that is, in effecting the salvation of man by the death and resurrection of Christ, as seems clear from John viii. 56.; Heb. xi. 19. where see notes. This view of it serves to remove an objection sometimes alleged, that the command given to Abraham is irreconcileable with the perfections of the Deity; for if the transaction was designed to be a figure and type of the sacrifice of Christ, it evinces the goodness and benevolence of God in making such a discovery by means of a parabolical representation. Besides, although to offer a human victim would be cruel and wicked, to do so by a divine command is a proof of obedience; and in the present case it formed such a trial of Abraham, as rendered him a pattern of faith and obedience to believers in all ages. In short, it was a proceeding which must have brought comfort to Abraham himself, as well as conferred benefit upon the whole Church, and therefore an evidence of God's paternal mercy to mankind.

16. By myself, &c.] Because he could swear by no greater; Heb. vi. 13, 14.; Ps. cv. 9.; Luke i. 73.; comp. ch. xii. 2, 7. notes: "and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies ;" i. e. their cities; gate, being the principal part, is put for the whole. The general sense is, that Abraham's seed should triumph over their enemies, which was fulfilled in a temporal sense by the victories of the Israelites under Joshua, David, Solomon, &c., and in a spiritual sense, by the conquest and triumph of his seed, the Messiah, over all the enemies of God.

22. concubine,] Ch. xvi. 2. note.

CHAPTER XXIII.

2. came, &c.] Probably from Beer-sheba, where he had been residing, ch. xxii. 19. to Hebron where Sarah died. "The same is Hebron," i. e. is now so called.

3. stood up] From the ground on which he had been sitting, as was usual with mourners in token of sorrow; ch. xxxvii. 35.; Job ii. 12, 13.; Isa. xlvii. 1. "From before his dead," i. e. from the place where he had been mourning over his dead wife. With v. 4. comp. Heb. xi. 9. et seq.

6. a mighty prince] Literally, "a prince of God," an Hebraic idiom for mighty or illustrious prince; and the children of Heth give Abraham this title in consequence of his comparatively great wealth and possessions; ch. xiii. 2. xiv. 14. xxiv. 35. In the choice," i. e. in the choicest of our sepulchres, in any thou shalt choose.

7. bowed] Bent his body towards the ground, a custom among the orientals in token of respect. The Holy Scriptures enjoin a compliance with the customary modes of civility and politeness; ch. xviii. 2. xix. 1.

9. the cave] See Matt. viii. 28. note.

10. dwelt] Literally "sat;" i. e. he was then present among

the children of Heth. "All that went in at the gate," &c. a periphrasis for the inhabitants of the city. With v. 12. comp. v. 7.

16. hearkened] Acquiesced in the price mentioned by Ephron, and "weighed the silver," &c. for anciently they did not tell or count money, but weighed it, till this being found inconvenient, they stamped it to denote its value; ch. xliii. 21. It seems that it continued to be weighed till the time of David, 1 Chron. xxi. 25. and afterwards; Jer. xxxii. 9. And is even still in use occasionally in some parts of the East. "Current money with the merchant,"

i. e. such shekels of silver as were current with merchants and traders. With v. 18. comp. v. 10. and with v. 19. comp. v. 2.

notes.

CHAPTER XXIV.

1. well stricken] Far advanced in days, or age. Abraham was now about 140 years old; for he was 100 when Isaac was born ; ch. xxi. 5., and Isaac was forty when he married Rebekah; ch. xxv. 20.

2. his eldest servant of his house,] Probably Eliezer, the steward of his house, ch. xv. 2. “ Put," &c. That this was a rite used in swearing, or making a solemn promise, is clear from what follows, and from ch. xlvii. 29. comp. with ch. 1. 5.; but as to the origin and reason of it, the commentators widely differ. The most probable opinion is, that as circumcision was the token and seal of God's covenant with Abraham, putting the hand under the thigh, denoted, by a significative action, that the person swore by that covenant, as in taking an oath we kiss the New Testament: many, however, think it was merely a rite practised as a token of subjection and homage due to a superior; v. 9.

4. unto my country,] Not unto Ur, where he was born; ch. xi. 28, 31. but as appears from the sequel, unto Mesopotamia, which he calls "his country," because he had resided there at Haran for several years, and because his brother lived there.

6. Beware, &c.] Abraham would not have his son even to go into the country which God had commanded him to leave, because the command included his posterity, ch. xii. 1.; and because he trusted in the providence of God, who would send his angel to guide and promote the object of the journey, v. 7.; with which verse comp. ch. xii. 7.; Heb. i. 14. notes.

11. to kneel down] Camels are taught to bend their knees in order to be loaded and unloaded. "At the time," &c. it was and continues to be, the custom in the East for women to draw water, and to go to the wells for that purpose in the cool of the evening; v. 13; ch. xxix. 9.; Exod. ii. 16.

18. my Lord: The Hebrew is used in addresses of politeness and civility, equivalent to our "Sir."

21. to wit] Rather "to learn, or know." The servant was so astonished at the agreement of these circumstances with his

prayer, that he stood silent, anxious "to know whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous" by designing this woman to be the wife of his master's son.

22. ear-ring] Probably" a nose-jewel," for such are worn even to this day; but some, as in the margin, take it to mean a jewel to ornament the forehead; v. 47. The weight of these jewels appears extraordinary, being perhaps nearly six ounces, but massy and heavy jewellery is frequently worn by the Eastern ladies.

27. left destitute] Viz. 'who hath not withdrawn from my master his mercy" in promising blessings, "and his truth” and faithfulness in performing his promises.

28. her mother's house] So called, as some say, because Bethuel her father was dead; but, as in the East the females always had separate apartments, it rather seems to mean that assigned to her mother; comp. v. 67.; ch. xxxi. 33. With v. 32. comp. ch. xviii. 4. note.

49. that I may turn, &c.] That I may go some other way in order to fulfil the obligation of my oath.

50. we cannot speak unto thee bad or good] We cannot say aught against it, since "the thing proceedeth from the Lord;" comp. ch. xxxi. 24.

57. at her mouth.] Let her answer whether she "will go with this man," v. 58. i. e. immediately as he requests. With v. 60. comp. ch. xxii. 17. note.

63. to meditate] He retired to a field in the evening, as best suited for thought and meditation. With v. 65. comp. ch. xx. 16.

CHAPTER XXV.

1. then again, &c.] Though here called a wife, she was a concubine, as appears from v. 6.; 1 Chron. i. 32. Whether he took her during Sarah's lifetime, or after her death, cannot be determined.

6. of the concubines,] Viz. of Hagar and Keturah; comp. ch. xvi. 2. note. To the sons of these secondary wives Abraham gave gifts, and sent them away, that they might not interfere with Isaac, who was his heir, ch. xxi. 10-12. and unto whom he had given all that he had; ch. xxiv. 36.

8. of years;] So our translators have supplied it; comp. ch. XXXV. 29.; Job xlii. 17., but the Hebrew may mean full of comforts and blessings; "and was gathered to his people," by which nothing more seems to be meant than that he died as all his ancestors had done before him; comp. ch. xv. 15. note.

18. he died, &c.] Viz. he continued till death in the presence of all his brethren, agreeably to the promise made to his mother; ch. xvi. 12. The sense is the same, if we render it as in the margin," it fell," &c. i. e. it fell to his lot to live in the presence of all his brethren.

19. the generations] The true account or history; ch. ii. 4.

21. entreated] With many and assiduous prayers, as the Hehrew verb implies; "for his wife," or rather "before his wife," in her presence, she joining with him in this earnest entreaty to the Lord. By comparing v. 20. with v. 26. it appears that they had lived 20 years without children.

22. struggled] In a violent and painful manner, so that she cried out, "If it be so, why am I thus ?" the meaning of which seems to be, If it be so that God hath heard our prayers, why am I in this painful condition?" and she went to inquire of the Lord," viz. concerning this matter. How she inquired is not stated, but probably by secret prayer.

23. Two nations] Viz. the Edomites and Israelites, who shall descend from the children with which thou art now pregnant. The following clauses, then, refer not to Esau and Jacob, but to their posterity, which were "two manner of people," quite distinct in character and manners, and perpetually separated from each other; "the one people," the Edomites, were for a long time more powerful than "the other people;" yet, notwithstanding this, they, "the elder," were made subject to the Israelites, "the younger;" 2 Sam. viii. 14.; 2 Chron. xxv. 11. and though often revolting, they were finally subdued, were converted to Judaism, and finally incorporated with the Israelitish nation. See the reasoning of St. Paul upon this history in Rom. ix. 10. et seq.

25. red, &c.] He was covered all over with a reddish hair or down, like a hairy garment; comp. ch. xxvii. 11. et seq.

27. a man of the field;] Not meaning addicted to agriculture, but to the chace, and spending most of his time among the fields. "A plain man," rather "a mild and gentle man," preferring the more sedate occupations to the hardier exercise of hunting. Jacob's whole conduct shows that he was not a plain-dealing, but an artful

man.

28. venison:] Hebrew means game, that which is taken in hunting.

29. sod] The preterite of "seethe," i. e. to boil. The word rendered "pottage" signifies a dish made by boiling. It was of a red colour, v. 30. and the principal ingredient consisted of lentiles, . 34. a sort of pulse, which forms a common food to this day, and when boiled forms a pottage of a chocolate colour.

31. birthright,] Or, right of primogeniture, to which belonged many privileges, though it is difficult to say exactly what they were in the patriarchal ages. It was a right which might be transferred, as appears from this transaction.

33. Swear, &c.] Take an oath that thou dost truly transfer it to me; he did so," and sold his birthright," for which the Apostle styles him "profane;" Heb. xii. 16. where see note.

CHAPTER XXVI.

1. the first famine] Mentioned ch. xii. 10. et seq. When the famine here alluded to took place, is not known; for "Abimelech" was a common name of the kings of that country, as Pharaoh was of those of Egypt; into which kingdom Isaac was commanded not to go down, v. 2. as Abraham had done upon the like occasion, ch. xii. 10., and as he was probably intending to do.

3. the oath] Ch. xxii. 16. The Lord now repeats and confirms the promises to Isaac, which he had before made with Abraham; ch xii. 2. 7. notes; because this patriarch "obeyed his voice," &c. ch. xii. 4. xvii. 23. xviii. 19.

7. She is my sister :] The Hebrews called all their kindred brothers and sisters, and Rebekah was his cousin ; but still it was a culpable prevarication, like that of his father Abraham; ch. xii. 13.

10. might lightly, &c.] Might easily or readily have lain with thy wife, and thou shouldest have brought guilt upon us; ch. xx.

9. note.

11. toucheth] Who injures or uses violence towards them; so v. 29.

12. an hundred-fold:] Meaning in a general sense that God blessed him with abundant crops.

13. went forward, and grew] A Hebrew phrase denoting that he went on increasing until he became very great; ch. xiii. 2. xxiv. 35.

14. a great store of servants :] A numerous household of servants; not " great husbandry," as in the margin. With v. 15. et seq. comp. ch. xxi. 25-30.

24. the God of Abraham] By this form of expression is meant both that he was the exclusive object of Abraham's worship, and that he was in covenant with Abraham; ch. xvii. 7. xxiv. 12. xxviii. 13.; Exod. iii. 6. et al. "I will bless thee," &c. ; see v. 3, 4. note. With v. 25. comp. ch. iv. 26. xii. 7. notes.

28. an oath] A mutual league or covenant, the conditions of which are stated in v. 29. comp. ch. xxi. 23. note.

33. he called it Sheba :] Viz. confirmed and renewed this name, which had been before given to it by Abraham, ch. xxi. 31.; "therefore the name of the city," which was afterwards built there, "is Beersheba, unto this day," i. e. is at present so called.

35. Which] Viz. these wives of Esau caused much grief to Isaac and Rebekah, because, as some think, he married them contrary to the direction of his parents; ch. xxiv. 3. But this is doubtful, and it is more agreeable to the words of the historian to suppose that it was owing to his wives' conduct and dispositions; comp. ch. xxvii. 46. xxviii. 8.