The First Boke of Moses called Genesis Part 7

And there fell a derth in y^e lande/ pa.s.singe the first derth y^t fell in the dayes of Abraham. Wherfore Isaac went vnto Abimelech kinge of y^e Philistis vnto Gerar. Th? the LORde apeared vnto him & sayde goo not doune in to Egipte/ but byde in y^e land which I saye vnto y^e: Sogeorne in this lde/ & I wyll be with y^e & wyll blesse y^e: for vnto the & vnto thy sede I will geue all these ctreis And I will performe the oothe which I swore vnto Abrah thy father/ & will multiplye thy seed as y^e starres of heav?/ & will geue vnto thy seed all these contreis. And thorow thy seed shall all the natis of the erth be blessed/ because y^t Abrah harkened vnto mi voyce & kepte mine ordinauces/ cmaudm?tes/ statutes & lawes

And Isaac dwelled in Gerar. And y^e m? of the place asked hi of his wife/ & he sayde y^t she was his sister: for he feared to calle her his wife lest the m? of the place shulde haue kylled hym for hir sake/ because she was bewtyfull to y^e eye. And it happened after he had bene there longe tyme/ y^t Abimelech kinge of y^e Philistis loked out at a wyndow & sawe Isaac sportinge with Rebecca his wife. And Abimelech sende for Isaac & sayde: se/ she is of a suertie thi wife/ and why saydest thou y^t she was thi sister? And Isaac saide vnto hi: I thought y^t I mighte peradventure haue dyed for hir sake. Th? sayde Abimelech: whi hast thou done this vnto vs? one of y^e people myght lightely haue lyne by thy wife & so shuldest thou haue broughte synne vpon vs Th Abimelech charged all his people saynge: he y^t toucheth this man or his wife/ shall surely dye for it.

And Isaac sowed in y^e lde/ & founde in y^e same yere an hudred bushels: for y^e LORde blessed hi/ & the man waxed mightye/ & w?t forth & grewe till he was exceadinge great/ y^t he had possessi of shepe/ of ox? & a myghtie housholde: so y^t the Philestians had envy at him: In so moch y^t they stopped & fylled vp with erth/ all the welles which his fathers servauntes dygged in his father Abrahams tyme. Than sayde Abimelech vnto Isaac: gett the fr me/ for thou art myghtier then we a greate deale.

Than Isaac departed thense & pitched his tente in the valey Gerar & dwelt there. And Isaac digged agayne/ the welles of water which they dygged in the dayes of Abrah his father which the Philestis had stoppe after y^e deth of Abrah/ & gaue th? the same names which hys father gaue th?. As Isaacs seruautes dygged in the valey/ they founde a well of springynge water. And the herdm? of Gerar dyd stryue with Isaacs herdm? saynge: the water is oures Than called he the well Eseck because they stroue with hym.

Than dygged they another well/ & they stroue for y^t also. Therfore called he it Sitena. And than he departed th?se & dygged a nother well for the which they stroue not: therfore called he it Rehoboth saige: y^e LORde hath now made vs rowme & we are encreased vp the erth.

Afterward departed he th?ce & came to Berseba

And the LORde apered vnto hi the same nyghte & sayde. I am the G.o.d of Abrah thy father/ feare not for I am with the & will blesse the & multiplye thy sede for my seruaute Abrahams sake. And than he buylded an aulter there and called vp the name of the LORde/ & there pitched his tente. And there Isaacs servauntes dygged a well.

Than came Abimelech to him fr Gerar & Ahusath his frende and Phicol his chefe captayne. And Isaac sayde vnto th?: wherfore come ye to me/ seige ye hate me & haue put me awaye fr you? Than sayde they: we sawe that the LORde was with the/ and therfore we sayde that there shulde be an oothe betwixte vs d the/ & that we wolde make a bonde with the: y^t thou shuldeste do vs no hurte/ as we haue not touched the and haue done vnto the nothinge but good/ and s?d the awaye in peace: for thou art now the blessed of the LORde. And he made th? a feast/ and they ate d drke. And they rose vp by tymes in the mornynge and sware one to another. And Isaac sent th? awaye. And they departed from him in peace.

And y^t same daye came Isaacs servautes & tolde hi of a well which they had dygged: & sayde vnto hi/ that thei had founde water. And he called it Seba/ wherfore the name of the cyte is called Berseba vnto this daye.

The .xxvij. Chapter.

When Esau was .xl. yere olde/ he toke to wyfe Iudith the doughter of Bery an Hethite/ and Basmath the doughter of Elon an Hethite also/ which were dishobedient vnto Isaac and Rebecca. And it came to pa.s.se that Isaac wexed olde & his eyes were dymme/ so that he coude nat see.

Th called he Esau his eldest sonne & sayde vnto him: mi sonne. And he sayde vnto hym: heare am I. And he sayde: beholde/ I am olde d knowe not the daye of mi deth: Now therfore take thi weap?s/ thy quiver & thi bowe/ & gett the to the feldes & take me some venyson & make me meate such as I loue/ & brynge it me & let me eat that my soull may blesse the before that I dye:

But Rebecca hard wh? Isaac spake to Esau his sonne. And as soone as Esau was gone to the felde to catche venyson & to brige it/ she spake vnto Iacob hir sonne sainge: Behold I haue herde thi father talkinge with Esau thy brother & saynge: bringe me venyson & make me meate that I maye eate & blesse the before the LORde yer I dye. Now therfore my sonne heare my voyce in that which I cmaunde the: gett the to the flocke/ & bringe me th?ce .ij. good kiddes/ & I will make meate of th?

for thi father/ soch as he loueth. And thou shalt brige it to thi father & he shal eate/ y^t he maye blysse the before his deth

Than sayde Iacob to Rebecca his mother. Beholde Esau mi brother is rugh & I am smooth. Mi father shal peradu?ture fele me/ d I shal seme vnto hi as though I w?t aboute to begyle hi/ & so shall he brige a curse vp me & not a blessige: & his mother saide vnto him. Vpp me be thi curse my sonne/ only heare my voyce & goo and fetch me them. And Iacob went d fett them and brought them to his mother.

And his mother made meate of them accordinge as his father loued And she went and fett goodly rayment of her eldest sonne Esau which she had in the house with hir/ and put them vpon Iacob hir yongest sonne/ d she put the skynnes vpon his hdes & apon the smooth of his necke.

And she put y^e meate & brede which she had made in the hde of hir sonne Iacob

And he went in to his father saynge: my father/ And he swered: here am I/ who are thou my sonne? And Iacob sayde vnto his father: I am Esau thy eldest sonne/ I haue done acordinge as thou baddest me/ vp and sytt and eate of my venyson/ that thi soule maye blesse me. But Isaac sayde vnto his sonne. How cmeth it that thou hast fownde it so quicly my sonne? He answered: The LORde thy G.o.d brought it to my hande. Than sayde Isaac vnto Iacob: come nere and let me fele the my sonne/ whether thou be my sonne Esau or not. Than went Iacob to Isaac his father/ & he felt him & sayde the voyce is Iacobs voyce/ but the hdes ar y^e hdes of Esau. And he knewe him not/ because his handes were rough as his brother Esaus handes: And so he blessed him.

And he axed him/ art thou my sonne Esau? And he sayde: that I am. Than sayde he: brynge me and let me eate of my sonnes venyson/ that my soule maye blesse the. And he broughte him/ and he ate. And he broughte him wyne also/ and he dranke. And his father Isaac sayde vnto him: come nere and kysse me my sonne. And he w?t to him & kissed him. And he smelled y^e sauoure of his raym?t & blessed hi & sayde See/ y^e smell of my sne is as y^e smell of a feld which the lorde hath blessed. G.o.d geue the of y^e dewe of heav? & of the fatnesse of the erth and pl?tie of corne & wyne. People be thy servauntes & natis bowe vnto the. Be lorde ouer thy brethr?/ and thy mothers children stoupe vnto the. Cursed be he y^t curseth the/ & blessed be he that blesseth the.

As soone as Isaac had made an end of blessig/ Iacob and Iacob was scace gone out fr the preasence of Isaac his father: then came Esau his brother fr his huntynge: And had made also meate/ and brought it in vnto his father & sayde vnto him: Aryse my father & eate of thy sonnes venyson/ that thy soule may blesse me. Th his father Isaac sayde vnto him. Who art thou? he answered I am thy eldest sonne Esau.

And Isaac was greatly astoyned out of mesure and sayde: Where is he then that hath huted venyson and broughte it me/ and I haue eaten of all before thou camest/ and haue blessed him/ d he shall be blessed styll. Wh? Esau herde the wordes of his father/ he cryed out greatly & bitterly aboue mesure/ and sayde vnto his father: blesse me also my father. And he sayde thy brother came with subtilte/ d hath tak?

awaye thy blessynge. Then sayde he: He maye well be called Iacob/ for he hath vndermyned me now .ij. tymes/ fyrst he toke awaye my byrthrighte: and se/ now hath he taken awaye my blessynge also. And he sayde/ hast thou kepte neuer a blessynge for me?

Isaac answered and sayde vnto Esau: beholde I haue made him thi LORde & all his mothers childern haue I made his seruauntes. Moreouer wyth corne d wyne haue I stablesshed him/ what c I do vnto the now my sonne? And Esau sayde vnto his father: hast thou but y^t one blessynge my father? blesse me also my father: so lyfted vp Esau his voyce & wepte Th Isaac his father answered & sayde vnto him

Beholde thy dwellynge place shall haue of the fatnesse of the erth/ & of the dewe of heauen fr aboue. And wyth thy swerde shalt thou lyue and shalt be thy brothers seruaunte But the tyme will come/ when thou shalt gett the mastrye/ and lowse his yocke from of thy necke.

And Esau hated Iacob because of the blessynge y^t his father blessed him with all/ & sayde in his harte: The dayes of my fathers sorowe are at hde/ for I will sley my brother Iacob. And these wordes of Esau hir eldest sonne/ were told to Rebecca. And she sente d called Iacob hir yongest sonne/ and sayde vnto hi: beholde thy brother Esau threatneth to kyll the: Now therfore my sne heare my voyce/ make the redie & flee to Lab my brother at Haran And tarie with him a while/ vntill thy brothers fearsnes be swaged/ and vntill thy brothers wrath turne away from the/ and he forgett that which thou hast done to him.

Th will I sende and fett the awaye from thence. Why shulde I lose you both in one daye.

And Rebecca spake to Isaac: I am wery of my life/ for feare of the doughters of Heth. Yf Iacob take a wife of the doughters of Heth/ soch one as these are/ or of the doughters of the lande/ what l.u.s.t shulde I haue to lyue.

-- The .xxviij. Chapter.

Than Isaac called Iacob his sonne and blessed him/ d charged him and sayde vnto him: se thou take not a wife of the doughters of Canaan/ but aryse d gett the to Mesopotamia of the house of Bethuel thy mothers father: and there take the a wife of the doughters of Laban thi mothers brother. And G.o.d allmightie blesse the/ increase the and multiplie the that thou mayst be a nombre of people/ and geue the the blessynge of Abraham: both to the and to thy seed with the that thou mayst possesse the lde (wherein thou art a strangere) which G.o.d gaue vnto Abraham. Thus Isaac sent forth Iacob/ to goo to Mesopotamia vnto Laban/ sonne of Bethuel the Sirien/ and brother to Rebecca Iacobs & Esaus mother.

When Esau sawe that Isaac had blessed Iacob/ and sent him to Mesopotamia/ to fett him a wife thence/ and that/ as he blessed him he gaue him a charge saynge: se thou take not a wife of the doughters of Canaan: and that Iacob had obeyed his father and mother/ & was gone vnto Mesopotamia: and seynge also that the doughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his father: Then went he vnto Ismael/ and toke vnto the wiues which he had/ Mahala the doughter of Ismael Abrahams sonne/ the sister of Nabaioth to be his wife.

Iacob departed from Berseba and went toward Haran/ and came vnto a place and taried there all nyghte/ because the sonne was downe. And toke a stone of the place/ and put it vnder his heade/ and layde him downe in the same place to slepe. And he dreamed: and beholde there stode a ladder apon the erth/ and the topp of it reached vpp to heau?.

And se/ the angells of G.o.d went vp and downe apon it/ yee d the LORde stode apon it and sayde.

I am the LORde G.o.d of Abraham thi father and the G.o.d of Isaac: The londe which thou slepest apon will I geue the and thy seed. And thy seed shalbe as the dust of the erth: And thou shalt spreade abrode: west/ east/ north and south. And thorow the and thy seed shall all the kynreddes of the erth be blessed. And se I am with the/ and wylbe thy keper in all places whother thou goost/ & wyll brynge y^e agayne in to this lande: Nether will I leaue the vntill I haue made good/ all that I haue promysed the.

When Iacob was awaked out of his slepe/ he sayde: surely the LORde is in this place/ d I was not aware. And he was afrayde & sayde how fearfull is this place? it is none other/ but euen the house of G.o.d and the gate of heau?. And Iacob stode vp early in the mornynge and toke the stone that he had layde vnder his heade/ and pitched it vp an ende and poured oyle on the topp of it. And he called the name of the place Beth.e.l.l/ for in dede the name of the citie was called Lus before tyme.

And Iacob vowed a vowe saynge: Yf G.o.d will be with me and wyll kepe me in this iourney which I goo and will geue me bread to eate and cloothes to put on/ so that I come agayne vnto my fathers house in saftie: then shall the LORde be my G.o.d/ and this stone which I haue sett vp an ende/ shalbe G.o.des house/ And of all that thou shalt geue me/ will I geue the tenth vnto the.

-- The .xxix. Chapter.

Then Iacob lyfte vp his fete & w?t toward the east countre. And as he loked aboute/ behold there was a well in the feld/ and .iij. flockes of shepe laye therby (for at that well were the flockes watered) & there laye a great stone at the well mouth And the maner was to brynge the flockes thyther/ & to roull the stone fr the welles mouth and to water the shepe/ and to put the stone agayne vppon the wells mouth vnto his place.

And Iacob sayde vnto th?: brethern/ wh?ce be ye? and they sayde: of Haran ar we. And he sayde vnto th?: knowe ye Laban the sonne of Nahor.

And they sayde: we knowe him. And he sayde vnto th?: is he in good health? And they sayde: he is in good health: and beholde/ his doughter Rahel cometh with y^e shepe. And he sayde: lo/ it is yet a great whyle to nyghte/ nether is it tyme y^t the catell shulde be gathered together: water the shepe and goo and fede th?. And they sayde: we maye not/ vntill all y^e flockes be brought together & the stone be roulled fr the wells mouth/ and so we water oure shepe.

Whyle he yet talked with th?/ Rahel came with hir fathers shepe/ for she kepte them. As soone As Iacob sawe Rahel/ the doughter of Laban his mothers brother/ and the shepe of Laban his mothers brother/ he went and rowled the stone fr the wells mouth/ and watered the shepe of Lab his mothers brother And Iacob kyssed Rahel/ and lyfte vp his voyce and wepte: and tolde her also y^t he was hir fathers brother and Rebeccas sonne. Th? Rahel ranne and tolde hir father.

When Laban herd tell of Iacob his sisters sonne/ he ranne agaynst him and enbraced hi & kyssed him d broughte him in to his house. And th?

Iacob told Lab all y^e matter And th? Lab sayde: well/ thou art my bone & my flesh. Abyde with me the s.p.a.ce of a moneth. And afterward Laban sayd vnto Iacob: though thou be my brother/ shuldest thou therfore serue me for nought? tell me what shall thi wages be? And Laban had .ij. doughters/ the eldest called Lea and the yongest Rahel.

Lea was tender eyed: But Rahel was bewtifull d well fauored. And Iacob loued her well/ and sayde: I will serue the .vij. yere for Rahel thy yongest doughter. And Laban answered: it is better y^t I geue her the/ than to another man: byde therfore with me.

And Iacob serued .vij. yeres for Rahel/ and they semed vnto him but a fewe dayes/ for the loue he had to her. And Iacob sayde vnto Laban/ geue me my wife/ that I maye lye with hir For the tyme appoynted me is come.

Than Laban bade all the men of that place/ and made a feast. And when eu? was come/ he toke Lea his doughter and broughte her to him and he went in vnto her. And Laban gaue vnto his doughter Lea/ Zilpha his mayde/ to be hir seruaunte.

And when the mornynge was come/ beholde it was Lea. Than sayde he to Laban: wherfore hast thou played thus with me? dyd not I serue the for Rahel/ wherfore than hast thou begyled me? Laban answered: it is not the maner of this place/ to marre the yongest before the eldest. Pa.s.se out this weke/ & th shall this also be geven the for y^e seruyce which thou shalt serue me yet .vij. yeres more. And Iacob dyd eu? so/ and pa.s.sed out that weke/ & than he gaue hi Rahel his doughter to wyfe also. And Laban gaue to Rahel his doughter/ Bilha his handmayde to be hir servaute. So laye he by Rahel also/ and loved Rahel more than Lea/ and serued him yet .vij. yeres more.

When the LORde sawe that Lea was despised/ he made her frutefull: but Rahel was baren. And Lea conceaued and bare a sonne/ d called his name Rub?/ for she sayde: the LORde hath loked apon my tribulation.

And now my husbonde will loue me. And she conceaued agayne and bare a sonne/ and sayde: the LORde hath herde that I am despised/ d hath therfore geuen me this sonne also/ and she called him Simeon. And she conceaued yet and bare a sonne/ d sayde: now this once will my husbonde kepe me company/ because I haue borne him .iij. sonnes: and therfore she called his name Levi. And she conceaued yet agayne/ and bare a sonne saynge: Now will I prayse the LORde: therfore she called his name Iuda/ and left bearynge.