[While sojourning in Canaan Jacob's sons plundered the city of Shechem. Because of this Jacob feared that all the Canaanites would rise up against him.]

XVII

THE GIVING OF THE NEW NAME TO JACOB (Genesis xxxv: 1-15)

And God said unto Jacob, Arise, go up to Beth-el,1 and dwell there: and make there an altar unto God, who appeared unto thee when thou fleddest from the face of Esau thy brother. Then Jacob said unto his household, and to all that were with him, "Put away the foreign gods that are among you, and purify yourselves, and change your garments: and let us arise, and go up to Beth-el; and I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went." And they gave unto Jacob all the foreign gods which were in their hand, and the rings which were in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem. And they journeyed: and a terror of God was upon the cities that were round about them, and they did not pursue after the sons of Jacob. So Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan (the same is Beth-el), he and all the people that were with him. And he built there an altar, and called the place El-beth-el; because there God was revealed unto him, when he fled from the face of his brother. Deborah Rebekah's nurse died, and she was buried below

And

1. Bethel was the place where, years before, Jacob had made a vow to erect there a house of God. (See XIII.)

2. Idols.

3. "The God of the House of God."

Beth-el under the oak: and the name of it was called Allon-bacuth.

And God appeared unto Jacob again, when he came from Paddan-aram, and blessed him. And God said unto him, "Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: " and he called his name Israel. And God said unto him, “I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; and the land which I gave unto Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land." And God went up from him in the place where he spake with him. And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he spake with him, a pillar of stone: and he poured out a drink-offering thereon, and poured oil thereon.1 And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Beth-el.

[Jacob and his twelve sons, Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulon, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Joseph, and Benjamin, settled in Canaan. Joseph and Benjamin, the sons of Rachel and the youngest of the twelve, were the favorite children of their father.]

XVIII

THE SELLING OF JOSEPH

(Genesis xxxvii: 2-28)

Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and he was a lad with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives: and Joseph brought the evil report of them unto their father. Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his chil

1. See note on p. 53.

dren, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colors.1 And his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren; and they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto him. And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it to his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. And he said unto them, "Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: for, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves came round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf." And his brethren said to him, "Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us?" And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brethren, and said, "Behold, I have dreamed yet a dream; and, behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars made obeisance to me. 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? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?" And his brethren envied him; but his father kept the saying in mind.

And his brethren went to feed their father's flock in Shechem. And Israel said unto Joseph, "Are not thy brethren feeding the flock in Shechem? come, and I will send thee unto them." And he said to them, "Here am I." And he said to him, "Go now, see whether it is well with thy brethren, and well with the flock; and bring me word again." So he sent him out of the vale of Hebron, and he came to Shechem. And a certain man found him, and, behold, he was wandering in the field:

1. A long and richly embroidered tunic, such as was worn only by the sons of princes.

and the man asked him, saying, "What seekest thou?" And he said, "I am seeking my brethren: tell me, I pray thee, where they are feeding the flock." 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.

And they saw him afar off, and before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him. And they said one to another, "Behold, this dreamer cometh. Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into one of the pits, and we will say, 'An evil beast hath devoured him:' and we shall see what will become of his dreams." And Reuben heard it, and delivered him out of their hand, and said, "Let us not take his life." And Reuben said unto them, "Shed no blood; cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but lay no hand upon him: that he might deliver him out of their hand, to restore him to his father." And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they stripped Joseph of his coat, the coat of many colors that was on him; and they took him, and cast him into the pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it.

And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a caravan of Ishmaelites1 was coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt. And Judah said unto his brethren, “What profit is it if we slay our brother and conceal his blood? Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother, our flesh." And his brethren hearkened unto him. And there passed by Midianites, merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmael

1. Descendants of Ishmael and forefathers of the Arabs.

ites for twenty pieces of silver.1 And they brought Joseph into Egypt.

And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes. And `he returned unto his brethren, and said, "The child is not; and I, whither shall I go?" And they took Joseph's coat, and killed a he-goat, and dipped the coat in the blood; and they sent the coat of many colors, and they brought it to their father, and said, "This have we found: know now whether it is thy son's coat or not?" And he knew it and said, "It is my son's coat; an evil beast hath devoured him; Joseph is without doubt torn in pieces." And Jacob rent his garments, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many days. And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, "For I will go down to Sheol2 to my son mourning." And his father wept for him. And the Midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh's, the captain of the guard.

[Potiphar made Joseph a family servant, and the young Israelite performed his duties so well that he was taken notice of by his master, who finally made him overseer of his house. This position he filled so ably that Potiphar placed him in charge of all his possessions. Shortly after this advancement Joseph was accused of a crime of which he was innocent and thrown into prison by his master. But the keeper of the prison soon discovered that Joseph was a man of extraordinary ability and made him overseer of all the other prisoners.]

1. A little over eleven dollars.

2. Or Hades; the place of departed spirits.