Chapters 1-10 11-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 51-60 61-70 71-80 81-91
CHAPTER 21
1 And it was at that time at the end of a year and four months of
Abraham's dwelling in the land of the Philistines in Gerar, that
God visited Sarah, and the Lord remembered her, and she conceived
and bare a son to Abraham.
2 And Abraham called the name of the son which was born to him, which
Sarah bare to him, Isaac.
3 And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac at eight days old, as God
had commanded Abraham to do unto his seed after him; and Abraham
was one hundred, and Sarah ninety years old, when Isaac was born
to them.
4 And the child grew up and he was weaned, and Abraham made a great
feast upon the day that Isaac was weaned.
5 And Shem and Eber and all the great people of the land, and Abimelech
king of the Philistines, and his servants, and Phicol, the captain
of his host, came to eat and drink and rejoice at the feast which
Abraham made upon the day of his son Isaac's being weaned.
6 Also Terah, the father of Abraham, and Nahor his brother, came
from Haran, they and all belonging to them, for they greatly rejoiced
on hearing that a son had been born to Sarah.
7 And they came to Abraham, and they ate and drank at the feast which
Abraham made upon the day of Isaac's being weaned.
8 And Terah and Nahor rejoiced with Abraham, and they remained with
him many days in the land of the Philistines.
9 At that time Serug the son of Reu died, in the first year of the
birth of Isaac son of Abraham.
10 And all the days of Serug were two hundred and thirty-nine years,
and he died.
11 And Ishmael the son of Abraham was grown up in those days; he
was fourteen years old when Sarah bare Isaac to Abraham.
12 And God was with Ishmael the son of Abraham, and he grew up, and
he learned to use the bow and became an archer.
13 And when Isaac was five years old he was sitting with Ishmael
at the door of the tent.
14 And Ishmael came to Isaac and seated himself opposite to him,
and he took the bow and drew it and put the arrow in it, and intended
to slay Isaac.
15 And Sarah saw the act which Ishmael desired to do to her son Isaac,
and it grieved her exceedingly on account of her son, and she sent
for Abraham, and said to him, Cast out this bondwoman and her son,
for her son shall not be heir with my son, for thus did he seek to
do unto him this day.
16 And Abraham hearkened to the voice of Sarah, and he rose up early
in the morning, and he took twelve loaves and a bottle of water which
he gave to Hagar, and sent her away with her son, and Hagar went
with her son to the wilderness, and they dwelt in the wilderness
of Paran with the inhabitants of the wilderness, and Ishmael was
an archer, and he dwelt in the wilderness a long time.
17 And he and his mother afterward went to the land of Egypt, and
they dwelt there, and Hagar took a wife for her son from Egypt, and
her name was Meribah.
18 And the wife of Ishmael conceived and bare four sons and two daughters,
and Ishmael and his mother and his wife and children afterward went
and returned to the wilderness.
19 And they made themselves tents in the wilderness, in which they
dwelt, and they continued to travel and then to rest monthly and
yearly.
20 And God gave Ishmael flocks and herds and tents on account of
Abraham his father, and the man increased in cattle.
21 And Ishmael dwelt in deserts and in tents, traveling and resting
for a long time, and he did not see the face of his father.
22 And in some time after, Abraham said to Sarah his wife, I will
go and see my son Ishmael, for I have a desire to see him, for I
have not seen him for a long time.
23 And Abraham rode upon one of his camels to the wilderness to seek
his son Ishmael, for he heard that he was dwelling in a tent in the
wilderness with all belonging to him.
24 And Abraham went to the wilderness, and he reached the tent of
Ishmael about noon, and he asked after Ishmael, and he found the
wife of Ishmael sitting in the tent with her children, and Ishmael
her husband and his mother were not with them.
25 And Abraham asked the wife of Ishmael, saying, Where has Ishmael
gone? and she said, He has gone to the field to hunt, and Abraham
was still mounted upon the camel, for he would not get off to the
ground as he had sworn to his wife Sarah that he would not get off
from the camel.
26 And Abraham said to Ishmael's wife, My daughter, give me a little
water that I may drink, for I am fatigued from the journey.
27 And Ishmael's wife answered and said to Abraham, We have neither
water nor bread, and she continued sitting in the tent and did not
notice Abraham, neither did she ask him who he was.
28 But she was beating her children in the tent, and she was cursing
them, and she also cursed her husband Ishmael and reproached him,
and Abraham heard the words of Ishmael's wife to her children, and
he was very angry and displeased.
29 And Abraham called to the woman to come out to him from the tent,
and the woman came and stood opposite to Abraham, for Abraham was
still mounted upon the camel.
30 And Abraham said to Ishmael's wife, When thy husband Ishmael returneth
home say these words to him,
31 A very old man from the land of the Philistines came hither to
seek thee, and thus was his appearance and figure; I did not ask
him who he was, and seeing thou wast not here he spoke unto me and
said, When Ishmael thy husband returneth tell him thus did this man
say, When thou comest home put away this nail of the tent which thou
hast placed here, and place another nail in its stead.
32 And Abraham finished his instructions to the woman, and he turned
and went off on the camel homeward.
33 And after that Ishmael came from the chase he and his mother,
and returned to the tent, and his wife spoke these words to him,
34 A very old man from the land of the Philistines came to seek thee,
and thus was his appearance and figure; I did not ask him who he
was, and seeing thou wast not at home he said to me, When thy husband
cometh home tell him, thus saith the old man, Put away the nail of
the tent which thou hast placed here and place another nail in its
stead.
35 And Ishmael heard the words of his wife, and he knew that it was
his father, and that his wife did not honor him.
36 And Ishmael understood his father's words that he had spoken to
his wife, and Ishmael hearkened to the voice of his father, and Ishmael
cast off that woman and she went away.
37 And Ishmael afterward went to the land of Canaan, and he took
another wife and he brought her to his tent to the place where he
then dwelt.
38 And at the end of three years Abraham said, I will go again and
see Ishmael my son, for I have not seen him for a long time.
39 And he rode upon his camel and went to the wilderness, and he
reached the tent of Ishmael about noon.
40 And he asked after Ishmael, and his wife came out of the tent
and she said, He is not here my lord, for he has gone to hunt in
the fields, and to feed the camels, and the woman said to Abraham,
Turn in my lord into the tent, and eat a morsel of bread, for thy
soul must be wearied on account of the journey.
41 And Abraham said to her, I will not stop for I am in haste to
continue my journey, but give me a little water to drink, for I have
thirst; and the woman hastened and ran into the tent and she brought
out water and bread to Abraham, which she placed before him and she
urged him to eat, and he ate and drank and his heart was comforted
and he blessed his son Ishmael.
42 And he finished his meal and he blessed the Lord, and he said
to Ishmael's wife, When Ishmael cometh home say these words to him,
43 A very old man from the land of the Philistines came hither and
asked after thee, and thou wast not here; and I brought him out bread
and water and he ate and drank and his heart was comforted.
44 And he spoke these words to me: When Ishmael thy husband cometh
home, say unto him, The nail of the tent which thou hast is very
good, do not put it away from the tent.
45 And Abraham finished commanding the woman, and he rode off to
his home to the land of the Philistines; and when Ishmael came to
his tent his wife went forth to meet him with joy and a cheerful
heart.
46 And she said to him, An old man came here from the land of the
Philistines and thus was his appearance, and he asked after thee
and thou wast not here, so I brought out bread and water, and he
ate and drank and his heart was comforted.
47 And he spoke these words to me, When Ishmael thy husband cometh
home say to him, The nail of the tent which thou hast is very good,
do not put it away from the tent.
48 And Ishmael knew that it was his father, and that his wife had
honored him, and the Lord blessed Ishmael.
CHAPTER 22
1 And Ishmael then rose up and took his wife and his children and
his cattle and all belonging to him, and he journeyed from there
and he went to his father in the land of the Philistines.
2 And Abraham related to Ishmael his son the transaction with the
first wife that Ishmael took, according to what she did.
3 And Ishmael and his children dwelt with Abraham many days in
that land, and Abraham dwelt in the land of the Philistines a long
time.
4 And the days increased and reached twenty six years, and after
that Abraham with his servants and all belonging to him went from
the land of the Philistines and removed to a great distance, and
they came near to Hebron, and they remained there, and the servants
of Abraham dug wells of water, and Abraham and all belonging to
him dwelt by the water, and the servants of Abimelech king of the
Philistines heard the report that Abraham's servants had dug wells
of water in the borders of the land.
5 And they came and quarreled with the servants of Abraham, and
they robbed them of the great well which they had dug.
6 And Abimelech king of the Philistines heard of this affair, and
he with Phicol the captain of his host and twenty of his men came
to Abraham, and Abimelech spoke to Abraham concerning his servants,
and Abraham rebuked Abimelech concerning the well of which his
servants had robbed him.
7 And Abimelech said to Abraham, As the Lord liveth who created
the whole earth, I did not hear of the act which my servants did
unto thy servants until this day.
8 And Abraham took seven ewe lambs and gave them to Abimelech,
saying, Take these, I pray thee, from my hands that it may be a
testimony for me that I dug this well.
9 And Abimelech took the seven ewe lambs which Abraham had given
to him, for he had also given him cattle and herds in abundance,
and Abimelech swore to Abraham concerning the well, therefore he
called that well Beersheba, for there they both swore concerning
it.
10 And they both made a covenant in Beersheba, and Abimelech rose
up with Phicol the captain of his host and all his men, and they
returned to the land of the Philistines, and Abraham and all belonging
to him dwelt in Beersheba and he was in that land a long time.
11 And Abraham planted a large grove in Beersheba, and he made
to it four gates facing the four sides of the earth, and he planted
a vineyard in it, so that if a traveler came to Abraham he entered
any gate which was in his road, and remained there and ate and
drank and satisfied himself and then departed.
12 For the house of Abraham was always open to the sons of men
that passed and repassed, who came daily to eat and drink in the
house of Abraham.
13 And any man who had hunger and came to Abraham's house, Abraham
would give him bread that he might eat and drink and be satisfied,
and any one that came naked to his house he would clothe with garments
as he might choose, and give him silver and gold and make known
to him the Lord who had created him in the earth; this did Abraham
all his life.
14 And Abraham and his children and all belonging to him dwelt
in Beersheba, and he pitched his tent as far as Hebron.
15 And Abraham's brother Nahor and his father and all belonging
to them dwelt in Haran, for they did not come with Abraham to the
land of Canaan.
16 And children were born to Nahor which Milca the daughter of
Haran, and sister to Sarah, Abraham's wife, bare to him.
17 And these are the names of those that were born to him, Uz,
Buz, Kemuel, Kesed, Chazo, Pildash, Tidlaf, and Bethuel, being
eight sons, these are the children of Milca which she bare to Nahor,
Abraham's brother.
18 And Nahor had a concubine and her name was Reumah, and she also
bare to Nahor, Zebach, Gachash, Tachash and Maacha, being four
sons.
19 And the children that were born to Nahor were twelve sons besides
his daughters, and they also had children born to them in Haran.
20 And the children of Uz the first born of Nahor were Abi, Cheref,
Gadin, Melus, and Deborah their sister.
21 And the sons of Buz were Berachel, Naamath, Sheva, and Madonu.
22 And the sons of Kemuel were Aram and Rechob.
23 And the sons of Kesed were Anamlech, Meshai, Benon and Yifi;
and the sons of Chazo were Pildash, Mechi and Opher.
24 And the sons of Pildash were Arud, Chamum, Mered and Moloch.
25 And the sons of Tidlaf were Mushan, Cushan and Mutzi.
26 And the children of Bethuel were Sechar, Laban and their sister
Rebecca.
27 These are the families of the children of Nahor, that were born
to them in Haran; and Aram the son of Kemuel and Rechob his brother
went away from Haran, and they found a valley in the land by the
river Euphrates.
28 And they built a city there, and they called the name of the
city after the name of Pethor the son of Aram, that is Aram Naherayim
unto this day.
29 And the children of Kesed also went to dwell where they could
find a place, and they went and they found a valley opposite to
the land of Shinar, and they dwelt there.
30 And they there built themselves a city, and they called the
name at the city Kesed after the name of their father, that is
the land Kasdim unto this day, and the Kasdim dwelt in that land
and they were fruitful and multiplied exceedingly.
31 And Terah, father of Nahor and Abraham, went and took another
wife in his old age, and her name was Pelilah, and she conceived
and bare him a son and he called his name Zoba.
32 And Terah lived twenty-five years after he begat Zoba.
33 And Terah died in that year, that is in the thirty-fifth year
of the birth of Isaac son of Abraham.
34 And the days of Terah were two hundred and five years, and he
was buried in Haran.
35 And Zoba the son of Terah lived thirty years and he begat Aram,
Achlis and Merik.
36 And Aram son of Zoba son of Terah, had three wives and he begat
twelve sons and three daughters; and the Lord gave to Aram the
son of Zoba, riches and possessions, and abundance of cattle, and
flocks and herds, and the man increased greatly.
37 And Aram the son of Zoba and his brother and all his household
journeyed from Haran, and they went to dwell where they should
find a place, for their property was too great to remain in Haran;
for they could not stop in Haran together with their brethren the
children of Nahor.
38 And Aram the son of Zoba went with his brethren, and they found
a valley at a distance toward the eastern country and they dwelt
there.
39 And they also built a city there, and they called the name thereof
Aram, after the name of their eldest brother; that is Aram Zoba
to this day.
40 And Isaac the son of Abraham was growing up in those days, and
Abraham his father taught him the way of the Lord to know the Lord,
and the Lord was with him.
41 And when Isaac was thirty-seven years old, Ishmael his brother
was going about with him in the tent.
42 And Ishmael boasted of himself to Isaac, saying, I was thirteen
years old when the Lord spoke to my father to circumcise us, and
I did according to the word of the Lord which he spoke to my father,
and I gave my soul unto the Lord, and I did not transgress his
word which he commanded my father.
43 And Isaac answered Ishmael, saying, Why dost thou boast to me
about this, about a little bit of thy flesh which thou didst take
from thy body, concerning which the Lord commanded thee?
44 As the Lord liveth, the God of my father Abraham, if the Lord
should say unto my father, Take now thy son Isaac and bring him
up an offering before me, I would not refrain but I would joyfully
accede to it.
45 And the Lord heard the word that Isaac spoke to Ishmael, and
it seemed good in the sight of the Lord, and he thought to try
Abraham in this matter.
46 And the day arrived when the sons of God came and placed themselves
before the Lord, and Satan also came with the sons of God before
the Lord.
47 And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? and Satan
answered the Lord and said, From going to and fro in the earth,
and from walking up and down in it.
48 And the Lord said to Satan, What is thy word to me concerning
all the children of the earth? and Satan answered the Lord and
said, I have seen all the children of the earth who serve thee
and remember thee when they require anything from thee.
49 And when thou givest them the thing which they require from
thee, they sit at their ease, and forsake thee and they remember
thee no more.
50 Hast thou seen Abraham the son of Terah, who at first had no
children, and he served thee and erected altars to thee wherever
he came, and he brought up offerings upon them, and he proclaimed
thy name continually to all the children of the earth.
51 And now that his son Isaac is born to him, he has forsaken thee,
he has made a great feast for all the inhabitants of the land,
and the Lord he has forgotten.
52 For amidst all that he has done he brought thee no offering;
neither burnt offering nor peace offering, neither ox, lamb nor
goat of all that he killed on the day that his son was weaned.
53 Even from the time of his son's birth till now, being thirty-seven
years, he built no altar before thee, nor brought any offering
to thee, for he saw that thou didst give what he requested before
thee, and he therefore forsook thee.
54 And the Lord said to Satan, Hast thou thus considered my servant
Abraham? for there is none like him upon earth, a perfect and an
upright man before me, one that feareth God and avoideth evil;
as I live, were I to say unto him, Bring up Isaac thy son before
me, he would not withhold him from me, much more if I told him
to bring up a burnt offering before me from his flock or herds.
55 And Satan answered the Lord and said, Speak then now unto Abraham
as thou hast said, and thou wilt see whether he will not this day
transgress and cast aside thy words.
CHAPTER 23
1 At that time the word of the Lord came to Abraham, and he said
unto him, Abraham, and he said, Here I am.
2 And he said to him, Take now thy son, thine only son whom thou
lovest, even Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him
there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which shall
be shown to thee, for there wilt thou see a cloud and the glory
of the Lord.
3 And Abraham said within himself, How shall I separate my son
Isaac from Sarah his mother, in order to bring him up for a burnt
offering before the Lord?
4 And Abraham came into the tent, and he sat before Sarah his wife,
and he spoke these words to her,
5 My son Isaac is grown up and he has not for some time studied
the service of his God, now tomorrow I will go and bring him to
Shem, and Eber his son, and there he will learn the ways of the
Lord, for they will teach him to know the Lord as well as to know
that when he prayeth continually before the Lord, he will answer
him, therefore there he will know the way of serving the Lord his
God.
6 And Sarah said, Thou hast spoken well, go my lord and do unto
him as thou hast said, but remove him not at a great distance from
me, neither let him remain there too long, for my soul is bound
within his soul.
7 And Abraham said unto Sarah, My daughter, let us pray to the
Lord our God that he may do good with us.
8 And Sarah took her son Isaac and he abode all that night with
her, and she kissed and embraced him, and gave him instructions
till morning.
9 And she said to him, O my son, how can my soul separate itself
from thee? And she still kissed him and embraced him, and she gave
Abraham instructions concerning him.
10 And Sarah said to Abraham, O my lord, I pray thee take heed
of thy son, and place thine eyes over him, for I have no other
son nor daughter but him.
11 O forsake him not. If he be hungry give him bread, and if he
be thirsty give him water to drink; do not let him go on foot,
neither let him sit in the sun.
12 Neither let him go by himself in the road, neither force him
from whatever he may desire, but do unto him as he may say to thee.
13 And Sarah wept bitterly the whole night on account of Isaac,
and she gave him instructions till morning.
14 And in the morning Sarah selected a very fine and beautiful
garment from those garments which she had in the house, that Abimelech
had given to her.
15 And she dressed Isaac her son therewith, and she put a turban
upon his head, and she enclosed a precious stone in the top of
the turban, and she gave them provision for the road, and they
went forth, and Isaac went with his father Abraham, and some of
their servants accompanied them to see them off the road.
16 And Sarah went out with them, and she accompanied them upon
the road to see them off, and they said to her, Return to the tent.
17 And when Sarah heard the words of her son Isaac she wept bitterly,
and Abraham her husband wept with her, and their son wept with
them a great weeping; also those who went with them wept greatly.
18 And Sarah caught hold of her son Isaac, and she held him in
her arms, and she embraced him and continued to weep with him,
and Sarah said, Who knoweth if after this day I shall ever see
thee again?
19 And they still wept together, Abraham, Sarah and Isaac, and
all those that accompanied them on the road wept with them, and
Sarah afterward turned away from her son, weeping bitterly, and
all her men servants and maid servants returned with her to the
tent.
20 And Abraham went with Isaac his son to bring him up as an offering
before the Lord, as He had commanded him.
21 And Abraham took two of his young men with him, Ishmael the
son of Hagar and Eliezer his servant, and they went together with
them, and whilst they were walking in the road the young men spoke
these words to themselves,
22 And Ishmael said to Eliezer, Now my father Abraham is going
with Isaac to bring him up for a burnt offering to the Lord, as
He commanded him.
23 Now when he returneth he will give unto me all that he possesses,
to inherit after him, for I am his first born.
24 And Eliezer answered Ishmael and said, Surely Abraham did cast
thee away with thy mother, and swear that thou shouldst not inherit
any thing of all he possesses, and to whom will he give all that
he has, with all his treasures, but unto me his servant, who has
been faithful in his house, who has served him night and day, and
has done all that he desired me? to me will he bequeath at his
death all that he possesses.
25 And whilst Abraham was proceeding with his son Isaac along the
road, Satan came and appeared to Abraham in the figure of a very
aged man, humble and of contrite spirit, and he approached Abraham
and said to him, Art thou silly or brutish, that thou goest to
do this thing this day to thine only son?
26 For God gave thee a son in thy latter days, in thy old age,
and wilt thou go and slaughter him this day because he committed
no violence, and wilt thou cause the soul of thine only son to
perish from the earth?
27 Dost thou not know and understand that this thing cannot be
from the Lord? for the Lord cannot do unto man such evil upon earth
to say to him, Go slaughter thy child.
28 And Abraham heard this and knew that it was the word of Satan
who endeavored to draw him aside from the way of the Lord, but
Abraham would not hearken to the voice of Satan, and Abraham rebuked
him so that he went away.
29 And Satan returned and came to Isaac; and he appeared unto Isaac
in the figure of a young man comely and well favored.
30 And he approached Isaac and said unto him, Dost thou not know
and understand that thy old silly father bringeth thee to the slaughter
this day for naught?
31 Now therefore, my son, do not listen nor attend to him, for
he is a silly old man, and let not thy precious soul and beautiful
figure be lost from the earth.
32 And Isaac heard this, and said unto Abraham, Hast thou heard,
my father, that which this man has spoken? even thus has he spoken.
33 And Abraham answered his son Isaac and said to him, Take heed
of him and do not listen to his words, nor attend to him, for he
is Satan, endeavoring to draw us aside this day from the commands
of God.
34 And Abraham still rebuked Satan, and Satan went from them, and
seeing he could not prevail over them he hid himself from them,
and he went and passed before them in the road; and he transformed
himself to a large brook of water in the road, and Abraham and
Isaac and his two young men reached that place, and they saw a
brook large and powerful as the mighty waters.
35 And they entered the brook and passed through it, and the waters
at first reached their legs.
36 And they went deeper in the brook and the waters reached up
to their necks, and they were all terrified on account of the water;
and whilst they were going over the brook Abraham recognized that
place, and he knew that there was no water there before.
37 And Abraham said to his son Isaac, I know this place in which
there was no brook nor water, now therefore it is this Satan who
does all this to us, to draw us aside this day from the commands
of God.
38 And Abraham rebuked him and said unto him, The Lord rebuke thee,
O Satan, begone from us for we go by the commands of God.
39 And Satan was terrified at the voice of Abraham, and he went
away from them, and the place again became dry land as it was at
first.
40 And Abraham went with Isaac toward the place that God had told
him.
41 And on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the
place at a distance which God had told him of.
42 And a pillar of fire appeared to him that reached from the earth
to heaven, and a cloud of glory upon the mountain, and the glory
of the Lord was seen in the cloud.
43 And Abraham said to Isaac, My son, dost thou see in that mountain,
which we perceive at a distance, that which I see upon it?
44 And Isaac answered and said unto his father, I see and lo a
pillar of fire and a cloud, and the glory of the Lord is seen upon
the cloud.
45 And Abraham knew that his son Isaac was accepted before the
Lord for a burnt offering.
46 And Abraham said unto Eliezer and unto Ishmael his son, Do you
also see that which we see upon the mountain which is at a distance?
47 And they answered and said, We see nothing more than like the
other mountains of the earth. And Abraham knew that they were not
accepted before the Lord to go with them, and Abraham said to them,
Abide ye here with the ass whilst I and Isaac my son will go to
yonder mount and worship there before the Lord and then return
to you.
48 And Eliezer and Ishmael remained in that place, as Abraham had
commanded.
49 And Abraham took wood for a burnt offering and placed it upon
his son Isaac, and he took the fire and the knife, and they both
went to that place.
50 And when they were going along Isaac said to his father, Behold,
I see here the fire and wood, and where then is the lamb that is
to be the burnt offering before the Lord?
51 And Abraham answered his son Isaac, saying, The Lord has made
choice of thee my son, to be a perfect burnt offering instead of
the lamb.
52 And Isaac said unto his father, I will do all that the Lord
spoke to thee with joy and cheerfulness of heart.
53 And Abraham again said unto Isaac his son, Is there in thy heart
any thought or counsel concerning this, which is not proper? tell
me my son, I pray thee, O my son conceal it not from me.
54 And Isaac answered his father Abraham and said unto him, O my
father, as the Lord liveth and as thy soul liveth, there is nothing
in my heart to cause me to deviate either to the right or to the
left from the word that he has spoken to thee.
55 Neither limb nor muscle has moved or stirred at this, nor is
there in my heart any thought or evil counsel concerning this.
56 But I am of joyful and cheerful heart in this matter, and I
say, Blessed is the Lord who has this day chosen me to be a burnt
offering before Him.
57 And Abraham greatly rejoiced at the words of Isaac, and they
went on and came together to that place that the Lord had spoken
of.
58 And Abraham approached to build the altar in that place, and
Abraham was weeping, and Isaac took stones and mortar until they
had finished building the altar.
59 And Abraham took the wood and placed it in order upon the altar
which he had built.
60 And he took his son Isaac and bound him in order to place him
upon the wood which was upon the altar, to slay him for a burnt
offering before the Lord.
61 And Isaac said to his father, Bind me securely and then place
me upon the altar lest I should turn and move, and break loose
from the force of the knife upon my flesh and thereof profane the
burnt offering; and Abraham did so.
62 And Isaac still said to his father, O my father, when thou shalt
have slain me and burnt me for an offering, take with thee that
which shall remain of my ashes to bring to Sarah my mother, and
say to her, This is the sweet smelling savor of Isaac; but do not
tell her this if she should sit near a well or upon any high place,
lest she should cast her soul after me and die.
63 And Abraham heard the words of Isaac, and he lifted up his voice
and wept when Isaac spake these words; and Abraham's tears gushed
down upon Isaac his son, and Isaac wept bitterly, and he said to
his father, Hasten thou, O my father, and do with me the will of
the Lord our God as He has commanded thee.
64 And the hearts of Abraham and Isaac rejoiced at this thing which
the Lord had commanded them; but the eye wept bitterly whilst the
heart rejoiced.
65 And Abraham bound his son Isaac, and placed him on the altar
upon the wood, and Isaac stretched forth his neck upon the altar
before his father, and Abraham stretched forth his hand to take
the knife to slay his son as a burnt offering before the Lord.
66 At that time the angels of mercy came before the Lord and spake
to him concerning Isaac, saying,
67 0 Lord, thou art a merciful and compassionate King over all
that thou hast created in heaven and in earth, and thou supportest
them all; give therefore ransom and redemption instead of thy servant
Isaac, and pity and have compassion upon Abraham and Isaac his
son, who are this day performing thy commands.
68 Hast thou seen, O Lord, how Isaac the son of Abraham thy servant
is bound down to the slaughter like an animal? now therefore let
thy pity be roused for them, O Lord.
69 At that time the Lord appeared unto Abraham, and called to him,
from heaven, and said unto him, Lay not thine hand upon the lad,
neither do thou any thing unto him, for now I know that thou fearest
God in performing this act, and in not withholding thy son, thine
only son, from me.
70 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw, and behold, a ram was
caught in a thicket by his horns; that was the ram which the Lord
God had created in the earth in the day that he made earth and
heaven.
71 For the Lord had prepared this ram from that day, to be a burnt
offering instead of Isaac.
72 And this ram was advancing to Abraham when Satan caught hold
of him and entangled his horns in the thicket, that he might not
advance to Abraham, in order that Abraham might slay his son.
73 And Abraham, seeing the ram advancing to him and Satan withholding
him, fetched him and brought him before the altar, and he loosened
his son Isaac from his binding, and he put the ram in his stead,
and Abraham killed the ram upon the altar, and brought it up as
an offering in the place of his son Isaac.
74 And Abraham sprinkled some of the blood of the ram upon the
altar, and he exclaimed and said, This is in the place of my son,
and may this be considered this day as the blood of my son before
the Lord.
75 And all that Abraham did on this occasion by the altar, he would
exclaim and say, This is in the room of my son, and may it this
day be considered before the Lord in the place of my son; and Abraham
finished the whole of the service by the altar, and the service
was accepted before the Lord, and was accounted as if it had been
Isaac; and the Lord blessed Abraham and his seed on that day.
76 And Satan went to Sarah, and he appeared to her in the figure
of an old man very humble and meek, and Abraham was yet engaged
in the burnt offering before the Lord.
77 And he said unto her, Dost thou not know all the work that Abraham
has made with thine only son this day? for he took Isaac and built
an altar, and killed him, and brought him up as a sacrifice upon
the altar, and Isaac cried and wept before his father, but he looked
not at him, neither did he have compassion over him.
78 And Satan repeated these words, and he went away from her, and
Sarah heard all the words of Satan, and she imagined him to be
an old man from amongst the sons of men who had been with her son,
and had come and told her these things.
79 And Sarah lifted up her voice and wept and cried out bitterly
on account of her son; and she threw herself upon the ground and
she cast dust upon her head, and she said, O my son, Isaac my son,
O that I had this day died instead of thee. And she continued to
weep and said, It grieves me for thee, O my son, my son Isaac,
O that I had died this day in thy stead.
80 And she still continued to weep, and said, It grieves me for
thee after that I have reared thee and have brought thee up; now
my joy is turned into mourning over thee, I that had a longing
for thee, and cried and prayed to God till I bare thee at ninety
years old; and now hast thou served this day for the knife and
the fire, to be made an offering.
81 But I console myself with thee, my son, in its being the word
of the Lord, for thou didst perform the command of thy God; for
who can transgress the word of our God, in whose hands is the soul
of every living creature?
82 Thou art just, O Lord our God, for all thy works are good and
righteous; for I also am rejoiced with thy word which thou didst
command, and whilst mine eye weepeth bitterly my heart rejoiceth.
83 And Sarah laid her head upon the bosom of one of her handmaids,
and she became as still as a stone.
84 She afterward rose up and went about making inquiries till she
came to Hebron, and she inquired of all those whom she met walking
in the road, and no one could tell her what had happened to her
son.
85 And she came with her maid servants and men servants to Kireath-arba,
which is Hebron, and she asked concerning her Son, and she remained
there while she sent some of her servants to seek where Abraham
had gone with Isaac; they went to seek him in the house of Shem
and Eber, and they could not find him, and they sought throughout
the land and he was not there.
86 And behold, Satan came to Sarah in the shape of an old man,
and he came and stood before her, and he said unto her, I spoke
falsely unto thee, for Abraham did not kill his son and he is not
dead; and when she heard the word her joy was so exceedingly violent
on account of her son, that her soul went out through joy; she
died and was gathered to her people.
87 And when Abraham had finished his service he returned with his
son Isaac to his young men, and they rose up and went together
to Beersheba, and they came home.
88 And Abraham sought for Sarah, and could not find her, and he
made inquiries concerning her, and they said unto him, She went
as far as Hebron to seek you both where you had gone, for thus
was she informed.
89 And Abraham and Isaac went to her to Hebron, and when they found
that she was dead they lifted up their voices and wept bitterly
over her; and Isaac fell upon his mother's face and wept over her,
and he said, O my mother, my mother, how hast thou left me, and
where hast thou gone? O how, how hast thou left me!
90 And Abraham and Isaac wept greatly and all their servants wept
with them on account of Sarah, and they mourned over her a great
and heavy mourning.
CHAPTER 24
1 And the life of Sarah was one hundred and twenty-seven years,
and Sarah died; and Abraham rose up from before his dead to seek
a burial place to bury his wife Sarah; and he went and spoke to
the children of Heth, the inhabitants of the land, saying,
2 I am a stranger and a sojourner with you in your land; give me
a possession of a burial place in your land, that I may bury my
dead from before me.
3 And the children of Heth said unto Abraham, behold the land is
before thee, in the choice of our sepulchers bury thy dead, for
no man shall withhold thee from burying thy dead.
4 And Abraham said unto them, If you are agreeable to this go and
entreat for me to Ephron, the son of Zochar, requesting that he
may give me the cave of Machpelah, which is in the end of his field,
and I will purchase it of him for whatever he desire for it.
5 And Ephron dwelt among the children of Heth, and they went and
called for him, and he came before Abraham, and Ephron said unto
Abraham, Behold all thou requirest thy servant will do; and Abraham
said, No, but I will buy the cave and the field which thou hast
for value, In order that it may be for a possession of a burial
place for ever.
6 And Ephron answered and said, Behold the field and the cave are
before thee, give whatever thou desirest; and Abraham said, Only
at full value will I buy it from thy hand, and from the hands of
those that go in at the gate of thy city, and from the hand of
thy seed for ever.
7 And Ephron and all his brethren heard this, and Abraham weighed
to Ephron four hundred shekels of silver in the hands of Ephron
and in the hands of all his brethren; and Abraham wrote this transaction,
and he wrote it and testified it with four witnesses.
8 And these are the names of the witnesses, Amigal son of Abishna
the Hittite, Adichorom son of Ashunach the Hivite, Abdon son of
Achiram the Gomerite, Bakdil the son of Abudish the Zidonite.
9 And Abraham took the book of the purchase, and placed it in his
treasures, and these are the words that Abraham wrote in the book,
namely:
10 That the cave and the field Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite,
and from his seed, and from those that go out of his city, and
from their seed for ever, are to be a purchase to Abraham and to
his seed and to those that go forth from his loins, for a possession
of a burial place for ever; and he put a signet to it and testified
it with witnesses.
11 And the field and the cave that was in it and all that place
were made sure unto Abraham and unto his seed after him, from the
children of Heth; behold it is before Mamre in Hebron, which is
in the land of Canaan.
12 And after this Abraham buried his wife Sarah there, and that
place and all its boundary became to Abraham and unto his seed
for a possession of a burial place.
13 And Abraham buried Sarah with pomp as observed at the interment
of kings, and she was buried in very fine and beautiful garments.
14 And at her bier was Shem, his sons Eber and Abimelech, together
with Anar, Ashcol and Mamre, and all the grandees of the land followed
her bier.
15 And the days of Sarah were one hundred and twenty-seven years
and she died, and Abraham made a great and heavy mourning, and
he performed the rites of mourning for seven days.
16 And all the inhabitants of the land comforted Abraham and Isaac
his son on account of Sarah.
17 And when the days of their mourning passed by Abraham sent away
his son Isaac, and he went to the house of Shem and Eber, to learn
the ways of the Lord and his instructions, and Abraham remained
there three years.
18 At that time Abraham rose up with all his servants, and they
went and returned homeward to Beersheba, and Abraham and all his
servants remained in Beersheba.
19 And at the revolution of the year Abimelech king of the Philistines
died in that year; he was one hundred and ninety-three years old
at his death; and Abraham went with his people to the land of the
Philistines, and they comforted the whole household and all his
servants, and he then turned and went home.
20 And it was after the death of Abimelech that the people of Gerar
took Benmalich his son, and he was only twelve years old, and they
made him lying in the place of his father.
21 And they called his name Abimelech after the name of his father,
for thus was it their custom to do in Gerar, and Abimelech reigned
instead of Abimelech his father, and he sat upon his throne.
22 And Lot the son of Haran also died in those days, in the thirty-ninth
year of the life of Isaac, and all the days that Lot lived were
one hundred and forty years and he died.
23 And these are the children of Lot, that were born to him by
his daughters, the name of the first born was Moab, and the name
of the second was Benami.
24 And the two sons of Lot went and took themselves wives from
the land of Canaan, and they bare children to them, and the children
of Moab were Ed, Mayon, Tarsus, and Kanvil, four sons, these are
fathers to the children of Moab unto this day.
25 And all the families of the children of Lot went to dwell wherever
they should light upon, for they were fruitful and increased abundantly.
26 And they went and built themselves cities in the land where
they dwelt, and they called the names of the cities which they
built after their own names.
27 And Nahor the son of Terah, brother to Abraham, died in those
days in the fortieth year of the life of Isaac, and all the days
of Nahor were one hundred and seventy-two years and he died and
was buried in Haran.
28 And when Abraham heard that his brother was dead he grieved
sadly, and he mourned over his brother many days.
29 And Abraham called for Eliezer his head servant, to give him
orders concerning his house, and he came and stood before him.
30 And Abraham said to him, Behold I am old, I do not know the
day of my death; for I am advanced in days; now therefore rise
up, go forth and do not take a wife for my son from this place
and from this land, from the daughters of the Canaanites amongst
whom we dwell.
31 But go to my land and to my birthplace, and take from thence
a wife for my son, and the Lord God of Heaven and earth who took
me from my father's house and brought me to this place, and said
unto me, To thy seed will I give this land for an inheritance for
ever, he will send his angel before thee and prosper thy way, that
thou mayest obtain a wife for my son from my family and from my
father's house.
32 And the servant answered his master Abraham and said, Behold
I go to thy birthplace and to thy father's house, and take a wife
for thy son from there; but if the woman be not willing to follow
me to this land, shall I take thy son back to the land of thy birthplace?
33 And Abraham said unto him, Take heed that thou bring not my
son hither again, for the Lord before whom I have walked he will
send his angel before thee and prosper thy way.
34 And Eliezer did as Abraham ordered him, and Eliezer swore unto
Abraham his master upon this matter; and Eliezer rose up and took
ten camels of the camels of his master, and ten men from his master's
servants with him, and they rose up and went to Haran, the city
of Abraham and Nahor, in order to fetch a wife for Isaac the son
of Abraham; and whilst they were gone Abraham sent to the house
of Shem and Eber, and they brought from thence his son Isaac.
35 And Isaac came home to his father's house to Beersheba, whilst
Eliezer and his men came to Haran; and they stopped in the city
by the watering place, and he made his camels to kneel down by
the water and they remained there.
36 And Eliezer, Abraham's servant, prayed and said, O God of Abraham
my master; send me I pray thee good speed this day and show kindness
unto my master, that thou shalt appoint this day a wife for my
master's son from his family.
37 And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Eliezer, for the sake
of his servant Abraham, and he happened to meet with the daughter
of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, brother to Abraham,
and Eliezer came to her house.
38 And Eliezer related to them all his concerns, and that he was
Abraham's servant, and they greatly rejoiced at him.
39 And they all blessed the Lord who brought this thing about,
and they gave him Rebecca, the daughter of Bethuel, for a wife
for Isaac.
40 And the young woman was of very comely appearance, she was a
virgin, and Rebecca was ten years old in those days.
41 And Bethuel and Laban and his children made a feast on that
night, and Eliezer and his men came and ate and drank and rejoiced
there on that night.
42 And Eliezer rose up in the morning, he and the men that were
with him, and he called to the whole household of Bethuel, saying,
Send me away that I may go to my master; and they rose up and sent
away Rebecca and her nurse Deborah, the daughter of Uz, and they
gave her silver and gold, men servants and maid servants, and they
blessed her.
43 And they sent Eliezer away with his men; and the servants took
Rebecca, and he went and returned to his master to the land of
Canaan.
44 And Isaac took Rebecca and she became his wife, and he brought
her into the tent.
45 And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebecca, the daughter
of his uncle Bethuel, for a wife.
CHAPTER 25
1 And it was at that time that Abraham again took a wife in his
old age, and her name was Keturah, from the land of Canaan.
2 And she bare unto him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak
and Shuach, being six sons. And the children of Zimran were Abihen,
Molich and Narim.
3 And the sons of Jokshan were Sheba and Dedan, and the sons of
Medan were Amida, Joab, Gochi, Elisha and Nothach; and the sons
of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Chanoch, Abida and Eldaah.
4 And the sons of Ishbak were Makiro, Beyodua and Tator.
5 And the sons of Shuach were Bildad, Mamdad, Munan and Meban;
all these are the families of the children of Keturah the Canaanitish
woman which she bare unto Abraham the Hebrew.
6 And Abraham sent all these away, and he gave them gifts, and
they went away from his son Isaac to dwell wherever they should
find a place.
7 And all these went to the mountain at the east, and they built
themselves six cities in which they dwelt unto this day.
8 But the children of Sheba and Dedan, children of Jokshan, with
their children, did not dwell with their brethren in their cities,
and they journeyed and encamped in the countries and wildernesses
unto this day.
9 And the children of Midian, son of Abraham, went to the east
of the land of Cush, and they there found a large valley in the
eastern country, and they remained there and built a city, and
they dwelt therein, that is the land of Midian unto this day.
10 And Midian dwelt in the city which he built, he and his five
sons and all belonging to him.
11 And these are the names of the sons of Midian according to their
names in their cities, Ephah, Epher, Chanoch, Abida and Eldaah.
12 And the sons of Ephah were Methach, Meshar, Avi and Tzanua,
and the sons of Epher were Ephron, Zur, Alirun and Medin, and the
sons of Chanoch were Reuel, Rekem, Azi, Alyoshub and Alad.
13 And the sons of Abida were Chur, Melud, Kerury, Molchi; and
the sons of Eldaah were Miker, and Reba, and Malchiyah and Gabol;
these are the names of the Midianites according to their families;
and afterward the families of Midian spread throughout the land
of Midian.
14 And these are the generations of Ishmael the son Abraham, whom
Hagar, Sarah's handmaid, bare unto Abraham.
15 And Ishmael took a wife from the land of Egypt, and her name
was Ribah, the same is Meribah.
16 And Ribah bare unto Ishmael Nebayoth, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam
and their sister Bosmath.
17 And Ishmael cast away his wife Ribah, and she went from him
and returned to Egypt to the house of her father, and she dwelt
there, for she had been very bad in the sight of Ishmael, and in
the sight of his father Abraham.
18 And Ishmael afterward took a wife from the land of Canaan, and
her name was Malchuth, and she bare unto him Nishma, Dumah, Masa,
Chadad, Tema, Yetur, Naphish and Kedma.
19 These are the sons of Ishmael, and these are their names, being
twelve princes according to their nations; and the families of
Ishmael afterward spread forth, and Ishmael took his children and
all the property that he had gained, together with the souls of
his household and all belonging to him, and they went to dwell
where they should find a place.
20 And they went and dwelt near the wilderness of Paran, and their
dwelling was from Havilah unto Shur, that is before Egypt as thou
comest toward Assyria.
21 And Ishmael and his sons dwelt in the land, and they had children
born to them, and they were fruitful and increased abundantly.
22 And these are the names of the sons of Nebayoth the first born
of Ishmael; Mend, Send, Mayon; and the sons of Kedar were Alyon,
Kezem, Chamad and Eli.
23 And the sons of Adbeel were Chamad and Jabin; and the sons of
Mibsam were Obadiah, Ebedmelech and Yeush; these are the families
of the children of Ribah the wife of Ishmael.
24 And the sons of Mishma the son of Ishmael were Shamua, Zecaryon
and Obed; and the sons of Dumah were Kezed, Eli, Machmad and Amed.
25 And the sons of Masa were Melon, Mula and Ebidadon; and the
sons of Chadad were Azur, Minzar and Ebedmelech; and the sons of
Tema were Seir, Sadon and Yakol.
26 And the sons of Yetur were Merith, Yaish, Alyo, and Pachoth;
and the sons of Naphish were Ebed-Tamed, Abiyasaph and Mir; and
the sons of Kedma were Calip, Tachti, and Omir; these were the
children of Malchuth the wife of Ishmael according to their families.
27 All these are the families of Ishmael according to their generations,
and they dwelt in those lands wherein they had built themselves
cities unto this day.
28 And Rebecca the daughter of Bethuel, the wife of Abraham's son
Isaac, was barren in those days, she had no offspring; and Isaac
dwelt with his father in the land of Canaan; and the Lord was with
Isaac; and Arpachshad the son of Shem the son of Noah died in those
days, in the forty-eighth year of the life of Isaac, and all the
days that Arpachshad lived were four hundred and thirty-eight years,
and he died.
CHAPTER 26
1 And in the fifty-ninth year of the life of Isaac the son of Abraham,
Rebecca his wife was still barren in those days.
2 And Rebecca said unto Isaac, Truly I have heard, my lord, that
thy mother Sarah was barren in her days until my Lord Abraham,
thy father, prayed for her and she conceived by him.
3 Now therefore stand up, pray thou also to God and he will hear
thy prayer and remember us through his mercies.
4 And Isaac answered his wife Rebecca, saying, Abraham has already
prayed for me to God to multiply his seed, now therefore this barrenness
must proceed to us from thee.
5 And Rebecca said unto him, But arise now thou also and pray,
that the Lord may hear thy prayer and grant me children, and Isaac
hearkened to the words of his wife, and Isaac and his wife rose
up and went to the land of Moriah to pray there and to seek the
Lord, and when they had reached that place Isaac stood up and prayed
to the Lord on account of his wife because she was barren.
6 And Isaac said, O Lord God of heaven and earth, whose goodness
and mercies fill the earth, thou who didst take my father from
his father's house and from his birthplace, and didst bring him
unto this land, and didst say unto him, To thy seed will I give
the land, and thou didst promise him and didst declare unto him,
I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven and as the sand
of the sea, now may thy words be verified which thou didst speak
unto my father.
7 For thou art the Lord our God, our eyes are toward thee to give
us seed of men, as thou didst promise us, for thou art the Lord
our God and our eyes are directed toward thee only.
8 And the Lord heard the prayer of Isaac the son of Abraham, and
the Lord was entreated of him and Rebecca his wife conceived.
9 And in about seven months after the children struggled together
within her, and it pained her greatly that she was wearied on account
of them, and she said to all the women who were then in the land,
Did such a thing happen to you as it has to me? and they said unto
her, No.
10 And she said unto them, Why am I alone in this amongst all the
women that were upon earth? and she went to the land of Moriah
to seek the Lord on account of this; and she went to Shem and Eber
his son to make inquiries of them in this matter, and that they
should seek the Lord in this thing respecting her.
11 And she also asked Abraham to seek and inquire of the Lord about
all that had befallen her.
12 And they all inquired of the Lord concerning this matter, and
they brought her word from the Lord and told her, Two children
are in thy womb, and two nations shall rise from them; and one
nation shall be stronger than the other, and the greater shall
serve the younger.
13 And when her days to be delivered were completed, she knelt
down, and behold there were twins in her womb, as the Lord had
spoken to her.
14 And the first came out red all over like a hairy garment, and
all the people of the land called his name Esau, saying, That this
one was made complete from the womb.
15 And after that came his brother, and his hand took hold of Esau's
heel, therefore they called his name Jacob.
16 And Isaac, the son of Abraham, was sixty years old when he begat
them.
17 And the boys grew up to their fifteenth year, and they came
amongst the society of men. Esau was a designing and deceitful
man, and an expert hunter in the field, and Jacob was a man perfect
and wise, dwelling in tents, feeding flocks and learning the instructions
of the Lord and the commands of his father and mother.
18 And Isaac and the children of his household dwelt with his father
Abraham in the land of Canaan, as God had commanded them.
19 And Ishmael the son of Abraham went with his children and all
belonging to them, and they returned there to the land of Havilah,
and they dwelt there.
20 And all the children of Abraham's concubines went to dwell in
the land of the east, for Abraham had sent them away from his son,
and had given them presents, and they went away.
21 And Abraham gave all that he had to his son Isaac, and he also
gave him all his treasures.
22 And he commanded him saying, Dost thou not know and understand
the Lord is God in heaven and in earth, and there is no other beside
him?
23 And it was he who took me from my father's house, and from my
birth place, and gave me all the delights upon earth; who delivered
me from the counsel of the wicked, for in him did I trust.
24 And he brought me to this place, and he delivered me from Ur
Casdim; and he said unto me, To thy seed will I give all these
lands, and they shall inherit them when they keep my commandments,
my statutes and my judgments that I have commanded thee, and which
I shall command them.
25 Now therefore my son, hearken to my voice, and keep the commandments
of the Lord thy God, which I commanded thee, do not turn from the
right way either to the right or to the left, in order that it
may be well with thee and thy children after thee forever.
26 And remember the wonderful works of the Lord, and his kindness
that he has shown toward us, in having delivered us from the hands
of our enemies, and the Lord our God caused them to fall into our
hands; and now therefore keep all that I have commanded thee, and
turn not away from the commandments of thy God, and serve none
beside him, in order that it may be well with thee and thy seed
after thee.
27 And teach thou thy children and thy seed the instructions of
the Lord and his commandments, and teach them the upright way in
which they should go, in order that it may be well with them forever.
28 And Isaac answered his father and said unto him, That which
my Lord has commanded that will I do, and I will not depart from
the commands of the Lord my God, I will keep all that he commanded
me; and Abraham blessed his son Isaac, and also his children; and
Abraham taught Jacob the instruction of the Lord and his ways.
29 And it was at that time that Abraham died, in the fifteenth
year of the life of Jacob and Esau, the sons of Isaac, and all
the days of Abraham were one hundred and seventy-five years, and
he died and was gathered to his people in good old age, old and
satisfied with days, and Isaac and Ishmael his sons buried him.
30 And when the inhabitants of Canaan heard that Abraham was dead,
they all came with their kings and princes and all their men to
bury Abraham.
31 And all the inhabitants of the land of Haran, and all the families
of the house of Abraham, and all the princes and grandees, and
the sons of Abraham by the concubines, all came when they heard
of Abraham's death, and they requited Abraham's kindness, and comforted
Isaac his son, and they buried Abraham in the cave which he bought
from Ephron the Hittite and his children, for the possession of
a burial place.
32 And all the inhabitants of Canaan, and all those who had known
Abraham, wept for Abraham a whole year, and men and women mourned
over him.
33 And all the little children, and all the inhabitants of the
land wept on account of Abraham, for Abraham had been good to them
all, and because he had been upright with God and men.
34 And there arose not a man who feared God like unto Abraham,
for he had feared his God from his youth, and had served the Lord,
and had gone in all his ways during his life, from his childhood
to the day of his death.
35 And the Lord was with him and delivered him from the counsel
of Nimrod and his people, and when he made war with the four kings
of Elam he conquered them.
36 And he brought all the children of the earth to the service
of God, and he taught them the ways of the Lord, and caused them
to know the Lord.
37 And he formed a grove and he planted a vineyard therein, and
he had always prepared in his tent meat and drink to those that
passed through the land, that they might satisfy themselves in
his house.
38 And the Lord God delivered the whole earth on account of Abraham.
39 And it was after the death of Abraham that God blessed his son
Isaac and his children, and the Lord was with Isaac as he had been
with his father Abraham, for Isaac kept all the commandments of
the Lord as Abraham his father had commanded him; he did not turn
to the right or to the left from the right path which his father
had commanded him.
CHAPTER 27
1 And Esau at that time, after the death of Abraham, frequently
went in the field to hunt.
2 And Nimrod king of Babel, the same was Amraphel, also frequently
went with his mighty men to hunt in the field, and to walk about
with his men in the cool of the day.
3 And Nimrod was observing Esau all the days, for a jealousy was
formed in the heart of Nimrod against Esau all the days.
4 And on a certain day Esau went in the field to hunt, and he found
Nimrod walking in the wilderness with his two men.
5 And all his mighty men and his people were with him in the wilderness,
but they removed at a distance from him, and they went from him
in different directions to hunt, and Esau concealed himself for
Nimrod, and he lurked for him in the wilderness.
6 And Nimrod and his men that were with him did not know him, and
Nimrod and his men frequently walked about in the field at the
cool of the day, and to know where his men were hunting in the
field.
7 And Nimrod and two of his men that were with him came to the
place where they were, when Esau started suddenly from his lurking
place, and drew his sword, and hastened and ran to Nimrod and cut
off his head.
8 And Esau fought a desperate fight with the two men that were
with Nimrod, and when they called out to him, Esau turned to them
and smote them to death with his sword.
9 And all the mighty men of Nimrod, who had left him to go to the
wilderness, heard the cry at a distance, and they knew the voices
of those two men, and they ran to know the cause of it, when they
found their king and the two men that were with him lying dead
in the wilderness.
10 And when Esau saw the mighty men of Nimrod coming at a distance,
he fled, and thereby escaped; and Esau took the valuable garments
of Nimrod, which Nimrod's father had bequeathed to Nimrod, and
with which Nimrod prevailed over the whole land, and he ran and
concealed them in his house.
11 And Esau took those garments and ran into the city on account
of Nimrod's men, and he came unto his father's house wearied and
exhausted from fight, and he was ready to die through grief when
he approached his brother Jacob and sat before him.
12 And he said unto his brother Jacob, Behold I shall die this
day, and wherefore then do I want the birthright? And Jacob acted
wisely with Esau in this matter, and Esau sold his birthright to
Jacob, for it was so brought about by the Lord.
13 And Esau's portion in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which
Abraham had bought from the children of Heth for the possession
of a burial ground, Esau also sold to Jacob, and Jacob bought all
this from his brother Esau for value given.
14 And Jacob wrote the whole of this in a book, and he testified
the same with witnesses, and he sealed it, and the book remained
in the hands of Jacob.
15 And when Nimrod the son of Cush died, his men lifted him up
and brought him in consternation, and buried him in his city, and
all the days that Nimrod lived were two hundred and fifteen years
and he died.
16 And the days that Nimrod reigned upon the people of the land
were one hundred and eighty-five years; and Nimrod died by the
sword of Esau in shame and contempt, and the seed of Abraham caused
his death as he had seen in his dream.
17 And at the death of Nimrod his kingdom became divided into many
divisions, and all those parts that Nimrod reigned over were restored
to the respective kings of the land, who recovered them after the
death of Nimrod, and all the people of the house of Nimrod were
for a long time enslaved to all the other kings of the land.
CHAPTER 28
1 And in those days, after the death of Abraham, in that year the
Lord brought a heavy famine in the land, and whilst the famine
was raging in the land of Canaan, Isaac rose up to go down to Egypt
on account of the famine, as his father Abraham had done.
2 And the Lord appeared that night to Isaac and he said to him,
Do not go down to Egypt but rise and go to Gerar, to Abimelech
king of the Philistines, and remain there till the famine shall
cease.
3 And Isaac rose up and went to Gerar, as the Lord commanded him,
and he remained there a full year.
4 And when Isaac came to Gerar, the people of the land saw that
Rebecca his wife was of a beautiful appearance, and the people
of Gerar asked Isaac concerning his wife, and he said, She is my
sister, for he was afraid to say she was his wife lest the people
of the land should slay him on account of her.
5 And the princes of Abimelech went and praised the woman to the
king, but he answered them not, neither did he attend to their
words.
6 But he heard them say that Isaac declared her to be his sister,
so the king reserved this within himself.
7 And when Isaac had remained three months in the land, Abimelech
looked out at the window, and he saw, and behold Isaac was sporting
with Rebecca his wife, for Isaac dwelt in the outer house belonging
to the king, so that the house of Isaac was opposite the house
of the king.
8 And the king said unto Isaac, What is this thou hast done to
us in saying of thy wife, She is my sister? how easily might one
of the great men of the people have lain with her, and thou wouldst
then have brought guilt upon us.
9 And Isaac said unto Abimelech, Because I was afraid lest I die
on account of my wife, therefore I said, She is my sister.
10 At that time Abimelech gave orders to all his princes and great
men, and they took Isaac and Rebecca his wife and brought them
before the king.
11 And the king commanded that they should dress them in princely
garments, and make them ride through the streets of the city, and
proclaim before them throughout the land, saying, This is the man
and this is his wife; whoever toucheth this man or his wife shall
surely die. And Isaac returned with his wife to the king's house,
and the Lord was with Isaac and he continued to wax great and lacked
nothing.
12 And the Lord caused Isaac to find favor in the sight of Abimelech,
and in the sight of all his subjects, and Abimelech acted well
with Isaac, for Abimelech remembered the oath and the covenant
that existed between his father and Abraham.
13 And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Behold the whole earth is before
thee; dwell wherever it may seem good in thy sight until thou shalt
return to thy land; and Abimelech gave Isaac fields and vineyards
and the best part of the land of Gerar, to sow and reap and eat
the fruits of the ground until the days of the famine should have
passed by.
14 And Isaac sowed in that land, and received a hundred-fold in
the same year, and the Lord blessed him.
15 And the man waxed great, and he had possession of flocks and
possession of herds and great store of servants.
16 And when the days of the famine had passed away the Lord appeared
to Isaac and said unto him, Rise up, go forth from this place and
return to thy land, to the land of Canaan; and Isaac rose up and
returned to Hebron which is in the land of Canaan, he and all belonging
to him as the Lord commanded him.
17 And after this Shelach the son at Arpachshad died in that year,
which is the eighteenth year of the lives of Jacob and Esau; and
all the days that Shelach lived were four hundred and thirty-three
years and he died.
18 At that time Isaac sent his younger son Jacob to the house of
Shem and Eber, and he learned the instructions of the Lord, and
Jacob remained in the house of Shem and Eber for thirty-two years,
and Esau his brother did not go, for he was not willing to go,
and he remained in his father's house in the land of Canaan.
19 And Esau was continually hunting in the fields to bring home
what he could get, so did Esau all the days.
20 And Esau was a designing and deceitful man, one who hunted after
the hearts of men and inveigled them, and Esau was a valiant man
in the field, and in the course of time went as usual to hunt;
and he came as far as the field of Seir, the same is Edom.
21 And he remained in the land of Seir hunting in the field a year
and four months.
22 And Esau there saw in the land of Seir the daughter of a man
of Canaan, and her name was Jehudith, the daughter of Beeri, son
of Epher, from the families of Heth the son of Canaan.
23 And Esau took her for a wife, and he came unto her; forty years
old was Esau when he took her, and he brought her to Hebron, the
land of his father's dwelling place, and he dwelt there.
24 And it came to pass in those days, in the hundred and tenth
year of the life of Isaac, that is in the fiftieth year of the
life of Jacob, in that year died Shem the son of Noah; Shem was
six hundred years old at his death.
25 And when Shem died Jacob returned to his father to Hebron which
is in the land of Canaan.
26 And in the fifty-sixth year of the life of Jacob, people came
from Haran, and Rebecca was told concerning her brother Laban the
son of Bethuel.
27 For the wife of Laban was barren in those days, and bare no
children, and also all his handmaids bare none to him.
28 And the Lord afterward remembered Adinah the wife of Laban,
and she conceived and bare twin daughters, and Laban called the
names of his daughters, the name of the elder Leah, and the name
of the younger Rachel.
29 And those people came and told these things to Rebecca, and
Rebecca rejoiced greatly that the Lord had visited her brother
and that he had got children.
CHAPTER 29
1 And Isaac the son of Abraham became old and advanced in days,
and his eyes became heavy through age; they were dim and could
not see.
2 At that time Isaac called unto Esau his son, saying, Get I pray
thee thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, rise up and go forth
into the field and get me some venison, and make me savory meat
and bring it to me, that I may eat in order that I may bless thee
before my death, as I have now become old and gray-headed.
3 And Esau did so; and he took his weapon and went forth into the
field to hunt for venison, as usual, to bring to his father as
he had ordered him, so that he might bless him.
4 And Rebecca heard all the words that Isaac had spoken unto Esau,
and she hastened and called her son Jacob, saying, Thus did thy
father speak unto thy brother Esau, and thus did I hear, now therefore
hasten thou and make that which I shall tell thee.
5 Rise up and go, I pray thee, to the flock and fetch me two fine
kids of the goats, and I will get the savory meat for thy father,
and thou shalt bring the savory meat that he may eat before thy
brother shall have come from the chase, in order that thy father
may bless thee.
6 And Jacob hastened and did as his mother had commanded him, and
he made the savory meat and brought it before his father before
Esau had come from his chase.
7 And Isaac said unto Jacob, Who art thou, my son? And he said,
I am thy first born Esau, I have done as thou didst order me, now
therefore rise up I pray thee, and eat of my hunt, in order that
thy soul may bless me as thou didst speak unto me.
8 And Isaac rose up and he ate and he drank, and his heart was
comforted, and he blessed Jacob and Jacob went away from his father;
and as soon as Isaac had blessed Jacob and he had gone away from
him, behold Esau came from his hunt from the field, and he also
made savory meat and brought it to his father to eat thereof and
to bless him.
9 And Isaac said unto Esau, And who was he that has taken venison
and brought it me before thou camest and whom I did bless? And
Esau knew that his brother Jacob had done this, and the anger of
Esau was kindled against his brother Jacob that he had acted thus
toward him.
10 And Esau said, Is he not rightly called Jacob? for he has supplanted
me twice, he took away my birthright and now he has taken away
my blessing; and Esau wept greatly; and when Isaac heard the voice
of his son Esau weeping, Isaac said unto Esau, What can I do, my
son, thy brother came with subtlety and took away thy blessing;
and Esau hated his brother Jacob on account of the blessing that
his father had given him, and his anger was greatly roused against
him.
11 And Jacob was very much afraid of his brother Esau, and he rose
up and fled to the house of Eber the son of Shem, and he concealed
himself there on account of his brother, and Jacob was sixty-three
years old when he went forth from the land of Canaan from Hebron,
and Jacob was concealed in Eber's house fourteen years on account
of his brother Esau, and he there continued to learn the ways of
the Lord and his commandments.
12 And when Esau saw that Jacob had fled and escaped from him,
and that Jacob had cunningly obtained the blessing, then Esau grieved
exceedingly, and he was also vexed at his father and mother; and
he also rose up and took his wife and went away from his father
and mother to the land of Seir, and he dwelt there; and Esau saw
there a woman from amongst the daughters of Heth whose name was
Bosmath, the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and he took her for
a wife in addition to his first wife, and Esau called her name
Adah, saying the blessing had in that time passed from him.
13 And Esau dwelt in the land of Seir six months without seeing
his father and mother, and afterward Esau took his wives and rose
up and returned to the land of Canaan, and Esau placed his two
wives in his father's house in Hebron.
14 And the wives of Esau vexed and provoked Isaac and Rebecca with
their works, for they walked not in the ways of the Lord, but served
their father's gods of wood and stone as their father had taught
them, and they were more wicked than their father.
15 And they went according to the evil desires of their hearts,
and they sacrificed and burnt incense to the Baalim, and Isaac
and Rebecca became weary of them.
16 And Rebecca said, I am weary of my life because of the daughters
of Heth; if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as
these which are of the daughters of the land, what good then is
life unto me?
17 And in those days Adah the wife of Esau conceived and bare him
a son, and Esau called the name of the son that was born unto him
Eliphaz, and Esau was sixty-five years old when she bare him.
18 And Ishmael the son of Abraham died in those days, in the sixty-forth
year of the life of Jacob, and all the days that Ishmael lived
were one hundred and thirty-seven years and he died.
19 And when Isaac heard that Ishmael was dead he mourned for him,
and Isaac lamented over him many days.
20 And at the end of fourteen years of Jacob's residing in the
house of Eber, Jacob desired to see his father and mother, and
Jacob came to the house of his father and mother to Hebron, and
Esau had in those days forgotten what Jacob had done to him in
having taken the blessing from him in those days.
21 And when Esau saw Jacob coming to his father and mother he remembered
what Jacob had done to him, and he was greatly incensed against
him and he sought to slay him.
22 And Isaac the son of Abraham was old and advanced in days, and
Esau said, Now my father's time is drawing nigh that he must die,
and when he shall die I will slay my brother Jacob.
23 And this was told to Rebecca, and she hastened and sent and
called for Jacob her son, and she said unto him, Arise, go and
flee to Haran to my brother Laban, and remain there for some time,
until thy brother's anger be turned from thee and then shalt thou
come back.
24 And Isaac called unto Jacob and said unto him, Take not a wife
from the daughters of Canaan, for thus did our father Abraham command
us according to the word of the Lord which he had commanded him,
saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; if thy children keep
my covenant that I have made with thee, then will I also perform
to thy children that which I have spoken unto thee and I will not
forsake them.
25 Now therefore my son hearken to my voice, to all that I shall
command thee, and refrain from taking a wife from amongst the daughters
of Canaan; arise, go to Haran to the house of Bethuel thy mother's
father, and take unto thee a wife from there from the daughters
of Laban thy mother's brother.
26 Therefore take heed lest thou shouldst forget the Lord thy God
and all his ways in the land to which thou goest, and shouldst
get connected with the people of the land and pursue vanity and
forsake the Lord thy God.
27 But when thou comest to the land serve there the Lord, do not
turn to the right or to the left from the way which I commanded
thee and which thou didst learn.
28 And may the Almighty God grant thee favor in the sight of the
people of the earth, that thou mayest take there a wife according
to thy choice; one who is good and upright in the ways of the Lord.
29 And may God give unto thee and thy seed the blessing of thy
father Abraham, and make thee fruitful and multiply thee, and mayest
thou become a multitude of people in the land whither thou goest,
and may God cause thee to return to this land, the land of thy
father's dwelling, with children and with great riches, with joy
and with pleasure.
30 And Isaac finished commanding Jacob and blessing him, and he
gave him many gifts, together with silver and gold, and he sent
him away; and Jacob hearkened to his father and mother; he kissed
them and arose and went to Padan-aram; and Jacob was seventy-seven
years old when he went out from the land of Canaan from Beersheba.
31 And when Jacob went away to go to Haran Esau called unto his
son Eliphaz, and secretly spoke unto him, saying, Now hasten, take
thy sword in thy hand and pursue Jacob and pass before him in the
road, and lurk for him, and slay him with thy sword in one of the
mountains, and take all belonging to him and come back.
32 And Eliphaz the son of Esau was an active man and expert with
the bow as his father had taught him, and he was a noted hunter
in the field and a valiant man.
33 And Eliphaz did as his father had commanded him, and Eliphaz
was at that time thirteen years old, and Eliphaz rose up and went
and took ten of his mother's brothers with him and pursued Jacob.
34 And he closely followed Jacob, and he lurked for him in the
border of the land of Canaan opposite to the city of Shechem.
35 And Jacob saw Eliphaz and his men pursuing him, and Jacob stood
still in the place in which he was going, in order to know what
this was, for he did not know the thing; and Eliphaz drew his sword
and he went on advancing, he and his men, toward Jacob; and Jacob
said unto them, What is to do with you that you have come hither,
and what meaneth it that you pursue with your swords.
36 And Eliphaz came near to Jacob and he answered and said unto
him, Thus did my father command me, and now therefore I will not
deviate from the orders which my father gave me; and when Jacob
saw that Esau had spoken to Eliphaz to employ force, Jacob then
approached and supplicated Eliphaz and his men, saying to him,
37 Behold all that I have and which my father and mother gave unto
me, that take unto thee and go from me, and do not slay me, and
may this thing be accounted unto thee a righteousness.
38 And the Lord caused Jacob to find favor in the sight of Eliphaz
the son of Esau, and his men, and they hearkened to the voice of
Jacob, and they did not put him to death, and Eliphaz and his men
took all belonging to Jacob together with the silver and gold that
he had brought with him from Beersheba; they left him nothing.
39 And Eliphaz and his men went away from him and they returned
to Esau to Beersheba, and they told him all that had occurred to
them with Jacob, and they gave him all that they had taken from
Jacob.
40 And Esau was indignant at Eliphaz his son, and at his men that
were with him, because they had not put Jacob to death.
41 And they answered and said unto Esau, Because Jacob supplicated
us in this matter not to slay him, our pity was excited toward
him, and we took all belonging to him and brought it unto thee;
and Esau took all the silver and gold which Eliphaz had taken from
Jacob and he put them by in his house.
42 At that time when Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob, and
had commanded him, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife from amongst
the daughters of Canaan, and that the daughters of Canaan were
bad in the sight of Isaac and Rebecca,
43 Then he went to the house of Ishmael his uncle, and in addition
to his older wives he took Machlath the daughter of Ishmael, the
sister of Nebayoth, for a wife.
CHAPTER 30
1 And Jacob went forth continuing his road to Haran, and he came
as far as mount Moriah, and he tarried there all night near the
city of Luz; and the Lord appeared there unto Jacob on that night,
and he said unto him, I am the Lord God of Abraham and the God
of Isaac thy father; the land upon which thou liest I will give
unto thee and thy seed.
2 And behold I am with thee and will keep thee wherever thou goest,
and I will multiply thy seed as the stars of Heaven, and I will
cause all thine enemies to fall before thee; and when they shall
make war with thee they shall not prevail over thee, and I will
bring thee again unto this land with joy, with children, and with
great riches.
3 And Jacob awoke from his sleep and he rejoiced greatly at the
vision which he had seen; and he called the name of that place
Bethel.
4 And Jacob rose up from that place quite rejoiced, and when he
walked his feet felt light to him for joy, and he went from there
to the land of the children of the East, and he returned to Haran
and he set by the shepherd's well.
5 And he there found some men; going from Haran to feed their flocks,
and Jacob made inquiries of them, and they said, We are from Haran.
6 And he said unto them, Do you know Laban, the son of Nahor? and
they said, We know him, and behold his daughter Rachel is coming
along to feed her father's flock.
7 Whilst he was yet speaking with them, Rachel the daughter of
Laban came to feed her father's sheep, for she was a shepherdess.
8 And when Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of Laban, his mother's
brother, he ran and kissed her, and lifted up his voice and wept.
9 And Jacob told Rachel that he was the son of Rebecca, her father's
sister, and Rachel ran and told her father, and Jacob continued
to cry because he had nothing with him to bring to the house of
Laban.
10 And when Laban heard that his sister's son Jacob had come, he
ran and kissed him and embraced him and brought him into the house
and gave him bread, and he ate.
11 And Jacob related to Laban what his brother Esau had done to
him, and what his son Eliphaz had done to him in the road.
12 And Jacob resided in Laban's house for one month, and Jacob
ate and drank in the house of Laban, and afterward Laban said unto
Jacob, Tell me what shall be thy wages, for how canst thou serve
me for nought?
13 And Laban had no sons but only daughters, and his other wives
and handmaids were still barren in those days; and these are the
names of Laban's daughters which his wife Adinah had borne unto
him; the name of the elder was Leah and the name of the younger
was Rachel; and Leah was tender-eyed, but Rachel was beautiful
and well favored, and Jacob loved her.
14 And Jacob said unto Laban, I will serve thee seven years for
Rachel thy younger daughter; and Laban consented to this and Jacob
served Laban seven years for his daughter Rachel.
15 And in the second year of Jacob's dwelling in Haran, that is
in the seventy ninth year of the life of Jacob, in that year died
Eber the son of Shem, he was four hundred and sixty-four years
old at his death.
16 And when Jacob heard that Eber was dead he grieved exceedingly,
and he lamented and mourned over him many days.
17 And in the third year of Jacob's dwelling in Haran, Bosmath,
the daughter of Ishmael, the wife of Esau, bare unto him a son,
and Esau called his name Reuel.
18 And in the fourth year of Jacob's residence in the house of
Laban, the Lord visited Laban and remembered him on account of
Jacob, and sons were born unto him, and his first born was Beor,
his second was Alib, and the third was Chorash.
19 And the Lord gave Laban riches and honor, sons and daughters,
and the man increased greatly on account of Jacob.
20 And Jacob in those days served Laban in all manner of work,
in the house and in the field, and the blessing of the Lord was
in all that belonged to Laban in the house and in the field.
21 And in the fifth year died Jehudith, the daughter of Beeri,
the wife of Esau, in the land of Canaan, and she had no sons but
daughters only.
22 And these are the names of her daughters which she bare to Esau,
the name of the elder was Marzith, and the name of the younger
was Puith.
23 And when Jehudith died, Esau rose up and went to Seir to hunt
in the field, as usual, and Esau dwelt in the land of Seir for
a long time.
24 And in the sixth year Esau took for a wife, in addition to his
other wives, Ahlibamah, the daughter of Zebeon the Hivite, and
Esau brought her to the land of Canaan.
25 And Ahlibamah conceived and bare unto Esau three sons, Yeush,
Yaalan, and Korah.
26 And in those days, in the land of Canaan, there was a quarrel
between the herdsmen of Esau and the herdsmen of the inhabitants
of the land of Canaan, for Esau's cattle and goods were too abundant
for him to remain in the land of Canaan, in his father's house,
and the land of Canaan could not bear him on account of his cattle.
27 And when Esau saw that his quarreling increased with the inhabitants
of the land of Canaan, he rose up and took his wives and his sons
and his daughters, and all belonging to him, and the cattle which
he possessed, and all his property that he had acquired in the
land of Canaan, and he went away from the inhabitants of the land
to the land of Seir, and Esau and all belonging to him dwelt in
the land of Seir.
28 But from time to time Esau would go and see his father and mother
in the land of Canaan, and Esau intermarried with the Horites,
and he gave his daughters to the sons of Seir, the Horite.
29 And he gave his elder daughter Marzith to Anah, the son of Zebeon,
his wife's brother, and Puith he gave to Azar, the son of Bilhan
the Horite; and Esau dwelt in the mountain, he and his children,
and they were fruitful and multiplied.