As He had once appeared to Isaac, so now God appeared to Jacob in the visions of the night; and He said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down into Egypt, for I will there make of thee a great nation: I will go down with thee into Egypt; and I will also surely bring thee up again. And He promised that his son Joseph should be with him when he died.

The place which Joseph had chosen for his father to live in was called Goshen-a place where there was plenty of pasture for the cattle and sheep which Israel had brought with him; and when Israel drew near to this place he sent his son Judah before him to tell Joseph that he was coming.

Joseph, as soon as he heard this, went in his chariot to meet his father; and when they met he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while. And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive. He felt that God had given him now all that he could desire.

God's people were now strangers in a land that was not theirs. God had told Abraham that it should be

So, and now He had brought it to pass.

When Joseph had seen and welcomed his father, he said he would now go and tell the king, and he would say that his father had come with all his people, and that the people were shepherds, and had brought their sheep and cattle with them.

The Egyptians hated shepherds for some reason, perhaps because

they had been greatly troubled by some shepherd-king, who had destroyed their cities and temples; but Joseph, the servant of God, would not deceive Pharaoh, and he also bade his brethren, if the king questioned them, answer quite truly. Then, he said, they would be allowed to dwell in the land of Goshen.

Joseph now went to Pharaoh, and said, My father and my brethren, and their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have, are come out of the land of Canaan; and, behold, they are in the land of Goshen. And he took some of his brethren, even five men, and presented them unto Pharaoh.

And Pharaoh said unto his brethren, What is your occupation? And they said unto Pharaoh, Thy servants are shepherds, both we, and also our fathers. They also told the king that in the land of Canaan both they and their flocks were starving, and they asked him to let them dwell in the land of Goshen.

The king freely gave them leave, saying to Joseph, The land of Egypt is before thee; in the best of the land make thy father and brethren to dwell; in the land of Goshen let them dwell: and if thou knowest any men of activity among them, then make them rulers over my cattle.

Joseph now brought his father into the presence of Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed the king who had been so good to his son, and who was now so good to himself and to his people.

And Pharaoh said unto Jacob, How old art thou? And Jacob said unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my

pilgrimage are an hundred and thirty years: few and evil have the days of the years of my life been: for he was not as yet, for those times, very old -not so old as either his father Isaac, or his grandfather Abraham; and he had seen much sorrow.

His cares were, however, ended now; for, by the kindness of the good king, Joseph was able to take care of him for the rest of his life. And Joseph likewise took care of his brethren and all his father's household.

In the meantime the famine grew worse and worse, until the people had spent all their money in buying food, which had, of course, become very dear.

When they had spent all their money, the Egyptians came to Joseph, asking him now to give them bread out of the king's stores, as they had no more money to buy with, and, without food, they must die; but Joseph told them to bring him their cattle, since they had no more money, and he would let them have bread in exchange.

When the people had given up all their cattle, and were again in want of food, they went to Joseph and told him that they had nothing now left to give but themselves and their lands, and they begged that the king would let them have food, taking now themselves and their lands in exchange.

Joseph did as they desired; and so he got all the fields and lands in the kingdom for Pharaoh, with the exception of the lands of the priests, for Pharaoh gave food to the priests, so that they had no need to sell.

Then Joseph removed the people out of the cities, to dwell in different parts of the kingdom and cultivate the ground; and he gave them seed and bade them sow, telling them that four parts of that which grew should be theirs for food, while the fifth part should be for the king.

All the people readily agreed to this, and it became a law. Thus Joseph faithfully served the king his master, and did good to the country, and saved the lives of the people.

THE DEATH OF JACOB.

IME passed: and when the Israelites, who had become very rich and very numerous, had been seventeen years in the land of Goshen,

Israel knew that he should soon die; so he sent for his son Joseph, and asked him to promise that he should not be buried in the land of the stranger, but should be taken to the land of Canaan, and buried with Abraham and Isaac. And Joseph promised solemnly.

After this Jacob became very ill, so messengers were sent to Joseph to tell him.

As soon as Joseph heard it he went to see his father, taking with him his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, that they as well as he might receive a blessing.

Jacob was glad when Joseph came, and he said that Ephraim and Manasseh should be to him as his own sons.

But his eyes were dim with age,