txt/Tanakh/Torah/Genesis/English/The Koren Jerusalem Bible.txt

Genesis
בראשית
The Koren Jerusalem Bible
https://www.korenpub.com/koren_en_usd/koren/tanakh-bible/the-koren-jerusalem-bible.html

Genesis



Chapter 1

IN THE BEGINNING God created the heaven and the earth.
And the earth was without form and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And a wind from God moved over the surface of the waters.
And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
And God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.
And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide water from water.
And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.
And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day.
And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas: and God saw that it was good.
And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, herb yielding seed, and fruit tree yielding fruit after its kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
And the earth brought forth grass, herb yielding seed after its kind, and tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after its kind: and God saw that it was good.
And there was evening and there was morning, a third day.
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:
and let them be for lights in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.
And God made the two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: and the stars also.
And God set them in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth,
and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.
And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.
And God said, Let the waters swarm abundantly with moving creatures that have life, and let birds fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
And God created the great crocodiles, and every living creature that moves, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind: and God saw that it was good.
And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply in the earth.
And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.
And God said, Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind, cattle, and creeping things, and beasts of the earth after their kind: and it was so.
And God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the earth after its kind: and God saw that it was good.
And God said, Let Us make Mankind in Our image, after Our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.
So God created Mankind in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
And God blessed them, and God said to them, Be fruitful, and multiply, replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.
And God said, Behold I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, on which is the fruit yielding seed; to you it shall be for food.
And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for food: and it was so.
And God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Chapter 2

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their host.
And by the seventh day God ended His work which He had done; and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.
And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because in it He rested from all his work which God had created and performed.
These are the generations of the heaven and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.
And no plant of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb of the field had yet grown: for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground.
But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.
And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in ῾Eden; and there He put the man whom He had formed.
And out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
And a river went out of ῾Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and branched into four streams.
The name of the first is Pishon: that it is which compasses the whole land of Ḥavila, where there is gold;
and the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the shoham stone.
And the name of the second river is Giĥon: it compasses the whole land of Kush.
And the name of the third river is Ḥiddeqel: that is it which goes toward the east of Ashshur. And the fourth river is Perat.
And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of ῾Eden to till it and to keep it.
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayst freely eat:
but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for on the day that thou eatest of it thou shalt surely die.
And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help to match him.
And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every bird of the air; and brought them to the man to see what he would call them: and whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.
And the man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for the man there was not found a help to match him.
And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept: and He took one of his sides, and closed up the flesh in its place,
and of the side, which the Lord God had taken from the man, He made a woman, and brought her to the man.
And the man said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
That is why a man leaves his father and his mother, and cleaves to his wife: and they become one flesh.
And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and they felt no shame.

Chapter 3

Now the serpent was craftier than all the beasts of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, Has God said, You shall not eat of any tree of the garden?
And the woman said to the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, You shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.
And the serpent said to the woman, You shall not surely die:
for God knows that on the day you eat of it, then your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit, and did eat, and gave also to her husband with her; and he did eat.
And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves loincloths.
And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the breeze of the day: and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.
And the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, Where art thou?
And he said, I heard Thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
And He said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee that thou shouldst not eat?
And the man said, The woman whom Thou didst give to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
And the Lord God said to the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
And the Lord God said to the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
and I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
Unto the woman He said, I will greatly multiply the pain of thy childbearing; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and yet thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.
And to the man He said, Because thou hast hearkened to the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return to the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and to dust shalt thou return.
And the man called his wife’s name Ḥavva; because she was the mother of all living (Ḥay).
For the man also and for his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.
And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become like one of Us, knowing good and evil: and now, what if he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eating, live for ever:
therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of ῾Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
So He drove out the man; and He placed the keruvim at the east of the garden of ῾Eden, and the bright blade of a revolving sword to guard the way to the tree of life.

Chapter 4

And the man knew Ḥavva his wife; and she conceived, and bore Qayin saying, I have acquired a manchild from the Lord.
And she again bore, his brother Hevel. And Hevel was a keeper of sheep, but Qayin was a tiller of the ground.
And in process of time it came to pass, that Qayin brought of the fruit of the ground an offering to the Lord.
And Hevel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat parts thereof. And the Lord had respect to Hevel and to his offering:
but to Qayin and to his offering He had not respect. And Qayin was very angry, and his face fell.
And the Lord said to Qayin, Why art thou angry? and why art thou crestfallen?
If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin crouches at the door, and to thee shall be his desire. Yet thou mayst rule over him.
And Qayin talked with Hevel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Qayin rose up against Hevel his brother, and slew him.
And the Lord said to Qayin, Where is Hevel thy brother? And he said, I know not: am I my brother’s keeper?
And He said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood cries to Me from the ground.
And now cursed art thou from the earth, which has opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand;
when thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield to thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be on the earth.
And Qayin said to the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear.
Behold, Thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from Thy face I shall be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that anyone that finds me shall slay me.
And the Lord said to him, Therefore whoever slays Qayin, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Qayin, lest any finding him should smite him.
And Qayin went out from the presence of the Lord, and dwelt in the land of Nod, to the east of ῾Eden.
And Qayin knew his wife; and she conceived, and bore Ḥanokh: and he built a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Ḥanokh.
And to Ḥanokh was born ῾Irad: and ῾Irad begot Meĥuya᾽el: and Meĥiyya᾽el begot Metusha᾽el: and Metusha᾽el begot Lemekh.
And Lemekh took to him two wives: the name of the one was ῾Ada, and the name of the other Żilla.
And ῾Ada bore Yaval: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle.
And his brother’s name was Yuval: he was the father of all such as handle the lyre and pipe.
And Żilla, she also bore Tuval-qayin, forger of every sharp instrument in brass and iron: and the sister of Tuval-qayin was Na῾ama.
And Lemekh said to his wives, ῾Ada and Żilla, Hear my voice; wives of Lemekh, hearken to my speech: for I have slain a man for wounding me, and a young man for my hurt.
If Qayin shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lemekh seventy and sevenfold.
And Adam (Man) knew his wife again; and she bore a son, and called his name Shet: For God, said she, has appointed me another seed instead of Hevel whom Qayin slew.
And to Shet, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enosh: then men began to call upon the Lord by name.

Chapter 5

This is the book of the generations of Adam (Man). In the day that God created mankind, in the likeness of God He made him;
male and female He created them; and blessed them, and called their name Man, in the day when they were created.
And Adam lived a hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Shet:
and the days of Adam after he had begotten Shet were eight hundred years: and he begot sons and daughters:
and all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
And Shet lived a hundred and five years, and begot Enosh:
and Shet lived after he begot Enosh eight hundred and seven years, and begot sons and daughters:
and all the days of Shet were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.
And Enosh lived ninety years, and begot Qenan:
and Enosh lived after he begot Qenan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begot sons and daughters:
and all the days of Enosh were nine hundred and five years: and he died.
And Qenan lived seventy years, and begot Mahalal᾽el:
and Qenan lived after he begot Mahalal᾽el eight hundred and forty years, and begot sons and daughters:
and all the days of Qenan were nine hundred and ten years: and he died.
And Mahalal᾽el lived sixty five years, and begot Yered:
and Mahalal᾽el lived after he begot Yered eight hundred and thirty years, and he begot sons and daughters:
and all the days of Mahalal᾽el were eight hundred and ninety five years: and he died.
And Yered lived a hundred and sixty two years, and he begot Ḥanokh:
and Yered lived after he begot Ḥanokh eight hundred years, and begot sons and daughters:
and all the days of Yered were nine hundred and sixty two years: and he died.
And Ḥanokh lived sixty five years, and begot Metushelaĥ:
and Ḥanokh walked with God after he begot Metushelaĥ three hundred years, and begot sons and daughters:
and all the days of Ḥanokh were three hundred and sixty five years:
and Ḥanokh walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
And Metushelaĥ lived a hundred and eighty seven years, and begot Lemekh:
and Metushelaĥ lived after he begot Lemekh seven hundred and eighty two years, and begot sons and daughters:
and all the days of Metushelaĥ were nine hundred and sixty nine years: and he died.
And Lemekh lived a hundred and eighty two years, and begot a son:
and he called his name Noaĥ, saying, This one shall comfort us for our work and the toil of our hands, because of the ground which the Lord has cursed.
And Lemekh lived after he begot Noaĥ five hundred and ninety five years, and begot sons and daughters:
and all the days of Lemekh were seven hundred and seventy seven years: and he died.
And Noaĥ was five hundred years old: and Noaĥ begot Shem, Ḥam, and Yefet.

Chapter 6

And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them,
that the distinguished men saw that the daughters of men were fair; and they took them wives of all whom they chose.
And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive on account of man, for that he also is flesh: and his days shall be a hundred and twenty years.
There were Nefilim in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the distinguished men came in to the daughters of men, and they bore children to them; the same were mighty men of old, men of renown.
And the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that all the impulse of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
And the Lord repented that He had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him at His heart.
And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth: both man, and beast, and creeping things, and the birds of the air; for I repent that I have made them.
But Noaĥ found favour in the eyes of the Lord.
These are the generations of Noaĥ: Noaĥ was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noaĥ walked with God.
And Noaĥ begot three sons, Shem, Ḥam, and Yefet.
The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.
And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted its way upon the earth.
And God said to Noaĥ, The end of all flesh is come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
Make thee an ark of gofer wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch.
And this is the fashion of which thou shalt make it: the length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits.
A window shalt thou make to the ark, and to a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt thou set in its side; with lower, second, and third stories shalt thou make it.
And, behold, I will bring the flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, in which is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is on the earth shall die.
But with thee will I establish My covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons’ wives with thee.
And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female.
Of birds after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after its kind, two of every sort shall come to thee, to keep them alive.
And take thou to thee of all food that is eaten, and gather it to thee; and it shall be for food for thee, and for them.
So Noaĥ did according to all that God commanded him; thus he did.

Chapter 7

And the Lord said to Noaĥ, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before Me in this generation.
Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, male and female: and of beasts that are not clean by twos, male and female.
Of birds of the air, also by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth.
For in another seven days, I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth.
And Noaĥ did according to all that the Lord commanded him.
And Noaĥ was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth.
And Noaĥ went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood.
Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of birds and of everything that creeps upon the earth,
there went in two and two to Noaĥ into the ark, male and female, as God had commanded Noaĥ.
And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.
In the six hundredth year of Noaĥ’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken open, and the windows of heaven were opened.
And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights.
In the selfsame day Noaĥ, and Shem, and Ḥam, and Yefet, the sons of Noaĥ, and Noaĥ’s wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, entered into the ark;
they, and every beast after its kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort.
And they went in to Noaĥ into the ark, two and two of all flesh in which is the breath of life.
And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the Lord shut him in.
And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bore up the ark, and it was raised above the earth.
And the waters prevailed, and were increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of the waters.
And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high mountains, that were under the whole heaven, were covered.
Fifteen cubits upward did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered.
And all flesh perished that moved upon the earth, both of birds, and of cattle, and of beasts, and of every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth, and all mankind:
all in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was on the dry land, died.
And He destroyed every living substance which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and creeping things, and the birds of the heaven; they were destroyed from the earth: and Noaĥ only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark.
And the waters prevailed upon the earth a hundred and fifty days.

Chapter 8

And God remembered Noaĥ, and every living thing, and all the cattle that were with him in the ark: and God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters were assuaged;
the fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped,
and the rain from heaven was restrained; and the waters receded from the earth continually: and after the end of a hundred and fifty days the waters were abated.
And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat.
And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month: in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, were the tops of the mountains seen.
And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noaĥ opened the window of the ark which he had made:
and he sent forth the raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth.
Also he sent forth the dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from the face of the ground;
but the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned to him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put out his hand, and took her, and pulled her in to him into the ark.
And he waited yet another seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark;
and the dove came in to him in the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf plucked off: so Noaĥ knew that the waters were abated from off the earth.
And he waited yet another seven days; and sent forth the dove; which returned not again to him any more.
And it came to pass in the six hundred and first year, in the first month on the first day of the month, that the waters were dried up from off the earth: and Noaĥ removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and, behold, the face of the ground was dry.
And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, was the earth dried.
And God spoke to Noaĥ, saying,
Go out of the ark, thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons’ wives with thee.
Bring out with thee every living thing that is with thee, of all flesh, both of birds, and of cattle, and of every creeping thing that creeps on the earth; that they may breed abundantly on the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon the earth.
And Noaĥ went out, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him:
every beast, every creeping thing, and every bird, and whatever creeps on the earth, after their kinds, went out of the ark.
And Noaĥ built an altar to the Lord; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.
And the Lord smelled the sweet savour; and the Lord said in His heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake; for the impulse of man’s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more everything living, as I have done.
While the earth remains, seed time and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

Chapter 9

And God blessed Noaĥ and his sons, and said to them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.
And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every bird of the air, upon all that moves upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered.
Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things.
But flesh with its life, which is its blood, you shall not eat.
And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man’s brother will I require the life of man.
Whoso sheds man’s blood by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made He man.
And as for you, be fruitful, and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply in it.
And God spoke to Noaĥ, and to his sons with him, saying,
And behold, I establish My covenant with you, and with your seed after you;
and with every living creature that is with you, of the birds, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that came out of the ark, to every beast of the earth.
And I will establish My covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of the flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth.
And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations:
I have set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between Me and the earth.
And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud:
and I will remember My covenant, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.
And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.
And God said to Noaĥ, This is the token of the covenant, which I have established between Me and all flesh that is upon the earth.
And the sons of Noaĥ, that went out of the ark, were Shem, and Ḥam, and Yefet: and Ḥam is the father of Kena῾an.
These are the three sons of Noaĥ: and of them was the whole earth overspread.
And Noaĥ began to be a husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:
And he drank of the wine, and was drunk; and he was uncovered within his tent.
And Ḥam, the father of Kena῾an saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren outside.
And Shem and Yefet took the garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father’s nakedness.
And Noaĥ awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done to him.
And he said, Cursed be Kena῾an; a servant of servants shall he be to his brethren.
And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem; and Kena῾an shall be his servant.
God shall enlarge Yefet, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem; and Kena῾an shall be his servant.
And Noaĥ lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years.
And all the days of Noaĥ were nine hundred and fifty years: and he died.

Chapter 10

Now these are the generations of the sons of Noaĥ: Shem, Ḥam, and Yefet; and to them were sons born after the flood.
The sons of Yefet; Gomer, and Magog, and Maday, and Yavan, and Tuval, and Meshekh, and Tiras.
And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Rifat, and Togarma.
And the sons of Yavan; Elisha, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim.
By these were the isles of the nations divided in their lands; everyone after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.
And the sons of Ḥam; Kush, and Miżrayim, and Put, and Kena῾an.
And the sons of Kush; Seva, and Ḥavila, and Savta, and Ra῾ma, and Savtekha, and the sons of Ra῾ma; Sheva, and Dedan.
And Kush begot Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth.
He was a mighty hunter before the Lord: wherefore it is said, Like Nimrod the mighty hunter before the Lord.
And the beginning of his kingdom was Bavel, and Erekh, and Akkad, and Kalne, in the land of Shin῾ar.
Out of that land went forth Ashshur, and built Nineve, and the city Reĥovot, and Kelaĥ.
And Resen between Nineve and Kelaĥ: that is a great city.
And Miżrayim begot Ludim, and ῾Anamim, and Lehavim and Naftuhim.
And Patrusim, and Kasluĥim, (out of whom came Pelishtim) and Kaftorim.
And Kena῾an begot Żidon his firstborn, and Ḥet,
and the Yevusi, and the Emori, and the Girgashi.
And the Ḥivvi, and the ῾Arqi, and the Sini,
and the Arvadi, and the Żemari, and the Hamati: and afterwards the families of the Kena῾ani were spread abroad.
And the border of the Kena῾ani was from Żidon, as thou comest to Gerar, unto ῾Azza; as thou goest to Sedom, and ῾Amora, and Adma, and Żevoyim, unto Lesha.
These are the sons of Ḥam, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, in their nations.
To Shem also, the father of all the children of ῾Ever, the brother of Yefet the elder, to him were children born.
The children of Shem; ῾Elam, and Ashshur, and Arpakhshad, and Lud, and Aram.
And the children of Aram; ῾Uż, and Ḥul, and Geter, and Mash.
And Arpakhshad begot Shelaĥ, and Shelaĥ begot ῾Ever.
And to ῾Ever were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided; and his brother’s name was Yoqtan.
And Yoqtan begot Almodad, and Shelef, and Ḥażarmavet, and Yeraĥ,
and Hadoram, and Uzal, and Diqla,
and ῾Oval, and Avima᾽el, and Sheva,
and Ofir, and Ḥavila, and Yovav: all these were the sons of Yoqtan.
And their dwelling was from Mesha, as thou goest to Sefar a mountain of the east.
These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations.
These are the families of the sons of Noaĥ, after their generations, in their nations: and from these were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.

Chapter 11

And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech.
And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shin῾ar; and they dwelt there.
And they said to one another, Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for mortar.
And they said, Come, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach to heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men were building.
And the Lord said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be withheld from them, which they have schemed to do.
Come, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.
So the Lord scattered them abroad from there upon the face of all the earth: and they ceased to build the city.
Therefore is the name of it called Bavel; because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.
These are the generations of Shem: Shem was a hundred years old, and begot Arpakhshad two years after the flood:
and Shem lived after he begot Arpakhshad five hundred years, and begot sons and daughters.
And Arpakhshad lived thirty five years, and begot Shelaĥ.
And Arpakhshad lived after he begot Shelaĥ four hundred and three years, and begot sons and daughters.
And Shelaĥ lived thirty years, and begot ῾Ever:
and Shelaĥ lived after he begot ῾Ever four hundred and three years, and begot sons and daughters.
And ῾Ever lived thirty four years, and begot Peleg:
and ῾Ever lived after he begot Peleg four hundred and thirty years, and begot sons and daughters.
And Peleg lived thirty years, and begot Re῾u:
and Peleg lived after he begot Re῾u two hundred and nine years, and begot sons and daughters.
And Re῾u lived thirty two years, and begot Serug:
and Re῾u lived after he begot Serug two hundred and seven years, and begot sons and daughters.
And Serug lived thirty years, and begot Naĥor:
and Serug lived after he begot Naĥor two hundred years, and begot sons and daughters.
And Naĥor lived twenty nine years, and begot Teraĥ:
and Naĥor lived after he begot Teraĥ a hundred and nineteen years, and begot sons and daughters.
And Teraĥ lived seventy years, and begot Avram, Naĥor, and Haran.
Now these are the generations of Teraĥ: Teraĥ begot Avram, Naĥor, and Haran; and Haran begot Lot.
And Haran died before his father Teraĥ in the land of his nativity, in Ur-kasdim.
And Avram and Naĥor took wives for themselves; the name of Avram’s wife was Saray; and the name of Naĥor’s wife, Milka, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milka, and the father of Yiska.
But Saray was barren; she had no child.
And Teraĥ took Avram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son’s son, and Saray his daughter in law, his son Avram’s wife; and they went out with them from Ur-kasdim, to go into the land of Kena῾an; and they came to Ḥaran, and dwelt there.
And the days of Teraĥ were two hundred and five years: and Teraĥ died in Ḥaran.

Chapter 12

Now the Lord said to Avram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, to the land that I will show thee:
and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curses thee: and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
So Avram departed, as the Lord had spoken to him; and Lot went with him: and Avram was seventy five years old when he departed out of Ḥaran.
And Avram took Saray his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had acquired in Ḥaran; and they went forth to go to the land of Kena῾an; and into the land of Kena῾an they came.
And Avram passed through the land to the place of Shekhem unto the terebinth of More. And the Kena῾ani was then in the land.
And the Lord appeared to Avram, and said, To thy seed will I give this land: and there he built an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him.
And he removed from there to a mountain on the east of Bet-el, and pitched his tent, having Bet-el on the west, and ῾Ay on the east: and there he built an altar to the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord.
And Avram journeyed, going on still toward the Negev.
And there was famine in the land: and Avram went down to Miżrayim to sojourn there; for the famine was severe in the land.
And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter to Miżrayim that he said to Saray his wife, Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon:
therefore it shall come to pass, when the Miżrim shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive.
Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee.
And it came to pass, that, when Avram was come to Miżrayim, the Miżrim beheld the woman that she was very fair.
The princes also of Par῾o saw her, and commended her before Par῾o: and the woman was taken into Par῾o’s house.
And he treated Avram well for her sake: and he had sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she asses, and camels.
And the Lord plagued Par῾o and his house with great plagues because of Saray, Avram’s wife.
And Par῾o called Avram, and said, What is this that thou hast done to me? why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife?
Why didst thou say, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to me to wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way.
And Par῾o commanded his men concerning him: and they sent him away, and his wife, and all that he had.

Chapter 13

And Avram went up out of Miżrayim, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negev.
And Avram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.
And he went on his journeys from the Negev even to Bet-el, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bet-el and ῾Ay;
to the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first: and there Avram called on the name of the Lord.
And Lot also, who went with Avram, had flocks, and herds, and tents.
And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together: for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together.
And there was a strife between the herdmen of Avram’s cattle and the herdmen of Lot’s cattle: and the Kena῾ani and the Perizzi dwelt then in the land.
And Avram said to Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen, for we are brethren.
Is not the whole land before thee? separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left.
And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of the Yarden, that it was well watered everywhere, before the Lord destroyed Sedom and ῾Amora, like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Miżrayim, as thou comest to Żo῾ar.
Then Lot chose him all the plain of the Yarden; and Lot journeyed east; and they separated themselves one from the other.
Avram dwelt in the land of Kena῾an, and Lot dwelt in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sedom.
But the men of Sedom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly.
And the Lord said to Avram, after Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thy eyes, and look from the place where thou art, northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward;
for all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.
Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it to thee.
Then Avram removed his tent, and came and dwelt by the terebinths of Mamre, which is in Ḥevron, and built there an altar to the Lord.

Chapter 14

And it came to pass in the days of Amrafel king of Shin῾ar, Aryokh king of Ellasar, Kedorla῾omer king of ῾Elam, and Tid῾al king of Goyim,
that these made war with Bera king of Sedom, and with Birsha king of ῾Amora, Shin᾽av, king of Adma, and Shem᾽ever, king of Żevoyim, and the king of Bela which is Żo῾ar.
All these were joined together in the vale of Siddim, which is the salt sea.
Twelve years they served Kedorla῾omer, and in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
And in the fourteenth year came Kedorla῾omer, and the kings that were with him and smote the Refa᾽im in ῾Ashterot-qarnayim, and the Zuzim in Ham, and the Emim in Shave-qiryatayim,
and the Ḥori in their mount Se῾ir, unto El-paran, which is by the wilderness.
And they returned, and came to ῾En-mishpat, which is Qadesh, and smote all the country of the ῾Amaleqi, and also the Emori, that dwelt in Ḥażażon-tamar.
And there went out the king of Sedom, and the king of ῾Amora, and the king of Adma, and the king of Żevoyim, and the king of Bela (the same is Żo῾ar;) and they joined battle with them in the vale of Siddim;
with Kedorla῾omer the king of ῾Elam, and with Tid῾al, king of Goyim, and Amrafel, king of Shin῾ar, and Aryokh, king of Ellasar; four kings against five.
And the vale of Siddim was full of slime pits; and the kings of Sedom and ῾Amora fled, and fell there; and they that remained fled to the mountain.
And they took all the goods of Sedom and ῾Amora, and all their foodstuff, and went their way.
And they took Lot, Avram’s brother’s son, who dwelt in Sedom, and his goods, and departed.
And there came one that had escaped, and told Avram the Hebrew; for he dwelt by the terebinths of Mamre the Emori, brother of Eshkol, and brother of ῾Aner: and these were confederate with Avram.
And when Avram heard that his brother was taken captive, he led forth his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them to Dan.
And he divided himself against them, he and his servants by night, and smote them, and pursued them to Ḥova, which is on the left hand of Dammeseq.
And he brought back all the goods, and also brought back his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people.
And the king of Sedom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter of Kedorla῾omer and of the kings that were with him, at the valley of Shave, which is the king’s dale.
And Malki-żedeq king of Shalem brought out bread and wine: and he was a priest of the most high God.
And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Avram of the most high God, Possessor of heaven and earth:
and blessed be the most high God, Who has delivered thy enemies into thy hand. And he gave him a tithe of everything.
And the king of Sedom said to Avram, Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself.
And Avram said to the king of Sedom, I have raised my hand to the Lord, the most high God, the Possessor of heaven and earth,
that I will take nothing from a thread even to a shoe-latchet, and that I will not take anything that is thine, lest thou shouldst say, I have made Avram rich:
save only that which the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me, ῾Aner, Eshkol, and Mamre; let them take their share.

Chapter 15

After these things the word of the Lord came to Avram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Avram: I am thy shield; thy reward will be very great.
And Avram said, Lord God, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is Eli῾ezer of Dammeseq?
And Avram said, Behold, to me Thou hast given no seed: and, one born in my house is my heir.
And, behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, This shall not be thy heir; but he that shall come forth out of thy own bowels shall be thy heir.
And He brought him outside, and said, Look now toward heaven, and count the stars, if thou be able to number them: and He said to him, So shall thy seed be.
And he believed in the Lord; and He counted it to him for righteousness.
And He said to him, I am the Lord that brought thee out of Ur-kasdim, to give thee this land to inherit it.
And he said, Lord God, by what shall I know that I shall inherit it?
And He said to him, Take Me a heifer three years old, and a goat three years old, and a ram three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon.
And he took to Him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each half against the other: but the birds he divided not.
And the eagle came down upon the carcasses, and Avram drove them away.
And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Avram; and, lo, a horror of great darkness fell upon him.
And He said to Avram, Know surely that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;
and also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterwards shall they come out with great substance.
And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age.
But in the fourth generation they shall come back here, for the iniquity of the Emori is not yet full.
And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning torch that passed between those pieces.
In the same day the Lord made a covenant with Avram, saying, To thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Miżrayim to the great river, the river Perat:
the Qeni, and the Qenizzi, and the Qadmoni,
and the Ḥitti, and the Perizzi, and the Refa᾽im,
and the Emori, and the Kena῾ani, and the Girgashi, and the Yevusi.

Chapter 16

Now Saray Avram’s wife bore him no children: and she had a Miżrian handmaid, whose name was Hagar.
And Saray said to Avram, Behold now, the Lord has restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in to my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Avram hearkened to the voice of Saray.
And Saray Avram’s wife took Hagar, her maid, the Miżrian, after Avram had dwelt ten years in the land of Kena῾an, and gave her to her husband Avram for a wife.
And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived: and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes.
And Saray said to Avram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the Lord judge between me and thee.
But Avram said to Saray, Behold, thy maid is in thy hand; do to her as it pleases thee. And when Saray dealt harshly with her, she fled from her face.
And an angel of the Lord found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain on the way to Shur.
And he said, Hagar, Saray’s maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Saray.
And the angel of the Lord said to her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself to her hands.
And the angel of the Lord said to her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude.
And the angel of the Lord said to her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Yishma᾽el; because the Lord has heard thy affliction.
And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man’s hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.
And she called the name of the Lord that spoke to her, Thou God seest me: for she said,
Have I also here looked after Him that sees me? Therefore the well was called Be᾽er-laĥay-ro᾽i; behold, it is between Qadesh and Bered.
And Hagar bore Avram a son: and Avram called his son’s name, whom Hagar bore, Yishma᾽el.
And Avram was eighty six years old, when Hagar bore Yishma᾽el to Avram.

Chapter 17

And when Avram was ninety nine years old, the Lord appeared to Avram, and said to him, I am the Almighty God; walk before Me, and be perfect.
And I will make My covenant between Me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.
And Avram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying,
As for Me, behold, My covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations.
Neither shall thy name any more be called Avram, but thy name shall be Avraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.
And I will make thee exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.
And I will establish My covenant between Me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God to thee, and to thy seed after thee.
And I will give to thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land in which thou dost sojourn, all the land of Kena῾an, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.
And God said to Avraham, Thou shalt keep My covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.
This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and thy seed after thee; Every manchild among you shall be circumcised.
And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant between Me and you.
And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every manchild in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, who is not of thy seed.
He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
And the uncircumcised manchild the flesh of whose foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.
And God said to Avraham, As for Saray thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Saray, but Sara shall her name be.
And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: and I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall issue from her.
Then Avraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born to him that is a hundred years old? and shall Sara, that is ninety years old, give birth?
And Avraham said to God, O that Yishma᾽el might live before thee!
And God said, Sara thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Yiżĥaq: and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.
And as for Yishma᾽el I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.
But my covenant will I establish with Yiżĥaq, whom Sara shall bear to thee at this time next year.
And He finished talking with him, and God went up from Avraham.
And Avraham took Yishma᾽el his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his money, every male among the men of Avraham’s house; and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day, as God had said to him.
And Avraham was ninety nine years old, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
And Yishma᾽el his son was thirteen years old, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
In the selfsame day was Avraham circumcised, and Yishma᾽el his son.
And all the men of his house, born in the house, and bought with money of a stranger, were circumcised with him.

Chapter 18

And the Lord appeared to him by the terebinths of Mamre, as he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day;
and he raised his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him; and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the ground,
and said, My Lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant:
let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree:
and I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort your hearts; after that you shall pass on: seeing that you are come to your servant. And they said, So do, as thou hast said.
And Avraham hastened into the tent to Sara, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes.
And Avraham ran to the herd, and fetched a calf tender and good, and gave it to the young man; and he hurried to prepare it.
And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they ate.
And they said to him, Where is Sara thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent.
And he said, I will certainly return to thee at this season; and, lo, Sara thy wife shall have a son. And Sara heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.
Now Avraham and Sara were old, advanced in age; and it had ceased to be with Sara after the manner of women.
Therefore Sara laughed within herself, saying, After I am grown old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?
And the Lord said to Avraham, Why did Sara laugh, saying, Shall I indeed bear a child, who am old?
Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the time appointed I will return to thee, at this season, and Sara shall have a son.
Then Sara denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And He said, No; but thou didst laugh.
And the men rose up from there, and looked toward Sedom: and Avraham went with them to bring them on the way.
And the Lord said, Shall I hide from Avraham that thing which I intend to do;
seeing that Avraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?
For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Avraham that which He has spoken of him.
And the Lord said, Because the cry of Sedom and ῾Amora is great, and because their sin is very grievous;
I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come to Me; and if not, I will know.
And the men turned their faces from there and went toward Sedom: but Avraham stood yet before the Lord.
And Avraham drew near, and said, Wilt Thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?
Perhaps there are fifty righteous within the city: wilt Thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?
Far be it from Thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, far be it from Thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
And the Lord said, If I find in Sedom fifty just men within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.
And Avraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak to the Lord, who am but dust and ashes:
perhaps there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt Thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And He said, If I find there forty five, I will not destroy it.
And he spoke to him yet again, and said, perhaps there shall be forty found there. And He said, I will not do it for the forty’s sake.
And he said to him, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: perhaps there shall thirty be found there. And He said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there.
And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak to the Lord: perhaps there shall be twenty found there. And He said, I will not destroy it for the twenty’s sake.
And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: perhaps ten shall be found there. And He said, I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten.
And the Lord went His way, as soon as He had left speaking to Avraham: and Avraham returned to his place.

Chapter 19

And there came two angels to Sedom at evening, and Lot sat in the gate of Sedom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face to the ground;
and he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant’s house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and you may rise up early, and go your ways. And they said, No; but we will abide in the street all night.
And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in to him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat.
But before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sedom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter:
and they called to Lot, and said to him, Where are the men who came in to thee this night? bring them out to us, that we may know them.
And Lot went out at the door to them, and shut the door after him,
And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly.
Behold now, I have two daughters who have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do to them as is good in your eyes: only to these men do nothing; seeing that they have come under the shadow of my roof.
And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee than with them. And they strongly urged the man, Lot, and came near to break the door.
But the men put out their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut the door.
And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door.
And the men said to Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place:
for we will destroy this place, because the cry of them has grown great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord has sent us to destroy it.
And Lot went out, and spoke to his sons in law, who married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the Lord will destroy the city. But he seemed to his sons in law as one that jested.
And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, who are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.
And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the Lord being merciful to him: and they brought him out, and set him outside the city.
And it came to pass, when they had brought them outside, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.
And Lot said to them, Oh, not so, my Lord:
behold now, thy servant has found favour in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shown to me in saving my life; I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die:
behold now, this city is near to flee to, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape there, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.
And he said to him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for which thou hast spoken.
Haste thee, escape there; for I cannot do anything till thou be come there. Therefore the name of the city was called Żo῾ar.
The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Żo῾ar.
Then the Lord rained upon Sedom and upon ῾Amora brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven;
and He overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.
But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.
And Avraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the Lord:
and he looked toward Sedom and ῾Amora, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up like the smoke of a furnace.
And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Avraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot dwelt.
And Lot went up out of Żo῾ar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Żo῾ar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters.
And the firstborn said to the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in to us after the manner of all the earth:
come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.
And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.
And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said to the younger, Behold, I lay last night with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.
And they made their father drink wine that night also: and the younger arose, and lay with him; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.
Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father.
And the firstborn bore a son, and called his name Mo᾽av: he is the father of Mo᾽av to this day.
And the younger, she also bore a son, and called his name Ben-῾ammi: he is the father of the children of ῾Ammon to this day.

Chapter 20

And Avraham journeyed from there toward the Negev, and dwelt between Qadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.
And Avraham said of Sara his wife, She is my sister: and Avimelekh king of Gerar sent, and took Sara.
But God came to Avimelekh in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art a dead man, because of the woman whom thou hast taken, for she is a man’s wife.
But Avimelekh had not come near her: and he said, Lord, wilt Thou slay also a righteous nation?
Said he not to me, She is my sister? and she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.
And God said to him in a dream, I too know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against Me: therefore I did not permit thee to touch her.
Now therefore restore the man’s wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.
Therefore Avimelekh rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears: and the men were sore afraid.
Then Avimelekh called Avraham, and said to him, What hast thou done to us? and in what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds to me that ought not to be done.
And Avimelekh said to Avraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing?
And Avraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife’s sake.
And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.
And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, This is thy kindness which thou shalt show to me; at every place where we shall come, say of me, He is my brother.
And Avimelekh took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them to Avraham, and restored him Sara his wife.
And Avimelekh said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleases thee.
And to Sara he said, Behold, I have given thy brother a thousand pieces of silver: behold, it is to thee a covering of the eyes, to all that are with thee, and unto all others: thus she was reproved.
So Avraham prayed to God: and God healed Avimelekh, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bore children.
For the Lord had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Avimelekh, because of Sara Avraham’s wife.

Chapter 21

And the Lord visited Sara as He had said, and the Lord did to Sara as He had spoken.
For Sara conceived, and bore Avraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.
And Avraham called the name of his son that was born to him, whom Sara bore to him, Yiżĥaq.
And Avraham circumcised his son Yiżĥaq being eight days old, as God had commanded him.
And Avraham was a hundred years old, when his son Yiżĥaq was born to him.
And Sara said, God has made laughter for me, so that all that hear will laugh with me.
And she said, Who would have said to Avraham, that Sara should give children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age.
And the child grew, and was weaned: and Avraham made a great feast on the same day that Yiżĥaq was weaned.
And Sara saw the son of Hagar the Miżrian, whom she had born to Avraham, mocking.
So she said to Avraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, with Yiżĥaq.
And the thing was very grievous in Avraham’s eyes because of his son.
And God said to Avraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sara has said to thee, hearken to her voice; for in Yiżĥaq shall thy seed be called.
And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.
And Avraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Be᾽er-sheva.
And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.
And she went, and sat her down over against him a good way off, as it were a bowshot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lifted up her voice, and wept.
And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, What ails thee, Hagar? fear not; for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is.
Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thy hand; for I will make him a great nation.
And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.
And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.
And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Miżrayim.
And it came to pass at that time, that Avimelekh and Pikhol captain of his host spoke to Avraham, saying, God is with thee in all that thou doest:
now therefore swear to me here by God that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son’s son: but according to the kindness that I have done to thee, thou shalt do to me, and to the land in which thou hast sojourned.
And Avraham said, I will swear.
And Avraham reproved Avimelekh because of the well of water, which Avimelekh’s servants had violently taken away.
And Avimelekh said, I know not who has done this thing: neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but today.
And Avraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them to Avimelekh; and both of them made a covenant.
And Avraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.
And Avimelekh said to Avraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves?
And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness to me, that I have dug this well.
Therefore he called that place Be᾽er-sheva; because there they swore both of them.
Thus they made a covenant at Be᾽er-sheva; then Avimelekh rose up, and Pikhol the captain of his host, and they returned to the land of the Pelishtim.
And Avraham planted a tamarisk in Be᾽er-sheva, and called there on the name of the Lord, the everlasting God.
And Avraham sojourned in the land of the Pelishtim many days.

Chapter 22

And it came to pass after these things, that God did test Avraham, and said to him, Avraham: and he said, Here I am!
And He said, Take now thy son, thy only son Yiżĥaq, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriyya; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.
And Avraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Yiżĥaq his son, and broke up the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went to the place of which God had told him.
Then on the third day Avraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.
And Avraham said to his young men, stay here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and prostrate ourselves, and come again to you.
And Avraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Yiżĥaq his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and the knife; and they went both of them together.
And Yiżĥaq spoke to Avraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here I am, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?
And Avraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.
And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Avraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Yiżĥaq his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood.
And Avraham stretched out his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.
And an angel of the Lord called to him out of heaven, and said, Avraham, Avraham: and he said, Here I am.
And he said, Lay not thy hand upon the lad, neither do anything to him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thy only son from me.
And Avraham lifted up his eyes, and looked and behold behind him a ram caught in the thicket by his horns: and Avraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in place of his son.
And Avraham called the name of that place Adonay-yir᾽e: as it is said to this day, In the mount the Lord will appear.
And the angel of the Lord called to Avraham out of heaven the second time,
and said, By myself have I sworn, says the Lord, because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thy only son:
that I will exceedingly bless thee, and I will exceedingly 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 its enemies;
and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed My voice.
So Avraham returned to his young men, and they rose up and went together to Be᾽er-sheva; and Avraham dwelt at Be᾽er-sheva.
And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Avraham, saying, Behold Milka, she also has born children to thy brother Naĥor;
῾Uż his firstborn, and Buz his brother, and Qemu᾽el the father of Aram,
and Kesed, and Ḥazo, and Pildash, and Yidlaf, and Betu᾽el.
And Betu᾽el begot Rivqa: these eight did Milka bear to Naĥor, Avraham’s brother.
And his concubine, whose name was Re᾽uma, she bore also Tevaĥ, and Gaĥam, and Taĥash, and Ma῾akha.

Chapter 23

And Sara was a hundred and twenty seven years old: these were the years of Sara’s life.
And Sara died in Qiryat-arba; that is Ḥevron, in the land of Kena῾an: and Avraham came to mourn for Sara, and to weep for her.
And Avraham stood up from before his dead, and spoke to the sons of Ḥet, saying,
I am a stranger and a sojourner with you: give me a possession of a buryingplace with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.
And the children of Ḥet answered Avraham, saying to him,
Hear us, my lord: thou art a mighty prince among us: in the choice of our sepulchres bury thy dead; none of us shall with- hold from thee his tomb, but that thou mayst bury thy dead.
And Avraham stood up, and bowed himself to the people of the land, to the children of Ḥet.
And he spoke with them, saying, If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight; hear me, and intreat for me to ῾Efron the son of Żoĥar,
that he may give me the cave of Makhpela, which he has, which is in the end of his field; for the full price he shall give it me for a possession of a buryingplace amongst you.
And ῾Efron dwelt among the children of Ḥet: and ῾Efron the Ḥitti answered Avraham in the hearing of the children of Ḥet, even of all that went in at the gate of his city, saying,
No, my lord, hear me: the field I give thee, and the cave that is in it, I give it thee; in the presence of the sons of my people I give it thee: bury thy dead.
And Avraham bowed himself down before the people of the land.
And he spoke to ῾Efron in the hearing of the people of the land, saying, But if thou wilt give it, I pray thee, hear me: I will give thee the price of the field; take it of me, and I will bury my dead there.
And ῾Efron answered Avraham, saying to him,
My lord, hearken to me: a piece of land worth four hundred shekels of silver; what is that between me and thee? bury therefore thy dead.
And Avraham hearkened to ῾Efron; and Avraham weighed to ῾Efron the silver, which he had named in the hearing of the sons of Ḥet, four hundred shekels of silver, current money with the merchant.
And the field of ῾Efron, which was in Makhpela, which was before Mamre, the field, and the cave which was in it, and all the trees that were in the field, that were in all the borders round about, were made over
to Avraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Ḥet, before all that went in at the gate of his city.
And after this, Avraham buried Sara his wife in the cave of the field of Makhpela before Mamre: the same is Ḥevron in the land of Kena῾an.
And the field, and the cave that is in it, were made over to Avraham for a possession of a buryingplace by the sons of Ḥet.

Chapter 24

And Avraham was old, advanced in age: and the Lord had blessed Avraham in all things.
And Avraham said to the eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh:
and I will make thee swear by the Lord, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife to my son of the daughters of the Kena῾ani, among whom I dwell;
but thou shalt go to my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife to my son Yiżĥaq.
And the servant said to him, Perhaps the woman will not be willing to follow me to this land: must I needs bring thy son back to the land from where thou didst come?
And Avraham said to him, Beware lest thou bring my son back there.
The Lord God of heaven, Who took me from my father’s house, and from the land of my kindred, and Who spoke to me, and swore to me, saying, To thy seed will I give this land; He shall send His angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife for my son from there.
And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring not my son back there.
And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Avraham his master, and swore to him concerning that matter.
And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed; for all the goods of his master were in his hand: and he arose, and went to Aram-naharayim, to the city of Naĥor.
And he made his camels kneel down outside the city by a well of water at the time of evening, at the time that the women go out to draw water.
And he said, O Lord God of my master Avraham, I pray Thee, send me good speed this day, and show kindness to my master Avraham.
Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water:
and let it come to pass, that the girl to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let her be she that Thou hast appointed for Thy servant Yiżĥaq; and thereby shall I know that Thou hast shown kindness to my master.
And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rivqa came out, who was born to Betu᾽el, son of Milka, the wife of Naĥor, Avraham’s brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder.
And the girl was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up.
And the servant ran to meet her, and said, Let me, I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher.
And she said, Drink, my lord: and she hastened, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink.
And when she had done giving him drink, she said, I will draw water for thy camels also, until they have done drinking.
And she hastened, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again to the well to draw water, and drew for all his camels.
And the man wondering at her held his peace, to know whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not.
And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden earring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold;
and said, Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee: is there room in thy father’s house for us to lodge in?
And she said to him, I am the daughter of Betu᾽el the son of Milka, whom she bore to Naĥor.
And she said to him, We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in.
And the man bowed down his head, and prostrated himself to the Lord.
And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of my master Avraham, Who has not left my master destitute of His love and His truth: as for me, the Lord has guided me in the way to the house of my master’s brethren.
And the girl ran, and told them of her mother’s house these things.
And Rivqa had a brother, and his name was Lavan: and Lavan ran out to the man, to the well.
And it came to pass, when he saw the earring and bracelets upon his sister’s hands, and when he heard the words of Rivqa his sister, saying, Thus spoke the man to me; that he came to the man; and, behold, he stood by the camels at the well.
And he said, Come in, thou blessed of the Lord; why dost thou stand outside? for I have prepared the house, and room for the camels.
And the man came into the house: and he ungirded his camels, and gave straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet, and the men’s feet that were with him.
And there was set food before him to eat: but he said, I will not eat, until I have told my errand. And he said, Speak on.
And he said, I am Avraham’s servant.
And the Lord has blessed my master greatly; and he is become great: and He has given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and menservants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses.
And Sara my master’s wife bore a son to my master when she was old: and to him he has given all that he has.
And my master made me swear, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife to my son of the daughters of the Kena῾ani, in whose land I dwell:
but thou shalt go to my father’s house, and to my kindred, and take a wife for my son.
And I said to my master, Perhaps the woman will not follow me.
And he said to me, The Lord, before Whom I walk, will send His angel with thee, and prosper thy way; and thou shalt take a wife for my son of my kindred, and of my father’s house:
then shalt thou be clear from this my oath, when thou comest to my kindred; and if they grant it not to thee, thou shalt be clear of my oath.
And I came this day to the well, and said, O Lord God of my master Avraham, if now Thou do prosper my way which I go:
behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass, that the maid who comes forth to draw, and I say to her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water from thy pitcher to drink;
and she say to me, Both drink thou, and I will also draw for thy camels: she shall be the woman whom the Lord has appointed for my master’s son.
And before I had done speaking in my heart, behold, Rivqa came out with her pitcher on her shoulder; and she went down to the well, and drew water: and I said to her, Let me drink, I pray thee.
And she made haste, and let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, Drink, and I will give thy camels to drink also: so I drank, and she made the camels drink also.
And I asked her, and said, Whose daughter art thou? And she said, The daughter of Betu᾽el, Naĥor’s son, whom Milka bore to him: and I put the ring upon her nose, and the bracelets upon her hands.
And I bowed down my head, and worshipped the Lord, and blessed the Lord God of my master Avraham, Who had led me in the right way to take my master’s brother’s daughter for his son.
And now if you will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me: and if not, tell me; so that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left.
Then Lavan and Betu᾽el answered and said, The thing comes from the Lord: we cannot speak to thee bad or good.
Behold, Rivqa is before thee, take her, and go, and let her be thy master’s son’s wife, as the Lord has spoken.
And it came to pass, that, when Avraham’s servant heard their words, he prostrated himself to the earth before the Lord.
And the servant brought out jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and garments, and gave them to Rivqa: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things.
And they did eat and drink, he and the men that were with him, and tarried all night; and they rose up in the morning, and he said, Send me away to my master.
And her brother and her mother said, Let the girl stay with us a few days, at the least ten; after that she shall go.
And he said to them, Hinder me not, seeing the Lord has prospered my way; send me away that I may go to my master.
And they said, We will call the girl, and inquire at her mouth.
And they called Rivqa, and said to her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I will go.
And they sent away Rivqa their sister, and her nurse, and Avraham’s servant, and his men.
And they blessed Rivqa, and said to her, Thou art our sister, be thou the mother of thousands of ten thousands, and let thy seed possess the gate of those which hate them.
And Rivqa, and her maids arose, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rivqa, and went his way.
And Yiżĥaq came from the way of Be᾽er-laĥay-ro᾽i; for he dwelt in the land of the Negev.
And Yiżĥaq went out to meditate in the field at the evening time: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, camels were coming.
And Rivqa lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Yiżĥaq, she descended from the camel.
And she said to the servant, What man is this that walks in the field to meet us? And the servant said, It is my master: therefore she took her veil, and covered herself.
And the servant told Yiżĥaq all the things that he had done.
And Yiżĥaq brought her into his mother Sara’s tent, and took Rivqa, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Yiżĥaq was comforted after his mother’s death.

Chapter 25

Then again Avraham took a wife, and her name was Qetura.
And she bore him Zimran, and Yoqshan, and Medan, and Midyan, and Yishbaq, and Shuaĥ.
And Yoqshan begot Sheva, and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Ashshurim, and Letushim, and Le᾽ummim.
And the sons of Midyan; ῾Efa and ῾Efer, and Ḥanokh, and Avida, and Elda῾a. All these were the children of Qetura.
And Avraham gave all that he had to Yiżĥaq.
But to the sons of the concubines, which Avraham had, Avraham gave gifts, and sent them away from his son, while he yet lived, eastward, to the east country.
And these are the days of the years of Avraham’s life which he lived, a hundred and seventy five years.
Then Avraham expired, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years; and was gathered to his people.
And his sons Yiżĥaq and Yishma᾽el buried him in the cave of Makhpela, in the field of ῾Efron the son of Żoĥar the Ḥittite, which is before Mamre;
the field which Avraham purchased of the sons of Ḥet: there was Avraham buried, and Sara his wife.
And it came to pass after the death of Avraham, that God blessed his son Yiżĥaq; and Yiżĥaq dwelt by Be᾽er-laĥay-ro᾽i.
Now these are the generations of Yishma᾽el, Avraham’s son, whom Hagar the Miżrian, Sara’s handmaid, bore to Avraham:
and these are the names of the sons of Yishma᾽el, by their names, according to their generations: the firstborn of Yishma᾽el, Nevayot; and Qedar, and Adbe᾽el, and Mivsam,
and Mishma, and Duma, and Massa,
Ḥadad, and Tema, Yetur, Nafish, and Qedema.
These are the sons of Yishma᾽el, and these are their names, by their towns, and by their encampments; twelve princes according to their nations.
And these are the years of the life of Yishma᾽el, a hundred and thirty seven years: and he expired and died; and was gathered to his people.
And they dwelt from Ḥavila to Shur, that is before Miżrayim, as thou goest toward Ashshur: and he dwelt in the presence of all his brethren.
And these are the generations of Yiżĥaq, Avraham’s son: Avraham begot Yiżĥaq:
and Yiżĥaq was forty years old when he took Rivqa to wife, the daughter of Betu᾽el the Arammian of Paddan-aram, the sister to Lavan the Arammian.
And Yiżĥaq entreated the Lord for his wife, because she was barren: and the Lord was entreated of him, and Rivqa his wife conceived.
And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to inquire of the Lord.
And the Lord said to her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two peoples shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.
And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.
And the first came out red, all over like a hairy garment; and they called his name ῾Esav.
And after that came out his brother, and his hand took hold on ῾Esav’s heel; and his name was called Ya῾aqov: and Yiżĥaq was sixty years old when she bore them.
And the boys grew: and ῾Esav was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Ya῾aqov was a plain man, dwelling in tents.
And Yiżĥaq loved ῾Esav, for he relished his venison: but Rivqa loved Ya῾aqov.
And Ya῾aqov cooked pottage: and ῾Esav came from the field, and he was faint:
and ῾Esav said to Ya῾aqov, Give me to swallow, I pray thee, of that red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom (red).
And Ya῾aqov said, Sell me this day thy birthright.
And ῾Esav said, Behold, I am at the point of death, and what profit shall this birthright do to me?
And Ya῾aqov said, Swear to me this day; and he swore to him: and he sold his birthright to Ya῾aqov.
Then Ya῾aqov gave ῾Esav bread and pottage of lentils; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus ῾Esav despised the birthright.

Chapter 26

And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Avraham. And Yiżĥaq went to Avimelekh, king of the Pelishtim to Gerar.
And the Lord appeared to him, and said, Go not down into Miżrayim; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of:
sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for to thee, and to thy seed, I will give all these countries and I will perform the oath which I swore to Avraham thy father;
and I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and will give to thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed;
because Avraham obeyed My voice, and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.
And Yiżĥaq dwelt in Gerar:
and the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me on account of Rivqa; because she was fair to look upon.
And it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Avimelekh king of the Pelishtim looked out at a window, and saw, and behold, Yiżĥaq was sporting with Rivqa his wife.
And Avimelekh called Yiżĥaq, and said, Behold, surely she is thy wife: and how didst thou say, She is my sister? And Yiżĥaq said to him, Because I said, Lest I die for her.
And Avimelekh said, What is this thou hast done to us? one of the people might easily have lain with thy wife, and thou shouldst have brought guiltiness upon us.
And Avimelekh charged all his people, saying, He that touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.
Then Yiżĥaq sowed in that land, and received in the same year a hundredfold: for the Lord blessed him.
And the man grew great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great:
for he had possessions of flocks, and possessions of herds, and a great store of servants: and the Pelishtim envied him.
For all the wells which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Avraham his father, the Pelishtim had stopped them up, and filled them with earth.
And Avimelekh said to Yiżĥaq, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we.
And Yiżĥaq departed from there, and pitched in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there.
And Yiżĥaq dug again the wells of water, which they had dug in the days of Avraham his father; for the Pelishtim had stopped them up after the death of Avraham: and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them.
And Yiżĥaq’s servants dug in the valley, and found there a well of springing water.
And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Yiżĥaq’s herdmen, saying, The water is ours: and he called the name of the well ῾Eseq; because they strove with him.
And they dug another well, and strove for that also: and he called the name of it Sitna.
And he removed from there, and dug another well; and for that they strove not: and he called the name of it Reĥovot; and he said, For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.
And he went up from there to Be᾽er-sheva.
And the Lord appeared to him the same night, and said, I am the God of Avraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and multiply thy seed for My servant Avraham’s sake.
And he built an altar there, and called upon the name of the Lord, and pitched his tent there: and there Yiżĥaq’s servants dug a well.
Then Avimelekh went to him from Gerar, and Aĥuzzat his friend, and Pikhol the captain of his army.
And Yiżĥaq said to them, Why do you come to me, seeing you hate me, and have sent me away from you?
And they said, We saw indeed that the Lord was with thee: and we said, Let there be now an oath between us, between us and thee, and let us make a covenant with thee;
that thou wilt do us no hurt, as we have not touched thee, and as we have done to thee nothing but good, and have sent thee away in peace: thou art now the blessed of the Lord.
And he made them a feast, and they did eat and drink.
And they rose up early in the morning, and swore one to another: and Yiżĥaq sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.
And it came to pass the same day, that Yiżĥaq’s servants came, and told him concerning the well which they had dug, and said to him, We have found water.
And he called it Shiv῾a: therefore the name of the city is Be᾽er-sheva to this day.
And ῾Esav was forty years old when he took to wife Yehudit the daughter of Be᾽eri the Ḥittite, and Basemat the daughter of Elon the Ḥittite:
and they were a grief of mind to Yiżĥaq and to Rivqa.

Chapter 27

And it came to pass, that when Yiżĥaq was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called ῾Esav his eldest son, and said to him, My son: and he said to him, Here I am.
And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death:
now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and catch me some venison;
and make me savoury food, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat, that my soul may bless thee before I die.
And Rivqa heard when Yiżĥaq spoke to ῾Esav his son. And ῾Esav went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it.
And Rivqa spoke to Ya῾aqov her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father speak to ῾Esav thy brother, saying,
Bring me venison, and make me savoury food, that I may eat, and bless thee before the Lord before my death.
Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee.
Go now to the flock, and fetch me from there two good kids of the goats; and I will make them into savoury food for thy father, such as he loves:
and thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his death.
And Ya῾aqov said to Rivqa his mother, Behold, ῾Esav my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man:
my father perhaps will feel me, and I shall seem to him a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.
And his mother said to him, Upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them.
And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother: and his mother made savoury food, such as his father loved.
And Rivqa took the best clothes of her eldest son ῾Esav, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Ya῾aqov her younger son:
and she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck:
and she gave the savoury food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Ya῾aqov.
And he came to his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I: who art thou, my son?
And Ya῾aqov said to his father, I am ῾Esav thy firstborn; I have done according as thou didst tell me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.
And Yiżĥaq said to his son, How is it that thou hast found it so quickly, my son? And he said, Because, the Lord thy God sent me good speed.
And Yiżĥaq said to Ya῾aqov, Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou art really my son ῾Esav or not.
And Ya῾aqov went near to Yiżĥaq his father; and he felt him, and said, The voice is Ya῾aqov’s voice, but the hands are the hands of ῾Esav.
And he recognised him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother ῾Esav’s hands: so he blessed him.
And he said, Art thou really my son ῾Esav? And he said, I am.
And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s venison, that my soul may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine, and he drank.
And his father Yiżĥaq said to him, Come near now, and kiss me, my son.
And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelt the smell of his garments, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field which the Lord has blessed:
therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine:
let peoples serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother’s sons bow down to thee: cursed be those that curse thee, and blessed be those that bless thee.
And it came to pass, as soon as Yiżĥaq had made an end of blessing Ya῾aqov, and Ya῾aqov was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Yiżĥaq his father, that ῾Esav his brother came in from his hunting.
And he also had made savoury food, and brought it to his father, and said to his father, Let my father arise, and eat of his son’s venison, that thy soul may bless me.
And Yiżĥaq his father said to him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn ῾Esav.
And Yiżĥaq trembled very much, and said, Who then is he that has taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed him? moreover, he shall be blessed.
And when ῾Esav heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceedingly bitter cry, and said to his father, Bless me, me also, O my father.
And he said, Thy brother came with cunning and has taken away thy blessing.
And he said, Is not he rightly named Ya῾aqov? for he has supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he has taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?
And Yiżĥaq answered and said to ῾Esav, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him: and what shall I do now for thee, my son?
And ῾Esav said to his father, Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father.
And ῾Esav raised his voice, and wept. And Yiżĥaq his father answered and said to him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be of the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above;
and by thy sword shalt thou live, and thou shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck.
And ῾Esav hated Ya῾aqov because of the blessing with which his father blessed him: and ῾Esav said in his heart, When the days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Ya῾aqov.
And these words of ῾Esav, her elder son, were told to Rivqa: and she sent and called Ya῾aqov her younger son, and said to him, Behold, thy brother ῾Esav comforts himself, purposing to kill thee.
Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; and arise, flee to Lavan my brother, to Ḥaran;
and dwell with him a few days, until thy brother’s fury turn away;
until thy brother’s anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will send, and fetch thee from there: why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?
And Rivqa said to Yiżĥaq, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Ḥet: if Ya῾aqov take a wife of the daughters of Ḥet, such as these, of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life be to me?

Chapter 28

And Yiżĥaq called Ya῾aqov, and blessed him, and charged him, and said to him, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Kena῾an.
Arise, go to Paddan-aram, to the house of Betu᾽el thy mother’s father; and take thee a wife from there of the daughters of Lavan thy mother’s brother.
And God Almighty bless thee, and make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, that thou mayst be a multitude of people;
and give thee the blessing of Avraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayst inherit the land in which thou art a sojourner, and which God gave to Avraham.
And Yiżĥaq sent away Ya῾aqov: and he went to Paddan-aram to Lavan, son of Betu᾽el the Arammian, the brother of Rivqa, mother of Ya῾aqov and ῾Esav.
When ῾Esav saw that Yiżĥaq had blessed Ya῾aqov, and sent him away to Paddan-aram, to take him a wife from there; and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Kena῾an:
and that Ya῾aqov obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Paddan-aram,
and ῾Esav saw that the daughters of Kena῾an pleased not Yiżĥaq his father;
then ῾Esav went and took to wife besides the wives he had, Maĥalat the daughter of Yishma᾽el Avraham’s son, the sister of Nevayot.
And Ya῾aqov went out from Be᾽er-sheva, and went toward Ḥaran.
And he lighted on a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them under his head, and lay down in that place to sleep.
And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
And, behold, the Lord stood above it, and said, I am the Lord God of Avraham thy father, and the God of Yiżĥaq: the land on which thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;
and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places to which thou goest, and will bring thee back to this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.
And Ya῾aqov awoke out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not.
And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is no other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
And Ya῾aqov rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put under his head, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil on the top of it.
And he called the name of that place Bet-el: but the name of that city was called Luz at first.
And Ya῾aqov vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and clothing to wear,
so that I come back to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God:
and this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that Thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth to Thee.

Chapter 29

Then Ya῾aqov lifted up his feet, and went to the land of the people of the east.
And he looked, and behold a well in the field, and, lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks: and a great stone was upon the well’s mouth.
And there were all the flocks gathered: and they rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone back upon the well’s mouth in its place.
And Ya῾aqov said to them, My brethren, where are you from? And they said, Of Ḥaran are we.
And he said to them, Do you know Lavan the son of Naĥor? And they said, We know him.
And he said to them, Is he well? And they said, He is well: and, behold, Raĥel his daughter comes with the sheep.
And he said, Lo, it is yet high day, neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water the sheep, and go and feed them.
And they said, We cannot, until all the flocks are gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well’s mouth; then we may water the sheep.
And while he was still speaking with them, Raĥel came with her father’s sheep: for she kept them.
And it came to pass, when Ya῾aqov saw Raĥel the daughter of Lavan his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Lavan his mother’s brother, that Ya῾aqov went near, and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Lavan his mother’s brother.
And Ya῾aqov kissed Raĥel, and raised his voice, and wept.
And Ya῾aqov told Raĥel that he was her father’s brother, and that he was Rivqa’s son: and she ran and told her father.
And it came to pass, when Lavan heard the tidings of Ya῾aqov his sister’s son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him, and kissed him, and brought him to his house. And he told Lavan all these things.
And Lavan said to him, Surely thou art my bone and my flesh. And he stayed with him a month.
And Lavan said to Ya῾aqov, Because thou art my brother, shouldst thou therefore serve me for nothing? tell me, what shall thy wages be?
And Lavan had two daughters: the name of the elder was Le᾽a, and the name of the younger was Raĥel.
And Le᾽a’s eyes were weak; but Raĥel was beautiful and well favoured.
And Ya῾aqov loved Raĥel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for Raĥel thy younger daughter.
And Lavan said, It is better that I give her to thee, than that I should give her to another man: stay with me.
And Ya῾aqov served seven years for Raĥel and they seemed to him but a few days, for the love he had to her.
And Ya῾aqov said to Lavan, Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her.
And Lavan gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast.
And it came to pass in the evening, that he took Le᾽a his daughter, and brought her to him; and he went in to her.
And Lavan gave to his daughter Le᾽a Zilpa his maid for a handmaid.
And it came to pass, that in the morning, behold, it was Le᾽a: and he said to Lavan, What is this thou hast done to me? did not I serve with thee for Raĥel? why then hast thou beguiled me?
And Lavan said, It must not be so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn.
Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet another seven years.
And Ya῾aqov did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Raĥel his daughter to wife also.
And Lavan gave to Raĥel his daughter Bilha his maid to be her handmaid.
And he went in also to Raĥel, and moreover he loved Raĥel more than Le᾽a, and served with him yet another seven years.
And when the Lord saw that Le᾽a was hated, He opened her womb: but Raĥel was barren.
And Le᾽a conceived, and bore a son, and she called his name Re᾽uven: for she said, Surely the Lord has looked upon my affliction; now therefore my husband will love me.
And she conceived again, and bore a son; and said, Because the Lord has heard that I was hated, He has therefore given me this son also: and she called his name Shim῾on.
And she conceived again, and bore a son; and said, Now this time will my husband be joined to me, because I have born him three sons; therefore was his name called Levi.
And she conceived again, and bore a son and she said, Now will I praise the Lord: therefore she called his name Yehuda, and she left off bearing.

Chapter 30

And when Raĥel saw that she bore Ya῾aqov no children, Raĥel envied her sister; and said, Give me children, or else I die.
And Ya῾aqov’s anger burned against Raĥel: and he said, Am I in the place of God, Who has withheld from thee the fruit of the womb?
And she said, Behold my maid Bilha, go in to her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by her.
And she gave him Bilha her handmaid to wife: and Ya῾aqov went in to her.
And Bilha conceived, and bore Ya῾aqov a son.
And Raĥel said, God has judged me, and has also heard my voice, and has given me a son: therefore called she his name Dan.
And Bilha Raĥel’s maid conceived again, and bore Ya῾aqov a second son.
And Raĥel said, With great wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name Naftali.
When Le᾽a saw that she had stopped bearing, she took Zilpa her maid, and gave her to Ya῾aqov to wife.
And Zilpa Le᾽a’s maid bore Ya῾aqov a son.
And Le᾽a said, Fortune comes, and she called his name Gad.
And Zilpa Le᾽a’s maid bore Ya῾aqov a second son.
And Le᾽a said, Happy am I, for the daughters will call me blessed: and she called his name Asher.
And Re᾽uven went in the days of the wheat harvest, and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother Le᾽a. Then Raĥel said to Le᾽a, Give me, I pray thee, of thy son’s mandrakes.
And she said to her, Is it a small matter that thou hast taken my husband? and wouldst thou take away my son’s mandrakes also? And Raĥel said, Therefore he shall lie with thee tonight for thy son’s mandrakes.
And Ya῾aqov came out of the field in the evening, and Le᾽a went out to meet him, and said, Thou must come in to me; for indeed I have hired thee with my son’s mandrakes. And he lay with her that night.
And God hearkened to Le᾽a, and she conceived, and bore Ya῾aqov a fifth son.
And Le᾽a said, God has given me my hire, because I have given my maiden to my husband: and she called his name Yissakhar.
And Le᾽a conceived again, and bore Ya῾aqov a sixth son.
And Le᾽a said, God has endowed me with a good dowry; now will my husband dwell with me, because I have born him six sons: and she called his name Zevulun.
And afterwards she bore a daughter, and called her name Dina.
And God remembered Raĥel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb.
And she conceived, and bore a son; and said, God has taken away my reproach:
and she called his name Yosef; and said, The Lord shall add to me another son.
And it came to pass, when Raĥel had born Yosef, that Ya῾aqov said to Lavan, Send me away, that I may go to my own place, and to my country.
Give me my wives and my children, for whom I have served thee, and let me go: for thou knowst my service which I have done thee.
And Lavan said to him, I pray thee, if I have found favour in thine eyes, I have learned by signs that the Lord has blessed me for thy sake.
And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it.
And he said to him, Thou knowst how I have served thee, and how thy cattle were with me.
For the little which thou hadst before I came is now increased to a multitude; and the Lord has blessed thee since my coming: and now when shall I provide for my own house also?
And he said, What shall I give thee? And Ya῾aqov said, Thou shalt not give me anything: if thou wilt do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep thy flock.
I will pass through all thy flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown ones among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such shall be my hire.
So shall my righteousness answer for me in time to come, when thou shalt come to see my hire before thy face: every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall be counted stolen with me.
And Lavan said, Behold, would it might be according to thy word.
And he removed that day the he goats that were streaked and spotted, and all the she goats that were speckled and spotted, and every one that had some white in it, and all the brown ones among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons.
And he set three days’ journey between himself and Ya῾aqov: and Ya῾aqov tended the rest of Lavan’s flocks.
And Ya῾aqov took him rods of green poplar, and of the almond and plane tree; and peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.
And he set the rods which he had peeled before the flocks in the gutters in the watering troughs when the flocks came to drink, that they should conceive when they came to drink.
And the flocks conceived before the rods, and brought forth cattle streaked, speckled, and spotted.
And Ya῾aqov separated the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the streaked and all the brown in the flock of Lavan; and he put his own flocks by themselves, and put them not to Lavan’s cattle.
And it came to pass, whenever the stronger cattle did conceive, that Ya῾aqov laid the rods before the eyes of the cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods.
But when the cattle were feeble, he did not put them in: so the feebler were Lavan’s, and the stronger Ya῾aqov’s.
And the man increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses.

Chapter 31

And he heard the words of Lavan’s sons, saying, Ya῾aqov has taken away all that was our father’s; and of that which was our father’s has he gotten all his glory.
And Ya῾aqov beheld the face of Lavan, and, behold, it was not towards him as before.
And the Lord said to Ya῾aqov, Return to the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred; and I will be with thee.
And Ya῾aqov sent and called Raĥel and Le᾽a to the field to his flock,
and he said to them, I see your father’s face, that it is not towards me as before; but the God of my father has been with me.
And you know that with all my power I have served your father.
And your father has deceived me, and changed my wages ten times; but God did not allow him to hurt me.
If he said thus, The speckled shall be thy wages; then all the flock bore speckled: and if he said thus, The streaked shall be thy hire; then all the flock bore streaked.
Thus God has taken away the cattle of your father, and given it to me.
And it came to pass at the time that the flock conceived, that I raised my eyes, and saw in a dream, and, behold, the rams which leaped upon the cattle were streaked, speckled, and grizzled.
And the angel of God spoke to me in a dream, saying, Ya῾aqov: And I said, Here I am.
And he said, Lift up now thy eyes, and see, all the rams which leap upon the flock are streaked, speckled, and grizzled: for I have seen all that Lavan does to thee.
I am the God of Bet-el, where thou didst anoint a pillar, and where thou didst vow a vow to me: now arise, get out of this land, and return to the land of thy birth.
And Raĥel and Le᾽a answered and said to him, Is there yet any portion or inheritance for us in our father’s house?
Are we not counted strangers by him? for he has sold us, and has quite devoured also our money.
For all the riches which God has taken from our father, it is ours, and our children’s: now then, whatever God has said to thee, do.
Then Ya῾aqov rose up, and set his sons and his wives on the camels;
and he carried away all his cattle, and all his goods which he had acquired, the cattle of his getting, which he had acquired in Paddan-aram, to go to Yiżĥaq his father in the land of Kena῾an.
And Lavan went to shear his sheep. Now Raĥel had stolen the images that were her father’s.
And Ya῾aqov outwitted Lavan the Arammian, in that he told him not that he fled.
So he fled with all that he had; and he rose up, and passed over the river and set his face toward the mount Gil῾ad.
And it was told Lavan on the third day that Ya῾aqov was fled.
And he took his brethren with him, and pursued after him a seven days’ journey; and they overtook him in the mount Gil῾ad.
And God came to Lavan the Arammian in a dream by night, and said to him, Take heed that thou speak not to Ya῾aqov either good or bad. Then Lavan overtook Ya῾aqov.
Now Ya῾aqov had pitched his tent in the mount: and Lavan with his brethren pitched in the mount of Gil῾ad.
And Lavan said to Ya῾aqov, What hast thou done, that thou hast cheated me, and carried away my daughters, as captives taken with the sword?
Why didst thou flee away secretly, and rob me; and didst not tell me, that I might have sent thee away with mirth, and with songs, with timbrel, and with lyre?
And hast not suffered me to kiss my sons and my daughters? thou hast now done foolishly.
It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt: but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, Take thou heed that thou speak not to Ya῾aqov either good or bad.
And now, though thou wouldst needs be gone, because thou dost long after thy father’s house, yet why hast thou stolen my gods?
And Ya῾aqov answered and said to Lavan, Because I was afraid: for I said, Perhaps thou wouldst take by force thy daughters from me.
Anyone with whom thou findest thy gods, let him not live: before our brethren discern thou what is thine with me, and take it to thee. For Ya῾aqov knew not that Raĥel had stolen them.
And Lavan went into Ya῾aqov’s tent, and into Le᾽a’s tent, and into the two maidservants’ tents; but he found them not. Then he went out of Le᾽a’s tent, and entered into Raĥel’s tent.
Now Raĥel had taken the images, and put them in the camel’s saddle, and sat upon them. And Lavan searched all the tent, but found them not.
And she said to her father, Let it not displease my lord that I cannot rise up before thee; for the way of women is upon me. And he searched, but found not the images.
And Ya῾aqov was angry and strove with Lavan: and Ya῾aqov answered and said to Lavan, What is my trespass? what is my sin, that thou hast so hotly pursued after me?
Although thou hast searched all my stuff what hast thou found of all thy household goods? set it here before my brethren and thy brethren, that they may judge between us both.
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 to thee; I bore 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 my eyes.
Thus 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.
Were it not that the God of my father, the God of Avraham, and the Fear of Yiżĥaq, had been with me, surely thou hadst sent me away now empty. God has seen my affliction and the labour of my hands, and He rebuked thee last night.
And Lavan answered and said to Ya῾aqov, These daughters are my daughters, and these children are my children, and these cattle are my cattle, and all that thou seest is mine: and what can I do this day for these my daughters, or for their children whom they have born?
Now therefore come thou, let us make a covenant, I and thou; and let it be for a witness between me and thee.
And Ya῾aqov took a stone, and set it up for a pillar.
And Ya῾aqov said to his brethren, Gather stones; and they took stones, and made a heap: and they did eat there upon the heap.
And Lavan called it Yegar-sahaduta: but Ya῾aqov called it Gal῾ed.
And Lavan said, This heap is a witness between me and thee this day.
Therefore was the name of it called Gal῾ed; and also Miżpa; for he said, The Lord watch between me and thee, when we are absent one from another.
If thou shalt afflict my daughters, or if thou shalt take other wives beside my daughters, no man is with us; see, God is witness between me and thee.
And Lavan said to Ya῾aqov, Behold this heap, and behold this pillar, which I have set between me and thee;
this heap be witness, and this pillar be witness, that I will not pass over this heap to thee, and that thou shalt not pass over this heap and this pillar to me, for harm.
The God of Avraham, and the god of Naĥor, the god of their father, judge between us. And Ya῾aqov swore by the Fear of his father Yiżĥaq.
Then Ya῾aqov offered sacrifice upon the mount, and called his brethren to eat bread: and they did eat bread, and tarried all night on the mountain.

Chapter 32

And early in the morning Lavan rose up, and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them: and Lavan departed, and returned to his place.
And Ya῾aqov went on his way, and angels of God met him.
And when Ya῾aqov saw them, he said, This is God’s camp: and he called the name of that place Maĥanayim.
And Ya῾aqov sent messengers before him to ῾Esav his brother to the land of Se῾ir, the country of Edom.
And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall you speak to my lord ῾Esav; Thy servant Ya῾aqov says thus, I have sojourned with Lavan, and stayed there until now:
and I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and menservants, and womenservants: and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find favour in thy sight.
And the messengers returned to Ya῾aqov, saying, We came to thy brother ῾Esav, and also he is coming to meet thee, and four hundred men with him.
Then Ya῾aqov was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that were with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two camps;
and said, If ῾Esav come to the one camp, and smite it, then the camp which is left shall escape.
And Ya῾aqov said, O God of my father Avraham, and God of my father Yiżĥaq, the Lord Who did say to me, Return to thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee:
I am unworthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which Thou hast shown Thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Yarden; and now I am become two camps. 
Deliver me, I pray Thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of ῾Esav: for I fear him, lest he come and smite me, the mother with the children.
And Thou didst say, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed like the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.
And he lodged there that same night; and took of that which came to his hand a present for ῾Esav his brother;
two hundred she goats, and twenty he goats, two hundred ewes, and twenty rams,
thirty milch camels with their colts, forty cows, and ten bulls, twenty she asses, and ten foals.
And he delivered them into the hand of his servants, every drove by itself; and said to his servants, Pass over before me, and put a space between drove and drove.
And he commanded the foremost, saying, When ῾Esav my brother meets thee, and asks thee, saying, Whose art thou? and whither dost thou go? and whose are these before thee?
Then thou shalt say, They are thy servant Ya῾aqov’s, it is a present sent to my lord ῾Esav: and, behold, also he is behind us.
And so commanded he the second, and the third, and all that followed the droves, saying, In this manner shall you speak to ῾Esav, when you find him.
And say moreover, Behold, thy servant Ya῾aqov is behind us. For he said, I will appease him with the present that goes before me, and afterwards I will see his face; perhaps he will accept me.
So the present went over before him: and he himself  lodged that night in the camp.
And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford of Yabboq.
And he took them, and sent them over the wadi, and sent over that which he had.
And Ya῾aqov was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
And when he saw that he did not prevail against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Ya῾aqov’s thigh was put out of joint, as he wrestled with him.
And he said, Let me go, for the day breaks. And he said, I will not let thee go, unless thou bless me.
And he said to him, What is thy name? And he said, Ya῾aqov.
And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Ya῾aqov, but Yisra᾽el: for thou hast contended with God and with men, and hast prevailed.
And Ya῾aqov asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Why is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.
And Ya῾aqov called the name of the place Peni᾽el: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.
And as he passed over Penu᾽el the sun rose upon him, and he limped upon his thigh.
Therefore the children of Yisra᾽el eat not of the sinew of the vein, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, to this day: because he touched the hollow of Ya῾aqov’s thigh in the sinew of the vein.

Chapter 33

And Ya῾aqov lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, ῾Esav came, and with him four hundred men. And he divided the children to Le᾽a, and to Raĥel, and to the two handmaids.
And he put the handmaids and their children foremost, and Le᾽a and her children after, and Raĥel and Yosef  last of all.
And he passed over before them, and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother.
And ῾Esav ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept.
And he lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children; and said, Who are those with thee? And he said, The children which God has graciously given thy servant.
Then the handmaidens came near, they and their children, and they bowed themselves.
And Le᾽a also with her children came near, and bowed themselves: and after came Yosef near and Raĥel, and they bowed themselves.
And he said, What meanest thou by all this drove which I met? And he said, These are to find favour in the sight of my lord.
And ῾Esav said, I have enough, my brother; keep what thou hast to thyself.
And Ya῾aqov said, By no means, if now I have found favour in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand: for truly I have seen thy face, as though I had seen the face of an angel, and thou wast pleased with me.
Take, I pray thee, my blessing that is brought to thee; because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough. And he urged him, and he took it.
And he said, Let us take our journey, and let us go, and I will go before thee.
And he said to him, My lord knows that the children are tender, and the flocks and herds giving suck are a care for me: and if they should overdrive them one day, all the flock will die.
Let my lord, I pray thee, pass over before his servant: and I will lead on slowly, according to the pace of the cattle that goes before me and the children, until I come to my lord to Se῾ir.
And ῾Esav said, Let me now leave with thee some of the folk that are with me. And he said, What need is there? let me find favour in the sight of my lord.
So ῾Esav returned that day on his way to Se῾ir.
And Ya῾aqov journeyed to Sukkot, and built him a house, and made booths for his cattle: therefore the name of the place is called Sukkot.
And Ya῾aqov came to Shalem, a city of Shekhem, which is in the land of Kena῾an, when he came from Paddan-aram; and pitched his tent before the city.
And he bought the piece of land on which he had spread his tent, at the hand of the children of Ḥamor, Shekhem’s father, for a hundred pieces of money.
And he erected there an altar, and called it El-elohe-yisra᾽el.

Chapter 34

And Dina the daughter of Le᾽a, whom she bore to Ya῾aqov, went out to see the daughters of the land.
And when Shekhem the son of Ḥamor the Ḥivvite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her.
And his soul was drawn to Dina the daughter of Ya῾aqov, and he loved the girl, and spoke kindly to the girl.
And Shekhem spoke to his father Ḥamor, saying, Get me this child for a wife.
And Ya῾aqov heard that he had defiled Dina his daughter: now his sons were with his cattle in the field: and Ya῾aqov held his peace until they were come.
And Ḥamor the father of Shekhem went out to Ya῾aqov to speak with him.
And the sons of Ya῾aqov came from the field when they heard it: and the men were grieved, and they were very angry, because he had done a disgraceful thing in Yisra᾽el in lying with Ya῾aqov’s daughter; which thing ought not to be done.
And Ḥamor spoke with them, saying, The soul of my son Shekhem longs for your daughter: I pray you give her him to wife.
And make marriages with us; give your daughters to us, and take our daughters to you.
And you shall dwell with us: and the land shall be before you; dwell and trade in it, and get property in it.
And Shekhem said to her father and to her brethren, Let me find favour in your eyes, and what you shall say to me I will give.
Ask me never so much dowry and gift, and I will give according as you shall say to me: but give me the girl for a wife.
And the sons of Ya῾aqov answered Shekhem and Ḥamor his father with cunning, because he had defiled Dina their sister, and they spoke:
and they said to them, We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised; for that would be a reproach to us:
but in this will we consent to you: If you will be as we are, that every male of you be circumcised;
then will we give our daughters to you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people.
But if you will not hearken to us, to be circumcised; then will we take our daughter, and we will be gone.
And their words pleased Ḥamor, and Shekhem, Ḥamor’s son.
And the young man did not delay to do the thing, because he had delight in Ya῾aqov’s daughter: and he was the most honoured of all the house of his father.
And Ḥamor and Shekhem his son came to the gate of their city, and spoke with the men of their city, saying,
These men are peaceable with us; therefore let them dwell in the land, and trade in it; for the land, behold, it is large enough for them; let us take their daughters to us for wives, and let us give them our daughters.
Only on this condition will the men consent to us to dwell with us, to be one people, if every male among us be circumcised, as they are circumcised.
Shall not their cattle and their substance and every beast of theirs be ours? only let us consent to them, and they will dwell with us.
And to Ḥamor and to Shekhem his son all that went out of the gate of his city hearkened; and every male was circumcised, all that went out of the gate of his city.
And it came to pass on the third day, when they were in pain, that two of the sons of Ya῾aqov, Shim῾on and Levi, Dina’s brethren, took each man his sword, and came upon the city unresisted, and slew all the males.
And they slew Ḥamor and Shekhem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dina out of Shekhem’s house, and went out.
The sons of Ya῾aqov came upon the slain, and plundered the city, because they had defiled their sister.
They took their sheep, and their oxen, and their asses, and that which was in the city, and that which was in the field,
and all their wealth, and all their little ones, and their wives they took captive, and plundered all that was in the house.
And Ya῾aqov said to Shim῾on and Levi, You have brought trouble on me to make me odious among the inhabitants of the land, among the Kena῾ani and the Perizzi; and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house.
But they said, Should he deal with our sister as with a harlot?

Chapter 35

And God said to Ya῾aqov, Arise, go up to Bet-el, and dwell there: and make there an altar to God, Who appeared to thee when thou didst flee from the face of ῾Esav thy brother.
Then Ya῾aqov said to his household, and to all that were with him, Put away the strange gods that are among you, and make yourselves clean, and change your garments:
and let us arise, and go up to Bet-el; and I will make there an altar to God, Who answers me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way on which I went.
And they gave to Ya῾aqov all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were in their ears; and Ya῾aqov hid them under the oak which was by Shekhem.
And they journeyed: and the terror of God was upon the cities that were round about them, and they did not pursue after the sons of Ya῾aqov.
So Ya῾aqov came to Luz, which is in the land of Kena῾an, that is, Bet-el, he and all the people that were with him.
And he built there an altar, and called the place El-bet-el: because there God appeared to him, when he fled from the face of his brother.
And Devora, Rivqa’s nurse died, and she was buried beneath Bet-el under an oak: and the name of it was called Allon-bakhut.
And God appeared to Ya῾aqov again, when he came out of Paddan-aram, and blessed him.
And God said to him, Thy name Ya῾aqov: thy name shall not be called any more Ya῾aqov, but Yisra᾽el shall be thy name: and He called his name Yisra᾽el.
And God said to him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins;
and the land which I gave to Avraham and Yiżĥaq, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land.
And God went up from him in the place where He talked with him.
And Ya῾aqov set up a pillar in the place where He talked with him, a pillar of stone: and he poured a drink offering on it, and he poured oil on it.
And Ya῾aqov called the name of the place where God had spoken with him, Bet-el.
And they journeyed from Bet-el; and there was but a little way to come to Efrat: and Raĥel travailed, and she had hard labour.
And it came to pass, when she was in hard labour, that the midwife said to her, Fear not; thou shalt have this son also.
And it came to pass, as her soul was departing (for she died), that she called his name Ben-oni: but his father called him Binyamin.
And Raĥel died, and was buried in the way to Efrat, which is Bet-leĥem.
And Ya῾aqov set a pillar upon her grave: that is the pillar of Raĥel’s grave to this day.
And Yisra᾽el journeyed, and pitched his tent beyond the tower of ῾Eder.
And it came to pass, when Yisra᾽el dwelt in that land, that Re᾽uven went and lay with Bilha his father’s concubine: and Yisra᾽el heard of it.
Now the sons of Ya῾aqov were twelve: the sons of Le᾽a; Re᾽uven, Ya῾aqov’s first-born, and Shim῾on and Levi, and Yehuda, and Yissakhar and Zevulun.
The sons of Raĥel; Yosef and Binyamin.
And the sons of Bilha, Raĥel’s handmaid; Dan, and Naftali.
And the sons of Zilpa, Le᾽a’s handmaid; Gad, and Asher: these are the sons of Ya῾aqov who were born to him in Paddan-aram.
And Ya῾aqov came to Yiżĥaq his father to Mamre, to the city of Arba, which is Ḥevron, where Avraham and Yiżĥaq sojourned.
And the days of Yiżĥaq were a hundred and eighty years.
And Yiżĥaq expired, and died, and was gathered to his people, being old and full of days: and his sons ῾Esav and Ya῾aqov buried him.

Chapter 36

Now these are the generations of ῾Esav, who is Edom.
῾Esav took his wives of the daughters of Kena῾an; ῾Ada the daughter of Elon the Ḥittite, and Oholivama, daughter of ῾Ana, daughter of Żiv῾on the Ḥivvite;
and Basemat, daughter of Yishma᾽el, sister of Nevayot.
And ῾Ada bore to ῾Esav Elifaz; and Basemat bore Re῾u᾽el;
and Oholivama bore Ye῾ush and Ya῾lam, and Qoraĥ: these were the sons of ῾Esav who were born to him in the land of Kena῾an.
And ῾Esav took his wives, and his sons, and his daughters, and all the persons of his house, and his cattle, and all his beasts, and all his substance, which he had acquired in the land of Kena῾an; and went into another country away from his brother Ya῾aqov.
For their property was too great for them to dwell together; and the land in which they sojourned could not bear them because of their cattle.
Thus dwelt ῾Esav in mount Se῾ir: ῾Esav is Edom.
And these are the generations of ῾Esav the father of Edom in mount Se῾ir:
these are the names of ῾Esav’s sons; Elifaz the son of ῾Ada the wife of ῾Esav, Re῾u᾽el the son of Basemat the wife of ῾Esav.
And the sons of Elifaz were Teman, Omar, Żefo, and Ga῾tam, and Qenaz.
And Timna was concubine to Elifaz ῾Esav’s son; and she bore to Elifaz ῾Amaleq; these were the sons of ῾Ada ῾Esav’s wife.
And these are the sons of Re῾u᾽el; Naĥat, and Zeraĥ, Shamma, and Mizza: these were the sons of Basemat ῾Esav’s wife.
And these were the sons of Oholivama, the daughter of ῾Ana the daughter of Żiv῾on, ῾Esav’s wife: and she bore to ῾Esav Ye῾ush, and Ya῾lam, and Qoraĥ.
These were the chiefs of the sons of ῾Esav: the sons of Elifaz the firstborn son of ῾Esav; the chief Teman, the chief Omar, the chief Żefo, the chief Qenaz,
the chief Qoraĥ, the chief Ga῾tam, the chief ῾Amaleq: these are the chiefs of Elifaz in the land of Edom; these were the sons of ῾Ada.
And these are the sons of Re῾u᾽el ῾Esav’s son; the chief Naĥat, the chief Zeraĥ, the chief Shamma, the chief Mizza: these are the chiefs that came of Re῾u᾽el in the land of Edom; these are the sons of Basemat ῾Esav’s wife.
And these are the sons of Oholivama ῾Esav’s wife; the chief Ye῾ush, the chief Ya῾lam, the chief Qoraĥ: these were the chiefs that came of Oholivama the daughter of ῾Ana, ῾Esav’s wife.
These are the sons of ῾Esav, who is Edom, and these are their chiefs.
These are the sons of Se῾ir the Ḥorian who inhabited the land; Lotan, and Shoval, and Żiv῾on and ῾Ana.
And Dishon, and Eżer, and Dishan: these are the chiefs of the Ḥori, the children of Se῾ir in the land of Edom.
And the children of Lotan were Ḥori and Hemam; and Lotan’s sister was Timna.
And the children of Shoval were these; ῾Alevan, and Manaĥat, and ῾Eval, Shefo, and Onam.
And these are the children of Żiv῾on; both Ayya, and ῾Ana: this was that ῾Ana that found the hot springs in the wilderness, as he fed the asses of Żiv῾on his father.
And the children of ῾Ana were these; Dishon, and Oholivama the daughter of ῾Ana.
And these are the children of Dishan; Ḥemdan, and Eshban, and Yitran, and Keran.
The children of Eżer are these; Bilhan, and Za῾avan, and ῾Aqan.
The children of Dishan are these; Uż, and Aran.
These are the chiefs that came of the Ḥori: the chief Lotan, the chief Shoval, the chief Żiv῾on, the chief ῾Ana,
the chief Dishon, the chief Eżer, the chief Dishan: these are the chiefs that came of the Ḥori, according to their chiefs in the land of Se῾ir.
And these are the kings that reigned in the land of Edom, before there reigned any king over the children of Yisra᾽el.
And Bela the son of Be῾or reigned in Edom: and the name of his city was Dinhava.
And Bela died, and Yovav the son of Zeraĥ of Bożra reigned in his place;
and Yovav died, and Ḥusham of the land of the Temani reigned in his place;
and Ḥusham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who smote Midyan in the field of Mo᾽av, reigned in his place; and the name of his city was ῾Avit.
And Hadad died, and Samla of Masreqa reigned in his place;
and Samla died, and Sha᾽ul of Reĥovot by the river reigned in his place;
and Sha᾽ul died, and Ba῾al-ĥanan the son of ῾Akhbor reigned in his place;
and Ba῾al-ĥanan the son of ῾Akhbor died, and Hadar reigned in his place, and the name of his city was Pa῾u; and his wife’s name was Mehetav᾽el, daughter of Matred, daughter of Me-zahav.
And these are the names of the chiefs that came of ῾Esav, according to their families, after their places, by their names; the chief Timna, the chief ῾Aleva, the chief Yetet,
the chief Oholivama, the chief Ela, the chief Pinon,
the chief Qenaz, the chief Teman, the chief Mivżar,
the chief Magdi᾽el, the chief ῾Iram: these are the chiefs of Edom, according to their settlements in the land of their possession. He is ῾Esav the father of Edom.

Chapter 37

And Ya῾aqov dwelt in the land in which his father had sojourned, in the land of Kena῾an.
These are the generations of Ya῾aqov. Yosef being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilha, and with the sons of Zilpa, his father’s wives: and Yosef brought to his father their evil report.
Now Yisra᾽el loved Yosef more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat with long sleeves.
And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him.
And Yosef dreamed a dream, and he told it his brethren: and they hated him yet the more.
And he said to them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed:
for, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and bowed down to my sheaf.
And his brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words.
And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have again dreamed a dream; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars bowed down to me.
And he told it to his father, and to his brothers: and his father rebuked him, and said to him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brothers indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?
And his brothers envied him; but his father kept the matter in mind.
And his brothers went to feed their father’s flock in Shekhem.
And Yisra᾽el said to Yosef, Do not thy brothers feed the flock in Shekhem? come, and I will send thee to them. And he said to him, Here I am.
And he said to him, Go, I pray thee, see whether it be well with thy brothers, and well with the flocks; and bring me word again. So he sent him out of the vale of Ḥevron, and he came to Shekhem.
And a certain man found him, and, behold, he was wandering in the field: and the man asked him, saying, What seekest thou?
And he said, I seek my brothers: tell me, I pray thee, where they feed their flocks.
And the man said, They are departed from here; for I heard them say, Let us go to Dotan. And Yosef went after his brothers, and found them in Dotan.
And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near to them, they conspired against him to slay him.
And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer comes.
Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say, An evil beast has devoured him: and we shall see what will become of his dreams.
And Re᾽uven heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him.
And Re᾽uven said to them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might save him out of their hands, to deliver him back to his father.
And it came to pass, when Yosef was come to his brethren, that they stripped Yosef of his coat, the long sleeved coat that was on him.
And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty; there was no water in it.
And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a company of Yishme᾽elim came from Gil῾ad with their camels bearing gum balm and ladanum, going to carry it down to Miżrayim.
And Yehuda said to his brothers, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood?
Come, and let us sell him to the Yishme᾽elim, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh.
And his brothers hearkened to him. Then there passed by Midyanim, merchants; and they drew and lifted up Yosef out of the pit, and sold Yosef to the Yishme᾽elim for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Yosef into Miżrayim.
And Re᾽uven returned to the pit; and, behold, Yosef was not in the pit; and he rent his clothes.
And he returned to his brothers, and said, The child is not; and I, where shall I go?
And they took Yosef’s coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat in the blood;
and they sent the coat with long sleeves, and they brought it to their father; and said, This we have found: know now whether it be thy son’s coat or no.
And he knew it, and said, It is my son’s coat; an evil beast has devoured him; Yosef is without doubt torn in pieces.
And Ya῾aqov rent his clothes, and put sackcloth on his loins, and mourned for his son many days.
And all his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him; but he refused to be comforted; and he said, For I will go down to my son mourning into She᾽ol. Thus his father wept for him.
And the Midyanim sold him to Miżrayim to Potifar, Par῾o’s chamberlain, a captain of the guard.

Chapter 38

And it came to pass at that time, that Yehuda went down from his brothers, and turned in to a certain ῾Adullamite, whose name was Ḥira.
And Yehuda saw there a daughter of a certain Kena῾anite, whose name was Shu῾a; and he took her, and went in to her.
And she conceived, and bore a son; and he called his name ῾Er.
And she conceived again, and bore a son; and she called his name Onan.
And she yet again conceived, and bore a son; and called his name Shela: and he was at Keziv, when she bore him.
And Yehuda took a wife for ῾Er his firstborn, whose name was Tamar.
And ῾Er, Yehuda’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord slew him.
And Yehuda said to Onan, Go in to thy brother’s wife, and perform the duty of a brother in law, and raise up seed to thy brother.
And Onan knew that the seed would not be his; and it came to pass, when he went in to his brother’s wife, that he spilled it on the ground, lest he should give seed to his brother.
And the thing which he did displeased the Lord: So He slew him also.
Then said Yehuda to Tamar his daughter in law, Remain a widow at thy father’s home, till Shela my son be grown: for he said, Lest perchance he die also, as his brothers did. And Tamar went and dwelt in her father’s house.
And in process of time the daughter of Shu῾a Yehuda’s wife died; and when Yehuda was comforted, he went up to his sheep shearers to Timna, he and his friend Ḥira the ῾Adullamite.
And it was told Tamar, saying, Behold thy father in law goes up to Timna to shear his sheep.
And she put off her widow’s garments, and covered herself with a veil, and wrapped herself, and sat by the entrance to ῾Enayim, which is by the way to Timna; for she saw that Shela was grown, and she was not given to him to wife.
When Yehuda saw her, he thought her to be a harlot; because she had covered her face.
And he turned to her by the way, and said, Come now, I pray thee, let me come in to thee (for he knew not that she was his daughter in law.) And she said, What wilt thou give me, that thou mayst come in to me?
And he said, I will send thee a kid from the flock. And she said, Wilt thou give me a pledge, till thou send it?
And he said, What pledge shall I give thee? And she said, Thy signet, and thy cord, and thy staff that is in thy hand.
And he gave it her, and came in to her, and she conceived by him. And she arose, and went away, and laid by her veil from her, and put on the garments of her widowhood.
And Yehuda sent the kid by the hand of his friend the ῾Adullamite, to receive his pledge from the woman’s hand: but he found her not.
Then he asked the men of that place, saying, Where is the harlot, that was at ῾Enayim by the wayside? And they said, There was no harlot in this place.
And he returned to Yehuda, and said, I cannot find her; and also the men of the place said, There was no harlot in this place.
And Yehuda said, Let her take it to her, lest we be shamed: behold, I sent this kid, and thou hast not found her.
And it came to pass about three months after, that it was told Yehuda, saying, Tamar thy daughter in law has played the harlot; and also, behold, she is with child by harlotry. And Yehuda said, Bring her out and let her be burnt.
When she was brought forth, she sent to her father in law, saying, By the man, whose these are, am I with child: and she said, Discern, I pray thee, whose are these, the signet, and the cord, and the staff.
And Yehuda acknowledged them, and said, She has been more righteous than I; because I gave her not to Shela my son. And he knew her again no more.
And it came to pass in the time of her travail, that, behold, twins were in her womb.
And it came to pass, when she travailed, that the one put out his hand: and the midwife took and bound upon his hand a scarlet thread, saying, This came out first.
And it came to pass, as he drew back his hand, that, behold, his brother came out: and she said, Why hast thou made such a breach for thyself? Therefore his name was called Pereż.
And afterward his brother came out, that had the scarlet thread upon his hand: and his name was called Zeraĥ.

Chapter 39

And Yosef was brought down to Miżrayim; and Potifar, the chamberlain of Par῾o, captain of the guard, a Miżrian, bought him of the hands of the Yishme᾽elim, who had brought him down there.
And the Lord was with Yosef, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Miżrian.
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 Yosef found favour in his sight, and 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 Miżrian’s house for Yosef’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 Yosef’s hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Yosef was a good-looking person, and well favoured.
And it came to pass after these things, that his master’s wife cast her eyes upon Yosef; and she said, Lie with me.
But he refused, and said to his master’s wife, Behold, my master knows not what is with me in the house, and he has committed all that he has to my hand;
there is none greater in this house than I; neither has he kept back anything from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?
And it came to pass, as she spoke to Yosef day by day, that he hearkened not to her, to lie by her, or to be with her.
And it came to pass about this time, that Yosef went into the house to do his work; and there was none of the men of the house there within.
And she caught him by his garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and went outside.
And it came to pass, when she saw that he had left his garment in her hand, and was fled outside,
that she called to the men of her house, and spoke to them, saying, See, he has brought in a Hebrew to us to mock us; he came in to me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice:
and it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled, and went outside.
And she laid up his garment by her, until his lord came home.
And she spoke to him according to these words, saying, The Hebrew servant, whom thou hast brought to us, came in to me to have his sport with me.
And it came to pass, as I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled outside.
And it came to pass, when his master heard the words of his wife, which she spoke to him, saying, After this manner did thy servant to me; that his anger burned.
And Yosef’s master took him, and put him into the prison, a place where the king’s prisoners were bound: and he was there in the prison.
But the Lord was with Yosef, and showed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the officer of the prison.
And the officer of the prison committed to Yosef’s hand all the prisoners that were in the prison; and whatever they did there, he was the doer of it.
The keeper of the prison looked not to anything that was under his hand; because the Lord was with him, and that which he did, the Lord made it prosper.

Chapter 40

And it came to pass after these things, that the butler of the king of Miżrayim, and his baker, offended their lord the king of Miżrayim.
And Par῾o was angry against two of his officers, against the chief of the butlers, and against the chief of the bakers.
And he put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Yosef was bound.
And the captain of the guard charged Yosef with them, and he served them: and they continued a season in custody.
And they dreamed a dream both of them, each man his dream on the same night, each man according to the interpretation of his dream, the butler and the baker of the king of Miżrayim, who were bound in the prison.
And Yosef came in to them in the morning, and looked upon them, and, behold, they were sad.
And he asked Par῾o’s officers that were with him in custody in his lord’s house, saying, Why do you look so sadly today?
And they said to him, We have dreamed a dream, and there is no interpreter of it. And Yosef said to them, Do not interpretations belong to God? tell me them, I pray you.
And the chief butler told his dream to Yosef, and said to him, In my dream, behold, a vine was before me;
and on the vine were three tendrils: and it was as though it budded, and its blossoms shot forth; and its clusters brought forth ripe grapes:
and Par῾o’s cup was in my hand: and I took the grapes, and pressed them into Par῾o’s cup, and I gave the cup into Par῾o’s hand.
And Yosef said to him, This is the interpretation of it: The three tendrils are three days:
within another three days shall Par῾o lift up thy head, and restore thee to thy place: and thou shalt deliver Par῾o’s cup into his hand, after the former manner when thou wast his butler.
But think of me when it shall be well with thee, and show kindness, I pray thee, to me, and make mention of me to Par῾o, and bring me out of this house:
for I was stolen away out of the land of the Hebrews: and here also have I done nothing that they should put me into the dungeon.
When the chief  baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said to Yosef, I also in my dream, behold, I had three baskets of white bread on my head.
And in the uppermost basket there was of all manner of baked food for Par῾o; and the birds did eat them out of the basket upon my head.
And Yosef answered and said, This is its interpretation: The three baskets are three days:
within another three days shall Par῾o lift up thy head from off thee, and shall hang thee on a tree; and the birds shall eat thy flesh from off thee.
And it came to pass on the third day, which was Par῾o’s birthday, that he made a feast for all his servants: and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and of the chief baker among his servants.
And he restored the chief butler to his butlership again; and he gave the cup into Par῾o’s hand;
but he hanged the chief baker: as Yosef had interpreted to them.
Nevertheless the chief butler did not remember Yosef, but forgot him.

Chapter 41

And it came to pass at the end of two years, that Par῾o dreamed: and, behold, he stood by the River.
And, behold, there came up out of the River seven cows, well favoured, and fat of flesh; and they fed in the reed grass.
And, behold, seven other cows came up after them out of the River, ill favoured and lean of flesh; and stood by the other cows upon the brink of the River.
And the ill favoured and leanfleshed cows ate up the seven well favoured and fat cows. So Par῾o awoke.
And he slept and dreamed a second time: and, behold, seven ears of corn came up on one stalk, plump and good.
And, behold, seven ears thin, and blasted by the east wind sprang up after them.
And the seven thin ears devoured the seven plump and full ears. And Par῾o awoke, and, behold, it was a dream.
And it came to pass in the morning that his spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the magicians of Miżrayim, and all her wise men: and Par῾o told them his dream; but there was none that could interpret them to Par῾o.
Then spoke the chief butler to Par῾o, saying, I do remember my faults this day:
Par῾o was angry with his servants, and put me in custody in the officer of the guard’s house, both me and the chief baker:
and we dreamed a dream in one night, I and he; we dreamed each man according to the interpretation of his dream.
And there was there with us a young man, a Hebrew, servant to the officer of the guard; and we told him, and he interpreted to us our dreams; to each man according to his dream he did interpret.
And it came to pass, as he interpreted to us, so it was; I was restored to my office, and he was hanged.
Then Par῾o sent and called Yosef, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon: and he shaved himself, and changed his garments, and came in to Par῾o.
And Par῾o said to Yosef, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it.
And Yosef answered Par῾o, saying, it is not me: God shall give Par῾o a favourable answer.
And Par῾o said to Yosef, In my dream, behold, I stood upon the bank of the River:
and, behold, there came up out of the River seven cows, fat of flesh and well favoured; and they fed in the reed grass:
and, behold, seven other cows came up after them, poor and very ill favoured and lean of flesh, such as I never saw in all the land of Miżrayim for badness:
and the lean and the ill favoured cows did eat up the first seven fat cows:
and when they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; for they were still ill favoured, as at the beginning. So I awoke.
And I saw in my dream, and, behold, seven ears came up on one stalk, full and good:
and, behold, seven ears, withered, thin, and blasted by the east wind, sprang up after them:
and the thin ears devoured the seven good ears: and I told this to the magicians; but there was none that could explain it to me.
And Yosef said to Par῾o, The dream of Par῾o is one: God has declared to Par῾o what he is about to do.
The seven good cows are seven years; and the seven good ears are seven years: the dream is one.
And the seven thin and ill favoured cows that came up after them are seven years: and the seven empty ears blasted with the east wind shall be seven years of famine.
This is the thing which I have spoken to Par῾o: What God is about to do He has shown to Par῾o.
Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Miżrayim.
And there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Miżrayim; and the famine shall consume the land;
and the plenty shall not be known in the land by reason of that famine following; for it shall be very grievous.
And as for the repetition of the dream to Par῾o twice; it is because the thing is fast determined by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.
Now therefore let Par῾o look out a man discreet and wise, and set him over the land of Miżrayim.
Let Par῾o do this, and let him appoint officers over the land, and take up the fifth part of the land of Miżrayim in the seven years of plenty.
And let them gather all the food of those good years that come, and lay up corn under the hand of Par῾o, and let them keep food in the cities.
And that food shall be for store to the land against the seven years of famine, which shall be in the land of Miżrayim; that the land perish not through the famine.
And the thing was good in the eyes of Par῾o, and in the eyes of all his servants.
And Par῾o said to his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom is the spirit of God?
And Par῾o said to Yosef, since God has shown thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art:
thou shalt be over my house, and according to thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou.
And Par῾o said to Yosef, See, I have set thee over all the land of Miżrayim.
And Par῾o took off his ring from his hand, and put it on Yosef’s hand, and arrayed him in garments of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck;
and he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Avrekh (Bow the knee): and made him ruler over all the land of Miżrayim.
And Par῾o said to Yosef, I am Par῾o, and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Miżrayim.
And Par῾o called Yosef’s name, Żafenat-pa῾neaĥ; and he gave him to wife Asenat the daughter of Poti-fera priest of On. And Yosef went out over all the land of Miżrayim.
And Yosef was thirty years old when he stood before Par῾o, king of Miżrayim. And Yosef went out from the presence of Par῾o, and went through all the land of Miżrayim.
And in the seven years of plenty the earth brought forth by heaps.
And he gathered up all the food of the seven years, which were in the land of Miżrayim, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field, which was round about every city, laid he up within it.
And Yosef gathered corn like the sand of the sea, very much, until he stopped numbering; for it was without number.
And to Yosef were born two sons before the years of famine came, whom Asenat the daughter of Poti-fera priest of On bore to him.
And Yosef called the name of the firstborn Menashshe: For God, said he, has made me forget all my toil, and all my father’s house.
And the name of the second he called Efrayim: For God has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.
And the seven years of plenty, that were in the land of Miżrayim, were ended.
And the seven years of famine began to come, according as Yosef had said: and the famine was in all the lands; but in all the land of Miżrayim there was bread.
And when all the land of Miżrayim was famished, the people cried to Par῾o for bread: and Par῾o said to all Miżrayim, Go to Yosef; what he says to you, do.
And the famine was over all the face of the earth: And Yosef opened all the storehouses, and sold to Miżrayim; and the famine grew severe in the land of Miżrayim.
And all countries came to Miżrayim to Yosef to buy corn; because the famine was so severe in all the earth.

Chapter 42

Now when Ya῾aqov saw that there was corn in Miżrayim, Ya῾aqov said to his sons, Why do you look at one another?
And he said, Behold, I have heard that there is corn in Miżrayim: go down there, and buy for us from there, that we may live, and not die.
And Yosef’s ten brothers went down to buy corn in Miżrayim.
But Binyamin, Yosef’s brother, Ya῾aqov sent not with his brethren; for he said, Lest mischief befall him.
And the sons of Yisra᾽el came to buy corn among those that came: for the famine was in the land of Kena῾an.
And Yosef was the governor of the land, and he it was that sold to all the people of the land: and Yosef’s brothers came, and bowed themselves down before him with their faces to the earth.
And Yosef saw his brethren, and he knew them, but made himself strange to them, and spoke roughly to them; and he said to them, Where do you come from? And they said, From the land of Kena῾an to buy food.
And Yosef knew his brethren, but they knew him not.
And Yosef remembered the dreams which he had dreamed about them, and he said to them, You are spies; to see the nakedness of the land are you come.
And they said to him, No, my lord, but to buy food are thy servants come.
We are all one man’s sons; we are true men, thy servants are no spies.
And he said to them, No, but you are come to see the nakedness of the land.
And they said, Thy servants are twelve, we are brothers, sons of one man in the land of Kena῾an; and, behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is no more.
And Yosef said to them, That is what I spoke to you, saying, you are spies:
hereby you shall be proved; by the life of Par῾o you shall not go out of here unless your youngest brother comes here.
Send one of you, and let him fetch your brother, and you shall be kept in prison, that your words may be proved, whether there be any truth in you: or else by the life of Par῾o surely you are spies.
And he put them all together into custody for three days.
And Yosef said to them on the third day, This do, and live: I fear God:
if you are true men, let one of your brothers be bound in the house of your confinement: and you go, carry corn for the famine of your houses:
but bring your youngest brother to me; so shall your words be verified, and you shall not die. And they did so.
And they said one to another, Truly, we are guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us.
And Re᾽uven answered them, saying, Did I not speak to you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and you would not hear? therefore, behold, even his blood is required.
And they knew not that Yosef understood them; for he spoke to them by an interpreter.
And he turned himself about from them, and wept; and turned back to them, and spoke with them, and took from them Shim῾on, and bound him before their eyes.
Then Yosef gave orders to fill their sacks with corn, and to restore every man’s money into his sack, and to give them provision for the way: and thus it was performed.
And they loaded their asses with the corn, and departed from there.
And as one of them opened his sack to give his ass provender in the lodging place, he saw his money; for, behold, it was in the mouth of his sack.
And he said to his brethren, My money is returned; and, lo, it is in my sack: and their heart failed them, and they were afraid, saying one to another, What is this that God has done to us?
And they came to Ya῾aqov their father to the land of Kena῾an, and told him all that had befallen them; saying,
The man, who is the lord of the land, spoke roughly to us, and took us for spies of the country.
And we said to him, We are true men; we are no spies:
We are twelve brethren, sons of our father; one is no more, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Kena῾an.
And the man, the lord of the country, said to us, Hereby shall I know that you are true men; leave one of your brethren here with me, and take food for the famine of your households, and be gone:
and bring your youngest brother to me: then shall I know that you are no spies, but that you are true men: so will I deliver you your brother, and you shall traffic in the land.
And it came to pass as they emptied their sacks, that, behold, every man’s bundle of money was in his sack: and when both they and their father saw the bundles of money, they were afraid.
And Ya῾aqov their father said to them, You have bereaved me of my children: Yosef is not, and Shim῾on is not, and you will take Binyamin away: all these things have come upon me.
And Re᾽uven spoke to his father, saying, Slay my two sons, if I bring him not to thee: deliver him into my hand, and I will bring him back to thee.
And he said, My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he is left alone: if mischief befall him by the way in which you go, then shall you bring down my grey hairs with sorrow to She᾽ol.

Chapter 43

And the famine was severe in the land.
And it came to pass, when they had eaten up the corn which they had brought out of Miżrayim, their father said to them, Go back, buy us a little food.
And Yehuda spoke to him, saying, The man did solemnly protest to us, saying, You shall not see my face, unless your brother is with you.
If thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go down and buy thee food:
but if thou wilt not send him, we will not go down: for the man said to us, You shall not see my face, unless your brother is with you.
And Yisra᾽el said, Why did you treat me so ill, as to tell the man whether you had another brother?
And they said, The man asked us particularly of our state, and of our kindred, saying, Is your father yet alive? have you another brother? and we told him according to the tenor of these words: could we possibly know that he would say, Bring your brother down?
And Yehuda said to Yisra᾽el his father, Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go; that we may live, and not die, both we, and thou, and also our little ones.
I will be surety for him; of my hand shalt thou require him: if I bring him not to thee, and set him before thee, then I shall have sinned to thee for ever.
For if we had not lingered, surely now we had returned this second time.
And their father Yisra᾽el said to them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, gum, ladanum, nuts, and almonds:
and take double money in your hand; and the money that was returned in the mouth of your sacks, carry it back in your hand; perhaps it was an oversight:
take also your brother, and arise, go again to the man:
and God Almighty give you mercy before the man, that he may release to you your other brother, and Binyamin. If I be bereaved of my children, then I am bereaved.
And the men took that present, and they took double money in their hand, and Binyamin; and they rose up, and went down to Miżrayim, and stood before Yosef.
And when Yosef saw Binyamin with them, he said to the ruler of his house, Bring these men home, and slaughter a beast, and make it ready; for the men shall dine with me at noon.
And the man did as Yosef bade; and the man brought the men into Yosef’s house.
And the men were afraid, because they were brought into Yosef’s house; and they said, Because of the money that was returned in our sacks at the first time are we brought in; that he may seek occasion against us, and fall upon us, and take us for bondmen, and our asses.
And they came near to the steward of Yosef’s house, and they spoke with him at the door of the house,
and said, O sir, we came down indeed at the first time to buy food:
and it came to pass, when we came to the lodging place, that we opened our sacks, and, behold, every man’s money was in the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight:
and we have brought it back in our hand. And other money have we brought down in our hands to buy food: we cannot tell who put our money in our sacks.
And he said, Peace be to you, fear not: your God, and the God of your father, has given you treasure in your sacks: I had your money. And he brought Shim῾on out to them.
And the man brought the men into Yosef’s house, and gave them water, and they washed their feet; and he gave their asses provender.
And they made ready the present for when Yosef came at noon: for they had heard that they should eat bread there.
And when Yosef came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves to him to the earth.
And he asked them of their welfare, and said, Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?
And they answered, Thy servant our father is in good health, he is still alive. And they bowed down their heads, and made obeisance.
And he lifted up his eyes, and saw his brother Binyamin, his mother’s son, and said, Is this your younger brother, of whom you spoke to me? And he said, God be gracious to thee, my son.
And Yosef made haste: for his affection was kindled towards his brother: and he sought where to weep; and he entered into his chamber, and wept there.
And he washed his face, and went out, and restrained himself, and said, Set on bread.
And they set on for him by himself, and for them by themselves, and for the Miżrim who did eat with them, by themselves: because the Miżrim might not eat bread with the Hebrews; for that is an abomination to the Miżrim.
And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his youth: and the men marvelled one at another.
And he took and sent portions to them from before him: but Binyamin’s portion was five times as much as any of theirs. And they drank, and were merry with him.

Chapter 44

And he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man’s money in the mouth of his sack.
And put my cup, the silver cup, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest, and his corn money. And he did according to the word that Yosef had spoken.
As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their asses.
And when they were gone out of the city, and not yet far off, Yosef said to his steward, Up, follow after the men; and when thou dost overtake them, say to them, Why have you rewarded evil for good?
Is not this that from which my lord drinks, and whereby indeed he divines? you have done evil in so doing.
And he overtook them, and he spoke to them these same words.
And they said to him, Why does my lord say these words? Far be it from thy servants to do according to this thing:
behold, the money, which we found in our sacks’ mouths, we brought again to thee out of the land of Kena῾an: how then should we steal out of thy lord’s house silver or gold?
With whomever of thy servants it be found, let him die, and we also will be my lord’s bondmen.
And he said, Now also let it be according to your words: he with whom it is found shall be my bondman; and you shall be blameless.
Then they speedily took down every man his sack to the ground, and opened every man his sack.
And he searched, and began at the eldest, and ended at the youngest: and the cup was found in Binyamin’s sack.
Then they rent their clothes, and loaded every man his ass, and returned to the city.
And Yehuda and his brethren came to Yosef’s house; for he was still there: and they fell before him to the ground.
And Yosef said to them, What deed is this that you have done? do you not know that such a man as I can certainly divine?
And Yehuda said, What shall we say to my lord? what shall we speak? or how shall we clear ourselves? God has found out the iniquity of thy servants: behold, we are my lord’s bondmen, both we, and he also with whom the cup is found.
And he said, Far be it from me that I should do so: but the man in whose hand the cup is found, he shall be my bondman; and as for you, go up in peace to your father.
Then Yehuda came near to him, and said, Oh my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord’s ears, and let not thy anger burn against thy servant: for thou art even as Par῾o.
My lord asked his servants, saying, Have you a father, or a brother?
And we said to my lord, We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother, and his father loves him.
And thou didst say to thy servants, Bring him down to me, that I may set my eyes upon him.
And we said to my lord, The lad cannot leave his father: for if he should leave his father, his father would die.
And thou didst say to thy servants, Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you shall see my face no more.
And it came to pass when we came up to thy servant my father, we told him the words of my lord.
And our father said, Go back, and buy us a little food.
And we said, We cannot go down: if our youngest brother be with us, then will we go down: for we may not see the man’s face, unless our youngest brother is with us.
And thy servant my father said to us, You know that my wife bore me two sons:
and the one went out from me, and I said, Surely he is torn in pieces; and I saw him not since:
and if you take this also from me, and mischief befall him, you shall bring down my grey hairs with sorrow to She᾽ol.
Now therefore when I come to thy servant my father, and the lad is not with us; seeing that his life is bound up in the lad’s life;
it shall come to pass, when he sees that the lad is not with us, that he will die: and thy servants shall bring down the grey hairs of thy servant our father with sorrow to She᾽ol.
For thy servant became surety for the lad to my father, saying, If I bring him not to thee, then I shall have sinned to my father for ever.
Now therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant remain instead of the lad a bondman to my lord; and let the lad go up with his brothers.
For how shall I go up to my father, and the lad be not with me? lest I see the evil that shall come on my father.

Chapter 45

Then Yosef could not restrain himself before all them that stood by him; and he cried, Cause every man to go out from me. And no man stood with him, while Yosef made himself known to his brethren.
And he wept aloud: and Miżrayim and the house of Par῾o heard.
And Yosef said to his brethren, I am Yosef: does my father yet live? And his brothers could not answer him; for they were terrified at his presence.
And Yosef said to his brothers, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I am Yosef your brother, whom you sold into Miżrayim.
Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that you sold me here: for God did send me before you to preserve life.
For these two years has the famine been in the land: and there are five more years, in which there shall neither be ploughing nor harvest.
And God sent me before you to preserve you a remnant in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.
So now it was not you that sent me here, but God: and He has made me a father to Par῾o, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Miżrayim.
Hasten, and go up to my father, and say to him, Thus says thy son Yosef, God has made me lord of all Miżrayim: come down to me, do not delay:
and thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near me, thou, and thy children, and thy children’s children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast:
and there will I nourish thee; for there are still five years of famine; lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast, come to poverty.
And, behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Binyamin, that it is my mouth that speaks to you.
And you shall tell my father of all my glory in Miżrayim, and of all that you have seen: and you shall hasten and bring down my father here.
And he fell on his brother Binyamin’s neck, and wept; and Binyamin wept on his neck.
And he kissed all his brethren, and wept on them: and after that his brethren talked with him.
And the report was heard in Par῾o’s house, saying, Yosef’s brethren are come: and it pleased Par῾o well, and his servants.
And Par῾o said to Yosef, Say to thy brethren, Do this: load your beasts, and go, get you to the land of Kena῾an;
and take your father and your households, and come to me: and I will give you the good of the land of Miżrayim, and you shall eat the fat of the land.
Now thou art commanded, do this; take wagons out of the land of Miżrayim for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring your father, and come.
Also give no thought to your goods; for the good of all the land of Miżrayim is yours.
And the children of Yisra᾽el did so: and Yosef gave them wagons, according to the commandment of Par῾o, and gave them provision for the way.
To all of them he gave each man changes of clothing; but to Binyamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of clothing.
And to his father he sent after this manner; ten asses laden with the good things of Miżrayim and ten she asses laden with corn and bread and food for his father by the way.
So he sent his brethren away, and they departed: and he said to them, See that you do not fall out by the way.
And they went up out of Miżrayim, and came to the land of Kena῾an to Ya῾aqov their father,
and told him, saying, Yosef is still alive, and he is governor over all the land of Miżrayim. And his heart fainted, for he believed them not.
And they told him all the words of Yosef, which he had said to them: and when he saw the wagons which Yosef had sent to carry him, the spirit of Ya῾aqov their father revived:
and Yisra᾽el said, It is enough; Yosef my son is still alive: I will go and see him before I die.

Chapter 46

And Yisra᾽el took his journey with all that he had, and came to Be᾽er-sheva, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Yiżĥaq.
And God spoke to Yisra᾽el in the visions of the night, and said, Ya῾aqov, Ya῾aqov. And he said, Here I am.
And He said, I am God, the God of thy father: fear not to go down to Miżrayim; for I will there make of thee a great nation:
I will go down with thee into Miżrayim; and I will also surely bring thee up again: and Yosef shall put his hand on thy eyes.
And Ya῾aqov rose up from Be᾽er-sheva, and the sons of Yisra᾽el carried Ya῾aqov their father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Par῾o had sent to carry him.
And they took their cattle, and their goods, which they had acquired in the land of Kena῾an; and came to Miżrayim, Ya῾aqov, and all his seed with him:
his sons, and his sons’ sons with him, his daughters, and his sons’ daughters, and all his seed brought he with him to Miżrayim.
And these are the names of the children of Yisra᾽el, who came into Miżrayim, Ya῾aqov and his sons: Re᾽uven, Ya῾aqov’s firstborn.
And the sons of Re᾽uven; Ḥanokh, and Pallu, and Ḥeżron, and Karmi.
And the sons of Shim῾on; Yemu᾽el, and Yamin, and Ohad, and Yakhin, and Żoĥar, and Sha᾽ul the son of the Kena῾anite woman.
And the sons of Levi; Gershon, Qehat, and Merari.
And the sons of Yehuda; ῾Er, and Onan, and Shela, and Pereż, and Zeraĥ: but ῾Er and Onan died in the land of Kena῾an. And the sons of Pereż were Ḥeżron and Ḥamul.
And the sons of Yissakhar; Tola, and Puvva, and Yov, and Shimron.
And the sons of Zevulun; Sered, and Elon, and Yaĥle᾽el.
These are the sons of Le᾽a, whom she bore to Ya῾aqov in Paddan-aram, with his daughter Dina: all the souls of his sons and his daughters were thirty three.
And the sons of Gad; Żifyon, and Ḥaggi, Shuni, and Eżbon, ῾Eri, and Arodi, and Ar᾽eli.
And the sons of Asher; Yimna, and Yishva, and Yishvi, and Beri῾a, and Seraĥ their sister: and the sons of Beri῾a were Ḥever and Malki᾽el.
These are the sons of Zilpa, whom Lavan gave to Le᾽a his daughter, and these she bore to Ya῾aqov, sixteen souls.
The sons of Raĥel, Ya῾aqov’s wife; Yosef and Binyamin.
And to Yosef in the land of Miżrayim were born Menashshe and Efrayim, whom Asenat, daughter of Poti-fera; the priest of On bore to him.
And the sons of Binyamin were Bela, and Bekher, and Ashbel, Gera, and Na῾aman, Eĥi, and Rosh, Muppim, and Ḥuppim, and Ard.
These are the sons of Raĥel, who were born to Ya῾aqov: all the souls were fourteen.
And the sons of Dan; Ḥushim.
And the sons of Naftali; Yaĥże᾽el, and Guni, and Yeżer, and Shillem.
These are the sons of Bilha, whom Lavan gave to Raĥel his daughter, and she bore these to Ya῾aqov: all the souls were seven.
All the souls that came with Ya῾aqov into Miżrayim, who came out of his loins, besides Ya῾aqov’s sons’ wives, all the souls were sixty six.
And the sons of Yosef, who were born him in Miżrayim, were two souls: all the souls of the house of Ya῾aqov who came into Miżrayim were seventy.
And he sent Yehuda before him to Yosef, to show the way before him to Goshen; and they came into the land of Goshen.
And Yosef made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Yisra᾽el his father, to Goshen, and presented himself to him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while.
And Yisra᾽el said to Yosef, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art still alive.
And Yosef said to his brethren, and to his father’s house, I will go up, and tell Par῾o, and say to him, My brethren, and my father’s house, who were in the land of Kena῾an, are come to me;
and the men are shepherds, for they have ever been owners of cattle; and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have.
And it shall come to pass, when Par῾o shall call you, and shall say, What is your occupation?
that you shall say, Thy servants’ trade has been about cattle from our youth even until now, both we, and also our fathers: that you may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination to Miżrayim.

Chapter 47

Then Yosef came and told Par῾o, 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 Kena῾an; and, behold, they are in the land of Goshen.
And he took some of his brothers, five men, and presented them to Par῾o.
And Par῾o said to his brothers, What is your occupation? And they said to Par῾o, Thy servants are shepherds, both we, and also our fathers.
They said moreover to Par῾o, To sojourn in the land are we come; for thy servants have no pasture for their flocks; for the famine is severe in the land of Kena῾an: now therefore, we pray thee, let thy servants dwell in the land of Goshen.
And Par῾o spoke to Yosef, saying, Thy father and thy brethren are come to thee:
the land of Miżrayim 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 knowst any able men among them, then make them rulers over my cattle.
And Yosef brought in Ya῾aqov his father, and set him before Par῾o: and Ya῾aqov blessed Par῾o.
And Par῾o said to Ya῾aqov, How old art thou?
And Ya῾aqov said to Par῾o, The days of the years of my sojournings are a hundred and thirty years: few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their sojournings.
And Ya῾aqov blessed Par῾o, and went out from before Par῾o.
And Yosef provided abodes for his father and his brethren, and gave them a possession in the land of Miżrayim, in the best of the land, in the land of Ra῾meses, as Par῾o had commanded.
And Yosef nourished his father, and his brethren, and all his father’s household, with bread, according to their little ones.
And there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Miżrayim and all the land of Kena῾an languished by reason of the famine.
And Yosef gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Miżrayim, and in the land of Kena῾an, for the corn which they bought: and Yosef brought the money to Par῾o’s house.
And when money failed in the land of Miżrayim, and in the land of Kena῾an, all Miżrayim came to Yosef, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money fails.
And Yosef said, Give your cattle; and I will give you for your cattle, if money fail.
And they brought their cattle to Yosef; and Yosef gave them bread in exchange for horses, and for the flocks, and for the herds, and for the asses: and he fed them with bread in exchange for all their cattle for that year.
When that year was ended, they came to him in the second year, and said to him, We will not hide from my lord, how that our money is spent; my lord also has our herds of cattle; there is nothing left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies, and our lands:
why shall we die before thy eyes, both we and our land? buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants to Par῾o: and give us grain, that we may live, and not die, that the land be not desolate.
And Yosef bought all the land of Miżrayim for Par῾o; for Miżrayim sold every man his field, because the famine prevailed over them: so the land became Par῾o’s.
And as for the people, he removed them to the cities from one end of the borders of Miżrayim, to the other end.
Only the land of the priests he bought not; for the priests had a portion assigned them by Par῾o, and did eat their portion which Par῾o gave them: therefore they sold not their lands.
Then Yosef said to the people, Behold, I have bought you this day and your land for Par῾o: lo, here is grain for you, and you shall sow the land.
And it shall come to pass at harvest times, that you shall give the fifth part to Par῾o, and four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, and for your food, and for them of your households, and for food for your little ones.
And they said, Thou hast saved our lives: let us find favour in the sight of my lord, and we will be Par῾o’s servants.
And Yosef made it a law over the land of Miżrayim to this day, that Par῾o should have the fifth part; except the land of the priests only, which became not Par῾o’s.
And Yisra᾽el dwelt in the land of Miżrayim in the country of Goshen; and they took possession of it, and grew, and multiplied exceedingly.
And Ya῾aqov lived in the land of Miżrayim seventeen years: so the whole age of Ya῾aqov was a hundred and forty seven years.
And the time drew near for Yisra᾽el to die: and he called his son Yosef, and said to him, If now I have found favour in thy sight, put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me; bury me not, I pray thee, in Miżrayim:
but I will lie with my fathers, and thou shalt carry me out of Miżrayim, and bury me in their buryingplace.
And he said, I will do as thou hast said. And he said, Swear to me. And he swore to him. And Yisra᾽el bowed himself upon the bed’s head.

Chapter 48

And it came to pass after these things, that one told Yosef, Behold, thy father is sick: and he took with him his two sons, Menashshe and Efrayim.
And one told Ya῾aqov, and said, Behold, thy son Yosef comes to thee: and Yisra᾽el strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed.
And Ya῾aqov said to Yosef, God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Kena῾an, and blessed me,
and said to me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.
And now thy two sons, Efrayim and Menashshe, who were born to thee in the land of Miżrayim before I came to thee into Miżrayim, are mine; as Re᾽uven and Shim῾on they shall be mine.
And thy issue, which thou begettest after them, shall be thine, and shall be called after the name of their brothers in their inheritance.
And as for me, when I came from Paddan, Raĥel died by me in the land of Kena῾an on the way, when yet there was but a little way to come to Efrat: and I buried her there in the way of Efrat; that is Bet-leĥem.
And Yisra᾽el beheld Yosef’s sons, and said, Who are these?
And Yosef said to his father, They are my sons, whom God has given me in this place. And he said, Bring them, I pray thee, to me, and I will bless them.
Now the eyes of Yisra᾽el were dim from age, so that he could not see. And he brought them near to him; and he kissed them, and embraced them.
And Yisra᾽el said to Yosef, I had not thought to see thy face: and, lo, God has shown me also thy children.
And Yosef brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth.
And Yosef took them both, Efrayim in his right hand toward Yisra᾽el’s left hand, and Menashshe in his left hand toward Yisra᾽el’s right hand, and he presented them to him.
And Yisra᾽el stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Efrayim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Menashshe’s head, changing his hands; for Menashshe was the first-born.
And he blessed Yosef, and said, God, before Whom my fathers Avraham and Yiżĥaq did walk, the God Who has been my shepherd all my life long until this day,
the angel who redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Avraham and Yiżĥaq; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.
And when Yosef saw that his father laid his right hand upon the head of Efrayim, it displeased him: and he held up his father’s hand, to remove it from Efrayim’s head to Menashshe’s head.
And Yosef said to his father, Not so, my father: for this is the firstborn; put thy right hand upon his head.
And his father refused, and said, I know it, my son, I know it: he also shall become a people, and he also shall be great: but truly his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his seed shall become a multitude of nations.
And he blessed them that day, saying, By thee shall Yisra᾽el bless, saying, God make thee as Efrayim and as Menashshe: and he set Efrayim before Menashshe.
And Yisra᾽el said to Yosef, Behold, I die: but God shall be with you, and bring you back to the land of your fathers.
Moreover I have given to thee one portion more than thy brothers, which I took out of the hand of the Emori with my sword and with my bow.

Chapter 49

And Ya῾aqov called to his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days.
Gather yourselves together, and hear, you sons of Ya῾aqov; and hearken to Yisra᾽el your father.
Re᾽uven, thou art my firstborn, my might and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:
unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father’s bed; then thou didst defile it: he went up to my couch.
Shim῾on and Levi are brothers; instruments of cruelty are their swords.
Let my soul not come into their council; to their assembly let my honour not be united: for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they lamed an ox.
Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel: I will divide them in Ya῾aqov, and scatter them in Yisra᾽el.
Yehuda thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be on the neck of thy enemies; thy father’s children shall bow down before thee.
Yehuda is a lion’s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as a lioness; who shall rouse him up?
The staff shall not depart from Yehuda, nor the sceptre from between his feet, until Shilo come, and the obedience of the people be his.
Binding his foal to the vine, and his ass’s colt to the choice vine; he washes his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes;
his eyes are red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.
Zevulun shall dwell at the shore of the sea; and he shall be a haven for ships; and his border shall be at Żidon.
Yissakhar is a strong ass couching down between the sheepfolds:
and he saw that rest was good, and the land that it was pleasant; and he bowed his shoulder to bear, and became a servant to tribute.
Dan shall judge his people, as one of the tribes of Yisra᾽el.
Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, that bites the horse’s heels, so that his rider shall fall backward.
I wait for thy salvation, O Lord.
Gad, raiders shall maraud him, but he shall overcome at the last.
Out of Asher his bread shall be fat, and he shall yield royal dainties.
Naftali is a hind let loose: he gives goodly words.
Yosef is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a well; whose branches run over the wall:
the archers fiercely attacked him, and shot at him, and hated him:
but his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made supple by the hands of the mighty God of Ya῾aqov; (from thence from the shepherd, the Stone of Yisra᾽el:)
by the God of thy father, Who shall help thee; and by the Almighty, Who shall bless thee, with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that couches beneath, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb:
the blessings of thy father are potent above the blessings of my progenitors to the utmost bound of the everlasting hills: they shall be on the head of Yosef, and on the crown of the head of him that was separated from his brothers.
Binyamin is a ravenous wolf: in the morning he shall devour the prey, and at night he shall divide the spoil.
All these are the twelve tribes of Yisra᾽el: and this is that which their father spoke to them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them.
And he charged them, and said to them, I am to be gathered to my people: bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of ῾Efron, the Ḥittite,
in the cave that is in the field of Makhpela, which is before Mamre, in the land of Kena῾an, which Avraham bought with the field from ῾Efron the Ḥittite for a possession of a buryingplace.
There they buried Avraham and Sara his wife; there they buried Yiżĥaq and Rivqa his wife; and there I buried Le᾽a.
The purchase of the field and of the cave that is in it was from the children of Ḥet.
And when Ya῾aqov had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and expired, and was gathered to his people.

Chapter 50

And Yosef fell on his father’s face, and wept upon him, and kissed him.
And Yosef commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father: and the physicians embalmed Yisra᾽el.
And forty days were fulfilled for him: for so are fulfilled the days of those who are embalmed: and Miżrayim wept for him seventy days.
And when the days of his mourning were past, Yosef spoke to the house of Par῾o, saying, If now I have found favour in your eyes, speak, I pray you, in the ears of Par῾o, saying,
My father made me swear, saying, Lo, I die: in my grave which I have dug for myself in the land of Kena῾an there shalt thou bury me. Now therefore let me go up, I pray thee, and bury my father, and I will come back.
And Par῾o said, Go up, and bury thy father, according as he made thee swear.
And Yosef went up to bury his father: and with him went up all the servants of Par῾o, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Miżrayim.
And all the house of Yosef, and his brothers, and his father’s house: only their little ones, and their flocks, and their herds, they left in the land of Goshen.
And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen: and it was a very great company.
And they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Yarden, and there they mourned with a great and very sore lamentation: and he made a mourning for his father of seven days.
And when the inhabitants of the land, the Kena῾ani, saw the mourning at the floor of Atad, they said, This is a grievous mourning to Miżrayim: so that the name of it was called Avel-miżrayim, which is beyond the Yarden.
And his sons did to him according as he had commanded them:
for his sons carried him into the land of Kena῾an, and buried him in the cave of the field of Makhpela, which Avraham bought with the field for a possession of a buryingplace from ῾Efron the Ḥittite, before Mamre.
And Yosef returned to Miżrayim, he, and his brethren, and all that went up with him to bury his father, after he had buried his father.
And when Yosef’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, What if Yosef will hate us, and will pay us back the evil which we did to him.
And they sent word urgently to Yosef, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying,
So shall you say to Yosef, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brothers, and their sin; for they did evil to thee: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Yosef wept when they spoke to him.
And his brothers even went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we are thy servants.
And Yosef said to them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God?
But as for you, you thought evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring it to pass at this day that much people should be saved alive.
Now therefore fear not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spoke kindly to them.
And Yosef dwelt in Miżrayim, he, and his father’s house: and Yosef lived a hundred and ten years.
And Yosef saw Efrayim’s children of the third generation: the children also of Makhir the son of Menashshe were born on Yosef’s knees.
And Yosef said to his brothers, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you up out of this land to the land of which He swore to Avraham, to Yiżĥaq, and to Ya῾aqov.
And Yosef took an oath of the children of Yisra᾽el, saying, God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.
So Yosef died, being a hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Miżrayim.