hands. Not able to brook this affront, fhe vowed the ruin of the innocent youth; and accordingly having His refu- brought together with her outcries all who were within fal makes hearing, the charged Jofeph with her own crime, conber accufe firming the charge by the dumb witness fhe had torn from

him.

him. By the time her husband came home, fhe had dreft up her story fo well, that he was eafily believed. Had Potiphar loved Jofeph less than he did, it is probable he would have facrificed him that minute to his refentment ; He is fent but he contented himself for the prefent with sending him to prifon. into the king's prifons, where we fhall leave him for a while, to take a view of what paffed in his father's family.

Judah's Nor long after Jofeph had been fold into Egypt, Jumarriage dah married the daughter of a Canaanite, whose name with a was Shuah, by whom he had three fons (N), Er, Onan, Canaan and Shelab. Er being cut off for his wickednefs, before ite. he had any children by his wife Tamar, Judah bid his Er's death. fecond fon Onan take her, according to the custom of Onan's fin that country, and raife a pofterity to his brother. Onan and death. obeyed feemingly; but,not brooking the thoughts, that his

children fhould be efteemed his brother's, took fuch a wicked and unnatural way to prevent Tamar's having any by him, that GOD was provoked to punish him with • Gen. xxxix. p. tot.

(N) It is not eafy to guefs at what time Judah had these three fons by this Canaanitish woman; and, if we take the words in the original, at that time, in a strict fenfe, as if it happened about the time that Jofeph was fold, he must have been too young, being but twenty-two years of age; for Jofeph was feventeen years old, and he could not be above four or five years older, being the fourth fon of Leah, and he and Jofeph both born within the compafs of feven years. So that the most that can be thought is, that he had married either a little before Jo

feph was fold, or about that time, and that the latter part of the ftory of his fon's marriage and death, and the bufinefs of Tamar, happened during the twenty years that Jafeph continued in Egypt. And therefore, though Mofes relates all these events in the chapter preceding that which gives an account of his disgrace and imprisonment, it is most probable, that he has done it to prevent intermingling the story of thofe two brothers too much, and fo has made an end of Judah's adventures, before he went on with those of Jofeph,

death

death alfo (O). Judah therefore bid her remain a widow in her father's houfe, till his third fon was grown old enough to supply his brother's place; but the time being come, and Judah neglecting to fend for her, as indeed he never defigned it, left Shelah fhould meet with the fate of his two brothers, fhe refolved to put him in mind of his engagement by fome other way.

JUDAH, having buried his wife about this time, as foon Judah and as the ufual days of mourning were over, went to over- Tamar. look his fheep-fhearers at Timnath, attended only by his friend Adullam. Tamar had timely notice of his defign; and, thinking this a favourable opportunity to execute her own, the divefted herself of her widow's garments, covered her face with a veil, and in the attire of an harlot placed herself between the two ways that led to Timnath, Judah faw her, and, taking her to be what the appeared, made his addreffes to her, and prevailed. He won her confent, by promifing her a kid, and leaving with her, at her requeft, his fignet, his bracelets, and his ftaff, as fo many pledges for the performance of his promife. The kid he immediately fent by his friend Adullam; but the pretended harlot had difappeared, and no tidings could be heard of her.

SOME months after Judah was informed, that Tamar Tamar was certainly with child. At this news he was not dif- with child pleafed, as her death would free him from his promife of marrying her to his fon Shelah. He pretended,, however, to be highly provoked at her incontinency, and condemned her accordingly to the flames (R); but, Condemn

(O) Though Onan's fin was in itself great enough, yet it is very probable, that it was aggravated with a worfe circumftance; viz. his having an eye to the fuppreffing of the MESSIAH'S Coming, fince he should not have the honour to be numbered among his anceftors (204), which might provoke GOD to cut him off.

(R) Some think that Judab, as head of his own fa

upon ed to be burnt,

mily, had power of life and
death over all that belonged to
it; but it is hardly probable,
that the Canaanites, in whole
country they dwelt, would
give a ftranger fuch a power.
'Tis more likely therefore,
that he meant only, that the
fhould be brought before a
court of judicature, and fen-
tenced according to the laws of
the country. But, whether
judge or profecutor, it was an

But abfolved.

upon her producing the above-mentioned pledges, and declaring that the owner of them was the father of the child, Judah, in the greateft confufion and furprize,owned, that he was the more innocent of the two, and that he had wronged her in with-holding Shelah from her. He afterwards conducted her home, but never touched her A ftrange from that time. When her full time came fhe brought birth. forth twins; but the manner of their birth was very furprifing; for one of them putting forth his hand, the midwife tied a scarlet thread round it as a token of his being the first-born: but he withdrew his hand, and, his brother fhewing him the way into the world, he was called by his mother Phares, or breach, by reafon of the breach he had made between his brother and him ; other was called Zaraht.

Jofeph.

the

JOSEPH in the mean while was got into fuch favour Year of with the keeper of the prifon, that he intrufted him with flood the care of all the prifoners. To two of them, men of 632. fome diftinction, viz. Pharaoh's chief butler and baker, Bef. Chr. Jofeph not only interpreted the dreams they had had, but 1717. told them alfo the precife time when they should fee them fulfilled. Accordingly three days after the butler was reDreams of ftored to his place, and the baker hanged (S). Joseph two prifon

ers ex

plained.

t Gen. xxxviii. p. tot,

inhuman thing to put a woman
to death before the was deliver-
ed; and the Romans, bad as
they were with respect to chil-
dren, whom they used to ex-
pofe when they thought fit,
had yet a law to prevent a
pregnant woman being put to
death before her delivery (209).
But it is probable, that his
eagerness to be rid of her,
made him fpeak more unad-
vifedly than he would have
done, had the been a more in-
different perfon. And it is
plain, that Jofephus looked up-
on all the tranfactions mention-
ed in this chapter to be fo
little for the credit of Judah,

took

and his fons, that he has fuppreffed them all. This is one, though far from the only inftance of his fuppreffing any thing that cafts a reflection on his nation: the reft will occur in the fequel.

(S) Our tranflation has rendered the expreflion which Jofeph uses to the butler and the baker, hall lift up thy bead, too literally, fince that would imply the fame fate to them both, contrary to the event. The words in the original mean, that in three days Pharach would have them brought to their trial, in which cafes the prifoner was fet up on high

(309) Ælian, & V

took this opportunity of addreffing himself to the former, and to beg his affiftance and intereft to get him out of prifon, telling him at the fame time how he had been fold out of his country, and falfly accufed by his miftrefs, and what else he thought proper to move him to comply with his request ".

THE former, being fet at liberty, and reftored to his place, never remembred his fellow prifoner till two years after, when the two famous dreams of Pharaoh forced him, in a manner, to call him to mind, and to recommend him to the king, as one who had a much greater talent at interpreting dreams, than any he had yet confulted. Upon his recommendation, Jofeph was fent for out of prison; and he no fooner appeared than Pharaoh told him his dreams; and promifed him a confiderable reward, if he could give him an interpretation of them. Pharaoh had dreamed, that he had seen seven lufty fat cows feeding on the banks of the Nile; foon after which feven others, lean and ill-favoured, came and devoured them; and yet looked neither the fatter or bigger for it. His fecond dream was much of the fame kind; viz. feven full ears of corn devoured by feven blafted ones. Jofeph anfwered the king, with his ufual Pharaoh's modefty, that the feven cows and feven ears fignified the 2 dreams fame thing; that the dream being repeated, was only a interpretfign, that the thing was to happen immediately after: that ed by Jothe feven fat cows and full ears fignified feven years of ex-feph. ceffive plenty, which would nevertheless be quite forgot Year of ten in the feven fucceeding years of famine, fignified by flood 633. the feven lean cows and blafted ears *. He thereupon ad- Bef.Christ viled the king to appoint a wife and expert man over his 1715whole kingdom, who should take care to build granaries, and fend officers into every province, to lay up a fifth part of all the corn of the feven plentiful years, against the fucceeding years of famine.

THE king and all that heard him were furprised at the Jofeph's wifdom of this young ftranger, who was then but thirty advanceyears old; and concluded that he was the fitteft person to ment and be fet over the kingdom, and to put his proposal in execu- glory.

u Ibid. xxxix, * Ibid. xl.

to be easily seen by the judges and court (210). The fequel fhews this to have been the true

per tot.

meaning, fince, after fuch exa-
mination, the one was hanged,
and the other reinstated,

(210) See 1 Kings xxi. 9.

His marriage.

tion. He was thereupon made mafter and overfeer of Pharaoh's houfe; and orders were given, that he should be obeyed in all things, as if he had been Pharoah himfelf. The king took his fignet off his finger, and gave it to him, caufed him to be cloathed in fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck; telling him, that he appointed him fuperintendant over the whole kingdom, and the next to himself in authority: he gave him moreover the name of Zaphnaph-paaneah, which fignifies a revealer of fecrets (T); beftowed on him in marriage the daughter of Potipherah, priest or prince of On (U); and

(211) Hieron. in loc. Eugubin, &c. (212) Targ. Onkel. in loc. Jef. Ant. l. ii. c. 6. LXX. Grot, Fun, in loc. &al. (213) Gen. xlii. 18. (214) Ezek. xxx. 16. (215) Vid. Hieron. loc. Hebr. (216) Vid. fup. vol. i. p. 411.