Chapters 1-10 11-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 51-60 61-70 71-80 81-91
CHAPTER 51
1 And Jacob afterward heard that there was corn in Egypt, and he
called unto his sons to go to Egypt to buy corn, for upon them
also did the famine prevail, and he called unto his sons, saying,
2 Behold I hear that there is corn in Egypt, and all the people of
the earth go there to purchase, now therefore why will you show yourselves
satisfied before the whole earth? go you also down to Egypt and buy
us a little corn amongst those that come there, that we may not die.
3 And the sons of Jacob hearkened to the voice of their father, and
they rose up to go down to Egypt in order to buy corn amongst the
rest that came there.
4 And Jacob their father commanded them, saying, When you come into
the city do not enter together in one gate, on account of the inhabitants
of the land.
5 And the sons of Jacob went forth and they went to Egypt, and the
sons of Jacob did all as their father had commanded them, and Jacob
did not send Benjamin, for he said, Lest an accident might befall
him on the road like his brother; and ten of Jacob's sons went forth.
6 And whilst the sons of Jacob were going on the road, they repented
of what they had done to Joseph, and they spoke to each other, saying,
We know that our brother Joseph went down to Egypt, and now we will
seek him where we go, and if we find him we will take him from his
master for a ransom, and if not, by force, and we will die for him.
7 And the sons of Jacob agreed to this thing and strengthened themselves
on account of Joseph, to deliver him from the hand of his master,
and the sons of Jacob went to Egypt; and when they came near to Egypt
they separated from each other, and they came through ten gates of
Egypt, and the gate keepers wrote their names on that day, and brought
them to Joseph in the evening.
8 And Joseph read the names from the hand of the gate-keepers of
the city, and he found that his brethren had entered at the ten gates
of the city, and Joseph at that time commanded that it should be
proclaimed throughout the land of Egypt, saying,
9 Go forth all ye store guards, close all the corn stores and let
only one remain open, that those who come may purchase from it.
10 And all the officers of Joseph did so at that time, and they closed
all the stores and left only one open.
11 And Joseph gave the written names of his brethren to him that
was set over the open store, and he said unto him, Whosoever shall
come to thee to buy corn, ask his name, and when men of these names
shall come before thee, seize them and send them, and they did so.
12 And when the sons of Jacob came into the city, they joined together
in the city to seek Joseph before they bought themselves corn.
13 And they went to the walls of the harlots, and they sought Joseph
in the walls of the harlots for three days, for they thought that
Joseph would come in the walls of the harlots, for Joseph was very
comely and well favored, and the sons of Jacob sought Joseph for
three days, and they could not find him.
14 And the man who was set over the open store sought for those names
which Joseph had given him, and he did not find them.
15 And he sent to Joseph, saying, These three days have passed, and
those men whose names thou didst give unto me have not come; and
Joseph sent servants to seek the men in all Egypt, and to bring them
before Joseph.
16 And Joseph's servants went and came into Egypt and could not find
them, and went to Goshen and they were not there, and then went to
the city of Rameses and could not find them.
17 And Joseph continued to send sixteen servants to seek his brothers,
and they went and spread themselves in the four corners of the city,
and four of the servants went into the house of the harlots, and
they found the ten men there seeking their brother.
18 And those four men took them and brought them before him, and
they bowed down to him to the ground, and Joseph was sitting upon
his throne in his temple, clothed with princely garments, and upon
his head was a large crown of gold, and all the mighty men were sitting
around him.
19 And the sons of Jacob saw Joseph, and his figure and comeliness
and dignity of countenance seemed wonderful in their eyes, and they
again bowed down to him to the ground.
20 And Joseph saw his brethren, and he knew them, but they knew him
not, for Joseph was very great in their eyes, therefore they knew
him not.
21 And Joseph spoke to them, saying, From whence come ye? and they
all answered and said, Thy servants have come from the land of Canaan
to buy corn, for the famine prevails throughout the earth, and thy
servants heard that there was corn in Egypt, so they have come amongst
the other comers to buy corn for their support.
22 And Joseph answered them, saying, If you have come to purchase
as you say, why do you come through ten gates of the city? it can
only be that you have come to spy through the land.
23 And they all together answered Joseph, and said, Not so my lord,
we are right, thy servants are not spies, but we have come to buy
corn, for thy servants are all brothers, the sons of one man in the
land of Canaan, and our father commanded us, saying, When you come
to the city do not enter together at one gate on account of the inhabitants
of the land.
24 And Joseph again answered them and said, That is the thing which
I spoke unto you, you have come to spy through the land, therefore
you all came through ten gates of the city; you have come to see
the nakedness of the land.
25 Surely every one that cometh to buy corn goeth his way, and you
are already three days in the land, and what do you do in the walls
of harlots in which you have been for these three days? surely spies
do like unto these things.
26 And they said unto Joseph, Far be it from our lord to speak thus,
for we are twelve brothers, the sons of our father Jacob, in the
land of Canaan, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the Hebrew,
and behold the youngest is with our father this day in the land of
Canaan, and one is not, for he was lost from us, and we thought perhaps
he might be in this land, so we are seeking him throughout the land,
and have come even to the houses of harlots to seek him there.
27 And Joseph said unto them, And have you then sought him throughout
the earth, that there only remained Egypt for you to seek him in?
And what also should your brother do in the houses of harlots, although
he were in Egypt? have you not said, That you are from the sons of
Isaac, the son of Abraham, and what shall the sons of Jacob do then
in the houses of harlots?
28 And they said unto him, Because we heard that Ishmaelites stole
him from us, and it was told unto us that they sold him in Egypt,
and thy servant, our brother, is very comely and well favored, so
we thought he would surely be in the houses of harlots, therefore
thy servants went there to seek him and give ransom for him.
29 And Joseph still answered them, saying, Surely you speak falsely
and utter lies, to say of yourselves that you are the sons of Abraham;
as Pharaoh liveth you are spies, therefore have you come to the houses
of harlots that you should not be known.
30 And Joseph said unto them, And now if you find him, and his master
requireth of you a great price, will you give it for him? and they
said, It shall be given.
31 And he said unto them, And if his master will not consent to part
with him for a great price, what will you do unto him on his account?
and they answered him, saying, If he will not give him unto us we
will slay him, and take our brother and go away.
32 And Joseph said unto them, That is the thing which I have spoken
to you; you are spies, for you are come to slay the inhabitants of
the land, for we heard that two of your brethren smote all the inhabitants
of Shechem, in the land of Canaan, on account of your sister, and
you now come to do the like in Egypt on account of your brother.
33 Only hereby shall I know that you are true men; if you will send
home one from amongst you to fetch your youngest brother from your
father, and to bring him here unto me, and by doing this thing I
will know that you are right.
34 And Joseph called to seventy of his mighty men, and he said unto
them, Take these men and bring them into the ward.
35 And the mighty men took the ten men, they laid hold of them and
put them into the ward, and they were in the ward three days.
36 And on the third day Joseph had them brought out of the ward,
and he said unto them, Do this for yourselves if you be true men,
so that you may live, one of your brethren shall be confined in the
ward whilst you go and take home the corn for your household to the
land of Canaan, and fetch your youngest brother, and bring him here
unto me, that I may know that you are true men when you do this thing.
37 And Joseph went out from them and came into the chamber, and wept
a great weeping, for his pity was excited for them, and he washed
his face, and returned to them again, and he took Simeon from them
and ordered him to be bound, but Simeon was not willing to be done
so, for he was a very powerful man and they could not bind him.
38 And Joseph called unto his mighty men and seventy valiant men
came before him with drawn swords in their hands, and the sons of
Jacob were terrified at them.
39 And Joseph said unto them, Seize this man and confine him in prison
until his brethren come to him, and Joseph's valiant men hastened
and they all laid hold of Simeon to bind him, and Simeon gave a loud
and terrible shriek and the cry was heard at a distance.
40 And all the valiant men of Joseph were terrified at the sound
of the shriek, that they fell upon their faces, and they were greatly
afraid and fled.
41 And all the men that were with Joseph fled, for they were greatly
afraid of their lives, and only Joseph and Manasseh his son remained
there, and Manassah the son of Joseph saw the strength of Simeon,
and he was exceedingly wroth.
42 And Manassah the son of Joseph rose up to Simeon, and Manassah
smote Simeon a heavy blow with his fist against the back of his neck,
and Simeon was stilled of his rage.
43 And Manassah laid hold of Simeon and he seized him violently and
he bound him and brought him into the house of confinement, and all
the sons of Jacob were astonished at the act of the youth.
44 And Simeon said unto his brethren, None of you must say that this
is the smiting of an Egyptian, but it is the smiting of the house
of my father.
45 And after this Joseph ordered him to be called who was set over
the storehouse, to fill their sacks with corn as much as they could
carry, and to restore every man's money into his sack, and to give
them provision for the road, and thus did he unto them.
46 And Joseph commanded them, saying, Take heed lest you transgress
my orders to bring your brother as I have told you, and it shall
be when you bring your brother hither unto me, then will I know that
you are true men, and you shall traffic in the land, and I will restore
unto you your brother, and you shall return in peace to your father.
47 And they all answered and said, According as our lord speaketh
so will we do, and they bowed down to him to the ground.
48 And every man lifted his corn upon his ass, and they went out
to go to the land of Canaan to their father; and they came to the
inn and Levi spread his sack to give provender to his ass, when he
saw and behold his money in full weight was still in his sack.
49 And the man was greatly afraid, and he said unto his brethren,
My money is restored, and lo, it is even in my sack, and the men
were greatly afraid, and they said, What is this that God hath done
unto us?
50 And they all said, And where is the Lord's kindness with our fathers,
with Abraham, Isaac, end Jacob, that the Lord has this day delivered
us into the hands of the king of Egypt to contrive against us?
51 And Judah said unto them, Surely we are guilty sinners before
the Lord our God in having sold our brother, our own flesh, and wherefore
do you say, Where is the Lord's kindness with our fathers?
52 And Reuben said unto them, Said I not unto you, do not sin against
the lad, and you would not listen to me? now God requireth him from
us, and how dare you say, Where is the Lord's kindness with our fathers,
whilst you have sinned unto the Lord?
53 And they tarried over night in that place, and they rose up early
in the morning and laded their asses with their corn, and they led
them and went on and came to their father's house in the land of
Canaan.
54 And Jacob and his household went out to meet his sons, and Jacob
saw and behold their brother Simeon was not with them, and Jacob
said unto his sons, Where is your brother Simeon, whom I do not see?
and his sons told him all that had befallen them in Egypt.
CHAPTER 52
1 And they entered their house, and every man opened his sack and
they saw and behold every man's bundle of money was there, at which
they and their father were greatly terrified.
2 And Jacob said unto them, What is this that you have done to
me? I sent your brother Joseph to inquire after your welfare and
you said unto me. A wild beast did devour him.
3 And Simeon went with you to buy food and you say the king of
Egypt hath confined him in prison, and you wish to take Benjamin
to cause his death also, and bring down my grey hairs with sorrow
to the grave on account of Benjamin and his brother Joseph.
4 Now therefore my son shall not go down with you, for his brother
is dead and he is left alone, and mischief may befall him by the
way in which you go, as it befell his brother.
5 And Reuben said unto his father, Thou shalt slay my two sons
if I do not bring thy son and place him before thee; and Jacob
said unto his sons, Abide ye here and do not go down to Egypt,
for my son shall not go down with you to Egypt, nor die like his
brother.
6 And Judah said unto them, refrain ye from him until the corn
is finished, and he will then say, Take down your brother, when
he will find his own life and the life of his household in danger
from the famine.
7 And in those days the famine was sore throughout the land, and
all the people of the earth went and came to Egypt to buy food,
for the famine prevailed greatly amongst them, and the sons of
Jacob remained in Canaan a year and two months until their corn
was finished.
8 And it came to pass after their corn was finished, the whole
household of Jacob was pinched with hunger, and all the infants
of the sons of Jacob came together and they approached Jacob, and
they all surrounded him, and they said unto him, Give unto us bread,
and wherefore shall we all perish through hunger in thy presence?
9 Jacob heard the words of his son's children, and he wept a great
weeping, and his pity was roused for them, and Jacob called unto
his sons and they all came and sat before him.
10 And Jacob said unto them, And have you not seen how your children
have been weeping over me this day, saying, Give unto us bread,
and there is none? now therefore return and buy for us a little
food.
11 And Judah answered and said unto his father, If thou wilt send
our brother with us we will go down and buy corn for thee, and
if thou wilt not send him then we will not go down, for surely
the king of Egypt particularly enjoined us, saying, You shall not
see my face unless your brother be with you, for the king of Egypt
is a strong and mighty king, and behold if we shall go to him without
our brother we shall all be put to death.
12 Dost thou not know and hast thou not heard that this king is
very powerful and wise, and there is not like unto him in all the
earth? behold we have seen all the kings of the earth and we have
not seen one like that king, the king of Egypt; surely amongst
all the kings of the earth there is none greater than Abimelech
king of the Philistines, yet the king of Egypt is greater and mightier
than he, and Abimelech can only be compared to one of his officers.
13 Father, thou hast not seen his palace and his throne, and all
his servants standing before him; thou hast not seen that king
upon his throne in his pomp and royal appearance, dressed in his
kingly robes with a large golden crown upon his head; thou hast
not seen the honor and glory which God has given unto him, for
there is not like unto him in all the earth.
14 Father, thou hast not seen the wisdom, the understanding and
the knowledge which God has given in his heart, nor heard his sweet
voice when he spake unto us.
15 We know not, father, who made him acquainted with our names
and all that befell us, yet he asked also after thee, saying, Is
your father still living, and is it well with him?
16 Thou hast not seen the affairs of the government of Egypt regulated
by him, without inquiring of Pharaoh his lord; thou hast not seen
the awe and fear which he impressed upon all the Egyptians.
17 And also when we went from him, we threatened to do unto Egypt
like unto the rest of the cities of the Amorites, and we were exceedingly
wroth against all his words which he spoke concerning us as spies,
and now when we shall again come before him his terror will fall
upon us all, and not one of us will be able to speak to him either
a little or a great thing.
18 Now therefore father, send we pray thee the lad with us, and
we will go down and buy thee food for our support, and not die
through hunger. And Jacob said, Why have you dealt so ill with
me to tell the king you had a brother? what is this thing that
you have done unto me?
19 And Judah said unto Jacob his father, Give the lad into my care
and we will rise up and go down to Egypt and buy corn, and then
return, and it shall be when we return if the lad be not with us,
then let me bear thy blame forever.
20 Hast thou seen all our infants weeping over thee through hunger
and there is no power in thy hand to satisfy them? now let thy
pity be roused for them and send our brother with us and we will
go.
21 For how will the Lord's kindness to our ancestors be manifested
to thee when thou sayest that the king of Egypt will take away
thy son? as the Lord liveth I will not leave him until I bring
him and place him before thee; but pray for us unto the Lord, that
he may deal kindly with us, to cause us to be received favorably
and kindly before the king of Egypt and his men, for had we not
delayed surely now we had returned a second time with thy son.
22 And Jacob said unto his sons, I trust in the Lord God that he
may deliver you and give you favor in the sight of the king of
Egypt, and in the sight of all his men.
23 Now therefore rise up and go to the man, and take for him in
your hands a present from what can be obtained in the land and
bring it before him, and may the Almighty God give you mercy before
him that he may send Benjamin and Simeon your brethren with you.
24 And all the men rose up, and they took their brother Benjamin,
and they took in their hands a large present of the best of the
land, and they also took a double portion of silver.
25 And Jacob strictly commanded his sons concerning Benjamin, Saying,
Take heed of him in the way in which you are going, and do not
separate yourselves from him in the road, neither in Egypt.
26 And Jacob rose up from his sons and spread forth his hands and
he prayed unto the Lord on account of his sons, saying, O Lord
God of heaven and earth, remember thy covenant with our father
Abraham, remember it with my father Isaac and deal kindly with
my sons and deliver them not into the hands of the king of Egypt;
do it I pray thee O God for the sake of thy mercies and redeem
all my children and rescue them from Egyptian power, and send them
their two brothers.
27 And all the wives of the sons of Jacob and their children lifted
up their eyes to heaven and they all wept before the Lord, and
cried unto him to deliver their fathers from the hand of the king
of Egypt.
28 And Jacob wrote a record to the king of Egypt and gave it into
the hand of Judah and into the hands of his sons for the king of
Egypt, saying,
29 From thy servant Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham the Hebrew,
the prince of God, to the powerful and wise king, the revealer
of secrets, king of Egypt, greeting.
30 Be it known to my lord the king of Egypt, the famine was sore
upon us in the land of Canaan, and I sent my sons to thee to buy
us a little food from thee for our support.
31 For my sons surrounded me and I being very old cannot see with
my eyes, for my eyes have become very heavy through age, as well
as with daily weeping for my son, for Joseph who was lost from
before me, and I commanded my sons that they should not enter the
gates of the city when they came to Egypt, on account of the inhabitants
of the land.
32 And I also commanded them to go about Egypt to seek for my son
Joseph, perhaps they might find him there, and they did so, and
thou didst consider them as spies of the land.
33 Have we not heard concerning thee that thou didst interpret
Pharaoh's dream and didst speak truly unto him? how then dost thou
not know in thy wisdom whether my sons are spies or not?
34 Now therefore, my lord and king, behold I have sent my son before
thee, as thou didst speak unto my sons; I beseech thee to put thy
eyes upon him until he is returned to me in peace with his brethren.
35 For dost thou not know, or hast thou not heard that which our
God did unto Pharaoh when he took my mother Sarah, and what he
did unto Abimelech king of the Philistines on account of her, and
also what our father Abraham did unto the nine kings of Elam, how
he smote them all with a few men that were with him?
36 And also what my two sons Simeon and Levi did unto the eight
cities of the Amorites, how they destroyed them on account of their
sister Dinah?
37 And also on account of their brother Benjamin they consoled
themselves for the loss of his brother Joseph; what will they then
do for him when they see the hand of any people prevailing over
them, for his sake?
38 Dost thou not know, O king of Egypt, that the power of God is
with us, and that also God ever heareth our prayers and forsaketh
us not all the days?
39 And when my sons told me of thy dealings with them, I called
not unto the Lord on account of thee, for then thou wouldst have
perished with thy men before my son Benjamin came before thee,
but I thought that as Simeon my son was in thy house, perhaps thou
mightest deal kindly with him, therefore I did not this thing unto
thee.
40 Now therefore behold Benjamin my son cometh unto thee with my
sons, take heed of him and put thy eyes upon him, and then will
God place his eyes over thee and throughout thy kingdom.
41 Now I have told thee all that is in my heart, and behold my
sons are coming to thee with their brother, examine the face of
the whole earth for their sake and send them back in peace with
their brethren.
42 And Jacob gave the record to his sons into the care of Judah
to give it unto the king of Egypt.
CHAPTER 53
1 And the sons of Jacob rose up and took Benjamin and the whole
of the presents, and they went and came to Egypt and they stood
before Joseph.
2 And Joseph beheld his brother Benjamin with them and he saluted
them, and these men came to Joseph's house.
3 And Joseph commanded the superintendent of his house to give
to his brethren to eat, and he did so unto them.
4 And at noon time Joseph sent for the men to come before him with
Benjamin, and the men told the superintendent of Joseph's house
concerning the silver that was returned in their sacks, and he
said unto them, It will be well with you, fear not, and he brought
their brother Simeon unto them.
5 And Simeon said unto his brethren, The lord of the Egyptians
has acted very kindly unto me, he did not keep me bound, as you
saw with your eyes, for when you went out from the city he let
me free and dealt kindly with me in his house.
6 And Judah took Benjamin by the hand, and they came before Joseph,
and they bowed down to him to the ground.
7 And the men gave the present unto Joseph and they all sat before
him, and Joseph said unto them, Is it well with you, is it well
with your children, is it well with your aged father? and they
said, It is well, and Judah took the record which Jacob had sent
and gave it into the hand of Joseph.
8 And Joseph read the letter and knew his father's writing, and
he wished to weep and he went into an inner room and he wept a
great weeping; and he went out.
9 And he lifted up his eyes and beheld his brother Benjamin, and
he said, Is this your brother of whom you spoke unto me? And Benjamin
approached Joseph, and Joseph placed his hand upon his head and
he said unto him, May God be gracious unto thee my son.
10 And when Joseph saw his brother, the son of his mother, he again
wished to weep, and he entered the chamber, and he wept there,
and he washed his face, and went out and refrained from weeping,
and he said, Prepare food.
11 And Joseph had a cup from which he drank, and it was of silver
beautifully inlaid with onyx stones and bdellium, and Joseph struck
the cup in the sight of his brethren whilst they were sitting to
eat with him.
12 And Joseph said unto the men, I know by this cup that Reuben
the first born, Simeon and Levi and Judah, Issachar and Zebulun
are children from one mother, seat yourselves to eat according
to your births.
13 And he also placed the others according to their births, and
he said, I know that this your youngest brother has no brother,
and I, like him, have no brother, he shall therefore sit down to
eat with me.
14 And Benjamin went up before Joseph and sat upon the throne,
and the men beheld the acts of Joseph, and they were astonished
at them; and the men ate and drank at that time with Joseph, and
he then gave presents unto them, and Joseph gave one gift unto
Benjamin, and Manasseh and Ephraim saw the acts of their father,
and they also gave presents unto him, and Osnath gave him one present,
and they were five presents in the hand of Benjamin.
15 And Joseph brought them out wine to drink, and they would not
drink, and they said, From the day on which Joseph was lost we
have not drunk wine, nor eaten any delicacies.
16 And Joseph swore unto them, and he pressed them hard, and they
drank plentifully with him on that day, and Joseph afterward turned
to his brother Benjamin to speak with him, and Benjamin was still
sitting upon the throne before Joseph.
17 And Joseph said unto him, Hast thou begotten any children? and
he said, Thy servant has ten sons, and these are their names, Bela,
Becher, Ashbal, Gera, Naaman, Achi, Rosh, Mupim, Chupim, and Ord,
and I called their names after my brother whom I have not seen.
18 And he ordered them to bring before him his map of the stars,
whereby Joseph knew all the times, and Joseph said unto Benjamin,
I have heard that the Hebrews are acquainted with all wisdom, dost
thou know anything of this?
19 And Benjamin said, Thy servant is knowing also in all the wisdom
which my father taught me, and Joseph said unto Benjamin, Look
now at this instrument and understand where thy brother Joseph
is in Egypt, who you said went down to Egypt.
20 And Benjamin beheld that instrument with the map of the stars
of heaven, and he was wise and looked therein to know where his
brother was, and Benjamin divided the whole land of Egypt into
four divisions, and he found that he who was sitting upon the throne
before him was his brother Joseph, and Benjamin wondered greatly,
and when Joseph saw that his brother Benjamin was so much astonished,
he said unto Benjamin, What hast thou seen, and why art thou astonished?
21 And Benjamin said unto Joseph, I can see by this that Joseph
my brother sitteth here with me upon the throne, and Joseph said
unto him, I am Joseph thy brother, reveal not this thing unto thy
brethren; behold I will send thee with them when they go away,
and I will command them to be brought back again into the city,
and I will take thee away from them.
22 And if they dare their lives and fight for thee, then shall
I know that they have repented of what they did unto me, and I
will make myself known to them, and if they forsake thee when I
take thee, then shalt thou remain with me, and I will wrangle with
them, and they shall go away, and I will not become known to them.
23 At that time Joseph commanded his officer to fill their sacks
with food, and to put each man's money into his sack, and to put
the cup in the sack of Benjamin, and to give them provision for
the road, and they did so unto them.
24 And on the next day the men rose up early in the morning, and
they loaded their asses with their corn, and they went forth with
Benjamin, and they went to the land of Canaan with their brother
Benjamin.
25 They had not gone far from Egypt when Joseph commanded him that
was set over his house, saying, Rise, pursue these men before they
get too far from Egypt, and say unto them, Why have you stolen
my master's cup?
26 And Joseph's officer rose up and he reached them, and he spoke
unto them all the words of Joseph; and when they heard this thing
they became exceedingly wroth, and they said, He with whom thy
master's cup shall be found shall die, and we will also become
slaves.
27 And they hastened and each man brought down his sack from his
ass, and they looked in their bags and the cup was found in Benjamin's
bag, and they all tore their garments and they returned to the
city, and they smote Benjamin in the road, continually smiting
him until he came into the city, and they stood before Joseph.
28 And Judah's anger was kindled, and he said, This man has only
brought me back to destroy Egypt this day.
29 And the men came to Joseph's house, and they found Joseph sitting
upon his throne, and all the mighty men standing at his right and
left.
30 And Joseph said unto them, What is this act that you have done,
that you took away my silver cup and went away? but I know that
you took my cup in order to know thereby in what part of the land
your brother was.
31 And Judah said, What shall we say to our lord, what shall we
speak and how shall we justify ourselves, God has this day found
the iniquity of all thy servants, therefore has he done this thing
to us this day.
32 And Joseph rose up and caught hold of Benjamin and took him
from his brethren with violence, and he came to the house and locked
the door at them, and Joseph commanded him that was set over his
house that he should say unto them, Thus saith the king, Go in
peace to your father, behold I have taken the man in whose hand
my cup was found.
CHAPTER 54
1 And when Judah saw the dealings of Joseph with them, Judah approached
him and broke open the door, and came with his brethren before
Joseph.
2 And Judah said unto Joseph, Let it not seem grievous in the sight
of my lord, may thy servant I pray thee speak a word before thee?
and Joseph said unto him, Speak.
3 And Judah spoke before Joseph, and his brethren were there standing
before them; and Judah said unto Joseph, Surely when we first came
to our lord to buy food, thou didst consider us as spies of the
land, and we brought Benjamin before thee, and thou still makest
sport of us this day.
4 Now therefore let the king hear my words, and send I pray thee
our brother that he may go along with us to our father, lest thy
soul perish this day with all the souls of the inhabitants of Egypt.
5 Dost thou not know what two of my brethren, Simeon and Levi,
did unto the city of Shechem, and unto seven cities of the Amorites,
on account of our sister Dinah, and also what they would do for
the sake of their brother Benjamin?
6 And I with my strength, who am greater and mightier than both
of them, come this day upon thee and thy land if thou art unwilling
to send our brother.
7 Hast thou not heard what our God who made choice of us did unto
Pharaoh on account of Sarah our mother, whom he took away from
our father, that he smote him and his household with heavy plagues,
that even unto this day the Egyptians relate this wonder to each
other? so will our God do unto thee on account of Benjamin whom
thou hast this day taken from his father, and on account of the
evils which thou this day heapest over us in thy land; for our
God will remember his covenant with our father Abraham and bring
evil upon thee, because thou hast grieved the soul of our father
this day.
8 Now therefore hear my words that I have this day spoken unto
thee, and send our brother that he may go away lest thou and the
people of thy land die by the sword, for you cannot all prevail
over me.
9 And Joseph answered Judah, saying, Why hast thou opened wide
thy mouth and why dost thou boast over us, saying, Strength is
with thee? as Pharaoh liveth, if I command all my valiant men to
fight with you, surely thou and these thy brethren would sink in
the mire.
10 And Judah said unto Joseph, Surely it becometh thee and thy
people to fear me; as the Lord liveth if I once draw my sword I
shall not sheathe it again until I shall this day have slain all
Egypt, and I will commence with thee and finish with Pharaoh thy
master.
11 And Joseph answered and said unto him, Surely strength belongeth
not alone to thee; I am stronger and mightier than thou, surely
if thou drawest thy sword I will put it to thy neck and the necks
of all thy brethren.
12 And Judah said unto him, Surely if I this day open my mouth
against thee I would swallow thee up that thou be destroyed from
off the earth and perish this day from thy kingdom. And Joseph
said, Surely if thou openest thy mouth I have power and might to
close thy mouth with a stone until thou shalt not be able to utter
a word; see how many stones are before us, truly I can take a stone,
and force it into thy mouth and break thy jaws.
13 And Judah said, God is witness between us, that we have not
hitherto desired to battle with thee, only give us our brother
and we will go from thee; and Joseph answered and said, As Pharaoh
liveth, if all the kings of Canaan came together with you, you
should not take him from my hand.
14 Now therefore go your way to your father, and your brother shall
be unto me for a slave, for he has robbed the king's house. And
Judah said, What is it to thee or to the character of the king,
surely the king sendeth forth from his house, throughout the land,
silver and gold either in gifts or expenses, and thou still talkest
about thy cup which thou didst place in our brother's bag and sayest
that he has stolen it from thee?
15 God forbid that our brother Benjamin or any of the seed of Abraham
should do this thing to steal from thee, or from any one else,
whether king, prince, or any man.
16 Now therefore cease this accusation lest the whole earth hear
thy words, saying, For a little silver the king of Egypt wrangled
with the men, and he accused them and took their brother for a
slave.
17 And Joseph answered and said, Take unto you this cup and go
from me and leave your brother for a slave, for it is the judgment
of a thief to be a slave.
18 And Judah said, Why art thou not ashamed of thy words, to leave
our brother and to take thy cup? Surely if thou givest us thy cup,
or a thousand times as much, we will not leave our brother for
the silver which is found in the hand of any man, that we will
not die over him.
19 And Joseph answered, And why did you forsake your brother and
sell him for twenty pieces of silver unto this day, and why then
will you not do the same to this your brother?20 And Judah said,
the Lord is witness between me and thee that we desire not thy
battles; now therefore give us our brother and we will go from
thee without quarreling.
21 And Joseph answered and said, If all the kings of the land should
assemble they will not be able to take your brother from my hand;
and Judah said, What shall we say unto our father, when he seeth
that our brother cometh not with us, and will grieve over him?
22 And Joseph answered and said, This is the thing which you shall
tell unto your father, saying, The rope has gone after the bucket.
23 And Judah said, Surely thou art a king, and why speakest thou
these things, giving a false judgment? woe unto the king who is
like unto thee.
24 And Joseph answered and said, There is no false judgment in
the word that I spoke on account of your brother Joseph, for all
of you sold him to the Midianites for twenty pieces of silver,
and you all denied it to your father and said unto him, An evil
beast has devoured him, Joseph has been torn to pieces.
25 And Judah said, Behold the fire of Shem burneth in my heart,
now I will burn all your land with fire; and Joseph answered and
said, Surely thy sister-in-law Tamar, who killed your sons, extinguished
the fire of Shechem.
26 And Judah said, If I pluck out a single hair from my flesh,
I will fill all Egypt with its blood.
27 And Joseph answered and said, Such is your custom to do as you
did to your brother whom you sold, and you dipped his coat in blood
and brought it to your father in order that he might say an evil
beast devoured him and here is his blood.
28 And when Judah heard this thing he was exceedingly wroth and
his anger burned within him, and there was before him in that place
a stone, the weight of which was about four hundred shekels, and
Judah's anger was kindled and he took the stone in one hand and
cast it to the heavens and caught it with his left hand.
29 And he placed it afterward under his legs, and he sat upon it
with all his strength and the stone was turned into dust from the
force of Judah.
30 And Joseph saw the act of Judah and he was very much afraid,
but he commanded Manassah his son and he also did with another
stone like unto the act of Judah, and Judah said unto his brethren,
Let not any of you say, this man is an Egyptian, but by his doing
this thing he is of our father's family.
31 And Joseph said, Not to you only is strength given, for we are
also powerful men, and why will you boast over us all? and Judah
said unto Joseph, Send I pray thee our brother and ruin not thy
country this day.
32 And Joseph answered and said unto them, Go and tell your father,
an evil beast hath devoured him as you said concerning your brother
Joseph.
33 And Judah spoke to his brother Naphtali, and he said unto him,
Make haste, go now and number all the streets of Egypt and come
and tell me; and Simeon said unto him, Let not this thing be a
trouble to thee; now I will go to the mount and take up one large
stone from the mount and level it at every one in Egypt, and kill
all that are in it.
34 And Joseph heard all these words that his brethren spoke before
him, and they did not know that Joseph understood them, for they
imagined that he knew not to speak Hebrew.
35 And Joseph was greatly afraid at the words of his brethren lest
they should destroy Egypt, and he commanded his son Manasseh, saying,
Go now make haste and gather unto me all the inhabitants of Egypt,
and all the valiant men together, and let them come to me now upon
horseback and on foot and with all sorts of musical instruments,
and Manasseh went and did so.
36 And Naphtali went as Judah had commanded him, for Naphtali was
lightfooted as one of the swift stags, and he would go upon the
ears of corn and they would not break under him.
37 And he went and numbered all the streets of Egypt, and found
them to be twelve, and he came hastily and told Judah, and Judah
said unto his brethren, Hasten you and put on every man his sword
upon his loins and we will come over Egypt, and smite them all,
and let not a remnant remain.
38 And Judah said, Behold, I will destroy three of the streets
with my strength, and you shall each destroy one street; and when
Judah was speaking this thing, behold the inhabitants of Egypt
and all the mighty men came toward them with all sorts of musical
instruments and with loud shouting.
39 And their number was five hundred cavalry and ten thousand infantry,
and four hundred men who could fight without sword or spear, only
with their hands and strength.
40 And all the mighty men came with great storming and shouting,
and they all surrounded the sons of Jacob and terrified them, and
the ground quaked at the sound of their shouting.
41 And when the sons of Jacob saw these troops they were greatly
afraid of their lives, and Joseph did so in order to terrify the
sons of Jacob to become tranquilized.
42 And Judah, seeing some of his brethren terrified, said unto
them, Why are you afraid whilst the grace of God is with us? and
when Judah saw all the people of Egypt surrounding them at the
command of Joseph to terrify them, only Joseph commanded them,
saying, Do not touch any of them.
43 Then Judah hastened and drew his sword, and uttered a loud and
bitter scream, and he smote with his sword, and he sprang upon
the ground and he still continued to shout against all the people.
44 And when he did this thing the Lord caused the terror of Judah
and his brethren to fall upon the valiant men and all the people
that surrounded them.
45 And they all fled at the sound of the shouting, and they were
terrified and fell one upon the other, and many of them died as
they fell, and they all fled from before Judah and his brethren
and from before Joseph.
46 And whilst they were fleeing, Judah and his brethren pursued
them unto the house of Pharaoh, and they all escaped, and Judah
again sat before Joseph and roared at him like a lion, and gave
a great and tremendous shriek at him.
47 And the shriek was heard at a distance, and all the inhabitants
of Succoth heard it, and all Egypt quaked at the sound of the shriek,
and also the walls of Egypt and of the land of Goshen fell in from
the shaking of the earth, and Pharaoh also fell from his throne
upon the ground, and also all the pregnant women of Egypt and Goshen
miscarried when they heard the noise of the shaking, for they were
terribly afraid.
48 And Pharaoh sent word, saying, What is this thing that has this
day happened in the land of Egypt? and they came and told him all
the things from beginning to end, and Pharaoh was alarmed and he
wondered and was greatly afraid.
49 And his fright increased when he heard all these things, and
he sent unto Joseph, saying, Thou hast brought unto me the Hebrews
to destroy all Egypt; what wilt thou do with that thievish slave?
send him away and let him go with his brethren, and let us not
perish through their evil, even we, you and all Egypt.
50 And if thou desirest not to do this thing, cast off from thee
all my valuable things, and go with them to their land, if thou
delightest in it, for they will this day destroy my whole country
and slay all my people; even all the women of Egypt have miscarried
through their screams; see what they have done merely by their
shouting and speaking, moreover if they fight with the sword, they
will destroy the land; now therefore choose that which thou desirest,
whether me or the Hebrews, whether Egypt or the land of the Hebrews.
51 And they came and told Joseph all the words of Pharaoh that
he had said concerning him, and Joseph was greatly afraid at the
words of Pharaoh and Judah and his brethren were still standing
before Joseph indignant and enraged, and all the sons of Jacob
roared at Joseph, like the roaring of the sea and its waves.
52 And Joseph was greatly afraid of his brethren and on account
of Pharaoh, and Joseph sought a pretext to make himself known unto
his brethren, lest they should destroy all Egypt.
53 And Joseph commanded his son Manasseh, and Manasseh went and
approached Judah, and placed his hand upon his shoulder, and the
anger of Judah was stilled.
54 And Judah said unto his brethren, Let no one of you say that
this is the act of an Egyptian youth for this is the work of my
father's house.
55 And Joseph seeing and knowing that Judah's anger was stilled,
he approached to speak unto Judah in the language of mildness.
56 And Joseph said unto Judah, Surely you speak truth and have
this day verified your assertions concerning your strength, and
may your God who delighteth in you, increase your welfare; but
tell me truly why from amongst all thy brethren dost thou wrangle
with me on account of the lad, as none of them have spoken one
word to me concerning him.
57 And Judah answered Joseph, saying, Surely thou must know that
I was security for the lad to his father, saying, If I brought
him not unto him I should bear his blame forever.
58 Therefore have I approached thee from amongst all my brethren,
for I saw that thou wast unwilling to suffer him to go from thee;
now therefore may I find grace in thy sight that thou shalt send
him to go with us, and behold I will remain as a substitute for
him, to serve thee in whatever thou desirest, for wheresoever thou
shalt send me I will go to serve thee with great energy.
59 Send me now to a mighty king who has rebelled against thee,
and thou shalt know what I will do unto him and unto his land;
although he may have cavalry and infantry or an exceeding mighty
people, I will slay them all and bring the king's head before thee.
60 Dost thou not know or hast thou not heard that our father Abraham
with his servant Eliezer smote all the kings of Elam with their
hosts in one night, they left not one remaining? and ever since
that day our father's strength was given unto us for an inheritance,
for us and our seed forever.
61 And Joseph answered and said, You speak truth, and falsehood
is not in your mouth, for it was also told unto us that the Hebrews
have power and that the Lord their God delighteth much in them,
and who then can stand before them?
62 However, on this condition will I send your brother, if you
will bring before me his brother the son of his mother, of whom
you said that he had gone from you down to Egypt; and it shall
come to pass when you bring unto me his brother I will take him
in his stead, because not one of you was security for him to your
father, and when he shall come unto me, I will then send with you
his brother for whom you have been security.
63 And Judah's anger was kindled against Joseph when he spoke this
thing, and his eyes dropped blood with anger, and he said unto
his brethren, How doth this man this day seek his own destruction
and that of all Egypt!
64 And Simeon answered Joseph, saying, Did we not tell thee at
first that we knew not the particular spot to which he went, and
whether he be dead or alive, and wherefore speaketh my lord like
unto these things?
65 And Joseph observing the countenance of Judah discerned that
his anger began to kindle when he spoke unto him, saying, Bring
unto me your other brother instead of this brother.
66 And Joseph said unto his brethren, Surely you said that your
brother was either dead or lost, now if I should call him this
day and he should come before you, would you give him unto me instead
of his brother?
67 And Joseph began to speak and call out, Joseph, Joseph, come
this day before me, and appear to thy brethren and sit before them.
68 And when Joseph spoke this thing before them, they looked each
a different way to see from whence Joseph would come before them.
69 And Joseph observed all their acts, and said unto them, Why
do you look here and there? I am Joseph whom you sold to Egypt,
now therefore let it not grieve you that you sold me, for as a
support during the famine did God send me before you.
70 And his brethren were terrified at him when they heard the words
of Joseph, and Judah was exceedingly terrified at him.
71 And when Benjamin heard the words of Joseph he was before them
in the inner part of the house, and Benjamin ran unto Joseph his
brother, and embraced him and fell upon his neck, and they wept.
72 And when Joseph's brethren saw that Benjamin had fallen upon
his brother's neck and wept with him, they also fell upon Joseph
and embraced him, and they wept a great weeping with Joseph.
73 And the voice was heard in the house of Joseph that they were
Joseph's brethren, and it pleased Pharaoh exceedingly, for he was
afraid of them lest they should destroy Egypt.
74 And Pharaoh sent his servants unto Joseph to congratulate him
concerning his brethren who had come to him, and all the captains
of the armies and troops that were in Egypt came to rejoice with
Joseph, and all Egypt rejoiced greatly about Joseph's brethren.
75 And Pharaoh sent his servants to Joseph, saying, Tell thy brethren
to fetch all belonging to them and let them come unto me, and I
will place them in the best part of the land of Egypt, and they
did so.
76 And Joseph commanded him that was set over his house to bring
out to his brethren gifts and garments, and he brought out to them
many garments being robes of royalty and many gifts, and Joseph
divided them amongst his brethren.
77 And he gave unto each of his brethren a change of garments of
gold and silver, and three hundred pieces of silver, and Joseph
commanded them all to be dressed in these garments, and to be brought
before Pharaoh.
78 And Pharaoh seeing that all Joseph's brethren were valiant men,
and of beautiful appearance, he greatly rejoiced.
79 And they afterward went out from the presence of Pharaoh to
go to the land of Canaan, to their father, and their brother Benjamin
was with them.
80 And Joseph rose up and gave unto them eleven chariots from Pharaoh,
and Joseph gave unto them his chariot, upon which he rode on the
day of his being crowned in Egypt, to fetch his father to Egypt;
and Joseph sent to all his brothers' children, garments according
to their numbers, and a hundred pieces of silver to each of them,
and he also sent garments to the wives of his brethren from the
garments of the king's wives, and he sent them.
81 And he gave unto each of his brethren ten men to go with them
to the land of Canaan to serve them, to serve their children and
all belonging to them in coming to Egypt.
82 And Joseph sent by the hand of his brother Benjamin ten suits
of garments for his ten sons, a portion above the rest of the children
of the sons of Jacob.
83 And he sent to each fifty pieces of silver, and ten chariots
on the account of Pharaoh, and he sent to his father ten asses
laden with all the luxuries of Egypt, and ten she asses laden with
corn and bread and nourishment for his father, and to all that
were with him as provisions for the road.
84 And he sent to his sister Dinah garments of silver and gold,
and frankincense and myrrh, and aloes and women's ornaments in
great plenty, and he sent the same from the wives of Pharaoh to
the wives of Benjamin.
85 And he gave unto all his brethren, also to their wives, all
sorts of onyx stones and bdellium, and from all the valuable things
amongst the great people of Egypt, nothing of all the costly things
was left but what Joseph sent of to his father's household.
86 And he sent his brethren away, and they went, and he sent his
brother Benjamin with them.
87 And Joseph went out with them to accompany them on the road
unto the borders of Egypt, and he commanded them concerning his
father and his household, to come to Egypt.
88 And he said unto them, Do not quarrel on the road, for this
thing was from the Lord to keep a great people from starvation,
for there will be yet five years of famine in the land.
89 And he commanded them, saying, When you come unto the land of
Canaan, do not come suddenly before my father in this affair, but
act in your wisdom.
90 And Joseph ceased to command them, and he turned and went back
to Egypt, and the sons of Jacob went to the land of Canaan with
joy and cheerfulness to their father Jacob.
91 And they came unto the borders of the land, and they said to
each other, What shall we do in this matter before our father,
for if we come suddenly to him and tell him the matter, he will
be greatly alarmed at our words and will not believe us.
92 And they went along until they came nigh unto their houses,
and they found Serach, the daughter of Asher, going forth to meet
them, and the damsel was very good and subtle, and knew how to
play upon the harp.
93 And they called unto her and she came before them, and she kissed
them, and they took her and gave unto her a harp, saying, Go now
before our father, and sit before him, and strike upon the harp,
and speak these words.
94 And they commanded her to go to their house, and she took the
harp and hastened before them, and she came and sat near Jacob.
95 And she played well and sang, and uttered in the sweetness of
her words, Joseph my uncle is living, and he ruleth throughout
the land of Egypt, and is not dead.
96 And she continued to repeat and utter these words, and Jacob
heard her words and they were agreeable to him.
97 He listened whilst she repeated them twice and thrice, and joy
entered the heart of Jacob at the sweetness of her words, and the
spirit of God was upon him, and he knew all her words to be true.
98 And Jacob blessed Serach when she spoke these words before him,
and he said unto her, My daughter, may death never prevail over
thee, for thou hast revived my spirit; only speak yet before me
as thou hast spoken, for thou hast gladdened me with all thy words.
99 And she continued to sing these words, and Jacob listened and
it pleased him, and he rejoiced, and the spirit of God was upon
him.
100 Whilst he was yet speaking with her, behold his sons came to
him with horses and chariots and royal garments and servants running
before them.
101 And Jacob rose up to meet them, and saw his sons dressed in
royal garments and he saw all the treasures that Joseph had sent
to them.
102 And they said unto him, Be informed that our brother Joseph
is living, and it is he who ruleth throughout the land of Egypt,
and it is he who spoke unto us as we told thee.
103 And Jacob heard all the words of his sons, and his heart palpitated
at their words, for he could not believe them until he saw all
that Joseph had given them and what he had sent him, and all the
signs which Joseph had spoken unto them.
104 And they opened out before him, and showed him all that Joseph
had sent, they gave unto each what Joseph had sent him, and he
knew that they had spoken the truth, and he rejoiced exceedingly
an account of his son.
105 And Jacob said, It is enough for me that my son Joseph is still
living, I will go and see him before I die.
106 And his sons told him all that had befallen them, and Jacob
said, I will go down to Egypt to see my son and his offspring.
107 And Jacob rose up and put on the garments which Joseph had
sent him, and after he had washed, and shaved his hair, he put
upon his head the turban which Joseph had sent him.
108 And all the people of Jacob's house and their wives put on
the garments which Joseph had sent to them, and they greatly rejoiced
at Joseph that he was still living and that he was ruling in Egypt,
109 And all the inhabitants of Canaan heard of this thing, and
they came and rejoiced much with Jacob that he was still living.
110 And Jacob made a feast for them for three days, and all the
kings of Canaan and nobles of the land ate and drank and rejoiced
in the house of Jacob.
CHAPTER 55
1 And it came to pass after this that Jacob said, I will go and
see my son in Egypt and will then come back to the land of Canaan
of which God had spoken unto Abraham, for I cannot leave the land
of my birth-place.
2 Behold the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, Go down to
Egypt with all thy household and remain there, fear not to go down
to Egypt for I will there make thee a great nation.
3 And Jacob said within himself, I will go and see my son whether
the fear of his God is yet in his heart amidst all the inhabitants
of Egypt.
4 And the Lord said unto Jacob, Fear not about Joseph, for he still
retaineth his integrity to serve me, as will seem good in thy sight,
and Jacob rejoiced exceedingly concerning his son.
5 At that time Jacob commanded his sons and household to go to
Egypt according to the word of the Lord unto him, and Jacob rose
up with his sons and all his household, and he went out from the
land of Canaan from Beersheba, with joy and gladness of heart,
and they went to the land of Egypt.
6 And it came to pass when they came near Egypt, Jacob sent Judah
before him to Joseph that he might show him a situation in Egypt,
and Judah did according to the word of his father, and he hastened
and ran and came to Joseph, and they assigned for them a place
in the land of Goshen for all his household, and Judah returned
and came along the road to his father.
7 And Joseph harnessed the chariot, and he assembled all his mighty
men and his servants and all the officers of Egypt in order to
go and meet his father Jacob, and Joseph's mandate was proclaimed
in Egypt, saying, All that do not go to meet Jacob shall die.
8 And on the next day Joseph went forth with all Egypt a great
and mighty host, all dressed in garments of fine linen and purple
and with instruments of silver and gold and with their instruments
of war with them.
9 And they all went to meet Jacob with all sorts of musical instruments,
with drums and timbrels, strewing myrrh and aloes all along the
road, and they all went after this fashion, and the earth shook
at their shouting.
10 And all the women of Egypt went upon the roofs of Egypt and
upon the walls to meet Jacob, and upon the head of Joseph was Pharaoh's
regal crown, for Pharaoh had sent it unto him to put on at the
time of his going to meet his father.
11 And when Joseph came within fifty cubits of his father, he alighted
from the chariot and he walked toward his father, and when all
the officers of Egypt and her nobles saw that Joseph had gone on
foot toward his father, they also alighted and walked on foot toward
Jacob.
12 And when Jacob approached the camp of Joseph, Jacob observed
the camp that was coming toward him with Joseph, and it gratified
him and Jacob was astonished at it.
13 And Jacob said unto Judah, Who is that man whom I see in the
camp of Egypt dressed in kingly robes with a very red garment upon
him and a royal crown upon his head, who has alighted from his
chariot and is coming toward us? and Judah answered his father,
saying, He is thy son Joseph the king; and Jacob rejoiced in seeing
the glory of his son.
14 And Joseph came nigh unto his father and he bowed to his father,
and all the men of the camp bowed to the ground with him before
Jacob.
15 And behold Jacob ran and hastened to his son Joseph and fell
upon his neck and kissed him, and they wept, and Joseph also embraced
his father and kissed him, and they wept and all the people of
Egypt wept with them.
16 And Jacob said unto Joseph, Now I will die cheerfully after
I have seen thy face, that thou art still living and with glory.
17 And the sons of Jacob and their wives and their children and
their servants, and all the household of Jacob wept exceedingly
with Joseph, and they kissed him and wept greatly with him.
18 And Joseph and all his people returned afterward home to Egypt,
and Jacob and his sons and all the children of his household came
with Joseph to Egypt, and Joseph placed them in the best part of
Egypt, in the land of Goshen.
19 And Joseph said unto his father and unto his brethren, I will
go up and tell Pharaoh, saying, My brethren and my father's household
and all belonging to them have come unto me, and behold they are
in the land of Goshen.
20 And Joseph did so and took from his brethren Reuben, Issachar
Zebulun and his brother Benjamin and he placed them before Pharaoh.
21 And Joseph spoke unto Pharaoh, saying, My brethren and my father's
household and all belonging to them, together with their flocks
and cattle have come unto me from the land of Canaan, to sojourn
in Egypt; for the famine was sore upon them.
22 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Place thy father and brethren
in the best part of the land, withhold not from them all that is
good, and cause them to eat of the fat of the land.
23 And Joseph answered, saying, Behold I have stationed them in
the land of Goshen, for they are shepherds, therefore let them
remain in Goshen to feed their flocks apart from the Egyptians.
24 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Do with thy brethren all that
they shall say unto thee; and the sons of Jacob bowed down to Pharaoh,
and they went forth from him in peace, and Joseph afterward brought
his father before Pharaoh.
25 And Jacob came and bowed down to Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed
Pharaoh, and he then went out; and Jacob and all his sons, and
all his household dwelt in the land of Goshen.
26 In the second year, that is in the hundred and thirtieth year
of the life of Jacob, Joseph maintained his father and his brethren,
and all his father's household, with bread according to their little
ones, all the days of the famine; they lacked nothing.
27 And Joseph gave unto them the best part of the whole land; the
best of Egypt had they all the days of Joseph; and Joseph also
gave unto them and unto the whole of his father's household, clothes
and garments year by year; and the sons of Jacob remained securely
in Egypt all the days of their brother.
28 And Jacob always ate at Joseph's table, Jacob and his sons did
not leave Joseph's table day or night, besides what Jacob's children
consumed in their houses.
29 And all Egypt ate bread during the days of the famine from the
house of Joseph, for all the Egyptians sold all belonging to them
on account of the famine.
30 And Joseph purchased all the lands and fields of Egypt for bread
on the account of Pharaoh, and Joseph supplied all Egypt with bread
all the days of the famine, and Joseph collected all the silver
and gold that came unto him for the corn which they bought throughout
the land, and he accumulated much gold and silver, besides an immense
quantity of onyx stones, bdellium and valuable garments which they
brought unto Joseph from every part of the land when their money
was spent.
31 And Joseph took all the silver and gold that came into his hand,
about seventy two talents of gold and silver, and also onyx stones
and bdellium in great abundance, and Joseph went and concealed
them in four parts, and he concealed one part in the wilderness
near the Red sea, and one part by the river Perath, and the third
and fourth part he concealed in the desert opposite to the wilderness
of Persia and Media.
32 And he took part of the gold and silver that was left, and gave
it unto all his brothers and unto all his father's household, and
unto all the women of his father's household, and the rest he brought
to the house of Pharaoh, about twenty talents of gold and silver.
33 And Joseph gave all the gold and silver that was left unto Pharaoh,
and Pharaoh placed it in the treasury, and the days of the famine
ceased after that in the land, and they sowed and reaped in the
whole land, and they obtained their usual quantity year by year;
they lacked nothing.
34 And Joseph dwelt securely in Egypt, and the whole land was under
his advice, and his father and all his brethren dwelt in the land
of Goshen and took possession of it.
35 And Joseph was very aged, advanced in days, and his two sons,
Ephraim and Manasseh, remained constantly in the house of Jacob,
together with the children of the sons of Jacob their brethren,
to learn the ways of the Lord and his law.
36 And Jacob and his sons dwelt in the land of Egypt in the land
of Goshen, and they took possession in it, and they were fruitful
and multiplied in it.
CHAPTER 56
1 And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years, and the
days of Jacob, and the years of his life were a hundred and forty
seven years.
2 At that time Jacob was attacked with that illness of which he
died and he sent and called for his son Joseph from Egypt, and
Joseph his son came from Egypt and Joseph came unto his father.
3 And Jacob said unto Joseph and unto his sons, Behold I die, and
the God of your ancestors will visit you, and bring you back to
the land, which the Lord sware to give unto you and unto your children
after you, now therefore when I am dead, bury me in the cave which
is in Machpelah in Hebron in the land of Canaan, near my ancestors.
4 And Jacob made his sons swear to bury him in Machpelah, in Hebron,
and his sons swore unto him concerning this thing.
5 And he commanded them, saying, Serve the Lord your God, for he
who delivered your fathers will also deliver you from all trouble.
6 And Jacob said, Call all your children unto me, and all the children
of Jacob's sons came and sat before him, and Jacob blessed them,
and he said unto them, The Lord God of your fathers shall grant
you a thousand times as much and bless you, and may he give you
the blessing of your father Abraham; and all the children of Jacob's
sons went forth on that day after he had blessed them.
7 And on the next day Jacob again called for his sons, and they
all assembled and came to him and sat before him, and Jacob on
that day blessed his sons before his death, each man did he bless
according to his blessing; behold it is written in the book of
the law of the Lord appertaining to Israel.
8 And Jacob said unto Judah, I know my son that thou art a mighty
man for thy brethren; reign over them, and thy sons shall reign
over their sons forever.
9 Only teach thy sons the bow and all the weapons of war, in order
that they may fight the battles of their brother who will rule
over his enemies.
10 And Jacob again commanded his sons on that day, saying, Behold
I shall be this day gathered unto my people; carry me up from Egypt,
and bury me in the cave of Machpelah as I have commanded you.
11 Howbeit take heed I pray you that none of your sons carry me,
only yourselves, and this is the manner you shall do unto me, when
you carry my body to go with it to the land of Canaan to bury me,
12 Judah, Issachar and Zebulun shall carry my bier at the eastern
side; Reuben, Simeon and Gad at the south, Ephraim, Manasseh and
Benjamin at the west, Dan, Asher and Naphtali at the north.
13 Let not Levi carry with you, for he and his sons will carry
the ark of the covenant of the Lord with the Israelites in the
camp, neither let Joseph my son carry, for as a king so let his
glory be; howbeit, Ephraim and Manasseh shall be in their stead.
14 Thus shall you do unto me when you carry me away; do not neglect
any thing of all that I command you; and it shall come to pass
when you do this unto me, that the Lord will remember you favorably
and your children after you forever.
15 And you my sons, honor each his brother and his relative, and
command your children and your children's children after you to
serve the Lord God of your ancestors all the days.
16 In order that you may prolong your days in the land, you and
your children and your children's children for ever, when you do
what is good and upright in the sight of the Lord your God, to
go in all his ways.
17 And thou, Joseph my son, forgive I pray thee the prongs of thy
brethren and all their misdeeds in the injury that they heaped
upon thee, for God intended it for thine and thy children's benefit.
18 And O my son leave not thy brethren to the inhabitants of Egypt,
neither hurt their feelings, for behold I consign them to the hand
of God and in thy hand to guard them from the Egyptians; and the
sons of Jacob answered their father saying, O, our father, all
that thou hast commanded us, so will we do; may God only be with
us.
19 And Jacob said unto his sons, So may God be with you when you
keep all his ways; turn not from his ways either to the right or
the left in performing what is good and upright in his sight.
20 For I know that many and grievous troubles will befall you in
the latter days in the land, yea your children and children's children,
only serve the Lord and he will save you from all trouble.
21 And it shall come to pass when you shall go after God to serve
him and will teach your children after you, and your children's
children, to know the Lord, then will the Lord raise up unto you
and your children a servant from amongst your children, and the
Lord will deliver you through his hand from all affliction, and
bring you out of Egypt and bring you back to the land of your fathers
to inherit it securely.
22 And Jacob ceased commanding his sons, and he drew his feet into
the bed, he died and was gathered to his people.
23 And Joseph fell upon his father and he cried out and wept over
him and he kissed him, and he called out in a bitter voice, and
he said, O my father, my father.
24 And his son's wives and all his household came and fell upon
Jacob, and they wept over him, and cried in a very loud voice concerning
Jacob.
25 And all the sons of Jacob rose up together, and they tore their
garments, and they all put sackcloth upon their loins, and they
fell upon their faces, and they cast dust upon their heads toward
the heavens.
26 And the thing was told unto Osnath Joseph's wife, and she rose
up and put on a sack and she with all the Egyptian women with her
came and mourned and wept for Jacob.
27 And also all the people of Egypt who knew Jacob came all on
that day when they heard this thing, and all Egypt wept for many
days.
28 And also from the land of Canaan did the women come unto Egypt
when they heard that Jacob was dead, and they wept for him in Egypt
for seventy days.
29 And it came to pass after this that Joseph commanded his servants
the doctors to embalm his father with myrrh and frankincense and
all manner of incense and perfume, and the doctors embalmed Jacob
as Joseph had commanded them.
30 And all the people of Egypt and the elders and all the inhabitants
of the land of Goshen wept and mourned over Jacob, and all his
sons and the children of his household lamented and mourned over
their father Jacob many days.
31 And after the days of his weeping had passed away, at the end
of seventy days, Joseph said unto Pharaoh, I will go up and bury
my father in the land of Canaan as he made me swear, and then I
will return.
32 And Pharaoh sent Joseph, saying, Go up and bury thy father as
he said, and as he made thee swear; and Joseph rose up with all
his brethren to go to the land of Canaan to bury their father Jacob
as he had commanded them.
33 And Pharaoh commanded that it should be proclaimed throughout
Egypt, saying, Whoever goeth not up with Joseph and his brethren
to the land of Canaan to bury Jacob, shall die.
34 And all Egypt heard of Pharaoh's proclamation, and they all
rose up together, and all the servants of Pharaoh, and the elders
of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt went up with
Joseph, and all the officers and nobles of Pharaoh went up as the
servants of Joseph, and they went to bury Jacob in the land of
Canaan.
35 And the sons of Jacob carried the bier upon which he lay; according
to all that their father commanded them, so did his sons unto him.
36 And the bier was of pure gold, and it was inlaid round about
with onyx stones and bdellium; and the covering of the bier was
gold woven work, joined with threads, and over them were hooks
of onyx stones and bdellium.
37 And Joseph placed upon the head of his father Jacob a large
golden crown, and he put a golden scepter in his hand, and they
surrounded the bier as was the custom of kings during their lives.
38 And all the troops of Egypt went before him in this array, at
first all the mighty men of Pharaoh, and the mighty men of Joseph,
and after them the rest of the inhabitants of Egypt, and they were
all girded with swords and equipped with coats of mail, and the
trappings of war were upon them.
39 And all the weepers and mourners went at a distance opposite
to the bier, going and weeping and lamenting, and the rest of the
people went after the bier.
40 And Joseph and his household went together near the bier barefooted
and weeping, and the rest of Joseph's servants went around him;
each man had his ornaments upon him, and they were all armed with
their weapons of war.
41 And fifty of Jacob's servants went in front of the bier, and
they strewed along the road myrrh and aloes, and all manner of
perfume, and all the sons of Jacob that carried the bier walked
upon the perfumery, and the servants of Jacob went before them
strewing the perfume along the road.
42 And Joseph went up with a heavy camp, and they did after this
manner every day until they reached the land of Canaan, and they
came to the threshing floor of Atad, which was on the other side
of Jordan, and they mourned an exceeding great and heavy mourning
in that place.
43 And all the kings of Canaan heard of this thing and they all
went forth, each man from his house, thirty-one kings of Canaan,
and they all came with their men to mourn and weep over Jacob.
44 And all these kings beheld Jacob's bier, and behold Joseph's
crown was upon it, and they also put their crowns upon the bier,
and encircled it with crowns.
45 And all these kings made in that place a great and heavy mourning
with the sons of Jacob and Egypt over Jacob, for all the kings
of Canaan knew the valor of Jacob and his sons.
46 And the report reached Esau, saying, Jacob died in Egypt, and
his sons and all Egypt are conveying him to the land of Canaan
to bury him.
47 And Esau heard this thing, and he was dwelling in mount Seir,
and he rose up with his sons and all his people and all his household,
a people exceedingly great, and they came to mourn and weep over
Jacob.
48 And it came to pass, when Esau came he mourned for his brother
Jacob, and all Egypt and all Canaan again rose up and mourned a
great mourning with Esau over Jacob in that place
49 And Joseph and his brethren brought their father Jacob from
that place, and they went to Hebron to bury Jacob in the cave by
his fathers.
50 And they came unto Kireath-arba, to the cave, and as they came
Esau stood with his sons against Joseph and his brethren as a hindrance
in the cave, saying, Jacob shall not be buried therein, for it
belongeth to us and to our father.
51 And Joseph and his brethren heard the words of Esau's sons,
and they were exceedingly wroth, and Joseph approached unto Esau,
saying, What is this thing which they have spoken? surely my father
Jacob bought it from thee for great riches after the death of Isaac,
now five and twenty years ago, and also all the land of Canaan
he bought from thee and from thy sons, and thy seed after thee.
52 And Jacob bought it for his sons and his seed after him for
an inheritance for ever, and why speakest thou these things this
day?
53 And Esau answered, saying, Thou speakest falsely and utterest
lies, for I sold not anything belonging to me in all this land,
as thou sayest, neither did my brother Jacob buy aught belonging
to me in this land.
54 And Esau spoke these things in order to deceive Joseph with
his words, for Esau knew that Joseph was not present in those days
when Esau sold all belonging to him in the land of Canaan to Jacob.
55 And Joseph said unto Esau, Surely my father inserted these things
with thee in the record of purchase, and testified the record with
witnesses, and behold it is with us in Egypt.
56 And Esau answered, saying unto him, Bring the record, all that
thou wilt find in the record, so will we do.
57 And Joseph called unto Naphtali his brother, and he said, Hasten
quickly, stay not, and run I pray thee to Egypt and bring all the
records; the record of the purchase, the sealed record and the
open record, and also all the first records in which all the transactions
of the birth-right are written, fetch thou.
58 And thou shalt bring them unto us hither, that we may know from
them all the words of Esau and his sons which they spoke this day.
59 And Naphtali hearkened to the voice of Joseph and he hastened
and ran to go down to Egypt, and Naphtali was lighter on foot than
any of the stags that were upon the wilderness, for he would go
upon ears of corn without crushing them.
60 And when Esau saw that Naphtali had gone to fetch the records,
he and his sons increased their resistance against the cave, and
Esau and all his people rose up against Joseph and his brethren
to battle.
61 And all the sons of Jacob and the people of Egypt fought with
Esau and his men, and the sons of Esau and his people were smitten
before the sons of Jacob, and the sons of Jacob slew of Esau's
people forty men.
62 And Chushim the son of Dan, the son of Jacob, was at that time
with Jacob's sons, but he was about a hundred cubits distant from
the place of battle, for he remained with the children of Jacob's
sons by Jacob's bier to guard it.
63 And Chushim was dumb and deaf, still he understood the voice
of consternation amongst men.
64 And he asked, saying, Why do you not bury the dead, and what
is this great consternation? and they answered him the words of
Esau and his sons; and he ran to Esau in the midst of the battle,
and he slew Esau with a sword, and he cut off his head, and it
sprang to a distance, and Esau fell amongst the people of the battle.
65 And when Chushim did this thing the sons of Jacob prevailed
over the sons of Esau, and the sons of Jacob buried their father
Jacob by force in the cave, and the sons of Esau beheld it.
66 And Jacob was buried in Hebron, in the cave of Machpelah which
Abraham had bought from the sons of Heth for the possession of
a burial place, and he was buried in very costly garments.
67 And no king had such honor paid him as Joseph paid unto his
father at his death, for he buried him with great honor like unto
the burial of kings.
68 And Joseph and his brethren made a mourning of seven days for
their father.
CHAPTER 57
1 And it was after this that the sons of Esau waged war with the
sons of Jacob, and the sons of Esau fought with the sons of Jacob
in Hebron, and Esau was still lying dead, and not buried.
2 And the battle was heavy between them, and the sons of Esau were
smitten before the sons of Jacob, and the sons of Jacob slew of
the sons of Esau eighty men, and not one died of the people of
the sons of Jacob; and the hand of Joseph prevailed over all the
people of the sons of Esau, and he took Zepho, the son of Eliphaz,
the son of Esau, and fifty of his men captive, and he bound them
with chains of iron, and gave them into the hand of his servants
to bring them to Egypt.
3 And it came to pass when the sons of Jacob had taken Zepho and
his people captive, all those that remained were greatly afraid
of their lives from the house of Esau, lest they should also be
taken captive, and they all fled with Eliphaz the son of Esau and
his people, with Esau's body, and they went on their road to Mount
Seir.
4 And they came unto Mount Seir and they buried Esau in Seir, but
they had not brought his head with them to Seir, for it was buried
in that place where the battle had been in Hebron.
5 And it came to pass when the sons of Esau had fled from before
the sons of Jacob, the sons of Jacob pursued them unto the borders
of Seir, but they did not slay a single man from amongst them when
they pursued them, for Esau's body which they carried with them
excited their confusion, so they fled and the sons of Jacob turned
back from them and came up to the place where their brethren were
in Hebron, and they remained there on that day, and on the next
day until they rested from the battle.
6 And it came to pass on the third day they assembled all the sons
of Seir the Horite, and they assembled all the children of the
east, a multitude of people like the sand of the sea, and they
went and came down to Egypt to fight with Joseph and his brethren,
in order to deliver their brethren.
7 And Joseph and all the sons of Jacob heard that the sons of Esau
and the children of the east had come upon them to battle in order
to deliver their brethren.
8 And Joseph and his brethren and the strong men of Egypt went
forth and fought in the city of Rameses, and Joseph and his brethren
dealt out a tremendous blow amongst the sons of Esau and the children
of the east.
9 And they slew of them six hundred thousand men, and they slew
amongst them all the mighty men of the children of Seir the Horite;
there were only a few of them left, and they slew also a great
many of the children of the east, and of the children of Esau;
and Eliphaz the son of Esau, and the children of the east all fled
before Joseph and his brethren.
10 And Joseph and his brethren pursued them until they came unto
Succoth, and they yet slew of them in Succoth thirty men, and the
rest escaped and they fled each to his city.
11 And Joseph and his brethren and the mighty men of Egypt turned
back from them with joy and cheerfulness of heart, for they had
smitten all their enemies.
12 And Zepho the son of Eliphaz and his men were still slaves in
Egypt to the sons of Jacob, and their pains increased.
13 And when the sons of Esau and the sons of Seir returned to their
land, the sons of Seir saw that they had all fallen into the hands
of the sons of Jacob, and the people of Egypt, on account of the
battle of the sons of Esau.
14 And the sons of Seir said unto the sons of Esau, You have seen
and
therefore you know that this camp was on your account, and not
one mighty man or an adept in war remaineth.
15 Now therefore go forth from our land, go from us to the land
of Canaan to the land of the dwelling of your fathers; wherefore
shall your children inherit the effects of our children in latter
days?
16 And the children of Esau would not listen to the children of
Seir, and the children of Seir considered to make war with them.
17 And the children of Esau sent secretly to Angeas king of Africa,
the same is Dinhabah, saying,
18 Send unto us some of thy men and let them come unto us, and
we will fight together with the children of Seir the Horite, for
they have resolved to fight with us to drive us away from the land.
19 And Angeas king of Dinhabah did so, for he was in those days
friendly to the children of Esau, and Angeas sent five hundred
valiant infantry to the children of Esau, and eight hundred cavalry.
20 And the children of Seir sent unto the children of the east
and unto the children of Midian, saying, You have seen what the
children of Esau have done unto us, upon whose account we are almost
all destroyed, in their battle with the sons of Jacob.
21 Now therefore come unto us and assist us, and we will fight
them together, and we will drive them from the land and be avenged
of the cause of our brethren who died for their sakes in their
battle with their brethren the sons of Jacob.
22 And all the children of the east listened to the children of
Seir, and they came unto them about eight hundred men with drawn
swords, and the children of Esau fought with the children of Seir
at that time in the wilderness of Paran.
23 And the children of Seir prevailed then over the sons of Esau,
and the children of Seir slew on that day of the children of Esau
in that battle about two hundred men of the people of Angeas king
of Dinhabah.
24 And on the second day the children of Esau came again to fight
a second time with the children of Seir, and the battle was sore
upon the children of Esau this second time, and it troubled them
greatly on account of the children of Seir.
25 And when the children of Esau saw that the children of Seir
were more powerful than they were, some men of the children of
Esau turned and assisted the children of Seir their enemies.
26 And there fell yet of the people of the children of Esau in
the second battle fifty-eight men of the people at Angeas king
of Dinhabah.
27 And on the third day the children of Esau heard that some of
their brethren had turned from them to fight against them in the
second battle; and the children of Esau mourned when they heard
this thing.
28 And they said, What shall we do unto our brethren who turned
from us to assist the children of Seir our enemies? and the children
of Esau again sent to Angeas king of Dinhabah, saying,
29 Send unto us again other men that with them we may fight with
the children of Seir, for they have already twice been heavier
than we were.
30 And Angeas again sent to the children of Esau about six hundred
valiant men, and they came to assist the children of Esau.
31 And in ten days' time the children of Esau again waged war with
the children of Seir in the wilderness of Paran, and the battle
was very severe upon the children of Seir, and the children of
Esau prevailed at this time over the children of Seir, and the
children of Seir were smitten before the children of Esau, and
the children of Esau slew from them about two thousand men.
32 And all the mighty men of the children of Seir died in this
battle, and there only remained their young children that were
left in their cities.
33 And all Midian and the children of the east betook themselves
to flight from the battle, and they left the children of Seir and
fled when they saw that the battle was severe upon them, and the
children of Esau pursued all the children of the east until they
reached their land.
34 And the children of Esau slew yet of them about two hundred
and fifty men and from the people of the children of Esau there
fell in that battle about thirty men, but this evil came upon them
through their brethren turning from them to assist the children
of Seir the Horite, and the children of Esau again heard of the
evil doings of their brethren, and they again mourned on account
of this thing.
35 And it came to pass after the battle, the children of Esau turned
back and came home unto Seir, and the children of Esau slew those
who had remained in the land of the children of Seir; they slew
also their wives and little ones, they left not a soul alive except
fifty young lads and damsels whom they suffered to live, and the
children of Esau did not put them to death, and the lads became
their slaves, and the damsels they took for wives.
36 And the children of Esau dwelt in Seir in the place of the children
of Seir, and they inherited their land and took possession of it.
37 And the children of Esau took all belonging in the land to the
children of Seir, also their flocks, their bullocks and their goods,
and all belonging to the children of Seir, did the children of
Esau take, and the children of Esau dwelt in Seir in the place
of the children of Seir unto this day, and the children of Esau
divided the land into divisions to the five sons of Esau, according
to their families.
38 And it came to pass in those days, that the children of Esau
resolved to crown a king over them in the land of which they became
possessed. And they said to each other, Not so, for he shall reign
over us in our land, and we shall be under his counsel and he shall
fight our battles, against our enemies, and they did so.
39 And all the children of Esau swore, saying, That none of their
brethren should ever reign over them, but a strange man who is
not of their brethren, for the souls of all the children of Esau
were embittered every man against his son, brother and friend,
on account of the evil they sustained from their brethren when
they fought with the children of Seir.
40 Therefore the sons of Esau swore, saying, From that day forward
they would not choose a king from their brethren, but one from
a strange land unto this day.
41 And there was a man there from the people of Angeas king of
Dinhabah; his name was Bela the son of Beor, who was a very valiant
man, beautiful and comely and wise in all wisdom, and a man of
sense and counsel; and there was none of the people of Angeas like
unto him.
42 And all the children of Esau took him and anointed him and they
crowned him for a king, and they bowed down to him, and they said
unto him, May the king live, may the king live.
43 And they spread out the sheet, and they brought him each man
earrings of gold and silver or rings or bracelets, and they made
him very rich in silver and in gold, in onyx stones and bdellium,
and they made him a royal throne, and they placed a regal crown
upon his head, and they built a palace for him and he dwelt therein,
and he became king over all the children of Esau.
44 And the people of Angeas took their hire for their battle from
the children of Esau, and they went and returned at that time to
their master in Dinhabah.
45 And Bela reigned over the children of Esau thirty years, and
the children of Esau dwelt in the land instead of the children
of Seir, and they dwelt securely in their stead unto this day.
CHAPTER 58
1 And it came to pass in the thirty-second year of the Israelites
going down to Egypt, that is in the seventy-first year of the life
of Joseph, in that year died Pharaoh king of Egypt, and Magron
his son reigned in his stead.
2 And Pharaoh commanded Joseph before his death to be a father
to his son, Magron, and that Magron should be under the care of
Joseph and under his counsel.
3 And all Egypt consented to this thing that Joseph should be king
over them, for all the Egyptians loved Joseph as of heretofore,
only Magron the son of Pharaoh sat upon, his father's throne, and
he became king in those days in his father's stead.
4 Magron was forty-one years old when he began to reign, and forty
years he reigned in Egypt, and all Egypt called his name Pharaoh
after the name of his father, as it was their custom to do in Egypt
to every king that reigned over them.
5 And it came to pass when Pharaoh reigned in his father's stead,
he placed the laws of Egypt and all the affairs of government in
the hand of Joseph, as his father had commanded him.
6 And Joseph became king over Egypt, for he superintended over
all Egypt, and all Egypt was under his care and under his counsel,
for all Egypt inclined to Joseph after the death of Pharaoh, and
they loved him exceedingly to reign over them.
7 But there were some people amongst them, who did not like him,
saying, No stranger shall reign over us; still the whole government
of Egypt devolved in those days upon Joseph, after the death of
Pharaoh, he being the regulator, doing as he liked throughout the
land without any one interfering.
8 And all Egypt was under the care of Joseph, and Joseph made war
with all his surrounding enemies, and he subdued them; also all
the land and all the Philistines, unto the borders of Canaan, did
Joseph subdue, and they were all under his power and they gave
a yearly tax unto Joseph.
9 And Pharaoh king of Egypt sat upon his throne in his father's
stead, but he was under the control and counsel of Joseph, as he
was at first under the control of his father.
10 Neither did he reign but in the land of Egypt only, under the
counsel of Joseph, but Joseph reigned over the whole country at
that time, from Egypt unto the great river Perath.
11 And Joseph was successful in all his ways, and the Lord was
with him, and the Lord gave Joseph additional wisdom, and honor,
and glory, and love toward him in the hearts of the Egyptians and
throughout the land, and Joseph reigned over the whole country
forty years.
12 And all the countries of the Philistines and Canaan and Zidon,
and on the other side of Jordan, brought presents unto Joseph all
his days, and the whole country was in the hand of Joseph, and
they brought unto him a yearly tribute as it was regulated, for
Joseph had fought against all his surrounding enemies and subdued
them, and the whole country was in the hand of Joseph, and Joseph
sat securely upon his throne in Egypt.
13 And also all his brethren the sons of Jacob dwelt securely in
the land, all the days of Joseph, and they were fruitful and multiplied
exceedingly in the land, and they served the Lord all their days,
as their father Jacob had commanded them.
14 And it came to pass at the end of many days and years, when
the children of Esau were dwelling quietly in their land with Bela
their king, that the children of Esau were fruitful and multiplied
in the land, and they resolved to go and fight with the sons of
Jacob and all Egypt, and to deliver their brother Zepho, the son
of Eliphaz, and his men, for they were yet in those days slaves
to Joseph.
15 And the children of Esau sent unto all the children of the east,
and they made peace with them, and all the children of the east
came unto them to go with the children of Esau to Egypt to battle.
16 And there came also unto them of the people of Angeas, king
of Dinhabah, and they also sent unto the children of Ishmael and
they also came unto them.
17 And all this people assembled and came unto Seir to assist the
children of Esau in their battle, and this camp was very large
and heavy with people, numerous as the sand of the sea, about eight
hundred thousand men, infantry and cavalry, and all these troops
went down to Egypt to fight with the sons of Jacob, and they encamped
by Rameses.
18 And Joseph went forth with his brethren with the mighty men
of Egypt, about six hundred men, and they fought with them in the
land of Rameses; and the sons of Jacob at that time again fought
with the children of Esau, in the fiftieth year of the sons of
Jacob going down to Egypt, that is the thirtieth year of the reign
of Bela over the children of Esau in Seir.
19 And the Lord gave all the mighty men of Esau and the children
of the east into the hand of Joseph and his brethren, and the people
of the children of Esau and the children of the east were smitten
before Joseph.
20 And of the people of Esau and the children of the east that
were slain, there fell before the sons of Jacob about two hundred
thousand men, and their king Bela the son of Beor fell with them
in the battle, and when the children of Esau saw that their king
had fallen in battle and was dead, their hands became weak in the
combat.
21 And Joseph and his brethren and all Egypt were still smiting
the people of the house of Esau, and all Esau's people were afraid
of the sons of Jacob and fled from before them.
22 And Joseph and his brethren and all Egypt pursued them a day's
journey, and they slew yet from them about three hundred men, continuing
to smite them in the road; and they afterward turned back from
them.
23 And Joseph and all his brethren returned to Egypt, not one man
was missing from them, but of the Egyptians there fell twelve men.
24 And when Joseph returned to Egypt he ordered Zepho and his men
to be additionally bound, and they bound them in irons and they
increased their grief.
25 And all the people of the children of Esau, and the children
of the east, returned in shame each unto his city, for all the
mighty men that were with them had fallen in battle.
26 And when the children of Esau saw that their king had died in
battle they hastened and took a man from the people of the children
of the east; his name was Jobab the son of Zarach, from the land
of Botzrah, and they caused him to reign over them instead of Bela
their king.
27 And Jobab sat upon the throne of Bela as king in his stead,
and Jobab reigned in Edom over all the children of Esau ten years,
and the children of Esau went no more to fight with the sons of
Jacob from that day forward, for the sons of Esau knew the valor
of the sons of Jacob, and they were greatly afraid of them.
28 But from that day forward the children of Esau hated the sons
of Jacob, and the hatred and enmity were very strong between them
all the days, unto this day.
29 And it came to pass after this, at the end of ten years, Jobab,
the son of Zarach, from Botzrah, died, and the children of Esau
took a man whose name was Chusham, from the land of Teman, and
they made him king over them instead of Jobab, and Chusham reigned
in Edom over all the children of Esau for twenty years.
30 And Joseph, king of Egypt, and his brethren, and all the children
of Israel dwelt securely in Egypt in those days, together with
all the children of Joseph and his brethren, having no hindrance
or evil accident and the land of Egypt was at that time at rest
from war in the days of Joseph and his brethren.
CHAPTER 59
1 And these are the names of the sons of Israel who dwelt in Egypt,
who had come with Jacob, all the sons of Jacob came unto Egypt,
every man with his household.
2 The children of Leah were Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar
and Zebulun, and their sister Dinah.
3 And the sons of Rachel were Joseph and Benjamin.
4 And the sons of Zilpah, the handmaid of Leah, were Gad and Asher.
5 And the sons of Bilhah, the handmaid of Rachel, were Dan and
Naphtali.
6 And these were their offspring that were born unto them in the
land of Canaan, before they came unto Egypt with their father Jacob.
7 The sons of Reuben were Chanoch, Pallu, Chetzron and Carmi.
8 And the sons of Simeon were Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zochar
and Saul, the son of the Canaanitish woman.
9 And the children of Levi were Gershon, Kehath and Merari, and
their sister Jochebed, who was born unto them in their going down
to Egypt.
10 And the sons of Judah were Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez and Zarach.
11 And Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan; and the sons of
Perez were Chezron and Chamul.
12 And the sons of Issachar were Tola, Puvah, Job and Shomron.
13 And the sons of Zebulun were Sered, Elon and Jachleel, and the
son of Dan was Chushim.
14 And the sons of Naphtali were Jachzeel, Guni, Jetzer and Shilam.
15 And the sons of Gad were Ziphion, Chaggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri,
Arodi and Areli.
16 And the children of Asher were Jimnah, Jishvah, Jishvi, Beriah
and their sister Serach; and the sons of Beriah were Cheber and
Malchiel.
17 And the sons of Benjamin were Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman,
Achi, Rosh, Mupim, Chupim and Ord.
18 And the sons of Joseph, that were born unto him in Egypt, were
Manasseh and Ephraim.
19 And all the souls that went forth from the loins of Jacob, were
seventy souls; these are they who came with Jacob their father
unto Egypt to dwell there: and Joseph and all his brethren dwelt
securely in Egypt, and they ate of the best of Egypt all the days
of the life of Joseph.
20 And Joseph lived in the land of Egypt ninety-three years, and
Joseph reigned over all Egypt eighty years.
21 And when the days of Joseph drew nigh that he should die, he
sent and called for his brethren and all his father's household,
and they all came together and sat before him.
22 And Joseph said unto his brethren and unto the whole of his
father's household, Behold I die, and God will surely visit you
and bring you up from this land to the land which he swore to your
fathers to give unto them.
23 And it shall be when God shall visit you to bring you up from
here to the land of your fathers, then bring up my bones with you
from here.
24 And Joseph made the sons of Israel to swear for their seed after
them, saying, God will surely visit you and you shall bring up
my bones with you from here.
25 And it came to pass after this that Joseph died in that year,
the seventy-first year of the Israelites going down to Egypt.
26 And Joseph was one hundred and ten years old when he died in
the land of Egypt, and all his brethren and all his servants rose
up and they embalmed Joseph, as was their custom, and his brethren
and all Egypt mourned over him for seventy days.
27 And they put Joseph in a coffin filled with spices and all sorts
of perfume, and they buried him by the side of the river, that
is Sihor, and his sons and all his brethren, and the whole of his
father's household made a seven day's mourning for him.
28 And it came to pass after the death of Joseph, all the Egyptians
began in those days to rule over the children of Israel, and Pharaoh,
king of Egypt, who reigned in his father's stead, took all the
laws of Egypt and conducted the whole government of Egypt under
his counsel, and he reigned securely over his people.
CHAPTER 60
1 And when the year came round, being the seventy-second year from
the Israelites going down to Egypt, after the death of Joseph,
Zepho, the son of Eliphaz, the son of Esau, fled from Egypt, he
and his men, and they went away.
2 And he came to Africa, which is Dinhabah, to Angeas king of Africa,
and Angeas received them with great honor, and he made Zepho the
captain of his host.
3 And Zepho found favor in the sight of Angeas and in the sight
of his people, and Zepho was captain of the host to Angeas king
of Africa for many days.
4 And Zepho enticed Angeas king of Africa to collect all his army
to go and fight with the Egyptians, and with the sons of Jacob,
and to avenge of them the cause of his brethren.
5 But Angeas would not listen to Zepho to do this thing, for Angeas
knew the strength of the sons of Jacob, and what they had done
to his army in their warfare with the children of Esau.
6 And Zepho was in those days very great in the sight of Angeas
and in the sight of all his people, and he continually enticed
them to make war against Egypt, but they would not.
7 And it came to pass in those days there was in the land of Chittim
a man in the city of Puzimna, whose name was Uzu, and he became
degenerately deified by the children of Chittim, and the man died
and had no son, only one daughter whose name was Jania.
8 And the damsel was exceedingly beautiful, comely and intelligent,
there was none seen like unto her for beauty and wisdom throughout
the land.
9 And the people of Angeas king of Africa saw her and they came
and praised her unto him, and Angeas sent to the children of Chittim,
and he requested to take her unto himself for a wife, and the people
of Chittim consented to give her unto him for a wife.
10 And when the messengers of Angeas were going forth from the
land of Chittim to take their journey, behold the messengers of
Turnus king of Bibentu came unto Chittim, for Turnus king of Bibentu
also sent his messengers to request Jania for him, to take unto
himself for a wife, for all his men had also praised her to him,
therefore he sent all his servants unto her.
11 And the servants of Turnus came to Chittim, and they asked for
Jania, to be taken unto Turnus their king for a wife.
12 And the people of Chittim said unto them, We cannot give her,
because Angeas king of Africa desired her to take her unto him
for a wife before you came, and that we should give her unto him,
and now therefore we cannot do this thing to deprive Angeas of
the damsel in order to give her unto Turnus.
13 For we are greatly afraid of Angeas lest he come in battle against
us and destroy us, and Turnus your master will not be able to deliver
us from his hand.
14 And when the messengers of Turnus heard all the words of the
children of Chittim, they turned back to their master and told
him all the words of the children of Chittim.
15 And the children of Chittim sent a memorial to Angeas, saying,
Behold Turnus has sent for Jania to take her unto him for a wife,
and thus have we answered him; and we heard that he has collected
his whole army to go to war against thee, and he intends to pass
by the road of Sardunia to fight against thy brother Lucus, and
after that he will come to fight against thee.
16 And Angeas heard the words of the children of Chittim which
they sent to him in the record, and his anger was kindled and he
rose up and assembled his whole army and came through the islands
of the sea, the road to Sardunia, unto his brother Lucus king of
Sardunia.
17 And Niblos, the son of Lucus, heard that his uncle Angeas was
coming, and he went out to meet him with a heavy army, and he kissed
him and embraced him, and Niblos said unto Angeas, When thou askest
my father after his welfare, when I shall go with thee to fight
with Turnus, ask of him to make me captain of his host, and Angeas
did so, and he came unto his brother and his brother came to meet
him, and he asked him after his welfare.
18 And Angeas asked his brother Lucus after his welfare, and to
make his son Niblos captain of his host, and Lucus did so, and
Angeas and his brother Lucus rose up and they went toward Turnus
to battle, and there was with them a great army and a heavy people.
19 And he came in ships, and they came into the province of Ashtorash,
and behold Turnus came toward them, for he went forth to Sardunia,
and intended to destroy it and afterward to pass on from there
to Angeas to fight with him.
20 And Angeas and Lucus his brother met Turnus in the valley of
Canopia, and the battle was strong and mighty between them in that
place.
21 And the battle was severe upon Lucus king of Sardunia, and all
his army fell, and Niblos his son fell also in that battle.
22 And his uncle Angeas commanded his servants and they made a
golden coffin for Niblos and they put him into it, and Angeas again
waged battle toward Turnus, and Angeas was stronger than he, and
he slew him, and he smote all his people with the edge of the sword,
and Angeas avenged the cause of Niblos his brother's son and the
cause of the army of his brother Lucus.
23 And when Turnus died, the hands of those that survived the battle
became weak, and they fled from before Angeas and Lucus his brother.
24 And Angeas and his brother Lucus pursued them unto the highroad,
which is between Alphanu and Romah, and they slew the whole army
of Turnus with the edge of the sword.
25 And Lucus king of Sardunia commanded his servants that they
should make a coffin of brass, and that they should place therein
the body of his son Niblos, and they buried him in that place.
26 And they built upon it a high tower there upon the highroad,
and they called its name after the name of Niblos unto this day,
and they also buried Turnus king of Bibentu there in that place
with Niblos.
27 And behold upon the highroad between Alphanu and Romah the grave
of Niblos is on one side and the grave of Turnus on the other,
and a pavement between them unto this day.
28 And when Niblos was buried, Lucus his father returned with his
army to his land Sardunia, and Angeas his brother king of Africa
went with his people unto the city of Bibentu, that is the city
of Turnus.
29 And the inhabitants of Bibentu heard of his fame and they were
greatly afraid of him, and they went forth to meet him with weeping
and supplication, and the inhabitants of Bibentu entreated of Angeas
not to slay them nor destroy their city; and he did so, for Bibentu
was in those days reckoned as one of the cities of the children
of Chittim; therefore he did not destroy the city.
30 But from that day forward the troops of the king of Africa would
go to Chittim to spoil and plunder it, and whenever they went,
Zepho the captain of the host of Angeas would go with them.
31 And it was after this that Angeas turned with his army and they
came to the city of Puzimna, and Angeas took thence Jania the daughter
of Uzu for a wife and brought her unto his city unto Africa.