Commentary on the Holy Bible

31 And Joseph said unto his brethren, and unto his father's house, ^ I will go up, and show Pharaoh, and say inito him. My brethren, and my father's house, which were in the land of Canaan, arc come unto me.

32 And the men are shepherds, for " their

likely to signify a chariot, as the verb "IDX asar, which signifies to liind, lie, or i/oic, is used; and not iyjD chabash, which signifies to saddle.

VerSe 30. Now lei me die, since I have seen thi) face'\ Perhaps old Simeon had this place in view when, seeing the salvation of Israel, he said, Lord, noio lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, tjr., Luke ii. 29.

Verse 34. Thy servants'' trade hath been about cattle] "The land of Goshen, called also the land of Rarnrses, lay east of the Nile, by which it was never ovcrflmved, and was bounded by the mountains of the Thebaid on the south, by the Nile and Mediterranean on the west and north, and by the Red Sea and desert of Arabia on the east. It was the Heliopolitan nome or district, and its capital was called ON. Its proper name was Geshen, the country of grass or pasturage, or of the shepherds, in opposition to the rest of the land which was sown after having been overflowed by the Nile." — Bruce. As this land was both fruitful and pleasant, Joseph wished to fix his family in that part of Egvpt; hence he advises them to tell Pharaoh that their trade had been in cattle from their youth: and because every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians, hence he concluded that there would be less difficulty to get them quiet settlement in Goshen, as they would then be separated from the Egyptians, and consequently have the free use of all their religious customs. This scheme succeeded, and the consequence was the preservation both of their religion and their lives, though some of their posterity did afterwards corrupt themselves; see Ezek. x.v. S; Amos v. 26. As it is well known that the Egyptians had cattle and flocks themselves, and that Pharaoh even requested that some of Joseph's brethren should be made rulers over his cattle, how could it be said, as in ver. 34, Every shepherd is an abomination vnto the Egyptians? Three reasons may be assigned for this: 1. Shepherds and feeders of cattle were usually a sort of lawless, freebooting banditti, frequently making inroads on villages, &c., carrying off cattle, and whatever spoils they could find. This might probably have been the case formerly, for it is well known it has often been the case since. On this account such persons must have been universally detested. 2. They must have abhorred shepherds if ATanclho^s account of the h</csos or king-shc])herds can be

33 And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, *> What is your occupation?

34 That ye shall say, Thy servants' ■= trade hath been about cattle ^ from our youth even until now, both we, and also our fathers; that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is " an abomination unto the Egyptians.

credited. Hordes of marauders under this name, from Arabia, Syria, and Ethiopia, (whose chief occupation, like the Bedouin Arabs of the present day, was to keep flocks,) made a powerful irruption into Egypt, which they subdued and ruled with great tyranny for 259 years. Now, though they had been expelled from that land some considerable time before this, yet their name, and all persons of a similar occupation, were execrated by the Egyptians, on account of the depredations and long-continued ravages they had committed in the country. 3. The last and prohal)ly the best reason why the Egyptians abhorred such shepherds as the Israelites were, was, they sacrificed those very animals, the ox particularly, and the sheep, which the Egyptians held sacred. Hence the Roman historian Tacitus, speaking of the Jews, says: " Caeso ariete velut in contumelia Ammonis; Bos quoque immolatur, quern ^gyptii Api.m colunt." " They sacrifice the ram in order to insult Jupiter Amman, and they sacrifice the ox, which the Egyptians worship under the name of Apis.^'' Though some contend that this idolatry was not as yet established in Egypt, and that the king-shepherds were either after the time of Joseph, or that Manetho by them intends the Israelites themselves; yet, as the arguments by which these conjectures are supported are not sufficient to overthrow those wliich are brought for the support of the contrary opinions, and as there was evidently an established religion and priesthood in Egypt before Joseph's time, (for we find the priests had a certain portion of the land of Egypt which was held so sacred that Joseph did not attempt to buy it in the time of the famine, when he bought all the laud which belonged to the people, chap, xlvii. 20-32,) and as that established priesthood was in all likelihood idolatrous, and as the worship of.Apis under the form of an ox was one of the most ancient forms of worship in Egypt, we may rest tolerably certain that it was chiefly on this account that the shepherds, or tiiosc who fed on and sacrificed these objects of their worship, were an abomination to the Egyptians. Calmet has entered into this subject at large, and to his notes I must refer those readers who wish for farther information. See on chap, xliii. 32.

On the principal subject of this chapter, the going down of Jacob and his family into Egypt, Bishop War- barton, in his Divine Legation of Moses, makes the following judicious reflections: " The promise God made to Abraham, to give his posterity the land of Canaan, could not be performed till that family was grown strong enough to take and keep possession of it. In the meantime, therefore, they were necessitated to reside among idolaters, and to reside unmixed; but whoever e.xamines their history will see that the Israelites had ever a violent propensity to join themselves to Gentile nations, and practise their manners. God therefore, in his infinite wisdom, brought them into Egypt, and kept them there during this period, the only place where they could remain for so long a time safe and unconfounded with the natives, the ancient Egyptians being by numerous institutions forbidden all fellowship with strangers, and bearing besides a particular aversion to the profession of the Israelites, who were shepherds. Thus the natural dispositions of the Is raelites, which in Egypt occasioned their superstitions, and in consequence the necessity of a burdensome ritual, would in any other country have absorbed them into Gcntitism, and confounded them with idolaters. From the Israelites going into Egypt arises a new occasion to adore the footsteps of Eternal Wisdom in his dispensations to his chosen people.".

Joseph, informs Pharaoh that his father and brethren are arrived in Goshen, 1. He presents five of his brethren before the king, 2, who questions them concerning their occupation; they inform him that they are shepherds, and request permission to dwell in the land (/Goshen, 3, 4. Pharaoh consents, and desires that some of the most active of them should be made rulers over his cattle, 5, 6. Joseph presents his father to Pharaoh, 1, who questions him concerning his age, 8, to lohich Jacob returns an-affccting answer, and blesses Pharaoh, 9, 10. Joseph places his father and family in the land o/' Rameses, [Goshen,) and furnishes them with provisions, 11, 12. The fa?nine prevailing in the land, the Egyptians deliver up all their money to Joseph to get food, 13-15. The next year they bring their cattle, 16, 17. The third, their lands and their persons, 18-21. The land of the priests Joseph does not buy, as it was a royal, grant to them from Pharaoh, 22. The people receive seed to sow the land on condition that they shall give a fifth part of the produce to the king, 23, 24. The people agree, and Joseph makes it a law all over Egypt, 25, 26. The Israelites multiply exceedingly, 27. Jacob, having lived seventeen years in Goshen, and being one hundred and forty-seven years old, 28, makes Joseph promise not to bury him m Egypt, but in Canaan, 29, 30. Joseph promises and confirms it tvith an oath, 31.

Joseph ^ came and told and said. My father and my brethren, and their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have, are come out of the land of Canaan; and, behold, they are in '' the land of Goshen.

2 And he took some of his brethren, even five men, and ° presented them unto Pharaoh.

3 And Pharaoh said unto his brethren, ^ What is your occupation? And they said

NOTES ON CHAP. XLVII. Verse 2. He took some of his brethren^ There is something very strange in the original; literally translated it signifies " from the end or extremity (nyp^D miktseh) of his brethren he took five men." This has been understood six diflerent ways. 1. Joseph took five of his brethren that came/rai to hand — at random, without design or choice. 2. Joseph took five of the meanest-looking of his brethren to present before Pharaoh, fearing if he had taken the sightliest that Pharaoh would detain them for his service, whereby their religion and morals might be con-upted. 3. Joseph toolc five of tlie best made and finest-looking of his brethren, and presented tlicm before Pharaoh, wishing to impress his mind with a favourable opinion of the

4 (They said moreover unto Pharaoh,) ^ For to sojourn in the land are we come; for thy servants have no pasture for their flocks; « for the famine is sore in the land of Canaan: now therefore, we pray thee, let thy servants ^ dwell in the land of Goshen.

5 And Pharaoh spake unto Joseph, saying,

family which he had just now brought into Egypt, and to do himself honour. 4. Joseph took five of the youngest of his brethren. 5. He took five of the eldest of his brethren. 6. He took five from the extremity or end of his brethren, i. e., some of the eldest and some of the youngest, viz., Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Issachar, and Benjamin. — Rab. Solomon. It is certain that in Judges xviii. 2, the word may be understood as implying dignity, valour, excellence, and pre-eminence: And the children of Dan sent of their family FIVE tnen Dmspa miktsotham, not from their coasts, but of the most eminent or excellent they had; and it is probable they might have had their eye on what Joseph did here when they made their choice, choosing the same number, five, and of their principal men, as

6 ' The land of Egypt is before thee; in the best of the land make thy father and brethren to dwell; '' in the land of Goshen let them dwell: and if thou knowcst a7iy men of activity among them, then make them rulers over my cattle.

7 And Joseph brought in Jacob his father, and set him before Pharaoh: and Jacob blessed Pharaoh.

8 And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, ' How old art thou 1

9 And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, "■ The days of the years of my pilgrimage are a hundred and thirty years: " few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and ° have not attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers, in the days of their pilgi-image.

did Joseph, because tlie mission was important, to go and search out the land. But the word may be understood simply us signifying sot>ie; out of the whole of his brethren lie took only five men, &c.

Verse 6. In the best of the land make thy father and brethren to dioell; in the land of Goshen let them dtcetl] So it appears that the land of Goshen was the best of the land of Egypt.

Men of activity] TH "i^JX anshcy chayil, stout or robust men — such as were capable of bearing fatigue, and of rendering their authority respectable.

Riders over my cattle.] njp3 miknch signifies not only cattle, but possessions or property of any kind; though most usually cattle arc intended, because in ancient times they constituted the principal part of a man's property. The word may be taken here in a more extensive sense, and the circumstances of the case seem obviously to require it. If every shepherd was an abomination to the Egyptians, however we may understand or qualify the expression, is it to be supposed that Pharaoh should desire that the brethren of his prime minister, of his chief favourite, should be employed in some of the very meanest oflices in the land! We may therefore safely understand Pharaoh as expressing his will, that the brethren of Joseph should be appointed as overseers or superintendents of his domestic concerns, while Joseph superintended those of the stale.

Verse 7. Jacob blessed Pharaoh.] Saluted him on his entrance with Peace he unto thee, or some such expres,sion of respect and good will. For the meaning of the term to bless, as applied to God and man, see on chap. ii. 3.

A'erse 9. The days of the years of my pilgrimage] "1UI3 megurai, of my sojourning or wandering. Jacob

1 1 And Joseph placed his father and his brethren, and gave them a possession in the land of Egj'pt, in the best of the land, in the land of 1 Rameses, ' as Pharaoh had com-

12 And Joseph nourished his father, and hi.'t brethren, and all his father's household, with bread, 'according to their families.'

1 3 And there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very sore, " so that the land of Egypt, and all the land of Canaan, fainted by reason of the famine.

the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, for the corn which they bought: and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house.

had always lived a migratory or wandering life, in different parts of Canaan, Mesopotamia, and Egypt, scarcely ever at rest; and in the places where he lived longest, always exposed to the fatigues of the field and the desert. Our word pilgrim comes from the French pelerin and pelegrin, which are corrupted from the Latin pcregrinus, an alien, stranger, or foreigner, from the adverb peregre, abroad, not at home. The pilgrim was a person who took a journey, long or short, on some religious account, submitting during the time to many hardships and privations. A more appropriate term could not be conceived to express the life of Jacob, and the motive which induced him to live such a life. His journey to Padan-aram or Mesopotamia excepted, the principal part of his journeys were properly pilgrimages, undertaken in the course of God's providence on a religious account.

Have not attained unto the — life of my fathers] Jacob lived in the whole one hundred and forty-seven years; Isaac his father lived one hundred and eighty; and Abraham his grandfather, one hundred and seventyfive. These were days of years in comparison of the lives of the preceding patriarchs, some of whom lived nearly ten centuries!

A'erse l-l. Gathered up all the money] i.e., by selling corn out of the public stores to the [jeople; and this he did tdl the money failed, ver. 15, till all the money was exchanged for corn, and brought into Pliaraoh's treasury. Besides the fifth part of the produce of the seven plentiful years, Joseph had bought additional com « itli Pharaoh's money to lay up against the famine thai was to prevail in the seven years of dearth; and it is very likely that this was sold out at the price for which it was bought, and the fifth part, which belonged to Pharaoh, sold out at the same price. And as inonei

of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for '" why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth.

1 6 And Joseph said, Give your cattle; and I will give you for your cattle, if money fail.

17 And they brought their cattle unto Joseph: and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for horses, and for the flocks, and for the cattle of the herds, and for the asses; and he ^ fed them with bread for all their cattle, for that year.

year, and sa:'d unto liim, We will not hide it from my lord, how that our money is spent; my lord also hath our herds of cattle; there is not aught left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies and our lands: 19 Wherefore shall we die before thine eyes.

at that time could not be plentiful, the cash of the whole nation was thus exhausted, as far as that had circulated among the common people.

Verse 16. Gii-e your cattle] This was the wisest measure that could be adopted, both for the preservation of the people and of the cattle also. As the people had not grain for their own sustenance, consequently they could have none for their cattle; hence the cattle were in the most imminent danger of starving; and the people also were in equal danger, as they must have divided a portion of that bought for themselves with the cattle, which for the sake of tillage, &c., they wished of course to preserve till the seven years of famine should end. The cattle being bought by Joseph were supported at the royal expense, and very likely returned to the people at the end of the famine; for how else could they cultivate their ground, transport iheir merchandise, &c., &c.? For this part of Joseph's conduct he certainly deserves high praise and no censure.

Verse 18. When that year was ended] The sixth year of the famine, they came unto him the second year, which was the last or seventh year of the famine, in which, it was necessary to sow the land that tliere might be a crop the succeeding year; for Joseph, on whose prediction they relied, had foretold that the famine should continue only seveyi years, and consequently ihey expected the eighth year to be a fruitful year provided the land was soioed, without which, though the inundation of the land by the Nile might amount to the sixteen requisite cubits, there could be no crop.

Verse 19. Buy us and our land for bread] In times of famine in Hindoslan, thousands of children have been sold to prevent their perishing. In the Burman empire the sale of whulc families to discharge debts is very common. — Ward^s Customs.

both we and our land? buy us and a. M. 2302. our land for bread, and we and ' 1

our land will be servants unto Pharaoh: and give us seed, that we may live, and not die, that the land be not desolate.

20 And Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for the Egyptians sold every man his field, because the famine prevailed over them: so the land became Pharaoh's.

2 1 (And as for the people, iie removed them to cities, from 07ie end of the borders of Egypt even to the other end thereof.)

22 ^ Only the land of the ^ priests bought he not; for the priests had a portion assigned them of Pharaoh, and did eat their portion which Pharaoh gave them: wherefore they sold not their lands.

23 Then Joseph said unto the a.m. 2203.

this day and your land for Pharaoh: lo, he7-e IS seed for you, and ye shall sow the land.

Verse 21. And as for the people, he removed them to cities] It is very likely that Joseph was influenced by no political motive in removing the people to the cities, but merely by a motive of humanity and prudence. As the corn was laid up in the cities he found it more convenient to bring them to the place where they might be conveniently fed; each being within the reach of an easy distribution. Thus then the country which could afford no sustenance was abandoned for the time being, that the people might be fed in those places where the provision was deposited.

A^'erse 22. The land of the priests bought he not] From this verse it is natural to infer that whatever the religion of Egypt was, it was established by law and supported by the slate. Hence when Joseph bought all the lands of the Egyptians for Pharaoh, he bought not the land of the priests, for that was a portion assigned them by Pharaoh; and they did eat — did live on, that portion. This is the earliest account we have of an established religion supported by the state.

Verse 23. / have bought you this day and your land for Pharaoh] It fully appears that the kingdom of Egypt was previously to the time of Joseph a very limited monarchy. The king had his estates; the priests had their lands; and the common people their partrimony independently of both. The land of Rameses or Goshen appears to have been the king's land, ver. 11. The priests had their lands, which they did not sell to Joseph, ver. 22, 26; and that the people had lands independent of the crown, is evident from the purchases Joseph made, ver. 19, 20; and we may conclude from those purchases that Pharaoh had no power to levy taxes upon his subjects to increase his own revenue until he had bought the original right which each individual had in his possessions. And when Joseph bought this for the king he raised the 257 a

24 And it shall come to pass in the increase, that yc shall give the filth paj-t unto Pharaoh, and four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, and for your food, and for them of your households, and for food for your little ones.

25 And they said. Thou hast saved our lives. " let us find grace in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoli's servants,

26 And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt unto this day, (hat Pharaoh should have the fifth po/<; '' except the land of the *= priests only, which became not Pharaoh's.

\ 27 And Israel "^ dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions therein, and " grew, and multiplied exceedingly.

crown an ample revenue, though he restored the lands, In' obliging each to pay one fifth of the product to ihe king, vcr. 2-1. And it is worthy of remark that the people of Egypt well understood the distinction between sulijecis and serrants; for when they came to.sell their land, they offered to sell themselves also, and said; Bwj us and our land, and we and our land will he servants unto Pharaoh, ver. 19.

Diodorus Siculiis, lib. i., gives the same account of the ancient constitution of Egypt. " The land," says he, " was divided into three parts: 1. One belonged to the PRIESTS, with which they provided all sacrifices, and maintained all the ministers of religion. 2. A second part was the king's, to support his court and family, and to supply expenses for wars if they should happen. Hence there were no taxes, the king having so ample an estate. 3. The remainder of l\\e land belonged to the subjects, who appear (from the account of Diodorus) to have been all soldiers, a kind of standing militia, liable, at the king's cvpense, to serve in all wars for the preservation of the state." This was a constitution sometliing like the British; the government appears to have been mixed, and the monarcliy properl)' limited, till Joseph, by buying the land of the people, made the king in some sort de-.spolic. But it does not appear that any improper use was made of this, as in much later times we find it.still a comparatively limited monarchy.

Verse 2 1. Yc shall give the fifth part unto Pharaoh'] This is precisely the case in Hindoslan; the king has \\\e fifth part of all the crops.

Verse 2G. And Joseph made it a laiii] That the people should hold their land from the king, and give him Ihe fifth part of the produce as a yearly tax. Beyond tliis it appears the king had no farther demands. Tlie whole of tliis conduct of Joseph has been as strongly censured by some as applauded by others. It is natural for men lo run into extremes in Stacking or defending any position. Sober and judia 268

29 And the time? drew nigh that Israel must die; and he called his son Joseph, and said unto him. If now I have found grace in thy sight, *■ put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and ' deal kindly and truly with me, ^ bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt.

30 But ' I will lie with my fathers, and thou shall carry me out of Egypt, and " bury me in their burying-place. And he said, I will do as thou liast said.

3 1 And he said, Swear unto me; and he sware unto him. And " Israel bowed himself upon the bed's head.

cious men will consider what Joseph did by Divmc appointment as a prophet of God, and what he did merely as a statesman from tlie circumstances of the case, the complexion of the lime.s, and the character of the people over whom he presided. When this is di.spassionately done, we shall see much reason to adore God, applaud the man, and perhaps in some cases censure the minister. Joseph is never held up to our view as an unerring prophet of God. He was an honoured instrument in the hands of God of saving two nations from utter rui.i, and especially of preserving that family from whi.-h the Messiah was to spring, and of perpetuating the true religion among them. In this character he is represented in the sacred pages. His conduct as the prime minister of Pharaoh was powerfully indicative of a deep and consummate politician, who had high notions of prerogative, wluch led him to use every prudent means to aggrandize his master, and at the same time to do what he judged best on the whole for the people he governed. See the conclusion of the 50lh chapter.

Verse 30. I leilllie with my fathers] As God had promised the land of Canaan to Abraham and his posterity, Jacob considered it as a consecrated place, under the particular superintendence and blessing of God: and as Sarah, Abraham, and Isaac were interred near to Hebron, he in all probability wished to lie, not only in the same place, but in the same grave: and it is not likely that he would have been solicitous about this, had he not considered that promised land as being a type of Ihe rest that remains for Ihe people of God, and a pledge of the inheritance among the saints in light.

slviii. 2) while conversing with his son, and receiving his oatli and promise; and that when this was finished \ip. bowed himself upon the hecfs head — exhausted with the conversation, he again reclined himself on his bed as before. This seems to be the simple meaning, which the text, unconnected with any religious system or prejudice, naturally proposes. But because nntV shachah, signifies not only to how but to worship, because acts of religious worship were performed by bowing or prostration, and because nUO mittah, a bed, by the change of the points, only becomes matteh, a stafi", in which sense the Septuagint took it, translating the original words thus: Kai ttpogeuvvtigev lapar^X stti TO aKf)ov TTj^ jiajidov avTov, and Israel loorshipped upon the top of his staff, which the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews, chap. xi. 2 1, quotes literatim; therefore some have supposed that Jacob certainly had a carved image on the bead or top of his staff, to which he paid a species of adoration; or that he bowed him self" to the staffer sceptre of Joseph, thus fulfilling the prophetic import of his son's dreams! The sense of the Hebrew text is given above. If the reader prefers the sense of the Septuagint and the Epistle to the Hebrews, the meaning is, that Jacob, through feebleness, supported himself with a staff, and that, when he got the requisite assurance from Joseph that his dead body should be carried to Canaan, leaning on his staff he bowed his head in adoration to God, who had supported him all his life long, and hitherto ful filled all his promises.

Joseph, hearing that his father was near death, took his two sons Ephraim and Manasseh, and went to Goshen to visit him, 1. Jacob strengthens himself to receive them, 2. Gives Joseph an account of God^s appearing to him at Lu~, and repeating the promise, 3, 4. Adopts Ephraim nnrf Manasseh as his own sons, 5, 6. Mentions the death of Rachel at Ephrath,!. He blesses Ephraim and Manasseh, preferring the former, who was the younger, to his elder brother, 8—17. Joseph, supposing his father had mistaken in giving the right of primogeniture to the youngest, endeavours to correct him, 18. Jacob shows that he did it designedly, prophecies much good concerning both; but sets Ephraim the youngest before Manasseh, 19, 20. Jacob speaks of his death, and predicts the return of his posterity from Egypt, 3 1. And gives Joseph a portion above his brethren, which he had taken from the Amorites, 22.

Behold, thy father is sick: and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.

2 And one told Jacob, and said, Behold, thy son Joseph cometh unto thee: and Israel strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed.

3 And Jacob said unto Joseph, God almighty appeared unto me at =■ Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me,

4 And said unto me, Behold, I will make (hee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will

Verse 1. One told Joseph, Behold, thy father is sick] He was ill before, and Joseph knew it; but it appears that a messenger had been now despatched to inform Joseph that his father was apparently at the point of death.

Verse 2. Israel strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed.] He had been confined to his bed before, (see chap, xlvii. 31,) and now, hearing that Joseph ^as come to see him, he made what efforts his little remaining strength would admit, to sit up in bed to receive his son. This verse proves that a bed, not a staff, is intended in the preceding chapter, ver. 31.

Verses. God Almighty] nmhn El Shaddai,theallsvfficient God, the Outpourer and Dispenser of mercies,

5 And now thy ■= two sons, Ephraim and Manasseli, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt, before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mnie.

6 And thy issue, which thou begetlest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in their inheritance.

7 And as for me, when I came from Padan, '' Rachel died by me in the land of Canaan

Verse 5. And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh— are mine] I now adopt them into my own family, and they shall have their place among my twelve sons, and be treated in every respect as those, and have an equal interest in all the spiritual and temporal blessings of the covenant.

Verse 7. Rachel died by me, c^-c] Rachel was the wife of Jacob's choice, and the object of his unvarying affection; he loved her in life — he loves her in death: many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it. A match of a man's own making, when guided by reason and religion, will necpssanly be a happy one. When fathers and mothers make

Ephrath: and I buried lier there in tlie way of Ephrath; tlie same is Beth-lchem.

9 And Joseph said unto his father, * They are mj' sons, whom God hath given me in this place. And he said. Bring them, I pray thee, imto me, and ' I will bless them.

10 (Now s the eyes of Israel were '' dim for age, so that he could not see.) And he

m.itclies for their children, which are dictated by motives, not of afleclion, but merely of convenience, worldly gain, &c., &c., such matches are generally wretched; it is Leah in the place of Rachel to the end of life's pilgrimage.

A'crse 8. "Who are these?] At verse 10 it is said, that Jacob's eyes were dim for age, that he could not see — could not discern any object unless it were near him; therefore, though he saw Ephraim and Manasseh, yet he could iu)t distinguish them till they were brought nigh unto him.

Verse 11.7 had not thought to see thy face] There is much delicacy and much tenderness in these expressions. He feels himself now amply recompensed for his long grief and trouble on account of the suppo.sed death of Joseph, in seeing not only himself but his two sons, whom God, by an especial act of favour, is about to add to the number of his owm. Thus wc find that as Reuben and Simeon were heads of two distinct tribes in Israel, so were Ephraim and Manasseh; because Jacob, in a sort of sacramental way, had adopted them with equal privileges to those of his own sons.

Verse 12. Joseph — howed himself with his face In the earth.] This act of Joseph has been extravagantly extolled by Dr. Dclaney and others. " When I consider him on his knees to God," says Dr. Delaney, " I regard him as a poor mortal in the discharge of his duty to his Cre.\tor. When I behold him bowing before Pharaoh, I consider him in the dutiful posture of a suhjcct to his prince. But when I see him bending to the earth before a poor, old, blind, decrepit father, I behold him with admiration and delight. How doth that humiliation exalt him!"' This is insufferable! for it in effect says that it is a wondrovis condescension in a young man, who, in the course of God's providence, with scarcely any efforts of his own, was raised to affluence and worldly grandeur, to show respect to his father! And that respect was the more graluiluus and condescending, because that father was poor, old, blind, and decrepit! The maxim of this most exceptionable flight of admiration is, that " chddren who have risen to affluence arc not obliged to reverence their parents when reduced in their circumstances, and Drought down by the weight of years and infirmities to the sides of the grave; and should they acknowledge and reverence them, it would be a mark of sin-

1 1 And Israel said unto Joseph, '' I had not thought to see thy face: aiul lo, God hath showed me also thy seed.

12 And Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth.

13 And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel's left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel's right hand, and brought thejn near unto him.

gular goodness, and be highly merilorions." Should positions of this kind pass without reprehension? I trow not. By the law of God and nature Joseph was as much bound to pay his dying father this _^/io/ respcct, as he was to reverence his hing, or to worship his God. As to myself, 1 must freely confess that I see nothing pecvliarly amiable in this part of Joseph's conduct; he simply acquitted himself of a duty which God, nature, decency, and common sense, imperiously demanded of him, and all such in his circumstances, to discharge. To the present day children in the east, next to God, pay the deepest reverence to their parents. Besides, before whom was Joseph bowing ■ Not merely \\\s father, but a most eminent patriarch; one highly distinguished by the Lord, and one of the three of whom the Supreme Being speaks in the most favourable and affectionate manner; the three who received and transmitted the true faith, and kept unbroken the Divine covenant; I am the God o/ Abraham, the God q/" Isaac, and the God o/" Jacob. He has never said, I am the God of Joseph. And if we compare 1\k father and the son as men, we shall find that the latter was exceeded by the former in almost endless degrees. Joseph owed his advancement and his eminence to what some would call good fortune, and what nc know to have been the especial providence of God working in his behalf, wholly independent of his own industry, &c., everj' event of that providence issuing in his favour. Jacob owed his own support and preservation, and the support and preservation of his numerous family, under God, to the continual exercise of the vast powers of a strong and vigorous mind, to which the providence of God seemed ever in opposition; because God chose to try to the uttermost the great gifts whicli he had bestowed. If therefore the most humble and abject inferior should reverence dignity and eminence raised to no common height, so should Joseph bow down his face to the earth before JACOB.

Besides, Joseph, in thus reverencing his father, only followed the customs of the Egyptians among whom he lived, who, according to Herodotus, {Euterpe, c. 80,) were particularly remarkable for the reverence they paid to old age. " For if a young person meet his senior, he instantly turns aside to make way for him; if an aged person enter an apartment, the youth alwa.ys

14 And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim's

head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh's head, ' guiding his hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the first-born.

1 5 And ■" he blessed Joseph, and said, God, ° before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac

rise from their seats;" and Mr. Savary observes that the reverence mentioned by Herodotus is yet paid to old age on every occasion in Egypt. In Mohammedan countries the children sit as if dumb in the presence of their parents, never attempting to speak unless spoken to. Among the ancient Romans it was considered a crime worthy of death not to rise up in the presence of an aged person, and acting a contrary part was deemed an awful mark of the deep degeneracy of the times. Thus the satirist: —

Credehant hoc grande nefas, et morle piandum. Si Juvenis vetdlo non assurrexerat; et si Barbate cuicumque puer. Jvv. Sat. xiii., v. 54.

Ard had not men the hoary heads revered, Of boi/s paid reverence when a man appear'd, Bnk must have died. Dryden.

Indeed, though Dr. Delaney is much struck with what he thinks to be great and meritorious condescension and humility on the part of Joseph; yet we find the thing itself, the deepest reverence to parents and old age, practised by all the civilized nations in the world, not as a matter of meritorious courtesy, but as a point of rational and absolute duty.

Verse 14. Israel stretched out his right hand, c^-c] Laying hands on the head was always used among the Jews in giving blessings, designating men to any office, and in the consecration of solemn sacrifices. This is the first time we find it mentioned; but we often read of it afterwards. See Num. xxvii. 18, 23; Deut. xxxiv. 9; Matt. xix. 13, 15; Acts vi. 6; 1 Tim. iv. 14. Jacob laid his right hand on the head of the younger, which we are told he did wittingly — well knowing what he was about, for (or although) Manasseh was the first-born, knowing by the Spirit of prophecy that Ephraim's posterity would be more powerful than that of Manasseh. It is observable how God from the beginning has preferred the younger to the elder, as Abel before Cain; Shem before Japhelh; Isaac before Ishmael; Jacob before Esau; Judah and Joseph before Reuben; Ephraim before Manasseh; Moses before Aaron; and David before his brethren. '• This is to be resolved entirely into the wise and secret counsel of God, so far as it regards temporal blessings and national privileges, as the apostle tells us, Rom. ix. 11; see the notes on ehap. xxv. 23. But this preference has no concern with God's conferring a greater measure of his love and approbation on one person more than another; compare Gen. iv. 7, with Heb xi. 4, and you will see that a difference in moral character was the sole Cause why God preferred Abel to Caia." — Dodd. The grace that converts the soul

1 6 The Angel ° which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let " my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them 1 grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.

certainly comes from the mere mercy of God, without any merit on man's part; and a sufficiency of this is offered to every man, Tit. ii. II, 12. But it is not less certain that God loves those best who are most faithful to this grace.

Verse 15. He blessed Joseph] The father first, and then the sons afterwards. And this is an additional proof to what has been adduced under ver. 12, of Jacob's superiority; for the less is always blessed of the greater.

The God lohich fed me all my life long] Jacob is now standing on the verge of eternity, with his faith strong in God. He sees his life to be a series of mercies; and as he had been affectionately attentive, provident, and kind to his most helpless child, so has God been unto him; he has fed him. all his life long; he plainly perceives that he owes every morsel of food which he has received to the mere mercy and kindness

Verse 16. The Angel which redeemed me from all evil] Ssjn "IxSon hammalac haggoel. The Messenger, the Redeemer or Kinsman; for so iHl goel signifies; for this term, in the law of Moses, is applied to that person whose right it is, from his being nearest akin, to redeem or purchase back a forfeited inheritance. But of whom does Jacob speak 1 We have often seen, in the preceding chapters, an angei of God appearing to the patriarchs; (see particularly chap. xvi. 7, and the note there;) and we have full proof that this was no created angel, but the Messenger of the Divine Council, the Lord Jesus Christ. Who then was the angel that redeemed Jacob, and whom he invoked to bless Ephraim and Manasseh? Is it not JESUS! He alone can be called Goel, the redeeming Kinsman; for he alone took part of our flesh and blood that the right of redemption might be his; and that the forfeited possession of the favour and image of God might be redeemed, brought back, and restored to all those who believe in his name. To have invoked any other angel or messenger in such a business would. have been impiety. Angels bless not; to God alo7ie this prerogative belongs. With what confidence may a truly religious father use these words in behalf of his children: " Jesus, the Christ, who hath redeemed me, bless the lads, redeem them also, and save them unto eternal life!"

Let my name be named on them] " Let them be ever accounted as a part of my own family; let them be true Israelites — persons who shall prevail with God as I have done; and the name of Abraham — being partakers of his faith; and the name of Isaac — let them be as remarkable for submissive obedience as he

him: and he held up his father's hand, to

1 8 Aiid Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the first-born; put thy right hand upon his head.

1 9 And his father refused, and said, ' I know It, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly " his younger brother shall be greater than

was. Let the virtues of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob be accumulated in lliem, and invariably displayed by them!" These are the very words of adoption; and by the imposition of hands, the invocation of the Redeemer, and llie solemn dlessing [)ronounced, the adoption was completed. From this moment Ephraim and Manasseh had the same rights and privileges as Jacob's sons, wliich as the sons of Joseph they could never have possessed.

And let them grow into a multitude] D17 IJTl veyidgu larob; Lei them increase like fishes into a multitude. Fish are the most prolific of all animals; see the instances produced on chap. i. 20. This prophetic blessing was verified in a most remarkable manner; see Num. xxvi. 34, 37; Deut. x.xxiii. 17; Josh. xvii. 17. At one time the tribe of Ephraim amounted to 40,500 effective men, and that of Manasseh to 52,700, amounting in the whole to 93.200.

Verse 18. Joseph said— Not so, my father] Joseph supposed that his father had made a mistake in laying liis right hand on the head of the youngest, because the right hand was considered as the most noble, and the instrument of conveying the highest dignities, and thus it has ever been considered among all nations, though the reason of it is not particularly obvious. Even in the heavens the right hand of God is the place of the most exalted dignity. It has been observed that Joseph spoke here as he was moved by natural affection, and that Jacob acted as lie was influenced by the Holy Spirit.

Verse 20. In thee shall Israel bless] That is. In future generations the Israelites shall take their form of wishing prosperity to any nation or family from the circumstance of the good which it shall be known that God has done to Ephraim and Manasseh: May God-> make thee as fruitful as Ephraim, and multiply thee as Manasseh! So, to their daughters when married, the Jewish women are accustomed to sav, God make thee as Sarah and Rebekah! The forms are still in use.

A'erse 21. Behold, I die] With what composure is this most awful word expressed! Surely of Jacob it might be now said, " He turns his sight undaunted on the tomb;" for though it is not said that he ipas full of days, a3 were Abraham and Isaac, yet he is per-

20 And he blessed them that day, saying, "■ In thee shall Israel bless, saying, God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh: and he set Ephraim before Manasseh.

21 And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I die: but ' God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your fathers.

22 Moreover ^ I have given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand ^ of the Amorite, with my sword and with my bow.

fectly willing to bid adieu to earthly things, and lay his body in the grave. Could any person act as the patriarchs did in their last moments, who had no hopes of eternal life, no belief in the immortality of the soul? Impossible! With such a conviction of the being of God, with such proofs of his tenderness and regard, with such experience of his providential and miraculous interference in their behalf, could they suppose that they were only creatures of a day, and that Gcd had wasted so much care, attention, providence, grace, and goodness, on creatures who were to be ultimately like the beasts that perish t The supposition that they could have no correct notion of the immortality of the soul is as dishonourable to God as to themselves. But what shall we think of Christians who have formed this hypothesis into a system to prove — what? Why, that the patriarchs lived and died in the dark! That either the soul has no immortality, or that God has not thought proper to reveal it. Away with such an opinion! It cannot be said to merit serious refutation. Verse 22. Moreover I have given to thee one portion] ins D2\y shechem achad, one shcchem or one shoulder. We have already seen the transactions between Jacob and his family on one part, and Shechem and the sons of Hamor on the other. See chap, xxxiii. 18, 19, and chap, xxxiv. As he uses the word shechem here, I think it likely that he alludes to the purchase of the field or parcel of ground mentioned chap, xxxiii. 18, 19. It has been supposed that this parcel of ground, which Jacob bought from Shechem, had been taken from him by the Amorites, and that he afterwards had recovered it by his sword and by his bow, i. e., by force of arms. Shechem appears to have fallen to the lot of Joseph's sons; (see Josh. xvii. 1, land XX. 7;) and in our Lord's time there was a parcel of ground near to Sychar or Shechem which was still considered as th.at portion which Jacob gave to his soa Joseph, John iv. 5; and on the whole it was probably the same that Jacob bought for a hundred pieces of money, chap, xxxiii. 18, 19. But how it could be said that he took this out of the hand of the Amorite icit^ his sword and his bow, we cannot tell. Many attempts have been made to explain this abstruse verse, but they have all hitherto been fruitless. Jacob's words were ne doubt perfectly well understood by Joseph, and probably alluded to some transaction that is not now on record; and it is much safer for us to confess our ignorance, than to hazard conjecture after conjecture on a subject of which we can know nothing certainly.

1. On filial respect to aged and destitute parents we have already had occasion to speak; see ver. 1 1. The duty of children to their parents only ceases when the parents are laid in their graves, and this duty is the next in order and importance to the duty we owe to God. No circumstances can alter its nature or lessen its importance; Honour thy father and thy mother is the sovereign, everlaoting command of God. While the relations o( parent and child exist, this commandment will be im full force.

2. The Redeeming Angela the Messenger of the covenant^ in his preserving and saving influence, is invoked by dying Jacob to be the protector and Saviour of Ephraim and Manasseh, ver. 16. With what advantage and effect can a dying parent recommend the Lord Jesus to his children, who can testify with his last breath that this Jesus has redeemed him from all evil! Reader, canst thou call Christ thy Redeemer? Hast thou, through him, recovered the forfeited inheritance 1 Or dost thou expect redemption from all evd by any other means 1 Through him, and him alone, God will redeem thee from all thy sins; and as thou knowest not wh.at a moment may bring forth, thou hast not a moment to lose. Thou hast sinned, and there is no name given under heaven among men whereby thou canst be saved but Jesus Christ. Acquaint thyself now with him, and be at peace, and thereby good shall come unto thee.

3. We find that the patriarchs ever held the promised land in the most sacred point of view. It was God's gift to them; it was confirmed by a covenant that spoke of and referred to better things. We believe that this land typified the rest which remains for tlie people of God, and can we be indifferent to the excellence of this rest! A patriarch could not die in peace, however distant from this land, without an assurance that his bones should be laid in it. How can lue live, how can we die comfortably, without the assurance that our lives are hid with Christ in God, and that we shall dwell in his presence for ever 1 There remains a rest for the people of God, and only for the people of God; for those alone who love, serve, reverence, and obey him, in his Son Jesus Christi shall ever enjoy it.

/<seob, about to die, calls his sons together that he may bless them, or give prophetic declarations concerning their posterity, 1, 2. Prophetic declaration concerning, Reuben, 3, 4. Concerning Simeon and Levi, 5-7; concerning Judah, 8-12; concerning Zebulun, 13; concerning Issachar, 14, 15; concerning Dan, 16-18; concerning Gad, 19; concerning Asher, 20; concerning Naphtali, 21; concerning Joseph, 22-26; concerning Benjamin, 27. Summary concerning the twelve tribes, 28. Jacob gives directions concerning his being buried in the cave of Machpetah, 29—32. Jacob dies, 33.

together, that I may ^ tell you that which shall oefall you '' in the last days.

NOTES ON CHAP. XLIX. Verse 1. That which shall befall you in the last days.] It is evident from this, and indeed from the whole complexion of these important prophecies, that the twelve sons of Jacob had very little concern in them, personally considered, as they were to be fulfilled in the last days, i. e., in times remote Irom that period, and consequently to their posterity, and not to themselves, or to their immediate families. The whole of these prophetic declarations, from ver. 2 to ver. 27 inclusive, is delivered in strongly figurative language, and in the poetic form, which, in every translation, should be preserved as nearly as possible, rendering the version line for line with the original. This order I shall pursue in the succeeding notes, always proposing the verse first, in as literal a translation as possible, line for line with the Hebrew after the hemistich form, from which the sea'je will more readily appear; but to the Hebrew

2. Come together and hear, O sons of Jacob! And hearken unto Israel your father.

Bishop Newton has justly observed that Jacob had received a double blessing, spiritual and temporal; the promise of being progenitor of the Messiah, and the promise of the land of Canaan. The promised land he might divide among his children as he pleased, but the other must be confined to one of his sons; he therefore assigns to each son a portion in the land of Canaan, but limits the descent of the blessed seed to the tribe of Judah. Some have put themselves to a great deal of trouble and learned labour to show that it was a general opinion of the ancients that the soul, a short time previous to its departure from the body, becomes endued with a certain measure of the

• and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and llic

prophetic gift or foresight; and that this was probably the case with Jacob. But it would be derogatory to the dignity of the prophecies delivered in this chapter, to suppose that they came by any other means than direct inspiration, as to their main matter, though certain circumstances appear to be left to the patriarch himself, in which he might express his own feelings both as a father and as a judge. This is Strikingly evident, 1. In the case of Reuben, from whom he had received the grossest insult, however the passage relative to him may be understood; and, 2. In the case of Joseph, the tenderly beloved son of his most beloved loife Rachel, m the prophecy concerning whom he gives full vent to all those tender and affectionate emotions which, as a. father and a husband, do him endless credit.

My might, and the prime of my strength. Excelling in eminence, and excelling in power:

4. Pouring out like the waters: — thou shalt not excel, For thou wentest up to the bed of thy father, — Then thou didst defile: to my couch he went up!

Verse 3. Reuben as the first-born had a right to a double portion of all that the father had; see Deut. xxi. 17.

The eminence or dignity mentioned here may refer to the priesthood; the power, to the regal government or kingdom. In this sense it has been understood by all the ancient Targumists. The Targum of Onkelos paraphrases it thus: " Thou shouldst have received three portions, the birthright, the priesthood, and the kingdom:" and to this the Targums of Jonathan ben Uzziel and Jerusalem add: " But because thou hast sinned, the birthright is given to Joseph, the kingdom to Judah, and the priesthood to Levi." That the birthright was given to the sons of Joseph we have the fullest proof from 1 Chron. v. 1.

Verse 4. Ponring out tike the waters'] This is an obscure sentence because unfinished. It evidently relates to tlic defilement of his father's couch; and the word inS pachaz, here translated pouring out, and in our Version unstable, has a bad meaning in other places of the Scripture, being applied to dissolute, debauched, and licentious conduct. See Judg. ix. 4; Zeph. iii. 4; Jer. xxiii. 14, 32; xxix. 23.

Thou shalt not eicel] This tribe never rose to any eminence in Israel; was not so numerous by one third as either Judah, Joseph, or Dan, when Moses took the sum of them in the wilderness, Num. i. 21; and was among the first that were carried into captivity, 1 Chron. v. 26.

Then thou didst defile] Another unfinished senencc, similar to the former, and upon the same sub-

5 ^ Simeon and Levi are ' brethren; " in stniments " of cruelty are in their habitations.

ject, passing over a transaction covertly, which delicacy forbade Jacob to enlarge on. For the crime of Reuben, see the notes on chap. xxxv. 22.

6. Into their secret council my soul did not come; In their confederacy my honour was not united: For in their anger they slew a man,(B''N ish, a noble,) And in their pleasure they murdered a prince.

And I will disperse them in Israel. Verse 5. Simeon and Levi are brethren] Not only springing from the same parents, but they have the same kind of disposition, headstrong, deceitful, vindictive, and cruel.

They have accomplished, Jfc] Our margin has it, Their sivords are iveapons of violence, i. e. Their swords, which they should have used in defence of their persons or the honourable protection of their families, they have employed in the base and dastardly murder of an innocent people.

The Septuagint gives a different turn to this line from our translation, and confirms the translation given above: SuvtrcAfoav a6tKLav t^aiptaeu^ avTuv They have accomplished the iniquity of their purpose; with which the Samaritan Version agrees. In the Samaritan text we read X2,^ <■"'"> '^'i* ^""^ accomplished, instead of the Hebrew ^bj keley, weapons or instruments, which reading most critics prefer: and as to Dn'm:30 mecherotheyhem,iT3.ns\Mei above their fraudulent purposes, and which our translation on almost no authority renders their habitations, it ranst either come from the Mthiopic 10"D macar, he counselled, devised stratagems, d[c., (see Castel,) or from the Arabic

JLo macara, he deceived, practised deceit, plotted. Sic, which is nearly of the same import. This gives not only a consistent but evidently the true sense.

Verse 6. Into their secret council, &c.] Jacob here exculpates himself from all participation in the guilt of Simeon and Levi in the murder of the Shechemitcs. He most solemnly declares that he knew nothing of the confederacy by which it was executed, nor of tlie secret council in which it was plotted.

If it should be said that the words N^H tabo and inn techad should be translated in the future tense or in the imperative, as in our translation, I shall not contend; though it is well known that the preterite is nflen used for the future in Hebrew, and vice Tsrsa. Taken thus, the words mark the strong detestation which this holy man's soul felt for the villany of his sons: " My soul shall not come into theii secei

for 'in their anger they slew a man, and in

7 Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce;

And in their pleasure] This marks the highest degree of wickedness and settled malice, they were delighted with their deed. A similar spirit Saul of Tarsus possessed previously to his conversion; speaking of the martyrdom of St. Stephen, St. Luke says, Acts viii. 1: Xavlog de jji* amevSoKuv vy avaipeaei avTov And Saul was gladly consenting to his death. He was with the others highly delighted with it; and thus the prediction of our Lord was fulfilled, John xvi. 2: Yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killelh you toill think that he doeth God service. And it is represented as the highest pitch of profligacy and wickedness, not only to sin, but to delight in it; see Rom. i. 33. As the original word psi raison signifies, in general, pleasure, benevolence, delight, &c., it should neither be translated self-will nor wilfulness, as some have done, but simply as above; and the reasons appear sufficiently obvious. They murdered a prince — - Hamor, the father of Shechem. Instead of ^la' shor, which we have translated a wall, and others an ox, I read "W sar, a prince, which makes a consistent sense; (see Kennicott's first Dissertation, p. 56, &c.;) as there is no evidence whatever that Simeon and Levi either dug down a wall or houghed the oxen, as some have translated the passage; (see the margin;) on the contrary, the text, chap. xxxv. 28, 29, proves that they had taken for their own use the sheep, oxen, asses, all their wealth, their wives, and their little ones.

Verse 7. Cursed was their anger]. The first motions of their violence were savage; and their excessive or overflowing lorath, TTi'^^ ebrah, for it was inflexible — neither the supplications of the males, nor the entreaties, tears, cries, and shrieks of the helpless females, could deter them from their murderous purpose; for this, ver. 5, they are said to have accomplished.

I will divide them out, DpbnN achallekem, I will make them into lots, giving a portion of them to one tribe, and a portion to another; but they shall never attain to any political consequence. This appears to have ^een literally fulfilled. Levi had no inheritance except forty-eight cities, scattered through different parts of the land of Canaan: and as to the tribe of Simeon, it is generally believed among the Jews that they became schoolmasters to the other tribes; and when they entered Canaan they had only a small portion, a few towns and villages in the worst part of Judah's lot. Josh. xix. 1, which afterwards finding too little, they formed different colonies in districts which they conquered from the Idumeans and Amaiekites, 1 Chron. iv. 39, &c. Thus these two tribes

8 " Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise; '' thy hand shall be in the neck

were not only separated from each other, but even divided from themselves, according to this prediction of Jacob.

8. Judah! thou! Thy brethren shall praise thee. Thy hand, in the neck of thine enemies:

From the prey, my son, thou hast ascended. He couched, lying down like a strong lion. And like a lioness; who shall arouse him %

And to the choice vine the foals of his ass, He washed his garments in wine, His clothes in the blood of the grape.

Verse 8. Thy brethren shall praise thee.] As the name Judah signifies praise, Jacob takes occasion from its meaning to show that this tribe should be so eminent and glorious, that the rest of the tribes should praise it; that is, they should acknowledge its superior dignity, as in its privileges it should be distinguished beyond all the others. On the prophecy relative to Judah, Dr. Hales has several judicious remarks, and has left very little to be farther desired on the subject. Every reader will be glad to meet with them here.

" The prophecy begins with his name Judah, signifying the praise of the Lord, which was given to him at his birth by his mother Leah, chap. xxix. 35. It then describes the warlike character of this tribe, to which, by the Divine appointment, was assigned the flrst lot of the promised land, which was conquered accordingly by the pious and heroic Caleb; the first who laid hands on the necks of his enemies, and routed and subdued them, Josh. xiv. 11; xv. 1; Judg. i. 1, 2; and led the way for their total subjugation under David; who, in allusion to this prediction, praises God, and says; Thou hast given me the necks of mine enemies, that I might destroy them that hate me, Psa. xviii. 40. In the different stages of its strength, this tribe is compared to a lion's ivhelp, to a full grown lion, and to a nursing lioness, the fiercest of all. Hence a lion was the standard of Judah; compare Num. ii. 3, Ezek. i. 10. The city of David, where he reposed himself after his conquests, secure in the terror of his name, 1 Chron. xiv. 17, was called Ariel, the lion of God, Isa. xxix. 1; and our Lord himself, his most illustrious descendant, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, Rev. v. 5. 36S

drcn shall bow down before ihce.

my son, thou art gone up: s- he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up?

" The duration of the power of this famous tribe is next determined: ' the sceptre of dominion,' as it is understood Esth. viii. 4; Isa. xiv. 5, &c., or its civil government, was not to cease or depart from Judah until the birth or coming of Shiloh, signifying the Apostle, as Christ is styled, Heb. iii. 1; nor was the native lawgiver, or expounder of the late, teacher, or scribe, intimating their ecclesiastical polity, to cease, until Shiloh should have a congregation of peoples, or religious followers, attached to him. And how accurately was this fulfilled in both these respects!

" 1. Shortly before the birth of Christ a decree was issued by Augustus Ca;sar that all the land of Judea and Galilee should be enroWcrf, or a registry of persons taken, in which Christ was included, Luke ii. 1-7; whence Julian the apostate unwittingly objected to his title of Christ or King, that ' he was born a subject of Ciesar!' About eleven years after Judea was made a Roman province, attached to Syria on the deposal and banishment of Archelaus, the son of Herod the Great, for maladministration; and an assessment of properties or taxing was carried into effect by Ci/renius, then governor of Syria, the same who before, as the emperor's procurator, had made the enrolment, Luke ii. 2; Acts v. 37; and thenceforth Judea was governed by a Roman deputy, and the judicial power of life and death taken away from the Jews, John

" 2. Their ecclesiastical polity ceased with the destruction of their city and temple by the Romans, A. D. 70; at which time the Gospel had been preached through the known world by the apostles, ' his witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth;' Acts ii. 8; Rom. X. 18.

" Our Lord's triumphant entry into Jerusalem, before his crucifixion, ' riding on an ass, even a colt the foal of an ass,' which by his direction his disciples brought to him fur this purpose, — ' Go into the village over against you, and presently ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her; loose them, and bring them to me,' Matt. xxi. 2-5, remarkably fulfilling the prophecy of Zecliariah, ix. 9, is no less a fulfilment of this prophecy of Shiloh. ' binding or tying his foal to the vine, even his ass\i colt to the choice vine.' In ancient times lo ride upon white asses or ass-colts was the privilege of persons of high rank, princes, judges, and prophets, Judg. v. 10; x. 4; Num. xxii. 22. And as the children of Israel were symbolized by the wne, Psa. Ixxx. 8, Hos. x. 1, and the men of Judah by ' a (choice) vine of Sorek,' in the original, both here and in the beautiful allegory of Isaiah, v. 1-7, adopted by Jeremiah, ii. 21, and by our Lord, Matt. xxi. 3 t, who styled himself the true vine, John xv. 1; 80 the union of both these images signified our Lord's assumption, as the promised Shiloh, of the dignity of ihe king of the Jews, not in a temporal but in a npiritual sense, as he declared to Pilate, John xviii.

36, as a prelude to his second coming in glory 'to restore again the kingdom to Israel.''

"The vengeance to be then inflicted on all the enemies of his Church, or congiegation of faithful Christians, is expressed by the symbolical imagery of ' washing his garments in ivine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes;' which to understand literally, would be incongruous and unusual any where, while it aptly represents his garments crimsoned in the blood of his foes, and their immense slaughter; an imagery frequently adopted in the- prophetic scriptures.

" The strength and wholesomer.ess of Shiloh's doctrine are next represented by having ' his eyes red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.' And thus the evangelical prophet, in similar strains, invites the world to embrace the Gospel: —

Ho, every one that thirsteth, come to the waters. And he that hath no money; come, buy and eat: Yea, come, buy wine and milk. Without money and tvithout price- Isa. Iv. 1.

" On the last day of the feast of tabernacles it was customary among the Jews for the people to bring water from the fountain of Siloah or Siloam, which they poured on the altar, singing the words of Isaiah, xii. 3: Wtlh joy shall ye draw water from the fountain of salvation; which the Targum interprets, ' With joy sha'il ye receive a new doctrine from the elect of the JUST ONE;' and the feast itself was also called Hosannah, Save, we beseech thee. And Isaiah has also described the apostasy of the Jews from their tutelar God Immanuel, under the corresponding imagery of their ' rejecting the gently-flowing waters of Siloah,' Isa. viii. 6-8.

" Hence our Lord, on the last day of the feast, significantly invited the Jews to come unto him as the true and living Fountain of waters, Jer. ii. 13. 'If any man thirst, let him come to me and drink;' John vii. 37. He also compared his doctrine to new wtne, which required to be put into neiv bottles, made of skins strong enough to contain it. Matt. ix. 17; while the Gospel is repeatedly represented as affording milk for babes, or the first principles of the oracles of God for novices in the faith, as well as strong meat [and strong wine] for masters in Christ or adepts. Matt, xiii. 11; Heb. v. 12-14.

" And our Lord's most significant miracle was wrought at this fountain, when he gave sight to a man forty years old, who had been blind from his birth, by sending him, after he had anointed his eyes with moistened clay, to wash in the pool of Siloam, which is the Greek pronunciation of the Hebrew nViy Siloah or Siloh, Isa. viii. 6, where the Sepluagmt version reads ^tf.uap, signifying, according to the evangelist. oTforaA^ffof, sent forth, and consequently derived from nSa' shalach, lo send, John ix. 7. Our Lord thus assuming to himself his two leading titles of Messiah, signifying anointed, and Shiloh, sent forth

Shiloh.''s coming foretold.

Prophecy concerning Zebuluii.

10^ The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor " a lawgiver '' frorn between his feet, " until Sl.doh come; ^ and unto iiim shall the gathering of the people he. 1 1 ° Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes:

or delegated from God; as he had done before at the opening of his mission: ' The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor; he hath sent me forth (aireaTaXKe) to heal the broken-hearted,' &c.; Luke iv. 18.

" And in the course of it he declared, I was not sent forth (airfaraAi/v) but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel, Matt. xv. 24, by a twofold reference to his character in JacoVs prophecy of Shiloh and Shepherd of Israel, Gen. xli.x. 10-24. 'This is life eternal, to know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou senlest forth,'' (an-Eorfi/laf,) to instruct and sa%'e mankind, John xvii. 3; and he thus distinguishes his own superior mission from his comnission to his apostles: ' As the F.^ther hath sent ME, {aTTCdTalne ^t,) so I send you,' irefiiru v/iac, John XX. 21. Whence St. Paul expressly styles Jesus Christ ' the Apostle ('O Affoffrt/Xof) and High Priest)f our profession,' Heb. iii. 1; and by an elaborate jgument shows the superiority of his mission above:hat of Moses, and of his priesthood above that of Aaron, in the sequel of the epistle. His priesthood was foretold by David to be a royal priesthood, after the order of Melchizedek, Psa. ex. 4. But where shall we find his mission or apostleship foretold, except in Jacob's prophec}' of Shiloh I which was evidently so understood by Moses when God offered to send him as his ambassador to Pharaoh, and he declined at first the arduous mission: ' O my Lord, send I pray thee by the hand of Him whom thou wilt send,'' or by the promised Shiloh, E.xod. iii. 10; iv. 13; by whom in his last blessing to the Israelites, parallel to that of Jacob, he prayed that ' God would bring back Judah to his people' from captivity, Deut. xxxiii. 7.

" Here then we find the true meaning and derivation of the much disputed term Shiloh in this prophecy of Jacob, which is fortunately preserved by the Vulgate, rendering qui miltendus est, he that is to be sent, and also by a rabbinical comment on Deut. xxii. 7: ' If you keep this precept, you hasten the coming of the Messiah, who is called Sent.'

" This important prophecy concerning Judah intimates, 1. The warlike character and conquests of this tribe; 2. The cessation of their civil and religious polity at the first coming of Shiloh; 3. His meek and owly inauguration at that time, as spiritual King of the Jews, riding on an ass like the 3.ncKr\l jiCges and prophets; 4. His second coming as a warrior to trample on all his foes; and, 5. To save and instruct hia faithful people." — Hales' Anal., vol. ii., p. 167, &c.

12 His feyes shall be red with A. M. 2315-

13^ Zebulun shall dwell at the haven of the sea; and he shall be for a haven of ships; and his border shall he unto Zidon.

Verse 10. From Judah the sceptre shall not depart] The Jews have a quibble on the word D2J0 shehet, which we translate sceptre; they say it signifies a staff or rod, and that the meaning of it is, that ^^afflictions shall not depart from the Jews till the Messiah comes;" that they are still under affliction, and therefore the Messiah is not come. This is a miserable shift to save a lost cause. Their chief Targumist, Onkelos, understood and translated the word nearly as we do; and the same meaning is adopted by the Jerusalem Targurn, and by all the ancient versions, the Arabic excepted, which has '. '.'f^^ hazecl, a rod; but in a very ancient MS. of the Pentateuch in my own possession the word ja)>*uselet is used, which signifies a tribe. Judah shall continue a distinct tribe till the Messiah shall come; and it did so; and after his coming it was confounded with the oitiprs, so that all distinction has been ever since lost.

Nor a teacher from his offspring] I am sufficiently aware that the literal meaning of the original I'Sjl ['33 mihbeyn raglaiv is from between his feet, and I am as fully satisfied that it should never be so translated; from between the feet and out of the thigh simply mean progeny, natural offspring, for reasons which surely need not be mentioned. The Targum oi Jonathan ben Uzziel, and the Jerusalem Targum, apply the whole of this prophecy, in a variety of very minute particulars, to the Messiah, and give no kind of countenance to the fictions of the modern Jews.

13. At the haven of the seas shall Zebulun dwell, And he shall be a haven for ships.

And his border shall extend unto Sidon. Verse 13. Zebulun's lot or portion in the division of the Promised Land extended from the Mediterranean Sea on the west, to the lake of Gennesarelh on the east; see his division, Josh. xix. 10, &c. The Targum of Jonathan ben Uzziel paraphrases the passage thus: " Zebulun shall be on the coasts of the sea, and he shall rule over the havens; he shall suhdue the provinces of the sea with his ships, and his border shall extend unto Sidon."

1 5. And he saw the resting place that it was good. And the land that it was pleasant;

And he inclined his shoulder to the load. And became a servant unto tribute. Verse 14. Issachar is a strong ass] D1J 13n cAamor garem is properly a strong-limbed ass; couching i«.

15 And he saw that rest was good, and the land tliat it was pleasant; and bowed '' his shoulder to bear, and became a servant unto tribute.

tioeen tivo burdens — bearing patiently, as must understand it, the fatigues of agriculture, and submitting to exorbitant taxes rather that exert themselves to drive out the old inhabitants.

The two burdens literally mean the tioo sacks or panniers, one on each side of the animal's body; and couching down between these refers to the well-known propensity of the ass, whenever wearied or overloaded, to lie down even with its burden on its back.

Verse 15. He saw that rest] The inland portion that was assigned to him between the other tribes. He inclined hts shoulder to the load; the Chaldee paraphrast gives this a widely different turn to that given it by most commentators: " He saw his portion that it was good, and the land that it was fruitful; and he shall subdue the provinces of the people, and drive out their inhabitants, and those who are left shall be his servants, and his tributaries." Grotius understands it nearly in the same way. The pusillanimity which is generally attributed to this tribe certainly does not agree with tlie view in which they arc exhibited in Scripture. In the song of Deborah this tribe is praised for the powerful assistance which it then afforded, Judg. V. 15. And in 1 Chron. vii. 1-5, they are expressly said to have been valiant men of might in all their families, and in all their generations; i.e., through every period of their history. It appears they were a laborious, hardy, valiant tribe, patient in labour, and invincible in war; bearing both these burdens with great constancy whenever it was necessary. When Tola of this tribe judged Israel, the land had rest twenty-three years, Judg. x. 1.

Verse 16. Dan shall judge] Dan, whose name signifies judgment, was the eldest of Jacob's sons by Bilhah, Rachel's maid, and he is here promised an equal rule with those tribes that sprang from either Leah or Rachel, the legal wives of Jacob.

Some Jewish and some Christian writers understand this prophecy of Samson, who sprang from this tribe, and judged, or as the word might be translated avenged, the people of Israel twenty years. See Judg. liii. 2; XV. 20.

Verse 17. Dan shall be a serpent] The original wori is BTIJ nachash, and we have seen on chap. iii. that tliis has a great variety of significations. It is probable that a serpent is here intended, but of what kind wc know not; yet as the principal reference in the text is to guile, cunning, &c., the same creature may be intended as in chap. iii.

1 7 '' Dan shall be a serpent by the way, ' an adder in the path, that biteth the horse

phon, which is nowhere else to be found in the Bible, is thus translated by the Vulgate, and Dochart approves of the translation. The cerastes has its name from two little horns upon its head, and is remarkable for the property here ascribed to the shephiphon. The word niN orach, which we translate path, signifies the track or rut made in the ground by the wheel of a cart, wagon, &c. And the description that Nicander gives of this serpent in his Theriaca perfectly agrees with what is here said of the shephiphon

It is intimated that this tribe should gain the principal part of its conquests more by cunning and stratagem, than by valour; and this is seen particularly in their conquest of Laish, Judges xviii., and even in some of the transactions of Samson, such as burning the corn of the Philistines, and at last pulling down their temple, and destroying three thousand at one time, see Judg. xvi. 26-30.

This is a remarkable ejaculation, and seems to stand perfectly unconnected with all that went before and all that follows; though it is probable that certain prophetic views which Jacob now had, and which he does not explain, gave rise to it; and by this he at once expressed both his^ai(/i and hope in God. Both Jewish and Christian commentators have endeavoured to find out the connection in which these words ex isted in the mind of the patriarch. The Targum of Jonathan expresses the whole thus: "When Jacob saw Gideon the son of Joash, and Samson the son of Manoah, which were to be saviours in a future age, he said: I do not wait for the salvation of Gideon, 1 do not expect the salvation of Samson, because their salvation is a temporal salvation; but I wait for and expect thy salvation, 0 Lord, because thy salvation is eternal." And the Jerusalem Targum much to the same purpose: " Our father Jacob said: Wait not, ray soul, for the redemption of Gideon the son of Joash which is temporal, nor the redemption of Samson which is a created salvation; but for the salvation which thou hast said by thy Word should come to thy people the children of Israel: my soul waits for this thy salvation." Indeed these Targums understand almost the whole of these prophecies of the Messiah, and especially what is said about Judah, every woid of which they refer to him. Thus the ancient Jews convict the modems of both false interpretations and vain expectations. As the tribe of Dan was the first that appears to have been seduced from the true worship of God, (see Judg. xviii. 30,) some have thought that Jacob refers particularly to this, and sees the end of the general apostasy only in the redemption by Jesus

19 "Gad, a 'troop shall overcome him: but he shall overcome at the last.

20 ° Out of Asherhis hicad shall be A. M. 2315. fat, and he shall yield royal dainties. —: '.

Christ, considering the nackash above as the seducer, «nd the Messiah the promised seed.

This is one of the most obscure prophecies in the whole chapter; and no two interpreters agree in the translation of the original words, which exhibit a most singular allUeralion: —

The prophecy seems to refer generally to the frequent disturbances to which this tribe should be exposed, and their hostile, warlike disposition, that would always lead them to repel every aggression. It is likely that the prophecy had an especial fulfilment when this tribe, in conjunction w'ith that of Reuben and the half tribe of Manasseh, got a great victory over the Hagarites, taking captive one hundred thousand men, two thousand asses, Jifly thousand camels, and two hundred and fifty thousand sheep; see 1 Chron. v. 18-22. Dr. Durell and others translate the last word 2ny akeb, rear — " He shall invade their rear;" which contains almost no meaning, as it only seems to state that though the army that invaded Gad should be successful, yet the Gadites would harass their rear as they returned: but this could never be a subject of sufficient consequence for a prophecy. The word:ipj; ckeb is frequently used as a particle, signifying in consequence, because of, on account of. After the Gadites had obtained the victory above mentioned, they continued to possess the land of their enemies till they were carried away captive. The Chaldee paraphrasts apply this to the Gadites going armed over Jordan before their brethren, discomfiting their enemies, and returning back with much spoil. See Josh. iv. 12, 13, and x.xii. 1, 2, 8.

20. From Asher his bread shall be fat. And he shall produce royal dainties.

This refers to the great fertility of the lot that fell to Asher, and which appears to have corresponded with the name, which signifies happy or blessed. His great prosperity is described by Moses in this figurative way: " Let Aslier be blessed with children, let him be acceptable to his brethren, and let him dip his foot in oil;" Deut. xxxiii. 24.

This is BocharCs translation; and perhaps no man who understands the genius of the Hebrew language will attempt to dispute its propriety; it is as literal as it is correct. Our own translation scarcely gives any sense. The fruitfulness of this tribe in children may a be here intended. From his four sons Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem, which he took down into Egypt, chap. xlvi. 24, in the course of two hundred and fifteen years there sprang of effective men 53,400: but as great increase in this way was not an uncommon case in the descendants of Jacob, this may refer particularly to the fruitfulness of their soil, and the especial providential care and blessing of the Almighty; to which indeed Moses seems particularly to refer, Deut. xxxiii. 23: O NaphtaU, satisfied tcith favour, and full with the blessing of the Lord. So that he may be re presented under the notion of a tree planted in a rich soil, growing to a prodigious size, extending its branches in all directions, and becoming a shade for men and cattle, and a harbour for the fowls of heaven

22. The son of a fruitful (vine) is Joseph; The son of a fruitful (vine) by the fountain: The daughters (branches) shoot over the wall.

23. They sorely afflicted him and contended with him; The chief archers had him in hatred.

And the arms of his hands were made strong

25. By the God of thy father, for he helped thee; And God All-sufficient, he blessed thee. The blessing of the heavens from above. And the blessings lying in the deep beneath, The blessings of the breasts and of the womb.

26. The blessings of thy father have prevailed Over the blessings of the eternal mountains. And the desirable things of the everlasting hills. These shall be on the head of Joseph,

Verse 22. The son of a fruitful vine] This appears to me to refer to Jacob himself, who was blessed with such a numerous posterity that in two hundred and fifteen years after this his own descendants amounted to upwards of 600,000 effective men; and the figures here are intended to point out the continual growth and increase of his posterity. Jacob was a fruitful tree planted by a fountain, which because it was good would yield good fruit; and because it was planted ned.r a fountain, from being continually watered, would be perpetually fruitful. The same is used and applied to Jacob, Deut. xxxiii. 23: The fountain of Jacob shall be upon a land of com, and wine, JfC.

The daughters, nU3 banoth, put here for branches shoot over or run upon the wall.] Alluding probably to the case of the vine, which requires to be supported by a wall, trees, &c. Some commentators have understood this literally, and have applied it to the Egyptian women, who were so struck with the beauty of

23 The archers have "■ sorely grieved him, and shot at. him, and hated him:

24 But his " bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of ' the mighty God of Jacob; " (from thence ''is the shepherd, "the stone of Israel:)

25 " Even by the God of thy father, who shall help thee: ^ and by the Almighty, ^ who

Joseph as to get upon walls, the tops of houses, &c., to see him as he passed by. This is agreeaWe to the view talvcii of the subject by the Koran. See the notes on chap, xxxix. 7.

A'erse 23. The chief archers] D':fn 'Si'D baalcy ehilstsim, the masters of arrows — Joseph's l)rethren, who eitlicr used sucli weapons, while feeding their flocks in the deserts, for the protection of themselves and cattle, or for the purpose of hunting; and who probably excelled in archery. It may however refer to the bitter speeches and harsh words that they spoke to and of him, for they hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him, chap, xxxvii. 4. Thus they sorely afflicted him, and were incessantly scolding or finding fault.

Verse 24. But his bow remained in strength] The more he was persecuted, either by his brethren or in Egypt, the more resplendent his uprightness and virtues shone: and the arms — his extended power and influence, of his hands — plans, designs, and particular operations of his prudence, judgment, discretion, cjr., were all rendered successful by the hand — the powerful succour and protection, of the Mighty One of Jacob— that God who blessed and prospered all the counsels and plans of Jacob, and protected and increased liini also when he was in a strange land, and often under the power of those who sought opportunities to oppress and defraud him.

By the name of the Shepherd; the Rock of Israel] Jehovah, and El-Elohey Israel; see chap, x.xxiii. 20. This appears to me to refer to the subject of the thirtysecond chapter, where Jacob wrestled with God, had God's name revealed to him, and his own name changed from Jacob to Israel, in consequence of which he built an altar, and dedicated it to God, who had appeared to him under the name of Elohei/-Israel, the strong God of Israel; which circumstance led him to use the term Rock, which, iis an emblem of power, is frequently given to God in the sacred writings, and may here refer to tlie stone which Jacob set up. It is very probable that the word shepherd is intended to apply to our blessed Lord, who is the Shepherd of Israel, the good Shepherd, John x. 11-17; and who, beyond all controversy, was the person with whom Jacob wrestled. See the notes on chap. xvi. 7, and xxxii. 24.

Verse 25. The God of thy father] How frequently God is called the God of Jacob none needs be told who reads the Bible.

26 The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of thy progenitors, " unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills— '' they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him that was sepa rate from his brethren.

THE Almighty or All-sufficient; I read 'li? Ss El Shaddai, God All-sufficient; which is the reading of the Samaritan, Septuagint, Syriac, and Coptic, and of three reputable MSS. in the collections of Kennicott and De Rossi. The copies used by those ancient versions had evidently 7N El, God, and not nx elh, the, a mistake produced in later times. On the word "\w Ss El Shaddai, see the note on chap. xvii. 1.

The blessing of the heavens from above] A generally pure, clear, serene sky, frequently dropping down fertilizing showers and dews, so as to make a very fruitful soil and salubrious atmosphere.

Blessings lyingin the deep beneath] Whatever riches could be gained from the sea or rivers, from mines and i minerals in the bowels of the earth, and from abundant! springs in different parts of his inheritance. Our Irans-j lation of this line is excessively obscure: Blessings' of the deep that lieth under. What is it that lies under the deep? By connecting nD"i3 bircoth, blessings, with ni"31 robelseth, lying, all ambiguity is avoided, and the text speaks a plain and consistent sense.

The blessings of the breasts and of the jvomi).] A numerous offspring, and an abundance of cattle. The progeny of Joseph, by Ephraim and Manasseh, amounted at the first census or enumeration (Num. i.) to 75,900 men, which exceeded the sum of any one tribe; Judah, the greatest of the others, amounting to no more than 74,600. Indeed, Ephraim and Manasseh had multiplied so greatly in tlie days of Joshua, that a common lot was not sufltcient for them. See their complaint, Josh. xvii. 14.

Verse 26. The blessing of thy father, tjc] The blessings which thy father now prays for and pronounces are neither temporal nor transitory; they shall exceed in their duration the eternal motoitains, and in their value and spiritual nature all the conveniences, comforts, and delicacies which the everlasting hills can produce. They shall last when the heavens and the earth are no more, and shall extend througliout eternity. They arc the blessings which shall be commanicated to the world by means of the Messiah.

The Jerusalem Targuni paraphrases the place thus: " The blessing of this father shall be added unio the blessings wherewith thy fathers Abraham and Isaac, who are likened to mountains, have blessed thee; and they shall exceed the blessings of the four mothers, Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, and Leah, who are likened to the hills: all these blessmgs shall be a crown of

the prey, '^and at night he shall divide the spoil.

28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them.

29 And he charged them, and said tmto them, I « am to be gathered unto my people: ''bury me with my fathers sin the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite.

30 In the cave that is in the field of Maclipelah, (which is before Mamre in the land of

In the morning he shall devour the prey. And in the evening he shall divide the spoil.

This tribe is very fitly compared to a ravenous luolf, because of the rude courage and ferocity which they have invariably displayed, particularly in their war with the other tribes, in which they killed more men than the whole of their own numbers amounted to.

" This last tribe," says Dr. Hales, " is compared to a loolf for its ferocious and martial disposition, such as was evinced by their contests with the other tribes, in which, after two victories, they were almost exterminated, Judg. six., XX." Its union with the tribe of Judah seems to be intimated in their joint conquests, expressed nearly in the same terms: "Judah went up from the prey;" "Benjamin devoured the prey." Moses in his parallel prophecy, Deut. xxxiii. 12, confirms this by signifying that the sanctuary should be fixed in his lot, and that he should continue as long as the existence of the temple itself: —

In the morning, Jj-c] These expressions have been variously understood. The sense given above is that in which the principal interpreters agree; but Houligant protests against the prophecy signifying the continuance of this tribe, as the words, " in the morning devouring the prey," and " in the evening dividing the spoil," are supposed to imply; " because," he observes, "after the return from the Babn;\ii.sh captivity, this tribe is no more mentioned." But this may be accounted for from the circumstance of its being associated with that oi Judah, (see 1 Kings xii. 21-24,) after which it is scarcely ever mentioned but in that union. Being thus absorbed in the tribe of Judah, it continued from the morning till the evening of the Jewish dispensation, and consequently till the Lion of the tribe of Judah was seen in the wilderness of Israel.

31 (' Tliere they buried Abraham and Sarah his wife; ^ there they buried Isaac and Re ■ bekah his wife; and there I buried JiCah.)

32 The purchase of the field and of the cave that is therein ivas from the children of Heth.

33 And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and ' was gathered unto his people.

In the morning, according to Mr. Ainsworth, " signifies the Jirst times; for Ehud of Benjamin was the second judge that saved the Israelites from the hands of the Moabites, Judg. iii. 15, &c. Saul of Benjamin was the first king of Israel; he and his son were great warriors, making a prey of many enemies 1 Sam. xi. 6, 7, II; xiv. 13, 15, 47, 48. And the evening, the latter times; for Mordecai and Esther of Benjamin delivered the Jews from a great destruction, and slew their enemies, Esth. viii. 7,9, 11; ix 5, 6, 15, 16."

Verse 28. Every one according to his blessing] That is, guided by the unerring Spirit of prophecy Jacob now foretold to each of his sons all the important events which should take place during their successive generations, and the predominant characteristic of each tribe; and, at the same time, made some comparatively obscure references to the advent of the Messiah, and the redemption of the world by him.

Verse 29. Biiri/ me with my fathers, 4'C.] From this it appears that the cave at Maehpelah was a common burying-place for Hebrews of distinction; and indeed the first public burying-place mentioned in history. From ver. 31 we find that Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, and Leah, had been already deposited there, and among them Jacob wished to have his bones laid; and he left his dying charge with his children to bury him in this place, and this they conscientiously performed. See chap. 1. 13.

Verse 33. He gathered tip his feet into the bed] ^It is very probable that while delivering these prophetic blessings Jacob sat upon the side of his bed, leaning upon his stafi"; and having finished, he lifted tip his feet into the bed, stretched himself upon it, and expired!

And loas gathered unto his people.] The testimony that this place bears to the immortality of the soul, and to its existence separate from the body, should not be lightly regarded. In the same moment in which Jacob is said to have gathered up his feet into the bed, and to have expired, it is added, and was gathered unto his people. It is certain that his body was not then gathered to his people, nor till seven weeks after; and it is not likely that a circumstance, so distant in point both of time and place, would have been thus anticipated, and associated with facts ihat look place in that moment. I cannot help therefore considering this an additional evidence for the tmmatenaltli/ of the soul, and that it was intended by the Holy Spirit to convey this grand and consolatory sentiment, that when a holy man ceases to live among his fellows, his soul becomes an inhabitant of another world, and is joined to the spirits of just men made perfect.

1. It has been conjectured (sec the note, chap, xxxvii, 9) that the eleven stars that bowed down to Joseph might probably refer to the signs of the Zodiac, which were very anciently known in Egypt, and are supposed to have had their origin in Chaldea. On this supposition Joseph's eleven brethren answered' to eleven of these signs, and himself to the twelfth. General Valiancy has endeavoured, in his Collectanea de Rebus Hibcrnicis, vol. vi., part ii., p. 343, to trace out the analogy between the twelve sons of Jacob and the twelve signs of the Zodiac, which Dr. Hales {.\nabjsis, vol. ii., p. 165) has altered a little, and placed in a form in which it becomes more generally applicable. As this scheme is curious, many readers who may not have the opportunity of consulting the above works will be pleased to find it here. That there is an allusion to the tivelve signs of the Zodiac, and probably to their ancient asterisms, may be readily credited; but how far the peculiar characteristics of the sons of Jacob were expressed by the animals in the Zodiac, is a widely different question.

1. Reuben — "Unstable (rather pouring out) as waters''^ — the sign Aquarius, represented as a man pouring out icaters from an urn.

heels" — Scorpio, the Scorpion. On the celestial sphere the Scorpion is actually represented as biting the heel of the horse of I the archer Sagittarius; and Chela:, " his claFS," originally occupied the space of Libra.

8. Joseph — " His bow remained in strength" — the sign Sagittarius, the archer or bow-man; commonly represented, even on the.Asiatic Zodiacs, with his bow bent, and the arrow drawn up to the head — the bow 'mfull strength.

— the sign Pisces. Vi. Benjamin — "A ravening wolf" — Capricorn, which on the Egyptian sphere was represented by a goat led by Pan, with a wolfs head.

cannot pretend to say; but that the twelve sigruvvte at that time known in Egypt and Chaldea, there tan be little doubt.

2. We have now seen the life of Jacob brought to a close; and have carefully traced it through all Its various fortunes, as the facts presented themselves in the preceding chapters. Isaac his father was wiiat might properly be called a good man; but in strength of mind he appears to have fallen far short of his father Abraham, and his son Jacob. Having left the management of his domestic concerns to Rebekah his wife, who was an artful and comparatively irreligious woman, the education of his sons was either neglected or perverted. The unhappy influence which the precepts and example of his mother had on the mind of her son we have seen and deplored. Through the mercy of God Jacob outlived the shady part of his own character, and his last days were his brightest and his best. He had many troubles and difReuhies in life, under which an inferior mind must have necessarily sunk; but being a worker together with the providence of God, his difficulties only served in general to whet his invention, and draw out the immense resources of his own mind. He had to do with an avaricious, procrastinating rehitive, as destitute of humanity as he was oi justice. Let this plead something in his excuse. He certainly did outwit his father-in-law; and yet, probably, had no more than the just recompense of his faithful services in the successful issue of all his devices. From the time in which God favoured him with that wonderful manifestation of grace at Peniel, chap, xxxii., he became a neio man. He had frequent discoveries of God before, to encourage him in journeys, secular affairs, &c.; but none in which the heart-changing power of Divine grace was so abundantly revealed. Happy he whose last days are his best! We can scarcely conceive a scene morq noble or dignified than that exhibited at the deathbed of Jacob. This great man was now one hundred and forty-seven years of age; though his body, by the waste of time, was greatly enfeebled, yet whh a mind in perfect vigour, and a hope full of immortality, he calls his numerous family together, all of them in their utmost state of prosperity, and gives them his last counsels, and his dying blessing. His declarations show that the secret of the Lord was with him, and that his candle shone bright upon his tabernacle. Having finished his work, with perfect possession of all his faculties, and being determined that while he was able to help himself none should be called in to assist, (which was one of the grand characteristics of his life,) he, with that dignity whicli became a great man and a man of God, stretched himself upon his bed, and rather appears to have conquered Acii\\\ than to have suffered it. WTio, seeing the end of this illustrious patriarch, can help exclaiming. There is none like the God of Jcshurun! Let Jacob's God be my God! Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his! Reader, God is still the same: and though he may not make thee as great as was Jacob, yet he is ready to make thee as good; and, whatever thy past life may have been, to crown thee witii loving-kindness and tender mercies, that thy end also may be peace.

Joseph hexoails the death of his father, and commands the physicians to embalm him, 1, 2. The Egyptians mourn for him seventy days, 3. Joseph begs permission from Pharaoh to accompany his father's corpse to Canaan, 4, 5. Pharaoh consents, 6. Pharaoh's domestics and elders, the elders of Egypt, Joseph and his brethren, with chariots, horsemen, ifC.,form the funeral procession, 7-9. They come /o Me threshingfloor of Atad, and mourn there seven days, 10. The Canaanites call the place Abel-Mizraiin, 11. They bury Jacob in the cave of Machpelah, 12, 13. Joseph returns to Egypt, 14. His brethren, fearing his displeasure, send messengers to him to entreat his forgiveness of past u-rongs, 15-17. They follow, and prostrate themselves before him, and offer to be his servants, 18. Joseph receives them affectionately, and assures them and theirs of his care and protection, 19-21. Joseph and his brethren dwell in Egypt, and lie sees the third generation of his children, 22, 23. Being about to die, he prophecies the return of the children of Israel from Egypt, 24, a^id causes them to stvear that they will carry his bones to Canaan, 2o. Joseph dies, aged one hundred and ten years; is embalmed, and put in a coffin in Egypt, 26.

Verse 1. Josephfcll upon his father's face] Though this act appears to be suspended by the unnatural division of this verse from the preceding chapter, yet we may rest assured it was the immediate consequence of Jacob's death.

Verse2. The physicians] D'XST ropheim, the healers, those whose business it was to heal or restore the body from sickness by the administration of proper medicines; and when death took place, to heal or preserve it from dissolution by embalming, and thus give it a sort of immortality or everlasting duration. The original word n^n chanat, which we translate to embalm, has undoubtedly the same meaning with the Arabic f-f,ft—~/;on<7//7. which also signifies to embalm, or to preserve from putrefaction by the application of spices, &c., and hence »j^li2*2>- hantat, an embalmer. The word is used to express the reddening of leather; and probably the ideal meaning may be something analogous to our tanning, which consists in removing the moisture, and closing up the pores so as to rentier them impervious to wet. This probably is the grand principle in embalming; and whatever effects this, will preserve fesh as perfectly as skin. Who can doubt that a human muscle, undergoing the same process of tanning as the hide of an oi, would not become equally incorruptible? I have seen a gart of the muscle of a human thigh, that, having dome into contact with some tanniiig matter, either in the coffin or in the grave, was in a state of perfect soundness, when the rest of the body had been long reduced to earth; and it exhibited the appearance of a thick piece of loell tanned leather.