T H E L EG EN D S O F

T H E J EWS

BY

L O U I S G I NZ B E R G

T RA NSLA T E D F RO M TH E G E RM A N M A NUSC R I PT B Y

H E NR I E T T A SZ OL D

B I B L E T I M ES A ND CHA RA C T ERS

FROM THE C R E AT I O N To JACOB

PH I A E IA
L D LPH

T H! J a wwn PUB L I A
C T O I N S IEOC TY o r A m a xc a
1 9 13
 I
COPYR GHT, I 9 09 ,

BY

THE JE W I
SH I I
PUBL CAT ON SOC lB TY OF I
AME R CA

S ix t h Edit ion
E ig h te e n t h Th ous a n d
 TO

M Y B R O TH ER ASH ER
 PRE F A CE

Wa r rich n ie a n d i
n rgen d: h a t
b egeben , dd : a ll ei n ve r a l t et n it .

Th e term R a bb i n i c wa s lie d t o th e Je w ish Lite r ature

a pp

of po st B ibli cal times by th o se w h o c onceived the Ju d a

-

i sm o f the later ep oc h t o be something difie r e n t fr o m the

Judaism o f th e B ible somethin g a c tually Oppo se d to it
,
.

S u ch observers hel d that the Jewish nation c eased t o exi st

w ith the moment w hen its political independen c e was de
st r oyed For them the Judaism o f the late r epoc h has been
.

a Judaism o f the S ynagogue the spokesmen o f w hi c h have

,

been the s c holars the Rabbis And W hat th i s phase o f Jud a

, .

is m brought f o rth has been c onsidered by them t o be the

pro duct of the scho ol s rathe r than the product o f practi c al ,

pu l sating li f e Poeti c phantasmago r ia f requently the vapor

.
,

i n gs o f morbid visionaries is the material o ut o f which these

,

s cholars c onstru ct the theologic system of the Rabbis a n d ,

fai r y tales the spo nta neous crea tions of the pe ople whi c h
, ,

take the fo r m o f sa c red legend in Je w ish lite r ature a re ,

denom i nated the S c riptural exegesis of the R abbis a n d con ,

dem med incontine n tly as n uga! r a b b in or mn .

As the name of a man c lings to him s o men cl ing t o nam es

, .

F or the primitive savage the name is part o f the essence o f

a pe rs o n o r thing and even in the m or e advan c ed stages o f
,

cu ltu r e j u dgments a r e n o t alway s for me d in a gr e e ment with

,
 III P r efa ce

facts as they a r e but rather a cc ording to the names by whi ch

,

they are called The current estimate Of Rabbinic Literature

.

is a case in point With th e label Rabbini c late r ages in

.

h e r ite d f rom former ages a c ertain distorted view o f the

literature s o designated To this day and even among
.
,

scholars that approach its investigation with unprej u d i c ed

minds the Opinion prevails that it is pure l y a learned p rod
,

u ct
. And yet the t r uth is that the most prominent feature o f
Rabbinic Literature is its popular c haracter .

The school and the home are not mutua l ly opposed t o eac h
o ther in the c on c eption o f the Jews They study in their .

homes and they live in their sc hools Likewise there is no

, .

distinct class of s c holars among them a class that wi thdraws ,

itsel f from p a r ti c ipation in the affairs o f practical life Even .

in the domain o f the Ha l akah the Rabbis were n ot s o much

,

oc c upied with theoretic prin c iples o f l aw as with the con c rete

phenomena o f dai l y existen c e These they s ought t o grasp
.

and shape And what is tr ue of the Halakah is t r ue with

.

greater emphasis o f the Haggadah which is popular i n the ,

doubl e sense o f app ealing t o the people and being produ c ed

in the main by the people T o speak o f the Hagga dah o f the
.

Tannai m and Amoraim is a s far f rom fa c t a s to speak o f the

l e gends o f Shakespeare and S cott The ancient authors and
.

their modern brethren o f the gui l d a l ike elabo r ate legendar y

ma terial w hi c h they found a t hand .

It h a s been hel d by s ome that the Hagga d ah con

ta ins n o po pular legends that it is w hol l y a factitious a ca
, ,

demic produ c t A c ursory glan c e at the pseudepigr aphi c

.

literature o f the Jews whi c h is ol d er than the Haggadah

,

literature by several c enturies sho w s h ow untenable this

,
 P r e fa ce 1x t

vie w is That the on e l iterature shou l d have drawn from the

.

other is precluded by histori c al facts At a very early time .

the Synagogue disavowed the pseudepigra phi c literature ,

whi c h was the favorite reading matter o f the se c taries a n d

the Ch ristians Neverthe l ess th e inner r elation between
.

them is o f the closest kind The only essential di ffe r en c e

.

is that the M idrashi c form prevails in the Haggadah and ,

the parenetic or apocalyptic form in the pseudepigrapha .

The common element must therefore depa rt from the Mid

rash on the on e hand and from parenesis on the other .

Folk l o r e fairy tales l egends and a l l forms o f story telling

, , ,

akin to these are c omprehended in the terminology of the ,

post Biblica l literature o f the Je w s under the inclusive de

-
,

scription Haggadah a name that c an be explained by a cir

,

cu ml ocu tion but cannot b e trans l ated Whatever it is a p

, .

p l ied to is thereby characterized first as being derived from

the Holy Sc riptures and then a s bein g o f the nature of a
,

story An d in p o int o f fa ct this dualism sums up the dis

.
, ,

tin gu is h in g f eatures o f Jewish Legend Mo r e th a n eighteen .

centuries ago the Jewish histo rian Josephus obse r ved that
though we be deprived o f ou r wea lth o f ou r ci ti es or of , ,

”
the other advantages w e have our l a w continues immortal , .

Th e word he meant to u s e w a s not l a w but Torah on l y he , ,

c ou l d n o t find an equivalent f or it in Greek . A singe r of the

S ynagogu e a thousand years a fte r Jos ephus who expressed ,

his sentiments in Hebrew uttered the same thought, The

Holy City and a ll her daughter cities are violated they lie ,

in rui ns despoiled o f their ornaments their splendor da r k

, ,

ened f rom sight Naught is le f t to us S ave one eternal

.

tr easu r e al o ne—the H o ly Torah The sad de r the li f e of .

x P r e fa ce

the Jewish people the mor e it f elt the need o f taking re f uge
,

in its past The S c r ipture or to use the Jewish term th e

.
, , ,

Torah w a s the only remnant o f its former national i nde

,

p e n de n ce a n d the T or ah w a s the magic means o f making a

,

sordi d a c tuality r e c e d e befo re a glo r ious mem ory To th e .

S cripture w a s a ssign ed the task of supplying n ou ri shment

to th e min d as w ell a s the soul t o the inte ll ect as w ell as th e
,

imagina tion and th e result is the Hal akah an d the Haggadah

, .

The fancy o f the people di d not die ou t in the post Bib l i c al -

time but the b ent o f its a c tivity w a s d etermined by the past

, .

M en c rave d ente r tainment in later times as well as in the

earlie r only instead o f r esorting fo r its subj e ct matter to
,
-

w hat happene d unde r thei r eyes they d rew from the f oun ,

tai n head o f the past The events in the ancient history of

-
.

Israel which w a s not only studied but lived ove r again

, ,

dai l y stimulate d the desi r e to c riticise it The religious r e

, .

fl e ction s upo n nature laid down in the myths of the people ,

the fairy tales whi c h have the sole obj ec t of pleasing a n d

, ,

the legen d s w hi c h a r e the people s verdi c t upon history—al l

,
’

these we r e w elded into one produ ct The fan c y o f the Je w .

ish people was engage d by the past r efle c ted in the B ibl e ,

and all i ts cr eations wear a B iblical hue f or this reason .

This explains the pe c uliar for m o f the Haggadah .

B ut what is spontaneously brought fo rth by the peo ple is

o ften preserve d o nly in the form impresse d up o n it by th e
fee l in g and the th ought o f the poet or by the S pe culations of
,

the lea r ne d Als o Jewish legends have rarely been trans

.

mitt e d in thei r original shape They have been perpetuated

.

in the form o f M idr ash that is S c riptu r al exegesis The

, ,
.

teachers O f the Haggadah cal l ed Rab b a n cm d A gga dta in

'

,
 P r ef a ce x 1

the Talmud were no folklo rists f rom w hom a f aithful r e

, ,

produ c tion of legendary material may be expecte d Pri .

marily they were homilists who u s e d l e ge n ds for didacti c

,
~

pu rposes a n d their main obj ect w a s to establish a c lose con

,

n e ct ion betw een the S c ripture and th e c reations o f the

p op u
lar fan c y to give the latter a fir m basis an d se c u r e a long
,

term of life for them .

On e o f the most imp o rtant tasks of the modern in v e s

t iga tion of the Haggadah is to make a c lean separation b e

tween the original el ements and the later learned additions .

Hardly a beginning has been made in this direction B ut as .

l ong a s the task of distinguishing them has not been aecom

p l is h e d it is impossib l e to w rite ou t th e B iblical legends of
,

the Jews without including the supplemental work of schol

ars in the products o f the popular fancy .

In th e present work The Legends o f the Jews I have

, ,

made the first a ttempt to gather f rom the original sources

a ll Jewish legends in s o far a s they refer to Bib l ical person
,

ages and events and reprodu c e them with the greatest a t

,

ta in a b l e completeness and accuracy I use the expression .

Jewish rather than Rabbini c be c ause the sources from

, ,

whi c h I ha ve levied contributions are not limited to the Rab

bini c literat u r e As I expect to take occasion elsewhere to
.

enter i n t o a d es c ription o f the sour c es in detail the following ,

data must suffic e fo r the present .

The works of the Talmudic M idrashi c literatu re are of -

the fir st impo rtan c e C o vering the period fr om the second

.

to the fou rteenth c entury they c ontain the maj or pa rt of the

,

Jewish le gen d a r y material Akin to this in c ontent i f not

.

always in fo rm is that d erive d fr om the Targumim of whi c h ,

x 11 P r e fa ce

the ol d est vers i ons were produced not earlie r than the fou rth
century and the most recent not later than the tenth The
, .

M idr ashic literature has been prese r ved only in f ragmenta ry

form Man y Haggadot n o t found in ou r existing co l lections
.

are quot e d by the au thors o f the M iddle Ages A c cordingly .

,

a n ot in c onsiderable number o f the legends here printed are

t a ken from mediaeval B ible commentators and homi l ists I .

wa s fo rtunate in being abl e to avail myself also of fr a gments

o f M idrashim o f which on l y manuscript Copies are ext ant .

The works O f the older Kabbalah are l ikewise tr easuries of

quotations from lost M i d rashim an d it w a s among the Kab
,

b a l is ts and later amon g the Hasidim that n e w legends arose

, , .

The literatures produced in these tw o circles are there fo r e

o f gr eat importance fo r the present purpose .

Furthermore Jewish l egends c an be culle d not from the

,

w ritings of the S ynagogu e alone ; they appear also in those

o f the Ch urch Ce r tain Jewish works repudiated by the
.

Syna gogue w e r e accepted and mothere d by th e Chur ch .

T his is the literature usu a l l y denomi nate d apoc ryphal

pseudepigr aphi c From the point of vie w of legend s the
.
,

apocryphal b ooks are o f subordinate imp o rtan c e whil e th e ,

pseudepigr aph a a r e of fundamental value Even quantita .

t iv e ly the latter are an imposing mass B esides the Greek

.

wri tings o f the Helle nist Jews they c ontain Latin ; Syrian
'

, ,

Ethiopi c Ar amean A r abi c Persian an d O ld Slavi c

, , , ,

produ ct s tr anslated directly o r indirectly from Je w ish works

of Palestinian or Hellenisti c ori gin The us e of thes e
.

pseudepigrapha r equires great caution Nea r ly all o f the m.

a r e embellished with Ch ri sti a n inte rpolations and in some

c ases the inse r ted po rti ons have choked the or i gi n al form so
 P r e fa ce x m

completely that it is impossible to dete r mine at first sight

w hether a Jewish or a Christian lege nd is under examina
tion I believe ho wever that the pseudepigraphic materia l
.
, ,

made u s e o f by me is Jewish beyond the cavi l of a doubt ,

and therefore it could not have been le f t out of a ccount in a

w ork l ike the present .

However in th e appre c iation of Jewish Legends it is the

, ,

Rabbinic writers that should form the point o f departure ,

and not the pseudepigrapha The former represent the main .

stream o f Jewish thought a n d feeling the latter only an ,

undercurrent If the Synagogu e cast ou t the p s e u de p i

.

g r a p h a and the Church a dOp t e d th e m with a gr eat show o f

, .

f avor th ese r espective atti tudes were not determined a rbi

,

trari l y o r by chan c e The ps eudepigrapha originated in

.

circles that harbore d the germs f rom w hi ch Christianity

deve l oped later on The Chur c h coul d thu s appropriate
.

the m as her o w n with j ust reason .

In the use of s ome of the apo c ryphal a n d pseudepigraphi c

writings I found it exped ient to quote the English tr a n sl a
,

tions o f them made by others in s o fa r as they could be ,

brought into a cc o rd with the general style o f the book for ,

w hi c h pu rp o se I pe rmitted myself the l iberty o f slight verbal

c hange s In particulars I wa s guided natura ll y by my ow n
.
, , ,

con c eption of the subj ect whi c h the Notes j ustify in detail
, .

Besides the p seudepigrapha there are other Jewish sources

in Christian garb In the rich l iterature of the Chur c h
.

Fathers many a Jewish legend lies embalmed whi c h on e

would seek in vain in Jewish books It w a s therefore my .

S pecial c on c e rn t o u s e the w ritings o f the Fathers to th e

utmost .
x Iv P r e fa ce

The lux u r iant abundance of the material to be present e d

made it impossib l e to give a verbal rendition o f each legend .

This wou l d have required more than three times the spa c e
at my disposal I c an therefore c laim completeness for my
.

work only as t o content In for m it had to su ff er curtai l

.

ment When several conflicting versions o f the same legend

.

existed I gave only one in the text reserving the other one
, , ,

o r the several others fo r the Notes or when practicab l e

, , , ,

they were fused into one typical legen d the component parts ,

o f which are ana l yzed in the Note s In other instances I

.

resorted to the expedient O f citi n g one version in one place

and the others in other appropriate places in furtherance of ,

my aim to give a smooth presentation o f the matter with as

, ,

f e w interr uptions to the course o f the narrative as possib l e .

F o r this reason I avoi de d such transitional phrases as Some

” ”
say, It has been maintained etc That my method
, .

somet imes separates things that belong together cannot be

considered a grave disadvantage a s the Index at the end of
,

the work will present a logical rearrangement of the materia l

for the benefit o f the interested stu dent I als o did not hesi .

tate to treat o f the same personage in di ff erent c hapters as , ,

for instance many o f the l egends bearing upon Jacob those

, ,

c onnected with the latter years o f the Patriarch do not a p ,

pear in the chapte r bearing his name but will be found in ,

the sections devoted to Joseph for th e reason that on c e the

,

son steps upon the s c ene he be comes the central fi gure t o

, ,

which the li f e and deeds o f the father are subordinated .

Again in c onsideration o f lack O f space the Bib l i ca l narra

,

i
t ve s underlying the legends had to be omitted — surely not a
serious omission in a subj ect with which widespread a c
quaintance may be presupposed a s a matter of course .
 P r e fa ce xv

As a th i r d conse q uen c e of the amplitu d e of the mate r ial it ,

was thought advisab l e to divide it into severa l volumes The .

references the explan ations O f the sources used and the

, ,

interpretations given and especially numerous emendations

, , ,

o f the text Of the Midrashim and the pseudepigr apha which ,

determined my conception O f the passages s o emended wi l l ,

be found in the last vo l ume the fourth which wi l l contain

, ,

a l so an Introduction to the History of Jewish Legends a ,

numbe r o f Excursuses and the Index

, .

As the first three vo l umes are in the hands o f the printer

almost in their entirety I venture to express the hope that
,

the whole work wi ll appear within measurable ti me the ,

parts following each other at sh or t interva l s .

LO U I S G IN Z B ERG .

NE W YORK , M a rch 24, 1 9 09

 CONT E NT S

P REFA CE

I T HE C RE ATI ON O F THE W O RLD

.

Th e F irs t T h i n g s C r e a te d—Th e A lp h a b e t—Th e

F irs t Da y—Th e S e con d D a y — Th e T h ird D a y—Th e
Fo u r th Da y—Th e F ifth D a y—Th e S i x th D a y—Al l
Th in gs P r a is e th e Lo rd .

M a n a n d th e Worl d—Th e A n g e l s a n d th e C re a t io n
o f Ma n —Th e C r e a ti on o f A da m— Th e S oul o f M a n
Th e I de a l M a n —Th e Fa ll o f S a ta n —Wo ma n
A da m a n d Ev e in P a ra di s e—Th e Fa ll o f M a n—Th e
— —
P un i s h me n t S a bb a t h in H e a v e n A da m s Re p e n ta n ce
’

— —
Th e B ook o f Ra z ie l Th e S ickn e s s o f A da m Eve s
’ —
S to r y o f t h e Fa ll—Th e D e a th o f A da m—Th e D ea th o f °

E ve .

T H E T EN GENERA TI O N S
Th e B i rth o f C a in —Fr a tri cide —Th e P uni s h me n t o f
Ca i n —Th e I n h a b ita n ts o f t h e S e ven Ea rth s—Th e
D e s ce n da n t s o f C a i n —Th e D e sc e n da n t s o f A da m a n d
Li l ith —S e th a n d H is D e s ce n da n ts—En os h Th e Fa ll —
of th e An ge ls—E n och Ru l e r a n d T e a ch e r—Th e
A s ce n s i on o f E n och —Th e T ra n s l a ti on o f E n och
,

M e th u s e la h .

Th e B irth of Noa h —Th e P u n i s h me n t o f th e Fa lle n

A n ge l s—Th e G e n e r a tion o f t h e D e u l g —Th H l y
e e o

B oo k -“
Th e I n ma te s of th e A rk—Th F l d—N h
e oo oa

Le a ve s th e A r k—Th e C u rs e of Dr k
un —N h ’
en n es s oa s

D e sce n da n t s S p re a d Ab roa d—Th e D e p ra vity of Ma n

ki n d—Ni mrod—Th e T ow e r o f B a b e l .
! ! III C on te n ts

V . A B RAHA M
Th e W ick e d Ge n e r a t ion s—Th e B ir th o f Ab h a m
ra

Th e B a b e P r o cl a ims Go d — Ab ra h a m s Fir st
’
ra Ap p ea n ce
in P ub l ic—Th e P re a ch e r o f t h e T r u e Fa i th —I n t h e
Fi e r y F u r n a ce —A b r a h a m E mig r a te s t o H a r a n — Th e
S t a r in th e E a s t—Th e T r u e B e l ie ve r—Th e I con ocl a s t
Ab r a h a m in C a n a a n —H is S oj o u r n in Egy p t Th e Fi r s t
—
-

P h a r a oh —Th e W a r o f th e K in g s Th e Cove n a n t o f t h e
P ie ce s—Th e B ir th o f I s h ma e l—Th e ! is it o f t h e A n ge l s
—Th e Citie s o f S in —A b r a h a m P l e a ds fo r t h e S in n e r s
Th e D e s tr ucti on o f t h e S i n f u l C it ie s—Amon g t h e
P h i l i s tin e s—Th e B ir th o f I sa a c—I s h ma e l Ca s t O ff
Th e Tw o W iv e s o f I s h ma e l—Th e Cove n a n t w ith
Ab i me l e ch —S a ta n Accu s e s Ab r a h a m—Th e Jou rn e y t o
M or ia h —Th e A ke da h — Th e D e a th a n d B u r ia l o f S a r a h
‘

—E l i e z e r’s M i s s ion —Th e W ooin g o f R e b e ka h —Th e

L a s t Y e a rs o f Ab ra h a m—A H e r a ld o f D e a th —Ab r a
h a m ! i e w s Ea rth a n d H e a ve n —Th e P a tron of H eb ron .

J AC O B
Th e B i r th of Esa u and
J a co b e —ThFa vo rit e o f
A b ra h a m—Th e S a l e O f t h e B ir th r igh t — I s a a c w ith th e
— —
P h il is t in e s I s a a c B l e s s e s Ja co b E s a u s T r u e C h a r a cte r
’

—
Re ve a l e d Ja cob L e a ve s H is Fa th e r s H o u s e Ja cob
’ —
P u r s u e d b y E l ip h a z a n d E s a u—Th e D a y o f M ira cl e s
J a co b w it h L a b a n — T h e M a r r ia g e o f J a co b — T h e B irth
o f J a co b s C h il dr e n —Ja c ob F l e e s b e f o r e L a b a n —
’
Th e
C ove n a n t w ith La b a n — Ja cob a n d E s a u P re p a r e t o
M e e t— Ja cob W re s tl e s w ith th e An ge l—Th e M e e tin g
b e tw e e n E s a u a n d Ja cob —Th e O u tra ge a t S h e ch e m— A
Wa r Fru s tr a te d— Th e W a r w ith th e Nin e vite s—Th e
Wa r i
w th t h e A mo r it e s I s a c B l e s e s L evi a n d Ju da h
-
a s

—J oy a n d S orr ow in t h e —
H ou s e o f Ja cob E s a u s Ca m
’

pa ign a g i t Ja cob—Th e
a ns D e s ce n da n ts of Esa u.
 I
TH E C R EA T I O N O F THE W O RL D
T H E F IR S T T H IN GS C REA TED
In the beginning tw o thousand years before the heaven
,

an d the earth seven things were created : the Torah written

,

w ith b l ack fire on white fire an d lying in the lap o f God ;

‘

the Divine Throne erected in the heaven which later was

,

over the heads o f the Ha yyot Paradise on the right side o f

God Hell on the left side ; the Celestial Sanctuary d irectly
,

in front o f Go d having a j ewel on its a l tar graven with the

,

Name o f the M essiah an d a Voi c e that cries aloud Return

, , ,

”
ye chi l dren o f men .

When God resolved upon the creation o f the world He ,

”
took counsel with the Torah H er advice was this : O
.

Lord a king without an army and without courtiers and a t

,

t e n da n t s hardly dese rves the name o f king fo r none is nigh ,

’
to express the homage due to him The answer pleased
.

God e xceeding l y Thus did He teach al l earth l y kings by

.
,

His Divine example to undertake naught without first con

,

8
s u l tin g advisers .

The advice o f the Torah was given with some reserva

tions . S he was skeptical about the va l ue o f an earthly
world on account o f the S infulness O f men who wou l d be
, ,

sure t o disregard her precepts But Go d dispelled her

.

doubts He told her that repentan c e had been created long

.
,

be fore and s i nners would have the Opportunity o f mending

,
4 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s

thei r ways Besides the Temple servi c e would be invested

.
,

with atoning power and Paradise and hell were intended

,

to do duty as rewar d and punishment Finally the Messiah .

,

was appointed to bring salvation which woul d put an end t o

,

‘
all sinfulness .

No r is this worl d inhabite d by man the fi rst of things

earthly c reated by God He ma d e several worlds before
.

ours but He destroyed th em a l l because H e was pleased

, ,

with none until He c reated ours But even this last wor l d
.
5

would have had no permanence if God had executed His ,

original plan o f ruling it according to the princip l e of strict

j ustice It was only when He s a w that j ustice by itsel f
.

would unde r mine the w orld that He associated mercy with

j usti c e and made them to rule j ointly
,
Thus from the .
“
,

beginning o f all things prevailed Divine goodness with ,

out which no thing could have continued to exist If not for .

it the myriads o f evil spirits had soon put an end to the

,

generations O f men But the goodness o f God has ordained

.
,

that in every Nisan at the time O f the spring equinox ,the

,

seraphim shall approach the world o f spirits and intimidate ,

them s o that they fear to do harm to men Again if God .

,

in His goodness had n ot given pr o tection to the weak the ,

tame animals would have been extirpated long ago by the

wild animals In Tammuz at the time o f the summer s ol
.
,

stice when the strength o f b e h e mot is at its height h e roars

, ,

s o l ou d that all the animals hear it and for a whole yea r ,

they a r e affrighted and timi d an d their acts beco me les s

,

ferocious than their natu r e is Again in Tishri at the

.
, ,

'
time o f the autumnal equinox the great bird ziz flaps hi s
,

wings and utt e r s his cry s o that the bird s O f prey the eagles
, ,
 Th e C re a tion f
o th e Wor l d ’

an d the vultures blench and they fear to swo op down upo n

, ,

the o thers and annihilate them in their gree d And again .

, ,

w ere it not for the goodness O f God the vast number of big ,

fish had qui c kly put an end to the little ones But at the .

time O f the winter solstice in the mon th o f Tebet the s e a

, ,

grows restless for then leviathan spouts up water and the

, ,

big fish become uneasy They rest r ai n thei r appetite and

.
,

the litt l e ones escape their rapa c ity .

Final l y the goodness of God mani fests itsel f in the pres

,

e rva t ion o f H is people Israel It c ould not have survived .

the enmity o f the Genti l es if God had not appointed pro ,

“
t e cto r s for it the archangels M ichael and Gabriel
, When .

ever Israe l disobeys Go d and is a c cused o f mis d emeanors

,

by the angels o f the other nations he is defended by his ,

designated guardians with such good result that the other

,

angels conceive f ear o f them O nce the ange l s o f the othe r.

nations are terrified the nations themselves venture not to

,

c arry o ut thei r wicked d esign s against Israel .

That the goodness o f Go d may rule on earth as in heaven ,

the Ange l s o f Destru c tion a r e assigne d a place at the far

end Of the heavens f rom which they may never stir w hile
, ,

the Angels of M er c y en c ir c le the Thr o ne of God at H is ,

"
behest .

T HE A L P HA B ET
When Go d was about to c reate the world by H is word ,

the twenty tw o letters o f the a l phabet descended from the

-

terrible and august c rown of God whereon they were e n

graved with a pen o f flaming fire They stood ro und about .

God and o ne a fte r the o the r s pake an d entreated

, Create ,
6 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws
”
the world through me ! The first to step forwar d was the
letter Ta w It said : O Lord o f the world ! May it b e
.

Thy w ill to c reate Th y worl d through me seeing that it is ,

through me that Thou wilt give the T o rah to Israel by the

hand o f Moses a s it is written Moses commanded us the
, ,

Torah The Holy O ne blessed be H e made rep l y and , , ,

”
said NO !
, Ta w aske d Why not ! and God answered : ,

Be c ause in days to c ome I shall pla c e thee as a sign o f

death upon th e f oreheads o f men As soon as Ta w heard .

these words issue from the mouth o f the Holy O ne blessed ,

be He it retire d f rom His presence disappointed

, .

The Shin then stepped f orward and pleaded : O Lord ,

o f the w orld c reate Thy world through me seeing that

, ,

”
Thine ow n name S h a dda i be gi ns with me Unfortunately .
,

it is also the first lette r o f S haw lie an d o f Sheker f alse , , ,

hood and that in c apacitate d it Resh had no better luck It

, . .

was pointed ou t that it was the initial lette r o f Ra wicked ‘

, ,

and Rasha evil a nd after that the distinction it enj oys o f

'

, ,

being the first l etter in the Name o f God Rahum the , ,

M ercifu l counte d f or naught The K o f w a s rej ected b e

, .
,

cause K e la l a h curse outweighs the advantage of being the

, ,

first in K a do s h the Holy O ne In vain did Za dde call a t

, .

tention to Zaddik the Righteous O ne ; there w a s Za r ot the

, ,

misfortunes O f Israel t o testify against it P e had P o de h , . ,

redeemer to its c redit but Pesha transgression reflected

, ,
‘

, ,

dishonor upon it A i n w a s d e c la r e d unfit b e c ause though

.
‘

, ,

it begins Anawah humility i t perfo r ms the same se rvice

‘

, ,

fo r E r wa h immoral i ty S amek said : O Lord may it be

‘

, . ,

Thy will to beg i n the c reation with me for Thou art ca ll ed ,

”
S amek after me the Upholder O f all that fa l l
, ,
But God .
 Th e Cr e a tion o f th e Wor l d 7

said : Th o u art needed in the place i n whi c h th o u art ; 11

”
thou must continue to uphold all that fall Nun intro .

duces Ner the lamp o f the Lord which is th e spirit o f

, ,

” ”
men but it also introduces Ner the l amp o f the wicked
, ,
“
,

which wi ll be put out by Go d Mem starts Melek king one .

, ,

o f the titles o f God As it is the first letter o f M e h u ma h con

.
,

fusion as we l l it ha d no chance o f accomp l ishing its desire

, ,
.

The claim o f Lamed bore its refutation within itself It a d .

va n ce d the argument that it was the first letter o f Lu b ot the ,

ce l estial tables for the Ten Comm andments ; it forgot that

the tables were shivered in pieces by Moses Ka f w a s sure .

o f victory K is s e h the throne o f Go d K a b od His honor

.
, , , ,

and K e te r H is crown all begin with it God had to remind

, , .

it that He would s mite toge th e r His han d s Kaf in despair , ,

over the mis fortunes o f Israel Yod at first sight seemed the .

appropriate letter for the beginning o f creation on account ,

o f its association with Yah God if only Ye g er h a Ra the '

-
, , ,

evil inclination had n ot happened to begin with it too Tet

, , .

is identifie d with Tob the good However the truly goo d is

, .
,

not in this world ; it belongs to the worl d to come Het i s .

the first letter of Hanun the Gracious O ne but this a dva n

,
°

tage is o ff set by its p l ace in the word f or 8 111 Hattat Zain , .

suggests Zakor remembrance but it is itself the word fo r

, ,

weapon the doer o f mis chie f Waw and He compose the

, .

Ine ff able Name of God ; they are therefor e too exalted to be

pressed into the se r vi c e o f the mundane wor l d I f Dalet .

had stood on l y fo r Dabar the Divine Word it would have

, ,

been used but it stands also fo r Din j ustice an d unde r the

, , ,

rule o f l a w without love th e w o r l d would have fallen to ‘

ruin Finally in spite Of r em i nding on e o f Ga dol great

.
, , ,
8 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

Gimel would not do because Gemul r etribution sta rts , , ,

with it .

Afte r the claims o f all these letters had been disposed of ,

Bet stepped be fore the H oly O ne blessed be He and p l eaded , ,

before H im : O Lord o f the world ! May it be Thy wi l l to

create Thy world through me seeing that all the dwe l lers ,

in the world give praise dai l y unto Thee through me as it is ,

‘ ’
said B lessed be the Lord forever Amen and Amen
, .
, .

The Holy O ne b l esse d be He at once granted the pe tition

, ,

o f Bet H e said B lessed be he that cometh in the name o f

.
,

”
the Lord And H e created His wor l d through B et as it is
.
,

”
s aid, B e r e s h it God created the heaven and the earth .

The only letter that had refrained from urging its c l aims
w a s the modest Alef an d Go d rewarded it later fo r its h u
,

mi lity by giving it the first place in the Decalogue 12

.

T H E F IR S T DA Y
Onthe fir st
day o f creation God produce d ten things
th e heavens and the earth Tohu and Bohu light and dark , ,

ness wind and water the duration o f the d ay an d the d ura

, ,
1‘

15
tion o f the night .

Though the heavens and the earth c onsist of enti rely di f

m
f e r e n t e l ements they were yet created as a unit
“
, like the ,

pot and its cove r ”

The heavens were fashione d f r om the
.

light o f God s garment and the earth from the snow under
’
,

”
the Divine Throne Tohu is a green band which e n com
.

passes the whole w o rld and dispenses darkness and Bohu

‘

, ,

consists o f stones in the abyss the producers o f the waters ,

.

The l ight created at the very beginning i s not the same as the
light emitte d by the s u n the moon , a n d the s ta rs w h ich
'

'

, ,
10 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

The s eventh heaven on the other han d co nta i n s naught

, ,

but what is good and beautiful : right j usti c e and mercy the , , ,

storeh o uses o f life pe a c e and blessing the s o uls of the pious

, , , ,

the s o uls and spiri ts O f unborn generati o ns the dew with ,

which G o d will revive the dead on the resurre ction day and , ,

above all the Divine Throne su r r o unded by the seraphim

, , ,

”
the o fa n im the holy H a yyot and the ministering angels
, , .

Corresponding t o the seven heavens God c reated s even ,

earths each separate d f rom the ne xt by five layers O ver

, .

the lowest earth the seventh c alled Erez lie in su c cession

, , ,

”
the abyss the Tohu the Bohu a s e a an d w aters
, , Then the , , .

sixth ea rth is reached the A d amah the s c ene o f the mag , ,

n ifice n ce o f G o d In th e same w a y the Adamah is separated

.

from the fi fth earth the Arka whi ch co ntains Gehenna and
, , ,

S ha ar e Mawet and S ha a r e Z a l ma w e t and B e é r S hah at

'

,
'

, ,

and Tit h a Y a w en an d Abaddon and S h e ol f an d there th e

-
, ,
‘

souls o f the w icked a r e guarded by the Angels o f De s tr u c

tion In the same way Ar ka is foll o wed by Harabah the dr y
.
, ,

the place o f brooks an d streams in spit e o f i ts name as the ,

next calle d Y a b b a sh a h the main l and c ontains the rivers and

, , ,

the springs Tebel t h e second earth i s the first mainland

.
, ,

inhabited by living cr eatu r es three hundre d an d sixty five ,

-

”
species all essentially d i ff erent from th o se o f o ur ow n earth
,
.

Some have human heads s e t on the bo dy of a lion o r a s e r ,

pent or an o x ; o thers have human b o dies topped by the head

,

o f on e o f thes e animals B esi d es Tebel is inhabited by .

,

human beings with tw o heads an d fo ur hands and feet in ,

fact w ith all thei r o rgans doubled ex c epting o nly the t runk ! 7

It happens s o metimes that the parts o f these doub l e persons

quarrel w ith ea c h other espe c ially wh i le eating and drink,
 Th e Cr e a tion o f th e Wor l d 11

ing when each c laims the best and large st portions for him
,

sel f This species o f mankind is distinguished for great

.

piety another di ff erence between it and the inhabitants of

,

our earth .

O ur ow n earth is c alled Heled and like the o thers it is , , ,

separated fr o m the Tebel b y an abyss th e T o hu the Bohu , , ,

a sea and waters

, .

Thus on e earth rises ab o ve the o ther f ro m the fi rst to th e ,

seven th and over the seventh earth the heavens are vau l ted
, ,

from the first to the seventh the last O f them attache d to the ,

arm o f God The seven heavens form a unity the seven

.
,

kinds o f earth fo r m a unity and the heavens an d the earth ,

28
together also form a unity .

When God made our present heavens and o u r p resent

“ ’”m
earth the n e w heavens and the n e w e a r th
, were als o
brought forth yea and the hundred and ninety s ix th o usan d
, ,
-

’ o
w orlds which God created unto His o w n gl or y .

It takes five hundred years to w alk from the earth to the

heavens an d fro m on e end o f a heaven to th e other an d
, ,

31
also from on e heaven to the next and it takes the sam e ,

length o f time to travel fro m the east to the west or from ,

the south to the north O f all this vast world only one
.
"2

third is inhabited the other tw o thirds being equally divided

,
-

bet w een water and waste d esert land .

Beyond the inhabited parts to the east is Paradise with

its seven divisions each assigned to the pious of a certain
,

degree The o c ean is situated to the west and it is dotted

.
,

w ith islands upo n islands inhabited by many di ff erent peo ,

ples Beyond it in turn are the boundless steppes fu l l o f

.
, ,

se rpents an d s cor p io ns an d d estitute o f e ve r y s or t O f vego

,
12 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

whethe r herbs or trees To the north are the supplies

t a tion , .

of hell fir e o f sno w hail sm o ke ice darkness and wind

-
, , , , , ,

storms and in that vicinity soj ourn a l l so rts o f devils de

, ,

mons and ma l ign spirits Their dwel l ing place is a great

, .
-

stretch o f land it would take five hundred years to traverse

,

it Beyond l ies hell To the south is the chamber containing

. .

reserves o f fire the cave o f smoke and the forge o f b l asts

, ,

and hurricanes Thus it comes that the wind b l owing from

.
84

the south brings heat and su l triness to the ea rth Were it .

n ot for the angel Ben Nez the Winged who keeps the south , ,

”
wind back with his pinions the wor l d would be c onsumed ,
.

Besides the fury o f its blast is tempered by the north wind

, ,

which always appears a s moderator whatever othe r wind ,

”
may be b l owing .

In the east th e w est and the south heaven and earth

, , ,

touch each other but the north God l eft unfinished that any
, ,

man who announced himsel f as a god might be s e t the task

o f supplying the deficiency an d stan d c onvi c ted a s a pre ,

tender .

The constru c tion of the earth w a s begun at the c entre ,

w it h the foundati o n s tone o f the Temple the Eben S heti ,

”
yah for the Holy Land i s at the c entral point o f the sur
,

face of the ea rth Jerusalem i s at the central point o f Pa l es

,

tine and the Temp l e is situated at the centre o f the Ho l y

,

City In the san c tuary itsel f the Hekal is the centre and
. ,

the holy Ark occupies the centre of the Hekal built on the ,

”
foundation stone which thus is at the centre o f the earth
,
.

Then c e issued the first ray o f l ight piercing to the Ho l y ,

”
Land and f rom there i l luminating the who l e earth
,
The .

c reation of th e world however cou l d not take place unti l , ,

 Th e C r e a tio n of th e Wor l d "
13

Go d had banished the ruler o f the d ark R eti re God .

,

said to h im; for I desire to create the world by means O f

”
light . O nly a fter the light had been fashioned darkness ,

‘3
arose the light ruling in the s ky the darkness on th e earth
, , .

The power o f God displaye d itself not only in the creation

O f th e worl d o f things but equally in the limitations which
,

He imposed upon each The heavens an d the earth stretched

.

themselves out in length and breadth as though they aspired

to in fin itu de and it required the wo rd o f G od t o call a halt
,

”
to their encr o a chments .

T HE S EC O N D DAY

On the se con d d ay God brought f orth fo u r cr eatio ns the ,

fir ma me n t hell fire and the angels

“
.
, , ,

The fir ma me n t is not the same as the heavens o f the fi rst

day It i s the crystal stretche d forth over the heads of the
.

H a yyot from which the heavens derive their l ight as the

, ,

earth derives its light f rom the sun This fir ma me n t saves .

the earth f rom being engulfed by the waters o f the heavens ;

it forms the partition between the waters above an d the
waters below It was made to c rystal l ize into the soli d i t
.

is by the heavenly fi re which broke its bounds and con , ,

de n s e d the sur face o f the fir ma me n t Thus fire made a .

d ivision between the c elestial an d the terrestrial at the time

o f creation as it d id at the revelati on on Mount S inai
‘0
The .

firma me n t 18 n o t more than three fingers thick nevertheless ,

it divides two su ch heavy bo d ies a s the waters below which ,

a re the foundations f or the nether worl d and the waters ,

above which are the foun d ations f or the seven heavens the
, ,

”
Divine Throne an d the abo d e of the angels
, .
 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s

The separation o f the waters into upper and lower waters

w a s the only act o f the sort done by God in connection with
“
the work o f creation All other acts were unifying It
. .

theref o recause d s o me di fficulties When Go d c ommanded .

,

Let the waters be gathered together unto on e place and , ,

”
let the dry land appear c ertain parts refused to obey , .

They embraced each o ther all the more c l ose l y In His .

w rath at the waters Go d d etermined to let th e whole o f crea

,

t i on resolve itsel f into chaos again H e summoned the Angel .

of the Fa c e and ordered him to destroy the world The

, .

angel Opened his eyes wide and scorching fires and thick ,

c louds ro l led forth from them whi l e he cried ou t He who , ,

divides the R ed S ea in sunder ! —and the rebellious waters

stood The all however w a s still in danger o f destruction
.
, ,
.

’
Then began the singer o f God s praises : O Lord o f the
w orld in days to come Thy creatures will sing praises with
,

o u t end to Thee they will bless Thee boundlessly and they

, ,

w ill g l orify Thee without measure Thou wi l t s e t Abraha m .

apa rt from a l l mankind as Thine ow n ; on e o f h is sons Thou

w ilt c all My fir s t born and his descendants wi l l take th e
-

yoke o f Thy kingdom upon themselves In ho l iness an d .

purity Thou w i lt besto w Thy Torah upon them with th e ,

’
words I am the Lord your Go d whereunto they wi ll make
, ,

’
answer All that Go d hath spoken we will do And now I
,
.

beseech Thee have pity upon Thy world destroy it not for
, , ,

”
i f Thou destroyest it who wi l l fu l fil Thy wi l l
,
! God w a s
pacified ; He withdrew the command ordaining the de s tr u c
tion o f the world but the waters H e put un d e r the moun
,

tains t o remain there forever

, .
"0

Th e o b j e c ti o n of the lo w er w ate r s to divisi o n an d s e p

 Th e Cr e a tion f
o th e Wor l d 15

aration w a s not thei r only reason for rebelling The

“1
.

waters had been the first to give praise to God and whe n ‘

their separation into upper and lower w a s decreed the w a ,

ters above re j oiced s aying B l essed are w e w h o are privi

, ,

”
l e g e d to abide near our Creator and near H is Holy Throne .

Jubi l ating thus they fl e w upward and uttered song and

, ,

praise to the Creator o f the wor l d Sadness fel l upon the .

waters be l ow They lamente d : Woe unto us we have not

.
,

been found worthy to dwell in the presence o f God and ,

”
praise Him together w ith ou r companions Therefore they .

attempted to rise upward until God repulsed them and , ,

52
pressed them under the earth Yet they were not left u n r e
.

warded for their loyalty Whenever the waters above desire

.

to give praise to God they must first seek perm i ss i o n f r o m

,

”
the waters below .

The second day of c reation w a s an unt o war d d ay in more

than the one res p ect that it introduced a breach where b e
fore there ha d been nothing but unity ; fo r it was the day that
s a w also the creation of hell Therefore God could n ot say
.

O f this day as o f the others that He s a w that it w a s good

, .

A division may be ne c essary but i t c annot be c alle d go od , ,

and he ll surely does n ot deserve the attribute of good .

“

He ll h a s seven divisions on e bene ath th e o ther They

“5 “
, .

are ca l led S h eo l Abaddon B e ér S hah at T i t h a Y a w e n

/
, , , ,
-
,

S ha are Mawet Sha are Za l ma w e t and Gehenna It requ i res

'

,
‘

, .

th ree hundred years to traverse the height or the width o r , ,

the d epth of each division and it would take s ix thousand

,

three hundred years to go over a t r a c t of lan d equal i n ex

”
tent to the seven divisions .

Ea c h of the seven divisions in tu r n has seven sub d iv i s io n s ,

16 Th e L e gen ds f
o th e J ew s

an d in ea c h co mpa rt ment there are seven rive r s o f fi re and

seven o f hail The w idth of each is on e thousand ells its
.
,

depth on e thousand an d its length three hundred and they

, ,

fl ow o n e from the other and are supervised by ninety thou

,

sand Angels o f Destru ction There are besides in every .

, ,

compartment seven thousand c aves in every cave there are ,

'

seven thousand crevices and in eve ry crevice seven thou

,

sand sco rpions Every scorpion has three hundred rings and
.
,

in every ring seven thousand pouches o f venom from which ,

fl o w seven rivers of dead l y poison If a ma n handles it he .

,

immediately bursts every limb is torn from his body his

, ,

”
bowels are c left asunder and he fa ll s upon his face
, There .

are a l s o five di ff erent kin d s o f fire in hel l O ne devours and .

absorbs another devours and does n ot absorb whi l e the

, ,

third absorbs and does not devou r and there is sti ll another ,

fire which neither devours nor absorbs and furthermore a

, ,

fire which devours fire There are coals big as mountains

.
,

an d coa l s big as hills and coals as large as the Dead Sea

‘

, ,

and coa l s like huge stones and there a re rivers of pitch and
,

”
su l phur flowing and seething like live coals .

The third c reation o f the second day was the angel hosts ,

both the ministering angel s and the ange l s o f praise The .

reason they had n o t been c a l led into being on the first day
was lest men believe that the ange l s assisted God in the
,

creation o f the heavens and the earth .

61

The angels that are fashioned f rom fire have forms o f

fir e but only s o long as they remain in heaven When they
“2
, .

d es c end t o ea rth to do the bidding o f God here below either

, ,

they a r e chan ged into wind o r they assume the guise o f ,

me n There are ten ranks or degrees among the angels

. .
“
18 Th e L ege n ds f
o th e J ew s

mount the fi e ry la dd e r and j oin the angels o f the s eventh

heaven an d surround the throne o f God with H a sh ma l and
,

all the holy H a yyot Adorned with mi l lions of fiery crowns

.
,

arrayed in fiery garments all the angels in unison in the , ,

same words an d w ith the s ame mel o dy i ntone s o ngs o f

, ,

praise to Go d “
.

T H E T H IR D DA Y
Up to thi s t i me the earth w a s a plain an d w holly c overed ,

with water S carcely had the w ords o f God Let th e

.
,

waters be gathered together made themselves heard whe n , ,

mountains appeared all o ve r an d hills and the water col 71

,

l e cte d in the deep lying bas i ns B ut the w ater w a s r e ca l ci

-
.

trant it resiste d the o r d er t o occ upy the lowly spots and

, ,

threatened to overflo w the earth until God fo rced it back ,

into the s e a and encircle d th e s ea w ith san d N o w when

,
.
,

ever the water is tempte d t o t r ansg r es s its b o un d s i t beh o lds ,

72
the sand and recoils , .

The waters did but im i tate thei r ch i e f R ahab the Angel o f ,

the S ea who rebelled at th e creation o f the w orl d Go d had

, .

commanded Rahab to take in th e water B ut he refused . ,

”
saying , I have enough The punishment f or his diso
.

b e die n ce w a s death His bo d y rests in the depths o f the sea

. ,

the w ate r dispelling the foul odor that emanates f r o m it

“
.

The main c reation of the thir d day w a s the realm o f

plants the terrestrial plants as w ell as the plants o f Para
,

dise . Fi r st o f all the cedars of Lebanon and the othe r great

trees w ere ma d e In their pri d e at having been put first
. ,

they shot up high i n the a i r They c onsidered themselves .

the f avored among plants Then God spake I hate a rr o

.
,
 Th e Cr e a tion f
o th e Wor ld 19

ga n c e and pride f or I alone a m exalted and n o ne beside

, , ,

and H e created the iron on the same day the substance with ,

which trees are fe ll ed down The trees began to weep and

.
,

when God asked the reason o f their tears they said : We ,

cry because Thou hast created the iron t o uproot us there

with A l l the while w e ha d thought ourse l ves the highest o f
.

the ea rth and n ow the iron o u r destroyer has been ca l led

, , ,

”
into existence God rep l ied : You yourse l ves w il l furnish
.

the axe with a hand l e Without your assistan c e the iron

.

”
wi l l not be ab l e to do aught against you .
7‘

The command to bear seed after their kind was given to

the trees alone But the various sorts o f grass reasone d
.
,

that if God had not desired divisions a c cording to classes ,

He wou l d not have instructed the trees to bear fruit after

their kind with the seed thereo f in it especially as trees are ,

inclined o f thei r o w n accord to divide themselves into s p e

cies The grasses therefore reproduced themselves also after
.

their kinds This prompted the exclamation o f the Prin c e

.

o f the Worl d Let the glory o f the Lord en d ure foreve r ;

,

” 7“
let the Lord rej oice in His works .

The most important work done on the thir d day w a s th e

creation o f Paradise Tw o gates o f c arbuncle form the e n
.

trance to Paradis e and sixty myr i ads o f ministering ange l s

,
"

keep watch over them Each o f these angels shines with the
.

l ustre o f the heavens When the j ust man appears before

.

the gates th e cl oth e s in which he was buried are taken o ff

,

him and the ange l s array him in seven garments o f clou d s of

,

glory and pla c e upon his hea d tw o c rowns o n e o f precious

, ,

stones and pearls the other of gol d of Pa rvaim and they

"
, ,

put eight myrtles in his han d an d they utter praises b e ,

20 Th e L eg e n ds f
o th e J ew s

fore him and say to him Go thy way and eat thy bread, ,

with j oy And they lead h im to a place full o f rivers sur

.
,

rounded by eight hun dr e d kin d s of r oses and myrtles Each .

on e has a c anopy acc o rding to h is merits

"
and under it ,

fl o w f ou r rivers on e o f milk the other o f b a lsam the third

, , ,

o f wine an d the fourth o f honey Every c anopy is over

, .

grown by a vine o f gold and thirty pearls hang f rom it each

, ,

o f them shining like V enus U nder each canopy there is a .

table o f precious stones and pearls and S ixty angels stand at ,

the hea d o f every j ust man saying unto him : GO and eat ,

with j oy o f the honey f o r th o u hast busie d thyse l f with the

,

Torah and s h e is sweeter than honey and drink o f the

, ,

”
w ine p reserved in the grape since the s ix d ays o f creation ,

for thou hast busied thysel f with the Torah and she is com ,

’
pare d t o wine The least f air o f the j ust is beautifu l as
.

Joseph and Rabb i Johanan and a s the grains Of a silver ,

° 8
pomegranate upon which fall the rays o f the s u n There is .

”
n o light fo r the light of the righteous is t h e shining l ight
,
.

And they undergo f ou r transformations every day passing ,

through fou r states In the first the righteous is changed

.

into a child H e enters the division fo r c hildren and tastes

.
,

the j oys o f childhood Then he is c hanged into a youth and

. ,

enters the division for the youths with who m he enj oys the ,

delights o f y o uth Next he becomes an adu l t in the prime o f

.
,

life and he enter s the division o f men an d enj oys the

, ,

pleasures o f manhood Finally he is c hange d into an old

.
,

man H e enters the di visi o n f o r th e o l d an d en j oys th e

.
,

pleasures o f age .

There are eighty my ri a d s of trees i n eve ry cor ne r o f Para

dis e th e meanest am ong the m ch oice r than all the S pice
,
 Th e Cr e a tion o f th e Wor l d 21

trees In eve ry c orner there are sixty myriads o f angels

.

S inging with sweet voices and the tree of life stands in

,

’
the middle and shades the whole of P a r a dis e It has .
n

fifteen thousand tastes each di ff erent f rom the other and

, ,

the perfumes th ereo f vary likewise O ver it hang seven .

”
c l ouds o f glory and winds blow upon it f rom all fou r sides
, ,

so that its odor is w afted from on e end o f the world to the

other U nderneath sit the scholars and explain the Torah
. .

O ve r each o f them tw o c anopies are spread on e o f stars , ,

the other o f s u n and moon and a curtain Of clouds o f

,

g l ory separates the on e c anopy f rom the o ther Beyond .

Paradise begins Eden co ntaining three hundred and ten

,

wor l ds and seven co mpa rtments fo r seven diff erent c l asses

o f the pious .In the first a re the martyr victims o f the gov
”
e r n me n t ,
like R abbi Akiba and his c o l leagu es in the s e c “5

° 8 “7
o n d those w h o w ere drowned in the third Rabbi Johanan
ben Zakkai and his disciples ; in the fourth those who were
carried o ff in the cloud o f glory ; in the fifth the penitents
“
,

w h o o cc upy a place w hich even a perfe ctly pious man can

not obtain ; in the S ixth are the youths w h o have not tasted
o f sin in thei r lives ; in the seventh are those poo r who stud

ie d B ible and M ishnah an d le d a life o f sel f respecting de

,
-

ce n cy . And Go d sits i n the mid s t of them an d exp o unds the

"0
Torah to them .

As for the seven di v i si o n s of P arad i se ea c h of them is ,

twelve myria d s of miles in width and twelve myriads of

miles in length In the first divisi o n dwell the proselytes
.

w h o embra c e d Judaism of their ow n f ree will not f rom ,

c ompulsi o n The wa l ls are o f gla ss and the w ainscoting o f

.

c edar The prophet Ob a dia h himsel f a proselyte is th e

.
,
‘n

,
22 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

o versee r of this first divisi o n The se co n d d iv i s io n is buil t

.

o f silver and th e wainscoting thereof is o f c e d a r Here

, .

dwell those who have repented and M anasseh the penitent , ,

s o n o f Hezekiah presides over them

,
The third division i s .

bui l t o f si l ver and gold H ere dwe l l Abraham Isaac and

.
, ,

Jacob and all the I sraelites w h o came ou t of Egypt and th e

, ,

whole generation that live d in the desert A l so David is 92

.

there together with a l l his sons except Absalom one o f

, ,

t hem, Chileab sti l l alive , An d a l l the kings o f Judah are

.

there with the exception o f Manasseh the s on Of Hezekiah

, , ,

w h o presides in the se c ond division over the penitents ,

.

Moses and Aar o n preside over the third division H ere are .

precious vessels o f silve r an d gol d and j ew els and canopie s

and beds an d thrones and lamps o f gol d o f precious stones , , ,

“
and o f pearls the best o f everything there is in heaven The
, .

"5
fourth division is built o f beautiful r ubies and its w a inscot ,

ing is o f Olive w o od H ere dwel l the perfect and the stead

.

fast in faith and their wainscoting is o f Olive wood becaus e

, ,

their lives were bitter a s O l ives to them The fifth division is .

”
bui l t o f si l ver and gold and refined gold and the finest o f ,

go l d and glass and bdellium and through the midst o f it,

flows the river Gih o n Th e wainscoting is o f silver and gold

.
,

and a perfume b r eathe s through it more exquisite than the

perfume of Leban o n The co ve r ings o f the si l ver and go l d
.

beds are ma d e of purple an d blue w oven by Eve and o f , ,

scarlet an d the hai r of go ats w o ven by angels H ere dwells

,
.

the Messiah on a palanquin ma d e of the w o od o f Lebanon ,

“
the pillars thereo f o f silver the bott o m of gold the seat o f
, ,

”
it purple With him i s E l ij ah H e takes the head o f Mes
. .

siah an d places it in h is bos om an d say s t o h i m B e quiet

, , , ,
 Th e Cr e a tion f
o th e Worl d 23

for the end draweth nigh O n every Monday a n d Thurs

.

day and on Sabbaths an d holidays the Patriarchs come to ,

him and the twelve sons o f Jacob and Moses Aaron David
, , , , ,

S olomon and all the kings O f Israel and of Judah and they
, ,

w eep with him and comfort him and s a y unto him ,

Be ,

”
q uiet and put trust in thy Creator for the end draweth nigh
,
.

Also Korah and h is company and Dathan Abiram and A b

, , ,

salom come to him on every W e dnes d ay and ask him ,

H ow long be f ore the end comes f ull o f wonders ! When

w ilt thou bring us life again and from the abysses o f th e
,

”
ea rth lift u s ! The Messiah answers them Go to your ,

fathers and a s k them and when they hear this they are ,

a shamed and do not a s k their fathers

, .

In the s ixth division dwell those wh o d ie d i n per forming

a pious act and in the seventh division thos e who died fro m
,

illness i nfli c ted a s an expiation for the s ins o f Is r ael

"
.

T H E F O U R TH DA Y
The fourth d ay of creation p r oduced the sun the m oo n , ,

and the sta r s These heavenly spheres were not actually

.

f ashione d o n th i s day ; they were created on the first day ,

and me r ely were assign ed thei r places in the heavens o n th e

”
fou rth . At fi rst the sun an d the mo o n en j oyed equal
”
powers and prer o gatives The m oo n spoke t o God and
.
,

sai d : O Lord why didst Thou create the world with the
,
.

”
lette r Bet ! G od replied : That it might be made known
”
unt o M y c reatures that there are tw o worl d s The moon : .

O Lord whi ch o f the tw o w orlds is the larger this world

, ,

”
o r the w o rl d t o c ome ! God : The world to co me is the
”
la rge r . Th e moo n : O Lord Th o u did s t cr eate tw o
,
24 Th e L eg e n ds f
o th e J ew s

w o rlds a greater and a lesse r w orld ; Thou didst create the

,

heaven and the earth the heaven exceeding the earth ; Thou
,

didst create fire an d water the water stronger than the fire , ,

beca use it c an quen c h the fi re ; an d n ow Thou hast created

th e s un and the moon and it is becoming that one o f them
,

”
should be greater than the other Then spake God to the .

moon : I know well thou wouldst have m e make Thee ,

greate r than the s un As a punishment I decree that thou

.

mayest keep but on e sixtieth O f thy light

-
The moon made .

supplication : Shall I be punished s o severely for having

spoken a single word ! Go d relented : In the future world
I will restore thy light s o that thy light ma y again be as
,

”
the light o f the s u n The moon was not yet satisfied
. O .

”
Lord s h e said and the light o f the s u n h ow great wi l l it
, , ,

”
be in that day ! Then the wrath o f God was once more
enkind l ed : What thou still plottest against the s u n ! A S
,

thou livest in the world to come his light shall be sevenfo l d

,

” ”
the l ight he n ow sheds .
1

The sun runs his course like a bridegr oo m He sits upon .

1 01
a throne with a garland on h is head Ninety s ix angels .
-

accompany him on his daily j ou rney in relays o f eight every ,

hour two to the le f t o f him and two to the right t w o before

, , ,

him and two behin d S tr o ng as he is he c ou l d complete his

, .
,

course f rom south to north in a single instant but three ,

hundre d and sixty fiv e angels r estrain him by means o f as

-

many gr appling i r o ns Eve r y day on e looses his hold and

-
. ,

the s u n must thus S pend three hund r e d and sixty five days -

o n his c o urse The progress o f the s un in his circuit is an

.

uninterrupte d s o ng o f praise to God An d this song a l one .

makes his m o tion p o ssible There fo r e when J o shua wanted .

,
 26 Th e L eg e n ds of th e J ew s

v i bration is c ommunicated to the angels an d the holy H a yyot ,

to th e other plants and also to the trees and plants o n earth

, ,

and to all the b eings on earth and in heaven It i s the s ig .

nal for them all t o cast their eyes up w ard As soon as they .

s e e the Ineff able Name which is engraved in the s u n they

, ,

raise their voices in songs o f praise to God At the same .

moment a heavenly voi c e is heard to s a y W oe to the s o ns ,

o f men that consi d er n o t the honor o f God like unto these

”
c reatures w hose voices n ow rise aloft in adoration .

These wo rd s naturally are not hear d by men as litt l e as

, , ,

they perceive the grating o f the s un against the wheel to

which all the celestial bo dies a r e attached although th e ,

”
noise it makes is extraordinarily loud This fricti on of th e .

s un and the wheel produces the motes dancing about in the

“
sunbeams They are the carriers of heal ing to the sick
.
,

the only health giving creations o f the f ourth day on the

-
,

whole an un f ortunate d ay espe ci ally fo r children a ffli cting

, ,

“
them with disease .

When God punished the envious mo o n by diminishing

her light and splen do r s o that s h e c ease d t o be the equal o f
,

m
the s un a s S he had been or igin a l ly s h e f ell and tiny ,
n o
,

th r ea d s we r e lo o se d f ro m he r b o dy . The s e a r e the sta r s .

T HE F IFTH DAY
”
O n the fifth d ay of creati o n Go d t o ok an d w ater fir e
‘
,

and out o f these tw o elements He made the fi shes o f the

m
sea . The animals in the w ate r are much mo r e numerous
than those on land F or every species on land exceptin g
. ,

only the weasel the r e i s a c o r responding spe c ies in the water

, ,

an d bes id es the r e a r e many fo un d o nly in the w ate r

“ 5
.
, ,
 Cr e a tion f th e Wor l d
'

Th e o 27

The ruler o ver the s e a animal s is leviathan W i th all

-
.

the other fishes he was made on the fifth day O rigina ll y .

117

he was cr eated ma l e and fema l e l ike a ll the other anima l s .

But when it appeared that a pair o f these monsters might

annihilate the whole ea r th with their united strength God ,

”
ki l led the female S O enormous is leviathan that to quench
.

his thirst h e needs all the wate r that flows f rom the Jorda n
11 9
into the s e a H is food consists o f the fish which g o b e
.

m 0
tween his j aws o f their ow n a cco r d When he is hungry .
,

a hot breath b l ows from his nostrils and it makes the waters ,

o f the great s e a seething hot Formidabl e though b e h e mot

.
,

the other monster is he feels inse c ure until he is certain that

, ,

”
l eviathan has satisfied his thirst The only thing that can .
1

keep him in che c k is the stickleback a litt l e fish which w a s ,

created for the pu rpose and of which he stands in great

,

122
awe. But leviathan is more than merely la rge and strong ;
he is w o nde rfully made besides H is fins radiate bril l iant .

” 3
light the very s un is obscured by it and also his eyes shed
, ,

such splendo r that frequently the sea is illuminated s u d

121
de n l y by it No wonder that this marvellous beast is the
.

124
plaything o f God in whom He takes His pastime
,
.

There is but one thing that makes leviathan repulsive his ,

foul smell which is S O strong that i f it penetrated thither

, ,

it would ren d er Paradise itsel f an impossible

The real purpose o f leviathan is to be served up as a
dainty to the pious in the world to c ome The f emale was .

put into brine as soon as she w a s kille d t o be preserv ed ,

against the time when her flesh will be nee d ed The male .
120

is destined to o ff er a delectable sight to all beho l ders before

he is co nsumed When his last hou r arr i ves G o d will sum
.
,
~
28 Th e L e gen ds f
o th e J e ws

mon the angels t o ente r into combat with the monster B ut .

no s oone r will leviathan cast his glan c e at them than they

w ill flee in f ea r an d d ismay f ro m the fi el d of battle They .

will return t o th e cha rge with s w o rds but in vain fo r his

, ,

scales c an turn back steel like straw They will be equa l ly

.

unsu cc ess ful w hen they attempt to kill him by throwing

darts and slinging stones ; such missiles will rebound with
out leavi ng the least impression on his body Dishea rtened .
,

the angels w ill give up th e c ombat and God will command

,

leviathan an d b e h e mot to enter into a duel with ea ch other .

The issue w ill be that bo th w i l l drop dead b e h e mot slaugh ,

’
te r e d by a blo w o f leviathan s fins and leviathan kil l ed by a
, .

lash o f b e h e mot s tail From the skin o f leviathan God wi l l

’
.

constru c t tents to shelter companies o f the pious while they

en j oy the dishes made o f his flesh The amount assigned to
.

ea c h o f the pi o u s will be in proportion to his deserts and ,

none w ill envy o r begrudge the other his better S hare What .

’
is left o f leviathan s skin w ill be stretched ou t over Je r u s a
l em as a canopy and th e light st r eami ng f rom it wi l l il l u
,

mine the w hole world and what is le ft o f his flesh after th e

,

pious have appeased their appetite wi l l be distribute d among

,

1 27
the rest o f men to carry on traffi c therewith
, .

O n the sa me day w ith the fishes the bi rds were c reated

, ,

for these t w o kinds o f animals are closely related to each

other Fish are fashioned ou t of water and bi rd s o ut o f
.
,

”
marshy gr oun d saturated with water .

A S leviathan is th e king of fi shes s o the z i z i s app o inte d t o

,

”
rule over the birds . His name c omes f ro m the vari ety o f
ta ste s his flesh has ; i t ta stes like th i s ze h an d like that
, , ,

ze h .
“
The ziz is a s monstrous o f s i ze as leviathan himsel f .
 Th e Cr e a tion o f th e Wor l d 29

His ankles r est o n the earth and his head reaches to the
,

m
very sky .

It once happened that travellers on a vessel noticed a bird .

As he stood in the water it merely covered his feet and his

, ,

head knocked against th e s ky The onlookers thought the

.

water cou l d not have any depth at that point and they pre ,

pared to take a bath there A heaven l y voice warne d them

.

’
Alight not here ! O nce a carpenter s axe slipped f rom his
hand at this spot and it took it seven years to touch bot
,

tom . The bird the trave ll ers s a w was none other than the
H

1 32
ziz. H is wings are s o huge that unfu rled they darken the
s un They protect the earth against the storm s o f the
south ; without their aid the ea r th would not be able to resist
the winds b l owing thence O nce an egg o f th e z iz fell to
.
13 4 '

the ground and broke The fluid from it flooded S ixty c ities
.
,

and the shock crushed three hundred cedars Fo rtunately .

such accidents do not occur frequently As a rule the bird .

lets her eggs slide gently into her nest This on e mishap .

was due to the -fact that the egg was r otten and the bird ,

cast it away carelessly The ziz has another name Rena

.
,

”
nim be cause he is the celestial singer
, O n account of his .
“

re l ation to the heaven l y regions he is also called S ekwi the ,

”” 7
seer and besides he is called s on of the nest
, , , because ,

h is fledgling birds break away f rom the shell without being

hatched by the mother bird ; they spring di r ectly f rom th e
nest as i t , L i ke leviathan so ziz is a deli c ac y to b e
,

served to the pious a t/th e end o f time to com p ensate the m ,

for the pr i vations which absta i ning from the un c lean fowls
”
imposed upon them !
30 Th e L e ge n ds f
o th e J e ws

TH E S I! TH D AY
As the fish we r e forme d ou t o f wate r and the b i r d s out ,

o f boggy ear th well mixed with w ater s o the mammals were ,

formed o u t o f so l id earth
1 40
and as leviathan is the most,

notable representative o f the fis h kin d and ziz o f the bird ,

kind s o b e h e mot is the most notable representative O f the

,

mammal kin d B e h e mot matches leviathan in strength and

.
,

he had to be prevented like leviathan from multiplying and, ,

increasing els e the world cou l d not have continued to ex

,

is t ; a fter God had created him male and female H e at once ,

deprived him o f the desire to propagate h is kind He is s o .

monstrous that h e requires the produce o f a thousand moun

tains for his daily food A l l the w ater that flows through .

the be d o f the Jordan in a year s u fli ce s h im exact l y for on e

gulp It therefore w a s necessary to give h im on e stream
.

entire l y fo r his o w n u s e a strea m flowing f orth from Para

,

B e h e mot too is destined t o be served

1 42
dise called Y u b a l
, .
, ,

to the pious as an appetizing dainty but before they enj oy ,

his flesh they wi l l b e permitte d to view the morta l combat

,

between leviathan an d b e h e mo t as a rewar d for having , .

denied themselves the pleasures o f the c ir c us an d its gladia

“ 3
t o r ia l contests .

Leviathan ziz an d b eh e mot are n o t the o nly m o nsters ;

, ,

there are many o thers an d marvellou s ones like the r e é m

, , ,

a giant animal o f whi c h only o n e couple male and f emale

, , ,

is in existen c e Had there been more the worl d could hard l y

.
,

have maintaine d itself against them The act o f copulation .

occurs but Once in seventy years between them for Go d has ,

s o o rdered it that the male and female re em are at Opposi te

en d s O f the earth the on e in the east the other in the west

, , .
 Th e Cr e a tion o f th e Wor l d 31

The a c t O f Co pulation r esults in the d eath of the male H e is .

bitten by the female and dies o f the bite The f emale b e .

c omes pre gn ant and remains in this stafe fo r n o less than

twelve years At the en d o f this long perio d she gives birth
.

to twins a male an d a f emale The year pre c eding her de

, .

livery she is not a b l e to move S he would die of hunger

'
.
,

w ere it n o t that her own spittle fl owi ng copiously f rom her

mouth waters an d f r u ctifie s the earth near her and c auses it ,

to bring fo rth enough f o r her maintenan c e For a whole .

year the animal can but roll fro m side to side until finally he r ,

be ll y bursts and the twins issue forth Their appearan c e is

, .

thus the signal for the death o f the mothe r r e é m She makes .

room fo r the n e w generation which in turn is destined to

,

su ff er the same fate as the generation that w ent before I m .

mediate l y after birth th e one goes eastward an d the other

,

w estward to meet only a fter the lapse o f seventy years

, ,

propagate themselves an d perish , A traveller w h o once

.
“

s a w a re em o n e day o l d described its height to be f our par a

sangs and the length o f its head on e parasang and a half

“ 5
.
,

Its horns measure o n e hundre d ells and thei r he i ght i s a ,

”
great deal more .

O ne ofthe most rema r kable c reatures is the man of th e

m
mountain Adne Sadeh or briefly Adam
, , ,
H is form is , .

exactly that of a human being but he is f astened t o the ,

groun d by means of a navel string up o n which his li fe de

-
,

pends The cord o n c e snapped he dies This animal keeps

.
, .

himsel f alive with what is pro d u c e d by the soil a r ound abou t

him as fa r as his tether permits him to c rawl No c reatu re .

may venture to appr oa c h w ithin the radius of his cor d for he ,

seizes an d demolishes whateve r co mes i n his rea c h T o kill .

32 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e Jews

him on e may n ot go nea r to him the navel string must be

, ,
-

severed from a distance by means of a d art an d then he d ies ,

amid groans and moans .

O nce upon a time a trave l ler happene d i n the r egion

where this animal is found He overheard his host c onsul t
.

his wi f e as to what to do to h o nor thei r guest and resolve ,

to serve our man as he said Thinking he ha d fa l len

G‘

, .

among c annibals the strange r ran as fast as his feet could

,

carry h im from his entertainer who sought vainly to restrain

,

him Afterward he found ou t that there had been no in

.
,

tention o f r egaling him with human flesh but o nly w ith the ,

”m
flesh o f the strange animal c alled man .

A S the man o f the mountai n i s fixed to the gr o und by

his navel string s o the barna c le goose is grown to a tree by
-
,
-

its bill It is hard to s a y w hether it is an animal and must

.

be slaughtered to be fit for food o r whether it is a plant and ,

°
no ritual c eremony is necessary before eating it .
115

Among the birds the ph oenix i s the most wonder f ul .

When Eve gave all the animals some of the fruit o f th e tree
o f knowledge the phoen i x was the o nly bird that refused to
,

eat thereof and he w a s rewarded with eternal life Whe n

,
.

he has lived a thousand years his body shrinks and the , ,

feathers drop f rom it until he is a s small as an egg This

,
.

m 1
i s the nucleus o f the new b ir d .

The ph oenix is a l so ca l led the guar d ian o f the terrestria l

S phere He runs with the s u n on his c ircuit and he
. ,

spreads out his wings and catches up the fiery rays of the
sun . I f he w ere n ot there to inter c ept them neither man
“
,

nor any other animate being w oul d keep a l ive O n his right .

wing the fo ll o wing w o r d s a r e ins cribe d in huge letters ,

34 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e J ew s

The sham ir was made at twilight on the sixth d ay of c rea

ti on together w i th o ther extraordinary things It is abou t .

as large as a barley c orn and it possesses the remarkable

,

property o f c utting the har d est o f diamon d s For this .

reason it w a s used fo r the stones in the breastplate worn by

the high priest F irst the names o f th e twelve tribes were
.

traced with ink on the stones t o be set into the breastplate ,

then the shamir was passed over the lines and thus they ,

w ere graven . The w onder ful c ircumstan c e was that the

friction wore n o parti c les f ro m the stones The shamir was .

also used fo r hewing into shape the stones from which the
Temple was bui l t because the law prohibited iron tools to
,

1 02
be used for the w ork in the Temple The shamir may n ot
.

be put in an iron vessel for safe keeping nor in any metal

-
,

vessel it would burst such a re c eptacle asunder It is kept

, .

wrapped up in a woo l len cloth and this in turn is p l aced in a

,

m
l ead basket fi l led w ith barley bran The shami r was
.
s

guar d ed in Paradise until S olomon needed it He sent the .

eagle thither to fetch the w orm ! With the d est r u c tion o f

“

”
the Temple the shamir v anished .
s

A simi l ar fate overtook the ta h a s h which ha d been c reated

,

only that its skin might be used for the Tabernacle O nce .

the Taberna cle w a s completed the tab ash disappeared It

, .

had a horn o n its forehead was gaily colo r ed like the turkey
,

”
cock and be l onge d to the class of clean animals !
,

Among the fishes there are also w onderful c reatu r es th e ,

s e a goats an d the d olph i ns n o t to mention leviathan

-
,
A sea .

faring man on c e s a w a s e a goat on whose horns the words

-

were inscribed : I am a little s e a -animal yet I traversed

“
,

three hun d red parasangs to o ff er mysel f as food to the levia

 Th e C r e a tion f
o th e Wor l d 35

” 1“
than . The dolphins are hal f man and hal f fish ; they
even have sexual intercourse with human beings ; therefore
”
they are called a l so sons o f the s e a fo r in a sense they ,

r epresent the huma n kind in the waters .

Though every species in the animal world was created

”
during the last t w o days o f the s ix o f creation yet ma n v ,

chara c teristics o f certain anima ls appeared later Cats and .

mice f oes now were friends originally Their later e n

, , .

mity had a distinct cause O n on e occasion the mous e a p

.

p e a r e d before God and spoke : I and the cat are partners ,

”
but n ow w e have nothing to eat The Lord answered
.

Thou art intriguing against thy companion only that thou ,

”
mayest devour her As a p u nishment s h e shall devour thee
.
, .

Thereupon the mouse : O Lord o f the worl d wherein have ,

”
I done wrong ! Go d replied : O thou un clean repti l e
“
,

thou shouldst have been w arne d by the example o f the moon ,

who los t a part o f her light because s h e spake ill o f the s u n

, ,

and what s h e lost w a s given to her opponent The evil .

i ntentions thou didst harbor against thy co mpanion shall b e

punished in the same way Instead o f thy devouring her
.
,

”
s h e sha l l devour thee The mouse : O Lord of the world !
.

Shall my whole kind be destroyed P God : I will take c are

”
that a remnant o f thee is spared In her r age the mouse
.

bit the c at and the c at in turn threw hersel f upon the mouse
, ,

and ha cked into her with her teeth until S he lay dead S ince .

that moment the mouse stands in such a w e o f the c at that

s h e does not even attempt to de fend hersel f against her

’ 1 71
enemy s attacks and always keeps herself in hiding
,
.

Similarly dogs and c ats maintained a friendly r elation to

ea c h o ther and o nly late r o n be c ame enemies A dog and a
, .
36 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

cat were par tners and they shared with each other what
,

ever they had I t once happened that neither could find

.

anything to eat for three days Thereupon the dog p ro .

posed that they dissolve their pa rtnership The cat should .

go to Adam in whose house there would surely be enough

,

for her to eat while the dog shou l d seek his fo rtune else
,

w here . Before they separated they took a n oath never t o,

go to the same master The cat took up h er abode with

.

Adam and s h e found suffi cient mice in his house to satisfy

,

her appetite S e eing h ow useful s h e was in driving away

.

and extirpating mice Adam treated her most kindly The

, .

dog o n the other hand s a w bad times

, , The first night after .

their separation he spent in the cave o f the wo l f who had ,

granted him a night s lodging At night the dog caught

’
.

'

the sound O f steps and he r eported it to his host who bade

, ,

h im repu l se the intruders They were wild animals Litt l e

. .

lacked and the dog would have lost his li fe Dismayed the .
,

dog fled from the house o f the wol f and t o ok refuge with ,

the monkey But h e would not grant him even a sing l e

.

’
night s lodging ; and the fugitive w a s forced to appeal to
the hospita l ity o f the sheep Again the dog heard steps in
.

the middle o f the night O beying the bidding o f his host

.
,

he aros e to chase away the marauders who turned out to be ,

wolves The barkin g o f the dog apprised the wo l ves o f

.

the presen c e o f sheep s o that the dog innocently c aused th e

,

’
sheep s death N o w he had lost his last friend Night after
. .

night he begged f o r she l ter without ever fi nding a home,

.

Final l y he decided to repair to the house o f Adam who als o

, ,

gr anted him refuge for o n e night When wild animals a p .

p r oa ch e d the h o use under cover o f d arkness the d o g began ,

 Th e Cr e a tion o f th e Wor ld 37

to ba rk A d am awoke a n d wi th h is b ow and arr o w he drove

, ,

them away Recognizing the dog s usefulness he bade h im

.
’
,

remai n with h im always But as soon as the c at espied the

.

’
dog in Adam s house S he began to quarrel with him and
, ,

reproach him with having broken his oath to her Ada m .

did his best to pacify the cat H e to l d her he had himsel f

.

invited the dog to make his home there and he assured her ,

’
s h e wou l d in no wise be the loser by the dog s presence ; h e

wanted both to stay with him But it was impossib l e to a p

.

pease the cat The dog promised her not to touch anything
.

intended for her She insisted that she cou l d not l ive in one
.

and the same house with a thief like the dog Bickerings .

between the dog and the cat became the order Of the day .

Fina l ly the dog could stand it no longer and he left Adam s ’

,

house and betook himse l f to Seth s By S eth he was wel

,
’
.

comed kindly and from Seth s hou se he continued to make

,
’
,

e fforts at reconciliation with the cat In vain Yes the e u . .

,

mity between the first dog and the first cat w a s transmitted
to a l l their descendants until this very day .
1 72

Even the physical peculiarities o f certain animals were

not original features with them but owed their existence to,

something that occurred subsequent to the days o f creation .

The mouse at first had quite a di ff erent mouth from its

present mouth In Noah s ark in whi c h a l l animals to
.
’
, ,

ensure the preservation o f every ki n d lived together peace ,

ab l y the pai r o f mice were on c e sitting next to the c at

, .

Suddenly the latter remembered that her father was in

the habit o f d evouring mice and thinking there w a s n o
,

harm in fo ll owing his exa mple she j umped at the mouse , ,

wh o vain l y looked fo r a h o le int o which to slip o u t of sight .

38 Th e L eg en ds f
o th e J e ws

Then a mira c le happene d a hole appeared w h er e n o ne had

been before and the m o use s o ught refuge in it The c at
, .

pursued the mouse and th o ugh s h e c oul d n ot f ollow he r

,

into th e h o le s h e co ul d inse rt he r paw and try t o pull the

,

mouse o ut o f her c ove rt Quickly the m o use Opene d he r .

mouth in the hope that the p a w would go into it and th e ,

cat would be prevented f rom fastening her claws in her

flesh But as the cavity o f the mouth was not big en o ugh
.
,

the cat succeeded in clawing the c heeks of the mouse Not .

that this he l ped her much it merely widened the mouth o f ,

the m o use and her prey after a l l es caped the cat

,
After .
“

her happy escape the m o use betook herse lf to Noah and said
,

to him O pious man be g o od enough to s e w up my cheek

, ,

”
w here my enemy the cat has torn a rent in it
,
Noah bade
, .

her fet c h a hair ou t o f th e tail o f the swine and w i th this ,

he repaired the da mage Then c e the little seam like line.

-

“
next to the mouth o f every mouse to this very day .

The raven is another animal that changed its appearan c e

during its soj ourn in the ark When Noah desired to S end .

h im f o r th to find out about the state o f the waters he hid

’
,

under the wings o f the eagle Noah f ound him however .

, ,

and said to him Go and s e e whether the waters have di

,

”
minished The raven pleaded : H ast thou none othe r
.
“

among a l l the bi rds to send on this Noah : My

”m
power extends no f urther than over thee and the dove .

B ut the raven was not satisfie d H e said to Noah with great .

insolence : Thou sendest me f orth only that I ma y meet my

death and thou w ish e st my death that my wife may be at
,
.

”m
thy se rvi c e Thereup o n Noah c u r sed the raven thus
.

May thy m o u th , wh ich has sp o ken ev i l against me b e , ac

 Th e Cr e a tion f
o th e Wor l d 39

c urse d an d thy intercourse with thy w i f e be only through

,

” ”
Al l the animals in the ark said A Ine n
1
And this is the
‘

it
. .

reas o n Wh y a mass o f spittle runs from the mouth o f the

male r aven into the mouth o f the f ema l e during the act o f
copu l ation and o nly thus the f emale is impregnated
,
.
“

Altogether the raven is an unattractive animal H e is u n .

kind toward h is ow n young s o long as their bodies are not

covered with black f eath ers though as a rule ravens love,
“

“
o n e another God therefore takes the young ravens under
.
.

H is special protection From their ow n excrement mag

.

1 81
g o ts come forth which serve a s thei r food during the three
,

days that elapse a fter their bi rth until their w hite f eathers ,

tu rn black and their parents re c ognize the m a s their o ff

”
S pring an d care fo r them .

The raven h a s himsel f t o b l a me a l s o for the a w k wa r d hop

'

in his gait H e Observed the gra c eful step of the d ove and
.
,

envious o f he r tried to emulate it The out c ome was that .

he almost broke h is bones without in the least succeeding in

making himsel f resemble the d ove n ot to mention that h e ,

brought the s co rn o f the o ther animals down upon himsel f .

H is f ailure excite d thei r ridi c ule Then he decided to r e .

turn to his own original gait but in the interval he had u n ,

lea r n it and he could walk neithe r the o n e way nor the

‘
.
,

othe r p r operly His step had become a hop betwixt and

.

betw ee n Thus we s e e h o w true it is that he w h o is dis s a t

.
,

is fie d with his sma l l portion loses the little he h a s in strivin g

’
f o r more and better things
83
.

The steer is als o on e O f the animals that have su ff ered a

change i n the course o f time O riginally his fa c e was e m .

ti t ely overg ro w n w i th ha ir but n ow the r e i s n o ne on h i s nose

, ,
40 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

an d that is b e c aus e Joshu a kisse d him on his nose d u r ing th e

siege o f Jerich o J o shua was an exceedingly heavy man
. .

Horses donkeys and mules none cou l d bear him they al l

, , , ,

broke down unde r his weight What they could n ot d o the .

,

steer a c complishe d O n h is back Joshua ro de to the siege

.

o f Jericho an d i n grat i tu d e he bestowe d a kiss up o n h i s

,

“
nose .

The se rpent t oo i s other than it was at fi rst B efore th e

, , .

fall o f man it w a s the cleverest o f all animals c reated and ,

in f orm it resembled man close l y It stood upright and .

,

was O f extraordina ry size A f te r w a r df it lost the menta l

.
“ s

advantages it had possessed a s compared with o ther a n i

mals and i t degenerated physically to o ; it was deprived of
, ,

its f eet s o that it c ould not pursue other anima l s and ki l l

,

them Th e mole an d the f rog ha d to be made harmless in

.

simi l ar w ays ; the f ormer h a s no eyes else it were ir r e s is ti ,

ble and the f rog has n o teeth else n o animal in the water
, ,

were sure of its li f e .

“

While the c unning o f the se rpent wrought its ow n undo

ing the cunning o f the fox stood him in good stead in
,

many an embarrassing situation After A d am ha d com .

mitt e d the s in Of disobedien c e God de l ivered the whole o f ,

th e a nimal world into the power o f the Angel of Death and ,

H e ordered him to cast on e pair of each kind into the water .

H e and leviathan together thus have d ominion o ver a l l that

has l ife When the Angel Of Death w a s in the a ct o f e x e cut
.

ing the Divine c ommand upon the fox he began t o weep ,

bitterly The An gel o f Death aske d him th e reason o f h is

.

tears and the fox replied that he was mou rning the s a d fate
,

o f his friend At the same time he pointed to the fi gu re o f

.
42 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e Jews

y o u n o t tell me th e truth at o nce ! Then I co uld have

b r o ught my heart al o ng with me f or Ki ng Leviathan who ,

w ould have sh o we r e d h o n o rs upon me A s i t is you will .

,

surely su ff e r punishment for bringi ng me with o ut my hea r t .

”
The foxes y o u s e e he c onti nue d d o n ot carry their hearts
, , ,

aroun d with them They keep the m in a safe pla c e and

.
,

”
when they have need of them they f et c h th e m then c e The, .

fis h quickly swam to shore and lan d e d the fox s o that h e, ,

might go f or his heart NO soone r d id he feel d ry land

.

under h is feet than he began to j ump an d shout and when ,

they u rged him to g o in search o f h is heart and follow them , ,

he said : O ye f ools coul d I have f ollowed you into the

,

water i f I had not ha d my heart with me ! O r exists there

,

a c reature able to go abroad without his heart ! The fish

“ ’ 7
replied : Come come thou art f ooling us
, , Whereupon .

the fox : O ye f ools if I could play a trick on the Angel o f

,

”
Death h ow mu c h easier w a s it to make game o f you
,
! So
they h a d to return their errand undone and leviathan could
, ,

not but confirm the taunting j udgment of the f ox : In very

truth the fo x is w ise O f heart and ye are fools
, , .

ALL T HI N GS P R A I S E THE L O RD

Whateve r God c reated has value Even the animals .

”

and the inse c ts tha t seem useless and noxious at first sight
have a vocation to fulfil The snail trailing a moist streak
.

a fter it as it crawls and s o using up its vita l ity serves as a

, ,

remedy for boils The sting o f a hornet is hea l ed by the

.

house fly c rushed an d applie d t o the w o und The gnat

-
. ,

feeble c reature ta kin g i n foo d but neve r se c reting it is a

, ,

specifi c against the po i son o f a viper an d this venomous rep ,

 Th e Cr e a tion o f th e Wor l d

t ile itsel f c u r es e r upt io ns wh i le the l i za rd is the antido te to

,

the s c orp i o n .

N o t only d o a ll cr eatu r es s e rve man an d co nt ribute t o his ,

co m fo rt but also G o d tea cheth us through the beasts o f the

,

”
earth and maketh us w ise through th e f owls o f heaven
,
.

H e endowed many animals with admi r able moral qualities

as a pattern for man I f the Torah had n ot been revealed to
.

u s we might have learnt regar d f or the de c encies o f life

,

from the cat who c o vers her excrement with earth ; regard
,

for the property o f others from the ants w h o never e n ,

’
cr o a ch upon o n e an o ther s stores ; an d r ega rd f or de c orous

conduct from the coc k w h o when he desires to unite with

, ,

the hen promises t o buy he r a c loak long enough to reach

,

to the ground and w hen the hen r eminds h im o f his prom i se

, ,

he shakes his c omb an d says

'

May I be deprived of my
,

”
comb if I do not buy it w hen I have the means
, Th e .

grasshopper als o has a less on to tea c h to man A l l the sum .

mer through it sings until its belly bu r sts and death c laims
, ,

it Though it knows the f ate that awaits it yet it sings on

.
, .

SO man should do his duty t o wa r d Go d n o matter w hat th e ,

consequen c es The stork should be ta ken as a model in tw o

.

respects He guar d s the purity o f his f am i ly li f e zealously

.
,

and toward his fellows he is compassi o nate and merciful .

Even the f rog can be the tea c her of man By the side of .

the water there lives a species o f animals w hich subsist off

aquati c creatures al o ne When the f r o g n o ti c es that o ne o f
.

them is hungry he goes to it o f his ow n a cco r d an d o ff ers

, ,

himse l f as food thus f ulfilling the in j un cti o n

, I f thine ,

enemy be hu n gry give him brea d t o eat ; an d if he be th ir sty

, ,

m
gi ve him water t o drink
!
.
44 Th e L e g en ds o f th e J ews

The whole o f creation was calle d into existence by G od

unto His gl ory
1 93
and each creature has its ow n hymn o f
,

p raise wherewith to exto l the Creator Heaven and earth .

,

Paradise and hell desert and fi eld rivers and seas— a l l have
, ,

their ow n w a y o f paying homage to God The hymn of the .

earth i s From the uttermost pa rt o f the earth have w e

,
“

heard songs glory to the Righteous

,
’
The sea exc l aims .
,

Above the voices o f many waters the mighty breakers o f ,

the s e a the Lord on high is mighty

, .

Also the celestia l bodies and the elements proc l ai m the

praise o f their Creator— the s u n moon and stars the clouds , , ,

and the winds l ightning and de w The s u n says The sun

, .
,

and m o on stood sti ll in their habitation at the light of Thine ,

arrows as they went at the shining o f Thy glittering spear

,

and the stars S i ng T h ou art the Lord even Thou a l one ;

, ,

Thou hast made heaven the heaven o f heavens with a ll their , ,

host the earth and a ll things that are there on the seas and
, ,

all that is in them and Thou preservest them all ; and the
,

”
host of heaven worshippeth Thee .

Every p l ant furthermore has a song o f praise The fruit

-
, .

ful tree sings Then shal l a l l the trees o f the wood sing for
,

j oy before the Lord for He cometh ; for H e come th to j udge

, ,
t

the earth a n d the ears o f grain on the field sing The pas ,

tu res are covered with flocks ; the va ll eys also are covered
”
over with corn ; they shout for j oy they also sing ,
.

Great among singers o f praise are the birds and greatest ,

among them is the cock When God at midnight goes to the .

pious in Paradise a ll the trees therein break out into adora

,

tion and their s on g s a w a ke n the cock who begins in turn to

,
‘

praise God Seven t imes he crows each time re c iting a

.
,
 Th e C r e a tion o f th e Wor l d 45

verse The first verse is : Lift up your heads 0 ye gates ;

.
,

and be ye l ift up ye ever l asting doors and the King o f

, ,

g l ory S ha ll come in Who is the King of glory ! The Lord

.

”
strong and mighty the Lord mighty in battle
, The second .

verse : Li ft up your heads O ye gates ; yea lift them up ye

, , ,

everlasting doors and the King o f glo r y sha l l come in Who

, .

is this King o f g l ory ! The Lord o f hosts He is the King o f ,

”
glory . The third : Arise ye righteous and occupy your
, ,

sel ves with the Torah that your reward may b e abundant in
,

”
the wor l d hereafter The fou rth : I have waited for Thy
.

salvation O Lord !
,
The fifth : H ow long wilt thou sleep ,

0 sluggard ! When wi l t thou arise ou t o f thy sleep ! The

sixth : Love not sleep lest thou come to poverty ; open thine
,

”
eyes and thou shalt be satisfied with bread
, And the .

seventh verse sung by the cock runs : It is time to w o rk for

the Lord for they have made void Thy l a w
, .

The song o f the vulture is : I wi l l h i ss fo r them and ,

gather them ; fo r I have redeemed them and they sha ll in ,

crease as they have increased — the same verse with which

the bird wi l l in time to come announce the advent of the
M essiah the on l y di ff erence being that when he hera l ds the
, ,

Messiah he will s it upon the ground and sing his verse ,

while at all other times he is seated elsewhere when he sings

it
.

N o r d o the other anima l s praise God l ess than the birds .

Even the beasts o f prey give fo rt h adoration The l ion says .

The Lord S ha l l go forth as a mighty man ; He S ha ll stir up

j ealousy like a man o f war ; He shall cry yea He sha ll shout , ,

”
a l oud ; He sha ll do mighti l y against his enemies And the .

fox exhorts unto j ustice with the words : Woe unto h im

46 Th e L ege n ds o
f th e Jew s

that buil d eth h i s h o use by unrighteousness an d h is c hamber s

,

’
by inj usti c e that useth his neighb or s servi c e with o ut wages ,

”
an d giveth him not h is hire .

Yea the dumb fishes kn o w h ow t o p roc la i m the p r aise o f

,

”
their Lord The voice o f the L o rd is up o n the waters ,

they s a y the God of glory thunde r eth even the Lord upon
, ,

many waters while the f rog exclaims Blessed be the

,

”
name o f the glo r y o f H is kingdom forever an d ever !
Contemptible though they are even the r eptiles give pra i se
,

unto thei r C reato r The mouse ext o ls God with the words
.

Howbeit Thou a rt j ust in all that is co me up on me ; for

”
Thou hast dealt truly but I have done wickedly
, .An d the
cat sings : Let everyth i ng that hath b r e a th pra i se the Lord .

”
P r aise ye the Lord
1“
.
 II

A DA M

PA GE

MA N A ND

TH E A N GEL S AND THE C REATI O N O F MA N

T HE C RE A TI O N O F ADAM .

TH E S O U L O F M A N
TH E I D EAL M A N .

T H E FA LL O F S A TA N.

WO M A N
AD AM AND EV E I N PARAD I S E
TH E FA L L O F M A N
TH E P U NI S H M ENT
S A B B ATH I N H EA ! EN
AD A M s R E P ENTANCE
’

TH E BOO K O F RA Z IEL
TH E S IC K NE S S O F AD AM
’
E ! E S S T O RY O F THE FAL L .

TH E D EAT H O F AD AM
50 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Je ws

resembles the ball o f his eye : the Ocean that enc i rcles th e
earth i s like unto the white of the eye the dry la n d is the ,

i r i s Jerusalem the pupil an d the T emple the image mi r

, ,

“
r o r e d in the pupil o f the eye .

But man is more than a mere image of th i s world H e .

unite s both heavenly an d earthly qualities within himself .

In four he r esembles the ange l s in four the beasts H is , .

power o f speech his dis c riminating intelle c t his upright

, ,

w alk th e glance o f his eye—they all make an angel o f him

, .

But on the other han d he eats and d rinks s ecretes the waste
, , ,

matter in his body propagates his kind and dies l ike the
, , ,

beast o f the field Therefore Go d sai d before the creation

.

o f man : The celestials are n ot propagated but they are ,

i mmo rtal ; the beings o n earth are p ropagated but they die , .

I will create man to be the union of the tw o s o that whe n ,

he sins when he behaves l ike a beast death sha ll overtake

, ,

him ; bu t i f h e refrains from sin he shall live forever , .

“

Go d n ow bade all beings in heaven and on earth c ontribute

to the c reation o f man and He Himsel f took part in i t
, .

Thus they a l l wi l l love man and i f he should s in they wi l l

, ,

’
be interested in his preservation .

The whole w o rl d natu ra l ly was c reated for the pious the ,

Go d fearing man w hom Israel produ c es with the helpful

-
,

gu idan c e o f the l a w O f God revealed to him It was there .

“
,

fore Is rael wh o w a s taken into special consideration at the

,

time man was made All other creatures were instructed

.

to change thei r natu re i f Israel shoul d ever need their help

,

i n the course o f his history The s e a was o rdered to divide

.

be fore Moses and the heavens t o give ear to the w ords o f

,

the lea d er ; the s u n an d the m oo n w ere bid d en to stand sti l l

 A da m 51

be fo r e Joshua the r avens to feed Elija h the fire t o spa r e

, ,

the three youths in the furnace the lion to d o no ha r m to

,

Daniel the fish t o spew forth Jonah an d th e heavens t o o pe n

, ,

’
before Ezekiel .

In His modesty Go d t oo k c ounsel w i th the angels be for e

, ,

the c reat i on o f the w orl d r egarding His i ntention of making

,

man He said : For the sake o f Israel I will create the

.
,

world A s I sha l l make a division between light an d d ark

.

ness s o I will in time to c o me do f or Is r ael i n Egypt—thi ck

,

darkness sha ll be over the lan d an d the ch i ldren of Israel

,

shall have light in their d wellings ; as I shall make a separa

tion between the waters un d er the fir ma me n t and the waters
‘

above the firma me n t s o I will do for Isr ael—I w i ll d ivi d e

,

the waters for him when he crosses the Re d S ea ; a s on the

third day I shall create plants s o I will d o for Israel—I will
,

br i ng forth manna for him in the w il derness ; as I shall

create luminaries to divide day f rom night s o I will d o fo r ,

Israel— I will go before him by day in a pillar o f clou d an d

by n ight i n a pi l lar o f fire ; as I shall create the fowl o f the
a i r an d th e fishes o f the s e a so I will d o f o r Israel—I will
,

b ri ng qua i ls for him fr o m the s e a ; an d a s I shall breathe the

breath o f li fe i nto the nostrils o f man s o I will d o for ,

Israel— I will give the T or ah unto h im the tree o f li fe , .

The angels marvelled that s o mu c h l o ve shoul d be l av

is h e d upon this people o f Is r ael and God told them :
, On
the first day o f c reati o n I shall make the heavens an d stretch
,

them ou t ; s o will Israel r aise up the Taberna c le as the

dwell i n g pla c e o f My glory O n the se co n d d ay I shall put
-
.
,

a division between the ter r estr i al waters an d the heavenly

w ate r s ; s o w i ll he han g up a ve i l in the Tabe r na c le t o d iv id e
52 Th e L e ge n ds f
o th e J e ws

the Holy P l ace and the Most Ho l y O n the thi r d d ay I shall .

,

make the earth put f orth grass and herb ; s o will he in ,

obedience to My commands eat herbs on the first nigh t o f,

the Passover an d prepare showbread for Me O n the fourth

, .

day I shall make the l uminaries ; s o w i l l he make a gol den

,

ca ndlestick for M e O n the fifth day I sha l l create the

.
,

birds ; s o will he fashion the cherubim with o utstretched

wings O n the sixth day I shall create man ; s o will Israel
.
,

s e t aside a man o f the sons o f Aaron as high p r iest for My

” ° 1
service .

Accordingly the whole of c reat i on was cond i t i onal Go d

,
.

said to the things H e made on the first s ix days : I f Israe l

accepts the Torah you will continu e an d endure ; otherwise
, ,

”
I shal l turn eve rything back into chaos again The who l e .

world was thus kept in suspense and dread unti l the d ay

o f the revelation on S ina i when Israel received and accepted
,

the Torah and s o f ulfi l led the condition ma d e by Go d at th e

,

time when He c reate d the universe .

11

T H E A N GE L S AND TH E C REA TI O N O F MA N
Go din His wisdom having resolved to create man He ,

asked counsel o f a ll around Him before He proceeded to

execute H is purpose—a n example to man be he never s o ,

great and distingu ished n ot to scorn the advice of the

,

humb l e and l ow l y First Go d ca l led upon heaven and earth

.
,

then upon a l l other things He had c reated and l ast upon the
,

ange l s .

The angels we r e n o t a l l o f o n e opinion The Angel of .

Love favored the creation o f man because he would be a f ,

fe ct ion a t e a n d l o v i ng ; but the Angel o f Truth Opposed it ,

 Hda m 53

because he woul d be full o f lies An d w h i le the Angel o f

.

Justice favored it because he w ou l d p r a ctice j ustice the

,
'

Angel o f Peace opposed it because he w o u l d be quarre l some

,
.

To invalidate hi s protest G od cast the Angel o f Truth

,

down from heaven to ea rth and when the others cried out
,

against such contemptuou s treatment o f their companion ,

”
He said Truth wi l l spring back ou t of the earth
,
.

The obj ections of the angels would have been much

str onger had they kn own the whol e truth about man God
,
.

had told them only about the pious and had concealed from ,

them that there wou l d be reprobates among mankind too ,

.

An d yet though they knew but hal f the truth the ange l s
, ,

we re neverthe l ess prompted to cry o u t : What is man that ,

Thou art mindfu l of him ! And the s on o f man that Thou ,

”
visitest him ! God rep l ied : The fow l o f the ai r and the
fish o f the s e a what were they created for ! O f what avail
,

a l arder fu ll of appetizing dainties and no guest to enj oy ,

”
them ! And the ange l s could not but exclaim : O Lord ,

o u r Lord h ow exce ll ent is Thy name i n al l the earth !

, DO
” 3
as is pleasing in Thy sight .

For not a fe w o f the angels thei r opposit i on bore fatal

consequences When God summoned the band under the
.

a rchange l M ichael and asked their Opinion on the creation

,

O f man they answered scorn fu ll y

, What i s man that “
,

Thou art mind ful o f him ! And the son o f man that Thou ,

visitest him ! Go d thereupon stretched forth His little

finger and a l l were consumed by fire ex c ept thei r c hie f
,

Michael And th e same fate be fel l the band un d er the lead

.

e r s h ip o f the archangel Gabr i el ; he alone of all w a s saved

from destru c ti o n .
54 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

The th ird ban d co nsulted was commanded by the arch

angel L a b b ie l Taught by the horrible fate o f his prede
.

“
ce s s or s he warned his troop : You have seen what mis
,

fortune overtook the angels wh o said What is man that , ,

’
Thou a rt mindful o f him ! Let us have a care not to do
likewise lest we suffer the same dire punishment For Go d
, .

will not refrain from doing in the end what H e has

planne d Therefore it is advisable for us to yield to H is
.

”
wishes . Thus w arned th e ange l s spoke : Lord of the
,
“

wor l d it i s well that Thou hast thought o f creating man

, .

D O Thou c reate him according to Thy wi l l And as for us .

,

w e wi l l be h is attendants and his ministers and reveal unto ,

” ’
h im all ou r secrets Ther eupon God changed L a b b ie l s
.

name to Raphael the Rescuer be c ause his host of angels

, ,

had been rescued by his sage a dvi c e H e w a s appointed the .

Angel o f Healing who has in his safe keeping all the c elestial
,
-

”
remedies the types o f the medical remedies use d on ea rth
, .

T HE C REA TI O N O F AD A M
When at last the assent o f the ange l s to the c reation o f
man w a s given God said to Gabriel : Go and fetch Me dust
,

from the fou r corners o f the earth and I will c reate ma n ,

”
therewith Gabriel went forth to do the bidding o f the
.

Lord but the earth d rove him away an d refused to let him
, ,

gather up dust from it Gabriel remonstrated : Why 0

.
“
,

Earth dost thou n ot hearken unto th e voice o f the Lord

, ,

who founde d thee upon the waters without props o r pi l

”
lars ! Th e ea rth replie d and sai d : I am destined to
,

be c ome a curse an d to be c urse d thr o ugh man and if Go d

, ,

H ims el f d o es n o t take the dust f rom me no on e else shall ,

 A da m 65

”
ever d o i t When God heard th is H e str etche d out H is
.
, _

hand took o f the d ust of the gro un d :and c reate d th e fi rs t

,

man therew i th .

Of s e t purpose the d ust w a s taken f ro m all four corne r s

o f th e ea rth s o that i f a man f rom the east shoul d happen
,

t o di e in the west o r a man from the w est in the east the

, ,

ea rth should not dare r efuse to r eceive the d ea d and tell ,

him t o go w hen c e he was taken Whereve r a man c han c es .

to die an d wheresoeve r he is buried there will he r etu r n to

, ,

the earth from wh i ch he sp ran g Also the dust w a s o f .

,

various colors— re d black white an d green— red for the

, , ,

bloo d b l a c k for the bowels white for the b o nes an d ve i n s

, , ,

and green for the pale S kin .

At this early moment the Tor ah i nte rfe r e d S he a d .

dressed hersel f to God : O Lord o f the w o rl d ! The w orl d

is Thine Thou canst d o w ith it a s seemeth good in Thine
,

eyes B ut the man Th o u art n ow c r eating w ill be f e w o f

.

days and full o f trouble and s in I f it be not Thy pu rp ose .

to have forbearan c e and patien c e w i th him i t were bette r ,

not to call him into being G od replie d I s it for nau ght

.
,

”
I am calle d long su ff er i n g an d mer c iful !
-
1“

The grace and lovingkindnes s o f God r eveale d them s elves

pa rt ic ularly in H is t a king one spoon ful o f dust f rom the spot
where in t i me to come the alta r w o ul d stand saying I , ,

shall take man f r o m th e pla c e of atonement that he may ,

en d ure .
H 10

T HE S OU L OF MAN
The c are wh i ch God exercised in f ash i oning every d eta i l
of the body o f man is as naught in Compa ri s o n w i th H is
56 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e J e ws

solicitude for the human soul The soul o f man w a s cr e ated .

on the first day for it is the spirit o f God moving upon the
,

fa c e of th e waters Thus instead of being the last man is

.
, ,

rea l ly the first work o f creation “

.

This S pirit o r to ca l l it by its usual name the sou l o f man

, , , ,

possesses five di ff erent powers By means o f o n e o f them .

s h e escapes f rom the body every night rises up to h e aven , ,

”
a n d fetches n e w l ife thence for man .

With the sou l of Adam the sou l s o f all the gene r ations o f
men were created They are stored up in a promptuary in
.
,

the seventh o f the heavens whence they are drawn as t hey ,

”
are needed for human body after human body .

The soul and body o f man are unite d in this way : When
a woman has c onceived the Angel O f the Night Lai l ah car, , ,

ries the sperm before God and Go d de c rees what manner Of ,

human being shal l become o f it—whether it sha l l be male o r

female strong o r weak rich o r poor beauti ful o r ugly long
, , , ,

or short f at o r thin an d what a l l its other qualities sha l l be

, ,
.

Piety and wickedness alone are le ft to the determination of

man himse l f Then G od makes a S ign to the angel appointed
.

o ve r the souls saying Bring Me the s o ul s o and s o which

, ,
- -
,

i s hi d den in Paradise whose name i s s o an d s o and whose

,
- -
,

’
form i s s o-and S O The angel brings the designated soul
-
.
,

and she bows down when S he appears in the presence o f God ,

and p rostrates hersel f before Him At that moment Go d .

,

issues the command Enter this sperm ,

The sou l opens .

her mouth and pleads : O Lord o f the world ! I am we l l

,

pleased with th e world in which I have been liv i ng s ince th e

day on which Thou didst call me into being Why dost .

Thou n ow desire to have me enter this impure sperm I who ,

58 Th e L e ge n ds f
o th e J ews
’
they di d n o t observe Go d s To r ah and H is c omman dments .

There fore have they co me to this disgra c e whi ch thou seest

them su ff er Know thy d est i ny is also to depa rt from th e
.
,

w o rl d B e j ust th ere fo re an d n ot w icke d that th o u mayest

.
, , ,

”
ga in the future wo r l d .

Between m or ning a n d evening the angel ca rri es th e s o ul

ar ound an d shows her where s h e will live an d where s h e
,

w ill die and the pla c e where s h e w i ll burie d an d he takes

, ,

her through the w h o le w orld and points ou t the j ust and t h e ,

S inne r s an d all things In the evening he r epla c es her in

.
,

the womb of the m o ther an d the r e s h e r emains for nine,

months .

When the t i me a rr ives for he r to eme rg e fro m the w o mb

i nto the Open w o rl d th e same angel a d dresses the soul
, _ ,

“
The time has c ome f or thee to go abro a d into the Ope n
w o rl d The soul demurs
. Why d ost th o u w ant to make
,

”
me go fo rth into the Open world ! The angel replies
Kn ow th a t as thou w ert formed a ga i nst thy will s o n ow ,

th ou w i lt be bo rn against thy will an d against thy w i ll tho u ,

shalt die an d aga i nst thy w i ll th ou shalt gi ve ac c ount o f

,

thyself before the King o f kings the Holy O ne blessed be , ,

”
He . But the s o ul is relu c tant to le a ve he r pla c e Then .

the angel fill ip s the babe o n the n o se extingu i shes the light ,

at h is hea d an d brings him forth i nt o th e w orl d against his

,

wi l l Immediately the c hil d forgets all h is s o ul h a s seen an d

.

learnt an d h e comes i nto the worl d cr y i ng for he l o s e s a

, ,

place of shelte r an d S e c u ri ty and rest .

When the t i me a rr ives fo r man t o quit thi s w or l d th e ,

s ame angel appea r s an d as ks him Dost thou re c ogn i ze “

,

”
me ! An d man r epl i es Y e s ; but w h y d ost th o u come to
,
 A da m 59

”
me t o d ay an d th o u d i d st come o n n o o ther day !
-
, The
angel says To take thee away f rom the world fo r the time
, ,

”
of thy d epa rtu r e has a rr ived Then man falls to weeping
.
,

a n d his voice penetrates t o all ends o f the w or ld yet no ,

c reatu r e hea r s h is voi ce except the c ock alon e Man r emon

, .

strates w i t h the angel From tw o w o rl d s th o u didst take

,

me and i nto this world thou didst bring me

,
But the angel .

reminds h i m : D id I not te l l thee that th o u w ert formed

aga i nst th y w i ll and thou w ouldst be born against thy will
, ,

and against thy will thou wouldst die ! And against thy w ill
thou w i lt have to give ac c ount an d r e ckon i ng of thysel f b e
” °
fore th e H o ly O ne blessed be H e
, .
2

T H E ID EA L M A N
Like all cr ea tures formed on th e s ix d ays o f c reat i on ,

Adam c ame f r o m the hands o f the Creator fully and com

p l e t e l y devel o pe d H e.w a s n ot like a child but like a man ,

o f twenty years of age 21

The dimensions o f his body were
.

gigantic rea c h i ng fro m heaven to earth o r what amounts

, , ,

”
to the same from east t o west
,
2
Among later generations
.

o f men ,there were but f e w w h o in a measure resembled

Adam in his extraordina r y size an d physical perfections .

Sams o n p o ssesse d his strength S aul h i s neck Absalom his

, ,

hai r Asahel his fle e tn e s s o f foot U zziah his forehead Josiah

, , ,

his n o strils Ze d ek i ah his eyes an d Zerubbabel his voice

, ,
.

H ist ory sh ow s that these physi c al ex c e l len cies were no bless

ings t o many of thei r p o ssess o rs they invited the ruin of
’
almost all . S amson s extra o r d inary str ength caused his
death ; S aul k i lle d himsel f by c utting his ne c k with h i s ow n
s word ; w hile spee d ing s w iftly Asahel was pier c e d by ,
60 Th e L e ge n ds f
o th e J ews

’
Abne r s spea r ; Ab s alom was c aught up by h is h a ir in an
o ak an d thus suspended met h is death ; Uzziah w a s smitten
,

w i th leprosy upon h is forehead ; the darts that kil l ed Josiah

’
entered th ro ugh h is n o st ri ls an d Ze d ek i ah s eyes w er e ,

”
b l inded .

The general i ty of men i nher i te d a s l i ttle o f the beauty as

o f the portentous size O f their first father The fairest .

women compared with S arah are as apes c ompared with a

human being S arah s relation to Eve i s the same and
’
.
, ,

again Eve w a s but as an ape compared with Adam His

, .

person w a s s o handsome that th e very sole of h is f oot ob

”
s cu r e d the splendor o f the s u n .

H is spiritual qualities kept pa c e w i th h i s pe r sonal c harm ,

f or Go d had fashione d his soul with particular care She is .

the i mage o f God an d as Go d fills the world so the soul fills

, ,

the human body ; as God sees all things and i s seen by none , ,

s o the soul sees but cann o t be seen ; as God guides the

,

world s o the soul guides the body ; a s God in H is holiness

,

i s pure s o is th e s o ul ; an d a s God dw ells in se cre t s o d ot h

, ,

” 5
the soul .

’
When Go d was ab o ut to put a soul into Adam s clod like -

bo dy He said : At which po i nt sha l l I breathe the soul

,
“

i nto him ! Into the mouth ! Nay for he will use it to speak ,

ill o f h is fellow man Into the eyes ! With them he wi l l

-
.

wink lustfully Into the ears ! They will hearken to slander

.

and blasphemy I will breathe her into h is nostrils ; as they

.

discern the un clean an d rej ect it and take in the f ragrant , ,

s o the pious will shun s in and w i ll cleave to the w ords of

,

” ° 2
the Torah .

’
The per fections o f Adam s s oul S howe d themselves as
 A da m 61

soon as he receive d her in d ee d while he w a s still without

, ,

li fe In the hour that intervene d between breathing a soul

.

into the first man a n d his becomin g alive God revealed the ,

whole hi s t o ry o f mankin d to him H e showed him ea c h .

generation an d i ts lea d e r s ; ea c h generat i on and its prophets ;

each generati o n an d its teachers ; each generation and its
scholars ; each generation and its statesmen ; each generatio n
and its j u d ges each generation and its pious members ; each
generation and its average commonplace members ; and
,
'

each generation and its impious members The tale o f thei r .

years the number O f their days the reckon i ng o f their hours

, , ,

and the measure of their steps all w ere ma d e known unto

,

27
him .

O f his own free will Adam relinqu i she d seventy o f his

a l lotted years H is appointed span was to be a thousand
.

years on e o f the Lord s days But h e s a w that only a S ingl e

,
’
.

minute o f life w a s apportioned to the great soul O f David ,

and he made a gift o f seventy years to he r r e d ucing his own ,

”
years to nine hundred an d thirty .

The wisdom o f Adam displaye d itsel f t o g r eatest a dva n

tage when he gave names to the animals Then it appeared .

that God in c ombating the arguments of the angels that op

,

posed the c reation o f man had spoken well when He insisted

, ,

that man w ould possess more wisdom than they themselves .

When Adam was barely an hour Old Go d assembled the ,

whole world o f animals before him and the angels The .

latte r were ca l le d upon to name the di ff erent kinds but they ,

w ere not equal t o the task Adam however spoke without

.
, ,

hesitation : O Lord o f the world ! The proper name fo r

this animal is o x for this on e horse for this on e l ion for
, , ,
62 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

this one c amel . An d s o h e c alle d all i n tu rn by name su i t ,

in g the name t o the pe c uliarity of the an i mal Then Go d .

a ske d him what h is n ame w a s t o be an d he said Adam b e , ,

cause h e ha d been c reate d Out of Ad amah d ust of the ea rth , .

Again God aske d h i m H i s o wn name an d he sai d : Adonai

, , ,

Lord be cause Th o u a r t L or d o ve r all c reatures —the very

,

name God had given unt o Himse l f the name by whi ch the ,

a ngels c all H im the name that w i ll remain immutable e v

, er
”
more .But without the gi f t of the holy sp iri t Ada m co ul d ,

not have foun d names fo r all ; he was in ve r y t r uth a p rophet ,

”
an d his w is d om a p r Op h e tic quality .

The n ames of the animals were not the o nly i nh eri ta n c e

handed d o wn by Adam to the generations after him for ,

mankin d o wes all c ra f ts to him espe c ially the a rt of writing

, ,

”
and he was the invento r o f al l the seventy langu ages An d .
1

still another task he accomplished for h is des c en d ants God .

s howe d A d am the whole earth an d A d am d esignate d what

,

pla c es were t o be sett le d late r by men an d w hat pla c e s w ere ,

”
to rema i n w aste .

T H E F A LL O F S A TA N

The extraor di na r y qu alities with which Adam wa s blesse d ,

physi ca l an d spiritual as well arouse d the envy O f th e

,

angels They attempte d t o consume him with fire an d h e

.
,

woul d have perishe d ha d not the protecting han d o f God

,

r ested up o n h i m an d establ i shed p ea c e between him and the

,

”
h eavenly host In pa rti cular S atan w a s j ealous of the fi r s t
.
,

man an d his evil thoughts final ly led t o his fall A fte r

, .
.

A d am ha d been en d owe d w i th a soul G od inv i te d all the ,

angels to co me and pay h i m r eve r en c e an d homage S ata n .

,
 A da m 63

the gr eatest of the an gels i n heaven w i th twelve wings , ,

instead of s ix like all the others re fuse d to pay heed to the ,

behest o f God saying “

Thou didst create u s angel s from
, ,

the splendor o f the Shekinah and n ow Thou dost comman d ,

u s to cast ourselves down before the creature which Tho u

”
didst fashion ou t o f the dust o f the ground ! Go d a n
s w e re d Yet this dust o f the groun d has more wisdom and
,

unde r stan d ing than thou S atan demanded a trial o f w it

.

“
w ith Adam and God assented thereto saying :
, I hav e ,

cr eated beasts bird s and reptiles I shall have them all

, , .

come before thee and be fore Adam I f thou art ab l e to give .

them names I shall command Adam to show honor unto

,

thee and thou shalt rest next to the Sheki nah o f My glory
, .

But i f not and Adam calls them by the names I have

,

assign ed to them then thou wilt be subj ect to Adam and he

, ,

”
shal l have a place in My garden and c ultivate it Thus , .

spake God and He betook Himself to Paradise Satan fol

, ,

lo w ing Him When Adam behel d God he sai d to his w i fe

.
, ,

O come let us worship an d b ow down ; let us kneel be for e

,

”
the Lor d o u r Maker Now S atan attempted to assign
.

names to the animals He failed with the first tw o that pre

.

sented themselves the ox an d the cow God led tw o othe r s

, .

be fore him the c amel and the d onkey with the same result
, ,
.

Then God turned to Adam and questioned him regarding ,

th e names o f the same animals f raming His questi o ns i n ,

such wise that the first letter o f the first word w a s the same
as the first letter o f the name o f the animal stand i ng be for e
him Thus Adam d iv i ne d the proper name an d S atan w a s
.
,

forc e d to a cknowledge the superiority Of the first man .

Neve rtheless he br o ke o ut i n w il d o ut cri es that r ea c he d th e

64 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jew s

heavens and he refused to d o homage unto Adam as he had

,

been bidden The host o f angels led by him d i d likewise

.
"

in spite of the urgent representations of Michael who was ,

the first to prostrate himsel f before Adam in order to show

a good example to the other angels M ichael addresse d .

Satan : Give ad o ration to the image o f God ! But if thou

doest i t n ot then the Lor d God will break out in wrath
,

against thee Satan replie d : I f He breaks o ut in wrath

.

against me I will exalt my thr o n e ab o ve the sta r s o f Go d I

, ,

wi l l be like the Most High ! At on c e God flung S atan and

his host out o f heaven down to the ea rth and from that
, ,

”
moment d ates the enmity between Satan an d man .

W O MA N
When Adam Opened his eyes the fi rst ti me an d beheld ,

the world about h im h e broke into praise o f Go d

,
H ow ,

”
great are Thy works O Lord ! ,
But his admiration fo r
the wor l d surrounding him did n o t excee d the admiration
a ll c reatures conceived fo r Adam They t oo k him to be .

thei r creator and they all c ame to O ff er him a d oration But

, .

he spoke : Why d o you come to worship me ! Nay you ,

and I together will acknowledge the maj esty and the might
’
o f Him w h o hath c reated us all The Lord reigneth
. he ,

’
c ontinued ,
He is apparelled w i th maj esty .

And not alone th e creatu res on ea r th even the angel s ,

thought Adam the lor d o f all and they were about to sa l ute
,

”
him with Holy holy holy is the Lord of hosts when
“
, , , ,

Go d c aused sleep to fall upon him an d then the angels kne w

,

"
that he w a s but a human being .

The purpose o f the sleep that en fol d e d A d am w a s to give

66 Th e L e ge n ds f
o th e J e ws

girls are exposed to he r wicke d designs until they are twenty

days Ol d The only way to ward o ff the evil is to attach
.

an amulet bearing the names o f her three angel captors to

the children fo r su c h had been the agreement between
,

”
them .

The w o man destined to be com e the true c o mpanion o f

ma n was taken f rom Adam s body for only when like is
’
,

j oined unto like the union is indissoluble The creatio n .

O f woman from man was possible because Adam originally

’
had tw o f aces which were separated at the birth o f Eve
, .
2

When God w a s on the point o f making Eve H e said : I ,

w ill not make her from the head o f man l est she carry her ,

hea d high in arrogant pride ; not from the eye lest s h e be ,

w a nton eyed ; not from th e ear lest she be an eavesdropper ;

-
,

n ot from th e ne ck lest s h e be insolent

, n ot f rom the mouth ,

l est s h e be a tattler ; not from the heart lest she be inc l ined ,

to envy ; n ot from the hand lest s h e be a medd l er ; not from

,

the foot lest she be a gadabout I wil l form her from a

, .

”
c haste portion o f the body and to every limb and organ as
,

”
H e forme d it God said , B e chaste ! B e chaste !
, Never
t h e l e s s in spite O f the great c aution use d woman has al l
, ,

the faults Go d tried to obviate The daughters o f Zion .

were haughty and walked with stretched forth necks and

w anton eyes ; S arah w a s an eavesdropper in her o w n tent ,

when the angel spoke with Abraham ; M iriam was a ta l e

beare r a c cusing Moses ; Rachel w a s envious o f her siste r
,

Leah ; Eve put o u t her hand t o take the forbi d den fruit an d ,

”
i
D nah was a gadabout .

The physi c al formation o f w o man is far more c omplicated

“

tha n tha t of man as it must be fo r th e function of ch i l d

,
 A dorn 67

b earing , and likewise the intelligence of woman matures .

more quick l y than the inte l ligence o f man Many of the .

“

physical and psychical di ff erences between the t w o sexes

must be attributed to the f act that man w a s formed from the
gr ound and woman from bone Women need perfumes .
,

while men d o not ; dust o f the ground remains the same no

matter h ow l oh g it is kept ; flesh howeve r requires salt to
, ,

keep it in good condition The voice o f women is shrill not

.
,

s o the voice of men ; when soft viands are c ooked no sound ,

is heard but let a bone be put in a pot and at once it

, ,

crack l es A man is easily placated n ot s o a woman ; a few

.
,

drops of water su ffice to soften a c l od o f earth ; a bone stays

hard and i f it were to soak in water f o r days The man
, .

must ask the wo man to be his wi fe and not the woman the ,

man to be her husband be c ause it is man who h a s sustained

,

the loss o f his rib and he sallies forth to make goo d his loss
,

again The very di fferences between the sexes in garb and

.

socia l forms go back to the origin o f man and woman for

their r easons Woman covers her ha i r in token of Eve s
.
’

having b rought s in into the w orld ; s h e tr i es to hide her

shame ; and women precede men in a funeral c ortege b e ,

cause it w a s woman who brought d eath into the world And .

the re l igious c ommands addressed to w omen alone are c on

n e cte d with the history o f Eve Adam was the heave o ff er
.

ing o f the w orld and Eve de fil e d it A s expiation all

, .
,

women are commanded to separate a heave o ff ering from

the dough And because woman extinguished the light of
.

’ ”
man s sou l s h e is bidden to kind l e the Sabbath light
, .

Adam was first made to fa ll into a deep sleep be fore the

ri b for E ve wa s taken fro m h i s Sid e For, ha d he wat ched.
68 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jews

her cr eati on s h e w ould not have awakened love in him To

,
.

this day it is true that men do not appre c iate the charms o f
women whom they have known and obse r ved from childh ood
up Indeed G o d had c reated a wi fe for Adam before Eve
.
, ,

but he w o uld not have her because she had been made in ,

his presence Kn o w i n g w ell a l l the details o f her forma

.

ti o n he w a s r epell ed by her
,
B ut when he roused himself .
46

from his pro found s l eep an d s a w Eve before him in a l l he r

,

su rpr i sing beauty and gra c e he exclaimed This is S he w h o , ,

c aused my heart to throb many a night ! Yet he discerned

at on c e what the nature o f woman was S he would h e .
,

knew seek to c a r ry her point w ith man either by entreaties

,

and tears o r flattery and caresses

,
He said therefo r e .
, ,

“7
This is my never silent bell ! -

The wedding o f the first couple w a s celebrated with pomp

never repeated in the whole course o f history since God .

H imself befo re p r esenting her to Adam attired and adorned

, ,

Eve as a bride Yea He appealed to the angels saying :

.
, ,

Come let us perform services o f friendship for Ada m

,

and his helpmate for the world rests upon frien dl y services
, ,

and they are more pleasing in My sight than the sa cri fi c es

’
Israel will o ff er upon the altar The ange l s a c cordingl y .

su rr ounded the ma r r i age canopy an d God pronoun c ed the ,

blessings upon the bridal couple as the Hazan does under ,

the Huppah The angels then danced and played upon

.

musical instruments before Ad a m and Eve in thei r ten b rid a l

chambers o f gol d pearls an d pre c ious stone s; which God
, ,

had prepare d for them .

Adam cal l ed his wife Ishah and himself he called Ish , ,

a ba n d onin g th e n a me A d am w hi c h he had b or ne be for e t h e

,
 A da m 69

creation o f E ve for th e reason that God ad d e d His ow n

,

name Yah t o the names of the man and the woman— Yod to
Is h and H e t o Ishah— to indicate that as long as they w alked
in the ways o f God and Observed His c ommandments H is ,

name w ould shield them against all harm But if they w ent .

astray His name w oul d be w ith d rawn and instead of Ish

, ,

there would remain E s h fire a fire issuin g fro m ea c h an d

, ,

consuming the other .

AD AM AND EV E I N P A RAD I S E
The Garden o f Eden was the abode o f the first man an d
woman and the sou l s o f all men must pass through i t a fte r
,

d eath before they reach thei r final destination For the

, .

s o uls of the departed must go through seven p o rtals be fore

they arrive in the heaven Ar a b ot There the souls o f the
'

p i ous are t rans formed into angels an d there they r emain ,

forever p raising God and feasting their sight up o n the

,

g l ory o f the Shekinah The first portal is the Cave o f

.

Machpelah in the vicinity o f Pa r adise which is under the

, ,

c are and supervision of A d am I f the soul that presents .

hersel f at the po rtal is worthy h e c a ll s ou t Make room !

, ,

”
Thou a rt welcome ! The soul then pro c eeds until s h e
arrives at the gate Of Paradis e guarded by the cherubim an d
the flaming swor d I f s h e i s n ot f oun d worthy she is con
.
,

sumed by the swor d ; othe rw is e S he re ceives a pa s s bill -

,

whi c h a d mits her to the te r restrial Paradise There i n is a .

p i llar Of smoke an d light extend i ng f rom Paradise to the

gate of heaven and it depends upon th e c hara c ter o f the
,

soul whether she c an climb upward on it an d reach heaven .

The third por tal Zebul is at the entran c e o f heaven I f the

, , .
70 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

soul is worthy the guard Opens the porta l and admits her
,

to the heaven l y Temp l e Michae l presents her to God and

.
,

condu c ts her to the seventh portal A r a b ot within which

'

, ,

the soul s o f the pious cha n ged to angels praise the Lo rd

, , ,

”
and feed on the gl ory o f the Shekinah .

In Paradise stand the t ree of life an d the tree o f knowl

edge the latter forming a hedge about the former O n l y
, .

he w h o h a s c leared a path for hims el f through the tree of

knowledge c an c ome c l ose to the tree o f l ife which i s so ,

huge that it wou l d take a man five hundred years to tra

verse a distance equal to the diameter o f the trunk a nd no ,

l ess vast is the S pace shaded by its crown o f branches From .

beneath it flows forth the wate r that irrigates the whol e

earth parting thence into four streams the Ganges the
, , ,

Nile the Tigris and the Euphrates

, , But i t w a s on l y dur
.
“

ing the days o f creation that the rea l m o f p l ants l ooked t o

th e w aters o f the earth for nourishment Later on God .

made the plants dependent upon the rain the uppe r waters ,
.

The clouds rise from ea rth to heaven where water is poured

,

i nto them as f rom a conduit Th e plants began to fee l the

.
52

e ff e c t o f the water only after Adam was created Although .

they had been brought forth on the third day Go d did not ,

permit them to sprout and appear above the surface o f the

earth until Adam prayed to Him to give food unto them
, ,

"3
for God longs for the prayers o f the piou s .

Paradise being such as it w a s it was natura l ly not me c es

, , ,

sa ry for Adam to work the land True the Lord God put
.
,

the man into the Garden Of Eden to dress it and to keep it ,

but that only means he is to study the Torah there and fu l fi l

”
the c ommandments o f God The r e w ere especia ll y six
.
 A da m 71

c omman d ment s ic h
eve ry human be i n g is exp e cte d t o
wh
heed : man should not worship idols ; nor blaspheme God ;
nor commit murder n or in c est nor theft and robbe r y ; an d
, ,

a l l generations have the d uty o f i nstituting measu r es of l a w

and o rder O ne more su ch co mman d there w a s but i t w a s

.
“5
,

a tempora ry i n j unction Adam was to eat only the green

.

things of the field But the prohibition against the

.

’
use o f animals for food w a s revoked in Noah s ti me after ,

the deluge Nevertheless Adam w a s not c ut off f r o m th e

.
,
L

enj oyment o f meat dishes Though he w a s n o t pe rmitted

.

to s l aughter animals for the appeasing of his appetite the ,

ange l s b r ought h i m meat and wine serving him like atten d ,

And as the angels m i nistere d t o h i s w ants s o also

66
ants .
,

the animals They were w holly un d e r his do min io n an d

“
,

thei r food they took ou t o f his hand and o ut o f E ve s ’

In .
“

all respects the animal w o rl d ha d a di ff e r ent r elati o n to

,

Adam from their relation to h is des c endants Not only d i d .

”
they know the language o f man but they r espe c te d the ,

i mage o f Go d and they feared the first human couple all

, ,

”
o f wh i ch changed into the opposite after the fall o f man .

T H E FALL O F M A N
Am o ng the animals the serpent was notable Of all of .

them he had the most excellent qualities in some of whi c h ,

he resemb l ed man Like man he stoo d upright upon tw o

.

feet and in he i ght he w a s equal to the camel Ha d it not

, .

been for the fa l l o f man w h i ch brought misfo r tune t o them

, ,

too on e pair O f serpents woul d have su ffi c ed to per form all

,

the w o rk man has to do an d besides they would have s up

, , ,

p l ied him with silve r gol d gems an d pearls A s a matte r

, , , .
72 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jew s

of fa ct i t was the ve r y ability o f the serpent that le d to the

,

ruin Of man an d h is ow n ruin His superior menta l gi fts .

cause d h i m t o be co me an infidel It likewise explains his .

envy of man espe ci ally o f his c onj ugal re l ations Envy

, .

made him meditate ways and means o f bringing abo ut the

death o f A d am H e was too w ell a c quainted with the
.
60

chara c te r of the man to attempt to exe r cise tri cks o f p e r s u a

sion upon him an d he appr o ached the woman knowing that
, ,

women are beguile d easily Th e c onversation with Eve was

.

cunni ngly planne d s h e c oul d n o t but be caught in a tr ap

, .

The se rpent began I S it true that Go d hath said Ye S hall

, ,

” ”
n o t eat o f every tree in the gar d en ! We may rej oined ,

Eve , eat o f the fruit o f all the trees in the garden ex c ept ,

that which is in the midst o f the garden and that w e may ,

not even touch l est we be stricken with d eath

, She spoke .

thus be c ause in his zeal to guar d her against the trans

,

gressing of the Div i ne command Ada m had forbidden Eve ,

to tou ch the tree though God had menti one d only the eating
,

o f the f r uit . It r emains a truth w hat the proverb says , ,

Better a wall ten hands high that stands than a wall a ,

” ’
hund r ed ells high that cannot stan d It w a s Adam s e x a g .

g e ra tion that a ff or d e d the serpent the possibility o f p e r s u a d

ing E ve to taste o f the forbidden fruit The serpent pushed .

E ve aga i nst the t r ee and said : Thou seest that touching

,

the tr ee has n o t caused thy d eath A s l i ttle will it hu rt thee

.

to eat the f ruit o f the tree Naught but malevolen c e has

.

p rompte d the prohibition for as soon as ye eat thereo f ye

, ,

shall be a s Go d A s H e c reates and dest roys worl d s S o will

.
,

ye have the p o w er to c reate an d destr o y As He doth slay .

an d r ev i ve s o w ill ye have the powe r t o sla y and revive

, .
“
74 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jews

itsel f
.
“
S ca r ce had s h e finished when she s a w the Angel of ,

Death before her Expecting her end to come immediately

.
,

s h e resolved t o make A d am eat o f the f orbidden fruit too , ,

lest h e espouse another w ife a fte r her death It required .

"5

tears and lamentations on he r part to prevail up on Adam to

take the baleful step Not yet satisfie d s h e gave of the fruit
.
,

to all other l iving beings that they too might be subj ect to
, , ,

”
death . All ate and they all are mortal with the exception
, ,

o f the bird ma l h am who refused the fruit with the words :

, ,

Is it n o t enough that ye have sinned against God and have ,

brought death to others ! M ust ye still come to me and seek

’
to persuade me into disobeying God s c ommand that I may ,

eat and die thereof ! I wi l l not do your bidding A b eav .

e n l y voi c e w a s heard then to s a y to Adam and Eve : To

you was the command given Ye did not heed it ; ye did .

transgress it and ye did seek to persuade the bird ma l ham

, .

H e was steadfast and he feared Me although I gave him n o

, ,

comman d Therefore he shall never taste of death neithe r

.
,

he nor h is des c en d ants— they all shall live fo r ever in

” 67
Pa radise .

Adam spoke to Eve : Didst thou gi ve me o f the tree o f

wh i ch I forbade thee to eat ! Thou didst give me thereof ,

’
for my eye s a re opened and the teeth in my mon th are s e t
,

on edge .Eve ma d e answer A S my teeth were set o n,

“

”
edge s o may the teeth o f al l living beings be s e t o n edge
e"
, .

The first result w a s that Adam and Eve became naked .

B e fore thei r bodies had been overlaid with a horny skin

, ,

and enve l oped with the clou d o f glory No sooner had they .

violated the command given th e ni than the c l oud o f glory

and the horny skin dropped from them and they stood there ,
 A da m 75

”
in their nakedness and ashamed , A dam tried to gather .

l eave s from the trees to cover part of their bodies but he ,

heard o n e tr ee after the other s a y : There is the thief that

deceived his Creator Nay the foot o f pride sha ll not come
.
,

against me nor the hand o f the wicked touch me Hence

,
.
,

”
and take no l e a v e s f r om me ! . O nly the fig tre e granted -

h im permission to t ake o f its leaves That w a s because the .

fig w a s the forbidden f ruit itse l f A d am had the same ex .

p e r ie n c e as that prince who seduced on e o f the maid ser

-

vants in the pa l a c e When the king his father chased hi m

.
, ,

out he vainly sought a refuge with the other maid servants

,
-
,

but on l y she who had c aused his disgra c e would grant him
assistan c e .

T H E P U N I S H ME N T
As long as Adam stood naked casting about for mea ns o f
,

escape f rom his embarrassment God di d n o t appear unt o ,

him for on e should not strive to see a man in the hour o f

,

’
his disgr ace He w aited until Adam and Eve had covere d
.

themselves with fig leaves But even before God S poke to

.
"1

him Adam knew what was impending He heard the angels

, .

announce G o d b e ta ke th Himse lf unt o th o se that dwell in

,

Paradise . He heard more too He heard what the angels

, .

were saying to on e another about his fall and what they ,

were saying to God In astonishment the angels exclaimed :

.

“
What ! He still wa l ks about in Paradise ! He is n o t yet
”
d ead ! Whereupon G o d : I said to him In the d ay that ,

’
thou eatest thereof thou shalt sure l y die !
, Now ye kn o w ,

not what manner o f day I meant—on e o f My days o f a

thousand years or on e o f you r days I will give him on e o f
, .
76 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e Jews

My days H e shall have nine hundred and th i rty yea r s t o

.

” ’ 7
live and seventy to leave to his descendants
, .

When Adam an d Eve heard God approachin g they h id ,

am ong the trees—w h i ch w o uld n ot have been po ssible be fore

’
th e fall B efore h e co mmitted h i s tr espass Adam s height
.
,

was f rom th e heavens to the ea r th but afterward it was ,

”
reduced t o on e hun d red ells Another consequen c e of his
.

s in w a s the fear A d am f elt when he hear d the voice o f G od ;

before his f a l l it had not disquiete d him in the least Hen ce .

"

it was that when A d am said I hea r d Thy voice in the

,

”
garden and I w a s afraid God replied
, ,
Aforetime thou ,

! ” 7“
wert not a fraid and n ow thou art a fraid
,

God refra i ne d f rom repr o a c hes at first S tanding a t the .

gate of Pa r adise He but asked Where art thou Ada m!

,
”
, ,

Thu s d id Go d desire to teach man a r ule o f polite behavior ,

never t o enter the house o f anothe r with o ut announ c ing him

”
sel f. It c annot be denied the w ord s Where art thou !
“
,

were pregnant with mea ning They w e r e i ntended to bring .

home t o Adam the vast di ff erence between his latter and

his former state—between h is supernatural size then an d
h is shrunken size n ow ; bet w een the lordship of God over
him then an d the lordship o f the se rpent ove r him n ow
"
.

At the same time God wante d t o give A d am the Opportunity

,

o f repentin g of his s in and he woul d have received Di vine

,

forgi veness for it But s o far from repenting o f it A d am

.
,

slande re d Go d and uttered blasphemies against Him

,
.
“

When God asked him Hast thou eaten o f the tree whereof
,

”
I commanded thee thou shouldst not eat ! he di d not con
fess his sin but ex cused himsel f with the words : O Lor d
,

o f the w o rl d ! A s l o ng as I w a s alone I d id not fa l l int o ,

 £4da m 77

s in , but a s s oo n as th i s w o man came t o me sh e tempte d me , .

God replied : I gave her unto thee as a help an d thou a r t ,

ung rate f ul when thou a ccu s e s t her saying S h e gave me of, ,

’
the tree Th o u shouldst not have obeye d he r fo r th o u a rt
. ,

the hea d an d n o t ,
Go d w h o kn o ws all things ha d
, ,

foreseen e xactly th i s an d H e ha d not c reate d E ve until

,

Adam ha d aske d H i m f or a helpmat e s o that he might n ot ,

have apparentl y good reas o n for r e p roa c hing Go d w i th

having created w oman .

A s Adam tr i e d to shi f t the blame for h i s mis d eed from

himsel f s o also Eve S he like he r husban d di d not con
, .
, ,

fess her transgr ession and pray for par d on; w h ich woul d
’

”
have been granted t o her Gra c ious as G o d i s He di d n o t
.
,

pronounce the doo m upon A d am an d Eve until they S h o we d

themselves sti ff necked -
Not s o w i th the serpent God
. .

inflicted the c urse up o n the serpent without hearing h is d e

f e n s e ; fo r the S erpent is a v i lla i n and the w i cke d a r e go od
,

debate r s I f God had questione d h i m the serpent w o ul d

.
,

have ans w e r e d : Thou di d st give them a co mmand an d I ,

”
d id c ont ra d i ct i t Why d i d they obey me an d not Thee !
.
,

The r e fo r e G o d d i d n o t ente r into an a r gument w i th the s e r

pent but straightway d e cr ee d the following ten pun i sh
,

ments : The mouth of the serpent w a s c lose d and his powe r ,

o f spee c h taken/ a w ay ; h i s han d s an d f eet were hacke d off

the ea r th wa s gi ven him as food ; he must su ff er great pa i n
in sl o ugh i n g h i s S k i n ; enm i ty i s t o exist between him an d
man ; i f he eats the c h oic est v i an d s o r d rinks the sweetest,

beve rages they all c hange i nto dust i n h i s m o uth ; the p r e g

,

nan cy of the f emale serpent lasts seven yea r s ; me n shall

s ee k to k i ll h i m a s S oo n a s they c at c h S i h t of h im; e ve n in
g
78 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Jew s

the f utu r e wor l d w he r e all beings will be blessed he will not

, ,

escape the punishment decreed for him ; he wi ll vanish from

o u t o f the Holy Land i f Israel wa l ks in the ways of God
“
.

Fu rthe rmor e G o d spake to the serpent : I created thee

,

to be kin g o ve r all animals c attle and the beasts o f the field

,

alike ; but thou wast n ot satisfied Therefore thou shalt be .

cursed above all c attle an d above every beast o f the field .

I c reated thee o f upright posture ; but thou wast not satisfied .

There fore thou shalt go upon thy belly I cr eated thee to .

eat the same food a s man ; but thou w ast not satisfied .

Therefore thou shalt eat dust all the days o f thy life Thou .

didst seek to cause the death o f Adam in order to espouse

h is wi f e Therefore I wi l l put enmity between thee and the
.

H ow true it is— h e who lusts after what is not

’
woman .

his due not only does he not attain h is d esi r e but he als o
, ,

loses what he h a s !
A s a ngels ha d been present w hen th e d oo m w a s p ro
n ou n ce d upon the serpent—for God had c onv o ked a S anhe

d ri n o f seventy on e angels when H e s a t in j udgment upon

-

h im—s o the execution o f the decree against him was e n

truste d t o angels They d escended from heaven an d
.
,

c hoppe d off h is hands and feet His su ff erin g w a s s o great

.

that h is agonized c ries c o uld be hear d f r o m one end o f th e

”
worl d t o the othe r .

The ve rd i c t against E ve als o c onsisted of ten c u r se s ,

the e ff ect o f whi c h i s noticeable to this day in th e physica l ,

S p i ritual and social state o f woman It was n o t God H im

, .
35

sel f who announced her fate to Eve The only woman with .

whom God ever spoke was Sarah In the c ase o f Eve H e .

,

ma d e o f the se rv ic es of an i nte r p r ete r “

us e .
 A da r n 79

Fina l ly also the punishment o f Adam was tenfold : he

,

lost his celestial clothing— God strippe d it off h im; in s o r

r o w he was t o earn his daily bread ; the foo d he ate w a s to

be turned fro m good into bad ; his children were t o wande r

from land to land ; his body w a s t o exude sweat ; he w a s to
have an evil inc l ination ; in death h is b o dy was to be a p r ey
o f the worms ; animals were to have p o wer over him in that ,

they could slay him ; his days we r e t o be fe w and fu l l o f

troub l e ; in the en d he was to render a cco unt of al l h is doings
” 7
o n earth .

These three sinne r s were not the o nly o nes to have pun
i s h me n t dealt o u t to them The earth fare d no better for it
.
,
.

had been guilty o f various misdemeanors In the first place .

,

it had not entire l y heeded the comman d o f Go d given on ‘

”
the third day to bring forth tree o f fruit
, What God had .

desired w a s a tree the wood o f which was to be as pleasant

to the taste a s the fruit thereof The ea rth however pro
.
, ,

” 8
du ce d a tree bearing fruit the tree itsel f not being edible
, .

Again the earth did not do its w h o le duty in connection

,

with the s in o f Adam God had appo inted the s u n and the
.

ea rth witnesses to testi fy against Adam i n case h e c o m

mitte d a trespass The s u n acc o rdingly had gr o wn dark
.
, ,

the instant Adam became guilty o f disobe dience but the ,

’
earth not kno w
, ing h ow to take n o tice of Adam s fal l dis ,

regarded it a l toge th e r . The earth also had to suff e r a ten

so

fo l d p u ms h me n t : independent before s h e w a s he r e a fter to

,

wait to be watered by the rain from above ; sometimes the

fruits o f the earth fai l ; the grain she brings forth is stricken
with b l asting and mi l dew ; she must produ c e all sorts of
noxious vermin ; then c eforth s h e w a s to be divi d e d i nt o va l
80 Th e L e gen ds f
o th e J ew s

leys and mountains ; sh e must gr ow bar r en t rees bearing ,

n o f ruit ; thorns and thistles spr o ut from her ; much is sown

i n the earth but little is harvested ; in time to come the earth
,

will have to disclose her blood an d shall no mor e c over he r

,

slai n; an d fi nally sh e shall o ne d ay

, , w a x o l d like a
, ,

”
garment .

When Adam hea r d the w o r d s Thorns and thistles shall

,

”
it b r i ng forth con c erning the ground a sweat broke out
, ,

on his face and he said : What ! S hall I and my cattle

,

”
eat from the same manger ! The L o r d had mercy upon
him and spoke
, In vie w of the sweat o f thy fa c e thou
, ,

”
shalt eat bread .

The earth i s n ot the o nly thing c reate d that was ma d e t o

su ff er th rough the s in o f Adam The same fate overt oo k .

the m o on When the serpent seduced Adam and Eve an d

.
,

expose d their nakedness they wept bitter l y and with them

, ,

wept the heavens and the s u n and the stars and all c reate d
, ,

beings and things up t o the throne o f G od The very .

angels and th e c e l estial beings were grieved by th e trans

gr e s s ion o f Adam The moon alone laughed w herefore
.
,

God gr e w wroth and obscured her light Instea d o f shin

, .

in g steadily l ike the s u n all the length o f the d ay s h e gr ows

, ,

”
ol d qui ckly and must be born an d reborn again and again
, , .

The ca ll o us c on d u c t o f the moon o ff en d e d God not only by ,

w a y o f c ontrast with the compassion o f all other creatures ,

but be c ause He H imself was f ull o f p i ty f o r Adam and his

w i fe . H e made c lothes fo r them o ut o f the skin stripped
”
f rom th e serpent H e wou l d have d o ne even more He
. .

wo uld have permitte d them to remain i n Paradise i f only ,

they had been penitent But they r efuse d to repent and

.
,
82 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jews

ings unt o Go d and hi s prayers be accepted before the Lo rd

, .

Thereupon the angels c ame before God and spake : King ,

unto everlasting command Thou us to give Adam sweet

,

scente d spi c es of Paradise and God hear d their praye r , .

Thus Ada m gathe r ed sa ff ron nard c a l amus an d Cinnamon , , , ,

an d all s orts o f seeds besides for his sustenan c e Laden with .

”
th es e Adam and Eve left Paradise an d came upon earth
, , .

They had enj oyed the splendors o f Paradise but a br ie f

span o f time—but a fe w hours It was in th e first hour of the .

S ixth day o f creation that God conceive d the idea o f creating

man ; in the se cond hour H e took counsel with the ange l s ;
,

in the thi r d H e gathered the dust for the body o f man ; in

,

the f ou r th H e formed Adam ; in the fifth H e c lothed him

, ,

with skin ; in the sixth the soulless S hape was complete s o

, ,

that it c oul d stand upright ; in the seventh a soul was ,

breathe d int o it ; i n the eighth man was l ed into Paradise ; ,

in the ninth the Divine c o mmand prohibiting the fruit o f

,

the tree in the mi d st o f the garden was issued to him ; in

the tenth he transgressed the comman d ; in the eleventh
, ,

he w a s j udged ; and in the twelfth hour o f the d ay he was ,

cast out of Paradise in atonement for his s in

,
.

This event ful day w a s the first o f the month of Tish ri .

Therefore God S poke to Adam : Thou shalt be the proto

type of thy chil d ren As thou hast been j udged by M e on
.

this day and absolved s o thy children Israel shall be judged

,

’
by Me on this Ne w Year s Day an d they s h a l l be ,

”
absolve d .

Each day o f creation bro ught forth three th i ngs : the fir st ,

heaven ea rth an d light ; the second the fir ma me n t Ge

, , , ,

h enna and the angels ; the thir d t r ee s he rbs an d Para d ise ;

, , , ,
 A da m 83

the fourth s un moon and stars ; and the fifth fishes birds
, , , , , ,

and levia than A S God intended to rest on the seventh day

.
,

the Sabbath the sixth day had to do d o uble duty It br o ught

,
.

fo rth s ix cr eations : Adam Eve c attle r eptiles the beasts o f

, , , ,

the field and dem ons The dem o ns were made sh o rtly be fore
, .

the Sabbath c ame i n and they are therefore in corporeal

, , ,

”
S pirits— the Lord had n o time t o create bodies fo r them .

In the twilight between the sixth day and the S abbath

, ,

t e n creations w ere b r ought fo r th : the r ainbow i nvisible ,

’
until Noah s time ; the manna ; watersp r ings when c e Israel , ,

d rew water for his thirst in the d esert ; the wr i ting upon the
tw o tables of stone given at S inai ; the pen w i th w hi c h the

w ri ting was written ; the t w o tables themselves ; the m o uth

o f B a l a a m s s h e a s s ; the grave o f Moses ; the c ave in which
’ -

Moses and Elij ah dwelt ; and the ro d of Aa ro n w ith its ,

blossoms and its r ipe almon d s .

S A BB A TH IN H EA! EN
B e for e the w or l d created there w a s n one t o praise
wa s ,

God an d kn o w H im Therefore He create d the angels and

.

the holy Ha yyot th e heavens an d their host and A d am as

, ,

well They all w e r e to praise an d glorify the i r Creator

. .

During the week o f c reation howeve r there was n o s u i table

, ,
i
time t o p r ocl a im the S plendor and praise o f the Lord O nly .

o n the Sabbath w hen all creat i on reste d the beings on earth

, ,

and in heaven all together broke into song an d adorati on

, ,

when God as c en d ed His throne and sate upon It w a s

the Throne of J o y upon which H e sate and He had a l l the ,

ange l s pass before H im— the angel o f the w ater the angel ,

o f the ri ve r s th e an gel of the m o unta i n s the an gel of th e

, ,
84 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Je ws

hills the angel o f the abysses the an gel o f the d e s e r ts the

, , ,

angel of the s u n the angel of the moon the angel of the

, ,

P le i ades the angel o f O rion the angel of the he rbs the

, , ,

a ngel o f Pa r a d is e the angel o f Gehenna the angel of the

, ,

t rees th e angel of th e r epti les the angel of the w i ld beasts

, , ,

the angel of the do me s ti c animals the angel of the fishes , ,

th e angel o f the loc u s ts the angel o f the bi r ds the Chi e f

, ,

angel o f the angels the angel o f ea c h heaven the chi ef

, ,

angel o f each division o f the heavenly hosts th e chie f angel ,

o f the holy Ha yyot the chief angel o f the cherubim the

, ,

chie f angel o f the ofa n im and all the other splen d id terribl e
, , ,

and mighty angel c hie fs They all appeared be fore God .

w ith g r eat j oy lave d in a strea m o f j oy and they rej oi c ed

, ,

an d dance d an d san g and extolled the Lor d w ith many

,

p r aises an d many i nstruments The ministering angels b e .

”
gan , Let the glo ry o f the Lord endure foreve r !
“
And
the rest o f the angel s t o ok up the son g with the w ords Let ,

” ’
the Lord I CJOI CC I n H is w orks !
'

A r a b ot the s eventh ,

heaven w a s fil l e d w ith j oy an d glor y S plen d or an d strength

, , ,

power an d might and pride an d magnifi c en c e an d gr an d eur ,

p rais e and j ubilat i on song and gla d ness s tea df astnes s an d

, ,

r i ghte o usness honor and adoration

, .

The n God bade the Angel of the S abbath S eat h im s el f

up o n a thr o n e of g l o ry a n d He br o ught before him the
,

chie fs o f the angels o f all th e heavens and all the abysses ,

and bade them dance an d rej oice say i ng S abbath it is , ,

”
unto the L o rd ! an d the exalted princes o f the heavens r e
s p on de d Unto the Lord it is Sabba th ! Even Adam w a s
,

pe r mitted t o as c end to th e highest heaven t o take pa rt in ,

the r ej oi cing over the Sabbath .

86 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je w s

In this w a y A d am w a s res c ued from the fi r es of hell the ,

meet punishment fo r his sins and in gratitude he composed

,

a psalm in honor o f th e S abbath whi c h David later embo d ied

,

“
in h is Psalter .

Stil l another opportunity was given t o Ad am to lea rn an d

appreciate the value o f the S abbath The c elestial light .
,

whereby A d am could survey the worl d f rom end to end ,

should p r operly have been made to disappear i mmediately

a fter h is s in B ut ou t o f consideration for the Sabbath Go d
.
,

ha d let this light continue to shine and the ange l s at s u n , ,

dow n on the sixth day i ntoned a song o f praise and thanks

,

gi v i ng to God for the radiant l ight shining through the

,

night O nly with the going ou t of the S abbath day the

.

celestial light c eased to the consternation of Adam w h o

, ,

fear ed that the serpent wou l d attack him in the dark But .

God illumined his understanding and he learned to rub two,

“
stones against each other and produce light f or his needs .

The celestial l ight was but one o f the s even precious gi fts
enj oyed by Adam before the fall and to be granted to man
again only in the Messiani c time The others are the re .

s p l e n de n ce o f h is c ountenance ; life eternal ; his tall stature ;

the fruits o f the soil ; the fruits o f the tree ; and the l umi
na r ies o f the s ky the s un and the moon for in the world to
, ,

come the light o f the moon S hall be as the light o f the sun ,

and th e light of the sun shall be sevenfol d .

“

AD AM S R E P EN TA N CE
’

Cast ou t o f Pa r adise Adam and Eve bui l t a hut for them

,

selves and for seven days they s a t in it in great distress

, ,

mou rn ing and lamenting At the end o f the seven d ays tor
.
,
 A da m 87

me n te d by hunger they came forth and sought foo d

,
. F or
seven other days Adam j ourneyed up and down in the lan d
, ,

looking for such dainties as he had enj oyed in Paradise In .

vain ; he found nothing Then Eve spoke to her husband : .

My lord if it please thee slay me Mayhap God will then

, ,
.

take thee back into Paradise fo r the Lord God became ,

”
wroth with thee only on account of me But A d am re .

j e cte d her plan with abhorrence and both went forth again ,

on the search for food Nine days passed and still they
.
,

found naught resembling what they had ha d in Paradise .

They s a w only food fit for cattle and b easts Then Adam .

p r Op os e d : Let us do penance mayhap the Lo r d G o d will ,

forgive us and have pity on us and give us something to s u s ,

3,
tain ou r li fe Knowing that Eve was not vigorous enough
.

t o undergo the mo r tifica t ion o f the flesh which he purposed

to inflict upon himsel f he prescribed a penance for her di f
,

f e r e n t from his ow n H e said to her : Arise and go to the

.
,

Tigris take a stone and stand upon it in the deepest part of

,

the r iver where the water will rea c h as high as thy ne c k

, .

And l et no S peech issue forth from thy mouth for w e are u n ,

w orthy to suppli ca te God ou r lips are unclean by reason of,

the forbidden fruit o f the tree Rema i n in the w ate r for .

”
thirty seven days
-
.

For himsel f Adam o rdaine d forty days of f ast i ng whil e ,

he stood in the ri ver Jordan in the same way as Eve w a s

to take up her stand in the waters of the Ti gris After he .

had adj usted th e stone in the middl e o f the J orda n an d

'

mounted it with the waters surg ing up to his ne c k he sai d :

, ,

I adj ure thee O thou water of the Jor d an ! A fflict thysel f

,

w ith me and gather unto me a l l swimming creatures that

,
88 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jew s

live in thee Let them surround me and sorrow with me and

.
,

let them not beat their ow n breasts with grief but let them ,

”
beat me Not they have sinned only I alone !
. Ve ry soon
,

they all c ame the dwellers in the Jordan and they e n co m

, ,

passe d him and f rom that moment the water o f the Jordan
,

st o od still and c ease d from flowing .

The penance which Adam an d Eve laid upon themselves

awakene d m i sgi v i ngs i n S atan He f eare d Go d m ight f o rgi ve
.

their s in and therefore essayed to hinder Eve i n her purpose

, .

A fter a lapse o f eighteen days h e appeared unto her i n the

guis e o f an angel As though in distress on a c count of her
.
,

h e began to cry saying : Step up o u t o f the river an d

, ,

weep no longer The Lord Go d hath heard your mourning

.
,

and you r penitence hath been accepted by H im All the .

angels suppl icate d the Lord in your behalf and H e hath ,

sent me to fetch you ou t o f the wate r and gi ve you the suste

nan c e that you enj oyed in Paradise and for which you have ,

been mourning ’
E n feebled as S he was by her penances and
.

mortifica tion s Eve yielded to the solicitations of Satan and

, ,
'

he led he r to where her h u s b a n d w a s Adam recognized him .

at on c e and amid tears he cried out : 0 Eve Eve where

, , ,

n ow is thy penitence ! H ow couldst tho u let our adversary

s e d u c e thee again— him w h o robbed us o f our soj ourn in
”
Paradise and a l l spiritua l j oy ! Thereupon Eve too bega n , ,

to weep and cry ou t : Woe unto thee O Satan ! Why ,

s t r iv e s t thou a gainst us without any reason ! What have w e

”
done unto thee that thou shouldst pursue u s s o craftily !
With a deep fetched sigh S atan told them h ow that Adam
-
, ,

o f whom he had been j ealous had been the r eal reason of his
,

fa l l H aving lost his glory through him he ha d intr i gue d t o

.
,

have him driven fr om Paradise .

9 0 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

T HE B OO K O F R A Z IE L
’
A fte r Adam s expulsion from Paradise he prayed to God ,

in these words : O Go d Lord o f the worl d ! Thou didst

,

create the w ho l e world unto the honor and glory o f the

Mighty O ne and Th o u didst as w a s pleasing unto Thee
, .

Thy kingdom i s unto all eternity and Th y reign unto all ,

g enerati o ns . Naught i s hidden from Thee and naught is ,

c on c ealed from Thine eyes Thou didst create me as Thy

.

handiw o rk and didst make me the ruler over Thy creatures

, ,

that I might be the chief o f Thy works But the cunning .

,

a c curse d serpent seduced me with the tree o f desire and

lusts yea h e sedu c ed the wife o f my bosom But Thou

, , .

d idst not make known unto me what sha l l befall my children

and the generations after me I know well that no human .

being c an be righteous i n Thine eyes and what i s my ,

strength that I should step before Thee with an impudent

fa c e ! I have no mouth wherewith to speak and no eye
w herewith t o s e e for I did s in and commit a trespass and
, , ,

by reason o f my sins I w a s driven forth from Paradise I

, .

must plough the earth whence I was taken and the o ther in ,

habitants of the earth the beasts no longer as on c e stan d

, , , ,

in awe an d f ear o f me From the time I ate o f the tree o f

.

knowledge o f g oo d and evi l wisdom departed from me and, ,

I am a fool that knoweth naught an ignorant man that ,

u n de r s ta n de th not Now O merciful and gracious God I

.
, ,

p ray to Thee to turn again Thy compassion to the head o f

Thy works to the spirit which Thou didst insti l into him
, ,

and the s o ul Thou didst breathe into him Meet me with s .

Thy gra c e for Th o u art gracious Sl ow to anger and fu l l o f

, , ,

l o ve 0 that my praye r w o uld r ea c h unto the throne o f

.
 A da m 9 1

Thy glory and my supp l ication unto the thr o ne o f Thy

, -

mercy and Thou wouldst inc l ine to me with lovingkindness

,
.

May the words o f my mouth be acceptab l e that Thou turn ,

n ot away from my petition Thou wert from ever l asting

.
,

and Thou wi l t be unto everlasting ; Thou wert king an d ,

Thou wi l t eve r be king Now have Thou mercy upon the

.
,

work o f Thy hands Grant me knowledge and understand

.

ing that I may know what shall befall me and my posterity

, , ,

and all the generations that come after me and what sha l l ,

befa ll me on every day and in every month and mayest ,

Thou not withhold f rom me the help of Thy servants an d of

”
Thy ange l s .

O n the third day after he had o ff ered up this pra yer while ,

he was sitting on the banks o f the river that flows forth out
o f Paradise there appeared to him in the heat o f the day
, , ,

the angel Raziel bearing a book in his hand The angel

, .

addressed Adam thus : O Adam why art thou s o faint ,

hearted ! Why art thou distressed and anxious ! Thy

w ords w ere heard at the moment w hen thou didst utter thy
supp l ication and entreaties and I have received the charge
,

t o teach thee pure words and deep unde r standing to make ,

thee wise through the contents o f the sacre d book in my

hand to know what wi l l happen to thee until the day o f thy
,

death And all thy descendants an d all the late r genera

.

tions i f they wi l l but read this book in purity w i th a devout

, ,

hea rt and an humble m i nd an d obey its precepts will b e

, ,

come like unto thee They t o o wil l foreknow what things

.
, ,

shall happen and in what m onth and on what day or in what

,

night A l l will be manifest to them— they will know an d

.

understand whether a calam i ty will come a fam i ne or w il d ,

92 Th e L e g en ds o f th e J e ws

bea s t s flood s o r d rought ; whether there w i ll be ab un dan c e

,

o f grain o r dearth ; w hether the wicked will rul e the world ;

w hether l oc usts will devastate the land ; whether the fruits

w ill drop from the trees unripe ; whether boils wi l l a fflict
men ; whether wa rs will prevail o r diseases or plagues ,

among men an d cattle ; whethe r good is resolved upo n i n

heaven or evil ; whether blood will fl ow and the death rattl e
, ,
-

o f the slain be heard in the city And n ow A d am come and .

, ,

gi ve heed unto what I shall tell thee regarding the manne r

”
o f thi s book and its holiness .

Raziel the angel then rea d f r o m the b ook an d whe n

, , ,

Adam heard the wor d s o f the holy volume as they issue d

from the mouth o f the ang el he f ell down a ff righte d But ,

”
the angel encouraged him Ar i se Adam he said be of
.
, , ,

goo d c ou rage be not afrai d take the book from me and keep
, ,

i t for thou wilt draw knowl e dge from it thyself and become
,

wise and thou wilt a l so teach its contents to a l l those wh o

,

”
shall be fciu n d worthy o f knowing what it contains .

In the moment when Adam took the book a flame o f fi re ,

shot up from near the r iver and the angel rose heavenward,

w i th it Then Adam knew that he w h o had spoken to him

.

w a s an angel o f God and it was from the Holy King H im

,

sel f that the book had come and he used i t in holiness and
,

purity It is the book ou t o f which a l l things worth knowing

.

can be learnt and all mysteries and it teaches also h ow to

, ,

call upon the angels and make them appear before men and ,

answer all their questions But not all alike can use the
.

b oo k onl y he who is wise and God f earing and resorts t o

,
-
,

it in holiness Su ch an on e i s se c ure against al l wicked

.

c ounsels , h i s l ife i s se r ene , a nd wh en d eath takes h im fro m

94 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

Eve called out to the assailant H ow durst thou lay han d

,

”
o n the image of God ! The ready answer came : It is
thine o w n fau l t Hadst thou not Opened thy mouth to eat
.

o f the f orbidden fruit my mouth would n ot be Opened n ow

,

”
to d estroy a human being But Seth remonstrated : Hol d
.

thy ton gue ! D esist f ro m the i mage o f God until the d ay o f

”
j udgment And the beast gave way saying
. See I t e , , ,

”
frain mysel f f rom the i mage of G o d and it slunk away t o ,

”
its c overt .

Arrive d at the gate s o f Paradise Eve an d S eth began to ,

c ry bitterly and they besought God with many lamentations

,

to gi ve them oil from the tree of His mercy For hours .

they prayed thus At last the archangel Michael appeared

.
,

an d in forme d them that he came as the messenger o f God

t o tell them that thei r petition c ould not be granted Ada m .

would die in a f e w days and as he w a s subj ect to d eath s o

, ,

would be all his descendants O nly at the time o f the resur .

rect i on and then only to the pious the oil of life woul d be
, ,

dispensed together with all the bliss and all the delights o f
,

Paradise .
“
Retu rned to Adam they rep o rted what ha d ,

happened and he sai d to Eve :

, What misfortune didst “

thou bring up o n u s when thou di d st arouse great wrath !

S ee d eath i s the portion o f a l l our ra c e ! Call hither ou r

,

’
c h i l d re n an d o u r chil dr en s children and tell them the man ,

’
ner o f our sinning And while Adam lay prostrate up on
.

the bed o f pain Eve told them the story o f their fall
,
.
“

E! ES
’
S TO RY OF THE FALL
Afte r I was created God divided Paradise and al l th e
,

animals the r e i n bet w een Adam and me The east and the .
 A da m 95

no r th were assigned to Adam togethe r with the male ani ,

mals I was mistress o f the west and th e south and a l l the

.

female animals Satan smarting under the disgrace of

.
,

”
having been dismissed f rom the heavenly host resolve d t o ,

bring ab out o u r ruin and avenge himsel f upon the c ause o f

his dis comfitu r e He w on the serpent over t o h is side and
.
,

pointed ou t t o him that be fore the c reation o f Adam the

animals coul d enj oy a l l that grew in Paradise and now they ,

were restricted to the weeds To drive Adam from Pa r adise .

w ould therefore be f or the good o f all The serpent de .

mu r re d for he stood in awe of the w rath o f G od But S atan

, .

calme d his fears and said Do th o u but be come my

, ,

vessel an d I sha l l speak a word through thy mouth whe r e

,

with thou wilt suc c eed i n seducing man .

The serpent thereupon suspended himsel f fro m the w all

surrounding Paradise to carry on his conversation w i th me
,

from without And this happened at the very moment when

.

my tw o guardian angels had betaken themselves t o heaven

t o supplicate the Lord I w a s quite alone the r e fore and
.
,

w hen S atan assumed the appearance of an angel bent o ve r ,

the wall o f Paradise and intone d seraph ic songs o f praise I

, ,

w a s d eceive d and thought him an angel

, A conversation .

was held betw een us S atan speak i ng th r ough the mouth o f

,

th e se r pent :

Ar t th o u E ve ! ”

”
Y e s it i s I
, .

What art th o u do i ng in Pa r a d ise ! ”

The Lor d has put u s he r e to c ult i vate i t an d eat of it s

”
f ruits .

That is good . Yet you eat not of all the trees .

96 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

That w e d o excepting a single one the tree that stands

, ,

in th e midst o f Paradise Concerning it a l one God has fo r

.
,

b i dden us to eat o f it else the Lo r d sai d ye will die

, , , .

The serpent made every e ffor t to persuade me that I had

naught to fear—that God kn ew that in the d ay that A da m
and I ate o f the fruit o f the tree we S hould be as He H im ,

”
sel f It w a s j ealousy that had made H i m sa y
. Ye S ha ll ,

not eat o f it .In spite o f a ll his urging I remained stead ,

fast and refused to touch the tree Then the serpent e m .

gaged to pluck the fruit for me Thereupon I opened the .

gate o f Paradise and he slipped in Scarcely w a s he within

, .
,

when he said to me I repent o f my wor d s I wou l d

,
“
,

”
rather not give thee o f the fruit o f the forbid d en tree It .

was but a cunning device to tempt me more He con .

sented to give me o f the fruit only after I swore to make

my hu sband eat o f it too This is the o ath he made m e
, .

take : By the throne o f G od by the cherubim and by the , ,

tree of li fe I shal l give my husband of this fruit that he

, ,

may eat too

, Thereupon the serpent a s c en d e d the tree
.

and inj ected his poison the poison of the evi l inclinati on
, ,

”
into the fruit and bent the branch on w hich it grew t o
,

the ground I took hold of it but I knew at once that I w a s

.
,

stripped o f the r i ghteousness in which I had been clothed .

I began to weep because o f i t a n d be ca use of th e o ath th e

,

serpent had force d from me .

The serpent disappeare d f r o m the tree w hile I s o ugh t ,

leaves wherewith to c over my nakedness but all the trees ,

w i th i n my r each ha d cast o ff their leaves at the moment when

”
I ate o f the forbid d en fru i t There was only one that r e
.
1

t a in e d its leaves the fig—tree the very t ree the f ruit of w hich
, ,
98 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

by heat and yet pinche d by col d Th o u shalt t oi l gr eatly

,
.
,

and yet not gain wea l th Thou sha l t gro w fat and yet cease
.
,

to live A n d the animals o ver which thou a rt the master wi l l

.

rise up against thee be cause th o u did st not keep my

,

Upon me God pronoun c e d thi s senten c e : Th o u shalt

su ff er anguish in childbirth an d grievous torture In sorro w .

shalt thou bring forth children and in the hou r o f travai l , ,

when thou a rt near to l o se thy life thou wilt con f ess and ,

c ry Lord Lord save me this time and I will never again

, , , ,

’
indulge in carnal pleasure an d yet thy des i re shall ever and
,

”
ever be unto thy husban d .

At the same t ime a l l sorts of di s eases w e r e d e cr eed upo n

us God sai d t o Adam : Because th o u di dst turn aside
.

from My cove n ant I wil l inflict seventy plagues upon thy

,

flesh The pain o f the first p l ague sha l l lay hold on thy
.

eyes ; the pain o f the second plague upon thy hea ring an d ,

””
o ne afte r the o the r all the plagues S hall come upon thee .
9

The se rp ent Go d addressed thus : Because thou b e ca m

e s t the vessel of the Evil d e c eiving the inn o cent ,

cursed a rt th o u above all cattl e and above eve ry beast o f th e

fiel d Thou shalt be robbe d o f the food th o u wast wont to
.

eat an d d ust shalt th o u eat all the days o f thy l ife Upon
, .

thy breast an d thy belly shalt thou go and o f thy hands and ,

thy f eet thou shalt be deprived Th o u shalt not remai n in .

p o ssession of thy ea r s nor o f thy wings nor o f any o f thy

, ,

l imbs w here w ith th o u didst sedu c e the woman an d her hus

ban d br i ngi ng them to such a pass that they must be driven
,

fo rth f ro m Para d ise And I will put enmity between thee

.

an d the seed o f man It shall bruise thy head an d thou

.
,

”
shalt bruise his heel until the day o f j udgment .
 A da m 99

TH E D EA TH O F ADA M

O n the la st d ay of A d am s li f e Eve sa id t o h i m ’
, , Wh y
sh o uld I go o n l i v i n g when th o u a r t n o m or e ! H ow long
,

”
S hall I have to linge r o n a fter thy d eath ! Tell me this !
A d am assu r e d he r s h e w o ul d n o t tar r y l o n g They w oul d .

d ie to gethe r and be bu ri e d t ogether in the same pla c e H e

, .

c omman d e d he r not to tou c h his corpse until an angel from

God ha d ma d e provision rega rd ing it an d S he was to begin ,

a t once to p r ay to Go d until his s o ul escape d fr om his bo d y .

While Eve w a s on her knees in praye r an angel c ame , ,

”
and bade he r rise Eve ar i se from thy penan c e he co m
.
, ,

ma n de d . Beh o l d thy husband hath le f t h i s mo rtal c oil

,
.

Aris e and s e e his spirit go up t o his Creator to appear b e

, ,

”
fore H i m An d 10 s h e beheld a cha r iot o f light d rawn
.
, , ,

by four sh i ning eagles an d prece d e d by angels In th i s

,
.

c ha r i ot lay the soul o f Adam wh ich the angels w e r e taking ,

to heaven Arrived there they burnt in c ense until the

.
,

c louds o f smoke envelope d the heavens Then they praye d .

t o God to have mer c y upon H is image an d the work of His

holy han d s In he r awe an d f right Eve summone d S eth
.
, ,

an d s h e ba d e him look upon the vision and expla i n

the c elestial sights beyond he r unde r stand i ng S he .

aske d, Who may the tw o Ethiop i ans be w h o a r e a d d i ng ,

’ ”
their p r aye r s to thy father s ! S eth t o ld her they were the ,

s un an d the mo o n tu r ne d s o bla c k be c
, co ul d not
S hine i n th e fa c e of the Fathe r ca r ce l y ha d he

spoken when an angel ble w a t r umpet

, all the angels ,

cr ie d o ut w ith aw ful vo ic es Blesse d be the glory of the ,

L or d by His c reatures for He h a s S h o wn me rc y unto A d am

, ,

”
the wor k of H is han d s ! A s e r aph then s e i ze d A d am an d ,
1 00 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je w s

carr i e d him o ff to the rive r A cheron washed him three times , ,

a n d b r ought him be fore the p resence o f God who s a t upon ,

H i s throne and stretching ou t His hand l ifted Adam up

, , ,

an d ga ve him o ve r t o the archangel M ichael w ith the words , ,

Raise h i m t o the Paradise o f the thir d heaven and there ,

thou shalt leave him until the great an d fearful d ay ordained

”
by M e M i chael exe c uted the Divine behest a n d a ll the
.
,

angels sang a song o f praise ext o lling G od for the pardon ,

He had ac c orded Adam .

Michael n ow en tr eated God to let h i m atten d to the prepa

’
ration o f Adam s body f or th e grave Permission being .

given M ichael repai r e d to ea rth a c co mpanie d by all th e

, ,

angels When they entere d the terrestrial Paradise a l l the

.
,

trees bl o ssomed f o r th an d the pe rfume w a fted thence lulled

,

a l l men into slumber except Seth alone Then God said to

Adam as his body lay on the groun d : I f thou ha d st kept
,

My commandment they w ould not re j oice w h o brought thee

,

hither B ut I tell thee I w ill turn the j oy o f S atan and h is

.
,

cons ort s int o sorrow an d thy sorrow shall be turned int o

,

j oy I w il l r estore thee to thy dominion an d thou shalt s it

.
,

up o n the throne o f thy seducer while he shall be d a mned , ,

”
w ith th o se wh o hearken unto him .

The r eupon at the bidding of God the three great ar c h

, ,

”
angels co ve r ed the bo d y o f Adam with linen an d poured
5
,

s w eet s melling oil upon i t

-
With i t t ey interred also th e
. h

b od y of Abel which had lain unburied since Cain had slain

,

’
h i m fo r all the mu r de r er s e ffo r ts to hide it had been in vain
,
.

The co rpse again and again sprang forth from the earth ,

an d a voice i ssued thence pro claiming No creature shall

, ,

rest i n the ea rth unt i l th e fi rst one o f all has r eturne d the
1 02 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J e ws

prayer she ad d e d the petition r aising he r eyes heavenwar d

, ,

Lor d of the worl d ! R eceive my sp i rit ! an d s h e gave up

he r s o ul t o God .

The a rc hangel M ichael c ame an d tau ght S eth h ow t o pre

par e E ve for burial and three angels des c en d e d an d i nterred
,

he r b o dy i n the g rave with A d am an d Abel Then Mi c hael .

sp o ke t o S eth Thus shalt thou bu r y a l l men that die until

,

”
the r esurre c ti o n d ay An d again hav i ng gi ven him this
.
,

c o mman d he S poke : Lo n ger than S ix days ye shall not

,

”
mou rn . The repose of the seventh day is the token o f the
resurre ction i n the latte r d ay for on the seventh day the ,

Lo rd reste d fro m all the w o rk w hi c h He ha d cr eated

”
an d ma d e .

Th o ugh d eath w a s b ro u ght int o the w o rl d thr o ugh Adam ,

y et he c ann o t be hel d responsible for the death o f men O n c e .

on a t i me he sa i d to God : I am n o t c on c erned about the

death o f the wi c ked but I should not l ike the p i ous to r e
,

pr oa ch me an d lay the blame for their death upon me I .

pray Thee make no mention o f my guilt

,
And God prom .

i se d t o fulfil h is w ish Therefore when a man i s about to

.
,

die God appears t o him an d bids him s e t d own i n writing

, ,

all he h a s done d u ring h is li fe for H e tells him Thou art

, , ,

d y i ng by r eason of thy evi l d ee d s The re cor d finished . ,

God o rders h i m t o seal i t with h i s seal This is the w riting .

God will br i ng out on the j u d gment d ay an d to ea c h will be

,

ma d e known h is d ee d s A S soon as li fe i s ext i n ct i n a man

. ,

he is presented t o A d am w h o m he a ccuses o f having caused

,

h is d eath But A d am r epu di ates the c harge :

. I c ommitted
but on e trespa s s I s the r e any among you an d be he the
.
,

”
m o st p ious wh o h a s n o t been gu i lty o f mo r e than o ne !
,
 III

T H E TE N G E N E RA T I O N S

T HE B IRT H O F CAI N .

FRA TRICI D E
T H E P U NI S H M EN T O F C AI N
.

T H E I N HA B I TAN TS O F THE S E! EN
EA R T H S
T HE D E S CEN D AN T S O F C AI N
.

T HE D E S CEN D AN T S O F ADA M AN D L ILI T H

S ET H AN D H I S D E S CEN D AN TS .

EN OS H
TH E FA LL O F
E N O CH , R U LER AN D T EACHER .

T H E A S CEN S I O N O F E N O CH
T HE T RAN S LATI O N O F E N O CH .

M E T H U S ELAH
1 06 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Jew s

to be inte rr upted in her penan c e she le f t he r husban d an d ,

4

j ourneyed westward because s h e feared her presence might

,

continue to bring him misery Adam remained in the east . .

When the days o f Eve to be delivered were fulfilled and ,

S he began to f eel the pangs o f travai l i n g she prayed to Go d ,

f or help But H e hearkened not unto her supp l ications

. .

”
Who wi l l carry the report to my lor d Adam ! s h e asked
herse l f . Ye luminaries in the s ky I beg you te ll it to my , ,

master Adam when ye return to the east ! In that sel f

same hour Adam cried ou t : The lamentation o f Eve has
,

pierced to my ear ! Mayhap the serpent has again assaulted

”
her and he hastened to his wife Finding her i n grievous
, .

p ain he besought Go d in her behal f an d twelve angels a p

, ,

p ea red together with two heavenly powers

, A ll these .
5

took up thei r post to right o f her and to le ft o f her while ,

M ichael also standing on her right s ide passe d his hand over
, ,

her f rom her face d ownward to her breast an d said to her

, , ,

B e thou blessed Eve for the sake of Adam Because of

, , .

his solicitations and his prayers I w a s sent to grant thee our

assistan c e Make r eady to give birth to thy c hi l d !
. Im
mediately her s on w a s bo rn a radiant figure A l ittl e while
, .
“

an d the babe stoo d upon h is f eet r an o ff an d returned hol d

, ,

i ng in h is hands a stalk of straw w hich h e gave to his ,

mother F o r this reason he w a s name d Cain the Heb r ew

.
,

wor d fo r stalk of straw .

Now Adam took Eve an d the boy t o his home in the ea st .

God sent him various kinds o f seeds by the hand of the angel
Michael and h e was taught h ow to cultivate the ground and
,

make it yield produce and fruits to su stain h imself and his ,

’
family an d his posterity .
 Th e Te n Ge n e r a tion s 1 07

A f te r a while Eve bore he r se con d s on whom

, , sh e name d
Hebel because s h e said he w a s born but to d ie
, , ,
.

F RA TRICI D E
The S laying of Abel by Cain did not come a s a wholly
unexpected event to his parents In a dream Eve had see n .

the blood o f Abel fl ow into the mouth of Cain who drank i t ,

with avidity though his brother entreated him not to take

,

a l l When s h e to l d her d ream to Adam he said lament i ng

.
, , ,

O that this may not portend the death o f Abel at the han d
o f Cain ! He separated th e tw o lads assigning to each an ,

abode of h is o w n and to each he taught a di fferent occupa

,

tion Cain became a tiller o f the ground an d Abel a keep e r

.
,

o f sheep It was a l l in vain In sp i te o f thes e p r e c autions

. .
,

“
Cain slew his brother .

H is hosti l ity towar d Abel had more than one r eason It .

began when God h a d respect unto the offering of Abel an d

.
,

accepted it by sending heaven l y fire down to consume i t ,

while the o ff ering of Cain w a s rej e cted They brought .

10

their sacrifices on the fourteenth day of Nisan at the in ,

stance o f their fathe r who ha d spoken thus to his sons

,

This is the day on which in times t o come Is rael will o ffe r

, ,

sacrifices Therefore do ye too br i ng sa crifices to you r

.
, , ,

”
Creator on this day that H e may take pleasure in you
, .

The place o f o ff ering which they chose was the spot

whereo n the alta r o f the Temple at Jerusalem stood later .
11

Abel selected the best o f his flocks for his sacrifice but Cain ,

ate his meal first and a fter he had satisfied his appetite he
, ,

o ff ered unto Go d what was left over a fe w grains o f flax ,

seed A s th o ugh his o ff ense had not been great enough in

.
1 08 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J e ws

o ff e ri ng unt o G od fr u i t of th e gro u n d wh ich h a d b een cu r se d

by Go d ! What wonder that his sa c rifice was not received
n

w ith favo r ! B esides a chastisement was i nflicted upon him

, .

His face tu r n ed bla ck as sm o ke Neve rtheless h is dis

.
13
, _

position underwent no c hange even when God spoke to h im ,

thus : I f thou w ilt amend thy w ays thy guilt wi l l be for ,

gi ven thee ; i f not thou wi l t be d elivere d into the power o f

,

the evil in clination ; It c oucheth at the door Of thy heart ,

yet it depends upon thee whether thou sha l t be master over

”
it o r it shall be master over thee
, .

Cain thought he had been w ronged an d a dispute followed ,

betw een him and Abel I believed he said

.
“
that th e , ” ,
“

”
world was c reated through goodness but I s e e that good ,

d eeds bear no f ruit Go d rules the worl d with arbitrary

.

po w e r else why had He r espe c t unto thy o ff ering and not

, ,

”
unto mine also ! Abel oppose d him ; he maintained that
Go d rewards goo d dee d s without having respe c t unto per
,

sons I f hi s sacrifice had been accepted gra c ious l y by Go d

.
,

’
and Cain s not it w a s because his deeds w er e goo d and hi s
, ,

’
brother s wicke d .

’
But this was not the o nly c ause of Cain s hatre d toward
Abel Pa rtly love for a woman brought about th e crime To
. .

ensure the propagat i on of the human race a girl destined , ,

to be his wife was born together with each o f the sons of

,

Adam Abel s twin siste r was o f exqu i site beauty and Cain
.
’
,

des i red her There fore he w a s c onstantly brooding over

.
"

ways and means o f ridding himsel f of h is brother .

The opportunity presente d itsel f ere long O ne da y a .

S heep be l onging to Abel tramped over a fie l d that had been

planted by Ca i n In a r a ge the latter called ou t
“
. What
, ,
1 10 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je w s

Abel for the r e i s n o other human being on ea rth

,
Th i s .

thought ha d but passe d through his mind when God a p

p e a r e d unto him an d addressed
, him in these words : Be
fore thy parents thou canst flee but ca nst thou go out f rom ,

M y p r esen c e too ! ,Can any hi de himsel f in secret places

’
that I shall n ot s e e him ! A l as f or Abel that h e showed
thee mercy an d re f rained from killing thee w hen he ha d
, ,

thee in hi s power ! Alas that h e gra nte d thee the opp or

tu n ity o f s l aying him !
! ”
Questioned by God Where is Abel thy brothe r
, Ca i n
’
answered : Am I my brother s keeper ! Thou art He wh o
holdest wat c h over all cr e atures an d yet Thou de ma n de s t ,

account o f me ! True I S lew him but Thou didst create

, ,

the evil inclination in me Thou gu a r de s t all things ; why

.
,

then didst Thou permit me to slay him ! Thou di d st Thy

,

sel f slay him fo r hadst Thou looked with a f avorable c oun

,

t e n a n ce toward my o ff ering as towar d h i s I had ha d n o ,

”
reason for envy i ng him and I had not slain him
, But Go d .

’
said , The voice o f thy brothe r s blood issuing from his
“

”
many wounds crieth out against thee and l ikewise the blood ,

o f all the pi o us w h o might have S prung f rom the loins o f

Abel .

Also the s o ul o f Abel d enounced the mur d erer for s h e ,

could fin d r est nowhere She could neither soa r heaven

.

w ard n or abi d e in the grave with he r bo d y f or no human

, ,

soul had done eithe r be fore But Cain still refused t o c on

.
21

fess his guilt H e i nsiste d that he had never seen a man

.

ki l led and h ow w a s he to suppose that the stones whi c h h e

,

threw at Abel would take hi s life ! Then on account o f ,

Cain God c ursed the ground that it might not yield f ruit
, ,
 Th e Te n Ge n e r a tion s III
”
unt o him 2
With a single punishment both Cain and the
.

earth were chastised the ea rth because it retaine d the co rpse

,

”
o f Abel and did not c ast it above ground
, .

In the obduracy o f his heart Cain spake : O L o r d of ,

the world ! Are there informers w h o denounce men before

Thee ! My parents are the only living human beings and ,

they know naught of my deed Thou a b ide s t in the heavens .

,

and h ow S houldst Thou know what things happen on

”
ea rth ! God said in reply : Thou fool ! I carry the whol e
world I have made it and I will bear it
.
, a reply that -

gave Cain the Opportunity o f feign ing repentance Th o u .

bearest the w hole world he said and my s in Thou canst

, ,

”
not bear ! Veri l y m i ne I a u I ty is too great to be borne !
,

Yet yesterday Thou didst banish my father from Thy

,

presence to day Thou dost banish me In sooth i t will be

,
-
.
,

”
said it i s Thy way to banish
,
.

Although this was but dissimulation and not true repent ,

ance yet God granted Cain pardon and removed the ha l f o f

, ,

his chastisement from him O riginally the decree had con

.
,

de mn e d him to be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth .

N ow he w a s no longer to roam about forever but a fugitive ,

he was to r ema i n An d s o mu c h w a s hard en o ugh to have

.

to su ff er for the ea r th quaked under Cain and a l l the an i

, ,

mals the wild an d the tame among them the accu rsed s er
, ,

pent gathered together and essaye d to devour him in order

,

to avenge the innocent blood o f Abel Final l y Cai n could .

bear it n o longe r and breaking o u t in tears he cried :

, , ,

Whithe r shall I go fr om Thy spirit ! O r whither sh a ll I

flee f rom Thy To protect him f rom the on
s l a u gh t o f the beasts God i ns c ribed one letter of His H o ly
,
1 12 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J e ws
”
Name upon his forehea d and fu r th e rmofe H e a d dressed
,

’
the animals : Cain s punishment shall n ot be like unto the
punishment o f future mur d erers He has shed blood but .
,

there was none t o give him instru ction H enceforth h ow .

,

”
eve r he w h o sl ays another shall himsel f be s l ain
, Then .

God gave him the d og as a protec tion against the wild beasts ,

and to mark him as a s i nner H e a fflicted him with lepr o sy

, .

’
Cain s repentance i nsin c ere though it w a s bore a good
, ,

result When Adam met him and inquired what doom had
.
,

been d e c reed against him Cain tol d h ow his repentance had

,

propitiated God and Adam exclaime d S o potent i s repent

, ,

ance and I knew it not !

, Th ereupon h e composed a hymn
o f pra i se to Go d beginning with the words
, It is a good ,

thing to c on fes s thy sins unto the Lord !

The cr ime committe d by Cain ha d bane ful c onsequen c es ,

n ot for h i msel f alone but for the whole of nature also

,
.

B e fore the f ru i ts which the earth bore unto him when he

,

til l ed the ground had taste d like the f ruits o f Paradise .

”
Now his labor pro d u c ed naught but thorns and thistl es .

The gr ound changed an d deteriorate d at the ve ry moment

’
o f Abel s v io lent en d The trees and the plants i n the pa rt
.

o f the earth w hereon the vi ctim lived re f used to yield their

f ru i ts a cco unt o f the ir grie f over him an d o nly at th e

, on ,

birth o f S eth th o se that gr ew i n the p o rtion belon gi ng to

Abel began to fl ourish an d bear again But never did they .

resume thei r fo rme r p o wers While be fore the v i ne had

.
, ,

b o rn e nine hun d red an d t wenty s ix d i ff erent vari eties of -

f ru i t it n ow b rought forth but on e kin d An d s o it was w i th

, .

all othe r specie s They will r ega i n the ir p ri st i ne powers

.

’
o nly in the w o rld to co me 0
.
1 14 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je ws

the g ro und which however bears neither wheat no r any

, , ,

other o f the seven spe c ies In this Adamah Cain Ab el “

.
, , ,

an d S eth were born Afte r the murde r o f Abe l Cain w a s

.
,

s ent ba c k t o the Erez where he was frightened into repent

,

an c e by its darkness an d by the flames o f the ever turning -

swo r d Accepting h is peniten c e God permitted hi m to as

.
,

c end to the thir d earth the Arka which receives some light
, ,

from the s un The Arka was su rr endered to the Cainites

.

forever as thei r perpetual domain They till the ground

, .
,

and plant trees but they have neithe r w h e at n o r any o the r

,

of th e seven species .

S ome o f the Cainites are giants some o f them are d war f s , .

They have tw o heads wherefore they can never a rrive at a

,

”
decision ; they are always at l oggerhea d s with themse l ves .

It may happen that they are pi o us n ow o nly to be incline d ,

to d o evil the next moment

'

In the Ge the fourth earth live the generation o f the

, ,

Tower o f Babel and their descendants Go d banished them .

thither becaus e the four th earth is not fa r f rom Gehenna ,

and there fore close to the flaming fire The inhabitants o f .

“

the Ge are skil ful in all a rts and accompl ished in a l l depa rt
,

ments o f science an d knowledge an d their abode overflow s ,

w i th wealth When an inhabit a nt o f our earth visits them

. ,

they give him the most p r e c ious thing i n their possession ,

but then they lead h i m to the Ne s h ia h the fi fth ea rth where , ,

he be c omes oblivi o us o f h i s o r i gi n an d his home The .

Ne s h ia h is inhabite d by d warfs without noses ; they breathe

through tw o holes i nstea d They have n o memo ry ; o nce a
.

thing h a s happened they forget it c ompletely whence their

, ,

”
ea rth is ca lled Ne s h ia h forgetting The fo urth and fifth
, .
 Th e Te n Ge n e r a tion s II5

earths are like th e Arka ; they have trees but neither wheat ,

nor any other of the seven spe c ies .

The sixth ea rth the Ziah i s inhabite d by han d s o me men

, , ,

wh o are the owners o f abundant weal th an d live in palatial ,

residences but they l ack water as the name o f their te r ri

, ,

”
tory Ziah drought indicates Hen c e vegetati o n is spa r se
, ,
“
, .

with them and their tree culture meets w ith in diff e r

,

ent success They hasten to any w a te r s p r in g that is dis cov

.

ered and sometimes they succee d in slipping th r ough it up

,

to ou r earth where they satisfy thei r sharp appetite for the

,

food eaten by the inhabitants o f ou r earth Fo r the rest .

,

they are men o f steadfast faith more than any othe r c lass of ,

”
mankind .

Adam remained in the A d amah unt i l a fte r the b ir th of

S eth Then passing the third earth the Ar ka the ab i ding
.
, , ,

place o f the Cainites and the next three earths as well the
, ,

Ge the Ne s h ia h and the Ziah God transported him to the

, , ,

Tebel the seventh earth the earth inhabited by men

, , .

T HE D E S CEN D ANT S O F C AI N
Ca i n kne w on l y too we l l that his blood gui ltiness would -

be visited upon him in the seventh generation Thus had .

’
Go d decree d against him
7
He endeavored therefore to .
, ,

”
immo rtal i ze his name by means o f monuments , an d he b e
c ame a buil d e r o f cities The first o f them he called Eno ch
.
,

after his son be c ause i t was at the birth of Enoch that he

,

”
began to enj o y a measure of rest an d peace Besides he .
,

’
founded six other cities This building o f cities w a s a go d
.
0

less deed for he surroun d ed them w i th a wa l l fo r cing h i s

, ,

family t o r ema i n w i thin All his o the r do ings w e r e e qually

.
1 16 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

imp i ous The punishment G o d ha d ordained for him did n ot

.

e ff ect any i mprovement H e sinned i n order to secure hi s

.

o w n pleasure though h is neighbors suffere d in j ury thereby

, .

H e augmente d his househol d substan c e by r apine an d vio

len c e ; h e ex c ite d h is acqua i ntan c es to pr oc ure pleasu r es an d
spoils by r obbery an d h e be ca me a great leader o f men int o
,

w i cke d c ourses H e also introduced a change in the w ays of

.

simplicity wherein men ha d lived be fore an d he w a s the ,

autho r o f measures an d weights An d whereas men lived .

i nnocently and generously whil e they knew nothing of s u ch

arts he changed the world into cunning cr aftiness
, .
41

L i ke unt o Cain we r e all his descendants impious an d god ,

”
less wherefore Go d resolved to destr oy them
, .

The end o f Cain overtook him in the seventh gene ra tio n

o f men and it w a s inflicte d upon him by the hand o f his
,

gr eat grandson Lamech This Lame c h was b l ind and when

-
.
,

h e went a — hunting he was le d by his y o ung s on who wou l d

, ,

apprise h is f ather when game came in S ight an d Lame c h ,

would then S h o ot at it with his b ow an d arrow O nce upon .

a time he an d his s on went on the c hase and the lad dis ,

cerned something horned in the distance H e naturally took .

it to be a beast of on e kin d or another and he told the b l ind ,

Lamech to let h is a r row fly The aim was goo d and the

.
,

quarry d r oppe d t o the gro und When they c ame close to the
.

vict im the la d ex claimed : Fa ther th o u hast killed some

, ,

thin g that resembles a huma n being in all respe c ts except ,

”
it ca rr ies a horn on i ts forehead ! Lamech kne w at once
what ha d happened— h e ha d killed h is ancestor Cain who ,

”
had been marked by God with a horn In despai r he smote
.

his hands t o gether ina d ve r tently killing h is s on as he clasped

,
1 18 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e Je w s

named for he c omplete d the work o f his ancestor Cain

, .

Ca i n c ommitte d murder and Tubal cain the first who knew

,
-
,

h ow t o sharpen i ron an d c opper f urnished the instruments ,

”
use d in w ars and combats Naamah the lovely earned her
.
, ,

name f rom the sweet soun d s which s h e drew from her cym
”
bals w hen she calle d the worshippers to pay homage to idol s .

T HE D E S CEN D ANT S O F ADA M AND L ILITH

When the wives o f Lamech heard the decision o f Adam ,

that they were toc ontinue to live with their husband they ,

tu rne d upon him saying , O physician heal thin e own

, ,

lameness ! They were alluding to the fact that he h i mself

had been living apart from his wife S in c e the death o f Abe l ,

for h e had said Why should I beget chil d ren if it i s but

, ,

toexpose them t o death ! ”

Though he avoi d ed i nter c ourse with Eve he w a s visited ,

in h i s sleep by female spir i ts and from his union with them

,

sprang sha d es and demons o f various kinds and they w e r e "7

,

endowed with p eculiar gi fts .

O n c e upon a time there lived in Palestine a ve r y ri ch and

pious man wh o had a s on name d Rabbi Hanina He knew
,
.

the w h o le o f the To r ah by heart When he was at the point

.

o f d eath he sent f or h i s s on Rabbi Hanina an d bade him

, , , ,

as his last r equest to study the To r ah d ay and night f ulfil

, ,

the comman d s o f the l a w an d be a faithful friend to the

,

poor He also tol d him that he and his wife the mother o f
.
,

Rabb i Hanina would d ie o n the se l fsame day and the seven

, ,

d ays o f mou rning for the two would en d on the eve o f the
Passover He enj oined him not to grieve excessive l y but
.
,

t o g o t o mar ket o n that day and buy the first article o ff ered
,
 Th e Te n Ge n e r a tion s 1 19

to him no matter how costly it might be I f it happened to

, .

be an edible he was to prepare it and serve it with much

,

c eremony H is expense and trouble w ould re c eive their

.

re c ompense Al l happened as foretol d : the man an d his

.

wi fe died upon the same day and the end o f the week o f ,

mourning coincided with the eve o f the Passover The s on .

’
in turn carried ou t his father s behest : he repaired to mar
ket and there he met an old man who o ff ered a S ilver dish
,

for sale Although the price asked was exorbitant yet he

.
,

bought it as h i s father had bidden The dish w a s s e t upon

, .

the Seder table a n d when Rabbi Han i na Opened it he found

, ,

a second dish within and inside o f this a live f rog j umping

, ,

and hopping around gleefu ll y He gave the frog foo d an d .

drink and by the end o f the festival h e was grown so big

,

that Rabbi Hanina made a cabinet for him in which he ate ,

and lived In the course o f time the cabinet became too

.
,

small an d the Rabbi built a chamber put the frog within

, , ,

and gave him abundant food and drink All this he did .

’
that he might not vi olate his f ather s last wish But the frog .

wax ed and gr ew ; he consumed all his host owned unti l , ,

fina l ly Rabbi Hanina was stripped bare o f all his posses

,

sions Then the frog Opened his mouth and began to speak
. .

”
My dear Rabbi Hanina he said do not worry ! S eeing
, ,

thou didst raise me and care for me thou may e st ask o f me ,

”
whatever thy heart d esireth and i t shall be g ranted thee .

Rabbi Hanina made reply I desire naught but that thou ,

shouldst tea c h me the whole o f the Torah The frog as .

sented and he did indeed teach him the whole o f the Torah
, , , ,

and the seventy languages of men besides His metho d .

‘8

w a s to write a f e w words upon a s c rap of paper whi c h he ,

1 20 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

ha d h i s pup i l s w all ow Thus he a cqui re d not al one the

.

Torah and the seventy tongues but also the language o f ,

beasts and birds Thereupon the frog S poke to the wi fe o f

Rabbi Hanina : Thou didst tend me we l l and I have ,

given thee n o recompense But thy reward will be paid .

t hee before I depart from you only you must both a ccom ,

pany me to the woods There you shall s e e what I sha l l d o

.

’
for you Accordingly they went to the woods with him
.
,
.

Arrived there the frog began to cry aloud and at the sound
, ,

all s orts of
beasts and birds assembled These he com .

ma n de d to produce precious stones as many as they coul d ,

ca rry Also they were to bring herbs and roots for the wi fe
.

o f Rabbi Hanina and he taught her h ow to use them as

,

remedies for all varieties of disease A ll this they were .

bidden to take home with them . When they were about to

return th e frog a dd ressed them thus : May the Ho l y O ne
, ,

blessed be H e have mercy upon you an d requite you for all

, ,

the trouble you took on my account without s o much as ,

i nquiring who I am Now I shall make my origin known to

.

you .I am the s on o f A d am a son whom he begot du ring ,

the hundred and thi rty years of his separation from Eve .

Go d h a s endowed me with the power o f assuming any form

”
o r guis e I desire Rabbi Hanina and his wi fe depa rted
.

for their home an d they became very ri ch an d en j oyed the

, ,

”
r espect and confi d en c e o f the king .

S ET H A ND HIS D E S CEN D ANT S

The exhortations o f the wives of Lamech took e ff e c t upo n
Adam After a separation of one hundred and thi rty years
.
,

he retu rn ed to Eve and the love he n ow bore her was

,
1 22 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ews

known they made two pi ll ars upon Adam s predi ction that
, ,
’

the w orld was to be destroyed at one time by the force of

fire and at another time by the vio l ence and quantity of
water The on e was o f brick the other of stone and they
.
, ,

inscribe d thei r discoveries on both tha t in case the ,

pi l lar o f brick should be destroyed by the flood the p i ll ar o f ,

stone might remain and exhibit thes e discoveries to man

,

kind and also inform them that there was another pi l lar of
, ,

brick erected by them

, .

E N O SH
Enosh was aske d w h o h is father was an d he named S eth , .

The quest i oners the peop l e of his time continued : Who

, ,

”
was the father o f Seth ! Enosh : Adam And who .

”
w a s the f ather o f Adam !
“
He had neither father nor
”
mother G od formed him from the dust o f the earth
, B ut .

”
man h a s not the appea r ance of dust ! After death man
returns to dust as God said And man sha ll turn again
, ,
‘

unto dust but on the day o f his cr e ation man was made ,

in the image o f God H ow was th e woman c reated !

.

Male an d female H e create d them But h ow ! G od .

took water and ea rth and m oulded them together in the

,

” ”
form o f man But h ow
.
! pursued the questioners .

Enosh took s ix clods o f ea rth mixed them and moulded , ,

”
them and formed an image o f d ust and clay
,
But said .
,

the people this image does not walk nor does it possess
, ,

”
any breath o f li fe H e then essayed to show them h o w
.

God breathed the breath of life into the nostrils of Adam ,

but when he began to blow his breath into the image he ha d

f ormed Satan entered it and the figure walked and the
, , ,
 Th e Te n Ge n e r a tion s 1 23

people o f his time w h o had been i n quiring these matters o f

Enosh went astray after it saying Wh at i s the di ff erence, ,
“

between bowing down before this image and paying homage

” 54
to a man !
The generation of Enosh were thus the first idol wor
shippers and the punishment for their fo ll y was not delayed
,

long Go d caused the sea to transgress its bounds and a

.
,

portion of the earth w a s flooded This was the time also .

when the mountains became rocks and the dead bodies of ,

men began to decay And sti ll another consequence of the

.

s in o f ido l atry was that the countenances o f the men of the

fo ll owing generations were no longer in the l ikeness and

image o f God as the countenances o f Adam S eth and
, , ,

Enosh had been They resemb l ed centaurs and apes and

.
,

55
the demons lost their fear o f men .

But there was a stil l more serious consequence f rom the

ido l atrous practices introduced in the time of Enosh When .

God drove Adam forth from Paradise the Shekinah r e ,

mained behind enthroned above a cherub under the tree of

,

li fe
. The ange l s descended from heaven and repaired
thither in hosts to receive their instructions and Adam and
, ,

his descendants sat by the gate to bask in the sp l endor of

the S hekinah sixty fiv e thousand times more radiant than
,
-

the sp l endor o f the sun This brightness o f the Shekinah

.

makes al l u pon who m it fa ll s exempt from disease and ,

neither insects n o r dem ons c an come nigh unto them to

do them harm .

Thu s it w a s until the time of Enosh when men began to ,

gather gold si l ver gems and pear l s from a l l parts of the

, , ,

earth and made idols thereo f a thousand parasangs high

, .
1 24 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jews

What w a s w o rse by means o f the magi c a r ts taught them

,

by the angels U zza an d A z z a e l they s e t themselves as mas,

ter s over th e heavenly sphe r es an d f o rc ed the s un the moo n

, , ,

and the stars t o be subse rvient to themselves instead o f

the Lord This i mpel le d the angels to a s k God
. What is
’
man that Thou art mindful of h i m ! Why d idst Thou
,

abandon the highest o f the heavens the s eat of Thy glory ,

and Thy exalte d Th r one in A r a b ot and descend to men who

'

, ,

”
pay w orship to i d ol s putting Thee up o n a level with them !
,

The S hek i nah w a s i nduced to l eave the ea rth and as c end to

heaven amid the blare and flourish o f the trumpets o f the
,

myria d s o f angel hosts .

56

T HE FALL O F THE A NGEL S

The d eprav i ty of mank i n d which began t o sh o w i t s el f i n
,

the time o f Enosh had in c rease d monstrously in the ti me o f

,

his grandson Ja r ed by r eas o n o f the fallen angels When

,
.

the a ngels s a w the beauti ful attract i ve daughters of men

, ,

they luste d after them and sp oke : We wi l l c hoos e wives

,

fo r ourselves only f rom among the daughters o f men an d ,

”
beget chil d ren with them Their c h ie f S h e mh a za i said
.
,

I fear me ye will n ot put this plan o f yours i nto e x e cu

,

t io n and I alone shall have to suff er the consequen c es o f a

,

g r eat s in Then they answered him an d said : We will

.
,

al l swear an oath and w e w ill bind ourselves separately and

, ,

together not t o aban do n the plan but t o c a rr y it th ro u gh t o

, ,

”
the end .

Two hun d re d angels d es c en d e d to the summ i t of M o unt

Hermon which o wes its name to this very occur r en c e b e
, ,

cause they b o un d themselves there to f ulfil thei r purpo se ,

1 26 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Jews

unto the wat c hers of the heavens who have left the high ,

h eavens the eternal place of holiness de fil in g themselves

,

with women doing as men d o taking w i ves unto themselves

, , ,

and casting themselves into the arms of destru ction upon

ear th Go an d proclaim unt o them that they sha l l find
.

neither peace nor pardon For eve ry time they take j oy in .

their o ff spring they shall s e e the violent death of their sons

, ,

and sigh o ver the r uin o f their children They wi l l pray and .

supplicate everm o re b u t n e ve r shall they att a in t o me rc y

, .

”
o r peace .

Enoch r epai r e d t o A zazel and the o the r fallen angels t o ,

announce the d oo m uttered against them They all were .

filled with fear Tr e mbling seized upon them and they im

.
,

p l or e d Eno c h to s e t up a petition for them and read it to the

Lord o f heaven for they could n o t S peak with God as afore
,

time nor even raise thei r eyes heavenward for sham e on

, ,

a cc ount of their sins Enoch granted thei r request and in

.
,

a vis ion he w a s v o u c h sa fed the answer whi c h he was to car ry

back to the angels It appeared to En oc h that he w a s wafted
.

i nto heaven upon c louds and w a s set d o wn be fore the thro ne

,

o f God God spake : Go fo rth an d s a y to the watchers o f

.

heaven w h o have sent thee hithe r to intercede for them

V erily i t i s you who ought to plead in beha l f o f men not
, ,

men i n behal f o f you ! Why did ye fo rsake the high holy , ,

an d eternal heavens to po l lute yourselves with the da u gh

,

ters of men taking wives unto you rselves d oing like the
, ,

races o f the earth an d begetting giant sons ! Giants begot

,

ten by flesh and spirits wi ll be ca ll ed evil spirits o n ea rth ,

and on the ea r th w ill be thei r dwelling place Evil spirits -

.

pr oc eed f ro m the ir b odi es be ca us e the y are cr eate d fro m,

 Th e Te n Ge n e r a tion s 1 27

above and from the holy watchers is their beginning and

,

prima l origin ; they wi l l be evil spirits on ea rth and evil ,

spirits they will be named And the S pirits of heaven have

.

their dwel l ing in heaven but the spirits o f the earth which
, ,

were born upon the earth have their d wel l ing on the earth
, .

And the spirits o f the giants will devou r oppress destroy , , ,

attack do battle and c ause d estruction on th e earth and

, , ,

work a fil iction They will take no kind o f food no r wi l l

.
,

they thirst and they wi l l be invisi b le An d these spirits wi l l

, .

rise up against the children o f men and against the women ,

because they have proceeded from them Since the days o f .

murder and destruction and the death o f the giants when ,

the spirits went forth from the soul of their flesh in or d er to ,

destroy without incurring j u dgme n t—thus will they destroy

until the d ay when the great consummation o f the great
world be consummate d And n ow as to the watchers w h o
.

have sent thee to inter c e d e for them who had been a fore ,

time in heaven s a y to them : You have been in heaven

, ,

and though the hidden things had n ot yet been reveale d to

you you know worthless mysteries an d in the hardness of
, ,

you r hearts you have r ecounte d these to the women an d ,

through these myster i es women an d men work much evil

on ea r th S ay to them therefore : Y o u have no pea c e !
“8
.

E N O CH R U LER
, AND T EACHER
A fter Enoch had lived a men long time se c lude d f rom ,

he once hea rd the voice o f an angel calling to him : Enoch ,

Enoch make thyself ready and leave the house an d the

,

secret place w herein thou hast kept thysel f hidden an d ,

assume domin i on o ver men to teach them the ways in wh i ch

,
1 28 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

they shall walk an d the deeds which they shall do i n order

, ,

”
that they may walk in the ways o f God .

Eno c h le f t h i s retreat and betook h i msel f t o the haunts

o f men He gathered them about him and i nst r u cte d them
.
,

i n the co ndu ct pleasing to Go d H e sent messenger s all o ver

.

to announ ce Ye wh o d esi r e t o know the w ays of God

,

”
and righte o us c on d u c t c ome ye to Eno c h !
, Thereupo n a
vast c o n course o f people thronged about h i m to hear th e ,

wis d om he w o uld teach and learn f rom h is mouth what i s

good and right Even k i ngs and princes no less than o ne
.
,

hun d red an d thirty i n numbe r assemble d about him and , ,

submitte d themselves to his d ominion to be taught an d ,

guided by him a s he taught an d gui d e d all the others

,
.

P eace reigned thus o ve r the whole worl d all the tw o hun

dre d an d fo r ty three years d ur i ng w h ic h the infl uen c e o f
-

Enoch p r evaile d .

At th e expiration o f this p e r ihd in the yea r in w hi c h A d am

,

die d an d w a s bu r ie d w ith great hon o rs by S eth En o sh

, , ,

En o ch a n d Methuselah E no c h resolve d to retire agai n f rom

, ,

inter co u rse w ith men and dev o te himsel f w ho l ly to the s e r

,

vice o f Go d But h e w i th d re w gra d ually F irst he w ould

. .

spend three d ays i n p r ayer and praise of G od an d o n th e ,

fou rth day he woul d return to his disciples and grant them
i nstru ct io n M any years passe d thus then he appeared
.
,

among them but on c e a week later o n c e a month and fin ;

, , , ,

ally o n c e a yea r The kings prin c es and all others w h o

, .
, ,

were des i r o us of seeing E noch and hea r kening t o his words

did n o t ventu r e t o c o me close to him du ring the times o f his
retirement S u c h a w ful maj esty s a t upon h is co untenance
.
,

they f eare d fo r their ve r y life i f they but looke d at him .

1 30 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

he a d monishe d them d aily to retu rn and n o t br i ng d e ath

down upon themselves O n the sixth day of the j ourney
.
,

h e sai d t o those still accompanying him Go ye home for , ,

on the morrow I sha l l ascend to heaven an d whoever will ,

then be near me he w ill die , Nevertheless some o f hi s

.
,

compan i ons remaine d w ith him saying : Whithersoeve r ,

“

thou goest , we w i ll g o . B y th e living God , d eath alone shall

part u s
O n the seventh d ay En och w a s c a r r i e d into the heavens in
a fiery chariot drawn by fi ery chargers The d ay thereafter .
,

the kings who had turn e d back in good time sent messengers
to inquire i nto the f ate o f the men who had refused to sepa
r ate themselves from Enoch for they had noted the number,

o f them . They foun d snow and gr eat hailstones upon the

spot when c e E noch had r i sen and when they searched , ,

beneath they discovered the bodies of all w h o ha d remained

,

behin d w i th Eno c h He alone w a s not am ong them ; he wa s

.

”
o n high i n heaven .

T H E A SCEN S I O N or E N O CH
Th i s w a s not the first time Eno ch ha d been i n heaven .

Once be fore w hile he soj ourned among men he had been

, ,

pe rmi tte d t o s e e all there is on earth an d i n the heavens .

O n a time w hen h e w a s sleeping a gr eat grief came upon ,

his heart an d he wept in his dream not knowing what the

, ,

grief meant n or what would happen to him And there a p

, .

p e a r e d t o him tw o men ve ry tall Their f a c es shone l ike the

, .

s un , an d their eyes were like burning lamps and fire c a me ,

fo rth from their lips ; their wings were brighter than gold ,

the i r hands w hite r than snow They stood at the head of .

 Th e Te n Ge n e r a tion s 1 31

Enoch s bed and cal l ed him by his name He awoke from

’
,
.

his sleep and hastened and made obeisance to them and was
, ,

terrified And these men said to him : Be o f good chee r

.
,

Enoch be not afraid ; the everlasting God hath sent u s t o

,

thee and lo ! to day thou shalt as c end with us into heaven

,
-
.

And tell thy sons and thy se rvants an d let none seek thee , ,

”
till the Lord bring thee back to them .

Enoch did as he was to l d and after he ha d spoken t o his

,

sons and instructe d them n ot to turn aside from Go d an d

, ,

to keep His j udgment these two men summoned him and

, ,

took him on thei r wings an d placed him on the clouds which

, ,

moved higher and higher til l they set him down in the first
,

heaven Here they showe d him the t w o hundred angels who

.

rule the stars and their heavenly service Here he s a w also

, .

the treasuries o f snow and ice o f clouds and de w , .

From there they took him to the second heaven where he ,

s a w the f allen ange l s imprisoned they who obeyed not the ,

c ommandments o f God and took counsel o f their own will

,
.

The fallen angels said to Enoch O man o f God ! Pray ,

”
for us to the Lord and he answered : Who am I a mortal
, ,

man tha t I shoul d pray fo r angels ! Wh o knows whither I

,

! ”
go o r what awaits me
,

They took him from then c e t o the th i r d heaven where ,

they showed h i m Paradise with a l l the trees o f beautiful ,

colors and their fruits ripe and l uscious and al l kinds o f

, , ,

food wh i ch they produced springing up with de l ightful f ra

,

g r a n ce In th e midst o f Paradise he s a w the tree o f li fe

.
,

in that pla c e in which God rests when H e c omes into Para

dis e This tree ca nnot be d es c ribed fo r its excellence and
.

sw e e t f ragran c e an d it i s beautiful more than any c reated

, ,
1 32 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

thin g an d
, all i ts si d es it i s like gold an d c ri ms on i n a p
on

p e a ra n ce and transparent as fire and it co vers eve rything

, , .

Fr o m i ts roo t in the gar d en there go fo rth four streams ,

which pou r o ut honey m i lk oil an d w ine an d they go down

, , , ,

t o the P ara di se o f Eden that lies o n the co nfines between

,

the ea rthly r egi on of c o r r uptibility and th e heavenly region

o f i n co rr uptibility an d then c e they go along the ea rth He
, .

also s a w the three hun d re d angels w h o keep the garden and ,

with never ceasing voi c es and blesse d singing they serve th e

-

Lord every day The angels lead i ng E noch explained t o

.

him that this place is prepared fo r the r ighteous while the ,

terr i ble place prepared f or the sinners i s i n the northern

regions of the third heaven He sa w there all sorts of tor .

tu res and impenetrable gloom an d there is n o light there

, , ,

but a gloomy fir e is always burning And all that place has

_ .

fire o n all sides and on a l l sides cold and i c e thus it burns

, ,

and f reezes And the angels terrible and with o ut p i ty c arry

.
, ,

savage weapons and their to rture i s unme r c ifu l

, .

The ange ls took h i m then to the fou rth heaven and

’
,

showe d him all the comings i n an d g o ings forth an d all the ,

r ays of the light o f the s un an d the m oo n H e s a w the fif .

teen myri a d s of angels w h o go o ut w ith the s un and attend ,

h i m d u r in g the d ay and the th o usan d angel s w h o attend him

,

by n i ght E ach angel has s ix w i ngs an d they g o be fore the

.
,

cha ri ot of the s u n w h i le on e hundre d angels keep the s u n

,

wa rm an d l i ght i t up He sa w als o the w onde rful and

, .

strange cr eatures name d phoen i xes an d ch a l ki dr i who ,

attend the c ha ri ot o f the s un an d go w i th him bringi ng heat

, ,

an d de w They showe d him also the s ix gates i n the east

.

of the fo u rth heaven by w h ich th e s un goes fo r th a n d the

, ,
 34 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

fiery hosts o f great archangels and incorp oreal powers an d

lordships and principa l ities and powers he w a s a fraid an d ,

tr emble d w i th a great te rr or Those lea d ing hi m t ook hol d

.

o f him an d brought him i nto the midst o f them and sai d t o

, ,

”
him , B e of goo d cheer Eno c h be not afraid an d they
, , ,

showed him the Lord f rom a far sitting on His lofty thr o ne , ,

while all the heavenly hosts divided in ten classes ha ving , ,

approached stood on the ten steps according to their rank

, ,

and made obeisance to the Lord An d s o they pro c ee d ed .

to thei r p l aces in j oy and mirth an d boundless light sing ,

ing songs with l ow and gentle voices and gloriously serv i ng ,

H im They leave not nor depart day o r night standing

.
,

before the face o f the Lord working H is will cherubim and

, ,

seraphim sta nding around His throne And the six winged
, .
-

creatures overshadow a l l H is throne sin gi ng with a soft ,

voice before the face o f the Lord Holy ho l y ho l y is the , , , ,

”
Lord o f hosts ; heaven and earth are full o f His glory .

When he ha d seen a l l these the angels leading him said to ,

him Enoc h up to this time we were ordered to accompany

,

thee . They departed and he s a w them n o more Eno ch

, .

remaine d at the extremity o f the seventh heaven i n great ,

terror saying t o himse l f

,
“
Woe is me ! What has come
,

”
upon me ! B ut then Gabriel c ame and said unto him ,

Enoch be not a f raid stand up and come with me and

, , ,

”
stand up before the f a c e o f the Lord forever And Eno ch .

answered : O my lord my spirit has departed from me with

,

fear and trembling Cal l the men to me who have brought

.

me to the place ! U p o n them I have relied and with them I ,

”
wou l d go before the face o f the Lord And Gabriel hurrie d .

him away like a leaf carri ed o ff b y th e wind and s e t h i m ,

 Th e Ten Ge n e r a tion s 1 35

be fo r e the fa c e o f the Lord Eno c h fell down a n d w or .

shipped the Lord who said to him : Enoch be not a fraid !

, ,

Rise up and stand before My face f orever And M ichael .

li fted him up an d at the command o f th e Lord t ook his

,

earthly robe from him and anointed him w ith the hol y oil , ,

an d c lothed him and when he gazed upon himself he looked

, ,

’
like o ne o f God s glorious ones and fear and trembling de ,

pa rte d from him God called then one o f His archangels

.

who was more wise than a l l the others and wrote d own a l l ,

the doings of the Lord and He said to h i m Bring forth, ,

the books from My store place and gi ve a r eed to E noch -

,

and interpret the books to him The angel di d as he was .

commanded and he instructed Eno c h thirty days an d thirty

,

nights and his lips never ceased speaking whi l e Enoch w a s

, ,

w riting down all the things about heaven and e arth angels ,

and men and all that is suitable to be instru c te d i n H e

‘

.
,

also wrote down all abou t the souls o f men those o f them ,

w hich are not born and the places prepared for them fo r
,

ever H e copie d all ac c urately and he wrote three hundre d

.
,

and sixty s ix books A fter he ha d received all the in str u c

-
.

tions f rom the archangel God revealed unto him gr eat ,

secrets which even the angels do not kno w H e told him

, .

h ow ou t o f th e lowest darkness the visible and the invisible

, ,

were c rea te d h ow He formed heaven light water and

, , , ,

earth and also the fa l l o f Satan and th e creation and sin o f

,

Adam He narrated to him and further reveale d to hi m ,

that the duration of the w o rld will be seven thousand years ,

an d the eighth millennium will be a time when there i s n o

computation no end ne i the r yea r s nor months nor weeks
, , , , ,

nor days nor hours , .

1 36 Th e L e ge n ds f
o th e J ew s

The Lord finishe d this r evelati o n to Eno c h w i th the wor d s :

An d n ow I give thee S amuil an d Ra gu il who brought ,

thee to Me . Go with them upon the earth an d tell thy sons ,

what things I have said to thee an d what thou hast seen ,

from the lowest heaven up to My throne Give them the .

works w r itten o ut by thee and they shall rea d them and

, ,

’
shall dist r ibute the books t o thei r chil d ren s chi l dren and
f rom generation to generati on an d f rom nation to nation .

An d I w ill give thee My messenger Michael for thy writ

i ngs an d for the writings o f thy fathers A d am Seth Enosh , , , ,

Kenan M a h a l a l e l and Jared thy f athe r An d I shall not

, , .

require them till the last age fo r I have i nstructed My two

,

angels A r iu k an d Mariuk whom I have put upon the ea rt h

, ,

a s thei r gu ardians an d I have ordered them in time to

,

gu a rd them that the account o f what I sha l l do i n thy

,

fam i ly may not be lost i n the deluge to c ome For on a c .

count o f the wicke d ness and iniquity of men I will bring a ,

deluge upon the earth and I will d estroy all but I will leave
, ,

a r i ghteous man of thy race with all his house who sha l l act ,

a c cording to My wi l l From thei r see d will be r aise d up a

.

numer o us ge ne ration and on the extincti o n o f that family

, ,

I will sho w them the books o f thy w ritings and of thy

father and the guardians o f them on earth will show them
,

to the men who are tru e and please Me An d they shall tell .

to anothe r generat i on and they hav i ng r ead them shall b e

, , ,

”
g l orifie d at last more than be fore .

Eno c h was then sent to earth to r emain the r e for thi rty
days t o i nstruct h is sons but befo r e he left heaven God
, ,

sent an angel t o h i m w h o se appea r an c e w a s like sn ow an d ,

h is hands w e r e like ic e En oc h lo o ke d at h i m an d h is f ace

.
,
1 38 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je w s

mael When the generation o f the d eluge transgresse d an d

.
,

spoke to God saying Depa rt from us for w e do not desire

, , ,

to know Thy ways Enoch was carried to heaven to serve, ,

there as a witness that God w a s not a c ruel God in spite of

the destruction decreed upon all living beings on ea rth .

When Enoch under the gu idance o f the angel A n p ie l

, ,

w a s carried from earth to heaven the holy be ings the , ,

o fa n im the seraphim the cherubim all those who move the

, , ,

throne o f God and the ministering spirits whos e substance

,

is o f consuming fire they a l l at a distan c e o f s ix hundre d

, ,

m
and fifty illion and three hundred parasangs noticed th e ,

presence o f a human being and they e xclaimed : When ce ,

the odor o f on e born o f woman ! H ow c omes he into the

highest heaven o f the fir e coruscating angels ! But Go d -

rep l ied : O My servants and hosts ye M y cherubim o fa , , ,

nim and seraphim l et this not be an o ff ense unto you for

, , ,

a ll the children of men denied M e and My mighty dominion ,

and they paid homage to the idols s o that I transferred the ,

S hekinah f rom earth to heaven But this man Enoch is the .

elect o f men H e has more faith j ustice and r ighteousness

.
, ,

than all the rest and he is the only r eward I have d erived
,

”
from the terrestrial wor l d .

Before Enoch could be admitted to servi c e near the Div i ne

throne the gates o f wisdom were opened unto him and the
, ,

gates o f understanding an d of dis c ernment o f l ife pea c e , , , ,

and the Shekinah o f strength and power of might l ov e li

, , ,

ness and gra c e o f humility an d f ea r o f s in Equipped by

, , .

God with extraordinary wisdom sagacity j udgment knowl , , ,

edge learning compassionateness love kindness grace

, , , , , ,

humility strength power mi ght splendor beauty shapeli

, , , , , ,
 Th e Te n Ge n e r a tion s 1 39

ness an d all other excel l ent qualit i es bey o n d the endow

, ,

ment o f any of the celestial beings Enoch received besides , , ,

many thousand blessings from God and his height and his ,

breadth became equal to the height and the breadth of the

world and thi rty s ix wings were attached to his body to
,
-
,

the right and to the left each as large as the wor l d and
, ,

three hundred and sixty fiv e thousand eyes were bestowed-

upon him each bril l iant as the s u n A magnificent throne

,
.

was erected fo r him beside the gates o f the seventh ce l estial

palace an d a herald proclaimed throughout the heavens con
,

ce rning him w h o w a s hencefo rth to be called Metatron in

,

the ce l estial regions : I have appointed M y servant Meta

tron as prince and chie f over a ll the princes in My rea l m ,

with the exception only o f the eight august and exa l ted
princes that bear My name Whatever angel has a request .

to prefe r to Me shall appear before Metatron and what he

, ,

will command at My bidding ye must obse r ve and do for , ,

the prince of wisdom a n d the pr i nce of understanding are

at his se rvice and they will reveal unto him the sciences o f
,

the c elestials and the terrestrials the knowledge of the pres ,

ent order of the world and the knowledge of the future

o rder o f the world Furthermore I have ma d e him the
.
,

gua r dian of the treasures o f the palaces in the heaven Ara

'

b ot and o f the t r easures of l if e that are i n the highest

,

heaven .

O ut o f the love He bore Enoch Go d a r raye d h i m i n a ,

magni fic ent garment to which every kind o f luminary in

,

existen c e was attache d and a crown gleaming with forty

,

nine j ewels the splen d or o f which pier c ed to a l l pa rt s o f the

,

seven heavens and t o the four c orners of the ea r th In the .

1 40 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J e ws

presen c e o f the heavenly f amily He set th i s cr own upo n ,

”
the head o f En o ch and called him the little Lord ,
It “
.

bears also the letters by means o f which heaven and earth

were create d an d seas and rivers mountains and
, ,

va ll eys planets an d c onstellations lightning an d thunder

, , ,

snow an d hail storm and whirlwind—these and also all

,

things neede d in the world and the mysteries o f c reation , .

Even the prin c es of the heavens when they see M etatron , ,

tremb l e before him and prostrate themselves ; his ma gn ifi

,

cence and maj esty the sp l endor and beau t y radiating from
,

him overwhelm t hem even the wicked S amael the greatest , ,

o f them even Gabriel the ange l o f the fire B a r die l th e angel

, ,

o f the hail Ru b iel the angel o f the wind Barkie l the angel
, ,

o f the lightning Za miel th e angel o f the hurricane Z a k kie l

’
, ,

’
the angel o f the storm S u i e l the angel of the earthquake , ,

Z a fie l the angel o f the showers R a mie l the angel o f the

' '

thunder Ra s h ie l the angel o f the whir l wind S h a l gie l the

'

, ,

angel o f the snow M a tr ie l th e angel o f the rain S h a ms h ie l

, ,

the ange l o f the d ay L e lie l the angel of the night Ga l gl ie l

, ,

the ange l o f the sola r system O fa n ie l th e angel o f the wheel ,

o f the moon K oka b ie l the angel o f the sta r s and R a h t ie l the

, ,

ange l o f the constellations .

When E noch w a s trans fo r me d i nt o M etatron his bo dy ,

w a s turned i nto c elest i al fire —his flesh became flame his ,

veins fi re his bones glimmering coals the light o f his eyes

, ,

heavenly brightness his eye bal l s torches o f fire his hai r a

, ,

flaring blaze all h is limbs and organs burning sparks and

, ,

his frame a c onsuming fire To right o f him spark l ed flames .

o f fire to left o f him burnt to r ches o f fire and o n a l l sides

, ,

he w a s engirdle d by storm and whi rlwind hurricane and ,

“
thundering .
1 42 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Je ws

m o u r ne d over the d em i s e of Methuselah an d God rewarded

,

them therefo r H e adde d seven days to the time of grace

.

which H e had o rdained before bringing d estru c tion upo n

the earth by a fl o od of waters .
T H E B IRTH O F
T HE PU NI S H M ENT O F THE FALLEN
A NG E L S
T HE G ENERATI O N O F THE D EL U GE
T H E HO LY BOO K
T H E I N MATES O F THE A RK
T H E F L OO D
’
NOAH L EA VES THE A RK
T H E CU R S E O F D R U NKENN ESS
NO AH S D ESCENDANTS S P R E AD A B R O AD
’
.

T HE D E P RA V ITY O F M A N K 1 N D
N IMR O D
1 46 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

him the reason O f hi s coming Methuselah told h i m th e.

cause o f h is anxiety and requested him to make the truth

,

known to him Enoch answered and said : The Lord wi ll

.
,

do a n e w thing in the earth There wi ll come a great de

.

struction on the earth and a deluge for one year Thi s son
, .

who is born unto thee will be l eft o n the earth and his three ,

chi l dren will be saved with him when al l mankind that are
,

on the earth shall die And there wi ll be a great punish

.

ment on the earth and the earth will be cleansed from a l l

,

impu rity And n o w make known to thy s on Lamech that

.

he who was born i s in truth his s o n and cal l his name Noah , ,

for he wil l be left to you and he and his chi l dren wi l l be

,

”
saved from the destruction which will come upon the ea rth .

When Methuse l ah had heard the wor d s Of his father w h o ,

showed him a l l the secret things he retu rned home and , ,

he ca l led the chi l d Noah for he would cause the e a rth to

,

rej oice in compensation for al l destruction .

‘

B y the name Noah he was ca ll ed on l y by h i s grand fathe r

Methuse l ah ; his father and a ll others called him M enahem .

H is generation was addicted to sor c ery and M ethuselah ,

apprehended that his grandson might be bewitched if his

true name were known wherefore he kept it a secret
,
.

Menahem Comforter suited him as well as Noah ; it indi

, ,

ca t e d that he would be a consoler i f but the evi l doers O f his

-
,

time would repent Of thei r mis de e ds

Is
At his very birth it .

w a s f e l t that he would bring c onsolation an d de l iverance .

When th e Lo rd said to Adam Cursed is the ground for thy

,

” ”
sake he asked
,
F or h o w long a time !
,
and the answe r
made by God w a s Until a man child Shall be born whose
,

co n format i on is su ch that the r i te of ci r c umcis i on need not

 N oa h 1 47

be practice d upon him Th i s was fulfilled in Noah he was

.
,

’
circumcised from his mother s womb .

Noah ha d S carcely come into the world when a marke d

change was noticeable Since the c urse brought upon the
.

earth by the s in O f A d am i t happened that wheat being

,

sown yet oats would sprout and grow This ceased with
, .

the appearan c e Of Noah : the earth bore th e products planted

in i t And it was Noah who when he was grown to man
.
,

hood invented the plough the scythe the hoe and other
, , , ,

implements fo r c ultivating the ground Be fore him men .

“
had worked the land with their bare hands .

There was another token to i n d icate that the c hil d born

unto Lamech was app o inted f or an extraordinary d estiny .

When God created Adam H e gave him dominion over all

,

things : the co w obeyed the ploughman and the furrow w a s ,

willing to be drawn But after the fall Of Adam all things

.

rebel l ed against him : the co w refused Obedience to the

p l oughman an d also the furrow was refractory Noah w a s
, .

born and all returned to its state preceding the fall O f man
, .

Before the birth o f Noah the s e a w a s in the habit Of

,

transgressing i ts boun d s twice dai l y morning and evening , ,

and flood ing the lan d up to the graves Afte r his birth it .

kept with i n i ts c onfines And the famine that afflicted the

.

world in the time O f Lamech the second of the ten great ,

famines appointe d to come up o n it ceased i ts ravages w i th

,

’
the birth Of Noah .

THE PU N I S H M E N T O F T H E FA LL EN A NGELS
G ro wn to manh o od Noah fo l lowed in the ways o f h i s
,

g r an d father Methuselah wh i le all other men of the t i me

,
1 48 Th e L e g en ds o f th e Jews

rose up a ga i n s t th i s pious king S O f ar f rom Obse r ving h is

.

p r e c epts they pursued the e vrl in c lination Of their hearts

, ,

an d perpetrate d all sorts Of abominable deeds Ch ie fly the .

“

fallen angels and their giant posteri ty caused th e dep r avity

O f mankind The blood spilled by the giants cried unto
.

heaven f rom th e ground an d the four archangels accused

,

the f allen angel s an d their sons be fore God whereupon He ,

gave the following orders to them : U riel was sent to Noah

to announce to him that the earth would be destroyed by a
floo d and to teach him h ow to save his ow n life Raphael
, .

w a s told to put the fallen angel Azazel into chains ca st him ,

into a pit Of sha rp and pointed stones in the desert D u da e l ,

and cover him with darkness and so was he to remain until

,

the great day Of j udgment when he wou l d be thrown into

,

the fiery pit O f hell a n d the earth would be healed Of the

,

corruption he had contrived upon it Gab ri el was charged .

to proceed against the bastards and the reprobates the sons ,

o f the ange l s begotten with the daughters O f men and ,

p l unge them into deadly c onflicts with on e another Shem .

’
h a za i s ilk we re handed over to Michael w h o first caused ,

them to witness the death Of thei r chil d ren in their bloody

combat with each other and then he bound them and pinned
,

them un d er the hills O f the e arth where they will remain ,

for seventy generations until the day Of j udgment t o be

, ,

’
ca rrie d then c e to the fiery pit o f hell .

The fall Of Azazel and S h e mh a za i ca me about in th i s way .

When the generati on O f the deluge began t o pra c tice idola

t ry Go d w a s deeply g ri eve d The t wo angels S h e mh a za i
, .

and Azazel arose an d sai d :

, O Lor d O f the world ! It has
ha pp ene d th a t wh ich we
, for et o l d a t th e cr ea tio n of th e
1 50 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

under what wou l d they have to eat they wh o nee d e d d aily a

, ,

thousand camels a thousand horses an d a thousan d steers !

, ,

These two sons O f S h e mh a z a i H iw w a and H iyya by ,

name dreamed dream s The on e s a w a great stone which

, .

covered the earth an d the earth was marked a l l over with

,

l ines upon lines O f writing An ange l came and with a .

,

kni fe obliterate d al l the l ines l eaving but four letters upon ,

the stone The othe r son s a w a large p l easure grove planted

.

with a l l sorts of trees But angels approached bearing axes

.
,

and they felled the trees sparing a single on e with three o f

,

its branches .

When H iw w a and H iyya awoke they repaired to their ,

fathe r who inte rpreted the dreams for them saying

, God , ,

wil l bring a deluge and none wil l escape with his l ife ex
, ,

ce p t in g only Noah and his sons When they heard this .

,

the t w o began to cry and scream but their father conso l ed ,

them Soft soft ! DO not grieve

,
As Often as men .

cut or haul stones or l aunch vesse l s they shall invoke your

, ,

names H iw w a ! H iyya !
,
This prophecy soothed them .

S h e mh a za i then did penance He suspended himse l f b e .

tween heaven and earth and in this position Of a penitent ,

sinner he hangs to this day But Azazel persisted obdurately .

in h is sin Of l eading mankind astray by means Of sensual

allurements For this r e ason tw o h e goats were sacrificed
.
-

in the Temp l e on the Day Of Atonement the on e for God , ,

that He pardon the S ins O f Israel the other for Azazel that , ,

“
he bear the sins Of Israel .

Un l ike I s t e h a r the pious maiden Naamah the love l y

, , ,

sister o f Tuba l cain l ed the ange l s astray with her beauty

-
, ,

and from her union with S h a mdon sp r ang the devi l A s mo

 1 51

deus . She w a s as shameless as a l l the other d escendants O f

11

Cain and as prone to bestia l indu l gences Cainite women

, .

and Cainite men alike were in the habit O f wa l king abroad

naked and they gave themselves up to every conceivable
,

manner O f l ewd practices O f such were the women whose .

beauty and sensual cha rms tempte d the ange l s from the path
O f virtue The angels on the other hand no s ooner had
.
, ,
‘

they rebelled against God and descended to earth than they

lost thei r transcendental qua l ities an d were invested with ,

sublunary bodies so that a union with th e daughters Of men

,

became possible The O ffspring O f these a ll iances between

.

t h e ange l s and the Cainite women were the giants

12
known ,

for their strength and their S in fulness ; as their very name ,

the Emim indicates they inspired fea r They have many

, , .

other names Sometimes they go by the name Rephaim

.
,

’
because one glance at them made one s heart grow weak ; o r
by the name Gibb o r im simp l y giants because their size w a s
, ,

s o enormous that their thigh measure d eighteen ells ; o r by

the name Z a mz u mmim because they were great masters in ,

war ; or by the name Anak i m because they touched the s u n ,

with their neck ; o r by the name I vv im because like the , ,

snake they could j udge Of the qualities of the soil ; or fina l ly

, ,

by the name Nephi l im because bringing the world to its fall

, , ,

”
they themselves fel l .

T H E G ENERATI O N O F THE D EL U GE
While the descendants o f Cain in resemb l ed the ir f ather
his S infu l ness and depravity the descendants O f S eth led a ,

p i ous we ll regu l ated l i fe and the di ff erence between the

,
-
,

c ondu ct Of th e tw o sto cks w a s r e fl e cted in their hab i tatio ns .

1 52 Th e L e ge n ds f
o th e J e ws

The family of S eth was settled upon th e mou n t a ms I n the '

vicinity O f Paradise whi l e the fami l y O f Cain resided in the

,

field o f D amascus the S pot whereon Abel was S lain by Cain

, .

Un fortunately at the time Of M ethuselah following the

, ,

death Of Adam the family O f S eth be ca me c orrupted after

,

the manne r O f the Cainites The t w o strains united with

.

each othe r to execute all k i nds Of iniquitous deeds The .

result o f the marriages between them were the Nephi l im ,

whose sins brought the deluge upon the world In thei r .

a rroganc e they claimed the same pedigr ee a s the posterity Of

S eth and they c ompa r ed themselves with princes and men
,

”
Of noble descent .

The wantonness O f this generation w a s in a measure due

to the ideal conditions under which mank ind l i ved before the
flood They knew neither toil n o r care and as a con s e
.
,

q ue n ce O f their extraordinary pr o sperity they grew insolent .

In their arrogance they rose u p against God A S ingle s ow .

ing bore a harvest su fficient for the needs O f f o rty years and ,

by means O f magic arts they could compel the very s u n and

”
moon to stand read y to do their s er vi c e Th e raising of .

chi l dren gave them no trouble They we r e b orn afte r a f e w

.

days pregnancy and immediately after birth they c ould

’
,

walk and talk ; they themse l ves aided the mother in seve r ing
the navel string Not even demons could do them harm
. .

O nce a n e w born babe running to fetch a light whereby his

-
,

mother might cut the navel string met the chief o f ,

the demons and a combat ensued between th e tw o Sud

,
.

de n l y the c rowing O f a c oc k w a s heard and th e demon made

,

o ff crying o u t to th e chi l d
, GO and report unto thy mother
, ,

if i t had n o t been for the crowing O f the cock I ha d ,

1 54 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

Partl y they persisted in their obdura c y O f heart be cause

Noah ha d made known to them that the flood would not
descen d 80 l ong as the pious Methuselah soj ourned among
them The peri od Of on e hundred and twenty years which
.

God had appointed as the term Of their probation having

expired Methuselah died but o u t Of regard for the memory
, ,

’
O f this pious man Go d gave them anothe r week s respite ,

the week o f mourning for him During this time o f grace .

,

the laws Of nature were suspended the s u n rose in the west ,

an d s e t in the east TO the sinners Go d gave the dainties

.

that await man i n the f uture world fo r the pur pose Of show ,

”
in g them what they were f orfeiting But a l l this proved .

unavailing and Methuselah and the othe r pious men O f the

, ,

generation having departed this li fe Go d b rought the deluge ,

” 0
upon the e arth .

T HE HO LY BOO K
Great wisdom w a s n eeded fo r building the ark whi c h ,

was to have space for a l l beings on earth even the spirits , .

O n l y th e fishes did not have to be provided for Noah .

21

acquired the necessa ry wisdom from the book given to Adam

by the angel Raziel in which all celestial an d all earthly
,

knowledge i s recorded .

While the first human pair were sti l l in Paradise it on c e ,

happened that S amael acco mpanied by a lad approached

, ,

Eve and requested her to keep a watch ful eye upon h is l ittle
s on unti l h e shou l d return Eve gave him the promise
. .

When Adam c ame back f rom a wa l k in Paradise he found ,

a howling screaming child with Eve who in reply to his

, , ,

q uestion to l d him it w a s S a ma e l s Adam w a s annoyed and

,
’
.
,
 N oa h I SS

his annoyance gr ew as the boy crie d an d s c reamed more

and more violent l y In his vexation b e dea l t the l itt l e one a
.

blow that killed him But the corpse did not cease to wail
.

and weep n or did it cease when Adam cut it up into bits

,
.

To rid himsel f O f th e plague Adam cooked the remains an d , ,

he and Eve ate them S carce l y had they finished when . ,

Samae l appeared and demanded his son The t w o ma l e fa c .

tors tried to deny everything ; they pretended they had no

knowledge O f his s on But Samael said to them : What !
.

You dare te ll l ies and God in times to come wi l l give Israe l

,

the Torah in which it is said Keep thee far f r o m a false ,

word
While they were S peaking thus suddenly the voi c e o f the ,

Sl ain lad was heard proceeding from the heart of Adam and
Eve and it addressed these words to Samael :
, Go
hence ! I have penetrated to the heart Of Adam and the
heart Of Eve and never again S ha ll I quit thei r hearts nor
, ,

’
the hearts O f their children o r thei r children s children unto , ,

”
the end O f all generations .

Samael depa rted but Adam was sore grieved and he put
, ,

o n sackcloth and ashes and he fasted many many days , , ,

u ntil God appeared unto him and said : My s on have no , ,

fear of Samae l I wi l l give thee a remedy that wi l l he l p

.

thee against him for it was at My instan c e that he went to

,

” ! ”
thee . Adam asked , And what is thi s remedy God :
”
The Torah . Adam : And where is the Torah ! God
then gave him the book o f the angel Raz i el which he studied ,

day an d night After some time had passed the angels

.
,

vis i te d Adam and envious Of the wisdom h e had drawn

, ,

from the book they sought to destro y him c unningly by

,
1 56 Th e L e ge n ds f
o th e J ew s

c alling him a god and prostrating themselves befo r e him i n ,

S pite O f hi sremonstrance Do not prostrate yourselves b e

,

fore me but magni fy the Lord with me and let us exalt Hi s

, ,

Name togethe r However the envy O f the angels was S O

.
,

great that they stol e the book God had given Adam from
him and threw it in the s e a Adam search ed for it every
, .

w here in vain and the loss distressed him sorely

,
Again he .

fasted many days until God appeared unto him and said
, ,

”
“
Fear not ! I will gi ve the book back to thee and H e ,

called Rahab the Angel Of the S ea and o rdered him to

, ,

recove r the b oo k fro m the s e a an d restore it to Adam And .

”
s o he d i d .

Upon the death Of A d am the holy b oo k d isappeared but , ,

later the c ave in whi c h it was hidden was revea l ed to

Enoch in a dream It was f rom this book that Enoch drew
.

his knowledge O f nature O f the ea rth and Of the heavens , ,

and he became S O wise through it that his Wi sdom exceeded

the wisdom o f Adam O nce he had c ommitte d i t to memory
.
,

Enoch hid the book aga i n .

Now when Go d resolved upon b ringing the fl oo d on the

,

earth He sent the archangel R aphael to Noah as the bearer

, ,

O f the fo ll owing message : I give thee herewith the ho l y

book that all the secrets and mysteries written therein mav
,

be made mani f est unto thee and that thou mayest know h ow ,

to fu l fil its injunction in holiness purity modesty and , , ,

humb l eness Thou wilt learn from i t h ow to build an ark O f

.

the w ood o f the gophe r tree wherein thou and thy sons and , , ,

”
thy wi fe sha l l find protect ion .

Noah took the book and when he studied it the holy spirit
, ,

c ame upon him and he knew all things needful for the
,
1 58 Th e L e g e nds f
o th e J ews

day whereon they came to the ark the sun w a s dar k ,

ened and the foundations Of the earth trembled and li gh t

, ,

ning flashed and the thunder boomed as never be for e And

, , ;

yet the sinners remained impenitent In n a u gh t d id they .

,

change the i r w i cked doings during those last s e fe n d ays .

When fina l ly t h e floo d broke loose seven h u n d red th ou ,

san d O f the children O f men gathered around the a rk and ,

implored Noah t o grant them protection With a loud voice .

he replied and sai d : Are ye not those who were rebe ll ious
,

’!
toward God saying There is no Go d
, ,
‘
Therefore H e
h a s brought ruin upon you to annihilate you and destroy
,

you f rom the f ace o f the earth Have I n ot been prophesy

.

ing this unto you these hundred an d twenty years and you ,

wou ld not give heed unto the voice Of God ! Yet n ow you
desire to be kept alive ! Then th e sinners c r i ed o ut : SO
be it ! We all a r e ready n ow to turn back to God i f only ,

thou wilt Open the door o f thy ark to r e c eive u s that we may ,

”
l ive and n ot die Noah ma d e answe r and said : That ye
.
,

do n o w when you r need presses hard upon you Why d i d

, .

you not turn to God during a l l the hundred and twenty years
which the Lor d appointed unto you a s the term Of repent
ance ! No w do ye c ome and ye S pe ak thus because distress
, ,

besets y o u r lives There fore Go d will not hearken unto you

.

”
and gi ve yo u ear ; naught will you accomplish !
The cro w d O f s i nners tried to take the entran c e to the
ark by storm but the wil d beasts keeping watch aroun d the
,

a r k s e t up o n them an d many were slain while the r est

, ,

”
escaped only to meet dea th in the waters Of the flood
,
The .

wate r alone could n o t have made an end O f them fo r they ,

we r e g i ants in statu r e and strength When Noah threat .

 N oa h I S9

ened them with the scourge Of Go d they would make reply ,

“
I f the waters O f the flood come from above they wi l l ,

never reach up to ou r necks ; and i f they come from be l ow ,

the soles O f o u r feet are large enough to dam up the

”
S prings But God ba d e each drop pas s thro ugh Gehenna
.

be fore it fell t o earth and the h ot rain s c a l ded the skin Of

,

the sinners The punishment that overtook them w a s b e

.

fitting their crime As their sensua l desires had made them

.

hot and inflamed them to i mmora l ex c esses S O they were

, ,

26
chastised by means O f heated water .

Not even in the hour Of the death struggle coul d the

sinners suppress thei r vile instincts When the water began .

to stream up ou t O f the S prings they threw their little chil ,

“
dren into them to choke the flood, .

It w a s by the grace o f Go d not on a c co unt o f his merits , ,

that Noah found S he l te r in the ark before the overwhelming

force Of the waters A l though he was better than his con
.
28

temporaries he w a s yet not worthy O f having wonders done

,

for his sake He had S O litt l e faith that he did not enter the
.

ark until the w aters had risen to his knees With him his .

piou s wife Naamah the daughte r O f Enosh escaped the

, ,

”
peri l and h is three sons and the wives o f his three sons
, , .

Noah had n ot marr i ed until he was four hundred an d

ninety eight years Old Then the Lord had bidden him to
-
.

take a wi fe unto himsel f He had not desired to bring chi l dren

.

into the world seeing that they would a l l have to perish in

,

the floo d and he had only three sons born unto him shortly
, ,

before the deluge came God had given him s o sma ll a

.
to

number o f O ffspring that he might be spared the necessity

O f buildi n g the ark on an overlarge scale in c ase they turned
1 60 Th e L e g e n ds of th e Je w s

ou t to be pious And i f not i f they t oo we r e d eprave d like

.
, , ,

the rest Of their generation sorrow over their destruction ,

“1
would but be increased in proportion to their number .

As Noah and his f amily were the only ones not to have a
share in th e corruptness o f the age s o the anima l s received ,

into the ark were such as had led a natural life Fo r th e .

animals O f the time were a s immoral as the men : the dog

united with the wolf the cock with the pea fow l and many
,
-
,

o thers paid no heed to sexual purity Those that w ere save d .

33
were such as had kept themselves untainted .

Before the flood the number o f unclean animals ha d been

greater than the number O f the c l ean Afterward the ratio .

was reversed be c ause while seven pairs Of clean animal s

,

were preserved i n the ark but t w o pairs Of the un c lean were

,

”
preserved .

O ne animal the reem N o ah c oul d n o t take into the ark

, , .

O n account O f its huge s ize it c o uld not find room therein .

Noah therefore tied it t o the ark and it ran on behind ,

.
“

Al so he co ul d not make space for the gi ant O g the king O f

, ,

B ashan H e s a t on top of the ark securely and in this w a y

.
,

esca ped the flood of waters Noah doled out his food to h im
.

dai l y through a hole be c ause Og had p ro m

, ,
ised that he an d
”
his descendants wou l d serve him as slaves in perpetuity .

Tw o creatures Of a most peculi ar kind also found refuge

in the ark Among th e beings that c ame to Noah there w a s
.

Falsehoo d asking f or shelter He was denied adm i ssion .

,

be cau se he had no c ompanion an d Noah w a s taking i n th e ,

animals only by pairs Falseh oo d went Off to seek a partne r

. ,

a n d he met M is fortune wh o m b e associate d with h i msel f

,

o n the c on d ition that she m i ght appr op r i ate w hat Falseh ood
1 62 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je w s

The di fficu l ties were increased when the flood began to

toss the ark from S ide to side Al l inside o f it were S haken .

up like lentils in a pot The l ions began to roar the oxen

.
,

lowed the wolves how l ed and al l the animals gave vent t o

, ,

their agony each th ro ugh the sounds i t ha d the p o w e r t o

,

utter .

A l so Noah an d h is s on s thinking that death w a s h i gh

, ,

broke into tears Noah p r ayed to Go d : O Lor d h elp us

.
, ,

for we are not ab l e to b e a r the evil that encompasses us .

The bi ll ows surge about us th e streams o f destruction make

,

us afraid and death stares u s in the face O hear ou r

, .

prayer deliver us incline Thysel f unto us and be gra c ious

, , ,

°
unto us ! Re d eem u s and save u s ! 3

The flood was produced by a union of the male w aters ,

w hich are above the fir ma me n t an d the f emale waters ,

”
issuing from the earth The upper waters rushed through
.

the space le ft w hen God removed tw o stars out o f the con

ste l lation Pleia d e s A fte r w ar d t o put a stop to the floo d
.
, ,

Go d had to trans fer tw o sta r s f r o m th e co nstellat i on of the

Bear to the constellation O f the Pleiades That i s why the .

Bear runs a fter the Pleiades She wants her tw o ch i l dr en .

back but they w ill be restored t o he r o nly i n the futur e

,

”
w orld .

There w e r e othe r changes among the c el estial sphe r es

du ring the year Of the flood All the time it l asted the sun.
,

and the moon shed no light whence Noah was ca ll ed by his

,

”
name the resting on e for in hi s li fe the sun and the m oo n
, ,

r ested The ark w a s illuminated by a precious stone the

.
,

light Of whi ch was more bril l ia nt by night than by day s o ,

enabling Noah to distingu i sh between day an d riigh t

‘1
.
 N oa h 1 63

The duration o f the flo od was a whole year It began on .

the seventeenth day o f Heshwan and the rain continued for ,

forty days un til the tw enty seventh o f K is l e w The pun

,
-
.

is h me n t cor r esponded to the crime Of th e sinful generation .

They had le d immoral lives and begotten ba stard c hildren , ,

whose emb ryonic state lasts fo rty days F rom the twenty .

seventh o f K is l e w until the first Of S iwan a perio d Of on e ,

hundred an d fifty days the water stood at on e and the same

,

height fi fteen el l s abo ve the earth D uring that time a l l the

,
.

wicked were destroyed ea ch on e receivi ng the punishment

,

due to him Cain was among those that pe ri shed an d thus

.
43
,

the death o f Abel was a v e n ge d S O powe r ful were th e .

‘s

waters in working havo c that the corps e Of Adam w a s n o t

“
spared in its grave .

On the first Of S iwan the waters bega n t o abat e a quarter ,

Of an ell a day and at the end Of Sixty d ays on the tenth day
, ,

o f Ab the summits o f the mounta ins showed themselves

, .

But many days before on the tenth O f Tammuz Noah had

, ,

sent fo rth the raven and a week later the d ove on the fi rst
, ,

Of her three sallies r ep eate d at inte rval s o f a week It too k

, .

from the first o f Ab until the first o f Tishri f o r th e waters t o

subs i de wholly from the f ace o f the ear th Even then th e .

so i l w a s s o miry that the d wellers in th e ark had to rema i n

with i n until the twenty seventh day O f Heshwan c omplet-
,

i ng a full s un yea r co nsisting o f t w elve mo ons an d e l even

,

“
days .

Noah had expe rienced di ffi culty all along in as c e rtaining

the state o f the waters When he d esired to dispatch th e.

raven the bird said : The Lord thy Master hates me an d

, , , ,

thou do st hate me t oo Thy Master hates me for H e ba d e

, .
,
1 64 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

thee take seven pa irs of the c lean animals into the ark an d ,

but tw o pairs of the unclean animals to which I belon g , .

Th o u hatest me fo r thou dost not choose as a messenger a

, , ,

bird Of o ne Of the kinds o f which there are seven pairs in the

ark but th o u sendest me an d o f my kin d there is but one
, ,

pa i r S uppose n o w I should perish by reas o n O f heat o r

.
, ,

col d w o uld n ot th e worl d be the po o re r by a whole spe c ies

,

o f animals ! O r c an i t be that thou hast cast a lustful eye

”
upon my mate and desirest to r id thysel f o f me !
, Whe r e
unto N o ah made answer and said : Wretc h ! I must l i ve
,

apa rt f rom my ow n w i f e i n the ark H ow mu c h less would .

”
s u ch thoughts occu r to my min d as thou imp u t e s t to me !
’
The r aven s erran d ha d no su c cess for when he s a w the ,

body O f a d ea d man he s e t to work to devou r i t an d did not

, ,

execute the o rders g i ven to h i m by Noah Thereupon the .

d ove was sent o ut Towar d evening s h e r eturned with an

.

Olive lea f in he r bill plucked upon the M o un t of O lives at

,

Je rusalem fo r the Holy Lan d ha d n o t been ravaged by the

,

deluge As s h e plucked i t S he sai d to G od :

. O Lo r d o f the
,

w or ld let my f ood be a s bitter a s the Olive but d o Thou gi ve

“

, ,

it to me f r o m Thy hand r athe r than i t S h oul d b e s w eet

, ,

a n d I be d elive re d into the powe r O f men

47
.

N OA H L E A! E S T H E A RK
Th o ugh the earth assumed its Old form at the en d O f the
year o f pun i shment Noah did n ot aban d on the ark until he
,

receive d the c omman d o f Go d t o leave it He sai d t o him .

s el f A S I ente r e d the ark at the bidding O f God s o I w ill

, ,

”
l eave i t only at His bidding Yet w hen God bade Noah go
.
,

out Of the a r k he re f u s e d be cause he f ea r e d that afte r he

, ,
1 66 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e J ew s

bodi l y defect he , wa s not perm i tted to do the Offic e s of a

"1
priest .

The sa cri fices c onsisted o f an ox a sheep a goat tw o , , ,

turtle d oves and t w o young pigeons Noah had chosen

, .

these kinds because he supposed they were ap p ointed for

sacrifices seeing that God had commanded him to take seven
,

pairs o f them into the ark with him The alta r was erected .

in the same p l ace on which Adam and Cain and Abel had
brought their sacrifices and on whi ch later the a l ta r was t o
,

"2
be in the sanctuary at Jerusalem .

After the sacrifice was comp l eted God blessed Noah and ,

his sons H e made them to be rulers o f the wor l d as Adam

had been and He gave them a command saying
, Be , ,

”
f ruitful and multiply upon the earth for during their s o ,
u

j ourn in th e ark the t w o sexes O f men and anima l s a l ike

, , ,

had lived apart from each othe r because while a publi c ,

ca l amity rages continence is becoming even to those who

are left unscathed This l a w o f c onduct had been violated
.

by none in the ark ex c ept by Ham by the dog and by the , ,

’
raven They a l l received a punishment H a m s was that h is
. .

des c endants were men of d ark hued S kin -

.
“

As a token that He would destroy the ea rth no more Go d ,

s e t H is bow in the c loud Even i f men should be steeped in

.

s in again the b o w proclaims to them that their S ins wi ll c ause

,

no harm to the wor l d Times came in the cour se of the ages

.

when men were pious enough not to have to live in dread of

punishment In such times the b ow w a s not visible
“5
. .

God accorded permission to Noah and his descendants t o

use the flesh o f animals for food which had been forbidden ,

f rom the time Of A d am until then But they w ere to abstain .

 N oa h 1 67

from the use o f bl oo d He ordained the seven Noa chian

.

l aws the observance o f which is incumbent upon a ll men

, ,

n o t upon Is rael a l one God enj oined particu l ar l y the com

.

mand against the shedding O f human blood Whoso would .

’
shed man s b l o o d his blood would be she d Even if human
, .

j udges let the guilty man go f ree his punishment wou l d ,

ove rtake him H e w o uld die an unnatural death such a s

.
,

he had inflicted upon his fellow man Yea even beasts that -
.
,

“I
slew men even o f them would the life O f men be r e qu ir e d
, .

T H E CU RSE O F D R U NKENNES S
Noah lost his epithet the pious when he began t o “

occupy himsel f with the growing of the vine He became a .

man o f the ground and this first attempt to produce wine

,

at the same time produced the first to drink to excess the ,

first to utter curses upon his associates and the fir st to intro ,

duce slavery This is the way it all came about Noah

. .

found the vine w hich Adam had taken with him from Para
dise when he was driven forth He tasted the grapes upon
, .

it an d fin di ng them palatable h e resolve d to p l ant the vi ne

, , ,

and ten d it O n the selfsame day on whi ch he planted it

.
"
,

it bo re fr u i t he put it in the w ine press drew O ff the j ui c e

,
-
, ,

drank it be c ame d r unken and w a s dishonored— a l l on one

, ,

d ay H is assistant in the work of cultivating the vine w a s

.

S atan who had happened a l ong at the very moment when he

,

w a s engaged in plan tin g the s l ip he had found S atan asked .

”
him : What is it thou a rt planting he r e !
”
Noah : A vineyard .

Satan : An d w hat may be the qualities O f what i t

”
pro d u c es !
 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Jews

Noah : The f ruit it bears is sweet be it dry o r mo i st , .

It yields w i ne that r ej o i ceth the heart O f man .

S ata n Let u s go i nt o pa r tne r ship i n this business o f

“

planting a vineya r d .

”
Noah : Agree d !
S atan the r eup o n slaughte r e d a lamb an d then i n su cces , ,

sion a lion a pig an d a monkey Th e bloo d O f each as i t

, , , .

w a s killed he made to fl o w under the vine Thus he co n .

v e ye d t o Noah what the qualities o f wine are : be fore man

d ri nks o f it he is i nnocent as a lamb ; i f he drinks o f it mod

,

e ra t e l y he f ee l s a s strong as a lion ; if he drinks more o f it

,

than he can bea r he resembles the pig ; and i f he drinks to

,

the point of intox ic at i on then he behaves like a monkey

, ,

he dances ar o un d sings talks obs c enely , an d know s not

, ,

what he is doing .

This deterred Noah n o m or e than did the example o f

Adam whose fall ha d also been d ue to wine for the for
, ,

bidden fruit had been the grape w ith w h ich he ha d ma d e,

”
himsel f drunk .

In his dr unken co n d it i on N o ah bet oo k h i msel f t o the tent

Of h is w i fe His s on Ham s a w him the r e and he tol d h i s
.
,

brothe r s w hat he ha d noti c ed an d said : The first man ha d

,

but tw o s o ns an d on e sle w the other ; this man N o ah h a s

,

”
three So ns yet he desires to beget a f ourth besides
, Nor .

did Ham r est satisfied with these disrespectful words a ga i nst

his fathe r H e a d ded to thi s s in of irreve r ence th e still
.

gr eate r o utrage o f attempting t o pe r form an Operation up o n

his father designe d t o prevent proc reati o n .

When Noah aw oke fro m his wine an d became sobe r he ,

pronoun c ed a c urse upon Ham in the person o f h is youngest

1 70 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e J ew s

the d es c en d ant s of Shem the Assyri ans even when the

, ,

angel o f the Lord burnt them in the c amp were not exp o sed , ,

thei r garments remained upon their co rpses unsinged A n d .

in time to c ome when Gog shall su ff er his d efeat Go d w ill

, ,

provide both shrouds an d a place o f burial fo r him an d all

h is multitude the p o ster i ty o f Japheth
, .

Though Shem and Japheth both showe d them s elves t o b e

dutiful and de ferential yet it was Shem who deserved the
,

larger meed o f praise H e w a s the first to s e t about c over

.

ing h is father Japheth j oined him after the good deed had
.

been begun Therefore the des c endants o f Shem received

.

as their special reward the tallit the garment worn by them

, ,

”
while the Ja p h e th ite s have only the toga A further dis .

tinction accorded to Shem was the mention o f his name in

’
connection with God s in the blessing of Noah Blessed be .

the L o rd the God O f Shem he said though as a rule the

, , ,

name o f Go d is not j oined to the name Of a living person ,

only to the name o f on e who h a s d eparted this l ife .

“

The relation o f Shem to Japheth was expressed i n the

blessing thei r father pronounced upon them : Go d wi l l grant
a land o f beauty t o Japheth an d h i s sons will be proselyt es
,

dwel l ing in the a c ademies of Shem At the same time .

65

Noah conveyed by his words that th e Shekinah wou l d dwel l

only in the first Temple erected by Solomon a s on o f Shem
, , ,

and not in the se cond Temple the buil d e r of whi ch w o uld be

,

”
Cy r us a descendant of Japheth
, .

NO AH ’
S D ESCENDANTS S P READ AB RO AD
When it became known to Ham that hi s father had cursed
him he fled ashamed and with h is family he settled in the
, ,
 N oa h 1 71

c ity built by him and named Ne e la ta ma u k fo r h i s wi fe

,
.

Jealous of his brother Japheth fo l low ed his example He ,

.

likewise bui l t a city which he named for h is wi fe Ada ,

ta n e s e s Shem was the on l y one of the sons O f Noah wh o

.

’
did not abandon him In the vicinity O f h is father s home
.
,

by the mountain he bui l t his c ity to which he also gave h is

, ,

wife s name Z e de ke te l b a b The three cities are all nea r

’
,
.

Mount L ub a r the eminence upon which the ark rested Th e

,
.

first lies to the south of it the se c on d to the west an d the , ,

third to the east .

Noah endeavored to in c ulcate the o r d inances and the com

’
mands known to him upon his chi l dre n an d his childre n s
chi l dren In particu l ar he admonished them against the for
.

n ica t io n the uncleanness and a l l the iniquity which ha d

, ,

brought the flood down upon the earth H e r eproache d .

them with living apart from one another and with their ,

j e a l ou s ie s for he feared that a fter his death they might go

, , ,

so far as to S hed human b l ood Against this he warned .

them impressively that they be not annihilate d from the

,

earth l ike those that went before Anothe r l a w which he

m
.

enj oined upon the to Observe it was the l a w ordaining that

, ,

the fruit O f a tree S ha l l not be used the first three years it

bears and even in the fourth year it shall be the portion o f
,

the priests al one a fter a part thereo f has been o ff ered upon
,

th e a l tar o f God And h a v mg ma de an end o f giving hi s

.

teachings and inj unctions Noah said : For thus did Enoch , ,

you r ancestor exhort h is s on Methuselah and M ethuselah

, ,

his s on Lamech and Lame c h d e l ivered a ll unt o me as h is

,

father had bidden him and n ow I do exh o rt you my c hil , ,

dren as Enoch exhorted his s on When he lived i n his

, .
,
1 72 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e J ew s

gene r ation which was the seventh generation O f man he

, ,

commanded i t and testified it unto his c hildren and his c hil

’ ”
dren s c h i ldren until the day o f his death
, .

In the year 1 569 after the cr eation o f the w o rl d N oah ,

di vide d the ea rth by l ot among his three sons in the presen c e ,

o f an angel E ach o ne stret ched forth his hand and t oo k a

.

slip from the bosom o f Noah S hem s slip was ins cr ibe d
’
.

w ith th e middle O f the earth and this portion be came the in

,

he ritan c e o f h is des c endants unto all etern ity Noah rej oiced .

that the lot had assign ed i t to Shem Thus w a s f ulfilled his .

”
blessing upon him And God in the habitation of Shem
, ,

for three holy pla c es f ell within his pre c in cts— the Holy o f
Holies in the Temple Mount Sinai the middle point Of the
, ,

dese rt and Mount Zion th e m id dle p o int o f the navel o f

, ,

th e ea rth .

The south fell to the l o t o f Ham an d the north be came ,

the i nheritance o f Japheth The land of Ham is hot Ja p h

.
,

’ ’
eth s co ld but Shem s is ne i the r hot n or c old i ts temperature
, ,

is h o t and c ol d mixed “
.

This division of the ea rth took pla c e t o ward the en d o f

th e li fe o f P el e g the name given to him by his father Eber
, ,

w h o being a pr o phet kne w that the d iv i sion o f the ea rth

, ,

w oul d take place in the time o f h is s on The brothe r O f “

.

Peleg w a s c alle d Joktan be cause the d u r at io n of the l i fe of

,

”
man w a s s hortene d in h is time .

In turn the th r ee sons o f N oah w hile they w e r e still

, ,

standing in th e presence of their fathe r divided each his ,

.

po rtio n am on g h i s c hil d ren Noah threatening with his curse

,

a n y w h o s h o ul d stretch o ut his hand to take a po rtion not

a ssigned to him by l o t An d they all c ri e d

. S o be it ! S O ,

be it !
1 74 Th e L e g en ds o f th e J ew s

w i se men of In d ia Ar am Ma c ed o nia and Egyp t d raw the ir

, , ,

knowledge The sages o f India devote d themselves pa r

.

ti cu l a r l y to the study O f curative trees an d spices ; the Ara

means w ere w ell versed i n the knowledge of the prope rt ies

O f gr ain s an d see d s an d they translated the ol d medical
,

books i nt o the ir language The wise men o f Macedonia

.

w e r e the fir st t o apply med ic al knowledge pra c tica l ly whi l e ,

the Egypt i an s s ought t o e ff e c t c ures by means o f magic a rts

and by means of astr ology an d they ta ught the Midrash o f
,

the Chal d ees co mp o se d by Kangar the s on o f U r the son

, , ,

o f Kesed . Medical S kill S prea d furthe r and fu rther unt il

the time o f ZE s cu l a p iu s This Mace donian sage a ccom
.
,

p a n ie d by forty learned magicians j ourneyed from c ountry ,

to country until they c ame to the land beyond India in th e

, ,

directi on o f Paradise They hope d there to find some w ood

.

o f the tree of life an d thus spread their fame abroad ove r

,

the whole w orl d Thei r hope was frustrate d When they

. .

arrived a t the S pot they found healing trees and wood o f the
,

tree o f l ife but when they were in the a c t o f stretching forth

,

thei r hands to gathe r what they desired lightning darted ,

out O f the ever turning sword smote them to the ground

-
, ,

and they were a l l burnt With them d isappeared all kn o wl

.

edge o i me dic ine an d it d id not r evive until the ti me o f th e

,

first A rtaxerxes unde r the Macedonian sage Hippocrates

, ,

D ioscorides of Baala Galen o f Caphtor and the Hebrew

, ,

”
Asaph .

T H E D E P RA V ITY O F M ANKIND
With the spread o f mankind co rrupti on in c rease d While .

N o ah w a s s ti ll al i ve the d e s c en d ants of S hem Ham an d

, , ,
 ivoa h 1 75

Japheth appointed p r in c es ove r each of the three g r oups .

Nimrod for the des c endants o f Ha rri, Joktan for the de

s ce n da n t s o f Shem and P h e n e ch for the des c en d ants of
,

’
Japheth Ten yea r s be f ore Noah s d eath the numbe r o f
.
,

those subj e c t to the three pr i n c es amounted t o millions .

When this g r eat concou rse of men came to B a byl o ni a up o n

thei r j ourneyings they said to one another : Beh o l d the
, ,

time is coming when at the end o f days neighbo r w i ll be

, ,

separated from neighbor and brothe r f rom brother and on e

, ,

wi l l ca rry on war against the other GO t o let us build us .

,

a c ity and a tower whose top may rea ch unto heaven and
, , ,

l et us make u s a g reat name upon the earth And n ow let .

”
us mak e bricks and each on e w r ite his name upon his br i ck
,
.

All agreed to this proposal w ith the ex c eption o f twelve ,

pious men Abraham among them They refused to m

, m .

the o thers They were seized by the pe opl e and brought

.
,

before the three prin c es to whom they gave the fo l lowin g

,

reason for their refusal : We w ill n ot make bricks nor “

,

remain with you for w e know but on e Go d and Him w e

, ,

serve ; even i f you burn us in the fi re together with the

b r icks we will not w alk in your ways Nimrod and P h e n e ch
, .

fl e w i nto su c h a passion over the twelve men that they r e

solve d to thr o w them into the fire Joktan however besides .
, ,

being a God fearing man was o f c lose kin to the men on

-
,

trial and he essaye d t o save them H e p roposed to his tw o

, .

colleagues to g rant them a S even d ays respite His plan w a s

’
.

a cc epted su c h d eference being pai d him as the p ri mat e

,

am o ng the three The twelve were incarce r ated in the

.

house o f J oktan In the night he c harged fifty of his atten d

.

ants to m o unt the pr i soners upon mules an d take them t o th e

'
1 76 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jews

mountains Thus they woul d es cape the threatened punis h

.

ment Joktan provided them with food for a month He

. .

was sure that in the meantime either a change o f sentiment

would c o me about and the people desist from thei r purpo se
, ,

o r Go d would help the fugitives E leven o f the prisoners .

assente d to the plan w ith gratitude Abraham alone rej ecte d .

i t saying : Behold to day we flee to the mountains t o

, ,
-

es c ape f rom the fire but i f wild beasts ru sh ou t from the

,

mounta i ns and d evou r us or i f food is la c king s o that w e

, ,

die by famine w e sha l l be foun d fleeing before the pe ople

,

o f the land and dying in our sins N ow as the Lord liveth .

, ,

in w hom I trust I wil l not dep art from this place whe rein
,

they have imprisoned me and if I am to d ie thr ough my ,

sins then w ill I die by the w i ll o f God a c cording t o H is

, ,

desi r e .

In va i n J o ktan en d eav or e d t o persua d e Ab r aham t o fl ee .

H e persisted i n his refusal H e remained behin d al on e in .

the prison house whi l e the other eleven ma d e the i r es cape

, .

At the expiration o f the set term when the people retu rn ed ,

a n d demanded the death o f the twelve c aptives Joktan cou l d ,

p rodu c e only Abraham H i s excuse was that the rest had

.

br o ken loo se during the night The peopl e were abo ut to .

thr o w themselves upon Abraham and cast him into the l ime
kiln S u dd enly a n earthquake was felt the fire darted from
.
,

the furna c e an d all w h o w ere standing r ound about eighty

, ,

four thousand o f the people w ere co nsumed whi l e Abraham , ,

rema i ne d untou ched The r eupon he r epaired to his eleven

.

f r iends i n the m o untains an d to l d them of the mira c le that

,

h a d be fallen fo r his sake They all retu rned w i th him and

.
, ,

unmoleste d by the people they gave p r aise an d thanks to ,

"
God .
1 78 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

sway as the ninth ruler to possess the same power will be

,

”
the Messiah .

His impiousness kept pa c e with his g row i ng po w e r .

S ince the flood there had been no su c h sinner as Nimr od .

He fashioned idol s o f wood and stone an d paid worship t o ,

them But n ot satisfied to lead a godless life himse l f he

.
,

did all he c o ul d to tempt h is subj ects into evil ways wherein ,

he w a s aided a n d abetted by his son M ardom This s on o f .

his outstripped h is father i n iniquity It was the ir ti me and .

their l ife that gave ris e to the proverb O ut o f the wi cked ,

” “3
cometh forth wickedness .

The great success that attended all O f Nimr o d s under ’

takings produced a sinister e ff e c t Men no longer tr usted in .

God but rather in thei r o w n prowess and abi l ity an a tti

,
“
,

”
tude t o which Nimrod tried to convert the whole world .

There fore people said Since the cr e ation o f the worl d

,

there has been none like Nimrod a mighty hunter o f men ,

” ° 8
and beasts and a sinner before God
, .

’
An d not all this su fficed unto Nimrod s evil d esire Not
i
.

e n ou gh th a t h e turned men away f r o m Go d he did all he ,

c ou l d to make them pay Divine honors unto himsel f H e .

s e t himsel f up a s a g o d and made a s e at for himself in imi

,

t a tion o f the seat Of God It was a tower built out o f a round

.

rock and o n it he pla c ed a throne o f cedar wood upon

, ,

which arose one above the other four thrones O f iron cop
, , , ,

per S i l ver an d gold Crowning a l l upon the go l den throne

, ,
.
, ,

lay a precious stone r ound in shape and gigantic in size

,
.

This S e rved him as a seat and as he sate upon it all nati ons
, ,

me an d pa i d him D i vine h o mage

"
ca .
 N oa h I 79

T H E TO WER O F B A B EL
The iniquity and godlessness of Ni rod reached thei r m
climax in the building o f the Tower o f Babel H is coun .

s e l l o r s had proposed the p l an o f ere c ting such a tower ,

Nimrod had agreed to it and it w a s executed in Shin a r by a

,

mob Of s ix hundred thousand men The enterprise w a s .

neither more n or less than rebellion aga i nst Go d and there ,

were three so rts o f r ebels among the builders The first .

party spoke Let u s ascend into the heavens and wage war
,

fare w i th Him ; the second party spoke Let us ascen d into ,

the heavens s e t up o u r ido l s and pay worship unto them

, ,

there ; and the third party spoke Let us ascend into the ,

heavens and ruin them with ou r bows and spears

, .

Many many years were passed in bui l ding the tower It

, .

reached s o great a height that it took a year to mount to the

top A brick w a s therefo r e more precious in the sight of
.
, ,

the builders than a human being I f a man fe ll down and .

,

met his death none took notice of it but i f a brick dropped

, , ,

they wept be c ause i t w o uld take a year to replace it So

, .

intent were they up o n a cc omplishing their purpose that they

wou l d not permit a woman to interrupt herse l f in her work
o f brick ma king when the hou r o f travail came upon her
-
.

Mou l ding bricks s h e gave birth to her child and tying it , ,

round her body in a sheet S he went on moulding bricks

, .

They never slackened i n their work and from their dizzy ,

height they c onstantly shot arrows to war d heaven which , ,

returning w ere seen to be covered with blood They were

, .

thus fortified i n their delusion and they c rie d We have

, ,

slain all wh o are in heaven Thereupon Go d turned t o the

.

seventy an gel s wh o en co mpass H is throne an d He spake ,

1 80 Th e L e ge n ds of th e Jews

GO to let u s go down and there c onfoun d their language

, , ,

”
that they may not understand on e another s S peech
’
Thus .

it happened Thenceforth none knew what the other spoke

. .

O ne would a s k for the mortar and the other hande d him a

,

brick ; i n a r age h e w o ul d throw the brick at his partner and

,

kil l him Many perishe d i n this manner and the rest were
.
,

punished a cc ording to the nature o f their rebel l ious condu c t .

Those who had S poken Let u s ascend into the heavens

, ,

”
s e t up o u r idols and pay worship unto them there Go d
, ,

t r ans formed into apes and phantoms ; those who had p r o

pose d to assault the heavens with their a rms God set against ,

each other s o that they fell in the c ombat ; and those who
had resolved to carry on a combat with Go d in heaven were
scattered broadcast Over the earth 5 A s for the unfinished .

tower a part sa n k into the earth and another part was con
, ,

”
sumed by fire ; only on e thir d o f i t remained standing
-
.

The place o f the tower has never lost its pe c uliar qua l ity .

”
Whoever passes it f orgets all he knows .

The punishment inflicte d upon the sin ful generation o f

the tower is comparatively lenient O n a c count o f rapine .

the generation o f the fl o od were utterly d estro yed w hile ,

the generation o f the tower were preserved in spite of their

blasphemies and all their other acts O ff ensive to God The .

reason is that God sets a high value upon pea c e and ha r

mony There fore the generation of the d eluge who gave
.
,

themselves up to d epredation an d bore hatred to on e ,

another w ere extirpated root and bran c h while the gen

, , ,

e r a t ion o f the Tower O f Babel dwelling ami c ably together ,

and loving o ne a nothe r w e r e spa r e d al i ve at l e a s t a r e mn an t

, ,

th em
”
of .
 !

A B RA H A M

T H E W IC K ED G ENERA TI O NS .

T H E B IRTH O F A B RAHAM
T H E B A B E PR O CLAI M S GOD
A B RAHAM S ’
F IRST A PP EA RANCE
PU B LI C
T HE P REACHER O F TH E T R U E FAITH .

I N THE FIERY FU RNACE

A B RAHAM E MIGRATES T O H ARAN
T H E S TAR I N THE E AST .

T H E T R U E B ELIE VE R .

T H E I C O N O CLA S T
A B RAHAM I N CANAAN
H I S SO J OU RN I N E GY P T
TH E F IRST P HARA O H .

T HE WA R O F THE K I NGS
TH E COV ENANT O F THE P IECES .

TH E B IRTH O F I SH MAEL
T HE VISIT O F THE A NGEL S
T H E C ITIES O F S I N.

A B RAHAM P LEADS FO R THE S I NNERS .

T H E DE STR U CTI O N OF TH E S INF U L C ITIES

A M O NG THE P HILISTINES .

TH E B IRTH O F I SAAC .

I S H M A EL CAST O F F.

TH E T w o W I VE S O F I S H M A E I
T H E COV ENANT WITH A B IMELECH
S ATAN A CC U S ES AB RAHAM .

T HE J O U RNEY To M O R IA H .
 P A GE

T H E A K EDAH
‘

2 79

T HE D EATH AND BU RIAL O F S ARAH .

E LIEZ ER S M ISSI O N
’

T H E WO O ING O F R E B EKAH .

T HE L A S T Y EA RS O F A B RAHAM .

A H E RA LD OF

A B RAHAM VIE W S E ARTH AND H EA V EN .

T H E PAT R O N O F H E B R O N .
1 86 Th e L eg e n ds f
o th e J e ws

began also to take c aptives an d s ell them as Sl aves And .

they m a de unto themselves molten images which they w o r ,

shipped each o ne the i dol he had molten for himse l f for the
, ,

evil spirits under their leader M a s t e ma led them astray into

s in and uncleanness For this r eason Reu ca l led his son
.

S erug because all mankind ha d tu rned aside unto s in an d

,

transgress i on When he grew to manhood the name was

.
,

seen to have been chosen fittin gl y for he too worshipped , , ,

idols and when he himself had a s on Nahor by name he

, , ,

taught him the arts o f the Chaldees h ow to be a so othsaye r ,

and practi c e magic according to S igns in the h eavens .

When in time a s on was born to Nahor M a st e ma sent

, , ,

ravens and othe r birds to despoil the earth and rob men o f
the proceeds of the i r work As soon as they had dropped.

the seed in the furrows and be fore they could cover it over
,

with earth the birds picked it up from the surfa c e of the

,

ground and Naho r ca ll ed h is S on Terah be c ause the ravens

, ,

an d the other birds plagued men devoured their seed and , ,

r e d u ce d them to de s titu tion .

ls

T H E B IRTH O F AB RA HA M
’
Terah married E mte l aj the daughter of K a r n a b o and
, ,

the O ff spri ng of their union was Abraham H is birth had .

’
been read i n the stars by Nimr o d for this impious king was ,

a cunning ast r ologe r and it was manifest to him that a man

,

would be born in h is day who wou l d rise up against him

and triumphantly give the lie to his religi on In his terror .

at the fate foretold him in the stars he sent for h is p rinces ,

and governors and asked them to a d v i se him in the matter

,
.

They answered a n d sa id : O u r unanimous advi c e is that

,
 A br a h a m 1 87

thou shouldst build a great house station a guar d at the ,

entrance thereof and make known in the whole of thy

,

rea l m that a ll p regnant women sha l l repair thither togethe r

with thei r midwives W ho are to remain with them when they
,

are de l ivered When the days o f a woman to be delivered

.

are fu l filled and the chi l d is born it shall be the duty of the
, ,

midwi fe to kill it if it be a boy But i f the chi l d be a girl

, . ,

it shal l be kept alive and the mother shall re c e i ve gi fts an d

,

costly garments and a herald shall proclaim Thus is d one

, ,

unto the woman who bears a daughter !

The king w a s pleased with this co unsel an d he ha d a ,

proclamation published throughout his whole kingdom s u m ,

moning a l l the architects to build a great house for him ,

sixty ells high and eighty wide A fter it was completed .

,

he issued a se c ond proclamation summoning all pregnant ,

women thither and there they were t o remain until thei r

,

confinement Offi c ers were appointed t o take the wome n to

.

the house and guards were stationed in it and about it to

, ,

prevent the women from es c ap i ng thence He furthermo re .

sent midwives to the house and commanded them to slay ,

’
the men c hildren at their mothers breasts But if a woman .

bore a girl s h e was to be arrayed in byssus silk and em

, , ,

broidered garments and led forth from the house o f dete m

,

ti o n ami d great honors NO less than seventy th o usan d.

children were slaughtered thus Then the angels appeared .

be fore God and spoke

, Seest Thou not what he doth yon
, ,

sinne r and blasphemer Nimrod s on o f Canaan who slays

, ,

”
so many inno c ent babes that have done no harm ! God
ans w ered and said : Ye holy angels I know it an d I see
, ,

it for I neither S lumbe r no r S leep I behold and I kno w

, .
1 88 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Jews

the secret things and the things that a re revea led and ye ,

shall witness what I will do unto th is sinner and b l asphemer ,

”
f or I will turn M y han d aga i nst him t o chastise him .

It w a s about this time that Terah espoused the mother of

Abraham and S he w a s with c hild When her body grew
, .

’
large at the end o f three months o f pregnancy and her ,

countenance became pale Terah said unto her ,

What ail s ,

thee my wife that thy countenan c e is s o pa l e and thy body

, ,

S O swollen ! She answered and said Every year I su ff er

, ,

°
w i th this malady But Terah wou l d not be put o ff thus
1
.

H e insisted : Show me thy body I t seems to me thou a rt .

big with child I f that be s o it behooves us not to vio l ate

.
,

”
the command o f ou r go d Nimrod When he passed his .
11

hand over her body there happened a miracle The chi l d

, .

rose until it lay beneath her breasts and Terah cou l d fee l ,

nothing with his hands H e said to his wife

. Thou didst ,

S peak truly and naught became visible until the day o f her
,

delive ry .

When he r time app roa ched she le f t th e c ity in great terr o r

,

a n d wandered toward the dese rt walking along the edge o f ,

”
a val ley until s h e happened acros s a cave She entered
, .

this refuge and on the next day she was seized with throes
, ,

and s h e gave birth to a s on The who l e c ave was fi ll ed W ith

.

’
the light o f the c hild s c ountenance as with the splendor of
the s un and the mother rej oiced ex c eedingly The babe
, .

s h e bore was ou r f ather Abraham .

His mother lamented and sai d to he r s o n : Alas that I

,

bore thee at a time when Nimrod is king For thy sake .

seventy thousand men c hil d ren were slaughtered and I am ,

seized w ith terror on a cc ount o f thee that he hear of thy ,

1 90 Th e L ege n ds f
o th e J ew s

and Abraham washed his face and his hands an d feet and ,

he prayed to God bowing down and prostrating himse l f

'

, .

Meantime the mother of Abraham thought o f him i n

sorrow and tears and S he went forth from the city to seek
,

him in the c ave in w hi c h S he had abandoned him Not fin d .

ing her s on s h e wept bitterly and said Woe unto me that

, , ,

I bore thee but t o be c ome a prey o f W ild beasts the bears ,

and the l ions and the wolves ! She went to the edge o f
the valley and there S he found her son But s h e did not
, .

re c ognize him for he had grown very large S he addressed

, .

” “
the lad Peace be with thee ! and he returned
, With ,

”
thee be pea c e ! and he continued Unto what pu rpose ,

didst thou come t o the desert ! She replie d I went forth ,

f rom the city t o seek my 5 011 Abraham questioned fur .

”
ther , Who brought thy s on hither ! and the mother r e
pl i ed thereto : I had become pregnant from my husband
Terah and when the days o f my delivery were fulfilled I
, ,

w a s in anxiety about my son in my womb lest our king ,

c ome the s on o f Canaan a n d slay him as he ha d slain the

, ,

s e v e h ty thousand othe r men children Scarcely had I .

r eache d the c ave i n this valley when the throes o f travailing

seized me and I bore a s on whom I left behin d in the cave
, , ,

and I went home again Now am I come to seek him but .

,

”
I find him n ot .

Abraham then S poke As to this child thou tellest o f

, ,

h ow was it !
ol d

The mother : ab o ut twenty days ol d

It wa s .

Abraham : I S there a woman in th e world who woul d

forsake he r n e w born s on in the desert and c ome t o see k
-
,

”
h i m a fte r twenty d ay s !
 A br a h a m 19 1

The m o ther :
Peradventure God will S ho w H imself a
merciful Go d !
Abraham : I am the s on whom thou hast c ome to seek
”
in this va l ley !
The mother My s on h ow th o u a rt g ro wn ! But
,

twenty days ol d and thou c anst alrea d y walk and talk with
, ,

thy mouth !
Abraham : S O it i s an d thus O my mother i t i s ma d e
, , ,

known unto thee that there i s in the world a great terrible , ,

l i ving and ever -existing G o d w h o doth s e e but who cannot

, , ,

be s een He is in the heavens above an d the w hol e earth

.
,

is full o f H is g l ory .

”
The mother : My son i s there a Go d besi d e Nimr od !
,

Abraham : Y e s mother the G o d Of the heavens and the

, ,

God of the earth He is also the G od o f N imrod son of

,

Canaan . GO therefore and ca rry this message unto

, ,

Nimro d .

The mother o f Abraham returned to the c i ty and told her

husband Terah h ow s h e had fo und thei r son Terah wh o .
,

was a prince and a magnate in the house of the k i ng betook ,

himse l f to the royal pala c e and cast himse l f down be fore th e

,

k ing upon his f ace It was the rule that on e who prostrate d
.

himsel f be fore the king was n ot permitted to li ft up his head

until the king bade hi m lift it up Nimrod gave permiss i on .

to Terah to rise and state his request Thereupon Terah .

related all that had happened with his w ife and his son .

When Nimrod heard hi s tale abj e c t fear seize d upon him, ,

and he asked his c ounsellors and prin c es what to do with

the lad They answered an d said :
.
, O ur king an d ou r “

god ! Wherefore a rt thou in fear by reas o n Of a little chil d !

1 92 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s
”
There are myriads upon my r ia d s o f princes I n thy realm ,

ru l ers o f thousands rulers o f hundreds rulers o f fifties and

, , ,

ru l ers o f tens and o verseers without number Let the petti

, .

est o f the princes go and fetch the boy and put him in
prison . But the king interpose d Have ye ever seen a ,

baby o f twenty days walking with his f eet S peaking with ,

his mouth and proclaiming with his tongue that there is a

,

Go d in heaven who i s O ne and none beside H im who see s

, , ,

and i s not seen ! A l l the assemble d pr i n c es were h o rro r

“
struck at these words .

At this time S atan i n human form appea r e d clad i n bla ck ,

si l k garb and he cast himself down before the king Nim

, .

rod said ,
“
Raise thy head and state thy request S atan .

asked the king : Why art thou terr i fied and why are ye ,

a ll in fear on a c count o f a little lad ! I wi l l counsel the e

what thou shalt do : O pen thy arsenal and give weapo ns
unto a l l th e princes chie fs and go vernors and unto a l l the
, , ,

warriors and send them to fet c h him unt o thy servi c e an d

,

”
to be under thy dominion .

This advice given by Satan the k i ng a cc epted an d fol

lowed H e sent a gr eat armed host to bring Abraham t o
.

him When the boy s a w the army approach him he was

.
,

s o re a fraid and amid tears he implored Go d fo r help In

, .

answer to h i s p r a ve r God sent the angel Gabriel to him

, ,

and h e sa l d : B e n ot a fraid and disquieted for God is with ,

thee H e will res c ue thee ou t o f the hands o f a l l thine a d

.

”
versar i es Go d c omman d ed Gabriel to put thick dark
.
,

cl ou d s between Abraham and his assailants Dismayed by .

the h eavy clouds they fled returning to Nimrod their king

, , , ,

”
and they sa i d to him Let us depa rt and leave this rea l m
, ,
1 94 Th e L ege n ds o f th e Jew s

When Te r ah hea rd the s e w ord s he pe r sua d e d Ab r aham ,

to follow him int o the house wh ere his son told him all that ,

had happened—h ow i n on e day he had comp l eted a fo rty

’
days j ourney Terah thereupon went to Nimrod and r e
.

ported t o him that his son Ab r aham had sudden l y appeared

in Babylon The king sent for Abraham and h e c ame b e
.
22
,

for e h im with his fathe r Abraham passe d the magnates .

and the di gnitaries until he reache d the royal throne up o n ,

whi c h he seized hold shaking it and c ry i ng o ut with a loud

,

voi c e : O Nimrod thou contemptible wretch that de n ie s t

, ,

the essen c e o f faith that de n ie s t the living and immutabl e

,

G od an d Abraham H is servant the trusted steward o f His

, ,

house Acknowledge Him an d repeat after me the words

.
,

The Eternal is God the O nly O ne and there i s none beside ;

, ,

He is i n c orporeal living ever existing ; H e slumbers not

, ,
-

and sleeps not who hath c reated the world that men might
,

believe in Him And co n f ess also c oncern i ng me and say

.
,

that I am the servant o f God an d th e trusted ste w ar d o f H is

” ° 2
house .

While A b r a h a m p r ocl a ime d

this w i th a l o u d voi c e the
'

idols f ell upon their faces and with them also King Nim ,

ro d For a spa c e o f two hours an d a hal f the king lay li fe

“
.

less an d w hen his soul r eturned upon h i m he spoke and

, ,

sa id Is it thy v oic e O Abraham or the voice o f thy Go d !

, , ,

An d Abraham answered an d said Th i s voice is the voice , ,

”
O f the least o f all creatures called i nto existence by God .

The r eupon Nimro d sai d V er i ly the God of Abraham is a , ,

”
gr e at and power ful God the King O f all kings an d he com , ,

ma n de d Te rah to take h is s on an d remove him a n d retu rn ,

a ga i n unto h i s ow n ci ty an d f athe r an d s on d i d as the kin g

,

”
h a d ord e r e d .
 A bra h a m 195

T H E P R EA CHER O F T H E T R U E F AI T H
When Abraham attained the age o f twenty years h is ,

father Terah fell i l l He spoke as follows to h is sons Haran

.

and Abraham I adj ure y ou by y o ur lives my sons sell

, , ,

these tw o id ols fo r me fo r I have not enough money to

,

meet o ur expenses Ha r an exe c ute d the wish of his f ather

.
,

but i f any one acc o sted Abraham to buy an idol from him , ,

”
and asked him the price he w o uld answer Three manehs
, , ,

”
and then question in turn H ow Old art thou ! ,
Thirty
”
years the reply wou l d be
, Thou art thirty years of age.
,

a n d yet thou w o uldst worship this id ol which I made but

to day !
-
The man woul d d epart an d go his w a y and ,

another w ould approach Abraham an d ask H ow mu ch i s , ,

” ”
this i do l ! an d Five manehs woul d be the reply an d ,

again Abraham would put the question H ow ol d art ,

”
thou ! Fi fty years And dost thou wh o a rt fi f ty
.

years o f age b ow down be fore this id ol wh ich w a s ma d e but

to day !
-
Thereupon the man w oul d depa rt an d go his w a y .

Abraham then t oo k t w o i d ols put a r o pe ab o ut their n e ck s

, ,

and w ith thei r faces turned downward he dragge d them

, ,

along the ground c ry i ng alou d all the t i me : Who w i ll buy

,

an idol wherein there is n o p rofi t e i the r unto i tsel f or ,

unto him that buys i t in ord er t o w o rship i t ! It has a mouth ,

but it S peaketh not ; eyes but i t s eeth not ; f eet but i t walk
, ,

”
eth not ; ea r s but i t h ea r eth n o t
, .

The pe o ple wh o hea rd Abraham w e r e amazed ex c ee di ngly

at his wor d s As h e went through the st r eets he met an
.
,

Ol d w o man w h o app ro a che d h im w i th th e pu r pose Of buy i ng

an idol go od and b i g to be w orsh i ppe d an d l oved

, , Ol d .
“

”
w o man Ol d w o ma n
, s a id Ab r a h a m
, I kn o w n o p rofi t ,
1 96 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e Jews

the rein eithe r in the b ig ones or in th e little ones either unt o

, ,

”
themselves o r unt o others And he c ontinued to S peak to
.
,

her what has be c ome o f the big image thou di dst buy f r o m
,

”
my brothe r Ha r an to w orship it ! ,
”
Thieves S he r eplie d , ,

”
came i n the night an d st o le it wh i le I w a s sti l l at the bath
, .

”
I f it be thus Abraham went on questioning he r
, h ow ,
“

canst th o u pay homage to an idol that cannot save itsel f f rom

thieves let al o ne save othe r s like thysel f thou S illy ol d
, , ,

woman o ut of mis f o rtun e ! H ow i s i t p o ssible fo r thee t o

,

s a y that the image thou w or s h ipp e s t is a go d ! If i t be a

g od w h y di d it not save itself o u t o f the han d s o f those
,

thieves ! Nay in the idol ther e is no p rofit e i ther unt o its el f

, ,

”
o r unt o h i m that adores it .

The o l d woman rej o i ne d I f what th o u s ayest be tr ue

, ,

” ”
whom shall I serve ! Se r ve the God o f all g od s t e ,

tu rne d Abraham the L o r d of lor d s w h o hath create d

,
“
,

heaven and earth the s e a an d all therein—the God o f Nim

,

rod and the Go d o f Terah the God o f the east the west the
, , ,

s o uth an d the north Wh o i s N i mr od the dog who cal leth

, .
, ,

”
himsel f a god that w o r sh i p b e Off ered unto him
,
!

Abraham su cc eeded i n Opening the eyes of the ol d w o man ,

and s h e be came a zealous miss i onary for the tru e Go d .

When S he d is co ve r e d the th i eves wh o ha d carried off he r

i d ol an d they r est o red it to her s h e br o ke i t in p i eces with a
, ,

stone an d a s S h e wen d ed he r w a y th r ough the streets she

, ,

cried al o u d Wh o w ould save h i s s o ul f rom destruction

,
“
,

and be p r ospe ro us i n all h is d oings let h i m se rve the God ,

”
o f Abraham Thus s h e co nve r te d many men an d w o men
.

t o the true belie f .

Rumor s o f th e w ord s an d d ee d s Of the Ol d wo man rea c he d

1 98 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e Jews

the othe r he beheade d This one ha d his eyes stru c k out

.
,

”
the othe r had his hands crushed After a l l were mutilated .
7
,

h e w ent away having first put the axe int o the han d o f the
,

largest i dol .

The fea st en d ed the king returne d an d when he s a w all

, ,

h is idols shivered in pie c es he inquired who had per petrated

,

t h e mischie f Abraham was named a s the on e who had

.

been guilty of the outrage and the king summoned him an d

,

questioned him as t o hi s motive f or the deed Abraham .

rep l ied : I di d n o t d o it ; it was the largest O f the idol s

w h o shattered a l l the rest S eest thou not that he sti l l has
.

the axe in his hand ! And i f thou wilt not believe my words ,

a s k h im an d he will tell thee .

IN TH E F I E RY FU RNACE
No w the king was exceedingly wroth at Abraham an d ,

o rderedhim to be cast into prison where he commanded the ,

28
warden n ot to give him bread or water But God h e a r k .

ened unto the praye r o f Abraham and sent Gabrie l to him in ,

his dunge o n For a year the angel dwe l t with him and
.
,

provided him w ith all sorts o f foo d and a spring of fresh ,

wate r welled up before him and he d rank o f it At the end

, .

of a year the magnates O f the realm presente d themselves

,

be fore the king and advised him to cast Abraham into the
,

fire that the people might believe in Nimrod forever

,
.

Thereupon the king issue d a decree that a ll the subj ects o f

the king in all his provinces men and women young and Ol d
, , ,

should bring wood within forty days and he caused it t o be ,

’
thrown into a great furnace and set a fir e The flames shot .
o

up to the skies an d the people were sore a fraid o f the fire

,
.
 A br a h a m 99

Now the warden of

the prison was ordered to bring Abra
ham forth an d cast him in the flames The warden reminde d .

the king that Abraham had not had food o r d rink a whole
year and therefore must be dead but Nimr o d neve rtheless
, ,

desired him to step in front O f the prison an d c a l l his name .

I f he made reply he w a s to be hauled ou t to the pyre I f he

, .

had perished his rema i ns were to rece i ve bu rial an d h is

, ,

memo ry w a s to be wiped out henceforth .

Great l y amazed the warden was when h i s c ry Abraham , ,

” ”
art thou a l ive ! was answered with I am living “
He .

questioned further Who has been bringing thee food an d

,

! ”
drink all these many days and Abraham replied : Food
and drink have been bestowed upon me by Him who i s ove r
a l l things the God o f all gods and the Lord of all lor d s who
, ,

alone doeth wonde r s He who is the God o f Nimrod an d

,

the God o f Terah and the God o f the whole world He .

dis p e n s e th food and drink unto all beings H e sees but He .

,

cann ot be seen He is i n the heavens above and He is present

, ,

in all pla c es fo r He H i msel f s up e r vis e th al l th i ngs an d p ro

,

”
v ide th for al l .

The miracul o us r es c ue o f Abraham f rom d eath by sta rva

tion and thirst convinced the prison keeper O f the truth of -

Go d and His prophet Abraham and he a c knowle d ged h is ,

’
belie f i n bo th publicly The king s threat o f death unless h e
.

recante d could not turn him away from his n e w and t r ue

faith When the hangman raised his sword and s e t it at h is
.

throat to kill him he exclaimed , The Eternal He is Go d

, ,

the God o f the W hole worl d as well as o f the blasphemer

”
Nim r o d . B ut the sword c o uld not c ut his fl esh The .

hard er it was pre s s e d aga i nst his throat the more it brok e ,

”
i nt o pieces .
2 00 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jews

Nimrod however was not to be turne d a s i d e fro m h i s

, ,

pu rpose to make Abraham su ffer death by fire O ne of the

,
.

princes w a s d ispatche d to f etch him fo rth But scarcely did .

the messenge r s e t about the task of throwing him into th e

fire when the flame leapt forth from the f urnace and con
,

sume d him Many more attempts we r e made to cast Abra

.

ham into the f urnace but always with the same success
,

w hoever seized him to pitch him in w a s himsel f burnt an d ,

a large numbe r lost their lives S atan appeared in human .

shape a n d advise d the king to place Abraham in a catapult

,

and sling him into the fire Thus no on e would be required .

to come near the flame Satan himsel f constructed the cata

.

pult H aving proved it fit three times by means of stones

.

put i n the machine they bound Abraham hand and foot

, , ,

an d were about t o consign him to the flames At that mo .

ment S atan still disguised in human shape approached

, ,

Abraham and said If thou desirest to deliver thyse l f fr o m

, ,

the fire o f Nimrod b ow down before him and believe in

,

him . But Abraham rej ected the tempter w ith the wor d s ,

May the Eternal rebuke thee thou v i le contemptible a c , , ,

”
cu r sed blasphemer ! and S atan departed from him .

Then the mothe r o f Abraham came to him and implored

him to pay homage to Nimrod and escape the impending
mis fortune B ut he sa id t o her : O mothe r water can
.
,

’
extinguish Nimrod s fire but the fire o f God wi l l not die
,

”
o u t f or evermo r e Wate r cannot quench it 31
. When his .

mother hear d these wor d s sh e spake May the God whom

, ,

”
thou servest rescu e thee f rom the fire o f Nimrod !
Abraham was finally place d in the catapu l t and he raise d ,

his eyes heaven w ard an d spoke O Lord my Go d Th o u

, , ,
202 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

Ebe r kept i n hiding an d as for Asshur he said

, , , H ow can
”
I live among such sinners and departed o u t o f the land
! “

The only o ne wh o remain e d un shaken was Abraham I .

”
w ill not forsake God h e sai d and therefore Go d did not
, ,

fo rsake h i m w h o ha d hea rkene d neither u nt o h is father n or

,

unto h is mother .

The m i ra c ulous d elive r an c e of Abrah a m fro m the fie ry

furna c e togethe r with his later fortunes w a s th e f ul fil ment
, ,

an d explanation of what h i s f ather Terah ha d read in the

stars H e had seen the star o f Haran consumed by fire and
.
,

at the same time fill and rule the whole w o rld The mean .

in g w a s pl ain n ow Haran was irresolute in his faith he

.
,

could n ot de c ide whether to adhere to Abraham or the

idolaters When it befell that those who woul d not se rve
.

idols w e r e c ast int o the fiery f u rna c e Haran reas o ne d i n ,

thi s manne r : Abraham being my el d e r will be ca l le d

, ,

upon be fore me I f he comes f orth o ut of the fi e r y tri al

.

triumphant I will de cla r e my allegian c e to him ; otherwis e

,

”
I will take sides agai nst him Afte r God Himsel f ha d .

’
res cu e d Ab rah am f rom d eath an d H a ra n s tu rn c ame t o ,

make h is confession o f f ai th he announce d his adheren c e ,

to Abraham But s ca rcely ha d he c ome near th e furn a c e

87
.
,

when h e was seize d by the flames and c onsumed be c ause ,

h e was la cking in fir m faith in God Terah ha d read the .

stars well i t n ow appeare d : Ha r an was bu rnt and his

, ,

”
daughte r S a r ah be c ame the wi fe o f Abraham whose de ,

”
s ce n da n ts fill the earth In another way the death o f Haran
.

w a s n o tewo rthy It was the first instance since the c reation

.
,

’
of the w o rld Of a son s dying wh i le h i s f athe r wa s still
,
 A br a h a m 2 03

The k i ng the p ri n c es and all the people who ha d been

, , ,

witnesses o f th e wonders done for Abraham came to him , ,

and prostrated themselves before him But Abraham said .

DO n ot b ow down before me but be fore G od the Master , ,

o f the universe who hath c reated y o u

,
S erve H im an d .

walk in H is ways f or He i t w a s w h o de l ivered me f rom the

,

flames and He i t is w h o hath c reated the soul and th e spirit

,

o f every human being who formeth man in the womb o f his

,

mother and bringeth him into the world H e saveth fro m

, .

”
a l l sickn ess those who put their trust in Him .

The king then dismissed Abraham a fte r l o ading h im ,

do w n with an abundan c e o f precious gifts am o ng the m t w o ,

slaves w h o had been r aised in the royal palace O gi w a s '

the name o f the on e Eliezer the name o f the other The

, .

pr i n c es fol lowed the example of the king and they gave him ,

s ilver and gold and gems But all thes e gifts did not
, , .

rej oice the hea rt Of Abraham s o much a s the three hundred

fo l lowers that j o i ned him and b e ca me a d herents o f his
religion .

A B RAHAM E M I GRA T E S To H A RAN

Fo r a period o f tw o years Abraham c ould devote himsel f
undisturbed to his chosen task o f turning the hearts o f men
to Go d and His teachings In h is pious unde rtaking he .
“

was aided by hi s wi f e S arah whom he had married in the ,

meantime . While he exho rted the men an d sought t o c on

vert them S a rah a dd ressed hersel f to the women
, She .
“

was a helpmeet worthy o f Abraham In d eed in prophet ica l .

,

“
p owers she ranked higher than her husband She w a s

somet i me s c alled Iscah the see r on that a cc ount

“
.
, ,
2 04 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

At the exp i ration o f tw o years it happened that Nimr od

dreamed a d ream In his dream he found himse l f with h i s
.

army near the fi ery f u r nace in th e va l ley into whi ch Abra

ham had been cast A man r esembling Abraham steppe d
.

o u t of the f urna c e an d h e ran a fter the king with d rawn

,

sword the kin g fl eeing before him i n terro r Whi l e r un

, .

’
ning the pursue r threw an egg at Nimrod s hea d an d a
, ,
.

’
mighty stream issued therefrom wherein the king s who l e ,

host was drowne d The king alone su rv i ve d with three

.
,

men When Nimrod examined his companions he observe d

.
,

that they wore r oyal attire and in form and stature th ey r e ,

semble d himsel f Th e stream c hanged back into an egg

.

again and a little chick broke forth from i t and it fl e w up

, , ,

settle d upon the hea d o f the king an d put out on e o f h is ,

eyes .

The king was co n foun d e d i n his sleep an d when he awoke , ,

his heart beat like a tri p hammer and his fear was exceeding
-
,

great In the morning when he arose he sent and called

.
, ,

for h is wi se men a n d his magi c ians and to l d them his dream , .

O ne o f his wise men A n oko by name stood up and said, , ,

Know O king this dream points to the misfo rtune which

, ,

Abraham and his d escen d ants wi l l bring upon thee A tim e .

w ill co me w hen he an d his fol l owers w ill make war upon

thy army and they will annihilate it Thou and the th ree
, .

kings thy allies w ill be the only ones to escape death But
, ,
.

later thou wilt lose thy li fe at the hands o f on e o f the

des c en d ants o f Abraham Consider O king that thy wise .
, ,

men r ead th i s fate of th i ne in the stars fifty tw o years ago ,

-
,

at the birth o f Abraham A S long as Abraham liveth upon .

”
the gro un d thou shalt n ot be stablishe d no r thy kingd o m
, ,
.
206 Th e L eg e n ds f
o th e J ew s
’
Terah s r esolve to quit his nat i ve lan d fo r the sake of
Abraham and take up hi s abo d e in strange pa rts and his ,

impulse to d o i t be fore even the Di vin e call v i site d Abraham

himsel f—this the Lor d a c counted a great merit unto Ter ah ,

and he was pe r m i tte d to s e e h is s on Ab raham rule as ki ng

ove r the whole w o rl d F o r when the mira cle happened
.
,

and Isaa c was born unt o his aged parents the whole world ,

repaire d to Abraham a n d S arah an d demanded to know ,

what they had done that S O g r eat a thi n g should be a ccom

p l is h e d fo r them Abraham told them all that had happened
.

between Nim r od and himsel f h ow he had been ready to be

,

burnt fo r the gl or y o f God an d h ow the Lord had res c ued

,

him f rom the flames In token o f their a d mi r ation fo r

‘

Abraham and his teachings they appointed him to be thei r

,

’
king and in commem or ation o f Isaac s w o ndrous birth the
, ,

money co i ne d by Abraham b o re the figures o f an aged hus

band and wife on th e obverse side a n d of a young man and ,

his wife on th e reve r s e S i d e fo r Abraham and Sarah bo th

,

’
we r e r ej uvenate d at the birth of Isaa c Ab r aham s white hair ,

’
t u r ne d bla ck an d the l i nes in S a r ah s f a c e were smoothe d
,

out .

Fo r many yea r s Te r ah co nt i nu ed to live a witness o f h i s

’
son s glo ry for h is death di d not occ u r until Isaa c was 3
,

youth o f th i rty five An d a still greate r reward waited

-

upon h is goo d dee d Go d ac c epte d his r epentance and

.
,

when he departed this li fe he entered into Pa r ad i se and

, ,

not into hell though he had passed the larger number of

,

Indeed it had been his fau l t that Abraham

,

h is days in s in .
,

ca me near losing h is li fe at the hands o f Nimro d .

"
 A bra h a m 2 07

T H E S TAR I N TH E EA S T
Te rah ha d been a high i off cial at the cou r t of Nim ro d
an d ,

he was held i n great consideration by the king and his suite .

A s on w a s born unto him whom he called Abram because ,

th e ki ng had raise d him to an exa l ted place In th e n i ght of .

’
Abraham s birth the astr ologers an d the wise men o f Nim
,

r od came t o the house o f Terah and ate and drank an d , ,

rej oi c ed with him that night When they left the hous e.
,

they li fted up thei r eyes toward heaven to look at the stars ,

and they s a w and behold on e great star came from the east
, , ,

and ran athwa rt the heavens and swal l owe d up the four sta r s
at the four corners They all were astonished at the sight
.
,

but they understoo d this matter and knew its import They ,
.

sai d to on e another : This on l y betokens that the child that

hath been born unto Terah this night will grow up an d be
fruitful and h e will multip l y and possess al l the ea rth he
, ,

and h is chi l dren forever and h e and his seed will slay gr eat
,

”
kings and i nheri t their lands .

They went home that night and in the m o rning they ro se

,

up earl y and assemb l ed in their meeting house They spake

,
-
.
,

and sai d to on e another : L O the S ight that we s a w last ,

night is hidden from the king i t has not been made known ,

to him and should this thing become known to him in the

,

latter days he w ill say to u s Why did you conceal this

, ,

ma tt er f rom me ! and then we shall a l l suffer death Now .

,

let u s go an d tell the king th e sight wh i ch we s a w and the ,

”
interpretati o nthereo f and we shall be clear from this thing
, .

And they went to the king and tol d him the sight they had
seen an d their interpretation thereof and they added the
, ,

advi c e that he pay th e valu e o f the c hild t o Te r ah an d slay ,

the babe .
208 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

A ccordingly th e king sent for Terah and when h e came

, , ,

he spake to him : It hath been told unto me that a s on

was b o rn t o thee ye s te migh t an d a wondrous S ign w a s,

Observe d i n the heavens at his birth Now give me the b oy .

,

that w e may S lay him be fore evil comes upon us from him ,

and I w i ll gi ve the e thy house f u l l o f si l ver and gol d in

”
ex change f or him Terah answered : This thing whi ch
.
“

thou p r omis e st unt o me is like the words which a man

spoke to a mule saying I will give thee a great heap Of
, ,

barley a houseful thereof on condition that I cut off thy

, ,

head ! The mule r eplied O f what u s e will all the barley

,

be to me if thou c uttest off my head ! W h o will eat it when

,

’
thou givest it to me ! Thus also do I s a y : What shall I
do with S ilver and gold afte r the d eath of my s on ! Wh o
” ’
shall inher i t me ! But when Terah s a w h ow the king s
anger burned within him at these words he added What , ,

ever the king desireth to do unto hi s servant that let him do , ,

’
even my s on i s at the king s disposal w ith o ut value o r ex ,

change he and his tw o ol d er brethren

,

The king spake howeve r saying ,

I , , w ill pur chase thy
”
youngest s on for a pri c e And Terah made answer Let
.
,

’
my king g i ve me three days time to consider the matter
and c onsult about it with my family The king agreed to .

thi s c on d ition and on the third d ay h e sent to Terah say i ng

, , ,

Give me thy s on for a price as I spoke unto thee and i f , ,

th o u wilt n ot do this I will sen d an d slay all thou hast in

,

”
thy house the r e shall not be a d og left unto thee
,
.

Then Terah t o ok a chil d which his handmaid ha d born e

unto him that d ay and he brought the babe to the king and
, ,

r e ce i ved value fo r him and the king took the child an d

,
2 10 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e Jews

ting the hea d o f the first upon th e n e w body Then Terah .

continued an d ma d e five more go d s and all these he de l iv ,

ered t o Ab r aha m an d ba d e h im s ell them i n the st r eets o f

,

the city .

Abraham s a d dled his mule an d went to the inn wher e

,

merchants fro m F an d ana in S yr i a put up o n their way t o

Egypt He h op e d t o disp o se o f his w ares there When h e
. .

reached the in n o n e of the c amels bel o nging t o the mer

,

chants belche d and the soun d frightene d h is mule S O that

,

it ran off pell mell and broke three of the idols The mer
-
.

chants n o t only bought the tw o sound idols f rom him they ,

also gave him the price o f the broken ones f or Abraham ha d ,

tol d them h ow d istressed he w a s to appear before his father

with less m o ney tha n h e ha d expe cte d to r e c eive for his
handiw o rk .

This i ncident ma d e Ab raha m r efle c t up o n the worthless

ness of i dols an d he said t o himsel f : What are these evil
,

things d one by my f ather ! I s not he the god o f his gods ,

fo r do they not c ome int o being by re a s o n o f his c a rving and

chiselling an d c ontriving ! Were i t not m o re seemly that
they shoul d pay worship to him than he to them seeing they ,

”
are the w or k of his han d s ! Meditating thus he rea ched ,

’
h is father s house an d he entere d an d handed h is f ather
,

the money for the fi ve images and Terah rej oiced and sa id
, , ,

Blesse d a r t th o u unto my gods because thou didst bring

,

me the pri c e of the idols and my labor was not in vain

,
.

But Ab r aham ma d e r eply : Hear my fathe r Terah blesse d , ,

a re thy gods th rough thee for thou a rt thei r go d s in c e thou

, ,

didst fash io n them an d their blessing is destruction an d

,

the i r help is vanity They that help not themselves how

.
,

”
ca n they he l p thee o r bless me !
 A bra h a m 21 I

Terah gr ew very wrathful at Abraham that he utt ere d ,

such speech against his gods and Abraham thinking upon , ,

his fathe r s anger left him an d went from the house But
’
, .

Terah c alled him back and said Gather together the c hips
, ,

o f the oak w oo d from which I made images be fo re thou d idst

’
return an d prepa r e my d inner fo r me
,
Ab r aham ma d e .

’
ready to do h is f ather s biddin g an d a s h e to ok up the c hips ,

he found a little god among them whose f orehea d bore the ,

”
inscription God Barisat H e thre w the chips upon the
.

fire and s e t Barisat up next to it saying : Attention ! Take

, ,

care Barisat that th e fire go not o ut until I c ome ba ck I f

, , .

”
it burns l ow blo w i nto it an d make it flame up again
, ,
.

Speaking thus he went ou t When h e c ame i n again he

, .
,

found Barisat lying prone upon his back badly burnt Smil , .

ing he said to himself

, In truth Barisat thou ca nst keep
, , ,

”
the fire alive and prepare food an d whi l e he spoke the idol , ,

was consumed to ashes Then he took the dishes to his .

father and he ate and drank and was glad and blessed h is
,

god M a r u ma th But Abraham said to hi s father Bless not

.
,

thy god M a r u ma th but rathe r thy god Barisat for he i t

, ,

was who out o f his great love for thee threw himsel f int o
, ,

the fire that thy meal might b e c o oke d Where i s he .

“

”
n ow ! exc l aimed Terah and Abraham answered ,
He ,

”
hath be c ome ashes in the fie r ce n e s s o f the fire Terah sai d .
,

G reat is the power o f Barisat ! I will make me another

this day and to morr o w he wi l l prepare my food fo r me
,
-
.

These words o f his father made Abraham laugh in his

mind but his soul was grieve d at h is obduracy and he p ro
, ,

ce e de d to make clear his views upon the idols saying : ,

Father no matter w h ic h of the t wo i dols thou blessest th y

, ,
 12 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e J ew s

behavio r i s senseless ,
fo r the images that stan d i n the holy
templ e are m o re to be w or shipped than thine Z u ch e u s the .
,

go d o f my b rothe r Nahor is more venerable than M a r uma th

, ,

be c ause he is ma d e cunningly o f gol d an d when he grows ,

Ol d, he w ill be w o rke d o ver again B ut when thy M a r uma th .

be co mes di m o r is shivered in pieces h e w ill not be r e

, ,

newe d for h e is o f stone And the god Joa u v who stands

, .
,

ab o ve the other gods w i th Z u ch e u s is mo r e venerabl e than ,

Barisat made o f wood because he is hammere d ou t o f silver

, , ,

an d o rnamented by men to S how his magnificen c e But thy

, .

Barisat before thou didst fashion him into a god with thy
,

axe w a s rooted in the earth standing there great and won

, ,

de r fu l with the glo r y o f branches an d blossoms

, Now he .

i s d ry an d gone is his s a p From his height he h as fal l en

, .

t o the earth f r o m grandeu r he came to pettiness and the

, ,

appearance o f his face h a s pale d away and he himse l f was ,

burnt i n the fire an d he was consumed unto ashes and he is

, ,

no more And thou didst then s a y I will make me another

.
,

’
this d ay and t o morrow he wi l l prepare my food for me
,
-
.

” “
Father Abraham continued and said
, the fire is more , ,

to be w o rshippe d than thy go d s o f gold and silver and wood

and s tone because it c onsumes them But a l so the fire I
, .

call n o t g od because it is subj e c t to the water which

, ,

quen c hes i t But also the water I call not god because it
.
,

is sucke d up by the earth and I ca l l the ea rt h more ven ,

e t able because i t c onquers the water But also the ea rt h I

, .

call not go d be c ause it is dr i ed out by the s u n and I call th e

, ,

s u n more venerable than the earth because he i ll umines the ,

w hole world with h i s rays But a l so the s u n I ca l l not god

.
,

be cause his light is o bs c u r ed w hen da r kn ess cometh up Nor .

2 14 Th e L eg e n ds f
o th e Je w s

it is too little for you ! There fore I will prepare fresh

savo ry meat to morrow bette r and more p l enti fu l than this
-
, ,

’
that I may s e e what cometh therefrom But the gods r e .

maine d mute and w ithout motion before th e second o ff ering

o f excellent s av o ry meat a s before the first o ff ering and ,

th e spirit o f Go d came over Abraham and he c ried out and , ,

said : Woe unt o my f ather and his wicked generation

“
,

whose hearts are all i nclined to vanity who serve these ido l s ,

o f wo o d an d stone which cannot eat nor smell nor hear

, , , ,

nor speak w hich have mouths without speech eyes without

, ,

sight ears without hearing han d s without feeling an d legs

, , ,

w ith o ut motion !
Abraham then took a hatchet in his hand an d broke a l l ,

’
h is father s gods and when he had done breaking them he
,

placed the hatchet in the hand o f the biggest god among

them a l l and he went ou t Terah having heard the crash
, .
,

of the hatchet on the stone ran to the room of the ido l s and
, ,

he reache d it at the moment when Abraham was leaving it ,

and when h e s a w what had happened he hastened afte r ,

Abraham and he said to him

, What is this mischief thou
,

”
hast done to my gods ! Abraham answered : I S et savo ry
meat be fore them and when I c ame n i gh unto them that
, ,

they might eat they all stretche d ou t their hands to take of

,

the meat be f ore the big o n e had put forth his hand to eat
,
.

This on e enrage d against them on a c count of their behavior

, ,

took the hatchet and broke them all and behold th e hatchet , ,

is yet in his hands as thou mayest see, .

Then Terah tu rne d i n w rath upon Abraham and he sa i d ,

Thou S peakest lies unto me ! Is there spirit soul or power , ,

in these go ds to do all th o u hast told me ! Are they not

 A br a h a m 215

wood an d sto ne ! and have I not myself ma d e them ! It is

thou that didst p l ace the hatchet in the hand o f the b i g go d ,

”
and thou sayest he smote them all Abraham answered his .

father and said : H ow then c anst thou serve these idols

, , ,

in whom there is no power to do anything ! Can these i d ols

in which thou trustest de l iver thee ! Can they hear th y
”
prayers when thou callest upon them ! Afte r having
Spoken these and s i milar words admonishing his father to ,

mend his ways and refrain from worshipping i dols he leapt ,

up before Terah took the hatchet from the b ig id ol br o ke i t

, ,

therewith and ran away

,

Terah hastened to Nim r od b o wed down be f ore him an d

, ,

besought him to hea r his story about his s on who ha d been

,

born to him fi fty years back and h ow h e had done to his

,

gods and h ow he had spoken

, No w therefore my lord
.
, ,

”
and king he said send for him that he may c ome before
, ,

thee and do thou j udge him according to the l a w that we

, ,

”
may be de l ivered from his evil When Abraham was .

brought before the king he to l d him the same story as he

,

had told Terah about the big go d who broke the smaller
,

ones but the k i ng replied

, Idols do neither speak nor eat
, , ,

nor move Then Abraham r eproa c hed him for worshipping

.

gods that can do nothing and admonished him to serve the

,

God o f the universe His last words were

. I f thy wicke d ,
“

heart wi l l not hearken to my words to cause thee to forsake ,

thy evil ways and serve the Etern al Go d then wilt thou d ie ,

in shame i n the latter days thou thy people and a l l that are
, , ,

connected with thee who hear thy words and w alk in thy
, ,

”
evil ways .

The king or d ered Abraham to be put into pri son an d at ,

2 16 Th e L eg e n ds f
o th e J e ws

the en d of te n d ays he cause d all the p r inces and great men

o f the realm to appear before him and to them he put the ,

case of Abraham Thei r ve r dict was that he S hould be burnt

.
,

and a ccor d ingly the king had a fire prepared for three days
, ,

an d th r ee nights in h is fu rna c e at K a s dim an d Abraham

, ,

w a s to be carr i e d th i ther from pr i son to be bu rnt .

All the i nhab i tants o f the land about nine hundred thou ,

sand men and the w o men and the chi l dren besides came to
, ,

s e e w hat w o ul d be d one w i th Abraham And wh en he was .

brought forth the astrologers re cognize d him an d they said ,

t o the k i ng S u rely this is the man whom w e knew as a

, ,

c hild at whose birth the great star swallowe d th e four stars

, .

B ehold his f ather di d transgress thy c ommand and he made

, ,

a mockery o f thee for he di d bring thee another c hild and

, ,

him didst thou kill .

’
Terah was greatly terr ifi ed for h e w a s afra i d o f the king s ,

w r ath an d he a d m i tted that he had dece i ve d the king and

, ,

w hen the king said Tell me who a d vised thee to do thi s

,
.

”
H id e naught an d thou shalt not die he f al sely ac c used
, ,

Ha r an w h o had been thirty tw o years ol d at th e time o f

,
-

’
Ab r aham s bi rth o f having advised him t o deceive the king
,
.

At the co mman d o f the king Abraham and Haran stripped , ,

o f all thei r clothes except their hosen and their hands and ,

feet bo un d w i th linen cords were cast into the furnace , .

Ha ran be c ause h i s heart was not perfect with the Lord

, ,

p er i shed in the fire an d also the men who cast them into the
,

furna c e were burnt by the flames which leapt ou t over

them an d Ab r aham alone w a s saved by the Lor d and he
, ,

w a s not bu r nt though the c ords w ith w hich he w a s bound

,

w e r e co nsume d For th r ee d ays and th r ee nights Abraham

.
2 18 Th e L e g en ds o f th e J ew s

answered him an d sai d , D i smiss all c a r e c on c erning thy

father and thy kinsmen from thy thoughts Though they .

speak words o f kin d ness to thee yet are they all of one mind
, ,

” ° 5
to ruin thee .

Then Abraham fors ook his father in Haran and j our ,

h eyed to Canaan accompanied by the blessing o f God who

, ,

said unto him I will make o f thee a great nation and I

, ,

will bles s thee and make thy name great These three
, .

blessings were to c ounteract the evil consequen c es which h e ,

f eared w o uld follow emigration for travelling from p l ace

, ,

to place inter feres with the growth of the family it lessens ,

’
one s substance and it diminishes th e consideration on e
,

64
enj oys. The greatest o f all blessings however was the , ,

”
word o f God And be thou a blessing
, The meaning o f .

this w a s that whoeve r c ame in contact with Abraham was

blesse d Even the mariners on the s e a were indebted to him
.

55
f or prosperous voyages Besides God held o u t the promise
.
,

to him that i n time t o come h is name would be mentioned in

the Benedi c tions God w ould be praised as the Shie l d o f
,

Abraham a distinction a c corded to no other mortal except

,

” ”
Davi d . But the words And be thou a b l essing wi l l be
,
“
,

fulfilled only i n the future world when the seed o f Abraham ,

shall be known among the nations and his o ff spring among

”
th e peoples as the seed which the Lord hath b l essed
“7
.

When Abraham first w a s bid d en to l eave his home he w a s ,

not tol d to what lan d he was to j ourney—all the greater

w oul d be his reward for exe c uting the c ommand o f Go d
"8
.

And Abraham showe d his trust in God for he said I am , ,

”
ready t o go whithersoever Thou sendest me The Lord .

then bade him go to a lan d w herein He would reveal H im n

 A br a h a m 219

sel f and when he went to Canaan late r Go d appeared to

, ,

”
him and he knew that it w a s the prom i sed l and
, .

O n entering Canaan Abraham did not yet know that it

,

w a s the land appointed as his inheritance Nevertheless he .

rej o i ced when he reache d it In Mesopotamia and in Aram .

n a h a r a im the inhabitants o f which he had seen eating drink

, ,

ing a n d acting wanton l y h e had always wished

, , O that ,

”
my portion may n ot be in this land but when he c ame to ,

Canaan he Observed that the peop l e devoted themselves in

,

du s t r iou s l y to the cu l tivation o f the lan d and he sa id O , ,

”
that my po rtion may be in this land ! God then spoke to
him an d said
, Unto thy seed wi l l I gi ve this
,
“

Happy in these j oyous tidings Abraham erected a n altar to ,

the Lor d to give thanks unto Him for the promise and then ,

he j ourneyed o n sou thward in the direction of the spot

, ,

whereon the Temp l e was once to stand In Hebron he .

again e rected an a l tar thus taking possession o f the land in

,

a measure And likewise he raised an altar in Ai because

.
,

he foresaw that a misfortune wou l d be fall his off spring

there at the c onquest o f the land u n de r Jos h ua The altar
'

, .
,

he hope d would obviate the evil results that might follow

,
.

Each altar raised by him w a s a c entre fo r his activities as

a missionary As soon as he came to a pla c e in which he
.

desired to soj ourn h e wou l d stret ch a tent fi rst fo r S arah

, ,

and next for himsel f and then he woul d proceed at once

,

to make proselytes and bring them under the wings o f the

Shekinah Thus he accomplished his purpose of induc i ng
.

”
a ll men to proclaim the Name o f God .

For the present Abraham was but a stranger i n h i s prom

ised lan d A fte r the partition of the ea rt h among the s ons
.
2 20 Th e L eg en ds f
o th e Jew s

of N o ah when all had gone to thei r allotte d portions it ha p

, ,

pene d that Canaan s on o f Ham s a w that the land extending

from the Lebanon to the River of Egypt w a s f ai r to look
upon and he refused to go to his ow n a ll otment westward
, ,

by the s e a He settled in the land upon Lebanon eastward

.
,

a n d westward from the border o f the Jordan and t h e

bo r der of the s e a An d Ham his f ather and his brothers

.
, ,

Cush an d M iz r aim S poke to him and said : Thou l ivest in ,

a lan d that i s n ot thine f or it w a s n ot assigned unto u s

,

w hen the lots w ere dra w n Do not thus ! But if thou per
.

s is t e s t ye th o u an d thy ch i ldren wi ll fall accursed in the

, , , , ,

land in a rebellion Thy settling here was rebe l lion and

, .
,

through rebellion thy children will be felled down and thy ,

seed wi l l be destroye d unto all eternity Soj ourn not in the .

land o f Shem fo r unto Shem an d unto the children o f Shem

,

w a s it apportioned by lot Accurse d art thou and accursed

.
,

wilt thou be before all th e children o f Noah on a c count o f

the curse for we took an oath before the h oly Judge and
,

”
before ou r fathe r Noah .

But Canaan hearkene d not unto the words of h is fath er

and his b r othe r s He d welt in the lan d o f the Lebanon from
.

”
Hamath even unt o the entrance o f Egypt he and his sons ,
.

Though the C anaanites had taken unlawful possession o f

the land yet Abraham respecte d the i r rights ; he provided
,

his c amels w ith muzzles to p r event them fr om pasturing

,

upon the p ro perty o f others .

"3

HIS S OJ O U RN I N E GY P T
S c a rc ely ha d Abraham established himsel f i n Canaan ,

w hen a devastat i ng famine b r oke out—o n e of the ten Go d

2 22 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s

through a stream h e s a w the reflection o f her beauty in the

,

67
water l ike the brilliance o f the s u n Wherefore he spok e .

to he r thus The Egypt i ans are very sensual and I will

,
“
,

put thee in a c asket that no harm befall me on a c count o f

thee . At the Egyptian boundary the tax co ll ecto rs asked ,

him about the c ontents o f the casket and Abraham told them ,

” ”
he had barley i n it No they said . it contains wheat
, , .

”
V ery w ell repl i ed Abraham I am p repared to pay the
, ,

”
tax on wheat The o ffi c e r s then hazarded the guess
. It ,

c onta i ns pepper ! Abraham agr eed to pay the tax on

pepper and w hen they charged him with con c ealing gold
,

in the c asket he did not refuse to pay the tax on gold and
, ,

finally o n pre cio us stones S eeing that he demurred to no

.

c harge h o weve r high the tax co ll ectors made thorough l y

, , ,

suspicious i nsisted upo n his unfastening the casket and

,

letting them examine the contents When i t w a s forced .

open the w hole of Egypt w a s resplendent with the beauty o f

,

Sarah In c ompa rison with her all othe r beauties were

.
,

like apes c ompared with men She excelled Eve hersel f . .

“

The servants of Pharaoh outbid on e another in seeking to

obta in possess i on o f her though they were o f Opinion that
,

s o radiant a beauty ought not to remain the property o f a

”
pr i vate indivi d ual They rep orted the matter to the ki ng
. ,

an d Pharaoh sent a power ful armed for c e to bring Sarah to

”
the palace an d s o bewitche d w a s he by he r cha rms that
,

those who ha d br o ught him the news o f her c oming in to

Egypt w ere loa d ed down with bounti ful gifts
71
.

Ami d tea r s Abraham Offered up a praye r H e entr eated

,
.

God in these words : Is this the reward fo r my confidence

in Th ee ! Fo r the s ake o f Thy g r a c e and Thy lovin gkin d
 A br a h a m 2 23

ness let not my h Op e be put to shame

, S arah als o im .
72

p l or e d Go d saying :
,
O God Thou didst bid my lor d Abra ,

ham leave his home the lan d o f his fathers and j ourney to
, ,

Canaan and Thou di d st promise him to do goo d unto h i m i f

,

he fulfilled Thy comman d s And n ow we have d one as Thou

.

didst c ommand us to do We left our country an d our .

kind r ed and we j ourneye d to a strange land unto a pe ople

, ,

which w e kne w not heretofore We came hither to save .

o u r people from sta rvation an d n ow hath this terrible mis

,

fortune befallen O Lord help me and save me fr o m the

.
,

hand o f this enemy and for the sake o f Thy gra c e S how me
,

’
goodf
An ange l appeare d unto Sarah w hile s h e w a s in the p res
ence o f the king to whom he w a s not visible and he bade
, ,

her take courage say i ng ,Fear naught S arah for God

, , ,

hath heard thy prayer ’

The king questioned S arah as t o
.

the man in the company of w hom s h e had come t o Egypt ,

and Sarah c alled Abraham her brother Pharaoh pledge d .

himsel f to make Abraham great an d powe r ful to do fo r h im ,

whatever s h e w i shed He sent much gold and silve r to

.

Abraham an d diamon d s and pearls sheep an d oxen an d

, , ,

men slaves and w omen slaves an d he assigned a residen c e to

,

”
him within the p r ecincts of the r o yal pala c e In the love he .

bore Sarah he w rote o u t a marriage contra c t d eeding to he r

, ,

a l l he owned in the way o f gold and silver an d men slaves ,

and women slaves and the provin c e o f Goshen bes id es the

, ,

provin c e oc cupied in later days by the descendants o f S arah ,

because it w a s their property Most remarkable o f all he .

,

gave her his ow n d aughter Hagar as slave for he pre ferre d ,

to s e e his daughter the se rvant o f S arah to r eigning as mis

”
t r ess in another harem .
 24 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

H i s free han d e d gene ro s i t y ava i le d naught

-
During .

the night when he w a s ab o ut to appr o ach S ar ah an angel

, ,

appeared a rmed w ith a stick a n d i f Pharaoh but tou ched

,

’
Sarah s shoe to remove i t from her foot the angel planted a ,

blow upon his hand and when he gra sped her dress a s e c
, ,

on d blow f o l lowed At each blow he was about to deal the

.
,

angel asked Sarah wh e the r he w a s t o let it descend and i f ,

s h e ba d e him give Pharaoh a moment to recover himsel f he ,

waite d an d di d as s h e desired An d another great mi racl e

.

came to pass P haraoh and his nobles an d his se rvants

.
, , ,

the very walls of his house and his be d were a fflicted with
75
leprosy and he could not indulge his carnal desires
, This .

night in which Pharaoh and hi s c ourt su ff ered their well

d ese rved punishment was the night of the fi fteenth o f Nisan ,

th e same night w here i n God visited the E gyptians in a later

time in or d er to r edeem Israel th e des c endants o f S ar ah
,
.
“

H or r ifie d by the plague sent upon him Pharaoh inquired ,

h ow he could ri d himsel f thereof He applied to the priests .

,

from whom he f oun d ou t th e true cause of his affliction ,

which was corroborate d by S a r ah H e then sent for Abra .

ham and returned h is wi f e to h i m pu r e and untouched and , ,

ex c used himsel f fo r what ha d ha p pene d saying th at he had ,

had the i ntention o f c onnecting himsel f in marriage with

him w h o m he ha d th ought to b e the brother of S a rah
"
, He .

be stow e d rich gi fts upon the husband and the wi fe an d they ,

departed for C anaan after a three months soj ourn in

,
’

"
E gypt .

A rri ved in Can a an they sought the same night shelters at -

w hich they had rested before in o rder to pay their a cc ounts

, ,

and also to teach by their example that i t is not proper to

”
seek n e w quarters unless one is for c ed to it .
2 26 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s

Ru fli a n s assaulted him snat c he d h is wares f rom him and

, ,

ma de a laughing stock o f h i m The se cond night whi c h he

-
.
,

wa s compelle d to spend in the ruin aga i n a s ly plan ripened ,

in h is m i n d He arose an d gathere d together a crew o f

.

th i rty lusty f ellows H e t o ok them to the graveyar d and

.
,

ba d e them in the name o f the king charge t w o hundre d

, ,

pieces of silver for every bo d y they buried O the r wi s e .

interment was to be prevente d In this way he succeede d .

in amassing great wealth within eight months Not only did .

he a c quire silver go l d an d precious gems but also he a t

, , ,

t a ch e d a co nsi d e r able for c e a r med an d mounte d t o hi s

, ,

person .

O n the day on w hich the king appea r ed among the p e o pl e ,

they began to c omplain o f this tax upon the dead They .

sai d : What is thi s thou art inflicting upon thy servants

permitting none to be buried unless they pay thee silver and
gol d ! H as a thing like this c ome to pass in the world since
the days o f A d am that the dead shoul d not be interred
,

unless money be pa i d there fo r ! We know well that it i s the

privilege of the king to take an annual tax from the living .

But thou takest tribute from the dead too an d th o u exactest , ,

it day by d ay O king we c annot endure th i s any longer

.
, ,

f or the whole o f the city is ruined thereby .

’
The k i ng who ha d had no suspicion of Ra kyon s d oings
, ,

f ell into a gr eat rage when the people gave him information
about them He ordered him and his armed force to appear
.

be fore him Ra kyon did not c ome empty handed He was

.
-
.

prece d ed by a thousand youths an d maidens mounted upon ,

steeds and a rraye d in state apparel These were a present .

to th e k i ng When he hi msel f stepped before the king h e

. ,
 A b ra h a m 2 27

d elive r e d gol d silve r and diam o n d s t o h i m i n gr eat abun

, ,

dan c e and a magnifi c ent c harger The se gi fts and the dis
,
.

play of splendor did n o t f ail o f taking e ff e c t up o n the king ,

an d w hen Ra kyon i n w ell c onsidered w o r d s an d w ith a

,
-

pliant tongu e des c ribe d the unde rtaking he won n o t o nly

, ,

the king to his side but also the whole c ou rt and the king
, ,

s aid t o him ,
No longer shalt thou be ca lled Ra kyon Have ,

naught but Pharaoh Paymaste r fo r th o u d i d st colle c t t a xes

, , ,

”
from the dead .

S O pro found w a s the impression ma d e by Ra kyon that the

kin g th e gr andees and the people all togethe r resolve d to
, , ,

put the gu idance o f the realm in the han d s of Phara o h .

Under the suzerainty o f A s h w e r os h he a d ministe r ed l a w

and j ustice through out th e year ; only on th e one d ay w hen
he showed himsel f to th e pe o pl e di d the kin g himsel f give
j udgment an d d e c ide c ases Th r ough the powe r thus co n
.

ferred upon h im an d through cunning p ra ctices P haraoh ,

su c ceeded in usu rping r oyal authority an d he c olle cted taxes ,

from all the inhabitants of Egypt Nevertheless he was b e .

loved O f the people and it was decreed that eve r y rule r o f

,

Egypt sh o ul d then c e for th bear the name Ph a ra oh .

n
‘

T H E WA R O F T HE K IN GS
’
O n his retu rn f rom E gy pt Ab raham s r elat i ons to h i s ow n
family we r e distu rbed by annoying ci rcumstan c es S tri f e .

d evelope d between the herd men o f his cattle an d the he rd

’
men Of L o t s cattle Ab raham furnishe d his he rd s with muz
.

zl e s
, but L o t made no such provision an d w hen th e shep ,

’ ’
herds that pasture d Abraham s floc ks to o k Lot s shepherd s
to ta sk on a cco unt of the o m i s s i o n the latte r r epl i e d :
, It i s
2 28 Th e L eg e n ds f
o th e J e ws

known o f a surety that God said unto Abraham To thy ,

’
seed will I give the land But Abraham is a steri l e
.

mul e Never will he have children O n the morrow he will

. .

d i e and Lot will be h is hei r Thus the flocks o f L ot are but

, .

consumin g what belongs to them or thei r master But Go d .

spoke : V e r ily I said unto Abraham I would give the land

,

unto h is see d but only after the seven nations sha l l have
,

been destroyed f rom ou t o f the land To day the Canaanites .

-

are therein an d the Perizzites They still have the right of

, .

”
habitation .

Now when the str ife exten d ed

, fr om th e servants t o the
masters an d Abraham vainly
, cal l ed h i s nephew Lot to
account for his unbecoming behavior Abraham decided he ,

would have t o pa rt f rom his kinsman though he shou l d have ,

to compel L ot the r et o by for c e L ot thereupon separated .

himsel f n o t fr om Abraham al one but from the Go d o f Abra ,

ham also and he beto ok h i msel f to a district in which im

,

morality an d s in r eigned supreme wherefore punishment ,

o ve rt oo k him for h is ow n flesh sedu ce d him later unt o s in

, .

Go d was d ispleased with Abraham for not l iving i n pea c e

and harm o ny with h is ow n kindred as he lived with a l l the ,

world beside O n the other hand God also took it in i ll part

.
,

that Abraham was a ccepting Lot tacitly as his heir though ,

H e ha d pr omise d him in clear unm i stakabl e words

, To
, ,
“

”
thy see d will I give the land After Abraham had sepa .

rated himsel f f rom L ot he received the assu rance again that

,

Canaan shoul d o n c e belong to his seed which God would ,

multiply as the san d which is upon the s e a S ho re A s the -

.

san d fills the whol e earth s o the offspring o f Abraham wou l d

,

be s ca ttere d o ve r th e whole ea rth from end to end ; an d as ,

2 30 Th e L eg e n ds f
o th e Jew s

was forced to a cknowle d ge the suzerainty o f Ch e d orla o mer ,

who n o w proceeded to form an alliance with Arioch king o f

El l asa r a n d Tidal the king o f several nations the pu rpose
, , ,

o f which was to c rush the cities o f the c ircle o f the Jordan .

The united f or c es o f these kings numbe ri ng eight hundred ,

thousan d m a r che d upon the five cit i es subduing whatever

, ,

they en c ountered in their course and annihi l ating the de ,

85

s ce n da n ts o f the gi ants Fo rtified places unwalled cities

.
, ,

and flat open country all fe l l in their hands

, ,
They pushed .
“

on thr o ugh the d esert as f ar as th e sp r ing issuing from th e

ro ck at Kadesh the spot appointed by God as the place o f

,

pronoun cing j udgment agai nst Moses an d Aaron on account

o f the wa ters o f stri f e Then c e they turned toward the
.

c ent ral portion o f Palestine the count ry o f dates where they, ,

en c ountere d th e five godless kings Bera the vi l lain king o f , , ,

S o d om ; B i rsha the sinne r king o f Go morrah ; Shinab th e

, , ,

fathe r hater king o f Admah ; Shemeber th e voluptua r y

-
, , ,

king o f Zeboiim ; and the king o f B ela the c ity that devours ,

its inhabitan ts The five w ere routed in th e f ruitful V ale o f

.

S iddim the c anals of which later formed the Dead S ea

, .

They that remained of the rank an d fil e fled to the moun

ta ins but th e kings fell int o the slime pits and stuck there
, .

O nly th e king o f S odom w a s r escue d mira culously for the , ,

purpose that h e might conve rt those h eathen to faith in God

that had n o t believed in the wonderful del iveran c e o f Abra
”
ham from the fi ery f u rna c e .

The victors despoile d So d om of all its go ods and v i ctuals ,

and took Lot boasting We h ave taken the son o f Abra

, ,

’
ham s brother ca pt i ve s o betray i ng the real obj e c t o f thei r
,

unde rtaking ; the ir i nne r m o st desire was t o strike at

”
Abraham .
 A bra h a m 23 I

It w a s o n th e fi r s t evening o f the Passover and Abraham ,

”
was eating o f the unleavened bread when the ar changel ,

’
Michae l brought him the report o f Lot s captivity This .

angel bears another name bes i des Palit the es c aped b e , , ,

cause when Go d threw Samael and his host f rom their holy
pla c e in heaven the r ebellious leader held on to M ichael and
,

tried to drag him along downward and Michael es c ape d ,

fa l ling from heaven only through the help of God

"0
.

’
When the report o f his nephew s evil state rea c he d Abra
ham he straightway dismissed all thought o f his dissensions
,

w ith Lo t from h is mind and only c onsidered ways and

,

”
means o f de l iveran c e . He c onvoke d his discip l es to W hom
he had taught the true faith and who all c alled themselves
,

by the name Abraham H e gave them gold and si l ver s a y

.
92
,

i ng at the same time : Know that we go to war fo r the

purpose of saving human lives Therefore do ye n ot d ire c t
.
,

”
your eyes upon money here he gold and silver before you
,
.

Fur thermore he admonished them in these w o r d s : We a r e

prepar i ng to go to w a r Let none j oin us who hath c om
.

mit te d a trespass and fears that Divine punishment w ill

,

descend upon him . Ala r me d by his warning not on e woul d ,

obey his call to arms they were f earful o n a cc ount o f thei r

,

sins. Elieze r alone remained with him wherefore God ,

“
spake and said
, All forsook thee save only Eliezer .

Verily I sha l l invest him with the strength of the th r ee

,

hundre d an d eighteen men whose aid th o u d i d st seek i n

”
vain .

The battle fo ught w i th the m i ghty h o sts o f the kings fro m ,

which Abraham emerge d vi c torious happene d on the fif ,

te e n th o f Nisan the night appo i nted for m i ra c ul o u s d ee d s

“
.
,
2 32 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je ws

The arrows an d stones hurled at him e ffected naught but ,

"5

the d ust o f the ground the chaff and the stubbl e which he , ,

threw at the enemy were trans formed into death dealing -

”
j avelins and s w o r ds Ab r aham as tall as s eventy men s e t
.
,

o n end , and r equirin g a s much food and drink as seventy

men marche d forward wi th giant strides each o f his steps
, ,

measurin g fou r miles until he overtook the kings and , ,

annihilated thei r troops Further he cou l d not go for he .

,

had reached Dan where Jeroboam would once raise the

'

’
golden c alves and on this ominous spot Abraham s strength
,

"7
diminished .

Hi s victory w a s p o ssibl e only be cause the c elestial powers

espoused his s ide The planet Jupiter made the night bright
.

”
for him an d an angel Lailah by name fought for him
, ,
In , .
8

a true sense it w a s a victory o f God All the nations a c

, .

knowledged his more than human achievement and they ,

fashioned a throne fo r Abraham an d erected it on the fi el d ,

o f battle When they attempted to seat him upon i t amid

.
,

exclamations o f T h ou art ou r king ! Thou art o u r prince !

”
Thou art ou r god ! Abraham war d ed them o ff and said , ,

The unive r se h a s i ts King and it has its Go d ! H e de ,

c l in e d all honors an d returne d his property unto ea c h man

, .

O nly the little children he kept by himse l f He reared them .

in the knowledge o f Go d and later they atone d for the dis ,

gr ace o f their parents .

S omewhat ar rogantly the king o f Sodom s e t ou t to meet

Abraham H e was proud that a great miracle his rescue
.
,

from the slime pit had been performed for him too He , , .

made Abraham the proposition that he keep the despoiled

”
goods for himsel f But Abraham refuse d them and said :
.
9
,
2 34 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e Je ws

blessing i n an unseemly way He named Abraham first and .

then God As a punishment he was deposed by God from

.
,

the pr i estly dignity and instea d i t w a s passe d over t o Abra

,

ham with whose des c endants it remained forever

, .
104

As a rewar d for the s a n ctifica tion o f the Ho l y Name ,

whi c h Abraham had brought about when he re fused to keep

1 05
aught o f the goods taken in battle his descendants r e ,

ce iv e d t w o c ommands the command o f the threads in the

,

borders of their garments and the command o f the latchets ,

to be bound upon their hands and to be used as frontlets b e

tween the i r eyes Thus they commemorate that their a n
.

ce s to r refused to take s o much as a thread o r a lat c het An d .

because he woul d not touch a shoe latchet o f the spoils h is -

,

des c en d ants c ast their shoe upon Edom

1 06
.

T HE COV ENANT O F
THE P IECES
Sho r tly a f ter the war Go d revea l ed Himsel f unto Abra
,

ham to soothe his conscience a s to the spil l ing o f innocent

,

blood for i t was a scruple that gave him much anguish o f

,

spirit Go d assured him at the same time that H e would

.

cause pious men to arise among his descendants who l ike , ,

himself would be a S hield unto their generation

, As a .
1 07

further distinction God gave him l eave to ask what he

,

would have r are grace ac c orded to none beside except

, ,

Jacob Solomon Ahaz and the M essiah Abraham spoke

, , , .
,

and said : O Lord o f the world i f in time to come my

“
,

descendants should provoke Thy wrath it were better I r e ,

mained childless Lot for the sake of whom I j ourneyed

.
,

a s far a s Damas c us where God w a s my protection wou l d

, ,

b e w ell pleased t o be my heir Mo reover I have rea d i n . ,

 A bra h a m 2 35

the stars Abraham thou wi l t beget no c hildren

, ,
There .

upon God raised Abraham above the vault o f the S k i es and ,

Now
'

He said Thou art a prophet n ot an astrologer

, , 0

Abraham demanded no S ign that he would be blessed with

o ff spring Without losing another w ord he believed in the
.
,

Lord and he was rewarded for his simple faith by a S hare

,

in this world and a share in the world t o c o me as well and , ,

besides the redemption of Israel from the exile w ill t a ke

,

place as a recompense for his firm trust .

But though he believed the promise ma d e him w ith a f ull

and abiding faith he yet desired to kno w by what merit of
,

theirs his descendants w o u l d maintain themselves There .

fore God bade him b ring Him a sacrifi c e o f three heifers ,

three s h e goats three rams a turtle dove and a young

-
, , ,

pigeon thus indicating t o Abraham the va r ious sacrifices

,

that should once be brought in the Temple to atone for the ,

S ins of Is rael and furthe r his wel fare But what will b e .

”
come o f my descendants asked Abraham , afte r the ,

”
Temple is destroyed ! God replied and said I f they read , ,

the orde r of sacrifices a s they wi l l be s e t down in the Scrip

tures I wi l l ac c ount it unto them as though they had offered
,

”m
the sacrifices and I will forgive all their sins
, And Go d .

continue d and revealed to Ab r a h a m the course o f Israel s

°
’

history and the history o f the whole world : The heifer o f

three years indicates the dominion o f Babylon the s h e goat ,
-

o f three y e ars stands for the empire of the Greeks the ram ,

o f three years for the Medo Persian power the rule o f Ish
-
,

mael is represente d by the ram and Israel i s the innocent ,

do ve.

Abraham took him these animals and divide d them in the

2 36 Th e L ege n ds o f th e J ew s

midst Ha d he n o t d o ne s o Is ra el w ould not have been ab l e

.
,

to resist the power o f the four kingdoms But the birds h e .

d i vi d ed not to indicate that Is r ael w i ll remain wh o le And

, .

the b i rds o f p rey c ame down upon the car casses and Abra ,

ham drove them away Thus was announced the advent o f

.

th e Messiah who will c ut the heathen in pieces but Abra

, ,

m
ham bade Messiah wait until the time appointed unto him .

An d a s the M essiani c time was made known unto Abraham ,

s o also the time o f the resurrect i on o f the dead When he .

laid the halves o f the pieces o ver against ea c h oth er the ,

animals be c ame alive again as the bir d fl e w o ver them

, .
11 3

While he w a s preparing these sa c rifices a vision o f great ,

im port was granted to Abraham Th e s un sank a nd a .

,

deep sleep f ell upon him and he beheld a smoking f urnace

, ,

Gehe nna the furnace that God prepares for the S inner ; and
,

he beheld a flaming torch the r evelation on Sinai where

, ,

all the people s a w flaming tor ches ; and he behel d the sacri
fice s to be brought by Israel ; and an horror o f great dark
nes s fell upon him the dom i nion o f the four kingdoms And
, .

Go d spake to him : Abraham as long as thy chi l dren fu l fi l

,

the t wo dut i es o f studying the Torah and per forming the

servi c e in the Temple the tw o visitat i ons Gehenna and a l ien
, ,

rule w ill be S pa r ed them But i f they neglect th e tw o duties

,
.
,

they w ill have to su ff er th e tw o ch a s tis e me n t s f on ly thou

mayest choose w hether they S hall be punishe d by means o f
”
Gehenna or by means o f the dominion of the stranger Al l .

the day l o ng Abraham w avered until Go d cal l ed unto him

,

H owlong w ilt thou halt between t w o opinions ! De c ide

f or o n e o f the t w o an d let it be for the dominion o f the
,

str ange r ! Then God ma d e known to him the four hundred

2 38 Th e L e g en ds f
o th e J ew s
’
No sooner had Hagar s union with Abraham been con
summated an d s h e felt that she was with chil d than she
, ,

began to treat her former mistress contemptuous l y though ,

Sarah w a s particu l arly ten d er toward he r in the state in

which s h e wa s When noble matrons came to s e e Sarah s h e
.
,

“
was in the habit o f u rging them to pay a visit to poo r
Hagar too Th e dames wou l d comply with h er suggestion
, .
,

but Hagar would use the opportunity to disparage Sarah .

My lady Sarah s h e would s a y is n ot inward l y what s h e

, ,

appears to be outwardly She makes the impression o f a .

righteous pious woman but s h e is not for if she were h ow

, , , ,

could her child l essness be explained after s o many years o f

! ”
marriage while I became p regnant at once
,

S arah sco r ned to bicker with her slave yet the r age s h e ,

felt found vent in these words to It is thou

who art doing me wrong Thou hearest the words o f Hagar
.
,

and thou sayest naught to oppose them and I hoped that ,

thou wouldst take my pa rt For thy sake d id I leave my .

native land an d the house o f my father an d I followed thee ,

into a strange land w ith trust in God In Egyp t I p retended .

to be thy sister that no harm might befall thee When I s a w

, .

that I should bea r no Chi l dren I took the E gyp tian woman , ,

my slave Haga r and gave her unto thee for wi fe contenting

, ,

mysel f with th e thought that I woul d rear the children s h e

wou l d bear N o w s h e treats me d i sdainfu ll y i n thy presence
. .

O that Go d might look upon the inj ustice whi ch hath been
done unto me to j udge between thee and me an d have mercy
, ,

upon us restore peace to ou r home and grant us o ff spring

, , ,

that we have no need o f children f rom Hagar the E gyptian ,

bondw oman o f the generation o f the heathen that cast thee

i n the fiery furnace !
 A br a h a m 2 39

Abraham modest and unassuming as h e was was r eady to

, ,

do j ustice to Sarah and he conferred fu l l power upon her

,

to dispose o f Hagar according to her pleasure H e added .

but on e caution Having once made her a mistress w e can

, ,

”
n ot again reduce her to the state o f a bondwoman Un .

mindful o f this warn i ng Sarah e xacted the services of a ,

slave from Hagar Not a l one this s h e tormented her and

.
, ,

finally she cast an evi l eye upon her so that the unborn chi l d ,

dropped from her and she ran away O n her flight s h e w a s

, .

met by severa l ange l s and they bade her return at the same
, ,

time making known to her that S he wou l d bear a son who

shou l d be called Ishmael—o n e o f the s ix men who have
been given a name by God before thei r bi rth the others ,

1 22
being Isaac Moses Solomon Josiah and the Messiah
, , , ,
.

Thirteen years after the birth o f Ishmael the command

was issued to Abraham that he put the S ign of the covenant
upon his body and upon the bodies o f the male members o f
his household Abraham was reluctant at first to do the
.

bidding o f Go d for h e feared that th e circumcision O f his

,

flesh wou l d raise a barrier between himsel f and the rest o f

mankind But God said unto him
. Let it su ffice thee that ,

I am thy God and thy Lord as it s u ffice th the w orld that I ,

” ” 1
am its God and its Lord .

Abraham then consulted with his three true friends Aner , ,

Eshcol and Mamre regarding the command of the circum

, ,

cis ion The first one spoke and said Thou art nigh unto a
.
, ,

hundred years ol d and thou c onsiderest inflicting such pain

,

”
upon thyself ! The a d vice o f the second w a s also against
“ ” “
it
. What said Eshcol
, thou choosest to mark thysel f ,

”
s o that thy enemies may r e c ognize thee W i th o ut fail !
240 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s

Mamre the th i rd was the o nly o n e to advise obedience to

, ,

the c ommand o f God Go d su c co r ed thee from the fiery

.

”
furna c e he sai d He helpe d thee in the combat with the
, ,

ki ngs H e p ro vided for thee d ur i ng the famine and thou

, ,

dost hesitate to execute His behest c on c erning th e cir c um

Ac co rdingly Abraham did as Go d had com ,

ma n de d in bright daylight bidding d efian c e to a l l that none

, , ,

might s a y Had we seen h im attempt it we shoul d have

,
“
,

”
prevente d him .
"5

The ci r c um c ision w a s pe r fo r me d o n th e tenth da y of

Tishri the Day o f Atonement and upon the spot on
, ,

w hi c h the a l tar was later to be ere c ted in the Temple for th e ,

a c t o f Abraham remains a never c easing atonement f or -

“
Isra el .

T H E VI S I T O F TH E A NGEL S
On the th ird day a fter h is Abraham cir c um c ision when,

w a s su ff e r ing d ire pain

1 27
God spoke to the angels saying , , ,

”
GO to let u s pay a visit to the sick
, The angels refus e d .
,

and s aid : What is man that Thou art mindful o f him !

“
,

And the s on o f man that Thou visitest h im! An d Thou ,

d es i rest to betake Thysel f to a place o f uncl eanness a p l ace ,

O f blood and fi lth ! But Go d r eplied unto them Thus do ,

ye speak A S ye live th e savor o f this blood is sweeter to

.
-
,

me tha n myr r h and in c ense an d i f yo u d o not d esire to vi sit ,

”” 8
Abraham I w ill go alone , .

The day wh ereon G od visited h i m w a s excee d ingly hot ,

for H e ha d b o re d a h o le i n hell s o tha t its heat might r ea ch ,

a s f a r a s the ea rth an d no wayfarer venture abroad o n th e

,

”
h igh w ays an d Ab r aham be le f t un di stu rbe d in his p a i n
,
.
242 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s

Shekinah Turning to God he said O Lord may i t please

.
, , ,

Th ee n o t to leave Thy servant whil e he provides fo r the

” ” 1
entertainment o f his guests Then he addressed himsel f
.

to the stranger walking in the m i ddle between the other two ,

whom by this token he considered the most distinguished ,

it was th e ar c hangel M ichael—an d he bade h im an d 11 1 5

companions turn aside int o hi s tent The manne r o f his .

guests who treated on e another politely made a goo d im

, ,

pression upon Abraham H e was assured that they were

.

men o f worth w hom he was entertaining But a s they .

1 35

appeare d outwardly like Arabs and the peopl e worshipped ,

the dust o f thei r feet he bade them first w a sh their feet that
, ,

”
they might n ot defile his tent .

H e di d n ot depend upon his own j udgment i n reading the

character o f his guests By his tent a tree was planted
.
,

which spread its b ranches ou t over a l l who believed in God ,

a n d a ff orde d them shade But i f idolaters went under the

.

tr ee the branches turned upward and cast no shade upon

, ,

the ground Whenever Abraham s a w this sign he would at

.
,

on c e set about the task of converting the worshippers o f the

false go d s And a s the tree made a distinction between th e
.

pious and the impious s o also between the clean and the
,

unclean I ts shade was denied them as long as they r e

.

fr a in e d from taking the prescribed ritual bath in the sp ring

that flowed ou t from its roots the waters o f which rose at ,

on c e for those whose uncleanness was o f a venia l chara c ter

and could be removed fo rthwith whil e others had to wait ,

s even days for the wate r to c ome up Accordingl y Ab r a .

,

ham ba d e the th ree men lean against the tr unk o f the

t ree . Thus he w oul d soon learn their w o rth or th eir
”
un w o rthiness .
 A br a h a m 24 3

B eing o f the truly pious who promise little but perform

, ,

” ”
“

mu c h,
1
Abraham said only : I will fetch a morsel o f “

bread and com fo rt ye you r hea rt

, seeing that ye c han c ed to ,

pass my tent at dinner time Then after ye have g i ven thanks

.
,

”m
to God ye may pass on
,
But when the meal w a s served
.

’
t o the guests it w a s a royal banquet excee d ing Solomon s
, ,

at the time of h is m o st splendid magnifi c en c e Abraham .

himsel f ran unto the herd to fetch c attle for meat H e

,
.

slaughtered three calves that he might be able t o s e t a

,

” ”
“
tongue w ith mustard be fore each o f his guests ! In
o rde r to ac custom Ishmael to God pleasing deeds he had -
,

m
him dress the calves an d he bade Sarah bake the b r ea d
,
.

B ut as he knew that women are apt to treat guests niggardly ,

h e was explicit in his request to her H e said Make ready .

,

qui ckly three measures o f meal yea fine meal As it hap

, , .

pene d the brea d was not brought to the table be c ause it ha d

, ,

a cc identally be c ome un clean an d ou r f ather Abraham w a s

,

m
accustomed to eat his daily brea d only in a c lean state .

Abraham himsel f serve d h i s guests an d it appea r e d t o h i m ,

that the three men ate But th i s w a s an illusion In reality

. .

the angels did not eat only Abraham his three fr i ends
, , ,

Ane r Esh c ol and Mamre and his s on Ishmael partook of

, , ,

the banquet and th e po r t i ons s e t be fo re the angels w e r e

,

“
devoured by a heavenly fire .

Although the angel s remaine d angels even in the ir human

disguise nevertheless the personality o f Abraham was s o
’
,

exalte d that i n h is presen c e the archangels felt in s ign ifi

”
c ant !
A fter the meal the angels asked after S arah th ough they ,

knew that s h e was in retirement i n her tent but i t w a s ,

2 44 Th e L e g en ds i
o th e Je w s

proper for them to pay the i r r espe cts to th e l a dv o f the

house and send her the cup o f wine over which the b l essing
had been said M ichael the greatest o f the angels there
.
, ,

upon announ c e d the bi r th o f Isaa c H e d rew a line upon .

the wall saying When the s u n c ros ses this point S arah
‘

, , ,

will be with chil d and when he c rosses the next p oint s h e

, ,

”
w ill give birth to a chi l d This communication whi c h was
.
,

i ntended for Sarah and not for Abraham to whom the ,

promise had been reveale d long before the angels made at ,

1 47

the entrance to her tent but Ishmael stood between th e

,

angel and Sarah for it would not h ave been seemly to de

,

l iver the message in secret with none other by Yet s o

, .
,

radi a nt was the beauty o f S arah that a beam o f it st ruck

th e angel an d made him look up In th e act of tu rning
, .

’”
toward her he heard her laugh within h e rs e l f z
,
Is it
possible that these bowels c an yet bring forth a c hild these ,

shrivelled breasts give suck ! And though I should be able

” 1
to bear yet is not my lord Abra ham old
,
!

An d the Lord s aid unto Abraham : Am I too Ol d to do

wonders ! And wherefore d oth Sa rah laugh saying Shall , ,

°
I o f a surety bear a chi l d whi c h am Ol d ! , The reproach 15

made by God was directed against Abraham as well as

against S arah for he too had showe d hi sel f o f l ittle faith
, , , m
when he w a s told that a s on woul d be born unto him But .

God mentioned on l y S arah s in c re d u l ity leaving Abr a ham

’
,

m
to become c onscious o f h is defe c t himsel f .

Regardful o f the pea c e o f their family l i fe Go d had n ot ,

’
repeated S arah s words accurately to Abraham Abraham .

might have taken amiss what hi s wi fe had said abo ut his

a d van c e d yea r s an d s o pre c ious is the pea c e between h us
,
246 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

r Op e . H e meant to secure i t for h i mself The frien dl y per .

suasions o f Hedor induced the stranger to remain with hi m

t w o days though he had expected to stay only overnight
,
.

When the time c ame for him to contin ue on his j ourney ,

he asked his host fo r the c arpet and th e rope H edor said .

Thou hast dreame d a dream and this is the interpretation ,

of thy dream : the rope signifies that thou wilt have a long
li fe as long a s a rop e ; the varicolored carpet indi cates that
,

th o u wilt ow n an or c hard wherein thou wilt plant a l l sorts

’
o f fruit trees The strange r insisted that his carpet w a s
.

a reality n ot a d ream f an c y and he cont i nued to demand its

, ,

r etu r n Not only did Hedor deny having taken anything

.

f rom his guest he even insisted upon pay for having inte r
,

p r e te d h is d ream to him His usual p r ice fo r such servi c es

.
,

h e said w a s fou r silver pie c es but in view o f the fact that

, ,

he was his guest he would as a favo r to him c o ntent h im

, , ,

sel f with three pieces O f silve r .

After much wrangling they put their case be fore on e o f,

the j udges o f Sodom S h e r e k by name and he said to th e

, ,

p l ainti ff H edo r is known i n this city as a trustwo rthy

,
“

”
interpreter o f d r eams and what he tells thee is true
, The .

stranger d eclared himsel f not satisfie d w ith the verdict and ,

c ontinue d to urge his side o f the c ase Then S h e r e k drove .

both the plainti ff and the defendant f rom the co urt room .

Seeing this the inhabitants gathered together and chased

,

the strange r f rom the ci ty an d lamenting the loss , of his

ca rpet he had to pursue h is way
, .

As S odom ha d a j udge wo rthy o f itself s o also had the ,

other cities— S h a rka r in Gomorrah Z a b n a k in Admah and , ,

Man o n in Zebo i im E lie ze r the b on d man .

, of Ab r aham made
,
 A br a h a m 24 7

slight changes i n the names o f these j udges in accordan c e ,

with the nature o f what they did : the fi r st he c alled Shak

kara Liar ; the second S h a kr u r a Arch d eceiver ; the third
, ,
-

K a zb a n F a l s ifie r and the fourth M azle Din Pe rverter o f

, ,
-
,

Judgment At the suggestion o f these j udges the cities s e t

.
,

up beds on their commons When a stranger arrived three

.
,

men seized him by his head and three by his feet and they
, ,

forced him upon on e o f the beds I f he was too S hort to

.

fit into it exact l y h is s ix attendants pu ll ed and wrenched his

,

limbs until he fi l led it o u t ; i f he was too long for it they ,

tried to j am him in with all th eir combined strengt h until ,

the victim was on the verge of death H is outcries were .

met with the words , Thus wi l l be done to any man that

”
comes into ou r land .

A fter a while travellers avoided th ese cities but i f some ,

poor devil was betrayed occasiona ll y into entering them ,

they would give him gold and si l ver but never any bread
, ,

s o that he was bound to die of starvation O nce he was .

dead the residents o f the city came and took back the
,

marke d gold and silver which they had given him and they ,

would quarrel about the distribution o f his c lothes fo r they ,

would bury him naked .

O nce Eliezer the bondman o f Abraham went to S odom

, , ,

at the bidding of Sarah to inquire after the we l fare o f Lot

, .

He happened to enter the city at th e moment when the

people were robbing a strange r o f his garments E l iezer .

espoused the cause o f the poo r wretch and the So d omites ,

turned against him ; one threw a stone at his forehead and

caused considerable loss of blood Instantly the assailant
.
, ,

seeing the blood gush forth demanded payment for having

,
248 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

per forme d the operation of cupp i ng E liezer r efused to pay .

for the i nfliction o f a wound upon him and he was haled b e ,

fore the j udge S h a kka r a The decisi o n went against him

.
,

f or the l a w of the lan d gave the assailant the right to de mand

payment E l iezer qui c kly picked up a stone and threw i t at
.

’
the j udge s f o r ehead When he s a w that the b l ood was
.

flowing pro fusely he said to the j u d ge

, Pay my d ebt to ,

”
the man and give me the balance .

The cause o f their cruelty w a s their ex c eeding great

wealth Their soil w a s gol d and in their miserliness and
.
,

their greed for more and more gold they wanted to prevent ,

strangers from enj oy i ng aught o f their riches A ccordingly .

,

they fl oode d th e highways with streams o f water s o that

'

the roa d s t o the ir city w ere obliterated and none c ould fin d ,

th e w a y thither They were as heartless toward beasts as

.

towa r d men They begrudge d the birds what they ate an d

.
,

the r efore extirpate d them “

They behaved impiously
.

towar d on e another too not shrinking back from murder to

, ,

gain pos session of more gold I f they Observed that a man .

owne d great riches t w o o f them woul d conspire against him

,
.

They w o uld beguile h i m to the vicin i ty o f ruins and while ,

the on e kept him on the spot by pleasant c onverse the other ,

woul d un d ermine the wall near which h e stood until it sud ,

de n l y crashe d down upon h im and killed him Then the tw o .

plotters would divide his wealth between them .

Another method of enriching themselves with the prope rty

o f others w a s in vogue among them They were adroit .

thieves When they made up their minds to c ommit theft

.
,

they would first a s k thei r victim to take care o f a sum o f

money fo r them which they smea r e d with stro ngly s c ented
,
2 50 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e Jew s

cea l e d themselves nea r the beggar and caught Pa l tit in the ,

act of giving him something to eat She had to pay for her .

humanity w i th death ; s h e was burnt upon a pyre .

The people o f Admah w ere no better than those Of Sodom .

O nce a strange r came to A d mah intending to stay overnight

,

and c ontinue his j ourney the next morning The daughter .

o f a r ich man met the stranger an d gave him water to drink

,

an d b r ea d to eat a t h is request When the people o f A d mah

.

hea r d o f this infraction o f the law o f the land they s eized ,

the gi rl and arraigned her before the j udge who condemne d ,

her t o d eath The people smeared her with honey f rom top
.

to toe an d expose d her where bees w ould be attracted to

,

he r The inse c ts stung her to death and the callous people

.
,

paid n o heed t o her heartrending cries Then it was that .

”
Go d resolved upon the destru c tion of these sinn ers .

A B RA HA M P LE A D S F O R THE S I NNERS
When God s a w that there w a s no righteous man among
the inhabitants o f the sinful cities and there would be none ,

am o ng thei r des c endants for the sake o f whose merits the

,

rest might be t r eated with lenient c onsi d eration He resolved ,

to annihi late them on e and a l l But before j udgment w a s

.
158

executed the Lord ma d e known unto Abraham what He

,

w ould do t o Sodom Gomorrah an d the other cities o f the

, ,

plain for they formed a part of Canaan the land promise d

, ,

unto Abraham and therefore did God s a y

,
I wi ll not ,
“

” 1 5°
destro y them without the consent of Abraham .

Like a c ompassionate f ather Abraham importuned th e ,

gr ace o f God in behal f o f the s i nne rs H e spoke to Go d an d . ,

said : Th o u d i d st take an oath that no more should a l l

“
 A b ra h a m 2 51

flesh be c ut o ff by the waters of a flood Is it meet that .

Thou shouldst evade Thy oath and de s t foy cities by fire !

Shall the Judge o f all the earth not do right Himse l f !
V eri l y i f Th o u desirest to maintain the world Thou must
, ,

gi ve up the strict l ine o f j usti c e I f Thou in s is te s t upon the

.

right alone there can be no worl d

, Whereupon Go d said .

to Abraham : Thou takest de l ight in defending My c rea

tures and thou wouldst n o t ca l l them guilty Therefore I
, .

Spoke with none but thee du ring the ten generations sin c e
”
Noah . Abraham ventured to use still stronger words
in order to secure the safety o f the godless That be f ar .

”
from Thee he said to s l ay the righteous w i th the w icked
, , ,

that the dwellers on the earth s a y not It is His trade to ,

destroy the generations o f men in a cruel manner ; for H e

destroyed the generation o f Enosh then the generation o f ,

the flood and then He sent the confusion o f tongues H e

, .

’
sticks ever to H is trade .

Go d made reply : I will let a l l the gene r at io ns I have

destroyed pass before thee that thou mayest s e e they have
,

not su ff ered the extreme punishment they deserved But i f .

thou thinkest that I did not act j ust l y then instruct thou Me ,

in what I must do and I w i ll endeavor to act i n accor d ance

,

w ith thy words An d Abraham had to admit that God had

.

not diminished i n aught the j ustice due to every creature in

this w o rld or th e other world ! Neverthe l ess he continue d
“

to speak and he said : Wi l t Thou consume the cities if

,
“
,

”
there be ten righteous men in each ! And God said NO , ,

i f I find fifty righteous therein I will not destroy the ,

”m
cities.

Abraham : I have taken upon me to speak unto the L o rd ,

2 52 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

I w h o would have been turned l ong S ince into dust o f the

ground by Amraphel and into ashes by Nimrod had it not ,

been for Thy gra c e Peradventure there S ha ll lack five o f

.
1 63

the fi fty righteous for Zoar the smallest of the five cities , .

”
Wilt Thou destroy a l l the city fo r l ack of five !

Go d : I w i ll not destroy it i f I find there forty and five ,

.

Abraham : Peradventure there be ten pious in each o f

the four c ities then forgive Zoar I n Thy grace for its s ins
, ,

”
are n ot s o great in number as the sins of the others .

God granted his petition yet Abraham continued to plea d

, ,

and he asked whe ther God would not be satisfied i f there

were but thirty righteous ten in each o f the three larger
,

cities and woul d pardon th e tw o sma ll er ones even though

, ,

there were no r ighteous therein whose merits would inter ,

cede for them This too the Lord granted and fu rther
.
, , ,

more H e promised not to destroy the cities i f but twenty

righteous were f ound therein ; yes God con c eded that H e ,

w ould preserve the five cities for the sake o f ten righteou s
More than th i s Abraham di d n ot ask f or he kne w ,

that eight righteous ones Noah and h is wife and his three
, ,

sons and the i r wives had not suffi ced to avert the doom o f
,

the generat i on of the flood and furthermore h e hoped that

,

Lot h is wi f e and their four daughters together with the

, , ,

husbands o f their daughters would make up the numbe r ,

ten What he did not know was that even the righteous in
.

thes e s in laden c it i es though better than the rest were far

-
, ,

”
from good .

Abraham d id not c ease to pray for the d eliveran c e o f the

sinners even a fter the Shekinah had removed from him .

But his s upp l i cati o ns and his inter c essions were in vai n .
“
2 54 Th e L eg e n ds f
o th e J ew s

man at o n c e L o t however w a s insistent and c ar ri ed them

.
, , ,

i nto h is hous e by main force At home he had to overcome .

1 72

the opposit i on o f his wife f or she sa i d I f the inhabitants

, ,

o f Sodom hear o f th i s they will S lay thee

, .

Lot d ivided h is dwelling in tw o parts one for h i msel f and ,

h is gu ests the other for h is wife s o that if aught happened

, , , ,

h is wife woul d be spare d

1 73
Nevertheless it was s h e who
.

betr aye d him S he went to a neighbor and bo rrowed some

.

salt an d to the question whether s h e co uld not have sup

, ,

plied hersel f with salt d uring d aylight hours s h e replied , ,

We ha d enough salt until some guests c ame to u s ; for

,

’
them we nee d ed more In this way the presen c e o f
.

strange r s w a s bruited abroad in the city .

“

In the beginning the angels were in c lined to hearken to

the petit io n o f L ot in behalf of the sinners but w hen all the ,

people of the c ity big and little c ro wded around the house
, ,

o f L ot with the purpose o f committing a monstrous c rime ,

the angel s war d ed off his prayers sayin g Hithe rto thou , ,

’
coul d st intercede for them but n ow no longer It was not , .

the first time that the inhabitants o f S odom wante d t o p e rp e

trate a c rime o f this sort They had made a l a w some time
.

be fore that all strangers were to be treated in this horrible

wa y Lot who w a s appointed chie f j udge on th e very
.
,

’
day o f the angels coming tried to in d u c e the people to ,

desist f r om thei r purpose saying to them My brethren

, , ,

the generation o f the deluge was exti r pate d in consequence

o f su c h s i ns as you d esire to c ommit and yo u would reve r t ,

”
to them ! But they rep l ied : Ba ck ! And though Abra
ham himsel f came hither we should have no c onsi d erat i on
,

for him I s i t p o ss i ble that thou w o ul d st s e t as id e a l a w

.

w h ich thy p r e d e c esso r s administere d

3 ) 1 75
 A br a h a m 2 55

E ven Lot s moral sense was no better than it should have

’

been It is the duty o f a man to venture his li fe for the

.

honor o f h is wife and his daughter s but Lot was ready to ,

sacrifi c e the honor of his daughters wherefor he w a s pun ,

is h e d severe l y l ater on
1 76
.

The angels to l d Lot who they were and what the mission ,

that had brought them to Sodom and they c harged him to ,

flee from the city with his wife and his four daughters tw o ,

”
o f them married and tw o betrothed
,
Lot communi c ated .

their bi dding to his sons in l a w and they mocked at him

- -
, ,

and said : O thou foo l ! V iolins cymbals and flutes r e , ,

sound in the city and thou sayest Sodom wi ll be d estroyed !

,

S uch s c offi ng but hastened the execution of the doom o f

S odom .
“
The angel Michael laid hold upon the hand o f
Lot and his wi fe and his daughters whi l e with his litt l e
, ,

finger the angel Gabriel touched the r oc k whereon the

S in fu l cities were bui l t and ove rturned them At the same
, .

time the rain that w a s streaming d o wn upon the tw o c ities

”
was changed into brimstone .

When the angels had brought fo rth Lot an d his family

and set them without the city he bade them r un for their ,

lives and not look behin d lest they behold the Shekinah
, , ,

whi c h had descen d ed to work the destru ction o f the c iti es .

The wi fe o f L ot coul d not control herself Her mothe r love .

ma d e her look behind to s e e if he r marr i e d daughters w ere

fol l owing She beheld the Shekinah and she be c ame a pillar
.

of salt This pil l ar exists unto this d ay The c attle lick it

. .

a l l day long and in the evening it seems to have dis a p

,

p e a r e d but w hen morning c omes it stands the r e as la r ge as

,

”
be fo re .
2 56 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

The savior angel had urged Lot himsel f to take re fuge

with Abraham But he refused an d said : A S long as I
.
,

d w elt apart from Abraham Go d compared my deeds with ,

the dee d s o f my fell o w citizens an d among them I appeared

-
,

a s a righteous man I f I should return to Abraham G od

.
,

””
w ill s e e that his goo d dee d s outweigh mine by far
1
The .

angel then granted his plea that Zoar be left undestr o yed .

This c ity had been founded a year later than the other four ;
it was only fifty one years ol d and therefore the measure of
-
,

its s ins w a s n ot so full as the measure O f the sins of the

182
neighboring cities .

The dest ruction of the cities o f the plain took place at

dawn o f the sixteenth d ay of Nisan fo r the reason that there ,

were m oon and s u n worshippers among the inhabitants .

God sai d : I f I destroy them by day the moon worshippers ,

will say Were the moon here s h e would prove hersel f

, ,

o u r sav i or ; and if I destroy them by night the s u n w o r ,

shippers w ill s a y Were the s u n here he woul d prove him

, ,

sel f ou r savio r I will there fore l et the i r chastisement over

.

take them on the sixteenth day of Nisan at an hou r at which

””
th e m o on and the s un are both in the skies .
3

The s inful inhabitants o f the c ities o f the plain not o nly

lost the ir l i fe in this world but also their share in the future
,

worl d As for the c i ties themselves howeve r they will be

.
, ,

rest o re d in the Messiani c time .

1 84

The d est r u c tion o f So d om happene d at the time at which

Abraham w a s per forming h is morning d evotions and for his ,

sake it was establishe d as the proper hour for the mo rnin g

prayer unto all times When he tu r ned his eyes toward
.
185

S odo m an d behel d the ri sing smo ke h e praye d fo r the de ,

2 58 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s
’
There w a s another reason f or Abraham s l eaving his pla c e ;
’
the people spoke to o much ab o ut the ugly in c i d ent with Lo t s
d aughters .

A rr i ve din the lan d of the Philistines he again as a fore , ,

time in Egypt c ame to an understanding w i th Sarah that

, ,

s h e w a s to call he r sel f his sister When the repo rt of her

.

beauty reached the king he ordere d her to be brought b e

,

fore him and h e asked her who her c ompanion was and
, ,

s h e told him that Abraham w a s her brother Entranced by .

her beauty Abimelech the king took Sarah to wife and

, ,

heape d ma r ks o f honor upon Abraham in a c cordance with

the j ust claims o f a brother o f the queen Toward evening . ,

before retiring while h e was still seated upon his throne

, ,

Abimelech fell into a sleep and he slept unti l the mo rning

, ,

and i n the d ream he dreamed he s a w an angel o f the Lord

raising his sw o rd to d eal him a death blow Sore frightened .
,

h e aske d the c ause and the angel replied and said : Thou
, ,

wilt die o n a cc ount o f the woman thou d i dst take into thy
house this day fo r she i s the wi fe o f Abraham the man
, ,

whom thou didst cite be fore thee Return h is wi fe unto him !

.

But i f thou r esto r e her n o t th o u shalt su r ely die thou and

, ,

”
all that are thine .

In that night the vo ic e of a g r eat c rying w a s hear d

in the w hole land o f the Philistines fo r they s a w the figure ,

o f a man walk i ng about with sword i n hand slaying all that

, ,

came in h i s way At the same time i t happene d that in men

.

and beasts alike all the apertures of the body closed up ,

and the land was seize d with indes c ribable excitement In .

the morning w hen the king awoke in agony and terro r he

, , ,

c alle d all h i s s e rvants an d told his drea m in the i r ears One .

 A br a h a m 2 59

of their number sai d : O l ord and king ! Restore th i s

woman unt o the man for he is her husband It i s but his
,
.

w a y in a strange land to pretend that s h e is his sister Thus .

did he with the king o f Egypt too and God sent heavy , ,

a fflicti ons up o n Pharaoh when he took the woman unto him

se l f Consider also O lor d and king what hath befa l le n
.
, , ,

this night in the land ; great pain wailing an d c onfusion , ,

there was and we kno w that i t c ame upon u s only be caus e

,

” ”
o f th i s woman
1
.

There were some among h is se r vants wh o spake : B e

not a fraid o f dreams ! What dreams make known t o man
”
i s but falsehood Then Go d appeared unto Abimele c h
.

again and comman d ed him to let Sarah go free otherw i se ,

”
he would be a dea d man Abimelech replied : Is this
.
1

Thy way ! Then I ween the generation o f the flo od and

, ,

the generation o f the c on fusion o f tongues were innocent ,

too ! The man himself did s a y unt o me S he i s my siste r , ,

and S he even s h e herself said He is my brothe r an d a l l

, , ,

”
the pe ople o f their househol d said the same wo r ds And .

God sai d unto him “

Yea I know that thou hast not yet
°
,

committed a trespass fo r I withheld thee from sinning

, .

’
Thou di d st not know that S arah was a man s wi fe But is .
“ 2

it becoming to question a stranger n o sooner does he s e t ,

foot upon thy territory about the woman a c c ompanying him

, ,

w hethe r s h e be h is wife or his sister ! Abraham who i s a ,

prophet kne w beforehand the danger to himself i f he t e

,

vealed the w h ole truth B ut be i ng a prophet h e als o , ,

knows that thou didst not tou c h his w i fe and he shall pray ,

”
fo r thee and thou shalt live
,
.

Th e sm ok e wa s s t i ll ri s i n g fro m the r u i n s of S odom , an d

2 60 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

Abimelech and his peop l e seeing it feared that a like fate

, ,

”
might overtake them ! The king ca ll ed Abraham and r e
p r oa ch e d him fo r having caused such great misfo rtune
through his f a l se statements concerning Sarah Abraha m .

excused his conduct by his apprehension th a t th e fear of God ,

n ot being in the place the inhabitants of the l and s l ay him

,

”
fo r h is wife Abraham went o n and to l d the history of hi s
.

who l e life and he said : When I dwelt in the house of my

,

father th e nations o f the wor l d sought to do me harm but

, ,

God p roved Himself my Redeemer When the nations o f the .

wor l d tried to l ead me astray to ido l atry God revea l ed Him

,
,

s elf to me and H e said Get thee out o f thy count r y and

, , ,

’ ’
from thy kindred and from thy father s house And when
,
.

the nations o f the wor l d were about to go astray God sent ,

t w o prophets my kinsmen Shem and Eber to admonish

, ,

” 1”
them .

Abime l ech gave rich gifts to Abraham wherein he acted ,

otherwise than Pharaoh in s imi l ar circumstances The .

Egyptian king gave gifts to Sarah but Abimelech was God ,

” 7
fea ri ng and desired that Abraham pray for him
, To .

S arah he gave a cost l y robe that covered her who l e person ,

h iding her seductive c harms from the view o f beholders At .

the same time it w a s a reproach to Abraham that he had not ,

”
fitted Sarah out with the S plendor due to hi s wife .
8

Though Abimelech had done him great inj ury Abraham ,

not only granted him the forgi veness he craved but a l so he ,

praye d for him to Go d Thus he is an exemp l ar unto a ll

.

Man S hou l d be p l iant as a reed not hard l ike the ce d ar ,

.

He should be easily appeased and slow to anger and as soon, ,

as he w h o has sinned against him asks for par don he shou l d ,

2 62 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

They all b or e c hildren . An d all the blind we r e ma d e to see ,

all the lame we r e made whole the d umb were ma d e t o speak , ,

and the ma d were r esto r e d to reason And a still greate r .

’
mirac l e happene d : on the d ay o f Isaa c s bi rth the s u n shone
with su c h splendo r as had not been se en since th e fall o f
”
man an d as he wi l l shine again only in the f uture world
, .

To S ilen c e those wh o asked signifi c ant l y Can on e a ,

hun dr ed years ol d beget a s on ! God commanded the angel

w h o has c harge over the embryos t o give them form and ,

shape that he f ashion Isaa c pre c isely ac c or d ing t o the m odel

,

o f Abraham s o that all seeing Isaa c might ex c la i m

, Abra ,

”
ham begot Isaa c .

That Abraham and S arah w ere blesse d with off sp ri ng

only after they had atta i ned s o great an age had an impo r ,

tant reason It was necessary that Abraham S houl d b ea r

.

the S ign O f the co venant upon his b o dy befo re h e begot th e

s on who w a s appointed to be the f ather o f Israel
“
An d .

as Isaa c was the first child b o r n t o Abraham a fter he w a s

marked with th e S ign he d id not fail to c elebrate his cir c um
,

°
cis ion with much pomp an d c erem o ny o n the eighth day
20
.

Shem Eber Abimele c h k i ng o f the P h i listines and hi s

, , ,

whole retinue P h icol the captain o f his host in it— they a ll

,

were present and also Terah and his

, s on Nahor in a w ord , ,

”
all the gr eat ones round ab o ut .
07
On this o cc as io n Abraham
c ouldat last put a stop t o the talk o f th e people who said , ,

Look at th i s ol d c ouple ! They pi c ked up a found l ing o n

the high w ay and they pretend he i s the i r
, ow n s on , an d t o
mak e the i r statement seem c re d ibl e they a rrange a f east i n ,

’
his honor Abrah am ha d inv i te d not only men t o the c ele
.

b ration but als o the

, w i ves Of the ma gnates w i th thei r in
 A br a h a m 2 63

fauts and Go d permitted a mi r a c le t o be don e S a r ah had

,
.

”
enough milk in her breasts to su ckle all the babes there ,

a n d they who drew from her breasts ha d much to thank he r

fo r
. Those whose mothers ha d harbore d only pious
thoughts in their min d s when they let them drink the mi l k
that flowe d from the breasts o f the pious Sa r ah they became ,

proselytes when they grew up ; and those whose mothers let

Sarah nurse them only in or d er to test her they grew up t o ,

be power ful rulers losing their dominion only at the revela

,

tion o n Mount Sinai be c ause they would not accept the

,

Torah All proselytes and pious heathen are the d es c en d

.

”
ants o f these in fants .

Among the guests of Abraham w e r e the thirty one k i ngs -

and thirty on e viceroys of Palestine wh o were vanquished

-

by Joshua at the conquest o f the Holy Lan d Even Og king .

o f Bashan w a s present an d he ha d to su ff er the teasin g o f

,

the o ther guests w h o rallie d him upon hav i ng calle d Abra

,

ham a sterile mule who would never have o ff spring Og

,
.
,

o n h is part pointe d at the little boy with c ontempt and sai d

, , ,

”
Were I to lay my finge r upon him he wou l d be c rushed ,
.

Whereup o n Go d sai d to him : Th o u makest mock o f the

gi ft given to Abraham ! As th o u livest thou shalt l ook upon ,

millions an d myria d s o f his descen d ants and in the en d ,

” °
th o u shalt fall into the i r hands .
“1

I S H MAEL C AST O F F
When Isaac gr e w up quarrels b r oke out b e t w een him a n d
,

Ishmael on a c count o f the ri ghts o f the first born Ishmael

,
-
.

insisted he should receive a d ouble portion o f the i nheritan c e

a fter the d eath of Ab r aham an d I s aa c sh o ul d r e c e i ve
, o nly
2 64 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e J ew s

o ne portion Ishmael who had been a ccustomed f rom h i s

.
,

y outh to u s e the b ow and arrow was in the habit of aimin g,

h is missiles in the dire ction o f Isaac saying at the same time ,

th at he w a s but j esting S arah however insisted that

.
211
, ,

Abraham make o ver to Isaa c all he owned that no disputes ,

” ”
might arise a f ter h is death for s h e said Ishmael is not
, , ,

w orthy o f be i ng heir w i th my s on nor with a man l ike Isaac, ,

” ”
and certainly n ot w i th my s on Isaa c Fu rthermore .
2
,

Sa r ah ins i ste d that Abraham divor c e himse l f from Hagar ,

the mother o f Ishmael an d send away th e woman and her

,

s on s o that there be naught in common between them and

,

her o w n son either in this world o r in the future world

, .

O f all the trials Ab raham ha d to undergo none was so ,

hard to bear a s this for it gr ieved him sore l y to separate

,

himsel f f rom his s on God appeared to him in the fo ll owing

.

night and said to him : Abraham knowest thou not that

, ,

S arah appointe d to be thy wife f ro m her mother s

wa s
’

womb ! S he is thy companion and the wife of thy youth ,

and I named n ot Hagar a s thy wi f e n o r S arah as thy bond ,

woman What S arah spoke unto thee was naught but

.

truth an d let it n o t be grievous in thy sight because o f th e

,

l ad and because of thy bondwoman

, The next morning .

Abraham rose up early gave Hagar he r bi l l of divorcement

, ,

and sent her away with her s on first binding a rope about ,

he r loins that all might s e e s h e w a s a bondwoman .

The evil glan c e cast upon her stepson by Sar ah made h im

sick an d f everish s o that Hagar had to carry him grown u p
, ,
-

as he w a s In his f ever he d rank often o f the water in the

.

bottle gi ven her by Abraham as sh e left his house an d the ,

wate r w a s q u ickly spent That S he mi ght not look upon th e

.
2 66 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s

had come from Egypt and to Egypt S he returned to c h oo s e

, ,

a W i fe for h e r s on .

T H E T w o W I V E S O F I S H M AEL
Th e wi f e o f Ishmael bore f ou r sons an d a da ughte r ,

an d a fte rw a rd Ishmael h is mothe r and hi s wife and chil

, ,

d ren went an d r etu r ne d to the wilde rness Th ey ma d e .

themselves tents in the wilderness in whi c h they dwelt and ,

they c ontinue d to encamp an d j ou r ney month by month and ,

yea r by yea r And Go d gave Ishmael flocks and her d s and

.
, ,

tents o n ac c ount o f Abraham his father and the man in

, ,

creased in cattle And s o me time after Abraham sai d to

.
,

S a rah his wi fe I wi l l go and s e e my son I shmael ; I yearn

, ,

”
to look upon him for I have not seen him for a long time
, .

And Abraham rode upon on e o f h is c amels to the wi l d erness ,

to seek his s on Ishmael for he heard that he w a s dwel l ing

,

in a tent in th e wilde r ness with all belonging to him An d .

Abraham went t o the w ilderness an d he r eached the tent o f ,

Ishmael about n oon and he asked a f te r h i m H e found

,
.

the wi f e of Ishmael sitting in the tent with he r chil d ren and ,

her husband and h is mother were not with them An d .

Abraham aske d the wi fe o f Ishmael say i ng Where , ,

”
h a s Ishmael gone ! An d s h e said H e has gone to the ,

’
fiel d to hunt game An d Abraham w a s still mounted upon
.

the c amel fo r he w o uld not alight up o n the gr ound as h e

, ,

had sw o rn to h i s w i f e S arah that he w oul d not get off f ro m

th e c amel An d Abraham sai d to Ishmael s wi fe
.
’
My ,

daughte r gi ve me a little w ater that I may d rink for I am

, , ,

” ’
fatigu ed an d t ir e d fro m the j ou r ney And Ishmael s w ife .

ans w e r e d an d S ai d t o Abraham
, We have neithe r water ,
“
 A br a h a m 26 7

nor b r ead an d s h e was sitting in the tent and d i d not take

, ,

any not i ce o f Abraham She did not even ask h im who he

.

was But all th e w hile S he was beating he r c hildren in the

.

tent and s h e w a s c ursing them and s h e also cursed he r h u s

, ,

band Ishmael and sp oke evil o f him and Abraham hear d

, ,

the w o rds o f Ishmael s wi f e to her c hildren and it w a s an

’
,

evil thing i n his eyes An d Abraham c a l led to the woman to

.

come ou t t o him from the tent and the woman ca me out an d , ,

stood face t o f a c e w ith Abraham while Abraham was sti l l ,

’
mounted upon the camel And Abraham said to Ishmael s.

wi fe ,
When thy husband Ishmael r etu r ns home s a y these ,

words to him : A very ol d man from the land o f the Phi l is

tines came hithe r to seek thee an d his appearance was thus ,

and s o and thus was his figure I did not ask him w h o he
, .

was a n d seeing tho u w ast not he r e he spoke unto me and

, , ,

said When Ishmael thy husband returns tell him Thus d i d

, , ,

the man s a y When thou c omest home put away this tent
, ,

pin which thou hast place d here and place another tent— pin ,

in i ts stead And Abraham finished his instructions to the

.

woman and h e turned and went o ff on the c amel homeward

, .

And when Ishmael returned to the tent he hear d the words ,

of his wi fe and he knew that it was his father and that h is

, ,

wife had n ot h o nored him And Ishmael un d ersto o d his

.

’
father s w ords that he had spoken to his w i f e and he ,

hearkened to the vo ic e o f his f ather an d h e divor c ed ,

his wi fe and she went away And Ishmael a fterwar d went

, .

to the l and o f Canaan and he took an o ther w i fe an d h e

, ,

brought he r to his tent to the pla c e w here he dwelt

, .

An d at the end of three years Abraham sai d I w i ll go , ,

again an d see Ishmael my s on for I have n o t seen him fo r a ,

2 68 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s

long time And he rode upon his camel and went to the
.
,

wilderness and he rea c he d the tent o f Ishmael abo ut n oon

, .

An d he asked after Ishmael and his w if e c ame ou t o f the ,

tent an d s h e s aid H e is not here my lo rd for he has gone

, , , ,

to hunt in the fields and f ee d the camels and the wo man ,

sai d to Abraham Turn i n my lord i nto the tent and eat

, , , ,

a morsel o f bread for thy soul must be w earied on a cc ount

,

”
o f the j ourney An d Abraham said to her
. I wi l l not ,

stop for I am in haste to continue my j ou rney but gi ve me a

, ,

”
little water to drink fo r I am th i rsty and the woman
, ,

hastened and ran into the tent and s h e brought out water ,

an d bread t o Abraham w hich s h e pla c e d befo re him urging

, ,

him to eat and drink and he ate an d drank and his heart
, ,

was merry and he blessed his son Ishmael And he finished

, .

his meal and he blesse d the L o r d and he said to Ishmae l s

'

, ,

w i fe : When Ishmael c omes home say these words to him ,

A very old man from the land of the Philistines came hither ,

and asked a f ter thee and thou wast n o t here and I brought
, ,

him o u t brea d and water and he ate an d drank and his hea r t
, ,

was merry An d he spoke these w ords to me When Ish

. ,

mael thy husba nd c o mes home s a y unto him The tent pin , ,
-

which thou hast i s ve r y good do not put it away fro m the ,

”
tent . An d Ab ra ham fi nished c ommanding the woman and ,

he r od e o ff to his home to the land of the Phi l istines and

, ,

when Ishmael c ame to his tent his wi f e went fo rth t o meet ,

h im w i th j oy an d a cheer f ul heart an d s h e t o ld him th e ,

words of the o l d man Ishmael kne w that i t w a s his f ather

. ,

and that his w i f e had honored him and b e prai se d the ,

Lord And Ishmael then t o ok his wi fe an d his chi l dren and

.

h is cattle and all bel o n g i ng to him and he j o u r neyed f r o m ,

 70 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s

without correction The herdmen o f Abraham and th o s e

.

o f Abimelech had le ft thei r d i spute about the we l l to d e ci sion

by or d eal : the w ell was t o belong t o the p a rty for whose

sheep the w aters w ould ri se s o that they c ould drink o f them .

But the shepherds of Abimelech dis r egarded th e agreemen t ,

and they wreste d the well for their ow n use A S a witness 220
.

an d a pe r petual sign that the well bel o nged to h im Abraham ,

s e t aside seven sheep c or r esponding to the s even Noachian

,

laws binding upon all men alike B ut Go d sai d Thou .

221
,
“

didst give h i m seven sheep As th o u livest the Phi l istine s

.
,

shall o n e day slay seven righteous men S amson Hophni , , ,

Phinehas and S aul with his three sons and they will destroy
, ,

seven holy places and they will keep the holy Ark in their
,

country a s booty o f war fo r a period o f seven months an d ,

f urthermore only the seventh generation o f thy descendants

wi l l be able to rej oi c e in the possession o f the land promise d
” ”
to them After co ncluding the allian c e with Abimele c h
.
2
,

who acknowledge d Abraham s right upon the well Abraham

’
,

c alled the pla c e Bee r S heba be cause there they s wor e bo th

-
,

o f them unt o a covenant o f frien d sh i p .

In Beer S heba Abraham d welt many ye a r s an d then c e he

-
,

endeavo red to spread the l a w o f God H e planted a large .

grove there and he made f ou r gates fo r it facing the four

, ,

s ides o f the earth east w est n o rth and south an d h e

, , , , ,

planted a vineyard therein I f a trave l ler came that way he

. ,

entered by the gate that fa ced him and he s a t in the gr ove , ,

and ate and drank until he was s atisfied an d then he de

, , ,

pa rted F o r the house o f Abraham was always Open fo r a l l

.

passers b y an d they c ame daily to eat and drink there I f

-
,
.

On e w a s hungry an d h e c ame t o Ab r aham he

, , w ould giv e
 Abra h a m 27 1

h i m w hat he nee d e d s o that he might eat and d r i nk a n d be

,

satisfied ; and i f on e was naked and he c ame to Abraham

, ,

’
he would c lothe him wi th the garments o f th e poo r man s
choice and give him S ilver and go l d an d make known t o
, ,

him the L o rd w h o had c reate d him and s e t him on earth

, .

After the w ayfarers ha d eaten they w ere in the habit o f

,

thanking Abraham f or his kind ente rtainment o f them ,

w hereto he wou ld r eply : What ye gi ve thanks unto me !

,

Rather return thanks to your host H e who a l one provides ,

”
fo od and drink fo r al l c reatures Then the people would
.

”
ask , Where i s He !
“
and Abraham wou l d answer them ,

and s a y : He is the Ru l er o f heaven and earth

“
He .

w oundeth and He healeth He formeth the embry o in the

,

w omb o f th e mothe r and bringeth it f orth into the world ,

H e causeth the plants and the trees to grow He killeth and ,

He maketh a live He bringeth d own to She o l and bringeth

,

”
up . When the pe ople heard s u c h w o rds they w ould ask , ,

H ow shall w e return thanks to God and mani fest ou r

“

gratitude unt o Him ! And Ab raham w ould instru c t them

i n these wor d s : S ay Blessed be the Lord wh o is blessed !
,

”
Blesse d be H e that gi veth brea d an d foo d unto a l l flesh !
In th i s manner d id Ab r aham tea c h those wh o had enj oyed
’
h is h o sp i tal i ty h ow to praise an d thank Go d
“
Abraham s .

house thus be came not only a lodging pla c e for the hungry -

a n d th i rsty but also a place o f instru cti o n w he r e the knowl

,

edge of God and H is la w were ta ught .

S A TAN A CC U SE S A B RAH AM
In s pite o f the lav i sh hosp i tal ity practi c e d i n th e h ouse o f
Abraham it happened on c e that a poor man o r rather an
, ,
2 72 Th e L eg en ds o f th e Je ws

al l eged p o or man was turne d away empty handed and this

,
-
,

’
was the imme d iate r eason for the last of Abra h am s t e mp ta
ti o ns the sacrifice of h i s favorite s on Isaac It was th e da y
, .

o n whi c h Abraham celeb r ate d the birth o f Isaa c with a gr eat

banquet t o w hich a l l the magnates o f the time were bidden
,

with their wives Satan w h o a l ways appears at a feast in

.
,

whi ch no poor people participate and keeps aloof from ,

those to which poor guests are invited turned up at Abra ,

’
ham s banquet in the gu i se o f a beggar asking a l mS at the
door H e had noticed that Abraham had invited no poor
.

man an d h e knew that his house w a s the right pla c e for

,

him .

Abraham o ccupied with the ente rtainment o f his dis

wa s
t in gu is h e d guests and Sarah was endeavo ring to convi nce
,

their wives the matrons that Isaac was her child in very
, ,

truth , and n ot a spu rious child NO on e c on c erned himse l f .

about the begga r at the doo r , wh o thereupon a cc used Abra

” 8
ham before God .

Now there was a , d ay w hen

the sons o f God came to pre
s ent themselves be f ore the Lord and Satan c ame also among ,

”
them An d the Lord said unto Sa tan
. From whence ,
“

”
comest thou ! and S atan answered the Lord and s a id , ,

From going to and fro on the earth a n d from walking up ,

”
and down in it And th e Lord said unto Satan
. What ,

”
hast thou to s a y co n c erning a l l the chi l dren o f the earth !

and S atan answe r e d the Lor d and said : I have seen a l l ,

the children o f the earth s e r vrn g Thee and remembering

Thee when they requ i re aught from The e And when Thou
, .

gi vest them what they requi re f rom Thee then they forsake ,

Thee an d the y r emember Thee n o more Hast Thou seen

, .
2 74 Th e L ege n ds o f th e J e ws

take f rom thy bo dy co n c ern i ng whi c h th e Lord co mmanded

,

thee ! As the Lor d liveth the G od o f my father Abraha m

, ,

i f the Lor d shoul d s a y unt o my fathe r Take n ow thy son ,

Isaa c an d bring him up a s an o ff erin g be fore M e I woul d ,

”
not r efra i n but I w ould j oy fully a cc ede to i t
, .

T H E J O U RNEY To M O RIAH
An d the Lord th ought to try Abraham and Isaa c in this
” ”
m atte r
. An d H e said to Abraham Take n ow thy son , .

Ab r aham : I have tw o sons and I do not know w hich

,

o f them Th o u co mman d est me to take .

”
God : Thine only s on .

Ab r aham : The on e i s the o nly s on o f his m o ther and ,

”
the o the r i s the only s on of his m o the r .

”
Go d : Wh o m thou lovest .

Abra ham : I l ove th i s one an d I l o ve that one .

God : E ven Isaa c .

”
Abraham : And where shall I go !
Go d : T o the land I w ill show thee an d
“
, o ff e r Isaa c
”
there fo r a burnt o ffering .

Abraham : Am I fit to pe rfor m the s a crific e am I a

“
,

”
priest ! O u ght n ot rathe r the high p ri est S hem t o d o it !
God : When th o u w ilt ar ri ve at that pla c e I w i ll c ouse ,

”m
c rate thee and make thee a p riest .

And Ab r aham said within himsel f H ow sh al l I sepa r ate ,

my son Isaa c f r o m S arah h i s mother ! And he c ame i nto

the tent an d he sa te be fore S arah h i s w if e an d he spake
, ,

these w ord s to her : My s on Isaa c i s gro w n up an d he has ,

n o t yet stu d ied the se rvi c e o f God Now t o morrow I wi l l

.
,
-

g o an d b ri ng him t o S hem an d E be r h i s s on an d there h e ,

 A b ra h a m 2 75

w i ll learn the ways of the Lo rd fo r they w ill tea ch him to ,

kno w the Lor d an d to know h o w t o pr ay unto the Lor d

,

that H e may ans wer him and to know the way o f s erv i ng ,

”
the Lor d his G o d An d S arah sai d Thou hast spoken
.
,

well Go my l o r d and d o unto h im as thou hast said

.
, , ,

but remove him not far fro m me neither let him r emain ,

”
there too long for my sou l i s bound within his sou l
,
And .

Abraha m said unto Sarah My daughter let us pray to the , ,

”
Lord ou r God that He may do good with us An d S a r ah .

took her s on Is a a c and he abode with he r all that night and

, ,

s h e kisse d and embrace d him and s h e laid inj unctions upon ,

him till morning and s h e sa i d to Abraham : O my lor d

, ,

I pray thee take heed of thy s on an d place th i ne eyes over

, ,

him fo r I have no other s on nor d aughter but him O neg

, .

lect him not I f he be hungry give him brea d and i f he be

.
, ,

th i rsty gi ve him water to drink ; do not let him go o n foot

, ,

neither let him s it in the s u n neither let h i m go by h i msel f

,

o n the road neithe r turn him f rom whateve r he may d esi r e

, ,

”
but do unto him as he may s a y to thee .

After spending the whole night i n weeping on a cc ount of

Isaa c s h e got up i n the morn i ng and sele c te d a very fi ne
,

and beautiful garment from those that Abimele c h had gi ven

to her And she d ressed Isaac therewith an d S he put a
.
,

turban up o n his head and S h e fastened a pre ci ous stone in

,

the top o f the turban and she gave them prov i sions for the
,

road And Sarah went out with them and s h e accompanied

.
,

them upon the road to s e e them off and they said to he r , ,

Return to the tent And when Sarah hear d the words o f

.

her son Isaac s h e wept ! bitterly and Abraham wept w i th

, ,

he r an d the i r
, son wep
’
w i th them a g r eat , w eep i ng ,
als o
27 6 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

those o f thei r se rvants who went with them wept greatly .

An d Sarah c aught hold o f Isaa c and she held hi m in her,

arms an d s h e embra c ed him and continued to weep with

, ,

him an d S arah sa id Wh o knoweth if I sha l l eve r s e e th ee

, ,

”
a ga i n a fter this d ay !
Ab r aham d epa r te d w i th Isaa c ami d gr eat we ep i ng while ,

m
S ara h an d the se r vants returne d to the tent H e t ook t w o .

o f h i s y o ung men with him Ishmael and Eliezer and while

, ,

they were walking in the road th e y o ung men spoke these

,

w ords to each other S a i d Ishmael to Eliezer : Now my

.

father Abraham is go ing w i th Isaa c to bring him up for a

burnt o ff ering to the Lord an d when h e returneth he will
, ,

give unto me a l l that he possesses to inherit after him for , ,

”
I am h is firs t born
-
Eliezer answered : S urely Abraham
.
,

did c ast thee o ff with thy mothe r an d swea r that thou ,

shouldst n ot inherit anything o f all h e possesses And to .

whom will he g i ve all that he has all his precious things , ,

but unto h is servant wh o has been f aith f ul in his house to

, ,

me wh o have served him night an d d ay an d have done a l l

, ,

”
that he des i re d me ! The holy sp ir it answere d Neither ,

this on e nor that one w i ll inherit Ab r aha ” ”

m .
2

An d while Abraham and Isaa c were pr oc eed i ng along th e

road Satan c ame and appeared to Abraham in the figu re o f
,

a ve ry aged man humble and of contrite sp i rit and said to

, ,

him : A rt thou silly or foolish that th o u goest to do this

,

thing t o thine only s on ! God gave thee a s on i n thy latter

days in thine o l d age an d wilt th o u go and slaughter him
, , ,

who did not co mmit any vi o lence and w i lt thou c ause the
,

soul o f thine only s on to perish fr i m the earth ! Do st thou

not know an d un d erstand t h at thi s th ing c ann ot be f r o m the
2 78 Th e L eg en ds o f th e Jew s

fie d at the v oic e o f Ab r aham and he w ent a w a y fro m them , ,

and the pla c e be came dry land aga i n a s it w a s at first And .

Abraham w ent w i th Is aa c t owar d the place that Go d ha d

told him .

S atan then appea r e d unt o S a rah in the figu re an ol d of

”
man an d said unto her
, Where did thine husband go
,
!

S he sai d To his work , An d w here di d thy s on Isaac

.

”
go ! he inquired fu rther and s h e ans w ered H e went , ,

w ith h i s father to a pla c e o f study of the Torah S atan .

s ai d : O thou poo r Old w o man thy teeth will be set on ,

edge on a cc ount of thy s on a s th o u knowest n ot that Ab ra ,

ham took h is s on with him on the road to sacrifice him In .

’
this hou r Sarah s loins tremble d and all her limbs shook ,
.

S he no more o f this world Neve rtheless S he arouse d

wa s .

hersel f an d said All that God hath told Abraham may he

, , ,

”
do it unto li f e an d unto pea c e .

O n the thi r d day of his j ou rn e y Ab r a h a m li fted up hi s , .

eyes and s a w the place at a d istance whi c h Go d had to l d ,

h i m H e notice d upon the mountain a pillar of fir e reaching

.

f ro mthe earth to heaven and a heavy cl o u d in which the,

glory o f Go d was seen Abraham sai d t o Isaa c

. My son , ,

dost thou s e e on that m ountain whi c h w e per c eive at a dis

tan c e that w hich I s e e upon i t ! An d Isaa c an swered an d ,

sai d unto h i s father I s e e an d lo a pillar o f fire and a

, , , ,

”
cloud the glo r y of the L o r d is seen up o n the cloud
, and .

Abrah a m kne w then that Isaa c was a c cepted before the

L o r d fo r an o ff ering He aske d Ishmael and Eliezer
. Do ,

”
y o u also s e e that which we s ee upon th e mounta i n ! They
a ns w ere d We see nothing more than like the other moun
,

”
tains an d Ab r aham kne w that the y w e r e n o t a cc epte d b e
,
 A b ra h a m 2 79

”6
fo re
the Lord t o go w i th them Abraham said to them .
,

Abide ye her e with the ass you are like the ass—as little
“

”1
as it sees so little do you s e e
, I and Isaac my s on go .

to yonder mount and worship there be fore the Lo r d an d

, ,

””
this eve we will return to you An unc o nscious p ro phe c y
.
3

had come to Abraham for he prophesie d that he an d Isaa c

,

”
w ould both r eturn f rom the mountain Elieze r an d Ish .

mael rema i ned in that place a s Abraham ha d co mman d e d

, ,

w hile he and Isaac went fu rthe r .

T H E A K EDA H
‘

And wh i le they we r e walking along I s aa c spake unt o h is ,

father Behold the fir e and the woo d but whe r e then is

, , ,

”
the lamb for a burnt Offering before the Lord ! An d
Abraham answered Isaac saying The Lo rd hath c hose n
, ,

thee my s on for a perfect burnt o ff ering instead o f the

, , ,

”
lamb And Isaac said unto his father
. I will do all that ,

the Lo rd hath spoken to thee with j oy and c heer f ulness of

”
heart An d Abraham agai n sai d unto Isaa c hi s son
.
-
Is ,

the r e i n thy hea rt any thought o r c ounsel c on c erning th i s

wh ic h is n ot prope r ! Tell me my s on I pray thee ! O my , ,

’
s on , con ceal it n ot f rom me An d Isaa c answere d As
.
,

the Lor d liveth an d as thy s oul liveth there is nothing in

, ,

my heart t o cause me to deviate eithe r t o the r i ght o r the left

f rom the w o r d that He hath spo ken unto thee Neither limb .

nor mus cl e hath m o ve d or sti rr e d on a cco unt o f this nor is ,

there in my hea rt any thought or ev i l co unsel co n c er nin g

this But I am j oyful and cheer f ul o f hea rt i n th i s matte r
.
,

an d I s a y Blessed is the Lord who ha s th i s day c h o sen me

,

”
to be a burnt o ff e r ing before Him .
2 80 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J e ws

Abraham great l y r ej oi c ed at the w o r ds of Isaa c an d they ,

went on an d came togethe r t o that pla c e that the Lo rd had

”
spoken of An d Ab r aham approa c he d to build the alta r in
.

that pl a c e a n d Ab r aham di d build w hile Is aa c hande d h im

, ,

stones an d m o rta r until they finishe d ere ct i ng the alta r

, .

And Ab r aham took the w ood and arrange d it upon the alta r ,

an d he boun d Isaac to pla c e him upon the woo d whi ch w a s

,

upon the altar to S lay him fo r a burnt o ff e r ing befo r e the

,

Lor d . Isaa c spake hereupon : Father make haste bare

“ 1
, ,

thine arm an d bin d my hands and feet securely for I am a

, ,

young man but thirty seven years o f age and thou art an
,
-
,

o ldman When I behol d the slaughtering knife in thy hand

.
,

I may pe rc han c e begin to tremble at the sight and push

against thee for the desi r e unto l i fe is bo ld Also I may do
, .

myself an inj ury and make mysel f unfit t o be sacrificed I .

adj ure thee the r e fore my father make haste execute the
, , , ,

will o f thy Creator d elay n ot Tu rn up thy garment gird

, .
,

thy loins and a fter that thou hast slaughtered me bu rn me

, ,

unto fine ashes Then gather the ashes an d bring them to

.
,

Sarah my mother an d p l a c e them in a c asket in her cham

, ,

be r At all hours w henever s h e enters her chamber s h e

.
, ,

”
will remembe r her s on Isaac and weep for him .

And again Isaac spoke : As soon as thou hast slaugh

t e re d me an d hast separated thyse l f from me and r et u r n e s t
, ,

to Sarah my mothe r and s h e asketh thee Where is m y , ,

s on Isaac ! what w ilt thou answe r her and what wi l l you t w o ,

”
do in your ol d age ! Abraham answered an d said We , ,

kn ow w e c an survive thee by a f e w d ays only He who was .

o u r C omfort be fo r e thou wast bo r n w ill c omfo rt us n ow ,

”
an d hen c eforth .
2 82 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s
”
up o n th e lad neither do thou any thing unto him !
, Abra
ham ma d e answer and he said : Go d d id co mman d me to
,

slaughter Isaa c an d th o u dost command me not to S laughter

,

him ! The w ord s o f the Tea cher and the words of the d is
cip l e —unt o wh o se
wo r ds d o th on e hea r ken Then ! 2“

Abraham heard it said : By Mysel f have I s w orn saith ,

th eLord because th o u hast d one this thing an d hast not

, ,

withheld thy s on thine only s on that in blessing I w i ll bless

, ,

thee and in multip l ying I will multiply thy seed as the s tars
,

o f the heaven and a s the sand which is upon the s e a shore ;

,
-

and thy seed shall p o ssess the gate of his enemies an d in ,

th yseed shall all the nations o f the ea rth be blesse d be caus e ,

”
thou hast obeyed My voi c e .

At once Abraham left fro m Isaa c wh o r etu r ne d t o l if e

o ff , ,

revived by the heavenly vo ic e a dmonishing Abraham n o t to

slaughter his s on Abraham lo o sed his bo nds and Isaa c
.
,

stood upon h i s f eet an d sp oke th e benedi ction

,
B lesse d ,
“

”
a rt Thou O Lord wh o qu icke n e st the d ea d
, , .

Then spake Abr a ham t o God S hall I g o hen c e w i th o ut

,

having o ff ere d up a sa cr i fic e W hereunt o God r eplie d an d ,

s aid Li ft up thine eyes an d behold the sa cr i fic e beh i n d

,

thee . An d Ab r aham li fte d up h i s eyes an d behol d , , ,

behin d h i m a ram c aught in the thi cket w hi c h God ha d ,

cr eate d i n the twilight o f S abbath eve in the w eek of cre

ation a nd p r epa r e d s i n c e then a s a bu rnt o ff er i ng in stea d o f
,

Isaac And th e r a m ha d been r unnin g towa r d Abraham

'

.
,

when S atan ca u ght hol d of h i m an d enta ngle d h i s h o rns in

the th ic ket that he might n o t a d van c e t o Abraham And
, .

Abraham seeing this fet che d him f r o m the thi c ket and
, , ,

b rought h i m up o n the alta r as an o ff e ri ng in the pla c e o f his

 A bra h a m 2 83

s on Isaa c An d Abraham sprinkle d the bloo d o f the ram

.

upon the alta r and he exclaimed and s aid This is instead

, , ,

o f my s on and may this be c onsidered as the bloo d o f my

,

son before the Lord An d whatsoever Abraham did by

.

the a l tar he exclaimed and said

, , This is instead o f my,
“

s on and may it be co nsidered be fo re the Lord i n place o f

,

my s on . An d God accepted the sacrifi c e o f the r am an d ,

it was ac counte d a s though it had been Isaa c .

As the creation of this ram had been extraordina r y s o ,

also was the use to which a l l pa rts of his car c ass were put .

Not on e thing went to waste The ashes o f the parts bu r nt

.

upon the alta r forme d the foundation of the inner alta r ,

whereon the expiatory sa c rifice was brought once a year ,

on the Day o f Atonement the day on which the o ff ering o f

,

Isaac took pla c e Of the sinews of the ram David made ten
.
,

strings fo r h i s harp upon which he playe d The skin served .

Elij ah fo r his gi rdle a n d o f his tw o h o rns the on e w a s

, ,

blown at the en d o f the revelation on Mount Sinai and the ,

other w i ll be use d t o procla i m the en d o f the Exile when the ,

great horn shall be blown an d they shall come wh i ch were

,

ready to pe r ish in the land of Assyr i a and they that w ere ,

out c asts i n the land of Egypt and they shall w or ship th e

,

” ”
Lord i n the h o ly m o unta i n at Jerusalem .
2

When God co mmande d the f ather to d es i s t fro m sa cri

ficin g Isaa c Abraham sa i d :
, O ne man tempts an other ,

be c ause he knoweth n o t what i s in the heart o f his neigh

bor B ut Th o u su r ely d i d s t kn o w that I w a s rea d y t o sa c r i
.

”
fice my s on !
God : It w a s man ifest t o M e an d I fo r eknew i t that , ,

”
thou w oul d st w i thhold n ot even thy soul fro m Me .
2 84 Th e L ege n ds o f th e J e ws
”
Abraham : An d why then didst Th o u affl i c t me thus !
, ,

Go d : I t w a s My w i sh that th e wo r l d shoul d be co me
“

a c quainted with thee an d should know that it i s not without

,

good reason that I have chosen thee f rom all the nations .

Now it hath been w itnesse d unt o men that th o u fea rest

247
God
Hereupon God Opened the heaven s an d Ab r aham heard ,

”
the w ords By Mysel f I swea r !
,

Abraham : Thou s w e a r e s t an d als o I swea r I will not , ,

”
leave this altar until I have sai d what I have to say .

Go d : S peak whatsoever thou hast to S peak !

Abraham : D i dst Thou not promise me Thou wouldst
“

let one come fo rt h ou t o f min e own b o wel s whos e seed ,

”
should fi l l the whole world !
”
God : Yes .

”
Abraham : Wh o m did s t Th o u mea n !

God : Isaa c “
.

Abraham : D id st Thou n o t pro mise me to m a ke my seed

as nume rous as the sand of the s e a -sh or e !
”
Go d : Y e s “
.

”
Abraham : Th r ough w h ic h on e o f my chi l d ren !
”
Go d : Through Isaa c
“
.

Abraham : I might have repr o ached Thee an d sa id O , ,

Lo r d o f the worl d yester d ay Thou di d st tell me In Isaa c

, ,

shall Thy see d be calle d and n ow Th o u sayest Take thy , ,

s on th in e only s on even Isaa c an d Off er him for a burn t

, , ,

o ff ering . But I re f ra i ne d mysel f an d I S ai d nothing,

. Thu s
mayest Thou w hen the c hildren o f Isaa c co mmit trespasses
,

and be cause o f them fall upon ev i l times be mind ful o f th e ,

o ff ering of their fathe r Isaa c and

,
fo rgi ve thei r S ins and
”
d eliver them f r o m their su ff er i ng .
286 Th e L ege n ds o
f th e J ews

ca rr ie d t o P a r adise by angels a n d there he s o jo urne d f o r

,

t hree yea r s Thus Abraham r etur ned h o me al one an d

.
,

w hen S a r ah beheld him S he exclaimed Satan S poke t r uth

, ,

”
when he sa i d that Isaa c wa s sa c rifice d an d so gri eve d wa s ,

he r s oul that it fl e d f r o m he r bo d y .

B U RIAL O F S ARA H
T HE D EATH A ND
While Ab r aham w a s engage d in the sacrifice S atan w ent ,

to Sarah and appeared to her i n the figure o f an ol d man

, ,

very humble an d meek an d sai d to he r : , Dost thou n o t

kno w all that Abraham h a s d one unt o t hine only s on this
d ay ! H e too k Isaa c an d built an alta r s laughtere d him
, , ,

a n d b ro u ght him up a s a sacrifice Isaa c cr ied an d wept .

be fo r e his f ather but he looke d not at him neither di d he

, ,

’
have compass i o n upon h i m Afte r sa ying th e s e words t o
.

S a r ah S atan w ent away f ro m her an d s h e thought h i m

, ,

t o be an ol d man f rom a mongst the sons o f men w h o ha d

been with her s on S arah l if te d up her v o ice an d c rie d b i t
.
,

t e r ly saying :
, O my So n Isaa c my s on O that I had th i s
, , ,

day died instea d of thee ! It grieves me for thee ! A fter that

I have r ea r ed the e an d have br ought thee up my j oy is turne d ,

into mou r ning over thee In my longing f or a c hil d I cr ied

.
,

and praye d till I bo r e thee at ninety Now hast th o u se rved

, .

this day for the kni fe an d the fir e B ut I co nsol e mysel f it .

,

being the w ord of God an d th ou d i d st pe r form the c om

,

man d of thy God f or wh o c an transgress the w ord of ou r

,

God in w hose hands is the soul o f eve r y l i ving c reature !

,

Thou a rt j ust O Lo rd o u r God for all Th y w o rks are g ood

, ,

and righteous fo r I also rej o i c e with the w o r d whi ch Th o u

,

di d st c o mmand and while mine eye w eepeth bitte r ly my

, ,
 A br a h a m 2 87

hea rt rej oiceth And Sarah laid he r head upon the bosom
m
.

o f one o f her handmaids and she beca e as sti ll as a stone

,
.

She r o se up a fterward and went about m a king inquiries

concerning he r s on ti l l s h e c ame to Hebron and no on e
, ,

cou l d tell he r what had happened to her son Her servants .

went to seek him in the house of Shem and Ebe r and they ,

could not find him and they sought throughout the l and and
, ,

he was not there And beho l d Satan came to S arah in the

.
, ,

S hape o f an ol d man and said unto her I spoke fa l se l y

, ,

u n to t h e e
.
,
for Abraham did not ki ll hi s s on and he is not ,

dead and when s h e hear d the word her j oy was s o ex c eed

, ,

in gl y vio l ent that her soul went ou t th r ough j oy .

When Abraham with Isaa c returne d to Beer sheba they -

,

sought for Sarah and co uld not fin d her and when they ,

made inqui ri es c on c erning her they were tol d that she had ,

gone as far as Hebron to seek them Abraham and Isaac .

went to her to Hebron and when they found that S he w a s

,

dead th ey c ried bitterly o ver her an d I saa c s ai d : O my

, ,

mother my mother h ow hast thou le ft me an d whi ther hast

, , ,

thou gone ! 0 w hithe r hast thou gone and h ow hast thou ,

”
l eft me ! An d Abraham and all h i s se rvants w ept and
”
mou r ned o ver he r a great an d heavy m ou rning even that ,

Ab r aham did not pray but spent h is time in mou r ning an d

,

”
w eeping o ver S a rah And i ndeed he ha d great reason t o
.
, ,

m ou rn h is loss for even in he r ol d age S arah had retained

,

”
the beauty o f her youth and the innoc en c e o f her c hi l dh ood .
3

The d eath of S arah w a s a l o ss n ot o n l y for Abraham and

his family but fo r the whol e co untry So long as s h e w a s
, .

alive all went well i n the land A fte r her death confusion
, .

ensue d The w eep i ng lamenting an d wailing over he r

.
, ,
2 88 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

goin g hence w a s universa l and Abraham instead o f r e ce iv , ,

ing consolation had to o ff er cons o lation to others He spoke

, .

to the mourning people and sai d : My children ta ke not , ,

the going hen c e o f Sarah t oo much to heart There is on e .

event unto a l l t o the p i ous and the impi o us alike I pray

, .

you n ow give me a bu rying pla c e with yo u not as a gi ft but

,
-
, ,

””
for money .
9

’
In these l ast fe w w o rd s Abraham s unassuming m o desty
was expressed God had promised him the whole land yet
.
,

when he came to bu r y his dead he had to pay for the grave , ,

and it did not ente r his heart to c ast aspersions upon the
ways of God In all humi l ity he spake to the p eople of
.

Hebron saying , I am a stranger an d a So j ou r ne r with

,
“

”
yo u . There fore spake God to him and said Thou didst , ,

bear thysel f modestly As thou livest I will appoint thee .

,

” °
l ord and prince ove r them .
26

To the people themselves he appeared an angel and they ,

answered his words saying : Thou art a prin c e o f Go d ,

“

among us In the choice of o u r s epul chres bury thy dead

.
,

among the ri c h i f thou wilt or a m ong the poo r i f thou ,

” ”1
wi l t .

Abraham fi rst o f all gave thanks t o God fo r the friendly

feeling S hown to him by the child r en o f Heth and then he ,

”
continued h is negotiations for the Cave o f Machpelah He .

had long known the pe c uliar value o f th i s spot Adam had .

chosen it as a burial pla c e for himself He had feared his

-
.

body might be used for idolatrous purposes after his death ;

he there fore d esignated the Cave o f Machpelah a s the pla c e
o f his burial an d in the depths his co rpse w a s l aid s o that
, ,

none might fin d it When he i nter r e d Eve there he

.
,
29 0 Th e L e g en ds o f th e J ew s

Abraham the field w i thout co mpensation but when Abraham ,

insisted upon paying for it Ephron said : My lord , ,

hearken unto me A pie c e o f lan d w o rth four hundred

.

”
S hekels o f silver what is that betw i xt me an d thee show
,
!

ing only too well that the mo hey w a s o f the greatest c ou se

q u e n ce to him Abraha m understood his words and when
.
,

he came to pay fo r the field he we i ghed ou t the s u m agreed ,

”
upon between them in the best o f c urrent c oin A deed .
,

signed by four witnesses was drawn up and the fie l d o f , ,

Ephron which was in Machpelah the fie l d and the cave

, , ,

which was there i n w ere made su r e unto Ab r aham and his

,

descendants for all times .

The burial o f S arah then to o k pla c e ami d gr eat ma gn ifi ,

cence and th e sympathy o f all S hem and his s on Eber . ,

Abimelech k i ng o f the Philistines Ane r E shcol an d Mamre , , , ,

as well as all the great o f the land followed her bie r A ,

.

’
seven d ays mourning was kept for her and all the in h a b i ,

”
tants o f the lan d c ame t o condole with Abraham and Isaa c .

When Abraham entere d the c ave to pla c e the bo d y o f

Sarah within Ad a m an d Eve r e fu se d t o remain there b e
, ,

”
cause they said as i t i s we a r e ashame d in the p r esence
, , ,

o f God on a cc ount of th e sin w e co mmitte d an d now we ,

”
sha l l be even more ashame d on a cc ount o f you r goo d deeds .

Abraham soothed Adam H e p ro mised to pray t o God for.

him that the nee d for shame be remove d f rom him A d am

, .

resumed his pla c e an d Abraham entombed S a r ah an d at

, ,

”
the same time he c a rri e d E ve r e s i sti ng ba c k to he r place , ,
.

O ne year a fter the d eath of S arah Ab i mele ch k i ng of the ,

P hilist i nes d ie d too at the age of on e hun d red an d n i nety

, ,

th r ee years H is s u cc ess o r up o n th e th ro ne w a s his t w elv e

.
 A b ra h a m 29 1

year ol d s on B e n me l e k w h o took th e name o f h is f ather

,

a fte r his a c cession Abraham did not fai l t o pay a vis i t of

.

condolen c e at the c ou rt of Abimelech .

Lot also died ab o ut this time at t h e age o f on e hun d re d

,

and forty tw o H is sons M o ab and Ammon both married

-
.
, ,

Canaanit i sh wives Moab begot a s on and Ammon had

.
,

S ix sons an d the des c endants o f both w e r e nume rous

,

ex c eedingly .

Abraham su ff ere d a seve r e l o ss at th e same t i me i n the

death o f h is brother Nahor whose days ended at Haran
, ,

when he ha d rea c he d the age of on e hun d re d and seventy

” 0
t w o years .

’
E LIEZ ER S M I S SI O N
The death o f S a rah dealt Abraham a blow f rom which
he did not recover S o long as s h e was alive he felt him
.
,

sel f young and vigorous but after s h e had passe d away ol d

, ,

age sudden l y overtook him 2

It was he himsel f w h o made
.

the plea that age be betraye d by suitable signs and tokens .

Before the t i me o f Abrah am an ol d man was not distin

g u is h a b l e externally f rom a young man an d as Is a a c was ,

the image of his fathe r i t happened frequently that father

,

an d s on were mistaken fo r each other and a request meant ,

for th e o ne was pre ferred t o the other Abraham prayed .

therefo r e that o l d age might have marks to distinguish it

from y o uth and God gra nte d his petition and since the time
, ,

o f Abraham the appea rance o f men changes in ol d age .

This is on e o f the seven great wonders that have o c curre d

m
i n th e course o f h is tory
’

The blessing o f God did not forsake Abraham in o l d age ,

29 2 Th e L e g e nds f
o th e J ew s

either That it might n o t be said it had been grante d to him

.

only for the sake o f S a r ah Go d prospered him after he r

,

death too Hagar bore hi m a daughter and Ishmael r e

,
.
,

p e n t e d o f hi s evi l ways and subordinated himse l f to Isaac .

And as Abraham enj oyed undisturbe d happiness in his

family s o also outside in the world The kings o f the e a st
, , .

and the west eagerly besieged the door o f his house in

o rder to d er i ve benefit f rom his wisdom From his neck a .

pre ci ous stone w a s suspended which possessed the power

,

o f healing the sick who looked upon it O n the death of .

Abraham God attached it to the wheel of the s u n The

, .

greatest blessing enj oyed by him and by none beside except ,

h is s on Isaa c and Jacob the s on o f Isaa c w a s that the evil ,

inclination had no power over him s o that i n th is li f e he ,

m
had a foretaste o f the future w o r l d
But all these Divine blessings showered upon Abraham
w ere n ot undes erve d H e was clean o f hand and pure o f
.
,

“
heart on e that did not l ift up his soul unto vanity
, .

H e fulfi l led all the comman d s that were revealed later ,

even the Rabbinical inj unctions as for i nstance the one , , ,

’
relating to the limits of a Sabbath day s j ourney wherefor ,

his reward was that God disc l osed to him the n e w tea ch ings
which H e expounded dai l y in the heavenly academy .

But on e thing lacked to c omp l ete the happiness of Abra

ham the marriage o i Isaac H e there fore called his o l d
,
.

serv ant E l iezer unto himse l f Elieze r resembled his master

.

not only externally in his appearan c e but a l so S piritua ll y

, ,
.

Like Abraham he possessed fu l l power over the evil in cl ina

”
tion and l ike the master the servant was an adept in the
2
,

la w
. Abraham spake the fol l owing words to E l iezer : I
29 4 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J e ws

from when c e I c a me f o r i f thou broughtest him thither

,

again it were as though th o u tookest him to hel l G od who

, .

sets the heavens in motion He wi l l s e t th i s matter right

, ,

” ’
too and He that took me f rom my father s house and that
, ,

spake unto me and that swore unto me i n Haran and at the

, ,

co venant o f the pieces tha t H e wou l d give this land unto

,

my seed He sha l l send H is ex c ellent angel befo re thee and

, ,

’
thou shalt take a wi fe for my s on f r o m thence E l iezer .

then sw o re to his master concerning the matter and Abra ,

”
ham made him take the oath by the sign o f the covenant .

T HE WOO ING O F R E B EKAH

”
Attended by ten men mounted upon ten c amels la d en
,

w ith j ewels and trinkets Eliezer betook himsel f to Haran

,

under the c onvoy of tw o angels the on e appo i nted t o keep ,

286
guard over Eliezer the other over Rebekah
, .

The j ourney t o Haran to o k but a fe w hours at evening ,

o f the same day he reached there be c ause the earth hastened ,

”
to meet him i n a w on d er f ul w a y He made a halt at the .

w ell o f water and he p rayed to God to permit him to dis

,

t in gu is h the wife appointed for Isaac among the d amsels

that came to draw water by this token that s h e a l one and

, , ,

”
not the others would give him dr ink
, Stri c tly speaking .
8
,

this w i sh o f his was unseemly fo r suppose a bondwoman ,

”
had given him water to d rink ! But God granted his r e
q uest All the damsels sai d they cou l d n ot give him o f thei r
.

w ater because the y ha d to take it home

, Then appeared .

R ebekah co ming to the well contra ry to her w ont for she

, ,

w a s the d aughter o f a k i ng Bethuel her f ather being king

,

of Haran When Eliezer ad d resse d his request for water

.
 A b ra h a m 29 5

to drink to this young i nnocent c hi l d not only w a s s h e ready ,

to do his bidding but s h e rebuked th e o ther maidens on

‘

”
account of their disc o urtesy to a stranger Eliezer noti c ed .
,

t oo h ow the water rose up to her o f its o w n a c c o rd from the

,

bo ttom of the well s o that s h e needed not to exert hersel f

,

to draw it Having scrutinized her careful l y he felt certa in

.
,

that s h e w a s the wi fe c hos en for Isaa c H e gave her a nose .

ring wherein was s e t a precious stone hal f a S hekel in

, ,

weight foreshadowing the hal f S hekel w hi c h her desc end

,
-

ants would once bring to the san c tua r y year by year He .

gave her a l so tw o bra c elets for he r han d s o f ten S hekels ,

weight in gold in token o f the tw o tables o f stone an d the

,

Ten Commandments up o n them .

When Rebekah bea r ing the j ewels c ame t o her mothe r

, ,

and to her brother Laban this on e hastened to E l iezer in

,

order to slay him and take possession o f his goods Laban .

soon learnt that he would not be abl e to do much ha rm to a

giant like Eliezer He met him at the moment when Eliezer
.

”
seize d t w o camels and bore them a c ross the st r eam Be .

’
sides o n a c count of El i ezer s close resemblan c e to Abraham
, ,

Laban thought h e s a w Abraham before him and he said ,

C ome in th o u blessed o f the L o rd ! It is not becoming

,

that th o u sh o ul d st stan d w i th o ut I have c leanse d my house

,

””
o f id o ls
3
.

But w hen E lie zer arrived at the h ouse of Bethuel they ,

tried to kill him with c unning They set poisoned food b e .

fore him Lu c kily he refused to eat before he had dis

.
,

charged himsel f o f his erran d While he wa s te ll ing his .

story it was ordained by God that the dish intended for him
,

should co me to stand in f r o nt o f Bethuel wh o ate o f it an d

,

“
died .
29 6 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

Elieze r showed the d o cument he ha d in whi c h Ab r aham

deeded all his possess i ons to Isaac and he made it known to ,

the kindred o f Abraham h ow deeply attached to them his,

“
maste r w a s in spite of the long years o f separation
, Yet .

he l et them know at the same time that Ab r aham w a s not

dependent wholly upon them He m i ght seek a wife fo r .

his s on among the daughters o f Ishmael or L o t At first the .

kindred o f Ab r aha m c onsente d t o let R ebekah go with

Eliezer but as Bethuel ha d d ied in the meantime they did
, ,

not want to give Rebekah in marriage w ithout consulting

her B esides they deemed it proper that s h e should remain
.
,

at home at l e ast during the w eek of mourning for he r

”
father . But E l iezer seeing the angel wait for him would
, ,

brook no delay and h e said The man who came with me

, ,

”
and prospered my way waits for me without and as Re
, ,

bekah professed hersel f rea d y to go at once with E l iezer ,

her mother and brother granted her wish and dismissed her
with their blessings But their blessings did not come f rom
.

the bottom o f the ir hearts Indee d as a rule the blessing .

, ,

o f the impiou s is a c urse whe r e for e R ebekah r emaine d

,

”
barren for years .
98

’
Elieze r s return t o Canaan w a s as w o nde rf ul as his goi n g
’
to Haran had been A seventeen days j ourney he ae com
.

p lis h e d in three hou rs He le ft Haran at noon and he

.
,

”
’ ’
arr i ved at Hebron at three o c lock in the a fte rnoon the ,

time fo r the Minhah Prayer which had been introdu c ed by ,

Isaac H e w a s in the posture o f praying when R ebekah

.

first laid eyes upon him wherefore she asked Eliezer what
,

man this was She s a w he was not an o rdinary individual

. .

S he noticed the unusua l beauty o f Isaa c and also that an ,

29 8 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e J ew s

T HE L AST Y EARS O F AB RAHAM

Rebekah first s a w Isaa c as he was c oming from the way
o f Beer lahai roi
-
the d we l ling place o f Hagar whither he
-
,
-
,

had gone after the death o f his mother for the purpos e o f ,

reuniting h is fathe r w ith Haga r or a s s h e i s also calle d “

, , ,

”
’
K e t u ra h f
Hagar bore h i m S ix sons wh o however d i d s ca nt h on or , , ,

to the i r fathe r for they all w ere i dolaters

,
Abraham there .
31 0
,

fore during his ow n lifetime sent them away from the pres
, ,

’
ence o f Isaac that they might n ot be singed by Isaa c s flame
, ,

and gave them the instru ction to j ourney eastward as far as

m
possible There he built a city for them surrounde d by
.
,

an iron wall s o high that the s u n could not shine into the
,

city But Abraham provided them with huge gems and

.

pearls their lustre more brilliant than the light of the s u n

, ,

which wi l l be used in the Messiani c time when the m o on

sha l l be confoun d ed an d the s u n ashamed Also Abra .
“ 112

ham taught them the black art wherewith they held sway ,

over d emons and spir i ts It is f rom this city i n the east .

that La ban Balaam and B a l a a m father B eor derived thei r

, ,
’
s
3 13
sorceries .

Ephe r on e of the gran d s o ns of Ab raham and Ketu r ah

, ,

invaded L yb ia w i th an armed force an d took possessio n o f ,

the countr y F r om this Epher the whole land o f Africa h a s

.

it s name Aram is als o a country made habitable by a

.
31 4

kinsman o f Ab r aham In h is ol d age Terah c ontracted a

.

n e w marriage w i th P e lil a h and fr o m this union sprang a ,

son Zoba w h o w a s the f athe r I n turn o f three sons The

, .

Oldest o f these Aram was ex c eedingly rich and powe rful

, , ,

and the old home in Haran suffi c ed not for him an d his k i ns
 A br a h a m 29 9

men the sons o f Nah or the b roth e r of Ab r ah a m A r am

, ,
.

an d his brethren an d all that belonged t o h im the r e f ore

depa rted f ro m H a ran and they settled in a vale an d they
, ,

bui l t themselves a city there which they c alled Aram Zoba -

,

to perpetuate the name o f the fathe r and h is firs t born -

s on . Anothe r Aram Aram n a h a ra im on the Euphrates

,
-
, ,

was built by A ram s on o f Kemuel a nephew o f Abraham ,

.

Its real name was Petor after the s on o f Aram but it is , ,

better known as Aram n a h a ra im The descendants o f -

.

Kesed anothe r nephew o f Abraham a s on of his brother

, ,

Nahor established themselves opposite to S hinar wher e they

, ,

founde d the city of Kesed the c ity w hen c e the Chal d ees a r e
,

c al l ed K a s dim .

Though Abraham kn e w full well that Isaa c deserved h i s

paternal b l essing beyond all his sons yet he withheld it from ,

h iin that n o hostile feelings be arouse d among his d escend

,

ants He spake and said : I am but flesh and blood here

.
, ,

t o day to mor row i n the grave What I w a s able to d o for

-
,
-
.

my chi l dren I have done Hen c e forth let come w hat Go d

.

”
desires to do in His world and it happened that imme di ,

ately after th e de a th o f Abraham God Himse l f appeared

'

unto Isaac and gave him His bles sing

, .

A H ERALD O F D EATH
When the day o f the death o f Abraham drew near th e ,

L ord said t o Mi chael

“
Arise and go to Abraham and say
,
‘

to him Th o u shalt depa r t from life ! so that he might s e t

,

h is hous e i n o rder be fore he died An d Mi c hael w ent an d .

c ame to Ab r aham and found him s i tting be fo re his oxen for

ploughing Abraham seeing Mi c hael but n o t kn o w i ng wh o
.
, ,
300 Th e L eg en ds f
o th e J e ws

he w a s salute d h i m an d sa id t o him
, S i t down a l i ttl e ,

wh i le and I w ill o rd e r a beast to be brought an d we wi l l

, ,

go to my house that thou mayest r est w ith me fo r i t i s

, ,

toward evening an d a rise in the morning an d go w hi ther

,

soever thou wilt An d Abraham c a l le d on e o f his servan t s ,

an d said to h i m GO and bring me a beast th a t the strange r ,

”
may S it upon it fo r h e i s wearied w i th h is journey
, B ut .

M i c hael sai d I abstain f rom ever sitting upon a n y fou r

,

”
f Oote d beast let u s walk therefo r e till w e rea c h the h o use
, ,
.

O n the i r w a y to the house they passe d a huge tree and ,

Ab r aham hea rd a v o ice fro m its b r anches s i ngi ng H o ly , ,

art thou because thou hast kept the pu rpose for whi ch thou
,

”
wast sent Abraham hi d the myste ry i n his heart thinkin g
.
,

that the strange r did n ot hea r it A rri ve d at his hous e he .

,

o rdere d the se r vants t o prepare a meal and while they were ,

busy w i th thei r w o rk he called his s on Isaac and sai d to

, ,

him Arise an d put w ate r in the vessel that we may wash

, ,

”
the feet o f the strange r An d he brought it a s he was com
.

ma n de d and A b ra h a m s a id I per c e i ve that i n th i s basin

'

, ,

I shall never again w ash the feet o f any man c oming to us

”
as a guest Hearin g this Isaac bega n t o weep an d Ab ra
.
, ,

ham seeing h is s on w eep also wept an d M i chael seeing

, , , ,

them w eep wept also and the tea r s of M ichael fell int o th e
, ,

w ater and be c ame pre c iou s stones

, .

B efore sitting down to the ta ble Mi c hael a ro s e w ent o ut , ,

for a moment as if t o ease nature an d a s c en d ed to heaven

, ,

in th e twinkling o f an eye and stood be f ore the L o r d and , ,

sa id t o H im : Lord and Master let Thy power kn o w that ,

I am unable to remind that righteou s man o f his dea th f o r ,

I have n o t seen upon the earth a man like him compas ,

3 02 Th e L egen ds f
o th e J ew s

befallen us ! ”
Michael ans w e r e d an d sa id to he r Nay , , ,

my S iste r S arah it i s n o t a s th o u sayest but thy s on I saa c

, , ,

methinks behel d a dr eam an d c ame to u s weeping and we

, , , ,

”
seein g h i m w e r e m o ve d in our hearts an d wept
, S arah .
,

hea r ing M ichael speak kne w st r aightway that i t w a s an

,

angel o f the L o rd on e o f the three an gel s w h o m they ha d

,

enterta i ne d in their hous e on c e be fore and there f ore s h e ,

ma d e a sign t o Abraham to c ome ou t toward the door to in ,

fo rm him of w hat s h e kne w Abraham sai d Th o u hast .

:

per c eive d w ell for I too when I w ashed h is f eet knew in

, , , ,

my hea r t that they were the feet that I ha d w ashe d at the

”
o a k o f M am r e and that w ent t o s ave L ot
, Abrah a m r e . ,

tu r ning t o h is chamber ma d e Isaac relate h i s d ream wh ich

, ,

Michael inte r p r eted to them saying : Thy s on Isaa c has ,

spoken truth for thou shalt g o and be t a ken up into the

,

heavens but thy b od y S hall remain on ea rth until seven

, ,

thousan d ages a r e f ulfille d fo r then all flesh sha l l arise , .

Now there fore Ab r aham s e t thy house i n o r d er for thou

, , , ,

”
hast hear d w hat is d e cr ee d c on c erning thee Abraham .

answere d N ow I kn o w th o u a r t an angel of the Lo r d an d

, ,

wast sent t o take my s o ul but I w i ll not go w ith th ee but

, ,

”
do thou w hatever thou a r t comma n d e d Mi cha el retu rn ed .

’
to heaven an d tol d G o d o f Abraham s re fusal to obey his
summons and he was again commande d to go d own and
,

admon i sh Abraham not to rebel against God who had b e ,

stowe d many blessings up o n him and he reminded him ,

that n o o ne who has come f r o m Adam and E ve can es c ap e

death an d that God in His gr eat kin d ness t o war d him d id
,

not perm i t the sickle of d eath to meet him but sent His chie f ,

”
captain M ichael t o him
, Whe r e fo re then he ende d
, .
, , ,
 Ab r a h a m 303

hast thou said to the c hie f c aptain I will n o t go with ,

”
thee ! Whe n M i chael d elivered these exhortations to
Abraham he s a w that i t w a s f utile t o Opp o se the w i ll o f
,

Go d and h e consented to die but w ishe d to have on e d esire

, ,

o f his fu l fi l led while still al i ve He sai d to M ichael : I .

b eseech thee l o r d i f I must depart from my b o dy I desire

, , ,

to be taken up i n my bo d y that I ma y s e e the creatures that

,

”
the Lord has create d in heaven and on earth M i c hael .

went up int o heaven an d spake be fo re the L o r d co n c e r ning

,

Abraham an d the Lor d answered Mi c hael

, Go an d take ,

up Abraha m in the b od y an d S how him all things and w hat ,

”
ever he shall say to thee do to him a s to My f r i end
,
.

A B RA HAM VIEWS E ARTH AND H EAV EN

The archangel Michael w ent d own and took Abraham ,

upon a c hariot o f the cherubim and lifted h i m up into the ,

a ir o f heaven an d le d him upon the clou d togethe r w i th

, ,

sixty angels an d Abraha m ascended upon the c ha r iot ove r

,

a l l the earth and s a w all things that a r e bel o w o n the earth

, ,

b o th good and bad L ooking d own up o n the ea rth h e s a w

.
,

a man committing adultery with a wedded wo man an d ,

turning t o M i chael he said S en d fire f rom heaven to c on

,

sume them . S traightway the r e c ame down fi re an d con

sume d them f or God had comman d ed M ichael to do what
,

soeve r Abraham s hould ask him to do He looked again .

,

and he s a w thieves digg i ng through a house and Abraham ,

said,
“
Let w il d beasts come o ut o f the d esert and tear ,

th em in pieces and immediately w ild beasts came out o f

,

the d esert and devoure d them Again he looke d d o wn an d .

,

h e s a w people prepar i ng to commit mu r de r and he said , ,

 0
3 4 Th e L eg en ds f
o th e J ew s

Let the earth Open and swallow them and as he s po ke , , ,

th e earth swa l lowed them alive Then God S poke to .

Michael : Turn away Abraham t o his ow n house and let

h im not go r ound the whole earth be cause he has no com ,

pass i on o n sinners but I have compassion on S inners that

, ,

they may tu r n an d live an d repent of their sins and be ,

’
s a v e df

S o Michael turne d the cha riot an d bro ught Abraham to ,

the pla c e o f j u d gment o f all souls H ere he s a w t w o gates

.
,

the one broad and the o ther narro w the narr o w gate , th t t of
the j ust whi ch leads to life they that enter through it go
, ,

I nto Pa radise The broad gate i s that o f sinners which l eads

.
,

to destruction an d eternal punishment Then Abraham w ept . ,

s aying Wo e is me w hat S ha l l I do ! for I am a man big

,
“

o f body an d how shall I be able t o ente r by the narrow

,

gate ! M ichael answere d and said to Abraham , Fear ,

not nor g ri eve fo r thou shalt enter by it unhindered and a l l

, , ,

”
they who are like thee Abraham perceiving that a soul
.
,

w a s adj udged to be set in the midst asked M ichael the

reason for it and Michael answered
, B eca use the j ud ge ,

found its sins and its righteousnes s equal he neither com ,

mitte d i t to j u dgment nor to be saved Abraham said to .

”

Michael Let u s pray for this soul and s e e whether Go d

, ,

’
w i l l hear u s and when they rose up from thei r prayer
, ,

M i chael in formed Ab r aham that the soul w a s s aved by the

prayer and w a s taken by an angel and c arried up to Para
,

dise Abraham said to M ichael

. Le t u s yet call upon the
,

Lor d and supplicate H i s compassion an d entreat H i s mer cy

for the s ouls o f the sinne r s whom I formerly in my anger , ,

c ursed an d destroyed wh o m th e earth devoure d and the

, ,
306 Th e L eg e n ds f
o th e Jew s

not Abraham that this beauty is mine o r that I come thu s

, , ,

to every man Nay but i f any one is righteous like thee I

.
, ,

thus take a crown an d come to him but if he is a sinne r I , ,

come in great c o rruption and ou t o f thei r sins I make a ,

crown fo r my head an d I shake them with great fear so

, ,

“
that they are dismayed Abraham said to him And a rt
.
,

thou indeed he that is called Death !

, , H e answered and ,

” “
said , I am the bitter name but Abraham answered I , ,

”
will n ot go with thee And Abraham said to Death Show
.
,

’
us thy corruption And Death r evealed his c o rruption
.
7
,

showing tw o heads the on e had the face of a se rpent the

, ,

othe r head was l ike a sword All the servants o f Abraha m .

,

looking at the fier c e mien o f Death died but Abraham , ,

prayed to the Lord and he raised them up As the looks of

, .

’
Death were not ab l e to cause Abraham s soul to depart from
him God removed the soul o f Abraham as in a dream and
, ,

the archange l Michael took it up into heaven After .

great praise and g l o ry ha d been given to the Lord by the

’
angels who brought Abraham s sou l and after Abraham ,

bowed down to worship then came the voice of God saying , ,

thus : Take My f riend Abraham into Paradise where are ,

the taberna cles of My ri ghteous ones and the abodes o f M y

saints Isaa c an d Jac o b in his bosom where there is no ,

trouble n or grie f n or sighin g but pea c e and rej oi cing and

, , ,

”
l ife unending .
3"

’
Abraham s a ct i vity d id not c ease with h isd eath and as he
,

interceded in this w o rld for th e sinners , s o w i l l he intercede

for them in the w orld t o c ome O n the day o f j udgment he .

wi l l sit at the gate o f hell and he wi l l not su ff er those w h o

,

kep t the l a w o f cir c um c ision to enter therein .

 A b ra h a m 307

T H E P ATR O N O F H E B R O N
O nce upon a time some Jews lived in Hebr o n fe w in ,

number but pious and good and particu l arly hospitable

, , .

When strangers came to the Cave of Machpelah to pray

there the inhabitants o f the place fairly quarrelled w ith each
,

other for the privi l ege of entertaining the guests an d the ,

on e who carried O ff the vi ct or y re jo i c e d as though he had

found great spoil .

O n the eve o f the Day o f At o nement it appea r e d that in , ,

spite o f a l l their e ff orts the dwe l lers at Hebron could not

,

secure the tenth man needed for publi c Divine service and ,

they feared they w ould have none on the holy day Toward .

evening when the s un was about to sink they descried an

, ,

o l d man with S ilver white beard bearing a sack upon his ,

shoulder his ra i ment tatte r e d an d h is feet ba d ly swo l len

, ,

from much walking They ran t o meet him took him to

.
,

o n e o f the houses gave him food and d rink and after s u p

, , ,

p l ying him with n e w white garments they all together went ,

to the synagogue for worship Aske d w hat h is name w a s .

,

the stranger replied Abraham , .

At the end o f the f ast the r esi d ent s of Heb ro n c ast lots
,

for the privilege o f entertaining the guest Fortune favore d .

the beadle who the envy of the r est bore his guest away
, , ,

to his house O n the w a y he suddenly disappeared and

.
, ,

the beadle c ould n ot find him anywhere In vain all the .

Jews of the pla c e went on a quest for h i m Their sleep l ess .

night spent in s ear c hing had no result The stranger c o

, , uld .

not be found B ut no sooner had the beadle lain down

.
,

towar d m or ning wea r y and anxious t o snatch some sleep

, , ,

than he s a w the lost guest before him h is fa c e luminous as ,

lightnin g an d h is garments magn i fi c ent an d stu dd e d w i th

,
308 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

gems ra d iant as the s u n Before the beadle stu nne d by

.
,

fright cou l d open h is mouth the stranger spake and said :

, , ,

I am Abraham the Hebrew your ancestor who rests here , ,

i n the Cave o f Ma chpelah When I s a w h ow gr ieved you

.

were at not having the numbe r o f men prescribed for a

publi c se rvice I c ame fo rt h t o you Have no fear ! Rej oice
, .

” 3
and be merry of heart !
O n another oc c asion Abraham gran ted his ass i stance t o
the people o f Hebron The lor d o f the c ity w a s a hea rt l ess
.

man w h o oppressed the Jews sorely O ne day he com

, .

ma n de d them to pay a large sum o f money into his co ff ers ,

the whole s u m in uniform c oins al l stamped with the same ,

year It w a s but a pretext to kill the Jews H e knew that

. .

h is demand w a s imp o ss i ble o f fulfilment .

The Jews proclaimed a fast and day o f public prayer o n ,

which to supplicate God that H e turn aside the sword s u s

pended above them The night foll o wing the beadle in a
.
,

dream s a w an awe inspiring o l d man w h o ad d ressed him in

-
,

the following w ords : Up quickly ! Hasten to the gate o f ,

the cou r t where lies the money you need I am your father
,
.

Abraham I have beheld the a ffl ic ti o n wherewith the Gen

.

”
tiles oppress you but God has hear d y o u r groans
,
In .

great terror the beadle arose but he s a w no on e yet he wen t, ,

to the spot designated by the vision and he found the money ,

and took it to the congregation telling his dream at the same ,

time Amazed they c ounted the gold pre c isely the amount
.
, ,

required o f them by the prin c e no mor e and n o less Th ey ,

.

surrendered the s u m to him and he who had c onsidered ,

compliance with his deman d impossible re cognized n ow that ,

Go d is with the Jews a n d then c e for th they fo un d f av or i n

,

h is ey es
“ 0
.
 ! I

JAC O B
T HE B IRTH O F E SA U AND J AC O B
I s aa c was the counterpart of his father in body an d soul .

H e resembled him in every particular in beauty wisdom , ,

”
stren gth wealth and n obl e deeds
, ,
It w a s therefore as
.
, ,

great an honor f or Isaa c to be called the s on o f his father

as for Abraham to be called the father o f his s on an d though ,

Abraham w a s the p rogenitor o f th i rty nati o ns he is always ,

designated a s the f ather of Isaa c .

2

Despite his many excellent qualities Isaa c marr i e d late in

,

life God permitted him to meet the wife su itable to hi m

.

only a fter he had su cc ess fully disproved the mocking

charges o f Ishmael who was in the habit o f taunting h im
,

with having been cir cum c ised at the early age o f eight days ,

W hil e Ishmael had submitte d himself voluntari l y to the

operation when h e was thirteen years ol d For this reason .

God demanded Isaa c as a sacrifice when he had at tained to

full manhood at the age o f thirty seven and Isaac was ready
,
-
,

’
to give up h i s life Ishmael s j ibes were thus robbed o f
.

their sting and I s aa c w a s permitted t o marry But another

, .

delay occurred be fore his marriage cou l d take p l ace Di .

r e ctl y afte r the sa c rifice on Mount Moriah his mother died , ,

and he mourne d her fo r three years Final l y he mar r ie d

.
“

Rebekah who was then a maiden o f fou rteen

, .
‘

’
Rebekah w a s a ro se between thorns Her father w a s
.
312 Th e L e g e n ds o
f th e J ew s

the A r amean Bethuel an d her brother was Laban but she

, ,

’
di d n ot walk in their ways Her piety w a s equal to Is a ac s
“ ‘
. .

'
Nev e rtheless the i r marriage was not ent i rely happy for they ,

lived togethe r no less than twenty years without begett in g

’
children .Rebekah besought her husband to entreat G od
for the gift o f ch i ldren as his father Abraham had done At
, .

first Isaac w ould not d o her bidding Go d had promised .

Abraham a numerous progeny and he thought their c hil d ,

’
lessness was probably Reb e ka h s fault and it was her duty ,

to supplicate God and not his But Rebekah would not de

, .

sist and husband and wi fe repaire d to Mount Moriah to

,

gether to pray to God there And Isaac sai d : O Lo r d .

“

God o f heaven and earth whose goodness and mercies fill

,

’
the e arth Thou who didst take my father from his father s
,

house and from his birthplace and didst bring him unto this ,

land and didst say unto him To thee and thy seed wi ll I give
, ,

the l and and didst promis e him and declare unto him I
, ,

wi ll multiply thy seed as the stars o f heaven and as the sand

o f the s e a now may Thy words be verified which Thou didst
,

speak unt o my father F or Thou art the Lord o ur God ou r

.
,

eyes are toward Thee to give u s seed of men a s Thou didst

,

promise u s for Thou art the Lord our God and ou r eyes
, ,

are upon Thee Isaac prayed fu r thermore that all chi l

.

dren destined for him might be born unt o him fro m this
pious wi fe of h is and Rebekah made the same petition r e
,

garding her husband Is a a c and the children d estined for her .

’
T h e i r un i ted prayer was heard Yet it was chiefly for .

the sake o f Isaa c that God gave them child r en It is true .

,

’ ’
R e b e ka h s piety equalle d her hu sban d s but the praye r of a ,

pious man who is the son o f a p i ous man i s f ar more e ffica

314 Th e L e ge n ds f
o th e Je ws

when Esau threatene d to carry his point at the expense o f

”
h is mother s life that Ja c ob gave w a y
’
.

R ebekah aske d other women whether they too had s u f , ,

f e re d su c h pain during their pregnancy and when they told ,

her they ha d not hea rd o f a c ase like he r s except the preg ,

’
nan c y o f Nimrod s mother s h e betook herself t o M ount
,

Moriah whereon Shem and Ebe r ha d their B et h a M idr ash

,
-
.

She r equeste d them as w ell as Abraham to inquire of God

what the c ause of he r di r e su ff ering was And Shem r e .
17

plied : My d aughter I confide a secret to thee See to it

,
.

that none finds it ou t Tw o nations are in thy womb an d

.
,

h ow should thy bo d y contain them seeing that the who l e ,

world will not be large enough for them to exist in it to

gether peaceably ! Tw o nations they are each owning a ,

world o f its ow n the o n e the Torah the other s in From

, , .

the one will spring Solomon the builder o f the Temple from
, ,

t he other V espas i an the destroyer thereo f

,
These tw o are .

w hat are neede d to r aise the number o f nations to seventy .

They w i l l never be in the same estate Esau wi ll vaunt .

lords w hile Ja c ob will bring forth prophets and if Esau

, ,

h a s prin c es Ja c ob will have kings

18

, They Israel and Rome

.
, ,

are the tw o nations destine d to be hated by a ll the world

19
.

O ne will exceed the othe r in strength First Esau wi l l sub .

j ugate the w hol e world but in the end Jacob will ru l e over
,

”
a ll
.
0
The olde r o f the t w o will serve the younger provided ,

this one is pu r e o f heart o therwise the y o unger w il l be

,

”
enslave d by the olde r .
21

The c ir c umstan c es conne c te d w ith the b irth o f her twin

sons were a s remarkable as those d u ring the period o f R e
’
beka h s p r egn an cy Esau w a s the first to s e e the light and
.
,
 Ja cob 31 5

w ith h i m a l l impur i ty c ame f rom the w omb Ja cob w a s born

c l ean and sweet o f body Esau w a s brought forth w ith hair
. ,

”
bear d and teeth b o th f ront and back and he w a s bl oo d red
, , ,
-
,

a sign o f his future sanguinary nature O n a ccount of his .

24

ruddy appea r an c e he r emained u ncir c umcise d Isaac his .

,

father feared that it was due to poo r c irculation o f the blood

, ,

and he hesitated to perform the c ir c um c ision He de c ided to .

wait unti l Esau should attain hi s thirteenth year the age at ,

which Ishmael ha d received the s i gn o f the c ovenant But .

’
when Esau grew up he re fu se d t o gi ve heed to h is father s
,

”
wish and so he w a s le ft un c ir c umc i se d
, The Opposite of .

his brother in this as in all respe c ts Ja cob was born with ,

”
the sign o f the covenant up o n his bo d y a r are distinction ,
.

But Esau also b o re a mark upon him a t birth the figure o f a ,

”
serpent the symbol o f all that is wicke d and hated o f God
, .

The names c o n f erre d upon the brothers a re pregn ant with

meaning The ol d e r w a s calle d Esau be cause he was Asui
‘

.
, ,

fully develope d when he w a s bo rn and the nam e o f the ,

younge r w a s given to him by God to p oint t o some i mpor ,

tant events in the f utu r e o f Israel by the numerical value o f

'

each letter The first letter in Ya okob Yod with the valu e
.
, ,

o f ten stands for the decalogue ; the second

'

, Ayin equal to , ,

seventy for the seventy el d ers the lea d e r s o f Israel ; the

, ,

third Ko f a hundred for the Templ e a hundred ells in

, , , ,

”
height ; and the l ast Bet for the two tables of st one
, ,
.

T HE FA VORITE O F A B R A H AM
While Esau and Jacob w e r e l i ttle thei r ch a r a c te rs co ul d ,

not be j udged prope r ly They we r e like the myr tle an d the

.

thorn bush which look alike in the early stage s of thei r

-
,
316 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

g r o w th A fter they have attained f ull s i ze the my rtle is

. ,

known by its f ragrance and t h e tho r n bush by its th or ns

,
-
.

In the ir childhoo d both brothers w ent to s c hool but when

, ,

they r ea che d thei r th i rteenth yea r an d we r e o f age thei r , ,

ways parte d Ja cob c ontinued his stu di es i n the B et h a

.

Midrash o f Shem and Eber an d Esau abandoned h imsel f t o ,

”
idolatry an d an i mmoral li fe Both were hunters o f men .
,

Esau tried to capture them in or d er to turn them away from

”
Go d and Jacob t o turn them toward God
, , In spite o f .

his impious deeds Esau possessed the art o f winning his

,

’
father s lov e H is hyp o criti cal co ndu ct made Isaa c believe
.

”
that his fir s t bor n s on w a s extremely pious
-
Father .
,

”
he would a sk Isaa c what is the tithe o n str a w an d salt !
,

The question made him appea r God fea r ing in the ey e s of -

his f ather be c aus e thes e two products a r e the ve ry ones that

,

are exempt from tithing Isaa c fai l ed t o n o ti c e t o o that

81
.
, ,

his olde r s on gave him f orb idd en foo d t o eat What he t ook .

’
for the flesh of young goats w a s dog s meat
32
.

Rebekah w a s more c lear sighted S he knew her sons as -

.

they really w e r e an d therefore her love for Ja co b was ex

,

ce e din g gr eat The oftener s h e heard his voice the deeper

.
,

’
gr e w her a ffection fo r h i m Abraham agreed with he r .
3
.

H e al so loved h is grandson Jacob for h e kn ew that in him ,

his name an d his seed would be ca ll e d And he said unt o .

Rebekah My daughte r wat c h ove r my s on Ja cob fo r he

, , ,

sha ll be in my stead on the earth and for a bless ing in the

midst o f the c hildren o f men and f o r the gl ory o f the whole,

”
seed of S hem Havi ng admonished Rebekah thus to keep
.

gua rd over Ja c ob who was destined to be the bearer o f the

,

ble s s ing gi ven to Ab ra ham by Go d he calle d fo r h i s g rand ,

31 8 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ews

T H E SA LE O F T H E B I RTHRIGHT
Th o ugh Ab raham rea c hed a good ol d age beyon d the ,

limit o f years vouchsa f ed later generations he yet died five ,

years be fo r e h i s allotted time The intention was to let him .

l ive to be one hun d re d an d eighty years ol d the same age a s ,

’
Isaa c s at h is d eath but on ac c ount o f Esau God brought his
,

life t o an ab r upt c lose Fo r some time Esau had been pu r

.

suing h is evil i n clinations in secret Fina l ly he dropped his .

’
mask an d on the day o f Abraham s death he was gu ilty o f
,

five crimes : he ravished a betr o the d maiden c ommitt ed ,

mu rder do ubted the resu r re cti o n of the d ead scorn ed th e

, ,

bi rthright and d enie d G o d Then the Lord said : I prom

, .

ise d Abraham that he shoul d go to h is f athers i n peace Can .

I n ow permit h i m t o be a witness o f his grandson s rebel l ion

’

against Go d h i s vi olat i on of the laws o f chastity and his

, ,

shedding of bl ood ! It is bette r f or him t o d ie n ow in

’"
p e a ce f
The men sla i n by E sau o n th i s d ay w e r e Nimrod and two
o f h is adj utants A long standing f eud ha d existed between
.
-

Esau and Nim rod be c aus e the m i ghty hunter before the
,

Lor d w a s j ealou s o f Esau who also devote d himsel f assidu

,

o u s ly t o the c hase O nce when h e w a s hunting it happened

.

that Nim r od was separated from his people only tw o men ,

were w ith him E sau who lay in ambush noticed his isola
.
, ,

tion and waite d until he should pass h i s c ove rt Then h e

, .

thre w himsel f upon Nimrod suddenly and felle d him an d ,

his tw o companions w h o hastene d to his su c cor The out

, .

cries o f the latter b rought the atten d ants of Nimrod to the

spot where he lay d ea d but not be f ore Esau had strippe d
,

”
him o f his ga rments an d fle d t o the c ity with them
, .
 Ja cob 9

These garments o f Nimrod had an extraordinary e ff ect

upon cattle beasts and birds O f their ow n accord they
'

.
, ,

wou l d come and prostrate themselves before him who was

arrayed in them Thus Nimrod and Esau after him were
.

”
ab l e to rule over men and beasts .

A fter s l aying Nimrod Esau hastened cityward in great

,

fear o f his victim s fo l lowers Tired and exhausted he a r

’
.

rived at home to fi n d Jacob busy preparing a dish o f l enti l s .

’
Numerous male and female slaves were in Isaac s house
ho l d Neverthe l ess Jacob was s o simple and modest in his
.

demeanor that i f he came home late from the Bet h a M id

,
-

rash he would disturb none to prepare his meal but wou l d

, ,

do it himself O n thi s occasion he was c ooking l enti l s for

.

’
his father to serve to him as his mourner s meal after the
,

death o f Abraham Adam and Eve had eaten lentils after

.

the murder o f Abel and s o had the parents o f Haran when

, ,

h e perished in the fiery furnace The reason they a r e used .

’
for the mourner s meal is that the round lentil symbolizes
death : as the l entil ro l ls s o death s o rrow and mou rning
, , ,

”
constantly rol l about among men from on e to the o ther ,
.

Esau a ccosted Jacob thus Why a rt thou prepar i ng ,

”
lenti l s !

Jacob : Because our gran d fathe r passe d away ; they shal l

be a sign of my grie f and mourning that he may love me ,

”
in the days to come .

“
Esau : Thou fool ! Dost thou really think it possible ~

that man shou l d c ome to l ife again after he has been dead
”
and has mou l dered in the grave ! H e continued to taunt “2

”
Jacob Why dost thou give thyse l f s o mu c h troub l e ! he
.

said. Li ft up thine eyes and thou wi l t see that a l l men

,
320 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je ws

eat whatever c o mes to hand—fis h c reeping and craw l ing ,

creatu res swine s flesh and a l l so rts o f things l ike these and
,
’
, ,

”
thou ve x e s t thysel f about a dish O f lentils .

Ja cob : I f we act like other men what sha l l we do on

“
,

the day Of the Lor d the day o n which the pious will r e
,

ce iv e their reward when a herald will proc l aim : Where is

,

H e that weigheth the deeds Of men where i s He that ,

counteth
Esau : Is there a future world ! O r wi l l the dead be
ca ll ed ba c k to l i fe ! I f it were so why hath not Adam r e ,

turned ! Hast thou heard that Noah thr o ugh whom the ,

world was raised anew hath reappeared ! Yea Abraham, , ,

the friend O f God more beloved Of Him than any man hath
, ,

”
he come to li fe again !
Jacob : I f thou a rt O f Op inion that there is no future
“

w orld an d that the d ead do not r i se to n e w life then why

, ,

dost thou want thy birthright ! S e ll it to me n ow whi l e it , ,

is yet possible to do s o O nce the Torah i s revealed it c an

.
,

not be done V erily there is a future wor l d in which the

.
, ,

righteous receive their rewa rd I te l l thee this lest thou .

,

” ‘3
s a y later I deceived thee .

Jacob was little c oncerned about the doub l e share o f the

inheritance that went with the birthright What he thought .

Of w a s the priestly se rvice which was the prerogative O f the

,

fir s t born in ancient times and Jaco b was loth to have his

-
,

impiou s brother Esau play the p r iest he w h o despised a l l ,

Divine se rvice .
“

The scorn mani fested by Esau for the resurrection O f the

dead he felt al so for the promise O f God to give th e Ho l y
Land to the seed O f Abraham H e di d n ot believe in it and. ,
3 2 2 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

Isaac The Philistines were envious O f Abraham ; s o al so O f

.

Isaac Abraham l ong remained chi l d l ess ; s o also Is a ac

. .

Abraham begot on e pious son and one wicked s on ; so a lso

Isaac And fina ll y as in the time Of Abraham s o also in
.
, , ,

the t i me O f Isaac a famine ca me upon the land

“
.
,

At first Isa a c intended to follo w th e exampl e O f his father

and remove t o Egypt but Go d appeared unto him and , ,

spake Thou art a perfect sacrifice without a b l emi sh

“

, ,

and a s a burnt O ffering i s made unfit if it is taken outside Of

th e san ctuary s o thou wou l dst be profaned if thou shoul dst
,

happen outside Of the Holy Land Remain in the land and . ,

endeavor to cultivate i t In this lan d dwells the Sheki nah

.
,

and in days to come I will give unto thy chi l dren the rea l ms
possesse d by mighty rulers first a part thereo f and th e ,

whole in the Messianic time .

Isaac obeyed the comman d O f Go d and he sett l ed in ,

Gerar When he noticed that the inhabitants O f the place

.

be gan to have designs up o n his wife he followed the ex ,

a mpl e O f Abraham and pretended she was his sister

“
, The .

’
repo rt Of Reb e ka h s b e auty reached the king himself but he ,

w a s mindful O f the great danger to which he had once ex

posed himsel f on a similar oc c asion and he l eft Isaac and ,

his wife unmoleste d 55

A fter they had been in Gerar for
.

three months Abimelech noticed that the manner Of Isaac

, ,

who lived in the outer court Of the royal palace was that Of ,

a husband toward Rebekah H e c al l ed him to account.

“
,

saying It might have happened to the k i ng himse l f to t a ke

,

the woman thou didst call thy sister Indeed Isaac l ay .

57
,

under the suspicion Of having il l i c it intercourse with Re

bekah for at first the people Of the place would not believe
,
 Ja co b 32 3

that s h e was his wife When Isaac persisted in his state

.

ment Abime l ech sent his grandees for them ordered the m
,
“
,

to be arrayed in royal vestments and had it proclaime d b e ,

fore them as they ro d e through the city : These tw o are

,

man and wi fe He that toucheth this man o r his wife shall

.

”
surely be put to death .

Thereafter the king invited Isaac to sett l e in his domains ,

and he assigned fie l ds and vineyards to him for cu l tivation ,

”
the best the land a ff orded But Isaac was not se l f inter
.
-

e ste d. The tithe O f a ll he possessed h e gave to the poor O f

Gerar Thus he was the first to introduce the l a w O f tithing
.

for the poor as his father Abraham had been the first to
,

separate the priests portion f rom his fortune

’
Isaac was .
60

rewa rded by abundant harvests ; the land yielded a hun d red

times m o re than was expected though the soil w a s barren ,

and the year unfruitful H e grew s o rich that people wished

.

“ ’
to have the dung from Isaac s s h e mules rathe r than -

’ ””
Abimelech s gold and si l ve r But his wea l th called fo rth
1
.

the envy o f the Phi l istines fo r it i s characteristi c Of the

,

wicked that they begrudge thei r fellow men the go od an d -

,

r ej oice when they see evil d escend upon them and envy ,

brings hatred in its wake an d s o th e Philistines fir st envie d

,

Isaa c and then hated him In thei r enmity toward him

, .
,

they st o pped the wel l s which Abraham had had his se rvants
dig Thus they broke thei r covenant with Abraham and
.

were faith l ess and they have only themselves to b l ame i f

,

they were exterminate d later on by the Israe l ites .

Isaac departed from Gera r and began to dig again the ,

we ll s Of water which they had digged in the days O f Abra

ham h is fathe r and wh i ch the Philistines had st o pped H is
, .
3 24 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jew s

reverence for his father was so gr eat that he even restored

the names by which Abraham had ca l led the we ll s TO .

reward him for h is fi l ial respe c t the Lord l eft the name O f ,

Isaa c unchanged whi l e his father and his son had to submit
,

”
to n ew names .

After four attempts to secure wate r I saa c was success fu l ,

he found the we l l O f water that fo ll owed the Patriarchs .

Abraham had Obtained it a fter three diggings H ence the .

”
name Of the we l l Beer S heba
,
-
the well Of seven diggi ngs
, ,

the same we ll that wi ll supply water to Jerusa l em and its

environs in the Messiani c time .
63

’
Isaac s success with his wel l s but served to in c rease the
envy Of the Phi l istines for he had come upon water in a
,

most unlikely spot and besides in a year O f drouth But

, ,

“
the Lord fu l fi l s the desire O f them that fear Him As .

Isaa c executed the wi ll O f his Creator s o God accomp l ished ,

”
his desire . And Abimelech the king O f Gerar speedily
, ,

came to see that God w a s on the side O f Isaac for to chastise , ,

’
him for having instigated Isaac s removal from Gera r his ,

house was ravaged by robbers in the night and he himse l f ,

was stricken with leprosy The wel l s Of the Phi l istines

.
65

ran dry as soon as Is a ac left Gerar and also the trees fai l ed ,

to yield their fruit None cou l d be in doubt but that these

.

things were the castigation for thei r unkindness .

N ow Abime l ech entreated h is friends especia l ly the a d ,

ministrator O f h is kingdom to accompany him to Isaac and

,

”
he l p him win back his friendship Abimelech and the Phi .

l istines spake thus to I saac We have convinced ourselves

that the Shekinah is with thee and therefore we desire thee
,

to renew the covenant whi c h thy father made with us that ,

326 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jew s

dren and not Th in e ! Let us consider The y e ars Of a man

,
.

are seventy Fr o m th ese twenty are to be dedu ct ed fo r

.
,

Thou in fl icte s t no punishment upon those under twenty Of .

the fifty years that are left on e half are to be dedu cted for ,
-

the nights passe d in sleep There remain on l y twenty fiv e .

-

years and these are to be diminishe d by twelve and a half

, ,

the time spent in praying eating and attending to othe r , ,

nee d s in li f e du ring which men commit no sins That leaves

, .

Only twelve years and a half I f Thou wilt take these upon .

Thysel f well and goo d I f not do Thou take on e ha l f

, .
,
-

”
thereof and I will take the other half
, The des c endants Of .

”
Isaa c w ill then say V e r ily thou art ou r true father !
,
“
,

But he will point to G o d and a d monish them Nay gi ve, , ,

n ot you r praises to me but to God alone and Israel with

, , ,

eyes directe d heavenward wi l l s a y Thou O Lord art our , , , ,

”
Father ; o ur Redeeme r from ever l asting is Thy name .

It w a s Isaac or as he is sometimes ca l led E l ihu the son O f

, , ,

Bara c hel who revealed the w on d er f ul myster ies O f natu r e

,

70
in h is arguments with Job .

At the end Of the yea r s O f f ami ne God appeared unt o ,

Isaac and bade him return to Canaan Isaac did as h e was

, .

commande d and he settle d in H ebron At this time he sent

, .

his younger s on Ja cob to the Bet h a M idrash O f Shem and -

Ebe r to study th e law O f the Lord Jacob remained there

, .

thirty t w o yea r s A s fo r Esau he refused to l earn and h e

-
.
, ,

remained in the hou se o f hi s father The chase was his on l y .

occu pation and as h e pursued beasts s o he pursued men

, , ,

seeking t o capture them with cunning and deceit .

O n one O f his hunting expeditions Esau came to Mount ,

Seir whe r e he became acquainted with Judith Of the family

, ,
 Ja co b 32 7

Of Ham and he took her unto himsel f as his wife and

, ,

b rought her to his father at H eb r on .

Ten years later when S hem h is tea cher die d Jacob r e

, ,

turned home a t the age O f fifty Another s ix years passed

,
. ,

and Rebekah received the j oyful news that her sister in l a w - -

Adinah the wife Of Laban wh o like all the women O f his

'

, , ,

house had been c hildless until then had given birth to twin
, ,

d aughters Leah and Rache l Rebekah w eary o f her life

,
.
“
,

o n account Of the woman chosen by he r Ol d er s on exhorted ,

Jacob not to marry on e Of the daughte r s Of Canaan but a ,

maiden O f the family O f Ab raham H e assured his mother .

that the words O f Abraham biddin g him t o marr y n o w oman

,

O f the Canaanites were graven upon his memory and fo r

, ,

this reason he was still unmarrie d though he ha d attained ,

the age O f sixty tw o and Esau had been urging hi m for

-
,

twenty— tw o years past to f ollow his example and we d a

daughter O f the people Of the land in which they live d H e .

had hea r d that his uncl e Laban had d aughters and he w a s ,

resolve d t o c ho o se on e o f them a s his wife Deeply m oved .

by the w o rd s Of her s on Rebekah thanke d him an d gave

,

praise unt o God with the wor d s Blesse d be the Lord “

God an d ma y His Holy Name be blessed for ever an d ever

, ,

who hath given me Jacob as a pure s on and a holy see d ; fo r

he is Thine an d Thine shall h i s seed be c ontinually an d
,

thro u ghout all the generations for evermore Bless him O .

,

Lord an d pla c e in my m o uth the bless i ng o f righteousness

, ,

”
that I may bless him .

An d when the spirit O f the Lord came over he r s h e lai d ,

her hands upon the head O f Jacob an d gave him he r mate rnal
blessing It ended with the words
. May the Lord O f the ,
32 8 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ews

world love thee as the heart

,
Of thy a ff ectionate mother re
72
j oices in thee and may H e bless thee
,
.

I S A AC B LESSES J AC O B
Esau s marr i age with the daughters of the Ca naan i tes
’

was an abomination not only in the eyes Of his mother but ,

a l so i n the eyes O f his father H e su ffered even more than

.

Rebekah through the i dolatrous practices Of his d aughters

in l a w
-
. It is the nature o f man to Oppose less resistance
than woman to disagreeable circumsta nces A bo ne is not .

harmed by a co ll ision that would sh i ver an earthen pot in

pieces Man who is created out Of the dust Of the ground
.
, ,

has not the endurance Of woman formed out O f bone Is a a c .

was made prematurely Old by the c o ndu c t O f his daughters

in l a w and he lost the sight O f h is eyes
-
, Rebekah had been .

a cc ustome d in the home O f her chi l dhood to the incense

burnt before idols and she could there fore bear it under her
,

Ow n roo f— tree U n like he r I saa c had never had any such

.
,

experien c e while he abo d e w ith h i s parents and he w a s stung ,

by the smoke ar ising from the sacrifices O ff ered to their

’
idols by h is daughters in l a w in his ow n house
- -
Isaa c s .

eyes had su ff ered earlier in life too When he lay bound ,

.

u p o n the altar about to be sacrificed by his father the angels

, ,

wept and their tears fell upon his eyes a n d the r e they t e
, ,

maine d and weakened his sight .

At the same t i me he had brought the scourge O f blindness

down upon himsel f by his love fo r Esau He j ustified th e .

’
wicked for a bribe the bribe O f Esau s filial love and l oss Of
, ,

vision is the punishment that fo ll ows the tak ing o f bribes .

”
A gift it is said blin d s the eyes O f the w i se
, ,
.
330 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

and beware Of bringing him the flesh O f an an i mal t h at had .

died O f itself or had been torn by a bea st and he w as to

, ,

guard also against putting an animal b e fore Isaa c that h a d

”
been stolen from its rightful owner Then contin ue d .
“

”
Is a a c will I bless him w h o is worthy O f being blesse d
,
.

This charge was la i d upon Esau on the eve of the Pass

over and Isaac said to him : TO —
,
night the whole world “

wi l l sing the Hallel unto Go d It is the night when the store

.

houses o f de w are unlocke d Therefore prepare dainties for

.

”
me that my soul may bless thee before I die
, But the ho l y .

spirit interposed Eat not the bread Of him that hath

,

” ° ’
an evil eye Isaac s longing for tidbits was d ue to h is
.
7

b l indness As the sightless cannot behold the food they ea t

.
,

they do not enj oy it with fu l l relish and their appetite must ,

be tempted with parti c ularly palatable morsels .

Es au sallie d forth to pro c ure what his fathe r desired littl e ,

”
reckin g the whence or how whether by robbery o r theft, .

’
TO hinde r the qui ck exe c ution O f his father s order God sent ,

Satan on the c hase with Esau He w a s to delay him as lon g .

as possible Esau woul d catch a d eer and leave him lyi n g

.

bound wh i le he pursued other game Immediately S atan

, .

would come an d liberate the deer and when Esau returne d ,

to the spo t his victim was n ot t o be found This w a s r e

, .

p e a te d several ti mes Again and again the quarry was run

.

down an d bound and liberated s o that Jacob w a s able

, , ,

mea nwhile to ca r ry out the plan O f Rebekah whereby he

wou l d be b l essed instead O f Esau .

Though Rebekah had n ot heard the words that ha d pass e d

between Isaa c an d Esau they nevertheless we re reveale d to
,

her through the ho l y spirit and she resolve d to restr ain

,
 Ja co b 33 1

her husband from taking a fa l se step She w a s not actuated .

by love for Ja c ob but by the wish O f keep i ng Isaac from

,

committing a detestab l e act Rebekah said to Ja c ob : .

"2

This night the storehouses Of de w are unlocked ; it is the

night during which the ce l estial beings chant the Hallel
unto God the night set apart for the de l iverance O f thy
,

children from E gypt on which they too wi l l sing the

, , ,

Halle l GO n ow an d prepare savo r y meat for thy father

.
,

”
that he may b l ess thee before his death DO as I bid thee .
,

Obey me as thou art wont for thou art my son whose Chil ,

dren every on e will be good and God fearing—not on e shall

, ,
-

”
be grace l ess .

In S pite o f his gr eat respect for h is mother Jacob r e ,

fused a t first to heed her command H e feared he might .

” ’
commit a s in especia l ly as he might thus bring his father s
,

curse down upo n him A S it w a s Isaa c m ight still have a

.
,

blessing for him after giving Esau his But Rebekah a l

, .

“
layed his anxieties with the words When Adam was
,
:

cursed the malediction fe l l upon his mother the earth an d

, , ,

S O S hal l I thy mother bear the imprecation if thy father

, , ,

curses thee Moreover if the worst comes to the worst I

.
, ,

am prepared to step before thy father and te l l him Esau is ,

’
a vi l lain and Ja c ob is a righteous man
, .

Thus constrained by his mother Jacob in tears and with , ,

”
body bowed went O ff to execute the plan made by Rebekah
, .

As he was to provide a Passove r meal she bade him get ,

t w o kids on e for the Passover sa c rifice and one for the

,

’
festival sa cr ifice 9 TO soothe Jacob s conscien c e she added
8
-
,

that her marriage contract entit l ed her to tw o kids daily .

”
And she c ontinue d these two kids wi l l bring goo d unto
, ,
330 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

a nd beware Of bringing him the flesh O f an an i mal that had .

died O f itself or had been torn by a bea st and he w as to

, ,

guar d also against putting an animal b e fore Isaa c that h ad

”
been stolen f rom its rightful owner Then continue d .
“
,

”
Isaa c will I bless him who is worthy O f being blesse d
,
.

This c harge was lai d upon Esau on the eve of the Pass
over and Isaac said to him : TO night the whole world
,
-

wi l l sing the Ha l lel unt o Go d It is the night when the store

.

houses O f de w are unlocked Therefore prepare dainties for

.

”
me that my soul may bless thee before I d ie
, But the ho l y .

spirit interposed Eat not the bread Of him that h a th

,

” ’ ’
an evil eye Isaac s longing for tidbits w a s d ue to h i s
.
7

b l indness As the sightless cannot behold the food they ea t

.
,

they do n o t enj oy it with full relish and their appetite must ,

be tempted with particularly palatable morsels .

Es au sallie d forth to pro c ure what his father desired littl e ,

”
recking the whence or h ow whether by robbery o r the ft
, .

’
TO hinde r the quick execution O f his father s order God s ent ,

S atan on the Chase with Esau He w a s to delay him as lon g .

as possible Esau woul d cat ch a d eer and leave him lyin g

.

bound w h i le he pursued other game Immediately S atan

, .

would come an d liberate the dee r and when Esau returne d ,

to the spo t his vi c tim was n ot to be found This w a s r e

, .

p e a t e d several times Again and again the quar ry was run

.

down and bound and liberated S O that Jacob was able

, , ,

meanwhile to ca r ry out the plan O f Rebe kah whereby he

wou l d be b l essed instead O f Esau .

Though Rebekah had n ot heard the words that had passed

between Isaa c an d Esau they nevertheless were reveale d to
,

her through the hol y spirit and she resolve d to restr ain
,
332 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jew s

thee the b l essing O f thy fathe r and they wi ll bring good

, ,

unto thy chi l dren for t w o kids wi l l be the atoning sacrifice

,

”
O ff ered on the Day O f Atonement .

’
Jacob s hesitation was not yet removed His father he .
,

feared woul d touch him and convin c e himsel f that he was

,

not hai ry an d therefore not his son Esau Accordingly

, .
,

Rebekah tore the skins O f the tw o kids into strips and sewed
them together for Jacob w a s S O ta ll a giant that otherwise
,

”
they wou l d not have su fficed to cover his hands TO make .

Jacob s d i sgu i se complete Rebekah felt j ustified in putting

’
,

’
Esau s wonderful garments On him They were the high .

“
priestly raiment in which God had clothed Adam the ,

—
fir s t born o f the w orld
”
for in the days before the erection
,

Of the Tabernacle all the fir s t born males offi ciated as priests

-
.

From Adam thes e garments descended to Noah who trans ,

mitte d them to Shem a n d Shem bequeathed them to Abra

,

ham and Abraham to his s on Isaac from whom they reached

, ,

Esau as the Olde r O f his tw o sons It was the Opinion o f .

Rebekah that as Jacob had bought the birthright from his

brother he had thereby come into pos s ession Of the gar
,

”
ments as well There was no need for her to gO and fet ch
.

them from the hous e Of Esau H e knew his wives far too .

we l l to entrust s o precious a treasure to them ; they were in

the safe keeping O f his mother B esi d es he used them mos t
-
.
,

frequ ent l y in the house O f his parents A S a rule he did .

,

not l ay much stress upon decent appare l H e w a s wi ll ing to .

appear on the street clad in rags but he considered it his ,

“
duty to wait upon h is father arrayed in his best My .

” “
father Esau was in the habit Of saying
, is a king in my ,

sight and it would i ll b e c ome me to serve be fore him in any

,
 Ja co b 3 33

thing but royal appare l TO the great respect he mani

.

f e s t e d toward his father the descendants O f Esau o w e a ll

_

their good fortune o n earth Thus doth God reward a goo d .

deed .

Rebekah led Jacob equipped and arrayed in this way to

’
the door O f Is aac s chamber There s h e parted from him .

“
with the words Henceforward may t h y Creator assist
,

” ”
thee .
0
Jacob entered ad d ressing Isaac with Fath er
, ,

and receiving the response Here am I ! Who a rt thou ,

“
,

”
my s on ! he replied equivocally It is I thy fir s t born ,
“
,
-

”
s on is Esau H e sought to avoid a falsehood and yet not
.
,

” 1 “
betray that he was Jacob Isaac then said : Thou art.

great l y in haste to secure thy bless ing Thy father Abra .

ham was seventy five years o l d when h e was blessed and

-
,

”
thou art but sixty three Jacob rep l ied awkward l y
-
. Be ,

”
cause the Lord thy God sent me good speed Is aa c c on .

cluded at once that this was not Esau for he would not have ,

mentioned the name Of God and he made up his mind to ,

feel the s on before him and make sure who he was Terror .

“
seized upon Jacob at the words O f Isaac Come near I , ,

”
pray thee that I may feel thee my son
, A c o l d sweat cov ,
.

ered his body and his heart melted like wax Then God
, .

caused the archangels Michael and Gabriel to descend The .

o n e seized his right hand the other his left hand while the
, ,

Lord God Himself supported him that his courage might ,

not fail him Isaac felt him and finding his hands hairy
.
, , ,

’
he said The voice i s Jacob s voice but the hands are the
, ,

”
hands O f Esau words in which he conveyed the prophecy
,

that s o long as the voice O f Jacob is heard in the houses Of

prayer and o f learning the hands o f Esau w ill not be able
,
334 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je w s

to prevail against him Yes he continued

.
,it is the ,

voice of Jacob the voice that imposes si l en c e upon those

,

”
on earth and in heaven for even the angels may not raise
,

their voices in praise of God until Israel has finished his

prayers .

’
Isaa c s scruples about blessing the s on before him were
not yet removed for with his p rophetical eye he foresaw
,

that this one would have des c endants who w oul d vex the
Lord At the same time it w a s reveale d to him that even
.
,

the sinners in Israel would turn penitents and then he w a s ,

r eady to bless Ja c ob He bade him c ome near and kiss him

.
,

to indicate that it would be Jacob who would imp r int the

last kiss upon Isaac before he was consigned to the gr ave
h e and none other When Ja cob sto od close to him b e
.
,

dis c erned the fragrance o f Paradise clin ging to him and he ,

exclaimed S ee the sme l l O f my s on is as the smell Of th e

, ,

”
field which the Lord hath bless ed .

The fragrance emanating from Jacob was not the onl y

thing about him derived from Paradise The archangel .

M ichael had fetched then c e the wine which Jacob gave his
”
father to drink that an exa l te d m ood might des cend upon
,

him fo r only when a man is j oyously excited the Shekinah

,

”
r ests upon him The holy spirit fi l led Isaac an d he gave
.
,

Ja c ob his tenfold blessing Go d give thee of the de w o f

”
heaven the celestial de w wherewith God will awaken the
,

pious to n e w life in days to come ; and O f the fatness of

the earth the goo ds Of this world ; and plenty of corn
and wine the Torah and the c ommandments which bestow
,

the same j oy upon man as abundant ha rvests ; peop l es 95 “

shall serve thee the Ja p h e th ite s an d the Hamites

,
nations
336 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je ws

The h oly sp i r i t a d ded in turn : He sha l l cal l upon me ,

and I wi ll answer him ; I will be with him in troub l e ; I wi l l

deliver him and honor h im With l ong life wi l l I satisfy
,
.

”
him and sho w him my salvation
,
.

Jacob left the presence of his father crowned like a bride

groo m adorn ed like a bride and bathed in celestial de w
, , ,

whi c h fil led h is bo nes with marrow and transformed him ,

”
into a hero and a giant .

O f a miracle done fo r him at that very moment Jacob

himself was not aware Had he tarried with his father an.

instant longer Esau would have met him there and wo u l d

, ,

sure l y have s l ain him It happened that exactly as Jacob

.

was on the point O f leaving the tent o f his father carrying ,

in his hands the p l ates O ff which Isaac had eaten he noticed ,

Esau approaching and h e concea l ed himse l f behind the d oo r

,
.

Fortunately it was a r evo l ving d oo r s o that though he cou l d

, ,

s e e Esau he could not b e seen by him

,
.

E SA U ’
S T R U E C HARACTER R E V EALED
”
E sau arrived after a delay o f four hou rs In spite O f .

all the efforts he had put forth h e had not succeeded in ,

catching any game an d he was compe ll ed to ki ll a dog and

,

’
prepare its flesh f or his father s A ll this had made
Esau ill humored and when he bade his father partake o f
-
,

the meal the invitation sounde d harsh

,
Let my father .
“

” ’ ”
arise he said
, and eat o f h is son s venison
,
Jacob had .

S poken differently ; he had said Arise I pray thee s it and , , ,

eat o f my venison The wo rds of Esau terrified Isaac

.

greatly His fright exceeded that which he had fe l t when

.

h i s father was about to O ff er him a s a sacrifice and he cried ,

 Ja co b 337

o u t, Who then is he that h a th been the me d iator between

”
me and the Lord to make the blessing r e a ch Ja c ob !
,
f

words meant to imp l y that he suspected Rebekah of hav i ng

’
instigated Jacob s act .

Isaac s alarm was c ause d by his seeing hell at the feet of

’

Esau S carce l y had he entered the house w hen the walls

.

thereof began to get hot on account o f the nea rness o f hell ,

which h e brought along with him Isaac cou l d not but ex .

claim Who will be burnt down yonder I or my son

,
“
,

”
Jacob ! and the Lord answered him Neither thou nor ,

”
Jacob but the hunter
,
.

Isaac told Esau that the meat s e t before him by Jacob had
ha d marve ll ous qua l ities Any savor that on e desired it .

possessed it was even endowed with the taste o f the food

,

that God wi l l grant the pious in the world to come I .

“

”
know not he said what the meat w a s But I had only to
, , .

wish for bread and it tasted l ike bread o r fish or locu sts o r
, , , ,

flesh of animals in short it had the taste o f any dainty on e

, ,

” ” “
could wish for When Esau heard the word flesh he
.
,

began to weep and he said : To me Jacob gave no more

,

than a dish o f lentils and in payment for it he took my ,

birthright What must he have taken f rom thee for fl esh

.

! ”
of animals H itherto Isaac had been in great anguish on
a ccount of the thought that he had committed a wrong in

giving hi s b l essing to his younge r s on instead o f the fir s t

born to whom it belonged by l a w and custom But when
, .

he heard that Jacob had acquired the bi rthright f rom E sau ,

”
he said I gave my blessing to the right one !
,

In his dismay I saac had had the intention of c urs i n g

,

Jacob for h aving w rested the blessing from him through

22
3 38 Th e L e g en ds o f th e J e ws

cunn i ng God prevented him from carrying o u t his plan

. .

H e reminded him that h e would but curse himse l f see ing ,

that h is blessing contained the wor d s Cursed be eve ry one ,

”
that c urseth thee B ut Isaac was not willing to a ckn ow l
.

edge his blessing valid as applied to Jacob until he w a s ,

i nforme d that h is se co n d s on w a s the possessor o f the bi rth

”
r ight O nly the n d i d he s a y Yea he shall be blessed
.
,
“

, ,

whereat Esau c ried with an ex c eeding great an d bitte r c ry .

By w a y o f punishment for having been the c ause o f su c h

distr ess a des c endant o f Jacob M ordecai w a s also made to
, , ,

c ry w i th a loud and bitte r c ry and his grie f w a s bro ught,

forth by the Amalekite H aman the des c endant O f Esau At

,
.

the words Of Isaac Thy brother c ame with wisdom and

, ,

”
hath taken a w ay thy blessing Esau spat ou t in vexati on
, ,

and sai d H e took away my birthright an d I kept silence

, , ,

and n ow that he takes away my blessing S hould I also keep ,

silence ! Is not h e rightly named Ja c ob ! for he hath

1 01

” ”
supp l ante d me thes e two times .
1

Isaa c continue d to speak t o Esau : B ehold I have ma d e ,

him thy lor d h e i s thy kin g an d do w hat thou wi l t thy

, , ,

blessings w i ll st i ll b el on g to him ; all h is brethren have I

given t o him fo r S laves and w hat slaves possess belongs to
,

their o wner The r e is nothing for it thou must be content

.
,

”
that thou wilt receive thy brea d bake d f rom thy master .

The Lo rd took i t i ll o f Is a a c that he cheered him with su ch

”
kind words T o Mine enemy He r eproached him thou
.
, ,

’
sayest What shall I do fo r thee my son !
, Isaa c replie d
, ,

O that he mig ht fin d gra c e with The e ! God : He is a

re c reant Isaa c : Doth he not act righteo usly when he
.

”
h o n o rs his parents ! God : In the lan d of uprightness
34 0 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ews

t o n o condition whatsoever Whether he deserved them or

.

n o t E sau was to enj oy the goods o f thi s world Jacob s

,
’
.

blessing however depended upon his pious deeds ; through

, ,

them he w ould have a j ust c laim upon earthly prosperity .

Isaa c th o ught : Jacob is a r ighteous man h e wi l l not mur ,

mur against God though it should come to pass that su ff er

,

ing be inflicted upon him in spite o f his upright li fe But .

that reprobate Esau i f he should do a good deed o r pray to

, ,

Go d and not be heard he wou l d say As I pray to the ido l s

, ,

for naught s o it is in vain to pray to God

, F or this rea
s on di d Isaac besto w a n unconditional blessing upon Esau
“
.

’
J A C OB L EA! E S H I S F ATHER S H OUSE
Esau hate d h is brothe r Jacob o n account o f the blessing
that his father ha d given him and Jacob was very much
,

a f raid of his brothe r Esau and h e fle d to the house o f Eber

, ,

the s on o f Shem an d he c on c eale d himsel f there fourteen

,

year s on account of h is brother Esau and he continued there ,

to learn the ways o f the Lor d an d His commandments .

When Esau s a w that Jacob had fled an d escaped from him ,

and Jacob had cunningly obtained the blessing th en Esau ,

grieve d exceedingly an d he was also vexed at his father

,

and mother He a l so rose up and took his wife and went

’

.
,

away from his fathe r and mother to the land o f S ei r There .

he married his second wife B a s e ma th the daughter of E l on

, ,

the Hittite and h e called her name Adah saying that the
, ,

b l essing ha d in that time passed from him After dwel l ing .

in Se i r for s ix months Esau returned to the land o f Can a an

, ,

’
and place d his two wives in his father s house i n Hebron .

An d the wives Of Esau vexed and provoked Isaa c and Re

 Ja co b 34 1

bekah with their works for they walked not in the ways of ,

’
the Lord but served their fathers gods of wood and stone
, ,

a s thei r fathers had taught them and they were more wicke d ,

than thei r fathers They sacrificed and burnt incense to the

.

Baa l im and Isaac and Rebekah became wea ry of them An d

,
.

’
at the end o f fou rteen years o f Jacob s r esiding i n the house
o f Eber Jacob desired to s e e h is father and his mother and
, ,

he returned home Esau had forgotten in those days what

.

Jacob had done to him in having taken the b l essing from ,

him but when Esau s a w Jacob returning to his parents he

, ,

remembered what Jacob had done to him and he w a s greatly ,

” 7
incensed agai nst him and he sought to slay him
,
.

But Esau wou l d not ki l l Jacob while his father w a s yet

a l ive l est Isaac beget anothe r s on He wanted to be sure
,
.

O f being the on l y heir

1 08
However his hatred against Jacob
.
,

wa s so gr eat that he determined to hasten the death O f his

father and then dispatch Jacob S u ch murderous plans .

Es au cherished in his heart though he den i e d that he was

'

harboring them But God spoke . Probably thou knowest ,

not that I examine the hearts O f men for I am the Lord ,

”
that searcheth the heart And not God alone knew the .

secret desires O f Esau Rebekah like a l l the Mothers was

.
, ,

a prophetess and she delayed not to warn Jacob o f the

,

”
danger that hung over him Thy brother s h e said t o .
,

“
him , is as sure of accomplishing his wicked purpose as
though thou wert dead Now therefore my son Obey my .
, ,

voice and arise flee thou to Laban my brothe r to Har a n

, , , ,

’
and ta rry with him for seven years unti l thy brother s fury ,

”
turn away In the goodness Of h er heart Rebekah could
.
,

not but be li eve that the anger o f Esau was only a fleeting
34 2 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je w s

passion and would disapp ea r in the course o f time But s h e

,
.

”
was mistaken his hate persisted until the end o f his life
,
.

Courageous as he w a s Jacob would not run away from ,

danger He sai d to h is mother

. I am not afraid ; i f h e ,

”
wishes t o kill me I wi l l kill him to which she replied Let
, , ,

” °
me not be bereaved o f both my s o ns in on e day By these .
11

wor d s Rebekah again showed her prophetic gift As sh e .

spoke s o it happened— when their time c ame Esau was

, ,

s l ain while the burial o f Jacob was taking place .

And Jacob said to Rebekah : Behol d thou knowest that ,

my father h a s bec o me ol d and d oes n o t s e e and i f I leave ,

him and go away he will be angry and will curse me I

, .

”
w ill not go ; i f h e sen d s me only then will I go , .

A c cordingly Rebekah went to Isaa c and amid tears she

, ,

spoke to him thus : I f Ja cob take a wife o f the daughters

” ”
o f Heth what goo d shall my life d o me
,
! And Isaac 1

ca l led Jacob and cha rged him an d sai d unt o him : Tho u
, ,

shalt n o t take a w ife o f the d aughters of Canaan for thu s ,

did ou r f ather Abraham c omman d u s a c c o r d ing to th e word

o f th e Lo r d which He ha d commanded h i m saying
, Unt o , ,

thy seed will I gi ve the land ; i f thy c hildren keep My c ove

nant that I h ave made with thee then will I also perform to ,

thy c hildren that which I have spoken unto thee and I will ,

’
not fo rsak e them Now there fore my s on hearken to my
.
, ,

voi c e t o all that I shall command thee and refrain from

, ,

taking a w i fe f rom amongst the daughters of Canaan A ri se .

,

’
go to Haran to the house Of Bethuel thy mother s father
, , ,

and take thee a w ife from thence O f the daughters Of Laban ,

’
thy mother s brother Take heed lest thou shouldst forget
.

the Lord thy God and a l l His ways in the lan d to which
344 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jews

let not the purpose prosper which Esau harbors against

Jacob Put a bridle upon h i m that he accomp l ish not all
. ,

'
” ”7
h e w il l s
to do .

’
When Esau observe d that even h i s father s love ha d
passed from him to Jacob he went away to I shma el an d , , ,

he addressed him as follows : LO as thy father gave all ,

his possessions to thy brother Isaac and dismissed thee with ,

empty hands so my father purposeth to do to me Make

, .

thysel f ready then go fo rth and slay th y brother and I wi l l

, ,

slay mine and then w e tw o shall divide the whole wor l d

,

”
between u s And Ishmael rep l ied : Why dost thou want
.

”
me to slay thy father thou canst do it thysel f
! Esau said .

It hath happened aforetime that a man ki l led his brother

Cain murdered Abel But that a s on should ki l l his father
.

is unh ear d O f .

Esau did n o t really sh ri nk back from parri cide only it ,

chanced not to fit the plan he had hatched I f Ishmael .

slays my f ather he said to himsel f ,

I am the rightful ,
“

redeemer and I shall kill Ishmael to avenge my f ather an d

, ,

i f then I murder Jacob too everything wi l l be l ong to me

, , , , ,

””
as the he i r of my father and my uncle This shows that .
8

’
Esau s marriage with Mahalath the d aughter of Ishmael ,

and gr andchild o f Abraham was not con c luded ou t o f r e ,

gard for his parents who were Opposed to his tw o other ,

wives daughters o f the Canaanites All he desired was to

, .

enter into amicable relations with Ishmael in order to exe

c ute his d evi l ish plan .
“

But E sau reckoned without his host The night be fore .

his wedding with Maha l ath Ishmae l died and Nebaioth , ,

the s on o f Ishmael stepped into his father s place and gave

’
, ,
 Ja co b 34 5

” ’
away h is siste r H ow litt l e it had been in Esau s min d to
. .

make his parents happy by taking a granddaughte r of Abra

ham to wi fe appears from the fact that he kept his tw o
,

othe r wives the Canaanitish women The daughte r o f I s h

,
.

mae l followed the example o f her c ompanions and thus s h e ,

but added to the gr ief c ause d the parents o f Esau by their

daughters in —la w
-
.
121
And th e opportunity might have been
a most favorable one for Esau to turn aside from his god l ess
ways and a mend his c ondu c t for the bridegroom is pardoned
,

o n his wed d ing day fo r all his sins c ommitted in years

gone by .

’
Scarcely had Ja cob left his father s house w hen R ebekah ,

began to weep for s h e w a s sorely distressed about him

, .

“
Isaac comforted her saying : Weep not for Jacob ! In
,

peace doth he depart and in pea c e wi l l he return The Lo rd

,
.
,

God Most High will guard him against a l l evil and be with
,

him He wi ll not forsake him all the days of his li fe Have

. .

no fear for him for he wa l keth on the right pa th he is a

, ,

perfect man an d he hath f aith i n Go d—h e w ill n o t

,

” ” 1
perish .

J A C OB PU R S U ED B Y E L IP HA Z A ND E S A U
When Jacob went away to go to Haran Esau calle d h is ,

s on Eliphaz and secret l y spoke unto him saying : Now

, ,

hasten tak e thy sword in thy hand and pursue Jacob and
, ,

pass before him i n the road and lurk for him and slay him
,

with thy sword in o n e o f the mountains and take all b e ,

”
longing unto him and come back ,And Eliphaz was dex .

t e r ou s and expe rt with the bow as his father had taught ,

him and he w a s a n o ted hunter in the field and a valiant

,
346 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jews

man And Eliphaz did as his father ha d co mmanded him

. .

And Eliphaz was at that time thirteen years ol d and he ,

’
a rose an d went and t o ok ten of his mother s brothers with
him and pu r sue d Ja c ob An d he followed Jacob closely a n d
, .
,

when he o ve r to o k him he lay in ambush for him on the

,

bo r ders o f the land of Canaan Opposite to the c ity of She

,

chem An d Jacob s a w Eliphaz and his men pursuing after

.

him an d Ja c ob stoo d in the place in which he was going in

,

order to know w hat it w a s for he d id not understand their

,

purpose Eliphaz dre w h is swor d and went on advanc i ng

.
,

he a n d his men t owa rd J a cob and Ja cob said unto them

, , ,

Wherefo re have you c ome hither an d why d o you pursue ,

w ith y o u r swords ! Eliphaz c ame near to Ja cob and a n ,

s w e r e d as f ollo w s Thus did my father c ommand me and

, ,

n ow there f ore I will not d eviate f rom the orders whi c h my

fathe r gave me A n d when Ja c ob s a w that Esau had im

.

p r esse d his c omman d u r gently upon E l iphaz he approache d ,

and suppli c ate d Eliphaz and h is men saying B ehold all , , ,

that I have and that which my father and m o ther gav e unto
,

m e that tak e unto the e and go from me and do not

, ,

slay me an d may this thing that thou wilt d o with me be

,

”
acc o unte d unt o thee a s r ighteousness And the Lord .

caused Ja cob to fin d favo r i n the sight o f E l iphaz and hi s

men and they hearkened to the voice of Jacob and they did
, ,

not put him t o d eath but took all his belongings toge ther
, ,

w ith the silver and gold that he had brought with him from
Beer S heba They left him nothing When E l iphaz and
-
. .

his men returned to Esau and to l d h i m all that had hap

,

pened t o them with Jacob he was wroth with his s on E l i

,

p h a z and w ith h is men beca u s e they ha d not put Ja c ob to

,
34 8 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

o ff , but he w a s overwhelmed by the waves and he met his ,

’
death Ja c ob put on the dead man s c l othes m ounted his
.
,

horse an d went o ff It w a s a lucky chance for E l iphaz had

, .
,

st r ipped him o f everything even his Cl othes a n d the m ir a cl e

, ,

o f the river had happened only that he might not be f or c ed

”
to appear naked among men .

Though Jacob was robbed o f all his po ssessions his ,

courage did not fail him He said : Should I lose hope in

.

my Creator ! I s e t my eyes upon the merits o f my fathers .

”
F or the sake o f them th e Lord wi l l give me H is aid An d .

“
God said : Jacob thou puttest thy trust in the merits o f
,

thy fathers therefore I wi ll not su ff er thy foo t to be moved ;

,

He that keepeth thee will not slumber Yea still more ! .

,

While a keeper wat c heth only by day as a rule and sleepeth ,

by night I wi l l guard thee day and night for behold He

, , , ,

that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep The .

Lord wi l l keep thee from a l l evil from Esau as well as ,

Laban ; He will keep thy soul that th e Angel o f Death do

,

thee no hurt ; He will keep thy go i n g ou t and thy coming in ,

H e will support thee n ow thou a rt leav i n g Canaan and ,

”
when th o u re tu rn e s t to Canaan .

Jacob was relu ctant to l eave the Holy Land before b e r e

”
ce ive d direct permission from God My parents he r e .
,

fl ecte d bade me go forth and so j ourn outside o f the land

,
“
,

but w h o knows whether it be the wi l l o f God that I do as

” ” 1
they s a y and beget children outside of the Holy Land !
,

Accordingly he betook hims elf to Beer S heba

, There -
.
,

where the Lord had given pe rmission to Isaac to depart from

Canaan and go to Phi l istia he would learn the w i ll of the
,

Lord concerning himsel f .

 Ja cob 34 9

He did not fo l low the examp l e o f his father and grand

fathe r and take re fuge with Abimele ch b ecause he feared ,

the king might force also him into a co venant an d make it ,

impossib l e fo r his descendants o f many generations to take

possession o f the Philistine land Nor c oul d he stay at home.
,

because o f his fear that Esau might wrest the birthright

and the blessing from him and to that he would not and ,

13
could not agree He was as little disposed to take up the
.

combat with Esau for he knew the truth o f the maxim H e

, ,

who courts danger will be overcome by it ; he who avoids

danger wi ll overcome it Both Abraham and Isaa c had
.

l ived according to this rule His grandfather ha d fl ed from

.

Nimrod and his f ather had gone away f r om the Phi l is

,

”
tines !

T HE D AY O F M IRACLES
’
Jacob s j ourney to Haran was a suc c essi o n of miracles .

The first o f the five that be fell for his sake in the c ourse o f
it was that the s u n sa n k whi l e Jacob w a s passing Mount
Mo ri ah though it w a s high noon at the time He was fo l
, .

lowing the sp ri ng that appeare d wherever the P atriarchs

went o r settled It accompanied Ja cob from Beer S heba to
.
-

’
Mount Moriah a t wo days j ourney When he arrived at
, .

the ho l y hill the Lord said to him : Ja c ob thou hast brea d

, ,

in thy wa ll et and the spring o f waters is near by t o quench

,

thy thirst Thus thou hast f ood and drink an d here thou
.
,

”
canst lodge for the night But Jacob replie d : The s u n
.

has bare l y passed the fifth of its twelve d ay stages why ,

”
shou l d I lie down to sleep at s o unseemly an h o u r ! But
then Ja c ob pe r cei ved that the sun was about to sink and he ,
3 50 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je ws

prepared to make ready his bed It was the D ivine purpose

.

not to let Jacob pass the site o f the future Temp l e without
stopping ; he was to tarry there at least one n ight A l so Go d .
,

desired t o appea r unt o Jacob an d He shows H imsel f un to

,

”
His faith f ul ones only at night At the same time Jacob
.

was save d f rom the pu r suit o f Esau who had to d es i st on ,

”
account o f the prematu r e d a r knes s .

Jacob took twelve stones from the altar on which his

f ather Isaa c had lain b o un d as a sa c r i fi c e and he said : It ,

was the purpose o f God to let twelve tribes a rise but they ,

have n ot been begotten by Abraham or Isa ac I f n ow .

, ,

these twelve stones will unite int o a single on e then S hall I ,

kno w fo r a c ertainty that I am destined to become the f athe r

”
o f the twelve tribes At this time the se c on d miracl e came
.

to pass the twelve stones j oined th emselves together an d

,

made on e which he put un d e r his head an d at once it b e

, ,

came soft an d downy like a pillow It was we ll that he ha d .

a com fo rtable co uch He w a s i n gr eat need o f rest f or it

.
,

was the first night in fourteen years that he did not keep
’
vigils During all thos e years passe d in Eber s house o f
.
,

learnin g h e h a d d evote d the nights to study An d f or

, .

twenty year s t o co me he w a s not to sleep for while he w a s ,

with his uncle Laban he s pent all the night a n d eve ry night
,

”
reciti ng the Psalm s !
O n the w hol e it w a s a n i ght of ma rvels He dreame d a .

’
dream i n whi c h the co u r se o f the w o rl d s h i sto r y was n u
fol d e d to h i m O n a ladder set up on th e earth with the
.
‘

top o f it r eaching to heaven h e behel d the tw o angels who

,

had been sent to Sodom For on e hundre d and thi rty eight
.
-

years they ha d been ban i she d fro m the c elestial regions b e ,

3 52 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

earth But as the earth is tro d d en up o n by all so thy chil

.
,

dren when they commit trespasses wi ll be trodden upon by

, ,

” ”
the nations of the e arth
1
And furthermore God prom
.
, ,

ised that Jacob shoul d spread ou t to the west and to the east ,

a greate r p r omise than that given to hi s fathers Ab raham

’
and Isaac to whom He had a ll otte d a limite d l and Jacob s
,
.

” f
w a s an unbounded p o s s e s s ion

From this wondrous dream Jacob awoke with a sta r t o f

fright on account o f the vision he had had o f the de s t r u c
,

”
tion o f the Temple H e cried out H ow dreadful is this
.
,

place ! this is none other but the house o f Go d wherein is ,

”
the gate o f heaven through which prayer ascends to Him .

He took the stone made ou t o f the twe l ve and s e t it up for ,

a pillar and poured oil upon the t op of it which had flowed

, ,

down from heaven for him and God sank this anointed stone
,

unto the abyss to serve as the centre o f the earth the same
, ,

stone the Eben S h e tiya h

, that forms the centre o f th e
,

sanctuary whereon the Ine ff ab l e Name is g raven the

, ,

know l edge of which makes a man master over natu re and ,

over li fe and death .

Jacob cast himself down before the Eben S h e t iya h an d ,

entreated God to fulfil the promise He had given him and ,

a l so he prayed that God grant him honorable sustenance .

F or God had not mentioned bread to eat and raiment to put

o n that Jacob might learn to have faith in the Lord
, Then .

he vowe d to gi ve the tenth o f a l l he owned unto God i f He ,

would but grant h i s petition Thus Jacob was the first to .

”
take a vow upon himsel f and the first too to separate th e
, , ,

“
tithe from his income .

God had promi sed him almost all that is desirable but ,
 Ja co b 3 53

he feared he might forfeit the pledged b l essings through his

”
S infu l ness and again he prayed earnest l y that God bring
,
5

’
him back to his father s house unimpaired i n body posses ,

”
sions a n d knowledge an d guard him in the strange land
, , ,

whither he was g o in g a gainst idolatry an i mm o ral li fe

, , ,

” 7
and bloodshed .

His praye r at an en d Ja cob set ou t on h is way to Haran

, ,

and the third wonder happened In the twinkling of an eye .

he arrived at his destination The earth j umpe d from .

Mount Moriah to Haran A wonder like this God has exe .

”
c u te d on l y four times in the whole course o f history !

The first thing to meet his eye in H aran w a s the well

whence the inhabitants d rew their supply of water A l .

though it was a gr eat city Haran su ff ered from dearth o f ,

water and therefore th e well could not be used by the

,

’
peop l e free o f charge Jacob s so j ourn in the city produ c ed
.

a change By reason o f his meritorious dee d s the wate r

.

springs were blesse d an d the city had w ater enough for its
,

needs .

Jacob s a w a number o f people by the well an d he ques ,

t ion e d them My brethren when c e be ye !

, H e thus ,

made himsel f a model for all to fo l low A man should be .

companionab l e an d address others like br o thers and fr i ends

, ,

and not wait fo r them to greet him Each on e should strive .

to be the fi rst to give the salutation o f pea c e that the angels ,

o f peace and compassion may come to meet him When h e .

was informed that the b y standers hailed from Haran h e -

,

made inquiry about the chara cter and vo c ation o f his uncl e
Laban and whether they were on terms o f friendly i nter
,

cou rse with him They answered briefly : The r e is peace

.
3 54 Th e L e g en ds f
o th e Jews

between us but i f thou art desirous o f i nqu ir i n g f u rthe r

, ,

here comes Rachel the daughter o f Laban From her thou .

”
canst learn all thou hast a mind to learn They knew that .

”
wom en l ike to talk where fore they r eferred h i m t o Ra chel
,
.

Jacob found it strange that s o many shoul d be sta n di ng

idle by the we l l and he q uestioned fu rther : Are you d ay
,

laborers ! then i t is too early fo r y o u to put by you r work .

But i f you are pasturing your ow n sheep why do you n o t ,

water you r flocks and let them They told him

they w ere waiting until all th e shepherds brought their
flocks thither and together ro ll ed the stone from the mouth
,

o f the well. While he was yet speakin g with them Rachel ,

’
came with her father s sheep for Laban had no sons an d
, ,

a pest having broken ou t shortly before among his cattle so ,

f e w sheep were le f t that a maiden like R achel could easily

tend them Now when Jacob s a w the daughter o f h is
.
,

mother s brother approaching he ro ll ed the great stone f ro m

’
,

the mouth of the we l l as easily as a cork is drawn f rom a

bott l e— the fou rth wonder o f this extraordina ry day Ja .

’
cob s str ength was equal to the stren gt h o f all th e shep
herds ; with his t w o a rms al o ne he accomplished what usual l y
”
requires the unite d for c es o f a large assemblage o f men .
1

He had been d ivinely endowe d with this supernatural

stren gt h on leaving the Holy Land God had caused the .

de w o f th e resurre c tion t o d rop down upon him an d his ,

physical st r ength was s o great that even i n a c ombat w i th

”
the angels he was Victor i ous .

The fifth and last w o nder o f the d ay w a s that the w ater

rose from the depths o f the wel l to the ve ry top there was ,

no need to draw i t u p and there it remaine d all the t w enty

,

yea rs that Jacob abode in Haran .

3 56 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jews

attended he concluded that he carried great sums o f money

,

in his gird l e and he threw his arms about his waist to find
,

o ut whether his supposition w a s true Disappointed in this .

,

h e yet di d not give up hope that his nephew Jacob was a man
of s ubstan c e P erhaps b e co ncealed precious stones in his
.

m o uth and h e kisse d him in order to find ou t whether he

,

ha d guesse d a ri ght B ut Jacob sai d to him : Thou think

.
~

e s t I have money Nay thou art mistaken I h ave but

.
, ,

Then he went on to tell him h ow it had come

about that he stood be fore him empty han d ed H e said that -
.

his father Isaa c had sent him on his w a y provided with gold ,

s i lve r and money but he had encountered E l iphaz who had

, , ,

threatened to slay him To this assailant Jacob had spoken .

thus : Kn o w that the d escendants o f Abraham have an

obligation to meet they will have to serve four hundred,

years in a lan d that is n ot theirs If thou s l a ye s t me then .

,

you the seed of Esau w ill have to pay the debt

,
It were
, .

better therefore to take all I have and spare my life s o

, , , ,

that what is owing may b e pai d by me Hence Ja c ob .

,

continued I stand before thee ba r e of all the substance

,

”
ca rried Off by Eliphaz .

’
This tale o f his nephew s pove rty filled Laban w i th dis
“
may .What he exclaimed shall I have to give food
, ,

and drink for a m onth o r perhaps even a year to this fe ll ow , , ,

w h o has come t o me empty hande d ! H e betook himse l f -

to his teraphim to a s k them for counsel upon the matter

, ,

and they admonished him saying : Beware o f send i ng him ,

away from thy house His star an d his constel l ation are so
.

lucky that good fortune wi l l atten d a l l his undert a kings and ,

for his sake the blessing of the Lor d w ill rest upon al l thou
”
do est in thy house o r in thy fi el d
, .
 Ja co b 7

Laban was satisfied with the advice o f the teraphim b u t ,

h e w a s emb a rrassed as to the way in which he was to attach

Ja c ob to his house He did not venture to o ff e r him service
.
,

’
lest Ja c ob s c onditions be impossible o f f ulfilment Again .

he reso rted to the teraphim and asked them with what ,

r ewa rd to tempt his nephew and they replied : A wife is ,

his w age ; he wi ll ask nothing else o f thee but a wi fe It is .

his nature t o be attracted by wom en and whenever he ,

threatens to leave thee d o but o ff e r him another wi fe an d

, ,

” ” 1
he will not depart .

Laban went back to Jacob and said Tell me what sha l l

, , ,

”
thy wages be ! and he rep l ied Th i nkest thou I came ,
“

” ” 1
hither to make money ! I came only to get m e a wife ,

for Jacob ha d n o sooner beheld Rachel than h e fell in love

with her a n d made her a p r Op o s a l of marriage R ache l con .

sented but a d ded th e warning : My father is c unning and

, ,

”
thou a rt n ot his match Ja c ob : I am his brother in cun
.

”
ning . Ra c hel But i s deception be coming unto the
”
pious ! Ja c ob : Yes with the righteous righteousness
,

”
is seemly an d w ith the deceiver deception But continued
, .
,

Jacob , tell me wherein he may deal cunningly with me .

“
Rachel : I have an older sister whom he desires to see ,

married befo r e m e and he wi l l try to palm her o ff on thee

,

” ’
instead of me To be prepared for Laban s trickery Jacob
.
,

and Rachel agreed upon a S ign by which he would recognize

her in the nuptial
Thus warne d to be on his guard against Laban Jacob ,

worded hi s agreement with him regarding his marriage to

Rachel with such precision that no room was le ft for d is to r
0 tion or gui l e Jacob said : I know that the people o f this
.
“
358 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jew s

place a r e knaves there fore I d esire to put the matt er ve r y

,

c learly to thee I wi ll serve thee seven years for Ra c hel hen ce

.
,

not Leah ; fo r thy daughter that thou bringest me not some

,

o ther woman likewise name d Ra chel ; for the younger da ugh

”
te r that thou e x ch a n g e s t not their names in the meantime
,
.

Nothing of all this availe d : It p rofits not i f a villain is

c ast into a sawmill —neither for c e nor gentle words can
c i rcumvent a rascal Laban deceived not only Ja c ob but
.
,

al so the guests whom he invited to the wedding .

T HE M ARRIAGE O F J AC O B
Afte r Jacob had served Laban seven years he sai d t o his ,

uncle : The Lor d destined me to be the f ather of twelve

tribes I am n ow eighty fou r years ol d and i f I do n ot take
.
-
,

” ”
thought o f the matter n ow when c an I ! ,
Thereupon 1

Laban co nsented to let him have h is d aughte r Ra chel t o

w i fe and he was married forty four years a f ter his brothe r
,
-

E sau The Lor d o ften defers the happiness of the pious

.
,

w hile H e pe rmits the w i c ked to enj oy the fulfilment o f their

”
d esires s o on Esau however had pu rpose l y chosen his
.
1
, ,

fortieth year for h i s marriage ; he had wante d to indi cate

that he was wa l king in the footsteps o f his father Isaac who ,

had likewise married at f orty years o f age Esau was like .

a swine that stretches ou t its feet when it lies down to show ,

that it is cloven f ooted like th e clean an i mals though it is

-
,

none the less on e of the unclean animals U ntil his fortie th .

year Esau made a p r actice o f vio l ating the wives o f other

men and then at h is marriage he acted as though he were
,

fo ll owing the example o f his pious father Accordingly .

,

the woman he married was o f h is ow n kind Judith a da ugh , ,

360 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je ws

his olde r daughte r fir st for he knew that Ja c ob woul d

,

consent to serve him a second period of seven years f o r love

o f Rachel .O n the day of the wedding he assemble d the
inhabitants o f H aran an d addressed them as fo ll ows : Ye
,

kno w well that we used t o su ffer from lack o f water and ,

a s soon as this piou s man Jacob came to d well among us ,

”
w e had water in abundance What hast thou in mind to
.

do ! they asked Laban H e rep l ied : I f ye have naught

.

to s a y against it I wil l deceive him and give him Leah to

,

wife H e loves Rachel with an exceeding great love and

.
,

for her sake he will tarry with us yet seven other years
”
Do as it pleaseth thee his friends sai d
, Wel l then .
, ,

“
said Laban let each on e o f you give m e a pledge that ye
,

”
wi l l not betray my purpose .

With the pledges they left with him Laban bought wine , ,

o il an d meat for the wedding feast and he s e t a meal before

, ,

them which they had themse l ves paid for Becau se he de .

ce iv e d his fellow citizens thus Laban is c al l ed Arami

“
-
,
the ,

’
dece i ver . They feaste d all day long until late at night , ,

an d when Jacob expresse d his astonishment at the attention

“
shown him they said to him
, Through thy piety thou
didst a great service o f lovingkindness unto u s ou r supp l y ,

o f water w a s increased unto abundance and we d esire to ,

”
show o u r gratitude therefor And indeed they tried to
.
, ,

’
give him a hint o f Laban s pu rpose In the marriage ode .

”
which they sang they used the r e f rain Halia in the hope ,

”
that h e w o uld understand it as H a L e a h This I s Leah ,
.

B ut Jac ob w a s unsuspic i ous and noticed nothing .

When the bride was led into the nuptia l chamber the ,

guests extinguished a ll the candles much to Ja cob s amaze

’
,
 Ja co b 36 1

ment . But the ir ex planat io n s at i s fi e d him Thinkest .

”
th ou they said we have as little sens e o f de c ency as thy
, ,

c o unt rymen ! Jacob therefore did n ot discove r the de ce p

tion practiced upon him until morning During the night .

Leah responded whenever he called Ra c hel fo r w hich he ,

reproached her bitterly when daylight came O thou de .

ce ive r daughter o f a deceiver why didst thou answer me

, ,

’ ”
when I called Rachel s name ! Is there a teacher without
”
a pupil ! asked Leah in return ,
I but profited by thy .

instruction When thy father c alle d thee Esau di d st thou

.
,

” ” 1
not s a y Here am I !
,

Ja c ob was greatly enraged against Laban and he said to ,

him : Why didst thou deal treacherously with me ! Take

back thy daughter and let me depa rt seeing thou didst act
, ,

wicked l y toward me .
1 65
Laban pacified him however say , ,

ing, It is not s o d one i n o ur p l ace to give the younger ,

”
be fore the fir s t born and Jacob agreed to se rve yet seven
-
,

othe r years for Rachel and after th e seven days of the feast
,

’ ”
o f Leah s wedding were fulfilled he married Ra ch e l f ,

With Leah and Ra che l Jacob received the han dmaid s

,

Zilpah and Bi l hah t w o other daughters of Laban w hom his

, ,

”
con c ubines had borne unto him .

T HE B IRTH O F J AC OB S
’
C H I LDREN
The ways o f God are not l ike unto the ways o f men A .

man clings close to his friend while he has riches and for ,

sakes him when he fa l ls into poverty But when God sees a .

mortal unsteady a n d faltering H e rea c hes a hand out to him

, ,

and raises him up Thus it happened with Leah S he was

. .

hated by Jacob an d G o d visited her in mer c y Ja cob s aver

,
’
.
3 62 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ews

sion to Leah began the very morning after thei r wedding ,

when his wi fe taunted him with not being who l ly free fro m
c unning and cra ft himself Then God said Help can come
.
,

to Leah only i f s h e gives b i rth t o a child then the love o f

her husband w i ll r eturn t o Go d remembere d the
tea r s s h e ha d she d w hen s h e praye d that her doom cha ining ,

he r to that re cr eant Esau be averted from her and so w on

, ,

drou s are the uses o f praye r that Leah besides turning aside ,

the impen ding dec r ee was permitted to mar r y Jacob before

,

her sister and be the first to bear him a child There was .

another reason w h y the L o rd was c ompassionately inclined

towar d Leah S he ha d gotten herse l f ta l ked about The
. .

sailors on the s e a the t r avellers along the highways the

, ,

women at their looms they a l l go ssiped about Leah saying

, , ,

S he is n ot within what he r seeming is without She a p .

pe a r s to b e pi o us but if s h e we r e s h e would not have de

, ,

”
ce ive d her siste r To put an end to al l this tattl e God
.
,

granted her the distinction o f bearing a son at the end o f

seven months a fte r he r ma r riage He was on e of a pair o f .

twins the other c hild being a daughter So it was with

, .

eleven o f the sons of Ja c ob all o f them except Joseph w ere

,

bo rn twins wi th a g i rl an d the twin sister and brother mar

,

ried later o n Altogether it w a s an extraordinary chi l d

.
1

birth for Le a h w as ba rr en n o t forme d by nature to bea r

, ,

chil d ren .

She called he r fir s t b or n son R euben w hi c h means S ee

-
,

the normal man f or he was neither big nor little neith er

”
, ,

dark nor f air but exa ctly normal

,
In calling her olde st .
1 71

”
child Reuben See the son Leah indicated his futu re
, ,

”
character Behold the differen c e the name implied b e
.
, ,
364 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Jew s

may be r e ga rd e d a s th o u gh they w ere dead the blind the , ,

lepe r the childless an d he who w a s once rich and has lost

, ,

” ’
his fo rtune Ja c ob s anger was kind l ed against Rachel
.
,

and he sai d : It w e r e better thou shouldst address thy

’
petition to Go d and n ot to me for am I in God s stead who
, , ,

”
hath withheld f rom thee the f r uit o f the womb ! Go d was
1"

displeased with this answer that Jacob made to his sad wi fe .

He rebuked him w ith the words : Is i t thus tho u

woul d st c om fo rt a gr i ef stricken heart ! As thou livest the
-
,

d ay w ill c ome when thy children wi ll stand before the s on o f

Ra chel an d h e will u s e the same words thou hast but n ow
,

used saying Am I in the p l a c e o f the Lord !

, ,

Rachel also made rep l y to Jacob saying : Did not thy ,

f ather too entreat God for thy mother with earnest words
, , ,

beseeching H im t o remove her barrenness ! Jacob : It

is t r ue but Isaa c ha d no chi l dren and I have several
, Ra ,
.

chel °
Remembe r thy grandfather Abraham thou c anst ,

n ot deny that he ha d c hildren when h e supplicated God in

behal f o f S arah ! Ja cob : Wouldst thou do for me what

Sarah did for my g r andfather ! Rachel : P ray what did ,

”
sh e ! Jacob : S he hersel f brought a r i val into her house .

Ra chel : I f that is all that is ne c essary I am ready to fo l ,

l ow the example of Sarah and I pray that as she was ,

granted a c hild for hav i ng invite d a riva l so may I be ,

” ”
blessed too , Thereupon Rachel gave Jacob Bi l hah her
.
1
,

freed handmai d to wi fe and S he bore him a s on whom

, , ,

Rachel c a l le d Dan saying A S the Lor d w a s gr acious unto

, ,

me an d gave me a s on according to my petition s o He wi l l ,

permit Samson the d escendant o f Dan to j udge his peop l e

, , ,

” ’
that it fall n ot into the han d s of the Philistines Bilhah s .
 Ja cob 3 65

second son Rachel named Naphtal i sayin g M ine is the

, ,

bond that binds Jacob to this p l ace for it w a s for my sake

,

that he came to Laban . At the same time S he wanted to

convey by this name that the Torah which is as sweet as ,

”
No fe t,
honeycomb wou l d be taught in the territory o f
,

N And the name had sti ll a third meaning : As

Go d hath heard my fervent prayer for a son s o He wi ll ,

hearken unt o the fervent prayer of the Na p h ta lite s when

”” 1
they are beset by their enemies .

Leah see ing that she had left bearing while B ilhah h e r
, , ,

S ister s handmaid bore Jacob tw o sons concluded that it

’
, ,

’
was Ja c ob s destiny to h a v e ,fou r wives her sister and her ,

self and their hal f sisters Bi l hah and Zilpah Therefore

,
-
.

1 82
she also gave him her h a ndmaid to wife Zilpah was the .

youngest of the four women It was the custom of that time

.

to give the older daughter the o l der handmaid and the ,

younger daughter the younger handmaid as their dowry , ,

when they got married Now i n order to make Jacob b e

.
,

lieve that his wife was the younger daught er he had served
for Laban had given Leah the younger han dmaid as her
,

marriage portion This Zi l pah was so young that her bo d y

.

betrayed no outward signs o f pregnancy and nothing was ,

known of her condition until her s o n was born Leah ca ll ed .

“ ” “
the boy Gad which means fortune or it may mean the
, ,

cutter for from Gad was d escended the prophet Elij ah

, ,

who brings good fortune to Israel and he also c uts down

,

the heathen Leah had other reasons too for choos , ,

ing this name o f double meaning The tribe of Gad had the
.

good for tune o f entering into p ossession o f its a ll otment in

“
the H oly Land before any o f the others and also Gad the , , ,

”
s on of Ja c o b w a s born cir c um ci s e d !
3 66 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws
’
To Z ilp a h s second s on Leah gave the name o f Asher ,

”
praise f or s h e said
,
Unto me all manner of praise is
, ,
“

d ue for I brought my handmaid into the house of my hus

,

ban d as w if e S a r ah d id likew i s e but on l y because s h e had

.
,

n o chil d ren an d s o it w a s also with R achel But as for me

,
.
,

I ha d children and nevertheless I subdued my passion and

, ,

without j ealousy I gave my handmaid to my husband for

” ”
wife V erily all will praise and extol me
.
,
Furthermore .
1

s h e spoke : As the women will praise me s o the sons of ,

Asher wi ll in time to c ome p raise God fo r their fru i t f ul p os

”” 7
s ession in the Holy Land .

The next s on b o rn unto Jacob w a s Issa c har a reward , ,

an d once more it w a s Leah w h o was permitted to bring forth

the c hild a s a r ewar d f rom God for her pious desire to have
,

the twelve tribes co me into the worl d To se cure this r esu l t .

,

”
s h e left no means untrie d .

It happened once that her Oldest s o n R euben was tending

’
h i s father s a s s during the ha rvest and he bound him to a ,

r oot o f duda im and w ent his way O n returning he found

, .
,

the dudaim to r n ou t o f the ground and the ass lying dead ,

besi d e it The be a st had uprooted it in trying to get l oose

.
,

and the plant h a s a peculiar quality whoever tears it up ,

must d ie 18 9
As it w a s the time o f the harvest when it is ,

permitte d for any on e to take a plant from a field and as ,

dudaim is besides a plant which the owner o f a field e s

, ,

teems lightly Reuben carried it home Being a good son

, .
,

h e di d not keep it for himse l f but gave it to hi s mother ,

.

Ra chel desired the dudaim and she asked the plant of Leah , ,

who pa rted with it to her sister but o n the condition that ,

Ja co b when he r etu r ne d fro m w o r k in the evening sh o u l d

, ,
368 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jew s

two handmaids h a s borne him tw o I f n ow I were to bring .

, ,

forth another s on my sister Rachel wou l d not be equal even

,

”
unto the han d ma i ds Therefore s h e prayed to God to
.

change the male embryo in her w o mb into a f emale an d God ,

”
hearkene d unto her p r a ye r f
Now all the wives of Ja cob Leah Ra chel Zi l pah and , , , ,

Bi l hah unite d their prayers with the prayer o f Jacob and

, ,

togethe r they besought Go d to remove the curse of barren

’
ness f rom Ra c hel O n New Year s Day the d ay whereon
.
,

Go d sits in j udgment upon the inhabitants of the earth He ,

”
remembere d Ra chel an d g r anted her a s on
, And Rachel .

spake , God hath taken away my reproach for all the ,

people had sai d that s h e w a s not a pious woman e l se had ,

s h e borne chi l dren and n ow that God had hearkened to her

, ,

and opene d he r w omb such idle talk n o lon ger had any
,

”
r eason !
By b ea f in g a s on s h e ha d escape d another disgrace S he
, .

h a d said to hersel f : Jacob hath a mind to return to the

“

land o f his birth and my father wi l l not be able to hinder

,

his d aughters who have b o rne him children from fo ll owing

their husband thither with thei r chi l dren B ut he wi l l not .

let me the chil d less wi fe go too and he wi l l keep me here

, , , ,

and marry me t o o ne of the She said

f urthermore A s my s on hath removed my reproach s o
,
“
,

Joshua his descendant will ro ll away a reproach from the

, ,

”
Israelites when he C ircumcises th em beyond Jordan
,
.

Ra chel c alled her s on Joseph increase say i ng

’
Go d , , ,

wi l l give me an a dd itional s on Prophetess as s h e was s h e .

3,
,

foresaw s h e would have a second son But an increase .

adde d on by Go d is lar ger than th e original ca pital itsel f .

 Ja co b 69

B en j amin the second s on wh o m Ra c hel r ega rd e d me r el y

, ,
~

as a supplement had ten sons while Joseph begot on l y

, ,

tw o .These twelve together may be c onside r ed the twelve

”
tribes b o rne by Ra c hel Had Ra c hel not used the form o f
.
1

”
expression The Lord add to me another s on s h e he r sel f
, ,

’”
would have begotten t w elve tribes with Ja cob f

J A C OB F LEE S B E F O R E L AB AN
Ja co b h a d o nly been waiting f o r Joseph t o be b orn to
begin preparations for his j ourney home The holy spirit .

had revealed t o him that the house o f Joseph would work

the destruction o f the house o f Esau and therefore Jacob , , ,

Now I need not fear

“
exclaimed at the birth o f Joseph ,

, 7 333
Esau or his legions .

About this time Rebekah s ent her nurse Debo r ah the

, ,

’
daughter o f Uz a c companied by two of Isaac s servants to
, ,

’
Jacob to urge him to return to his father s house n ow that
, ,

his fourteen years of servi c e ha d come to an end Then .

Jacob approached Laban and spoke Give me my wives, ,

and my chi l dren that I may go unto m i ne ow n pla c e and

, ,

to my count r y for my mother has sent messengers unto

,

’ ” 2
me bidding me to return to my father s house
, Laban
answered saying O that I might find favo r in thine eyes !
, ,

By a sign it was made known unto me that God blesseth me

”
for thy sake What Laban had i n mind was the treasure
.

he had found on the day Jacob ca me to him and he con s id ,

” 5
ered that a token o f his b e n e fice n t powers Indeed God .
,

had wrought many a thing in the house of Laban that testi

fie d to the blessings spread abroad by the pious S hortly .

’
b e fore Ja cob came a pest ha d broken o ut a mon g Laban s
,

24
3 70 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jew s
”
ca ttle nd with his arrival it ceased
, a An d Laban had h a d .

’
no s on but d u r ing Ja cob s s oj o ur n i n Ha r an s ons w e r e bo rn
,

unto him .

A l l the hire he aske d in r etu r n for his labor an d f or the

blessings h e ha d brought Laban was the speckled and
spotted am ong the go ats o f his her d and the bla ck amon g ,

the sheep Laban assented to his conditions saying

. Be , ,

”
hold I woul d it m i ght be according to thy w o rd
, The .

a rch villain Laban w hose tongu e wagged in a l l di re ctions

-
, ,

and who ma d e all sorts o f promises that were never kept ,

j udged othe r s by himself and therefore suspected Ja cob o f

,

wanting to d eceive him An d yet i n the end it w a s Laban

.
208
, ,

himsel f who broke his wor d No less tha n a hun d red times .

he changed the agreement between them Neverthe l ess his .

’
unrighteous c ondu ct was o f no avail Though a three days .

j ourney had been s e t betwixt Laban s flocks an d Jacob s the

’ ’
,

angels were wont to bring the sheep belonging to Laban

’ ’
down to Jacob s sheep and Jacob s droves grew constantly
,

”
larger and better Laban had given on l y the feeb l e
.

and sick to Ja cob yet the young o f th e flock raised under

, ,

’
Jacob s tendance w ere s o excellent in qua l ity that people
,

”
bought them at a heavy p ri ce And Jacob had n o need to .
0

reso rt to the peeled ro d s H e had but to speak and the .

,

flocks bare ac c ord i ng to his desire What Laban deserved .

211

was utter ruin f or ha ving permitte d the pious Jacob to work

,

for him without hire and after his wages had been changed
,

ten times and ten times Laban ha d tried to overrea ch him

, ,

” 2
Go d rewarded him in this way But his goo d luck with .

the flo cks w a s only what Jacob deserved Every faithful .

labo rer is rewa r de d by G o d in this w o rld quite regardless ,

37 a Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je ws

ton gue .
The hea d with the tablet un d er the tongu e was
then put in a house where lights were lighted before it and ,

at the time when they bowe d down to it it spoke to them on ,

all matters that they aske d o f it and that was d ue t o the ,

p o w er of the Name wh i ch wa s wr i tten up o n it .

T H E CO! E NAN T W I TH L AB AN
Jacob d eparted an d crossed an d s e t his the Euph r ates ,

face toward Gilead for the ho l y spirit reveale d to him that

,

God would bring he l p there to his children in the days O f

Jephthah Meantime the shepherds o f Haran obse r ved that
.

the we l l which had been filled to overflowing since the ar

,

rival o f Jacob in thei r p l ace ran dry sud d en l y For three , .

days they watched and waited in the hope that the waters ,

w ould return in th e same abundance as before D is a p .

pointed the y final l y told Laban o f th e misfortune and he

, ,

d ivined at once that Jacob had departed thence for he knew ,

that the blessing had been conferred upon Haran only for
’ “
the sake of his s on in law s merits - -
.

O n th e morrow Laban rose early assembled a l l the people ,

o f the city an d pursue d Jacob with the intention o f ki ll ing

,

him when he overtook him But the archangel Michae l .

appeared unto him and bade him take heed unto h imse l f
, ,

that he d o n ot the l east unto Jacob else would he suffer ,

”
death himself This message from heaven c ame to Laban
.
0

during the night for when in extraordinary cases God finds

, , ,

it necessary to reveal Himsel f unto the heathen He does it

-
,

only in the dark clandestinely as it were while He shows

, ,

Himsel f to the prophets o f the Jews openly du ring daylight , .

Laban a cc omplishe d the j o u rney in on e day for w hich

 Ja co b 3 73

221
Jacob had taken seven and he overtook him at the mou n
,

tain of Gilead When he came upon Ja c ob he found h fm

.
,

I mmé
”
in the act o f pray i ng an d giving praise unto Go d !
dia te l y L a ban fell to remonstrat i ng with h is s on in l a w for - -

havin g st o len away unawares to him H e sho w ed h is tr u e .

character when he said It is i n the powe r o f my han d to

,

do thee hu r t but the God o f thy father sp ake unto me

,

yeste r night say i ng Take heed to thyself that thou speak

, ,

”
not to Jacob either good or bad That is the way o f the .

wicked they boast o f the evil they can do Laban wanted

, .

to l et Jacob know that on l y the dream warning him against

doing aught that was harm ful to Ja c ob p r evented him f ro m
carrying out th e wicked d esign he ha d forme d a gainst
”
h imf
Laban continued to take Ja cob t o task an d he con c lu d ed ,

with the words And n ow though thou wouldst nee d s

, ,

’
be gone because thou sore longedst after thy f ather s
,

”
house yet wherefore hast thou stolen my go d s !
, When
he pronounced the last words his grandchildren inter rupte d ,

him saying We are ashamed o f thee grandfather that in

, , , ,

’
thy ol d age thou shoul d st us e such words a s my gods ‘
.

Laban searched all the tents for his i dols going first to the ,

’
tent o f Jacob which was Rachel s at the same time for Jacob
, ,

always dwelt w ith h is f avorite wi fe Finding noth i ng he .

,

’
went thence to Leah s tent and t o the tents o f the t w o hand
,

maids and noticing that Rachel wa s feeling about here and

, ,

there his suspicions were aroused and he entered her tent

, ,

a second time H e would n ow have f ound what he was

.

looking for i f a mira c le had not come to pass The teraphim

, .

were trans formed into drinki n g vesse l s and Laban had to ,

desist from his fruit l ess S earch .

3 74
'

Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Jews

No w Jacob w h o did ,know that R achel had stolen he r

n ot

fa ther s teraphim i n ord e r t o turn h im aside from hi s i do la

’

trous way s w a s w ro th w ith Laban an d began to chi d e w i th

, ,

’
h i m In th e q uar r el between them Jacob s noble chara c ter
.
,

man i feste d i tsel f Notwithstanding his exc i tement he did

.
,

n o t su ff er a singl e unbecoming word to es c ape him H e .

only r eminded Laban o f the loyalty and d ev o tion with which

he had se r ved him doing fo r him w hat none other wou l d
,

o r coul d have don e H e s a i d : I d ealt w ro ng f ully with “

.

’
the lion for God had appo i nte d o f Laban s sheep for the
,

’
lion s d a i ly sustenan c e and I deprived him thereof Cou l d
, .

another shephe rd have d one thus ! Yes the people abuse d ,

me c alling me r obber a n d sneak thief for they th ought that

,
.
,

only by stea l ing by day and stealing by night coul d I repla c e

the animals tO r n by w ild beasts And as to my honesty ”
.
,

h e c ontinue d is i t likely there is another s on in l a w wh o

,
“
- -
,

having live d w ith h is f athe r in l a w hath n o t taken some - -

,

l ittle thing f ro m the household of his father in l a w a knife - -

, ,

o r other tr i fle ! But thou hast felt about all my stu ff what ,

hast th o u foun d o f all thy h o useh o l d stu ff ! N o t s o mu ch

”
a s a needle o r a nail .

In his in di gn ati o n an d co ns cio us o f h is i nno c en c e Ja cob

, ,

exclaime d “
Wit h w homsoeve r thou fin de s t thy gods h e
, ,

shall not l i ve w ords whi ch c ontaine d a c urse—the thie f

”
,

w a s cursed with p remature death and the r e fore Ra c hel ha d ,

to d ie in gi ving bi r th to Benj a min In d eed th e c urse w o ul d .

,

have taken e ffect at once ha d it n o t been the w i sh of God ,

”
that Rachel shoul d b e a r Ja cob h is y o ungest s on . .

After the quarrel th e tw o me n made a treaty a nd w i th

, ,

his gigantic strength Ja cob s e t up a huge ro ck a s a mem o

3 76 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je ws
”
Jacob an d h is family an d his substa nce had es cape d him .

H is t r ue f eelin gs he betraye d in the message which he sent t o

Esau at on c e upon h is return to H ar an by the hand o f his ,

s on B e or and ten c ompanions o f h is s on The message rea d .

Hast th o u h ea rd what Ja cob thy brother has done unto m e

‘

who first c ame to m e nake d an d bare an d I went to meet him , ,

and too k h im to my h o us e with honor an d brought hi m up , ,

and gave him my tw o daughters for wives an d als o t w o o f ,

my maids ! And God blesse d him on my ac count and he in ,

c rease d abundantly and had sons and daughters an d maid

,

servants an d also an uncommon stock of flocks and herds

, ,

c a mels an d asses also silve r and gold in abundan c e B ut

, .

w hen he s a w that his wealth in c rease d h e left me while I ,

w ent to shea r my sheep and he rose up and fled in secrecy

, .

And h e put h is w ives and children upon camels and he led ,

away all h is cattle an d substance w hi ch he acquired i n my

l and an d he r esolved to go to his f athe r Is a a c to the land o f
, ,

Canaan A n d he d id h ot s ti ffer me t o kiss my sons and

’ ‘

daughte r s and he c arr ied away my d aughters as captives

,

o f the sword an d he also stole my g o ds an d he fle d

, An d , .

n ow I have left him in the mountain of the br o ok o f Jabbok ,

he an d all belonging to him n ot a j o t of h i s substanc e is la ck

,

ing I f it be thy wish to go to h i m go an d there wilt thou

.
, ,

”m
find him an d th o u canst do unto him as thy soul desireth
, .

Jac ob ha d n o need to f ear eithe r Laban or Esau fo r on ,

his j ourney he w a s a c companie d by tw o angel hosts one ,

going with h i m fro m Haran t o the borders o f the Holy

Land where he was r e c eive d by the other h o st the angels
, ,

”
o f Palestine Ea c h o f these hosts consisted of no less than
.
0

”
s ix hu n dre d thousand angels an d w hen he beheld them
,
1
,
 Ja cob 3 77

Ja c ob sai d : Ye belong neither to the host o f E sau who i s ,

prepa r ing to go out t o w a r against me; no r the host o f

Laban who is about t o pursue me again Ye a r e th e hosts
,
.

”
of the ho l y ange l s sent by the Lord And he gave the name .

M a hanaim Doub l e Host to th e s pot on w hi c h th e se co n d

,
-
,

”
army r e l ieve d the first .

J A C O B A ND E SA U P RE P ARE To M EE T
’
The message o f Laban awakened Esau s ol d hatre d
towar d Ja cob with increase d fu r y and he assemble d his ,

househ o l d c onsisting o f sixty men With them and three

, .

hundre d and forty inhab i ta nts of S eir he went forth to do ,

battle with Ja cob an d kill h i m H e divided his warr i ors into

.

seven coho r ts gi ving to his s on Eliphaz h is ow n d iv i sion o f

,

sixty an d putt i ng the other s ix di visi o ns under as many o f

,

the Hor i tes .

While E s a u w a s ha sten i n g onwa rd to meet Ja c ob the ,

messenger s w hi c h Laban ha d sent to Esau c ame t o Rebekah

and told he r that Esau an d his fou r hundred men were abou t
to make wa r upon Ja cob w i th the pu rpose of slaying him
,

and taking possession of al l he had Anxious lest Esau .

shou l d execute his plan while yet Jacob w a s o n the j ourney ,

’
s h e hasti l y dispatched seventy tw o o f the retainers o f Isaac s
-

household to give him help Jacob tarrying on the banks

, .
,

o f the brook Jabbok r ej oiced at the sight o f these men and

, ,

’
b e gr eete d them w i th the words This is Go d s helpin g,
“

”
host w here fore he c alle d the pla c e o f their meeting M a
,

hamaim Host , .

Afte r the w a rri o r s sent by Rebekah had satisfie d h i s ques

ti o ns r ega r d i ng the w el fare o f his parents they d elive r e d his ,
3 78 Th e L e g e n ds o
f th e Je ws
’
mother s message unto h i m thus : I have hear d my s on , , ,

that thy brother Esau hath gone for th against thee o n the
roa d w i th men o f the c hildren of S ei r th e Horite an d
, ,

there for e my s on hea r ken to my voi c e an d take c ounsel

, , ,

wi th thysel f w hat thou wilt do an d when h e c ometh up t o ,

thee supp l i cate him an d do n o t speak r oughly to him an d

, , ,

give him a present f rom what thou possessest an d fr om ,

w hat God h a s f av o red thee with And w hen he asketh thee

.

conce r ning thy a ff a i rs conceal nothing fro m h i m pe rhaps

, ,

he may turn f rom h is anger aga i nst thee an d th o u wi l t ,

thereby save thy s o ul thou an d all belonging to thee for it

, ,

”
is thy duty to hono r him S in c e h e is th y elder brothe r
, .

An d w hen Ja c ob hear d the wor d s o f h is mother w h i ch

the messenge r s had spoken to h im he lifted up his voi ce ,

and w ept b i tterly an d di d a s h is mother c omman d ed him

, .

H e s e n t me s s e n ge r s t o Esau t o pla c ate h i m an d they sai d

‘

unto h i m Thus S peaketh thy servant Ja cob : My lor d

:

think n o t tha t the blessing which my father besto w e d upon

me pro fite d me T w enty years I se r ved Laban and b e d e
.
,

ce iv e d me a n d c hange d my h i re ten times

,
a s thou well ,

kn ow est Yet d i d I labor sorely in h i s h o use an d God s a w my

.
,

affl iction my labo r and the work o f my hands an d afterwa r d

, , ,

H e c ause d me t o find grace and favor in the sight of Laban .

’
An d th r ough Go d s great mercy an d kin d ness I a cq uired ,

oxe n an d asses an d cattle and men servants an d ma i d -

se rvants An d n ow I am c oming to my country an d to my

.

home t o my father an d mothe r w h o are i n the land o f

, ,

Canaa n An d I have sent to let my l o rd kn o w all this in

.

or d e r t o fi nd f av or in the eyes o f my l o r d s o that h e may ,

n ot i mag i ne t h at I have be c ome a man o f substan c e o r that ,

3 80 Th e L eg e n ds o f th e Jew s

In reply to all these gentle words Esau spoke with arro ,

gance : Sure l y I have h e ard and tru l y it has been told

,

unto me what Jacob has been to Laban w h o brought h im ,

up in h is house and gave him his daughters for wives an d

, ,

he begot sons and daughters and abundant l y increased i n

,

’
wea l th and riches in Laban s hous e and with his help An d .

when he s a w that his wealth was abundant and his riches

’
were great he fled with a ll belonging to him from Laban s
,

’
house and he carried away Laban s daughters from their
,

father a s ca ptives of the sword w ithout tel l ing him of it , .

And not only to Laban hath Jacob done thus but also unto ,

me hath he done s o and he hath twice supplan ted me and

, ,

shall I be silent ! N ow I have this day come with my ca mp

,

to meet him and I wi l l do unto him ac c ording to the desire

,

o f my heart .

The messengers d ispatched by Jacob n ow r eturned to

”
him and reporte d these words o f Esau unto him
, They .
7

a l so to l d him that his brothe r was advancing against him

with an army consisting o f fou r hundred crowned heads ,

”
ea c h leading a host o f fo ur hundre d men It is true .
,

thou art his brother an d thou t r e a te s t him as a brother

,

”
shou l d they said to Jacob but he i s an Esau th o u must
, , ,

” ”
be made a w are o f his vil l ainy .
2

Jacob bore in mind the promise o f God that H e would ,

’
bring him ba c k to his father s house in p e ace yet the report ,

’
about his brothe r s purpose alarmed him greatly A pious .

man may neve r depen d upon promises o f earthly good God .

does not keep the pro m ise if he is guilty o f the sma l lest
conceivab l e trespass and Jacob feared t hat he might have
,

forfeited happiness by reason Of a s in committed by him .

 Ja co b 81

Moreover he w a s anxious lest Esau be the on e favored by

,

God inasmuch as he ha d these twenty years been fulfi l ling

,

t w o Divine c ommands that Jacob had had to disregar d .

Esau had been living i n the Holy Land Jacob outside o f it ;

,

the former ha d been in attendance upon his parents the ,

l atter dwel l ing at a distance from them And much as he .

feared defeat Jacob a l so feared the reverse that he might

, ,

be victorious ove r Esau o r might even slay his brother

, ,

which would be as bad as to be slain by him And he was .

depressed by another apprehension that his f ather had died

, ,

for he reasoned that Esau woul d not take su c h warlike steps

” 0
against his o w n brother were his father still alive
, .

When his wives s a w the anxiety that possessed Ja cob ,

they began to quarrel with him and r eproach him for havin g
,

’
taken them away from their father s house though he kne w ,

”
that su c h danger threatened from Esau 1
Then Jacob deter
.

mined to apply the three means that might save him from
the fate impending : he would cry to God for help appease ,

’
Esau s wrath with presents and hold himsel f in readine s s
,

”
for war i f the worst came to the worst .
2

H e prayed to God : O Thou God of my fath er Abraham ,

and God o f my father Isaa c Go d o f all w h o wa l k in the

,

ways o f the pious and do like unto them ! I am not worthy

o f the least o f a ll the mercies and o f a l l the truth which
, ,

Thou hast showed unto Thy servant O Lord of the world

.
,

as Tho u didst not su ff er Laban to execute his evil designs

against me so a l so bring to naught the purpose o f Esau w h o
, ,

desireth to slay me O Lord of the wor l d in Thy Torah

.
,

which Thou wi l t give us on Mount Sinai it is written And ,

whethe r it be cow o r ewe ye shall not ki l l it and her young

,
382 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je w s

both in on e day I f this wret c h sh o ul d co me and mur d er my

.

c hildren and their mothers at the same time who would ,

then d esire t o r ea d Thy Torah which Th o u wilt give u s on

Mount S inai ! An d yet Thou d idst speak F or the sake o f ,

th y me r its an d f or the merits of thy f athe r s I wi l l do good

unto thee an d in the future worl d thy chil d ren shall be as

,

numerous as the sand o f the s e a .

A s Ja c ob praye d for his ow n deliverance s o also he ,

praye d for the salvation o f his des c en d ants that they might ,

n ot be annihilated by the descendants of Esau .

S u c h was th e prayer of Jacob when h e s a w Esau a p

p r oa ch in g f r o m afar an d G o d hear d his petition and looked
,

upon his tears and He gave him the assurance that for his
,

sake h i s des c en d ants to o w o ul d be r edeeme d from all

, ,

”
distress !
The n the Lor d sent three angels an d they went be fore ,

Esau and they appeare d unto Esau and his people as hun
,

dreds and thousands o f men riding upon horses They w ere .

furnishe d w i th all so rts o f w eapons and divi d ed into fou r ,

columns And on e division w ent o n and they foun d Esau

.
,

coming w i th f ou r hund r e d men an d the division ran toward

,

them a n d ter r ifie d them Esau fell Off his horse in al a rm

, .
,

and all his men separate d f rom him in great fear while the ,

app roaching co lumn shouted a f te r them V eri l y we are the , ,

servants o f Ja cob the se rvant o f God an d who can stand

, ,

”
agai nst us ! Esau then sai d unt o them O then my lord , ,

an d br othe r Ja c ob i s your lord w hom I have not seen these

,

twenty yea r s and now that I have this day come to s e e him
, ,

do you treat me in this manner ! The angels answered ,

A s the Lo rd l i veth were n o t Ja cob thy brother w e had

, ,
3 84 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je ws

w hat is holy when thou callest Esau lord Ja cob ex .

cu s e d himse l f ; he w a s but flattering the wicke d in o rder to

escape d eath at his hands .

J AC O B W RESTLES WITH THE A NGEL

The servants o f Jacob went before him with the p resent
for Esau an d he fo ll owed with h is wives and his chi l dren
, .

A S he was about to pass over th e ford of Jabbok he observed ,

a shepherd who likewise had S heep and came l s

,
The .

stranger approached Jacob and proposed that they shou l d

ford the stream together and he l p each other move thei r
,

cattle over and Jacob assented on the condition that his

, ,

possessions S hould be put across first In the twink l ing of .

’
an eye Jacob s sheep were transferred to the other side o f
the stream by the shepherd Then the flocks o f the shep.

herd were to be moved by Jacob but no matter h ow many ,

he took ove r to the Opposite bank a l ways there remained ,

some on the hithe r shore There w a s no end to the cattle

.
,

though Jacob labored a l l the night through At l ast he l ost .

pati ence and he fe ll upon the shepherd and caught h im

,

by the throat crying o u t ,

O thou wizard thou W izard at
, , ,

”
night no enchantment su cc ee d s ! The angel thought ,

“
Ve ry wel l let him know once for a l l with whom he has
,

had and with his finger he touched the earth ,

when c e fire burst forth B ut Jacob said

. What ! thou ,
“

thinkest thus t o a ff right me Wh o am made who ll y o f ,

” ”
2
fire !
The sh epherd was no less a personage than the archangel
M i chae l and in his combat with Jacob he was assisted by the
,

W hole host o f angels under his command He w a s on the .

 Ja cob 3 85

point o f inflicting a dangerous wound upon Ja cob when God ,

appeared and all the angels even M ichael himself felt thei r
, , ,

strength o oze away S eeing that he could not prevail

.

aga i nst Ja cob the ar changel touched the hol l ow o f his thigh
, ,

and inj ured him and Go d rebuked h im saying Dost thou

, , ,

act as is seemly when thou causest a bl e mish in My priest

,

”
Jacob ! M ichael said in astonishment Why it is I who , ,

”
am Thy priest ! But Go d said Thou a rt My p riest in ,
“

”
heaven and h e is My priest on earth
,
Thereupon M i chae l .

summoned the archangel Raphael saying My comrade I , , ,

p ray thee help me ou t o f my distress for thou art charge d

, ,

”
wi th the hea l ing o f a l l disease and Raphael cured Ja co b
,

o f the inj u r y M ichael had inflicted .

The Lord continued to reproa ch Michael s aying Why , ,

! ”
didst thou do harm unto My fir s t born s on and the a rch-

angel answered I did it o nly to glori fy Thee an d then

, ,

God appointed Michael as the guardian angel o f Jacob and

his seed unto the end o f all generations with these words : ,

Thou a rt a fire an d s o is Jacob a fi re ; thou art th e head o f

,

the angels and he i s the head o f the nations ; thou art s u

,

preme over all the angels and h e is supreme over all the
,

peoples There fore he who is supreme over a l l the angels

.

shall be appo i nted unt o him who is supreme over all the
peoples that he may ent r eat mer c y fo r him from the S u
,

”
preme O ne ove r all .

Then Michael said unto Jacob H o w is it possibl e that,

thou who cou l dst prevai l against me the most distinguished ,

”
o f the ange l s art a fraid of Esau !
,

When the day broke Michael said to Jacob Let me go

, , ,

for the day breaketh but Jacob he l d him back saying Art
, , ,

25
386 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je ws

thou a thief o r a gambler with dice that thou fearest th e

, ,

”
daylight ! At that moment appeare d many different hosts
o f angels and they calle d unto M ichael :
, As c end O Mi ,

chael the time of song hath come and i f thou art n ot in

, ,

heaven t o lea d the choi r none w ill sing And Michael , .

entreated Ja cob w i th supp l ications to let him go for h e ,

feared the angels o f A r a b ot woul d consume him with fi r e

'

if he w ere n ot there to start the songs o f praise at the proper

time Jacob said
. I will n ot let thee go except thou bless
, ,

me w hereto Michael made reply : Who is greater the

,
” “
,

se rvant or the s on ! I am the servant an d thou art the son ,

.

” w
Why then cra v e s t thou my blessing !
, ,
Jacob u rged as
a n argument The angels that visited Abraham did not
“
,

”
leave without b l essing him but Michael held They were , ,

”
sent by God for that very purpose and I was not Yet , .

Jacob insiste d upon h is demand and M ichael pleaded wi t h ,

him saying
, The angels that betrayed a heaven l y secret
,

were banished from thei r pla c e for on e hundred and thirty

eight yea r s Dost th o u desire that I should acquaint the e
.

”
with what would cause my banishment likewise ! In the
end the angel nevertheless had to yield ; Jacob c ould not be
moved and M ichael took counsel with himself thus : I will
,

reveal a secret to him and i f God demands to know why I ,

reveal ed it I wi l l make answer Thy chi l dren stand upon

, ,

thei r wishes with Thee and Thou dost yie l d to them H ow , .

,

’ ”
then could I have left Jacob s wish unfulfil l ed !
,

The n Michael spoke to Jacob saying : A day will com e ,

when God will reveal Himsel f unto thee and He wi l l change ,

”
thy name and I sha l l be present when He changeth it
,
.

Thy n ame shall be ca ll ed no more Jacob but Israel for , ,

3 88 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Je ws

and I an d all the heavenly powers r ecognize it t o be val i d ,

f or t h ou hast shown thyself master ove r the mighty powers

”” 2
o f the h eavens as over Esau and his legions .

An d even then Jacob would not let the angel depa rt he ,

had to reveal his name to him first and the angel made ,

kn own to him that it w a s Israel the same name that J a c ob ,

253
would once bear .

At l ast the angel departed afte r Ja cob had blesse d h i m

, ,

a n d Jacob ca l led the place o f wrest l ing Penuel the same ,

place to which before he had given the name Mahanaim for ,

both words have but one meaning the place o f enco unter ,

”
w i th angels .

T H E M EETI NG B ETWEEN E SA U A ND J AC OB
At the break day the angel left o ff f rom wrestling w ith
of

Jacob The dawn on that day was o f particularly sh o rt

.

du ration The s u n rose tw o hours be fore his time by way

.
,

o f compensation for having s e t ear l y on the day on which ,

Jacob passed Mount Moriah on his j ourney to Haran to ,

induce him to turn aside and lodge fo r a night on the future

”
Temple pla c e 5
Indeed the power o f the s u n on this same
.
,

day w a s altogether remarkable H e shone with the bri l .

lia n ce and ardor with which he was i nvested during th e s ix

da ys o f the creation and a s he wi l l shine at the end o f days
, ,

to make whole the halt and the b l ind among the Jews and to
consume the heathen This same hea l ing and devasta ting
.

property h e had on that day too for Jacob was c ured while
, , ,

Esau and hi s princes were all but burnt up by his terribl e

”
heat .

Jacob was in dire need o f healing l ot i ons for the inj u ry

 Ja co b 89

he had sustained in the encounter with the angel The com .

bat between them had been grim the du s f whirled up by the ,

”
scuffle rose to the ve ry throne o f God Though Jacob 7

prevailed against his huge opponent as big as one third o f ,

-

the whole world throw i ng him to the ground and keeping

,

him pinne d do wn yet the angel had inj ured him by clutch
,

ing at the s inew o f the hip which is upon the hollow o f the
thigh s o that it was dislo c ated and Jacob ha l ted upon hi s
, ,

The healing power o f the s u n restore d him never ,

t h e l e s s his children took it upon themselves not to eat the

sinew o f the hip which i s upon the ho l lo w o f the thigh fo r ,

they rep roa ched themselves with having been the c ause o f
his mishap they S hould not have left h im alone in that
,

”
night.

N ow although Ja c ob ha d prepared for the w orst fo r Open

, ,

hostilities even yet when h e s a w Esau an d his men he

, ,

thought it discreet to make s eparate divisions o f the house

holds o f Leah Rachel and the handmaids and divide the
, ,

children unto each o f them An d he put the handmaids and

.

their c hildren foremost an d Leah and her chil d ren after and
, ,

Rachel and Joseph hindermost It w a s the stratagem which .

the fox used with the lion O n c e upon a time the king o f
.

beasts was wroth with his subj ects and they looke d hither ,

a n d thithe r f or a spokesman who mastered the art o f a

p
peasing thei r ruler The fox O ffered h i msel f for the un d er
.

“
taking saying
, I know three hundred fables which will
,

”
al l ay his fury . His o ff er was accepted with j oy O n the .

way to the lion the fox suddenly stood still and in reply to
, ,

the questions put to him he said I have forgotten on e hun

, ,

” ”
dred o f the three hun d red f ables Never mind said .
“

,
39 0 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

those accompanying h im tw o hundred wi l l se rve the pur

,

’
pose A little way f urther on the fox again stopped su d
.
9

de n l y and questione d again he con fessed that he had for

, , ,

gotten hal f o f the tw o hundred remaining fables The .

animals with him s till c o nsole d him that the hundred h e

knew would su ff i c e But the fox halted a third time and
.
,

then he admitted that hi s memory had fai l e d him entirely ,

an d he had forgotten all the fables he knew an d he advised ,

that every animal approach the king o n his ow n account and

endeavor to appease h is anger At first Jacob had had cour .

age enough to ente r the lists with Esau i n beha l f o f a l l with

him Now he came to the conclus i on t o let each one try to
.

do what he c ould for himself .

Howeve r Jacob w a s too fond a father to expose his family

,

to the first brunt of the dange r He himself passed over .

be fore all the rest saying It is better that they attack me

, ,

than my Afte r him came the handmaids and

their c hildren H is r eason for pla c ing them the r e w a s that
.
,

i f Esau shoul d be overcome by passion for the women and ,

try to violate them he w ould thus meet the handmaids first

, ,

and i n the meantime Jacob wou l d h ave the chan c e o f prepar

ing for more determined resistance in th e defense o f the
”
hon o r o f his w ives Joseph and Rachel c ame last a n d
1
.
,

Joseph walked i n front of his mother though Jacob had ,

o rd e r ed the reverse . But the son knew both the beauty o f

h i s mother and the lust fulness o f h i s uncle and th erefore he ,

t ri e d to hide Rachel f r om the sight of Esau .

In the vehemence o f h i s rage against Ja cob Esau vow e d ,

that he w oul d not S lay him with b ow and a rr ow but w ould ,

bite h im dea d w i th h i s mouth and su ck his bl ood But h e , .

39 2 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je w s
”
and besides a fa l con for the chase
, , But even the animals 2

re fused to gi ve up their gentle master Jacob and become the

property o f the villain Esau They a ll ran away when Jacob
.

wanted to hand them over to his brother and th e resu l t was ,

that the only ones that reached Esau were the feeble and the
° 27
lame all that could n ot make good their escape
, .

At first Esau declined the presents o ff ered to him Nat .

u r a l l y that w a s a mere pretense

, While refusing the gifts .

with words he held h is hand outstretched ready to receive

,

”
Ja c ob took the hint and insisted that he a ccept
’
1
them ,

them saying : Nay I pray thee i f n ow I have found grace

, , ,

in thy sight then receive my present at my hand forasmuch

, ,

as I have seen thy face a s I have seen the face o f angels

, ,

’
and thou a rt pleased with me The closing words were
.

chosen with well calculate d purpose Jacob wanted Esau

-
.

to derive the meaning that h e had intercourse with ange l s ,

and to be inspire d with a w e Jacob was like the man invited

.

to a banquet by his mortal enemy who has been seeking an

oppo rtunity to slay him When the guest divines the pur
.

pose for which he has been brought thither he says t o the ,

host : What a magnificent and delicious mea l this is ! But

once before in my li fe did I partake o f on e l ike it and that ,

was when I was bi d den by the king to his table —enough to

drive terror to the heart o f the would b e slayer He takes -
.

good care not to harm a man on such intimate terms with

”
the king as to be invited to his tab l e ! 2

Ja co b had valid reason for reca ll ing his encounter with

the angel for it was the angel of Es a u who had measured
,

’
h is strength w i th Jacob s and had been overcome
“
, .

As Esau ac c epted the presents o f Jacob wi l lingly on this

 Ja co b 39 3

first occasion so he continued to accept them for a who l e

,

year ; daily Ja cob gave him presents as o n the day of their

meeting for he said
, ,
A gift doth blind the eyes o f the
,

’
wise and h ow much more doth it blind the wicked ! There
,

fore will I give him presents upon presents perhaps he wi l l ,

”
l et me alone B es i des he d i d not atta c h much value to
.
,

the possessions h e had acquired outside of the Holy Land .

Such possessions are n ot a blessing and he did not hesitate ,

to part with them .

Beside the presents whi ch Jacob gave Esau he a l so paid ,

out a large sum o f money to him for the Cave o f Machpe l ah .

Immediate l y upon his arrival in the Holy Land he sol d

a l l he had brought with him from Haran and a pile o f gol d ,

w a s the proceeds of the sale H e spoke to Esau saying :

.
,

Like me thou hast a share in the Cave o f M achpelah wi l t ,

”
thou take this pile o f gold for thy portion therein ! What
”
ca re I for the Cave ! returned Esau Gol d i s what I
.
“

want and for his share I n Machpelah he took the gold

,

realized from the sale o f the possessions Jacob had a ccu mu

lated outside o f the Holy Land But Go d fi ll ed the vacuum
.

without delay and Jacob was as rich as before

, .

Wealth w a s not an obj ect o f desire to Ja c ob H e woul d .

have been well content in his o w n behalf and in behal f

,

o f his family to resign al l earthly treasures in favor of

,

Esau and his fami l y He said to Esau :

. I foresee that
in future d ays su ff ering will be inflicted by thy chil d ren
upon mine But I do not demu r thou mayest exercise thy
.
,

domin i on and wear thy crown until the time when the Mes
siah springs from my loins and receives the rul e f rom
,

”
thee. These words spoken by Jacob will be r ealized i n days
39 4 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ews

to come when a l l the nations will rise up against the king

,

dom of Edom and take away on e city after another from

,

him on e rea l m a fter another until they reach B et Gu b r in

, ,
-
,

and then the M essiah will appear and assume his kingship .

The angel o f Edom wi l l flee for refuge to Bozrah but God ,

w i l l appear there and slay him for though Bozrah is one of

, ,

the Cities of refuge yet will the Lor d exercise the right o f
,

the avenger the rein H e wi l l seize the angel by his hair

.
,

and Elij ah wi l l slaughter him letting the blood spatter the ,

”
garments of God A l l this Jacob had in mind when he said
.

to Esau Let my lord I pray thee pass over before his

, , ,

”
servant until I come unto my lord unto Seir
,
Jacob him .

self neve r went to Sei r What he meant w a s the Messianic

.

time when Israel shall go to Sei r and take possession ,

“
thereof .

Ja c ob tarrie d in S u c c oth a whole year and he Opened a ,

27 7
house o f learning there Then he j ourneyed on to
.

Shechem whi l e Esau betoo k himself to Seir s aying to

, ,

”
himse l f H ow long sha l l I be a burden to my brother ! for
,

’
i t w a s during Jacob s soj ourn at S u ccoth that Esau receive d
”
daily presents f rom Ja cob f
And Ja c ob a fter abiding these many years in a strange
,

land came to Shechem in peace unimpaired in mind and

, ,

body He had forgotten none o f the knowle d ge he had a c

.

quired before ; the gifts he gave to Esau did not encroa ch

upon his wealth ; the inj ury infli c ted by the angel that
wrestle d with him had been heale d and likewise his children ,

were sound and hea l thy .

“

Ja c ob entered Shechem on a Friday late in the a fternoon , ,

an d his fi r st co n c ern w a s to lay out the boundar i es of the

39 4 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

to come when all the nations will rise up against the king
,

dom of Edom and take away on e city after another from

,

him on e realm after another until they reach B et Gu b r in

, ,
-
,

and then the Messiah will appear and assume his kingship .

The angel o f Edom wi l l flee for refuge to Bozrah but God ,

wi l l appear there and slay him for though Bozrah is on e o f

, ,

the c ities of refuge yet will the Lord exercise the right o f
,

the avenger therein H e wi l l seize the angel by his hair

.
,

and E l ij ah wi l l slaughter him letting the blood spatter the ,

275
garments of God All this Jacob had in mind when he said
.

to Esau Let my lord I pray thee pass over before his

, , ,

”
se rvant until I come unto my lord unto Se ir
,
Jacob him .

se l f never went to S eir What he meant w a s the Messianic

.

t ime when Is rael shall go to Sei r and take possession ,

"
thereof .

Ja c ob tarried in S u ccoth a whole year and he Opened a ,

” 7
house o f learning there Then he j ourneyed on to
.

Shechem w hil e Esau betoo k himse l f to Seir saying to

, ,

”
himse l f H ow long S hall I be a burden to my brother ! for
,

it was during Jacob s soj ourn at S uccoth that Esau received

’

”
’
daily presents from Ja cob f
And Ja c ob after abiding these many years in a strange
,

land came to S hechem in pea c e unimpaired in mind and

, ,

body H e had forgotten none o f the knowledge he had a c

.

quired before ; the gifts he gave to Esau did not encroa ch

upon his wealth ; the inj ury inflicted by the angel that
wrestle d with him had been heale d and likewise his children ,

”
were sound and healthy .

Jacob entered She chem on a Fri d ay late in the a fternoon , ,

and his fi r st co n c ern w a s to l ay o u t the boundar i es o f the

 J a cob 39 5

city that the l aws o f the Sabbath might not be transgressed

, .

A s soon as he w a s settled in the p l ace h e sent presents to ,

the notab l es A man must be grateful to a city from which

.

he derives benefits No less did the common people enj oy

.

his bounty For them he Opened a market where he so l d

.

a l l wares at l ow
A l so he lost no time in buying a parcel o f ground for it is ,

the duty o f every man of substance who comes to the Ho l y

Land f rom outside to make himse l f the possessor o f l and
”
there .
1
He gave a hundred l ambs fo r his estate a hundred ,

year l ing S heep and a hundred pieces of money and received

, ,

in return a bi ll o f sale to which he attached his signature

, ,

using the letters Y o d H e for it And then he erected an

-
.

a l tar to God upon his land and he said Thou art the Lord
, ,

of a l l celestial things an d I am the lord o f all ea rthly

,

’
things . But God said Not even the overseer o f the syna
,

gogue arrogates privi l eges in the synagogue an d thou as ,

s u me s t lordship with a high hand ! For s ooth on th e morro w ,

”” 3
thy daughter will go abroad and s h e shall be humbled , .

T HE O U TRAGE A T S HECHEM
Whi l e Jacob and his sons were sitting in the house o f
”
l earn ing occupied with the study of the Torah Dinah went
, ,
3

abroad to see the dancing and singing women whom She ,

c hem had hired to dance and p l ay in the streets in order to

entice her Had s h e remained at home nothing ,

would have happened to her But s h e was a woman and .

,

a ll women like to sho w themse l ves in the When

Shechem caught sight o f her he seized her by main force , ,

young though s h e and vio l ated her in beastly

”
fashi o n .
3 96 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Je ws

This mi s fortune be fe l l Jacob as a punishment for his

excessive self con fide n ce In his negotiations with Laban
-
.
,

he had used the expression My righteousness sha ll answer ,

for me hereafter Besides on his return to Pa l estine

.
3,
, ,

w hen h e was preparing to meet his brother he concea l ed ,

h is daughter Dinah in a chest l est Esau desire to have her ,

for wi fe and he be ob l iged to give her to him God spoke

, .

to him saying : Herein hast thou acted unkindly toward

,

thy brother and therefore Dinah will have to mar r y Job

, ,

on e that is neither ci rcumcised nor a prose l yte Thou didst .

refuse to give her to one that i s circumcised and on e that is ,

uncircumcised wi l l take her Thou didst refuse to give he r .

to Esau in lawful wed l ock and n ow s h e wi l l fall a victim to ,

’
the ravisher s il l icit passion .
H 288

When Jacob heard that Shechem had de fil e d his daughter ,

he sent twelve servants to fetch Dinah from S h e ch e m s ’

house but Shechem went out to them with his men and
, ,

drove them from h is house and he would not su ff er them to ,

come unto Dinah and he kissed and embraced her be fore

,

’
the i r eyes Ja c ob then sent t w o mai d ens o f his servants
.

daughters t o remain with Dinah in the house o f Sh e chem .

Shechem bade three o f h is friends go to his father Hamor ,

the s on o f H a dda ku m the son o f Pered and s a y Get me

, , ,

’ 9
this damsel to wife Hamor tried at first to persuade his
.

s on not to take a Hebrew woman to wife but when Shechem ,

persisted in his request he did ac cording to the word o f his,

s on
,
and went forth to communicate with Jacob concerning
the matter In the meanwhi l e the sons O f Ja cob returne d
.

from the field and kind l ed with wrath they spoke unto
, ,

thei r f ather saying ,Surely death i s due to this man and

,
39 8 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Jews

him f rom God that a n y man that is not o f his des c endants
, ,

w h o d esireth to take o n e o f his daughters to wife shall cau s e ,

”
eve ry male belonging to him to be c ircum c ised .

S hechem an d his father hastened to do the wishes o f the

sons of Ja cob an d they persua d ed also the men of the c ity
,

to do likewise f or they were greatly esteeme d by them

, ,

be i ng the princes o f the land .

O n the next day Shechem an d his fathe r ro se up early

,

i n the morning and they assembled all the men o f the ci ty

, ,

and they c a ll ed for the sons o f Ja c ob and they circum c ise d ,

Shechem his father his five brothers and all the males in
, , ,

th e c i ty s ix hundred and forty fiv e men and t w o hundred

,
-

and seventy s ix lads H a dda ku m the grandfather o f She

-
.
,

c hem and his s ix brothers woul d not be c ircumcised and

, ,

they w ere greatly in c ense d against the people o f the c ity fo r

submitting to the wishes o f the sons o f Jacob .

In the evening o f the second day She chem and his f ather ,

sent to have eight litt l e c hildren whom their mothers had

concealed b r ought to them to be c ircumcised H a dda kum .

and h is s ix brothers spran g at the messengers an d sought to ,

s l ay them and sought to slay also Shechem Hamor and

, , ,

Dinah They chided Shechem an d his f athe r for doing a

.

thing that their fathers had never d one which woul d rais e ,

the i re of the inhabitants o f the lan d of C a naan against them ,

a s well as the ire o f all the children o f Ham and that on a c ,

c ount o f a H eb r ew woman H a dda ku m and his brothers .

finishe d by saying : Behold to mor r ow w e wil l go and

“
,
-

as semble ou r Canaanitish brethren and we wil l come and ,

smite you and a l l in whom you trust that there shal l not be ,

”
a rem n ant left of you or them .
 Joc o b 399

When Hamor and his s on She c hem an d all the people o f

the city heard this they were sore afraid and they repented
, ,

what they had done and Shechem an d his father answered

,

H a dda ku m and his brothers Be c ause w e sa w that the “

Hebrews would not accede t o ou r wishes con c erning their

d aughter w e did this thing but when we shall have obtained
, ,

o u r request from them w e wi l l then do unto them that which

,

i s in your hearts and i n o urs a s soon as w e shall be come ,

”
stron g .

Dinah who hea rd thei r w o rds hastened and dispat ched

, ,

on e o f her maidens whom her fathe r had sent t o take c are o f

her in S h e ch e m s house and informed Ja c ob and his sons o f

’
,

the conspiracy plotted against them When the sons o f .

Jacob heard this they were fi l led with wrath and S imon and
, ,

Levi swore and said , As the Lord liveth by to morrow

, ,
-

”
there shal l n ot be a remnant left I n the whole city .

They began the extermination by ki l ling eighteen o f the

twenty young men who had concea l ed themselves a n d were
not circumcised and tw o o f them fl e d and escaped to some
,

lime pits that were in the city Then Simon and Levi slew .

a ll the city not leaving a male over and while they were
, ,

looking for spoi l s outside o f the c ity three hun d red women ,

rose against them and threw stones and dust upon them but ,

S imon single handed slew them all an d r eturned to the Ci ty

-
, ,

where he j oined Levi Then they took away from the people
.

outside o f the city thei r sheep their o xen their c attle and , , ,

a l so the w o men and th e l ittle chi l dren and they le d all these ,

away and took them to the city to their father Jacob The
, .

numbe r o f women whom they did not slay but onl y took cap ,

tive w a s eighty five virgi ns among them a y o ung damsel o f

,
-
,
4 00 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ews

great beauty by the name o f Bunah whom S imon took to ,

wife The numbe r o f the ma l es which they took captive and

.

did not slay w a s fo rty seven and a l l these men and women
-
,

were servants to the sons o f Jacob and to thei r ch ildr en ,

after them until the d ay they left Egypt

, .

A W A R FR U STRATED
’

When Simon a n d L e vi had gone from the city the two ,

young men w h o had concea l ed themselves in the l ime pits ,

and we r e not slain amongst the peop l e o f the city rose up , ,

and they foun d the city desolate without a man only weep , ,

ing women and they cried ou t saying B eho l d this is the

, , , ,

evi l whi c h the sons o f Ja cob did who destroyed one o f the
Canaanite cities and w ere not afrai d of all the lan d o f
,

”
Canaan .

They left the city an d w ent to Tappuah and tol d th e ,

inhabitants all that the sons o f Jacob had done to th e

city of Shechem Jashub the king o f Tappuah sent to
.
, ,

Shechem to s e e whether these young men to l d the truth ,

for he did not believe them saying H ow c ou l d two men

, ,

”
destroy a l arge City like Shechem ! The messengers o f
Jashub retu rned and they reported The C ity is destroyed
, , ,

not a man is le ft there on l y weeping women neither ar e

, ,

there flocks an d c attle there for all that w a s in the c ity was
,

”
taken away by the sons o f Jacob .

Jashub wondere d thereat for the like ha d n o t been hear d

,

from the days o f Nimrod and not even f rom th e remotest

,

times that two men should be able to destroy s o large a city

, ,

and he deci d e d to go to wa r against the H ebrews and ,

avenge the caus e o f the people o f Shechem H is co unse ll ors .

4 02 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jews

ing to Isaac who had come to their assistance marched for

, ,

w ard to meet the Amorites a peop l e exceeding l y numerous

, ,

l ike unto the s a nd upon the sea —S hore The sons o f Jacob .

s ent unto their grandfather Isaac at Hebron requesting him , ,

to pray unto the Lord to protect them from the hand of the
Canaanites and he prayed as fo l lows : O Lord God Thou
, ,

didst promis e my fathe r saying I will mu l tiply thy seed as

, ,

the stars o f heaven and also me Thou didst promise that

,

Thou wou l dst establish Thy word to my father Now O .

,

Lord God o f the who l e wor l d pervert I pray Thee the

, , , ,

counsel o f these kings that they may not fight against my

,

sons and impress the hearts of their kings and their peop l e
,

with the terror of my sons and bring down their pride that
,

they turn away from my sons De l iver my sons and their .

servants from them with Thy strong hand and outstretched

”
arm for power and might are in Thy hands to do a l l this
,
.

Jacob also prayed unto God and said : O Lord God , ,

powerful and exalted God w h o hast reigned from days o f

,

O l d from then until n ow and forever ! Thou art He who

,

stirreth up wars and causeth them to c ease In Thy hand .

are powe r and might to exalt and to bring l ow O may my .

prayer be acceptable unto Thee that Thou mayest turn to ,

me with Thy mercies to impress the h e arts o f these kings

,

and their peop l e with the terror o f my sons and terrify them ,

and thei r camps and with Thy gr eat kindness d eliver all
,

those that trust in Thee for Thou art He who subdues the
,

”
peop l es under us and the nations under our feet
, .

God heard the praye rs o f Isaac and Jacob and He filled ,

the hearts o f all the advisers of the Canaanite kings with

great fea r and terror and when the kings who were unde
, ,
 Ja co b 40 3

cided whether to undertake a c ampaign a gainst the s ons of

Jacob consulted them they said : Are you S i ll y o r is there
, , ,

no understanding I n you that you propose to fight with the

,

Hebrews ! Why do you take de l ight in your o w n de s tr u c

tion this day ! Behold t w o o f them came to the city of
,

Shechem without fea r or terror and they put a ll the in h a b i

,

tants of the city to the sword no man stood up against them

, ,

and h ow wi l l you be ab l e to fight with them a ll !

The roya l counsel l ors then proceeded to enumerate all the
mighty things God had done fo r Abraham Jacob and the , ,

sons o f Jacob such as had not been done from days of ol d

,

and by any o f the gods o f the nations When the kings .

heard a l l the words o f thei r advisers they were afrai d of ,

the sons O f Jacob and they wou l d not fight against them
,
.

They turned back with their armies on that day each to his ,

o w n city But the sons o f Jacob kept their station that day
.

ti ll evening and seeing that the kings did not advance to do

,

battl e with them in order to avenge the inhabitants o f She

chem whom they had ki ll ed they retu rned ,

The wrath of the Lord descended upon the inhabitants of

Shechem to the uttermost on account o f their wickedness .

For they had sought to d o unto Sarah and Rebekah as they

did unto Dinah but the Lord h a d prevented them Also they
, .

had persecuted Abraham when he was a stranger and they ,

had vexed his flocks when they were big with young and ,

Eb l a e n one b o rn in his house they had hand l ed most shame

, ,

fu ll y And thus they did to a l l strangers taking a way their

.
,

wives by
4 04 Th e L e g en ds o f th e Jew s

T H E W A R W ITH THE N INEV ITES

The d e s truction of Shechem by S imon and Levi terrifie d
the heathen a l l around I f two sons of Jacob had succeeded
.

in ruining a great city l ike Shechem they argued what , ,

would Jacob and a l l his sons accomplish acting together !

Jacob meanwhile left Shechem hindered by none and with , ,

all his possessions he set out to betake himsel f to his father ,

’
Isaa c But a fter an eight days march he encountered a
.

powerful army which had been dispatched from Nineveh to

,

levy tribute upon the whole world and subj ugate it O n .

coming in the vicinity of Sh echem this army heard to what ,

the city had been exposed at the hands o f the sons of Jacob ,

and fury seized the men and they resolve d to make war ,

upon Jacob .

But Jacob said to h is sons : Fear not God will be your ,

helper and He will fight for you against you r enemies

,
.

O nly you must put away from you the strange gods in you r
possession and you must puri fy yourselves and wash you r
, ,

garments clean .

Girt with his sword Jacob advanced against the enemy, ,

and in the first ons l aught he s l ew twelve thousand of th e

weak in the army Then Judah spake to him and said
.
, ,

“
Father thou a rt tired and exhausted let me fight the
, ,

”
enemy alone And Jacob rep l ied saying Judah my s on
.
, , , ,

I know thy strength and thy bravery that they are exceed ,

”
in g great s o that none in the world is l ike unto thee therein
,
.

’
His countenance like a l ion s and inflamed with wrath ,

Judah attacked the army and s l ew twe l ve myriads o f tried

,

and famous warriors The battle raged hot in front and in

.

the r ear and Levi his brother hastened to his aid and t o
, ,
4 06 Th e L e ge n ds o f th e Jew s

ban d o f tw o thou s and men beset him he leapt up in th e ,

ai r and over them and vanishe d from their sight Twenty .

t w o myriads he S lew on this day and when evening came he ,

planned to flee under cover o f darkness But suddenly .

ninety thousand men appeared and h e was compel l ed to ,

continue the fight He rushed at them w ith h is sword but

'

.
,

it broke and he had to defen d himself by grinding huge

,

rocks into l ime powder and this he threw at the enemy and
,

b l in d ed them s o that they could s e e nothing Luckily dark .

,

ness was about to fall and he could permit himself to take

,

rest for the night .

In the morning Judah said to Jacob Father thou didst

, , ,

fight the whole o f yesterday and thou a rt weary and ex ,

h a u s te d
. Let me fight this day Wh e h the warriors .

’
caught sight o f Judah s lion face and his lion teeth and ,

heard h is l ion voice they were greatly a fraid Judah hopped

,
.

and j umped ove r the army like a flea from o n e warrior to ,

the next raining blows down upon them incessant l y and

, ,

by evening he had S lain eighty thousand and ninety six men -

,

armed with swords and bows But fatigue overcame him .

,

’
and Zebulon took up his station at h is brother s left hand ,

and mowed down eighty thousand o f the enemy M eantime .

Judah regained some o f his strength and rising up in wrath , ,

and f u ry and gnashing hi s teeth with a nois e like unto

,

thunder c laps in midsummer he put the army to flight It

, .

ran a distance o f eighteen miles an d Ju d ah co uld enj o y a ,

respite that night .

But the army reappeared o n the morrow ready for battle ,

'

again to take revenge o n Ja COb and his children They

, .

blew the i r t r umpets w hereupon Ja c ob spake to his sons

, ,
 J a co b 40 7

Go forth and fight with you r enemies Issachar and Gad .

said that this day they wou l d take the combat upon them
selves and thei r father bade them do it while their brothers
,

kept guar d and held themselves in readiness to aid and r e

lieve the t w o combatants when they showed signs o f weari
ness and exha ustion .

The leaders o f the day slew fo r ty eight thousan d wa r -

r i ors and put to flight t w

, elve myriads more who concea l ed ,

themselves in a c ave Issachar and Gad fetched trees from

.

the woods piled the trunks up in front o f the opening o f

,

the c ave and s e t fire to them When the fire blazed with a
,
.

fier c e flame the warriors spoke saying : Why should we

, ,

stay in this cave and perish with the smoke and the heat !
Rather wi ll we go forth and fight with ou r enemies then ,

”
we may have a chance o f saving ourse l ves They left the .

c ave going through Openings at the side and they attacked

, ,

Issachar and Gad in front and behind Dan and Naphtali .

s a w the plight o f their brothers and ran to their assistance .

They l aid about with their swords hewing a w a y for them ,

selves to Issachar and Gad and united with them they too
, , , , ,

Opposed the foe .

It was the third day of the c o nfli c t an d the Ninev i tes ,

were reinforced by an army as numerous as the sand on the

s ea shore
-
A l l the sons of Ja cob united to Oppose it and they
.
,

routed the host But when they pursued a fter the enemy
.
,

the fugitives fa c ed about and resumed the battl e saying ,

Why shoul d w e run away ! Let us rather fight them per ,

haps w e may be victori ous n ow they are weary ,

A stub .

born combat ensued and when Jacob s a w the vehement

,

attack upon his ch i ldren he himself sp r an g int o the thi c k of

,
4 08 Th e L e g en ds o f th e Jews

the b a ttle an d dealt blows right and left Nevertheless the .

heathen were victorious and s ucceeded in separating Judah

,

from h is bre thren As soon as Jacob was aware o f the peril

.

o f h i s s on he whistled and Judah responded and his

, , ,

breth r en hastened to his aid Judah w a s fatigued and .

parche d with thirst and there w a s no water for him to

,

drink but h e dug his finge r into the ground w i th such force
,

that water gushed o u t in the sight o f the whole army Then .

said one warrior to another I will flee before these d evi l s , ,

for Go d fights on their s ide and he and a l l the army fl ed ,

p recipitately pursued by the sons o f Jacob Soldiers withou t

, .

number they slew and then they went back to their tents
, .

O n their return they noticed that Joseph w a s missing and ,

they feared he had been killed or taken c aptive Naphtal i .

ran a fter the retreating enemy to m ak e search for Joseph , ,

and he found him still fighting against the Ninevite army .

He j oined Joseph a n d ki ll ed c ount l ess soldiers and o f th e

, ,

fu gi tive s ma ny d rowned and the men that were besetti ng

,

Joseph ran Off and left him in sa fety .

At the end o f the wa r Jacob continue d h i s jo u rney uh ,

”
hindere d t o his father Isaac
,
.
1

T H E WA R WITH THE A MO R I T E S
At fi rst the peopl e that live d round about S hechem
ma d e
n o attempt to m o lest Jacob who had returned thither after,

a w hile together with h is household to take up his abode

, ,

there and establish himsel f But at the end o f seven years .

th e heathen began to harass him The kings o f the Amorites .

assemble d togethe r against the son s o f Jacob to slay them

”
i n the V alley of S he c hem I s i t n o t en o ugh .they s ai d , ,
410 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e Jew s

him with such force that he dropped his shield which Judah
, ,

snatched from the ground and used to defend himself against

h is eight assailants H is brother Levi c ame and stood next
.

to him and shot o ff an arrow that killed Elon king o f

, ,

Gaash and then Judah killed the eight men And his father
,
.

Jacob came an d killed Z e r or i king o f Shi l oh None o f the .

heathen could prevail against these sons o f Jacob they had ,

n ot the courage to stand up be fore them but took to flight , ,

and the sons of Jacob pursue d after them and each s l ew a ,

thousand men o f the Amorites on that day before the going ,

down o f the s u n And the other sons of Jacob set forth

.

f rom the Hill o f Shechem where they had taken up thei r

,

stand and they also pursued after them as far as Hazor

, .

B efore this city they had another severe encounte r with the
enemy more severe than that in the V a ll ey of Shechem
, .

Jacob let his arrows fly and slew Pirathon king o f Hazor

, ,

and then P a s u s i king o f Sartan Laban king o f Aram and , ,

S hebir king o f Mahanaim .

Judah was the first to mount the walls of Hazor As he .

approached the top fou r w arriors attacked him but he s l ew

, ,

them without stopping i n his ascent and before his brother ,

Naphta l i c oul d bring him succor Naphta l i fo l lowed him .

,

and the tw o stood upo n the wall Judah to the right and ,

N a p h ta l i to the le ft an d thence they dealt out death to the

,

warriors The other sons o f Jacob fol l owed their tw o

.

brothers in turn and made an end o f exterminating th e

,

heathen host on that day They subj ugated Hazor slew the
.
,

warriors thereof let no man escape with his li fe and

, ,

despoiled the city o f all therein .

O n the day following they went to S artan an d aga in a ,

 Ja co b 411

bloody battle took place Sartan w a s situated upon high .

land and the hi l l befo re the city was l ikewise very high so
, ,

that none cou l d c ome near unto it and also none could come ,

near unto the citadel because the wa l l thereof was high

,
.

Neverthe l ess they made themselves masters of the city They .

s e a l e d the wal l s o f the citadel Judah o n th e east side being ,

the first to ascend then Gad on the west side Simon and
, ,

Levi on the north and Reuben and Dan on the south and
, ,

Naphta l i and Issacha r s e t fire to the hinges upon whi c h the

gates o f the city were hung .

In the same w a y the sons of Jacob subdued five other

cities Tappuah Arbe l Shi l oh Mahanaim and Gaash mak
, , , , , ,

ing an end o f a l l o f them in five days O n the sixth day a l l .

the Amorites assembled and they came to Jacob and his sons
,

unarmed bowed down before them an d sued for peace

, , .

And the sons o f Jacob made peace with the heathen who ,

ceded Timna to them and all the land O f H a r a r ia h In that

, .

dav also Ja c ob conclude d pea c e with them and they made ,

restitution to the sons o f Jacob for all the cattle they had
taken tw o head for one and they restored all the spoi l they
, ,

had carried off And Jacob turned to go to Timna and

.
,

Judah went to Arbel and then c eforth the Amorites troub l ed

,

”
them no more .

I SA A C B LESSES L EV I AND JUDAH

I f a man voweth a vow and he does not fulfil it in good ,

time h e wi l l stumb l e through three grave sins idolatry

, , ,

unchastity and b l oodshed Jacob had been guilty o f not

, .

accomplishing promptly the vo w he had taken upon himsel f

at Beth cl and there fore punishment ove r took h i m—his
-
,
412 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Je ws

d aughte r was dish o no re d his sons s l ew men and they kept

, ,

”
the i dols f oun d among the spoils of Shechem Therefore .
,

when Ja c ob prost r ate d himsel f b e for e God a f ter the bloody

'

outrage at She chem H e ba d e him arise and go to B eth e l

, ,
-

”
and a cc omplish the v o w he ha d vowe d there ! B efore
Ja c ob s e t o u t fo r the holy pla c e to do the bidding of God ,

he took the i d ols which were in the possession of his sons ,

and the teraphim whi c h Rachel had sto l en from her father ,

”
and he shivere d them in pieces and burie d the bits under
,
5

an oa k upon Mount uprooting the tree with on e

hand concealing the remains o f the idols in the ho ll ow left
,

in the earth and planting the oa k again with on e h and

, .

Among the d estroyed idols was on e in the form of a dove ,

an d this the S amar i tans d ug up later an d worshipped .

O n reaching Beth e l he ere cted an a l tar to the Lord and

-
,

on a pillar he s e t up the stone whereon he had rested his

hea d dur i n g the night which he had passed there on his

j ourney to Then he bade his parents c ome to
Beth e l and take part i n his sa c rifice But Isaa c sent him a
-
.

message saying
,
O my s on Jacob that I might s e e the e
, ,

”
before I die whereupon Jacob hastened to his parents
, ,

taking Levi and Ju d ah with him When his grandchildren

.

steppe d before Isaac th e darkness that shrouded his eyes

,

dropped away an d he sa id M y s on are these thy chi l dren

, , , ,

”
for they resembl e thee ! And the spirit o f prophecy e n
t e r e d his mouth and he graspe d Levi with his right hand
,

and Judah with his left in order to bless them a n d he S poke ,

these words to Lev i : May the Lord bring thee and thy
seed nigh unto Him before a l l flesh that ye serve in H is ,

san c tua r y like the Angel o f the Fa c e and the Holy Angels .
414 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e Jews

But a short time elapsed a fter the death of the nurse

Deborah and Rebekah died too Her passing away was
, ,
.

not made the occasion for public mourning The reason was .

that as Abraham was dea d Isaac blind and Jacob away

, , ,

from home there remained Esau as the on l y mourner t o

,

appea r in public and represent her f ami l y and beho l ding ,

that vi ll ain it was feared might tempt a looker oh to cry

, ,
-

“ ”
out, Accursed be the breasts that gave thee suck To .

avoid this the buria l o f Rebekah took place at night

, .

”
G od appeare d unto Jacob to comfort him in his grief ,

and with Him appeared the heaven l y family It was a S ign .

of grace fo r all the while the sons o f Jacob had been carry
,

ing idols with them the Lord had not revea l ed Himse l f to
At this time God announced to Jacob the birth of
Benj amin soon to occur and the birth of Manasseh and
,

Ephraim who also w ere to be founders o f tribes and fur

, ,

th e r mo r e He told him that these three wou l d count kings

among the i r d escendants Saul and I s h b os h e th of the seed

,
-
,

o f Benj amin Jeroboam the Ephraimite and Jehu o f th e

, ,

tribe o f Manasseh In this vision God confirmed the change

.
,

o f h is name from Jacob to Israel promised him by the angel ,

with whom he had wrestled o n entering the Holy Land and ,

finally God r eveale d to him that he would be the l ast o f the

three with w hose names the Name of Go d would appear
united for God is called only the God o f Abraham the God
, ,

of Isaac and the God o f Jacob and never the God of any
, ,

one
In token o f this revelation from God Jacob set up a pi l lar ,

o f stone and he poured out a dri n k offering thereon as in a

, ,

later day the priests were to O ffer libations in the Temp l e on

 Ja co b 415

the Feast o f Tabernacles and the l ibatio n brought by Jacob

,

at Beth e l was as much as a ll the waters in th e Sea o f

-

Tiberias .

At the time when Deborah and Rebekah died oc c urred ,

”
a l so the death of Rache l at the age o f thirty six but not
,
-
,

before her prayer was heard that she bear Jacob a second ,

son for she died in giving bi rth to Benjamin Twe l ve years

,
.

s h e had borne no chi l d then s h e fasted twelve days and

, ,

her petition w a s granted her She brought forth the young

.

est s on o f Jacob whom h e c a ll ed B enj amin the s on O f days

, , ,

because he was born in his father s ol d’

and with h im
”
a twin siste r was born .

Rache l was buried in the w a y to Ephrath because Jacob , ,

gifted with p r Op h e tic spirit foresaw that the exi l es wou l d

,

pass this p l ace on their march to Babylon and as they ,

’
passed Rachel would entreat God s mer c y for the p oo r
,

outcasts .

Jacob j ourneyed on to Jerusalem .

During Rache l s l ifetime her couch had a l ways stoo d I n

’
,

the tent o f Jacob After her death he ordered the couch o f

.
,

her handmaid B i l hah to be c arried thither Reuben was .

sorely vexed thereat and he said

, Not enough that Rachel ,

a l ive cu rtailed the rights o f my mother she must needs give ,

her annoyance also after death ! He went and took

’
the couch o f his mother Leah and placed it in Jacob s tent
’ m ’
instead of Bi l hah s couch Reuben s brothers l ea rned o f
.

his disrespectful act from Asher He had found it out in one .

way or another and had to l d it to his brethren who rup

, ,

t u r e d their relations with him for they would have nothing

,

to do w ith an informer and they did not become reconciled

,
4 16 Th e L e g e n ds o
f th e J e w s

with Asher until Reuben himsel f confessed his tr a n s g r e s

”
sion . For it was not long before Reuben recognized that
he had acted reprehensibly toward his father and he fasted ,

and put on sackc l oth and repented of his misdeed H e w a s

, .

the first among men to do penance and therefore Go d said ,

to him : S ince the beginning o f the world it ha th not hap

pened that a man hath sinned and then repented ther e o f .

Thou art the first to do penance and as thou l ivest a prophet , ,

o f thy seed Hosea sha ll b e the first to proclaim O Israel

, , , ,

”
r eturn ’
.
8

S CA M P AIGN AGAINST J AC O B
E SA U ’

When Isaac felt his end approaching he called his t w o ,

sons to him and charged them with his l ast wish and wi ll
, ,

and gave them his blessing H e said : I adj ure you by .

the exalted Name the praised honored glorious immutab l e

, , , , ,

and mighty O ne who hath made heaven and ea rth and a ll

,

things together that ye fear Him and serve Him and each
, , ,

sha ll love his brother in mercy and j ustice and none wish ,

evil unto the othe r n ow and henceforth unto a l l eternity a l l

, ,

the days o f your l ife that ye may enj oy good fortune in a l l

,

”
your unde rta kings and that ye perish not ,
.

Fu rthermore he commanded them to bury him in the Cave

o f Machpelah by the side o f his father Abraham in the
, ,

grave which he had dug fo r himse l f with his own hands .

Then he divided his possessions between his tw o sons giving ,

Esau the larger portion and Jacob the sma ll er But Esau , .

said ,
I sol d my birthright to Jacob and I ceded it to him , ,

3,
and it belongs unto him Isaac rej oiced gr e a tl v that Esau
.

acknowledged the rights o f Ja cob of his ow n accord and he ,

c l o s ed his eyes in peace

“
.
4 18 Th e L e g e n ds f
o th e J ew s

they ha d all assembled to c onsole Ja cob for the death of

Leah and they s a t there unconcerne d none enterta ine d a
, ,

suspi ci on that a n assault upon them was meditate d by any

man And the great army ha d al rea d y en c ircle d thei r c astle
.
,

and still none w ithin suspected any har m neithe r J a cob ,

and h is children nor the two hundred se r vants Now when .

Jacob s a w that Esau presumed to make w ar upon them ,

an d s o ught to slay them in the citadel an d was shooting ,

da rt s at them he ascended the wall o f the citadel and spake

,

words o f peace and friendship and brotherly love to Esau .

H e said : I S this the consolat io n whi c h thou hast c ome to

bring me to c omfort me for my wife who hath been taken
, ,

by death ! I s this in accordance with the oath thou didst

swear twi c e unto thy father an d thy mother before they died !
Thou hast violated thy oath and in the hou r when th o u ,

”
didst swear unto thy father thou wast j udged ,But E s au .

ma d e reply Neither the children o f men nor the beasts

:

o f the fiel d swea r an oath t o keep i t unto a l l eternity but on ,

eve ry day they d evise evil aga i nst o ne another when it is ,

directed against an enemy or w hen they seek to slay an

,

a d versary I f the boar will change his s k i n and make his

.

bristles as soft a s wool or i f he can cause horns to sprout

,

forth on his hea d like the horns o f a stag o r a ram then ,

shall I observe the tie o f brotherh o od with thee

Then spoke Judah to his father Jacob saying : H ow long ,

wilt thou stand yet wasting words o f pea c e a n d fr i endship

upon him ! And he attacks u s unaw ares like an enemy with , ,

”
his mail c lad w a r riors seeking t o S lay u s
-
, Hea ri ng these .

words Jac ob g raspe d h i s bow a n d kille d Adoram the E dom

,

i te and a s e cond time he bent his b ow an d the arro w st ru ck

, ,
 Ja co b 4 19

E sau up o n the r i ght thigh The wound w a s m o rtal and his

.
,

sons lifted Esau up and put him upon his ass and he came ,

t o Adora and there he died

, .

Judah made a sal l y to the south o f the citadel and W ith ,

’
him were Naphtali and Gad aide d by fifty o f Ja cob s s e r ,

vants to the east Levi and Dan went forth with fifty ser
vants ; Reuben Issacha r and Zebulon with fifty servan ts to
, , ,

the north ; and Simon B enj amin an d Enoch the last the
, , ,

s o n o f Reuben with fifty servants to the west

,
Judah was , .

exceedingly brave in battle Together w ith Nap htali and Gad

.

he pressed forward into the ranks o f the enemy and cap ,

t u r e d one o f their i ron towers O n their bucklers they .

caught the sha rp missiles hurle d against them in su c h n u m

bers that the light of the s u n was darkened by reason o f the
roc ks and darts and stones Judah w a s the first to break the
.

ra nks o f the enemy of whom he kille d s ix v al iant men and

, ,

h e was a c companied on the right by Naphta l i and by Gad on

the left They also hewed down t w o soldiers each whi l e
.
,

their troo p o f se r vants ki ll ed on e man each Nevertheless .

they did not succeed in forc ing the a rmy a w ay fro m the
south o f the citadel not even when all together Judah and
, ,

hi s brethren made an united atta c k upon the enemy each o f

, ,

them picking ou t a victim and slaying him An d they were .

sti ll unsuccess ful in a thi r d combined atta ck th ough this ,

time each killed tw o men .

When Judah s a w n ow that the enemy remained in posses

sion o f the field and it was impossible to dis l odge them he
, ,

girded himsel f with strengt h and an heroic S pirit animated,

him Judah Naphtali and Ga d un i ted and t ogethe r they

.
, , ,

pierced the ranks o f the enemy Judah slaying ten o f them , ,

42 0 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

and his b r othe r s ea c h e i ght S ee i ng th i s the se rvants t oo k

.
,

c ourage an d they j oine d thei r leade r s and fo ught at their

,

side Ju d ah lai d about him to r ight an d to le f t always aided

.
,

by N a p h ta l i an d Ga d and s o they su cc eeded in f or c ing the

'

enemy on e ris fu r the r t o the s outh away f rom the c itadel ,

.

But the hostile army re c overe d itsel f an d ma i ntained a brave ,

stan d against all the s o ns o f Jacob wh o w e r e f aint from the ,

hardships o f the c ombat an d co uld n ot c ontinue to fight

,
.

Thereupon Judah turne d to G o d in prayer and God h e a r k ,

ene d unto his petition and H e helped them H e s e t loose a

, .

storm f r o m one o f H is treasure c hambers and i t blew int o ,

the fa c es o f the enemy an d fi lled thei r eyes with d arkn ess

, ,

and they c o uld not s e e h ow t o fight But Judah and his .

brothers c oul d s e e clearly f or the w in d blew upon thei r,

backs Now Judah and his t w o br o thers wr o ught hav oc

.

among them they hewed the enemy down as the r eaper

,

mows d o wn the stalks o f grain and heaps them up f or

sheaves .

After they had routed the divis i on o f the army as si gned

to them o n th e south they hastene d to the a id of thei r
,

brothers w h o w ere de f ending the east n o rth an d west o f

, , ,

the c ita d el with three companies O n each side the wind .

ble w into the fa c es of the enemy and s o the sons o f Ja cob ,

suc c eeded in annihilating thei r army Four hundred were .

’
slain in battle and six hun d re d fled among the latter E sau s
, ,

four sons Reu el Jeush Lotan and Korah The oldest of

, , , , .

his sons Elipha z to o k no pa rt in the war be c ause he w a s a

, , ,

discipl e o f Ja cob an d the r e for e w ould not bea r a rms a ga inst

,

him .

The sons o f Ja cob pu r sued after the fleeing remnant of

4 22 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J ew s

’
opened To the dea f th o u w o ul d st sa y I f th ou d i d s t f ash iol i
.
,

a water pitcher thou w oul d st su r ely not forget to make e a rs

,

f or it an d if God c reated thee without hearing it is b u t

, ,

that H e may be glorified through thee in the day w hen th e

’
ears o f the d ea f shall be unstopped In su c h w ise thou .

didst endeavo r t o c ons ole the f eeble and the maimed But .

n ow i t is c ome unto thee and thou a rt troubled Thou , .

sayest I am a n upright man why d oth H e chastise me ! But

, ,

w h o I p r ay thee eve r p erished being innoc ent !

, , N oah w a s ,

save d f ro m the fl ood Abraham fr om the fie ry furna c e Isaa c

, ,

fro m the slaughtering kni f e Ja cob fro m an gels Moses from , ,

the swo rd of P hara o h an d Israel f rom t h e E gyptians that

,

”
w ere d ro w ned in the S ea Thus shall all the w icked fare
. .

Job answe r e d E lipha z an d s aid L oo k at thy father

, ,

”
E sau !
B ut Eliphaz r eturne d : I have nothing to do with him ,

the s on shoul d not bear the iniquity o f the father Esau will .

b e destroye d be c ause h e exe c ute d no good deeds and like

, ,

w ise his duk es w ill perish B ut a s for me I am a prophet .

, ,

and my message is not unt o Esau but unt o thee to make , ,

thee rende r a c count o f thysel f B ut G od r ebuked Elipha z . ,

a n d sa i d : Th o u didst speak ha r sh wor d s unto My servant

Job . Therefore shall O badiah on e o f thy descendants , ,

’
utt er a prophecy o f d enun c iati on against thy father s house ,

”m
the Edomites .

The co ncubine o f Eliphaz was Timna a p r in c ess o f royal ,

bl ood w h o had asked to be r e c eived into the faith o f Ab r a

,

h a m and his f amily b u t they a l l Abraham Isaa c and Ja c ob

, , , , ,

had re j ected her and s h e sai d Rather w ill I be a mai d

, ,

s e rvant unto the dregs of this nation than mistress o f a n ,

 4 23

o th er nation and s o s h e was willing to be con c ubine to

,

Eliphaz To punish the Patriarchs for the a ff ront they had

.

o ffe r ed her s h e was made the mother of Amalek who in

, ,

“
fl icte d great inj ury upon Israel .

’
Another on e o f Esau s descendants Anah had a most , ,

unusual experience O nce when he was pasturing his

.

father s asses in the wi l derness he led them to on e o f the

’
,

dese rts on the sho r es o f the Red S ea opposite the wil d erness ,

o f the nations and while he w a s feeding the beasts a very

, ,

heavy storm came f rom the other side of the s e a and th e ,

a sses could not move Then about on e hundred and twenty

.

gr eat an d terr ib l e a n ima l s came ou t f rom the wilderness at

th e other side o f the s e a and they all c ame to th e p l ace where
,

the asses we r e and they placed themselves the r e From the

, .

middle down these animals were in the shape of a man and

, ,

f rom the middle up some had the likeness o f bears some o f ,

apes and they al l had tails behind them like the tail of
,

the dukip a t from between their sh oulders r ea c hing down

,

t o the earth The animals mounted the asses and they rode
.
,

away with them and unto this day no eye hath seen them
, .

O ne o f them approached Anah an d smote him with its tail

, ,

an d then ran o ff .

Whe n Anah s a w all this he was ex c eedingly a fraid on

,

ac c ount o f h is life and he fled to the city where he related

, ,

all that had happened to him Many sallied forth to seek

.

the asses but none cou l d find them Anah and his brothers
,
.

w ent no more to the same p l ace from that day forth for they ,

m
were greatly a fraid on account of their l ives .

This Ana h was the o ff spring o f an incestuous marriage

h is m o ther w a s at the same t i me the mother o f his father
424 Th e L e g e n ds o f th e J e ws

Zibeon An d a s he w a s b o rn o f an unnatural union so h e

.
,

t ri ed to br i ng about unnatural un i ons among animals H e .

was the first to mix the bree d o f the horse and the ass and
produce th e mule As a punishment God c rossed the sna ke
.
,

and the lizar d an d they brought forth th e h a b a rb a r whose

, ,

bite is certain d eath like the bite o f the white s h e mu l e

,
-
.

The descendan ts o f E sau had ei ght kings before there

reigned any kin g over th e descendants o f Ja c ob But a time .

c ame w hen the Jews ha d eight kings during whose reign the
E d omites had none and were subj e c t to the Jewish kings .

This w a s the time that intervene d between S aul the first ,

Israelitish king who ruled over Edom an d Jehoshaphat for

, , ,

Edom did n ot make itsel f in d ependent o f Jewish r ule until

the time o f Joram the s on o f Jehoshaphat There w a s a d i f
,
.

’
ference between the kings of Esau s seed and the kings o f
-

’
Jacob s seed The Jewish people always produced the i r
.

kings from thei r own midst while the Edomites had to go to

,

”
alien peop l es to secure theirs The first Edomite king was.

m
the Aramean B a l a a m c alle d Bela i n his c apacity a s ruler of
,
3

Edom His su cc es s or Job called Jobab also came from

.
, ,

Bozrah and for f urnishing Edom with a k i ng this city wi ll

,

be chastise d in t i me to c ome When God sits i n j udgment on

.

“
Edom B ozrah will be the first to su ff er punishment
,
.

The rule o f E d om was o f sho rt durati on while the rule o f ,

Israel will be unto all times for the stan d ar d o f the Messiah
,

shall wave foreve r a n d eve r .