Imatges de pàgina
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funeral was fcarce over when Abraham was commanded Abraby GoD to depart thence, into a land which he should fhew ham'scall. to him; and GoD affured him, that he would bless, protect, and multiply him in an extraordinary manner; and that in his feed all the nations of the earth fhould be bleffed he readily obeyed, being doubtless well acquainted with the call, and taking Sarah his wife, and Lot his brother's fon, with all his fervants and cattle, went into the land of Cannan, and pitchled his tents near the city of Sichem (C) then inhabited by the Canaanites, where he built an altar unto the LORD. Here GOD was pleased to appear again unto him, to confirm all his former promifes, and to affure him, that he would one day give that land to his pofterity. Soon after, a great famine, Year of which happened in those parts, forced him to remove into the flood Egypt, which was then the only place where he might hope to find provifion for his numerous family, and great multitude of cattle. However, the fear he was in the account of Sarah his wife, who, tho' fhe was paft the fixty-fifth year of her age, retained yet beauty enough to endanger the man's life who should pafs for her husband, made him refolve, after fome hesitation, that fhe fhould pafs for his fifter, in every place they came to. And from f Ibid.

e Gen. xii. 2, & feqq.

left Haran, and that his father died but a little while before. But we choose to refer our reader for a more fatisfactory folution to the learned Capzovius, especially with the notes of Marcus Mofes in our Englife tongue.

It may not be improper to take notice here, that though Haran, the land fo called, and Haran, the fon of Terah, be fpelt with the fame letters in ours, and other verfions, from which fome have concluded, that the latter gave his name to the country; yet in the original they are differently writ; viz. the former with a n cheth, equivalent to the

upon

Greek X, and might be more
properly fpelt Charan; where-
as Terab's fon's name begins
only with a he, which an-
fwers to our b

(C) If we may credit Ni-
cholas of Damafcus, Abraham
came with an army from Chal-
dea, ftopt, and reigned fome
time in the country of Da-
mafcus, before he went to Si-
chem (7), and his name was
ftill famous there. Jofephus
feems to have quoted his very
words, adding, that Abraham's
name was to that day in
great veneration in that coun-
try, and that there was still a
village which bore the name of
Abraham's habitation.

(7) Ap. Jofeph ant, I. i. c. 8. Eufeb, præp. lix. c. 16.

428.

Bef. Chr.

1920.

Goes into

Egypt.

this descent into Egypt the generality of chronologers compute the space of four hundred and thirty years mentioned by St. Paul, agreeably to what Mofes fays in another place i, that Ifrael dwelt in Egypt four hundred and thirty years; that is, as the LXX interpret it, that from the first coming of Abraham thither to the exodus should ́ be four hundred and thirty years. We fhall have occafion Year of to refume this point in its proper place. Abraham had not flood 429. been long in Egypt before Sarah charmed the Egyptians, Bef. Chr. and in the end captivated Pharaoh himself; who, for her 1919. fake, fhewed extraordinary favours to her pretended broOther (E). In a fhort time Abraham faw himself poffeffed of vaft numbers of fheep, oxen, camels, affes, men and maidfervants, befides gold, filver, and other precious things, which Pharoah heaped upon him; though all too mean' to recompenfe him for the lofs of his wife: at length GOD was pleased to interpofe on his behalf, and to deliver Sarah from the imminent danger the was in. Pharaoh and his house were infefted with fuch plagues, as plainly convinced them on whose account they fuffered. king then fent for Abraham, and having fharply rebuked him for deceiving him in a matter of fuch confequence, delivered up his wife to him as free from any stain of difloyalty as he had received her; and gave orders, that they might fafely depart his dominions with all the wealth they

had.

The

ABRAHAM made no stay in Egypt after this; the faReturns to mine being ceafed in the place which he had left, he Bethel. returned thither by the fame way; and, on the altar he had built before, offered a facrifice of thanks for his happy escape, and safe return ". In the mean time, the herds of i Exod. xii. 40. m Gen. xii, pass.

h Galat. iii. 17.

& xiii.

(E) Perhaps it may not be unacceptable to obferve here, that Pharaoh was not the name of this particular king, but an appellation common to all the kings of Egypt. They had alfo other particular names, as So, Necho, Shishac, &c. but under which of the kings of Egypt this event happened, is

(8) See vol. ii. p. 38.

impoffible to determine, not only because his particular name is not mentioned by Mofes, but likewife by reafon of the great confufion we have obferved in their chronology, and fucceffion of their kings (8); however, abp. Uber ventures to call him Apophis (9).

(9) Sub A. M. 2084,

Let,

Lot, as well as his own, being grown too numerous for the land they lived in, fuch contentions arose between their fhepherds, that Abraham refolved in a friendly man- Separates ner to feparate from Lot; and, having given him his from Lot. choice of the whole country that lay before him, Lot chose the fertile plains of Sodom and Gomorrah, which he faw watered by the river fordan, and parted from his uncle", Abraham was no fooner separated from him, but Gop, who seems to have been the fole conductor of this scene, that the promised bleffings might fall on him alone, bid him caft his eye round the horizon, and promised to give all that land he beheld, to him and his pofterity. Abraham foon after left Bethel, and went to dwell in the land of Moreh, which is in Hebron, where he built an altar unto God, and foon after contracted a friendship with three of the greateft men of the place; viz. Mamre, Aner, and Efhcol; the firft of whom communicated his name to all the country t. This alliance proved very ferviceable to Abraham in procefs of time, and was the cause of his living peaceably near ten years among them: but a misfortune which befel Lot about this time, who was taken captive by Chedorlaomer and his allies, forced Lot taken him to mufter up all his forces and courage to rescue prisoner; him out of their hands. This difafter no fooner reached Year of Abraham's ears than he communicated the news of it to flood 436. his three friends, Mamre, Aner and Efhcol. He readily Bef. Chr. obtained their affiftance, and joining three hundred of his 1912. men to it, they marched in purfuit of the conquerors, surprised them at Dan in the night, purfued them as

far as Hoba, on the left of Damafcus, and having re-andrescued fcued Lot with all his family, fervants, and cattle, brought by Abrahim back to his old habitation. The king of Sodom, ham, who was probably the son of him who had perished in the lime-pits, came out to congratulate Abraham upon his fuccefs, and even offered him all the booty which he had retaken, the men and women excepted, but the patriarch nobly refused to accept the leaft fhare of it. Here Melchifedek met and bleffed him, and he presented that highprieft with the tythes of all the spoil P.

AFTER this Abraham removed to Mamre, or Hebron, Removes where GOD was pleafed to appear to him a fifth time in to Hebron.

n Ibid. ver. 7, & feqq. Vid. fup. before, vol. ii. p. 412, & (K). * Vid. fup. vol. ii. p. 129. Sup. ibid. p. 196,

vol. ii. p. 120.

+ See

• Genef. c. xiv. paff,

P Genef. c. xiv. ver. 18.

a vifion, and to give him fresh affurances of his fpecial fa vour, adding, that he would be his exceeding great reward. Abraham, who had hitherto hearkened to God's promises without any expreffion of diftruft, ventured now, for the first time, to expoftulate with him, not comprehending how they could poffibly be fulfilled whilft himfelf continued childlefs, and to all appearance must leave all his fubftance to Eliezer of Damafcus, overfeer of his houfhold. This was indeed a modeft way to try whether GOD defigned to bless him with a child; and God did not leave him long in fufpenfe, but affured him, that not Eliezer, but a fon of his own fhould be his heir; then commanding him to lift up his eyes to heaven, promised to make his pofterity more numerous than the stars thereof. Abraham was now eighty-five years old, and Sarah, turned of seventy-four, was thought barren. All thefe had been fufficient to ftagger a faith lefs firm than his; but the Scripture fays, that he believed in GoD, and that it was imputed unto him for righteoufnefs. GoD was pleafed moreover, to repeat his former promifes, that he would infallibly give that land to his pofterity, affuring him, that it was for that very end that he had brought him thither out of Chaldea. Here Abraham could not forbear defiring of God to give him fome certain token, whereby he might be affured that his feed fhould poffefs that land, and GOD was pleased to comply with his requeft. He bid him take an heifer of three years, a goat of three years, and a ram of three years (I), with r Gen. xv. 1-6, & feqq.

I

(I) The word which we that Abraham was then repretranflate three years old, in the fenting the three future facrioriginal is, nusu mebule- fices; namely, burnt-offerings, Sheth,which rather fignifies tri- facrifice for fin, and peaceplicated, or thrice told, be- offering. However that be, ing the paul, in the conjuga- it is from this action of dition piel, as the grammarians viding the victims, and paffing fpeak. Accordingly Onkelos thro' the midft to them, that (32) tranflates it three heifers, the Ifraelites introduced the three goats, and three rams; like ceremony in the ratifying wherein he is followed by o- their covenants either with ther Jewish commentators. One of them tells us (33),

GOD or men.

(32) Vid. Mercer. Villet. Rab. Sal. & al, in loc. Gerund. ap. Munft, in Gen. xix, fub not, d.

(33) Mof.

a pigeon

a pigeon and a turtle-dove, and offer them up. Abraham immediately took them, killed the three beasts, clove them in the midft; and joining the pieces one to the other, laid the birds on the top of them, whilft himfelf ftayed to drive away the fowls from the facrifice. As foon as the fun began to fet, a deep fleep fell upon him, followed by a horror of great darkness; during which, it was revealed to him from GOD, that his pofterity should fojourn and be afflicted in a strange land four hundred years (K): at the expiration of which, GoD would pu

• Ibid. ver. 6.

(K) Expofitors have given into various opinions, in order to make out these four hun dred years. Genebrard a learned Romish chronoloer has affirmed, that the Ifraelites dwelt in Egypt the full number of four hundred years (34), whofe error may be easily confuted by the lives of Kohath, the fon of Levi, who went down with Jacob (35), and died in Egypt in the hundredth and thirty-third year of his age (36) of his fon Amram, the father of Mofes, who lived one hundred and thirty-feven years (37); and of Mofes, who was eighty years old when he brought Ifrael out of Egypt; all which feveral numbers make but three hundred and fifty years, out of which we muft fubftra&t those which Kobath had attained when he went down into Egypt, and likewife the time the fathers lived with their children. This has made fome reduce the number to lefs than two hundred

(34) Id. ibid. (37) Ibid. ver. 20. (59) Galat. iii. 15.

Rom. iv. 3, & alib.

nish

and ten years (38), and others to two hundred; whereas we fhall endeavour to prove, that they remained there two hundred and fifteen years. St. Paul reckons from the first promife made to Abraham, to the promulgation of the law, in the first year after the exod, four hundred and thirty years ( (39). Of which two hundred and fifteen were already expired, when Ifrael came into Egypt, which is thus proved, 1. From the time of Abraham's arrival in Canaan, to Jacob's defcent into Egypt, are but two hundred and fifteen years; viz. twenty-five from the time of the promise to the birth of his fon Isaac; 60 more to the birth of Jacob, who is affirmed by Mofes to have been 130 years old when he ftood before Pharaoh, all which make but 215. 2. The laft remaining two hundred and fifteen may be thus reckoned: Kabaih came down with Jacob, and,

(35) Gen. xlvi. 11.
(36) Exod. vi. 13.
(38) Chryfot, homil. I. i. Nic. de Lyr. in loc.

according

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