with my master, tell me: and if not, tell me; that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left." Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said: "The thing proceedeth from the Lord: we cannot speak unto thee bad or good. Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as the Lord hath spoken." And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard their words, he worshipped the Lord, bowing himself to the earth. And the servant brought forth jewels 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. And they did eat and drink, he and the men that were with him, and tarried all night. And they rose up in the morning, and he said: "Send me away unto my master." And her brother and her mother said: "Let the damsel abide with us a few days, at the least ten; after that she shall go." And he said unto them: "Hinder me not, seeing the Lord hath prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master." And they said: "We will call the damsel, and enquire at her mouth." And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, "Wilt thou go with this man?" And she said, "I will go." And they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men. And they blessed Rebekah, and said unto her: "Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them." And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way. And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahai-roi; for he dwelt in the south country. And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and behold, the camels were coming. And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. 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. And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done. And Isaac brought 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. And Abraham gave all that he had unto Isaac. 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, unto the east country. And these are the days of the years of Abraham's life which he lived, an hundred threescore and fifteen years. Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years; and was gathered to his people. 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 Mamre; the field which Abraham purchased of the sons of Heth: there was Abraham buried, and Sarah his wife. 2. JACOB Birth of Esau and Jacob (Gen. xxv. 21–28). And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac ; and Isaac dwelt by the well Lahai-roi. And Isaac intreated the Lord for his wife, because she was barren: and the Lord was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived. And the children struggled together within her; and she said: "If it be so, why am I thus ?" And she went to enquire of the Lord. And the Lord said unto her: "Two nations are in thy womb, And two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; And the one people shall be stronger than the other people; And the elder shall serve the younger." And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau. And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was three-score years old when she bare them. And the boys grew : and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents. And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob. Esau Sells his Birthright (Gen. xxv. 29-34). And Jacob sod 1pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint. 1 sod. 'Seethed,' boiled. And Esau said to Jacob: "Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom.' And Jacob said, "Sell me this day thy birthright. "2 And Esau said: "Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?" And Jacob said, "Swear to me this day;" and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright. The Promises Renewed to Isaac (Gen. xxvi. 1-5, 12-17, 23-25, 34, 35). And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar. And the Lord appeared unto him, and said: "Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of. Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; and I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws." Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the Lord blessed him, and the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great: for he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds and great store of servants. And the Philistines envied him; for all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth. And Abimelech said unto Isaac: "Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we." And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. And he went up from thence to Beer-sheba. And the Lord appeared 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 1 Edom. Red. 2 birthright. This was valued as conferring both a better position in the family, and a larger share of the inheritance. 8 See note, p. 17. thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham's sake." And he builded an altar there, and called upon the name of the Lord, and pitched his tent there: and there Isaac's servants digged a well. And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite; which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah. The Blessing of Jacob (Gen. xxvii. 1-40). And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his eldest son, and said unto him; "My son:" and he said unto him, "Behold, here am I." And he said: "Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death: now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison; and make me savory meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die." And Rebekah heard when Isaac spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it. And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying: "Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying, Bring me venison, and make me savory meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the Lord before my death. Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee. Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats; and I will make them savory meat for thy father, such as he loveth and thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his death." And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother: "Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing." And his mother said unto him: "Upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them." And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother: and his mother made savory meat, such as his father loved. And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son and she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck: and she gave the savory meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob. And he came unto his father, and said, "My father." And he said: "Here am I; who art thou, my son?" 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 soul may bless me. 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." And Isaac said unto Jacob: "Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not." And Jacob went 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." And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands: so he blessed him. And he said, "Art thou my very son Esau?" And he said, "I am." And he said: "Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's venison, 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. And his father Isaac said unto him: "Come near now, and kiss me, my son." And he came near, and kissed him: 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: And the fatness of the earth, And plenty of corn and wine: Let people serve thee, And nations bow down to thee: Be lord over thy brethren, And let thy mother's sons bow down to thee: And blessed be he that blesseth thee." And it came to pass, 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. And he also had made savory meat, and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father: "Let my father |