In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was
without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the
Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light,
that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called
the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the
morning were the first day.
And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it
divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and
divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which
were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament
Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.
And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto
one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. And God called the dry
land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God
saw that it was good. And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb
yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in
itself, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, and
herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was
in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the
morning were the third day.
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the
day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days,
and years: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give
light upon the earth: and it was so. And God made two great lights; the
greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the
stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light
upon the earth, And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the
light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and
the morning were the fourth day. And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that
hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of
heaven. And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth,
which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every
winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And God blessed
them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let
fowl multiply in the earth. And the evening and the morning were the fifth
day.
And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind,
cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.
And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their
kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God
saw that it was good.
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them
have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over
the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth
upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God
created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them,
and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth,
and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl
of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is
upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree
yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. And to every beast of the earth, and
to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth,
wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. And
God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the
evening and the morning were the sixth day.
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And
on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested
on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed
the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his
work which God created and made.
These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were
created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, And
every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field
before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and
there was not a man to till the ground. But there went up a mist from the
earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. And the LORD God formed
man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of
life; and man became a living soul.
And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the
man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the LORD God to
grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of
life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and
evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was
parted, and became into four heads. The name of the first is Pison: that is it
which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; And the
gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. And the name
of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of
Ethiopia. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth
toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates. And the LORD
God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to
keep it.
And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden
thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,
thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt
surely die.
And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will
make him an help meet for him. And out of the ground the LORD God formed
every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto
Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every
living creature, that was the name thereof. And Adam gave names to all
cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam
there was not found an help meet for him.
And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and
he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib,
which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought
her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of
my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto
his wife: and they shall be one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and
his wife, and were not ashamed.
Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD
God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not
eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We
may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree
which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it,
neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye
shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then
your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was
pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of
the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and
he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they
were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves
aprons. And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in
the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence
of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.
And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou? And
he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked;
and I hid myself.
And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree,
whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? And the man said,
The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I
did eat. And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast
done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou
art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly
shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put
enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it
shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. Unto the woman he
said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou
shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall
rule over thee.
And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy
wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou
shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat
of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee;
and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat
bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust
thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return. And Adam called his wife's name
Eve; because she was the mother of all living. Unto Adam also and to his wife
did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.
And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know
good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of
life, and eat, and live for ever: Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from
the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. So he drove
out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and
a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.
And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I
have gotten a man from the LORD. And she again bare his brother Abel. And
Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the
ground an offering unto the LORD. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings
of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to
his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain
was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy
countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if
thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire,
and thou shalt rule over him. And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it
came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his
brother, and slew him.
And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know
not: Am I my brother's keeper? And he said, What hast thou done? the voice
of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. And now art thou
cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's
blood from thy hand; When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth
yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the
earth.
And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear.
Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from
thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth;
and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. And
the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall
be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any
finding him should kill him.
And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of
Nod, on the east of Eden. And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and
bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the
name of his son, Enoch. And unto Enoch was born Irad: and Irad begat
Mehujael: and Mehujael begat Methusael: and Methusael begat Lamech.
And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and
the name of the other Zillah. And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such
as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle. And his brother's name was Jubal:
he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ. And Zillah, she
also bare Tubal-cain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the
sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah.
And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of
Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding,
and a young man to my hurt. If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech
seventy and sevenfold.
And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth:
For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom
Cain slew. And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his
name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.
This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man,
in the likeness of God made he him; Male and female created he them; and
blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were
created.
And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own
likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth: And the days of Adam
after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and
daughters: And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty
years: and he died.
And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos: And Seth lived
after he begat Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and
daughters: And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and
he died.
And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan: And Enos lived after he begat
Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters: And
all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years: and he died.
And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel: And Cainan lived after
he begat Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons and
daughters: And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years: and
he died.
And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and begat Jared: And Mahalaleel
lived after he begat Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and
daughters: And all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred ninety and five
years: and he died.
And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch: And
Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat sons and
daughters: And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years:
and he died.
And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah: And Enoch
walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat
sons and daughters: And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and
five years: And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech:
And Methuselah lived after he begat Lamech seven hundred eighty and two
years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Methuselah were
nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died.
And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son: And he
called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work
and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed.
And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years,
and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Lamech were seven
hundred seventy and seven years: and he died. And Noah was five hundred
years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth,
and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters
of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.
And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also
is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.
There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the
sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to
them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.
And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that
every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved
him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created
from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and
the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his
generations, and Noah walked with God. And Noah begat three sons, Shem,
Ham, and Japheth.
The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.
And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had
corrupted his way upon the earth.
And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth
is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the
earth.
Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and
shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. And this is the fashion which thou
shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the
breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits. A window shalt thou
make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the door of the
ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, second, and third stories
shalt thou make it. And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the
earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven;
and every thing that is in the earth shall die. But with thee will I establish my
covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife,
and thy sons' wives with thee. And of every living thing of all flesh, two of
every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they
shall be male and female. Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their
kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall
come unto thee, to keep them alive. And take thou unto thee of all food that
is eaten, and thou shalt gather it to thee; and it shall be for food for thee, and
for them. Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did
he.
And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for
thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. Of every clean beast
thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that
are not clean by two, the male and his female. Of fowls also of the air by
sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the
earth. For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days
and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy
from off the face of the earth.
And Noah did according unto all that the LORD commanded him. And Noah
was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth.
And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him,
into the ark, because of the waters of the flood. Of clean beasts, and of
beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon
the earth, There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and
the female, as God had commanded Noah. And it came to pass after seven
days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.
In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the
seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the
great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. And the rain
was upon the earth forty days and forty nights.
In the selfsame day entered Noah, and Shem, and Ham, and Japheth, the
sons of Noah, and Noah's wife, and the three wives of his sons with them,
into the ark; They, and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their
kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind,
and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort. And they went in unto
Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life. And
they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had
commanded him: and the LORD shut him in.
And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and
bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth. And the waters prevailed,
and were increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of
the waters. And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the
high hills, that were under the whole heaven, were covered. Fifteen cubits
upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered.
And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and
of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every
man: All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land,
died. And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of
the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the
heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained
alive, and they that were with him in the ark. And the waters prevailed upon
the earth an hundred and fifty days.
And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the cattle that was
with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the
waters asswaged; The fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven
were stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained; And the waters
returned from off the earth continually: and after the end of the hundred and
fifty days the waters were abated.
And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the
month, upon the mountains of Ararat. And the waters decreased continually
until the tenth month: in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, were
the tops of the mountains seen.
And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of
the ark which he had made: And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to
and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth. Also he sent forth a
dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the
ground; But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned
unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth:
then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the
ark. And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out
of the ark; And the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth
was an olive leaf pluckt off: so Noah knew that the waters were abated from
off the earth. And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the dove;
which returned not again unto him any more.
And it came to pass in the six hundredth and first year, in the first month, the
first day of the month, the waters were dried up from off the earth: and Noah
removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and, behold, the face of the
ground was dry. And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of
the month, was the earth dried.
And God spake unto Noah, saying, Go forth of the ark, thou, and thy wife, and
thy sons, and thy sons' wives with thee. Bring forth with thee every living
thing that is with thee, of all flesh, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of every
creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they may breed abundantly
in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth. And Noah went
forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him: Every beast,
every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the
earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark.
And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and
of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the LORD
smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse
the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is
evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I
have done. While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and
heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.
And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and
multiply, and replenish the earth. And the fear of you and the dread of you
shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon
all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your
hand are they delivered. Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you;
even as the green herb have I given you all things. But flesh with the life
thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat. And surely your blood of
your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the
hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man.
Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the
image of God made he man. And you, be ye fruitful, and multiply; bring forth
abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein.
And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying, And I, behold, I
establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; And with every
living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of
the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth.
And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any
more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to
destroy the earth.
And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me
and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I
do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between
me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the
earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: And I will remember my
covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh;
and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the
bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the
everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is
upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant,
which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth.
And the sons of Noah, that went forth of the ark, were Shem, and Ham, and
Japheth: and Ham is the father of Canaan. These are the three sons of Noah:
and of them was the whole earth overspread. And Noah began to be an
husbandman, and he planted a vineyard: And he drank of the wine, and was
drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent. And Ham, the father of
Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.
And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders,
and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their
faces were backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness.
And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done
unto him. And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be
unto his brethren. And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Shem; and
Canaan shall be his servant. God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in
the tents of Shem; and Canaan shall be his servant.
And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years. And all the days
of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years: and he died.
Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth:
and unto them were sons born after the flood. The sons of Japheth; Gomer,
and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. And
the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah. And the sons of
Javan; Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. By these were the isles of
the Gentiles divided in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their
families, in their nations.
And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan. And the
sons of Cush; Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtecha: and
the sons of Raamah; Sheba, and Dedan. And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to
be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD:
wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD. And
the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in
the land of Shinar. Out of that land went forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh,
and the city Rehoboth, and Calah, And Resen between Nineveh and Calah:
the same is a great city. And Mizraim begat Ludim, and Anamim, and
Lehabim, and Naphtuhim, And Pathrusim, and Casluhim, (out of whom came
Philistim,) and Caphtorim.
And Canaan begat Sidon his firstborn, and Heth, And the Jebusite, and the
Amorite, and the Girgasite, And the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite, And
the Arvadite, and the Zemarite, and the Hamathite: and afterward were the
families of the Canaanites spread abroad. And the border of the Canaanites
was from Sidon, as thou comest to Gerar, unto Gaza; as thou goest, unto
Sodom, and Gomorrah, and Admah, and Zeboim, even unto Lasha. These are
the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their countries,
and in their nations.
Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth
the elder, even to him were children born. The children of Shem; Elam, and
Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram. And the children of Aram; Uz, and
Hul, and Gether, and Mash. And Arphaxad begat Salah; and Salah begat Eber.
And unto Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg; for in his
days was the earth divided; and his brother's name was Joktan. And Joktan
begat Almodad, and Sheleph, and Hazarmaveth, and Jerah, And Hadoram,
and Uzal, and Diklah, And Obal, and Abimael, and Sheba, And Ophir, and
Havilah, and Jobab: all these were the sons of Joktan. And their dwelling was
from Mesha, as thou goest unto Sephar a mount of the east. These are the
sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after
their nations. These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their
generations, in their nations: and by these were the nations divided in the
earth after the flood.
And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to
pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of
Shinar; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another, Go to, let us make
brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had
they for morter. And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose
top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered
abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of
men builded. And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all
one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained
from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there
confound their language, that they may not understand one another's
speech. So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all
the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called
Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and
from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.
These are the generations of Shem: Shem was an hundred years old, and
begat Arphaxad two years after the flood: And Shem lived after he begat
Arphaxad five hundred years, and begat sons and daughters. And Arphaxad
lived five and thirty years, and begat Salah: And Arphaxad lived after he begat
Salah four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters. And
Salah lived thirty years, and begat Eber: And Salah lived after he begat Eber
four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters. And Eber lived
four and thirty years, and begat Peleg: And Eber lived after he begat Peleg
four hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters. And Peleg lived
thirty years, and begat Reu: And Peleg lived after he begat Reu two hundred
and nine years, and begat sons and daughters. And Reu lived two and thirty
years, and begat Serug: And Reu lived after he begat Serug two hundred and
seven years, and begat sons and daughters. And Serug lived thirty years, and
begat Nahor: And Serug lived after he begat Nahor two hundred years, and
begat sons and daughters. And Nahor lived nine and twenty years, and begat
Terah: And Nahor lived after he begat Terah an hundred and nineteen years,
and begat sons and daughters. And Terah lived seventy years, and begat
Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
Now these are the generations of Terah: Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and
Haran; and Haran begat Lot. And Haran died before his father Terah in the
land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldees. And Abram and Nahor took them
wives: the name of Abram's wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor's wife,
Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah.
But Sarai was barren; she had no child. And Terah took Abram his son, and
Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son
Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go
into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there. And the
days of Terah were two hundred and five years: and Terah died in Haran.
Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy
kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I
will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name
great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and
curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be
blessed.
So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with
him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of
Haran. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their
substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in
Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of
Canaan they came.
And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain
of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land. And the LORD appeared
unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he
an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him. And he removed from
thence unto a mountain on the east of Beth-el, and pitched his tent, having
Beth-el on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto
the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD. And Abram journeyed, going
on still toward the south.
And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to
sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land. And it came to pass,
when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife,
Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon: Therefore it
shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This
is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive. Say, I pray thee,
thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall
live because of thee.
And it came to pass, that, when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians
beheld the woman that she was very fair. The princes also of Pharaoh saw
her, and commended her before Pharaoh: and the woman was taken into
Pharaoh's house. And he entreated Abram well for her sake: and he had
sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she
asses, and camels. And the LORD plagued Pharaoh and his house with great
plagues because of Sarai Abram's wife. And Pharaoh called Abram, and said,
What is this that thou hast done unto me? why didst thou not tell me that she
was thy wife? Why saidst thou, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to
me to wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way. And
Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him: and they sent him away, and
his wife, and all that he had.
And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and
Lot with him, into the south. And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and
in gold. And he went on his journeys from the south even to Beth-el, unto the
place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Beth-el and Hai;
Unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first: and there
Abram called on the name of the LORD.
And Lot also, which went with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents. And
the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together: for their
substance was great, so that they could not dwell together. And there was a
strife between the herdmen of Abram's cattle and the herdmen of Lot's
cattle: and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land. And
Abram said unto Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and
thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren. Is not
the whole land before thee? separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt
take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand,
then I will go to the left.
And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well
watered every where, before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even
as the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.
Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they
separated themselves the one from the other. Abram dwelled in the land of
Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward
Sodom. But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD
exceedingly.
And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up
now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and
southward, and eastward, and westward: For all the land which thou seest, to
thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. And I will make thy seed as the
dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then
shall thy seed also be numbered. Arise, walk through the land in the length of
it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee. Then Abram removed his
tent, and came and dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and built
there an altar unto the LORD.
And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of
Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of nations; That these
made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah,
Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela,
which is Zoar. All these were joined together in the vale of Siddim, which is
the salt sea. Twelve years they served Chedorlaomer, and in the thirteenth
year they rebelled. And in the fourteenth year came Chedorlaomer, and the
kings that were with him, and smote the Rephaims in Ashteroth Karnaim, and
the Zuzims in Ham, and the Emims in Shaveh Kiriathaim, And the Horites in
their mount Seir, unto El-paran, which is by the wilderness. And they
returned, and came to En-mishpat, which is Kadesh, and smote all the
country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites, that dwelt in Hazezon-
tamar. And there went out the king of Sodom, and the king of Gomorrah, and
the king of Admah, and the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (the same is
Zoar;) and they joined battle with them in the vale of Siddim; With
Chedorlaomer the king of Elam, and with Tidal king of nations, and Amraphel
king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar; four kings with five. And the vale of
Siddim was full of slimepits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and
fell there; and they that remained fled to the mountain. And they took all the
goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their victuals, and went their way.
And they took Lot, Abram's brother's son, who dwelt in Sodom, and his
goods, and departed.
And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he
dwelt in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of
Aner: and these were confederate with Abram. And when Abram heard that
his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own
house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan. And he
divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them,
and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus. And
he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his
goods, and the women also, and the people.
And the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the
slaughter of Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him, at the valley
of Shaveh, which is the king's dale. And Melchizedek king of Salem brought
forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. And he
blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of
heaven and earth: And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered
thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.
And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons, and take the
goods to thyself. And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine
hand unto the LORD, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth,
That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not
take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich:
Save only that which the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men
which went with me, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their portion.
After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward. And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus? And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness. And he said unto him, I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it. And he said, Lord GOD, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it? And he said unto him, Take me an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon. And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not. And when the fowls came down upon the carcases, Abram drove them away. And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him. And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full. And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces. In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: The Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites, And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims, And the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.
Now Sarai Abram's wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an
Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now,
the LORD hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it
may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice
of Sarai. And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after
Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her
husband Abram to be his wife.
And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived: and when she saw that she
had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes. And Sarai said unto
Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and
when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the LORD
judge between me and thee. But Abram said unto Sarai, Behold, thy maid is
in thy hand; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarai dealt hardly with
her, she fled from her face.
And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness,
by the fountain in the way to Shur. And he said, Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence
camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of
my mistress Sarai. And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Return to thy
mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.
And the angel of the LORD said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly,
that it shall not be numbered for multitude. And the angel of the LORD said
unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his
name Ishmael; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction. And he will be a
wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against
him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren. And she called the
name of the LORD that spake unto her, Thou God seest me: for she said, Have
I also here looked after him that seeth me? Wherefore the well was called
Beer�lahai�roi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered.
And Hagar bare Abram a son: and Abram called his son's name, which Hagar
bare, Ishmael. And Abram was fourscore and six years old, when Hagar bare
Ishmael to Abram.
And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to
Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be
thou perfect. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will
multiply thee exceedingly. And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with
him, saying,
As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of
many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy
name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I
will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings
shall come out of thee.
And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after
thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee,
and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after
thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an
everlasting possession; and I will be their God.
And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou,
and thy seed after thee in their generations. This is my covenant, which ye
shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child
among you shall be circumcised. And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your
foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you. And he
that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your
generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any
stranger, which is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy house, and he that is
bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall
be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. And the uncircumcised man
child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off
from his people; he hath broken my covenant.
And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her
name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be. And I will bless her, and give thee a
son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations;
kings of people shall be of her. Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed,
and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years
old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear? And Abraham said unto
God, O that Ishmael might live before thee! And God said, Sarah thy wife shall
bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish
my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after
him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and
will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall
he beget, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant will I establish
with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.
And he left off talking with him, and God went up from Abraham.
And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and
all that were bought with his money, every male among the men of
Abraham's house; and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame
day, as God had said unto him. And Abraham was ninety years old and nine,
when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. And Ishmael his son was
thirteen years old, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. In the
selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son. And all the
men of his house, born in the house, and bought with money of the stranger,
were circumcised with him.
And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the
tent door in the heat of the day; And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo,
three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from
the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground, And said, My Lord, if
now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy
servant: Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest
yourselves under the tree: And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye
your hearts; after that ye shall pass on: for therefore are ye come to your
servant. And they said, So do, as thou hast said. And Abraham hastened into
the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine
meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth. And Abraham ran unto the
herd, and fetcht a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man; and
he hasted to dress it. And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had
dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and
they did eat.
And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the
tent. And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life;
and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door,
which was behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in
age; and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. Therefore
Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have
pleasure, my lord being old also? And the LORD said unto Abraham,
Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am
old? Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return
unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son. Then
Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And he said, Nay; but
thou didst laugh.
And the men rose up from thence, and looked toward Sodom: and Abraham
went with them to bring them on the way. And the LORD said, Shall I hide
from Abraham that thing which I do; Seeing that Abraham shall surely
become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be
blessed in him? For I know him, that he will command his children and his
household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice
and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath
spoken of him. And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah
is great, and because their sin is very grievous; I will go down now, and see
whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come
unto me; and if not, I will know. And the men turned their faces from thence,
and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the LORD.
And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with
the wicked? Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou
also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?
That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the
wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee:
Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? And the LORD said, If I find in
Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their
sakes. And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me
to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes: Peradventure there
shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of
five? And he said, If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it. And he
spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found
there. And he said, I will not do it for forty's sake. And he said unto him, Oh let
not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Peradventure there shall thirty be
found there. And he said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there. And he said,
Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord: Peradventure
there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for
twenty's sake. And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet
but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not
destroy it for ten's sake. And the LORD went his way, as soon as he had left
communing with Abraham: and Abraham returned unto his place.
And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of
Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself
with his face toward the ground; And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I
pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet,
and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we
will abide in the street all night. And he pressed upon them greatly; and they
turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast,
and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat.
But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom,
compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every
quarter: And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men
which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know
them. And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him,
And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly. Behold now, I have two
daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out
unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do
nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof. And they
said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and
he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them.
And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the
door. But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to
them, and shut to the door. And they smote the men that were at the door of
the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied
themselves to find the door.
And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy
sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out
of this place: For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen
great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it. And
Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters,
and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But
he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.
And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise,
take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed
in the iniquity of the city. And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his
hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two
daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth,
and set him without the city.
And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said,
Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain;
escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed. And Lot said unto them, Oh,
not so, my Lord: Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and
thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving
my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I
die: Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me
escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live. And he said unto
him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not
overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken. Haste thee, escape
thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither. Therefore the
name of the city was called Zoar.
The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar.
Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire
from the LORD out of heaven; And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain,
and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.
But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.
And Abraham gat up early in the morning to the place where he stood before
the LORD: And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the
land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as
the smoke of a furnace.
And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God
remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when
he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt.
And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two
daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he
and his two daughters. And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is
old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner
of all the earth: Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with
him, that we may preserve seed of our father. And they made their father
drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and
he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. And it came to
pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said unto the younger, Behold, I lay
yesternight with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go
thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. And they
made their father drink wine that night also: and the younger arose, and lay
with him; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. Thus
were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father. And the firstborn
bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites
unto this day. And the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name
Ben-ammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.
And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the south country, and dwelled
between Kadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar. And Abraham said of
Sarah his wife, She is my sister: and Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took
Sarah.
But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold,
thou art but a dead man, for the woman which thou hast taken; for she is a
man's wife. But Abimelech had not come near her: and he said, Lord, wilt
thou slay also a righteous nation? Said he not unto me, She is my sister? and
she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and
innocency of my hands have I done this. And God said unto him in a dream,
Yea, I know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld
thee from sinning against me: therefore suffered I thee not to touch her. Now
therefore restore the man his wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for
thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou
shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.
Therefore Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants,
and told all these things in their ears: and the men were sore afraid. Then
Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him, What hast thou done unto us?
and what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my
kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be
done. And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast
done this thing? And Abraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear of God
is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife's sake. And yet indeed
she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my
mother; and she became my wife. And it came to pass, when God caused me
to wander from my father's house, that I said unto her, This is thy kindness
which thou shalt shew unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of
me, He is my brother.
And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants,
and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife. And
Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee.
And unto Sarah he said, Behold, I have given thy brother a thousand pieces of
silver: behold, he is to thee a covering of the eyes, unto all that are with thee,
and with all other: thus she was reproved.
So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and
his maidservants; and they bare children. For the LORD had fast closed up all
the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham's wife.
And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he
had spoken. For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at
the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name
of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac. And
Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had
commanded him. And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son
Isaac was born unto him.
And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh
with me. And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah
should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age. And
the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same
day that Isaac was weaned.
And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto
Abraham, mocking. Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this
bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir
with my son, even with Isaac. And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's
sight because of his son.
And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the
lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee,
hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called. And also of the
son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.
And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of
water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and
sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.
And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under
one of the shrubs. And she went, and sat her down over against him a good
way off, as it were a bowshot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the
child. And she sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept. And God
heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of
heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath
heard the voice of the lad where he is. Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in
thine hand; for I will make him a great nation. And God opened her eyes, and
she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and
gave the lad drink. And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the
wilderness, and became an archer. And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran:
and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.
And it came to pass at that time, that Abimelech and Phichol the chief captain
of his host spake unto Abraham, saying, God is with thee in all that thou
doest: Now therefore swear unto me here by God that thou wilt not deal
falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son's son: but according to the
kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land
wherein thou hast sojourned. And Abraham said, I will swear. And Abraham
reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which Abimelech's servants
had violently taken away. And Abimelech said, I wot not who hath done this
thing: neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but to day. And
Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and both of
them made a covenant. And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by
themselves. And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What mean these seven ewe
lambs which thou hast set by themselves? And he said, For these seven ewe
lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness unto me, that I
have digged this well. Wherefore he called that place Beer-sheba; because
there they sware both of them. Thus they made a covenant at Beer-sheba:
then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they
returned into the land of the Philistines.
And Abraham planted a grove in Beer-sheba, and called there on the name of
the LORD, the everlasting God. And Abraham sojourned in the Philistines' land
many days.
And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said
unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. And he said, Take now thy
son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of
Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains
which I will tell thee of.
And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took
two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the
burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told
him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar
off. And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I
and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you. And Abraham
took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he
took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together.
And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said,
Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is
the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide
himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. And
they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an
altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him
on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took
the knife to slay his son.
And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham,
Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the
lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest
God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. And
Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught
in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered
him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. And Abraham called the
name of that place Jehovah-jireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the
LORD it shall be seen.
And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second
time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast
done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing
I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the
heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall
possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the
earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. So Abraham returned
unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beer-sheba; and
Abraham dwelt at Beer-sheba.
And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying,
Behold, Milcah, she hath also born children unto thy brother Nahor; Huz his
firstborn, and Buz his brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram, And Chesed,
and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel. And Bethuel begat Rebekah:
these eight Milcah did bear to Nahor, Abraham's brother. And his concubine,
whose name was Reumah, she bare also Tebah, and Gaham, and Thahash,
and Maachah.
And Sarah was an hundred and seven and twenty years old: these were the
years of the life of Sarah. And Sarah died in Kirjath-arba; the same is Hebron
in the land of Canaan: and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep
for her.
And Abraham stood up from before his dead, and spake unto the sons of
Heth, saying, I am a stranger and a sojourner with you: give me a possession
of a buryingplace with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight. And the
children of Heth answered Abraham, saying unto him, Hear us, my lord: thou
art a mighty prince among us: in the choice of our sepulchres bury thy dead;
none of us shall withhold from thee his sepulchre, but that thou mayest bury
thy dead. And Abraham stood up, and bowed himself to the people of the
land, even to the children of Heth. And he communed with them, saying, If it
be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight; hear me, and
intreat for me to Ephron the son of Zohar, That he may give me the cave of
Machpelah, which he hath, which is in the end of his field; for as much money
as it is worth he shall give it me for a possession of a buryingplace amongst
you. And Ephron dwelt among the children of Heth: and Ephron the Hittite
answered Abraham in the audience of the children of Heth, even of all that
went in at the gate of his city, saying, Nay, my lord, hear me: the field give I
thee, and the cave that is therein, I give it thee; in the presence of the sons of
my people give I it thee: bury thy dead. And Abraham bowed down himself
before the people of the land. And he spake unto Ephron in the audience of
the people of the land, saying, But if thou wilt give it, I pray thee, hear me: I
will give thee money for the field; take it of me, and I will bury my dead there.
And Ephron answered Abraham, saying unto him, My lord, hearken unto me:
the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver; what is that betwixt me and
thee? bury therefore thy dead.
And Abraham hearkened unto Ephron; and Abraham weighed to Ephron the
silver, which he had named in the audience of the sons of Heth, four hundred
shekels of silver, current money with the merchant.
And the field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre,
the field, and the cave which was therein, and all the trees that were in the
field, that were in all the borders round about, were made sure Unto
Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Heth, before all
that went in at the gate of his city. And after this, Abraham buried Sarah his
wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre: the same is Hebron
in the land of Canaan. And the field, and the cave that is therein, were made
sure unto Abraham for a possession of a buryingplace by the sons of Heth.
And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the LORD had blessed
Abraham in all things. And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house,
that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh: And
I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the
earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the
Canaanites, among whom I dwell: But thou shalt go unto my country, and to
my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac. And the servant said unto
him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land:
must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest?
And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither
again.
The LORD God of heaven, which took me from my father's house, and from
the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me,
saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; he shall send his angel before thee,
and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence. And if the woman will
not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only
bring not my son thither again. And the servant put his hand under the thigh
of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning that matter.
And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed;
for all the goods of his master were in his hand: and he arose, and went to
Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor. And he made his camels to kneel down
without the city by a well of water at the time of the evening, even the time
that women go out to draw water. And he said, O LORD God of my master
Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto
my master Abraham. Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the
daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water: And let it come to
pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee,
that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also:
let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and
thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master.
And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah
came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor,
Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder. And the damsel was
very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went
down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up. And the servant ran to
meet her, and said, Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher. And
she said, Drink, my lord: and she hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her
hand, and gave him drink. And when she had done giving him drink, she said,
I will draw water for thy camels also, until they have done drinking. And she
hasted, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again unto the well
to draw water, and drew for all his camels. And the man wondering at her
held his peace, to wit whether the LORD had made his journey prosperous or
not. And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took
a golden earring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of
ten shekels weight of gold; And said, Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray
thee: is there room in thy father's house for us to lodge in? And she said unto
him, I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milcah, which she bare unto
Nahor. She said moreover unto him, We have both straw and provender
enough, and room to lodge in. And the man bowed down his head, and
worshipped the LORD. And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of my master
Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I
being in the way, the LORD led me to the house of my master's brethren. And
the damsel ran, and told them of her mother's house these things.
And Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban: and Laban ran out
unto the man, unto the well. And it came to pass, when he saw the earring
and bracelets upon his sister's hands, and when he heard the words of
Rebekah his sister, saying, Thus spake the man unto me; that he came unto
the man; and, behold, he stood by the camels at the well. And he said, Come
in, thou blessed of the LORD; wherefore standest thou without? for I have
prepared the house, and room for the camels.
And the man came into the house: and he ungirded his camels, and gave
straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet, and the
men's feet that were with him. And there was set meat before him to eat: but
he said, I will not eat, until I have told mine errand. And he said, Speak on.
And he said, I am Abraham's servant. And the LORD hath blessed my master
greatly; and he is become great: and he hath given him flocks, and herds, and
silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses.
And Sarah my master's wife bare a son to my master when she was old: and
unto him hath he given all that he hath. And my master made me swear,
saying, Thou shalt not take a wife to my son of the daughters of the
Canaanites, in whose land I dwell: But thou shalt go unto my father's house,
and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son. And I said unto my master,
Peradventure the woman will not follow me. And he said unto me, The LORD,
before whom I walk, will send his angel with thee, and prosper thy way; and
thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my father's house:
Then shalt thou be clear from this my oath, when thou comest to my kindred;
and if they give not thee one, thou shalt be clear from my oath. And I came
this day unto the well, and said, O LORD God of my master Abraham, if now
thou do prosper my way which I go: Behold, I stand by the well of water; and
it shall come to pass, that when the virgin cometh forth to draw water, and I
say to her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water of thy pitcher to drink; And she
say to me, Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy camels: let the same be
the woman whom the LORD hath appointed out for my master's son. And
before I had done speaking in mine heart, behold, Rebekah came forth with
her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down unto the well, and drew
water: and I said unto her, Let me drink, I pray thee. And she made haste, and
let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, Drink, and I will give thy
camels drink also: so I drank, and she made the camels drink also. And I
asked her, and said, Whose daughter art thou? And she said, The daughter of
Bethuel, Nahor's son, whom Milcah bare unto him: and I put the earring upon
her face, and the bracelets upon her hands. And I bowed down my head, and
worshipped the LORD, and blessed the LORD God of my master Abraham,
which had led me in the right way to take my master's brother's daughter
unto his son. And now if ye will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me:
and if not, tell me; that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left. Then Laban
and Bethuel answered and said, The thing proceedeth from the LORD: we
cannot speak unto thee bad or good. Behold, Rebekah is before thee, take
her, and go, and let her be thy master's son's wife, as the LORD hath spoken.
And it came to pass, that, when Abraham's servant heard their words, he
worshipped the LORD, bowing himself to the earth. And the servant brought
forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to
Rebekah: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.
And they did eat and drink, he and the men that were with him, and tarried all
night; and they rose up in the morning, and he said, Send me away unto my
master. And her brother and her mother said, Let the damsel abide with us a
few days, at the least ten; after that she shall go. And he said unto them,
Hinder me not, seeing the LORD hath prospered my way; send me away that I
may go to my master. And they said, We will call the damsel, and enquire at
her mouth. And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go with this
man? And she said, I will go. And they sent away Rebekah their sister, and her
nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men. And they blessed Rebekah, and
said unto her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of
millions, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.
And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and
followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way.
And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahai-roi; for he dwelt in the south
country. And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he
lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming. And
Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the
camel. For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the
field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took
a vail, and covered herself. And the servant told Isaac all things that he had
done. And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rebekah,
and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his
mother's death.
Then again Abraham took a wife, and her name was Keturah. And she bare
him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah.
And Jokshan begat Sheba, and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim,
and Letushim, and Leummim. And the sons of Midian; Ephah, and Epher, and
Hanoch, and Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah.
And Abraham gave all that he had unto Isaac. But unto the sons of the
concubines, which Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, and sent them away
from Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, unto the east country. And
these are the days of the years of Abraham's life which he lived, an hundred
threescore and fifteen years. Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a
good old age, an old man, and full of years; and was gathered to his people.
And his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the
field of Ephron the son of Zohar the Hittite, which is before Mamre; The field
which Abraham purchased of the sons of Heth: there was Abraham buried,
and Sarah his wife.
And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son
Isaac; and Isaac dwelt by the well Lahai-roi.
Now these are the generations of Ishmael, Abraham's son, whom Hagar the
Egyptian, Sarah's handmaid, bare unto Abraham: And these are the names of
the sons of Ishmael, by their names, according to their generations: the
firstborn of Ishmael, Nebajoth; and Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam, And
Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa, Hadar, and Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and
Kedemah: These are the sons of Ishmael, and these are their names, by their
towns, and by their castles; twelve princes according to their nations. And
these are the years of the life of Ishmael, an hundred and thirty and seven
years: and he gave up the ghost and died; and was gathered unto his people.
And they dwelt from Havilah unto Shur, that is before Egypt, as thou goest
toward Assyria: and he died in the presence of all his brethren.
And these are the generations of Isaac, Abraham's son: Abraham begat Isaac:
And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of
Bethuel the Syrian of Padan-aram, the sister to Laban the Syrian. And Isaac
intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was
intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived. And the children struggled
together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to
enquire of the LORD. And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy
womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and
the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall
serve the younger.
And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in
her womb. And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they
called his name Esau. And after that came his brother out, and his hand took
hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore
years old when she bare them. And the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning
hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents. And
Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob.
And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint: And
Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am
faint: therefore was his name called Edom. And Jacob said, Sell me this day
thy birthright. And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit
shall this birthright do to me? And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he
sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau
bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and
went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.
And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the
days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto
Gerar. And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt;
dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: Sojourn in this land, and I will be
with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all
these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy
father; And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will
give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of
the earth be blessed; Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my
charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
And Isaac dwelt in Gerar: And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and
he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the
men of the place should kill me for Rebekah; because she was fair to look
upon. And it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that
Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window, and saw, and,
behold, Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife. And Abimelech called Isaac,
and said, Behold, of a surety she is thy wife: and how saidst thou, She is my
sister? And Isaac said unto him, Because I said, Lest I die for her. And
Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? one of the people might
lightly have lien with thy wife, and thou shouldest have brought guiltiness
upon us. And Abimelech charged all his people, saying, He that toucheth this
man or his wife shall surely be put to death.
Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold:
and the LORD blessed him. And the man waxed great, and went forward, and
grew until he became very great: For he had possession of flocks, and
possession of herds, and great store of servants: and the Philistines envied
him. For all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of
Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with
earth. And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier
than we.
And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar, and
dwelt there. And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged
in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after
the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by which
his father had called them. And Isaac's servants digged in the valley, and
found there a well of springing water. And the herdmen of Gerar did strive
with Isaac's herdmen, saying, The water is ours: and he called the name of
the well Esek; because they strove with him. And they digged another well,
and strove for that also: and he called the name of it Sitnah. And he removed
from thence, and digged another well; and for that they strove not: and he
called the name of it Rehoboth; and he said, For now the LORD hath made
room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land. And he went up from thence
to Beer-sheba. And the LORD appeared unto him the same night, and said, I
am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless
thee, and multiply thy seed for my servant Abraham's sake. And he builded
an altar there, and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent
there: and there Isaac's servants digged a well.
Then Abimelech went to him from Gerar, and Ahuzzath one of his friends,
and Phichol the chief captain of his army. And Isaac said unto them,
Wherefore come ye to me, seeing ye hate me, and have sent me away from
you? And they said, We saw certainly that the LORD was with thee: and we
said, Let there be now an oath betwixt us, even betwixt us and thee, and let
us make a covenant with thee; That thou wilt do us no hurt, as we have not
touched thee, and as we have done unto thee nothing but good, and have
sent thee away in peace: thou art now the blessed of the LORD. And he made
them a feast, and they did eat and drink. And they rose up betimes in the
morning, and sware one to another: and Isaac sent them away, and they
departed from him in peace. And it came to pass the same day, that Isaac's
servants came, and told him concerning the well which they had digged, and
said unto him, We have found water. And he called it Shebah: therefore the
name of the city is Beer-sheba unto this day.
And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of
Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite: Which were
a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah.
And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that
he could not see, he called Esau his eldest son, and said unto him, My son:
and he said unto him, Behold, here am I. And he said, Behold now, I am old, I
know not the day of my death: Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons,
thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison;
And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat;
that my soul may bless thee before I die. And Rebekah heard when Isaac
spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to
bring it.
And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father
speak unto Esau thy brother, saying, Bring me venison, and make me savoury
meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the LORD before my death. Now
therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee.
Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats;
and I will make them savoury meat for thy father, such as he loveth: And thou
shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before
his death. And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, Behold, Esau my brother is
a hairy man, and I am a smooth man: My father peradventure will feel me,
and I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and
not a blessing. And his mother said unto him, Upon me be thy curse, my son:
only obey my voice, and go fetch me them. And he went, and fetched, and
brought them to his mother: and his mother made savoury meat, such as his
father loved. And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son Esau, which
were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son: And
she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the
smooth of his neck: And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she
had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob.
And he came unto his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I; who
art thou, my son? And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy firstborn; I
have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my
venison, that thy soul may bless me. And Isaac said unto his son, How is it
that thou hast found it so quickly, my son? And he said, Because the LORD thy
God brought it to me. And Isaac said unto Jacob, Come near, I pray thee, that
I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not. And Jacob
went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said, The voice is Jacob's
voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau. And he discerned him not,
because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands: so he blessed
him. And he said, Art thou my very son Esau? And he said, I am. And he said,
Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's venison, that my soul may bless
thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him
wine, and he drank. And his father Isaac said unto him, Come near now, and
kiss me, my son. And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell
of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son is as the
smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed: Therefore God give thee of the
dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine: Let
people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren,
and let thy mother's sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that
curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee.
And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and
Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau
his brother came in from his hunting. And he also had made savoury meat,
and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father, Let my father arise,
and eat of his son's venison, that thy soul may bless me. And Isaac his father
said unto him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau.
And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, Who? where is he that hath
taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest,
and have blessed him? yea, and he shall be blessed. And when Esau heard
the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry, and
said unto his father, Bless me, even me also, O my father. And he said, Thy
brother came with subtilty, and hath taken away thy blessing. And he said, Is
not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he
took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing.
And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me? And Isaac answered
and said unto Esau, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren
have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained
him: and what shall I do now unto thee, my son? And Esau said unto his
father, Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my
father. And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept. And Isaac his father answered
and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and
of the dew of heaven from above; And by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt
serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the
dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.
And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed
him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at
hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob. And these words of Esau her elder
son were told to Rebekah: and she sent and called Jacob her younger son,
and said unto him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort
himself, purposing to kill thee. Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; and
arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran; And tarry with him a few days,
until thy brother's fury turn away; Until thy brother's anger turn away from
thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will send, and
fetch thee from thence: why should I be deprived also of you both in one
day? And Rebekah said to Isaac, 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 shall my life do me?
And Isaac called Jacob, and blessed him, and charged him, and said unto him,
Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan. Arise, go to Padan-aram,
to the house of Bethuel thy mother's father; and take thee a wife from
thence of the daughters of Laban thy mother's brother. And God Almighty
bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayest be a
multitude of people; And give thee the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to
thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land wherein thou art a
stranger, which God gave unto Abraham. And Isaac sent away Jacob: and he
went to Padan-aram unto Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of
Rebekah, Jacob's and Esau's mother.
When Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob, and sent him away to Padan-aram,
to take him a wife from thence; and that as he blessed him he gave
him a charge, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan;
And that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Padan-aram;
And Esau seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his
father; Then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives which he had
Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham's son, the sister of Nebajoth, to
be his wife.
And Jacob went out from Beer-sheba, and went toward Haran. And he
lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was
set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and
lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up
on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of
God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the LORD stood above it,
and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the
land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; And thy seed
shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west,
and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy
seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee,
and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again
into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have
spoken to thee of.
And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this
place; and I knew it not. And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this
place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put
for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. And
he called the name of that place Beth-el: but the name of that city was called
Luz at the first. And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and
will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment
to put on, So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the
LORD be my God: And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's
house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.
Then Jacob went on his journey, and came into the land of the people of the
east. And he looked, and behold a well in the field, and, lo, there were three
flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks: and a
great stone was upon the well's mouth. And thither were all the flocks
gathered: and they rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the
sheep, and put the stone again upon the well's mouth in his place. And Jacob
said unto them, My brethren, whence be ye? And they said, Of Haran are we.
And he said unto them, Know ye Laban the son of Nahor? And they said, We
know him. And he said unto them, Is he well? And they said, He is well: and,
behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep. And he said, Lo, it is yet
high day, neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water
ye the sheep, and go and feed them. And they said, We cannot, until all the
flocks be gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well's mouth;
then we water the sheep.
And while he yet spake with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep: for
she kept them. And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of
Laban his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother's brother,
that Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and
watered the flock of Laban his mother's brother. And Jacob kissed Rachel,
and lifted up his voice, and wept. And Jacob told Rachel that he was her
father's brother, and that he was Rebekah's son: and she ran and told her
father. And it came to pass, when Laban heard the tidings of Jacob his sister's
son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him, and kissed him, and
brought him to his house. And he told Laban all these things. And Laban said
to him, Surely thou art my bone and my flesh. And he abode with him the
space of a month.
And Laban said unto Jacob, Because thou art my brother, shouldest thou
therefore serve me for nought? tell me, what shall thy wages be? And Laban
had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the
younger was Rachel. Leah was tender eyed; but Rachel was beautiful and well
favoured. And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for
Rachel thy younger daughter. And Laban said, It is better that I give her to
thee, than that I should give her to another man: abide with me. And Jacob
served seven years for Rachel; and they seemed unto him but a few days, for
the love he had to her.
And Jacob said unto Laban, Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I
may go in unto her. And Laban gathered together all the men of the place,
and made a feast. And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Leah his
daughter, and brought her to him; and he went in unto her. And Laban gave
unto his daughter Leah Zilpah his maid for an handmaid. And it came to pass,
that in the morning, behold, it was Leah: and he said to Laban, What is this
thou hast done unto me? did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then
hast thou beguiled me? And Laban said, It must not be so done in our
country, to give the younger before the firstborn. Fulfil her week, and we will
give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven
other years. And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel
his daughter to wife also. And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his
handmaid to be her maid. And he went in also unto Rachel, and he loved also
Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years.
And when the LORD saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but
Rachel was barren. And Leah conceived, and bare a son, and she called his
name Reuben: for she said, Surely the LORD hath looked upon my affliction;
now therefore my husband will love me. And she conceived again, and bare a
son; and said, Because the LORD hath heard that I was hated, he hath
therefore given me this son also: and she called his name Simeon. And she
conceived again, and bare a son; and said, Now this time will my husband be
joined unto me, because I have born him three sons: therefore was his name
called Levi. And she conceived again, and bare a son: and she said, Now will I
praise the LORD: therefore she called his name Judah; and left bearing.
And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no children, Rachel envied her
sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or else I die. And Jacob's anger
was kindled against Rachel: and he said, Am I in God's stead, who hath
withheld from thee the fruit of the womb? And she said, Behold my maid
Bilhah, go in unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also
have children by her. And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid to wife: and
Jacob went in unto her. And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son. And
Rachel said, God hath judged me, and hath also heard my voice, and hath
given me a son: therefore called she his name Dan. And Bilhah Rachel's maid
conceived again, and bare Jacob a second son. And Rachel said, With great
wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called
his name Naphtali. When Leah saw that she had left bearing, she took Zilpah
her maid, and gave her Jacob to wife. And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a
son. And Leah said, A troop cometh: and she called his name Gad. And Zilpah
Leah's maid bare Jacob a second son. And Leah said, Happy am I, for the
daughters will call me blessed: and she called his name Asher.
And Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest, and found mandrakes in the
field, and brought them unto his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, Give
me, I pray thee, of thy son's mandrakes. And she said unto her, Is it a small
matter that thou hast taken my husband? and wouldest thou take away my
son's mandrakes also? And Rachel said, Therefore he shall lie with thee to
night for thy son's mandrakes. And Jacob came out of the field in the evening,
and Leah went out to meet him, and said, Thou must come in unto me; for
surely I have hired thee with my son's mandrakes. And he lay with her that
night. And God hearkened unto Leah, and she conceived, and bare Jacob the
fifth son. And Leah said, God hath given me my hire, because I have given my
maiden to my husband: and she called his name Issachar. And Leah
conceived again, and bare Jacob the sixth son. And Leah said, God hath
endued me with a good dowry; now will my husband dwell with me, because I
have born him six sons: and she called his name Zebulun. And afterwards
she bare a daughter, and called her name Dinah.
And God remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her
womb. And she conceived, and bare a son; and said, God hath taken away my
reproach: And she called his name Joseph; and said, The LORD shall add to me
another son.
And it came to pass, when Rachel had born Joseph, that Jacob said unto
Laban, Send me away, that I may go unto mine own place, and to my country.
Give me my wives and my children, for whom I have served thee, and let me
go: for thou knowest my service which I have done thee. And Laban said unto
him, I pray thee, if I have found favour in thine eyes, tarry: for I have learned
by experience that the LORD hath blessed me for thy sake. And he said,
Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it. And he said unto him, Thou knowest
how I have served thee, and how thy cattle was with me. For it was little which
thou hadst before I came, and it is now increased unto a multitude; and the
LORD hath blessed thee since my coming: and now when shall I provide for
mine own house also? And he said, What shall I give thee? And Jacob said,
Thou shalt not give me any thing: if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again
feed and keep thy flock: I will pass through all thy flock to day, removing from
thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the
sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such shall be
my hire. So shall my righteousness answer for me in time to come, when it
shall come for my hire before thy face: every one that is not speckled and
spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be counted
stolen with me. And Laban said, Behold, I would it might be according to thy
word. And he removed that day the he goats that were ringstraked and
spotted, and all the she goats that were speckled and spotted, and every one
that had some white in it, and all the brown among the sheep, and gave them
into the hand of his sons. And he set three days' journey betwixt himself and
Jacob: and Jacob fed the rest of Laban's flocks.
And Jacob took him rods of green poplar, and of the hazel and chesnut tree;
and pilled white strakes in them, and made the white appear which was in the
rods. And he set the rods which he had pilled before the flocks in the gutters
in the watering troughs when the flocks came to drink, that they should
conceive when they came to drink. And the flocks conceived before the rods,
and brought forth cattle ringstraked, speckled, and spotted. And Jacob did
separate the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the ringstraked,
and all the brown in the flock of Laban; and he put his own flocks by
themselves, and put them not unto Laban's cattle. And it came to pass,
whensoever the stronger cattle did conceive, that Jacob laid the rods before
the eyes of the cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods.
But when the cattle were feeble, he put them not in: so the feebler were
Laban's, and the stronger Jacob's. And the man increased exceedingly, and
had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses.
And he heard the words of Laban's sons, saying, Jacob hath taken away all
that was our father's; and of that which was our father's hath he gotten all this
glory. And Jacob beheld the countenance of Laban, and, behold, it was not
toward him as before. And the LORD said unto Jacob, Return unto the land of
thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee. And Jacob sent and
called Rachel and Leah to the field unto his flock, And said unto them, I see
your father's countenance, that it is not toward me as before; but the God of
my father hath been with me. And ye know that with all my power I have
served your father. And your father hath deceived me, and changed my
wages ten times; but God suffered him not to hurt me. If he said thus, The
speckled shall be thy wages; then all the cattle bare speckled: and if he said
thus, The ringstraked shall be thy hire; then bare all the cattle ringstraked.
Thus God hath taken away the cattle of your father, and given them to me.
And it came to pass at the time that the cattle conceived, that I lifted up mine
eyes, and saw in a dream, and, behold, the rams which leaped upon the
cattle were ringstraked, speckled, and grisled. And the angel of God spake
unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: And I said, Here am I. And he said, Lift up
now thine eyes, and see, all the rams which leap upon the cattle are
ringstraked, speckled, and grisled: for I have seen all that Laban doeth unto
thee. I am the God of Beth-el, where thou anointedst the pillar, and where
thou vowedst a vow unto me: now arise, get thee out from this land, and
return unto the land of thy kindred. And Rachel and Leah answered and said
unto him, Is there yet any portion or inheritance for us in our father's house?
Are we not counted of him strangers? for he hath sold us, and hath quite
devoured also our money. For all the riches which God hath taken from our
father, that is ours, and our children's: now then, whatsoever God hath said
unto thee, do.
Then Jacob rose up, and set his sons and his wives upon camels; And he
carried away all his cattle, and all his goods which he had gotten, the cattle of
his getting, which he had gotten in Padan-aram, for to go to Isaac his father
in the land of Canaan. And Laban went to shear his sheep: and Rachel had
stolen the images that were her father's. And Jacob stole away unawares to
Laban the Syrian, in that he told him not that he fled. So he fled with all that
he had; and he rose up, and passed over the river, and set his face toward the
mount Gilead. And it was told Laban on the third day that Jacob was fled. And
he took his brethren with him, and pursued after him seven days' journey;
and they overtook him in the mount Gilead. And God came to Laban the
Syrian in a dream by night, and said unto him, Take heed that thou speak not
to Jacob either good or bad.
Then Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mount:
and Laban with his brethren pitched in the mount of Gilead. And Laban said
to Jacob, What hast thou done, that thou hast stolen away unawares to me,
and carried away my daughters, as captives taken with the sword? Wherefore
didst thou flee away secretly, and steal away from me; and didst not tell me,
that I might have sent thee away with mirth, and with songs, with tabret, and
with harp? And hast not suffered me to kiss my sons and my daughters? thou
hast now done foolishly in so doing. It is in the power of my hand to do you
hurt: but the God of your father spake unto me yesternight, saying, Take thou
heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad. And now, though thou
wouldest needs be gone, because thou sore longedst after thy father's house,
yet wherefore hast thou stolen my gods? And Jacob answered and said to
Laban, Because I was afraid: for I said, Peradventure thou wouldest take by
force thy daughters from me. With whomsoever thou findest thy gods, let
him not live: before our brethren discern thou what is thine with me, and
take it to thee. For Jacob knew not that Rachel had stolen them. And Laban
went into Jacob's tent, and into Leah's tent, and into the two maidservants'
tents; but he found them not. Then went he out of Leah's tent, and entered
into Rachel's tent. Now Rachel had taken the images, and put them in the
camel's furniture, and sat upon them. And Laban searched all the tent, but
found them not. And she said to her father, Let it not displease my lord that I
cannot rise up before thee; for the custom of women is upon me. And he
searched, but found not the images.
And Jacob was wroth, and chode with Laban: and Jacob answered and said to
Laban, What is my trespass? what is my sin, that thou hast so hotly pursued
after me? Whereas thou hast searched all my stuff, what hast thou found of
all thy household stuff? set it here before my brethren and thy brethren, that
they may judge betwixt us both. This twenty years have I been with thee; thy
ewes and thy she goats have not cast their young, and the rams of thy flock
have I not eaten. That which was torn of beasts I brought not unto thee; I bare
the loss of it; of my hand didst thou require it, whether stolen by day, or
stolen by night. Thus I was; in the day the drought consumed me, and the
frost by night; and my sleep departed from mine eyes. Thus have I been
twenty years in thy house; I served thee fourteen years for thy two daughters,
and six years for thy cattle: and thou hast changed my wages ten times.
Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, had
been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now empty. God hath seen
mine affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight.
And Laban answered and said unto Jacob, These daughters are my daughters,
and these children are my children, and these cattle are my cattle, and all that
thou seest is mine: and what can I do this day unto these my daughters, or
unto their children which they have born? Now therefore come thou, let us
make a covenant, I and thou; and let it be for a witness between me and
thee. And Jacob took a stone, and set it up for a pillar. And Jacob said unto his
brethren, Gather stones; and they took stones, and made an heap: and they
did eat there upon the heap. And Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha: but Jacob
called it Galeed. And Laban said, This heap is a witness between me and thee
this day. Therefore was the name of it called Galeed; And Mizpah; for he said,
The LORD watch between me and thee, when we are absent one from
another. If thou shalt afflict my daughters, or if thou shalt take other wives
beside my daughters, no man is with us; see, God is witness betwixt me and
thee. And Laban said to Jacob, Behold this heap, and behold this pillar, which I
have cast betwixt me and thee; This heap be witness, and this pillar be
witness, that I will not pass over this heap to thee, and that thou shalt not
pass over this heap and this pillar unto me, for harm. The God of Abraham,
and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge betwixt us. And Jacob
sware by the fear of his father Isaac. Then Jacob offered sacrifice upon the
mount, and called his brethren to eat bread: and they did eat bread, and
tarried all night in the mount. And early in the morning Laban rose up, and
kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them: and Laban departed,
and returned unto his place.
And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. And when Jacob
saw them, he said, This is God's host: and he called the name of that place
Mahanaim.
And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother unto the land of
Seir, the country of Edom. And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall ye
speak unto my lord Esau; Thy servant Jacob saith thus, I have sojourned with
Laban, and stayed there until now: And I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and
menservants, and womenservants: and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may
find grace in thy sight.
And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to thy brother Esau,
and also he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him. Then
Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was
with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands; And said,
If Esau come to the one company, and smite it, then the other company
which is left shall escape.
And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the
LORD which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I
will deal well with thee: I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of
all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I
passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands. Deliver me, I pray
thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest
he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children. And thou
saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea,
which cannot be numbered for multitude.
And he lodged there that same night; and took of that which came to his
hand a present for Esau his brother; Two hundred she goats, and twenty he
goats, two hundred ewes, and twenty rams, Thirty milch camels with their
colts, forty kine, and ten bulls, twenty she asses, and ten foals. And he
delivered them into the hand of his servants, every drove by themselves; and
said unto his servants, Pass over before me, and put a space betwixt drove
and drove. And he commanded the foremost, saying, When Esau my brother
meeteth thee, and asketh thee, saying, Whose art thou? and whither goest
thou? and whose are these before thee? Then thou shalt say, They be thy
servant Jacob's; it is a present sent unto my lord Esau: and, behold, also he is
behind us. And so commanded he the second, and the third, and all that
followed the droves, saying, On this manner shall ye speak unto Esau, when
ye find him. And say ye moreover, Behold, thy servant Jacob is behind us. For
he said, I will appease him with the present that goeth before me, and
afterward I will see his face; peradventure he will accept of me. So went the
present over before him: and himself lodged that night in the company. And
he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants,
and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford Jabbok. And he took them, and
sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had.
And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the
breaking of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he
touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of
joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh.
And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto
him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be
called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God
and with men, and hast prevailed. And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I
pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my
name? And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place
Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. And as he
passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh.
Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is
upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of
Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank.
And Jacob lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, Esau came, and with
him four hundred men. And he divided the children unto Leah, and unto
Rachel, and unto the two handmaids. And he put the handmaids and their
children foremost, and Leah and her children after, and Rachel and Joseph
hindermost. And he passed over before them, and bowed himself to the
ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. And Esau ran to meet
him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept.
And he lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children; and said,
Who are those with thee? And he said, The children which God hath
graciously given thy servant. Then the handmaidens came near, they and
their children, and they bowed themselves. And Leah also with her children
came near, and bowed themselves: and after came Joseph near and Rachel,
and they bowed themselves. And he said, What meanest thou by all this drove
which I met? And he said, These are to find grace in the sight of my lord. And
Esau said, I have enough, my brother; keep that thou hast unto thyself. And
Jacob said, Nay, I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then
receive my present at my hand: for therefore I have seen thy face, as though I
had seen the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me. Take, I pray thee,
my blessing that is brought to thee; because God hath dealt graciously with
me, and because I have enough. And he urged him, and he took it. And he
said, Let us take our journey, and let us go, and I will go before thee. And he
said unto him, My lord knoweth that the children are tender, and the flocks
and herds with young are with me: and if men should overdrive them one
day, all the flock will die. Let my lord, I pray thee, pass over before his servant:
and I will lead on softly, according as the cattle that goeth before me and the
children be able to endure, until I come unto my lord unto Seir. And Esau
said, Let me now leave with thee some of the folk that are with me. And he
said, What needeth it? let me find grace in the sight of my lord.
So Esau returned that day on his way unto Seir. And Jacob journeyed to
Succoth, and built him an house, and made booths for his cattle: therefore
the name of the place is called Succoth.
And Jacob came to Shalem, a city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan,
when he came from Padan-aram; and pitched his tent before the city. And he
bought a parcel of a field, where he had spread his tent, at the hand of the
children of Hamor, Shechem's father, for an hundred pieces of money. And
he erected there an altar, and called it El-elohe-Israel.
And Dinah the daughter of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob, went out to see
the daughters of the land. And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite,
prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her.
And his soul clave unto Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the
damsel, and spake kindly unto the damsel. And Shechem spake unto his
father Hamor, saying, Get me this damsel to wife. And Jacob heard that he
had defiled Dinah his daughter: now his sons were with his cattle in the field:
and Jacob held his peace until they were come.
And Hamor the father of Shechem went out unto Jacob to commune with
him. And the sons of Jacob came out of the field when they heard it: and the
men were grieved, and they were very wroth, because he had wrought folly in
Israel in lying with Jacob's daughter; which thing ought not to be done. And
Hamor communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth
for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife. And make ye marriages
with us, and give your daughters unto us, and take our daughters unto you.
And ye shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you; dwell and trade
ye therein, and get you possessions therein. And Shechem said unto her
father and unto her brethren, Let me find grace in your eyes, and what ye
shall say unto me I will give. Ask me never so much dowry and gift, and I will
give according as ye shall say unto me: but give me the damsel to wife. And
the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father deceitfully, and
said, because he had defiled Dinah their sister: And they said unto them, We
cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that
were a reproach unto us: But in this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as
we be, that every male of you be circumcised; Then will we give our daughters
unto you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you,
and we will become one people. But if ye will not hearken unto us, to be
circumcised; then will we take our daughter, and we will be gone.
And their words pleased Hamor, and Shechem Hamor's son. And the young
man deferred not to do the thing, because he had delight in Jacob's daughter:
and he was more honourable than all the house of his father.
And Hamor and Shechem his son came unto the gate of their city, and
communed with the men of their city, saying, These men are peaceable with
us; therefore let them dwell in the land, and trade therein; for the land,
behold, it is large enough for them; let us take their daughters to us for wives,
and let us give them our daughters. Only herein will the men consent unto us
for to dwell with us, to be one people, if every male among us be circumcised,
as they are circumcised. Shall not their cattle and their substance and every
beast of theirs be ours? only let us consent unto them, and they will dwell
with us. And unto Hamor and unto Shechem his son hearkened all that went
out of the gate of his city; and every male was circumcised, all that went out
of the gate of his city.
And it came to pass on the third day, when they were sore, that two of the
sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah's brethren, took each man his sword,
and came upon the city boldly, and slew all the males. And they slew Hamor
and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah out of
Shechem's house, and went out. The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and
spoiled the city, because they had defiled their sister. They took their sheep,
and their oxen, and their asses, and that which was in the city, and that which
was in the field, And all their wealth, and all their little ones, and their wives
took they captive, and spoiled even all that was in the house. And Jacob said
to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled me to make me to stink among the
inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites: and I being
few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay
me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house. And they said, Should he deal
with our sister as with an harlot?
And God said unto Jacob, Arise, go up to Beth-el, and dwell there: and make
there an altar unto God, that appeared unto thee when thou fleddest from
the face of Esau thy brother. Then Jacob said unto his household, and to all
that were with him, Put away the strange gods that are among you, and be
clean, and change your garments: And let us arise, and go up to Beth-el; and
I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my
distress, and was with me in the way which I went. And they gave unto Jacob
all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were
in their ears; and Jacob hid them under the oak which was by Shechem. And
they journeyed: and the terror of God was upon the cities that were round
about them, and they did not pursue after the sons of Jacob.
So Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, that is, Beth-el, he and
all the people that were with him. And he built there an altar, and called the
place El-beth-el: because there God appeared unto him, when he fled from
the face of his brother. But Deborah Rebekah's nurse died, and she was
buried beneath Beth-el under an oak: and the name of it was called Allon-bachuth.
And God appeared unto Jacob again, when he came out of Padan-aram, and
blessed him. And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not
be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his
name Israel. And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and
multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall
come out of thy loins; And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I
will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land. And God went up
from him in the place where he talked with him. And Jacob set up a pillar in
the place where he talked with him, even a pillar of stone: and he poured a
drink offering thereon, and he poured oil thereon. And Jacob called the name
of the place where God spake with him, Beth-el.
And they journeyed from Beth-el; and there was but a little way to come to
Ephrath: and Rachel travailed, and she had hard labour. And it came to pass,
when she was in hard labour, that the midwife said unto her, Fear not; thou
shalt have this son also. And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing,
(for she died) that she called his name Ben-oni: but his father called him
Benjamin. And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which is
Beth-lehem. And Jacob set a pillar upon her grave: that is the pillar of
Rachel's grave unto this day.
And Israel journeyed, and spread his tent beyond the tower of Edar. And it
came to pass, when Israel dwelt in that land, that Reuben went and lay with
Bilhah his father's concubine: and Israel heard it. Now the sons of Jacob were
twelve: The sons of Leah; Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, and Simeon, and Levi,
and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun: The sons of Rachel; Joseph, and
Benjamin: And the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid; Dan, and Naphtali: And
the sons of Zilpah, Leah's handmaid; Gad, and Asher: these are the sons of
Jacob, which were born to him in Padan-aram.
And Jacob came unto Isaac his father unto Mamre, unto the city of Arbah,
which is Hebron, where Abraham and Isaac sojourned. And the days of Isaac
were an hundred and fourscore years. And Isaac gave up the ghost, and died,
and was gathered unto his people, being old and full of days: and his sons
Esau and Jacob buried him.
Now these are the generations of Esau, who is Edom. Esau took his wives of
the daughters of Canaan; Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and
Aholibamah the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite; And
Bashemath Ishmael's daughter, sister of Nebajoth. And Adah bare to Esau
Eliphaz; and Bashemath bare Reuel; And Aholibamah bare Jeush, and Jaalam,
and Korah: these are the sons of Esau, which were born unto him in the land
of Canaan. And Esau took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all
the persons of his house, and his cattle, and all his beasts, and all his
substance, which he had got in the land of Canaan; and went into the country
from the face of his brother Jacob. For their riches were more than that they
might dwell together; and the land wherein they were strangers could not
bear them because of their cattle. Thus dwelt Esau in mount Seir: Esau is
Edom.
And these are the generations of Esau the father of the Edomites in mount
Seir: These are the names of Esau's sons; Eliphaz the son of Adah the wife of
Esau, Reuel the son of Bashemath the wife of Esau. And the sons of Eliphaz
were Teman, Omar, Zepho, and Gatam, and Kenaz. And Timna was
concubine to Eliphaz Esau's son; and she bare to Eliphaz Amalek: these were
the sons of Adah Esau's wife. And these are the sons of Reuel; Nahath, and
Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah: these were the sons of Bashemath Esau's wife.
And these were the sons of Aholibamah, the daughter of Anah the daughter
of Zibeon, Esau's wife: and she bare to Esau Jeush, and Jaalam, and Korah.
These were dukes of the sons of Esau: the sons of Eliphaz the firstborn son of
Esau; duke Teman, duke Omar, duke Zepho, duke Kenaz, duke Korah, duke
Gatam, and duke Amalek: these are the dukes that came of Eliphaz in the land
of Edom; these were the sons of Adah.
And these are the sons of Reuel Esau's son; duke Nahath, duke Zerah, duke
Shammah, duke Mizzah: these are the dukes that came of Reuel in the land of
Edom; these are the sons of Bashemath Esau's wife.
And these are the sons of Aholibamah Esau's wife; duke Jeush, duke Jaalam,
duke Korah: these were the dukes that came of Aholibamah the daughter of
Anah, Esau's wife. These are the sons of Esau, who is Edom, and these are
their dukes.
These are the sons of Seir the Horite, who inhabited the land; Lotan, and
Shobal, and Zibeon, and Anah, And Dishon, and Ezer, and Dishan: these are
the dukes of the Horites, the children of Seir in the land of Edom. And the
children of Lotan were Hori and Hemam; and Lotan's sister was Timna. And
the children of Shobal were these; Alvan, and Manahath, and Ebal, Shepho,
and Onam. And these are the children of Zibeon; both Ajah, and Anah: this
was that Anah that found the mules in the wilderness, as he fed the asses of
Zibeon his father. And the children of Anah were these; Dishon, and
Aholibamah the daughter of Anah. And these are the children of Dishon;
Hemdan, and Eshban, and Ithran, and Cheran. The children of Ezer are these;
Bilhan, and Zaavan, and Akan. The children of Dishan are these; Uz, and Aran.
These are the dukes that came of the Horites; duke Lotan, duke Shobal, duke
Zibeon, duke Anah, duke Dishon, duke Ezer, duke Dishan: these are the
dukes that came of Hori, among their dukes in the land of Seir.
And these are the kings that reigned in the land of Edom, before there
reigned any king over the children of Israel. And Bela the son of Beor reigned
in Edom: and the name of his city was Dinhabah. And Bela died, and Jobab
the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his stead. And Jobab died, and Husham
of the land of Temani reigned in his stead. And Husham died, and Hadad the
son of Bedad, who smote Midian in the field of Moab, reigned in his stead:
and the name of his city was Avith. And Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah
reigned in his stead. And Samlah died, and Saul of Rehoboth by the river
reigned in his stead. And Saul died, and Baal-hanan the son of Achbor
reigned in his stead. And Baal-hanan the son of Achbor died, and Hadar
reigned in his stead: and the name of his city was Pau; and his wife's name
was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahab. And these
are the names of the dukes that came of Esau, according to their families,
after their places, by their names; duke Timnah, duke Alvah, duke Jetheth,
duke Aholibamah, duke Elah, duke Pinon, duke Kenaz, duke Teman, duke
Mibzar, duke Magdiel, duke Iram: these be the dukes of Edom, according to
their habitations in the land of their possession: he is Esau the father of the
Edomites.
And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of
Canaan. These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years
old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of
Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives: and Joseph brought
unto his father their evil report. Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his
children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of
many colours. And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more
than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably unto
him.
And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated
him yet the more. And he said unto them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I
have dreamed: For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my
sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round
about, and made obeisance to my sheaf. And his brethren said to him, Shalt
thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And
they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.
And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said,
Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon
and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. And he told it to his father, and
to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this
dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren
indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth? And his brethren
envied him; but his father observed the saying.
And his brethren went to feed their father's flock in Shechem. And Israel said
unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed the flock in Shechem? come, and I will
send thee unto them. And he said to him, Here am I. And he said to him, Go, I
pray thee, see whether it be well with thy brethren, and well with the flocks;
and bring me word again. So he sent him out of the vale of Hebron, and he
came to Shechem.
And a certain man found him, and, behold, he was wandering in the field: and
the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou? And he said, I seek my
brethren: tell me, I pray thee, where they feed their flocks. And the man said,
They are departed hence; for I heard them say, Let us go to Dothan. And
Joseph went after his brethren, and found them in Dothan. And when they
saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired
against him to slay him. And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer
cometh. Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit,
and we will say, Some evil beast hath devoured him: and we shall see what
will become of his dreams. And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of
their hands; and said, Let us not kill him. And Reuben said unto them, Shed
no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand
upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his
father again.
And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they
stript Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colours that was on him; And
they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no
water in it. And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and
looked, and, behold, a company of Ishmeelites came from Gilead with their
camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt.
And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and
conceal his blood? Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not
our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren
were content. Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew
and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for
twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt.
And Reuben returned unto the pit; and, behold, Joseph was not in the pit; and
he rent his clothes. And he returned unto his brethren, and said, The child is
not; and I, whither shall I go?
And they took Joseph's coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat
in the blood; And they sent the coat of many colours, and they brought it to
their father; and said, This have we found: know now whether it be thy son's
coat or no. And he knew it, and said, It is my son's coat; an evil beast hath
devoured him; Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces. And Jacob rent his
clothes, and put sackcloth upon his loins, and mourned for his son many
days. And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he
refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down into the grave unto
my son mourning. Thus his father wept for him. And the Midianites sold him
into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh's, and captain of the guard.
And it came to pass at that time, that Judah went down from his brethren,
and turned in to a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah. And Judah saw
there a daughter of a certain Canaanite, whose name was Shuah; and he took
her, and went in unto her. And she conceived, and bare a son; and he called
his name Er. And she conceived again, and bare a son; and she called his
name Onan. And she yet again conceived, and bare a son; and called his
name Shelah: and he was at Chezib, when she bare him. And Judah took a
wife for Er his firstborn, whose name was Tamar. And Er, Judah's firstborn,
was wicked in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD slew him. And Judah said
unto Onan, Go in unto thy brother's wife, and marry her, and raise up seed to
thy brother. And Onan knew that the seed should not be his; and it came to
pass, when he went in unto his brother's wife, that he spilled it on the
ground, lest that he should give seed to his brother. And the thing which he
did displeased the LORD: wherefore he slew him also. Then said Judah to
Tamar his daughter in law, Remain a widow at thy father's house, till Shelah
my son be grown: for he said, Lest peradventure he die also, as his brethren
did. And Tamar went and dwelt in her father's house.
And in process of time the daughter of Shuah Judah's wife died; and Judah
was comforted, and went up unto his sheepshearers to Timnath, he and his
friend Hirah the Adullamite. And it was told Tamar, saying, Behold thy father
in law goeth up to Timnath to shear his sheep. And she put her widow's
garments off from her, and covered her with a vail, and wrapped herself, and
sat in an open place, which is by the way to Timnath; for she saw that Shelah
was grown, and she was not given unto him to wife. When Judah saw her, he
thought her to be an harlot; because she had covered her face. And he turned
unto her by the way, and said, Go to, I pray thee, let me come in unto thee;
(for he knew not that she was his daughter in law.) And she said, What wilt
thou give me, that thou mayest come in unto me? And he said, I will send thee
a kid from the flock. And she said, Wilt thou give me a pledge, till thou send it?
And he said, What pledge shall I give thee? And she said, Thy signet, and thy
bracelets, and thy staff that is in thine hand. And he gave it her, and came in
unto her, and she conceived by him. And she arose, and went away, and laid
by her vail from her, and put on the garments of her widowhood. And Judah
sent the kid by the hand of his friend the Adullamite, to receive his pledge
from the woman's hand: but he found her not. Then he asked the men of
that place, saying, Where is the harlot, that was openly by the way side? And
they said, There was no harlot in this place. And he returned to Judah, and
said, I cannot find her; and also the men of the place said, that there was no
harlot in this place. And Judah said, Let her take it to her, lest we be shamed:
behold, I sent this kid, and thou hast not found her.
And it came to pass about three months after, that it was told Judah, saying,
Tamar thy daughter in law hath played the harlot; and also, behold, she is
with child by whoredom. And Judah said, Bring her forth, and let her be
burnt. When she was brought forth, she sent to her father in law, saying, By
the man, whose these are, am I with child: and she said, Discern, I pray thee,
whose are these, the signet, and bracelets, and staff. And Judah
acknowledged them, and said, She hath been more righteous than I; because
that I gave her not to Shelah my son. And he knew her again no more.
And it came to pass in the time of her travail, that, behold, twins were in her
womb. And it came to pass, when she travailed, that the one put out his hand:
and the midwife took and bound upon his hand a scarlet thread, saying, This
came out first. And it came to pass, as he drew back his hand, that, behold,
his brother came out: and she said, How hast thou broken forth? this breach
be upon thee: therefore his name was called Pharez. And afterward came out
his brother, that had the scarlet thread upon his hand: and his name was
called Zarah.
And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh,
captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him of the hands of the
Ishmeelites, which had brought him down thither. And the LORD was with
Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master
the Egyptian. And his master saw that the LORD was with him, and that the
LORD made all that he did to prosper in his hand. And Joseph found grace in
his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and
all that he had he put into his hand. And it came to pass from the time that he
had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the LORD
blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the LORD
was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field. And he left all that he
had in Joseph's hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which
he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured.
And it came to pass after these things, that his master's wife cast her eyes
upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me. But he refused, and said unto his
master's wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house,
and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand; There is none greater in
this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee,
because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin
against God? And it came to pass, as she spake to Joseph day by day, that he
hearkened not unto her, to lie by her, or to be with her. And it came to pass
about this time, that Joseph went into the house to do his business; and there
was none of the men of the house there within. And she caught him by his
garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled,
and got him out.
And it came to pass, when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand,
and was fled forth, That she called unto the men of her house, and spake
unto them, saying, See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock us; he
came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice: And it came to
pass, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his
garment with me, and fled, and got him out. And she laid up his garment by
her, until his lord came home. And she spake unto him according to these
words, saying, The Hebrew servant, which thou hast brought unto us, came in
unto me to mock me: And it came to pass, as I lifted up my voice and cried,
that he left his garment with me, and fled out.
And it came to pass, when his master heard the words of his wife, which she
spake unto him, saying, After this manner did thy servant to me; that his
wrath was kindled. And Joseph's master took him, and put him into the
prison, a place where the king's prisoners were bound: and he was there in
the prison.
But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in
the sight of the keeper of the prison. And the keeper of the prison committed
to Joseph's hand all the prisoners that were in the prison; and whatsoever
they did there, he was the doer of it. The keeper of the prison looked not to
any thing that was under his hand; because the LORD was with him, and that
which he did, the LORD made it to prosper.
And it came to pass after these things, that the butler of the king of Egypt and
his baker had offended their lord the king of Egypt. And Pharaoh was wroth
against two of his officers, against the chief of the butlers, and against the
chief of the bakers. And he put them in ward in the house of the captain of
the guard, into the prison, the place where Joseph was bound. And the
captain of the guard charged Joseph with them, and he served them: and
they continued a season in ward.
And they dreamed a dream both of them, each man his dream in one night,
each man according to the interpretation of his dream, the butler and the
baker of the king of Egypt, which were bound in the prison. And Joseph came
in unto them in the morning, and looked upon them, and, behold, they were
sad. And he asked Pharaoh's officers that were with him in the ward of his
lord's house, saying, Wherefore look ye so sadly to day? And they said unto
him, We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter of it. And Joseph
said unto them, Do not interpretations belong to God? tell me them, I pray
you. And the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, In my
dream, behold, a vine was before me; And in the vine were three branches:
and it was as though it budded, and her blossoms shot forth; and the clusters
thereof brought forth ripe grapes: And Pharaoh's cup was in my hand: and I
took the grapes, and pressed them into Pharaoh's cup, and I gave the cup
into Pharaoh's hand. And Joseph said unto him, This is the interpretation of it:
The three branches are three days: Yet within three days shall Pharaoh lift up
thine head, and restore thee unto thy place: and thou shalt deliver Pharaoh's
cup into his hand, after the former manner when thou wast his butler. But
think on me when it shall be well with thee, and shew kindness, I pray thee,
unto me, and make mention of me unto Pharaoh, and bring me out of this
house: For indeed I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews: and here
also have I done nothing that they should put me into the dungeon. When
the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said unto Joseph, I
also was in my dream, and, behold, I had three white baskets on my head:
And in the uppermost basket there was of all manner of bakemeats for
Pharaoh; and the birds did eat them out of the basket upon my head. And
Joseph answered and said, This is the interpretation thereof: The three
baskets are three days: Yet within three days shall Pharaoh lift up thy head
from off thee, and shall hang thee on a tree; and the birds shall eat thy flesh
from off thee.
And it came to pass the third day, which was Pharaoh's birthday, that he
made a feast unto all his servants: and he lifted up the head of the chief
butler and of the chief baker among his servants. And he restored the chief
butler unto his butlership again; and he gave the cup into Pharaoh's hand:
But he hanged the chief baker: as Joseph had interpreted to them. Yet did not
the chief butler remember Joseph, but forgat him.
And it came to pass at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh dreamed: and,
behold, he stood by the river. And, behold, there came up out of the river
seven well favoured kine and fatfleshed; and they fed in a meadow. And,
behold, seven other kine came up after them out of the river, ill favoured and
leanfleshed; and stood by the other kine upon the brink of the river. And the
ill favoured and leanfleshed kine did eat up the seven well favoured and fat
kine. So Pharaoh awoke. And he slept and dreamed the second time: and,
behold, seven ears of corn came up upon one stalk, rank and good. And,
behold, seven thin ears and blasted with the east wind sprung up after them.
And the seven thin ears devoured the seven rank and full ears. And Pharaoh
awoke, and, behold, it was a dream. And it came to pass in the morning that
his spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt,
and all the wise men thereof: and Pharaoh told them his dream; but there
was none that could interpret them unto Pharaoh.
Then spake the chief butler unto Pharaoh, saying, I do remember my faults
this day: Pharaoh was wroth with his servants, and put me in ward in the
captain of the guard's house, both me and the chief baker: And we dreamed a
dream in one night, I and he; we dreamed each man according to the
interpretation of his dream. And there was there with us a young man, an
Hebrew, servant to the captain of the guard; and we told him, and he
interpreted to us our dreams; to each man according to his dream he did
interpret. And it came to pass, as he interpreted to us, so it was; me he
restored unto mine office, and him he hanged.
Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out of the
dungeon: and he shaved himself, and changed his raiment, and came in unto
Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there
is none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, that thou canst
understand a dream to interpret it. And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It
is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.
And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, In my dream, behold, I stood upon the bank
of the river: And, behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, fatfleshed
and well favoured; and they fed in a meadow: And, behold, seven other kine
came up after them, poor and very ill favoured and leanfleshed, such as I
never saw in all the land of Egypt for badness: And the lean and the ill
favoured kine did eat up the first seven fat kine: And when they had eaten
them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; but they were still
ill favoured, as at the beginning. So I awoke. And I saw in my dream, and,
behold, seven ears came up in one stalk, full and good: And, behold, seven
ears, withered, thin, and blasted with the east wind, sprung up after them:
And the thin ears devoured the seven good ears: and I told this unto the
magicians; but there was none that could declare it to me.
And Joseph said unto Pharaoh, The dream of Pharaoh is one: God hath
shewed Pharaoh what he is about to do. The seven good kine are seven
years; and the seven good ears are seven years: the dream is one. And the
seven thin and ill favoured kine that came up after them are seven years; and
the seven empty ears blasted with the east wind shall be seven years of
famine. This is the thing which I have spoken unto Pharaoh: What God is
about to do he sheweth unto Pharaoh. Behold, there come seven years of
great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt: And there shall arise after them
seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of
Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land; And the plenty shall not be
known in the land by reason of that famine following; for it shall be very
grievous. And for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice; it is
because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.
Now therefore let Pharaoh look out a man discreet and wise, and set him
over the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint officers over
the land, and take up the fifth part of the land of Egypt in the seven plenteous
years. And let them gather all the food of those good years that come, and
lay up corn under the hand of Pharaoh, and let them keep food in the cities.
And that food shall be for store to the land against the seven years of famine,
which shall be in the land of Egypt; that the land perish not through the
famine.
And the thing was good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of all his
servants. And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this
is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is? And Pharaoh said unto Joseph,
Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and
wise as thou art: Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word
shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou.
And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt.
And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph's hand,
and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck;
And he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried
before him, Bow the knee: and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt.
And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and without thee shall no man
lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh called Joseph's
name Zaphnath-paaneah; and he gave him to wife Asenath the daughter of
Poti-pherah priest of On. And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt.
And Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt.
And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all
the land of Egypt. And in the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth
by handfuls. And he gathered up all the food of the seven years, which were
in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field,
which was round about every city, laid he up in the same. And Joseph
gathered corn as the sand of the sea, very much, until he left numbering; for
it was without number. And unto Joseph were born two sons before the years
of famine came, which Asenath the daughter of Poti-pherah priest of On
bare unto him. And Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh: For
God, said he, hath made me forget all my toil, and all my father's house. And
the name of the second called he Ephraim: For God hath caused me to be
fruitful in the land of my affliction.
And the seven years of plenteousness, that was in the land of Egypt, were
ended. And the seven years of dearth began to come, according as Joseph
had said: and the dearth was in all lands; but in all the land of Egypt there
was bread. And when all the land of Egypt was famished, the people cried to
Pharaoh for bread: and Pharaoh said unto all the Egyptians, Go unto Joseph;
what he saith to you, do. And the famine was over all the face of the earth:
and Joseph opened all the storehouses, and sold unto the Egyptians; and the
famine waxed sore in the land of Egypt. And all countries came into Egypt to
Joseph for to buy corn; because that the famine was so sore in all lands.
Now when Jacob saw that there was corn in Egypt, Jacob said unto his sons,
Why do ye look one upon another? And he said, Behold, I have heard that
there is corn in Egypt: get you down thither, and buy for us from thence; that
we may live, and not die.
And Joseph's ten brethren went down to buy corn in Egypt. But Benjamin,
Joseph's brother, Jacob sent not with his brethren; for he said, Lest
peradventure mischief befall him. And the sons of Israel came to buy corn
among those that came: for the famine was in the land of Canaan. And
Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all the
people of the land: and Joseph's brethren came, and bowed down
themselves before him with their faces to the earth.
And Joseph saw his brethren, and he knew them, but made himself strange
unto them, and spake roughly unto them; and he said unto them, Whence
come ye? And they said, From the land of Canaan to buy food. And Joseph
knew his brethren, but they knew not him. And Joseph remembered the
dreams which he dreamed of them, and said unto them, Ye are spies; to see
the nakedness of the land ye are come. And they said unto him, Nay, my lord,
but to buy food are thy servants come. We are all one man's sons; we are true
men, thy servants are no spies. And he said unto them, Nay, but to see the
nakedness of the land ye are come. And they said, Thy servants are twelve
brethren, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan; and, behold, the
youngest is this day with our father, and one is not. And Joseph said unto
them, That is it that I spake unto you, saying, Ye are spies: Hereby ye shall be
proved: By the life of Pharaoh ye shall not go forth hence, except your
youngest brother come hither. Send one of you, and let him fetch your
brother, and ye shall be kept in prison, that your words may be proved,
whether there be any truth in you: or else by the life of Pharaoh surely ye are
spies. And he put them all together into ward three days. And Joseph said
unto them the third day, This do, and live; for I fear God: If ye be true men, let
one of your brethren be bound in the house of your prison: go ye, carry corn
for the famine of your houses: But bring your youngest brother unto me; so
shall your words be verified, and ye shall not die. And they did so.
And they said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in
that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not
hear; therefore is this distress come upon us. And Reuben answered them,
saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye
would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required. And they knew
not that Joseph understood them; for he spake unto them by an interpreter.
And he turned himself about from them, and wept; and returned to them
again, and communed with them, and took from them Simeon, and bound
him before their eyes.
Then Joseph commanded to fill their sacks with corn, and to restore every
man's money into his sack, and to give them provision for the way: and thus
did he unto them. And they laded their asses with the corn, and departed
thence. And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the
inn, he espied his money; for, behold, it was in his sack's mouth. And he said
unto his brethren, My money is restored; and, lo, it is even in my sack: and
their heart failed them, and they were afraid, saying one to another, What is
this that God hath done unto us?
And they came unto Jacob their father unto the land of Canaan, and told him
all that befell unto them; saying, The man, who is the lord of the land, spake
roughly to us, and took us for spies of the country. And we said unto him, We
are true men; we are no spies: We be twelve brethren, sons of our father; one
is not, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Canaan. And
the man, the lord of the country, said unto us, Hereby shall I know that ye are
true men; leave one of your brethren here with me, and take food for the
famine of your households, and be gone: And bring your youngest brother
unto me: then shall I know that ye are no spies, but that ye are true men: so
will I deliver you your brother, and ye shall traffick in the land.
And it came to pass as they emptied their sacks, that, behold, every man's
bundle of money was in his sack: and when both they and their father saw the
bundles of money, they were afraid. And Jacob their father said unto them,
Me have ye bereaved of my children: Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye
will take Benjamin away: all these things are against me. And Reuben spake
unto his father, saying, Slay my two sons, if I bring him not to thee: deliver
him into my hand, and I will bring him to thee again. And he said, My son
shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he is left alone: if
mischief befall him by the way in the which ye go, then shall ye bring down
my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave.
And the famine was sore in the land. And it came to pass, when they had
eaten up the corn which they had brought out of Egypt, their father said unto
them, Go again, buy us a little food. And Judah spake unto him, saying, The
man did solemnly protest unto us, saying, Ye shall not see my face, except
your brother be with you. If thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go
down and buy thee food: But if thou wilt not send him, we will not go down:
for the man said unto us, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother be
with you. And Israel said, Wherefore dealt ye so ill with me, as to tell the man
whether ye had yet a brother? And they said, The man asked us straitly of our
state, and of our kindred, saying, Is your father yet alive? have ye another
brother? and we told him according to the tenor of these words: could we
certainly know that he would say, Bring your brother down? And Judah said
unto Israel his father, Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go; that we
may live, and not die, both we, and thou, and also our little ones. I will be
surety for him; of my hand shalt thou require him: if I bring him not unto
thee, and set him before thee, then let me bear the blame for ever: For
except we had lingered, surely now we had returned this second time.
And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the
best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a
little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds: And take
double money in your hand; and the money that was brought again in the
mouth of your sacks, carry it again in your hand; peradventure it was an
oversight: Take also your brother, and arise, go again unto the man: And God
Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may send away your other
brother, and Benjamin. If I be bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.
And the men took that present, and they took double money in their hand,
and Benjamin; and rose up, and went down to Egypt, and stood before
Joseph. And when Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the ruler of his
house, Bring these men home, and slay, and make ready; for these men shall
dine with me at noon. And the man did as Joseph bade; and the man brought
the men into Joseph's house. And the men were afraid, because they were
brought into Joseph's house; and they said, Because of the money that was
returned in our sacks at the first time are we brought in; that he may seek
occasion against us, and fall upon us, and take us for bondmen, and our
asses. And they came near to the steward of Joseph's house, and they
communed with him at the door of the house, And said, O sir, we came
indeed down at the first time to buy food: And it came to pass, when we
came to the inn, that we opened our sacks, and, behold, every man's money
was in the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight: and we have brought
it again in our hand. And other money have we brought down in our hands to
buy food: we cannot tell who put our money in our sacks. And he said, Peace
be to you, fear not: your God, and the God of your father, hath given you
treasure in your sacks: I had your money. And he brought Simeon out unto
them. And the man brought the men into Joseph's house, and gave them
water, and they washed their feet; and he gave their asses provender. And
they made ready the present against Joseph came at noon: for they heard
that they should eat bread there.
And when Joseph came home, they brought him the present which was in
their hand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth. And he
asked them of their welfare, and said, Is your father well, the old man of
whom ye spake? Is he yet alive? And they answered, Thy servant our father is
in good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down their heads, and made
obeisance. And he lifted up his eyes, and saw his brother Benjamin, his
mother's son, and said, Is this your younger brother, of whom ye spake unto
me? And he said, God be gracious unto thee, my son. And Joseph made
haste; for his bowels did yearn upon his brother: and he sought where to
weep; and he entered into his chamber, and wept there. And he washed his
face, and went out, and refrained himself, and said, Set on bread. And they
set on for him by himself, and for them by themselves, and for the Egyptians,
which did eat with him, by themselves: because the Egyptians might not eat
bread with the Hebrews; for that is an abomination unto the Egyptians. And
they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright, and the
youngest according to his youth: and the men marvelled one at another. And
he took and sent messes unto them from before him: but Benjamin's mess
was five times so much as any of theirs. And they drank, and were merry with
him.
And he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men's sacks
with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man's money in his sack's
mouth. And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack's mouth of the youngest,
and his corn money. And he did according to the word that Joseph had
spoken. As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and
their asses. And when they were gone out of the city, and not yet far off,
Joseph said unto his steward, Up, follow after the men; and when thou dost
overtake them, say unto them, Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good? Is
not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth? ye
have done evil in so doing.
And he overtook them, and he spake unto them these same words. And they
said unto him, Wherefore saith my lord these words? God forbid that thy
servants should do according to this thing: Behold, the money, which we
found in our sacks' mouths, we brought again unto thee out of the land of
Canaan: how then should we steal out of thy lord's house silver or gold? With
whomsoever of thy servants it be found, both let him die, and we also will be
my lord's bondmen. And he said, Now also let it be according unto your
words: he with whom it is found shall be my servant; and ye shall be
blameless. Then they speedily took down every man his sack to the ground,
and opened every man his sack. And he searched, and began at the eldest,
and left at the youngest: and the cup was found in Benjamin's sack. Then
they rent their clothes, and laded every man his ass, and returned to the city.
And Judah and his brethren came to Joseph's house; for he was yet there: and
they fell before him on the ground. And Joseph said unto them, What deed is
this that ye have done? wot ye not that such a man as I can certainly divine?
And Judah said, What shall we say unto my lord? what shall we speak? or how
shall we clear ourselves? God hath found out the iniquity of thy servants:
behold, we are my lord's servants, both we, and he also with whom the cup is
found. And he said, God forbid that I should do so: but the man in whose
hand the cup is found, he shall be my servant; and as for you, get you up in
peace unto your father.
Then Judah came near unto him, and said, Oh my lord, let thy servant, I pray
thee, speak a word in my lord's ears, and let not thine anger burn against thy
servant: for thou art even as Pharaoh. My lord asked his servants, saying,
Have ye a father, or a brother? And we said unto my lord, We have a father,
an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead,
and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him. And thou saidst
unto thy servants, Bring him down unto me, that I may set mine eyes upon
him. And we said unto my lord, The lad cannot leave his father: for if he
should leave his father, his father would die. And thou saidst unto thy
servants, Except your youngest brother come down with you, ye shall see my
face no more. And it came to pass when we came up unto thy servant my
father, we told him the words of my lord. And our father said, Go again, and
buy us a little food. And we said, We cannot go down: if our youngest brother
be with us, then will we go down: for we may not see the man's face, except
our youngest brother be with us. And thy servant my father said unto us, Ye
know that my wife bare me two sons: And the one went out from me, and I
said, Surely he is torn in pieces; and I saw him not since: And if ye take this
also from me, and mischief befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hairs with
sorrow to the grave. Now therefore when I come to thy servant my father,
and the lad be not with us; seeing that his life is bound up in the lad's life; It
shall come to pass, when he seeth that the lad is not with us, that he will die:
and thy servants shall bring down the gray hairs of thy servant our father
with sorrow to the grave. For thy servant became surety for the lad unto my
father, saying, If I bring him not unto thee, then I shall bear the blame to my
father for ever. Now therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant abide instead of
the lad a bondman to my lord; and let the lad go up with his brethren. For
how shall I go up to my father, and the lad be not with me? lest peradventure
I see the evil that shall come on my father.
Then Joseph could not refrain himself before all them that stood by him; and
he cried, Cause every man to go out from me. And there stood no man with
him, while Joseph made himself known unto his brethren. And he wept
aloud: and the Egyptians and the house of Pharaoh heard. And Joseph said
unto his brethren, I am Joseph; doth my father yet live? And his brethren
could not answer him; for they were troubled at his presence. And Joseph
said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near.
And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. Now
therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither:
for God did send me before you to preserve life. For these two years hath the
famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall
neither be earing nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve you a
posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it
was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to
Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of
Egypt. Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son
Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry not:
And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me,
thou, and thy children, and thy children's children, and thy flocks, and thy
herds, and all that thou hast: And there will I nourish thee; for yet there are
five years of famine; lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast,
come to poverty. And, behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother
Benjamin, that it is my mouth that speaketh unto you. And ye shall tell my
father of all my glory in Egypt, and of all that ye have seen; and ye shall haste
and bring down my father hither. And he fell upon his brother Benjamin's
neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck. Moreover he kissed all his
brethren, and wept upon them: and after that his brethren talked with him.
And the fame thereof was heard in Pharaoh's house, saying, Joseph's
brethren are come: and it pleased Pharaoh well, and his servants. And
Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Say unto thy brethren, This do ye; lade your
beasts, and go, get you unto the land of Canaan; And take your father and
your households, and come unto me: and I will give you the good of the land
of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the land. Now thou art commanded, this
do ye; take you wagons out of the land of Egypt for your little ones, and for
your wives, and bring your father, and come. Also regard not your stuff; for
the good of all the land of Egypt is yours. And the children of Israel did so:
and Joseph gave them wagons, according to the commandment of Pharaoh,
and gave them provision for the way. To all of them he gave each man
changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver,
and five changes of raiment. And to his father he sent after this manner; ten
asses laden with the good things of Egypt, and ten she asses laden with corn
and bread and meat for his father by the way. So he sent his brethren away,
and they departed: and he said unto them, See that ye fall not out by the
way.
And they went up out of Egypt, and came into the land of Canaan unto Jacob
their father, And told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive, and he is governor over
all the land of Egypt. And Jacob's heart fainted, for he believed them not. And
they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said unto them: and
when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of
Jacob their father revived: And Israel said, It is enough; Joseph my son is yet
alive: I will go and see him before I die.
And Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beer-sheba, and
offered sacrifices unto the God of his father Isaac. And God spake unto Israel
in the visions of the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I. And
he said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt; for I
will there make of thee a great nation: I will go down with thee into Egypt;
and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Joseph shall put his hand upon
thine eyes.
And Jacob rose up from Beer-sheba: and the sons of Israel carried Jacob their
father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Pharaoh
had sent to carry him. And they took their cattle, and their goods, which they
had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob, and all his seed
with him: His sons, and his sons' sons with him, his daughters, and his sons'
daughters, and all his seed brought he with him into Egypt.
And these are the names of the children of Israel, which came into Egypt,
Jacob and his sons: Reuben, Jacob's firstborn. And the sons of Reuben;
Hanoch, and Phallu, and Hezron, and Carmi.
And the sons of Simeon; Jemuel, and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jachin, and Zohar,
and Shaul the son of a Canaanitish woman.
And the sons of Levi; Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
And the sons of Judah; Er, and Onan, and Shelah, and Pharez, and Zerah: but
Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. And the sons of Pharez were Hezron
and Hamul.
And the sons of Issachar; Tola, and Phuvah, and Job, and Shimron.
And the sons of Zebulun; Sered, and Elon, and Jahleel. These be the sons of
Leah, which she bare unto Jacob in Padan-aram, with his daughter Dinah: all
the souls of his sons and his daughters were thirty and three.
And the sons of Gad; Ziphion, and Haggi, Shuni, and Ezbon, Eri, and Arodi,
and Areli.
And the sons of Asher; Jimnah, and Ishuah, and Isui, and Beriah, and Serah
their sister: and the sons of Beriah; Heber, and Malchiel. These are the sons
of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter, and these she bare unto
Jacob, even sixteen souls. The sons of Rachel Jacob's wife; Joseph, and
Benjamin.
And unto Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim,
which Asenath the daughter of Poti-pherah priest of On bare unto him.
And the sons of Benjamin were Belah, and Becher, and Ashbel, Gera, and
Naaman, Ehi, and Rosh, Muppim, and Huppim, and Ard. These are the sons of
Rachel, which were born to Jacob: all the souls were fourteen.
And the sons of Dan; Hushim.
And the sons of Naphtali; Jahzeel, and Guni, and Jezer, and Shillem. These are
the sons of Bilhah, which Laban gave unto Rachel his daughter, and she bare
these unto Jacob: all the souls were seven. All the souls that came with Jacob
into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob's sons' wives, all the
souls were threescore and six; And the sons of Joseph, which were born him
in Egypt, were two souls: all the souls of the house of Jacob, which came into
Egypt, were threescore and ten.
And he sent Judah before him unto Joseph, to direct his face unto Goshen;
and they came into the land of Goshen. And Joseph made ready his chariot,
and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen, and presented himself unto
him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while. And Israel
said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art
yet alive. And Joseph said unto his brethren, and unto his father's house, I will
go up, and shew Pharaoh, and say unto him, My brethren, and my father's
house, which were in the land of Canaan, are come unto me; And the men are
shepherds, for their trade hath been to feed cattle; and they have brought
their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have. And it shall come to pass,
when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What is your occupation? 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.
Then Joseph came and told Pharaoh, 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. And he took
some of his brethren, even five men, and presented them unto Pharaoh. And
Pharaoh said unto his brethren, What is your occupation? And they said unto
Pharaoh, Thy servants are shepherds, both we, and also our fathers. 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. And Pharaoh spake unto Joseph, saying, Thy father and thy brethren
are come unto thee: 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 knowest any men of activity among them, then make them rulers
over my cattle. And Joseph brought in Jacob his father, and set him before
Pharaoh: and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How old
art thou? And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my
pilgrimage are an 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 pilgrimage. And Jacob blessed Pharaoh,
and went out from before Pharaoh.
And Joseph placed his father and his brethren, and gave them a possession in
the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh
had commanded. And Joseph nourished his father, and his brethren, and all
his father's household, with bread, according to their families.
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.
And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in 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. And when money failed in the land
of Egypt, and in the land 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. And Joseph said, Give your cattle; and I will give you for your cattle, if
money fail. 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. When that year was ended, they came unto him the second year,
and said unto him, 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 ought left in the sight
of my lord, but our bodies, and our lands: Wherefore shall we die before
thine eyes, both we and our land? buy us and our land for bread, and we and
our land will be servants unto Pharaoh: and give us seed, that we may live,
and not die, that the land be not desolate. 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. And as for the
people, he removed them to cities from one end of the borders of Egypt even
to the other end thereof. 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. Then Joseph
said unto the people, Behold, I have bought you this day and your land for
Pharaoh: lo, here is seed for you, and ye shall sow the land. And it shall come
to pass in the increase, that ye shall give the fifth part 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. And they said, Thou hast
saved our lives: let us find grace in the sight of my lord, and we will be
Pharaoh's servants. And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt unto this
day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth part; except the land of the priests
only, which became not Pharaoh's.
And Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had
possessions therein, and grew, and multiplied exceedingly. And Jacob lived in
the land of Egypt seventeen years: so the whole age of Jacob was an hundred
forty and seven years. 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: But I will lie with my fathers, and thou
shalt carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their buryingplace. And he said, I
will do as thou hast said. And he said, Swear unto me. And he sware unto
him. And Israel bowed himself upon the bed's head.
And it came to pass after these things, that one told Joseph, Behold, thy
father is sick: and he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. And
one told Jacob, and said, Behold, thy son Joseph cometh unto thee: and Israel
strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed. And Jacob said unto Joseph, God
Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me,
And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I
will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed
after thee for an everlasting possession.
And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, 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 mine. And thy issue, which thou begettest after
them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brethren in
their inheritance. And as for me, when I came from Padan, Rachel died by me
in the land of Canaan in the way, when yet there was but a little way to come
unto Ephrath: and I buried her there in the way of Ephrath; the same is Beth-lehem.
And Israel beheld Joseph's sons, and said, Who are these? And Joseph said
unto his father, They are my sons, whom God hath given me in this place. And
he said, Bring them, I pray thee, unto me, and I will bless them. Now the eyes
of Israel were dim for age, so that he could not see. And he brought them
near unto him; and he kissed them, and embraced them. And Israel said unto
Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face: and, lo, God hath shewed me also
thy seed. And Joseph brought them out from between his knees, and he
bowed himself with his face to the earth. 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 them near unto him. 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 firstborn.
And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and
Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, 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 grow
into a multitude in the midst of the earth. And when Joseph saw that his
father laid his right hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him: and he
held up his father's hand, to remove it from Ephraim's head unto Manasseh's
head. And Joseph said unto his father, Not so, my father: for this is the
firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head. 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 he, and his seed
shall become a multitude of nations. 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. And Israel said unto Joseph, Behold, I
die: but God shall be with you, and bring you again unto the land of your
fathers. 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.
And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I
may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days. Gather yourselves
together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.
Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength,
the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power: Unstable as water,
thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then
defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch.
Simeon and Levi are brethren; instruments of cruelty are in their habitations.
O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine
honour, be not thou united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their
selfwill they digged down a wall. Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and
their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in
Israel.
Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the
neck of thine enemies; thy father's children shall bow down before thee.
Judah is a lion's whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped
down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The
sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet,
until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. 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: His eyes shall be red
with wine, and his teeth white with milk.
Zebulun shall dwell at the haven of the sea; and he shall be for an haven of
ships; and his border shall be unto Zidon.
Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens: And he saw
that rest was good, and the land that it was pleasant; and bowed his shoulder
to bear, and became a servant unto tribute.
Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel. Dan shall be a
serpent by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels, so that
his rider shall fall backward. I have waited for thy salvation, O LORD.
Gad, a troop shall overcome him: but he shall overcome at the last.
Out of Asher his bread shall be fat, and he shall yield royal dainties.
Naphtali is a hind let loose: he giveth goodly words.
Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run
over the wall: The archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and
hated him: 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:) Even by the God of thy father, who shall help
thee; and by the Almighty, who shall bless thee with blessings of heaven
above, blessings of the deep that lieth under, blessings of the breasts, and of
the womb: The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of
my 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
separate from his brethren.
Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf: in the morning he shall devour the prey, and
at night he shall divide the spoil.
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. And he charged them, and said unto them, I am to be gathered unto
my people: bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron
the Hittite, In the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before
Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field of
Ephron the Hittite for a possession of a buryingplace. There they buried
Abraham and Sarah his wife; there they buried Isaac and Rebekah his wife;
and there I buried Leah. The purchase of the field and of the cave that is
therein was from the children of Heth. 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.
And Joseph fell upon his father's face, and wept upon him, and kissed him.
And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father:
and the physicians embalmed Israel. And forty days were fulfilled for him; for
so are fulfilled the days of those which are embalmed: and the Egyptians
mourned for him threescore and ten days. And when the days of his
mourning were past, Joseph spake unto the house of Pharaoh, saying, If now
I have found grace in your eyes, speak, I pray you, in the ears of Pharaoh,
saying, My father made me swear, saying, Lo, I die: in my grave which I have
digged for me in the land of Canaan, there shalt thou bury me. Now therefore
let me go up, I pray thee, and bury my father, and I will come again. And
Pharaoh said, Go up, and bury thy father, according as he made thee swear.
And Joseph went up to bury his father: and with him went up all the servants
of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt,
And all the house of Joseph, and his brethren, and his father's house: only
their little ones, and their flocks, and their herds, they left in the land of
Goshen. And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen: and it was
a very great company. And they came to the threshingfloor of Atad, which is
beyond Jordan, and there they mourned with a great and very sore
lamentation: and he made a mourning for his father seven days. And when
the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning in the floor of
Atad, they said, This is a grievous mourning to the Egyptians: wherefore the
name of it was called Abel-mizraim, which is beyond Jordan. And his sons did
unto him according as he commanded them: For his sons carried him into
the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah,
which Abraham bought with the field for a possession of a buryingplace of
Ephron the Hittite, before Mamre.
And Joseph returned into Egypt, he, and his brethren, and all that went up
with him to bury his father, after he had buried his father.
And when Joseph's brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph
will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we
did unto him. And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did
command before he died, saying, So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray
thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee
evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of
thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him. And his brethren also
went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants.
And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God? But as for
you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass,
as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not: I will
nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly
unto them.
And Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he, and his father's house: and Joseph lived an
hundred and ten years. And Joseph saw Ephraim's children of the third
generation: the children also of Machir the son of Manasseh were brought up
upon Joseph's knees. And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die: and God will
surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware
to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And Joseph took an oath of the children of
Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from
hence. So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: and they
embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.