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PERIOD II.]

JACOB RETURNS INTO CANAAN.

God blessed Jacob, and his riches increased exceedingly; he had much cattle, and many maid-servants, men-servants, and camels, and asses. He stayed with Laban twenty years. Laban and his sons envied Jacob, because of his great riches. Jacob left Laban, and took with him his wives and children. Laban followed him and overtook him on Mount Gilead; but God came to Laban by night and said to him, "Take heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad."

Rachel had stolen her father's images. Laban searched for them, but found them not, for she sat upon them; and Jacob was wroth with Laban: and said, "What is my trespass? what is my sin, that thou hast so hotly pursued after me?" He also said, "This twenty years have I been with thee; thy ewes and thy she goats have not cast their young, and the rams of thy flock have I not eaten. That which was torn of beasts I brought not unto thee; I bare the loss of it; of my hand didst thou require it, whether stolen by day, or stolen by night. Thus I was; in the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep departed from mine eyes. have I been twenty years in thy house; I served thee fourteen years for thy two daughters, and six years for thy cattle: and thou hast changed my wages ten times. Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now empty. God hath seen mine affliction and the labour of my hands, and rebuked thee yesternight." Laban and Jacob covenanted not to do harm to each other.

Thus

The angel of God met Jacob at Mahanaim. Jacob heard that his brother Esau was coming towards him, and he feared to meet him; so he prayed to God to deliver him and his family from Esau's hand; he also sent messengers before him with a great present. At Peniel God changed Jacob's name to ISRAEL. The two brothers met, and were reconciled to each other. Esau returned to Mount Seir. Jacob journeyed to Succoth; he bought a parcel of land from the Shechemites, and erected an altar there. Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, was taken by the prince of Shechem. Afterwards, her brothers, Simeon and Levi, deceitfully slew many of the Shechemites.

NOTES AND EXPLANATIONS. [2347-1635 B.C.

a well-in eastern countries wells are had acquired in Padan-aram-his wives, of vast importance; those near towns children, and property. frequented by the women of every family, hence they are suitable places for travellers to make inquiries.

are

Rachel-ewe;' she was Jacob's cousin, her father being the brother of his mother Rebekah. This young and beautiful woman followed the avocation of a shepherdess, a thing not uncommon in those times. Exod. ii. 16,17. Rachel became the mother of two children-Joseph & Benjamin. deceived-a certain retribution attends every act of disobedience to the divine laws. Jacob had been guilty of deceiving his father, and now he is himself deceived by his own uncle. Moreover Jacob was not privileged to see his mother any more, by whose aid he had deceived his father.

Leah God compensated Leah for being less loved than Rachel, by making her the happy mother of seven children -Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Dinah.

camels-beasts of burden adapted for travelling over sandy deserts. Less. 10.

asses eastern asses are larger and very superior to those with which we are familiar; in many respects they are preferable to horses.

envied-envy leads to other crimes, as in the case of Cain; and there is little doubt that the envy of Laban's sons would have urged them to some desperate act, had not Jacob fled according to the Lord's command.

God came-as God's intervention is never unnecessary, it is evident that Laban and his company had intended to inflict some injury upon Jacob.

images-probably small figures in human shape; such household gods were long a source of iniquity in Israel. drought, &c.—so excessive are the summer heats in Canaan that the grass is often burned up; while the night dews render the atmosphere very cold. empty-Jacob apprehended that Laban intended to rob him of all that he

angels met, &c.-to comfort him after one trial, and to prepare him for another just at hand.

present-in the East gifts are presented to superiors; the presentation of which indicates the inferiority of the party presenting them.

or 'the

Israel- beholding God,' prince that prevailed with God;' the surname of Jacob which was afterwards applied to his whole posterity.

reconciled-friendship was restored, and distrust of each other removed.

GEOGRAPHICAL NOTES.

testi

MOUNT GILEAD-' heap of mony; the mountains of Gilead lie east of the Jordan, and extend from Antilibanus southward into Arabia Petrea.

On one of these bills was Galeed, the heap of witness, of Jacob and Laban.

MAHANAIM-'two hosts ;' a Levitical city beyond the Jordan, between Mount Gilead and the brook Jabbok: its name was given to it by Jacob because the angels of God met him there on his return from Padan-aram into Canaan.

God;' a place east of the Jordan near the ford of the brook Jabbok, at which Jacob received the name of ISRAEL.

PENIEL or PENUEL- the vision of

MOUNT SEIR-the mountainous tract to the south of Canaan extending from the southern extremity of the Dead Sea to Ezion-geber. This country was inhabited by the posterity of Esau, and called Edom. Less. 11, 'Idumea.'

SUCCOTH-tents; the first encamp-
ment of the Israelites after they left
Egypt; also a city of Gilead at which
Jacob dwelt before he went to Shechem.

of Ephraim, forty miles from Jeru-
SHECHEM-part or portion;' a city
Mts. Ébal and Gerizim.
salem, situated in the valley between
the sons of Jacob, Simeon & Levi, slew
At this place
the Shechemites deceitfully. Near
Shechem was Jacob's well, and the
parcel of ground which Jacob gave to
his son Joseph.

PERIOD II.]

THE NAME OF JACOB CHANGED.

BROTHERLY

FORGIVENESS.

"AND ESAU RAN TO MEET JACOB, AND EMBRACED HIM, AND FELL ON HIS NECK AND KISSED HIM."

We walk together side by side,
Within one hamlet we abide,

And play beneath the same green tree;
Along the self same path we roam,
The like temptations round us come,
And all are pilgrims hastening home,
Where Christ our Lord shall ever be.
We must not linger in the race,
To look into each other's face,

And count the sins our brothers do,
And tell them o'er, as though we found,
A pleasure in the grievous sound,

As though our own hands were not bound,
And we had nothing bad to rue.
Each has his own appointed part,
To watch the sins of his own heart,
To keep his bridal garment bright;
The beam is dark in his own eye,
He must not scan too curiously,
The little motes that dimly lie,

And darken less his brother's light.

VERSES FOR HOLY SEASONS.

14. BENJAMIN BORN. JOSEPH'S EARLY HISTORY. Genesis xxxiv.-xxxvii. & xxxix.

After Jacob had lived some time at Shechem God commanded him to remove to Bethel, and to put away the strange gods from his household; he built an altar at Bethel. At this place God had appeared to him when he fled from Esau on his way to Padan-aram. God appeared to Jacob again at Bethel, and blessed him, and called his name ISRAEL, and God said, "The land which I gave Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, to thee will I give it and to thy seed after thee will I give the land." Jacob journeyed from Bethel to Ephrath, Benjamin, his youngest son, was born. Rachel, the mother of Benjamin, died, and was buried at Ephrath. After that, Jacob came to his father at Mamre. Esau became rich, and had many children; his descendants were called Edomites. The des

As

JOSEPH IS HATED, SOLD, AND IMPRISONED. [2347-1635 B.C. cendants of Jacob were afterwards called ISRAELITES, from his new name ISRAEL.

Jacob loved Joseph more than his other children, but his brethren hated him. Joseph dreamed dreams, showing that his father and his brethren would bow down before him. His brethren hated him the more for these dreams, and sold him to a company of Midianites which came from Gilead with their camels bearing spicery, balm, and myrrh, which they were carrying down into Egypt. His brethren dipped his coat in the blood of a kid which they killed, and showed it to their father. Jacob thought some evil beast had devoured Joseph. The Midianites took Joseph into Egypt, and sold him as a slave to Potiphar, an officer of Pharoah, king of Egypt. And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man. And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand. And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand. And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the Lord was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field. And he left all that he had in Joseph's hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured. Potiphar's wife spoke falsely of Joseph, and had him cast into prison. While Joseph was in prison in Egypt, Isaac died in Canaan. His sons Esau and Jacob went to Mamre, where Isaac had lived many years, and buried him. The age of Isaac was a-hundred-and-fourscore years.

NOTES AND EXPLANATIONS.

strange gods-household divinities; | instead of Benoni, 6 son of my sorrow,' such as those which Rachel stole from her father. Lesson 13, 'images.'

household-not only those which his wives possessed, but the idols belonging to his servants, male and female.

Benjamin-son of my right hand;' this name was given him by Jacob

which the dying Rachel had called him.

Joseph-adding;' was the elder of Rachel's two sons; he was a youth of upright principles and conduct; and was afterwards of great service to his aged father and his brethren. Lesson 16.

hated-because he told his father of their misdeeds.

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6

bably composed of descendants of both Midian and Ishmael.

GILEAD-a country east of the Jordan, celebrated at this time for its medicinal balsams, and for its spices. Lesson 13, 'Mount Gilead.'

EDOMITES-from Edom 'red,' a name given to Esau. Lesson 12, Esau.' EPHRATH-abundance;' the ancient name of Bethlehem, on the way to which place Benjamin was born, and Rachel was buried. Though celebrated EGYPT-called also Mizraim after on many accounts, it was a very small one of Ham's sons, lay on the borders of place; it was on an eminence about the river Nile; it measured in extent six miles south-west of Jerusalem. about 11,000 square miles. Though MIDIANITES-descendants of Midian, the climate of Egypt was extremely

the fourth son of Abraham & Keturah; their country was in Arabia Petrea. The merchants who bought Joseph of his brethren are called Midianites and also Ishmaelites; the party was pro

hot, yet the inundations of the Nile rendered it a very fertile country, so much so, that for a long period it was reckoned the granary of the world. Less. 5, ' Egypt.'

DIRGE OF RACHEL.

"AND RACHEL DIED, AND WAS BURIED IN THE WAY TO EPHRATH, WHICH IS BETHLEHEM."

And Rachel lies in Ephrath's land,

Beneath her lonely oak of weeping,
With mouldering heart and withering hand,
The sleep of death for ever sleeping.

The Spring comes smiling down the vale,
The lilies and the roses bringing;

But Rachel never more shall hail,

The flowers that in the world are springing.

The Summer gives his radiant day,

And Jewish dames the dance are treading;
But Rachel, on her couch of clay,

Sleeps all unheeded and unheeding.

The Autumn's ripening sunbeam shines,
And reapers to the field is calling;
But Rachel's voice no longer joins
The choral song at twilight's falling.
The Winter sends his drenching shower,
And sweeps his howling blast around her;
But earthly storms possess no power,

To break the slumber that hath bound her.

Thus round and round the Seasons go,

But joy or grief no more betide her,
For Rachel's bosom could not know

Though friends were bound in death beside her.

W. KNOX.

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