of possessions But that Ephraim though he were the least and youngest should exceed him and have a larger posterity than he In effect he gave them his benediction and preferring the youngest before the eldest he finished this Ceremony in saying Israel shall be blessed in you and when Parents shall give their blessings unto their Children they shall beseech God to multiply them as he hath Multiplyed those of Ephraim and Manasses After this Jacob began to turn himself towards Joseph to advertise him that he was now dying and that for the rest God would be with him and his Children and would bring them all back into the Country of their fore fathers In fine he gave unto Ioseph as a birth-right above his Brethren the Land he had in Sichem which was one of the fairest parts of his possessions and which he particularly affected as having formerly acquired it by force of armes from the Amorites CHAP. XI The last Will and Testament of Jacob containing the benedictions given unto the twelve Patriarks AMongst all the exercises of life there is not any one more necessary and more important than timely to learn the manner of dying pioussy Death layes every where ambushes for us and only waits for the hour to surprise us It is a difficult Art to die well But there is scarce any person who can dispose himself to expect it by reason the bare thought of it useth to terrifie us Nevertheless wee must grow familiar with this cruell tyrant and perform very often during life what wee could wish lay in our power to doe at the hower of death otherwise wee find our selves surprised when this Mercilesse executioner takes a trumpet in his hand to sound the last retreat which must be made unto the tomb Then is it that the loudest talkers become dumb and that the boldest are wholy out of countenance and many in this state are so far from thinking on others as they hardly know themselves It is a great comfort neverthelesse Vocavit autem Jacob filios suos ait eis congregamini ut annuntiem quae ventura sunt vobis in diebus novissimis Gen. 49. v. 1. to have words and blessings in our mouths even to the last gasp and to be able to dye like Iacob who drawing neer his passage called together his Children and particularly remonstrated unto each of them in these termes the condition and course wherein their affaris should be in ti meto come Ruben my Eldest Son Ruben primogenitus tu fortitudo mea principium doloris mei prior in donis major in imperio Gen. 49. v. 3. I gave thee life being in the flower and strength of my age thou art the first for whom I had those cares and disquiets which fathers commonly have in the education of their Children Thy advantages and privileges ought to be greater than those of others and thy posterity more powerfull than that of thy brethren Nature made thee their Chief and their Prince Effusus eis sicut aqua non crescas quia ascendisti cubile patris tui maculasti stratum cjus Gen. 49. v. 4. But the Justice of God who never leaves a Crime unpunished will revenge that which thou hast committed in staining my bed And as odours which are tainted lose their vertue so the effusion and prostitution thou hast made of thy self will occasion that thy race and posterity shall never be considerable either by Authority Number or Riches Simeon and Levi impious Warriors Simeon Levi siatres vasa iniquitatis bellantia Gen. 49. v 5. whom a blind fury hath rendred more like than nature and bloud you are the Instruments and Authors of the unjust and bloudy slaughter of the Sichemites In consilium corum non veniat anima mea c. Gen. 49. v. 6. I did not approve the effects of your cruell revenge when it was executed I then condemn'd it and shall condemn it now dying and detest the fury and brutish perfidiousness which made you surprise and massacre Hemor Sichem the Father and Son with their Subjects Maledictus suror eorum quia pertinax indignatio corum quia dura dâ—vidam vos in Jacob dispergam eos in Israel Gen. 49. v. 9. The disclaim I made of your cruelty shall not be without effect Because you have conspired to doe mischief you shall be for ever separated So obstinate and inveterate hatred as yours deserves a lasting chastisement which will take from you all the power of re-uniting your selves to execute your wicked designs Juda Juda te laudabunt fratres tui manus tua in cervicibus inimicorum tuorum adorabunt te filii patris tui Gen. 49. v. 8. you shall be praised and honoured by your Brethren they shall adore and acknowledge you for their King you shall triumph over your enemies and be more dreadfull than a young Lion whom hunger excites to the rage which is naturall to him you shall march with your victorious Army to make the Usurpers feel that they shall not long enjoy their tyrannicall Conquests The happiness inseparably fastned to your Arms shall render you formidable when you are in peace and you shall have no neighbour so bold as to declare warre against you to regain what you have taken from him The Crown shall not depart out of the house of Juda and it shall give Kings unto Judea even till the comming of the Messias Non auferetur Sceptrum de Juda c. who will be the desire and generall expectation of all Nations in the World This great Prince shall unite the Jews and Gentiles Donec veniat qui mittendus est ipse erit expectatio gentium Gen. 49. v. 10. and these two people shall make but one It is true that this union shall cost him dear for having but one deportment and countenance to which all people shall bear respect and invest him with the power of commanding them as a Soveraign his eyes being full of splendour and lightnings Pulcriores sunt oculi ejus vino dentes ejus lacte candidiores Gen. 49. v. 12. He being the most beautifull and most accomplish'd of all men will not rest satisfied by his incomparable attractives to vanquish hearts and linck them fast together but will mingle an effusion of his Divine bloud to perfect this alliance Vide Tertul. S. Ambros ubi de benedictione patriae c. 4. S. Chrys and wil die in bloud his sacred body which as a Robe pretious Mantle shal cover the wonders of the Divinitie personally united to him Zabulon shall dwell on the Sea-shore Zabulon littore maris babitabit in statione navium pertingens usque ad Sidonem Gen. 49. v. 13. Issachar asinus fortis accubans inter termi nos Gen. 49 v. 14. Vidit requiem quod esset bona terram quod optima c. Gen. 49. v. 15. and in the Havens which are on the coasts of Palestine even
before I dy O God! what consolation for a good Father to see again a good Son he was dead in his thoughts and behold him risen again He was lost and is found again a cruell Bear had devoured him and of all his reliques there was onely left him a bloody garment A strange change and behold him on a Throne and Master of one of the fairest Empires in the Universe What alteration and what Metamorphosis humane Prudence what sayest thou unto this Art not thou then ravished at the sight of these Prodigies hast thou not a desire to submit unto the Lawes of this wise Intelligence which sports with these Counsels and goes even under the Abysses of misfortune there to produce Peace Glory and immortality as a fair day in the midst of darkness Yes truly but to adore the effects of the Divine Providence and the most absolute power it hath over our lives and honours We must follow Jacob and goe visit Joseph Love hath wings at his Feet like Fame Profectusque Israel cum omnibus quae habâ—bat venit ad puteum juramenti Gen. 46. v. 1. he knows not what delay and retardment meaneth Jacob is on his way to see Joseph he is already in Bershabe neer unto that famous Well where Abraham heretofore made a solemn agreement with Abimelech and where both of them swore an inviolable peace There it was where Jacob stayed to offer his Sacrifice unto God upon the Altar of Abraham Et mactatis ibi victimis Deo patris sui Isaack Gen. 46. v. 1. Audivit cum per visionem noctis vocantem se dicentem sibi Jacob Jacob cui respondit Ecce adsum There having immolated Victimes he resign'd into the hands of God all the designs of his voyage he resolves to passe away one night in that place But scarce had he closed the eyes of the body but those of his soul were open'd to see and hear the God of his Father Isaack who called Jacob Jacob to which Jacob had nothing else to say but that he heard his voice and was most ready to execute his Commands Courage then Jacob Ait illi Deus Ego sum fortissimus Deus patris tui noli timere descende in Aegyptum quia in gentem magnam faciâ—mâ—te ibi Gâ—â— 46. v. 4. Joseph queque ponet manus suos super oculos tuos Gen. 46. v. 4. for it is the most powerfull God of thy Father Isaack who calls and appoints thee to passe into the Land of Egypt And there it is where he intends to make thee a Father of many Nations Yes saith he I promise thee Jacob that I will goe with thee and I assure thee that Joseph shall close thine eyes with his own hands O God! what Sacrifice what Vision What Speech and what Oath As for the Sacrifice in the first place what Jacob did ought to be an instruction to all those who leave their Country and intend to alter the course of their lives that before all things they should consult with God and take him for their guide in the Voyages designs they take in hand for it is unto him we ought first to Sacrifise our hearts and immolate all our hopes otherwise we shall look behind us like that wavering Woman who for her inconstancy was turned into a Statue of Salt Secondly the apparition of God which Jacob saw is a certain token that his eye still watcheth over those who dedicate themselves unto him and that he is neither deaf nor dumb to those that speak unto him Thirdly Gods promise is too faithfull and his Love too generous to forsake those who walk in his wayes and have taken him for their guide Fourthly when God promised Iacob to bring him back out of Egypt this must be understood of his Posterity and of the Israelites Jacobs Successors whom God after Two hundred and Fifteen years brought back out of Egypt into Chanaan Touching Jacob he dyed in Egypt between Josephs arms as we are going to see in the sequell of this History It sufficeth for the present to follow him in the remainder of his voyage It was about the morning of the second day that Jacob forsook Bershabe to pursue his Journey Surexit autem Jacob à puteo Juramenti c. Gen. 46. v. 6. It was indeed one of the fairest spectacles which ever appeared on the Confines of Palestine to see him in the head of his Troops as a good Father followed by his Children But I assure my self it had been most delitious and profitable to hear them if the holy Scripture would have given us some brief relation of their Discourse Nevertheless Cunctae animae ingressae sunt cum Jacob in Aegyptum sexaginta Gen. 46. v. 26. it acquaints us with the number of these happy Travellers which were seventy in all comprising therein Joseph with Manasses and Ephraim his two Sons who were born there Hence it evidently follows that when Moyses said there went thither Sixty and six he did neither put in the list Jacob nor Joseph Manasses nor Ephraim On the contrary when Saint Luke reckoneth Seventy and five he comprehends in that number the Sons and Nephews of Joseph whose birth hapned during the life and residence of this holy Patriark in Egypt Mean-while Jacob pursues his Journey Misit autem Judam ante se ad Joseph ut nunciaret ei occurreret in Gessen Gea 46. v. 28. but before his setting foot in Egypt he sent Judas to find out Joseph that he might be advertised of his comming and goe forth to receive him in the Land of Gessen Joseph hath no sooner heard this news Quò cum pervenissent juncto Joseph curru ascendit obviam patri ad eundem locum Gen. 46. v. 29. but he set forth to meet Iacob God knows whether the time might seem long unto him and whether his heart and mind went not faster than his body God knows also the various thoughts Jacob had in Expecting Joseph saying Alas what pains for one pleasure what desires for one fruition what Thorns for one Rose what Nights for one Day and how many Combats and dangers for one Triumph In fine behold Joseph in Jacobs bosome Vidensque eum irruit super collum ejus inter amplexus flevit Gen. 46. v. 29. Dixiâ—que pater ad Joseph Jam laetus morior quia vidi faciem tuam superstitem te relinquo GeÌ„ 46. v. 30. At ille locutus est aâ— fratres suos ad omnem domum patris sui ascendam nunciabo Pharaoni dicamque â—i Fratres mei domits patris mei qui erant in terra Chanaan venerunt ad me Gen. 46. v. 31. Cumque vocaverit dixerit quod est opus vestrum GeÌ„ 46. v. 33 Respondebitis viri pastores sumus servi tui ab infantia nostra usque in praesens nos patres nostri Gen. 46. v. 34. behold the Father in the Arms of his Son Ioseph leaps
on his neck and dearly embraceth him but he had no other than tears to utter What then can Iacob say Ah! my Son saith he now that I have seen thy face I am content and after this I shall willingly dye for it sufficeth me to leave thee alive After this Ioseph turning himself towards his Brethren and towards all those of Jacobs house began to say unto them that he was going unto Pharaoh to advertise him that his Brethren were arrived with their whole Family and that they had brought their Flocks and goods with them and when Command should be given them to see the King if he chanced to ask them of what Trade they were they should answer they had no other than that of meer Sheapheards and that all their â—indred who were as well as themselves his most humble servants and resolved to live and dye in his service never had any other employment since their birth Behold the instructions Joseph gave to all his Brethren whilst he conducted them with his Father to salute Pharaoh Now it was not out of Complement he put these words into their Mouths but upon Design that the King hearing they were Sheapheards and brought up in this Profession might permit them to live peaceably together with their Father in the Land of Gessen Vt habitare positis in terra Gessen quia detestantur Aegyptii omnes pastores ovium Gen. 46. v. 34. which was neerest unto Chanaan where there were also lovely Pastures and where they should be severed from the Egyptians who mortally hated all the Sheapheards which were in their Country by reason they had not the religious impiety of Egypt which adored Animals for Gods and who for that effect durst not kill them detesting for that reason all the Sheapheards of other Regions who had the care of Feeding their Flocks to the end they themselves with others might be nourished by them In fine Extremos quoque fratrum suorum quinque viros constituit coran Rege Gen. 47. v. 2. Hebraei Hemerus Pererius Oleaster In optimo loco fac eos habitare trade eis terram Gessen Gen. 47. v. 6. Quod si nosti in eis esse viros industrios constitue illos magistros pecorum meorum Gen. 47. v. 6. Post haec introduxit Joseph patrem suum ad Regem statuit eum coram co Gen. 47. v. 7. Et benedicto Rege egressus est soras Gen. 47. v. 10. the advice of Ioseph and his desire found happy success For assoon as he was returned unto the Court he presented unto Pharaoh five of his Brethren who in shew promised the least The King having cast his eyes on them and knowing they were Sheapheards gave them Gessen for their quarter and Commanded from that time they should take care of his Flocks Not long after Iacob entred who bore on his brow the Majesty of a King the authority of a Patriarch the wisedome of a Prophet and the glory of a Father of Nations When first he saw the King he besought Heaven to pour on him and his Kingdome all sorts of Benedictions The holy Scripture hath not otherwise declared unto us Iacobs entry into the presence of Pharaoh for my part I have often represented him unto my thoughts at the door or in the Kings anti-Chamber bare-headed and with hair whiter than Snow a beard down to his girdle and a neck bowed with old age eyes watered with tears and all his whole body somewhat trembling Me thinks I see him supported on one side with Ioseph on the other by Benjamin I even hear some sighs which issue forth of his mouth to refresh the ardors of his heart for notwithstanding all the coldnesse of his age he alwayes conserved in a dying body the sense of a truly generous soul and of a spirit of fire which was never out of Motion or Action I know not what Pharaoh thought seeing this good old man Et interrogatus ab eo quot sunt dies annorum vitae tuae Gen. 47. v. 7. Respondit Dies peregrinationis meae centum triginta annorum sunt parvi mali non pervenerunt usque ad dies patrum meo um quibus peregrinati sunt Gen. 47. v 9. Floscule mane puer media vir floscule luce Floscule sub nocte sole cadents senex Sic oreris morcrisque uno tu floscule Phoebo Vno sisque puer virque senexque die but he asked him how old he was to which he made answer Sir for the space of a hundred and thirty years I have been a Pilgrim on the Earth This journey truly is very short if you onely consider its durance but very long if you cast your eyes on the miseries of my life Nevertheless I am not yet arrived to the Term of my Fore-fathers Few old men will be found in the World who may not say the same For life is but a course in which we go from our Cradle to the Tomb. Dayes months years and entire Ages are but moments in the sight of God Man is but but a Flower which begins to blow at the break of day to fade about Noon and to drop away at night He is a shadow which passeth away a Feather which flyes a Reed which breaks an Image which loseth its Luster a Vapour which is dissipated a Beauty which perisheth a breath a smoak and a puff of Air which swells in the midst of a storm and appears on the water to dissolve at the same instant Nevertheless we need no longer space to see and feel much misery For it is enough to be born of a woman to be consumed with sorrows and to serve as a pittifull Subject to all sorts of Accidents Vicissitudes of life Witness Iacob who was no sooner come into the World but he must leave his Fathers house to go from thence with a staff in his hand into Forein Countries and like a fugitive to shun the persecution of his Brother We need but follow him in this sad journey and spend with him Twenty years in quality of a Servant at Labans house From thence we must depart out of Mesopotamia and bondage to expose our selves unto dangers of Death and to meet with Esau who comes to assail him with four hundred men We must see him in the affrightment he took at the Murther his Children committed upon the Sichemites Had he not also some cause to die at the death of Rachel and to expire on her body which inclosed the moitie of his life But who could behold the sorrow which pierc'd his heart when his Children were so impudent as to bring incest even into his house Surely he would have said that his life was but a web of misfortunes if we joyn with it the loss of Joseph the separation of Benjamin the captivity of Simeon and finally his last departure out of Chanaan Life both very short and long who will deny he had reason to say that his life had been very short if
the Merchants Ex trahentes cum de Cysterna vendiderunt Ismaelitis Gen. 37. v. 28. But if Death be sweeter than Captivity and if a couragious person hath less repugnancy to receive a Stab with a Dagger into his Heart than to have manacles on his Hands This generous Youth was very unhappy to come out of a Sepulcher to serve unknown Masters and a sort of people to whom the hope of profit rendred all things vendible even liberty it self which is yet a thousand times more pretious than Life Joseph then is set to sale unto any that will give money for him He is naked but resembleth not those Birds which are most valued for their feathers The Proclamation of Joseph He hath a tender and delicate Body but a generous and penetrating Spirit He is covered all over with dust but it is but a Cloud which hides for a time the Face of the Sun He speaks not a word but it is modesty which closeth his Mouth and renders his silence more eloquent than a long discourse He is asham'd but it is of his Brothers crime He shakes but it is for fear lest Gods designs be not accomplished Behold Joseph who will Alas what Proclamations what sale and what commerce Judas what are you doing Unmercifull Brethren have you not a horror to sell your own Bloud and to part with a Brother for a few pieces of Silver Ah what Powerfull motives to divert Josephs Brethren from their wicked designs are not these Eyes and looks capable of mollifying your furies doth not this innocent move you to compassion Is not this little naked and trembling Body an object more worthy of pitty than envy Remember that he is a part of your selves the delight of your Father and the last hope your Family can have It is true that at present he is but a Reed but he may grow unto a Palm and extend his Branches throughout all Judea It is true he is Young but he hath the wit and Spirit of a Man aged no less than a hundred years And besides he may chance one day to change his thraldome into an honourable liberty But if the dreams he had oblige you to fear the event they come either from God or not if of God Ah surely it is against him you make War If not why doe you arm your selves against an Idoll of Wind and a Phantasm of vanity All these motives were not powerfull enough to divert the current of these impious and execrable designs Nevertheless the furies of envy are torrents which have no bounds nor limits nothing being able to stop them The bargain is then made Joseph is sold Qui duxerunt eum in Aegyptum Gen. 37. v. 28. Reversusque Ruben ad Cysternam non invenit puerum Gen. 37. v. 29. and they that bought him for a slave bring him into Egypt without bearing any respect either unto his Youth beauty extraction or all the good qualities which made him so much amiable Whilst they were carrying him away behold Ruben who not being present at this sale and knowing nothing of what passed went directly unto the Well and often called upon Joseph When he saw he made no answer he thought him Dead either naturally or by violence whereupon he began to run as one distracted and fearfully to cry out Alas where is Joseph where is this poor Youth The sighs of Ruben where have they put him what have they done with him And what is become of him Joseph where art thou Ah whither shall I goe and how can I live Et scissis vestibus pergens ad fratres suos ait puer non comparet ego quo ibo Gen. 27. v. 30. if thou doest live no more what will my Father say unto me and on whom will he lay the blame Must not I render an account of him as his Elder Brother Brethren what answer doe you make me is he alive is he Dead if he be Dead where is his Body that I may Water it with my tears to powr out part of my grief by my Eyes Brethren shew me him I beseech you or some of his reliques Ah where is his Sepulcher where is the happy Land which hides this Treasure But if he be still living where is he and to what place have you sent him I will seek I will seek every where untill I find him It is enough for me if I may see him and but once more speak to him he knows the affection I bear him and the confidence he ought to have in me Ah! where is Joseph then Ruben quiet thy self for Joseph is not Dead but only sold Ah! what commerce Joseph sold what rage of envy what inhumane traffick what negotiation and what cruelty Joseph in fetters and bondage Joseph sold as a slave what will my father say what stroak of death will this news give him and how can he ever live being deprived of all hope to see his Son again Notwithstanding all these Remonstrances Tulerunt autem tunicam ejus in sanguine haedi quem occiderunt â—inxerunt Gen. 37. v. 31. they resolved to cut the throat of a Kid to steep Josephs garments in his bloud which being done they sent it all bloudy unto Jacob with direction to those that carried it to bid him look whether it were not his Sons garment Mittentes qui ferrent ad patrem dicerent hunc invenimus vide utrum tunica tui filii sit an non Gen. 37. v. 32. and say that they had found it in this sad plight I know not who was the Messenger that delivered this dreadfull spoil unto Jacob But Jacob casts his eyes upon this sad present and seeing this bloudy torn garment became saith Philo presently silent grief wanting words to answer the thoughts of his mind and the resentments of his heart Quam cum agnovisset pater ait tunica filii mei est sera pessima commedit eum bestia devoravit Joseph Genes 37. v. 33. His astonished eyes as also his mouth were suspended for a time as to their function he saw and heard nothing but of murthered Ghosts which spake confusedly to him The excesse of grief puts arms into his hands against himself Seissisque vestibus indutus est cilicio lugens filium suum multo tempore Gen. 37. v. 34. he tears off his hair and dilacerates his breast and all his garments But his tears efface not the bloud before his eyes His silence makes him no answer and the holy vengeance he exerciseth on himself doth not punish the Authours of his grief Congregatis autem curctis liberis ejus ut lenicent delorem patris notuit consolationem accipere c. Genes 37. v. 35. Mean-while all Jacobs friends and servants wept bitterly nothing was heard throughout the whole house but cryes sobs and accusations Every one strived to kiss his garment and Jacob could hardly tear it out of their hands to cry out Ah! this
we only consider the durance thereof and very long if we would contemplate the misfortunes contracted at his birth never to forsake him But as the setting Sun useth to dissipate the Clouds which had obscured it in the day and as sometimes wind rain and a tempest cease in the evening so Jacob at the end of his life began to enter into a calm and to enjoy fair weather It was in the City of Heros Joseph verò patri fratribus suis dedit possessionem in Agypto in optimo terrae loco Ramesses ut pâ—aeceperat â—harao Gen. 47.11 as the Septuagint have expounded it or els in Ramasses which is upon the Land of Gessen where Jacob made his last abode and where he found at last a haven after all his miseries as we are going to see CHAP. X. The last words of Jacob. ALas there is nothing eternall amongst created things and nothing which begins not to wax old assoon as it begins to live Life and Deathare inseparable companions which follow each other at a neer distance and tread even upon the same steps God himself saith Tertullian Roc stipulata est Dei vox hoc spopandit omnt quod nascitur c. Tertul. lib. de an cap. 30. is as it were ingaged thereunto by his word and all creatures at their birth are obliged unto it by promise at the very instant they enter into the world Life notwithstanding hath no regular periods and though he that made every thing with weight and measure hath shut up Creatures in the circle of Ages yet he hath not prescribed them equall limits but there are some who make their voyages longer or shorter than others However in vain is it to stray and take by-wayes For we must either in the morning at noon or in the evening arrive at our Lodging and after a thousand and a thousand windings at our finall resting place It is there said Calisthenes where Fathers and Children Calesthenes M.S. young and old wise men and fools the strong and weak and even the demi-Gods find themselves confused with Plants and beasts Death said a Favourite of Justinian pitcheth every where his tents and we as often hear mournfull Ditties under Velvet Canopies and in Ballisters of Ivory as under Pavillions of coarse Cloth and Cottages thatch'd with straw We see in Town ditches and under the dust of Battells Captains lying amongst Souldiers We behold under merciless blades and amongst Scymiters people lying with their Magistrates And at best there are but some Stones some Ciphers and Epitaphs which distinguish them Death then is more just and civill than birth The last hath Complacences for some and rigours for others but the first is indifferent towards all and we see at her feet Scepters amongst Scyths with this Inscription The Motto of Death Nemini parco I spare no man Death suffers not its self to be corrupted by favour it is on the River of oblivion and all the bodyes he ferries over in his Boat are naked not to appear different one from the other It was for this reason as the incomparable Picus of Mirandula said Most important advice Wise men during their lives and especially upon the approach of death ought to perform such actions as their memory might be immortall to the end if Death be common to them the manner of dying might be peculiar The Phoenix is no lesse subject unto death than Owles but Owles dye in the night and in a hollow place of some rotten Tree Whereas the Phoenix expires in the rayes of the Sun and upon a pile of Cinnamon and Musk. The Swan is no more exempt from it than the Raven But the Raven dyes craking upon some carrion and the Swan singing upon the bank of some fair River Jacob who as the Father of Nations seemd to have right unto Immortality was yet no more immortall than Esau but their death will be very different For Esau dyes suddenly like a Raven and an Owl but Jacob a far off saw his hours approching like a Phoenix and as a Swan which sings according to the common saying when he is breathing his last He was a hundred forty and seven years old when he perceived the arrivall of that moment which was to finish the course of his life Factique sunt omnes dies vitae illius Centum quadraginta septem annorum Gen. 47. v 28. Cumque appropinquare cerneret diem mortis suae vocavit filium suum Joseph dixit ad eum Si inveni gratiam in conspectu tuo pone manum tuam sub femoâ—e meo facies mihi misericordiam vâ—ritatem ut non sepelias me in Aegypto Gen. 47. v. 29. Sed dormiam cum patribus meis auseras me de terra hac condasq in sepulchno majorum meorum Gen. 47. v. 30. Rupertus hic Then this happy Patriark commanding Iosephs presence said unto him My Son it is time for me to dye there is no appeal I goe whither Abraham and Isaack are gone before and you shall come thither after me Mean-while I prithee if thou lov'st me put thy hand under my thigh and assure me that after my death thou wilt transport my body out of Egypt into Chanaan to bury it in the Sepulcher of my fore Fathers This is all I ask and all the favour I expect from thy love and goodness Iacob had reason to desire to be carried into Chanaan and laid in the monument of his Ancestors for this was the Land promised to his Children and which was to be one day consecrated by the worship of God and by the presence of the Messias As for the the Oath to which he oblig'd Ioseph it did not proceed from any distrust of his affection and fidelity Adoravit Isâ—ael Deum conversus ad lectuli caput Gen. 47. v. 31. Ribera in c. 11. ad Heb. Abulensis Et alii hic His ita transactis nunctatum Joseph quod aegrotaret pater fuus qui assumptis dâ—oobus filiis Manasse Ephraim ire perrexit Gen. 48. v. 1. but it was only done to the end that if Pharaoh should hinder him from rendring this duty unto his Father he might answer he was engaged thereto by Oath After this protestation Jacob adored God first turning his head towards the beds side where Joseph stood and directly towards the East because it was in this place they were accustomed to offer Sacrifices and erect Altars or rather to cast some look towards the Land of promise on which he had already placed all his hopes and desires Afterwards Jacob chancing to fall sick the news of of it was presently brought unto Joseph who immediatly took with him his two Sons Manasses and Ephraim to see him once more that they might receive his last Benediction Dictumque est Seni Ecce filius tuns Joseph venit ad te Qui confortatus sedit in lectulo Gen. 48. v. 2. Et ingresso ad se ait Deus
omnipotens apparuit mihi in Luza quae est in terra Chanaan benedixitque mihi Gen. 48. v. 3. Et ait Ego te ougebo multiplicabo c. Gen. 48. v. 4. Duo ergo filti tui qui nati sunt tibi in terra Aegypti antequam bue venirem ad te mei erunt Ephraim Manasses sicut Ruben Simeon reputabuntur mihi Gen. 48. v. 4. Reliquos autem quos genueris post eos tui erunt nomine fratrum suorum vocabuntur in possessionibus suis Gen. 48. v. 6. At the report of Iosephs return Iacob more vigorous than before raised himself half up in his bed and perceiving him entring he said unto him My Son it is necessary thou should'st know that the Omnipotent God of my forefathers appeared unto me in Luz which is in the Land of Chanaan to give me his benediction and to assure me I shall be the Father of a long posterity and that one day my Children shall be heirs of this most blessed Land I adopt then thy two Children which were born in Egypt before I came into these parts and I will have them from hence forth reputed no less mine than Ruben and Simeon Thereby Ioseph came to know that Manasses and Ephraim should have their Tribes a part and their share of succession in Chanaan as well as Ruben and Simeon and his other Children which was the cause he farther said unto Ioseph that if he chanced to have other Children they should be only in such sort esteemed his as not to have other Tribe than that of Manasses and Ephraim and no other share of the Possessions in Chanaan Rachel was not forgotten in his Will for Iacob having spoken of his Children remembred her and saith to Ioseph My Son I adopt thy Children Mibi enim quando venicham de Mesopotamia mortua est Rechel in terra Chanaan in ipso itinere sepelivi eam juxta viam Euphratae quae alio nomine appellabatur Bethlem Gen. 48. v. 7 Vatabius hic for Rachel by whom I might yet have had more Children dyed too soon for me and for the good of my whole Family It was at my return from Mesopotamia in the Land of Chanaan and very neer unto Ephrata that is Bethelem where she is interred It is probable that Iacob might have said more and that he might have staied longer upon the sad memory of his dear Rachel if at the same time he had not had a glimpse of Manasses and Ephraim whom Ioseph presented to him Adduc inquit eorad me ut benedicam illis Gen. 48. v. 9. Oculi enim Israel caligabant pâ—ae nimia senectute clâ—â—è videre non poterat Gen. 48. v. 10. Applicitosque ad se de osculatus est circumplexus eos Gen. 48. v. 10. to receive a second time his Benediction I know not whether Ioseph and all that were Witnesses of this interview could restrain their tears But to speak the truth it was a spectacle worthy of compassion to behold Iacob upon his death-bed striving to see the two Children of Ioseph who drew neer him and whom he could hardly have known if Ioseph had not named them and assur'd him that they were his Children Then both of them cast themselves gently on his body which Iacob feeling he kissed them one after the other and then having embraced them he turned his eyes towards Ioseph and said unto him My Son Dixit ad filium suum non sum fraudatus aspectu tuo insuper ostendit mihi Deus semen tuum Gen. 48. v. 11. what a happiness is it for me to see thee before I dye Ah! surely I never could have believed it But at last he that never forsakes those who serve him hath hitherto preserved thee and it is he who at this instant makes me enjoy the sight of thee and thy Children Iacob notwithstanding did not suffer Manasses and Ephraim to depart but held them still in his arms and on his breast untill Ioseph who feard they might disease him Cumque tulisset eos Joseph ' de gremio patris adoravit pronus in terram Gen. 48. v. 12. Et posuit Ephraim ad dexteram suam id est ad sinistram Israel Manassen verò in sinistra sua ad dextram scilicet patris applicuitque ambes ad eum Gen. 48. v. 13. Benedicitque Jacob filiis Joseph ait Gen. 48. v. 15. Which being done he cast himself on his knees neer Iacobs bed to adore his God and to thank him for the favours his goodness had imparted to him Afterwards perceiving that this holy man by little and little drew neer his end he set Ephraim at his right side and Manasses at his left to place Manasses on the right hand of Jacob Ephraim on the left But Jacob who saw less with the eyes of the body than with those of his soul and who considered not so much the present as the future holding his arms across laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim who was the youngest and his left on Manasses who was the eldest and blessed them both in this manner Deus in cujus conpsecta ambulaverunt pitres mei c. Gen. 48. v. 15. I beseech with my whole heart that God in whose presence my fore-Fathers Abraham and Isaack have walked that God who nourished me from my tendrest youth even to this day Angelus qui eruit me de cunctis malis benedicat pueris istis invocetur super eos nomen meum c. Gen. 48. v. 16. that Angel who hath guarded me from all evill to vouchsafe a blessing unto these two Children Let my name and that of my fore-fathers Abraham and Jsaack be earnestly called upon for them and may they have large increase upon the earth Joseph grew sad Videns autem Joseph quod posuisset pater suus dexteram manum super caput Ephraim graviter accepit c. Gen. 48. v. 17. seeing his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim and endeavoured to put it on that of Manasses advertising Jacob that he had taken the younger for the elder brother But Jacob answered Qui renuens ait Scie fili mi scio iste quidem erit in populos multiplicabitur sed frater ejus minor maior erit illo semen illius crescet in gentes Gen. 48. v. 19. Benedixitque eis in tempore illo dicens in te benedicetur Israel atque dicetur faciat tibi deus sicut Ephraim Manasse constituitque Ephraim ante Manassen Gen. 48. v. 20. Et ait ad Joseph filium suum En ego morior erit Deus vobiscum reducetque vos ad terram patrum vestrorum Gen. 48. v. 21. Do tibi partem unant extra sratres tuos quam tuti de manu Amorrhaeâ—in gladio arcu meo Gen. 48. v. 22. that he well knew what he did and that for the rest Manasses should be powerfull in people and in all sorts
or else the Storms of the day which preceded And truly what can a dying man say who hath lived in the intriges of Fortune in the Labyrinth of Law-suites in the incombrances of a Family in an abysse of passions and in a hell of Miseries after this what can you expect from these infortunate Parents and from these miserable friends which cannot say any thing to themselves but that they are hopelesse Ah! what farewell what separation and what kind of death Children of Saints predestinate Souls happy Successors of Jacob fall not into these precipices but follow the way and tracks which are marked out to you by your fore-fathers And thou my dear Reader build at least an Oratory in thy heart and make a Temple of thy house and an Altar of thy Bed where thou maist offer unto God what thou hast what thou art and what thou hast been In fine have then words in thy mouth for thy self for thy Children and Friends to the end having given thy benediction to those that have deserved it thou maist obtain the blessing of God who is thy Father thy King thy Maker and thy last end CHAP. XII The Lamentations of Joseph for the Death of Jacob. NAture useth to exact duties which cannot be deny'd her without Injustice and some kind of cruelty A man must have the soul of a Tyger to be devoyd of grief and resentment for the miseries of a Parent or friend then chiefly when he either hears them related or is a witness of them I know there are shamefull defects and misbeseeming a good courage and sometimes teares and sighes serve but to vent weaknesses and to betray the constancy wee ought to have But very often there are Tributes which must be payed unto love and piety And such tears as these saith St. Ipsae dulces lacrimae sunt ipsi fletus iucundi quibus restinguitur ardor animo quasi relaxatus evaporat affectus Ambr. Ambrose quench the ardors of our Souls and cause our sincerest and most tender affections sweetly to evaporate by our eyes These are generous tears and impositions unto which the noblest persons are most obliged For my part I laugh at certain slight Philosophers who study to shew in their Stoicall countenances and hold as the Principle of their Academy That we must be always equall without distinguishing That there is a certain equality more proper to a marble Statue than to a reasonable man The wisest Philosophy hath far better Maxims and one of her Axiomes is that There are times occasions which require sentiments of Joy and other seasons which demand expressions of grief And truly were it a hansome thing to see a Son with a smiling countenance and dry eyes at the Tomb of his father It would be a strange spectacle to see him in the midst of a banquet and at a Ball when his Father is laid in the earth and I would willingly know amongst what nations and in what sect there are lawes which dispense with what is due unto the sweet memory of the living and dead Above all the custome of funerals and those ceremonies which Quod cernens Joseph ruit super faciem patris flens deosculans eum Gen. 50. v. 1. Praecepitque servis suis medicis ut aromatibus condirent patrem Gen. 50. v. 2. Flevitque eum Aegyptus septuaginta diebus Gen. 50. v. 3. Dixitque ei Pharao ascende sepeli patrem tuum sicut adjuratus es Gen. 50. v. 6. Quo ascendente ierunt cum coomnes senes domus Pharaonis cunctique majores natu terrae Aegypti Gen. 50. v. 7. Domus Joseph cum fratribus suis c. Gen. 50. v. 8. Habuit quoque in comitatu currus equites c. Gen. 50. v 9. Absque parvulis gregibus atque armentis quae dereliquerant in terra Gesson Gen. 50. v 8. Veneruntque ad aream Atad quae sita est trans Ioâ—danem c. Gen. 50. v. 10. ubi celebrantes exequias planctu magno atque vebementi impleverunt septem dies Gen. 50. v. 10. Reversusque est Joseph in Aegyptum cum fratribus suis Gen. 50. v. 14. Quo mortuo timentes sratres ejus mutuo colloquentes ne fortè memor sit injuriae quam passus est reddut nobis omne malum quod fecimus Gen. 50. v. 15. though very different have been alwayes observ'd in like accidents are so just and antient as wee cannot condemn them without accusing the first men in the World and those eminent persons who have been the Masters of virtue and piety Witness Joseph who having received in his bosome and into his mouth the last groans of his father cast himself on his body and whilst he watered his face with tears procur'd Physicians to imbalm him according to the custome of the Egyptians who spent seaventy dayes in mourning for Jacob. After which Joseph ask'd and obtain'd leave of Pharaoh to conduct him unto the Monument he had bought in Canaan to which he was followed by the old men of Egypt and by all the most antient Officers of the kings house I find not in what ranck Josephs brethren went but they were accompanied thither by a great number of Chariots and horse-men which joyn'd together made up a great Convoy although all the Children and troops had been left in the land of Gessen In fine they all ariv'd at a spatious place which was beyond Jordan which the Hebrews called Atad by reason it was covered all over with Thorns and which now bears the name of Betagla which is as much to say the lodging of the circle because the Children of Jacob set themselves there in order to perform the Ceremonies of the funerall and to deplore the losse of their father with the greatest demonstration of sorrow all which was performed in the court of Atad and in this house of tears for the space of seaven intire dayes Afterwards Joseph with his brethren and all the rest of the Convoy return'd into Egypt to settle themselves in their usuall employments Now it was there where fear which is the inseparable companion of a guilty soul had leisure again to agitate these poor wretches who perswaded themselves that having lost their Father there remained nothing for them but a Judge in the person of their Brother who had motives powerrull enough to revenge himself of their disloyalty Mandaverunt ei dicentes pater tuus praecepit nobis antequam moreretur Gen. 40. v. 16. Vt haec tibi verbis illius diceremus obsecro ut obliviscaris sceleris fratrum tuorum c. Gen. 50. v 17. Quibus auditis flevit Joseph Gen. 50. v. 17. Veneruntque ad cum fratres sui proni adorantes in terram dixerunt servi tui sumus Gen. 50. v. 18. Quibus ille respondit Nolite timcre Ego pascam vos parvulos vestros c. Gen. 50. v. 21. Some remedy must then be found to oppose the danger which threatned them
hand of pennance It is there where we ought to gird our Reins for otherwise a God of Purity would abhor to enter into an unclean Habitation into an unchaste Soul and into a Body which serves for a retreat unto the most merciless enemies of Vertue and Chastity We must have Staves in our Hands and Shooes on our Feet like Pilgrims which pass along and seek an abode elswhere than in a forrein Country where we must quit all we have or else either soon or late be forsaken by them Let us make haste then and remember An excellent thought I beseech you that this very day may be our Paschal and our passage from Earth unto Heaven What stayes us in the World our Parents will pass away or else are already gone before Our Friends are not here beneath for the Earth hath none but infidel perfidious and envious people In fine All that is under Heaven remains in a continual vicissitude The face of the Universe changeth every moment and that which sparkleth the most hath but marks of a vain appearance which serve onely to dazle our eyes and deceive our souls Such then saith St. Paul as have wives ought to live as if they had none that is to say Without being fastned unto any inordinate affection Those also who sigh and groan under the weight of miseries as if they had attained to the height of their desires and pretensions those that are on the top of the wheel as if they were under the feet of Fortune and loaden with all afflictions those that heap together riches as if they possessed nothing those that are ingaged amongst Creatures and are inforced to make use of them as if they were severed from them or as if the use of those Creatures were forbidden them This concludes my Brethren That we must break the Chains which fasten us to any other thing than God we must abandon Egypt and depart out of this unfortunate Land where nothing but Plagues Deaths and all sorts of horrors are seen Happy are they who follow God and Moses in the thickest part of the desart out of these tumults and dangers Proscâ—tique sunt filii Israel de Ramesse in Socoth sexcenta fere millia peditum virorum absque parvulis Exod. 12. v. 27. which are so frequent in Cities and Courts We cannot have more delightful company than his Elect who go from Egypt into Ramasses and from Ramasses into the Land of Socoth almost to the number of six hundred thousand foot-men without reckoning women and little children nor even the common people which can hardly be numbred I leave you my dear Reader to reflect on all that passed in this illustrious Departure and during this voyage which was I believe the most famous that hath ever been Nothing but the echoes of their Songs of Victory and of the Benedictions they gave unto their Redeemer were every where heard whilst their Tyrants howled like wolves from whom their prey is taken or else like Ravens which croak upon some dead body Moreover the convoy of the people of Israel was very rich and sumptuous Dominus autem dedit grariam populo coram Aegyptiis c. for they carried with them the most pretious moveables of Egypt as God had ordained them And to this effect he had imprinted on their foreheads and upon their faces I know not what marks of sweetness and so strong and powerfull attractives or as St. Austin beleev'd Sed vulgus promiscuum innumerabile ascendit cum eis oves armenta animantia diversi generis multa nimis Exod. 12. v. 38. Coxcruntque farinam quam dudum de Aegypto conspersam tulerant fecerunt sub cinâ—ricios panes azimos Exod. 12. v. 39. Habitatio autem filiorum Israel qua manserunt in Aegypto fuit quadringentorum trigenta annorum Exod. 12. v. 40. Hanc observare debent omnes filii Israel ingenerationibus suis Exod. 12. v. 42. Dixitque Dominus 〈◊〉 Moisen Aaron haec est Religio omnis alienigena non comedit ex eo Exod. 12. v. 43. Omnis autem servus emptititus circumcidetur sic comedet Exod. 12. v. 44. Advena mercenarius edent etit ex ea Exod. 12. v. 45. Omnis caetus filiorum Israel faciet illud Exod. 12. v. 47. such secret qualities as thereby they gained the hearts and friendships of those who before were their persecutors So that they desir'd them to burthen themselves with their spoiles and to depart as it were loaded with the booty they had gained from their enemies and pillaged after the victory of a most just warr which was also due unto them as a just recompence of their labours They carried also with them Sheep Oxen and all kind of Beasts Yet had nothing dressed and fit to eat wherefore they were faine speedily to set their hands awork and cause that which they had brought with them to be baked upon Ashes In fine This night when God drew them out of the calamities of Egypt and the bondage of Pharaoh was the end of four hundred and Thirty years which they pass'd therein and all the Children of Israel ought to observe it with a Solemnall worship throughout all generations It was also for this cause God said unto Moses and Aaron that such were the Ceremonies of the Paschal and that no stranger foreign Merchant nor any mercenary Servant or bought with money could be admitted unto the banquet of the Lamb till after the establishment of the Lawes for Circumcision To the end there might be but one Law both for those of the Country and for strangers which were mingled with the naturall Jewes All these conditions were most religiously kept and the Israelites omitted nothing of what God had given in command unto Moses Feceruntque omnes fibi Israel sicut praececeperâ—t dominus Moisi Aaron Exod. 12. v. 50. Et cadem die eduxit Dominus filâ—os Israel de terra Aegypti per turmas suas Exod. 12. v. 51. And so on the same day the Lord drew them out of Egypt according to their Tribes prescribing to them all the lawes they were to observe ordaining them chiefly Sanctification that is to say the offering of the first born as well of men as beasts to the end by this Sacrifice they should have a living and animated occasion to recall into their memory the singular favours had been done them when during the Murther of the Egyptians all theirs were preserved CHAP. XVIII Pharaoh Swallowed up in the Red Sea THE belief of one God Clemens Allexan â—rom 5. and the Evident demonstration of his justice are so inseparable as it would be more easy to meet with a spring without Water a life without a Soul and stars without rayes than a Soveraign nature which had not the power to punish sinners This then is almost as much as to say that there is one God and he is just We cannot even understand the frightfull termes and