were grown up to manhood who were as yet in the loins of their father;* and even after that Patriarch had repeatedly migrated from dwelling-place to dwelling-place in the land of Canaan. For " Jacob," we read when all these other events had been re

66

lated in their order, came unto Isaac his

father, unto Mamre, unto the city of Arbah, which is Hebron, where Abraham and Isaac sojourned."+

How then is this seeming discrepancy to be got over? I mean, the discrepancy between Isaac's anxiety to bless his son before he died, and the fact of his being found alive perhaps forty or fifty years afterwards? My answer is this-that it was probably at a moment of dangerous sickness when he bethought himself of imparting the blessing --and I feel my conjecture supported by * Genesis, xxxiv. 5. + Ibid. xxxv. 27.

the following minute coincidences.

That

Isaac was then desirous to have " savoury meat such as he loved," as though he loathed his ordinary food: that Jacob bade him" arise and sit that he might eat of his venison," as though he was at the time stretched upon his bed; that he “trembled very exceedingly," when Esau came in and he was apprised of his mistake, as though he was very weak; that the words of Esau, when he said in his heart "the days of mourning for my father are at hand," are as though he was thought sick unto death; and that those of Rebekah, when she said

unto Jacob "should I be deprived of you ? both in one day," are as though she sup

posed the time of her widowhood to be

near.

I will add that the prolongation of Isaac's life unexpectedly (as it should seem,) may

have had its influence in the continued protection of Jacob from Esau's anger, the latter, even in the first burst of his passion, retaining that reverence for his father which determined him to put off the execution of his evil purposes against Jacob, till he should be no more. And this affection seems to have been felt by him to the last; for wild and wandering as was his life, the sword or the bow ever in his hand, we nevertheless find him anxious to do honour to his father's grave, and assisting Jacob at the burial.* The filial feelings therefore which had stayed his hand at first, were still tending to soothe him during Jacob's absence, and to propitiate him on Jacob's return; for the days of mourning for his father were still not come.

* Genesis, xxxv. 29.

VII.

My next coincidence may not be thought in itself so convincing as some others, yet, as it at once furnishes an argument for the truth of Genesis and an answer to an objection, I will not pass it over. When Jacob is about to remove with his family to Beth-el, a place already consecrated in his memory by the vision of angels, and thenceforward to be distinguished by an altar to his God, he gives the following extraordinary command to his household and all that are with him: "Put away the strange gods that are among you, and be clean, and change your garments;"* or as it might be translated with perhaps more closeness, "the gods of the stranger." Had Jacob, then, hitherto tolerated the worship of idols * Genesis, xxxv. 2.

among his own attendants? Had he connived so long at a defection from the God of his fathers, even whilst he was befriended by Him, whilst he was living under His special protection, whilst he was in frequent communication with Him? This is hard to be believed; indeed it would have seemed incredible altogether, had it not been remembered that Rachel had Images which she stole from her father Laban, and which he at least considered as his household gods. Those images, however, might be taken by Rachel as valuables, silver or gold perhaps, a fair prize as she might think, serving to balance the portion which Laban had withheld from her, and the money which he had devoured. That she used them herself as idols does not appear, but rather the contrary-and that Jacob was perfectly unconscious of their