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The Legends of the Jews Volume 1
by Louis Ginzberg
October, 1998 [Etext
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The Legends of the
Jews Volume 1, by Louis Ginzberg
Footnote numbers have been indicated but
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THE LEGENDS OF THE
JEWS
BY LOUIS GINZBERG
TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN MANUSCRIPT BY
HENRIETTA SZOLD
VOLUME I
BIBLE TIMES AND CHARACTERS
FROM THE CREATION TO
JACOB
TO MY BROTHER ASHER
PREFACE
Was sich nie und nirgends hat begeben, das allein
veraltet nie.
The term Rabbinic was applied to the Jewish
Literature of post-Biblical times by those who conceived the Judaism of the
later epoch to be something different from the Judaism of the Bible, something
actually opposed to it. Such observers held that the Jewish nation ceased to
exist with the moment when its political independence was destroyed. For them
the Judaism of the later epoch has been a Judaism of the Synagogue, the
spokesmen of which have been the scholars, the Rabbis. And what this phase of
Judaism brought forth has been considered by them to be the product of the
schools rather than the product of practical, pulsating life. Poetic
phantasmagoria, frequently the vaporings of morbid visionaries, is the material
out of which these scholars construct the theologic system of the Rabbis, and
fairy tales, the spontaneous creations of the people, which take the form of
sacred legend in Jewish literature, are denominated the Scriptural exegesis of
the Rabbis, and condemned incontinently as nugae rabbinorum.
As the name of a man
clings to him, so men cling to names. For the primitive savage the name is part
of the essence of a person or thing, and even in the more advanced stages of
culture, judgments are not always formed in agreement with facts as they are,
but rather according to the names by which they are called. The current
estimate of Rabbinic Literature is a case in point. With the label Rabbinic
later ages inherited from former ages a certain distorted view of the
literature so designated. To this day, and even among scholars that approach
its investigation with unprejudiced minds, the opinion prevails that it is
purely a learned product. And yet the truth is that the most prominent feature
of Rabbinic Literature is its popular character.
The school and the
home are not mutually opposed to each other in the conception of the Jews. They
study in their homes, and they live in their schools. Likewise there is no
distinct class of scholars among them, a class that withdraws itself from
participation in the affairs of practical life. Even in the domain of the
Halakah, the Rabbis were not so much occupied with theoretic principles of law
as with the concrete phenomena of daily existence. These they sought to grasp
and shape. And what is true of the Halakah is true with greater emphasis of the
Haggadah, which is popular in the double sense of appealing to the people and
being produced in the main by the people. To speak of the Haggadah of the
Tannaim and Amoraim is as far from fact as to speak of the legends of
Shakespeare and Scott. The ancient authors and their modern brethren of the
guild alike elaborate legendary material which they found at hand.
It has been held by
some that the Haggadah contains no popular legends, that it is wholly a
factitious, academic product. A cursory glance at the pseudepigraphic
literature of the Jews, which is older than the Haggadah literature by several
centuries, shows how untenable this view is. That the one literature should
have drawn from the other is precluded by historical facts. At a very early
time the Synagogue disavowed the pseudepigraphic literature, which was the
favorite reading matter of the sectaries and the Christians. Nevertheless the
inner relation between them is of the closest kind. The only essential
difference is that the Midrashic form prevails in the Haggadah, and the
parenetic or apocalyptic form in the pseudepigrapha. The common element must
therefore depart from the Midrash on the one hand and from parenesis on the
other.
Folklore, fairy
tales, legends, and all forms of story telling akin to these are comprehended,
in the terminology of the post-Biblical literature of the Jews, under the
inclusive description Haggadah, a name that can be explained by a
circumlocution, but cannot be translated. Whatever it is applied to is thereby
characterized first as being derived from the Holy Scriptures, and then as
being of the nature of a story. And, in point of fact, this dualism sums up the
distinguishing features of Jewish Legend. More than eighteen centuries ago the
Jewish historian Josephus observed that "though we be deprived of our
wealth, of our cities, or of the other advantages we have, our law continues
immortal." The word he meant to use was not law, but Torah, only he could
not find an equivalent for it in Greek. A singer of the Synagogue a thousand
years after Josephus, who expressed his sentiments in Hebrew, uttered the same
thought: "The
The fancy of the
people did not die out in the post-Biblical time, but the bent of its activity
was determined by the past.
Men craved
entertainment in later times as well as in the earlier, only instead of
resorting for its subject-matter to what happened under their eyes, they drew
from the fountain-head of the past. The events in the ancient history of
But what is
spontaneously brought forth by the people is often preserved only in the form
impressed upon it by the feeling and the thought of the poet, or by the
speculations of the learned. Also Jewish legends have rarely been transmitted
in their original shape. They have been perpetuated in the form of Midrash,
that is, Scriptural exegesis. The teachers of the Haggadah, called Rabbanan
d'Aggadta in the Talmud, were no folklorists, from whom a faithful reproduction
of legendary material may be expected. Primarily they were homilists, who used
legends for didactic purposes, and their main object was to establish a close
connection between the Scripture and the creations of the popular fancy, to
give the latter a firm basis and secure a long term of life for them.
One of the most
important tasks of the modern investigation of the Haggadah is to make a clean
separation between the original elements and the later learned additions.
Hardly a beginning has been made in this direction. But as long as the task of
distinguishing them has not been accomplished, it is impossible to write out
the Biblical legends of the Jews without including the supplemental work of
scholars in the products of the popular fancy.
In the present work,
"The Legends of the Jews," I have made the first attempt to gather
from the original sources all Jewish legends, in so far as they refer to
Biblical personages and events, and reproduce them with the greatest attainable
completeness and accuracy. I use the expression Jewish, rather than Rabbinic,
because the sources from which I have levied contributions are not limited to
the Rabbinic literature. As I expect to take occasion elsewhere to enter into a
description of the sources in detail, the following data must suffice for the
present.
The works of the
Talmudic Midrashic literature are of the first importance. Covering the period
from the second to the fourteenth century, they contain the major part of the
Jewish legendary material. Akin to this in content if not always in form is
that derived from the Targumim, of which the oldest versions were produced not
earlier than the fourth century, and the most recent not later than the tenth.
The Midrashic literature has been preserved only in fragmentary form. Many
Haggadot not found in our existing collections are quoted by the authors of the
Middle Ages. Accordingly, a not inconsiderable number of the legends here
printed are taken from medieval Bible commentators and homilists. I was
fortunate in being able to avail myself also of fragments of Midrashim of which
only manuscript copies are extant.
The works of the
older Kabbalah are likewise treasuries of quotations from lost Midrashim, and
it was among the Kabbalists, and later among the Hasidim, that new legends
arose. The literatures produced in these two circles are therefore of great
importance for the present purpose.
Furthermore, Jewish
legends can be culled not from the writings of the Synagogue alone; they appear
also in those of the Church. Certain Jewish works repudiated by the Synagogue
were accepted and mothered by the Church. This is the literature usually
denominated apocryphal-pseudepigraphic. From the point of view of legends, the
apocryphal books are of subordinate importance, while the pseudepigrapha are of
fundamental value. Even quantitatively the latter are an imposing mass. Besides
the Greek writings of the Hellenist Jews, they contain Latin, Syrian, Ethiopic,
Aramean, Arabic, Persian, and Old Slavic products translated directly or
indirectly from Jewish works of Palestinian or Hellenistic origin. The use of these
pseudepigrapha requires great caution. Nearly all of them are embellished with
Christian interpolations, and in some cases the inserted portions have choked
the original form so completely that it is impossible to determine at first
sight whether a Jewish or a Christian legend is under examination. I believe,
however, that the pseudepigraphic material made use of by me is Jewish beyond
the cavil of a doubt, and therefore it could not have been left out of account
in a work like the present.
However, in the
appreciation of Jewish Legends, it is the Rabbinic writers that should form the
point of departure, and not the pseudepigrapha. The former represent the main
stream of Jewish thought and feeling, the latter only an undercurrent. If the
Synagogue cast out the pseudepigrapha, and the Church adopted them with a great
show of favor, these respective attitudes were not determined arbitrarily or by
chance. The pseudepigrapha originated in circles that harbored the germs from
which Christianity developed later on. The Church could thus appropriate them
as her own with just reason.
In the use of some
of the apocryphal and pseudepigraphic writings, I found it expedient to quote
the English translations of them made by others, in so far as they could be
brought into accord with the general style of the book, for which purpose I
permitted myself the liberty of slight verbal changes. In particulars, I was
guided, naturally, by my own conception of the subject, which the Notes justify
in detail.
Besides the pseudepigrapha
there are other Jewish sources in Christian garb. In the rich literature of the
Church Fathers many a Jewish legend lies embalmed which one would seek in vain
in Jewish books. It was therefore my special concern to use the writings of the
Fathers to the utmost.
The luxuriant
abundance of the material to be presented made it impossible to give a verbal
rendition of each legend. This would have required more than three times the
space at my disposal. I can therefore claim completeness for my work only as to
content. In form it had to suffer curtailment. When several conflicting
versions of the same legend existed, I gave only one in the text, reserving the
other one, or the several others, for the Notes, or, when practicable, they
were fused into one typical legend, the component parts of which are analyzed
in the Notes. In other instances I resorted to the expedient of citing one
version in one place and the others in other appropriate places, in furtherance
of my aim, to give a smooth presentation of the matter, with as few
interruptions to the course of the narrative as possible. For this reason I
avoided such transitional phrases as "Some say," "It has been
maintained," etc. That my method sometimes separates things that belong together
cannot be considered a grave disadvantage, as the Index at the end of the work
will present a logical rearrangement of the material for the benefit of the
interested student. I also did not hesitate to treat of the same personage in
different chapters, as, for instance, many of the legends bearing upon Jacob,
those connected with the latter years of the Patriarch, do not appear in the
chapter bearing his name, but will be found in the sections devoted to Joseph,
for the reason that once the son steps upon the scene, he becomes the central
figure, to which the life and deeds of the father are subordinated. Again, in
consideration of lack of space the Biblical narratives underlying the legends
had to be omitted--surely not a serious omission in a subject with which widespread
acquaintance may be presupposed as a matter of course.
As a third
consequence of the amplitude of the material, it was thought advisable to
divide it into several volumes. The references, the explanations of the sources
used, and the interpretations given, and, especially, numerous emendations of
the text of the Midrashim and the pseudepigrapha, which determined my
conception of the passages so emended, will be found in the last volume, the
fourth, which will contain also an Introduction to the History of Jewish
Legends, a number of Excursuses, and the Index.
As the first three
volumes are in the hands of the printer almost in their entirety, I venture to
express the hope that the whole work will appear within measurable time, the
parts following each other at short intervals.
LOUIS GINZBERG.
CONTENTS
Day--The Third Day--The Fourth Day--The Fifth
Day--The Sixth Day--All Things Praise the Lord.
II. ADAM Man and the
World--The Angels and the Creation of Man--The Creation of Adam--The Soul of
Man--The Ideal Man--The Fall of Satan--Woman--Adam and Eve in
III. THE TEN
GENERATIONS The Birth of Cain--Fratricide--The Punishment of Cain--The
Inhabitants of the Seven Earths--The Descendants of Cain--The Descendants of
Adam and Lilith--Seth and His Descendants--Enosh--The Fall of the
Angels--Enoch, Ruler and Teacher--The Ascension of Enoch--The Translation of
Enoch--Methuselah.
IV. NOAH The Birth
of Noah--The Punishment of the Fallen Angels--The Generation of the Deluge--The
Holy Book--The Inmates of the
V. ABRAHAM The
Wicked Generations--The Birth of Abraham--The Babe Proclaims God--Abraham's
First Appearance in Public--The Preacher of the True Faith--In the Fiery
Furnace--Abraham Emigrates to
VI. JACOB The Birth
of Esau and Jacob--The Favorite of Abraham--The
I
THE CREATION OF THE WORLD
THE FIRST THINGS CREATED THE ALPHABET THE FIRST DAY THE SECOND DAY THE THIRD
DAY THE FOURTH DAY THE FIFTH DAY THE SIXTH DAY ALL THINGS PRAISE THE LORD
I
THE CREATION OF THE
WORLD
THE FIRST THINGS
CREATED
In the beginning,
two thousand years before the heaven and the earth, seven things were created:
the Torah written with black fire on white fire, and lying in the lap of God;
the Divine Throne, erected in the heaven which later was over the heads of the
Hayyot;
When God resolved
upon the creation of the world, He took counsel with the Torah.[2] Her advice
was this: "O Lord, a king without an army and without courtiers and
attendants hardly deserves the name of king, for none is nigh to express the
homage due to him." The answer pleased God exceedingly. Thus did He teach
all earthly kings, by His Divine example, to undertake naught without first
consulting advisers.[3]
The advice of the
Torah was given with some reservations. She was skeptical about the value of an
earthly world, on account of the sinfulness of men, who would be sure to
disregard her precepts. But God dispelled her doubts. He told her, that
repentance had been created long before, and sinners would have the opportunity
of mending their ways. Besides, the
Nor is this world
inhabited by man the first of things earthly created by God. He made several
worlds before ours, but He destroyed them all, because He was pleased with none
until He created ours.[5] But even this last world would have had no
permanence, if God had executed His original plan of ruling it according to the
principle of strict justice. It was only when He saw that justice by itself
would undermine the world that He associated mercy with justice, and made them
to rule jointly.[6] Thus, from the beginning of all things prevailed Divine
goodness, without which nothing could have continued to exist. If not for it,
the myriads of evil spirits had soon put an end to the generations of men. But
the goodness of God has ordained, that in every Nisan, at the time of the
spring equinox, the seraphim shall approach the world of spirits, and
intimidate them so that they fear to do harm to men. Again, if God in His
goodness had not given protection to the weak, the tame animals would have been
extirpated long ago by the wild animals. In Tammuz, at the time of the summer
solstice, when the strength of behemot is at its height, he roars so loud that
all the animals hear it, and for a whole year they are affrighted and timid,
and their acts become less ferocious than their nature is. Again, in Tishri, at
the time of the autumnal equinox, the great bird ziz[7] flaps his wings and
utters his cry, so that the birds of prey, the eagles and the vultures, blench,
and they fear to swoop down upon the others and annihilate them in their greed.
And, again, were it not for the goodness of God, the vast number of big fish
had quickly put an end to the little ones. But at the time of the winter
solstice, in the month of Tebet, the sea grows restless, for then leviathan
spouts up water, and the big fish become uneasy. They restrain their appetite, and
the little ones escape their rapacity.
Finally, the
goodness of God manifests itself in the preservation of His people
That the goodness of
God may rule on earth as in heaven, the Angels of Destruction are assigned a
place at the far end of the heavens, from which they may never stir, while the
Angels of Mercy encircle the Throne of God, at His behest.[9]
THE ALPHABET
When God was about
to create the world by His word, the twenty-two letters of the alphabet[10]
descended from the terrible and august crown of God whereon they were engraved
with a pen of flaming fire. They stood round about God, and one after the other
spake and entreated, "Create the world through me! The first to step
forward was the letter Taw. It said: "O Lord of the world! May it be Thy
will to create Thy world through me, seeing that it is through me that Thou
wilt give the Torah to
The Shin then
stepped forward, and pleaded: "O Lord of the world, create Thy world
through me: seeing that Thine own name Shaddai begins with me."
Unfortunately, it is also the first letter of Shaw, lie, and of Sheker,
falsehood, and that incapacitated it. Resh had no better luck. It was pointed
out that it was the initial letter of Ra', wicked, and Rasha' evil, and after
that the distinction it enjoys of being the first letter in the Name of God,
Rahum, the Merciful, counted for naught. The Kof was rejected, because Kelalah,
curse, outweighs the advantage of being the first in Kadosh, the Holy One. In
vain did Zadde call attention to Zaddik, the Righteous One; there was Zarot,
the misfortunes of
After the claims of
all these letters had been disposed of, Bet stepped before the Holy One,
blessed be He, and pleaded before Him: "O Lord of the world! May it be Thy
will to create Thy world through me, seeing that all the dwellers in the world
give praise daily unto Thee through me, as it is said, 'Blessed be the Lord
forever. Amen, and Amen.' " The Holy One, blessed be He, at once granted
the petition of Bet. He said, "Blessed be he that cometh in the name of
the Lord." And He created His world through Bet, as it is said,
"Bereshit God created the heaven and the earth." The only letter that
had refrained from urging its claims was the modest Alef, and God rewarded it
later for its humility by giving it the first place in the Decalogue.[12]
THE FIRST DAY
On the first day of
creation God produced ten things:[13] the heavens and the earth, Tohu and Bohu,
light and darkness, wind and water, the duration of the day[14] and the
duration of the night.[15]
Though the heavens
and the earth consist of entirely different elements,[16] they were yet created
as a unit, "like the pot and its cover."[17] The heavens were
fashioned from the light of God's garment, and the earth from the snow under
the Divine Throne.[18] Tohu is a green band which encompasses the whole world,
and dispenses darkness, and Bohu consists of stones in the abyss, the producers
of the waters. The light created at the very beginning is not the same as the
light emitted by the sun, the moon, and the stars, which appeared only on the
fourth day. The light of the first day was of a sort that would have enabled
man to see the world at a glance from one end to the other. Anticipating the
wickedness of the sinful generations of the deluge and the
Several heavens were
created,[20] seven in fact,[21] each to serve a purpose of its own. The first,
the one visible to man, has no function except that of covering up the light
during the night time; therefore it disappears every morning. The planets are
fastened to the second of the heavens; in the third the manna is made for the
pious in the hereafter; the fourth contains the celestial
The seventh heaven,
on the other hand, contains naught but what is good and beautiful: right,
justice, and mercy, the storehouses of life, peace, and blessing, the souls of
the pious, the souls and spirits of unborn generations, the dew with which God
will revive the dead on the resurrection day, and, above all, the Divine
Throne, surrounded by the seraphim, the ofanim, the holy Hayyot, and the
ministering angels.[22]
Corresponding to the
seven heavens, God created seven earths, each separated from the next by five
layers. Over the lowest earth, the seventh, called Erez, lie in succession the
abyss, the Tohu, the Bohu, a sea, and waters.[23] Then the sixth[24] earth is
reached, the Adamah, the scene of the magnificence of God. In the same way the
Adamah is separated from the fifth earth, the Arka, which contains Gehenna, and
Sha'are Mawet, and Sha'are Zalmawet, and Beer Shahat, and Tit ha-Yawen, and
Abaddon, and Sheol,[25] and there the souls of the wicked are guarded by the Angels
of Destruction. In the same way Arka is followed by Harabah, the dry, the place
of brooks and streams in spite of its name, as the next, called Yabbashah, the
mainland, contains the rivers and the springs. Tebel, the second earth, is the
first mainland inhabited by living creatures, three hundred and sixty-five
species,[26] all essentially different from those of our own earth. Some have
human heads set on the body of a lion, or a serpent, or an ox; others have
human bodies topped by the head of one of these animals. Besides, Tebel is
inhabited by human beings with two heads and four hands and feet, in fact with
all their organs doubled excepting only the trunk.[27] It happens sometimes
that the parts of these double persons quarrel with each other, especially
while eating and drinking, when each claims the best and largest portions for
himself. This species of mankind is distinguished for great piety, another
difference between it and the inhabitants of our earth.
Our own earth is
called Heled, and, like the others, it is separated from the Tebel by an abyss,
the Tohu, the Bohu, a sea, and waters.
Thus one earth rises
above the other, from the first to the seventh, and over the seventh earth the
heavens are vaulted, from the first to the seventh, the last of them attached
to the arm of God. The seven heavens form a unity, the seven kinds of earth
form a unity, and the heavens and the earth together also form a unity.[28]
When God made our
present heavens and our present earth, "the new heavens and the new
earth"[29] were also brought forth, yea, and the hundred and ninety-six
thousand worlds which God created unto His Own glory.[30]
It takes five
hundred years to walk from the earth to the heavens, and from one end of a
heaven to the other, and also from one heaven to the next,[31] and it takes the
same length of time to travel from the east to the west, or from the south to
the north.[32] Of all this vast world only one-third is inhabited, the other
two-thirds being equally divided between water and waste desert land.
Beyond the inhabited
parts to the east is
In the east, the
west, and the south, heaven and earth touch each other, but the north God left
unfinished, that any man who announced himself as a god might be set the task
of supplying the deficiency, and stand convicted as a pretender.[37]
The construction of
the earth was begun at the centre, with the foundation stone of the
THE SECOND DAY
On the second day
God brought forth four creations, the firmament, hell, fire, and the
angels.[44] The firmament is not the same as the heavens of the first day. It
is the crystal stretched forth over the heads of the Hayyot, from which the
heavens derive their light, as the earth derives its light from the sun. This
firmament saves the earth from being engulfed by the waters of the heavens; it
forms the partition between the waters above and the waters below.[45] It was
made to crystallize into the solid it is by the heavenly fire, which broke its
bounds, and condensed the surface of the firmament. Thus fire made a division
between the celestial and the terrestrial at the time of creation, as it did at
the revelation on Mount Sinai.[46] The firmament is not more than three fingers
thick,[47] nevertheless it divides two such heavy bodies as the waters below,
which are the foundations for the nether world, and the waters above, which are
the foundations for the seven heavens, the Divine Throne, and the abode of the
angels.[48]
The separation of
the waters into upper and lower waters was the only act of the sort done by God
in connection with the work of creation.[49] All other acts were unifying. It
therefore caused some difficulties. When God commanded, "Let the waters be
gathered together, unto one place, and let the dry land appear," certain
parts refused to obey. They embraced each other all the more closely. In His
wrath at the waters, God determined to let the whole of creation resolve itself
into chaos again. He summoned the Angel of the Face, and ordered him to destroy
the world. The angel opened his eyes wide, and scorching fires and thick clouds
rolled forth from them, while he cried out, "He who divides the
The second day of
creation was an untoward day in more than the one respect that it introduced a
breach where before there had been nothing but unity; for it was the day that
saw also the creation of hell. Therefore God could not say of this day as of
the others, that He "saw that it was good." A division may be
necessary, but it cannot be called good, and hell surely does not deserve the
attribute of good.[54] Hell[55] has seven divisions,[36] one beneath the other.
They are called Sheol, Abaddon, Beer Shahat, Tit ha-Yawen, Sha'are Mawet,
Sha'are Zalmawet: and Gehenna. It requires three hundred years to traverse the
height, or the width, or the depth of each division, and it would take six
thousand three hundred[37] years to go over a tract of land equal in extent to
the seven divisions.[38]
Each of the seven
divisions in turn has seven subdivisions, and in each compartment there are
seven rivers of fire and seven of hail. The width of each is one thousand ells,
its depth one thousand, and its length three hundred, and they flow one from
the other, and are supervised by ninety thousand Angels of Destruction. There
are, besides, in every compartment seven thousand caves, in every cave there
are seven thousand crevices, and in every crevice seven thousand scorpions.
Every scorpion has three hundred rings, and in every ring seven thousand
pouches of venom, from which flow seven rivers of deadly poison. If a man
handles it, he immediately bursts, every limb is torn from his body, his bowels
are cleft asunder, and he falls upon his face.[56] There are also five
different kinds of fire in hell. One devours and absorbs, another devours and
does not absorb, while the third absorbs and does not devour, and there is
still another fire, which neither devours nor absorbs, and furthermore a fire
which devours fire. There are coals big as mountains, and coals big as hills,
and coals as large as the
The third creation
of the second day was the angel hosts, both the ministering angels and the
angels of praise. The reason they had not been called into being on the first
day was, lest men believe that the angels assisted God in the creation of the
heavens and the earth.[61] The angels that are fashioned from fire have forms
of fire,[62] but only so long as they remain in heaven. When they descend to
earth, to do the bidding of God here below, either they are changed into wind,
or they assume the guise of men.[63] There are ten ranks or degrees among the
angels.[64]
The most exalted in
rank are those surrounding the Divine Throne on all sides, to the right, to the
left, in front, and behind, under the leadership of the archangels Michael,
Gabriel, Uriel, and Raphael.[65]
All the celestial
beings praise God with the words, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of
hosts," but men take precedence of the angels herein. They may not begin
their song of praise until the earthly beings have brought their homage to
God.[66] Especially Israel is preferred to the angels. When they encircle the
Divine Throne in the form of fiery mountains and flaming hills, and attempt to
raise their voices in adoration of the Creator, God silences them with the
words, "Keep quiet until I have heard the songs, praises, prayers, and
sweet melodies of
THE THIRD DAY
Up to this time the
earth was a plain, and wholly covered with water. Scarcely had the words of
God, "Let the waters be gathered together," made themselves heard,
when mountains appeared all over and hills,[71] and the water collected in the
deep-lying basins. But the water was recalcitrant, it resisted the order to
occupy the lowly spots, and threatened to overflow the earth, until God forced
it back into the sea, and encircled the sea with sand. Now, whenever the water
is tempted to transgress its bounds, it beholds the sand, and recoils.[72]
The waters did but
imitate their chief Rahab, the Angel of the Sea, who rebelled at the creation
of the world. God had commanded Rahab to take in the water. But he refused,
saying, "I have enough." The punishment for his disobedience was
death. His body rests in the depths of the sea, the water dispelling the foul
odor that emanates from it.[73]
The main creation of
the third day was the realm of plants, the terrestrial plants as well as the
plants of
The command to bear
seed after their kind was given to the trees alone. But the various sorts of
grass reasoned, that if God had not desired divisions according to classes, He
would not have instructed the trees to bear fruit after their kind with the
seed thereof in it, especially as trees are inclined of their own accord to
divide themselves into species. The grasses therefore reproduced themselves
also after their kinds. This prompted the exclamation of the Prince of the
World, "Let the glory of the Lord endure forever; let the Lord rejoice in
His works."[75]
The most important
work done on the third day was the creation of
division for the youths, with whom he enjoys
the delights of youth. Next he becomes an adult, in the prime of life, and he
enters the division of men, and enjoys the pleasures of manhood. Finally, he is
changed into an old man. He enters the division for the old, and enjoys the
pleasures of age.
There are eighty
myriads of trees in every corner of
As for the seven
divisions of
In the sixth
division dwell those who died in performing a pious act, and in the seventh
division those who died from illness inflicted as an expiation for the sins of
Israel.[97]
THE FOURTH DAY
The fourth day of
creation produced the sun, the moon, and the stars. These heavenly spheres were
not actually fashioned on this day; they were created on the first day, and
merely were assigned their places in the heavens on the fourth.[98] At first
the sun and the moon enjoyed equal powers and prerogatives.[99] The moon spoke
to God, and said: "O Lord, why didst Thou create the world with the letter
Bet?" God replied: "That it might be made known unto My creatures
that there are two worlds." The moon: "O Lord: which of the two
worlds is the larger, this world or the world to come?" God: "The
world to come is the larger." The moon: "O Lord, Thou didst create
two worlds, a greater and a lesser world; Thou didst create the heaven and the
earth, the heaven exceeding the earth; Thou didst create fire and water, the
water stronger than the fire, because it can quench the fire; and now Thou hast
created the sun and the moon, and it is becoming that one of them should be
greater than the other." Then spake God to the moon: "I know well,
thou wouldst have me make Thee greater than the sun. As a punishment I decree
that thou mayest keep but one-sixtieth of thy light." The moon made
supplication: "Shall I be punished so severely for having spoken a single
word?" God relented: "In the future world I will restore thy light,
so that thy light may again be as the light of the sun." The moon was not
yet satisfied. "O Lord," she said, "and the light of the sun,
how great will it be in that day?" Then the wrath of God was once more
enkindled: "What, thou still plottest against the sun? As thou livest, in
the world to come his light shall be sevenfold the light he now
sheds."[100] The Sun runs his course like a bridegroom. He sits upon a
throne with a garland on his head.[101] Ninety-six angels accompany him on his
daily journey, in relays of eight every hour, two to the left of him, and two
to the right, two before Him, and two behind. Strong as he is, he could
complete his course from south to north in a single instant, but three hundred
and sixty-five angels restrain him by means of as many grappling-irons. Every
day one looses his hold, and the sun must thus spend three hundred and
sixty-five days on his course. The progress of the sun in his circuit is an
uninterrupted song of praise to God. And this song alone makes his motion
possible. Therefore, when Joshua wanted to bid the sun stand still, he had to
command him to be silent. His song of praise hushed, the sun stood still.[102]
The sun is
double-faced; one face, of fire, is directed toward the earth, and one of hail,
toward heaven, to cool off the prodigious heat that streams from the other
face, else the earth
would catch afire. In winter the sun turns his
fiery face upward, and thus the cold is produced.[103] When the sun descends in
the west in the evening, he dips down into the ocean and takes a bath, his fire
is extinguished, and therefore he dispenses neither light nor warmth during the
night. But as soon as he reaches the east in the morning, he laves himself in a
stream of flame, which imparts warmth and light to him, and these he sheds over
the earth. In the same way the moon and the stars take a
bath in a stream of hail before they enter upon
their service for the night.[104]
When the sun and the
moon are ready to start upon their round of duties, they appear before God, and
beseech him to relieve them of their task, so that they may be spared the sight
of sinning mankind. Only upon compulsion they proceed with their daily course.
Coming from the presence of God, they are blinded by the radiance in the
heavens, and they cannot find their way. God, therefore, shoots off arrows, by
the glittering light of which they are guided. It is on account of the
sinfulness of man, which the sun is forced to contemplate on his rounds, that
he grows weaker as the time of his going down approaches, for sins have a
defiling and enfeebling effect, and he drops from the horizon as a sphere of
blood, for blood is the sign of corruption.[105] As the sun sets forth on his
course in the morning, his wings touch the leaves on the trees of Paradise, and
their vibration is communicated to the angels and the holy Hayyot, to the other
plants, and also to the trees and plants on earth, and to all the beings on
earth and in heaven. It is the signal for them all to cast their eyes upward.
As soon as they see the Ineffable Name, which is engraved in the sun, they
raise their voices in songs of praise to God. At the same moment a heavenly
voice is heard to say, "Woe to the sons of men that consider not the honor
of God like unto these creatures whose voices now rise aloft in
adoration."[106] These words, naturally, are not heard by men; as little
as they perceive the grating of the sun against the wheel to which all the
celestial bodies are attached, although the noise it makes is extraordinarily
loud.[107] This friction of the sun and the wheel produces the motes dancing
about in the sunbeams. They are the carriers of healing to the sick,[108] the
only health-giving creations of the fourth day, on the whole an unfortunate
day, especially for children, afflicting them with disease.[109] When God
punished the envious moon by diminishing her light and splendor, so that she
ceased to be the equal of the sun as she had been originally,[110] she
fell,[111] and tiny threads were loosed from her body. These are the
stars.[112]
THE FIFTH DAY
On the fifth day of
creation God took fire[118] and water, and out of these two elements He made
the fishes of the sea.[114] The animals in the water are much more numerous
than those on land. For every species on land, excepting only the weasel, there
is a corresponding species in the water, and, besides, there are many found
only in the water.[115]
The ruler over the
sea-animals is leviathan.[116] With all the other fishes he was made on the
fifth day.[117] Originally he was created male and female like all the other
animals. But when it appeared that a pair of these monsters might annihilate
the whole earth with their united strength, God killed the female.[119] So
enormous is leviathan that to quench his thirst he needs all the water that
flows from the Jordan into the sea.[119] His food consists of the fish which go
between his jaws of their own accord.[120] When he is hungry, a hot breath
blows from his nostrils, and it makes the waters of the great sea seething hot.
Formidable though behemot, the other monster, is, he feels insecure until he is
certain that leviathan has satisfied his thirst.[121] The only thing that can
keep him in check is the stickleback, a little fish which was created for the
purpose, and of which he stands in great awe.[122] But leviathan is more than
merely large and strong; he is wonderfully made besides. His fins radiate
brilliant light, the very sun is obscured by it,[123] and also his eyes shed
such splendor that frequently the sea is illuminated suddenly by it.[121] No
wonder that this marvellous beast is the plaything of God, in whom He takes His
pastime.[124]
There is but one
thing that makes leviathan repulsive, his foul smell: which is so strong that
if it penetrated thither, it would render
The real purpose of
leviathan is to be served up as a dainty to the pious in the world to come. The
female was put into brine as soon as she was killed, to be preserved against
the time when her flesh will be needed.[126] The male is destined to offer a
delectable sight to all beholders before he is consumed. When his last hour
arrives, God will summon the angels to enter into combat with the monster. But
no sooner will leviathan cast his glance at them than they will flee in fear
and dismay from the field of battle. They will return to the charge with
swords, but in vain, for his scales can turn back steel like straw. They will
be equally unsuccessful when they attempt to kill him by throwing darts and
slinging stones; such missiles will rebound without leaving the least
impression on his body. Disheartened, the angels will give up the combat, and
God will command leviathan and behemot to enter into a duel with each other.
The issue will be that both will drop dead, behemot slaughtered by a blow of
leviathan's fins, and leviathan killed by a lash of behemot's tail. From the
skin of leviathan God will construct tents to shelter companies of the pious
while they enjoy the dishes made of his flesh. The amount assigned to each of
the pious will be in proportion to his deserts, and none will envy or begrudge
the other his better share. What is left of leviathan's skin will be stretched
out over Jerusalem as a canopy, and the light streaming from it will illumine
the whole world, and what is left of his flesh after the pious have appeased
their appetite, will be distributed among the rest of men, to carry on traffic
therewith.[127]
On the same day with
the fishes, the birds were created, for these two kinds of animals are closely
related to each other. Fish are fashioned out of water, and birds out of marshy
ground saturated with water.[128]
As leviathan is the
king of fishes, so the ziz is appointed to rule over the birds.[129] His name
comes from the variety of tastes his flesh has; it tastes like this, zeh, and
like that, zeh.[130] The ziz is as monstrous of size as leviathan himself. His ankles
rest on the earth, and his head reaches to the very sky.[121]
It once happened
that travellers on a vessel noticed a bird. As he stood in the water, it merely
covered his feet, and his head knocked against the sky. The onlookers thought
the water could not have any depth at that point, and they prepared to take a
bath there. A heavenly voice warned them: "Alight not here! Once a
carpenter's axe slipped from his hand at this spot, and it took it seven years
to touch bottom." The bird the travellers saw was none other than the
ziz.[132] His wings are so huge that unfurled they darken the sun.[133] They
protect the earth against the storms of the south; without their aid the earth
would not be able to resist the winds blowing thence.[134] Once an egg of the
ziz fell to the ground and broke. The fluid from it flooded sixty cities, and
the shock crushed three hundred cedars. Fortunately such accidents do not occur
frequently. As a rule the bird lets her eggs slide gently into her nest. This
one mishap was due to the fact that the egg was rotten, and the bird cast it
away carelessly. The ziz has another name, Renanin,[135] because he is the
celestial singer.[136] On account of his relation to the heavenly regions he is
also called Sekwi, the seer, and, besides, he is called "son of the
nest,"[137] because his fledgling birds break away from the shell without
being hatched by the mother bird; they spring directly from the nest, as it
were.[138] Like leviathan, so ziz is a delicacy to be served to the pious at the
end of time, to compensate them for the privations which abstaining from the
unclean fowls imposed upon them.[139]
THE SIXTH DAY
As the fish were
formed out of water, and the birds out of boggy earth well mixed with water, so
the mammals were formed out of solid earth,[140] and as leviathan is the most
notable representative of the fish kind, and ziz of the bird kind, so behemot
is the most notable representative of the mammal kind. Behemot matches
leviathan in strength, and he had to be prevented, like leviathan, from
multiplying and increasing, else the world could not have continued to exist;
after God had created him male and female, He at once deprived him of the
desire to propagate his kind.[141] He is so monstrous that he requires the
produce of a thousand mountains for his daily food. All the water that flows
through the bed of the
Leviathan, ziz, and
behemot are not the only monsters; there are many others, and marvellous ones,
like the reem, a giant animal, of which only one couple, male and female, is in
existence. Had there been more, the world could hardly have maintained itself
against them. The act of copulation occurs but once in seventy years between
them, for God has so ordered it that the male and female reem are at opposite
ends of the earth, the one in the east, the other in the west. The act of
copulation results in the death of the male. He is bitten by the female and
dies of the bite. The female becomes pregnant and remains in this state for no
less than twelve years. At the end of this long period she gives birth to
twins, a male and a female. The year preceding her delivery she is not able to
move. She would die of hunger, were it not that her own spittle flowing
copiously from her mouth waters and fructifies the earth near her, and causes
it to bring forth enough for her maintenance. For a whole year the animal can
but roll from side to side, until finally her belly bursts, and the twins issue
forth. Their appearance is thus the signal for the death of the mother reem.
She makes room for the new generation, which in turn is destined to suffer the
same fate as the generation that went before. Immediately after birth, the one
goes eastward and the other westward, to meet only after the lapse of seventy
years, propagate themselves, and perish.[144] A traveller who once saw a reem
one day old described its height to be four parasangs, and the length of its
head one parasang and a half.[145] Its horns measure one hundred ells, and
their height is a great deal more.[146]
One of the most
remarkable creatures is the "man of the mountain," Adne Sadeh, or,
briefly, Adam.[147] His form is exactly that of a human being, but he is
fastened to the ground by means of a navel-string, upon which his life depends.
The cord once snapped, he dies. This animal keeps himself alive with what is
produced by the soil around about him as far as his tether permits him to
crawl. No creature may venture to approach within the radius of his cord, for
he seizes and demolishes whatever comes in his reach. To kill him, one may not
go near to him, the navel-string must be severed from a distance by means of a
dart, and then he dies amid groans and moans.[143] Once upon a time a traveller
happened in the region where this animal is found. He overheard his host
consult his wife as to what to do to honor their guest, and resolve to serve
"our man," as he said. Thinking he had fallen among cannibals, the
stranger ran as fast as his feet could carry him from his entertainer, who
sought vainly to restrain him. Afterward, he found out that there had been no
intention of regaling him with human flesh, but only with the flesh of the
strange animal called "man."[146] As the "man of the
mountain" is fixed to the ground by his navel-string, so the
barnacle-goose is grown to a tree by its bill. It is hard to say whether it is
an animal and must be slaughtered to be fit for food, or whether it is a plant
and no ritual ceremony is necessary before eating it.[150]
Among the birds the
phoenix is the most wonderful. When Eve gave all the animals some of the fruit
of the tree of knowledge, the phoenix was the only bird that refused to eat
thereof, and he was rewarded with eternal life. When he has lived a thousand
years, his body shrinks, and the feathers drop from it, until he is as small as
an egg. This is the nucleus of the new bird.[151]
The phoenix is also
called "the guardian of the terrestrial sphere." He runs with the sun
on his circuit, and he spreads out his wings and catches up the fiery rays of
the sun.[152] If he were not there to intercept them, neither man nor any other
animate being would keep alive. On his right wing the following words are
inscribed in huge letters,[153] about four thousand stadia high: "Neither
the earth produces me, nor the heavens, but only the wings of fire." His
food consists of the manna of heaven and the dew of the earth. His excrement is
a worm, whose excrement in turn is the cinnamon used by kings and princes.[152]
Enoch, who saw the phoenix birds when he was translated, describes them as
flying creatures, wonderful and strange in appearance, with the feet and tails
of lions, and the heads of crocodiles; their appearance is of a purple color
like the rainbow; their size nine hundred measures. Their wings are like those
of angels, each having twelve, and they attend the chariot of the sun and go
with him, bringing heat and dew as they are ordered by God. In the morning when
the sun starts on his daily course, the phoenixes and the chalkidri[154] sing,
and every bird flaps its wings, rejoicing the Giver of light, and they sing a
song at the command of the Lord.[155] Among reptiles the salamander and the
shamir are the most marvellous. The salamander originates from a fire of myrtle
wood[156] which has been kept burning for seven years steadily by means of
magic arts. Not bigger than a mouse, it yet is invested with peculiar
properties. One who smears himself with its blood is invulnerable,[157] and the
web woven by it is a talisman against fire.[158] The people who lived at the
deluge boasted that, were a fire flood to come, they would protect themselves
with the blood of the salamander.[159]
King Hezekiah owes
his life to the salamander. His wicked father, King Ahaz, had delivered him to
the fires of Moloch, and he would have been burnt, had his mother not painted
him with the blood of the salamander, so that the fire could do him no
harm.[160]
The shamir was made
at twilight on the sixth day of creation together with other extraordinary
things.[161] It is about as large as a barley corn, and it possesses the
remarkable property of cutting the hardest of diamonds. For this reason it was
used for the stones in the breastplate worn by the high priest. First the names
of the twelve tribes were traced with ink on the stones to be set into the
breastplate, then the shamir was passed over the lines, and thus they were
graven. The wonderful circumstance was that the friction wore no particles from
the stones. The shamir was also used for hewing into shape the stones from
which the Temple was built, because the law prohibited iron tools to be used
for the work in the Temple.[162] The shamir may not be put in an iron vessel
for safe-keeping, nor in any metal vessel, it would burst such a receptacle
asunder. It is kept wrapped up in a woollen cloth, and this in turn is placed
in a lead basket filled with barley bran.[163] The shamir was guarded in
belonged to the class of clean animals.[166]
Among the fishes there are also wonderful creatures, the sea-goats and the
dolphins, not to mention leviathan. A sea-faring man once saw a sea-goat on
whose horns the words were inscribed: "I am a little sea-animal, yet I
traversed three hundred parasangs to offer myself as food to the
leviathan."[167] The dolphins are half man and half fish; they even have
sexual intercourse with human beings; therefore they are called also "sons
of the sea," for in a sense they represent the human kind in the
waters.[163]
Though every species
in the animal world was created during the last two days of the six of
creation,[169] yet many characteristics of certain animals appeared later. Cats
and mice, foes now, were friends originally. Their later enmity had a distinct
cause. On one occasion the mouse appeared before God and spoke: "I and the
cat are partners, but now we have nothing to eat." The Lord answered:
"Thou art intriguing against thy companion, only that thou mayest devour
her. As a punishment, she shall devour thee." Thereupon the mouse: "O
Lord of the world, wherein have I done wrong?" God replied: "O thou
unclean reptile, thou shouldst have been warned by the example of the moon, who
lost a part of her light, because she spake ill of the sun, and what she lost
was given to her opponent.[170] The evil intentions thou didst harbor against
thy companion shall be punished in the same way. Instead of thy devouring her,
she shall devour thee." The mouse: "O Lord of the world! Shall my
whole kind be destroyed?" God: "I will take care that a remnant of
thee is spared." In her rage the mouse bit the cat, and the cat in turn
threw herself upon the mouse, and hacked into her with her teeth until she lay
dead. Since that moment the mouse stands in such awe of the cat that she does
not even attempt to defend herself against her enemy's attacks, and always
keeps herself in hiding.[171] Similarly dogs and cats maintained a friendly
relation to each other, and only later on became enemies. A dog and a cat were
partners, and they shared with each other whatever they had. It once happened
that neither could find anything to eat for three days. Thereupon the dog
proposed that they dissolve their partnership. The cat should go to Adam, in
whose house there would surely be enough for her to eat, while the dog should
seek his fortune elsewhere. Before they separated, they took an oath never to
go to the same master. The cat took up her abode with Adam, and she found
sufficient mice in his house to satisfy her appetite. Seeing how useful she was
in driving away and extirpating mice, Adam treated her most kindly. The dog, on
the other hand, saw bad times. The first night after their separation he spent
in the cave of the wolf, who had granted him a night's lodging. At night the
dog caught the sound of steps, and he reported it to his host, who bade him
repulse the intruders. They were wild animals. Little lacked and the dog would
have lost his life. Dismayed, the dog fled from the house of the wolf, and took
refuge with the monkey. But he would not grant him even a single night's
lodging; and the fugitive was forced to appeal to the hospitality of the sheep.
Again the dog heard steps in the middle of the night. Obeying the bidding of
his host, he arose to chase away the marauders, who turned out to be wolves.
The barking of the dog apprised the wolves of the presence of sheep, so that
the dog innocently caused the sheep's death. Now he had lost his last friend.
Night after night he begged for shelter, without ever finding a home. Finally,
he decided to repair to the house of Adam, who also granted him refuge for one
night. When wild animals approached the house under cover of darkness, the dog
began to bark, Adam awoke, and with his bow and arrow he drove them away.
Recognizing the dog's usefulness, he bade him remain with him always. But as
soon as the cat espied the dog in Adam's house, she began to quarrel with him,
and reproach him with having broken his oath to her. Adam did his best to
pacify the cat. He told her he had himself invited the dog to make his home there,
and he assured her she would in no wise be the loser by the dog's presence; he
wanted both to stay with him. But it was impossible to appease the cat. The dog
promised her not to touch anything intended for her. She insisted that she
could not live in one and the same house with a thief like the dog. Bickerings
between the dog and the cat became the order of the day. Finally the dog could
stand it no longer, and he left Adam's house, and betook himself to Seth's. By
Seth he was welcomed kindly, and from Seth's house, he continued to make
efforts at reconciliation with the cat. In vain. Yes, the enmity between the
first dog and the first cat was transmitted to all their descendants until this
very day.[172]
Even the physical
peculiarities of certain animals were not original features with them, but owed
their existence to something that occurred subsequent to the days of creation.
The mouse at first had quite a different mouth from its present mouth. In
Noah's ark, in which all animals, to ensure the preservation of every kind,
lived together peaceably, the pair of mice were once sitting next to the cat.
Suddenly the latter remembered that her father was in the habit of devouring
mice, and thinking there was no harm in following his example, she jumped at
the mouse, who vainly looked for a hole into which to slip out of sight. Then a
miracle happened; a hole appeared where none had been before, and the mouse
sought refuge in it. The cat pursued the mouse, and though she could not follow
her into the hole, she could insert her paw and try to pull the mouse out of
her covert. Quickly the mouse opened her mouth in the hope that the paw would
go into it, and the cat would be prevented from fastening her claws in her
flesh. But as the cavity of the mouth was not big enough, the cat succeeded in
clawing the cheeks of the mouse. Not that this helped her much, it merely
widened the mouth of the mouse, and her prey after all escaped the cat.[173]
After her happy escape, the mouse betook herself to Noah and said to him,
"O pious man, be good enough to sew up my cheek where my enemy, the cat,
has torn a rent in it." Noah bade her fetch a hair out of the tail of the
swine, and with this he repaired the damage. Thence the little seam-like line
next to the mouth of every mouse to this very day.[174]
The raven is another
animal that changed its appearance during its sojourn in the ark. When Noah
desired to send him forth to find out about the state of the waters, he hid
under the wings of the eagle. Noah found him, however, and said to him,
"Go and see whether the waters have diminished." The raven pleaded:
"Hast thou none other among all the birds to send on this errand?"
Noah: "My power extends no further than over thee and the dove."[175]
But the raven was not satisfied. He said to Noah with great insolence:
"Thou sendest me forth only that I may meet my death, and thou wishest my
death that my wife may be at thy service."[176] Thereupon Noah cursed the
raven thus: "May thy mouth, which has spoken evil against me, be accursed,
and thy intercourse with thy wife be only through it."[177] All the
animals in the ark said Amen. And this is the reason why a mass of spittle runs
from the mouth of the male raven into the mouth of the female during the act of
copulation, and only thus the female is impregnated.[178] Altogether the raven
is an unattractive animal. He is unkind toward his own young so long as their
bodies are not covered with black feathers,[179] though as a rule ravens love
one another.[180] God therefore takes the young ravens under His special
protection. From their own excrement maggots come forth,[181] which serve as
their food during the three days that elapse after their birth, until their
white feathers turn black and their parents recognize them as their offspring
and care for them.[182]
The raven has
himself to blame also for the awkward hop in his gait. He observed the graceful
step of the dove, and envious of her tried to enmulate it. The outcome was that
he almost broke his bones without in the least succeeding in making himself
resemble the dove, not to mention that he brought the scorn of the other
animals down upon himself. His failure excited their ridicule. Then he decided
to return to his own original gait, but in the interval he had unlearnt it, and
he could walk neither the one way nor the other properly. His step had become a
hop betwixt and between. Thus we see how true it is, that he who is
dissatisfied with his small portion loses the little he has in striving for
more and better things.[163]
The steer is also
one of the animals that have suffered a change in the course of time.
Originally his face was entirely overgrown with hair, but now there is none on
his nose, and that is because Joshua kissed him on his nose during the siege of
The serpent, too, is
other than it was at first. Before the fall of man it was the cleverest of all
animals created, and in form it resembled man closely. It stood upright, and
was of extraordinary size.[185] Afterward, it lost the mental advantages it had
possessed as compared with other animals, and it degenerated physically, too;
it was deprived of its feet, so that it could not pursue other animals and kill
them. The mole and the frog had to be made harmless in similar ways; the former
has no eyes, else it were irresistible, and the frog has no teeth, else no
animal in the water were sure of its life.[186]
While the cunning of
the serpent wrought its own undoing, the cunning of the fox stood him in good
stead in many an embarrassing situation. After Adam had committed the sin of
disobedience, God delivered the whole of the animal world into the power of the
Angel of Death, and He ordered him to cast one pair of each kind into the
water. He and leviathan together thus have dominion over all that has life.
When the Angel of Death was in the act of executing the Divine command upon the
fox, he began to weep bitterly. The Angel of Death asked him the reason of his
tears, and the fox replied that he was mourning the sad fate of his friend. At
the same time he pointed to the figure of a fox in the sea, which was nothing
but his own reflection. The Angel of Death, persuaded that a representative of
the fox family had been cast into the water, let him go free. The fox told his
trick to the cat, and she in turn played it on the Angel of Death.[187] So it
happened that neither cats nor foxes are represented in the water, while all
other animals are.[188]
When leviathan
passed the animals in review, and missing the fox was informed of the sly way in
which he had eluded his authority, he dispatched great and powerful fish on the
errand of enticing the truant into the water. The fox walking along the shore
espied the large number of fish, and he exclaimed, "How happy he who may
always satisfy his hunger with the flesh of such as these." The fish told
him, if he would but follow them, his appetite could easily be appeased. At the
same time they informed him that a great honor awaited him. Leviathan, they
said, was at death's door, and he had commissioned them to install the fox as
his successor. They were ready to carry him on their backs, so that he had no
need to fear the water, and thus they would convey him to the throne, which
stood upon a huge rock. The fox yielded to these persuasions, and descended
into the water. Presently an uncomfortable feeling took possession of him. He
began to suspect that the tables were turned; he was being made game of instead
of making game of others as usual. He urged the fish to tell him the truth, and
they admitted that they had been sent out to secure his person for leviathan,
who wanted his heart,[189] that he might become as knowing as the fox, whose
wisdom he had heard many extol. The fox said reproachfully: "Why did you
not tell me the truth at once? Then I could have brought my heart along with me
for King Leviathan, who would have showered honors upon me. As it is, you will
surely suffer punishment for bringing me without my heart. The foxes, you
see," he continued, "do not carry their hearts around with them. They
keep them in a safe place, and when they have need of them, they fetch them
thence." The fish quickly swam to shore, and landed the fox, so that he
might go for his heart. No sooner did he feel dry land under his feet than he
began to jump and shout, and when they urged
him to go in search of his heart, and follow them, he said: "O ye fools,
could I have followed you into the water, if I had not had my heart with me? Or
exists there a creature able to go abroad without his heart?" The fish replied:
"Come, come, thou art fooling us." Whereupon the fox: "O ye
fools, if I could play a trick on the Angel of Death, how much easier was it to
make game of you?" So they had to return, their errand undone, and
leviathan could not but confirm the taunting judgment of the fox: "In very
truth, the fox is wise of heart, and ye are fools."[190]
ALL THINGS PRAISE THE LORD
"Whatever God
created has value." Even the animals and the insects that seem useless and
noxious at first sight have a vocation to fulfil. The snail trailing a moist
streak after it as it crawls, and so using up its vitality, serves as a remedy
for boils. The sting of a hornet is healed by the house-fly crushed and applied
to the wound. The gnat, feeble creature, taking in food but never secreting it,
is a specific against the poison of a viper, and this venomous reptile itself
cures eruptions, while the lizard is the antidote to the scorpion.[191] Not
only do all creatures serve man, and contribute to his comfort, but also God
"teacheth us through the beasts of the earth, and maketh us wise through
the fowls of heaven." He endowed many animals with admirable moral
qualities as a pattern for man. If the Torah had not been revealed to us, we
might have learnt regard for the decencies of life from the cat, who covers her
excrement with earth; regard for the property of others from the ants, who
never encroach upon one another's stores; and regard for decorous conduct from
the cock, who, when he desires to unite with the hen, promises to buy her a
cloak long enough to reach to the ground, and when the hen reminds him of his
promise, he shakes his comb and says, "May I be deprived of my comb, if I
do not buy it when I have the means." The grasshopper also has a lesson to
teach to man. All the summer through it sings, until its belly bursts, and
death claims it. Though it knows the fate that awaits it, yet it sings on. So
man should do his duty toward God, no matter what the consequences. The stork
should be taken as a model in two respects. He guards the purity of his family
life zealously, and toward his fellows he is compassionate and merciful. Even
the frog can be the teacher of man. By the side of the water there lives a
species of animals which subsist off aquatic creatures alone. When the frog
notices that one of them is hungry, he goes to it of his own accord, and offers
himself as food, thus fulfilling the injunction, "If thine enemy be
hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to
drink."[192]
The whole of
creation was called into existence by God unto His glory,[193] and each
creature has its own hymn of praise wherewith to extol the Creator. Heaven and
earth,
Also the celestial
bodies and the elements proclaim the praise of their Creator--the sun, moon,
and stars, the clouds and the winds, lightning and dew. The sun says, "The
sun and moon stood still in their habitation, at the light of Thine arrows as
they went, at the shining of Thy glittering spear"; and the stars sing,
"Thou art the Lord, even Thou alone; Thou hast made heaven, the heaven of
heavens, with all their host, the earth and all things that are thereon, the
seas and all that is in them, and Thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven
worshippeth Thee."
Every plant,
furthermore, has a song of praise. The fruitful tree sings, "Then shall
all the trees of the wood sing for joy, before the Lord, for He cometh; for He
cometh to judge the earth"; and the ears of grain on the field sing,
"The pastures are covered with flocks; the valleys also are covered over
with corn; they shout for joy, they also sing."
Great among singers
of praise are the birds, and greatest among them is the cock. When God at
The song of the
vulture is: "I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed
them, and they shall increase as they have increased"--the same verse with
which the bird will in time to come announce the advent of the Messiah, the
only difference being, that when he heralds the Messiah he will sit upon the
ground and sing his verse, while at all other times he is seated elsewhere when
he sings it.
Nor do the other
animals praise God less than the birds. Even the beasts of prey give forth
adoration. The lion says: "The Lord shall go forth as a mighty man; He
shall stir up jealousy like a man of war; He shall cry, yea, He shall shout
aloud; He shall do mightily against his enemies." And the fox exhorts unto
justice with the words: "Woe unto him that buildeth his house by
unrighteousness, and his chambers by injustice; that useth his neighbor's
service without wages, and giveth him not his hire."
Yea, the dumb fishes
know how to proclaim the praise of their Lord. "The voice of the Lord is
upon the waters," they say, "the God of glory thundereth, even the
Lord upon many waters"; while the frog exclaims, "Blessed be the name
of the glory of His kingdom forever and ever."
Contemptible though
they are, even the reptiles give praise unto their Creator. The mouse extols
God with the words: "Howbeit Thou art just in all that is come upon me;
for Thou hast dealt truly, but I have done wickedly." And the cat sings:
"Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the
Lord."[194]
II
ADAM MAN AND THE
WORLD THE ANGELS AND THE CREATION OF MAN THE CREATION OF ADAM THE SOUL OF MAN
THE IDEAL MAN THE FALL OF SATAN WOMAN ADAM AND EVE IN PARADISE THE FALL OF MAN
THE PUNISHMENT SABBATH IN HEAVEN ADAM'S REPENTANCE THE BOOK OF RAZIEL THE
SICKNESS OF ADAM EVE'S STORY OF THE FALL THE DEATH OF ADAM THE DEATH OF EVE
II
ADAM
MAN AND THE WORLD
With ten Sayings God
created the world, although a single Saying would have sufficed. God desired to
make known how severe is the punishment to be meted out to the wicked, who
destroy a world created with as many as ten Sayings, and how goodly the reward
destined for the righteous, who preserve a world created with as many as ten
Sayings.[1]
The world was made
for man, though he was the last-comer among its creatures. This was design. He
was to find all things ready for him. God was the host who prepared dainty
dishes, set the table, and then led His guest to his seat. At the same time
man's late appearance on earth is to convey an admonition to humility. Let him
beware of being proud, lest he invite the retort that the gnat is older than
he.[2]
The superiority of
man to the other creatures is apparent in the very manner of his creation,
altogether different from theirs. He is the only one who was created by the
hand of God.[3] The rest sprang from the word of God. The body of man is a
microcosm, the whole world in miniature, and the world in turn is a reflex of
man. The hair upon his head corresponds to the woods of the earth, his tears to
a river, his mouth to the ocean.[4] Also, the world resembles the ball of his
eye: the ocean that encircles the earth is like unto the white of the eye, the
dry land is the iris, Jerusalem the pupil, and the Temple the image mirrored in
the pupil of the eye.[5] But man is more than a mere image of this world. He
unites both heavenly and earthly qualities within himself. In four he resembles
the angels, in four the beasts. His power of speech, his discriminating
intellect, his upright walk, the glance of his eye--they all make an angel of
him. But, on the other hand, he eats and drinks, secretes the waste matter in
his body, propagates his kind, and dies, like the beast of the field. Therefore
God said before the creation of man: "The celestials are not propagated,
but they are immortal; the beings on earth are propagated, but they die. I will
create man to be the union of the two, so that when he sins, when he behaves
like a beast, death shall overtake him; but if he refrains from sin, he shall
live forever."[6] God now bade all beings in heaven and on earth
contribute to the creation of man, and He Himself took part in it. Thus they
all will love man, and if he should sin, they will be interested in his
preservation.[7]
The whole world
naturally was created for the pious, the God-fearing man, whom
In His modesty, God
took counsel with the angels, before the creation of the world, regarding His
intention of making man. He said: "For the sake of
third day, I shall make the earth put forth
grass and herb; so will he, in obedience to My commands, eat herbs on the first
night of the Passover, and prepare showbread for Me. On the fourth day, I shall
make the luminaries; so will he make a golden candlestick for Me. On the fifth
day, I shall create the birds; so will he fashion the cherubim with
outstretched wings. On the sixth day, I shall create man; so will
Accordingly, the whole
of creation was conditional. God said to the things He made on the first six
days: "If
THE ANGELS AND THE CREATION OF MAN
God in His wisdom
hiving resolved to create man, He asked counsel of all around Him before He
proceeded to execute His purpose--an example to man, be he never so great and
distinguished, not to scorn the advice of the humble and lowly. First God
called upon heaven and earth, then upon all other things He had created, and
last upon the angels.
The angels were not
all of one opinion. The Angel of Love favored the creation of man, because he
would be affectionate and loving; but the Angel of Truth opposed it, because he
would be full of lies. And while the Angel of Justice favored it, because he
would practice justice, the Angel of Peace opposed it, because he would be
quarrelsome.
To invalidate his
protest, God cast the Angel of Truth down from heaven to earth, and when the
others cried out against such contemptuous treatment of their companion, He
said, "Truth will spring back out of the earth."
The objections of
the angels would have been much stronger, had they known the whole truth about
man. God had told them only about the pious, and had concealed from them that
there would be reprobates among mankind, too. And yet, though they knew but
half the truth, the angels were nevertheless prompted to cry out: "What is
man, that Thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that Thou visitest him?"
God replied: "The fowl of the air and the fish of the sea, what were they
created for? Of what avail a larder full of appetizing dainties, and no guest
to enjoy them?" And the angels could not but exclaim: "O Lord, our
Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth! Do as is pleasing in Thy
sight."[12]
For not a few of the
angels their opposition bore fatal consequences. When God summoned the band
under the archangel Michael, and asked their opinion on the creation of man,
they answered scornfully: "What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? And
the son of man, that Thou visitest him?" God thereupon stretched forth His
little finger, and all were consumed by fire except their chief Michael. And
the same fate befell the band under the leadership of the archangel Gabriel; he
alone of all was saved from destruction.
The third band consulted was commanded by the
archangel Labbiel. Taught by the horrible fate of his predecessors, he warned
his troop: "You have seen what misfortune overtook the angels who said 'What
is man, that Thou art mindful of him?' Let us have a care not to do likewise,
lest we suffer the same dire punishment. For God will not refrain from doing in
the end what He has planned. Therefore it is advisable for us to yield to His
wishes." Thus warned, the angels spoke: "Lord of the world, it is
well that Thou hast thought of creating man. Do Thou create him according to
Thy will. And as for us, we will be his attendants and his ministers, and
reveal unto him all our secrets." Thereupon God changed Labbiel's name to
Raphael, the Rescuer, because his host of angels had been rescued by his sage
advice. He was appointed the Angel of Healing, who has in his safe-keeping all
the celestial remedies, the types of the medical remedies used on earth.[12]
THE CREATION OF ADAM
When at last the assent of the angels to the
creation of man was given, God said to Gabriel: "Go and fetch Me dust from
the four corners of the earth, and I will create man therewith." Gabriel
went forth to do the bidding of the Lord, but the earth drove him away, and
refused to let him gather up dust from it. Gabriel remonstrated: "Why, O
Earth, dost thou not hearken unto the voice of the Lord, who founded thee upon
the waters without props or pillars?" The earth replied, and said: "I
am destined to become a curse, and to be cursed through man, and if God Himself
does not take the dust from me, no one else shall ever do it." When God
heard this, He stretched out His hand, took of the dust of the ground, and
created the first man therewith.[14] Of set purpose the dust was taken from all
four corners of the earth, so that if a man from the east should happen to die
in the west, or a man from the west in the east, the earth should not dare
refuse to receive the dead, and tell him to go whence he was taken. Wherever a
man chances to die, and wheresoever he is buried, there will he return to the
earth from which he sprang. Also, the dust was of various colors--red, black,
white, and green--red for the blood, black for the bowels, white for the bones
and veins, and green for the pale skin.
At this early moment
the Torah interfered. She addressed herself to God: "O Lord of the world!
The world is Thine, Thou canst do with it as seemeth good in Thine eyes. But
the man Thou art now creating will be few of days and full of trouble and sin.
If it be not Thy purpose to have forbearance and patience with him, it were
better not to call him into being." God replied, "Is it for naught I
am called long-suffering and merciful?"[15]
The grace and
lovingkindness of God revealed themselves particularly in His taking one
spoonful of dust from the spot where in time to come the altar would stand,
saying, "I shall take man from the place of atonement, that he may
endure."[19]
THE SOUL OF MAN
The care which God
exercised in fashioning every detail of the body of man is as naught in
comparison with His solicitude for the human soul. The soul of man was created
on the first day, for it is the spirit of God moving upon the face of the
waters. Thus, instead of being the last, man is really the first work of
creation.[17]
This spirit, or, to
call it by its usual name, the soul of man, possesses five different powers. By
means of one of them she escapes from the body every night, rises up to heaven,
and fetches new life thence for man.[18]
With the soul of
Adam the souls of all the generations of men were created. They are stored up
in a promptuary, in the seventh of the heavens, whence they are drawn as they
are needed for human body after human body.[19]
The soul and body of
man are united in this way: When a woman has conceived, the Angel of the Night,
Lailah, carries the sperm before God, and God decrees what manner of human
being shall become of it--whether it shall be male or female, strong or weak,
rich or poor, beautiful or ugly, long or short, fat or thin, and what all its
other qualities shall be. Piety and wickedness alone are left to the
determination of man himself. Then God makes a sign to the angel appointed over
the souls, saying, "Bring Me the soul so-and-so, which is hidden in
In the evening, the
angel takes the soul to hell, and there points out the sinners whom the Angels
of Destruction are smiting with fiery scourges, the sinners all the while
crying out Woe! Woe! but no mercy is shown unto them. The angel then questions
the soul as before, "Dost thou know who these are?" and as before the
reply is negative. The angel continues: "These who are consumed with fire
were created like unto thee. When they were put into the world, they did not
observe God's Torah and His commandments. Therefore have they come to this
disgrace which thou seest them suffer. Know, thy destiny is also to depart from
the world. Be just, therefore, and not wicked, that thou mayest gain the future
world."
Between morning and
evening the angel carries the soul around, and shows her where she will live
and where she will die, and the place where she will buried, and he takes her
through the whole world, and points out the just and the sinners and all
things. In the evening, he replaces her in the womb of the mother, and there
she remains for nine months.
When the time
arrives for her to emerge from the womb into the open world, the same angel
addresses the soul, "The time has come for thee to go abroad into the open
world." The soul demurs, "Why dost thou want to make me go forth into
the open world?" The angel replies: "Know that as thou wert formed
against thy will, so now thou wilt be born against thy will, and against thy
will thou shalt die, and against thy will thou shalt give account of thyself
before the King of kings, the Holy One, blessed be He." But the soul is
reluctant to leave her place. Then the angel fillips the babe on the nose,
extinguishes the light at his head, and brings him forth into the world against
his will. Immediately the child forgets all his soul has seen and learnt, and
he comes into the world crying, for he loses a place of shelter and security
and rest.
When the time
arrives for man to quit this world, the same angel appears and asks him,
"Dost thou recognize me?" And man replies, "Yes; but why dost
thou come to me to-day, and thou didst come on no other day?" The angel
says, "To take thee away from the world, for the time of thy departure has
arrived." Then man falls to weeping, and his voice penetrates to all ends
of the world, yet no creature hears his voice, except the cock alone. Man
remonstrates with the angel, "From two worlds thou didst take me, and into
this world thou didst bring me." But the angel reminds him: "Did I
not tell thee that thou wert formed against thy will, and thou wouldst be born
against thy will, and against thy will thou wouldst die? And against thy will
thou wilt have to give account and reckoning of thyself before the Holy One,
blessed be He."[20]
THE IDEAL MAN
Like all creatures
formed on the six days of creation, Adam came from the hands of the Creator
fully and completely developed. He was not like a child, but like a man of
twenty years of age.[21] The dimensions of his body were gigantic, reaching
from heaven to earth, or, what amounts to the same, from east to west.[22] Among
later generations of men, there were but few who in a measure resembled Adam in
his extraordinary size and physical perfections. Samson possessed his strength,
Saul his neck, Absalom his hair, Asahel his fleetness of foot, Uzziah his
forehead, Josiah his nostrils, Zedekiah his eyes, and Zerubbabel his voice.
History shows that these physical excellencies were no blessings to many of
their possessors; they invited the ruin of almost all. Samson's extraordinary
strength caused his death; Saul killed himself by cutting his neck with his own
sword; while speeding swiftly, Asahel was pierced by Abner's spear; Absalom was
caught up by his hair in an oak, and thus suspended met his death; Uzziah was
smitten with leprosy upon his forehead; the darts that killed Josiah entered
through his nostrils, and Zedekiah's eyes were blinded.[23]
The generality of
men inherited as little of the beauty as of the portentous size of their first
father. The fairest women compared with Sarah are as apes compared with a human
being. Sarah's relation to Eve is the same, and, again, Eve was but as an ape
compared with Adam. His person was so handsome that the very sole of his foot
obscured the splendor of the sun.[24]
His spiritual
qualities kept pace with his personal charm, for God had fashioned his soul
with particular care. She is the image of God, and as God fills the world, so
the soul fills the human body; as God sees all things, and is seen by none, so
the soul sees, but cannot be seen; as God guides the world, so the soul guides
the body; as God in His holiness is pure, so is the soul; and as God dwells in
secret, so doth the soul.[25]
When God was about
to put a soul into Adam's clod-like body, He said: "At which point shall I
breathe the soul into him? Into the mouth? Nay, for he will use it to speak ill
of his fellow-man. Into the eyes? With them he will wink lustfully. Into the
ears? They will hearken to slander and blasphemy. I will breathe her into his
nostrils; as they discern the unclean and reject it, and take in the fragrant,
so the pious will shun sin, and will cleave to the words of the Torah"[26]
The perfections of
Adam's soul showed themselves as soon as he received her, indeed, while he was
still without life. In the hour that intervened between breathing a soul into
the first man and his becoming alive, God revealed the whole history of mankind
to him. He showed him each generation and its leaders; each generation and its
prophets; each generation and its teachers; each generation and its scholars;
each generation and its statesmen; each generation and its judges; each
generation and its pious members; each generation and its average, commonplace
members; and each generation and its impious members. The tale of their years,
the number of their days, the reckoning of their hours, and the measure of
their steps, all were made known unto him.[27]
Of his own free will
Adam relinquished seventy of his allotted years. His appointed span was to be a
thousand years, one of the Lord's days. But he saw that only a single minute of
life was apportioned to the great soul of David, and he made a gift of seventy
years to her, reducing his own years to nine hundred and thirty.'
The wisdom of Adam
displayed itself to greatest advantage when he gave names to the animals. Then
it appeared that God, in combating the arguments of the angels that opposed the
creation of man, had spoken well, when He insisted that man would possess more
wisdom than they themselves. When Adam was barely an hour old, God assembled
the whole world of animals before him and the angels. The latter were called
upon to name the different kinds, but they were not equal to the task. Adam,
however, spoke without hesitation: "O Lord of the world! The proper name
for this animal is ox, for this one horse, for this one lion, for this one
camel." And so he called all in turn by name, suiting the name to the
peculiarity of the animal. Then God asked him what his name was to be, and he
said Adam, because he had been created out of Adamah, dust of the earth. Again,
God asked him His own name, and he said: "Adonai, Lord, because Thou art
Lord over all creatures"--the very name God had given unto Himself, the
name by which the angels call Him, the name that will remain immutable
evermore.[29] But without the gift of the holy spirit, Adam could not have
found names for all; he was in very truth a prophet, and his wisdom a prophetic
quality.[30]
The names of the
animals were not the only inheritance handed
down by Adam to the generations after him, for
mankind owes all crafts to him, especially the art of writing, and he was the
inventor of all the seventy languages.[31] And still another task he
accomplished for his descendants. God showed Adam the whole earth, and Adam
designated what places were to be settled later by men, and what places were to
remain waste.[32]
THE FALL OF SATAN
The extraordinary
qualities with which Adam was blessed, physical and spiritual as well, aroused
the envy of the angels. They attempted to consume him with fire, and he would
have perished, had not the protecting hand of God rested upon him, and
established peace between him and the heavenly host.[33] In particular, Satan
was jealous of the first man, and his evil thoughts finally led to his fall.
After Adam had been endowed with a soul, God invited all the angels to come and
pay him reverence and homage. Satan, the greatest of the angels in heaven, with
twelve wings, instead of six like all the others, refused to pay heed to the
behest of God, saying, "Thou didst create us angels from the splendor of
the Shekinah, and now Thou dost command us to cast ourselves down before the
creature which Thou didst fashion out of the dust of the ground!" God
answered, "Yet this dust of the ground has more wisdom and understanding
than thou." Satan demanded a trial of wit with Adam, and God assented
thereto, saying: "I have created beasts, birds, and reptiles, I shall have
them all come before thee and before Adam.
If thou art able to give them names, I shall
command Adam to show honor unto thee, and thou shalt rest next to the Shekinah
of My glory. But if not, and Adam calls them by the names I have assigned to
them, then thou wilt be subject to Adam, and he shall have a place in My
garden, and cultivate it." Thus spake God, and He betook Himself to
WOMAN
When Adam opened his
eyes the first time, and beheld the world about him, he broke into praise of
God, "How great are Thy works, O Lord!" But his admiration for the
world surrounding him did not exceed the admiration all creatures conceived for
Adam. They took him to be their creator, and they all came to offer him
adoration. But he spoke: "Why do you come to worship me? Nay, you and I
together will acknowledge the majesty and the might of Him who hath created us
all. 'The Lord reigneth,' " he continued, " 'He is apparelled with
majesty.' "[36]
And not alone the
creatures on earth, even the angels thought Adam the lord of all, and they were
about to salute him with "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts,"
when God caused sleep to fall upon him, and then the angels knew that he was
but a human being.[37]
The purpose of the
sleep that enfolded Adam was to give him a wife, so that the human race might
develop, and all creatures recognize the difference between God and man. When
the earth heard what God had resolved to do, it began to tremble and quake.
"I have not the strength," it said, "to provide food for the
herd of Adam's descendants. "But God pacified it with the words, "I
and thou together, we will find food for the herd." Accordingly, time was
divided between God and the earth; God took the night, and the earth took the
day. Refreshing sleep nourishes and strengthens man, it affords him life and
rest, while the earth brings forth produce with the help of God, who waters it.
Yet man must work the earth to earn his food.[38]
The Divine
resolution to bestow a companion on Adam met the wishes of man, who had been
overcome by a feeling of isolation when the animals came to him in pairs to be
named.[39] To banish his loneliness, Lilith was first given to Adam as wife.
Like him she had been created out of the dust of the ground. But she remained
with him only a short time, because she insisted upon enjoying full equality
with her husband. She derived her rights from their identical origin. With the
help of the Ineffable Name, which she pronounced, Lilith flew away from Adam,
and vanished in the air. Adam complained before God that the wife He had given
him had deserted him, and God sent forth three angels to capture her. They
found her in the
The woman destined
to become the true companion of man was taken from Adam's body, for "only
when like is joined unto like the union is indissoluble."[41] The creation
of woman from man was possible because Adam originally had two faces, which
were separated at the birth of Eve.[42]
When God was on the
point of making Eve, He said: "I will not make her from the head of man,
lest she carry her head high in arrogant pride; not from the eye, lest she be
wanton-eyed; not from the ear, lest she be an eavesdropper; not from the neck,
lest she be insolent; not from the mouth, lest she be a tattler; not from the
heart, lest she be inclined to envy; not from the hand, lest she be a meddler;
not from the foot, lest she be a gadabout. I will form her from a chaste
portion of the body," and to every limb and organ as He formed it, God said,
"Be chaste! Be chaste! "Nevertheless, in spite of the great caution
used, woman has all the faults God tried to obviate. The daughters of Zion were
haughty and walked with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes; Sarah was an
eavesdropper in her own tent, when the angel spoke with Abraham; Miriam was a
talebearer, accusing Moses; Rachel was envious of her sister Leah; Eve put out
her hand to take the forbidden fruit, and Dinah was a gadabout.[43]
The physical
formation of woman is far more complicated than that of man, as it must be for
the function of child-bearing, and likewise the intelligence of woman matures
more quickly than the intelligence of man.[44] Many of the physical and
psychical differences between the two sexes must be attributed to the fact that
man was formed from the ground and woman from bone. Women need perfumes, while
men do not; dust of the ground remains the same no matter how long it is kept;
flesh, however, requires salt to keep it in good condition. The voice of women
is shrill, not so the voice of men; when soft viands are cooked, no sound is
heard, but let a bone be put in a pot, and at once it crackles. A man is easily
placated, not so a woman; a few drops of water suffice to soften a clod of
earth; a bone stays hard, and if it were to soak in water for days. The man
must ask the woman to be his wife, and not the woman the man to be her husband,
because it is man who has sustained the loss of his rib, and he sallies forth
to make good his loss again. The very differences between the sexes in garb and
social forms go back to the origin of man and woman for their reasons. Woman
covers her hair in token of Eve's having brought sin into the world; she tries
to hide her shame; and women precede men in a funeral cortege, because it was
woman who brought death into the world. And the religious commands addressed to
women alone are connected with the history of Eve. Adam was the heave offering
of the world, and Eve defiled it. As expiation, all women are commanded to
separate a heave offering from the dough. And because woman extinguished the
light of man's soul, she is bidden to kindle the Sabbath light.[45]
Adam was first made
to fall into a deep sleep before the rib for Eve was taken from his side. For,
had he watched her creation, she would not have awakened love in him. To this
day it is true that men do not appreciate the charms of women whom they have
known and observed from childhood up. Indeed, God had created a wife for Adam
before Eve, but he would not have her, because she had been made in his
presence. Knowing well all the details of her formation, he was repelled by
her.[46] But when he roused himself from his profound sleep, and saw Eve before
him in all her surprising beauty and grace, he exclaimed, "This is she who
caused my heart to throb many a night!" Yet he discerned at once what the
nature of woman was. She would, he knew, seek to carry her point with man
either by entreaties and tears, or flattery and caresses. He said, therefore,
"This is my never-silent bell!"[47]
The wedding of the
first couple was celebrated with pomp never repeated in the whole course of
history since. God Himself, before presenting her to Adam, attired and adorned
Eve as a bride. Yea, He appealed to the angels, saying: "Come, let us
perform services of friendship for Adam and his helpmate, for the world rests
upon friendly services, and they are more pleasing in My sight than the
sacrifices
Adam called his wife
Ishah, and himself he called Ish, abandoning the name Adam, which he had borne
before the creation of Eve, for the reason that God added His own name Yah to
the names of the man and the woman--Yod to Ish and He to Ishah--to indicate that
as long as they walked in the ways of God and observed His commandments, His
name would shield them against all harm. But if they went astray, His name
would be withdrawn, and instead of Ish there would remain Esh, fire, a fire
issuing from each and consuming the other.[48]
ADAM AND EVE IN
The Garden of Eden
was the abode of the first man and woman, and the souls of all men must pass
through it after death, before they reach their final destination. For the
souls of the departed must go through seven portals before they arrive in the
heaven 'Arabot. There the souls of the pious are transformed into angels, and
there they remain forever, praising God and feasting their sight upon the glory
of the Shekinah. The first portal is the
In
Eve's.[57] In all respects, the animal world
had a different relation to Adam from their relation to his descendants. Not
only did they know the language of man,[58] but they respected the image of
God, and they feared the first human couple, all of which changed into the
opposite after the fall of man.[59]
THE FALL OF MAN
Among the animals
the serpent was notable. Of all of them he had the most excellent qualities, in
some of which he resembled man. Like man he stood upright upon two feet, and in
height he was equal to the camel. Had it not been for the fall of man, which brought
misfortune to them, too, one pair of serpents would have sufficed to perform
all the work man has to do, and, besides, they would have supplied him with
silver, gold, gems, and pearls. As a matter of fact, it was the very ability of
the serpent that led to the ruin of man and his own ruin. His superior mental
gifts caused him to become an infidel. It likewise explains his envy of man,
especially of his conjugal relations. Envy made him meditate ways and means of
bringing about the death of Adam.[60] He was too well acquainted with the
character of the man to attempt to exercise tricks of persuasion upon him, and
he approached the woman, knowing that women are beguiled easily. The
conversation with Eve was cunningly planned, she could not but be caught in a
trap. The serpent began, "Is it true that God hath said, Ye shall not eat
of every tree in the garden?" "We may," rejoined Eve, "eat
of the fruit of all the trees in the garden, except that which is in the midst
of the garden, and that we may not even touch, lest we be stricken with
death." She spoke thus, because in his zeal to guard her against the
transgressing of the Divine command, Adam had forbidden Eve to touch the tree,
though God had mentioned only the eating of the fruit. It remains a truth, what
the proverb says, "Better a wall ten hands high that stands, than a wall a
hundred ells high that cannot stand." It was Adam's exaggeration that
afforded the serpent the possibility of persuading Eve to taste of the
forbidden fruit. The serpent pushed Eve against the tree, and said: "Thou
seest that touching the tree has not caused thy death. As little will it hurt
thee to eat the fruit of the tree. Naught but malevolence has prompted the
prohibition, for as soon as ye eat thereof, ye shall be as God. As He creates
and destroys worlds, so will ye have the power to create and destroy. As He
doth slay and revive, so will ye have the power to slay and revive.[61] He
Himself ate first of the fruit of the tree, and then He created the world.
Therefore doth He forbid you to eat thereof, lest you create other worlds.
Everyone knows that 'artisans of the same guild hate one another.' Furthermore,
have ye not observed that every creature hath dominion over the creature
fashioned before itself? The heavens were made on the first day, and they are
kept in place by the firmament made on the second day. The firmament, in turn,
is ruled by the plants, the creation of the third day, for they take up all the
water of the firmament. The sun and the other celestial bodies, which were
created on the fourth day, have power over the world of plants. They can ripen
their fruits and flourish only through their influence. The creation of the
fifth day, the animal world, rules over the celestial spheres. Witness the ziz,
which can darken the sun with its pinions. But ye are masters of the whole of
creation, because ye were the last to be created. Hasten now and eat of the
fruit of the tree in the midst of the garden, and become independent of God,
lest He bring forth still other creatures to bear rule over you."[62]
To give due weight
to these words, the serpent began to shake the tree violently and bring down
its fruit. He ate thereof, saying: "As I do not die of eating the fruit,
so wilt thou not die." Now Eve could not but say to herself, "All
that my master"--so she called Adam--"commanded me is but lies,"
and she determined to follow the advice of the serpent.[63] Yet she could not
bring herself to disobey the command of God utterly. She made a compromise with
her conscience. First she ate only the outside skin of the fruit, and then,
seeing that death did not fell her, she ate the fruit itself.[64] Scarce had
she finished, when she saw the Angel of Death before her. Expecting her end to
come immediately, she resolved to make Adam eat of the forbidden fruit, too,
lest he espouse another wife after her death.[65] It required tears and
lamentations on her part to prevail upon Adam to take the baleful step. Not yet
satisfied, she gave of the fruit to all other living beings, that they, too,
might be subject to death.[66] All ate, and they all are mortal, with the
exception of the bird malham, who refused the fruit, with the words: "Is
it not enough that ye have sinned against God, and have brought death to
others? Must ye still come to me and seek to persuade me into disobeying God's
command, that I may eat and die thereof? I will not do your bidding." A
heavenly voice was heard then to say to Adam and Eve: "To you was the
command given. Ye did not heed it; ye did transgress it, and ye did seek to
persuade the bird malham. He was steadfast, and he feared Me, although I gave
him no command. Therefore he shall never taste of death, neither he nor his
descendants--they all shall live forever in
Adam spoke to Eve:
"Didst thou give me of the tree of which I forbade thee to eat? Thou didst
give me thereof, for my eyes are opened, and the teeth in my mouth are set on
edge." Eve made answer, "As my teeth were set on edge, so may the
teeth of all living beings be set on edge."[68] The first result was that
Adam and Eve became naked. Before, their bodies had been overlaid with a horny
skin, and enveloped with the cloud of glory. No sooner had they violated the
command given them than the cloud of glory and the horny skin dropped from
them, and they stood there in their nakedness, and ashamed.[69] Adam tried to
gather leaves from the trees to cover part of their bodies, but he heard one
tree after the other say: "There is the thief that deceived his Creator.
Nay, the foot of pride shall not come against me, nor the hand of the wicked
touch me. Hence, and take no leaves from me!" Only the fig-tree granted
him permission to take of its leaves. That was because the fig was the
forbidden fruit itself. Adam had the same experience as that prince who seduced
one of the maid-ser vants in the palace. When the king, his father, chased him
out, he vainly sought a refuge with the other maid-servants, but only she who
had caused his disgrace would grant him assistance.[70]
THE PUNISHMENT
As long as Adam
stood naked, casting about for means of escape from his embarrassment, God did
not appear unto him, for one should not "strive to see a man in the hour
of his disgrace." He waited until Adam and Eve had covered themselves with
fig leaves.[71] But even before God spoke to him, Adam knew what was impending.
He heard the angels announce, "God betaketh Himself unto those that dwell
in
When Adam and Eve
heard God approaching, they hid among the trees--which would not have been
possible before the fall. Before he committed his trespass, Adam's height was
from the heavens to the earth, but afterward it was reduced to one hundred
ells.[73] Another consequence of his sin was the fear Adam felt when he heard the
voice of God: before his fall it had not disquieted him in the least.[74] Hence
it was that when Adam said, "I heard Thy voice in the garden, and I was
afraid," God replied, "Aforetime thou wert not afraid, and now thou
art afraid?"[75]
God refrained from
reproaches at first. Standing at the gate of
As Adam tried to
shift the blame for his misdeed from himself, so also Eve. She, like her
husband, did not confess her transgression and pray for pardon, which would
have been granted to her.[81] Gracious as God is, He did not pronounce the doom
upon Adam and Eve until they showed themselves stiff-necked. Not so with the
serpent. God inflicted the curse upon the serpent without hearing his defense;
for the serpent is a villain, and the wicked are good debaters. If God had
questioned him, the serpent would have answered: "Thou didst give them a
command, and I did contradict it. Why did they obey me, and not Thee?"[82]
Therefore God did not enter into an argument with the serpent, but straightway
decreed the following ten punishments: The mouth of the serpent was closed, and
his power of speech taken away; his hands and feet were hacked off; the earth
was given him as food; he must suffer great pain in sloughing his skin; enmity
is to exist between him and man; if he eats the choicest viands, or drinks the
sweetest beverages, they all change into dust in his mouth; the pregnancy of
the female serpent lasts seven years; men shall seek to kill him as soon as
they catch sight of him; even in the future world, where all beings will be
blessed, he will not escape the punishment decreed for him; he will vanish from
out of the Holy Land if Israel walks in the ways of God.[83]
Furthermore, God
spake to the serpent: "I created thee to be king over all animals, cattle
and the beasts of the field alike; but thou wast not satisfied. Therefore thou
shalt be cursed above all cattle and above every beast of the field. I created
thee of upright posture; but thou wast not satisfied. Therefore thou shalt go
upon thy belly. I created thee to eat the same food as man; but thou wast not
satisfied. Therefore thou shalt eat dust all the days of thy life. Thou didst
seek to cause the death of Adam in order to espouse his wife. Therefore I will
put enmity between thee and the woman." How true it is--he who lusts after
what is not his due, not only does he not attain his desire, but he also loses
what he has!
As angels had been
present when the doom was pronounced upon the serpent--for God had convoked a
Sanhedrin of seventy-one angels when He sat in judgment upon him--so the
execution of the decree against him was entrusted to angels. They descended
from heaven, and chopped off his hands and feet. His suffering was so great
that his agonized cries could be heard from one end of the world to the
other.[84]
The verdict against
Eve also consisted of ten curses, the effect of which is noticeable to this day
in the physical, spiritual, and social state of woman.[85] It was not God
Himself who announced her fate to Eve. The only woman with whom God ever spoke
was Sarah. In the case of Eve, He made use of the services of an interpreter.[86]
Finally, also the
punishment of Adam was tenfold: he lost his celestial clothing--God stripped it
off him; in sorrow he was to earn his daily bread; the food he ate was to be
turned from good into bad; his children were to wander from land to land; his
body was to exude sweat; he was to have an evil inclination; in death his body
was to be a prey of the worms; animals were to have power over him, in that
they could slay him; his days were to be few and full of trouble; in the end he
was to render account of all his doings on earth."
These three sinners
were not the only ones to have punishment dealt out to them. The earth fared no
better, for it had been guilty of various misdemeanors. In the first place, it
had not entirely heeded the command of God given on the third day, to bring
forth "tree of fruit." What God had desired was a tree the wood of
which was to be as pleasant to the taste as the fruit thereof. The earth,
however, produced a tree bearing fruit, the tree itself not being edible.[88]
Again, the earth did not do its whole duty in connection with the sin of Adam.
God had appointed the sun and the earth witnesses to testify against Adam in
case he committed a trespass. The sun, accordingly, had grown dark the instant
Adam became guilty of disobedience, but the earth, not knowing how to take
notice of Adam's fall, disregarded it altogether.[89] The earth also had to
suffer a tenfold punishment: independent before, she was hereafter to wait to
be watered by the rain from above; sometimes the fruits of the earth fail; the
grain she brings forth is stricken with blasting and mildew; she must produce
all sorts of noxious vermin; thenceforth she was to be divided into valleys and
mountains; she must grow barren trees, bearing no fruit; thorns and thistles
sprout from her; much is sown in the earth, but little is harvested; in time to
come the earth will have to disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her
slain; and, finally, she shall, one day, "wax old like a
garment."[90]
When Adam heard the
words, "Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth," concerning the
ground, a sweat broke out on his face, and he said: "What! Shall I and my
cattle eat from the same manger?" The Lord had mercy upon him, and spoke,
"In view of the sweat of thy face, thou shalt eat bread."[91]
The earth is not the
only thing created that was made to suffer through the sin of Adam. The same
fate overtook the moon. When the serpent seduced Adam and Eve, and exposed
their nakedness, they wept bitterly, and with them wept the heavens, and the
sun and the stars, and all created beings and things up to the throne of God.
The very angels and the celestial beings were grieved by the trans gression of
Adam. The moon alone laughed, wherefore God grew wroth, and obscured her light.
Instead of shining steadily like the sun, all the length of the day, she grows
old quickly, and must be born and reborn, again and again.[92] The callous
conduct of the moon offended God, not only by way of contrast with the
compassion of all other creatures, but because He Himself was full of pity for
Adam and his wife. He made clothes for them out of the skin stripped from the
serpent.[93] He would have done even more. He would have permitted them to
remain in
To guard the
entrance to Paradise, God appointed the cherubim, called also the ever-turning
sword of flames, because angels can turn themselves from one shape into another
at need.[94] Instead of the tree of life, God gave Adam the Torah, which
likewise is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her, and he was permitted
to take up his abode in the vicinity of Paradise in the east.[95]
Sentence pronounced
upon Adam and Eve and the serpent, the Lord commanded the angels to turn the
man and the woman out of
Seeing that God had
resolved unalterably, Adam began to weep again and implore the angels to grant
him at least permission to take sweet-scented spices with him out of Paradise,
that outside, too, he might be able to bring offerings unto God, and his
prayers be accepted before the Lord. Thereupon the angels came before God, and
spake: "King unto everlasting, command Thou us to give Adam sweetscented
spices of
This eventful day
was the first of the month of Tishri. Therefore God spoke to Adam: "Thou
shalt be the prototype of thy children. As thou hast been judged by Me on this
day and absolved, so thy children
Each day of creation
brought forth three things: the first, heaven, earth, and light; the second,
the firmament, Gehenna, and the angels; the third, trees, herbs, and
In the twilight,
between the sixth day and the Sabbath, ten creations were, brought forth: the
rainbow, invisible until Noah's time; the manna; watersprings, whence Israel
drew water for his thirst in the desert; the writing upon the two tables of
stone given at Sinai; the pen with which the writing was written; the two
tables themselves; the mouth of Balaam's she-ass; the grave of Moses; the cave
in which Moses and Elijah dwelt; and the rod of Aaron, with its blossoms and
its ripe almonds.[99]
SABBATH IN HEAVEN
Before the world was
created, there was none to praise God and know Him. Therefore He created the
angels and the holy Hayyot, the heavens and their host, and Adam as well. They
all were to praise and glorify their Creator. During the week of creation,
however, there was no suitable time to proclaim the splendor and praise of the
Lord. Only on the Sabbath, when all creation rested, the beings on earth and in
heaven, all together, broke into song and adoration when God ascended His
throne and sate upon it.[100] It was the Throne of Joy upon which He sate, and
He had all the angels pass before Him--the angel of the water, the angel of the
rivers, the angel of the mountains, the angel of the hills, the angel of the
abysses, the angel of the deserts, the angel of the sun, the angel of the moon,
the angel of the Pleiades, the angel of Orion, the angel of the herbs, the
angel of Paradise, the angel of Gehenna, the angel of the trees, the angel of
the reptiles, the angel of the wild beasts, the angel of the domestic animals,
the angel of the fishes, the angel of the locusts, the angel of the birds, the
chief angel of the angels, the angel of each heaven, the chief angel of each
division of the heavenly hosts, the chief angel of the holy Hayyot, the chief
angel of the cherubim, the chief angel of the ofanim, and all the other
splendid, terrible, and mighty angel chiefs. They all appeared before God with
great joy, laved in a stream of joy, and they rejoiced and danced and sang, and
extolled the Lord with many praises and many instruments. The ministering
angels began, "Let the glory of the Lord endure forever!" And the
rest of the angels took up the song with the words, "Let the Lord rejoice
in His works!" 'Arabot, the seventh heaven, was filled with joy and glory,
splendor and strength, power and might and pride and magnificence and grandeur,
praise and jubilation, song and gladness, steadfastness and righteousness,
honor and adoration.
Then God bade the
Angel of the Sabbath seat himself upon a throne of glory, and He brought before
him the chiefs of the angels of all the heavens and all the abysses, and bade
them dance and rejoice, saying, "Sabbath it is unto the Lord!" and
the exalted princes of the heavens responded, "Unto the Lord it is
Sabbath!" Even Adam was permitted to ascend to the highest heaven, to take
part in the rejoicing over the Sabbath.
By bestowing Sabbath
joy upon all beings, not excepting Adam, thus did the Lord dedicate His
creation. Seeing the majesty of the Sabbath, its honor and greatness, and the
joy it conferred upon all, being the fount of all joy, Adam intoned a song of
praise for the Sabbath day. Then God said to him, "Thou singest a song of
praise to the Sabbath day, and singest none to Me, the God of the
Sabbath?" Thereupon the Sabbath rose from his seat, and prostrated himself
before God, saying, "It is a good thing to give thanks unto the
Lord," and the whole of creation added, "And to sing praises unto Thy
Name, O Most High!"[101]
This was the first
Sabbath, and this its celebration in heaven by God and the angels. The angels
were informed at the same time that in days to come
For Adam the Sabbath
had a peculiar significance. When he was made to depart out of
Still another
opportunity was given to Adam to learn and appreciate the value of the Sabbath.
The celestial light, whereby Adam could survey the world from end to end,
should properly have been made to disappear immediately after his sin. But out
of consideration for the Sabbath, God had let this light continue to shine, and
the angels, at sundown on the sixth day, intoned a song of praise and
thanksgiving to God, for the radiant light shining through the night. Only with
the going out of the Sabbath day the celestial light ceased, to the
consternation of Adam, who feared that the serpent would attack him in the
dark. But God illumined his understanding, and he learned to rub two stones
against each other and produce light for his needs.[104]
The celestial light
was but one of the seven precious gifts enjoyed by Adam before the fall and to
be granted to man again only in the Messianic time. The others are the
resplendence of his countenance; life eternal; his tall stature; the fruits of
the soil; the fruits of the tree; and the luminaries of the sky, the sun and
the moon, for in the world to come the light of the moon shall be as the light
of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold.[105]
ADAM'S REPENTANCE
Cast out of
For himself Adam
ordained forty days of fasting, while he stood in the river
The penance which
Adam and Eve laid upon themselves awakened misgivings in Satan. He feared God
might forgive their sin, and therefore essayed to hinder Eve in her purpose.
After a lapse of eighteen days he appeared unto her in the guise of an angel.
As though in distress on account of her, he began to cry, saying: "Step up
out of the river, and weep no longer. The Lord God hath heard your mourning,
and your penitence hath been accepted by Him. All the angels supplicated the
Lord in your behalf, and He hath sent me to fetch you out of the water and give
you the sustenance that you enjoyed in
When Adam heard the
confession of Satan, he prayed to God: "O Lord my God! In Thy hands is my
life. Remove from me this adversary, who seeks to deliver my soul to
destruction, and grant me the glory he has forfeited." Satan disappeared
forthwith, but Adam continued his penance, standing in the waters of the
While Adam stood in
the river, he noticed that the days were growing shorter, and he feared the
world might be darkened on account of his sin, and go under soon. To avert the
doom, be spent eight days in prayer and fasting. But after the winter solstice,
when he saw that the days grew longer again, he spent eight days in rejoicing,
and in the following year he celebrated both periods, the one before and the
one after the solstice. This is why the heathen celebrate the calends and the
saturnalia in honor of their gods, though Adam had consecrated those days to
the honor of God.[107]
The first time Adam
witnessed the sinking of the sun be was also seized with anxious fears. It
happened at the conclusion of the Sabbath, and Adam said, "Woe is me! For
my sake, because I sinned, the world is darkened, and it will again become void
and without form. Thus will be executed the punishment of death which God has
pronounced against me!" All the night he spent in tears, and Eve, too,
wept as she sat opposite to him. When day began to dawn, he understood that
what he had deplored was but the course of nature, and be brought an offering
unto God, a unicorn whose horn was created before his hoofs,[108] and he
sacrificed it on the spot on which later the altar was to stand in
Jerusalem.[109]
THE BOOK OF RAZIEL
After Adam's
expulsion from
On the third day
after he had offered up this prayer, while he was sitting on the banks of the
river that flows forth out of Paradise, there appeared to him, in the heat of
the day, the angel Raziel, bearing a book in his hand. The angel addressed Adam
thus: "O Adam, why art thou so fainthearted? Why art thou distressed and
anxious? Thy words were heard at the moment when thou didst utter thy
supplication and entreaties, and I have received the charge to teach thee pure
words and deep understanding, to make thee wise through the contents of the
sacred book in my hand, to know what will happen to thee until the day of thy
death. And all thy descendants and all the later generations, if they will but
read this book in purity, with a devout heart and an humble mind, and obey its
precepts, will become like unto thee. They, too, will foreknow what things
shall happen, and in what month and on what day or in what night. All will be
manifest to them--they will know and understand whether a calamity will come, a
famine or wild beasts, floods or drought; whether there will be abundance of
grain or dearth; whether the wicked will rule the world; whether locusts will
devastate the land; whether the fruits will drop from the trees unripe; whether
boils will afflict men; whether wars will prevail, or diseases or plagues among
men and cattle; whether good is resolved upon in heaven, or evil; whether blood
will flow, and the death-rattle of the slain be heard in the city. And now,
Adam, come and give heed unto what I shall tell thee regarding the manner of
this book and its holiness."
Raziel, the angel,
then read from the book, and when Adam heard the words of the holy volume as
they issued from the mouth of the angel, he fell down affrighted. But the angel
encouraged him. "Arise, Adam," he said, "be of good courage, be
not afraid, take the book from me and keep it, for thou wilt draw knowledge
from it thyself and become wise, and thou wilt also teach its contents to all
those who shall be found worthy of knowing what it contains."
In the moment when
Adam took the book, a flame of fire shot up from near the river, and the angel
rose heavenward with it. Then Adam knew that he who had spoken to him was an
angel of God, and it was from the Holy King Himself that the book had come, and
he used it in holiness and purity. It is the book out of which all things worth
knowing can be learnt, and all mysteries, and it teaches also how to call upon
the angels and make them appear before men, and answer all their questions. But
not all alike can use the book, only he who is wise and God-fearing, and
resorts to it in holiness. Such an one is secure against all wicked counsels,
his life is serene, and when death takes him from this world, he finds repose
in a place where there are neither demons nor evil spirits, and out of the
hands of the wicked he is quickly rescued.[110]
THE SICKNESS OF ADAM
When Adam had lived
to be nine hundred and thirty years old, a sickness seized him, and he felt
that his days were drawing to an end. He summoned all his descendants, and
assembled them before the door of the house of worship in which he had always
offered his prayers to God, to give them his last blessing. His family were
astonished to find him stretched out on the bed of sickness, for they did not
know what pain and suffering were.[111] They thought he was overcome with
longing after the fruits of
Adam bade Eve go
with Seth to the gates of
Arrived at the gates
of
EVE'S STORY OF THE FALL
After I was created,
God divided
The serpent
thereupon suspended himself from the wall surrounding
"Art thou
Eve?"
"Yes, it is
I."
"What art thou
doing in
"The Lord has
put us here to cultivate it and eat of its fruits."
"That is good.
Yet you eat not of all the trees."
That we do,
excepting a single one, the tree that stands in the midst of
The serpent made
every effort to persuade me that I had naught to fear--that God knew that in
the day that Adam and I ate of the fruit of the tree, we should be as He
Himself. It was jealousy that had made Him say,[118] "Ye shall not eat of
it." In spite of all his urging, I remained steadfast and refused to touch
the tree. Then the serpent engaged to pluck the fruit for me. Thereupon I
opened the gate of
The serpent
disappeared from the tree, while I sought leaves wherewith to cover my
nakedness, but all the trees within my reach had cast off their leaves at the
moment when I ate of the forbidden fruit.[121] There was only one that retained
its leaves, the fig-tree, the very tree the fruit of which had been forbidden
to me.[122] I summoned Adam, and by means of blasphemous words I prevailed upon
him to eat of the fruit. As soon as it had passed his lips, he knew his true
condition, and he exclaimed against me: "Thou wicked woman, what bast thou
brought down upon me? Thou hast removed me from the glory of God."
At the same time
Adam and I heard the archangel Michael[123] blow his trumpet, and all the
angels cried out: "Thus saith the Lord, Come ye with Me to
We hid ourselves
because we feared the judgment of God. Sitting in his chariot drawn by
cherubim, the Lord, accompanied by angels uttering His praise, appeared in
Adam tried to put
the blame on me, who had promised to hold him harmless before God. And I in
turn accused the serpent. But God dealt out justice to all three of us. To Adam
He said: "Because thou didst not obey My commands, but didst hearken unto
the voice of thy wife, cursed is the ground in spite of thy work. When thou
dost cultivate it, it will not yield thee its strength. Thorns and thistles
shall it bring forth to thee, and in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat
bread. Thou wilt suffer many a hardship, thou wilt grow weary, and yet find no
rest. Bitterly oppressed, thou shalt never taste of any sweetness. Thou shalt
be scourged by heat, and yet pinched by cold. Thou shalt toil greatly, and yet
not gain wealth. Thou shalt grow fat, and yet cease to live. And the animals
over which thou art the master will rise up against thee, because thou didst
not keep my command."[127]
Upon me God
pronounced this sentence: "Thou shalt suffer anguish in childbirth and
grievous torture. In sorrow shalt thou bring forth children, and in the hour of
travail, when thou art near to lose thy life, thou wilt confess and cry, 'Lord,
Lord, save me this time, and I will never again indulge in carnal pleasure,'
and yet thy desire shall ever and ever be unto thy husband."[128]
At the same time all
sorts of diseases were decreed upon us. God said to Adam: "Because thou
didst turn aside from My covenant, I will inflict seventy plagues upon thy
flesh. The pain of the first plague shall lay hold on thy eyes; the pain of the
second plague upon thy hearing, and one after the other all the plagues shall
come upon thee."[129] The serpent God addressed thus: "Because thou
becamest the vessel of the Evil One,[130] deceiving the innocent, cursed art
thou above all cattle and above every beast of the field. Thou shalt be robbed
of the food thou wast wont to eat, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy
life. Upon thy breast and thy belly shalt thou go, and of thy hands and thy
feet thou shalt be deprived. Thou shalt not remain in possession of thy ears,
nor of thy wings, nor of any of thy limbs wherewith thou didst seduce the woman
and her husband, bringing them to such a pass that they must be driven forth
from
THE DEATH OF ADAM
On the last day of
Adam's life, Eve said to him, "Why should I go on living, when thou art no
more? How long shall I have to linger on after thy death? Tell me this!"
Adam assured her she would not tarry long. They would die together, and be
buried together in the same place. He commanded her not to touch his corpse
until an angel from God had made provision regarding it, and she was to begin
at once to pray to God until his soul escaped from his body.
While Eve was on her
knees in prayer, an angel came,[132] and bade her rise. "Eve, arise from
thy penance," he commanded. "Behold, thy husband hath left his mortal
coil. Arise, and see his spirit go up to his Creator, to appear before
Him." And, lo, she beheld a chariot of light, drawn by four shining
eagles, and preceded by angels. In this chariot lay the soul of Adam, which the
angels were taking to heaven. Arrived there, they burnt incense until the
clouds of smoke enveloped the heavens. Then they prayed to God to have mercy
upon His image and the work of His holy hands. In her awe and fright, Eve
summoned Seth, and she bade him look upon the vision and explain the celestial
sights beyond her understanding. She asked, "Who may the two Ethiopians
be, who are adding their prayers to thy father's?" Seth told her, they
were the sun and the moon, turned so black because they could not shine in the
face of the Father of light.[133] Scarcely had he spoken, when an angel blew a
trumpet, and all the angels cried out with awful voices, "Blessed be the
glory of the Lord by His creatures, for He has shown mercy unto Adam, the work
of His hands!" A seraph then seized Adam, and carried him off to the river
Acheron, washed him three times, and brought him before the presence of God,
who sat upon His throne, and, stretching out His hand, lifted Adam up and gave
him over to the archangel Michael, with the words, "Raise him to the
Paradise of the third heaven, and there thou shalt leave him until the great
and fearful day ordained by Me." Michael executed the Divine behest, and
all the angels sang a song of praise, extolling God for the pardon He had
accorded Adam.
Michael now
entreated God to let him attend to the preparation of Adam's body for the
grave. Permission being given, Michael repaired to earth, accompanied by all
the angels. When they entered the terrestrial
Thereupon, at the
bidding of God, the three great archangels[135] covered the body of Adam with
linen, and poured sweet-smelling oil upon it. With it they interred also the
body of Abel, which had lain unburied since Cain had slain him, for all the
murderer's efforts to hide it had been in vain. The corpse again and again
sprang forth from the earth, and a voice issued thence, proclaiming, "No
creature shall rest in the earth until the first one of all has returned the
dust to me of which it was formed."[136] The angels carried the two bodies
to Paradise, Adam's and Abel's--the latter had all this time been lying on a
stone on which angels had placed it--and they buried them both on the spot
whence God had taken the dust wherewith to make Adam.[137]
God called unto the
body of Adam, "Adam! Adam!" and it answered, "Lord, here am
I!" Then God said: "I told thee once, Dust thou art, and unto dust
shalt thou return. Now I promise thee resurrection. I will awaken thee on the
day of judgment, when all the generations of men that spring from thy loins,
shall arise from the grave." God then sealed up the grave, that none might
do him harm during the six days to elapse until his rib should be restored to
him through the death of Eve.[138]
THE DEATH OF EVE
The interval between
Adam's death and her own Eve spent in weeping. She was distressed in particular
that she knew not what had become of Adam's body, for none except Seth had been
awake while the angel interred it. When the hour of her death drew nigh, Eve
supplicated to be buried in the selfsame spot in which the remains of her
husband rested. She prayed to God: "Lord of all powers! Remove not Thy
maid-servant from the body of Adam, from which Thou didst take me, from whose
limbs Thou didst form me. Permit me, who am an unworthy and sinning woman, to
enter into his habitation. As we were together in
The archangel
Michael came and taught Seth how to prepare Eve for burial, and three angels
descended and interred her body in the grave with Adam and Abel. Then Michael
spoke to Seth, "Thus shalt thou bury all men that die until the
resurrection day." And again, having given him this command, he spoke:
"Longer than six days ye shall not mourn.[139] The repose of the seventh
day is the token of the resurrection in the latter day, for on the seventh day
the Lord rested from all the work which He had created and made."[140]
Though death was
brought into the world through Adam, yet he cannot be held responsible for the
death of men. Once on a time he said to God: "I am not concerned about the
death of the wicked, but I should not like the pious to reproach me and lay the
blame for their death upon me. I pray Thee, make no mention of my guilt."
And God promised to fulfil his wish. Therefore, when a man is about to die, God
appears to him, and bids him set down in writing all he has done during his
life, for, He tells him, "Thou art dying by reason of thy evil
deeds." The record finished, God orders him to seal it with his seal. This
is the writing God will bring out on the judgment day, and to each will be made
known his deeds.[141] As soon as life is extinct in a man, he is presented to
Adam, whom be accuses of having caused his death. But Adam repudiates the
charge: "I committed but one trespass. Is there any among you, and be he
the most pious, who has not been guilty of more than one?"[142]
III
THE TEN GENERATIONS
THE BIRTH OF CAIN FRATRICIDE THE PUNISHMENT OF CAIN THE INHABITANTS OF THE
SEVEN EARTHS THE DESCENDANTS OF CAIN THE DESCENDANTS OF ADAM AND LILITH SETH
AND HIS DESCENDANTS ENOSH THE FALL OF THE ANGELS ENOCH, RULER AND TEACHER THE
ASCENSION OF ENOCH THE TRANSLATION OF ENOCH METHUSELAH
III
THE TEN GENERATIONS
THE BIRTH OF CAIN
There were ten
generations from Adam to Noah, to show how long-suffering is the Lord, for all
the generations provoked Him unto wrath, until He brought the deluge upon
them.[1] By reason of their impiousness God changed His plan of calling one
thousand generations into being between the creation of the world and the
revelation of the law at Mount Sinai; nine hundred and seventy-four He
suppressed before the flood.[2]
Wickedness came into
the world with the first being born of woman, Cain, the oldest son of Adam.
When God bestowed
Adam was not in the
company of Eve during the time of her pregnancy with Cain. After she had
succumbed a second time to the temptations of Satan, and permitted herself to
be interrupted in her penance,[4] she left her husband and journeyed westward,
because she feared her presence might continue to bring him misery. Adam
remained in the east. When the days of Eve to be delivered were fulfilled, and
she began to feel the pangs of travailing, she prayed to God for help. But He
hearkened not unto her supplications. "Who will carry the report to my
lord Adam?" she asked herself. "Ye luminaries in the sky, I beg you,
tell it to my master Adam when ye return to the east!" In that self same
hour, Adam cried out: "The lamentation of Eve has pierced to my ear!
Mayhap the serpent has again assaulted her," and he hastened to his wife.
Finding her in grievous pain, he besought God in her behalf, and twelve angels
appeared, together with two heavenly powers.[5] All these took up their post to
right of her and to left of her, while Michael, also standing on her right
side, passed his hand over her, from her face downward to her breast, and said
to her, "Be thou blessed, Eve, for the sake of Adam. Because of his
solicitations and his prayers I was sent to grant thee our assistance. Make
ready to give birth to thy child!" Immediately her son was born, a radiant
figure.[6] A little while and the babe stood upon his feet, ran off, and
returned holding in his hands a stalk of straw, which he gave to his mother.
For this reason he was named Cain, the Hebrew word for stalk of straw.
Now Adam took Eve
and the boy to his home in the east. God sent him various kinds of seeds by the
hand of the angel Michael, and he was taught how to cultivate the ground and
make it yield produce and fruits, to sustain himself and his family and his
posterity.[7]
After a while, Eve
bore her second son, whom she named Hebel, because, she said, he was born but
to die.
FRATRICIDE
The slaying of Abel
by Cain did not come as a wholly unexpected event to his parents. In a dream
Eve had seen the blood of Abel flow into the mouth of Cain, who drank it with
avidity, though his brother entreated him not to take all. When she told her
dream to Adam, he said, lamenting, "O that this may not portend the death
of Abel at the hand of Cain!" He separated the two lads, assigning to each
an abode of his own, and to each he taught a different occupation. Cain became
a tiller of the ground, and Abel a keeper of sheep. It was all in vain. In
spite of these precautions, Cain slew his brother.[9]
His hostility toward
Abel had more than one reason. It began when God had respect unto the offering
of Abel, and accepted it by sending heavenly fire down to consume it, while the
offering of Cain was rejected.[10] They brought their sacrifices on the
fourteenth day of Nisan, at the instance of their father, who had spoken thus
to his sons: "This is the day on which, in times to come, Israel will
offer sacrifices. Therefore, do ye, too, bring sacrifices to your Creator on
this day, that He may take pleasure in you." The place of offering which
they chose was the spot whereon the altar of the Temple at Jerusalem stood
later.[11] Abel selected the best of his flocks for his sacrifice, but Cain ate
his meal first, and after he had satisfied his appetite, he offered unto God
what was left over, a few grains of flax seed. As though his offense had not
been great enough in offering unto God fruit of the ground which had been
cursed by God![12] What wonder that his sacrifice was not received with favor!
Besides, a chastisement was inflicted upon him. His face turned black as
smoke.[13] Nevertheless, his disposition underwent no change, even when God
spoke to him thus: "If thou wilt amend thy ways, thy guilt will be
forgiven thee; if not, thou wilt be delivered into the power of the evil
inclination. It coucheth at the door of thy heart, yet it depends upon thee
whether thou shalt be master over it, or it shall be master over
thee."[14]
Cain thought he had
been wronged, and a dispute followed between him and Abel. "I
believed," he said, "that the world was created through goodness,[15]
but I see that good deeds bear no fruit. God rules the world with arbitrary
power, else why had He respect unto thy offering, and not unto mine also?"
Abel opposed him; he maintained that God rewards good deeds, without having
respect unto persons. If his sacrifice had been accepted graciously by God, and
Cain's not, it was because his deeds were good, and his brother's wicked.[16]
But this was not the
only cause of Cain's hatred toward Abel. Partly love for a woman brought about
the crime. To ensure the propagation of the human race, a girl, destined to be
his wife, was born together with each of the sons of Adam. Abel's twin sister
was of exquisite beauty, and Cain desired her.[17] Therefore he was constantly
brooding over ways and means of ridding himself of his brother.
The opportunity
presented itself ere long. One day a sheep belonging to Abel tramped over a
field that had been planted by Cain. In a rage, the latter called out,
"What right hast thou to live upon my land and let thy sheep pasture
yonder?" Abel retorted: "What right hast thou to use the products of
my sheep, to make garments for thyself from their wool? If thou wilt take off
the wool of my sheep wherein thou art arrayed, and wilt pay me for the flesh of
the flocks which thou hast eaten, then I will quit thy land as thou desirest,
and fly into the air, if I can do it." Cain thereupon said, "And if I
were to kill thee, who is there to demand thy blood of me?" Abel replied:
"God, who brought us into the world, will avenge me. He will require my
blood at thine hand, if thou shouldst slay me. God is the Judge, who will visit
their wicked deeds upon the wicked, and their evil deeds upon the evil.
Shouldst thou slay me, God will know thy secret, and He will deal out
punishment unto thee."
These words but
added to the anger of Cain, and he threw himself upon his brother.[18] Abel was
stronger than he, and he would have got the worst of it, but at the last moment
he begged for mercy, and the gentle Abel released his hold upon him. Scarcely
did he feel himself free, when he turned against Abel once more, and slew him.
So true is the saying, "Do the evil no good, lest evil fall upon
thee."[19]
THE PUNISHMENT OF CAIN
The manner of Abel's
death was the most cruel conceivable. Not knowing what injury was fatal, Cain
pelted all parts of his body with stones, until one struck him on the neck and
inflicted death.
After committing the
murder, Cain resolved to flee, saying, "My parents will demand account of
me concerning Abel, for there is no other human being on earth." This
thought had but passed through his mind when God appeared unto him, and
addressed him in these words: "Before thy parents thou canst flee, but
canst thou go out from My presence, too? 'Can any hide himself in secret places
that I shall not see him?' Alas for Abel that he showed thee mercy, and
refrained from killing thee, when he had thee in his power! Alas that he
granted thee the opportunity of slaying him!"
Questioned by God,
"Where is Abel thy brother?" Cain answered: "Am I my brother's
keeper? Thou art He who holdest watch over all creatures, and yet Thou
demandest account of me! True, I slew him, but Thou didst create the evil
inclination in me. Thou guardest all things; why, then, didst Thou permit me to
slay him? Thou didst Thyself slay him, for hadst Thou looked with a favorable
countenance toward my offering as toward his, I had had no reason for envying
him, and I had not slain him." But God said, "The voice of thy
brother's blood issuing from his many wounds crieth out against thee,[20] and
likewise the blood of all the pious who might have sprung from the loins of
Abel."
Also the soul of
Abel denounced the murderer, for she could find rest nowhere. She could neither
soar heavenward, nor abide in the grave with her body, for no human soul had
done either before.[21] But Cain still refused to confess his guilt. He
insisted that he had never seen a man killed, and how was he to suppose that
the stones which he threw at Abel would take his life? Then, on account of
Cain, God cursed the ground, that it might not yield fruit unto him.[22] With a
single punishment both Cain and the earth were chastised, the earth because it
retained the corpse of Abel, and did not cast it above ground.[23]
In the obduracy of
his heart, Cain spake: "O Lord of the world! Are there informers who
denounce men before Thee? My parents are the only living human beings, and they
know naught of my deed. Thou abidest in the heavens, and how shouldst Thou know
what things happen on earth?" God said in reply: "Thou fool! I carry
the whole world. I have made it, and I will bear it"--a reply that gave
Cain the opportunity of feigning repentance. "Thou bearest the whole
world," he said, "and my sin Thou canst not bear?[24] Verily, mine
iniquity is too great to be borne! Yet, yesterday Thou didst banish my father
from Thy presence, to-day Thou dost banish me. In sooth, it will be said, it is
Thy way to banish."[25]
Although this was
but dissimulation, and not true repentance, yet God granted Cain pardon, and
removed the half of his chastisement from him. Originally, the decree had
condemned him to be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth. Now he was no
longer to roam about forever, but a fugitive he was to remain. And so much was
hard enough to have to suffer, for the earth quaked under Cain, and all the
animals, the wild and the tame, among them the accursed serpent, gathered
together and essayed to devour him in order to avenge the innocent blood of
Abel. Finally Cain could bear it no longer, and, breaking out in tears, he
cried: "Whither shall I go from Thy spirit? Or whither shall I flee from Thy
presence?"[26] To protect him from the onslaught of the beasts, God
inscribed one letter of His Holy Name upon his forehead," and furthermore
He addressed the animals: "Cain's punishment shall not be like unto the
punishment of future murderers. He has shed blood, but there was none to give
him instruction. Henceforth, however, he who slays another shall himself be
slain." Then God gave him the dog as a protection against the wild beasts,
and to mark him as a sinner, He afflicted him with leprosy.
Cain's repentance,
insincere though it was, bore a good result. When Adam met him, and inquired
what doom had been decreed against him, Cain told how his repentance had
propitiated God, and Adam exclaimed, "So potent is repentance, and I knew
it not!" Thereupon he composed a hymn of praise to God, beginning with the
words, "It is a good thing to confess thy sins unto the Lord!"[29]
The crime committed
by Cain had baneful consequences, not for himself alone, but for the whole of
nature also. Before, the fruits which the earth bore unto him when he tilled
the ground had tasted like the fruits of
Nature was modified
also by the burial of the corpse of Abel. For a long time it lay there exposed,
above ground, because Adam and Eve knew not what to do with it. They sat beside
it and wept, while the faithful dog of Abel kept guard that birds and beasts did
it no harm. On a sudden, the mourning parents observed how a raven scratched
the earth away in one spot, and then hid a dead bird of his own kind in the
ground. Adam, following the example of the raven, buried the body of Abel, and
the raven was rewarded by God. His young are born with white feathers,
wherefore the old birds desert them, not recognizing them as their offspring.
They take them for serpents. God feeds them until their plumage turns black,
and the parent birds return to them. As an additional reward, God grants their
petition when the ravens pray for rain.[31]
THE INHABITANTS OF THE SEVEN EARTHS
When Adam was cast
out of
light, and utterly void. Adam was terrified,
particularly by the flames of the ever-turning sword, which is on this earth.
After he had done penance, God led him to the second earth, the Adamah, where
there is light reflected from its own sky and from its phantom-like stars and
constellations. Here dwell the phantom-like beings that issued from the union
of Adam with the spirits." They are always sad; the emotion of joy is not
known to them. They leave their own earth and repair to the one inhabited by
men, where they are changed into evil spirits. Then they return to their abode
for good, repent of their wicked deeds, and till the ground, which, however,
bears neither wheat nor any other of the seven species.[34] In this Adamah,
Cain, Abel, and
Seth were born. After the murder of Abel, Cain
was sent back to the Erez, where he was frightened into repentance by its
darkness and by the flames of the ever-turning sword. Accepting his penitence,
God permitted him to ascend to the third earth, the
Arka, which receives some light from the sun.
The Arka was surrendered to the Cainites forever, as their perpetual domain.
They till the ground, and plant trees, but they have neither wheat nor any
other of the seven species.
Some of the Cainites
are giants, some of them are dwarfs. They have two heads, wherefore they can
never arrive at a decision; they are always at loggerheads with themselves.[34]
It may happen that they are pious now, only to be inclined to do evil the next
moment.
In the Ge, the
fourth earth, live the generation of the
The sixth earth, the
Ziah, is inhabited by handsome men, who are the owners of abundant wealth, and
live in palatial residences, but they lack water, as the name of their
territory, Ziah, "drought," indicates. Hence vegetation is sparse
with them, and their tree culture meets with indifferent success. They hasten
to any waterspring that is discovered, and sometimes they succeed in slipping
through it up to our earth, where they satisfy their sharp appetite for the
food eaten by the inhabitants of our earth. For the rest, they are men of
steadfast faith, more than any other class of mankind.[36]
Adam remained in the
Adamah until after the birth of Seth. Then, passing the third earth, the Arka,
the abiding place of the Cainites, and the next three earths as well, the Ge,
the Neshiah, and the Ziah, God transported him to the Tebel, the seventh earth,
the earth inhabited by men.
THE DESCENDANTS OF CAIN
Cain knew only too
well that his blood-guiltiness would be visited upon him in the seventh
generation. Thus had God decreed against him.[37] He endeavored, therefore, to
immortalize his name by means of monuments,[38] and he became a builder of
cities. The first of them he called Enoch, after his son, because it was at the
birth of Enoch that he began to enjoy a measure of rest and peace.[39] Besides,
he founded six other cities.[40] This building of cities was a godless deed,
for he surrounded them with a wall, forcing his family to remain within. All
his other doings were equally impious. The punishment God had ordained for him
did not effect any improvement. He sinned in order to secure his own pleasure,
though his neighbors suffered injury thereby. He augmented his household
substance by rapine and violence; he excited his acquaintances to procure
pleasures and spoils by robbery, and he became a great leader of men into
wicked courses. He also introduced a change in the ways of simplicity wherein
men had lived before, and he was the author of measures and weights. And
whereas men lived innocently and generously while they knew nothing of such
arts, he changed the world into cunning craftiness.[41]
Like unto Cain were
all his descendants, impious and godless, wherefore God resolved to destroy
them.[42]
The end of Cain
overtook him in the seventh generation of men, and it was inflicted upon him by
the hand of his great-grandson Lamech. This Lamech was blind, and when he went
a-hunting, he was led by his young son, who would apprise his father when game
came in sight, and Lamech would then shoot at it with his bow and arrow. Once
upon a time he and his son went on the chase, and the lad discerned something
horned in the distance. He naturally took it to be a beast of one kind or
another, and he told the blind Lamech to let his arrow fly. The aim was good,
and the quarry dropped to the ground. When they came close to the victim, the
lad exclaimed: "Father, thou hast killed something that resembles a human
being in all respects, except it carries a horn on its forehead!" Lamech
knew at once what had happened--he had killed his ancestor Cain, who had been
marked by God with a horn.[43] In despair he smote his hands together,
inadvertently killing his son as he clasped them. Misfortune still followed
upon misfortune. The earth opened her mouth and swallowed up the four
generations sprung from Cain--Enoch, Irad, Mehujael, and Methushael. Lamech,
sightless as he was, could not go home; he had to remain by the side of Cain's
corpse and his son's. Toward evening, his wives, seeking him, found him there.
When they heard what he had done, they wanted to separate from him, all the
more as they knew that whoever was descended from Cain was doomed to
annihilation. But Lamech argued, "If Cain, who committed murder of malice
aforethought, was punished only in the seventh generation, then I, who had no
intention of killing a human being, may hope that retribution will be averted
for seventy and seven generations." With his wives, Lamech repaired to
Adam, who heard both parties, and decided the case in favor of Lamech.[44]
The corruptness of
the times, and especially the depravity of Cain's stock, appears in the fact
that Lamech, as well as all the men in the generation of the deluge, married
two wives, one with the purpose of rearing children, the other in order to
pursue carnal indulgences, for which reason the latter was rendered sterile by
artificial means. As the men of the time were intent upon pleasure rather than
desirous of doing their duty to the human race, they gave all their love and
attention to the barren women, while their other wives spent their days like
widows, joyless and in gloom.
The two wives of
Lamech, Adah and Zillah, bore him each two children, Adah two sons, Jabal and
Jubal, and Zillah a son, Tubal-cain, and a daughter, Naamah. Jabal was the
first among men to erect temples to idols, and Jubal invented the music sung
and played therein. Tubal-cain was rightly named, for he completed the work of
his ancestor Cain. Cain committed murder, and Tubal-cain, the first who knew
how to sharpen iron and copper, furnished the instruments used in wars and
combats. Naamah, "the lovely," earned her name from the sweet sounds
which she drew from her cymbals when she called the worshippers to pay homage
to idols.[45]
THE DESCENDANTS OF ADAM AND LILITH
When the wives of
Lamech heard the decision of Adam, that they were to continue to live with
their husband, they turned upon him, saying, "O physician, heal thine own
lameness!" They were alluding to the fact that he himself had been living
apart from his wife since the death of Abel, for he had said, "Why should
I beget children, if it is but to expose them to death?"[46]
Though he avoided
intercourse with Eve, he was visited in his sleep by female spirits, and from
his union with them sprang shades and demons of various kinds,[47] and they
were endowed with peculiar gifts.
Once upon a time
there lived in
his son, Rabbi Hanina, and bade him, as his
last request, to study the Torah day and night, fulfil the commands of the law,
and be a faithful friend to the poor. He also told him that he and his wife,
the mother of Rabbi Hanina, would die on the selfsame day, and the seven days
of mourning for the two would end on the eve of the Passover. He enjoined him
not to grieve excessively, but to go to market on that day, and buy the first
article offered to him, no matter how costly it might be. If it happened to be
an edible, he was to prepare it and serve it with much ceremony. His expense
and trouble would receive their recompense. All happened as foretold: the man
and his wife died upon the same day, and the end of the week of mourning
coincided with the eve of the Passover. The son in turn carried out his
father's behest: he repaired to market, and there he met an old man who offered
a silver dish for sale. Although the price asked was exorbitant, yet he bought
it, as his father had bidden. The dish was set upon the Seder table, and when
Rabbi Hanina opened it, he found a second dish within, and inside of this a
live frog, jumping and hopping around gleefully. He gave the frog food and
drink, and by the end of the festival he was grown so big
that Rabbi Hanina made a cabinet for him, in
which he ate and lived. In the course of time, the cabinet became too small,
and the Rabbi built a chamber, put the frog within, and gave him abundant food
and drink. All this he did that he might not violate his father's last wish.
But the frog waxed and grew; he consumed all his host owned, until, finally,
Rabbi Hanina was stripped bare of all his possessions. Then the frog opened his
mouth and began to speak. "My dear Rabbi Hanina," he said, "do
not worry! Seeing thou didst raise me and care for me, thou mayest ask of me
whatever thy heart desireth, and it shall be granted thee." Rabbi Hanina
made reply, "I desire naught but that thou shouldst teach me the whole of
the Torah." The frog assented, and he did, indeed, teach him the whole of
the Torah, and the seventy languages of men besides.[48] His method was to
write a few words upon a scrap of paper, which he had his pupil swallow. Thus
he acquired not alone the Torah and the seventy tongues, but also the language
of beasts and birds. Thereupon the frog spoke to the wife of Rabbi Hanina:
"Thou didst tend me well, and I have given thee no recompense. But thy
reward will be paid thee before I depart from you, only you must both accompany
me to
the woods. There you shall see what I shall do
for you." Accordingly, they went to the woods with him. Arrived there, the
frog began to cry aloud, and at the sound all sorts of beasts and birds
assembled. These he commanded to produce precious stones,
as many as they could carry. Also they were to
bring herbs and roots for the wife of Rabbi Hanina, and he taught her how to
use them as remedies for all varieties of disease. All this they were bidden to
take home with them. When they were about to return, the frog addressed them
thus: "May the Holy One, blessed be He, have mercy upon you, and requite
you for all the trouble you took on my account, without so much as inquiring
who I am. Now I shall make my origin known to you. I am the son of Adam, a son
whom he begot during the hundred and thirty years of his separation from Eve.
God has endowed me with the power of assuming any form or guise I desire."
Rabbi Hanina and his wife departed for their home, and they became very rich,
and enjoyed the respect and confidence of the king.[49]
SETH AND HIS DESCENDANTS
The exhortations of
the wives of Lamech took effect upon Adam. After a separation of one hundred
and thirty years, he returned to Eve, and the love he now bore her was stronger
by far than in the former time. She was in his thoughts even when she was not
present to him bodily. The fruit of their reunion was Seth, who was destined to
be the ancestor of the Messiah.[50]
Seth was so formed
from birth that the rite of circumcision could be dispensed with. He was thus
one of the thirteen men born perfect in a way.[51] Adam begot him in his
likeness and image, different from Cain, who had not been in his likeness and
image. Thus Seth became, in a genuine sense, the father of the human race,
especially the father of the pious, while the depraved and godless are
descended from Cain.[52]
Even during the
lifetime of Adam the descendants of Cain became exceedingly wicked, dying
successively, one after another, each more wicked than the former. They were
intolerable in war, and vehement in robberies, and if any one were slow to
murder people, yet was he bold in his profligate behavior in acting unjustly
and doing injury for gain.
Now as to Seth. When
he was brought up, and came to those years in which he could discern what was
good, he became a virtuous man, and as he was himself of excellent character,
so he left children behind him who imitated his virtues. All these proved to be
of good disposition. They also inhabited one and the same country without
dissensions, and in a happy condition, without any misfortune's falling upon
them, until they died. They also were the inventors of that peculiar sort of
wisdom which is concerned with the heavenly bodies and their order. And that
their inventions might not be lost before they were sufficiently known, they
made two pillars, upon Adam's prediction that the world was to be destroyed at
one time by the force of fire and at another time by the violence and quantity
of water. The one was of brick, the other of stone, and they inscribed their
discoveries on both, that in case the pillar of brick should be destroyed by
the flood, the pillar of stone might remain, and exhibit these discoveries to
mankind, and also inform them that there was another pillar, of brick, erected
by them.[53]
ENOSH
Enosh was asked who
his father was, and he named Seth. The questioners, the people of his time,
continued: "Who was the father of Seth?" Enosh:
"Adam."--"And who was the father of Adam?"--"He had
neither father nor mother, God formed him from the dust of the
earth."--"But man has not the appearance of dust!"--"After
death man returns to dust, as God said, 'And man shall turn again unto dust;'
but on the day of his creation, man was made in the image of
God."--"How was the woman created?"- "Male and female He
created them."--"But how?"--"God took water and earth, and
moulded them together in the form of man."--"But how?" pursued
the questioners.
Enosh took six clods
of earth, mixed them, and moulded them, and formed an image of dust and clay.
"But," said the people, "this image does not walk, nor does it
possess any breath of life." He then essayed to show them how God breathed
the breath of life into the nostrils of Adam, but when he began to blow his
breath into the image he had formed, Satan entered it, and the figure walked,
and the people of his time who had been inquiring these matters of Enosh went
astray after it, saying, "What is the difference between bowing down
before this image and paying homage to a man?"[54]
The generation of
Enosh were thus the first idol worshippers, and the punishment for their folly
was not delayed long. God caused the sea to transgress its bounds, and a
portion of the earth was flooded. This was the time also when the mountains
became rocks, and the dead bodies of men began to decay. And still another
consequence of the sin of idolatry was that the countenances of the men of the
following generations were no longer in the likeness and image of God, as the
countenances of Adam, Seth, and Enosh had been. They resembled centaurs and
apes, and the demons lost their fear of men.[55]
But there was a
still more serious consequence from the idolatrous practices introduced in the
time of Enosh. When God drove Adam forth from
Thus it was until
the time of Enosh, when men began to gather gold, silver, gems, and pearls from
all parts of the earth, and made idols thereof a thousand parasangs high. What
was worse, by means of the magic arts taught them by the angels Uzza and
Azzael, they set themselves as masters over the heavenly spheres, and forced
the sun, the moon, and the stars to be subservient to themselves instead of the
Lord. This impelled the angels to ask God: " 'What is man, that Thou art
mindful of him?' Why didst Thou abandon the highest of the heavens, the seat of
Thy glory and Thy exalted Throne in 'Arabot, and descend to men, who pay
worship to idols, putting Thee upon a level with them?" The Shekinah was
induced to leave the earth and ascend to heaven, amid the blare and flourish of
the trumpets of the myriads of angel hosts.[56]
THE FALL OF THE ANGELS
The depravity of
mankind, which began to show itself in the time of Enosh, had increased
monstrously in the time of his grandson Jared, by reason of the fallen angels.
When the angels saw the beautiful, attractive daughters of men, they lusted
after them, and spoke: "We will choose wives for ourselves only from among
the daughters of men, and beget children with them." Their chief Shemhazai
said, "I fear me, ye will not put this plan of yours into execution, and I
alone shall have to suffer the consequences of a great sin." Then they
answered him, and said: "We will all swear an oath, and we will bind
ourselves, separately and together, not to abandon the plan, but to carry it
through to the end."
Two hundred angels
descended to the summit of
Then the earth
complained about the impious evil-doers. But the fallen angels continued to
corrupt mankind. Azazel taught men how to make slaughtering knives, arms,
shields, and coats of mail. He showed them metals and how to work them, and
armlets and all sorts of trinkets, and the use of rouge for the eyes, and how
to beautify the eyelids, and how to ornament themselves with the rarest and
most precious jewels and all sorts of paints. The chief of the fallen angels,
Shemhazai, instructed them in exorcisms and how to cut roots; Armaros taught
them how to raise spells; Barakel, divination from the stars; Kawkabel,
astrology; Ezekeel, augury from the clouds; Arakiel, the signs of the earth;
Samsaweel, the signs of the sun; and Seriel, the signs of the moon.[57]
While all these
abominations defiled the earth, the pious Enoch lived in a secret place. None
among men knew his abode, or what had become of him, for he was sojourning with
the angel watchers and holy ones. Once he heard the call addressed to him:
"Enoch, thou scribe of justice, go unto the watchers of the heavens, who
have left the high heavens, the eternal place of holiness, defiling themselves
with women, doing as men do, taking wives unto themselves, and casting themselves
into the arms of destruction upon earth. Go and proclaim unto them that they
shall find neither peace nor pardon. For every time they take joy in their
offspring, they shall see the violent death of their sons, and sigh over the
ruin of their children. They will pray and supplicate evermore, but never shall
they attain to mercy or peace."
Enoch repaired to
Azazel and the other fallen angels, to announce the doom uttered against them.
They all were filled with fear. Trembling seized upon them, and they implored
Enoch to set up a petition for them and read it to the Lord of heaven, for they
could not speak with God as aforetime, nor even raise their eyes heavenward,
for shame on account of their sins. Enoch granted their request, and in a
vision he was vouchsafed the answer which he was to carry back to the angels.
It appeared to Enoch that he was wafted into heaven upon clouds, and was set
down before the throne of God. God spake: "Go forth and say to the
watchers of heaven who have sent thee hither to intercede for them: Verily, it
is you who ought to plead in behalf of men, not men in behalf of you I Why did
ye forsake the high, holy, and eternal heavens, to pollute yourselves with the
daughters of men, taking wives unto yourselves, doing like the races of the earth,
and begetting giant sons? Giants begotten by flesh and spirits will be called
evil spirits on earth, and on the earth will be their dwelling-place. Evil
spirits proceed from their bodies, because they are created from above, and
from the holy watchers is their beginning and primal origin; they will be evil
spirits on earth, and evil spirits they will be named. And the spirits of
heaven have their dwelling in heaven, but the spirits of the earth, which were
born upon the earth, have their dwelling on the earth. And the spirits of the
giants will devour, oppress, destroy, attack, do battle, and cause destruction
on the earth, and work affliction. They will take no kind of food, nor will
they thirst, and they will be invisible. And these spirits will rise up against
the children of men and against the women, because they have proceeded from
them. Since the days of murder and destruction and the death of the giants,
when the spirits went forth from the soul of their flesh, in order to destroy
without incurring judgment--thus will they destroy until the day when the great
consummation of the great world be consummated. And now as to the watchers who
have sent thee to intercede for them, who had been aforetime in heaven, say to
them: You have been in heaven, and though the hidden things had not yet been
revealed to you, you know worthless mysteries, and in the hardness of your
hearts you have recounted these to the women, and through these mysteries women
and men work much evil on earth. Say to them therefore: You have no
peace!"[58]
ENOCH, RULER AND TEACHER
After Enoch had
lived a long time secluded from men, he once heard the voice of an angel
calling to him: "Enoch, Enoch, make thyself ready and leave the house and
the secret place wherein thou hast kept thyself hidden, and assume dominion
over men, to teach them the ways in which they shall walk, and the deeds which
they shall do, in order that they may walk in the ways of God."
Enoch left his
retreat and betook himself to the haunts of men. He gathered them about him,
and instructed them in the conduct pleasing to God. He sent messengers all over
to announce, "Ye who desire to know the ways of God and righteous conduct,
come ye to Enoch!" Thereupon a vast concourse of people thronged about him,
to hear the wisdom he would teach and learn from his mouth what is good and
right. Even kings and princes, no less than one hundred and thirty in number,
assembled about him, and submitted themselves to his dominion, to be taught and
guided by him, as he taught and guided all the others. Peace reigned thus over
the whole world all the two hundred and forty-three years during which the
influence of Enoch prevailed.
At the expiration of
this period, in the year in which Adam died, and was buried with great honors
by Seth, Enosh, Enoch, and Methuselah, Enoch resolved to retire again from
intercourse with men, and devote himself wholly to the service of God. But he
withdrew gradually. First he would spend three days in prayer and praise of
God, and on the fourth day he would return to his disciples and grant them
instruction. Many years passed thus, then he appeared among them but once a
week, later, once a month, and, finally, once a year. The kings, princes, and
all others who were desirous of seeing Enoch and hearkening to his words did
not venture to come close to him during the times of his retirement. Such awful
majesty sat upon his countenance, they feared for their very life if they but
looked at him. They therefore resolved that all men should prefer their requests
before Enoch on the day he showed himself unto them.
The impression made
by the teachings of Enoch upon all who heard them was powerful. They prostrated
themselves before him, and cried "Long live the king! Long live the
king!" On a certain day, while Enoch was giving audience to his followers,
an angel appeared and made known unto him that God had resolved to install him
as king over the angels in heaven, as until then he had reigned over men. He
called together all the inhabitants of the earth, and addressed them thus:
"I have been summoned to ascend into heaven, and I know not on what day I
shall go thither. Therefore I will teach you wisdom and righteousness before I
go hence." A few days yet Enoch spent among men, and all the time left to
him he gave instruction in wisdom, knowledge, God-fearing conduct, and piety,
and established law and order, for the regulation of the affairs of men. Then
those gathered near him saw a gigantic steed descend from the skies, and they
told Enoch of it, who said, "The steed is for me, for the time has come
and the day when I leave you, never to be seen again." So it was. The
steed approached Enoch, and he mounted upon its back, all the time instructing
the people, exhorting them, enjoining them to serve God and walk in His ways.
Eight hundred thousand of the people followed a day's journey after him. But on
the second day Enoch urged his retinue to turn back: "Go ye home, lest
death overtake you, if you follow me farther." Most of them heeded his
words and went back, but a number remained with him for six days, though he
admonished them daily to return and not bring death down upon themselves. On
the sixth day of the journey, he said to those still accompanying him, "Go
ye home, for on the morrow I shall ascend to heaven, and whoever will then be
near me, he will die." Nevertheless, some of his companions remained with
him, saying: "Whithersoever thou goest, we will go. By the living God,
death alone shall part us."
On the seventh day
Enoch was carried into the heavens in a fiery chariot drawn by fiery chargers.
The day thereafter, the kings who had turned back in good time sent messengers
to inquire into the fate of the men who had refused to separate themselves from
Enoch, for they had noted the number of them. They found snow and great
hailstones upon the spot whence Enoch had risen, and, when they searched
beneath, they discovered the bodies of all who had remained behind with Enoch.
He alone was not among them; he was on high in heaven.[59]
THE ASCENSION OF ENOCH
This was not the
first time Enoch had been in heaven. Once before, while he sojourned among men,
he had been permitted to see all there is on earth and in the heavens. On a
time when he was sleeping, a great grief came upon his heart, and he wept in
his dream, not knowing what the grief meant, nor what would happen to him. And
there appeared to him two men, very tall. Their faces shone like the sun, and
their eyes were like burning lamps, and fire came forth from their lips; their
wings were brighter than gold, their hands whiter than snow. They stood at the
head of Enoch's bed, and called him by his name. He awoke from his sleep, and
hastened and made obeisance to them, and was terrified. And these men said to
him: "Be of good cheer, Enoch, be not afraid; the everlasting God hath
sent us to thee, and lo! to-day thou shalt ascend with us into heaven. And tell
thy sons and thy servants, and let none seek thee, till the Lord bring thee
back to them."
Enoch did as he was
told, and after he had spoken to his sons, and instructed them not to turn
aside from God, and to keep His judgment, these two men summoned him, and took
him on their wings, and placed him on the clouds, which moved higher and
higher, till they set him down in the first heaven. Here they showed him the
two hundred angels who rule the stars, and their heavenly service. Here he saw
also the treasuries of snow and ice, of clouds and dew.
From there they took
him to the second heaven, where he saw the fallen angels imprisoned, they who
obeyed not the commandments of God, and took counsel of their own will. The
fallen angels said to Enoch, "O man of God! Pray for us to the Lord,"
and he answered: "Who am I, a mortal man, that I should pray for angels?
Who knows whither I go, or what awaits me?"
They took him from
thence to the third heaven, where they showed him
The angels took him
then to the fourth heaven, and showed him all the comings in and goings forth,
and all the rays of the light of the sun and the moon. He saw the fifteen
myriads of angels who go out with the sun, and attend him during the day, and
the thousand angels who attend him by night. Each angel has six wings, and they
go before the chariot of the sun, while one hundred angels keep the sun warm,
and light it up. He saw also the wonderful and strange creatures named
phoenixes and chalkidri, who attend the chariot of the sun, and go with him,
bringing heat and dew. They showed him also the six gates in the east of the
fourth heaven, by which the sun goes forth, and the six gates in the west where
he sets, and also the gates by which the moon goes out, and those by which she
enters. In the middle of the fourth heaven he saw an armed host, serving the
Lord with cymbals and organs and unceasing voices.
In the fifth heaven
he saw many hosts of the angels called Grigori. Their appearance was like men,
and their size was greater than the size of the giants, their countenances were
withered, and their lips silent. On his question who they were, the angels
leading him answered, "These are the Grigori, who with their prince
Salamiel rejected the holy Lord." Enoch then said to the Grigori,
"Why wait ye, brethren, and serve ye not before the face of the Lord, and
why perform ye not your duties before the face of the Lord, and anger not your
Lord to the end?" The Grigori listened to the rebuke, and when the trumpets
resounded together with a loud call, they also began to sing with one voice,
and their voices went forth before the Lord with sadness and tenderness.
In the seventh
heaven he saw the seven bands of archangels who arrange and study the
revolutions of the stars and the changes of the moon and the revolution of the
sun, and superintend the good or evil conditions of the world. And they arrange
teachings and instructions and sweet speaking and singing and all kinds of
glorious praise. They hold in subjection all living things, both in heaven and
on earth. In the midst of them are seven phoenixes, and seven cherubim, and
seven six-winged creatures, singing with one voice.
When Enoch reached
the seventh heaven, and saw all the fiery hosts of great archangels and
incorporeal powers and lordships and principalities and powers, he was afraid
and trembled with a great terror. Those leading him took hold of him, and
brought him into the midst of them, and said to him, "Be of good cheer,
Enoch, be not afraid," and they showed him the Lord from afar, sitting on
His lofty throne, while all the heavenly hosts, divided in ten classes, having
approached, stood on the ten steps according to their rank, and made obeisance
to the Lord. And so they proceeded to their places in joy and mirth and
boundless light, singing songs with low and gentle voices, and gloriously
serving Him. They leave not nor depart day or night, standing before the face
of the Lord, working His will, cherubim and seraphim, standing around His
throne. And the six-winged creatures overshadow all His throne, singing with a
soft voice before the face of the Lord, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of
hosts; heaven and earth are full of His
glory." When he had seen all these, the angels leading him said to him,
"Enoch, up to this time we were ordered to accompany thee." They
departed, and he saw them no more. Enoch remained at the extremity of the
seventh heaven, in great terror, saying to himself, "Woe is me! What has
come upon me!" But then Gabriel came and said unto him, "Enoch, be
not afraid, stand up and come with me, and stand up before the face of the Lord
forever." And Enoch answered: "O my lord, my spirit has departed from
me with fear and trembling. Call the men to me who have brought me to the place!
Upon them I have relied, and with them I would go before the face of the
Lord." And Gabriel hurried him away like a leaf carried off by the wind,
and set him before the face of the Lord. Enoch fell down and worshipped the
Lord, who said to him: "Enoch, be not afraid! Rise up and stand before My
face forever." And Michael lifted him up, and at the command of the Lord
took his earthly robe from him, and anointed him with the holy oil, and clothed
him, and when he gazed upon himself, he looked like one of God's glorious ones,
and fear and trembling departed from him. God called then one of His archangels
who was more wise than all the others, and wrote down all the doings of the
Lord, and He said to him, "Bring forth the books from My store-place, and
give a reed to Enoch, and interpret the books to him." The angel did as he
was commanded, and he instructed Enoch thirty days and thirty nights, and his
lips never ceased speaking, while Enoch was writing down all the things about
heaven and earth, angels and men, and all that is suitable to be instructed in.
He also wrote down all about the souls of men, those of them which are not
born, and the places prepared for them forever. He copied all accurately, and
he wrote three hundred and sixty-six books. After he had received all the
instructions from the archangel, God revealed unto him great secrets, which
even the angels do not know. He told him how, out of the lowest darkness, the
visible and the invisible were created, how He formed heaven, light, water, and
earth, and also the fall of Satan and the creation and sin of Adam He narrated
to him, and further revealed to him that the duration of the world will be
seven thousand years, and the eighth millennium will be a time when there is no
computation, no end, neither years, nor months, nor weeks, nor days, nor hours.
The Lord finished
this revelation to Enoch with the words: "And now I give thee Samuil and
Raguil, who brought thee to Me. Go with them upon the earth, and tell thy sons
what things I have said to thee, and what thou hast seen from the lowest heaven
up to My throne. Give them the works written out by thee, and they shall read
them, and shall distribute the books to their children's children and from
generation to generation and from nation to nation. And I will give thee My
messenger Michael for thy writings and for the writings of thy fathers, Adam,
Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, and Jared thy father. And I shall not require
them till the last age, for I have instructed My two angels, Ariuk and Mariuk,
whom I have put upon the earth as their guardians, and I have ordered them in
time to guard them, that the account of what I shall do in thy family may not
be lost in the deluge to come. For on account of the wickedness and iniquity of
men, I will bring a deluge upon the earth, and I will destroy all, but I will
leave a righteous man of thy race with all his house, who shall act according
to My will. From their seed will be raised up a numerous generation, and on the
extinction of that family, I will show them the books of thy writings and of
thy father, and the guardians of them on earth will show them to the men who
are true and please Me. And they shall tell to another generation, and they,
having read them, shall be glorified at last more than before."
Enoch was then sent
to earth to remain there for thirty days to instruct his sons, but before he
left heaven, God sent an angel to him whose appearance was like snow, and his
hands were like ice. Enoch looked at him, and his face was chilled, that men
might be able to endure the sight of him. The angels who took him to heaven put
him upon his bed, in the place where his son Methuselah was expecting him by
day and by night. Enoch assembled his sons and all his household, and
instructed them faithfully about all things he had seen, heard, and written
down, and he gave his books to his sons, to keep them and read them,
admonishing them not to conceal the books, but tell them to all desiring to
know. When the thirty days had been completed, the Lord sent darkness upon the
earth, and there was gloom, and it hid the men standing with Enoch. And the
angels hasted and took Enoch, and carried him to the highest heaven, where the
Lord received him and set him before His face, and the darkness departed from
the earth, and there was light. And the people saw, and did not understand how
Enoch was taken, and they glorified God.
Enoch was born on
the sixth day of the month of Siwan, and he was taken to heaven in the same
month, Siwan, on the same day and in the same hour when he was born. And
Methuselah hasted and all his brethren, the sons of Enoch, and built an altar
in the place called Achuzan, whence Enoch was taken up to heaven. The elders
and all the people came to the festivity and brought their gifts to the sons of
Enoch, and made a great festivity, rejoicing and being merry for three days,
praising God, who had given such a sign by means of Enoch, who had found favor
with them.[60]
THE TRANSLATION OF ENOCH
The sinfulness of
men was the reason why Enoch was translated to heaven. Thus Enoch himself told
Rabbi Ishmael. When the generation of the deluge transgressed, and spoke to
God, saying, "Depart from us, for we do not desire to know Thy ways,"
Enoch was carried to heaven, to serve there as a witness that God was not a
cruel God in spite of the destruction decreed upon all living beings on earth.
When Enoch, under
the guidance of the angel 'Anpiel, was carried from earth to heaven, the holy
beings, the ofanim, the seraphim, the cherubim, all those who move the throne
of God, and the ministering spirits whose substance is of consuming fire, they
all, at a distance of six hundred and fifty million and three hundred
parasangs, noticed the presence of a human being, and they exclaimed:
"Whence the odor of one born of woman? How comes he into the highest
heaven of the fire-coruscating angels?" But God replied: "O My
servants and hosts, ye, My cherubim, ofanim, and seraphim, let this not be an
offense unto you, for all the children of men denied Me and My mighty dominion,
and they paid homage to the idols, so that I transferred the Shekinah from
earth to heaven. But this man Enoch is the elect of men. He has more faith,
justice, and righteousness than all the rest, and he is the only reward I have
derived from the terrestrial world."
Before Enoch could
be admitted to service near the Divine throne, the gates of wisdom were opened
unto him, and the gates of understanding, and of discernment, of life, peace,
and the Shekinah, of strength and power, of might, loveliness, and grace, of
humility and fear of sin. Equipped by God with extraordinary wisdom, sagacity,
judgment, knowledge, learning, compassionateness, love, kindness, grace,
humility, strength, power, might, splendor, beauty, shapeliness, and all other
excellent qualities, beyond the endowment of any of the celestial beings, Enoch
received, besides, many thousand blessings from God, and his height and his
breadth became equal to the height and the breadth of the world, and thirty-six
wings were attached to his body, to the right and to the left, each as large as
the world, and three hundred and sixty-five thousand eyes were bestowed upon
him, each brilliant as the sun. A magnificent throne was erected for him beside
the gates of the seventh celestial palace, and a herald proclaimed throughout
the heavens concerning him, who was henceforth to be called Metatron in the
celestial regions: "I have appointed My servant Metatron as prince and
chief over all the princes in My realm, with the exception only of the eight
august and exalted princes that bear My name. Whatever angel has a request to
prefer to Me, shall appear before Metatron, and what he will command at My
bidding, ye must observe and do, for the prince of wisdom and the prince of
understanding are at his service, and they will reveal unto him the sciences of
the celestials and the terrestrials, the knowledge of the present order of the
world and the knowledge of the future order of the world. Furthermore, I have
made him the guardian of the treasures of the palaces in the heaven 'Arabot,
and of the treasures of life that are in the highest heaven."
Out of the love He
bore Enoch, God arrayed him in a magnificent garment, to which every kind of
luminary in existence was attached, and a crown gleaming with forty-nine
jewels, the splendor of which pierced to all parts of the seven heavens and to
the four corners of the earth. In the presence of the heavenly family, He set
this crown upon the head of Enoch, and called him "the little Lord."
It bears also the letters by means of which heaven and earth were created, and
seas and rivers, mountains and valleys, planets and constellations, lightning
and thunder, snow and hail, storm and whirlwind--these and also all things
needed in the world, and the mysteries of creation. Even the princes of the
heavens, when they see Metatron, tremble before him, and prostrate themselves;
his magnificence and majesty, the splendor and beauty radiating from him
overwhelm them, even the wicked Samael, the greatest of them, even Gabriel the
angel of the fire, Bardiel the angel of the hail, Ruhiel the angel of the wind,
Barkiel the angel of the lightning, Za'miel the angel of the hurricane, Zakkiel
the angel of the storm, Sui'el the angel of the earthquake, Za'fiel the angel
of the showers, Ra'miel the angel of the thunder, Ra'shiel the angel of the
whirlwind, Shalgiel the angel of the snow, Matriel the angel of the rain,
Shamshiel the angel of the day, Leliel the angel of the night, Galgliel the
angel of the solar system, Ofaniel the angel of the wheel of the moon, Kokabiel
the angel of the stars, and Rahtiel the angel of the constellations.
When Enoch was
transformed into Metatron, his body was turned into celestial fire--his flesh
became flame, his veins fire, his bones glimmering coals, the light of his eyes
heavenly brightness, his eyeballs torches of fire, his hair a flaring blaze,
all his limbs and organs burning sparks, and his frame a consuming fire. To
right of him sparkled flames of fire, to left of him burnt torches of fire, and
on all sides he was engirdled by storm and whirlwind, hurricane and
thundering.[61]
METHUSELAH
After the
translation of Enoch, Methuselah was proclaimed ruler of the earth by all the
kings. He walked in the footsteps of his father, teaching truth, knowledge, and
fear of God to the children of men all his life, and deviating from the path of
rectitude neither to the right nor the left.[62] He delivered the world from
thousands of demons, the posterity of Adam which he had begotten with Lilith,
that she-devil of she-devils. These demons and evil spirits, as often as they
encountered a man, had sought to injure and even slay him, until Methuselah
appeared, and supplicated the mercy of God. He spent three days in fasting, and
then God gave him permission to write the Ineffable Name upon his sword,
wherewith he slew ninety-four myriads of the demons in a minute, until Agrimus,
the first-born of them, came to him and entreated him to desist, at the same
time handing the names of the demons and imps over to him. And so Methuselah
placed their kings in iron fetters, while the remainder fled away and hid
themselves in the innermost chambers and recesses of the ocean. And it is on
account of the wonderful sword by means of which the demons were killed that he
was called Methuselah.[63]
He was so pious a
man that he composed two hundred and thirty parables in praise of God for every
word he uttered. When he died, the people heard a great commotion in the
heavens, and they saw nine hundred rows of mourners corresponding to the nine
hundred orders of the Mishnah which he had studied, and tears flowed from the
eyes of the holy beings down upon the spot where he died. Seeing the grief of
the celestials, the people on earth also mourned over the demise of Methuselah,
and God rewarded them therefor. He added seven days to the time of grace which
He had ordained before bringing destruction upon the earth by a flood of
waters.[64]
IV
NOAH THE BIRTH OF
NOAH THE PUNISHMENT OF THE FALLEN ANGELS THE GENERATION OF THE DELUGE THE HOLY
BOOK THE INMATES OF THE
IV
NOAH
THE BIRTH OF NOAH
Methuselah took a
wife for his son Lamech, and she bore him a man child. The body of the babe was
white as snow and red as a blooming rose, and the hair of his head and his long
locks were white as wool, and his eyes like the rays of the sun. When he opened
his eyes, he lighted up the whole house, like the sun, and the whole house was
very full of light.[1] And when he was taken from the hand of the midwife, he
opened his mouth and praised the Lord of righteousness.[2] His father Lamech
was afraid of him, and fled, and came to his own father Methuselah. And he said
to him: "I have begotten a strange son; he is not like a human being, but
resembles the children of the angels of heaven, and his nature is different,
and he is not like us, and his eyes are as the rays of the sun, and his
countenance is glorious.[3] And it seems to me that he is not sprung from me,
but from the angels, and I fear that in his days a wonder may be wrought on the
earth. And now, my father, I am here to petition thee and implore thee, that
thou mayest go to Enoch, our father, and learn from him the truth, for his
dwelling place is among the angels."
And when Methuselah
heard the words of his son, he went to Enoch, to the ends of the earth, and he
cried aloud, and Enoch heard his voice, and appeared before him, and asked him
the reason of his coming. Methuselah told him the cause of his anxiety, and
requested him to make the truth known to him. Enoch answered, and said:
"The Lord will do a new thing in the earth. There will come a great
destruction on the earth, and a deluge for one year. This son who is born unto
thee will be left on the earth, and his three children will be saved with him,
when all mankind that are on the earth shall die. And there will be a great
punishment on the earth, and the earth will be cleansed from all impurity. And
now make known to thy son Lamech that he who was born is in truth his son, and
call his name Noah, for he will be left to you, and he and his children will be
saved from the destruction which will come upon the earth." When
Methuselah had heard the words of his father, who showed him all the secret
things, he returned home, and he called the child Noah, for he would cause the
earth to rejoice in compensation for all destruction.[4]
By the name Noah he
was called only by his grandfather Methuselah; his father and all others called
him Menahem. His generation was addicted to sorcery, and Methuselah apprehended
that his grandson might be bewitched if his true name were known, wherefore he
kept it a secret. Menahem, Comforter, suited him as well as Noah; it indicated
that he would be a consoler, if but the evil-doers of his time would repent of
their misdeeds.[5] At his very birth it was felt that he would bring
consolation and deliverance. When the Lord said to Adam, "Cursed is the
ground for thy sake," he asked, "For how long a time?" and the
answer made by God was, "Until a man child shall be born whose
conformation is such that the rite of circumcision need not be practiced upon
him." This was fulfilled in Noah, he was circumcised from his mother's
womb.
Noah had scarcely come
into the world when a marked change was noticeable. Since the curse brought
upon the earth by the sin of Adam, it happened that wheat being sown, yet oats
would sprout and grow. This ceased with the appearance of Noah: the earth bore
the products planted in it. And it was Noah who, when he was grown to manhood,
invented the plough, the scythe, the hoe, and other implements for cultivating
the ground. Before him men had worked the land with their bare hands.[6]
There was another
token to indicate that the child born unto Lamech was appointed for an
extraordinary destiny. When God created Adam, He gave him dominion over all
things: the cow obeyed the ploughman, and the furrow was willing to be drawn.
But after the fall of Adam all things rebelled against him: the cow refused
obedience to the ploughman, and also the furrow was
refractory. Noah was born, and all returned to
its state preceding the fall of man.
Before the birth of
Noah, the sea was in the habit of transgressing its bounds twice daily, morning
and evening, and flooding the land up to the graves. After his birth it kept
within its confines. And the famine that afflicted the world in the time of
Lamech, the second of the ten great famines appointed to come upon it, ceased
its ravages with the birth of Noah.[7]
THE PUNISHMENT OF THE FALLEN ANGELS
Grown to manhood,
Noah followed in the ways of his grandfather Methuselah, while all other men of
the time rose up against this pious king. So far from observing his precepts,
they pursued the evil inclination of their hearts, and perpetrated all sorts of
abominable deeds.[8] Chiefly the fallen angels and their giant posterity caused
the depravity of mankind. The blood spilled by the giants cried unto heaven
from the ground, and the four archangels accused the fallen angels and their
sons before God, whereupon He gave the following orders to them: Uriel was sent
to Noah to announce to him that the earth would be destroyed by a flood, and to
teach him how to save his own life. Raphael was told to put the fallen angel
Azazel into chains, cast him into a pit of sharp and pointed stones in the
desert Dudael, and cover him with darkness, and so was he to remain until the
great day of judgment, when he would be thrown into the fiery pit of hell, and
the earth would be healed of the corruption he had contrived upon it. Gabriel
was charged to proceed against the bastards and the reprobates, the sons of the
angels begotten with the daughters of men, and plunge them into deadly
conflicts with one another. Shemhazai's ilk were handed over to Michael, who
first caused them to witness the death of their children in their bloody combat
with each other, and then he bound them and pinned them under the hills of the
earth, where they will remain for seventy generations, until the day of
judgment, to be carried thence to the fiery pit of hell.[9]
The fall of Azazel
and Shemhazai came about in this way. When the generation of the deluge began
to practice idolatry, God was deeply grieved. The two angels Shemhazai and
Azazel arose, and said: "O Lord of the world! It has happened, that which
we foretold at the creation of the world and of man, saying, 'What is man, that
Thou art mindful of him?' " And God said, "And what will become of
the world now without man?" Whereupon the angels: "We will occupy
ourselves with it." Then said God: "I am well aware of it, and I know
that if you inhabit the earth, the evil inclination will overpower you, and you
will be more iniquitous than ever men." The angels pleaded, "Grant us
but permission to dwell among men, and Thou shalt see how we will sanctify Thy
Name." God yielded to their wish, saying, "Descend and sojourn among
men!"
When the angels came
to earth, and beheld the daughters of men in all their grace and beauty, they
could not restrain their passion. Shemhazai saw a maiden named Istehar, and he
lost his heart to her. She promised to surrender herself to him, if first he
taught her the Ineffable Name, by means of which he raised himself to heaven.
He assented to her condition. But once she knew it, she pronounced the Name,
and herself ascended to heaven, without fulfilling her promise to the angel.
God said, "Because she kept herself aloof from sin, we will place her
among the seven stars, that men may never forget her," and she was put in
the constellation of the Pleiades.
Shemhazai and
Azazel, however, were not deterred from entering into alliances with the
daughters of men, and to the first two sons were born. Azazel began to devise
the finery and the ornaments by means of which women allure men. Thereupon God
sent Metatron to tell Shemhazai that He had resolved to destroy the world and
bring on a deluge. The fallen angel began to weep and grieve over the fate of
the world and the fate of his two sons. If the world went under, what would
they have to eat, they who needed daily a thousand camels, a thousand horses,
and a thousand steers?
These two sons of
Shemhazai, Hiwwa and Hiyya by name, dreamed dreams. The one saw a great stone
which covered the earth, and the earth was marked all over with lines upon
lines of writing. An angel came, and with a knife obliterated all the lines,
leaving but four letters upon the stone. The other son saw a large pleasure
grove planted with all sorts of trees. But angels approached bearing axes, and they
felled the trees, sparing a single one with three of its branches.
When Hiwwa and Hiyya
awoke, they repaired to their father, who interpreted the dreams for them,
saying, "God will bring a deluge, and none will escape with his life,
excepting only Noah and his sons." When they heard this, the two began to
cry and scream, but their father consoled them: "Soft, soft! Do not
grieve. As often as men cut or haul stones, or launch vessels, they shall
invoke your names, Hiwwa! Hiyya!" This prophecy soothed them.
Shemhazai then did
penance. He suspended himself between heaven and earth, and in this position of
a penitent sinner he hangs to this day. But Azazel persisted obdurately in his
sin of leading mankind astray by means of sensual allurements. For this reason
two he-goats were sacrificed in the
Unlike Istehar, the
pious maiden, Naamah, the lovely sister of Tubal-cain, led the angels astray
with her beauty, and from her union with Shamdon sprang the devil Asmodeus.[11]
She was as shameless as all the other descendants of Cain, and as prone to
bestial indulgences. Cainite women and Cainite men alike were in the habit of
walking abroad naked, and they gave themselves up to every conceivable manner
of lewd practices. Of such were the women whose beauty and sensual charms
tempted the angels from the path of virtue. The angels, on the other hand, no
sooner had they rebelled against God and descended to earth than they lost
their transcendental qualities, and were invested with sublunary bodies, so
that a union with the daughters of men became possible. The offspring of these
alliances between the angels and the Cainite women were the giants,[12] known
for their strength and their sinfulness; as their very name, the Emim,
indicates, they inspired fear. They have many other names. Sometimes they go by
the name Rephaim, because one glance at them made one's heart grow weak; or by
the name Gibborim, simply giants, because their size was so enormous that their
thigh measured eighteen ells; or by the name Zamzummim, because they were great
masters in war; or by the name Anakim, because they touched the sun with their
neck; or by the name Ivvim, because, like the snake, they could judge of the
qualities of the soil; or finally, by the name Nephilim, because, bringing the
world to its fall, they themselves fell.[13]
THE GENERATION OF THE DELUGE
While the
descendants of Cain resembled their father in his sinfulness and depravity, the
descendants of Seth led a pious, well-regulated life, and the difference
between the conduct of the two stocks was reflected in their habitations. The
family of Seth was settled upon the mountains in the vicinity of
Unfortunately, at
the time of Methuselah, following the death of
Adam, the family of Seth became corrupted
after the manner of the Cainites. The two strains united with each other to
execute all kinds of iniquitous deeds. The result of the marriages between them
were the Nephilim, whose sins brought the deluge upon the world. In their
arrogance they claimed the same pedigree as the posterity of Seth, and they
compared themselves with princes and men of noble descent.[14]
The wantonness of
this generation was in a measure due to the ideal conditions under which
mankind lived before the flood. They knew neither toil nor care, and as a consequence
of their extraordinary prosperity they grew insolent. In their arrogance they
rose up against God. A single sowing bore a harvest sufficient for the needs of
forty years, and by means of magic arts they could compel the very sun and moon
to stand ready to do their service.[15] The raising of children gave them no
trouble. They were born after a few days' pregnancy, and immediately after
birth they could walk and talk; they themselves aided the mother in severing
the navel string. Not even demons could do them harm. Once a new-born babe,
running to fetch a light whereby his mother might cut the navel string, met the
chief of the demons, and a combat ensued between the two. Suddenly the crowing
of a cock was heard, and the demon made off, crying out to the child, "Go
and report unto thy mother, if it had not been for the crowing of the cock, I
had killed thee!" Whereupon the child retorted, "Go and report unto
thy mother, if it had not been for my uncut navel string, I had killed thee!"[16]
It was their
care-free life that gave them space and leisure for their infamies. For a time
God, in His long-suffering kindness, passed by the iniquities of men, but His
forbearance ceased when once they began to lead unchaste lives, for "God
is patient with all sins save only an immoral life."[17]
The other sin that
hastened the end of the iniquitous generation was their rapacity. So cunningly
were their depredations planned that the law could not touch them. If a
countryman brought a basket of vegetables to market, they would edge up to it,
one after the other, and abstract a bit, each in itself of petty value, but in
a little while the dealer would have none left to sell.[18]
Even after God had
resolved upon the destruction of the sinners, He still permitted His mercy to
prevail, in that He sent Noah unto them, who exhorted them for one hundred and
twenty years to amend their ways, always holding the flood over them as a
threat. As for them, they but derided him. When they saw him occupying himself
with the building of the ark, they asked, "Wherefore this ark?"
Noah: "God will
bring a flood upon you."
The sinners:
"What sort of flood? If He sends a fire flood, against that we know how to
protect ourselves. If it is a flood of waters, then, if the waters bubble up
from the earth, we will cover them with iron rods, and if they descend from
above, we know a remedy against that, too."
Noah: "The
waters will ooze out from under your feet, and you will not be able to ward
them off."
Partly they
persisted in their obduracy of heart because Noah had made known to them that
the flood would not descend so long as the pious Methuselah sojourned among
them. The period of one hundred and twenty years which God had appointed as the
term of their probation having expired, Methuselah died, but out of regard for
the memory of this pious man God gave them another week's respite, the week of
mourning for him. During this time of grace, the laws of nature were suspended,
the sun rose in the west and set in the east. To the sinners God gave the
dainties that await man in the future world, for the purpose of showing them
what they were forfeiting.[19] But all this proved unavailing, and, Methuselah
and the other pious men of the generation having departed this life, God
brought the deluge upon the earth.[20]
THE HOLY BOOK
Great wisdom was
needed for building the ark, which was to have space for all beings on earth,
even the spirits. Only the fishes did not have to be provided for.[21] Noah
acquired the necessary wisdom from the book given to Adam by the angel Raziel,
in which all celestial and all earthly knowledge is recorded.
While the first
human pair were still in
While they were
speaking thus, suddenly the voice of the slain lad was heard proceeding from
the heart of Adam and Eve, and it addressed these words to Samael: "Go
hence! I have penetrated to the heart of Adam and the heart of Eve, and never
again shall I quit their hearts, nor the hearts of their children, or their
children's children, unto the end of all generations."
Samael departed, but
Adam was sore grieved, and he put on sackcloth and ashes, and he fasted many,
many days, until God appeared unto him, and said: "My son, have no fear of
Samael. I will give thee a remedy that will help thee against him, for it was
at My instance that he went to thee." Adam asked, "And what is this
remedy?" God: "The Torah." Adam: "And where is the
Torah?" God then gave him the book of the angel Raziel, which he studied
day and night. After some time had passed, the angels visited Adam, and,
envious of the wisdom he had drawn from the book, they sought to destroy him
cunningly by calling him a god and prostrating themselves before him, in spite
of his remonstrance, "Do not prostrate yourselves before me, but magnify
the Lord with me, and let us exalt His Name together." However, the envy
of the angels was so great that they stole the book God had given Adam from
him, and threw it in the sea. Adam searched for it everywhere in vain, and the
loss distressed him sorely. Again he fasted many days, until God appeared unto
him, and said: "Fear not! I will give the book back to thee," and He
called Rahab, the Angel of the Sea, and ordered him to recover the book from
the sea and restore it to Adam. And so he did.[22]
Upon the death of
Adam, the holy book disappeared, but later the cave in which it was hidden was
revealed to Enoch in a dream. It was from this book that Enoch drew his
knowledge of nature, of the earth and of the heavens, and he became so wise
through it that his wisdom exceeded the wisdom of Adam. Once he had committed
it to memory, Enoch hid the book again.
Now, when God
resolved upon bringing the flood on the earth, He sent the archangel Raphael to
Noah, as the bearer of the following message: "I give thee herewith the
holy book, that all the secrets and mysteries written therein may be made
manifest unto thee, and that thou mayest know how to fulfil its injunction in
holiness, purity, modesty, and humbleness. Thou wilt learn from it how to build
an ark of the wood of the gopher tree, wherein thou, and thy sons, and thy wife
shall find protection."
Noah took the book,
and when he studied it, the holy spirit came upon him, and he knew all things
needful for the building of the ark and the gathering together of the animals.
The book, which was made of sapphires, he took with him into the ark, having
first enclosed it in a golden casket. All the time he spent in the ark it
served him as a time-piece, to distinguish night from day. Before his death, he
entrusted it to Shem, and he in turn to Abraham. From Abraham it descended
through Jacob, Levi, Moses, and Joshua to Solomon, who learnt all his wisdom
from it, and his skill in the healing art, and also his mastery over the
demons.[23]
THE INMATES OF THE
The ark was
completed according to the instructions laid down in the Book of Raziel. Noah's
next task was gathering in the animals. No less than thirty-two species of
birds and three hundred and sixty-five of reptiles he had to take along with
him. But God ordered the animals to repair to the ark, and they trooped
thither, and Noah did not have to do so much as stretch out a finger.[24]
Indeed, more appeared than were required to come, and God instructed him to sit
at the door of the ark and note which of the animals lay down as they reached
the entrance and which stood. The former belonged in the ark, but not the
latter. Taking up his post as he had been commanded, Noah observed a lioness
with her two cubs. All three beasts crouched. But the two young ones began to
struggle with the mother, and she arose and stood up next to them. Then Noah
led the two cubs into the ark. The wild beasts, and the cattle, and the birds
which were not accepted remained standing about the ark all of seven days, for
the assembling of the animals happened one week before the flood began to
descend. On the day whereon they came to the ark, the sun was darkened, and the
foundations of the earth trembled, and lightning flashed, and the thunder
boomed, as never before. And yet the sinners remained impenitent. In naught did
they change their wicked doings during those last seven days.
When finally the
flood broke loose, seven hundred thousand of the children of men gathered
around the ark, and implored Noah to grant them protection. With a loud voice
he replied, and said: "Are ye not those who were rebellious toward God,
saying, 'There is no God'? Therefore He has brought ruin upon you, to
annihilate you and destroy you from the face of the earth. Have I not been
prophesying this unto you these hundred and twenty years, and you would not
give heed unto the voice of God? Yet now you desire to be kept alive!"
Then the sinners cried out: "So be it! We all are ready now to turn back
to God, if only thou wilt open the door of thy ark to receive us, that we may
live and not die." Noah made answer, and said: "That ye do now, when
your need presses hard upon you. Why did you not turn to God during all the
hundred and twenty years which the Lord appointed unto you as the term of
repentance? Now do ye come, and ye speak thus, because distress besets your
lives. Therefore God will not hearken unto you and give you ear; naught will
you accomplish!"
The crowd of sinners
tried to take the entrance to the ark by storm, but the wild beasts keeping
watch around the ark set upon them, and many were slain, while the rest
escaped, only to meet death in the waters of the flood.[25] The water alone
could not have made an end of them, for they were giants in stature and
strength. When Noah threatened them with the scourge of God, they would make
reply: "If the waters of the flood come from above, they will never reach
up to our necks; and if they come from below, the soles of our feet are large
enough to dam up the springs." But God bade each drop pass through Gehenna
before it fell to earth, and the hot rain scalded the skin of the sinners. The
punishment that overtook them was befitting their crime. As their sensual
desires had made them hot, and inflamed them to immoral excesses, so they were
chastised by means of heated water.[26]
Not even in the hour
of the death struggle could the sinners suppress their vile instincts. When the
water began to stream up out of the springs, they threw their little children
into them, to choke the flood.[27]
It was by the grace
of God, not on account of his merits, that Noah found shelter in the ark before
the overwhelming force of the waters.[28] Although he was better than his
contemporaries, he was yet not worthy of having wonders done for his sake. He
had so little faith that he did not enter the ark until the waters had risen to
his knees. With him his pious wife Naamah, the daughter of Enosh, escaped the
peril, and his three sons, and the wives of his three sons."
Noah had not married
until he was four hundred and ninety-eight years old. Then the Lord had bidden
him to take a wife unto himself. He had not desired to bring children into the
world, seeing that they would all have to perish in the flood, and he had only
three sons, born unto him shortly before the deluge came.[30] God had given him
so small a number of offspring that he might be spared the necessity of
building the ark on an overlarge scale in case they turned out to be pious. And
if not, if they, too, were depraved like the rest of their generation, sorrow
over their destruction would but be increased in proportion to their
number.[31]
As Noah and his
family were the only ones not to have a share in the corruptness of the age, so
the animals received into the ark were such as had led a natural life. For the
animals of the time were as immoral as the men: the dog united with the wolf,
the cock with the pea-fowl, and many others paid no heed to sexual purity.
Those that were saved were such as had kept themselves untainted.[32]
Before the flood the
number of unclean animals had been greater than the number of the clean.
Afterward the ratio was reversed, because while seven pairs of clean animals
were preserved in the ark, but two pairs of the unclean were preserved.[33]
One animal, the
reem, Noah could not take into the ark. On account of its huge size it could
not find room therein. Noah therefore tied it to the ark, and it ran on
behind.[34] Also, he could not make space for the giant Og, the king of
Two creatures of a
most peculiar kind also found refuge in the ark. Among the beings that came to
Noah there was Falsehood asking for shelter. He was denied admission, because
he had no companion, and Noah was taking in the animals only by pairs.
Falsehood went off to seek a partner, and he met Misfortune, whom he associated
with himself on the condition that she might appropriate what Falsehood earned.
The pair were then accepted in the ark. When they left it, Falsehood noticed
that whatever he gathered together disappeared at once, and he betook himself
to his companion to seek an explanation, which she gave him in the following words,
"Did we not agree to the condition that I might take what you earn?"
and Falsehood had to depart empty-handed."
THE FLOOD
The assembling of
the animals in the ark was but the smaller part of the task imposed upon Noah.
His chief difficulty was to provide food for a year and accommodations for
them. Long afterward Shem, the son of Noah, related to Eliezer, the servant of
Abraham, the tale of their experiences with the animals in the ark. This is
what he said: "We had sore troubles in the ark. The day animals had to be
fed by day, and the night animals by night. My father knew not what food to
give to the little zikta. Once he cut a pomegranate in half, and a worm dropped
out of the fruit, and was devoured by the zikta. Thenceforth my father would knead
bran, and let it stand until it bred worms, which were fed to the animal. The
lion suffered with a fever all the time, and therefore he did not annoy the
others, because he did not relish dry food. The animal urshana my father found
sleeping in a corner of the vessel, and he asked him whether he needed nothing
to eat. He answered, and said: 'I saw thou wast very busy, and I did not wish
to add to thy cares.' Whereupon my father said, 'May it be the will of the Lord
to keep thee alive forever,' and the blessing was realized."[37]
The difficulties
were increased when the flood began to toss the ark from side to side. All
inside of it were shaken up like lentils in a pot. The lions began to roar, the
oxen lowed, the wolves howled, and all the animals gave vent to their agony,
each through the sounds it had the power to utter.
Also Noah and his
sons, thinking that death was nigh, broke into tears. Noah prayed to God:
"O Lord, help us, for we are not able to bear the evil that encompasses
us. The billows surge about us, the streams of destruction make us afraid, and
death stares us in the face. O hear our prayer, deliver us, incline Thyself
unto us, and be gracious unto us! Redeem us and save us!"[38]
The flood was
produced by a union of the male waters, which are above the firmament, and the
female waters issuing from the earth.[39] The upper waters rushed through the
space left when God removed two stars out of the constellation Pleiades.
Afterward, to put a stop to the flood, God had to transfer two stars from the
constellation of the Bear to the constellation of the Pleiades. That is why the
Bear runs after the Pleiades. She
wants her two children back, but they will be
restored to her only in the future world.[40]
There were other
changes among the celestial spheres during the year of the flood. All the time
it lasted, the sun and the moon shed no light, whence Noah was called by his
name, "the resting one," for in his life the sun and the moon rested.
The ark was illuminated by a precious stone, the light of which was more
brilliant by night than by day, so enabling Noah to distinguish between day and
night.[41]
The duration of the flood was a whole year. It
began on the seventeenth day of Heshwan, and the rain continued for forty days,
until the twenty-seventh of Kislew. The punishment corresponded to the crime of
the sinful generation. They had led immoral lives, and begotten bastard
children, whose embryonic state lasts forty days. From the twenty seventh of
Kislew until the first of Siwan, a period of one hundred and fifty days, the
water stood at one and the same height, fifteen ells above the earth. During
that time all the wicked were destroyed, each one receiving the punishment due
to him.[42] Cain was among those that perished, and thus the death of Abel was
avenged.[43] So powerful were the waters in working havoc that the corpse of
Adam was not spared in its grave.[44]
On the first of
Siwan the waters began to abate, a quarter of an ell a day, and at the end of
sixty days, on the tenth day of Ab, the summits of the mountains showed
themselves. But many days before, on the tenth of Tammuz, Noah had sent forth
the raven, and a week later the dove, on the first of her three sallies,
repeated at intervals of a week. It took from the first of Ab until the first
of Tishri for the waters to subside wholly from the face of the earth. Even
then the soil was so miry that the dwellers in the ark had to remain within
until the twenty-seventh day of Heshwan, completing a full sun year, consisting
of twelve moons and eleven days.[45]
Noah had experienced
difficulty all along in ascertaining the state of the waters. When he desired
to dispatch the raven, the bird said: "The Lord, thy Master, hates me, and
thou dost hate me, too. Thy Master hates me, for He bade thee take seven pairs
of the clean animals into the ark, and but two pairs of the unclean animals, to
which I belong. Thou hatest me, for thou dost not choose, as a messenger, a
bird of one of the kinds of which there are seven pairs in the ark, but thou
sendest me, and of my kind there is but one pair. Suppose, now, I should perish
by reason of heat or cold, would not the world be the poorer by a whole species
of animals? Or can it be that thou hast cast a lustful eye upon my mate, and
desirest to rid thyself of me?" Where unto Noah made answer, and said:
"Wretch! I must live apart from my own wife in the ark. How much less
would such thoughts occur to my mind as thou imputest to me!"[46]
The raven's errand
had no success, for when he saw the body of a dead man, he set to work to
devour it, and did not execute the orders given to him by Noah. Thereupon the
dove was sent out. Toward evening she returned with an olive leaf in her bill,
plucked upon the
NOAH LEAVES THE
Though the earth
assumed its old form at the end of the year of punishment, Noah did not abandon
the ark until he received the command of God to leave it. He said to himself,
"As I entered the ark at the bidding of God, so I will leave it only at
His bidding." Yet, when God bade Noah go out of the ark, he refused,
because he feared that after he had lived upon the dry land for some time, and
begotten children, God would bring another flood. He therefore would not leave
the ark until God swore He would never visit the earth with a flood again.[48]
When he stepped out
from the ark into the open, he began to weep bitterly at sight of the enormous
ravages wrought by the flood, and he said to God: "O Lord of the world!
Thou art called the Merciful, and Thou shouldst have had mercy upon Thy
creatures." God answered, and said: "O thou foolish shepherd, now
thou speakest to Me. Thou didst not so when I addressed kind words to thee,
saying: 'I saw thee as a righteous man and perfect in thy generation, and I
will bring the flood upon the earth to destroy all flesh. Make an ark for
thyself of gopher wood.' Thus spake I to thee, telling thee all these
circumstances, that thou mightest entreat mercy for the earth. But thou, as
soon as thou didst hear that thou wouldst be rescued in the ark, thou didst not
concern thyself about the ruin that would strike the earth. Thou didst but
build an ark for thyself, in which thou wast saved. Now that the earth is
wasted, thou openest thy mouth to supplicate and pray."
Noah realized that
he had been guilty of folly. To propitiate God and acknowledge his sin, he
brought a sacrifice.[49] God accepted the offering with favor, whence he is
called by his name Noah.[50] The sacrifice was not offered by Noah with his own
hands; the priestly services connected with it were performed by his son Shem.
There was a reason for this. One day in the ark Noah forgot to give his ration
to the lion, and the hungry beast struck him so violent a blow with his paw
that he was lame forever after, and, having a bodily defect, he was not
permitted to do the offices of a priest.[51]
The sacrifices
consisted of an ox, a sheep, a goat, two turtle doves, and two young pigeons.
Noah had chosen these kinds because he supposed they were appointed for sacrifices,
seeing that God had commanded him to take seven pairs of them into the ark with
him. The altar was erected in the same place on which Adam and Cain and Abel
had brought their sacrifices, and on which later the altar was to be in the
sanctuary at Jerusalem.[52]
After the sacrifice
was completed, God blessed Noah and his sons. He made them to be rulers of the
world as Adam had been,[53] and He gave them a command, saying, "Be
fruitful and multiply upon the earth," for during their sojourn in the ark,
the two sexes, of men and animals alike, had lived apart from each other,
because while a public calamity rages continence is becoming even to those who
are left unscathed. This law of conduct had been violated by none in the ark
except by Ham, by the dog, and by the raven. They all received a punishment.
Ham's was that his descendants were men of dark-hued skin.[54]
As a token that He
would destroy the earth no more, God set His bow in the cloud. Even if men
should be steeped in sin again, the bow proclaims to them that their sins will
cause no harm to the world. Times came in the course of the ages when men were
pious enough not to have to live in dread of punishment. In such times the bow
was not visible.[55]
God accorded
permission to Noah and his descendants to use the flesh of animals for food,
which had been forbidden from the time of Adam until then. But they were to
abstain from the use of blood. He ordained the seven Noachian laws, the
observance of which is incumbent upon all men, not upon
THE CURSE OF DRUNKENNESS
Noah lost his
epithet "the pious" when he began to occupy himself with the growing
of the vine. He became a "man of the ground," and this first attempt
to produce wine at the same time produced the first to drink to excess, the
first to utter curses upon his associates, and the first to introduce slavery.
This is the way it all came about. Noah found the vine which Adam had taken
with him from
Noah: "A
vineyard."
Satan: "And
what may be the qualities of what it produces?"
Noah: "The
fruit it bears is sweet, be it dry or moist. It yields wine that rejoiceth the
heart of man."
Satan: "Let us
go into partnership in this business of planting a vineyard."
Noah:
"Agreed!"
Satan thereupon
slaughtered a lamb, and then, in succession, a lion, a pig, and a monkey. The
blood of each as it was killed he made to flow under the vine. Thus he conveyed
to Noah what the qualities of wine are: before man drinks of it, he is innocent
as a lamb; if he drinks of it moderately, he feels as strong as a lion; if he
drinks more of it than he can bear, he resembles the pig; and if he drinks to
the point of intoxication, then he behaves like a monkey, he dances around,
sings, talks obscenely, and knows not what he is doing.[58]
This deterred Noah
no more than did the example of Adam, whose fall had also been due to wine, for
the forbidden fruit had been the grape, with which he had made himself
drunk.[59]
In his drunken
condition Noah betook himself to the tent of his wife. His son Ham saw him
there, and he told his brothers what he had noticed, and said: "The first
man had but two sons, and one slew the other; this man Noah has three sons, yet
he desires to beget a fourth besides." Nor did Ham rest satisfied with
these disrespectful words against his father. He added to this sin of
irreverence the still greater outrage of attempting to perform an operation
upon his father designed to prevent procreation.
When Noah awoke from
his wine and became sober, he pronounced a curse upon Ham in the person of his
youngest son
As Ham was made to
suffer requital for his irreverence, so Shem and Japheth received a reward for
the filial, deferential way in which they took a garment and laid it upon both
their shoulders, and walking backward, with averted faces, covered the
nakedness of their father. Naked the descendants of Ham, the Egyptians and Ethiopians,
were led away captive and into exile by the king of Assyria, while the
descendants of Shem, the Assyrians, even when the angel of the Lord burnt them
in the camp, were not exposed, their garments remained upon their corpses
unsinged. And in time to come, when Gog shall suffer his defeat, God will
provide both shrouds and a place of burial for him and all his multitude, the
posterity of Japheth.
Though Shem and
Japheth both showed themselves to be dutiful and deferential, yet it was Shem
who deserved the larger meed of praise. He was the first to set about covering
his father. Japheth joined him after the good deed had been begun. Therefore
the descendants of Shem received as their special reward the tallit, the
garment worn by them, while the Japhethites have only the toga.[63] A further
distinction accorded to Shem was the mention of his name in connection with
God's in the blessing of Noah. "Blessed be the Lord, the God of
Shem," he said, though as a rule the name of God is not joined to the name
of a living person, only to the name of one who has departed this life.[64]
The relation of Shem
to Japheth was expressed in the blessing their father pronounced upon them: God
will grant a land of beauty to Japheth, and his sons will be proselytes dwelling
in the academies of Shem.[65] At the same time Noah conveyed by his words that
the Shekinah would dwell only in the first Temple, erected by Solomon, a son of
Shem, and not in the second Temple, the builder of which would be Cyrus, a
descendant of Japheth.[66]
NOAH'S DESCENDANTS SPREAD ABROAD
When it became known
to Ham that his father had cursed him, he fled ashamed, and with his family he
settled in the city built by him, and named Neelatamauk for his wife. Jealous
of his brother, Japheth followed his example. He likewise built a city which he
named for his wife, Adataneses. Shem was the only one of the sons of Noah who
did not abandon him. In the vicinity of his father's home, by the mountain, he
built his city, to which he also gave his wife's name, Zedeketelbab. The three
cities are all near
Noah endeavored to
inculcate the ordinances and the commands known to him upon his children and
his children's children. In particular he admonished them against the
fornication, the uncleanness, and all the iniquity which had brought the flood
down upon the earth. He reproached them with living apart from one another, and
with their jealousies, for he feared that, after his death, they might go so
far as to shed human blood. Against this he warned them impressively, that they
be not annihilated from the earth like those that went before. Another law
which he enjoined upon them, to observe it, was the law ordaining that the
fruit of a tree shall not be used the first three years it bears, and even in
the fourth year it shall be the portion of the priests alone, after a part
thereof has been offered upon the altar of God. And having made an end of
giving his teachings and injunctions, Noah said: "For thus did Enoch, your
ancestor, exhort his son Methuselah, and Methuselah his son Lamech, and Lamech
delivered all unto me as his father had bidden him, and now I do exhort you, my
children, as Enoch exhorted his son. When he lived, in his generation, which
was the seventh generation of man, he commanded it and testified it unto his
children and his children's children, until the day of his death."[67]
In the year 1569
after the creation of the world, Noah divided the earth by lot among his three
sons, in the presence of an angel. Each one stretched forth his hand and took a
slip from the bosom of Noah. Shem's slip was inscribed with the middle of the
earth, and this portion became the inheritance of his descendants unto all
eternity. Noah rejoiced that the lot had assigned it to Shem. Thus was
fulfilled his blessing upon him, "And God in the habitation of Shem,"
for three holy places fell within his precincts--the Holy of Holies in the
Temple, Mount Sinai, the middle point of the desert, and Mount Zion, the middle
point of the navel of the earth.
The south fell to
the lot of Ham, and the north became the inheritance of Japheth. The
This division of the
earth took place toward the end of the life of Peleg, the name given to him by
his father Eber, who, being a prophet, knew that the division of the earth
would take place in the time of his son.[69] The brother of Peleg was called
Joktan, because the duration of the life of man was shortened in his time.[70]
In turn, the three
sons of Noah, while they were still standing in the presence of their father,
divided each his portion among his children, Noah threatening with his curse
any who should stretch out his hand to take a portion not assigned to him by
lot. And they all cried, "So be it! So be it!"[71]
Thus were divided
one hundred and four lands and ninety-nine islands among seventy-two nations,
each with a language of its own, using sixteen different sets of characters for
writing. To Japheth were allotted forty-four lands, thirty-three islands,
twenty-two languages, and five kinds of writing; Ham received thirty-four lands,
thirty-three islands, twenty-four languages, and five kinds of writing; and
Shem twenty-six lands, thirty-three islands, twenty-six languages, and six
kinds of writing--one set of written characters more to Shem than to either of
his brothers, the extra set being the Hebrew.[72]
The land appointed
as the inheritance of the twelve sons of Jacob was provisionally granted to
Canaan, Zidon, Heth, the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, the Hivites,
the Arkites, the Sinites, the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites. It
was the duty of these nations to take care of the land until the rightful
owners should come.[73]
No sooner had the
children of Noah and their children's children taken possession of the
habitations apportioned to them, than the unclean spirits began to seduce men
and torment them with pain and all sorts of suffering leading to spiritual and
physical death. Upon the entreaties of Noah God sent down the angel Raphael,
who banished nine-tenths of the unclean spirits from the earth, leaving but
one-tenth for Mastema, to punish sinners through them. Raphael, supported by
the chief of the unclean spirits, at that time revealed to Noah all the
remedies residing in plants, that he might resort to them at need. Noah
recorded them in a book, which he transmitted to his son Shem.[74] This is the
source to which go back all the medical books whence the wise men of
THE DEPRAVITY OF MANKIND
With the spread of
mankind corruption increased. While Noah was still alive, the descendants of
Shem, Ham, and Japheth appointed princes over each of the three groups- Nimrod
for the descendants
of Ham, Joktan for the descendants of Shem,
and Phenech for the descendants of Japheth. Ten years before Noah's death, the
number of those subject to the three princes amounted to millions. When this
great concourse of men came to
journeyings, they said to one another:
"Behold, the time is coming when, at the end of days, neighbor will be
separated from neighbor, and brother from brother, and one will carry on war
against the other. Go to, let us build us a city, and a tower, whose top may
reach unto heaven, and let us make us a great name upon the earth. And now let
us make bricks, and each one write his name upon his brick." All agreed to
this proposal, with the exception of twelve pious men, Abraham among them. They
refused to join the others. They were seized by the people, and brought before
the three princes, to whom they gave the following reason for their refusal:
"We will not make bricks, nor remain with you, for we know but one God,
and Him we serve; even if you burn us in the fire together with the bricks, we
will not walk in your ways." Nimrod and Phenech flew into such a passion
over the twelve men that they resolved to throw them into the fire. Joktan,
however, besides being a God-fearing man, was of close kin to the men on trial,
and he essayed to save them. He proposed to his two colleagues to grant them a
seven days' respite. His plan was accepted, such deference being paid him as
the primate among the three. The twelve were incarcerated in the house of
Joktan. In the night he charged fifty of his attendants to mount the prisoners
upon mules and take them to the mountains. Thus they would escape the
threatened punishment. Joktan provided them with food for a month. He was sure
that in the meantime either a change of sentiment would come about, and the
people desist from their purpose, or God would help the fugitives. Eleven of
the prisoners assented to the plan with gratitude. Abraham alone rejected it,
saying: "Behold, to-day we flee to the mountains to escape from the fire,
but if wild beasts rush out from the mountains and devour us, or if food is
lacking, so that we die by famine, we shall be found fleeing before the people
of the land and dying in our sins. Now, as the Lord liveth, in whom I trust, I
will not depart from this place wherein they have imprisoned me, and if I am to
die through my sins, then will I die by the will of God, according to His
desire."
In vain Joktan
endeavored to persuade Abraham to flee. He persisted in his refusal. He
remained behind alone in the prison house, while the other eleven made their
escape. At the expiration of the set term, when the people returned and
demanded the death of the twelve captives, Joktan could produce only Abraham.
His excuse was that the rest had broken loose during the night. The people were
about to throw themselves upon Abraham and cast him into the lime kiln.
Suddenly an earthquake was felt, the fire darted from the furnace, and all who
were standing round about, eighty four thousand of the people, were consumed, while
Abraham remained untouched. Thereupon he repaired to his eleven friends in the
mountains, and told them of the miracle that had befallen for his sake. They
all returned with him, and, unmolested by the people, they gave praise and
thanks to God.[76]
NIMROD
The first among the
leaders of the corrupt men was Nimrod.[77] His father Cush had married his
mother at an advanced age, and Nimrod, the offspring of this belated union, was
particularly dear to him as the son of his old age. He gave him the clothes
made of skins with which God had furnished Adam and Eve at the time of their
leaving
His impiousness kept
pace with his growing power. Since the flood there had been no such sinner as
Nimrod. He fashioned idols of wood and stone, and paid worship to them. But not
satisfied to lead a godless life himself, he did all he could to tempt his
subjects into evil ways, wherein he was aided and abetted by his son Mardon.
This son of his outstripped his father in iniquity. It was their time and their
life that gave rise to the proverb, "Out of the wicked cometh forth
wickedness."[83]
The great success
that attended all of Nimrod's undertakings produced a sinister effect. Men no
longer trusted in God, but rather in their own prowess and ability,[84] an
attitude to which Nimrod tried to convert the whole world.[85] Therefore people
said, "Since the creation of the world there has been none like Nimrod, a
mighty hunter of men and beasts, and a sinner before God."[86]
And not all this
sufficed unto Nimrod's evil desire. Not enough that he turned men away from
God, he did all he could to make them pay Divine honors unto himself. He set
himself up as a god, and made a seat for himself in imitation of the seat of
God. It was a tower built out of a round rock, and on it he placed a throne of
cedar wood, upon which arose, one above the other, four thrones, of iron,
copper, silver, and gold. Crowning all, upon the golden throne, lay a precious
stone, round in shape and gigantic in size. This served him as a seat, and as
he sate upon it, all nations came and paid him Divine homage.[87]
THE
The iniquity and
godlessness of Nimrod reached their climax in the building of the
Many, many years
were passed in building the tower. It reached so great a height that it took a
year to mount to the top. A brick was, therefore, more precious in the sight of
the builders than a human being. If a man fell down, and met his death, none
took notice of it, but if a brick dropped, they wept, because it would take a
year to replace it. So intent were they upon accomplishing their purpose that
they would not permit a woman to interrupt herself in her work of brick-making
when the hour of travail came upon her. Moulding bricks she gave birth to her
child, and, tying it round her body in a sheet, she went on moulding bricks.
They never slackened
in their work, and from their dizzy height they constantly shot arrows toward
heaven, which, returning, were seen to be covered with blood. They were thus
fortified in their delusion, and they cried, "We have slain all who are in
heaven." Thereupon God turned to the seventy angels who encompass His
throne, and He spake: "Go to, let us go down, and there confound their
language, that they may not understand one another's speech." Thus it
happened. Thenceforth none knew what the other spoke. One would ask for the
mortar, and the other handed him a brick; in a rage, he would throw the brick
at his partner and kill him. Many perished in this manner, and the rest were
punished according to the nature of their rebellious conduct. Those who had
spoken, "Let us ascend into the heavens, set up our idols, and pay worship
unto them there," God transformed into apes and phantoms; those who had
proposed to assault the heavens with their arms, God set against each other so
that they fell in the combat; and those who had resolved to carry on a combat
with God in heaven were scattered broadcast over the earth. As for the
unfinished tower, a part sank into the earth, and another part was consumed by
fire; only one-third of it remained standing.[88] The place of the tower has
never lost its peculiar quality. Whoever passes it forgets all he knows.[89]
The punishment
inflicted upon the sinful generation of the tower is comparatively lenient. On
account of rapine the generation of the flood were utterly destroyed, while the
generation of the tower were preserved in spite of their blasphemies and all
their other acts offensive to God. The reason is that God sets a high value
upon peace and harmony. Therefore the generation of the deluge, who gave
themselves up to depredation, and bore hatred to one another, were extirpated,
root and branch, while the generation of the Tower of Babel dwelling amicably
together, and loving one another, were spared alive, at least a remnant of
them.[90]
Beside the
chastisement of sin and sinners by the confounding of speech, another notable
circumstance was connected with the
descent of God upon earth--one of only ten
such descents to occur between the creation of the world and the day of
judgment. It was on this occasion that God and the seventy angels that surround
His throne cast lots concerning the various nations. Each angel received a
nation, and
V
ABRAHAM THE WICKED
GENERATIONS THE BIRTH OF ABRAHAM THE BABE PROCLAIMS GOD ABRAHAM S FIRST
APPEARANCE IN PUBLIC THE PREACHER OF THE TRUE FAITH IN THE FIERY FURNACE
ABRAHAM EMIGRATES TO HARAN THE STAR IN THE EAST THE TRUE BELIEVER THE
ICONOCLAST ABRAHAM IN CANAAN HIS SOJOURN IN EGYPT THE FIRST PHARAOH THE WAR OF
THE KINGS THE COVENANT OF THE PIECES THE BIRTH OF ISHMAEL THE VISIT OF THE
ANGELS THE CITIES OF SIN ABRAHAM PLEADS FOR THE SINNERS THE DESTRUCTION OF THE
SINFUL CITIES AMONG THE PHILISTINES THE BIRTH OF ISAAC ISHMAEL CAST OFF THE TWO
WIVES OF ISHMAEL THE COVENANT WITH ABIMELECH SATAN ACCUSES ABRAHAM THE JOURNEY
TO MORIAH THE AKEDAH THE DEATH AND BURIAL OF SARAH ELIEZER'S MISSION THE WOOING
OF REBEKAH THE LAST YEARS OF ABRAHAM A HERALD OF DEATH ABRAHAM VIEWS EARTH AND
HEAVEN THE PATRON OF HEBRON
V
ABRAHAM
THE WICKED
GENERATIONS
Ten generations
there were from Noah to Abraham, to show how great is the clemency of God, for
all the generations provoked His wrath, until Abraham our father came and
received the reward of all of them.[1] For the sake of Abraham God had shown
himself long-suffering and patient during the lives of these ten generations.
Yea, more, the world itself had been created for the sake of his merits.[2] His
advent had been made manifest to his ancestor Reu, who uttered the following
prophecy at the birth of his son Serug: "From this child he shall be born
in the fourth generation that shall set his dwelling over the highest, and he
shall be called perfect and spotless, and shall be the father of nations, and
his covenant shall not be dissolved, and his seed shall be multiplied
forever."[3]
It was, indeed, high
time that the "friend of God"[4] should make his appearance upon
earth. The descendants of Noah were sinking from depravity to lower and lower
depths of depravity. They were beginning to quarrel and slay, eat blood, build
fortified cities and walls and towers, and set one man over the whole nation as
king, and wage wars, people against people, and nations against nations, and
cities against cities, and do all manner of evil, and acquire weapons, and
teach warfare unto their children. And they began also to take captives and
sell them as slaves. And they made unto themselves molten images, which they
worshipped, each one the idol he had molten for himself, for the evil spirits
under their leader Mastema led them astray into sin and uncleanness. For this
reason Reu called his son Serug, because all mankind had turned aside unto sin
and transgression. When he grew to manhood, the name was seen to have been
chosen fittingly, for he, too, worshipped idols, and when he himself had a son,
Nahor by name, he taught him the arts of the Chaldees, how to be a soothsayer
and practice magic according to signs in the heavens. When, in time, a son was
born to Nahor, Mastema sent ravens and other birds to despoil the earth and rob
men of the proceeds of their work. As soon as they had dropped the seed in the
furrows, and before they could cover it over with earth, the birds picked it up
from the surface of the ground, and Nahor called his son Terah, because the
ravens and the other birds plagued men, devoured their seed, and reduced them
to destitution.[6]
THE BIRTH OF ABRAHAM
Terah married
Emtelai, the daughter of Karnabo,[6] and the offspring of their union was
Abraham. His birth had been read in the stars by Nimrod,[7] for this impious
king was a cunning astrologer, and it was manifest to him that a man would be
born in his day who would rise up against him and triumphantly give the lie to
his religion. In his terror at the fate foretold him in the stars, he sent for
his princes and governors, and asked them to advise him in the matter. They
answered, and said: "Our unanimous advice is that thou shouldst build a
great house, station a guard at the entrance thereof, and make known in the
whole of thy realm that all pregnant women shall repair thither together with
their midwives, who are to remain with them when they are delivered. When the
days of a woman to be delivered are fulfilled, and the child is born, it shall
be the duty of the midwife to kill it, if it be a boy. But if the child be a
girl, it shall be kept alive, and the mother shall receive gifts and costly
garments, and a herald shall proclaim, 'Thus is done unto the woman who bears a
daughter!' "
The king was pleased
with this counsel, and he had a proclamation published throughout his whole
kingdom, summoning all the architects to build a great house for him, sixty
ells high and eighty wide. After it was completed, he issued a second
proclamation, summoning all pregnant women thither, and there they were to
remain until their confinement. Officers were appointed to take the women to
the house, and guards were stationed in it and about it, to prevent the women
from escaping thence. He furthermore sent midwives to the house, and commanded
them to slay the men children at their mothers' breasts. But if a woman bore a
girl, she was to be arrayed in byssus, silk, and embroidered garments, and led
forth from the house of detention amid great honors. No less than seventy
thousand children were slaughtered thus. Then the angels appeared before God,
and spoke, "Seest Thou not what he doth, yon sinner and blasphemer, Nimrod
son of Canaarl, who slays so many innocent babes that have done no harm?"
God answered, and said: "Ye holy angels, I know it and I see it, for I
neither slumber nor sleep. I behold and I know the secret things and the things
that are revealed, and ye shall witness what I will do unto this sinner and
blasphemer, for I will turn My hand against him to chastise him."[8]
It was about this
time that Terah espoused the mother of Abraham, and she was with child. When
her body grew large at the end of three months of pregnancy,[9] and her
countenance became pale, Terah said unto her, "What ails thee, my wife,
that thy countenance is so pale and thy body so swollen?" She answered,
and said, "Every year I suffer with this malady."[10] But Terah would
not be put off thus. He insisted: "Show me thy body. It seems to me thou
art big with child. If that be so, it behooves us not to violate the command of
our god Nimrod."[11] When he passed his hand over her body, there happened
a miracle. The child rose until it lay beneath her breasts, and Terah could
feel nothing with his hands. He said to his wife, "Thou didst speak
truly," and naught became visible until the day of her delivery.
When her time
approached, she left the city in great terror and wandered toward the desert,
walking along the edge of a valley,[12] until she happened across a cave. She
entered this refuge, and on the next day she was seized with throes, and she
gave birth to a son. The whole cave was filled with the light of the child's
countenance as with the splendor of the sun, and the mother rejoiced
exceedingly. The babe she bore was our father Abraham.
His mother lamented,
and said to her son: "Alas that I bore thee at a time when Nimrod is king.
For thy sake seventy thousand men children were slaughtered, and I am seized
with terror on account of thee, that he hear of thy existence, and slay thee.
Better thou shouldst perish here in this cave than my eye should behold thee
dead at my breast." She took the garment in which she was clothed, and
wrapped it about the boy. Then she abandoned him in the cave, saying, "May
the Lord be with thee, may He not fail thee nor forsake thee."[13]
THE BABE PROCLAIMS GOD
Thus Abraham was
deserted in the cave, without a nurse, and he began to wail. God sent Gabriel
down to give him milk to drink, and the angel made it to flow from the little
finger of the baby's right hand, and he sucked at it until he was ten days
old.[14] Then he arose and walked about, and he left the cave, and went along
the edge of the valley.[15] When the sun sank, and the stars came forth, he
said, "These are the gods!" But the dawn came, and the stars could be
seen no longer, and then he said, "I will not pay worship to these, for
they are no gods." Thereupon the sun came forth, and he spoke, "This
is my god, him will I extol." But again the sun set, and he said, "He
is no god," and beholding the moon, he called her his god to whom he would
pay Divine homage. Then the moon was obscured, and he cried out: "This,
too, is no god! There is One who sets them all in motion."[16]
He was still
communing with himself when the angel Gabriel approached him and met him with
the greeting, "Peace be with thee," and Abraham returned, "With
thee be peace," and asked, "Who art thou?" And Gabriel answered,
and said, "I am the angel Gabriel, the messenger of God," and he led
Abraham to a spring of water near by, and Abraham washed his face and his hands
and feet, and he prayed to God, bowing down and prostrating himself.
Meantime the mother
of Abraham thought of him in sorrow and tears, and she went forth from the city
to seek him in the cave in which she had abandoned him. Not finding her son,
she wept bitterly, and said, "Woe unto me that I bore thee but to become a
prey of wild beasts, the bears and the lions and the wolves!" She went to
the edge of the valley, and there she found her son. But she did not recognize
him, for he had grown very large. She addressed the lad, "Peace be with
thee!" and he returned, "With thee be peace!" and he continued,
"Unto what purpose didst thou come to the desert?" She replied,
"I went forth from the city to seek my son." Abraham questioned
further, "Who brought thy son hither?" and the mother replied
thereto: "I had become pregnant from my husband Terah, and when the days
of my delivery were fulfilled, I was in anxiety about my son in my womb, lest
our king come, the son of Canaan, and slay him as he had slain the seventy
thousand other men children. Scarcely had I reached the cave in this valley
when the throes of travailing seized me, and I bore a son, whom I left behind
in the cave, and I went home again. Now am I come to seek him, but I find him
not."
Abraham then spoke,
"As to this child thou tellest of, how old was it?"
The mother: "It
was about twenty days old."
Abraham: "Is
there a woman in the world who would forsake her new-born son in the desert,
and come to seek him after twenty days?"
The mother:
"Peradventure God will show Himself a merciful God!"
Abraham: "I am
the son whom thou hast come to seek in this valley!"
The mother: "My
son, how thou art grown! But twenty days old, and thou canst already walk, and
talk with thy mouth!"[17]
Abraham: "So it
is, and thus, O my mother, it is made known unto thee that there is in the
world a great, terrible, living, and ever-existing God, who doth see, but who cannot
be seen. He is in the heavens above, and the whole earth is full of His
glory."
The mother: "My
son, is there a God beside Nimrod?"
Abraham: "Yes,
mother, the God of the heavens and the God of the earth, He is also the God of
Nimrod son of
The mother of
Abraham returned to the city and told her husband Terah how she had found their
son. Terah, who was a prince and a magnate in the house of the king, betook
himself to the royal palace, and cast himself down before the king upon his
face. It was the rule that one who prostrated himself before the king was not
permitted to lift up his head until the king bade him lift it up. Nimrod gave
permission to Terah to rise and state his request. Thereupon Terah related all
that had happened with his wife and his son. When Nimrod heard his tale, abject
fear seized upon him, and he asked his counsellors and princes what to do with
the lad. They answered, and said: "Our king and our god! Wherefore art
thou in fear by reason of a little child? There are myriads upon myriads of
princes in thy realm,[18] rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of
fifties, and rulers of tens, and overseers without number. Let the pettiest of
the princes go and fetch the boy and put him in prison." But the king
interposed, "Have ye ever seen a baby of twenty days walking with his
feet, speaking with his mouth, and proclaiming with his tongue that there is a
God in heaven, who is One, and none beside Him, who sees and is not seen?"
All the assembled princes were horror struck at these words.[19]
At this time Satan
in human form appeared, clad in black silk garb, and he cast himself down
before the king. Nimrod said, "Raise thy head and state thy request."
Satan asked the king: "Why art thou terrified, and why are ye all in fear
on account of a little lad? I will counsel thee what thou shalt do: Open thy
arsenal and give weapons unto all the princes, chiefs, and governors, and unto
all the warriors, and send them to fetch him unto thy service and to be under
thy dominion."
This advice given by
Satan the king accepted and followed. He sent a great armed host to bring
Abraham to him. When the boy saw the army approach him, he was sore afraid, and
amid tears he implored God for help. In answer to his prayer, God sent the
angel Gabriel to him, and he said: "Be not afraid and disquieted, for God
is with thee. He will rescue thee out of the hands of all thine
adversaries." God commanded Gabriel to put thick, dark clouds between Abraham
and his assailants. Dismayed by the heavy clouds, they fled, returning to
Nimrod, their king, and they said to him, "Let us depart and leave this
realm," and the king gave money unto all his princes and his servants, and
together with the king they departed and journeyed to Babylon.[20]
ABRAHAM'S FIRST APPEARANCE IN PUBLIC
Now Abraham, at the
command of God, was ordered by the angel Gabriel to follow Nimrod to
Abraham did as he
was bidden, and in the twinkling of an eye he found himself before the gates of
the city of
Abraham met his
parents in
When Terah heard
these words, he persuaded Abraham to follow him into the house, where his son
told him all that had happened--how in one day he had completed a forty days'
journey. Terah thereupon went to Nimrod and reported to him that his son
Abraham had suddenly appeared in Babylon.[22] The king sent for Abraham, and he
came before him with his father. Abraham passed the magnates and the
dignitaries until he reached the royal throne, upon which he seized hold,
shaking it and crying out with a loud voice: "O Nimrod, thou contemptible
wretch, that deniest the essence of faith, that deniest the living and
immutable God, and Abraham His servant, the trusted steward of His house.
Acknowledge Him, and repeat after me the words: The Eternal is God, the Only
One, and there is none beside; He is incorporeal, living, ever-existing; He
slumbers not and sleeps not, who hath created the world that men might believe
in Him. And confess also concerning me, and say that I am the servant of God
and the trusted steward of His house."[23]
While Abraham
proclaimed this with a loud voice, the idols fell upon their faces, and with
them also King Nimrod.[24] For a space of two hours and a half the king lay
lifeless, and when his soul returned upon him, he spoke and said, "Is it
thy voice, O Abraham, or the voice of thy God?" And Abraham answered, and
said, "This voice is the voice of the least of all creatures called into
existence by God." Thereupon Nimrod said, "Verily, the God of Abraham
is a great and powerful God, the King of all kings," and he commanded
Terah to take his son and remove him, and return again unto his own city, and
father and son did as the king had ordered.[25]
THE PREACHER OF THE TRUE FAITH
When Abraham
attained the age of twenty years, his father Terah fell ill. He spoke as
follows to his sons
The people who heard
Abraham were amazed exceedingly at his words. As he went through the streets,
he met an old woman who approached him with the purpose of buying an idol, good
and big, to be worshipped and loved. "Old woman, old woman," said
Abraham, "I know no profit therein, either in the big ones or in the
little ones, either unto themselves or unto others. And," he continued to
speak to her, "what has become of the big image thou didst buy from my
brother
The old woman
rejoined, "If what thou sayest be true, whom shall I serve?"
"Serve the God of all gods," returned Abraham, "the Lord of
lords, who hath created heaven and earth, the sea and all therein--the God of
Nimrod and the God of Terah, the God of the east, the west, the south, and the
north. Who is Nimrod, the dog, who calleth himself a god, that worship be
offered unto him?"
Abraham succeeded in
opening the eyes of the old woman, and she became a zealous missionary for the
true God. When she discovered the thieves who had carried off her idol, and they
restored it to her, she broke it in pieces with a stone, and as she wended her
way through the streets, she cried aloud, "Who would save his soul from
destruction, and be prosperous in all his doings, let him serve the God of
Abraham." Thus she converted many men and women to the true belief.
Rumors of the words
and deeds of the old woman reached the king, and he sent for her. When she
appeared before him, he rebuked her harshly, asking her how she dared serve any
god but himself. The old woman replied: "Thou art a liar, thou deniest the
essence of faith, the One Only God, beside whom there is no other god. Thou
livest upon His bounty, but thou payest worship to another, and thou dost
repudiate Him, and His teachings, and Abraham His servant."
The old woman had to
pay for her zeal for the faith with her life. Nevertheless great fear and
terror took possession of Nimrod, because the people became more and more
attached to the teachings of Abraham, and he knew not how to deal with the man
who was undermining the old faith. At the advice of his princes, he arranged a
seven days' festival, at which all the people were bidden to appear in their
robes of state, their gold and silver apparel. By such display of wealth and
power he expected to intimidate Abraham and bring him back to the faith of the
king. Through his father Terah, Nimrod invited Abraham to come before him, that
he might have the opportunity of seeing his greatness and wealth, and the glory
of his dominion, and the multitude of his princes and attendants. But Abraham
refused to appear before the king. On the other hand, he granted his father's
request that in his absence he sit by his idols and the king's, and take care
of them.
Alone with the
idols, and while he repeated the words, "The Eternal He is God, the
Eternal He is God!" he struck the king's idols from their thrones, and
began to belabor them with an axe. With the biggest he started, and with the
smallest he ended. He hacked off the feet of one, and the other he beheaded.
This one had his eyes struck out, the other had his hands crushed.[27] After
all were mutilated, he went away, having first put the axe into the hand of the
largest idol.
The feast ended, the
king returned, and when he saw all his idols shivered in pieces, he inquired
who had perpetrated the mischief. Abraham was named as the one who had been
guilty of the outrage, and the king summoned him and questioned him as to his
motive for the deed. Abraham replied: "I did not do it; it was the largest
of the idols who shattered all the rest. Seest thou not that he still has the
axe in his hand? And if thou wilt not believe my words, ask him and he will
tell thee."
IN THE FIERY FURNACE
Now the king was
exceedingly wroth at Abraham, and ordered him to be cast into prison, where he commanded
the warden not to give him bread or water.[28] But God hearkened unto the
prayer of Abraham, and sent Gabriel to him in his dungeon. For a year the angel
dwelt with him, and provided him with all sorts of food, and a spring of fresh
water welled up before him, and he drank of it. At the end of a year, the
magnates of the realm presented themselves before the king, and advised him to
cast Abraham into the fire, that the people might believe in Nimrod forever.
Thereupon the king issued a decree that all the subjects of the king in all his
provinces, men and women, young and old, should bring wood within forty days,
and he caused it to be thrown into a great furnace and set afire.[29] The
flames shot up to the skies, and the people were sore afraid of the fire. Now
the warden of the prison was ordered to bring Abraham forth and cast him in the
flames. The warden reminded the king that Abraham had not had food or drink a
whole year, and therefore must be dead, but Nimrod nevertheless desired him to
step in front of the prison and call his name. If he made reply, he was to be
hauled out to the pyre. If he had perished, his remains were to receive burial,
and his memory was to be wiped out henceforth.
Greatly amazed the
warden was when his cry, "Abraham, art thou alive?" was answered with
"I am living." He questioned further, "Who has been bringing
thee food and drink all these many days?" and Abraham replied: "Food
and drink have been bestowed upon me by Him who is over all things, the God of
all gods and the Lord of all lords, who alone doeth wonders, He who is the God
of Nimrod and the God of Terah and the God of the whole world. He dispenseth
food and drink unto all beings. He sees, but He cannot be seen, He is in the
heavens above, and He is present in all places, for He Himself superviseth all
things and provideth for all."
The miraculous
rescue of Abraham from death by starvation and thirst convinced the
prison-keeper of the truth of God and His prophet Abraham, and he acknowledged
his belief in both publicly. The king's threat of death unless he recanted
could not turn him away from his new and true faith. When the hangman raised
his sword and set it at his throat to kill him, he exclaimed, "The Eternal
He is God, the God of the whole world as well as of the blasphemer
Nimrod." But the sword could not cut his flesh. The harder it was pressed
against his throat, the more it broke into pieces.[30]
Nimrod, however, was
not to be turned aside from his purpose, to make Abraham suffer death by fire.
One of the princes was dispatched to fetch him forth. But scarcely did the
messenger set about the task of throwing him into the fire, when the flame
leapt forth from the furnace and consumed him. Many more attempts were made to
cast Abraham into the furnace, but always with the same success- whoever seized
him to pitch him in was himself burnt, and a large number lost their lives.
Satan appeared in human shape, and advised the king to place Abraham in a
catapult and sling him into the fire. Thus no one would be required to come
near the flame. Satan himself constructed the catapult. Having proved it fit
three times by means of stones put in the machine, they bound Abraham, hand and
foot, and were about to consign him to the flames. At that moment Satan, still
disguised in human shape, approached Abraham, and said, "If thou desirest
to deliver thyself from the fire of Nimrod, bow down before him and believe in
him." But Abraham rejected the tempter with the words, "May the
Eternal rebuke thee, thou vile, contemptible, accursed blasphemer!" and
Satan departed from him.
Then the mother of
Abraham came to him and implored him to pay homage to Nimrod and escape the
impending misfortune. But he said to her: "O mother, water can extinguish
Nimrod's fire, but the fire of God will not die out for evermore. Water cannot
quench it."[31] When his mother heard these words, she spake, "May
the God whom thou servest rescue thee from the fire of Nimrod!"
Abraham was finally
placed in the catapult, and he raised his eyes heavenward, and spoke, "O
Lord my God, Thou seest what this sinner purposes to do unto me!"[32] His
confidence in God was unshakable. When the angels received the Divine
permission to save him, and Gabriel approached him, and asked, "Abraham,
shall I save thee from the fire?" he replied, "God in whom I trust,
the God of heaven and earth, will rescue me," and God, seeing the
submissive spirit of Abraham, commanded the fire, "Cool off and bring
tranquillity to my servant Abraham."[33]
No water was needed
to extinguish the fire. The logs burst into buds, and all the different kinds
of wood put forth fruit, each tree bearing its own kind. The furnace was
transformed into a royal pleasance, and the angels sat therein with Abraham.
When the king saw the miracle, he said: "Great witchcraft! Thou makest it
known that fire hath no power over thee, and at the same time thou showest
thyself unto the people sitting in a pleasure garden." But the princes of
Nimrod interposed all with one voice, "Nay, our lord, this is not witchcraft,
it is the power of the great God, the God of Abraham, beside whom there is no
other god, and we acknowledge that He is God, and Abraham is His servant."
All the princes and all the people believed in God at this hour, in the
Eternal, the God of Abraham, and they all cried out, "The Lord He is God
in heaven above and upon the earth beneath; there is none else."[34]
Abraham was the
superior, not only of the impious king Nimrod and his attendants, but also of
the pious men of his time, Noah, Shem, Eber, and Asshur.[35] Noah gave himself
no concern whatsoever in the matter of spreading the pure faith in God. He took
an interest in planting his vineyard, and was immersed in material pleasures.
Shem and Eber kept in hiding, and as for Asshur, he said, "How can I live
among such sinners?" and departed out of the land.[36] The only one who
remained unshaken was Abraham. "I will not forsake God," he said, and
therefore God did not forsake him, who had hearkened neither unto his father
nor unto his mother.
The miraculous
deliverance of Abraham from the fiery furnace, together with his later
fortunes, was the fulfilment and explanation of what his father Terah had read
in the stars. He had seen the star of
The king, the
princes, and all the people, who had been witnesses of the wonders done for
Abraham, came to him, and prostrated themselves before him. But Abraham said:
"Do not bow down before me, but before God, the Master of the universe,
who hath created you. Serve Him and walk in His ways, for He it was who
delivered me from the flames, and He it is who hath created the soul and the
spirit of every human being, who formeth man in the womb of his mother, and
bringeth him into the world. He saveth from all sickness those who put their
trust in Him."
The king then
dismissed Abraham, after loading him down with an abundance of precious gifts,
among them two slaves who had been raised in the royal palace. 'Ogi was the
name of the one, Eliezer the name of the other. The princes followed the
example of the king, and they gave him silver, and gold, and gems. But all
these gifts did not rejoice the heart of Abraham so much as the three hundred
followers that joined him and became adherents of his religion.
ABRAHAM EMIGRATES TO
For a period of two
years Abraham could devote himself undisturbed to his chosen task of turning
the hearts of men to God and His teachings.[41] In his pious undertaking he was
aided by his wife Sarah, whom he had married in the meantime. While he exhorted
the men and sought to convert them, Sarah addressed herself to the women.[42]
She was a helpmeet worthy of Abraham. Indeed, in prophetical powers she ranked
higher than her husband.[43] She was sometimes called Iscah, "the
seer," on that account.[44]
At the expiration of
two years it happened that Nimrod dreamed a dream. In his dream he found
himself with his army near the fiery furnace in the valley into which Abraham
had been cast. A man resembling Abraham stepped out of the furnace, and he ran
after the king with drawn sword, the king fleeing before him in terror. While
running, the pursuer threw an egg at Nimrod's head, and a mighty stream issued
therefrom, wherein the king's whole host was drowned. The king alone survived,
with three men. When Nimrod examined his companions, he observed that they wore
royal attire, and in form and stature they resembled himself. The stream
changed back into an egg again, and a little chick broke forth from it, and it
flew up, settled upon the head of the king, and put out one of his eyes.
The king was
confounded in his sleep, and when he awoke, his heart beat like a trip-hammer,
and his fear was exceeding great. In the morning, when he arose, he sent and
called for his wise men and his magicians, and told them his dream. One of his
wise men, Anoko by name, stood up, and said: "Know, O king, this dream
points to the misfortune which Abraham and his descendants will bring upon
thee. A time will come when he and his followers will make war upon thy army,
and they will annihilate it. Thou and the three kings, thy allies, will be the
only ones to escape death. But later thou wilt lose thy life at the hands of
one of the descendants of Abraham. Consider, O king, that thy wise men read
this fate of thine in the stars, fifty-two years ago, at the birth of Abraham.
As long as Abraham liveth upon the ground, thou shalt not be stablished, nor
thy kingdom." Nimrod took Anoko's words to heart, and dispatched some of
his servants to seize Abraham and kill him. It happened that Eliezer, the slave
whom Abraham had received as a present from Nimrod, was at that time at the
royal court. With great haste he sped to Abraham to induce him to flee before
the king's bailiffs. His master accepted his advice, and took refuge in the
house of Noah and Shem, where he lay in hiding a whole month. The king's
officers reported that despite zealous efforts Abraham was nowhere to be found.
Thenceforth the king did not concern himself about Abraham.
When Terah visited
his son in his hiding-place, Abraham proposed that they leave the land and take
up their abode in
Noah and Shem aided
and abetted the efforts of Abraham to persuade Terah, whereupon Terah consented
to leave his country, and he, and Abraham, and
Terah's resolve to
quit his native land for the sake of Abraham and take up his abode in strange
parts, and his impulse to do it before even the Divine call visited Abraham
himself--this the Lord accounted a great merit unto Terah, and he was permitted
to see his son Abraham rule as king over the whole world. For when the miracle
happened, and Isaac was born unto his aged parents, the whole world repaired to
Abraham and Sarah, and demanded to know what they had done that so great a
thing should be accomplished for them. Abraham told them all that had happened
between Nimrod and himself, how he had been ready to be burnt for the glory of
God, and how the Lord had rescued him from the flames. In token of their
admiration for Abraham and his teachings, they appointed him to be their king,
and in commemoration of Isaac's wondrous birth, the money coined by Abraham
bore the figures of an aged husband and wife on the obverse side, and of a
young man and his wife on the reverse side, for Abraham and Sarah both were
rejuvenated at the birth of Isaac, Abraham's white hair turned black, and the
lines in Sarah's face were smoothed out.
For many years Terah
continued to live a witness of his son's glory, for his death did not occur
until Isaac was a youth of thirty-five.[46] And a still greater reward waited
upon his good deed. God accepted his repentance, and when he departed this
life, he entered into
THE STAR IN THE EAST
Terah had been a
high official at the court of Nimrod, and he was held in great consideration by
the king and his suite. A son was born unto him whom he called Abram, because
the king had raised him to an exalted place. In the night of Abraham's birth,
the astrologers and the wise men of Nimrod came to the house of Terah, and ate
and drank, and rejoiced with him that night. When they left the house, they
lifted up their eyes toward heaven to look at the stars, and they saw, and,
behold, one great star came from the east and ran athwart the heavens and
swallowed up the four stars at the four corners. They all were astonished at
the sight, but they understood this matter, and knew its import. They said to
one another: "This only betokens that the child that hath been born unto
Terah this night will grow up and be fruitful, and he will multiply and possess
all the earth, he and his children forever, and he and his seed will slay great
kings and inherit their lands."
They went home that
night, and in the morning they rose up early, and assembled in their
meeting-house. They spake, and said to one another: "Lo, the sight that we
saw last night is hidden from the king, it has not been made known to him, and
should this thing become known to him in the latter days, he will say to us,
Why
did you conceal this matter from me? and then
we shall all suffer death. Now, let us go and tell the king the sight which we
saw, and the interpretation thereof, and we shall be clear from this
thing." And they went to the king and told him the sight they had seen,
and their interpretation thereof, and they added the advice that he pay the
value of the child to Terah, and slay the babe.
Accordingly, the
king sent for Terah, and when he came, he spake to him: "It hath been told
unto me that a son was born to thee yesternight, and a wondrous sign was
observed in the heavens at his birth. Now give me the boy, that we may slay him
before evil comes upon us from him, and I will give thee thy house full of
silver and gold in exchange for him." Terah answered: "This thing
which thou promisest unto me is like the words which a man spoke to a mule,
saying, 'I will give thee a great heap of barley, a houseful thereof, on
condition that I cut off thy head!' The mule replied, 'Of what use will all the
barley be to me, if thou cuttest off my head? Who will eat it when thou givest
it to me?' Thus also do I say: What shall I do with silver and gold after the death
of my son? Who shall inherit me?" But when Terah saw how the king's anger
burned within him at these words, he added, "Whatever the king desireth to
do unto his servant, that let him do, even my son is at the king's disposal,
without value or exchange, he and his two older brethren."
The king spake,
however, saying, "I will purchase thy youngest son for a price." And
Terah made answer, "Let my king give me three days' time to consider the
matter and consult about it with my family." The king agreed to this
condition, and on the third day he sent to Terah, saying, "Give me thy son
for a price, as I spoke unto thee, and if thou wilt not do this, I will send
and slay all thou hast in thy house, there shall not be a dog left unto
thee."
Then Terah took a child
which his handmaid had borne unto him that day, and he brought the babe to the
king, and received value for him, and the king took the child and dashed his
head against the ground, for he thought it was Abraham. But Terah took his son
Abraham, together with the child's mother and his nurse, and concealed them in
a cave, and thither he carried provisions to them once a month, and the Lord
was with Abraham in the cave, and he grew up, but the king and all his servants
thought that Abraham was dead.
And when Abraham was
ten years old, he and his mother and his nurse went out from the cave, for the
king and his servants had forgotten the affair of Abraham.
In that time all the
inhabitants of the earth, with the exception of Noah and his household, transgressed
against the Lord, and they made unto themselves every man his god, gods of wood
and stone, which could neither speak, nor hear, nor deliver from distress. The
king and all his servants, and Terah with his. household, were the first to
worship images of wood and stone. Terah made twelve gods of large size, of wood
and of stone, corresponding to the twelve months of the year, and he paid
homage to them monthly in turn.[48]
THE TRUE BELIEVER
Once Abraham went
into the temple of the idols in his father's house, to bring sacrifices to
them, and he found one of them, Marumath by name, hewn out of stone, lying
prostrate on his face before the iron god of Nahor. The idol was too heavy for
him to raise it alone, and he called his father to help him put Marumath back
in his place. While they were handling the image, its head dropped off, and
Terah took a stone, and chiselled another Marumath, setting the head of the
first upon the new body. Then Terah continued and made five more gods, and all
these he delivered to Abraham, and bade him sell them in the streets of the
city.
Abraham saddled his
mule, and went to the inn where merchants from Fandana in
This incident made
Abraham reflect upon the worthlessness of idols, and he said to himself:
"What are these evil things done by my father? Is not he the god of his
gods, for do they not come into being by reason of his carving and chiselling
and contriving? Were it not more seemly that they should pay worship to him
than he to them, seeing they are the work of his hands?" Meditating thus,
he reached his father's house, and he entered and handed his father the money
for the five images, and Terah rejoiced, and said, "Blessed art thou unto
my gods, because thou didst bring me the price of the idols, and my labor was
not in vain." But Abraham made reply: "Hear, my father Terah, blessed
are thy gods through thee, for thou art their god, since thou didst fashion
them, and their blessing is destruction and their help is vanity. They that
help not themselves, how can they help thee or bless me?"
Terah grew very
wrathful at Abraham, that he uttered such speech against his gods, and Abraham,
thinking upon his father's anger, left him and went from the house. But Terah
called him back, and said, "Gather together the chips of the oak wood from
which I made images before thou didst return, and prepare my dinner for
me." Abraham made ready to do his father's bidding, and as he took up the
chips he found a little god among them, whose forehead bore the inscription
"God Barisat." He threw the chips upon the fire, and set Barisat up
next to it, saying: "Attention! Take care, Barisat, that the fire go not
out until I come back. If it burns low, blow into it, and make it flame up
again." Speaking thus, he went out. When he came in again, he found
Barisat lying prone upon his back, badly burnt. Smiling, he said to himself,
"In truth, Barisat, thou canst keep the fire alive and prepare food,"
and while he spoke, the idol was consumed to ashes. Then he took the dishes to
his father, and he ate and drank and was glad and blessed his god Marumath. But
Abraham said to his father, "Bless not thy god Marumath, but rather thy
god Barisat, for he it was who, out of his great love for thee, threw himself
into the fire that thy meal might be cooked." "Where is he now?"
exclaimed Terah, and Abraham answered, "He hath become ashes in the
fierceness of the fire." Terah said, "Great is the power of Barisat!
I will make me another this day, and to-morrow he will prepare my food for
me."
These words of his
father made Abraham laugh in his mind, but his soul was grieved at his
obduracy, and he proceeded to make clear his views upon the idols, saying:
"Father, no matter which of the two idols thou blessest, thy behavior is
senseless, for the images that stand in the holy temple are more to be
worshipped than thine. Zucheus, the god of my brother Nahor, is more venerable
than Marumath, because he is made cunningly of gold, and when he grows old, he
will be worked over again. But when thy Marumath becomes dim, or is shivered in
pieces, he will not be renewed, for he is of stone. And the god Joauv, who
stands above the other gods with Zucheus, is more venerable than Barisat, made
of wood, because he is hammered out of silver, and ornamented by men, to show
his magnificence. But thy Barisat, before thou didst fashion him into a god
with thy axe, was rooted in the earth, standing there great and wonderful, with
the glory of branches and blossoms. Now he is dry, and gone is his sap. From
his height he has fallen to the earth, from grandeur he came to pettiness, and
the appearance of his face has paled away, and he himself was burnt in the
fire, and he was consumed unto ashes, and he is no more. And thou didst then
say, 'I will make me another this day, and to-morrow he will prepare my food
for me.' Father," Abraham continued, and said, "the fire is more to
be worshipped than thy gods of gold and silver and wood and stone, because it
consumes them. But also the fire I call not god, because it is subject to the
water, which quenches it. But also the water I call not god, because it is
sucked up by the earth, and I call the earth more venerable, because it
conquers the water. But also the earth I call not god, because it is dried out
by the sun, and I call the sun more venerable than the earth, because he
illumines the whole world with his rays. But also the sun I call not god,
because his light is obscured when darkness cometh up. Nor do I call the moon
and the stars gods, because their light, too, is extinguished when their time to
shine is past. But hearken unto this, my father Terah, which I will declare
unto thee, The God who hath created all things, He is the true God, He hath
empurpled the heavens, and gilded the sun, and given radiance to the moon and
also the stars, and He drieth out the earth in the midst of many waters, and
also thee hath He put upon the earth, and me hath He sought out in the
confusion of my thoughts."[49]
THE ICONOCLAST
But Terah could not
be convinced, and in reply to Abraham's question, who the God was that had
created heaven and earth and the children of men, he took him to the hall
wherein stood twelve great idols and a large number of little idols, and
pointing to them he said, "Here are they who have made all thou seest on
earth, they who have created also me and thee and all men on the earth,"
and he bowed down before his gods, and left the hall with his son.
Abraham went thence
to his mother, and he spoke to her, saying: "Behold, my father has shown
those unto me who made heaven and earth and all the sons of men. Now,
therefore, hasten and fetch a kid from the flock, and make of it savory meat,
that I may bring it to my father's gods, perhaps I may thereby become
acceptable to them." His mother did according to his request, but when
Abraham brought the offering to the gods, he saw that they had no voice, no
hearing, no motion, and not one of them stretched forth his hand to eat.
Abraham mocked them, and said, "Surely, the savory meat that I prepared
doth not please you, or perhaps it is too little for you! Therefore I will
prepare fresh savory meat to-morrow, better and more plentiful than this, that
I may see what cometh therefrom." But the gods remained mute and without
motion before the second offering of excellent savory meat as before the first offering,
and the spirit of God came over Abraham, and he cried out, and said: "Woe
unto my father and his wicked generation, whose hearts are all inclined to
vanity, who serve these idols of wood and stone, which cannot eat, nor smell,
nor hear, nor speak, which have mouths without speech, eyes without sight, ears
without hearing, hands without feeling, and legs without motion!"
Abraham then took a
hatchet in his hand, and broke all his father's gods, and when he had done
breaking them he placed the hatchet in the hand of the biggest god among them
all, and he went out. Terah, having heard the crash of the hatchet on the
stone, ran to the room of the idols, and he reached it at the moment when
Abraham was leaving it, and when he saw what had happened, he hastened after
Abraham, and he said to him, "What is this mischief thou hast done to my
gods?" Abraham answered: "I set savory meat before them, and when I
came nigh unto them, that they might eat, they all stretched out their hands to
take of the meat, before the big one had put forth his hand to eat. This one,
enraged against them on account of their behavior, took the hatchet and broke
them all, and, behold, the hatchet is yet in his hands, as thou mayest
see."
Then Terah turned in
wrath upon Abraham, and he said: "Thou speakest lies unto me! Is there
spirit, soul, or power in these gods to do all thou hast told me? Are they not
wood and stone? and have I not myself made them? It is thou that didst place
the hatchet in the hand of the big god, and thou sayest he smote them
all." Abraham answered his father, and said: "How, then, canst thou
serve these idols in whom there is no power to do anything? Can these idols in
which thou trustest deliver thee? Can they hear thy prayers when thou callest upon
them?" After having spoken these and similar words, admonishing his father
to mend his ways and refrain from worshipping idols, he leapt up before Terah,
took the hatchet from the big idol, broke it therewith, and ran away.
Terah hastened to
Nimrod, bowed down before him, and besought him to hear his story, about his
son who had been born to him fifty years back, and how he had done to his gods,
and how he had spoken. "Now, therefore, my lord and king," he said,
"send for him that he may come before thee, and do thou judge him
according to the law, that we may be delivered from his evil." When
Abraham was brought before the king, he told him the same story as he had told
Terah, about the big god who broke the smaller ones, but the king replied,
"Idols do neither speak, nor eat, nor move." Then Abraham reproached
him for worshipping gods that can do nothing, and admonished him to serve the
God of the universe. His last words were, "If thy wicked heart will not
hearken to my words, to cause thee to forsake thy evil ways and serve the
Eternal God, then wilt thou die in shame in the latter days, thou, thy people,
and all that are connected with thee, who hear thy words, and walk in thy evil
ways."
The king ordered
Abraham to be put into prison, and at the end of ten days he caused all the
princes and great men of the realm to appear before him, and to them he put the
case of Abraham. Their
verdict was that he should be burnt, and,
accordingly, the king had a fire prepared for three days and three nights, in
his furnace at Kasdim, and Abraham was to be carried thither from prison to be
burnt.
All the inhabitants
of the land, about nine hundred thousand men, and the women and the children
besides, came to see what would be done with Abraham. And when he was brought
forth, the astrologers recognized him, and they said to the king, "Surely,
this is the man whom we knew as a child, at whose birth the great star
swallowed the four stars. Behold, his father did transgress thy command, and he
made a mockery of thee, for he did bring thee another child, and him didst thou
kill."
Terah was greatly
terrified, for he was afraid of the king's wrath, and he admitted that he had
deceived the king, and when the king said, "Tell me who advised thee to do
this. Hide naught, and thou shalt not die," he falsely accused
At first the king
would not believe them, but when some of his faithful princes corroborated the
words of his servants, he rose up and went to see for himself. He then
commanded his servants to take Abraham from the fire, but they could not,
because the flames leapt toward them from the furnace, and when they tried
again, at the king's command, to approach the furnace, the flames shot out and
burnt their faces, so that eight of their number died. The king then called
unto Abraham, and said: "O servant of the God who is in heaven, go forth
from the midst of the fire, and come hither and stand before me," and
Abraham came and stood before the king. And the king spoke to Abraham, and
said, "How cometh it that thou wast not burnt in the fire?" And
Abraham made answer, "The God of heaven and earth in whom I trust, and who
hath all things in His power, He did deliver me from the fire into which thou
didst cast me."[51]
ABRAHAM IN
With ten temptations
Abraham was tempted, and he withstood them all, showing how great was the love
of Abraham.[52] The first test to which he was subjected was the departure from
his native land. The hardships were many and severe which he encountered, and
he was loth to leave his home, besides. He spoke to God, and said, "Will
not the people talk about me, and say, 'He is endeavoring to bring the nations
under the wings of the Shekinah, yet he leaves his old father in
Then Abraham forsook
his father in
When Abraham first
was bidden to leave his home, he was not told to what land he was to
journey--all the greater would be his reward for executing the command of
God.[58] And Abraham showed his trust in God, for he said, "I am ready to
go whithersoever Thou sendest me." The Lord then bade him go to a land
wherein He would reveal Himself, and when he went to
On entering
Each altar raised by
him was a centre for his activities as a missionary. As soon as he came to a
place in which he desired to sojourn, he would stretch a tent first for Sarah,
and next for himself, and then he would proceed at once to make proselytes and
bring them under the wings of the Shekinah. Thus he accomplished his purpose of
inducing all men to proclaim the Name of God.[61]
For the present
Abraham was but a stranger in his promised land. After the partition of the
earth among the sons of Noah, when all had gone to their allotted portions, it
happened that Canaan son of Ham saw that the land extending from the Lebanon to
the River of Egypt was fair to look upon, and he refused to go to his own allotment,
westward by the sea. He settled in the land upon
But
HIS SOJOURN IN
Scarcely had Abraham
established himself in
The famine in the
time of Abraham prevailed only in
On this journey from
Amid tears, Abraham
offered up a prayer. He entreated God in these words: "Is this the reward
for my confidence in Thee? For the sake of Thy grace and Thy lovingkindness,
let not my hope be put to shame."[72] Sarah also implored God, saying:
"O God, Thou didst bid my lord Abraham leave his home, the land of his
fathers, and journey to
An angel appeared
unto Sarah while she was in the presence of the king, to whom he was not
visible, and he bade her take courage, saying, "Fear naught, Sarah, for
God hath heard thy prayer." The king questioned Sarah as to the man in the
company of whom she had come to
His free-handed
generosity availed naught. During the night, when he was about to approach
Sarah, an angel appeared armed with a stick, and if Pharaoh but touched Sarah's
shoe to remove it from her foot, the angel planted a blow upon his hand, and
when he grasped her dress, a second blow followed. At each blow he was about to
deal, the angel asked Sarah whether he was to let it descend, and if she bade
him give Pharaoh a moment to recover himself, he waited and did as she desired.
And another great miracle came to pass. Pharaoh, and his nobles, and his
servants, the very walls of his house and his bed were afflicted with leprosy,
and he could not indulge his carnal desires.[75] This night in which Pharaoh
and his court suffered their well deserved punishment was the night of the
fifteenth of Nisan, the same night wherein God visited the Egyptians in a later
time in order to redeem Israel, the descendants of Sarah.[76]
Horrified by the
plague sent upon him, Pharaoh inquired how he could rid himself thereof. He
applied to the priests, from whom he found out the true cause of his
affliction, which was corroborated by Sarah. He then sent for Abraham and
returned his wife to him, pure and untouched, and excused himself for what had
happened, saying that he had had the intention of connecting himself in
marriage with him, whom he had thought to be the brother of Sarah.[77] He
bestowed rich gifts upon the husband and the wife, and they departed for
Canaan, after a three months' sojourn in Egypt.[78]
Arrived in
Abraham's sojourn in
Egypt was of great service to the inhabitants of the country, because he
demonstrated to the wise men of the land how empty and vain their views were,
and also he taught them astronomy and astrology, unknown in Egypt before his
time.[80]
THE FIRST PHARAOH
The Egyptian ruler,
whose meeting with Abraham had proved so untoward an event, was the first to
bear the name Pharaoh. The succeeding kings were named thus after him. The
origin of the name is connected with the life and adventures of Rakyon,
Have-naught, a man wise, handsome, and poor, who lived in the
On the day on which
the king appeared among the people, they began to complain of this tax upon the
dead. They said: "What is this thou art inflicting upon thy servants-
permitting none to be buried unless they pay thee silver and gold! Has a thing
like this come to pass in the world since the days of Adam, that the dead should
not be interred unless money be paid therefor! We know well that it is the
privilege of the king to take an annual tax from the living. But thou takest
tribute from the dead, too, and thou exactest it day by day. O king, we cannot
endure this any longer, for the whole of the city is ruined thereby."
The king, who had
had no suspicion of Rakyon's doings, fell into a great rage when the people
gave him information about them. He ordered him and his armed force to appear
before him. Rakyon did not come empty-handed. He was preceded by a thousand
youths and
maidens, mounted upon steeds and arrayed in
state apparel. These were a present to the king. When he himself stepped before
the king, he delivered gold, silver, and diamonds to him in great abundance,
and a magnificent charger. These gifts and the display of splendor did not fail
of taking effect upon the king, and when Rakyon, in well-considered words and
with a pliant tongue, described the undertaking, he won not only the king to
his side, but also the whole court, and the king said to him, "No longer
shalt thou be called Rakyon, Have-naught, but Pharaoh, Paymaster, for thou
didst collect taxes from the dead."
So profound was the
impression made by Rakyon that the king, the grandees, and the people, all
together resolved to put the guidance of the realm in the hands of Pharaoh.
Under the suzerainty of Ashwerosh he administered law and justice throughout
the year; only on the one day when he showed himself to the people did the king
himself give judgment and decide cases. Through the power thus conferred upon
him and through cunning practices, Pharaoh succeeded in usurping royal
authority, and he collected taxes from all the inhabitants of
THE WAR OF THE KINGS
On his return from
Egypt Abraham's relations to his own family were disturbed by annoying
circumstances. Strife developed between the herdmen of his cattle and the
herdmen of
cattle. Abraham furnished his herds with
muzzles, but Lot made no such provision, and when the shepherds that pastured
Abraham's flocks took Lot's shepherds to task on account of the omission, the
latter replied: "It is known of a surety that God said unto Abraham, 'To
thy seed will I give the land.' But Abraham is a sterile mule. Never will he
have children. On the morrow he will die, and
Now, when the strife extended from the
servants to the masters, and Abraham vainly called his nephew
God was displeased
with Abraham for not living in peace and harmony with his own kindred, as he
lived with all the world beside. On the other hand, God also took it in ill
part that Abraham was accepting
The departure of
the canals of which later formed the
The victors
despoiled
It was on the first
evening of the Passover, and Abraham was eating of the unleavened bread,[89]
when the archangel Michael brought him the report of
When the report of
his nephew's evil state reached Abraham, he straightway dismissed all thought
of his dissensions with Lot from his mind, and only considered ways and means
of deliverance.[91] He convoked his disciples to whom he had taught the true
faith, and who all called themselves by the name Abraham.[92] He gave them gold
and silver, saying at the same time: "Know that we go to war for the
purpose of saving human lives. Therefore, do ye not direct your eyes upon
money, here lie gold and silver before you." Furthermore he admonished
them in these words: "We are preparing to go to war. Let none join us who
hath committed a trespass, and fears that Divine punishment will descend upon
him." Alarmed by his warning, not one would obey his call to arms, they
were fearful on account of their sins. Eliezer alone remained with him,
wherefore God spake, and said: "All forsook thee save only Eliezer.
Verily, I shall invest him with the strength of the three hundred and eighteen
men whose aid thou didst seek in vain."[93]
The battle fought
with the mighty hosts of the kings, from which Abraham emerged victorious,
happened on the fifteenth of Nisan, the night appointed for miraculous
deeds.[94] The arrows and stones hurled at him effected naught,[95] but the
dust of the ground, the chaff, and the stubble which he threw at the enemy were
transformed into death-dealing javelins and swords.[96] Abraham, as tall as
seventy men set on end, and requiring as much food and drink as seventy men,
marched forward with giant strides, each of his steps measuring four miles,
until he overtook the kings, and annihilated their troops. Further he could not
go, for he had reached Dan, where Jeroboam would once raise the golden calves,
and on this ominous spot Abraham's strength diminished.[97]
His victory was
possible only because the celestial powers espoused his side. The planet
Jupiter made the night bright for him, and an angel, Lailah by name, fought for
him.[98] In a true sense, it was a victory of God. All the nations acknowledged
his more than human achievement, and they fashioned a throne for Abraham, and
erected it on the field of battle. When they attempted to seat him upon it,
amid exclamations of "Thou art our king! Thou art our prince! Thou art our
god!" Abraham warded them off, and said, "The universe has its King,
and it has its God!" He declined all honors, and returned his property
unto each man. Only the little children he kept by himself. He reared them in
the knowledge of God, and later they atoned for the disgrace of their parents.
Somewhat arrogantly
the king of
In spite of his
great success, Abraham nevertheless was concerned about the issue of the war.
He feared that the prohibition against shedding the blood of man had been
transgressed, and he also dreaded the resentment of Shem, whose descendants had
perished in the encounter. But God reassured him, and said: "Be not
afraid! Thou hast but extirpated the thorns, and as to Shem, he will bless thee
rather than curse thee." So it was. When Abraham returned from the war,
Shem, or, as he is sometimes called, Melchizedek, the king of righteousness,
priest of God Most High, and king of Jerusalem, came forth to meet him with
bread and wine.[102] And this high priest instructed Abraham in the laws of the
priesthood and in the Torah, and to prove his friendship for him he blessed
him, and called him the partner of God in the possession of the world, seeing
that through him the Name of God had first been made known among men.[103] But
Melchizedek arranged the words of his blessing in an unseemly way. He named
Abraham first and then God. As a punishment, he was deposed by God from the
priestly dignity, and instead it was passed over to Abraham, with whose
descendants it remained forever.[104]
As a reward for the
sanctification of the Holy Name, which Abraham had brought about when he
refused to keep aught of the goods taken in battle,[105] his descendants
received two commands, the command of the threads in the borders of their
garments, and the command of the latchets to be bound upon their hands and to
be used as frontlets between their eyes. Thus they commemorate that their
ancestor refused to take so much as a thread or a latchet. And because he would
not touch a shoe-latchet of the spoils, his descendants cast their shoe upon
Edom.[106]
THE COVENANT OF THE PIECES
Shortly after the
war, God revealed Himself unto Abraham, to soothe his conscience as to the
spilling of innocent blood, for it was a scruple that gave him much anguish of
spirit. God assured him at the same time that He would cause pious men to arise
among his descendants, who, like himself, would be a shield unto their
generation.[107] As a further distinction, God gave him leave to ask what he
would have, rare grace accorded to none beside, except Jacob, Solomon, Ahaz,
and the Messiah. Abraham spoke, and said: "O Lord of the world, if in time
to come my descendants should provoke Thy wrath, it were better I remained
childless.
But though he
believed the promise made him with a full and abiding faith, he yet desired to
know by what merit of theirs his descendants would maintain themselves.
Therefore God bade him bring Him a sacrifice of three heifers, three she-goats,
three rams, a turtle dove, and a young pigeon, thus indicating to Abraham the
various sacrifices that should once be brought in the Temple, to atone for the
sins of Israel and further his welfare.[110] "But what will become of my
descendants," asked Abraham, "after the Temple is destroyed?"
God replied, and said, "If they read the order of sacrifices as they will
be set down in the Scriptures, I will account it unto them as though they had
offered the sacrifices, and I will forgive all their sins."[111] And God
continued and revealed to Abraham the course of Israel's history and the
history of the whole world: The heifer of three years indicates the dominion of
Babylon, the she-goat of three years stands for the empire of the Greeks, the
ram of three years for the Medo-Persian power, the rule of Ishmael is
represented by the ram, and Israel is the innocent dove.
Abraham took him
these animals and divided them in the midst. Had he not done so,
While he was
preparing these sacrifices, a vision of great import was granted to Abraham.
The sun sank, and a deep sleep fell upon him, and he beheld a smoking furnace,
Gehenna, the furnace that God prepares for the sinner; and he beheld a flaming
torch, the revelation on Sinai, where all the people saw flaming torches; and
he beheld the sacrifices to be brought by Israel; and an horror of great
darkness fell upon him, the dominion of the four kingdoms. And God spake to
him: "Abraham, as long as thy children fulfil the two duties of studying
the Torah and performing the service in the Temple, the two visitations,
Gehenna and alien rule, will be spared them. But if they neglect the two
duties, they will have to suffer the two chastisements; only thou mayest choose
whether they shall be punished by means of Gehenna or by means of the dominion
of the stranger." All the day long Abraham wavered, until God called unto
him: "How long wilt thou halt between two opinions? Decide for one of the
two, and let it be for the dominion of the stranger!" Then God made known
to him the four hundred years' bondage of
THE BIRTH OF ISHMAEL
The covenant of the
pieces, whereby the fortunes of his descendants were revealed to Abraham, was
made at a time when he was still childless.[115] As long as Abraham and Sarah
dwelt outside of the
No sooner had
Hagar's union with Abraham been consummated, and she felt that she was with
child, than she began to treat her former mistress contemptuously, though Sarah
was particularly tender toward her in the state in which she was. When noble
matrons came to see Sarah, she was in the habit of urging them to pay a visit
to "poor Hagar," too. The dames would comply with her suggestion, but
Hagar would use the opportunity to disparage Sarah. "My lady Sarah,"
she would say, "is not inwardly what she appears to be outwardly. She
makes the impression of a righteous, pious woman, but she is not, for if she
were, how could her childlessness be explained after so many years of marriage,
while I became pregnant at once?"
Sarah scorned to
bicker with her slave, yet the rage she felt found vent in these words to
Abraham:[120] "It is thou who art doing me wrong. Thou hearest the words
of Hagar, and thou sayest naught to oppose them, and I hoped that thou wouldst
take my part. For thy sake did I leave my native land and the house of my
father, and I followed thee into a strange land with trust in God. In
Abraham, modest and
unassuming as he was, was ready to do justice to Sarah, and he conferred full
power upon her to dispose of Hagar according to her pleasure. He added but one
caution, "Having once made her a mistress, we cannot again reduce her to
the state of a bondwoman." Unmindful of this warning, Sarah exacted the
services of a slave from Hagar. Not alone this, she tormented her, and finally
she cast an evil eye upon her, so that the unborn child dropped from her, and
she ran away. On her flight she was met by several angels, and they bade her
return, at the same time making known to her that she would bear a son who
should be called Ishmael--one of the six men who have been given a name by God
before their birth, the others being Isaac, Moses, Solomon, Josiah, and the
Messiah.[122]
Thirteen years after
the birth of Ishmael the command was issued to Abraham that he put the sign of
the covenant upon his body and upon the bodies of the male members of his
household. Abraham was reluctant at first to do the bidding of God, for he
feared that the circumcision of his flesh would raise a barrier between himself
and the rest of mankind. But God said unto him, "Let it suffice thee that
I am thy God and thy Lord, as it sufficeth the world that I am its God and its
Lord."[123]
Abraham then
consulted with his three true friends, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, regarding the
command of the circumcision. The first one spoke, and said, "Thou art nigh
unto a hundred years old, and thou considerest inflicting such pain upon
thyself?" The advice of the second was also against it. "What,"
said Eshcol, "thou choosest to mark thyself so that thy enemies may
recognize thee without fail?" Mamre, the third, was the only one to advise
obedience to the command of God. "God succored thee from the fiery
furnace," he said, "He helped thee in the combat with the kings, He
provided for thee during the famine, and thou dost hesitate to execute His
behest concerning the circumcision?[124] Accordingly, Abraham did as God had
commanded, in bright daylight, bidding defiance to all, that none might say,
"Had we seen him attempt it, we should have prevented him."[125]
The circumcision was
performed on the tenth day of Tishri, the Day of Atonement, and upon the spot
on which the altar was later to be erected in the
THE VISIT OF THE ANGELS
On the third day
after his circumcision, when Abraham was suffering dire pain,[127] God spoke to
the angels, saying, "Go to, let us pay a visit to the sick." The
angels refused, and said: "What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? And
the son of man, that Thou visitest him? And Thou desirest to betake Thyself to
a place of uncleanness, a place of blood and filth?" But God replied unto
them, "Thus do ye speak. As ye live, the savor of this blood is sweeter to
me than myrrh and incense, and if you do not desire to visit Abraham, I will go
alone."[128]
The day whereon God
visited him was exceedingly hot, for He had bored a hole in hell, so that its
heat might reach as far as the earth, and no wayfarer venture abroad on the
highways, and Abraham be left undisturbed in his pain.[129] But the absence of
strangers caused Abraham great vexation, and he sent his servant Eliezer forth
to keep a lookout for travellers. When the servant returned from his fruitless
search, Abraham himself, in spite of his illness and the scorching heat,
prepared to go forth on the highway and see whether he would not succeed where
failure had attended Eliezer, whom he did not wholly trust at any rate, bearing
in mind the well-known saying, "No truth among slaves."[130] At this
moment God appeared to him, surrounded by the angels. Quickly Abraham attempted
to rise from his seat, but God checked every demonstration of respect, and when
Abraham protested that it was unbecoming to sit in the presence of the Lord,
God said, "As thou livest, thy descendants at the age of four and five
will sit in days to come in the schools and in the synagogues while I reside
therein."[131]
Meantime Abraham
beheld three men. They were the angels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael. They had
assumed the form of human beings to fulfil his wish for guests toward whom to
exercise hospitality. Each of them had been charged by God with a special
mission, besides, to be executed on earth. Raphael was to heal the wound of
Abraham, Michael was to bring Sarah the glad tidings that she would bear a son,
and Gabriel was to deal destruction to
He did not depend upon
his own judgment in reading the character of his guests. By his tent a tree was
planted, which spread its branches out over all who believed in God, and
afforded them shade. But if idolaters went under the tree, the branches turned
upward, and cast no shade upon the ground. Whenever Abraham saw this sign, he
would at once set about the task of converting the worshippers of the false
gods. And as the tree made a distinction between the pious and the impious, so
also between the clean and the unclean. Its shade was denied them as long as
they refrained from taking the prescribed ritual bath in the spring that flowed
out from its roots, the waters of which rose at once for those whose
uncleanness was of a venial character and could be removed forthwith, while
others had to wait seven days for the water to come up. Accordingly, Abraham
bade the three men lean against the trunk of the tree. Thus he would soon learn
their worth or their unworthiness.[137]
Being of the truly
pious, "who promise little, but perform much,"[133] Abraham said
only: "I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your heart, seeing
that ye chanced to pass my tent at dinner time. Then, after ye have given
thanks to God, ye may pass on."[139] But when the meal was served to the
guests, it was a royal banquet, exceeding Solomon's at the time of his most
splendid magnificence. Abraham himself ran unto the herd, to fetch cattle for
meat. He slaughtered three calves, that he might be able to set a "tongue
with mustard" before each of his guests.[140] In order to accustom Ishmael
to God-pleasing deeds, he had him dress the calves,[141] and he bade Sarah bake
the bread. But as he knew that women are apt to treat guests niggardly, he was
explicit in his request to her. He said, "Make ready quickly three
measures of meal, yea, fine meal." As it happened, the bread was not
brought to the table, because it had accidentally become unclean, and our
father Abraham was accustomed to eat his daily bread only in a clean
state.[142] Abraham himself served his guests, and it appeared to him that the
three men ate. But this was an illusion. In reality the angels did not
eat,[143] only Abraham, his three friends, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, and his son
Ishmael partook of the banquet, and the portions set before the angels were
devoured by a heavenly fire.[144]
Although the angels
remained angels even in their human disguise, nevertheless the personality of
Abraham was so exalted that in his presence the archangels felt
insignificant.[145]
After the meal the
angels asked after Sarah, though they knew that she was in retirement in her
tent, but it was proper for them to pay their respects to the lady of the house
and send her the cup of wine over which the blessing had been said.[146]
Michael, the greatest of the angels, thereupon announced the birth of Isaac. He
drew a line upon the wall, saying, "When the sun crosses this point, Sarah
will be with child, and when he crosses the next point, she will give birth to
a child." This communication, which was intended for Sarah and not for
Abraham, to whom the promise had been revealed long before,[147] the angels
made at the entrance to her tent, but Ishmael stood between the angel and
Sarah, for it would not have been seemly to deliver the message in secret, with
none other by. Yet, so radiant was the beauty of Sarah that a beam of it struck
the angel, and made him look up. In the act of turning toward her, he heard her
laugh within herself:[148] "Is it possible that these bowels can yet bring
forth a child, these shrivelled breasts give suck? And though I should be able
to bear, yet is not my lord Abraham old?[149]
And the Lord said
unto Abraham: "Am I too old to do wonders? And wherefore doth Sarah laugh,
saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old?"[150] The reproach
made by God was directed against Abraham as well as against Sarah, for he, too,
had showed himself of little faith when he was told that a son would be born
unto him. But God mentioned only Sarah's incredulity, leaving Abraham to become
conscious of his defect himself.[151]
Regardful of the
peace of their family life, God had not repeated Sarah's words accurately to
Abraham. Abraham might have taken amiss what his wife had said about his
advanced years, and so precious is the peace between hus band and wife that
even the Holy One, blessed be He, preserved it at the expense of truth.[152]
After Abraham had
entertained his guests, he went with them to bring them on their way, for,
important as the duty of hospitality is, the duty of speeding the parting guest
is even more important.[153] Their way lay in the direction of Sodom, whither
two of the angels were going, the one to destroy it, and the second to save
Lot, while the third, his errand to Abraham fulfilled, returned to heaven.[154]
THE CITIES OF SIN
The inhabitants of
a feast lasting several days and consisting of
the most revolting orgies. If a stranger merchant passed through their
territory, he was besieged by them all, big and little alike, and robbed of
whatever he possessed. Each one appropriated a bagatelle, until the traveller
was stripped bare. If the victim ventured to remonstrate with one or another,
he would show him that he had taken a mere trifle, not worth talking about. And
the end was that they hounded him from the city.
Once upon a time it
happened that a man journeying from
After much
wrangling, they put their case before one of the judges of
As
After a while
travellers avoided these cities, but if some poor devil was betrayed
occasionally into entering them, they would give him gold and silver, but never
any bread, so that he was bound to die of starvation. Once he was dead, the
residents of the city came and took back the marked gold and silver which they
had given him, and they would quarrel about the distribution of his clothes,
for they would bury him naked.
Once Eliezer, the
bondman of Abraham, went to
The cause of their
cruelty was their exceeding great wealth. Their soil was gold, and in their
miserliness and their greed for more and more gold, they wanted to prevent
strangers from enjoying aught of their riches. Accordingly, they flooded the
highways with streams of water, so that the roads to their city were
obliterated, and none could find the way thither. They were as heartless toward
beasts as toward men. They begrudged the birds what they ate, and therefore extirpated
them.[155] They behaved impiously toward one another, too, not shrinking back
from murder to gain possession of more gold. If they observed that a man owned
great riches, two of them would conspire against him. They would beguile him to
the vicinity of ruins, and while the one kept him on the spot by pleasant
converse, the other would undermine the wall near which he stood, until it
suddenly crashed down upon him and killed him. Then the two plotters would
divide his wealth between them.
Another method of
enriching themselves with the property of others was in vogue among them. They
were adroit thieves. When they made up their minds to commit theft, they would
first ask their victim to take care of a sum of money for them, which they
smeared with strongly scented oil before handing it over to him. The following
night they would break into his house, and rob him of his secret treasures, led
to the place of concealment by the smell of the oil.
Their laws were
calculated to do injury to the poor. The richer a man, the more was he favored
before the law. The owner of two oxen was obliged to render one day's shepherd
service, but if he had but one ox, he had to give two days' service. A poor
orphan, who was thus forced to tend the flocks a longer time than those who
were blessed with large herds, killed all the cattle entrusted to him in order
to take revenge upon his oppressors, and he insisted, when the skins were
assigned, that the owner of two head of cattle should have but one skin, but
the owner of one head should receive two skins, in correspondence to the method
pursued in assigning the work. For the use of the ferry, a traveller had to pay
four zuz, but if he waded through the water, he had to pay eight zuz.[156]
The cruelty of the
Sodomites went still further.
suspected that some one was giving him food in
secret. Three men concealed themselves near the beggar, and caught Paltit in
the act of giving him something to eat. She had to pay for her humanity with
death; she was burnt upon a pyre.
The people of Admah
were no better than those of
ABRAHAM PLEADS FOR THE SINNERS
When God saw that
there was no righteous man among the inhabitants of the sinful cities, and
there would be none among their descendants, for the sake of whose merits the
rest might be treated with lenient consideration, He resolved to annihilate
them one and all.[158] But before judgment was executed, the Lord made known
unto Abraham what He would do to Sodom, Gomorrah, and the other cities of the
plain, for they formed a part of Canaan, the land promised unto Abraham, and
therefore did God say, "I will not destroy them without the consent of
Abraham."[159]
Like a compassionate
father, Abraham importuned the grace of God in behalf of the sinners. He spoke
to God, and said: "Thou didst take an oath that no more should all flesh
be cut off by the waters of a flood. Is it meet that Thou shouldst evade Thy
oath and destroy cities by fire? Shall the Judge of all the earth not do right
Himself? Verily, if Thou desirest to maintain the world, Thou must give up the
strict line of justice. If Thou insistest upon the right alone, there can be no
world." Whereupon God said to Abraham: "Thou takest delight in
defending My creatures, and thou wouldst not call them guilty. Therefore I
spoke with none but thee during the ten generations since Noah."[160]
Abraham ventured to use still stronger words in order to secure the safety of
the godless. "That be far from Thee," he said, "to slay the
righteous with the wicked, that the dwellers on the earth say not, 'It is His
trade to destroy the generations of men in a cruel manner; for He destroyed the
generation of Enosh, then the generation of the flood, and then He sent the
confusion of tongues. He sticks ever to His trade.' "
God made reply:
"I will let all the generations I have destroyed pass before thee, that
thou mayest see they have not suffered the extreme punishment they deserved.
But if thou thinkest that I did not act justly, then instruct thou Me in what I
must do, and I will endeavor to act in accordance with thy words." And
Abraham had to admit that God had not diminished in aught the justice due to
every creature in this world or the other world.[161] Nevertheless he continued
to speak, and he said: "Wilt Thou consume the cities, if there be ten
righteous men in each?" And God said, "No, if I find fifty righteous
therein, I will not destroy the cities."[162]
Abraham: "I
have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, I who would have been turned long
since into dust of the ground by Amraphel and into ashes by Nimrod, had it not
been for Thy grace.[163] Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty
righteous for Zoar, the smallest of the five cities. Wilt Thou destroy all the
city for lack of five?"
God: "I will
not destroy it, if I find there forty and five."
Abraham:
"Peradventure there be ten pious in each of the four cities, then forgive
Zoar in Thy grace, for its sins are not so great in number as the sins of the
others."
God granted his
petition, yet Abraham continued to plead, and he asked whether God would not be
satisfied if there were but thirty righteous, ten in each of the three larger
cities, and would pardon the two smaller ones, even though there were no
righteous therein, whose merits would intercede for them. This, too, the Lord
granted, and furthermore He promised not to destroy the cities if but twenty
righteous were found therein; yes, God conceded that He would preserve the five
cities for the sake of ten righteous therein.[164] More than this Abraham did
not ask, for he knew that eight righteous ones, Noah and his wife, and his
three sons and their wives, had not sufficed to avert the doom of the
generation of the flood, and furthermore he hoped that Lot, his wife, and their
four daughters, together with the husbands of their daughters, would make up
the number ten. What he did not know was that even the righteous in these
sin-laden cities, though better than the rest, were far from good.[165]
Abraham did not
cease to pray for the deliverance of the sinners even after the Shekinah had
removed from him. But his supplications and his intercessions were in
vain.[166] For fifty-two years God had warned the godless; He had made
mountains to quake and tremble. But they hearkened not unto the voice of
admonition. They persisted in their sins, and their well-merited punishment
overtook them.[167] God forgives all sins, only not an immoral life. And as all
these sinners led a life of debauchery, they were burnt with fire.[168]
THE DESTRUCTION OF THE SINFUL CITIES
The angels left
Abraham at
Bred in the house of
Abraham,
The angels, who had
accepted Abraham's hospitality without delay, first refused to comply with
Lot's request, for it is a rule of good breeding to show reluctance when an
ordinary man invites one, but to accept the invitation of a great man at once.
In the beginning the
angels were inclined to hearken to the petition of Lot in behalf of the
sinners, but when all the people of the city, big and little, crowded around
the house of Lot with the purpose of committing a monstrous crime, the angels
warded off his prayers, saying, "Hitherto thou couldst intercede for them,
but now no longer." It was not the first time that the inhabitants of
Even
The angels told Lot
who they were, and what the mission that had brought them to Sodom, and they
charged him to flee from the city with his wife and his four daughters, two of
them married, and two betrothed.[177] Lot communicated their bidding to his
sons-in-law, and they mocked at him, and said: "O thou fool! Violins,
cymbals, and flutes resound in the city, and thou sayest
When the angels had
brought forth
The savior angel had
urged
The destruction of
the cities of the plain took place at dawn of the sixteenth day of Nisan, for
the reason that there were moon and sun worshippers among the inhabitants. God
said: "If I destroy them by day, the moon worshippers will say, Were the
moon here, she would prove herself our savior; and if I destroy them by night,
the sun worshippers will say, Were the sun here, he would prove himself our
savior. I will therefore let their chastisement overtake them on the sixteenth
day of Nisan at an hour at which the moon and the sun are both in the
skies."[183]
The sinful
inhabitants of the cities of the plain not only lost their life in this world,
but also their share in the future world. As for the cities themselves,
however, they will be restored in the Messianic time.[184]
The destruction of
Sodom happened at the time at which Abraham was performing his morning
devotions, and for his sake it was established as the proper hour for the
morning prayer unto all times.[185] When he turned his eyes toward Sodom and
beheld the rising smoke, he prayed for the deliverance of Lot, and God granted
his petition--the fourth time that Lot became deeply indebted to Abraham.
Abraham had taken him with him to
Though
AMONG THE PHILISTINES
The destruction of
Arrived in the land
of the Philistines, he again, as aforetime in
In that night the
voice of a great crying was heard in the whole land of the Philistines, for
they saw the figure of a man walking about, with sword in hand, slaying all
that came in his way. At the same time it happened that in men and beasts alike
all the apertures of the body closed up, and the land was seized with
indescribable excitement. In the morning, when the king awoke, in agony and
terror, he called all his servants and told his dream in their ears. One of
their number said: "O lord and king! Restore this woman unto the man, for
he is her husband. It is but his way in a strange land to pretend that she is
his sister. Thus did he with the king of
There were some
among his servants who spake: "Be not afraid of dreams! What dreams make
known to man is but falsehood." Then God appeared unto Abimelech again and
commanded him to let Sarah go free, otherwise he would be a dead man.[191]
Abimelech replied: "Is this Thy way? Then, I ween, the generation of the
flood and the generation of the confusion of tongues were innocent, too! The
man himself did say unto me, She is my sister, and she, even she herself said,
He is my brother, and all the people of their household said the same
words." And God said unto him: "Yea, I know that thou hast not yet
committed a trespass, for I withheld thee from sinning. Thou didst not know
that Sarah was a man's wife.[192] But is it becoming to question a stranger, no
sooner does he set foot upon thy territory, about the woman accompanying him,
whether she be his wife or his sister? Abraham, who is a prophet, knew
beforehand the danger to himself if he revealed the whole truth.[193] But,
being a prophet, he also knows that thou didst not touch his wife, and he shall
pray for thee, and thou shalt live."
The smoke was still
rising from the ruins of
concerning Sarah. Abraham excused his conduct
by his apprehension that, the fear of God not being in the place, the
inhabitants of the land slay him for his wife.[195] Abraham went on and told
the history of his whole life, and he said: "When I dwelt in the house of
my father, the nations of the world sought to do me harm, but God proved
Himself my Redeemer. When the nations of the world tried to lead me astray to
idolatry, God revealed Himself to me, and He said, 'Get thee out of thy
country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house.' And when the
nations of the world were about to go astray, God sent two prophets, my kinsmen
Shem and Eber, to admonish them."[196]
Abimelech gave rich
gifts to Abraham, wherein he acted otherwise than Pharaoh in similar
circumstances. The Egyptian king gave gifts to Sarah, but Abimelech was God
fearing, and desired that Abraham pray for him.[197] To Sarah he gave a costly
robe that covered her whole person, hiding her seductive charms from the view
of beholders. At the same time it was a reproach to Abraham, that he had not
fitted Sarah out with the splendor due to his wife.[198]
Though Abimelech had
done him great injury, Abraham not only granted him the forgiveness he craved,
but also he prayed for him to God. Thus he is an exemplar unto all. "Man
should be pliant as a reed, not hard like the cedar." He should be easily
appeased, and slow to anger, and as soon as he who has sinned against him asks
for pardon, he should forgive him with all his heart. Even if deep and serious
injury has been done to him, he should not be vengeful, nor bear his brother a
grudge in his heart.[199]
Abraham prayed thus
for Abimelech: "O Lord of the world! Thou hast created man that he may
increase and propagate his kind. Grant that Abimelech and his house may
multiply and increase!"[200] God fulfilled Abraham's petition in behalf of
Abimelech and his people, and it was the first time it happened in the history
of mankind that God fulfilled the prayer of one human being for the benefit of
another.[201] Abimelech and his subjects were healed of all their diseases, and
so efficacious was the prayer offered by Abraham that the wife of Abimelech,
barren hitherto, bore a child.[202]
THE BIRTH OF ISAAC
When the prayer of
Abraham for Abimelech was heard, and the king of the Philistines recovered, the
angels raised a loud cry, and spoke to God thus: "O Lord of the world! All
these years hath Sarah been barren, as the wife of Abimelech was. Now Abraham
prayed to Thee, and the wife of Abimelech hath been granted a child. It is just
and fair that Sarah should be remembered and granted a child." These words
of the angels, spoken on the New Year's Day, when the fortunes of men are
determined in heaven for the whole year, bore a result. Barely seven months
later, on the first day of the Passover, Isaac was born.
The birth of Isaac
was a happy event, and not in the house of Abraham alone. The whole world
rejoiced, for God remembered all barren women at the same time with Sarah. They
all bore children. And all the blind were made to see, all the lame were made
whole, the dumb were made to speak, and the mad were restored to reason. And a
still greater miracle happened: on the day of Isaac's birth the sun shone with
such splendor as had not been seen since the fall of man, and as he will shine
again only in the future world.[203]
To silence those who
asked significantly, "Can one a hundred years old beget a son?" God
commanded the angel who has charge over the embryos, to give them form and
shape, that he fashion Isaac precisely according to the model of Abraham, so
that all seeing Isaac might exclaim, "Abraham begot Isaac."[204]
That Abraham and
Sarah were blessed with offspring only after they had attained so great an age,
had an important reason. It was necessary that Abraham should bear the sign of
the covenant upon his body before he begot the son who was appointed to be the
father of Israel.[205] And as Isaac was the first child born to Abraham after
he was marked with the sign, he did not fail to celebrate his circumcision with
much pomp and ceremony on the eighth day.[206] Shem, Eber, Abimelech king of
the Philistines, and his whole retinue, Phicol the captain of his host in
it--they all were present, and also Terah and his son Nahor, in a word, all the
great ones round about.[207] On this occasion Abraham could at last put a stop
to the talk of the people, who said, "Look at this old couple! They picked
up a foundling on the highway, and they pretend he is their own son, and to
make their statement seem credible, they arrange a feast in his honor."
Abraham had invited not only men to the celebration, but also the wives of the
magnates with their infants, and God permitted a miracle to be done. Sarah had
enough milk in her breasts to suckle all the babes there,[208] and they who
drew from her breasts had much to thank her for. Those whose mothers had
harbored only pious thoughts in their minds when they let them drink the milk
that flowed from the breasts of the pious Sarah, they became proselytes when
they grew up; and those whose mothers let Sarah nurse them only in order to
test her, they grew up to be powerful rulers, losing their dominion only at the
revelation on Mount Sinai, because they would not accept the Torah. All
proselytes and pious heathen are the descendants of these infants.[209]
Among the guests of
Abraham were the thirty-one kings and thirty-one viceroys of
ISHMAEL CAST OFF
When Isaac grew up,
quarrels broke out between him and Ishmael, on account of the rights of the
first-born. Ishmael insisted he should receive a double portion of the
inheritance after the death of Abraham, and Isaac should receive only one
portion. Ishmael, who had been accustomed from his youth to use the bow and
arrow, was in the habit of aiming his missiles in the direction of Isaac,
saying at the same time that he was but jesting.[211] Sarah, however, insisted
that Abraham make over to Isaac all he owned, that no disputes might arise
after his death,[212] "for," she said, "Ishmael is not worthy of
being heir with my son, nor with a man like Isaac, and certainly not with my
son Isaac."[213] Furthermore, Sarah insisted that Abraham divorce himself
from Hagar, the mother of Ishmael, and send away the woman and her son, so that
there be naught in common between them and her own son, either in this world or
in the future world.
Of all the trials
Abraham had to undergo, none was so hard to bear as this, for it grieved him
sorely to separate himself from his son. God appeared to him in the following
night, and said to him: "Abraham, knowest thou not that Sarah was
appointed to be thy wife from her mother's womb? She is thy companion and the
wife of thy youth, and I named not Hagar as thy wife, nor Sarah as thy
bondwoman. What Sarah spoke unto thee was naught but truth, and let it not be
grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman."
The next morning Abraham rose up early, gave Hagar her bill of divorcement, and
sent her away with her son, first binding a rope about her loins that all might
see she was a bondwoman.[214]
The evil glance cast
upon her stepson by Sarah made him sick and feverish, so that Hagar had to
carry him, grown-up as he was. In his fever he drank often of the water in the
bottle given her by Abraham as she left his house, and the water was quickly
spent. That she might not look upon the death of her child, Hagar cast Ishmael
under the willow shrubs growing on the selfsame spot whereon the angels had
once spoken with her and made known to her that she would bear a son. In the
bitterness of her heart, she spoke to God, and said, "Yesterday Thou didst
say to me, I will greatly multiply thy seed, that it shall not be numbered for
multitude, and to-day my son dies of thirst." Ishmael himself cried unto
God, and his prayer and the merits of Abraham brought them help in their need,
though the angels appeared against Ishmael before God. They said, "Wilt
Thou cause a well of water to spring up for him whose descendants will let Thy
children of
At that moment
Ishmael was pious indeed, for he was praying to God in the following words:
"O Lord of the world! If it be Thy will that I shall perish, then let me
die in some other way, not by thirst, for the tortures of thirst are great
beyond all others." Hagar, instead of praying to God, addressed her
supplications to the idols of her youth. The prayer of Ishmael was acceptable
before God, and He bade Miriam's well spring up, the well created in the
twilight of the sixth day of creation.[216] Even after this miracle Hagar's
faith was no stronger than before. She filled the bottle with water, because
she feared it might again be spent, and no other would be nigh. Thereupon she
journeyed to
THE TWO WIVES OF ISHMAEL
The wife of Ishmael
bore four sons and a daughter, and afterward Ishmael, his mother, and his wife
and children went and returned to the wilderness. They made themselves tents in
the wilderness in which they dwelt, and they continued to encamp and journey,
month by month and year by year. And God gave Ishmael flocks, and herds, and
tents, on account of Abraham his father, and the man increased in cattle. And
some time after, Abraham said to Sarah, his wife, "I will go and see my
son Ishmael; I yearn to look upon him, for I have not seen him for a long
time." And Abraham rode upon one of his camels to the wilderness, to seek
his son Ishmael, for he heard that he was dwelling in a tent in the wilderness
with all belonging to him. And Abraham went to the wilderness, and he reached
the tent of Ishmael about
And at the end of
three years, Abraham said, "I will go again and see Ishmael my son, for I
have not seen him for a long time." And he rode upon his camel, and went
to the wilderness, and he reached the tent of Ishmael about
THE COVENANT WITH ABIMELECH
After a sojourn of
twenty-six years in the land of the Philistines, Abraham departed thence, and
he settled in the neighborhood of
As long as Abraham
was childless, the heathen did not believe in his piety, but when Isaac was
born, they said to him, "God is with thee." But again they
entertained doubt of his piety when he cast off Ishmael. They said, "Were
he a righteous man, he would not drive his first-born forth from his
house." But when they observed the impious deeds of Ishmael, they said,
"God is with thee in all thou doest." That Abraham was the favorite
of God, they saw in this, too, that although
Before Abraham
concluded the covenant with Abimelech, king of the Philistines, he reproved him
on account of a well, for "Correction leads to love," and "There
is no peace without correction." The herdmen of Abraham and those of
Abimelech had left their dispute about the well to decision by ordeal: the well
was to belong to the party for whose sheep the waters would rise so that they
could drink of them. But the shepherds of Abimelech disregarded the agreement,
and they wrested the well for their own use.[220] As a witness and a perpetual
sign that the well belonged to him, Abraham set aside seven sheep,
corresponding to the seven Noachian laws binding upon all men alike.[221] But
God said, "Thou didst give him seven sheep. As thou livest, the
Philistines shall one day slay seven righteous men, Samson, Hophni, Phinehas,
and Saul with his three sons, and they will destroy seven holy places, and they
will keep the holy Ark in their country as booty of war for a period of seven
months, and furthermore only the seventh generation of thy descendants will be
able to rejoice in the possession of the land promised to them."[222]
After concluding the alliance with Abimelech, who acknowledged Abraham's right
upon the well, Abraham called the place Beer-sheba, because there they swore
both of them unto a covenant of friendship.
In Beer-sheba
Abraham dwelt many years, and thence he endeavored to spread the law of God. He
planted a large grove there, and he made four gates for it, facing the four
sides of the earth, east, west, north, and south, and he planted a vineyard therein.
If a traveller came that way, he entered by the gate that faced him, and he sat
in the grove, and ate, and drank, until he was satisfied, and then he departed.
For the house of Abraham was always open for all passers-by, and they came
daily to eat and drink there. If one was hungry, and he came to Abraham, he
would give him what he needed, so that he might eat and drink and be satisfied;
and if one was naked, and he came to Abraham, he would clothe him with the
garments of the poor man's choice, and give him silver and gold, and make known
to him the Lord, who had created him and set him on earth.[223] After the
wayfarers had eaten, they were in the habit of thanking Abraham for his kind
entertainment of them, whereto he would reply: "What, ye give thanks unto
me! Rather return thanks to your host, He who alone provides food and drink for
all creatures." Then the people would ask, "Where is He?" and
Abraham would answer them, and say: "He is the Ruler of heaven and earth.
He woundeth and He healeth, He formeth the embryo in the womb of the mother and
bringeth it forth into the world, He causeth the plants and the trees to grow,
He killeth and He maketh alive, He bringeth down to Sheol and bringeth
up." When the people heard such words, they would ask, "How shall we
return thanks to God and manifest our gratitude unto Him?" And Abraham
would instruct them in these words: "Say, Blessed be the Lord who is
blessed! Blessed be He that giveth bread and food unto all flesh!" In this
manner did Abraham teach those who had enjoyed his hospitality how to praise
and thank God.[224] Abraham's house thus became not only a lodging-place for
the hungry and thirsty, but also a place of instruction where the knowledge of
God and His law were taught.[225]
SATAN ACCUSES ABRAHAM
In spite of the
lavish hospitality practiced in the house of Abraham, it happened once that a
poor man, or rather an alleged poor man, was turned away empty-handed, and this
was the immediate reason for the last of Abraham's temptations, the sacrifice
of his favorite son Isaac. It was the day on which Abraham celebrated the birth
of Isaac with a great banquet, to which all the magnates of the time were
bidden with their wives. Satan, who always appears at a feast in which no poor
people participate, and keeps aloof from those to which poor guests are
invited, turned up at Abraham's banquet in the guise of a beggar asking alms at
the door. He had noticed that Abraham had invited no poor man, and he knew that
his house was the right place for him.
Abraham was occupied
with the entertainment of his distinguished guests, and Sarah was endeavoring
to convince their wives, the matrons, that Isaac was her child in very truth,
and not a spurious child. No one concerned himself about the beggar at the door,
who thereupon accused Abraham before God.[226]
Now, there was a day
when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came
also among them.[227] And the Lord said unto Satan, "From whence comest
thou?" and Satan answered the Lord, and said, "From going to and fro
on the earth, and from walking up and down in it." And the Lord said unto
Satan, "What hast thou to say concerning all the children of the
earth?" and Satan answered the Lord, and said: "I have seen all the
children of the earth serving Thee and remembering Thee, when they require
aught from Thee. And when Thou givest them what they require from Thee, then
they forsake Thee, and they remember Thee no more. Hast Thou seen Abraham, the
son of Terah, who at first had no children, and he served Thee and erected
altars to Thee wherever he came, and he brought offerings upon them, and he
proclaimed Thy name continually to all the children of the earth? And now his
son Isaac is born to him, he has forsaken Thee. He made a great feast for all
the inhabitants of the land, and the Lord he has forgotten. For amidst all that
he has done, he brought Thee no offering, neither burnt offering nor peace
offering, neither one lamb nor goat of all that he had killed in the day that
his son was weaned. Even from the time of his son's birth till now, being
thirty-seven years, he built no altar before Thee, nor brought up any offering
to Thee, for he saw that Thou didst give what he requested before Thee, and he
therefore forsook Thee." And the Lord said to Satan: "Hast thou
considered My servant Abraham? For there is none like him in the earth, a
perfect and an upright man before Me for a burnt offering, and that feareth God
and escheweth evil. As I live, were I to say unto him, Bring up Isaac thy son
before Me, he would not withhold him from Me, much less if I told him to bring
up a burnt offering before Me from his flocks or herds." And Satan
answered the Lord, and said, "Speak now unto Abraham as Thou hast said,
and Thou wilt see whether he will not transgress and cast aside Thy words this
day."[228]
God wished to try
Isaac also. Ishmael once boasted to Isaac, saying, "I was thirteen years
old when the Lord spoke to my father to circumcise us, and I did not transgress
His word, which He commanded my father." And Isaac answered Ishmael,
saying, "What dost thou boast to me about this, about a little bit of thy
flesh which thou didst take from thy body, concerning which the Lord commanded
thee? As the Lord liveth, the God of my father Abraham, if the Lord should say
unto my father, Take now thy son Isaac and bring him up as an offering before
Me, I would not refrain, but I would joyfully accede to it."
THE JOURNEY TO MORIAH
And the Lord thought
to try Abraham and Isaac in this matter.[229] And He said to Abraham,
"Take now thy son."
Abraham: "I
have two sons, and I do not know which of them Thou commandest me to
take."
God: "Thine
only son."
Abraham: "The
one is the only son of his mother, and the other is the only son of his
mother."
God: "Whom thou
lovest."
Abraham: "I
love this one and I love that one."
God: "Even
Isaac."[230]
Abraham: "And
where shall I go?"
God: "To the
land I will show thee, and offer Isaac there for a burnt offering."
Abraham: "Am I
fit to perform the sacrifice, am I a priest? Ought not rather the high priest
Shem to do it?"
God: "When thou
wilt arrive at that place, I will consecrate thee and make thee a
priest."[231]
And Abraham said
within himself, "How shall I separate my son Isaac from Sarah his
mother?" And he came into the tent, and he sate before Sarah his wife, and
he spake these words to her: "My son Isaac is grown up, and he has not yet
studied the service of God. Now, to-morrow I will go and bring him to Shem and
Eber his son, and there he will learn the ways of the Lord, for they will teach
him to know the Lord, and to know how to pray unto the Lord that He may answer
him, and to know the way of serving the Lord his God." And Sarah said,
"Thou hast spoken well. Go, my lord, and do unto him as thou hast said,
but remove him not far from me, neither let him remain there too long, for my
soul is bound within his soul." And Abraham said unto Sarah, "My
daughter, let us pray to the Lord our God that He may do good with us."
And Sarah took her son Isaac, and he abode with her all that night, and she
kissed and embraced him, and she laid injunctions upon him till morning, and
she said to Abraham: "O my lord, I pray thee, take heed of thy son, and
place thine eyes over him, for I have no other son nor daughter but him. O
neglect him not. If he be hungry, give him bread, and if he be thirsty, give
him water to drink; do not let him go on foot, neither let him sit in the sun,
neither let him go by himself on the road, neither turn him from whatever he
may desire, but do unto him as he may say to thee."
After spending the
whole night in weeping on account of Isaac, she got up in the morning and
selected a very fine and beautiful garment from those that Abimelech had given
to her. And she dressed Isaac therewith, and she put a turban upon his head,
and she fastened a precious stone in the top of the turban, and she gave them
provisions for the road. And Sarah went out with them, and she accompanied them
upon the road to see them off, and they said to her, "Return to the tent."
And when Sarah heard the words of her son Isaac, she wept bitterly, and Abraham
wept with her, and their son wept with them, a great weeping, also those of
their servants who went with them wept greatly. And Sarah caught hold of Isaac,
and she held him in her arms, and she embraced him, and continued to weep with
him, and Sarah said, "Who knoweth if I shall ever see thee again after
this day?"
Abraham departed
with Isaac amid great weeping, while Sarah and the servants returned to the
tent.[232] He took two of his young men with him, Ishmael and Eliezer, and
while they were walking in the road, the young men spoke these words to each
other. Said Ishmael to Eliezer: "Now my father Abraham is going with Isaac
to bring him up for a burnt offering to the Lord, and when he returneth, he
will give unto me all that he possesses, to inherit after him, for I am his
first-born." Eliezer answered: "Surely, Abraham did cast thee off
with thy mother, and swear that thou shouldst not inherit anything of all he
possesses. And to whom will he give all that he has, all his precious things,
but unto his servant, who has been faithful in his house, to me, who have
served him night and day, and have done all that he desired me?" The holy
spirit answered, "Neither this one nor that one will inherit
Abraham."[233]
And while Abraham
and Isaac were proceeding along the road, Satan came and appeared to Abraham in
the figure of a very aged man, humble and of contrite spirit, and said to him:
"Art thou silly or foolish, that thou goest to do this thing to thine only
son? God gave thee a son in thy latter days, in thine old age, and wilt thou go
and slaughter him, who did not commit any violence, and wilt thou cause the
soul of thine only son to perish from the earth? Dost thou not know and
understand that this thing cannot be from the Lord? For the Lord would not do
unto man such evil, to command him, Go and slaughter thy son." Abraham,
hearing these words, knew that it was Satan, who endeavored to turn him astray
from the way of the Lord, and he rebuked him that he went away. And Satan
returned and came to Isaac, and he appeared unto him in the figure of a young
man, comely and well-favored, saying unto him: "Dost thou not know that
thy silly old father bringeth thee to the slaughter this day for naught? Now,
my son, do not listen to him, for he is a silly old man, and let not thy
precious soul and beautiful figure be lost from the earth." And Isaac told
these words to his father, but Abraham said to him, "Take heed of him, and
do not listen to his words, for he is Satan endeavoring to lead us astray from
the commands of our God." And Abraham rebuked Satan again, and Satan went
from them, and, seeing he could not prevail over them, he transformed himself
into a large brook of water in the road, and when Abraham, Isaac, and the two
young men reached that place, they saw a brook large and powerful as the mighty
waters. And they entered the brook, trying to pass it, but the further they
went, the deeper the brook, so that the water reached up to their necks, and
they were all terrified on account of the water. But Abraham recognized the
place, and he knew that there had been no water there before, and he said to
his son: "I know this place, on which there was no brook nor water. Now,
surely, it is Satan who doth all this to us, to draw us aside this day from the
commands of God." And Abraham rebuked Satan, saying unto him: "The
Lord rebuke thee, O Satan. Begone from us, for we go by the command of
God." And Satan was terri fied at the voice of Abraham, and he went away
from them, and the place became dry land again as it was at first. And Abraham
went with Isaac toward the place that God had told him.[234]
Satan then appeared
unto Sarah in the figure of an old man, and said unto her, "Where did
thine husband go?" She said, "To his work." "And where did
thy son Isaac go?" he inquired further, and she answered, "He went
with his father to a place of study of the Torah." Satan said: "O
thou poor old woman, thy teeth will be set on edge on account of thy son, as
thou knowest not that Abraham took his son with him on the road to sacrifice
him." In this hour Sarah's loins trembled, and all her limbs shook. She
was no more of this world. Nevertheless she aroused herself, and said,
"All that God hath told Abraham, may he do it unto life and unto
peace."[235]
On the third day of
his journey, Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place at a distance, which
God had told him. He noticed upon the mountain a pillar of fire reaching from
the earth to heaven, and a heavy cloud in which the glory of God was seen.
Abraham said to Isaac, "My son, dost thou see on that mountain which we
perceive at a distance that which I see upon it?" And Isaac answered, and
said unto his father, "I see, and, lo, a pillar of fire and a cloud, and
the glory of the Lord is seen upon the cloud." Abraham knew then that
Isaac was accepted before the Lord for an offering. He asked Ishmael and
Eliezer, "Do you also see that which we see upon the mountain?" They
answered, "We see nothing more than like the other mountains," and
Abraham knew that they were not accepted before the Lord to go with them.[236]
Abraham said to them, "Abide ye here with the ass, you are like the
ass--as little as it sees, so little do you see.[237] I and Isaac my son go to
yonder mount, and worship there before the Lord, and this eve we will return to
you."[238] An unconscious prophecy had come to Abraham, for he prophesied
that he and Isaac would both return from the mountain.[239] Eliezer and Ishmael
remained in that place, as Abraham had commanded, while he and Isaac went
further.
THE 'AKEDAH
And while they were
walking along, Isaac spake unto his father, "Behold, the fire and the
wood, but where then is the lamb for a burnt offering before the Lord?"
And Abraham answered Isaac, saying, "The Lord hath chosen thee, my son,
for a perfect burnt offering, instead of the lamb." And Isaac said unto
his father, "I will do all that the Lord hath spoken to thee with joy and
cheerfulness of heart." And Abraham again said unto Isaac his son,
"Is there in thy heart any thought or counsel concerning this which is not
proper? Tell me, my son, I pray thee! O my son, conceal it not from me."
And Isaac answered, "As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is
nothing in my heart to cause me to deviate either to the right or the left from
the word that He hath spoken unto thee. Neither limb nor muscle hath moved or
stirred on account of this, nor is there in my heart any thought or evil
counsel concerning this. But I am joyful and cheerful of heart in this matter,
and I say, Blessed is the Lord who has this day chosen me to be a burnt
offering before Him."
Abraham greatly
rejoiced at the words of Isaac, and they went on and came together to that
place that the Lord had spoken of.[240] And Abraham approached to build the
altar in that place, and Abraham did build, while Isaac handed him stones and
mortar, until they finished erecting the altar. And Abraham took the wood and
arranged it upon the altar, and he bound Isaac, to place him upon the wood
which was upon the altar, to slay him for a burnt offering before the
Lord.[241] Isaac spake hereupon: "Father, make haste, bare thine arm, and
bind my hands and feet securely, for I am a young man, but thirty-seven years of
age, and thou art an old man. When I behold the slaughtering knife in thy hand,
I may perchance begin to tremble at the sight and push against thee, for the
desire unto life is bold. Also I may do myself an injury and make myself unfit
to be sacrificed. I adjure thee, therefore, my father, make haste, execute the
will of thy Creator, delay not. Turn up thy garment, gird thy loins, and after
that thou hast slaughtered me, burn me unto fine ashes. Then gather the ashes,
and bring them to Sarah, my mother, and place them in a casket in her chamber.
At all hours, whenever she enters her chamber, she will remember her son Isaac
and weep for him."
And again Isaac
spoke: "As soon as thou hast slaughtered me, and hast separated thyself
from me, and returnest to Sarah my mother, and she asketh thee, Where is my son
Isaac? what wilt thou answer her, and what will you two do in your old
age?" Abraham answered, and said, "We know we can survive thee by a
few days only. He who was our Comfort before thou wast born, will comfort us
now and henceforth."
After he had laid
the wood in order, and bound Isaac on the altar, upon the wood, Abraham braced
his arms, rolled up his garments, and leaned his knees upon Isaac with all his
strength. And God, sitting upon His throne, high and exalted, saw how the
hearts of the two were the same, and tears were rolling down from the eyes of
Abraham upon Isaac, and from Isaac down upon the wood, so that it was submerged
in tears. When Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his
son, God spoke to the angels: "Do you see how Abraham my friend proclaims
the unity of My Name in the world? Had I hearkened unto you at the time of the
creation of the world, when ye spake, What is man, that Thou art mindful of
him? And the son of man, that Thou visitest him? who would there have been to
make known the unity of My Name in this world?" The angels then broke into
loud weeping, and they exclaimed: "The highways lie waste, the wayfaring
man ceaseth, he hath broken the covenant. Where is the reward of Abraham, he
who took the wayfarers into his house, gave them food and drink, and went with
them to bring them on the way? The covenant is broken, whereof Thou didst speak
to him, saying, 'For in Isaac shall thy seed be called,' and saying, 'My
covenant will I establish with Isaac,' for the slaughtering knife is set upon
his throat."
The tears of the
angels fell upon the knife, so that it could not cut Isaac's throat, but from
terror his soul escaped from him. Then God spoke to the archangel Michael, and
said: "Why standest thou here? Let him not be slaughtered." Without
delay, Michael, anguish in his voice, cried out: "Abraham! Abraham! Lay
not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him!" Abraham
made answer, and he said: "God did command me to slaughter Isaac, and thou
dost command me not to slaughter him! The words of the Teacher and the words of
the disciple- unto whose words doth one hearken?"[242] Then Abraham heard
it said: "By Myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, 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."
At once Abraham left
off from Isaac, who returned to life, revived by the heavenly voice admonishing
Abraham not to slaughter his son. Abraham loosed his bonds, and Isaac stood
upon his feet, and spoke the benediction, "Blessed art Thou, O Lord, who
quickenest the dead."[243]
Then spake Abraham
to God, "Shall I go hence without having offered up a sacrifice?"
Whereunto God replied, and said, "Lift up thine eyes, and behold the
sacrifice behind thee."[244] And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and, behold,
behind him a ram caught in the thicket, which God had created in the twilight
of Sabbath eve in the week of creation, and prepared since then as a burnt
offering instead of Isaac. And the ram had been running toward Abraham, when
Satan caught hold of him and entangled his horns in the thicket, that he might
not advance to Abraham. And Abraham, seeing this, fetched him from the thicket,
and brought him upon the altar as an offering in the place of his son Isaac.
And Abraham sprinkled the blood of the ram upon the altar, and he exclaimed,
and said, "This is instead of my son, and may this be considered as the
blood of my son before the Lord." And whatsoever Abraham did by the altar,
he exclaimed, and said, "This is instead of my son, and may it be
considered before the Lord in place of my son." And God accepted the
sacrifice of the ram, and it was accounted as though it had been Isaac.[245]
As the creation of
this ram had been extraordinary, so also was the use to which all parts of his
carcass were put. Not one thing went to waste. The ashes of the parts burnt
upon the altar formed the foundation of the inner altar, whereon the expiatory
sacrifice was brought once a year, on the Day of Atonement, the day on which
the offering of Isaac took place. Of the sinews of the ram, David made ten
strings for his harp upon which he played. The skin served Elijah for his
girdle, and of his two horns, the one was blown at the end of the revelation on
Mount Sinai, and the other will be used to proclaim the end of the Exile, when
the "great horn shall be blown, and they shall come which were ready to
perish in the land of Assyria, and they that were outcasts in the land of
Egypt, and they shall worship the Lord in the holy mountain at
Jerusalem."[246]
When God commanded
the father to desist from sacrificing Isaac, Abraham said: "One man tempts
another, because he knoweth not what is in the heart of his neighbor. But Thou
surely didst know that I was ready to sacrifice my son!"
God: "It was
manifest to Me, and I foreknew it, that thou wouldst withhold not even thy soul
from Me."
Abraham: "And
why, then, didst Thou afflict me thus?"
God: "It was My
wish that the world should become acquainted with thee, and should know that it
is not without good reason that I have chosen thee from all the nations. Now it
hath been witnessed unto men that thou fearest God."[247]
Hereupon God opened
the heavens, and Abraham heard the words, "By Myself I swear!"
Abraham: "Thou
swearest, and also I swear, I will not leave this altar until I have said what
I have to say."
God: "Speak
whatsoever thou hast to speak!"
Abraham: "Didst
Thou not promise me Thou wouldst let one come forth out of mine own bowels,
whose seed should fill the whole world?"
God:
"Yes."
Abraham: "Whom
didst Thou mean?"
God: "Isaac."
Abraham: "Didst
Thou not promise me to make my seed as numerous as the sand of the
sea-shore?"
God:
"Yes."
Abraham:
"Through which one of my children?"
God: "Through
Isaac."
Abraham: "I
might have reproached Thee, and said, O Lord of the world, yesterday Thou didst
tell me, In Isaac shall Thy seed be called, and now Thou sayest, Take thy son,
thine only son, even Isaac, and offer him for a burnt offering. But I refrained
myself, and I said nothing. Thus mayest Thou, when the children of Isaac commit
trespasses and because of them fall upon evil times, be mindful of the offering
of their father Isaac, and forgive their sins and deliver them from their
suffering."
God: "Thou hast
said what thou hadst to say, and I will now say what I have to say. Thy
children will sin before me in time to come, and I will sit in judgment upon
them on the New Year's Day. If they desire that I should grant them pardon,
they shall blow the ram's horn on that day, and I, mindful of the ram that was
substituted for Isaac as a sacrifice, will forgive them for their
sins."[248]
Furthermore, the
Lord revealed unto Abraham that the Temple, to be erected on the spot of
Isaac's offering, would be destroyed,[249] and as the ram substituted for Isaac
extricated himself from one tree but to be caught in another, so his children
would pass from kingdom to kingdom--delivered from Babylonia they would be
subjugated by Media, rescued from Media they would be enslaved by Greece,
escaped from Greece they would serve Rome--yet in the end they would be
redeemed in a final redemption, at the sound of the ram's horn, when "the
Lord God shall blow the trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the
south."[250]
The place on which
Abraham had erected the altar was the same whereon Adam had brought the first
sacrifice, and Cain and Abel had offered their gifts to God--the same whereon
Noah raised an altar to God after he left the ark;[251] and Abraham, who knew
that it was the place appointed for the Temple, called it Yireh, for it would
be the abiding place of the fear and the service of God.[252] But as Shem had
given it the name Shalem, Place of Peace, and God would not give offence to
either Abraham or Shem, He united the two names, and called the city by the
name Jerusalem.[253]
After the sacrifice
on Mount Moriah, Abraham returned to Beer-sheba, the scene of so many of his
joys.[254] Isaac was carried to Paradise by angels, and there he sojourned for
three years. Thus Abraham returned home alone, and when Sarah beheld him, she
exclaimed, "Satan spoke truth when he said that Isaac was
sacrificed," and so grieved was her soul that it fled from her body.[255]
THE DEATH AND BURIAL OF SARAH
While Abraham was
engaged in the sacrifice, Satan went to Sarah, and appeared to her in the
figure of an old man, very humble and meek, and said to her: "Dost thou
not know all that Abraham has done unto thine only son this day? He took Isaac,
and built an altar, slaughtered him, and brought him up as a sacrifice. Isaac
cried and wept before his father, but he looked not at him, neither did he have
compassion upon him." After saying these words to Sarah, Satan went away
from her, and she thought him to be an old man from amongst the sons of men who
had been with her son. Sarah lifted up her voice, and cried bitterly, saying:
"O my son, Isaac, my son, O that I had this day died instead of thee I It
grieves me for thee! After that I have reared thee and have brought thee up, my
joy is turned into mourning over thee. In my longing for a child, I cried and
prayed, till I bore thee at ninety. Now hast thou served this day for the knife
and the fire. But I console myself, it being the word of God, and thou didst
perform the command of thy God, for who can transgress the word of our God, in
whose hands is the soul of every living creature? Thou art just, O Lord our
God, for all Thy works are good and righteous, for I also rejoice with the word
which Thou didst command, and while mine eye weepeth bitterly, my heart
rejoiceth." And Sarah laid her head upon the bosom of one of her
handmaids, and she became as still as a stone.
She rose up
afterward and went about making inquiries concerning her son, till she came to
Hebron, and no one could tell her what had happened to her son. Her servants
went to seek him in the house of Shem and Eber, and they could not find him,
and they sought throughout the land, and he was not there. And, behold, Satan
came to Sarah in the shape of an old man, and said unto her, "I spoke
falsely unto thee, for Abraham did not kill his son, and he is not dead,"
and when she heard the word, her joy was so exceedingly violent that her soul
went out through joy.
When Abraham with Isaac
returned to Beer-sheba, they sought for Sarah and could not find her, and when
they made inquiries concerning her, they were told that she had gone as far as
Hebron to seek them. Abraham and Isaac went to her to Hebron, and when they
found that she was dead, they cried bitterly over her, and Isaac said: "O
my mother, my mother, how hast thou left me, and whither hast thou gone? O
whither hast thou gone, and how hast thou left me?" And Abraham and all
his servants wept and mourned over her a great and heavy mourning," even
that Abraham did not pray, but spent his time in mourning and weeping over
Sarah.[257] And, indeed, he had great reason to mourn his loss, for even in her
old age Sarah had retained the beauty of her youth and the innocence of her
childhood.[258]
The death of Sarah
was a loss not only for Abraham and his family, but for the whole country. So
long as she was alive, all went well in the land. After her death confusion
ensued. The weeping, lamenting, and wailing over her going hence was universal,
and Abraham, instead of receiving consolation, had to offer consolation to
others. He spoke to the mourning people, and said: "My children, take not
the going hence of Sarah too much to heart. There is one event unto all, to the
pious and the impious alike. I pray you now, give me a burying-place with you,
not as a gift, but for money."[259]
In these last few
words Abraham's unassuming modesty was expressed. God had promised him the
whole land, yet when he came to bury his dead, he had to pay for the grave, and
it did not enter his heart to cast aspersions upon the ways of God. In all
humility he spake to the people of Hebron, saying, "I am a stranger and a
sojourner with you." Therefore spake God to him, and said, "Thou
didst bear thyself modestly. As thou livest, I will appoint thee lord and
prince over them."[260]
To the people
themselves he appeared an angel, and they answered his words, saying:
"Thou art a prince of God among us. In the choice of our sepulchres bury
thy dead, among the rich if thou wilt, or among the poor if thou
wilt."[261]
Abraham first of all
gave thanks to God for the friendly feeling shown to him by the children of
Heth, and then he continued his negotiations for the Cave of Machpelah.[262] He
had long known the peculiar value of this spot. Adam had chosen it as a
burial-place for himself. He had feared his body might be used for idolatrous
purposes after his death; he therefore designated the Cave of Machpelah as the
place of his burial, and in the depths his corpse was laid, so that none might
find it.[263] When he interred Eve there, he wanted to dig deeper, because he
scented the sweet fragrance of Paradise, near the entrance to which it lay, but
a heavenly voice called to him, Enough! Adam himself was buried there by Seth,
and until the time of Abraham the place was guarded by angels, who kept a fire
burning near it perpetually, so that none dared approach it and bury his dead
therein.[264] Now, it happened on the day when Abraham received the angels in
his house, and he wanted to slaughter an ox for their entertainment, that the
ox ran away, and in his pursuit of him Abraham entered the Cave of Machpelah.
There he saw Adam and Eve stretched out upon couches, candles burning at the
head of their resting-places, while a sweet scent pervaded the cave.
Therefore Abraham
wished to acquire the Cave of Machpelah from the children of Heth, the
inhabitants of the city of Jebus. They said to him. "We know that in time
to come God will give these lands unto thy seed, and now do thou swear a
covenant with us that Israel shall not wrest the city of Jebus from its
inhabitants without their consent." Abraham agreed to the condition, and
he acquired the field from Ephron, in whose possession it lay.[265]
This happened the
very day on which Ephron had been made the chief of the children of Heth, and
he had been raised to the position so that Abraham might not have to have
dealings with a man of low rank. It was of advantage to Abraham, too, for
Ephron at first refused to sell his field, and only the threat of the children
of Heth to depose him from his office, unless he fulfilled the desire of
Abraham, could induce him to change his disposition.[266]
Dissembling
deceitfully, Ephron then offered to give Abraham the field without compensation,
but when Abraham insisted upon paying for it, Ephron said: "My lord,
hearken unto me. A piece of land worth four hundred shekels of silver, what is
that betwixt me and thee?" showing only too well that the money was of the
greatest consequence to him. Abraham understood his words, and when he came to
pay for the field, he weighed out the sum agreed upon between them in the best
of current coin.[267] A deed, signed by four witnesses, was drawn up, and the
field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, the field, and the cave which was
therein, were made sure unto Abraham and his descendants for all times.
The burial of Sarah
then took place, amid great magnificence and the sympathy of all. Shem and his
son Eber, Abimelech king of the Philistines, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, as well
as all the great of the land, followed her bier. A seven days' mourning was
kept for her, and all the inhabitants of the land came to condole with Abraham
and Isaac.[268]
When Abraham entered
the cave to place the body of Sarah within, Adam and Eve refused to remain
there, "because," they said, "as it is, we are ashamed in the
presence of God on account of the sin we committed, and now we shall be even
more ashamed on account of your good deeds." Abraham soothed Adam. He
promised to pray to God for him, that the need for shame be removed from him.
Adam resumed his place, and Abraham entombed Sarah, and at the same time he
carried Eve, resisting, back to her place.[269]
One year after the
death of Sarah, Abimelech king of the Philistines died, too, at the age of one
hundred and ninety-three years. His successor upon the throne was his
twelve-year old son Benmelek, who took the name of his father after his
accession. Abraham did not fail to pay a visit of condolence at the court of
Abimelech.
Lot also died about
this time, at the age of one hundred and forty-two. His sons, Moab and Ammon,
both married Canaanitish wives. Moab begot a son, and Ammon had six sons, and
the descendants of both were numerous exceedingly.
Abraham suffered a
severe loss at the same time in the death of his brother Nahor, whose days
ended at Haran, when he had reached the age of one hundred and seventy two
years.[270]
ELIEZER'S MISSION
The death of Sarah
dealt Abraham a blow from which he did not recover. So long as she was alive,
he felt himself young and vigorous, but after she had passed away, old age
suddenly overtook him.[271] It was he himself who made the plea that age be
betrayed by suitable signs and tokens. Before the time of Abraham an old man
was not distinguishable externally from a young man, and as Isaac was the image
of his father, it happened frequently that father and son were mistaken for
each other, and a request meant for the one was preferred to the other. Abraham
prayed therefore that old age might have marks to distinguish it from youth,
and God granted his petition, and since the time of Abraham the appearance of
men changes in old age. This is one of the seven great wonders that have
occurred in the course of history.[272]
The blessing of God
did not forsake Abraham in old age, either. That it might not be said it had
been granted to him only for the sake of Sarah, God prospered him after her
death, too. Hagar bore him a daughter, and Ishmael repented of his evil ways
and subordinated himself to Isaac. And as Abraham enjoyed undisturbed happiness
in his family, so also outside, in the world. The kings of the east and the
west eagerly besieged the door of his house in order to derive benefit from his
wisdom. From his neck a precious stone was suspended, which possessed the power
of healing the sick who looked upon it. On the death of Abraham, God attached
it to the wheel of the sun. The greatest blessing enjoyed by him, and by none
beside except his son Isaac and Jacob the son of Isaac, was that the evil
inclination had no power over him, so that in this life he had a foretaste of
the future world.[273]
But all these Divine
blessings showered upon Abraham were not undeserved. He was clean of hand, and
pure of heart, one that did not lift up his soul unto vanity.[274]
He fulfilled all the
commands that were revealed later, even the Rabbinical injunctions, as, for
instance, the one relating to the limits of a Sabbath day's journey, wherefor
his reward was that God disclosed to him the new teachings which He expounded
daily in the heavenly academy.[275]
But one thing lacked
to complete the happiness of Abraham, the marriage of Isaac. He therefore
called his old servant Eliezer unto himself. Eliezer resembled his master not
only externally, in his appearance, but also spiritually. Like Abraham he
possessed full power over the evil inclination,[276] and like the master, the
servant was an adept in the law.[277] Abraham spake the following words to
Eliezer: "I am stricken in age, and I know not the day of my death.
Therefore prepare thyself, and go unto my country, and to my kindred, and fetch
hither a wife for my son."[278] Thus he spake by reason of the resolution
he had taken immediately after the sacrifice of Isaac on Moriah, for he had there
said within himself, that if the sacrifice had been executed, Isaac would have
gone hence childless. He was even ready to choose a wife for his son from among
the daughters of his three friends, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, because he knew
them to be pious, and he did not attach much importance to aristocratic stock.
Then spake God to him, and said: "Concern thyself not about a wife for
Isaac.[279] One has already been provided for him," and it was made known
to Abraham that Milcah, the wife of his brother Nahor, childless until the
birth of Isaac, had then been remembered by God and made fruitful. She bore
Bethuel, and he in turn, at the time of Isaac's sacrifice, begot the daughter
destined to be the wife of Isaac.[280]
Mindful of the
proverb, "Even if the wheat of thine own place be darnel, use it for
seed," Abraham determined to take a wife for Isaac from his own family. He
argued that as any wife he chose would have to become a proselyte, it would be
best to use his own stock, which had the first claim upon him.[281]
Eliezer now said to
his master: "Peradventure no woman will be willing to follow me unto this
land. May I then marry my own daughter to Isaac?" "No," replied
Abraham, "thou art of the accursed race, and my son is of the blessed race,
and curse and blessing cannot be united.[282] But beware thou that thou bring
not my son again unto the land from whence I came, for if thou broughtest him
thither again, it were as though thou tookest him to hell. God who sets the
heavens in motion, He will set this matter right, too,[283] and He that took me
from my father's house, and that spake unto me, and that swore unto me in
Haran, and at the covenant of the pieces, that He would give this land unto my
seed, He shall send His excellent angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife
for my son from thence." Eliezer then swore to his master concerning the
matter, and Abraham made him take the oath by the sign of the covenant.[284]
THE WOOING OF REBEKAH
Attended by ten
men,[285] mounted upon ten camels laden with jewels and trinkets, Eliezer
betook himself to Haran under the convoy of two angels, the one appointed to
keep guard over Eliezer, the other over Rebekah.[286]
The journey to Haran
took but a few hours, at evening of the same day he reached there, because the
earth hastened to meet him in a wonderful way.[287] He made a halt at the well
of water, and he prayed to God to permit him to distinguish the wife appointed
for Isaac among the damsels that came to draw water, by this token, that she
alone, and not the others, would give him drink.[288] Strictly speaking, this
wish of his was unseemly, for suppose a bondwoman had given him water to
drink![289] But God granted his request. All the damsels said they could not
give him of their water, because they had to take it home. Then appeared
Rebekah, coming to the well contrary to her wont, for she was the daughter of a
king, Bethuel her father being king of Haran. When Eliezer addressed his
request for water to drink to this young innocent child, not only was she ready
to do his bidding, but she rebuked
the other maidens on account of their
discourtesy to a stranger.[290] Eliezer noticed, too, how the water rose up to
her of its own accord from the bottom of the well, so that she needed not to
exert herself to draw it. Having scrutinized her carefully, he felt certain
that she was the wife chosen for Isaac. He gave her a nose ring, wherein was
set a precious stone, half a shekel in weight, foreshadowing the half-shekel
which her descendants would once bring to the sanctuary year by year. He gave
her also two bracelets for her hands, of ten shekels weight in gold, in token
of the two tables of stone and the Ten Commandments upon them.[291]
When Rebekah,
bearing the jewels, came to her mother and to her brother Laban, this one
hastened to Eliezer in order to slay him and take possession of his goods.
Laban soon learnt that he would not be able to do much harm to a giant like
Eliezer. He met him at the moment when Eliezer seized two camels and bore them
across the stream.[292] Besides, on account of Eliezer's close resemblance to
Abraham, Laban thought he saw Abraham before him, and he said: "Come in,
thou blessed of the Lord! It is not becoming that thou shouldst stand without,
I have cleansed my house of idols."[293]
But when Eliezer
arrived at the house of Bethuel, they tried to kill him with cunning. They set
poisoned food before him. Luckily, he refused to eat before he had discharged
himself of his errand. While he was telling his story, it was ordained by God
that the dish intended for him should come to stand in front of Bethuel, who
ate of it and died.[294]
Eliezer showed the
document he had in which Abraham deeded all his possessions to Isaac, and he
made it known to the kindred of Abraham, how deeply attached to them his master
was, in spite of the long years of separation.[295] Yet he let them know at the
same time that Abraham was not dependent wholly upon them. He might seek a wife
for his son among the daughters of Ishmael or Lot. At first the kindred of Abraham
consented to let Rebekah go with Eliezer, but as Bethuel had died in the
meantime, they did not want to give Rebekah in marriage without consulting her.
Besides, they deemed it proper that she should remain at home at least during
the week of mourning for her father.[296] But Eliezer, seeing the angel wait
for him, would brook no delay, and he said, "The man who came with me and
prospered my way, waits for me without," and as Rebekah professed herself
ready to go at once with Eliezer, her mother and brother granted her wish and
dismissed her with their blessings.[297] But their blessings did not come from
the bottom of their hearts. Indeed, as a rule, the blessing of the impious is a
curse, wherefore Rebekah remained barren for years.
Eliezer's return to
Canaan was as wonderful as his going to Haran had been. A seventeen days'
journey he accomplished in three hours. He left Haran at noon, and he arrived
at Hebron[299] at three o'clock in the afternoon, the time for the Minhah
Prayer, which had been introduced by Isaac. He was in the posture of praying
when Rebekah first laid eyes upon him, wherefore she asked Eliezer what man
this was. She saw he was not an ordinary individual. She noticed the unusual
beauty of Isaac, and also that an angel accompanied him. Thus her question was
not dictated by mere curiosity.[300] At this moment she learnt through the holy
spirit, that she was destined to be the mother of the godless Esau. Terror
seized her at the knowledge, and, trembling, she fell from the camel and
inflicted an injury upon herself.[301]
After Isaac had
heard the wonderful adventures of Eliezer, he took Rebekah to the tent of his
mother Sarah, and she showed herself worthy to be her successor. The cloud
appeared again that had been visible over the tent during the life of Sarah,
and had vanished at her death; the light shone again in the tent of Rebekah
that Sarah had kindled at the coming in of the Sabbath, and that had burnt
miraculously throughout the week; the blessing returned with Rebekah that had
hovered over the dough kneaded by Sarah; and the gates of the tent were opened
for the needy, wide and spacious, as they had been during the lifetime of
Sarah.[302]
For three years
Isaac had mourned for his mother, and he could find no consolation in the
academy of Shem and Eber, his abiding-place during that period. But Rebekah
comforted him after his mother's death,[303] for she was the counterpart of
Sarah in person and in spirit.[304]
As a reward for
having executed to his full satisfaction the mission with which he had charged
him, Abraham set his bondman free.[305] The curse resting upon Eliezer, as upon
all the descendants of Canaan, was transformed into a blessing, because he
ministered unto Abraham loyally.[306] Greatest reward of all, God found him
worthy of entering Paradise alive, a distinction that fell to the lot of very
few.[307]
THE LAST YEARS OF
ABRAHAM
Rebekah first saw
Isaac as he was coming from the way of Beer-lahai-roi, the dwelling-place of
Hagar, whither he had gone after the death of his mother, for the purpose of
reuniting his father with Hagar,[308] or, as she is also called, Keturah.[309]
Hagar bore him six
sons, who, however, did scant honor to their father, for they all were
idolaters.[310] Abraham, therefore, during his own lifetime, sent them away
from the presence of Isaac, that they might not be singed by Isaac's flame, and
gave them the instruction to journey eastward as far as possible.[311] There he
built a city for them, surrounded by an iron wall, so high that the sun could
not shine into the city. But Abraham provided them with huge gems and pearls,
their lustre more brilliant than the light of the sun, which will be used in
the Messianic time when "the moon shall be confounded and the sun
ashamed."[312] Also Abraham taught them the black art, wherewith they held
sway over demons and spirits. It is from this city in the east that Laban,
Balaam, and Balaam's father Beor derived their sorceries.[313]
Epher, one of the
grandsons of Abraham and Keturah, invaded Lybia with an armed force, and took
possession of the country. From this Epher the whole land of Africa has its
name.[314] Aram is also a country made habitable by a kinsman of Abraham. In
his old age Terah contracted a new marriage with Pelilah, and from this union
sprang a son Zoba, who was the father in turn of three sons. The oldest of
these, Aram, was exceedingly rich and powerful, and the old home in Haran
sufficed not for him and his kinsmen, the sons of Nahor, the brother of
Abraham. Aram and his brethren and all that belonged to him therefore departed
from Haran, and they settled in a vale, and they built themselves a city there
which they called Aram-Zoba, to perpetuate the name of the father and his
first-born son. Another Aram, Aram-naharaim, on the Euphrates, was built by
Aram son of Kemuel, a nephew of Abraham. Its real name was Petor, after the son
of Aram, but it is better known as Aram-naharaim. The descendants of Kesed,
another nephew of Abraham, a son of his brother Nahor, established themselves opposite
to Shinar, where they founded the city of Kesed, the city whence the Chaldees
are called Kasdim.[315]
Though Abraham knew
full well that Isaac deserved his paternal blessing beyond all his sons, yet he
withheld it from him, that no hostile feelings be aroused among his
descendants. He spake, and said: "I am but flesh and blood, here to-day,
to-morrow in the grave. What I was able to do for my children I have done.
Henceforth let come what God desires to do in His world," and it happened
that immediately after the death of Abraham God Himself appeared unto Isaac,
and gave him His blessing.[316]
A HERALD OF DEATH
When the day of the
death of Abraham drew near, the Lord said to Michael, "Arise and go to
Abraham and say to him, Thou shalt depart from life!" so that he might set
his house in order before he died. And Michael went and came to Abraham and
found him sitting before his oxen for ploughing. Abraham, seeing Michael, but
not knowing who he was, saluted him and said to him, "Sit down a little while,
and I will order a beast to be brought, and we will go to my house, that thou
mayest rest with me, for it is toward evening, and arise in the morning and go
whithersoever thou wilt." And Abraham called one of his servants, and said
to him: "Go and bring me a beast, that the stranger may sit upon it, for
he is wearied with his journey." But Michael said, "I abstain from
ever sitting upon any fourfooted beast, let us walk therefore, till we reach
the house."
On their way to the
house they passed a huge tree, and Abraham heard a voice from its branches,
singing, "Holy art thou, because thou hast kept the purpose for which thou
wast sent." Abraham hid the mystery in his heart, thinking that the
stranger did not hear it. Arrived at his house, he ordered the servants to
prepare a meal, and while they were busy with their work, he called his son
Isaac, and said to him, "Arise and put water in the vessel, that we may
wash the feet of the stranger." And he brought it as he was commanded, and
Abraham said, "I perceive that in this basin I shall never again wash the
feet of any man coming to us as a guest." Hearing this, Isaac began to
weep, and Abraham, seeing his son weep, also wept, and Michael, seeing them
weep, wept also, and the tears of Michael fell into the water, and became
precious stones.
Before sitting down
to the table, Michael arose, went out for a moment, as if to ease nature, and
ascended to heaven in the twinkling of an eye, and stood before the Lord, and
said to Him: "Lord and Master, let Thy power know that I am unable to
remind that righteous man of his death, for I have not seen upon the earth a
man like him, compassionate, hospitable, righteous, truthful, devout,
refraining from every evil deed." Then the Lord said to Michael, "Go
down to My friend Abraham, and whatever he may say to thee, that do thou also,
and whatever he may eat, eat thou also with him, and I will cast the thought of
the death of Abraham into the heart of Isaac, his son, in a dream, and Isaac
will relate the dream, and thou shalt interpret it, and he himself will know
his end." And Michael said, "Lord, all the heavenly spirits are
incorporeal, and neither eat nor drink, and this man has set before me a table
with an abundance of all good things earthly and corruptible. Now, Lord, what
shall I do?" The Lord answered him, "Go down to him and take no
thought for this, for when thou sittest down with him, I will send upon thee a
devouring spirit, and it will consume out of thy hands and through thy mouth
all that is on the table."
Then Michael went
into the house of Abraham, and they ate and drank and were merry. And when the
supper was ended, Abraham prayed after his custom, and Michael prayed with him,
and each lay down to sleep upon his couch in one room, while Isaac went to his
chamber, lest he be troublesome to the guest. About the seventh hour of the
night, Isaac awoke and came to the door of his father's chamber, crying out and
saying, "Open, father, that I may touch thee before they take thee away
from me." And Abraham wept together with his son, and when Michael saw
them weep, he wept likewise. And Sarah, hearing the weeping, called forth from
her bedchamber, saying: "My lord Abraham, why this weeping? Has the
stranger told thee of thy brother's son Lot, that he is dead? or has aught
befallen us?" Michael answered, and said to her, "Nay, my sister
Sarah, it is not as thou sayest, but thy son Isaac, methinks, beheld a dream,
and came to us weeping, and we, seeing him, were moved in our hearts and
wept." Sarah, hearing Michael speak, knew straightway that it was an angel
of the Lord, one of the three angels whom they had entertained in their house
once before, and therefore she made a sign to Abraham to come out toward the
door, to inform him of what she knew. Abraham said: "Thou hast perceived
well, for I, too, when I washed his feet, knew in my heart that they were the
feet that I had washed at the oak of Mamre, and that went to save Lot."
Abraham, returning to his chamber, made Isaac relate his dream, which Michael
interpreted to them, saying: "Thy son Isaac has spoken truth, for thou
shalt go and be taken up into the heavens, but thy body shall remain on earth,
until seven thousand ages are fulfilled, for then all flesh shall arise. Now,
therefore, Abraham, set thy house in order, for thou wast heard what is decreed
concerning thee." Abraham answered, "Now I know thou art an angel of
the Lord, and wast sent to take my soul, but I will not go with thee, but do
thou whatever thou art commanded." Michael returned to heaven and told God
of Abraham's refusal to obey his summons, and he was again commanded to go down
and admonish Abraham not to rebel against God, who had bestowed many blessings
upon him, and he reminded him that no one who has come from Adam and Eve can
escape death, and that God in His great kindness toward him did not permit the
sickle of death to meet him, but sent His chief captain, Michael, to him.
"Wherefore, then," he ended, "hast thou said to the chief
captain, I will not go with thee?" When Michael delivered these
exhortations to Abraham, he saw that it was futile to oppose the will of God,
and he consented to die, but wished to have one desire of his fulfilled while
still alive. He said to Michael: "I beseech thee, lord, if I must depart
from my body, I desire to be taken up in my body, that I may see the creatures
that the Lord has created in heaven and on earth." Michael went up into
heaven, and spake before the Lord concerning Abraham, and the Lord answered
Michael, "Go and take up Abraham in the body and show him all things, and
whatever he shall say to thee, do to him as to My friend."
ABRAHAM VIEWS EARTH AND HEAVEN
The archangel
Michael went down, and took Abraham upon a chariot of the cherubim, and lifted
him up into the air of heaven, and led him upon the cloud, together with sixty
angels, and Abraham ascended upon the chariot over all the earth, and saw all
things that are below on the earth, both good and bad. Looking down upon the
earth, he saw a man committing adultery with a wedded woman, and turning to
Michael he said, "Send fire from heaven to consume them." Straightway
there came down fire and consumed them, for God had commanded Michael to do
whatsoever Abraham should ask him to do. He looked again, and he saw thieves
digging through a house, and Abraham said, "Let wild beasts come out of
the desert, and tear them in pieces," and immediately wild beasts came out
of the desert and devoured them. Again he looked down, and he saw people
preparing to commit murder, and he said, "Let the earth open and swallow
them," and, as he spoke, the earth swallowed them alive. Then God spoke to
Michael: "Turn away Abraham to his own house and let him not go round the
whole earth, because he has no compassion on sinners, but I have compassion on
sinners, that they may turn and live and repent of their sins, and be
saved."
So Michael turned
the chariot, and brought Abraham to the place of judgment of all souls. Here he
saw two gates, the one broad and the other narrow, the narrow gate that of the
just, which leads to life, they that enter through it go into Paradise. The
broad gate is that of sinners, which leads to destruction and eternal
punishment. Then Abraham wept, saying, "Woe is me, what shall I do? for I
am a man big of body, and how shall I be able to enter by the narrow
gate?" Michael answered, and said to Abraham, "Fear not, nor grieve,
for thou shalt enter by it unhindered, and all they who are like thee."
Abraham, perceiving that a soul was adjudged to be set in the midst, asked
Michael the reason for it, and Michael answered, "Because the judge found
its sins and its righteousness equal, he neither committed it to judgment nor
to be saved." Abraham said to Michael, "Let us pray for this soul,
and see whether God will hear us," and when they rose up from their
prayer, Michael informed Abraham that the soul was saved by the prayer, and was
taken by an angel and carried up to Paradise. Abraham said to Michael,
"Let us yet call upon the Lord and supplicate His compassion and entreat
His mercy for the souls of the sinners whom I formerly, in my anger, cursed and
destroyed, whom the earth devoured, and the wild beasts tore in pieces, and the
fire consumed, through my words. Now I know that I have sinned before the Lord
our God."
After the joint
prayer of the archangel and Abraham, there came a voice from heaven, saying,
"Abraham, Abraham, I have hearkened to thy voice and thy prayer, and I
forgive thee thy sin, and those whom thou thinkest that I destroyed, I have
called up and brought them into life by My exceeding kindness, because for a
season I have requited them in judgment, and those whom I destroy living upon
earth, I will not requite in death."
When Michael brought
Abraham back to his house, they found Sarah dead. Not seeing what had become of
Abraham, she was consumed with grief and gave up her soul. Though Michael had
fulfilled Abraham's wish, and had shown him all the earth and the judgment and
recompense, he still refused to surrender his soul to Michael, and the
archangel again ascended to heaven, and said unto the Lord: "Thus speaks
Abraham, I will not go with thee, and I refrain from laying my hands on him,
because from the beginning he was Thy friend, and he has done all things
pleasing in Thy sight. There is no man like him on earth, not even Job, the
wondrous man." But when the day of the death of Abraham drew nigh, God
commanded Michael to adorn Death with great beauty and send him thus to
Abraham, that he might see him with his eyes.
While sitting under
the oak of Mamre, Abraham perceived a flashing of light and a smell of sweet
odor, and turning around he saw Death coming toward him in great glory and
beauty. And Death said unto Abraham: "Think not, Abraham, that this beauty
is mine, or that I come thus to every man. Nay, but if any one is righteous
like thee, I thus take a crown and come to him, but if he is a sinner, I come
in great corruption, and out of their sins I make a crown for my head, and I
shake them with great fear, so that they are dismayed." Abraham said to
him, "And art thou, indeed, he that is called Death?" He answered,
and said, "I am the bitter name," but Abraham answered, "I will
not go with thee." And Abraham said to Death, "Show us thy
corruption." And Death revealed his corruption, showing two heads, the one
had the face of a serpent, the other head was like a sword. All the servants of
Abraham, looking at the fierce mien of Death, died, but Abraham prayed to the
Lord, and he raised them up. As the looks of Death were not able to cause
Abraham's soul to depart from him, God removed the soul of Abraham as in a
dream, and the archangel Michael took it up into heaven. After great praise and
glory had been given to the Lord by the angels who brought Abraham's soul, and
after Abraham bowed down to worship, then came the voice of God, saying thus:
"Take My friend Abraham into Paradise, where are the tabernacles of My
righteous ones and the abodes of My saints Isaac and Jacob in his bosom, where
there is no trouble, nor grief, nor sighing, but peace and rejoicing and life unending."[317]
Abraham's activity
did not cease with his death, and as he interceded in this world for the
sinners, so will he intercede for them in the world to come. On the day of
judgment he will sit at the gate of hell, and he will not suffer those who kept
the law of circumcision to enter therein.[318]
THE PATRON OF HEBRON
Once upon a time
some Jews lived in Hebron, few in number, but pious and good, and particularly
hospitable. When strangers came
to the Cave of Machpelah to pray there, the
inhabitants of the place fairly quarrelled with each other for the privilege of
entertaining the guests, and the one who carried off the victory rejoiced as
though he had found great spoil.
On the eve of the
Day of Atonement, it appeared that, in spite of all their efforts, the dwellers
at Hebron could not secure the tenth man needed for public Divine service, and
they feared they would have none on the holy day. Toward evening, when the sun
was about to sink, they descried an old man with silver white beard, bearing a
sack upon his shoulder, his raiment tattered, and his feet badly swollen from
much walking. They ran to meet him, took him to one of the houses, gave him
food and drink, and, after supplying him with new white garments, they all
together went to the synagogue for worship. Asked what his name was, the
stranger replied, Abraham.
At the end of the
fast, the residents of Hebron cast lots for the privilege of entertaining the
guest. Fortune favored the beadle, who, the envy of the rest, bore his guest
away to his house. On the way, he suddenly disappeared, and the beadle could
not find him anywhere. In vain all the Jews of the place went on a quest for
him. Their sleepless night, spent in searching, had no result. The stranger
could not be found. But no sooner had the beadle lain down, toward morning,
weary and anxious, to snatch some sleep, than he saw the lost guest before him,
his face luminous as lightning, and his garments magnificent and studded with
gems radiant as the sun. Before the beadle, stunned by fright, could open his
mouth, the stranger spake, and said: "I am Abraham the Hebrew, your
ancestor, who rests here in the Cave of Machpelah. When I saw how grieved you
were at not having the number of men prescribed for a public service, I came forth
to you. Have no fear! Rejoice and be merry of heart!"[319]
On another occasion
Abraham granted his assistance to the people of Hebron. The lord of the city
was a heartless man, who oppressed the Jews sorely. One day he commanded them
to pay a large sum of money into his coffers, the whole sum in uniform coins,
all stamped with the same year. It was but a pretext to kill the Jews. He knew
that his demand was impossible of fulfilment.
The Jews proclaimed
a fast and day of public prayer, on which to supplicate God that He turn aside
the sword suspended above them. The night following, the beadle in a dream saw
an awe-inspiring old man, who addressed him in the following words: "Up,
quickly! Hasten to the gate of the court, where lies the money you need. I am
your father Abraham. I have beheld the affliction wherewith the Gentiles
oppress you, but God has heard your groans." In great terror the beadle
arose, but he saw no one, yet he went to the spot designated by the vision, and
he found the money and took it to the congregation, telling his dream at the
same time. Amazed, they counted the gold, precisely the amount required of them
by the prince, no more and no less. They surrendered the sum to him, and he who
had considered compliance with his demand impossible, recognized now that God
is with the Jews, and thenceforth they found favor in his eyes.[320]
VI
JACOB THE BIRTH OF
ESAU AND JACOB THE FAVORITE OF ABRAHAM THE SALE OF THE BIRTHRIGHT ISAAC WITH
THE PHILISTINES ISAAC BLESSES JACOB ESAU'S TRUE CHARACTER REVEALED JACOB LEAVES
HIS FATHER'S HOUSE JACOB PURSUED BY ELIPHAZ AND ESAU THE DAY OF MIRACLES JACOB
WITH LABAN THE MARRIAGE OF JACOB THE BIRTH OF JACOB'S CHILDREN JACOB FLEES
BEFORE LABAN THE COVENANT WITH LABAN JACOB AND ESAU PREPARE TO MEET JACOB WRESTLES
WITH THE ANGEL THE MEETING BETWEEN ESAU AND JACOB THE OUTRAGE AT SHECHEM A WAR
FRUSTRATED THE WAR WITH THE NINEVITES THE WAR WITH THE AMORITES ISAAC BLESSES
LEVI AND JUDAH JOY AND SORROW IN THE HOUSE OF JACOB ESAU'S CAMPAIGN AGAINST
JACOB THE DESCENDANTS OF ESAU
VI
JACOB
THE BIRTH OF ESAU
AND JACOB
Isaac was the
counterpart of his father in body and soul. He resembled him in every
particular--"in beauty, wisdom, strength, wealth, and noble
deeds."[1] It was, therefore, as great an honor for Isaac to be called the
son of his father as for Abraham to be called the father of his son, and though
Abraham was the progenitor of thirty nations, he is always designated as the
father of Isaac.[2]
Despite his many
excellent qualities, Isaac married late in life. God permitted him to meet the
wife suitable to him only after he had successfully disproved the mocking
charges of Ishmael, who was in the habit of taunting him with having been
circumcised at the early age of eight days, while Ishmael had submitted himself
voluntarily to the operation when be was thirteen years old. For this reason
God demanded Isaac as a sacrifice when he had attained to full manhood, at the
age of thirty-seven, and Isaac was ready to give up his life. Ishmael's jibes
were thus robbed of their sting, and Isaac was permitted to marry. But another
delay occurred before his marriage could take place. Directly after the
sacrifice on Mount Moriah, his mother died, and he mourned her for three
years.[3] Finally he married Rebekah, who was then a maiden of fourteen.[4]
Rebekah was "a
rose between thorns." Her father was the Aramean Bethuel, and her brother
was Laban, but she did not walk in their ways.[5] Her piety was equal to
Isaac's.[6] Nevertheless their marriage was not entirely happy, for they lived
together no less than twenty years without begetting children.[7] Rebekah
besought her husband to entreat God for the gift of children, as his father
Abraham had done. At first Isaac would not do her bidding. God had promised
Abraham a numerous progeny, and he thought their childlessness was probably
Rebekah's fault, and it was her duty to supplicate God, and not his. But
Rebekah would not desist, and husband and wife repaired to Mount Moriah
together to pray to God there. And Isaac said: "O Lord God of heaven and
earth, whose goodness and mercies fill the earth, Thou who didst take my father
from his father's house and from his birthplace, and didst bring him unto this
land, and didst say unto him, To thee and thy seed will I give the land, and
didst promise him and declare unto him, I will multiply thy seed as the stars
of heaven and as the sand of the sea, now may Thy words be verified which Thou
didst speak unto my father. For Thou art the Lord our God, our eyes are toward
Thee, to give us seed of men as Thou didst promise us, for Thou art the Lord
our God, and our eyes are upon Thee."[8] Isaac prayed furthermore that all
children destined for him might be born unto him from this pious wife of his,
and Rebekah made the same petition regarding her husband Isaac and the children
destined for her.
Their united prayer
was heard.[9] Yet it was chiefly for the sake of Isaac that God gave them
children. It is true, Rebekah's piety equalled her husband's, but the prayer of
a pious man who is the son of a pious man is far more efficacious than the
prayer of one who, though pious himself, is descended from a godless father.
The prayer wrought a
great miracle, for Isaac's physique was such that he could not have been
expected to beget children, and equally it was not in the course of nature that
Rebekah should bear children.[10]
When Rebekah had
been pregnant seven months,[11] she began to wish that the curse of
childlessness had not been removed from her.[12] She suffered torturous pain,
because her twin sons began their lifelong quarrels in her womb. They strove to
kill each other. If Rebekah walked in the vicinity of a temple erected to
idols, Esau moved in her body, and if she passed a synagogue or a Bet
ha-Midrash, Jacob essayed to break forth from her womb.[13] The quarrels of the
children turned upon such differences as these. Esau would insist that there
was no life except the earthly life of material pleasures, and Jacob would
reply: "My brother, there are two worlds before us, this world and the world
to come. In this world, men eat and drink, and traffic and marry, and bring up
sons and daughters, but all this does not take place in the world to come. If
it please thee, do thou take this world, and I will take the other."[14]
Esau had Samael as his ally, who desired to slay Jacob in his mother's womb.
But the archangel Michael hastened to Jacob's aid. He tried to burn Samael, and
the Lord saw it was necessary to constitute a heavenly court for the purpose of
arbitrating the case of Michael and Samael.[15] Even the quarrel between the
two brothers regarding the birthright had its beginning before they emerged
from the womb of their mother. Each desired to be the first to come into the
world. It was only when Esau threatened to carry his point at the expense of
his mother's life that Jacob gave way.[16]
Rebekah asked other
women whether they, too, had suffered such pain during their pregnancy, and
when they told her they had not heard of a case like hers, except the pregnancy
of Nimrod's mother, she betook herself to Mount Moriah, whereon Shem and Eber
had their Bet ha-Midrash. She requested them as well as Abraham to inquire of
God what the cause of her dire suffering was.[17] And Shem replied: "My
daughter, I confide a secret to thee. See to it that none finds it out. Two
nations are in thy womb, and how should thy body contain them, seeing that the
whole world will not be large enough for them to exist in it together
peaceably? Two nations they are, each owning a world of its own, the one the
Torah, the other sin. From the one will spring Solomon, the builder of the
Temple, from the other Vespasian, the destroyer thereof. These two are what are
needed to raise the number of nations to seventy. They will never be in the
same estate. Esau will vaunt lords, while Jacob will bring forth prophets, and
if Esau has princes, Jacob will have kings.[18] They, Israel and Rome, are the
two nations destined to be hated by all the world.[19] One will exceed the
other in strength. First Esau will subjugate the whole world, but in the end
Jacob will rule over all.[20] The older of the two will serve the younger,
provided this one is pure of heart, otherwise the younger will be enslaved by
the older."[21]
The circumstances
connected with the birth of her twin sons were as remarkable as those during
the period of Rebekah's pregnancy. Esau was the first to see the light, and
with him all impurity came from the womb;[22] Jacob was born clean and sweet of
body. Esau was brought forth with hair, beard, and teeth, both front and
back,[23] and he was blood-red, a sign of his future sanguinary nature.[24] On
account of his ruddy appearance he remained uncircumcised. Isaac, his father,
feared that it was due to poor circulation of the blood, and he hesitated to
perform the circumcision. He decided to wait until Esau should attain his
thirteenth year, the age at which Ishmael had received the sign of the
covenant. But when Esau grew up, he refused to give heed to his father's wish,
and so he was left uncircumcised.[25] The opposite of his brother in this as in
all respects, Jacob was born with the sign of the covenant upon his body, a
rare distinction.[26] But Esau also bore a mark upon him at birth, the figure
of a serpent, the symbol of all that is wicked and hated of God.[27]
The names conferred
upon the brothers are pregnant with meaning. The older was called Esau, because
he was 'Asui, fully developed when he was born, and the name of the younger was
given to him by God, to point to some important events in the future of Israel
by the numerical value of each letter. The first letter in Ya'akob, Yod, with
the value of ten, stands for the decalogue; the second, 'Ayin, equal to
seventy, for the seventy elders, the leaders of Israel; the third, Kof, a
hundred, for the Temple, a hundred ells in height; and the last, Bet, for the
two tables of stone.[28]
THE FAVORITE OF ABRAHAM
While Esau and Jacob
were little, their characters could not be judged properly. They were like the
myrtle and the thorn-bush, which look alike in the early stages of their
growth. After they have attained full size, the myrtle is known by its
fragrance, and the thorn-bush by its thorns.
In their childhood,
both brothers went to school, but when they reached their thirteenth year, and
were of age, their ways parted. Jacob continued his studies in the Bet ha
Midrash of Shem and Eber, and Esau abandoned himself to idolatry and an immoral
life.[29] Both were hunters of men, Esau tried to capture them in order to turn
them away from God, and Jacob, to turn them toward God.[30] In spite of his
impious deeds, Esau possessed the art of winning his father's love. His
hypocritical conduct made Isaac believe that his first-born son was extremely
pious. "Father," he would ask Isaac, "what is the tithe on straw
and salt?" The question made him appear God-fearing in the eyes of his
father, because these two products are the very ones that are exempt from
tithing.[31] Isaac failed to notice, too, that his older son gave him forbidden
food to eat. What he took for the flesh of young goats was dog's meat.[32]
Rebekah was more
clear-sighted. She knew her sons as they really were, and therefore her love
for Jacob was exceeding great. The oftener she heard his voice, the deeper grew
her affection for him.[33] Abraham agreed with her. He also loved his grandson
Jacob, for he knew that in him his name and his seed would be called. And he
said unto Rebekah, "My daughter, watch over my son Jacob, for he shall be
in my stead on the earth and for a blessing in the midst of the children of
men, and for the glory of the whole seed of Shem." Having admonished
Rebekah thus to keep guard over Jacob, who was destined to be the bearer of the
blessing given to Abraham by God, he called for his grandson, and in the
presence of Rebekah he blessed him, and said: "Jacob, my beloved son, whom
my soul loveth, may God bless thee from above the firmament, and may He give
thee all the blessing wherewith He blessed Adam, and Enoch, and Noah, and Shem,
and all the things of which He told me, and all the things which He promised to
give me may He cause to cleave to thee and to thy seed forever, according to
the days of the heavens above the earth. And the spirit of Mastema shall not
rule over thee or over thy seed, to turn thee from the Lord, who is thy God from
henceforth and forever. And may the Lord God be a father to thee, and mayest
thou be His first-born son, and may He be a father to thy people always. Go in
peace, my son."[34]
And Abraham had good
reason to be particularly fond of Jacob, for it was due to the merits of his
grandson that he had been rescued from the fiery furnace.[35]
Isaac and Rebekah,
knowing of Abraham's love for their young son, sent their father a meal by
Jacob on the last Feast of Pentecost which Abraham was permitted to celebrate
on earth, that he might eat and bless the Creator of all things before he died.
Abraham knew that his end was approaching, and he thanked the Lord for all the
good He had granted him during the days of his life, and blessed Jacob and bade
him walk in the ways of the Lord, and especially he was not to marry a daughter
of the Canaanites. Then Abraham prepared for death. He placed two of Jacob's
fingers upon his eyes, and thus holding them closed he fell into his eternal
sleep, while Jacob lay beside him on the bed. The lad did not know of his
grandfather's death, until he called him, on awakening next morning,
"Father, father," and received no answer.[36]
THE SALE OF THE BIRTHRIGHT
Though Abraham
reached a good old age, beyond the limit of years vouchsafed later generations,
he yet died five years before his allotted time. The intention was to let him
live to be one hundred and eighty years old, the same age as Isaac's at his
death, but on account of Esau God brought his life to an abrupt close. For some
time Esau had been pursuing his evil inclinations in secret. Finally he dropped
his mask, and on the day of Abraham's death he was guilty of five crimes: he
ravished a betrothed maiden, committed murder, doubted the resurrection of the
dead, scorned the birthright, and denied God. Then the Lord said: "I
promised Abraham that he should go to his fathers in peace. Can I now permit
him to be a witness of his grandson's rebellion against God, his violation of
the laws of chastity, and his shedding of blood? It is better for him to die
now in peace."[37]
The men slain by
Esau on this day were Nimrod and two of his adjutants. A long-standing feud had
existed between Esau and Nimrod, because the mighty hunter before the Lord was
jealous of Esau, who also devoted himself assiduously to the chase. Once when
he was hunting it happened that Nimrod was separated from his people, only two
men were with him. Esau, who lay in ambush, noticed his isolation, and waited
until he should pass his covert. Then he threw himself upon Nimrod suddenly,
and felled him and his two companions, who hastened to his succor. The outcries
of the latter brought the attendants of Nimrod to the spot where he lay dead,
but not before Esau had stripped him of his garments, and fled to the city with
them.[38]
These garments of
Nimrod had an extraordinary effect upon cattle, beasts, and birds. Of their own
accord they would come and prostrate themselves before him who was arrayed in
them. Thus Nimrod and Esau after him were able to rule over men and beasts.[39]
After slaying
Nimrod, Esau hastened cityward in great fear of his victim's followers. Tired
and exhausted he arrived at home to find Jacob busy preparing a dish of
lentils. Numerous male and female slaves were in Isaac's household. Nevertheless
Jacob was so simple and modest in his demeanor that, if he came home late from
the Bet ha-Midrash, he would disturb none to prepare his meal, but would do it
himself.[40] On this occasion he was cooking lentils for his father, to serve
to him as his mourner's meal after the death of Abraham. Adam and Eve had eaten
lentils after the murder of Abel, and so had the parents of Haran, when he
perished in the fiery furnace. The reason they are used for the mourner's meal
is that the round lentil symbolizes death: as the lentil rolls, so death,
sorrow, and mourning constantly roll about among men, from one to the
other.[41]
Esau accosted Jacob
thus, "Why art thou preparing lentils?"
Jacob: "Because
our grandfather passed away; they shall be a sign of my grief and mourning,
that he may love me in the days to come."
Esau: "Thou
fool! Dost thou really think it possible that man should come to life again
after he has been dead and has mouldered in the grave?"[42] He continued
to taunt Jacob. "Why dost thou give thyself so much trouble?" he
said. "Lift up thine eyes, and thou wilt see that all men eat whatever
comes to hand--fish, creeping and crawling creatures, swine's flesh, and all
sorts of things like these, and thou vexest thyself about a dish of lentils."
Jacob: "If we
act like other men, what shall we do on the day of the Lord, the day on which
the pious will receive their reward, when a herald will proclaim: Where is He
that weigheth the deeds of men, where is He that counteth?"
Esau: "Is there
a future world? Or will the dead be called back to life? If it were so, why
hath not Adam returned? Hast thou heard that Noah, through whom the world was
raised anew, hath reappeared? Yea, Abraham, the friend of God, more beloved of
Him than any man, hath he come to life again?"
Jacob: "If thou
art of opinion that there is no future world, and that the dead do not rise to
new life, then why dost thou want thy birthright? Sell it to me, now, while it
is yet possible to do so. Once the Torah is revealed, it cannot be done.
Verily, there is a future world, in which the righteous receive their reward. I
tell thee this, lest thou say later I deceived thee."[43]
Jacob was little
concerned about the double share of the inheritance that went with the
birthright. What he thought of was the priestly service, which was the
prerogative of the first-born in ancient times, and Jacob was loth to have his
impious brother Esau play the priest, he who despised all Divine service.[44]
The scorn manifested
by Esau for the resurrection of the dead he felt also for the promise of God to
give the Holy Land to the seed of Abraham. He did not believe in it, and
therefore he was willing to cede his birthright and the blessing attached
thereto in exchange for a mess of pottage.[45] In addition, Jacob paid him in
coin,[46] and, besides, he gave him what was more than money, the wonderful
sword of Methuselah, which Isaac had inherited from Abraham and bestowed upon
Jacob.[47]
Esau made game of
Jacob. He invited his associates to feast at his brother's table, saying,
"Know ye what I did to this Jacob? I ate his lentils, drank his wine,
amused myself at his expense, and sold my birthright to him." All that
Jacob replied was, "Eat and may it do thee good!" But the Lord said, "Thou
despisest the birthright, therefore I shall make thee despised in all
generations." And by way of punishment for denying God and the
resurrection of the dead, the descendants of Esau were cut off from the
world.[48]
As naught was holy
to Esau, Jacob made him swear, concerning the birthright, by the life of their
father, for he knew Esau's love for Isaac, that it was strong.[49] Nor did he
fail to have a document made out, duly signed by witnesses, setting forth that
Esau had sold him the birthright together with his claim upon a place in the
Cave of Machpelah.[50]
Though no blame can
attach to Jacob for all this, yet he secured the birthright from him by
cunning, and therefore the descendants of Jacob had to serve the descendants of
Esau.[51]
ISAAC WITH THE PHILISTINES
The life of Isaac
was a faithful reflex of the life of his father. Abraham had to leave his
birthplace; so also Isaac. Abraham was exposed to the risk of losing his wife;
so also Isaac. The Philistines were envious of Abraham; so also of Isaac.
Abraham long remained childless; so also Isaac. Abraham begot one pious son and
one wicked son; so also Isaac. And, finally, as in the time of Abraham, so also
in the time of Isaac, a famine came upon the land.[52]
At first Isaac
intended to follow the example of his father and remove to Egypt, but God
appeared unto him, and spake: "Thou art a perfect sacrifice, without a
blemish, and as a burnt offering is made unfit if it is taken outside of the
sanctuary, so thou wouldst be profaned if thou shouldst happen outside of the
Holy Land. Remain in the land, and endeavor to cultivate it. In this land
dwells the Shekinah, and in days to come I will give unto thy children the
realms possessed by mighty rulers, first a part thereof, and the whole in the
Messianic time."[53]
Isaac obeyed the
command of God, and he settled in Gerar. When he noticed that the inhabitants
of the place began to have designs upon his wife, he followed the example of
Abraham, and pretended she was his sister.[54] The report of Rebekah's beauty
reached the king himself, but he was mindful of the great danger to which he
had once exposed himself on a similar occasion, and he left Isaac and his wife
unmolested.[55] After they had been in Gerar for three months, Abimelech
noticed that the manner of Isaac, who lived in the outer court of the royal
palace, was that of a husband toward Rebekah.[56] He called him to account,
saying, "It might have happened to the king himself to take the woman thou
didst call thy sister."[57] Indeed, Isaac lay under the suspicion of
having illicit intercourse with Rebekah, for at first the people of the place
would not believe that she was his wife. When Isaac persisted in his
statement,[58] Abimelech sent his grandees for them, ordered them to be arrayed
in royal vestments, and had it proclaimed before them, as they rode through the
city: "These two are man and wife. He that toucheth this man or his wife
shall surely be put to death."
Thereafter the king
invited Isaac to settle in his domains, and he assigned fields and vineyards to
him for cultivation, the best the land afforded.[59] But Isaac was not
self-interested. The tithe of all he possessed he gave to the poor of Gerar.
Thus he was the first to introduce the law of tithing for the poor, as his
father Abraham had been the first to separate the priests' portion from his
fortune.[60] Isaac was rewarded by abundant harvests; the land yielded a
hundred times more than was expected, though the soil was barren and the year
unfruitful. He grew so rich that people wished to have "the dung from
Isaac's she-mules rather than Abimelech's gold and silver."[61] But his
wealth called forth the envy of the Philistines, for it is characteristic of
the wicked that they begrudge their fellow-men the good, and rejoice when they
see evil descend upon them, and envy brings hatred in its wake, and so the
Philistines first envied Isaac, and then hated him. In their enmity toward him,
they stopped the wells which Abraham had had his servants dig. Thus they broke
their covenant with Abraham and were faithless, and they have only themselves
to blame if they were exterminated later on by the Israelites.
Isaac departed from
Gerar, and began to dig again the wells of water which they had digged in the
days of Abraham his father, and which the Philistines had stopped. His
reverence for his father was so great that he even restored the names by which
Abraham had called the wells. To reward him for his filial respect, the Lord
left the name of Isaac unchanged, while his father and his son had to submit to
new names.[62]
After four attempts
to secure water, Isaac was successful; he found the well of water that followed
the Patriarchs. Abraham had obtained it after three diggings. Hence the name of
the well, Beer-sheba, "the well of seven diggings," the same well
that will supply water to Jerusalem and its environs in the Messianic time.[63]
Isaac's success with
his wells but served to increase the envy of the Philistines, for he had come
upon water in a most unlikely spot and, besides, in a year of drouth. But
"the Lord fulfils the desire of them that fear Him." As Isaac
executed the will of his Creator, so God accomplished his desire.[64] And
Abimelech, the king of Gerar, speedily came to see that God was on the side of
Isaac, for, to chastise him for having instigated Isaac's removal from Gerar,
his house was ravaged by robbers in the night, and he himself was stricken with
leprosy.[65] The wells of the Philistines ran dry as soon as Isaac left Gerar,
and also the trees failed to yield their fruit. None could be in doubt but that
these things were the castigation for their unkindness.
Now Abimelech
entreated his friends, especially the administrator of his kingdom, to
accompany him to Isaac and help him win back his friendship.[66] Abimelech and
the Philistines spake thus to Isaac: "We have convinced ourselves that the
Shekinah is with thee, and therefore we desire thee to renew the covenant which
thy father made with us, that thou wilt do us no hurt, as we also did not touch
thee." Isaac consented. It illustrates the character of the Philistines
strikingly that they took credit unto themselves for having done him no hurt.
It shows that they would have been glad to inflict harm upon him, for "the
soul of the wicked desireth evil."
The place in which
the covenant was made between Isaac and the Philistines was called Shib'ah, for
two reasons, because an oath was "sworn" there, and as a memorial of
the fact that even the heathen are bound to observe the "seven"
Noachian laws.[67]
For all the wonders
executed by God for Isaac, and all the good he enjoyed throughout his life, he
is indebted to the merits of his father. For his own merits he will be rewarded
in future.[68] On the great day of judgment it will be Isaac who will redeem
his descendants from Gehenna. On that day the Lord will speak to Abraham,
"Thy children have sinned," and Abraham will make reply, "Then
let them be wiped out, that Thy Name be sanctified." The Lord will turn to
Jacob, thinking that he who had suffered so much in bringing his sons to manhood's
estate would display more love for his posterity. But Jacob will give the same
answer as Abraham. Then God will say: "The old have no understanding, and
the young no counsel. I will now go to Isaac. Isaac," God will address
him, "thy children have sinned," and Isaac will reply: "O Lord
of the world, sayest Thou my children, and not THINE? When they stood at Mount
Sinai and declared themselves ready to execute all Thy bidding before even they
heard it, Thou didst call Israel 'My first-born,' and now they are MY children,
and not THINE! Let us consider. The years of a man are seventy. From these
twenty are to be deducted, for Thou inflictest no punishment upon those under
twenty. Of the fifty years that are left, one-half are to be deducted for the
nights passed in sleep. There remain only twenty-five years, and these are to
be diminished by twelve and a half, the time spent in praying, eating, and
attending to other needs in life, during which men commit no sins. That leaves
only twelve years and a half. If Thou wilt take these upon Thyself, well and
good. If not, do Thou take one-half thereof, and I will take the other
half." The descendants of Isaac will then say, "Verily, thou art our
true father!" But he will point to God, and admonish them, "Nay, give
not your praises to me, but to God alone," and Israel, with eyes directed
heavenward, will say, "Thou, O Lord, art our Father; our Redeemer from
everlasting is Thy name."[69]
It was Isaac, or, as
he is sometimes called, Elihu the son of Barachel, who revealed the wonderful
mysteries of nature in his arguments with Job.[70]
At the end of the
years of famine, God appeared unto Isaac, and bade him return to Canaan. Isaac
did as he was commanded, and he settled in Hebron. At this time he sent his
younger son Jacob to the Bet ha-Midrash of Shem and Eber, to study the law of
the Lord. Jacob remained there thirty-two years. As for Esau, he refused to
learn, and he remained in the house of his father. The chase was his only
occupation, and as he pursued beasts, so he pursued men, seeking to capture
them with cunning and deceit.
On one of his
hunting expeditions, Esau came to Mount Seir, where he became acquainted with
Judith, of the family of Ham, and he took her unto himself as his wife, and
brought her to his father at Hebron.
Ten years later,
when Shem his teacher died, Jacob returned home, at the age of fifty. Another
six years passed, and Rebekah received the joyful news that her sister-in-law
'Adinah, the wife of Laban, who, like all the women of his house, had been
childless until then, had given birth to twin daughters, Leah and Rachel.[71]
Rebekah, weary of her life on account of the woman chosen by her older son,
exhorted Jacob not to marry one of the daughters of Canaan, but a maiden of the
family of Abraham. He assured his mother that the words of Abraham, bidding him
to marry no woman of the Canaanites, were graven upon his memory, and for this
reason he was still unmarried, though he had attained the age of sixty-two, and
Esau had been urging him for twenty-two years past to follow his example and
wed a daughter of the people of the land in which they lived. He had heard that
his uncle Laban had daughters, and he was resolved to choose one of them as his
wife. Deeply moved by the words of her son, Rebekah thanked him and gave praise
unto God with the words: "Blessed be the Lord God, and may His Holy Name
be blessed for ever and ever, who hath given me Jacob as a pure son and a holy
seed; for he is Thine, and Thine shall his seed be continually and throughout
all the generations for evermore. Bless him, O Lord, and place in my mouth the
blessing of righteousness, that I may bless him."
And when the spirit
of the Lord came over her, she laid her hands upon the head of Jacob and gave
him her maternal blessing. It ended with the words, "May the Lord of the
world love thee, as the heart of thy affectionate mother rejoices in thee, and
may He bless thee."[72]
ISAAC BLESSES JACOB
Esau's marriage with
the daughters of the Canaanites was an abomination not only in the eyes of his
mother, but also in the eyes of his father. He suffered even more than Rebekah
through the idolatrous practices of his daughters in-law. It is the nature of
man to oppose less resistance than woman to disagreeable circumstances. A bone
is not harmed by a collision that would shiver an earthen pot in pieces. Man,
who is created out of the dust of the ground, has not the endurance of woman
formed out of bone. Isaac was made prematurely old by the conduct of his
daughters-in-law, and he lost the sight of his eyes. Rebekah had been
accustomed in the home of her childhood to the incense burnt before idols, and
she could therefore bear it under her own roof-tree. Unlike her, Isaac had
never had any such experience while he abode with his parents, and he was stung
by the smoke arising from the sacrifices offered to their idols by his
daughters-in-law in his own house.[73] Isaac's eyes had suffered earlier in
life, too. When he lay bound upon the altar, about to be sacrificed by his
father, the angels wept, and their tears fell upon his eyes, and there they
remained and weakened his sight.
At the same time he
had brought the scourge of blindness down upon himself by his love for Esau. He
justified the wicked for a bribe, the bribe of Esau's filial love, and loss of
vision is the punishment that follows the taking of bribes. "A gift,"
it is said, "blinds the eyes of the wise."
Nevertheless his
blindness proved a benefit for Isaac as well as Jacob. In consequence of his
physical ailments, Isaac had to keep at home, and so he was spared the pain of
being pointed out by the people as the father of the wicked Esau.[74] And,
again, if his power of vision had been unimpaired, he would not have blessed
Jacob. As it was, God treated him as a physician treats a sick man who is
forbidden to drink wine, for which, however, he has a strong desire. To placate
him, the physician orders that warm water be given him in the dark, and he be
told that it is wine.[75]
When Isaac reached
the age of one hundred and twenty three, and was thus approaching the years
attained by his mother, he began to meditate upon his end. It is proper that a
man should prepare for death when he comes close to the age at which either of
his parents passed out of life. Isaac reflected that he did not know whether
the age allotted to him was his mother's or his father's, and he therefore
resolved to bestow his blessing upon his older son, Esau, before death should
overtake him.[76] He summoned Esau, and he said, "My son," and Esau
replied, "Here am I," but the holy spirit interposed: "Though he
disguises his voice and makes it sound sweet, put no confidence in him. There
are seven abominations in his heart. He will destroy seven holy places--the
Tabernacle, the sanctuaries at Gilgal, Shiloh, Nob, and Gibeon, and the first
and the second Temple."
Gently though Esau
continued to speak to his father, he yet longed for his end to come.[77] But
Isaac was stricken with spiritual as well as physical blindness. The holy
spirit deserted him, and he could not discern the wickedness of his older son.
He bade him sharpen his slaughtering knives and beware of bringing him the
flesh of an animal that had died of itself, or had been torn by a beast, and he
was to guard also against putting an animal before Isaac that had been stolen
from its rightful owner. "Then," continued Isaac, "will I bless
him who is worthy of being blessed."[78]
This charge was laid
upon Esau on the eve of the Passover, and Isaac said to him: "To-night the
whole world will sing the Hallel unto God. It is the night when the storehouses
of dew are unlocked. Therefore prepare dainties for me, that my soul may bless
thee before I die." But the holy spirit interposed, "Eat not the
bread of him that hath an evil eye."[79] Isaac's longing for tidbits was
due to his blindness. As the sightless cannot behold the food they eat, they do
not enjoy it with full relish, and their appetite must be tempted with
particularly palatable morsels.
Esau sallied forth
to procure what his father desired, little recking the whence or how, whether
by robbery or theft.[80] To hinder the quick execution of his father's order,
God sent Satan on the chase with Esau. He was to delay him as long as possible.
Esau would catch a deer and leave him lying bound, while he pursued other game.
Immediately Satan would come and liberate the deer, and when Esau returned to
the spot, his victim was not to be found. This was repeated several times.
Again and again the quarry was run down, and bound, and liberated, so that
Jacob was able meanwhile to carry out the plan of Rebekah whereby he would be
blessed instead of Esau.
Though Rebekah had
not heard the words that had passed between Isaac and Esau, they nevertheless
were revealed to her through the holy spirit,[81] and she resolved to restrain
her husband from taking a false step. She was not actuated by love for Jacob,
but by the wish of keeping Isaac from committing a detestable act.[82] Rebekah
said to Jacob: "This night the storehouses of dew are unlocked; it is the
night during which the celestial beings chant the Hallel unto God, the night
set apart for the deliverance of thy children from Egypt, on which they, too,
will sing the Hallel. Go now and prepare savory meat for thy father, that he
may bless thee before his death.[83] Do as I bid thee, obey me as thou art
wont, for thou art my son whose children, every one, will be good and
God-fearing--not one shall be graceless."
In spite of his
great respect for his mother,[84] Jacob refused at first to heed her command.
He feared he might commit a sin,[85] especially as he might thus bring his
father's curse down upon him. As it was, Isaac might still have a blessing for
him, after giving Esau his. But Rebekah allayed his anxieties, with the words:
"When Adam was cursed, the malediction fell upon his mother, the earth,
and so shall I, thy mother, bear the imprecation, if thy father curses thee.
Moreover, if the worst comes to the worst, I am prepared to step before thy
father and tell him, 'Esau is a villain, and Jacob is a righteous man.' "
Thus constrained by
his mother, Jacob, in tears and with body bowed, went off to execute the plan
made by Rebekah.[86] As he was to provide a Passover meal, she bade him get two
kids, one for the Passover sacrifice and one for the festival sacrifice.[87] To
soothe Jacob's conscience, she added that her marriage contract entitled her to
two kids daily. "And," she continued, "these two kids will bring
good unto thee, the blessing of thy father, and they will bring good unto thy
children, for two kids will be the atoning sacrifice offered on the Day of
Atonement."
Jacob's hesitation
was not yet removed. His father, he feared, would touch him and convince
himself that he was not hairy, and therefore not his son Esau. Accordingly,
Rebekah tore the skins of the two kids into strips and sewed them together, for
Jacob was so tall a giant that otherwise they would not have sufficed to cover
his hands.[88] To make Jacob's disguise complete, Rebekah felt justified in
putting Esau's wonderful garments on him. They were the high priestly raiment
in which God had clothed Adam, "the first-born of the world," for in
the days before the erection of the Tabernacle all the first-born males
officiated as priests. From Adam these garments descended to Noah, who transmitted
them to Shem, and Shem bequeathed them to Abraham, and Abraham to his son
Isaac, from whom they reached Esau as the older of his two sons. It was the
opinion of Rebekah that as Jacob had bought the birthright from his brother, he
had thereby come into possession of the garments as well.[89] There was no need
for her to go and fetch them from the house of Esau. He knew his wives far too
well to entrust so precious a treasure to them; they were in the safe-keeping
of his mother. Besides, he used them most frequently in the house of his
parents. As a rule, he did not lay much stress upon decent apparel. He was
willing to appear on the street clad in rags, but he considered it his duty to
wait upon his father arrayed in his best. "My father," Esau was in
the habit of saying, "is a king in my sight, and it would ill become me to
serve before him in any thing but royal apparel." To the great respect he
manifested toward his father, the descendants of Esau owe all their good
fortune on earth. Thus doth God reward a good deed.
Rebekah led Jacob
equipped and arrayed in this way to the door of Isaac's chamber. There she
parted from him with the words, "Henceforward may thy Creator assist
thee."[90] Jacob entered, addressing Isaac with "Father," and
receiving the response, "Here am I! Who art thou, my son?" he replied
equivocally, "It is I, thy first-born son is Esau." He sought to
avoid a falsehood, and yet not betray that he was Jacob.[91] Isaac then said:
"Thou art greatly in haste to secure thy blessing. Thy father Abraham was
seventy-five years old when he was blessed, and thou art but sixty-three."
Jacob replied awkwardly, "Because the Lord thy God sent me good
speed." Isaac concluded at once that this was not Esau, for he would not
have mentioned the name of God, and he made up his mind to feel the son before
him and make sure who he was. Terror seized upon Jacob at the words of Isaac,
"Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son." A cold sweat
covered his body, and his heart melted like wax. Then God caused the archangels
Michael and Gabriel to descend. The one seized his right hand, the other his
left hand, while the Lord God Himself supported him, that his courage might not
fail him. Isaac felt him, and, finding his hands hairy, he said, "The voice
is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau," words in which he
conveyed the prophecy that so long as the voice of Jacob is heard in the houses
of prayer and of learning, the hands of Esau will not be able to prevail
against him. "Yes," he continued, "it is the voice of Jacob, the
voice that imposes silence upon those on earth and in heaven," for even
the angels may not raise their voices in praise of God until Israel has
finished his prayers.
Isaac's scruples
about blessing the son before him were not yet removed, for with his
prophetical eye he foresaw that this one would have descendants who would vex
the Lord. At the same time, it was revealed to him that even the sinners in
Israel would turn penitents, and then he was ready to bless Jacob. He bade him
come near and kiss him, to indicate that it would be Jacob who would imprint
the last kiss upon Isaac before he was consigned to the grave- he and none
other. When Jacob stood close to him, he discerned the fragrance of Paradise
clinging to him, and he exclaimed, "See, the smell of my son is as the
smell of the field which the Lord hath blessed."[92]
The fragrance
emanating from Jacob was not the only thing about him derived from Paradise.
The archangel Michael had fetched thence the wine which Jacob gave his father
to drink,[93] that an exalted mood might descend upon him, for only when a man
is joyously excited the Shekinah rests upon him.[94] The holy spirit filled
Isaac, and he gave Jacob his tenfold blessing: "God give thee of the dew
of heaven," the celestial dew wherewith God will awaken the pious to new
life in days to come; "and of the fatness of the earth," the goods of
this world; "and plenty of corn and wine," the Torah and the
commandments which bestow the same joy upon man as abundant harvests;[95]
"peoples shall serve thee," the Japhethites and the Hamites;
"nations shall bow down to thee," the Shemite nations; "thou
wilt be lord over thy brethren," the Ishmaelites and the descendants of
Keturah; "thy mother's sons will bow down to thee," Esau and his
princes; "cursed be every one that curseth thee," like Balaam;
"and blessed be every one that blesseth thee," like Moses.[96]
For each blessing
invoked upon Jacob by his father Isaac, a similar blessing was bestowed upon
him by God Himself in the same words. As Isaac blessed him with dew, so also
God: "And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many peoples as
dew from the Lord." Isaac blessed him with the fatness of the earth, so
also God: "And he shall give the rain of thy seed, that thou shalt sow the
ground withal; and bread of the increase of the ground, and it shall be fat and
plenteous." Isaac blessed him with plenty of corn and wine, so also God:
"I will send you corn and wine." Isaac said, "Peoples shall
serve thee," so also God: "Kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and
their queens thy nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their faces
to the earth, and lick the dust of thy feet." Isaac said, "Nations
shall bow down to thee," so also God: "And He will make thee high
above all nations which He hath made, in praise, and in name, and in
honor."
To this double
blessing his mother Rebekah joined hers: "For He shall give His angels
charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in
their hands, lest thou dash thy feet against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the
lion and adder; the young lion and the serpent shalt thou trample under feet.
Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him; I will set
him on high, because he hath known my name."
The holy spirit
added in turn: "He shall call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be
with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honor him. With long life will I
satisfy him, and show him my salvation."[97]
Jacob left the
presence of his father crowned like a bridegroom, adorned like a bride, and
bathed in celestial dew, which filled his bones with marrow, and transformed
him into a hero and a giant.[98]
Of a miracle done
for him at that very moment Jacob himself was not aware. Had he tarried with
his father an instant longer, Esau would have met him there, and would surely
have slain him. It happened that exactly as Jacob was on the point of leaving
the tent of his father, carrying in his hands the plates off which Isaac had
eaten, he noticed Esau approaching, and he concealed himself behind the door.
Fortunately, it was a revolving door, so that though he could see Esau, he
could not be seen by him.
ESAU'S TRUE CHARACTER REVEALED
Esau arrived after a
delay of four hours.[99] In spite of all the efforts he had put forth, he had
not succeeded in catching any game, and he was compelled to kill a dog and
prepare its flesh for his father's meal.[100] All this had made Esau
ill-humored, and when he bade his father partake of the meal, the invitation
sounded harsh. "Let my father arise," he said, "and eat of his
son's venison." Jacob had spoken differently; he had said, "Arise, I
pray thee, sit and eat of my venison." The words of Esau terrified Isaac
greatly. His fright exceeded that which he had felt when his father was about
to offer him as a sacrifice, and he cried out, "Who then is he that hath
been the mediator between me and the Lord, to make the blessing reach
Jacob?"- words meant to imply that he suspected Rebekah of having instigated
Jacob's act.
Isaac's alarm was
caused by his seeing hell at the feet of Esau. Scarcely had he entered the
house when the walls thereof began to get hot on account of the nearness of
hell, which he brought along with him. Isaac could not but exclaim, "Who
will be burnt down yonder, I or my son Jacob?" and the Lord answered him,
"Neither thou nor Jacob, but the hunter."
Isaac told Esau that
the meat set before him by Jacob had had marvellous qualities. Any savor that
one desired it possessed, it was even endowed with the taste of the food that
God will grant the pious in the world to come. "I know not," he said,
"what the meat was. But I had only to wish for bread, and it tasted like
bread, or fish, or locusts, or flesh of animals, in short, it had the taste of
any dainty one could wish for." When Esau heard the word
"flesh," he began to weep, and he said: "To me Jacob gave no
more than a dish of lentils, and in payment for it he took my birthright. What
must he have taken from thee for flesh of animals?" Hitherto Isaac had
been in great anguish on account of the thought that he had committed a wrong
in giving his blessing to his younger son instead of the firstborn, to whom it
belonged by law and custom. But when he heard that Jacob had acquired the birthright
from Esau, he said, "I gave my blessing to the right one!"
In his dismay, Isaac
had had the intention of cursing Jacob for having wrested the blessing from him
through cunning. God prevented him from carrying out his plan. He reminded him
that he would but curse himself, seeing that his blessing contained the words,
"Cursed be every one that curseth thee." But Isaac was not willing to
acknowledge his blessing valid as applied to Jacob, until he was informed that
his second son was the possessor of the birthright. Only then did he say,
"Yea, he shall be blessed," whereat Esau cried with an exceeding
great and bitter cry. By way of punishment for having been the cause of such
distress, a descendant of Jacob, Mordecai, was also made to cry with a loud and
bitter cry, and his grief was brought forth by the Amalekite Haman, the
descendant of Esau. At the words of Isaac, "Thy brother came with wisdom,
and hath taken away thy blessing," Esau spat out in vexation, and said,
"He took away my birthright, and I kept silence, and now that he takes
away my blessing, should I also keep silence?[101] Is not he rightly named
Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times."[102]
Isaac continued to
speak to Esau: "Behold, I have made him thy lord, he is thy king, and do
what thou wilt, thy blessings will still belong to him; all his brethren have I
given to him for slaves, and what slaves possess belongs to their owner. There
is nothing for it, thou must be content that thou wilt receive thy bread baked
from thy master." The Lord took it ill of Isaac that he cheered him with
such kind words. "To Mine enemy," He reproached him, "thou
sayest, 'What shall I do for thee, my son?' " Isaac replied, "O that
he might find grace with Thee!" God: "He is a recreant." Isaac:
"Doth he not act righteously when he honors his parents?" God:
"In the land of uprightness will he deal wrongfully, he will stretch his
hand forth in days to come against the Temple." Isaac: "Then let him
enjoy much good in this world, that he may not behold the abiding-place of the
Lord in the world to come."[103]
When it became plain
to Esau that he could not induce his father to annul the blessing bestowed upon
Jacob, he tried to force a blessing for himself by an underhand trick. He said:
"Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my
father, else it will be said thou hast but one blessing to bestow. Suppose both
Jacob and I had been righteous men, had not then thy God had two blessings, one
for each?" The Lord Himself made reply: "Silence! Jacob will bless
the twelve tribes, and each blessing will be different from every other."
But Isaac felt great pity for his older son, and he wanted to bless him, but
the Shekinah forsook him, and he could not carry out what he purposed. Thereupon
Esau began to weep. He shed three tears--one ran from his right eye, the second
from his left eye, and the third remained hanging from his eyelash. God said,
"This villain cries for his very life, and should I let him depart
empty-handed?" and then He bade Isaac bless his older son.[104]
The blessing of
Isaac ran thus: "Behold, of the fat of the earth shall be thy
dwelling," by which he meant Greater Greece, in Italy; "and of the
dew of heaven from above," referring to Bet-Gubrin; "and by thy sword
shalt thou live, and thou shalt serve thy brother," but when he casts off
the yoke of the Lord, then shalt thou "shake his yoke from off thy
neck," and thou wilt be his master.[105]
The blessing which
Isaac gave to his older son was bound to no condition whatsoever. Whether he
deserved them or not, Esau was to enjoy the goods of this world. Jacob's
blessing, however, depended upon his pious deeds; through them he would have a
just claim upon earthly prosperity. Isaac thought: "Jacob is a righteous
man, he will not murmur against God, though it should come to pass that
suffering be inflicted upon him in spite of his upright life. But that
reprobate Esau, if he should do a good deed, or pray to God and not be heard,
he would say, 'As I pray to the idols for naught, so it is in vain to pray to
God.' " For this reason did Isaac bestow an unconditional blessing upon
Esau.[106]
JACOB LEAVES HIS FATHER'S HOUSE
Esau hated his
brother Jacob on account of the blessing that his father had given him, and
Jacob was very much afraid of his brother Esau, and he fled to the house of
Eber, the son of Shem, and he concealed himself there fourteen years on account
of his brother Esau, and he continued there to learn the ways of the Lord and
His commandments. When Esau saw that Jacob had fled and escaped from him, and
Jacob had cunningly obtained the blessing, then Esau grieved exceedingly, and
he was also vexed at his father and mother. He also rose up and took his wife,
and went away from his father and mother to the land of Seir. There he married
his second wife, Basemath, the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and he called her
name Adah, saying that the blessing had in that time passed from him. After
dwelling in Seir for six months, Esau returned to the land of Canaan, and
placed his two wives in his father's house in Hebron. And the wives of Esau
vexed and provoked Isaac and Rebekah with their works, for they walked not in
the ways of the Lord, but served their fathers' gods of wood and stone, as
their fathers had taught them, and they were more wicked than their fathers.
They sacrificed and burnt incense to the Baalim, and Isaac and Rebekah became
weary of them. And at the end of fourteen years of Jacob's residing in the
house of Eber, Jacob desired to see his father and his mother, and he returned
home. Esau had forgotten in those days what Jacob had done to him, in having
taken the blessing from him, but when Esau saw Jacob returning to his parents,
he remembered what Jacob had done to him, and he was greatly incensed against
him, and he sought to slay him.[107]
But Esau would not
kill Jacob while his father was yet alive, lest Isaac beget another son. He
wanted to be sure of being the only heir.[108] However, his hatred against
Jacob was so great that he determined to hasten the death of his father and
then dispatch Jacob. Such murderous plans Esau cherished in his heart, though
he denied that he was harboring them. But God spoke, "Probably thou
knowest not that I examine the hearts of men, for I am the Lord that searcheth
the heart." And not God alone knew the secret desires of Esau. Rebekah,
like all the Mothers, was a prophetess, and she delayed not to warn Jacob of
the danger that hung over him. "Thy brother," she said to him,
"is as sure of accomplishing his wicked purpose as though thou wert dead.
Now therefore, my son, obey my voice, and arise, flee thou to Laban my brother,
to Haran, and tarry with him for seven years, until thy brother's fury turn
away." In the goodness of her heart, Rebekah could not but believe that
the anger of Esau was only a fleeting passion, and would disappear in the
course of time. But she was mistaken, his hate persisted until the end of his
life.[109]
Courageous as he
was, Jacob would not run away from danger. He said to his mother, "I am
not afraid; if he wishes to kill me, I will kill him," to which she
replied, "Let me not be bereaved of both my sons in one day."[110] By
words Rebekah again showed her prophetic gift. As she spoke, so it
happened--when their time came, Esau was slain while the burial of Jacob was
taking place.[111]
And Jacob said to
Rebekah: "Behold, thou knowest that my father has become old and does not
see, and if I leave him and go away, he will be angry and will curse me. I will
not go; if he sends me, only then will I go."[112]
Accordingly, Rebekah
went to Isaac, and amid tears she spoke to him thus: "If Jacob take a wife
of the daughters of Heth, what good shall my life do me?"[113] And Isaac
called Jacob, and charged him, and said unto him: "Thou shalt not take a
wife of the daughters of Canaan, for thus did our father Abraham command us
according to the word of the Lord, which He had commanded him, saying, 'Unto
thy seed will I give the land; if thy children keep My covenant that I have
made with thee, then will I also perform to thy children that which I have
spoken unto thee, and I will not forsake them.' Now therefore, my son, hearken
to my voice, to all that I shall command thee, and refrain from taking a wife
from amongst the daughters of Canaan. Arise, go to Haran, to the house of
Bethuel, thy mother's father, and take thee a wife from thence of the daughters
of Laban, thy mother's brother. Take heed lest thou shouldst forget the Lord
thy God and all His ways in the land to which thou goest, and shouldst join
thyself to the people of the land, and pursue vanity, and forsake the Lord thy
God. But when thou comest to the land, serve the Lord. Do not turn to the right
or to the left from the way which I commanded thee, and which thou didst learn.
And may the Almighty God grant thee favor before the people of the land, that
thou mayest take a wife there according to thy choice, one who is good and
upright in the way of the Lord. And may God give unto thee and thy seed the
blessing of thy father Abraham and make thee fruitful and multiply thee, and
mayest thou become a multitude of people in the land whither thou goest, and
may God cause thee to return to thy land, the land of thy father's dwelling,
with children and with great riches, with joy and with pleasure."[114]
As the value of a
document is attested by its concluding words, the signature of the witnesses,
so Isaac confirmed the blessing he had bestowed upon Jacob.[116] That none
might say Jacob had secured it by intrigue and cunning, he blessed him again
with three blessings, in these words, "In so far as I am endowed with the
power of blessing, I bestow blessing upon thee. May God, with whom there is
endless blessing, give thee His, and also the blessing wherewith Abraham
desired to bless me, desisting only in order not to provoke the jealousy of
Ishmael."[116]
Seeing with his
prophetic eye that the seed of Jacob would once be compelled to go into exile,
Isaac offered up one more petition, that God would bring the exiles back again.
He said, "He shall deliver thee in six troubles, and in the seventh there
shall no evil touch thee." And also Rebekah prayed to God in behalf of
Jacob: "O Lord of the world, let not the purpose prosper which Esau
harbors against Jacob. Put a bridle upon him, that he accomplish not all he
wills to do."[117]
When Esau observed
that even his father's love had passed from him to Jacob, he went away, to
Ishmael, and he addressed him as follows: "Lo, as thy father gave all his
possessions to thy brother Isaac, and dismissed thee with empty hands, so my
father purposeth to do to me. Make thyself ready then, go forth and slay thy
brother, and I will slay mine, and then we two shall divide the whole world
between us." And Ishmael replied: "Why dost thou want me to slay thy
father? thou canst do it thyself." Esau said: "It hath happened
aforetime that a man killed his brother- Cain murdered Abel. But that a son
should kill his father is unheard of."
Esau did not really
shrink back from parricide, only it chanced not to fit the plan he had hatched.
"If Ishmael slays my father," he said to himself, "I am the
rightful redeemer, and I shall kill Ishmael to avenge my father, and if, then,
I murder Jacob, too, everything will belong to me, as the heir of my father and
my uncle."[118] This shows that Esau's marriage with Mahalath, the
daughter of Ishmael and grandchild of Abraham, was not concluded out of regard
for his parents, who were opposed to his two other wives, daughters of the
Canaanites. All he desired was to enter into amicable relations with Ishmael in
order to execute his devilish plan.[119]
But Esau reckoned
without his host. The night before his wedding with Mahalath Ishmael died, and
Nebaioth, the son of Ishmael, stepped into his father's place, and gave away
his sister.[120] How little it had been in Esau's mind to make his parents
happy by taking a granddaughter of Abraham to wife, appears from the fact that
he kept his two other wives, the Canaanitish women. The daughter of Ishmael
followed the example of her companions, and thus she but added to the grief
caused the parents of Esau by their daughters-in-law.[121] And the opportunity
might have been a most favorable one for Esau to turn aside from his godless
ways and amend his conduct, for the bridegroom is pardoned on his wedding day
for all his sins committed in years gone by.[122]
Scarcely had Jacob
left his father's house, when Rebekah began to weep, for she was sorely
distressed about him. Isaac comforted her, saying: "Weep not for Jacob! In
peace doth he depart, and in peace will he return. The Lord, God Most High,
will guard him against all evil and be with him. He will not forsake him all
the days of his life. Have no fear for him, for he walketh on the right path,
he is a perfect man, and he hath faith in God--he will not perish."[123]
JACOB PURSUED BY ELIPHAZ AND ESAU
When Jacob went away
to go to Haran, Esau called his son Eliphaz, and secretly spoke unto him,
saying: "Now hasten, take thy sword in thy hand and pursue Jacob, and pass
before him in the road, and lurk for him and slay him with thy sword in one of
the mountains, and take all belonging unto him, and come back." And
Eliphaz was dexterous and expert with the bow, as his father had taught him,
and he was a noted hunter in the field and a valiant man. And Eliphaz did as his
father had commanded him. And Eliphaz was at that time thirteen years old, and
he arose and went and took ten of his mother's brothers with him, and pursued
Jacob. And he followed Jacob closely, and when he overtook him, he lay in
ambush for him on the borders of the land of Canaan, opposite to the city of
Shechem. And Jacob saw Eliphaz and his men pursuing after him, and Jacob stood
in the place in which he was going in order to know what it was, for he did not
understand their purpose. Eliphaz drew his sword and went on advancing, he and
his men, toward Jacob, and Jacob said unto them, "Wherefore have you come
hither, and why do you pursue with your swords?" Eliphaz came near to
Jacob, and answered as follows, "Thus did my father command me, and now
therefore I will not deviate from the orders which my father gave me." And
when Jacob saw that Esau had impressed his command urgently upon Eliphaz, he
approached and supplicated Eliphaz and his men, saying, "Behold, all that
I have, and that which my father and mother gave unto me, that take unto thee
and go from me, and do not slay me, and may this thing that thou wilt do with
me be accounted unto thee as righteousness." And the Lord caused Jacob to
find favor in the sight of Eliphaz and his men, and they hearkened to the voice
of Jacob, and they did not put him to death, but took all his belongings,
together with the silver and gold that he had brought with him from Beer-sheba.
They left him nothing. When Eliphaz and his men returned to Esau, and told him
all that had happened to them with Jacob, he was wroth with his son Eliphaz and
with his men, because they had not put Jacob to death. And they answered, and
said unto Esau, "Because Jacob supplicated us in this matter, not to slay
him, our pity was moved toward him, and we took all belonging to him, and we
came back." Esau then took all the silver and gold which Eliphaz had taken
from Jacob, and he put them by in his house.[124]
Nevertheless Esau
did not give up the hope of intercepting Jacob on his flight and slaying him.
He pursued him, and with his men occupied the road along which he had to
journey to Haran. There a great miracle happened to Jacob. When he observed
what Esau's intention was, he turned off toward the Jordan river, and, with
eyes directed to God, he cleft the waters with his wanderer's staff, and
succeeded in crossing to the other side. But Esau was not to be deterred. He
kept up the pursuit, and reached the hot springs at Baarus before his brother,
who had to pass by there. Jacob, not knowing that Esau was on the watch for
him, decided to bathe in the spring, saying, "I have neither bread nor
other things needful, so I will at least warm my body in the waters of the
well." While he was in the bath, Esau occupied every exit, and Jacob would
surely have perished in the hot water, if the Lord had not caused a miracle to
come to pass. A new opening formed of itself, and through it Jacob escaped.
Thus were fulfilled the words, "When thou passest through the waters, I
will be with thee; when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be
burnt," for Jacob was saved from the waters of the Jordan and from the
fire of the hot spring.
At the same time
with Jacob, a rider, leaving his horse and his clothes on the shore, had
stepped into the river to cool off, but he was overwhelmed by the waves, and he
met his death. Jacob put on the dead man's clothes, mounted his horse, and went
off. It was a lucky chance, for Eliphaz had stripped him of everything, even
his clothes, and the miracle of the river had happened only that he might not
be forced to appear naked among men.[125]
Though Jacob was
robbed of all his possessions, his courage did not fail him. He said:
"Should I lose hope in my Creator? I set my eyes upon the merits of my
fathers. For the sake of them the
Lord will give me His aid." And God said:
"Jacob, thou puttest thy trust in the merits of thy fathers, therefore I
will not suffer thy foot to be moved; He that keepeth thee will not slumber.
Yea, still more! While a keeper watcheth only by day as a rule, and sleepeth by
night, I will guard thee day and night, for, behold, He that keepeth Israel
shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord will keep thee from all evil, from
Esau as well as Laban; He will keep thy soul, that the Angel of Death do thee no
hurt; He will keep thy going out and thy coming in, He will support thee now
thou art leaving Canaan, and when thou returnest to Canaan."[126]
Jacob was reluctant
to leave the Holy Land before he received direct permission from God. "My
parents," he reflected, "bade me go forth and sojourn outside of the
land, but who knows whether it be the will of God that I do as they say, and
beget children outside of the Holy Land?"[127] Accordingly, he betook
himself to Beer-sheba. There, where the Lord had given permission to Isaac to
depart from Canaan and go to Philistia, he would learn the will of the Lord
concerning himself.
He did not follow
the example of his father and grandfather and take refuge with Abimelech,
because he feared the king might force also him into a covenant, and make it
impossible for his descendants of many generations to take possession of the
Philistine land. Nor could he stay at home, because of his fear that Esau might
wrest the birthright and the blessing from him,
and to that he would not and could not
agree.[128] He was as little disposed to take up the combat with Esau, for he
knew the truth of the maxim, "He who courts danger will be overcome by it;
he who avoids danger will overcome it." Both Abraham and Isaac had lived
according to this rule. His grandfather had fled from Nimrod, and his father
had gone away from the Philistines.[129]
THE DAY OF MIRACLES
Jacob's journey to
Haran was a succession of miracles. The first of the five that befell for his
sake in the course of it was that the sun sank while Jacob was passing Mount
Moriah, though it was high noon at the time. He was following the spring that
appeared wherever the Patriarchs went or settled. It accompanied Jacob from
Beer-sheba to Mount Moriah, a two days' journey. When he arrived at the holy
hill, the Lord said to him: "Jacob, thou hast bread in thy wallet, and the
spring of waters is near by to quench thy thirst. Thus thou hast food and
drink, and here thou canst lodge for the night." But Jacob replied: "The
sun has barely passed the fifth of its twelve day stages, why should I lie down
to sleep at so unseemly an hour?" But then Jacob perceived that the sun
was about to sink, and he prepared to make ready his bed.[130] It was the
Divine purpose not to let Jacob pass the site of the future Temple without
stopping; he was to tarry there at least one night. Also, God desired to appear
unto Jacob, and He shows Himself unto His faithful ones only at night.[131] At
the same time Jacob was saved from the pursuit of Esau, who had to desist on
account of the premature darkness.[132]
Jacob took twelve
stones from the altar on which his father Isaac had lain bound as a sacrifice,
and he said: "It was the purpose of God to let twelve tribes arise, but
they have not been begotten by Abraham or Isaac. If, now, these twelve stones
will unite into a single one, then shall I know for a certainty that I am
destined to become the father of the twelve tribes." At this time the
second miracle came to pass, the twelve stones joined themselves together and
made one, which he put under his head, and at once it became soft and downy
like a pillow. It was well that he had a comfortable couch. He was in great
need of rest, for it was the first night in fourteen years that he did not keep
vigils. During all those years, passed in Eber's house of learning, he had
devoted the nights to study. And for twenty years to come he was not to sleep,
for while he was with his uncle Laban, he spent all the night and every night
reciting the Psalms.[133]
On the whole it was
a night of marvels. He dreamed a dream in which the course of the world's
history was unfolded to him. On a ladder set up on the earth, with the top of
it reaching to heaven, he beheld the two angels who had been sent to Sodom. For
one hundred and thirty-eight years they had been banished from the celestial
regions, because they had betrayed their secret mission to Lot. They had
accompanied Jacob from his father's house thither, and now they were ascending
heavenward. When they arrived there, he heard them call the other angels, and
say, "Come ye and see the countenance of the pious Jacob, whose likeness
appears on the Divine throne, ye who yearned long to see it," and then he
beheld the angels descend from heaven to gaze upon him.[134] He also saw the
angels of the four kingdoms ascending the ladder. The angel of Babylon mounted
seventy rounds, the angel of Media, fifty-two, that of Greece, one hundred and
eighty, and that of Edom mounted very high, saying, "I will ascend above
the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High," and Jacob heard
a voice remonstrating, "Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the
uttermost parts of the pit." God Himself reproved Edom, saying,
"Though thou mount on high as the eagle, and though thy nest be set among
the stars, I will bring thee down from thence."[135]
Furthermore, God
showed unto Jacob the revelation at Mount Sinai, the translation of Elijah, the
Temple in its glory and in its spoliation, Nebuchadnezzar's attempt to burn the
three holy children in the fiery furnace, and Daniel's encounter with Bel.[136]
In this, the first
prophetic dream dreamed by Jacob,[137] God made him the promise that the land
upon which he was lying would be given to him, but the land he lay upon was the
whole of Palestine, which God had folded together and put under him.
"And," the promise continued, "thy seed will be like unto the
dust of the earth. As the earth survives all things, so thy children will
survive all the nations of the earth. But as the earth is trodden upon by all,
so thy children, when they commit trespasses, will be trodden upon by the
nations of the earth."[138] And, furthermore, God promised that Jacob
should spread out to the west and to the east, a greater promise than that
given to his fathers Abraham and Isaac, to whom He had allotted a limited land.
Jacob's was an unbounded possession.[139]
From this wondrous
dream Jacob awoke with a start of fright, on account of the vision he had had
of the destruction of the Temple.[140] He cried out, "How dreadful is this
place! this is none other but the house of God, wherein is the gate of heaven
through which prayer ascends to Him." He took the stone made out of the
twelve, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it, which
had flowed down from heaven for him, and God sank this anointed stone unto the
abyss, to serve as the centre of the earth, the same stone, the Eben
Shetiyah,[141] that forms the centre of the sanctuary, whereon the Ineffable
Name is graven, the knowledge of which makes a man master over nature, and over
life and death.[142]
Jacob cast himself
down before the Eben Shetiyah, and entreated God to fulfil the promise He had
given him, and also he prayed that God grant him honorable sustenance. For God
had not mentioned bread to eat and raiment to put on, that Jacob might learn to
have faith in the Lord. Then he vowed to give the tenth of all he owned unto
God, if He would but grant his petition. Thus Jacob was the first to take a vow
upon himself,[143] and the first, too, to separate the tithe from his
income.[144]
God had promised him
almost all that is desirable, but he feared he might forfeit the pledged
blessings through his sinfulness,[145] and again he prayed earnestly that God
bring him back to his father's house unimpaired in body, possessions, and
knowledge,[146] and guard him, in the strange land whither he was going,
against idolatry, an immoral life, and bloodshed.[147]
His prayer at an
end, Jacob set out on his way to Haran, and the third wonder happened. In the twinkling
of an eye he arrived at his destination. The earth jumped from Mount Moriah to
Haran. A wonder like this God has executed only four times in the whole course
of history.[148]
The first thing to
meet his eye in Haran was the well whence the inhabitants drew their supply of
water. Although it was a great city, Haran suffered from dearth of water, and
therefore the well could not be used by the people free of charge. Jacob's
sojourn in the city produced a change. By reason of his meritorious deeds the
water springs were blessed, and the city had water enough for its needs.
Jacob saw a number
of people by the well, and he questioned them, "My brethren, whence be
ye?" He thus made himself a model for all to follow. A man should be
companionable, and address others like brothers and friends, and not wait for
them to greet him. Each one should strive to be the first to give the
salutation of peace, that the angels of peace and compassion may come to meet
him. When he was informed that the by-standers hailed from Haran, he made
inquiry about the character and vocation of his uncle Laban, and whether they
were on terms of friendly intercourse with him. They answered briefly:
"There is peace between us, but if thou art desirous of inquiring further,
here comes Rachel the daughter of Laban. From her thou canst learn all thou
hast a mind to learn." They knew that women like to talk, wherefore they
referred him to Rachel.[149]
Jacob found it
strange that so many should be standing idle by the well, and he questioned
further: "Are you day laborers? then it is too early for you to put by
your work. But if you are pasturing your own sheep, why do you not water your
flocks and let them feed?"[150] They told him they were waiting until all
the shepherds brought their flocks thither, and together rolled the stone from
the mouth of the well. While he was yet speaking with them, Rachel came with
her father's sheep, for Laban had no sons, and a pest having broken out shortly
before among his cattle, so few sheep were left that a maiden like Rachel could
easily tend them. Now, when Jacob saw the daughter of his mother's brother
approaching, he rolled the great stone from the mouth of the well as easily as
a cork is drawn from a bottle--the fourth wonder of this extraordinary day.
Jacob's strength was equal to the strength of all the shepherds; with his two
arms alone he accomplished what usually requires the united forces of a large
assemblage of men. He had been divinely endowed with this supernatural strength
on leaving the Holy Land. God had caused the dew of the resurrection to drop
down upon him, and his physical strength was so great that even in a combat
with the angels he was victorious.[152]
The fifth and last
wonder of the day was that the water rose from the depths of the well to the
very top, there was no need to draw it up, and there it remained all the twenty
years that Jacob abode in Haran.[153]
JACOB WITH LABAN
Rachel's coming to
the well at the moment when Jacob reached the territory belonging to Haran was
an auspicious omen. To meet young maidens on first entering a city is a sure
sign that fortune is favorable to one's undertakings. Experience proves this
through Eliezer, Jacob, Moses, and Saul. They all encountered maidens when they
approached a place new to them, and they all met with success.[154]
Jacob treated Rachel at once as his cousin,
which caused significant whispering among the by-standers. They censured Jacob
for his demeanor toward her, for since God had sent the deluge upon the world,
on account of the immoral life led by men, great chastity had prevailed,
especially among the people of the east. The talk of the men reduced Jacob to
tears. Scarcely had he kissed Rachel when he began to weep, for he repented of
having done it.
There was reason
enough for tears. Jacob could not but remember sadly that Eliezer, his
grandfather's slave, had brought ten camels laden with presents with him to
Haran, when he came to sue for a bride for Isaac, while he had not even a ring
to give to Rachel. Moreover, he foresaw that his favorite wife Rachel would not
lie beside him in the grave, and this, too, made him weep.
As soon as Rachel
heard that Jacob was her cousin, she ran home to tell her father about his
coming. Her mother was no longer among the living, else she would naturally
have gone to her. In great haste Laban ran to receive Jacob. He reflected, if
Eliezer, the bondman, had come with ten camels, what would not the favorite son
of the family bring with him, and when he saw that Jacob was unattended, he
concluded that he carried great sums of money in his girdle, and he threw his
arms about his waist to find out whether his supposition was true. Disappointed
in this, he yet did not give up hope that his nephew Jacob was a man of
substance. Perhaps he concealed precious stones in his mouth, and he kissed him
in order to find out whether he had guessed aright. But Jacob said to him:
"Thou thinkest I have money. Nay, thou art mistaken, I have but
words."[155] Then he went on to tell him how it had come about that he
stood before him empty-handed. He said that his father Isaac had sent him on
his way provided with gold, silver, and money, but he had encountered Eliphaz,
who had threatened to slay him. To this assailant Jacob had spoken thus:
"Know that the descendants of Abraham have an obligation to meet, they
will have to serve four hundred years in a land that is not theirs. If thou
slayest me, then you, the seed of Esau, will have to pay the debt. It were
better, therefore, to take all I have, and spare my life, so that what is owing
may be paid by me. Hence," Jacob continued, "I stand before thee bare
of all the substance carried off by Eliphaz."[156]
This tale of his
nephew's poverty filled Laban with dismay. "What," he exclaimed,
"shall I have to give food and drink for a month or, perhaps, even a year
to this fellow, who has come to me empty-handed!" He betook himself to his
teraphim, to ask them for counsel upon the matter, and they admonished him,
saying: "Beware of sending him away from thy house. His star and his
constellation are so lucky that good fortune will attend all his undertakings,
and for his sake the blessing of the Lord will rest upon all thou doest, in thy
house or in thy field."
Laban was satisfied
with the advice of the teraphim, but he was embarrassed as to the way in which
he was to attach Jacob to his house. He did not venture to offer him service,
lest Jacob's conditions be impossible of fulfilment. Again he resorted to the
teraphim, and asked them with what reward to tempt his nephew, and they
replied: "A wife is his wage; he will ask nothing else of thee but a wife.
It is his nature to be attracted by women, and whenever he threatens to leave
thee, do but offer him another wife, and he will not depart.
Laban went back to
Jacob, and said, "Tell me, what shall thy wages be?" and he replied,
"Thinkest thou I came hither to make money? I came only to get me a
wife,"[158] for Jacob had no sooner beheld Rachel than he fell in love
with her and made her a proposal of marriage. Rachel consented, but added the
warning: "My father is cunning, and thou art not his match." Jacob:
"I am his brother in cunning." Rachel: "But is deception
becoming unto the pious?" Jacob: "Yes, 'with the righteous
righteousness is seemly, and with the deceiver deception.' But," continued
Jacob, "tell me wherein he may deal cunningly with me." Rachel:
"I have an older sister, whom he desires to see married before me, and he
will try to palm her off on thee instead of me." To be prepared for
Laban's trickery, Jacob and Rachel agreed upon a sign by which he would
recognize her in the nuptial night.[159]
Thus warned to be on
his guard against Laban, Jacob worded his agreement with him regarding his
marriage to Rachel with such precision that no room was left for distortion or
guile. Jacob said: "I know that the people of this place are knaves,
therefore I desire to put the matter very clearly to thee. I will serve thee
seven years for Rachel, hence not Leah; for thy daughter, that thou bringest me
not some other woman likewise named Rachel; for the younger daughter, that thou
exchangest not their names in the meantime."
Nothing of all this
availed: "It profits not if a villain is cast into a
sawmill"--neither force nor gentle words can circumvent a rascal. Laban
deceived not only Jacob, but also the guests whom he invited to the wedding.
THE MARRIAGE OF JACOB
After Jacob had
served Laban seven years, he said to his uncle: "The Lord destined me to
be the father of twelve tribes. I am now eighty-four years old, and if I do not
take thought of the matter now, when can I?"[160] Thereupon Laban
consented to let him have his daughter Rachel to wife, and he was married
forty-four years after his brother Esau. The Lord often defers the happiness of
the pious, while He permits the wicked to enjoy the fulfilment of their desires
soon.[161] Esau, however, had purposely chosen his fortieth year for his
marriage; he had wanted to indicate that he was walking in the footsteps of his
father Isaac, who had likewise married at forty years of age. Esau was like a
swine that stretches out its feet when it lies down, to show that it is
cloven-footed like the clean animals, though it is none the less one of the
unclean animals. Until his fortieth year Esau made a practice of violating the wives
of other men, and then at his marriage he acted as though he were following the
example of his pious father. Accordingly, the woman he married was of his own
kind, Judith, a daughter of Heth, for God said: "This one, who is designed
for stubble, to be burnt by fire, shall take unto wife one of a people also
destined for utter destruction." They, Esau and his wife, illustrated the
saying, "Not for naught does the raven consort with the crow; they are
birds of a feather."[162]
Far different it was
with Jacob. He married the two pious and lovely sisters, Leah and Rachel, for
Leah, like her younger sister, was beautiful of countenance, form, and stature.
She had but one defect, her eyes were weak, and this malady she had brought
down upon herself, through her own action. Laban, who had two daughters, and
Rebekah, his sister, who had two sons, had agreed by letter, while their
children were still young, that the older son of the one was to marry the older
daughter of the other, and the younger son the younger daughter. When Leah grew
to maidenhood, and inquired about her future husband, all her tidings spoke of
his villainous character, and she wept over her fate until her eyelashes
dropped from their lids. But Rachel grew more and more beautiful day by day,
for all who spoke of Jacob praised and extolled him, and "good tidings
make the bones fat."
In view of the
agreement between Laban and Rebekah, Jacob refused to marry the older daughter
Leah. As it was, Esau was his mortal enemy, on account of what had happened
regarding the birthright and the paternal blessing. If, now, Jacob married the
maiden appointed for him, Esau would never forgive his younger brother.
Therefore Jacob resolved to take to wife Rachel, the younger daughter of his
uncle.[163]
Laban was of another
mind. He purposed to marry of his older daughter first, for he knew that Jacob
would consent to serve him a second period of seven years for love of Rachel.
On the day of the wedding he assembled the inhabitants of Haran, and addressed
them as follows: "Ye know well that we used to suffer from lack of water,
and as soon as this pious man Jacob came to dwell among us, we had water in
abundance." "What hast thou in mind to do?" they asked Laban. He
replied: "If ye have naught to say against it, I will deceive him and give
him Leah to wife. He loves Rachel with an exceeding great love, and for her
sake he will tarry with us yet seven other years." "Do as it pleaseth
thee," his friends said. "Well, then," said Laban, "let
each one of you give me a pledge that ye will not betray my purpose."
With the pledges
they left with him, Laban bought wine, oil, and meat for the wedding feast, and
he set a meal before them which they had themselves paid for. Because he
deceived his fellow-citizens thus, Laban is called Arami, "the
deceiver." They feasted all day long, until late at night, and when Jacob
expressed his astonishment at the attention shown him, they said to him:
"Through thy piety thou didst a great service of lovingkindness unto us,
our supply of water was increased unto abundance, and we desire to show our
gratitude therefor." And, indeed, they tried to give him a hint of Laban's
purpose. In the marriage ode which they sang they used the refrain
"Halia," in the hope that he would understand it as Ha Leah,
"This is Leah." But Jacob was unsuspicious and noticed nothing.
When the bride was
led into the nuptial chamber, the guests extinguished all the candles, much to
Jacob's amazement. But their explanation satisfied him. "Thinkest
thou," they said, "we have as little sense of decency as thy
countrymen?" Jacob therefore did not discover the deception practiced upon
him until morning. During the night Leah responded whenever he called Rachel,
for which he reproached her bitterly when daylight came. "O thou deceiver,
daughter of a deceiver, why didst thou answer me when I called Rachel's
name?" "Is there a teacher without a pupil?" asked Leah, in
return. "I but profited by thy instruction. When thy father called thee
Esau, didst thou not say, Here am I?"[164]
Jacob was greatly
enraged against Laban, and he said to him: "Why didst thou deal
treacherously with me? Take back thy daughter, and let me depart, seeing thou
didst act wickedly toward me."[165] Laban pacified him, however, saying,
"It is not so done in our place, to give the younger before the
first-born," and Jacob agreed to serve yet seven other years for Rachel,
and after the seven days of the feast of Leah's wedding were fulfilled, he
married Rachel.[166]
With Leah and
Rachel, Jacob received the handmaids Zilpah and Bilhah, two other daughters of
Laban, whom his concubines had borne unto him.[167]
THE BIRTH OF JACOB'S CHILDREN
The ways of God are
not like unto the ways of men. A man clings close to his friend while he has
riches, and forsakes him when he falls into poverty. But when God sees a mortal
unsteady and faltering, He reaches a hand out to him, and raises him up. Thus
it happened with Leah. She was hated by Jacob, and God visited her in mercy.
Jacob's aversion to Leah began the very morning after their wedding, when his
wife taunted him with not being wholly free from cunning and craft himself.
Then God said, "Help can come to Leah only if she gives birth to a child;
then the love of her husband will return to her."[168] God remembered the
tears she had shed when she prayed that her doom, chaining her to that recreant
Esau, be averted from her, and so wondrous are the uses of prayer that Leah,
besides turning aside the impending decree, was permitted to marry Jacob before
her sister and be the first to bear him a child. There was another reason why
the Lord was compassionately inclined toward Leah. She had gotten herself
talked about. The sailors on the sea, the travellers along the highways, the
women at their looms, they all gossiped about Leah, saying, "She is not
within what her seeming is without. She appears to be pious, but if she were,
she would not have deceived her sister."[169] To put an end to all this
tattle, God granted her the distinction of bearing a son at the end of seven
months after her marriage. He was one of a pair of twins, the other child being
a daughter. So it was with eleven of the sons of Jacob, all of them except
Joseph were born twins with a girl, and the twin sister and brother married
later on.[170] Altogether it was an extraordinary childbirth, for Leah was
barren, not formed by nature to bear children.
She called her
first-born son Reuben, which means "See the normal man," for he was
neither big nor little, neither dark nor fair, but exactly normal.[171] In
calling her oldest child Reuben, "See the son," Leah indicated his
future character. "Behold the difference," the name implied,
"between my first-born son and the first-born son of my father in-law.
Esau sold his birthright to Jacob of his own free will, and yet he hated him.
As for my first-born son, although his birthright was taken from him without
his consent, and given to Joseph, it was nevertheless he who rescued Joseph
from the hands of his brethren."[172]
Leah called her
second son Shime'on, "Yonder is sin," for one of his descendants was
that Zimri who was guilty of vile trespasses with the daughters of Moab.[173]
The name of her
third son, Levi, was given him by God Himself, not by his mother. The Lord
summoned him through the angel Gabriel, and bestowed the name upon him as one
who is "crowned" with the twenty-four gifts that are the tribute due
to the priests.[174]
At the birth of her
fourth son, Leah returned thanks to God for a special reason. She knew that
Jacob would beget twelve sons, and if they were distributed equally among his
four wives, each would bear three. But now it appeared that she had one more
than her due share, and she called him Jehudah, "thanks unto God."
She was thus the first since the creation of the world to give thanks to
God,[175] and her example was followed by David and Daniel, the descendants of
her son Judah.
When Rachel saw that
her sister had borne Jacob four sons, she envied Leah. Not that she begrudged
her the good fortune she enjoyed, she only envied her for her piety, saying to
herself that it was to her righteous conduct that she owed the blessing of many
children.[176] Then she besought Jacob: "Pray unto God for me, that He
grant me children, else my life is no life. Verily, there are four that may be
regarded as though they were dead, the blind, the leper, the childless, and he
who was once rich and has lost his fortune." Jacob's anger was kindled
against Rachel, and he said: "It were better thou shouldst address thy
petition to God, and not to me, for am I in God's stead, who hath withheld from
thee the fruit of the womb?"[177] God was displeased with this answer that
Jacob made to his sad wife. He rebuked him with the words: "Is it thus
thou wouldst comfort a grief-stricken heart? As thou livest, the day will come
when thy children will stand before the son of Rachel, and he will use the same
words thou hast but now used, saying, 'Am I in the place of the Lord?' "
Rachel also made
reply to Jacob, saying: "Did not thy father, too, entreat God for thy mother
with earnest words, beseeching Him to remove her barrenness?" Jacob:
"It is true, but Isaac had no children, and I have several." Rachel:
"Remember thy grandfather Abraham, thou canst not deny that he had
children when he supplicated God in behalf of Sarah!" Jacob: "Wouldst
thou do for me what Sarah did for my grandfather?" Rachel: "Pray,
what did she?" Jacob: "She herself brought a rival into her
house." Rachel: "If that is all that is necessary, I am ready to
follow the example of Sarah, and I pray that as she was granted a child for
having invited a rival, so may I be blessed, too."[178] Thereupon Rachel
gave Jacob Bilhah, her freed handmaid, to wife, and she bore him a son, whom
Rachel called Dan, saying, "As the Lord was gracious unto me and gave me a
son according to my petition, so He will permit Samson, the descendant of Dan,
to judge his people, that it fall not into the hands of the
Philistines."[179] Bilhah's second son Rachel named Naphtali, saying,
"Mine is the bond that binds Jacob to this place, for it was for my sake
that he came to Laban." At the same time she wanted to convey by this name
that the Torah, which is as sweet as Nofet, "honeycomb," would be
taught in the territory of Naphtali.[180] And the name had still a third
meaning: "As God hath heard my fervent prayer for a son, so He will
hearken unto the fervent prayer of the Naphtalites when they are beset by their
enemies."[181]
Leah, seeing that
she had left bearing, while Bilhah, her sister's handmaid, bore Jacob two sons,
concluded that it was Jacob's destiny to have four wives, her sister and
herself, and their half-sisters Bilhah and Zilpah. Therefore she also gave him
her handmaid to wife.[182] Zilpah was the youngest of the four women. It was
the custom of that time to give the older daughter the older handmaid, and the
younger daughter the younger handmaid, as their dowry, when they got married.
Now, in order to make Jacob believe that his wife was the younger daughter he
had served for, Laban had given Leah the younger handmaid as her marriage
portion. This Zilpah was so young that her body betrayed no outward signs of
pregnancy, and nothing was known of her condition until her son was born. Leah
called the boy Gad, which means "fortune," or it may mean "the cutter,"
for from Gad was descended the prophet Elijah, who brings good fortune to
Israel, and he also cuts down the heathen world.[183] Leah had other reasons,
too, for choosing this name of double meaning. The tribe of Gad had the good
fortune of entering into possession of its allotment in the Holy Land before
any of the others,[184] and, also, Gad the son of Jacob was born
circumcised.[185]
To Zilpah's second
son Leah gave the name of Asher, "praise," for, she said, "Unto
me all manner of praise is due, for I brought my handmaid into the house of my
husband as wife. Sarah did likewise, but only because she had no children, and
so it was also with Rachel. But as for me, I had children, and nevertheless I
subdued my passion, and without jealousy I gave my handmaid to my husband for
wife. Verily, all will praise and extol me."[186] Furthermore she spoke:
"As the women will praise me, so the sons of Asher will in time to come
praise God for their fruitful possession in the Holy Land."[187]
The next son born
unto Jacob was Issachar, "a reward," and once more it was Leah who
was permitted to bring forth the child, as a reward from God for her pious
desire to have the twelve tribes come into the world. To secure this result,
she left no means untried.[188]
It happened once that
her oldest son Reuben was tending his father's ass during the harvest, and he
bound him to a root of dudaim, and went his way. On returning, he found the
dudaim torn out of the ground, and the ass lying dead beside it. The beast had
uprooted it in trying to get loose, and the plant has a peculiar quality,
whoever tears it up must die.[189] As it was the time of the harvest, when it
is permitted for any one to take a plant from a field, and as dudaim is,
besides, a plant which the owner of a field esteems lightly, Reuben carried it
home. Being a good son, he did not keep it for himself, but gave it to his
mother. Rachel desired the dudaim, and she asked the plant of Leah, who parted
with it to her sister, but on the condition that Jacob, when he returned from
work in the evening, should tarry with her for a while. It was altogether
unbecoming conduct in Rachel to dispose thus of her husband. She gained the
dudaim, but she lost two tribes. If she had acted otherwise, she would have
borne four sons instead of two. And she suffered another punishment, her body
was not permitted to rest in the grave beside her husband's.
Jacob came home from
the field after night had fallen, for he observed the law obliging a day
laborer to work until darkness sets in, and Jacob's zeal in the affairs of
Laban was as great in the last seven years, after his marriage, as in the first
seven, while he was serving for the hand of Rachel.[190] When Leah heard the
braying of Jacob's ass, she ran to meet her husband,[191] and without giving
him time to wash his feet, she insisted upon his turning aside into her
tent.[192] At first Jacob refused to go, but God compelled him to enter, for
unto God it was known that Leah acted from pure, disinterested motives.[193]
Her dudaim secured two sons for her, Issachar, the father of the tribe that
devotes itself to the study of the Torah, whence his name meaning
"reward," and Zebulon, whose descendants carried on commerce, using
their profits to enable their brethren of Issachar to keep at their studies.[194]
Leah called this last-born son of hers Zebulon, "dwelling-place," for
she said, "Now will my husband dwell with me, seeing that I have borne him
six sons, and, also, the sons of Zebulon will have a goodly dwelling-place in
the Holy Land."[195]
Leah bore once more,
and this last time it was a daughter, a man child turned into a woman by her
prayer. When she conceived for the seventh time, she spake as follows:
"God promised Jacob twelve sons. I bore him six, and each of the two
handmaids has borne him two. If, now, I were to bring forth another son, my
sister Rachel would not be equal even unto the handmaids." Therefore she
prayed to God to change the male embryo in her womb into a female, and God
hearkened unto her prayer.[196]
Now all the wives of
Jacob, Leah, Rachel, Zilpah, and Bilhah, united their prayers with the prayer
of Jacob, and together they besought God to remove the curse of barrenness from
Rachel. On New Year's Day, the day whereon God sits in judgment upon the
inhabitants of the earth, He remembered Rachel, and granted her a son.[197] And
Rachel spake, "God hath taken away my reproach," for all the people
had said that she was not a pious woman, else had she borne children, and now
that God had hearkened to her, and opened her womb, such idle talk no longer
had any reason.[198]
By bearing a son,
she had escaped another disgrace. She had said to herself: "Jacob hath a
mind to return to the land of his birth, and my father will not be able to
hinder his daughters who have borne him children from following their husband
thither with their children. But he will not let me, the childless wife, go,
too, and he will keep me here and marry me to one of the
uncircumcised."[199] She said furthermore, "As my son hath removed my
reproach, so Joshua, his descendant, will roll away a reproach from the
Israelites, when he circumcises them beyond Jordan."[200]
Rachel called her
son Joseph, "increase," saying, "God will give me an additional
son." Prophetess as she was, she foresaw she would have a second son. But
an increase added on by God is larger than the original capital itself.
Benjamin, the second son, whom Rachel regarded merely as a supplement, had ten
sons, while Joseph begot only two. These twelve together may be considered the
twelve tribes borne by Rachel.[201] Had Rachel not used the form of expression,
"The Lord add to me another son," she herself would have begotten
twelve tribes with Jacob.[202]
JACOB FLEES BEFORE LABAN
Jacob had only been
waiting for Joseph to be born to begin preparations for his journey home. The
holy spirit had revealed to him that the house of Joseph would work the
destruction of the house of Esau, and, therefore, Jacob exclaimed at the birth
of Joseph, "Now I need not fear Esau or his legions.[203]
About this time,
Rebekah sent her nurse Deborah, the daughter of Uz, accompanied by two of
Isaac's servants, to Jacob, to urge him to return to his father's house, now
that his fourteen years of service had come to an end. Then Jacob approached
Laban, and spoke, "Give me my wives and my children, that I may go unto
mine own place, and to my country, for my mother has sent messengers unto me,
bidding me to return to my father's house."[204] Laban answered, saying,
"O that I might find favor in thine eyes! By a sign it was made known unto
me that God blesseth me for thy sake." What Laban had in mind was the
treasure he had found on the day Jacob came to him, and he considered that a
token of his beneficent powers.[205] Indeed, God had wrought many a thing in
the house of Laban that testified to the blessings spread abroad by the pious.
Shortly before Jacob came, a pest had broken out among Laban's cattle, and with
his arrival it ceased.[206] And Laban had had no son, but during Jacob's
sojourn in Haran sons were born unto him.[207]
All the hire he
asked in return for his labor and for the blessings he had brought Laban was
the speckled and spotted among the goats of his herd, and the black among the
sheep. Laban assented to his conditions, saying, "Behold, I would it might
be according to thy word." The arch-villain Laban, whose tongue wagged in
all directions, and who made all sorts of promises that were never kept, judged
others by himself, and therefore suspected Jacob of wanting to deceive
him.[208] And yet, in the end, it was Laban himself who broke his word. No less
than a hundred times he changed the agreement between them. Nevertheless his
unrighteous conduct was of no avail. Though a three days' journey had been set
betwixt Laban's flocks and Jacob's, the angels were wont to bring the sheep
belonging to Laban down to Jacob's sheep, and Jacob's droves grew constantly
larger and better.[209] Laban had given only the feeble and sick to Jacob, yet
the young of the flock, raised under Jacob's tendance, were so excellent in
quality that people bought them at a heavy price.[210] And Jacob had no need to
resort to the peeled rods. He had but to speak, and the flocks bare according
to his desire.[211] What Laban deserved was utter ruin, for having permitted
the pious Jacob to work for him without hire, and after his wages had been
changed ten times, and ten times Laban had tried to overreach him, God rewarded
him in this way.[212] But his good luck with the flocks was only what Jacob
deserved. Every faithful laborer is rewarded by God in this world, quite
regardless of what awaits him in the world to come.[213] With empty hands Jacob
had come to Laban, and he left him with herds numbering six hundred thousand.
Their increase had been marvellous, an increase that will be equalled only in
the Messianic time.[214]
The wealth and good
fortune of Jacob called forth the envy of Laban and his sons, and they could
not hide their vexation in their intercourse with him. And the Lord said unto
Jacob, "Thy father-in-law's countenance is not toward thee as beforetime,
and yet thou tarriest with him? Do thou rather return unto the land of thy
fathers, and there I will let My Shekinah rest upon thee, for I cannot permit
the Shekinah to reside outside of the Holy Land."[215] Immediately Jacob sent
the fleet messenger Naphtali[216] to Rachel and Leah to summon them to a
consultation, and he chose as the place of meeting the open field, where none
could overhear what was said.[217]
His two wives
approved the plan of returning to his home, and Jacob resolved at once to go
away with all his substance, without as much as acquainting Laban with his
intention. Laban was gone to shear his sheep, and so Jacob could execute his
plan without delay.
That her father
might not learn about their flight from his teraphim, Rachel stole them, and
she took them and concealed them upon the camel upon which she sat, and she
went on. And this is the manner they used to make the images: They took a man
who was the first-born, slew him and took the hair off his head, then salted
the head, and anointed it with oil, then they wrote "the Name" upon a
small tablet of copper or gold, and placed it under his tongue. The head with
the tablet under the tongue was then put in a house where lights were lighted
before it, and at the time when they bowed down to it, it spoke to them on all
matters that they asked of it, and that was due to the power of the Name which
was written upon it.[218]
THE COVENANT WITH LABAN
Jacob departed and
crossed the Euphrates, and set his face toward Gilead, for the holy spirit
revealed to him that God would bring help there to his children in the days of
Jephthah. Meantime the shepherds of Haran observed that the well, which had
been filled to overflowing since the arrival of Jacob in their place, ran dry
suddenly. For three days they watched and waited, in the hope that the waters
would return in the same abundance as before. Disappointed, they finally told
Laban of the misfortune, and he divined at once that Jacob had departed thence,
for he knew that the blessing had been conferred upon Haran only for the sake
of his son-in-law's merits.[219]
On the morrow Laban
rose early, assembled all the people of the city, and pursued Jacob with the
intention of killing him when he overtook him. But the archangel Michael
appeared unto him, and bade him take heed unto himself, that he do not the
least unto Jacob, else would he suffer death himself.[220] This message from
heaven came to Laban during the night, for when, in extraordinary cases, God
finds it necessary to reveal Himself unto the heathen, He does it only in the
dark, clandestinely as it were, while He shows Himself to the prophets of the
Jews openly, during daylight.
Laban accomplished
the journey in one day for which Jacob had taken seven,[221] and he overtook
him at the mountain of Gilead. When he came upon Jacob, he found him in the act
of praying and giving praise unto God.[222] Immediately Laban fell to
remonstrating with his son-in-law for having stolen away unawares to him. He
showed his true character when he said, "It is in the power of my hand to
do thee hurt, but the God of thy father spake unto me yesternight, saying, Take
heed to thyself that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad." That is
the way of the wicked, they boast of the evil they can do. Laban wanted to let
Jacob know that only the dream warning him against doing aught that was harmful
to Jacob prevented him from carrying out the wicked design he had formed
against him.[223]
Laban continued to
take Jacob to task, and he concluded with the words, "And now, though thou
wouldst needs be gone, because thou sore longedst after thy father's house, yet
wherefore hast thou stolen my gods?" When he pronounced the last words,
his grandchildren interrupted him, saying, "We are ashamed of thee,
grandfather, that in thy old age thou shouldst use such words as 'my gods.'
" Laban searched all the tents for his idols, going first to the tent of
Jacob, which was Rachel's at the same time, for Jacob always dwelt with his
favorite wife. Finding nothing, he went thence to Leah's tent, and to the tents
of the two handmaids, and, noticing that Rachel was feeling about here and
there, his suspicions were aroused, and he entered her tent a second time. He
would now have found what he was looking for, if a miracle had not come to
pass. The teraphim were transformed into drinking vessels, and Laban had to
desist from his fruitless search.
Now Jacob, who did
not know that Rachel had stolen her father's teraphim in order to turn him
aside from his idolatrous ways, was wroth with Laban, and began to chide with
him. In the quarrel between them, Jacob's noble character manifested itself.
Notwithstanding his excitement, he did not suffer a single unbecoming word to
escape him. He only reminded Laban of the loyalty and devotion with which he
had served him, doing for him what none other would or could have done. He
said: "I dealt wrongfully with the lion, for God had appointed of Laban's
sheep for the lion's daily sustenance, and I deprived him thereof. Could another
shepherd have done thus? Yes, the people abused me, calling me robber and sneak
thief, for they thought that only by stealing by day and stealing by night
could I replace the animals torn by wild beasts. And as to my honesty," he
continued, "is it likely there is another son-in-law who, having lived
with his father-in-law, hath not taken some little thing from the household of
his father-in-law, a knife, or other trifle? But thou hast felt about all my
stuff, what hast thou found of all thy household stuff? Not so much as a needle
or a nail."
In his indignation,
and conscious of his innocence, Jacob exclaimed, "With whomsoever thou
findest thy gods, he shall not live," words which contained a curse--the
thief was cursed with premature death, and therefore Rachel had to die in
giving birth to Benjamin. Indeed, the curse would have taken effect at once,
had it not been the wish of God that Rachel should bear Jacob his youngest
son.[224]
After the quarrel,
the two men made a treaty, and with his gigantic strength Jacob set up a huge
rock as a memorial, and a heap of stones as a sign of their covenant. In this
matter Jacob followed the example of his fathers, who likewise had covenanted
with heathen nations, Abraham with the Jebusites, and Isaac with the Philistines.
Therefore Jacob did not hesitate to make a treaty with the Arameans.[225] Jacob
summoned his sons, calling them brethren, for they were his peers in piety and
strength, and he bade them cast up heaps of stones. Thereupon he swore unto his
father-in-law that he would take no wives beside his four daughters, either
while they were alive or after their death, and Laban, on his part, swore that
he would not pass over the heaps or over the pillar unto Jacob with hostile
intent,[226] and he took the oath by the God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor,
while Jacob made mention of the Fear of Isaac. He refrained from using the term
"the God of Isaac," because God never unites His name with that of a
living person, for the reason that so long as a man has not ended his years, no
trust may be put in him, lest he be seduced by the evil inclination. It is
true, when He appeared unto Jacob at Beth-el, God called Himself "the God
of Isaac." There was a reason for the unusual phrase. Being blind, Isaac
led a retired life, within his tent, and the evil inclination had no power over
him any more. But though God had full confidence in Isaac, yet Jacob could not
venture to couple the name of God with the name of a living man, wherefore he
took his oath by "the Fear of Isaac."[227]
Early in the morning
after the day of covenanting, Laban rose up, and kissed his grandchildren and
his daughters, and blessed them. But these acts and words of his did not come
from the heart; in his innermost thoughts he regretted that Jacob and his
family and his substance had escaped him.[228] His true feelings he betrayed in
the message which he sent to Esau at once upon his return to Haran, by the hand
of his son Beor and ten companions of his son. The message read: "Hast
thou heard what Jacob thy brother has done unto me, who first came to me naked
and bare, and I went to meet him, and took him to my house with honor, and
brought him up, and gave him my two daughters for wives, and also two of my
maids? And God blessed him on my account, and he increased abundantly, and had
sons and daughters and maidservants, and also an uncommon stock of flocks and
herds, camels and asses, also silver and gold in abundance. But when he saw
that his wealth increased, he left me while I went to shear my sheep, and he
rose up and fled in secrecy. And he put his wives and children upon camels, and
he led away all his cattle and substance which he acquired in my land, and he
resolved to go to his father Isaac, to the land of Canaan. And he did not
suffer me to kiss my sons and daughters, and he carried away my daughters as
captives of the sword, and he also stole my gods, and he fled. And now I have
left him in the mountain of the brook of Jabbok, he and all belonging to him,
not a jot of his substance is lacking. If it be thy wish to go to him, go, and
there wilt thou find him, and thou canst do unto him as thy soul
desireth."[229]
Jacob had no need to
fear either Laban or Esau, for on his journey he was accompanied by two angel
hosts, one going with him from Haran to the borders of the Holy Land, where he
was received by the other host, the angels of Palestine.[230] Each of these
hosts consisted of no less than six hundred thousand angels,[231] and when he
beheld them, Jacob said: "Ye belong neither to the host of Esau, who is
preparing to go out to war against me, nor the host of Laban, who is about to
pursue me again. Ye are the hosts of the holy angels sent by the Lord."
And he gave the name Mahanaim, Double-Host, to the spot on which the second
army relieved the first.[232]
JACOB AND ESAU PREPARE TO MEET
The message of Laban
awakened Esau's old hatred toward Jacob with increased fury, and he assembled
his household, consisting of sixty men. With them and three hundred and forty
inhabitants of Seir, he went forth to do battle with Jacob and kill him. He
divided his warriors into seven cohorts, giving to his son Eliphaz his own
division of sixty, and putting the other six divisions under as many of the
Horites.
While Esau was
hastening onward to meet Jacob, the messengers which Laban had sent to Esau
came to Rebekah and told her that Esau and his four hundred men were about to
make war upon Jacob, with the purpose of slaying him and taking possession of
all he had. Anxious lest Esau should execute his plan while yet Jacob was on
the journey, she hastily dispatched seventy-two of the retainers of Isaac's
household, to give him help. Jacob, tarrying on the banks of the brook Jabbok,
rejoiced at the sight of these men, and he greeted them with the words, "This
is God's helping host," wherefore he called the place of their meeting
Mahanaim, Host.
After the warriors
sent by Rebekah had satisfied his questions regarding the welfare of his
parents, they delivered his mother's message unto him, thus: "I have
heard, my son, that thy brother Esau hath gone forth against thee on the road,
with men of the children of Seir the Horite, and therefore, my son, hearken to
my voice, and take counsel with thyself what thou wilt do, and when he cometh
up to thee, supplicate him, and do not speak roughly to him, and give him a
present from what thou possessest, and from what God has favored thee with. And
when he asketh thee concerning thy affairs, conceal nothing from him, perhaps
he may turn from his anger against thee, and thou wilt thereby save thy soul,
thou and all belonging to thee, for it is thy duty to honor him, since he is
thy elder brother."
And when Jacob heard
the words of his mother which the messengers had spoken to him, he lifted up
his voice and wept bitterly, and did as his mother commanded him.
He sent messengers
to Esau to placate him, and they said unto him: "Thus speaketh thy servant
Jacob: My lord, think not that the blessing which my father bestowed upon me
profited me. Twenty years I served Laban, and he deceived me, and changed my
hire ten times, as thou well knowest. Yet did I labor sorely in his house, and
God saw my affliction, my labor, and the work of my hands, and afterward He
caused me to find grace and favor in the sight of Laban. And through God's
great mercy and kindness, I acquired oxen and asses and cattle and men-servants
and maid servants. And now I am coming to my country and to my home, to my
father and mother, who are in the land of Canaan. And I have sent to let my
lord know all this in order to find favor in the eyes of my lord, so that he
may not imagine that I have become a man of substance, or that the blessing
with which my father blessed me has benefited me."[233]
Furthermore spake
the messengers: "Why dost thou envy me in respect to the blessing
wherewith my father blessed me? Is it that the sun shineth in my land, and not
in thine? Or doth the dew and the rain fall only upon my land, and not upon
thine? If my father blessed me with the dew of heaven, he blessed thee with the
fatness of the earth, and if he spoke to me, Peoples will serve thee, he hath
said unto thee, By thy sword shalt thou live. How long, then, wilt thou
continue to envy me? Come, now, let us set up a covenant between us, that we
will share equally all the vexations that may occur."
Esau would not agree
to this proposal, his friends dissuaded him therefrom, saying, "Accept not
these conditions, for God hath said to Abraham, Know of a surety that thy seed
shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve the people
thereof, and the aliens shall afflict them four hundred years. Wait, therefore,
until Jacob and his family go down into Egypt to pay off this debt."
Jacob also sent word
to Esau, saying: "Though I dwelt with that heathen of the heathen, Laban,
yet have I not forgotten my God, but I fulfil the six hundred and thirteen
commandments of the Torah.[234] If thy mind be set upon peace, thou wilt find
me ready for peace. But if thy desire be war, thou wilt find me ready for war.
I have with me men of valor and strength, they have but to utter a word, and
God fulfils it. I tarried with Laban until Joseph should be born, he who is
destined to subdue thee.[235] And though my descendants be held in bondage in
this world, yet a day will come when they will rule over their
rulers."[236]
In reply to all
these gentle words, Esau spoke with arrogance: "Surely I have heard, and
truly it has been told unto me what Jacob has been to Laban, who brought him up
in his house, and gave him his daughters for wives, and he begot sons and
daughters, and abundantly increased in wealth and riches in Laban's house and
with his help. And when he saw that his wealth was abundant and his riches were
great, he fled with all belonging to him from Laban's house, and he carried away
Laban's daughters from their father as captives of the sword, without telling
him of it. And not only to Laban hath Jacob done thus, but also unto me hath he
done so, and he hath twice supplanted me, and shall I be silent? Now, I have
this day come with my camp to meet him, and I will do unto him according to the
desire of my heart."
The messengers
dispatched by Jacob now returned to him, and reported these words of Esau unto
him.[237] They also told him that his brother was advancing against him with an
army consisting of four hundred crowned heads, each leading a host of four
hundred men.[238] "It is true, thou art his brother, and thou treatest him
as a brother should," they said to Jacob, "but he is an Esau, thou
must be made aware of his villainy."[239]
Jacob bore in mind
the promise of God, that He would bring him back to his father's house in
peace, yet the report about his brother's purpose alarmed him greatly. A pious
man may never depend upon promises of earthly good. God does not keep the promise
if he is guilty of the smallest conceivable trespass, and Jacob feared that he
might have forfeited happiness by reason of a sin committed by him. Moreover,
he was anxious lest Esau be the one favored by God, inasmuch as he had these
twenty years been fulfilling two Divine commands that Jacob had had to
disregard. Esau had been living in the Holy Land, Jacob outside of it; the
former had been in attendance upon his parents, the latter dwelling at a
distance from them. And much as he feared defeat, Jacob also feared the
reverse, that he might be victorious over Esau, or might even slay his brother,
which would be as bad as to be slain by him. And he was depressed by another
apprehension, that his father had died, for he reasoned that Esau would not
take such warlike steps against his own brother, were his father still
alive.[240]
When his wives saw
the anxiety that possessed Jacob, they began to quarrel with him, and reproach
him for having taken them away from their father's house, though he knew that
such danger threatened from Esau.[241] Then Jacob determined to apply the three
means that might save him from the fate impending: he would cry to God for
help, appease Esau's wrath with presents, and hold himself in readiness for war
if the worst came to the worst.[242]
He prayed to God:
"O Thou God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, God of all
who walk in the ways of the pious and do like unto them! I am not worthy of the
least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which Thou hast showed unto Thy
servant. O Lord of the world, as Thou didst not suffer Laban to execute his
evil designs against me, so also bring to naught the purpose of Esau, who
desireth to slay me. O Lord of the world, in Thy Torah which Thou wilt give us
on Mount Sinai it is written, And whether it be cow or ewe, ye shall not kill
it and her young both in one day. If this wretch should come and murder my
children and their mothers at the same time, who would then desire to read Thy
Torah which Thou wilt give us on Mount Sinai? And yet Thou didst speak, For the
sake of thy merits and for the merits of thy fathers I will do good unto thee,
and in the future world thy children shall be as numerous as the sand of the
sea."
As Jacob prayed for
his own deliverance, so also he prayed for the salvation of his descendants,
that they might not be annihilated by the descendants of Esau.
Such was the prayer
of Jacob when he saw Esau approaching from afar, and God heard his petition and
looked upon his tears, and He gave him the assurance that for his sake his
descendants, too, would be redeemed from all distress.[243]
Then the Lord sent
three angels, and they went before Esau, and they appeared unto Esau and his
people as hundreds and thousands of men riding upon horses. They were furnished
with all sorts of weapons, and divided into four columns. And one division went
on, and they found Esau coming with four hundred men, and the division ran
toward them, and terrified them. Esau fell off his horse in alarm, and all his
men separated from him in great fear, while the approaching column shouted
after them, "Verily, we are the servants of Jacob, the servant of God, and
who can stand against us?" Esau then said unto them, "O, then my lord
and brother Jacob is your lord, whom I have not seen these twenty years, and
now that I have this day come to see him, do you treat me in this manner?"
The angels answered, "As the Lord liveth, were not Jacob thy brother, we
had not left one remaining of thee and thy people, but on account of Jacob we
will do nothing to thee." This division passed from Esau, and when he had
gone from there about a league, the second division came toward him, and they
also did unto Esau and his men as the first had done to them, and when they
permitted him to go on, the third came and did like the first, and when the
third had passed also, and Esau still continued with his men on the road to
Jacob, the fourth division came and did to them as the others had done. And
Esau was greatly afraid of his brother, because he thought that the four
columns of the army which he had encountered were the servants of Jacob.
After Jacob had made
an end of praying, he divided all that journeyed with him into two companies,
and he set over them Damesek and Alinus, the two sons of Eliezer, the bondman
of Abraham, and their sons.[244] Jacob's example teaches us not to conceal the
whole of our fortune in one hiding-place, else we run the danger of losing
everything at one stroke.
Of his cattle he
sent a part to Esau as a present, first dividing it into three droves in order
to impress his brother more. When Esau received the first drove, he would think
he had the whole gift that had been sent to him, and suddenly he would be
astonished by the appearance of the second portion, and again by the third.
Jacob knew his brother's avarice only too well.[245]
The men who were the
bearers of Jacob's present to Esau were charged with the following message,
"This is an offering to my lord Esau from his slave Jacob." But God
took these words of Jacob in ill part, saying, "Thou profanest what is
holy when thou callest Esau lord." Jacob excused himself; he was but
flattering the wicked in order to escape death at his hands.[246]
JACOB WRESTLES WITH THE ANGEL
The servants of
Jacob went before him with the present for Esau, and he followed with his wives
and his children. As he was about to pass over the ford of Jabbok, he observed
a shepherd, who likewise had sheep and camels. The stranger approached Jacob
and proposed that they should ford the stream together, and help each other
move their cattle over, and Jacob assented, on the condition that his
possessions should be put across first. In the twinkling of an eye Jacob's
sheep were transferred to the other side of the stream by the shepherd. Then
the flocks of the shepherd were to be moved by Jacob, but no matter how many he
took over to the opposite bank, always there remained some on the hither shore.
There was no end to the cattle, though Jacob labored all the night through. At
last he lost patience, and he fell upon the shepherd and caught him by the
throat, crying out, "O thou wizard, thou wizard, at night no enchantment
succeeds!" The angel thought, "Very well, let him know once for all
with whom he has had dealings," and with his finger he touched the earth,
whence fire burst forth. But Jacob said, "What! thou thinkest thus to
affright me, who am made wholly of fire?"[247]
The shepherd was no
less a personage than the archangel Michael, and in his combat with Jacob he
was assisted by the whole host of angels under his command. He was on the point
of inflicting a dangerous wound upon Jacob, when God appeared, and all the
angels, even Michael himself, felt their strength ooze away. Seeing that he
could not prevail against Jacob, the archangel touched the hollow of his thigh,
and injured him, and God rebuked him, saying, "Dost thou act as is seemly,
when thou causest a blemish in My priest Jacob?" Michael said in
astonishment, "Why, it is I who am Thy priest!" But God said,
"Thou art My priest in heaven, and he is My priest on earth."
Thereupon Michael summoned the archangel Raphael, saying, "My comrade, I
pray thee, help me out of my distress, for thou art charged with the healing of
all disease," and Raphael cured Jacob of the injury Michael had inflicted.
The Lord continued
to reproach Michael, saying, "Why didst thou do harm unto My first-born
son?" and the archangel answered, "I did it only to glorify
Thee," and then God appointed Michael as the guardian angel of Jacob and
his seed unto the end of all generations, with these words: "Thou art a
fire, and so is Jacob a fire; thou art the head of the angels, and he is the
head of the nations; thou art supreme over all the angels, and he is supreme
over all the peoples. Therefore he who is supreme over all the angels shall be
appointed unto him who is supreme over all the peoples, that he may entreat
mercy for him from the Supreme One over all."
Then Michael said
unto Jacob, "How is it possible that thou who couldst prevail against me,
the most distinguished of the angels, art afraid of Esau?"
When the day broke,
Michael said to Jacob, "Let me go, for the day breaketh," but Jacob
held him back, saying, "Art thou a thief, or a gambler with dice, that
thou fearest the daylight?" At that moment appeared many different hosts
of angels, and they called unto Michael: "Ascend, O Michael, the time of
song hath come, and if thou art not in heaven to lead the choir, none will
sing." And Michael entreated Jacob with supplications to let him go, for
he feared the angels of 'Arabot would consume him with fire, if he were not
there to start the songs of praise at the proper time. Jacob said, "I will
not let thee go, except thou bless me," whereto Michael made reply:
"Who is greater, the servant or the son? I am the servant, and thou art
the son. Why, then, cravest thou my blessing?"[248] Jacob urged as an
argument, "The angels that visited Abraham did not leave without blessing
him," but Michael held, "They were sent by God for that very purpose,
and I was not." Yet Jacob insisted upon his demand, and Michael pleaded
with him, saying, "The angels that betrayed a heavenly secret were
banished from their place for one hundred and thirty eight years. Dost thou
desire that I should acquaint thee with what would cause my banishment likewise?"
In the end the angel nevertheless had to yield; Jacob could not be moved, and
Michael took counsel with himself thus: "I will reveal a secret to him,
and if God demands to know why I revealed it, I will make answer, Thy children
stand upon their wishes with Thee, and Thou dost yield to them. How, then,
could I have left Jacob's wish unfulfilled?"
Then Michael spoke
to Jacob, saying: "A day will come when God will reveal Himself unto thee,
and He will change thy name, and I shall be present when He changeth it.[249]
Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel, for happy thou, of woman
born, who didst enter the heavenly palace, and didst escape thence with thy
life." And Michael blessed Jacob with the words, "May it be the will
of God that thy descendants be as pious as thou art."[250]
At the same time the
archangel reminded Jacob that he had promised to give a tithe of his
possessions unto God, and at once Jacob separated five hundred and fifty head
of cattle from his herds, which counted fifty-five hundred. Then Michael went
on, "But thou hast sons, and of them thou hast not set apart the
tenth." Jacob proceeded to pass his sons in review: Reuben, Joseph, Dan,
and Gad being the first-born, each of his mother, were exempt, and there
remained but eight sons, and when he had named them, down to Benjamin, he had
to go back and begin over again with Simon, the ninth, and finish with Levi as
the tenth.
Michael took Levi
with him into heaven, and presented him before God, saying, "O Lord of the
world, this one is Thy lot, and the tenth belonging unto Thee," and God
stretched forth His hand and
blessed Levi with the blessing that his
children should be the servants of God on earth as the angels were His servants
on high. Michael spoke again, "Doth not a king provide for the sustenance
of his servants?" whereupon God appointed for the Levites all that was
holy unto the Lord.[251]
Then Jacob spoke to
the angel: "My father conferred the blessing upon me that was intended for
Esau, and now I desire to know whether thou wilt acknowledge the blessing as
mine, or wilt bring charges against me on account of it." And the angel
said: "I acknowledge the blessing to be thine by right. Thou didst not
gain it by craft and cunning, and I and all the heavenly powers recognize it to
be valid, for thou hast shown thyself master over the mighty powers of the
heavens as over Esau and his legions."[252]
And even then Jacob
would not let the angel depart, he had to reveal his name to him first, and the
angel made known to him that it was Israel, the same name that Jacob would once
bear.[253]
At last the angel
departed, after Jacob had blessed him, and Jacob called the place of wrestling
Penuel, the same place to which before he had given the name Mahanaim, for both
words have but one meaning, the place of encounter with angels.[254]
THE MEETING BETWEEN ESAU AND JACOB
At the break of day
the angel left off from wrestling with Jacob. The dawn on that day was of
particularly short duration. The sun rose two hours before his time, by way of
compensation for having set early, on the day on which Jacob passed Mount
Moriah on his journey to Haran, to induce him to turn aside and lodge for a
night on the future Temple place.[255] Indeed, the power of the sun on this
same day was altogether remarkable. He shone with the brilliance and ardor with
which he was invested during the six days of the creation, and as he will shine
at the end of days, to make whole the halt and the blind among the Jews and to
consume the heathen. This same healing and devastating property he had on that
day, too, for Jacob was cured, while Esau and his princes were all but burnt up
by his terrible heat.[256]
Jacob was in dire
need of healing lotions for the injury he had sustained in the encounter with
the angel. The combat between them had been grim, the dust whirled up by the
scuffle rose to the very throne of God.[257] Though Jacob prevailed against his
huge opponent, as big as one-third of the whole world, throwing him to the
ground and keeping him pinned down, yet the angel had injured him by clutching
at the sinew of the hip which is upon the hollow of the thigh, so that it was
dislocated, and Jacob halted upon his thigh.[258] The healing power of the sun
restored him, nevertheless his children took it upon themselves not to eat the
sinew of the hip which is upon the hollow of the thigh, for they reproached
themselves with having been the cause of his mishap, they should not have left
him alone in that night.[259]
Now, although Jacob
had prepared for the worst, for open hostilities even, yet when he saw Esau and
his men, he thought it discreet to make separate divisions of the households of
Leah, Rachel, and the handmaids, and divide the children unto each of them. And
he put the handmaids and their children foremost, and Leah and her children
after, and Rachel and Joseph hindermost. It was the stratagem which the fox
used with the lion. Once upon a time the king of beasts was wroth with his
subjects, and they looked hither and thither for a spokesman who mastered the
art of appeasing their ruler. The fox offered himself for the undertaking,
saying, "I know three hundred fables which will allay his fury." His
offer was accepted with joy. On the way to the lion, the fox suddenly stood
still, and in reply to the questions put to him, he said, "I have
forgotten one hundred of the three hundred fables." "Never
mind," said those accompanying him, "two hundred will serve the
purpose." A little way further on the fox again stopped suddenly, and,
questioned again, he confessed that he had forgotten half of the two hundred
remaining fables. The animals with him still consoled him that the hundred he
knew would suffice. But the fox halted a third time, and then he admitted that
his memory had failed him entirely, and he had forgotten all the fables he
knew, and he advised that every animal approach the king on his own account and
endeavor to appease his anger. At first Jacob had had courage enough to enter
the lists with Esau in behalf of all with him. Now he came to the conclusion to
let each one try to do what he could for himself.
However, Jacob was
too fond a father to expose his family to the first brunt of the danger. He
himself passed over before all the rest, saying, "It is better that they
attack me than my children."[260] After him came the handmaids and their
children. His reason for placing them there was that, if Esau should be
overcome by passion for the women, and try to violate them, he would thus meet
the handmaids first, and in the meantime Jacob would have the chance of
preparing for more determined resistance in the defense of the honor of his
wives.[261] Joseph and Rachel came last, and Joseph walked in front of his
mother, though Jacob had ordered the reverse. But the son knew both the beauty
of his mother and the lustfulness of his uncle, and therefore he tried to hide
Rachel from the sight of Esau.[262]
In the vehemence of
his rage against Jacob, Esau vowed that he would not slay him with bow and
arrow, but would bite him dead with his mouth, and suck his blood. But he was
doomed to bitter disappointment, for Jacob's neck turned as hard as ivory, and
in his helpless fury Esau could but gnash his teeth.[263] The two brothers were
like the ram and the wolf. A wolf wanted to tear a ram in pieces, and the ram
defended himself with his horns, striking them deep into the flesh of the wolf.
Both began to howl, the wolf because he could not secure his prey, and the ram
from fear that the wolf renew his attacks. Esau bawled because his teeth were
hurt by the ivory-like flesh of Jacob's neck, and Jacob feared that his brother
would make a second attempt to bite him.[264]
Esau addressed a
question to his brother. "Tell me," he said, "what was the army
I met?" for on his march against Jacob he had had a most peculiar
experience with a great host of forty thousand warriors. It consisted of
various kinds of troops, armor-clad soldiers walking on foot, mounted on
horses, and seated in chariots, and they all threw themselves upon Esau when
they met. He demanded to know whence they came, and the strange soldiers hardly
interrupted their savage onslaught to reply that they belonged to Jacob. Only
when Esau told them that Jacob was his brother did they leave off, saying,
"Woe to us if our master hears that we did thee harm." This was the
army and the encounter Esau inquired about as soon as he met his brother. But
the army was a host of angels, who had the appearance of warriors to Esau and
his men.[265] Also the messengers sent by Jacob to Esau had been angels, for no
mere human being could be induced to go forth and face the recreant.[266]
Jacob now gave Esau
the presents intended for him, a tenth of all his cattle,[267] and also pearls
and precious stones,[268] and, besides, a falcon for the chase.[269] But even
the animals refused to give up their gentle master Jacob and become the
property of the villain Esau. They all ran away when Jacob wanted to hand them
over to his brother, and the result was that the only ones that reached Esau
were the feeble and the lame, all that could not make good their escape.[270]
At first Esau
declined the presents offered to him. Naturally, that was a mere pretense.
While refusing the gifts with words, he held his hand outstretched ready to
receive them.[271] Jacob took the hint, and insisted that he accept them,
saying: "Nay, I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thy sight, then
receive my present at my hand, forasmuch as I have seen thy face, as I have
seen the face of angels, and thou art pleased with me." The closing words
were chosen with well-calculated purpose. Jacob wanted Esau to derive the
meaning that he had intercourse with angels, and to be inspired with awe. Jacob
was like the man invited to a banquet by his mortal enemy who has been seeking
an opportunity to slay him. When the guest divines the purpose for which he has
been brought thither, he says to the host: "What a magnificent and
delicious meal this is! But once before in my life did I partake of one like
it, and that was when I was bidden by the king to his table"--enough to
drive terror to the heart of the would-be slayer. He takes good care not to
harm a man on such intimate terms with the king as to be invited to his
table![272]
Jacob had valid
reason for recalling his encounter with the angel, for it was the angel of Esau
who had measured his strength with Jacob's, and had been overcome.[273]
As Esau accepted the
presents of Jacob willingly on this first occasion, so he continued to accept
them for a whole year; daily Jacob gave him presents as on the day of their
meeting, for, he said, " 'A gift doth blind the eyes of the wise,' and how
much more doth it blind the wicked! Therefore will I give him presents upon
presents, perhaps he will let me alone." Besides, he did not attach much
value to the possessions he had acquired outside of the Holy Land. Such
possessions are not a blessing, and he did not hesitate to part with them.
Beside the presents
which Jacob gave Esau, he also paid out a large sum of money to him for the
Cave of Machpelah. Immediately upon his arrival in the Holy Land he sold all he
had brought with him from Haran, and a pile of gold was the proceeds of the
sale. He spoke to Esau, saying: "Like me thou hast a share in the Cave of
Machpelah, wilt thou take this pile of gold for thy portion therein?"
"What care I for the Cave?" returned Esau. "Gold is what I
want," and for his share in Machpelah he took the gold realized from the
sale of the possessions Jacob had accumulated outside of the Holy Land. But God
"filled the vacuum without delay," and Jacob was as rich as
before.[274]
Wealth was not an
object of desire to Jacob. He would have been well content, in his own behalf
and in behalf of his family, to resign all earthly treasures in favor of Esau
and his family. He said to Esau: "I foresee that in future days suffering
will be inflicted by thy children upon mine. But I do not demur, thou mayest
exercise thy dominion and wear thy crown until the time when the Messiah
springs from my loins, and receives the rule from thee." These words spoken
by Jacob will be realized in days to come, when all the nations will rise up
against the kingdom of Edom, and take away one city after another from him, one
realm
after another, until they reach Bet-Gubrin,
and then the Messiah will appear and assume his kingship. The angel of Edom
will flee for refuge to Bozrah, but God will appear there, and slay him, for
though Bozrah is one of the cities of refuge, yet will the Lord exercise the
right of the avenger therein. He will seize the angel by his hair, and Elijah
will slaughter him, letting the blood spatter the garments of God.[275] All
this Jacob had in mind when he said to Esau, "Let my lord, I pray thee,
pass over before his servant, until I come unto my lord unto Seir." Jacob
himself never went to Seir. What he meant was the Messianic time when Israel
shall go to Seir, and take possession thereof.[276]
Jacob tarried in
Succoth a whole year, and he opened a house of learning there.[277] Then he
journeyed on to Shechem, while Esau betook himself to Seir, saying to himself,
"How long shall I be a burden to my brother?" for it was during
Jacob's sojourn at Succoth that Esau received daily presents from Jacob.[278]
And Jacob, after
abiding these many years in a strange land, came to Shechem in peace,
unimpaired in mind and body. He had forgotten none of the knowledge he had
acquired before; the gifts he gave to Esau did not encroach upon his wealth;
the injury inflicted by the angel that wrestled with him had been healed, and
likewise his children were sound and healthy.[279]
Jacob entered
Shechem on a Friday, late in the afternoon, and his first concern was to lay
out the boundaries of the city, that the laws of the Sabbath might not be
transgressed. As soon as he was settled in the place, he sent presents to the
notables. A man must be grateful to a city from which he derives benefits. No
less did the common people enjoy his bounty. For them he opened a market where
he sold all wares at low prices.[280]
Also he lost no time
in buying a parcel of ground, for it is the duty of every man of substance who
comes to the Holy Land from outside to make himself the possessor of land
there.[281] He gave a hundred lambs for his estate, a hundred yearling sheep,
and a hundred pieces of money, and received in return a bill of sale, to which
he attached his signature, using the letters Yod-He for it. And then he erected
an altar to God upon his land, and he said, "Thou art the Lord of all
celestial things, and I am the lord of all earthly things." But God said, "Not
even the overseer of the synagogue arrogates privileges in the synagogue, and
thou assumest lordship with a high hand? Forsooth, on the morrow thy daughter
will go abroad, and she shall be humbled."[282]
THE OUTRAGE AT SHECHEM
While Jacob and his
sons were sitting in the house of learning, occupied with the study of the
Torah,[283] Dinah went abroad to see the dancing and singing women, whom
Shechem had hired to dance and play in the streets in order to entice her
forth.[284] Had she remained at home, nothing would have happened to her. But
she was a woman, and all women like to show themselves in the street.[285] When
Shechem caught sight of her, he seized her by main force, young though she
was,[286] and violated her in beastly fashion.[287]
This misfortune befell
Jacob as a punishment for his excessive self-confidence. In his negotiations
with Laban, he had used the expression, "My righteousness shall answer for
me hereafter." Besides, on his return to Palestine, when he was preparing
to meet his brother, he concealed his daughter Dinah in a chest, lest Esau
desire to have her for wife, and he be obliged to give her to him. God spoke to
him, saying: "Herein hast thou acted unkindly toward thy brother, and
therefore Dinah will have to marry Job, one that is neither circumcised nor a
proselyte. Thou didst refuse to give her to one that is circumcised, and one
that is uncircumcised will take her. Thou didst refuse to give her to Esau in
lawful wedlock, and now she will fall a victim to the ravisher's illicit passion."[288]
When Jacob heard
that Shechem had defiled his daughter, he sent twelve servants to fetch Dinah
from Shechem's house, but Shechem went out to them with his men, and drove them
from his house, and he would not suffer them to come unto Dinah, and he kissed
and embraced her before their eyes. Jacob then sent two maidens of his
servants' daughters to remain with Dinah in the house of Shechem. Shechem bade
three of his friends go to his father Hamor, the son of Haddakum, the son of
Pered, and say, "Get me this damsel to wife." Hamor tried at first to
persuade his son not to take a Hebrew woman to wife, but when Shechem persisted
in his request, he did according to the word of his son, and went forth to
communicate with Jacob concerning the matter. In the meanwhile the sons of
Jacob returned from the field, and, kindled with wrath, they spoke unto their
father, saying, "Surely death is due to this man and his household,
because the Lord God of the whole earth commanded Noah and his children that
man shall never rob nor commit adultery. Now, behold, Shechem has ravaged and
committed fornication with our sister, and not one of all the people of the
city spake a word to him." And whilst they were speaking, Hamor came to
speak to Jacob the words of his son concerning Dinah, and after he ceased to
speak, Shechem himself came to Jacob and repeated the request made by his
father. Simon and Levi answered Hamor and Shechem deceitfully, saying:
"All you have spoken unto us we will do. And, behold, our sister is in
your house, but keep away from her until we send to our father Isaac concerning
this matter, for we can do nothing without his counsel. He knows the ways of
our father Abraham, and whatever he saith unto us we will tell you, we will
conceal nothing from you."
Shechem and his
father went home thereafter, satisfied with the result achieved, and when they
had gone, the sons of Jacob asked him to seek counsel and pretext in order to
kill all the inhabitants of the city, who had deserved this punishment on
account of their wickedness. Then Simon said to them: "I have good counsel
to give you. Bid them be circumcised. If they consent not, we shall take our
daughter from them, and go away. And if they consent to do this, then, when
they are in pain, we shall attack them and slay them." The next morning
Shechem and his father came again to Jacob, to speak concerning Dinah, and the
sons of Jacob spoke deceitfully to them, saying: "We told our father Isaac
all your words, and your words pleased him, but he said, that thus did Abraham
his father command him from God, that any man that is not of his descendants,
who desireth to take one of his daughters to wife, shall cause every male
belonging to him to be circumcised."
Shechem and his
father hastened to do the wishes of the sons of Jacob, and they persuaded also
the men of the city to do likewise, for they were greatly esteemed by them,
being the princes of the land.
On the next day,
Shechem and his father rose up early in the morning, and they assembled all the
men of the city, and they called for the sons of Jacob, and they circumcised
Shechem, his father, his five brothers, and all the males in the city, six
hundred and forty-five men and two hundred and seventy-six lads. Haddakum, the
grandfather of Shechem, and his six brothers would not be circumcised, and they
were greatly incensed against the people of the city for submitting to the
wishes of the sons of Jacob.
In the evening of
the second day, Shechem and his father sent to have eight little children whom
their mothers had concealed brought to them to be circumcised. Haddakum and his
six brothers sprang at the messengers, and sought to slay them, and sought to
slay also Shechem, Hamor, and Dinah. They chided Shechem and his father for
doing a thing that their fathers had never done, which would raise the ire of
the inhabitants of the land of Canaan against them, as well as the ire of all
the children of Ham, and that on account of a Hebrew woman. Haddakum and his
brothers finished by saying: "Behold, to-morrow we will go and assemble
our Canaanitish brethren, and we will come and
smite you and all in whom you trust, that there shall not be a remnant left of
you or them."
When Hamor and his
son Shechem and all the people of the city heard this, they were sore afraid,
and they repented what they had done, and Shechem and his father answered
Haddakum and his brothers: "Because we saw that the Hebrews would not
accede to our wishes concerning their daughter, we did this thing, but when we
shall have obtained our request from them, we will then do unto them that which
is in your hearts and in ours, as soon as we shall become strong."
Dinah, who heard
their words, hastened and dispatched one of her maidens whom her father had
sent to take care of her in Shechem's house, and informed Jacob and his sons of
the conspiracy plotted against them. When the sons of Jacob heard this, they
were filled with wrath, and Simon and Levi swore, and said, "As the Lord
liveth, by to-morrow there shall not be a remnant left In the whole city."
They began the
extermination by killing eighteen of the twenty young men who had concealed
themselves and were not circumcised, and two of them fled and escaped to some
lime pits that were in the city. Then Simon and Levi slew all the city, not
leaving a male over, and while they were looking for spoils outside of the
city, three hundred women rose against them and threw stones and dust upon
them, but Simon single-handed slew them all, and returned to the city, where he
joined Levi. Then they took away from the people outside of the city their
sheep, their oxen, their cattle, and also the women and the little children,
and they led all these away, and took them to the city to their father Jacob.
The number of women whom they did not slay, but only took captive, was
eighty-five virgins, among them a young damsel of great beauty by the name of
Bunah, whom Simon took to wife. The number of the males which they took captive
and did not slay was forty-seven, and all these men and women were servants to
the sons of Jacob, and to their children after them, until the day they left
Egypt.
A WAR FRUSTRATED
When Simon and Levi
had gone from the city, the two young men who had concealed themselves in the
lime pits, and were not slain amongst the people of the city, rose up, and they
found the city desolate, without a man, only weeping women, and they cried out,
saying, "Behold, this is the evil which the sons of Jacob did who
destroyed one of the Canaanite cities, and were not afraid of all the land of
Canaan."
They left the city
and went to Tappuah, and told the inhabitants all that the sons of Jacob had
done to the city of Shechem. Jashub, the king of Tappuah, sent to Shechem to
see whether these young men told the truth, for he did not believe them,
saying, "How could two men destroy a large city like Shechem?" The
messengers of Jashub returned, and they reported, "The city is destroyed,
not a man is left there, only weeping women, neither are there flocks and
cattle there, for all that was in the city was taken away by the sons of
Jacob."
Jashub wondered
thereat, for the like had not been heard from the days of Nimrod, and not even
from the remotest times, that two men should be able to destroy so large a
city, and he decided to go to war against the Hebrews, and avenge the cause of
the people of Shechem. His counsellors said to him: "If two of them laid
waste a whole city, surely if thou goest against them, they all will rise up
against us, and destroy us. Therefore, send to the kings round about, that we all
together fight against the sons of Jacob, and prevail against them."
The seven kings of
the Amorites, when they heard the evil that the sons of Jacob had done to the
city of Shechem, assembled together, with all their armies, ten thousand men,
with drawn swords, and they came to fight against the sons of Jacob. And Jacob
was greatly afraid, and he said to Simon and Levi, "Why have you brought
such evil upon me? I was at rest, and you provoked the inhabitants of the land
against me by your acts."
Then Judah spoke to
his father: "Was it for naught that Simon and Levi killed the inhabitants
of Shechem? Verily, it was because Shechem dishonored our sister, and
transgressed the command of our God to Noah and his children, and not one of
the inhabitants of the city interfered in the matter. Now, why art thou afraid,
and why art thou displeased at my brethren? Surely, our God, who delivered the
city of Shechem and its people into their hand, He will also deliver into our
hands all the Canaanitish kings who are coming against us. Now cast away thy
fears, and pray to God to assist us and deliver us."
Judah then addressed
his brethren, saying: "The Lord our God is with us! Fear naught, then!
Stand ye forth, each man girt with his weapons of war, his bow and his sword,
and we will go and fight against the uncircumcised. The Lord is our God, He
will save us."
Jacob, his eleven
sons, and one hundred servants belonging to Isaac, who had come to their
assistance, marched forward to meet the Amorites, a people exceedingly numerous,
like unto the sand upon the sea-shore. The sons of Jacob sent unto their
grandfather Isaac, at Hebron, requesting him to pray unto the Lord to protect
them from the hand of the Canaanites, and he prayed as follows: "O Lord
God, Thou didst promise my father, saying, I will multiply thy seed as the
stars of heaven, and also me Thou didst promise that Thou wouldst establish Thy
word to my father. Now, O Lord, God of the whole world, pervert, I pray Thee,
the counsel of these kings, that they may not fight against my sons, and
impress the hearts of their kings and their people with the terror of my sons,
and bring down their pride that they turn away from my sons. Deliver my sons
and their servants from them with Thy strong hand and outstretched arm, for power
and might are in Thy hands to do all this."
Jacob also prayed
unto God, and said: "O Lord God, powerful and exalted God, who hast
reigned from days of old, from then until now and forever! Thou art He who
stirreth up wars and causeth them to cease. In Thy hand are power and might to
exalt and to bring low. O may my prayer be acceptable unto Thee, that Thou
mayest turn to me with Thy mercies, to impress the hearts of these kings and
their people with the terror of my sons, and terrify them and their camps, and
with Thy great kindness deliver all those that trust in Thee, for Thou art He
who subdues the peoples under us, and the nations under our feet."
God heard the
prayers of Isaac and Jacob, and He filled the hearts of all the advisers of the
Canaanite kings with great fear and terror, and when the kings, who were
undecided whether to undertake a campaign against the sons of Jacob, consulted
them, they said: "Are you silly, or is there no understanding in you, that
you propose to fight with the Hebrews? Why do you take delight in your own
destruction this day? Behold, two of them came to the city of Shechem without
fear or terror, and they put all the inhabitants of the city to the sword, no
man stood up against them, and how will you be able to fight with them
all?"
The royal
counsellors then proceeded to enumerate all the mighty things God had done for
Abraham, Jacob, and the sons of Jacob, such as had not been done from days of
old and by any of the gods of the nations. When the kings heard all the words
of their advisers, they were afraid of the sons of Jacob, and they would not
fight against them. They turned back with their armies on that day, each to his
own city. But the sons of Jacob kept their station that day till evening, and
seeing that the kings did not advance to do battle with them in order to avenge
the inhabitants of Shechem whom they had killed, they returned home.[289]
The wrath of the
Lord descended upon the inhabitants of Shechem to the uttermost on account of
their wickedness. For they had sought to do unto Sarah and Rebekah as they did
unto Dinah, but the Lord had prevented them. Also they had persecuted Abraham
when he was a stranger, and they had vexed his flocks when they were big with
young, and Eblaen, one born in his house, they had handled most shamefully. And
thus they did to all strangers, taking away their wives by force.[290]
THE WAR WITH THE NINEVITES
The destruction of
Shechem by Simon and Levi terrified the heathen all around. If two sons of
Jacob had succeeded in ruining a great city like Shechem, they argued, what
would Jacob and all his sons accomplish acting together? Jacob meanwhile left
Shechem, hindered by none, and with all his possessions he set out, to betake
himself to his father Isaac. But after an eight days' march he encountered a
powerful army, which had been dispatched from Nineveh to levy tribute upon the
whole world and subjugate it. On coming in the vicinity of Shechem, this army
heard to what the city had been exposed at the hands of the sons of Jacob, and
fury seized the men, and they resolved to make war upon Jacob.
But Jacob said to
his sons: "Fear not, God will be your helper, and He will fight for you
against your enemies. Only you must put away from you the strange gods in your
possession, and you must purify yourselves, and wash your garments clean."
Girt with his sword,
Jacob advanced against the enemy, and in the first onslaught he slew twelve
thousand of the weak in the army. Then Judah spake to him, and said,
"Father, thou art tired and exhausted, let me fight the enemy alone."
And Jacob replied, saying, "Judah, my son, I know thy strength and thy
bravery, that they are exceeding great, so that none in the world is like unto
thee therein." His countenance like a lion's and inflamed with wrath,
Judah attacked the army, and slew twelve myriads of tried and famous warriors.
The battle raged hot in front and in the rear, and Levi his brother hastened to
his aid, and together they won a victory over the Ninevites. Judah alone slew
five thousand more soldiers, and Levi dealt blows right and left with such
vigor that the men of the enemy's army fell like grain under the scythe of the
reaper.
Alarmed about their
fate, the people of Nineveh said: "How long shall we fight with these
devils? Let us return to our land, lest they exterminate us root and branch,
without leaving a remnant." But their king desired to restrain them, and
he said: "O ye heroes, ye men of might and valor, have you lost your
senses that you ask to return to your land? Is this your bravery? After you
have subdued many kingdoms and countries, ye are not able to hold out against
twelve men? If the nations and the kings whom we have made tributary to
ourselves hear of this, they will rise up against us as a man, and make a
laughing-stock of us, and do with us according to their desire. Take courage,
ye men of the great city of Nineveh, that your honor and your name be exalted,
and you become not a mockery in the mouth of your enemies."
These words of their
king inspired the warriors to continue the campaign. They sent messengers to
all the lands to ask for help, and, reinforced by their allies, the Ninevites
assaulted Jacob a second time. He spoke to his sons, saying, "Take courage
and be men, fight against your enemies." His twelve sons then took up
their stand in twelve different places, leaving considerable intervals between
one and another, and Jacob, a sword in his right hand and a bow in his left,
advanced to the combat. It was a desperate encounter for him. He had to ward off
the enemy to the right and the left. Nevertheless he inflicted a severe blow,
and when a band of two thousand men beset him, he leapt up in the air and over
them and vanished from their sight. Twenty-two myriads he slew on this day, and
when evening came he planned to flee under cover of darkness. But suddenly
ninety thousand men appeared, and he was compelled to continue the fight. He
rushed at them with his sword, but it broke, and he had to defend himself by
grinding huge rocks into lime powder, and this he threw at the enemy and
blinded them so that they could see nothing. Luckily, darkness was about to
fall, and he could permit himself to take rest for the night.
In the morning,
Judah said to Jacob, "Father, thou didst fight the whole of yesterday, and
thou art weary and exhausted. Let me fight this day." When the warriors
caught sight of Judah's lion face and his lion teeth, and heard his lion voice,
they were greatly afraid. Judah hopped and jumped over the army like a flea,
from one warrior to the next, raining blows down upon them incessantly, and by
evening he had slain eighty thousand and ninety-six men, armed with swords and
bows. But fatigue overcame him, and Zebulon took up his station at his
brother's left hand, and mowed down eighty thousand of the enemy. Meantime
Judah regained some of his strength, and, rising up in wrath and fury, and
gnashing his teeth with a noise like unto thunder claps in midsummer, he put
the army to flight. It ran a distance of eighteen miles, and Judah could enjoy
a respite that night.
But the army
reappeared on the morrow, ready for battle again, to take revenge on Jacob and
his children. They blew their trumpets, whereupon Jacob spake to his sons,
"Go forth and fight with your enemies." Issachar and Gad said that this
day they would take the combat upon themselves, and their father bade them do
it while their brothers kept guard and held themselves in readiness to aid and
relieve the two combatants when they showed signs of weariness and exhaustion.
The leaders of the
day slew forty-eight thousand warriors, and put to flight twelve myriads more,
who concealed themselves in a cave. Issachar and Gad fetched trees from the
woods, piled the trunks up in front of the opening of the cave, and set fire to
them. When the fire blazed with a fierce flame, the warriors spoke, saying:
"Why should we stay in this cave and perish with the smoke and the heat?
Rather will we go forth and fight with our enemies, then we may have a chance
of saving ourselves." They left the cave, going through openings at the
side, and they attacked Issachar and Gad in front and behind. Dan and Naphtali
saw the plight of their brothers and ran to their assistance. They laid about
with their swords, hewing a way for themselves to Issachar and Gad, and, united
with them, they, too, opposed the foe.
It was the third day
of the conflict, and the Ninevites were reinforced by an army as numerous as
the sand on the sea-shore. All the sons of Jacob united to oppose it, and they
routed the host. But when they pursued after the enemy, the fugitives faced
about and resumed the battle, saying: "Why should we run away? Let us
rather fight them, perhaps we may be victorious, now they are weary." A
stubborn combat ensued, and when Jacob saw the vehement attack upon his
children, he himself sprang into the thick of the battle and dealt blows right
and left. Nevertheless the heathen were victorious, and succeeded in separating
Judah from his brethren. As soon as Jacob was aware of the peril of his son, he
whistled, and Judah responded, and his brethren hastened to his aid. Judah was
fatigued and parched with thirst, and there was no water for him to drink, but
he dug his finger into the ground with such force that water gushed out in the
sight of the whole army. Then said one warrior to another, "I will flee
before these devils, for God fights on their side," and he and all the
army fled precipitately, pursued by the sons of Jacob. Soldiers without number
they slew, and then they went back to their tents. On their return they noticed
that Joseph was missing, and they feared he had been killed or taken captive.
Naphtali ran after the retreating enemy, to make search for Joseph, and he
found him still fighting against the Ninevite army. He joined Joseph, and
killed countless soldiers, and of the fugitives many drowned, and the men that
were besetting Joseph ran off and left him in safety.
At the end of the
war Jacob continued his journey, unhindered, to his father Isaac.[291]
THE WAR WITH THE AMORITES
At first the people
that lived round about Shechem made no attempt to molest Jacob, who had
returned thither after a while, together with his household, to take up his
abode there and establish himself. But at the end of seven years the heathen
began to harass him. The kings of the Amorites assembled together against the
sons of Jacob to slay them in the Valley of Shechem. "Is it not
enough," they said, "that they have slain all the men of Shechem?
Should they be permitted now to take possession of their land, too?" and
they advanced to render battle.
Judah leapt into the
midst of the ranks of the foot soldiers of the allied kings, and slew first of
all Jashub, the king of Tappuah, who was clad in iron and brass from top to
toe. The king was mounted, and from his horse he cast his spears downward with
both hands, in front of him and in back, without ever missing his aim, for he
was a mighty warrior, and he could throw javelins with one hand or the other.
Nevertheless Judah feared neither him nor his prowess. He ran toward him, snatching
a stone of sixty sela'im from the ground and hurling it at him. Jashub was at a
distance of one hundred and seventy-seven ells and one-third of an ell, and,
protected with iron armor and throwing spears, he moved forward upon Judah. But
Judah struck him on his shield with the stone, and unhorsed him. When the king
attempted to rise, Judah hastened to his side to slay him before he could get
on his feet. But Jashub was nimble, he stood ready to attack Judah, shield to
shield, and he drew his sword to cut off Judah's head. Quickly Judah raised his
shield to catch the blow upon it, but it broke in pieces. What did Judah now?
He wrested the shield of his opponent away from him, and swung his sword
against Jashub's feet, cutting them off above the ankles. The king fell
prostrate, his sword slipped from his grasp, and Judah hastened to him and
severed his head from his body.
While Judah was
removing the armor of his slain adversary, nine of Jashub's followers appeared.
Judah slung a stone against the head of the first of them that approached him,
with such force that he dropped his shield, which Judah snatched from the
ground and used to defend himself against his eight assailants. His brother
Levi came and stood next to him, and shot off an arrow that killed Elon, king
of Gaash, and then Judah killed the eight men. And his father Jacob came and
killed Zerori king of Shiloh. None of the heathen could prevail against these
sons of Jacob, they had not the courage to stand up before them, but took to
flight, and the sons of Jacob pursued after them, and each slew a thousand men
of the Amorites on that day, before the going down of the sun. And the other
sons of Jacob set forth from the Hill of Shechem, where they had taken up their
stand, and they also pursued after them as far as Hazor. Before this city they
had another severe encounter with the enemy, more severe than that in the
Valley of Shechem. Jacob let his arrows fly, and slew Pirathon king of Hazor,
and then Pasusi king of Sartan, Laban king of Aram, and Shebir king of
Mahanaim.
Judah was the first
to mount the walls of Hazor. As he approached the top, four warriors attacked
him, but he slew them without stopping in his ascent, and before his brother
Naphtali could bring him succor. Naphtali followed him, and the two stood upon
the wall, Judah to the right and Naphtali to the left, and thence they dealt
out death to the warriors. The other sons of Jacob followed their two brothers
in turn, and made an end of exterminating the heathen host on that day. They
subjugated Hazor, slew the warriors thereof, let no man escape with his life,
and despoiled the city of all therein.
On the day following
they went to Sartan, and again a bloody battle took place. Sartan was situated
upon high land, and the hill before the city was likewise very high, so that
none could come near unto it, and also none could come near unto the citadel,
because the wall thereof was high. Nevertheless they made themselves masters of
the city. They scaled the walls of the citadel, Judah on the east side being
the first to ascend, then Gad on the west side, Simon and Levi on the north,
and Reuben and Dan on the south, and Naphtali and Issachar set fire to the
hinges upon which the gates of the city were hung.
In the same way the
sons of Jacob subdued five other cities, Tappuah, Arbel, Shiloh, Mahanaim, and
Gaash, making an end of all of them in five days. On the sixth day all the
Amorites assembled, and they came to Jacob and his sons unarmed, bowed down
before them, and sued for peace. And the sons of Jacob made peace with the
heathen, who ceded Timna to them, and all the land of Harariah. In that day
also Jacob concluded peace with them,
and they made restitution to the sons of Jacob
for all the cattle they had taken, two head for one, and they restored all the
spoil they had carried off. And Jacob turned to go to Timna, and Judah went to
Arbel, and thenceforth the Amorites troubled them no more.[292]
ISAAC BLESSES LEVI AND JUDAH
If a man voweth a
vow, and he does not fulfil it in good time, he will stumble through three
grave sins, idolatry, unchastity, and bloodshed. Jacob had been guilty of not
accomplishing promptly the vow he had taken upon himself at Beth-el, and
therefore punishment overtook him--his daughter was dishonored, his sons slew
men, and they kept the idols found among the spoils of Shechem.[293] Therefore,
when Jacob prostrated himself before God after the bloody outrage at Shechem,
He bade him arise, and go to Beth-el and accomplish the vow he had vowed
there.[294] Before Jacob set out for the holy place to do the bidding of God,
he took the idols which were in the possession of his sons, and the teraphim
which Rachel had stolen from her father, and he shivered them in pieces, and
buried[295] the bits under an oak upon Mount Gerizim,[296] uprooting the tree
with one hand, concealing the remains of the idols in the hollow left in the
earth, and planting the oak again with one hand.[297]
Among the destroyed
idols was one in the form of a dove, and this the Samaritans dug up later and
worshipped.
On reaching Beth-el
he erected an altar to the Lord, and on a pillar he set up the stone whereon he
had rested his head during the night which he had passed there on his journey
to Haran.[298] Then he bade his parents come to Beth-el and take part in his
sacrifice. But Isaac sent him a message, saying, "O my son Jacob, that I
might see thee before I die," whereupon Jacob hastened to his parents,
taking Levi and Judah with him. When his grandchildren stepped before Isaac, the
darkness that shrouded his eyes dropped away, and he said, "My son, are
these thy children, for they resemble thee?" And the spirit of prophecy
entered his mouth, and he grasped Levi with his right hand and Judah with his
left in order to bless them, and he spoke these words to Levi: "May the
Lord bring thee and thy seed nigh unto Him before all flesh, that ye serve in
His sanctuary like the Angel of the Face and the Holy Angels. Princes, judges,
and rulers shall they be unto all the seed of the children of Jacob. The word
of God they will proclaim in righteousness, and all His judgments they will
execute in justice, and they will make manifest His ways unto the children of
Jacob, and unto Israel His paths." And unto Judah he spake, saying:
"Be ye princes, thou and one of thy sons, over the sons of Jacob. In thee
shall be the help of Jacob, and the salvation of Israel shall be found in thee.
And when thou sittest upon the throne of the glory of thy justice, perfect
peace shall reign over all the seed of the children of my beloved
Abraham."
On the morrow, Isaac
told his son that he would not accompany him to Beth-el on account of his great
age, but he bade him not delay longer to fulfil his vow, and gave him
permission to take his mother Rebekah with him to the holy place. And Rebekah
and her nurse Deborah went to Beth-el with Jacob.[299]
JOY AND SORROW IN THE HOUSE OF JACOB
Deborah, the nurse
of Rebekah, and some of the servants of Isaac had been sent to Jacob by his
mother, while he still abode with Laban, to summon him home at the end of his
fourteen years' term of service. As Jacob did not at once obey his mother's
behest, the two servants of Isaac returned to their master, but Deborah
remained with Jacob then and always. Therefore, when Deborah died in Beth-el, Jacob
mourned for her, and he buried her below Beth-el under the palm-tree,[300] the
same under which the prophetess Deborah sat later, when the children of Israel
came to her for judgment.[301]
But a short time
elapsed after the death of the nurse Deborah, and Rebekah died, too. Her
passing away was not made the occasion for public mourning. The reason was
that, as Abraham was dead, Isaac blind, and Jacob away from home, there
remained Esau as the only mourner to appear in public and represent her family,
and beholding that villain, it was feared, might tempt a looker-on to cry out,
"Accursed be the breasts that gave thee suck." To avoid this, the
burial of Rebekah took place at night.
God appeared unto
Jacob to comfort him in his grief,[302] and with Him appeared the heavenly
family. It was a sign of grace, for all the while the sons of Jacob had been
carrying idols with them the Lord had not revealed Himself to Jacob.[303] At
this time God announced to Jacob the birth of Benjamin soon to occur, and the birth
of Manasseh and Ephraim, who also were to be founders of tribes, and
furthermore He told him that these three would count kings among their
descendants, Saul and Ish-bosheth, of the seed of Benjamin, Jeroboam the
Ephraimite, and Jehu of the tribe of Manasseh. In this vision, God confirmed
the change of his name from Jacob to Israel, promised him by the angel with
whom he had wrestled on entering the Holy Land, and finally God revealed to him
that he would be the last of the three with whose names the Name of God would
appear united, for God is called only
the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the
God of Jacob, and never the God of any one else.[304]
In token of this
revelation from God, Jacob set up a pillar of stone, and he poured out a drink
offering thereon, as in a later day the priests were to offer libations in the
Temple on the Feast of Tabernacles,[305] and the libation brought by Jacob at
Beth-el was as much as all the waters in the Sea of Tiberias.[306]
At the time when
Deborah and Rebekah died, occurred also the death of Rachel, at the age of
thirty-six,[307] but not before her prayer was heard, that she bear Jacob a
second son, for she died in giving birth to Benjamin. Twelve years she had
borne no child, then she fasted twelve days, and her petition was granted her.
She brought forth the youngest son of Jacob, whom he called Benjamin, the son
of days, because he was born in his father's old age,[308] and with him a twin
sister was born.[309]
Rachel was buried in
the way to Ephrath, because Jacob, gifted with prophetic spirit, foresaw that
the exiles would pass this place on their march to Babylon, and as they passed,
Rachel would entreat God's mercy for the poor outcasts.[310]
Jacob journeyed on
to Jerusalem.[311]
During Rachel's
lifetime, her couch had always stood in the tent of Jacob. After her death, he
ordered the couch of her handmaid Bilhah to be carried thither. Reuben was
sorely vexed thereat, and he said, "Not enough that Rachel alive curtailed
the rights of my mother, she must needs give her annoyance also after
death!" He went and took the couch of his mother Leah and placed it in
Jacob's tent instead of Bilhah's couch.[312] Reuben's brothers learned of his
disrespectful act from Asher. He had found it out in one way or another, and
had told it to his brethren, who ruptured their relations with him, for they
would have nothing to do with an informer, and they did not become reconciled
with Asher until Reuben himself confessed his transgression.[313] For it was
not long before Reuben recognized that he had acted reprehensibly toward his
father, and he fasted and put on sackcloth, and repented of his misdeed. He was
the first among men to do penance, and therefore God said to him: "Since
the beginning of the world it hath not happened that a man hath sinned and then
repented thereof. Thou art the first to do penance, and as thou livest, a
prophet of thy seed, Hosea, shall be the first to proclaim, 'O Israel, return.'
"[314]
ESAU'S CAMPAIGN AGAINST JACOB
When Isaac felt his
end approaching, he called his two sons to him, and charged them with his last
wish and will, and gave them his blessing. He said: "I adjure you by the
exalted Name, the praised, honored, glorious, immutable, and mighty One, who
hath made heaven and earth and all things together, that ye fear Him, and serve
Him, and each shall love his brother in mercy and justice, and none wish evil
unto the other, now and henceforth unto all eternity, all the days of your
life, that ye may enjoy good fortune in all your undertakings, and that ye
perish not."
Furthermore he
commanded them to bury him in the Cave of Machpelah, by the side of his father
Abraham, in the grave which he had dug for himself with his own hands. Then he
divided his possessions between his two sons, giving Esau the larger portion,
and Jacob the smaller. But Esau said, "I sold my birthright to Jacob, and
I ceded it to him, and it belongs unto him." Isaac rejoiced greatly that
Esau acknowledged the rights of Jacob of his own accord, and he closed his eyes
in peace.[315]
The funeral of Isaac
was not disturbed by any unseemly act, for Esau was sure of his heritage in
accordance with the last wishes expressed by his father. But when the time came
to divide Isaac's possessions between the two brothers, Esau said to Jacob,
"Divide the property of our father into two portions, but I as the elder
claim the right of choosing the portion I desire." What did Jacob do? He
knew well that "the eye of the wicked never beholds treasures enough to
satisfy it," so he divided their common heritage in the following way: all
the material possessions of his father formed one portion, and the other
consisted of Isaac's claim upon the Holy Land, together with the Cave of
Machpelah, the tomb of Abraham and Isaac. Esau chose the money and the other
things belonging to Isaac for his inheritance, and to Jacob were left the Cave
and the title to the Holy Land. An agreement to this effect was drawn up in
writing in due form, and on the strength of the document Jacob insisted upon
Esau's leaving Palestine. Esau acquiesced, and he and his wives and his sons
and daughters journeyed to Mount Seir, where they took up their abode.[316]
Though Esau gave way
before Jacob for the nonce, he returned to the land to make war upon his
brother. Leah had just died, and Jacob and the sons borne by Leah were mourning
for her, and the rest of his sons, borne unto him by his other wives, were
trying to comfort them, when Esau came upon them with a powerful host of four
thousand men, well equipped for war, clad in armor of iron and brass, all
furnished with bucklers, bows, and swords. They surrounded the citadel wherein
Jacob and his sons dwelt at that time with their servants and children and
households, for they had all assembled to console Jacob for the death of Leah,
and they sat there unconcerned, none entertained a suspicion that an assault
upon them was meditated by any man. And the great army had already encircled
their castle, and still none within suspected any harm, neither Jacob and his
children nor the two hundred servants. Now when Jacob saw that Esau presumed to
make war upon them, and sought to slay them in the citadel, and was shooting
darts at them, he ascended the wall of the citadel and spake words of peace and
friendship and brotherly love to Esau. He said: "Is this the consolation
which thou hast come to bring me, to comfort me for my wife, who hath been
taken by death? Is this in accordance with the oath thou didst swear twice unto
thy father and thy mother before they died? Thou hast violated thy oath, and in
the hour when thou didst swear unto thy father, thou wast judged." But
Esau made reply: "Neither the children of men nor the beasts of the field
swear an oath to keep it unto all eternity, but on every day they devise evil
against one another, when it is directed against an enemy, or when they seek to
slay an adversary. If the boar will change his skin and make his bristles as
soft as wool, or if he can cause horns to sprout forth on his head like the
horns of a stag or a ram, then shall I observe the tie of brotherhood with
thee."
Then spoke Judah to
his father Jacob, saying: "How long wilt thou stand yet wasting words of
peace and friendship upon him? And he attacks us unawares, like an enemy, with
his mail-clad warriors, seeking to slay us." Hearing these words, Jacob
grasped his bow and killed Adoram the Edomite, and a second time he bent his
bow, and the arrow struck Esau upon the right thigh. The wound was mortal, and
his sons lifted Esau up and put him upon his ass, and he came to Adora, and
there he died.
Judah made a sally
to the south of the citadel, and with him were Naphtali and Gad, aided by fifty
of Jacob's servants; to the east Levi and Dan went forth with fifty servants;
Reuben, Issachar, and Zebulon with fifty servants, to the north; and Simon,
Benjamin, and Enoch, the last the son of Reuben, with fifty servants, to the
west. Judah was exceedingly brave in battle. Together with Naphtali and Gad he
pressed forward into the ranks of the enemy, and captured one of their iron
towers. On their bucklers they caught the sharp missiles hurled against them in
such numbers that the light of the sun was darkened by reason of the rocks and
darts and stones. Judah was the first to break the ranks of the enemy, of whom
he killed six valiant men, and he was accompanied on the right by Naphtali and
by Gad on the left. They also hewed down two soldiers each, while their troop
of servants killed one man each. Nevertheless they did not succeed in forcing
the army away from the south of the citadel, not even when all together, Judah
and his brethren, made an united attack upon the enemy, each of them picking
out a victim and slaying him. And they were still unsuccessful in a third
combined attack, though this time each killed two men.
When Judah saw now
that the enemy remained in possession of the field, and it was impossible to
dislodge them, he girded himself with strength, and an heroic spirit animated
him. Judah, Naphtali, and Gad united, and together they pierced the ranks of
the enemy, Judah slaying ten of them, and his brothers each eight. Seeing this,
the servants took courage, and they joined their leaders and fought at their
side. Judah laid about him to right and to left, always aided by Naphtali and
Gad, and so they succeeded in forcing the enemy one ris further to the south,
away from the citadel. But the hostile army recovered itself, and maintained a
brave stand against all the sons of Jacob, who were faint from the hardships of
the combat, and could not continue to fight. Thereupon Judah turned to God in
prayer, and God hearkened unto his petition, and He helped them. He set loose a
storm from one of His treasure chambers, and it blew into the faces of the
enemy, and filled their eyes with darkness, and they could not see how to fight.
But Judah and his brothers could see clearly, for the wind blew upon their
backs. Now Judah and his two brothers wrought havoc among them, they hewed the
enemy down as the reaper mows down the stalks of grain and heaps them up for
sheaves.
After they had
routed the division of the army assigned to them on the south, they hastened to
the aid of their brothers, who were defending the east, north, and west of the
citadel with three companies. On each side the wind blew into the faces of the
enemy, and so the sons of Jacob succeeded in annihilating their army. Four
hundred were slain in battle, and six hundred fled, among the latter Esau's
four sons, Reuel, Jeush, Lotan, and Korah. The oldest of his sons, Eliphaz,
took no part in the war, because he was a disciple of Jacob, and therefore
would not bear arms against him.
The sons of Jacob
pursued after the fleeing remnant of the army as far as Adora. There the sons
of Esau abandoned the body of their father, and continued their flight to Mount
Seir. But the sons of Jacob remained in Adora over night, and out of respect
for their father they buried the remains of his brother Esau. In the morning
they went on in pursuit of the enemy, and besieged them on Mount Seir. Now the
sons of Esau and all the other fugitives came and fell down before them, bowed
down, and entreated them without cease, until they concluded peace with them.
But the sons of Jacob exacted tribute from them.[317]
THE DESCENDANTS OF ESAU
The worthiest among
the sons of Esau was his first-born Eliphaz. He had been raised under the eyes
of his grandfather Isaac, from whom he had learnt the pious way of life.[318]
The Lord had even found him worthy of being endowed with the spirit of
prophecy, for Eliphaz the son of Esau is none other than the prophet Eliphaz,
the friend of Job. It was from the life of the Patriarchs that he drew the
admonitions which he gave unto Job in his disputes with him. Eliphaz spake:
"Thou didst ween thyself the equal of Abraham, and thou didst marvel,
therefore, that God should deal with thee as with the generation of the
confusion of tongues. But Abraham stood the test of ten temptations, and thou
faintest when but one toucheth thee. When any that was not whole came to thee,
thou wouldst console him. To the blind thou wouldst say, If thou didst build
thyself a house, thou wouldst surely put windows in it, and if God hath denied
thee light, it is but that He may be glorified through thee in the day when
'the eyes of the blind shall be opened.' To the deaf thou wouldst say, If thou
didst fashion a water pitcher, thou wouldst surely not forget to make ears for
it, and if God created thee without hearing, it is but that He may be glorified
through thee in the day when 'the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.' In such
wise thou didst endeavor to console the feeble and the maimed. But now it is
come unto thee, and thou art troubled. Thou sayest, I am an upright man, why
doth He chastise me? But who, I pray thee, ever perished, being innocent? Noah
was saved from the flood, Abraham from the fiery furnace, Isaac from the
slaughtering knife, Jacob from angels, Moses from the sword of Pharaoh, and
Israel from the Egyptians that were drowned in the Sea. Thus shall all the
wicked fare."
Job answered
Eliphaz, and said, "Look at thy father Esau!"
But Eliphaz
returned: "I have nothing to do with him, the son should not bear the
iniquity of the father. Esau will be destroyed, because he executed no good
deeds, and likewise his dukes will perish. But as for me, I am a prophet, and
my message is not unto Esau, but unto thee, to make thee render account of
thyself." But God rebuked Eliphaz, and said: "Thou didst speak harsh
words unto My servant Job. Therefore shall Obadiah, one of thy descendants,
utter a prophecy of denunciation against thy father's house, the
Edomites."[319]
The concubine of
Eliphaz was Timna, a princess of royal blood, who had asked to be received into
the faith of Abraham and his family, but they all, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
had rejected her, and she said, "Rather will I be a maid servant unto the
dregs of this nation, than mistress of another nation," and so she was
willing to be concubine to Eliphaz. To punish the Patriarchs for the affront
they had offered her, she was made the mother of Amalek, who inflicted great
injury upon Israel.[320]
Another one of
Esau's descendants, Anah, had a most unusual experience. Once when he was
pasturing his father's asses in the wilderness, he led them to one of the
deserts on the shores of the Red Sea, opposite the wilderness of the nations,
and while he was feeding the beasts, a very heavy storm came from the other
side of the sea, and the asses could not move. Then about one hundred and
twenty great and terrible animals came out from the wilderness at the other
side of the sea, and they all came to the place where the asses were, and they
placed themselves there. From the middle down, these animals were in the shape
of a man, and from the middle up some had the likeness of bears, some of apes,
and they all had tails behind them like the tail of the dukipat, from between
their shoulders reaching down to the earth. The animals mounted the asses, and
they rode away with them, and unto this day no eye hath seen them. One of them
approached Anah, and smote him with its tail, and then ran off.
When Anah saw all
this, he was exceedingly afraid on account of his life, and he fled to the
city, where he related all that had happened to him. Many sallied forth to seek
the asses, but none could find them. Anah and his brothers went no more to the
same place from that day forth, for they were greatly afraid on account of
their lives.[321]
This Anah was the
offspring of an incestuous marriage; his mother was at the same time the mother
of his father Zibeon. And as he was born of an unnatural union, so he tried to
bring about unnatural unions among animals. He was the first to mix the breed
of the horse and the ass and produce the mule. As a punishment, God crossed the
snake and the lizard, and they brought forth the habarbar, whose bite is certain
death, like the bite of the white she-mule.[322]
The descendants of
Esau had eight kings before there reigned any king over the descendants of
Jacob. But a time came when the Jews had eight kings during whose reign the
Edomites had none and were subject to the Jewish kings. This was the time that
intervened between Saul, the first Israelitish king, who ruled over Edom, and
Jehoshaphat, for Edom did not make itself independent of Jewish rule until the
time of Joram, the son of Jehoshaphat. There was a difference between the kings
of Esau's seed and the kings of Jacob's seed. The Jewish people always produced
their kings from their own midst, while the Edomites had to go to alien peoples
to secure theirs.[323] The first Edomite king was the Aramean Balaam,[324]
called Bela in his capacity as ruler of Edom. His successor Job, called Jobab
also, came from Bozrah, and for furnishing Edom with a king this city will be
chastised in time to come. When God sits in judgment on Edom, Bozrah will be
the first to suffer punishment.[325]
The rule of Edom was
of short duration, while the rule of Israel will be unto all times, for the
standard of the Messiah shall wave forever and ever.[326]
End of The Project
Gutenberg Etext of The Legends of the Jews Volume 1