How many wives or women bore Children for Abram the Deceitful Patriarch many Less Informed Christians Claim is their Father in Faith
EXCEPT THIS PROFESSOR OF MODERN THEOSOPHY!
WHY WERE ISRAELITES
TAKEN AS CAPTIVES TO BABYLON BY KING NEBUCHADNEZZAR
PROLOGUE
Take note of
the fact that the worship of Baal was established in Babylon in the famous
tower of Babel.
BAAL
Lord, 1. In the Old
Testament denotes an idol of the Phoenicians, and particularly of the Tyrians,
whose worship was also introduced with great solemnities among the Hebrews, and
especially at Samaria, along with that of Astarte, Jg 6:25-32; 2Ki 10:18,28. See ASHTORETH, plural ASH'TAROTH. The plural, Baalim, signifies images or
statues of Baal, Jg 2:11; 10:10. Of the
extent to which the worship of this idol was domesticated among the Phoenicians
and Carthaginians, we have an evidence in the proper names of persons; as,
among the former, Ethbaal, Jerubbaal; and among the latter, Hannibal, Asdrubal,
etc. Among the Babylonians, the same
idol was worshipped under the name of |BEL|, which is only another form of the
word Baal, Isa 46:1; Jer 50:2; 51:44.
The worship of Baal was established in Babylon in the famous tower of
Babel, the uppermost room of which served at the same time as an observatory,
and as the repository of a collection of astronomical observations.
That in the
astronomical, or rather, astrological mythology of the East, we are to look for
the origin of this worship in the adoration of the heavenly bodies, is conceded
by all critics. The more common opinion
has been, that Baal, or Bel, is the sun; and that, under this name, this
luminary received divine honors. But the
Greek and Roman writers give to the Babylonian Bel the name of Jupiter Belus,
meaning the planet Jupiter, which was regarded, along with the planet Venus, as
the guardian and giver of all good fortune; and formed, with Venus, the most
fortunate of all constellations, under which alone fortunate sovereigns could
be born. This planet, therefore, many
suppose to have been the object of worship under the name of Baal, as also the
planet Venus under that of Astarte. Not
that the sun was not an object of idolatrous worship among these nations, but
in that case he is represented under his own name; as 2Ki 23:11.
The temples and
altars of Ball were generally on eminences.
Manasseh placed in the two courts of the temple at Jerusalem altars to
all the host of heaven, and in particular to Astarte, 2Ki 21:5,7. Jeremiah threatens the Jews who had
sacrificed to Baal on the house-top, Jer 32:29; and Josiah destroyed the altars
which Ahaz had erected on the terrace of his palace,
2Ki 23:12.
Human victims were
offered to Baal, as they were also to the sun.
Jeremiah reproaches the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem with
"building the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for
burnt-offerings unto Baal," Jer 19:5; an expression which appears to be
decisive as to the actual slaying by fire of the unhappy victims to Baal. See MOLOCH.
The children of
Israel were prone to serve Baal. See Nu
25:3 Jg 2:14; 3:7. Under Samuel they put
away their idols, 1Sa 7:4. This
continued under David and Solomon; but under Ahab, whose wife Jezebel was a
daughter of the Zidonian king Ethbaal, the worship of Baal was restored with
great pomp, 1Ki 16:31.
Joined with other
words, Baal signifies also other false gods.
Baal-Berith, or the "lord of the covenant," was a god of the
Shechemites, Jg 8:33; 9:4. Baal-Peor, or
"the lord of Peor," was a filthy idol of the Moabites, |Nu 25:3,5; Ho
9:10|. Baal-Zebub, "lord of
flies," was a god of the Philistines at Ekron. See BEELZEBUB.
2.
The word BAAL also occurs in many compound names of places, not always having
any reference to the idol.
BABEL
Confusion, the name
of a lofty tower, begun to be built by the descendants of Noah among who Nimrod
was a leader, about one hundred and twenty years after the flood; so called
because God there confounded the language of those who were employed in the undertaking,
Ge 10:10; 11:9. Their object in building
the city and tower, was to concentrate the population and the dominion at that
spot; and as this was contrary to the divine purpose of replenishing the earth
with inhabitants, and betrayed an ungodly and perhaps idolatrous disposition,
God frustrated their designs by miraculously giving to different portions of
the people different languages, or different modes of pronunciation and
divergent dialects of the original language of man, thus causing them to disperse
over the globe. Compare Ac 2:1-11. The tower was apparently left incomplete, but
the foundation of the city was probably laid, and a portion no doubt of the
builders continued to dwell there. The
place became afterwards the celebrated city of Babylon. It has been supposed that the tower of Babel
was afterwards finished, and called the tower of Belus, within the city of
Babylon. Herodotus visited this tower,
and describes it as a square pyramid, measuring half a mile in circumference at
the base; from this rose eight towers one above another gradually decreasing in
the summit, which was reached by a broad road winding up around the
outside. This tower was used for
astronomical purposes, but was chiefly devoted to the worship of Bel, whose
temple contained immense treasures, including several statues of massive gold,
one of which was forty feet in height.
Here were deposited the sacred golden vessels brought from Jerusalem.
2Ch 36:7; Jer 51:44. Its ruins are
supposed to be the present Birs Nimroud, six miles south-west of Hilleh, the
modern Babylon: an immense mound of coarse sun-dried bricks, laid with
bitumen. It is a ruinous heap, shattered
by violence, furrowed by storms, and strewn with fragments of brick, pottery,
etc., fused and vitrified by some intense heat.
It is 190 feet high, and on the top rises an irregular tower 90 feet in
circumference and 35 feet high, built of the fine brick - with which the whole
mound appears to have been faced. The
tower is rent asunder and mutilated at the top, and scathed as if by lightning
- a monument, some have thought, of the just wrath of God. See NEBUCHADNEZZAR.
BABYLON
1. A celebrated city situated on the Euphrates, the
original foundation of which is described under the word Babel. Wit this coincide many ancient traditions,
while some speak of Semiramis as the founder, and others of
Nebuchadnezzar. These accounts may all
be reconciled, by supposing that Semiramis rebuilt the ancient city, and the
Nebuchadnezzar. These accounts may all
be reconciled, by supposing that Semiramis rebuilt the ancient city, and that
Nebuchadnezzar afterwards greatly enlarged and adorned it.
Babylon lay in a vast and fertile plain watered by the
Euphrates, with flowed through the city.
Its walls are described as 60 miles in circumference, 300 feet high, and
75 feet wide, Jer 51:44-58. A deep
trench ran parallel with the walls. In
each of the four sides were 25 brazen gates, from which roads crossed to the
opposite gates. On the squares thus
formed countless houses and gardens were made.
Nebuchadnezzar's palace was in an inclosure six miles in
circumference. Within this were also
"the hanging gardens," an immense artificial mound 400 feet high,
sustained by archers upon arches, terraced off for trees and flowers, the water
for which was drawn from the river by machinery concealed in the mound, Da
4:29,30.
Under Nebuchadnezzar, Babylon reached the summit of her
greatness and splendor. She was renowned
for learning especially in astronomy, and for skill in various arts, as the
making of carpets and cloths, of perfumes, jewelry, etc. Her location gave her to a great extent the
control of the traffic, by the Euphrates and by caravans, between Central Asia
and Arabia and Egypt. She was "a
city of merchants," Isa 43:14; Eze 17:4; and into her lap flowed, either
through conquest or commerce, the wealth of almost all known lands. Justly therefore might the prophets call her
"the great," Da 4:20; "the praise of the whole earth," Jer
51:41; "the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency," Isa 13:19; "the
lady of kingdoms," Isa 47:5; but also "the tender and delicate,"
and "given to pleasures," Isa 47:1,8.
In consequence of the opulence and luxury of the inhabitants,
corruptness and licentiousness of manners and morals were carried to a
frightful extreme. Bel, Nebo, Nergal,
Merodach, Succoth-benoth, and other idols, were there worshipped with rites in
which impurity was made a matter of religion.
Well might we expect Jehovah to bring down vengeance on her crimes. Indeed, the woes denounced against Babylon by
the prophets constitute some of the most awfully splendid and sublime portions
of the whole Bible, Isa 13:1-22; 14:22; 21:9; 47:1-15; Jer 25:1-38; 50:1-46;
51:1-64, etc.
The city did not long remain the capital of the world. Under the reign of Nebuchadnezzar's
grandson. Nabonnidus, the Belshazzar of
the Scriptures, it was besieged and taken by Cyrus. The accounts of Greek historians harmonize
here with that of the Bible: that Cyrus made his successful assault on a night
when the whole city, relying on the strength of the walls, had given themselves
up to the riot and debauchery of a grand public festival, and the king and his
nobles were reveling at a splendid entertainment. Cyrus had previously caused a canal, which
ran west of the city, and carried off the superfluous water of the Euphrates
into the lake of Nitocris, to be cleared out, in order to turn the river into
it; which, by this means, was rendered so shallow, that his soldiers were able
to penetrate along its bed into the city, Da 5:1-31. 538 B.C.
From this time its importance declined, for Cyrus made Susa the capital
of his kingdom. It revolted against
Darius Hystapis, who again subdued it, broke down all its gates, and reduced
its walls to the height of fifty cubits.
According to Strabo, Xerxes destroyed the tower of Belus. Under the Persians, and under Alexander's
successors, Babylon continued to decline, especially after Seleucus Nicator had
founded Selencia, and made it his residence.
A great portion of the inhabitants of Babylon removed thither; and in
Strabo's time, that is, under Augustus Babylon had become so desolate, that it
might be called a vast desert. There was
a town on its site until the fourth century, and many Jews dwelt there,
1Pe 5:13. But from this time onward, Babylon ceases
almost to be mentioned; even its ruins have not been discovered until within
the last two centuries; and it is only within the present century that these
ruins have been traced and described.
These consist of numerous mounds, usually of brick, deeply furrowed and
decayed by time, strewn with fragments of brick, bitumen, pottery, etc. One of these is described above. See BABEL.
Another, four miles northwest of Hilleh, and called by the natives Kasr,
is thought to mark the site of the hanging gardens. These ruins are 2,400 feet long, and 1,800
broad. Another near by, called
Mujellibah, is of similar dimensions.
From these mounds thousands of bricks have been dug, bearing
arrow-headed inscriptions as ancient as the time of Nebuchadnezzar, whose name
often occurs. The aspect of the whole
region is dreary and forlorn. It is
infested by noxious animals, and perhaps in no place under heaven is the
contrast between ancient magnificence and present desolation greater than
here. The awful prophecy of Isaiah,
uttered more than a century before, has been most literally fulfilled, Isa
13:14.
The name of Babylon is used symbolically in Re 14:8;
16:1-21; 17:1-18; 18:1-24, to mark the idolatry, superstition, lewdness luxury,
and persecution of the people of God, which characterized heathen Rome and
modern Antichrist. Some thus interpret
1Pe 5:13.
2. There was also a Babylon in Egypt, a
city not far from Heliopolis. Some
suppose this to be the Babylon mentioned 1Pe 5:13; but this is not probable.
LET US START WITH HOW ABRAM CAME TO UR AND BABYLONIA
Genesis 11, verses 27 - 32
27 ¶ Now these are the generations of Terah: Terah
begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran begat Lot. (KJV)
27 ¶ Now
these are the descendants of Terah. Terah was the father of Abram, Nahor, and
Haran; and Haran was the father of Lot. (RSV)
GBN JWN MHC MHCC TSK
28 And
Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the
Chaldees. (KJV)
28 Haran
died before his father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldeans.
(RSV)
FBN JFB TSK
29 And
Abram and Nahor took them wives: the name of Abram's wife was Sarai; and the
name of Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and
the father of Iscah. (KJV)
29 And
Abram and Nahor took wives; the name of Abram's wife was Sarai, and the name of
Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran the father of Milcah and Iscah.
(RSV)
Ge 17:15; 20:12; 22:20
GBN ACC FBN TSK
30 But
Sarai was barren; she had no child. (KJV)
30 Now
Sarai was barren; she had no child. (RSV)
Ge 16:1-2; 18:11-12
TSK
31 And
Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai his
daughter in law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of
the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and
dwelt there. (KJV)
31 Terah
took Abram his son and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his
daughter-in-law, his son Abram's wife, and they went forth together from Ur of
the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan; but when they came to Haran, they
settled there. (RSV)
Ge 10:19; 12:1; 15:7; Ne 9:7; Ac 7:4
GBN ACC FBN JFB TSK
32 And the
days of Terah were two hundred and five years: and Terah died in Haran. (KJV)
32 The days
of Terah were two hundred and five years; and Terah died in Haran. (RSV)
ACC TSK
DID GOD CALL ABRAM OUT OR HIS FATHER TERAH
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 26.
And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran.] Haran was certainly the eldest son of Terah,
and he appears to have been born when Terah was about seventy years of age, and
his birth was followed in successive periods with those of Nahor his second,
and Abram his youngest son. Many have
been greatly puzzled with the account here, supposing because Abram is
mentioned first, that therefore he was the eldest son of Terah: but he is only
put first by way of dignity. An in
stance of this we have already seen, Ge 5:32, where Noah is represented as
having Shem, Ham, and Japheth in this order of succession; whereas it is
evident from other scriptures that Shem was the youngest son, who for dignity
is named first, as Abram is here; and Japheth the eldest, named last, as Haran
is here. Terah died two hundred and five
years old, Ge 11:32; then Abram departed from Haran when seventy-five years
old, Ge 12:4; therefore Abram was born, not when his father Terah was seventy,
but when he was one hundred and thirty.
When any case of dignity or pre-eminence is to be
marked, then even the youngest son is set before all the rest, though contrary
to the usage of the Scriptures in other cases.
Hence we find Shem, the youngest son of Noah, always mentioned first;
Moses is mentioned before his elder brother Aaron; and Abram before his two
elder brethren Haran and Nahor. These
observations are sufficient to remove all difficulty from this place.
27 ¶ Now
these are the generations of Terah: Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and
Haran begat Lot. (KJV)
27 ¶ Now
these are the descendants of Terah. Terah was the father of Abram, Nahor, and
Haran; and Haran was the father of Lot. (RSV)
GBN JWN MHC MHCC TSK
28 And
Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the
Chaldees. (KJV)
28 Haran
died before his father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldeans.
(RSV)
FBN JFB TSK
29 And
Abram and Nahor took them wives: the name of Abram's wife was Sarai; and the
name of Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and
the father of Iscah. (KJV)
29 And
Abram and Nahor took wives; the name of Abram's wife was Sarai, and the name of
Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran the father of Milcah and Iscah.
(RSV)
Ge 17:15; 20:12; 22:20
GBN ACC FBN TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 29.
Milcah, the daughter of Haran] Many suppose Sarai and Iscah are the same
person under two different names; but this is improbable, as Iscah is expressly
said to be the daughter of Haran, and Sarai was the daughter of Terah, and half
sister of Abram.
30 But
Sarai was barren; she had no child. (KJV)
30 Now
Sarai was barren; she had no child. (RSV)
Ge 16:1-2; 18:11-12
TSK
31 And
Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai his
daughter in law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of
the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and
dwelt there. (KJV)
31 Terah
took Abram his son and Lot the son of Haran, his grandson, and Sarai his
daughter-in-law, his son Abram's wife, and they went forth together from Ur of
the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan; but when they came to Haran, they
settled there. (RSV)
Ge 10:19; 12:1; 15:7; Ne 9:7; Ac 7:4
GBN ACC FBN JFB TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 31.
They went forth-front Ur of the Chaldees] Chaldea is sometimes understood as comprising
the whole of Babylonia; at other times, that province towards Arabia Deserta,
called in Scripture The land of the Chaldeans. The capital of this place was
Babylon, called in Scripture The beauty of the Chaldees' excellency, Isa 13:19.
Ur appears
to have been a city of some considerable consequence at that time in Chaldea;
but where situated is not well known. It
probably had its name Ur rwa, which signifies fire, from the worship practised
there. The learned are almost
unanimously of opinion that the ancient inhabitants of this region were
ignicolists or worshippers of fire, and in that place this sort of worship
probably originated; and in honour of this element, the symbol of the Supreme
Being, the whole country, or a particular city in it, might have had the name
Ur. Bochart has observed that there is a
place called Ouri, south of the Euphrates, in the way from Nisibis to the river
Tigris. The Chaldees mentioned here had
not this name in the time of which Moses speaks, but they were called so in the
time in which Moses wrote. Chesed was the son of Nahor, the son of Terah, Ge
22:22. From Chesed descended the Chasdim, whose language was the same as that
of the Amorites, Da 1:4; 2:4. These Chasdim, whence the caldaioi, Chaldeans, of
the Septuagint, Vulgate, and all later versions, afterwards settled on the
south of the Euphrates. Those who dwelt in Ur were either priests or astronomers,
Da 2:10, and also idolaters, Jos 24:2,3,14,15. And because they were much
addicted to astronomy, and probably to judicial astrology, hence all
astrologers were, in process of time, called Chaldeans, Da 2:2-5.
The building of Babel, the confusion of tongues,
and the first call of Abram, are three remarkable particulars in this chapter;
and these led to the accomplishment of three grand and important designs: 1. The peopling of the whole earth; 2. The preservation of the true religion by
the means of one family; and 3. The preservation of the line uncorrupted by
which the Messiah should come. When God
makes a discovery of himself by a particular revelation, it must begin in some
particular time, and be given to some particular person, and in some particular
place. Where, when, and to whom, are comparatively matters of small
importance. It is God's gift; and his
own wisdom must determine the time, the person, and the place. But if this be the case, have not others
cause to complain because not thus favoured?
Not at all, unless the favouring of the one for a time should
necessarily cut off the others for ever.
But this is not the case. Abram was first favoured; that time, that
country, and that person were chosen by infinite wisdom, for there and then God
chose to commence these mighty operations of Divine goodness. Isaac and Jacob
also received the promises, the twelve patriarchs through their father, and the
whole Jewish people through them. Afterwards the designs of God's endless mercy
were more particularly unfolded; and the word, which seemed to be confined for
two thousand years to the descendants of a single family, bursts forth on all
hands, salvation is preached to the Gentiles, and thus in Abram's seed all the
nations of the earth are blessed.
Hence none can find fault, and none can have cause
to complain; as the salvation which for a time appeared to be restricted to a
few, is now on the authority of God, liberally offered to the whole human race!
32 And the
days of Terah were two hundred and five years: and Terah died in Haran. (KJV)
32 The days
of Terah were two hundred and five years; and Terah died in Haran. (RSV)
ACC TSK
My Friends,
count your teeth with your tongue my people of Biafra say, therefore decide
whether the later cookeries of Abram being called by God is is true or fake!
LET ME ONLY DEAL WITH TWO OR THREE WIVES OF ABRAM FOR
NOW
GENESIS 25, verses 1 - 8
1 ¶ Then again Abraham took a wife, and her name
was Keturah. (KJV)
1 ¶ (WNT)
1Ch 1:32-33
GBN ACC JFB JWN MHC MHCC TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
CHAPTER XXV
Abraham
marries Keturah, 1.
Their
issue, 2-4.
Makes
Isaac his heir, 5;
but gives
portions to the sons of his concubines, and sends
them
eastward from Isaac, to find settlements, 6.
Abraham's
age, 7,
and death,
8.
Is buried
by his sons Isaac and Ishmael in the cave of Machpelah,
9, 10.
God's
blessing upon Isaac, 11.
The
generations of Ishmael, 12-16.
His age,
17,
and death,
18.
Of the
generations of Isaac, 19,
who was
married in his fortieth year, 20.
Rebekah
his wife being barren, on his prayer to God she conceives, 21.
She
inquires of the Lord concerning her state, 22.
The Lord's
answer, 23.
She is
delivered of twins, 24.
Peculiarities in the birth of her sons Esau and Jacob, from which
they had
their names, 25, 26.
Their
different manner of life, 27, 28.
Esau,
returning from the field faint, begs pottage from his
brother,
29, 30.
Jacob
refuses to grant him any but on condition of his selling him
his
birthright, 31.
Esau,
ready to die, parts with his birthright to save his life, 32.
Jacob
causes him to confirm the sale with an oath, 33.
He
receives bread and pottage of lentiles, and departs, 34.
NOTES ON
CHAP. XXV
Verse 1.
Then again Abraham took a wife] When Abraham took Keturah we are not
informed; it might have been in the lifetime of Sarah; and the original Poyw
vaiyoseph, and he added, &c., seems to give some countenance to this
opinion. Indeed it is not very likely
that he had the children mentioned here after the death of Sarah; and from the
circumstances of his age, feebleness, &c., at the birth of Isaac, it is
still more improbable. Even at that age,
forty years before the marriage of Isaac, the birth of his son is considered as
not less miraculous on his part than on the part of Sarah; for the apostle
expressly says, Ro 4:19, that Abraham considered not his own body NOW DEAD,
when he was about a hundred years old, nor the DEADNESS of Sarah's womb; hence
we learn that they were both past the procreation of children, insomuch that
the birth of Isaac is ever represented as supernatural. It
is therefore very improbable that he had any child after the birth of Isaac;
and therefore we may well suppose that Moses had related this transaction out
of its chronological order, which is not unfrequent in the sacred writings,
when a variety of important facts relative to the accomplishment of some grand
design are thought necessary to be produced in a connected series. On this account intervening matters
of a different complexion are referred to a future time. Perhaps
we may be justified in reading the verse: "And Abraham had added, and had
taken a wife (besides Hagar) whose name was Keturah," &c. The chronology in the margin dates this
marriage with Keturah A. M. 2154, nine years after the death of Sarah, A. M.
2145. Jonathan ben Uzziel and the
Jerusalem Targum both assert that Keturah was the same as Hagar. Some rabbins, and with them Dr. Hammond, are
of the same opinion; but both Hagar and Keturah are so distinguished in the
Scriptures, that the opinion seems destitute of probability.
2 And she
bare him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah.
(KJV)
2 (WNT)
1Ch 1:32-33
ACC TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 2.
Zimran] Stephanus Byzantinus
mentions a city in Arabia Felix called Zadram, which some suppose to have been
named from this son of Keturah; but it is more likely, as Calmet observes, that
all these sons of Abraham resided in Arabia Deserta; and Pliny, Hist. Nat.,
lib. vi., c. 28, mentions a people in that country called Zamarenians, who were
probably the descendants of this person.
Jokshan] Several learned men have
been of opinion that this Jokshan was the same as Kachtan, the father of the
Arabs. The testimonies in favour of this
opinion see in Dr. Hunt's Oration, De Antiquitate, &c., Linguae Arabicae,
p. 4. Calmet supposes that the Cataneans, who inhabited a part of Arabia
Deserta, sprang from this Jokshan.
Medan, and
Midian] Probably those who peopled that
part of Arabia Petraea contiguous to the land of Moab eastward of the Dead
Sea. St. Jerome terms the people of this
country Madinaeans; and Ptolemy mentions a people called Madianites, who dwelt
in the same place.
Ishbak] From this person Calmet
supposes the brook Jabbok, which has its source in the mountains of Gilead, and
falls into the sea of Tiberias, took its name.
Shuah.] Or Shuach. From this man the Sacceans, near to Batanla,
at the extremity of Arabia Deserta, towards Syria, are supposed to have sprung. Bildad the Shuhite, one of Job's friends, is
supposed to have descended from this son of Abraham.
3 And
Jokshan begat Sheba, and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim, and
Letushim, and Leummim. (KJV)
3 (WNT)
ACC TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 3.
Sheba] From whom sprang the Sabeans,
who robbed Job of his cattle. See
Bochart and Calmet.
Asshurim,
and Letushim, and Leummim.] We know not who these were, but as each name is
plural they must have been tribes or families, and not individuals. Onkelos interprets these words of persons
dwelling in camps, tents, and islands; and Jonathan ben Uzziel calls them
merchants, artificers, and heads or chiefs of people.
4 And the
sons of Midian; Ephah, and Epher, and Hanoch, and Abida, and Eldaah. All these
were the children of Keturah. (KJV)
4 (WNT)
ACC FBN TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 4.
Ephah, and Epher, &c.] Of
these we know no more than of the preceding; an abundance of conjectures is
already furnished by the commentators.
5 And
Abraham gave all that he had unto Isaac. (KJV)
5 (WNT)
Ge 24:35-36
ACC JFB JWN TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 5.
Gave all that he had unto Isaac.] His principal flocks, and especially
his right to the land of Canaan, including a confirmation to him and his
posterity of whatever was contained in the promises of God.
6 But unto
the sons of the concubines, which Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, and sent
them away from Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, unto the east
country. (KJV)
6 (WNT)
Ge 21:14; Jg 6:3
GBN ACC FBN JWN TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 6.
Unto the sons of the concubines] Viz., Hagar and Keturah, Abraham gave
gifts. Cattle for breed, seed to sow the land, and implements for husbandry,
may be what is here intended.
And sent
them away-while he yet lived] Lest after his death they should dispute a
settlement in the Land of Promise with Isaac; therefore he very prudently sent
them to procure settlements during his lifetime, that they might be under no
temptation to dispute the settlement with Isaac in Canaan. From this circumstance arose that law which
has prevailed in almost all countries, of giving the estates to the eldest son
by a lawful wife; for though concubines, or wives of the second rank, were
perfectly legitimate in those ancient times, yet their children did not
inherit, except in case of the failure of legal issue, and with the consent of
the lawful wife; and it is very properly observed by Calmet, that it was in
consequence of the consent of Leah and Rachel that the children of their slaves
by Jacob had a common and equal lot with the rest. By a law of Solon all natural children were
excluded from the paternal inheritance, but their fathers were permitted to
give them any sum not beyond a thousand drachma by way of present.
Eastward,
unto the east country.] Arabia Deserta,
which was eastward of Beer-sheba, where Abraham lived.
7 And these
are the days of the years of Abraham's life which he lived, an hundred
threescore and fifteen years. (KJV)
7 (WNT)
ACC FBN JFB JWN TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 7.
The days of the years, &c.]
There is a beauty in this expression which is not sufficiently
regarded. Good men do not live by
centuries, though many such have lived several hundred years, nor do they count
their lives even by years, but by days, living as if they were the creatures
only of A DAY; having no more time than they can with any propriety call their
own, and living that day in reference to eternity.
8 Then
Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full of
years; and was gathered to his people. (KJV)
8 (WNT)
Ge 15:15; 35:29; 49:29,33
ACC FBN JWN TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 8.
Then Abraham gave up the ghost] Highly as I value our translation for
general accuracy, fidelity, and elegance, I must beg leave to dissent from this
version. The original word ewgy yigva,
from the root eyg gava, signifies to pant for breath, to expire, to cease from
breathing, or to breathe one's last; and here, and wherever the original word
is used, the simple term expired would be the proper expression. In our translation this expression occurs Ge
25:8,17; 35:29; 44:33; Job 3:11; 10:18; 11:20; 13:19; 14:10; La 1:19; in all of
which places the original is eyg gava. It occurs also in our translation, Jer
15:9, but there the original is hvpn hxpn naphecah naphshah, she breathed out
her soul; the verb eyg gava not being used.
Now as our English word ghost, from the Anglo-Saxon [A.S.] gast, an
inmate, inhabitant, guest, (a casual visitant,) also a spirit, is now
restricted among us to the latter meaning, always signifying the immortal
spirit or soul of man, the guest of the body; and as giving up the spirit,
ghost, or soul, is an act not proper to man, though commending it to God, in
our last moments, is both an act of faith and piety; and as giving up the
ghost, i.e., dismissing his spirit from his body, is attributed to Jesus
Christ, to whom alone it is proper, I therefore object against its use in every
other case.
Every man since the fall has not only been liable
to death, but has deserved it, as all have forfeited their lives because of
sin. Jesus Christ, as born immaculate, and having never sinned, had not
forfeited his life, and therefore may be considered as naturally and properly
immortal. No man, says he, taketh it-my
life, from me, but I lay it down of myself; I have power to lay it down, and I
have power to take it again: therefore doth the Father love me, because I lay
down my life that I might take it again, Joh 10:17,18. Hence we rightly translate Mt 27:50, afhke to
pneuma, he gave up the ghost; i.e., he dismissed his spirit that he might die
for the sin of the world. The Evangelist St. Joh 19:30, makes use of an
expression to the same import, which we translate in the same way, paredwke to
pneuma, he delivered up his spirit. We
translate Mr 15:37, and Lu 23:46, he gave up the ghost, but not correctly, because
the word in both these places is very different, exepneuse, he breathed his
last, or expired, though in the latter place (Lu 23:46) there is an equivalent
expression, O Father, into thy hands paratiyemai to pneuma mou, I commit my
spirit, i.e., I place my soul in thy hand; proving that the act was his own,
that no man could take his life away from him, that he did not die by the
perfidy of his disciple, or the malice of the Jews, but by his own free act.
Thus HE LAID DOWN his life for the sheep.
Of Ananias and Sapphira, Ac 5:5,10, and of Herod, Ac 12:23, our
translation says they gave up the ghost; but the word in both places is
exequxe, which simply means to breathe out, to expire, or die; but in no case,
either by the Septuagint in the Old or any of the sacred writers in the New
Testament, is afhke to mneuma or paredwke to pneuma, he dismissed his spirit or
delivered up his spirit, spoken of any person but Christ. Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Jacob, &c., breathed
their last; Ananias, Sapphira, and Herod expired; but none, Jesus Christ
excepted, gave up the ghost, dismissed, or delivered up his own spirit, and was
consequently free among the dead. Of the
patriarchs, &c., the Septuagint uses the word ekleipwn, failing, or
katepause, he ceased or rested.
An old
man] Viz., one hundred and seventy-five,
the youngest of all the patriarchs; and full of years. The word years is not in the text; but as our
translators saw that some word was necessary to fill up the text, they added
this in italics. It is probable that the
true word is Mymy yamim, days, as in Ge 35:29; and this reading is found in
several of Kennicott's and De Rossi's MSS., in the Samaritan text, Septuagint,
Vulgate, Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Chaldee. On these authorities it might be
safely admitted into the text.
Being full
of days, or full of years.-To be satiated with days or life, has been in use
among different nations to express the termination of life, and especially life
ended without reluctance. It seems to be
a metaphor taken from a guest regaled by a plentiful banquet, and is thus used
by the Roman poets.
Lucretius, lib. iii., ver. 947, ridiculing those
who were unreasonably attached to life, and grievously afflicted at the
prospect of death, addresses them in the following manner:-
AGAIN THE ETHNOCENTRICISM OF ISREALITES SHOWS
ISHMAEL AS THE FIRST BORN MALE WAS THE CHIEF MOURNER AS FAR AS DR KENEZ
IS CONCERNED, LET US BE HONEST
The man whose mighty soul is not immersed
in dubious whirl of secular
concerns,
His final hour ne'er takes him
by surprise,
But, FULL of LIFE, he stands
PREPARED to DIE.
It was the opinion of Aristotle
that a man should depart from life as he should rise from a banquet. Thus Abraham died FULL of days, and SATISFIED
with life, but in a widely different spirit from that recommended by the above
writers-HE left life with a hope full of immortality, which they could never
boast; for HE saw the day of Christ, and was glad; and his hope was crowned,
for here it is expressly said, He was gathered to his fathers; surely not to
the bodies of his sleeping ancestors, who were buried in Chaldea and not in
Canaan, nor with his fathers in any sense, for he was deposited in the cave
where his WIFE alone slept; but he was gathered to the spirits of just men made
perfect, and to the Church of the first-born, whose names are written in
heaven; Heb 12:23.
9 And his sons Isaac and Ishmael
buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron the son of Zohar
the Hittite, which is before Mamre; (KJV)
9 (WNT)
Ge 23:9; 35:29; 50:13
ACC FBN JFB JWN TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 9. His sons Isaac and
Ishmael buried him] Though Ishmael and
his mother had been expelled from Abraham's family on the account of Isaac,
yet, as he was under the same obligation to a most loving affectionate father
as his brother Isaac, if any personal feuds remained, they agreed to bury them
on this occasion, that both might dutifully join in doing the last offices to a
parent who was an honour to them and to human nature: and, considering the
rejection of Ishmael from the inheritance, this transaction shows his character
in an amiable point of view; for though he was a wild man, (see Ge 16:12,) yet
this appellation appears to be more characteristic of his habits of life than
of his disposition.
For the character of Abraham see the conclusion of this chapter. See ACC for Ge 25:34.
10 The field which Abraham
purchased of the sons of Heth: there was Abraham buried, and Sarah his wife.
(KJV)
10 (WNT)
Ge 23:3-16; 49:31
TSK
11 ¶ And it came to pass after
the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac; and Isaac dwelt by the
well Lahairoi. (KJV)
11 ¶ (WNT)
Ge 16:14; 24:62
ACC FBN JWN MHC MHCC TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 11. God blessed his son
Isaac] The peculiar blessings and
influences by which Abraham had been distinguished now rested upon Isaac; but
how little do we hear in him of the work of faith, the patience of hope, and
the labour of love! Only one Abraham and
one Christ ever appeared among men; there have been some successful imitators,
there should have been many.
IF BY NOW, ANY OF MY READERS OR FOLLOWERS, HAS NOT
FOUND AN ANSWER TO THE TITLE OF THIS LENGTHY DIATRIBE, THEN YOU LACK SPIRITUAL
INSIGHT INTO THE FORGERIES IN THE ENTIRE BIBLE.
IT IS BETTER FOR YOU TO STOP HERE!
·
Did Jacob obey the God of his Fathers when
he took all his descendants to Egypt.
·
Why did Joseph’s position in Pharaoh’s Royal court DEGENERATE
INTO 400 YEARS SLAVERY
·
Why did Moses call them a WICKED or STIFF
NECKED generation despite being A CHOSEN PEOPLE.
·
Have you ever bothered to ask as well, WHY
THEY AGAIN WERE SLAVES IN ASSYRIA FOR 200 YEARS
·
Why is religion especially the imported
version THE OPIUM OF THE MASSES as Karl Marx opined.
·
Now ask yourself again, WHY WERE ISRAELITES
TAKEN TO BABYLON FOR A 400 YEARS SLAVERY.
HERE, I BEG TO SIGN OFF -
Rev. Prof. J. J. Kenez, D.Sc.
• Did Jacob obey the God of his Fathers when he took all his descendants to Egypt.
ReplyDelete• Why did Joseph’s position in Pharaoh’s Royal court DEGENERATE INTO 400 YEARS SLAVERY
• Why did Moses call them a WICKED or STIFF NECKED generation despite being A CHOSEN PEOPLE.
• Have you ever bothered to ask as well, WHY THEY AGAIN WERE SLAVES IN ASSYRIA FOR 200 YEARS
• Why is religion especially the imported version THE OPIUM OF THE MASSES as Karl Marx opined.
• Now ask yourself again, WHY WERE ISRAELITES TAKEN TO BABYLON FOR A 400 YEARS SLAVERY.
HERE, I BEG TO SIGN OFF - Rev. Prof. J. J. Kenez, D.Sc.
ReplyDeleteAdam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 9. His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him] Though Ishmael and his mother had been expelled from Abraham's family on the account of Isaac, yet, as he was under the same obligation to a most loving affectionate father as his brother Isaac, if any personal feuds remained, they agreed to bury them on this occasion, that both might dutifully join in doing the last offices to a parent who was an honour to them and to human nature: and, considering the rejection of Ishmael from the inheritance, this transaction shows his character in an amiable point of view; for though he was a wild man, (see Ge 16:12,) yet this appellation appears to be more characteristic of his habits of life than of his disposition.
For the character of Abraham see the conclusion of this chapter. See ACC for Ge 25:34.
10 The field which Abraham purchased of the sons of Heth: there was Abraham buried, and Sarah his wife. (KJV)
10 (WNT)
Ge 23:3-16; 49:31
TSK
11 ¶ And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that God blessed his son Isaac; and Isaac dwelt by the well Lahairoi. (KJV)
11 ¶ (WNT)
Ge 16:14; 24:62
ACC FBN JWN MHC MHCC TSK
Adam Clarke's Commentary:
Verse 11. God blessed his son Isaac] The peculiar blessings and influences by which Abraham had been distinguished now rested upon Isaac; but how little do we hear in him of the work of faith, the patience of hope, and the labour of love! Only one Abraham and one Christ ever appeared among men; there have been some successful imitators, there should have been many.
IF BY NOW, ANY OF MY READERS OR FOLLOWERS, HAS NOT FOUND AN ANSWER TO THE TITLE OF THIS LENGTHY DIATRIBE, THEN YOU LACK SPIRITUAL INSIGHT INTO THE FORGERIES IN THE ENTIRE BIBLE.
IT IS BETTER FOR YOU TO STOP HERE!