4

Shava. And Abimelek and Phikol, the chief of his host, arose, and returned to the land of the Phelishtaee. And he planted a tree in Beer Shava, and prayed there in the name of the Lord, the Most High God. And Abraham sojourned in the land of the Phelishtaee many days.

XXII. And it was after these things that the Lord tempted Abraham; and He said to him, Abraham! And he said, Behold, I am. And He said, Take now thy son, thy only, whom thou lovest, Izhak, and go into the land of worship, and offer him before Me there, a burnt offering, upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee. And Abraham arose in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Izhak his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which the Lord had spoken to him. And in the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place from afar. And Abraham said to his young men, Wait you here with the ass, and I and the young man will ascend yonder and worship, and return to you. And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid on Izhak his son; and he took in his hand the fire and the knife, and they went both of them as one. And Izhak spake to Abraham his father, and said, Father! And he said, Behold, I am, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood; but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? And Abraham said, The lamb for the burnt offering is revealed before the Lord, my son. And they

went, both of them, as one. And they came to the place of which the Lord had told him. And Abraham

4 Sam. Vers., Pumkol," a name with the same meaning as the Hebrew form.

5 Sam. Vers., "a paradise."

6 Sam. Vers., "the Mighty, the Most High.”

7 Sam. Vers., "vision."

builded there the altar, and set in order the woods, and bound Izhak his son, and laid him upon the altar above the woods. And Abraham stretched forth his hand and took the knife to cut off his son. And the Angel of the Lord called to him from the heavens, and said, Abraham, Abraham! And he said, Behold, I am. And he said to him, Stretch not out thy hand upon the youth, neither do any thing to him: for now I know that thou fearest the Lord, and that thou hast not spared thy only son for Me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes after these (words), and saw, and behold, one ram, holden in the bush by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him for a burnt offering instead of his son. And Abraham worshipped and prayed there in that place, and said before the Lord, Here shall generations worship: wherefore it shall be said in that day, In this mountain Abraham worshipped before the Lord.9 And the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham the second time from the heavens, and said, By my Word have I sworn, saith the Lord, because thou hast done this thing, and hast not spared thy only son, therefore, blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thy sons as the stars of heaven and as the sand which is on the sea shore; and thy sons shall inherit the cities of their enemies. And all the peoples of the earth shall be blessed through thy son: forasmuch as thou hast received My word. And Abraham returned to his young men, and they arose and went together unto Beer Shava, and Abraham dwelt in Beer Shava.

And it was after these things it was shown to Abraham, saying, Behold, Milcha, also, hath born sons to Nachor, thy brother: Uts his first-born, and Booz

Sam. Vers., " the son of thy heart."

9 Sam. Vers., "In the mountain the Lord will see, will multiply."

his brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram, and Kesed, and Chazu, and Phildash, and Yedlaph, and Bethuel. And Bethuel begat Rebekah. These eight bare Milcha to Nahor, brother of Abraham. And his concubine, whose name was Reüma, she also bare Tebach, and Gacham, and Tachash, and Maaka.

SECTION V.

CHAIYEY SARAH.

XXIII. And the life of Sarah was a hundred and twenty and seven years, the years of the life of Sarah. And Sarah died in Kiryath-arba, which is Hebron, in the land of Kenaan. And Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to lament her. And Abraham rose up from the presence of his dead, and spake with the sons of Hittah, saying, I am a guest and a sojourner with you: give me the possession of a sepulchre with you, that I may bury my dead from before me. And the sons of Hittah answered Abraham, saying to him, Receive from us Ribbona; a prince before the Lord art thou among us; in the best of our sepulchres bury thy dead. No man of us will refuse his sepulchre to thee for the burial of thy dead. And Abraham rose and bowed to the people of the land, the sons of Hittah. And he spake with them, saying, If you are willing in your minds that I should bury my dead from before me, receive from me, and request for me of Ephron bar Zochar that he will give me the Double Cavern, which is in the side of 1 Sam. Vers., "consult with."

2 Mearath Kaphelta. Hebrew, Mearath hamakphela, "the double cave;" root, kaphal, to couple.” LXX., τὸ σπήλαιον τὸ διπλοῦν.

his field for the full amount (shelim) of silver he shall give it to me among you for the possession of a sepulchre. But Ephron was sitting in the midst of the sons of Hittah; and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham before the sons of Hittah, of all entering the gate of the city, saying, No, my lord; receive of me; I will present to thee the field and the cavern which is in it; to thee will I present it; in sight of the sons of my people will I present it to thee. Bury thy dead. And Abraham bowed before the people of the land. And he spake with Ephron before the people of the land, saying, Nevertheless, if thou wilt do me a grace, receive from me; I will give money for the field; take of me, and I will bury my dead there. And Ephron answered Abraham, saying to him, My lord, receive of me: the land is worth four hundred sileen of silver; between me and thee what is it? Bury thy dead. And Abraham agreed with Ephron, and Abraham weighed to Ephron the silver of which he had spoken before the sons of Hittah, four hundred sileen of silver, which is received in merchandise in every city. And Ephron confirmed the field in which is the double cavern which is before Mamre; the field, and the cavern that is therein, and all the trees which were in the field, in all its boundaries round about, to Abraham, for a purchase, in the sight of the sons of Hitah, of all entering the gate of the city. And after this Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the double cavern of the field which is before Mamre, that is Hebron, in the land of Kenaan. And the field and the cavern which is in it were confirmed to Abraham for the possession of a sepulchre from the sons of Hittah.

XXIV. And Abraham was old, (and) advanced in

3 Or, "province."

4

"By the testimony of."

days, and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things. And Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his house, who had authority over all which was his, Put now thy hand under my thigh, and I will adjure thee by the Word of the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that thou wilt not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Kenaanaee among whom I dwell. But to my country and to my kindred thou wilt go, and take a wife for my son Izhak. And the servant said to him, Perhaps the woman will not be willing to come after me to this land,—returning am I to return thy son to the land from which thou hast gone forth? And Abraham said to him, Take care that thou return not my son thither; the Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from the house of my father and from the land of my birth, and who spake to me, and sware to me, saying, I will give thee this land, will send His angel before thee, and thou wilt take a wife for my son from thence. And if the woman be not willing to come after thee, thou shalt be absolved from this my oath; only cause not my son to return thither. 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 lord and went. And all the goods of his master were in his hand. And he arose and went to Aram, which is upon Phrath, the river, to the city of Nachor. And he made the camels rest without the city at a well of waters in the evening time, at the time when they came forth to fill. And he said, Lord God of my master Abraham, let it, I pray, be opportune with me this day, and deal thou graciously with my master Abraham. Behold, I stand by the fountain of waters, and the daughters of the men of the city will come forth to draw water. Let the maiden to whom I shall say,