his son.' The place was now sacred to the Lord; Abraham gave it the name of Jehovah-jireh (the Lord will see or select), which also implied that on this mount the Lord's nation would be seen, worshipping on the spot where their great ancestor had so nobly fought and conquered. After this marvellous act of faith, and when Isaac was restored to his father, the Lord called again from heaven and repeated those promises and hopes which had so often been given to the patriarch, the promise of numberless descendants, of great possessions, of conquest over the enemy, and of blessings that would come to all the nations of the earth through his seed.

Exalted and comforted by these assurances, Abraham returned with Isaac, and they went together to Beersheba.

13. DEATH AND BURIAL OF SARAH.

[GENES. XXIII.]

Sarah was a hundred and twenty-seven years old when she died, not at Beer-sheba, but at Hebron where the patriarch had once more pitched his tents, and where he mourned and wept for her. Although he had dwelt so long in Canaan, he owned no foot of ground; but he was anxious to purchase from the Hittites a burial-place which was to belong to his descendants for ever. The people of the land, however, who venerated and loved the patriarch, entreated of him to bury his dead in any one of their own sepulchres, for none would refuse him this privilege. But Abraham declined their offer; he went to the gates of the city where the people were assembled, and begged of Ephron, the son of Zohar, to sell him the cave of Machpelah for a burial ground. Ephron desired Abraham to accept the cave together with the whole field of which

it formed a part as a gift, but artfully intimated that he valued it at four hundred shekels, probably an exorbitant price. Abraham, without pausing to consider the sum, weighed to Ephron the silver which he had named, and took rightful possession of the field and the cave which lay before Mamre. The piece of land bought of the heathen by Abraham in the presence of all the children of Heth, was thenceforth considered a hallowed spot; there Sarah was buried, and afterwards Abraham and the later patriarchs.

14. REBEKAH.

[GENES. XXIV.]

Abraham was advanced in years, and his strength was declining. But he had been greatly blessed by God in all things. When his son Isaac was forty years old, he longed to find a wife for him, fit to become the mother of nations, the mother of God's elected people. No woman of Canaan was worthy of such a destiny. Therefore, Abraham called Eliezer, the faithful servant of his house, and pledged him, by a solemn oath, not to take a wife for his son from among the daughters of the Canaanites, but to choose one from his own family in his Mesopotamian home, whither he was at once to proceed. Eliezer, conscious of the great importance of his mission, asked what he should do if the maiden refused to follow him: should he take Isaac to the land of the Euphrates? But this Abraham positively forbade; he knew that Canaan was the land of Divine promise, and he implicitly believed that the angel of the Lord would lead Eliezer's steps; yet should the maiden not consent to follow him, then he was freed from the obligations of his oath. So Eliezer set out upon his errand of trust in such a manner as became the mes

senger of a great nomad chief. His caravan consisted of ten camels, which were required for himself and his companions, and for the numerous and costly presents which he took with him for Isaac's future bride and for her family. He journeyed eastward until he came to Mesopotamia and saw the city of Nahor in the distance. He halted towards the evening at the principal well without the gates of the city, at the time when he knew the women would come out to draw water. Full of eagerness to accomplish his mission, and knowing how completely Abraham had ever been under the direct guidance of God, he determined to yield unreservedly to the prompting of the Divine spirit, and to act strictly as God might direct him. And he said: 'O Lord God of my master Abraham, I pray Thee, send me good speed this day, and show kindness to my master Abraham. Behold, I stand here by the well of water, and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water. And let it be that the maiden to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink, and who will then say, Drink, and I will give water to thy camels also; let her be she whom Thou hast appointed for Thy servant, for Isaac; and thereby I shall know that Thou hast shown kindness to my master.' As Eliezer concluded his words, there came from the gates of the city a comely maiden. She descended to the well and filled her pitcher. Eliezer at once approached her, and said: ‘Let me, I pray thee, taste a little water of thy pitcher.' Full of courtesy, she not only cheerfully acceded to the request, but proposed, with kindly zeal, to draw water for the camels also. Eliezer wondered in delighted silence, and stood looking at the maiden as she drew the water from the well, emptying her vessel into the trough, and then resuming her task until all the camels were refreshed. Her goodness and activity made him hope that she was the destined bride of his master. So he took a nose-ring and bracelets

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of gold, and placing them in Rebekah's hands, asked: "Whose daughter art thou?' and wishing to test her with respect to that great eastern virtue, hospitality, he added: Is there room in thy father's house for me to stay in?' The maiden's answer rejoiced Eliezer: I am,' she said, 'a daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, whom she bore to Nahor;' and she continued with evident pleasure: We have both straw and provender enough, and room to stay in.' The Divine guidance had thus not forsaken the faithful servant, pious and God-fearing like his master.

Rebekah returned at once to her father's house, and showing the presents related her meeting at the well. When her brother Laban heard it, he hastened to the spot, where he found Eliezer with his caravan. He accosted him with gentle politeness and sincere hospitality: 'Come, thou blessed of the Lord; wherefore dost thou stand without? and I have cleared the house, and there is room for the camels.' Thus saying he led the way to the city, and received Eliezer and his whole caravan into his house. Straw and provender were brought for the camels, and a meal was speedily prepared for the travellers. But the faithful servant would not taste food before he had performed his mission. He related with touching simplicity the motives and the whole history of his journey to Mesopotamia, beginning his narrative by a description of the greatness and the wealth of his master Abraham, and then giving a detailed account of the important charge entrusted to him, of his solemn oath, of his arrival at the well, of his prayer to God, of the appearance of Rebekah, and of the wonderful fulfilment of the prayer. And in conclusion he said: Now if you will do kindness and truth to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand or to the left.' Bethuel and Laban, struck by the evident interference of God throughout the narrative of Eliezer, felt that Rebekah was indeed

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destined to become the wife of Isaac, the beloved of God; so they readily consented to her departure. Eliezer, in a transport of delight and gratitude, now produced his presents costly garments and glittering trinkets of gold and silver for Rebekah, and valuable gifts for her brother Laban and for her mother. Then commenced the feast, and at last the faithful Eliezer retired to rest after the fatigues of the eventful journey. But early the next morning, he begged of his hosts to let him return to his master. He would not even consent to a delay of a few days; and although the bride's parents wished her to remain a short time longer in the home of her youth, he entreated for an instant departure. At this urgent request, Rebekah was asked whether she would go, and she answered: 'I will go.' So the maiden was blessed by her relatives, and the caravan set forth again, Rebekah attended by her nurse and her maids, as behoved the sister of the wealthy Laban.

Isaac, still sad at heart for the loss of his mother, was wandering out in his fields at evening, absorbed in meditation. He lifted up his eyes, and saw a line of camels approaching from the distance. Rebekah had also perceived the solitary figure in the field, and had respectfully alighted from her camel. When told that Isaac was before her, she covered herself with her veil. Eliezer then related to Isaac the strange history of his journey: and Isaac brought Rebekah into his mother Sarah's tent, and she became his wife, and he loved her; and Isaac was comforted after his mother's death.'