ; for she luas 
 afraid. And he said, Nay ; hut thoti, didst laugh. 
 
 It would seem that these words of grave reproof brought her to 
 share her husband's faith, and that she now 'judged Him faithful 
 Who promised' ; she learned that God can trace our secret thoughts, 
 our half-expressed emotions ; all things are plain to His eyes. 
 When I read this account of God's homely intercourse with 
 Abraham and Sarah by angelic messengers, when I read this 
 familiar colloquy of the Divine with man, I contrast it with the 
 next step in man's spiritual education. When the time came for 
 God's dread Law to be given, Moses was bidden not to ' draw 
 nigh,' he ' exceeilingly feared and quaked ' in the Divine Presence ; 
 ali things then reminded man that he was unworthy to stand 
 before God. That too was a needful lesson, and came in its due 
 place. 
 
 16. And the men rose up from thence, and looked toioard 
 Sodom : and Ahraham ivent xuith them to hring them on the 
 way. 
 
 Abraham went with them in order to fulfil his hospitable duties, 
 and also desiring to penetrate the dread sentence with which he 
 perceived his guests to be laden. He observed great anger and 
 awe in their faces as they looked towards Sodom, and he feared 
 for his friend who was still abiding there. He hoped to be able 
 to intercede for those in danger. 
 
Ver. 21.] A great Cry 91 
 
 17. And the Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham that 
 
 thing xvhich I do ; 
 
 This is like an anticipation of Gospel grace. Christ the Lord says, 
 ' Henceforth I call you not servants but friends — for all things 
 which I have heard of My Father I have made known unto you.' 
 Here we see that Abraham had been indeed admitted to friendship 
 with God. Here we see what is meant by the title ' Abraham's 
 God.' Now that same God is our God ; do we keep our; hearts 
 so pure, so calm, so watchful, as to be fit to hold communion with 
 our Father, and receive His gracious messages ? 
 
 18, Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and 
 mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed 
 in him? 19. For I hnow him, that he tvill command his 
 children and his hoxhsehold after him, and they shall heep the 
 way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment ; that the Lord 
 may bring xipon Abraham that ivhich He hath spoken of him. 
 
 God, Who had chosen Abraham, regards him not in himself, but in 
 the community of believers which was to spring from him. 
 Abraham was the founder of true religion in the world. He 
 provided for its transmission by instituting worship and instruction. 
 Those whom God had given him became a church bound together 
 by common faith and duty. O great mercy of God, whereby 
 religion, immortal hope, loving obedience to an Unseen Guide, 
 have been planted and continued among men ! 
 
 20. And the Lord said, Because the cry of Sodom and 
 Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous ; 
 
 Then grievous sin causes a great cry to go up to the care of God. 
 Men, indeed, are deaf to this awful cry, but the Divine Judge 
 hears and heeds. Let me remember for my comfort that if my 
 sins have cried thus loudly for vengeance, yet the Blood of Christ 
 speaks better things, pleads for mercy as loudly. Even if my sins 
 have been very grievous, against light, against truth, in contempt 
 of mercy, yet 1 know that my Judge is my Saviour too. 
 
 21. / will go down now, and see tvhether they have done 
 altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto Me ; 
 and if not, I will hnoiv. 
 
 In this verse God seems to come down to my level and speak as a 
 man, to teach me a salutary lesson. He would not Himself give 
 sentence till He had seen as well as heard. He would look into 
 things for Himself with extreme patience and forbearance. Oh 
 
92 Ahraha^n standing before the Lord [Gen. XVIII. 
 
 may I suppress that spirit of hasty judgment, hasty condemnation, 
 which has so much sway over me ! I would resolve never to 
 blame without grave cause, or to decide until I really know the 
 truth. 
 
 2 2. And the men turned their faces from thence, and went 
 toward Sodom : hut Abraham stood yet before the Lord. 
 
 Then the Avengers went on their way and drew near to the doomed 
 city, and yet all things went on there as usual ; vice and luxury 
 were not abated ; no outward signs pointed to the last hour of 
 trial passing away and the time of vengeance coming near. Only 
 one of the three Angels, who represented God and bore His Name, 
 remained to receive Abraham's prayers and give them an answer 
 from God. In this Angel, Who is called ' the Lord,' and speaks as 
 God, am I right in recognising my Divine Lord and Saviour, as 
 yet unincarnate ? Is all this manifestation a foreshadowing of His 
 closer intercourse with us? 
 
 23. And Abraham dreiv near, and said, Wilt Thou also 
 destroy the righteous with the wicked? 24. Peradventtire 
 there be fifty righteous ivithin the city : ivilt Thou also destroy 
 and not spare the j^lace for the fifty righteo^is that are therein ? 
 25. That he far from Thee to do after this manner, to slay the 
 righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as 
 the tdcked, that be far from Thee: Shall not the Judge of all 
 the earth do right ? 
 
 The doctrine of the Divine Justice has firm hold on Abraham's soul 
 — he is surely persuaded that God is the Judge of all the earth, 
 
 and is a righteous Judge, distinguishing between the righteous and 
 the wicked. This is the foundation truth on which to rest when 
 all the world seems to totter ; God is the Judge, and He is 
 righteous. I may be certain of His justice, though all the world 
 lie in confusion. This was Abraham's faith, and it is still that 
 of God's people. Indeed, the terrible inequalities of life contend 
 with it, but faith looks forward to the eternal judgment, and 
 perseveres in her confession. O Lord, I know that Thou art 
 righteous, and that no deed will fail to find its recompense with 
 Thee ! 
 
 26. And the Lord said, If I fi7id in Sodom fifty righteous 
 within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes. 
 
 Glory be to Thee, O Lord, for Thy mercy ! How unrecognised are 
 the humble services of the good ! we know not how many great 
 states, great glories, great undertakings, subsist by virtue of God's 
 
Ver. 32.] Prevailing Intercession 93 
 
 regard for His true servants, hidden, and perhaps despised, as they 
 are. Do not think that the world's glories 
 
 ' Stand by their own unshaken might.' 
 
 Oh no ! God's forbearance, the prayers of saints, the humble virtues 
 of the good, have more to do with it. 
 
 27. And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have 
 taken upon ine to speak unto the Lord, which am hut dust and 
 ashes : 28. Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty 
 righteous : wilt Thou destroy all the city for lack of five ? 
 And He said, If I find there forty and five, I loill not destroy 
 it. 29. And he spake unto Him yet again, and said, 
 Peradventure there shall be forty fotmd there. And He said, 
 I will not do it for forty's sake. 
 
 Prayer grows and perseveres, and still wins a favouring answer. 
 Abraham reminds us of those New Testament parables which 
 speak of persevering in prayer, of that friend who won the loaves 
 by his importunity (Luke xi. 5), or that poor widow whose cries 
 wearied the unjust judge into attending to her case (Luke xviii. 5). 
 Prayer does not presume, but recognises man's frailty, man's 
 nothingness ; it confesses that we are indeed miserable, poor, 
 blind, naked ; but, just because of this, it flies to God for what 
 we need : relying not on any worthiness of our own, but on His 
 unbounded mercy. 
 
 30. And he said unto Him, let not the Lord be angry, 
 and I will speak : Peradventiire there shall thirty be found 
 there. And He said, I ivill not do it, if I find thirty there. 
 
 Abraham gets bolder here, and deducts ten ; his fear of the approach- 
 ing judgment and his sense of God's wonderful goodness both 
 growing keener. Christians in such circumstances have One Who 
 presents their prayers. One for Whose merits they claim to be 
 heard. In this history I notice God's goodness : how ready He 
 is to spare, how patient in attending to the cries of one earnest 
 heart. He Himself suggests to us those requests to which He 
 graciously listens. 
 
 31. And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to 
 speak unto the Lord : Peradventure there shall be twenty found 
 there. And He said, I will not destroy it for iiventy's sake. 
 32. And he said, let not the Lord be angry, and I tvill 
 
94 Sodom's last Chance [Gen. XIX. 
 
 speak yet btit this once : Feradveuture ten shall be found there. 
 And He said, I will not destroy it for ten's sake. 
 
 This is the farthest point to which intercession dared to go. And 
 let us not think that it was wasted, even though not ten righteous 
 could be found. It was for Abraham's sake that Lot and his 
 daughters were spared (xix. 29). There runs throughout this six 
 times repeated intercession a deep sense of God's mercy as well 
 as of His justice, also a sense of the worth of a righteous soul, also 
 a conviction of the value of prayer : we conclude that it is indeed 
 worth while to pray. Here in their earliest rudiments great ques- 
 tions are stirred belonging to God's government ; a devout soul 
 is seen pleading with God's justice, relying on His mercy, ventur- 
 ing into the great conflict between good and evil to rescue some 
 souls that are in peril. 
 
 33. And the Lord tvent His ivay, as soon as He had left 
 communing ivith Abraham : and Abraham returned unto his 
 place. 
 
 God brought this interview to an end, and Abraham retired full of 
 sad thoughts. He thought of the frightful judgment that hung 
 over the guilty city. He feared for his friends who were entangled 
 in it. No doubt he shared with his family the expectation and the 
 warning ; no doubt he drew out for them the lesson that deadly 
 lusts indulged ruin the soul and provoke God to destroy the sinner. 
 Abraham 'returned to his place,' far different indeed from that 
 place which Lot had chosen ; it was indeed more humble and 
 poorer, but it was safe — purity and peace were there. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 I. Lot entertaineth two angels. 4. The vicious Sodomites are stricken 
 with blindness. 12. Lot is sent for safety into the mountains. 
 18. He obtaineth leave to go into Zoar. 2<). Sodom and Gomorrah 
 are destroyed. 26. Lot's wife is a pillar of salt. 30. Lot dwelleth 
 in a cave. 31. The incestuous original of Moab and Ammon. 
 
 AND there came tivo angels to Sodom at even ; and Lot sat 
 in the gate of Sodom : and Lot seeing them rose up to 
 meet them; and he bowed himself ivith his face toward the 
 ground ; 
 
 Lot had done foolishly in settling at Sodom at all, knowing as he 
 did what kind of character it bore ; he had had a sharp and sudden 
 warning in being despoiled and taken captive. But he had gone 
 
Ver. 7-] Impending Ruin 95 
 
 back thither again, invited by the rich ground and the prospect 
 of wealth. Indeed it ' vexed his righteous soul ' to live with such 
 people, yet he continued to do so, neither had he been able to win 
 any one to better ways. 
 
 2. And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, 1 pray you, 
 into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and loash your 
 feet, and ye shall rise %ip early, and go on your ways. And 
 they said. Nay ; hut we luill abide in the street all night. 
 3. And he pressed upon them greatly ; arid they turned in 
 U7ito him, and entered into his hoicse ; and he made them a 
 feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat. 
 
 Lot had learnt from Abraham to be hospitable to strangers ; he 
 desired to protect them from insult, he waited on their needs and 
 rejoiced to serve them ; indeed, like the two disciples at Emmaus 
 with their risen Lord (Luke xxiv. 29), he had to 'constrain' them 
 before they would accept his hospitality. He offered them his 
 best care, his best gifts, and they repaid him with deliverance in 
 the impending judgment. 
 
 4. But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the 
 men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, 
 all the people from every quarter : 5. And they called unto 
 Lot, and said iinto him. Where are the men ivhich came in to 
 thee this night 1 bring them out unto us, that ive may know 
 them. 
 
 We are shocked to read of this widespread, deadly, unnatural vice ; 
 but let us rather take warning lest we ourselves by compliance 
 with the desires of the flesh fall under its dominion, and so be led 
 on into deadly downfalls. It is too true that in hearts where 
 unclean desire rules, all pure and tender affections fade away, the 
 heart itself becomes flesh, there is no longer any room for faith, 
 for compassion, for reverence. Oh that those who have learnt their 
 own frailty by sad experience would rise and burst their chain, 
 before it becomes too strong ! 
 
 6. And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the 
 door after him, 7. And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so 
 wickedly. 
 
 Lot had courage, then, and could speak his mind. But if he had 
 done so at other times, if he had realised before this that these 
 
gb Blinded Hearts [Gen. XIX. 
 
 sinners were indeed his brethren, and claimed of him some instruc- 
 tion, some reclamation, he would not have been left so utterly 
 alone on the side of good. Still his courage and self-sacrifice are 
 good to notice. 
 
 8. Behold noio, I have ttvo daughters which have not known 
 man ; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye 
 to them as is good in your eyes : only unto these men do 
 nothing ; for therefore came they under the shadoiv of my 
 roof. 
 
 Was he right in this offer ? Surely not. It marks, indeed, his in- 
 tense regard for the sacred rites of hospitality that he would sacri- 
 fice his own children to avert evil from his guests ; but it is never 
 right to try and avoid one sin by allowing another. Far better 
 for us to take our stand on God's Law and trust in Him to protect 
 us. Abraham would never have recommended such a plan as 
 this. It would never have been thought of in a household where 
 God was truly served. 
 
 9. And they said, Stand hack. And they said again, This 
 one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs he a judge : 
 now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they 
 pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to hreak 
 the door. 
 
 When you read of the brutality and violence of the people of Sodom, 
 remember that Christ the Lord said that if His mighty works had 
 been done in Sodom it would have been brougiit to repentance 
 and saved from destruction ; or again, that the cities which wil- 
 fully rejected His disciples' message would have a heavier judgment 
 than Sodom had. It is too true that many sinners whose vices I 
 abhor, whose brutality I despise, have never had my chances of 
 seeing God's marvels or hearing His gracious word. How little 
 were their opportunities compared with mine ! 
 
 10. But the men put forth their hand, and j^ulled Lot into 
 the house to them, and shut to the door. 11. And they smote 
 the men that were at the door of the house with hlindness, hoth 
 small and great ; so that they wearied themselves to find the 
 door. 
 
 This does not mean total blindness, for they gradually dispersed and 
 found their way home ; all was quiet when Lot went out later in 
 the night. It would seem rather to mean a confusion and bewilder- 
 ment which hindered them from carrying out their vile threats. 
 God intervened to protect Lot, who trusted in Him. Though not 
 naturally courageous, Lot gained courage by having angels on his 
 side. 
 
Ver. i6.] The Merciful Avetigers gj 
 
 12. And the men said 7into Lot, Hast thou here any besides ? 
 son-in-laiv, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever 
 thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place : 1 3. For 
 we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen 
 great before the face of the Lord ; and the Lord hath sent us 
 to destroy it. 
 
 This was in the night, when all was now peaceful and at rest. No 
 signs were there that this was the last night of Sodom's existence. 
 Feasting, no doubt, and strife and business had gone on as usual, 
 and yet the last sands in the glass were running out. I wonder 
 whether, when the Day of Judgment comes, it will come on an 
 asto»ished world as swiftly, as suddenly, as that judgment came 
 in old days. 
 
 14. And Lot went out, and s2)aJce iinto his sons-in-laiv, 
 which married his daughters, and said, Uj), get you oiit of this 
 place; for the Lord will destroy this city. But he seemed as 
 one that mocked unto his sons-in-law. 
 
 Such is mostly the case with those who preach God's approaching 
 judgments. So it was with Noah as the Flood drew near. Things 
 had gone on so long they seemed sure to go on still. What change 
 was there that night in the heaven or on the earth that men should 
 expect a catastrophe so near ? Those who went by their senses 
 alone found words about God's wrath and their own approaching 
 ruin tedious to hear and impossible to believe. 
 
 15. And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened 
 Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which 
 are here ; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. 
 16. And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, 
 and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two 
 daughters ; the Lord being mercifid unto him : and they 
 brought him forth, and set him without the city. 
 
 O hard parting ! Lot had settled there in order to grow rich peace- 
 ably, and he had seen all things prosper with him. Once he had 
 lost all, even his liberty, and that and all else had been recovered 
 through Abraham's courage ; and now he had suddenly and 
 irrevocably to part with all past any chance of recovery. Thanks 
 be to God even for that salutary violence whereby He rescues us 
 from the Sodom of this world, whereby He warns us, even sharply 
 and painfully, that this is a perishing world, and that we must 
 G 
 
98 God's Forbearance [Gen. XIX. 
 
 set our hopes on an abiding city. When Thy warning comes, 
 give us, Lord, ears to listen to it. 
 
 17. And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth 
 abroad, that He said, jEscape for thy life; look not behind 
 thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, 
 lest thou be consumed. 
 
 ' Haste, for thy life escape, nor look behind ! ' 
 Here is a grave warning — leave all else and think only of life. Let 
 me hear and repeat this warning when it concerns not life in this 
 world but my hold on everlasting peace. There are times when 
 I have to rise up at once and leave pleasant or gainful things if I 
 would save my true self — times when I must escape from the 
 world's torrent lest I be swallowed up and lost in it. On the 
 mountain I shall be safe ; let me not rest till my foot is firmly 
 rooted there. 
 
 18. And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord: 
 19. Behold now. Thy servant hath found grace in Thy sight, 
 and Thou hast magnified Thy mercy, which Thou hast shelved 
 unto me in saving my life ; and I cannot escape to the moun- 
 tain, lest some evil take me, and I die: 20. Behold noiv, this 
 city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one : Oh, let me 
 escape thither {is it not a little one ?) and my soid shall live. 
 
 How weak is Lot's faith ! He dares not trust to the Divine promise 
 of safety, if he has to cross the wide plain before he can be secure. 
 But yet he believed enough to know that ruin was near. The 
 dawn brightened, and the sun was just about to rise ; all things 
 looked beautiful and at peace ; the lovely land was ' like the 
 garden of the Lord ' ; and yet the hour had come for its being laid 
 desolate. So, too, one day will all this great and wonderful world 
 pass away ; but believing souls will have found a Zoar in which 
 to be safe. 
 
 21. And He said unto him. See, I have accepted thee con- 
 cerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for 
 the which thou hast spoken. 
 
 Here is a gracious answer, like what Abraham obtained to his inter- 
 cession. Here we see that Lot must have kept up his prayers, 
 though he lived in Sodom. God was wont to hear and answer 
 him. He prayed ' not trusting in his own righteousness, but in 
 God's manifold and great mercy,' and so was heard. Who in 
 Zoar thought of the true cause of its escaping from the near and 
 manifest ruin of all its neighbour cities ? 
 
Ver. 27.] Remember Lofs Wife 99 
 
 22. Haste thee, escape thither ; for I cannot do any thing 
 till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was 
 called Zoar. 
 
 God seems to tie His own hands. He Who is Almighty says : ' I 
 cannot do anything ' — all waits upon Lot's speed in gaining a 
 refuge. So in Ezekiel ix., so in Revelation vii., God's avenging 
 judgments wait until His true servants are marked or sealed with 
 His sign. We must never suppose that He forgets any one soul 
 that trusts in Him. He Who governs His universe by general 
 laws is yet attentive to the cry of each of us. 
 
 23. The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into 
 Zoar. 24. Then the Lord rained tipon Sodom and upon 
 Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven ; 
 25. And He overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all 
 the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the 
 ground. 
 
 Here is a rehearsal of that Great Day to come, when men shall say, 
 'Peace and safety,' while 'sudden destruction cometh upon them.' 
 Here are all things that seemed so beautiful and so permanent 
 swallowed up in a deluge of fire, just as the great world itself shall 
 one day be burned up. As to the natural causes of this catastrophe, 
 I am told little ; in what way God convulsed the earth, or called 
 forth the slumbering fires that lie beneath its surface, or sent light- 
 nings from on high, I know not ; but earth and air and fire are 
 alike His messengers, and do His bidding. When all this world 
 passes away in a like ruin, Faith will know where to cling for 
 safety. 
 
 26. But his wife looked bach from behind him, and she 
 became a pillar of salt. 
 
 Thou didst say, O Lord — to point this verse and fix it in our minds 
 — ' Remember Lot's wife ! ' Let me not look back longingly to 
 that Sodom out of which Thou hast once delivered me ; let me 
 not stop and linger on my way heavenward, lest my heart grow 
 careless and I never reach my heavenly home. ' Remember Lot's 
 wife ! ' sounds as a sharp warning to all those who are double- 
 minded, who love sin's ways still, and cannot heartily quit them. 
 O Divine Guide, lead me by the hand, and leave me not, till I 
 reach that City where I shall be safe for ever ! 
 
 27. And Abraham gat up early in the morning to the place 
 where he stood before the Lord : 
 
 He came there full of fear, remembering the awful warnings of the 
 previous day, remembering, too, the gracious answers which God 
 
roo The Mountain of Safety [Gen. XIX. 
 
 had given to his intercession. He was deeply moved with Lot's 
 danger and the nearness of judgment — all these thoughts drove 
 sleep from his eyes. Oh that we had hearts like his to intercede 
 earnestly for those many souls who go on towards death and judg- 
 ment like brute beasts unheeding of their danger ! 
 
 28. And lie looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and 
 toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and lo, the smoke 
 of the country went np as the smoke of a furnace. 
 
 The air was filled with smoke, the sign of a great conflagration going 
 on beneath. Abraham, as he looked on from his distant height, 
 thanked God that he had been kept from the attractions of the 
 sinful city. The sight told him of God's wrath prepared for sinners. 
 It was a figure of the end of all things, of the passing away of this 
 great world and all that seems so secure in it. Will not believers, 
 in that day, look on securely while the conflagration rages round 
 them? 
 
 29. And it came to pass, ivhen God destroyed the cities of 
 the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of 
 the midst of the overthroiv, ivhen He overthrew the cities in the 
 which Lot dwelt. 
 
 ' For Abraham's sake ' — -he was God's friend ; those who were dear 
 to him were saved. Let me, too, have a share in the prayers of 
 good Christians ; let their intercession for me prevail to rescue me 
 on the day of danger. Above all, let me have a portion in the 
 all-prevailing intercession of Christ Jesus, which the Church pleads 
 at the Altar. In myself is no worthiness ; but I represent to God 
 the prayers of His saints, the infinite merit of His Son, and, thus 
 praying, I am heard and helped. 
 
 30. And Lot ivent ^q) out of Z oar, and dtvelt in the moun- 
 tain, and his tivo daughters ivith him ; for he feared to dwell 
 in Zoar : and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters. 
 
 How weak is Lot's faith ! When told that he should be safe on the 
 mountain, he disbelieved the promise, and pleaded that he should 
 never get there. When told that Zoar should be a refuge for him, 
 he feared to continue there, seeing how near it was to the scene 
 of ruin. If he had remained in Zoar, he might have done good 
 and used the great judgment that had occurred to bring tliose 
 who lived there to repentance ; but he forsook the haunts of men 
 in his terror, and went to live where fire could not fall upon him, 
 nor houses crumble around him. With such fear had the sights 
 and sounds of that day inspired him. 
 
Ver. 38.] Lot and his Daughters 101 
 
 31. And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is 
 old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us 
 after the manner of all the earth : 
 
 Lot's daughters had heard of the Flood, and how but one family had 
 been left alive, and they thought that the same might be the case 
 now after a like destruction had come upon Sodom. Living in 
 solitude and with the smoke of the great desolation still overhang- 
 ing them, they had no knowledge of others surviving, or thought at 
 least that they themselves were cut off from mankind. There are 
 dangers which creep into a solitary life, no less than into that which 
 is led in busy haunts of men. Even in retirement we should watch 
 and pray lest Satan enter. 
 
 32. Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will 
 lie with him, that rue may 'preserve seed of our father. 
 ^7^. And they made their father drink wine that night: and 
 the firstborn ivent in, and lay with her father ; and he per- 
 ceived not when she lay doivn, nor when she arose. 34. And 
 it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstboo^n said unto the 
 younger, Behold, I lay yesternight with my father : let us make 
 him drink ivine this night also ; and go thou in, and lie with 
 him, that ive may 2>i'eserve seed of our father. 35. And they 
 made their father drink wine that flight also : and the younger 
 arose, and lay ivitJi him ; and he perceived not xohen she lay 
 down, nor when she arose. 36. Thxis were both the daughters 
 of Lot with child by their father. 
 
 What are we to say of this conduct of Lot and his daughters ? Of 
 him we suppose that he drank to drown his sorrows and fears or to 
 cheer his loneliness; certainly he had no knowledge of his daughters' 
 evil purpose, or intention of complying with it ; and of them we may 
 say that they acted in simplicity, believing that it was their duty 
 to raise up offspring who should continue man's race. Still, it 
 was not thus that God's true servants lived. If Lot had remained 
 in Abraham's society he would have continued in the straight path ; 
 God's judgments would have taught, not overpowered him. His 
 years in Sodom had brought him down to a lower level. 
 
 37. And the firsthorn bare a son, and called his name Moab: 
 the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day. 38. And 
 the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name Ben- 
 ammi : the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto 
 this day. 
 
 Of Lot himself we knowno more. We may well suppose that Abraham 
 found him out, maintained and comforted him. We may believe 
 
! Gerar [Gen. XX. 
 
 that he regained peace with God in his latter years. The children 
 of his incestuous union with his daughters became the ancestors of 
 two nations who relinquished the true God for idols, and were 
 continual enemies of God's people. In Numbers xxv. we read how 
 the women of Moab and the idols of Moab brought ruin upon 
 God's host. In Judges xi. and 1st Samuel xi. we hear of the 
 cruelties of Ammon against Israel. When I look back over this 
 chapter I pray that God would keep me in the society of the good, 
 would preserve me in a wholesome fear, would save me from 
 becoming hardened in sin. Fire and brimstone do not always 
 light on vile actions now. Oh no ; but such acts sear the heart and 
 leave there a hardness and indifference wherein no good thoughts 
 or prayers can flourish. 
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 1. Abraham sojourneth at Gerar, 2. denieth his wife, and loseth her. 
 
 3. Abimelech is reproved for her in a dream, g. He rebuketh 
 
 Abraham, 14. restoreth Sarah, 16. and reproveth her, 17. He is 
 healed by Abraham's prayer. 
 
 AND Ahralmm journeyed from thence toward the south 
 country, and dwelled between Kadesh and Shur, and 
 sojour'ned in Gerar. 
 
 Then Abraham's life, like ours, had its changes and trials. One 
 while he is visited by Divine messengers, enjoys marvellous 
 promises, has great revelations of God's ways made to him. 
 Presently again he is obliged to wander from place to place, is 
 in fear for his life or goods. Let me dispose myself to a quiet 
 and settled faith, remembering that though I change in spirits or 
 in circumstances, my Heavenly Guide is still the same. I do not 
 leave Him behind, go where I will. 
 
 2. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister: 
 and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah. 3. But 
 God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, 
 Behold, thou art but a dead man, for the woman tvhich thou 
 hast taken ; for she is a man's ivife. 
 
 No doubt Abraham prayed while Abimelech slept, and it was in 
 answer to the former's prayer that the latter received instruction. 
 God's warning to the king, and the king's acceptance of it, show 
 what we should think of adultery. Those who escape the sentence 
 
Ver. 8.] AbimelecKs Dreatn 103 
 
 of earthly judges because they are too high in power to be touched, 
 or because their sin is not known, are yet known and sentenced by 
 the Judge of all. He declares that certain sins are deadly, and kill 
 the soul's life. Shall we not believe Him ? 
 
 4. But Ahimelech had not come near her : and he said, 
 Lord, wilt Thou slay also a righteous nation ? 5. Said he 
 not unto Me, She is my sister ? and she, even she herself said, 
 He is my brother : in the integrity of my heart and innocency 
 of my hands have I done this. 6. And God said unto him in 
 a dream, Yea, I knoiv that thou didst this in the integrity of 
 thy heart ; for I also withheld thee from sinning against Me : 
 therefore suffered I thee not to touch her. 
 
 Then King Ahimelech has a Master over him, Who disposes of his 
 life, restrains his actions, accepts his vindication. Be thou pleased, 
 O Lord, to maintain the innocence of heart, the simplicity of life, 
 with which our dear lads and girls enter a dangerous world. 
 Suffer them not to be corrupted by sin. Be Thou with those who 
 trust in Thee. Thy mercy has often kept me from following out 
 my own sinful desires. I recognise in my own life's history Thy 
 gracious withholding Hand. 
 
 'How much, preventing God, how much I owe 
 
 To the defences Thou hast round me set: 
 Example, custom, fear, occasion slow. 
 
 These scorned bondmen were my parapet.' 
 
 7. Now therefore restore the man his wife ; for he is a 
 prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live : and if 
 thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, 
 thou, and all that are thine. 
 
 Abraham is a prophet. A prophet is here first mentioned in Scrip- 
 ture. He is one whom God chooses to know and declare His will, 
 one to whom He reveals mysteries. A prophet's prayer was 
 accepted by God. How gracious is our heavenly Father to raise 
 up, amidst our darkness, prophets to be lights of the world, salt of 
 the earth, guides and intercessors for us ! Give us, Lord, eyes to 
 recognise Thy prophets, and hearts to learn from them. 
 
 8. Therefore Ahimelech rose early in the mornitig, and 
 called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears : 
 and the men were sore afraid. 
 
 God has made use of the visions of the night to declare His will. Abim- 
 elech awoke, but the impression of his dream remained. He was 
 
I04 The Fear of God restraining from Sin [Gen. XX. 
 
 stirred up to greater faith and fear of God. I see here something 
 of the dispensation of God towards heathens which Scripture now 
 and then discloses. ' Gerar's guileless king ' is but one of those 
 many who in heathen lands looked to and were guided by the 
 Living and True God Whom we worship. 
 
 9. Then Ahimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, 
 What hast thou done unto %is, and ivhat have I offended thee, 
 that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin ? 
 thou hast done deeds imto me that ought not to be done. 
 10. And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, 
 that thou hast done this thing ? 
 
 This was long before the seventh commandment was published amidst 
 the thunders of Sinai. That then did no more than renew and 
 proclaim afresh the voice of God within us, bidding us keep holy 
 the marriage bond. Give me grace, Lord, in my teaching or 
 conversation, to speak of purity in a pure manner. Let me feel 
 and bring home to other hearts how great a sin it is to enslave our 
 bodies to adulterous lust. From such downfalls do Thou, Good 
 Lord, deliver me. 
 
 11. And Abraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear 
 of God is not in this place ; and they will slay me for my 
 wife's sake. 
 
 So the fear of God was spread more widely than Abraham thought. 
 Indeed, it may sometimes be found where we little expect it. He 
 is the Living Dread of His true servants and worshippers. They 
 join togetlier fear and love of that Holy Name by which they are 
 called. And yet far more widely than any profession of faith in God 
 extends an unexpressed reverence, a wholesome awe, which rein- 
 forces all that is good within us and is a great means to keep the 
 soul from sin. Those who hearken to this holy fear will be led on 
 from fear into knowledge and love. 
 
 12. And yet indeed she is my sister ; she is the daughter of 
 my father, but not the daughter of my mother ; and she became 
 my wife. 13. And it came to ^xiss, tvhen God caused me to 
 ivander from my father s house, that I said unto her. This is 
 thy kindness xvhich thou shall shew unto me ; at every place 
 whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother. 
 
 This permission to marry a half-sister, the daughter of the same 
 father, was one of the things which some ancient laws allowed, but 
 
Ver. 1 8.] Sarah reproved 105 
 
 which Moses afterwards in his law forbade, just as some things 
 which Moses allowed Christ Jesus afterwards prohibited. In the 
 country whence Abraham came it had been allowed him without 
 blame. Did he learn all God's will at once ? Oh no ; God 
 caused him to leave his home, bade him lead a pilgrim life, 
 protected him in danger, showed him marvels to come. How 
 gradual was his education, how much he was continually learning 
 from his heavenly Teacher ! Trust in God, confidence that 
 wherever he was God would keep him, did he but keep to God's 
 side, that was one thing which took him a long time to learn. 
 
 14. And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, 
 and ivomenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored 
 him Sarah his wife. 15. And Abimelech said. Behold, my 
 land is before thee : divell where it pleaseth thee. 
 
 In this Gentile king bestowing upon the heir of promise presents and 
 favours, I see a figure of that time to come when the sovereigns of 
 this world should press their gifts on the church and endow it with 
 honours and wealth. It was no doubt a good feeling that stirred 
 
 ' Each convert king to rear 
 His mother from the dust ; 
 And pious was it to enrich, nor fear 
 Christ for the rest to trust ; ' 
 
 but yet the Church thus enriched soon lost the apostolic zeal which 
 it had once had. 
 
 16. And unto Sarah he said, Behold, I have given thy 
 brother a thousand pieces of silver : behold, he is to thee a 
 covering of the eyes, unto all that are ivith thee, and tvith all 
 other ; thus she ivas rep)roved. 
 
 If Sarah is, according to St. Paul, a type of the Churcli of Christ, our 
 spiritual Mother, she is here reminded that Christ is her Head and 
 sole Lord, her beauty is from Him, her honour consists in entire 
 loyalty to Him. Sarah received a present to signify that her 
 honour and position were restored her, that she was acknowledged 
 to be Abraham's true wife. She should take no other lord, but 
 remain ever steadfast and faithful to him. 
 
 17. So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed 
 Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants ; and they bare 
 children. 18. For the Lord had fast closed %ip all the wombs 
 of the house of Abimelech, beccmse of Sarah Abraham'' s wife. 
 
 Here, as in chapter xviii. , prayer is revealed as prevailing with God. 
 The women of Abimelech's household could not bring to the birth, 
 
io6 Isaacs Birth [Gen. XXI. 
 
 had travail pains but no happy deliverance, while Sarah remained 
 captive ; and it was Abraham's prayer which removed this affliction 
 which had extended to the king's own wife as well as to women in 
 humbler place. There is much needing to be healed in the souls 
 as well as the bodies of those whom I love. Would that my 
 prayers were so urgent, so persevering, as to win an answer of 
 blessing for them ! 
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 I. Isaac is born. 4. He is circumcised. 6. Sarah's joy. g. Hagar and 
 Ishmael are cast forth. 15. Hagar in distress. 17. The angel 
 comforteth her. 22. Abimelech's covenant with Abraham at Beer- 
 sheba. 
 
 AND the Lord visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord 
 did unto Sarah as He had spoken. 2. For Sarah con- 
 ceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time 
 of which God had spoken to him. 
 
 This was a visitation of mercy — the long-promised heir was born 
 after years of waiting. Sometimes God visits in judgment ; His 
 threatenings come true as surely as His promises. Many have 
 been His gracious visitations to His servants ; above all, that one, 
 long-desired, when ' the Dayspring from on high visited us,' and 
 enlightened our darkness. I would fain cherish a settled con- 
 viction that God is true, and that what He has said will surely 
 come to pass, either in judgment or in mercy. Thus my life 
 would glide on peacefully, relying upon the sure words of my 
 Heavenly Friend. 
 
 3. And Abraham called the name of his son that tvas born 
 unto him, ivhom Sarah bare to him, Jsaac. 4. A7id Abraham 
 circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had 
 commanded him. 5. And Abraham ivas an hundred years 
 old, when his son Isaac ivas born unto him. 
 
 I am reminded here of the birth of Christ's forerunner, John the 
 Baptist ; he too was given to his parents in their old age, accord- 
 ing to a Divine promise. But John's privilege was to see the 
 Saviour with his own eyes and go immediately before Him, in 
 this excelling the old Patriarchs who had long passed away into 
 the unseen world before He came, to Whom they had looked 
 
Ver. 9-] Is hmael mocking Isaac 107 
 
 forward. The birth of Isaac, the heir of promise, is a figure of 
 the power of the Gospel which gives new birth to hearts and 
 raises up believers who become heirs of all the treasures of grace. 
 Before the Holy Spirit came, God had faithful servants, but no 
 heirs of His kingdom in the fullest sense. 
 
 6. And Sarah said, God hath made me to latigh, so that all 
 that hear will laugh with me. 7. And she said, Who would 
 have said unto Abraham, that Sarah shoidd have given 
 children suck ? for I have home him a son in his old age. 
 
 This joy was all the dearer and more precious because it had. been 
 long waited for — it reminds us that true religion is not only 
 'righteousness and peace,' but also 'joy in the Holy Ghost.' 
 Christ Himself, before His Passion, desired that His own 'joy 
 might abide in us,' and 'be full.' His Apostles speak continually 
 of Christian joy — and yet this joy has to co-exist with suffering 
 and with tears — il!> burns on, and is not altogether stifled by pain 
 and care. When God has made us His children, put in our 
 hearts a sense of sonship, it is good news which the world cannot 
 falsify. 
 
 8. And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham 
 made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned. 
 
 Here I am reminded of Hannah, who brought Samuel to God's 
 House when he had been weaned, and presented him there with 
 feasting and joy, and made that thanksgiving which my Lord's 
 Mother took as the expression of her own gratitude and made out 
 of it a Magnificat for all believers to use. Isaac was weaned from 
 his mother's breast (probably in his third year), the time had come 
 for him to lead his own life and take solid food ; but there are 
 some souls to whom this step never seems to come in their spiritual 
 progress — they hang on other's opinions, like the babe on his 
 mother's breast ; they have not learnt to go direct to God and 
 lean on Him rather than on human guides. 
 
 9. And Sarah saw the son of Ilagar the Egyptian, which 
 she had born unto Abraham, mocking. 
 
 Ishmael mocked Isaac, and might have gone on to ill-treat him. 
 St. Paul sees here the conduct of the unconverted Jews ; ' as he 
 that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after 
 the spirit, even so it is now.' So it is in all times with those who 
 love and serve this world, they are inclined to ridicule the hopes 
 and prospects of God's true children. 
 
io8 The Son of the Bondwoman [Gen. XXL 
 
 lo. Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast otit this bond- 
 woman and her son : for the son of this bondiuoman shall not 
 be heir ivith my son, even with Isaac, ii. And the thing was 
 very grievous in Ahraharris sight because of his son. 
 
 This sadness of Abraham's at having to part with his dear Ishmael, 
 who would now leave his father's house, and lose what good 
 learning and good ways he had had there, recalls the great Apostle 
 who had ' great heaviness and continual sorrow in his heart ' 
 when he thought of 'his kinsmen according to the flesh,' the 
 literal Israel, who had despised God's gospel promises and lost 
 them. So great a severance it was and so final. The Apostle's 
 ' heart's desire and prayer ' went up to God for those from whom 
 he was parted. 
 
 12. And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in 
 thy sight becatise of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman ; 
 in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearTcen unto her voice ; 
 for in Isaac shall thy seed be called. 
 
 ' They are not all Israel, who are of Israel,' but the ' children of the 
 promise are counted for a seed' — there is a my-tery of rejection, 
 as of acceptance. God chose Isaac to found His chosen family, 
 and passed by Ishmael, the elder, just as he passes by many 
 nations, many hearts, and brings His message home to others ; 
 why, I know not. Sarah was right after all in deciding that the 
 time had come for Ishmael to depart ; she is a figure of the 
 Christian Church towards the end of the apostolic age, when it 
 was clearly seen that the gap between Jews and Christians could 
 not be bridged over, but that the former were outside the household 
 of faith and contrary to it. 
 
 13. And also of the son of the bondivoman will I make a 
 nation, because he is thy seed. 
 
 Not that God would leave Ishmael without a blessing suited to his 
 character and condition. He became famous, warlike, and the 
 founder of a mighty race and widespread faith. Certainly 
 Ishmael could not become Isaac, nor share the Gospel promises, 
 but in tliat evangelical history, of whicli this is a figure, Ishmael 
 could spiritually become the heir, Jews could relinquish their state 
 of separation and share with Christians all the blessings that Christ 
 brought — the son of the bondwoman could regain freedom. Let 
 me never by my pride or harshness put a stumbling-block in the 
 way of any Jews recognising their true Saviour. 
 
Ver. 1 8.] Hagar's Co7npassion for her Child 109 
 
 14. And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took 
 bread, and a bottle of luater, and gave it unto Hagar, putting 
 it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her aiuay : and she 
 departed, and ivandered in the tvilderness of Beer-sheba. 
 
 Here are exiles wandering in the desert long before the Exodus. 
 Hagar and her son lacked guide and water and hope — they 
 wandered and could find no way. Just so those Jews of whom 
 she is a figure ; they refused the true Christ and the Gospel 
 promises, and began a long unfruitful journey in which they are 
 still entangled, with their hope of a Messiah so long mocking 
 them. 
 
 15. And the water ivas spent in the bottle, and she cast the 
 child tinder one of the shrubs. 16. And she went, and sat her 
 doivn over against him a good way off, as it loere a bowshot : 
 for she said, Let me not see the death of the child. And she 
 sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept. 
 
 Perhaps this poor mother, now Abraham had cast her out, had lost 
 her faith in Abraham's God, and in the promises made to her 
 previously (xvi. 10, 12). Now that she shared no more in the 
 worship and the comforts of Abraham's tent, she seemed also cast 
 out of God's sight and care. Christian mothers are sustained in 
 their worst anxieties on behalf of their children by the thought 
 that God is near, God sees, God cares. Nay, they know that in 
 a wonderful manner He has been pleased to take on Himself a 
 child's condition and be cherished by a tender mother. Mary 
 stood with patience by the Cross and saw her Divine Son die ; 
 a Christian mother will follow her pattern, and ' sorrow not as one 
 without hope.' 
 
 17. And God heard the voice of the lad ; and the Angel of 
 God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said tinto her. What 
 aileih thee, Hagar ? fear not ; for God hath heard the voice of 
 the lad where he is. 18. Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him 
 in thine hand ; for I will make him a great nation. 
 
 God 'heard the voice of the lad' ; God promised him present help 
 and future greatness. God sustained the poor mother's fainting 
 heart. Oh that our dear lads would so pray that God would hear 
 their voice ! In the great danger and temptations of opening life, 
 how can a lad pass on his way safely unless he prays to Abraham's 
 God and wins help from Him ? 
 
no Eyes opened [Gen. XXI, 
 
 19. And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water ; 
 and she went, and filled the bottle tvith water, and gave the 
 lad drinh. 
 
 This well of living water, bright and clear, which was life in the 
 thirsty desert land, reminds me of my Saviour's gracious invitation, 
 'If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink.' The 
 Prophet also tells us, * With joy shall ye draw water out of the 
 wells of salvation.' As we wander in the world's wilderness we 
 are led by God's mercy to some pure and gracious springs whence 
 He refreshes us. Let us beware of the false poisonous refreshment 
 which sin would offer ; that draught sparkles brightly but stirs a 
 fever in the blood which bids us drink and drink again, 
 
 • Till the seared taste in foulest wells 
 Is fain to slake its fire." 
 
 20. And God was tvith the lad ; and he greiv, and dwelt in 
 the ivilderness, and became an archer. 21. And he dwelt in 
 the wilderness of Paran : and his mother took him a wife out 
 of the land of Egypt. 
 
 Ishmael led a bold adventurous life and founded a powerful nation. 
 We hear of him later as joining Isaac at Abraham's funeral. He 
 soon forgot what Divine promises, what hopes of unseen good, 
 his father had cherished. It was suflScient for him to be the father 
 of renowned chiefs and to be feared by all his neighbours. His 
 mother chose him a wife from Egypt, and so linked him with that 
 land of bondage. He never learnt to walk with God, or to look 
 for His blessing or reward. 
 
 22. And it came to pass at that time, that Ahimelech and 
 Phichol the chief captain of his host spake unto Abraham, 
 saying, God is tvith thee in cdl that thou doest : 23. J^ow 
 therefore sivear unto me here by God that thou wilt not deal 
 falsely with me, nor tvith my son, nor with my son's S07i : but 
 according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shall 
 do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned. 
 
 This Canaanite prince observed well and acted rightly. He ascribed 
 Abraham's prosperity to God's Presence with him. He reckoned 
 that Abraham had a hidden source of strength, and that his 
 friendship was well worth securing. Perhaps he had heard of the 
 great promises which God had made to Abraham and to his 
 family. Indeed, there was no need to make Abraham take an oath 
 to be friendly — his word would have been sufficient, yet the 
 Patriarch did not refuse to give this additional security. 
 
Ver. 30-] A Covenant of Peace iii 
 
 24. And Abraham said, I mil swear. 
 
 Yet was Abraham right in swearing an alliance with this prince 
 whose descendants were to be the enemies of God's people, and 
 to be destroyed and expelled from the Holy Land ? What he 
 meant evidently was to give a pledge of peace for himself and his 
 immediate descendants. It was many hundred years yet before 
 the iniquity of the Canaanites brought down God's vengeance on 
 them. Nor indeed were the Philistines ever in reality expelled or 
 their sea-coast occupied by Israel. God left them to prove His 
 people. 
 
 25. And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of a well of 
 water, which Abimelech's servants had violently taken away. 
 26. And Abimelech said, I wot not who had done this thing : 
 neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but to 
 day. 
 
 If Abraham had armed his servants (as in chap, xiv.) he might have 
 defended the well, or made reprisals ; but his work and mission 
 were peaceful, nor did he ever reckon this world's goods worth 
 fighting for. It was only for his friend's life and liberty that he 
 had taken arms and won a victory against mighty odds. 
 
 27. And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto 
 Abimelech; and both of them made a covenant. 28. And 
 Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. 
 29. And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these 
 seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves? 30. A^id 
 he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, 
 that they may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this 
 well. 
 
 These lambs, a sacred seven in number, solemnly offered and taken, 
 were a pledge that the two chiefs referred their agreement to God 
 Himself, and took Him for their Witness. They were also a special 
 attestation of the fact that the well was Abraham's according to 
 public acknowledgment. Yet we find (xxvi. 18) that the very 
 wells which Abraham had digged were seized again by the Philis- 
 tines, and had to be reclaimed and reopened by Isaac. Of what 
 extreme importance was a well in that thirsty land ! I have reason 
 to be grateful to God, Who opens for me wells of truth, of comfort, 
 and of hope, in life's journey. It is not my hand but His mercy 
 that provides them. 
 
112 The Grove and Well of Beersheba [Gen. XXII. 
 
 31. Wherefore he called that place Beersheba ; hecaxi^e there 
 they sware both of them. 32. Thus they made a covenant at 
 Beersheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief 
 captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the 
 Philistines. 
 
 This place called Beer-sheba, which may be rendered either ' the well 
 of the oath' or 'the well of seven,' was a famous sanctuary in 
 patriarchal days ; various recollections centred round it; it marked 
 the southern boundary of the Holy Land, as Dan did the northern. 
 Abraham honoured it by a long stay, as he did Dan by his victory 
 over the invader (xiv. 14), thus unconsciously marking out the 
 bounds of his people's inheritance. His descendants long after- 
 wards recalled that they were treading in his footsteps, and were 
 favoured for his sake. 
 
 33. And Abraham plaiited a grove in Beersheba, and 
 called there on the Name of the Lord, the everlasting God. 
 34. And Abraham sojourned in the Philistines^ land many 
 days. 
 
 Abraham planted the trees because he desired to do good wherever 
 he went, and that future travellers might sit under the shade of 
 his grove. He wished also to mark that place as a shrine set 
 apart for the worship of the True and Living God. Wherever he 
 went, it was as a priest to offer to God, and as a prophet to 
 announce His Name. Amidst a world that was rapidly forgetting 
 their Creator, Abraham's business was to remind men of Him Who 
 made them. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII 
 
 I. Abraham is tempted to offer Isaac. 3. He giveth proof of his faith 
 and obedience, ir. The angel stayeth him. 13. Isaac is exchanged 
 with a ram. 14. The place is called Jehovah-jireh. 15. Abraham 
 is blessed again. 20. The generations of Nahor unto Rebekah. 
 
 AXD it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt 
 Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said. 
 Behold, here am I. 
 
 The Psalmist says : ' Try me, O God, and seek the ground of my 
 heart; prove me, and examine my thoughts.' But when God 
 
Ver. 5.] The Trial of Abraham 113 
 
 answers this prayer and really sends such a trial, such a proof, our 
 weak faith shrinks back and says, ' O Lord, no, not this.' God had 
 given Abraham great gifts, great mercies, great promises ; but lie 
 was now about to require from him a proof of obedience such as 
 his heart did not dream of. Thy ways, O Lord, are different from 
 ours. Whatever trial comes, however heart-searching it be, enable 
 us to say with Abraham, ' My heart is ready, O Lord, my heart 
 is ready,' or, in the words which Christ adopted for His own, ' Lo, 
 I come to do Thy will, O God.' 
 
 2. And He said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, 
 whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah ; and 
 offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains 
 which I will tell thee of. 
 
 God asks for the life of Isaac, which He had Himself marvellously 
 given, and on which such great hopes hung. Abraham is bidden 
 to give up the heir of the promises, and apparently bring to nought 
 all the multiplied and assured pledges which God had made. 
 What he loved best, he is to lose ; what is most frightful to him, 
 he is to do. He is to offer his son with his own hands as a human 
 sacrifice, such as God abhorred. O strange, O marvellous word ! 
 and yet it came to Abraham as clearly and plainly as the other 
 commands and promises of God had come, nor could he doubt it. 
 When we have to give up our dearest ones to die or to leave us, 
 God bids us offer them up with a free heart, a willing resignation, 
 a resolute courage. Is it not He Who asks for them ? will they 
 not be safe with Him ? 
 
 3. And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled 
 his ass, and took tivo of his young men with him, and Isaac 
 his son, and clave the ivood for the btirnt offering, and rose up, 
 and went unto the place of which God had told him. 
 
 Here is prompt obedience, careful attention to all details of the 
 sacrifice. Abraham himself cut and prepared the wood for the 
 burnt-offering, as his custom was. He kept his dread errand to 
 himself, so as not to be hindered by tears or entreaties from carry- 
 ing it out. His whole heart was bent on obeying as perfectly as 
 possible. To this end all his former acts of obedience had been 
 leading. God had been long preparing him for this signal act of 
 trust. 
 
 4. Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and 
 taw the place afar off. 5. And Abraham said unto his young 
 
 U 
 
114 The Cross foreshadowed [Gen. XXII. 
 
 men, Abide ye here with the ass ; and I and the lad ivill go 
 yonder and worship, and come again to yoti. 
 
 We stay below ; our eyes follow the father and son as they enter on 
 the Mount of Sacrifice. We may not be able to enter into the 
 feelings of a parent who gives up his dear child to the grave, or 
 into the sorrow of their parting who took each other to be faithful 
 till death, or into the thoughts of the dying themselves when they 
 realise that their last hour draws nigh. Such experiences are 
 known only to God and to the suffering heart. When He requires 
 of us what we love best, nay, all our hopes, our projects, our very 
 life, it is for us to say, 'Not my will, O Lord, but Thine.' We 
 may not refuse the cross which His dear Son bore, and which He 
 now prepares for us. Meanwhile, let us quietly wait for His good 
 seasons and learn, by submission in little things, to be ready for 
 greater. 
 
 6. And Abraham took the ivood of the burnt offering, and 
 laid it upon Isaac his son ; and he took the fire in his hand, 
 and a knife ; and they tvent both of them together. 
 
 In Isaac ascending the Mount to the place where he was to be sacri- 
 ficed, carrying the load of wood, submitting humbly to his father's 
 will, I recognise my Divine Master on His way to Calvary. Here 
 is the way of sorrows trodden nearly 2000 years before Good Friday. 
 Isaac shares Abraham's obedience and patience ; he gives up his 
 freedom and manly strength ; he bows himself to bear and to die. 
 So Christ our Lord laid aside His power and glory and united His 
 human will with that of His dear Father in working out the plan 
 of our redemption. I cannot enter, dear Lord, into the burden 
 of Thy Cross, the depth of Thy sorrow ; but as far as I am bidden 
 to follow Thee I will, setting my steps bravely along the rough 
 road, and learning the lesson of Thy Cross more and more. 
 
 7. And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, 
 My father : and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said. 
 Behold the fire and the wood : but ivhere is the lamb for a 
 burnt offering ? 8. And Abraham said. My son, God ivill 
 provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering : so they went 
 both of them together. 
 
 No need, dear friend, to search far for what to offer. God knows 
 how to find that. All our choices, our hopes, our plans of good, 
 the comforts we should miss, the health we rejoice in, the dear 
 ones on whom we lean, nay, the very opportunities of grace which 
 sustain us — all these arc fit to be offered in sacrifice. They need, 
 indeed, to be sprinkled with Christ's own Blood and oftered in 
 
Ver. 12.] The crowning Act of Sacrifice 115 
 
 union with His Cross, but, thus purified, they become priceless 
 offerings, and God accepts them graciously. ' God will provide 
 Himself a lamb.' Yes, 1 do not doubt it; all I desire is grace to 
 yield up the sacrifice when it is asked for. 
 
 9. And they came to the 'place which God had told him of ; 
 and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, 
 and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar ^t,pon the 
 wood. 
 
 Isaac lay down to die in silence ; he submitted to be bound ; he 
 received the sentence of death with entire submission, knowing 
 that his life belonged to his father (according to the rights of those 
 days), perfectly loving and trusting that father. Here I see in 
 figure my Lord stretched upon the Cross, and beginning His long 
 death-agony. His was not the pang of a moment, as Isaac's would 
 have been ; no, the long hours of death gradually drained out His 
 earthly life, gave Him space still to pray and to teach us. While 
 He hung there, He wrought marvels of mercy for us. Helplessness 
 is sometimes the greatest power, and we do more by patience than 
 if we disposed of all possible means and energies. 
 
 10. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the 
 knife to slay his son. 
 
 This was the crowning point of all, the perfection of Abraham's 
 trust and obedience. Up to this point there was the chance, the 
 possibility, of his drawing back, or of Isaac's resisting ; but now 
 all was complete, and the actual death-blow about to fall. Yet 
 his hand and heart did not fail. God obtained what He desired, 
 not the bleeding flesh of sacrifice, but the generosity of a perfectly 
 dutiful heart. It is His will to require the same disposition from 
 us through various kinds of sacrifice ; and He often carries the 
 whole transaction right out, bids us give up our treasure, and 
 does not interpose at all. Only remember that He knows. He 
 feels, He orders all. It is for our greater good that He lets the 
 blow fall. 
 
 11. And the Angel of the Lord called unto him, out of 
 heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am 
 I. 12. And He said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, 
 neither do thou any thing unto him : for noiv I know that thou 
 fearest God, seeing thou hast riot withheld thy so7i, thine only 
 son from Me. 
 
 O gracious voice that approves the father's perfect intention, that 
 says, ' Well done, good and faithful servant ! ' God says, ' Now 
 
ii6 Isaac rescued from Death [Gen. XXII. 
 
 I know,' speaking in human language. He knows, meaning that 
 He has called forth in visible act what lay deep within. He 
 knows, because He thus lets others know. He knows, because He 
 Himself bestowed that faith and obedience which have been thus 
 gloriously manifested. According to the law of all early nations, 
 the son belonged to the father : he was in his hand and could be 
 disposed of at his pleasure. Therefore, in asking the father for 
 his son's life, God asked only for what the father had a right to 
 give, though it might wring his heart to do so, and turn all his 
 light to darkness. 
 
 13. And Abraham lifted %ip his eyes, and looked, and 
 hehold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns : and 
 Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for 
 a burnt offering in the stead of his son. 
 
 In this ram substituted for the son of promise, I see a hint of the 
 legal sacrifices which took the place of the true offering for a time, 
 until their insufficiency was proved. Then God's dear Son came 
 Himself and went through the whole action of His death, endured 
 to the end, and no substitute came. Only He was given back to 
 live again with immortal life, as Isaac was rendered to this brief 
 earthly life. The law of sacrifice comes down from the first days 
 of mankind ; it claims for a higher Power what men love and value 
 most ; slain animals are but an imperfect expression of it — Christ 
 Jesus best fulfilled it. 
 
 14. And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah- 
 jireh : as it is said to this day. In the mount of the Lord it 
 shall be seen. 
 
 God interposes when need is, only we must climb the mountain first. 
 He bids us obey, and He will see to the rest. That mountain 
 which Abraham and Isaac climbed for the sacrifice seems to have 
 been part of the same ridge that was afterwards consecrated as the 
 site of the Temple, and not far from which Jesus was Himself 
 crucified. How wonderfully God was seen on that mountain in 
 visions, in promises, in fulfilment ! Let us trust Him and give 
 ourselves wholly into His Hand. So His true servants have done 
 in life or in death, in success or in failure. 
 
 15. Arid the Angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of 
 heaven the second time, 16. And said, By Myself have I 
 sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, 
 and haat not ivithheld thy son, thine only son: 17. That in 
 
Ver. 20.] Perfect Obedience 117 
 
 blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply 
 thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is 
 upon the sea shore ; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his 
 enemies ; 
 
 This great and solemn rehearsal of the promises is the last in 
 Abraham's life, and the fullest of all. It is introduced with the 
 solemnity of an oath ; it foretells abundant blessing and increase 
 and victory. It is based on Abraham's offering of his son, ' because 
 thou hast done this thing.' God had found what He required. 
 He had drawn out of weak humanity the highest response of which 
 our nature admitted, the answer of a heart that could trust God 
 and triumph for His sake over all the hindrances of natural affec- 
 tion and human wisdom. What, give up his all, his son whom he 
 loves, the promises which centred on that son, the hopes and 
 prospects of nature and grace ! Yes, all, when God required. 
 May I try to imitate this whole-hearted devotion. 
 
 18. And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be 
 blessed ; because thou hast obeyed my voice. 
 
 Here is Abraham rejoicing to see Christ's day : here is the Redeemer 
 dimly manifested to Old Testament faith. This blessing to all 
 nations was not fulfilled in the literal prosperity of the Jews, nor in 
 their preserving for the world a treasure of true religion. It had 
 regard to that One of Abraham's descendants Who was to be also 
 the world's Divine Saviour, and to make possible for renewed 
 hearts that same faith and obedience that Abraham had showed. 
 That promised Benefactor was to open the door of faith to believers 
 from every land and race. 
 
 19. So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they 
 rose tip and ivent together to Beer-sheba ; and Abraham dwelt 
 at Beer-sheba. 
 
 They went back, but with what thoughts ! Their faith in Divine 
 mercies was fuller. They had tried and proved God, no less than 
 He had tried and proved them. They understood better now 
 what was the true sacrifice that God required, that the slain victim 
 was but a sign of inward devotion. No doubt Abraham passed 
 the latter days of his long life in peaceful meditation on what God 
 had done and what He would yet do, and in instructing in these 
 things those who came after him. 
 
 20. And it came to pass after these things, that it was told 
 Abraham, saying. Behold, Milcah, she hath also born children 
 
ii8 Sarah dies [Gen. XXIII. 
 
 unto thy brother Nahor ; 21. Ihiz his firstborn, and Buz his 
 brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram, 22. And Chesed, 
 and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel. 23. And 
 Bethuel begat Rebekah : these eight Milcah did bear to Nahor, 
 Abraham's brother. 24. And his concubine, ivhose name ivas 
 Reumah, she bare also Tebah, ayid Gaham, and Thahash, and 
 Maachah. 
 
 The history of Nahor's family comes in, because from them came 
 Rebekah, and afterwards Rachel and Leah, who enter into the 
 chosen household and bear heirs of promise. Evidently among 
 that family some knowledge of the true God had been retained, or 
 bestowed. God kept from the abominations of heathendom those 
 who were to be mothers of His chosen. Yet how small was the 
 light there, how easily corrupted or extinguished, apart from 
 Abraham's household, where alone God spoke clearly ! 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 I. The age and death of Sarah. 3. The purchase of Machpelah, 19. where 
 Sarah was buried. 
 
 AND Sarah was an hundred and seven and twenty years 
 old: these were the years of the life of Sarah. 2. And 
 Sarah died in Kirjatharba ; the same is Hebron in the kmd 
 of Canaan: and Abraham came to moui'n fur Sarah^ and to 
 weep for her. 
 
 Sarah is the mother of the chosen family. No other woman in 
 Scripture has the years of her life counted, or so much told about 
 her burying-place. She died in the land of promise which God 
 had given to her descendants, and no doubt with full faith in her 
 Divine Guide. I naturally compare her with the Mother of my 
 Lord and Saviour ; but there is this difference, that Mary is lost in 
 the glory of her Divine Son ; when or where she died, where her 
 body was laid, in what manner Christ took her to Himself, I know 
 not. With Sarah it is otherwise ; we are allowed to learn how long 
 she lived, to follow her to her grave and know its exact situation, 
 Abraham felt that now their joint wanderings were over, they 
 could no longer talk together of God's grace or His dealings with 
 them. He thought with trembling hope of what might yet await 
 them. 
 
Ver. 9.] Abraham seeking a Grave iig 
 
 3. And Abraham stood iip from before his dead, and spake 
 unto the so7is of Heth, saying, 4. / am a stranger and a 
 sojourner with you : give me a possession of a burying-place 
 with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight. 
 
 Lord, give me a tender regard for the dead. Let me show honour 
 to their lifeless bodies, to their last resting-places, let me cherish 
 their memory. I too, like Abraham, am a sojourner, and must 
 ere long leave this world for somewhat further. It will soon be 
 the turn of my friends to hide away my dead body in the ground. 
 It will be safe there till my Master calls it forth to live afresh. 
 
 5. And the children of Heth answered Abraham, saying 
 unto him, 6. Hear us, my lord: thou art a mighty prince 
 among us : in the choice of our se2mlchres bury thy dead; none 
 of us shall ivifhhold from thee his se2mlchre, but that thou 
 mayest bury thy dead. 
 
 Abraham had a good character from the Hittites among whom he 
 lived. They knew that he used his power not for violence, but 
 for defence only. They knew that he was generous and merciful. 
 They honoured, though they did not share, his faith. Thus they 
 willingly offered him a share in their own sepulchres. Let him, if 
 he would, bury his dead wife where their own dead rested ; but his 
 thoughts were otherwise. 
 
 7. And Abraham stood up, and bowed himself to the people 
 of the land, even to the children of Heth. 
 
 What ceremonies are here ? Was not Abraham the chosen lord of 
 the land, sole possessor of Divine revelation, the Friend of God 
 Himself? And yet we find him treating the lords of the Hittite 
 town with such lowly respect and courtesy. Such are the ways of 
 God's true children. They honour authority wherever they find it. 
 They recommend true religion by a respectful demeanour to persons 
 in office. 
 
 8. And he communed ivith them, saying, If it be your mind 
 that I should bury my dead out of my sight ; hear me, and 
 intreat for me to Ep>hron the son of Zohar, 9. That he may 
 give me the cave of Machinlah, which he hath, which is in the 
 end of his field ; for as much money as it is worth he shall 
 give it me for a possession of a btirying -place amongst you. 
 
 Abraham desired to buy this cave as a burying-place for his wife, for 
 himself, and for his descendants. His purpose was to express his 
 
) EphrorCs liberal Offer [Gen. XXIII. 
 
 faith in the Divine Promise by taking solemn possession of this 
 ground. It was to keep his descendants' hearts fixed to the 
 land of Canaan. They would always cherish the hope of living 
 and dying 
 
 ' Among their fathers' tombs.' 
 
 Round that sacred spot God's praises would go up, His Name be 
 known. Here the bones of believers would lie and turn to dust, 
 and yet ' rest in hope.' 
 
 lo. And Ej)hron divelt among the children of Heth : and 
 Ephron the Hittite ansivered Abraham in the audience of the 
 children of Heth, even of all that went in at the gate of his 
 city, saying, 1 1 . Nay, my lord, hear me : the field give I 
 thee, and the cave that is therein, I give it thee ; in the presence 
 of the sons of my people give I it thee : hury thy dead. 
 
 Ephron's courtesy and generosity resemble the behaviour of Araunah 
 to King David (2 Sam. xxiv. 22). Ephron and Araunah were 
 both of the Canaanite race, and showed that it was capable of 
 good qualities as of very evil ones. The woman of Sarepta, who 
 entertained Elijah with her last morsel, and the woman of Canaan 
 whose faith won a blessing from our Lord, are also good specimens 
 of that same race. Let it be given to me, as to the saints, 
 to find and bring out all the good that people have in them, not 
 the bad. 
 
 12. And Abraham howed down himself hef ore the people of 
 the land. 13. A^id he spake unto Ephron in the audience of 
 the people of the land, saying, Biit if thou wilt give it, I p)ray 
 thee, hear me : I will give thee money for the field ; take it of 
 vie, and I will bury my dead there. 
 
 I suppose Abraham felt that he could not accept as a gift from men 
 what was already God's gift to him, or at least he desired to set 
 always a pattern of disinterestedness. He was like the great 
 Apostle who said, ' No man shall rob me of this boasting,' viz. that 
 he had refused gifts, and done at his own cost all that he had done. 
 Abraham was ashamed to take any advantage ; he would never 
 have the name of being grasping or covetous. He anticipated 
 Christ's own maxim that it is better to give than to receive. 
 
 14. And Ephron answered Abraham, saying tinto liim, 
 15. My lord, hearken unto me: the land is worth four hun- 
 dred shekels of silver ; ivhat is that betwixt me and thee ? bury 
 
Ver. 20.] The Cave of Machpelah bought 121 
 
 therefore thy dead. 16. And Abraham hearkened unto 
 Ephron ; and Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver, which 
 he had named in the aiidience of the sons of Heth, four hun- 
 dred shekels of silver, current money with the merchant. 
 
 The land was worth so much, Ephron said, and Abraham paid it ; 
 nor was there any difficulty over the bargain. Abraham bought 
 ground in Canaan enough for a grave ; Jacob (xxxiii. 19) enough 
 for an altar. Coined money did not yet exist, but bars of silver 
 of a certain weight served the same purpose. Certainly the land 
 belongs to God, and is only lent by Him to His children for their 
 use, but it is agreeable both with common sense and with faith to 
 buy and occupy a part, to take money for a piece of land. Any 
 doctrine that contradicts this must go on to refuse men any right 
 or title at all to their savings and earnings. It is true that our 
 right both to ground and money is limited by the conditions of 
 this short life which rapidly snatches from us all we have. 
 
 17. And the field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, 
 which was before Mamre, the field, and the cave which was 
 therein, and all the trees that ivere in the field, that were in all 
 the borders ro%i,nd about, were made sure. 18. Unto Abraham 
 for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before 
 all that went in at the gate of his city. 
 
 This field, with its trees and cave so minutely described, carries our 
 thoughts on to that other cave which lay in Joseph's garden, and 
 which (like the cave of Machpelah) was newly wrought and un- 
 occupied, wherein the Body of Christ lay for its two days' rest. 
 This cave was to receive the bodies of Abraham and Sarah, that 
 cave the Body of their Son and Saviour. Believers in old time 
 sought this one with reverence to honour the great Patriarchs who 
 lay here ; believers say of that one, ' He is not here, He is risen.' 
 Yet His very rest there in death for a while has sanctified the grave 
 to be a house of rest for God's people. 
 
 19. And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his ivife in the 
 cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre : the same is 
 Hebron in the land of Canaan. 20. A^id the field, and the 
 cave that is therein, were made sure unto Abraham for a 
 possession of a hurying-place by the sons of Heth. 
 
 Did Abraham then feel that his own life's work, or God's bounti'ul 
 promises, had failed when he found that all of Canaan which he 
 had gained was a grave for his wife, and wherein he soon would lie 
 beside her ? Oh no ; if he had built a city, called a territory after 
 
; Eliezer's Commission [Gen. XXIV. 
 
 his own name, settled his descendants in rich properties of their 
 own, then indeed he might have felt that God's promises were all 
 spent, nothing more was to be hoped for. But now he could not 
 be content with earth, he thought of a better country; he wor- 
 shipped 'a God of the living,' Whom Death could not sever from 
 the believing heart, Who could fulfil His promises in the land 
 beyond the grave. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 Abraham sweareth his servant, lo. The servant's journey: 12. His 
 prayer: 14. His sign. 15. Rebekah meeteth him, 18. fulfilleth his 
 sign, 22. receiveth jewels, 23. sheweth her kindred, 25. and inviteth 
 him home. 26. The servant blesseth God. 29. Laban entertaineth 
 him. 34. The servant sheweth his message. 50. Laban and 
 Bethuel approve it. 58. Rebekah consenteth to go. 62. Isaac 
 meeteth her. 
 
 A 
 
 ND Abraham xvas old, and tvell stricken in age: and the 
 Lord had blessed Abraham in all things. 
 
 His long life was nearly ended. He had lived by faith and looked 
 forward to God's future promises. He had known God too long 
 to complain of old age or fear death's approach. But he had still 
 one duty to fulfil. According to the customs of those days it was 
 Abraham's duty to provide a marriage for his son, and thus continue 
 the chosen family. 
 
 2. And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, 
 that rided over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand 
 lender my thigh: 3. And I toill make thee siuear by the Lord, 
 the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thon shalt 
 not take a ivife tinto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, 
 among tvhom I dwell : 
 
 That was Abraham's first care, that the bride should not be a 
 Canaanite. He knew that that race was given to idolatry and to 
 many ill practices. He desired to keep his son free from any 
 entanglements with them. The chosen seed were to live a life 
 apart, dwell in tents, look forward in hope, cherish the service of 
 God, not be lost among llittites or Philistines. Had they not a 
 treasure of faith which the world knew not of? — and therefore they 
 must not lose it. 
 
Ver. 8.] God's Atigel a promised Guide 123 
 
 4. But thou shah go unto my country, and to my kindred^ 
 and take a luife unto my son Isaac. 
 
 There was indeed some superstition mixed with their religion. They 
 served other gods, but yet had retained some knowledge of the 
 true God. And Abraham knew their character, that it was 
 upright and pure. Among them he had been brought up, had 
 himself found God, had first learned to believe in and worship 
 Him. He had reason to think that a pure and faithful wife 
 might come from this stem. His soul was set on a religious 
 marriage, one that promised union of hearts, not mere riches or 
 glory. 
 
 5. And the servant said unto him, Feradventure the woman 
 will not be ivilling to follow me unto this land : must I needs 
 bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest ? 
 6. And Abraham said imto him, Beivare thou that thou bring 
 not my son thither again. 
 
 Do not go backward ; God's word is ' forward.' God had set Isaac in 
 the land of promise, with lofty prospects, with present mercies, 
 with a wonderful experience in the past. Let the servant beware 
 lest he bring to nought God's covenant and promise by leading his 
 master's son back into the land beyond Euphrates. Let our eyes 
 be set to follow our Divine Guide onward, sure that His end for us 
 is good. 
 
 7. The Lord God of heaven, which took me from my father's 
 house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto 
 me, and that sware U7ito me, saying, Unto thy seed tvill I give 
 this land ; lie shall send His angel before thee, and thou sJialt 
 take a tuife unto my son from thence. 
 
 Here is Abraham's faith set forth to us. He knew in Whom he had 
 believed ; he trusted in God's promises, in His overruling mercy. 
 Abraham's faith is ours ; we too say, ' I believe in God the Father 
 Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth.' We too can discern great 
 promises in the future, great mercies in the past, signs of a 
 heavenly guidance over us. With this faith I started in life. I 
 have kept it so far. O God, let me not lose it ! 
 
 8. And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then 
 thou shalt be clear from this my oath : only bring not my son 
 
124 Eliezcr devises a Test [Gen. XXIV. 
 
 thither again. 9. And the servant put his hand under the 
 thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning 
 that matter. 
 
 A slave's oath then was as good as a freeman's. EHezer shared in 
 his master's hopes, his master's faith. He made an oath by that 
 covenant of circumcision into which Abraham had entered. He 
 made it as believing that God Himself watched over his promise 
 and would exact its fulfilment. No doubt he esteemed himself 
 happy to be trusted with this errand, and so help to continue the 
 chosen seed and win the promise. 
 
 10. A7id the servant took ten camels of the camels of his 
 master, and departed ; for all the goods of his master were in 
 his hand : and he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto the 
 city of Nahor. 
 
 Eliezer reminds me of John the Baptist, who knew that he was not 
 the Bridegroom but the Bridegroom's friend, and who said, ' He 
 must increase, but I must decrease.' He had no fear of diminish- 
 ing his own influence in the household, or losing his own prospects 
 by Isaac's marriage. No, all through his long journey eastwards 
 his heart was wholly set on the e.xact and loyal fulfilment of what 
 he had to do. 
 
 n. And he made his camels to kneel down without the city 
 by a well of water at the time of the evening, even the time 
 that women go out to draiv water. 12. And he said, Lord 
 God of my master Abraham, I pray Thee, send me good speed 
 this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham. 
 
 It is well to consult God in a difficult matter. And the servant 
 addressed God as the 'God of Abraham,' because the chief of the 
 tribe represented all the members of it before God — they appeared 
 before God in his person and as associated with him ; also, 
 because it was to Abraham specially that the promises and 
 covenant had been given ; also, because his servants had seen 
 in Abraham's history many signs of God's overruling providence. 
 Between master and servant there existed entire sympathy and 
 confidence. 
 
 13. Behold, I stand here by the well of water ; and the 
 daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water : 
 14. And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shcdl 
 say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink ; and 
 she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels d/rink also : 
 
Ver. 20.] Rebekah fulfils it 125 
 
 let the same he she that Thou hast appointed for Thy servant 
 Isaac ; and thereby shall I know that Thou hast shewed kind- 
 ness unto my master. 
 
 Was this a rash prayer ? Did he stake too much on a chance word 
 or action? Does he not rather resemble the Apostles when they 
 had to fill up a place in their company, and said, ' Thou, Lord, 
 which knowest the hearts of all, show whether of these two Thou 
 hast chosen ' ? What he sought was to find for his young master's 
 wife one who was ready to entertain strangers and be kind to all 
 around her — nay, who had a tender care for the poor cattle also. 
 These were the qualities needed for her who was to become the 
 mother of God's chosen household. He was far from making 
 riches the condition of his choice. The person who should please 
 Abraham must be generous and hospitable, like himself. 
 
 15. And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that 
 behold, Rebekah came out, who was horn to Bethuel, son of 
 Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher 
 upon her shoulder. 16. And the damsel was very fair to look 
 upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she 
 went down to the ivell, and filled her pitcher, and came up. 
 
 Rebekah is diligent and active ; she comes out first to the well as 
 evening approaches ; she is the first whom Eliezer sees — yet all 
 this was of God's guiding Hand, His inspiration. What seemed 
 chance, or man's fancy, was overruled by Him towards a great 
 end. Let our part be so to live, so to pray, that He may dispose 
 all our ways to find peace and truth. As to Rebekah, 
 
 ' Love, sweetness, goodness in her person shined.' 
 Eliezer admired her beauty, her diligence, her air of kindness and 
 uprightness, and he determined to put to her the question over 
 which he had been pondering. 
 
 17. And the servant ran to meet her, and said, Let me, I 
 pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher. 18. And she 
 said. Drink, my lord: and she hasted, and let down her 
 pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink. 19. And tvhen 
 she had done giving him drink, she said, I will draw water for 
 thy camels also, %intil they have done drinking. 20. And she 
 hasted, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again 
 unto the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels. 
 
 Then she was patient, she did not mind being delayed and having 
 all her toil over again. She was courteous, and readily awaited 
 
126 Betrothal Gifts [Gen. XXIV. 
 
 Eliezer's full refreshment. She was considerate for the poor 
 beasts, and determined that she would wait on them also and 
 satisfy their prodigious thirst. Evidently she was glad to find an 
 opportunity to wait on travel-wearied men and cattle. All these 
 virtues seemed to join in her, and were set off by the grace and 
 beauty with which God had adorned her. 
 
 21. And the man wondering at her held his peace, to wit 
 whether the Lord had made his joiirney prospermcs or not. 
 
 Why wait and consider any longer? Have not all things turned 
 out just according to the prayer made and the test chosen ? Must 
 not this person, so beautiful, so kind, so unsparing of toil, so given 
 to hospitality, be the appointed maiden ? But Eliezer was waiting 
 upon God. He desired to follow exactly where He led ; he 
 desired to take no step in this great matter without reflection. Oh 
 that I had always been careful to think first, pray first, lift up my 
 heart to God before I decided on an important step ! 
 
 2 2. A7id it came to pass, as the camels had done drinlcing, 
 that the man took a golden earring of half a shekel iveight, and 
 two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels iveight of gold ; 
 23. And said. Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee : 
 is there room in thy father s house for us to lodge in ? 
 
 These presents were betrothal gifts, and implied that he would treat 
 about her marriage. When she saw them she knew that a crisis 
 had come in her life. Little had she thought when she stepped 
 down to the well that afternoon and toiled up the steps again with 
 her heavy pitcher that God had such designs ready for her. 
 
 24. And she said unto him, I am the daughter of Bethuel 
 the son of Milcah, which she bare unto Nahor. 25. She said 
 moreover unto him, We have both straw and provender enough, 
 and room to lodge in. 
 
 Eliezer found in Abraham's kindred, previously unknown to him, 
 the same love of hospitality which Abraham himself had. He 
 saw that the fear of God and an open hand went together here 
 as well as in Abraham's tent. He knew in a moment that he had 
 been divinely guided to find the right person and the right family. 
 
 26. And the man bowed down his head, and worshipped the 
 Lord. 27, And he said. Blessed be the Lord God of my 
 master Abraham, Who hath not left destitute my master of His 
 
Ver. 3I-] Laban gives a Welcome 127 
 
 mercy and His truth : I being in the way, the Lord led me to 
 the house of my master's brethren. 
 
 Blessed be God for His mercies to us ! they are unbounded, and far 
 beyond our deserts. Blessed be God also for the faith and truth 
 of His saints which have won blessings from flim in which we 
 share ! Blessed be God for His true promises, His faithful guid- 
 ance. His blessing on our undertakings ! And if this is so now, 
 shall we not on the heavenly shore acknowledge it still more fully? 
 
 28. And the damsel ran, and told them of her mother's house 
 these things. 
 
 She had grown up in the performance of home duties, in purity, 
 tenderness, reverence. Suddenly there came on her the call to a 
 new life, a new home, and this under God's manifest Providence. 
 She reminds us of Mary, to whom when at Nazareth (by the well 
 there, it is thought) came a heavenly messenger, a glorious 
 announcement, the news of a destiny beyond man's highest dream. 
 It is in quiet days, prayers, the practice of obedience, that we 
 prepare ourselves for the call which will one day come. 
 
 29. And Bebekah had a bi'other, and his name was Laban: 
 and Laban ran out unto the man, unto the well. 30. And it 
 came to pass, when he saiv the earring and bracelets upon his 
 sister's hands, and ivhen he heard the ivords of Rebekah his 
 sister, saying, Thus spalce the man unto me; that he came 
 unto the man ; and behold, he stood by the camels at the well. 
 
 Eliezer waited by the well, something like Christ our Lord by 
 Jacob's well (St. John iv. 30), after He had spoken to the Samaritan 
 woman, and before the people came out on her report to see Him 
 and learn from Him for themselves. Eliezer had come from far to 
 find and fetch home a bride, and was thus a type of that Divine 
 Bridegroom Who came to win our hearts. 
 
 31. And he said, Come in, thou blessed of the Lord ; where- 
 fore standest thou without ? for I have prepared the house, and 
 room for the camels. 
 
 This designation of a stranger and a guest as ' Thou blessed of the 
 Lord ' expresses the feeling of the ancients, to whom strangers 
 appeared with something of Divine guardianship about them. 
 God was their Guide, their Defender. He received as done to 
 himself what kindness was showed them — attention to them was 
 
128 Business before Refreshment [Gen. XXIV. 
 
 the first of all duties. And besides this hospitable instinct, a sense 
 of special Divine guidance, shown in bringing Eliezer to the house 
 he sought, appears in Laban's words. 
 
 32. And the man came into the house : and he ungirded his 
 camels, and gave strata and provender for the camels, and 
 tvaier to wash his feet, and the men's feet that ivere with him. 
 
 Certainly this ready hospitality, this attentive courtesy, which marked 
 Laban when young, differs from his character in old age (xxxi. 7). 
 There he appears grasping and deceitful ; yet our last view of him, 
 at the end of chap. xxxi. gives a good impression again. Abraham's 
 household was a school of true religion and generous liberality, 
 but where Laban lived religion was mixed with idolatry, all the 
 good traditions of former days tended to be obscured. WTiat 
 should I have been but for the examples, the restraints, the 
 lessons with which God has surrounded me ! 
 
 ^^. And there loas set meat before him to eat : but he said, 
 I will not eat, until I have told mine errand. And he said, 
 Sjyeak on. 
 
 In this zeal of the faithful servant to bring his master's business to a 
 good end before he refreshes himself, I am reminded of that other 
 Servant of the Lord, appearing in our mortality. Who, when His 
 disciples prayed Him, saying, ' Master, eat,' said, ' I have meat to 
 eat that ye know not of — my meat is to do the will of Him that 
 sent me, and finish His work.' To such good servants, whether 
 human only, or Him Who is Divine as well as human, their 
 Lord's interests are their own. In forwarding His business they 
 themselves find comfort and refreshment. 
 
 34. And he said, I am Abrahams servant. 
 
 A short verse, but important, as declaring his position and his 
 master's name, who was {his hearers knew) of their kindred. He 
 begins his tale with 'I am Abraham's servant,' just as St. Paul 
 begins his letters with 'Paul, the servant of Jesus Christ.' He 
 rejoices in this character and condition, and desires to be a good 
 servant and fulfil all that is required of him. What higher end 
 can I have than to be a faithful servant of God and of my brethren? 
 
 35. And the Lord hath blessed my master greatly ; and he 
 is become great : and He hath given him flocks, and herds, and 
 silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and 
 camels, and asses. 
 
 Do not fear to let your sister go in Abraham's footsteps, leave her 
 home and friends, and start for a new country. Look how 
 
Ver. 46-] The Coiose of Froziidence surveyed 129 
 
 Abraham has prospered there ; but I do not say it was his own 
 skill or luck. Oh no, God blessed and increased him ; it is God 
 to Whom he and his look for prosperity. 
 
 36. And Sarah my master's ivife hare a son to my master 
 when she was old : and unto him hath he given all that he 
 hath. 
 
 Isaac is the heir. Sarah, of your own kindred, who is my master's 
 sole lawful wife and free help-meet, bore liim. He has already, 
 or will have ultimately, the headship and property of the tribe. 
 Eliezer could not allege at once, or to untaught hearers, what other 
 mysterious promises would come down to Isaac, and which his 
 wife would share with him. Yet those were the best treasure of 
 all for father to hand down to son, for mother to talk of to 
 children. 
 
 37. And my master made me sivear, saying, Thoti shall not 
 take a wife to my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, in 
 whose land I dwell : 38. But thou shalt go unto m.y father s 
 house, and to my kindred, and take a tvife unto my son. 
 39. And I said rmto my master, Peradventure the tvoman tvill 
 not follow me. 40. And he said unto me, The Lord, before 
 Whom I walk, vnll send His angel ivith thee, and prosper thy 
 ivay ; and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, 
 and of my father's house : 41. Then shalt thou he clear from 
 this my oath, when thou, comest to my kindred; and if they 
 give not thee one, thou shalt he clear from my oath. 42. And 
 I came this day unto the ivell, and said, Lord God of my 
 master Abraham, if now Thou do prosper my way ivhich I go: 
 43. Behold, I stand by the well of water ; and it shall come to 
 pass, that when the virgin cometh forth to draiv tvater, and I 
 say to her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water of thy pitcher 
 to drink ; 44. And she say to me. Both drink thou, and I 
 tvill also draio for thy camels: let the same be the woman 
 whom the Lord hath appointed out for my master's son. 
 45. And before I had done speaking in mine heart, behold, 
 Rebekah came forth with her pitcher on her shotdder ; and she 
 tvent down unto the well, and dreio tvater : and I said unto 
 her, Let me drink, I pray thee. 46. And she made haste, and 
 let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, Drink, and 
 I will give thy camels drink also : so I drank, and she made 
 
 I 
 
1 30 The Servanfs good Success [Gen. XXIV. 
 
 the camels drink also. 47. And I asked her, and said, Whose 
 daughter art thou ? And she said, The daughter of Bethuel, 
 Wahor's son, tvhom Milcah bare unto him: and I -put the 
 earring %i'pon her face, and the bracelets upon her hands. 
 48. And I bowed doivn my head, and ivorshipjjed the Lord, 
 and blessed the Lord God of my master Abraham, Which had 
 led me in the right ivay to take my master s brother's daughter 
 unto his son. 
 
 In all this history of his doings which Eliezer repeats, there appears 
 a simple truthfulness, a great trust in God's Providence, a great 
 love for Abraham and his family, a thankful heart. One so 
 minded prays and is not ashamed to pray. He thanks God for 
 mercies received and so draws down more. He feels that God 
 has guided and will guide his steps. Such were the faith and 
 practice in which Abraham's household grew up. 
 
 49. And noto if ye ivill deal kindly and trtdy tvith my 
 master, tell me : and if not, tell me ; that I may turn to the 
 right hand, or to the left. 
 
 What I ask is a free consent. I desire to know whether you share 
 my opinion as to God's guidance in the matter, whether you are 
 willing to intrust the maiden to me, whether you retain love 
 and affection for Abraham. God's will indeed had appeared 
 throughout, yet God's will does not override our wills, but seeks 
 our free consent and acceptance. The Lord Jesus would have us 
 count the cost before we leave all and follow Him ; He bids us 
 freely choose and make answer to His demands. 
 
 50. Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said. The thing 
 proceedeth from the Lord: toe cannot speak unto thee bad or 
 good. 51. Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, 
 and let her be thy master's son's wife, as the Lord hath spoken. 
 
 O wonderful, what can we say? Is not God's will manifest here? 
 What can we add to it, or take from it ? Let me too have eyes to 
 discern God's gracious Providence 
 
 ' Where not too deep for mortal sense.' 
 
 Let me observe in my own life and experience the touch of that 
 Merciful Hand which has so far wonderfully guided and blessed 
 me, has brought me back when far astray. Let my choice be to 
 obey and accept what He appoints. 
 
Ver. 56.] Delay is dangerous 131 
 
 52. And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant 
 heard their words, he worshij^ind the Lord, bowing himself to 
 the earth. 
 
 He thanked God first, man afterwards. He worshipped God with 
 lowliest reverence of gesture, as well as words of praise. He 
 knew that God was in every place, and therefore to be worshipped 
 everywhere. He was never ashamed of being known as the ser- 
 vant of the true God, of acknowledging that no wisdom, skill, or 
 persuasions of his own, had carried out this business successfully. 
 Certainly many Christians, living in Gospel times, are too blind, 
 too cold-hearted, or too timid, to behave thus. 
 
 53. And the servant brought forth jeivels of silver, and 
 jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah : he 
 gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things. 
 
 These gifts were to confirm the betrothal and to satisfy the bride's 
 family (to whom a sum of money and gifts were due according to 
 the custom of those days). Rebekah, adorned with these jewels 
 and receiving all her glory from her spouse, reminds me of the 
 bride in Psalm xlv., whom the King adorns with gold and ' raiment 
 of needlework,' and the Psalmist encourages with promises of 
 future splendour : ' Hearken, O daughter, and consider, incline 
 thine ear ; forget also thine own people, and thy father's house. 
 Instead of thy fathers, thou shalt have children whom thou 
 mayest make princes in all lands.' Of such thoughts and hopes 
 the betrothal gifts were a token. 
 
 54. And they did eat and drink, he and the men that loere 
 with him, and tarried all night; and they rose up in the 
 morning, and he said. Send me away tmto my master. 
 
 Glory to God for joyful hours, for meetings with dear friends, for 
 the Holy Festivals which mark our year, for the common blessings 
 and mercies of life ! Did not my Divine Lord, God's true Ser- 
 vant, part with His friends after a Feast, in which He had blessed, 
 comforted, and cheered them ? 
 
 55. And her brother and her mother said. Let the damsel 
 abide ivith us a few days, at the least ten; after that she shall 
 go. 56. And he said unto them. Hinder me not, seeing the 
 fjord hath ivrospered my way ; send me away that I may go 
 to my master. 
 
 Abraham was his master, whom he loved and obeyed. Abraham 
 was now in extreme old age, but yet had lost no claim on his 
 
132 Rebekah accepts the Call [Gen. XXIV. 
 
 servant's affection and duty. Nay, Abraham's household repre- 
 sented the Church ; it was the stronghold and centre of faith 
 amidst an irreligious world. Eliezer could not rest till he was 
 there again. ' Out of sight ' was not with him ' out of mind. ' He 
 served ' not with eye-service,' but ' with singleness of heart.' God 
 guiding him all the way, his master waiting for his return ; such 
 thoughts as these never left him. 
 
 5 7. And they said, We will call the damsel, and enquire at 
 her mouth. 58. And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, 
 Wilt thou go -with this man ? And she said, I will go. 
 
 Rebekah here reproduces Abraham's faith. Like him, she left her 
 home, her friends, her gods, for an unknown land, an unknown 
 home. Yet she knew that God was there, and that it was His 
 call she followed. And we find her accordingly in after-life 
 instructed of God's choice between her sons, and grieved at the 
 heathen wives Esau chose. We find, too, her tender remem- 
 brance of her old home, in her sending her beloved Jacob thither 
 (xxvii. 48), whom she had instructed in the faith and fear of the 
 true God. 
 
 59. And they sent aivay Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, 
 and Abraham's servant, and his men. 60. And they blessed 
 Rebekah, and said ^cnfo her. Thou ai't our sister, be thou the 
 mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the 
 gate of those which hate them. 61. And Rebekah arose, and 
 her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the 
 man : and the servant took Rebekah, and ivent his way. 
 
 Rebekah 's companions were her nurse and some of her maidens. Of 
 Deborah, her nurse, we know only this, that when she died, in 
 extreme old age, and Jacob buried her, the place was called ' the 
 oak of weeping ' (xxxv. 8), so great respect had Rebekah's son 
 and grandsons for their mother's old servant. All this chapter 
 raises thoughts in our minds about good service and the ties that 
 should link a household together. Both Old Testament and New 
 Testament speak of this suljject, and remind us how with many 
 a large part of life's trial consists in their behaviour to the fellow- 
 creatures and redeemed members of Christ, over whom, or under 
 whom. Providence sets them. So may I (if I am a master or a 
 mistress) treat my servants as I would have God treat me. Will 
 not God soon set us all on a level before His Judgment Throne ? 
 
 62. And Isaac came from the way of the ivell Lahai-roi ; 
 for he dwell in the south coxmtry. 63. And Isaac tuent out to 
 
Ver. 67.] Isaac comforted 133 
 
 meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, 
 and saiv, and behold, the camels ivere coming. 
 
 Isaac went to meditate at eventide. He chose a quiet time and place 
 for thought and prayer. He was far from life's temptations and 
 ambitions, much wrapt up in the thought of God's dealings with 
 him, and of the great destiny in store for his race. Meanwhile 
 God's choicest gift, a good wife, was preparing for him. One was 
 approaching who would double his own actions and energies, and 
 would share all his good thoughts and hopes. Let me never be 
 too busy to give time for thought and for the recollection of God's 
 gracious Presence. Has He not guided me, far beyond my own 
 wisdom or skill ? To Him I owe ail my blessings. 
 
 64. And Rehekah lifted tip her eyes, and ivheu she saiu 
 Isaac, she lighted of (he camel. 65. For she had said unto 
 the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet 
 us ? And the servant had said. It is my master .• therefore she 
 took a vail, and covered herself. 
 
 Here is Isaac's bride whom God has brought him. She brings 
 modesty and reverence as her best adornment. She comes trusting 
 in the protection of an unseen Divine Guide. She represents to 
 us the tender questionings, and fear mingled with trust, with which 
 a girl steps forth into the world and begins her new life as a wife 
 in a new home. Troubles and sorrows lie before her ; dangers 
 too and disappointments ; but she will take each as it comes and 
 learn its lesson. She will find grace and wisdom for each day, 
 will learn to sustain and comfort others. 
 
 66. And the servant told Isaac cdl things that he had done. 
 
 A good history it was, an interesting chapter it makes. We cannot 
 do better than follow it in our own ways and errands. This 
 servant of Abraham and servant of God is full of a reverential 
 fear and sense of God's Presence and guidance ; he is thoroughly 
 loyal and dutiful to his master, putting himself quite out of sight ; 
 he is trustworthy and discreet in taking care of and in spending 
 the treasures ; he carries through this difficult and delicate errand, 
 and God's blessing rests on what he has done. 
 
 67. And Isaac hrottght her into his mother Sarah's tent, and 
 took Rebekah, and she became his wife ; and he loved her : and 
 Isaac was comforted after his mother's death. 
 
 Sarah, then, had been all things to her son. Her death, even at 
 her great age, had left a void in his heart. This God mercifully 
 filled by giving him a loved and loving wife. O merciful Lord, 
 
134 The Sons of Keturah [Gen. XXV. 
 
 Who givest us more of this world's blessings than Thou Thyself 
 didst enjoy, be pleased to bless wedded love so that it hide not 
 Thee ; and when it is broken off by death, or withholden by Pro- 
 vidence, lead our hearts to find rest in Thee, Who art best and 
 dearest of all ! 
 
 CHAPTER XXV 
 
 I. The sons of Abraham by Keturah. 5. The division of his goods. 
 7. His age, and death. 9. His burial. 12. The generations of 
 Ishmael. 17. His age, and death, ig. Isaac prayeth for Rebekah, 
 being barren. 22. The children strive in her womb. 24. The birth 
 of Esau and Jacob. 27. Their difference. 29. Esau selteth his 
 birthright. 
 
 THEN again Abraham took a wife, and her name was 
 Keturah. 2. And she bare him Ziinran, aiid Jolcshan, 
 and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah. 
 
 We know that St. Paul (Gal. iv. 24) found in the position of Ishmael 
 and of Isaac an illustration of those respectively who remained 
 Jews and who became Christians : the one were children of the 
 bondwoman, the others of the freewoman ; the one clung to the 
 earthly Jerusalem, and shared her bondage and blindness ; the 
 others became children of the Jerusalem which is above, and were 
 set free, becoming heirs of grace. Is it allowable for us (without 
 St. Paul's authority) to carry the illustration further and see in the 
 children of Keturah, freemen and sons of Abraham, yet soon 
 leaving their father's house and presence, a figure of those Chris- 
 tians who only endure for a while, who begin well but do not 
 continue, who soon quit their heavenly inheritance and turn wholly 
 to this world ? Ishmael thus would represent to us those who never 
 became Christians ; Isaac true Christians, who become and remain 
 God's children ; the sons of Keturah those who lose the grace that 
 might have been theirs. 
 
 3. And Jolcshan begat Sheba, and Dedan. And the sons of 
 Dedan were Asshurim, and Letushim, and Leummim. 
 4. And the sons of Alidian ; Ephah, and Epher, and Ilanoch, 
 and Abidah, and Eldaah. All these were the children of 
 Keturah. 
 
 All these were tribes in Arabia (it would seem) and descended from 
 Abraham : their fathers were Aliraham's sons by his latest marri- 
 age, born of him when he was very old, able to have learnt from 
 
Ver. 8.] Abraham's Death 135 
 
 him the knowledge of the true God, able to have gained wise 
 lessons from his long experience ; yet we find their descendants 
 hostile to God's people (so far as we hear of them at all) and 
 destitute of true faith ; nay, readily persuaded by the impostor 
 Mahomet, and led by him to desolate the Church. At this we 
 cannot but marvel, and^adore the mystery of God's calling, Who 
 gives grace and light according to His Sovereign Will, 
 
 5. And Abraham gave all that he had tmto Isaac. 6. But 
 unto the sons of the concubines, which Abraham had, Abraham 
 gave gifts, and sent them away from Isaac his son, while he 
 yet lived, eastward, imto the east country. 
 
 Therefore Abraham's silver and gold, his flocks and herds, his men- 
 servants and maid-servants (xxiv. 35) were shared between Isaac 
 and the children of Keturah ; for the presents must have consisted 
 in such things as these ; and we find that Keturah's children were 
 contented, settled eastwards with their gifts, and prospered there. 
 What special thing did Isaac retain ? Hope, above all, trust, and 
 peace. He was contented with what his father gave him ; he 
 meditated on God's promises, of which he was the heir ; he looked 
 forward to the blessing to come. It is worth while to contrast 
 the fortunes of Ishmael and Hagar with those of Keturah's chil- 
 dren. The two former left the Patriarch's tent in need, in tears, 
 in loneliness, not with any portion of wealth bestowed on them ; 
 yet they enjoyed an angel's presence, heavenly comfort, a sense 
 that God saw and cared for them. 
 
 7. And these are the days of the years of Abraham's life 
 which he lived, an hundred threescore and fifteen years. 
 8. Then A braham gave iip the ghost, and died in a good old 
 age, an old man, and fidl of years ; and tvas gathered to his 
 people. 
 
 Abraham departed in a peaceful old age and was gathered to his 
 people. He left to us lessons of trust and faithfulness. He was 
 full of days, and rose up from life's banquet as one well wearied 
 or fully satisfied. What shall we say of the life after death? 
 Does 'gathered to his people' merely mean that he died as they 
 had died ? Does ' the God of Abraham ' merely mean that God 
 whom Abraham, while he existed, worshipped with transitoiy 
 homage? Nay, there is another world, another life, where what 
 has begun will be completed. There the souls of the just live 
 before that God Whom they trusted here. There all souls, good 
 or bad, continue their separate being. All this is mysterious and 
 beyond the reach of sense. One day I shall myself experience 
 what it really means. 
 
136 Abraham'' s Funeral [Gen. XXV. 
 
 9. And his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave 
 of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron, the son of Zohar the 
 Hittite, which is before Mavire ; 10. The field which 
 Abraham purcliased of the sons of Heth : there was Abraham 
 buried, and Sarah his wife. 
 
 So Abraham's death brought together again Isaac and Ishmael who 
 had been so long parted, broke down the division between them ; 
 just as Christ's death' broke down the division between Jew and 
 Gentile, reversed curses and separations, made all men brethren. 
 In the sacred cave (so often mentioned) where the patriarchs' 
 bodies were laid, I am taught to think of a still more sacred bury- 
 ing-place, where my Lord's Body was laid for its brief Easter rest. 
 That, too, was a cave, and as yet unused for sepulture. That, too, 
 was a token, an inauguration, a taking possession of the realms 
 of death, that we might enter them without fear, knowing that our 
 Friend has been there. 
 
 II. And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that 
 God blessed his son Isaac ; and Isaac dtvelt by the well Lahai- 
 
 Isaac inherited a blessing for his father's sake. This was the wealth 
 that Abraham bequeathed him. Abraham had trusted in God's 
 mercy, remembered His Presence, walked with Him all his days. 
 The very places where he had sojourned bore in their names 
 records of past mercies. All this Isaac inherited and passed on to 
 those who came after. He too, like his father, while thankful 
 for present mercies, had his eye fixed on the distant future and 
 looked for greater marvels to be one day revealed. 
 
 12. Now these are the generations of Ishmael, Abraham's 
 son, lohom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah's handmaid, bare unto 
 Abraham: 
 
 The history of Ishmael is interposed here. He was born of a bond- 
 woman, but attained temporal advantages far above Isaac. Yet he 
 remained outside the true promises, outside the best hopes of 
 Abraham's house. Isaac was without an heir for many years ; while 
 Ishmael had twelve sons who are called princes and occupy strong 
 places and have a name that is feared and honoured. Isaac mean- 
 while sojourned with his flock by this or tiiat well, setting up or 
 moving his tents, and looking forward. His hopes are not wholly 
 bounded by this visible world. 
 
 13. And these are the names of the sons of Ishmael, by 
 their names, according to their generations : the firstborn of 
 
Ver. 20.] Is/wiael's Sons 137 
 
 Ishvmel, Nehajoth ; and Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mihsam, 
 14. And Mlshma, and Dumah, and Massa, 15. Hadar, and 
 Tenia, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah: 16. These are the 
 sons of Ishmael, and these are their names, hy their towns, 
 and by their castles ; twelve princes according to their nations. 
 
 These Arabian tribes dwelt some in villages, some in tents. Their 
 power and valour were once famous throughout all the counti7 
 eastward of Palestine ; now their very names can scarcely be traced. 
 They had their day of ]:>rosperity and glory, and it passed. But 
 the heirs of promise led obscure lives and looked rather to God's 
 favour than human renown. It was a great thing for humanity, 
 wearied with life's oppressions, deceits, failures, to acquire an 
 eternal hope, a patience that looks elsewhere for reward. This 
 great gift God gave to Isaac's seed, not Ishmael's. 
 
 17. And these are the years of the life of Ishmael, an 
 hundred and thirty and. seven years : and he gave up the 
 ghost and died ; and was gathered unto his people. 18. And 
 they dwelt from Havilah unto Shur, that is before Egypt, as 
 thov, goest toward Assyria: and he died in the presence of all 
 his brethren. 
 
 Does Scripture then give any decision as to the eternal state of 
 Ishmael ? None ; nor do the early booksTof the Bible ever speak 
 explicitly of the life to come. And yet Ishmael is a figure of those 
 who have earth's blessings and miss those of heaven. Whatever 
 was his own character and position before God, he typically 
 represents those who do not share the position of God's children, 
 who serve Him with outward service only, receive their blessing 
 in material success, and are contented therewith. They pass on 
 and understand not the comforts, the mercies, the sacred commun- 
 ings which true childlike hearts enjoy, and which are to them sure 
 pledges of everlasting communion with their Divine Friend. 
 
 19. And these are the generations of Isaac, Abraham's son: 
 Abraham begat Isaac: 20, And Isaac was forty years old 
 tvhen he took ItebeJcah to wife, the daughter of Bethnel the 
 Syrian of Padan-aram, the sister to Laban the Syrian. 
 
 Of Isaac's history and character we are told very little, — 
 
 ' Many the guileless years tlie Patriarch spent, 
 Blest in the wife a father's foresight chose.' 
 
 Many prayers, many acts of mercy, many hopes of grace were 
 connected with him, but are hidden from us. He inherited and 
 
138 Diverse Characters of the Unborn [Gen. XXV. 
 
 passed on the blessing of Abraham, the faith of Abraham. In his 
 life he reproduced Abraham's experiences and manner of life. Let 
 me draw this lesson from what Scripture conceals, that most part 
 of our true life is hidden with God. \Miat men observe in us, our 
 behaviour under certain circumstances, really depends on the life- 
 long secret patientgrowthof character which lies between ourselves 
 and our God. 
 
 21. And Isaac inireated the Lord for his wife, because she 
 ivas barren : and the Lord was intreated of him, and Rebekali 
 his wife conceived. 
 
 Isaac prayed repeatedly and continually, and at last won an answer. 
 He knew (iod's promise was sure that in him the chosen family 
 should be continued, and yet he prayed daily that it might be so. 
 Do not call this lack of faith, because promises are meant to be 
 accomplished through prayers. His wife's long barrenness re- 
 minds us of the truth in the spiritual world that aii ffuitfulness in 
 good is of God. We cannot do any good thing but by Him. It 
 is He Who has ' chosen and set us that we may bear fruit and that 
 our fruit may remain.' \Vhat good could my character bear apart 
 from grace? God, Who is Lord of both worlds, gives natural 
 offspring to parents, and sows in the children's hearts seeds of 
 love, of truth, of duty. 
 
 2 2. And the children struggled together within her; and 
 she said. If it be so, why am I thus ? And she tvent to enquire 
 of the Lord. 
 
 Rebekah's pains and fears, which led her to consult God, and strive 
 to find out what would be the issue of her pregnancy, figure to us 
 the troubles of God's Church which contains within her both true 
 and false Christians, and is consequently rent by divisions and 
 offences. Rebekah went to consult God — where ? Perhaps it was 
 to some holy place where God was manifested by word or vision, 
 or perhaps to Abraham himself, for he \^■as still alive at this time. 
 Anyhow, she sought an answer and found it. 
 
 23. And the Lord said tmto her, Tivo stations are in thy 
 womb, and tivo manner of people shall be separated from thy 
 bowels; and the one x>eople shall be stronger than the other 
 people ; and the elder shall serve the younger. 
 
 These unconscious lives began already to manifest difference. They 
 were derived from one father and mother ; they lay as yet folded 
 together within the womb, yet God viewed them as different in their 
 character and in their end. God wonderfully foreknows what we 
 
Ver. 30.] Esau and Jacob 139 
 
 shall be. He assigns our lot according to His sovereign good 
 pleasure. What is it in one rather than another that obtains 
 Divine favour, that meets with steps of grace and helps towards 
 glory? Indeed I know not. Human worthiness cannot account 
 for it. I adore the depth of the Divine Counsels which I cannot 
 fathom. 
 
 24. And when her days to be delivered ivere fulfilled, 
 behold, there were twins in her womb. 25. And the first came 
 out red, all over like an hairy garment ; and they called his 
 name Esazi. 26. A7id after that came his brother out, and 
 his hand took hold on Esau's heel ; and his name ivas called 
 Jacob : and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them. 
 27. And the boys greio : and Esau was a cunning hunter, a 
 man of the field ; and Jacob was a plain man, divelling in 
 tents. 
 
 The difference of their appearance at birth corresponded with their 
 after difference of character and destiny. Esau's courage and 
 success as a hunter, Jacob's quiet life and home duties, are a figure 
 of two sorts of lives ; one which is set on seizing the advantages of 
 this present world, and the other which looks to God's approval 
 and the ho)ie of heaven. Lord, give me rather Jacob's part, a 
 well-ordered life, a humble trust, a knowledge of Thee, Who art 
 the God of Jacob. There is more good for me in this service than 
 in the rich spoil which delights Esau's children. 
 
 28. And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison: 
 hut Rehekah loved Jacob. 
 
 Isaac's partiality for his eldest son, whose gifts he enjoyed, and 
 Rebekah's tenderness for the younger, who was bent on pleasing 
 her, are human and natural instincts. But with God ' there is no 
 variableness, neither shadow of turning.' We can trace the causes 
 of human preference for one or another, but not the reasons of 
 God's choice. I know not, O my God, why Thou hast chosen me 
 to know of Thy salvation. Let me never wilfully lose the mercy 
 I have freely received. 
 
 29. And Jacob sod pottage : and Esau came from the field, 
 and he ivas faint: 30. And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I 
 pray thee, with that same red j)ottage ; for I am faint : there- 
 fore was his name called Edom. 
 
 Esau, wearied out with his fruitless chase, and looking eagerly on the 
 tempting mess which his brother had prepared, represents to mc 
 
I40 A Birthright sold [Gen. XXVI. 
 
 the children of this world who spend their life in a weary round of 
 search for new pleasures, new excitements. They wish to ex- 
 perience all sensations, make trial of all that life has to offer. Nay, 
 they at times envy the quietness, the comforts, the hopefulness of 
 God's children. The soul, like Esau in his hunting, runs a varied 
 round, yet finds nothing settled, nothing satisfying. What is the 
 fragrant red pottage but the pleasure of a moment which takes the 
 restless fancy ? 
 
 31. And Jacob said. Sell me this day thy birthright. 
 32. And Escni said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and 
 tvhat profit shall this birthright do to me? 33. And Jacob 
 said, Sivear to me this day ; and he sware unto him : and he 
 sold his birthright unto Jacob. 
 
 Let me never part with my birthright ; I mean, with my place in the 
 covenant of grace, with my hope of heaven, with my trust in God's 
 tender mercy. Nay, let me cling to this all my days, and sooner 
 lose all else than it. With Jacob it meant the coveted promise, 
 the prospect of Canaan, the position of ancestor to the world's 
 Redeemer. But with Christians it is faith's portion and a place in 
 the everlasting kingdom. It would seem that Jacob was grasping 
 and unbrotherly in thus turning his brother's eager fancy to his own 
 profit (though God's wise purpose was wrought out thereby) : but 
 Christians are innocent and wise in sacrificing temporal things for 
 eternal, in yielding up a mess of pottage and laying fast hold on 
 eternal life. Jacob gave up his dinner, but obtained the right to 
 a blessing ; so may I give up much pleasure or praise for the ap- 
 proval of my God. 
 
 34. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles ; 
 and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and tvent his way: 
 thus Esau despised his birthright. 
 
 We read with surprise how easily, how carelessly, Esau parted with 
 his right to the mysterious blessing. But this significant trans- 
 action is daily repeated, and we cease to wonder at it. We lose 
 God's favour, and triumph over the restraints of conscience, the 
 warnings of God's Spirit, 
 
 ' sell true bliss 
 For wealth or power, for pleasure or renown,' 
 
 and go on our downward road without heeding. Indeed, the time 
 will come for tears and vam regrets ; fruitless tears those, for Esau 
 could never get back what he had thrown away. May I prevent 
 God's judgment by sincere fruitful repentance, which may effectu- 
 ally change my condition in His sight. I have not yet despised 
 the call beyond remedy. I trust to Christ's precious Blood and 
 fruitful tears to wash out my contempt for Divme Grace. 
 
Ver. 4-] A second Famine 141 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI 
 
 1. Isaac because of famine went to Gerar. 2. God instructeth, and 
 
 blesseth him. 7. He is reproved by Abimelech for denying his 
 wife. 12. He groweth rich. 18. He diggeth Esek, Sitnah, and 
 Rehoboth. 26. Abimelech maketh a covenant with him at Beer- 
 sheba. 34. Esau's wives. 
 
 AND tliere ivas a famine in the land, besides the first 
 famine that was hi the days of Abraham. And Isaac 
 went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar. 
 
 2. And the Lord appeared unto him, and said, Go not down 
 into Egypt ; divell in the land which I shall tell thee of: 
 
 Isaac was preparing to enter Egypt, as his father had done, to find 
 sustenance there, but God bade him remain in the outskirts of the 
 Holy Land. No doubt he consulted God and sought earnestly to 
 know His will, before taking the journey, and the answer came 
 that he was to remain, not to enter Egypt. Let me in all my ways 
 acknowledge God, and then He will direct my paths. Let my way, 
 wherever it leads here below, be disposed towards the attainment 
 of everlasting salvation. I am but a traveller on earth, and look 
 for a lasting settlement elsewhere. 
 
 3. Sojourn in this land, and I ivill be with thee, and will 
 bless thee ; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I tvill give all 
 these coiintries, and I will perform the oath which I sware 
 unto Abraham thy father ; 
 
 In Isaac's more prosperous days he had not been reminded of the 
 blessing, but when famine and flight are upon him God renews 
 mercies and revives blessings. His comforts come when other 
 comforts fail. Thus the saints are not really deserted, though they 
 may seem so outwardly. Isaac was deeply certain that his father 
 had not believed in vain. His father had passed away without 
 seeing his hopes realised ; but yet Isaac knew that those who 
 trusted in God are not deceived. He did not say, ' My father 
 Abraham believed in God, and nothing has come of it.' Oh no ; 
 both he and Abraham had learnt to trust and wait ; death did not 
 close their view. 
 
 4. A7id I tvill make thy seed to multiply as the stars of 
 heaven, and tvill give unto thy seed all these countries ; and in 
 thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed ; 
 
 Though not Jews, we are Isaac's seed. We look to him as our 
 spiritual father. His blessing has come upon us ; that is, because 
 
142 Isaac's Fears [Gen. XXVI. 
 
 Christ has brought us into the sacred family. Devout hearts in old 
 time must have pondered over this promise. Who should this 
 foretold Benefactor be? How shall He profit the whole world? 
 What blessing could He bring upon nations so diverse, so 
 estranged, so fierce, so plunged in idolatry? How comes this 
 more than human power to be lodged in Him? Faith now can 
 solve all these difficulties and see them answered in the Person 
 and work of our Divine Saviour. 
 
 5. Because that Abraham obeyed My voice, and kept My 
 charge^ My commandments, My statutes, and My laivs. 
 
 Abraham's call and Abraham's obedience had both been prepared 
 by God ; one was knit with the other. He Who called him called 
 him to be faithful and obedient, but yet his calling is attributed 
 here to his good deeds in order to give a pattern and example to 
 Isaac. This is the way for us to bring about the fulfilment of 
 promises ; we must fulfil the condition on our part, God will not 
 fail of His. It is the obedience and perseverance of His elect that 
 declare that He has chosen them from all eterniiy. God has 
 oiven to us, as to Abraham, His charge. His commandments. His 
 statutes. His laws ; let us not be slow to keep them. The way of 
 obedience is the path which leads to true blessedness. It is my 
 happiness to be the servant of so good a Master, to wait on His 
 look, to apprehend His bidding. 
 
 6. And. Isaac dwelt in Gerar : 7. And the men, of the 
 place ashed him of his wife ; and he said. She is my sister : 
 for he feared to say, She is my wife ; lest, said he, the men of 
 the place shordd kill me for Rebekah ; because she was fair to 
 look upon. 
 
 This may well have happened early in Isaac's wandering life, when 
 his wife had not yet borne him children. It was a like experience 
 to that which Abraham had had both in Egj'pt and in the same 
 place of Gerar with King Abimelech (probably another king of 
 that name) many years before. In his anxiety on account of his 
 wife's beauty, which made him fear both for his own life and her 
 honour. I see figured the responsibility of possessing truth. Divine 
 Truth is beautiful and pure and full of charm to tiue hearts, but 
 those who enjoy it are in danger of seeing it enslaved or corrupted, 
 nay, of losing it through their own fault ; and yet, if they cling 
 fast to it, they will come off conquerors. Truth sets free at last 
 all those who love it. 
 
 8. Ami it came to pass, ivhen he had been there a long time, 
 that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window. 
 
Ver. 14.] Isaac's Blessings 143 
 
 and saw, and, behold, Isaac was sporting with Rehekah his 
 wife. 9. And Ahimelech called Isaac, and said, Behold, of a 
 surety she is thy wife : and how saidst thou, She is my sister 1 
 And Isaac said unto him, Becaiise I said. Lest I die for her. 
 10. And Ahimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? 
 one of the 'people might lightly have lien ivith thy loife, and 
 thou shoiddst have hrought gidlliness upon us. 
 
 Oh that I had courage to speak the truth always, and never be 
 ashamed of confessing myself a Christian under all circumstances ! 
 Isaac had prevaricated about his wife, and was rebuked by the 
 heathen king, but I have constantly been afraid to acknowledge 
 myself a Catholic Christian. I have avoided saying grace at meals 
 openly, or standing up for a friend, or declaring my belief in 
 Divine Providence — anything rather than show that I loved God's 
 Truth and held to it. 
 
 II. And Ahimelech charged all his people, saying, He that 
 toucheth this man or his ivife shall surely he put to death. 
 
 This outward order of protection from the king expressed to Isaac 
 and Rebekah the protecting care of God's Providence, which they 
 had distrusted. Surely ' He that keepeth Israel shall neither 
 slumber nor sleep' ; surely ' the Lord Himself is thy Keeper, the 
 Lord is thy Defence upon thy right hand.' Believing this, relying 
 on this, I shall walk on through this evil world with a calm and 
 quiet mind, knowing that all seeming enemies and dangers are 
 under the orders of the King of kings, and bound to work out my 
 salvation. 
 
 1 2. Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same 
 year an hundredfold.- and the Lord hlessed him. 13. And 
 the man waxed great, and tvent forivard, and grew until he 
 became very great: 14. For he had possession of flocks, and 
 possession of herds, and great store of servants : and the 
 Philistines envied him. 
 
 He came there flying from famine, and he grew rich. No other 
 crops prospered in the sterile soil, but he alone found a rich return ; 
 his very exile, necessity, anxiety, all turned to his profit. What 
 field is there in which I can sow liberally and be sure of a rich 
 return? Surely the poor and their necessities offer me this good 
 ground, if I wisely and liberally use it. God says, ' He that soweth 
 bountifully shall reap also bountifully.' Oh may I find this saying 
 true, and lind an hundredfold of comfort myself when I need it ! 
 
144 The old Wells reopened [Gen. XXVI. 
 
 15. For all the ivells which his father^ s servants had digged 
 in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped 
 them, and filled them ivith earth. 16, And Ahimelech said 
 unto Isaac, Go from us ; for thou art much mightier than we. 
 
 Many false teachers have tried to stop up the wells of truth with 
 which God refreshes souls. Once these wells flowed with living 
 water for the comfort of many, but now they seem all choked and 
 dry. Courage ! the water is there, it is ours, it has not lost its 
 virtue ; man alone has interposed error and obscurity. It is God's 
 saints who have opened springs of truth to us, it is our own folly 
 that has spoiled and choked them. Those who love Him will try 
 to open access to the spring and refresh other souls thence. Isaac 
 found that envy had grown up round him, and he had to Hy into 
 the desert again, but he took God's blessing with him. 
 
 17. And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his tent in the 
 valley of Gerar, and divelt there. 18. And Isaac digged 
 again the tvells of water, tvhich they had digged in the days of 
 Abraham his father ; for the Philistines had stopped them 
 after the death of Abraham : and he called their names after 
 the names by which his father had called them. 
 
 These were Isaac's heritage ; he called them by the same names, 
 drank the same water from them that his youth had known. So 
 it is our task to provide for thirsting souls access to the same 
 springs from which Ciiristians in old time were refreshed ; it is 
 not new truths that will save us, but free access to the old. 
 Nothing can be devised more powerful, more consoling, more 
 illuminating, than the old doctrines of the Gospel ; they are enough 
 for every mind and heart, each can take his own draught there- 
 from and live. 
 
 19. And Isaac's servants diqged in the valley, and found 
 there a well of springing water. 20. And the Jierdmen of 
 Gerar did strive with Isaac's herdmen, saying, The water is 
 ours: and he called the name of the well Esek; because they 
 strove ivith him. 21. And they digged another well, and 
 strove for that also : and he called the name of it Sitnah. 
 
 I thought to find peace, and behold contention, but yet it is wiser 
 to yield to that contention and so let it die out. This well called 
 'strife,' and the ne.xt one called 'enmity,' often are opened on our 
 path ; but let us overcome evil with good, let us do good though 
 we suffer for it, let us pour out our best care, best succour, though 
 we reap only ingratitude. Isaac passed from place to place, 
 
Ver. 25-] Old Memories revived. 145 
 
 leaving fresh sources of water open behind him, just as his Divine 
 descendant 'went about doing good,' healing, setting free, and yet 
 being Himself spoken against for it. 
 
 22. And he removed from thence, and digged another well ; 
 and for that they strove not : and he called the name of it 
 Rehohoth ; and he said, For noiv the Lord hath made room 
 for us, and tve shall be fruitfid in the land. 
 
 Lord, enlarge my heart that I may find room there for Thee and for 
 other souls ; let me have a large heart ; and let me, like Isaac, 
 return ready acknowledgments to Thee Who art the Giver of peace 
 and love. He did not regard this hard-won repose as the fruit of 
 his own labour, but attributed it to the grace of his Almighty 
 Friend, on Whose blessing he had learnt entirely to depend. We 
 are told that ' the Lord shall give His people the blessing of 
 peace': this is indeed the best of gifts, — peace within, free from 
 encroaching passions, — peace without, a space in which to work 
 and pray, — peace in finding out and living by sacred Truth. 
 Praise to God for opening all these comforts to us I 
 
 23. And he tvent up from thence to Beer-sheba. 24. And 
 the Lord a-ppeared unto him the same night, and said, I am 
 the God of Abraham thy father : fear not, for I am with thee, 
 and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for My servant 
 Abraham^ s sake. 
 
 At Beer-sheba Isaac had lived in his youth ; there he had learnt to 
 worship the true God ; thence God had called him to the mys- 
 terious sacrifice on Moriah, and thither he had returned as one 
 risen from the dead. This ancient sanctuary of believers stood on 
 the southern edge of the Promised Land ; it was the last shrine to 
 which their hearts turned before entering on the desert beyond ; 
 and God recalls to Isaac there the old promises and hopes, bids 
 him lose sight of present dangers in the thought of an invisible 
 protector, of present insignificance in the thought of future glory. 
 He was to be blessed for Abraham's sake, and shall not we find 
 richer and surer blessings for Christ's sake ? 
 
 25. And he biiilded an altar there, and called upon the 
 name of the Lord, and pitched his tent there : and there 
 Isaac's servants digged a well. 
 
 His first care was for worship : first of all, he set up God's Altar and 
 
 served it, or rather rebuilt that at which his father had worshipped 
 
 of old ; then he turned to think of his own rest and refreshment. 
 
 Isaac went from place to place, nor did he ever attain even the 
 
 K 
 
146 A holy Feast in sign of Peace [Gen. XXVI. 
 
 greatness and influence which his father had had; his hopes were 
 set on the Unseen ; he is like one for whose thoughts and hopes this 
 present world is all too small. He never complained that God's 
 promise to him had failed or been delayed. No, for he had learned 
 to wait and look to the end. 
 
 26. Then Ahimelech tvent to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath 
 one of his friends, and Phichol the chief cajitain of his army. 
 27. And Isaac said u7ito them, Wherefore come ye to me, seeing 
 ye hate me, and have sent me away from you ? 
 
 The princes of the Philistines come to Isaac to make an alliance just 
 as they (or their fathers) had to Abraham years before (xxi. 22). 
 In Isaac there is an uniformity of character, a simplicity and up- 
 rightness on all occasions, which make him sought even by the 
 world's magnates, who might (one would have thought) have 
 despised his friendship ; but he passes on, carrying God's gprace and 
 blessing with him. Who will grant us this uniformity and calm- 
 ness of heart, to remain the same whether in prosperity or ad- 
 versity, never puffed up, never prostrate, never forsaking the even 
 road of peace ? If we were thus, other souls would be strengthened 
 and helped by knowing us. 
 
 28. And they said. We satv certainly that the Lord was 
 with thee : and we said. Let there he now an oath hetivixt us, 
 even betwixt us and thee, and let us make a covenant with thee; 
 29. That thou tvilt do us no hurt, as loe have not touched thee, 
 and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and have sent 
 thee away in peace : thou art now the blessed of tlie Lord. 
 
 The Philistine king recognised in Isaac the blessing and presence of 
 that God Whose servant he was. He felt that he had driven him 
 away unjustly and unwisely ; therefore he sought to minimise 
 the difference between them and to make all things smooth for 
 the future. It were good for me to follow him at least in this, 
 that I recognise God's servants and ask for their goodwill and 
 prayers. Well worth while for me to find out true hearts, families 
 where God is sincerely loved, where earnest prayers and good 
 communions are made ; joining myself to such, I shall dwell more 
 closely with God. 
 
 30. And he made them a feast, and they did eat and 
 drink. 31. And they rose up betimes in the moiming, and 
 sware one to another : and Isaac sent them away, and they 
 departed from him in peace. 
 
 Isaac does not reproach Abimelech with wells stopped up, or 
 covenants broken ; he represses all the complaints he might easily 
 
Ver. 35-] Esaiis profane Marriages 147 
 
 have made ; he gladly embraces the occasion of renewed peace. I 
 see in his patience, his love of retirement and prayer, his dis- 
 interestedness and humility, some traces and rudiments of the 
 Prince of Peace, his descendant according to the flesh. In Old 
 Testament saints I welcome many scattered rays of that Divine 
 and perfect excellence which at last ' showed itself on the earth 
 and conversed with men.' 
 
 32. And it came to 2Jass the same day, that Isaac^s servants 
 came, and told him concerning the ivell tvhich they had digged, 
 and said unto him, We have found tvater. 33. And he called 
 it Shebah : therefore the name of the city is Beer-sheha unto 
 this day. 
 
 So the well which had been called by Abraham ' well of seven ' 
 (referring to the seven lambs which were a token and pledge of 
 the treaty that he made there) is now cleared out and made to 
 llow afresh by Isaac, and the same name renewed to it, only now 
 with reference to the ' oath ' which had been freshly made. In 
 traversing Genesis I move amidst deep wells and springs of truth, 
 many of them half choked up by men's ignorance or rash conjec- 
 tures ; be it given to me to reverently open up the old truths, find 
 Christ hidden under figures, draw lessons and comforts from the old 
 histories. In this world's dry, thirsty journey how welcome to us 
 is Holy Scripture with its openings into thoughts of comfort. 
 
 34. And Esau was forty years old ivhen he took to wife 
 Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the 
 daughter of Elon the Hittite : 35. Which were a grief of 
 mind unto Isaac and to Rehelcah. 
 
 What mistake did Esau make? He allied himself by these mar- 
 riages with the powerful tribe of the Hittites, and became thus 
 a great lord ; soon he api)ears at the head of a host, soon he oc- 
 cupies a mountain stronghold, while his brother is defenceless and 
 .solitary. True, but Esau's wives were very different from what 
 his grandmother and mother had been ; they did not agree with 
 the piety, the modesty, the care for strangers, the respect for the 
 poor, the waiting on God's promises which marked the holy 
 household ; they could not share in the prayers that went on there ; 
 they never cared to learn about the True God and His wonderful 
 dealings. Isaac and Rebekah felt that such mothers would not 
 bring up children to follow Abraham's steps. 
 
148 Isaads advancing Age [Gen. XXVII. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII 
 
 I. Isaac sendeth Esau for venison. 6. Rebekah instructeth Jacob to 
 obtain the blessing. 15. Jacob under the person of Esau obtaineth 
 it. 30. Esau bringeth venison. 33. Isaac trembleth. 34. Esau 
 complaineth, and by importunity obtaineth a blessing. 41. He 
 threateneth Jacob. 42. Rebekah disappointeth it. 
 
 AND it came, to joass, that when Isaac ivas old, and his eyes 
 were dim, so that he coidd not see, he ccdled Esau his 
 eldest son, and said tmto him, My son : and he said unto him, 
 Behold, here ain I. 
 
 Isaac had to bear many years of blindness, for he lived till Jacob's 
 return from Mesopotamia. In those days there were no books to 
 read to him, not even Scripture. He lived among idolaters, and 
 had few friends to cheer him. He had to bear the apparent con- 
 tradiction between the glorious promises of which he was heir and 
 his actual insignificance in the world. No doubt his Divine Friend 
 illumined his darkness with some rays of comfort and hope. But 
 I view blind Isaac not only in himself but as representing the 
 position of his descendants, the Jews, in the presence of Christ's 
 Light. Just as the veil on Moses' face, so the darkening of Isaac's 
 eyes figures the condition of the Jews seeking for the true Messiah, 
 but not being able to discern Him. 
 
 2. And he said, Behold now, I am old, I Icnoiv not the day 
 of my death : 
 
 Isaac called Esau, but God's call was to Jacob. Isaac had his plan 
 for blessing Esau, but God overruled it otherwise according to His 
 own will. ' It is not,' says St. Paul, 'of him that willeth, nor of 
 him that runneth.' No ; for God, Who knows hearts, saw that in 
 Jacob which fitted him to be heir of the blessing, and brought it 
 about infallibly that he should be heir. In this chapter I mark 
 and marvel at man's sins bringing about God's wise purpose at 
 last. Isaac lived many years in the expectation of death. Once, 
 long ago, on Moriah, he had made up his mind to die, and he 
 practised daily the same submission, the same preparation. 
 
 3. Now therefore tahe, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver 
 and thy boiv, and go out to the field, and take me some venison; 
 4. And maJce me savotiry meat, such as I love, and briny it to 
 
Ver. lo,] The Device to steal a Blessing 149 
 
 me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I 
 die. 
 
 This kind of inheritor of the blessing, armed and vigorous, bringing 
 luxuries, trusting in his own strength, is such a Messiah as blinded 
 hearts looked for, — one who would prevail by his own might, 
 satisfy his friends with this world's riches, obtain their praise and 
 goodwill thereby ; but not such, O Lord, is Thy King, meek and 
 gentle, welcomed by humble hearts. Esau willingly accepted his 
 father's commands, though he had sold his birthright long ago, 
 because all he hoped to obtain was some temporal profit and 
 honour. 
 
 5. And Rebekah heard when Isaac spahe to Esau his son. 
 And Esau went to the field to Mint for venison, and to bring 
 it. 6. And Rebekah sjKtke tmto Jacob her son, saying. 
 Behold, I heard thy father speak tinto Esau thy brother, 
 saying, 7. Bring me venison, and make me savoury meat, 
 that I may eat, and bless thee before the Lord before my death. 
 8. Noiv therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that 
 which I command thee. 
 
 Rebekah knew that Isaac's blessing marked an important and de- 
 cisive occasion, and that the promises would thus be solemnly 
 handed over to the heir ; and therefore she devised a plan to make 
 Jacob receive the blessing, not Esau. Jacob, she knew, was 
 designed by God to receive this place, and was fitter for it. God's 
 counsels, she knew, pointed this way ; her whole heart was set 
 on obtaining the blessing for Jacob. In all this history I discern 
 two things : one is the deceit of mother and son, and I blame it — 
 it was punished by trouble and lifelong separation coming upon 
 them ; and the other is, God's purpose, God's design ; that was 
 infalliljly wrought out, even through men's fault, — that I recognise 
 and adore. 
 
 9. Go noiu to the flock, and fetch me from thence ttvo good 
 kids of the goats ; and I will make them savoury meat for thy 
 father, such as he loveth : 10. And thou shall bring it to thy 
 father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his 
 death. 
 
 What was the meaning of this savoury meat wliich Rebekah offered 
 lo prepare and by which Isaac was to be propitiated ? It reminds 
 me of the promises of the Law, which were temporal and earthly, 
 and consisted in long life, good harvests, peaceable days, a pos- 
 terity to preserve the family name. It reminds me, too, of Christ's 
 
150 Esau s goodly Raijnent [Gen. XXVII. 
 
 bountiful, healing, beneficent works of mercy for the hungry or 
 suffering. By these outward temporal benefits souls were to be 
 attracted towards Christ and His eternal promises. 
 
 II. And Jacob said to BehehaJi his motlier, Behold, Bsau 
 my hrother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man : 
 1 2. My father peradveniure will feel me, and I shall seem to 
 him as a deceive?- ; and I shall bring a ctirse upon me, and not 
 a blessing. 
 
 Jacob feared only to be found out ; the thought of deceit in itself was 
 not insupportable to him. He ought to have said, ' God, Who is 
 essential Truth, can bring about His design without any fraud of 
 mine.' No doubt he would thus have reaped the blessing and had 
 no bitterness with it ; but I see here the figure of a deeper difl"er- 
 ence to be bridged, a wider personification undertaken. Who was 
 it that came disguised as a sinner, wrapt in the robe of faulty 
 humanity, while inwardly blessed for evermore, who incurred a 
 curse and turned it into a blessing for all mankind ? 
 
 13. And his mother said iinto him, Upon me be thy curse, 
 my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them. 14. And 
 he ivent, and fetched, and brought them to his mother : and his 
 mother made savoury meat, such as his father loved. 
 
 Rebekah was moved to this deceit by her love for Jacob and by her 
 strong sense of God's purpose for him ; no doubt she showed lack 
 of faith in resorting to it. But I view in her the Church of God, 
 the mother of redeemed souls, bidding us approach without fear 
 of the curse, bidding us shelter our unworthiness under Christ's 
 atonement. Nay, she seems to represent Divine Grace, making 
 us and our doings acceptable, providing for us what our own 
 strength or merits could never supply. Thus I look beyond human 
 frailty to the deep mysteries which lie hidden beneath. 
 
 15. And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son 
 Usau, which ivere u'ith her in the house, and put them upon 
 Jacob her younger son : 
 
 The?e goodly garments of Esau, under which Jacob was hidden, are 
 like the splendour of the Jewish ritual and kingdom, the majesty 
 of the Prophets, the whole glory of the Ancient Law. These 
 belonged to the Jews, and were their pride and delight ; but a day 
 came when Esau was disinherited, and then Jacob was found 
 clothed in them. So Christians pass beneath the outward apparel 
 of legal ceremonies and behold the Son of God veiled there, 
 recognised by true hearts, the true Prince Whom this purple robe 
 covered. 
 
Ver. 19.] Jacob disguised. 151 
 
 16. And she put the shins of the kids of the goats upon his 
 hands, and iipon the smooth of his neck : 
 
 The goat was the sin-offering. In the goatskin which disguised 
 Jacob I see a figure of those sins, not His own, which Christ took 
 on Himself. Jacob was not Esau, though he wore a skin of hair ; 
 so Christ was not a sinner, though He appeared in sinners' sem- 
 blance. As Jacob, when he had won the blessing, laid aside the 
 hairy skin ; so Christ abolished the guilt of sin and the malediction 
 ot the Law, and appeared holy and harmless, ever separate from 
 sin, ever able to make intercession for sinners. 
 
 17. And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she 
 had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob. 
 
 Jacob has merely to wait. His mother prepares all things and puts 
 them in his hands. Esau, meanwhile, searches the fields for game, 
 and then has to cook and season what he has caught ; and after all 
 he is too late, his father cannot relish the viands. Jacob mean- 
 while seems to say, ' I will not trust in my bow ; it is not my sword 
 that shall help me ' ; — he receives all without his own labour ; he 
 rests on favour, not deserts. Who does not see here wonderful 
 portraits of those who by mercy win, or by self-righteousness lose, 
 the eternal inheritance ? 
 
 18. And he came unto his father, and said, My father : 
 and he said. Here am I; who art thoxi, my son ^ 19. And 
 Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy firstborn; I have 
 done according as thou badest me : arise, I pray thee, sit and 
 eat of my venison, that thy sold may bless me. 
 
 I do not excuse Jacob's fraud or Isaac's dulness ; but I behold here 
 mysteries in which they are the unconscious actors. Who is this 
 believing son, hidden beneath the name and garb of the profane, 
 yet coming before his father to win a far-reaching blessing? His 
 father hears him, because he appears as Esau, and confesses that 
 he bears Esau's character. All this makes me think of Good 
 Friday, of Christ's bearing our sins and appearing thus before His 
 heavenly Father. Again, in Isaac's being beguiled, I recognise 
 (as he afterwards didj himself) the will of God, which led him, 
 against his intention, to bestow the blessing on the true heir — on 
 him whose character fitted him best for the inheritance. Isaac's 
 great feebleness and blindness were not really deceived, though 
 it seemed so at the time. His God still watched over him and 
 ordered all things for his good. 
 
152 A Deceiver^ and yet tnie [Gen. XXVII. 
 
 20. And Isaac said unto his son, How is it that thou hast 
 found it so quickly, my son ? And he said, Because the Lord 
 thy God brought it to me. 
 
 This was an equivocation in the letter, but yet true in the spirit. 
 Jacob meant it deceitfully, but God overruled the words. Was 
 it not God's favour, God's will, that brought about the mother's 
 suggestion and the son's acceptance of it? In Isaac's family it 
 was, I see, the custom to ascribe all things, even good luck in 
 hunting, to Divine Providence ; the sons were not ashamed to 
 ascribe their success to God's gift. 
 
 21. And Isaac said zmto Jacob, Come near, I i:>ray thee, 
 that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau 
 or not. 22. And Jacob ivent near unto Isaac his father ; and 
 he felt him, and said, The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands 
 are the hands of Esau. 23. And he discerned him not, because 
 his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands : so he 
 blessed him. 
 
 Isaac appears to take all possible precautions, and yet he is caught 
 by his son's deceit, which, by God's deep providence, brought 
 about Divine ends. In Jacob, thus standing in Esau's place, pre- 
 senting Esau's hands to be toucjjjed, I behold my Saviour taking 
 on Himself my sins and unworthiness and using His own Divine 
 Voice to present my petition. He Who is God is yet disguised 
 as man, and takes the place of sinners. His Father takes Him 
 for such, and deals out to Him what is meant for them, O great 
 mystery which runs through all Scripture, is felt through all ages ! 
 
 24. And he said. Art tho7i my very son Esau ? And he 
 said, I am. 25. And he said. Bring it near to me, and I will 
 eat of my son's venisoyi, that my soul may bless thee. And he 
 brought it near to him, and he did eat : and he brought him 
 wine, and he drank. 
 
 Isaac takes this repast for Esau's gift, and blesses the giver accord- 
 ingly. But I sec here the true Jacob offering Himself as a sacri- 
 ficed Lamb, shedding His precious Blood for our salvation. This 
 is the very mystery of substitution which Isaac himself in his youth 
 had prefigured on Moriah. I am happy to have the true Jacob 
 to plead for me with my Heavenly Father. 
 
 26. And his father Isaac said unto him, Come near now, 
 and kiss me, my son. 27. And he came near, and kissed him: 
 
Ver. 3I-] The Blessing won 153 
 
 and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and 
 said, See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which 
 the Lord hath blessed: 
 
 This kiss of fatherly love is the sign of my reconciliation with God. 
 In this scent of Esau's clothes (which Rebekah doubtless kept in 
 drawers with fragrant herbs of the field), I see the fragrance of 
 all good works which adorn the Church of Christ, the congregation 
 of redeemed souls. This is no longer Esau's dress, but has become 
 the raiment of the true Jacob. This is what is expressed by the 
 Psalmist's words : ' Thou hast put off my sackcloth and girded 
 me with gladness.' Christ appears rejoicing in His glory and 
 bestowing His grace upon us that we too may be glorified in 
 Him. 
 
 28. Therefore God give thee of the deto of heaven, and the 
 fatness of the earth, and jjl^nty of corn and wine : 
 
 This dew of heaven is Divine grace ; this fatness of the earth is virtue 
 and holy love ; this corn and wine are the blessings hidden in the 
 Holy Sacrament of Christ's Death. He was Himself the Corn of 
 wheat which fell into the ground and died, yet revived and bore 
 much fruit ; He was the true Vine, of which we are the branches. 
 Under these figures of temporal blessing Faith recognises a store 
 of heavenly treasure. 
 
 29. Let people serve thee, and nations boio doivn to thee : be 
 lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons bow down to 
 thee : cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he 
 that blesseih thee. 
 
 This never came true of the literal Jacob. Oh no ; he led a humble, 
 dependent life. Esau lorded it over him when they met. Esau 
 and his children enjoyed far greater peace and prosperity than the 
 house of Jacob. Jacob's wandering life, domestic sorrows, 'few 
 and evil days,' ended in 'the house of bondage,' with darkening 
 prospects for his posterity. True, but Faith knows what true 
 blessing is, and how it comes, takes its Beatitudes from Christ's 
 own lips, and knows what blessings and what woes He has in- 
 fallibly pronounced. Faith sees included in this blessing all true 
 Christians who are united in heart to their Lord, and suffer and 
 rejoice with His grace to shelter them. 
 
 30. And it came to 2xiss, as soon as Isaac had made an end 
 of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from 
 the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in 
 from his hunting. 31. And he also had made savoury meat, 
 
154 A bitter Cry raised in vain [Gen. XXVII. 
 
 aTid brought it unto his father, and said unto his father. Let 
 my father arise, and eat of his son's venison, that thy soul may 
 bless me. 
 
 All was done now, the blessing given, the door shut ; and yet Esau 
 remained in ignorance, fully persuaded that his present would be 
 acceptable, fully persuaded that he would obtain the blessing. O 
 Lord, will there not be, when life ends, some cases of self-deception 
 like this, of souls who trust that they are in the way of peace when 
 they have missed it, trust that their life and works will be accept- 
 able in God's judgment when they will be rejected? I entreat 
 Thee, let my eyes be open in time, let me know where and what 
 I am before that time when tears shall have no power. 
 
 32. Aiid Isaac his father said unto him. Who art thou ? 
 And he said, I am thy son, tlty firsiborn Esau. 
 
 Esau is as a stranger now ; neither his voice, nor presents, nor 
 obedience avail to replace him. Jacob has taken sonship and 
 blessing away. Now what Jacob did deceitfully was overruled by 
 God to work out His Divine plan. The blessing was won by 
 Jacob and lost by Esau as a figure of Christ's work when He put 
 aside the old covenant and appeared before His heavenly Father 
 wearing our nature. Now we are 'blessed with all spiritual 
 blessings in heavenly places in Christ.' Now our Father receives 
 us sinners as His dear children. 
 
 2,2)- And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, Who? 
 where is he that hath taken venison, and brought it vie, and I 
 have eaten of all before thou earnest, and have blessed him 1 
 yea, and he shall he blessed. 
 
 Isaac marvelled and trembled, discerning how God had wrought all, 
 how God had turned all things according to His foreordained plan. 
 He did not become angry with Jacob, nor attempt to revoke what 
 he had unknowingly done. No, for he saw that he had been but 
 an instrument in God's hands. ' Who is it,' he says, ' who came 
 and won the blessing?' This is like the saying of Saul at his 
 conversion, 'Who art Thou, Lord?' I strove with '1 hee unknowing, 
 but now I discern Thy power. Isaac adored God's Providence, 
 and submitted himself wholly to His will. 
 
 34. And tvhen Esa%i heard the ivords of his father, he cried 
 toith a great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father. 
 Bless me, even me also, my father. 
 
 Esau valued his birthright far otherwise now than he once did, when 
 he sold it contemptuously for the mess of pottage. He had learnt 
 
Ver. 37.] Esau's Forfeit 155 
 
 his own folly, yet rather regretted its consequences than really felt 
 contrition for his contempt. His bitter cry could not get back 
 what had been lost. So lost innocence, lost peace, do not return 
 for all our regret. Still, when I find myself awakened to my loss, 
 conscious that I have thrown away Divine favour, I will use the 
 words of the prodigal son, ' Father, I have sinned against heaven, 
 and in thy sight, aud am no more worthy to be called thy son.' 
 There is a virtue in those words which Esau's bitter cry lacked. 
 
 35. And he said, Thy brother came with suhtilty, and haih 
 taken aivay thy blessing. 36. And he said, Is not he rightly 
 named Jacob ? for he hath supplanted vie these two times : he 
 took away my birthright ; and behold, now he hath taken auxvy 
 my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing 
 for me ? 
 
 Jacob had stolen the blessing, had taken his brother's place. This 
 fraud of Jacob's, wrong as it was, figures to me that holy and 
 lawful prudence wherewith persevering hearts retain their place in 
 God's favour; nay, rise to a higher place, while the rash and 
 faithless lose what once they had. Let me ponder over this 
 warning, ' Hold fast that thou hast, that no man take thy crown,' 
 or 'That which thou hast, hold fast till I come,' or ' So run that ye 
 may obtain.' I know that many who were once more holy, more 
 learned, more useful than I, have fallen away afterwards from all 
 good, and I draw the lesson, ' Be not high-minded, but fear,' and 
 yet trust Divine mercy to make sure to me what they lost. 
 
 37. And Isaac ansivered and said unto Esau, Behold, I 
 have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to 
 him for servants; and with corn and wine have I stistained 
 hivi : and tvliat shall I do noiv unto thee, my son ? 
 
 Yet what Isaac had really conveyed to Jacob was not temporal 
 lordship nor wealth, but something higher and deeper. Look to 
 those words of Christ's, ' The servant abideth not in the house for 
 ever, the son abideth ever : if therefore the Son make you free, 
 YOU are free indeed.' They point us to our true Lord and 
 Ransomer and the blessings lie bestows and which are the best. 
 We do not find that Ksau served Jacol) — far from it; nor that Esau 
 lacked while Jacob abounded in riches — quite the reverse. Esau 
 could feed four hunilrcd men, while Jacob and his family suffered 
 assaults of famine and had to tly into Egypt before it. The privi- 
 leges of Jacob were evidently of another order, and connected 
 with an eternal hope, a spiritual refreshment, a treasure of heavenly 
 riches, all as yet unexpressed in words. 
 
156 Fruitless Tears [Gen. XXVII. 
 
 38. And Esau said unto his father, Hast thou hut one 
 blessing, my father 1 bless me, even me also, my father. 
 And Esau lifted up his voice and wept : 
 
 Esau thought only of temporal loss, of dignity diminished, and was 
 deeply vexed with his own folly, but yet could not change what 
 had been done. It is a grave truth that there are, in the end, 
 but two conditions, either blessing or cursing, either with Christ 
 or without Him, either spiritual life or spiritual death. Let my 
 tears be shed now while they may wash out the past, let me lay 
 hold on the promises now while they are within my reach, lest I 
 cry out too late when the door is shut. 
 
 39. And Isaac his father ansivered and said unto him, 
 Behold, thy divelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of 
 the dew of heaven from above; 40. And by thy sword shalt 
 thou live, and shalt serve thy brother ; and it shall come to pass 
 vjhen thou shalt have the dominion, that tho%(, shalt break his 
 yoke from off thy neclc. 
 
 This was joy for Esau, to lead a free and warlike life. His land was 
 to be barren, ' far from fatness of earth and dew of heaven' {for 
 'far from ' rather than 'of seems to be the meaning in verse 39, 
 with which Malachi i. 3 agrees). What fertility there was should 
 be due to his own toil ; but a greater resource lay in his good 
 sword — strong arm and venturous hand should bring him deliver- 
 ance. He represents those who rely on their own strength and 
 feel no need of a Saviour. They fancy that to get free from vice, 
 to obtain inward peace, their own strength suffices. Christ's yoke 
 is to them unmeaning, a mere burden, a mere form ; while to 
 believers He is life itself. Let me submit to the true Jacob and 
 find freedom and peace in that subjection. 
 
 41, And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing tvherevfith 
 his father blessed him : and Esau said in his heart. The days 
 of mourning for my father are at hand ; then will I slay my 
 brother Jacob. 
 
 Then he could not forgive Jacob for gaining the blessing which he 
 had himself despised, just as the Jews could not pardon the 
 Gentiles for welcoming tlie Messiah whoni they had rejected. 
 Jacob had won the blessing, yet his way of gaining it was so much 
 mi.xed with his own deceit that it had brought hatred between him 
 and his brother. This was not God's meaning, nor did the bless- 
 ing involve in itself the least diminution of Esau's present temporal 
 privileges and glory ; but Esau could not put from him the 
 
Ver. 46.] The Heir banished 157 
 
 thought that he had been overreached. Nevertheless Divine 
 mercy still watched over him and prevented his murderous design 
 from succeeding. 
 
 42. And these words of Esau her elder son were told to 
 Rebekah : and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and 
 said unto him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, 
 doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee. 43. Now there- 
 fore, my son, obey my voice ; and arise, Jiee thou to Lahan my 
 brother to Haran ; 
 
 Rebekah had inspired Jacob with courage to gain the blessing ; now 
 she has to inspire him with fear, lest he should remain at home 
 and lose life and blessing too. It is very wonderful how she takes 
 the act done, the words said, as irrevocable, does not bid Jacob 
 offer excuses or make promises of rdparation. She knew the words 
 said to her of old (xxv. 23), as regards the destiny of her two sons. 
 She remembered the incident of the birthright sold. She knew 
 many things that threw a light on the character of each, and 
 therefore she set herself to fulfil the purposes of God for future 
 ages which were committed, she knew, to Jacob. 
 
 44. And tarry with him a feiv days, until thy brother's 
 fury turn away ; 45. Until thy brother's anger turn away 
 from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: 
 then I will send, and fetch thee from thence : u'hy should I 
 be deprived also of you both in one day ? 
 
 Had not the true Heir and Son, as soon as His royalty was recog- 
 nised, to flee away from Bethlehem into Egypt and abide there 
 a while, lest the wrath of this world's monarch cut Him oft" 
 prematurely? Rebekah feared to be deprived of both her sons, 
 by Esau becoming a criminal, by Jacob being murdered ; so she 
 was contented to choose Jacob's exile instead, which was in those 
 days an absence almost like death, little cheered or broken by 
 letters or messages. Nor did she ever again see him in this world. 
 In looking back through the chapter I marvel to see in Rebekah 
 such a mixture of faith and distrust, such a perception of God's 
 great ends and such a wrong hasty choice of means to carry them 
 out. No doubt the many years of her son's absence, and the 
 prospect of her own end as it drew near, refined her character and 
 rooted her thoughts on the eternal unchangeable Friend Who is all- 
 sufficient to bring about what He has promised. 
 
 46. And Rebekah said to Isaac, I am weary of my life 
 because of the daughters of Heth : if Jacob take a wife of the 
 
158 Blessed, yet cast out [Gen. XXVIII. 
 
 daughters of Ileth, such as those which are of the daughters of 
 the land, tvhat good shall my life do me ? 
 
 The daughters of Heth wearied out Rebekah because they had no 
 share in her prayers or in her hopes. Their children were brought 
 up outside the circle of ideas in which Abraham's family lived. 
 They never learnt to keep God's statutes, worship Him in truth, 
 rely on His grace and promises ; but I do not suppose that 
 Rebekah would have disclosed her vexation with Esau's household 
 unless she had designed thereby to influence Isaac to send his 
 son Jacob away accompanied with his goodwill and blessing. 
 She knew when to be silent and when to speak. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII 
 
 I. Isaac blesseth Jacob, and sendeth him to Padan-aram. 6. Esau 
 marrieth Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael. 10. The vision of 
 Jacob's ladder. 18. The Stone of Beth-el. 20. Jacob's vow. 
 
 AND Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and charged him, 
 and said unto hivi, Thoii, shalt not take a wife of the 
 daughters of Canaan. 2. Arise, go to Pculan-aram, to the 
 house of Bethuel thy mother's father ; and take thee a wife 
 from thence of the daughters of Laban thy mothefs brother. 
 
 A good wife, a good mother, what greater blessings can God give 
 than these ? Isaac earnestly sought to secure them for the chosen 
 seed. He feared that Cartaanite women would give bad examples 
 both in their belief and in their lives. He saw how ill Esau had 
 chosen. Therefore, remembering his mother whom he had greatly 
 loved, and knowing that his own wife had come of the same 
 family, he resolved to ally his son Jacob there. It was at God's 
 inspiration that Isaac kept his son apart from the people of Canaan, 
 refused to let him marry among them ; he had a faith and hope 
 which they could not share, nay, whicli they would soon have made 
 him forget. 
 
 3. And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, 
 and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a multitude of peo2)le ; 
 4. And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy 
 seed tvith thee ; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou 
 art a stranger, ivhich God gave unto Abraham. 
 
 This is a prayer and a blessing too ; it shows that Isaac had now fully 
 accepted the transference of the headship and the promises from 
 
Ver. 9-J Leaving Home 159 
 
 Esau to Jacob. It had been accomplished without his knowledge 
 and against his will, but yet it was God Who had so ordered it. 
 Isaac committed to this dear son the great undefined glorious hope 
 of One Who should bless the world, and the nearer i)romises 
 of Canaan for a home and heritage : this was the treasure of faith, 
 the inheritance of promise which believers passed on from one to 
 the other ; into this communion of hope Isaac now admitted his 
 son. 
 
 5. And Isaac sent away Jacob: and he went to Padan- 
 aram imto Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of 
 Rebehah, Jacob's and Usau's mother. 
 
 Jacob undertook a long journey alone and on foot to visit the country 
 of his ancestors and obtain a wife thence ; he left his parents and 
 started off on an unknown road ; yet he carried with him God's 
 blessing, he did not feel utterly alone. He reminds me of a mis- 
 sionary in Africa or America going long lonely journeys through 
 dense forests, bearing about with him a hidden hope, a message of 
 faith, looking out for kindred hearts who may be led to share his 
 worship and life. 
 
 6. When Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob, and sent 
 him away to Padan-aram, to take him a wife from thence ; 
 and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, Thou 
 shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan ; 7. And 
 that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to 
 Padan-aram; 8. And Esau seeing that the daughters of 
 Canaan pleased not Isaac his father ; 
 
 Esau did not look deep enough ; he saw that his brother had gained 
 the blessing and he had lost it ; but he attributed this to his own 
 disobedience in having married Canaanite wives contrary to his 
 parents' wish, while Jacob had readily obeyed their bidding. All 
 this, he thought, could be remedied now by making another al- 
 liance more after their mind, and then all would be as before ; he 
 forgot his own recklessness, which had despised and flung away 
 irremediably the treasure that he had been born to. 
 
 9. Then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives 
 ivhich he had Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham's 
 son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife. 
 
 This step could not mend what he had done amiss, Mahalath was 
 doubtless different from the Canaanite wives in her regard for 
 Abraham's memory, in her faith in the one True God ; but Esau's 
 household was only the more divided. He did not restore himself 
 thus to the peace of God's children, or the unity of heart and 
 uprightness of life which Abraham had cherished and taught. 
 
i6o Jacob's Vision [Gen. XXVIII. 
 
 10. And Jacob ivent out from Beer-sheba, and went toward 
 Haran. 
 
 So Thou, Divine Lord, didst quit Thy heavenly home, didst journey 
 through the rough paths of this world, didst become poor, laying 
 aside all Thy state, didst take our infirmities and miseries in ex- 
 change for Thy glory, didst come to seek our love and win our 
 heart. Jacob in his lonely journey reminds me of Thee. 
 
 11. And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there 
 all night, because the sun ivas set ; and he took of the stones of 
 that place, and put them for his 2)illows, and lay down in that 
 place to sleep. 
 
 Jacob felt solitary ; his home was left far behind ; he was without 
 protection in an unsettled world ; he may have thought that his 
 father's God beheld him no more, cared no more for him now that 
 he had left the family tents. How many young men and women, 
 starting in life amidst strangers, have had these same doubts and 
 fears, have felt it hard to continue their childhood's prayers or 
 believe that a Divine Friend was nigh them ! How shall they per- 
 severe in right ? how find comfort and strength ? It is to meet 
 questionings like these that the glorious Vision of this chapter is 
 recorded. 
 
 12. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the 
 earth, and the top of it reached to heaven : and behold the 
 angels of God ascending and descending on it. 
 
 Behold on the lonely hillside a stair leading to heaven ; behold in 
 the dark night bright forms passing up and down in continual 
 communication between heaven and earth. This Vision is like 
 that in Bethlehem field, where the shepherds found the dark night 
 brightened and cheered by a Cliristmas message. It is true, then, 
 O my God, that the unseen world is ever near, that my wants, my 
 tears, are known above, that Thy mercies are ever descending to 
 me. My nothingness is precious in Thy sight ; Thy angels watch 
 over me, Thy Providence cares for me. These thoughts trans- 
 figure the dark earth and make it the outer court of Heaven. 
 
 13. And behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the 
 Lord God of Abraham thy fatlier, and the God of Isaac : the 
 land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed ; 
 
 Here is a heavenly Father revealed, now that Jacob is away from 
 his earthly father's care ; now that other friends are absent here is 
 
Ver. i6.] Lo, I am with you always i6i 
 
 a gracious countenance shining on him in love. It is thus that 
 God would be found by those who are starting in life. They were 
 dedicated to their father's God, now He becomes theirs ; they trust 
 in His promises, feel His blessing, are cheered by religious comforts 
 and encouragements to begin their life's work with cheerful obedi- 
 ence. God tells them He will bless their efforts, make His pro- 
 mises for them come true, 
 
 14. And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou 
 shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the 
 north, and to the south : and in thee and in thy seed shall all 
 the families of the earth be blessed. 
 
 O wealth of blessings which had been declared first to Abraham, 
 then to Isaac, and are now poured forth for Jacob, blessings which 
 could not be accomplished till long after those patriarchs had 
 passed away from this world. Yet, though their bodies had long 
 turned to dust they would not wholly miss their share ; they would 
 welcome their Divine Descendant Who brings the universal bless- 
 ing ; without Him Gentiles would not know of the blessing or 
 regard Jacob's memory. It is in Christ that we inherit the true 
 Canaan, win a company of worshippers for God from all nations, 
 obtain blessing instead of the wrath we have deserved. 
 
 15. And behold, I avi with thee, and will keep thee in all 
 places whither thou goest, and ivill bring thee again into this 
 land ; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I 
 have spolcen to thee of. 
 
 What have I done, Great God, to deserve Thy favour ? what have I 
 contributed to this alliance that Thou shouldest give me health 
 and peace, a sense of Thy Presence, an experience of Thy good- 
 ness ? Nay, it is all of Thee, my deservings are nought ; when I 
 read this gracious promise of a Divine Guardian ever near, and see 
 how things temporal are thus made to lead on gently into a better 
 country,'an everlasting peace, the vision of God for ever, I confess 
 that I am amazed at God's mercy ; yet He bids me trust Him 
 without fail. 
 
 1 6. And Jacob aivahed out of his sleep, and he said, Surely 
 the Lord is in this 2ilace ; and I knew it not. 
 
 God is here to protect Jacob and receive his worship ; God's merci- 
 ful eye looks on him ; God's promises are renewed and confirmed 
 to him : all that he had been taught at home is true. O gracious 
 Vision ! then I must not sin, because God's eye beholds me ; then 
 L 
 
1 62 Jacob' s waking Excla7nation [Gen. XXIX. 
 
 I must no'c despair, because His hand restrains me. I have awoke 
 now to the truth ; my eyes are opened to see the invisible, to re- 
 cognise God's unseen armies set for my guard. Only let me not 
 lose this sense of God's Presence ; to retain that is worth to me 
 more than rich treasures. 
 
 17. And lie ivas afraid, and said, How dreadful is this 
 vlace/ this is none other hut the house of God, and this is the 
 yate of heaven. 
 
 Let me, Lord, retain a reverence for Thy Presence, Thy House, Thy 
 Word ; keep me in holy fear ; let me beware of careless familiarity 
 with, or indifference to, sacred things. God, Who is always near, 
 has yet chosen certain places, certain days, certain occasions, to 
 manifest Himself; His wisdom has so ordered it, and I will 
 cheerfully fall in with His appointment. I will enter God's house 
 seriously, behave there devoutly, come to His altar with humble 
 adoration, observe His holy seasons as they come round ; this is 
 my wisdom and my choice, and if the world scoff, why, I know of 
 One higher than they. Whose approval is more to me than theirs. 
 
 18. And Jacob rose iip early in the morning, and took the 
 stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a 
 pillar, and poured oil up)on the top of it. 
 
 This was to revive and preserve the impression he had gained ; this 
 was to consecrate a little sanctuary to which his soul might here- 
 after retire and be again in God's Presence, see again the golden 
 stair and heavenly messengers. He found it salutary to note the 
 place and occasion of the Vision. I too remember with gratitude 
 the places where I have found God near, the saints by whom He 
 has spoken to me, the occasions of comfort and of peace which 
 He has sent ; as long as memory lasts, I would preserve these 
 with gratitude. 
 
 19. And he called the name of that place Beth-el : hut the 
 name of that city ivas called Luz at the first. 
 
 Let the church I attend, or the place where I habitually say my 
 prayers, be to me a Bethel, or flouse of God. It is to others a 
 mere building of brick or stone, an ordinary room or corner, but 
 there I have opened my heart to my Divine Lord ; He has heard 
 my vows and given me an answer. I have found it of extreme 
 importance to preserve a special place to say my prayers in, and 
 to keep my times for saying them free and distinct from all other 
 duties. Thus Luz becomes Bethel, the profane melts away before 
 what is sacred, common days and hours are illuminated by a ray 
 of heavenly light. 
 
Ver. I.J A threefold Vow 163 
 
 20. And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God tvill be with 
 me, and will keep me in this xoay that I go, and ivill give me 
 bread to eat, and raiment to put on, 21. So that I come 
 again to my father' s house in peace; then shall the Lord be 
 my God: 
 
 This is the first point in Jacob's vow, 'then shall the Lord be my 
 God.' He means, I will not be ashamed to be known as God's 
 worshipper, I will not share in the worship of idols, I will pro- 
 claim and trust in His Providence. Let me too make this promise, 
 I will be a worshipper of the one True God revealed in Christ 
 Jesus. Wherever I am I will never be ashamed of this profession. 
 I do not ask great things of Him, but merely what is sufficient for 
 soul and body, and even for that I trust, but do not presume ; He 
 knows best how to provide for me. 
 
 2 2. And this stone, ivhich I have set for a pillar, shcdl be 
 God's house : and of cdl that Thou shalt give me I will surely 
 give the tenth unto Thee. 
 
 Here are the second and third points in Jacob's vow. He will re- 
 spect the place of the Vision, worship there, treat it as holy ground 
 because of the grace he had there received. And, lastly, he will 
 devote to God's service a tenth of all his earnings, will make God 
 share in his riches, whatever they be. Here are the three points 
 of the vow summed up: 'The Lord is my God'; ' Bethel is His 
 house'; 'a tenth of all my profits are His.' O God, Who didst put 
 this vow into Jacob's heart and enable him to fulfil it, let me vow 
 to Thee what good works and duties I owe, and watch carefully 
 over the performance of them. I look to Thee alone, not to my 
 own strong hand or quick brain for success, for peace, for joy. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX 
 
 I. Jacob Cometh to the well of Haran. 9. He taketh acquaintance of 
 Rachel. 13. Laban entertaineth him. 18. Jacob covenanteth for 
 Rachel. 23. He is deceived with Leah. 28. He marrieth also 
 Rachel, and serveth for her seven years more. 32. Leah beareth 
 Reuben, 33. Simeon, 34. Levi, 35. and Judah. 
 
 THEN Jacob u'ent on his journey, and came into the land of 
 the peopde of the east. 
 
 He journeyed on, cheered and encouraged by the Vision seen at 
 Bethel ; he had learnt the lesson of God's Presence and Provi- 
 dence — though alone, he was not alone — and the long journey was 
 
1 64 The Well in the Field [Gen. XXIX. 
 
 cheered by solemn and hopeful thoughts. Jacob had no long train 
 of servants, nor camels loaded with presents ; no, he represents to 
 us a Christian who remembers that this life is but a journey, and 
 that he will soon be at home ; reason therefore for not entangling 
 himself with a great burden of earthly goods and affairs, reason 
 for not setting his heart too closely on anything here. Are we 
 not strangers and sojourners, swiftly passing through this life to 
 our eternal home ? Will not God soon bring us there, and care for 
 us till we get there? 
 
 2. And he looked, and behold a well in the field, and lo, 
 there were three flocks of sheep lying by it ; for out of that 
 well they icatered the flocks : and a great stone was upon the 
 ivell's mouth. 3. And thither were all the flocks gathered : 
 and they rolled the stone from the ivell's mouth, and ivatered 
 the sheep, and put the stone again upon the well's mouth in his 
 2)lace. 
 
 This was not the well by the city, with the steps of stone, down 
 which Rebekah had gone carrying the pitcher. No, this was a 
 well far out in the fields, and it was so precious as to be closed 
 with a huge stone which was only stirred by the united strength of 
 many shepherds ; this was in order to protect the precious life- 
 giving stream and save it from defilement or waste. But I who 
 read am reminded of that great stone which closed the mouth of 
 the sepulchre where the true Spring of all life lay hid. His friends 
 pondered over that great stone and wondered who should roll it 
 away for them, but they found it rolled away and a fresh tide of 
 grace coming forth to the world. 
 
 4. And Jacob said unto them, My brethren, tvhence be ye ? 
 And they said, Of Haran are we. 5. And he said U7ito them, 
 Knoiv ye Laban the S07i of Nahor 2 And they said, We know 
 him. 6. And he said unto them. Is he well ? And they said. 
 He is well : and behold, Rachel his daughter cometh ivith the 
 sheep. 
 
 Jacob addressed the shepherds as brethren, and asked them after 
 Laban and his welfare. ' Is it peace with him ? ' is the literal 
 meaning of his question. ' Peace,' they replied. This is the 
 custom of the sacred language which speaks of peace, where other 
 languages speak only of health or prosperity. So Jesus bade His 
 disciples say, ' Peace be to this house,' spoke of a 'son of peace,' 
 left His own peace with His friends. O my God, let my welfare 
 be this, not mere robustness of health or fulness of purse, but true 
 inward peace with Thee, and, if it may be so, with other men who 
 are my brethren and Thy creatures ! 
 
Ver. 12.] The Stone rolled away 165 
 
 7, And he said, Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time 
 that the cattle should he gathered together : water ye the sheep, 
 and go and feed them. 8. And they said, We cannot, until 
 all the jlocTcs he gathered together, and till they roll the stone 
 from the well's mouth; then we water the sheep. 
 
 Jacob was evidently a good shepherd^ — he lamented that the sheep 
 should be kept thirsty and hungry ; he did not agree with tlic 
 excuses the shepherds of Haran offered for their neglect of the 
 flocks. Does he not suggest to us that Good Shepherd, Who, 
 when He came, ' had compassion on the multitude because they 
 fainted and were scattered abroad as sheep that had no shepherd ' ? 
 (St. Matt. ix. 36). Jacob forgets his own matters in his care for 
 the sheep ; he is not satisfied with the indifference of those with 
 whom he converses. 
 
 9. And ivhile he yet spake to them, Rachel came with her 
 father's sheep: for she kept them. 10. And it came to pass, 
 when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Lahan his mother's 
 brother, and the sheep of Lahan his mother's brother, that 
 Jacob ivent near, and rolled the stone from the well's mouth, 
 and watered the flock of Lahan his mother's brother. 11. And 
 Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept. 
 
 Jacob had been guided in his long journey, Rachel in her shepherd- 
 ing, so as to meet at this well, at this time. God designed their 
 lifelong love to begin here. She was one who was not afraid of 
 labour or hardship, who devoted herself to the tasks vi'hich came 
 to her to do ; and the sight of her inspired Jacob with strength to 
 roll away the stone and release the needed water. He is like that 
 Good Shepherd Who sat by Jacob's own well long afterwards and 
 offered to the Samaritan woman a draught of living and refreshing 
 water. 
 
 12. And Jacob told Rachel that he was lier father's brother, 
 and that he was Rebekah's son : and she ran and told her 
 father. 
 
 Certainly there is a remarkable contrast between the circumstances 
 of Eliezer's visit to seek Rebckah for Isaac, and Jacob's when he 
 comes to choose a wife for himself. The former is attended by a 
 long train, displays gold, oflers presents at once, has great store of 
 rich gifts with him, while Jacob has nothing but his own love to 
 recommend him. Yet true love cannot mistake him. He is no 
 messenger, but the spouse himself; he speaks to the heart of his 
 future bride. So Christ does with those that are worthy of His 
 
1 66 Seven Years^ Service [Gen. XXIX. 
 
 love. It is the Lord Himself, His own mercy, wisdom, excellence, 
 that is dear to Christian hearts ; they recognise Him and return 
 His love. 
 
 13. And it came to pass, when Lahan heard the tidings of 
 Jacob his sister's son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced 
 him, and kissed him, and brought him to his house. And he 
 told Lahan cdl these things. 14. And Laban said to him. 
 Surely thou art my bone and my flesh. And he abode with 
 him the space of a month. 
 
 How gracious is Laban's first welcome, how tender his words, and 
 yet ihey hid a grasping, covetous heart ! I do not think Jacob told 
 Laban about the vision at Bethel or the mysterious promised 
 blessing. No, probably he confined himself to news of the 
 journey and particulars about Isaac and Rebekah. He and Laban 
 were kindred indeed by flesh and blood ; but Jacob had prayers 
 and hopes deep in his heart which Laban took no thought of. 
 
 15. A7id Laban said %mto Jacob, Because thou art my 
 brother, shoiddest thou therefore serve me for nought ? tell me, 
 ivhat shall thy ivages be? 16. And Lahan had tivo daughters: 
 the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger 
 was Rachel. 17. Leah was tender eyed; but RacJiel tvas 
 beautiful and u'ell favoured. iS. And Jacob loved Rachel; 
 and said, I ivill serve thee seven years for Rachel thy 
 younger daughter. 
 
 Jacob appears in ' the form of a servant ' ; he says nothing for a 
 month of his love or his hopes. When he does, it is to bind 
 himself to seven years' hr.rd service before he wins his bride. To 
 find her he had left his father's home and come to sojourn among 
 strangers ; yet he is willing to win her by labour and humiliation. 
 He shadows forth thus the true Bridegroom of our souls. 
 
 19. And Laban said. It is better that I give her to thee, 
 than that I should give her to another man : abide ivith me. 
 20. And Jacob served seven years for Rachel ; and they 
 seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her. 
 
 Laban, who was covetous, grasped the opportunity of giving his 
 daughter in marriage without providing a dowry as he should have 
 done (xxxi. 15), Also, he saw the value of Jacob's services, and 
 willingly employed him at so cheap a rate. But Jacob heartily 
 
Ver. 25.] A false Bride 167 
 
 embraced the bargain ; Rachel was so dear to him that he counted 
 no time or labour wasted that would bring her to his arms ; 
 thoughts of her love sweetened all his toil. Let those, dear Lord, 
 who call themselves shepherds of souls, and are set apart to serve 
 Thee in the sacred ministry, remember Jacob and set themselves 
 to win souls ; let them not seek high place, or wealth, or authority 
 in the Church, or an easy reposeful life, but regard only Christ's 
 people and live for them. Such labour is abundantly blessed and 
 rewarded. 
 
 21. And Jacob said imto Lahan, Give me my wife, for my 
 days are fidfilled, that I may go unto her. 
 
 So spake the true Jacob when His hour drew near. 'My time,' 
 said He, 'is at hand.' He * knew that the hour was come.' All 
 the actions and sufferings of His Divine Life had been leading up 
 to it. He had come to win us by all His toils, and by laying 
 down His own life. He invited believers to love and trust Him 
 with a perfect heart and become His for ever. Who else is worthy 
 of all their love ? 
 
 2 2. And Lahan gathered together all the men of the place, 
 and made a feast. 
 
 A wedding feast often becomes in Scripture the figure of union with 
 God. The king ' would make a marriage for his son' ; ' the friend 
 of the bridegroom ' negotiates the union ; ' the Bridegroom 
 Cometh ' and they who are ready enter in ; the wedding feast is 
 spread, and the wedding garment expected to be worn; 'the 
 marriage of the Lamb is come and his wife hath made herself 
 ready.' All the glory, the tenderness, the hopes of an earthly 
 union (indeed here they are often all mixed with earthly dust or 
 turned into disappointment) shadow forth something deeper, to 
 which our hearts gradually draw near, which God enables them by 
 degrees to comprehend. 
 
 23. And it came to jmss in the evening, that he took Leah 
 his daughter, and brought her to him ; and he went in unto 
 her. 24. And Lahan gave unto his daiighter Leah Zil2Xth hii 
 maid for an handmaid. 25. And it came to pass, that in the 
 morning, behold, it tvas Leah : and he said to Lahan, What is 
 this thov, hast done unto me ? did not I serve with thee for 
 Rachel ? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me ? 
 
 Here is a cruel deception that mocked the bridegroom's hopes. It 
 must have reminded Jacob how he had himself deceived his father. 
 
1 68 A second Seven Years [Gen. XXIX. 
 
 It may happen that in marriage we are disappointed ; we find 
 that the loved one cannot fulfil our expectations — 
 
 ' The brightest and the happiest pair 
 Will find occasions to forbear, 
 And something every day they live 
 To pity, or perhaps forgive.' 
 
 So is God's will, that husband or wife should by patience, prayer, 
 and the teaching of life's experience, turn Leah into Rachel, that 
 is, discord into love. 
 
 26. And Labaii said, It rmist not he so done in our country, 
 to give the younger before the firstborn. 27. Fidfil her week, 
 and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt 
 serve with me yet seven other years. 28. And Jacob did so, 
 and fulfilled her week : and he gave him Rachel his daughter 
 to wife also. 29. And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter 
 Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid. 
 
 Laban thought of nothing but how to get his daughter off his hands 
 without paying any dowry, and to secure Jacob's services without 
 pay ; but Jacob submitted with patience to the deceit and grasping 
 of his uncle, guided perhaps by the thought of an overruling 
 Divine Providence which was bringing good out of mischief. 
 Such a union as this with two sisters at once was afterwards 
 forbidden by the law (Lev. xviii. 18), as polygamy itself was by 
 the Gospel, but the times as yet permitted it. Christian writers 
 have been wont to see figured in these two wives, Leah and 
 Rachel, as in Christ's holy friends, Martha and Mary, the two 
 sorts of life which believers have to lead. Leah signifies the 
 business, the care, the grief, the disappointments that belong to 
 one who works for his brethren's good ; Rachel the tranquil joy 
 and heavenly peace of meditation on Divine things. Yet it is not 
 allowed to us to seek the delights of that peaceful and untroubled 
 contemplation, till we have first given ourselves with zeal to the 
 good works which God lays on us to do, even though they may 
 involve us m much toil and care. 
 
 30. And he went in also tmto Rachel, and he loved also 
 Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other 
 years. 31. And u'hen the Lord saw that Leah tvas hated, He 
 opened her ivomb .• but Rachel tvas barren. 
 
 Following out the figurative allusion hinted at under the last verse, 
 we notice that Leah brings children to Jacob. lie is consoled for 
 his disappointment in her unloved society by the hopeful children 
 whom she bears him. So it is that in active duties, in teaching, 
 
Ver. 35.] Lealis Sons 169 
 
 in ministering, in attending to the souls and bodies of our brethren, 
 God grants to us infinite joys and comforts; those we benefit 
 become to us as our own, their joys are ours. In their gratitude 
 we find an abundant recompense for the time we have taken from 
 our own peace and quiet. 
 
 32. And Leah conceived, and bare a son, and she ccdled his 
 name Reuben : for she said, Surely the Lord hath loolced upon 
 my ajjiiction ; now therefore my husband ivill love nie. 
 
 Leah's first boy was called Reuben, which means 'Behold, a son.' 
 * God hath beheld me,' she said ; ' He has seen that I have no 
 charms of my own, no power to win a husband's love, and, there- 
 fore, as I had nought of my own to trust to. He showed His 
 gracious care for me.' She reminds us in this verse of a greater 
 and holier Mother marvelling that God ' has regarded the low 
 estate of His handmaiden.' 
 
 33. And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said, 
 Because the Lord hath heard that I ivas hated. He hath there- 
 fore given me this son also : and she called his name Simeon. 
 
 This son is called Simeon, which means * hearing.' *God has heard 
 that I am hated, and this son is the fruit of His consoling goodness 
 to me.' Not otherwise does a Christian represent to God his own 
 vileness, his own wretchedness and unworthiness, as a very plea 
 for mercy. I am indeed, O Lord, worthy only of Thy wrath, but 
 yet Thy love is greater. 
 
 34. And she conceived again, and bare a son; and said. 
 Now this time luill my husband be joined unto me, because I 
 have horn him three sons : therefore was his name called Levi. 
 
 This son's name signifies 'union' or 'attachment.' So will her 
 husband's heart be hers, so will he be joined to her, not only by 
 literal outward marriage but by union of heart and feeling. It is 
 this that she covets — she longs for that heart which had never 
 been hers — all her desire is to win her husband's love. 
 
 35. And she conceived again, and bare a son: and she said, 
 Noio will I praise the Lord': therefore she called his name 
 Judah ; and left bearing. 
 
 This fourth son is Judah, or ' praise.' At the birth of each child Leah 
 thinks of God as the giver of the precious gift. Their very names 
 serve to remind her of Divine Mercy. What else do Christian 
 
lyo RachePs Anguish [Gen. XXX. 
 
 mothers when they bring their children to God's House to be 
 blessed in His Name, signed with His Cross, declared to belong to 
 His flock ? They learn to trust God with their children's welfare, 
 to bring them up from their earliest years to know and love a 
 heavenly Father. 
 
 CHAPTER XXX 
 
 I. Rachel, in grief for her barrenness, giveth Bilhah her maid unto Jacob. 
 5. She beareth Dan and Naphtali. 9. Leah giveth Zilpah her maid, 
 who beareth Gad and Asher. 14. Reuben findeth mandrakes, with 
 which Leah buyeth her husband of Rachel. 17. Leah beareth 
 Issachar, Zebulun, and Dinah. 22. Rachel beareth Joseph. 25. Jacob 
 desireth to depart. 27. Laban stayeth him on a new covenant. 
 37. Jacob's policy, whereby he became rich. 
 
 AND when Rachel saw that she hare Jacob no children^ 
 Rachel envied her sister ; and said unto Jacob, Give 
 me children, or else I die. 
 
 Rachel's grief at not being a mother is like the great Apostle's 
 longing to multiply his spiritual children ; that is all his desire — 
 he ' endures all things for the elect's sake ' ; he lives only to 
 travail of souls. For her, her husband's love, which she possessed 
 entirely, was not enough to satisfy her. No, nor is the vision of 
 Truth, the comfort of prayer, enough for an earnest heart unless 
 other souls are new born by grace to share it. The heart cries 
 out for such fellowship, it cannot endure to be alone in believing. 
 
 2. And Jacob's anger ivas kindled against Rachel: and he 
 said, Am I in God's stead. Who hath withheld from thee the 
 fruit of the womb ? 
 
 God alone could bless the marriage bed and make it fruitful of dear 
 children. It is God too Who gives us the spiritual offspring for 
 which we crave. Do not think that your own eloquence, your 
 own devotion, can plant faith in one heart. 
 
 ' There was a place, there was a time. 
 Whether by night or day, 
 God's Spirit came and left that gift, 
 Then passed upon His way." 
 
 3. And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in unto her ; 
 and she shall bear upon my l-nees, that I may also have 
 children by her. 4. And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid 
 
Ver. II,] The Sons of Bilhah and Zilpah 171 
 
 to wife : and Jacob ivent in unto her. 5. And Bilhah con- 
 ceived, and bare Jacob a son. 
 
 Slaves thus assist in building up the house of Israel for which God 
 had such great designs. Yet it was Rachel, the free and dearly 
 beloved wife, who adopted the servile offspring as her own and so 
 made them free. Her desire was that the race of Abraham should 
 multiply, and for this she was content to yield up her own rights 
 to another. She figures to us the Church of God, which is 
 increased by the ministry even of servile, unwilling, disloyal priests, 
 but it is the true Church of God which receives and welcomes the 
 
 6. And Rachel said, God hath judged me, and hath also 
 heard my voice, and hath given me a son : therefore called she 
 his name Dan. 
 
 This name means 'judgment' or 'vindication.' 'God,' she said, 'has 
 shown Himself on my side, maintained my cause, rescued me from 
 undeserved contempt.' Rachel took the motherhood of her slave 
 as a token for herself. 'This is,' she said, 'a proof that it was 
 not for my fault that I am barren. Here is a merciful sign of 
 God's protecting care over me.' 
 
 7. And Bilhah RacheVs maid conceived again, and hare 
 Jacob a second son. 8. And Rachel said. With great wrest- 
 lings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: 
 and she called his name Naphtali. 
 
 This name means ' wrestling ' ; she had struggled for a blessing, had 
 won it only after long endurance ; it was the fruit of her prayers. 
 She was content to see her slave in her husband's arms, so long 
 as she could win a child thus which should be reckoned as her 
 own. She resembles the Apostle when he says, 'Some preach 
 Christ even of envy and strife,' or ' supposing to add affliction to 
 my bonds,' and declares, 'but I rejoice therein, yea, and will 
 rejoice.' So long as souls were born to Christ, St. Paul's great 
 heart was content to put up with any opprobrium that might fall 
 on himself. 
 
 9. When Leah saio that she had left bearing, she took 
 Ziljiah her maid, and gave her to Jacob to loife. 10. And 
 Zilpah Leah's maid hare Jacob a son. 11. And Leah said, A 
 troop cometh : and she called his name Gad. 
 
 The name of this son of Zilpah is here explained as ' a troop ' ; this 
 son made up Leah's family into a band or army ; but it may be 
 
172 The coveted Fruit [Gen. XXX. 
 
 also rendered 'fortunate,' as expressing her happiness in her ser- 
 vant's fruitfulness. Leah earnestly desired more children, both 
 as establishing a claim on her husband's heart and as providing 
 for the future glory of that family to which the promises had been 
 given, and which she knew would spread into a mighty nation. 
 
 12. And Zilpah LealCs maid hare Jacob a second son. 
 13. And Leah said, Happy am I, for the daughters will call 
 7)16 blessed: and she called his name Asher. 
 
 This son's name expressed 'happiness.' Leah rejoiced that she had 
 so many sons, both her own and adopted by her. This made up 
 to her for her husband's indifference. Jacob, indeed, had desired 
 but one wife, had but one in heart, though fraud and custom had 
 arranged his life otherwise. All his mature life he loved Rachel, 
 and when she was dead, cared for her children above all his family, 
 and remembered her grave. None else could be to him what she 
 was. Taking his life as representing a Christian's course, his 
 union with Leah figures the busy stirring life of works of mercy, 
 fruitful in good, but all the time his heart belongs to Rachel, or 
 heavenly contemplation, which he loves best. 
 
 14. And Reuben ivent in the days of ivheat harvest, and 
 found mandrahes in the field, and brought them unto his 
 mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, Give me, I pray 
 thee, of thy sonh mandraJces. 15. And she said unto her, Is 
 it a small matter that thoii hast taken my husband ? and 
 wouldest thou take away my soi'Cs mandrakes also ? And 
 Rachel said, Therefore he shall lie tvith thee to-night for thy 
 son's mandrakes. 16. And Jacob came out of the field in the 
 evening, and Leah ivent out to meet him, and said. Thou must 
 come in unto me ; for surely I have hired thee loith my son's 
 mandrakes. And he lay with her that night. 
 
 This fruit, called also love-apple, was thought to promote fertility ; 
 therefore it was that Rachel craved for it, and to obtain it parted 
 with her husband's embraces for a while. In all this history those 
 who look only to the letter of Scripture see but an account of poly- 
 gamy and the jealousies arising from a man's possessing many 
 wives, and they regard all this as contemptible ; but the reality 
 lies deeper. Jacob was not merely swayed by fancy or his wives 
 by jealousy. That a man should have more wives than one was, 
 in those days, permitted by God, and was consistent with holy 
 living and mutual regard. This household was a holy one, and 
 in it were figured mysteries to come. 
 
Ver. 23.] Jacob's Household 173 
 
 17. And God hearkened unto Leah, and she conceived, and 
 hare Jacob the fifth son. 18. And Leah said, God hath given 
 me my hire, because I have given my maiden to my husband : 
 and she called his name Issachar. 
 
 This name meant 'pay' or 'reward.' Leah took this son's birth 
 as an answer to her prayers, and a compensation for her sacrifice 
 on parting with her husband to her servant. It was not that she 
 rejoiced over her sister's barrenness, but that the affection of her 
 sons proved to her she was not forsaken of God or man. 
 
 19. A7id Leah conceived again, and bare Jacob the sixth 
 son. 20. A7id Leah said, God hath endued me with a good 
 dowry ; now will my husband dwell with me, because I have 
 horn him six sons : and she called his name Zebuhm. 
 
 This son's name signifies 'dwelling'. She had no beauty of her 
 own, no dowry of her own, for which her husband should esteem 
 her ; but she trusted that her children should make her dear and 
 precious to him, so that he would not forsake her. Certainly 
 Leah counted herself for nothing, she regarded her children as 
 her only claim to favour. She reminds us of him who said to 
 his spiritual children, ' Ye are my glory, my joy, my crown of 
 rejoicing.' 
 
 21. A7id afterwards she bare a daughter, and called her 
 name Dinah. 
 
 This is the only one of Jacob's daughters (for he had several, as we 
 see from xx.wii. 35) who is mentioned by name, and this only 
 because the history of her downfall and its consequences has to be 
 told in xxxiv. Her beauty was no doubt far superior to her 
 mother's ; but it would seem that she lacked prudence, and went 
 into doubtful company. Anyhow, what we are told of her speaks 
 of warning rather than of blessing. 
 
 2 2. And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to 
 her, and opened her womb. 23. And she conceived, and hare a 
 son ; and said, God hath taken away my reproach : 
 
 Here is Rachel's son born at last to take away her inferiority. He 
 is so longed for, so precious to his parents, and becomes in after 
 days so great and famous. Though a younger son, he attained 
 greater honour than his brothers, became the saviour of the whole 
 family, left a name for peace, purity, and wisdom behind him. 
 Was not this son worth more than all the rest ? He seems to figure 
 to us that Divine Son — born after long waiting — Who lock away 
 our stains, raised us up from the earth, brought us healing and 
 peace. 
 
174 The Birth of Joseph [Gen. XXX. 
 
 24. And she called his name Joseph; and said, The Lord 
 shall add to vie another son. 
 
 His mother regarded him as the precursor of other offspring to come, 
 and gave him a name which signified ' increase.' So Christ's own 
 birth of Mary was followed by the new birth of innumerable souls 
 to God through Him. With Joseph's birth Jacob's years of ser- 
 vice came to an end : he has finished his doubled seven years of 
 bondage, and now feels that he is free. 
 
 25. And it came to pass, token Rachel had born Joseph, 
 that Jacoh said tinto Lahan, Send me away, that I may go 
 unto mine oivn place, cmd to my country. 26. Give me my 
 wives and my children, for whom I have served thee, and let me 
 go : for thou hioiuest my service xchich I have done thee. 
 
 In Jacob's words, when he was thinking of his home and desiring 
 to gather together those souls that were his and lead them back 
 thither, I hear the voice of the Son of God searching for His elect, 
 and saying, ' How often would I have gathered thy children 
 together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings ! ' 
 The Good Shepherd sought to rescue His own from the bondage 
 of the world and of the Law, and in spite of all resistance He won 
 them and took them with Him. 
 
 27. And Lahan said unto him, I pray thee, if I have found 
 favour in thine eyes, tarry : for I have learned by experience 
 that the Lord hath blessed me for thy sake. 28. And he said, 
 App)oint me thy ivages, and I tvill give it. 
 
 Laban recognises Jacob's worth, and observes that God's blessing 
 comes upon all that he does. So long as Jacob was willing to 
 remain and work on, Laban had not greatly cared to acknowledge 
 or reward his labours. Let me, Lord, have eyes to discern Thy 
 servants while they are with' me, and to recognise that the blessings 
 I enjoy are the fruit of their prayers and love. I who am un- 
 worthy have been infinitely helped and blessed by the presence of 
 good Christians, in whose mercies I have shared. 
 
 29. And he said unto him, Thou knowest hoiv I have served 
 thee, and hoio thy cattle teas with me. 30. For it ivas little 
 7vhich thou hadst before I came, and it is noiu increased tmto a 
 midtitiide ; and the Lord hath blessed thee since my coming : 
 and 7101V when shall I provide for mine own house also ? 
 
 Here we seem to hear Samuel vindicating his uprightness in judging 
 Israel, or the great Apostle reminding his brethren of ail his 
 
Ver. 36.] A Hire proposed to Jacob 175 
 
 tears and toils. The latter says to his Ephesian converts, ' Ye 
 yourselves know after what manner I have been with you all the 
 time, serving the Lord with all humility of mind, and with many 
 tears and temptations.' He tells 'how, by the space of three 
 years, I ceased not to admonish every one night and day with 
 tears.' He bids them in turn take heed to the flock over which 
 God had set them — that precious flock bought with a Divine price 
 — and he, like Jacob, attributes all increase to the blessing of God, 
 'Who is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among 
 all them that are sanctified.' 
 
 31. And he said, What shall I give thee ? And Jacob said, 
 Thou shalt not give me any thing : if thou wilt do this thing 
 for me, I will again feed and keep thy flock. 32. / will pass 
 through all thy flock to-day, removing from thence all the 
 speckled and sj^otted cattle, and all the hrown cattle am,ong the 
 sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats : and of 
 such shall he my hire. 33. So shall my righteousness answer 
 for me in time to come, when it shcdl come for my hire before 
 thy face : every one that is not speckled and spotted among the 
 goats, and broivn among the sheep, that shcdl be counted stolen 
 with me. 34. And Lahan said, Behold, I wotdd it might be 
 according to thy word. 
 
 It is apparently a very small wage for which Jacob stipulates, for in 
 that country, it is said, very few sheep are black, very few goats 
 spotted with white ; and even of that little, Laban, while outwardly 
 consenting, determines to deprive him, if possible. Jacob was to 
 have all that was strange or unusual in appearance among the 
 flock. At first, all the cattle — Laban's and Jacob's — seemed 
 blended indistinguishably together ; but a day would come when 
 a difference would be made — a day when those who belonged to 
 the good shepherd should be known and claimed by him. In 
 this transitory confusion, to be followed by a lasting separation, 
 do we not discern a figure of mysteries to come ? 
 
 35. And he removed that day the he-goats that ivere ring- 
 straked and sp)otted, and all the she-goats that tvere speckled 
 and spotted, and every one that had some white in it, and all 
 the brown among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his 
 sons. 36. And he set three days' jowney hetivixt himself and 
 Jacob : and Jacob fed the rest of Laban's flocks. 
 
 Laban was determined that there should be no chance of augmenting 
 Jacob's share, and so was willing to deprive a great part of the 
 
176 Jacob's striped Cattle [Gen. XXXI. 
 
 flocks pf Jacob's guardianship, which he had just professed to value 
 so highly. He carefully withdrew from him all the speckled and 
 spotted goats, all the speckled or black sheep, and set them out of 
 Jacob's reach, leaving him only those of one colour— the light 
 sheep or the dark goats — those from whom he hoped no unusually 
 coloured offspring would come, so that his son-in-law might get 
 the worst of the arrangement. 
 
 37. And Jacob took him rods of green poplar, and of the 
 hazel and chesmit tree ; and pilled ivhite strakes in them, and 
 made the ivhite appear which was in the rods. 38. And he set 
 the rods ivhich he had pilled before the flocks in the gutters in 
 the ivatering troughs tohen the flocks came to drink, that they 
 should conceive when they came to drink. 39. And the flocks 
 conceived before the rods, and brought forth cattle ringstraked, 
 speckled, and spotted. 40. And Jacob did separate the lambs, 
 and set the faces of the flocks toivard the ringstraked, and all 
 the broivn in the flock of Laban ; and he put his own flocks by 
 themselves, and 2yut them not tmto Laban s cattle. 
 
 This device of Jacob's, to produce coloured and striped cattle, by 
 having the striped rods exposed before the eyes of the females at 
 the water-troughs, and its success in producing the kind of young 
 that he required, could not have continued long ; for as soon as 
 Laban became aware of it, he changed Jacob's wages, and this 
 time after time (xxxi. 7 and 41). Still, whatever he arranged, all 
 turned out for Jacob's interest : his share, of whatever kind it was, 
 was a good one. God recompensed him for his long labour — 
 remembered His own promises towards him. It was God's over- 
 ruling power, not Jacob's craft, that gave him wealth. 
 
 41. And it came to ^:)ass, tvhensoever the stro)iger cattle did 
 conceive, that JacoJ^ laid the rods before the eyes of the cattle 
 in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods. 
 42. But when the cattle were feeble, he put them not in: so the 
 feebler were Labau's, and the stronger Jacob's. 
 
 This was how Jacob's flock began, and it grew up stronger and 
 healthier than all Laban's cattle. It was no choice of the sheep 
 themselves that gave them one temperament or another, one master 
 or another ; they were so constituted or di>posed according to God's 
 natural Providence or men's arrangement. True, and so it is in the 
 Lord's flock, with weaker or stronger souls, with those who fail or 
 who persevere. Our spiritual constitution is various according to 
 nature or circumstance ; our chances vary exceedingly. Yet, dear 
 
Ver. 3-] Enmity instead of Love 177 
 
 Lord, I am Thy sheep, Thou art my Shepherd. Thou speakest 
 to and pleadcst with me, as if there was no other soul for whom 
 Thou didst die. My weakness is not able to weary out Thy love. 
 
 43. And the man increased exceedingly, and had much 
 cattle, and maid-servants, and men-servants, and camels, and 
 
 asses. 
 
 This is different from his entry into Padan-Aram, when he had but 
 his staff. He felt now that God had cared for him, turned all 
 things to his good. Yet I, instructed by Gospel teaching, know 
 that when we are poor, sick, unfortunate, we are no less protected 
 and guided than in prosperity. I will not complain that God has 
 forsaken me, though I am stripped of the world's goods or hopes. 
 He is my true Riches, my abiding Friend. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI 
 
 I. Jacob upon displeasure departeth secretly. 19. Rachel stealeth her 
 father's images. 22. Laban pursueth after him, 26. and com- 
 plaineth of the wrong. 34. Rachel's policy to hide the images. 
 36. Jacob's complaint of Laban. 43. The covenant of Laban and 
 Jacob at Galeed. 
 
 AND he heard the words of Laban's sons, saying, Jacob 
 hath taken auuy all that ivas our father's ; and of that 
 which ivas our father's hath he gotten all this glory. 2. And 
 Jacob beheld the countenance of Laban, and behold, it ivas not 
 toward him as before. 
 
 Then nothing had succeeded with Laban since he withdrew his flock 
 from Jacob's care and set himself to counteract Jacob's prospering. 
 All his schemes had been frustrated, and Jacob saw in his growing 
 alienation great danger for himself. Envy and hatred were visible 
 on Laban's face when they met. Now Jacob was not actually 
 that Good Shepherd Who was to lay down His life for the sheep — 
 no, only a shadow and figure of Him. Jacob's duty was not to 
 offer his life to man's hatred, but to flee from it. He had, too, a 
 sense deep within, that his future and his hopes were to be accom- 
 plished in Palestine, that his home lay there. 
 
 3. And the Lord said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of 
 thy fathers, and to thy hindred ; and I will be ivith thee. 
 
 O gracious promise, truly fulfilled ! Not only outward warnings of 
 danger but an inward voice of guidance encouraged Jacob to start 
 M 
 
178 Wages ten Times changed [Gen. XXXI. 
 
 for his old home. Fresh dangers might await him there from his 
 brother's resentment, but yet God promised to be with him still. 
 What ! dangers there as well as here ? Yes ; so it is on this earth ; 
 wherever we go, there is risk, peril, temptation. But yet the 
 faithful soul says : ' Mine eyes are ever looking unto the Lord, for 
 He shall jjluck iny feet out of the net. I change from one peril to 
 another, but my God is unchanged. ' 
 
 4. And Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah to the field 
 unto his fioclc, 5. And said unto them, I see your father's 
 countenance, that it is not toivard me as before ; but the God 
 of my father hath been ivith vie. 
 
 ' Your father,' Jacob said, ' is now no father to me. No ; he hates me 
 and would harm me. My father, Isaac, is far off and powerless 
 to help, but my Heavenly Father does not forget me. He is my 
 childhood's God and well known to me by the experience of a life 
 spent under His shadow, and enjoying His mercy.' As Jacob's 
 wives listened to him they were strengthened and guided to trust 
 in this unseen merciful heavenly Friend of Whom their husband had 
 told them. 
 
 6. And ye Icnoio that ivith all my power 1 have served your 
 father. 7. And your father hath deceived me, and changed 
 my wages ten times; but God suffered him 7iot to hurt me. 
 
 8. If he said thus, The speckled shall be thy wages ; then cdl 
 the cattle bare speckled : and if he said thus. The ringstraked 
 shall be thy hire; then bare all the cattle ringstraked. 
 
 9. Thus God hath taken away the cattle of your father, and 
 given thetn to me. 
 
 God's blessing had had more effect than Laban's ill-will. God's 
 wisdom and providence, not Jacob's own craft, had wrought out 
 his fortunes. ' I am not the author of all this wealth,' said Jacob, 
 'it is God's gift to me, a sign of His vindication of my upright- 
 ness. God has stood my Friend when men were against me. Shall 
 not we (his argument was) obey and trust in this Divine protecting 
 and merciful One ? ' 
 
 10. And it came to pass at the time that the cattle conceived, 
 that I lifted up mine eyes, and saiv in a dream, and behold, 
 the rams jvhich leaped upon the cattle tvere ringstixiked, sjjeckled, 
 and grisled. 11. And the Angel of God spake unto me in a 
 dream, saying, Jacob: And I said. Here ami. 12. And 
 
Ver. 1 8.] The God of Bethel 179 
 
 He said, Lift up notv thine eyes, and see, all the rams ivhich 
 leap upon the cattle are ringst7'aked, S2)eckled, and grisled: for 
 I have seen all that Laban doeth tinto thee. 
 
 Our patience, our wrongs, our courage are witnessed by God. He 
 knows all that we have to bear. He disposes the operations of 
 nature, the instinct of beasts, the passions of men to work out His 
 wise ends. Those who commit their way unto Him will find out 
 this at last, will see in all their ways a gracious overshadowing 
 love. 
 
 13. / am the God of Beth-el, where thou anointedst thej)illar, 
 and ivhere thou voivedst a voio unto Me : noiu arise, get thee 
 out from this land, and rettirn unto the land of thy kindred. 
 
 God reminds Jacob of the former vision and the feelings which he 
 had had then. God makes Bethel and its recollections revive in 
 his mind after so many years. Glory to God for recalling to me 
 the feelings I had at the time of my conversion ! How fervently I 
 prayed then, how generously I promised, how richly God's mercy 
 came home to my heart ! I would fain feel now as I felt then. 
 Oh that I kept better in mind what I promised then ! Let me at 
 least make up my mind to obey God now, and that promptly and 
 cheerfully. 
 
 14. And Rachel and Leah answered and said unto him. 
 Is there yet any portion or inheritance for us in our father's 
 house ? 15. .4 re u'e not counted of him strangers ? for he hath 
 sold us, and hath quite devoured also our money. 16. For all 
 the riches ivhich God hath taken from our father, that is ours, 
 and our children's : noiv then, whatsoever God hath said iinto 
 thee, do. 
 
 Here we see fulfilled what the Psalmist sang of when he said : 
 ' Hearken, O daughter, and consider, incline thine ear : forget 
 also thine own people and thy father's house.' Here is what the 
 image of the fruitless leafy fig-tree, withered up by Christ, represents. 
 Here we see the Christian Church, which Christ has espoused to 
 Himself, leaving her Jewish home, where all had now become poor 
 and unprofitable,— sacrifices without power to cleanse, a priesthood 
 that had lost its right to bless, a law that had become only a 
 burden, — leaving all this and passing to a new standpoint which 
 her Heavenly Bridegroom had designed for her. 
 
 17. Then Jacob rose up, and set his sons and his wives upon 
 camels ; 18. And he carried away all his cattle, and all his 
 
i8o Stolen Gods [Gen. XXXI. 
 
 goods xvldch he had gotten, the cattle of his getting, which he 
 had gotten in Padan-aram, for to go to Isaac his father in the 
 land of Canaan. 
 
 So, more than one hundred years before, had Abraham gone that 
 same journey, at the bidding of the same God. But Abraham 
 ' went forth, not knowing whither he went ' ; while Jacob was 
 returning to the home of his childhood, the land where he had 
 received Divine promises. This journey reminds us of yet another 
 Exodus, when Jacob's descendants came out Irom 'the house of 
 bondage ' and set their faces towards Canaan, carrying with them 
 Egyptian spoil and Egyptian wisdom. How great a spell had 
 Canaan to win hearts back thither ! They could not abide else- 
 where. Their true home claimed them. 
 
 19. And Lahan ivent to shear his sheep: and Rachel had 
 stolen the images that ivere her father'' s. 20. And Jacob stole 
 away tmawares to Lahan the Syrian, in that he told him not 
 that he fled. 
 
 Laban at his shearing feast relaxed his covetous anxiety and rejoiced 
 to think he was not so poor after all, when in the midst of his mirth 
 he heard of Jacob's departure and the gods being stolen who were 
 (as he thought) the givers of good luck to his house. Laban's 
 religion was of a mixed sort, like his conduct. He worshipped the 
 true God and yet looked for a blessing to the images which his 
 household venerated. He had impulses of generosity as well as of 
 covetousness. He represents the followers of this world, who are 
 uneasy and vexed at seeing God's chiklren withdraw themselves 
 from among them and take a line of their own. Give me. Lord, 
 grace to pass the river and set my face heavenwards without 
 regarding the snares, the threats, the persuasions with which men 
 would hinder my journey. 
 
 21. So he fled luith all that he had ; and he rose up, and 
 passed over the river, and set his face totvard the mount 
 Gilead, 
 
 Here are the chosen family finally crossing Euphrates and setting 
 their faces towards Canaan. It was more than a thousand years 
 before Jacob's descendants passed on this road again ; that was 
 when the Captivity came, and they had to tread back this very 
 road and recross the great river with sadness and tears ; yet their 
 God was with them still, and they were able to pray to Him ' by 
 the waters of Babylon.' Euphrates, which once flowed by the 
 happy garden and witnessed the unfallen state of man, still flows 
 on, though bondage and sorrow and desolation line its banks 
 now. 
 
Ver. 28.] A Meeting ifi Motmt Gilead 181 
 
 22. And it was told Laban on the third day that Jacob was 
 ■fled. 23. And he took his brethren ivith him, and p^trsued 
 after him seven days' journey ; and they overtook him in the 
 mount Gilead. 
 
 Why did Laban take trouble to set on foot all this hot pursuit? 
 Indeed, he had not taken pleasure in Jacob's society when he had 
 him ; it would seem that he could not bear to live with Jacob, nor 
 yet to let him go. He liked to have him at his beck and call and 
 arrange his life for him. That Jacob should go back to serve his 
 own God in his own land in independence seemed to Laban a 
 thing intolerable and offensive to his own dignity. 
 
 24. And God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream by 
 night, and said unto hiyn, Take heed that thou speak not to 
 Jacob either good or bad. 
 
 This great Vision changed not so much Laban's heart as his be- 
 haviour ; he dared not now ill-use or revile Jacob. God, Who had 
 inspired Jacob to flee homewards, and had promised to protect 
 him, fulfilled His promise by chiding Laban's fierce heart and 
 warning him against taking vengeance. Do Thou, Lord, in mercy 
 interfere and save me from myself. Speak to me when I am 
 tempted to hasty passion and check any sharp word or unkind 
 act. 
 
 25. Then Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched 
 his tent in the mount : and Laban ivith his bretJiren pitched in 
 the mount of Gilead. 
 
 All seemed to portend a fight, and Jacob's family fully expected 
 their ruin to ensue, but their unseen Divine Protector was at hand 
 to turn all things to a good end. He allows us to be destitute of 
 earthly succour on purpose to awaken our faith in Himself. He 
 bids us cheerfully resign ourselves into His Divine Hands Who cares 
 for us. I can see no chance for myself, no way of escape, no re- 
 sources on which to rely, then let me the rather trust in a Friend 
 Who is ' full of kindness, full of care, full of power.' 
 
 26. And Laban said to Jacob, What hast thou done, that 
 thou hast stolen away unauxires to me, and carried away my 
 daughters, as captives taken ivith the siuord? 27. Wherefore 
 didst thou flee aivay secretly, and steal away from me ; and 
 didst not tell me, that I might have sent thee away with mirth, 
 and with songs, ivith tabret, and with harp ? 28. And hast 
 
1 82 Mutual Reproaches [Gen. XXXI. 
 
 not suffered me to kiss my sons and my daughters ? thou hast 
 now done foolishly in so doing. 
 
 Laban appears, more than all, to be vexed because his dignity had 
 not been consulted. This ceremonial departure would have added 
 little to Jacob's comfort or happiness. When warnings, revelations, 
 the attractions of home, the sanctity of the Holy Land, all joined 
 to bid him start and fly without looking back, what mattered more 
 or less of splendour and elegance about his movements? That he 
 should go, and go at once, was the matter of supreme importance. 
 Let me lay to heart this lesson, and not mind if the men of this 
 world scoff at the method of my moving heavenward, so I get 
 there. 
 
 2g. It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt : hut the 
 God of your father spake %mto me yesternight, saying, Take 
 thou heed that thou, speah not to Jacob either good or bad. 
 30. And now, though thou wouldest needs be gone, because thou 
 sore longedst after thy father'' s house, yet wherefore hast thou 
 stolen my gods ? 
 
 Laban saw that there was a difference between a God who could 
 speak and gods who were but dumb idols ; why did he not learn 
 from Jacob how to fear the Living and True God, so that a common 
 faith and worship might have linked him and his son-in-law closely 
 together? Laban had not wholly cast off faith in God, but yet 
 looked superstitiously for prosperity to these images which were 
 set up in his house ; what protection can idols bring who cannot 
 protect themselves? 
 
 31. And Jacob ansivered and said to Laban, Because I was 
 afraid : for I said, Peradventure thou ivouldest take by force 
 thy daughters from me. 32. With whomsoever thou findest 
 thy gods, let him not live: before our brethren discern thou 
 what is thine tuith me, and take it to thee. For Jacob knew 
 not that Rachel had stolen them. 
 
 Jacob thought, and with good reason, that Laban meant to keep 
 him in perpetual bondage, or at least to claim his wives and 
 children and goods and leave him helpless and ruined. That was 
 why he fled ; he longed for home, freedom, and security, but he 
 had never agreed to plundering Laban of his false gods ; that was 
 not Jacob's way of teaching the service of the true God ; he knew 
 that idolatry is rooted in the heart, and cannot be eradicated 
 merely by the disappearance of a sacred image. O Lord, may I 
 have a right sense of, and a love for, Thee Who art Living and 
 True ; then no idols or deceits can ensnare me, nothing can rob 
 me of Thy Presence. 
 
Ver. 39.] of Laban and Jacob 183 
 
 2,2y And Laban went into Jacob's tent, and into Leah's tent, 
 and into the tivo maidservants' tents ; but he found them not. 
 Then went he out of Leah's tent, and entered into Rachel's 
 tent. 34. Now Rachel had taken the images, and init them. 
 in the camel's furniture, and sat tipon them. And Laban 
 searched all the tent, but found them not. 35. And she said 
 to her father, Let it not dis23lease my lord that I cannot rise 
 up before thee; for the custom of women is xipon me. And 
 he searched, btct found not the images. 
 
 So these precious idols have to be ignominiously stuffed among the 
 baggage and used as a seat by a suffering woman ; they have lost 
 all their venerableness. Was it not thus with Jewish customs and 
 ceremonies after the Gospel came? By no direct enactment, but 
 by the force of Gospel teaching, the glory of Gospel Revelation, 
 they lost their old meaning, and became first burdensome, then 
 pernicious to faith. God showed His plain intention to withdraw 
 those ceremonies from the observance of Christians. 
 
 36. And Jacob was tvroth, and chode uith Laban: and 
 Jacob answered and said to Laban, What is my trespass 1 
 what is my sin, that thou hast so hotly pursued after me ? 
 37. Whereas thoxi hast searched all my stuf, what hast thou 
 found of all thy household stuff? set it here before my brethren 
 and thy brethren, that they may judge betwixt us both. 
 
 So Jews would tell us tliat we have robbed them of their sacred 
 things, that the Old Testament, the use of Psalms in worship, the 
 practice of keeping the Ten Commandments, the kingdom of 
 Christ, the message of Faith in one True God, are all theirs ; 
 that we have only despoiled them of their own. But our account 
 is that all this is rightfully ours ; the promise of Messiah, the 
 covenant of grace, the law of duty, are all long previous to Moses ; 
 the Prophets and the Psalms speak of the hopes of humanity, the 
 yearning of true hearts in all lands for peace and truth. All these 
 things arc ours who believe in Christ Jesus ; we have stolen 
 nothing, for we are the heirs of the ages, and God designed for us 
 His fullest Revelation, which should embrace all the rest. 
 
 38. 2'his tiventy years have I been tvith thee; thy ewes and 
 thy she-goats have not cast their young, and the rams of thy 
 flock have I not eaten. 39. That which ivas torn of beasts I 
 brought not unto thee ; I bare the loss of it ; of my hand didst 
 thou require it, whether stolen by day, or stolen by night. 
 
1 84 A Shepherd's Toils [Gen. XXXI. 
 
 40. Thus I ivas ; in the day the dro^ight consumed me, and the 
 frost hy night ; and Tny sleep departed from mine eyes. 
 
 This is the Eastern good shepherd. No less, in our cold northern 
 climes, the shepherd's dangers, cares, and toils abound, though of 
 a different sort. Here, the sounds of winter storm 
 
 ' Are warnings which the shepherd ask 
 To dismal and to dangerous task.' 
 
 He has to go forth in the snow to seek and guide his sheep ; he 
 bears the fierce blast uncomplaining. 
 
 ' If fails his heart, if his limbs fail, 
 Benumbing death is in the gale.' 
 
 May the remembrance of the fierce heat, the parching frost, the 
 drenching storms which shepherds have to bear, the thought of 
 their long toils, their patient searches, reprove the sloth, the in- 
 difference, the self-indulgence which I, O Lord, have shown in 
 Thy service ! Why was it Thou gavest me charge of Thy sheep ? 
 
 41. Thus have I been twenty years in thy house ; I served 
 thee foxirteen years for thy two daughters, and six years for 
 thy cattle : and thou hast changed my wages ten times. 
 
 Rebekah was granted at once at the prayer of Isaac's messenger, but 
 Rachel and Leah were won by fourteen years' service, and the 
 cattle by hard perseverance and God's good Providence, not by 
 any liberality or faithfulness on Laban's part. O good lesson of 
 patience ! what is worth winning that can be won without this 
 virtue ? From men we may expect plenty of malice or ingratitude, 
 but from our God forbearance and help always ; we cannot wear 
 out His goodness. 
 
 42. Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and 
 the Fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely thou hadst soit me 
 away now empty. God hath seen mine affliction ajid the labour 
 of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight. 
 
 O God of Abraham, O Fear of Isaac, O Friend of Jacob, may I 
 have those sentiments of love and fear towards Thee which are 
 fitting for a creature ! I look to Thee as my Creator and Gov- 
 ernor ; I tremlile at the mysteries wliich encompass me round ; 
 I have reason to distrust my own frailty, but I have a firm con- 
 fidence in Thy encompassing Love ; all the promises of the Gospel 
 encourage me to trust and hope. Thou knowcst all my needs, 
 all my anxieties. 
 
Ver. 50.] The Lor(Vs Watchtower 185 
 
 43. And Lahan ansivered and said unto Jacob, These 
 daughters are my daughters, and these children are my 
 children, and these cattle are my cattle, and all that thott seest 
 is mine : and ivhat can I do this day unto these my daughters, 
 or unto their children which they have home ? 44. Noio there- 
 fore come thoK, let us make a covenant, I and thou ; and let it 
 he for a ivitness betiveen me and thee. 
 
 O wonder ! here is Laban's wrath all changed to love, his jealousy 
 into perfect concord ; here is peace come instead of war. What 
 hand could accomplish this but that of the Disposer of hearts? 
 And is there not here a figure of that good day to come when God 
 shall break down the division between Jews and Christians, shall 
 unite them in one covenant and one worship, shall do away with 
 the unbelief and suspicion that keeps them separate now ? That 
 will be a day of joy indeed that shall unite the heart of the fathers 
 to their children and the heart of the children to their fathers. 
 
 45. And Jacob took a stone, and set it up for a pillar. 
 46. And Jacob said tmto his brethren. Gather stones; and 
 they took stones, and made an heap : and they did eat there 
 upon the heap. 47. And Laban ccdled it Jegar-saha-duiha : 
 hut Jacob called it Galeed. 48. And Lahan said, This heap 
 is a ivitness between me and thee this day. Therefore teas the 
 name of it called Gcdeed ; 
 
 This heap of stones on which they sat and ate together, and which 
 was called in both their dialects by the common name of ' the 
 witness heap,' served both for altar and for table and for memo- 
 rial. Here the two chiefs had worshipped together, here they had 
 shared in a peaceful meal, here they had sworn friendship to each 
 other ; this was to future ages the token of their agreement. 
 Reading these verses we are reminded of the Apostle's words, 
 ' To whom coming, as unto a living stone, ... ye also, as 
 lively stones, are built up into a spiritual house, an holy priest- 
 hood, to offer unlo God acceptable sacrifices through Jesus Christ.' 
 He is the Foundation-stone, we the stones built on Him to make 
 up the edifice : priests too to minister in this Temple, and brethren 
 linked by common vows. 
 
 49. And Mizpah ; for he said, The Lord ivatch between me 
 and thee, tvhen tue are absent one from another. 50. If thou 
 shall afflict my daughters, or if thou shall take other wives 
 beside my da^ighters, no man is tvith us ; see, God is ivitness 
 betwixt me and thee. 
 
 Mizpah means 'watchtower.' Laban said that God would look 
 from that vantage-ground and watch over Jacob's conduct to 
 
1 86 The Pillar of Witness [Gen. XXXII. 
 
 Laban's daughters. Jacob would be out of the reach of an earthly 
 judge, but God knew how to observe and to punish transgression. 
 Let me ever remember that God watches over me for my protec- 
 tion and for my restraint ; if I break my solemn promises, men 
 may not know, but He knows. I may be absent from my home 
 and those who love me, but my God is an intimate Friend, a 
 watchful Guard. 
 
 51. And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heajJ, and 
 behold this pillar, zvhich I have cast betivixt me and thee ; 
 52. This heap be ivitness, and this pillar be witness, that I ivill 
 not pass over this heap to thee, and that thou shalt not pass 
 over this heap and this pillar unto me, for harm. 
 
 Laban then thought that Jacob would become great ; he had a sense 
 that God's promises to Jacob would be accomplished, and he 
 desired to provide that his own and Jacob's descendants should 
 live at peace together. His treaty of peace anticipates the day of 
 the Cross, which slew enmity and made peace, which made Jew 
 and Gentile, Barbarian and Scythian, slave and free, one in Christ 
 Jesus. 
 
 53. The God of Abraham, and tJie God of Nahor, the God 
 of their father, judge betwixt zis. And Jacob sware by the 
 Fear of his father Isaac. 
 
 No doulit Laban's meaning was to invoke the True God as known 
 and worshipped in the family of Terah. No doubt, for the time, 
 he forgot the idolatrous worship which he had mixed up with 
 God's true service ; but yet as Terah, and Abraham, before his 
 call, had only known this God in dim figures and as confounded 
 with the false deities of the people round, Jacob is careful to swear 
 by the True and Living God Whom his father Isaac worshipped, 
 and in Whose service he himself had been brought up. He clung 
 fast to his faith in that God, and would never let it go. 
 
 54. Then Jacob offered sacrifice upon the mount, and called 
 his brethren to eat bread : and they did eat bread, and tarried 
 all night in the mount. 55. And early in the morning Laban 
 rose up, and hissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed 
 them: and Laban departed, and retiirned xmto his jdace. 
 
 Then all this joyful and peaceful communion of hearts, which God 
 brought about, and into which He changed the previous enmity, 
 was not meant to be enjoyed for long. Separation ensued, and a 
 barrier of time and distance was set up. Yes, so it is ; God bids 
 
Ver. 5.] Hosts of Angels 187 
 
 the inquirer ' Go thy way until the end of the days. Do not 
 seek to search too deeply into God's counsels, or fathom when 
 He will unite again those who are severed here.' And yet His 
 promises, His Cross, His love are sure pledges that He will do 
 this, that the partings of those who believe and love are but for 
 a time, and their reunion will last for ever. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII 
 
 X. Jacob's vision at Mahanaim. 3. His message to Esau. 6. He is 
 afraid of Esau's coming, g. He prayeth for deliverance. 13. He 
 sendeth a present to Esau. 24. He wrestleth with an angel at 
 Peniel, where he is called Israel. 31. He halteth. 
 
 AND Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met 
 him. 2. And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is 
 God's host : and he called the name of that place Mahanaim. 
 
 This passing glimpse of angels welcomed Jacob into his own land 
 again, just as they had appeared to him at Bethel when he was 
 leaving it. He was strengthened to feel that God was near him, 
 God protected him, tliat hosts of enemies could not prevail over 
 one who had God's hosts pledged to fight for him. Let me so 
 live, so pray, so trust, that I may be blessed with the guardianship 
 of God's holy angels, that they may help me in my prayers and 
 sustain me in dark moments. I see them not, yet know that they 
 are near. 
 
 3. And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother 
 unto the land of >Seir, the conntry of Edom. 4. And he 
 coimnandcd them, saying, Thus shall ye speak unto my lord 
 Esau ; Thy servant Jacob saith thus, I have sojoiirned with 
 Laban, and stayed there until noio : 5. And I have oxen, and 
 asses, flocks, and men-servants, and ivomen-servants : and I have 
 sent to tell my lord, that I may find grace in thy sight. 
 
 ' I come back to my own country in all humility after long years of 
 exile. I do not come to beg or to strive for wealth ; God has 
 given me resources enough, so that I am able rather to bestow 
 than seek. I do not wisli to interfere with my brother's blessing 
 or rights, those which arc proper to him ; all I ask is his goodwill 
 and help.' In all this message of Jacob's I notice much courtesy, 
 good sense, far-sightedness, but I see that he does not mean to 
 relinquish his own covenanted blessing, the inheritance of the 
 
1 88 Jacob remembers past Mercies [Gen. XXXII. 
 
 future, the hope of mankind's promised Benefactor. Oh no, he 
 would sooner die than lose that ; but he keeps it to himself as a 
 subject in which Esau could not share, 
 
 6. And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came 
 to thy brother Esau, and also he cometh to meet thee, and four 
 hundred men ivith him. 
 
 News of war — God's hosts had melted away into the intangible sky, 
 but here are a very visilile host of material enemies, ready to rush 
 on Jacob's helpless caravan and slay or plunder at their pleasure. 
 At this message dismay prevailed throughout Jacob's company, 
 and he himself had to remedy matters as he could, had to devise 
 what plans were best — above all, to take counsel with his unseen 
 Divine Friend. So may I keep my self-possession when adverse 
 news comes, do all that is needful, and yet lean on an unfailing 
 Hand. 
 
 7. Then Jacob ivas greatly afraid and distressed: and he 
 divided the people that teas ivith him, and the flocks, and herds, 
 and the camels, into tivo bands; 8. And said, If Esau come 
 to the one comp>any, and smite it, then the other company tvhich 
 is left shall escap)e. 
 
 How was it Jacob feared so much? Had he not a Divine promise 
 of security? Of what avail was his faith, his hope, his regard to 
 Divine promises? I do not think that in this life trust can 
 altogether banish fear. They may exist together in the same 
 heart. We feel our danger, we are distressed at the power of evil, 
 at the burden of pain, and yet the sense of this heavy weight leads 
 us the more to do whatever can be done and confide ourselves to 
 God's mercy for what is out of our power. O Lord, my frailty is 
 great, my resources few, and the hosts of evil are strong. Of 
 myself I have no strength or wisdom, and therefore I cast all 
 upon Thee. 
 
 9. And Jacob said, God of my father Abraham, and God 
 of my father Isaac, the Lord Which saidst unto me. Return 
 unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I ivill deal ivell 
 with thee : 10. / am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, 
 and of all the trxith, xvhich Thou, hast sheiced tmto Thy servant; 
 for with my staff I passed over this Jordan ; and now I am 
 become tivo bands. 
 
 O merciful God, I have learnt from my fathers to believe in Thee. 
 I know of Thy wonders and mercies wrought in old time. Those 
 
Ver. i6,] Jacob pleads old Promises 189 
 
 who trusted in Thee have not been deceived. I have so far 
 followed Thy guidance and found Thy promises true. Let it be 
 so still. I return Thee humble and hearty thanks, good Lord, 
 for Thy goodness to me in the time past, and now that fresh trials 
 await me, let me have fresh experience of Thy goodness. Praise 
 to Thy Holy Name for what Thou art and hast done for me ! 
 
 11. Deliver me, I vray Thee, from the hand of my brother, 
 from the hand of Esau : for I fear him, lest he tvill come and 
 smite me, and the mother tvith the children. 
 
 Here is the difference between Jacob's household and the family of 
 Laban or of Esau. Others turned to false gods with vain prayers, 
 or relied simply on their right hand, their strength and valour. 
 But Jacob's God is his Friend to Whom he turns, to Whom he 
 opens his heart. It is not his wealth for which he fears, but for 
 his dear wives and children ; he would willingly risk himself for 
 those dear lives. Oh that I could speak to God in earnest and per- 
 suasive accents when the souls of those I love are in peril ! Oh that 
 I could win their salvation by hearty intercession through Christ's 
 prevailing merits ! 
 
 12. And Thou saidst, I ivill sxLvely do thee good, and make 
 thy seed as the sand of the sea, ivhich cannot he numbered for 
 mtdtitiide. 
 
 ' It is Thy promise, Lord, for which I plead ; it is Thy word that is 
 in peril. Thou saidst, " I will multiply thy seed as sand or stars, 
 will give thee Canaan, will cause the world's salvation to proceed 
 from thee." It is this word of Thine which will be ruined if I and 
 mine are destroyed. Thy choice and calling are surely not in 
 vain. I have ventured on Thy word, and can trust Thee not to 
 deceive me.' Such a prayer as this contains in it the assurance of 
 an answer; it is anchored on the firm rock of God's Truth, of His 
 loving-kindness. 
 
 13. And he lodged there that same night ; and took of that 
 which came to his hand a p>'esent for Esau his brother; 
 14. Two hundred she-goats, and twenty he-goats, tivo himdred 
 ewes, and twenty rams, 15. Thirty milch camels tvith their 
 colts, forty kine, and ten bidls, tiventy she-asses, and ten foals. 
 16. And he delivered them into the hand of his servants, every 
 drove by themselves; and said unto his servants, Pass over 
 before me, and put a space betivixt drove and drove. 
 
 Jacob knew ' that a brother offended is harder to be won than a 
 great city,' so he laid siege to Esau's wrath and directed against it 
 
iQo The Fordjabbok [Gen. XXXII. 
 
 all his battering-trains of gifts. He desired that the beauty, the 
 curiousness, the frequent succession of his presents and the reflec- 
 tion that they were all for Esau himself, all to be added to his 
 store and increase his consequence, should insensibly appease 
 Esau's passion and turn it into complacency. It would be hard, 
 he justly thought, for any one's anger to stand out against this 
 method of treatment. I wish I had always taken like pains to 
 turn away wrath and remove prejudice. That is an object well 
 worth gaining. 
 
 17. And he commanded the foremost, saying, When Esau 
 my brother vieeteth thee, and asJceth thee, saying, Whose art 
 thon ? and whither goest thoiL? and ivhose are these before thee? 
 18. Then thou shall say. They be thy servant Jacob's ; it is a 
 present sent unto my lord Esau : and behold, also he is behind 
 us. 19. And so commanded he the second, and the third, and 
 all that followed the droves, saying. On this manner shall ye 
 speak unto Esau, tvhen ye find him. 20. And say ye more- 
 over. Behold, thy servant Jacob is behind us. For he said, I 
 will appease him with the 2^vesent that goeth before me, and 
 afterward I ivill see his face; 2)e7'adventt(7'e he will accept of 
 me. 
 
 Jacob by these wise precautions won his object. He turned his 
 brother's angry face into a face of kindness. Nor did he the less 
 by his prayers and tears win a sight of God's Face looking 
 graciously on him. In his early days, when he had had the 
 vision at Bethel, God had looked on him in love from the top of 
 the heavenly stair ; but now a long series of years, trials, sins 
 seemed to come between and dim the brightness. Happy are we 
 who have a Heavenly Advocate with God, a Brother Who is 
 Divine and human, Who represents our case, speaks for us when 
 we cannot speak for ourselves. 
 
 21. So went the present over before him : and himself lodged 
 that night in the company. 22. And he rose up that night, 
 and took his two ivives, and his two ivomen-servants, and his 
 eleven sons, and passed over the ford J abboh. 23. And he took 
 them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that lie had. 
 
 This was the crisis of Jacob's life, the time of his greatest anxiety ; 
 he felt not for himself, but for all that he loved. He saw terrible 
 danger close at hand, and could do no more to meet it. So after 
 he had given all orders and made all preparations he remained 
 alone on the further shore of the stream to commune with his 
 own heart and with God. He had conducted his caravan through 
 
Ver. 28.] Wrestlings of the lonely Heart 191 
 
 the stream, and he returned alone to the northern shore to wait a 
 while. When I read of this strange pause and quietness before 
 the great hour of trial began, I cannot help thinking of my Lord 
 in the garden, praying for me and for my brethren, entering into a 
 strange conflict of soul before His outward suffering began. 
 
 24. And Jacob was left alone ; and there wrestled a Man 
 with him iintil the breaking of the day. 25. And when He 
 saiu that He 2}f'cvailed not against him, He touched the hollow 
 of his thigh; and the holloiv of Jacob's thigh ivas out of joint, 
 as he wrestled ivith Him. 
 
 In Jacob's hard struggle in the darkness with an unknown Adversary, 
 I am reminded of my Lord struggling with the burden of our sins, 
 with the wrath of His Father, with unknown agonies which are 
 too deep for me to understand. I think of Him Who wrestled in 
 ' strong crying and tears,' Who had to taste the bitter cup, to bear 
 the hour of darkness. I recall Him Who was ' sore amazed and 
 very heavy,' Who said, ' Why hast Thou forsaken Me?' He did 
 not give up His task for shame, or for pain, or for desolation of 
 spirit. He persevered till Divine justice was appeased and our 
 pardon assured. Yet it was by His very weakness He triumphed. 
 All His wisdom. His holiness. His supernatural power would not 
 have sufficed. No, it was by weakness, by shame, by tears, by 
 parting of soul and body, by the grave. By these, O Prince of 
 God, Thou didst win that conflict in which no mere wisdom or 
 glory could have prevailed. 
 
 26. And He said, Let Me go, for the day hreaheth. And 
 he said, I will not let Thee go, except Thou bless me. 
 
 He clung fast, though with failing strength. He knew that great 
 issues hung on the blessing which he resolved to win. He knew 
 that the night was ending, and, if he persevered now, he was 
 safe. He felt close to God's deep designs, God's marvels. So 
 did our gracious Saviour carry His work right through, seeking 
 not His own glory, but the blessing of reconciliation for us, 
 determined to win for humanity new life and hope. Through 
 stages of bitter death and agony of soul and the dark realms of 
 the grave He carried that purpose on. 
 
 27. And He said unto him, What is thy name? And he 
 said, Jacob. 28. A7id He said. Thy name shall be ccdled no 
 more Jacob, but Israel : for as a prince hast thou poivcr with 
 God and with men, and hast prevailed. 
 
 Jacob is no more a supplanter, but a Prince ; he has power with God 
 and with men ; his prayer is heard ; his peace is won ; his soul 
 
192 Peniel [Gen. XXXIII. 
 
 has passed into victory and freedom. Now our Saviour's Name of 
 Jesus was not indeed changed in itself by the might of His Passion, 
 but it was changed in the opinion had of it. From an ordinary 
 name of little meaning it is now raised above eveiy name, is 
 honoured in realms above and below. Jesus was ' made a little 
 lower than the angels ' for a while, but now, on account of His 
 successful struggle, is crowned with glory and honour, is known as 
 mighty to save. 
 
 29. And Jacob asked Him, and said, Tell me, I pray Thee, 
 Thy name. And He said. Wherefore is it that Thou dost ask 
 after My Name ? And He blessed him there. 
 
 What was that Name? The dread Stranger told it not, but we 
 know it. It is ' the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.' Faithful 
 souls under the old covenant strove to know it, but in vain — it 
 was not wholly revealed to their longing gaze. Christians alone 
 can say, ' Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
 the Father of mercy and the God of all comfort ' ; to them Christ 
 speaks plainly and not in proverbs, shows them plainly of the 
 Father, gives unspeakable peace, the fulness of blessing. Thus, 
 
 Lord, Thou didst win a blessing for us. Thou wast in Thyself 
 ever blessed, but Thou didst not forget Thy brethren who lay 
 under a curse, nay, didst obtain full blessing for them. 
 
 30. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel : for I 
 have seen God face to face, and my life is j^reserved. 
 
 O Face of God, revealed only in flashes under the old covenant, 
 seen more clearly, shining with mild radiance, in the person of 
 Christ, let me ever approach Thee in humble confidence, knowing 
 that my sins indeed are great, but Thy grace is still the same as of 
 old. 
 
 ' Through faith I see Thee face to face, 
 
 I see Thee face to face and live. 
 
 In vain I have not wept and strove, 
 
 Thy nature and Thy Name is Love." 
 
 And in this great conflict my Saviour has been before me. Psalm 
 xxii. contains the record of His wrestling and His victory. There 
 
 1 see His Divine Soul passing through these experiences. 
 
 31. And as he jmssed over Pemiel the sun rose iipon him, 
 and he halted upon his thigh. 32. Therefore the children of 
 Israel eat not of the sinew ivhich shrank, ivhich is upon the 
 hollow of the thigh, tmto this day : because He touched the 
 hollow of Jctcob^s thigh in the sinew that shrank. 
 
 This feebleness was the result and memorial of that great night and 
 its conflict. Jacob passed now from reliance on himself, on 
 
Ver. 3.] A great Crisis 193 
 
 his craft, his slcill, his foresight, into a humble recognition of 
 his own nothingness and a sense of the overpowering goodness of 
 God. Instead of trust in his own strength, he had received a 
 sense of God's Ahnightiness ; and he retained a memorial of it (and 
 his people after him), just as Christ Himself in all His majesty 
 bears the marks of those sacred wounds which He endured for us. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII 
 
 I. The kindness of Jacob and Esau at their meeting. 17. Jacob cometh 
 to Succoth. 18. At Shalem he buyeth a field and buildeth an altar 
 called £l-elohe-Israel. 
 
 AND Jacob lifted iip his eyes, and looked, and behold, Esau 
 came, and with him four hundred men. And he divided 
 the children unto Leah, and unto Rachel, and unto the two 
 handmaids. 2. And he put the handmaids and their children 
 foremost, and Leah and her children after, and Rachel and 
 Joseph hindermost. 
 
 Jacob had never thought of resisting Esau by force ; and now less 
 than ever. He was weary with watching, and with the fears and 
 dangers of his flight from Laban. He was lame from his strange 
 experience of the night. He had had (to use the woids of his 
 great descendant S. Paul) 'fightings without and fears within.' 
 Yes, but he experienced also the truth of the same Apostle's 
 words when he says, ' When I am weak, then am I strong,' or, 
 ' I will glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may 
 rest upon me.' He took one last precaution, to arrange those 
 whom he loved, that they might have a chance of escape if 
 blows were exchanged ; and he put the dearest in the place of 
 most security. 
 
 3. And he passed over before them, and bowed himself to the 
 ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. 
 
 Here we see the Good Shepherd, ' When He putteth forth His sheep. 
 He goeth before them.' He is willing, if need be, ' to lay down 
 His life for His sheep.' Here we see the true Jacob saying, ' If ye 
 seek Me, let these go their way.' After all his agony of soul, now 
 that the crisis has come, he goes forward with a cheerful and re- 
 solute mind, trusting in God's protection. He humbles himself, 
 remembering his old transgression towards his brother. 
 N 
 
194 An offended Brother won [Gen. XXXIII. 
 
 4. And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell 
 on his neck, and kissed him : and they wept. 
 
 O b'essing of God, which emptied Esau's heart of all its long- 
 nourished wrath, turned all its bitterness into love ! Notice how 
 Jacob succeeded in overcoming his brother's fury. Was it not 
 by prayer to God, by trust in God, by free liberality, by humble 
 duty and reverence, by readiness to put himself in the lowest 
 place? All these were inspired by God, and used by Him to 
 bend Esau's heart. Do Tliou, Lord, teach me such ways, such a 
 secret of peace. 
 
 5. And he lifted iip his eyes, and saw the women and 
 the children; and said, Who are those with thee? And he 
 said, The children which God hath graciously given thy 
 servant. 
 
 Who is it Who says (taking up the prophet's language), ' Behold I, 
 and the children which God hath given me'? Who is it Who 
 says, ' Thine they were, and Thou gavest them Me ' ; and ' I pray 
 that those whom Thou hast given Me may be with Me where I 
 am ' ? Is it not wonderful to see Jesus our Saviour repeating 
 Jacob's very words ? W^e learn thereby that what was good in 
 Jacob was by the gift and grace of Christ, W'hom he represented, 
 and that Jacob's children figure that holy household of which we 
 are members, wherein God has set us to journey together towards 
 heaven. 
 
 6. Then the handmaidens came near, they and their children, 
 and tliey bowed themselves. 7. Aiid Leah also with her chil- 
 dren came near, and bowed themselves : and after came Joseph 
 near and Rachel, and they boived themselves. 
 
 The women and children, who had been in great dread, and looking out 
 for signs of the fray commencing, were restored all at once to 
 peace and joy. Esau received their respectl'ul duty, and addressed 
 them with words and gestures of kindness. How many outpour- 
 ings of thanks must have gone up to God from those who were so 
 suddenly set free from their fear ! No doubt Jacob taught his 
 children to thank God for their deliverance, taught them too to 
 value a humble and reverent demeanour, which had on this day 
 served him well. 
 
 8. And he said, What meanest thou by all this drove which 
 I met? And he said, These are to find grace in the sight of 
 my lord. 
 
 Jacob, who had devoted himself to the pursuit of wealth, knew how 
 to part with it, how to procure with it what was more precious. 
 
Ver. 13.] Esau!s Kindness 195 
 
 He felt that he had no claim of his own on his brother's goodwill, 
 and therefore he must purchase it by open-handed lil>erality. 'I 
 indeed,' he seems to say, ' may be displeasing in thy sight, but my 
 gifts are not. Let them be accepted in my place, as the expres- 
 sion of that love and respect I wish to show.' Let me, when I 
 give alms, do it wiih this feeling, freely giving up what I have 
 that I may please my gracious Lord, and make up for my own 
 lack of duty in the past. 
 
 9. And Esau said, I have enoiigh, my brother ; keep that 
 thou hast unto thyself. 10. And Jacob said, Nay, I pray 
 thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then receive my 
 present at my hand: for therefore I have seen thy face, as 
 though I had seen the face of God, and iho%i wast pleased with 
 me. 
 
 Jacob's liberahty had healed his brother's jealousy. O blessed effect 
 of an open hand, a generous heart! Jacob saw in his brother's 
 kindly face a token that God's Face was shining on him in mercy. 
 It was the unseen Friend Who had provided tor him this visible 
 brotherly affection where he had only expected enmity. He was 
 wise in discerning behind the cloud so many tokens of Him Who 
 is ever near to help us, wise in generously parting with his choicest 
 flocks that Esau might always have before him a lasting proof of 
 his brother's regard. 
 
 11. Take, I pray thee, my blessing that is brought to thee; 
 because God hath dealt graciously ivith me, and because I have 
 enough. And he urged him, and he took it. 
 
 Esau looked on property as a man's own ; ' Why should not Jacob 
 retain what he had acquired?' But Jacob looked on it as a gift 
 of God's bounty, and so to be devoted to such purposes as God 
 indicated. He knew that by giving up the firstfruits of his toil 
 he would gain a greater blessing on what remained. God has 
 blessed me, made me abound in all things ; let me too bless others 
 and share with them. I will not dry up the source of all my 
 wealth, namely, God's bounty, by being myself churlish or nig- 
 gardly. 
 
 12. And lie said, Let us take our journey, and let us go, and 
 I will go before thee. 13. And he said unto him. My lord 
 knoiveth that the children are tender, and the Jiocks and herds 
 with young are with me : and if men should overdrive them one 
 day, all the flock will die. 
 
 Here are enemies become friends, protection offered by him who 
 had come to despoil. So great is God's sway over reluctant 
 
196 A friendly Parting [Gen. XXXIII. 
 
 hearts. But Jacob knows that Esau's pace does not suit his ; 
 he prefers to travel separately ; he accommodates himself to 
 the capacity of the little ones, of the cattle with young ; it is 
 their condition that he provides for. O that Christian pastors had 
 always answered thus. Often they have employed Esau's 
 methods, outward force, outward show, a march and step wholly 
 of this world, and thus offended, vexed, oppressed tender con- 
 sciences. S. Paul's plan was like Jacob's. He 'behaved himself 
 gently ' among his converts, ' even as a nurse cherisheth her 
 children.' He was ' willing to spend, and be spent for them.' 
 
 14. Let my lord, I pray thee, pass over before his servant: 
 and I will lead on softly, according as the cattle that goeth 
 before me and the children be able to endure, iintil I come unto 
 my lord unto Seir. 
 
 So may I always act and plan. Let secular power take its own 
 way. Let this world's learning, titles, strength, remain out of 
 my reach. Let me rather devote myself to the necessities, the 
 religion, the progress of humble souls. Jacob preferred looking 
 after the weak lambs, the children, the behaviour of his herdmen, 
 the wants and sufferings of the humblest member of his caravan ; 
 this suited him better than the flash of arms, the roll of drums, 
 the step of chargers with which Esau's host moved. No doubt he 
 went to stay at Seir later, though we are not told of it. Certainly 
 he would take all pains to stablish this newly-won friendship. 
 
 15. And Esau said, Let me noiv leave ivith thee some of the 
 folk that are tvith me. And he said. What needeth it .? let me 
 find grace in the sight of my lord. 
 
 So far God's angels had protected him. He had not needed other 
 guard. Having got his brother's love, he was well off, and re- 
 quired no other privilege. I think that God's Church has often 
 been greatly harmed by retaining a guard of Esau's men — I mean, 
 by being mixed up with this world's institutions, by being disguised 
 as a power of this world, using the arms, the gifts, the methods 
 of this world's soldiers. It has been impossible to recognise the 
 household of the true Jacob while it was so confounded with Esau's 
 people. 
 
 16. So Usau returned that day on his way tmto Seir. 
 17. And Jacob joiirneijed to Succoth, and built him an house, 
 and made booths for his cattle: therefore the name of the 
 place is called Sticcoth. 
 
 Here is a second migration into the land of promise ; but it differs 
 from the earlier one of Abraham's days. Here are houses built and 
 
Ver. 20.] Jacob' s Parcel of Ground 197 
 
 a long stay made. Jacob encamps with his family, and builds 
 them a resting-place, where they can be at peace after their long 
 and harassed journey. He had to tell them of Abraham's days 
 and hopes, and of the features of the land which their line was one 
 day to possess. If he had gone with Esau, he would have had to 
 put aside all this, for the two brothers differed wholly in their 
 point of view. To Esau such things would have seemed dreams 
 and fancies. 
 
 18. And Jacob came to Shalem, a city of Shechem, ivhich is 
 in the land of Canaan, when he came from Padanaram ; and 
 pitched his tent before the city. 
 
 Jacob came to Sichem with his family, as his grandfather Abra- 
 ham had done years before when it was yet scarcely inhabited 
 (xii. 6). Jacob's wives and children had all been born in Meso- 
 potamia, and felt themselves strange in the land of promise. He 
 wished to show them Abraham's old altar (xii. 7), and make 
 them partakers in Abraham's hopes and prayers. He desired to 
 profess his own adherence to Abraham's faith ; even in acquiring 
 land for himself, he remained outside the Canaanite towns, and 
 kept himself apart from their lives and doings. 
 
 19. And he bought a parcel of a field, where he had spread 
 his tent, at the hand of the children of Hamor, Shechem's 
 father, for an hundred pieces of money. 
 
 This plot of ground stretched eastward from Sichem. It contains 
 Jacob's well and Joseph's tomb. It is dear to us, because we have 
 read of the Lord Jesus sitting there by the well and talking to the 
 Samaritan woman. Jacob bought it intending to bequeath it 
 specially to his dear son Joseph as a pledge of his share in the 
 hopes of the nation. It was regard for J acob's memory and Jacob's 
 faith which led the people of Sichem to listen to Christ's own 
 words. 
 
 20. And he erected there an cdtar, and called it El-Elohe- 
 Israel. 
 
 Was not this Abraham's old altar which time had perhaps injured? 
 Jacob worshipped CJod there as ' Israel's mighty One,' remember- 
 ing that awful occasion on which the name of Israel had been 
 given to him and Who gave it. It was Jacob's wrestling, his 
 infirmity, his pain, that gave him the right to call on God by this 
 special Name. He won God's ear by the virtue of his conflict. 
 So did Christ Jesus win a victory by His humiliation, by His 
 struggles with our mortal woes and tenrs. 
 
DinaHs Fall [Gen. XXXIV. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV 
 
 Dinah is ravished by Shechem. 4. He sueth to marry her. 13. The 
 sons of Jacob offer the condition of circumcision to the Shechemites. 
 20. Hamor and Shechem persuade them to accept it. 25. The sons 
 of Jacob upon that advantage slay them, 27 and spoil their city. 30. 
 Jacob reproveth Simeon and Levi. 
 
 A 
 
 ND Dinah the daughter of Leah, tvhich she hare unto 
 Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. 
 
 Guard, O Lord, the dear children, when they are entering on life ; 
 preserve them from all that may beguile their hearts, or lead them 
 into sin. Let them prize tlie memory of their home, cheribh a 
 modest, humble, patient character ; thus they will begin life's 
 dangerous road safely. Dinah thought only of finding pleasure 
 and making new experiences ; but she fell into great trouble 
 through this curiosity. 
 
 2. And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince 
 of the country, saiv her, he took her, and lay with her, and de- 
 filed her. 3. Arid his soid clave unto Dinah the daughter of 
 Jacob, and he loved the damsel, and spake kindly unto the 
 damsel. 4. And Shechem spake tmto his father Hamor, 
 saying. Get me this damsel to rvife. 
 
 I have learnt this, that the best way of keeping from sin is to keep 
 out of the way of temptation. If any person or occasion is 
 dangerous to me, I had best avoid them. My virtue is not strong 
 enough to bear the strain of frequent opportunity. Let purity be 
 my treasure ; let me rejoice to guard it ; let me ever by prayer 
 and watchfulness abide faithful to my duty ; be the same in the 
 dark as in the light ; be ever mindful of God's Presence. So 
 shall I avoid the bitterness of hateful memories later on. 
 
 5. And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his 
 daughter : now his sons ivere vnth his cattle in the field: and 
 Jacob held his peace until they were come. 6. And Hamor 
 the father of Shechem went out unto Jacob to commune with 
 him. 7. And the sons of Jacob came out of the field ivhen they 
 heard it : and the men ivere grieved, and they ivere very wroth, 
 because he had tvrought folly in Israel in lying with Jacob's 
 daughter ; which thing ought not to be done. 
 
 The anger of the brothers at their sister's dishonour has an honour- 
 able aspect. They will not compound the stain upon her name 
 
Ver. 13.] Sheche Ill's Offer 199 
 
 for any caresses or presents ; and yet their severity strangely reminds 
 me of Rom. ii. 21, ' Tliou that teachest another, teacliest tlion not 
 thyself? . . . Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, 
 dost thou commit adultery ? ' I do not find that tlie transgressions 
 of Reuben, or of Judah, or the murder contemplated against Joseph, 
 were so bad in their brethren's eyes. How easy is this virtue of 
 ours which condemns so severely in strangers what we allow so 
 readily in ourselves and our friends ! 
 
 8. And Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of 
 my son Shcchem longeth for your daughter : I pray you give 
 her him to wife. 9. And make ye marriages with us, and 
 give your daughters itnto us, and tahe our daughters unto you. 
 10. And ye shall dwell ivith us : and the land shall be before 
 you ; divell and trade ye therein, and get you possessions 
 therein. 
 
 This is a proposal to relinquish God's calling, to forfeit the promises 
 He had made, to abandon the special sanctity of the chosen family, 
 and become as one with the heathen round about. Here is a grave 
 temptation. They are invited by the prospect of ease, profit, and 
 power to lay aside their life of strangers and pilgrims, and become 
 as those 'who have no hope and are without God in the world.' 
 If Jacob and his sons had listened to this smooth persuasion, God's 
 plan for planting true religion amongst men, and preparing a nation 
 and Church for His .Son's Advent, would all have come to nought. 
 Let me remain steadfast to my God, Who has called me out of the 
 world and m.ade me an heir of His Kingdom. I will not part 
 with that glorious hope for the false jewels of earth. 
 
 II. And Shechem said unto her father and tmio her 
 brethren. Let me find grace in your eyes, and what ye shall say 
 unto me I will give. 12. Ash me never so much dowry and 
 gift, and I tvill give according as ye shall say unto me : but 
 give me the damsel to wife. 
 
 Shechem found no price too great to pay, if only he might enjoy 
 Dinah for his wife. Yet, if he had obtained her, most likely his 
 fancy would soon have been smitten by some new object. O God, 
 do Thou direct and guide the hearts of the young, fix them early 
 on Thee, that they may love, with Thee and in Thee, those whom 
 Thou hast appointed for their love ! Are wayward fancy and 
 momentary passion good guides into a harmony that is to last for 
 life? 
 
 13. And the sons of Jacob ansioered Shechem and Hamor 
 his father deceitfully, and said, because he had defiled Dinah 
 
200 Circumcision profits not [Gen. XXXIV. 
 
 their sister : 14. And they said unto them, We cannot do this 
 thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised ; for that 
 were a reproach unto us: 15. But in this ivill ive consent 
 unto you : If ye ivill be ow we be, that every male of you be 
 circumcised; 16. Then ivill we give our daiighters unto you, 
 and ive will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell ivith 
 you, and ive ivill become one xieople. 1 7 . But if ye will not 
 hearken unto us, to be circumcised ; then will we take our 
 daughter, and ive will he gone. 
 
 This false overture, only designed to snare the Gentiles to their ruin, 
 proposes a semblance of unity, but is not concerned with the 
 reality. The sons of Jacob did not propose to the inhabitants of 
 the land that they should worship the True God or reform their 
 lives according to His Law. No ; all they proposed was to im- 
 print a sign of subjection upon their bodies, and, unless they had 
 this, they were to be held as unclean and unfit for intercourse. I 
 am somewhat reminded, in reading this, of those Jewish Christians 
 in S. Paul's time, against whom he fought so strenuously, who 
 laboured to oblige Gentile Christians to accept circumcision as 
 a mere outward rite, and would have no communion with them 
 otherwise. 
 
 18. And their words pleased Hamor, and Shechem Uamors 
 son. 19. And the young man deferred not to do the thing, 
 because he had delight in Jacob's daughter : and he was more 
 honourable than all the house of his father. 
 
 They were deceived by the false condition : they threw away, for the 
 time, their strength and power of resistance, so that they were 
 helpless in the hour of danger. So S. Paul says to wavering, 
 doubtful hearts who are perplexed between Christ and the Jewish 
 Law: 'I, Paul, say unto you, if ye be circumcised, Christ shall 
 profit you nothing. Ye that will be justified by the Law, ye are 
 separated from Christ, ye are fallen from grace.' He points out 
 to them that this method of seeking peace is false and ruinous. 
 
 20. And Hamor and Shechem his so7i came unto the gate of 
 their city, and communed with the men of their city, saying, 
 21. These men are peaceable with us ; therefore let them dwell 
 in the land, and trade therein ; for the land, behold, it is large 
 enough for them ; let us take their daughters to us for wives, 
 and let ns give them our daughters. 22. Only herein will the 
 men consent unto us for to dwell with us, to be one people, if 
 
Ver. 29.] Fierce Anger and cruel Wrath 201 
 
 every male among tis be circumcised, as they are circumcised. 
 23. Shall not their cattle and their substance and every beast 
 of theirs he ours ? only let us consent unto them, and they will 
 dwell with us. 24. And unto Hamor and u7ito Shechem his 
 son hearkened, all that tvent out of the gate of his city ; and 
 every male was circumcised, cdl that ivent out of the gate of his 
 city. 
 
 O what false confidence ! Destruction was preparing for them, and 
 they, all the while, were full of hopes of growing rich by inter- 
 course with Jacob's family. They already looked on his wealth 
 as their own. One might say to them with S. Paul, ' Who hath 
 bewitched you?' or, 'They zealously seek you in no good way' 
 (Gal. V. 17). It was not any improvement in faith or manners that 
 the Canaanites sought by outward conformity with the heirs of 
 promise, nothing but mere wealth, and the bait drew them to 
 destruction. 
 
 25. And it came to pass on the third day, when they ivere 
 sore, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, DinaKs 
 brethren, took each man his sword, and came %ipon the city 
 boldly, and sleio all the mcdes. 26. And they slew Hamor 
 and Shechem his son tvith the edge of their sword, and took 
 Dinah out of ShecherrCs house, and went out. 
 
 Of this action Jacob himself says (xlix. 7) : 'Cursed be their anger, 
 for it was fierce ; and their wrath, for it was cruel.' It was quite 
 contrary to the statutes of that God Whom they professed to serve ; 
 nor could their outraged honour justify it. But I see a figure here 
 of mysteries that the Gospel was to reveal : how that the severity 
 of the Law knew of no pardon, that circumcision and the other 
 prescribed rites brought no real forgiveness — nought was there but 
 precept and recompense ; for grace and pardoning mercy souls 
 had to look elsewhere. 
 
 27. The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and spoiled the 
 city, because they had defiled their sister. 28. They took their 
 sheep, and their oxen, and their asses, and that which ivas in 
 the city, and that which was in the field, 29. And all their 
 wealth, and all their little ones, and their ivives took they 
 captive, and spoiled even all that was in the house. 
 
 Thus wrong was punished by wrong, outrage by worse outrage. 
 Our Lord checks such hasty vengeance by reminding us, ' He 
 that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.' 
 But were not all the inhabitants of Canaan to be destroyed and 
 
202 The holy Household in danger [Gen. XXXV, 
 
 their possessions seized by the descendants of Jacob under Joshua's 
 leadership ? Yes ; but that decree was not yet made l^nown. 
 God in His wisdom and for grave reasons (some of which I can 
 discern) ordained through Moses that those nations should be 
 exterminated from before the face of His people, and the land 
 wholly cleared for their settlement therein. Such was the warfare 
 of early times ; nor did God act otherwise than through the cus- 
 toms and feelings that were then prevalent. But no such order 
 had been given here. On this occasion the chosen family appears 
 as if sinking to the level of a tribe of robbers. 
 
 30. And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled 
 me to make me to stink among the inhabitants of the land, 
 among the Canaanites and the Perizzites : and I being feiv in 
 number, they shall gather tliemselves together against me, and 
 slay me ; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house. 31. And 
 they said, Should he deal vrith our sister as with an harlot ? 
 
 Jacob's proper weapons were peace and patience. He had the ex- 
 ample of Abraham and Isaac before him. He went as a sojourner 
 and pilgrim through the world. This violent outrage, this unspar- 
 ing plunder, were alien to his character. He says to his sons, like 
 Christ to His disciples, ' Ye know not what manner of spirit ye 
 are of.' The God of Abraham did not bid His servants seek His 
 protection and win His favour by these means. ' We shall thus,' 
 Jacob felt, ' be abandoned by God, as well as overwhelmed by 
 enemies.' Cruelty and dissimulation such as these brethren had 
 used were an abiding grief to their father, though he kept his 
 judgment secret as yet. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV 
 
 I. God sendeth Jacob to Beth-el. 2. He purgeth his house of idols. 
 6. He buildeth an altar at Beth-el. 8. Deborah dieth at Allon- 
 bachuth. 9. God blesseth Jacob at Beth-el. 16. Rachel travaileth 
 of Benjamin, and dieth in the way to Edar. 22. Reuben lieth with 
 Bilhah. 23. The sons of Jacob. 27. Jacob cometh to Isaac at 
 Hebron. 28. The age, death, and burial of Isaac. 
 
 AND God said unto Jacob, Arise, go up to Beth-el, and 
 dwell there : and make there an altar tinto God, that 
 appeared unto thee when thou fleddest from the face of Usau 
 thy brother. 
 
 This is a word of comfort, and also of reproach. Amidst gathering 
 dangers and fears Jacob is reminded of Him Who had been his 
 
Ver. 4.] A Family reformed 203 
 
 support and succour in previous trials. Could not He Who pro- 
 tectrd Jacob before protect him now? AnH yet the Heavenly 
 Voice has something of reproach in it ; it seems to remind Jacob 
 of a too-long-nt'glected duty. Why had he not sooner paid his 
 vows and made his prayer at the holy i>lace, as he had promised ? 
 Trouble and fear came on him, and then he listened to the voice 
 of God, reminding him of a forgotten duly. 
 
 2. Then Jacob said unto his household, and to all that were 
 with him, Put away the strange gods that are among you, and 
 he clean, and change your garments: 3. And let us arise, 
 and go up to Beth-el ; and I ivill mahe there an altar unto 
 God, Who ansivered me in the day of my distress, and zvas 
 with me in the ivay ivhich I ivent. 
 
 Jacob's household had now grown large ; it was augmented too by 
 the captives from Shechem. Rachel had brought sacred images 
 with her from Mesopotamia, and no doubt there were some per- 
 sons in so large a company who worshipped idols secretly or 
 publicly. Here is an invitation to put away all these and to begin 
 afresh with the love and service of the True God. The changing 
 their garments, polluted by blood, was but a figure of the inward 
 change which God requires of His worshippers. Jacob bade his 
 household consider the Truth, the Mercy, the Omnipresence of 
 that God Whom he worshipped. How much more worthy an 
 object of worship He is than mere dumb idols ! 
 
 4. And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which 
 were in their hand, and all their earrings ivhich were in their 
 ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak ivhich was by 
 Shechem. 
 
 These idols and these charms were put right out of sight and hidden 
 for ever. Was it the same great oak which overshadowed the 
 place of their burial and which had stood when Abraham entered 
 the land (xii. 6), that was still fresh and living when Joshua 
 (Josh. xxiv. 26) set up the memorial stone under it? If it was 
 the same tree, what a talc it might have told of ihe great men and 
 great events it had seen, itself unchanged. To it, as to the 
 churchyard yew, might be said, 
 
 ' In thy continuance thou mayest see in scorn 
 Men's feeble generations, that are born 
 And die, and then unto thy feet are brought ' ; 
 
 but yet in a simple heart that loves God there is an enduring force 
 and immortality of a far higher order. 
 
204 Bethel revisited [Gen. XXXV. 
 
 5. And they journeyed : and the terror of God was upon the 
 cities tlmt were roxind about them, and they did not pursue 
 after the sons of Jacob. 
 
 Jacob left the world's idols buried under the oak, which rose over 
 them like the Cross over vanquished heathenism : and his enemies 
 forthwith despaired of injuring him or repaying the cruel violrnce 
 of his sons. God had, as before-time, turned away wrath, over- 
 ruled hearts, shown Himself as the powerful Protector of those 
 to whom His promises were committed. 
 
 6. So Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, 
 that is, Beth-el, he and all the people that xvere ivith him. 
 7. And he built there an altar, and called the place El-beth- 
 El : because there God appeared %into him, xvhen he fled from 
 the face of his brother. 
 
 He came back to the sacred jilace, not now alone, but increased in 
 numbers and in goods. He brought back many memories from 
 his twenty years' absence. He and his household joined in solemn 
 worship to that God Who had proved Himself true. Now that 
 God is my God. I praise and serve the God of Jacob. He can 
 be to me as faithful and merciful as Jacob found Him. I will 
 offer to Him my best duty and service, knowing He is worthy of 
 more than I can give. 
 
 8. But Deborah liebekrUis nurse died, and she vjas buried 
 beneath Beth-el tmder an oak : and the name of it was called 
 Allon-bachuth. 
 
 Here is indeed (as Archbishop Laud says of his steward) an 'ancient, 
 loving, and faithful servant ' who died ' to the great both luss and 
 grief of her masters. She had accompanied Jacob's molher from 
 the far East, and had been ever since a centre of good, a teacher 
 of love and duty to several generations. Jacob's family showed 
 solemn grief at her burial, as a testimony to her great worth ; she 
 had left her home to share the wanderins^s and dangers of the holy 
 household, and to receive and pass on tlieir hopes of salvation to 
 come. 
 
 9. And God appeared unto Jacob again, ivhen he came out 
 of Padan-aram, and blessed him. 10. And God said ^lnto 
 him. Thy name is Jacob : thy name shall not be called any 
 more Jacob, hit Israel shall be thy name : and lie called his 
 name Israel. 
 
 He had rightly called this place the gate of Heaven, for he still finds 
 it open for blessings and promises to come down thence to him. 
 
Ver. 15.] Gracious Inipressions renewed 205 
 
 He comes there after more than twenty years and revives the old 
 impression vvliicli he had gained there at first. Again he hears the 
 promises, is encouraged and cheered by Divine mercy. So, O 
 God, when our dear young people come back to visit their old 
 home, the church where their childhood worshipped, do Thou 
 awaken and stablish in them resolutions and impressions of good. 
 
 IT. And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: he 
 friiitfal and mtdtiply ; a nation and a company of nations 
 shall be of thee, and Icings shall come out of thy loins; 
 
 12. And the land lohich I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I 
 rvill give it, and to thy seed after thee tvill I give the land. 
 
 13. And God went zip from him in the place where He talked 
 ivith him. 
 
 How was all this to come true? It reads like the promises in 
 Psalm ii. : 'Ask of me, and I will give thee the nations for thine 
 inheritance, and the utmost parts of the earth for thy possession.' 
 No mere multiplication of the Jewish nation, nor the crown of 
 a sin-stained and divided royalty on their brows, could fulfil what 
 is here set forth so gloriously. ' I gave the land to Abraham and 
 Isaac,' says the Voice. Yet, Lord, Abraham had nothing of it 
 but a grave, and Isaac was lingering on in obscurity, blind, and 
 almost forgotten. Ah, the words refer to a spiritual posterity 
 whom God should make ' kings and priests ' through His dear 
 Son's consecrated royalty ; they tell of ' an inheritance incor- 
 ruptible and undefiled ' on which believers enter. 
 
 14. And Jacob set up a pillar in the place tvhei-e He talked 
 with him, even a pillar of stone : and he poured a drink offer- 
 ing thereon, and he p)oured oil thereon. 15. And Jacob called 
 the name of the 'place where God spake tvith him, Beth-el, 
 
 Was not this the same stone, now re-edified, which he had erected 
 long ago? He did not offer sacrifice upon it, but retained it as a 
 twice-holy memorial. It is like our Christian altar, not a place 
 for bleeding victims, but for a spiritual offering of praise in which 
 God's grace descends invisibly, and where wine represents the 
 precious Blood shed once for all. Yet in His law God warned 
 the Israelites (Lev. xxvi. i) against setting up or honouring such 
 sacred stones, showing us how soon due reverence might pass 
 into superstition. Remember, this twice-consecrated Bethel, so 
 dear to faith, became the shrine of the golden calf, the place 
 accursed and denounced by God's prophets. O God of Bethel 
 Who hast been faithful to me all my days, let me not become 
 unbelieving and reprobate, and so provoke Thee, Who art my 
 best and truest Friend ! 
 
2o6 Rachel dies in bearing Benjamin [Gen. XXXV. 
 
 1 6. And they journeyed from Beth-el ; and there ivas hct a 
 little way to come to Ej^hralli,: and Rachel travailed, and she 
 had hard labour. 17. And it came to pass, when she was in 
 hard labour, (hat the midivife said unto her, Fear not ; thou 
 shalt have this son also. 
 
 Rachel said of old to her husband, ' Give me children, or else I die,' 
 and behold the very fulfilment of her desire brought death to her. 
 Why has God so ordered it that we cannot begin life without 
 agony and danger to her who has conceived us in her womb? I 
 know not, but it may be that His design was to plant maternal 
 love thus, to make thus a mysterious and intimate link between 
 the mother and her offspring, whom she has borne at the risk of 
 her life. Christ Himself on the Cross gave birth to our salvation 
 with long travail and anguish. 
 
 18. And it came to pass, as her sotd was in departing {fw 
 she died) that she called his name Ben-oni : hut his father 
 called him Benjamin. 
 
 ' Son of sorrow,' his mother said ; * son of strength, son of prosperity,' 
 said his father. This was his father's darling, the youngest by 
 far of all his children, and in whom his old age was wrapt up. 
 All Christians may in a figurative sense be called ' sons of sorrow,' 
 and yet 'sons of strength,' for Christ's Cross and Resurrection are 
 the double source of their life — they look to One Who went 
 through agony and the grave, and yet One Whose power brought 
 life out of death. These are one, not two, one and the selfsame 
 Saviour. 
 
 19. And Rachel died, and luas buried in the way to 
 Ephrath, which is Beth-lehem. 20. And Jacob set a j'illar 
 tip)on her grave: that is the pillar of Rachel's grave unto 
 this day. 
 
 Jacob had said, like the shepherds in the Gospel, ' Let us now go 
 even unto Bethlehem,' when this disaster overtook him. His dear 
 Rachel, who had shared his toils and journeys for so many years, 
 must leave him now. Once her love had made the long years 
 pass like a few days, but in his old age he was deprived of lier. 
 She could comfort him no longer. She had now to go another 
 road while he pursued his homeward journey. He did not carry 
 her onward to the cave of Machpelah and lay her in Abraham's 
 grave, but built her a monument which should witness to the 
 land being her children's heritage. She lay so near to Betlilchem 
 that the prophet, when he spoke of the tears of sufferers there, 
 called it ' Rachel weeping for her children.' 
 
Ver. 26.] ReuberHs Critne 207 
 
 21. And Israel journeyed, atid spread his tent beyond the 
 tower of Edar. 
 
 This tower marked some pasture- fields ; it was used to watch and 
 protect the flocks. Perhaps this was the very spot where the 
 shepherds were to keep their flocks on Christmas night, and Jacob 
 with his flocks was occup)ing the same place eighteen hundred 
 years before. What knowledge had he of the promised Saviour? 
 We know not what glimpses God may have given him, what 
 thoughts were in his mind as he walked through those blessed 
 fields. 
 
 2 2. And it came to pass, when Israel dwelt in that land, 
 that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father's concubine : 
 and Israel heard it. Noio the sons of Jacob tvere tivelve : 
 
 Now that Rachel was dead, her maid, Bilhah, was without a guide 
 and protector. Reuben's great crime was known to and re- 
 membered by his father, who denounced it in his last words 
 (xlix. 4) ; it brought on him a curse instead of a blessing ; it 
 caused his privilege as the first-born to pass to Joseph, who loved 
 and cherished purity. The history of Jacob's family is plain 
 spoken, telling us of the evil as well as the good, telling us where 
 the children fell away from their parents' teaching and God's law. 
 
 23. The sons of Leah : Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, and 
 Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebidun : 
 24. The sons of Rachel ; Joseph, and Benjamin: 25. And 
 the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid ; Dan, and Naphtali: 
 26. And the sons of Zil^^ah, Leah's handmaid; Gad, and 
 Asher : these are the sons of Jacob, \vhich were born to Jam in 
 Padan-aram. 
 
 These twelve, witli all their individual sins and failures, are yet the 
 company of patriarchs who founded the twelve tribes of Israel, 
 To them answer umier the Gospel ' the glorious company of the 
 Apostles' who foumled the spiritual Israel to which we belong. 
 'The Israel of God ' is, in S. Paul's judgment, a spiritual, not an 
 earthly kinship ; it is made up of Jews or Gentiles, of bond or free, 
 — in short, of all those who worship the God of Israel as revealed to 
 us in His only Son, Christ Jesus. Israel's psalms, Israel's prophets, 
 Israel's prayers are ours, only we see more meaning in them than 
 the Jews could discern. 
 
2o8 Isaacs Death and Burial [Gen. XXXVI. 
 
 27. And Jacob came unto Isaac his father unto Mamre, unto 
 the city of Arhah, which is Hebron, tvhere Abraham and Isaac 
 sojourned. 
 
 Isaac had long lived at Gerar or at Beersheba, but in his latter days 
 he came to sojourn near his father Abraham's grave. He desired 
 to quit this life with the same dispositions as Abraham had had. 
 He knew that the promises could not come true on earth for him 
 any more than for Abraham. No, he looked for eternal peace, 
 for * an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, that fadeth not away' 
 — these earth could not give. 
 
 28. And the days of Isaac were an hundred and fourscore 
 years. 
 
 He had been blind many years when he died. His death did not 
 come till some time after the events recorded in this chapter, not 
 till after Joseph had been lost, not till a few years before the 
 migration into Egypt. So his last days were saddened by Jacob's 
 grief for Joseph, and by the approaching famine. Isaac had lived 
 a life hidden with God. His life recalls our Saviour's thirty years 
 of silence and seclusion. Isaac's birth, his willingness to be 
 sacrificed on Mount Moriah, the birth of his sons, the infirmities 
 and patience of his long decay, these are all that we know of 
 him, but the rest is known to God. 
 
 29. And Isaac gave up the ghost, and died, and was 
 gathered tmto his people, being old and full of days : and his 
 .sons Esaii and Jacob buried him. 
 
 A long life ; but, when it is over, a long life and a short life are 
 the same — only faith and love never die. If we by faith unite 
 our hearts to God's eternity, something remains though our body 
 has turned to dust and our name is forgotten. Esau and Jacob 
 met again at Isaac's funeral ; they too were grown old, and their 
 enmity had completely passed away. God had mercifully blotted 
 out the jealousies of bygone years. How gracious is He in not 
 suffering us to follow out our hasty anger ! 
 
Ver. 8.] The House of Esau 209 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI 
 
 I. Esau's three wives. 6. His removal to mount Seir. g. His sons. 
 15. The dukes which descended of his sons. 20. The sons and dukes 
 of Seir. 24. Anah findeth mules. 31. The kings of Edom. 40. The 
 dukes that descended of Esau. 
 
 ~VrOW these are the generations of Esau, who is Edom. 
 XM 2. Esaii took his wives of the daughters of Canaan; 
 Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Aholibamah the 
 daughter of Anah the datighter of Ziheon the Hivite ; 3. And 
 Bashemath Ishmael's daughter, sister of Nebajoth. 4. And 
 Adah hare to Esau Eliphaz ; and Bashemath hare Reuel ; 
 5. And Aholihamah bare Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah: 
 these are the sons >f Esau, which were born unto him in the 
 land of Canaan. 
 
 The names of Esau's wives have been given already (xxvi. 34, and 
 x.xviii. 9), but differently from this passage, nor is it easy to ex- 
 plain how the difference arose. It is, however, clear that two of 
 his wives were of the nations of Canaan, strangers to the hopes of 
 Abraham's house, and that the daughter of Ishmael, whovn he 
 married afterwards, did nothing to remedy this alienation of heart, 
 which ended in a lasting enmity between the descendants of Esau 
 and those of Jacob. Esau's family are recounted in this chapter 
 for his father Isaac's sake, not as if they had any place in the line 
 of promise ; they were broken off from the good olive-tree, and 
 planted outside the Lord's chosen garden. Yet they attained 
 worldly power long before the family of Jacob. 
 
 6. And Esau took his tvives, and his sons, and his daughters, 
 and all the persons of his house, and his cattle, and all his 
 beasts, and all his substance, which he had got in the land of 
 Canaan; and went into the country from the face of his 
 brother Jacob. 7. Eor their riches ivere more than that they 
 might dwell together ; and the land ivherein they were strangers 
 could not hear them becattse of their cattle. 8. Thus dwelt 
 Esau in mount Seir : Esau is Edom. 
 
 Esau and Jacob were both wealthy, the former much more powerful 
 and more feared. They shared Isaac's riches between them after 
 his death, nor did any return of the old jealousy trouble their 
 peace while they lived ; but Esau left Canaan and established him- 
 self in Mount Seir. He had no faith in and consequently no 
 
 
Children of Edoni [Gen. XXXVl. 
 
 share in the great things which God had promised to Abraham 
 and Isaac. Jacob, when he slept alone at Bethel with the stone 
 for his pillow, was in reality far richer than Esau at the head of 
 his warriors, for he had a secret treasure of faith and grace which 
 he never lost. Outwardly the life and property and occupation of 
 the two brothers resembled each other, but Esau's thoughts never 
 went heavenwards, angels never met him, nor did any Divine 
 Voice cheer or restrain him. In Mount Seir no altars arose to 
 the true God. 
 
 9. And these are the generations of Esau the father of the 
 Edomites in mount Seir : 10. These are the names of Bsau's 
 sons; Eliphaz the son of Adah the wife of Esau, Reuel the 
 son of Bashemath the wife of Esau. 11. And the sons of 
 Eliphaz ivere Teman, Omar, Zepho, and Gatam, and Kenaz. 
 12. And Tirnna ivas concubine to Eliphaz Esau's son; and 
 she bare to Eliphaz Amalek : these tvere the so7is of Adah 
 Esau's wife. 13. And these are the sons of Reuel ; Nahath, 
 and Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah: these were the sons of 
 Bashemath Esaii's tvife. 14. And these were the sons of 
 Ahoiibaynah, the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon, 
 Esau's tvife : and she bare to Esau Jeush, and Jaalam, and 
 Korah. 15. These were dahes of the sons of Esau: the sons 
 of Eliphaz the firstborn son of Esau ; duke Teman, duke Omar, 
 duke Zepho, duke Kenaz, 16. Duke Korah, duke Getam, and 
 duke Amalek: these are the dukes that came of Eliphaz in the 
 land of Edom ; these tvere the sons of Adah. 17. And these 
 are the sons of Reuel Esaus son ; duke Nahath, duke Zerah, 
 duke Shammah, duke Mizzah : these are the dukes that came of 
 Reuel in the land of Edom ; these are the sons of Bashemath 
 Esau's wife. 18. And these are the sons of Aholibamah 
 Esau's u'lfe ; duke Jeush, duke Jaalam, duke Korah : these 
 were the dukes that came of Aholibamah the daughter of Anah, 
 Esau's wife. 19. These are the sons of Esau, ivho is Edom, 
 and these are their dukes. 
 
 These fourteen dukes or sheikhs descended from Esau, were the 
 heads of powerful tribes ; their names were feared in war, 
 honoured in peace ; their dwelling was the great mountain 
 range which runs from the eastern side of the Dead Sea to the 
 eastern arm of the Red Sea. The inaccessible rocks, deep 
 winding valleys, caves and mountain sanctuaries of that land were 
 the secure portion of Esau's children ; meanwhile the house of 
 Jacob learned 'to labour and wait.' They had to pass through 
 years of bondage, years of wandering, before they found a home. 
 
Ver. 35.] The Horites 
 
 20. These are the sons of Seir the Horite, who inhabited 
 the land; Lotan, and Shobal, and Zibeon, and Anah, 
 
 21. And Dishon, and Ezer, and Dishan: these are the dukes 
 of the Horites, the chikb'en of Seir in the land of Edom. 
 
 22. And the children of Lotan were Hori and Ileman ; and 
 Lotan' s sister teas Timna. 23. And the children of Shobal 
 were these; Alvan, and Manahath, and JEbal, Shepho, and 
 Onavi. 24. And these are the children of Zibeon ; both Ajah, 
 and Anah : this was that Anah that found the mides in the 
 ivildei'ness, as he fed the asses of Zibeon his father. 25. And 
 the children of Anah ivere these; Dishon, and Aholibamah, 
 the daughter of Anah. 26, And these are the children of 
 Dishon; Ilemdam, and Eshban, and Ithran, and Cher an. 
 27. The children of Ezer are these ; Bilhan, and Zaavan, and 
 Akan. 28. The children of Dishan are these; Uz, and Aran. 
 29. These are the dukes that came of the Horites ; duke Lotan, 
 duke Shobal, diike Zibeon, duke Anah, 30. Duke Dishon, 
 duke Ezer, duke Dishan ; these are the dukes that came of 
 Hori, among their chikes in the land of Seir. 
 
 In these verses are mentioned the chiefs of the Horite tribes, who 
 preceded Esau's family on Mount Seir. They already possessed 
 it in Abraham's time (xiv. 6) ; afterwards they were allied to and 
 then overthrown by the house of Esau (Deut. ii. 12). We know 
 little more of them than their names and the country that they 
 lived in. One of them found the hot springs (so the word used in 
 verse 24 seems to mean) in the wilderness when he was keeping 
 his father's asses. Perhaps this was the same sulphur spring 
 which still flows about two leagues from the eastern side of the 
 Dead Sea. How hard it is to believe that all these long since 
 forgotten warriors of old lime, each with their separate weight of 
 responsibilities, each with their own opportunities and trials, 
 live to God and will appear in the Judgment Day! — yet so faith 
 teaches. 
 
 31. And these are the kings that reigned in the land of 
 Edom, before there reigned any king over the children of 
 Israel. 32. And Bela the son of Beor reigned in Edom: and 
 the name of his city was Dinhabah. 33. And Bela died, and 
 Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his stead. 
 34. AtuI Jobab died, and Husham of the land of Temani 
 reigned in his stead. 35. And. Husham died, and Hadad the 
 son of Bedad, loho smote Midian in the field of Moab, reigned 
 
Kings of old Time [Gen. XXXVII. 
 
 in his stead : and the name of his city was Avith. 36. And 
 Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his stead. 
 37. And Samlah died, and Satd of Rehohoth by the river 
 reigned in his stead. 38. And Said died, and Baal-hanan 
 the son of Achhor reigned in his stead. 39. And Baal-hanan 
 the son of Achhor died, and Hadar reigned in his stead: and 
 the name of his city was Pau ; and his wife's name was 
 Mehetahel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahah. 
 
 These kings of old time were, it would seem, elective — we never 
 read of son succeeding father. They came from different places ; 
 some were foreigners, not Edomites. Their reigns were, it 
 would seem, short and troubled. They pass over the stage of 
 history like Banquo's descendants in the magic glass, carrying 
 indeed crowns and sceptres, yet but of a shadowy royalty. God's 
 will for Israel (i Sam. viii. 7) was that His chosen people should 
 do without kings. He would provide for them better otherwise. 
 It was a downward step, though foretold, when they insisted on 
 having a king like other nations. 
 
 40. And these are the names of the dukes that came of Esau, 
 according to their families, after their 2)laces, hy their names ; 
 duke Timnah, duke Alvah, duke Jetheth, 41. Duke Aholi- 
 bavuih, duke Elah, duke Pinon, 42. Duke Kenaz, duke 
 Teman, duke Mihzar, 43. Duke Jfagdiel, duke h'am: these 
 he the dukes of Edom, according to their habitations in the 
 land of their 2^ossession : he is Esau the father of the 
 Edomites. 
 
 These were ' the dukes of Edom,' who ' were amazed ' at the 
 victories of triumphant Israel (Exod. xv. 5). Yet it was not with 
 brotherly feeling or sympathy. When Israel, after their long 
 wanderings, came near the territory of Edom in their march 
 toward the promised land, and humbly petitioned for a passage 
 through it, they were harshly refused, and had to take a long 
 circuitous route 'to compass the land of Edom.' During the 
 period of the kings of Israel, mutual hostilities, wars, massacres, 
 marked the relations of the two peoples. At the downfall of 
 Jerusalem the Edomites were the bitterest enemies the Jews had 
 (Psalm cxxxvii. 7). Thus the reconciliation of Esau and Jacob 
 bore no fruit for their descendants, whereas their enmity and 
 distrust revived again and were perpetuated. 
 
Ver. 3-1 Joseph and his Brothers 213 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVII 
 
 2. Joseph is hated of his brethren. 5. His two dreams. 13. Jacob sendeth 
 him to visit his brethren, 18. His brethren conspire his death. 
 21. Reuben saveth him. 26. They sell him to the Ishmaelites. 
 31. His father, deceived by the bloody coat, mourneth for him. 
 36. He is sold to Potiphar in Egypt. 
 
 A 
 
 ND Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father ivas a 
 stranger, in the land of Canaan. 
 
 Esau was gone, but Jacob remained. Esau had renounced the dim 
 future hopes of his kindred and grasped instead the more visible 
 and tangible chieftainship of Mount Seir ; but Jacob remained 
 behind in Canaan, confident that what God had promised He 
 would perform, even though no outward signs of it appeared. 
 His conduct is what the Apostle recommends to us where he says, 
 ' Cast not away then your confidence which hath great recompense 
 of reward ; for ye have need of patient endurance, that having 
 done the will of God, ye may inherit the promise ; for yet a very 
 little while and He that cometh will come and will not tarry. 
 Now the just shall live by faith, but if he draw back, my soul 
 shall have no pleasure in him.' 
 
 2. These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seven- 
 teen years old, ivas feeding the flock with his brethren ; and 
 the lad ivas ivith the sons of Bilhah, and ivith the sons of 
 Zilpah, his father's tvives: and Joseph brought unto his 
 father their evil report. 
 
 Joseph was trained for his great destiny by a shepherd's duties, like 
 David in after time. He had to bear heat and cold and share 
 in all the herdsmen's labours. When he came to high place he 
 had learnt humility and consideration for the weak by the experi- 
 ence of his own youth. When his brethren spoke or acted 
 wrongly, he, though the younger, protested. His rule was the 
 Apostle's, ' Have no fellowship with the works of darkness, but 
 rather reprove them.' 
 
 3. Noiu Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, 
 because he was the son of his old age : and he made him a 
 coat of many colours. 
 
 Who is this beloved son, born late, and yet preferred before liis 
 brethren? He is one of them, yet stands apart from them in 
 
214 A Harvest Dreafu [Gen. XXXVII. 
 
 purity and grace. The robe his father made him was but a sign 
 of inward superiority. May we not exclaim when we read — 
 
 ' O purest semblance of the Eternal Son, 
 Who dwelt in thee, as in some blessed shrine, 
 To draw hearts after thee and make them thine !' 
 
 4. And when his hretliren saiv (hat their father loved him 
 more than all his brethren, they hated him, and coidd not 
 speah peaceably %mto him. 
 
 Of whom is it said that His enemies ' began to press upon Him 
 vehemently and question Him about many things, laying wait for 
 something to come out of His mouth, that they might accuse 
 Him ' (S. Luke xi. 53, 54) ? Who is it who says, ' Now have they 
 both seen and hated "both Me and My Father?' I observe in 
 Joseph a figure of that Divine Person Who showed forth all 
 perfection in human nature, and Whose spotless purity, intimate 
 union with His heavenly Father, deep heart-searching wisdom, 
 made those envy who did not love. 
 
 5. And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his 
 brethren: and they hated him yet the more. 6. And he said 
 unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have 
 dreamed : 
 
 They hated him before because he blamed their faults, and because 
 he was so dear to their father, and now yet more because of the 
 presages he had of his future greatness. In this too he resembled 
 Christ Jesus, Who drove His enemies to fury by saying, ' Hereafter 
 shall ye see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power and 
 coming in the clouds of heaven.' The Lord's greatness and 
 majesty was concealed for a while, kept dark until the moment for 
 His exaltation arrived, as it had been with Joseph in the days of 
 his humility. 
 
 7. For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and to, 
 my sheaf arose, and cdso stood upright : and behold, your 
 sheaves stood round abo2it, and made obeisance to my sheaf. 
 
 Jacob, then, like his father Isaac (xxvi. 12), sometimes joined agricul- 
 ture with the care of flocks. He did not lead, like Abraham, a 
 wholly pastoral life. This harvest dream Joseph had takes our 
 thoughts to Christ's word about the corn of wheat that dies and yet 
 brings forth much fruit (S. John xii. 24). Christ is the firstfruits of 
 the harvest, raised up and presented before God, to bring a blessing 
 on all the other sheaves. Kigluly we bow down before Him, we 
 adore Him from Whom all good and blessing come. 
 
Ver. II.] Presages of Glory to come 215 
 
 8. And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign 
 over us ? or shalt thoti indeed have dominion over us ? And 
 they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his 
 words. 
 
 It happened so, in time to come. Joseph's brethren indeed bowed 
 before him and felt that their whole dependence was in his mercy. 
 So it is with Christ the Lord. He is a man like us, born of a 
 human Mother, nourished as other children are, subject to the cares 
 and sorrows of mortals, yet we say, ' Thou art the King of glory, 
 O Christ.' We acknowledge readily that He is our true Lord ; 
 there is no disgrace in giving all honour, all glory to Him. He 
 reigns to bless, not oppress us. 
 
 9. And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his 
 brethren, arid said. Behold, I have dreamed, a dream more ; 
 and behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made 
 obeisance to me. 
 
 All this is too great for Joseph, but suits perfectly with Christ. 
 Our Saviour is worshipped by saints of the old covenant and the 
 new. He is the centre to which all true hearts turn ; they .iscribe 
 to Him whatever goodness they have, whatever light they shine 
 with. Twice over came this dream-warning, signifying Joseph's 
 future distinction, and verified by the event ; and yet dreams are 
 mostly mere idle fancy. Do Thou, Lord, if Thou hast a message 
 for me by day or night, in sleep or waking, make me discern Thy 
 word clearly and understand its meaning. Thou hast ways of 
 distinguishing what is false from what is true. Thou canst keep 
 me from putting my trust in folly. 
 
 10. And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and 
 his father rebuked him, and said unto him. What is this 
 dream that thou hast dreamed 1 Shall I and thy mother and 
 thy brethren indeed come to boiv doivn ourselves to thee to the 
 earth? 11. And his brethren envied him; but his father 
 observed the saying. 
 
 Jacob watched over his son's character, and checked in him any 
 rudiments of conceit. He bade him recollect his place and duty; 
 and yet he pondered over the tokens of his future greatness. He, 
 in his fatherly care, resembles Mary, who reproved her Divine Son 
 for remaining behind in the Temple (S. Luke ii. 48), and yet ' kept 
 in her heart ' all the sayings and incidents that pointed towards His 
 true nature and Divine glory. Joseph grew up thus, like Christ 
 Jesus after him, in wisdom and grace, as in years. 
 
2i6 Dothan [Gen. XXXVII. 
 
 12. And his brethren went to feed their father's flock in 
 Shechem. 13. And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy 
 brethren feed the flock in Shechem 1 come, and I will send thee 
 unto them. And he said to him, Here am I. 14. And he 
 said to him, Go, I pray thee, see whether it be well ivith thy 
 brethren, and tvell with the flocks ; and bring me tvord ayain. 
 So he sent him out of the vale of Hebron, and he came to 
 Shechem. 
 
 This errand is like that of David in i Samuel xvii., when Jesse 
 sent him down to the camp to see after his brethren's welfare ; 
 and the elder brothers there received the younger somewhat in the 
 same manner as these did, though they did not proceed to 
 violence. These two, Joseph and David, sent by their father to 
 visit their brethren, full of kindness for them, willingly obeying, 
 cheerfully venturing, yet misunderstood and reviled, are figures 
 of a more important visit, a holier Brother, an errand of greater 
 love, more cruelly misunderstood. Joseph went to Shechem. 
 Strange that Jacob's sons should go back to the neighbourhood 
 of that city which they had used so ill (ch. xxxiv. ) ; but it would 
 seem that Jacob valued much the piece of land which he had 
 bought there, and that he had had at one period to reclaim his 
 right to it by force (xlviii. 22). We know how the true Joseph 
 went there long afterwards and sat down wearied by the well. 
 
 15. And a certain man found him, and behold, he was 
 tvandering in the field: and the man asked him, saying. What 
 seekest thou ? 16. And he said, I seek my brethren : tell me, 
 I pray thee, u'here they feed their flocks. 17. And the man 
 said. They are departed hence ; for I heard them say, Let us go 
 to Dothan. And Joseph went after his brethren, and found 
 them in Dothan. 
 
 So Christ Jesus 'came down to earth from heaven,' came seeking us, 
 pursued our redemption with labour and pain. ' What seekest 
 thou?' is a question which may be profitably addressed to the 
 young, it bids us reflect on the object of our life. Mostly we shall 
 find whatever we seek with energy ; but let it be a good aim, a 
 true and satisfying reward. Joseph came to Dothan, where the 
 prophet Elisha lived long afterwards. It was there that the 
 young man who waited on Elisha sought and found the assurance 
 that God protects His servants (2 Kings vi. 17). 
 
 18. And when they saiv him afar of, even before he came 
 near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him. 
 
 Envy and hatred only wait for a chance. If you nourish those 
 vipers in your bosom you may expect some day they will bite you. 
 
Ver. 2 2.] Plots against the beloved Son 217 
 
 Lord, let me in quiet hours regulate my heart and thoughts, so 
 that I may not fall under the opportunity when some deadly 
 temptation to vice or violence comes upon me. If there is any 
 one I much dislike, let me pray for him and cultivate thoughts 
 of peace towards him ; so shall I not be overcome by resentment 
 at some bitter word or shifty dealing of his. Far better for me 
 to overcome evil with good ; that is true victory. 
 
 19. And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer 
 Cometh. 20. Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and 
 cast him into some pit, and tve will say, Some evil beast hath 
 devoured him: and we shall see what tvill become of his 
 dreams. 
 
 Here we seem to be listening to Christ's enemies seeking how they 
 may destroy Him, jealous because of His growing influence, 
 determined to end it. What, nothing but dreams to make 
 brothers so bitter ! Yes ; most of the things men contend so 
 violently about are mere dreams, no substance in them. It is 
 some trifle, some flattering honour, some imperceptible advantage 
 which has brought about war and desolation, has destroyed 
 thousands of lives and homes. The brothers when they said 
 exultingly, ' What will become of his dream-honours then, when 
 he is safely killed and put away ? ' are like thjse Jews who spoke 
 of the Lord as ' that deceiver,' and said, ' He saved others, 
 Himself He cannot save.' They laughed to think of all His 
 glorious words and lofty claims being confounded by failure ; but 
 truth was otherwise. 
 
 21. And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their 
 hands ; and said. Let us not kill him. 22. And Reuben said 
 unto them. Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in 
 the ivilderness, and lay no hand upon him, that he might 
 rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again. 
 
 Reuben's ineffectual kindness holds the same place as St. Peter's 
 attempted defence of Christ Jesus when He was being apprehended. 
 ' Non tali auxilio.' God's plans were different ; man's violence is 
 after all but an instrument in His Hand, it but works out the 
 Divine plan. Still, it is good to notice in Reuben, as against his 
 vicious and unstable character, this bright instance of kindness ; 
 perhaps he feared lest Jt)seph's death might be reckoned to 
 himself, put down to his envy of that lirother who had succeeded 
 to the place and esteem which he had himself lost. 
 
2i8 The Pit wherein is no Water [Gen. XXXVI I. 
 
 23. And it came to 2mss, ivhen Joseph was come unto his 
 brethren, that they stript Joseph out of his coat, his coat of 
 many colours that ivas on him ; 24. And they took him, and 
 cast him into a- pit : and the pit was empty, there ivas no water 
 in it. 
 
 Yet God said, ' I am with him in trouble. I will deliver him 
 and bring him to honour.' Was Joseph able, in this moment of 
 danger, and in the darkness of the pit, to recall God's Presence, 
 to lay hold on the Divine Hand ? We know not, but there have 
 been holy souls who have been upheld when all seemed darkest. 
 God has been with them in their worst moments of pain or 
 insult. Joseph laid in the pit, out of sight and hope, reminds us 
 of Christ Jesus descending into the under-world ; but it was that 
 He might carry there a message of comfort. 
 
 25. And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up 
 tlieir eyes and looked, and behold, a company of Ishmaelites 
 came from Gilead with their camels bearing spicery and balm 
 and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt. 
 
 The Ishmaelites had already become used to commerce, and supplied 
 luxurious Egypt with precious gums and spices. They had 
 caravans well organised and guarded. How different is this from 
 the wandering pastoral life of Jacob's family ! But yet the latter 
 had one treasure, knowledge of the true God, which the others 
 had almost entirely lost. This was worth more to the world's 
 future than all other riches. 
 
 26. And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if 
 toe slay our brother, and conceal his blood? 27. Come, and 
 let its sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hands be tipon 
 him ; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren 
 were content. 
 
 Joseph's life trembled in the balance ; finally, it was settled that he 
 should be got rid of by being sold as a slave. Yet in God's Book 
 his safety and honour were all guaranteed. He ' went thro ugh 
 _fire and water,' but it was that God might 'bring him out into a' 
 
 wealthy place.' He seemed to his brothers a worthless object, 
 
 to be got rid of one way or another ; they mocked his entreaties 
 (xlii. 21). How bitterly in time to come they recollected this 
 scene ! Did they not, all unknowingly, represent that great 
 occasion when Christ's own nation rejected Him and gave Him 
 away to the Gentiles ? 
 
Ver. 33-] Twenty Pieces of Silver paid 219 
 
 28. Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and 
 they dreio and lifted tip Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph 
 to the Ishmaelites for ttventy pieces of silver : and they brought 
 Joseph into Egypt. 
 
 All the various families that traced their line to Abraham are here 
 represented as combining together against Joseph. The Ishmaelites 
 were children of Hagar, the Midianites of Keturah, and Jacob's 
 sons of Sarah ; these last were the worst. Joseph was alone, 
 amongst so many cruel or indifferent spectators. He was 
 rejected by his fatiier's house and handed over to strangers ; thus 
 ' figuring Christ, Whose message was rejected by His own people 
 and then transferred to the Gentile world. The former, says the 
 Apostle (Acts xiii. 46), 'counted themselves unworthy of ever- 
 lasting life,' so its heralds ' turned to the Gentiles.' 
 
 29. And Reuben returned unto the pit ; and behold, Joseph 
 zvas not in the pit; and he rent his clothes. 30. And he 
 returned iinto his brethren, and said, The child is not ; and I, 
 whither shall I go ? 
 
 Why was Reuben out of sight just when he was most wanted ? He 
 was genuinely sorry for his brother, and had tried in vain (xlii. 22) 
 to turn the others from their purpose ; and yet when Joseph was to 
 be sold Reuben happened to be out of the way. This belongs to 
 his character, and explains his not excelling in anything. Let me 
 ask of God a steadfast heart ; let me put Christ's business first, and 
 never attend to my own convenience before the welfare of my 
 brethren and the glory of God. 
 
 31. And they took Joseph's coat, and hilled a kid of the 
 goats, and dipped the coat in the blood ; 32. And they sent 
 the coat of many coloui's, and they brottght it to their father ; 
 and said, This have we found : knoiv now luhether it be thy 
 son's coat or no. t^t,. And he knew it, and said, It is my son's 
 coat; an evil beast hath devoured him; Joseph is withotU 
 doubt rent in pieces. 
 
 Who is it who comes forward in vision clothed in a garment dipped 
 in lilood (Rev. xix. 13)? Yet it is not for vengeance only thac 
 that Blood calls ; it ' speaks better things ' than the blood of 
 Old Testament saints ; nay, by it other rol)es are made white 
 (Rev. vii. 14). We who present before our heavenly Father the 
 tokens of Christ's Death, the Wounds which His Sacred Humanity 
 endured, do so with humble confidence, acknowledging our guilt 
 but relying on Divine Mercy. 
 
220 Jacob mourning his Darling [Gen. XXXVIII. 
 
 34. And Jacob rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his 
 loins, and mourned for his son many days. 
 
 Jacob thought it no shame to give way to his grief for this dear and 
 honoured son. He was not one of those who profess a philosophic 
 indifference to tears and pain. Oh no ; it is well for us to ' humble 
 ourselves under the mighty Hand of God.' It is well for us, like 
 the Divine Exemplar, to weep when affliction touches us, to grieve 
 for our brethren's grief; such tears God will in due time wipe 
 away ; they do not express discontent with God's will, nor a 
 merely selfish sorrow. 
 
 35. And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to 
 comfort him; but he refused to be comforted ; and he said. 
 For I ivill go doivn into the grave unto my son mourning. 
 Thus his father wept for him. 
 
 Jacob's thoughts went onward to the other world, where he thought 
 his dear Joseph was gone. He looked forward to the world of 
 shadows as reuniting him to his darling again. Now that Jesus 
 has in reality gone that road, has lain in the pit, has lightened 
 the darkness of the grave, we can look forward with some fear 
 and yet more hope to the swiftly coming end of our earthly life. 
 
 ' As in the pit his father's darling lay 
 
 Beside the desert way, 
 And knew not how, but knew his God could save 
 Even from that living grave,' 
 
 so we contemplate approaching death, and know that it cannot 
 extinguish love. 
 
 36. And the Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, 
 an officer of Pharaoh's, and captain of the guard. 
 
 He was sold as a beast might have been. Far away were all the 
 hopes and plans of his youth, far away his father's love, far away 
 the -worship of the God of Abraham. Yet Joseph stored in his 
 heart these dear memories. He had hope and a good conscience. 
 He was a man though a slave. He disposed himself not to 
 fruitless regrets, but to do well all that he was ordered to do ; he 
 determined to deserve and wm trust. 
 
Ver. 7.] Er's early Death 221 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVIII 
 
 I. Judah begetteth Er, Onan, and Shelah. 6. Er marrieth Tamar. 
 8. The trespass of Onan. 12. Tamar stayeth for Shelah. 13. She 
 deceiveth Judah. 27. She beareth twins, Pharez and Zarah. 
 
 AND it came to pass at that time, that Judah went down 
 from his brethren, and txhrned into a certain Adullamite, 
 whose name was Hirah. 2. And Judah saw there a daughter 
 of a certain Canaanite, ivhose name was Shuah ; and he took 
 her, and tvent in unto her. 
 
 Judah was still very young, only three years older than Joseph. He 
 left the society of his own family and allied himself with the in- 
 habitants of Canaan both by friendship and by marriage. His 
 sons turned out ill as they grew up. He himself fell into grave 
 sin, out of which were born the children who became heads of 
 the chief families of the tribe. "Why is this story related to us, 
 except to show that Divine Grace does not take account of any 
 preceding merit? Abraham had been an idolater. Isaac was 
 chosen before his birth. Jacob obtained the blessing by craft in 
 preference to his elder brother ; and now Judah is Christ's ancestor 
 rather than Joseph, and the descendants of incest rather than those 
 of faithful marriage. All these carry on the line of promise ; all 
 these appear in the genealogy of Christ ; all these hand on the 
 deposit of faith in a Redeemer Who, when He came, brought 
 cleansing to sinners, mercy to those most undeserving. 
 
 3. And she conceived, and hare a son; and he called his 
 name Er. 4. And she conceived again, and bare a son ; and 
 she called his name Onan. 5. And she yet again conceived, 
 and hare a son ; and called his name Shelah : and he was at 
 Chezib, when she bare him. 6. And Judah took a wife for Er 
 his firstborn, whose name was Tamar. 7. A7id Er, Jicdah's 
 firstborn, was ivicked in the sight of the Lord ; and the Lord 
 sleiv him. 
 
 Er was very young, yet his wickedness provoked his early death. 
 Let me so clearly put God's law and its holy requirements before 
 the eyes of the young that they may understand that they are 
 accountable beings. They find themselves in no chance world, 
 but under the rule of a righteous Governor ; cruelty, impurity, 
 
OnatCs Fault [Gen. XXXVIII. 
 
 deceit, cannot but bring misery ; as a lad sows, so will he reap. 
 Fix these truths, dear Lord, on the minds of the young, and those 
 who have to teach them. 
 
 8. And Judah said tmto Onan, Go in u7ifo thy brother's 
 ivife, and marry her, and raise up seed to thy brother. 
 9. Awl Onan kneiv that the seed should not be his ; and it 
 came to pass, xvhen he went in unto his brother s tvife, that he 
 spilled it on the ground, lest that he should give seed to his 
 brother. 10. And the thing which he did displeased the Lord: 
 wherefore he slew hhn cdso. 
 
 Then the injunction of the Mosaic Law (Deut. xxv. 5), bidding the 
 brother marry the widow of his childless brother, and appointing 
 that the eldest son of such a marriage should be reckoned as the 
 son of the dead brother and succeed to his inheritance, was but 
 the perpetuation of an ancient custom. Its purpose was to preserve 
 the name of the dead and to retain the division of inheritances. 
 But Onan refused to fulfil this duty. He would not part with the 
 inheritance that had belonged to his brother, or he would not 
 abridge his own liberty by becoming a father. So he perpetrated 
 wickedness instead. It is true that perverted reason sets itself to 
 justify such excesses, but I appeal to the natural instinct of man 
 and to God's holy law as saying plainly what is right and what is 
 wrong in this matter. On these I take my stand, and refuse to alter. 
 
 II. Then said Judah to Tamar his daughter-in-laio, 
 Remain a ividow at thy father'' s house, till Shelah my son be 
 grown: for he said. Lest 2ieradventure he die also, as his 
 brethren did. And Tamar went and dwelt in her father s 
 house. 
 
 Judah was horrified at his sons' deaths, but we do not read that he 
 himself learnt from God's awful judgments to live a pure and 
 godly life. He promised Shelah to his daughter-in-law, but 
 insincerely, not meaning to give him to her. He bade her return 
 to her father's house and set there a good example of chaste 
 widowhood, but he never intended that his own life as a widower 
 should be chaste. S. Paul's advice to widows (i Cor. vii. 39, 40, 
 and I Tim. v. 3-15) has a true ring about it, a sober practical- 
 ness. 
 
 12. And in jirocess of time the daughter of Shuah Jiidah's 
 wife died : and Jttdah tvas comforted, and went up unto his 
 
Ver. 19.] Tamar disguised as a Harlot 223 
 
 sheepskearers to Tininath, he and his friend Hirah the 
 Adullamite. 
 
 Judah had lost his wife and finished his mourning for her. He was 
 about to take part in the shearing festival, and share the mirth of 
 his companions. His friend the Adullamite was apparently a 
 person of easy virtue and worldly maxims, whose presence would 
 not put him to shame in anything. Judah had not, like his 
 brother Joseph, the practice of remembering God's Presence as a 
 safeguard in hours of temptation. 
 
 13. And it tvas told Tamar, saying, Behold thy father-in- 
 law goeth up to Timnath to shear his sheep. 14. And, she put 
 her widoiv's garments off from her, a7id covered her with a vail, 
 and wrapped herself, and sat in an open place, which is by the 
 way to Timnath ; for she saw that Shelah tvas groivn, and she 
 was not given unto him to wife. 
 
 Tamar is not so much to be blamed for her wickedness as excused 
 for her ignorance. She knew little of the spirit of true religion, 
 but was in despair at her marriage treaty being laid aside and 
 forgotten, and she thought that only by such a means as this could 
 she obtain the offspring that she desired. Thus she laid aside her 
 widow's habits, and appeared as a woman of evil life, such as 
 were in old times excluded from cities and forced to haunt the 
 roads. Thus she laid a snare into which Judah fell because he 
 had put aside self-restraint, and the fear of God Who is ever 
 nigh. 
 
 15. When Judah saw her, he thought her to he an harlot ; 
 because she had covered her face. 16. And he turned unto her 
 by the way, and said. Go to, I pray thee, let me come in unto 
 thee; (for he kneiv not that she ivas his daughter-in-law). 
 And she said, What tuilt thou give me, that thou mayest come 
 in unto me? 17. And he said, I v:ill send thee a kid from, 
 the flock. And she said. Wilt thou give me a pledge, till thou 
 send it? 18. And he said, What pledge shall I give thee? 
 And she said. Thy signet, and thy bracelets, and thy staff that 
 is in thine hand. And he gave it her, and came in unto her, 
 and she conceived by him. 19. And she arose, and went away, 
 and laid by her vail from he?; and put on the garments of her 
 widowhood. 
 
 Judah fell, just as his descendant David was overthrown in a moment, 
 by looking when he should have turned his eyes away. To those 
 
224 Pledges redeemed [Gen. XXXVIII. 
 
 who regard fornication as a thing indifferent, we would say, Who 
 is there that could bear to think of his sister or daughter being 
 dishonoured ? Who would not feel the bitterest shame and 
 indignation at being compelled to witness such an outrage ? And 
 if we honour good women thus, and would die to preserve their 
 honour, how can we dare to despise and degrade their sisters, who 
 were once perhaps the treasure of some home ? Indeed, poor out- 
 casts are deserving of the greatest pity and kindness. They need 
 a helping hand to restore them to what God meant them to be. 
 
 20. And Judah sent the kid by the hand of his friend the 
 Adullamite, to receive his jyledge from the woman's hand: but 
 he found her not. 2 1 . Then he asked the men of that place, 
 saying, Where is the harlot, that ivas openly by the way side ? 
 And they said, There was no harlot in this place. 22. And 
 he returned to Judah, and said, I cannot find her ; and also 
 the men of the place said, that there was no harlot in this 
 place. 
 
 The very Canaanites who inhabited the place abhorred the notion 
 of such a person being allowed among them. They were glad to 
 reply that they knew of no harlot haunting there. Preserve in us, 
 O Lord, such sentiments. Let us never attain to the fancied 
 freedom of those bold spirits who laugh at modesty. Let our 
 courage and liberty be all for good and upright ends. Let deeds 
 of darkness be a shame in our judgment. 
 
 23. And Judah said, Let her take it to her, lest ive be 
 shamed : behold, I sent this kid, and thou hast not fo^md her. 
 
 Judah boasted of his exactness in performing his word and redeeming 
 his pledge. He said that the unknown woman could have no 
 right to reproach him. He had done just as he promised her. In 
 all this he resembles many persons who pique themselves on their 
 character, on their exactness in performing engagements, in dis- 
 charging public duties, but forget entirely how far the require- 
 ments of God's law extend. Mercy, purity, reverence, are 
 strictly due to Him. The law of Christ claims the whole heart 
 and life : what have we to say to such engagements, such require- 
 ments? 
 
 24. And it came to pass aboiit three months after, that it 
 ivas told Judah, saying, Tamar thy daughter-in-law hath 
 played the harlot ; and also, behold, she is tvith child by 
 whoredom. And Judah said. Bring her forth, and let her be 
 burnt. 
 
 The sentence upon Tamar pronounced her guilty of death, as being 
 the affianced wife of Shelah, and having betrayed her promised 
 
Ver. 30.] Birth of Pharez and Zarah 225 
 
 husband. It is not in exact accordance witli the law of Moses ; 
 that, however, pronounced a sentence of death upon the unfaithful 
 wife (Deut. xxii. 22). Those who brought to our Lord the woman 
 taken in adultery said, ' Moses in the law commanded that such 
 should be stoned.' Moses' law also ordered the execution of a 
 newly married wife who should prove to have been unchaste 
 while living in her father's house (Ueut. xxii. 21). In all these 
 points Moses only took up and apparently mitigated the rigorous 
 penalties heretofore in force. Judah, in his cold pronouncement 
 of the death sentence, reminds us of the way in which we blame 
 in others the very vices to which we are ourselves secretly given. 
 True Christians will recognise themselves in the calamities and 
 downfalls of their bretliren ; will say, 'There, but for the grace of 
 God, am I ' ; w ill say ' What is that defect in my own heart 
 which inclines me to condemn so keenly such-and-such a transgres- 
 sion in another ? ' 
 
 25. When she was brought forth, she sent to her father-in- 
 I'uv, saying, By the man, whose these are, am I ivith child : 
 and she said, Discern, I pray thee, whose are these, the signet, 
 and bracelets, and staff. 26. And Judah acknowledged them, 
 and said. She hath beeri more righteous than I; heccmse that I 
 gave her not to Shelah my son. And he Jcnew her again no 
 more. 
 
 In like manner both Jew and Gentile were proved guilty before 
 God. It was to a world of sinners that Christ came. The 
 preaching of the Gospel brought with it the recognition of man's 
 own wretchedness. Such a stain was allowed to subsist in the 
 line of Christ's ancestors on purpose to illustrate how Divine 
 mercy found in us no worthiness. Mary's Son, the purest flower 
 of human nature, sprang from this corrupt stem. Christ's 
 victorious grace came to revive dead souls, to wash foulest stains 
 away. Tamar and Judah now'acknowledged their fault, and each 
 lived a widowed life henceforward in uprightness. 
 
 27. And it came to 2^(1 ss in the time of her travail, that, 
 behold, ttvins tvere in her tvomb. 28. And it came to pass, 
 when she travailed, that the one p%U out his hand : and the 
 midtvife took and borind upon his hand a scarlet thread, say- 
 ing, This came out first. 29. And it came to 2^ass, as he dreto 
 back his hand, that, behold, his brother came out : and she said, 
 If 070 hast thou broken forth ( this breach be upon thee : there- 
 fore his name was called Pharez. 30. And afterward came 
 
 P 
 
2 26 Potiphars House [Gen. XXXIX. 
 
 o^d his brother^ that had the scarlet thread ztpon his hand : 
 and his name was called Zarah. 
 
 Here is the ancestor of the chosen seed. It is from Pharsz, the 
 child of incest, that David and David's Son descended. Pharez 
 was the first-born son against the inidwife's expectation. Zarah, 
 who had the scarlet thread upon him, was born later, though seen 
 before. Thus our minds are led to think of Christ Jesus, Who, 
 though He came late in time, is the first-born of God, the leader 
 of the noble army of saints. Those who came before as well as 
 those who came after Him, are all marked with His Blood, and 
 depend wholly on His righteousness. He is sung by them all— 
 they all say, ' Worthy is the Lamb.' 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIX 
 
 I. Joseph advanced in Potiphar's house. 7. He resisteth his mistress's 
 temptation. 13. He is talsely accused. 20. He is cast in prison. 
 21. God is with nim there. 
 
 AND Joseph was brought doivn to Egypt ; and Potiphar, 
 an officer of Pharaoh, cajjtain of the g aard, an Ecjyptian^ 
 bought him of the hands of the Ishmeelites, which had brought 
 him doivn thither. 
 
 Do not think that God neglects those who love Him, when He lets 
 them fall into misery. Do not think that true hearts will always 
 be happy here lielow. Here is one on whom God's eyes are ever 
 open, who acknowledges God in all his ways, yet he is attacked, 
 sold, imprisoned, falsely accused. It is true, later on, he was 
 exalted and raised to high estate ; but there are many brave and 
 pure souls whose captivity has never been redressed, who have 
 breathed out their last under ill-usage or in extreme abandon- 
 ment. When you read of such cases, do not say like the scoffing 
 heathen, ' Quis putet esse Deos?' but raise your eyes higher, and 
 recall that God's ways are not yet unveiled. 
 
 2. And the Lord was with Joseph, and he tvas a prosperous 
 man ; and he uus in the house of his master the Egyptian. 
 3. And his master saiv that the Lord ivas ivitJi Jiivi, and that 
 the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand. 
 
 God was with him ; that was the secret of His prosperity. Joseph 
 used to practise the thouglu of God's Presence. He thought, ' God 
 
Ver. 8.] A Portrait of Joseph 227 
 
 is near, God helps and sustains me ' ; and this recollection cheered 
 him in hard times, restrained him under temptation, made him 
 do all his work in the best possible manner. Of every little bit 
 of work he said, ' Let this be done for God's sake, and done well.' 
 His master was thus drawn by Joseph's conduct to recognise the 
 presence and guidance of the True God. Oh that we all by our 
 behaviour could teach such a lesson ! 
 
 4. And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: 
 and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had 
 he put into his hand. 
 
 Joseph had evidently the grace of government ; he could be trusted 
 to order all things well. As in after days he directed the admin- 
 istration of a kingdom successfully, so now his master's business, his 
 household, land, accounts. He had the gift of knowing what 
 each of the other servants was fit for, and he made all things go 
 smoothly by constant patience and attention. Difficulties no 
 doubt arose, but these he took to God, and so found solution of 
 them. 
 
 5. And it came to pass from the time that he had made him 
 overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the Lord 
 blessed the Egyptian's house for Josej^h's sake ; and the blessing 
 of the Lord was up)on all that he hail in the house, and in the 
 field. 6. And he left all that he had in Joseph's hand; and 
 he kneiv not ought he had, save the bread vjhich he did eat. 
 And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured. 
 
 No doubt Potiphar raised Joseph by degrees ; first kept him about 
 his person, then gave him this or that matter to attend to, last of 
 all, put all business in his hands. Thus he himself was able to 
 attend entirely to his duties at the Court, confident that all things 
 at home would go well. Besides his good stnse and integrity, 
 Joseph was also giited with good looks and grace. Do not put 
 blame on such gifts. Do not think that their possessor must 
 needs use iheni for selfishness or vanity. Oh no, surely they are 
 sparks from the Divine light, they remind us of the uncreated 
 beauty ; attractiveness of look and manner is a talent which God 
 bestows in love, which lie means to be used for comfort and 
 blessing, not wasted on sin. 
 
 7. And it came to pass after these things, that his master's 
 tvife cast her eyes iipon Joseph ; and she said, Li' with me. 
 8. But he refused, and said unto his masters ivife, Behold, 
 
2 28 Firmness in Temptation [Gen. XXXIX. 
 
 imy master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he 
 hath committed all that he hath to my hand ; 9. There is 
 none greater in this house than 1 ; neither hath he kept hack 
 any thing from me hut thee, heca^ise thou art his wife.- how 
 then can I do this great ivickedness, and sin against God ? 
 
 Joseph spoke to his mistress respectfully and wisely, seeking to call 
 her back to true and upright ways. He said to her, ' I have a 
 master to whom I belong, and whom I am bound to respect. I 
 am grateful to him for his goodness. I desire to prove myself 
 worthy of the absolute trust that he has shown to me. Above all, 
 I believe in God, Who sees and knows all that I do, and Whose 
 holy law forbids such wickedness as this. 'I cannot,' he said, 
 ' betray at once my kind master and my merciful God.' 
 
 10. And it came to pass, as she spake to Joseph day hy day, 
 that he hearkened not unto her, to lie hy her, or to be tvith her. 
 
 I have often admired the wise rules given in a good book for those 
 who are tempted to deadly sin. ' Battle against this vice, but do 
 not attempt to face it directly. Avoid to the utmost of thy power 
 every occasion and every person that brings thee into danger ; if 
 compelled at times to meet such, use a grave and modest de- 
 meanour and distant words, not any excessive tenderness or 
 aflTahility. Fly from temptation, for thou art as stubble before 
 the fire, and when thou least thinkest it will overtake and ruin 
 thee. Avoid idle dreaming ; be well employed and diligent always. 
 Do not condemn or blame others who have been guilty, but con- 
 iess thyself dust and ashes. This vice is almost always connected 
 with pride ; therefore humble thyself, and rejoice in all that de- 
 preciates and crosses thy pride. Above all, watch and keep guard.' 
 
 11. And it came to pass about this time, that Joseph ivent 
 into the house to do his business ; and there was none of the 
 men of the house there within. 12. And she caught him by 
 his garment, saying. Lie with me : and he left his garment in 
 her hand, and Jied, and got him out. 
 
 Joseph lulfils the Apostle's description of a true believer, as ' made 
 free from sin and become a servant to God.' He regarded a good 
 conscience as the best treasure, though he might lose all else ; and 
 God as his one sole INIaster Whom he must please, though all 
 others are against him. Lord, give me grace when I am tempted 
 to fly from the danger and seek refuge before Thy Cross. Let Thy 
 Wounds be my succour, Thy Sacred Passion my healing remedy. 
 Let me fly to Thee at once with an earnest word or inward 
 aspiration ; thus I shall overcome. 
 
Ver. 20.] JosepJis Garment a false Proof 229 
 
 13. And it came to ixxss, ivhen she saw that he had left his 
 garment in her hand, and was fled forth, 14. lliat she called 
 unto the men of her house, and spaJce unto them, saying, See, 
 he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mode us ; he came in 
 unto me to lie tvith me, and I cried iviih a loud voice : 
 15. And it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted up my 
 voice and cried., that he left his garment tvith me, and fled, and 
 got him out. 
 
 No doubt, as his brothers were jealous of his favour with their father, 
 so his fellow-servants were jealous of his favour with their master. 
 Thus this shameful accusation found willing ears to receive it, 
 ready tongues to spread it. Thus his virtue was overborne, and 
 he was reckoned an abandoned character. He was ' numbered 
 with the transgressors,' as his true Lord afterwards. 
 
 16. And she laid up his garment by her, until his lord came 
 home. 17. And she spake unto hi7n according to these toords, 
 saying. The Hebreiv servant, which thou hast brought unto us, 
 came in unto me to mock me: 18. And it came to pass, as I 
 lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, 
 and fled out. 
 
 Here is Joseph's coat again brought in as a proof. First it was 
 alleged to his father as a proof of his having been torn in pieces ; 
 then another time to his master as a proof of his being lost to all 
 shame. Yet neither the garment torn and soiled with blood, nor 
 that which the jealous woman laid up as a proof to ruin him, had 
 a true tale to tell. Joseph himself remained sound in life and pure 
 of heart in spite of these supposed tokens. What is this kind of 
 love which turns so soon into deadly hate? It is not love at all, 
 but selfishness. When I seek to gratify my passion at the expense 
 of a loved object, I do not really love, but hate ; it is but a grasp- 
 ing selfishness or covetousness that has falsely borrowed the holy 
 name of Love. 
 
 19. And it came to pass, ivhen his master heard the words 
 of his wife, which she spmke \mto him, saying, After this 
 manner did thy servant to vie ; that his wrath tvas kindled. 
 20. And Joseph's master took him, and put him into the 
 prison, a p)lace where the king's prisoners were bound : and he 
 was there in the prison. 
 
 Not much honour this, to be imprisoned for having deceived his 
 master, abused the trust confided to him, turned all his good 
 
230 Prison Hours [Gen. XL. 
 
 character to shame. He was now despised and abhorred of all ; 
 he had no friends to comfort him — in those days books were 
 scarcely known, the example of saints and martyrs and of their 
 suffering Lord did not exist — no one shared Joseph's belief in 
 God's Providence or his hope of the Divine Promises. Observe, 
 if Joseph had been withheld from sin merely by pride, or by reason, 
 or by any other human motive, he would have been left very 
 desolate now ; but he trusted in the living God, and therefore was 
 at peace, though all outward consolation seemed gone. The 
 Apostle felt the same when he said, ' Persecuted, but not forsaken ; 
 cast down, but not destroyed,' 
 
 21. But the Lord was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, 
 and gave him favoiir in the sight of the keeper of the prison. 
 
 O blessed Companion and safe Guide ! He who has God with him 
 cannot feel utterly alone, though he may have some dark hours, 
 may have (like Jesus Himself) times of agony, times of feeling for- 
 saken. I read that 'the Lord was with Joseph,' and yet that 
 God's own Son said to His heavenly Father, ' Why hast Thou 
 forsaken Me?' Why is this, except to show that Christ Jesus 
 drank the very dregs of the cup, knew all that was worst in 
 trouble? Still at last His 
 
 ' soul, that seemed 
 Forsaken, feels her present God again, 
 
 And in her Father's arms 
 Contented, dies away.' 
 
 2 2. And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph's hand 
 all the prisoners that ivere in the prison ; and ivhatsoever they 
 did there, he was the doer of it. 23. The keeper of the prison 
 looked not to any thing that was nnder his hand ; because the 
 Lord 7vas with him, and that xvhich he did, the Lord made it 
 to prosper. 
 
 Evidently Joseph never claimed credit for himself. His good sense, 
 his success, his trustworthiness, were no subjects of self-com- 
 placency : because he always ascribed his good fortune to the Giver 
 of all good. It is, ' the Lord was with him,' 'the Lord made his 
 doings to prosper.' Now, let my prosperity be of that kind that 
 I can safely attribute it to the same blessed source that Joseph did. 
 If I grow rich by deceit, by covetou>ness, by successful betting or 
 gambling, can I say truly that it is the Lord that has made me 
 prosper ? 
 
Ver. 6.] Prison Ministries 231 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 I. The butler and baker of Pharaoh in prison. 4. Joseph hath charge of 
 them. 5. He interpreteth their dreams. 20. They come to pass 
 according to his interpretation. 23. The ingratitude of the butler. 
 
 AND it came to 2)ass after these things, tliat the butler of 
 the king of Egypt and his baker had offended their lord 
 i/ie king of Egypt. 2. And Pharaoh tvas ivroth against two 
 of his officers, against the chief of the butlers, and against the 
 chief of the bakers. 3. And he put them in loard in the house 
 of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place ivhere 
 Joseph was hound. 
 
 Prisons, too, are in God's Hand, have been inhabited by His Saints, 
 made homes of truth and grace. Let us descend there and see 
 what light God sheds in such dark places. These two great 
 officers must have been mixed up in some grave conspiracy ; per- 
 haps they had been accused (one with apparent reason, one without 
 reason) of practising on their master's life. In their deep disgrace 
 they found time for reflection. Once they had been envied by all 
 men, on account of their great charge and their nearness to the 
 monarch ; but all. their glory had vanished in a moment. So 
 must my money, my position, the estimation had of my influence, 
 leave me suddenly when I die. 
 
 4. And the captain of the guard charged Joseph with them, 
 and he served them : and they contimied a season in ward. 
 
 Joseph had now, after a long imprisonment, attained to be trusted 
 and set above others, though still within the gloomy prison walls. 
 He practised the Apostle's words, ' Remember those in bonds, as 
 bound with them': he remembered what the first days of his own 
 imprisonment had been, and tried by all means to alleviate others' 
 troubles. He, all unknowing, was a figure of that merciful and 
 faiihful One Who is 'touched with the feeling of our infirmities,' 
 and was * tempted in all points like as we are, yet without sin.' 
 
 5. And they dreamed a dream both of them, each man his 
 dream in one night, each man according to the inierprcfatioH 
 of his dream, the butler and the baker of the king of Egypt, 
 u'hich were bound in the prison. 6. And Joseph came in unto 
 
232 Dream Comforts [Gen. XL. 
 
 them in the morning, and looked upon them, and behold, they 
 were sad. 7. And he asked Pharaoh's officers that were loith 
 him in the ivard of his lord's house, saying. Wherefore look ye 
 so sadly today? 
 
 O strange dream-world, in which fancy holds sway and the soul loses 
 the reins and is tossed hither and thither, as if at random ! When 
 dreams plunge me back into foolish or evil memories from which 
 my waking hours are now clear, I will when I awake thank my 
 Emancipator Who alone has delivered me. When dreams fore- 
 shadow anything of apparent truth or reality, I will wait for a 
 confirmation in waking hours before I believe them. If I am 
 always ready to learn ; if I say, 'Speak, Lord, for Thy servant 
 heareth,' I shall be able to distinguish true from false guidance. 
 
 8. And tliey said unto him, We have dreamed a dream, and 
 there is no interpreter of it. And Joseph said, unto them, Do 
 not interp)retations belong to God? tell me them, I pray you. 
 
 Joseph's sympathy gave him a ready key to open hearts, though not 
 to open prison doors. His daily visit brought comfort to the 
 afflicted ; they made a friend of him. He looked up to God and 
 sought wisdom thence. It is not to great men or wise that God 
 always commits 1 1 is message, but to simple hearts that are ready 
 to listen. Joseph always said, ' It is God Who rules, disposes, dis- 
 closes.' He was encompassed by a constant sense of an abiding 
 Divine Presence. This it is which makes him the closest type of 
 Christ Jesus, in Whom Godhead ever dwells. 
 
 9. And the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said 
 to him, In my dream, behold, a vine ivas before vie ; 10. And 
 in the vine tvere three branches : and it ivas as though it budded, 
 and her blossoms shot forth ; and the clusters thereof brought 
 forth ripe grapes: 11. And Pharaoh's cup ivas in my hand: 
 and I toulc the grapes, and pressed them into Pharaoh's cup, 
 and I gave the cu]) into Pharaoh's hand. 
 
 Here was the recollection of the scene in which the dreamer used to 
 play a part, and yet all in impossible order and sequence, as is 
 the wont of dreams. The vine that brings forth at once shoots 
 and flowers and grapes, the grapes which ripen in a moment, and 
 supply wine ready made for Pharaoh's pleasure, what is all this 
 but 'the baseless fabric of a vision ' ? But with it there was the 
 man's deep persuasion that he would again resume his duties, 
 again return to the uncertain sunshine of royal favour. What 
 could this dream mean? — so clear, so marked, so convincing, that 
 the dreamer woke and could scarcely believe he was not standing 
 by Pharaoh's side ! 
 
Vek. 15.] Remember tiie 233 
 
 12. And Joseph said unto him, This is the interpretation of 
 it: The three branches are three days: 13. Yet within three 
 days shall Pharaoh lift iq) thine head, and restore thee unto 
 thy place : and thou shalt deliver Pharaoh's cup into his hand, 
 after the former manner when thou wast his butler. 
 
 In three days glory should issue out of shame, light out of darkness, 
 safety out of danger. So, dear Lord, Thou didst by Thy three 
 days' sojourn in the grave change our spiritual outlook, restore us 
 to heavenly places, give us pardon and peace. Not three whole 
 days between Christ's Passion with its agony and the gladness of 
 Easter night. 
 
 14. Btit think on me when it shall be ivell loith thee, and 
 sheiv kindness, I pray thee, unto me, and make mention of me 
 unto Pharaoh, and bring me out of this house. 
 
 Will not the body thus address the soul, ' Remember me, I pray 
 thee, when it shall be well with thee, when thou shalt have passed 
 into the place of light, the realm of peace — forget not thy old and 
 intimate comrade with whom thou wast united on earth, but inter- 
 cede with the King of kings, that I too may be raised up from 
 corruption and made with thee a partaker of the glorious liberty 
 of the children of God ? ' Nay, this prayer resembles that of the 
 dying thief : ' Remember me, when Thou comest in Thy king- 
 dom.' It is the prayer of a believer who says, ' Remember, Lord, 
 that I have trusted in Thee, have discerned Thee by faith amidst 
 the shadows of this world, have looked forward to Thy future 
 glorious reign, amidst the apparent confusion and defeat of Thy 
 hidden Providence. I have trusted that Thou dost govern all 
 things well. I ask with righteous Nehemiah, " Remember me, 
 O my God, for good.'" 
 
 15. For indeed I was stolen away out of the land of the 
 Hebreivs : and here also have I done nothing that they should 
 ptU me into the dungeon. 
 
 Not a word against his brothers, or against his mistress ; he does not 
 desire to prove any one in fault, but merely to excite sympathy 
 for his own hapless lot. His motto is that of the Psalmist : 
 'Commit thy way unto the Lord, and put thy trust in Him, and 
 He shall bring it to pass.' He looks back to Canaan as 'the 
 land of the Hebrews,' for so Abraham and his posterity were called. 
 They were strangers and foreigners, travellers from beyond the 
 River, had no ground of their own ; and yet they claimed the 
 land, hoped for it, were laid there in token of that hope. 
 
234 Dream Terrors [Gen. XLT. 
 
 1 6. When the chief baker saw that the intei-^^retation was 
 good, he said unto Joseph, I also ivas in my dream, and 
 behold, I had three %vhite baskets on my head: 17. And in 
 the %ippermost basket there tvas of all manner of hakemeats for 
 Pharaoh; and the birds did eat them out of the basket upo7i 
 my head. 
 
 Alas ! that befalls me in reality which came to this hapless baker in 
 the dream. I display the good deeds I have prepared, I do not 
 shelter or protect them by modesty, I let the vultures of human 
 flattery pounce on them and carry them off. Alas ! when the 
 great King comes in to hold His supper, my hands will be all 
 empty. Beware, dear friend, of this great danger. What good 
 is it to have laboured to do worthy deeds, if you allow vanity to 
 rob you of all the reward ? Rather store safe, and keep to your- 
 self, your precious things ; so shall they be preserved safely for the 
 great King's Table, and be His delight. 
 
 18. And Joseph answered and said, This is the interpre- 
 tation thereof : The three baskets are three days : 19. Yet 
 within three days shall Pharaoh lift up thy head from off thee, 
 and shall hang thee on a tree ; and the birds shall eat thy 
 jlesh from off thee. 
 
 O terrible voice of judgment which will say, 'The harvest is past, 
 the summer is ended,' which will say, 'Get thine house in order, 
 for thou must die ' ! Joseph, himself a criminal, in the midst 
 between two criminals, foretelling peace to the one, ruin to the 
 other, reminds me of my Lord on the Cross between the two 
 robbers ; how He pardoned the one and gave him the most 
 comfortable promise that mortal ears ever heard ; how He left 
 the other to die in impenitence. I do not penetrate the mystery 
 of God's judgments, why He bestows life and r^ra e on one, leaves 
 another to go on in his wickedness. But what I observe of them 
 gives me a humble fear, makes me take at once the Divine Hand 
 held out to me, lest I miss it for ever, 
 
 20. And it came to pass the third day, ivhich tvas Pharaoh's 
 birthday, that he made a feast tmto all his servants : and he 
 lifted up the head of the chief butler and of the chief baker 
 among his servants. 21. And he restored the chief butler unto 
 his butlership again; and he gave the cup into Pharaoh's 
 hand: 22. But he hanged the chief baker : as Joseph had 
 interj^reted to them. 
 
 One day the Great King will make a Feast, 'and gather in all as 
 many as shall be found, both bad and good,' will ' come in to see 
 
Ver. I.] Forgetfulness of Kindness received 235 
 
 the guests,' — nay, ' He will gird Himself and make them sit down 
 to meat and will serve them.' Certainly His friends shall sit with 
 Him 'at His table, in His kingdom.' ' He shall satisfy them with 
 the plenteousness of His house, with the river of His pleasures.' 
 But He will not approve all as worthy to sit there. He will have 
 the Books open. He will observe whether the wedding garment 
 is worn. O great difTerence, which exceeds all other differences ! 
 Can it be that I myself have to stand this test, to be weighed and 
 found false or true ? will my Lord then recall what I have been, 
 what I have done ? Then let me live in the thought of eternal 
 truths, and pass my life here as an accountable being. 
 
 23. Yet did not the chief hutler remember Joseph, hut forgot 
 him. 
 
 How soon I forget, when all smiles on me, the prayers and feelings 
 of my adversity, how I leant on others, needed help, paid earnest 
 prayers and vows, promised all things if I was but well and 
 prosperous again ! Yet a deep oblivion has crept over my memory 
 of those days. When my body ached, and I felt every little incon- 
 venience a burden too great to bear, when I depended on the 
 ministration of loving hands, I had many good thoughts, which 
 have left me altogether now that I am well and strong. Before I 
 blame too sharply this forgetful butler, who plunged at once into 
 the duties of his high place and forgot his friend in the prison, I 
 will judge and condemn my own selfishness, which is extreme. 
 
 CHAPTER XLI 
 
 Pharaoh's two dreams. 25, Joseph interpreteth them. 33. He giveth 
 Pharaoh counsel. 38. Joseph is advanced. 50. He begetteth 
 Manasseh and Ephraim. 54. The famine beginneth. 
 
 A 
 
 ND it came to pass at the end of two fall years, that 
 Pharaoh dreamed : and behold, he stood by the river. 
 
 Two long years rolled away, and Joseph seemed forgotten in his 
 prison ; but his heavenly Father was not really forgetful of him. 
 He knew what Joseph had to learn, what lessons of humility, of 
 patience, of sympathy prison life could give him. These years 
 laid the foundation of his steadfast wisdom afterwards. They 
 provided a wholesome antidote to the temptations which glory 
 would bring. Let us learn to wait our Father's good time for our 
 deliverance. Let us bear in mind that He is eternal, and that 
 those who trust in Him share in His eternity. They are not 
 
236 The Kiiie and Ears of Corn [Gen. XLI. 
 
 impatient, not confounded at being left to suffer a while. While 
 the Imtler and all other friends had forgotten Joseph, God re- 
 membered him and troulsled Pharaoh's slumbers with thoughts 
 that led to his beini: set free. 
 
 2. And behold, there came up out of the river seven vjell 
 favniired kine and fatfleshed ; and. they fed in a meadow. 
 3. And behold, seven other kine came up after t/iem out of the 
 river, ill favoured and leanfleshed ; and stood by the other kine 
 upon the brink of the river. 4. And the ill favoured and 
 leanfleshed kine did eat zip the seven tvell favoured and fat 
 kine. So Pharaoh awoke. 
 
 Pharaoh was like a god ; his providence embraced all Egj'pt ; his 
 glory and honour filled the world. Even his sleeping thoughts 
 turned upon the fertilising river and the well-being of the country. 
 As he slept, the life-giving stream, on which all Eg)-pt depended 
 for its yearly sustenance, seemed to send forth first seven fair and 
 fat kine, then seven poor and lean ones. The latter stood by the 
 former a while, and then set upon them and devoured them. And 
 this dream came with an extraordinary impress of reality. To an 
 Eg)'ptian these two were alike Divine, to be worshipped and prayed 
 to, Pharaoh on his throne, and the beneficent mysterious River. 
 Yet the power of Pharaoh, the resources of the Nile, had alike 
 their limit. Often they failed to help their supplicants. I, thank 
 God, have a better Master, a more unfailing spring ! 
 
 5. And he slept and dreamed the second time: and behold, 
 seven ears of corn came up upon one stalk, rank and good. 
 6. And behold, seven thin ears and blasted with the east wind 
 sprang tq) after them. 7. And the seven thin ears devoured 
 the seven rank and full ears. And Pharaoh awoke, and 
 behold, it was a dream. 
 
 Here is a second dream, also very vivid and impressive. Seven rich 
 full ears of corn on one stalk grew up in the meadow beside the 
 king as he stood, and then seven poor blighted ears followed them 
 and seemed to devour them — at least the rich ears vanished and 
 there were only left the poor blighted ears, looking all the blacker 
 and emptier. No promise, no comfort in such a crop as that ! I 
 am myself a blade of wheat in God's field, and have no worthiness 
 of my own. My best promise is but poor and blighted. Let me 
 so acknowledge my own vilcncss, so trust in Divine mercy, that I 
 may be joined to that precious Corn of Wheat that fell and died 
 and brought forth much fruit, became the first-fruit of all earth's 
 harvest uplifted to God's heavenly garner. 
 
Ver. 13.] Memory stirred 237 
 
 8. And it came to pass in the morning thai his spirit was 
 troiibled ; and he sent and called for all the magicians of 
 Egypt, and all the wise men thereof : and Pharaoh told them 
 his dream ; hut there was none that could interpret them unto 
 Pharaoh. 
 
 I would not say that these wise men and magicians were wholly 
 impostors. Nay, they seem to have been honest in declaring that 
 the dream-lesson escaped them. There are many links between 
 things invisible and visible, between spirit and matter which men's 
 hearts investigate wistfully, longing to read the exact meaning. 
 Doubtless, we who have God's Church and God's written Word 
 to t;uide us, enjoy clearer light than did men of old. But still we 
 need not condemn those who sought to satisfy human craving for 
 some guidance from on high, some voice from above. In the 
 world's childhood God had many ways of teaching men. 
 
 9. The7i spake the chief butler unto Pharaoh, saying, I do 
 remember my faults this day : 10. Pharaoh ivas ivroth ivith 
 his servants, and put me in ward in the captain of the guard's 
 house, both me and the chief baker : 
 
 ' I remember my disgrace,' he said ; ' I call to mind the time when 
 I was out of favour, anxious about the future, grieved at my own 
 folly, pining within gloomy prison walls. What the king has said 
 about his dream brings back to my mind these anxious prison- 
 hours, and how it was I got comfort and a ray of light.' What a 
 salutary remembrance it is, now that all prospers with us, to think 
 of the sad hours we had and who helped and sustained us then ! 
 Too many people are so dazzled by their brilliant present that 
 they put the dull past entirely out of their thoughts. 
 
 II. A7id we dreamed a dream in one night, I and he; we 
 dreamed each man according to the intei'pretation of his dream, 
 12. And there was there with us a young man, an Hebrew, 
 servant to the captain of the guard ; and vje told him, and he 
 interpreted to us our dreams ; to each man according to his 
 dream he did interpret. 13. And it came to pass, as he 
 interpreted to us, so it was ; one he restored unto mine office, 
 and him he hanged. 
 
 That prison became the Interpreter's House. Divine wisdom showed 
 itself through a human voice — there 
 
 'The Spirit spake clear as in Israel." 
 
 All fell out just as Joseph had foretold. So one day will the words 
 
238 The King sent a?id delivered him [Gen. XLI. 
 
 of God's servants as to the future end of what now is all come 
 true. Actions and lives will find their true recompense, faith's 
 presages will be justified. So I believe and am sure. 
 
 14. Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they hrouyht 
 him hastily out of the dungeon : and he shaved himself, and 
 changed his raiment, and came in unto Pharaoh, 
 
 O jo3rful day, when God remembered His servant, brought him out 
 from his long captivity, clothed him in festal garments, set him 
 before the king's gracious countenance ! A joyful day too was it 
 when God brought His Son out of the gloomy grave, gave Him a 
 resurrection Body, turned all the shame of the Cross into immortal 
 gladness. A joyful day too will it be when Christ's servants shall 
 follow their Master on that same road of joy, as they have along 
 the road of the Cross ; when they shall experience the redemption 
 of their body, the final victory of good, eternal security and peace. 
 WTiat a change from this life's prison and dangers ! 
 
 15. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a 
 dream, and there is none that can interpret it : and I have 
 heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to 
 interpret it. 16. And Joseph ansivered Pharaoh, saying, It 
 is not in me : God shall give Pharaoh an ansiuer of peace. 
 
 It was not in Pharaoh, this Divine satisfying wisdom — nor, not yet, 
 in his councillors ; but Joseph too said it was not in him. God 
 only could give light, set doubts to rest. It was from God that 
 Joseph sought and brought his interpretation. He reminds us of 
 the great Apostle who says, ' I laboured more abundantly than 
 they all ; yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.' I 
 too, dear Lord, should know much, should labour very profitably 
 if I leant only on Thee, referred all things to Thee, had daily 
 experience of Thy light and grace. 
 
 17. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, In my dream, behold, 
 I stood upon the hank of the river: 18. And behold, there 
 came up out of the river seven kine, fatjieshed and well 
 favoured; and they fed in a meadotv : 19. And behold, 
 seven other kine came up after them, poor and very ill favoured 
 and leanfleshed, such as I never satv in all the land of Egypt 
 for badness: 20. A7id the lean and the ill favoured kine did 
 eat up the first seven fat kine: 21. And when they had eaten 
 them It]), it cotdd not be knotvn that they had eaten them ; but 
 
Ver. 28.] The Dreams explained 239 
 
 they were still ill favoured, as at the beginning. So I awoke. 
 22. And I saiv in my dream, and behold, seven ears came up 
 in one stalk, full and good: 23. A^id behold, seven ears, 
 loithered, thin, and blasted with the east wind, sprung up after 
 them : 24. And the thin ears devoured the seven good ears : 
 and I told this unto the magicians ; but there was none that 
 coidd declare it to me. 
 
 Here are grave presentiments of evil, monsters that swallow up all 
 the bright apparent promises of good. What is the meaning of 
 those fair beginnings and sad endings ? Why should the sacred 
 river, the sustaining earth, send forth first life and then death, and 
 death gain the victory ? Nay, O Pharaoh, there is but one land 
 
 Where the trees are always green, 
 
 one country where the tree of life, the water of life, always satisfy. 
 God's servants dream and think of that country, but cannot appre- 
 hend it as yet ; it is not here on earth. Life there will more than 
 make up for all that is amiss below. 
 
 25, And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh 
 is one : God hath shewed Pharaoh what He is aboiit to do. 
 
 What a great gift for any king, or for any man, to know what God 
 is about to do ! This is a rare blessing, a great favour from above. 
 If we know, we can provide, otherwise we should grope in uncer- 
 tainty. Dear friend, do not you know what God is about to do? 
 I will tell you. He will certainly send you death, almost certainly 
 sickness. He will certainly judge you according to your works. 
 He will make you live again, after this short life is done. If you 
 practise love and truth. He will make you reap the fruits of it. 
 All this is true and plain and of the utmost importance to you to 
 know. 
 
 26. The seven good kine are seven years ; and the seven good 
 ears are seven years ; the dream is one. 27. And the seven 
 thin and ill favoured kine that came up after them are seven 
 years ; and the seven tmpty ears blasted with the east ivind 
 shall be seven years of famine. 28. This is the thing which I 
 have spoken unto Pharaoh: What God is about to do He 
 sheweih unto Pharaoh. 
 
 Give me wisdom. Lord, to look onward into the coming time, and 
 make provision for it. While I have heaUh and peace, power to 
 learn, hearts round me to luve, opportunities of communion with 
 God, let me store up memories of good, deeds of kindness, hearty 
 
240 Provide against Famine [Gen. XLI. 
 
 prayers. May be I have to go through dark hours, times of 
 temptation or of loneliness. I shall need then all the fruit of the 
 gracious years I enjoy now. 
 
 29. Behold, there come seven years of great plenty through- 
 out all the land of Egypt: 30. And there shall arise after 
 them seven years of famine ; and all the plenty shall be for- 
 gotten in the land of Egypt ; and the famine shall consume 
 the land ; 31. And the plenty shall not he known in the land 
 hy reason of that famine following ; for it shall be very 
 grievous. 
 
 The famine will be so great and so universal that men will forget the 
 rich plenty of the prosperous years. Seven years' plenty will have 
 made men think that returns are safe, seasons certain, the yearly 
 fertilising inundation sure to come. No doubt, apart from this 
 vision, the seven years of plenty would have lulled men's minds 
 into entire confidence ; but yet how soon all this abundance would 
 be forgotten ! The parched fields, the withered trees, the river 
 that would not rise to spread life ; all this was to be year after 
 year as if no life or profit should ever return. Just as in a very 
 cold winter we forget all thoughts of summer heat, so would this 
 long intolerable drought banish all thoughts of better days from the 
 nation's heart. It was God's will to lead Egypt through such ex- 
 periences ; first of comfort, then of need. 
 
 32. And for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh 
 twice ; it is because the thing is established by God, and God 
 mil shortly bring it to ptass. 
 
 This is like the warning of later Scripture, ' Yet a little while, how 
 little, how little, and He that cometh will surely come and will 
 not tarry.' Faith looks forward a little way. Faith puts aside 
 human conjectures and reasonings, and depends with absolute 
 certainty on the speedy fulfilment of what God has revealed. 
 Yes, ' God will shortly bring it to pass.' I am persuaded of this, 
 I rely on the sure word of my heavenly Friend, Who has never 
 deceived those Who trust Him. 
 
 33. Noiv therefore let Pharaoh look out a man discreet and 
 tvise, and set him over the land of Egypt. 34. Let Pharaoh 
 do this, and let him appoint officer's over the land, and take up 
 the fifth part of the land of Egypt in the seven plenteous 
 years. 
 
 These are Joseph's counsels, for he knew what was coming, and 
 thoroughly believed the Divine warning. First, appoint a wise 
 
Vek. 42.] A Man in whom God's Spirit is 241 
 
 intendant, who shall devote himself wholly to taking the requisite 
 measures. Secondly, let the fifth part of the crops be bought up 
 and stored yearly during these good seasons. Thirdly, let granaries 
 for the purpose be established in all the cities, for there they can 
 be well guartled. Thus Joseph wisely thought and counselled ; he 
 had a plan ready. How shall I, Lord, obtain a wise and under- 
 staniiing heart able to meet and deal with all circumstances as they 
 arise? In no other way than by prayer and diligence. Let me 
 use all means of instruction I can, and ask God's Spirit to supply 
 my defects. 
 
 36. A7id that food shall he for store to the land against the 
 seven years of famine, lohich shall be in the land of Egyjjt ; 
 t/iat the land perish not through the famine. 
 
 Surely the spirit of this verse should be cherished by all who are 
 entering on life. Let me in times of plenty provide against 
 famine. Let me lay by money against sickness. Let me lay by 
 information against the time when I shall have no books or leisure. 
 Let me lay by good thoughts, good texts, good prayers against 
 days of temptation or spiritual drought. God in His mercy sets 
 me in a time of plenty, gives me a mind to store truth, and access 
 to good books and good people. Oh, let me profit by His manifold 
 opportunities ! Thanks, dear Lord, for the blessings I enjoy, and 
 grant that I may not waste them. 
 
 37. And the thing ivas good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in 
 the eyes of all his servants. 38. And Pharaoh said unto his 
 servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in ivhom the 
 Spirit of God is? 39. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, For- 
 asmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so 
 discreet and wise as thou art : 40. Thov, shalt he over my 
 house, and according unto thy word shcdl all my people he 
 rided: only in the throne tvill I be greater than thou. 
 
 God had showed him future things. God's Spirit spoke in his 
 simplicity and modesty. God had given him grace to persuade 
 kings and wise men of the truth of his warnings. Were not all 
 these signs that he was designed for government, able to carry out 
 into practice the suggestions he had laid down ? Here is the call 
 come at last and suddenly. Here is the opportunity for which God 
 had long been preparing His servant. 
 
 41. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee 
 over all the land of Egypt. 42. And Pharaoh took off his 
 ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph's hand, and 
 
 Q 
 
242 Royal Honours [Gen. XLI. 
 
 arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain 
 about his nech ; 43. And he made him to ride in the second 
 chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the 
 knee : and he made him rider over all the land of Egypt. 
 
 Here are distinctions which, according to Egyptian custom, accom- 
 pany Joseph's elevation — a signet ring, a garment of fine linen, a 
 golden collar, a royal chariot, a herald proclaiming his approach 
 and bidding all men bow. How hard it is, dear friends, to keep a 
 humble and lowly heart within when all around have become so 
 obsequious ! Did Joseph in his sudden intoxicating grandeur 
 steady himself by any dim thoughts or forecasts of his Divine Lord, 
 Who should one day come on earth and win victory by suffering 
 the greatest humiliation ? Anyhow, he called God to mind, and 
 so breathed safely in the dangerous air. 
 
 44. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Plmraoh, and 
 without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the 
 land of Egypt. 
 
 This almost royal, almost Divine glory, despots can give and can take 
 away. As the breath of a royal mouth raises a slave to be adored 
 by the world, so a sudden gust of royal displeasure can blow down 
 again, like a house of cards, all that magnificence. Those are 
 happy who retain tranquillity within and are the same before 
 God and before their friends, whether they have lofty titles and 
 royal favour or have lost all these appendages. Christ's glory. 
 His majesty. His kingdom, which never fails, are good subjects of 
 thought and interest for one who is likely to be fascinated with the 
 world's splendours. 
 
 45. And Pharaoh called Joseph's name Zaphnath-paaneah ; 
 and he gave him to wife Asenath the daughter of Poti-pherah 
 priest of On. And Josep)h tvent out over all the land of 
 Egypt. 
 
 A glorious title, which seems to mean ' sustainer of life ' or ' preserver 
 of the world '; a bride of high family, who linked Joseph with the 
 Priests of Heliopolis, the richest and most powerful body in Egypt. 
 Such were his honours now, but he remained the same in heart, no 
 less humble, pure, and tender-hearted than of old. In his being cast 
 out from his father's house and taking a Gentile bride, who bare 
 him children, I sec a shadow of Him Who was rejected by His own 
 people, and framed to Himself a spiritual Bride from Gentile con- 
 verts, that Church which is our Spiritual Mother. 
 
Ver. 52.] The plenteous Years 243 
 
 46. And Joseph 7vas thirty years old when he stood before 
 Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the 
 presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all the land of 
 Egypt. 
 
 Joseph set to work to provide against the famine, and for this purpose 
 he was not content to sit at home and wait for heavenly intimations. 
 No ; he surveyed thoroughly all the population he had to feed, the 
 cultivated land that was available, the means that existed for 
 storage, the officers who should be responsible to him. He looked 
 into all these things himself, and so was able to frame his plans. 
 
 47. And in the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth 
 by handfitls. 48. And he gathered up all the food of the 
 seven years, tvhich ivere in the land of Egypjt, and laid up the 
 food in the cities : the food of the field, tvhich tvas round about 
 every city, laid he up in the same. 49. And Joseph gathered 
 corn as the sand of the sea, very much, until he left numbering ; 
 for it was without number. 
 
 This rich abundance of the fertile soil was the gift primarily of the 
 favouring River, which for seven years rose to that exact height 
 which was needed to shower fertility around. In those seven years 
 it was hard for Egyptians to realise that their prosperity was pre- 
 carious or likely to alter, hard for them to spare, lay by, deny 
 themselves, in order to provide for the future. Lord, when I am 
 prosperous, when I abound, when all blessings, spiritual and tem- 
 poral, enrich my heart, let me sometimes remember that famine 
 time may come ; let me lay by a store of Thy mercies in the hands 
 of the needy, that their prayers may help me in my trial-hour. 
 
 50. And unto Joseph tcere born two sons before the years of 
 famine came, which Asenath the daughter of Poti-pherah priest 
 of On bare unto him. 51. And Joseph called the name of the 
 firstborn Manasseh : For God, said he, hath made me forget 
 all my toil, and all my father s house. 52. And the name of 
 the second ccdled he Ephraim : For God hath caused me to be 
 fruitful in the land of my affliction. 
 
 Joseph ' forgot,' yet not utterly, nor for ever, his childhood's days. 
 Joseph was ' fruitful ' and increased, yet still his heart lacked news 
 of his own kindred. He was not wholly taken up with his own com- 
 forts. So, too, my Lord in His glory has escaped from suffering 
 and from the burden of human infirmity, but He retains still the 
 
244 The famme Years [Gen. XLII. 
 
 memory of His suflerings here below, the affections of His human 
 heart. All His glory does not make Him less our Brother and our 
 Friend. 
 
 53. And the seven years of pletiteousness, that was in the 
 land of Egypt, were ended. 54. And the seven years of dearth 
 began to come, according as Joseph had said: and the dearth 
 tvas in all lands: but in all the land of Egypt there was 
 bread. 
 
 What is the House of Bread, the land of plenty, when in all neigh- 
 bouring regions scarcity prevails ? Whence is it that hungry 
 hearts can be satisfied in their journey through this unsatisfying 
 wilderness? Indeed, the true Joseph has been here, and has laid 
 up a store of grace and truth to which He directs us. Here is 
 sufficient to sustain us until we come to that place where hunger, 
 thirst, and tears can be no more. 
 
 55. And when all the land of Egypt was famished, the 
 people cried to Pharaoh for bread: and Pharaoh said unto all 
 the Egyptians, Go tmto Joseph ; ivhat he saith to yon, do. 
 56. A7id the famine was over all the face of the earth. And 
 Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold unto the Egyptians ; 
 and the famine waxed sore in the land of Egypt. 57. And 
 all countries came into Egypt to Joseph for to buy corn; 
 because that the famine was so sore in all lands. 
 
 The Church of God, like the land of Egj'pt, has had its seasons of 
 plenty, and again of scarcity. Times were when miraculous 
 gifts, heavenly graces, fervent missionaries, devout lives abounded : 
 then there came a sad change ; the Church became corrupt, 
 divided, slothful ; God's Word was rarely and poorly preached ; 
 souls were not won nor sought after. O dread and grim famine ! 
 Yet even then there were hid ien stores of grace, secret holy lives, 
 fervent prayers, some operations of grace, comforts of Divine 
 mercy. Do not doubt but that even in the worst ages God blessed 
 hearts, worked through His ordinances, enlightened by His Spirit. 
 Some souls lived by this Bread even then. 
 
Ver. 5.] Corn in Egypt 245 
 
 CHAPTER XLII 
 
 1. Jacob sendeth his ten sons to buy corn in Egypt. 16. They are 
 
 imprisoned by Joseph for spies. 18. They are set at liberty, on 
 condition to bring Benjamin. 21. They have remorse for Joseph. 
 34. Simeon is kept for a pledge. 25. They return with corn, and 
 their money. 29. Their relation to Jacob. 36. Jacob refuseth to send 
 Benjamin. 
 
 "VrOW when Jacob saiv that there tvas corn in Egypt, Jacob 
 X 1 said unto his sons, Why do ye look one upon another ? 
 
 2. And he said, Behold, I have heard that there is corn in 
 Egypt ; get you down thither, and buy for us from thence ; 
 that we may live, and not die. 
 
 Jacob invites his children to go elsewhere for food. He points out 
 to them their own barren fields and the need of buying corn. He 
 sends them to that land of abundance where Joseph rules and dis- 
 penses food. He asks why they hesitate to go. Not otherwise 
 do the holy patriarchs and prophets, now with God, plead with 
 their descendants the Jews, invite them to consider their own 
 afflicted state, the loss of temple and sacrifice, the failure of 
 Messianic hopes, the passing of the foretold time ; and bid them 
 think where it is that the types and prophecies have found fulfil- 
 ment. Who it is Who has taken the worship of God, the books of 
 Old Testament Scripture, the hopes and prayers of Jewish faith, 
 and made them into nourishment for the world. 
 
 3. And Josejih's ten brethren went down to buy co7'n in 
 Egypt. 4. But Benjamin, Joseph's brother, Jacob sent not 
 ivith his brethren; for he said. Lest peradventtire mischief 
 befall him. 5. And the sons of Israel came to buy corn 
 among those that came : for the famine tvas in the land of 
 Canaan. 
 
 On Benjamin all Jacob's hopes are set. He dares not trust his darling 
 to the dangers of the way. Joseph, loo, thought mostly about 
 Benjamin, was anxious to see him, rejoices at his coming. Ben- 
 jamin alone was worth (so thought Jacob and Joseph) all the rest 
 of the family. Am I not reminded here of that glorious person of 
 the tribe of Benjamin, ' a Hebrew of the Hebrews,' who was the 
 inheritor of the Pharisees' traditions, and turned them all to the 
 service of Divine grace, who by his words and writings so power- 
 fully won hearts to love the true Joseph ? 
 
246 Dreams cofne true [Gen. XLII. 
 
 6. And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it 
 ivas that sold to all the 2>eople of the land : and Joseph's 
 brethren came, and bowed down themselves before him ivith 
 their faces to the earth. 7. And Joseph saiv his brethren, and 
 he hieiv them, but made himself strange tinto them, and spake 
 roughly unto them ; and he said unto them, Whence come ye ? 
 And they said, From the land of Canaan to buy food. 
 
 8. And Joseph kneiv his brethren, but they knew not him. 
 
 9. A7id Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of 
 them, and said ^mto them, Ye are sp)ies; to see the nakedness 
 of the land ye are come. 
 
 O glorious elevation, dignity which changes Joseph beyond recogni- 
 tion ! Yet still he was their brother, and carried a brother's heart, 
 though he suppressed its tenderness for a while. In their prostra- 
 tion before him he recognised how wonderfully Divine Power had 
 brought all things about. The dreams of his glory had been 
 blotted from Joseph's memory by suffering and by business, but now 
 he recalled them, and their truth flashed on him. Was it not like 
 a dream fulfilled when Christ was exalted from the grave, when 
 Gentile nations were converted, when new continents were won to 
 believe? Yet Christ has done all this, and He still reigns. What 
 can we do better than worship and trust Him ? 
 
 10. And they said unto hivi, Kay, my lord, but to buy 
 food are thy servants come. 1 1 . We are all one man's sons ; 
 we are true men, thy servants are no spies. 12. And he said 
 unto them, Nay, but to see the nakedness of the land ye are 
 come. 
 
 Joseph and the Egyptians were on their guard against spies, who 
 might pretend they were in need and on the road to purchase corn, 
 but were in reality planning a hostile expedition against the en- 
 feebled realm. So Christ's Apostles kept their eyes open to dis- 
 cern ' false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to 
 spy out our liberty, which we have in Christ Jesus, that they 
 might bring us into bondage.' Such there were in Apostolic days 
 who pretended to be Christians that they might enslave Christian 
 hearts and steal them from Christ. Let us who are believers 
 guard the faith and the souls committed to us ; let us remember that 
 we live in a state of war, and enemies are hidden near. 
 
 13. And they said. Thy servants are twelve brethren, the 
 sons of one man in the land of Canaan ; and behold, the 
 youngest is this day tvith our father, and one is not. 14. And 
 
Ver. 2 2.] I fear God 247 
 
 Jose'ph said unto them, That is it that I sjmhe unto you, say- 
 ing, Ye are S2nes : 15. Hereby ye shall he jyroved : By the 
 life of Pharauh ye shall not go forth hence, except your young- 
 est brother come hither. 16. Send one of you, and let him 
 fetch your brother, and ye shall be kept in prison, that your 
 words may be proved, whether there be any truth in you : or 
 else by the life of Pharaoh surely ye are spies. 17. And he 
 put them all together into ward three days. 
 
 This accusation, which Joseph himself did not believe, these threats, 
 this harsh treatment, are but a pretence, a means to an end. Joseph 
 earnestly desired to find out how his brethren were disposed to- 
 wards Benjamin, if they regretted their fault towards himself, how 
 they would come out of trial. He stifled the love that was in his 
 heart, and forced himself to assume a suspicious and wrathful 
 aspect. Do not accuse Joseph of severity, l)ut learn to recognise 
 in many seemingly harsh dealings of God His Fatherly mercy, 
 though for a while disguised. He means good to you in the end. 
 Only trust Him. 
 
 18. And Joseph said unto (hem the third day, This do, and 
 live ; for I fear God: 19. If ye be ti'ue men, let one of your 
 brethren be bound in the house of yotir prison : go ye, carry 
 corn for the famine of your houses: 20. But bring your 
 youngest brother unto me ; so shall your ivords be verified, and 
 ye shall not die. And they did so. 
 
 ' I fear God ' — this is a comfortable word. It assures the brothers 
 that they have not fallen under the power of a ruthless tyrant. ' I 
 fear God,' therefore I must practise justice and mercy. ' The fear 
 of God is the beginning of wisdom.' This fear does not exclude 
 love ; it is a humble, trustful fear, carries whh it a conscientious 
 desire to approve one's-self in God's sight. Let us try to bring 
 up the children in God's 'perpetual fear and love.' That is a 
 profitable education. What else can take the place of this sober- 
 ing, inspiring awe of the Most High ? 
 
 21. And they said one to another. We are verily guilty 
 concerning our brother, in that ive saiv the anguish of his soul, 
 what he besought us, and ive woidd. not hear ; therefore is this 
 distress come upon us. 22. And Reuben ansivered them, say- 
 ing, Sjiake 1 not unto you, saying. Do not sin against the 
 child; and ye tvonld not hear? therefore, behold, also his 
 blood is required. 
 
 Here we see the effect of that faith in God and knowledge of duty in 
 which Jacob's family had been brought up. His sons had thrown 
 
248 Simeon becomes a Hostage [Gen. XLII. 
 
 aside much of the good teaching they had had, but it remained deep 
 in their hearts ; it came to light now under pressure. When 
 the boy was in their power they had stifled brotherly feeling, but 
 now they remembered what the Voice of God and of nature was 
 saying all the time. Did not some of the Jews who had crucified 
 Christ Jesus, and had said, ' His Blood be on us and on our children, ' 
 come to the Apostles with pierced hearts and recall the Passion, 
 and say, ' What shall we do ? ' Will not the Lord require an account 
 from me of the souls I have injured, the prayers I have not heeded, 
 the necessities I have left unrelieved ? 
 
 23. And they knew not that Joseph understood them : for 
 he spake unto them by an interpreter. 24. And he turned 
 himself about from them, and wept ; and returned to them 
 again, and communed luith them, and took from them Simeon, 
 a7id bound him before their eyes. 
 
 Various feelings strove in Joseph's heart — the recollection of the pain- 
 ful past, thankfulness for his own safety, joy at his brothers' 
 evident penitence, reviving goodwill and tenderness for them — all 
 these found vent in tears. An interpreter stood between them and 
 him, receiving their petitions in Hebrew and transmitting them to 
 Joseph in the Egyptian tongue, and in like manner reporting 
 Joseph's commands to them ; but there was no real need of such 
 an official, the true Joseph understood his brethren well. There 
 are many to whom the Scripture is written in a strange tongue, has 
 no message. Who will give the help to open it and make its 
 words sound familiar and intelligible to hearts? Where shall we 
 find a faithful interpreter to render its accents plain ? 
 
 25. Then Joseph commanded to fill their sacks xvith corn, 
 and to restore every man's money into his sack, and to give 
 them provision for the way: and thus did he unto them. 
 26. And they laded their asses with the corn, and departed 
 thence. 
 
 Here is a fresh test devised by Joseph. He returned the money that 
 had been paid, wishing thus to render his brothers doubtful as to 
 their real position ; he wished their independence to be shaken. 
 They had not been present when the wheat was put into their 
 sacks and the sacks closed up, all this they had had to take on 
 trust. Not otherwise does God deal with us. He bids us give all 
 we have, and yet imparts His grace freely. He threatens and yet 
 comforts, reproaches us with the past and yet loads us with mercies, 
 troubles our peace that He may prepare us for full reconciliation. 
 There is about His dealings with us something of mystery, some- 
 thing beyond our power to analyse. 
 
Ver. 36.] The Price repaid 249 
 
 27. And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass pro- 
 vender in the inn, he espied his money ; for, behold, it ivas in 
 his sack's mouth. 28. And he said unto his brethreyi, My 
 money is restored ; and lo, it is even in viy sack : and their 
 heart failed them, and they ivere afraid, saying one to another. 
 What is this that God hath done unto tis ? 
 
 'What is this that God hath done unto us?' In these words the 
 sons of Jacob recognise God's chastening and guiding hand. They 
 feel that God has been with them on their journey, overruling and 
 providing. They begin to see that His gracious ends are being 
 worked out by what seemed chance. So may I, Lord, have eyes 
 to discern Thy working, a heart to ponder over the meaning of 
 the experiences of joy or sorrow which Thou preparest for me. 
 Thou art leading me on step by step. 
 
 29. A7id they came unto Jacob their father unto the land of 
 Canaan, and told him all that befell unto them; saying, 
 30. The mail, who is the lord of the land, spake roughly to us, 
 and took us for sjyies of the country. 31. And we said unto 
 him. We are ti'ue men; we are no spies: 32. We be tivelve 
 brethren, sons of our father ; one is not, and the younqest is 
 this day ivith our father in the land of Canaan. 33. Aiid the 
 man, the lord of the country, said iinto us, Hereby shall I knotv 
 that ye are trtie men ; leave one of your brethren here with me, 
 and take food for the famine of yo%ir households, and be gone: 
 34. And bring your yotmgest brother unto me : then shall I 
 knoio that ye are no spies, but that ye are true men : so will I 
 deliver you your brother, and ye shall traffick in the land. 
 
 They tell their tale in truth and simplicity as ' Israelites indeed, 
 in whom is no guile.' Some years previously they had devised 
 false tales to gain their own ends, had scrupled at no violence or 
 treachery that might serve them ; but now they have reached 
 mature age, God has been teaching them Ilis ways, fitting them 
 to found His Old Testament Church. The knowledge of God 
 and His statutes which they had acquired as boys had lain long 
 forgotten, but now it begins to bear some fruit. Their father, 
 whom they had deceived before, finds now that he can trust them. 
 
 35. And it came to 23ciss as they emjitied their sacks, that 
 behold, every man's bundle of money ivas in his sack : and 
 when both they and their father saivthe bundles of money, they 
 were afraid. 36. And Jacob their father said unto them, Me 
 
250 Endurance the Portion of Saints [Gen. XLIII. 
 
 have ye bereaved of my children : Joseph is not, and Sivieon is 
 not, and ye will take Benjamin aivay : all these things are 
 against me. 
 
 The sight of the money renewed suspicion in Jacob's mind. He had 
 never believed his sons' account of Joseph's end, and he begins 
 now to fear lest Simeon's disappearance should be in some way 
 caused by his brothers' avarice or double-dealing. Being, as he 
 always was, of a moderate, wary temper, now further sobered by 
 the assaults of age, he made no overt accusation, but we can see 
 what was in his mind. He says, ' All these things are against 
 me,' meaning that his fatherly heart is torn with trouble. He has 
 lost, or is losing, his dear ones, and attributes this to the coldness 
 and indifference of his other children. Those to whom God gives 
 the precious gift of children of their own will find, as with all 
 God's gifts on earth, that there comes with them an added vulner- 
 ableness, a capacity for untold troubles through what we love so 
 dearly. 
 
 37. And Reuhen spahe unto his father, saying. Slay my tivo 
 sons, if I bring him not to thee : deliver him into my hand, 
 and I ivill bring him to thee again. 
 
 Reuben will stake what he cares for most — he pledges his own two 
 sons for Benjamin's safety. When Joseph was in danger, Reuben 
 interceded and planned to deliver him, but ineffectually — nothing 
 came of his good intentions. But now, when Benjamin is to be 
 ventured as the last hope of the family, Reuben will guard him at 
 the price of what he holds dearer than life. Grace has changed 
 his mind, has given him more firmness and courage than of old. 
 
 38. And he said, My son shall not go dovm ivith you ; for 
 his brother is dead, and he is left alone : if mischief befall 
 him by the ivay in the luhich ye go, then shall ye bring down 
 my gray hairs ivith sorroiu to the grave, 
 
 Benjamin was the only pledge left to Jacob to remind him of his 
 dear and entirely beloved Rachel. Such is the sufficient explana- 
 tion of his father's exceeding tenderness for him ; but grave writers, 
 meditating on all this history, have been wont to look deeper than 
 the letter. They trace in Joseph sold, betrayed, exalted a living 
 figure of Christ Jesus ; and in Benjamin, a figure of those Jews 
 who should one day lay aside all the prejudices that they had been 
 brought up in, and seek Jesus as their Saviour, be joined again 
 thus to the Patriarchs and Prophets who worship ^Iary's Son as 
 their true Lord, — a happy day indeed when Benjamin and Joseph 
 are thus reunited. 
 
Ver. 7.] Acceptable only in the Beloved 251 
 
 CHAPTER XLIII 
 
 I. Jacob is hardly persuaded to send Benjamin. 15. Joseph entertaineth 
 his brethren. 31. He maketh them a feast. 
 
 AND the famine was sore in (he land. 2. And it came to 
 pass, ivhen thexj had eaten up the corn which they had 
 brought out of Egypt, their father said imto them, Go again, 
 buy us a little food. 
 
 This famine in the land recalls to us the prophetic warning : ' Behold 
 the days come, saith the Lord, that I will send a famine on the 
 land, not a famine of bread nor a thirst for water, but of hearing 
 the words of the Lord. . . . They shall run to and fro to seek the 
 word of the Lord, and they shall not find it' (Amos viii. 11). 
 Many souls in these days are hungry and athirst ; they desire truth 
 and cannot find it ; they find nothing on which their souls can 
 live. Oh that we could lead them to that Living Bread, in Whom 
 alone is all truth, all wisdom ! 
 
 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. // thou wilt send our 
 brother ivith us, toe tvill go doivn and buy thee food : 5. But 
 if thou wilt not send him, ive tvill not go down : for the man 
 said unto us. Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be 
 with yoti. 
 
 'The man said,' and his word will be accomplished. To 'seethe 
 man's face ' is life. ' The man ' can set free, can reconcile, can 
 give abundance — all will go well with us if we are in his favour. 
 With these thoughts the sons of Jacob have laid aside all their 
 former selfishness, all their former guile ; they will adopt no 
 plan but the straightforward one of going to this unknown lord 
 and carrying out his demands. They are ready for the good of 
 their household to venture themselves on his justice and mercy. 
 Thus it is that the invisible Divine Truth, not yet incarnate, which 
 shone in Joseph's person, awed and yet attracted. 
 
 6. And Israel said. Wherefore dealt ye so ill tuith me, as to 
 tell the man tvhether ye hud yet a brother ? 7. And they said, 
 7'he man asked tis strait ly of our state, and of otir kindred^ 
 saying, Is your father yet alive ? have ye another brother ? 
 
252 A Surety accepted [Gen. XLIII. 
 
 and we told him accoi'ding to the tenor of these words : could 
 we certainly know that he tvould say, Bring yoxir brother 
 down ? 
 
 Was it their imprudence ? Could they have done better otherwise ? 
 How is it that they alone have fared so ill in Egypt where other 
 strangers got a welcome ? No ; their words were true, their con- 
 duct without reproach. It was all of God's bringing about, for 
 wise reasons as yet hidden from them ; they have no cause to 
 blame themselves. May I, in troubles and disasters, have such 
 consolation ; be able to ascribe all to God, and discern His work- 
 ing ; not have my sorrows embittered by the recollection that my 
 own folly has caused them. 
 
 8. And Judah said unto Israel his father, Send the lad 
 with me, and we tvill arise and go ; that ive may live, and not 
 die, both we, and thou, and also our little ones. 9. / will be 
 surety for him ; of my hand shall thou 7-eqtdre him : if I 
 bring him not %into thee, and set him before thee, then let me 
 bear the blame for ever: 10. For except we had lingered, 
 surely now w<e had, returned this second time. 
 
 Judah's words ring true. He deserved to have charge of Benjamin 
 for the love and courage he showed. Jacob's confiding his dar- 
 ling to him on this profession reminds us of Christ's words to 
 S. Peter, ' Lovest thou Me?' then ' Feed My sheep,' 'Feed My 
 Iambs.' Christ is willing to trust the souls He has bought with 
 His blood to the care of those pastors who sincerely love Him and 
 love His people. This is the most needfid requirement for the 
 sacred ministry. If I have no love I shall do no good, only fail 
 miserably and lose the treasure confided to me ; if I have love, the 
 greatest difficulties will not utterly confound me. 
 
 II. 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 doivn the man a present, a little balm, and 
 a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds : 
 
 Jacob and his family were suftering privation, yet he would not let 
 them go before the ruler of Egypt with empty hands. S. Paul's 
 converts were like this, 'Their deep jioveily abounded unto the 
 riches of their liberality ' (2 Cor. viii. 2). These gifts are not 
 meant to enrich Joseph, who was wealthy, but they are a token of 
 duty and affection, a specimen of the best that Jacob's family had 
 to ofier, some of them remedies of value. They remind us that the 
 spiritual barrenness of Jacob's family has passed, and that they 
 have good fruits of repentance to show. 
 
Ver. 19.] Double Money in Hand 253 
 
 12. And take double money in your hand ; and the money 
 that was brought again in the mouth of yonr sacks, carry it 
 again in your hand; peradventure it ivas 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. 
 
 Jacob sees now that he need not be afraid for his dear Benjamin ; his 
 brothers, at least, may be safely trusted with him. He sends him 
 to the unknown Prince of whom the brothers have said so many 
 things, who seems so strangely interested in the family, whose 
 power over them is so absolute. In Jacob's words may be under- 
 stood the longing which Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob have that their 
 children should find mercy with the true Joseph, that He should 
 forget all their faults, receive them into His eternal inheritance. 
 Jacob ventures all his sons, all the hopes of his house, and by doing 
 this he gains life, riches, peace for them all at the hands of their 
 great Benefactor. 
 
 15. And the men took that present, and they took double 
 money in their hand, and Benjamin ; and rose up, and went 
 doivn to Egypt, and stood bej'ore 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 7nen into Joseph's 
 house. 
 
 Joseph discerned them at once in the crowd of those who came for 
 corn, but he took no notice of them openly, concealed his love 
 under a seeming indifference, moved away to his other business as 
 if he had taken no heed ; yet all the while he was preparing a 
 hearty welcome. His brethren would have rejoiced if they had 
 known his intentions, but as yet they knew them not. Does not 
 God deal with sinners somewhat in this way? He fills them with 
 fear, conceals His love for a while, that He may bring them to feel 
 their own unworthiness, their entire dependence on Him, the great 
 debt they owe His justice. 
 
 18. And the men were afraid, because they were bi'ought into 
 Joseph's house; and they said. Because of (he money that was 
 returned in our sacks at the first time are tve brought in ; that 
 he may seek occasion against us, and fall upon us, and take us 
 for bondmen, and our asses. 19. And they came near to the 
 
254 Gifts made ready [Gen. XLIII. 
 
 steward of Joseph's house, and they communed with him at the 
 door of the hotise, 20. A^id said, sir, lue came indeed down 
 at the first time to buy food: 21. And it came to pass, tohen 
 ive 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 
 iveight: and we have brought it again in our hand. 22. And 
 other money have ive brought doivn in our hands to buy food : 
 we cannot tell who piU ottr money in our sacks. 
 
 These apprehensions are vain. They have really nothing to fear 
 from so merciful, so gracious a lord ; yet he was not unwilling to 
 lead them through such an experience. He would rather see them 
 thus than that they should enter his house with confident gaze and 
 haughty attitude. Pie would teach them first a holy fear that 
 they may win their way to undoubted confidence afterwards. 
 Those make a great mistake who think to approach God with 
 nothing about them of the element of fear. 
 
 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 yotir money. And he brotight Simeon out unto them. 
 
 This Egyptian certainly belongs to the true Israel. He encourages 
 the children of promise, speaks to them of their father's God, re- 
 unites them to their imprisoned brother, is ready to serve them in 
 all ways. He attributes the happy recovery of their money to the 
 Providence of God, not intending thereby to deceive them, but 
 viewing God as inspiring hearts and giving orders through men's 
 ministry. It was, indeed, by Joseph's orders that this had been 
 done, but God had so- appointed, and they had Him to thank for it. 
 
 24. And the man brought the men into Josejih's house, and 
 gave them water, and they trashed their feet ; and he gave their 
 asses provender. 25. And they made ready the j^resent against 
 Joseph came at noon : for they heard that they should eat bread 
 there. 
 
 They must have felt like S. Peter when he had been released from 
 the prison (Acts xii. 9), ' He wist not that it was true, . . . but 
 thought he saw a vision.' All seemed too promising, too hopeful, 
 to be real. They still awaited anxiously the arrival of the great 
 lord who had invited tliem ; they felt that all their welfare depended 
 on his dispositions towards them. There was still something in his 
 treatment of them which they could not understand. Meanwhile, 
 they arranged their presents to the best advantage, and thought 
 only how to please him. 
 
Ver. 32.] Joseph's vielting Soul 255 
 
 26. And when Josejyk came home, they brought him the 
 present ivhich tvas 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 ivell, 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 obeisance. 
 
 I am reminded in reading these verses of Christ's return from the 
 grave, of His meeting His brethren with salutations of peace, of 
 their mingled fear and joy. They cry out, ' My Lord and my 
 God ' ; they adore and trust, though with a trembling joy, with 
 something of distance between them and their Master since He 
 has left mortality. Jacob himself comes forward on this occasion 
 to venerate Joseph, not in person, but through the instrument- 
 ality of his sons. Joseph is one of them, yet exalted so high that 
 the brethren fall before him in all humility. They have learnt to 
 rely on him as their only hope. 
 
 29. And he lifted up his eyes, and saw his brother Benjamin, 
 his mother's son, and said. Is this your younger brother, of 
 u'hom ye spake %cnto me ? And he said, God be gracious unto 
 thee, my son. 30. A^id 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. 
 
 Joseph's heart seems set on Benjamin alone. He separates him from 
 the rest by special notice, blessing, attentions. Of Benjamin's 
 own behaviour we are told nothing. He is brought forward, not 
 for any merits of his own, but because of his brother's un- 
 discerning, unprompted love. Could not Joseph, one asks, have 
 received his brethren and made himself known to them directly? 
 Why all these delays and disguises? So it is asked concerning 
 Christ's work ; why did our dear Lord spend such labour and 
 pains on redeeming us. He Who has all hearts, all means, in His 
 hand? Nay, He has His reasons. The way of tears which He 
 trod, the long series of His Passion, the process and method of 
 our conversion, all have their due place. Let us trust so w ise a 
 Brother, let us seek His blessing and guidance. 
 
 32. And they set on for him by himself, and for them by 
 themselves, and for the Egy2)tians, which did eat with him, by 
 themselves: because the Egyptians might not eat brtad tuith 
 
256 The Feast of Gladness [Gen. XLIV. 
 
 the Hebrews ; for that is an abomination unto the Egyptians. 
 33. And they sat before him, the firstborn 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 imto 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. 
 
 In the land of Canaan they had left scarcity, every morsel was 
 measured out ; here in Joseph's house is abundance and good 
 cheer. May I not see in this a hint of the barrenness of the Old 
 Testament Scriptures apart from Christ ? Without Him as their 
 way, their end, their hope, a sort of blankness comes over the Old 
 Testament History — what came of it ? What was God leading 
 His people towards? The Jews who ignore the hope of Israel 
 find left to them but the husk, the difficulties, commencements 
 which end in nothing. Believers whom Christ welcomes to His 
 table of Divine Truth see there the fulness of all those hints and 
 figures and yearnings which were on the lips of saints and pro- 
 phets in old time. It is the happy experience of some souls to 
 have found out all this, though for a while they knew it not. On 
 reading their Bible they can say, 'Once I was blind, now I see.' 
 
 CHAPTER XLIV 
 
 I. Joseph's policy to stay his brethren. 14. Judah's humble supplication 
 to Joseph. 
 
 AND he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill 
 the men's sacks with food, as miich as they can carry, 
 and ptit every man's money in his sack's mouth. 2. And put 
 my cup, the silver ctip, in the sack's mouth of the youngest, and 
 his corn money. And he did according to the ivord that 
 Joseph had spoken. 
 
 In this last trial which Joseph steels himself to inflict on his brethren, 
 I recognise his earnest desire to see how they would treat 
 Benjamin, — whetlier they would prefer their own safety to his, 
 whether they had really won anything of true self-sacrificing love. 
 He finds, and is delighted to find, that they come out well. Joseph's 
 steward must have been told, or have guessed, the secret of his 
 master's dealings with the strangers ; at least, he seems to fulfil the 
 instructions he had received as if he had penetrated their meaning. 
 
Ver. 10.] Eyes still holden 257 
 
 What is this cup hidden in the wheat ? A mystical cup, the 
 discovery of which brings sorrow and shame, which pledges the 
 holder of it to bondage? It represents the same cup of sorrow out 
 of which Joseph himself had drunk, the bitter cup which was put 
 to Christ's own lips first, and comes round to us in our turn. It is 
 offered to us, in a mystery, along with the Bread of Life. There 
 we receive what pledges us to patience and yet to hope. 
 
 3. ^s won as the morning was light, the men were sent 
 away, they and their asses. 4. And ivhen they ivere gone out 
 of the city, and not yet far off, Joseph said unto his steward, 
 Up, folloiv after the men ; and when thou dost overtake them, 
 say unto them, Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good? 
 5. Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby 
 indeed he divineth ? ye have done evil in so doing. 
 
 All this time the brothers' eyes had been holden, like those of the 
 two who went to Emmaus. Joseph made trial of their sentiments 
 just as the risen Lord did of the doubting imperfect faith of His 
 friends. Ought not the brothers to have known Joseph, the two 
 disciples to have recognised their Master long before they did ? 
 Sufficient tokens and signs of love had been given in either case, 
 but still the cloud remained between till God's moment had come. 
 Joseph's accusation, that the brothers, or one of them, had stolen his 
 precious silver divining cup, seems strange for two reasons ; first, 
 that the charge was untrue, and he knew it to be so. Again, how 
 could he who was inspired by heavenly wisdom imitate Egyptian 
 magicians in divining by looking into the cup? I reply that it 
 was allowable for him to invent this device to test his brothers' 
 hearts ; he did not mean to employ lasting deception. And 
 again, that he did not really use the cup for magic purposes ; it 
 was merely a phrase to exalt its preciousness. 
 
 6. And he overtook them, and he spake unto them these same 
 tvords. 7. And they said unto him, Wherefore saith my lord 
 these words ? God forbid that thy servants shotdd 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 ive steed out of thy lord's house 
 silver or gold? 9, With tvhomsoever of thy servants it be 
 found, both let him die, and ive also will be my lo?~d's bond- 
 men. 10. And he said, Now also let it be according unto your 
 words : he tvith ivhom it is found shall be my servant ; and ye 
 shall be blamdena. 
 
 This faithful servant speaks Joseph's own message ; he comforts, or 
 he threatens, or he discriminates, exactly as his master would have 
 
258 The mysterious Cup [Gen. XLIV. 
 
 him. He says ' my servant,' using his master's exact words. Oh 
 that those who take to mankind the message of the true Jo?eph 
 did so with equal faithfulness, never ' making the heart of the 
 righteous sad,' never 'strengthening the bands of the wicked'! 
 Give, Lord, to Thy ministers such discernment of heart that they 
 may know when to speak of Thy terrors, when of Thy love. 
 
 II. Then they speedily took doivii every man his sack to the 
 ground, and opened every man his sack. 1 2. And he searched, 
 and began at the eldest, and left at the youngest : and the cuii 
 was found in Benjamin's sack. 13. Then they rent their 
 clothes, and laded every man his ass, and returned to the city. 
 
 O dread discovery ! confounding even for innocence. They knew 
 not whether to condemn Benjamin, or to trust his protestations 
 and air of innocence. They felt themselves entangled in a web of 
 trouble from which they could see no outlet. Certainly it is 
 admirable to see with what patience, courage, and sympathy for 
 their endangered brother, they faced the situation. They were 
 not like those Corinthians whom S. Paul reproved for their self- 
 righteousness in the presence of sin, to whom he said, ' Your 
 glorying is not good ; know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth 
 the whole lump ? ' No, these took the crime as their own, and 
 atoned for it in penitence. 
 
 14. And Judah and his brethren came to JosejMs hotise ; 
 for he was yet there : and they fell before him on the ground. 
 
 They are not jealous of Benjamin, in spite of the favour which 
 Joseph had shown him. They do not treat him with indifference 
 because his mother was not their mother. They cast themselves 
 at Joseph's feet confessing themselves criminals, though they are 
 innocent, entreating for their young brother as if his life and 
 liberty are dearer than their own. The Church would flourish 
 indeed if believers interceded thus humbly with Christ Jesus on 
 behalf of erring and misguided souls. 
 
 15. And Joseph said tmio them, What deed is this that ye 
 have done ? wot ye not that such a man as I can certainly 
 divine? 16. And Judah said, What shall tve say unto my 
 lord 1 what shall we speak ? or how shall tve clear oui se/ve." ? 
 God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants: behold, we 
 are my lord's servants, both ive, and he also with ivhom the cnp 
 is found. 17. And he said, God forbid that I should do so,- 
 
Ver. 23.] JudaJis Intercession 259 
 
 hut the man in ivhose hand the cup is found, he shall be my 
 servant : and as for you, get you vp in peace unto your 
 father. 
 
 Joseph professes that he can divine with prophetic art, that he has 
 found out the criminal, and can punish him justly and him only ; 
 and Judah does not attempt to defend himself or his brothers, but 
 takes, as it were, all the fault on himself. Nay, he speaks in our 
 person ; it is we who say, ' How shall we speak, or how shall we 
 clear ourselves?' 'God hath found out the iniquity of Thy 
 servants.' We owe a great debt to God's justice; our own 
 righteousness is unable to satisfy him. We do not find any 
 innocence or worthiness of our own that we can allege. Feeling 
 thus, speaking thus, we become worthy to receive His infinite and 
 undeserved mercy. He gives us that pardon which we need and 
 yet dare not claim. 
 
 18. Then Judaic came near unto him, and said, my lord, 
 let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a tvord in my lord's ears, 
 and let not thine anger b^irn against thy servant : for thou art 
 even as Pharaoh. 
 
 Joseph listened to Judah 's speech, and marvelled at the tender, almost 
 paternal love which he had for Benjamin, a self-sacrificing ventur- 
 ing love that would dare and suffer all to rescue his young brother. 
 He marvelled, but it was not his gift, he did not inspire it ; but 
 the true Joseph, Christ our Saviour, Himself imparts to us what 
 love we have. When He rewards us, it is His own gift He 
 rewards. Joseph appears here 'even as Pharaoh'; he has royal 
 power to give or take away liberty and life. He who was once 
 sold, oppressed, forgotten, is now a sharer in sovereign power. 
 He reminds us of the text, ' Even as the Father raiseth the dead 
 and quickeneth them, even so the Son also quickeneth whom He 
 will ; that all men should honour the Son even as they honour the 
 Father. ' 
 
 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. A7id tho7i saidst unto thy servants, 
 Bring him doion 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 shoidd leave his father, his father tvo^dd die. 
 
 23. And thou saidst ttnfo thy servants, Except your youngest 
 
26o The Tale of Jacob's A?txieties [Gen. XLV- 
 
 brother come doiun loith you, ye shall see my face no more. 
 24. And it came to pass when we came up unto thy servant my 
 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 ivill ive go down: for we may not see the marCs face, 
 except our youngest brother be luith 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 doivn my gray hairs ivith snrroiv to the grave. 
 
 This is a simple and touching history, in which Judah relates just 
 what had been really said and done, but with a view to melt the 
 heart of the unknown lord on whom his fate depended. Jacob's 
 prolonged old age, his vivid remembrance of his dearly beloved 
 Rachel, his tender regard for the sons she had given him, his 
 great reluctance to risk his sole remaining darling amidst strangers, 
 all these are well set forth. Judah shows how great weight 
 Joseph's commands had had with him ; they had prevailed against 
 the aged father's scruples, had resulted in the younger brother 
 being brought down in the hope that he might find a favourable 
 welcome. Judah had been told that he would not be acceptable 
 without Benjamin, therefore he had brought him in obedience, 
 trusting, for his sake, to be accepted. 
 
 30. Nolo 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 tvith 2ts, that he ivill die : and thy servants shall 
 bring down the gray hairs of thy servant our father tvith 
 sorroiv to the grave. 
 
 What a change in Judah ! We have known him under other circum- 
 stances, and known ill of him ; but now he appears willing to give 
 up all sooner than distress his father. His whole soul is touched 
 with his father's anxiety, so that he thinks nothing of his own risk. 
 Surely, if we had known Judah, we should have forgiven all his 
 past faults for the sake of his present love. This is what Christ 
 the Lord does with the contrite soul. lie takes away evil, and 
 brings in good. He wipes out the past, and fills the heart with 
 devotion which renews it wholly. He imputes not the former sins 
 of any who sincerely seek His kingdom. 
 
 ' Who trust in Him, their guilt is gone ' (Ps. xxxiv. 22). — Keble. 
 
Ver. I.] Joseph alone with his Brothers 261 
 
 32. For thy servant hecaiae surety for the lad unto viy 
 father, saying. If I bring him not unto thee, then I shall bear 
 the blame to my father for ever. 33. Noiv therefore, I pray 
 thee, let thy servant abide instead of the lad a bondman to my 
 lord ; and let the lad go xip 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. 
 
 Wc see in Judah the image of a true pastor, who has to give account 
 for souls, who pleads for each with God, who ventures himself to 
 save his brethren, who fears his Father's reproach if any soul is 
 lost. We have in his words an echo of S. Paul's saying, ' I could 
 wish to be accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen 
 according to the flesh.' The Apostle could not bear to enjoy 
 Divine grace and favour without his dear countrymen. Their souls 
 were more precious to him than his own. It is such accents as 
 these which form a prevailing prayer. 
 
 CHAPTER XLV 
 
 I. Joseph maketh himself known to his brethren. 5. He comforteth them 
 in God's providence, g. He sendeth for his father. 16. Pharaoh 
 confirmeth it. 21. Joseph furnisheth them for their journey, and 
 exhorteth them to concord. 25. Jacob is revived with the news. 
 
 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, tvhile Joseph 
 made himself known unto his brethren. 
 
 Judah, when he spoke so touchingly, so convincingly, did not know 
 to whom he was speaking. He thought that he was before a severe 
 judge, but it was in reality a loving brother. He thought that he 
 had cruelty to fear, and in reality there was only kindness, which 
 was with difficulty restrained from showing itself. Compare this 
 position with our own when we come before Christ our Saviour, 
 full of the burden of our sms, humbly imploring His mercy. He 
 desires that we should be pardoned more than we ourselves desire 
 it. His warnings and terrors arc in love. He has led us through 
 rough ways on purpose that we might learn to love Him. Let us so 
 blend together awe of His majesty and trust of His mercy that He 
 may show us all the tenderness of His Divine Heart. 
 
262 // IS /, de not afraid [Gen. XLV. 
 
 2. And he wept aloud: and the Egyptians and the house of 
 Pharaoh heard. 
 
 Joseph remained alone with his eleven brethren, revealed himself 
 graciously to them, soothed their dismay, manifested to them his 
 love, sent them to do his commission. Where is it we read ' Him 
 hath God raised up and showed openly, not unto all the people, 
 but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us who did eat 
 and drink with Him after He rose?' This interview, like that 
 one, was reserved for brethren alone ; but soon the news of it 
 spread everywhere, and it was told what Joseph or what Christ 
 Jesus had said to their brethren at their meeting. We, too, can 
 assist by faith at the apparition of the Risen Saviour, and can bear 
 the news of it to other hearts. 
 
 3. And Joseph said unto his brethren, I am Joseph ; doth 
 VI 1/ father yet live? And his brethren coidd not answer him ; 
 for they were troubled at his presence. 
 
 ' They were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen 
 a spirit. ' This could not be the real living brother of their youth ! 
 How changed, too, was he ! in what a position ! how different 
 from the brother they knew ! I see here the feeling of the disciples 
 at the beginning of the forty days when fear still strove with joy in 
 them ; or the feelings of Saul when he found that the supposed 
 Impostor, against Whose disciples he had been raging, was indeed 
 the Heavenly King, the Hope of Israel. 
 
 4. And Joseph said imto 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. 
 
 'Behold, that it is I myself.' 'Why are ye troubled, and why do 
 thoughts arise in your hearts ? ' Christ thus tenderly soothed the 
 fears, encouraged the faith of His disciples after His return from 
 the dead. So does He still reveal Himself to doubting souls, en- 
 lightens them by degrees, makes them see the error in which they 
 have lived, the Love against which they have been fighting. 
 
 5. Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, 
 that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to 
 2ireserve life. 
 
 Our Divine Brother is better than Joseph, and can Himself impart the 
 peace and trust which Joseph recommends. He shows us our 
 fault, but at the same time reveals His mercy. He shows how 
 
Ver. io.] Not you, but God 263 
 
 Divine Providence draws good out of evil, how His truth is con- 
 firmed even by our errors, how it was needful for our salvation 
 that we should acknowledge who and what we are, and thus seek for 
 mercy. This is, indeed, a wonderful discovery when we see how 
 our sins have been overruled to our salvation — we learn to abhor 
 ourselves, but yet to realise the blessings of penitence, the full 
 grace and pity of our God. 
 
 6. For these two years hath the famine been in the land: 
 and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither he 
 earing nor harvest. 7. And God sent me before you to pre- 
 serve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a 
 great deliverance. 
 
 The long drought, the universal distress, the hopelessness of escape 
 otherwise, made all people depend on Joseph's store, seek his 
 favour ; his foresight was so keen, his supplies so great. If I, 
 apart from the true Joseph, consider my condition, I should utterly 
 despair. I have no spiritual resources, no treasure of grace, no 
 inward righteousness, but I put my trust in Him Who can well 
 supply me. He can bring me, who am utterly vile and foolish, 
 into His glorious kingdom, where I shall marvel to find myself. 
 
 8. So noio it ivas 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 rtder throughout all the land of Egypt. 
 
 Forget your own part in all this, think only of the good which God 
 has wrought out through your means. ' Through ignorance ye did 
 it . . . but what God hath foreshowed by the mouth of His pro- 
 phets . . . He hath so fulfilled '; these are S. Peter's words (Acts 
 iii. 17), speaking of a greater crime and greater triumph than 
 Joseph's history had to show. How wonderful is the order of 
 God's Providence, wherein, in a manner beyond our understanding, 
 He makes all things serve to His servants' good ! All things, even 
 crimes, vices, enemies, cruelties, follies, are thus by an astonishing 
 alchemy made to produce the gold of true love and increase the 
 number of rescued souls. 
 
 9. Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say tmto him. 
 Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all 
 Egypt: come doivn tinto me, tarry not: 10. And thoii shall 
 dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shall be near unto me, 
 thou, and thy children, and thy children's children, and thy 
 
264 Tears of Joy [Gen. XLV. 
 
 flocks, and thy herds, and all that thoa 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. 
 
 The time of grace has come, suspicions and difficuUies have disap- 
 peared in a moment. No need now for Benjamin or Judah to fear 
 bondage or deprecate faults. No need now to seek anxiously and 
 at cost for corn to take home. Joseph takes all their cares on him- 
 self, all his power and bounty are pledged to them ; all that is 
 needed now is to send forth the news of reconciliation. ' How 
 beautiful are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that pub- 
 lisheth peace, that bringeth glad tidings of good things ! ' Now 
 that I know where the Living Bread is to be found, now that I 
 have been welcomed by my Exalted Brother, and know how great 
 is His goodness, let me tell this glad news and win all men to 
 share it. 
 
 12. And behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother 
 Benjamin, that it is my mouth that sjieaketh unto you. 
 13. And ye shall tell my father of all my glory m Egypt, and 
 of all that ye have seen ; and ye shall haste and bring down 
 my father hither. 
 
 ' Your eyes see. ' What you thought were empty dreams have 
 turned out true ; he whom you thought an enemy is a friend ; 
 what you did lightly and carelessly was a cruel fault bringing 
 grave consequences. God's Divine hidden will disposing evil to 
 good, which you never thought of, has now become manifest. Let 
 us. Lord, have eyes to see ourselves as we are, and at the same 
 time Thee as Thou art. Thus alone shall we bear the sight of our 
 own folly, being consoled by the light of Thy gracious Face. 
 
 14. And he fell upo7i his h'other Benjamin's neck, and 
 wept; and Benjamin tvept upon his neck. 15. Moreover he 
 kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them: and after 
 that his brethren talked with him. 
 
 ' Men and brethren, what shall we do ? ' Our sins are come to our 
 knowledge, we have crucified Christ by our own sinfulness ; yet 
 remember that He is full of Divine compassion, that His Blood is 
 so powerful, His tenderness so great, that all the evil we have done 
 shall no more be mentioned if we repent of it. He will make it 
 as though it had not been ; His word of forgiveness is all-powerful ; 
 perfect love will at last cast out fear. What did this gracious 
 brother converse of with his reconciled brethren ? I know not, 
 
Ver. 20.] A gracious Welcome 265 
 
 nor do I know much of what the Lord said to the beloved disciple, 
 or to the eleven after the Resurrection, nor am I told what the 
 Blessed in Heaven say and do ; but peace, trust, love, are real and 
 revive hearts. In this life we but taste drops of them, but the 
 fulness is elsewhere. 
 
 16. And the fame thereof ivas heard in Pharaoh's house, 
 saying, Joseph's brethren are come : and it 2^i^ci,sed Pharaoh 
 ivell, and his servants. 
 
 It is good news that Israel should at last find Joseph, should recognise 
 him for their brother, should rejoice in his love. If their alienation 
 has brought good results, what will not their reconciliation do? 
 ' If their fall is the riches of the world, and their loss the riches of 
 the Gentiles ; how much more their fulness ? ' 'If the casting 
 away of them is the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiv- 
 ing of them be but Hfe from the dead?' (Rom. xi. 12, 15). 
 
 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; i8. And, tahe your father and your households, 
 and come unto me : and I ivill give you the good of the land of 
 Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the land. 1 9. Noxo thoit 
 art commanded, this do ye; take you wagons out of the land 
 of Egypt for your little ones, and for your vrives, and bring 
 your father, and come. 
 
 Are not these words like those of the Evangelical Prophet, who thus 
 concludes his great prophecy of Israel's restoration — 'And they 
 shall bring your brethren out of all nations for an offering to the 
 Lord, upon horses, upon chariots, upon litters, upon mules, and 
 upon swift beasts?' (Isa. Ixvi. 20.) Will not the end of time 
 see a gathering together of God's ancient people to His Divine Son, 
 their Redeemer ? The Jews remain still after all these centuries a 
 separate people, retaining the vestiges and relics of their old faith, 
 awaiting God's designs of mercy. Will not the time come for Him 
 to redeem their captivity and make them recognise His salvation ? 
 
 20. Also regard not your stuff ; for the good of all the land 
 of Egypt is yours. 
 
 They must make a sacrifice. Their removal from Canaan involves 
 some loss. Well, it is worth facing for the glories and advantages 
 of their new settlement. So S. I'aul says, ' What things were 
 gain for me, those I counted loss for Christ.' 'I suffered the loss 
 of all things, and count them but dung, that I may win Christ and 
 be found in Him. ' So it is with all those who accept God's 
 
2 66 Sustenance for the Way [Gen. XLVI. 
 
 gracious offer and seek the face of the true Joseph. They have to 
 give up some pleasures, some advantages, but God will abundantly 
 recompense them. 
 
 21. And the children of Israel did so: and Joseph gave 
 them wagons, according to the commandment of Pharaoh, and 
 gave them provision for the ivay. 22. To all of them he gave 
 each man changes of raiment; hut 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 com and bread and meat for his father hy the way. 
 
 Joseph first welcomed his brethren, then clothed and enriched them. 
 He received and acknowledged them as they were, and afterwards 
 clothed their poverty and shabbiness with the gifts of his own muni- 
 ficence. Not otherwise does Christ Jesus deal with us. He 
 accepts our nothingness, our vileness, that He may clothe us with 
 His abundant grace. He acknowledges us for His brethren, calls 
 us to a kingdom, though we deserve it not. Joseph sent presents 
 to his father, as his father had previously sent presents to him (xlii. 
 11) ; but those were spared out of poverty, tokens of respect, the 
 best Jacob could offer, these are overflowings of Joseph's abund- 
 ance, enough to sustain Jacob and all his household. Let us 
 offer to our Divine Lord willingly and cheerfully of what we have, 
 secure that we shall be no losers. Who can doubt His wealth 
 or His bountifulness ? 
 
 24. So he sent his bj'ethren away, and they departed: and 
 he said unto them. See that ye fall not out by the loay. 
 
 Be not jealous of any preference that I have shown to Benjamin ; be 
 not anxious to throw off on each other your own share of responsi- 
 bility for ill-using me of old ; be not ambitious as regards your new 
 establishment. No, you are beloved ; rest on and trust in that 
 love ; rejoice in your newly-won peace, and hasten to carry home the 
 tidings of it. This is good news, and suflicient for you, to know 
 that all is now peace, all is secure, plenty and i-epose await you. 
 Be only concerned to carry out the orders which I have given you. 
 
 25. And they tvent 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. 
 
 What a difference between this news of joy and the sad message 
 witnessed to by the bloodstained coat with which they had before 
 
Ver. 2.] Jacob's '■Nunc Diinittis' 267 
 
 saddened their father's heart ! Yes ; and in themselves, too, the 
 difference was great. They had now got rid of their jealousy, 
 their violence, their falsehood. With them, too, all things have 
 become new, so that they are fitted to impart this new hope. Glad 
 tidings ! he whom we thought dead lives and reigns ; all his 
 humiliation has turned into glory. Nature is unable at first to 
 grasp this astonishing revelation. 
 
 27. And they told him all the ivords of Joseph, tvhirh he 
 had said tinto them : and tvhen he saw the ivaaons ivhich 
 Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father 
 revived : 
 
 Jacob speaks of his sons much as the Christians at Damascus about 
 Saul when they said, ' He now preacheth the faith which once he 
 destroyed.' Jacob rejoices to see that all his family are turned 
 to Joseph now, trust him, love him, depend on him. So may it 
 be with the whole house of Israel ; may they be united with 
 believers of old time in acknowledgment of that Messiah Whom 
 they have so long despised. 
 
 28. And Israel said, It is eno%igh ; Joseph my son is yet 
 alive : I will go and see him before I die. 
 
 This is Jacob's 'Nunc Dimittis,' 'Lord, now lettest Thou Thy 
 servant depart in peace according to Thy word, for mine eyes 
 have seen Thy salvation.' Joseph, too, had become 'a light to 
 lighten the Gentiles ' before he was recognised as the ' glory of 
 God's people Israel.' Jacob felt now that God had been indeed 
 true and gracious to him. He looked forward to great mercies 
 yet, of which his dear son's exaltation was but the figure. He 
 disposed himself to take the step of entering Egypt, secure that 
 when he made one more change thence and entered the unseen 
 world, there, too, his faithful Guide would not be lacking. 
 
 CHAPTER XLVI 
 
 1. Jacob is comforted by God at Beer-sheba. 5. Thence he with his 
 company goeth into Egypt. 8. The number of his family that went 
 intOj Egypt. 29. Joseph meeteth Jacob. 31. He instructeth his 
 brethren how to answer to Pharaoh. 
 
 AND Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came 
 to Beer-sheba, and offered sacrifices unto the God of his 
 father Isaac. 2. And God spake unto Israel in the visions of 
 the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I. 
 Jacob had in his youth beheld God's gracious Face at Bethel ; there 
 he had first learned to believe and trust. Again, in mature age, 
 
268 Jacobus last Vision [Gkn. XLVI. 
 
 in a time of great anguish and fear, he had wrestled at Penuel with 
 the ' traveller unknown ' Whose Name and Face were hidden 
 from him ; there he had won peace and reconciliation through 
 strife. Now at the end of his life he has another vision, one 
 suited to his present need. God enlightens and cheers his age by 
 a gracious promise. God bids him 'fear not.' God promises 
 that His mercy shall not forsake Jacob's family. God meets his 
 unspoken questioning and bids him boldly leave the land of 
 promise, to return again in due time. 
 
 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 thee a great 
 nation. 
 
 Is not this like the vision which S. Paul had in his hour of need 
 (Acts xxiii. 11), when the Lord stood by him and said, 'Be of 
 good cheer, Paul, for as thou hast certified of Me at Jerusalem, so 
 shalt thou bear witness also at Rome ? ' Paul too was leaving the 
 Holy Land never to return. He was going to mighty Rome, 
 which had succeeded to Egypt's power among nations. His 
 prospects were uncertain, and even terrible ; yet his Divine Lord 
 promised him succour and fulfilled His word. He became the 
 spiritual father of innumerable souls whom he won through his 
 very exile. Is it not the same Lord Who speaks to Jacob in the 
 one place, to Paul in the other ? 
 
 4. / will go doivn with thee into Egypt ; and I will also 
 surely bring thee up again : and Joseph shall put his hand 
 upon thine eyes. 
 
 Do not fear to forsake Canaan and live in Egypt ; God will be there, 
 Joseph will be there. Egypt will become a land of promise under 
 such a Guide, with such a Protector. Death indeed will surely 
 come, but with a gentle aspect. Death will bring round thee 
 loving hearts, faithful prayers, thoughts of God's mercy in the 
 past and foreshadowings of the same mercy as lasting on beyond 
 the grave. Death with Joseph by would have no terrors. So I 
 feel regarding my own end. I look towards my Divine Brother 
 exalted for me. I say to death, 
 
 ' Little skills it where or how, 
 If thou comest then or now, 
 With a smooth or angrj' brow — 
 Come thou must, and we must die — 
 Jesu, Saviour, stand Thou by 
 When that last sleep seals our eye.' 
 
 5. And Jacob rose up from Beer-sheba: and the sons of 
 Israel carried Jacob their father, and their little ones, and 
 
Ver. 20.] A List of the Immigrants 269 
 
 their wives, in the uugons tohich Pharaoh had sent to carry 
 him. 6. And they took their cattle, and their goods, tvhich 
 they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, 
 Jacob, and all his seed with him: 7. His sons, and his so7is' 
 sons with him, his daughters, and his sons' daughters, and all 
 his seed brought he ivith him into Egypt. 
 
 God had said to Isaac (xxvi. 2, 3), 'Go not down into Egypt; 
 sojourn in the land, and I will be with thee and bless thee ' ; but 
 now He bids Jacob pursue a different plan. As his father had 
 trusted and obeyed, so does the son, sure that it is the same God 
 Who speaks, though His command is different. Jacob took into 
 Egypt a small company, but from it sprang a great multitude, a 
 mighty nation. Joseph's brethren and kinsfolk were but few, but 
 they contained in them the pledge of generations to come who 
 should believe and hope as they did. Christ Jesus after His 
 Resurrection had also comparatively few of His own nation to 
 believe in Him, but Scripture speaks of a time still future when 
 ' all Israel ' shall be gathered in to their true hope. 
 
 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 Shcml 
 the son of a Canaanitish looman. 11. And the sons of Levi ; 
 Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 12. And the sons of Jiidah ; 
 Er, and Onan, and Shelah, and Pharez, and Zerah : but Er 
 and Onan died in the land of Canaan. And the sons of 
 Pharez were Hezron and Hamul. 13. And the sons of 
 Issachar ; Tola, and Phuvah, and Job, and Shimron. 
 
 14. And the sons of Zebulun ; Sered, and Elon, and Jahleel. 
 
 15. These be the sons of Leah, tvhich 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 ; Jimnah, 
 and Ishuah, and Isui, and Beriah, and Sherah their sister: 
 and the sons of Beriah ; Htbcr, and Malchiel. 18. These are 
 the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter, 
 and these she bare unto Jacob, even sixteen sotds, 19. 77ie 
 sons of Rachel Jacob's wife ; Joseph and Benjamin. 20. And 
 
270 Jacob and Joseph meet again [Gen. XLVI. 
 
 unto Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and 
 Ephraim, which Asenath the daughter of Poii-pheraJi priest of 
 On hare unto him. 21. And the sons of Benjamin loere Belah, 
 and Becher, and Ashhel, Gera, and Naaman, Ehi, and Rosh, 
 Muppim, and Huppim, and Ard. 22. These are the sons of 
 Rachel, which were born to Jacob: cdl the soids 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, luhich Lahan 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, xohich came out of his loins, besides Jacob's sons tvives, 
 all the sotds 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, tvere 
 threescore and ten. 
 
 Here are God's people enumerated for the first time. Here is the 
 list of those who founded the families of Israel. Here is the holy 
 nation come to sojourn in a strange land, yet having their identity 
 clearly marked and able to preserve it. They will live in Egypt, 
 yet not as Egyptians ; they will hand on, even through bondage 
 and oppression, the sacred inheritance of promise. They looked 
 back to Canaan where their ancestors were buried, and forward to 
 a time when they should return thither with greater knowledge 
 and power than they now enjoyed. Thus it was that God 
 educated His people, filled them with sacred memories and cheer- 
 ful hopes, upheld them in their present exile with thoughts of a 
 lasting home. 
 
 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 ivept on his neck a good tvhile. 
 
 30. And Israel said unto Joseph, Noiv let me die, since I have 
 seen thy face, because thou art yet alive. 
 
 What passed at this meeting we are not further told. What memories 
 of old time, what expressions of gratitude to God, what hopes of 
 future mercies filled the conversation between Jacob and Joseph, 
 we know not. Tears expressed more than words ; but Jacob 
 declared himself ready to die, now that he had his dear son once 
 more with him. Death could have no terrors for him now 
 
Ver. 34-] The Shepherd' s Trade 271 
 
 Joseph's glory, power, forethought were enough for him to confide 
 in and rest all anxieties upon. So Christians feel as regards their 
 Divine Lord. They know not the mystery of death, but are 
 content to trust in their Redeemer, Who Himself died and yet is 
 alive for evermore. 
 
 31. And Joseph said unto his hrelhren, and unto his father s 
 house, J ivill go up, and shew Pharaoh, and say %into him. 
 My brethren, and my father's house, ivhich were in the land of 
 Canaan, are come unto me ; 
 
 I listen here to the words of one greater than Joseph, Who says, ' Go 
 unto My brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto My Father 
 and your Father, My God and your God.' Who is it Who is the 
 Mediator for His brethren. Who speaks for them, obtains for them 
 benefits from the Throne ? It is He Whom His brethren renounced 
 and sold, yet Who ever lives to plead for them. 
 
 32. And the men are shepherds, for their tradt 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 jmss, when 
 Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What is your occupa- 
 tion ? 34. That ye shall say. Thy servants' trade hath been 
 about cattle from otir yo%ith even until now, both ive, and also 
 oiir fathers : that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen ; for 
 every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians. 
 
 ' Remain,' says Joseph, ' in your simple life ; keep away from the 
 court, from the temples of the Egyptians; let the barrier of your 
 despised occupation remain.' Joseph was desirous to prevent his 
 brothers aiming at high places through his means ; he would have 
 them live as a people apart, awaiting God's destinies for them. 
 Yet he would not have them vaunt themselves as the chosen seed, 
 the future lords of Canaan. Let them rather keep to themselves 
 those high thoughts. It would be enough for them to have pasture 
 for their cattle, a space in which to live, and work, and pray. So 
 let us spend our time while we are in Egypt, as not of it, as having 
 our own inward life apart. We are heirs of a faith and hope 
 which the world does not share. 
 
272 A Visit to Pharaoh's Court [Gen. XLVII. 
 
 CHAPTER XLVII 
 
 I. Joseph presenteth five of his brethren, 7. and his father, before Pharaoh 
 II. He giveth them habitation and maintenance. 13. He getteth all 
 the Egyptians' money, 16. their cattle, 18. their lands to Pharaoh. 
 22. The priests' land was not bought. 23. He letteth the land to 
 them for a fifth part. 28. Jacob's age. 29. He sweareth Joseph to 
 bury him with his fathers. 
 
 THEN Joseph came and told Pharaoh, and said, My father 
 and my brethren, and their flocks, and their hercls, and 
 all that they have, are come out of the land of 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. 
 
 ' They are come,' he said, ' trusting in thy bounty, O king ; they have 
 no resources of their own, but rely on thy favour. I rank myself 
 with these five, and then half my family are present here, as a 
 pledge of the rest. I willingly lay aside my unique position to 
 rank myself with the other sons of Jacob.' Joseph reminds me 
 here, as often, of One Who is not ashamed to call us brethren, to 
 pray for us and in us, to present us with Him to our heavenly 
 Father. In Him we dare to approach the Throne of grace. 
 
 3. And Pharaoh scad unto his brethreii. What is your 
 occupation ? And they said unto Pharaoh, Thy servants are 
 shepherds, both tve, and also our fathers. 4. They said more- 
 over 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 : noio therefore, we pray 
 thee, let thy servants dwell in the land of Goshen. 
 
 Pharaoh wanted no idle subjects, particularly in this time of distress, 
 but he welcomed all those who could bring to Egypt useful know- 
 ledge and skill. And the sons of Jacob told him they were 
 shepherds ; that craft was all their care and employment. They 
 did not expect to live in towns or to become rich and mighty ; 
 sufficient for them was this homely work, which had been that of 
 their fathers before them. Nor did they mean to become citizens 
 of Ey;ypt. No, it would not be their lasting home. God might 
 have other designs for them in the future. O Lord, I too am 
 contented to regard this short life as a sojourn ; I will take times 
 of famine patiently ; I will ]5rofit by the green pastures of Goshen 
 when my way lies there ; I will do my work heartily, but yet 
 !ceep in mind Thy eternal home, which is my true end. 
 
Ver. io.] Human Life in Retrospect 273 
 
 5. And Pharaoh spake unto Josejjh, sayinr/, 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 
 divell ; in the land of Goshen let them dwell : and if thou 
 knowest any men of activity among them, then make them 
 riders over my cattle. 
 
 It would seem that Pharaoh regretted the poor estimation in which 
 pastoral life was held by the Egyptians. He felt that his own 
 cattle suffered from it, and he was glad that these Hebrews 
 should improve things. Pharaoh has a care for his sheep, and 
 considers to whom he will intrust them. He desires industrious 
 and capable men for the purpose. And will not my heavenly 
 Father require an account of Christ's slieep at my hands ? Will 
 He not ask whether I have fed, have tended, have guarded those 
 dear souls whom His Providence has put into my care ? 
 
 7. And Joseph brought in Jacob his fathtr, and set him 
 before Pharaoh : and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. 
 
 Jacob thanked Pharaoh for all his favours, wished him all manner 
 of blessings, humbled himself before him, and expressed his full 
 trust in his sovereign care. All these thoughts are included in 
 the words 'Jacob blessed Pharaoh.' He knew that he would be 
 well received for Joseph's sake ; that gave him courage to draw 
 near. What a comfort for me to have a Mediator with God, one 
 so influential, so dear to the Divine Majesty ! Trusting in such 
 a Patron I present to God my thanks, my praise, my prayers. I 
 offer myself to fulfill His gracious will in all things. 
 
 8. And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How old art thou ? 
 9. And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of 
 my jnlgrimage 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 year's of the life of my fathers in 
 the days of their pilgrimage. 10. And Jacob blessed Pharaoh, 
 and went out from before Pharaoh. 
 
 'Few and evil days'; and yet his had been a very long life, and 
 one variously blessed and favoured. Why did he look back on 
 his life as a mere pilgrimage, and that short and sad ? Indeed 
 mortality is our lot ; a very long life and a short one are much the 
 same when they draw towards the end. ' Pulvis et uml)ra sumus.' 
 A few years after we die our memory is forgotten, our place in 
 the world quite filled up. This is a 'transitory life,' not without 
 S 
 
2 74 Corn bought at great Price [Gen. XLVII. 
 
 some rich tokens of mercy, some good hopes of blessings to come, 
 but yet passed in a fallen world, with a body and mind that soon 
 fail, with hopes and plans that mostly disappoint us. 
 
 II. 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 Barneses, as Pharaoh had commanded. 
 12. A7id Joseph nourished his father, and his brethren, and 
 all his father's household, with bread, according to their 
 families. 
 
 Here are Joseph's family settled in the land. Even in famine time 
 they find some pasture. What they lack, his care supplies. They 
 soon forget the great straits they were in at home, now that they 
 are under so mighty and bountiful a Protector. These shepherds 
 can say with the Psalmist, ' The Lord is my Shepherd, I lack 
 nothing. He feeds me in a green pasture. He makes me to lie 
 down by refreshing waters.' Joseph, who has public duties and 
 the care of the kingdom upon him, yet never forgets his brethren 
 or fails to supply their need. 
 
 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 ivhich they 
 boiight : and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house. 
 
 We are in great need ; we long for truth, peace, light, and cannot 
 find them except with the true Joseph. He has abundant store ; 
 but, then. His price is high. He says, ' Knowledge rather than 
 choice gold,' 'Wisdom is lietter than rubies.' He says, 'Whoso- 
 ever forsaketh not all that he hath cannot be My disciple.' He 
 says, 'Sell all that thou hast, and follow Me.' Those who trust 
 Him will find that they have bargained wisely. He has that for 
 us which is worth more than gold. 
 
 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 tcs bread : for why should we die in thy presence ? 
 for the money faileth. 16. And Joseph said, Give your cattle; 
 and I tv'dl 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 
 
Ver. 2 2.] Lauds and Liberty gladly parted ivith 275 
 
 cattle of the herds, and for the asses : and he fed them vdth 
 bread for all their cattle for that year. 
 
 Nay, He needs more than our gold. He would have us put ourselves 
 wholly into His hands. We must do no work now in our own 
 strength. It is He from Whom come grace and strength, thoughts 
 of good, and power to carry them out. It is hard, but necessary, 
 that if I am to accomplish any good, it must be by daily seeking it 
 in prayer, winning it by humble waiting at the Throne. Once I 
 looked on myself as rich enough. I had wit, ability, means, to 
 influence others and sway the world ; now I feel my own nothing- 
 ness. Power is in the hands of my dear Lord alone. His strength 
 is perfected in my weaknes'^. 
 
 18. When that year was ended, they came unto him the 
 second yea?', and said unto him, We tvill not hide it from my 
 lord, how that our money is sjyent ; my lord also Jiath our 
 herds of cattle ; there is not ought left in the sight of my lord, 
 but our bodies, and our lands: 19. Wherefore shall loe die 
 before thine eyes, both we and our land ? buy us and oiir land 
 for bread, and ive and our land will be servants mito Pharaoh: 
 and give us seed, that we may live, and not die, that the la?id 
 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. 
 
 Joseph will not be content with my means or my talents, He wants 
 myself. I must become a servant to the Great King, lose my own 
 liberty, and be content to move and live at the Royal pleasure. 
 Here arc Ilis words, strange words too, ' If any man come to Me, 
 and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and 
 brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be My 
 disciple.' He (through the Apostle) declares, 'Ye are not your 
 own ; ye are bought with a price.' When I have confessed this, He 
 is my gracious Lord, and makes my service into perfect freedom. 
 
 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. 
 
 The idolatrous priests of Egypt escaped Joseph's administration. 
 They were in no need of provision, they remained unaffected by 
 
2 76 PharaoJi s fifth Part [Gen. XLVII. 
 
 the plan whereby he put the land into Pharaoh's hands. Looking 
 at the substance, at the reality of which this circumstance is the 
 figure, I ask, Is this a happy condition ? Is it well for souls to re- 
 main outside Christ's grace, to think to go to God without Him, 
 to retain a show of freedom, to rely on human strength apart 
 from the Cross ? Better to live under Joseph's rule and trust His 
 goodness. 
 
 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 shcdl he your oivn, 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 iis find grace in the sight of my lord, and 
 we loill he PharaoKs 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, ivhich 
 hecame not Pharaoh's. 
 
 Now, we are bound to thank our Lord for His goodness. He has 
 saved us, and we can now both live and work. He supplies us 
 bountifully with grace and comfort. He bids us sow the same 
 faith widely, and it will be our support and that of our brethren. 
 Our earthly circumstances may have changed for the worse, but 
 we all the more look to Him. We are now able to join in the 
 song, ' Thou hast redeemed us by Thy Blood out of every kindred 
 and tongue and people and nation.' Oh that we may realise this 
 happy condition, and be ready to venture all and endure all in 
 gratitude to that saving mercy which has never forgotten us ! 
 Under the Jewish law, a literal tithe was paid to the priests, but 
 we will give God double as much, a fifth instead of a tenth, 
 for ours is a service of the spirit, not the letter. 
 
 27. And Israel divelt in the land of Egypt, in the country 
 of Goshen; and they had possessio7is thereiii, and grew, and 
 imdtijylied exceedingly. 
 
 Israel begins now to grow into a nation. They seem outwardly 
 blended with the Gentiles. They are content under Joseph's 
 patronage. They appear to have relinquished their great future ; 
 and yet God is preparing them for it. Their rest, no less than their 
 wanderings, woiks out His designs. If for a while I seem, O 
 Lord, plunged in the cares of Egypt, lost amid the crowd of those 
 who worship this world's glories and charms, yet let me bear a 
 
Ver. 3I-] One hundred and forty-seven Years ended 277 
 
 different heart. Let there ever remain in me a sense that I am 
 Thine, that my best establishment here is but a temporary sojourn, 
 that I am the heir of eternal hopes. 
 
 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 dreiv 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 and tridy ivith me; bury me not, I 
 pray thee, in Egypt : 30. But I will lie with my fathers, and 
 thou shalt carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their 
 burying-jjlace. And he said, I icill do as thou hast said. 
 
 Jacob lived so long among his people in Egypt to teach them God's 
 commandments and promises, to preserve them from being carried 
 away by Egyptian idol-worship. But why was he so anxious 
 about the place of his burial ? Surely to one who believes in God 
 all burial-places are the same. God well knows (as S. Monica 
 says) whence to raise up our dust. She had once, her son tells us, 
 been most anxious that her body should lie by her husband's in her 
 own home ; but as her faith grew greater she said, * Let me be buried 
 wherever I die — the judgment call will be heard everywhere alike.' 
 I answer that Jacob wished to testify his firm adherence to God's 
 promises. He knew that Canaan and a distant future of blessing 
 would be his. He would keep his family from forgetting their 
 promised inheritance — even his ashes should preach. He had 
 shared Abraham's and Isaac's faith and hope, and his body, rest- 
 ing by theirs, should declare this. 
 
 31. And he said, Sivear unto me. And he sivare unto him. 
 And Israel bowed himself upon the bed's head. 
 
 Joseph is asked to swear, though his love and word were not doubt- 
 ful for a moment. He is desired to appeal to the Living God to 
 Whom all things are present, Who can raise up the dead, Who is 
 the God of dead and living. Before this God, in His Presence, 
 Joseph vowed he would lay his father's bones in the patriarchal 
 sepulchre, and thus testify to his people the firm confidence which 
 his father and he himself had in the immutability of the promises. 
 I too believe in the same God to Whom they ap]3ealed. I too am 
 a sharer in a great hope one day to be revealed. My very body 
 will participate in it. 
 
278 A Remembrance of Bethel [Gen. XLVIII. 
 
 CHAPTER XLVIII 
 
 I. Joseph with his sons visiteth his sick father. 2. Jacob strengtheneth 
 himself to bless them. 3. He repeateth the promise. 5. He taketh 
 Ephraim and Manasseh as his own. 7. He telleth Joseph of his 
 mother's grave. 9. He blesseth Ephraim and Manasseh. 17. He 
 preferreth the younger before the elder. 21. He prophesieth their 
 return to Canaan. 
 
 AND it came to pass after these things, that one told 
 Joseph, Behold, thy father is sick : and he took with 
 him his iivo sons, Ilanasseh and Ephraim. 2. And one told 
 Jacob, and said, Behold, thy son Joseph cometh imto thee : and 
 Israel strengthened himself, and sat %Lpon the bed. 
 
 I do not refuse sudden death, if it be God's will. Preparation for 
 death may be made while I am in full health ; but yet if the choice 
 were given, I should prefer my end to be like Jacob's, with full 
 foresight, with opportunity to prepare, to bless God, to look 
 backward over life, to give a word of admonition to my dear 
 ones. 
 
 ' I would the light of reason, Lord, 
 
 Up to the last might shine, 
 That my own hands might hold my soul 
 Until it passed to Thine.' 
 
 Yet, after all, I am in Thy hands always, and what end Thou 
 appointest will be best. 
 
 3. And Jacob said tcnto Joseph, God Almighty appeared 
 tmto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me, 
 4. And said unto me, Behold, I uill make thee fruitful, and. 
 mxdtiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people : 
 and vnll give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting 
 possession. 
 
 Jacob's mind goes back to the vision and promise of old time. He 
 says no word of his decaying health, or of his life in Egypt, but lets 
 us see what had been deepest in his heart all through life. He 
 recalls the time of his loneliness, his apprehensions, his poverty, 
 and how a Divine manifestation had come to him and glorified his 
 nothingness with rich and marvellous promises. ' How good,' 
 he said, ' has God been to me — how sure is His word — how 
 faithful a friend He is to the soul that trusts Him ! Can death (so 
 he ponders) break off altogether such a communion once entered 
 into between (iod and a believer?' 
 
Ver. 9.] RacheVs Grave, where to find it 279 
 
 5. And notv thy two sons, Uphi'aim and Manassek, which 
 were horn unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came iinto 
 thee into Egypt, are mine ; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall 
 be mine. 6. And thy issue, which thou begettest after them, 
 shall he thine, and shall be called after the name of their 
 brethren in their inheritance. 
 
 Jacob raises Ephraim and Manasseh into the number of the tribes of 
 Israel, and assigns them due portions of the inheritance. God 
 had promised Canaan to him ; it was his by right, though only to 
 be possessed in the dim future, and he left it to be divided among 
 his children. He was able by farseeing wisdom to fill up the 
 place which would be left vacant by Levi having ' no portion nor 
 inheritance with his brethren.' The chosen land should thus be 
 divided among twelve tribes, and twelve only. As surely as Jacob 
 knew the number of the tribes, so God knows the number of His 
 chosen. To Him all things are present. Our future is hidden in 
 His hand. Nothing can rob us of the eternal promises. If we 
 are but faithful, what power can tear us from Him? 
 
 7. And as for me, lohen I came from Padan, Rachel died 
 by me in the land of Canaan in the way, when yet there rvas 
 but a little way to come unto Ephrath : and I buried her there 
 in the way of Ephrath ; the same is Beth-lehem. 
 
 Rachel had died prematurely, leaving Jacob but two children. Now 
 he augments that number by adding Joseph's sons to the sacred 
 family. No doubt in the old days he had shared with Rachel his 
 faith and hope, had talked with her about God's designs ; and yet 
 she entered the Holy Land only to find a grave there. Will there 
 not be a place where yearnings will find satisfaction, where a little 
 dust will no longer choke the highest aspirations of the heart ? O 
 light, O peace, O purity, O union of true hearts, there is on earth 
 no room for you, but will not eternity yield space enough? Jacob 
 looked back, over long years, to his dear wile's death, and for her 
 sake blessed and honoured Joseph and his sons. 
 
 8. And Israel beheld Joseph's sons, and said. Who are 
 these ? 9. And. Joseph said %into 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 tvill bless them. 
 
 As Joseph answered, so the prophet speaks, 'Behold I and the 
 children whom God hath given me'; and both these answers 
 figure the union of Christ Jesus with us, how that we belong to 
 Him and have a share in His inheritance. Joseph felt that he 
 
Jacob's dim Gaze [Gen. XLVIII. 
 
 had been sold and consigned to death, but that God had raised him 
 up, given him a bride from the Gentiles, given him heirs, brought 
 them to inherit with himself the promised blessings. In all this 
 he typifies that true Son Who went through suffering to glory, and 
 Who makes room for us with Him. 
 
 lo. Now the eyes of hrael were dim for age, so that he 
 could not see. And he hroiight them near tinto him : and he 
 kissed them, and embraced them. ii. And Israel said unto 
 Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face : and lo, God hath 
 shewed me also thy seed. 12. And Joseph brought them out 
 from between his knees, and he boived himself uith his face to 
 the earth. 
 
 Jacob desired to pass on to Joseph's children the blessings which he 
 had himself received. He would make them enter the covenant 
 of promise. They should now be God's children, and regard Him 
 as their Father. Perhaps visions of Gospel promises came to them 
 with this dying benediction, dim thoughts of Him Who should 
 come to bless, not Jacob's house only, but all the world. That 
 love and power of God which they knew was a token of yet 
 greater mercies to come. 
 
 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, ivho was the younger, and his left hand %ipon 
 Manasseh' s head, guiding his hands wittingly ; for Manasseh 
 was the firstborn. 
 
 Here is a blessing conveyed by laying-on of hands with prayer. 
 Such is the ancient custom of believers, which the Church of Christ 
 has received and continues. But on this occasion Jacob imparts 
 the blessing with his hands crossed, as if in figure of that Cross 
 by which the blessing should come ; and choosing the younger 
 before the elder, as if foretelling that those who should come to 
 the faith last should surpass their predecessors. It is reasonable 
 on this grave occasion to look for mysteries. Joseph stands in 
 the place of Him Who was sold, betrayed, glorified. Manasseh 
 and Ephraim, the elder and younger sons, represent those Jews 
 who first believed in Christ, or shall believe later on. Jacob 
 represents the patriarchs and prophets welcoming those converts 
 whom Christ brings to join their blessed society. Faith thus 
 looks on beyond the letter, and loves to find hints of mysteries to 
 be unfolded hereafter. 
 
Ver. 20.] Ephraim set before Manasseh 281 
 
 15. And he blessed Josei^h, and said, God, before Whom 
 my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed 
 me all my life long tinto 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 midtittide in the midst of the 
 earth. 
 
 Faithful Shepherd, do Thou feed me ; tried Friend of souls, do Thou 
 befriend me ; Giver of blessing, let me prove Thy blessing true. 
 Thou hast guarded me through many dangers, restored me from 
 many downfalls, loaded me with comforts and mercies. I indeed 
 have wandered like a sheep that is lost, but Thy goodness did not 
 forget me when I forgot Thee. Let me live and die in this faith, 
 worshipping the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the true and 
 living God, Who was with His people in old time, but has now 
 come nearer still in the person of His dear Son. I march in the 
 ranks of those who from the beginning have held this faith. I 
 look to the reward which they looked to. 
 
 17. And when Joseph saw that his father laid his right 
 hand ^qwn the head of Ephraim, it displeased him : and he 
 held lip his father's hand, to remove it from, Ephraim! s head 
 unto ManasseKs head. 18. And Josepih said unto his father, 
 Not so, my father : for this is the firstborn : put thy right 
 hand upon his head. 19. And his father refused, and said, 
 I Icnoio it, my son, I knoiv 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 Ejihraim and as 
 Manasseh : and he set Ephraim before Manasseh. 
 
 Yes, Ephraim became the greater in after-time. Ephraim gave 
 kings to Israel in the line of Jeroboam. Ephraim gave a name to 
 the nation of Israel as distinct from Judah ; and yet that pre- 
 eminence was not blest, it involved separation from David's line, 
 and from the temple of the true God. I would rather find in this 
 greater honour of Ephraim a token of things yet to come, when 
 the latter end of Jews shall be better than their beginning, when 
 many shall have their eyes opened to see in Mary's Son their Hope 
 and King, when fervent Christians of Abraham's line shall recall 
 saints of old ; what S. Paul has in his mind when he says, 
 'What shall the receiving of them be but life from the dead?' 
 Blessings of temporal headship and wcaltii, if these are meant, 
 
282 I die^ Imt God shall be with you [Gen. XLIX. 
 
 are little compared to the great blessing of faith in Christ Jesus. 
 May I and those I love obtain this and never part with it ! 
 
 21. And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die: hut God 
 shall he with yon, and bring you again unto the land of your 
 fathers. 
 
 I have but a few moments to live, but faith can never die. I shall 
 disappear and turn to dust, but my God, Who is your God too, lives 
 and reigns. I shall be gathered to my fathers ; but they await the 
 fulfilment of the promise. Though dead, they live in God's sight. 
 My fathers believed and hoped as I do. They served the living 
 God, and knew that they had entered into an eternal covenant 
 with Him. Canaan was to them a pledge and sign of what ' eye 
 hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor heart of man conceived.' 
 
 22. Moreover I have given to thee one portion above thy 
 brethren, which I tooh out of the hand of the Amorite with my 
 sword and ivith my hoiv. 
 
 In the 'place of Sichem ' God had appeared to Abraham and said, 
 ' To thy seed will I give this land ' ; and he had raised there the 
 first altar of the true God which that land ever saw. Jacob had 
 bought that same spot, and hallowed it with renewed worship, and 
 had regained it by arms from the Amorites who sought to rob him 
 of it. In that place Joseph himself was to be buried. There too 
 Our Lord came and sat wearied by Jacob's well, and spoke to the 
 Samaritan woman about the living water. He won that land 
 again for the faith by His Apostolic missionaries (Acts viii.), when 
 the magician had usurped His place. Is not that region holy 
 ground, where Old Testament saints prayed, and worked, and 
 rested, and which the Lord Himself hallowed by His Presence? 
 And yet in that very place Our Lord took pains to teach us that 
 true worshippers can worship the Father acceptably in every place, 
 so it be 'in spirit and in truth.' 
 
 CHAPTER XLIX 
 
 I. Jacob calleth his sons to bless them. 3. Their blessing in particular. 
 29. He chargeth them about his burial. 33. He dieth. 
 
 AND Jacob called u7ito his sons, and said, Gather yourselves 
 together, that I may tell you that lohich shall befall you 
 in the last days. 2. Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye 
 sons of Jacob ; and hearken unto Israel your father. 
 
 Jacob, though dying, assumes the aspect of a prophet and of a judge. 
 He looks into the future, he searches hearts, he assigns punish- 
 
Ver. 7.] Reuben, Simeon, and Levi 283 
 
 ment and reward. He already views his descendants as settled in 
 the land, knows what region will belong to each and the character 
 of it. Here we find the root of the firm persuasion with which 
 the desert-wandering tribes sang — 
 
 ' Comrades, what our sires have told us. 
 Watch and wait, for it will come." 
 
 It is to me a great evidence of immortality to behold just before 
 dissolution love, insight, wisdom, hope, all in full exercise, all in' 
 perfection, while the frail body is already worn out. Will not at 
 death the voyager step from his boat and pass on otherwhere ? 
 
 3. Reuhen, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the begin- 
 ning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the 
 excellency of power : 4. Unstable as ivater, thou shall not 
 excel ; because thou wentest tip to thy father^ s bed; then 
 defiledst thou it : he went up to my couch. 
 
 Reuben threw away his glory, the double portion, the right to 
 command that should have been his. He chose instead the 
 gratification of his sinful passion. How many young men have 
 done just the same ! They have degraded their souls and bodies, 
 and awoke too late to find themselves covered with shame, or 
 ruined in health and hope. To Reuben nothing was sacred. He 
 polluted his father's wife, and did not fear his father's curse ; but 
 he found too late that God's laws avenge themselves, even if 
 human justice is silent. 
 
 5. Simeon and Levi are brethren; instruments of cruelty 
 are in their habitations. 6. my soul, come not thou into their 
 secret ; v,nto their assembly, mine honotir, be not thou united : 
 for in their anger they sletv a man, and in their selfivill they 
 digged doivn a wall. 7. Cursed be their anger, for it tvas 
 fierce ; and their wrath, for it was cruel : I ivill divide them 
 in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel. 
 
 Simeon and Levi heard, but replied not ; they were silent ; they 
 had no word to justify their violence. Jacob desired once more 
 to disclaim any share in it. To him the treachery, the cruelty, 
 the rapacity of his sons were alike hateful. It was not thus he 
 was to i^ain possession of the promises ; his Divine Guide did not 
 lead him such a way as this. But their false zeal has found many 
 imitators. Many have thought that violence could advance God's 
 kingdom, that the most holy Name could be glorified by per- 
 secuting unbelievers or heretics. From such grievous mistakes 
 may (jrul's goodness keeji me ! 
 
284 Judah, Zebiihm, Issachar [Gen. XLIX. 
 
 8. Judah, thou art he ivhovi thy brethren shall praise : thy 
 hand shall he in the neck of thine enemies ; thy father'' s 
 children shall hoiv 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 laivgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come ; and 
 unto him shall the gathering of the peoi:)le he. 11. Binding 
 his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine ; 
 he washed his garments in ivine, and his clothes in the blood of 
 grapes. 12. His eyes shall be red with loine, and his teeth 
 white with milk. 
 
 Judah should be victorious and royal like the king of beasts. 
 Vineyards and pastures should be his portion. So Jacob foretells ; 
 but he leads my thoughts on to ' the Lion of the tribe of Judah ' 
 Who conquered for us, to the slain Lamb Who receives power and 
 honour and glory. ' His kingdom is that which shall not be 
 destroyed.' He stooped down and humbled Himself, but it was 
 that He might win the victory. He came when His people were 
 about to lose all their temporal glory, that He might bring them 
 a surer staff on which to lean. His garments were ' dipped in 
 blood.' He turned the vinegar and gall into a cup of blessing. 
 This is a different kind of empire and glory and splendour from 
 what Judah would discern in Jacob's words, but it is one that lasts 
 on, while earthly sceptres rust and break. 
 
 13. Zehuhin shall dwell at the haven of the sea; and he 
 shall be for a haven of ships ; and his border shall be unto 
 Zidon. 
 
 The inheritance of Zebulon, here described as near to the shore of 
 the Mediterranean, and profitable therefore for trade, came out to 
 him by lot (Joshua xix. 10), thus fulfilling Jacob's prophecy. So 
 God orders what seems to us mere chance. He knows how to 
 fulfil His word. That sea near which Zebulon dwelt was then a 
 barrier parting nations, but in after days it became a bridge over 
 which the knowledge of the Gospel passed rapidly from land to 
 land. That was better merchandise than Sidon in old times 
 knew of. 
 
 14. Issachar is a strong ass couching dovm bettveen two 
 burdens: 15. And he saw that rest was good, and the land 
 
Ver. 19.] Dan and Gad 285 
 
 that it was 2^leasant ; and botved his shoulder to bear, and 
 became a sei-vant unto tribute. 
 
 Rest rather than the toil and pain of war, slavery rather than a 
 brave effort to shake off the yoke and be free. Such was to be 
 Issachar's lot. The rich pleasant country where he lived made up 
 to him for almost perpetual bondage to this or that foreign power. 
 How often in life we prefer our ease to God's service and our 
 brethren's good ! How often we allow idle habits to rule over us 
 and become our tyrants, and then too late find out in what slavery 
 we are ! 
 
 1 6. Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel. 
 1 7. Dan, shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, 
 that biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall fall back- 
 ward. 
 
 Dan's warlike gifts and strategy against encompassing foes are fore- 
 told here, such prowess as emerged in the hero Samson. But 
 when I read of the humble serpent crushed beneath the horse's 
 hoofs and yet biting him, so that he throws his rider, I see noted 
 the marvel of God's victories wrought through unlikely means. 
 Samson's strength lay in his hair ; he fought and overcame almost 
 alone and without weapons. When blind, despised, a captive, he 
 slew more than in his best days. Thus it is God's way to over- 
 come the mighty by the weak, to overthrow by the despised Cross 
 ail the world's glory. Our Saviour's deepest humiliation was the 
 weapon whereby He triumphed. 
 
 18. I have waited for Thy salvation, Lord. 
 
 Let this verse be mine. I know that ' with the Lord there is mercy, 
 and with Him is plenteous redemption.' I do not expect deliver- 
 ance from evil and misery through my own efforts, my own 
 confidence. Human learning and ability cannot bring it me. 
 Far be it from me to despise the efforts towards good of any brave 
 and aspiring heart, but yet they cannot succeed except by Divine 
 aid, Divine mercy. I wait for Him to bring salvation Who 
 humbled Himself to our dust that He might exalt us to Himself. 
 Looking onward over the achievements of his descendants, Jacob 
 felt that there was somewhat further needed, somewhat more than 
 power of man could accomplish, a victory of grace in comparison 
 with which earthly victories would seem nothing. 
 
 19. Gad, a troop shall overcome him : but he shall overcome 
 at the last. 
 
 Here is a state of war, defeat and victory following each other— a 
 state in which marauders are expected, but victoriously resisted. 
 
286 Asher, Naphtali, Joseph [Gen. XLIX. 
 
 Here is figured the condition of good Christians who are assaulted 
 by Satan with all manner of temptations, who lead a harassed 
 anxious life, but never give up their trust in Christ the Conqueror, 
 never cease contending against vice and unbelief. In such their 
 victorious Lord fights, to such He gives a crown. 
 
 20. Otil of Asher his bread shall he fat, and he shall yield 
 royal dainties. 
 
 What is that true Bread full of sweetness, that royal banquet at which 
 the elect feed ? It was from Nazareth it issued forth to be the sus- 
 tenance of true souls. Let me ever adoringly and thankfully 
 feed upon It, both in sacramental means and in Gospel words, and 
 in meditations on the Passion, wherein It was broken for my use. 
 Do not suppose, dear friend, that that Divine supply is exhausted 
 or has lost its savour. No ; it will suffice till the world's end. 
 
 2 1 . Naphtali is a hind let loose : he giveth goodly toords. 
 
 Who are those whose feet are 'beautiful upon the mountains,' who 
 ' bring glad tidings of good things' ? The prophet in vision saw and 
 heard them, they told ' how the Lord had redeemed Sion.' Who 
 are they who speed with extreme swiftness over sea and land 
 announcing Christ's Resurrection ? In the men of Naphtali, so 
 swift and so full of good tidings, I see shadowed forth Christ's 
 Apostles, who had the best of all news to bring, and so soon made 
 distant lands partakers of it. 
 
 2 2. Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitfxd hough hy a 
 well; whose branches run over the wall. 23. The archers 
 have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him : 
 24. Biit his boiv abode in strength, and the arms of his hands 
 were made strong hy the hands of the mighty God of Jacob ; 
 {from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel :) 25. Even 
 hy the God of thy father, who shall help thee ; and hy the 
 Almighty, ivho shall bless thee with blessings of heaven above, 
 blessings of the deep that iieth under, blessings of the breasts, 
 and of the ivomb : 26. The blessings of thy father have pre- 
 vailed above the blessings of my progenitors unto the utmost 
 bound of the everlasting hills : they shall he on the head of 
 Joseph, and on the crow7i of the head of him that was separate 
 from his brethren. 
 
 O Shepherd of Israel ! O Rock of our Salvation ! Who didst 
 triumph through suffering and death, Who didst rescue the world 
 
Ver. 28.] Benjamin 287 
 
 through the very means which Thine enemies devised to destroy 
 Thee, do Thou strengthen us in our hour of trial, turn curses into 
 blessings for us, give us the best of all blessings — a heart at peace 
 with Thee. Jacob had had blessings handed down to him from 
 his lathers, he had experienced many blessings in his own life, 
 even troubles had turned for him into blessings, and all this in- 
 heritance of trust and thankfulness he passed on to those who came 
 after him. Do not think that the patriarchs merely craved for 
 fruitful earth, teeming flocks, prosperous seasons. Oil no ; these 
 were but signs of a better blessing. 
 
 27. Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf: in the morning he 
 shall devour the prey, and at night he shall divide the spoil. 
 
 Benjamin should be a brave and warlike tribe, terrible to their 
 enemies, fierce and intractable in disposition. King Saul and his 
 warriors (i Sam. xxii. 6-7) came of that tribe. Saul, too, the 
 persecutor, carried on the tribal tradition of courage. He raged 
 fiercely against Christians, and spared no pains to extirpate them. 
 What a wonderful work of grace it was when God turned the wolf 
 into a lamb, took away his scornful, fierce, unbelieving heart, and 
 made him a model of tenderness and charity. He was still a 
 zealous warrior and won marvellous victories, but it was in Christ's 
 cause and with His peaceful weapons. 
 
 28. All these are the twelve tribes of Israel : and this is it 
 t/iat their father spake unto them, and blessed them ; every one 
 according to his blessing he blessed them. 
 
 Here are twelve blessings, for even the first three have something of 
 blessing concealed behind reproofs. Jacob pronounces them as 
 judge and as prophet, looking on into the far future, discerning 
 the character and fortunes of the tribes which should bear the 
 name of each son. The tribes are twelve, and that remains the 
 number of completion under which the Church is considered 
 whether in Old Testament or in New Testament. The gates of 
 the mystical city in Revelation xxi. are twelve ; its foundations 
 are twelve ; the holy elders who sit on thrones around the Throne 
 of God in Revelation iv. are twice twelve ; the Christians of Jewish 
 birth are welcomed in Revelation vii. as twelve times twelve 
 thousand. Pondering over those figures, I learn, that in spite 
 of man's failures God perfects and completes His Church, and I 
 am confident that what He has begun lie will finish in due time. 
 I learn to be one in heart with believers, both of the Old and New 
 Testament ; their God is my God, their hope my hope. Let me so 
 live and die that I may inherit the same blessing which they 
 found. 
 
288 Jacob's End [Gen. L. 
 
 29. And he charged them, and said unto them, I am to be 
 gathered unto my people : bury me ivith my fathers in the cave 
 that is in the field of Ephron the Hiitite, 30. In the cave 
 that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in 
 the land of Canaan, which Abraham boicght tvith the field of 
 Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a burying-place. 
 31. There they buried AbraJiam and Sarah his ivife ; there 
 they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife ; and there I bwied 
 Leah. 32. The jnirchase of the field and of the cave that is 
 therein was from the children of Heth. 
 
 Jacob was to be 'gathered unto his people.' He left his children 
 to rejoin his fathers ; his soul would associate with their souls, 
 his body lie by their bodies. He desired to testify in his last 
 dispositions his sure faith that Canaan would be one day holy to 
 the true God, filled with His praises, famous for His marvels. He 
 would have the faith of Abraham and Isaac be ever present in the 
 minds of his descendants. Thus it was they had lived, had hoped, 
 had prayed, had died ; let all true believers follow their pattern. 
 The Law of Moses, which came in afterwards with its precepts 
 and restrictions, could not annihilate the promises which had 
 preceded it. 
 
 33. And ivheji 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. 
 
 Look back over Jacob's long life and consider its lessons. His birth 
 had its accompanying predictions. The blessing was strangely 
 made over to him, God overruling to good even Jacob's craft and 
 his father's mistake. Then he had years of exile and hard service, 
 then a troublous and endangered return home. His life in 
 Canaan was filled with sorrows. At the end of his life a joyful 
 gleam of comfort appeared. Yet through all God's Presence did 
 not leave him, nor His blessing fail him. He had hope in his 
 death, possessed his soul to the last, died with perfect tranquillity 
 and sure faith. Jacob's God is mine ; He is no less strong, faithful, 
 merciful than Jacob found Him. 
 
Ver. 4-] Egyptian funeral Rites 289 
 
 CHAPTER L 
 
 I. The mourning for Jacob. 4. Joseph getteth leave of Pharaoh to goto 
 bury him. 7. The funeral. 14. Joseph comforteth his brethren, who 
 craved his pardon. 22. His age. 23. He seeth the third generation 
 of his sons. 24. He prophesieth unto his brethren of their return. 
 25. He taketh an oath of them for his bones. 26. He dieth and is 
 chested. 
 
 A 
 
 ND Joseph fell upon his father's face, and wept upon him, 
 and kissed him. 
 
 ' Farewell, dear father ; so many years we have gone along life's 
 journey together, so many services and comforts I have received 
 from thee, so many memories I have of my childish days and thy 
 love. Thou and I passed seventeen years of love and duty 
 together at the beginning of my life, seventeen also at the end of 
 thine ; nor in the lonely years between did we forget each other.' 
 Such thoughts were in Joseph's mind, but he wept 'not as those 
 who have no hope.' lie remembered that the God of Jacob still 
 lived, though Jacob had passed away. He discerned the guiding 
 hand of God visible over his father and himself. 
 
 2. And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to 
 embalm his father: and the 2yhi/sicians embalmed Israel. 
 3. And forty days ivere fxdfilled for him ; for so are fulfilled 
 the days of those ivhich are embalmed: and the Egyptians 
 mourned for him threescore and ten days. 
 
 Egypt was the land where the science of the grave was studied most. 
 The thoughts of the Egyptians turned much on the life after death, 
 and they had invented an art of preserving even the lifeless bodies 
 as far as might be in their former perfectness. Long ceremonious 
 mourning, funeral offerings, the embalming of the corpse, kept the 
 dead in mind. They strove to picture his journey to the other world, 
 his appearance before the Unseen Judge. Yet how easily all this 
 became superstitious, how little effect it had on the actions and 
 character of the living ! Moses by Divine inspiration cast it all 
 aside and struck out a truer way, bidding men devote their living 
 days to God's love and service, and not pry much into the condition 
 of the departed. 
 
 4. And tohen the days of his viOMrning were past, Joseph 
 spake %into the house of Pharaoh, saying, If now I have found 
 grace in your eyes, sjjeak, I pray you, in the ears of Pharaoh, 
 
 T 
 
290 A grarvd Burial [Gen. L. 
 
 saying, 5. My father made me sioear, saying, Lo, I die: in 
 my grave which I have digged for me in the land of Canaan, 
 there shalt thou bury me. Noiv therefore let me go up, I pray 
 thee, and bury my father, and I will come again. 6. And 
 Pharaoh said, Go up, and bury thy father^ according as he 
 made thee sivear. 
 
 Joseph addressed his request with great humility, as wishing to show 
 his dependence upon Pharaoh and Pharaoh's advisers ; and perhaps 
 the garb of mourning which he wore prevented him from drawing 
 near the king's presence. Pharaoh graciously granted his request. 
 Howdifferent from the Pharaoh of Moses' time, several hundred years 
 later ! Then believers sought in vain for the king's consent to 
 their leaving Egypt, and God had to bring them out by many 
 marvels. Yet He in Whose hand are the hearts of kings ordered 
 both answers, both fell into the good order of His Providence. 
 
 7. And Joseph ivent up to bury his father : and with him 
 went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, 
 and all the elders of the land of Egypt, 8. And all the house 
 of Joseph, and his brethren, and his father's house: only their 
 little ones, and their flocks, and their herds, they left in the 
 land of Goshen. 9. And there went ujy with him both chariots 
 and horsemen : and it was a very great company. 
 
 This great and splendid funeral procession passed over the desert 
 and stopped at the edge of the Promised Land. It makes me 
 think of the Exodus when the ' bannered lines ' of Israel passed 
 over the same route on their way to conquer the land. The entry 
 of Jacob's funeral procession seems to me like a ceremonious anti- 
 cipation of the entry of his descendants on their long-promised 
 inheritance. And, perhaps, another entry still remains to be 
 accomplished. Has God still in store for His chosen people a 
 recovery of their old home, a reunion with the faith and hope of 
 the Patriarchs, an inheritance among Christ's people? Many 
 believers have thought so and hoped so. 
 
 10. And they came to the threshingfloor of Atad, tvhich is 
 beyond Jordan, and there they mourned with a great and very 
 sore lamentation: and he made a mourning for his father 
 seven days. 11. And ivhen the inhabitants of the land, the 
 Canaanites, saw the mourning in the floor of Atad, they said, 
 lids is a grievous mourni7ig to the Egyptians : xoherefore the 
 name of it was called Abel-mizraim, u'hich is beyond Jordan. 
 
 This solemn and ceremonious lamentation, of which the tradition 
 long remained among the wondering Canaanites who witnessed it, 
 
Ver. 1 6.] Doubts and Fears 291 
 
 expressed the duty of the Egyptians towards Joseph and their 
 kindly regards for Jacob's memory. Joseph's heart was comforted 
 by the love and honour shown to his djar father. Yet I for my 
 part greatly deprecate a ceremonious funeral. When I am laid in 
 earth, let everything speak of hope and peace, not unmingled with 
 awe ; let some kind soul say a prayer or give me a tear. But let 
 the world's pomp and vanity be kept away from my lifeless body 
 when my soul has been summoned before the Judge. 
 
 12. And his sons did unto him according as he commanded 
 them : 13. Fo7' his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, 
 and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which 
 Abraham bought tvith the field for a possession of a burying- 
 place of E2)hron the Hittite, before Mamre. 
 
 The actual burial of Jacob was performed by his sons alone, the 
 Egyptian retinue being left at a distance. They laid their 
 father's body in the sacred earth and closed up the cave, nor have 
 any human remains been added since to those already there. The 
 veneration of after ages has built it over, and walled it round. 
 The Israelites, when they entered Canaan, and believers ever 
 since, have reverenced the spot. From that grave God will one 
 day raise up with their bodies those who first loved and trusted 
 Him in the old time. What if scarcely any dust of them is left, 
 yet their God is living and true ; He Who made the world and 
 gave life to creatures knows how to remake them. 
 
 14. And Joseph rettirned into Egypt, he, and his brethren, 
 and all that went tip xoith him to bury his father, after he had 
 buried his father. 15. And ivhen Joseph's brethren saiv that 
 their father was dead, they said, Joseph will 2^s^(i'dventu7'e 
 hate tis, and loill certainly requite us all the evil ivhich we did 
 u7ito him. 16. And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying. 
 Thy father did command before he died, saying, 
 
 Joseph's brothers had been forgiven, and had enjoyed many pledges 
 of their brother's good-will, yet the remembrance of their old fault 
 will not let them be at ease. They feel it more now than they 
 did at first. They are like those forgiven and converted souls 
 who yet fear God's judgment, and are confounded by the remem- 
 brance of their iniquities, not without hope ; 
 
 ' Who day by day and year by year 
 Survey the past with deepening fear, 
 Yet hourly with more hopeful cheer 
 To the dim future turn, the absolving Voice abide.' 
 
292 True Forgiveness [Gen. L. 
 
 17. So shall ye say imto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, 
 the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto 
 thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the 
 servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept ivhen they 
 spake unto him. 
 
 This is a strong plea for paidon. If Joseph had been other than he 
 was, if he had cherished a remembrance of his brothers' cruelty, 
 he must still have felt its weight. Amidst a scoffing world we are 
 united in serving the true God ; both we and you believe and fear 
 and hope ; all this is a treasure we have in common ; how then 
 can we bear malice to each other or strive to repay injury? Does 
 not a common fr.ith, a common approach to God's altar, a common 
 remembrance of Christ's atoning love mean something ? Surely it 
 should have power to wipe out the memory of wrongs received. 
 Both we and you have been forgiven the ten thousand talents by 
 Divine Mercy. Shall we stick at the hundred pence which stands 
 for human injustice? 
 
 18. And his brethren also went and fell down before his 
 face ; and they said, Behold, 7ve be thy servants. 1 9. And 
 Joseph said unto them. Fear not ; for am I in the place of 
 God? 20. But as for you, ye thought evil against me ; but 
 God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to 
 save much people alive. 
 
 O good Providence of God, turning evil to good, out of the poison of 
 men's malice compounding healthful draughts of mercy and peace ! 
 In the Providence of God all events, how disordered soever, have a 
 most perfect rule and order. He brought about Joseph's exalta- 
 tion, Joseph's munificence, the benefits wrought by his foresight 
 and wisdom, through his brothers' cruel act. Nor less does He 
 watch over our lives, turning to our good affronts, temptations, 
 unjust accusations; designing, by all the roughnesses of life, by all 
 the waves that buffet us, to prepare us for His eternal kingdom. 
 
 21. Now therefore fear ye not: I ivill nourish you and 
 your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly 
 unto them. 
 
 O true Joseph, I see that what men's malice wrought against Thee 
 did but fulfil the prophecies that went before, did but prepare a 
 saving ransom for us ! In the bitter agonies of Thy cruel Passion I 
 recognise man's injustice, but in the result of it Divine mercy only. 
 Now Thou speakest unto us 'comfortable words,' invitest us to 
 draw near without fear, and enjoy for ever the riches of Thy mercy. 
 We will trust Thee with ourselves for life and for eternity. 
 
Ver. 26.1 Josephs End 293 
 
 22. And Jusepk dwelt in E<jyj)t, he, and his father's house : 
 and Joseph lived an hundred and ten years. 23. And Joseph 
 saw Ephraim's children of the third generation : the children 
 also of Machir the son of Manasseh were brought up upon 
 Joseph's knees. 
 
 Here is a gracious and peaceful old age, with all honour and love 
 accompanying. Here are words and thoughts of good handed on 
 to successive generations. Joseph's long life was passed in the 
 discharge of duty ; he found comfort in his children, his grand- 
 children, his great-grandchildren. He was able to unite together 
 old and young in a common faith and hope. No doubt all these 
 mercies carried his thoughts yet further onward, and made him 
 say, ' Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I 
 will fear no evil, for Thou art with me,' or 'This God shall be 
 our guide unto death.' 
 
 24. A?id Joseph said unto his brethren, I die: and God 
 will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land tinto the 
 land lohich he sivare to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. 
 25. And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, 
 God ivill surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from 
 hence. 
 
 Your true Protector lives, though I am gone. Your best of friends 
 remains. He lives and reigns. His Name, His promise, His 
 word stands sure. Do not fear, though a new world rises round 
 you, new discoveries, new forces, for your God ' abideth faithful, 
 He cannot deny Himself.' Joseph left his bones to be borne be- 
 fore Israel on their march, as a pledge of his sure confidence that 
 his people should enter the promised land. My Master has left 
 me a better sign, a living remembrance, a sure pledge of ever- 
 lasting life. When I adore and receive It, I recognise that what 
 He promised is true. 
 
 26. So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: 
 and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt. 
 
 So Joseph died. So Genesis ends. So the faith and hope of the 
 chosen race recedes into the darkness for a while. And yet it 
 will spring forth, bud, and blossom when God's hour comes. Re- 
 member that with Him a thousand years arc as one day. He 
 takes long ages to work out His Divine plan. I^ook at any of the 
 reforms and improvements that have been wrought for men's 
 
2 94 Believe and luaii [Gen. L. 
 
 minds or bodies ; over what long periods, over wliat difficulties and 
 drawbacks, they had to make their way, and yet the time for them 
 came at last, and the man to carry out the work. So Thou, O 
 God, dealest with Thy people. Thou biddest them, above all 
 things, trust and wait. Those who commit their hope into Thy 
 hands will not lose it. 
 
 Printed by 1. and A. Constable, Printers to Her Majesty, 
 at the Edinburgh University Press. 
 
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