Commentary on the Holy Bible

Saw the place afar off.] He knew the place by seeing the cloud of glory smoking on the top of the mountain. — Targum.

Verse 5. land the lad will go — and come again] How could Abraham consistently with truth say this, when he knew he was going to make his son a burntoffering? The apostle answers for him: By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac — accounting that God was able to raise him up even from the dead, from whence also he receivedhimin a figure, Heb. xi. 17, 19. He knew that previously to the birth of Isaac both he and his wife were dead to all the purposes of procreation; that his birth was a kind of life from the dead; that the promise of God was most positive. In Isaac shall thy seed be called, chap, xxi. 12; that this promise could not fail; that it was his duty to obey the command of his Maker; and that it was as easy for God to restore him to life after he had been a burnt-offering, as it was for him to give him life in the beginning. Therefore he went fully purposed to offer his son, and yet confidently expecting to have him restored to life again. We icill go yonder and worship — perform a solemn act of devotion which God requires, and come again to you.

Verse 6. Took the loood — and laid it upon Isaac] Probably the mountain-top to which they were going was too difficult to be ascended by the ass; therefore either the father or the son must carry the wood, and it was most becoming in the latter.

8 And Aliraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb ' for a burnt-offering: so they went both of them together.

9 And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham bnilt an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and '' laid him on the altar upon the wood.

Verse 7. Behold the fire and the loood: but where is the lamb] Nothing can be conceived more tender, affectionate, and aflecting, than the question of the son and the reply of the father on this occasion. A paraphrase would spoil it; nothing can be added without injuring those expressions of affectionate submission on the one hand, and dignified tenderness and simplicity on the other.

Verse 8. My.inn, God will provide himself a lamb] Here we find the same obedient unshaken faith for which this pattern of practical piety was ever remarkable. But we must not suppose that this was the language merely of faith and obedience; the patriarch spoke prophetically, and referred to that Lamb of God which HK had provided for himself, who in the fulness of time should take away the sin of the world, and of whom Isaac was a most expressive type. All the other lambs which had been offered from the foundation of the world had been such as men chose and MEN offered; but this was the Lamb which GOD had provided — emphatically, the Lamb of God.

A''ersc 9. And bound Isaac his son] If the patriarch had not been upheld by the conviction that he was doing the icdl of God, and had he not felt the most perfect confidence that his son should be restored even from the dead, what agony must his heart have felt at every step of the journey, and through all the circumstances of this extraordinary business 1 What must his affectionate lieart have felt at the questions asked by his innocent and amiable son 1 What must he have suffered while building the altar, laying on the wood, binding his lovely son, placing him on the wood, taking the knife, and stretching out his hand to slay the child of his hopes? Every view we take of the subject interests the heart, and exalts the character of this father of the faithful. ]5ut has the character of Isaac been duly considered? la not the consideration of his excellence lost in the supposition that he was too young to enter particularly into a sense of his danger, and too feeble to have made any resistance, had he been unwilling to submit? Josephus supjioses that Isaac was now twenty-five, (see the chronology on ver. 1;) some rabbins that he was thirty-six; but it is more probable that he was now about thirty-three, the age at which iits great Antitype wa« offered up; and on this medium I have ventured to construct the chronology, of which Z think it necessary to give this notice to the reader.

1 1 And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham! and he said. Here am I.

12 And he said, ' Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto liim: for ""now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, from me.

Allowing him to be only ticenly-fice, he might have easily resisted; for can it be supposed that an old man of at least one hundred and twenty-five years of age could have bound, without his consent, a young man in the very prime and vigour of life t In this case we cannot say that the superior strength of the father prevailed, but the piety, filial affection, and obedience of the son yielded. All this was most illustriously typical of Christ. In both cases the father himself offers up his only-begotten son, and the father himself binds him on the wood or to the cross; in neither case is the son forced to yield, but yields of his own accord; in neither case is the life taken away by the hand of violence; Isaac yields himself to the knife, Jesus lays down his life for the sheep.

Verse 1 1. The angel of the Lord] The very person who was represented by this offering; the Lord Jesus, who calls himself Jehovah, ver. 16, and on his own authority renews the promises of the covenant. He was ever the great Mediator between God and man. See this point proved, chap. xv. 7.

Verse 13. Lay not thine hand vpon the lad] As Isaac was to be the representative of Jesus Christ's real sacrifice, it was sufficient for this purpose that in his own will, and the wdl of his father, the purpose of the immolation was complete. Isaac was now fully off'ered both by his father and by himself. The lather yields up the son, the son gives up his life; on both sides, as far as will and purpose could go, the sacrifice was complete. God simply spares the father the torture of putting the knife to his son's throat. Now was ^ the time when it might properly be said, " Sacrifice, fl and offering, and burnt-otrcring, and sacrifice for sin thou wouldcst not, neither hadst pleasure in them: then said the Angel of the Covenant, Lo! I come to do thy will, O God." Lay not thy hand upon the lad; an irrational creature will serve for the purpose of a representative sacrifice, from this til! the fulness of lime But without this most expressive representation of the father offering his beloved, only-begotten son, what reference can such sacrifices he considered to have to the great event of the incarnation and crucifixion of Christ? Abraham, the most dignified, the most immaculate of all the patriarchs; Isaac, the true pattern of piety to God and fili.al obediiMice, may well represent God tht Father so loving the world as to give his only-begottan Son, Jesus Christ, to die for the sin of man. Bui

behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt-ofTering in the stead of his son.

14 And Abraham called the name of that place " Jehovah-jireh: as it is said to this day. In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen.

15 And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time,

16 And said, ° By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son;

17 That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed p as the

the grand circumstances necessary to prefigure these important points could not be exhibited through the means of any or of the tvhole brute creation. The whole sacrificial system of the Mosaic economy had a retrospective and prospective view, referring from the sacrifice of Isaac to the sacrifice of Christ; in the first the dawning of the ' Sun of righteousness was seen; in the latter, his meridian splendour and glory. Taken in this light (and this is the only light in which it should be viewed) Abraham offering his son Isaac is one of the most important facts and most instructive histories in the whole Old Testament. See farther on this subject, chap, xxiii. 2.

Verse 14. Jehovah-jireh^ HNT' TY(7y Yehovah-yireh, literally interpreted in the margin, The Lord will see; that is, God will take care that every thing shall be done that is necessary for the comfort and support of them who trust in him: hence the words are usually translated, The Lord will provide; so our translators, ver. 8, nST D'nSx Elohim yireh, God will provide; because his eye ever affects his heart, and the wants he sees his hand is ever ready to supply. But all this seems to have been done under a Divine impulse, and the words to have been spoken prophetically; hence Houbigant and some others render the words thus: Domimis videbitur, the Lord shall be seen; and this translation the following clause seems to require, ^6- it is.laid to this day, nxi' nin' "in3 hehar Yehovah yeraeh, on this mount the Lord sh.\ll be seen. From this it appears that the sacrifice offered by Abraham wa-s understood to be a representative one, and a tradition was kept up that Jehovah should be seen in a sacrificial way on this mount. And ihb renders the opinion slated on ver. 1 more than probable, viz., that Abraham offered Isaac on that very mountain on which, in the fulness of time, Jesus suffered. See Bishop Warburtou.

sand which is upon the seashore; ' and ^ thy seed shall possess ' the gate of his enemies;

18" And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; ' because thou hast obeyed my voice.

19 So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up, and went together to '" Beer-sheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba.

20 And it came to pass after A.M. cir. 2143.

Abraham, saying. Behold, ^ Milcah, she hath also borne children unto thy brother Nahor; 215" Huz his first-born, and Buz his brother, and Kemuel the father ^ of Aram, that the person who was called the angel of the Lord is here caWeA Jehovah; see on ver. 2. An oath or an appeal to God is, among men, an end to strife; as God could swear by no greater, he sware by himself: being willing more abundantly, says the apostle, to show unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, he confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things, (his PROMISE and his oath,) in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, ivho have fled for refuge to lay hold on the hope set before us. See Heb. vi. 13-18.

Verse 17. Shall possess the gate of his enemies'] Instead oi gate the Septuagint have irolti^, cities; but as there is a very near resemblance between volei;, cities, and TruXaj-, gates, the latter might have been the original reading in the Septuagint, though none of the MSS. now acknowledge it. By the gates may be meant all the strength, whether troops, counsels, or for tified cities of their enemies. So Matt. xvi. 18: 0» this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it — the counsels, stratagems, and powers of darkness shall not be able to prevail against or overthrow the true Church of Christ; and possibly our Lord had this promise to Abraham and his spiritual posterity in view, when he spoke these words.

Verse 18. And in thy seed, t^c.] We have the authority of St. Paul, Gal. iii. 8, 16, 18, to restrain this to our blessed Lord, who was the seed through whom alone all God's blessings of providence, mercy, grace, and glory, should be conveyed to the nations of the earth.

Verse 20. Behold, Milcah, she hath also borne children unto thy brother] This short history seems introduced solely for the purpose of preparing the reader for the transactions related chap, xxiv., and to show that the providence of God was preparing, in one of the branches of the family of Abraham, a suitable spouse for his son Isaac.

22 And Chcsed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlapli, and Belhuel. 23 And "Bethuel begat *'Rcbekah: theseeight Milcah did bear to Nahor, Abraham's brother.

Buz his brother] From this person Elihu the Buzite, one of the friends of Job, is tlumglit to have descended.

Kemuel the fal her of Aram\ Kamouel, ■'^arepa Suauv, the father of the Si/rums, according to the Septuagint. Probably the Kamiletes, a Syrian tribe to the westward of the Euphrates are meant; tliey are mentioned by Slrabo.

Verse 24. His concubine] We borrow this word from the Latin compound concubina, from con, together, and cubo, to lie, and apply it solely to a woman cohabiting with a man without being legally married. The Hebrew word is iyjS'D pilegcsh, which is also a compound term, contracted, according to Parkhurst, from y!3 palag, to divide or share, and wVJJ nagash, to approach; because the husband, in the delicate phrase of the Hebrew tongue, approaches the concubine, and shares the bed, &c., of the real wife with her. The pilegesh or concubine, (from which comes the Greek naUaKTi pallahe, and also the Latin pellex,) in Scripture, is a kind of secondary wife, not unlawful in the patriarchal times; though the progeny of such could not inherit. The word is not used in the Scriptures in that disagreeable sense in which we commonly understand it. Hagar was properly the concubine or pilegesh of Abraham, and this annuente Deo, and with his wife's consent. Keturah, his second wife, is called a concubine, chap. x.Kvi. 15; 1 Chron. i. 32; and Bilhah and Zilhah were concubines to Jacob, chap. x.\.\v. 22. After the patriarchal times many eminent men had concubines, viz., Caleb, 1 Chron. ii. 46, 48; Manasses, I Chron. vii. 1 4; Gideon, Judg. viii. 3 1; Saul, 2 Sam. iii. 7; David, 2 Sam. v. 13; Solomon, 2 Kings \i. 3; and Rehoboam, 2 Chron. xi. 21. The pilegesh, therefore, differed widely from a prostitute; and however unlawful uader the New Testament, was not so under the Old.

From this chapter a pious mind may collect much jseful instruction. From the trial of Abraham we again see, I. That God may bring his followers into severe straits and difficulties, that they may have the better opportunity of both knowing and showing their own faith and obedience; and that he may seize on those occasions to show them the abundance of his mercy, and thus confirm them in righteousness all their days. There is a foolish saying among some religious people, which cannot be too severely reprobated: Un ■ tried grace is no grace. On the contrary, there may be much grace, though God, for good reasons, does no/ think proper for a time to put it to any severe trial or proof But grace is certainly not fully known but in being called to trials of severe and painful obedience But as all the gifts of God should be used, (and they are increased and strengthened by exercise,) it would be unjust to deny trials and exercises to grace, as this would be to preclude it from the opportunities of being strengthened and increased. 2. The offering up of Isaac is used by several religious people in a sort of metaphorical way, to signify their easily-besetting sins, beloved idols, <!j-c. But this is a most reprehensible abuse of the Scripture. It is both insolent and wicked to compare some abominable lust or unholy affection to the amiable and pious youth who, for his purity and excellence, was deemed worthy to prefigure the sacrifice of the Son of God. To call our vile passions and unlawful attachments by the name of our Isaacs is unpardonable; and to talk of sacrificing such to God is downright blasphemy. Such sayings as these appear to be legitimated by long use; but we should be deeply and scrupulously careful not to use any of the words of God in any sense in which he has not spoken them. If, in the course of God's providence, a parent is called to give up to death an amiable, only son, then there is a parallel in the case; and it may be justly said, if pious resignation fill the parent's mind, such a person, like Abraham, has been called to give his Isaac back to God. Independently of the typical reference to this transaction, there are two points which seem to be recommended particularly to our notice. 1. The astonishing faith;md prompt obedience of the father. 2. The innocence, filial respect, and passive submission of the son. Such a father and such a son were alone worthy of each other.

The age and death of Sarah, 1, 2. Abraham mourns for her, and requests a burial-place from the sons of Heth, 2—4. They freely offer him the choice of all their sepulchres, 5, (5. Abraham refuses to receive any as a free gift, and requests to buy the cave of Machpclah from Ephron, 7—9. Ephron proffers the cave and the field in which it was situated as a free gift unto Abraham, 10, 11. Abraham insists on giving its value in money, 12, 13. Ephron at last consents, and names the sum of four hundred shekels, 14, 15 Abraham weighs him the money in the presence of the people; in consequence of which the cave, the whole field, trees, cj-c, are made sure to him and his familq for a possession, Ifi-lS. The transaction being completed, Sarah is buried in the cave, 19. The sons of Heth ratfy the barza>n, 20. 140 a

• 2 And Sarah died in ^ Kirjath-arba; the

Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to

3 And Abraham stood up from before his

NOTES ON CHAP. XXIII. Verse 1. And Sarah was a hundred and seven and twenty years old] It is worthy of remark that Sarah is the only woman in the sacred writings whose age, death, and burial are distinctly noted. And she has been deemed worthy of higher honour, for St. Paul, Gal. iv. 23, 23, makes her a type of the Church of Christ; and her faith in the accomplishment of God's promise, that she should have a son, when all natural probabilities were against it, is particularly celebrated in the Epistle to the Hebrews, chap. xi. 11. Sarah was about ninety-one years old when Isaac was born, and she lived thirty-six years after, and saw him grown up to man's estate. With Sarah the promise of the incarnation of Christ commenced, though a comparatively obscure prophecy of it had been delivered to Eve, chap. iii. 15: and with Maky it terminated, having had its exact completion. Thus God put more honour upon these two women than upon all the daughters of Eve besides. Sarah's conception of Isaac was supernatural; she had passed the age and circumstances in which it was possible, naturally speaking, to have a child; therefore she laughed when the promise was given, knowing that the thing was impossible, because it had ceased to be with her after the manner of women. God allows this natural impossibility, and grants that the thing must be the effect of Divine interposition; and therefore asks, Is any thing too hard for God? The physical impossibility was increased in the case of Mary, she having no connection with man; but the same power interposed as in the case of Sarah: and we find that when all aptitude for natural procreation was gone, Sarah received strength to conceive seed, and bore a son, from whom, in a direct line, the Messiah, the Saviour of the world, was to descend; and through this same power we find a virgin conceiving and bearing a son against all natural impossibilities. Every thing is supernatural in the births both of the type and antitype; can it be wondered at then, if the spiritual offspring of the Messiah must have a supernatural birth likewise ] hence the propriety of that saying. Unless a man be born again — bornfi-om above — born, not only of water, but of the Holy Ghost, he cannot see the kingdotn nf God. These may appe.ar hard sayings, and those who are little in the habit of considering spiritual things may exclaim, " It is enthusiasm! Who can bear it t Such things cannot possibly be." To such persons I have only to say, God hath spoken. This is sufficient for those who credit his being and his Bible; nor is there any thing too hard for him. He, by whose almighty power, Sarah had strength to conceive and

4 ■= I a»i a stranger and a sojourner with you: ^ give me a possession of a burying place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.

5 And the children of Heth answered Abra ham, saving unto him.

bear a son in her old age, and by whose miraculous interference a virgin conceived, and the man Christ Jesus was born of her, can by the same power transform the sinful soul, and cause it to bear the image of the heavenly as it has borne the image of the earthly.

Verse 2. Sarah died in Kirjath-arba] Literally!>! the city of the four. Some suppose this place was called the city of the four because it was the burial place of Adam, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; others, because according to the opinion of the rabbins. Eve was buried there, with Sarah, Rebekah, and Leah. But it seems evidently to have had its name from a Canaanite, one of the Anakim, probably called Arba, (for the te.xt, Josh. xiv. 14, does not actually say this was his name,) who was the chief of the fotir brothers who dwelt there; the names of the others being Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai. See Judges i. 10. These three were destroyed by the tribe of Judah; probably the other had been previously dead.

Abraham came to mourn for Sarah] From verse 19 of the preceding chapter it appears that Abraham had settled at Beer-sheba; and here we find that Sarah died at Hebron, which was about twenty-four miles distant from Beer-sheba. For the convenience of feeding his numerous flocks, Abraham had probably several places of temporary residence, and particularly one at Beer-sheba, and another at Hebron; and it is likely that while he sojourned at Beer-sheba, Sarah died at Hebron; and his coming to mourn and iveep for her signifies his coming from the former to the latter place on the news of her death.

Verse 3. Abraham stood up from before his dead] He had probably sat on the ground some days in token of sorrow, as the custom then was, (see Tobit ii. 12, 13; Isa. xlvii. 1; and Gen. xxxvii. 35;) and when this time was finished he arose and began to treat about a burying place.

Verse 4. / am a stranger and a sojourner] It appears from Heb. xi. 13-lG; 1 Pet. ii. 11, that these words refer more to the state of his mind than of his body. He felt that he had no certain dwelling place, and was seeking by faith a city that had foundations.

Give me a possession of a burying place] It haa been remarked that in difl^erent nations it was deemed ignominious to be buried in another's ground; probably this prevailed in early times in the east, and it may be in reference to a sentiment of this kind that Abraham refuses to accept the offer of the children of Heth to bury in any of their sepulchres, and earnestly requests them to sell him one, that he might bury his wife in a place that he could claim as his own.

choice of our sepulchres bury thy dead; none of us shall withhold from thee his sepulchre, but that thou mayesl bury thy dead.

7 And Abraham stood up, and bowed himself to the people of the land, even to the children of Hclh.

S And he communed with them, saying, If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight; hear me, and entreat for me to Epliron the son of Zohar,

9 That he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he hath, which is in the end of his field; for b as much money as it is worlli he shall give it me for a possession of a burying place amongst you.

10 And Ephron dwelt among the children of Hcth: and Epliron the llitlite answered Abraham in the '' audience of the children of Heth, even of all that ' went in at the gate of his cit}% saying,

1 1 "^ Nay, my lord, hear mc: the field give I thee, and the cave that is therein, I give it thee; in the presence of the sons of my people give I it thee: bury thy dead.

12 And Abraham bowed down himself before the people of the land.

Verse 6. Thou art a mighty prince] □TtSx X'tyj ncsi Elohim, a prince of God — a person whom we know to be Divinely favoured, and whom, in consequence, we deeply respect and reverence.

Verse 8. Entreat for mc to Ephron] Abraham had already seen the cave and field, and finding to whom they belonged, and thai they would answer his purpose, came to the gale of Hebron, where the elders of the people sat to administer justice, &c., and where bargains and sales were made and witnessed, and having addressed himself to the elders, among whom Kphron •was, though it appears lie was not personally known to Abraham, he begged them to use their influence with the owner of the cave and field to sell it to him, that it might serve him and his family for a place of sepulture.

Verse 10. And Ephron dwelt among the children of Helli] And Epliron 2'iy' yo.ihel/, was sitting among the children of lli th, but, as w.is before conjectured, was personally unknown to Aliraham; he therefore answered for himself, making a free lender of the field, &c., to Abraham, in the presence of all the people, which amounted to a legal conveyance of the whole properly to the patriarch.

Verse 13. If thou wilt give it] Instead of, If thou will give it, we should read. But if thou will sell i'. T

1 3 And he spake unto Ephron in A. M. 2145 the audience of the people of tiic ' — 1 land, saying, But \[\\\o\xwilt giveit, I pray thee, hear me: I will give thee money for the field; take it of me, and I will bury my dead there

14 And Ephron answered Abraham, saying unto him,

1 5 My lord, hearken unto me: the land is worth four hundred ' shekels of silver; what is that bctwi.xt me and thee? bury therefore thy dead.

1 6 And Abraham hearkened unto Ephron; and Abraham ■" weighed to Ephron the silver, which he had named in the audience of the sons of llelli, four hundred shekels of silver, current money with the merchant.

17 And "the field of Ephron, which tvas in Machpelah, which teas before Mamre, the field, and the cave which was therein, and all the trees that were in the field, that were in all the borders round about, were made sure

18 Unto Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all that went in at die gate of his city.

19 And after this Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre: the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan.

will give thee money for the field; f)03 keseph, silver, not coined money, for it is not probable that any such was then in use.

Verse 15. The land is worth /our hundred shekels of silcer] Though the words is tcorth are not in the text, yet they arc necessarily expressed here to adapt the Hebrew to the idiom of our tongue. A shekel, according to the general opinion, was equal to two shillings and sixpence; but according to Dr. Prideaux, whose estimate I shall follow, three shillings English, four hundred of which are equal to sixty pounds sterling; but it is evident that a certain tceight is intended, and not a coin, for in verse 16 it is said. And Abraham weighed lpU^\ vaiyishkol, the silver, and hence it appears that this weight itself passed aftertcards as a current coin, for the word Vp'i? is not only used to express a coin or piece of silver, but also to weigh; see the note on chap. xx. 16.

Verse 16. Current with the merchant.] IPIdS 12>' ober lassochcr, passing to or xvith the Iravcllct — such as was commonly used by those who travelled about with merch.andise of any sort. The word signifies the same as hawker or pedlar among us.

A'erse 17..1// the trees that were in the field] It is possible that all these were specified in the agreement

20 And the field, and the cave that is therein, ° were made sure unto

Verse 20. And the field, (SfC.weremade sure] Dp'l vaiyaliom, were established, caused to stand; the whole transaction having been regulated according to all the forms of law then in use.

1. In this transaction between Abraham and the sons of Heth concerning the cave and field nf Machpelah, we have the earliest account on record of the purchase of land. The simplicity, openness, andeandour on both sides cannot be too much admired.

2. Sarah being dead, Abraham being only a sojourner in that land, shifting from place to place for the mere purpose of pasturing his flocks, and having no right to any part of tlie land, wished to purchase a place in which he might have the continual right of sepulture. For this purpose, 1. He goes to the gate of the city, the place where, in all ancient times, justice was administered, and bargains and sales concluded, and where for these purposes the elders of the people sat. 3. He there proposes to buy the cave known by the name of the Cave of Machpclah, the cave of the turning or the double cave, for a burying place for his family. 3. To prevent him from going to any unnecessary expense, the people with one voice offer him the privilege of burying liis wife in any of their sepulchres; this appearing to them to be no more than the common rights of hospitality and humanity required. 4. Abraham, intent on making a purchase, Ephron, the owner of the field and cave, values them at four hundred shekels, but at the same time wishes Abraham to receive the whole as a gift. 5. Abraham refuses the gift and weighs down the silver specified. 6. The people who enter in at the gate, i. e., the inhabitants coming from or going to their ordinary occupations in the country, witness the transaction, and thus the conveyance to Abraham is made sure without the intervention of those puzzlers of civil affairs by whose tricks and chicanery property often becomes insecure, and right and succession precarious and uncertain. But this censure does not fall on laivyers properly so called, who are men of honour, and whose office, in every well-regulated state, is as useful as it is respectable. But the accumulation and complex nature of almost all modern systems of law puzzle even justice herself, and often induce decisions by which truth falls in the streets and equity goes backwards In the first ages of mankind, suspicion, deceit, and gnilo seem to have had a very limited influence. Happy days of primitive simplicity! When shall they return 1

3. AVe often hear of the rudeness and barbarity of the primitive ages, but on what evidence ] Every rule of politeness that could be acted upon in such a case as that mentioned here, is brought into full practice. Is it possible to read the simple narration in this place without admiring the amiable, decent, and polite con duct displayed on both sides 1 Had even Lord Chesterfield read this account, his good sense would have led him to propose it as a model in all transactions between man and his fellows. There is neither awkward, stiff formality on the one hand, nor frippery or afl^ectation on the other. Decent respect, good sense, good nature, and good breeding, are all prominently displayed. And how highly laudable and useful is all this! A pedant or a boor on either side might have destroyed the simplicity of the whole transaction; the one by engendering caution and suspicion, and the other by exciting disgust. In all such transactions the beau and the boor are equally to be avoided. From \\\e first no sincerity can be expected, and the manners of llie latter render him intolerable. The religion of the Bible recommends and inculcates orderly behaviour, as well as purity of heart and life. They who, under the sane tion of religion, trample under foot the decent forms of civil respect, supposing that because they are religious they have a right to be rude, totally mistake the spirit of Christianity, for love or charity (the soul and essence of that religion) hehaveth not itself unseemly. Every attentive reader of the thirteenth chapter of St. Paul's first epistle to the Corinthians, will clearly discern that the description of true religion given in that place applies as forcibly to good breeding as to inward and outward holiness. What lessons of honesty, decent respect, and good manners could a sensible man derive from Abraham treating with the sons of Heth for the cave of Machpelah, and William Pom treating with the American Indians for the tract of land now called Pennsylvania! I leave others to draw the parajlgl, and to show how exactly the conduct and spirit of patriarch the first were exemplified in the conduct and spirit of patriarch the second. Let the righteous be had in everlasting remembrance!

Abraham, being solicitous to get his son Isaac properly married, calls his confidential servant, probably Ehezer, and makes him swear that he will not take a wife for Isaac from among the Canaanites, 1-3, but from among his own kindred, 4. The servant proposes certain difficulties, 5, U'hich Airaham removes by giving him the strongest assurances of God's direction ih the business, 6, 7, and then specifies the conditions of the oath, 8. The form of the oath itself, 9. The servant makes preparations for his journey, and sets out far Mesopotamia, the residence of Abraham's kindred, 10. Arrives at a well near to the place, 11. His prayer to God, 12-14. Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel, son of Nahor, Abraham's brother, comes to the well to draw water, 15. Sfic is described, 16. Conversation between her and Abraham's servant, in a 143 which every thing took place according to his prayer to God, 17-21. He makes her presents, and learns whose daughter she is, 22-24. She invites him to her father's house, 25. He returns thanks to God/or having thus far given him a prosperous journey, 26, 27. Rcbekah runs home and informs her family, 28; on which her brother Laban comes out, and invites the servant home, 29-31. His reception, 32, 33. Tells his errand, 31, and how he had proceeded in executing the trust reposed in him, 35-48. Requests an answer, 49. The family of Rebckah consent that she should become the ivife of Isaac, 50, 51. The servant worships God, 52, and gives presents to Milcah, Laban, and Hebekah, 53. He requests to he dismissed, 54-56. Rcbekah, being consulted, consents to go, 57, 58. She is accompanied by her nurse, 59, and having received the blessing of her parents and relatives, 60, she departs leith the servant of Abraham, 01. They are met by Isaac, who teas on an evening walk for the purpose of meditation, 62-65. The servant relates to Isaac all that he had done, 66. Isaac and Rebekah are married, 67.

2 And Abraham said "^ unto his eldest servant of his house, that ° ruled over all that he had, fPut, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh:

3 And I will make thee « swear by the Lord, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that '^ thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell:

4 ' But thou shalt go ^ unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac.

5 And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow

Verse 1. And Abraham was old] lie was now about one hundred and forty years of age, and consequently Isaac was forty, being born when liis father was one hundred years old. ticc chajj..\.\i. 5; xxv. 20.

Verse 2. Eldest servant] As this eldest servant is stated to have been the ruler over all that he had, it is very likely that Eliezcr is meant. See chap. xv. 2, 3.

Of the Canaanites] Because these had already been devoted to slavery, &c., and it would have been utterly inconsistent as well with prudence as with the design of God to have united the child and heir of tlie/))w;u'«e with one who wa-s under a curse, though that curse might be considered to be only of a political nature. See the curse of Canaan, chap. ix. 25.

A'erse4. My country] Mesopotamia, called here Abraham's country, because it was the place where the familv of Ilaran, his brother, had settled; and where Itimself had remained a considerable time with his father Terah. In this family, as well as in that of Nahor, the true religion had been in some sort preserved, though afterwards consider.ably corrupted; see chap. xxxi. 19.

And take a wife unto my son] k young man in Bengal is precisely in the same ciiciunstances as Isaac;

6 And Abraham said unto him. Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again.

7 The Lord God of heaven, which ' took me from my father's house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, " Unto thy seed will I give this land; " he shall send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence.

8 And if the woman v.-ill not be willing to follow thee, then " thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring not my son thither again.

9 And the servant put his hand under the

he has nothing to do in the choice of a wife; parents employ others to seek wives for their sons. Those who leave their homes in search of employment always marry their children in their own country, and among their acquaintance at home; never among the people with whom they reside. In Asiatic countries this custom has prevailed from the infancy of the human race. See Ward's Hindoo Customs,

Verse 5. Peradccnture the woman willnot be willing] We may see, says Calmct, by this and other passages of Scripture, Josh. ix. 18, what the sentiments of the ancients were relative to an oath. They believed they were bound precisely by what was spoken, and had no liberty to interpret the intentions of those to whom the oath was made.

A''erse 7. The Lord God, <^c.] He expresses the strongest confidence in God, that the great designs for which he had brought him from his own kindred to propagate the true religion in the earth would bo accomplished; and that therefore, when earthly instruments failed, heavenly ones should be employed. He shall send his angel, probably meaning the Angel of the Covenant, of whom see chap. xv. 7.

Verse 9. Put his hand under the thigh of Abraham] This form of swearing has greatly puzzled the commentators; but it is useless to detail o^>iniuns which

10 And the servant took ten camels, camels of his master, and departed; "1 all the goods of his master wei'e

in his hand:) and he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto '' the city of Nahor.

1 1 And he made his camels to kneel down without the city by a well of water at the time of the evening, even the time ' that women go out to draw luater.

12 And he said, " 0 Lord God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, ' send me good speed this day, and show kindness unto my master Abraham.

I neither believe myself, nor would wish my readers to credit. 1 believe the true sense is given in the Targum of Jonathan ben Uzziel, and that called the Jerusalem Targvm. In the former it is said, Put now thy hand "n^ina ni'tJ^ bigzirath mehulathi, in sectione circumcisionis mem; in the latter 'D"p "YV ninn techoth yerech keyami, sub femore fcederis mei. When we put the circumstances mentioned in this and the third verse together, we shall find that they fully express the ancient method of binding by oath in such transactions as had a religious tendency. 1. The rite or ceremony used on the occasion; the perso.i binding himself put his hand under the thigh of the person to whom he was to be bound; i. e., he put his hand on the part that bore the mark of circumcision, the sign of God's covenant, which is tantamount to our kissing the book, or laying the hand upon the Neto Testament or covenant of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2. The form of the oath itself; the person swore by Jehovah, the God of heaven and the God of the earth. Three essential attributes of God are here mentioned; 1. His self-existence and elernily in the name Jehovah. 2. His dominion of glory and blessedness in the kingdom of heaven. 3. His providence and bounty in the earth. The meaning of the oath seems to be this: " As God is unchangeable in his nature and purposes, so shall I be in this engagement, under the penalty of forfeiting all expectation of temporal prosperity, the benefits of the my.stical covenant, and future glory." An oath of this kind, taken at such a time, and on such an occasion, can never be deemed irreligious or profane. Thou shalt swear by his name — shall acknowledge and bind thyself unto the true God, as the just Judge of thy motives and actions, is a command of the Most High; and such an oath as the above is at once (on such an occasion) both proper and rational. The person binding himself proposes for a pattern the unchangeable and just God; and as He is the avenger of w'rong, and the punisher of falsehood, and has all power in the heavens and in the earth, so he can punish perjury by privation of spiritual and temporal blessings, by the loss of hfe, and by inflicting the perdition due to ungodly men, among whom liars and perjured persons occupy the most distinguished rank. Our ideas of delicacy may revolt from the rite used on this occasion; but when the nature of the covenant is considered, of which circumcision was the sign, we shall at once perceive that this rite could not be used without producing sentiments of reverence and godly fear, as the contracting party must know that the God of this covenant was a consuming fire. Vol. J. ( 11)

Verse 10. Took ten camels'] It appears that Abraham had left the whole management of this business to the discretion of his servant, to take with him what retinue and what dowry he pleased; for it is added, All the goods of his master tvere in his hand; and in those times it was customary to give a dowry for a wife, and not to receive one with her.

Verse 11. He made his camels to kneel down] To rest themselves, or lie down, as the Septuagint has very properly expressed it, Kai cKot/iiae -of Kafit]?^ovg. The time that women go out to draw water.] In Bengal it is the universal practice for the women to go to pools and rivers to fetch water. Companies of four, six, ten, or more, may be seen in every town daily going to fetch water, with the pitchers resting upon their sides; and, on their return from bathing, women frequently bring water home. — Ward.

Verse 12. And he said, O Lord God, ^c] " The conduct of this servant," says Dr. Dodd, " appears no less pious than rational. By supplicating for a sign, he acknowledges God to be the great superintendent and director of the universe, and of that event in particular; and at the same time, by asking a natural sign, such as betokened humanity, condescension, and other qualities which promised a discreet and virtuous wife, he puts his prayer upon such a discreet, rational footing, as to be a proper example for all to imitate who would not tempt the providence of God, by expecting extraordinary signs to be given them for the determination of cases which they are capable of deciding by a proper use of their rational faculties." This is all very good; but certainly tlie case referred to here is such a one as required especial direction from God; a case which no use of the rational faculties, without Divine influence, could be suflicient to determine. It is easy to run into extremes, and it is very natural so to do. In all things the assistance and blessing of God are necessary, even where human strength and wisdom have the fullest and freest sphere of action; but there are numberless cases, of infinite consequence to man, where his strength and prudence can be of little or no avail, and where the God of all grace must work all things according to the counsel of his own will. To expect the accomplishment of any good end, without a proper use of the means, is the most reprehensible enthusiasm; and to suppose that any good can be done or procured without the blessing and mercy of God, merely because proper means are used, is not less reprehensible. Plan, scheme, and labour like Eliezer, and then, by earnest faith and prayer, commit the whole to the direction and blessing of God. 145 a

of the men of the city come out to draw water:

14 And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall sa)', Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drmk also; let the same he she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac: and '^ thereby shall I know that thou hast showed kindness unto my master.

15 And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bcthuel, son of ^ Milcah, the wife of Nahur, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder.

1 6 And the damsel ° was ** very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known lier: and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up.

17 And the servant ran to meet her, and said. Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher.

1 8 " And she said, Drink, my lord: and she hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink.

Verse 15. Behold, Hehekah came oui\ How admirably had the providence of God adapted every circumstance to the necessity of the case, and so as in the most punctual manner to answer the prayer which his servant liad offered up!

V(!rse ly. / loill draw water for thy camels also'\ Had Rebekah done no more than Eliozer had prayed for, we might have supposed that she acted not as a free agent, liut was impelled to it by the aljsolutely controlling power of God; but as slic exceeds all that was requested, we see that it sprang from her native benevolence, and sets her conduct in the most amiable point of view.

Verse 21. The man, xrondcring at /ler] And he was so lost in wonder and astonishment at her simplicity, innocence, and benevolence, that he permitted this delicate female to draw water for ten camels, without ever attempting to afford her any kind of assistance! I know not wliich to admire most, the benevolence and condescension of Rebekah, or the cold and apparently stupid indifference of the servant of Abraham. Surely they are both of an uncommon cast.

Verse 22. The man took a golden car-ring'] DDI DiJ 7iezem zahah. That this could not be an car-ring is very probable from its being in the singular number. The margin calls it a jewel for the forehead; but it most likely means a jewel for the nose, or nose-ring, a 146

20 And she hasted, and emptied Iter pitcher into the trough, and ran again unto the well to draw tuater, and drew for all his camels.

21 And the man, wondering at her, held his peace, to wit, whether "^ the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not.

22 And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden 'ear-ring 'of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold;

23 And said, Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee: is there room in thy father's house for us to lodge in?

24 And she said unto him, s I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, which she bare unto Nahor.

25 She said moreover unto him, We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in.

26 And the man ^ bowed down his head, and worshipped the Lord.

which is in universal use through all parts of Arabia and Persia, particularly among young women. They are generally worn in the left nostril. The word is very properly translated e-^ij>j)U'Lov, an ornament for th» nose, bj' Symmachus.

And two bracelets] D'TOV 'Ji!'! nshcncy tsemidim. As tsemidim comes from T3i' Isamad, to join or couple together, it may very jiroperly mean bracelets, or whatever may clasp round the arms or legs; for rings andl ornaments are worn round both by females in India and 1 Persia. The small part of the leg is generally decorated in this way, and so is the whole arm from the I shoulder to the wrist. As these ^scmx/i/n were given] to Rebekah /or her hands, it sufficiently distinguishes] them from a sinidar ornament used for the ankles.

In different parts of the sacred writings there are allusions to ornaments of various kinds still in use in different -Vsialic countries. Tliey are of seven different sorts; 1. foi the forehead; 2. for the no5e; 3. for the ears; 4. for the arms; 5. for the fingers; 6. for the neck and breast; 7. for the ankles. See ver. 22, 47; also Ezck. xvi. 12; Piov. xi. 22; Isa. iii. 21; Gen. xx.xv. 1: Exod. xxxii. 2, 3; Job xlii. 11; Judg. viii. 24. The principal female ornaments are enumerated in the third chajiter of Isaiah, which are very nearly

27 And he said, ' Blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of '' his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the Lord ' led me to the house of my master's brethren.

28 And the damsel ran, and told them of her mother's house these tilings.

29 And Rebekah had a brother, and his name was "■ Laban: and Laban ran out unto the man, unto the well.

30 And it came to pass, when he saw the ear-ring and bracelets upon his sister's hands, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying. Thus spake the man unto me, that he came unto the man; and, behold, he stood by the camels at the well.

31 And he said, Come in, "thou blessed of the Lord; wherefore standest thou without? for I have prepared the house, and room for the camels.

32 And the man came into the house: and he ungirded his camels, and ° gave straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet, and the men's feet that wer". with him.

33 And there was set ineat before him to

Verse 26. Bowed down his head, and worshipped] Two acts of adoration are mentioned here; 1. Bowing the head, Ip' yi/;knd; and, 2. Prostration upon the earth, innt^'l vaiijishtachu. The bowing of the head was to Rehehah, to return her thanks for her kind invitation. The prostration was to Jehovah, in gratitude for the success with which he had favoured him.

Verse 27. The Lord led me] Bydesire of his master he went out on tliis journey; and as he aclinowledged God in aU his ways, the Lord directed all his steps.

Verse 28. Her mother' s house\ Some have conjectured from this that her father Bethuel was dead; and the person called Bethuel, verse 50, was a younger brother. This is possible, but the mother's house might be mentioned were even the father alive; for in Asiatic countries the women have apartments entirely separate from those of the men, in which their little children and grown-up daughters reside with them. ■ This was probably the case here, though it is very likely that Bethuel was dead, as the whole business appears to be conducted by Rebekah's brothers.

Verse 3 1. Thou blessed of the Lord] Probably a usual mode of wishing prosperity, as ho that is Ijlessed of the Lord is worthy of all respect; for, enjoying the Divine favour, he is in possession of the sum of happiness.

35 And the Lord i hath blessed my master greatly; aijd he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and men-servants, and maid-servants, and camels, and asses.

36 And Sarah my master's wife "^bare a son to my master when she was old, and ^ unto him hath he given all that he hath.

37 And my master 'made me swear, saying, Thou shall not take a wife to my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell:

38 " But thou shalt go unto rr.y father's house, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son.

39 "■ And I said unto my master, Peradven ture the woman will not follow me.

40 ™ And he said unto me. The Lord, ''before whom I walk, will send his angel with thee, and prosper thy way; and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my father's house.

Verse 32. Provender for the camels] These were the first objects of his care; for a good man is merciful to his beast.

Water to ivash his feet] Thus it thus appears that he had servants with him; and as the fatigues of the journey must have fallen as heavily upon them as upon himself, so we find no distinction made, but water is provided to wash their feet also.

Verse 33. / loill not eat until I have told] In Hindoostan it is not unusual for a Brahmin to enter a house and sit down, and when meat is offered, refuse to eat till he has obtained the object of his errand. Here is a servant who had his master's interest more at heart than his own. He refuses to take even necessary refreshment till he knows whether he is likely to accomplish the object of his journey. Did not our blessed Lord allude to the conduct of Abraham's servant, John iv. 34: Mi/ meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to fnish his work?

Verse 36. Vnto him hath he given all that he hath.] He has made Isaac his sole heir. These things appear to be spoken to show the relatives of Rebekah that his master's son was a proper match for her; for even in those primitive times there was regard had to the suitableness of station and rank in life, as well as of education, in order to render a match

comest to my kindred; and if they give not thee one, thou shall be clear from my oath.

42 And I came this day imto the well, and said, ^ 0 Lord God of my mastgr Abraham, if now thou do prosper my way which I go;

43 "Behold, I standby the well of water; and it shall come to pass, that when the virgin Cometh forth to draw water, and I say to her. Give me, I pray thee, a little water of thy pitcher to drink;

44 And she say to me, Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy camels; let the same be the woman wiiom tlie Lord hath appointed out for my master's son.

45 ^ And before I had done ■= speaking in mine heart, behold, Rebekah came forth, with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down unto the well, and drew water: and I said unto her, Let me drink, I pray thee.

46 And slic made haste, and let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: so I drank, and she made the camels drink also.

47 And I asked her, and ^said. Whose daughter art thou? And she said. The daughter of

comfortable. Persons of dissimilar habits, as well as of dissimilar religious principles, are never likely to be very happy in a married life. Even the pour and the rich may better meet together in matrimonial alliances than the religion.'! and the prnfanr, the well-bred and the vulgar. A person may be unequally yoked in a great variety of ways: Bear ye one another's hitrdens is the command of God; but where there is unsuitableness in the dispositions, education, mental capacity, &c., of the persons, then one side is obliged to bear the whole burden, and endless dissatisfaction is the result. See at the end.

Verse 42. O Lord God of my master] As Abraham was the friend of God, Eliezer makes use of this to ffive weight and consequence to his petitions.

Verse 43. When the virgin] 'nrhi'D hanlmnh, from DtJ.' alnm, to hide, cover, or conceal; a pure virgin, a woman not uncovered, and in this respect still concealed from man. The same as nSini helhitlah, ver. 16. which, from the explanation there given, incontestably means a virgin in the proper sense of the word — a young woman, not that is covered or kept at home, the common gloss, but who wa.'' not uncovered in the delicate sense in which the Scripture uses this word. See this interpretation vindicated on Isa. vii. 14.

Verse 45. Before I had done speaking in mine heart] So we find that the whole of this praver, so

ring upon her face, and the bracelets upon her hands.

48° And I bowed down my head, and wor shipped the Lord; and blessed the Lord God of my master Abraham, which had led me in the right way, to take ' my master's brother's daughter unto his son.

49 And now if ye will e deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me; and if not, tell me; that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left.

50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered and said, '^ The thing proceedeth from the Lord: we cannot ' speak unto thee bad or good.

5 1 Behold, Rebekah '' is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as the Lord hath spoken.

52 And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard their words, he ' worshipped the Lord, bowing himself to the

53 And the servant brought forth "jewels of silver, ° and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother ° precious things.

circumstantially related verses 12-14, and again 42-44, was mental, and heard only by that God to whom it was directed. It would have been improper to have used public prayer on the occasion, as his servants could have felt no particular interest in the accomplishment of his petitions, because they were not concerned in them, having none of the responsibility of this mission.

Averse 49. That I may turn to the right hand or to the left.] That is, Th;it I may go elsewhere and seek a ])roper match for the son of my master. Some have imagined that Eliezer intimated by these expressions that if he did not succeed in obtaining Rebekah, he would go and seek for a wife either among the descendants of Ishmael or the descendants of Lot. This interpretation is fanciful.

Verse 50. Laban and Bethuel] These seem both to be brothers, of whom Laban was the eldest and chief; for the opinion of Josephus appears to be very correct, iw'r., that Bethuel, the father, had been some time dead. See ver. 28.

Bad or good.] We can neither speak for noi against; it seems to be entirely the work of Oud, and we cordially submit: consult Rebekah; if she be willing, take her and go. See ver. 58.

Verse 53. Jeieels of silver, and jewels of gold] The word 'Ss heley, which we here translate jewels

and tanied all night; and they rose up in the morning, and he said, " Send me away unto my master.

55 And her brother and her mother said. Let the damsel abide with us "• a few days, at the least ten; after that she shall go.

56 And he said unto them, Hinder me not, seeing the Lord hath prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master.

57 And they said. We will call the damsel, and inquire at her mouth.

58 And they called Rebekah, and said unto her. Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go.

59 And they sent away Rebekah their sister, and ''her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men.

signifies properly vessels or instruments; and those presented by Eliezer might have been of various kinds. What he had given before, ver. 22, was in token of respect, what he gave now appears to have been in the way of doiory.

Precious things.'\ n3TJ3 migdanoth. This word is used to express exquisite fruits or delicacies, Deut. xxxiii. 13—16; precious plants ox flowers, Cant. iv. 16; vii. 13. But it may mean gifts in general, though rather of an inferior kind to those mentioned above.

Verse 54. And they did eat and drinlil When Eliezer had got a favourable answer, then he and his servants sat down to meat; this he had refused to do till he had told his message, ver. 33.

Verse 55. Let the damsel abide with us a few days, at the least ten] The original is very abrupt and obscure, because we are not acquainted with the precise meaning of the form of speech which is here used; "lltyj? IN D'n' yamim or asor days or ten, probably meaning a year or ten months, as the margin reads it, or a loeek or ten days. This latter is the most likely sense, as there would be no propriety after having given their consent that she should go,' in detaining her for a year or ten months. In matters of simple phraseology, or in those which concern peculiar customs, the Septuagint translation, especially in the Pentateuch, where it is most accurate and pure, may be considered a legitimate judge; this translation renders the words ii/iepac <Jaei Scku, about ten days. Houbigant contends strongly that instead of the words ^Ityi' IN D'D' yamim o asor, days or ten, we should read □'D' t^'^^ chodcsh yamim, a month of days, i. e., a full month; without which emendation he asserts, locus expUcari non possit, " the passage cannot be e.vplained." This emendation is supported by the Syriac version, which reads here '^*JOQj GvjI^ yerach yomin, a month of days, or a full month. The reader

60 And they blessed Rebekah, a.m. 2148. and said unto her. Thou art our

sister, be thou ^the mother of thousands of millions, and ' let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.

6 1 And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way.

62 And Isaac came from the way of the '■ well Lahai-roi; for he dwelt in the south country.

63 And Isaac went out "to meditate in the field at the '^ eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and behold, the camels were coming.

64 And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, ^ she lighted off the camel.

Verse 58. Wilt thou go icilh this man?] So it appears it was left ultimately to the choice of Rebekah whether she would accept the proposals now made to her, unless we suppose that the question meant, Wilt thou go immediately, or stay loith us a month longer?

She said, I will go.] It fully appears to be the will of God that it should be so, and I consent. This at once determined the whole business.

Verse 59. A7id her nurse] Whose name, we learn from chap. xx.vv. 8, was Deborah, and who, as a second mother, was deemed proper to accompany Rebekah. This was a measure dictated by good sense and prudence. Rebekah had other female attendants. See ver. 61.

Verse 60. Be thou the mother of thousands of millions] 71331 ■'B^nS lealphey rebabah, for thousands ten thousand, or for myriads of thousands, a large family being ever considered, in ancient times, as a proof of the peculiar blessing and favour of God. Similar addresses to a daughter, when she is going from her father's house to live with her husband, are very common among the Hindoos; such as, " Be thou the mother of a son," " Be thou the wife of a king," &c. See Ward.

Verse 63. And Isaac came] Concerning this loell see chap. xvi. 13, &c. As it appears from chap. xxv. 11, that Isaac dwelt at the well Lahai-roi, it has been conjectured that he had now come on a visit to his aged father at Beer-sheba, where he waited in expectation of his bride.

For he dwelt in the south country.] The southern part of the land of Canaan. See chap. xii. 9.

Verse 63. Isaac went out to meditate] n'^llasuach, to bend down the body, or the mind, or both. He was probably in deep thought, with his eyes fixed upon

65 For she 7iad said unlo the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore slic took ^ a veil, and covered herself.

the ground. MTiat the subject of his meditation was it is useless to inquire; he was a pious man, and could not be triflinglij enii)loyed.

Verse 65. She took a veil] t]'i'Xn hatstsaaif. This is the first time this word occurs, and it is of doubtful signification; hut most agree to render it a veil or a cloak. Tlie former is the most hkely, as it was generally used by women in the east as a sign of chastity, modesty, and subjection.

Verse 67. Sarah's tent] Sarah being dead, her tent became now appropriated to the use of Rebekah.

And took Rebekah, ijr.] After what /orm this was done we are not told; or whetlier there was any form used on the occasion, more than solemnly receiving her as the person whom God had cliosen to be liis wife; for it appears from ver. 66 that the servant told him all the especial providential circumstances ■which had marked his journey. The primitive form of marriage we have already seen, chap. ii. 33, 24, which, it is likely, as far as form was attended to, was that which was commonly used in all the patriarchal times.

Lv this chapter we have an affecting and edifying display of that providence by which God disposes and governs the affairs of the universe, descending to the minutest particulars, and managing the great whole by directing and influencing all its parts. This particular or especial providence we see is not confined to work by general laws; it is wise and intelligent, for it is the mind, the will, and energy of Gcd; it steps out of common ways, and takes particul-r directions, as endlessly varied Imman necessities may need, or the establishment and maintenance of godliness in the earth may require. What a hi.story of providential occurrences, coming all in answer to the prayer and faith of a simple, humble individual, does this chapter exhibit!

As Abraham's servant has God^ glory only in view in the errand on which he is going, he may well expect the Divine direction. See with what simplicity and confidence he prays to God! He even prescribes the way ii> which the Divine choice and approbation shall he made known; and God honours the purity of liis motives and his pious faith, by giving him precisely tlie answer he wished. How honoural)le in tlie sight of God is simplicity of heart! It has nothing to fear, and all good to hope for; whereas a spirit warped by self-interest and worldly views is always vnccrtain and igitated, as it is ever seeking that from its own counsels, projects, and schemes, which should be sought in God alone. In every place the upright man meets with his God; his heart acknowledges his Maker, and his Maker acknowledges him; for such a one the

66 And the servant told Isaac A.M.2148.

67 ^iiid Isaac brought lier into his mother '■ Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and lie loved her: and Isaac " was comforted after his mother's death.

Abraham's solicitude to get a suitable wife for his son is worthy of the most serious regard. He was well aware that if Isaac formed a matrimonial alliance with the Canaanites it might be ruinous to his piety, and prevent the dissemination of tlie true religion; therefore he binds his most trusty servant by a solemn oath not to take a wife for his son from the daughters of Canaan, but from his own kindred, among whom the knowledge of the true God was best preserved. Others liad different rays of the light of truth, but Abraham's family alone had the truth; and to the descendants of this family were the promises made.

How careful should parents be to procure alliances for their children with those who fear God, as so much of the peace and comfort of the children, and the happiness of their posterity, depend on this circumstance! But alas! how many sacrifice the comfort and salvation of their offspring at the shrine of Mammon! If they can procure rich husbands and tvives for their daughters and sons, then all, in their apprehension, is well. Marriages of this kind may be considered as mere bargain and sale; for there is scarcely ever any reference to God or eternity in them. The Divine institution of marriage is left out of sight; and the persons are united, not properly to each other, in the love, fear, and according to the ordinance of God, but they are wedded to so many thousand pounds sterling, and to so many houses, fields, &c. Thus like goes to like, metal to metal, earth to earth. Marriages formed on such principles are mere licensed adulteries. Let such contractors hear these awful words of God " Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not tliat the friendship of the world is enmity with God 1" James iv. 4. See on ver. 36.

^ythough under the patriarchal dispensation parents had a kind of absolute authority over their children, and miglit dispose of them as they pleased in general cases, yet it appears tliat in matrimonial connections they were under no compulsion. The suitable person was pointed out and recommended; but it does not appear that children were forced, against the whole tide of their affections, to take those persons who were the objects of the parent's choice. Wilt thou go with this man? was, in all likelihood, deemed essential to the completion of the contract; and by the answer, / tuill go, was the contract fully ratified. Thus the persons were ultimately left to their own choice, though the most prudent and proper means were no doubt used in order to direct and fix it. A\Tiether this was precisely the plan followed in primitive times we cannot absolutely say: they were times of great simphcily; and probably connections on the mere principle of affection, independently of all other considerations, seldom existed. And it must bo allowed that matches formed on the sole principle of conveniency might as well be formed by the parents as by any others; *nd in Asiatic countries it was generally so, for there the female seldom presumes to have a choice of her own.

consult the experience and wisdom of the parents; and the parents should ever pay much respect to the feelings of the child, nor oppose an alliance which may be in all other respects suitable, because there may be a lack of property on one side of the intended match. If parents would proceed in this way, God would pour his blessing on their seed, and his Spirit upon their offspring.

Atraham marries Keturah, 1. Their issue, 2-4. Makes Isaac his heir, 5; but gives portions to the sons of his concubines, and sends them eastward from Isaac, to find settlements, 6. Abraham^ s age, 7, and death, 8. Is buried by his sons Isaac and Ishmael in the cave of Machpelah, 9, 10. God's blessing upon. Isaac, II. The generations of Ishmael, 12-16. Ilts age, 17, and death, 18. Of the generations of Isaac, 19, loho was married in his fortieth year, 20. Rebekah his wife being barren, on his prayer to God she conceives, 21. She inquires of the Lord concerning her state, 22. The Lord's ansiver, 23. She is delivered of ticins, 24. Peculiarities in the birth of her sons Esau and Jacob, from ichich they had their names, 25, 26. Their different manner of life, 27, 28. Esau, returning from the field faint, begs pottage from his brother, 29, 30. Jacob refuses to grant him any but on condition of his selling him his birthright, 31. Esau, ready to die, parts with his birthright to save his life, 32. Jacob causes him to confirm the sale with an oath, 33. He receives bread and pottage of lenliles, and departs, 34.

Verse 1. Then again Abraham took a wife] When Abraham took Keturah we are not informed; it might have been in the lifetime of Sarah; and the original ^D"! vaiyoseph, and he added, dfc, seems to give some countenance to this opinion. Indeed it is not very likely that he had the children mentioned here after the death of Sarah; and from the circumstances of his age, feebleness, &c., at the birth of Isaac, it is still more improbable. Even at that age, forty years before tlie marriage of Isaac, the birth of his son is considered as not less miraculous on his part than on the part of.Sarah; for the apostle expressly says, Rom. -v. 19, that Abraham considered not his own body now DjEAD, when he was about a hundred years old, nor the DEADNESS o/ SaraVs womb; hence we learn that they were both past the procreation of children, insomuch that the birtli of Isaac is ever represented as supernatural. It is therefore very improbable that he had any child after the birth of Isaac; and therefore we may well suppose that Moses had related this transactioD out of its chronological order, which is not unfrequent in the sacred writings, when a variety of important facts relative to the accomplishment of some grand design are thought necessary to he produced in a connected series. On this account intervening matters of a differeKt complexion are referred to a future time. Perhaps we may be justified in reading the verse: " And.Vbraham had added, and had taken a wife (besides Ilagar) whose name was Keturah," &c. The clironology in the margin dates this marriage with K-eturah A. 1\I. 2154, nine years after the death of

Sarah, A. M. 2145. Jonathan ben Uzziel and the Jerusalem Targum both assert that Keturah was tlie same as Ilagar. Some rabbins, and with them Dr. Hammond, are of the same opinion; but both Hagar and Keturah are so distinguished in the Scriptures, that the opinion seems destitute of probability.

Verse 2. Zimran] Stephanos Byzantinus mentions a city in Arabia Felix called Zadram, which some suppose to have been named from tliis son of Keturah; but it is more Idcely, as Calmet observes, that all these sons of Abraham resided in Arabia Deseria; and Pliny, Hist. Nat., lib. vi., c. 28, mentions a people in that country called Zamarenians, who were probably the descendants of this person.

Jokshan] Several learned men have been of opinion that tliis Jokshan was the same as Kachtan, the father of the Arabs. The testimonies in favour of this opinion see in Dr. Hunt's Oration, De Antiquitate, &c.. Lingua Arabics, p. 4. Cahnet supposes that tlie^Cataneans, who inhabited a part of Arabia Deserta, sprang from this Jokshan.

Medan, and Midian] Probably those who peopled that part of Arabia Petr^a contiguous to the land of Moab eastward of the Dead Sea. St. Jerome terms the people of this country Madinitans; and Ptolemy mentions a people called Madianites, who dwelt in the same place.

Ishbak] From this person Calmet supposes the brook Jabbok, which has its source in the mountains of Gilcad, and falls into the sea of Tiberias, took its name.

Shuah.] Or Shuach. From this man the Sacceans, near to Batania, at the extremity of Arabia Deserta,

4 And tiie sons of Midian; Ephah, and Ephcr, and Hanoch, and Abidah, and Eldaah. All these luere the children of Kcturah. \. M. cir. 2175. 5 And *• Abraham save all that

6 But unto the sons of the concubines, which

towards Syria, are supposed to have sprung. Bildad the Shuhite, one of Job's friends, is supposed to have descended from this son of Abraham.

Verse 3. Sliela] From whom sprang the Saheans, who robbed Job of his cattle..Sec Boc/tarl and Calmet.

Asshurim, ant! Leiushim, andLeummim.] We know not wlio tliese were, but as each name is plural they must have been tribes ox families, ■^ni not individuals. Onkelos interjirets these words of persons dwelling in camps, tcnts,3.nA islands; and Jonathan ben Uzziel calls themmerchants, artificers, and heads or chiefs of people.

Verse 4. Ephah, and Epher, c^-c] Of these we know no more than of the preceding; an abundance of conjectures is already furnished by the commentators.

Verse 5. Gave all that he had unto Isaac.'] His principal flocks, and especially his right to the land of Canaan, including a ronfirmatimi to him and his posterity of whatever \vas contained in the promises of God.

Verse G. Unto the sons of the concubine.i] Viz., Hagar and Keturah, Abraham gave gifts. Cattle for breed, seed to sow the land, and implements for husbandry, may be what is here intended.

And sent them awatj — while he yet lived] Lest after his deatli they should dispute a settlement in the Land of Promise with Isaac; therefore he very prudently sent them to procure settlements during his lifetime, that they might be under no temptation to dispute the settlement with Isaac in Canaan. From this circumstance arose that law which has prevailed in almost all countries, of giving the estates to the eldest son by a lawful wife; for though concubines, or wives of the second rank, were perfectly legitimate in those ancient times, yet their children did not inherit, except in case of the failure of legal issue, and with the consent of the lawful wife; and it is very properly observed by Calmet, that it was in consequence of the consent of Leah and Rachel that the children of their slaves by Jacob had a common and eipial lot with the rest. By a law of Solon all natural children were excluded from the paternal inheritance, but their fathers were permitted to give them any sum not beyond a thousand drachma by way o( present.

Eastward, unto the east countrij.] Arabia Deserta, which was eastward of noer-sheba, where Abraham lived.

A''erso 7. The days of the years, cjr.] There is a neauty in this expression which is not suflSciently regarded. Good men do not live by centuries, though many such have lived several hundred years, nor do

Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, unto ' the cast country.

7 And these are the days of A. M. cir. 2183.

8 Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and f died in a good old age, an old man, and full

they count their lives even by years, but by days, living as if they were the creatures only of a d.\y; having no more time than they can with any propriety call their own, and living that day in reference to eternity.

Verse 8. Then Abraham gave up the ghost] Highly as I value our translation for general accuracy, fidelity, and elegance, I must beg leave to dissent from this version. The original \vord.l'lV yigva, from the root i'l J gava, signifies to pant for breath, to expire, to cease from breathing, or to breathe one'j last; and here, and wherever the original word is used, the simple term expired would be the proper expression. In our translation this expression occurs Gen. xxv. 8, 17; XXXV. 29; xlix. 33; Job iii. 11; x. 18; xi. 20; xiii. 19; xiv. 10; Lam. i. 19; in all of which places the original is yM gava. It occurs also in our translation, Jer. XV. 9, but there the original is niySJ nn3J naphecah naphshah, she breathed out her soul; the verb i'lj gava not being used. Now as our English word ghost, from the Anglo-Saxon jarc gast, an inmate, inhabitant, guest, (a casual visitant,) also a spirit, is now restricted among us to the latter meaning, always signifying the immortal spirit or soul of man, the guest of the body; and as giving up the spirit, ghost, or soul, is an act not proper to man, though commending it to God, in our last moments, is both an act of faith and piety; and as giving up the ghost, i. e., dismissing his spirit from his body, is attributed to Jesus Christ, to whom alone it is proper, I therefore object against its use in every other case.

Every man since the fall has not only been liable to death, but has deserved it, as all have forfeited their lives because of sin. Jesus Christ, as born immaculate, and having never sinned, had not forfeited his life, and therefore may be considered as naturally and properly immortal. No man, says he, talceth it — my life, from me, but I lay it doicn of myself; I have potcer to lay it dotrn, and I have power to take it again: therefore doth the Father love me, because I lay down my life that I might take it again, John x. 17, IS. Hence we rightly translate Matt, xxvii. 50, a^i;)/tf to m'cvpa, he gat-e up the ghost; i. e., he dismissed ftis spirit that he might die for the sin of the world. The Evangelist St. John, xix. 30, makes use of an expression to the same import, which we translate in the same way, irapciuKc to rrrrt'ua, he delivered up Ms spirit. We translate Mark xv. 37, and Luke xxiii. -16, he gave up the ghost, but not correctly, because the word in both these places is very different, tfeirvevot, i*

9 And ' his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried

breathed his last, or expired, though in the latter place (Luke xxiii. 46) there is an equivalent expression, O Father, into thy hands naparidtfiai to m>evim /lov, I commit my spirit, i. e., I place my soul in thy hand; proving that the act was his own, that no man could take his life away from him, that he did not die by the perfidy of his disciple, or the malice of the Jews, but by his own free act. Thus he laid down his life for the sheep. Of Ananias and Sapphira, Acts v. 5, 10, and of Herod, Acts xii. 23, our translation says they gave tip the ghost; but the word in both places is e^erpv^e, which simply means to breathe out, to expire, or die; but in no case, either by the Septuagint in the Old or any of the sacred writers in the Neto Testament, is a(J^/if TO nvtv/ja or TtapedoiKe to nvev^a, he dismissed his spirit or delivered up his spirit, spoken of any person but Christ. Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Jacob, &c., breathed their last; Ananias, Sapphira, and Herod expired; but none, Jesus Christ e.xcepted, gave up the ghost, dismissed, or delivered up his otvn spirit, and was consequently /ree among the dead. Of the patriarchs, &c., the Septuagint uses the word ckXei- TTuv, failing, or KaTeiravac, he ceased or rested.

An old man] Viz., one hundred and seventy-five, the youngest of all the patriarchs; and full of years. The word years is not in the text; but as our translators saw that some word was necessary to fiU up the text, they added this in Italics. It is probable that the true word is O'Q'' yamim, days, as in Gen. xxxv. 29; and this reading is found in several of KennicotCs and De Rossfs MSS., in the Samaritan text, Septuagint, Vulgate, Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Chaldee. On these authorities it might be safely admitted into the text.

Being full of days, or full of years. — To be satiated with days or life, has been in use among different nations to express the termination of life, and especially life ended without reluctance. It seems to be a metaphor taken from a guest regaled by a plentiful banquet, and is thus used by the Roman poets.

Lucretius, lib. iii., ver. 947, ridiculing those who were unreasonably attached to life, and grievously afflicted at the prospect of death, addresses them in the following manner: —

Quid mortem congemis, ac fles %

Nam si grata fuit tibi vita anteacta, priorque, Et non omnia pertusum congesta quasi in vas Commoda perfluxere, atque ingrata interiere: Cur non, ut plenus ynm contiva, eecedis % Fond mortal, what 's the matter, thou dost sigh 1 Why all these fears because thou once must die? For if the race thou hast already run Was pleasant, if with joy thou saw'st the sun. If all thy pleasures did not pass thy mind As through a sieve, but left some sweets behind. Why dost thou not then, like a thankful guest, Rise cheerfully from life's abundamt feast?

hina in the cave of Machpelah, in A. M. cir. 2183, the field of Epliron the son of ^^ ^^ "'' '^''- Zohar the Hittite, which is before Mamre;

Et nee opinanti mors ad caput astitit ante, Quam SATUH, ac plenus possis discedere rerum.

lb. ver. 972. And unexpected hasty death destroys. Before thy greedy mind is full of joys. Idem.

Horace makes use of the same figure: —

Inde fit, ut raro, qui se vixisse beatum Dicat, et exacto contentus tempore vitae Cedat, ut conviva satur, reperire queamus.

From hence how few, like sated guests, depart From life's full banquet with a cheerful heart?

The same image is expressed with strong ridicule in his last Epistle —

Thou hast eaten, drunk, and play'd enough; then why So stark reluctant to leave off, and die 1

The poet Statius uses abire paratum, plenum vita, " prepared to depart, being full of life," in exactly the same sense: —

Dubio quem non in turbine rerum

Deprcndet suprema dies; sed abire paratum, Ac plenum vita.

The man whose mighty soul is not immersed In dubious whirl of secular concerns. His final hour ne'er takes him by surprise. But, FULL of life, he stands prepared to die.

It was the opinion of Aristotle that a man should depart from life as he should rise from a banquet. Thus Abraham died full of days, and satisfied with life, but in a widely different spirit from that recommended by the above writers — he left life with a hope full of immortality, which they could never boast; for he saiD the day of Christ, and was glad; and his hope was crowned, for here it is expressly said, He ivas gathered to his fathers; surely not to the bodies of his sleeping ancestors, who were buried in Chaldea and not in Canaan, nor with his fathers in any sense, for he was deposited in the cave where his wife alone slept; but he was gathered to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to the Church of the first-bom, whose names are toritten in heaven; Heb. xii. 23.

Verse 9. His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him] Though Ishmael and his mother had been expelled from Abraham's family on the account of Isaac, yet, as he was under the same obligation to a most loving affectionate father as his brother Isaac, if any personal feuds remained, they agreed to bury them on this occasion, that both might dutifully join in doing the last offices to a parent who was an honour to them and to human nature: and, considering the rejection of Ishmael from

' there was Abraham buried, and Sarah his wife.

1 1 And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac; and Isaac dwelt by the "■ well Lahai-roi.

12 Now these are the generations of Ishmael, Abraham's son, " whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah's handmaid, bare unto Abraham:

1 3 And ° these a?-e the names of the sons of Ishmacl, by their names, according to their generations; the first-born of Ishmacl, Nebajoth; and Kcdar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam,

the inheritance, this transaction shows his character in an amiable point of view; for though he was a toild man, (see chap. xvi. 12,) yet this appellation appears to be more characteristic of his habits of life than of his disposition.

Verse 1 1. God blessed his son Isaac] The peculiar blessings and influences by which Abraham had been distinguished now rested upon Isaac; but how little do we hear in him of the work of faith, the patience of hope, and the labour of love! Only one Abraham and one Christ ever appeared among men; there have been some successful imitators, there should have been many.

Verse 12. These are the generations of Ishmacl] The object of the inspired writer seems to be to show how the promises of God were fulfilled to both the branches of Abraham's family. Isaac has been already referred to; God blessed him according to the promise. He had also promised to multiply Isltmael, and an account of his generation is introduced to show how exactly the promise had also been fulfilled to him.

Verse 13. Nchajoth] From whom came the Nabatheans, whose capital was Petra, or, according to Strabo, Nabttthea. They dwelt in Arabia Petraea, and extended themselves on the east towards Arabia Deserta.

Kedar] The founder of the Ccdreans, who dwelt near to the Nabatheans. The descendants of Kedar form a part of the Saracens.

Verse 1-1. Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa] Where the first and last of these settled is not known; but it is probable that Dumah gave liis name to a place called Dumah in Arabia. See a prophecy concerning this place, Isa. xxi. 11, from which we find that it was in the vicinity of Motmt Seir.

These three names have passed into a proverb among the Hebrews, because of their signification. i'OtS'n mishma signifies hearino; TTDIT dumah, sii.f.sce; and KETJ massa, patience. Hence, " Hear much, say little, 9nd bear much," tantamount to the famous maxim of

1 6 These arc the sons of Ishmael, and these are their names, by their towns, and by theii castles; 1 twelve princes according to theii nations.

17 And these are the years of A.M. 2231 the hfc of Ishmael, a hundred and — '■ L

thirty and seven years: and ■■ he gave up the ghost and died; and was gathered unto his

1 8 " And they dwelt from Havilah unto Shur, that?s before Egypt, as thou goest toward Assyria: and he ' died " in the presence of all his brethren.

the Stoics, Avcxov kqi airexov, " Sustain and abstain,^' is supposed to be the spirit of the original words.

Verse 15. Hadar] This name should be leaAHadad as in 1 Chron. i. 30. This reading is supported by more than three hundred MSS., versions, and printed editions. See ver. 18.

Tema] Supposed to be a place in Arabia Deserta, the same of which Job speaks, chap. vi. 19.

Jetur] From whom came the Itureans, who occupied a small tract of country beyond Jordan, which was afterwards possessed by the half-tribe of Manasseh.

Naphish] These are evidently the same people mentioned 1 Chron. v. 19, who, with the Itureans and the people of Nadab, assisted the Hagarenes against the Israelites, but were overcome by the two tribes of Reuben and Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.

Kedcmah] Probably the descendants of this person dwelt at Kcdcmoth, a place mentioned Dcut. ii. 26. I wish the reader to observe, that concerning those ancient tribes mentioned here or elsewhere in the Pentateuch little is known; nor of their places of settlement have we more certain information. On this subject many learned men have toiled hard with but little fruit of their labour. Those who wish to enter into discussions of this nature must consult Bocharfs Geographia Sacra, Calmel, &c.

Verse 10. These are their names] By which their descendants were called. Their towns — places of encampment in the wilderness, such as have been used by the Arabs from the remotest times. Their castles, QilTD tirotham, their toners, probably mountain tops, fortified rocks, and fastnesses of various kinds in woods and hilly countries.

Verse IS. They dwelt from Havilah unto Shur] The descendants of Ishmael possessed all tliat country which extends from east to west, from Havilah on the F.uphrates, near its junction with the Tigris, to the desert of Shur eastward of Egypt; and which extends along the isthmus of Suez, which separates the Red Sea from the Mediterranean.

As thou goest toward Assyria] " These words," says Calinet, " may refer either to Egypt, to Shur, or to

19 And these tions of Isaac,

^'' the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian, of Padan-aram, ^ the sister to Laban the Syrian.

Havilah. The desert of Shur is on the road from Egypt to Assyria in traversing Arabia Petrtea, and in passing by the country of Havilah. I know not," adds he, " whether Ashshurah in the text may not mark out rather the Asshurim descended from Keturah, than the Assyrians, who were the descendants of Asshur the son of Shem.""

He died in the presence of all his brethren.] The original will not well bear this translation. In Ter. 17 it is said, He gave up the ghost and died, and was gathered to his people. Then follows the account of the district occupied by the Ishmaelites, at the conclusion of which it is added, 122 VnN ID 'JD ly al peney col echaiv naphal, " It (the lot or district) fell (or was divided to him) in the presence of all his brethren:" and this was exactly agreeable to the promise of God, chap. xvi. 12, He shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren; and to show that this promise had been strictly fulfilled, it is here remarked that his lot or inheritance was assigned him by Divine Providence, contiguous to that of the other branches of the family. The same word, 73J naphal, is used Josh, xxiii. 4, for to divide by lot.

was barren: 5" and tlie Lord was entreated of liira, and ^ Rebekah his wife conceived. 22 And the children stnisgled A.M. 2168.

2.3 And the Lord said unto her, '' Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of

On the subject of writing the same proper name variously in our common Bibles, the following observations and tables will not be unacceptable to the reader.

" Men who have read their Bible with care," says Dr. Kennicott, " must have remarked that the name of the same person is often expressed differently in different places. Indeed the variation is sometimes so great that we can scarcely persuade ourselves that one and the same person is really meant. A uniform expression of proper names is diligently attended to in other books: perhaps in every other book, except the Old Testament. But here we find strange variety in the expression, and consequently great confusion: and indeed there is scarcely any one general source of error which calls for more carefid correction than the same proper names now wrongly expressed. I shall add here, from the Pentateuch, some proper names which are strangely varied: first, ticenty-three names expressed differently in the Hebrew text itself, and seventeen of them in our English translation; and then thirty-one names expressed uniformly in the Hebrew yet differently in the English.

in the same verse.

in the next verse.

in the same verse.

Dent, xxxii. 41.

Tlie subjection of Esau

A.M. 21(18. people shall be separated from thy

bowels; and " the one people shall be

GENESIS. to Jacob foretold.

stronger than the other people; and A. M. 2168,

' the elder shall serve the younger.

" Nothing can be more clear than that these fiftyfour proper names (at least the far greater part of them) should be expressed with the very same letters, in the places where they are now different. In the second list, instances 6, 10, and 13, have been corrected and expressed uniformly in the English Bible printed at Oxford in 1709. And surely the same justice in the translation should be done to the rest of these proper names, and to all others through the Bible; at least, where the original words are now properly the same. Who would not wonder at seeing the same persons named both Simon and Shimon, Richard and Ricard.' And can we then admit here l)oth Scth and Sheth, Rachel and Rahel f Again: whoever could admit (as above) both Gaza and Azzah, with Rameses and Raamses, should not object to ionrfon and Ondon, with Amsterdam and Amslradam. In short, in a history far more interesting than any other, the names of persons and places should be distinguished accurately, and defined with exact uniformity. And no true critic will think lightly of this advice of Origen, Conlemnenda non est accurata circa Nomina diligenlia ei, qui eeluerit probe intelligere sanctas literas.' No person

who desires thoroughly to understand the sacred writings, should undervalue a scrupulous attention to the projier names." — KcnnicotCs Remarks.

Verse 19. These ivie the generations of Isaac] This is the history of Isaac and his family. Here the sixth section of the law begins, called pni" m"?!)! toledoth yitschak; as the fifth, called mii' "n chaiye Sarah, which begins with chap, xxiii., ends at the preceding verse.

Verse 2 1. Isaac entreated the Lord for his wife^ Is.aac and Rebekah had now lived nineteen years together without having a child; for he was forty years old when he married Rebekah, ver. 20, and he was threescore years of age when Jacob and Esau were born, ver. 20. Hence it is evident they had lived nineteen years together without having a child.

The form of the original in this place is worthy of notice: Isaac entreated Jehovah, iniVX r\D}h Icnochach ishto, directly, purposely, especially, for his wife..'Vinsworlh thinks the words imply their praying together for this thing; and the rabbins say that " Isaac and Rebekah went on purpose to Mount Moriah, where he had been bound, and prayed together there that thejr

24 And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, be-

might have a son." God was pleased to exercise the faith of Isaac previous to the birth of Jacob, as he had exercised that of Abraham previous to his own birth.

Verse 22. The children struggled together] ISSliT yithrotsatsu, they dashed against or bruised each other, there was a violent agitation, so that the mother was apprehensive both of her own and her children's safety; and, supposing this was an uncommon case, she went to inquire of the Lord, as the good women in the present day would go to consult a surgeon or physician; for intercourse with God is not so common now, as it was in those times of great primitive simplicity. There are different opinions concerning the manner in which Rebekah inquired of the Lord. Some think it was hy faith and prayer simply; others, that she went to Shem or Melchi~edek; but Shem is supposed to have been dead ten years before this time; but as Abraham was yet alive, she might have gone to him, and consulted the Lord through his means. It is most likely that a prophet or priest was applied to on this occasion. It appears she was in considerable perplexity, hence that imperfect speech, If so, lohy am I thus? the simple meaning of which is probably this; If I must suffer such things, why did I ever wish to have a child t A speech not uncommon to mothers in their first pregnancy.

Verse 23. Tivo nations axe in thy womb] "We have," says Bishop Newton, " in the prophecies delivered respecting the sons of Isaac, ample proof that these prophecies were not meant so much of single persons as of whole nations descended from them; for what was predicted concerning Esau and Jacob was not verified in themselves, but in their posterity. The Edomites were the offspring of Esau, the Israelites were of Jacob; and who but the Author and Giver of life could foresee that two children in the womb would multiply into two nations? Jacob had tivelve sons, and their descendants were all united and incorporated into one nation; and what an overruling providence was it that two nations should arise from the two sons only of Isaac! and that they should be two such different nations! The Edomites and Israelites have been from the beginning two such different people in their manners, customs, and religion, as to be at perpetual variance among themselves. The children struggled together in the womb, which was an omen of their future disagreement; and when they grew up to manhood, they manifested very different inclinations. Esau was a cunning hunter, and delighted in the sports of the field; Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents — minding his sheep and his cattle. The religion of the Jews is well known; but whatever the Edomites were at first, in process of time they became idolaters. When Amaziah king of Judah overthrew them, he brought their gods, and set them up to be his gods. The king of Edom having refused a passage to the Israelites through his territories on their return from Egypt, the history of the Edomites afterwards is little more than the history of their wars with the Jews.

The one people shall he stronger than the other feople] The same author continues to observe, that

" for some time the family of Esau was the more powerful of the two, there having been dukes and kings in Edom before there was any king in Israel; but David and his captains made an entire conquest of the Edomites, slew several thousands of them, and compelled the rest to become tributaries, and planted garrisons among them to secure their obedience. In this state of servitude they continued about one hundred and fifty years, without a king of their own, being governed by deputies or viceroys appointed by the kings of Judah; but in the days of Jehoram they revolted, recovered their liberties, and set up a king of their own. Afterwards Amaziah, king of Judah, gave them a total overthrow in the valley of Salt; and Azariah took Elath, a commodious harbour on the Red Sea, from them. Judas Maccabeus also attacked and defeated them with a loss of more than ttoenty thousand at two different times, and took their chief city Hebron. At last Hyrcaniis his nephew took other cities from them, and reduced them to the necessity of leaving their country or embracing the Jewish religion; on which they submitted to be circumcised, and become proselytes to the Jewish religion, and were ever afterwards incorporated into the Jewish Church and nation."

The elder shall serve the younger^ " This passage," says Dr. Dodd, " serves for a key to explain the ninth chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, where the words are quoted; for it proves to a demonstration that this cannot be meant of God's arbitrary predestination of particular persons to eternal happiness or misery, without any regard to their merit or demerit — a doctrine which some have most impiously fathered on God, who is the best of beings, and who cannot possibly hate, far less absolutely doom to misery, any creature that he has made: but that it means only his bestowing greater external favours, or, if you please, higher opportunities for knowing and doing their duty, upon some men, than he does upon others; and that merely according to his o\vn wise purpose, without any regard to their merits or demerits, as having a right to confer greater or smaller degrees or perfection on whom he pleases."

The doctrine of unconditional predestination to eternal lile and eternal death cannot be supported by the example of God's dealings with Esau and Jacob, or with the Edomites and Israelites. After long reprobation the Edomites were incorporated among the Jews, and have ever since been undistinguishable members in the Jewish Church. The Jews, on the contrary, the elect of God, have been cut off and reprobated, and continue so to this day. If a time should ever come when the Jews shall all believe in Christ Jesus, which is a general opinion, then the Edomites, which are now absorbed among them, shall also become the elect. And even now Isaac finds both his children within the pale of the Jewish Church, equally entitled to the promises of salvation by Christ Jesus, of whom he was the most expressive and the most illustrious type. See the account of Abraham's offering, chap. xxii.

Verse 24. There were /«•!««] DOm Momim, from which comes Thomas, properly interpreted by the word

26 And after that came his brotlier out, and ^ his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and ^ his name was called Jacob: and Isaac loas threescore years old when she bare them.

27 And the boys grew: and Esau was ^ a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob tuas ' a plain man, '^ dwelling in tents.

28 And Isaac loved Esau, because ' he did "" eat of his venison: " but Rebckah loved Jacob.

A«5D/ior, Didi/miis, which signifies a twin; so the first person who was called Thomas or Diilymus, we may take for granted, had this name from the circumstance of his being a livin.