The Book of
Jasher
"Is not this written in
the Book of Jasher? " Joshua,
10:13. "behold, it is written
in the Book of Jasher." 2 Samuel, 1:18
THIS IS THE BOOK OF THE
GENERATIONS OF MAN WHOM GOD CREATED UPON THE EARTH ON THE DAY WHEN THE LORD GOD
MADE HEAVEN AND EARTH.
Chapters
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45
46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60
61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75
76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90
1 And God said, Let us make man
in our image, after our likeness, and God created man in his own image.
2 And God formed man from the
ground, and he blew into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a
living soul endowed with speech.
3 And the Lord said, It is not good for man to be alone; I will make unto him a
helpmeet.
4 And the Lord caused a deep
sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept, and he took away one of his ribs, and he
built flesh upon it, and formed it and brought it to Adam, and Adam awoke from
his sleep, and behold a woman was standing before him.
5 And he said, This is a bone of my bones and it shall be called woman, for
this has been taken from man; and Adam called her name Eve, for she was the
mother of all living.
6 And God blessed them and
called their names Adam and Eve in the day that he created them, and the Lord
God said, Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.
7 And the Lord God took Adam
and his wife, and he placed them in the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep
it; and he commanded them and said unto them, From every tree of the garden you
may eat, but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat,
for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die.
8 And when God had blessed and
commanded them, he went from them, and Adam and his wife dwelt in the garden
according to the command which the Lord had commanded them.
9 And the serpent, which God
had created with them in the earth, came to them to incite them to transgress
the command of God which he had commanded them.
10 And the serpent enticed and
persuaded the woman to eat from the tree of knowledge, and the woman hearkened
to the voice of the serpent, and she transgressed the word of God, and took
from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and she ate, and she took from
it and gave also to her husband and he ate.
11 And Adam and his wife
transgressed the command of God which he commanded them, and God knew it, and
his anger was kindled against them and he cursed them.
12 And the Lord God drove them
that day from the garden of Eden, to till the ground
from which they were taken, and they went and dwelt at the east of the garden
of Eden; and Adam knew his wife Eve and she bore two sons and three daughters.
13 And she called the name of
the first born Cain, saying, I have obtained a man from the Lord, and the name
of the other she called Abel, for she said, In vanity
we came into the earth, and in vanity we shall be taken from it.
14 And the boys grew up and
their father gave them a possession in the land; and Cain was a tiller of the
ground, and Abel a keeper of sheep.
15 And it was at the expiration
of a few years, that they brought an approximating offering to the Lord, and
Cain brought from the fruit of the ground, and Abel brought from the firstlings
of his flock from the fat thereof, and God turned and inclined to Abel and his
offering, and a fire came down from the Lord from heaven and consumed it.
16 And unto Cain and his
offering the Lord did not turn, and he did not incline to it, for he had
brought from the inferior fruit of the ground before the Lord, and Cain was
jealous against his brother Abel on account of this, and he sought a pretext to
slay him.
17 And in some time after, Cain
and Abel his brother, went one day into the field to do their work; and they
were both in the field, Cain tilling and ploughing his ground, and Abel feeding
his flock; and the flock passed that part which Cain had ploughed in the
ground, and it sorely grieved Cain on this account.
18 And Cain approached his
brother Abel in anger, and he said unto him, What is
there between me and thee, that thou comest to dwell and bring thy flock to
feed in my land?
19 And Abel answered his
brother Cain and said unto him, What is there between
me and thee, that thou shalt eat the flesh of my flock and clothe thyself with
their wool?
20 And now therefore, put off
the wool of my sheep with which thou hast clothed thyself, and recompense me
for their fruit and flesh which thou hast eaten, and when thou shalt have done
this, I will then go from thy land as thou hast said?
21 And Cain said to his brother
Abel, Surely if I slay thee this day, who will require
thy blood from me?
22 And Abel answered Cain,
saying, Surely God who has made us in the earth, he will avenge my cause, and
he will require my blood from thee shouldst thou slay me, for the Lord is the
judge and arbiter, and it is he who will requite man according to his evil, and
the wicked man according to the wickedness that he may do upon earth.
23 And now, if thou shouldst
slay me here, surely God knoweth thy secret views, and will judge thee for the
evil which thou didst declare to do unto me this day.
24 And when Cain heard the
words which Abel his brother had spoken, behold the anger of Cain was kindled
against his brother Abel for declaring this thing.
25 And Cain hastened and rose
up, and took the iron part of his ploughing instrument, with which he suddenly
smote his brother and he slew him, and Cain spilt the blood of his brother Abel
upon the earth, and the blood of Abel streamed upon the earth before the flock.
26 And after this Cain repented
having slain his brother, and he was sadly grieved, and he wept over him and it
vexed him exceedingly.
27 And Cain rose up and dug a
hole in the field, wherein he put his brother's body, and he turned the dust
over it.
28 And the Lord knew what Cain
had done to his brother, and the Lord appeared to Cain and said unto him, Where is Abel thy brother that was with thee?
29 And Cain dissembled, and
said, I do not know, am I my brother's keeper? And the Lord said unto him, What hast thou done? The voice of thy brother's blood crieth
unto me from the ground where thou hast slain him.
30 For thou hast slain thy
brother and hast dissembled before me, and didst imagine in thy heart that I
saw thee not, nor knew all thy actions.
31 But thou didst this thing
and didst slay thy brother for naught and because he spoke rightly to thee, and
now, therefore, cursed be thou from the ground which opened its mouth to
receive thy brother's blood from thy hand, and wherein thou didst bury him.
32 And it shall be when thou
shalt till it, it shall no more give thee its strength as in the beginning, for
thorns and thistles shall the ground produce, and thou
shalt be moving and wandering in the earth until the day of thy death.
33 And at that time Cain went
out from the presence of the Lord, from the place where he was, and he went
moving and wandering in the land toward the east of Eden, he and all belonging
to him.
34 And Cain knew his wife in
those days, and she conceived and bare a son, and he
called his name Enoch, saying, In that time the Lord began to give him rest and
quiet in the earth.
35 And at that time Cain also
began to build a city: and he built the city and he called the name of the city
Enoch, according to the name of his son; for in those days the Lord had given
him rest upon the earth, and he did not move about and wander as in the
beginning.
36 And Irad was born to Enoch,
and Irad begat Mechuyael and Mechuyael begat Methusael.
1 And it was in the hundred and
thirtieth year of the life of Adam upon the earth, that he again knew Eve his
wife, and she conceived and bare a son in his likeness and in his image, and
she called his name Seth, saying, Because God has appointed me another seed in
the place of Abel, for Cain has slain him.
2 And Seth lived one hundred
and five years, and he begat a son; and Seth called the name of his son Enosh,
saying, Because in that time the sons of men began to
multiply, and to afflict their souls and hearts by transgressing and rebelling
against God.
3 And it was in the days of
Enosh that the sons of men continued to rebel and transgress against God, to
increase the anger of the Lord against the sons of men.
4 And the sons of men went and they
served other gods, and they forgot the Lord who had created them in the earth:
and in those days the sons of men made images of brass and iron, wood and
stone, and they bowed down and served them.
5 And every man made his god
and they bowed down to them, and the sons of men forsook the Lord all the days
of Enosh and his children; and the anger of the Lord was kindled on account of
their works and abominations which they did in the earth.
6 And the Lord caused the
waters of the river Gihon to overwhelm them, and he destroyed and consumed
them, and he destroyed the third part of the earth, and notwithstanding this,
the sons of men did not turn from their evil ways, and their hands were yet
extended to do evil in the sight of the Lord.
7 And in those days there was
neither sowing nor reaping in the earth; and there was no food for the sons of
men and the famine was very great in those days.
8 And the seed which they sowed
in those days in the ground became thorns, thistles and briers; for from the
days of Adam was this declaration concerning the earth, of the curse of God,
which he cursed the earth, on account of the sin which Adam sinned before the
Lord.
9 And it was when men continued
to rebel and transgress against God, and to corrupt their ways, that the earth
also became corrupt.
10 And Enosh lived ninety years
and he begat Cainan;
11 And Cainan grew up and he
was forty years old, and he became wise and had knowledge and skill in all
wisdom, and he reigned over all the sons of men, and he led the sons of men to
wisdom and knowledge; for Cainan was a very wise man and had understanding in
all wisdom, and with his wisdom he ruled over spirits and demons;
12 And Cainan knew by his
wisdom that God would destroy the sons of men for having sinned upon earth, and
that the Lord would in the latter days bring upon them the waters of the flood.
13 And in those days Cainan
wrote upon tablets of stone, what was to take place in time to come, and he put
them in his treasures.
14 And Cainan reigned over the
whole earth, and he turned some of the sons of men to the service of God.
15 And when Cainan was seventy
years old, he begat three sons and two daughters.
16 And these are the names of
the children of Cainan; the name of the first born Mahlallel, the second Enan,
and the third Mered, and their sisters were Adah and Zillah; these are the five
children of Cainan that were born to him.
17 And Lamech, the son of
Methusael, became related to Cainan by marriage, and he took his two daughters
for his wives, and Adah conceived and bare a son to Lamech, and she called his
name Jabal.
18 And she again conceived and bare a son, and called his name Jubal; and Zillah, her
sister, was barren in those days and had no offspring.
19 For in those days the sons
of men began to trespass against God, and to transgress the commandments which
he had commanded to Adam, to be fruitful and multiply in the earth.
20 And some of the sons of men
caused their wives to drink a draught that would render them barren, in order
that they might retain their figures and whereby their beautiful appearance
might not fade.
21 And when the sons of men
caused some of their wives to drink, Zillah drank with them.
22 And the child-bearing women
appeared abominable in the sight of their husbands as widows, whilst their
husbands lived, for to the barren ones only they were attached.
23 And in the end of days and
years, when Zillah became old, the Lord opened her womb.
24 And she conceived and bare a
son and she called his name Tubal Cain, saying, After
I had withered away have I obtained him from the Almighty God.
25 And she conceived again and
bare a daughter, and she called her name Naamah, for she said, After I had withered away have I obtained pleasure and
delight.
26 And Lamech was old and
advanced in years, and his eyes were dim that he could not see, and Tubal Cain,
his son, was leading him and it was one day that Lamech went into the field and
Tubal Cain his son was with him, and whilst they were walking in the field,
Cain the son of Adam advanced towards them; for Lamech was very old and could
not see much, and Tubal Cain his son was very young.
27 And Tubal Cain told his
father to draw his bow, and with the arrows he smote Cain, who was yet far off,
and he slew him, for he appeared to them to be an animal.
28 And the arrows entered
Cain's body although he was distant from them, and he fell to the ground and
died.
29 And the Lord requited Cain's
evil according to his wickedness, which he had done to his brother Abel,
according to the word of the Lord which he had spoken.
30 And it came to pass when
Cain had died, that Lamech and Tubal went to see the animal which they had
slain, and they saw, and behold Cain their grandfather was fallen dead upon the
earth.
31 And Lamech was very much
grieved at having done this, and in clapping his hands together he struck his
son and caused his death.
32 And the wives of Lamech
heard what Lamech had done, and they sought to kill him.
33 And the wives of Lamech
hated him from that day, because he slew Cain and Tubal Cain, and the wives of
Lamech separated from him, and would not hearken to him in those days.
34 And Lamech came to his
wives, and he pressed them to listen to him about this matter.
35 And he said to his wives
Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice O wives of Lamech, attend to my words, for now
you have imagined and said that I slew a man with my wounds, and a child with
my stripes for their having done no violence, but surely know that I am old and
grey-headed, and that my eyes are heavy through age, and I did this thing unknowingly.
36 And the wives of Lamech
listened to him in this matter, and they returned to him with the advice of
their father Adam, but they bore no children to him from that time, knowing
that God's anger was increasing in those days against the sons of men, to
destroy them with the waters of the flood for their evil doings.
37 And Mahlallel the son of
Cainan lived sixty-five years and he begat Jared; and Jared lived sixty-two
years and he begat Enoch.
1 And Enoch lived sixty-five
years and he begat Methuselah; and Enoch walked with God after having begot Methuselah, and he served the Lord, and despised the evil
ways of men.
2 And the soul of Enoch was
wrapped up in the instruction of the Lord, in knowledge and in understanding;
and he wisely retired from the sons of men, and secreted himself from them for
many days.
3 And it was at the expiration
of many years, whilst he was serving the Lord, and praying before him in his
house, that an angel of the Lord called to him from Heaven, and he said, Here am I.
4 And he said, Rise, go forth
from thy house and from the place where thou dost hide thyself, and appear to
the sons of men, in order that thou mayest teach them the way in which they
should go and the work which they must accomplish to enter in the ways of God.
5 And Enoch rose up according
to the word of the Lord, and went forth from his house, from his place and from
the chamber in which he was concealed; and he went to the sons of men and
taught them the ways of the Lord, and at that time assembled the sons of men
and acquainted them with the instruction of the Lord.
6 And he ordered it to be
proclaimed in all places where the sons of men dwelt, saying, Where is the man who wishes to know the ways of the Lord and
good works? let him come to Enoch.
7 And all the sons of men then
assembled to him, for all who desired this thing went to Enoch, and Enoch
reigned over the sons of men according to the word of the Lord, and they came
and bowed to him and they heard his word.
8 And the spirit of God was upon
Enoch, and he taught all his men the wisdom of God and his ways, and the sons
of men served the Lord all the days of Enoch, and they came to hear his wisdom.
9 And all the kings of the sons
of men, both first and last, together with their princes and judges, came to
Enoch when they heard of his wisdom, and they bowed down to him, and they also
required of Enoch to reign over them, to which he consented.
10 And they assembled in all,
one hundred and thirty kings and princes, and they made Enoch king over them
and they were all under his power and command.
11 And Enoch taught them
wisdom, knowledge, and the ways of the Lord; and he made peace amongst them,
and peace was throughout the earth during the life of Enoch.
12 And Enoch reigned over the
sons of men two hundred and forty-three years, and he did justice and
righteousness with all his people, and he led them in the ways of the Lord.
13 And these are the
generations of Enoch, Methuselah, Elisha, and Elimelech, three sons; and their
sisters were Melca and Nahmah, and Methuselah lived eighty-seven years and he
begat Lamech.
14 And it was in the
fifty-sixth year of the life of Lamech when Adam died; nine hundred and thirty
years old was he at his death, and his two sons, with Enoch and Methuselah his
son, buried him with great pomp, as at the burial of kings, in the cave which
God had told him.
15 And in that place all the
sons of men made a great mourning and weeping on account of Adam; it has
therefore become a custom among the sons of men to this day.
16 And Adam died because he ate
of the tree of knowledge; he and his children after him, as the Lord God had
spoken.
17 And it was in the year of
Adam's death which was the two hundred and forty-third year of the reign of
Enoch, in that time Enoch resolved to separate himself
from the sons of men and to secret himself as at first in order to serve the
Lord.
18 And Enoch did so, but did
not entirely secret himself from them, but kept away from the sons of men three
days and then went to them for one day.
19 And during the three days
that he was in his chamber, he prayed to, and praised the Lord his God, and the
day on which he went and appeared to his subjects he taught them the ways of
the Lord, and all they asked him about the Lord he told them.
20 And he did in this manner
for many years, and he afterward concealed himself for six days, and appeared
to his people one day in seven; and after that once in a month, and then once
in a year, until all the kings, princes and sons of men sought for him, and
desired again to see the face of Enoch, and to hear his word; but they could
not, as all the sons of men were greatly afraid of Enoch, and they feared to
approach him on account of the Godlike awe that was seated upon his
countenance; therefore no man could look at him, fearing he might be punished
and die.
21 And all the kings and
princes resolved to assemble the sons of men, and to come to Enoch, thinking
that they might all speak to him at the time when he should come forth amongst
them, and they did so.
22 And the day came when Enoch
went forth and they all assembled and came to him, and Enoch spoke to them the
words of the Lord and he taught them wisdom and knowledge, and they bowed down
before him and they said, May the king live! May the king live!
23 And in some time after, when
the kings and princes and the sons of men were speaking to Enoch, and Enoch was
teaching them the ways of God, behold an angel of the Lord then called unto
Enoch from heaven, and wished to bring him up to heaven to make him reign there
over the sons of God, as he had reigned over the sons of men upon earth.
24 When at that time Enoch
heard this he went and assembled all the inhabitants of the earth, and taught
them wisdom and knowledge and gave them divine instructions, and he said to them,
I have been required to ascend into heaven, I therefore do not know the day of
my going.
25 And now therefore I will
teach you wisdom and knowledge and will give you instruction before I leave
you, how to act upon earth whereby you may live; and he did so.
26 And he taught them wisdom
and knowledge, and gave them instruction, and he reproved them, and he placed
before them statutes and judgments to do upon earth, and he made peace amongst
them, and he taught them everlasting life, and dwelt with them some time
teaching them all these things.
27 And at that time the sons of
men were with Enoch, and Enoch was speaking to them, and they lifted up their
eyes and the likeness of a great horse descended from heaven, and the horse
paced in the air;
28 And they told Enoch what
they had seen, and Enoch said to them, On my account does this horse descend
upon earth; the time is come when I must go from you and I shall no more be
seen by you.
29 And the horse descended at
that time and stood before Enoch, and all the sons of men that were with Enoch
saw him.
30 And Enoch then again ordered
a voice to be proclaimed, saying, Where is the man who
delighteth to know the ways of the Lord his God, let him come this day to Enoch
before he is taken from us.
31 And all the sons of men
assembled and came to Enoch that day; and all the kings of the earth with their
princes and counsellors remained with him that day; and Enoch then taught the
sons of men wisdom and knowledge, and gave them divine instruction; and he bade
them serve the Lord and walk in his ways all the days of their lives, and he
continued to make peace amongst them.
32 And it was after this that
he rose up and rode upon the horse; and he went forth and all the sons of men
went after him, about eight hundred thousand men; and they went with him one
day's journey.
33 And the second day he said
to them, Return home to your tents, why will you go? perhaps you may die; and
some of them went from him, and those that remained went with him six day's
journey; and Enoch said to them every day, Return to your tents, lest you may
die; but they were not willing to return, and they went with him.
34 And on the sixth day some of
the men remained and clung to him, and they said to him, We
will go with thee to the place where thou goest; as the Lord liveth, death only
shall separate us.
35 And they urged so much to go
with him, that he ceased speaking to them; and they went after him and would
not return;
36 And when the kings returned
they caused a census to be taken, in order to know the number of remaining men
that went with Enoch; and it was upon the seventh day that Enoch ascended into
heaven in a whirlwind, with horses and chariots of fire.
37 And on the eighth day all
the kings that had been with Enoch sent to bring back the number of men that
were with Enoch, in that place from which he ascended into heaven.
38 And all those kings went to
the place and they found the earth there filled with snow, and upon the snow
were large stones of snow, and one said to the other, Come, let us break
through the snow and see, perhaps the men that remained with Enoch are dead,
and are now under the stones of snow, and they searched but could not find him,
for he had ascended into heaven.
1 And all the days that Enoch
lived upon earth, were three hundred and sixty-five years.
2 And when Enoch had ascended
into heaven, all the kings of the earth rose and took Methuselah his son and
anointed him, and they caused him to reign over them in the place of his
father.
3 And Methuselah acted
uprightly in the sight of God, as his father Enoch had taught him, and he
likewise during the whole of his life taught the sons of men wisdom, knowledge
and the fear of God, and he did not turn from the good way either to the right
or to the left.
4 But in the latter days of
Methuselah, the sons of men turned from the Lord, they corrupted the earth,
they robbed and plundered each other, and they rebelled against God and they
transgressed, and they corrupted their ways, and would not hearken to the voice
of Methuselah, but rebelled against him.
5 And the Lord was exceedingly
wroth against them, and the Lord continued to destroy the seed in those days,
so that there was neither sowing nor reaping in the earth.
6 For when they sowed the
ground in order that they might obtain food for their support, behold, thorns
and thistles were produced which they did not sow.
7 And still the sons of men did
not turn from their evil ways, and their hands were still extended to do evil
in the sight of God, and they provoked the Lord with their evil ways, and the
Lord was very wroth, and repented that he had made man.
8 And he thought to destroy and
annihilate them and he did so.
9 In those days when Lamech the
son of Methuselah was one hundred and sixty years old, Seth the son of Adam
died.
10 And all the days that Seth
lived, were nine hundred and twelve years, and he died.
11 And Lamech was one hundred
and eighty years old when he took Ashmua, the daughter of Elishaa the son of
Enoch his uncle, and she conceived.
12 And at that time the sons of
men sowed the ground, and a little food was produced, yet the sons of men did
not turn from their evil ways, and they trespassed and rebelled against God.
13 And the wife
of Lamech conceived and bare him a son at that time, at the revolution
of the year.
14 And Methuselah called his
name Noah, saying, The earth was in his days at rest
and free from corruption, and Lamech his father called his name Menachem,
saying, This one shall comfort us in our works and miserable toil in the earth,
which God had cursed.
15 And the child grew up and
was weaned, and he went in the ways of his father Methuselah, perfect and
upright with God.
16 And all the sons of men
departed from the ways of the Lord in those days as they multiplied upon the
face of the earth with sons and daughters, and they taught one another their
evil practices and they continued sinning against the Lord.
17 And every man made unto
himself a god, and they robbed and plundered every man his neighbor as well as
his relative, and they corrupted the earth, and the earth was filled with
violence.
18 And their judges and rulers
went to the daughters of men and took their wives by force from their husbands
according to their choice, and the sons of men in those days took from the
cattle of the earth, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and
taught the mixture of animals of one species with the other, in order therewith
to provoke the Lord; and God saw the whole earth and it was corrupt, for all
flesh had corrupted its ways upon earth, all men and all animals.
19 And the Lord said, I will blot out man that I created from the face of the
earth, yea from man to the birds of the air, together with cattle and beasts
that are in the field for I repent that I made them.
20 And all men who walked in
the ways of the Lord, died in those days, before the Lord brought the evil upon
man which he had declared, for this was from the Lord, that they should not see
the evil which the Lord spoke of concerning the sons of men.
21 And Noah found grace in the
sight of the Lord, and the Lord chose him and his children to raise up seed from them upon the face of the whole earth.
1 And it was in the
eighty-fourth year of the life of Noah, that Enoch the son of Seth died, he was
nine hundred and five years old at his death.
2 And in the one hundred and
seventy ninth year of the life of Noah, Cainan the son of Enosh died, and all
the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years, and he died.
3 And in the two hundred and
thirty fourth year of the life of Noah, Mahlallel the son of Cainan died, and
the days of Mahlallel were eight hundred and ninety-five years, and he died.
4 And Jared the son of
Mahlallel died in those days, in the three hundred and thirty-sixth year of the
life of Noah; and all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years,
and he died.
5 And all who followed the Lord
died in those days, before they saw the evil which God declared to do upon
earth.
6 And after the lapse of many
years, in the four hundred and eightieth year of the life of Noah, when all
those men, who followed the Lord had died away from amongst the sons of men,
and only Methuselah was then left, God said unto Noah and Methuselah, saying,
7 Speak ye,
and proclaim to the sons of men, saying, Thus saith the Lord, return from your
evil ways and forsake your works, and the Lord will repent of the evil that he
declared to do to you, so that it shall not come to pass.
8 For thus saith the Lord,
Behold I give you a period of one hundred and twenty years; if you will turn to
me and forsake your evil ways, then will I also turn away from the evil which I
told you, and it shall not exist, saith the Lord.
9 And Noah and Methuselah spoke
all the words of the Lord to the sons of men, day after day, constantly speaking
to them.
10 But the sons of men would
not hearken to them, nor incline their ears to their words, and they were
stiffnecked.
11 And the Lord granted them a
period of one hundred and twenty years, saying, If
they will return, then will God repent of the evil, so as not to destroy the
earth.
12 Noah the son of Lamech
refrained from taking a wife in those days, to beget children, for he said,
Surely now God will destroy the earth, wherefore then shall I beget children?
13 And Noah was a just man, he
was perfect in his generation, and the Lord chose him to raise
up seed from his seed upon the face of the earth.
14 And the Lord said unto Noah,
Take unto thee a wife, and beget children, for I have seen thee righteous
before me in this generation.
15 And thou shalt raise up seed, and thy children with thee, in the midst of
the earth; and Noah went and took a wife, and he chose Naamah the daughter of
Enoch, and she was five hundred and eighty years old.
16 And Noah was four hundred
and ninety-eight years old, when he took Naamah for a wife.
17 And Naamah conceived and
bare a son, and he called his name Japheth, saying, God has enlarged me in the
earth; and she conceived again and bare a son, and he called his name Shem,
saying, God has made me a remnant, to raise up seed in the midst of the earth.
18 And Noah was five hundred
and two years old when Naamah bare Shem, and the boys
grew up and went in the ways of the Lord, in all that Methuselah and Noah their
father taught them.
19 And Lamech the father of
Noah, died in those days; yet verily he did not go with all his heart in the
ways of his father, and he died in the hundred and ninety-fifth year of the
life of Noah.
20 And all the days of Lamech
were seven hundred and seventy years, and he died.
21 And all the sons of men who
knew the Lord, died in that year before the Lord brought evil upon them; for
the Lord willed them to die, so as not to behold the evil that God would bring
upon their brothers and relatives, as he had so declared to do.
22 In that time, the Lord said
to Noah and Methuselah, Stand forth and proclaim to the sons of men all the
words that I spoke to you in those days, peradventure they may turn from their
evil ways, and I will then repent of the evil and will not bring it.
23 And Noah and Methuselah
stood forth, and said in the ears of the sons of men, all that God had spoken
concerning them.
24 But the sons of men would
not hearken, neither would they incline their ears to
all their declarations.
25 And it was after this that
the Lord said to Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me, on account of
their evil deeds, and behold I will destroy the earth.
26 And do thou take unto thee
gopher wood, and go to a certain place and make a
large ark, and place it in that spot.
27 And thus shalt thou make it;
three hundred cubits its length, fifty cubits broad and thirty cubits high.
28 And thou shalt make unto
thee a door, open at its side, and to a cubit thou shalt finish above, and
cover it within and without with pitch.
29 And behold I will bring the
flood of waters upon the earth, and all flesh be destroyed, from under the
heavens all that is upon earth shall perish.
30 And thou and thy household
shall go and gather two couple of all living things, male and female, and shall
bring them to the ark, to raise up seed from them upon
earth.
31 And gather unto thee all
food that is eaten by all the animals, that there may be food for thee and for
them.
32 And thou shalt choose for
thy sons three maidens, from the daughters of men, and they shall be wives to thy
sons.
33 And Noah rose up, and he
made the ark, in the place where God had commanded him, and Noah did as God had
ordered him.
34 In his
five hundred and ninety-fifth year
Noah commenced to make the ark, and he made the ark in five years, as the Lord
had commanded.
35 Then Noah took the three
daughters of Eliakim, son of Methuselah, for wives for his sons, as the Lord
had commanded Noah.
36 And it was at that time
Methuselah the son of Enoch died, nine hundred and sixty years old was he, at
his death.
1 At that time, after the death
of Methuselah, the Lord said to Noah, Go thou with thy household into the ark;
behold I will gather to thee all the animals of the earth, the beasts of the
field and the fowls of the air, and they shall all come and surround the ark.
2 And thou shalt go and seat
thyself by the doors of the ark, and all the beasts, the animals, and the
fowls, shall assemble and place themselves before thee, and such of them as
shall come and crouch before thee, shalt thou take and deliver into the hands
of thy sons, who shall bring them to the ark, and all that will stand before
thee thou shalt leave.
3 And the Lord brought this
about on the next day, and animals, beasts and fowls came in great multitudes
and surrounded the ark.
4 And Noah went and seated
himself by the door of the ark, and of all flesh that crouched before him, he
brought into the ark, and all that stood before him he left upon earth.
5 And a lioness came, with her
two whelps, male and female, and the three crouched before Noah, and the two
whelps rose up against the lioness and smote her, and made her flee from her
place, and she went away, and they returned to their places, and crouched upon
the earth before Noah.
6 And the lioness ran away, and
stood in the place of the lions.
7 And Noah saw this, and
wondered greatly, and he rose and took the two whelps, and brought them into
the ark.
8 And Noah brought into the ark
from all living creatures that were upon earth, so that there was none left but
which Noah brought into the ark.
9 Two and two came to Noah into
the ark, but from the clean animals, and clean fowls, he brought seven couples,
as God had commanded him.
10 And all the animals, and
beasts, and fowls, were still there, and they surrounded the ark at every place,
and the rain had not descended till seven days after.
11 And on that day, the Lord
caused the whole earth to shake, and the sun darkened, and the foundations of
the world raged, and the whole earth was moved violently, and the lightning
flashed, and the thunder roared, and all the fountains in the earth were broken
up, such as was not known to the inhabitants before; and God did this mighty
act, in order to terrify the sons of men, that there might be no more evil upon
earth.
12 And still the sons of men
would not return from their evil ways, and they increased the anger of the Lord
at that time, and did not even direct their hearts to all this.
13 And at the end of seven
days, in the six hundredth year of the life of Noah, the waters of the flood
were upon the earth.
14 And all the fountains of the
deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened, and the rain was
upon the earth forty days and forty nights.
15 And Noah and his household,
and all the living creatures that were with him, came into the ark on account
of the waters of the flood, and the Lord shut him in.
16 And all the sons of men that
were left upon the earth, became exhausted through
evil on account of the rain, for the waters were coming more violently upon the
earth, and the animals and beasts were still surrounding the ark.
17 And the sons of men
assembled together, about seven hundred thousand men and women, and they came
unto Noah to the ark.
18 And they called to Noah,
saying, Open for us that we may come to thee in the ark--and wherefore shall we
die?
19 And Noah, with a loud voice,
answered them from the ark, saying, Have you not all
rebelled against the Lord, and said that he does not exist? and therefore the
Lord brought upon you this evil, to destroy and cut you off from the face of
the earth.20 Is not this the thing that I spoke to you of one hundred and
twenty years back, and you would not hearken to the voice of the Lord, and now
do you desire to live upon earth?
21 And they said to Noah, We
are ready to return to the Lord; only open for us that we may live and not die.
22 And Noah answered them,
saying, Behold now that you see the trouble of your souls, you wish to return
to the Lord; why did you not return during these hundred and twenty years,
which the Lord granted you as the determined period?
23 But now you come and tell me
this on account of the troubles of your souls, now also the Lord will not
listen to you, neither will he give ear to you on this day, so that you will
not now succeed in your wishes.
24 And the sons of men
approached in order to break into the ark, to come in on account of the rain,
for they could not bear the rain upon them.
25 And the Lord sent all the
beasts and animals that stood round the ark. And the beasts overpowered them
and drove them from that place, and every man went his way and they again
scattered themselves upon the face of the earth.
26 And the rain was still
descending upon the earth, and it descended forty days and forty nights, and
the waters prevailed greatly upon the earth; and all flesh that was upon the
earth or in the waters died, whether men, animals, beasts, creeping things or
birds of the air, and there only remained Noah and those that were with him in
the ark.
27 And the waters prevailed and
they greatly increased upon the earth, and they lifted up the ark and it was
raised from the earth.
28 And the ark floated upon the
face of the waters, and it was tossed upon the waters so that all the living
creatures within were turned about like pottage in a cauldron.
29 And great anxiety seized all
the living creatures that were in the ark, and the ark was like to be broken.
30 And all the living creatures
that were in the ark were terrified, and the lions roared, and the oxen lowed,
and the wolves howled, and every living creature in the ark spoke and lamented
in its own language, so that their voices reached to a great distance, and Noah
and his sons cried and wept in their troubles; they were greatly afraid that
they had reached the gates of death.
31 And Noah prayed unto the Lord,
and cried unto him on account of this, and he said, O Lord help us, for we have
no strength to bear this evil that has encompassed us, for the waves of the
waters have surrounded us, mischievous torrents have terrified us, the snares
of death have come before us; answer us, O Lord, answer us, light up thy
countenance toward us and be gracious to us, redeem us and deliver us.
32 And the Lord hearkened to
the voice of Noah, and the Lord remembered him.
33 And a wind passed over the
earth, and the waters were still and the ark rested.
34 And the fountains of the
deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain from heaven was
restrained.
35 And the waters decreased in
those days, and the ark rested upon the mountains of Ararat.
36 And Noah then opened the
windows of the ark, and Noah still called out to the Lord at that time and he
said, O Lord, who didst form the earth and the heavens and all that are
therein, bring forth our souls from this confinement, and from the prison
wherein thou hast placed us, for I am much wearied with sighing.
37 And the Lord hearkened to
the voice of Noah, and said to him, When though shalt
have completed a full year thou shalt then go forth.
38 And at the revolution of the
year, when a full year was completed to Noah's dwelling in the ark, the waters
were dried from off the earth, and Noah put off the covering of the ark.
39 At that time, on the
twenty-seventh day of the second month, the earth was dry, but Noah and his
sons, and those that were with him, did not go out from the ark until the Lord
told them.
40 And the day came that the
Lord told them to go out, and they all went out from the ark.
41 And they went and returned
every one to his way and to his place, and Noah and his sons dwelt in the land
that God had told them, and they served the Lord all their days, and the Lord
blessed Noah and his sons on their going out from the ark.
42 And he said to them, Be fruitful and fill all the earth; become strong and
increase abundantly in the earth and multiply therein.
1 And these are the names of
the sons of Noah: Japheth, Ham and Shem; and children were born to them after
the flood, for they had taken wives before the flood.
2 These are the sons of
Japheth; Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras, seven sons.
3 And the sons of Gomer were
Askinaz, Rephath and Tegarmah.
4 And the sons of Magog were
Elichanaf and Lubal.
5 And the children of Madai
were Achon, Zeelo, Chazoni and Lot.
6 And the sons of Javan were
Elisha, Tarshish, Chittim and Dudonim.
7 And the sons of Tubal were
Ariphi, Kesed and Taari.
8 And the sons of Meshech were
Dedon, Zaron and Shebashni.
9 And the sons of Tiras were
Benib, Gera, Lupirion and Gilak; these are the sons of Japheth according to
their families, and their numbers in those days were about four hundred and
sixty men.
10 And these are the sons of
Ham; Cush, Mitzraim, Phut and Canaan, four sons; and the sons of Cush were
Seba, Havilah, Sabta, Raama and Satecha, and the sons of Raama were Sheba and
Dedan.
11 And the sons of Mitzraim
were Lud, Anom and Pathros, Chasloth and Chaphtor.
12 And the sons of Phut were
Gebul, Hadan, Benah and Adan.
13 And the sons of Canaan were
Zidon, Heth, Amori, Gergashi, Hivi, Arkee, Seni, Arodi, Zimodi and Chamothi.
14 These are the sons of Ham,
according to their families, and their numbers in those days were about seven
hundred and thirty men.
15 And these are the sons of
Shem; Elam, Ashur, Arpachshad, Lud and Aram, five sons; and the sons of Elam
were Shushan, Machul and Harmon.
16 And the sons of Ashar were
Mirus and Mokil, and the sons of Arpachshad were Shelach, Anar and Ashcol.
17 And the sons of Lud were
Pethor and Bizayon, and the sons of Aram were Uz, Chul, Gather and Mash.
18 These are the sons of Shem,
according to their families; and their numbers in those days were about three
hundred men.
19 These are the generations of
Shem; Shem begat Arpachshad and Arpachshad begat Shelach, and Shelach begat
Eber and to Eber were born two children, the name of one was Peleg, for in his
days the sons of men were divided, and in the latter days, the earth was
divided.
20 And the name of the second
was Yoktan, meaning that in his day the lives of the sons of men were
diminished and lessened.
21 These are the sons of
Yoktan; Almodad, Shelaf, Chazarmoveth, Yerach, Hadurom, Ozel, Diklah, Obal,
Abimael, Sheba, Ophir, Havilah and Jobab; all these are the sons of Yoktan.
22 And Peleg his brother begat
Yen, and Yen begat Serug, and Serug begat Nahor and Nahor begat Terah, and
Terah was thirty-eight years old, and he begat Haran and Nahor.
23 And Cush the son of Ham, the
son of Noah, took a wife in those days in his old age, and she bare a son, and
they called his name Nimrod, saying, At that time the sons of men again began
to rebel and transgress against God, and the child grew up, and his father
loved him exceedingly, for he was the son of his old age.
24 And the garments of skin
which God made for Adam and his wife, when they went out of the garden, were
given to Cush.
25 For after the death of Adam
and his wife, the garments were given to Enoch, the son of Jared, and when
Enoch was taken up to God, he gave them to Methuselah, his son.
26 And at the death of
Methuselah, Noah took them and brought them to the ark, and they were with him
until he went out of the ark.
27 And in their going out, Ham
stole those garments from Noah his father, and he took
them and hid them from his brothers.
28 And when Ham begat his first
born Cush, he gave him the garments in secret, and they were with Cush many
days.
29 And Cush also concealed them
from his sons and brothers, and when Cush had begotten Nimrod, he gave him
those garments through his love for him, and Nimrod grew up, and when he was
twenty years old he put on those garments.
30 And Nimrod became strong
when he put on the garments, and God gave him might and strength, and he was a
mighty hunter in the earth, yea, he was a mighty hunter in the field, and he
hunted the animals and he built altars, and he offered upon them the animals
before the Lord.
31 And Nimrod strengthened
himself, and he rose up from amongst his brethren, and he fought the battles of
his brethren against all their enemies round about.
32 And the Lord delivered all
the enemies of his brethren in his hands, and God prospered him from time to
time in his battles, and he reigned upon earth.
33 Therefore it became current
in those days, when a man ushered forth those that he had trained up for
battle, he would say to them, Like God did to Nimrod, who was a mighty hunter
in the earth, and who succeeded in the battles that prevailed against his
brethren, that he delivered them from the hands of their enemies, so may God
strengthen us and deliver us this day.
34 And when Nimrod was forty
years old, at that time there was a war between his brethren and the children
of Japheth, so that they were in the power of their enemies.
35 And Nimrod went forth at
that time, and he assembled all the sons of Cush and their families, about four
hundred and sixty men, and he hired also from some of his friends and
acquaintances about eighty men, and be gave them their hire, and he went with
them to battle, and when he was on the road, Nimrod strengthened the hearts of
the people that went with him.
36 And he said to them, Do not fear, neither be alarmed, for all our enemies will be
delivered into our hands, and you may do with them as you please.
37 And all the men that went
were about five hundred, and they fought against their enemies, and they
destroyed them, and subdued them, and Nimrod placed standing officers over them
in their respective places.
38 And he took some of their
children as security, and they were all servants to Nimrod and to his brethren,
and Nimrod and all the people that were with him turned homeward.
39 And when Nimrod had joyfully
returned from battle, after having conquered his enemies, all his brethren,
together with those who knew him before, assembled to make him king over them,
and they placed the regal crown upon his head.
40 And he set over his subjects
and people, princes, judges, and rulers, as is the custom amongst kings.
41 And he placed Terah the son
of Nahor the prince of his host, and he dignified him and elevated him above
all his princes.
42 And whilst he was reigning
according to his heart's desire, after having conquered all his enemies around,
he advised with his counselors to build a city for his palace, and they did so.
43 And they found a large
valley opposite to the east, and they built him a large and extensive city, and
Nimrod called the name of the city that he built Shinar, for the Lord had
vehemently shaken his enemies and destroyed them.
44 And Nimrod dwelt in Shinar,
and he reigned securely, and he fought with his enemies and he subdued them,
and he prospered in all his battles, and his kingdom became very great.
45 And all nations and tongues
heard of his fame, and they gathered themselves to him, and they bowed down to
the earth, and they brought him offerings, and he became their lord and king,
and they all dwelt with him in the city at Shinar, and Nimrod reigned in the
earth over all the sons of Noah, and they were all under his power and counsel.
46 And all the earth was of one
tongue and words of union, but Nimrod did not go in the ways of the Lord, and
he was more wicked than all the men that were before
him, from the days of the flood until those days.
47 And he made gods of wood and
stone, and he bowed down to them, and he rebelled against the Lord, and taught
all his subjects and the people of the earth his wicked ways; and Mardon his
son was more wicked than his father.
48 And every one that heard of
the acts of Mardon the son of Nimrod would say, concerning him, From the wicked
goeth forth wickedness; therefore it became a proverb in the whole earth,
saying, From the wicked goeth forth wickedness, and it was current in the words
of men from that time to this.
49 And Terah the son of Nahor,
prince of Nimrod's host, was in those days very great in the sight of the king
and his subjects, and the king and princes loved him, and they elevated him
very high.
50 And Terah took a wife and
her name was Amthelo the daughter of Cornebo; and the wife of Terah conceived
and bare him a son in those days.
51 Terah was seventy years old
when he begat him, and Terah called the name of his son that was born to him
Abram, because the king had raised him in those days, and dignified him above
all his princes that were with him.
1 And it was in the night that
Abram was born, that all the servants of Terah, and all the wise men of Nimrod,
and his conjurors came and ate and drank in the house of Terah, and they
rejoiced with him on that night.
2 And when all the wise men and
conjurors went out from the house of Terah, they lifted up their eyes toward
heaven that night to look at the stars, and they saw, and behold one very large
star came from the east and ran in the heavens, and he swallowed up the four
stars from the four sides of the heavens.
3 And all the wise men of the
king and his conjurors were astonished at the sight, and the sages understood
this matter, and they knew its import.
4 And they said to each other, This only betokens the child that has been born to Terah
this night, who will grow up and be fruitful, and multiply, and possess all the
earth, he and his children for ever, and he and his seed will slay great kings,
and inherit their lands.
5 And the wise men and
conjurors went home that night, and in the morning all these wise men and
conjurors rose up early, and assembled in an appointed house.
6 And they spoke and said to
each other, Behold the sight that we saw last night is hidden from the king, it
has not been made known to him.
7 And should this thing get
known to the king in the latter days, he will say to us, Why
have you concealed this matter from me, and then we shall all suffer death;
therefore, now let us go and tell the king the sight which we saw, and the
interpretation thereof, and we shall then remain clear.
8 And they did so, and they all
went to the king and bowed down to him to the ground, and they said, May the
king live, may the king live.
9 We heard that a son was born
to Terah the son of Nahor, the prince of thy host, and we yesternight came to
his house, and we ate and drank and rejoiced with him that night.
10 And when thy servants went
out from the house of Terah, to go to our respective homes to abide there for
the night, we lifted up our eyes to heaven, and we saw a great star coming from
the east, and the same star ran with great speed, and swallowed up four great
stars, from the four sides of the heavens.
11 And thy servants were
astonished at the sight which we saw, and were greatly terrified, and we made
our judgment upon the sight, and knew by our wisdom the proper interpretation
thereof, that this thing applies to the child that is born to Terah, who will
grow up and multiply greatly, and become powerful, and kill all the kings of
the earth, and inherit all their lands, he and his seed forever.
12 And now our lord and king,
behold we have truly acquainted thee with what we have seen concerning this
child.
13 If it seemeth good to the
king to give his father value for this child, we will slay him before he shall
grow up and increase in the land, and his evilincrease against us, that we and
our children perish through his evil.
14 And the king heard their
words and they seemed good in his sight, and he sent and called for Terah, and
Terah came before the king.
15 And the king said to Terah,
I have been told that a son was yesternight born to thee, and after this manner
was observed in the heavens at his birth.
16 And now therefore give me
the child, that we may slay him before his evil springs up against us, and I
will give thee for his value, thy house full of silver and gold.
17 And Terah answered the king
and said to him: My Lord and king, I have heard thy words, and thy servant
shall do all that his king desireth.
18 But my lord and king, I will
tell thee what happened to me yesternight, that I may see what advice the king
will give his servant, and then I will answer the king upon what he has just
spoken; and the king said, Speak.
19 And Terah said to the king,
Ayon, son of Mored, came to me yesternight, saying,
20 Give unto me the great and
beautiful horse that the king gave thee, and I will give thee silver and gold,
and straw and provender for its value; and I said to him, Wait till I see the
king concerning thy words, and behold whatever the king saith, that will I do.
21 And now my lord and king,
behold I have made this thing known to thee, and the advice which my king will
give unto his servant, that will I follow.
22 And the king heard the words
of Terah, and his anger was kindled and he considered him in the light of a
fool.
23 And the king answered Terah,
and he said to him, Art thou so silly, ignorant, or deficient in understanding,
to do this thing, to give thy beautiful horse for silver and gold or even for
straw and provender?
24 Art thou so short of silver
and gold, that thou shouldst do this thing, because thou canst not obtain straw
and provender to feed thy horse? and what is silver
and gold to thee, or straw and provender, that thou shouldst give away that
fine horse which I gave thee, like which there is none to be had on the whole
earth?
25 And the king left off
speaking, and Terah answered the king, saying, Like
unto this has the king spoken to his servant;
26 I beseech thee, my lord and
king, what is this which thou didst say unto me, saying, Give thy son that we
may slay him, and I will give thee silver and gold for his value; what shall I
do with silver and gold after the death of my son? who
shall inherit me? surely then at my death, the silver
and gold will return to my king who gave it.
27 And when the king heard the
words of Terah, and the parable which he brought concerning the king, it
grieved him greatly and he was vexed at this thing, and his anger burned within
him.
28 And Terah saw that the anger
of the king was kindled against him, and he answered the king, saying, All that
I have is in the king's power; whatever the king desireth to do to his servant,
that let him do, yea, even my son, he is in the king's power, without value in
exchange, he and his two brothers that are older than he.
29 And the king said to Terah,
No, but I will purchase thy younger son for a price.
30 And Terah answered the king,
saying, I beseech thee my lord and king to let thy servant speak a word before
thee, and let the king hear the word of his servant, and Terah said, Let my
king give me three days' time till I consider this matter within myself, and
consult with my family concerning the words of my king; and he pressed the king
greatly to agree to this.
31 And the king hearkened to
Terah, and he did so and he gave him three days' time, and Terah went out from
the king's presence, and he came home to his family and spoke to them all the
words of the king; and the people were greatly afraid.
32 And it was in the third day
that the king sent to Terah, saying, Send me thy son for a price as I spoke to
thee; and shouldst thou not do this, I will send and slay all thou hast in thy
house, so that thou shalt not even have a dog remaining.
33 And Terah hastened, (as the
thing was urgent from the king), and he took a child from one of his servants,
which his handmaid had born to him that day, and Terah brought the child to the
king and received value for him.
34 And the Lord was with Terah
in this matter, that Nimrod might not cause Abram's death, and the king took
the child from Terah and with all his might dashed his head to the ground, for
he thought it had been Abram; and this was concealed from him from that day,
and it was forgotten by the king, as it was the will of Providence not to
suffer Abram's death.
35 And Terah took Abram his son
secretly, together with his mother and nurse, and he concealed them in a cave,
and he brought them their provisions monthly.
36 And the Lord was with Abram
in the cave and he grew up, and Abram was in the cave ten years, and the king
and his princes, soothsayers and sages, thought that the king had killed Abram.
1 And Haran, the son of Terah,
Abram's oldest brother, took a wife in those days.
2 Haran was thirty-nine years
old when he took her; and the wife of Haran conceived and
bare a son, and he called his name Lot.
3 And she conceived again and bare a daughter, and she called her name Milca; and she
again conceived and bare a daughter, and she called her name Sarai.
4 Haran was forty-two years old
when he begat Sarai, which was in the tenth year of the life of Abram; and in
those days Abram and his mother and nurse went out from the cave, as the king
and his subjects had forgotten the affair of Abram.
5 And when Abram came out from
the cave, he went to Noah and his son Shem, and he remained with them to learn
the instruction of the Lord and his ways, and no man knew where Abram was, and
Abram served Noah and Shem his son for a long time.
6 And Abram was in Noah's house
thirty-nine years, and Abram knew the Lord from three years old, and he went in
the ways of the Lord until the day of his death, as Noah and his son Shem had
taught him; and all the sons of the earth in those days greatly transgressed against
the Lord, and they rebelled against him and they served other gods, and they
forgot the Lord who had created them in the earth; and the inhabitants of the
earth made unto themselves, at that time, every man his god; gods of wood and
stone which could neither speak, hear, nor deliver, and the sons of men served
them and they became their gods.
7 And the king and all his
servants, and Terah with all his household were then
the first of those that served gods of wood and stone.
8 And Terah had twelve gods of
large size, made of wood and stone, after the twelve months of the year, and he
served each one monthly, and every month Terah would bring his meat offering
and drink offering to his gods; thus did Terah all the days.
9 And all that generation were wicked in the sight of the Lord, and they thus made
every man his god, but they forsook the Lord who had created them.
10 And there was not a man
found in those days in the whole earth, who knew the Lord (for they served each
man his own God) except Noah and his household, and all those who were under
his counsel knew the Lord in those days.
11 And Abram the son of Terah
was waxing great in those days in the house of Noah, and no man knew it, and
the Lord was with him.
12 And the Lord gave Abram an
understanding heart, and he knew all the works of that generation were vain, and that all their gods were vain and were of no
avail.
13 And Abram saw the sun
shining upon the earth, and Abram said unto himself
Surely now this sun that shines upon the earth is God, and him will I serve.
14 And Abram served the sun in
that day and he prayed to him, and when evening came the sun set as usual, and
Abram said within himself, Surely this cannot be God?
15 And Abram still continued to
speak within himself, Who is he who made the heavens
and the earth? who created upon earth? where is he?
16 And night darkened over him,
and he lifted up his eyes toward the west, north, south, and east, and he saw
that the sun had vanished from the earth, and the day became dark.
17 And Abram saw the stars and
moon before him, and he said, Surely this is the God
who created the whole earth as well as man, and behold these his servants are
gods around him: and Abram served the moon and prayed to it all that night.
18 And in the morning when it
was light and the sun shone upon the earth as usual, Abram saw all the things
that the Lord God had made upon earth.
19 And Abram said unto himself
Surely these are not gods that made the earth and all mankind, but these are
the servants of God, and Abram remained in the house of Noah and there knew the
Lord and his ways' and he served the Lord all the days of his life, and all
that generation forgot the Lord, and served other gods of wood and stone, and
rebelled all their days.
20 And king
Nimrod reigned securely, and all the earth was under his control, and all the
earth was of one tongue and words of union.
21 And all the princes of
Nimrod and his great men took counsel together; Phut, Mitzraim, Cush and Canaan
with their families, and they said to each other, Come let us build ourselves a
city and in it a strong tower, and its top reaching heaven, and we will make
ourselves famed, so that we may reign upon the whole world, in order that the
evil of our enemies may cease from us, that we may reign mightily over them,
and that we may not become scattered over the earth on account of their wars.
22 And they all went before the
king, and they told the king these words, and the king agreed with them in this
affair, and he did so.
23 And all the families
assembled consisting of about six hundred thousand men, and they went to seek
an extensive piece of ground to build the city and the tower, and they sought
in the whole earth and they found none like one valley at the east of the land
of Shinar, about two days' walk, and they journeyed there and they dwelt there.
24 And they began to make
bricks and burn fires to build the city and the tower that they had imagined to
complete.
25 And the building of the
tower was unto them a transgression and a sin, and they began to build it, and
whilst they were building against the Lord God of heaven, they imagined in
their hearts to war against him and to ascend into heaven.
26 And all these people and all
the families divided themselves in three parts; the first said We will ascend
into heaven and fight against him; the second said, We will ascend to heaven
and place our own gods there and serve them; and the third part said, We will
ascend to heaven and smite him with bows and spears; and God knew all their
works and all their evil thoughts, and he saw the city and the tower which they
were building.
27 And when they were building
they built themselves a great city and a very high and strong tower; and on
account of its height the mortar and bricks did not reach the builders in their
ascent to it, until those who went up had completed a full year, and after
that, they reached to the builders and gave them the mortar and the bricks;
thus was it done daily.
28 And behold these ascended
and others descended the whole day; and if a brick should fall from their hands
and get broken, they would all weep over it, and if a man fell and died, none
of them would look at him.
29 And the Lord knew their
thoughts, and it came to pass when they were building they cast the arrows
toward the heavens, and all the arrows fell upon them filled with blood, and
when they saw them they said to each other, Surely we have slain all those that
are in heaven.
30 For this was from the Lord
in order to cause them to err, and in order; to destroy them from off the face
of the ground.
31 And they built the tower and
the city, and they did this thing daily until many days and years were elapsed.
32 And God said to the seventy
angels who stood foremost before him, to those who were near to him, saying,
Come let us descend and confuse their tongues, that one man shall not
understand the language of his neighbor, and they did so unto them.
33 And from that day following,
they forgot each man his neighbor's tongue, and they
could not understand to speak in one tongue, and when the builder took from the
hands of his neighbor lime or stone which he did not order, the builder would
cast it away and throw it upon his neighbor, that he would die.
34 And they did so many days,
and they killed many of them in this manner.
35 And the Lord smote the three
divisions that were there, and he punished them according to their works and
designs; those who said, We will ascend to heaven and serve our gods, became
like apes and elephants; and those who said, We will smite the heaven with arrows,
the Lord killed them, one man through the hand of his neighbor; and the third
division of those who said, We will ascend to heaven and fight against him, the
Lord scattered them throughout the earth.
36 And those who were left
amongst them, when they knew and understood the evil which was coming upon
them, they forsook the building, and they also became scattered upon the face
of the whole earth.
37 And they ceased building the
city and the tower; therefore he called that place Babel, for there the Lord
confounded the Language of the whole earth; behold it was at the east of the
land of Shinar.
38 And as to the tower which
the sons of men built, the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up one third part thereof, and a fire also descended from heaven and
burned another third, and the other third is left to this day, and it is of
that part which was aloft, and its circumference is three days' walk.
39 And many of the sons of men
died in that tower, a people without number.
1 And Peleg the son of Eber
died in those days, in the forty-eighth year of the life of Abram son of Terah,
and all the days of Peleg were two hundred and thirty-nine years.
2 And when the Lord had
scattered the sons of men on account of their sin at the tower, behold they
spread forth into many divisions, and all the sons of men were dispersed into
the four corners of the earth.
3 And all the families became
each according to its language, its land, or its city.
4 And the sons of men built
many cities according to their families, in all the places where they went, and
throughout the earth where the Lord had scattered them.
5 And some of them built cities
in places from which they were afterward extirpated, and they called these
cities after their own names, or the names of their children, or after their
particular occurrences.
6 And the sons of Japheth the
son of Noah went and built themselves cities in the places where they were
scattered, and they called all their cities after their names, and the sons of
Japheth were divided upon the face of the earth into many divisions and
languages.
7 And these are the sons of
Japheth according to their families, Gomer, Magog, Medai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech
and Tiras; these are the children of Japheth according to their generations.
8 And the children of Gomer,
according to their cities, were the Francum, who dwell in the land of Franza,
by the river Franza, by the river Senah.
9 And the children of Rephath
are the Bartonim, who dwell in the land of Bartonia by the river Ledah, which
empties its waters in the great sea Gihon, that is, oceanus.
10 And the children of Tugarma
are ten families, and these are their names: Buzar, Parzunac, Balgar, Elicanum,
Ragbib, Tarki, Bid, Zebuc, Ongal and Tilmaz; all these spread and rested in the
north and built themselves cities.
11 And they called their cities
after their own names, those are they who abide by the
rivers Hithlah and Italac unto this day.
12 But the families of Angoli,
Balgar and Parzunac, they dwell by the great river Dubnee; and the names of
their cities are also according to their own names.
13 And the children of Javan
are the Javanim who dwell in the land of Makdonia, and
the children of Medaiare are the Orelum that dwell in the land of Curson, and
the children of Tubal are those that dwell in the land of Tuskanah by the river
Pashiah.
14 And the children of Meshech
are the Shibashni and the children of Tiras are Rushash, Cushni, and Ongolis;
all these went and built themselves cities; those are the cities that are
situate by the sea Jabus by the river Cura, which empties itself in the river
Tragan.
15 And the children of Elishah
are the Almanim, and they also went and built themselves cities; those are the
cities situate between the mountains of Job and Shibathmo; and of them were the
people of Lumbardi who dwell opposite the mountains of Job and Shibathmo, and
they conquered the land of Italia and remained there unto this day.
16 And the children of Chittim
are the Romim who dwell in the valley of Canopia by the river Tibreu.
17 And the children of Dudonim
are those who dwell in the cities of the sea Gihon, in the land of Bordna.
18 These are the families of
the children of Japheth according to their cities and languages, when they were
scattered after the tower, and they called their cities after their names and
occurrences; and these are the names of all their cities according to their
families, which they built in those days after the tower.
19 And the children of Ham were
Cush, Mitzraim, Phut and Canaan according to their generation and cities.
20 All these went and built
themselves cities as they found fit places for them, and they called their
cities after the names of their fathers Cush, Mitzraim, Phut and Canaan.
21 And the children of Mitzraim
are the Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuchim, Pathrusim, Casluchim and Caphturim,
seven families.
22 All these dwell by the river
Sihor, that is the brook of Egypt, and they built themselves cities and called
them after their own names.
23 And the children of Pathros
and Casloch intermarried together, and from them went forth the Pelishtim, the
Azathim, and the Gerarim, the Githim and the Ekronim, in all five families;
these also built themselves cities, and they called their cities after the
names of their fathers unto this day.
24 And the children of Canaan
also built themselves cities, and they called their cities after their names,
eleven cities and others without number.
25 And four men from the family
of Ham went to the land of the plain; these are the names of the four men,
Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboyim.
26 And these men built
themselves four cities in the land of the plain, and they called the names of
their cities after their own names.
27 And they and their children
and all belonging to them dwelt in those cities, and they were fruitful and
multiplied greatly and dwelt peaceably.
28 And Seir the son of Hur, son
of Hivi, son of Canaan, went and found a valley opposite to Mount Paran, and he
built a city there, and he and his seven sons and his household dwelt there,
and he called the city which he built Seir, according to his name; that is the
land of Seir unto this day.
29 These are the families of
the children of Ham, according to their languages and cities, when they were
scattered to their countries after the tower.
30 And some of the children of
Shem son of Noah, father of all the children of Eber, also went and built
themselves cities in the places wherein they were scattered, and they called
their cities after their names.
31 And the sons of Shem were
Elam, Ashur, Arpachshad, Lud and Aram, and they built themselves cities and
called the names of all their cities after their names.
32 And Ashur son of Shem and
his children and household went forth at that time, a very large body of them,
and they went to a distant land that they found, and they met with a very
extensive valley in the land that they went to, and they built themselves four
cities, and they called them after their own names and occurrences.
33 And these are the names of
the cities which the children of Ashur built, Ninevah, Resen, Calach and
Rehobother; and the children of Ashur dwell there unto this day.
34 And the children of Aram
also went and built themselves a city, and they called the name of the city Uz
after their eldest brother, and they dwell therein; that is the land of Uz to
this day.
35 And in the second year after
the tower a man from the house of Ashur, whose name was Bela, went from the
land of Ninevah to sojourn with his household wherever he could find a place;
and they came until opposite the cities of the plain against Sodom, and they
dwelt there.
36 And the man rose up and
built there a small city, and called its name Bela, after his name; that is the
land of Zoar unto this day.
37 And these are the families
of the children of Shem according to their language and cities, after they were
scattered upon the earth after the tower.
38 And every kingdom, city, and
family of the families of the children of Noah built themselves many cities
after this.
39 And they established
governments in all their cities, in order to be regulated by their orders; so
did all the families of the children of Noah forever.
1 And Nimrod son of Cush was
still in the land of Shinar, and he reigned over it and dwelt there, and he
built cities in the land of Shinar.
2 And these are the names of
the four cities which he built, and he called their names after the occurrences
that happened to them in the building of the tower.
3 And he called the first
Babel, saying, Because the Lord there confounded the
language of the whole earth; and the name of the second he called Erech,
because from there God dispersed them.
4 And the third he called
Eched, saying there was a great battle at that place; and the fourth he called
Calnah, because his princes and mighty men were consumed there, and they vexed
the Lord, they rebelled and transgressed against him.
5 And when Nimrod had built
these cities in the land of Shinar, he placed in them the remainder of his
people, his princes and his mighty men that were left in his kingdom.
6 And Nimrod dwelt in Babel,
and he there renewed his reign over the rest of his subjects, and he reigned
securely, and the subjects and princes of Nimrod called his name Amraphel,
saying that at the tower his princes and men fell through his means.
7 And notwithstanding this,
Nimrod did not return to the Lord, and he continued in wickedness and teaching
wickedness to the sons of men; and Mardon, his son, was worse than his father,
and continued to add to the abominations of his father.
8 And he caused the sons of men
to sin, therefore it is said, From the wicked goeth
forth wickedness.
9 At that time there was war
between the families of the children of Ham, as they were dwelling in the
cities which they had built.
10 And Chedorlaomer, king of
Elam, went away from the families of the children of Ham, and he fought with
them and he subdued them, and he went to the five cities of the plain and he
fought against them and he subdued them, and they were under his control.
11 And they served him twelve
years, and they gave him a yearly tax.
12 At that time died Nahor, son
of Serug, in the forty-ninth year of the life of Abram son of Terah.
13 And in the fiftieth year of
the life of Abram son of Terah, Abram came forth from the house of Noah, and
went to his father's house.
14 And Abram knew the Lord, and
he went in his ways and instructions, and the Lord his God was with him.
15 And Terah his father was in
those days, still captain of the host of king Nimrod,
and he still followed strange gods.
16 And Abram came to his father's
house and saw twelve gods standing there in their temples, and the anger of
Abram was kindled when he saw these images in his father's house.
17 And Abram said, As the Lord
liveth these images shall not remain in my father's house; so shall the Lord
who created me do unto me if in three days' time I do not break them all.
18 And Abram went from them,
and his anger burned within him. And Abram hastened and went from the chamber
to his father's outer court, and he found his father sitting in the court, and
all his servants with him, and Abram came and sat before him.
19 And Abram asked his father,
saying, Father, tell me where is God who created heaven and earth, and all the
sons of men upon earth, and who created thee and me. And Terah answered his son
Abram and said, Behold those who created us are all with us in the house.
20 And Abram said to his
father, My lord, shew them to me I pray thee; and Terah brought Abram into the
chamber of the inner court, and Abram saw, and behold the whole room was full
of gods of wood and stone, twelve great images and others less than they
without number.
21 And Terah said to his son,
Behold these are they which made all thou seest upon earth, and which created
me and thee, and all mankind.
22 And Terah bowed down to his
gods, and he then went away from them, and Abram, his son, went away with him.
23 And when Abram had gone from
them he went to his mother and sat before her, and he said to his mother,
Behold, my father has shown me those who made heaven and earth, and all the
sons of men.
24 Now, therefore, hasten and
fetch a kid from the flock, and make of it savory
meat, that I may bring it to my father's gods as an offering for them to eat;
perhaps I may thereby become acceptable to them.
25 And his mother did so, and
she fetched a kid, and made savory meat thereof, and brought it to Abram, and
Abram took the savory meat from his mother and brought it before his father's
gods, and he drew nigh to them that they might eat; and Terah his father, did
not know of it.
26 And Abram saw on the day
when he was sitting amongst them, that they had no voice, no hearing, no
motion, and not one of them could stretch forth his hand to eat.
27 And Abram mocked them, and
said, Surely the savory meat that I prepared has not
pleased them, or perhaps it was too little for them, and for that reason they
would not eat; therefore tomorrow I will prepare fresh savory meat, better and
more plentiful than this, in order that I may see the result.
28 And it was on the next day
that Abram directed his mother concerning the savory meat, and his mother rose
and fetched three fine kids from the flock, and she made of them some excellent
savory meat, such as her son was fond of, and she gave it to her son Abram; and
Terah his father did not know of it.
29 And Abram took the savory
meat from his mother, and brought it before his father's gods into the chamber;
and he came nigh unto them that they might eat, and he placed it before them,
and Abram sat before them all day, thinking perhaps they might eat.
30 And Abram viewed them, and
behold they had neither voice nor hearing, nor did one of them stretch forth
his hand to the meat to eat.
31 And in the evening of that
day in that house Abram was clothed with the spirit of God.
32 And he called out and said,
Wo unto my father and this wicked generation, whose hearts are all inclined to
vanity, who serve these idols of wood and stone which can neither eat, smell,
hear nor speak, who have mouths without speech, eyes without sight, ears
without hearing, hands without feeling, and legs which cannot move; like them
are those that made them and that trust in them.
33 And when Abram saw all these
things his anger was kindled against his father, and he hastened and took a
hatchet in his hand, and came unto the chamber of the gods, and he broke all
his father's gods.
34 And when he had done
breaking the images, he placed the hatchet in the hand of the great god which
was there before them, and he went out; and Terah his father came home, for he
had heard at the door the sound of the striking of the hatchet; so Terah came
into the house to know what this was about.
35 And Terah, having heard the
noise of the hatchet in the room of images, ran to the room to the images, and
he met Abram going out.
36 And Terah entered the room
and found all the idols fallen down and broken, and
the hatchet in the hand of the largest, which was not broken, and the savory
meat which Abram his son had made was still before them.
37 And when Terah saw this his
anger was greatly kindled, and he hastened and went from the room to Abram.
38 And he found Abram his son
still sitting in the house; and he said to him, What
is this work thou hast done to my gods?
39 And Abram answered Terah his
father and he said, Not so my lord, for I brought savory meat before them, and
when I came nigh to them with the meat that they might eat, they all at once
stretched forth their hands to eat before the great one had put forth his hand
to eat.
40 And the large one saw their
works that they did before him, and his anger was violently kindled against
them, and he went and took the hatchet that was in the house and came to them
and broke them all, and behold the hatchet is yet in his hand as thou seest.
41 And Terah's anger was
kindled against his son Abram, when he spoke this; and Terah said to Abram his
son in his anger, What is this tale that thou hast
told? Thou speakest lies to me.
42 Is there in these gods
spirit, soul or power to do all thou hast told me? Are they not wood and stone,
and have I not myself made them, and canst thou speak
such lies, saying that the large god that was with them smote them? It is thou
that didst place the hatchet in his hands, and then sayest he smote them all.
43 And Abram answered his
father and said to him, And how canst thou then serve
these idols in whom there is no power to do any thing? Can those idols in which
thou trustest deliver thee? can they hear thy prayers
when thou callest upon them? can they deliver thee
from the hands of thy enemies, or will they fight thy battles for thee against
thy enemies, that thou shouldst serve wood and stone which can neither speak
nor hear?
44 And now surely it is not
good for thee nor for the sons of men that are connected with thee, to do these
things; are you so silly, so foolish or so short of understanding that you will
serve wood and stone, and do after this manner?
45 And forget the Lord God who
made heaven and earth, and who created you in the earth, and thereby bring a
great evil upon your souls in this matter by serving stone and wood?
46 Did not our fathers in days
of old sin in this matter, and the Lord God of the universe brought the waters
of the flood upon them and destroyed the whole earth?
47 And how can you continue to
do this and serve gods of wood and stone, who cannot hear, or speak, or deliver
you from oppression, thereby bringing down the anger of the God of the universe
upon you?
48 Now therefore my father refrain from this, and bring not evil upon thy soul
and the souls of thy household.
49 And Abram hastened and
sprang from before his father, and took the hatchet from his father's largest
idol, with which Abram broke it and ran away.
50 And Terah, seeing all that
Abram had done, hastened to go from his house, and he went to the king and he
came before Nimrod and stood before him, and he bowed down to the king; and the
king said, What dost thou want?
51 And he said, I beseech thee
my lord, to hear me--Now fifty years back a child was born to me, and thus has
he done to my gods and thus has he spoken; and now therefore, my lord and king,
send for him that he may come before thee, and judge him according to the law,
that we may be delivered from his evil.
52 And the king sent three men
of his servants, and they went and brought Abram before the king. And Nimrod
and all his princes and servants were that day sitting before him, and Terah
sat also before them.
53 And the king said to Abram,
What is this that thou hast done to thy father and to his gods? And Abram
answered the king in the words that he spoke to his father, and he said, The large god that was with them in the house did to them
what thou hast heard.
54 And the king said to Abram,
Had they power to speak and eat and do as thou hast said? And Abram answered
the king, saying, And if there be no power in them why
dost thou serve them and cause the sons of men to err through thy follies?
55 Dost thou imagine that they
can deliver thee or do anything small or great, that thou shouldst serve them?
And why wilt thou not sense the God of the whole universe, who created thee and
in whose power it is to kill and keep alive?
56 0 foolish, simple, and
ignorant king, woe unto thee forever.
57 I thought thou wouldst teach
thy servants the upright way, but thou hast not done this, but hast filled the
whole earth with thy sins and the sins of thy people who have followed thy
ways.
58 Dost thou not know, or hast
thou not heard, that this evil which thou doest, our ancestors sinned therein
in days of old, and the eternal God brought the waters of the flood upon them
and destroyed them all, and also destroyed the whole earth on their account?
And wilt thou and thy people rise up now and do like unto this work, in order
to bring down the anger of the Lord God of the universe, and to bring evil upon
thee and the whole earth?
59 Now therefore put away this
evil deed which thou doest, and serve the God of the universe, as thy soul is
in his hands, and then it will be well with thee.
60 And if thy wicked heart will
not hearken to my words to cause thee to forsake thy evil ways, and to serve
the eternal God, then wilt thou die in shame in the latter days, thou, thy
people and all who are connected with thee, hearing thy words or walking in thy
evil ways.
61 And when Abram had ceased
speaking before the king and princes, Abram lifted up his eyes to the heavens,
and he said, The Lord seeth all the wicked, and he will judge them.
1 And when the king heard the
words of Abram he ordered him to be put into prison; and Abram was ten days in
prison.
2 And at the end of those days
the king ordered that all the kings, princes and governors of different
provinces and the sages should come before him, and they sat before him, and
Abram was still in the house of confinement.
3 And the king said to the
princes and sages, Have you heard what Abram, the son
of Terah, has done to his father? Thus has he done to him, and I ordered him to
be brought before me, and thus has he spoken; his heart did not misgive him,
neither did he stir in my presence, and behold now he is confined in the
prison.
4 And therefore decide what
judgment is due to this man who reviled the king; who spoke and did all the
things that you heard.
5 And they all answered the
king saying, The man who revileth the king should be
hanged upon a tree; but having done all the things that he said, and having
despised our gods, he must therefore be burned to death, for this is the law in
this matter.
6 If it pleaseth the king to do
this, let him order his servants to kindle a fire both night and day in thy
brick furnace, and then we will cast this man into it. And the king did so, and
he commanded his servants that they should prepare a fire for three days and
three nights in the king's furnace, that is in Casdim; and the king ordered
them to take Abram from prison and bring him out to be burned.
7 And all the
king's servants, princes, lords, governors, and judges, and all the inhabitants
of the land, about nine hundred thousand men, stood opposite the furnace to see
Abram.
8 And all the women and little
ones crowded upon the roofs and towers to see what was doing with Abram, and
they all stood together at a distance; and there was not a man left that did
not come on that day to behold the scene.
9 And when Abram was come, the
conjurors of the king and the sages saw Abram, and they cried out to the king,
saying, Our sovereign lord, surely this is the man
whom we know to have been the child at whose birth the great star swallowed the
four stars, which we declared to the king now fifty years since.
10 And behold now his father
has also transgressed thy commands, and mocked thee by bringing thee another
child, which thou didst kill.
11 And when the king heard
their words, he was exceedingly wroth, and he ordered Terah to be brought
before him.
12 And the king said, Hast thou
heard what the conjurors have spoken? Now tell me truly, how didst thou; and if
thou shalt speak truth thou shalt be acquitted.
13 And seeing that the king's
anger was so much kindled, Terah said to the king, My
lord and king, thou hast heard the truth, and what the sages have spoken is
right. And the king said, How couldst thou do this
thing, to transgress my orders and to give me a child that thou didst not
beget, and to take value for him?
14 And Terah answered the king,
Because my tender feelings were excited for my son, at
that time, and I took a son of my handmaid, and I brought him to the king.
15 And the king said Who advised thee to this? Tell me, do not hide aught from
me, and then thou shalt not die.
16 And Terah was greatly
terrified in the king's presence, and he said to the king, It was Haran my
eldest son who advised me to this; and Haran was in those days that Abram was
born, two and thirty years old.
17 But Haran did not advise his
father to anything, for Terah said this to the king in order to deliver his
soul from the king, for he feared greatly; and the king said to Terah, Haran
thy son who advised thee to this shall die through fire with Abram; for the
sentence of death is upon him for having rebelled against the king's desire in
doing this thing.
18 And Haran at that time felt
inclined to follow the ways of Abram, but he kept it within himself.
19 And Haran said in his heart,
Behold now the king has seized Abram on account of these things which Abram
did, and it shall come to pass, that if Abram prevail over the king I will
follow him, but if the king prevail I will go after the king.
20 And when Terah had spoken
this to the king concerning Haran his son, the king ordered Haran to be seized
with Abram.
21 And they brought them both,
Abram and Haran his brother, to cast them into the fire; and all the
inhabitants of the land and the king's servants and princes and all the women
and little ones were there, standing that day over them.
22 And the king's servants took
Abram and his brother, and they stripped them of all their clothes excepting
their lower garments which were upon them.
23 And they bound their hands
and feet with linen cords, and the servants of the king lifted them up and cast
them both into the furnace.
24 And the Lord loved Abram and
he had compassion over him, and the Lord came down and delivered Abram from the
fire and he was not burned.
25 But all the cords with which
they bound him were burned, while Abram remained and walked about in the fire.
26 And Haran died when they had
cast him into the fire, and he was burned to ashes, for his heart was not
perfect with the Lord; and those men who cast him into the fire, the flame of
the fire spread over them, and they were burned, and twelve men of them died.
27 And Abram walked in the
midst of the fire three days and three nights, and all the servants of the king
saw him walking in the fire, and they came and told the king, saying, Behold we
have seen Abram walking about in the midst of the fire, and even the lower
garments which are upon him are not burned, but the cord with which he was
bound is burned.
28 And when the king heard
their words his heart fainted and he would not believe them; so he sent other
faithful princes to see this matter, and they went and saw it and told it to
the king; and the king rose to go and see it, and he saw Abram walking to and
fro in the midst of the fire, and he saw Haran's body burned, and the king
wondered greatly.
29 And the king ordered Abram
to be taken out from the fire; and his servants approached to take him out and they
could not, for the fire was round about and the flame
ascending toward them from the furnace.
30 And the king's servants fled
from it, and the king rebuked them, saying, Make haste
and bring Abram out of the fire that you shall not die.
31 And the servants of the king
again approached to bring Abram out, and the flames came upon them and burned
their faces so that eight of them died.
32 And when the king saw that
his servants could not approach the fire lest they should be burned, the king
called to Abram, O servant of the God who is in heaven, go forth from amidst
the fire and come hither before me; and Abram hearkened to the voice of the
king, and he went forth from the fire and came and stood before the king.
33 And when Abram came out the
king and all his servants saw Abram coming before the king, with his lower
garments upon him, for they were not burned, but the cord with which he was
bound was burned.
34 And the king said to Abram,
How is it that thou wast not burned in the fire?
35 And Abram said to the king,
The God of heaven and earth in whom I trust and who has all in his power, he
delivered me from the fire into which thou didst cast me.
36 And Haran the brother of
Abram was burned to ashes, and they sought for his body, and they found it consumed.
37 And Haran was eighty-two
years old when he died in the fire of Casdim. And the king, princes, and
inhabitants of the land, seeing that Abram was delivered from the fire, they
came and bowed down to Abram.
38 And Abram said to them, Do
not bow down to me, but bow down to the God of the world who made you, and
serve him, and go in his ways for it is he who delivered me from out of this
fire, and it is he who created the souls and spirits of all men, and formed man
in his mother's womb, and brought him forth into the world, and it is he who
will deliver those who trust in him from all pain.
39 And this thing seemed very
wonderful in the eyes of the king and princes, that Abram was saved from the
fire and that Haran was burned; and the king gave Abram many presents and he
gave him his two head servants from the king's house; the name of one was Oni
and the name of the other was Eliezer.
40 And all the kings, princes
and servants gave Abram many gifts of silver and gold and pearl, and the king
and his princes sent him away, and he went in peace.
41 And Abram went forth from
the king in peace, and many of the king's servants followed him, and about
three hundred men joined him.
42 And Abram returned on that
day and went to his father's house, he and the men that followed him, and Abram
served the Lord his God all the days of his life, and he walked in his ways and
followed his law.
43 And from that day forward
Abram inclined the hearts of the sons of men to serve the Lord.
44 And at that time Nahor and
Abram took unto themselves wives, the daughters of their brother Haran; the
wife of Nahor was Milca and the name of Abram's wife was Sarai. And Sarai, wife
of Abram, was barren; she had no offspring in those days.
45 And at the expiration of two
years from Abram's going out of the fire, that is in the fifty-second year of
his life, behold king Nimrod sat in Babel upon the throne, and the king fell
asleep and dreamed that he was standing with his troops and hosts in a valley
opposite the king's furnace.
46 And he lifted up his eyes
and saw a man in the likeness of Abram coming forth from the furnace, and that
he came and stood before the king with his drawn sword, and then sprang to the
king with his sword, when the king fled from the man, for he was afraid; and while
he was running, the man threw an egg upon the king's head, and the egg became a
great river.
47 And the king dreamed that
all his troops sank in that river and died, and the king took flight with three
men who were before him and he escaped.
48 And the king looked at these
men and they were clothed in princely dresses as the garments of kings, and had
the appearance and majesty of kings.
49 And while they were running,
the river again turned to an egg before the king, and there came forth from the
egg a young bird which came before the king, and flew at his head and plucked
out the king's eye.
50 And the king was grieved at
the sight, and he awoke out of his sleep and his spirit was agitated; and he
felt a great terror.
51 And in the morning the king
rose from his couch in fear, and he ordered all the wise men and magicians to
come before him, when the king related his dream to them.
52 And a wise servant of the
king, whose name was Anuki, answered the king, saying, This
is nothing else but the evil of Abram and his seed which will spring up against
my Lord and king in the latter days.
53 And behold the day will come
when Abram and his seed and the children of his household will war with my
king, and they will smite all the king's hosts and his troops.
54 And as to what thou hast
said concerning three men which thou didst see like unto thyself, and which did
escape, this means that only thou wilt escape with three kings from the kings
of the earth who will be with thee in battle.
55 And that which thou sawest
of the river which turned to an egg as at first, and the young bird plucking
out thine eye, this means nothing else but the seed of Abram which will slay
the king in latter days.
56 This is my king's dream, and
this is its interpretation, and the dream is true, and the interpretation which
thy servant has given thee is right.
57 Now therefore my king,
surely thou knowest that it is now fifty-two years since thy sages saw this at
the birth of Abram, and if my king will suffer Abram to live in the earth it
will be to the injury of my lord and king, for all the days that Abram liveth
neither thou nor thy kingdom will be established, for this was known formerly
at his birth; and why will not my king slay him, that his evil may be kept from
thee in latter days?
58 And Nimrod hearkened to the
voice of Anuki, and he sent some of his servants in secret to go and seize
Abram, and bring him before the king to suffer death.
59 And Eliezer, Abram's servant
whom the king had given him, was at that time in the presence of the king, and
he heard what Anuki had advised the king, and what the king had said to cause
Abram's death.
60 And Eliezer said to Abram,
Hasten, rise up and save thy soul, that thou mayest not die through the hands
of the king, for thus did he see in a dream concerning thee, and thus did Anuki
interpret it, and thus also did Anuki advise the king concerning thee.
61 And Abram hearkened to the
voice of Eliezer, and Abram hastened and ran for safety to the house of Noah
and his son Shem, and he concealed himself there and found a place of safety;
and the king's servants came to Abram's house to seek him, but they could not
find him, and they searched through out the country and he was not to be found,
and they went and searched in every direction and he was not to be met with.
62 And when the king's servants
could not find Abram they returned to the king, but the king's anger against
Abram was stilled, as they did not find him, and the king drove from his mind
this matter concerning Abram.
63 And Abram was concealed in
Noah's house for one month, until the king had forgotten this matter, but Abram
was still afraid of the king; and Terah came to see Abram his son secretly in
the house of Noah, and Terah was very great in the eyes of the king.
64 And Abram said to his
father, Dost thou not know that the king thinketh to
slay me, and to annihilate my name from the earth by the advice of his wicked
counsellors?
65 Now whom hast thou here and
what hast thou in this land? Arise, let us go together
to the land of Canaan, that we may be delivered from his hand, lest thou perish
also through him in the latter days.
66 Dost thou not know or hast
thou not heard, that it is not through love that Nimrod giveth thee all this
honor, but it is only for his benefit that he bestoweth all this good upon
thee?
67 And if he do
unto thee greater good than this, surely these are only vanities of the world,
for wealth and riches cannot avail in the day of wrath and anger.
68 Now therefore hearken to my
voice, and let us arise and go to the land of Canaan, out of the reach of
injury from Nimrod; and serve thou the Lord who created thee in the earth and
it will be well with thee; and cast away all the vain things which thou
pursuest.
69 And Abram ceased to speak,
when Noah and his son Shem answered Terah, saying, True
is the word which Abram hath said unto thee.
70 And Terah hearkened to the
voice of his son Abram, and Terah did all that Abram said, for this was from
the Lord, that the king should not cause Abram's death.
1 And Terah took his son Abram
and his grandson Lot, the son of Haran, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, the wife
of his son Abram, and all the souls of his household and went with them from Ur
Casdim to go to the land of Canaan. And when they came as far as the land of
Haran they remained there, for it was exceedingly good land for pasture, and of sufficient extent for those who accompanied
them.
2 And the people of the land of
Haran saw that Abram was good and upright with God and men, and that the Lord
his God was with him, and some of the people of the land of Haran came and
joined Abram, and he taught them the instruction of the Lord and his ways; and
these men remained with Abram in his house and they adhered to him.
3 And Abram remained in the
land three years, and at the expiration of three years the Lord appeared to
Abram and said to him; I am the Lord who brought thee forth from Ur Casdim, and
delivered thee from the hands of all thine enemies.
4 And now therefore if thou
wilt hearken to my voice and keep my commandments, my statutes and my laws,
then will I cause thy enemies to fall before thee, and I will multiply thy seed
like the stars of heaven, and I will send my blessing upon all the works of thy
hands, and thou shalt lack nothing.
5 Arise now, take thy wife and
all belonging to thee and go to the land of Canaan and remain there, and I will
there be unto thee for a God, and I will bless thee. And Abram rose and took
his wife and all belonging to him, and he went to the land of Canaan as the
Lord had told him; and Abram was fifty years old when he went from Haran.
6 And Abram came to the land of
Canaan and dwelt in the midst of the city, and he there pitched his tent
amongst the children of Canaan, inhabitants of the land.
7 And the Lord appeared to
Abram when he came to the land of Canaan, and said to him, This is the land
which I gave unto thee and to thy seed after thee forever, and I will make thy
seed like the stars of heaven, and I will give unto thy seed for an inheritance
all the lands which thou seest.
8 And Abram built an altar in
the place where God had spoken to him, and Abram there called upon the name of
the Lord.
9 At that time, at the end of
three years of Abram's dwelling in the land of Canaan, in that year Noah died,
which was the fifty-eighth year of the life of Abram; and all the days that
Noah lived were nine hundred and fifty years and he died.
10 And Abram dwelt in the land
of Canaan, he, his wife, and all belonging to him, and all those that
accompanied him, together with those that joined him from the people of the
land; but Nahor, Abram's brother, and Terah his father, and Lot the son of
Haran and all belonging to them dwelt in Haran.
11 In the fifth year of Abram's
dwelling in the land of Canaan the people of Sodom and Gomorrah and all the
cities of the plain revolted from the power of Chedorlaomer, king of Elam; for
all the kings of the cities of the plain had served Chedorlaomer for twelve
years, and given him a yearly tax, but in those days in the thirteenth year,
they rebelled against him.
12 And in the tenth year of
Abram's dwelling in the land of Canaan there was war between Nimrod king of
Shinar and Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Nimrod came to fight with
Chedorlaomer and to subdue him.
13 For Chedorlaomer was at that
time one of the princes of the hosts of Nimrod, and when all the people at the
tower were dispersed and those that remained were also scattered upon the face
of the earth, Chedorlaomer went to the land of Elam and reigned over it and
rebelled against his lord.
14 And in those days when
Nimrod saw that the cities of the plain had rebelled, he came with pride and
anger to war with Chedorlaomer, and Nimrod assembled all his princes and
subjects, about seven hundred thousand men, and went against Chedorlaomer, and
Chedorlaomer went out to meet him with five thousand men, and they prepared for
battle in the valley of Babel which is between Elam and Shinar.
15 And all those kings fought
there, and Nimrod and his people were smitten before the people of
Chedorlaomer, and there fell from Nimrod's men about six hundred thousand, and
Mardon the king's son fell amongst them.
16 And Nimrod fled and returned
in shame and disgrace to his land, and he was under subjection to Chedorlaomer
for a long time, and Chedorlaomer returned to his land and sent princes of his
host to the kings that dwelt around him, to Arioch king of Elasar, and to Tidal
king of Goyim, and made a covenant with them, and they were all obedient to his
commands.
17 And it was in the fifteenth
year of Abram's dwelling in the land of Canaan, which is the seventieth year of
the life of Abram, and the Lord appeared to Abram in that year and he said to
him, I am the Lord who brought thee out from Ur Casdim to give thee this land
for an inheritance.
18 Now therefore walk before me
and be perfect and keep my commands, for to thee and to thy seed I will give
this land for an inheritance, from the river Mitzraim unto the great river
Euphrates.
19 And thou shalt come to thy
fathers in peace and in good age, and the fourth generation shall return here
in this land and shall inherit it forever; and Abram built an altar, and he
called upon the name of the Lord who appeared to him, and he brought up
sacrifices upon the altar to the Lord.
20 At that time Abram returned
and went to Haran to see his father and mother, and his father's household, and
Abram and his wife and all belonging to him returned to Haran, and Abram dwelt
in Haran five years.
21 And many of the people of
Haran, about seventy-two men, followed Abram and Abram taught them the
instruction of the Lord and his ways, and he taught them to know the Lord.
22 In those days the Lord
appeared to Abram in Haran, and he said to him, Behold, I spoke unto thee these
twenty years back saying,
23 Go forth from thy land, from
thy birth-place and from thy father's house, to the land which I have shown
thee to give it to thee and to thy children, for there in that land will I
bless thee, and make thee a great nation, and make thy name great, and in thee
shall the families of the earth be blessed.
24 Now therefore arise, go
forth from this place, thou, thy wife, and all belonging to thee, also every
one born in thy house and all the souls thou hast made in Haran, and bring them
out with thee from here, and rise to return to the land of Canaan.
25 And Abram arose and took his
wife Sarai and all belonging to him and all that were born to him in his house
and the souls which they had made in Haran, and they came out to go to the land
of Canaan.
26 And Abram went and returned
to the land of Canaan, according to the word of the Lord. And Lot the son of
his brother Haran went with him, and Abram was seventy-five years old when he
went forth from Haran to return to the land of Canaan.
27 And he came to the land of
Canaan according to the word of the Lord to Abram, and he pitched his tent and
he dwelt in the plain of Mamre, and with him was Lot his brother's son, and all
belonging to him.
28 And the Lord again appeared
to Abram and said, To thy seed will I give this land;
and he there built an altar to the Lord who appeared to him, which is still to
this day in the plains of Mamre.
1 In those days there was in
the land of Shinar a wise man who had understanding in
all wisdom, and of a beautiful appearance, but he was poor and indigent; his
name was Rikayon and he was hard set to support himself.
2 And he resolved to go to
Egypt, to Oswiris the son of Anom king of Egypt, to show the king his wisdom;
for perhaps he might find grace in his sight, to raise him up and give him
maintenance; and Rikayon did so.
3 And when Rikayon came to
Egypt he asked the inhabitants of Egypt concerning the king, and the
inhabitants of Egypt told him the custom of the king of Egypt, for it was then
the custom of the king of Egypt that he went from his royal palace and was seen
abroad only one day in the year, and after that the king would return to his
palace to remain there.
4 And on the day when the king
went forth he passed judgment in the land, and every one having a suit came
before the king that day to obtain his request.
5 And when Rikayon heard of the
custom in Egypt and that he could not come into the presence of the king, he
grieved greatly and was very sorrowful.
6 And in the evening Rikayon
went out and found a house in ruins, formerly a bake house in Egypt, and he
abode there all night in bitterness of soul and pinched with hunger, and sleep
was removed from his eyes.
7 And Rikayon considered within
himself what he should do in the town until the king made his appearance, and
how he might maintain himself there.
8 And he rose in the morning
and walked about, and met in his way those who sold vegetables and various
sorts of seed with which they supplied the inhabitants.
9 And Rikayon wished to do the
same in order to get a maintenance in the city, but he
was unacquainted with the custom of the people, and he was like a blind man
among them.
10 And he went and obtained
vegetables to sell them for his support, and the rabble assembled about him and
ridiculed him, and took his vegetables from him and left him nothing.
11 And he rose up from there in
bitterness of soul, and went sighing to the bake house in which he had remained
all the night before, and he slept there the second night.
12 And on that night again he
reasoned within himself how he could save himself from starvation, and he
devised a scheme how to act.
13 And he rose up in the
morning and acted ingeniously, and went and hired thirty strong men of the
rabble, carrying their war instruments in their hands, and he led them to the
top of the Egyptian sepulchre, and he placed them there.
14 And he commanded them,
saying, Thus saith the king, Strengthen yourselves and be valiant men, and let
no man be buried here until two hundred pieces of silver be given, and then he
may be buried; and those men did according to the order of Rikayon to the
people of Egypt the whole of that year.
15 And in eight months time
Rikayon and his men gathered great riches of silver and gold, and Rikayon took
a great quantity of horses and other animals, and he hired more men, and he
gave them horses and they remained with him.
16 And when the year came
round, at the time the king went forth into the town, all the inhabitants of
Egypt assembled together to speak to him concerning the work of Rikayon and his
men.
17 And the king went forth on
the appointed day, and all the Egyptians came before him and cried unto him,
saying,
18 May the king live forever.
What is this thing thou doest in the town to thy servants, not to suffer a dead
body to be buried until so much silver and gold be given? Was there ever the
like unto this done in the whole earth, from the days of former kings yea even
from the days of Adam, unto this day, that the dead should not be buried only
for a set price?
19 We know it to be the custom
of kings to take a yearly tax from the living, but thou dost not only do this,
but from the dead also thou exactest a tax day by day.
20 Now, O king, we can no more
bear this, for the whole city is ruined on this account, and dost thou not know
it?
21 And when the king heard all
that they had spoken he was very wroth, and his anger burned within him at this
affair, for he had known nothing of it.
22 And the king said, Who and where is he that dares to do this wicked thing in my
land without my command? Surely you will tell me.
23 And they told him all the
works of Rikayon and his men, and the king's anger was aroused, and he ordered
Rikayon and his men to be brought before him.
24 And Rikayon took about a
thousand children, sons and daughters, and clothed them in silk and embroidery,
and he set them upon horses and sent them to the king by means of his men, and
he also took a great quantity of silver and gold and precious stones, and a
strong and beautiful horse, as a present for the king, with which he came
before the king and bowed down to the earth before him; and the king, his
servants and all the inhabitants of Egypt wondered at the work of Rikayon, and
they saw his riches and the present that he had brought to the king.
25 And it greatly pleased the
king and he wondered at it; and when Rikayon sat before him the king asked him
concerning all his works, and Rikayon spoke all his words wisely before the
king, his servants and all the inhabitants of Egypt.
26 And when the king heard the
words of Rikayon and his wisdom, Rikayon found grace in his sight, and he met
with grace and kindness from all the servants of the king and from all the
inhabitants of Egypt, on account of his wisdom and excellent speeches, and from
that time they loved him exceedingly.
27 And the king answered and
said to Rikayon, Thy name shall no more be called Rikayon but Pharaoh shall be
thy name, since thou didst exact a tax from the dead; and he called his name
Pharaoh.
28 And the king and his
subjects loved Rikayon for his wisdom, and they consulted with all the
inhabitants of Egypt to make him prefect under the king.
29 And all the inhabitants of
Egypt and its wise men did so, and it was made a law in Egypt.
30 And they made Rikayon
Pharaoh prefect under Oswiris king of Egypt, and
Rikayon Pharaoh governed over Egypt, daily administering justice to the whole
city, but Oswiris the king would judge the people of the land one day in the
year, when he went out to make his appearance.
31 And Rikayon Pharaoh
cunningly usurped the government of Egypt, and he exacted a tax from all the
inhabitants of Egypt.
32 And all the inhabitants of
Egypt greatly loved Rikayon Pharaoh, and they made a decree to call every king
that should reign over them and their seed in Egypt, Pharaoh.
33 Therefore all the kings that
reigned in Egypt from that time forward were called Pharaoh unto this day.
1 And in that year there was a
heavy famine throughout the land of Canaan, and the inhabitants of the land
could not remain on account of the famine for it was very grievous.
2 And Abram and all belonging
to him rose and went down to Egypt on account of the famine, and when they were
at the brook Mitzraim they remained there some time to rest from the fatigue of
the road.
3 And Abram and Sarai were
walking at the border of the brook Mitzraim, and Abram beheld his wife Sarai
that she was very beautiful.
4 And Abram said to his wife
Sarai, Since God has created thee with such a beautiful countenance, I am
afraid of the Egyptians lest they should slay me and take thee away, for the
fear of God is not in these places.
5 Surely then thou shalt do
this, Say thou art my sister to all that may ask thee, in order that it may be
well with me, and that we may live and not be put to death.
6 And Abram commanded the same
to all those that came with him to Egypt on account of the famine; also his
nephew Lot he commanded, saying, If the Egyptians ask thee concerning Sarai say
she is the sister of Abram.
7 And yet with all these orders
Abram did not put confidence in them, but he took Sarai and placed her in a
chest and concealed it amongst their vessels, for Abram was greatly concerned
about Sarai on account of the wickedness of the Egyptians.
8 And Abram and all belonging
to him rose up from the brook Mitzraim and came to Egypt; and they had scarcely
entered the gates of the city when the guards stood up to them saying, Give
tithe to the king from what you have, and then you may come into the town; and
Abram and those that were with him did so.
9 And Abram with the people
that were with him came to Egypt, and when they came they brought the chest in
which Sarai was concealed and the Egyptians saw the chest.
10 And the king's servants
approached Abram, saying, What hast thou here in this
chest which we have not seen? Now open thou the chest and give tithe to the
king of all that it contains.
11 And Abram said, This chest I will not open, but all you demand upon it I
will give. And Pharaoh's officers answered Abram, saying, It
is a chest of precious stones, give us the tenth thereof.
12 Abram said, All that you desire I will give, but you must not open the
chest.
13 And the king's officers
pressed Abram, and they reached the chest and opened it with force, and they
saw, and behold a beautiful woman was in the chest.
14 And when the officers of the
king beheld Sarai they were struck with admiration at her beauty, and all the
princes and servants of Pharaoh assembled to see Sarai, for she was very
beautiful. And the king's officers ran and told Pharaoh all that they had seen,
and they praised Sarai to the king; and Pharaoh ordered her to be brought, and
the woman came before the king.
15 And Pharaoh beheld Sarai and
she pleased him exceedingly, and he was struck with her beauty, and the king
rejoiced greatly on her account, and made presents to those who brought him the
tidings concerning her.
16 And the woman was then
brought to Pharaoh's house, and Abram grieved on account of his wife, and he
prayed to the Lord to deliver her from the hands of Pharaoh.
17 And Sarai also prayed at
that time and said, O Lord God thou didst tell my Lord Abram to go from his
land and from his father's house to the land of Canaan, and thou didst promise
to do well with him if he would perform thy commands; now behold we have done
that which thou didst command us, and we left our land and our families, and we
went to a strange land and to a people whom we have not known before.
18 And we came to this land to
avoid the famine, and this evil accident has befallen me; now therefore, O Lord
God, deliver us and save us from the hand of this oppressor, and do well with
me for the sake of thy mercy.
19 And the Lord hearkened to
the voice of Sarai, and the Lord sent an angel to deliver Sarai from the power
of Pharaoh.
20 And the king came and sat
before Sarai and behold an angel of the Lord was standing over them, and he
appeared to Sarai and said to her, Do not fear, for the Lord has heard thy
prayer.
21 And the king approached
Sarai and said to her, What is that man to thee who
brought thee hither? and she said, He is my brother.
22 And the king said, It is
incumbent upon us to make him great, to elevate him and to do unto him all the
good which thou shalt command us; and at that time the king sent to Abram
silver and gold and precious stones in abundance, together with cattle, men
servants and maid servants; and the king ordered Abram to be brought, and he
sat in the court of the king's house, and the king greatly exalted Abram on
that night.
23 And the king approached to
speak to Sarai, and he reached out his hand to touch her, when the angel smote
him heavily, and he was terrified and he refrained from reaching to her.
24 And when the king came near
to Sarai, the angel smote him to the ground, and acted thus to him the whole
night, and the king was terrified.
25 And the angel on that night
smote heavily all the servants of the king, and his whole household, on account
of Sarai, and there was a great lamentation that night amongst the people of
Pharaoh's house.
26 And Pharaoh, seeing the evil
that befell him, said, Surely on account of this woman has this thing happened
to me, and he removed himself at some distance from her and spoke pleasing
words to her.
27 And the king said to Sarai,
Tell me I pray thee concerning the man with whom thou camest here; and Sarai
said, This man is my husband, and I said to thee that
he was my brother for I was afraid, lest thou shouldst put him to death through
wickedness.
28 And the king kept away from
Sarai, and the plagues of the angel of the Lord ceased from him and his
household; and Pharaoh knew that he was smitten on account of Sarai, and the
king was greatly astonished at this.
29 And in the morning the king
called for Abram and said to him, What is this thou
hast done to me? Why didst thou say, She is my sister,
owing to which I took her unto me for a wife, and this heavy plague has
therefore come upon me and my household.
30 Now therefore here is thy
wife, take her and go from our land lest we all die on her account. And Pharaoh
took more cattle, men servants and maid servants, and silver and gold, to give
to Abram, and he returned unto him Sarai his wife.
31 And the king took a maiden
whom he begat by his concubines, and he gave her to Sarai for a handmaid.
32 And the king said to his
daughter, It is better for thee my daughter to be a handmaid in this man's
house than to be mistress in my house, after we have beheld the evil that
befell us on account of this woman.
33 And Abram arose, and he and
all belonging to him went away from Egypt; and Pharaoh ordered some of his men
to accompany him and all that went with him.
34 And Abram returned to the
land of Canaan, to the place where he had made the altar, where he at first had
pitched his tent.
35 And Lot the son of Haran,
Abram's brother, had a heavy stock of cattle, flocks and herds and tents, for the Lord was bountiful to them on account of
Abram.
36 And when Abram was dwelling
in the land the herdsmen of Lot quarrelled with the herdsmen of Abram, for
their property was too great for them to remain together in the land, and the
land could not bear them on account of their cattle.
37 And when Abram's herdsmen
went to feed their flock they would not go into the fields of the people of the
land, but the cattle of Lot's herdsmen did otherwise, for they were suffered to
feed in the fields of the people of the land.
38 And the people of the land
saw this occurrence daily, and they came to Abram and quarrelled with him on
account of Lot's herdsmen.
39 And Abram said to Lot, What
is this thou art doing to me, to make me despicable to the inhabitants of the
land, that thou orderest thy herdsman to feed thy cattle in the fields of other
people? Dost thou not know that I am a stranger in this land amongst the
children of Canaan, and why wilt thou do this unto me?
40 And Abram quarrelled daily
with Lot on account of this, but Lot would not listen to Abram, and he
continued to do the same and the inhabitants of the land came and told Abram.
41 And Abram said unto Lot, How
long wilt thou be to me for a stumbling block with the inhabitants of the land?
Now I beseech thee let there be no more quarrelling between us, for we are
kinsmen.
42 But I pray thee separate
from me, go and choose a place where thou mayest dwell with thy cattle and all
belonging to thee, but Keep thyself at a distance from me, thou and thy household.
43 And be not afraid in going
from me, for if any one do an injury to thee, let me know and I will avenge thy
cause from him, only remove from me.
44 And when Abram had spoken
all these words to Lot, then Lot arose and lifted up his eyes toward the plain
of Jordan.
45 And he saw that the whole of
this place was well watered, and good for man as well as affording pasture for
the cattle.
46 And Lot went from Abram to
that place, and he there pitched his tent and he dwelt
in Sodom, and they were separated from each other.
47 And Abram dwelt in the plain
of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and he pitched his tent there, and Abram remained
in that place many years.
1 At that time Chedorlaomer
king of Elam sent to all the neighboring kings, to Nimrod, king of Shinar who
was then under his power, and to Tidal, king of Goyim, and to Arioch, king of
Elasar, with whom he made a covenant, saying, Come up to me and assist me, that
we may smite all the towns of Sodom and its inhabitants, for they have rebelled
against me these thirteen years.
2 And these four kings went up
with all their camps, about eight hundred thousand men, and they went as they
were, and smote every man they found in their road.
3 And the five kings of Sodom
and Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboyim, Bera king of
Sodom, Bersha king of Gomorrah, and Bela king of Zoar, went out to meet them,
and they all joined together in the valley of Siddim.
4 And these nine kings made war
in the valley of Siddim; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah were smitten
before the kings of Elam.
5 And the valley of Siddim was
full of lime pits and the kings of Elam pursued the kings of Sodom, and the
kings of Sodom with their camps fled and fell into the lime pits, and all that
remained went to the mountain for safety, and the five kings of Elam came after
them and pursued them to the gates of Sodom, and they took all that there was
in Sodom.
6 And they plundered all the
cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and they also took Lot, Abram's brother's son,
and his property, and they seized all the goods of the cities of Sodom, and
they went away; and Unic, Abram's servant, who was in the battle, saw this, and
told Abram all that the kings had done to the cities of Sodom, and that Lot was
taken captive by them.
7 And Abram heard this, and he
rose up with about three hundred and eighteen men that were with him, and he
that night pursued these kings and smote them, and they all fell before Abram
and his men, and there was none remaining but the four kings who fled, and they
went each his own road.
8 And Abram recovered all the
property of Sodom, and he also recovered Lot and his property, his wives and
little ones and all belonging to him, so that Lot lacked nothing.
9 And when he returned from
smiting these kings, he and his men passed the valley of Siddim where the kings
had made war together.
10 And Bera king of Sodom, and
the rest of his men that were with him, went out from the lime pits into which
they had fallen, to meet Abram and his men.
11 And Adonizedek king of
Jerusalem, the same was Shem, went out with his men to meet Abram and his
people, with bread and wine, and they remained together in the valley of
Melech.
12 And Adonizedek blessed Abram, and Abram gave him a tenth from all that he had
brought from the spoil of his enemies, for Adonizedek was a priest before God.
13 And all the kings of Sodom
and Gomorrah who were there, with their servants,
approached Abram and begged of him to return them their servants whom he had
made captive, and to take unto himself all the property.
14 And Abram answered the kings
of Sodom, saying, As the Lord liveth who created heaven and earth, and who
redeemed my soul from all affliction, and who delivered me this day from my
enemies, and gave them into my hand, I will not take anything belonging to you,
that you may not boast tomorrow, saying, Abram became rich from our property
that he saved.
15 For the Lord my God in whom
I trust said unto me, Thou shalt lack nothing, for I will bless thee in all the
works of thy hands.
16 And now therefore behold,
here is all belonging to you, take it and go; as the Lord liveth I will not
take from you from a living soul down to a shoetie or thread, excepting the
expense of the food of those who went out with me to battle, as also the
portions of the men who went with me, Anar, Ashcol, and Mamre, they and their
men, as well as those also who had remained to watch the baggage, they shall
take their portion of the spoil.
17 And the kings of Sodom gave
Abram according to all that he had said, and they pressed him to take of
whatever he chose, but he would not.
18 And he sent away the kings
of Sodom and the remainder of their men, and he gave them orders about Lot, and
they went to their respective places.
19 And Lot, his brother's son,
he also sent away with his property, and he went with them, and Lot returned to
his home, to Sodom, and Abram and his people returned to their home to the
plains of Mamre, which is in Hebron.
20 At that time the Lord again
appeared to Abram in Hebron, and he said to him, Do
not fear, thy reward is very great before me, for I will not leave thee, until
I shall have multiplied thee, and blessed thee and made thy seed like the stars
in heaven, which cannot be measured nor numbered.
21 And I will give unto thy seed
all these lands that thou seest with thine eyes, to them will I give them for
an inheritance forever, only be strong and do not fear, walk before me and be
perfect.
22 And in the seventy-eighth
year of the life of Abram, in that year died Reu, the son of Peleg, and all the
days of Reu were two hundred and thirty-nine years, and he died.
23 And Sarai, the daughter of
Haran, Abram's wife, was still barren in those days; she did not bear to Abram
either son or daughter.
24 And when she saw that she
bare no children she took her handmaid Hagar, whom Pharaoh had given her, and
she gave her to Abram her husband for a wife.
25 For Hagar learned all the
ways of Sarai as Sarai taught her, she was not in any way deficient in
following her good ways.
26 And Sarai said to Abram,
Behold here is my handmaid Hagar, go to her that she
may bring forth upon my knees, that I may also obtain children through her.
27 And at the end of ten years
of Abram's dwelling in the land of Canaan, which is the eighty-fifth year of
Abram's life, Sarai gave Hagar unto him.
28 And Abram hearkened to the
voice of his wife Sarai, and he took his handmaid Hagar and Abram came to her
and she conceived.
29 And when Hagar saw that she
had conceived she rejoiced greatly, and her mistress was despised in her eyes,
and she said within herself, This can only be that I am better before God than
Sarai my mistress, for all the days that my mistress has been with my lord, she
did not conceive, but me the Lord has caused in so short a time to conceive by
him.
30 And when Sarai saw that
Hagar had conceived by Abram, Sarai was jealous of her handmaid, and Sarai said
within herself, This is surely nothing else but that
she must be better than I am.
31 And Sarai said unto Abram,
My wrong be upon thee, for at the time when thou didst pray before the Lord for
children why didst thou not pray on my account, that
the Lord should give me seed from thee?
32 And when I speak to Hagar in
thy presence, she despiseth my words, because she has conceived, and thou wilt
say nothing to her; may the Lord judge between me and thee for what thou hast
done to me.
33 And Abram said to Sarai,
Behold thy handmaid is in thy hand, do unto her as it may seem good in thy
eyes; and Sarai afflicted her, and Hagar fled from her to the wilderness.
34 And an angel of the Lord
found her in the place where she had fled, by a well, and he said to her, Do not fear, for I will multiply thy seed, for thou shalt
bear a son and thou shalt call his name Ishmael; now then return to Sarai thy
mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.
35 And Hagar called the place
of that well Beer-lahai-roi, it is between Kadesh and
the wilderness of Bered.
36 And Hagar at that time
returned to her master's house, and at the end of days Hagar bare a son to
Abram, and Abram called his name Ishmael; and Abram was eighty-six years old
when he begat him.
1 And in those days, in the
ninety-first year of the life of Abram, the children of Chittim made war with
the children of Tubal, for when the Lord had scattered the sons of men upon the
face of the earth, the children of Chittim went and embodied themselves in the
plain of Canopia, and they built themselves cities there and dwelt by the river
Tibreu.
2 And the children of Tubal
dwelt in Tuscanah, and their boundaries reached the river Tibreu, and the
children of Tubal built a city in Tuscanan, and they called the name Sabinah,
after the name of Sabinah son of Tubal their father, and they dwelt there unto
this day.
3 And it was at that time the
children of Chittim made war with the children of Tubal, and the children of
Tubal were smitten before the children of Chittim, and the children of Chittim
caused three hundred and seventy men to fall from the children of Tubal.
4 And at that time the children
of Tubal swore to the children of Chittim, saying, You
shall not intermarry amongst us, and no man shall give his daughter to any of
the sons of Chittim.
5 For all the daughters of
Tubal were in those days fair, for no women were then found in the whole earth so fair as the daughters of Tubal.
6 And all who delighted in the
beauty of women went to the daughters of Tubal and took wives from them, and
the sons of men, kings and princes, who greatly delighted in the beauty of
women, took wives in those days from the daughters of Tubal.
7 And at the end of three years
after the children of Tubal had sworn to the children of Chittim not to give
them their daughters for wives, about twenty men of the children of Chittim
went to take some of the daughters of Tubal, but they found none.
8 For the children of Tubal
kept their oaths not to intermarry with them, and they would not break their
oaths.
9 And in the days of harvest
the children of Tubal went into their fields to get in their harvest, when the
young men of Chittim assembled and went to the city of Sabinah,
and each man took a young woman from the daughters of Tubal, and they came to
their cities.
10 And the children of Tubal
heard of it and they went to make war with them, and they could not prevail
over them, for the mountain was exceedingly high from them, and when they saw
they could not prevail over them they returned to their land.
11 And at the revolution of the
year the children of Tubal went and hired about ten thousand men from those
cities that were near them, and they went to war with the children of Chittim.
12 And the children of Tubal
went to war with the children of Chittim, to destroy their land and to distress
them, and in this engagement the children of Tubal prevailed over the children
of Chittim, and the children of Chittim, seeing that they were greatly
distressed, lifted up the children which they had had by the daughters of
Tubal, upon the wall which had been built, to be before the eyes of the
children of Tubal.
13 And the children of Chittim
said to them, Have you come to make war with your own sons and daughters, and
have we not been considered your flesh and bones from that time till now?
14 And when the children of
Tubal heard this they ceased to make war with the children of Chittim, and they
went away.
15 And they returned to their
cities, and the children of Chittim at that time assembled and built two cities
by the sea, and they called one Purtu and the other Ariza.
16 And Abram the son of Terah
was then ninety-nine years old.
17 At that time the Lord
appeared to him and he said to him, I will make my covenant between me and
thee, and I will greatly multiply thy seed, and this is the covenant which I
make between me and thee, that every male child be circumcised, thou and thy
seed after thee.
18 At eight days old shall it
be circumcised, and this covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting
covenant.
19 And now therefore thy name
shall no more be called Abram but Abraham, and thy wife shall no more be called
Sarai but Sarah.
20 For I will bless you both,
and I will multiply your seed after you that you shall become a great nation,
and kings shall come forth from you.
1 And Abraham rose and did all
that God had ordered him, and he took the men of his household and those bought
with his money, and he circumcised them as the Lord had commanded him.
2 And there was not one left
whom he did not circumcise, and Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised in
the flesh of their foreskin; thirteen years old was Ishmael when he was circumcised
in the flesh of his foreskin.
3 And in the third day Abraham
went out of his tent and sat at the door to enjoy the heat of the sun, during
the pain of his flesh.
4 And the Lord appeared to him
in the plain of Mamre, and sent three of his ministering angels to visit him,
and he was sitting at the door of the tent, and he lifted his eyes and saw, and
lo three men were coming from a distance, and he rose up and ran to meet them,
and he bowed down to them and brought them into his house.
5 And he said to them, If now I have found favor in your sight, turn in and eat a
morsel of bread; and he pressed them, and they turned in and he gave them water
and they washed their feet, and he placed them under a tree at the door of the
tent.
6 And Abraham ran and took a
calf, tender and good, and he hastened to kill it, and gave it to his servant
Eliezer to dress.
7 And Abraham came to Sarah
into the tent, and he said to her, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it and make cakes to cover the pot containing
the meat, and she did so.
8 And Abraham hastened and
brought before them butter and milk, beef and mutton, and gave it before them
to eat before the flesh of the calf was sufficiently done, and they did eat.
9 And when they had done eating
one of them said to him, I will return to thee according to the time of life,
and Sarah thy wife shall have a son.
10 And the men afterward
departed and went their ways, to the places to which they were sent.
11 In those days all the people
of Sodom and Gomorrah, and of the whole five cities, were exceedingly wicked
and sinful against the Lord and they provoked the Lord with their abominations,
and they strengthened in aging abominably and scornfully before the Lord, and
their wickedness and crimes were in those days great before the Lord.
12 And they had in their land a
very extensive valley, about half a day's walk, and in it there were fountains
of water and a great deal of herbage surrounding the water.
13 And all the people of Sodom
and Gomorrah went there four times in the year, with their wives and children
and all belonging to them, and they rejoiced there with timbrels and dances.
14 And in the time of rejoicing
they would all rise and lay hold of their neighbor's
wives, and some, the virgin daughters of their neighbors, and they enjoyed
them, and each man saw his wife and daughter in the hands of his neighbor and
did not say a word.
15 And they did so from morning
to night, and they afterward returned home each man to his house and each woman
to her tent; so they always did four times in the year.
16 Also when a stranger came
into their cities and brought goods which he had purchased with a view to
dispose of there, the people of these cities would assemble, men, women and
children, young and old, and go to the man and take his goods by force, giving
a little to each man until there was an end to all the goods of the owner which
he had brought into the land.
17 And if the owner of the
goods quarreled with them, saying, What is this work which you have done to me,
then they would approach to him one by one, and each would show him the little
which he took and taunt him, saying, I only took that little which thou didst
give me; and when he heard this from them all, he would arise and go from them
in sorrow and bitterness of soul, when they would all arise and go after him,
and drive him out of the city with great noise and tumult.
18 And there was a man from the
country of Elam who was leisurely going on the road, seated upon his ass, which
carried a fine mantle of divers colors, and the mantle
was bound with a cord upon the ass.
19 And the man was on his
journey passing through the street of Sodom when the sun set in the evening,
and he remained there in order to abide during the night, but no one would let
him into his house; and at that time there was in Sodom a wicked and
mischievous man, one skillful to do evil, and his name was Hedad.
20 And he lifted up his eyes
and saw the traveler in the street of the city, and he came to him and said, Whence comest thou and whither dost thou go?
21 And the man said to him, I
am traveling from Hebron to Elam where I belong, and as I passed the sun set
and no one would suffer me to enter his house, though I had bread and water and
also straw and provender for my ass, and am short of nothing.
22 And Hedad answered and said
to him, All that thou shalt want shall be supplied by
me, but in the street thou shalt not abide all night.
23 And Hedad brought him to his
house, and he took off the mantle from the ass with the cord, and brought them
to his house, and he gave the ass straw and provender whilst the traveler ate
and drank in Hedad's house, and he abode there that night.
24 And in the morning the
traveler rose up early to continue his journey, when Hedad said to him, Wait, comfort
thy heart with a morsel of bread and then go, and the man did so; and he
remained with him, and they both ate and drank together during the day, when
the man rose up to go.
25 And Hedad said to him,
Behold now the day is declining, thou hadst better remain all night that thy
heart may be comforted; and he pressed him so that he tarried there all night,
and on the second day he rose up early to go away, when Hedad pressed him,
saying, Comfort thy heart with a morsel of bread and then go, and he remained
and ate with him also the second day, and then the man rose up to continue his
journey.
26 And Hedad said to him,
Behold now the day is declining, remain with me to comfort thy heart and in the
morning rise up early and go thy way.
27 And the man would not
remain, but rose and saddled his ass, and whilst he was saddling his ass the
wife of Hedad said to her husband, Behold this man has remained with us for two
days eating and drinking and he has given us nothing, and now shall he go away
from us without giving anything? and Hedad said to
her, Be silent.
28 And the man saddled his ass
to go, and he asked Hedad to give him the cord and mantle to tie it upon the
ass.
29 And Hedad said to him, What sayest thou? And he said to him, That
thou my lord shalt give me the cord and the mantle made with divers colors
which thou didst conceal with thee in thy house to take care of it.
30 And Hedad answered the man,
saying, This is the interpretation of thy dream, the cord which thou didst see,
means that thy life will be lengthened out like a cord, and having seen the
mantle colored with all sorts of colors, means that thou shalt have a vineyard
in which thou wilt plant trees of all fruits.
31 And the traveler answered,
saying, Not so my lord, for I was awake when I gave thee the cord and also a
mantle woven with different colors, which thou didst take off the ass to put
them by for me; and Hedad answered and said, Surely I have told thee the
interpretation of thy dream and it is a good dream, and this is the interpretation
thereof.
32 Now the sons of men give me
four pieces of silver, which is my charge for interpreting dreams, and of thee
only I require three pieces of silver.
33 And the man was provoked at
the words of Hedad, and he cried bitterly, and he brought Hedad to Serak judge
of Sodom.
34 And the man laid his cause
before Serak the judge, when Hedad replied, saying, It is not so, but thus the
matter stands; and the judge said to the traveler, This man Hedad telleth thee
truth, for he is famed in the cities for the accurate interpretation of dreams.
35 And the man cried at the
word of the judge, and he said, Not so my Lord, for it was in the day that I
gave him the cord and mantle which was upon the ass, in order to put them by in
his house; and they both disputed before the judge, the one saying, Thus the
matter was, and the other declaring otherwise.
36 And Hedad said to the man,
Give me four pieces of silver that I charge for my interpretations of dreams; I
will not make any allowance; and give me the expense of the four meals that
thou didst eat in my house.
37 And the man said to Hedad,
Truly I will pay thee for what I ate in thy house, only give me the cord and
mantle which thou didst conceal in thy house.
38 And Hedad replied before the
judge and said to the man, Did I not tell thee the
interpretation of thy dream? the cord means that thy
days shall be prolonged like a cord, and the mantle, that thou wilt have a
vineyard in which thou wilt plant all kinds of fruit trees.
39 This is the proper
interpretation of thy dream, now give me the four
pieces of silver that I require as a compensation, for I will make thee no
allowance.
40 And the man cried at the
words of Hedad and they both quarreled before the judge, and the judge gave
orders to his servants, who drove them rashly from the house.
41 And they went away
quarreling from the judge, when the people of Sodom heard them, and they
gathered about them and they exclaimed against the stranger, and they drove him
rashly from the city.
42 And the man continued his journey
upon his ass with bitterness of soul, lamenting and weeping.
43 And whilst he was going
along he wept at what had happened to him in the corrupt city of Sodom.
1 And the cities of Sodom had
four judges to four cities, and these were their names, Serak in the city of
Sodom, Sharkad in Gomorrah, Zabnac in Admah, and Menon in Zeboyim.
2 And Eliezer Abraham's servant
applied to them different names, and he converted Serak to Shakra, Sharkad to
Shakrura, Zebnac to Kezobim, and Menon to Matzlodin.
3 And by desire of their four
judges the people of Sodom and Gomorrah had beds erected in the streets of the
cities, and if a man came to these places they laid hold of him and brought him
to one of their beds, and by force made him to lie in them.
4 And as he lay down, three men
would stand at his head and three at his feet, and measure him by the length of
the bed, and if the man was less than the bed these six men would stretch him
at each end, and when he cried out to them they would not answer him.
5 And if he was longer than the
bed they would draw together the two sides of the bed at each end, until the
man had reached the gates of death.
6 And if he continued to cry
out to them, they would answer him, saying, Thus shall
it be done to a man that cometh into our land.
7 And when men heard all these
things that the people of the cities of Sodom did, they refrained from coming
there.
8 And when a poor man came to
their land they would give him silver and gold, and cause a proclamation in the
whole city not to give him a morsel of bread to eat, and if the stranger should
remain there some days, and die from hunger, not having been able to obtain a
morsel of bread, then at his death all the people of the city would come and
take their silver and gold which they had given to him.
9 And those that could
recognize the silver or gold which they had given him took it back, and at his
death they also stripped him of his garments, and they would fight about them,
and he that prevailed over his neighbor took them.
10 They would after that carry
him and bury him under some of the shrubs in the deserts; so they did all the
days to any one that came to them and died in their land.
11 And in the course of time
Sarah sent Eliezer to Sodom, to see Lot and inquire after his welfare.
12 And Eliezer went to Sodom,
and he met a man of Sodom fighting with a stranger, and the man of Sodom
stripped the poor man of all his clothes and went away.
13 And this poor man cried to
Eliezer and supplicated his favor on account of what the man of Sodom had done
to him.
14 And he said to him, Why dost
thou act thus to the poor man who came to thy land?
15 And the man of Sodom
answered Eliezer, saying, Is this man thy brother, or have the people of Sodom
made thee a judge this day, that thou speakest about this man?
16 And Eliezer strove with the
man of Sodom on account of the poor man, and when Eliezer approached to recover
the poor man's clothes from the man of Sodom, he hastened and with a stone
smote Eliezer in the forehead.
17 And the blood flowed
copiously from Eliezer's forehead, and when the man saw the blood he caught
hold of Eliezer, saying, Give me my hire for having
rid thee of this bad blood that was in thy forehead, for such is the custom and
the law in our land.
18 And Eliezer said to him,
Thou hast wounded me and requirest me to pay thee thy hire; and Eliezer would
not hearken to the words of the man of Sodom.
19 And the man laid hold of
Eliezer and brought him to Shakra the judge of Sodom for judgment.
20 And the man spoke to the
judge, saying, I beseech thee my lord, thus has this man done, for I smote him
with a stone that the blood flowed from his forehead, and he is unwilling to
give me my hire.
21 And the judge said to
Eliezer, This man speaketh truth to thee, give him his hire, for this is the
custom in our land; and Eliezer heard the words of the judge, and he lifted up
a stone and smote the judge, and the stone struck on his forehead, and the
blood flowed copiously from the forehead of the judge, and Eliezer said, If
this then is the custom in your land give thou unto this man what I should have
given him, for this has been thy decision, thou didst decree it.
22 And Eliezer left the man of
Sodom with the judge, and he went away.
23 And when the kings of Elam
had made war with the kings of Sodom, the kings of Elam captured all the
property of Sodom, and they took Lot captive, with his property, and when it
was told to Abraham he went and made war with the kings of Elam, and he
recovered from their hands all the property of Lot as well as the property of
Sodom.
24 At that time the wife of Lot
bare him a daughter, and he called her name Paltith, saying, Because God had
delivered him and his whole household from the kings of Elam; and Paltith
daughter of Lot grew up, and one of the men of Sodom took her for a wife.
25 And a poor man came into the
city to seek a maintenance, and he remained in the
city some days, and all the people of Sodom caused a proclamation of their
custom not to give this man a morsel of bread to eat, until he dropped dead
upon the earth, and they did so.
26 And Paltith the daughter of
Lot saw this man lying in the streets starved with hunger, and no one would
give him any thing to keep him alive, and he was just upon the point of death.
27 And her soul was filled with
pity on account of the man, and she fed him secretly with bread for many days,
and the soul of this man was revived.
28 For when she went forth to
fetch water she would put the bread in the water pitcher, and when she came to
the place where the poor man was, she took the bread from the pitcher and gave
it him to eat; so she did many days.
29 And all the people of Sodom
and Gomorrah wondered how this man could bear starvation for so many days.
30 And they said to each other,
This can only be that he eats and drinks, for no man can bear starvation for so
many days or live as this man has, without even his countenance changing; and
three men concealed themselves in a place where the poor man was stationed, to
know who it was that brought him bread to eat.
31 And Paltith daughter of Lot
went forth that day to fetch water, and she put bread into her pitcher of
water, and she went to draw water by the poor man's place, and she took out the
bread from the pitcher and gave it to the poor man and he ate it.
32 And the three men saw what
Paltith did to the poor man, and they said to her, It
is thou then who hast supported him, and therefore has he not starved, nor
changed in appearance nor died like the rest.
33 And the three men went out
of the place in which they were concealed, and they seized Paltith and the
bread which was in the poor man's hand.
34 And they took Paltith and
brought her before their judges, and they said to them, Thus did she do, and it
is she who supplied the poor man with bread, therefore did he not die all this
time; now therefore declare to us the punishment due to this woman for having
transgressed our law.
35 And the people of Sodom and
Gomorrah assembled and kindled a fire in the street of the city, and they took
the woman and cast her into the fire and she was burned to ashes.
36 And in the city of Admah
there was a woman to whom they did the like.
37 For a traveler came into the
city of Admah to abide there all night, with the intention of going home in the
morning, and he sat opposite the door of the house of the young woman's father,
to remain there, as the sun had set when be had reached that place; and the
young woman saw him sitting by the door of the house.
38 And he asked her for a drink
of water and she said to him, Who art thou? and he said to her, I was this day going on the road, and
reached here when the sun set, so I will abide here all night, and in the
morning I will arise early and continue my journey.
39 And the young woman went
into the house and fetched the man bread and water to eat and drink.
40 And this affair became known
to the people of Admah, and they assembled and brought the young woman before
the judges, that they should judge her for this act.
41 And the judge said, The judgment of death must pass upon this woman because she
transgressed our law, and this therefore is the decision concerning her.
42 And the people of those
cities assembled and brought out the young woman, and anointed her with honey
from head to foot, as the judge had decreed, and they placed her before a swarm
of bees which were then in their hives, and the bees flew upon her and stung
her that her whole body was swelled.
43 And the young woman cried
out on account of the bees, but no one took notice of her or pitied her, and
her cries ascended to heaven.
44 And the Lord was provoked at
this and at all the works of the cities of Sodom, for they had abundance of
food, and had tranquility amongst them, and still would not sustain the poor
and the needy, and in those days their evil doings and sins became great before
the Lord.
45 And the Lord sent for two of
the angels that had come to Abraham's house, to destroy Sodom and its cities.
46 And the angels rose up from
the door of Abraham's tent, after they had eaten and drunk, and they reached
Sodom in the evening, and Lot was then sitting in the gate of Sodom, and when
he saw them he rose to meet them, and he bowed down to the ground.
47 And he pressed them greatly
and brought them into his house, and he gave them victuals which they ate, and
they abode all night in his house.
48 And the angels said to Lot,
Arise, go forth from this place, thou and all belonging to thee, lest thou be
consumed in the iniquity of this city, for the Lord will destroy this place.
49 And the angels laid hold
upon the hand of Lot and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hands of his
children, and all belonging to him, and they brought him forth and set him
without the cities.
50 And they said to Lot, Escape
for thy life, and he fled and all belonging to him.
51 Then the Lord rained upon
Sodom and upon Gomorrah and upon all these cities brimstone and fire from the
Lord out of heaven.
52 And he overthrew these
cities, all the plain and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which
grew upon the ground; and Ado the wife of Lot looked back to see the
destruction of the cities, for her compassion was moved on account of her
daughters who remained in Sodom, for they did not go with her.
53 And when she looked back she
became a pillar of salt, and it is yet in that place unto this day.
54 And the oxen which stood in
that place daily licked up the salt to the extremities of their feet, and in
the morning it would spring forth afresh, and they again licked it up unto this
day.
55 And Lot and two of his
daughters that remained with him fled and escaped to the cave of Adullam, and
they remained there for some time.
56 And Abraham rose up early in
the morning to see what had been done to the cities of Sodom; and he looked and
beheld the smoke of the cities going up like the smoke of a furnace.
57 And Lot and his two
daughters remained in the cave, and they made their father drink wine, and they
lay with him, for they said there was no man upon earth that could raise up seed from them, for they thought that the whole
earth was destroyed.
58 And they both lay with their
father, and they conceived and bare sons, and the first born called the name of
her son Moab, saying, From my father did I conceive him; he is the father of
the Moabites unto this day.
59 And the younger also called
her son Benami; he is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.
60 And after this Lot and his
two daughters went away from there, and he dwelt on the other side of the
Jordan with his two daughters and their sons, and the sons of Lot grew up, and
they went and took themselves wives from the land of Canaan, and they begat
children and they were fruitful and multiplied.
1 And at that time Abraham
journeyed from the plain of Mamre, and he went to the land of the Philistines,
and he dwelt in Gerar; it was in the twenty-fifth year of Abraham's being in
the land of Canaan, and the hundredth year of the life of Abraham, that he came
to Gerar in the land of the Philistines.
2 And when they entered the
land he said to Sarah his wife, Say thou art my sister, to any one that shall
ask thee, in order that we may escape the evil of the inhabitants of the land.
3 And as Abraham was dwelling
in the land of the Philistines, the servants of Abimelech, king of the
Philistines, saw that Sarah was exceedingly beautiful, and they asked Abraham
concerning her, and he said, She is my sister.
4 And the servants of Abimelech
went to Abimelech, saying, A man from the land of
Canaan is come to dwell in the land, and he has a sister that is exceeding
fair.
5 And Abimelech heard the words
of his servants who praised Sarah to him, and
Abimelech sent his officers, and they brought Sarah to the king.
6 And Sarah came to the house
of Abimelech, and the king saw that Sarah was beautiful, and she pleased him
exceedingly.
7 And he approached her and
said to her, What is that man to thee with whom thou
didst come to our land? and Sarah answered and said He
is my brother, and we came from the land of Canaan to dwell wherever we could
find a place.
8 And Abimelech said to Sarah,
Behold my land is before thee, place thy brother in any part of this land that
pleases thee, and it will be our duty to exalt and
elevate him above all the people of the land since he is thy brother.
9 And Abimelech sent for
Abraham, and Abraham came to Abimelech.
10 And Abimelech said to
Abraham, Behold I have given orders that thou shalt be honored as thou desirest
on account of thy sister Sarah.
11 And Abraham went forth from
the king, and the king's present followed him.
12 As at evening time, before
men lie down to rest, the king was sitting upon his throne, and a deep sleep
fell upon him, and he lay upon the throne and slept till morning.
13 And he dreamed that an angel
of the Lord came to him with a drawn sword in his hand, and the angel stood
over Abimelech, and wished to slay him with the sword, and the king was
terrified in his dream, and said to the angel, In what have I sinned against
thee that thou comest to slay me with thy sword?
14 And the angel answered and
said to Abimelech, Behold thou diest on account of the woman which thou didst
yesternight bring to thy house, for she is a married woman, the wife of Abraham
who came to thy house; now therefore return that man his wife, for she is his
wife; and shouldst thou not return her, know that thou wilt surely die, thou
and all belonging to thee.
15 And on that night there was
a great outcry in the land of the Philistines, and the inhabitants of the land
saw the figure of a man standing with a drawn sword in his hand, and he smote
the inhabitants of the land with the sword, yea he continued to smite them.
16 And the angel of the Lord
smote the whole land of the Philistines on that night, and there was a great
confusion on that night and on the following morning.
17 And every womb was closed, and
all their issues, and the hand of the Lord was upon
them on account of Sarah, wife of Abraham, whom Abimelech had taken.
18 And in the morning Abimelech
rose with terror and confusion and with a great dread, and he sent and had his
servants called in, and he related his dream to them, and the people were
greatly afraid.
19 And one man standing amongst
the servants of the king answered the king, saying, O sovereign king, restore this woman to her husband, for he is her
husband, for the like happened to the king of Egypt when this man came to
Egypt.
20 And he said concerning his
wife, She is my sister, for such is his manner of doing when he cometh to dwell
in the land in which he is a stranger.
21 And Pharaoh sent and took
this woman for a wife and the Lord brought upon him grievous plagues until he
returned the woman to her husband.
22 Now therefore, O sovereign
king, know what happened yesternight to the whole land, for there was a very
great consternation and great pain and lamentation, and we know that it was on
account of the woman which thou didst take.
23 Now, therefore, restore this
woman to her husband, lest it should befall us as it did to Pharaoh king of
Egypt and his subjects, and that we may not die; and Abimelech hastened and
called and had Sarah called for, and she came before him, and he had Abraham
called for, and he came before him.
24 And Abimelech said to them, What is this work you have been doing in saying you are
brother and sister, and I took this woman for a wife?
25 And Abraham said, Because I thought I should suffer death on account of my
wife; and Abimelech took flocks and herds, and men servants and maid servants,
and a thousand pieces of silver, and he gave them to Abraham, and he returned
Sarah to him.
26 And Abimelech said to Abraham,
Behold the whole land is before thee, dwell in it
wherever thou shalt choose.
27 And Abraham and Sarah, his
wife, went forth from the king's presence with honor and respect, and they
dwelt in the land, even in Gerar.
28 And all the inhabitants of the
land of the Philistines and the king's servants were still in pain, through the
plague which the angel had inflicted upon them the whole night on account of
Sarah.
29 And Abimelech sent for
Abraham, saying, Pray now for thy servants to the Lord thy God, that he may put
away this mortality from amongst us.
30 And Abraham prayed on
account of Abimelech and his subjects, and the Lord heard the prayer of
Abraham, and he healed Abimelech and all his subjects.
1 And it was at that time at
the end of a year and four months of Abraham's dwelling in the land of the
Philistines in Gerar, that God visited Sarah, and the Lord remembered her, and
she conceived and bare a son to Abraham.
2 And Abraham called the name
of the son which was born to him, which Sarah bare to him, Isaac.
3 And Abraham circumcised his
son Isaac at eight days old, as God had commanded Abraham to do unto his seed
after him; and Abraham was one hundred, and Sarah
ninety years old, when Isaac was born to them.
4 And the child grew up and he
was weaned, and Abraham made a great feast upon the day that Isaac was weaned.
5 And Shem and Eber and all the
great people of the land, and Abimelech king of the Philistines, and his
servants, and Phicol, the captain of his host, came to eat and drink and
rejoice at the feast which Abraham made upon the day of his son Isaac's being
weaned.
6 Also Terah, the father of
Abraham, and Nahor his brother, came from Haran, they and all belonging to
them, for they greatly rejoiced on hearing that a son had been born to Sarah.
7 And they came to Abraham, and
they ate and drank at the feast which Abraham made upon the day of Isaac's
being weaned.
8 And Terah and Nahor rejoiced
with Abraham, and they remained with him many days in the land of the
Philistines.
9 At that time Serug the son of
Reu died, in the first year of the birth of Isaac son of Abraham.
10 And all the days of Serug
were two hundred and thirty-nine years, and he died.
11 And Ishmael the son of
Abraham was grown up in those days; he was fourteen years old when Sarah bare
Isaac to Abraham.
12 And God was with Ishmael the
son of Abraham, and he grew up, and he learned to use the bow and became an
archer.
13 And when Isaac was five
years old he was sitting with Ishmael at the door of the tent.
14 And Ishmael came to Isaac
and seated himself opposite to him, and he took the bow and drew it and put the
arrow in it, and intended to slay Isaac.
15 And Sarah saw the act which
Ishmael desired to do to her son Isaac, and it grieved her exceedingly on
account of her son, and she sent for Abraham, and said to him, Cast out this
bondwoman and her son, for her son shall not be heir with my son, for thus did
he seek to do unto him this day.
16 And Abraham hearkened to the
voice of Sarah, and he rose up early in the morning, and he took twelve loaves
and a bottle of water which he gave to Hagar, and sent her away with her son,
and Hagar went with her son to the wilderness, and they dwelt in the wilderness
of Paran with the inhabitants of the wilderness, and Ishmael was an archer, and
he dwelt in the wilderness a long time.
17 And he and his mother
afterward went to the land of Egypt, and they dwelt there, and Hagar took a
wife for her son from Egypt, and her name was Meribah.
18 And the wife
of Ishmael conceived and bare four sons and two daughters, and Ishmael
and his mother and his wife and children afterward went and returned to the
wilderness.
19 And they made themselves
tents in the wilderness, in which they dwelt, and they continued to travel and
then to rest monthly and yearly.
20 And God gave Ishmael flocks
and herds and tents on account of Abraham his father, and the man increased in
cattle.
21 And Ishmael dwelt in deserts
and in tents, traveling and resting for a long time, and he did not see the
face of his father.
22 And in some time after,
Abraham said to Sarah his wife, I will go and see my
son Ishmael, for I have a desire to see him, for I have not seen him for a long
time.
23 And Abraham rode upon one of
his camels to the wilderness to seek his son Ishmael, for he heard that he was
dwelling in a tent in the wilderness with all belonging to him.
24 And Abraham went to the
wilderness, and he reached the tent of Ishmael about noon, and he asked after
Ishmael, and he found the wife of Ishmael sitting in the tent with her
children, and Ishmael her husband and his mother were not with them.
25 And Abraham asked the wife
of Ishmael, saying, Where has Ishmael gone? and she said, He has gone to the field to hunt, and Abraham
was still mounted upon the camel, for he would not get off to the ground as he
had sworn to his wife Sarah that he would not get off from the camel.
26 And Abraham said to
Ishmael's wife, My daughter, give me a little water
that I may drink, for I am fatigued from the journey.
27 And Ishmael's wife answered
and said to Abraham, We have neither water nor bread, and she continued sitting
in the tent and did not notice Abraham, neither did she ask him who he was.
28 But she was beating her
children in the tent, and she was cursing them, and she also cursed her husband
Ishmael and reproached him, and Abraham heard the words of Ishmael's wife to
her children, and he was very angry and displeased.
29 And Abraham called to the
woman to come out to him from the tent, and the woman came and stood opposite
to Abraham, for Abraham was still mounted upon the camel.
30 And Abraham said to
Ishmael's wife, When thy husband Ishmael returneth
home say these words to him,
31 A very old man from the land
of the Philistines came hither to seek thee, and thus was his appearance and
figure; I did not ask him who he was, and seeing thou wast not here he spoke
unto me and said, When Ishmael thy husband returneth tell him thus did this man
say, When thou comest home put away this nail of the tent which thou hast
placed here, and place another nail in its stead.
32 And Abraham finished his
instructions to the woman, and he turned and went off on the camel homeward.
33 And after that Ishmael came
from the chase he and his mother, and returned to the tent, and his wife spoke
these words to him,
34 A very old man from the land
of the Philistines came to seek thee, and thus was his appearance and figure; I
did not ask him who he was, and seeing thou wast not at home he said to me,
When thy husband cometh home tell him, thus saith the old man, Put away the
nail of the tent which thou hast placed here and place another nail in its
stead.
35 And Ishmael heard the words
of his wife, and he knew that it was his father, and that his wife did not
honor him.
36 And Ishmael understood his father's
words that he had spoken to his wife, and Ishmael hearkened to the voice of his
father, and Ishmael cast off that woman and she went away.
37 And Ishmael afterward went
to the land of Canaan, and he took another wife and he brought her to his tent
to the place where he then dwelt.
38 And at the end of three
years Abraham said, I will go again and see Ishmael my son, for I have not seen
him for a long time.
39 And he rode upon his camel
and went to the wilderness, and he reached the tent of Ishmael about noon.
40 And he asked after Ishmael,
and his wife came out of the tent and she said, He is not here my lord, for he
has gone to hunt in the fields, and to feed the camels, and the woman said to
Abraham, Turn in my lord into the tent, and eat a morsel of bread, for thy soul
must be wearied on account of the journey.
41 And Abraham said to her, I
will not stop for I am in haste to continue my journey, but give me a little
water to drink, for I have thirst; and the woman hastened and ran into the tent
and she brought out water and bread to Abraham, which she placed before him and
she urged him to eat, and he ate and drank and his heart was comforted and he
blessed his son Ishmael.
42 And he finished his meal and
he blessed the Lord, and he said to Ishmael's wife, When Ishmael cometh home
say these words to him,
43 A very old man from the land
of the Philistines came hither and asked after thee, and thou wast not here;
and I brought him out bread and water and he ate and drank and his heart was
comforted.
44 And he spoke these words to
me: When Ishmael thy husband cometh home, say unto him, The
nail of the tent which thou hast is very good, do not put it away from the
tent.
45 And Abraham finished
commanding the woman, and he rode off to his home to the land of the
Philistines; and when Ishmael came to his tent his wife went forth to meet him
with joy and a cheerful heart.
46 And she said to him, An old man came here from the land of the Philistines and
thus was his appearance, and he asked after thee and thou wast not here, so I
brought out bread and water, and he ate and drank and his heart was comforted.
47 And he spoke these words to
me, When Ishmael thy husband cometh home say to him, The
nail of the tent which thou hast is very good, do not put it away from the
tent.
48 And Ishmael knew that it was
his father, and that his wife had honored him, and the
Lord blessed Ishmael.
1 And Ishmael then rose up and
took his wife and his children and his cattle and all belonging to him, and he
journeyed from there and he went to his father in the land of the Philistines.
2 And Abraham related to
Ishmael his son the transaction with the first wife that Ishmael took,
according to what she did.
3 And Ishmael and his children
dwelt with Abraham many days in that land, and Abraham dwelt in the land of the
Philistines a long time.
4 And the days increased and
reached twenty six years, and after that Abraham with his servants and all
belonging to him went from the land of the Philistines and removed to a great distance,
and they came near to Hebron, and they remained there, and the servants of
Abraham dug wells of water, and Abraham and all belonging to him dwelt by the
water, and the servants of Abimelech king of the Philistines heard the report
that Abraham's servants had dug wells of water in the borders of the land.
5 And they came and quarreled
with the servants of Abraham, and they robbed them of the great well which they
had dug.
6 And Abimelech king of the
Philistines heard of this affair, and he with Phicol the captain of his host
and twenty of his men came to Abraham, and Abimelech spoke to Abraham
concerning his servants, and Abraham rebuked Abimelech concerning the well of
which his servants had robbed him.
7 And Abimelech said to
Abraham, As the Lord liveth who created the whole earth,
I did not hear of the act which my servants did unto thy servants until this
day.
8 And Abraham took seven ewe
lambs and gave them to Abimelech, saying, Take these, I pray thee, from my
hands that it may be a testimony for me that I dug this well.
9 And Abimelech took the seven
ewe lambs which Abraham had given to him, for he had also given him cattle and
herds in abundance, and Abimelech swore to Abraham concerning the well,
therefore he called that well Beersheba, for there they both swore concerning
it.
10 And they both made a
covenant in Beersheba, and Abimelech rose up with Phicol the captain of his
host and all his men, and they returned to the land of the Philistines, and
Abraham and all belonging to him dwelt in Beersheba and he was in that land a
long time.
11 And Abraham planted a large
grove in Beersheba, and he made to it four gates facing the four sides of the
earth, and he planted a vineyard in it, so that if a traveler came to Abraham
he entered any gate which was in his road, and remained there and ate and drank
and satisfied himself and then departed.
12 For the house of Abraham was
always open to the sons of men that passed and repassed, who came daily to eat
and drink in the house of Abraham.
13 And any man who had hunger
and came to Abraham's house, Abraham would give him bread that he might eat and
drink and be satisfied, and any one that came naked to his house he would
clothe with garments as he might choose, and give him silver and gold and make
known to him the Lord who had created him in the earth; this did Abraham all
his life.
14 And Abraham and his children
and all belonging to him dwelt in Beersheba, and he pitched his tent as far as
Hebron.
15 And Abraham's brother Nahor
and his father and all belonging to them dwelt in Haran, for they did not come
with Abraham to the land of Canaan.
16 And children were born to
Nahor which Milca the daughter of Haran, and sister to Sarah, Abraham's wife,
bare to him.
17 And these are the names of
those that were born to him, Uz, Buz, Kemuel, Kesed, Chazo, Pildash, Tidlaf,
and Bethuel, being eight sons, these are the children of Milca which she bare
to Nahor, Abraham's brother.
18 And Nahor had a concubine
and her name was Reumah, and she also bare to Nahor,
Zebach, Gachash, Tachash and Maacha, being four sons.
19 And the children that were
born to Nahor were twelve sons besides his daughters, and they also had
children born to them in Haran.
20 And the children of Uz the
first born of Nahor were Abi, Cheref, Gadin, Melus, and Deborah their sister.
21 And the sons of Buz were
Berachel, Naamath, Sheva, and Madonu.
22 And the sons of Kemuel were
Aram and Rechob.
23 And the sons of Kesed were
Anamlech, Meshai, Benon and Yifi; and the sons of Chazo were Pildash, Mechi and
Opher.
24 And the sons of Pildash were
Arud, Chamum, Mered and Moloch.
25 And the sons of Tidlaf were
Mushan, Cushan and Mutzi.
26 And the children of Bethuel
were Sechar, Laban and their sister Rebecca.
27 These are the families of
the children of Nahor, that were born to them in Haran; and Aram the son of
Kemuel and Rechob his brother went away from Haran, and they found a valley in
the land by the river Euphrates.
28 And they built a city there,
and they called the name of the city after the name of Pethor the son of Aram,
that is Aram Naherayim unto this day.
29 And the children of Kesed
also went to dwell where they could find a place, and they went and they found
a valley opposite to the land of Shinar, and they dwelt there.
30 And they there built themselves
a city, and they called the name at the city Kesed after the name of their
father, that is the land Kasdim unto this day, and the Kasdim dwelt in that
land and they were fruitful and multiplied exceedingly.
31 And Terah, father of Nahor
and Abraham, went and took another wife in his old age, and her name was
Pelilah, and she conceived and bare him a son and he
called his name Zoba.
32 And Terah lived twenty-five
years after he begat Zoba.
33 And Terah died in that year, that is in the thirty-fifth year of the birth of Isaac
son of Abraham.
34 And the days of Terah were
two hundred and five years, and he was buried in Haran.
35 And Zoba the son of Terah
lived thirty years and he begat Aram, Achlis and
Merik.
36 And Aram son of Zoba son of
Terah, had three wives and he begat twelve sons and three daughters; and the
Lord gave to Aram the son of Zoba, riches and possessions, and abundance of
cattle, and flocks and herds, and the man increased greatly.
37 And Aram the son of Zoba and
his brother and all his household journeyed from Haran, and they went to dwell
where they should find a place, for their property was too great to remain in
Haran; for they could not stop in Haran together with their brethren the
children of Nahor.
38 And Aram the son of Zoba went
with his brethren, and they found a valley at a distance toward the eastern
country and they dwelt there.
39 And they also built a city
there, and they called the name thereof Aram, after the name of their eldest
brother; that is Aram Zoba to this day.
40 And Isaac the son of Abraham
was growing up in those days, and Abraham his father taught him the way of the
Lord to know the Lord, and the Lord was with him.
41 And when Isaac was
thirty-seven years old, Ishmael his brother was going about with him in the
tent.
42 And Ishmael boasted of
himself to Isaac, saying, I was thirteen years old when the Lord spoke to my
father to circumcise us, and I did according to the word of the Lord which he
spoke to my father, and I gave my soul unto the Lord, and I did not transgress
his word which he commanded my father.
43 And Isaac answered Ishmael,
saying, Why dost thou boast to me about this, about a little bit of thy flesh
which thou didst take from thy body, concerning which the Lord commanded thee?
44 As the Lord liveth, the God
of my father Abraham, if the Lord should say unto my father, Take now thy son
Isaac and bring him up an offering before me, I would not refrain but I would
joyfully accede to it.
45 And the Lord heard the word
that Isaac spoke to Ishmael, and it seemed good in the sight of the Lord, and
he thought to try Abraham in this matter.
46 And the day arrived when the
sons of God came and placed themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came
with the sons of God before the Lord.
47 And the Lord said unto
Satan, Whence comest thou? and
Satan answered the Lord and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from
walking up and down in it.
48 And the Lord said to Satan,
What is thy word to me concerning all the children of the earth? and Satan answered the Lord and said, I have seen all the
children of the earth who serve thee and remember thee when they require
anything from thee.
49 And when thou givest them
the thing which they require from thee, they sit at their ease, and forsake
thee and they remember thee no more.
50 Hast thou seen Abraham the
son of Terah, who at first had no children, and he served thee and erected
altars to thee wherever he came, and he brought up offerings upon them, and he
proclaimed thy name continually to all the children of the earth.
51 And now that his son Isaac
is born to him, he has forsaken thee, he has made a
great feast for all the inhabitants of the land, and the Lord he has forgotten.
52 For amidst all that he has
done he brought thee no offering; neither burnt offering nor peace offering, neither ox, lamb nor goat of all that he killed on
the day that his son was weaned.
53 Even from the time of his
son's birth till now, being thirty-seven years, he built no altar before thee,
nor brought any offering to thee, for he saw that thou didst give what he
requested before thee, and he therefore forsook thee.
54 And the Lord said to Satan,
Hast thou thus considered my servant Abraham? for there is none like him upon
earth, a perfect and an upright man before me, one that feareth God and
avoideth evil; as I live, were I to say unto him, Bring up Isaac thy son before
me, he would not withhold him from me, much more if I told him to bring up a
burnt offering before me from his flock or herds.
55 And Satan answered the Lord
and said, Speak then now unto Abraham as thou hast said, and thou wilt see
whether he will not this day transgress and cast aside thy words.
1 At that time the word of the
Lord came to Abraham, and he said unto him, Abraham, and he said, Here I am.
2 And he said to him, Take now
thy son, thine only son whom thou lovest, even Isaac, and go to the land of
Moriah, and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains
which shall be shown to thee, for there wilt thou see a cloud and the glory of
the Lord.
3 And Abraham said within
himself, How shall I separate my son Isaac from Sarah
his mother, in order to bring him up for a burnt offering before the Lord?
4 And Abraham came into the
tent, and he sat before Sarah his wife, and he spoke these words to her,
5 My son Isaac is grown up and
he has not for some time studied the service of his God, now tomorrow I will go
and bring him to Shem, and Eber his son, and there he will learn the ways of
the Lord, for they will teach him to know the Lord as well as to know that when
he prayeth continually before the Lord, he will answer him, therefore there he
will know the way of serving the Lord his God.
6 And Sarah said, Thou hast
spoken well, go my lord and do unto him as thou hast said, but remove him not
at a great distance from me, neither let him remain there too long, for my soul
is bound within his soul.
7 And Abraham said unto Sarah,
My daughter, let us pray to the Lord our God that he
may do good with us.
8 And Sarah took her son Isaac
and he abode all that night with her, and she kissed and embraced him, and gave
him instructions till morning.
9 And she said to him, O my
son, how can my soul separate itself from thee? And she still kissed him and
embraced him, and she gave Abraham instructions concerning him.
10 And Sarah said to Abraham, O
my lord, I pray thee take heed of thy son, and place thine eyes over him, for I
have no other son nor daughter but him.
11 O forsake him not. If he be
hungry give him bread, and if he be thirsty give him water to drink; do not let
him go on foot, neither let him sit in the sun.
12 Neither let him go by
himself in the road, neither force him from whatever he may desire, but do unto
him as he may say to thee.
13 And Sarah wept bitterly the
whole night on account of Isaac, and she gave him instructions till morning.
14 And in the morning Sarah
selected a very fine and beautiful garment from those garments which she had in
the house, that Abimelech had given to her.
15 And she dressed Isaac her
son therewith, and she put a turban upon his head, and she enclosed a precious
stone in the top of the turban, and she gave them provision for the road, and
they went forth, and Isaac went with his father Abraham, and some of their
servants accompanied them to see them off the road.
16 And Sarah went out with
them, and she accompanied them upon the road to see them off, and they said to
her, Return to the tent.
17 And when Sarah heard the
words of her son Isaac she wept bitterly, and Abraham her husband wept with
her, and their son wept with them a great weeping; also those who went with
them wept greatly.
18 And Sarah caught hold of her
son Isaac, and she held him in her arms, and she embraced him and continued to
weep with him, and Sarah said, Who knoweth if after
this day I shall ever see thee again?
19 And they still wept
together, Abraham, Sarah and Isaac, and all those that accompanied them on the
road wept with them, and Sarah afterward turned away from her son, weeping
bitterly, and all her men servants and maid servants returned with her to the
tent.
20 And Abraham went with Isaac
his son to bring him up as an offering before the Lord, as He had commanded
him.
21 And Abraham took two of his
young men with him, Ishmael the son of Hagar and Eliezer his servant, and they
went together with them, and whilst they were walking in the road the young men
spoke these words to themselves,
22 And Ishmael said to Eliezer,
Now my father Abraham is going with Isaac to bring him up for a burnt offering
to the Lord, as He commanded him.
23 Now when he returneth he
will give unto me all that he possesses, to inherit
after him, for I am his first born.
24 And Eliezer answered Ishmael
and said, Surely Abraham did cast thee away with thy mother, and swear that
thou shouldst not inherit any thing of all he possesses, and to whom will he
give all that he has, with all his treasures, but unto me his servant, who has
been faithful in his house, who has served him night and day, and has done all
that he desired me? to me will he bequeath at his death
all that he possesses.
25 And whilst Abraham was
proceeding with his son Isaac along the road, Satan came and appeared to
Abraham in the figure of a very aged man, humble and of contrite spirit, and he
approached Abraham and said to him, Art thou silly or brutish, that thou goest
to do this thing this day to thine only son?
26 For God gave thee a son in
thy latter days, in thy old age, and wilt thou go and slaughter him this day
because he committed no violence, and wilt thou cause the soul of thine only
son to perish from the earth?
27 Dost thou not know and
understand that this thing cannot be from the Lord? for
the Lord cannot do unto man such evil upon earth to say to him, Go slaughter
thy child.
28 And Abraham heard this and
knew that it was the word of Satan who endeavored to
draw him aside from the way of the Lord, but Abraham would not hearken to the
voice of Satan, and Abraham rebuked him so that he went away.
29 And Satan returned and came
to Isaac; and he appeared unto Isaac in the figure of a young man comely and
well favored.
30 And he approached Isaac and
said unto him, Dost thou not know and understand that
thy old silly father bringeth thee to the slaughter this day for naught?
31 Now therefore, my son, do
not listen nor attend to him, for he is a silly old man, and let not thy
precious soul and beautiful figure be lost from the earth.
32 And Isaac heard this, and
said unto Abraham, Hast thou heard, my father, that which this man has spoken? even thus has he spoken.
33 And Abraham answered his son
Isaac and said to him, Take heed of him and do not listen to his words, nor
attend to him, for he is Satan, endeavoring to draw us aside this day from the
commands of God.
34 And Abraham still rebuked
Satan, and Satan went from them, and seeing he could not prevail over them he
hid himself from them, and he went and passed before them in the road; and he
transformed himself to a large brook of water in the road, and Abraham and
Isaac and his two young men reached that place, and they saw a brook large and
powerful as the mighty waters.
35 And they entered the brook
and passed through it, and the waters at first reached their legs.
36 And they went deeper in the
brook and the waters reached up to their necks, and they were all terrified on
account of the water; and whilst they were going over the brook Abraham
recognized that place, and he knew that there was no water there before.
37 And Abraham said to his son
Isaac, I know this place in which there was no brook nor water, now therefore
it is this Satan who does all this to us, to draw us aside this day from the
commands of God.
38 And Abraham rebuked him and
said unto him, The Lord rebuke thee, O Satan, begone
from us for we go by the commands of God.
39 And Satan was terrified at
the voice of Abraham, and he went away from them, and the place again became
dry land as it was at first.
40 And Abraham went with Isaac
toward the place that God had told him.
41 And on the third day Abraham
lifted up his eyes and saw the place at a distance which God had told him of.
42 And a pillar of fire
appeared to him that reached from the earth to heaven, and a cloud of glory
upon the mountain, and the glory of the Lord was seen in the cloud.
43 And Abraham said to Isaac,
My son, dost thou see in that mountain, which we perceive at a distance, that
which I see upon it?
44 And Isaac answered and said
unto his father, I see and lo a pillar of fire and a cloud, and the glory of
the Lord is seen upon the cloud.
45 And Abraham knew that his
son Isaac was accepted before the Lord for a burnt offering.
46 And Abraham said unto
Eliezer and unto Ishmael his son, Do you also see that
which we see upon the mountain which is at a distance?
47 And they answered and said, We see nothing more than like the other mountains of the
earth. And Abraham knew that they were not accepted before the Lord to go with
them, and Abraham said to them, Abide ye here with the ass whilst I and Isaac
my son will go to yonder mount and worship there before the Lord and then
return to you.
48 And Eliezer and Ishmael
remained in that place, as Abraham had commanded.
49 And Abraham took wood for a
burnt offering and placed it upon his son Isaac, and he took the fire and the
knife, and they both went to that place.
50 And when they were going
along Isaac said to his father, Behold, I see here the fire and wood, and where
then is the lamb that is to be the burnt offering before the Lord?
51 And Abraham answered his son
Isaac, saying, The Lord has made choice of thee my
son, to be a perfect burnt offering instead of the lamb.
52 And Isaac said unto his
father, I will do all that the Lord spoke to thee with joy and cheerfulness of
heart.
53 And Abraham again said unto
Isaac his son, Is there in thy heart any thought or
counsel concerning this, which is not proper? tell me
my son, I pray thee, O my son conceal it not from me.
54 And Isaac answered his
father Abraham and said unto him, O my father, as the Lord liveth and as thy
soul liveth, there is nothing in my heart to cause me to deviate either to the
right or to the left from the word that he has spoken to thee.
55 Neither limb nor muscle has
moved or stirred at this, nor is there in my heart any thought or evil counsel
concerning this.
56 But I am of joyful and
cheerful heart in this matter, and I say, Blessed is
the Lord who has this day chosen me to be a burnt offering before Him.
57 And Abraham greatly rejoiced
at the words of Isaac, and they went on and came together to that place that
the Lord had spoken of.
58 And Abraham approached to
build the altar in that place, and Abraham was weeping, and Isaac took stones
and mortar until they had finished building the altar.
59 And Abraham took the wood
and placed it in order upon the altar which he had built.
60 And he took his son Isaac
and bound him in order to place him upon the wood which was upon the altar, to
slay him for a burnt offering before the Lord.
61 And Isaac said to his
father, Bind me securely and then place me upon the altar lest I should turn
and move, and break loose from the force of the knife upon my flesh and thereof
profane the burnt offering; and Abraham did so.
62 And Isaac still said to his
father, O my father, when thou shalt have slain me and burnt me for an
offering, take with thee that which shall remain of my ashes to bring to Sarah
my mother, and say to her, This is the sweet smelling savor of Isaac; but do
not tell her this if she should sit near a well or upon any high place, lest
she should cast her soul after me and die.
63 And Abraham heard the words
of Isaac, and he lifted up his voice and wept when Isaac spake these words; and
Abraham's tears gushed down upon Isaac his son, and Isaac wept bitterly, and he
said to his father, Hasten thou, O my father, and do with me the will of the
Lord our God as He has commanded thee.
64 And the hearts of Abraham
and Isaac rejoiced at this thing which the Lord had commanded them; but the eye
wept bitterly whilst the heart rejoiced.
65 And Abraham bound his son
Isaac, and placed him on the altar upon the wood, and Isaac stretched forth his
neck upon the altar before his father, and Abraham stretched forth his hand to
take the knife to slay his son as a burnt offering before the Lord.
66 At that time the angels of
mercy came before the Lord and spake to him concerning Isaac, saying,
67 0 Lord, thou art a merciful
and compassionate King over all that thou hast created in heaven and in earth,
and thou supportest them all; give therefore ransom and redemption instead of
thy servant Isaac, and pity and have compassion upon Abraham and Isaac his son,
who are this day performing thy commands.
68 Hast thou seen, O Lord, how
Isaac the son of Abraham thy servant is bound down to the slaughter like an
animal? now therefore let thy pity be roused for them,
O Lord.
69 At that time the Lord
appeared unto Abraham, and called to him, from heaven, and said unto him, Lay
not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him, for now I know
that thou fearest God in performing this act, and in not withholding thy son,
thine only son, from me.
70 And Abraham lifted up his
eyes and saw, and behold, a ram was caught in a thicket by his horns; that was
the ram which the Lord God had created in the earth in the day that he made
earth and heaven.
71 For the Lord had prepared
this ram from that day, to be a burnt offering instead of Isaac.
72 And this ram was advancing
to Abraham when Satan caught hold of him and entangled his horns in the thicket, that he might not advance to Abraham, in order that
Abraham might slay his son.
73 And Abraham, seeing the ram
advancing to him and Satan withholding him, fetched him and brought him before
the altar, and he loosened his son Isaac from his binding, and he put the ram
in his stead, and Abraham killed the ram upon the altar, and brought it up as
an offering in the place of his son Isaac.
74 And Abraham sprinkled some
of the blood of the ram upon the altar, and he exclaimed and said, This is in the place of my son, and may this be considered
this day as the blood of my son before the Lord.
75 And all that Abraham did on
this occasion by the altar, he would exclaim and say, This is in the room of my
son, and may it this day be considered before the Lord in the place of my son;
and Abraham finished the whole of the service by the altar, and the service was
accepted before the Lord, and was accounted as if it had been Isaac; and the
Lord blessed Abraham and his seed on that day.
76 And Satan went to Sarah, and
he appeared to her in the figure of an old man very humble and meek, and
Abraham was yet engaged in the burnt offering before the Lord.
77 And he said unto her, Dost thou not know all the work that Abraham has made with
thine only son this day? for he took Isaac and built an altar, and killed him,
and brought him up as a sacrifice upon the altar, and Isaac cried and wept
before his father, but he looked not at him, neither did he have compassion
over him.
78 And Satan repeated these
words, and he went away from her, and Sarah heard all the words of Satan, and
she imagined him to be an old man from amongst the sons of men who had been
with her son, and had come and told her these things.
79 And Sarah lifted up her
voice and wept and cried out bitterly on account of her son; and she threw
herself upon the ground and she cast dust upon her head, and she said, O my
son, Isaac my son, O that I had this day died instead of thee. And she
continued to weep and said, It grieves me for thee, O
my son, my son Isaac, O that I had died this day in thy stead.
80 And she still continued to
weep, and said, It grieves me for thee after that I have reared thee and have
brought thee up; now my joy is turned into mourning over thee, I that had a
longing for thee, and cried and prayed to God till I bare thee at ninety years
old; and now hast thou served this day for the knife and the fire, to be made
an offering.
81 But I console myself with
thee, my son, in its being the word of the Lord, for thou didst perform the
command of thy God; for who can transgress the word of our God, in whose hands
is the soul of every living creature?
82 Thou art just, O Lord our
God, for all thy works are good and righteous; for I
also am rejoiced with thy word which thou didst command, and whilst mine eye
weepeth bitterly my heart rejoiceth.
83 And Sarah laid her head upon
the bosom of one of her handmaids, and she became as still as a stone.
84 She afterward rose up and
went about making inquiries till she came to Hebron, and she inquired of all
those whom she met walking in the road, and no one could tell her what had
happened to her son.
85 And she came with her maid
servants and men servants to Kireath-arba, which is Hebron, and she asked
concerning her Son, and she remained there while she sent some of her servants
to seek where Abraham had gone with Isaac; they went to seek him in the house
of Shem and Eber, and they could not find him, and they sought throughout the
land and he was not there.
86 And behold, Satan came to
Sarah in the shape of an old man, and he came and stood before her, and he said
unto her, I spoke falsely unto thee, for Abraham did not kill his son and he is
not dead; and when she heard the word her joy was so exceedingly violent on
account of her son, that her soul went out through joy; she died and was
gathered to her people.
87 And when Abraham had
finished his service he returned with his son Isaac to his young men, and they
rose up and went together to Beersheba, and they came home.
88 And Abraham sought for
Sarah, and could not find her, and he made inquiries concerning her, and they
said unto him, She went as far as Hebron to seek you
both where you had gone, for thus was she informed.
89 And Abraham and Isaac went
to her to Hebron, and when they found that she was dead they lifted up their
voices and wept bitterly over her; and Isaac fell upon his mother's face and
wept over her, and he said, O my mother, my mother, how hast thou left me, and
where hast thou gone? O how, how hast thou left me!
90 And Abraham and Isaac wept
greatly and all their servants wept with them on account of Sarah, and they
mourned over her a great and heavy mourning.
1 And the life of Sarah was one
hundred and twenty-seven years, and Sarah died; and Abraham rose up from before
his dead to seek a burial place to bury his wife Sarah; and he went and spoke
to the children of Heth, the inhabitants of the land, saying,
2 I am a stranger and a
sojourner with you in your land; give me a possession of a burial place in your
land, that I may bury my dead from before me.
3 And the children of Heth said
unto Abraham, behold the land is before thee, in the
choice of our sepulchers bury thy dead, for no man shall withhold thee from
burying thy dead.
4 And Abraham said unto them,
If you are agreeable to this go and entreat for me to Ephron, the son of
Zochar, requesting that he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which is in the
end of his field, and I will purchase it of him for whatever he desire for it.
5 And Ephron dwelt among the
children of Heth, and they went and called for him, and he came before Abraham,
and Ephron said unto Abraham, Behold all thou requirest thy servant will do;
and Abraham said, No, but I will buy the cave and the field which thou hast for
value, In order that it may be for a possession of a burial place for ever.
6 And Ephron answered and said,
Behold the field and the cave are before thee, give whatever thou desirest; and
Abraham said, Only at full value will I buy it from
thy hand, and from the hands of those that go in at the gate of thy city, and
from the hand of thy seed for ever.
7 And Ephron and all his
brethren heard this, and Abraham weighed to Ephron four hundred shekels of
silver in the hands of Ephron and in the hands of all his brethren; and Abraham
wrote this transaction, and he wrote it and testified it with four witnesses.
8 And these are the names of
the witnesses, Amigal son of Abishna the Hittite, Adichorom son of Ashunach the
Hivite, Abdon son of Achiram the Gomerite, Bakdil the son of Abudish the
Zidonite.
9 And Abraham took the book of
the purchase, and placed it in his treasures, and these are the words that
Abraham wrote in the book, namely:
10 That the cave and the field
Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite, and from his seed, and from those that
go out of his city, and from their seed for ever, are to be a purchase to
Abraham and to his seed and to those that go forth from his loins, for a
possession of a burial place for ever; and he put a signet to it and testified
it with witnesses.
11 And the field and the cave
that was in it and all that place were made sure unto Abraham and unto his seed
after him, from the children of Heth; behold it is before Mamre in Hebron,
which is in the land of Canaan.
12 And after this Abraham
buried his wife Sarah there, and that place and all its boundary became to
Abraham and unto his seed for a possession of a burial place.
13 And Abraham buried Sarah
with pomp as observed at the interment of kings, and she was buried in very
fine and beautiful garments.
14 And at her bier was Shem,
his sons Eber and Abimelech, together with Anar, Ashcol and Mamre, and all the
grandees of the land followed her bier.
15 And the days of Sarah were
one hundred and twenty-seven years and she died, and Abraham made a great and
heavy mourning, and he performed the rites of mourning for seven days.
16 And all the inhabitants of
the land comforted Abraham and Isaac his son on account of Sarah.
17 And when the days of their
mourning passed by Abraham sent away his son Isaac, and he went to the house of
Shem and Eber, to learn the ways of the Lord and his instructions, and Abraham
remained there three years.
18 At that time Abraham rose up
with all his servants, and they went and returned homeward to Beersheba, and
Abraham and all his servants remained in Beersheba.
19 And at the revolution of the
year Abimelech king of the Philistines died in that year; he was one hundred and
ninety-three years old at his death; and Abraham went with his people to the
land of the Philistines, and they comforted the whole household and all his
servants, and he then turned and went home.
20 And it was after the death
of Abimelech that the people of Gerar took Benmalich his son, and he was only
twelve years old, and they made him lying in the place of his father.
21 And they called his name
Abimelech after the name of his father, for thus was it their custom to do in
Gerar, and Abimelech reigned instead of Abimelech his father, and he sat upon
his throne.
22 And Lot the son of Haran
also died in those days, in the thirty-ninth year of the life of Isaac, and all
the days that Lot lived were one hundred and forty years and he died.
23 And these are the children
of Lot, that were born to him by his daughters, the
name of the first born was Moab, and the name of the second was Benami.
24 And the two sons of Lot went
and took themselves wives from the land of Canaan, and they bare children to
them, and the children of Moab were Ed, Mayon, Tarsus, and Kanvil, four sons,
these are fathers to the children of Moab unto this day.
25 And all the families of the
children of Lot went to dwell wherever they should light upon, for they were
fruitful and increased abundantly.
26 And they went and built
themselves cities in the land where they dwelt, and they called the names of
the cities which they built after their own names.
27 And Nahor the son of Terah,
brother to Abraham, died in those days in the fortieth year of the life of
Isaac, and all the days of Nahor were one hundred and seventy-two years and he
died and was buried in Haran.
28 And when Abraham heard that
his brother was dead he grieved sadly, and he mourned over his brother many
days.
29 And Abraham called for
Eliezer his head servant, to give him orders concerning his house, and he came
and stood before him.
30 And Abraham said to him,
Behold I am old, I do not know the day of my death; for I am advanced in days;
now therefore rise up, go forth and do not take a wife for my son from this
place and from this land, from the daughters of the Canaanites amongst whom we
dwell.
31 But go to my land and to my
birthplace, and take from thence a wife for my son, and the Lord God of Heaven
and earth who took me from my father's house and brought me to this place, and
said unto me, To thy seed will I give this land for an inheritance for ever, he
will send his angel before thee and prosper thy way, that thou mayest obtain a
wife for my son from my family and from my father's house.
32 And the servant answered his
master Abraham and said, Behold I go to thy birthplace and to thy father's
house, and take a wife for thy son from there; but if the woman be not willing
to follow me to this land, shall I take thy son back to the land of thy
birthplace?
33 And Abraham said unto him,
Take heed that thou bring not my son hither again, for the Lord before whom I
have walked he will send his angel before thee and prosper thy way.
34 And Eliezer did as Abraham
ordered him, and Eliezer swore unto Abraham his master upon this matter; and
Eliezer rose up and took ten camels of the camels of his master, and ten men
from his master's servants with him, and they rose up and went to Haran, the
city of Abraham and Nahor, in order to fetch a wife for Isaac the son of
Abraham; and whilst they were gone Abraham sent to the house of Shem and Eber,
and they brought from thence his son Isaac.
35 And Isaac came home to his
father's house to Beersheba, whilst Eliezer and his men came to Haran; and they
stopped in the city by the watering place, and he made his camels to kneel down
by the water and they remained there.
36 And Eliezer, Abraham's
servant, prayed and said, O God of Abraham my master; send me I pray thee good
speed this day and show kindness unto my master, that
thou shalt appoint this day a wife for my master's son from his family.
37 And the Lord hearkened to
the voice of Eliezer, for the sake of his servant Abraham, and he happened to
meet with the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor,
brother to Abraham, and Eliezer came to her house.
38 And Eliezer related to them
all his concerns, and that he was Abraham's servant, and they greatly rejoiced
at him.
39 And they all blessed the
Lord who brought this thing about, and they gave him Rebecca, the daughter of
Bethuel, for a wife for Isaac.
40 And the young woman was of
very comely appearance, she was a virgin, and Rebecca was ten years old in
those days.
41 And Bethuel and Laban and
his children made a feast on that night, and Eliezer and his men came and ate
and drank and rejoiced there on that night.
42 And Eliezer rose up in the
morning, he and the men that were with him, and he called to the whole
household of Bethuel, saying, Send me away that I may go to my master; and they
rose up and sent away Rebecca and her nurse Deborah, the daughter of Uz, and
they gave her silver and gold, men servants and maid servants, and they blessed
her.
43 And they sent Eliezer away
with his men; and the servants took Rebecca, and he went and returned to his
master to the land of Canaan.
44 And Isaac took Rebecca and
she became his wife, and he brought her into the tent.
45 And Isaac was forty years
old when he took Rebecca, the daughter of his uncle Bethuel, for a wife.
1 And it was at that time that
Abraham again took a wife in his old age, and her name was Keturah, from the
land of Canaan.
2 And she bare unto him Zimran,
Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuach, being six sons. And the children of
Zimran were Abihen, Molich and Narim.
3 And the sons of Jokshan were
Sheba and Dedan, and the sons of Medan were Amida, Joab, Gochi, Elisha and
Nothach; and the sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Chanoch, Abida and Eldaah.
4 And the sons of Ishbak were
Makiro, Beyodua and Tator.
5 And the sons of Shuach were
Bildad, Mamdad, Munan and Meban; all these are the families of the children of
Keturah the Canaanitish woman which she bare unto Abraham the Hebrew.
6 And Abraham sent all these
away, and he gave them gifts, and they went away from his son Isaac to dwell
wherever they should find a place.
7 And all these went to the
mountain at the east, and they built themselves six cities in which they dwelt
unto this day.
8 But the children of Sheba and
Dedan, children of Jokshan, with their children, did not dwell with their
brethren in their cities, and they journeyed and encamped in the countries and
wildernesses unto this day.
9 And the children of Midian,
son of Abraham, went to the east of the land of Cush, and they there found a
large valley in the eastern country, and they remained there and built a city,
and they dwelt therein, that is the land of Midian unto this day.
10 And Midian dwelt in the city
which he built, he and his five sons and all belonging to him.
11 And these are the names of
the sons of Midian according to their names in their cities, Ephah, Epher,
Chanoch, Abida and Eldaah.
12 And the sons of Ephah were
Methach, Meshar, Avi and Tzanua, and the sons of Epher were Ephron, Zur, Alirun
and Medin, and the sons of Chanoch were Reuel, Rekem, Azi, Alyoshub and Alad.
13 And the sons of Abida were
Chur, Melud, Kerury, Molchi; and the sons of Eldaah were Miker, and Reba, and
Malchiyah and Gabol; these are the names of the Midianites according to their
families; and afterward the families of Midian spread throughout the land of
Midian.
14 And these are the
generations of Ishmael the son Abraham, whom Hagar, Sarah's handmaid, bare unto
Abraham.
15 And Ishmael took a wife from
the land of Egypt, and her name was Ribah, the same is Meribah.
16 And Ribah bare
unto Ishmael Nebayoth, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam and their sister Bosmath.
17 And Ishmael cast away his
wife Ribah, and she went from him and returned to Egypt to the house of her
father, and she dwelt there, for she had been very bad in the sight of Ishmael,
and in the sight of his father Abraham.
18 And Ishmael afterward took a
wife from the land of Canaan, and her name was Malchuth, and she bare unto him
Nishma, Dumah, Masa, Chadad, Tema, Yetur, Naphish and Kedma.
19 These are the sons of
Ishmael, and these are their names, being twelve princes according to their
nations; and the families of Ishmael afterward spread forth, and Ishmael took
his children and all the property that he had gained, together with the souls
of his household and all belonging to him, and they went to dwell where they
should find a place.
20 And they went and dwelt near
the wilderness of Paran, and their dwelling was from Havilah unto Shur, that is
before Egypt as thou comest toward Assyria.
21 And Ishmael and his sons
dwelt in the land, and they had children born to them, and they were fruitful
and increased abundantly.
22 And these are the names of
the sons of Nebayoth the first born of Ishmael; Mend, Send, Mayon; and the sons
of Kedar were Alyon, Kezem, Chamad and Eli.
23 And the sons of Adbeel were
Chamad and Jabin; and the sons of Mibsam were Obadiah, Ebedmelech and Yeush;
these are the families of the children of Ribah the wife of Ishmael.
24 And the sons of Mishma the
son of Ishmael were Shamua, Zecaryon and Obed; and the sons of Dumah were
Kezed, Eli, Machmad and Amed.
25 And the sons of Masa were
Melon, Mula and Ebidadon; and the sons of Chadad were Azur, Minzar and
Ebedmelech; and the sons of Tema were Seir, Sadon and Yakol.
26 And the sons of Yetur were
Merith, Yaish, Alyo, and Pachoth; and the sons of Naphish were Ebed-Tamed,
Abiyasaph and Mir; and the sons of Kedma were Calip, Tachti, and Omir; these
were the children of Malchuth the wife of Ishmael according to their families.
27 All these are the families
of Ishmael according to their generations, and they dwelt in those lands
wherein they had built themselves cities unto this day.
28 And Rebecca the daughter of
Bethuel, the wife of Abraham's son Isaac, was barren in those days, she had no
offspring; and Isaac dwelt with his father in the land of Canaan; and the Lord
was with Isaac; and Arpachshad the son of Shem the son of Noah died in those
days, in the forty-eighth year of the life of Isaac, and all the days that
Arpachshad lived were four hundred and thirty-eight years, and he died.
1 And in the fifty-ninth year
of the life of Isaac the son of Abraham, Rebecca his wife was still barren in
those days.
2 And Rebecca said unto Isaac,
Truly I have heard, my lord, that thy mother Sarah was
barren in her days until my Lord Abraham, thy father, prayed for her and she
conceived by him.
3 Now therefore stand up, pray
thou also to God and he will hear thy prayer and remember us through his
mercies.
4 And Isaac answered his wife
Rebecca, saying, Abraham has already prayed for me to God to multiply his seed,
now therefore this barrenness must proceed to us from thee.
5 And Rebecca said unto him,
But arise now thou also and pray, that the Lord may hear thy prayer and grant
me children, and Isaac hearkened to the words of his wife, and Isaac and his
wife rose up and went to the land of Moriah to pray there and to seek the Lord,
and when they had reached that place Isaac stood up and prayed to the Lord on
account of his wife because she was barren.
6 And Isaac said, O Lord God of
heaven and earth, whose goodness and mercies fill the earth, thou who didst
take my father from his father's house and from his birthplace, and didst bring
him unto this land, and didst say unto him, To thy seed will I give the land,
and thou didst promise him and didst declare unto him, I will multiply thy seed
as the stars of heaven and as the sand of the sea, now may thy words be
verified which thou didst speak unto my father.
7 For thou art the Lord our
God, our eyes are toward thee to give us seed of men, as thou didst promise us,
for thou art the Lord our God and our eyes are directed toward thee only.
8 And the Lord heard the prayer
of Isaac the son of Abraham, and the Lord was entreated of him and Rebecca his
wife conceived.
9 And in about seven months
after the children struggled together within her, and it pained her greatly
that she was wearied on account of them, and she said to all the women who were
then in the land, Did such a thing happen to you as it has to me? and they said unto her, No.
10 And she said unto them, Why am I alone in this amongst all the women that were upon
earth? and she went to the land of Moriah to seek the Lord on account of this;
and she went to Shem and Eber his son to make inquiries of them in this matter,
and that they should seek the Lord in this thing respecting her.
11 And she also asked Abraham
to seek and inquire of the Lord about all that had befallen her.
12 And they all inquired of the
Lord concerning this matter, and they brought her word from the Lord and told
her, Two children are in thy womb, and two nations shall rise from them; and
one nation shall be stronger than the other, and the greater shall serve the
younger.
13 And when her days to be
delivered were completed, she knelt down, and behold there were twins in her
womb, as the Lord had spoken to her.
14 And the first came out red
all over like a hairy garment, and all the people of the land called his name
Esau, saying, That this one was made complete from the
womb.
15 And after that came his brother, and his hand took hold of Esau's heel,
therefore they called his name Jacob.
16 And Isaac, the son of
Abraham, was sixty years old when he begat them.
17 And the boys grew up to
their fifteenth year, and they came amongst the society of men. Esau was a
designing and deceitful man, and an expert hunter in the field, and Jacob was a
man perfect and wise, dwelling in tents, feeding flocks and learning the
instructions of the Lord and the commands of his father and mother.
18 And Isaac and the children
of his household dwelt with his father Abraham in the land of Canaan, as God
had commanded them.
19 And Ishmael the son of
Abraham went with his children and all belonging to them, and they returned
there to the land of Havilah, and they dwelt there.
20 And all the children of
Abraham's concubines went to dwell in the land of the east, for Abraham had
sent them away from his son, and had given them presents, and they went away.
21 And Abraham gave all that he
had to his son Isaac, and he also gave him all his treasures.
22 And he commanded him saying,
Dost thou not know and understand the Lord is God in
heaven and in earth, and there is no other beside him?
23 And it was he who took me
from my father's house, and from my birth place, and gave me all the delights
upon earth; who delivered me from the counsel of the wicked, for in him did I
trust.
24 And he brought me to this
place, and he delivered me from Ur Casdim; and he said unto me, To thy seed
will I give all these lands, and they shall inherit them when they keep my
commandments, my statutes and my judgments that I have commanded thee, and
which I shall command them.
25 Now therefore my son,
hearken to my voice, and keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, which I
commanded thee, do not turn from the right way either to the right or to the
left, in order that it may be well with thee and thy children after thee
forever.
26 And remember the wonderful
works of the Lord, and his kindness that he has shown toward us, in having
delivered us from the hands of our enemies, and the Lord our God caused them to
fall into our hands; and now therefore keep all that I have commanded thee, and
turn not away from the commandments of thy God, and serve none beside him, in
order that it may be well with thee and thy seed after thee.
27 And teach thou thy children
and thy seed the instructions of the Lord and his commandments, and teach them
the upright way in which they should go, in order that it may be well with them
forever.
28 And Isaac answered his father
and said unto him, That which my Lord has commanded that will I do, and I will
not depart from the commands of the Lord my God, I will keep all that he
commanded me; and Abraham blessed his son Isaac, and also his children; and
Abraham taught Jacob the instruction of the Lord and his ways.
29 And it was at that time that
Abraham died, in the fifteenth year of the life of Jacob and Esau, the sons of
Isaac, and all the days of Abraham were one hundred and seventy-five years, and
he died and was gathered to his people in good old age, old and satisfied with
days, and Isaac and Ishmael his sons buried him.
30 And when the inhabitants of
Canaan heard that Abraham was dead, they all came with their kings and princes
and all their men to bury Abraham.
31 And all the inhabitants of
the land of Haran, and all the families of the house of Abraham, and all the
princes and grandees, and the sons of Abraham by the concubines, all came when
they heard of Abraham's death, and they requited Abraham's kindness, and comforted
Isaac his son, and they buried Abraham in the cave which he bought from Ephron
the Hittite and his children, for the possession of a burial place.
32 And all the inhabitants of
Canaan, and all those who had known Abraham, wept for Abraham a whole year, and
men and women mourned over him.
33 And all the little children, and all the inhabitants of the land wept on
account of Abraham, for Abraham had been good to them all, and because he had
been upright with God and men.
34 And there arose not a man who
feared God like unto Abraham, for he had feared his God from his youth, and had
served the Lord, and had gone in all his ways during his life, from his
childhood to the day of his death.
35 And the Lord was with him
and delivered him from the counsel of Nimrod and his people, and when he made
war with the four kings of Elam he conquered them.
36 And he brought all the
children of the earth to the service of God, and he taught them the ways of the
Lord, and caused them to know the Lord.
37 And he formed a grove and he
planted a vineyard therein, and he had always prepared in his tent meat and
drink to those that passed through the land, that they might satisfy themselves
in his house.
38 And the Lord God delivered
the whole earth on account of Abraham.
39 And it was after the death
of Abraham that God blessed his son Isaac and his children, and the Lord was
with Isaac as he had been with his father Abraham, for Isaac kept all the
commandments of the Lord as Abraham his father had commanded him; he did not turn
to the right or to the left from the right path which his father had commanded
him.
1 And Esau at that time, after
the death of Abraham, frequently went in the field to hunt.
2 And Nimrod king of Babel, the
same was Amraphel, also frequently went with his mighty men to hunt in the
field, and to walk about with his men in the cool of the day.
3 And Nimrod was observing Esau
all the days, for a jealousy was formed in the heart of Nimrod against Esau all
the days.
4 And on a certain day Esau went
in the field to hunt, and he found Nimrod walking in the wilderness with his
two men.
5 And all his mighty men and
his people were with him in the wilderness, but they removed at a distance from
him, and they went from him in different directions to hunt, and Esau concealed
himself for Nimrod, and he lurked for him in the wilderness.
6 And Nimrod and his men that
were with him did not know him, and Nimrod and his men frequently walked about
in the field at the cool of the day, and to know where his men were hunting in
the field.
7 And Nimrod and two of his men
that were with him came to the place where they were, when Esau started
suddenly from his lurking place, and drew his sword, and hastened and ran to
Nimrod and cut off his head.
8 And Esau fought a desperate
fight with the two men that were with Nimrod, and when they called out to him,
Esau turned to them and smote them to death with his sword.
9 And all the mighty men of
Nimrod, who had left him to go to the wilderness, heard the cry at a distance,
and they knew the voices of those two men, and they ran to know the cause of
it, when they found their king and the two men that were with him lying dead in
the wilderness.
10 And when Esau saw the mighty
men of Nimrod coming at a distance, he fled, and thereby escaped; and Esau took
the valuable garments of Nimrod, which Nimrod's father had bequeathed to
Nimrod, and with which Nimrod prevailed over the whole
land, and he ran and concealed them in his house.
11 And Esau took those garments
and ran into the city on account of Nimrod's men, and he came unto his father's
house wearied and exhausted from fight, and he was ready to die through grief
when he approached his brother Jacob and sat before him.
12 And he said unto his brother
Jacob, Behold I shall die this day, and wherefore then do I want the
birthright? And Jacob acted wisely with Esau in this matter, and Esau sold his
birthright to Jacob, for it was so brought about by the Lord.
13 And Esau's portion in the
cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham had bought from the children of
Heth for the possession of a burial ground, Esau also sold to Jacob, and Jacob
bought all this from his brother Esau for value given.
14 And Jacob wrote the whole of
this in a book, and he testified the same with witnesses, and he sealed it, and
the book remained in the hands of Jacob.
15 And when Nimrod the son of
Cush died, his men lifted him up and brought him in consternation, and buried
him in his city, and all the days that Nimrod lived were two hundred and
fifteen years and he died.
16 And the days that Nimrod
reigned upon the people of the land were one hundred and eighty-five years; and
Nimrod died by the sword of Esau in shame and contempt, and the seed of Abraham
caused his death as he had seen in his dream.
17 And at the death of Nimrod
his kingdom became divided into many divisions, and all those parts that Nimrod
reigned over were restored to the respective kings of the land, who recovered
them after the death of Nimrod, and all the people of the house of Nimrod were
for a long time enslaved to all the other kings of the land.
1 And in those days, after the
death of Abraham, in that year the Lord brought a heavy famine in the land, and
whilst the famine was raging in the land of Canaan, Isaac rose up to go down to
Egypt on account of the famine, as his father Abraham had done.
2 And the Lord appeared that
night to Isaac and he said to him, Do not go down to Egypt but rise and go to
Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines, and remain there till the famine
shall cease.
3 And Isaac rose up and went to
Gerar, as the Lord commanded him, and he remained there a full year.
4 And when Isaac came to Gerar,
the people of the land saw that Rebecca his wife was of a beautiful appearance,
and the people of Gerar asked Isaac concerning his wife, and he said, She is my
sister, for he was afraid to say she was his wife lest the people of the land
should slay him on account of her.
5 And the princes of Abimelech
went and praised the woman to the king, but he answered them not, neither did
he attend to their words.
6 But he heard them say that
Isaac declared her to be his sister, so the king reserved this within himself.
7 And when Isaac had remained
three months in the land, Abimelech looked out at the window, and he saw, and
behold Isaac was sporting with Rebecca his wife, for Isaac dwelt in the outer
house belonging to the king, so that the house of Isaac was opposite the house
of the king.
8 And the king said unto Isaac,
What is this thou hast done to us in saying of thy wife, She
is my sister? how easily might one of the great men of
the people have lain with her, and thou wouldst then have brought guilt upon
us.
9 And Isaac said unto
Abimelech, Because I was afraid lest I die on account of my wife, therefore I said,
She is my sister.
10 At that time Abimelech gave
orders to all his princes and great men, and they took Isaac and Rebecca his
wife and brought them before the king.
11 And the king commanded that
they should dress them in princely garments, and make them ride through the
streets of the city, and proclaim before them throughout the land, saying, This is the man and this is his wife; whoever toucheth this
man or his wife shall surely die. And Isaac returned with his wife to the
king's house, and the Lord was with Isaac and he continued to wax great and
lacked nothing.
12 And the Lord caused Isaac to
find favor in the sight of Abimelech, and in the sight of all his subjects, and
Abimelech acted well with Isaac, for Abimelech remembered the oath and the covenant
that existed between his father and Abraham.
13 And Abimelech said unto
Isaac, Behold the whole earth is before thee; dwell wherever it may seem good
in thy sight until thou shalt return to thy land; and Abimelech gave Isaac
fields and vineyards and the best part of the land of Gerar, to sow and reap
and eat the fruits of the ground until the days of the famine should have
passed by.
14 And Isaac sowed in that
land, and received a hundred-fold in the same year, and the Lord blessed him.
15 And the man waxed great, and
he had possession of flocks and possession of herds and great store of
servants.
16 And when the days of the
famine had passed away the Lord appeared to Isaac and said unto him, Rise up,
go forth from this place and return to thy land, to the land of Canaan; and
Isaac rose up and returned to Hebron which is in the land of Canaan, he and all
belonging to him as the Lord commanded him.
17 And after this Shelach the
son at Arpachshad died in that year, which is the eighteenth year of the lives
of Jacob and Esau; and all the days that Shelach lived were four hundred and
thirty-three years and he died.
18 At that time Isaac sent his
younger son Jacob to the house of Shem and Eber, and he learned the
instructions of the Lord, and Jacob remained in the house of Shem and Eber for
thirty-two years, and Esau his brother did not go, for he was not willing to
go, and he remained in his father's house in the land of Canaan.
19 And Esau was continually
hunting in the fields to bring home what he could get, so did Esau all the
days.
20 And Esau was a designing and
deceitful man, one who hunted after the hearts of men and inveigled them, and
Esau was a valiant man in the field, and in the course of time went as usual to
hunt; and he came as far as the field of Seir, the same is Edom.
21 And he remained in the land
of Seir hunting in the field a year and four months.
22 And Esau there saw in the
land of Seir the daughter of a man of Canaan, and her name was Jehudith, the
daughter of Beeri, son of Epher, from the families of Heth the son of Canaan.
23 And Esau took her for a
wife, and he came unto her; forty years old was Esau when he took her, and he
brought her to Hebron, the land of his father's dwelling place, and he dwelt
there.
24 And it came to pass in those
days, in the hundred and tenth year of the life of Isaac,
that is in the fiftieth year of the life of Jacob, in that year died
Shem the son of Noah; Shem was six hundred years old at his death.
25 And when Shem died Jacob
returned to his father to Hebron which is in the land of Canaan.
26 And in the fifty-sixth year
of the life of Jacob, people came from Haran, and Rebecca was told concerning
her brother Laban the son of Bethuel.
27 For the wife of Laban was
barren in those days, and bare no children, and also all his handmaids bare
none to him.
28 And the Lord afterward
remembered Adinah the wife of Laban, and she conceived and bare twin daughters,
and Laban called the names of his daughters, the name of the elder Leah, and
the name of the younger Rachel.
29 And those people came and
told these things to Rebecca, and Rebecca rejoiced greatly that the Lord had
visited her brother and that he had got children.
1 And Isaac the son of Abraham
became old and advanced in days, and his eyes became heavy through age; they
were dim and could not see.
2 At that time Isaac called
unto Esau his son, saying, Get I pray thee thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow,
rise up and go forth into the field and get me some venison, and make me savory
meat and bring it to me, that I may eat in order that I may bless thee before
my death, as I have now become old and gray-headed.
3 And Esau did so; and he took
his weapon and went forth into the field to hunt for venison, as usual, to
bring to his father as he had ordered him, so that he might bless him.
4 And Rebecca heard all the
words that Isaac had spoken unto Esau, and she hastened and called her son
Jacob, saying, Thus did thy father speak unto thy
brother Esau, and thus did I hear, now therefore hasten thou and make that
which I shall tell thee.
5 Rise up and go, I pray thee,
to the flock and fetch me two fine kids of the goats, and I will get the savory
meat for thy father, and thou shalt bring the savory meat that he may eat
before thy brother shall have come from the chase, in order that thy father may
bless thee.
6 And Jacob hastened and did as
his mother had commanded him, and he made the savory meat and brought it before
his father before Esau had come from his chase.
7 And Isaac said unto Jacob,
Who art thou, my son? And he said, I am thy first born Esau, I have done as
thou didst order me, now therefore rise up I pray thee, and eat of my hunt, in
order that thy soul may bless me as thou didst speak unto me.
8 And Isaac rose up and he ate
and he drank, and his heart was comforted, and he blessed Jacob and Jacob went
away from his father; and as soon as Isaac had blessed Jacob and he had gone
away from him, behold Esau came from his hunt from the field, and he also made
savory meat and brought it to his father to eat thereof and to bless him.
9 And Isaac said unto Esau, And who was he that has taken venison and brought it me
before thou camest and whom I did bless? And Esau knew that his brother Jacob
had done this, and the anger of Esau was kindled against his brother Jacob that
he had acted thus toward him.
10 And Esau said, Is he not rightly called Jacob? for he has supplanted me
twice, he took away my birthright and now he has taken away my blessing; and
Esau wept greatly; and when Isaac heard the voice of his son Esau weeping,
Isaac said unto Esau, What can I do, my son, thy brother came with subtlety and
took away thy blessing; and Esau hated his brother Jacob on account of the
blessing that his father had given him, and his anger was greatly roused against
him.
11 And Jacob was very much
afraid of his brother Esau, and he rose up and fled to the house of Eber the
son of Shem, and he concealed himself there on account of his brother, and
Jacob was sixty-three years old when he went forth from the land of Canaan from
Hebron, and Jacob was concealed in Eber's house fourteen years on account of
his brother Esau, and he there continued to learn the ways of the Lord and his
commandments.
12 And when Esau saw that Jacob
had fled and escaped from him, and that Jacob had cunningly obtained the
blessing, then Esau grieved exceedingly, and he was also vexed at his father
and mother; and he also rose up and took his wife and went away from his father
and mother to the land of Seir, and he dwelt there; and Esau saw there a woman
from amongst the daughters of Heth whose name was Bosmath, the daughter of Elon
the Hittite, and he took her for a wife in addition to his first wife, and Esau
called her name Adah, saying the blessing had in that time passed from him.
13 And Esau dwelt in the land
of Seir six months without seeing his father and mother, and afterward Esau
took his wives and rose up and returned to the land of Canaan, and Esau placed
his two wives in his father's house in Hebron.
14 And the wives of Esau vexed
and provoked Isaac and Rebecca with their works, for they walked not in the
ways of the Lord, but served their father's gods of wood and stone as their
father had taught them, and they were more wicked than
their father.
15 And they went according to
the evil desires of their hearts, and they sacrificed and burnt incense to the
Baalim, and Isaac and Rebecca became weary of them.
16 And Rebecca said, I am weary
of my life because of the daughters of Heth; if Jacob take
a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these which are of the daughters of
the land, what good then is life unto me?
17 And in those days Adah the
wife of Esau conceived and bare him a son, and Esau called the name of the son
that was born unto him Eliphaz, and Esau was sixty-five years old when she bare
him.
18 And Ishmael the son of
Abraham died in those days, in the sixty-forth year of the life of Jacob, and
all the days that Ishmael lived were one hundred and thirty-seven years and he
died.
19 And when Isaac heard that
Ishmael was dead he mourned for him, and Isaac lamented over him many days.
20 And at the end of fourteen
years of Jacob's residing in the house of Eber, Jacob desired to see his father
and mother, and Jacob came to the house of his father and mother to Hebron, and
Esau had in those days forgotten what Jacob had done to him in having taken the
blessing from him in those days.
21 And when Esau saw Jacob
coming to his father and mother he remembered what Jacob had done to him, and
he was greatly incensed against him and he sought to slay him.
22 And Isaac the son of Abraham
was old and advanced in days, and Esau said, Now my father's time is drawing
nigh that he must die, and when he shall die I will slay my brother Jacob.
23 And this was told to
Rebecca, and she hastened and sent and called for Jacob her son, and she said
unto him, Arise, go and flee to Haran to my brother Laban, and remain there for
some time, until thy brother's anger be turned from thee and then shalt thou
come back.
24 And Isaac called unto Jacob
and said unto him, Take not a wife from the daughters of Canaan, for thus did
our father Abraham command us according to the word of the Lord which he had
commanded him, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; if thy children
keep my covenant that I have made with thee, then will I also perform to thy
children that which I have spoken unto thee and I will not forsake them.
25 Now therefore my son hearken
to my voice, to all that I shall command thee, and refrain from taking a wife
from amongst the daughters of Canaan; arise, go to Haran to the house of
Bethuel thy mother's father, and take unto thee a wife from there from the
daughters of Laban thy mother's brother.
26 Therefore take heed lest
thou shouldst forget the Lord thy God and all his ways in the land to which thou
goest, and shouldst get connected with the people of the land and pursue vanity
and forsake the Lord thy God.
27 But when thou comest to the
land serve there the Lord, do not turn to the right or to the left from the way
which I commanded thee and which thou didst learn.
28 And may the Almighty God
grant thee favor in the sight of the people of the earth, that thou mayest take
there a wife according to thy choice; one who is good and upright in the ways
of the Lord.
29 And may God give unto thee
and thy seed the blessing of thy father Abraham, and make thee fruitful and
multiply thee, and mayest thou become a multitude of people in the land whither
thou goest, and may God cause thee to return to this land, the land of thy
father's dwelling, with children and with great riches, with joy and with
pleasure.
30 And Isaac finished
commanding Jacob and blessing him, and he gave him many gifts, together with
silver and gold, and he sent him away; and Jacob hearkened to his father and
mother; he kissed them and arose and went to Padan-aram; and Jacob was
seventy-seven years old when he went out from the land of Canaan from
Beersheba.
31 And when Jacob went away to
go to Haran Esau called unto his son Eliphaz, and secretly spoke unto him,
saying, Now hasten, take thy sword in thy hand and pursue Jacob and pass before
him in the road, and lurk for him, and slay him with thy sword in one of the
mountains, and take all belonging to him and come back.
32 And Eliphaz the son of Esau
was an active man and expert with the bow as his father had taught him, and he
was a noted hunter in the field and a valiant man.
33 And Eliphaz did as his
father had commanded him, and Eliphaz was at that time thirteen years old, and
Eliphaz rose up and went and took ten of his mother's brothers with him and
pursued Jacob.
34 And he closely followed
Jacob, and he lurked for him in the border of the land of Canaan opposite to
the city of Shechem.
35 And Jacob saw Eliphaz and
his men pursuing him, and Jacob stood still in the place in which he was going,
in order to know what this was, for he did not know the thing; and Eliphaz drew
his sword and he went on advancing, he and his men, toward Jacob; and Jacob
said unto them, What is to do with you that you have come hither, and what
meaneth it that you pursue with your swords.
36 And Eliphaz came near to
Jacob and he answered and said unto him, Thus did my father command me, and now
therefore I will not deviate from the orders which my father gave me; and when
Jacob saw that Esau had spoken to Eliphaz to employ force, Jacob then
approached and supplicated Eliphaz and his men, saying to him,
37 Behold all that I have and
which my father and mother gave unto me, that take unto thee and go from me,
and do not slay me, and may this thing be accounted unto thee a righteousness.
38 And the Lord caused Jacob to
find favor in the sight of Eliphaz the son of Esau, and his men, and they
hearkened to the voice of Jacob, and they did not put him to death, and Eliphaz
and his men took all belonging to Jacob together with the silver and gold that
he had brought with him from Beersheba; they left him nothing.
39 And Eliphaz and his men went
away from him and they returned to Esau to Beersheba, and they told him all
that had occurred to them with Jacob, and they gave him all that they had taken
from Jacob.
40 And Esau was indignant at
Eliphaz his son, and at his men that were with him, because they had not put
Jacob to death.
41 And they answered and said
unto Esau, Because Jacob supplicated us in this matter not to slay him, our
pity was excited toward him, and we took all belonging to him and brought it
unto thee; and Esau took all the silver and gold which Eliphaz had taken from
Jacob and he put them by in his house.
42 At that time when Esau saw
that Isaac had blessed Jacob, and had commanded him, saying, Thou shalt not
take a wife from amongst the daughters of Canaan, and that the daughters of
Canaan were bad in the sight of Isaac and Rebecca,
43 Then he went to the house of
Ishmael his uncle, and in addition to his older wives he took Machlath the
daughter of Ishmael, the sister of Nebayoth, for a wife.
1 And Jacob went forth
continuing his road to Haran, and he came as far as mount Moriah, and he
tarried there all night near the city of Luz; and the Lord appeared there unto
Jacob on that night, and he said unto him, I am the Lord God of Abraham and the
God of Isaac thy father; the land upon which thou liest I will give unto thee
and thy seed.
2 And behold I am with thee and
will keep thee wherever thou goest, and I will multiply thy seed as the stars
of Heaven, and I will cause all thine enemies to fall before thee; and when
they shall make war with thee they shall not prevail over thee, and I will
bring thee again unto this land with joy, with children, and with great riches.
3 And Jacob awoke from his
sleep and he rejoiced greatly at the vision which he had seen; and he called
the name of that place Bethel.
4 And Jacob rose up from that
place quite rejoiced, and when he walked his feet felt light to him for joy,
and he went from there to the land of the children of the East, and he returned
to Haran and he set by the shepherd's well.
5 And he there found some men;
going from Haran to feed their flocks, and Jacob made inquiries of them, and
they said, We are from Haran.
6 And he said unto them, Do you know Laban, the son of Nahor? and
they said, We know him, and behold his daughter Rachel is coming along to feed
her father's flock.
7 Whilst he was yet speaking
with them, Rachel the daughter of Laban came to feed her father's sheep, for
she was a shepherdess.
8 And when Jacob saw Rachel,
the daughter of Laban, his mother's brother, he ran and kissed her, and lifted
up his voice and wept.
9 And Jacob told Rachel that he
was the son of Rebecca, her father's sister, and Rachel ran and told her
father, and Jacob continued to cry because he had nothing with him to bring to
the house of Laban.
10 And when Laban heard that
his sister's son Jacob had come, he ran and kissed him and embraced him and
brought him into the house and gave him bread, and he ate.
11 And Jacob related to Laban
what his brother Esau had done to him, and what his
son Eliphaz had done to him in the road.
12 And Jacob resided in Laban's
house for one month, and Jacob ate and drank in the house of Laban, and
afterward Laban said unto Jacob, Tell me what shall be thy wages, for how canst
thou serve me for nought?
13 And Laban had no sons but
only daughters, and his other wives and handmaids were still barren in those
days; and these are the names of Laban's daughters which his wife Adinah had
borne unto him; the name of the elder was Leah and the name of the younger was
Rachel; and Leah was tender-eyed, but Rachel was beautiful and well favored,
and Jacob loved her.
14 And Jacob said unto Laban, I
will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter; and Laban
consented to this and Jacob served Laban seven years for his daughter Rachel.
15 And in the second year of
Jacob's dwelling in Haran, that is in the seventy ninth year of the life of
Jacob, in that year died Eber the son of Shem, he was
four hundred and sixty-four years old at his death.
16 And when Jacob heard that
Eber was dead he grieved exceedingly, and he lamented and mourned over him many
days.
17 And in the third year of
Jacob's dwelling in Haran, Bosmath, the daughter of Ishmael, the wife of Esau,
bare unto him a son, and Esau called his name Reuel.
18 And in the fourth year of
Jacob's residence in the house of Laban, the Lord visited Laban and remembered
him on account of Jacob, and sons were born unto him, and his first born was
Beor, his second was Alib, and the third was Chorash.
19 And the Lord gave Laban
riches and honor, sons and daughters, and the man increased greatly on account
of Jacob.
20 And Jacob in those days
served Laban in all manner of work, in the house and in the field, and the
blessing of the Lord was in all that belonged to Laban in the house and in the
field.
21 And in the fifth year died
Jehudith, the daughter of Beeri, the wife of Esau, in the land of Canaan, and
she had no sons but daughters only.
22 And these are the names of
her daughters which she bare to Esau, the name of the elder was Marzith, and
the name of the younger was Puith.
23 And when Jehudith died, Esau
rose up and went to Seir to hunt in the field, as usual, and Esau dwelt in the
land of Seir for a long time.
24 And in the sixth year Esau
took for a wife, in addition to his other wives, Ahlibamah, the daughter of
Zebeon the Hivite, and Esau brought her to the land of
Canaan.
25 And Ahlibamah conceived and
bare unto Esau three sons, Yeush, Yaalan, and Korah.
26 And in those days, in the
land of Canaan, there was a quarrel between the herdsmen of Esau and the
herdsmen of the inhabitants of the land of Canaan, for Esau's cattle and goods
were too abundant for him to remain in the land of Canaan, in his father's
house, and the land of Canaan could not bear him on account of his cattle.
27 And when Esau saw that his
quarreling increased with the inhabitants of the land of Canaan, he rose up and
took his wives and his sons and his daughters, and all belonging to him, and
the cattle which he possessed, and all his property that he had acquired in the
land of Canaan, and he went away from the inhabitants of the land to the land
of Seir, and Esau and all belonging to him dwelt in the land of Seir.
28 But from time to time Esau
would go and see his father and mother in the land of Canaan, and Esau
intermarried with the Horites, and he gave his daughters to the sons of Seir,
the Horite.
29 And he gave his elder
daughter Marzith to Anah, the son of Zebeon, his wife's brother, and Puith he
gave to Azar, the son of Bilhan the Horite; and Esau dwelt in the mountain, he
and his children, and they were fruitful and multiplied.
1 And in the seventh year,
Jacob's service which he served Laban was completed, and Jacob said unto Laban,
Give me my wife, for the days of my service are fulfilled; and Laban did so,
and Laban and Jacob assembled all the people of that place and they made a
feast.
2 And in the evening Laban came
to the house, and afterward Jacob came there with the people of the feast, and
Laban extinguished all the lights that were there in the house.
3 And Jacob said unto Laban,
Wherefore dost thou do this thing unto us? and Laban
answered, Such is our custom to act in this land.
4 And afterward Laban took his
daughter Leah, and he brought her to Jacob, and he came to her and Jacob did
not know that she was Leah.
5 And Laban gave his daughter
Leah his maid Zilpah for a handmaid.
6 And all the people at the
feast knew what Laban had done to Jacob, but they did not tell the thing to
Jacob.
7 And all the neighbors came
that night to Jacob's house, and they ate and drank and rejoiced, and played
before Leah upon timbrels, and with dances, and they responded before Jacob,
Heleah, Heleah.
8 And Jacob heard their words
but did not understand their meaning, but he thought such might be their custom
in this land.
9 And the neighbors spoke these
words before Jacob during the night, and all the lights that were in the house
Laban had that night extinguished.
10 And in the morning, when
daylight appeared, Jacob turned to his wife and he saw, and behold it was Leah
that had been lying in his bosom, and Jacob said, Behold now I know what the
neighbors said last night, Heleah, they said, and I knew it not.
11 And Jacob called unto Laban,
and said unto him, What is this that thou didst unto
me? Surely I served thee for Rachel, and why didst thou deceive me and didst
give me Leah?
12 And Laban answered Jacob,
saying, Not so is it done in our place to give the younger before the elder now
therefore if thou desirest to take her sister likewise, take her unto thee for
the service which thou wilt serve me for another seven years.
13 And Jacob did so, and he
also took Rachel for a wife, and he served Laban seven years more, and Jacob
also came to Rachel, and he loved Rachel more than Leah, and Laban gave her his
maid Bilhah for a handmaid.
14 And when the Lord saw that
Leah was hated, the Lord opened her womb, and she conceived and bare Jacob four
sons in those days.
15 And these are their names,
Reuben Simeon, Levi, and Judah, and she afterward left bearing.
16 And at that time Rachel was
barren, and she had no offspring, and Rachel envied her sister Leah, and when
Rachel saw that she bare no children to Jacob, she took her handmaid Bilhah,
and she bare Jacob two sons, Dan and Naphtali.
17 And when Leah saw that she
had left bearing, she also took her handmaid Zilpah, and she gave her to Jacob
for a wife, and Jacob also came to Zilpah, and she also bare Jacob two sons,
Gad and Asher.
18 And Leah again conceived and
bare Jacob in those days two sons and one daughter,
and these are their names, Issachar, Zebulon, and their sister Dinah.
19 And Rachel was still barren
in those days, and Rachel prayed unto the Lord at that time, and she said, O
Lord God remember me and visit me, I beseech thee, for now my husband will cast
me off, for I have borne him no children.
20 Now O Lord God, hear my
supplication before thee, and see my affliction, and give me children like one
of the handmaids, that I may no more bear my reproach.
21 And God heard her and opened
her womb, and Rachel conceived and bare a son, and she said, The Lord has taken
away my reproach, and she called his name Joseph, saying, May the Lord add to
me another son; and Jacob was ninety-one years old when she bare him.
22 At that time Jacob's mother,
Rebecca, sent her nurse Deborah the daughter of Uz, and two of Isaac's servants
unto Jacob.
23 And they came to Jacob to
Haran and they said unto him, Rebecca has sent us to thee that thou shalt
return to thy father's house to the land of Canaan; and Jacob hearkened unto
them in this which his mother had spoken.
24 At that time, the other
seven years which Jacob served Laban for Rachel were completed, and it was at
the end of fourteen years that he had dwelt in Haran that Jacob said unto
Laban, give me my wives and send me away, that I may go to my land, for behold
my mother did send unto me from the land at Canaan that I should return to my
father's house.
25 And Laban said unto him, Not so I pray thee; if I have found favor in thy sight do
not leave me; appoint me thy wages and I will give them, and remain with me.
26 And Jacob said unto him,
This is what thou shalt give me for wages, that I shall this day pass through
all thy flock and take away from them every lamb that is speckled and spotted
and such as are brown amongst the sheep, and amongst the goats, and if thou
wilt do this thing for me I will return and feed thy flock and keep them as at
first.
27 And Laban did so, and Laban
removed from his flock all that Jacob had said and gave them to him.
28 And Jacob placed all that he
had removed from Laban's flock in the hands of his sons, and Jacob was feeding
the remainder of Laban's flock.
29 And when the servants of
Isaac which he had sent unto Jacob saw that Jacob
would not then return with them to the land of Canaan to his father, they then
went away from him, and they returned home to the land of Canaan.
30 And Deborah remained with
Jacob in Haran, and she did not return with the servants of Isaac to the land
of Canaan, and Deborah resided with Jacob's wives and children in Haran.
31 And Jacob served Laban six
years longer, and when the sheep brought forth, Jacob removed from them such as
were speckled and spotted, as he had determined with Laban, and Jacob did so at
Laban's for six years, and the man increased abundantly and he had cattle and
maid servants and men servants, camels, and asses.
32 And Jacob had two hundred
drove of cattle, and his cattle were of large size and of beautiful appearance
and were very productive, and all the families of the sons of men desired to
get some of the cattle of Jacob, for they were exceedingly prosperous.
33 And many of the sons of men
came to procure some of Jacob's flock, and Jacob gave them a sheep for a man
servant or a maid servant or for an ass or a camel, or whatever Jacob desired
from them they gave him.
34 And Jacob obtained riches
and honor and possessions by means of these transactions with the sons of men,
and the children of Laban envied him of this honor.
35 And in the course of time he
heard the words of Laban's sons, saying, Jacob has taken away all that was our father's, and of that which was our father's has he acquired
all this glory.
36 And Jacob beheld the
countenance of Laban and of his children, and behold it was not toward him in
those days as it had been before.
37 And the Lord appeared to
Jacob at the expiration of the six years, and said unto him, Arise, go forth
out of this land, and return to the land of thy birthplace and I will be with
thee.
38 And Jacob rose up at that
time and he mounted his children and wives and all belonging to him upon
camels, and he went forth to go to the land of Canaan to his father Isaac.
39 And Laban did not know that
Jacob had gone from him, for Laban had been that day sheep-shearing.
40 And Rachel stole her
father's images, and she took them and she concealed them upon the camel upon
which she sat, and she went on.
41 And this is the manner of
the images; in taking a man who is the first born and slaying him and taking
the hair off his head, and taking salt and salting the head and anointing it in
oil, then taking a small tablet of copper or a tablet of gold and writing the
name upon it, and placing the tablet under his tongue, and taking the head with
the tablet under the tongue and putting it in the house, and lighting up lights
before it and bowing down to it.
42 And at the time when they
bow down to it, it speaketh to them in all matters that they ask of it, through
the power of the name which is written in it.
43 And some make them in the
figures of men, of gold and silver, and go to them in times known to them, and
the figures receive the influence of the stars, and tell them future things,
and in this manner were the images which Rachel stole from her father.
44 And Rachel stole these
images which were her father's, in order that Laban might not know through them
where Jacob had gone.
45 And Laban came home and he
asked concerning Jacob and his household, and he was not to be found, and Laban
sought his images to know where Jacob had gone, and could not find them, and he
went to some other images, and he inquired of them and they told him that Jacob
had fled from him to his father's, to the land of Canaan.
46 And Laban then rose up and
he took his brothers and all his servants, and he went forth and pursued Jacob,
and he overtook him in mount Gilead.
47 And Laban said unto Jacob,
What is this thou hast done to me to flee and deceive me, and lead my daughters
and their children as captives taken by the sword?
48 And thou didst not suffer me
to kiss them and send them away with joy, and thou didst steal my gods and
didst go away.
49 And Jacob answered Laban,
saying, Because I was afraid lest thou wouldst take
thy daughters by force from me; and now with whomsoever thou findest thy gods
he shall die.
50 And Laban searched for the
images and he examined in all Jacob's tents and furniture, but could not find
them.
51 And Laban said unto Jacob,
We will make a covenant together and it shall be a testimony between me and
thee; if thou shalt afflict my daughters, or shalt take other wives besides my
daughters, even God shall be a witness between me and thee in this matter.
52 And they took stones and
made a heap, and Laban said, This heap is a witness
between me and thee, therefore he called the name thereof Gilead.
53 And Jacob and Laban offered
sacrifice upon the mount, and they ate there by the heap, and they tarried in
the mount all night, and Laban rose up early in the morning, and he wept with
his daughters and he kissed them, and he returned unto his place.
54 And he hastened and sent off
his son Beor, who was seventeen years old, with Abichorof the son of Uz, the
son of Nahor, and with them were ten men.
55 And they hastened and went
and passed on the road before Jacob, and they came by another road to the land
of Seir.
56 And they came unto Esau and
said unto him, Thus saith thy brother and relative,
thy mother's brother Laban, the son of Bethuel, saying,
57 Hast thou heard what Jacob
thy brother has done unto me, who first came to me naked and bare, and I went
to meet him, and brought him to my house with honor, and I made him great, and
I gave him my two daughters for wives and also two of my maids.
58 And God blessed him on my
account, and he increased abundantly, and had sons, daughters and maid
servants.
59 He has also an immense stock
of flocks and herds, camels and asses, also silver and gold in abundance; and
when he saw that his wealth increased, he left me whilst I went to shear my
sheep, and he rose up and fled in secrecy.
60 And he lifted his wives and
children upon camels, and he led away all his cattle and property which he
acquired in my land, and he lifted up his countenance to go to his father
Isaac, to the land of Canaan.
61 And he did not suffer me to
kiss my daughters and their children, and he led my daughters as captives taken
by the sword, and he also stole my gods and he fled.
62 And now I have left him in
the mountain of the brook of Jabuk, him and all belonging to him; he lacketh
nothing.
63 If it be thy wish to go to
him, go then and there wilt thou find him, and thou canst do unto him as thy
soul desireth; and Laban's messengers came and told Esau all these things.
64 And Esau heard all the words
of Laban's messengers, and his anger was greatly kindled against Jacob, and he
remembered his hatred, and his anger burned within him.
65 And Esau hastened and took
his children and servants and the souls of his household, being sixty men, and
he went and assembled all the children of Seir the Horite and their people,
being three hundred and forty men, and took all this number of four hundred men
with drawn swords, and he went unto Jacob to smite him.
66 And Esau divided this number
into several parts, and he took the sixty men of his children and servants and
the souls of his household as one head, and gave them in care of Eliphaz his
eldest son.
67 And the remaining heads he
gave to the care of the six sons of Seir the Horite, and he placed every man
over his generations and children.
68 And the whole of this camp
went as it was, and Esau went amongst them toward Jacob, and he conducted them
with speed.
69 And Laban's messengers
departed from Esau and went to the land of Canaan, and they came to the house
of Rebecca the mother of Jacob and Esau.
70 And they told her saying,
Behold thy son Esau has gone against his brother Jacob with four hundred men,
for he heard that he was coming, and he is gone to make war with him, and to smite
him and to take all that he has.
71 And Rebecca hastened and
sent seventy two men from the servants of Isaac to meet Jacob on the road; for
she said, Peradventure, Esau may make war in the road when he meets him.
72 And these messengers went on
the road to meet Jacob, and they met him in the road of the brook on the
opposite side of the brook Jabuk, and Jacob said when he saw them, This camp is
destined to me from God, and Jacob called the name of that place Machnayim.
73 And Jacob knew all his father's people, and he kissed them and embraced
them and came with them, and Jacob asked them concerning his father and mother,
and they said, They were well.
74 And these messengers said
unto Jacob, Rebecca thy mother has sent us to thee, saying, I have heard, my
son, that thy brother Esau has gone forth against thee on the road with men
from the children of Seir the Horite.
75 And therefore, my son,
hearken to my voice and see with thy counsel what thou wilt do, and when he
cometh up to thee, supplicate him, and do not speak rashly to him, and give him
a present from what thou possessest, and from what God has favored thee with.
76 And when he asketh thee
concerning thy affairs, conceal nothing from him, perhaps he may turn from his
anger against thee and thou wilt thereby save thy soul, thou and all belonging
to thee, for it is thy duty to honor him, for he is thy elder brother.
77 And when Jacob heard the
words of his mother which the messengers had spoken to him, Jacob lifted up his
voice and wept bitterly, and did as his mother then commanded him.
1 And at that time Jacob sent
messengers to his brother Esau toward the land of Seir, and he spoke to him
words of supplication.
2 And he commanded them,
saying, Thus shall ye say to my lord, to Esau, Thus saith thy servant Jacob,
Let not my lord imagine that my father's blessing with which he did bless me
has proved beneficial to me.
3 For I have been these twenty
years with Laban, and he deceived me and changed my wages ten times, as it has
all been already told unto my lord.
4 And I served him in his house
very laboriously, and God afterward saw my affliction, my labor and the work of
my hands, and he caused me to find grace and favor in his sight.
5 And I afterward through God's
great mercy and kindness acquired oxen and asses and cattle, and men servants
and maid servants.
6 And now I am coming to my
land and my home to my father and mother, who are in the land of Canaan; and I
have sent to let my lord know all this in order to find favor in the sight of
my lord, so that he may not imagine that I have of myself obtained wealth, or
that the blessing with which my father blessed me has benefited me.
7 And those messengers went to
Esau, and found him on the borders of the land of Edom going toward Jacob, and
four hundred men of the children of Seir the Horite were standing with drawn
swords.
8 And the messengers of Jacob
told Esau all the words that Jacob had spoken to them concerning Esau.
9 And Esau answered them with
pride and contempt, and said unto them, Surely I have heard and truly it has
been told unto me what Jacob has done to Laban, who exalted him in his house
and gave him his daughters for wives, and he begat sons and daughters, and
abundantly increased in wealth and riches in Laban's house through his means.
10 And when he saw that his
wealth was abundant and his riches great he fled with all belonging to him,
from Laban's house, and he led Laban's daughters away from the face of their
father, as captives taken by the sword without telling him of it.
11 And not only to Laban has
Jacob done thus but also unto me has he done so and has twice supplanted me,
and shall I be silent?
12 Now therefore I have this
day come with my camps to meet him, and I will do unto him according to the
desire of my heart.
13 And the messengers returned
and came to Jacob and said unto him, We came to thy
brother, to Esau, and we told him all thy words, and thus has he answered us,
and behold he cometh to meet thee with four hundred men.
14 Now then know and see what
thou shalt do, and pray before God to deliver thee from him.
15 And when he heard the words
of his brother which he had spoken to the messengers of Jacob, Jacob was
greatly afraid and he was distressed.
16 And Jacob prayed to the Lord
his God, and he said, O Lord God of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac, thou didst
say unto me when I went away from my father's house, saying,
17 I am the Lord God of thy
father Abraham and the God of Isaac, unto thee do I give this land and thy seed
after thee, and I will make thy seed as the stars of heaven, and thou shalt
spread forth to the four sides of heaven, and in thee and in thy seed shall all
the families of the earth be blessed.
18 And thou didst establish thy
words, and didst give unto me riches and children and cattle, as the utmost
wishes of my heart didst thou give unto thy servant; thou didst give unto me
all that I asked from thee, so that I lacked nothing.
19 And thou didst afterward say
unto me, Return to thy parents and to thy birth place and I will still do well
with thee.
20 And now that I have come,
and thou didst deliver me from Laban, I shall fall in the hands of Esau who
will slay me, yea, together with the mothers of my children.
21 Now therefore, O Lord God,
deliver me, I pray thee, also from the hands of my brother Esau, for I am
greatly afraid of him.
22 And if there is no
righteousness in me, do it for the sake of Abraham and my father Isaac.
23 For I know that through
kindness and mercy have I acquired this wealth; now therefore I beseech thee to
deliver me this day with thy kindness and to answer me.
24 And Jacob ceased praying to
the Lord, and he divided the people that were with him with the flocks and
cattle into two camps, and he gave the half to the care of Damesek, the son of
Eliezer, Abraham's servant, for a camp, with his children, and the other half
he gave to the care of his brother Elianus the son of Eliezer, to be for a camp
with his children.
25 And he commanded them,
saying, Keep yourselves at a distance with your camps, and do not come too near
each other, and if Esau come to one camp and slay it, the other camp at a
distance from it will escape him.
26 And Jacob tarried there that
night, and during the whole night he gave his servants instructions concerning
the forces and his children.
27 And the Lord heard the
prayer of Jacob on that day, and the Lord then delivered Jacob from the hands
of his brother Esau.
28 And the Lord sent three
angels of the angels of heaven, and they went before Esau and came to him.
29 And these angels appeared
unto Esau and his people as two thousand men, riding upon horses furnished with
all sorts of war instruments, and they appeared in the sight of Esau and all
his men to be divided into four camps, with four chiefs to them.
30 And one camp went on and
they found Esau coming with four hundred men toward his brother Jacob, and this
camp ran toward Esau and his people and terrified them, and Esau fell off the
horse in alarm, and all his men separated from him in that place, for they were
greatly afraid.
31 And the whole of the camp
shouted after them when they fled from Esau, and all the warlike men answered,
saying,
32 Surely we are the servants
of Jacob, who is the servant of God, and who then can stand against us? And
Esau said unto them, O then, my lord and brother Jacob
is your lord, whom I have not seen for these twenty years, and now that I have
this day come to see him, do you treat me in this manner?
33 And the angels answered him
saying, As the Lord liveth, were not Jacob of whom thou speaketh thy brother,
we had not let one remaining from thee and thy people, but only on account of
Jacob we will do nothing to them.
34 And this camp passed from
Esau and his men and it went away, and Esau and his men had gone from them
about a league when the second camp came toward him with all sorts of weapons,
and they also did unto Esau and his men as the first camp had done to them.
35 And when they had left it to
go on, behold the third camp came toward him and they were all terrified, and
Esau fell off the horse, and the whole camp cried out, and said, Surely we are the servants of Jacob, who is the servant of
God, and who can stand against us?
36 And Esau again answered them
saying, O then, Jacob my lord and your lord is my brother, and for twenty years
I have not seen his countenance and hearing this day that he was coming, I went
this day to meet him, and do you treat me in this manner?
37 And they answered him, and
said unto him, As the Lord liveth, were not Jacob thy brother as thou didst
say, we had not left a remnant from thee and thy men, but on account of Jacob
of whom thou speakest being thy brother, we will not meddle with thee or thy
men.
38 And the third camp also
passed from them, and he still continued his road with his men toward Jacob,
when the fourth camp came toward him, and they also did unto him and his men as
the others had done.
39 And when Esau beheld the
evil which the four angels had done to him and to his men, he became greatly
afraid of his brother Jacob, and he went to meet him in peace.
40 And Esau concealed his
hatred against Jacob, because he was afraid of his life on account of his
brother Jacob, and because he imagined that the four camps that he had lighted
upon were Jacob's servants.
41 And Jacob tarried that night
with his servants in their camps, and he resolved with his servants to give
unto Esau a present from all that he had with him, and from all his property;
and Jacob rose up in the morning, he and his men, and they chose from amongst
the cattle a present for Esau.
42 And this is the amount of
the present which Jacob chose from his flock to give unto his brother Esau: and
he selected two hundred and forty head from the flocks, and he selected from
the camels and asses thirty each, and of the herds he chose fifty kine.
43 And he put them all in ten
droves, and he placed each sort by itself, and he delivered them into the hands
of ten of his servants, each drove by itself.
44 And he commanded them, and
said unto them, Keep yourselves at a distance from each other, and put a space
between the droves, and when Esau and those who are with him shall meet you and
ask you, saying, Whose are you, and whither do you go, and to whom belongeth
all this before you, you shall say unto them, We are the servants of Jacob, and
we come to meet Esau in peace, and behold Jacob cometh behind us.
45 And that which is before us
is a present sent from Jacob to his brother Esau.
46 And if they shall say unto
you, Why doth he delay behind you, from coming to meet his brother and to see
his face, then you shall say unto them, Surely he cometh joyfully behind us to
meet his brother, for he said, I will appease him with the present that goeth
to him, and after this I will see his face, peradventure he will accept of me.
47 So the whole present passed
on in the hands of his servants, and went before him on that day, and he lodged
that night with his camps by the border of the brook of Jabuk, and he rose up
in the midst of the night, and he took his wives and his maid servants, and all
belonging to him, and he that night passed them over the ford Jabuk.
48 And when he passed all
belonging to him over the brook, Jacob was left by himself, and a man met him,
and he wrestled with him that night until the breaking of the day, and the
hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint through wrestling with him.
49 And at the break of day the
man left Jacob there, and he blessed him and went
away, and Jacob passed the brook at the break of day, and he halted upon his
thigh.
50 And the sun rose upon him
when he had passed the brook, and he came up to the place of his cattle and
children.
51 And they went on till
midday, and whilst they were going the present was passing on before them.
52 And Jacob lifted up his eyes
and looked, and behold Esau was at a distance, coming along with many men,
about four hundred, and Jacob was greatly afraid of his brother.
53 And Jacob hastened and
divided his children unto his wives and his handmaids, and his daughter Dinah
he put in a chest, and delivered her into the hands of his servants.
54 And he passed before his
children and wives to meet his brother, and he bowed down to the ground, yea he
bowed down seven times until he approached his brother, and God caused Jacob to
find grace and favor in the sight of Esau and his men, for God had heard the
prayer of Jacob.
55 And the fear of Jacob and
his terror fell upon his brother Esau, for Esau was greatly afraid of Jacob for
what the angels of God had done to Esau, and Esau's anger against Jacob was
turned into kindness.
56 And when Esau saw Jacob
running toward him, he also ran toward him and he embraced him, and he fell
upon his neck, and they kissed and they wept.
57 And God put fear and
kindness toward Jacob in the hearts of the men that came with Esau, and they
also kissed Jacob and embraced him.
58 And also Eliphaz, the son of
Esau, with his four brothers, sons of Esau, wept with Jacob, and they kissed
him and embraced him, for the fear of Jacob had fallen upon them all.
59 And Esau lifted up his eyes
and saw the women with their offspring, the children of Jacob, walking behind
Jacob and bowing along the road to Esau.
60 And Esau said unto Jacob,
Who are these with thee, my brother? are they thy children or thy servants? and
Jacob answered Esau and said, They are my children which God hath graciously
given to thy servant.
61 And whilst Jacob was
speaking to Esau and his men, Esau beheld the whole camp, and he said unto
Jacob, Whence didst thou get the whole of the camp that I met yesternight? and Jacob said, To find favor in the sight of my lord, it is
that which God graciously gave to thy servant.
62 And the present came before
Esau, and Jacob pressed Esau, saying, Take I pray thee the present that I have
brought to my lord, and Esau said, Wherefore is this
my purpose? keep that which thou hast unto thyself.
63 And Jacob said, It is
incumbent upon me to give all this, since I have seen thy face, that thou still
livest in peace.
64 And Esau refused to take the
present, and Jacob said unto him, I beseech thee my lord, if now I have found
favor in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand, for I have therefore
seen thy face, as though I had seen a god-like face, because thou wast pleased
with me.
65 And Esau took the present,
and Jacob also gave unto Esau silver and gold and bdellium, for he pressed him
so much that he took them.
66 And Esau divided the cattle
that were in the camp, and he gave the half to the men who had come with him,
for they had come on hire, and the other half he delivered unto the hands of
his children.
67 And the silver and gold and
bdellium he gave in the hands of Eliphaz his eldest son, and Esau said unto
Jacob, Let us remain with thee, and we will go slowly along with thee until
thou comest to my place with me, that we may dwell there together.
68 And Jacob answered his
brother and said, I would do as my lord speaketh unto
me, but my lord knoweth that the children are tender, and the flocks and herds
with their young who are with me, go but slowly, for if they went swiftly they
would all die, for thou knowest their burdens and their fatigue.
69 Therefore let my lord pass
on before his servant, and I will go on slowly for the sake of the children and
the flock, until I come to my lord's place to Seir.
70 And Esau said unto Jacob, I
will place with thee some of the people that are with me to take care of thee
in the road, and to bear thy fatigue and burden, and he said, What needeth it my lord, if I may find grace in thy sight?
71 Behold I will come unto thee
to Seir to dwell there together as thou hast spoken, go thou then with thy
people for I will follow thee.
72 And Jacob said this to Esau
in order to remove Esau and his men from him, so that Jacob might afterward go
to his father's house to the land of Canaan.
73 And Esau hearkened to the
voice of Jacob, and Esau returned with the four hundred men that were with him
on their road to Seir, and Jacob and all belonging to him went that day as far
as the extremity of the land of Canaan in its borders, and he remained there
some time.
1 And in some time after Jacob
went away from the borders of the land, and he came to the land of Shalem, that
is the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, and he rested in front
of the city.
2 And he bought a parcel of the
field which was there, from the children of Hamor the people of the land, for
five shekels.
3 And Jacob there built himself
a house, and he pitched his tent there, and he made booths for his cattle,
therefore he called the name of that place Succoth.
4 And Jacob remained in Succoth
a year and six months.
5 At that time some of the
women of the inhabitants of the land went to the city of Shechem to dance and
rejoice with the daughters of the people of the city, and when they went forth
then Rachel and Leah the wives of Jacob with their families also went to behold
the rejoicing of the daughters of the city.
6 And Dinah the daughter of
Jacob also went along with them and saw the daughters of the city, and they
remained there before these daughters whilst all the people of the city were
standing by them to behold their rejoicings, and all the great people of the
city were there.
7 And Shechem the son of Hamor,
the prince of the land was also standing there to see them.
8 And Shechem beheld Dinah the
daughter of Jacob sitting with her mother before the daughters of the city, and
the damsel pleased him greatly, and he there asked his friends and his people,
saying, Whose daughter is that sitting amongst the
women, whom I do not know in this city?
9 And they said unto him,
Surely this is the daughter of Jacob the son of Isaac the Hebrew, who has dwelt
in this city for some time, and when it was reported that the daughters of the
land were going forth to rejoice she went with her mother and maid servants to
sit amongst them as thou seest.
10 And Shechem beheld Dinah the
daughter of Jacob, and when he looked at her his soul became fixed upon Dinah.
11 And he sent and had her
taken by force, and Dinah came to the house of Shechem and he seized her
forcibly and lay with her and humbled her, and he loved her exceedingly and
placed her in his house.
12 And they came and told the
thing unto Jacob, and when Jacob heard that Shechem had defiled his daughter
Dinah, Jacob sent twelve of his servants to fetch Dinah from the house of
Shechem, and they went and came to the house of Shechem to take away Dinah from
there.
13 And when they came Shechem
went out to them with his men and drove them from his house, and he would not
suffer them to come before Dinah, but Shechem was sitting with Dinah kissing
and embracing her before their eyes.
14 And the servants of Jacob
came back and told him, saying, When we came, he and
his men drove us away, and thus did Shechem do unto Dinah before our eyes.
15 And Jacob knew moreover that
Shechem had defiled his daughter, but he said nothing, and his sons were feeding
his cattle in the field, and Jacob remained silent till their return.
16 And before his sons came
home Jacob sent two maidens from his servants' daughters to take care of Dinah
in the house of Shechem, and to remain with her, and Shechem sent three of his
friends to his father Hamor the son of Chiddekem, the son of Pered, saying, Get
me this damsel for a wife.
17 And Hamor the son of
Chiddekem the Hivite came to the house of Shechem his son, and he sat before
him, and Hamor said unto his son,
91
Shechem, Is there then no woman
amongst the daughters of thy people that thou wilt take an
Hebrew woman who is not of thy people?
18 And Shechem said to him, Her only must thou get for me, for she is delightful in my
sight; and Hamor did according to the word of his son, for he was greatly
beloved by him.
19 And Hamor went forth to
Jacob to commune with him concerning this matter, and when he had gone from the
house of his son Shechem, before he came to Jacob to speak unto him, behold the
sons of Jacob had come from the field, as soon as they heard the thing that
Shechem the son of Hamor had done.
20 And the men were very much
grieved concerning their sister, and they all came home fired with anger,
before the time of gathering in their cattle.
21 And they came and sat before
their father and they spoke unto him kindled with wrath, saying, Surely death
is due to this man and to his household, because the Lord God of the whole
earth commanded Noah and his children that man shall never rob, nor commit
adultery; now behold Shechem has both ravaged and committed fornication with
our sister, and not one of all the people of the city spoke a word to him.
22 Surely thou knowest and
understandest that the judgment of death is due to Shechem, and to his father,
and to the whole city on account of the thing which he has done.
23 And whilst they were
speaking before their father in this matter, behold Hamor the father of Shechem
came to speak to Jacob the words of his son concerning Dinah, and he sat before
Jacob and before his sons.
24 And Hamor spoke unto them,
saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter; I pray you give
her unto him for a wife and intermarry with us; give us your daughters and we
will give you our daughters, and you shall dwell with us in our land and we
will be as one people in the land.
25 For our land is very
extensive, so dwell ye and trade therein and get possessions in it, and do
therein as you desire, and no one shall prevent you by saying a word to you.
26 And Hamor ceased speaking
unto Jacob and his sons, and behold Shechem his son had come after him, and he
sat before them.
27 And Shechem spoke before
Jacob and his sons, saying, May I find favor in your sight that you will give
me your daughter, and whatever you say unto me that will I do for her.
28 Ask me for abundance of
dowry and gift, and I will give it, and whatever you shall say unto me that
will I do, and whoever he be that will rebel against your orders, he shall die;
only give me the damsel for a wife.
29 And Simeon and Levi answered
Hamor and Shechem his son deceitfully, saying, All you have spoken unto us we
will do for you.
30 And behold our sister is in
your house, but keep away from her until we send to our father Isaac concerning
this matter, for we can do nothing without his consent.
31 For he knoweth the ways of
our father Abraham, and whatever he sayeth unto us we will tell you, we will
conceal nothing from you.
32 And Simeon and Levi spoke
this unto Shechem and his father in order to find a pretext, and to seek counsel
what was to be done to Shechem and to his city in this matter.
33 And when Shechem and his
father heard the words of Simeon and Levi, it seemed good in their sight, and
Shechem and his father came forth to go home.
34 And when they had gone, the
sons of Jacob said unto their father, saying, Behold, we know that death is due
to these wicked ones and to their city, because they transgressed that which
God had commanded unto Noah and his children and his seed after them.
35 And also because Shechem did
this thing to our sister Dinah in defiling her, for such vileness shall never
be done amongst us.
36 Now therefore know and see
what you will do, and seek counsel and pretext what is to be done to them, in
order to kill all the inhabitants of this city.
37 And Simeon said to them, Here is a proper advice for you: tell them to circumcise
every male amongst them as we are circumcised, and if they do not wish to do
this, we shall take our daughter from them and go away.
38 And if they consent to do
this and will do it, then when they are sunk down with pain, we will attack
them with our swords, as upon one who is quiet and peaceable, and we will slay
every male person amongst them.
39 And Simeon's advice pleased
them, and Simeon and Levi resolved to do unto them as it was proposed.
40 And on the next morning
Shechem and Hamor his father came again unto Jacob and his sons, to speak
concerning Dinah, and to hear what answer the sons of Jacob would give to their
words.
41 And the sons of Jacob spoke
deceitfully to them, saying, We told our father Isaac
all your words, and your words pleased him.
42 But he spoke unto us,
saying, Thus did Abraham his father command him from God the Lord of the whole
earth, that any man who is not of his descendants that should wish to take one
of his daughters, shall cause every male belonging to him to be circumcised, as
we are circumcised, and then we may give him our daughter for a wife.
43 Now we have made known to
you all our ways that our father spoke unto us, for we cannot do this of which
you spoke unto us, to give our daughter to an uncircumcised man, for it is a
disgrace to us.
44 But herein will we consent
to you, to give you our daughter, and we will also take unto ourselves your
daughters, and will dwell amongst you and be one people as you have spoken, if
you will hearken to us, and consent to be like us, to circumcise every male
belonging to you, as we are circumcised.
45 And if you will not hearken
unto us, to have every male circumcised as we are circumcised, as we have commanded,
then we will come to you, and take our daughter from you and go away.
46 And Shechem and his father
Hamor heard the words of the sons of Jacob, and the thing pleased them
exceedingly, and Shechem and his father Hamor hastened to do the wishes of the sons
of Jacob, for Shechem was very fond of Dinah, and his soul was riveted to her.
47 And Shechem and his father
Hamor hastened to the gate of the city, and they assembled all the men of their
city and spoke unto them the words of the sons of Jacob, saying,
48 We came to these men, the
sons of Jacob, and we spoke unto them concerning their daughter, and these men
will consent to do according to our wishes, and behold our land is of great
extent for them, and they will dwell in it, and trade in it, and we shall be
one people; we will take their daughters, and our daughters we will give unto
them for wives.
49 But only on this condition
will these men consent to do this thing, that every male amongst us be
circumcised as they are circumcised, as their God commanded them, and when we
shall have done according to their instructions to be circumcised, then will
they dwell amongst us, together with their cattle and possessions, and we shall
be as one people with them.
50 And when all the men of the
city heard the words of Shechem and his father Hamor, then all the men of their
city were agreeable to this proposal, and they obeyed to be circumcised, for
Shechem and his father Hamor were greatly esteemed by them, being the princes
of the land.
51 And on the next day, Shechem
and Hamor his father rose up early in the morning, and they assembled all the
men of their city into the middle of the city, and they called for the sons of
Jacob, who circumcised every male belonging to them on that day and the next.
52 And they circumcised Shechem
and Hamor his father, and the five brothers of Shechem, and then every one rose
up and went home, for this thing was from the Lord against the city of Shechem,
and from the Lord was Simeon's counsel in this matter, in order that the Lord
might deliver the city of Shechem into the hands of Jacob's two sons.
1 And the number of all the
males that were circumcised, were six hundred and
forty-five men, and two hundred and forty-six children.
2 But Chiddekem, son of Pered,
the father of Hamor, and his six brothers, would not listen unto Shechem and
his father Hamor, and they would not be circumcised, for the proposal of the
sons of Jacob was loathsome in their sight, and their anger was greatly roused
at this, that the people of the city had not hearkened to them.
3 And in the evening of the
second day, they found eight small children who had not been circumcised, for
their mothers had concealed them from Shechem and his father Hamor, and from
the men of the city.
4 And Shechem and his father
Hamor sent to have them brought before them to be circumcised, when Chiddekem
and his six brothers sprang at them with their swords, and sought to slay them.
5 And they sought to slay also
Shechem and his father Hamor and they sought to slay Dinah with them on account
of this matter.
6 And they said unto them, What is this thing that you have done? are
there no women amongst the daughters of your brethren the Canaanites, that you
wish to take unto yourselves daughters of the Hebrews, whom ye knew not before,
and will do this act which your fathers never commanded you?
7 Do you imagine that you will
succeed through this act which you have done? and what
will you answer in this affair to your brethren the Canaanites, who will come
tomorrow and ask you concerning this thing?
8 And if your act shall not
appear just and good in their sight, what will you do for your lives, and me
for our lives, in your not having hearkened to our
voices?
9 And if the inhabitants of the
land and all your brethren the children of Ham, shall hear of your act, saying,
10 On account of a Hebrew woman
did Shechem and Hamor his father, and all the inhabitants of their city, do
that with which they had been unacquainted and which their ancestors never
commanded them, where then will you fly or where conceal your shame, all your
days before your brethren, the inhabitants of the land of Canaan?
11 Now therefore we cannot bear
up against this thing which you have done, neither can we be burdened with this
yoke upon us, which our ancestors did not command us.
12 Behold tomorrow we will go
and assemble all our brethren, the Canaanitish brethren who dwell in the land,
and we will all come and smite you and all those who trust in you, that there
shall not be a remnant left from you or them.
13 And when Hamor and his son
Shechem and all the people of the city heard the words of Chiddekem and his
brothers, they were terribly afraid of their lives at their words, and they
repented of what they had done.
14 And Shechem and his father
Hamor answered their father Chiddekem and his brethren, and they said unto
them, All the words which you spoke unto us are true.
15 Now do not say, nor imagine
in your hearts that on account of the love of the Hebrews we did this thing
that our ancestors did not command us.
16 But because we saw that it
was not their intention and desire to accede to our wishes concerning their
daughter as to our taking her, except on this condition, so we hearkened to
their voices and did this act which you saw, in order to obtain our desire from
them.
17 And when we shall have
obtained our request from them, we will then return to them and do unto them
that which you say unto us.
18 We beseech you then to wait
and tarry until our flesh shall be healed and we again become strong, and we
will then go together against them, and do unto them that which is in your
hearts and in ours.
19 And Dinah the daughter of
Jacob heard all these words which Chiddekem and his brothers had spoken, and
what Hamor and his son Shechem and the people of their city had answered them.
20 And she hastened and sent
one of her maidens, that her father had sent to take care of her in the house
of Shechem, to Jacob her father and to her brethren, saying:
21 Thus did Chiddekem and his
brothers advise concerning you, and thus did Hamor and
Shechem and the people of the city answer them.
22 And when Jacob heard these
words he was filled with wrath, and he was indignant at them, and his anger was
kindled against them.
23 And Simeon and Levi swore
and said, As the Lord liveth, the God of the whole earth, by this time
tomorrow, there shall not be a remnant left in the whole city.
24 And twenty young men had
concealed themselves who were not circumcised, and
these young men fought against Simeon and Levi, and Simeon and Levi killed
eighteen of them, and two fled from them and escaped to some lime pits that
were in the city, and Simeon and Levi sought for them, but could not find them.
25 And Simeon and Levi
continued to go about in the city, and they killed all the people of the city
at the edge of the sword, and they left none remaining.
26 And there was a great
consternation in the midst of the city, and the cry of the people of the city
ascended to heaven, and all the women and children cried aloud.
27 And Simeon and Levi slew all the city; they left not a male remaining in the whole
city.
28 And they slew Hamor and
Shechem his son at the edge of the sword, and they brought away Dinah from the
house of Shechem and they went from there.
29 And the sons of Jacob went
and returned, and came upon the slain, and spoiled all their property which was
in the city and the field.
30 And whilst they were taking
the spoil, three hundred men stood up and threw dust at them and struck them
with stones, when Simeon turned to them and he slew them all with the edge of
the sword, and Simeon turned before Levi, and came into the city.
31 And they took away their
sheep and their oxen and their cattle, and also the remainder of the women and
little ones, and they led all these away, and they opened a gate and went out
and came unto their father Jacob with vigor.
32 And when Jacob saw all that
they had done to the city, and saw the spoil that they took from them, Jacob
was very angry at them, and Jacob said unto them, What is this that you have
done to me? behold I obtained rest amongst the
Canaanitish inhabitants of the land, and none of them meddled with me.
33 And now you have done to
make me obnoxious to the inhabitants of the land, amongst the Canaanites and
the Perizzites, and I am but of a small number, and they will all assemble
against me and slay me when they hear of your work with their brethren, and I
and my household will be destroyed.
34 And Simeon and Levi and all
their brothers with them answered their father Jacob and said unto him, Behold
we live in the land, and shall Shechem do this to our sister? why art thou silent at all that Shechem has done? and shall he deal with our sister as with a harlot in the
streets?
35 And the number of women whom
Simeon and Levi took captives from the city of Shechem, whom they did not slay,
was eighty-five who had not known man.
36 And amongst them was a young
damsel of beautiful appearance and well favored, whose name was Bunah, and
Simeon took her for a wife, and the number of the males which they took
captives and did not slay, was forty-seven men, and the rest they slew.
37 And all the young men and
women that Simeon and Levi had taken captives from the city of Shechem, were servants to the sons of Jacob and to their
children after them, until the day of the sons of Jacob going forth from the
land of Egypt.
38 And when Simeon and Levi had
gone forth from the city, the two young men that were left, who had concealed
themselves in the city, and did not die amongst the people of the city, rose up,
and these young men went into the city and walked about in it, and found the
city desolate without man, and only women weeping, and these young men cried
out and said, Behold, this is the evil which the sons of Jacob the Hebrew did
to this city in their having this day destroyed one of the Canaanitish cities,
and were not afraid of their lives of all the land of Canaan.
39 And these men left the city
and went to the city of Tapnach, and they came there and told the inhabitants
of Tapnach all that had befallen them, and all that the sons of Jacob had done
to the city of Shechem.
40 And the information reached
Jashub king of Tapnach, and he sent men to the city of Shechem to see those
young men, for the king did not believe them in this account, saying, How could
two men lay waste such a large town as Shechem?
41 And the messengers of Jashub
came back and told him, saying, We came unto the city,
and it is destroyed, there is not a man there; only weeping women; neither is
any flock or cattle there, for all that was in the city the sons of Jacob took
away.
42 And Jashub wondered at this,
saying, How could two men do this thing, to destroy so
large a city, and not one man able to stand against them?
43 For the like has not been
from the days of Nimrod, and not even from the remotest time, has the like
taken place; and Jashub, king of Tapnach, said to his people, Be courageous and
we will go and fight against these Hebrews, and do unto them as they did unto
the city, and we will avenge the cause of the people of the city.
44 And Jashub, king of Tapnach,
consulted with his counsellors about this matter, and his advisers said unto
him, Alone thou wilt not prevail over the Hebrews, for they must be powerful to
do this work to the whole city.
45 If two of them laid waste the whole city, and no one stood against them,
surely if thou wilt go against them, they will all rise against us and destroy
us likewise.
46 But if thou wilt send to all
the kings that surround us, and let them come together, then we will go with
them and fight against the sons of Jacob; then wilt thou prevail against them.
47 And Jashub heard the words
of his counsellors, and their words pleased him and his people, and he did so;
and Jashub king of Tapnach sent to all the kings of the Amorites that surrounded
Shechem and Tapnach, saying,
48 Go up with me and assist me,
and we will smite Jacob the Hebrew and all his sons, and destroy them from the
earth, for thus did he do to the city of Shechem, and do you not know of it?
49 And all the kings of the Amorites
heard the evil that the sons of Jacob had done to the city of Shechem, and they
were greatly astonished at them.
50 And the seven kings of the
Amorites assembled with all their armies, about ten thousand men with drawn
swords, and they came to fight against the sons of Jacob; and Jacob heard that
the kings of the Amorites had assembled to fight against his sons, and Jacob
was greatly afraid, and it distressed him.
51 And Jacob exclaimed against
Simeon and Levi, saying, What is this act that you
did? why have you injured me, to bring against me all
the children of Canaan to destroy me and my household? for I was at rest, even
I and my household, and you have done this thing to me, and provoked the
inhabitants of the land against me by your proceedings.
52 And Judah answered his
father, saying, Was it for naught my brothers Simeon and Levi killed all the
inhabitants of Shechem? Surely it was because Shechem had humbled our sister,
and transgressed the command of our God to Noah and his children, for Shechem
took our sister away by force, and committed adultery with her.
53 And Shechem did all this
evil and not one of the inhabitants of his city interfered with him, to say, Why wilt thou do this? surely for
this my brothers went and smote the city, and the Lord delivered it into their
hands, because its inhabitants had transgressed the commands of our God. Is it
then for naught that they have done all this?
54 And now why art thou afraid
or distressed, and why art thou displeased at my brothers, and why is thine
anger kindled against them?
55 Surely our God who delivered
into their hand the city of Shechem and its people, he will also deliver into
our hands all the Canaanitish kings who are coming against us, and we will do
unto them as my brothers did unto Shechem.
56 Now be tranquil about them
and cast away thy fears, but trust in the Lord our God, and pray unto him to
assist us and deliver us, and deliver our enemies into our hands.
57 And Judah called to one of
his father's servants, Go now and see where those kings, who are coming against
us, are situated with their armies.
58 And the servant went and
looked far off, and went up opposite Mount Sihon, and saw all the camps of the
kings standing in the fields, and he returned to Judah and said, Behold the kings
are situated in the field with all their camps, a people exceedingly numerous,
like unto the sand upon the sea shore.
59 And Judah said unto Simeon
and Levi, and unto all his brothers, Strengthen
yourselves and be sons of valor, for the Lord our God is with us, do not fear
them.
60 Stand forth each man, girt
with his weapons of war, his bow and his sword, and we will go and fight
against these uncircumcised men; the Lord is our God, He will save us.
61 And they rose up, and each
girt on his weapons of war, great and small, eleven sons of Jacob, and all the
servants of Jacob with them.
62 And all the servants of
Isaac who were with Isaac in Hebron, all came to them equipped in all sorts of
war instruments, and the sons of Jacob and their servants, being one hundred
and twelve men, went towards these kings, and Jacob also went with them.
63 And the sons of Jacob sent
unto their father Isaac the son of Abraham to Hebron, the same is Kireath-arba,
saying,
64 Pray we beseech thee for us
unto the Lord our God, to protect us from the hands of the Canaanites who are
coming against us, and to deliver them into our hands.
65 And Isaac the son of Abraham
prayed unto the Lord for his sons, and he said, O Lord God, thou didst promise
my father, saying, I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and thou
didst also promise me, and establish thou thy word, now that the kings of
Canaan are coming together, to make war with my children because they committed
no violence.
66 Now therefore, O Lord God,
God of the whole earth, pervert, I pray thee, the counsel of these kings that
they may not fight against my sons.
67 And impress the hearts of
these kings and their people with the terror of my sons and bring down their
pride, and that they may turn away from my sons.
68 And with thy strong hand and
outstretched arm deliver my sons and their servants from them, for power and
might are in thy hands to do all this.
69 And the sons of Jacob and
their servants went toward these kings, and they trusted in the Lord their God,
and whilst they were going, Jacob their father also prayed unto the Lord and
said, O Lord God, powerful and exalted God, who has reigned from days of old,
from thence till now and forever;
70 Thou art He who stirreth up
wars and causeth them to cease, in thy hand are power and might to exalt and to
bring down; O may my prayer be acceptable before thee that thou mayest turn to
me with thy mercies, to impress the hearts of these kings and their people with
the terror of my sons, and terrify them and their camps, and with thy great
kindness deliver all those that trust in thee, for it is thou who canst bring
people under us and reduce nations under our power.
1 And all the kings of the
Amorites came and took their stand in the field to consult with their
counsellors what was to be done with the sons of Jacob, for they were still
afraid of them, saying, Behold, two of them slew the whole of the city of
Shechem.
2 And the Lord heard the
prayers of Isaac and Jacob, and he filled the hearts of all these kings'
advisers with great fear and terror that they unanimously exclaimed,
3 Are you silly this day, or is
there no understanding in you, that you will fight with the Hebrews, and why
will you take a delight in your own destruction this day?
4 Behold two of them came to
the city of Shechem without fear or terror, and they killed all the inhabitants
of the city, that no man stood up against them, and
how will you be able to fight with them all?
5 Surely you know that their
God is exceedingly fond of them, and has done mighty things for them, such as
have not been done from days of old, and amongst all the gods of nations, there
is none can do like unto his mighty deeds.
6 Surely he delivered their
father Abraham, the Hebrew, from the hand of Nimrod, and from the hand of all
his people who had many times sought to slay him.
7 He delivered him also from
the fire in which king Nimrod had cast him, and his God delivered him from it.
8 And who else can do the like?
surely it was Abraham who slew the five kings of Elam,
when they had touched his brother's son who in those days dwelt in Sodom.
9 And took his servant that was
faithful in his house and a few of his men, and they pursued the kings of Elam
in one night and killed them, and restored to his brother's son all his
property which they had taken from him.
10 And surely you know the God
of these Hebrews is much delighted with them, and they are also delighted with
him, for they know that he delivered them from all their enemies.
11 And behold through his love
toward his God, Abraham took his only and precious son and intended to bring
him up as a burnt offering to his God, and had it not been for God who
prevented him from doing this, he would then have done it through his love to
his God.
12 And God saw all his works,
and swore unto him, and promised him that he would deliver his sons and all his
seed from every trouble that would befall them, because he had done this thing,
and through his love to his God stifled his compassion for his child.
13 And have you not heard what
their God did to Pharaoh king of Egypt, and to
Abimelech king of Gerar, through taking Abraham's wife, who said of her, She is
my sister, lest they might slay him on account of her, and think of taking her
for a wife? and God did unto them and their people all
that you heard of.
14 And behold, we ourselves saw
with our eyes that Esau, the brother of Jacob, came to him with four hundred
men, with the intention of slaying him, for he called to mind that he had taken
away from him his father's blessing.
15 And he went to meet him when
he came from Syria, to smite the mother with the children, and who delivered
him from his hands but his God in whom he trusted? he
delivered him from the hand of his brother and also from the hands of his
enemies, and surely he again will protect them.
16 Who does not know that it
was their God who inspired them with strength to do to the town of Shechem the
evil which you heard of?
17 Could it then be with their
own strength that two men could destroy such a large city as Shechem had it not
been for their God in whom they trusted? he said and
did unto them all this to slay the inhabitants of the city in their city.
18 And can you then prevail
over them who have come forth together from your city to fight with the whole of
them, even if a thousand times as many more should come to your assistance?
19 Surely you know and
understand that you do not come to fight with them, but you come to war with
their God who made choice of them, and you have therefore all come this day to
be destroyed.
20 Now therefore refrain from
this evil which you are endeavoring to bring upon yourselves, and it will be
better for you not to go to battle with them, although they are but few in
numbers, because their God is with them.
21 And when the kings of the
Amorites heard all the words of their advisers, their hearts were filled with
terror, and they were afraid of the sons of Jacob and would not fight against
them.
22 And they inclined their ears
to the words of their advisers, and they listened to all their words, and the
words of the counsellors greatly pleased the kings, and they did so.
23 And the kings turned and
refrained from the sons of Jacob, for they durst not
approach them to make war with them, for they were greatly afraid of them, and their
hearts melted within them from their fear of them.
24 For this proceeded from the
Lord to them, for he heard the prayers of his servants Isaac and Jacob, for
they trusted in him; and all these kings returned with their camps on that day,
each to his own city, and they did not at that time fight with the sons of
Jacob.
25 And the sons of Jacob kept
their station that day till evening opposite mount Sihon, and seeing that these
kings did not come to fight against them, the sons of Jacob returned home.
1 At that time the Lord
appeared unto Jacob saying, Arise, go to Bethel and
remain there, and make there an altar to the Lord who appeareth unto thee, who
delivered thee and thy sons from affliction.
2 And Jacob rose up with his
sons and all belonging to him, and they went and came to Bethel according to
the word of the Lord.
3 And Jacob was ninety-nine
years old when he went up to Bethel, and Jacob and his sons and all the people
that were with him, remained in Bethel in Luz, and he there built an altar to
the Lord who appeared unto him, and Jacob and his sons remained in Bethel six
months.
4 At that time died Deborah the
daughter of Uz, the nurse of Rebecca, who had been with Jacob; and Jacob buried
her beneath Bethel under an oak that was there.
5 And Rebecca the daughter of
Bethuel, the mother of Jacob, also died at that time in Hebron, the same is
Kireath-arba, and she was buried in the cave of Machpelah which Abraham had
bought from the children of Heth.
6 And the life of Rebecca was
one hundred and thirty-three years, and she died and when Jacob heard that his
mother Rebecca was dead he wept bitterly for his mother, and made a great
mourning for her, and for Deborah her nurse beneath the oak,
and he called the name of that place Allon-bachuth.
7 And Laban the Syrian died in
those days, for God smote him because he transgressed the covenant that existed
between him and Jacob.
8 And Jacob was a hundred years
old when the Lord appeared unto him, and blessed him and called his name
Israel, and Rachel the wife of Jacob conceived in those days.
9 And at that time Jacob and
all belonging to him journeyed from Bethel to go to his father's house, to
Hebron.
10 And whilst they were going
on the road, and there was yet but a little way to come to Ephrath, Rachel bare a son and she had hard labor and she died.
11 And Jacob buried her in the
way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem, and he set a pillar upon her grave, which
is there unto this day; and the days of Rachel were forty-five years and she
died.
12 And Jacob called the name of
his son that was born to him, which Rachel bare unto him, Benjamin, for he was
born to him in the land on the right hand.
13 And it was after the death
of Rachel, that Jacob pitched his tent in the tent of her handmaid Bilhah.
14 And Reuben was jealous for
his mother Leah on account of this, and he was filled with anger, and he rose
up in his anger and went and entered the tent of Bilhah and he thence removed
his father's bed.
15 At that time the portion of
birthright, together with the kingly and priestly offices, was removed from the
sons of Reuben, for he had profaned his father's bed, and the birthright was
given unto Joseph, the kingly office to Judah, and the priesthood unto Levi,
because Reuben had defiled his father's bed.
16 And these are the
generations of Jacob who were born to him in Padan-aram, and the sons of Jacob
were twelve.
17 The sons of Leah were Reuben
the first born, and Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and their sister
Dinah; and the sons of Rachel were Joseph and Benjamin.
18 The sons of Zilpah, Leah's
handmaid, were Gad and Asher, and the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid, were
Dan and Naphtali; these are the sons of Jacob which were born to him in
Padan-aram.
19 And Jacob and his sons and
all belonging to him journeyed and came to Mamre, which is Kireath-arba, that is in Hebron, where Abraham and Isaac sojourned,
and Jacob with his sons and all belonging to him, dwelt with his father in
Hebron.
20 And his brother Esau and his
sons, and all belonging to him went to the land of Seir and dwelt there, and
had possessions in the land of Seir, and the children of Esau were fruitful and
multiplied exceedingly in the land of Seir.
21 And these are the
generations of Esau that were born to him in the land of Canaan, and the sons
of Esau were five.
22 And Adah bare to Esau his
first born Eliphaz, and she also bare to him Reuel, and Ahlibamah bare to him Jeush, Yaalam and Korah.
23 These are the children of
Esau who were born to him in the land of Canaan; and the sons of Eliphaz the
son of Esau were Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, Kenaz and Amalex, and the sons of
Reuel were Nachath, Zerach, Shamah and Mizzah.
24 And the sons of Jeush were
Timnah, Alvah, Jetheth; and the sons of Yaalam were Alah, Phinor and Kenaz.
25 And the sons of Korah were
Teman, Mibzar, Magdiel and Eram; these are the families of the sons of Esau
according to their dukedoms in the land of Seir.
26 And these are the names of
the sons of Seir the Horite, inhabitants of the land of Seir, Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon,
Anah, Dishan, Ezer and Dishon, being seven sons.
27 And the children of Lotan
were Hori, Heman and their sister Timna, that is Timna who came to Jacob and
his sons, and they would not give ear to her, and she went and became a
concubine to Eliphaz the son of Esau, and she bare to him Amalek.
28 And the sons of Shobal were
Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho, and Onam, and the sons of Zibeon were Ajah, and
Anah, this was that Anah who found the Yemim in the wilderness when he fed the
asses of Zibeon his father.
29 And whilst he was feeding
his father's asses he led them to the wilderness at different times to feed
them.
30 And there was a day that he
brought them to one of the deserts on the sea shore, opposite the wilderness of
the people, and whilst he was feeding them, behold a very heavy storm came from
the other side of the sea and rested upon the asses that were feeding there,
and they all stood still.
31 And afterward about one
hundred and twenty great and terrible animals came out from the wilderness at
the other side of the sea, and they all came to the place where the asses were,
and they placed themselves there.
32 And those animals, from
their middle downward, were in the shape of the children of men, and from their
middle upward, some had the likeness of bears, and some the likeness of the
keephas, with tails behind them from between their shoulders reaching down to
the earth, like the tails of the ducheephath, and these animals came and
mounted and rode upon these asses, and led them away, and they went away unto
this day.
33 And one of these animals
approached Anah and smote him with his tail, and then fled from that place.
34 And when he saw this work he
was exceedingly afraid of his life, and he fled and escaped to the city.
35 And he related to his sons
and brothers all that had happened to him, and many men went to seek the asses
but could not find them, and Anah and his brothers went no more to that place
from that day following, for they were greatly afraid of their lives.
36 And the children of Anah the
son of Seir, were Dishon and his sister Ahlibamah, and the children of Dishon
were Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran and Cheran, and the children of Ezer were Bilhan,
Zaavan and Akan, and the children of Dishon were Uz and Aran.
37 These are the families of
the children of Seir the Horite, according to their dukedoms in the land of
Seir.
38 And Esau and his children
dwelt in the land of Seir the Horite, the inhabitant of the land, and they had
possessions in it and were fruitful and multiplied exceedingly, and Jacob and
his children and all belonging to them, dwelt with their father Isaac in the
land of Canaan, as the Lord had commanded Abraham their father.
1 And in the one hundred and
fifth year of the life of Jacob, that is the ninth year of Jacob's dwelling
with his children in the land of Canaan, he came from
Padan-aram.
2 And in those days Jacob
journeyed with his children from Hebron, and they went and returned to the city
of Shechem, they and all belonging to them, and they dwelt there, for the
children of Jacob obtained good and fat pasture land for their cattle in the
city of Shechem, the city of Shechem having then been rebuilt, and there were
in it about three hundred men and women.
3 And Jacob and his children
and all belonging to him dwelt in the part of the field which Jacob had bought
from Hamor the father of Shechem, when he came from Padan-aram before Simeon
and Levi had smitten the city.
4 And all those kings of the
Canaanites and Amorites that surrounded the city of Shechem,
heard that the sons of Jacob had again come to Shechem and dwelt there.
5 And they said, Shall the sons
of Jacob the Hebrew again come to the city and dwell therein, after that they
have smitten its inhabitants and driven them out? shall
they now return and also drive out those who are dwelling in the city or slay
them?
6 And all the kings of Canaan
again assembled, and they came together to make war with Jacob and his sons.
7 And Jashub king of Tapnach
sent also to all his neighboring kings, to Elan king of Gaash, and to Ihuri
king of Shiloh, and to Parathon king of Chazar, and to Susi king of Sarton, and
to Laban king of Bethchoran, and to Shabir king of Othnay-mah, saying,
8 Come up to me and assist me,
and let us smite Jacob the Hebrew and his sons, and all belonging to him, for
they are again come to Shechem to possess it and to slay its inhabitants as
before.
9 And all these kings assembled
together and came with all their camps, a people exceedingly plentiful like the
sand upon the sea shore, and they were all opposite to Tapnach.
10 And Jashub king of Tapnach
went forth to them with all his army, and he encamped with them opposite to
Tapnach without the city, and all these kings they divided into seven
divisions, being seven camps against the sons of Jacob.
11 And they sent a declaration
to Jacob and his son, saying, Come you all forth to us that we may have an
interview together in the plain, and revenge the cause of the men of Shechem
whom you slew in their city, and you will now again return to the city of
Shechem and dwell therein, and slay its inhabitants as before.
12 And the sons of Jacob heard
this and their anger was kindled exceedingly at the words of the kings of
Canaan, and ten of the sons of Jacob hastened and rose up, and each of them
girt on his weapons of war; and there were one hundred and two of their
servants with them equipped in battle array.
13 And all these men, the sons
of Jacob with their servants, went toward these kings, and Jacob their father
was with them, and they all stood upon the heap of Shechem.
14 And Jacob prayed to the Lord
for his sons, and he spread forth his hands to the Lord, and he said, O God,
thou art an Almighty God, thou art our father, thou didst form us and we are
the works of thine hands; I pray thee deliver my sons through thy mercy from
the hand of their enemies, who are this day coming to fight with them and save
them from their hand, for in thy hand is power and might, to save the few from
the many.
15 And give unto my sons, thy
servants, strength of heart and might to fight with their enemies, to subdue
them, and make their enemies fall before them, and let not my sons and their
servants die through the hands of the children of Canaan.
16 But if it seemeth good in
thine eyes to take away the lives of my sons and their servants, take them in
thy great mercy through the hands of thy ministers, that
they may not perish this day by the hands of the kings of the Amorites.
17 And when Jacob ceased
praying to the Lord the earth shook from its place, and the sun darkened, and
all these kings were terrified and a great consternation seized them.
18 And the Lord hearkened to
the prayer of Jacob, and the Lord impressed the hearts of all the kings and
their hosts with the terror and awe of the sons of Jacob.
19 For the Lord caused them to
hear the voice of chariots, and the voice of mighty horses from the sons of
Jacob, and the voice of a great army accompanying them.
20 And these kings were seized
with great terror at the sons of Jacob, and whilst they were standing in their
quarters, behold the sons of Jacob advanced upon them, with one hundred and
twelve men, with a great and tremendous shouting.
21 And when the kings saw the
sons of Jacob advancing toward them, they were still more panic struck, and
they were inclined to retreat from before the sons of Jacob as at first, and
not to fight with them.
22 But they did not retreat,
saying, It would be a disgrace to us thus twice to retreat from before the
Hebrews.
23 And the sons of Jacob came
near and advanced against all these kings and their armies, and they saw, and
behold it was a very mighty people, numerous as the sand of the sea.
24 And the sons of Jacob called
unto the Lord and said, Help us O Lord, help us and answer us, for we trust in
thee, and let us not die by the hands of these uncircumcised men, who this day
have come against us.
25 And the sons of Jacob girt
on their weapons of war, and they took in their hands each man his shield and
his javelin, and they approached to battle.
26 And Judah, the son of Jacob,
ran first before his brethren, and ten of his servants with him, and he went
toward these kings.
27 And Jashub, king of Tapnach,
also came forth first with his army before Judah, and Judah saw Jashub and his
army coming toward him, and Judah's wrath was kindled, and his anger burned
within him, and he approached to battle in which Judah ventured his life.
28 And Jashub and all his army
were advancing toward Judah, and he was riding upon a very strong and powerful
horse, and Jashub was a very valiant man, and covered with iron and brass from
head to foot.
29 And whilst he was upon the
horse, he shot arrows with both hands from before and behind, as was his manner
in all his battles, and he never missed the place to which he aimed his arrows.
30 And when Jashub came to
fight with Judah, and was darting many arrows against Judah, the Lord bound the
hand of Jashub, and all the arrows that he shot rebounded upon his own men.
31 And notwithstanding this,
Jashub kept advancing toward Judah, to challenge him with the arrows, but the
distance between them was about thirty cubits, and when Judah saw Jashub
darting forth his arrows against him, he ran to him with his wrath-excited
might.
32 And Judah took up a large
stone from the ground, and its weight was sixty shekels, and Judah ran toward
Jashub, and with the stone struck him on his shield, that Jashub was stunned
with the blow, and fell off from his horse to the ground.
33 And the shield burst asunder
out of the hand of Jashub, and through the force of the blow sprang to the
distance of about fifteen cubits, and the shield fell before the second camp.
34 And the kings that came with
Jashub saw at a distance the strength of Judah, the son of Jacob, and what he
had done to Jashub, and they were terribly afraid of Judah.
35 And they assembled near
Jashub's camp, seeing his confusion, and Judah drew his sword and smote
forty-two men of the camp of Jashub, and the whole of Jashub's camp fled before
Judah, and no man stood against him, and they left Jashub and fled from him,
and Jashub was still prostrate upon the ground.
36 And Jashub seeing that all
the men of his camp had fled from him, hastened and rose up with terror against
Judah, and stood upon his legs opposite Judah.
37 And Jashub had a single
combat with Judah, placing shield toward shield, and Jashub's men all fled, for
they were greatly afraid of Judah.
38 And Jashub took his spear in
his hand to strike Judah upon his head, but Judah had quickly placed his shield
to his head against Jashub's spear, so that the shield of Judah received the
blow from Jashub's spear, and the shield was split in too.
39 And when Judah saw that his
shield was split, he hastily drew his sword and smote Jashub at his ankles, and
cut off his feet that Jashub fell upon the ground, and the spear fell from his
hand.
40 And Judah hastily picked up
Jashub's spear, with which he severed his head and cast it next to his feet.
41 And when the sons of Jacob
saw what Judah had done to Jashub, they all ran into the ranks of the other
kings, and the sons of Jacob fought with the army of Jashub, and the armies of
all the kings that were there.
42 And the sons of Jacob caused
fifteen thousand of their men to fall, and they smote them as if smiting at gourds, and the rest fled for their lives.
43 And Judah was still standing
by the body of Jashub, and stripped Jashub of his coat of mail.
44 And Judah also took off the
iron and brass that was about Jashub, and behold nine men of the captains of
Jashub came along to fight against Judah.
45 And Judah hastened and took
up a stone from the ground, and with it smote one of them upon the head, and
his skull was fractured, and the body also fell from the horse to the ground.
46 And the eight captains that
remained, seeing the strength of Judah, were greatly afraid and they fled, and
Judah with his ten men pursued them, and they overtook them and slew them.
47 And the sons of Jacob were
still smiting the armies of the kings, and they slew many of them, but those
kings daringly kept their stand with their captains, and did not retreat from
their places, and they exclaimed against those of their armies that fled from
before the sons of Jacob, but none would listen to them, for they were afraid
of their lives lest they should die.
48 And all the sons of Jacob,
after having smitten the armies of the kings, returned and came before Judah,
and Judah was still slaying the eight captains of Jashub, and stripping off
their garments.
49 And Levi saw Elon, king of
Gaash, advancing toward him, with his fourteen captains to smite him, but Levi
did not know it for certain.
50 And Elon with his captains
approached nearer, and Levi looked back and saw that battle was given him in
the rear, and Levi ran with twelve of his servants, and they went and slew Elon
and his captains with the edge of the sword.
1 And Ihuri king of Shiloh came
up to assist Elon, and he approached Jacob, when Jacob drew his bow that was in
his hand and with an arrow struck Ihuri which caused his death.
2 And when Ihuri king of Shiloh
was dead, the four remaining kings fled from their station with the rest of the
captains, and they endeavored to retreat, saying, We have no more strength with
the Hebrews after their having killed the three kings and their captains who
were more powerful than we are.
3 And when the sons of Jacob
saw that the remaining kings had removed from their station, they pursued them,
and Jacob also came from the heap of Shechem from the place where he was
standing, and they went after the kings and they approached them with their servants.
4 And the kings and the
captains with the rest of their armies, seeing that the sons of Jacob
approached them, were afraid of their lives and fled till they reached the city
of Chazar.
5 And the sons of Jacob pursued
them to the gate of the city of Chazar, and they smote a great smiting amongst
the kings and their armies, about four thousand men, and whilst they were
smiting the army of the kings, Jacob was occupied with his bow confining
himself to smiting the kings, and he slew them all.
6 And he slew Parathon king of
Chazar at the gate of the city of Chazar, and he afterward smote Susi king of
Sarton, and Laban king of Bethchorin, and Shabir king of Machnaymah, and he
slew them all with arrows, an arrow to each of them, and they died.
7 And the sons of Jacob seeing
that all the kings were dead and that they were broken up and retreating,
continued to carry on the battle with the armies of the kings opposite the gate
of Chazar, and they still smote about four hundred of their men.
8 And three men of the servants
of Jacob fell in that battle, and when Judah saw that three of his servants had
died, it grieved him greatly, and his anger burned within him against the
Amorites.
9 And all the men that remained
of the armies of the kings were greatly afraid of their lives, and they ran and
broke the gate of the walls of the city of Chazar, and they all entered the
city for safety.
10 And they concealed
themselves in the midst of the city of Chazar, for the city of Chazar was very
large and extensive, and when all these armies had entered the city, the sons
of Jacob ran after them to the city.
11 And four mighty men,
experienced in battle, went forth from the city and stood against the entrance
of the city, with drawn swords and spears in their hands, and they placed
themselves opposite the sons of Jacob, and would not suffer them to enter the
city.
12 And Naphtali ran and came
between them and with his sword smote two of them, and cut off their heads at
one stroke.
13 And he turned to the other
two, and behold they had fled, and he pursued them, overtook them, smote them
and slew them.
14 And the sons of Jacob came
to the city and saw, and behold there was another wall to the city, and they
sought for the gate of the wall and could not find it, and Judah sprang upon
the top of the wall, and Simeon and Levi followed him, and they all three
descended from the wall into the city.
15 And Simeon and Levi slew all
the men who ran for safety into the city, and also the inhabitants of the city
with their wives and little ones, they slew with the edge of the sword, and the
cries of the city ascended up to heaven.
16 And Dan and Naphtali sprang
upon the wall to see what caused the noise of lamentation, for the sons of
Jacob felt anxious about their brothers, and they heard the inhabitants of the
city speaking with weeping and supplications, saying, Take
all that we possess in the city and go away, only do not put us to death.
17 And when Judah, Simeon, and
Levi had ceased smiting the inhabitants of the city, they ascended the wall and
called to Dan and Naphtali, who were upon the wall, and to the rest of their
brothers, and Simeon and Levi informed them of the entrance into the city, and
all the sons of Jacob came to fetch the spoil.
18 And the sons of Jacob took
the spoil of the city of Chazar, the flocks and herds, and the property, and
they took all that could be captured, and went away that day from the city.
19 And on the next day the sons
of Jacob went to Sarton, for they heard that the men of Sarton who had remained
in the city were assembling to fight with them for having slain their king, and Sarton was a very high and fortified city, and it
had a deep rampart surrounding the city.
20 And the pillar of the
rampart was about fifty cubits and its breadth forty cubits, and there was no
place for a man to enter the city on account of the rampart, and the sons of
Jacob saw the rampart of the city, and they sought an entrance in it but could
not find it.
21 For the entrance to the city
was at the rear, and every man that wished to come into the city came by that
road and went around the whole city, and he afterwards entered the city.
22 And the sons of Jacob seeing
they could not find the way into the city, their anger was kindled greatly, and
the inhabitants of the city seeing that the sons of Jacob were coming to them
were greatly afraid of them, for they had heard of their strength and what they
had done to Chazar.
23 And the inhabitants of the
city of Sarton could not go out toward the sons of Jacob after having assembled
in the city to fight against them, lest they might thereby get into the city,
but when they saw that they were coming toward them, they were greatly afraid
of them, for they had heard of their strength and what they had done to Chazar.
24 So the inhabitants of Sarton
speedily took away the bridge of the road of the city, from its place, before
the sons of Jacob came, and they brought it into the city.
25 And the sons of Jacob came
and sought the way into the city, and could not find it and the inhabitants of
the city went up to the top of the wall, and saw, and behold the sons of Jacob
were seeking an entrance into the city.
26 And the inhabitants of the
city reproached the sons of Jacob from the top of the wall, and they cursed
them, and the sons of Jacob heard the reproaches, and they were greatly
incensed, and their anger burned within them.
27 And the sons of Jacob were
provoked at them, and they all rose and sprang over the rampart with the force
of their strength, and through their might passed the forty cubits' breadth of
the rampart.
28 And when they had passed the
rampart they stood under the wall of the city, and they found all the gates of
the city enclosed with iron doors.
29 And the sons of Jacob came
near to break open the doors of the gates of the city, and the inhabitants did
not let them, for from the top of the wall they were casting stones and arrows
upon them.
30 And the number of the people
that were upon the wall was about four hundred men, and when the sons of Jacob
saw that the men of the city would not let them open the gates of the city,
they sprang and ascended the top of the wall, and Judah went up first to the
east part of the city.
31 And Gad and Asher went up
after him to the west corner of the city, and Simeon and Levi to the north, and
Dan and Reuben to the south.
32 And the men who were on the
top of the wall, the inhabitants of the city, seeing that the sons of Jacob
were coming up to them, they all fled from the wall, descended into the city,
and concealed themselves in the midst of the city.
33 And Issachar and Naphtali
that remained under the wall approached and broke the gates of the city, and
kindled a fire at the gates of the city, that the iron melted, and all the sons
of Jacob came into the city, they and all their men, and they fought with the
inhabitants of the city of Sarton, and smote them with the edge of the sword,
and no man stood up before them.
34 And about two hundred men
fled from the city, and they all went and hid themselves in a certain tower in
the city, and Judah pursued them to the tower and he broke down the tower,
which fell upon the men, and they all died.
35 And the sons of Jacob went
up the road of the roof of that tower, and they saw, and behold there was
another strong and high tower at a distance in the city, and the top of it
reached to heaven, and the sons of Jacob hastened and descended, and went with
all their men to that tower, and found it filled with about three hundred men,
women and little ones.
36 And the sons of Jacob smote
a great smiting amongst those men in the tower and they ran away and fled from
them.
37 And Simeon and Levi pursued
them, when twelve mighty and valiant men came out to them from the place where
they had concealed themselves.
38 And those twelve men
maintained a strong battle against Simeon and Levi, and Simeon and Levi could
not prevail over them, and those valiant men broke the shields of Simeon and
Levi, and one of them struck at Levi's head with his sword, when Levi hastily
placed his hand to his head, for he was afraid of the sword, and the sword
struck Levi's hand, and it wanted but little to the hand of Levi being cut off.
39 And Levi seized the sword of
the valiant man in his hand, and took it forcibly from the man, and with it he
struck at the head of the powerful man, and he severed his head.
40 And eleven men approached to
fight with Levi, for they saw that one of them was killed, and the sons of
Jacob fought, but the sons of Jacob could not prevail over them, for those men
were very powerful.
41 And the sons of Jacob seeing
that they could not prevail over them, Simeon gave a loud and tremendous shriek, and the eleven powerful men were stunned at the
voice of Simeon's shrieking.
42 And Judah at a distance knew
the voice of Simeon's shouting, and Naphtali and Judah ran with their shields
to Simeon and Levi, and found them fighting with those powerful men, unable to
prevail over them as their shields were broken.
43 And Naphtali saw that the
shields of Simeon and Levi were broken, and he took two shields from his servants
and brought them to Simeon and Levi.
44 And Simeon, Levi and Judah
on that day fought all three against the eleven mighty men until the time of
sunset, but they could not prevail over them.
45 And this was told unto
Jacob, and he was sorely grieved, and he prayed unto the Lord, and he and
Naphtali his son went against these mighty men.
46 And Jacob approached and
drew his bow, and came nigh unto the mighty men, and slew three of their men
with the bow, and the remaining eight turned back, and behold, the war waged
against them in the front and rear, and they were greatly afraid of their
lives, and could not stand before the sons of Jacob, and they fled from before
them.
47 And in their flight they met
Dan and Asher coming toward them, and they suddenly fell upon them, and fought
with them, and slew two of them, and Judah and his brothers pursued them, and
smote the remainder of them, and slew them.
48 And all the sons of Jacob
returned and walked about the city, searching if they could find any men, and
they found about twenty young men in a cave in the city, and Gad and Asher
smote them all, and Dan and Naphtali lighted upon the rest of the men who had
fled and escaped from the second tower, and they smote them all.
49 And the sons of Jacob smote
all the inhabitants of the city of Sarton, but the women and little ones they
left in the city and did not slay them.
50 And all the inhabitants of
the city of Sarton were powerful men, one of them would pursue a thousand, and
two of them would not flee from ten thousand of the rest of men.
51 And the sons of Jacob slew
all the inhabitants of the city of Sarton with the edge of the sword, that no man stood up against them, and they left the
women in the city.
52 And the sons of Jacob took
all the spoil of the city, and captured what they desired, and they took flocks
and herds and property from the city, and the sons of Jacob did unto Sarton and
its inhabitants as they had done to Chazar and its inhabitants, and they turned
and went away.
1 And when the sons of Jacob
went from the city of Sarton, they had gone about two hundred cubits when they
met the inhabitants of Tapnach coming toward them, for they went out to fight
with them, because they had smitten the king of Tapnach and all his men.
2 So all that remained in the
city of Tapnach came out to fight with the sons of Jacob, and they thought to
retake from them the booty and the spoil which they had captured from Chazar
and Sarton.
3 And the rest of the men of
Tapnach fought with the sons of Jacob in that place, and the sons of Jacob
smote them, and they fled before them, and they pursued them to the city of
Arbelan, and they all fell before the sons of Jacob.
4 And the sons of Jacob
returned and came to Tapnach, to take away the spoil of Tapnach, and when they
came to Tapnach they heard that the people of Arbelan had gone out to meet them
to save the spoil of their brethren, and the sons of Jacob left ten of their
men in Tapnach to plunder the city, and they went out toward the people of
Arbelan.
5 And the men of Arbelan went
out with their wives to fight with the sons of Jacob, for their wives were
experienced in battle, and they went out, about four hundred men and women.
6 And all the sons of Jacob
shouted with a loud voice, and they all ran toward the inhabitants of Arbelan,
and with a great and tremendous voice.
7 And the inhabitants of
Arbelan heard the noise of the shouting of the sons of Jacob, and their roaring
like the noise of lions and like the roaring of the sea and its waves.
8 And fear and terror possessed
their hearts on account of the sons of Jacob, and they were terribly afraid of
them, and they retreated and fled before them into the city, and the sons of
Jacob pursued them to the gate of the city, and they came upon them in the city.
9 And the sons of Jacob fought
with them in the city, and all their women were engaged in slinging against the
sons of Jacob, and the combat was very severe amongst them the whole of that
day till evening.
10 And the sons of Jacob could
not prevail over them, and the sons of Jacob had almost perished in that
battle, and the sons of Jacob cried unto the Lord and greatly gained strength
toward evening, and the sons of Jacob smote all the inhabitants of Arbelan by
the edge of the sword, men, women and little ones.
11 And also the remainder of
the people who had fled from Sarton, the sons of Jacob smote them in Arbelan,
and the sons of Jacob did unto Arbelan and Tapnach as they had done to Chazar
and Sarton, and when the women saw that all the men were dead, they went upon
the roofs of the city and smote the sons of Jacob by showering down stones like
rain.
12 And the sons of Jacob
hastened and came into the city and seized all the women and smote them with
the edge of the sword, and the sons of Jacob captured all the spoil and booty,
flocks and herds and cattle.
13 And the sons of Jacob did
unto Machnaymah as they had done to Tapnach, to Chazar and to Shiloh, and they
turned from there and went away.
14 And on the fifth day the
sons of Jacob heard that the people of Gaash had gathered against them to
battle, because they had slain their king and their captains, for there had
been fourteen captains in the city of Gaash, and the sons of Jacob had slain
them all in the first battle.
15 And the sons of Jacob that day
girt on their weapons of war, and they marched to battle against the
inhabitants of Gaash, and in Gaash there was a strong and mighty people of the
people of the Amorites, and Gaash was the strongest and best fortified city of
all the cities of the Amorites, and it had three walls.
16 And the sons of Jacob came
to Gaash and they found the gates of the city locked, and about five hundred
men standing at the top of the outer-most wall, and a people numerous as the
sand upon the sea shore were in ambush for the sons of Jacob from without the
city at the rear thereof.
17 And the sons of Jacob
approached to open the gates of the city, and whilst they were drawing nigh,
behold those who were in ambush at the rear of the city came forth from their
places and surrounded the sons of Jacob.
18 And the sons of Jacob were
enclosed between the people of Gaash, and the battle was both to their front
and rear, and all the men that were upon the wall, were casting from the wall
upon them, arrows and stones.
19 And Judah, seeing that the
men of Gaash were getting too heavy for them, gave a most piercing and
tremendous shriek and all the men of Gaash were terrified at the voice of
Judah's cry, and men fell from the wall at his powerful shriek, and all those
that were from without and within the city were greatly afraid of their lives.
20 And the sons of Jacob still
came nigh to break the doors of the city, when the men of Gaash threw stones
and arrows upon them from the top of the wall, and made them flee from the
gate.
21 And the sons of Jacob
returned against the men of Gaash who were with them
from without the city, and they smote them terribly, as striking against
gourds, and they could not stand against the sons of Jacob, for fright and
terror had seized them at the shriek of Judah.
22 And the sons of Jacob slew
all those men who were without the city, and the sons of Jacob still drew nigh
to effect an entrance into the city, and to fight under the city walls, but
they could not for all the inhabitants of Gaash who remained in the city had
surrounded the walls of Gaash in every direction, so that the sons of Jacob
were unable to approach the city to fight with them.
23 And the sons of Jacob came
nigh to one corner to fight under the wall, the inhabitants of Gaash threw arrows
and stones upon them like showers of rain, and they fled from under the wall.
24 And the people of Gaash who
were upon the wall, seeing that the sons of Jacob could not prevail over them
from under the wall, reproached the sons of Jacob in these words, saying,
25 What is the matter with you
in the battle that you cannot prevail? can you then do
unto the mighty city of Gaash and its inhabitants as you did to the cities of
the Amorites that were not so powerful? Surely to those weak ones amongst us
you did those things, and slew them in the entrance of the city, for they had
no strength when they were terrified at the sound of your shouting.
26 And will you now then be
able to fight in this place? Surely here you will all die, and we will avenge
the cause of those cities that you have laid waste.
27 And the inhabitants of Gaash
greatly reproached the sons of Jacob and reviled them with their gods, and
continued to cast arrows and stones upon them from the wall.
28 And Judah and his brothers
heard the words of the inhabitants of Gaash and their anger was greatly roused,
and Judah was jealous of his God in this matter, and he called out and said, O
Lord, help, send help to us and our brothers.
29 And he ran at a distance
with all his might, with his drawn sword in his hand, and he sprang from the
earth and by dint of his strength, mounted the wall, and his sword fell from
his hand.
30 And Judah shouted upon the
wall, and all the men that were upon the wall were terrified, and some of them
fell from the wall into the city and died, and those who were yet upon the
wall, when they saw Judah's strength, they were greatly afraid and fled for
their lives into the city for safety.
31 And some were emboldened to
fight with Judah upon the wall, and they came nigh to slay him when they saw
there was no sword in Judah's hand, and they thought of casting him from the
wall to his brothers, and twenty men of the city came up to assist them, and
they surrounded Judah and they all shouted over him, and approached him with
drawn swords, and they terrified Judah, and Judah cried out to his brothers
from the wall.
32 And Jacob and his sons drew
the bow from under the wall, and smote three of the men that were upon the top
of the wall, and Judah continued to cry and he exclaimed, O Lord help us, O
Lord deliver us, and he cried out with a loud voice upon the wall, and the cry
was heard at a great distance.
33 And after this cry he again
repeated to shout, and all the men who surrounded Judah on the top of the wall
were terrified, and they each threw his sword from his hand at the sound of
Judah's shouting and his tremor, and fled.
34 And Judah took the swords
which had fallen from their hands, and Judah fought with them and slew twenty
of their men upon the wall.
35 And about eighty men and
women still ascended the wall from the city and they all surrounded Judah, and
the Lord impressed the fear of Judah in their hearts, that they were unable to
approach him.
36 And Jacob and all who were
with him drew the bow from under the wall, and they slew ten men upon the wall,
and they fell below the wall, before Jacob and his sons.
37 And the people upon the wall
seeing that twenty of their men had fallen, they still ran toward Judah with
drawn swords, but they could not approach him for they were greatly terrified
at Judah's strength.
38 And one of their mighty men
whose name was Arud approached to strike Judah upon the head with his sword,
when Judah hastily put his shield to his head, and the sword hit the shield,
and it was split in two.
39 And this mighty man after he
had struck Judah ran for his life, at the fear of Judah, and his feet slipped
upon the wall and he fell amongst the sons of Jacob who were below the wall,
and the sons of Jacob smote him and slew him.
40 And Judah's head pained him
from the blow of the powerful man, and Judah had nearly died from it.
41 And Judah cried out upon the
wall owing to the pain produced by the blow, when Dan heard him, and his anger
burned within him, and he also rose up and went at a distance and ran and
sprang from the earth and mounted the wall with his wrath-excited strength.
42 And when Dan came upon the
wall near unto Judah all the men upon the wall fled, who had stood against
Judah, and they went up to the second wall, and they threw arrows and stones
upon Dan and Judah from the second wall, and endeavored to drive them from the
wall.
43 And the arrows and stones
struck Dan and Judah, and they had nearly been killed upon the wall, and
wherever Dan and Judah fled from the wall, they were attacked with arrows and
stones from the second wall.
44 And Jacob and his sons were
still at the entrance of the city below the first wall, and they were not able
to draw their bow against the inhabitants of the city, as they could not be
seen by them, being upon the second wall.
45 And Dan and Judah when they
could no longer bear the stones and arrows that fell upon them from the second
wall, they both sprang upon the second wall near the people of the city, and
when the people of the city who were upon the second wall saw that Dan and
Judah had come to them upon the second wall, they all cried out and descended
below between the walls.
46 And Jacob and his sons heard
the noise of the shouting from the people of the city, and they were still at
the entrance of the city, and they were anxious about Dan and Judah who were
not seen by them, they being upon the second wall.
47 And Naphtali went up with
his wrath-excited might and sprang upon the first wall to see what caused the
noise of shouting which they had heard in the city, and Issachar and Zebulun
drew nigh to break the doors of the city, and they opened the gates of the city
and came into the city.
48 And Naphtali leaped from the
first wall to the second, and came to assist his brothers, and the inhabitants
of Gaash who were upon the wall, seeing that Naphtali was the third who had
come up to assist his brothers, they all fled and descended into the city, and
Jacob and all his sons and all their young men came into the city to them.
49 And Judah and Dan and
Naphtali descended from the wall into the city and pursued the inhabitants of
the city, and Simeon and Levi were from without the city and knew not that the
gate was opened, and they went up from there to the wall and came down to their
brothers into the city.
50 And the inhabitants of the
city had all descended into the city, and the sons of Jacob came to them in
different directions, and the battle waged against them from the front and the
rear, and the sons of Jacob smote them terribly, and slew about twenty thousand
of them men and women, not one of them could stand up against the sons of
Jacob.
51 And the blood flowed
plentifully in the city, and it was like a brook of water, and the blood flowed
like a brook to the outer part of the city, and reached the desert of
Bethchorin.
52 And the people of Bethchorin
saw at a distance the blood flowing from the city of Gaash, and about seventy
men from amongst them ran to see the blood, and they came to the place where
the blood was.
53 And they followed the track
of the blood and came to the wall of the city of Gaash, and they saw the blood
issue from the city, and they heard the voice of crying from the inhabitants of
Gaash, for it ascended unto heaven, and the blood was continuing to flow
abundantly like a brook of water.
54 And all the sons of Jacob
were still smiting the inhabitants of Gaash, and were engaged in slaying them
till evening, about twenty thousand men and women, and the people of Chorin
said, Surely this is the work of the Hebrews, for they
are still carrying on war in all the cities of the Amorites.
55 And those people hastened
and ran to Bethchorin, and each took his weapons of war, and they cried out to
all the inhabitants of Bethchorin, who also girt on their weapons of war to go
and fight with the sons of Jacob.
56 And when the sons of Jacob
had done smiting the inhabitants of Gaash, they walked about the city to strip
all the slain, and coming in the innermost part of the city and farther on they
met three very powerful men, and there was no sword in their hand.
57 And the sons of Jacob came
up to the place where they were, and the powerful men ran away, and one of them
had taken Zebulun, who he saw was a young lad and of short stature, and with
his might dashed him to the ground.
58 And Jacob ran to him with
his sword and Jacob smote him below his loins with the sword, and cut him in
two, and the body fell upon Zebulun.
59 And the second one approached and seized Jacob to fell him to the ground, and Jacob turned to him and shouted to him, whilst Simeon and Levi ran and smo