The Legends of the Jews

To
MY BROTHER ASHER

Contents

PREFACE

Was sich nie und nirgends hat begeben, das allein veraltet nie.

The term Rabbinic was applied to the Jewish Literature of post-Biblical times
by those who conceived the Judaism of the later epoch to be something different
from the Judaism of the Bible, something actually opposed to it. Such observers
held that the Jewish nation ceased to exist with the moment when its political
independence was destroyed. For them the Judaism of the later epoch has been a
Judaism of the Synagogue, the spokesmen of which have been the scholars, the
Rabbis. And what this phase of Judaism brought forth has been considered by
them to be the product of the schools rather than the product of practical,
pulsating life. Poetic phantasmagoria, frequently the vaporings of morbid
visionaries, is the material out of which these scholars construct the
theologic system of the Rabbis, and fairy tales, the spontaneous creations of
the people, which take the form of sacred legend in Jewish literature, are
denominated the Scriptural exegesis of the Rabbis, and condemned incontinently
as nugae rabbinorum.

As the name of a man clings to him, so men cling to names. For the primitive
savage the name is part of the essence of a person or thing, and even in the
more advanced stages of culture, judgments are not always formed in agreement
with facts as they are, but rather according to the names by which they are
called. The current estimate of Rabbinic Literature is a case in point. With
the label Rabbinic later ages inherited from former ages a certain distorted
view of the literature so designated. To this day, and even among scholars that
approach its investigation with unprejudiced minds, the opinion prevails that
it is purely a learned product. And yet the truth is that the most prominent
feature of Rabbinic Literature is its popular character.

The school and the home are not mutually opposed to each other in the
conception of the Jews. They study in their homes, and they live in their
schools. Likewise there is no distinct class of scholars among them, a class
that withdraws itself from participation in the affairs of practical life. Even
in the domain of the Halakah, the Rabbis were not so much occupied with
theoretic principles of law as with the concrete phenomena of daily existence.
These they sought to grasp and shape. And what is true of the Halakah is true
with greater emphasis of the Haggadah, which is popular in the double sense of
appealing to the people and being produced in the main by the people. To speak
of the Haggadah of the Tannaim and Amoraim is as far from fact as to speak of
the legends of Shakespeare and Scott. The ancient authors and their modern
brethren of the guild alike elaborate legendary material which they found at
hand.

It has been held by some that the Haggadah contains no popular legends, that it
is wholly a factitious, academic product. A cursory glance at the
pseudepigraphic literature of the Jews, which is older than the Haggadah
literature by several centuries, shows how untenable this view is. That the one
literature should have drawn from the other is precluded by historical facts.
At a very early time the Synagogue disavowed the pseudepigraphic literature,
which was the favorite reading matter of the sectaries and the Christians.
Nevertheless the inner relation between them is of the closest kind. The only
essential difference is that the Midrashic form prevails in the Haggadah, and
the parenetic or apocalyptic form in the pseudepigrapha. The common element
must therefore depart from the Midrash on the one hand and from parenesis on
the other.

Folklore, fairy tales, legends, and all forms of story telling akin to these
are comprehended, in the terminology of the post-Biblical literature of the
Jews, under the inclusive description Haggadah, a name that can be explained by
a circumlocution, but cannot be translated. Whatever it is applied to is
thereby characterized first as being derived from the Holy Scriptures, and then
as being of the nature of a story. And, in point of fact, this dualism sums up
the distinguishing features of Jewish Legend. More than eighteen centuries ago
the Jewish historian Josephus observed that “though we be deprived of our
wealth, of our cities, or of the other advantages we have, our law continues
immortal.” The word he meant to use was not law, but Torah, only he could not
find an equivalent for it in Greek. A singer of the Synagogue a thousand years
after Josephus, who expressed his sentiments in Hebrew, uttered the same
thought: “The Holy City and all her daughter cities are violated, they lie in
ruins, despoiled of their ornaments, their splendor darkened from sight. Naught
is left to us save one eternal treasure alone—the Holy Torah.” The sadder the
life of the Jewish people, the more it felt the need of taking refuge in its
past. The Scripture, or, to use the Jewish term, the Torah, was the only
remnant of its former national independence, and the Torah was the magic means
of making a sordid actuality recede before a glorious memory. To the Scripture
was assigned the task of supplying nourishment to the mind as well as the soul,
to the intellect as well as the imagination, and the result is the Halakah and
the Haggadah.

The fancy of the people did not die out in the post-Biblical time, but the bent
of its activity was determined by the past.

Men craved entertainment in later times as well as in the earlier, only instead
of resorting for its subject-matter to what happened under their eyes, they
drew from the fountain-head of the past. The events in the ancient history of
Israel, which was not only studied, but lived over again daily, stimulated the
desire to criticize it. The religious reflections upon nature laid down in the
myths of the people, the fairy tales, which have the sole object of pleasing,
and the legends, which are the people’s verdict upon history—all these were
welded into one product. The fancy of the Jewish people was engaged by the past
reflected in the Bible, and all its creations wear a Biblical hue for this
reason. This explains the peculiar form of the Haggadah.

But what is spontaneously brought forth by the people is often preserved only
in the form impressed upon it by the feeling and the thought of the poet, or by
the speculations of the learned. Also Jewish legends have rarely been
transmitted in their original shape. They have been perpetuated in the form of
Midrash, that is, Scriptural exegesis. The teachers of the Haggadah, called
Rabbanan d’Aggadta in the Talmud, were no folklorists, from whom a faithful
reproduction of legendary material may be expected. Primarily they were
homilists, who used legends for didactic purposes, and their main object was to
establish a close connection between the Scripture and the creations of the
popular fancy, to give the latter a firm basis and secure a long term of life
for them.

One of the most important tasks of the modern investigation of the Haggadah is
to make a clean separation between the original elements and the later learned
additions. Hardly a beginning has been made in this direction. But as long as
the task of distinguishing them has not been accomplished, it is impossible to
write out the Biblical legends of the Jews without including the supplemental
work of scholars in the products of the popular fancy.

In the present work, “The Legends of the Jews,” I have made the first attempt
to gather from the original sources all Jewish legends, in so far as they refer
to Biblical personages and events, and reproduce them with the greatest
attainable completeness and accuracy. I use the expression Jewish, rather than
Rabbinic, because the sources from which I have levied contributions are not
limited to the Rabbinic literature. As I expect to take occasion elsewhere to
enter into a description of the sources in detail, the following data must
suffice for the present.

The works of the Talmudic Midrashic literature are of the first importance.
Covering the period from the second to the fourteenth century, they contain the
major part of the Jewish legendary material. Akin to this in content if not
always in form is that derived from the Targumim, of which the oldest versions
were produced not earlier than the fourth century, and the most recent not
later than the tenth. The Midrashic literature has been preserved only in
fragmentary form. Many Haggadot not found in our existing collections are
quoted by the authors of the Middle Ages. Accordingly, a not inconsiderable
number of the legends here printed are taken from medieval Bible commentators
and homilists. I was fortunate in being able to avail myself also of fragments
of Midrashim of which only manuscript copies are extant.

The works of the older Kabbalah are likewise treasuries of quotations from lost
Midrashim, and it was among the Kabbalists, and later among the Hasidim, that
new legends arose. The literatures produced in these two circles are therefore
of great importance for the present purpose.

Furthermore, Jewish legends can be culled not from the writings of the
Synagogue alone; they appear also in those of the Church. Certain Jewish works
repudiated by the Synagogue were accepted and mothered by the Church. This is
the literature usually denominated apocryphal-pseudepigraphic. From the point
of view of legends, the apocryphal books are of subordinate importance, while
the pseudepigrapha are of fundamental value. Even quantitatively the latter are
an imposing mass. Besides the Greek writings of the Hellenist Jews, they
contain Latin, Syrian, Ethiopic, Aramean, Arabic, Persian, and Old Slavic
products translated directly or indirectly from Jewish works of Palestinian or
Hellenistic origin. The use of these pseudepigrapha requires great caution.
Nearly all of them are embellished with Christian interpolations, and in some
cases the inserted portions have choked the original form so completely that it
is impossible to determine at first sight whether a Jewish or a Christian
legend is under examination. I believe, however, that the pseudepigraphic
material made use of by me is Jewish beyond the cavil of a doubt, and therefore
it could not have been left out of account in a work like the present.

However, in the appreciation of Jewish Legends, it is the Rabbinic writers that
should form the point of departure, and not the pseudepigrapha. The former
represent the main stream of Jewish thought and feeling, the latter only an
undercurrent. If the Synagogue cast out the pseudepigrapha, and the Church
adopted them with a great show of favor, these respective attitudes were not
determined arbitrarily or by chance. The pseudepigrapha originated in circles
that harbored the germs from which Christianity developed later on. The Church
could thus appropriate them as her own with just reason.

In the use of some of the apocryphal and pseudepigraphic writings, I found it
expedient to quote the English translations of them made by others, in so far
as they could be brought into accord with the general style of the book, for
which purpose I permitted myself the liberty of slight verbal changes. In
particulars, I was guided, naturally, by my own conception of the subject,
which the Notes justify in detail.

Besides the pseudepigrapha there are other Jewish sources in Christian garb. In
the rich literature of the Church Fathers many a Jewish legend lies embalmed
which one would seek in vain in Jewish books. It was therefore my special
concern to use the writings of the Fathers to the utmost.

The luxuriant abundance of the material to be presented made it impossible to
give a verbal rendition of each legend. This would have required more than
three times the space at my disposal. I can therefore claim completeness for my
work only as to content. In form it had to suffer curtailment. When several
conflicting versions of the same legend existed, I gave only one in the text,
reserving the other one, or the several others, for the Notes, or, when
practicable, they were fused into one typical legend, the component parts of
which are analyzed in the Notes. In other instances I resorted to the expedient
of citing one version in one place and the others in other appropriate places,
in furtherance of my aim, to give a smooth presentation of the matter, with as
few interruptions to the course of the narrative as possible. For this reason I
avoided such transitional phrases as “Some say,” “It has been maintained,” etc.
That my method sometimes separates things that belong together cannot be
considered a grave disadvantage, as the Index at the end of the work will
present a logical rearrangement of the material for the benefit of the
interested student. I also did not hesitate to treat of the same personage in
different chapters, as, for instance, many of the legends bearing upon Jacob,
those connected with the latter years of the Patriarch, do not appear in the
chapter bearing his name, but will be found in the sections devoted to Joseph,
for the reason that once the son steps upon the scene, he becomes the central
figure, to which the life and deeds of the father are subordinated. Again, in
consideration of lack of space the Biblical narratives underlying the legends
had to be omitted—surely not a serious omission in a subject with which
widespread acquaintance may be presupposed as a matter of course.

As a third consequence of the amplitude of the material, it was thought
advisable to divide it into several volumes. The references, the explanations
of the sources used, and the interpretations given, and, especially, numerous
emendations of the text of the Midrashim and the pseudepigrapha, which
determined my conception of the passages so emended, will be found in the last
volume, the fourth, which will contain also an Introduction to the History of
Jewish Legends, a number of Excursuses, and the Index.

As the first three volumes are in the hands of the printer almost in their
entirety, I venture to express the hope that the whole work will appear within
measurable time, the parts following each other at short intervals.

LOUIS GINZBERG.

NEW YORK, March 24, 1909

I
THE CREATION OF THE WORLD

THE FIRST THINGS CREATED

In the beginning, two thousand years before the heaven and the earth, seven
things were created: the Torah written with black fire on white fire, and lying
in the lap of God; the Divine Throne, erected in the heaven which later was
over the heads of the Hayyot; Paradise on the right side of God, Hell on the
left side; the Celestial Sanctuary directly in front of God, having a jewel on
its altar graven with the Name of the Messiah, and a Voice that cries aloud,
“Return, ye children of men.”[1]

When God resolved upon the creation of the world, He took counsel with the
Torah.[2] Her advice was this: “O Lord, a king without an army and without
courtiers and attendants hardly deserves the name of king, for none is nigh to
express the homage due to him.” The answer pleased God exceedingly. Thus did He
teach all earthly kings, by His Divine example, to undertake naught without
first consulting advisers.[3]

The advice of the Torah was given with some reservations. She was skeptical
about the value of an earthly world, on account of the sinfulness of men, who
would be sure to disregard her precepts. But God dispelled her doubts. He told
her, that repentance had been created long before, and sinners would have the
opportunity of mending their ways. Besides, the Temple service would be
invested with atoning power, and Paradise and hell were intended to do duty as
reward and punishment. Finally, the Messiah was appointed to bring salvation,
which would put an end to all sinfulness.[4]

Nor is this world inhabited by man the first of things earthly created by God.
He made several worlds before ours, but He destroyed them all, because He was
pleased with none until He created ours.[5] But even this last world would have
had no permanence, if God had executed His original plan of ruling it according
to the principle of strict justice. It was only when He saw that justice by
itself would undermine the world that He associated mercy with justice, and
made them to rule jointly.[6] Thus, from the beginning of all things prevailed
Divine goodness, without which nothing could have continued to exist. If not
for it, the myriads of evil spirits had soon put an end to the generations of
men. But the goodness of God has ordained, that in every Nisan, at the time of
the spring equinox, the seraphim shall approach the world of spirits, and
intimidate them so that they fear to do harm to men. Again, if God in His
goodness had not given protection to the weak, the tame animals would have been
extirpated long ago by the wild animals. In Tammuz, at the time of the summer
solstice, when the strength of behemot is at its height, he roars so loud that
all the animals hear it, and for a whole year they are affrighted and timid,
and their acts become less ferocious than their nature is. Again, in Tishri, at
the time of the autumnal equinox, the great bird ziz[7] flaps his wings and
utters his cry, so that the birds of prey, the eagles and the vultures, blench,
and they fear to swoop down upon the others and annihilate them in their greed.
And, again, were it not for the goodness of God, the vast number of big fish
had quickly put an end to the little ones. But at the time of the winter
solstice, in the month of Tebet, the sea grows restless, for then leviathan
spouts up water, and the big fish become uneasy. They restrain their appetite,
and the little ones escape their rapacity.

Finally, the goodness of God manifests itself in the preservation of His people
Israel. It could not have survived the enmity of the Gentiles, if God had not
appointed protectors for it, the archangels Michael and Gabriel.[8] Whenever
Israel disobeys God, and is accused of misdemeanors by the angels of the other
nations, he is defended by his designated guardians, with such good result that
the other angels conceive fear of them. Once the angels of the other nations
are terrified, the nations themselves venture not to carry out their wicked
designs against Israel.

That the goodness of God may rule on earth as in heaven, the Angels of
Destruction are assigned a place at the far end of the heavens, from which they
may never stir, while the Angels of Mercy encircle the Throne of God, at His
behest.[9]

THE ALPHABET

When God was about to create the world by His word, the twenty-two letters of
the alphabet[10] descended from the terrible and august crown of God whereon
they were engraved with a pen of flaming fire. They stood round about God, and
one after the other spake and entreated, “Create the world through me!” The
first to step forward was the letter Taw. It said: “O Lord of the world! May it
be Thy will to create Thy world through me, seeing that it is through me that
Thou wilt give the Torah to Israel by the hand of Moses, as it is written,
‘Moses commanded us the Torah.'” The Holy One, blessed be He, made reply, and
said, “No!” Taw asked, “Why not?” and God answered: “Because in days to come I
shall place thee as a sign of death upon the foreheads of men.” As soon as Taw
heard these words issue from the mouth of the Holy One, blessed be He, it
retired from His presence disappointed.

The Shin then stepped forward, and pleaded: “O Lord of the world, create Thy
world through me: seeing that Thine own name Shaddai begins with me.”
Unfortunately, it is also the first letter of Shaw, lie, and of Sheker,
falsehood, and that incapacitated it. Resh had no better luck. It was pointed
out that it was the initial letter of Ra’, wicked, and Rasha’ evil, and after
that the distinction it enjoys of being the first letter in the Name of God,
Rahum, the Merciful, counted for naught. The Kof was rejected, because Kelalah,
curse, outweighs the advantage of being the first in Kadosh, the Holy One. In
vain did Zadde call attention to Zaddik, the Righteous One; there was Zarot,
the misfortunes of Israel, to testify against it. Pe had Podeh, redeemer, to
its credit, but Pesha: transgression, reflected dishonor upon it. ‘Ain was
declared unfit, because, though it begins ‘Anawah, humility, it performs the
same service for ‘Erwah, immorality. Samek said: “O Lord, may it be Thy will to
begin the creation with me, for Thou art called Samek, after me, the Upholder
of all that fall.” But God said: “Thou art needed in the place in which thou
art;[11] thou must continue to uphold all that fall.” Nun introduces Ner, “the
lamp of the Lord,” which is “the spirit of men,” but it also introduces Ner,
“the lamp of the wicked,” which will be put out by God. Mem starts Melek, king,
one of the titles of God. As it is the first letter of Mehumah, confusion, as
well, it had no chance of accomplishing its desire. The claim of Lamed bore its
refutation within itself. It advanced the argument that it was the first letter
of Luhot, the celestial tables for the Ten Commandments; it forgot that the
tables were shivered in pieces by Moses. Kaf was sure of victory Kisseh, the
throne of God, Kabod, His honor, and Keter, His crown, all begin with it. God
had to remind it that He would smite together His hands, Kaf, in despair over
the misfortunes of Israel. Yod at first sight seemed the appropriate letter for
the beginning of creation, on account of its association with Yah, God, if only
Yezer ha-Ra’ the evil inclination, had not happened to begin with it, too. Tet
is identified with Tob, the good. However, the truly good is not in this world;
it belongs to the world to come. Het is the first letter of Hanun, the Gracious
One; but this advantage is offset by its place in the word for sin, Hattat.
Zain suggests Zakor, remembrance, but it is itself the word for weapon, the
doer of mischief. Waw and He compose the Ineffable Name of God; they are
therefore too exalted to be pressed into the service of the mundane world. If
Dalet had stood only for Dabar, the Divine Word, it would have been used, but
it stands also for Din, justice, and under the rule of law without love the
world would have fallen to ruin. Finally, in spite of reminding one of Gadol,
great, Gimel would not do, because Gemul, retribution, starts with it.

After the claims of all these letters had been disposed of, Bet stepped before
the Holy One, blessed be He, and pleaded before Him: “O Lord of the world! May
it be Thy will to create Thy world through me, seeing that all the dwellers in
the world give praise daily unto Thee through me, as it is said, ‘Blessed be
the Lord forever. Amen, and Amen.'” The Holy One, blessed be He, at once
granted the petition of Bet. He said, “Blessed be he that cometh in the name of
the Lord.” And He created His world through Bet, as it is said, “Bereshit God
created the heaven and the earth.” The only letter that had refrained from
urging its claims was the modest Alef, and God rewarded it later for its
humility by giving it the first place in the Decalogue.[12]

THE FIRST DAY

On the first day of creation God produced ten things:[13] the heavens and the
earth, Tohu and Bohu, light and darkness, wind and water, the duration of the
day[14] and the duration of the night.[15]

Though the heavens and the earth consist of entirely different elements,[16]
they were yet created as a unit, “like the pot and its cover.”[17] The heavens
were fashioned from the light of God’s garment, and the earth from the snow
under the Divine Throne.[18] Tohu is a green band which encompasses the whole
world, and dispenses darkness, and Bohu consists of stones in the abyss, the
producers of the waters. The light created at the very beginning is not the
same as the light emitted by the sun, the moon, and the stars, which appeared
only on the fourth day. The light of the first day was of a sort that would
have enabled man to see the world at a glance from one end to the other.
Anticipating the wickedness of the sinful generations of the deluge and the
Tower of Babel, who were unworthy to enjoy the blessing of such light, God
concealed it, but in the world to come it will appear to the pious in all its
pristine glory.[19]

Several heavens were created,[20] seven in fact,[21] each to serve a purpose of
its own. The first, the one visible to man, has no function except that of
covering up the light during the night time; therefore it disappears every
morning. The planets are fastened to the second of the heavens; in the third
the manna is made for the pious in the hereafter; the fourth contains the
celestial Jerusalem together with the Temple, in which Michael ministers as
high priest, and offers the souls of the pious as sacrifices. In the fifth
heaven, the angel hosts reside, and sing the praise of God, though only during
the night, for by day it is the task of Israel on earth to give glory to God on
high. The sixth heaven is an uncanny spot; there originate most of the trials
and visitations ordained for the earth and its inhabitants. Snow lies heaped up
there and hail; there are lofts full of noxious dew, magazines stocked with
storms, and cellars holding reserves of smoke. Doors of fire separate these
celestial chambers, which are under the supervision of the archangel Metatron.
Their pernicious contents defiled the heavens until David’s time. The pious
king prayed God to purge His exalted dwelling of whatever was pregnant with
evil; it was not becoming that such things should exist near the Merciful One.
Only then they were removed to the earth.

The seventh heaven, on the other hand, contains naught but what is good and
beautiful: right, justice, and mercy, the storehouses of life, peace, and
blessing, the souls of the pious, the souls and spirits of unborn generations,
the dew with which God will revive the dead on the resurrection day, and, above
all, the Divine Throne, surrounded by the seraphim, the ofanim, the holy
Hayyot, and the ministering angels.[22]

Corresponding to the seven heavens, God created seven earths, each separated
from the next by five layers. Over the lowest earth, the seventh, called Erez,
lie in succession the abyss, the Tohu, the Bohu, a sea, and waters.[23] Then
the sixth[24] earth is reached, the Adamah, the scene of the magnificence of
God. In the same way the Adamah is separated from the fifth earth, the Arka,
which contains Gehenna, and Sha’are Mawet, and Sha’are Zalmawet, and Beer
Shahat, and Tit ha-Yawen, and Abaddon, and Sheol,[25] and there the souls of
the wicked are guarded by the Angels of Destruction. In the same way Arka is
followed by Harabah, the dry, the place of brooks and streams in spite of its
name, as the next, called Yabbashah, the mainland, contains the rivers and the
springs. Tebel, the second earth, is the first mainland inhabited by living
creatures, three hundred and sixty-five species,[26] all essentially different
from those of our own earth. Some have human heads set on the body of a lion,
or a serpent, or an ox; others have human bodies topped by the head of one of
these animals. Besides, Tebel is inhabited by human beings with two heads and
four hands and feet, in fact with all their organs doubled excepting only the
trunk.[27] It happens sometimes that the parts of these double persons quarrel
with each other, especially while eating and drinking, when each claims the
best and largest portions for himself. This species of mankind is distinguished
for great piety, another difference between it and the inhabitants of our
earth.

Our own earth is called Heled, and, like the others, it is separated from the
Tebel by an abyss, the Tohu, the Bohu, a sea, and waters.

Thus one earth rises above the other, from the first to the seventh, and over
the seventh earth the heavens are vaulted, from the first to the seventh, the
last of them attached to the arm of God. The seven heavens form a unity, the
seven kinds of earth form a unity, and the heavens and the earth together also
form a unity.[28]

When God made our present heavens and our present earth, “the new heavens and
the new earth”[29] were also brought forth, yea, and the hundred and ninety-six
thousand worlds which God created unto His Own glory.[30]

It takes five hundred years to walk from the earth to the heavens, and from one
end of a heaven to the other, and also from one heaven to the next,[31] and it
takes the same length of time to travel from the east to the west, or from the
south to the north.[32] Of all this vast world only one-third is inhabited, the
other two-thirds being equally divided between water and waste desert land.

Beyond the inhabited parts to the east is Paradise[33] with its seven
divisions, each assigned to the pious of a certain degree. The ocean is
situated to the west, and it is dotted with islands upon islands, inhabited by
many different peoples. Beyond it, in turn, are the boundless steppes full of
serpents and scorpions, and destitute of every sort of vegetation, whether
herbs or trees. To the north are the supplies of hell-fire, of snow, hail,
smoke, ice, darkness, and windstorms, and in that vicinity sojourn all sorts of
devils, demons, and malign spirits. Their dwelling-place is a great stretch of
land, it would take five hundred years to traverse it. Beyond lies hell. To the
south is the chamber containing reserves of fire, the cave of smoke, and the
forge of blasts and hurricanes.[34] Thus it comes that the wind blowing from
the south brings heat and sultriness to the earth. Were it not for the angel
Ben Nez, the Winged, who keeps the south wind back with his pinions, the world
would be consumed.[35] Besides, the fury of its blast is tempered by the north
wind, which always appears as moderator, whatever other wind may be
blowing.[36]

In the east, the west, and the south, heaven and earth touch each other, but
the north God left unfinished, that any man who announced himself as a god
might be set the task of supplying the deficiency, and stand convicted as a
pretender.[37]

The construction of the earth was begun at the centre, with the foundation
stone of the Temple, the Eben Shetiyah,[38] for the Holy Land is at the central
point of the surface of the earth, Jerusalem is at the central point of
Palestine, and the Temple is situated at the centre of the Holy City. In the
sanctuary itself the Hekal is the centre, and the holy Ark occupies the centre
of the Hekal, built on the foundation stone, which thus is at the centre of the
earth.[39] Thence issued the first ray of light, piercing to the Holy Land, and
from there illuminating the whole earth.[40] The creation of the world,
however, could not take place until God had banished the ruler of the dark.[41]
“Retire,” God said to him, “for I desire to create the world by means of
light.” Only after the light had been fashioned, darkness arose, the light
ruling in the sky, the darkness on the earth.[42] The power of God displayed
itself not only in the creation of the world of things, but equally in the
limitations which He imposed upon each. The heavens and the earth stretched
themselves out in length and breadth as though they aspired to infinitude, and
it required the word of God to call a halt to their encroachments.[43]

THE SECOND DAY

On the second day God brought forth four creations, the firmament, hell, fire,
and the angels.[44] The firmament is not the same as the heavens of the first
day. It is the crystal stretched forth over the heads of the Hayyot, from which
the heavens derive their light, as the earth derives its light from the sun.
This firmament saves the earth from being engulfed by the waters of the
heavens; it forms the partition between the waters above and the waters
below.[45] It was made to crystallize into the solid it is by the heavenly
fire, which broke its bounds, and condensed the surface of the firmament. Thus
fire made a division between the celestial and the terrestrial at the time of
creation, as it did at the revelation on Mount Sinai.[46] The firmament is not
more than three fingers thick,[47] nevertheless it divides two such heavy
bodies as the waters below, which are the foundations for the nether world, and
the waters above, which are the foundations for the seven heavens, the Divine
Throne, and the abode of the angels.[48]

The separation of the waters into upper and lower waters was the only act of
the sort done by God in connection with the work of creation.[49] All other
acts were unifying. It therefore caused some difficulties. When God commanded,
“Let the waters be gathered together, unto one place, and let the dry land
appear,” certain parts refused to obey. They embraced each other all the more
closely. In His wrath at the waters, God determined to let the whole of
creation resolve itself into chaos again. He summoned the Angel of the Face,
and ordered him to destroy the world. The angel opened his eyes wide, and
scorching fires and thick clouds rolled forth from them, while he cried out,
“He who divides the Red Sea in sunder!”—and the rebellious waters stood. The
all, however, was still in danger of destruction. Then began the singer of
God’s praises: “O Lord of the world, in days to come Thy creatures will sing
praises without end to Thee, they will bless Thee boundlessly, and they will
glorify Thee without measure. Thou wilt set Abraham apart from all mankind as
Thine own; one of his sons Thou wilt call ‘My first-born’; and his descendants
will take the yoke of Thy kingdom upon themselves. In holiness and purity Thou
wilt bestow Thy Torah upon them, with the words, ‘I am the Lord your God,’
whereunto they will make answer, ‘All that God hath spoken we will do.’ And now
I beseech Thee, have pity upon Thy world, destroy it not, for if Thou
destroyest it, who will fulfil Thy will?” God was pacified; He withdrew the
command ordaining the destruction of the world, but the waters He put under the
mountains, to remain there forever.[50] The objection of the lower waters to
division and Separation[51] was not their only reason for rebelling. The waters
had been the first to give praise to God, and when their separation into upper
and lower was decreed, the waters above rejoiced, saying, “Blessed are we who
are privileged to abide near our Creator and near His Holy Throne.” Jubilating
thus, they flew upward, and uttered song and praise to the Creator of the
world. Sadness fell upon the waters below. They lamented: “Woe unto us, we have
not been found worthy to dwell in the presence of God, and praise Him together
with our companions.” Therefore they attempted to rise upward, until God
repulsed them, and pressed them under the earth.[52] Yet they were not left
unrewarded for their loyalty. Whenever the waters above desire to give praise
to God, they must first seek permission from the waters below.[53]

The second day of creation was an untoward day in more than the one respect
that it introduced a breach where before there had been nothing but unity; for
it was the day that saw also the creation of hell. Therefore God could not say
of this day as of the others, that He “saw that it was good.” A division may be
necessary, but it cannot be called good, and hell surely does not deserve the
attribute of good.[54] Hell[55] has seven divisions,[36] one beneath the other.
They are called Sheol, Abaddon, Beer Shahat, Tit ha-Yawen, Sha’are Mawet,
Sha’are Zalmawet: and Gehenna. It requires three hundred years to traverse the
height, or the width, or the depth of each division, and it would take six
thousand three hundred[37] years to go over a tract of land equal in extent to
the seven divisions.[38]

Each of the seven divisions in turn has seven subdivisions, and in each
compartment there are seven rivers of fire and seven of hail. The width of each
is one thousand ells, its depth one thousand, and its length three hundred, and
they flow one from the other, and are supervised by ninety thousand Angels of
Destruction. There are, besides, in every compartment seven thousand caves, in
every cave there are seven thousand crevices, and in every crevice seven
thousand scorpions. Every scorpion has three hundred rings, and in every ring
seven thousand pouches of venom, from which flow seven rivers of deadly poison.
If a man handles it, he immediately bursts, every limb is torn from his body,
his bowels are cleft asunder, and he falls upon his face.[56] There are also
five different kinds of fire in hell. One devours and absorbs, another devours
and does not absorb, while the third absorbs and does not devour, and there is
still another fire, which neither devours nor absorbs, and furthermore a fire
which devours fire. There are coals big as mountains, and coals big as hills,
and coals as large as the Dead Sea, and coals like huge stones, and there are
rivers of pitch and sulphur flowing and seething like live coals.[60]

The third creation of the second day was the angel hosts, both the ministering
angels and the angels of praise. The reason they had not been called into being
on the first day was, lest men believe that the angels assisted God in the
creation of the heavens and the earth.[61] The angels that are fashioned from
fire have forms of fire,[62] but only so long as they remain in heaven. When
they descend to earth, to do the bidding of God here below, either they are
changed into wind, or they assume the guise of men.[63] There are ten ranks or
degrees among the angels.[64]

The most exalted in rank are those surrounding the Divine Throne on all sides,
to the right, to the left, in front, and behind, under the leadership of the
archangels Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, and Raphael.[65]

All the celestial beings praise God with the words, “Holy, holy, holy, is the
Lord of hosts,” but men take precedence of the angels herein. They may not
begin their song of praise until the earthly beings have brought their homage
to God.[66] Especially Israel is preferred to the angels. When they encircle
the Divine Throne in the form of fiery mountains and flaming hills, and attempt
to raise their voices in adoration of the Creator, God silences them with the
words, “Keep quiet until I have heard the songs, praises, prayers, and sweet
melodies of Israel.” Accordingly, the ministering angels and all the other
celestial hosts wait until the last tones of Israel’s doxologies rising aloft
from earth have died away, and then they proclaim in a loud voice, “Holy, holy,
holy, is the Lord of hosts.” When the hour for the glorification of God by the
angels draws nigh, the august Divine herald, the angel Sham’iel, steps to the
windows[67] of the lowest heaven to hearken to the songs, prayers, and praises
that ascend from the synagogues and the houses of learning, and when they are
finished, he announces the end to the angels in all the heavens. The
ministering angels, those who come in contact with the sublunary world,[68] now
repair to their chambers to take their purification bath. They dive into a
stream of fire and flame seven times, and three hundred and sixty-five times
they examine themselves carefully, to make sure that no taint clings to their
bodies.[69] Only then they feel privileged to mount the fiery ladder and join
the angels of the seventh heaven, and surround the throne of God with Hashmal
and all the holy Hayyot. Adorned with millions of fiery crowns, arrayed in
fiery garments, all the angels in unison, in the same words, and with the same
melody, intone songs of praise to God.[70]

THE THIRD DAY

Up to this time the earth was a plain, and wholly covered with water. Scarcely
had the words of God, “Let the waters be gathered together,” made themselves
heard, when mountains appeared all over and hills,[71] and the water collected
in the deep-lying basins. But the water was recalcitrant, it resisted the order
to occupy the lowly spots, and threatened to overflow the earth, until God
forced it back into the sea, and encircled the sea with sand. Now, whenever the
water is tempted to transgress its bounds, it beholds the sand, and
recoils.[72]

The waters did but imitate their chief Rahab, the Angel of the Sea, who
rebelled at the creation of the world. God had commanded Rahab to take in the
water. But he refused, saying, “I have enough.” The punishment for his
disobedience was death. His body rests in the depths of the sea, the water
dispelling the foul odor that emanates from it.[73]

The main creation of the third day was the realm of plants, the terrestrial
plants as well as the plants of Paradise. First of all the cedars of Lebanon
and the other great trees were made. In their pride at having been put first,
they shot up high in the air. They considered themselves the favored among
plants. Then God spake, “I hate arrogance and pride, for I alone am exalted,
and none beside,” and He created the iron on the same day, the substance with
which trees are felled down. The trees began to weep, and when God asked the
reason of their tears, they said: “We cry because Thou hast created the iron to
uproot us therewith. All the while we had thought ourselves the highest of the
earth, and now the iron, our destroyer, has been called into existence.” God
replied: “You yourselves will furnish the axe with a handle. Without your
assistance the iron will not be able to do aught against you.”[74]

The command to bear seed after their kind was given to the trees alone. But the
various sorts of grass reasoned, that if God had not desired divisions
according to classes, He would not have instructed the trees to bear fruit
after their kind with the seed thereof in it, especially as trees are inclined
of their own accord to divide themselves into species. The grasses therefore
reproduced themselves also after their kinds. This prompted the exclamation of
the Prince of the World, “Let the glory of the Lord endure forever; let the
Lord rejoice in His works.”[75]

The most important work done on the third day was the creation of Paradise. Two
gates of carbuncle form the entrance to Paradise,[76] and sixty myriads of
ministering angels keep watch over them. Each of these angels shines with the
lustre of the heavens. When the just man appears before the gates, the clothes
in which he was buried are taken off him, and the angels array him in seven
garments of clouds of glory, and place upon his head two crowns, one of
precious stones and pearls, the other of gold of Parvaim,[77] and they put
eight myrtles in his hand, and they utter praises before him and say to him,
“Go thy way, and eat thy bread with joy.” And they lead him to a place full of
rivers, surrounded by eight hundred kinds of roses and myrtles. Each one has a
canopy according to his merits,[78] and under it flow four rivers, one of milk,
the other of balsam, the third of wine, and the fourth of honey. Every canopy
is overgrown by a vine of gold, and thirty pearls hang from it, each of them
shining like Venus. Under each canopy there is a table of precious stones and
pearls, and sixty angels stand at the head of every just man, saying unto him:
“Go and eat with joy of the honey, for thou hast busied thyself with the Torah,
and she is sweeter than honey, and drink of the wine preserved in the grape
since the six days of creation,[79] for thou hast busied thyself with the
Torah, and she is compared to wine.” The least fair of the just is beautiful as
Joseph and Rabbi Johanan, and as the grains of a silver pomegranate upon which
fall the rays of the sun.[80] There is no light, “for the light of the
righteous is the shining light.” And they undergo four transformations every
day, passing through four states. In the first the righteous is changed into a
child. He enters the division for children, and tastes the joys of childhood.
Then he is changed into a youth, and enters the division for the youths, with
whom he enjoys the delights of youth. Next he becomes an adult, in the prime of
life, and he enters the division of men, and enjoys the pleasures of manhood.
Finally, he is changed into an old man. He enters the division for the old, and
enjoys the pleasures of age.

There are eighty myriads of trees in every corner of Paradise, the meanest
among them choicer than all the spice trees. In every corner there are sixty
myriads of angels singing with sweet voices, and the tree of life stands in the
middle and shades the whole of Paradise.[81] It has fifteen thousand tastes,
each different from the other, and the perfumes thereof vary likewise. Over it
hang seven clouds of glory, and winds blow upon it from all four sides,[82] so
that its odor is wafted from one end of the world to the other. Underneath sit
the scholars and explain the Torah. Over each of them two canopies are spread,
one of stars, the other of sun and moon, and a curtain of clouds of glory
separates the one canopy from the other.[83] Beyond Paradise begins Eden,
containing three hundred and ten worlds[84] and seven compartments for seven
different classes of the pious. In the first are “the martyr victims of the
government,” like Rabbi Akiba and his colleagues;[85] in the second those who
were drowned;[86] in the third[87] Rabbi Johanan ben Zakkai and his disciples;
in the fourth those who were carried off in the cloud of glory;[88] in the
fifth the penitents, who occupy a place which even a perfectly pious man cannot
obtain; in the sixth are the youths[89] who have not tasted of sin in their
lives; in the seventh are those poor who studied Bible and Mishnah, and led a
life of self-respecting decency. And God sits in the midst of them and expounds
the Torah to them.[90]

As for the seven divisions of Paradise, each of them is twelve myriads of miles
in width and twelve myriads of miles in length. In the first division dwell the
proselytes who embraced Judaism of their own free will, not from compulsion.
The walls are of glass and the wainscoting of cedar. The prophet Obadiah,[91]
himself a proselyte, is the overseer of this first division. The second
division is built of silver, and the wainscoting thereof is of cedar. Here
dwell those who have repented, and Manasseh, the penitent son of Hezekiah,
presides over them. The third division is built of silver and gold. Here dwell
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and all the Israelites who came out of Egypt, and
the whole generation that lived in the desert.[92] Also David is there,
together with all his sons[93] except Absalom, one of them, Chileab, still
alive. And all the kings of Judah are there, with the exception of Manasseh,
the son of Hezekiah, who presides in the second division, over the penitents.
Moses and Aaron preside over the third division. Here are precious vessels of
silver and gold and jewels and canopies and beds and thrones and lamps, of
gold, of precious stones, and of pearls, the best of everything there is in
heaven.[94] The fourth division is built of beautiful rubies,[95] and its
wainscoting is of olive wood. Here dwell the perfect and the steadfast in
faith, and their wainscoting is of olive wood, because their lives were bitter
as olives to them. The fifth division is built of silver and gold and refined
gold,[96] and the finest of gold and glass and bdellium, and through the midst
of it flows the river Gihon. The wainscoting is of silver and gold, and a
perfume breathes through it more exquisite than the perfume of Lebanon. The
coverings of the silver and gold beds are made of purple and blue, woven by
Eve, and of scarlet and the hair of goats, woven by angels. Here dwells the
Messiah on a palanquin made of the wood of Lebanon, “the pillars thereof of
silver, the bottom of gold, the seat of it purple.” With him is Elijah. He
takes the head of Messiah, and places it in his bosom, and says to him, “Be
quiet, for the end draweth nigh.” On every Monday and Thursday and on Sabbaths
and holidays, the Patriarchs come to him, and the twelve sons of Jacob, and
Moses, Aaron, David, Solomon, and all the kings of Israel and of Judah, and
they weep with him and comfort him, and say unto him, “Be quiet and put trust
in thy Creator, for the end draweth nigh.” Also Korah and his company, and
Dathan, Abiram, and Absalom come to him on every Wednesday, and ask him: “How
long before the end comes full of wonders? When wilt thou bring us life again,
and from the abysses of the earth lift us?” The Messiah answers them, “Go to
your fathers and ask them”; and when they hear this, they are ashamed, and do
not ask their fathers.

In the sixth division dwell those who died in performing a pious act, and in
the seventh division those who died from illness inflicted as an expiation for
the sins of Israel.[97]

THE FOURTH DAY

The fourth day of creation produced the sun, the moon, and the stars. These
heavenly spheres were not actually fashioned on this day; they were created on
the first day, and merely were assigned their places in the heavens on the
fourth.[98] At first the sun and the moon enjoyed equal powers and
prerogatives.[99] The moon spoke to God, and said: “O Lord, why didst Thou
create the world with the letter Bet?” God replied: “That it might be made
known unto My creatures that there are two worlds.” The moon: “O Lord: which of
the two worlds is the larger, this world or the world to come?” God: “The world
to come is the larger.” The moon: “O Lord, Thou didst create two worlds, a
greater and a lesser world; Thou didst create the heaven and the earth, the
heaven exceeding the earth; Thou didst create fire and water, the water
stronger than the fire, because it can quench the fire; and now Thou hast
created the sun and the moon, and it is becoming that one of them should be
greater than the other.” Then spake God to the moon: “I know well, thou wouldst
have me make Thee greater than the sun. As a punishment I decree that thou
mayest keep but one-sixtieth of thy light.” The moon made supplication: “Shall
I be punished so severely for having spoken a single word?” God relented: “In
the future world I will restore thy light, so that thy light may again be as
the light of the sun.” The moon was not yet satisfied. “O Lord,” she said, “and
the light of the sun, how great will it be in that day?” Then the wrath of God
was once more enkindled: “What, thou still plottest against the sun? As thou
livest, in the world to come his light shall be sevenfold the light he now
sheds.”[100] The Sun runs his course like a bridegroom. He sits upon a throne
with a garland on his head.[101] Ninety-six angels accompany him on his daily
journey, in relays of eight every hour, two to the left of him, and two to the
right, two before Him, and two behind. Strong as he is, he could complete his
course from south to north in a single instant, but three hundred and
sixty-five angels restrain him by means of as many grappling-irons. Every day
one looses his hold, and the sun must thus spend three hundred and sixty-five
days on his course. The progress of the sun in his circuit is an uninterrupted
song of praise to God. And this song alone makes his motion possible.
Therefore, when Joshua wanted to bid the sun stand still, he had to command him
to be silent. His song of praise hushed, the sun stood still.[102]

The sun is double-faced; one face, of fire, is directed toward the earth, and
one of hail, toward heaven, to cool off the prodigious heat that streams from
the other face, else the earth would catch afire. In winter the sun turns his
fiery face upward, and thus the cold is produced.[103] When the sun descends in
the west in the evening, he dips down into the ocean and takes a bath, his fire
is extinguished, and therefore he dispenses neither light nor warmth during the
night. But as soon as he reaches the east in the morning, he laves himself in a
stream of flame, which imparts warmth and light to him, and these he sheds over
the earth. In the same way the moon and the stars take a bath in a stream of
hail before they enter upon their service for the night.[104]

When the sun and the moon are ready to start upon their round of duties, they
appear before God, and beseech him to relieve them of their task, so that they
may be spared the sight of sinning mankind. Only upon compulsion they proceed
with their daily course. Coming from the presence of God, they are blinded by
the radiance in the heavens, and they cannot find their way. God, therefore,
shoots off arrows, by the glittering light of which they are guided. It is on
account of the sinfulness of man, which the sun is forced to contemplate on his
rounds, that he grows weaker as the time of his going down approaches, for sins
have a defiling and enfeebling effect, and he drops from the horizon as a
sphere of blood, for blood is the sign of corruption.[105] As the sun sets
forth on his course in the morning, his wings touch the leaves on the trees of
Paradise, and their vibration is communicated to the angels and the holy
Hayyot, to the other plants, and also to the trees and plants on earth, and to
all the beings on earth and in heaven. It is the signal for them all to cast
their eyes upward. As soon as they see the Ineffable Name, which is engraved in
the sun, they raise their voices in songs of praise to God. At the same moment
a heavenly voice is heard to say, “Woe to the sons of men that consider not the
honor of God like unto these creatures whose voices now rise aloft in
adoration.”[106] These words, naturally, are not heard by men; as little as
they perceive the grating of the sun against the wheel to which all the
celestial bodies are attached, although the noise it makes is extraordinarily
loud.[107] This friction of the sun and the wheel produces the motes dancing
about in the sunbeams. They are the carriers of healing to the sick,[108] the
only health-giving creations of the fourth day, on the whole an unfortunate
day, especially for children, afflicting them with disease.[109] When God
punished the envious moon by diminishing her light and splendor, so that she
ceased to be the equal of the sun as she had been originally,[110] she
fell,[111] and tiny threads were loosed from her body. These are the
stars.[112]

THE FIFTH DAY

On the fifth day of creation God took fire[118] and water, and out of these two
elements He made the fishes of the sea.[114] The animals in the water are much
more numerous than those on land. For every species on land, excepting only the
weasel, there is a corresponding species in the water, and, besides, there are
many found only in the water.[115]

The ruler over the sea-animals is leviathan.[116] With all the other fishes he
was made on the fifth day.[117] Originally he was created male and female like
all the other animals. But when it appeared that a pair of these monsters might
annihilate the whole earth with their united strength, God killed the
female.[119] So enormous is leviathan that to quench his thirst he needs all
the water that flows from the Jordan into the sea.[119] His food consists of
the fish which go between his jaws of their own accord.[120] When he is hungry,
a hot breath blows from his nostrils, and it makes the waters of the great sea
seething hot. Formidable though behemot, the other monster, is, he feels
insecure until he is certain that leviathan has satisfied his thirst.[121] The
only thing that can keep him in check is the stickleback, a little fish which
was created for the purpose, and of which he stands in great awe.[122] But
leviathan is more than merely large and strong; he is wonderfully made besides.
His fins radiate brilliant light, the very sun is obscured by it,[123] and also
his eyes shed such splendor that frequently the sea is illuminated suddenly by
it.[121] No wonder that this marvellous beast is the plaything of God, in whom
He takes His pastime.[124]

There is but one thing that makes leviathan repulsive, his foul smell: which is
so strong that if it penetrated thither, it would render Paradise itself an
impossible abode.[125]

The real purpose of leviathan is to be served up as a dainty to the pious in
the world to come. The female was put into brine as soon as she was killed, to
be preserved against the time when her flesh will be needed.[126] The male is
destined to offer a delectable sight to all beholders before he is consumed.
When his last hour arrives, God will summon the angels to enter into combat
with the monster. But no sooner will leviathan cast his glance at them than
they will flee in fear and dismay from the field of battle. They will return to
the charge with swords, but in vain, for his scales can turn back steel like
straw. They will be equally unsuccessful when they attempt to kill him by
throwing darts and slinging stones; such missiles will rebound without leaving
the least impression on his body. Disheartened, the angels will give up the
combat, and God will command leviathan and behemot to enter into a duel with
each other. The issue will be that both will drop dead, behemot slaughtered by
a blow of leviathan’s fins, and leviathan killed by a lash of behemot’s tail.
From the skin of leviathan God will construct tents to shelter companies of the
pious while they enjoy the dishes made of his flesh. The amount assigned to
each of the pious will be in proportion to his deserts, and none will envy or
begrudge the other his better share. What is left of leviathan’s skin will be
stretched out over Jerusalem as a canopy, and the light streaming from it will
illumine the whole world, and what is left of his flesh after the pious have
appeased their appetite, will be distributed among the rest of men, to carry on
traffic therewith.[127]

On the same day with the fishes, the birds were created, for these two kinds of
animals are closely related to each other. Fish are fashioned out of water, and
birds out of marshy ground saturated with water.[128]

As leviathan is the king of fishes, so the ziz is appointed to rule over the
birds.[129] His name comes from the variety of tastes his flesh has; it tastes
like this, zeh, and like that, zeh.[130] The ziz is as monstrous of size as
leviathan himself. His ankles rest on the earth, and his head reaches to the
very sky.[121]

It once happened that travellers on a vessel noticed a bird. As he stood in the
water, it merely covered his feet, and his head knocked against the sky. The
onlookers thought the water could not have any depth at that point, and they
prepared to take a bath there. A heavenly voice warned them: “Alight not here!
Once a carpenter’s axe slipped from his hand at this spot, and it took it seven
years to touch bottom.” The bird the travellers saw was none other than the
ziz.[132] His wings are so huge that unfurled they darken the sun.[133] They
protect the earth against the storms of the south; without their aid the earth
would not be able to resist the winds blowing thence.[134] Once an egg of the
ziz fell to the ground and broke. The fluid from it flooded sixty cities, and
the shock crushed three hundred cedars. Fortunately such accidents do not occur
frequently. As a rule the bird lets her eggs slide gently into her nest. This
one mishap was due to the fact that the egg was rotten, and the bird cast it
away carelessly. The ziz has another name, Renanin,[135] because he is the
celestial singer.[136] On account of his relation to the heavenly regions he is
also called Sekwi, the seer, and, besides, he is called “son of the nest,”[137]
because his fledgling birds break away from the shell without being hatched by
the mother bird; they spring directly from the nest, as it were.[138] Like
leviathan, so ziz is a delicacy to be served to the pious at the end of time,
to compensate them for the privations which abstaining from the unclean fowls
imposed upon them.[139]

THE SIXTH DAY

As the fish were formed out of water, and the birds out of boggy earth well
mixed with water, so the mammals were formed out of solid earth,[140] and as
leviathan is the most notable representative of the fish kind, and ziz of the
bird kind, so behemot is the most notable representative of the mammal kind.
Behemot matches leviathan in strength, and he had to be prevented, like
leviathan, from multiplying and increasing, else the world could not have
continued to exist; after God had created him male and female, He at once
deprived him of the desire to propagate his kind.[141] He is so monstrous that
he requires the produce of a thousand mountains for his daily food. All the
water that flows through the bed of the Jordan in a year suffices him exactly
for one gulp. It therefore was necessary to give him one stream entirely for
his own use, a stream flowing forth from Paradise, called Yubal.[142] Behemot,
too, is destined to be served to the pious as an appetizing dainty, but before
they enjoy his flesh, they will be permitted to view the mortal combat between
leviathan and behemot, as a reward for having denied themselves the pleasures
of the circus and its gladiatorial contests.[143]

Leviathan, ziz, and behemot are not the only monsters; there are many others,
and marvellous ones, like the reem, a giant animal, of which only one couple,
male and female, is in existence. Had there been more, the world could hardly
have maintained itself against them. The act of copulation occurs but once in
seventy years between them, for God has so ordered it that the male and female
reem are at opposite ends of the earth, the one in the east, the other in the
west. The act of copulation results in the death of the male. He is bitten by
the female and dies of the bite. The female becomes pregnant and remains in
this state for no less than twelve years. At the end of this long period she
gives birth to twins, a male and a female. The year preceding her delivery she
is not able to move. She would die of hunger, were it not that her own spittle
flowing copiously from her mouth waters and fructifies the earth near her, and
causes it to bring forth enough for her maintenance. For a whole year the
animal can but roll from side to side, until finally her belly bursts, and the
twins issue forth. Their appearance is thus the signal for the death of the
mother reem. She makes room for the new generation, which in turn is destined
to suffer the same fate as the generation that went before. Immediately after
birth, the one goes eastward and the other westward, to meet only after the
lapse of seventy years, propagate themselves, and perish.[144] A traveller who
once saw a reem one day old described its height to be four parasangs, and the
length of its head one parasang and a half.[145] Its horns measure one hundred
ells, and their height is a great deal more.[146]

One of the most remarkable creatures is the “man of the mountain,” Adne Sadeh,
or, briefly, Adam.[147] His form is exactly that of a human being, but he is
fastened to the ground by means of a navel-string, upon which his life depends.
The cord once snapped, he dies. This animal keeps himself alive with what is
produced by the soil around about him as far as his tether permits him to
crawl. No creature may venture to approach within the radius of his cord, for
he seizes and demolishes whatever comes in his reach. To kill him, one may not
go near to him, the navel-string must be severed from a distance by means of a
dart, and then he dies amid groans and moans.[143] Once upon a time a traveller
happened in the region where this animal is found. He overheard his host
consult his wife as to what to do to honor their guest, and resolve to serve
“our man,” as he said. Thinking he had fallen among cannibals, the stranger ran
as fast as his feet could carry him from his entertainer, who sought vainly to
restrain him. Afterward, he found out that there had been no intention of
regaling him with human flesh, but only with the flesh of the strange animal
called “man.”[146] As the “man of the mountain” is fixed to the ground by his
navel-string, so the barnacle-goose is grown to a tree by its bill. It is hard
to say whether it is an animal and must be slaughtered to be fit for food, or
whether it is a plant and no ritual ceremony is necessary before eating
it.[150]

Among the birds the phoenix is the most wonderful. When Eve gave all the
animals some of the fruit of the tree of knowledge, the phoenix was the only
bird that refused to eat thereof, and he was rewarded with eternal life. When
he has lived a thousand years, his body shrinks, and the feathers drop from it,
until he is as small as an egg. This is the nucleus of the new bird.[151]

The phoenix is also called “the guardian of the terrestrial sphere.” He runs
with the sun on his circuit, and he spreads out his wings and catches up the
fiery rays of the sun.[152] If he were not there to intercept them, neither man
nor any other animate being would keep alive. On his right wing the following
words are inscribed in huge letters,[153] about four thousand stadia high:
“Neither the earth produces me, nor the heavens, but only the wings of fire.”
His food consists of the manna of heaven and the dew of the earth. His
excrement is a worm, whose excrement in turn is the cinnamon used by kings and
princes.[152] Enoch, who saw the phoenix birds when he was translated,
describes them as flying creatures, wonderful and strange in appearance, with
the feet and tails of lions, and the heads of crocodiles; their appearance is
of a purple color like the rainbow; their size nine hundred measures. Their
wings are like those of angels, each having twelve, and they attend the chariot
of the sun and go with him, bringing heat and dew as they are ordered by God.
In the morning when the sun starts on his daily course, the phoenixes and the
chalkidri[154] sing, and every bird flaps its wings, rejoicing the Giver of
light, and they sing a song at the command of the Lord.[155] Among reptiles the
salamander and the shamir are the most marvellous. The salamander originates
from a fire of myrtle wood[156] which has been kept burning for seven years
steadily by means of magic arts. Not bigger than a mouse, it yet is invested
with peculiar properties. One who smears himself with its blood is
invulnerable,[157] and the web woven by it is a talisman against fire.[158] The
people who lived at the deluge boasted that, were a fire flood to come, they
would protect themselves with the blood of the salamander.[159]

King Hezekiah owes his life to the salamander. His wicked father, King Ahaz,
had delivered him to the fires of Moloch, and he would have been burnt, had his
mother not painted him with the blood of the salamander, so that the fire could
do him no harm.[160]

The shamir was made at twilight on the sixth day of creation together with
other extraordinary things.[161] It is about as large as a barley corn, and it
possesses the remarkable property of cutting the hardest of diamonds. For this
reason it was used for the stones in the breastplate worn by the high priest.
First the names of the twelve tribes were traced with ink on the stones to be
set into the breastplate, then the shamir was passed over the lines, and thus
they were graven. The wonderful circumstance was that the friction wore no
particles from the stones. The shamir was also used for hewing into shape the
stones from which the Temple was built, because the law prohibited iron tools
to be used for the work in the Temple.[162] The shamir may not be put in an
iron vessel for safe-keeping, nor in any metal vessel, it would burst such a
receptacle asunder. It is kept wrapped up in a woollen cloth, and this in turn
is placed in a lead basket filled with barley bran.[163] The shamir was guarded
in Paradise until Solomon needed it. He sent the eagle thither to fetch the
worm.[164] With the destruction of the Temple the shamir vanished.[165] A
similar fate overtook the tahash, which had been created only that its skin
might be used for the Tabernacle. Once the Tabernacle was completed, the tahash
disappeared. It had a horn on its forehead, was gaily colored like the
turkey-cock, and belonged to the class of clean animals.[166] Among the fishes
there are also wonderful creatures, the sea-goats and the dolphins, not to
mention leviathan. A sea-faring man once saw a sea-goat on whose horns the
words were inscribed: “I am a little sea-animal, yet I traversed three hundred
parasangs to offer myself as food to the leviathan.”[167] The dolphins are half
man and half fish; they even have sexual intercourse with human beings;
therefore they are called also “sons of the sea,” for in a sense they represent
the human kind in the waters.[163]

Though every species in the animal world was created during the last two days
of the six of creation,[169] yet many characteristics of certain animals
appeared later. Cats and mice, foes now, were friends originally. Their later
enmity had a distinct cause. On one occasion the mouse appeared before God and
spoke: “I and the cat are partners, but now we have nothing to eat.” The Lord
answered: “Thou art intriguing against thy companion, only that thou mayest
devour her. As a punishment, she shall devour thee.” Thereupon the mouse: “O
Lord of the world, wherein have I done wrong?” God replied: “O thou unclean
reptile, thou shouldst have been warned by the example of the moon, who lost a
part of her light, because she spake ill of the sun, and what she lost was
given to her opponent.[170] The evil intentions thou didst harbor against thy
companion shall be punished in the same way. Instead of thy devouring her, she
shall devour thee.” The mouse: “O Lord of the world! Shall my whole kind be
destroyed?” God: “I will take care that a remnant of thee is spared.” In her
rage the mouse bit the cat, and the cat in turn threw herself upon the mouse,
and hacked into her with her teeth until she lay dead. Since that moment the
mouse stands in such awe of the cat that she does not even attempt to defend
herself against her enemy’s attacks, and always keeps herself in hiding.[171]
Similarly dogs and cats maintained a friendly relation to each other, and only
later on became enemies. A dog and a cat were partners, and they shared with
each other whatever they had. It once happened that neither could find anything
to eat for three days. Thereupon the dog proposed that they dissolve their
partnership. The cat should go to Adam, in whose house there would surely be
enough for her to eat, while the dog should seek his fortune elsewhere. Before
they separated, they took an oath never to go to the same master. The cat took
up her abode with Adam, and she found sufficient mice in his house to satisfy
her appetite. Seeing how useful she was in driving away and extirpating mice,
Adam treated her most kindly. The dog, on the other hand, saw bad times. The
first night after their separation he spent in the cave of the wolf, who had
granted him a night’s lodging. At night the dog caught the sound of steps, and
he reported it to his host, who bade him repulse the intruders. They were wild
animals. Little lacked and the dog would have lost his life. Dismayed, the dog
fled from the house of the wolf, and took refuge with the monkey. But he would
not grant him even a single night’s lodging; and the fugitive was forced to
appeal to the hospitality of the sheep. Again the dog heard steps in the middle
of the night. Obeying the bidding of his host, he arose to chase away the
marauders, who turned out to be wolves. The barking of the dog apprised the
wolves of the presence of sheep, so that the dog innocently caused the sheep’s
death. Now he had lost his last friend. Night after night he begged for
shelter, without ever finding a home. Finally, he decided to repair to the
house of Adam, who also granted him refuge for one night. When wild animals
approached the house under cover of darkness, the dog began to bark, Adam
awoke, and with his bow and arrow he drove them away. Recognizing the dog’s
usefulness, he bade him remain with him always. But as soon as the cat espied
the dog in Adam’s house, she began to quarrel with him, and reproach him with
having broken his oath to her. Adam did his best to pacify the cat. He told her
he had himself invited the dog to make his home there, and he assured her she
would in no wise be the loser by the dog’s presence; he wanted both to stay
with him. But it was impossible to appease the cat. The dog promised her not to
touch anything intended for her. She insisted that she could not live in one
and the same house with a thief like the dog. Bickerings between the dog and
the cat became the order of the day. Finally the dog could stand it no longer,
and he left Adam’s house, and betook himself to Seth’s. By Seth he was welcomed
kindly, and from Seth’s house, he continued to make efforts at reconciliation
with the cat. In vain. Yes, the enmity between the first dog and the first cat
was transmitted to all their descendants until this very day.[172]

Even the physical peculiarities of certain animals were not original features
with them, but owed their existence to something that occurred subsequent to
the days of creation. The mouse at first had quite a different mouth from its
present mouth. In Noah’s ark, in which all animals, to ensure the preservation
of every kind, lived together peaceably, the pair of mice were once sitting
next to the cat. Suddenly the latter remembered that her father was in the
habit of devouring mice, and thinking there was no harm in following his
example, she jumped at the mouse, who vainly looked for a hole into which to
slip out of sight. Then a miracle happened; a hole appeared where none had been
before, and the mouse sought refuge in it. The cat pursued the mouse, and
though she could not follow her into the hole, she could insert her paw and try
to pull the mouse out of her covert. Quickly the mouse opened her mouth in the
hope that the paw would go into it, and the cat would be prevented from
fastening her claws in her flesh. But as the cavity of the mouth was not big
enough, the cat succeeded in clawing the cheeks of the mouse. Not that this
helped her much, it merely widened the mouth of the mouse, and her prey after
all escaped the cat.[173] After her happy escape, the mouse betook herself to
Noah and said to him, “O pious man, be good enough to sew up my cheek where my
enemy, the cat, has torn a rent in it.” Noah bade her fetch a hair out of the
tail of the swine, and with this he repaired the damage. Thence the little
seam-like line next to the mouth of every mouse to this very day.[174]

The raven is another animal that changed its appearance during its sojourn in
the ark. When Noah desired to send him forth to find out about the state of the
waters, he hid under the wings of the eagle. Noah found him, however, and said
to him, “Go and see whether the waters have diminished.” The raven pleaded:
“Hast thou none other among all the birds to send on this errand?” Noah: “My
power extends no further than over thee and the dove.”[175] But the raven was
not satisfied. He said to Noah with great insolence: “Thou sendest me forth
only that I may meet my death, and thou wishest my death that my wife may be at
thy service.”[176] Thereupon Noah cursed the raven thus: “May thy mouth, which
has spoken evil against me, be accursed, and thy intercourse with thy wife be
only through it.”[177] All the animals in the ark said Amen. And this is the
reason why a mass of spittle runs from the mouth of the male raven into the
mouth of the female during the act of copulation, and only thus the female is
impregnated.[178] Altogether the raven is an unattractive animal. He is unkind
toward his own young so long as their bodies are not covered with black
feathers,[179] though as a rule ravens love one another.[180] God therefore
takes the young ravens under His special protection. From their own excrement
maggots come forth,[181] which serve as their food during the three days that
elapse after their birth, until their white feathers turn black and their
parents recognize them as their offspring and care for them.[182]

The raven has himself to blame also for the awkward hop in his gait. He
observed the graceful step of the dove, and envious of her tried to enmulate
it. The outcome was that he almost broke his bones without in the least
succeeding in making himself resemble the dove, not to mention that he brought
the scorn of the other animals down upon himself. His failure excited their
ridicule. Then he decided to return to his own original gait, but in the
interval he had unlearnt it, and he could walk neither the one way nor the
other properly. His step had become a hop betwixt and between. Thus we see how
true it is, that he who is dissatisfied with his small portion loses the little
he has in striving for more and better things.[163]

The steer is also one of the animals that have suffered a change in the course
of time. Originally his face was entirely overgrown with hair, but now there is
none on his nose, and that is because Joshua kissed him on his nose during the
siege of Jericho. Joshua was an exceedingly heavy man. Horses, donkeys, and
mules, none could bear him, they all broke down under his weight. What they
could not do, the steer accomplished. On his back Joshua rode to the siege of
Jericho, and in gratitude he bestowed a kiss upon his nose.[134]

The serpent, too, is other than it was at first. Before the fall of man it was
the cleverest of all animals created, and in form it resembled man closely. It
stood upright, and was of extraordinary size.[185] Afterward, it lost the
mental advantages it had possessed as compared with other animals, and it
degenerated physically, too; it was deprived of its feet, so that it could not
pursue other animals and kill them. The mole and the frog had to be made
harmless in similar ways; the former has no eyes, else it were irresistible,
and the frog has no teeth, else no animal in the water were sure of its
life.[186]

While the cunning of the serpent wrought its own undoing, the cunning of the
fox stood him in good stead in many an embarrassing situation. After Adam had
committed the sin of disobedience, God delivered the whole of the animal world
into the power of the Angel of Death, and He ordered him to cast one pair of
each kind into the water. He and leviathan together thus have dominion over all
that has life. When the Angel of Death was in the act of executing the Divine
command upon the fox, he began to weep bitterly. The Angel of Death asked him
the reason of his tears, and the fox replied that he was mourning the sad fate
of his friend. At the same time he pointed to the figure of a fox in the sea,
which was nothing but his own reflection. The Angel of Death, persuaded that a
representative of the fox family had been cast into the water, let him go free.
The fox told his trick to the cat, and she in turn played it on the Angel of
Death.[187] So it happened that neither cats nor foxes are represented in the
water, while all other animals are.[188]

When leviathan passed the animals in review, and missing the fox was informed
of the sly way in which he had eluded his authority, he dispatched great and
powerful fish on the errand of enticing the truant into the water. The fox
walking along the shore espied the large number of fish, and he exclaimed, “How
happy he who may always satisfy his hunger with the flesh of such as these.”
The fish told him, if he would but follow them, his appetite could easily be
appeased. At the same time they informed him that a great honor awaited him.
Leviathan, they said, was at death’s door, and he had commissioned them to
install the fox as his successor. They were ready to carry him on their backs,
so that he had no need to fear the water, and thus they would convey him to the
throne, which stood upon a huge rock. The fox yielded to these persuasions, and
descended into the water. Presently an uncomfortable feeling took possession of
him. He began to suspect that the tables were turned; he was being made game of
instead of making game of others as usual. He urged the fish to tell him the
truth, and they admitted that they had been sent out to secure his person for
leviathan, who wanted his heart,[189] that he might become as knowing as the
fox, whose wisdom he had heard many extol. The fox said reproachfully: “Why did
you not tell me the truth at once? Then I could have brought my heart along
with me for King Leviathan, who would have showered honors upon me. As it is,
you will surely suffer punishment for bringing me without my heart. The foxes,
you see,” he continued, “do not carry their hearts around with them. They keep
them in a safe place, and when they have need of them, they fetch them thence.”
The fish quickly swam to shore, and landed the fox, so that he might go for his
heart. No sooner did he feel dry land under his feet than he began to jump and
shout, and when they urged him to go in search of his heart, and follow them,
he said: “O ye fools, could I have followed you into the water, if I had not
had my heart with me? Or exists there a creature able to go abroad without his
heart?” The fish replied: “Come, come, thou art fooling us.” Whereupon the fox:
“O ye fools, if I could play a trick on the Angel of Death, how much easier was
it to make game of you?” So they had to return, their errand undone, and
leviathan could not but confirm the taunting judgment of the fox: “In very
truth, the fox is wise of heart, and ye are fools.”[190]

ALL THINGS PRAISE THE LORD

“Whatever God created has value.” Even the animals and the insects that seem
useless and noxious at first sight have a vocation to fulfil. The snail
trailing a moist streak after it as it crawls, and so using up its vitality,
serves as a remedy for boils. The sting of a hornet is healed by the house-fly
crushed and applied to the wound. The gnat, feeble creature, taking in food but
never secreting it, is a specific against the poison of a viper, and this
venomous reptile itself cures eruptions, while the lizard is the antidote to
the scorpion.[191] Not only do all creatures serve man, and contribute to his
comfort, but also God “teacheth us through the beasts of the earth, and maketh
us wise through the fowls of heaven.” He endowed many animals with admirable
moral qualities as a pattern for man. If the Torah had not been revealed to us,
we might have learnt regard for the decencies of life from the cat, who covers
her excrement with earth; regard for the property of others from the ants, who
never encroach upon one another’s stores; and regard for decorous conduct from
the cock, who, when he desires to unite with the hen, promises to buy her a
cloak long enough to reach to the ground, and when the hen reminds him of his
promise, he shakes his comb and says, “May I be deprived of my comb, if I do
not buy it when I have the means.” The grasshopper also has a lesson to teach
to man. All the summer through it sings, until its belly bursts, and death
claims it. Though it knows the fate that awaits it, yet it sings on. So man
should do his duty toward God, no matter what the consequences. The stork
should be taken as a model in two respects. He guards the purity of his family
life zealously, and toward his fellows he is compassionate and merciful. Even
the frog can be the teacher of man. By the side of the water there lives a
species of animals which subsist off aquatic creatures alone. When the frog
notices that one of them is hungry, he goes to it of his own accord, and offers
himself as food, thus fulfilling the injunction, “If thine enemy be hungry,
give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink.”[192]

The whole of creation was called into existence by God unto His glory,[193] and
each creature has its own hymn of praise wherewith to extol the Creator. Heaven
and earth, Paradise and hell, desert and field, rivers and seas—all have their
own way of paying homage to God. The hymn of the earth is, “From the uttermost
part of the earth have we heard songs, glory to the Righteous.” The sea
exclaims, “Above the voices of many waters, the mighty breakers of the sea, the
Lord on high is mighty.”

Also the celestial bodies and the elements proclaim the praise of their
Creator—the sun, moon, and stars, the clouds and the winds, lightning and dew.
The sun says, “The sun and moon stood still in their habitation, at the light
of Thine arrows as they went, at the shining of Thy glittering spear”; and the
stars sing, “Thou art the Lord, even Thou alone; Thou hast made heaven, the
heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all things that are
thereon, the seas and all that is in them, and Thou preservest them all; and
the host of heaven worshippeth Thee.”

Every plant, furthermore, has a song of praise. The fruitful tree sings, “Then
shall all the trees of the wood sing for joy, before the Lord, for He cometh;
for He cometh to judge the earth”; and the ears of grain on the field sing,
“The pastures are covered with flocks; the valleys also are covered over with
corn; they shout for joy, they also sing.”

Great among singers of praise are the birds, and greatest among them is the
cock. When God at midnight goes to the pious in Paradise, all the trees therein
break out into adoration, and their songs awaken the cock, who begins in turn
to praise God. Seven times he crows, each time reciting a verse. The first
verse is: “Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting
doors, and the King of glory shall come in. Who is the King of glory? The Lord
strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle.” The second verse: “Lift up your
heads, O ye gates; yea, lift them up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of
glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the
King of glory.” The third: “Arise, ye righteous, and occupy yourselves with the
Torah, that your reward may be abundant in the world hereafter.” The fourth: “I
have waited for Thy salvation, O Lord!” The fifth: “How long wilt thou sleep, O
sluggard? When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?” The sixth: “Love not sleep,
lest thou come to poverty; open thine eyes, and thou shalt be satisfied with
bread.” And the seventh verse sung by the cock runs: “It is time to work for
the Lord, for they have made void Thy law.”

The song of the vulture is: “I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have
redeemed them, and they shall increase as they have increased”—the same verse
with which the bird will in time to come announce the advent of the Messiah,
the only difference being, that when he heralds the Messiah he will sit upon
the ground and sing his verse, while at all other times he is seated elsewhere
when he sings it.

Nor do the other animals praise God less than the birds. Even the beasts of
prey give forth adoration. The lion says: “The Lord shall go forth as a mighty
man; He shall stir up jealousy like a man of war; He shall cry, yea, He shall
shout aloud; He shall do mightily against his enemies.” And the fox exhorts
unto justice with the words: “Woe unto him that buildeth his house by
unrighteousness, and his chambers by injustice; that useth his neighbor’s
service without wages, and giveth him not his hire.”

Yea, the dumb fishes know how to proclaim the praise of their Lord. “The voice
of the Lord is upon the waters,” they say, “the God of glory thundereth, even
the Lord upon many waters”; while the frog exclaims, “Blessed be the name of
the glory of His kingdom forever and ever.”

Contemptible though they are, even the reptiles give praise unto their Creator.
The mouse extols God with the words: “Howbeit Thou art just in all that is come
upon me; for Thou hast dealt truly, but I have done wickedly.” And the cat
sings: “Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the
Lord.”[194]

II
ADAM

MAN AND THE WORLD

With ten Sayings God created the world, although a single Saying would have
sufficed. God desired to make known how severe is the punishment to be meted
out to the wicked, who destroy a world created with as many as ten Sayings, and
how goodly the reward destined for the righteous, who preserve a world created
with as many as ten Sayings.[1]

The world was made for man, though he was the last-comer among its creatures.
This was design. He was to find all things ready for him. God was the host who
prepared dainty dishes, set the table, and then led His guest to his seat. At
the same time man’s late appearance on earth is to convey an admonition to
humility. Let him beware of being proud, lest he invite the retort that the
gnat is older than he.[2]

The superiority of man to the other creatures is apparent in the very manner of
his creation, altogether different from theirs. He is the only one who was
created by the hand of God.[3] The rest sprang from the word of God. The body
of man is a microcosm, the whole world in miniature, and the world in turn is a
reflex of man. The hair upon his head corresponds to the woods of the earth,
his tears to a river, his mouth to the ocean.[4] Also, the world resembles the
ball of his eye: the ocean that encircles the earth is like unto the white of
the eye, the dry land is the iris, Jerusalem the pupil, and the Temple the
image mirrored in the pupil of the eye.[5] But man is more than a mere image of
this world. He unites both heavenly and earthly qualities within himself. In
four he resembles the angels, in four the beasts. His power of speech, his
discriminating intellect, his upright walk, the glance of his eye—they all make
an angel of him. But, on the other hand, he eats and drinks, secretes the waste
matter in his body, propagates his kind, and dies, like the beast of the field.
Therefore God said before the creation of man: “The celestials are not
propagated, but they are immortal; the beings on earth are propagated, but they
die. I will create man to be the union of the two, so that when he sins, when
he behaves like a beast, death shall overtake him; but if he refrains from sin,
he shall live forever.”[6] God now bade all beings in heaven and on earth
contribute to the creation of man, and He Himself took part in it. Thus they
all will love man, and if he should sin, they will be interested in his
preservation.[7]

The whole world naturally was created for the pious, the God-fearing man, whom
Israel produces with the helpful guidance of the law of God revealed to him.[8]
It was, therefore, Israel who was taken into special consideration at the time
man was made. All other creatures were instructed to change their nature, if
Israel should ever need their help in the course of his history. The sea was
ordered to divide before Moses, and the heavens to give ear to the words of the
leader; the sun and the moon were bidden to stand still before Joshua, the
ravens to feed Elijah, the fire to spare the three youths in the furnace, the
lion to do no harm to Daniel, the fish to spew forth Jonah, and the heavens to
open before Ezekiel.[9]

In His modesty, God took counsel with the angels, before the creation of the
world, regarding His intention of making man. He said: “For the sake of Israel,
I will create the world. As I shall make a division between light and darkness,
so I will in time to come do for Israel in Egypt—thick darkness shall be over
the land, and the children of Israel shall have light in their dwellings; as I
shall make a separation between the waters under the firmament and the waters
above the firmament, so I will do for Israel—I will divide the waters for him
when he crosses the Red Sea; as on the third day I shall create plants, so I
will do for Israel—I will bring forth manna for him in the wilderness; as I
shall create luminaries to divide day from night, so I will do for Israel—I
will go before him by day in a pillar of cloud and by night in a pillar of
fire; as I shall create the fowl of the air and the fishes of the sea, so I
will do for Israel—I will bring quails for him from the sea; and as I shall
breathe the breath of life into the nostrils of man, so I will do for Israel—I
will give the Torah unto him, the tree of life.” The angels marvelled that so
much love should be lavished upon this people of Israel, and God told them: “On
the first day of creation, I shall make the heavens and stretch them out; so
will Israel raise up the Tabernacle as the dwelling-place of My glory. On the
second day, I shall put a division between the terrestrial waters and the
heavenly waters; so will he hang up a veil in the Tabernacle to divide the Holy
Place and the Most Holy. On the third day, I shall make the earth put forth
grass and herb; so will he, in obedience to My commands, eat herbs on the first
night of the Passover, and prepare showbread for Me. On the fourth day, I shall
make the luminaries; so will he make a golden candlestick for Me. On the fifth
day, I shall create the birds; so will he fashion the cherubim with
outstretched wings. On the sixth day, I shall create man; so will Israel set
aside a man of the sons of Aaron as high priest for My service.”[10]

Accordingly, the whole of creation was conditional. God said to the things He
made on the first six days: “If Israel accepts the Torah, you will continue and
endure; otherwise, I shall turn everything back into chaos again.” The whole
world was thus kept in suspense and dread until the day of the revelation on
Sinai, when Israel received and accepted the Torah, and so fulfilled the
condition made by God at the time when He created the universe.[11]

THE ANGELS AND THE CREATION OF MAN

God in His wisdom hiving resolved to create man, He asked counsel of all around
Him before He proceeded to execute His purpose—an example to man, be he never
so great and distinguished, not to scorn the advice of the humble and lowly.
First God called upon heaven and earth, then upon all other things He had
created, and last upon the angels.

The angels were not all of one opinion. The Angel of Love favored the creation
of man, because he would be affectionate and loving; but the Angel of Truth
opposed it, because he would be full of lies. And while the Angel of Justice
favored it, because he would practice justice, the Angel of Peace opposed it,
because he would be quarrelsome.

To invalidate his protest, God cast the Angel of Truth down from heaven to
earth, and when the others cried out against such contemptuous treatment of
their companion, He said, “Truth will spring back out of the earth.”

The objections of the angels would have been much stronger, had they known the
whole truth about man. God had told them only about the pious, and had
concealed from them that there would be reprobates among mankind, too. And yet,
though they knew but half the truth, the angels were nevertheless prompted to
cry out: “What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that
Thou visitest him?” God replied: “The fowl of the air and the fish of the sea,
what were they created for? Of what avail a larder full of appetizing dainties,
and no guest to enjoy them?” And the angels could not but exclaim: “O Lord, our
Lord, how excellent is Thy name in all the earth! Do as is pleasing in Thy
sight.”[12]

For not a few of the angels their opposition bore fatal consequences. When God
summoned the band under the archangel Michael, and asked their opinion on the
creation of man, they answered scornfully: “What is man, that Thou art mindful
of him? And the son of man, that Thou visitest him?” God thereupon stretched
forth His little finger, and all were consumed by fire except their chief
Michael. And the same fate befell the band under the leadership of the
archangel Gabriel; he alone of all was saved from destruction.

The third band consulted was commanded by the archangel Labbiel. Taught by the
horrible fate of his predecessors, he warned his troop: “You have seen what
misfortune overtook the angels who said ‘What is man, that Thou art mindful of
him?’ Let us have a care not to do likewise, lest we suffer the same dire
punishment. For God will not refrain from doing in the end what He has planned.
Therefore it is advisable for us to yield to His wishes.” Thus warned, the
angels spoke: “Lord of the world, it is well that Thou hast thought of creating
man. Do Thou create him according to Thy will. And as for us, we will be his
attendants and his ministers, and reveal unto him all our secrets.” Thereupon
God changed Labbiel’s name to Raphael, the Rescuer, because his host of angels
had been rescued by his sage advice. He was appointed the Angel of Healing, who
has in his safe-keeping all the celestial remedies, the types of the medical
remedies used on earth.[12]

THE CREATION OF ADAM

When at last the assent of the angels to the creation of man was given, God
said to Gabriel: “Go and fetch Me dust from the four corners of the earth, and
I will create man therewith.” Gabriel went forth to do the bidding of the Lord,
but the earth drove him away, and refused to let him gather up dust from it.
Gabriel remonstrated: “Why, O Earth, dost thou not hearken unto the voice of
the Lord, who founded thee upon the waters without props or pillars?” The earth
replied, and said: “I am destined to become a curse, and to be cursed through
man, and if God Himself does not take the dust from me, no one else shall ever
do it.” When God heard this, He stretched out His hand, took of the dust of the
ground, and created the first man therewith.[14] Of set purpose the dust was
taken from all four corners of the earth, so that if a man from the east should
happen to die in the west, or a man from the west in the east, the earth should
not dare refuse to receive the dead, and tell him to go whence he was taken.
Wherever a man chances to die, and wheresoever he is buried, there will he
return to the earth from which he sprang. Also, the dust was of various
colors—red, black, white, and green—red for the blood, black for the bowels,
white for the bones and veins, and green for the pale skin.

At this early moment the Torah interfered. She addressed herself to God: “O
Lord of the world! The world is Thine, Thou canst do with it as seemeth good in
Thine eyes. But the man Thou art now creating will be few of days and full of
trouble and sin. If it be not Thy purpose to have forbearance and patience with
him, it were better not to call him into being.” God replied, “Is it for naught
I am called long-suffering and merciful?”[15]

The grace and lovingkindness of God revealed themselves particularly in His
taking one spoonful of dust from the spot where in time to come the altar would
stand, saying, “I shall take man from the place of atonement, that he may
endure.”[19]

THE SOUL OF MAN

The care which God exercised in fashioning every detail of the body of man is
as naught in comparison with His solicitude for the human soul. The soul of man
was created on the first day, for it is the spirit of God moving upon the face
of the waters. Thus, instead of being the last, man is really the first work of
creation.[17]

This spirit, or, to call it by its usual name, the soul of man, possesses five
different powers. By means of one of them she escapes from the body every
night, rises up to heaven, and fetches new life thence for man.[18]

With the soul of Adam the souls of all the generations of men were created.
They are stored up in a promptuary, in the seventh of the heavens, whence they
are drawn as they are needed for human body after human body.[19]

The soul and body of man are united in this way: When a woman has conceived,
the Angel of the Night, Lailah, carries the sperm before God, and God decrees
what manner of human being shall become of it—whether it shall be male or
female, strong or weak, rich or poor, beautiful or ugly, long or short, fat or
thin, and what all its other qualities shall be. Piety and wickedness alone are
left to the determination of man himself. Then God makes a sign to the angel
appointed over the souls, saying, “Bring Me the soul so-and-so, which is hidden
in Paradise, whose name is so-and-so, and whose form is so-and-so.” The angel
brings the designated soul, and she bows down when she appears in the presence
of God, and prostrates herself before Him. At that moment, God issues the
command, “Enter this sperm.” The soul opens her mouth, and pleads: “O Lord of
the world! I am well pleased with the world in which I have been living since
the day on which Thou didst call me into being. Why dost Thou now desire to
have me enter this impure sperm, I who am holy and pure, and a part of Thy
glory?” God consoles her: “The world which I shall cause thee to enter is
better than the world in which thou hast lived hitherto, and when I created
thee, it was only for this purpose.” The soul is then forced to enter the sperm
against her will, and the angel carries her back to the womb of the mother. Two
angels are detailed to watch that she shall not leave it, nor drop out of it,
and a light is set above her, whereby the soul can see from one end of the
world to the other. In the morning an angel carries her to Paradise, and shows
her the righteous, who sit there in their glory, with crowns upon their heads.
The angel then says to the soul, “Dost thou know who these are?” She replies in
the negative, and the angel goes on: “These whom thou beholdest here were
formed, like unto thee, in the womb of their mother. When they came into the
world, they observed God’s Torah and His commandments. Therefore they became
the partakers of this bliss which thou seest them enjoy. Know, also thou wilt
one day depart from the world below, and if thou wilt observe God’s Torah, then
wilt thou be found worthy of sitting with these pious ones. But if not, thou
wilt be doomed to the other place.”

In the evening, the angel takes the soul to hell, and there points out the
sinners whom the Angels of Destruction are smiting with fiery scourges, the
sinners all the while crying out Woe! Woe! but no mercy is shown unto them. The
angel then questions the soul as before, “Dost thou know who these are?” and as
before the reply is negative. The angel continues: “These who are consumed with
fire were created like unto thee. When they were put into the world, they did
not observe God’s Torah and His commandments. Therefore have they come to this
disgrace which thou seest them suffer. Know, thy destiny is also to depart from
the world. Be just, therefore, and not wicked, that thou mayest gain the future
world.”

Between morning and evening the angel carries the soul around, and shows her
where she will live and where she will die, and the place where she will
buried, and he takes her through the whole world, and points out the just and
the sinners and all things. In the evening, he replaces her in the womb of the
mother, and there she remains for nine months.

When the time arrives for her to emerge from the womb into the open world, the
same angel addresses the soul, “The time has come for thee to go abroad into
the open world.” The soul demurs, “Why dost thou want to make me go forth into
the open world?” The angel replies: “Know that as thou wert formed against thy
will, so now thou wilt be born against thy will, and against thy will thou
shalt die, and against thy will thou shalt give account of thyself before the
King of kings, the Holy One, blessed be He.” But the soul is reluctant to leave
her place. Then the angel fillips the babe on the nose, extinguishes the light
at his head, and brings him forth into the world against his will. Immediately
the child forgets all his soul has seen and learnt, and he comes into the world
crying, for he loses a place of shelter and security and rest.

When the time arrives for man to quit this world, the same angel appears and
asks him, “Dost thou recognize me?” And man replies, “Yes; but why dost thou
come to me to-day, and thou didst come on no other day?” The angel says, “To
take thee away from the world, for the time of thy departure has arrived.” Then
man falls to weeping, and his voice penetrates to all ends of the world, yet no
creature hears his voice, except the cock alone. Man remonstrates with the
angel, “From two worlds thou didst take me, and into this world thou didst
bring me.” But the angel reminds him: “Did I not tell thee that thou wert
formed against thy will, and thou wouldst be born against thy will, and against
thy will thou wouldst die? And against thy will thou wilt have to give account
and reckoning of thyself before the Holy One, blessed be He.”[20]

THE IDEAL MAN

Like all creatures formed on the six days of creation, Adam came from the hands
of the Creator fully and completely developed. He was not like a child, but
like a man of twenty years of age.[21] The dimensions of his body were
gigantic, reaching from heaven to earth, or, what amounts to the same, from
east to west.[22] Among later generations of men, there were but few who in a
measure resembled Adam in his extraordinary size and physical perfections.
Samson possessed his strength, Saul his neck, Absalom his hair, Asahel his
fleetness of foot, Uzziah his forehead, Josiah his nostrils, Zedekiah his eyes,
and Zerubbabel his voice. History shows that these physical excellencies were
no blessings to many of their possessors; they invited the ruin of almost all.
Samson’s extraordinary strength caused his death; Saul killed himself by
cutting his neck with his own sword; while speeding swiftly, Asahel was pierced
by Abner’s spear; Absalom was caught up by his hair in an oak, and thus
suspended met his death; Uzziah was smitten with leprosy upon his forehead; the
darts that killed Josiah entered through his nostrils, and Zedekiah’s eyes were
blinded.[23]

The generality of men inherited as little of the beauty as of the portentous
size of their first father. The fairest women compared with Sarah are as apes
compared with a human being. Sarah’s relation to Eve is the same, and, again,
Eve was but as an ape compared with Adam. His person was so handsome that the
very sole of his foot obscured the splendor of the sun.[24]

His spiritual qualities kept pace with his personal charm, for God had
fashioned his soul with particular care. She is the image of God, and as God
fills the world, so the soul fills the human body; as God sees all things, and
is seen by none, so the soul sees, but cannot be seen; as God guides the world,
so the soul guides the body; as God in His holiness is pure, so is the soul;
and as God dwells in secret, so doth the soul.[25]

When God was about to put a soul into Adam’s clod-like body, He said: “At which
point shall I breathe the soul into him? Into the mouth? Nay, for he will use
it to speak ill of his fellow-man. Into the eyes? With them he will wink
lustfully. Into the ears? They will hearken to slander and blasphemy. I will
breathe her into his nostrils; as they discern the unclean and reject it, and
take in the fragrant, so the pious will shun sin, and will cleave to the words
of the Torah”[26]

The perfections of Adam’s soul showed themselves as soon as he received her,
indeed, while he was still without life. In the hour that intervened between
breathing a soul into the first man and his becoming alive, God revealed the
whole history of mankind to him. He showed him each generation and its leaders;
each generation and its prophets; each generation and its teachers; each
generation and its scholars; each generation and its statesmen; each generation
and its judges; each generation and its pious members; each generation and its
average, commonplace members; and each generation and its impious members. The
tale of their years, the number of their days, the reckoning of their hours,
and the measure of their steps, all were made known unto him.[27]

Of his own free will Adam relinquished seventy of his allotted years. His
appointed span was to be a thousand years, one of the Lord’s days. But he saw
that only a single minute of life was apportioned to the great soul of David,
and he made a gift of seventy years to her, reducing his own years to nine
hundred and thirty.’

The wisdom of Adam displayed itself to greatest advantage when he gave names to
the animals. Then it appeared that God, in combating the arguments of the
angels that opposed the creation of man, had spoken well, when He insisted that
man would possess more wisdom than they themselves. When Adam was barely an
hour old, God assembled the whole world of animals before him and the angels.
The latter were called upon to name the different kinds, but they were not
equal to the task. Adam, however, spoke without hesitation: “O Lord of the
world! The proper name for this animal is ox, for this one horse, for this one
lion, for this one camel.” And so he called all in turn by name, suiting the
name to the peculiarity of the animal. Then God asked him what his name was to
be, and he said Adam, because he had been created out of Adamah, dust of the
earth. Again, God asked him His own name, and he said: “Adonai, Lord, because
Thou art Lord over all creatures”—the very name God had given unto Himself, the
name by which the angels call Him, the name that will remain immutable
evermore.[29] But without the gift of the holy spirit, Adam could not have
found names for all; he was in very truth a prophet, and his wisdom a prophetic
quality.[30]

The names of the animals were not the only inheritance handed down by Adam to
the generations after him, for mankind owes all crafts to him, especially the
art of writing, and he was the inventor of all the seventy languages.[31] And
still another task he accomplished for his descendants. God showed Adam the
whole earth, and Adam designated what places were to be settled later by men,
and what places were to remain waste.[32]

THE FALL OF SATAN

The extraordinary qualities with which Adam was blessed, physical and spiritual
as well, aroused the envy of the angels. They attempted to consume him with
fire, and he would have perished, had not the protecting hand of God rested
upon him, and established peace between him and the heavenly host.[33] In
particular, Satan was jealous of the first man, and his evil thoughts finally
led to his fall. After Adam had been endowed with a soul, God invited all the
angels to come and pay him reverence and homage. Satan, the greatest of the
angels in heaven, with twelve wings, instead of six like all the others,
refused to pay heed to the behest of God, saying, “Thou didst create us angels
from the splendor of the Shekinah, and now Thou dost command us to cast
ourselves down before the creature which Thou didst fashion out of the dust of
the ground!” God answered, “Yet this dust of the ground has more wisdom and
understanding than thou.” Satan demanded a trial of wit with Adam, and God
assented thereto, saying: “I have created beasts, birds, and reptiles, I shall
have them all come before thee and before Adam. If thou art able to give them
names, I shall command Adam to show honor unto thee, and thou shalt rest next
to the Shekinah of My glory. But if not, and Adam calls them by the names I
have assigned to them, then thou wilt be subject to Adam, and he shall have a
place in My garden, and cultivate it.” Thus spake God, and He betook Himself to
Paradise, Satan following Him. When Adam beheld God, he said to his wife, “O
come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.” Now
Satan attempted to assign names to the animals. He failed with the first two
that presented themselves, the ox and the cow. God led two others before him,
the camel and the donkey, with the same result. Then God turned to Adam, and
questioned him regarding the names of the same animals, framing His questions
in such wise that the first letter of the first word was the same as the first
letter of the name of the animal standing before him. Thus Adam divined the
proper name, and Satan was forced to acknowledge the superiority of the first
man. Nevertheless he broke out in wild outcries that reached the heavens, and
he refused to do homage unto Adam as he had been bidden.[34] The host of angels
led by him did likewise, in spite of the urgent representations of Michael, who
was the first to prostrate himself before Adam in order to show a good example
to the other angels. Michael addressed Satan: “Give adoration to the image of
God! But if thou doest it not, then the Lord God will break out in wrath
against thee.” Satan replied: “If He breaks out in wrath against me, I will
exalt my throne above the stars of God, I will be like the Most High!” At once
God flung Satan and his host out of heaven, down to the earth, and from that
moment dates the enmity between Satan and man.’

WOMAN

When Adam opened his eyes the first time, and beheld the world about him, he
broke into praise of God, “How great are Thy works, O Lord!” But his admiration
for the world surrounding him did not exceed the admiration all creatures
conceived for Adam. They took him to be their creator, and they all came to
offer him adoration. But he spoke: “Why do you come to worship me? Nay, you and
I together will acknowledge the majesty and the might of Him who hath created
us all. ‘The Lord reigneth,'” he continued, “‘He is apparelled with
majesty.'”[36]

And not alone the creatures on earth, even the angels thought Adam the lord of
all, and they were about to salute him with “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of
hosts,” when God caused sleep to fall upon him, and then the angels knew that
he was but a human being.[37]

The purpose of the sleep that enfolded Adam was to give him a wife, so that the
human race might develop, and all creatures recognize the difference between
God and man. When the earth heard what God had resolved to do, it began to
tremble and quake. “I have not the strength,” it said, “to provide food for the
herd of Adam’s descendants.” But God pacified it with the words, “I and thou
together, we will find food for the herd.” Accordingly, time was divided
between God and the earth; God took the night, and the earth took the day.
Refreshing sleep nourishes and strengthens man, it affords him life and rest,
while the earth brings forth produce with the help of God, who waters it. Yet
man must work the earth to earn his food.[38]

The Divine resolution to bestow a companion on Adam met the wishes of man, who
had been overcome by a feeling of isolation when the animals came to him in
pairs to be named.[39] To banish his loneliness, Lilith was first given to Adam
as wife. Like him she had been created out of the dust of the ground. But she
remained with him only a short time, because she insisted upon enjoying full
equality with her husband. She derived her rights from their identical origin.
With the help of the Ineffable Name, which she pronounced, Lilith flew away
from Adam, and vanished in the air. Adam complained before God that the wife He
had given him had deserted him, and God sent forth three angels to capture her.
They found her in the Red Sea, and they sought to make her go back with the
threat that, unless she went, she would lose a hundred of her demon children
daily by death. But Lilith preferred this punishment to living with Adam. She
takes her revenge by injuring babes—baby boys during the first night of their
life, while baby girls are exposed to her wicked designs until they are twenty
days old. The only way to ward off the evil is to attach an amulet bearing the
names of her three angel captors to the children, for such had been the
agreement between them.[40]

The woman destined to become the true companion of man was taken from Adam’s
body, for “only when like is joined unto like the union is indissoluble.”[41]
The creation of woman from man was possible because Adam originally had two
faces, which were separated at the birth of Eve.[42]

When God was on the point of making Eve, He said: “I will not make her from the
head of man, lest she carry her head high in arrogant pride; not from the eye,
lest she be wanton-eyed; not from the ear, lest she be an eavesdropper; not
from the neck, lest she be insolent; not from the mouth, lest she be a tattler;
not from the heart, lest she be inclined to envy; not from the hand, lest she
be a meddler; not from the foot, lest she be a gadabout. I will form her from a
chaste portion of the body,” and to every limb and organ as He formed it, God
said, “Be chaste! Be chaste!” Nevertheless, in spite of the great caution used,
woman has all the faults God tried to obviate. The daughters of Zion were
haughty and walked with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes; Sarah was an
eavesdropper in her own tent, when the angel spoke with Abraham; Miriam was a
talebearer, accusing Moses; Rachel was envious of her sister Leah; Eve put out
her hand to take the forbidden fruit, and Dinah was a gadabout.[43]

The physical formation of woman is far more complicated than that of man, as it
must be for the function of child-bearing, and likewise the intelligence of
woman matures more quickly than the intelligence of man.[44] Many of the
physical and psychical differences between the two sexes must be attributed to
the fact that man was formed from the ground and woman from bone. Women need
perfumes, while men do not; dust of the ground remains the same no matter how
long it is kept; flesh, however, requires salt to keep it in good condition.
The voice of women is shrill, not so the voice of men; when soft viands are
cooked, no sound is heard, but let a bone be put in a pot, and at once it
crackles. A man is easily placated, not so a woman; a few drops of water
suffice to soften a clod of earth; a bone stays hard, and if it were to soak in
water for days. The man must ask the woman to be his wife, and not the woman
the man to be her husband, because it is man who has sustained the loss of his
rib, and he sallies forth to make good his loss again. The very differences
between the sexes in garb and social forms go back to the origin of man and
woman for their reasons. Woman covers her hair in token of Eve’s having brought
sin into the world; she tries to hide her shame; and women precede men in a
funeral cortege, because it was woman who brought death into the world. And the
religious commands addressed to women alone are connected with the history of
Eve. Adam was the heave offering of the world, and Eve defiled it. As
expiation, all women are commanded to separate a heave offering from the dough.
And because woman extinguished the light of man’s soul, she is bidden to kindle
the Sabbath light.[45]

Adam was first made to fall into a deep sleep before the rib for Eve was taken
from his side. For, had he watched her creation, she would not have awakened
love in him. To this day it is true that men do not appreciate the charms of
women whom they have known and observed from childhood up. Indeed, God had
created a wife for Adam before Eve, but he would not have her, because she had
been made in his presence. Knowing well all the details of her formation, he
was repelled by her.[46] But when he roused himself from his profound sleep,
and saw Eve before him in all her surprising beauty and grace, he exclaimed,
“This is she who caused my heart to throb many a night!” Yet he discerned at
once what the nature of woman was. She would, he knew, seek to carry her point
with man either by entreaties and tears, or flattery and caresses. He said,
therefore, “This is my never-silent bell!”[47]

The wedding of the first couple was celebrated with pomp never repeated in the
whole course of history since. God Himself, before presenting her to Adam,
attired and adorned Eve as a bride. Yea, He appealed to the angels, saying:
“Come, let us perform services of friendship for Adam and his helpmate, for the
world rests upon friendly services, and they are more pleasing in My sight than
the sacrifices Israel will offer upon the altar.” The angels accordingly
surrounded the marriage canopy, and God pronounced the blessings upon the
bridal couple, as the Hazan does under the Huppah. The angels then danced and
played upon musical instruments before Adam and Eve in their ten bridal
chambers of gold, pearls, and precious stones, which God had prepared for them.

Adam called his wife Ishah, and himself he called Ish, abandoning the name
Adam, which he had borne before the creation of Eve, for the reason that God
added His own name Yah to the names of the man and the woman—Yod to Ish and He
to Ishah—to indicate that as long as they walked in the ways of God and
observed His commandments, His name would shield them against all harm. But if
they went astray, His name would be withdrawn, and instead of Ish there would
remain Esh, fire, a fire issuing from each and consuming the other.[48]

ADAM AND EVE IN PARADISE

The Garden of Eden was the abode of the first man and woman, and the souls of
all men must pass through it after death, before they reach their final
destination. For the souls of the departed must go through seven portals before
they arrive in the heaven ‘Arabot. There the souls of the pious are transformed
into angels, and there they remain forever, praising God and feasting their
sight upon the glory of the Shekinah. The first portal is the Cave of
Machpelah, in the vicinity of Paradise, which is under the care and supervision
of Adam. If the soul that presents herself at the portal is worthy, he calls
out, “Make room! Thou art welcome!” The soul then proceeds until she arrives at
the gate of Paradise guarded by the cherubim and the flaming sword. If she is
not found worthy, she is consumed by the sword; otherwise she receives a
pass-bill, which admits her to the terrestrial Paradise. Therein is a pillar of
smoke and light extending from Paradise to the gate of heaven, and it depends
upon the character of the soul whether she can climb upward on it and reach
heaven. The third portal, Zebul, is at the entrance of heaven. If the soul is
worthy, the guard opens the portal and admits her ‘to the heavenly Temple.
Michael presents her to God, and conducts her to the seventh portal, ‘Arabot,
within which the souls of the pious, changed to angels, praise the Lord, and
feed on the glory of the Shekinah.[49]

In Paradise stand the tree of life and the tree of knowledge, the latter
forming a hedge about the former. Only he who has cleared a path for himself
through the tree of knowledge can come close to the tree of life, which is so
huge that it would take a man five hundred years to traverse a distance equal
to the diameter of the trunk, and no less vast is the space shaded by its crown
of branches. From beneath it flows forth the water that irrigates the whole
earth,[50] parting thence into four streams, the Ganges, the Nile, the Tigris,
and the Euphrates.[51] But it was only during the days of creation that the
realm of plants looked to the waters of the earth for nourishment. Later on God
made the plants dependent upon the rain, the upper waters. The clouds rise from
earth to heaven, where water is poured into them as from a conduit.[52] The
plants began to feel the effect of the water only after Adam was created.
Although they had been brought forth on the third day, God did not permit them
to sprout and appear above the surface of the earth, until Adam prayed to Him
to give food unto them, for God longs for the prayers of the pious.[53]

Paradise being such as it was, it was, naturally, not necessary for Adam to
work the land. True, the Lord God put the man into the Garden of Eden to dress
it and to keep it, but that only means he is to study the Torah there and
fulfil the commandments of God.[54] There were especially six commandments
which every human being is expected to heed: man should not worship idols; nor
blaspheme God; nor commit murder, nor incest, nor theft and robbery; and all
generations have the duty of instituting measures of law and order.[55] One
more such command there was, but it was a temporary injunction. Adam was to eat
only the green things of the field. But the prohibition against the use of
animals for food was revoked in Noah’s time, after the deluge. Nevertheless,
Adam was not cut off from the enjoyment of meat dishes. Though he was not
permitted to slaughter animals for the appeasing of his appetite, the angels
brought him meat and wine, serving him like attendants.[56] And as the angels
ministered to his wants, so also the animals. They were wholly under his
dominion, and their food they took out of his hand and out of Eve’s.[57] In all
respects, the animal world had a different relation to Adam from their relation
to his descendants. Not only did they know the language of man,[58] but they
respected the image of God, and they feared the first human couple, all of
which changed into the opposite after the fall of man.[59]

THE FALL OF MAN

Among the animals the serpent was notable. Of all of them he had the most
excellent qualities, in some of which he resembled man. Like man he stood
upright upon two feet, and in height he was equal to the camel. Had it not been
for the fall of man, which brought misfortune to them, too, one pair of
serpents would have sufficed to perform all the work man has to do, and,
besides, they would have supplied him with silver, gold, gems, and pearls. As a
matter of fact, it was the very ability of the serpent that led to the ruin of
man and his own ruin. His superior mental gifts caused him to become an
infidel. It likewise explains his envy of man, especially of his conjugal
relations. Envy made him meditate ways and means of bringing about the death of
Adam.[60] He was too well acquainted with the character of the man to attempt
to exercise tricks of persuasion upon him, and he approached the woman, knowing
that women are beguiled easily. The conversation with Eve was cunningly
planned, she could not but be caught in a trap. The serpent began, “Is it true
that God hath said, Ye shall not eat of every tree in the garden?” “We may,”
rejoined Eve, “eat of the fruit of all the trees in the garden, except that
which is in the midst of the garden, and that we may not even touch, lest we be
stricken with death.” She spoke thus, because in his zeal to guard her against
the transgressing of the Divine command, Adam had forbidden Eve to touch the
tree, though God had mentioned only the eating of the fruit. It remains a
truth, what the proverb says, “Better a wall ten hands high that stands, than a
wall a hundred ells high that cannot stand.” It was Adam’s exaggeration that
afforded the serpent the possibility of persuading Eve to taste of the
forbidden fruit. The serpent pushed Eve against the tree, and said: “Thou seest
that touching the tree has not caused thy death. As little will it hurt thee to
eat the fruit of the tree. Naught but malevolence has prompted the prohibition,
for as soon as ye eat thereof, ye shall be as God. As He creates and destroys
worlds, so will ye have the power to create and destroy. As He doth slay and
revive, so will ye have the power to slay and revive.[61] He Himself ate first
of the fruit of the tree, and then He created the world. Therefore doth He
forbid you to eat thereof, lest you create other worlds. Everyone knows that
‘artisans of the same guild hate one another.’ Furthermore, have ye not
observed that every creature hath dominion over the creature fashioned before
itself? The heavens were made on the first day, and they are kept in place by
the firmament made on the second day. The firmament, in turn, is ruled by the
plants, the creation of the third day, for they take up all the water of the
firmament. The sun and the other celestial bodies, which were created on the
fourth day, have power over the world of plants. They can ripen their fruits
and flourish only through their influence. The creation of the fifth day, the
animal world, rules over the celestial spheres. Witness the ziz, which can
darken the sun with its pinions. But ye are masters of the whole of creation,
because ye were the last to be created. Hasten now and eat of the fruit of the
tree in the midst of the garden, and become independent of God, lest He bring
forth still other creatures to bear rule over you.”[62]

To give due weight to these words, the serpent began to shake the tree
violently and bring down its fruit. He ate thereof, saying: “As I do not die of
eating the fruit, so wilt thou not die.” Now Eve could not but say to herself,
“All that my master”—so she called Adam—”commanded me is but lies,” and she
determined to follow the advice of the serpent.[63] Yet she could not bring
herself to disobey the command of God utterly. She made a compromise with her
conscience. First she ate only the outside skin of the fruit, and then, seeing
that death did not fell her, she ate the fruit itself.[64] Scarce had she
finished, when she saw the Angel of Death before her. Expecting her end to come
immediately, she resolved to make Adam eat of the forbidden fruit, too, lest he
espouse another wife after her death.[65] It required tears and lamentations on
her part to prevail upon Adam to take the baleful step. Not yet satisfied, she
gave of the fruit to all other living beings, that they, too, might be subject
to death.[66] All ate, and they all are mortal, with the exception of the bird
malham, who refused the fruit, with the words: “Is it not enough that ye have
sinned against God, and have brought death to others? Must ye still come to me
and seek to persuade me into disobeying God’s command, that I may eat and die
thereof? I will not do your bidding.” A heavenly voice was heard then to say to
Adam and Eve: “To you was the command given. Ye did not heed it; ye did
transgress it, and ye did seek to persuade the bird malham. He was steadfast,
and he feared Me, although I gave him no command. Therefore he shall never
taste of death, neither he nor his descendants—they all shall live forever in
Paradise.”[67]

Adam spoke to Eve: “Didst thou give me of the tree of which I forbade thee to
eat? Thou didst give me thereof, for my eyes are opened, and the teeth in my
mouth are set on edge.” Eve made answer, “As my teeth were set on edge, so may
the teeth of all living beings be set on edge.”[68] The first result was that
Adam and Eve became naked. Before, their bodies had been overlaid with a horny
skin, and enveloped with the cloud of glory. No sooner had they violated the
command given them than the cloud of glory and the horny skin dropped from
them, and they stood there in their nakedness, and ashamed.[69] Adam tried to
gather leaves from the trees to cover part of their bodies, but he heard one
tree after the other say: “There is the thief that deceived his Creator. Nay,
the foot of pride shall not come against me, nor the hand of the wicked touch
me. Hence, and take no leaves from me!” Only the fig-tree granted him
permission to take of its leaves. That was because the fig was the forbidden
fruit itself. Adam had the same experience as that prince who seduced one of
the maid-ser vants in the palace. When the king, his father, chased him out, he
vainly sought a refuge with the other maid-servants, but only she who had
caused his disgrace would grant him assistance.[70]

THE PUNISHMENT

As long as Adam stood naked, casting about for means of escape from his
embarrassment, God did not appear unto him, for one should not “strive to see a
man in the hour of his disgrace.” He waited until Adam and Eve had covered
themselves with fig leaves.[71] But even before God spoke to him, Adam knew
what was impending. He heard the angels announce, “God betaketh Himself unto
those that dwell in Paradise.” He heard more, too. He heard what the angels
were saying to one another about his fall, and what they were saying to God. In
astonishment the angels exclaimed: “What! He still walks about in Paradise? He
is not yet dead?” Whereupon God: “I said to him, ‘In the day that thou eatest
thereof, thou shalt surely die!’ Now, ye know not what manner of day I
meant—one of My days of a thousand years, or one of your days. I will give him
one of My days. He shall have nine hundred and thirty years to live, and
seventy to leave to his descendants.”[72]

When Adam and Eve heard God approaching, they hid among the trees—which would
not have been possible before the fall. Before he committed his trespass,
Adam’s height was from the heavens to the earth, but afterward it was reduced
to one hundred ells.[73] Another consequence of his sin was the fear Adam felt
when he heard the voice of God: before his fall it had not disquieted him in
the least.[74] Hence it was that when Adam said, “I heard Thy voice in the
garden, and I was afraid,” God replied, “Aforetime thou wert not afraid, and
now thou art afraid?”[75]

God refrained from reproaches at first. Standing at the gate of Paradise, He
but asked, “Where art thou, Adam?” Thus did God desire to teach man a rule of
polite behavior, never to enter the house of another without announcing
himself.[76] It cannot be denied, the words “Where art thou?” were pregnant
with meaning. They were intended to bring home to Adam the vast difference
between his latter and his former state—between his supernatural size then and
his shrunken size now; between the lordship of God over him then and the
lordship of the serpent over him now.[77] At the same time, God wanted to give
Adam the opportunity of repenting of his sin, and he would have received Divine
forgiveness for it. But so far from repenting of it, Adam slandered God, and
uttered blasphemies against Him.[78] When God asked him, “Hast thou eaten of
the tree whereof I commanded thee thou shouldst not eat?” he did not confess
his sin, but excused himself with the words: “O Lord of the world! As long as I
was alone, I did not fall into sin, but as soon as this woman came to me, she
tempted me.” God replied: “I gave her unto thee as a help, and thou art
ungrateful when thou accusest her, saying, ‘She gave me of the tree.’ Thou
shouldst not have obeyed her, for thou art the head, and not she.”[79] God, who
knows all things, had foreseen exactly this, and He had not created Eve until
Adam had asked Him for a helpmate, so that he might not have apparently good
reason for reproaching God with having created woman.[80]

As Adam tried to shift the blame for his misdeed from himself, so also Eve.
She, like her husband, did not confess her transgression and pray for pardon,
which would have been granted to her.[81] Gracious as God is, He did not
pronounce the doom upon Adam and Eve until they showed themselves stiff-necked.
Not so with the serpent. God inflicted the curse upon the serpent without
hearing his defense; for the serpent is a villain, and the wicked are good
debaters. If God had questioned him, the serpent would have answered: “Thou
didst give them a command, and I did contradict it. Why did they obey me, and
not Thee?”[82] Therefore God did not enter into an argument with the serpent,
but straightway decreed the following ten punishments: The mouth of the serpent
was closed, and his power of speech taken away; his hands and feet were hacked
off; the earth was given him as food; he must suffer great pain in sloughing
his skin; enmity is to exist between him and man; if he eats the choicest
viands, or drinks the sweetest beverages, they all change into dust in his
mouth; the pregnancy of the female serpent lasts seven years; men shall seek to
kill him as soon as they catch sight of him; even in the future world, where
all beings will be blessed, he will not escape the punishment decreed for him;
he will vanish from out of the Holy Land if Israel walks in the ways of
God.[83]

Furthermore, God spake to the serpent: “I created thee to be king over all
animals, cattle and the beasts of the field alike; but thou wast not satisfied.
Therefore thou shalt be cursed above all cattle and above every beast of the
field. I created thee of upright posture; but thou wast not satisfied.
Therefore thou shalt go upon thy belly. I created thee to eat the same food as
man; but thou wast not satisfied. Therefore thou shalt eat dust all the days of
thy life. Thou didst seek to cause the death of Adam in order to espouse his
wife. Therefore I will put enmity between thee and the woman.” How true it
is—he who lusts after what is not his due, not only does he not attain his
desire, but he also loses what he has!

As angels had been present when the doom was pronounced upon the serpent—for
God had convoked a Sanhedrin of seventy-one angels when He sat in judgment upon
him—so the execution of the decree against him was entrusted to angels. They
descended from heaven, and chopped off his hands and feet. His suffering was so
great that his agonized cries could be heard from one end of the world to the
other.[84]

The verdict against Eve also consisted of ten curses, the effect of which is
noticeable to this day in the physical, spiritual, and social state of
woman.[85] It was not God Himself who announced her fate to Eve. The only woman
with whom God ever spoke was Sarah. In the case of Eve, He made use of the
services of an interpreter.[86]

Finally, also the punishment of Adam was tenfold: he lost his celestial
clothing—God stripped it off him; in sorrow he was to earn his daily bread; the
food he ate was to be turned from good into bad; his children were to wander
from land to land; his body was to exude sweat; he was to have an evil
inclination; in death his body was to be a prey of the worms; animals were to
have power over him, in that they could slay him; his days were to be few and
full of trouble; in the end he was to render account of all his doings on
earth.

These three sinners were not the only ones to have punishment dealt out to
them. The earth fared no better, for it had been guilty of various
misdemeanors. In the first place, it had not entirely heeded the command of God
given on the third day, to bring forth “tree of fruit.” What God had desired
was a tree the wood of which was to be as pleasant to the taste as the fruit
thereof. The earth, however, produced a tree bearing fruit, the tree itself not
being edible.[88] Again, the earth did not do its whole duty in connection with
the sin of Adam. God had appointed the sun and the earth witnesses to testify
against Adam in case he committed a trespass. The sun, accordingly, had grown
dark the instant Adam became guilty of disobedience, but the earth, not knowing
how to take notice of Adam’s fall, disregarded it altogether.[89] The earth
also had to suffer a tenfold punishment: independent before, she was hereafter
to wait to be watered by the rain from above; sometimes the fruits of the earth
fail; the grain she brings forth is stricken with blasting and mildew; she must
produce all sorts of noxious vermin; thenceforth she was to be divided into
valleys and mountains; she must grow barren trees, bearing no fruit; thorns and
thistles sprout from her; much is sown in the earth, but little is harvested;
in time to come the earth will have to disclose her blood, and shall no more
cover her slain; and, finally, she shall, one day, “wax old like a
garment.”[90]

When Adam heard the words, “Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth,”
concerning the ground, a sweat broke out on his face, and he said: “What! Shall
I and my cattle eat from the same manger?” The Lord had mercy upon him, and
spoke, “In view of the sweat of thy face, thou shalt eat bread.”[91]

The earth is not the only thing created that was made to suffer through the sin
of Adam. The same fate overtook the moon. When the serpent seduced Adam and
Eve, and exposed their nakedness, they wept bitterly, and with them wept the
heavens, and the sun and the stars, and all created beings and things up to the
throne of God. The very angels and the celestial beings were grieved by the
trans gression of Adam. The moon alone laughed, wherefore God grew wroth, and
obscured her light. Instead of shining steadily like the sun, all the length of
the day, she grows old quickly, and must be born and reborn, again and
again.[92] The callous conduct of the moon offended God, not only by way of
contrast with the compassion of all other creatures, but because He Himself was
full of pity for Adam and his wife. He made clothes for them out of the skin
stripped from the serpent.[93] He would have done even more. He would have
permitted them to remain in Paradise, if only they had been penitent. But they
refused to repent, and they had to leave, lest their godlike understanding urge
them to ravage the tree of life, and they learn to live forever. As it was,
when God dismissed them from Paradise, He did not allow the Divine quality of
justice to prevail entirely. He associated mercy with it. As they left, He
said: “O what a pity that Adam was not able to observe the command laid upon
him for even a brief span of time!”

To guard the entrance to Paradise, God appointed the cherubim, called also the
ever-turning sword of flames, because angels can turn themselves from one shape
into another at need.[94] Instead of the tree of life, God gave Adam the Torah,
which likewise is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her, and he was
permitted to take up his abode in the vicinity of Paradise in the east.[95]

Sentence pronounced upon Adam and Eve and the serpent, the Lord commanded the
angels to turn the man and the woman out of Paradise. They began to weep and
supplicate bitterly, and the angels took pity upon them and left the Divine
command unfulfilled, until they could petition God to mitigate His severe
verdict. But the Lord was inexorable, saying, “Was it I that committed a
trespass, or did I pronounce a false judgment?” Also Adam’s prayer, to be given
of the fruit of the tree of life, was turned aside, with the promise, however,
that if he would lead a pious life, he would be given of the fruit on the day
of resurrection, and he would then live forever.

Seeing that God had resolved unalterably, Adam began to weep again and implore
the angels to grant him at least permission to take sweet-scented spices with
him out of Paradise, that outside, too, he might be able to bring offerings
unto God, and his prayers be accepted before the Lord. Thereupon the angels
came before God, and spake: “King unto everlasting, command Thou us to give
Adam sweet-scented spices of Paradise,” and God heard their prayer. Thus Adam
gathered saffron, nard, calamus, and cinnamon, and all sorts of seeds besides
for his sustenance. Laden with these, Adam and Eve left Paradise, and came upon
earth.[96] They had enjoyed the splendors of Paradise but a brief span of
time—but a few hours. It was in the first hour of the sixth day of creation
that God conceived the idea of creating man; in the second hour, He took
counsel with the angels; in the third, He gathered the dust for the body of
man; in the fourth, He formed Adam; in the fifth, He clothed him with skin; in
the sixth, the soulless shape was complete, so that it could stand upright; in
the seventh, a soul was breathed into it; in the eighth, man was led into
Paradise; in the ninth, the Divine command prohibiting the fruit of the tree in
the midst of the garden was issued to him; in the tenth, he transgressed the
command; in the eleventh, he was judged; and in the twelfth hour of the day, he
was cast out of Paradise, in atonement for his sin.

This eventful day was the first of the month of Tishri. Therefore God spoke to
Adam: “Thou shalt be the prototype of thy children. As thou hast been judged by
Me on this day and absolved, so thy children Israel shall be judged by Me on
this New Year’s Day, and they shall be absolved.”[97]

Each day of creation brought forth three things: the first, heaven, earth, and
light; the second, the firmament, Gehenna, and the angels; the third, trees,
herbs, and Paradise; the fourth, sun, moon, and stars; and the fifth, fishes,
birds, and leviathan. As God intended to rest on the seventh day, the Sabbath,
the sixth day had to do double duty. It brought forth six creations: Adam, Eve,
cattle, reptiles, the beasts of the field, and demons. The demons were made
shortly before the Sabbath came in, and they are, therefore, incorporeal
spirits—the Lord had no time to create bodies for them.[98]

In the twilight, between the sixth day and the Sabbath, ten creations were,
brought forth: the rainbow, invisible until Noah’s time; the manna;
watersprings, whence Israel drew water for his thirst in the desert; the
writing upon the two tables of stone given at Sinai; the pen with which the
writing was written; the two tables themselves; the mouth of Balaam’s she-ass;
the grave of Moses; the cave in which Moses and Elijah dwelt; and the rod of
Aaron, with its blossoms and its ripe almonds.[99]

SABBATH IN HEAVEN

Before the world was created, there was none to praise God and know Him.
Therefore He created the angels and the holy Hayyot, the heavens and their
host, and Adam as well. They all were to praise and glorify their Creator.
During the week of creation, however, there was no suitable time to proclaim
the splendor and praise of the Lord. Only on the Sabbath, when all creation
rested, the beings on earth and in heaven, all together, broke into song and
adoration when God ascended His throne and sate upon it.[100] It was the Throne
of Joy upon which He sate, and He had all the angels pass before Him—the angel
of the water, the angel of the rivers, the angel of the mountains, the angel of
the hills, the angel of the abysses, the angel of the deserts, the angel of the
sun, the angel of the moon, the angel of the Pleiades, the angel of Orion, the
angel of the herbs, the angel of Paradise, the angel of Gehenna, the angel of
the trees, the angel of the reptiles, the angel of the wild beasts, the angel
of the domestic animals, the angel of the fishes, the angel of the locusts, the
angel of the birds, the chief angel of the angels, the angel of each heaven,
the chief angel of each division of the heavenly hosts, the chief angel of the
holy Hayyot, the chief angel of the cherubim, the chief angel of the ofanim,
and all the other splendid, terrible, and mighty angel chiefs. They all
appeared before God with great joy, laved in a stream of joy, and they rejoiced
and danced and sang, and extolled the Lord with many praises and many
instruments. The ministering angels began, “Let the glory of the Lord endure
forever!” And the rest of the angels took up the song with the words, “Let the
Lord rejoice in His works!” ‘Arabot, the seventh heaven, was filled with joy
and glory, splendor and strength, power and might and pride and magnificence
and grandeur, praise and jubilation, song and gladness, steadfastness and
righteousness, honor and adoration.

Then God bade the Angel of the Sabbath seat himself upon a throne of glory, and
He brought before him the chiefs of the angels of all the heavens and all the
abysses, and bade them dance and rejoice, saying, “Sabbath it is unto the
Lord!” and the exalted princes of the heavens responded, “Unto the Lord it is
Sabbath!” Even Adam was permitted to ascend to the highest heaven, to take part
in the rejoicing over the Sabbath.

By bestowing Sabbath joy upon all beings, not excepting Adam, thus did the Lord
dedicate His creation. Seeing the majesty of the Sabbath, its honor and
greatness, and the joy it conferred upon all, being the fount of all joy, Adam
intoned a song of praise for the Sabbath day. Then God said to him, “Thou
singest a song of praise to the Sabbath day, and singest none to Me, the God of
the Sabbath?” Thereupon the Sabbath rose from his seat, and prostrated himself
before God, saying, “It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord,” and the
whole of creation added, “And to sing praises unto Thy Name, O Most High!”[101]

This was the first Sabbath, and this its celebration in heaven by God and the
angels. The angels were informed at the same time that in days to come Israel
would hallow the day in similar manner. God told them: “I will set aside for
Myself a people from among all the peoples. This people will observe the
Sabbath, and I will sanctify it to be My people, and I will be God unto it.
From all that I have seen, I have chosen the seed of Israel wholly, and I have
inscribed him as My first-born son, and I sanctified him unto Myself unto all
eternity, him and the Sabbath, that he keep the Sabbath and hallow it from all
work.”[102]

For Adam the Sabbath had a peculiar significance. When he was made to depart
out of Paradise in the twilight of the Sabbath eve, the angels called after
him, “Adam did not abide in his glory overnight!” Then the Sabbath appeared
before God as Adam’s defender, and he spoke: “O Lord of the world! During the
six working days no creature was slain. If Thou wilt begin now by slaying Adam,
what will become of the sanctity and the blessing of the Sabbath?” In this way
Adam was rescued from the fires of hell, the meet punishment for his sins, and
in gratitude he composed a psalm in honor of the Sabbath, which David later
embodied in his Psalter.[103]

Still another opportunity was given to Adam to learn and appreciate the value
of the Sabbath. The celestial light, whereby Adam could survey the world from
end to end, should properly have been made to disappear immediately after his
sin. But out of consideration for the Sabbath, God had let this light continue
to shine, and the angels, at sundown on the sixth day, intoned a song of praise
and thanksgiving to God, for the radiant light shining through the night. Only
with the going out of the Sabbath day the celestial light ceased, to the
consternation of Adam, who feared that the serpent would attack him in the
dark. But God illumined his understanding, and he learned to rub two stones
against each other and produce light for his needs.[104]

The celestial light was but one of the seven precious gifts enjoyed by Adam
before the fall and to be granted to man again only in the Messianic time. The
others are the resplendence of his countenance; life eternal; his tall stature;
the fruits of the soil; the fruits of the tree; and the luminaries of the sky,
the sun and the moon, for in the world to come the light of the moon shall be
as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold.[105]

ADAM’S REPENTANCE

Cast out of Paradise, Adam and Eve built a hut for themselves, and for seven
days they sat in it in great distress, mourning and lamenting. At the end of
the seven days, tormented by hunger, they came forth and sought food. For seven
other days, Adam journeyed up and down in the land, looking for such dainties
as he had enjoyed in Paradise. In vain; he found nothing. Then Eve spoke to her
husband: “My lord, if it please thee, slay me. Mayhap God will then take thee
back into Paradise, for the Lord God became wroth with thee only on account of
me.” But Adam rejected her plan with abhorrence, and both went forth again on
the search for food. Nine days passed, and still they found naught resembling
what they had had in Paradise. They saw only food fit for cattle and beasts.
Then Adam proposed: “Let us do penance, mayhap the Lord God will forgive us and
have pity on us, and give us something to sustain our life.” Knowing that Eve
was not vigorous enough to undergo the mortification of the flesh which he
purposed to inflict upon himself, he prescribed a penance for her different
from his own. He said to her: “Arise, and go to the Tigris, take a stone and
stand upon it in the deepest part of the river, where the water will reach as
high as thy neck. And let no speech issue forth from thy mouth, for we are
unworthy to supplicate God, our lips are unclean by reason of the forbidden
fruit of the tree. Remain in the water for thirty-seven days.”

For himself Adam ordained forty days of fasting, while he stood in the river
Jordan in the same way as Eve was to take up her stand in the waters of the
Tigris. After he had adjusted the stone in the middle of the Jordan, and
mounted it, with the waters surging up to his neck, he said: “I adjure thee, O
thou water of the Jordan! Afflict thyself with me, and gather unto me all
swimming creatures that live in thee. Let them surround me and sorrow with me,
and let them not beat their own breasts with grief, but let them beat me. Not
they have sinned, only I alone!” Very soon they all came, the dwellers in the
Jordan, and they encompassed him, and from that moment the water of the Jordan
stood still and ceased from flowing.

The penance which Adam and Eve laid upon themselves awakened misgivings in
Satan. He feared God might forgive their sin, and therefore essayed to hinder
Eve in her purpose. After a lapse of eighteen days he appeared unto her in the
guise of an angel. As though in distress on account of her, he began to cry,
saying: “Step up out of the river, and weep no longer. The Lord God hath heard
your mourning, and your penitence hath been accepted by Him. All the angels
supplicated the Lord in your behalf, and He hath sent me to fetch you out of
the water and give you the sustenance that you enjoyed in Paradise, and for
which you have been mourning.” Enfeebled as she was by her penances and
mortifications, Eve yielded to the solicitations of Satan, and he led her to
where her husband was. Adam recognized him at once, and amid tears he cried
out: “O Eve, Eve, where now is thy penitence? How couldst thou let our
adversary seduce thee again—him who robbed us of our sojourn in Paradise and
all spiritual joy?” Thereupon Eve, too, began to weep and cry out: “Woe unto
thee, O Satan! Why strivest thou against us without any reason? What have we
done unto thee that thou shouldst pursue us so craftily?” With a deep-fetched
sigh, Satan told them how that Adam, of whom he had been jealous, had been the
real reason of his fall. Having lost his glory through him, he had intrigued to
have him driven from Paradise.

When Adam heard the confession of Satan, he prayed to God: “O Lord my God! In
Thy hands is my life. Remove from me this adversary, who seeks to deliver my
soul to destruction, and grant me the glory he has forfeited.” Satan
disappeared forthwith, but Adam continued his penance, standing in the waters
of the Jordan for forty days.[106]

While Adam stood in the river, he noticed that the days were growing shorter,
and he feared the world might be darkened on account of his sin, and go under
soon. To avert the doom, he spent eight days in prayer and fasting. But after
the winter solstice, when he saw that the days grew longer again, he spent
eight days in rejoicing, and in the following year he celebrated both periods,
the one before and the one after the solstice. This is why the heathen
celebrate the calends and the saturnalia in honor of their gods, though Adam
had consecrated those days to the honor of God.[107]

The first time Adam witnessed the sinking of the sun be was also seized with
anxious fears. It happened at the conclusion of the Sabbath, and Adam said,
“Woe is me! For my sake, because I sinned, the world is darkened, and it will
again become void and without form. Thus will be executed the punishment of
death which God has pronounced against me!” All the night he spent in tears,
and Eve, too, wept as she sat opposite to him. When day began to dawn, he
understood that what he had deplored was but the course of nature, and he
brought an offering unto God, a unicorn whose horn was created before his
hoofs,[108] and he sacrificed it on the spot on which later the altar was to
stand in Jerusalem.[109]

THE BOOK OF RAZIEL

After Adam’s expulsion from Paradise, he prayed to God in these words: “O God,
Lord of the world! Thou didst create the whole world unto the honor and glory
of the Mighty One, and Thou didst as was pleasing unto Thee. Thy kingdom is
unto all eternity, and Thy reign unto all generations. Naught is hidden from
Thee, and naught is concealed from Thine eyes. Thou didst create me as Thy
handiwork, and didst make me the ruler over Thy creatures, that I might be the
chief of Thy works. But the cunning, accursed serpent seduced me with the tree
of desire and lusts, yea, he seduced the wife of my bosom. But Thou didst not
make known unto me what shall befall my children and the generations after me.
I know well that no human being can be righteous in Thine eyes, and what is my
strength that I should step before Thee with an impudent face? I have no mouth
wherewith to speak and no eye wherewith to see, for I did sin and commit a
trespass, and, by reason of my sins, I was driven forth from Paradise. I must
plough the earth whence I was taken, and the other inhabitants of the earth,
the beasts, no longer, as once, stand in awe and fear of me. From the time I
ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, wisdom departed from me, and I
am a fool that knoweth naught, an ignorant man that understandeth not. Now, O
merciful and gracious God, I pray to Thee to turn again Thy compassion to the
head of Thy works, to the spirit which Thou didst instil into him, and the soul
Thou didst breathe into him. Meet me with Thy grace, for Thou art gracious,
slow to anger, and full of love. O that my prayer would reach unto the throne
of Thy glory, and my supplication unto the throne of Thy mercy, and Thou
wouldst incline to me with lovingkindness. May the words of my mouth be
acceptable, that Thou turn not away from my petition. Thou wert from
everlasting, and Thou wilt be unto everlasting; Thou wert king, and Thou wilt
ever be king. Now, have Thou mercy upon the work of Thy hands. Grant me
knowledge and understanding, that I may know what shall befall me, and my
posterity, and all the generations that come after me, and what shall befall me
on every day and in every month, and mayest Thou not withhold from me the help
of Thy servants and of Thy angels.”

On the third day after he had offered up this prayer, while he was sitting on
the banks of the river that flows forth out of Paradise, there appeared to him,
in the heat of the day, the angel Raziel, bearing a book in his hand. The angel
addressed Adam thus: “O Adam, why art thou so fainthearted? Why art thou
distressed and anxious? Thy words were heard at the moment when thou didst
utter thy supplication and entreaties, and I have received the charge to teach
thee pure words and deep understanding, to make thee wise through the contents
of the sacred book in my hand, to know what will happen to thee until the day
of thy death. And all thy descendants and all the later generations, if they
will but read this book in purity, with a devout heart and an humble mind, and
obey its precepts, will become like unto thee. They, too, will foreknow what
things shall happen, and in what month and on what day or in what night. All
will be manifest to them—they will know and understand whether a calamity will
come, a famine or wild beasts, floods or drought; whether there will be
abundance of grain or dearth; whether the wicked will rule the world; whether
locusts will devastate the land; whether the fruits will drop from the trees
unripe; whether boils will afflict men; whether wars will prevail, or diseases
or plagues among men and cattle; whether good is resolved upon in heaven, or
evil; whether blood will flow, and the death-rattle of the slain be heard in
the city. And now, Adam, come and give heed unto what I shall tell thee
regarding the manner of this book and its holiness.”

Raziel, the angel, then read from the book, and when Adam heard the words of
the holy volume as they issued from the mouth of the angel, he fell down
affrighted. But the angel encouraged him. “Arise, Adam,” he said, “be of good
courage, be not afraid, take the book from me and keep it, for thou wilt draw
knowledge from it thyself and become wise, and thou wilt also teach its
contents to all those who shall be found worthy of knowing what it contains.”

In the moment when Adam took the book, a flame of fire shot up from near the
river, and the angel rose heavenward with it. Then Adam knew that he who had
spoken to him was an angel of God, and it was from the Holy King Himself that
the book had come, and he used it in holiness and purity. It is the book out of
which all things worth knowing can be learnt, and all mysteries, and it teaches
also how to call upon the angels and make them appear before men, and answer
all their questions. But not all alike can use the book, only he who is wise
and God-fearing, and resorts to it in holiness. Such an one is secure against
all wicked counsels, his life is serene, and when death takes him from this
world, he finds repose in a place where there are neither demons nor evil
spirits, and out of the hands of the wicked he is quickly rescued.[110]

THE SICKNESS OF ADAM

When Adam had lived to be nine hundred and thirty years old, a sickness seized
him, and he felt that his days were drawing to an end. He summoned all his
descendants, and assembled them before the door of the house of worship in
which he had always offered his prayers to God, to give them his last blessing.
His family were astonished to find him stretched out on the bed of sickness,
for they did not know what pain and suffering were.[111] They thought he was
overcome with longing after the fruits of Paradise, and for lack of them was
depressed. Seth announced his willingness to go to the gates of Paradise and
beg God to let one of His angels give him of its fruits. But Adam explained to
them what sickness and pain are, and that God had inflicted them upon him as a
punishment for his sin.[112] Adam suffered violently; tears and groans were
wrung from him. Eve sobbed, and said, “Adam, my lord, give me the half of thy
sickness, I will gladly bear it. Is it not on account of me that this hath come
upon thee? On account of me thou undergoest pain and anguish.”

Adam bade Eve go with Seth to the gates of Paradise and entreat God to have
mercy upon him, and send His angel to catch up some of the oil of life flowing
from the tree of His mercy and give it to his messengers. The ointment would
bring him rest, and banish the pain consuming him. On his way to Paradise, Seth
was attacked by a wild beast. Eve called out to the assailant, “How durst thou
lay hand on the image of God?” The ready answer came: “It is thine own fault.
Hadst thou not opened thy mouth to eat of the forbidden fruit, my mouth would
not be opened now to destroy a human being.” But Seth remonstrated: “Hold thy
tongue! Desist from the image of God until the day of judgment.” And the beast
gave way, saying, “See, I refrain myself from the image of God,” and it slunk
away to its covert.[113]

Arrived at the gates of Paradise, Eve and Seth began to cry bitterly, and they
besought God with many lamentations to give them oil from the tree of His
mercy. For hours they prayed thus. At last the archangel Michael appeared, and
informed them that he came as the messenger of God to tell them that their
petition could not be granted. Adam would die in a few days, and as he was
subject to death, so would be all his descendants. Only at the time of the
resurrection, and then only to the pious, the oil of life would be dispensed,
together with all the bliss and all the delights of Paradise.[114] Returned to
Adam, they reported what had happened, and he said to Eve: “What misfortune
didst thou bring upon us when thou didst arouse great wrath! See, death is the
portion of all our race! Call hither our children and our children’s children,
and tell them the manner of our sinning.” And while Adam lay prostrate upon the
bed of pain, Eve told them the story of their fall.[115]

EVE’S STORY OF THE FALL

After I was created, God divided Paradise and all the animals therein between
Adam and me. The east and the north were assigned to Adam, together with the
male animals. I was mistress of the west and the south and all the female
animals. Satan, smarting under the disgrace of having been dismissed from the
heavenly host, resolved to bring about our ruin and avenge himself upon the
cause of his discomfiture. He won the serpent over to his side, and pointed out
to him that before the creation of Adam the animals could enjoy all that grew
in Paradise, and now they were restricted to the weeds. To drive Adam from
Paradise would therefore be for the good of all. The serpent demurred, for he
stood in awe of the wrath of God. But Satan calmed his fears, and said, “Do
thou but become my vessel,[117] and I shall speak a word through thy mouth
wherewith thou wilt succeed in seducing man.”

The serpent thereupon suspended himself from the wall surrounding Paradise, to
carry on his conversation with me from without. And this happened at the very
moment when my two guardian angels had betaken themselves to heaven to
supplicate the Lord. I was quite alone therefore, and when Satan assumed the
appearance of an angel, bent over the wall of Paradise, and intoned seraphic
songs of praise, I was deceived, and thought him an angel. A conversation was
held between us, Satan speaking through the mouth of the serpent:

“Art thou Eve?”

“Yes, it is I.”

“What art thou doing in Paradise?”

“The Lord has put us here to cultivate it and eat of its fruits.”

“That is good. Yet you eat not of all the trees.”

“That we do, excepting a single one, the tree that stands in the midst of
Paradise. Concerning it alone, God has forbidden us to eat of it, else, the
Lord said, ye will die.”

The serpent made every effort to persuade me that I had naught to fear—that God
knew that in the day that Adam and I ate of the fruit of the tree, we should be
as He Himself. It was jealousy that had made Him say,[118] “Ye shall not eat of
it.” In spite of all his urging, I remained steadfast and refused to touch the
tree. Then the serpent engaged to pluck the fruit for me. Thereupon I opened
the gate of Paradise, and he slipped in. Scarcely was he within, when he said
to me, “I repent of my words, I would rather not give thee of the fruit of the
forbidden tree.” It was but a cunning device to tempt me more. He consented to
give me of the fruit only after I swore to make my husband eat of it, too. This
is the oath he made me take: “By the throne of God, by the cherubim, and by the
tree of life, I shall give my husband of this fruit, that he may eat, too.”
Thereupon the serpent ascended the tree and injected his poison, the poison of
the evil inclination, into the fruit,[119] and bent the branch on which it grew
to the ground. I took hold of it, but I knew at once that I was stripped of the
righteousness in which I had been clothed.[120] I began to weep, because of it
and because of the oath the serpent had forced from me.

The serpent disappeared from the tree, while I sought leaves wherewith to cover
my nakedness, but all the trees within my reach had cast off their leaves at
the moment when I ate of the forbidden fruit.[121] There was only one that
retained its leaves, the fig-tree, the very tree the fruit of which had been
forbidden to me.[122] I summoned Adam, and by means of blasphemous words I
prevailed upon him to eat of the fruit. As soon as it had passed his lips, he
knew his true condition, and he exclaimed against me: “Thou wicked woman, what
bast thou brought down upon me? Thou hast removed me from the glory of God.”

At the same time Adam and I heard the archangel Michael[123] blow his trumpet,
and all the angels cried out: “Thus saith the Lord, Come ye with Me to Paradise
and hearken unto the sentence which I will pronounce upon Adam.”[124]

We hid ourselves because we feared the judgment of God. Sitting in his chariot
drawn by cherubim, the Lord, accompanied by angels uttering His praise,
appeared in Paradise. At His coming the bare trees again put forth leaves.[125]
His throne was erected by the tree of life, and God addressed Adam: “Adam,
where dost thou keep thyself in hiding? Thinkest thou I cannot find thee? Can a
house conceal itself from its architect?”[126]

Adam tried to put the blame on me, who had promised to hold him harmless before
God. And I in turn accused the serpent. But God dealt out justice to all three
of us. To Adam He said: “Because thou didst not obey My commands, but didst
hearken unto the voice of thy wife, cursed is the ground in spite of thy work.
When thou dost cultivate it, it will not yield thee its strength. Thorns and
thistles shall it bring forth to thee, and in the sweat of thy face shalt thou
eat bread. Thou wilt suffer many a hardship, thou wilt grow weary, and yet find
no rest. Bitterly oppressed, thou shalt never taste of any sweetness. Thou
shalt be scourged by heat, and yet pinched by cold. Thou shalt toil greatly,
and yet not gain wealth. Thou shalt grow fat, and yet cease to live. And the
animals over which thou art the master will rise up against thee, because thou
didst not keep my command.”[127]

Upon me God pronounced this sentence: “Thou shalt suffer anguish in childbirth
and grievous torture. In sorrow shalt thou bring forth children, and in the
hour of travail, when thou art near to lose thy life, thou wilt confess and
cry, ‘Lord, Lord, save me this time, and I will never again indulge in carnal
pleasure,’ and yet thy desire shall ever and ever be unto thy husband.”[128]

At the same time all sorts of diseases were decreed upon us. God said to Adam:
“Because thou didst turn aside from My covenant, I will inflict seventy plagues
upon thy flesh. The pain of the first plague shall lay hold on thy eyes; the
pain of the second plague upon thy hearing, and one after the other all the
plagues shall come upon thee.”[129] The serpent God addressed thus: “Because
thou becamest the vessel of the Evil One,[130] deceiving the innocent, cursed
art thou above all cattle and above every beast of the field. Thou shalt be
robbed of the food thou wast wont to eat, and dust shalt thou eat all the days
of thy life. Upon thy breast and thy belly shalt thou go, and of thy hands and
thy feet thou shalt be deprived. Thou shalt not remain in possession of thy
ears, nor of thy wings, nor of any of thy limbs wherewith thou didst seduce the
woman and her husband, bringing them to such a pass that they must be driven
forth from Paradise. And I will put enmity between thee and the seed of man. It
shall bruise thy head, and, thou shalt bruise his heel until the day of
judgment.”[131]

THE DEATH OF ADAM

On the last day of Adam’s life, Eve said to him, “Why should I go on living,
when thou art no more? How long shall I have to linger on after thy death? Tell
me this!” Adam assured her she would not tarry long. They would die together,
and be buried together in the same place. He commanded her not to touch his
corpse until an angel from God had made provision regarding it, and she was to
begin at once to pray to God until his soul escaped from his body.

While Eve was on her knees in prayer, an angel came,[132] and bade her rise.
“Eve, arise from thy penance,” he commanded. “Behold, thy husband hath left his
mortal coil. Arise, and see his spirit go up to his Creator, to appear before
Him.” And, lo, she beheld a chariot of light, drawn by four shining eagles, and
preceded by angels. In this chariot lay the soul of Adam, which the angels were
taking to heaven. Arrived there, they burnt incense until the clouds of smoke
enveloped the heavens. Then they prayed to God to have mercy upon His image and
the work of His holy hands. In her awe and fright, Eve summoned Seth, and she
bade him look upon the vision and explain the celestial sights beyond her
understanding. She asked, “Who may the two Ethiopians be, who are adding their
prayers to thy father’s?” Seth told her, they were the sun and the moon, turned
so black because they could not shine in the face of the Father of light.[133]
Scarcely had he spoken, when an angel blew a trumpet, and all the angels cried
out with awful voices, “Blessed be the glory of the Lord by His creatures, for
He has shown mercy unto Adam, the work of His hands!” A seraph then seized
Adam, and carried him off to the river Acheron, washed him three times, and
brought him before the presence of God, who sat upon His throne, and,
stretching out His hand, lifted Adam up and gave him over to the archangel
Michael, with the words, “Raise him to the Paradise of the third heaven, and
there thou shalt leave him until the great and fearful day ordained by Me.”
Michael executed the Divine behest, and all the angels sang a song of praise,
extolling God for the pardon He had accorded Adam.

Michael now entreated God to let him attend to the preparation of Adam’s body
for the grave. Permission being given, Michael repaired to earth, accompanied
by all the angels. When they entered the terrestrial Paradise, all the trees
blossomed forth, and the perfume wafted thence lulled all men into slumber
except Seth alone. Then God said to Adam, as his body lay on the ground: “If
thou hadst kept My commandment, they would not rejoice who brought thee hither.
But I tell thee, I will turn the joy of Satan and his consorts into sorrow, and
thy sorrow shall be turned into joy. I will restore thee to thy dominion, and
thou shalt sit upon the throne of thy seducer, while he shall be damned, with
those who hearken unto him.”[134]

Thereupon, at the bidding of God, the three great archangels[135] covered the
body of Adam with linen, and poured sweet-smelling oil upon it. With it they
interred also the body of Abel, which had lain unburied since Cain had slain
him, for all the murderer’s efforts to hide it had been in vain. The corpse
again and again sprang forth from the earth, and a voice issued thence,
proclaiming, “No creature shall rest in the earth until the first one of all
has returned the dust to me of which it was formed.”[136] The angels carried
the two bodies to Paradise, Adam’s and Abel’s—the latter had all this time been
lying on a stone on which angels had placed it—and they buried them both on the
spot whence God had taken the dust wherewith to make Adam.[137]

God called unto the body of Adam, “Adam! Adam!” and it answered, “Lord, here am
I!” Then God said: “I told thee once, Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou
return. Now I promise thee resurrection. I will awaken thee on the day of
judgment, when all the generations of men that spring from thy loins, shall
arise from the grave.” God then sealed up the grave, that none might do him
harm during the six days to elapse until his rib should be restored to him
through the death of Eve.[138]

THE DEATH OF EVE

The interval between Adam’s death and her own Eve spent in weeping. She was
distressed in particular that she knew not what had become of Adam’s body, for
none except Seth had been awake while the angel interred it. When the hour of
her death drew nigh, Eve supplicated to be buried in the selfsame spot in which
the remains of her husband rested. She prayed to God: “Lord of all powers!
Remove not Thy maid-servant from the body of Adam, from which Thou didst take
me, from whose limbs Thou didst form me. Permit me, who am an unworthy and
sinning woman, to enter into his habitation. As we were together in Paradise,
neither separated from the other; as together we were tempted to transgress Thy
law, neither separated from the other, so, O Lord, separate us not now.” To the
end of her prayer she added the petition, raising her eyes heavenward, “Lord of
the world! Receive my spirit!” and she gave up her soul to God.

The archangel Michael came and taught Seth how to prepare Eve for burial, and
three angels descended and interred her body in the grave with Adam and Abel.
Then Michael spoke to Seth, “Thus shalt thou bury all men that die until the
resurrection day.” And again, having given him this command, he spoke: “Longer
than six days ye shall not mourn.[139] The repose of the seventh day is the
token of the resurrection in the latter day, for on the seventh day the Lord
rested from all the work which He had created and made.”[140]

Though death was brought into the world through Adam, yet he cannot be held
responsible for the death of men. Once on a time he said to God: “I am not
concerned about the death of the wicked, but I should not like the pious to
reproach me and lay the blame for their death upon me. I pray Thee, make no
mention of my guilt.” And God promised to fulfil his wish. Therefore, when a
man is about to die, God appears to him, and bids him set down in writing all
he has done during his life, for, He tells him, “Thou art dying by reason of
thy evil deeds.” The record finished, God orders him to seal it with his seal.
This is the writing God will bring out on the judgment day, and to each will be
made known his deeds.[141] As soon as life is extinct in a man, he is presented
to Adam, whom he accuses of having caused his death. But Adam repudiates the
charge: “I committed but one trespass. Is there any among you, and be he the
most pious, who has not been guilty of more than one?”[142]

III
THE TEN GENERATIONS

THE BIRTH OF CAIN

There were ten generations from Adam to Noah, to show how long-suffering is the
Lord, for all the generations provoked Him unto wrath, until He brought the
deluge upon them.[1] By reason of their impiousness God changed His plan of
calling one thousand generations into being between the creation of the world
and the revelation of the law at Mount Sinai; nine hundred and seventy-four He
suppressed before the flood.[2]

Wickedness came into the world with the first being born of woman, Cain, the
oldest son of Adam. When God bestowed Paradise upon the first pair of mankind,
He warned them particularly against carnal intercourse with each other. But
after the fall of Eve, Satan, in the guise of the serpent, approached her, and
the fruit of their union was Cain, the ancestor of all the impious generations
that were rebellious toward God, and rose up against Him. Cain’s descent from
Satan, who is the angel Samael, was revealed in his seraphic appearance. At his
birth, the exclamation was wrung from Eve, “I have gotten a man through an
angel of the Lord.”[3]

Adam was not in the company of Eve during the time of her pregnancy with Cain.
After she had succumbed a second time to the temptations of Satan, and
permitted herself to be interrupted in her penance,[4] she left her husband and
journeyed westward, because she feared her presence might continue to bring him
misery. Adam remained in the east. When the days of Eve to be delivered were
fulfilled, and she began to feel the pangs of travailing, she prayed to God for
help. But He hearkened not unto her supplications. “Who will carry the report
to my lord Adam?” she asked herself. “Ye luminaries in the sky, I beg you, tell
it to my master Adam when ye return to the east!” In that self same hour, Adam
cried out: “The lamentation of Eve has pierced to my ear! Mayhap the serpent
has again assaulted her,” and he hastened to his wife. Finding her in grievous
pain, he besought God in her behalf, and twelve angels appeared, together with
two heavenly powers.[5] All these took up their post to right of her and to
left of her, while Michael, also standing on her right side, passed his hand
over her, from her face downward to her breast, and said to her, “Be thou
blessed, Eve, for the sake of Adam. Because of his solicitations and his
prayers I was sent to grant thee our assistance. Make ready to give birth to
thy child!” Immediately her son was born, a radiant figure.[6] A little while
and the babe stood upon his feet, ran off, and returned holding in his hands a
stalk of straw, which he gave to his mother. For this reason he was named Cain,
the Hebrew word for stalk of straw.

Now Adam took Eve and the boy to his home in the east. God sent him various
kinds of seeds by the hand of the angel Michael, and he was taught how to
cultivate the ground and make it yield produce and fruits, to sustain himself
and his family and his posterity.[7]

After a while, Eve bore her second son, whom she named Hebel, because, she
said, he was born but to die.

FRATRICIDE

The slaying of Abel by Cain did not come as a wholly unexpected event to his
parents. In a dream Eve had seen the blood of Abel flow into the mouth of Cain,
who drank it with avidity, though his brother entreated him not to take all.
When she told her dream to Adam, he said, lamenting, “O that this may not
portend the death of Abel at the hand of Cain!” He separated the two lads,
assigning to each an abode of his own, and to each he taught a different
occupation. Cain became a tiller of the ground, and Abel a keeper of sheep. It
was all in vain. In spite of these precautions, Cain slew his brother.[9]

His hostility toward Abel had more than one reason. It began when God had
respect unto the offering of Abel, and accepted it by sending heavenly fire
down to consume it, while the offering of Cain was rejected.[10] They brought
their sacrifices on the fourteenth day of Nisan, at the instance of their
father, who had spoken thus to his sons: “This is the day on which, in times to
come, Israel will offer sacrifices. Therefore, do ye, too, bring sacrifices to
your Creator on this day, that He may take pleasure in you.” The place of
offering which they chose was the spot whereon the altar of the Temple at
Jerusalem stood later.[11] Abel selected the best of his flocks for his
sacrifice, but Cain ate his meal first, and after he had satisfied his
appetite, he offered unto God what was left over, a few grains of flax seed. As
though his offense had not been great enough in offering unto God fruit of the
ground which had been cursed by God![12] What wonder that his sacrifice was not
received with favor! Besides, a chastisement was inflicted upon him. His face
turned black as smoke.[13] Nevertheless, his disposition underwent no change,
even when God spoke to him thus: “If thou wilt amend thy ways, thy guilt will
be forgiven thee; if not, thou wilt be delivered into the power of the evil
inclination. It coucheth at the door of thy heart, yet it depends upon thee
whether thou shalt be master over it, or it shall be master over thee.”[14]

Cain thought he had been wronged, and a dispute followed between him and Abel.
“I believed,” he said, “that the world was created through goodness,[15] but I
see that good deeds bear no fruit. God rules the world with arbitrary power,
else why had He respect unto thy offering, and not unto mine also?” Abel
opposed him; he maintained that God rewards good deeds, without having respect
unto persons. If his sacrifice had been accepted graciously by God, and Cain’s
not, it was because his deeds were good, and his brother’s wicked.[16]

But this was not the only cause of Cain’s hatred toward Abel. Partly love for a
woman brought about the crime. To ensure the propagation of the human race, a
girl, destined to be his wife, was born together with each of the sons of Adam.
Abel’s twin sister was of exquisite beauty, and Cain desired her.[17] Therefore
he was constantly brooding over ways and means of ridding himself of his
brother.

The opportunity presented itself ere long. One day a sheep belonging to Abel
tramped over a field that had been planted by Cain. In a rage, the latter
called out, “What right hast thou to live upon my land and let thy sheep
pasture yonder?” Abel retorted: “What right hast thou to use the products of my
sheep, to make garments for thyself from their wool? If thou wilt take off the
wool of my sheep wherein thou art arrayed, and wilt pay me for the flesh of the
flocks which thou hast eaten, then I will quit thy land as thou desirest, and
fly into the air, if I can do it.” Cain thereupon said, “And if I were to kill
thee, who is there to demand thy blood of me?” Abel replied: “God, who brought
us into the world, will avenge me. He will require my blood at thine hand, if
thou shouldst slay me. God is the Judge, who will visit their wicked deeds upon
the wicked, and their evil deeds upon the evil. Shouldst thou slay me, God will
know thy secret, and He will deal out punishment unto thee.”

These words but added to the anger of Cain, and he threw himself upon his
brother.[18] Abel was stronger than he, and he would have got the worst of it,
but at the last moment he begged for mercy, and the gentle Abel released his
hold upon him. Scarcely did he feel himself free, when he turned against Abel
once more, and slew him. So true is the saying, “Do the evil no good, lest evil
fall upon thee.”[19]

THE PUNISHMENT OF CAIN

The manner of Abel’s death was the most cruel conceivable. Not knowing what
injury was fatal, Cain pelted all parts of his body with stones, until one
struck him on the neck and inflicted death.

After committing the murder, Cain resolved to flee, saying, “My parents will
demand account of me concerning Abel, for there is no other human being on
earth.” This thought had but passed through his mind when God appeared unto
him, and addressed him in these words: “Before thy parents thou canst flee, but
canst thou go out from My presence, too? ‘Can any hide himself in secret places
that I shall not see him?’ Alas for Abel that he showed thee mercy, and
refrained from killing thee, when he had thee in his power! Alas that he
granted thee the opportunity of slaying him!”

Questioned by God, “Where is Abel thy brother?” Cain answered: “Am I my
brother’s keeper? Thou art He who holdest watch over all creatures, and yet
Thou demandest account of me! True, I slew him, but Thou didst create the evil
inclination in me. Thou guardest all things; why, then, didst Thou permit me to
slay him? Thou didst Thyself slay him, for hadst Thou looked with a favorable
countenance toward my offering as toward his, I had had no reason for envying
him, and I had not slain him.” But God said, “The voice of thy brother’s blood
issuing from his many wounds crieth out against thee,[20] and likewise the
blood of all the pious who might have sprung from the loins of Abel.”

Also the soul of Abel denounced the murderer, for she could find rest nowhere.
She could neither soar heavenward, nor abide in the grave with her body, for no
human soul had done either before.[21] But Cain still refused to confess his
guilt. He insisted that he had never seen a man killed, and how was he to
suppose that the stones which he threw at Abel would take his life? Then, on
account of Cain, God cursed the ground, that it might not yield fruit unto
him.[22] With a single punishment both Cain and the earth were chastised, the
earth because it retained the corpse of Abel, and did not cast it above
ground.[23]

In the obduracy of his heart, Cain spake: “O Lord of the world! Are there
informers who denounce men before Thee? My parents are the only living human
beings, and they know naught of my deed. Thou abidest in the heavens, and how
shouldst Thou know what things happen on earth?” God said in reply: “Thou fool!
I carry the whole world. I have made it, and I will bear it”—a reply that gave
Cain the opportunity of feigning repentance. “Thou bearest the whole world,” he
said, “and my sin Thou canst not bear?[24] Verily, mine iniquity is too great
to be borne! Yet, yesterday Thou didst banish my father from Thy presence,
to-day Thou dost banish me. In sooth, it will be said, it is Thy way to
banish.”[25]

Although this was but dissimulation, and not true repentance, yet God granted
Cain pardon, and removed the half of his chastisement from him. Originally, the
decree had condemned him to be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth. Now he
was no longer to roam about forever, but a fugitive he was to remain. And so
much was hard enough to have to suffer, for the earth quaked under Cain, and
all the animals, the wild and the tame, among them the accursed serpent,
gathered together and essayed to devour him in order to avenge the innocent
blood of Abel. Finally Cain could bear it no longer, and, breaking out in
tears, he cried: “Whither shall I go from Thy spirit? Or whither shall I flee
from Thy presence?”[26] To protect him from the onslaught of the beasts, God
inscribed one letter of His Holy Name upon his forehead, and furthermore He
addressed the animals: “Cain’s punishment shall not be like unto the punishment
of future murderers. He has shed blood, but there was none to give him
instruction. Henceforth, however, he who slays another shall himself be slain.”
Then God gave him the dog as a protection against the wild beasts, and to mark
him as a sinner, He afflicted him with leprosy.

Cain’s repentance, insincere though it was, bore a good result. When Adam met
him, and inquired what doom had been decreed against him, Cain told how his
repentance had propitiated God, and Adam exclaimed, “So potent is repentance,
and I knew it not!” Thereupon he composed a hymn of praise to God, beginning
with the words, “It is a good thing to confess thy sins unto the Lord!”[29]

The crime committed by Cain had baneful consequences, not for himself alone,
but for the whole of nature also. Before, the fruits which the earth bore unto
him when he tilled the ground had tasted like the fruits of Paradise. Now his
labor produced naught but thorns and thistles.[29] The ground changed and
deteriorated at the very moment of Abel’s violent end. The trees and the plants
in the part of the earth whereon the victim lived refused to yield their
fruits, on account of their grief over him, and only at the birth of Seth those
that grew in the portion belonging to Abel began to flourish and bear again.
But never did they resume their former powers. While, before, the vine had
borne nine hundred and twenty-six different varieties of fruit, it now brought
forth but one kind. And so it was with all other species. They will regain
their pristine powers only in the world to come.[30]

Nature was modified also by the burial of the corpse of Abel. For a long time
it lay there exposed, above ground, because Adam and Eve knew not what to do
with it. They sat beside it and wept, while the faithful dog of Abel kept guard
that birds and beasts did it no harm. On a sudden, the mourning parents
observed how a raven scratched the earth away in one spot, and then hid a dead
bird of his own kind in the ground. Adam, following the example of the raven,
buried the body of Abel, and the raven was rewarded by God. His young are born
with white feathers, wherefore the old birds desert them, not recognizing them
as their offspring. They take them for serpents. God feeds them until their
plumage turns black, and the parent birds return to them. As an additional
reward, God grants their petition when the ravens pray for rain.[31]

THE INHABITANTS OF THE SEVEN EARTHS

When Adam was cast out of Paradise, he first reached the lowest of the seven
earths, the Erez, which is dark, without a ray of light, and utterly void. Adam
was terrified, particularly by the flames of the ever-turning sword, which is
on this earth. After he had done penance, God led him to the second earth, the
Adamah, where there is light reflected from its own sky and from its
phantom-like stars and constellations. Here dwell the phantom-like beings that
issued from the union of Adam with the spirits. They are always sad; the
emotion of joy is not known to them. They leave their own earth and repair to
the one inhabited by men, where they are changed into evil spirits. Then they
return to their abode for good, repent of their wicked deeds, and till the
ground, which, however, bears neither wheat nor any other of the seven
species.[34] In this Adamah, Cain, Abel, and Seth were born. After the murder
of Abel, Cain was sent back to the Erez, where he was frightened into
repentance by its darkness and by the flames of the ever-turning sword.
Accepting his penitence, God permitted him to ascend to the third earth, the
Arka, which receives some light from the sun. The Arka was surrendered to the
Cainites forever, as their perpetual domain. They till the ground, and plant
trees, but they have neither wheat nor any other of the seven species.

Some of the Cainites are giants, some of them are dwarfs. They have two heads,
wherefore they can never arrive at a decision; they are always at loggerheads
with themselves.[34] It may happen that they are pious now, only to be inclined
to do evil the next moment.

In the Ge, the fourth earth, live the generation of the Tower of Babel and
their descendants. God banished them thither because the fourth earth is not
far from Gehenna, and therefore close to the flaming fire.[35] The inhabitants
of the Ge are skilful in all arts, and accomplished in all departments of
science and knowledge, and their abode overflows with wealth. When an
inhabitant of our earth visits them, they give him the most precious thing in
their possession, but then they lead him to the Neshiah, the fifth earth, where
he becomes oblivious of his origin and his home. The Neshiah is inhabited by
dwarfs without noses; they breathe through two holes instead. They have no
memory; once a thing has happened, they forget it completely, whence their
earth is called Neshiah, “forgetting.” The fourth and fifth earths are like the
Arka; they have trees, but neither wheat nor any other of the seven species.

The sixth earth, the Ziah, is inhabited by handsome men, who are the owners of
abundant wealth, and live in palatial residences, but they lack water, as the
name of their territory, Ziah, “drought,” indicates. Hence vegetation is sparse
with them, and their tree culture meets with indifferent success. They hasten
to any waterspring that is discovered, and sometimes they succeed in slipping
through it up to our earth, where they satisfy their sharp appetite for the
food eaten by the inhabitants of our earth. For the rest, they are men of
steadfast faith, more than any other class of mankind.[36]

Adam remained in the Adamah until after the birth of Seth. Then, passing the
third earth, the Arka, the abiding place of the Cainites, and the next three
earths as well, the Ge, the Neshiah, and the Ziah, God transported him to the
Tebel, the seventh earth, the earth inhabited by men.

THE DESCENDANTS OF CAIN

Cain knew only too well that his blood-guiltiness would be visited upon him in
the seventh generation. Thus had God decreed against him.[37] He endeavored,
therefore, to immortalize his name by means of monuments,[38] and he became a
builder of cities. The first of them he called Enoch, after his son, because it
was at the birth of Enoch that he began to enjoy a measure of rest and
peace.[39] Besides, he founded six other cities.[40] This building of cities
was a godless deed, for he surrounded them with a wall, forcing his family to
remain within. All his other doings were equally impious. The punishment God
had ordained for him did not effect any improvement. He sinned in order to
secure his own pleasure, though his neighbors suffered injury thereby. He
augmented his household substance by rapine and violence; he excited his
acquaintances to procure pleasures and spoils by robbery, and he became a great
leader of men into wicked courses. He also introduced a change in the ways of
simplicity wherein men had lived before, and he was the author of measures and
weights. And whereas men lived innocently and generously while they knew
nothing of such arts, he changed the world into cunning craftiness.[41]

Like unto Cain were all his descendants, impious and godless, wherefore God
resolved to destroy them.[42]

The end of Cain overtook him in the seventh generation of men, and it was
inflicted upon him by the hand of his great-grandson Lamech. This Lamech was
blind, and when he went a-hunting, he was led by his young son, who would
apprise his father when game came in sight, and Lamech would then shoot at it
with his bow and arrow. Once upon a time he and his son went on the chase, and
the lad discerned something horned in the distance. He naturally took it to be
a beast of one kind or another, and he told the blind Lamech to let his arrow
fly. The aim was good, and the quarry dropped to the ground. When they came
close to the victim, the lad exclaimed: “Father, thou hast killed something
that resembles a human being in all respects, except it carries a horn on its
forehead!” Lamech knew at once what had happened—he had killed his ancestor
Cain, who had been marked by God with a horn.[43] In despair he smote his hands
together, inadvertently killing his son as he clasped them. Misfortune still
followed upon misfortune. The earth opened her mouth and swallowed up the four
generations sprung from Cain—Enoch, Irad, Mehujael, and Methushael. Lamech,
sightless as he was, could not go home; he had to remain by the side of Cain’s
corpse and his son’s. Toward evening, his wives, seeking him, found him there.
When they heard what he had done, they wanted to separate from him, all the
more as they knew that whoever was descended from Cain was doomed to
annihilation. But Lamech argued, “If Cain, who committed murder of malice
aforethought, was punished only in the seventh generation, then I, who had no
intention of killing a human being, may hope that retribution will be averted
for seventy and seven generations.” With his wives, Lamech repaired to Adam,
who heard both parties, and decided the case in favor of Lamech.[44]

The corruptness of the times, and especially the depravity of Cain’s stock,
appears in the fact that Lamech, as well as all the men in the generation of
the deluge, married two wives, one with the purpose of rearing children, the
other in order to pursue carnal indulgences, for which reason the latter was
rendered sterile by artificial means. As the men of the time were intent upon
pleasure rather than desirous of doing their duty to the human race, they gave
all their love and attention to the barren women, while their other wives spent
their days like widows, joyless and in gloom.

The two wives of Lamech, Adah and Zillah, bore him each two children, Adah two
sons, Jabal and Jubal, and Zillah a son, Tubal-cain, and a daughter, Naamah.
Jabal was the first among men to erect temples to idols, and Jubal invented the
music sung and played therein. Tubal-cain was rightly named, for he completed
the work of his ancestor Cain. Cain committed murder, and Tubal-cain, the first
who knew how to sharpen iron and copper, furnished the instruments used in wars
and combats. Naamah, “the lovely,” earned her name from the sweet sounds which
she drew from her cymbals when she called the worshippers to pay homage to
idols.[45]

THE DESCENDANTS OF ADAM AND LILITH

When the wives of Lamech heard the decision of Adam, that they were to continue
to live with their husband, they turned upon him, saying, “O physician, heal
thine own lameness!” They were alluding to the fact that he himself had been
living apart from his wife since the death of Abel, for he had said, “Why
should I beget children, if it is but to expose them to death?”[46]

Though he avoided intercourse with Eve, he was visited in his sleep by female
spirits, and from his union with them sprang shades and demons of various
kinds,[47] and they were endowed with peculiar gifts.

Once upon a time there lived in Palestine a very rich and pious man, who had a
son named Rabbi Hanina. He knew the whole of the Torah by heart. When he was at
the point of death, he sent for his son, Rabbi Hanina, and bade him, as his
last request, to study the Torah day and night, fulfil the commands of the law,
and be a faithful friend to the poor. He also told him that he and his wife,
the mother of Rabbi Hanina, would die on the selfsame day, and the seven days
of mourning for the two would end on the eve of the Passover. He enjoined him
not to grieve excessively, but to go to market on that day, and buy the first
article offered to him, no matter how costly it might be. If it happened to be
an edible, he was to prepare it and serve it with much ceremony. His expense
and trouble would receive their recompense. All happened as foretold: the man
and his wife died upon the same day, and the end of the week of mourning
coincided with the eve of the Passover. The son in turn carried out his
father’s behest: he repaired to market, and there he met an old man who offered
a silver dish for sale. Although the price asked was exorbitant, yet he bought
it, as his father had bidden. The dish was set upon the Seder table, and when
Rabbi Hanina opened it, he found a second dish within, and inside of this a
live frog, jumping and hopping around gleefully. He gave the frog food and
drink, and by the end of the festival he was grown so big that Rabbi Hanina
made a cabinet for him, in which he ate and lived. In the course of time, the
cabinet became too small, and the Rabbi built a chamber, put the frog within,
and gave him abundant food and drink. All this he did that he might not violate
his father’s last wish. But the frog waxed and grew; he consumed all his host
owned, until, finally, Rabbi Hanina was stripped bare of all his possessions.
Then the frog opened his mouth and began to speak. “My dear Rabbi Hanina,” he
said, “do not worry! Seeing thou didst raise me and care for me, thou mayest
ask of me whatever thy heart desireth, and it shall be granted thee.” Rabbi
Hanina made reply, “I desire naught but that thou shouldst teach me the whole
of the Torah.” The frog assented, and he did, indeed, teach him the whole of
the Torah, and the seventy languages of men besides.[48] His method was to
write a few words upon a scrap of paper, which he had his pupil swallow. Thus
he acquired not alone the Torah and the seventy tongues, but also the language
of beasts and birds. Thereupon the frog spoke to the wife of Rabbi Hanina:
“Thou didst tend me well, and I have given thee no recompense. But thy reward
will be paid thee before I depart from you, only you must both accompany me to
the woods. There you shall see what I shall do for you.” Accordingly, they went
to the woods with him. Arrived there, the frog began to cry aloud, and at the
sound all sorts of beasts and birds assembled. These he commanded to produce
precious stones, as many as they could carry. Also they were to bring herbs and
roots for the wife of Rabbi Hanina, and he taught her how to use them as
remedies for all varieties of disease. All this they were bidden to take home
with them. When they were about to return, the frog addressed them thus: “May
the Holy One, blessed be He, have mercy upon you, and requite you for all the
trouble you took on my account, without so much as inquiring who I am. Now I
shall make my origin known to you. I am the son of Adam, a son whom he begot
during the hundred and thirty years of his separation from Eve. God has endowed
me with the power of assuming any form or guise I desire.” Rabbi Hanina and his
wife departed for their home, and they became very rich, and enjoyed the
respect and confidence of the king.[49]

SETH AND HIS DESCENDANTS

The exhortations of the wives of Lamech took effect upon Adam. After a
separation of one hundred and thirty years, he returned to Eve, and the love he
now bore her was stronger by far than in the former time. She was in his
thoughts even when she was not present to him bodily. The fruit of their
reunion was Seth, who was destined to be the ancestor of the Messiah.[50]

Seth was so formed from birth that the rite of circumcision could be dispensed
with. He was thus one of the thirteen men born perfect in a way.[51] Adam begot
him in his likeness and image, different from Cain, who had not been in his
likeness and image. Thus Seth became, in a genuine sense, the father of the
human race, especially the father of the pious, while the depraved and godless
are descended from Cain.[52]

Even during the lifetime of Adam the descendants of Cain became exceedingly
wicked, dying successively, one after another, each more wicked than the
former. They were intolerable in war, and vehement in robberies, and if any one
were slow to murder people, yet was he bold in his profligate behavior in
acting unjustly and doing injury for gain.

Now as to Seth. When he was brought up, and came to those years in which he
could discern what was good, he became a virtuous man, and as he was himself of
excellent character, so he left children behind him who imitated his virtues.
All these proved to be of good disposition. They also inhabited one and the
same country without dissensions, and in a happy condition, without any
misfortune’s falling upon them, until they died. They also were the inventors
of that peculiar sort of wisdom which is concerned with the heavenly bodies and
their order. And that their inventions might not be lost before they were
sufficiently known, they made two pillars, upon Adam’s prediction that the
world was to be destroyed at one time by the force of fire and at another time
by the violence and quantity of water. The one was of brick, the other of
stone, and they inscribed their discoveries on both, that in case the pillar of
brick should be destroyed by the flood, the pillar of stone might remain, and
exhibit these discoveries to mankind, and also inform them that there was
another pillar, of brick, erected by them.[53]

ENOSH

Enosh was asked who his father was, and he named Seth. The questioners, the
people of his time, continued: “Who was the father of Seth?” Enosh:
“Adam.”—”And who was the father of Adam?”—”He had neither father nor mother,
God formed him from the dust of the earth.”—”But man has not the appearance of
dust!”—”After death man returns to dust, as God said, ‘And man shall turn again
unto dust;’ but on the day of his creation, man was made in the image of
God.”—”How was the woman created?”—”Male and female He created them.”—”But
how?”—”God took water and earth, and moulded them together in the form of
man.”—”But how?” pursued the questioners.

Enosh took six clods of earth, mixed them, and moulded them, and formed an
image of dust and clay. “But,” said the people, “this image does not walk, nor
does it possess any breath of life.” He then essayed to show them how God
breathed the breath of life into the nostrils of Adam, but when he began to
blow his breath into the image he had formed, Satan entered it, and the figure
walked, and the people of his time who had been inquiring these matters of
Enosh went astray after it, saying, “What is the difference between bowing down
before this image and paying homage to a man?”[54]

The generation of Enosh were thus the first idol worshippers, and the
punishment for their folly was not delayed long. God caused the sea to
transgress its bounds, and a portion of the earth was flooded. This was the
time also when the mountains became rocks, and the dead bodies of men began to
decay. And still another consequence of the sin of idolatry was that the
countenances of the men of the following generations were no longer in the
likeness and image of God, as the countenances of Adam, Seth, and Enosh had
been. They resembled centaurs and apes, and the demons lost their fear of
men.[55]

But there was a still more serious consequence from the idolatrous practices
introduced in the time of Enosh. When God drove Adam forth from Paradise, the
Shekinah remained behind, enthroned above a cherub under the tree of life. The
angels descended from heaven and repaired thither in hosts, to receive their
instructions, and Adam and his descendants sat by the gate to bask in the
splendor of the Shekinah, sixty-five thousand times more radiant than the
splendor of the sun. This brightness of the Shekinah makes all upon whom it
falls exempt from disease, and neither insects nor demons can come nigh unto
them to do them harm.

Thus it was until the time of Enosh, when men began to gather gold, silver,
gems, and pearls from all parts of the earth, and made idols thereof a thousand
parasangs high. What was worse, by means of the magic arts taught them by the
angels Uzza and Azzael, they set themselves as masters over the heavenly
spheres, and forced the sun, the moon, and the stars to be subservient to
themselves instead of the Lord. This impelled the angels to ask God: “‘What is
man, that Thou art mindful of him?’ Why didst Thou abandon the highest of the
heavens, the seat of Thy glory and Thy exalted Throne in ‘Arabot, and descend
to men, who pay worship to idols, putting Thee upon a level with them?” The
Shekinah was induced to leave the earth and ascend to heaven, amid the blare
and flourish of the trumpets of the myriads of angel hosts.[56]

THE FALL OF THE ANGELS

The depravity of mankind, which began to show itself in the time of Enosh, had
increased monstrously in the time of his grandson Jared, by reason of the
fallen angels. When the angels saw the beautiful, attractive daughters of men,
they lusted after them, and spoke: “We will choose wives for ourselves only
from among the daughters of men, and beget children with them.” Their chief
Shemhazai said, “I fear me, ye will not put this plan of yours into execution,
and I alone shall have to suffer the consequences of a great sin.” Then they
answered him, and said: “We will all swear an oath, and we will bind ourselves,
separately and together, not to abandon the plan, but to carry it through to
the end.”

Two hundred angels descended to the summit of Mount Hermon, which owes its name
to this very occurrence, because they bound themselves there to fulfil their
purpose, on the penalty of Herem, anathema. Under the leadership of twenty
captains they defiled themselves with the daughters of men, unto whom they
taught charms, conjuring formulas, how to cut roots, and the efficacy of
plants. The issue from these mixed marriages was a race of giants, three
thousand ells tall, who consumed the possessions of men. When all had vanished,
and they could obtain nothing more from them, the giants turned against men and
devoured many of them, and the remnant of men began to trespass against the
birds, beasts, reptiles, and fishes, eating their flesh and drinking their
blood.

Then the earth complained about the impious evil-doers. But the fallen angels
continued to corrupt mankind. Azazel taught men how to make slaughtering
knives, arms, shields, and coats of mail. He showed them metals and how to work
them, and armlets and all sorts of trinkets, and the use of rouge for the eyes,
and how to beautify the eyelids, and how to ornament themselves with the rarest
and most precious jewels and all sorts of paints. The chief of the fallen
angels, Shemhazai, instructed them in exorcisms and how to cut roots; Armaros
taught them how to raise spells; Barakel, divination from the stars; Kawkabel,
astrology; Ezekeel, augury from the clouds; Arakiel, the signs of the earth;
Samsaweel, the signs of the sun; and Seriel, the signs of the moon.[57]

While all these abominations defiled the earth, the pious Enoch lived in a
secret place. None among men knew his abode, or what had become of him, for he
was sojourning with the angel watchers and holy ones. Once he heard the call
addressed to him: “Enoch, thou scribe of justice, go unto the watchers of the
heavens, who have left the high heavens, the eternal place of holiness,
defiling themselves with women, doing as men do, taking wives unto themselves,
and casting themselves into the arms of destruction upon earth. Go and proclaim
unto them that they shall find neither peace nor pardon. For every time they
take joy in their offspring, they shall see the violent death of their sons,
and sigh over the ruin of their children. They will pray and supplicate
evermore, but never shall they attain to mercy or peace.”

Enoch repaired to Azazel and the other fallen angels, to announce the doom
uttered against them. They all were filled with fear. Trembling seized upon
them, and they implored Enoch to set up a petition for them and read it to the
Lord of heaven, for they could not speak with God as aforetime, nor even raise
their eyes heavenward, for shame on account of their sins. Enoch granted their
request, and in a vision he was vouchsafed the answer which he was to carry
back to the angels. It appeared to Enoch that he was wafted into heaven upon
clouds, and was set down before the throne of God. God spake: “Go forth and say
to the watchers of heaven who have sent thee hither to intercede for them:
Verily, it is you who ought to plead in behalf of men, not men in behalf of you
I Why did ye forsake the high, holy, and eternal heavens, to pollute yourselves
with the daughters of men, taking wives unto yourselves, doing like the races
of the earth, and begetting giant sons? Giants begotten by flesh and spirits
will be called evil spirits on earth, and on the earth will be their
dwelling-place. Evil spirits proceed from their bodies, because they are
created from above, and from the holy watchers is their beginning and primal
origin; they will be evil spirits on earth, and evil spirits they will be
named. And the spirits of heaven have their dwelling in heaven, but the spirits
of the earth, which were born upon the earth, have their dwelling on the earth.
And the spirits of the giants will devour, oppress, destroy, attack, do battle,
and cause destruction on the earth, and work affliction. They will take no kind
of food, nor will they thirst, and they will be invisible. And these spirits
will rise up against the children of men and against the women, because they
have proceeded from them. Since the days of murder and destruction and the
death of the giants, when the spirits went forth from the soul of their flesh,
in order to destroy without incurring judgment—thus will they destroy until the
day when the great consummation of the great world be consummated. And now as
to the watchers who have sent thee to intercede for them, who had been
aforetime in heaven, say to them: You have been in heaven, and though the
hidden things had not yet been revealed to you, you know worthless mysteries,
and in the hardness of your hearts you have recounted these to the women, and
through these mysteries women and men work much evil on earth. Say to them
therefore: You have no peace!”[58]

ENOCH, RULER AND TEACHER

After Enoch had lived a long time secluded from men, he once heard the voice of
an angel calling to him: “Enoch, Enoch, make thyself ready and leave the house
and the secret place wherein thou hast kept thyself hidden, and assume dominion
over men, to teach them the ways in which they shall walk, and the deeds which
they shall do, in order that they may walk in the ways of God.”

Enoch left his retreat and betook himself to the haunts of men. He gathered
them about him, and instructed them in the conduct pleasing to God. He sent
messengers all over to announce, “Ye who desire to know the ways of God and
righteous conduct, come ye to Enoch!” Thereupon a vast concourse of people
thronged about him, to hear the wisdom he would teach and learn from his mouth
what is good and right. Even kings and princes, no less than one hundred and
thirty in number, assembled about him, and submitted themselves to his
dominion, to be taught and guided by him, as he taught and guided all the
others. Peace reigned thus over the whole world all the two hundred and
forty-three years during which the influence of Enoch prevailed.

At the expiration of this period, in the year in which Adam died, and was
buried with great honors by Seth, Enosh, Enoch, and Methuselah, Enoch resolved
to retire again from intercourse with men, and devote himself wholly to the
service of God. But he withdrew gradually. First he would spend three days in
prayer and praise of God, and on the fourth day he would return to his
disciples and grant them instruction. Many years passed thus, then he appeared
among them but once a week, later, once a month, and, finally, once a year. The
kings, princes, and all others who were desirous of seeing Enoch and hearkening
to his words did not venture to come close to him during the times of his
retirement. Such awful majesty sat upon his countenance, they feared for their
very life if they but looked at him. They therefore resolved that all men
should prefer their requests before Enoch on the day he showed himself unto
them.

The impression made by the teachings of Enoch upon all who heard them was
powerful. They prostrated themselves before him, and cried “Long live the king!
Long live the king!” On a certain day, while Enoch was giving audience to his
followers, an angel appeared and made known unto him that God had resolved to
install him as king over the angels in heaven, as until then he had reigned
over men. He called together all the inhabitants of the earth, and addressed
them thus: “I have been summoned to ascend into heaven, and I know not on what
day I shall go thither. Therefore I will teach you wisdom and righteousness
before I go hence.” A few days yet Enoch spent among men, and all the time left
to him he gave instruction in wisdom, knowledge, God-fearing conduct, and
piety, and established law and order, for the regulation of the affairs of men.
Then those gathered near him saw a gigantic steed descend from the skies, and
they told Enoch of it, who said, “The steed is for me, for the time has come
and the day when I leave you, never to be seen again.” So it was. The steed
approached Enoch, and he mounted upon its back, all the time instructing the
people, exhorting them, enjoining them to serve God and walk in His ways. Eight
hundred thousand of the people followed a day’s journey after him. But on the
second day Enoch urged his retinue to turn back: “Go ye home, lest death
overtake you, if you follow me farther.” Most of them heeded his words and went
back, but a number remained with him for six days, though he admonished them
daily to return and not bring death down upon themselves. On the sixth day of
the journey, he said to those still accompanying him, “Go ye home, for on the
morrow I shall ascend to heaven, and whoever will then be near me, he will
die.” Nevertheless, some of his companions remained with him, saying:
“Whithersoever thou goest, we will go. By the living God, death alone shall
part us.”

On the seventh day Enoch was carried into the heavens in a fiery chariot drawn
by fiery chargers. The day thereafter, the kings who had turned back in good
time sent messengers to inquire into the fate of the men who had refused to
separate themselves from Enoch, for they had noted the number of them. They
found snow and great hailstones upon the spot whence Enoch had risen, and, when
they searched beneath, they discovered the bodies of all who had remained
behind with Enoch. He alone was not among them; he was on high in heaven.[59]

THE ASCENSION OF ENOCH

This was not the first time Enoch had been in heaven. Once before, while he
sojourned among men, he had been permitted to see all there is on earth and in
the heavens. On a time when he was sleeping, a great grief came upon his heart,
and he wept in his dream, not knowing what the grief meant, nor what would
happen to him. And there appeared to him two men, very tall. Their faces shone
like the sun, and their eyes were like burning lamps, and fire came forth from
their lips; their wings were brighter than gold, their hands whiter than snow.
They stood at the head of Enoch’s bed, and called him by his name. He awoke
from his sleep, and hastened and made obeisance to them, and was terrified. And
these men said to him: “Be of good cheer, Enoch, be not afraid; the everlasting
God hath sent us to thee, and lo! to-day thou shalt ascend with us into heaven.
And tell thy sons and thy servants, and let none seek thee, till the Lord bring
thee back to them.”

Enoch did as he was told, and after he had spoken to his sons, and instructed
them not to turn aside from God, and to keep His judgment, these two men
summoned him, and took him on their wings, and placed him on the clouds, which
moved higher and higher, till they set him down in the first heaven. Here they
showed him the two hundred angels who rule the stars, and their heavenly
service. Here he saw also the treasuries of snow and ice, of clouds and dew.

From there they took him to the second heaven, where he saw the fallen angels
imprisoned, they who obeyed not the commandments of God, and took counsel of
their own will. The fallen angels said to Enoch, “O man of God! Pray for us to
the Lord,” and he answered: “Who am I, a mortal man, that I should pray for
angels? Who knows whither I go, or what awaits me?”

They took him from thence to the third heaven, where they showed him Paradise,
with all the trees of beautiful colors, and their fruits, ripe and luscious,
and all kinds of food which they produced, springing up with delightful
fragrance. In the midst of Paradise he saw the tree of life, in that place in
which God rests when He comes into Paradise. This tree cannot be described for
its excellence and sweet fragrance, and it is beautiful, more than any created
thing, and on all its sides it is like gold and crimson in appearance, and
transparent as fire, and it covers everything. From its root in the garden
there go forth four streams, which pour out honey, milk, oil, and wine, and
they go down to the Paradise of Eden, that lies on the confines between the
earthly region of corruptibility and the heavenly region of incorruptibility,
and thence they go along the earth. He also saw the three hundred angels who
keep the garden, and with never-ceasing voices and blessed singing they serve
the Lord every day. The angels leading Enoch explained to him that this place
is prepared for the righteous, while the terrible place prepared for the
sinners is in the northern regions of the third heaven. He saw there all sorts
of tortures, and impenetrable gloom, and there is no light there, but a gloomy
fire is always burning. And all that place has fire on all sides, and on all
sides cold and ice, thus it burns and freezes. And the angels, terrible and
without pity, carry savage weapons, and their torture is unmerciful.

The angels took him then to the fourth heaven, and showed him all the comings
in and goings forth, and all the rays of the light of the sun and the moon. He
saw the fifteen myriads of angels who go out with the sun, and attend him
during the day, and the thousand angels who attend him by night. Each angel has
six wings, and they go before the chariot of the sun, while one hundred angels
keep the sun warm, and light it up. He saw also the wonderful and strange
creatures named phoenixes and chalkidri, who attend the chariot of the sun, and
go with him, bringing heat and dew. They showed him also the six gates in the
east of the fourth heaven, by which the sun goes forth, and the six gates in
the west where he sets, and also the gates by which the moon goes out, and
those by which she enters. In the middle of the fourth heaven he saw an armed
host, serving the Lord with cymbals and organs and unceasing voices.

In the fifth heaven he saw many hosts of the angels called Grigori. Their
appearance was like men, and their size was greater than the size of the
giants, their countenances were withered, and their lips silent. On his
question who they were, the angels leading him answered, “These are the
Grigori, who with their prince Salamiel rejected the holy Lord.” Enoch then
said to the Grigori, “Why wait ye, brethren, and serve ye not before the face
of the Lord, and why perform ye not your duties before the face of the Lord,
and anger not your Lord to the end?” The Grigori listened to the rebuke, and
when the trumpets resounded together with a loud call, they also began to sing
with one voice, and their voices went forth before the Lord with sadness and
tenderness.

In the seventh heaven he saw the seven bands of archangels who arrange and
study the revolutions of the stars and the changes of the moon and the
revolution of the sun, and superintend the good or evil conditions of the
world. And they arrange teachings and instructions and sweet speaking and
singing and all kinds of glorious praise. They hold in subjection all living
things, both in heaven and on earth. In the midst of them are seven phoenixes,
and seven cherubim, and seven six-winged creatures, singing with one voice.

When Enoch reached the seventh heaven, and saw all the fiery hosts of great
archangels and incorporeal powers and lordships and principalities and powers,
he was afraid and trembled with a great terror. Those leading him took hold of
him, and brought him into the midst of them, and said to him, “Be of good
cheer, Enoch, be not afraid,” and they showed him the Lord from afar, sitting
on His lofty throne, while all the heavenly hosts, divided in ten classes,
having approached, stood on the ten steps according to their rank, and made
obeisance to the Lord. And so they proceeded to their places in joy and mirth
and boundless light, singing songs with low and gentle voices, and gloriously
serving Him. They leave not nor depart day or night, standing before the face
of the Lord, working His will, cherubim and seraphim, standing around His
throne. And the six-winged creatures overshadow all His throne, singing with a
soft voice before the face of the Lord, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of
hosts; heaven and earth are full of His glory.” When he had seen all these, the
angels leading him said to him, “Enoch, up to this time we were ordered to
accompany thee.” They departed, and he saw them no more. Enoch remained at the
extremity of the seventh heaven, in great terror, saying to himself, “Woe is
me! What has come upon me!” But then Gabriel came and said unto him, “Enoch, be
not afraid, stand up and come with me, and stand up before the face of the Lord
forever.” And Enoch answered: “O my lord, my spirit has departed from me with
fear and trembling. Call the men to me who have brought me to the place! Upon
them I have relied, and with them I would go before the face of the Lord.” And
Gabriel hurried him away like a leaf carried off by the wind, and set him
before the face of the Lord. Enoch fell down and worshipped the Lord, who said
to him: “Enoch, be not afraid! Rise up and stand before My face forever.” And
Michael lifted him up, and at the command of the Lord took his earthly robe
from him, and anointed him with the holy oil, and clothed him, and when he
gazed upon himself, he looked like one of God’s glorious ones, and fear and
trembling departed from him. God called then one of His archangels who was more
wise than all the others, and wrote down all the doings of the Lord, and He
said to him, “Bring forth the books from My store-place, and give a reed to
Enoch, and interpret the books to him.” The angel did as he was commanded, and
he instructed Enoch thirty days and thirty nights, and his lips never ceased
speaking, while Enoch was writing down all the things about heaven and earth,
angels and men, and all that is suitable to be instructed in. He also wrote
down all about the souls of men, those of them which are not born, and the
places prepared for them forever. He copied all accurately, and he wrote three
hundred and sixty-six books. After he had received all the instructions from
the archangel, God revealed unto him great secrets, which even the angels do
not know. He told him how, out of the lowest darkness, the visible and the
invisible were created, how He formed heaven, light, water, and earth, and also
the fall of Satan and the creation and sin of Adam He narrated to him, and
further revealed to him that the duration of the world will be seven thousand
years, and the eighth millennium will be a time when there is no computation,
no end, neither years, nor months, nor weeks, nor days, nor hours.

The Lord finished this revelation to Enoch with the words: “And now I give thee
Samuil and Raguil, who brought thee to Me. Go with them upon the earth, and
tell thy sons what things I have said to thee, and what thou hast seen from the
lowest heaven up to My throne. Give them the works written out by thee, and
they shall read them, and shall distribute the books to their children’s
children and from generation to generation and from nation to nation. And I
will give thee My messenger Michael for thy writings and for the writings of
thy fathers, Adam, Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, and Jared thy father. And I
shall not require them till the last age, for I have instructed My two angels,
Ariuk and Mariuk, whom I have put upon the earth as their guardians, and I have
ordered them in time to guard them, that the account of what I shall do in thy
family may not be lost in the deluge to come. For on account of the wickedness
and iniquity of men, I will bring a deluge upon the earth, and I will destroy
all, but I will leave a righteous man of thy race with all his house, who shall
act according to My will. From their seed will be raised up a numerous
generation, and on the extinction of that family, I will show them the books of
thy writings and of thy father, and the guardians of them on earth will show
them to the men who are true and please Me. And they shall tell to another
generation, and they, having read them, shall be glorified at last more than
before.”

Enoch was then sent to earth to remain there for thirty days to instruct his
sons, but before he left heaven, God sent an angel to him whose appearance was
like snow, and his hands were like ice. Enoch looked at him, and his face was
chilled, that men might be able to endure the sight of him. The angels who took
him to heaven put him upon his bed, in the place where his son Methuselah was
expecting him by day and by night. Enoch assembled his sons and all his
household, and instructed them faithfully about all things he had seen, heard,
and written down, and he gave his books to his sons, to keep them and read
them, admonishing them not to conceal the books, but tell them to all desiring
to know. When the thirty days had been completed, the Lord sent darkness upon
the earth, and there was gloom, and it hid the men standing with Enoch. And the
angels hasted and took Enoch, and carried him to the highest heaven, where the
Lord received him and set him before His face, and the darkness departed from
the earth, and there was light. And the people saw, and did not understand how
Enoch was taken, and they glorified God.

Enoch was born on the sixth day of the month of Siwan, and he was taken to
heaven in the same month, Siwan, on the same day and in the same hour when he
was born. And Methuselah hasted and all his brethren, the sons of Enoch, and
built an altar in the place called Achuzan, whence Enoch was taken up to
heaven. The elders and all the people came to the festivity and brought their
gifts to the sons of Enoch, and made a great festivity, rejoicing and being
merry for three days, praising God, who had given such a sign by means of
Enoch, who had found favor with them.[60]

THE TRANSLATION OF ENOCH

The sinfulness of men was the reason why Enoch was translated to heaven. Thus
Enoch himself told Rabbi Ishmael. When the generation of the deluge
transgressed, and spoke to God, saying, “Depart from us, for we do not desire
to know Thy ways,” Enoch was carried to heaven, to serve there as a witness
that God was not a cruel God in spite of the destruction decreed upon all
living beings on earth.

When Enoch, under the guidance of the angel ‘Anpiel, was carried from earth to
heaven, the holy beings, the ofanim, the seraphim, the cherubim, all those who
move the throne of God, and the ministering spirits whose substance is of
consuming fire, they all, at a distance of six hundred and fifty million and
three hundred parasangs, noticed the presence of a human being, and they
exclaimed: “Whence the odor of one born of woman? How comes he into the highest
heaven of the fire-coruscating angels?” But God replied: “O My servants and
hosts, ye, My cherubim, ofanim, and seraphim, let this not be an offense unto
you, for all the children of men denied Me and My mighty dominion, and they
paid homage to the idols, so that I transferred the Shekinah from earth to
heaven. But this man Enoch is the elect of men. He has more faith, justice, and
righteousness than all the rest, and he is the only reward I have derived from
the terrestrial world.”

Before Enoch could be admitted to service near the Divine throne, the gates of
wisdom were opened unto him, and the gates of understanding, and of
discernment, of life, peace, and the Shekinah, of strength and power, of might,
loveliness, and grace, of humility and fear of sin. Equipped by God with
extraordinary wisdom, sagacity, judgment, knowledge, learning,
compassionateness, love, kindness, grace, humility, strength, power, might,
splendor, beauty, shapeliness, and all other excellent qualities, beyond the
endowment of any of the celestial beings, Enoch received, besides, many
thousand blessings from God, and his height and his breadth became equal to the
height and the breadth of the world, and thirty-six wings were attached to his
body, to the right and to the left, each as large as the world, and three
hundred and sixty-five thousand eyes were bestowed upon him, each brilliant as
the sun. A magnificent throne was erected for him beside the gates of the
seventh celestial palace, and a herald proclaimed throughout the heavens
concerning him, who was henceforth to be called Metatron in the celestial
regions: “I have appointed My servant Metatron as prince and chief over all the
princes in My realm, with the exception only of the eight august and exalted
princes that bear My name. Whatever angel has a request to prefer to Me, shall
appear before Metatron, and what he will command at My bidding, ye must observe
and do, for the prince of wisdom and the prince of understanding are at his
service, and they will reveal unto him the sciences of the celestials and the
terrestrials, the knowledge of the present order of the world and the knowledge
of the future order of the world. Furthermore, I have made him the guardian of
the treasures of the palaces in the heaven ‘Arabot, and of the treasures of
life that are in the highest heaven.”

Out of the love He bore Enoch, God arrayed him in a magnificent garment, to
which every kind of luminary in existence was attached, and a crown gleaming
with forty-nine jewels, the splendor of which pierced to all parts of the seven
heavens and to the four corners of the earth. In the presence of the heavenly
family, He set this crown upon the head of Enoch, and called him “the little
Lord.” It bears also the letters by means of which heaven and earth were
created, and seas and rivers, mountains and valleys, planets and
constellations, lightning and thunder, snow and hail, storm and whirlwind—these
and also all things needed in the world, and the mysteries of creation. Even
the princes of the heavens, when they see Metatron, tremble before him, and
prostrate themselves; his magnificence and majesty, the splendor and beauty
radiating from him overwhelm them, even the wicked Samael, the greatest of
them, even Gabriel the angel of the fire, Bardiel the angel of the hail, Ruhiel
the angel of the wind, Barkiel the angel of the lightning, Za’miel the angel of
the hurricane, Zakkiel the angel of the storm, Sui’el the angel of the
earthquake, Za’fiel the angel of the showers, Ra’miel the angel of the thunder,
Ra’shiel the angel of the whirlwind, Shalgiel the angel of the snow, Matriel
the angel of the rain, Shamshiel the angel of the day, Leliel the angel of the
night, Galgliel the angel of the solar system, Ofaniel the angel of the wheel
of the moon, Kokabiel the angel of the stars, and Rahtiel the angel of the
constellations.

When Enoch was transformed into Metatron, his body was turned into celestial
fire—his flesh became flame, his veins fire, his bones glimmering coals, the
light of his eyes heavenly brightness, his eyeballs torches of fire, his hair a
flaring blaze, all his limbs and organs burning sparks, and his frame a
consuming fire. To right of him sparkled flames of fire, to left of him burnt
torches of fire, and on all sides he was engirdled by storm and whirlwind,
hurricane and thundering.[61]

METHUSELAH

After the translation of Enoch, Methuselah was proclaimed ruler of the earth by
all the kings. He walked in the footsteps of his father, teaching truth,
knowledge, and fear of God to the children of men all his life, and deviating
from the path of rectitude neither to the right nor the left.[62] He delivered
the world from thousands of demons, the posterity of Adam which he had begotten
with Lilith, that she-devil of she-devils. These demons and evil spirits, as
often as they encountered a man, had sought to injure and even slay him, until
Methuselah appeared, and supplicated the mercy of God. He spent three days in
fasting, and then God gave him permission to write the Ineffable Name upon his
sword, wherewith he slew ninety-four myriads of the demons in a minute, until
Agrimus, the first-born of them, came to him and entreated him to desist, at
the same time handing the names of the demons and imps over to him. And so
Methuselah placed their kings in iron fetters, while the remainder fled away
and hid themselves in the innermost chambers and recesses of the ocean. And it
is on account of the wonderful sword by means of which the demons were killed
that he was called Methuselah.[63]

He was so pious a man that he composed two hundred and thirty parables in
praise of God for every word he uttered. When he died, the people heard a great
commotion in the heavens, and they saw nine hundred rows of mourners
corresponding to the nine hundred orders of the Mishnah which he had studied,
and tears flowed from the eyes of the holy beings down upon the spot where he
died. Seeing the grief of the celestials, the people on earth also mourned over
the demise of Methuselah, and God rewarded them therefor. He added seven days
to the time of grace which He had ordained before bringing destruction upon the
earth by a flood of waters.[64]

IV
NOAH

THE BIRTH OF NOAH

Methuselah took a wife for his son Lamech, and she bore him a man child. The
body of the babe was white as snow and red as a blooming rose, and the hair of
his head and his long locks were white as wool, and his eyes like the rays of
the sun. When he opened his eyes, he lighted up the whole house, like the sun,
and the whole house was very full of light.[1] And when he was taken from the
hand of the midwife, he opened his mouth and praised the Lord of
righteousness.[2] His father Lamech was afraid of him, and fled, and came to
his own father Methuselah. And he said to him: “I have begotten a strange son;
he is not like a human being, but resembles the children of the angels of
heaven, and his nature is different, and he is not like us, and his eyes are as
the rays of the sun, and his countenance is glorious.[3] And it seems to me
that he is not sprung from me, but from the angels, and I fear that in his days
a wonder may be wrought on the earth. And now, my father, I am here to petition
thee and implore thee, that thou mayest go to Enoch, our father, and learn from
him the truth, for his dwelling place is among the angels.”

And when Methuselah heard the words of his son, he went to Enoch, to the ends
of the earth, and he cried aloud, and Enoch heard his voice, and appeared
before him, and asked him the reason of his coming. Methuselah told him the
cause of his anxiety, and requested him to make the truth known to him. Enoch
answered, and said: “The Lord will do a new thing in the earth. There will come
a great destruction on the earth, and a deluge for one year. This son who is
born unto thee will be left on the earth, and his three children will be saved
with him, when all mankind that are on the earth shall die. And there will be a
great punishment on the earth, and the earth will be cleansed from all
impurity. And now make known to thy son Lamech that he who was born is in truth
his son, and call his name Noah, for he will be left to you, and he and his
children will be saved from the destruction which will come upon the earth.”
When Methuselah had heard the words of his father, who showed him all the
secret things, he returned home, and he called the child Noah, for he would
cause the earth to rejoice in compensation for all destruction.[4]

By the name Noah he was called only by his grandfather Methuselah; his father
and all others called him Menahem. His generation was addicted to sorcery, and
Methuselah apprehended that his grandson might be bewitched if his true name
were known, wherefore he kept it a secret. Menahem, Comforter, suited him as
well as Noah; it indicated that he would be a consoler, if but the evil-doers
of his time would repent of their misdeeds.[5] At his very birth it was felt
that he would bring consolation and deliverance. When the Lord said to Adam,
“Cursed is the ground for thy sake,” he asked, “For how long a time?” and the
answer made by God was, “Until a man child shall be born whose conformation is
such that the rite of circumcision need not be practiced upon him.” This was
fulfilled in Noah, he was circumcised from his mother’s womb.

Noah had scarcely come into the world when a marked change was noticeable.
Since the curse brought upon the earth by the sin of Adam, it happened that
wheat being sown, yet oats would sprout and grow. This ceased with the
appearance of Noah: the earth bore the products planted in it. And it was Noah
who, when he was grown to manhood, invented the plough, the scythe, the hoe,
and other implements for cultivating the ground. Before him men had worked the
land with their bare hands.[6]

There was another token to indicate that the child born unto Lamech was
appointed for an extraordinary destiny. When God created Adam, He gave him
dominion over all things: the cow obeyed the ploughman, and the furrow was
willing to be drawn. But after the fall of Adam all things rebelled against
him: the cow refused obedience to the ploughman, and also the furrow was
refractory. Noah was born, and all returned to its state preceding the fall of
man.

Before the birth of Noah, the sea was in the habit of transgressing its bounds
twice daily, morning and evening, and flooding the land up to the graves. After
his birth it kept within its confines. And the famine that afflicted the world
in the time of Lamech, the second of the ten great famines appointed to come
upon it, ceased its ravages with the birth of Noah.[7]

THE PUNISHMENT OF THE FALLEN ANGELS

Grown to manhood, Noah followed in the ways of his grandfather Methuselah,
while all other men of the time rose up against this pious king. So far from
observing his precepts, they pursued the evil inclination of their hearts, and
perpetrated all sorts of abominable deeds.[8] Chiefly the fallen angels and
their giant posterity caused the depravity of mankind. The blood spilled by the
giants cried unto heaven from the ground, and the four archangels accused the
fallen angels and their sons before God, whereupon He gave the following orders
to them: Uriel was sent to Noah to announce to him that the earth would be
destroyed by a flood, and to teach him how to save his own life. Raphael was
told to put the fallen angel Azazel into chains, cast him into a pit of sharp
and pointed stones in the desert Dudael, and cover him with darkness, and so
was he to remain until the great day of judgment, when he would be thrown into
the fiery pit of hell, and the earth would be healed of the corruption he had
contrived upon it. Gabriel was charged to proceed against the bastards and the
reprobates, the sons of the angels begotten with the daughters of men, and
plunge them into deadly conflicts with one another. Shemhazai’s ilk were handed
over to Michael, who first caused them to witness the death of their children
in their bloody combat with each other, and then he bound them and pinned them
under the hills of the earth, where they will remain for seventy generations,
until the day of judgment, to be carried thence to the fiery pit of hell.[9]

The fall of Azazel and Shemhazai came about in this way. When the generation of
the deluge began to practice idolatry, God was deeply grieved. The two angels
Shemhazai and Azazel arose, and said: “O Lord of the world! It has happened,
that which we foretold at the creation of the world and of man, saying, ‘What
is man, that Thou art mindful of him?'” And God said, “And what will become of
the world now without man?” Whereupon the angels: “We will occupy ourselves
with it.” Then said God: “I am well aware of it, and I know that if you inhabit
the earth, the evil inclination will overpower you, and you will be more
iniquitous than ever men.” The angels pleaded, “Grant us but permission to
dwell among men, and Thou shalt see how we will sanctify Thy Name.” God yielded
to their wish, saying, “Descend and sojourn among men!”

When the angels came to earth, and beheld the daughters of men in all their
grace and beauty, they could not restrain their passion. Shemhazai saw a maiden
named Istehar, and he lost his heart to her. She promised to surrender herself
to him, if first he taught her the Ineffable Name, by means of which he raised
himself to heaven. He assented to her condition. But once she knew it, she
pronounced the Name, and herself ascended to heaven, without fulfilling her
promise to the angel. God said, “Because she kept herself aloof from sin, we
will place her among the seven stars, that men may never forget her,” and she
was put in the constellation of the Pleiades.

Shemhazai and Azazel, however, were not deterred from entering into alliances
with the daughters of men, and to the first two sons were born. Azazel began to
devise the finery and the ornaments by means of which women allure men.
Thereupon God sent Metatron to tell Shemhazai that He had resolved to destroy
the world and bring on a deluge. The fallen angel began to weep and grieve over
the fate of the world and the fate of his two sons. If the world went under,
what would they have to eat, they who needed daily a thousand camels, a
thousand horses, and a thousand steers?

These two sons of Shemhazai, Hiwwa and Hiyya by name, dreamed dreams. The one
saw a great stone which covered the earth, and the earth was marked all over
with lines upon lines of writing. An angel came, and with a knife obliterated
all the lines, leaving but four letters upon the stone. The other son saw a
large pleasure grove planted with all sorts of trees. But angels approached
bearing axes, and they felled the trees, sparing a single one with three of its
branches.

When Hiwwa and Hiyya awoke, they repaired to their father, who interpreted the
dreams for them, saying, “God will bring a deluge, and none will escape with
his life, excepting only Noah and his sons.” When they heard this, the two
began to cry and scream, but their father consoled them: “Soft, soft! Do not
grieve. As often as men cut or haul stones, or launch vessels, they shall
invoke your names, Hiwwa! Hiyya!” This prophecy soothed them.

Shemhazai then did penance. He suspended himself between heaven and earth, and
in this position of a penitent sinner he hangs to this day. But Azazel
persisted obdurately in his sin of leading mankind astray by means of sensual
allurements. For this reason two he-goats were sacrificed in the Temple on the
Day of Atonement, the one for God, that He pardon the sins of Israel, the other
for Azazel, that he bear the sins of Israel.[10]

Unlike Istehar, the pious maiden, Naamah, the lovely sister of Tubal-cain, led
the angels astray with her beauty, and from her union with Shamdon sprang the
devil Asmodeus.[11] She was as shameless as all the other descendants of Cain,
and as prone to bestial indulgences. Cainite women and Cainite men alike were
in the habit of walking abroad naked, and they gave themselves up to every
conceivable manner of lewd practices. Of such were the women whose beauty and
sensual charms tempted the angels from the path of virtue. The angels, on the
other hand, no sooner had they rebelled against God and descended to earth than
they lost their transcendental qualities, and were invested with sublunary
bodies, so that a union with the daughters of men became possible. The
offspring of these alliances between the angels and the Cainite women were the
giants,[12] known for their strength and their sinfulness; as their very name,
the Emim, indicates, they inspired fear. They have many other names. Sometimes
they go by the name Rephaim, because one glance at them made one’s heart grow
weak; or by the name Gibborim, simply giants, because their size was so
enormous that their thigh measured eighteen ells; or by the name Zamzummim,
because they were great masters in war; or by the name Anakim, because they
touched the sun with their neck; or by the name Ivvim, because, like the snake,
they could judge of the qualities of the soil; or finally, by the name
Nephilim, because, bringing the world to its fall, they themselves fell.[13]

THE GENERATION OF THE DELUGE

While the descendants of Cain resembled their father in his sinfulness and
depravity, the descendants of Seth led a pious, well-regulated life, and the
difference between the conduct of the two stocks was reflected in their
habitations. The family of Seth was settled upon the mountains in the vicinity
of Paradise, while the family of Cain resided in the field of Damascus, the
spot whereon Abel was slain by Cain.

Unfortunately, at the time of Methuselah, following the death of Adam, the
family of Seth became corrupted after the manner of the Cainites. The two
strains united with each other to execute all kinds of iniquitous deeds. The
result of the marriages between them were the Nephilim, whose sins brought the
deluge upon the world. In their arrogance they claimed the same pedigree as the
posterity of Seth, and they compared themselves with princes and men of noble
descent.[14]

The wantonness of this generation was in a measure due to the ideal conditions
under which mankind lived before the flood. They knew neither toil nor care,
and as a consequence of their extraordinary prosperity they grew insolent. In
their arrogance they rose up against God. A single sowing bore a harvest
sufficient for the needs of forty years, and by means of magic arts they could
compel the very sun and moon to stand ready to do their service.[15] The
raising of children gave them no trouble. They were born after a few days’
pregnancy, and immediately after birth they could walk and talk; they
themselves aided the mother in severing the navel string. Not even demons could
do them harm. Once a new-born babe, running to fetch a light whereby his mother
might cut the navel string, met the chief of the demons, and a combat ensued
between the two. Suddenly the crowing of a cock was heard, and the demon made
off, crying out to the child, “Go and report unto thy mother, if it had not
been for the crowing of the cock, I had killed thee!” Whereupon the child
retorted, “Go and report unto thy mother, if it had not been for my uncut navel
string, I had killed thee!”[16]

It was their care-free life that gave them space and leisure for their
infamies. For a time God, in His long-suffering kindness, passed by the
iniquities of men, but His forbearance ceased when once they began to lead
unchaste lives, for “God is patient with all sins save only an immoral
life.”[17]

The other sin that hastened the end of the iniquitous generation was their
rapacity. So cunningly were their depredations planned that the law could not
touch them. If a countryman brought a basket of vegetables to market, they
would edge up to it, one after the other, and abstract a bit, each in itself of
petty value, but in a little while the dealer would have none left to sell.[18]

Even after God had resolved upon the destruction of the sinners, He still
permitted His mercy to prevail, in that He sent Noah unto them, who exhorted
them for one hundred and twenty years to amend their ways, always holding the
flood over them as a threat. As for them, they but derided him. When they saw
him occupying himself with the building of the ark, they asked, “Wherefore this
ark?”

Noah: “God will bring a flood upon you.”

The sinners: “What sort of flood? If He sends a fire flood, against that we
know how to protect ourselves. If it is a flood of waters, then, if the waters
bubble up from the earth, we will cover them with iron rods, and if they
descend from above, we know a remedy against that, too.”

Noah: “The waters will ooze out from under your feet, and you will not be able
to ward them off.”

Partly they persisted in their obduracy of heart because Noah had made known to
them that the flood would not descend so long as the pious Methuselah sojourned
among them. The period of one hundred and twenty years which God had appointed
as the term of their probation having expired, Methuselah died, but out of
regard for the memory of this pious man God gave them another week’s respite,
the week of mourning for him. During this time of grace, the laws of nature
were suspended, the sun rose in the west and set in the east. To the sinners
God gave the dainties that await man in the future world, for the purpose of
showing them what they were forfeiting.[19] But all this proved unavailing,
and, Methuselah and the other pious men of the generation having departed this
life, God brought the deluge upon the earth.[20]

THE HOLY BOOK

Great wisdom was needed for building the ark, which was to have space for all
beings on earth, even the spirits. Only the fishes did not have to be provided
for.[21] Noah acquired the necessary wisdom from the book given to Adam by the
angel Raziel, in which all celestial and all earthly knowledge is recorded.

While the first human pair were still in Paradise, it once happened that
Samael, accompanied by a lad, approached Eve and requested her to keep a
watchful eye upon his little son until he should return. Eve gave him the
promise. When Adam came back from a walk in Paradise, he found a howling,
screaming child with Eve, who, in reply to his question, told him it was
Samael’s. Adam was annoyed, and his annoyance grew as the boy cried and
screamed more and more violently. In his vexation he dealt the little one a
blow that killed him. But the corpse did not cease to wail and weep, nor did it
cease when Adam cut it up into bits. To rid himself of the plague, Adam cooked
the remains, and he and Eve ate them. Scarcely had they finished, when Samael
appeared and demanded his son. The two malefactors tried to deny everything;
they pretended they had no knowledge of his son. But Samael said to them:
“What! You dare tell lies, and God in times to come will give Israel the Torah
in which it is said, ‘Keep thee far from a false word’?”

While they were speaking thus, suddenly the voice of the slain lad was heard
proceeding from the heart of Adam and Eve, and it addressed these words to
Samael: “Go hence! I have penetrated to the heart of Adam and the heart of Eve,
and never again shall I quit their hearts, nor the hearts of their children, or
their children’s children, unto the end of all generations.”

Samael departed, but Adam was sore grieved, and he put on sackcloth and ashes,
and he fasted many, many days, until God appeared unto him, and said: “My son,
have no fear of Samael. I will give thee a remedy that will help thee against
him, for it was at My instance that he went to thee.” Adam asked, “And what is
this remedy?” God: “The Torah.” Adam: “And where is the Torah?” God then gave
him the book of the angel Raziel, which he studied day and night. After some
time had passed, the angels visited Adam, and, envious of the wisdom he had
drawn from the book, they sought to destroy him cunningly by calling him a god
and prostrating themselves before him, in spite of his remonstrance, “Do not
prostrate yourselves before me, but magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt
His Name together.” However, the envy of the angels was so great that they
stole the book God had given Adam from him, and threw it in the sea. Adam
searched for it everywhere in vain, and the loss distressed him sorely. Again
he fasted many days, until God appeared unto him, and said: “Fear not! I will
give the book back to thee,” and He called Rahab, the Angel of the Sea, and
ordered him to recover the book from the sea and restore it to Adam. And so he
did.[22]

Upon the death of Adam, the holy book disappeared, but later the cave in which
it was hidden was revealed to Enoch in a dream. It was from this book that
Enoch drew his knowledge of nature, of the earth and of the heavens, and he
became so wise through it that his wisdom exceeded the wisdom of Adam. Once he
had committed it to memory, Enoch hid the book again.

Now, when God resolved upon bringing the flood on the earth, He sent the
archangel Raphael to Noah, as the bearer of the following message: “I give thee
herewith the holy book, that all the secrets and mysteries written therein may
be made manifest unto thee, and that thou mayest know how to fulfil its
injunction in holiness, purity, modesty, and humbleness. Thou wilt learn from
it how to build an ark of the wood of the gopher tree, wherein thou, and thy
sons, and thy wife shall find protection.”

Noah took the book, and when he studied it, the holy spirit came upon him, and
he knew all things needful for the building of the ark and the gathering
together of the animals. The book, which was made of sapphires, he took with
him into the ark, having first enclosed it in a golden casket. All the time he
spent in the ark it served him as a time-piece, to distinguish night from day.
Before his death, he entrusted it to Shem, and he in turn to Abraham. From
Abraham it descended through Jacob, Levi, Moses, and Joshua to Solomon, who
learnt all his wisdom from it, and his skill in the healing art, and also his
mastery over the demons.[23]

THE INMATES OF THE ARK

The ark was completed according to the instructions laid down in the Book of
Raziel. Noah’s next task was gathering in the animals. No less than thirty-two
species of birds and three hundred and sixty-five of reptiles he had to take
along with him. But God ordered the animals to repair to the ark, and they
trooped thither, and Noah did not have to do so much as stretch out a
finger.[24] Indeed, more appeared than were required to come, and God
instructed him to sit at the door of the ark and note which of the animals lay
down as they reached the entrance and which stood. The former belonged in the
ark, but not the latter. Taking up his post as he had been commanded, Noah
observed a lioness with her two cubs. All three beasts crouched. But the two
young ones began to struggle with the mother, and she arose and stood up next
to them. Then Noah led the two cubs into the ark. The wild beasts, and the
cattle, and the birds which were not accepted remained standing about the ark
all of seven days, for the assembling of the animals happened one week before
the flood began to descend. On the day whereon they came to the ark, the sun
was darkened, and the foundations of the earth trembled, and lightning flashed,
and the thunder boomed, as never before. And yet the sinners remained
impenitent. In naught did they change their wicked doings during those last
seven days.

When finally the flood broke loose, seven hundred thousand of the children of
men gathered around the ark, and implored Noah to grant them protection. With a
loud voice he replied, and said: “Are ye not those who were rebellious toward
God, saying, ‘There is no God’? Therefore He has brought ruin upon you, to
annihilate you and destroy you from the face of the earth. Have I not been
prophesying this unto you these hundred and twenty years, and you would not
give heed unto the voice of God? Yet now you desire to be kept alive!” Then the
sinners cried out: “So be it! We all are ready now to turn back to God, if only
thou wilt open the door of thy ark to receive us, that we may live and not
die.” Noah made answer, and said: “That ye do now, when your need presses hard
upon you. Why did you not turn to God during all the hundred and twenty years
which the Lord appointed unto you as the term of repentance? Now do ye come,
and ye speak thus, because distress besets your lives. Therefore God will not
hearken unto you and give you ear; naught will you accomplish!”

The crowd of sinners tried to take the entrance to the ark by storm, but the
wild beasts keeping watch around the ark set upon them, and many were slain,
while the rest escaped, only to meet death in the waters of the flood.[25] The
water alone could not have made an end of them, for they were giants in stature
and strength. When Noah threatened them with the scourge of God, they would
make reply: “If the waters of the flood come from above, they will never reach
up to our necks; and if they come from below, the soles of our feet are large
enough to dam up the springs.” But God bade each drop pass through Gehenna
before it fell to earth, and the hot rain scalded the skin of the sinners. The
punishment that overtook them was befitting their crime. As their sensual
desires had made them hot, and inflamed them to immoral excesses, so they were
chastised by means of heated water.[26]

Not even in the hour of the death struggle could the sinners suppress their
vile instincts. When the water began to stream up out of the springs, they
threw their little children into them, to choke the flood.[27]

It was by the grace of God, not on account of his merits, that Noah found
shelter in the ark before the overwhelming force of the waters.[28] Although he
was better than his contemporaries, he was yet not worthy of having wonders
done for his sake. He had so little faith that he did not enter the ark until
the waters had risen to his knees. With him his pious wife Naamah, the daughter
of Enosh, escaped the peril, and his three sons, and the wives of his three
sons.

Noah had not married until he was four hundred and ninety-eight years old. Then
the Lord had bidden him to take a wife unto himself. He had not desired to
bring children into the world, seeing that they would all have to perish in the
flood, and he had only three sons, born unto him shortly before the deluge
came.[30] God had given him so small a number of offspring that he might be
spared the necessity of building the ark on an overlarge scale in case they
turned out to be pious. And if not, if they, too, were depraved like the rest
of their generation, sorrow over their destruction would but be increased in
proportion to their number.[31]

As Noah and his family were the only ones not to have a share in the
corruptness of the age, so the animals received into the ark were such as had
led a natural life. For the animals of the time were as immoral as the men: the
dog united with the wolf, the cock with the pea-fowl, and many others paid no
heed to sexual purity. Those that were saved were such as had kept themselves
untainted.[32]

Before the flood the number of unclean animals had been greater than the number
of the clean. Afterward the ratio was reversed, because while seven pairs of
clean animals were preserved in the ark, but two pairs of the unclean were
preserved.[33]

One animal, the reem, Noah could not take into the ark. On account of its huge
size it could not find room therein. Noah therefore tied it to the ark, and it
ran on behind.[34] Also, he could not make space for the giant Og, the king of
Bashan. He sat on top of the ark securely, and in this way escaped the flood of
waters. Noah doled out his food to him daily, through a hole, because Og had
promised that he and his descendants would serve him as slaves in
perpetuity.[35]

Two creatures of a most peculiar kind also found refuge in the ark. Among the
beings that came to Noah there was Falsehood asking for shelter. He was denied
admission, because he had no companion, and Noah was taking in the animals only
by pairs. Falsehood went off to seek a partner, and he met Misfortune, whom he
associated with himself on the condition that she might appropriate what
Falsehood earned. The pair were then accepted in the ark. When they left it,
Falsehood noticed that whatever he gathered together disappeared at once, and
he betook himself to his companion to seek an explanation, which she gave him
in the following words, “Did we not agree to the condition that I might take
what you earn?” and Falsehood had to depart empty-handed.

THE FLOOD

The assembling of the animals in the ark was but the smaller part of the task
imposed upon Noah. His chief difficulty was to provide food for a year and
accommodations for them. Long afterward Shem, the son of Noah, related to
Eliezer, the servant of Abraham, the tale of their experiences with the animals
in the ark. This is what he said: “We had sore troubles in the ark. The day
animals had to be fed by day, and the night animals by night. My father knew
not what food to give to the little zikta. Once he cut a pomegranate in half,
and a worm dropped out of the fruit, and was devoured by the zikta. Thenceforth
my father would knead bran, and let it stand until it bred worms, which were
fed to the animal. The lion suffered with a fever all the time, and therefore
he did not annoy the others, because he did not relish dry food. The animal
urshana my father found sleeping in a corner of the vessel, and he asked him
whether he needed nothing to eat. He answered, and said: ‘I saw thou wast very
busy, and I did not wish to add to thy cares.’ Whereupon my father said, ‘May
it be the will of the Lord to keep thee alive forever,’ and the blessing was
realized.”[37]

The difficulties were increased when the flood began to toss the ark from side
to side. All inside of it were shaken up like lentils in a pot. The lions began
to roar, the oxen lowed, the wolves howled, and all the animals gave vent to
their agony, each through the sounds it had the power to utter.

Also Noah and his sons, thinking that death was nigh, broke into tears. Noah
prayed to God: “O Lord, help us, for we are not able to bear the evil that
encompasses us. The billows surge about us, the streams of destruction make us
afraid, and death stares us in the face. O hear our prayer, deliver us, incline
Thyself unto us, and be gracious unto us! Redeem us and save us!”[38]

The flood was produced by a union of the male waters, which are above the
firmament, and the female waters issuing from the earth.[39] The upper waters
rushed through the space left when God removed two stars out of the
constellation Pleiades. Afterward, to put a stop to the flood, God had to
transfer two stars from the constellation of the Bear to the constellation of
the Pleiades. That is why the Bear runs after the Pleiades. She wants her two
children back, but they will be restored to her only in the future world.[40]

There were other changes among the celestial spheres during the year of the
flood. All the time it lasted, the sun and the moon shed no light, whence Noah
was called by his name, “the resting one,” for in his life the sun and the moon
rested. The ark was illuminated by a precious stone, the light of which was
more brilliant by night than by day, so enabling Noah to distinguish between
day and night.[41]

The duration of the flood was a whole year. It began on the seventeenth day of
Heshwan, and the rain continued for forty days, until the twenty-seventh of
Kislew. The punishment corresponded to the crime of the sinful generation. They
had led immoral lives, and begotten bastard children, whose embryonic state
lasts forty days. From the twenty seventh of Kislew until the first of Siwan, a
period of one hundred and fifty days, the water stood at one and the same
height, fifteen ells above the earth. During that time all the wicked were
destroyed, each one receiving the punishment due to him.[42] Cain was among
those that perished, and thus the death of Abel was avenged.[43] So powerful
were the waters in working havoc that the corpse of Adam was not spared in its
grave.[44]

On the first of Siwan the waters began to abate, a quarter of an ell a day, and
at the end of sixty days, on the tenth day of Ab, the summits of the mountains
showed themselves. But many days before, on the tenth of Tammuz, Noah had sent
forth the raven, and a week later the dove, on the first of her three sallies,
repeated at intervals of a week. It took from the first of Ab until the first
of Tishri for the waters to subside wholly from the face of the earth. Even
then the soil was so miry that the dwellers in the ark had to remain within
until the twenty-seventh day of Heshwan, completing a full sun year, consisting
of twelve moons and eleven days.[45]

Noah had experienced difficulty all along in ascertaining the state of the
waters. When he desired to dispatch the raven, the bird said: “The Lord, thy
Master, hates me, and thou dost hate me, too. Thy Master hates me, for He bade
thee take seven pairs of the clean animals into the ark, and but two pairs of
the unclean animals, to which I belong. Thou hatest me, for thou dost not
choose, as a messenger, a bird of one of the kinds of which there are seven
pairs in the ark, but thou sendest me, and of my kind there is but one pair.
Suppose, now, I should perish by reason of heat or cold, would not the world be
the poorer by a whole species of animals? Or can it be that thou hast cast a
lustful eye upon my mate, and desirest to rid thyself of me?” Where unto Noah
made answer, and said: “Wretch! I must live apart from my own wife in the ark.
How much less would such thoughts occur to my mind as thou imputest to me!”[46]

The raven’s errand had no success, for when he saw the body of a dead man, he
set to work to devour it, and did not execute the orders given to him by Noah.
Thereupon the dove was sent out. Toward evening she returned with an olive leaf
in her bill, plucked upon the Mount of Olives at Jerusalem, for the Holy Land
had not been ravaged by the deluge. As she plucked it, she said to God: “O Lord
of the world, let my food be as bitter as the olive, but do Thou give it to me
from Thy hand, rather than it should be sweet, and I be delivered into the
power of men.”[47]

NOAH LEAVES THE ARK

Though the earth assumed its old form at the end of the year of punishment,
Noah did not abandon the ark until he received the command of God to leave it.
He said to himself, “As I entered the ark at the bidding of God, so I will
leave it only at His bidding.” Yet, when God bade Noah go out of the ark, he
refused, because he feared that after he had lived upon the dry land for some
time, and begotten children, God would bring another flood. He therefore would
not leave the ark until God swore He would never visit the earth with a flood
again.[48]

When he stepped out from the ark into the open, he began to weep bitterly at
sight of the enormous ravages wrought by the flood, and he said to God: “O Lord
of the world! Thou art called the Merciful, and Thou shouldst have had mercy
upon Thy creatures.” God answered, and said: “O thou foolish shepherd, now thou
speakest to Me. Thou didst not so when I addressed kind words to thee, saying:
‘I saw thee as a righteous man and perfect in thy generation, and I will bring
the flood upon the earth to destroy all flesh. Make an ark for thyself of
gopher wood.’ Thus spake I to thee, telling thee all these circumstances, that
thou mightest entreat mercy for the earth. But thou, as soon as thou didst hear
that thou wouldst be rescued in the ark, thou didst not concern thyself about
the ruin that would strike the earth. Thou didst but build an ark for thyself,
in which thou wast saved. Now that the earth is wasted, thou openest thy mouth
to supplicate and pray.”

Noah realized that he had been guilty of folly. To propitiate God and
acknowledge his sin, he brought a sacrifice.[49] God accepted the offering with
favor, whence he is called by his name Noah.[50] The sacrifice was not offered
by Noah with his own hands; the priestly services connected with it were
performed by his son Shem. There was a reason for this. One day in the ark Noah
forgot to give his ration to the lion, and the hungry beast struck him so
violent a blow with his paw that he was lame forever after, and, having a
bodily defect, he was not permitted to do the offices of a priest.[51]

The sacrifices consisted of an ox, a sheep, a goat, two turtle doves, and two
young pigeons. Noah had chosen these kinds because he supposed they were
appointed for sacrifices, seeing that God had commanded him to take seven pairs
of them into the ark with him. The altar was erected in the same place on which
Adam and Cain and Abel had brought their sacrifices, and on which later the
altar was to be in the sanctuary at Jerusalem.[52]

After the sacrifice was completed, God blessed Noah and his sons. He made them
to be rulers of the world as Adam had been,[53] and He gave them a command,
saying, “Be fruitful and multiply upon the earth,” for during their sojourn in
the ark, the two sexes, of men and animals alike, had lived apart from each
other, because while a public calamity rages continence is becoming even to
those who are left unscathed. This law of conduct had been violated by none in
the ark except by Ham, by the dog, and by the raven. They all received a
punishment. Ham’s was that his descendants were men of dark-hued skin.[54]

As a token that He would destroy the earth no more, God set His bow in the
cloud. Even if men should be steeped in sin again, the bow proclaims to them
that their sins will cause no harm to the world. Times came in the course of
the ages when men were pious enough not to have to live in dread of punishment.
In such times the bow was not visible.[55]

God accorded permission to Noah and his descendants to use the flesh of animals
for food, which had been forbidden from the time of Adam until then. But they
were to abstain from the use of blood. He ordained the seven Noachian laws, the
observance of which is incumbent upon all men, not upon Israel alone. God
enjoined particularly the command against the shedding of human blood. Whoso
would shed man’s blood, his blood would be shed. Even if human judges let the
guilty man go free, his punishment would overtake him. He would die an
unnatural death, such as he had inflicted upon his fellow-man. Yea, even beasts
that slew men, even of them would the life of men be required.[56]

THE CURSE OF DRUNKENNESS

Noah lost his epithet “the pious” when he began to occupy himself with the
growing of the vine. He became a “man of the ground,” and this first attempt to
produce wine at the same time produced the first to drink to excess, the first
to utter curses upon his associates, and the first to introduce slavery. This
is the way it all came about. Noah found the vine which Adam had taken with him
from Paradise, when he was driven forth. He tasted the grapes upon it, and,
finding them palatable, he resolved to plant the vine and tend it.[57] On the
selfsame day on which he planted it, it bore fruit, he put it in the
wine-press, drew off the juice, drank it, became drunken, and was
dishonored—all on one day. His assistant in the work of cultivating the vine
was Satan, who had happened along at the very moment when he was engaged in
planting the slip he had found. Satan asked him: “What is it thou art planting
here?”

Noah: “A vineyard.”

Satan: “And what may be the qualities of what it produces?”

Noah: “The fruit it bears is sweet, be it dry or moist. It yields wine that
rejoiceth the heart of man.”

Satan: “Let us go into partnership in this business of planting a vineyard.”

Noah: “Agreed!”

Satan thereupon slaughtered a lamb, and then, in succession, a lion, a pig, and
a monkey. The blood of each as it was killed he made to flow under the vine.
Thus he conveyed to Noah what the qualities of wine are: before man drinks of
it, he is innocent as a lamb; if he drinks of it moderately, he feels as strong
as a lion; if he drinks more of it than he can bear, he resembles the pig; and
if he drinks to the point of intoxication, then he behaves like a monkey, he
dances around, sings, talks obscenely, and knows not what he is doing.[58]

This deterred Noah no more than did the example of Adam, whose fall had also
been due to wine, for the forbidden fruit had been the grape, with which he had
made himself drunk.[59]

In his drunken condition Noah betook himself to the tent of his wife. His son
Ham saw him there, and he told his brothers what he had noticed, and said: “The
first man had but two sons, and one slew the other; this man Noah has three
sons, yet he desires to beget a fourth besides.” Nor did Ham rest satisfied
with these disrespectful words against his father. He added to this sin of
irreverence the still greater outrage of attempting to perform an operation
upon his father designed to prevent procreation.

When Noah awoke from his wine and became sober, he pronounced a curse upon Ham
in the person of his youngest son Canaan. To Ham himself he could do no harm,
for God had conferred a blessing upon Noah and his three sons as they departed
from the ark. Therefore he put the curse upon the last-born son of the son that
had prevented him from begetting a younger son than the three he had. The
descendants of Ham through Canaan therefore have red eyes, because Ham looked
upon the nakedness of his father; they have misshapen lips, because Ham spoke
with his lips to his brothers about the unseemly condition of his father; they
have twisted curly hair, because Ham turned and twisted his head round to see
the nakedness of his father; and they go about naked, because Ham did not cover
the nakedness of his father. Thus he was requited, for it is the way of God to
mete out punishment measure for measure.

Canaan had to suffer vicariously for his father’s sin. Yet some of the
punishment was inflicted upon him on his own account, for it had been Canaan
who had drawn the attention of Ham to Noah’s revolting condition. Ham, it
appears, was but the worthy father of such a son.[61] The last will and
testament of Canaan addressed to his children read as follows: “Speak not the
truth; hold not yourselves aloof from theft; lead a dissolute life; hate your
master with an exceeding great hate; and love one another.”[62]

As Ham was made to suffer requital for his irreverence, so Shem and Japheth
received a reward for the filial, deferential way in which they took a garment
and laid it upon both their shoulders, and walking backward, with averted
faces, covered the nakedness of their father. Naked the descendants of Ham, the
Egyptians and Ethiopians, were led away captive and into exile by the king of
Assyria, while the descendants of Shem, the Assyrians, even when the angel of
the Lord burnt them in the camp, were not exposed, their garments remained upon
their corpses unsinged. And in time to come, when Gog shall suffer his defeat,
God will provide both shrouds and a place of burial for him and all his
multitude, the posterity of Japheth.

Though Shem and Japheth both showed themselves to be dutiful and deferential,
yet it was Shem who deserved the larger meed of praise. He was the first to set
about covering his father. Japheth joined him after the good deed had been
begun. Therefore the descendants of Shem received as their special reward the
tallit, the garment worn by them, while the Japhethites have only the toga.[63]
A further distinction accorded to Shem was the mention of his name in
connection with God’s in the blessing of Noah. “Blessed be the Lord, the God of
Shem,” he said, though as a rule the name of God is not joined to the name of a
living person, only to the name of one who has departed this life.[64]

The relation of Shem to Japheth was expressed in the blessing their father
pronounced upon them: God will grant a land of beauty to Japheth, and his sons
will be proselytes dwelling in the academies of Shem.[65] At the same time Noah
conveyed by his words that the Shekinah would dwell only in the first Temple,
erected by Solomon, a son of Shem, and not in the second Temple, the builder of
which would be Cyrus, a descendant of Japheth.[66]

NOAH’S DESCENDANTS SPREAD ABROAD

When it became known to Ham that his father had cursed him, he fled ashamed,
and with his family he settled in the city built by him, and named Neelatamauk
for his wife. Jealous of his brother, Japheth followed his example. He likewise
built a city which he named for his wife, Adataneses. Shem was the only one of
the sons of Noah who did not abandon him. In the vicinity of his father’s home,
by the mountain, he built his city, to which he also gave his wife’s name,
Zedeketelbab. The three cities are all near Mount Lubar, the eminence upon
which the ark rested. The first lies to the south of it, the second to the
west, and the third to the east.

Noah endeavored to inculcate the ordinances and the commands known to him upon
his children and his children’s children. In particular he admonished them
against the fornication, the uncleanness, and all the iniquity which had
brought the flood down upon the earth. He reproached them with living apart
from one another, and with their jealousies, for he feared that, after his
death, they might go so far as to shed human blood. Against this he warned them
impressively, that they be not annihilated from the earth like those that went
before. Another law which he enjoined upon them, to observe it, was the law
ordaining that the fruit of a tree shall not be used the first three years it
bears, and even in the fourth year it shall be the portion of the priests
alone, after a part thereof has been offered upon the altar of God. And having
made an end of giving his teachings and injunctions, Noah said: “For thus did
Enoch, your ancestor, exhort his son Methuselah, and Methuselah his son Lamech,
and Lamech delivered all unto me as his father had bidden him, and now I do
exhort you, my children, as Enoch exhorted his son. When he lived, in his
generation, which was the seventh generation of man, he commanded it and
testified it unto his children and his children’s children, until the day of
his death.”[67]

In the year 1569 after the creation of the world, Noah divided the earth by lot
among his three sons, in the presence of an angel. Each one stretched forth his
hand and took a slip from the bosom of Noah. Shem’s slip was inscribed with the
middle of the earth, and this portion became the inheritance of his descendants
unto all eternity. Noah rejoiced that the lot had assigned it to Shem. Thus was
fulfilled his blessing upon him, “And God in the habitation of Shem,” for three
holy places fell within his precincts—the Holy of Holies in the Temple, Mount
Sinai, the middle point of the desert, and Mount Zion, the middle point of the
navel of the earth.

The south fell to the lot of Ham, and the north became the inheritance of
Japheth. The land of Ham is hot, Japheth’s cold, but Shem’s is neither hot nor
cold, its temperature is hot and cold mixed.[68]

This division of the earth took place toward the end of the life of Peleg, the
name given to him by his father Eber, who, being a prophet, knew that the
division of the earth would take place in the time of his son.[69] The brother
of Peleg was called Joktan, because the duration of the life of man was
shortened in his time.[70]

In turn, the three sons of Noah, while they were still standing in the presence
of their father, divided each his portion among his children, Noah threatening
with his curse any who should stretch out his hand to take a portion not
assigned to him by lot. And they all cried, “So be it! So be it!”[71]

Thus were divided one hundred and four lands and ninety-nine islands among
seventy-two nations, each with a language of its own, using sixteen different
sets of characters for writing. To Japheth were allotted forty-four lands,
thirty-three islands, twenty-two languages, and five kinds of writing; Ham
received thirty-four lands, thirty-three islands, twenty-four languages, and
five kinds of writing; and Shem twenty-six lands, thirty-three islands,
twenty-six languages, and six kinds of writing—one set of written characters
more to Shem than to either of his brothers, the extra set being the
Hebrew.[72]

The land appointed as the inheritance of the twelve sons of Jacob was
provisionally granted to Canaan, Zidon, Heth, the Jebusites, the Amorites, the
Girgashites, the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, the Arvadites, the
Zemarites, and the Hamathites. It was the duty of these nations to take care of
the land until the rightful owners should come.[73]

No sooner had the children of Noah and their children’s children taken
possession of the habitations apportioned to them, than the unclean spirits
began to seduce men and torment them with pain and all sorts of suffering
leading to spiritual and physical death. Upon the entreaties of Noah God sent
down the angel Raphael, who banished nine-tenths of the unclean spirits from
the earth, leaving but one-tenth for Mastema, to punish sinners through them.
Raphael, supported by the chief of the unclean spirits, at that time revealed
to Noah all the remedies residing in plants, that he might resort to them at
need. Noah recorded them in a book, which he transmitted to his son Shem.[74]
This is the source to which go back all the medical books whence the wise men
of India, Aram, Macedonia, and Egypt draw their knowledge. The sages of India
devoted themselves particularly to the study of curative trees and spices; the
Arameans were well versed in the knowledge of the properties of grains and
seeds, and they translated the old medical books into their language. The wise
men of Macedonia were the first to apply medical knowledge practically, while
the Egyptians sought to effect cures by means of magic arts and by means of
astrology, and they taught the Midrash of the Chaldees, composed by Kangar, the
son of Ur, the son of Kesed. Medical skill spread further and further until the
time of aesculapius. This Macedonian sage, accompanied by forty learned
magicians, journeyed from country to country, until they came to the land
beyond India, in the direction of Paradise. They hoped there to find some wood
of the tree of life, and thus spread their fame abroad over the whole world.
Their hope was frustrated. When they arrived at the spot, they found healing
trees and wood of the tree of life, but when they were in the act of stretching
forth their hands to gather what they desired, lightning darted out of the
ever-turning sword, smote them to the ground, and they were all burnt. With
them disappeared all knowledge of medicine, and it did not revive until the
time of the first Artaxerxes, under the Macedonian sage Hippocrates,
Dioscorides of Baala, Galen of Caphtor, and the Hebrew Asaph.[75]

THE DEPRAVITY OF MANKIND

With the spread of mankind corruption increased. While Noah was still alive,
the descendants of Shem, Ham, and Japheth appointed princes over each of the
three groups—Nimrod for the descendants of Ham, Joktan for the descendants of
Shem, and Phenech for the descendants of Japheth. Ten years before Noah’s
death, the number of those subject to the three princes amounted to millions.
When this great concourse of men came to Babylonia upon their journeyings, they
said to one another: “Behold, the time is coming when, at the end of days,
neighbor will be separated from neighbor, and brother from brother, and one
will carry on war against the other. Go to, let us build us a city, and a
tower, whose top may reach unto heaven, and let us make us a great name upon
the earth. And now let us make bricks, and each one write his name upon his
brick.” All agreed to this proposal, with the exception of twelve pious men,
Abraham among them. They refused to join the others. They were seized by the
people, and brought before the three princes, to whom they gave the following
reason for their refusal: “We will not make bricks, nor remain with you, for we
know but one God, and Him we serve; even if you burn us in the fire together
with the bricks, we will not walk in your ways.” Nimrod and Phenech flew into
such a passion over the twelve men that they resolved to throw them into the
fire. Joktan, however, besides being a God-fearing man, was of close kin to the
men on trial, and he essayed to save them. He proposed to his two colleagues to
grant them a seven days’ respite. His plan was accepted, such deference being
paid him as the primate among the three. The twelve were incarcerated in the
house of Joktan. In the night he charged fifty of his attendants to mount the
prisoners upon mules and take them to the mountains. Thus they would escape the
threatened punishment. Joktan provided them with food for a month. He was sure
that in the meantime either a change of sentiment would come about, and the
people desist from their purpose, or God would help the fugitives. Eleven of
the prisoners assented to the plan with gratitude. Abraham alone rejected it,
saying: “Behold, to-day we flee to the mountains to escape from the fire, but
if wild beasts rush out from the mountains and devour us, or if food is
lacking, so that we die by famine, we shall be found fleeing before the people
of the land and dying in our sins. Now, as the Lord liveth, in whom I trust, I
will not depart from this place wherein they have imprisoned me, and if I am to
die through my sins, then will I die by the will of God, according to His
desire.”

In vain Joktan endeavored to persuade Abraham to flee. He persisted in his
refusal. He remained behind alone in the prison house, while the other eleven
made their escape. At the expiration of the set term, when the people returned
and demanded the death of the twelve captives, Joktan could produce only
Abraham. His excuse was that the rest had broken loose during the night. The
people were about to throw themselves upon Abraham and cast him into the lime
kiln. Suddenly an earthquake was felt, the fire darted from the furnace, and
all who were standing round about, eighty four thousand of the people, were
consumed, while Abraham remained untouched. Thereupon he repaired to his eleven
friends in the mountains, and told them of the miracle that had befallen for
his sake. They all returned with him, and, unmolested by the people, they gave
praise and thanks to God.[76]

NIMROD

The first among the leaders of the corrupt men was Nimrod.[77] His father Cush
had married his mother at an advanced age, and Nimrod, the offspring of this
belated union, was particularly dear to him as the son of his old age. He gave
him the clothes made of skins with which God had furnished Adam and Eve at the
time of their leaving Paradise. Cush himself had gained possession of them
through Ham. From Adam and Eve they had descended to Enoch, and from him to
Methuselah, and to Noah, and the last had taken them with him into the ark.
When the inmates of the ark were about to leave their refuge, Ham stole the
garments and kept them concealed, finally passing them on to his first-born son
Cush. Cush in turn hid them for many years. When his son Nimrod reached his
twentieth year, he gave them to him.[78] These garments had a wonderful
property. He who wore them was both invincible and irresistible. The beasts and
birds of the woods fell down before Nimrod as soon as they caught sight of him
arrayed in them,[79] and he was equally victorious in his combats with men.[80]
The source of his unconquerable strength was not known to them. They attributed
it to his personal prowess, and therefore they appointed him king over
themselves.[81] This was done after a conflict between the descendants of Cush
and the descendants of Japheth, from which Nimrod emerged triumphant, having
routed the enemy utterly with the assistance of a handful of warriors. He chose
Shinar as his capital. Thence he extended his dominion farther and farther,
until he rose by cunning and force to be the sole ruler of the whole world, the
first mortal to hold universal sway, as the ninth ruler to possess the same
power will be the Messiah.[82]

His impiousness kept pace with his growing power. Since the flood there had
been no such sinner as Nimrod. He fashioned idols of wood and stone, and paid
worship to them. But not satisfied to lead a godless life himself, he did all
he could to tempt his subjects into evil ways, wherein he was aided and abetted
by his son Mardon. This son of his outstripped his father in iniquity. It was
their time and their life that gave rise to the proverb, “Out of the wicked
cometh forth wickedness.”[83]

The great success that attended all of Nimrod’s undertakings produced a
sinister effect. Men no longer trusted in God, but rather in their own prowess
and ability,[84] an attitude to which Nimrod tried to convert the whole
world.[85] Therefore people said, “Since the creation of the world there has
been none like Nimrod, a mighty hunter of men and beasts, and a sinner before
God.”[86]

And not all this sufficed unto Nimrod’s evil desire. Not enough that he turned
men away from God, he did all he could to make them pay Divine honors unto
himself. He set himself up as a god, and made a seat for himself in imitation
of the seat of God. It was a tower built out of a round rock, and on it he
placed a throne of cedar wood, upon which arose, one above the other, four
thrones, of iron, copper, silver, and gold. Crowning all, upon the golden
throne, lay a precious stone, round in shape and gigantic in size. This served
him as a seat, and as he sate upon it, all nations came and paid him Divine
homage.[87]

THE TOWER OF BABEL

The iniquity and godlessness of Nimrod reached their climax in the building of
the Tower of Babel. His counsellors had proposed the plan of erecting such a
tower, Nimrod had agreed to it, and it was executed in Shinar by a mob of six
hundred thousand men. The enterprise was neither more nor less than rebellion
against God, and there were three sorts of rebels among the builders. The first
party spoke, Let us ascend into the heavens and wage warfare with Him; the
second party spoke, Let us ascend into the heavens, set up our idols, and pay
worship unto them there; and the third party spoke, Let us ascend into the
heavens, and ruin them with our bows and spears.

Many, many years were passed in building the tower. It reached so great a
height that it took a year to mount to the top. A brick was, therefore, more
precious in the sight of the builders than a human being. If a man fell down,
and met his death, none took notice of it, but if a brick dropped, they wept,
because it would take a year to replace it. So intent were they upon
accomplishing their purpose that they would not permit a woman to interrupt
herself in her work of brick-making when the hour of travail came upon her.
Moulding bricks she gave birth to her child, and, tying it round her body in a
sheet, she went on moulding bricks.

They never slackened in their work, and from their dizzy height they constantly
shot arrows toward heaven, which, returning, were seen to be covered with
blood. They were thus fortified in their delusion, and they cried, “We have
slain all who are in heaven.” Thereupon God turned to the seventy angels who
encompass His throne, and He spake: “Go to, let us go down, and there confound
their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.” Thus it
happened. Thenceforth none knew what the other spoke. One would ask for the
mortar, and the other handed him a brick; in a rage, he would throw the brick
at his partner and kill him. Many perished in this manner, and the rest were
punished according to the nature of their rebellious conduct. Those who had
spoken, “Let us ascend into the heavens, set up our idols, and pay worship unto
them there,” God transformed into apes and phantoms; those who had proposed to
assault the heavens with their arms, God set against each other so that they
fell in the combat; and those who had resolved to carry on a combat with God in
heaven were scattered broadcast over the earth. As for the unfinished tower, a
part sank into the earth, and another part was consumed by fire; only one-third
of it remained standing.[88] The place of the tower has never lost its peculiar
quality. Whoever passes it forgets all he knows.[89]

The punishment inflicted upon the sinful generation of the tower is
comparatively lenient. On account of rapine the generation of the flood were
utterly destroyed, while the generation of the tower were preserved in spite of
their blasphemies and all their other acts offensive to God. The reason is that
God sets a high value upon peace and harmony. Therefore the generation of the
deluge, who gave themselves up to depredation, and bore hatred to one another,
were extirpated, root and branch, while the generation of the Tower of Babel
dwelling amicably together, and loving one another, were spared alive, at least
a remnant of them.[90]

Beside the chastisement of sin and sinners by the confounding of speech,
another notable circumstance was connected with the descent of God upon
earth—one of only ten such descents to occur between the creation of the world
and the day of judgment. It was on this occasion that God and the seventy
angels that surround His throne cast lots concerning the various nations. Each
angel received a nation, and Israel fell to the lot of God. To every nation a
peculiar language was assigned, Hebrew being reserved for Israel—the language
made use of by God at the creation of the world.[91]

V
ABRAHAM

THE WICKED GENERATIONS

Ten generations there were from Noah to Abraham, to show how great is the
clemency of God, for all the generations provoked His wrath, until Abraham our
father came and received the reward of all of them.[1] For the sake of Abraham
God had shown himself long-suffering and patient during the lives of these ten
generations. Yea, more, the world itself had been created for the sake of his
merits.[2] His advent had been made manifest to his ancestor Reu, who uttered
the following prophecy at the birth of his son Serug: “From this child he shall
be born in the fourth generation that shall set his dwelling over the highest,
and he shall be called perfect and spotless, and shall be the father of
nations, and his covenant shall not be dissolved, and his seed shall be
multiplied forever.”[3]

It was, indeed, high time that the “friend of God”[4] should make his
appearance upon earth. The descendants of Noah were sinking from depravity to
lower and lower depths of depravity. They were beginning to quarrel and slay,
eat blood, build fortified cities and walls and towers, and set one man over
the whole nation as king, and wage wars, people against people, and nations
against nations, and cities against cities, and do all manner of evil, and
acquire weapons, and teach warfare unto their children. And they began also to
take captives and sell them as slaves. And they made unto themselves molten
images, which they worshipped, each one the idol he had molten for himself, for
the evil spirits under their leader Mastema led them astray into sin and
uncleanness. For this reason Reu called his son Serug, because all mankind had
turned aside unto sin and transgression. When he grew to manhood, the name was
seen to have been chosen fittingly, for he, too, worshipped idols, and when he
himself had a son, Nahor by name, he taught him the arts of the Chaldees, how
to be a soothsayer and practice magic according to signs in the heavens. When,
in time, a son was born to Nahor, Mastema sent ravens and other birds to
despoil the earth and rob men of the proceeds of their work. As soon as they
had dropped the seed in the furrows, and before they could cover it over with
earth, the birds picked it up from the surface of the ground, and Nahor called
his son Terah, because the ravens and the other birds plagued men, devoured
their seed, and reduced them to destitution.[6]

THE BIRTH OF ABRAHAM

Terah married Emtelai, the daughter of Karnabo,[6] and the offspring of their
union was Abraham. His birth had been read in the stars by Nimrod,[7] for this
impious king was a cunning astrologer, and it was manifest to him that a man
would be born in his day who would rise up against him and triumphantly give
the lie to his religion. In his terror at the fate foretold him in the stars,
he sent for his princes and governors, and asked them to advise him in the
matter. They answered, and said: “Our unanimous advice is that thou shouldst
build a great house, station a guard at the entrance thereof, and make known in
the whole of thy realm that all pregnant women shall repair thither together
with their midwives, who are to remain with them when they are delivered. When
the days of a woman to be delivered are fulfilled, and the child is born, it
shall be the duty of the midwife to kill it, if it be a boy. But if the child
be a girl, it shall be kept alive, and the mother shall receive gifts and
costly garments, and a herald shall proclaim, ‘Thus is done unto the woman who
bears a daughter!'”

The king was pleased with this counsel, and he had a proclamation published
throughout his whole kingdom, summoning all the architects to build a great
house for him, sixty ells high and eighty wide. After it was completed, he
issued a second proclamation, summoning all pregnant women thither, and there
they were to remain until their confinement. Officers were appointed to take
the women to the house, and guards were stationed in it and about it, to
prevent the women from escaping thence. He furthermore sent midwives to the
house, and commanded them to slay the men children at their mothers’ breasts.
But if a woman bore a girl, she was to be arrayed in byssus, silk, and
embroidered garments, and led forth from the house of detention amid great
honors. No less than seventy thousand children were slaughtered thus. Then the
angels appeared before God, and spoke, “Seest Thou not what he doth, yon sinner
and blasphemer, Nimrod son of Canaarl, who slays so many innocent babes that
have done no harm?” God answered, and said: “Ye holy angels, I know it and I
see it, for I neither slumber nor sleep. I behold and I know the secret things
and the things that are revealed, and ye shall witness what I will do unto this
sinner and blasphemer, for I will turn My hand against him to chastise him.”[8]

It was about this time that Terah espoused the mother of Abraham, and she was
with child. When her body grew large at the end of three months of
pregnancy,[9] and her countenance became pale, Terah said unto her, “What ails
thee, my wife, that thy countenance is so pale and thy body so swollen?” She
answered, and said, “Every year I suffer with this malady.”[10] But Terah would
not be put off thus. He insisted: “Show me thy body. It seems to me thou art
big with child. If that be so, it behooves us not to violate the command of our
god Nimrod.”[11] When he passed his hand over her body, there happened a
miracle. The child rose until it lay beneath her breasts, and Terah could feel
nothing with his hands. He said to his wife, “Thou didst speak truly,” and
naught became visible until the day of her delivery.

When her time approached, she left the city in great terror and wandered toward
the desert, walking along the edge of a valley,[12] until she happened across a
cave. She entered this refuge, and on the next day she was seized with throes,
and she gave birth to a son. The whole cave was filled with the light of the
child’s countenance as with the splendor of the sun, and the mother rejoiced
exceedingly. The babe she bore was our father Abraham.

His mother lamented, and said to her son: “Alas that I bore thee at a time when
Nimrod is king. For thy sake seventy thousand men children were slaughtered,
and I am seized with terror on account of thee, that he hear of thy existence,
and slay thee. Better thou shouldst perish here in this cave than my eye should
behold thee dead at my breast.” She took the garment in which she was clothed,
and wrapped it about the boy. Then she abandoned him in the cave, saying, “May
the Lord be with thee, may He not fail thee nor forsake thee.”[13]

THE BABE PROCLAIMS GOD

Thus Abraham was deserted in the cave, without a nurse, and he began to wail.
God sent Gabriel down to give him milk to drink, and the angel made it to flow
from the little finger of the baby’s right hand, and he sucked at it until he
was ten days old.[14] Then he arose and walked about, and he left the cave, and
went along the edge of the valley.[15] When the sun sank, and the stars came
forth, he said, “These are the gods!” But the dawn came, and the stars could be
seen no longer, and then he said, “I will not pay worship to these, for they
are no gods.” Thereupon the sun came forth, and he spoke, “This is my god, him
will I extol.” But again the sun set, and he said, “He is no god,” and
beholding the moon, he called her his god to whom he would pay Divine homage.
Then the moon was obscured, and he cried out: “This, too, is no god! There is
One who sets them all in motion.”[16]

He was still communing with himself when the angel Gabriel approached him and
met him with the greeting, “Peace be with thee,” and Abraham returned, “With
thee be peace,” and asked, “Who art thou?” And Gabriel answered, and said, “I
am the angel Gabriel, the messenger of God,” and he led Abraham to a spring of
water near by, and Abraham washed his face and his hands and feet, and he
prayed to God, bowing down and prostrating himself.

Meantime the mother of Abraham thought of him in sorrow and tears, and she went
forth from the city to seek him in the cave in which she had abandoned him. Not
finding her son, she wept bitterly, and said, “Woe unto me that I bore thee but
to become a prey of wild beasts, the bears and the lions and the wolves!” She
went to the edge of the valley, and there she found her son. But she did not
recognize him, for he had grown very large. She addressed the lad, “Peace be
with thee!” and he returned, “With thee be peace!” and he continued, “Unto what
purpose didst thou come to the desert?” She replied, “I went forth from the
city to seek my son.” Abraham questioned further, “Who brought thy son hither?”
and the mother replied thereto: “I had become pregnant from my husband Terah,
and when the days of my delivery were fulfilled, I was in anxiety about my son
in my womb, lest our king come, the son of Canaan, and slay him as he had slain
the seventy thousand other men children. Scarcely had I reached the cave in
this valley when the throes of travailing seized me, and I bore a son, whom I
left behind in the cave, and I went home again. Now am I come to seek him, but
I find him not.”

Abraham then spoke, “As to this child thou tellest of, how old was it?”

The mother: “It was about twenty days old.”

Abraham: “Is there a woman in the world who would forsake her new-born son in
the desert, and come to seek him after twenty days?”

The mother: “Peradventure God will show Himself a merciful God!”

Abraham: “I am the son whom thou hast come to seek in this valley!”

The mother: “My son, how thou art grown! But twenty days old, and thou canst
already walk, and talk with thy mouth!”[17]

Abraham: “So it is, and thus, O my mother, it is made known unto thee that
there is in the world a great, terrible, living, and ever-existing God, who
doth see, but who cannot be seen. He is in the heavens above, and the whole
earth is full of His glory.”

The mother: “My son, is there a God beside Nimrod?”

Abraham: “Yes, mother, the God of the heavens and the God of the earth, He is
also the God of Nimrod son of Canaan. Go, therefore, and carry this message
unto Nimrod.”

The mother of Abraham returned to the city and told her husband Terah how she
had found their son. Terah, who was a prince and a magnate in the house of the
king, betook himself to the royal palace, and cast himself down before the king
upon his face. It was the rule that one who prostrated himself before the king
was not permitted to lift up his head until the king bade him lift it up.
Nimrod gave permission to Terah to rise and state his request. Thereupon Terah
related all that had happened with his wife and his son. When Nimrod heard his
tale, abject fear seized upon him, and he asked his counsellors and princes
what to do with the lad. They answered, and said: “Our king and our god!
Wherefore art thou in fear by reason of a little child? There are myriads upon
myriads of princes in thy realm,[18] rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds,
rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens, and overseers without number. Let the
pettiest of the princes go and fetch the boy and put him in prison.” But the
king interposed, “Have ye ever seen a baby of twenty days walking with his
feet, speaking with his mouth, and proclaiming with his tongue that there is a
God in heaven, who is One, and none beside Him, who sees and is not seen?” All
the assembled princes were horror struck at these words.[19]

At this time Satan in human form appeared, clad in black silk garb, and he cast
himself down before the king. Nimrod said, “Raise thy head and state thy
request.” Satan asked the king: “Why art thou terrified, and why are ye all in
fear on account of a little lad? I will counsel thee what thou shalt do: Open
thy arsenal and give weapons unto all the princes, chiefs, and governors, and
unto all the warriors, and send them to fetch him unto thy service and to be
under thy dominion.”

This advice given by Satan the king accepted and followed. He sent a great
armed host to bring Abraham to him. When the boy saw the army approach him, he
was sore afraid, and amid tears he implored God for help. In answer to his
prayer, God sent the angel Gabriel to him, and he said: “Be not afraid and
disquieted, for God is with thee. He will rescue thee out of the hands of all
thine adversaries.” God commanded Gabriel to put thick, dark clouds between
Abraham and his assailants. Dismayed by the heavy clouds, they fled, returning
to Nimrod, their king, and they said to him, “Let us depart and leave this
realm,” and the king gave money unto all his princes and his servants, and
together with the king they departed and journeyed to Babylon.[20]

ABRAHAM’S FIRST APPEARANCE IN PUBLIC

Now Abraham, at the command of God, was ordered by the angel Gabriel to follow
Nimrod to Babylon. He objected that he was in no wise equipped to undertake a
campaign against the king, but Gabriel calmed him with the words: “Thou needest
no provision for the way, no horse to ride upon, no warriors to carry on war
with Nimrod, no chariots, nor riders. Do thou but sit thyself upon my shoulder,
and I shall bear thee to Babylon.”

Abraham did as he was bidden, and in the twinkling of an eye he found himself
before the gates of the city of Babylon.[21] At the behest of the angel, he
entered the city, and he called unto the dwellers therein with a loud voice:
“The Eternal, He is the One Only God, and there is none beside. He is the God
of the heavens, and the God of the gods, and the God of Nimrod. Acknowledge
this as the truth, all ye men, women, and children. Acknowledge also that I am
Abraham His servant, the trusted steward of His house.”

Abraham met his parents in Babylon, and also he saw the angel Gabriel, who bade
him proclaim the true faith to his father and his mother. Therefore Abraham
spake to them, and said: “Ye serve a man of your own kind, and you pay worship
to an image of Nimrod. Know ye not that it has a mouth, but it speaks not; an
eye, but it sees not; an ear, but it hears not; nor does it walk upon its feet,
and there is no profit in it, either unto itself or unto others?”

When Terah heard these words, he persuaded Abraham to follow him into the
house, where his son told him all that had happened—how in one day he had
completed a forty days’ journey. Terah thereupon went to Nimrod and reported to
him that his son Abraham had suddenly appeared in Babylon.[22] The king sent
for Abraham, and he came before him with his father. Abraham passed the
magnates and the dignitaries until he reached the royal throne, upon which he
seized hold, shaking it and crying out with a loud voice: “O Nimrod, thou
contemptible wretch, that deniest the essence of faith, that deniest the living
and immutable God, and Abraham His servant, the trusted steward of His house.
Acknowledge Him, and repeat after me the words: The Eternal is God, the Only
One, and there is none beside; He is incorporeal, living, ever-existing; He
slumbers not and sleeps not, who hath created the world that men might believe
in Him. And confess also concerning me, and say that I am the servant of God
and the trusted steward of His house.”[23]

While Abraham proclaimed this with a loud voice, the idols fell upon their
faces, and with them also King Nimrod.[24] For a space of two hours and a half
the king lay lifeless, and when his soul returned upon him, he spoke and said,
“Is it thy voice, O Abraham, or the voice of thy God?” And Abraham answered,
and said, “This voice is the voice of the least of all creatures called into
existence by God.” Thereupon Nimrod said, “Verily, the God of Abraham is a
great and powerful God, the King of all kings,” and he commanded Terah to take
his son and remove him, and return again unto his own city, and father and son
did as the king had ordered.[25]

THE PREACHER OF THE TRUE FAITH

When Abraham attained the age of twenty years, his father Terah fell ill. He
spoke as follows to his sons Haran and Abraham, “I adjure you by your lives, my
sons, sell these two idols for me, for I have not enough money to meet our
expenses.” Haran executed the wish of his father, but if any one accosted
Abraham, to buy an idol from him, and asked him the price, he would answer,
“Three manehs,” and then question in turn, “How old art thou?” “Thirty years,”
the reply would be. “Thou art thirty years of age, and yet thou wouldst worship
this idol which I made but to-day?” The man would depart and go his way, and
another would approach Abraham, and ask, “How much is this idol?” and “Five
manehs” would be the reply, and again Abraham would put the question, “How old
art thou?”—”Fifty years.”—”And dost thou who art fifty years of age bow down
before this idol which was made but to-day?” Thereupon the man would depart and
go his way. Abraham then took two idols, put a rope about their necks, and,
with their faces turned downward, he dragged them along the ground, crying
aloud all the time: “Who will buy an idol wherein there is no profit, either
unto itself or unto him that buys it in order to worship it? It has a mouth,
but it speaketh not; eyes, but it seeth not; feet, but it walketh not; ears,
but it heareth not.”

The people who heard Abraham were amazed exceedingly at his words. As he went
through the streets, he met an old woman who approached him with the purpose of
buying an idol, good and big, to be worshipped and loved. “Old woman, old
woman,” said Abraham, “I know no profit therein, either in the big ones or in
the little ones, either unto themselves or unto others. And,” he continued to
speak to her, “what has become of the big image thou didst buy from my brother
Haran, to worship it?” “Thieves,” she replied, “came in the night and stole it,
while I was still at the bath.” “If it be thus,” Abraham went on questioning
her, “how canst thou pay homage to an idol that cannot save itself from
thieves, let alone save others, like thyself, thou silly old woman, out of
misfortune? How is it possible for thee to say that the image thou worshippest
is a god? If it be a god, why did it not save itself out of the hands of those
thieves? Nay, in the idol there is no profit, either unto itself or unto him
that adores it.”[26]

The old woman rejoined, “If what thou sayest be true, whom shall I serve?”
“Serve the God of all gods,” returned Abraham, “the Lord of lords, who hath
created heaven and earth, the sea and all therein—the God of Nimrod and the God
of Terah, the God of the east, the west, the south, and the north. Who is
Nimrod, the dog, who calleth himself a god, that worship be offered unto him?”

Abraham succeeded in opening the eyes of the old woman, and she became a
zealous missionary for the true God. When she discovered the thieves who had
carried off her idol, and they restored it to her, she broke it in pieces with
a stone, and as she wended her way through the streets, she cried aloud, “Who
would save his soul from destruction, and be prosperous in all his doings, let
him serve the God of Abraham.” Thus she converted many men and women to the
true belief.

Rumors of the words and deeds of the old woman reached the king, and he sent
for her. When she appeared before him, he rebuked her harshly, asking her how
she dared serve any god but himself. The old woman replied: “Thou art a liar,
thou deniest the essence of faith, the One Only God, beside whom there is no
other god. Thou livest upon His bounty, but thou payest worship to another, and
thou dost repudiate Him, and His teachings, and Abraham His servant.”

The old woman had to pay for her zeal for the faith with her life. Nevertheless
great fear and terror took possession of Nimrod, because the people became more
and more attached to the teachings of Abraham, and he knew not how to deal with
the man who was undermining the old faith. At the advice of his princes, he
arranged a seven days’ festival, at which all the people were bidden to appear
in their robes of state, their gold and silver apparel. By such display of
wealth and power he expected to intimidate Abraham and bring him back to the
faith of the king. Through his father Terah, Nimrod invited Abraham to come
before him, that he might have the opportunity of seeing his greatness and
wealth, and the glory of his dominion, and the multitude of his princes and
attendants. But Abraham refused to appear before the king. On the other hand,
he granted his father’s request that in his absence he sit by his idols and the
king’s, and take care of them.

Alone with the idols, and while he repeated the words, “The Eternal He is God,
the Eternal He is God!” he struck the king’s idols from their thrones, and
began to belabor them with an axe. With the biggest he started, and with the
smallest he ended. He hacked off the feet of one, and the other he beheaded.
This one had his eyes struck out, the other had his hands crushed.[27] After
all were mutilated, he went away, having first put the axe into the hand of the
largest idol.

The feast ended, the king returned, and when he saw all his idols shivered in
pieces, he inquired who had perpetrated the mischief. Abraham was named as the
one who had been guilty of the outrage, and the king summoned him and
questioned him as to his motive for the deed. Abraham replied: “I did not do
it; it was the largest of the idols who shattered all the rest. Seest thou not
that he still has the axe in his hand? And if thou wilt not believe my words,
ask him and he will tell thee.”

IN THE FIERY FURNACE

Now the king was exceedingly wroth at Abraham, and ordered him to be cast into
prison, where he commanded the warden not to give him bread or water.[28] But
God hearkened unto the prayer of Abraham, and sent Gabriel to him in his
dungeon. For a year the angel dwelt with him, and provided him with all sorts
of food, and a spring of fresh water welled up before him, and he drank of it.
At the end of a year, the magnates of the realm presented themselves before the
king, and advised him to cast Abraham into the fire, that the people might
believe in Nimrod forever. Thereupon the king issued a decree that all the
subjects of the king in all his provinces, men and women, young and old, should
bring wood within forty days, and he caused it to be thrown into a great
furnace and set afire.[29] The flames shot up to the skies, and the people were
sore afraid of the fire. Now the warden of the prison was ordered to bring
Abraham forth and cast him in the flames. The warden reminded the king that
Abraham had not had food or drink a whole year, and therefore must be dead, but
Nimrod nevertheless desired him to step in front of the prison and call his
name. If he made reply, he was to be hauled out to the pyre. If he had
perished, his remains were to receive burial, and his memory was to be wiped
out henceforth.

Greatly amazed the warden was when his cry, “Abraham, art thou alive?” was
answered with “I am living.” He questioned further, “Who has been bringing thee
food and drink all these many days?” and Abraham replied: “Food and drink have
been bestowed upon me by Him who is over all things, the God of all gods and
the Lord of all lords, who alone doeth wonders, He who is the God of Nimrod and
the God of Terah and the God of the whole world. He dispenseth food and drink
unto all beings. He sees, but He cannot be seen, He is in the heavens above,
and He is present in all places, for He Himself superviseth all things and
provideth for all.”

The miraculous rescue of Abraham from death by starvation and thirst convinced
the prison-keeper of the truth of God and His prophet Abraham, and he
acknowledged his belief in both publicly. The king’s threat of death unless he
recanted could not turn him away from his new and true faith. When the hangman
raised his sword and set it at his throat to kill him, he exclaimed, “The
Eternal He is God, the God of the whole world as well as of the blasphemer
Nimrod.” But the sword could not cut his flesh. The harder it was pressed
against his throat, the more it broke into pieces.[30]

Nimrod, however, was not to be turned aside from his purpose, to make Abraham
suffer death by fire. One of the princes was dispatched to fetch him forth. But
scarcely did the messenger set about the task of throwing him into the fire,
when the flame leapt forth from the furnace and consumed him. Many more
attempts were made to cast Abraham into the furnace, but always with the same
success—whoever seized him to pitch him in was himself burnt, and a large
number lost their lives. Satan appeared in human shape, and advised the king to
place Abraham in a catapult and sling him into the fire. Thus no one would be
required to come near the flame. Satan himself constructed the catapult. Having
proved it fit three times by means of stones put in the machine, they bound
Abraham, hand and foot, and were about to consign him to the flames. At that
moment Satan, still disguised in human shape, approached Abraham, and said, “If
thou desirest to deliver thyself from the fire of Nimrod, bow down before him
and believe in him.” But Abraham rejected the tempter with the words, “May the
Eternal rebuke thee, thou vile, contemptible, accursed blasphemer!” and Satan
departed from him.

Then the mother of Abraham came to him and implored him to pay homage to Nimrod
and escape the impending misfortune. But he said to her: “O mother, water can
extinguish Nimrod’s fire, but the fire of God will not die out for evermore.
Water cannot quench it.”[31] When his mother heard these words, she spake, “May
the God whom thou servest rescue thee from the fire of Nimrod!”

Abraham was finally placed in the catapult, and he raised his eyes heavenward,
and spoke, “O Lord my God, Thou seest what this sinner purposes to do unto
me!”[32] His confidence in God was unshakable. When the angels received the
Divine permission to save him, and Gabriel approached him, and asked, “Abraham,
shall I save thee from the fire?” he replied, “God in whom I trust, the God of
heaven and earth, will rescue me,” and God, seeing the submissive spirit of
Abraham, commanded the fire, “Cool off and bring tranquillity to my servant
Abraham.”[33]

No water was needed to extinguish the fire. The logs burst into buds, and all
the different kinds of wood put forth fruit, each tree bearing its own kind.
The furnace was transformed into a royal pleasance, and the angels sat therein
with Abraham. When the king saw the miracle, he said: “Great witchcraft! Thou
makest it known that fire hath no power over thee, and at the same time thou
showest thyself unto the people sitting in a pleasure garden.” But the princes
of Nimrod interposed all with one voice, “Nay, our lord, this is not
witchcraft, it is the power of the great God, the God of Abraham, beside whom
there is no other god, and we acknowledge that He is God, and Abraham is His
servant.” All the princes and all the people believed in God at this hour, in
the Eternal, the God of Abraham, and they all cried out, “The Lord He is God in
heaven above and upon the earth beneath; there is none else.”[34]

Abraham was the superior, not only of the impious king Nimrod and his
attendants, but also of the pious men of his time, Noah, Shem, Eber, and
Asshur.[35] Noah gave himself no concern whatsoever in the matter of spreading
the pure faith in God. He took an interest in planting his vineyard, and was
immersed in material pleasures. Shem and Eber kept in hiding, and as for
Asshur, he said, “How can I live among such sinners?” and departed out of the
land.[36] The only one who remained unshaken was Abraham. “I will not forsake
God,” he said, and therefore God did not forsake him, who had hearkened neither
unto his father nor unto his mother.

The miraculous deliverance of Abraham from the fiery furnace, together with his
later fortunes, was the fulfilment and explanation of what his father Terah had
read in the stars. He had seen the star of Haran consumed by fire, and at the
same time fill and rule the whole world. The meaning was plain now. Haran was
irresolute in his faith, he could not decide whether to adhere to Abraham or
the idolaters. When it befell that those who would not serve idols were cast
into the fiery furnace, Haran reasoned in this manner: “Abraham, being my
elder, will be called upon before me. If he comes forth out of the fiery trial
triumphant, I will declare my allegiance to him; otherwise I will take sides
against him.” After God Himself had rescued Abraham from death, and Haran’s
turn came to make his confession of faith, he announced his adherence to
Abraham. But scarcely had he come near the furnace,[37] when he was seized by
the flames and consumed, because he was lacking in firm faith in God. Terah had
read the stars well, it now appeared: Haran was burnt, and his daughter
Sarah[38] became the wife of Abraham, whose descendants fill the earth.[39] In
another way the death of Haran was noteworthy. It was the first instance, since
the creation of the world, of a son’s dying while his father was still
alive.[40]

The king, the princes, and all the people, who had been witnesses of the
wonders done for Abraham, came to him, and prostrated themselves before him.
But Abraham said: “Do not bow down before me, but before God, the Master of the
universe, who hath created you. Serve Him and walk in His ways, for He it was
who delivered me from the flames, and He it is who hath created the soul and
the spirit of every human being, who formeth man in the womb of his mother, and
bringeth him into the world. He saveth from all sickness those who put their
trust in Him.”

The king then dismissed Abraham, after loading him down with an abundance of
precious gifts, among them two slaves who had been raised in the royal palace.
‘Ogi was the name of the one, Eliezer the name of the other. The princes
followed the example of the king, and they gave him silver, and gold, and gems.
But all these gifts did not rejoice the heart of Abraham so much as the three
hundred followers that joined him and became adherents of his religion.

ABRAHAM EMIGRATES TO HARAN

For a period of two years Abraham could devote himself undisturbed to his
chosen task of turning the hearts of men to God and His teachings.[41] In his
pious undertaking he was aided by his wife Sarah, whom he had married in the
meantime. While he exhorted the men and sought to convert them, Sarah addressed
herself to the women.[42] She was a helpmeet worthy of Abraham. Indeed, in
prophetical powers she ranked higher than her husband.[43] She was sometimes
called Iscah, “the seer,” on that account.[44]

At the expiration of two years it happened that Nimrod dreamed a dream. In his
dream he found himself with his army near the fiery furnace in the valley into
which Abraham had been cast. A man resembling Abraham stepped out of the
furnace, and he ran after the king with drawn sword, the king fleeing before
him in terror. While running, the pursuer threw an egg at Nimrod’s head, and a
mighty stream issued therefrom, wherein the king’s whole host was drowned. The
king alone survived, with three men. When Nimrod examined his companions, he
observed that they wore royal attire, and in form and stature they resembled
himself. The stream changed back into an egg again, and a little chick broke
forth from it, and it flew up, settled upon the head of the king, and put out
one of his eyes.

The king was confounded in his sleep, and when he awoke, his heart beat like a
trip-hammer, and his fear was exceeding great. In the morning, when he arose,
he sent and called for his wise men and his magicians, and told them his dream.
One of his wise men, Anoko by name, stood up, and said: “Know, O king, this
dream points to the misfortune which Abraham and his descendants will bring
upon thee. A time will come when he and his followers will make war upon thy
army, and they will annihilate it. Thou and the three kings, thy allies, will
be the only ones to escape death. But later thou wilt lose thy life at the
hands of one of the descendants of Abraham. Consider, O king, that thy wise men
read this fate of thine in the stars, fifty-two years ago, at the birth of
Abraham. As long as Abraham liveth upon the ground, thou shalt not be
stablished, nor thy kingdom.” Nimrod took Anoko’s words to heart, and
dispatched some of his servants to seize Abraham and kill him. It happened that
Eliezer, the slave whom Abraham had received as a present from Nimrod, was at
that time at the royal court. With great haste he sped to Abraham to induce him
to flee before the king’s bailiffs. His master accepted his advice, and took
refuge in the house of Noah and Shem, where he lay in hiding a whole month. The
king’s officers reported that despite zealous efforts Abraham was nowhere to be
found. Thenceforth the king did not concern himself about Abraham.

When Terah visited his son in his hiding-place, Abraham proposed that they
leave the land and take up their abode in Canaan, in order to escape the
pursuit of Nimrod. He said: “Consider that it was not for thy sake that Nimrod
overloaded thee with honors, but for his own profit. Though he continue to
confer the greatest of benefactions upon thee, what are they but earthly
vanity? for riches and possessions profit not in the day of wrath and fury.
Hearken unto my voice, O my father, let us depart for the land of Canaan, and
serve the God that hath created thee, that it may be well with thee.”

Noah and Shem aided and abetted the efforts of Abraham to persuade Terah,
whereupon Terah consented to leave his country, and he, and Abraham, and Lot,
the son of Haran, departed for Haran with their households. They found the land
pleasant, and also the inhabitants thereof, who readily yielded to the
influence of Abraham’s humane spirit and his piety. Many of them obeyed his
precepts and became God-fearing and good.[45]

Terah’s resolve to quit his native land for the sake of Abraham and take up his
abode in strange parts, and his impulse to do it before even the Divine call
visited Abraham himself—this the Lord accounted a great merit unto Terah, and
he was permitted to see his son Abraham rule as king over the whole world. For
when the miracle happened, and Isaac was born unto his aged parents, the whole
world repaired to Abraham and Sarah, and demanded to know what they had done
that so great a thing should be accomplished for them. Abraham told them all
that had happened between Nimrod and himself, how he had been ready to be burnt
for the glory of God, and how the Lord had rescued him from the flames. In
token of their admiration for Abraham and his teachings, they appointed him to
be their king, and in commemoration of Isaac’s wondrous birth, the money coined
by Abraham bore the figures of an aged husband and wife on the obverse side,
and of a young man and his wife on the reverse side, for Abraham and Sarah both
were rejuvenated at the birth of Isaac, Abraham’s white hair turned black, and
the lines in Sarah’s face were smoothed out.

For many years Terah continued to live a witness of his son’s glory, for his
death did not occur until Isaac was a youth of thirty-five.[46] And a still
greater reward waited upon his good deed. God accepted his repentance, and when
he departed this life, he entered into Paradise, and not into hell, though he
had passed the larger number of his days in sin. Indeed, it had been his fault
that Abraham came near losing his life at the hands of Nimrod.[47]

THE STAR IN THE EAST

Terah had been a high official at the court of Nimrod, and he was held in great
consideration by the king and his suite. A son was born unto him whom he called
Abram, because the king had raised him to an exalted place. In the night of
Abraham’s birth, the astrologers and the wise men of Nimrod came to the house
of Terah, and ate and drank, and rejoiced with him that night. When they left
the house, they lifted up their eyes toward heaven to look at the stars, and
they saw, and, behold, one great star came from the east and ran athwart the
heavens and swallowed up the four stars at the four corners. They all were
astonished at the sight, but they understood this matter, and knew its import.
They said to one another: “This only betokens that the child that hath been
born unto Terah this night will grow up and be fruitful, and he will multiply
and possess all the earth, he and his children forever, and he and his seed
will slay great kings and inherit their lands.”

They went home that night, and in the morning they rose up early, and assembled
in their meeting-house. They spake, and said to one another: “Lo, the sight
that we saw last night is hidden from the king, it has not been made known to
him, and should this thing become known to him in the latter days, he will say
to us, Why did you conceal this matter from me? and then we shall all suffer
death. Now, let us go and tell the king the sight which we saw, and the
interpretation thereof, and we shall be clear from this thing.” And they went
to the king and told him the sight they had seen, and their interpretation
thereof, and they added the advice that he pay the value of the child to Terah,
and slay the babe.

Accordingly, the king sent for Terah, and when he came, he spake to him: “It
hath been told unto me that a son was born to thee yesternight, and a wondrous
sign was observed in the heavens at his birth. Now give me the boy, that we may
slay him before evil comes upon us from him, and I will give thee thy house
full of silver and gold in exchange for him.” Terah answered: “This thing which
thou promisest unto me is like the words which a man spoke to a mule, saying,
‘I will give thee a great heap of barley, a houseful thereof, on condition that
I cut off thy head!’ The mule replied, ‘Of what use will all the barley be to
me, if thou cuttest off my head? Who will eat it when thou givest it to me?’
Thus also do I say: What shall I do with silver and gold after the death of my
son? Who shall inherit me?” But when Terah saw how the king’s anger burned
within him at these words, he added, “Whatever the king desireth to do unto his
servant, that let him do, even my son is at the king’s disposal, without value
or exchange, he and his two older brethren.”

The king spake, however, saying, “I will purchase thy youngest son for a
price.” And Terah made answer, “Let my king give me three days’ time to
consider the matter and consult about it with my family.” The king agreed to
this condition, and on the third day he sent to Terah, saying, “Give me thy son
for a price, as I spoke unto thee, and if thou wilt not do this, I will send
and slay all thou hast in thy house, there shall not be a dog left unto thee.”

Then Terah took a child which his handmaid had borne unto him that day, and he
brought the babe to the king, and received value for him, and the king took the
child and dashed his head against the ground, for he thought it was Abraham.
But Terah took his son Abraham, together with the child’s mother and his nurse,
and concealed them in a cave, and thither he carried provisions to them once a
month, and the Lord was with Abraham in the cave, and he grew up, but the king
and all his servants thought that Abraham was dead.

And when Abraham was ten years old, he and his mother and his nurse went out
from the cave, for the king and his servants had forgotten the affair of
Abraham.

In that time all the inhabitants of the earth, with the exception of Noah and
his household, transgressed against the Lord, and they made unto themselves
every man his god, gods of wood and stone, which could neither speak, nor hear,
nor deliver from distress. The king and all his servants, and Terah with his
household, were the first to worship images of wood and stone. Terah made
twelve gods of large size, of wood and of stone, corresponding to the twelve
months of the year, and he paid homage to them monthly in turn.[48]

THE TRUE BELIEVER

Once Abraham went into the temple of the idols in his father’s house, to bring
sacrifices to them, and he found one of them, Marumath by name, hewn out of
stone, lying prostrate on his face before the iron god of Nahor. The idol was
too heavy for him to raise it alone, and he called his father to help him put
Marumath back in his place. While they were handling the image, its head
dropped off, and Terah took a stone, and chiselled another Marumath, setting
the head of the first upon the new body. Then Terah continued and made five
more gods, and all these he delivered to Abraham, and bade him sell them in the
streets of the city.

Abraham saddled his mule, and went to the inn where merchants from Fandana in
Syria put up on their way to Egypt. He hoped to dispose of his wares there.
When he reached the inn, one of the camels belonging to the merchants belched,
and the sound frightened his mule so that it ran off pell-mell and broke three
of the idols. The merchants not only bought the two sound idols from him, they
also gave him the price of the broken ones, for Abraham had told them how
distressed he was to appear before his father with less money than he had
expected to receive for his handiwork.

This incident made Abraham reflect upon the worthlessness of idols, and he said
to himself: “What are these evil things done by my father? Is not he the god of
his gods, for do they not come into being by reason of his carving and
chiselling and contriving? Were it not more seemly that they should pay worship
to him than he to them, seeing they are the work of his hands?” Meditating
thus, he reached his father’s house, and he entered and handed his father the
money for the five images, and Terah rejoiced, and said, “Blessed art thou unto
my gods, because thou didst bring me the price of the idols, and my labor was
not in vain.” But Abraham made reply: “Hear, my father Terah, blessed are thy
gods through thee, for thou art their god, since thou didst fashion them, and
their blessing is destruction and their help is vanity. They that help not
themselves, how can they help thee or bless me?”

Terah grew very wrathful at Abraham, that he uttered such speech against his
gods, and Abraham, thinking upon his father’s anger, left him and went from the
house. But Terah called him back, and said, “Gather together the chips of the
oak wood from which I made images before thou didst return, and prepare my
dinner for me.” Abraham made ready to do his father’s bidding, and as he took
up the chips he found a little god among them, whose forehead bore the
inscription “God Barisat.” He threw the chips upon the fire, and set Barisat up
next to it, saying: “Attention! Take care, Barisat, that the fire go not out
until I come back. If it burns low, blow into it, and make it flame up again.”
Speaking thus, he went out. When he came in again, he found Barisat lying prone
upon his back, badly burnt. Smiling, he said to himself, “In truth, Barisat,
thou canst keep the fire alive and prepare food,” and while he spoke, the idol
was consumed to ashes. Then he took the dishes to his father, and he ate and
drank and was glad and blessed his god Marumath. But Abraham said to his
father, “Bless not thy god Marumath, but rather thy god Barisat, for he it was
who, out of his great love for thee, threw himself into the fire that thy meal
might be cooked.” “Where is he now?” exclaimed Terah, and Abraham answered, “He
hath become ashes in the fierceness of the fire.” Terah said, “Great is the
power of Barisat! I will make me another this day, and to-morrow he will
prepare my food for me.”

These words of his father made Abraham laugh in his mind, but his soul was
grieved at his obduracy, and he proceeded to make clear his views upon the
idols, saying: “Father, no matter which of the two idols thou blessest, thy
behavior is senseless, for the images that stand in the holy temple are more to
be worshipped than thine. Zucheus, the god of my brother Nahor, is more
venerable than Marumath, because he is made cunningly of gold, and when he
grows old, he will be worked over again. But when thy Marumath becomes dim, or
is shivered in pieces, he will not be renewed, for he is of stone. And the god
Joauv, who stands above the other gods with Zucheus, is more venerable than
Barisat, made of wood, because he is hammered out of silver, and ornamented by
men, to show his magnificence. But thy Barisat, before thou didst fashion him
into a god with thy axe, was rooted in the earth, standing there great and
wonderful, with the glory of branches and blossoms. Now he is dry, and gone is
his sap. From his height he has fallen to the earth, from grandeur he came to
pettiness, and the appearance of his face has paled away, and he himself was
burnt in the fire, and he was consumed unto ashes, and he is no more. And thou
didst then say, ‘I will make me another this day, and to-morrow he will prepare
my food for me.’ Father,” Abraham continued, and said, “the fire is more to be
worshipped than thy gods of gold and silver and wood and stone, because it
consumes them. But also the fire I call not god, because it is subject to the
water, which quenches it. But also the water I call not god, because it is
sucked up by the earth, and I call the earth more venerable, because it
conquers the water. But also the earth I call not god, because it is dried out
by the sun, and I call the sun more venerable than the earth, because he
illumines the whole world with his rays. But also the sun I call not god,
because his light is obscured when darkness cometh up. Nor do I call the moon
and the stars gods, because their light, too, is extinguished when their time
to shine is past. But hearken unto this, my father Terah, which I will declare
unto thee, The God who hath created all things, He is the true God, He hath
empurpled the heavens, and gilded the sun, and given radiance to the moon and
also the stars, and He drieth out the earth in the midst of many waters, and
also thee hath He put upon the earth, and me hath He sought out in the
confusion of my thoughts.”[49]

THE ICONOCLAST

But Terah could not be convinced, and in reply to Abraham’s question, who the
God was that had created heaven and earth and the children of men, he took him
to the hall wherein stood twelve great idols and a large number of little
idols, and pointing to them he said, “Here are they who have made all thou
seest on earth, they who have created also me and thee and all men on the
earth,” and he bowed down before his gods, and left the hall with his son.

Abraham went thence to his mother, and he spoke to her, saying: “Behold, my
father has shown those unto me who made heaven and earth and all the sons of
men. Now, therefore, hasten and fetch a kid from the flock, and make of it
savory meat, that I may bring it to my father’s gods, perhaps I may thereby
become acceptable to them.” His mother did according to his request, but when
Abraham brought the offering to the gods, he saw that they had no voice, no
hearing, no motion, and not one of them stretched forth his hand to eat.
Abraham mocked them, and said, “Surely, the savory meat that I prepared doth
not please you, or perhaps it is too little for you! Therefore I will prepare
fresh savory meat to-morrow, better and more plentiful than this, that I may
see what cometh therefrom.” But the gods remained mute and without motion
before the second offering of excellent savory meat as before the first
offering, and the spirit of God came over Abraham, and he cried out, and said:
“Woe unto my father and his wicked generation, whose hearts are all inclined to
vanity, who serve these idols of wood and stone, which cannot eat, nor smell,
nor hear, nor speak, which have mouths without speech, eyes without sight, ears
without hearing, hands without feeling, and legs without motion!”

Abraham then took a hatchet in his hand, and broke all his father’s gods, and
when he had done breaking them he placed the hatchet in the hand of the biggest
god among them all, and he went out. Terah, having heard the crash of the
hatchet on the stone, ran to the room of the idols, and he reached it at the
moment when Abraham was leaving it, and when he saw what had happened, he
hastened after Abraham, and he said to him, “What is this mischief thou hast
done to my gods?” Abraham answered: “I set savory meat before them, and when I
came nigh unto them, that they might eat, they all stretched out their hands to
take of the meat, before the big one had put forth his hand to eat. This one,
enraged against them on account of their behavior, took the hatchet and broke
them all, and, behold, the hatchet is yet in his hands, as thou mayest see.”

Then Terah turned in wrath upon Abraham, and he said: “Thou speakest lies unto
me! Is there spirit, soul, or power in these gods to do all thou hast told me?
Are they not wood and stone? and have I not myself made them? It is thou that
didst place the hatchet in the hand of the big god, and thou sayest he smote
them all.” Abraham answered his father, and said: “How, then, canst thou serve
these idols in whom there is no power to do anything? Can these idols in which
thou trustest deliver thee? Can they hear thy prayers when thou callest upon
them?” After having spoken these and similar words, admonishing his father to
mend his ways and refrain from worshipping idols, he leapt up before Terah,
took the hatchet from the big idol, broke it therewith, and ran away.

Terah hastened to Nimrod, bowed down before him, and besought him to hear his
story, about his son who had been born to him fifty years back, and how he had
done to his gods, and how he had spoken. “Now, therefore, my lord and king,” he
said, “send for him that he may come before thee, and do thou judge him
according to the law, that we may be delivered from his evil.” When Abraham was
brought before the king, he told him the same story as he had told Terah, about
the big god who broke the smaller ones, but the king replied, “Idols do neither
speak, nor eat, nor move.” Then Abraham reproached him for worshipping gods
that can do nothing, and admonished him to serve the God of the universe. His
last words were, “If thy wicked heart will not hearken to my words, to cause
thee to forsake thy evil ways and serve the Eternal God, then wilt thou die in
shame in the latter days, thou, thy people, and all that are connected with
thee, who hear thy words, and walk in thy evil ways.”

The king ordered Abraham to be put into prison, and at the end of ten days he
caused all the princes and great men of the realm to appear before him, and to
them he put the case of Abraham. Their verdict was that he should be burnt,
and, accordingly, the king had a fire prepared for three days and three nights,
in his furnace at Kasdim, and Abraham was to be carried thither from prison to
be burnt.

All the inhabitants of the land, about nine hundred thousand men, and the women
and the children besides, came to see what would be done with Abraham. And when
he was brought forth, the astrologers recognized him, and they said to the
king, “Surely, this is the man whom we knew as a child, at whose birth the
great star swallowed the four stars. Behold, his father did transgress thy
command, and he made a mockery of thee, for he did bring thee another child,
and him didst thou kill.”

Terah was greatly terrified, for he was afraid of the king’s wrath, and he
admitted that he had deceived the king, and when the king said, “Tell me who
advised thee to do this. Hide naught, and thou shalt not die,” he falsely
accused Haran, who had been thirty-two years old at the time of Abraham’s
birth, of having advised him to deceive the king. At the command of the king,
Abraham and Haran, stripped of all their clothes except their hosen, and their
hands and feet bound with linen cords, were cast into the furnace. Haran,
because his heart was not perfect with the Lord, perished in the fire, and also
the men who cast them into the furnace were burnt by the flames which leapt out
over them, and Abraham alone was saved by the Lord, and he was not burnt,
though the cords with which he was bound were consumed. For three days and
three nights Abraham walked in the midst of the fire, and all the servants of
the king came and told him, “Behold, we have seen Abraham walking about in the
midst of the fire.”[50]

At first the king would not believe them, but when some of his faithful princes
corroborated the words of his servants, he rose up and went to see for himself.
He then commanded his servants to take Abraham from the fire, but they could
not, because the flames leapt toward them from the furnace, and when they tried
again, at the king’s command, to approach the furnace, the flames shot out and
burnt their faces, so that eight of their number died. The king then called
unto Abraham, and said: “O servant of the God who is in heaven, go forth from
the midst of the fire, and come hither and stand before me,” and Abraham came
and stood before the king. And the king spoke to Abraham, and said, “How cometh
it that thou wast not burnt in the fire?” And Abraham made answer, “The God of
heaven and earth in whom I trust, and who hath all things in His power, He did
deliver me from the fire into which thou didst cast me.”[51]

ABRAHAM IN CANAAN

With ten temptations Abraham was tempted, and he withstood them all, showing
how great was the love of Abraham.[52] The first test to which he was subjected
was the departure from his native land. The hardships were many and severe
which he encountered, and he was loth to leave his home, besides. He spoke to
God, and said, “Will not the people talk about me, and say, ‘He is endeavoring
to bring the nations under the wings of the Shekinah, yet he leaves his old
father in Haran, and he goes away.'” But God answered him, and said: “Dismiss
all care concerning thy father and thy kinsmen from thy thoughts. Though they
speak words of kindness to thee, yet are they all of one mind, to ruin
thee.”[53]

Then Abraham forsook his father in Haran, and journeyed to Canaan, accompanied
by the blessing of God, who said unto him, “I will make of thee a great nation,
and I will bless thee, and make thy name great.” These three blessings were to
counteract the evil consequences which, he feared, would follow emigration, for
travelling from place to place interferes with the growth of the family, it
lessens one’s substance, and it diminishes the consideration one enjoys.[54]
The greatest of all blessings, however, was the word of God, “And be thou a
blessing.” The meaning of this was that whoever came in contact with Abraham
was blessed. Even the mariners on the sea were indebted to him for prosperous
voyages.[55] Besides, God held out the promise to him that in time to come his
name would be mentioned in the Benedictions, God would be praised as the Shield
of Abraham, a distinction accorded to no other mortal except David.[56] But the
words, “And be thou a blessing,” will be fulfilled only in the future world,
when the seed of Abraham shall be known among the nations and his offspring
among the peoples as “the seed which the Lord hath blessed.”[57]

When Abraham first was bidden to leave his home, he was not told to what land
he was to journey—all the greater would be his reward for executing the command
of God.[58] And Abraham showed his trust in God, for he said, “I am ready to go
whithersoever Thou sendest me.” The Lord then bade him go to a land wherein He
would reveal Himself, and when he went to Canaan later, God appeared to him,
and he knew that it was the promised land.[59]

On entering Canaan, Abraham did not yet know that it was the land appointed as
his inheritance. Nevertheless he rejoiced when he reached it. In Mesopotamia
and in Aramnaharaim, the inhabitants of which he had seen eating, drinking, and
acting wantonly, he had always wished, “O that my portion may not be in this
land,” but when he came to Canaan, he observed that the people devoted
themselves industriously to the cultivation of the land, and he said, “O that
my portion may be in this land!” God then spoke to him, and said, “Unto thy
seed will I give this land.”[60] Happy in these joyous tidings, Abraham erected
an altar to the Lord to give thanks unto Him for the promise, and then he
journeyed on, southward, in the direction of the spot whereon the Temple was
once to stand. In Hebron he again erected an altar, thus taking possession of
the land in a measure. And likewise he raised an altar in Ai, because he
foresaw that a misfortune would befall his offspring there, at the conquest of
the land under Joshua. The altar, he hoped, would obviate the evil results that
might follow.

Each altar raised by him was a centre for his activities as a missionary. As
soon as he came to a place in which he desired to sojourn, he would stretch a
tent first for Sarah, and next for himself, and then he would proceed at once
to make proselytes and bring them under the wings of the Shekinah. Thus he
accomplished his purpose of inducing all men to proclaim the Name of God.[61]

For the present Abraham was but a stranger in his promised land. After the
partition of the earth among the sons of Noah, when all had gone to their
allotted portions, it happened that Canaan son of Ham saw that the land
extending from the Lebanon to the River of Egypt was fair to look upon, and he
refused to go to his own allotment, westward by the sea. He settled in the land
upon Lebanon, eastward and westward from the border of the Jordan and the
border of the sea. And Ham, his father, and his brothers Cush and Mizraim spoke
to him, and said: “Thou livest in a land that is not thine, for it was not
assigned unto us when the lots were drawn. Do not thus! But if thou persistest,
ye, thou and thy children, will fall, accursed, in the land, in a rebellion.
Thy settling here was rebellion, and through rebellion thy children will be
felled down, and thy seed will be destroyed unto all eternity. Sojourn not in
the land of Shem, for unto Shem and unto the children of Shem was it
apportioned by lot. Accursed art thou, and accursed wilt thou be before all the
children of Noah on account of the curse, for we took an oath before the holy
Judge and before our father Noah.”

But Canaan hearkened not unto the words of his father and his brothers. He
dwelt in the land of the Lebanon from Hamath even unto the entrance of Egypt,
he and his sons.[62] Though the Canaanites had taken unlawful possession of the
land, yet Abraham respected their rights; he provided his camels with muzzles,
to prevent them from pasturing upon the property of others.[63]

HIS SOJOURN IN EGYPT

Scarcely had Abraham established himself in Canaan, when a devastating famine
broke out—one of the ten God appointed famines for the chastisement of men. The
first of them came in the time of Adam, when God cursed the ground for his
sake; the second was this one in the time of Abraham; the third compelled Isaac
to take up his abode among the Philistines; the ravages of the fourth drove the
sons of Jacob into Egypt to buy grain for food; the fifth came in the time of
the Judges, when Elimelech and his family had to seek refuge in the land of
Moab; the sixth occurred during the reign of David, and it lasted three years;
the seventh happened in the day of Elijah, who had sworn that neither rain nor
dew should fall upon the earth; the eighth was the one in the time of Elisha,
when an ass’s head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver; the ninth is the
famine that comes upon men piecemeal, from time to time; and the tenth will
scourge men before the advent of Messiah, and this last will be “not a famine
of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord.”[64]

The famine in the time of Abraham prevailed only in Canaan, and it had been
inflicted upon the land in order to test his faith. He stood this second
temptation as he had the first. He murmured not, and he showed no sign of
impatience toward God, who had bidden him shortly before to abandon his native
land for a land of starvation.[65] The famine compelled him to leave Canaan for
a time, and he repaired to Egypt, to become acquainted there with the wisdom of
the priests and, if necessary, give them instruction in the truth.[66]

On this journey from Canaan to Egypt, Abraham first observed the beauty of
Sarah. Chaste as he was, he had never before looked at her, but now, when they
were wading through a stream, he saw the reflection of her beauty in the water
like the brilliance of the sun.[67] Wherefore he spoke to her thus, “The
Egyptians are very sensual, and I will put thee in a casket that no harm befall
me on account of thee.” At the Egyptian boundary, the tax collectors asked him
about the contents of the casket, and Abraham told them he had barley in it.
“No,” they said, “it contains wheat.” “Very well,” replied Abraham, “I am
prepared to pay the tax on wheat.” The officers then hazarded the guess, “It
contains pepper!” Abraham agreed to pay the tax on pepper, and when they
charged him with concealing gold in the casket, he did not refuse to pay the
tax on gold, and finally on precious stones. Seeing that he demurred to no
charge, however high, the tax collectors, made thoroughly suspicious, insisted
upon his unfastening the casket and letting them examine the contents. When it
was forced open, the whole of Egypt was resplendent with the beauty of Sarah.
In comparison with her, all other beauties were like apes compared with men.
She excelled Eve herself.[68] The servants of Pharaoh outbid one another in
seeking to obtain possession of her, though they were of opinion that so
radiant a beauty ought not to remain the property of a private individual. They
reported the matter to the king,[69] and Pharaoh sent a powerful armed force to
bring Sarah to the palace,[70] and so bewitched was he by her charms that those
who had brought him the news of her coming into Egypt were loaded down with
bountiful gifts.[71]

Amid tears, Abraham offered up a prayer. He entreated God in these words: “Is
this the reward for my confidence in Thee? For the sake of Thy grace and Thy
lovingkindness, let not my hope be put to shame.”[72] Sarah also implored God,
saying: “O God, Thou didst bid my lord Abraham leave his home, the land of his
fathers, and journey to Canaan, and Thou didst promise him to do good unto him
if he fulfilled Thy commands. And now we have done as Thou didst command us to
do. We left our country and our kindred, and we journeyed to a strange land,
unto a people which we knew not heretofore. We came hither to save our people
from starvation, and now hath this terrible misfortune befallen. O Lord, help
me and save me from the hand of this enemy, and for the sake of Thy grace show
me good.”

An angel appeared unto Sarah while she was in the presence of the king, to whom
he was not visible, and he bade her take courage, saying, “Fear naught, Sarah,
for God hath heard thy prayer.” The king questioned Sarah as to the man in the
company of whom she had come to Egypt, and Sarah called Abraham her brother.
Pharaoh pledged himself to make Abraham great and powerful, to do for him
whatever she wished. He sent much gold and silver to Abraham, and diamonds and
pearls, sheep and oxen, and men slaves and women slaves, and he assigned a
residence to him within the precincts of the royal palace.[73] In the love he
bore Sarah, he wrote out a marriage contract, deeding to her all he owned in
the way of gold and silver, and men slaves and women slaves, and the province
of Goshen besides, the province occupied in later days by the descendants of
Sarah, because it was their property. Most remarkable of all, he gave her his
own daughter Hagar as slave, for he preferred to see his daughter the servant
of Sarah to reigning as mistress in another harem.[74]

His free-handed generosity availed naught. During the night, when he was about
to approach Sarah, an angel appeared armed with a stick, and if Pharaoh but
touched Sarah’s shoe to remove it from her foot, the angel planted a blow upon
his hand, and when he grasped her dress, a second blow followed. At each blow
he was about to deal, the angel asked Sarah whether he was to let it descend,
and if she bade him give Pharaoh a moment to recover himself, he waited and did
as she desired. And another great miracle came to pass. Pharaoh, and his
nobles, and his servants, the very walls of his house and his bed were
afflicted with leprosy, and he could not indulge his carnal desires.[75] This
night in which Pharaoh and his court suffered their well deserved punishment
was the night of the fifteenth of Nisan, the same night wherein God visited the
Egyptians in a later time in order to redeem Israel, the descendants of
Sarah.[76]

Horrified by the plague sent upon him, Pharaoh inquired how he could rid
himself thereof. He applied to the priests, from whom he found out the true
cause of his affliction, which was corroborated by Sarah. He then sent for
Abraham and returned his wife to him, pure and untouched, and excused himself
for what had happened, saying that he had had the intention of connecting
himself in marriage with him, whom he had thought to be the brother of
Sarah.[77] He bestowed rich gifts upon the husband and the wife, and they
departed for Canaan, after a three months’ sojourn in Egypt.[78]

Arrived in Canaan they sought the same night-shelters at which they had rested
before, in order to pay their accounts, and also to teach by their example that
it is not proper to seek new quarters unless one is forced to it.[79]

Abraham’s sojourn in Egypt was of great service to the inhabitants of the
country, because he demonstrated to the wise men of the land how empty and vain
their views were, and also he taught them astronomy and astrology, unknown in
Egypt before his time.[80]

THE FIRST PHARAOH

The Egyptian ruler, whose meeting with Abraham had proved so untoward an event,
was the first to bear the name Pharaoh. The succeeding kings were named thus
after him. The origin of the name is connected with the life and adventures of
Rakyon, Have-naught, a man wise, handsome, and poor, who lived in the land of
Shinar. Finding himself unable to support himself in Shinar, he resolved to
depart for Egypt, where he expected to display his wisdom before the king,
Ashwerosh, the son of ‘Anam. Perhaps he would find grace in the eyes of the
king, who would give Rakyon the opportunity of supporting himself and rising to
be a great man. When he reached Egypt, he learnt that it was the custom of the
country for the king to remain in retirement in his palace, removed from the
sight of the people. Only on one day of the year he showed himself in public,
and received all who had a petition to submit to him. Richer by a
disappointment, Rakyon knew not how he was to earn a livelihood in the strange
country. He was forced to spend the night in a ruin, hungry as he was. The next
day he decided to try to earn something by selling vegetables. By a lucky
chance he fell in with some dealers in vegetables, but as he did not know the
customs of the country, his new undertaking was not favored with good fortune.
Ruffians assaulted him, snatched his wares from him, and made a laughing-stock
of him. The second night, which he was compelled to spend in the ruin again, a
sly plan ripened in his mind. He arose and gathered together a crew of thirty
lusty fellows. He took them to the graveyard, and bade them, in the name of the
king, charge two hundred pieces of silver for every body they buried. Otherwise
interment was to be prevented. In this way he succeeded in amassing great
wealth within eight months. Not only did he acquire silver, gold, and precious
gems, but also he attached a considerable force, armed and mounted, to his
person.

On the day on which the king appeared among the people, they began to complain
of this tax upon the dead. They said: “What is this thou art inflicting upon
thy servants—permitting none to be buried unless they pay thee silver and gold!
Has a thing like this come to pass in the world since the days of Adam, that
the dead should not be interred unless money be paid therefor! We know well
that it is the privilege of the king to take an annual tax from the living. But
thou takest tribute from the dead, too, and thou exactest it day by day. O
king, we cannot endure this any longer, for the whole of the city is ruined
thereby.”

The king, who had had no suspicion of Rakyon’s doings, fell into a great rage
when the people gave him information about them. He ordered him and his armed
force to appear before him. Rakyon did not come empty-handed. He was preceded
by a thousand youths and maidens, mounted upon steeds and arrayed in state
apparel. These were a present to the king. When he himself stepped before the
king, he delivered gold, silver, and diamonds to him in great abundance, and a
magnificent charger. These gifts and the display of splendor did not fail of
taking effect upon the king, and when Rakyon, in well-considered words and with
a pliant tongue, described the undertaking, he won not only the king to his
side, but also the whole court, and the king said to him, “No longer shalt thou
be called Rakyon, Have-naught, but Pharaoh, Paymaster, for thou didst collect
taxes from the dead.”

So profound was the impression made by Rakyon that the king, the grandees, and
the people, all together resolved to put the guidance of the realm in the hands
of Pharaoh. Under the suzerainty of Ashwerosh he administered law and justice
throughout the year; only on the one day when he showed himself to the people
did the king himself give judgment and decide cases. Through the power thus
conferred upon him and through cunning practices, Pharaoh succeeded in usurping
royal authority, and he collected taxes from all the inhabitants of Egypt.
Nevertheless he was beloved of the people, and it was decreed that every ruler
of Egypt should thenceforth bear the name Pharaoh.[81]

THE WAR OF THE KINGS

On his return from Egypt Abraham’s relations to his own family were disturbed
by annoying circumstances. Strife developed between the herdmen of his cattle
and the herdmen of Lot’s cattle. Abraham furnished his herds with muzzles, but
Lot made no such provision, and when the shepherds that pastured Abraham’s
flocks took Lot’s shepherds to task on account of the omission, the latter
replied: “It is known of a surety that God said unto Abraham, ‘To thy seed will
I give the land.’ But Abraham is a sterile mule. Never will he have children.
On the morrow he will die, and Lot will be his heir. Thus the flocks of Lot are
but consuming what belongs to them or their master.” But God spoke: “Verily, I
said unto Abraham I would give the land unto his seed, but only after the seven
nations shall have been destroyed from out of the land. To-day the Canaanites
are therein, and the Perizzites. They still have the right of habitation.”

Now, when the strife extended from the servants to the masters, and Abraham
vainly called his nephew Lot to account for his unbecoming behavior, Abraham
decided he would have to part from his kinsman, though he should have to compel
Lot thereto by force. Lot thereupon separated himself not from Abraham alone,
but from the God of Abraham also, and he betook himself to a district in which
immorality and sin reigned supreme, wherefore punishment overtook him, for his
own flesh seduced him later unto sin.

God was displeased with Abraham for not living in peace and harmony with his
own kindred, as he lived with all the world beside. On the other hand, God also
took it in ill part that Abraham was accepting Lot tacitly as his heir, though
He had promised him, in clear, unmistakable words, “To thy seed will I give the
land.” After Abraham had separated himself from Lot, he received the assurance
again that Canaan should once belong to his seed, which God would multiply as
the sand which is upon the sea-shore. As the sand fills the whole earth, so the
offspring of Abraham would be scattered over the whole earth, from end to end;
and as the earth is blessed only when it is moistened with water, so his
offspring would be blessed through the Torah, which is likened unto water; and
as the earth endures longer than metal, so his offspring would endure forever,
while the heathen would vanish; and as the earth is trodden upon, so his
offspring would be trodden upon by the four kingdoms.[82]

The departure of Lot had a serious consequence, for the war waged by Abraham
against the four kings is intimately connected with it. Lot desired to settle
in the well-watered circle of the Jordan, but the only city of the plain that
would receive him was Sodom, the king of which admitted the nephew of Abraham
out of consideration for the latter.[83] The five impious kings planned first
to make war upon Sodom on account of Lot and then advance upon Abraham.[84] For
one of the five, Amraphel, was none other than Nimrod, Abraham’s enemy from of
old. The immediate occasion for the war was this: Chedorlaomer, one of Nimrod’s
generals, rebelled against him after the builders of the tower were dispersed,
and he set himself up as king of Elam. Then he subjugated the Hamitic tribes
living in the five cities of the plain of the Jordan, and made them tributary.
For twelve years they were faithful to their sovereign ruler Chedorlaomer, but
then they refused to pay the tribute, and they persisted in their
insubordination for thirteen years. Making the most of Chedorlaomer’s
embarrassment, Nimrod led a host of seven thousand warriors against his former
general. In the battle fought between Elam and Shinar, Nimrod suffered a
disastrous defeat, he lost six hundred of his army, and among the slain was the
king’s son Mardon. Humiliated and abased, he returned to his country, and he
was forced to acknowledge the suzerainty of Chedorlaomer, who now proceeded to
form an alliance with Arioch king of Ellasar, and Tidal, the king of several
nations, the purpose of which was to crush the cities of the circle of the
Jordan. The united forces of these kings, numbering eight hundred thousand,
marched upon the five cities, subduing whatever they encountered in their
course,[85] and annihilating the descendants of the giants. Fortified places,
unwalled cities, and flat, open country, all fell in their hands.[86] They
pushed on through the desert as far as the spring issuing from the rock at
Kadesh, the spot appointed by God as the place of pronouncing judgment against
Moses and Aaron on account of the waters of strife. Thence they turned toward
the central portion of Palestine, the country of dates, where they encountered
the five godless kings, Bera, the villain, king of Sodom; Birsha, the sinner,
king of Gomorrah; Shinab, the father-hater, king of Admah; Shemeber, the
voluptuary, king of Zeboiim; and the king of Bela, the city that devours its
inhabitants. The five were routed in the fruitful Vale of Siddim, the canals of
which later formed the Dead Sea. They that remained of the rank and file fled
to the mountains, but the kings fell into the slime pits and stuck there. Only
the king of Sodom was rescued, miraculously, for the purpose that he might
convert those heathen to faith in God that had not believed in the wonderful
deliverance of Abraham from the fiery furnace.[87]

The victors despoiled Sodom of all its goods and victuals, and took Lot,
boasting, “We have taken the son of Abraham’s brother captive,” so betraying
the real object of their undertaking; their innermost desire was to strike at
Abraham.[88]

It was on the first evening of the Passover, and Abraham was eating of the
unleavened bread,[89] when the archangel Michael brought him the report of
Lot’s captivity. This angel bears another name besides, Palit, the escaped,
because when God threw Samael and his host from their holy place in heaven, the
rebellious leader held on to Michael and tried to drag him along downward, and
Michael escaped falling from heaven only through the help of God.[90]

When the report of his nephew’s evil state reached Abraham, he straightway
dismissed all thought of his dissensions with Lot from his mind, and only
considered ways and means of deliverance.[91] He convoked his disciples to whom
he had taught the true faith, and who all called themselves by the name
Abraham.[92] He gave them gold and silver, saying at the same time: “Know that
we go to war for the purpose of saving human lives. Therefore, do ye not direct
your eyes upon money, here lie gold and silver before you.” Furthermore he
admonished them in these words: “We are preparing to go to war. Let none join
us who hath committed a trespass, and fears that Divine punishment will descend
upon him.” Alarmed by his warning, not one would obey his call to arms, they
were fearful on account of their sins. Eliezer alone remained with him,
wherefore God spake, and said: “All forsook thee save only Eliezer. Verily, I
shall invest him with the strength of the three hundred and eighteen men whose
aid thou didst seek in vain.”[93]

The battle fought with the mighty hosts of the kings, from which Abraham
emerged victorious, happened on the fifteenth of Nisan, the night appointed for
miraculous deeds.[94] The arrows and stones hurled at him effected naught,[95]
but the dust of the ground, the chaff, and the stubble which he threw at the
enemy were transformed into death-dealing javelins and swords.[96] Abraham, as
tall as seventy men set on end, and requiring as much food and drink as seventy
men, marched forward with giant strides, each of his steps measuring four
miles, until he overtook the kings, and annihilated their troops. Further he
could not go, for he had reached Dan, where Jeroboam would once raise the
golden calves, and on this ominous spot Abraham’s strength diminished.[97]

His victory was possible only because the celestial powers espoused his side.
The planet Jupiter made the night bright for him, and an angel, Lailah by name,
fought for him.[98] In a true sense, it was a victory of God. All the nations
acknowledged his more than human achievement, and they fashioned a throne for
Abraham, and erected it on the field of battle. When they attempted to seat him
upon it, amid exclamations of “Thou art our king! Thou art our prince! Thou art
our god!” Abraham warded them off, and said, “The universe has its King, and it
has its God!” He declined all honors, and returned his property unto each man.
Only the little children he kept by himself. He reared them in the knowledge of
God, and later they atoned for the disgrace of their parents.

Somewhat arrogantly the king of Sodom set out to meet Abraham. He was proud
that a great miracle, his rescue from the slime pit, had been performed for
him, too. He made Abraham the proposition that he keep the despoiled goods for
himself.[99] But Abraham refused them, and said: “I have lift up mine hand unto
the Lord, God Most High, who hath created the world for the sake of the pious,
that I will not take a thread nor a shoe-latchet nor aught that is thine. I
have no right upon any goods taken as spoils,[100] save only that which the
young men have eaten, and the portion of the men who tarried by the stuff,
though they went not down to the battle itself.” The example of Abraham in
giving a share in the spoils even unto the men not concerned directly in the
battle, was followed later by David, who heeded not the protest of the wicked
men and the base fellows with him, that the watchers who staid by the stuff
were not entitled to share alike with the warriors that had gone down to the
battle.[101]

In spite of his great success, Abraham nevertheless was concerned about the
issue of the war. He feared that the prohibition against shedding the blood of
man had been transgressed, and he also dreaded the resentment of Shem, whose
descendants had perished in the encounter. But God reassured him, and said: “Be
not afraid! Thou hast but extirpated the thorns, and as to Shem, he will bless
thee rather than curse thee.” So it was. When Abraham returned from the war,
Shem, or, as he is sometimes called, Melchizedek, the king of righteousness,
priest of God Most High, and king of Jerusalem, came forth to meet him with
bread and wine.[102] And this high priest instructed Abraham in the laws of the
priesthood and in the Torah, and to prove his friendship for him he blessed
him, and called him the partner of God in the possession of the world, seeing
that through him the Name of God had first been made known among men.[103] But
Melchizedek arranged the words of his blessing in an unseemly way. He named
Abraham first and then God. As a punishment, he was deposed by God from the
priestly dignity, and instead it was passed over to Abraham, with whose
descendants it remained forever.[104]

As a reward for the sanctification of the Holy Name, which Abraham had brought
about when he refused to keep aught of the goods taken in battle,[105] his
descendants received two commands, the command of the threads in the borders of
their garments, and the command of the latchets to be bound upon their hands
and to be used as frontlets between their eyes. Thus they commemorate that
their ancestor refused to take so much as a thread or a latchet. And because he
would not touch a shoe-latchet of the spoils, his descendants cast their shoe
upon Edom.[106]

THE COVENANT OF THE PIECES

Shortly after the war, God revealed Himself unto Abraham, to soothe his
conscience as to the spilling of innocent blood, for it was a scruple that gave
him much anguish of spirit. God assured him at the same time that He would
cause pious men to arise among his descendants, who, like himself, would be a
shield unto their generation.[107] As a further distinction, God gave him leave
to ask what he would have, rare grace accorded to none beside, except Jacob,
Solomon, Ahaz, and the Messiah. Abraham spoke, and said: “O Lord of the world,
if in time to come my descendants should provoke Thy wrath, it were better I
remained childless. Lot, for the sake of whom I journeyed as far as Damascus,
where God was my protection, would be well pleased to be my heir. Moreover, I
have read in the stars, ‘Abraham, thou wilt beget no children.'” Thereupon God
raised Abraham above the vault of the skies, and He said, “Thou art a prophet,
not an astrologer!”[108] Now Abraham demanded no sign that he would be blessed
with offspring. Without losing another word, he believed in the Lord, and he
was rewarded for his simple faith by a share in this world and a share in the
world to come as well, and, besides, the redemption of Israel from the exile
will take place as a recompense for his firm trust.[109]

But though he believed the promise made him with a full and abiding faith, he
yet desired to know by what merit of theirs his descendants would maintain
themselves. Therefore God bade him bring Him a sacrifice of three heifers,
three she-goats, three rams, a turtle dove, and a young pigeon, thus indicating
to Abraham the various sacrifices that should once be brought in the Temple, to
atone for the sins of Israel and further his welfare.[110] “But what will
become of my descendants,” asked Abraham, “after the Temple is destroyed?” God
replied, and said, “If they read the order of sacrifices as they will be set
down in the Scriptures, I will account it unto them as though they had offered
the sacrifices, and I will forgive all their sins.”[111] And God continued and
revealed to Abraham the course of Israel’s history and the history of the whole
world: The heifer of three years indicates the dominion of Babylon, the
she-goat of three years stands for the empire of the Greeks, the ram of three
years for the Medo-Persian power, the rule of Ishmael is represented by the
ram, and Israel is the innocent dove.

Abraham took him these animals and divided them in the midst. Had he not done
so, Israel would not have been able to resist the power of the four kingdoms.
But the birds he divided not, to indicate that Israel will remain whole. And
the birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abraham drove them away.
Thus was announced the advent of the Messiah, who will cut the heathen in
pieces, but Abraham bade Messiah wait until the time appointed unto him.[112]
And as the Messianic time was made known unto Abraham, so also the time of the
resurrection of the dead. When he laid the halves of the pieces over against
each other, the animals became alive again, as the bird flew over them.[112]

While he was preparing these sacrifices, a vision of great import was granted
to Abraham. The sun sank, and a deep sleep fell upon him, and he beheld a
smoking furnace, Gehenna, the furnace that God prepares for the sinner; and he
beheld a flaming torch, the revelation on Sinai, where all the people saw
flaming torches; and he beheld the sacrifices to be brought by Israel; and an
horror of great darkness fell upon him, the dominion of the four kingdoms. And
God spake to him: “Abraham, as long as thy children fulfil the two duties of
studying the Torah and performing the service in the Temple, the two
visitations, Gehenna and alien rule, will be spared them. But if they neglect
the two duties, they will have to suffer the two chastisements; only thou
mayest choose whether they shall be punished by means of Gehenna or by means of
the dominion of the stranger.” All the day long Abraham wavered, until God
called unto him: “How long wilt thou halt between two opinions? Decide for one
of the two, and let it be for the dominion of the stranger!” Then God made
known to him the four hundred years’ bondage of Israel in Egypt, reckoning from
the birth of Isaac, for unto Abraham himself was the promise given that he
should go to his fathers in peace, and feel naught of the arrogance of the
stranger oppressor. At the same time, it was made known to Abraham that his
father Terah would have a share in the world to come, for he had done penance
for his sinful deeds. Furthermore it was revealed to him that his son Ishmael
would turn into the path of righteousness while yet his father was alive, and
his grandson Esau would not begin his impious way of life until he himself had
passed away. And as he received the promise of their deliverance together with
the announcement of the slavery of his seed, in a land not theirs, so it was
made known to him that God would judge the four kingdoms and destroy them.[114]

THE BIRTH OF ISHMAEL

The covenant of the pieces, whereby the fortunes of his descendants were
revealed to Abraham, was made at a time when he was still childless.[115] As
long as Abraham and Sarah dwelt outside of the Holy Land, they looked upon
their childlessness as a punishment for not abiding within it. But when a ten
years’ sojourn in Palestine found her barren as before, Sarah perceived that
the fault lay with her.[116] Without a trace of jealousy she was ready to give
her slave Hagar to Abraham as wife,[117] first making her a freed woman.[118]
For Hagar was Sarah’s property, not her husband’s. She had received her from
Pharaoh, the father of Hagar. Taught and bred by Sarah, she walked in the same
path of righteousness as her mistress,[119] and thus was a suitable companion
for Abraham, and, instructed by the holy spirit, he acceded to Sarah’s
proposal.

No sooner had Hagar’s union with Abraham been consummated, and she felt that
she was with child, than she began to treat her former mistress contemptuously,
though Sarah was particularly tender toward her in the state in which she was.
When noble matrons came to see Sarah, she was in the habit of urging them to
pay a visit to “poor Hagar,” too. The dames would comply with her suggestion,
but Hagar would use the opportunity to disparage Sarah. “My lady Sarah,” she
would say, “is not inwardly what she appears to be outwardly. She makes the
impression of a righteous, pious woman, but she is not, for if she were, how
could her childlessness be explained after so many years of marriage, while I
became pregnant at once?”

Sarah scorned to bicker with her slave, yet the rage she felt found vent in
these words to Abraham:[120] “It is thou who art doing me wrong. Thou hearest
the words of Hagar, and thou sayest naught to oppose them, and I hoped that
thou wouldst take my part. For thy sake did I leave my native land and the
house of my father, and I followed thee into a strange land with trust in God.
In Egypt I pretended to be thy sister, that no harm might befall thee. When I
saw that I should bear no children, I took the Egyptian woman, my slave Hagar,
and gave her unto thee for wife, contenting myself with the thought that I
would rear the children she would bear. Now she treats me disdainfully in thy
presence. O that God might look upon the injustice which hath been done unto
me, to judge between thee and me, and have mercy upon us, restore peace to our
home, and grant us offspring, that we have no need of children from Hagar, the
Egyptian bondwoman of the generation of the heathen that cast thee in the fiery
furnace!”[121]

Abraham, modest and unassuming as he was, was ready to do justice to Sarah, and
he conferred full power upon her to dispose of Hagar according to her pleasure.
He added but one caution, “Having once made her a mistress, we cannot again
reduce her to the state of a bondwoman.” Unmindful of this warning, Sarah
exacted the services of a slave from Hagar. Not alone this, she tormented her,
and finally she cast an evil eye upon her, so that the unborn child dropped
from her, and she ran away. On her flight she was met by several angels, and
they bade her return, at the same time making known to her that she would bear
a son who should be called Ishmael—one of the six men who have been given a
name by God before their birth, the others being Isaac, Moses, Solomon, Josiah,
and the Messiah.[122]

Thirteen years after the birth of Ishmael the command was issued to Abraham
that he put the sign of the covenant upon his body and upon the bodies of the
male members of his household. Abraham was reluctant at first to do the bidding
of God, for he feared that the circumcision of his flesh would raise a barrier
between himself and the rest of mankind. But God said unto him, “Let it suffice
thee that I am thy God and thy Lord, as it sufficeth the world that I am its
God and its Lord.”[123]

Abraham then consulted with his three true friends, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre,
regarding the command of the circumcision. The first one spoke, and said, “Thou
art nigh unto a hundred years old, and thou considerest inflicting such pain
upon thyself?” The advice of the second was also against it. “What,” said
Eshcol, “thou choosest to mark thyself so that thy enemies may recognize thee
without fail?” Mamre, the third, was the only one to advise obedience to the
command of God. “God succored thee from the fiery furnace,” he said, “He helped
thee in the combat with the kings, He provided for thee during the famine, and
thou dost hesitate to execute His behest concerning the circumcision?”[124]
Accordingly, Abraham did as God had commanded, in bright daylight, bidding
defiance to all, that none might say, “Had we seen him attempt it, we should
have prevented him.”[125]

The circumcision was performed on the tenth day of Tishri, the Day of
Atonement, and upon the spot on which the altar was later to be erected in the
Temple, for the act of Abraham remains a never-ceasing atonement for
Israel.[126]

THE VISIT OF THE ANGELS

On the third day after his circumcision, when Abraham was suffering dire
pain,[127] God spoke to the angels, saying, “Go to, let us pay a visit to the
sick.” The angels refused, and said: “What is man, that Thou art mindful of
him? And the son of man, that Thou visitest him? And Thou desirest to betake
Thyself to a place of uncleanness, a place of blood and filth?” But God replied
unto them, “Thus do ye speak. As ye live, the savor of this blood is sweeter to
me than myrrh and incense, and if you do not desire to visit Abraham, I will go
alone.”[128]

The day whereon God visited him was exceedingly hot, for He had bored a hole in
hell, so that its heat might reach as far as the earth, and no wayfarer venture
abroad on the highways, and Abraham be left undisturbed in his pain.[129] But
the absence of strangers caused Abraham great vexation, and he sent his servant
Eliezer forth to keep a lookout for travellers. When the servant returned from
his fruitless search, Abraham himself, in spite of his illness and the
scorching heat, prepared to go forth on the highway and see whether he would
not succeed where failure had attended Eliezer, whom he did not wholly trust at
any rate, bearing in mind the well-known saying, “No truth among slaves.”[130]
At this moment God appeared to him, surrounded by the angels. Quickly Abraham
attempted to rise from his seat, but God checked every demonstration of
respect, and when Abraham protested that it was unbecoming to sit in the
presence of the Lord, God said, “As thou livest, thy descendants at the age of
four and five will sit in days to come in the schools and in the synagogues
while I reside therein.”[131]

Meantime Abraham beheld three men. They were the angels Michael, Gabriel, and
Raphael. They had assumed the form of human beings to fulfil his wish for
guests toward whom to exercise hospitality. Each of them had been charged by
God with a special mission, besides, to be executed on earth. Raphael was to
heal the wound of Abraham, Michael was to bring Sarah the glad tidings that she
would bear a son, and Gabriel was to deal destruction to Sodom and Gomorrah.
Arrived at the tent of Abraham, the three angels noticed that he was occupied
in nursing himself, and they withdrew.[132] Abraham, however, hastened after
them through another door of the tent, which had wide open entrances on all
sides.[133] He considered the duty of hospitality more important than the duty
of receiving the Shekinah. Turning to God, he said, “O Lord, may it please Thee
not to leave Thy servant while he provides for the entertainment of his
guests.”[134] Then he addressed himself to the stranger walking in the middle
between the other two, whom by this token he considered the most
distinguished,—it was the archangel Michael—and he bade him and his companions
turn aside into his tent. The manner of his guests, who treated one another
politely, made a good impression upon Abraham. He was assured that they were
men of worth whom he was entertaining.[135] But as they appeared outwardly like
Arabs, and the people worshipped the dust of their feet, he bade them first
wash their feet, that they might not defile his tent.[136]

He did not depend upon his own judgment in reading the character of his guests.
By his tent a tree was planted, which spread its branches out over all who
believed in God, and afforded them shade. But if idolaters went under the tree,
the branches turned upward, and cast no shade upon the ground. Whenever Abraham
saw this sign, he would at once set about the task of converting the
worshippers of the false gods. And as the tree made a distinction between the
pious and the impious, so also between the clean and the unclean. Its shade was
denied them as long as they refrained from taking the prescribed ritual bath in
the spring that flowed out from its roots, the waters of which rose at once for
those whose uncleanness was of a venial character and could be removed
forthwith, while others had to wait seven days for the water to come up.
Accordingly, Abraham bade the three men lean against the trunk of the tree.
Thus he would soon learn their worth or their unworthiness.[137]

Being of the truly pious, “who promise little, but perform much,”[133] Abraham
said only: “I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your heart, seeing
that ye chanced to pass my tent at dinner time. Then, after ye have given
thanks to God, ye may pass on.”[139] But when the meal was served to the
guests, it was a royal banquet, exceeding Solomon’s at the time of his most
splendid magnificence. Abraham himself ran unto the herd, to fetch cattle for
meat. He slaughtered three calves, that he might be able to set a “tongue with
mustard” before each of his guests.[140] In order to accustom Ishmael to
God-pleasing deeds, he had him dress the calves,[141] and he bade Sarah bake
the bread. But as he knew that women are apt to treat guests niggardly, he was
explicit in his request to her. He said, “Make ready quickly three measures of
meal, yea, fine meal.” As it happened, the bread was not brought to the table,
because it had accidentally become unclean, and our father Abraham was
accustomed to eat his daily bread only in a clean state.[142] Abraham himself
served his guests, and it appeared to him that the three men ate. But this was
an illusion. In reality the angels did not eat,[143] only Abraham, his three
friends, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, and his son Ishmael partook of the banquet,
and the portions set before the angels were devoured by a heavenly fire.[144]

Although the angels remained angels even in their human disguise, nevertheless
the personality of Abraham was so exalted that in his presence the archangels
felt insignificant.[145]

After the meal the angels asked after Sarah, though they knew that she was in
retirement in her tent, but it was proper for them to pay their respects to the
lady of the house and send her the cup of wine over which the blessing had been
said.[146] Michael, the greatest of the angels, thereupon announced the birth
of Isaac. He drew a line upon the wall, saying, “When the sun crosses this
point, Sarah will be with child, and when he crosses the next point, she will
give birth to a child.” This communication, which was intended for Sarah and
not for Abraham, to whom the promise had been revealed long before,[147] the
angels made at the entrance to her tent, but Ishmael stood between the angel
and Sarah, for it would not have been seemly to deliver the message in secret,
with none other by. Yet, so radiant was the beauty of Sarah that a beam of it
struck the angel, and made him look up. In the act of turning toward her, he
heard her laugh within herself:[148] “Is it possible that these bowels can yet
bring forth a child, these shrivelled breasts give suck? And though I should be
able to bear, yet is not my lord Abraham old?”[149]

And the Lord said unto Abraham: “Am I too old to do wonders? And wherefore doth
Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old?”[150] The
reproach made by God was directed against Abraham as well as against Sarah, for
he, too, had showed himself of little faith when he was told that a son would
be born unto him. But God mentioned only Sarah’s incredulity, leaving Abraham
to become conscious of his defect himself.[151]

Regardful of the peace of their family life, God had not repeated Sarah’s words
accurately to Abraham. Abraham might have taken amiss what his wife had said
about his advanced years, and so precious is the peace between husband and wife
that even the Holy One, blessed be He, preserved it at the expense of
truth.[152]

After Abraham had entertained his guests, he went with them to bring them on
their way, for, important as the duty of hospitality is, the duty of speeding
the parting guest is even more important.[153] Their way lay in the direction
of Sodom, whither two of the angels were going, the one to destroy it, and the
second to save Lot, while the third, his errand to Abraham fulfilled, returned
to heaven.[154]

THE CITIES OF SIN

The inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah and the three other cities of the plain
were sinful and godless. In their country there was an extensive vale, where
they foregathered annually with their wives and their children and all
belonging to them, to celebrate a feast lasting several days and consisting of
the most revolting orgies. If a stranger merchant passed through their
territory, he was besieged by them all, big and little alike, and robbed of
whatever he possessed. Each one appropriated a bagatelle, until the traveller
was stripped bare. If the victim ventured to remonstrate with one or another,
he would show him that he had taken a mere trifle, not worth talking about. And
the end was that they hounded him from the city.

Once upon a time it happened that a man journeying from Elam arrived in Sodom
toward evening. No one could be found to grant him shelter for the night.
Finally a sly fox named Hedor invited him cordially to follow him to his house.
The Sodomite had been attracted by a rarely magnificent carpet, strapped to the
stranger’s ass by means of a rope. He meant to secure it for himself. The
friendly persuasions of Hedor induced the stranger to remain with him two days,
though he had expected to stay only overnight. When the time came for him to
continue on his journey, he asked his host for the carpet and the rope. Hedor
said: “Thou hast dreamed a dream, and this is the interpretation of thy dream:
the rope signifies that thou wilt have a long life, as long as a rope; the
varicolored carpet indicates that thou wilt own an orchard wherein thou wilt
plant all sorts of fruit trees.” The stranger insisted that his carpet was a
reality, not a dream fancy, and he continued to demand its return. Not only did
Hedor deny having taken anything from his guest, he even insisted upon pay for
having interpreted his dream to him. His usual price for such services, he
said, was four silver pieces, but in view of the fact that he was his guest, he
would, as a favor to him, content himself with three pieces of silver.

After much wrangling, they put their case before one of the judges of Sodom,
Sherek by name, and he said to the plaintiff, “Hedor is known in this city as a
trustworthy interpreter of dreams, and what he tells thee is true.” The
stranger declared himself not satisfied with the verdict, and continued to urge
his side of the case. Then Sherek drove both the plaintiff and the defendant
from the court room. Seeing this, the inhabitants gathered together and chased
the stranger from the city, and lamenting the loss of his carpet, he had to
pursue his way.

As Sodom had a judge worthy of itself, so also had the other cities—Sharkar in
Gomorrah, Zabnak in Admah, and Manon in Zeboiim. Eliezer, the bondman of
Abraham, made slight changes in the names of these judges, in accordance with
the nature of what they did: the first he called Shakkara, Liar; the second
Shakrura, Arch-deceiver; the third Kazban, Falsifier; and the fourth,
Mazle-Din, Perverter of Judgment. At the suggestion of these judges, the cities
set up beds on their commons. When a stranger arrived, three men seized him by
his head, and three by his feet, and they forced him upon one of the beds. If
he was too short to fit into it exactly, his six attendants pulled and wrenched
his limbs until he filled it out; if he was too long for; it, they tried to jam
him in with all their combined strength, until the victim was on the verge of
death. Hit outcrles were met with the words, “Thus will be done to any man that
comes into our land.”

After a while travellers avoided these cities, but if some poor devil was
betrayed occasionally into entering them, they would give him gold and silver,
but never any bread, so that he was bound to die of starvation. Once he was
dead, the residents of the city came and took back the marked gold and silver
which they had given him, and they would quarrel about the distribution of his
clothes, for they would bury him naked.

Once Eliezer, the bondman of Abraham, went to Sodom, at the bidding of Sarah,
to inquire after the welfare of Lot. He happened to enter the city at the
moment when the people were robbing a stranger of his garments. Eliezer
espoused the cause of the poor wretch, and the Sodomites turned against him;
one threw a stone at his forehead and caused considerable loss of blood.
Instantly, the assailant, seeing the blood gush forth, demanded payment for
having performed the operation of cupping. Eliezer refused to pay for the
infliction of a wound upon him, and he was haled before the judge Shakkara. The
decision went against him, for the law of the land gave the assailant the right
to demand payment. Eliezer quickly picked up a stone and threw it at the
judge’s forehead. When he saw that the blood was flowing profusely, he said to
the judge, “Pay my debt to the man and give me the balance.”

The cause of their cruelty was their exceeding great wealth. Their soil was
gold, and in their miserliness and their greed for more and more gold, they
wanted to prevent strangers from enjoying aught of their riches. Accordingly,
they flooded the highways with streams of water, so that the roads to their
city were obliterated, and none could find the way thither. They were as
heartless toward beasts as toward men. They begrudged the birds what they ate,
and therefore extirpated them.[155] They behaved impiously toward one another,
too, not shrinking back from murder to gain possession of more gold. If they
observed that a man owned great riches, two of them would conspire against him.
They would beguile him to the vicinity of ruins, and while the one kept him on
the spot by pleasant converse, the other would undermine the wall near which he
stood, until it suddenly crashed down upon him and killed him. Then the two
plotters would divide his wealth between them.

Another method of enriching themselves with the property of others was in vogue
among them. They were adroit thieves. When they made up their minds to commit
theft, they would first ask their victim to take care of a sum of money for
them, which they smeared with strongly scented oil before handing it over to
him. The following night they would break into his house, and rob him of his
secret treasures, led to the place of concealment by the smell of the oil.

Their laws were calculated to do injury to the poor. The richer a man, the more
was he favored before the law. The owner of two oxen was obliged to render one
day’s shepherd service, but if he had but one ox, he had to give two days’
service. A poor orphan, who was thus forced to tend the flocks a longer time
than those who were blessed with large herds, killed all the cattle entrusted
to him in order to take revenge upon his oppressors, and he insisted, when the
skins were assigned, that the owner of two head of cattle should have but one
skin, but the owner of one head should receive two skins, in correspondence to
the method pursued in assigning the work. For the use of the ferry, a traveller
had to pay four zuz, but if he waded through the water, he had to pay eight
zuz.[156]

The cruelty of the Sodomites went still further. Lot had a daughter, Paltit, so
named because she had been born to him shortly after he escaped captivity
through the help of Abraham. Paltit lived in Sodom, where she had married. Once
a beggar came to town, and the court issued a proclamation that none should
give him anything to eat, in order that he might die of starvation. But Paltit
had pity upon the unfortunate wretch, and every day when she went to the well
to draw water, she supplied him with a piece of bread, which she hid in her
water pitcher. The inhabitants of the two sinful cities, Sodom and Gomorrah,
could not understand why the beggar did not perish, and they suspected that
some one was giving him food in secret. Three men concealed themselves near the
beggar, and caught Paltit in the act of giving him something to eat. She had to
pay for her humanity with death; she was burnt upon a pyre.

The people of Admah were no better than those of Sodom. Once a stranger came to
Admah, intending to stay overnight and continue his journey the next morning.
The daughter of a rich man met the stranger, and gave him water to drink and
bread to eat at his request. When the people of Admah heard of this infraction
of the law of the land, they seized the girl and arraigned her before the
judge, who condemned her to death. The people smeared her with honey from top
to toe, and exposed her where bees would be attracted to her. The insects stung
her to death, and the callous people paid no heed to her heartrending cries.
Then it was that God resolved upon the destruction of these sinners.[157]

ABRAHAM PLEADS FOR THE SINNERS

When God saw that there was no righteous man among the inhabitants of the
sinful cities, and there would be none among their descendants, for the sake of
whose merits the rest might be treated with lenient consideration, He resolved
to annihilate them one and all.[158] But before judgment was executed, the Lord
made known unto Abraham what He would do to Sodom, Gomorrah, and the other
cities of the plain, for they formed a part of Canaan, the land promised unto
Abraham, and therefore did God say, “I will not destroy them without the
consent of Abraham.”[159]

Like a compassionate father, Abraham importuned the grace of God in behalf of
the sinners. He spoke to God, and said: “Thou didst take an oath that no more
should all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood. Is it meet that Thou
shouldst evade Thy oath and destroy cities by fire? Shall the Judge of all the
earth not do right Himself? Verily, if Thou desirest to maintain the world,
Thou must give up the strict line of justice. If Thou insistest upon the right
alone, there can be no world.” Whereupon God said to Abraham: “Thou takest
delight in defending My creatures, and thou wouldst not call them guilty.
Therefore I spoke with none but thee during the ten generations since
Noah.”[160] Abraham ventured to use still stronger words in order to secure the
safety of the godless. “That be far from Thee,” he said, “to slay the righteous
with the wicked, that the dwellers on the earth say not, ‘It is His trade to
destroy the generations of men in a cruel manner; for He destroyed the
generation of Enosh, then the generation of the flood, and then He sent the
confusion of tongues. He sticks ever to His trade.'”

God made reply: “I will let all the generations I have destroyed pass before
thee, that thou mayest see they have not suffered the extreme punishment they
deserved. But if thou thinkest that I did not act justly, then instruct thou Me
in what I must do, and I will endeavor to act in accordance with thy words.”
And Abraham had to admit that God had not diminished in aught the justice due
to every creature in this world or the other world.[161] Nevertheless he
continued to speak, and he said: “Wilt Thou consume the cities, if there be ten
righteous men in each?” And God said, “No, if I find fifty righteous therein, I
will not destroy the cities.”[162]

Abraham: “I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, I who would have been
turned long since into dust of the ground by Amraphel and into ashes by Nimrod,
had it not been for Thy grace.[163] Peradventure there shall lack five of the
fifty righteous for Zoar, the smallest of the five cities. Wilt Thou destroy
all the city for lack of five?”

God: “I will not destroy it, if I find there forty and five.”

Abraham: “Peradventure there be ten pious in each of the four cities, then
forgive Zoar in Thy grace, for its sins are not so great in number as the sins
of the others.”

God granted his petition, yet Abraham continued to plead, and he asked whether
God would not be satisfied if there were but thirty righteous, ten in each of
the three larger cities, and would pardon the two smaller ones, even though
there were no righteous therein, whose merits would intercede for them. This,
too, the Lord granted, and furthermore He promised not to destroy the cities if
but twenty righteous were found therein; yes, God conceded that He would
preserve the five cities for the sake of ten righteous therein.[164] More than
this Abraham did not ask, for he knew that eight righteous ones, Noah and his
wife, and his three sons and their wives, had not sufficed to avert the doom of
the generation of the flood, and furthermore he hoped that Lot, his wife, and
their four daughters, together with the husbands of their daughters, would make
up the number ten. What he did not know was that even the righteous in these
sin-laden cities, though better than the rest, were far from good.[165]

Abraham did not cease to pray for the deliverance of the sinners even after the
Shekinah had removed from him. But his supplications and his intercessions were
in vain.[166] For fifty-two years God had warned the godless; He had made
mountains to quake and tremble. But they hearkened not unto the voice of
admonition. They persisted in their sins, and their well-merited punishment
overtook them.[167] God forgives all sins, only not an immoral life. And as all
these sinners led a life of debauchery, they were burnt with fire.[168]

THE DESTRUCTION OF THE SINFUL CITIES

The angels left Abraham at noon time, and they reached Sodom at the approach of
evening. As a rule, angels proclaim their errand with the swiftness of
lightning, but these were angels of mercy, and they hesitated to execute their
work of destruction, ever hoping that the evil would be turned aside from
Sodom.[169] With nightfall, the fate of Sodom was sealed irrevocably, and the
angels arrived there.[170]

Bred in the house of Abraham, Lot had learnt from him the beautiful custom of
extending hospitality, and when he saw the angels before him in human form,
thinking they were wayfarers, he bade them turn aside and tarry all night in
his house. But as the entertainment of strangers was forbidden in Sodom on
penalty of death, he dared invite them only under cover of the darkness of
night,[171] and even then he had to use every manner of precaution, bidding the
angels to follow him by devious ways.

The angels, who had accepted Abraham’s hospitality without delay, first refused
to comply with Lot’s request, for it is a rule of good breeding to show
reluctance when an ordinary man invites one, but to accept the invitation of a
great man at once. Lot, however, was insistent, and carried them into his house
by main force.[172] At home he had to overcome the opposition of his wife, for
she said, “If the inhabitants of Sodom hear of this, they will slay thee.”

Lot divided his dwelling in two parts, one for himself and his guests, the
other for his wife, so that, if aught happened, his wife would be spared.[173]
Nevertheless it was she who betrayed him. She went to a neighbor and borrowed
some salt, and to the question, whether she could not have supplied herself
with salt during daylight hours, she replied, “We had enough salt, until some
guests came to us; for them we needed more.” In this way the presence of
strangers was bruited abroad in the city.[174]

In the beginning the angels were inclined to hearken to the petition of Lot in
behalf of the sinners, but when all the people of the city, big and little,
crowded around the house of Lot with the purpose of committing a monstrous
crime, the angels warded off his prayers, saying, “Hitherto thou couldst
intercede for them, but now no longer.” It was not the first time that the
inhabitants of Sodom wanted to perpetrate a crime of this sort. They had made a
law some time before that all strangers were to be treated in this horrible
way. Lot, who was appointed chief judge on the very day of the angels’ coming,
tried to induce the people to desist from their purpose, saying to them, “My
brethren, the generation of the deluge was extirpated in consequence of such
sins as you desire to commit, and you would revert to them?” But they replied:
“Back! And though Abraham himself came hither, we should have no consideration
for him. Is it possible that thou wouldst set aside a law which thy
predecessors administered?”[175]

Even Lot’s moral sense was no better than it should have been. It is the duty
of a man to venture his life for the honor of his wife and his daughters, but
Lot was ready to sacrifice the honor of his daughters, wherefor he was punished
severely later on.[176]

The angels told Lot who they were, and what the mission that had brought them
to Sodom, and they charged him to flee from the city with his wife and his four
daughters, two of them married, and two betrothed.[177] Lot communicated their
bidding to his sons-in-law, and they mocked at him, and said: “O thou fool!
Violins, cymbals, and flutes resound in the city, and thou sayest Sodom will be
destroyed!” Such scoffing but hastened the execution of the doom of Sodom.[178]
The angel Michael laid hold upon the hand of Lot, and his wife and his
daughters, while with his little finger the angel Gabriel touched the rock
whereon the sinful cities were built, and overturned them. At the same time the
rain that was streaming down upon the two cities was changed into
brimstone.[179]

When the angels had brought forth Lot and his family and set them without the
city, he bade them run for their lives, and not look behind, lest they behold
the Shekinah, which had descended to work the destruction of the cities. The
wife of Lot could not control herself. Her mother love made her look behind to
see if her married daughters were following. She beheld the Shekinah, and she
became a pillar of salt. This pillar exists unto this day. The cattle lick it
all day long, and in the evening it seems to have disappeared, but when morning
comes it stands there as large as before.[180]

The savior angel had urged Lot himself to take refuge with Abraham. But he
refused, and said: “As long as I dwelt apart from Abraham, God compared my
deeds with the deeds of my fellow-citizens, and among them I appeared as a
righteous man. If I should return to Abraham, God will see that his good deeds
outweigh mine by far.”[181] The angel then granted his plea that Zoar be left
undestroyed. This city had been founded a year later than the other four; it
was only fifty-one years old, and therefore the measure of its sins was not so
full as the measure of the sins of the neighboring cities.[182]

The destruction of the cities of the plain took place at dawn of the sixteenth
day of Nisan, for the reason that there were moon and sun worshippers among the
inhabitants. God said: “If I destroy them by day, the moon worshippers will
say, Were the moon here, she would prove herself our savior; and if I destroy
them by night, the sun worshippers will say, Were the sun here, he would prove
himself our savior. I will therefore let their chastisement overtake them on
the sixteenth day of Nisan at an hour at which the moon and the sun are both in
the skies.”[183]

The sinful inhabitants of the cities of the plain not only lost their life in
this world, but also their share in the future world. As for the cities
themselves, however, they will be restored in the Messianic time.[184]

The destruction of Sodom happened at the time at which Abraham was performing
his morning devotions, and for his sake it was established as the proper hour
for the morning prayer unto all times.[185] When he turned his eyes toward
Sodom and beheld the rising smoke, he prayed for the deliverance of Lot, and
God granted his petition—the fourth time that Lot became deeply indebted to
Abraham. Abraham had taken him with him to Palestine, he had made him rich in
flocks, herds, and tents, he had rescued him from captivity, and by his prayer
he saved him from the destruction of Sodom. The descendants of Lot, the
Ammonites and the Moabites, instead of showing gratitude to the Israelites, the
posterity of Abraham, committed four acts of hostility against them. They
sought to compass the destruction of Israel by means of Balaam’s curses, they
waged open war against him at the time of Jephthah, and also at the time of
Jehoshaphat, and finally they manifested their hatred against Israel at the
destruction of the Temple. Hence it is that God appointed four prophets,
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Zephaniah, to proclaim punishment unto the
descendants of Lot, and four times their sin is recorded in Holy Writ.[186]

Though Lot owed his deliverance to the petition of Abraham, yet it was at the
same time his reward for not having betrayed Abraham in Egypt, when he
pretended to be the brother of Sarah.[187] But a greater reward still awaits
him. The Messiah will be a descendant of his, for the Moabitess Ruth is the
great-grandmother of David, and the Ammonitess Naamah is the mother of
Rehoboam, and the Messiah is of the line of these two kings.[188]

AMONG THE PHILISTINES

The destruction of Sodom induced Abraham to journey to Gerar. Accustomed to
extend hospitality to travellers and wayfarers, he no longer felt comfortable
in a district in which all traffic had ceased by reason of the ruined cities.
There was another reason for Abraham’s leaving his place; the people spoke too
much about the ugly incident with Lot’s daughters.[189]

Arrived in the land of the Philistines, he again, as aforetime in Egypt, came
to an understanding with Sarah, that she was to call herself his sister. When
the report of her beauty reached the king, he ordered her to be brought before
him, and he asked her who her companion was, and she told him that Abraham was
her brother. Entranced by her beauty, Abimelech the king took Sarah to wife,
and heaped marks of honor upon Abraham in accordance with the just claims of a
brother of the queen. Toward evening, before retiring, while he was still
seated upon his throne, Abimelech fell into a sleep, and he slept until the
morning, and in the dream he dreamed he saw an angel of the Lord raising his
sword to deal him a death blow. Sore frightened, he asked the cause, and the
angel replied, and said: “Thou wilt die on account of the woman thou didst take
into thy house this day, for she is the wife of Abraham, the man whom thou
didst cite before thee. Return his wife unto him! But if thou restore her not,
thou shalt surely die, thou and all that are thine.”

In that night the voice of a great crying was heard in the whole land of the
Philistines, for they saw the figure of a man walking about, with sword in
hand, slaying all that came in his way. At the same time it happened that in
men and beasts alike all the apertures of the body closed up, and the land was
seized with indescribable excitement. In the morning, when the king awoke, in
agony and terror, he called all his servants and told his dream in their ears.
One of their number said: “O lord and king! Restore this woman unto the man,
for he is her husband. It is but his way in a strange land to pretend that she
is his sister. Thus did he with the king of Egypt, too, and God sent heavy
afflictions upon Pharaoh when he took the woman unto himself. Consider, also, O
lord and king, what hath befallen this night in the land; great pain, wailing,
and confusion there was, and we know that it came upon us only because of this
woman.”[190]

There were some among his servants who spake: “Be not afraid of dreams! What
dreams make known to man is but falsehood.” Then God appeared unto Abimelech
again and commanded him to let Sarah go free, otherwise he would be a dead
man.[191] Abimelech replied: “Is this Thy way? Then, I ween, the generation of
the flood and the generation of the confusion of tongues were innocent, too!
The man himself did say unto me, She is my sister, and she, even she herself
said, He is my brother, and all the people of their household said the same
words.” And God said unto him: “Yea, I know that thou hast not yet committed a
trespass, for I withheld thee from sinning. Thou didst not know that Sarah was
a man’s wife.[192] But is it becoming to question a stranger, no sooner does he
set foot upon thy territory, about the woman accompanying him, whether she be
his wife or his sister? Abraham, who is a prophet, knew beforehand the danger
to himself if he revealed the whole truth.[193] But, being a prophet, he also
knows that thou didst not touch his wife, and he shall pray for thee, and thou
shalt live.”

The smoke was still rising from the ruins of Sodom, and Abimelech and his
people, seeing it, feared that a like fate might overtake them.[194] The king
called Abraham and reproached him for having caused such great misfortune
through his false statements concerning Sarah. Abraham excused his conduct by
his apprehension that, the fear of God not being in the place, the inhabitants
of the land slay him for his wife.[195] Abraham went on and told the history of
his whole life, and he said: “When I dwelt in the house of my father, the
nations of the world sought to do me harm, but God proved Himself my Redeemer.
When the nations of the world tried to lead me astray to idolatry, God revealed
Himself to me, and He said, ‘Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred,
and from thy father’s house.’ And when the nations of the world were about to
go astray, God sent two prophets, my kinsmen Shem and Eber, to admonish
them.”[196]

Abimelech gave rich gifts to Abraham, wherein he acted otherwise than Pharaoh
in similar circumstances. The Egyptian king gave gifts to Sarah, but Abimelech
was God fearing, and desired that Abraham pray for him.[197] To Sarah he gave a
costly robe that covered her whole person, hiding her seductive charms from the
view of beholders. At the same time it was a reproach to Abraham, that he had
not fitted Sarah out with the splendor due to his wife.[198]

Though Abimelech had done him great injury, Abraham not only granted him the
forgiveness he craved, but also he prayed for him to God. Thus he is an
exemplar unto all. “Man should be pliant as a reed, not hard like the cedar.”
He should be easily appeased, and slow to anger, and as soon as he who has
sinned against him asks for pardon, he should forgive him with all his heart.
Even if deep and serious injury has been done to him, he should not be
vengeful, nor bear his brother a grudge in his heart.[199]

Abraham prayed thus for Abimelech: “O Lord of the world! Thou hast created man
that he may increase and propagate his kind. Grant that Abimelech and his house
may multiply and increase!”[200] God fulfilled Abraham’s petition in behalf of
Abimelech and his people, and it was the first time it happened in the history
of mankind that God fulfilled the prayer of one human being for the benefit of
another.[201] Abimelech and his subjects were healed of all their diseases, and
so efficacious was the prayer offered by Abraham that the wife of Abimelech,
barren hitherto, bore a child.[202]

THE BIRTH OF ISAAC

When the prayer of Abraham for Abimelech was heard, and the king of the
Philistines recovered, the angels raised a loud cry, and spoke to God thus: “O
Lord of the world! All these years hath Sarah been barren, as the wife of
Abimelech was. Now Abraham prayed to Thee, and the wife of Abimelech hath been
granted a child. It is just and fair that Sarah should be remembered and
granted a child.” These words of the angels, spoken on the New Year’s Day, when
the fortunes of men are determined in heaven for the whole year, bore a result.
Barely seven months later, on the first day of the Passover, Isaac was born.

The birth of Isaac was a happy event, and not in the house of Abraham alone.
The whole world rejoiced, for God remembered all barren women at the same time
with Sarah. They all bore children. And all the blind were made to see, all the
lame were made whole, the dumb were made to speak, and the mad were restored to
reason. And a still greater miracle happened: on the day of Isaac’s birth the
sun shone with such splendor as had not been seen since the fall of man, and as
he will shine again only in the future world.[203]

To silence those who asked significantly, “Can one a hundred years old beget a
son?” God commanded the angel who has charge over the embryos, to give them
form and shape, that he fashion Isaac precisely according to the model of
Abraham, so that all seeing Isaac might exclaim, “Abraham begot Isaac.”[204]

That Abraham and Sarah were blessed with offspring only after they had attained
so great an age, had an important reason. It was necessary that Abraham should
bear the sign of the covenant upon his body before he begot the son who was
appointed to be the father of Israel.[205] And as Isaac was the first child
born to Abraham after he was marked with the sign, he did not fail to celebrate
his circumcision with much pomp and ceremony on the eighth day.[206] Shem,
Eber, Abimelech king of the Philistines, and his whole retinue, Phicol the
captain of his host in it—they all were present, and also Terah and his son
Nahor, in a word, all the great ones round about.[207] On this occasion Abraham
could at last put a stop to the talk of the people, who said, “Look at this old
couple! They picked up a foundling on the highway, and they pretend he is their
own son, and to make their statement seem credible, they arrange a feast in his
honor.” Abraham had invited not only men to the celebration, but also the wives
of the magnates with their infants, and God permitted a miracle to be done.
Sarah had enough milk in her breasts to suckle all the babes there,[208] and
they who drew from her breasts had much to thank her for. Those whose mothers
had harbored only pious thoughts in their minds when they let them drink the
milk that flowed from the breasts of the pious Sarah, they became proselytes
when they grew up; and those whose mothers let Sarah nurse them only in order
to test her, they grew up to be powerful rulers, losing their dominion only at
the revelation on Mount Sinai, because they would not accept the Torah. All
proselytes and pious heathen are the descendants of these infants.[209]

Among the guests of Abraham were the thirty-one kings and thirty-one viceroys
of Palestine who were vanquished by Joshua at the conquest of the Holy Land.
Even Og king of Bashan was present, and he had to suffer the teasing of the
other guests, who rallied him upon having called Abraham a sterile mule, who
would never have offspring. Og, on his part, pointed at the little boy with
contempt, and said, “Were I to lay my finger upon him, he would be crushed.”
Whereupon God said to him: “Thou makest mock of the gift given to Abraham! As
thou livest, thou shalt look upon millions and myriads of his descendants, and
in the end thou shalt fall into their hands.”[210]

ISHMAEL CAST OFF

When Isaac grew up, quarrels broke out between him and Ishmael, on account of
the rights of the first-born. Ishmael insisted he should receive a double
portion of the inheritance after the death of Abraham, and Isaac should receive
only one portion. Ishmael, who had been accustomed from his youth to use the
bow and arrow, was in the habit of aiming his missiles in the direction of
Isaac, saying at the same time that he was but jesting.[211] Sarah, however,
insisted that Abraham make over to Isaac all he owned, that no disputes might
arise after his death,[212] “for,” she said, “Ishmael is not worthy of being
heir with my son, nor with a man like Isaac, and certainly not with my son
Isaac.”[213] Furthermore, Sarah insisted that Abraham divorce himself from
Hagar, the mother of Ishmael, and send away the woman and her son, so that
there be naught in common between them and her own son, either in this world or
in the future world.

Of all the trials Abraham had to undergo, none was so hard to bear as this, for
it grieved him sorely to separate himself from his son. God appeared to him in
the following night, and said to him: “Abraham, knowest thou not that Sarah was
appointed to be thy wife from her mother’s womb? She is thy companion and the
wife of thy youth, and I named not Hagar as thy wife, nor Sarah as thy
bondwoman. What Sarah spoke unto thee was naught but truth, and let it not be
grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman.” The
next morning Abraham rose up early, gave Hagar her bill of divorcement, and
sent her away with her son, first binding a rope about her loins that all might
see she was a bondwoman.[214]

The evil glance cast upon her stepson by Sarah made him sick and feverish, so
that Hagar had to carry him, grown-up as he was. In his fever he drank often of
the water in the bottle given her by Abraham as she left his house, and the
water was quickly spent. That she might not look upon the death of her child,
Hagar cast Ishmael under the willow shrubs growing on the selfsame spot whereon
the angels had once spoken with her and made known to her that she would bear a
son. In the bitterness of her heart, she spoke to God, and said, “Yesterday
Thou didst say to me, I will greatly multiply thy seed, that it shall not be
numbered for multitude, and to-day my son dies of thirst.” Ishmael himself
cried unto God, and his prayer and the merits of Abraham brought them help in
their need, though the angels appeared against Ishmael before God. They said,
“Wilt Thou cause a well of water to spring up for him whose descendants will
let Thy children of Israel perish with thirst?” But God replied, and said,
“What is Ishmael at this moment—righteous or wicked?” and when the angels
called him righteous, God continued, “I treat man according to his deserts at
each moment.”[215]

At that moment Ishmael was pious indeed, for he was praying to God in the
following words: “O Lord of the world! If it be Thy will that I shall perish,
then let me die in some other way, not by thirst, for the tortures of thirst
are great beyond all others.” Hagar, instead of praying to God, addressed her
supplications to the idols of her youth. The prayer of Ishmael was acceptable
before God, and He bade Miriam’s well spring up, the well created in the
twilight of the sixth day of creation.[216] Even after this miracle Hagar’s
faith was no stronger than before. She filled the bottle with water, because
she feared it might again be spent, and no other would be nigh. Thereupon she
journeyed to Egypt with her son, for “Throw the stick into the air as thou
wilt, it will always land on its point.” Hagar had come from Egypt, and to
Egypt she returned, to choose a wife for her son.[217]

THE TWO WIVES OF ISHMAEL

The wife of Ishmael bore four sons and a daughter, and afterward Ishmael, his
mother, and his wife and children went and returned to the wilderness. They
made themselves tents in the wilderness in which they dwelt, and they continued
to encamp and journey, month by month and year by year. And God gave Ishmael
flocks, and herds, and tents, on account of Abraham his father, and the man
increased in cattle. And some time after, Abraham said to Sarah, his wife, “I
will go and see my son Ishmael; I yearn to look upon him, for I have not seen
him for a long time.” And Abraham rode upon one of his camels to the
wilderness, to seek his son Ishmael, for he heard that he was dwelling in a
tent in the wilderness with all belonging to him. And Abraham went to the
wilderness, and he reached the tent of Ishmael about noon, and he asked after
him. He found the wife of Ishmael sitting in the tent with her children, and
her husband and his mother were not with them. And Abraham asked the wife of
Ishmael, saying, “Where has Ishmael gone?” And she said, “He has gone to the
field to hunt game.” And Abraham was still mounted upon the camel, for he would
not alight upon the ground, as he had sworn to his wife Sarah that he would not
get off from the camel. And Abraham said to Ishmael’s wife, “My daughter, give
me a little water, that I may drink, for I am fatigued and tired from the
journey.” And Ishmael’s wife answered, and said to Abraham, “We have neither
water nor bread,” and she was sitting in the tent, and did not take any notice
of Abraham. She did not even ask him who he was. But all the while she was
beating her children in the tent, and she was cursing them, and she also cursed
her husband Ishmael, and spoke evil of him, and Abraham heard the words of
Ishmael’s wife to her children, and it was an evil thing in his eyes. And
Abraham called to the woman to come out to him from the tent, and the woman
came out, and stood face to face with Abraham, while Abraham was still mounted
upon the camel. And Abraham said to Ishmael’s wife, “When thy husband Ishmael
returns home, say these words to him: A very old man from the land of the
Philistines came hither to seek thee, and his appearance was thus and so, and
thus was his figure. I did not ask him who he was, and seeing thou wast not
here, he spoke unto me, and said, When Ishmael thy husband returns, tell him,
Thus did the man say, When thou comest home, put away this tent-pin which thou
hast placed here, and place another tent-pin in its stead.” And Abraham
finished his instructions to the woman, and he turned and went off on the camel
homeward. And when Ishmael returned to the tent, he heard the words of his
wife, and he knew that it was his father, and that his wife had not honored
him. And Ishmael understood his father’s words that he had spoken to his wife,
and he hearkened to the voice of his father, and he divorced his wife, and she
went away. And Ishmael afterward went to the land of Canaan, and he took
another wife, and he brought her to his tent, to the place where he dwelt.

And at the end of three years, Abraham said, “I will go again and see Ishmael
my son, for I have not seen him for a long time.” And he rode upon his camel,
and went to the wilderness, and he reached the tent of Ishmael about noon. And
he asked after Ishmael, and his wife came out of the tent, and she said, “He is
not here, my lord, for he has gone to hunt in the fields and feed the camels,”
and the woman said to Abraham, “Turn in, my lord, into the tent, and eat a
morsel of bread, for thy soul must be wearied on account of the journey.” And
Abraham said to her, “I will not stop, for I am in haste to continue my
journey, but give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty,” and the woman
hastened and ran into the tent, and she brought out water and bread to Abraham,
which she placed before him, urging him to eat and drink, and he ate and drank,
and his heart was merry, and he blessed his son Ishmael. And he finished his
meal, and he blessed the Lord, and he said to Ishmael’s wife: “When Ishmael
comes home, say these words to him: A very old man from the land of the
Philistines came hither, and asked after thee, and thou wast not here, and I
brought him out bread and water, and he ate and drank, and his heart was merry.
And he spoke these words to me, When Ishmael thy husband comes home, say unto
him, The tent-pin which thou hast is very good, do not put it away from the
tent.” And Abraham finished commanding the woman, and he rode off to his home,
to the land of the Philistines, and when Ishmael came to his tent, his wife
went forth to meet him with joy and a cheerful heart, and she told him the
words of the old man. Ishmael knew that it was his father, and that his wife
had honored him, and he praised the Lord. And Ishmael then took his wife and
his children and his cattle and all belonging to him, and he journeyed from
there, and he went to his father in the land of the Philistines. And Abraham
related to Ishmael all that had happened between him and the first wife that
Ishmael had taken, according to what she had done. And Ishmael and his children
dwelt with Abraham many days in that land, and Abraham dwelt in the land of the
Philistines a long time.[218]

THE COVENANT WITH ABIMELECH

After a sojourn of twenty-six years in the land of the Philistines, Abraham
departed thence, and he settled in the neighborhood of Hebron. There he was
visited by Abimelech with twenty of his grandees,[219] who requested him to
make an alliance with the Philistines.

As long as Abraham was childless, the heathen did not believe in his piety, but
when Isaac was born, they said to him, “God is with thee.” But again they
entertained doubt of his piety when he cast off Ishmael. They said, “Were he a
righteous man, he would not drive his first-born forth from his house.” But
when they observed the impious deeds of Ishmael, they said, “God is with thee
in all thou doest.” That Abraham was the favorite of God, they saw in this,
too, that although Sodom was destroyed and all traffic had come to a standstill
in that region, yet Abraham’s treasure chambers were filled. For these reasons,
the Philistines sought to form an alliance with him, to remain in force for
three generations to come, for it is to the third generation that the love of a
father extends.

Before Abraham concluded the covenant with Abimelech, king of the Philistines,
he reproved him on account of a well, for “Correction leads to love,” and
“There is no peace without correction.” The herdmen of Abraham and those of
Abimelech had left their dispute about the well to decision by ordeal: the well
was to belong to the party for whose sheep the waters would rise so that they
could drink of them. But the shepherds of Abimelech disregarded the agreement,
and they wrested the well for their own use.[220] As a witness and a perpetual
sign that the well belonged to him, Abraham set aside seven sheep,
corresponding to the seven Noachian laws binding upon all men alike.[221] But
God said, “Thou didst give him seven sheep. As thou livest, the Philistines
shall one day slay seven righteous men, Samson, Hophni, Phinehas, and Saul with
his three sons, and they will destroy seven holy places, and they will keep the
holy Ark in their country as booty of war for a period of seven months, and
furthermore only the seventh generation of thy descendants will be able to
rejoice in the possession of the land promised to them.”[222] After concluding
the alliance with Abimelech, who acknowledged Abraham’s right upon the well,
Abraham called the place Beer-sheba, because there they swore both of them unto
a covenant of friendship.

In Beer-sheba Abraham dwelt many years, and thence he endeavored to spread the
law of God. He planted a large grove there, and he made four gates for it,
facing the four sides of the earth, east, west, north, and south, and he
planted a vineyard therein. If a traveller came that way, he entered by the
gate that faced him, and he sat in the grove, and ate, and drank, until he was
satisfied, and then he departed. For the house of Abraham was always open for
all passers-by, and they came daily to eat and drink there. If one was hungry,
and he came to Abraham, he would give him what he needed, so that he might eat
and drink and be satisfied; and if one was naked, and he came to Abraham, he
would clothe him with the garments of the poor man’s choice, and give him
silver and gold, and make known to him the Lord, who had created him and set
him on earth.[223] After the wayfarers had eaten, they were in the habit of
thanking Abraham for his kind entertainment of them, whereto he would reply:
“What, ye give thanks unto me! Rather return thanks to your host, He who alone
provides food and drink for all creatures.” Then the people would ask, “Where
is He?” and Abraham would answer them, and say: “He is the Ruler of heaven and
earth. He woundeth and He healeth, He formeth the embryo in the womb of the
mother and bringeth it forth into the world, He causeth the plants and the
trees to grow, He killeth and He maketh alive, He bringeth down to Sheol and
bringeth up.” When the people heard such words, they would ask, “How shall we
return thanks to God and manifest our gratitude unto Him?” And Abraham would
instruct them in these words: “Say, Blessed be the Lord who is blessed! Blessed
be He that giveth bread and food unto all flesh!” In this manner did Abraham
teach those who had enjoyed his hospitality how to praise and thank God.[224]
Abraham’s house thus became not only a lodging-place for the hungry and
thirsty, but also a place of instruction where the knowledge of God and His law
were taught.[225]

SATAN ACCUSES ABRAHAM

In spite of the lavish hospitality practiced in the house of Abraham, it
happened once that a poor man, or rather an alleged poor man, was turned away
empty-handed, and this was the immediate reason for the last of Abraham’s
temptations, the sacrifice of his favorite son Isaac. It was the day on which
Abraham celebrated the birth of Isaac with a great banquet, to which all the
magnates of the time were bidden with their wives. Satan, who always appears at
a feast in which no poor people participate, and keeps aloof from those to
which poor guests are invited, turned up at Abraham’s banquet in the guise of a
beggar asking alms at the door. He had noticed that Abraham had invited no poor
man, and he knew that his house was the right place for him.

Abraham was occupied with the entertainment of his distinguished guests, and
Sarah was endeavoring to convince their wives, the matrons, that Isaac was her
child in very truth, and not a spurious child. No one concerned himself about
the beggar at the door, who thereupon accused Abraham before God.[226]

Now, there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the
Lord, and Satan came also among them.[227] And the Lord said unto Satan, “From
whence comest thou?” and Satan answered the Lord, and said, “From going to and
fro on the earth, and from walking up and down in it.” And the Lord said unto
Satan, “What hast thou to say concerning all the children of the earth?” and
Satan answered the Lord, and said: “I have seen all the children of the earth
serving Thee and remembering Thee, when they require aught from Thee. And when
Thou givest them what they require from Thee, then they forsake Thee, and they
remember Thee no more. Hast Thou seen Abraham, the son of Terah, who at first
had no children, and he served Thee and erected altars to Thee wherever he
came, and he brought offerings upon them, and he proclaimed Thy name
continually to all the children of the earth? And now his son Isaac is born to
him, he has forsaken Thee. He made a great feast for all the inhabitants of the
land, and the Lord he has forgotten. For amidst all that he has done, he
brought Thee no offering, neither burnt offering nor peace offering, neither
one lamb nor goat of all that he had killed in the day that his son was weaned.
Even from the time of his son’s birth till now, being thirty-seven years, he
built no altar before Thee, nor brought up any offering to Thee, for he saw
that Thou didst give what he requested before Thee, and he therefore forsook
Thee.” And the Lord said to Satan: “Hast thou considered My servant Abraham?
For there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man before Me
for a burnt offering, and that feareth God and escheweth evil. As I live, were
I to say unto him, Bring up Isaac thy son before Me, he would not withhold him
from Me, much less if I told him to bring up a burnt offering before Me from
his flocks or herds.” And Satan answered the Lord, and said, “Speak now unto
Abraham as Thou hast said, and Thou wilt see whether he will not transgress and
cast aside Thy words this day.”[228]

God wished to try Isaac also. Ishmael once boasted to Isaac, saying, “I was
thirteen years old when the Lord spoke to my father to circumcise us, and I did
not transgress His word, which He commanded my father.” And Isaac answered
Ishmael, saying, “What dost thou boast to me about this, about a little bit of
thy flesh which thou didst take from thy body, concerning which the Lord
commanded thee? As the Lord liveth, the God of my father Abraham, if the Lord
should say unto my father, Take now thy son Isaac and bring him up as an
offering before Me, I would not refrain, but I would joyfully accede to it.”

THE JOURNEY TO MORIAH

And the Lord thought to try Abraham and Isaac in this matter.[229] And He said
to Abraham, “Take now thy son.”

Abraham: “I have two sons, and I do not know which of them Thou commandest me
to take.”

God: “Thine only son.”

Abraham: “The one is the only son of his mother, and the other is the only son
of his mother.”

God: “Whom thou lovest.”

Abraham: “I love this one and I love that one.”

God: “Even Isaac.”[230]

Abraham: “And where shall I go?”

God: “To the land I will show thee, and offer Isaac there for a burnt
offering.”

Abraham: “Am I fit to perform the sacrifice, am I a priest? Ought not rather
the high priest Shem to do it?”

God: “When thou wilt arrive at that place, I will consecrate thee and make thee
a priest.”[231]

And Abraham said within himself, “How shall I separate my son Isaac from Sarah
his mother?” And he came into the tent, and he sate before Sarah his wife, and
he spake these words to her: “My son Isaac is grown up, and he has not yet
studied the service of God. Now, to-morrow I will go and bring him to Shem and
Eber his son, and there he will learn the ways of the Lord, for they will teach
him to know the Lord, and to know how to pray unto the Lord that He may answer
him, and to know the way of serving the Lord his God.” And Sarah said, “Thou
hast spoken well. Go, my lord, and do unto him as thou hast said, but remove
him not far from me, neither let him remain there too long, for my soul is
bound within his soul.” And Abraham said unto Sarah, “My daughter, let us pray
to the Lord our God that He may do good with us.” And Sarah took her son Isaac,
and he abode with her all that night, and she kissed and embraced him, and she
laid injunctions upon him till morning, and she said to Abraham: “O my lord, I
pray thee, take heed of thy son, and place thine eyes over him, for I have no
other son nor daughter but him. O neglect him not. If he be hungry, give him
bread, and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink; do not let him go on
foot, neither let him sit in the sun, neither let him go by himself on the
road, neither turn him from whatever he may desire, but do unto him as he may
say to thee.”

After spending the whole night in weeping on account of Isaac, she got up in
the morning and selected a very fine and beautiful garment from those that
Abimelech had given to her. And she dressed Isaac therewith, and she put a
turban upon his head, and she fastened a precious stone in the top of the
turban, and she gave them provisions for the road. And Sarah went out with
them, and she accompanied them upon the road to see them off, and they said to
her, “Return to the tent.” And when Sarah heard the words of her son Isaac, she
wept bitterly, and Abraham wept with her, and their son wept with them, a great
weeping, also those of their servants who went with them wept greatly. And
Sarah caught hold of Isaac, and she held him in her arms, and she embraced him,
and continued to weep with him, and Sarah said, “Who knoweth if I shall ever
see thee again after this day?”

Abraham departed with Isaac amid great weeping, while Sarah and the servants
returned to the tent.[232] He took two of his young men with him, Ishmael and
Eliezer, and while they were walking in the road, the young men spoke these
words to each other. Said Ishmael to Eliezer: “Now my father Abraham is going
with Isaac to bring him up for a burnt offering to the Lord, and when he
returneth, he will give unto me all that he possesses, to inherit after him,
for I am his first-born.” Eliezer answered: “Surely, Abraham did cast thee off
with thy mother, and swear that thou shouldst not inherit anything of all he
possesses. And to whom will he give all that he has, all his precious things,
but unto his servant, who has been faithful in his house, to me, who have
served him night and day, and have done all that he desired me?” The holy
spirit answered, “Neither this one nor that one will inherit Abraham.”[233]

And while Abraham and Isaac were proceeding along the road, Satan came and
appeared to Abraham in the figure of a very aged man, humble and of contrite
spirit, and said to him: “Art thou silly or foolish, that thou goest to do this
thing to thine only son? God gave thee a son in thy latter days, in thine old
age, and wilt thou go and slaughter him, who did not commit any violence, and
wilt thou cause the soul of thine only son to perish from the earth? Dost thou
not know and understand that this thing cannot be from the Lord? For the Lord
would not do unto man such evil, to command him, Go and slaughter thy son.”
Abraham, hearing these words, knew that it was Satan, who endeavored to turn
him astray from the way of the Lord, and he rebuked him that he went away. And
Satan returned and came to Isaac, and he appeared unto him in the figure of a
young man, comely and well-favored, saying unto him: “Dost thou not know that
thy silly old father bringeth thee to the slaughter this day for naught? Now,
my son, do not listen to him, for he is a silly old man, and let not thy
precious soul and beautiful figure be lost from the earth.” And Isaac told
these words to his father, but Abraham said to him, “Take heed of him, and do
not listen to his words, for he is Satan endeavoring to lead us astray from the
commands of our God.” And Abraham rebuked Satan again, and Satan went from
them, and, seeing he could not prevail over them, he transformed himself into a
large brook of water in the road, and when Abraham, Isaac, and the two young
men reached that place, they saw a brook large and powerful as the mighty
waters. And they entered the brook, trying to pass it, but the further they
went, the deeper the brook, so that the water reached up to their necks, and
they were all terrified on account of the water. But Abraham recognized the
place, and he knew that there had been no water there before, and he said to
his son: “I know this place, on which there was no brook nor water. Now,
surely, it is Satan who doth all this to us, to draw us aside this day from the
commands of God.” And Abraham rebuked Satan, saying unto him: “The Lord rebuke
thee, O Satan. Begone from us, for we go by the command of God.” And Satan was
terri fied at the voice of Abraham, and he went away from them, and the place
became dry land again as it was at first. And Abraham went with Isaac toward
the place that God had told him.[234]

Satan then appeared unto Sarah in the figure of an old man, and said unto her,
“Where did thine husband go?” She said, “To his work.” “And where did thy son
Isaac go?” he inquired further, and she answered, “He went with his father to a
place of study of the Torah.” Satan said: “O thou poor old woman, thy teeth
will be set on edge on account of thy son, as thou knowest not that Abraham
took his son with him on the road to sacrifice him.” In this hour Sarah’s loins
trembled, and all her limbs shook. She was no more of this world. Nevertheless
she aroused herself, and said, “All that God hath told Abraham, may he do it
unto life and unto peace.”[235]

On the third day of his journey, Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place
at a distance, which God had told him. He noticed upon the mountain a pillar of
fire reaching from the earth to heaven, and a heavy cloud in which the glory of
God was seen. Abraham said to Isaac, “My son, dost thou see on that mountain
which we perceive at a distance that which I see upon it?” And Isaac answered,
and said unto his father, “I see, and, lo, a pillar of fire and a cloud, and
the glory of the Lord is seen upon the cloud.” Abraham knew then that Isaac was
accepted before the Lord for an offering. He asked Ishmael and Eliezer, “Do you
also see that which we see upon the mountain?” They answered, “We see nothing
more than like the other mountains,” and Abraham knew that they were not
accepted before the Lord to go with them.[236] Abraham said to them, “Abide ye
here with the ass, you are like the ass—as little as it sees, so little do you
see.[237] I and Isaac my son go to yonder mount, and worship there before the
Lord, and this eve we will return to you.”[238] An unconscious prophecy had
come to Abraham, for he prophesied that he and Isaac would both return from the
mountain.[239] Eliezer and Ishmael remained in that place, as Abraham had
commanded, while he and Isaac went further.

THE ‘AKEDAH

And while they were walking along, Isaac spake unto his father, “Behold, the
fire and the wood, but where then is the lamb for a burnt offering before the
Lord?” And Abraham answered Isaac, saying, “The Lord hath chosen thee, my son,
for a perfect burnt offering, instead of the lamb.” And Isaac said unto his
father, “I will do all that the Lord hath spoken to thee with joy and
cheerfulness of heart.” And Abraham again said unto Isaac his son, “Is there in
thy heart any thought or counsel concerning this which is not proper? Tell me,
my son, I pray thee! O my son, conceal it not from me.” And Isaac answered, “As
the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is nothing in my heart to cause
me to deviate either to the right or the left from the word that He hath spoken
unto thee. Neither limb nor muscle hath moved or stirred on account of this,
nor is there in my heart any thought or evil counsel concerning this. But I am
joyful and cheerful of heart in this matter, and I say, Blessed is the Lord who
has this day chosen me to be a burnt offering before Him.”

Abraham greatly rejoiced at the words of Isaac, and they went on and came
together to that place that the Lord had spoken of.[240] And Abraham approached
to build the altar in that place, and Abraham did build, while Isaac handed him
stones and mortar, until they finished erecting the altar. And Abraham took the
wood and arranged it upon the altar, and he bound Isaac, to place him upon the
wood which was upon the altar, to slay him for a burnt offering before the
Lord.[241] Isaac spake hereupon: “Father, make haste, bare thine arm, and bind
my hands and feet securely, for I am a young man, but thirty-seven years of
age, and thou art an old man. When I behold the slaughtering knife in thy hand,
I may perchance begin to tremble at the sight and push against thee, for the
desire unto life is bold. Also I may do myself an injury and make myself unfit
to be sacrificed. I adjure thee, therefore, my father, make haste, execute the
will of thy Creator, delay not. Turn up thy garment, gird thy loins, and after
that thou hast slaughtered me, burn me unto fine ashes. Then gather the ashes,
and bring them to Sarah, my mother, and place them in a casket in her chamber.
At all hours, whenever she enters her chamber, she will remember her son Isaac
and weep for him.”

And again Isaac spoke: “As soon as thou hast slaughtered me, and hast separated
thyself from me, and returnest to Sarah my mother, and she asketh thee, Where
is my son Isaac? what wilt thou answer her, and what will you two do in your
old age?” Abraham answered, and said, “We know we can survive thee by a few
days only. He who was our Comfort before thou wast born, will comfort us now
and henceforth.”

After he had laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac on the altar, upon the
wood, Abraham braced his arms, rolled up his garments, and leaned his knees
upon Isaac with all his strength. And God, sitting upon His throne, high and
exalted, saw how the hearts of the two were the same, and tears were rolling
down from the eyes of Abraham upon Isaac, and from Isaac down upon the wood, so
that it was submerged in tears. When Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took
the knife to slay his son, God spoke to the angels: “Do you see how Abraham my
friend proclaims the unity of My Name in the world? Had I hearkened unto you at
the time of the creation of the world, when ye spake, What is man, that Thou
art mindful of him? And the son of man, that Thou visitest him? who would there
have been to make known the unity of My Name in this world?” The angels then
broke into loud weeping, and they exclaimed: “The highways lie waste, the
wayfaring man ceaseth, he hath broken the covenant. Where is the reward of
Abraham, he who took the wayfarers into his house, gave them food and drink,
and went with them to bring them on the way? The covenant is broken, whereof
Thou didst speak to him, saying, ‘For in Isaac shall thy seed be called,’ and
saying, ‘My covenant will I establish with Isaac,’ for the slaughtering knife
is set upon his throat.”

The tears of the angels fell upon the knife, so that it could not cut Isaac’s
throat, but from terror his soul escaped from him. Then God spoke to the
archangel Michael, and said: “Why standest thou here? Let him not be
slaughtered.” Without delay, Michael, anguish in his voice, cried out:
“Abraham! Abraham! Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing
unto him!” Abraham made answer, and he said: “God did command me to slaughter
Isaac, and thou dost command me not to slaughter him! The words of the Teacher
and the words of the disciple—unto whose words doth one hearken?”[242] Then
Abraham heard it said: “By Myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, because thou
hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, that in
blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the
stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea-shore; and thy seed
shall possess the gate of his enemies, and in thy seed shall all the nations of
the earth be blessed, because thou hast obeyed My voice.”

At once Abraham left off from Isaac, who returned to life, revived by the
heavenly voice admonishing Abraham not to slaughter his son. Abraham loosed his
bonds, and Isaac stood upon his feet, and spoke the benediction, “Blessed art
Thou, O Lord, who quickenest the dead.”[243]

Then spake Abraham to God, “Shall I go hence without having offered up a
sacrifice?” Whereunto God replied, and said, “Lift up thine eyes, and behold
the sacrifice behind thee.”[244] And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and, behold,
behind him a ram caught in the thicket, which God had created in the twilight
of Sabbath eve in the week of creation, and prepared since then as a burnt
offering instead of Isaac. And the ram had been running toward Abraham, when
Satan caught hold of him and entangled his horns in the thicket, that he might
not advance to Abraham. And Abraham, seeing this, fetched him from the thicket,
and brought him upon the altar as an offering in the place of his son Isaac.
And Abraham sprinkled the blood of the ram upon the altar, and he exclaimed,
and said, “This is instead of my son, and may this be considered as the blood
of my son before the Lord.” And whatsoever Abraham did by the altar, he
exclaimed, and said, “This is instead of my son, and may it be considered
before the Lord in place of my son.” And God accepted the sacrifice of the ram,
and it was accounted as though it had been Isaac.[245]

As the creation of this ram had been extraordinary, so also was the use to
which all parts of his carcass were put. Not one thing went to waste. The ashes
of the parts burnt upon the altar formed the foundation of the inner altar,
whereon the expiatory sacrifice was brought once a year, on the Day of
Atonement, the day on which the offering of Isaac took place. Of the sinews of
the ram, David made ten strings for his harp upon which he played. The skin
served Elijah for his girdle, and of his two horns, the one was blown at the
end of the revelation on Mount Sinai, and the other will be used to proclaim
the end of the Exile, when the “great horn shall be blown, and they shall come
which were ready to perish in the land of Assyria, and they that were outcasts
in the land of Egypt, and they shall worship the Lord in the holy mountain at
Jerusalem.”[246]

When God commanded the father to desist from sacrificing Isaac, Abraham said:
“One man tempts another, because he knoweth not what is in the heart of his
neighbor. But Thou surely didst know that I was ready to sacrifice my son!”

God: “It was manifest to Me, and I foreknew it, that thou wouldst withhold not
even thy soul from Me.”

Abraham: “And why, then, didst Thou afflict me thus?”

God: “It was My wish that the world should become acquainted with thee, and
should know that it is not without good reason that I have chosen thee from all
the nations. Now it hath been witnessed unto men that thou fearest God.”[247]

Hereupon God opened the heavens, and Abraham heard the words, “By Myself I
swear!”

Abraham: “Thou swearest, and also I swear, I will not leave this altar until I
have said what I have to say.”

God: “Speak whatsoever thou hast to speak!”

Abraham: “Didst Thou not promise me Thou wouldst let one come forth out of mine
own bowels, whose seed should fill the whole world?”

God: “Yes.”

Abraham: “Whom didst Thou mean?”

God: “Isaac.”

Abraham: “Didst Thou not promise me to make my seed as numerous as the sand of
the sea-shore?”

God: “Yes.”

Abraham: “Through which one of my children?”

God: “Through Isaac.”

Abraham: “I might have reproached Thee, and said, O Lord of the world,
yesterday Thou didst tell me, In Isaac shall Thy seed be called, and now Thou
sayest, Take thy son, thine only son, even Isaac, and offer him for a burnt
offering. But I refrained myself, and I said nothing. Thus mayest Thou, when
the children of Isaac commit trespasses and because of them fall upon evil
times, be mindful of the offering of their father Isaac, and forgive their sins
and deliver them from their suffering.”

God: “Thou hast said what thou hadst to say, and I will now say what I have to
say. Thy children will sin before me in time to come, and I will sit in
judgment upon them on the New Year’s Day. If they desire that I should grant
them pardon, they shall blow the ram’s horn on that day, and I, mindful of the
ram that was substituted for Isaac as a sacrifice, will forgive them for their
sins.”[248]

Furthermore, the Lord revealed unto Abraham that the Temple, to be erected on
the spot of Isaac’s offering, would be destroyed,[249] and as the ram
substituted for Isaac extricated himself from one tree but to be caught in
another, so his children would pass from kingdom to kingdom—delivered from
Babylonia they would be subjugated by Media, rescued from Media they would be
enslaved by Greece, escaped from Greece they would serve Rome—yet in the end
they would be redeemed in a final redemption, at the sound of the ram’s horn,
when “the Lord God shall blow the trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the
south.”[250]

The place on which Abraham had erected the altar was the same whereon Adam had
brought the first sacrifice, and Cain and Abel had offered their gifts to
God—the same whereon Noah raised an altar to God after he left the ark;[251]
and Abraham, who knew that it was the place appointed for the Temple, called it
Yireh, for it would be the abiding place of the fear and the service of
God.[252] But as Shem had given it the name Shalem, Place of Peace, and God
would not give offence to either Abraham or Shem, He united the two names, and
called the city by the name Jerusalem.[253]

After the sacrifice on Mount Moriah, Abraham returned to Beer-sheba, the scene
of so many of his joys.[254] Isaac was carried to Paradise by angels, and there
he sojourned for three years. Thus Abraham returned home alone, and when Sarah
beheld him, she exclaimed, “Satan spoke truth when he said that Isaac was
sacrificed,” and so grieved was her soul that it fled from her body.[255]

THE DEATH AND BURIAL OF SARAH

While Abraham was engaged in the sacrifice, Satan went to Sarah, and appeared
to her in the figure of an old man, very humble and meek, and said to her:
“Dost thou not know all that Abraham has done unto thine only son this day? He
took Isaac, and built an altar, slaughtered him, and brought him up as a
sacrifice. Isaac cried and wept before his father, but he looked not at him,
neither did he have compassion upon him.” After saying these words to Sarah,
Satan went away from her, and she thought him to be an old man from amongst the
sons of men who had been with her son. Sarah lifted up her voice, and cried
bitterly, saying: “O my son, Isaac, my son, O that I had this day died instead
of thee I It grieves me for thee! After that I have reared thee and have
brought thee up, my joy is turned into mourning over thee. In my longing for a
child, I cried and prayed, till I bore thee at ninety. Now hast thou served
this day for the knife and the fire. But I console myself, it being the word of
God, and thou didst perform the command of thy God, for who can transgress the
word of our God, in whose hands is the soul of every living creature? Thou art
just, O Lord our God, for all Thy works are good and righteous, for I also
rejoice with the word which Thou didst command, and while mine eye weepeth
bitterly, my heart rejoiceth.” And Sarah laid her head upon the bosom of one of
her handmaids, and she became as still as a stone.

She rose up afterward and went about making inquiries concerning her son, till
she came to Hebron, and no one could tell her what had happened to her son. Her
servants went to seek him in the house of Shem and Eber, and they could not
find him, and they sought throughout the land, and he was not there. And,
behold, Satan came to Sarah in the shape of an old man, and said unto her, “I
spoke falsely unto thee, for Abraham did not kill his son, and he is not dead,”
and when she heard the word, her joy was so exceedingly violent that her soul
went out through joy.

When Abraham with Isaac returned to Beer-sheba, they sought for Sarah and could
not find her, and when they made inquiries concerning her, they were told that
she had gone as far as Hebron to seek them. Abraham and Isaac went to her to
Hebron, and when they found that she was dead, they cried bitterly over her,
and Isaac said: “O my mother, my mother, how hast thou left me, and whither
hast thou gone? O whither hast thou gone, and how hast thou left me?” And
Abraham and all his servants wept and mourned over her a great and heavy
mourning, even that Abraham did not pray, but spent his time in mourning and
weeping over Sarah.[257] And, indeed, he had great reason to mourn his loss,
for even in her old age Sarah had retained the beauty of her youth and the
innocence of her childhood.[258]

The death of Sarah was a loss not only for Abraham and his family, but for the
whole country. So long as she was alive, all went well in the land. After her
death confusion ensued. The weeping, lamenting, and wailing over her going
hence was universal, and Abraham, instead of receiving consolation, had to
offer consolation to others. He spoke to the mourning people, and said: “My
children, take not the going hence of Sarah too much to heart. There is one
event unto all, to the pious and the impious alike. I pray you now, give me a
burying-place with you, not as a gift, but for money.”[259]

In these last few words Abraham’s unassuming modesty was expressed. God had
promised him the whole land, yet when he came to bury his dead, he had to pay
for the grave, and it did not enter his heart to cast aspersions upon the ways
of God. In all humility he spake to the people of Hebron, saying, “I am a
stranger and a sojourner with you.” Therefore spake God to him, and said, “Thou
didst bear thyself modestly. As thou livest, I will appoint thee lord and
prince over them.”[260]

To the people themselves he appeared an angel, and they answered his words,
saying: “Thou art a prince of God among us. In the choice of our sepulchres
bury thy dead, among the rich if thou wilt, or among the poor if thou
wilt.”[261]

Abraham first of all gave thanks to God for the friendly feeling shown to him
by the children of Heth, and then he continued his negotiations for the Cave of
Machpelah.[262] He had long known the peculiar value of this spot. Adam had
chosen it as a burial-place for himself. He had feared his body might be used
for idolatrous purposes after his death; he therefore designated the Cave of
Machpelah as the place of his burial, and in the depths his corpse was laid, so
that none might find it.[263] When he interred Eve there, he wanted to dig
deeper, because he scented the sweet fragrance of Paradise, near the entrance
to which it lay, but a heavenly voice called to him, Enough! Adam himself was
buried there by Seth, and until the time of Abraham the place was guarded by
angels, who kept a fire burning near it perpetually, so that none dared
approach it and bury his dead therein.[264] Now, it happened on the day when
Abraham received the angels in his house, and he wanted to slaughter an ox for
their entertainment, that the ox ran away, and in his pursuit of him Abraham
entered the Cave of Machpelah. There he saw Adam and Eve stretched out upon
couches, candles burning at the head of their resting-places, while a sweet
scent pervaded the cave.

Therefore Abraham wished to acquire the Cave of Machpelah from the children of
Heth, the inhabitants of the city of Jebus. They said to him. “We know that in
time to come God will give these lands unto thy seed, and now do thou swear a
covenant with us that Israel shall not wrest the city of Jebus from its
inhabitants without their consent.” Abraham agreed to the condition, and he
acquired the field from Ephron, in whose possession it lay.[265]

This happened the very day on which Ephron had been made the chief of the
children of Heth, and he had been raised to the position so that Abraham might
not have to have dealings with a man of low rank. It was of advantage to
Abraham, too, for Ephron at first refused to sell his field, and only the
threat of the children of Heth to depose him from his office, unless he
fulfilled the desire of Abraham, could induce him to change his
disposition.[266]

Dissembling deceitfully, Ephron then offered to give Abraham the field without
compensation, but when Abraham insisted upon paying for it, Ephron said: “My
lord, hearken unto me. A piece of land worth four hundred shekels of silver,
what is that betwixt me and thee?” showing only too well that the money was of
the greatest consequence to him. Abraham understood his words, and when he came
to pay for the field, he weighed out the sum agreed upon between them in the
best of current coin.[267] A deed, signed by four witnesses, was drawn up, and
the field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, the field, and the cave which was
therein, were made sure unto Abraham and his descendants for all times.

The burial of Sarah then took place, amid great magnificence and the sympathy
of all. Shem and his son Eber, Abimelech king of the Philistines, Aner, Eshcol,
and Mamre, as well as all the great of the land, followed her bier. A seven
days’ mourning was kept for her, and all the inhabitants of the land came to
condole with Abraham and Isaac.[268]

When Abraham entered the cave to place the body of Sarah within, Adam and Eve
refused to remain there, “because,” they said, “as it is, we are ashamed in the
presence of God on account of the sin we committed, and now we shall be even
more ashamed on account of your good deeds.” Abraham soothed Adam. He promised
to pray to God for him, that the need for shame be removed from him. Adam
resumed his place, and Abraham entombed Sarah, and at the same time he carried
Eve, resisting, back to her place.[269]

One year after the death of Sarah, Abimelech king of the Philistines died, too,
at the age of one hundred and ninety-three years. His successor upon the throne
was his twelve-year old son Benmelek, who took the name of his father after his
accession. Abraham did not fail to pay a visit of condolence at the court of
Abimelech.

Lot also died about this time, at the age of one hundred and forty-two. His
sons, Moab and Ammon, both married Canaanitish wives. Moab begot a son, and
Ammon had six sons, and the descendants of both were numerous exceedingly.

Abraham suffered a severe loss at the same time in the death of his brother
Nahor, whose days ended at Haran, when he had reached the age of one hundred
and seventy two years.[270]

ELIEZER’S MISSION

The death of Sarah dealt Abraham a blow from which he did not recover. So long
as she was alive, he felt himself young and vigorous, but after she had passed
away, old age suddenly overtook him.[271] It was he himself who made the plea
that age be betrayed by suitable signs and tokens. Before the time of Abraham
an old man was not distinguishable externally from a young man, and as Isaac
was the image of his father, it happened frequently that father and son were
mistaken for each other, and a request meant for the one was preferred to the
other. Abraham prayed therefore that old age might have marks to distinguish it
from youth, and God granted his petition, and since the time of Abraham the
appearance of men changes in old age. This is one of the seven great wonders
that have occurred in the course of history.[272]

The blessing of God did not forsake Abraham in old age, either. That it might
not be said it had been granted to him only for the sake of Sarah, God
prospered him after her death, too. Hagar bore him a daughter, and Ishmael
repented of his evil ways and subordinated himself to Isaac. And as Abraham
enjoyed undisturbed happiness in his family, so also outside, in the world. The
kings of the east and the west eagerly besieged the door of his house in order
to derive benefit from his wisdom. From his neck a precious stone was
suspended, which possessed the power of healing the sick who looked upon it. On
the death of Abraham, God attached it to the wheel of the sun. The greatest
blessing enjoyed by him, and by none beside except his son Isaac and Jacob the
son of Isaac, was that the evil inclination had no power over him, so that in
this life he had a foretaste of the future world.[273]

But all these Divine blessings showered upon Abraham were not undeserved. He
was clean of hand, and pure of heart, one that did not lift up his soul unto
vanity.[274]

He fulfilled all the commands that were revealed later, even the Rabbinical
injunctions, as, for instance, the one relating to the limits of a Sabbath
day’s journey, wherefor his reward was that God disclosed to him the new
teachings which He expounded daily in the heavenly academy.[275]

But one thing lacked to complete the happiness of Abraham, the marriage of
Isaac. He therefore called his old servant Eliezer unto himself. Eliezer
resembled his master not only externally, in his appearance, but also
spiritually. Like Abraham he possessed full power over the evil
inclination,[276] and like the master, the servant was an adept in the
law.[277] Abraham spake the following words to Eliezer: “I am stricken in age,
and I know not the day of my death. Therefore prepare thyself, and go unto my
country, and to my kindred, and fetch hither a wife for my son.”[278] Thus he
spake by reason of the resolution he had taken immediately after the sacrifice
of Isaac on Moriah, for he had there said within himself, that if the sacrifice
had been executed, Isaac would have gone hence childless. He was even ready to
choose a wife for his son from among the daughters of his three friends, Aner,
Eshcol, and Mamre, because he knew them to be pious, and he did not attach much
importance to aristocratic stock. Then spake God to him, and said: “Concern
thyself not about a wife for Isaac.[279] One has already been provided for
him,” and it was made known to Abraham that Milcah, the wife of his brother
Nahor, childless until the birth of Isaac, had then been remembered by God and
made fruitful. She bore Bethuel, and he in turn, at the time of Isaac’s
sacrifice, begot the daughter destined to be the wife of Isaac.[280]

Mindful of the proverb, “Even if the wheat of thine own place be darnel, use it
for seed,” Abraham determined to take a wife for Isaac from his own family. He
argued that as any wife he chose would have to become a proselyte, it would be
best to use his own stock, which had the first claim upon him.[281]

Eliezer now said to his master: “Peradventure no woman will be willing to
follow me unto this land. May I then marry my own daughter to Isaac?” “No,”
replied Abraham, “thou art of the accursed race, and my son is of the blessed
race, and curse and blessing cannot be united.[282] But beware thou that thou
bring not my son again unto the land from whence I came, for if thou broughtest
him thither again, it were as though thou tookest him to hell. God who sets the
heavens in motion, He will set this matter right, too,[283] and He that took me
from my father’s house, and that spake unto me, and that swore unto me in
Haran, and at the covenant of the pieces, that He would give this land unto my
seed, He shall send His excellent angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife
for my son from thence.” Eliezer then swore to his master concerning the
matter, and Abraham made him take the oath by the sign of the covenant.[284]

THE WOOING OF REBEKAH

Attended by ten men,[285] mounted upon ten camels laden with jewels and
trinkets, Eliezer betook himself to Haran under the convoy of two angels, the
one appointed to keep guard over Eliezer, the other over Rebekah.[286]

The journey to Haran took but a few hours, at evening of the same day he
reached there, because the earth hastened to meet him in a wonderful way.[287]
He made a halt at the well of water, and he prayed to God to permit him to
distinguish the wife appointed for Isaac among the damsels that came to draw
water, by this token, that she alone, and not the others, would give him
drink.[288] Strictly speaking, this wish of his was unseemly, for suppose a
bondwoman had given him water to drink![289] But God granted his request. All
the damsels said they could not give him of their water, because they had to
take it home. Then appeared Rebekah, coming to the well contrary to her wont,
for she was the daughter of a king, Bethuel her father being king of Haran.
When Eliezer addressed his request for water to drink to this young innocent
child, not only was she ready to do his bidding, but she rebuked the other
maidens on account of their discourtesy to a stranger.[290] Eliezer noticed,
too, how the water rose up to her of its own accord from the bottom of the
well, so that she needed not to exert herself to draw it. Having scrutinized
her carefully, he felt certain that she was the wife chosen for Isaac. He gave
her a nose ring, wherein was set a precious stone, half a shekel in weight,
foreshadowing the half-shekel which her descendants would once bring to the
sanctuary year by year. He gave her also two bracelets for her hands, of ten
shekels weight in gold, in token of the two tables of stone and the Ten
Commandments upon them.[291]

When Rebekah, bearing the jewels, came to her mother and to her brother Laban,
this one hastened to Eliezer in order to slay him and take possession of his
goods. Laban soon learnt that he would not be able to do much harm to a giant
like Eliezer. He met him at the moment when Eliezer seized two camels and bore
them across the stream.[292] Besides, on account of Eliezer’s close resemblance
to Abraham, Laban thought he saw Abraham before him, and he said: “Come in,
thou blessed of the Lord! It is not becoming that thou shouldst stand without,
I have cleansed my house of idols.”[293]

But when Eliezer arrived at the house of Bethuel, they tried to kill him with
cunning. They set poisoned food before him. Luckily, he refused to eat before
he had discharged himself of his errand. While he was telling his story, it was
ordained by God that the dish intended for him should come to stand in front of
Bethuel, who ate of it and died.[294]

Eliezer showed the document he had in which Abraham deeded all his possessions
to Isaac, and he made it known to the kindred of Abraham, how deeply attached
to them his master was, in spite of the long years of separation.[295] Yet he
let them know at the same time that Abraham was not dependent wholly upon them.
He might seek a wife for his son among the daughters of Ishmael or Lot. At
first the kindred of Abraham consented to let Rebekah go with Eliezer, but as
Bethuel had died in the meantime, they did not want to give Rebekah in marriage
without consulting her. Besides, they deemed it proper that she should remain
at home at least during the week of mourning for her father.[296] But Eliezer,
seeing the angel wait for him, would brook no delay, and he said, “The man who
came with me and prospered my way, waits for me without,” and as Rebekah
professed herself ready to go at once with Eliezer, her mother and brother
granted her wish and dismissed her with their blessings.[297] But their
blessings did not come from the bottom of their hearts. Indeed, as a rule, the
blessing of the impious is a curse, wherefore Rebekah remained barren for
years.

Eliezer’s return to Canaan was as wonderful as his going to Haran had been. A
seventeen days’ journey he accomplished in three hours. He left Haran at noon,
and he arrived at Hebron[299] at three o’clock in the afternoon, the time for
the Minhah Prayer, which had been introduced by Isaac. He was in the posture of
praying when Rebekah first laid eyes upon him, wherefore she asked Eliezer what
man this was. She saw he was not an ordinary individual. She noticed the
unusual beauty of Isaac, and also that an angel accompanied him. Thus her
question was not dictated by mere curiosity.[300] At this moment she learnt
through the holy spirit, that she was destined to be the mother of the godless
Esau. Terror seized her at the knowledge, and, trembling, she fell from the
camel and inflicted an injury upon herself.[301]

After Isaac had heard the wonderful adventures of Eliezer, he took Rebekah to
the tent of his mother Sarah, and she showed herself worthy to be her
successor. The cloud appeared again that had been visible over the tent during
the life of Sarah, and had vanished at her death; the light shone again in the
tent of Rebekah that Sarah had kindled at the coming in of the Sabbath, and
that had burnt miraculously throughout the week; the blessing returned with
Rebekah that had hovered over the dough kneaded by Sarah; and the gates of the
tent were opened for the needy, wide and spacious, as they had been during the
lifetime of Sarah.[302]

For three years Isaac had mourned for his mother, and he could find no
consolation in the academy of Shem and Eber, his abiding-place during that
period. But Rebekah comforted him after his mother’s death,[303] for she was
the counterpart of Sarah in person and in spirit.[304]

As a reward for having executed to his full satisfaction the mission with which
he had charged him, Abraham set his bondman free.[305] The curse resting upon
Eliezer, as upon all the descendants of Canaan, was transformed into a
blessing, because he ministered unto Abraham loyally.[306] Greatest reward of
all, God found him worthy of entering Paradise alive, a distinction that fell
to the lot of very few.[307]

THE LAST YEARS OF ABRAHAM

Rebekah first saw Isaac as he was coming from the way of Beer-lahai-roi, the
dwelling-place of Hagar, whither he had gone after the death of his mother, for
the purpose of reuniting his father with Hagar,[308] or, as she is also called,
Keturah.[309]

Hagar bore him six sons, who, however, did scant honor to their father, for
they all were idolaters.[310] Abraham, therefore, during his own lifetime, sent
them away from the presence of Isaac, that they might not be singed by Isaac’s
flame, and gave them the instruction to journey eastward as far as
possible.[311] There he built a city for them, surrounded by an iron wall, so
high that the sun could not shine into the city. But Abraham provided them with
huge gems and pearls, their lustre more brilliant than the light of the sun,
which will be used in the Messianic time when “the moon shall be confounded and
the sun ashamed.”[312] Also Abraham taught them the black art, wherewith they
held sway over demons and spirits. It is from this city in the east that Laban,
Balaam, and Balaam’s father Beor derived their sorceries.[313]

Epher, one of the grandsons of Abraham and Keturah, invaded Lybia with an armed
force, and took possession of the country. From this Epher the whole land of
Africa has its name.[314] Aram is also a country made habitable by a kinsman of
Abraham. In his old age Terah contracted a new marriage with Pelilah, and from
this union sprang a son Zoba, who was the father in turn of three sons. The
oldest of these, Aram, was exceedingly rich and powerful, and the old home in
Haran sufficed not for him and his kinsmen, the sons of Nahor, the brother of
Abraham. Aram and his brethren and all that belonged to him therefore departed
from Haran, and they settled in a vale, and they built themselves a city there
which they called Aram-Zoba, to perpetuate the name of the father and his
first-born son. Another Aram, Aram-naharaim, on the Euphrates, was built by
Aram son of Kemuel, a nephew of Abraham. Its real name was Petor, after the son
of Aram, but it is better known as Aram-naharaim. The descendants of Kesed,
another nephew of Abraham, a son of his brother Nahor, established themselves
opposite to Shinar, where they founded the city of Kesed, the city whence the
Chaldees are called Kasdim.[315]

Though Abraham knew full well that Isaac deserved his paternal blessing beyond
all his sons, yet he withheld it from him, that no hostile feelings be aroused
among his descendants. He spake, and said: “I am but flesh and blood, here
to-day, to-morrow in the grave. What I was able to do for my children I have
done. Henceforth let come what God desires to do in His world,” and it happened
that immediately after the death of Abraham God Himself appeared unto Isaac,
and gave him His blessing.[316]

A HERALD OF DEATH

When the day of the death of Abraham drew near, the Lord said to Michael,
“Arise and go to Abraham and say to him, Thou shalt depart from life!” so that
he might set his house in order before he died. And Michael went and came to
Abraham and found him sitting before his oxen for ploughing. Abraham, seeing
Michael, but not knowing who he was, saluted him and said to him, “Sit down a
little while, and I will order a beast to be brought, and we will go to my
house, that thou mayest rest with me, for it is toward evening, and arise in
the morning and go whithersoever thou wilt.” And Abraham called one of his
servants, and said to him: “Go and bring me a beast, that the stranger may sit
upon it, for he is wearied with his journey.” But Michael said, “I abstain from
ever sitting upon any fourfooted beast, let us walk therefore, till we reach
the house.”

On their way to the house they passed a huge tree, and Abraham heard a voice
from its branches, singing, “Holy art thou, because thou hast kept the purpose
for which thou wast sent.” Abraham hid the mystery in his heart, thinking that
the stranger did not hear it. Arrived at his house, he ordered the servants to
prepare a meal, and while they were busy with their work, he called his son
Isaac, and said to him, “Arise and put water in the vessel, that we may wash
the feet of the stranger.” And he brought it as he was commanded, and Abraham
said, “I perceive that in this basin I shall never again wash the feet of any
man coming to us as a guest.” Hearing this, Isaac began to weep, and Abraham,
seeing his son weep, also wept, and Michael, seeing them weep, wept also, and
the tears of Michael fell into the water, and became precious stones.

Before sitting down to the table, Michael arose, went out for a moment, as if
to ease nature, and ascended to heaven in the twinkling of an eye, and stood
before the Lord, and said to Him: “Lord and Master, let Thy power know that I
am unable to remind that righteous man of his death, for I have not seen upon
the earth a man like him, compassionate, hospitable, righteous, truthful,
devout, refraining from every evil deed.” Then the Lord said to Michael, “Go
down to My friend Abraham, and whatever he may say to thee, that do thou also,
and whatever he may eat, eat thou also with him, and I will cast the thought of
the death of Abraham into the heart of Isaac, his son, in a dream, and Isaac
will relate the dream, and thou shalt interpret it, and he himself will know
his end.” And Michael said, “Lord, all the heavenly spirits are incorporeal,
and neither eat nor drink, and this man has set before me a table with an
abundance of all good things earthly and corruptible. Now, Lord, what shall I
do?” The Lord answered him, “Go down to him and take no thought for this, for
when thou sittest down with him, I will send upon thee a devouring spirit, and
it will consume out of thy hands and through thy mouth all that is on the
table.”

Then Michael went into the house of Abraham, and they ate and drank and were
merry. And when the supper was ended, Abraham prayed after his custom, and
Michael prayed with him, and each lay down to sleep upon his couch in one room,
while Isaac went to his chamber, lest he be troublesome to the guest. About the
seventh hour of the night, Isaac awoke and came to the door of his father’s
chamber, crying out and saying, “Open, father, that I may touch thee before
they take thee away from me.” And Abraham wept together with his son, and when
Michael saw them weep, he wept likewise. And Sarah, hearing the weeping, called
forth from her bedchamber, saying: “My lord Abraham, why this weeping? Has the
stranger told thee of thy brother’s son Lot, that he is dead? or has aught
befallen us?” Michael answered, and said to her, “Nay, my sister Sarah, it is
not as thou sayest, but thy son Isaac, methinks, beheld a dream, and came to us
weeping, and we, seeing him, were moved in our hearts and wept.” Sarah, hearing
Michael speak, knew straightway that it was an angel of the Lord, one of the
three angels whom they had entertained in their house once before, and
therefore she made a sign to Abraham to come out toward the door, to inform him
of what she knew. Abraham said: “Thou hast perceived well, for I, too, when I
washed his feet, knew in my heart that they were the feet that I had washed at
the oak of Mamre, and that went to save Lot.” Abraham, returning to his
chamber, made Isaac relate his dream, which Michael interpreted to them,
saying: “Thy son Isaac has spoken truth, for thou shalt go and be taken up into
the heavens, but thy body shall remain on earth, until seven thousand ages are
fulfilled, for then all flesh shall arise. Now, therefore, Abraham, set thy
house in order, for thou wast heard what is decreed concerning thee.” Abraham
answered, “Now I know thou art an angel of the Lord, and wast sent to take my
soul, but I will not go with thee, but do thou whatever thou art commanded.”
Michael returned to heaven and told God of Abraham’s refusal to obey his
summons, and he was again commanded to go down and admonish Abraham not to
rebel against God, who had bestowed many blessings upon him, and he reminded
him that no one who has come from Adam and Eve can escape death, and that God
in His great kindness toward him did not permit the sickle of death to meet
him, but sent His chief captain, Michael, to him. “Wherefore, then,” he ended,
“hast thou said to the chief captain, I will not go with thee?” When Michael
delivered these exhortations to Abraham, he saw that it was futile to oppose
the will of God, and he consented to die, but wished to have one desire of his
fulfilled while still alive. He said to Michael: “I beseech thee, lord, if I
must depart from my body, I desire to be taken up in my body, that I may see
the creatures that the Lord has created in heaven and on earth.” Michael went
up into heaven, and spake before the Lord concerning Abraham, and the Lord
answered Michael, “Go and take up Abraham in the body and show him all things,
and whatever he shall say to thee, do to him as to My friend.”

ABRAHAM VIEWS EARTH AND HEAVEN

The archangel Michael went down, and took Abraham upon a chariot of the
cherubim, and lifted him up into the air of heaven, and led him upon the cloud,
together with sixty angels, and Abraham ascended upon the chariot over all the
earth, and saw all things that are below on the earth, both good and bad.
Looking down upon the earth, he saw a man committing adultery with a wedded
woman, and turning to Michael he said, “Send fire from heaven to consume them.”
Straightway there came down fire and consumed them, for God had commanded
Michael to do whatsoever Abraham should ask him to do. He looked again, and he
saw thieves digging through a house, and Abraham said, “Let wild beasts come
out of the desert, and tear them in pieces,” and immediately wild beasts came
out of the desert and devoured them. Again he looked down, and he saw people
preparing to commit murder, and he said, “Let the earth open and swallow them,”
and, as he spoke, the earth swallowed them alive. Then God spoke to Michael:
“Turn away Abraham to his own house and let him not go round the whole earth,
because he has no compassion on sinners, but I have compassion on sinners, that
they may turn and live and repent of their sins, and be saved.”

So Michael turned the chariot, and brought Abraham to the place of judgment of
all souls. Here he saw two gates, the one broad and the other narrow, the
narrow gate that of the just, which leads to life, they that enter through it
go into Paradise. The broad gate is that of sinners, which leads to destruction
and eternal punishment. Then Abraham wept, saying, “Woe is me, what shall I do?
for I am a man big of body, and how shall I be able to enter by the narrow
gate?” Michael answered, and said to Abraham, “Fear not, nor grieve, for thou
shalt enter by it unhindered, and all they who are like thee.” Abraham,
perceiving that a soul was adjudged to be set in the midst, asked Michael the
reason for it, and Michael answered, “Because the judge found its sins and its
righteousness equal, he neither committed it to judgment nor to be saved.”
Abraham said to Michael, “Let us pray for this soul, and see whether God will
hear us,” and when they rose up from their prayer, Michael informed Abraham
that the soul was saved by the prayer, and was taken by an angel and carried up
to Paradise. Abraham said to Michael, “Let us yet call upon the Lord and
supplicate His compassion and entreat His mercy for the souls of the sinners
whom I formerly, in my anger, cursed and destroyed, whom the earth devoured,
and the wild beasts tore in pieces, and the fire consumed, through my words.
Now I know that I have sinned before the Lord our God.”

After the joint prayer of the archangel and Abraham, there came a voice from
heaven, saying, “Abraham, Abraham, I have hearkened to thy voice and thy
prayer, and I forgive thee thy sin, and those whom thou thinkest that I
destroyed, I have called up and brought them into life by My exceeding
kindness, because for a season I have requited them in judgment, and those whom
I destroy living upon earth, I will not requite in death.”

When Michael brought Abraham back to his house, they found Sarah dead. Not
seeing what had become of Abraham, she was consumed with grief and gave up her
soul. Though Michael had fulfilled Abraham’s wish, and had shown him all the
earth and the judgment and recompense, he still refused to surrender his soul
to Michael, and the archangel again ascended to heaven, and said unto the Lord:
“Thus speaks Abraham, I will not go with thee, and I refrain from laying my
hands on him, because from the beginning he was Thy friend, and he has done all
things pleasing in Thy sight. There is no man like him on earth, not even Job,
the wondrous man.” But when the day of the death of Abraham drew nigh, God
commanded Michael to adorn Death with great beauty and send him thus to
Abraham, that he might see him with his eyes.

While sitting under the oak of Mamre, Abraham perceived a flashing of light and
a smell of sweet odor, and turning around he saw Death coming toward him in
great glory and beauty. And Death said unto Abraham: “Think not, Abraham, that
this beauty is mine, or that I come thus to every man. Nay, but if any one is
righteous like thee, I thus take a crown and come to him, but if he is a
sinner, I come in great corruption, and out of their sins I make a crown for my
head, and I shake them with great fear, so that they are dismayed.” Abraham
said to him, “And art thou, indeed, he that is called Death?” He answered, and
said, “I am the bitter name,” but Abraham answered, “I will not go with thee.”
And Abraham said to Death, “Show us thy corruption.” And Death revealed his
corruption, showing two heads, the one had the face of a serpent, the other
head was like a sword. All the servants of Abraham, looking at the fierce mien
of Death, died, but Abraham prayed to the Lord, and he raised them up. As the
looks of Death were not able to cause Abraham’s soul to depart from him, God
removed the soul of Abraham as in a dream, and the archangel Michael took it up
into heaven. After great praise and glory had been given to the Lord by the
angels who brought Abraham’s soul, and after Abraham bowed down to worship,
then came the voice of God, saying thus: “Take My friend Abraham into Paradise,
where are the tabernacles of My righteous ones and the abodes of My saints
Isaac and Jacob in his bosom, where there is no trouble, nor grief, nor
sighing, but peace and rejoicing and life unending.”[317]

Abraham’s activity did not cease with his death, and as he interceded in this
world for the sinners, so will he intercede for them in the world to come. On
the day of judgment he will sit at the gate of hell, and he will not suffer
those who kept the law of circumcision to enter therein.[318]

THE PATRON OF HEBRON

Once upon a time some Jews lived in Hebron, few in number, but pious and good,
and particularly hospitable. When strangers came to the Cave of Machpelah to
pray there, the inhabitants of the place fairly quarrelled with each other for
the privilege of entertaining the guests, and the one who carried off the
victory rejoiced as though he had found great spoil.

On the eve of the Day of Atonement, it appeared that, in spite of all their
efforts, the dwellers at Hebron could not secure the tenth man needed for
public Divine service, and they feared they would have none on the holy day.
Toward evening, when the sun was about to sink, they descried an old man with
silver white beard, bearing a sack upon his shoulder, his raiment tattered, and
his feet badly swollen from much walking. They ran to meet him, took him to one
of the houses, gave him food and drink, and, after supplying him with new white
garments, they all together went to the synagogue for worship. Asked what his
name was, the stranger replied, Abraham.

At the end of the fast, the residents of Hebron cast lots for the privilege of
entertaining the guest. Fortune favored the beadle, who, the envy of the rest,
bore his guest away to his house. On the way, he suddenly disappeared, and the
beadle could not find him anywhere. In vain all the Jews of the place went on a
quest for him. Their sleepless night, spent in searching, had no result. The
stranger could not be found. But no sooner had the beadle lain down, toward
morning, weary and anxious, to snatch some sleep, than he saw the lost guest
before him, his face luminous as lightning, and his garments magnificent and
studded with gems radiant as the sun. Before the beadle, stunned by fright,
could open his mouth, the stranger spake, and said: “I am Abraham the Hebrew,
your ancestor, who rests here in the Cave of Machpelah. When I saw how grieved
you were at not having the number of men prescribed for a public service, I
came forth to you. Have no fear! Rejoice and be merry of heart!”[319]

On another occasion Abraham granted his assistance to the people of Hebron. The
lord of the city was a heartless man, who oppressed the Jews sorely. One day he
commanded them to pay a large sum of money into his coffers, the whole sum in
uniform coins, all stamped with the same year. It was but a pretext to kill the
Jews. He knew that his demand was impossible of fulfilment.

The Jews proclaimed a fast and day of public prayer, on which to supplicate God
that He turn aside the sword suspended above them. The night following, the
beadle in a dream saw an awe-inspiring old man, who addressed him in the
following words: “Up, quickly! Hasten to the gate of the court, where lies the
money you need. I am your father Abraham. I have beheld the affliction
wherewith the Gentiles oppress you, but God has heard your groans.” In great
terror the beadle arose, but he saw no one, yet he went to the spot designated
by the vision, and he found the money and took it to the congregation, telling
his dream at the same time. Amazed, they counted the gold, precisely the amount
required of them by the prince, no more and no less. They surrendered the sum
to him, and he who had considered compliance with his demand impossible,
recognized now that God is with the Jews, and thenceforth they found favor in
his eyes.[320]

VI
JACOB

THE BIRTH OF ESAU AND JACOB

Isaac was the counterpart of his father in body and soul. He resembled him in
every particular—”in beauty, wisdom, strength, wealth, and noble deeds.”[1] It
was, therefore, as great an honor for Isaac to be called the son of his father
as for Abraham to be called the father of his son, and though Abraham was the
progenitor of thirty nations, he is always designated as the father of
Isaac.[2]

Despite his many excellent qualities, Isaac married late in life. God permitted
him to meet the wife suitable to him only after he had successfully disproved
the mocking charges of Ishmael, who was in the habit of taunting him with
having been circumcised at the early age of eight days, while Ishmael had
submitted himself voluntarily to the operation when he was thirteen years old.
For this reason God demanded Isaac as a sacrifice when he had attained to full
manhood, at the age of thirty-seven, and Isaac was ready to give up his life.
Ishmael’s jibes were thus robbed of their sting, and Isaac was permitted to
marry. But another delay occurred before his marriage could take place.
Directly after the sacrifice on Mount Moriah, his mother died, and he mourned
her for three years.[3] Finally he married Rebekah, who was then a maiden of
fourteen.[4]

Rebekah was “a rose between thorns.” Her father was the Aramean Bethuel, and
her brother was Laban, but she did not walk in their ways.[5] Her piety was
equal to Isaac’s.[6] Nevertheless their marriage was not entirely happy, for
they lived together no less than twenty years without begetting children.[7]
Rebekah besought her husband to entreat God for the gift of children, as his
father Abraham had done. At first Isaac would not do her bidding. God had
promised Abraham a numerous progeny, and he thought their childlessness was
probably Rebekah’s fault, and it was her duty to supplicate God, and not his.
But Rebekah would not desist, and husband and wife repaired to Mount Moriah
together to pray to God there. And Isaac said: “O Lord God of heaven and earth,
whose goodness and mercies fill the earth, Thou who didst take my father from
his father’s house and from his birthplace, and didst bring him unto this land,
and didst say unto him, To thee and thy seed will I give the land, and didst
promise him and declare unto him, I will multiply thy seed as the stars of
heaven and as the sand of the sea, now may Thy words be verified which Thou
didst speak unto my father. For Thou art the Lord our God, our eyes are toward
Thee, to give us seed of men as Thou didst promise us, for Thou art the Lord
our God, and our eyes are upon Thee.”[8] Isaac prayed furthermore that all
children destined for him might be born unto him from this pious wife of his,
and Rebekah made the same petition regarding her husband Isaac and the children
destined for her.

Their united prayer was heard.[9] Yet it was chiefly for the sake of Isaac that
God gave them children. It is true, Rebekah’s piety equalled her husband’s, but
the prayer of a pious man who is the son of a pious man is far more efficacious
than the prayer of one who, though pious himself, is descended from a godless
father.

The prayer wrought a great miracle, for Isaac’s physique was such that he could
not have been expected to beget children, and equally it was not in the course
of nature that Rebekah should bear children.[10]

When Rebekah had been pregnant seven months,[11] she began to wish that the
curse of childlessness had not been removed from her.[12] She suffered
torturous pain, because her twin sons began their lifelong quarrels in her
womb. They strove to kill each other. If Rebekah walked in the vicinity of a
temple erected to idols, Esau moved in her body, and if she passed a synagogue
or a Bet ha-Midrash, Jacob essayed to break forth from her womb.[13] The
quarrels of the children turned upon such differences as these. Esau would
insist that there was no life except the earthly life of material pleasures,
and Jacob would reply: “My brother, there are two worlds before us, this world
and the world to come. In this world, men eat and drink, and traffic and marry,
and bring up sons and daughters, but all this does not take place in the world
to come. If it please thee, do thou take this world, and I will take the
other.”[14] Esau had Samael as his ally, who desired to slay Jacob in his
mother’s womb. But the archangel Michael hastened to Jacob’s aid. He tried to
burn Samael, and the Lord saw it was necessary to constitute a heavenly court
for the purpose of arbitrating the case of Michael and Samael.[15] Even the
quarrel between the two brothers regarding the birthright had its beginning
before they emerged from the womb of their mother. Each desired to be the first
to come into the world. It was only when Esau threatened to carry his point at
the expense of his mother’s life that Jacob gave way.[16]

Rebekah asked other women whether they, too, had suffered such pain during
their pregnancy, and when they told her they had not heard of a case like hers,
except the pregnancy of Nimrod’s mother, she betook herself to Mount Moriah,
whereon Shem and Eber had their Bet ha-Midrash. She requested them as well as
Abraham to inquire of God what the cause of her dire suffering was.[17] And
Shem replied: “My daughter, I confide a secret to thee. See to it that none
finds it out. Two nations are in thy womb, and how should thy body contain
them, seeing that the whole world will not be large enough for them to exist in
it together peaceably? Two nations they are, each owning a world of its own,
the one the Torah, the other sin. From the one will spring Solomon, the builder
of the Temple, from the other Vespasian, the destroyer thereof. These two are
what are needed to raise the number of nations to seventy. They will never be
in the same estate. Esau will vaunt lords, while Jacob will bring forth
prophets, and if Esau has princes, Jacob will have kings.[18] They, Israel and
Rome, are the two nations destined to be hated by all the world.[19] One will
exceed the other in strength. First Esau will subjugate the whole world, but in
the end Jacob will rule over all.[20] The older of the two will serve the
younger, provided this one is pure of heart, otherwise the younger will be
enslaved by the older.”[21]

The circumstances connected with the birth of her twin sons were as remarkable
as those during the period of Rebekah’s pregnancy. Esau was the first to see
the light, and with him all impurity came from the womb;[22] Jacob was born
clean and sweet of body. Esau was brought forth with hair, beard, and teeth,
both front and back,[23] and he was blood-red, a sign of his future sanguinary
nature.[24] On account of his ruddy appearance he remained uncircumcised.
Isaac, his father, feared that it was due to poor circulation of the blood, and
he hesitated to perform the circumcision. He decided to wait until Esau should
attain his thirteenth year, the age at which Ishmael had received the sign of
the covenant. But when Esau grew up, he refused to give heed to his father’s
wish, and so he was left uncircumcised.[25] The opposite of his brother in this
as in all respects, Jacob was born with the sign of the covenant upon his body,
a rare distinction.[26] But Esau also bore a mark upon him at birth, the figure
of a serpent, the symbol of all that is wicked and hated of God.[27]

The names conferred upon the brothers are pregnant with meaning. The older was
called Esau, because he was ‘Asui, fully developed when he was born, and the
name of the younger was given to him by God, to point to some important events
in the future of Israel by the numerical value of each letter. The first letter
in Ya’akob, Yod, with the value of ten, stands for the decalogue; the second,
‘Ayin, equal to seventy, for the seventy elders, the leaders of Israel; the
third, Kof, a hundred, for the Temple, a hundred ells in height; and the last,
Bet, for the two tables of stone.[28]

THE FAVORITE OF ABRAHAM

While Esau and Jacob were little, their characters could not be judged
properly. They were like the myrtle and the thorn-bush, which look alike in the
early stages of their growth. After they have attained full size, the myrtle is
known by its fragrance, and the thorn-bush by its thorns.

In their childhood, both brothers went to school, but when they reached their
thirteenth year, and were of age, their ways parted. Jacob continued his
studies in the Bet ha Midrash of Shem and Eber, and Esau abandoned himself to
idolatry and an immoral life.[29] Both were hunters of men, Esau tried to
capture them in order to turn them away from God, and Jacob, to turn them
toward God.[30] In spite of his impious deeds, Esau possessed the art of
winning his father’s love. His hypocritical conduct made Isaac believe that his
first-born son was extremely pious. “Father,” he would ask Isaac, “what is the
tithe on straw and salt?” The question made him appear God-fearing in the eyes
of his father, because these two products are the very ones that are exempt
from tithing.[31] Isaac failed to notice, too, that his older son gave him
forbidden food to eat. What he took for the flesh of young goats was dog’s
meat.[32]

Rebekah was more clear-sighted. She knew her sons as they really were, and
therefore her love for Jacob was exceeding great. The oftener she heard his
voice, the deeper grew her affection for him.[33] Abraham agreed with her. He
also loved his grandson Jacob, for he knew that in him his name and his seed
would be called. And he said unto Rebekah, “My daughter, watch over my son
Jacob, for he shall be in my stead on the earth and for a blessing in the midst
of the children of men, and for the glory of the whole seed of Shem.” Having
admonished Rebekah thus to keep guard over Jacob, who was destined to be the
bearer of the blessing given to Abraham by God, he called for his grandson, and
in the presence of Rebekah he blessed him, and said: “Jacob, my beloved son,
whom my soul loveth, may God bless thee from above the firmament, and may He
give thee all the blessing wherewith He blessed Adam, and Enoch, and Noah, and
Shem, and all the things of which He told me, and all the things which He
promised to give me may He cause to cleave to thee and to thy seed forever,
according to the days of the heavens above the earth. And the spirit of Mastema
shall not rule over thee or over thy seed, to turn thee from the Lord, who is
thy God from henceforth and forever. And may the Lord God be a father to thee,
and mayest thou be His first-born son, and may He be a father to thy people
always. Go in peace, my son.”[34]

And Abraham had good reason to be particularly fond of Jacob, for it was due to
the merits of his grandson that he had been rescued from the fiery furnace.[35]

Isaac and Rebekah, knowing of Abraham’s love for their young son, sent their
father a meal by Jacob on the last Feast of Pentecost which Abraham was
permitted to celebrate on earth, that he might eat and bless the Creator of all
things before he died. Abraham knew that his end was approaching, and he
thanked the Lord for all the good He had granted him during the days of his
life, and blessed Jacob and bade him walk in the ways of the Lord, and
especially he was not to marry a daughter of the Canaanites. Then Abraham
prepared for death. He placed two of Jacob’s fingers upon his eyes, and thus
holding them closed he fell into his eternal sleep, while Jacob lay beside him
on the bed. The lad did not know of his grandfather’s death, until he called
him, on awakening next morning, “Father, father,” and received no answer.[36]

THE SALE OF THE BIRTHRIGHT

Though Abraham reached a good old age, beyond the limit of years vouchsafed
later generations, he yet died five years before his allotted time. The
intention was to let him live to be one hundred and eighty years old, the same
age as Isaac’s at his death, but on account of Esau God brought his life to an
abrupt close. For some time Esau had been pursuing his evil inclinations in
secret. Finally he dropped his mask, and on the day of Abraham’s death he was
guilty of five crimes: he ravished a betrothed maiden, committed murder,
doubted the resurrection of the dead, scorned the birthright, and denied God.
Then the Lord said: “I promised Abraham that he should go to his fathers in
peace. Can I now permit him to be a witness of his grandson’s rebellion against
God, his violation of the laws of chastity, and his shedding of blood? It is
better for him to die now in peace.”[37]

The men slain by Esau on this day were Nimrod and two of his adjutants. A
long-standing feud had existed between Esau and Nimrod, because the mighty
hunter before the Lord was jealous of Esau, who also devoted himself
assiduously to the chase. Once when he was hunting it happened that Nimrod was
separated from his people, only two men were with him. Esau, who lay in ambush,
noticed his isolation, and waited until he should pass his covert. Then he
threw himself upon Nimrod suddenly, and felled him and his two companions, who
hastened to his succor. The outcries of the latter brought the attendants of
Nimrod to the spot where he lay dead, but not before Esau had stripped him of
his garments, and fled to the city with them.[38]

These garments of Nimrod had an extraordinary effect upon cattle, beasts, and
birds. Of their own accord they would come and prostrate themselves before him
who was arrayed in them. Thus Nimrod and Esau after him were able to rule over
men and beasts.[39]

After slaying Nimrod, Esau hastened cityward in great fear of his victim’s
followers. Tired and exhausted he arrived at home to find Jacob busy preparing
a dish of lentils. Numerous male and female slaves were in Isaac’s household.
Nevertheless Jacob was so simple and modest in his demeanor that, if he came
home late from the Bet ha-Midrash, he would disturb none to prepare his meal,
but would do it himself.[40] On this occasion he was cooking lentils for his
father, to serve to him as his mourner’s meal after the death of Abraham. Adam
and Eve had eaten lentils after the murder of Abel, and so had the parents of
Haran, when he perished in the fiery furnace. The reason they are used for the
mourner’s meal is that the round lentil symbolizes death: as the lentil rolls,
so death, sorrow, and mourning constantly roll about among men, from one to the
other.[41]

Esau accosted Jacob thus, “Why art thou preparing lentils?”

Jacob: “Because our grandfather passed away; they shall be a sign of my grief
and mourning, that he may love me in the days to come.”

Esau: “Thou fool! Dost thou really think it possible that man should come to
life again after he has been dead and has mouldered in the grave?”[42] He
continued to taunt Jacob. “Why dost thou give thyself so much trouble?” he
said. “Lift up thine eyes, and thou wilt see that all men eat whatever comes to
hand—fish, creeping and crawling creatures, swine’s flesh, and all sorts of
things like these, and thou vexest thyself about a dish of lentils.”

Jacob: “If we act like other men, what shall we do on the day of the Lord, the
day on which the pious will receive their reward, when a herald will proclaim:
Where is He that weigheth the deeds of men, where is He that counteth?”

Esau: “Is there a future world? Or will the dead be called back to life? If it
were so, why hath not Adam returned? Hast thou heard that Noah, through whom
the world was raised anew, hath reappeared? Yea, Abraham, the friend of God,
more beloved of Him than any man, hath he come to life again?”

Jacob: “If thou art of opinion that there is no future world, and that the dead
do not rise to new life, then why dost thou want thy birthright? Sell it to me,
now, while it is yet possible to do so. Once the Torah is revealed, it cannot
be done. Verily, there is a future world, in which the righteous receive their
reward. I tell thee this, lest thou say later I deceived thee.”[43]

Jacob was little concerned about the double share of the inheritance that went
with the birthright. What he thought of was the priestly service, which was the
prerogative of the first-born in ancient times, and Jacob was loth to have his
impious brother Esau play the priest, he who despised all Divine service.[44]

The scorn manifested by Esau for the resurrection of the dead he felt also for
the promise of God to give the Holy Land to the seed of Abraham. He did not
believe in it, and therefore he was willing to cede his birthright and the
blessing attached thereto in exchange for a mess of pottage.[45] In addition,
Jacob paid him in coin,[46] and, besides, he gave him what was more than money,
the wonderful sword of Methuselah, which Isaac had inherited from Abraham and
bestowed upon Jacob.[47]

Esau made game of Jacob. He invited his associates to feast at his brother’s
table, saying, “Know ye what I did to this Jacob? I ate his lentils, drank his
wine, amused myself at his expense, and sold my birthright to him.” All that
Jacob replied was, “Eat and may it do thee good!” But the Lord said, “Thou
despisest the birthright, therefore I shall make thee despised in all
generations.” And by way of punishment for denying God and the resurrection of
the dead, the descendants of Esau were cut off from the world.[48]

As naught was holy to Esau, Jacob made him swear, concerning the birthright, by
the life of their father, for he knew Esau’s love for Isaac, that it was
strong.[49] Nor did he fail to have a document made out, duly signed by
witnesses, setting forth that Esau had sold him the birthright together with
his claim upon a place in the Cave of Machpelah.[50]

Though no blame can attach to Jacob for all this, yet he secured the birthright
from him by cunning, and therefore the descendants of Jacob had to serve the
descendants of Esau.[51]

ISAAC WITH THE PHILISTINES

The life of Isaac was a faithful reflex of the life of his father. Abraham had
to leave his birthplace; so also Isaac. Abraham was exposed to the risk of
losing his wife; so also Isaac. The Philistines were envious of Abraham; so
also of Isaac. Abraham long remained childless; so also Isaac. Abraham begot
one pious son and one wicked son; so also Isaac. And, finally, as in the time
of Abraham, so also in the time of Isaac, a famine came upon the land.[52]

At first Isaac intended to follow the example of his father and remove to
Egypt, but God appeared unto him, and spake: “Thou art a perfect sacrifice,
without a blemish, and as a burnt offering is made unfit if it is taken outside
of the sanctuary, so thou wouldst be profaned if thou shouldst happen outside
of the Holy Land. Remain in the land, and endeavor to cultivate it. In this
land dwells the Shekinah, and in days to come I will give unto thy children the
realms possessed by mighty rulers, first a part thereof, and the whole in the
Messianic time.”[53]

Isaac obeyed the command of God, and he settled in Gerar. When he noticed that
the inhabitants of the place began to have designs upon his wife, he followed
the example of Abraham, and pretended she was his sister.[54] The report of
Rebekah’s beauty reached the king himself, but he was mindful of the great
danger to which he had once exposed himself on a similar occasion, and he left
Isaac and his wife unmolested.[55] After they had been in Gerar for three
months, Abimelech noticed that the manner of Isaac, who lived in the outer
court of the royal palace, was that of a husband toward Rebekah.[56] He called
him to account, saying, “It might have happened to the king himself to take the
woman thou didst call thy sister.”[57] Indeed, Isaac lay under the suspicion of
having illicit intercourse with Rebekah, for at first the people of the place
would not believe that she was his wife. When Isaac persisted in his
statement,[58] Abimelech sent his grandees for them, ordered them to be arrayed
in royal vestments, and had it proclaimed before them, as they rode through the
city: “These two are man and wife. He that toucheth this man or his wife shall
surely be put to death.”

Thereafter the king invited Isaac to settle in his domains, and he assigned
fields and vineyards to him for cultivation, the best the land afforded.[59]
But Isaac was not self-interested. The tithe of all he possessed he gave to the
poor of Gerar. Thus he was the first to introduce the law of tithing for the
poor, as his father Abraham had been the first to separate the priests’ portion
from his fortune.[60] Isaac was rewarded by abundant harvests; the land yielded
a hundred times more than was expected, though the soil was barren and the year
unfruitful. He grew so rich that people wished to have “the dung from Isaac’s
she-mules rather than Abimelech’s gold and silver.”[61] But his wealth called
forth the envy of the Philistines, for it is characteristic of the wicked that
they begrudge their fellow-men the good, and rejoice when they see evil descend
upon them, and envy brings hatred in its wake, and so the Philistines first
envied Isaac, and then hated him. In their enmity toward him, they stopped the
wells which Abraham had had his servants dig. Thus they broke their covenant
with Abraham and were faithless, and they have only themselves to blame if they
were exterminated later on by the Israelites.

Isaac departed from Gerar, and began to dig again the wells of water which they
had digged in the days of Abraham his father, and which the Philistines had
stopped. His reverence for his father was so great that he even restored the
names by which Abraham had called the wells. To reward him for his filial
respect, the Lord left the name of Isaac unchanged, while his father and his
son had to submit to new names.[62]

After four attempts to secure water, Isaac was successful; he found the well of
water that followed the Patriarchs. Abraham had obtained it after three
diggings. Hence the name of the well, Beer-sheba, “the well of seven diggings,”
the same well that will supply water to Jerusalem and its environs in the
Messianic time.[63]

Isaac’s success with his wells but served to increase the envy of the
Philistines, for he had come upon water in a most unlikely spot and, besides,
in a year of drouth. But “the Lord fulfils the desire of them that fear Him.”
As Isaac executed the will of his Creator, so God accomplished his desire.[64]
And Abimelech, the king of Gerar, speedily came to see that God was on the side
of Isaac, for, to chastise him for having instigated Isaac’s removal from
Gerar, his house was ravaged by robbers in the night, and he himself was
stricken with leprosy.[65] The wells of the Philistines ran dry as soon as
Isaac left Gerar, and also the trees failed to yield their fruit. None could be
in doubt but that these things were the castigation for their unkindness.

Now Abimelech entreated his friends, especially the administrator of his
kingdom, to accompany him to Isaac and help him win back his friendship.[66]
Abimelech and the Philistines spake thus to Isaac: “We have convinced ourselves
that the Shekinah is with thee, and therefore we desire thee to renew the
covenant which thy father made with us, that thou wilt do us no hurt, as we
also did not touch thee.” Isaac consented. It illustrates the character of the
Philistines strikingly that they took credit unto themselves for having done
him no hurt. It shows that they would have been glad to inflict harm upon him,
for “the soul of the wicked desireth evil.”

The place in which the covenant was made between Isaac and the Philistines was
called Shib’ah, for two reasons, because an oath was “sworn” there, and as a
memorial of the fact that even the heathen are bound to observe the “seven”
Noachian laws.[67]

For all the wonders executed by God for Isaac, and all the good he enjoyed
throughout his life, he is indebted to the merits of his father. For his own
merits he will be rewarded in future.[68] On the great day of judgment it will
be Isaac who will redeem his descendants from Gehenna. On that day the Lord
will speak to Abraham, “Thy children have sinned,” and Abraham will make reply,
“Then let them be wiped out, that Thy Name be sanctified.” The Lord will turn
to Jacob, thinking that he who had suffered so much in bringing his sons to
manhood’s estate would display more love for his posterity. But Jacob will give
the same answer as Abraham. Then God will say: “The old have no understanding,
and the young no counsel. I will now go to Isaac. Isaac,” God will address him,
“thy children have sinned,” and Isaac will reply: “O Lord of the world, sayest
Thou my children, and not THINE? When they stood at Mount Sinai and declared
themselves ready to execute all Thy bidding before even they heard it, Thou
didst call Israel ‘My first-born,’ and now they are MY children, and not THINE!
Let us consider. The years of a man are seventy. From these twenty are to be
deducted, for Thou inflictest no punishment upon those under twenty. Of the
fifty years that are left, one-half are to be deducted for the nights passed in
sleep. There remain only twenty-five years, and these are to be diminished by
twelve and a half, the time spent in praying, eating, and attending to other
needs in life, during which men commit no sins. That leaves only twelve years
and a half. If Thou wilt take these upon Thyself, well and good. If not, do
Thou take one-half thereof, and I will take the other half.” The descendants of
Isaac will then say, “Verily, thou art our true father!” But he will point to
God, and admonish them, “Nay, give not your praises to me, but to God alone,”
and Israel, with eyes directed heavenward, will say, “Thou, O Lord, art our
Father; our Redeemer from everlasting is Thy name.”[69]

It was Isaac, or, as he is sometimes called, Elihu the son of Barachel, who
revealed the wonderful mysteries of nature in his arguments with Job.[70]

At the end of the years of famine, God appeared unto Isaac, and bade him return
to Canaan. Isaac did as he was commanded, and he settled in Hebron. At this
time he sent his younger son Jacob to the Bet ha-Midrash of Shem and Eber, to
study the law of the Lord. Jacob remained there thirty-two years. As for Esau,
he refused to learn, and he remained in the house of his father. The chase was
his only occupation, and as he pursued beasts, so he pursued men, seeking to
capture them with cunning and deceit.

On one of his hunting expeditions, Esau came to Mount Seir, where he became
acquainted with Judith, of the family of Ham, and he took her unto himself as
his wife, and brought her to his father at Hebron.

Ten years later, when Shem his teacher died, Jacob returned home, at the age of
fifty. Another six years passed, and Rebekah received the joyful news that her
sister-in-law ‘Adinah, the wife of Laban, who, like all the women of his house,
had been childless until then, had given birth to twin daughters, Leah and
Rachel.[71] Rebekah, weary of her life on account of the woman chosen by her
older son, exhorted Jacob not to marry one of the daughters of Canaan, but a
maiden of the family of Abraham. He assured his mother that the words of
Abraham, bidding him to marry no woman of the Canaanites, were graven upon his
memory, and for this reason he was still unmarried, though he had attained the
age of sixty-two, and Esau had been urging him for twenty-two years past to
follow his example and wed a daughter of the people of the land in which they
lived. He had heard that his uncle Laban had daughters, and he was resolved to
choose one of them as his wife. Deeply moved by the words of her son, Rebekah
thanked him and gave praise unto God with the words: “Blessed be the Lord God,
and may His Holy Name be blessed for ever and ever, who hath given me Jacob as
a pure son and a holy seed; for he is Thine, and Thine shall his seed be
continually and throughout all the generations for evermore. Bless him, O Lord,
and place in my mouth the blessing of righteousness, that I may bless him.”

And when the spirit of the Lord came over her, she laid her hands upon the head
of Jacob and gave him her maternal blessing. It ended with the words, “May the
Lord of the world love thee, as the heart of thy affectionate mother rejoices
in thee, and may He bless thee.”[72]

ISAAC BLESSES JACOB

Esau’s marriage with the daughters of the Canaanites was an abomination not
only in the eyes of his mother, but also in the eyes of his father. He suffered
even more than Rebekah through the idolatrous practices of his daughters
in-law. It is the nature of man to oppose less resistance than woman to
disagreeable circumstances. A bone is not harmed by a collision that would
shiver an earthen pot in pieces. Man, who is created out of the dust of the
ground, has not the endurance of woman formed out of bone. Isaac was made
prematurely old by the conduct of his daughters-in-law, and he lost the sight
of his eyes. Rebekah had been accustomed in the home of her childhood to the
incense burnt before idols, and she could therefore bear it under her own
roof-tree. Unlike her, Isaac had never had any such experience while he abode
with his parents, and he was stung by the smoke arising from the sacrifices
offered to their idols by his daughters-in-law in his own house.[73] Isaac’s
eyes had suffered earlier in life, too. When he lay bound upon the altar, about
to be sacrificed by his father, the angels wept, and their tears fell upon his
eyes, and there they remained and weakened his sight.

At the same time he had brought the scourge of blindness down upon himself by
his love for Esau. He justified the wicked for a bribe, the bribe of Esau’s
filial love, and loss of vision is the punishment that follows the taking of
bribes. “A gift,” it is said, “blinds the eyes of the wise.”

Nevertheless his blindness proved a benefit for Isaac as well as Jacob. In
consequence of his physical ailments, Isaac had to keep at home, and so he was
spared the pain of being pointed out by the people as the father of the wicked
Esau.[74] And, again, if his power of vision had been unimpaired, he would not
have blessed Jacob. As it was, God treated him as a physician treats a sick man
who is forbidden to drink wine, for which, however, he has a strong desire. To
placate him, the physician orders that warm water be given him in the dark, and
he be told that it is wine.[75]

When Isaac reached the age of one hundred and twenty three, and was thus
approaching the years attained by his mother, he began to meditate upon his
end. It is proper that a man should prepare for death when he comes close to
the age at which either of his parents passed out of life. Isaac reflected that
he did not know whether the age allotted to him was his mother’s or his
father’s, and he therefore resolved to bestow his blessing upon his older son,
Esau, before death should overtake him.[76] He summoned Esau, and he said, “My
son,” and Esau replied, “Here am I,” but the holy spirit interposed: “Though he
disguises his voice and makes it sound sweet, put no confidence in him. There
are seven abominations in his heart. He will destroy seven holy places—the
Tabernacle, the sanctuaries at Gilgal, Shiloh, Nob, and Gibeon, and the first
and the second Temple.”

Gently though Esau continued to speak to his father, he yet longed for his end
to come.[77] But Isaac was stricken with spiritual as well as physical
blindness. The holy spirit deserted him, and he could not discern the
wickedness of his older son. He bade him sharpen his slaughtering knives and
beware of bringing him the flesh of an animal that had died of itself, or had
been torn by a beast, and he was to guard also against putting an animal before
Isaac that had been stolen from its rightful owner. “Then,” continued Isaac,
“will I bless him who is worthy of being blessed.”[78]

This charge was laid upon Esau on the eve of the Passover, and Isaac said to
him: “To-night the whole world will sing the Hallel unto God. It is the night
when the storehouses of dew are unlocked. Therefore prepare dainties for me,
that my soul may bless thee before I die.” But the holy spirit interposed, “Eat
not the bread of him that hath an evil eye.”[79] Isaac’s longing for tidbits
was due to his blindness. As the sightless cannot behold the food they eat,
they do not enjoy it with full relish, and their appetite must be tempted with
particularly palatable morsels.

Esau sallied forth to procure what his father desired, little recking the
whence or how, whether by robbery or theft.[80] To hinder the quick execution
of his father’s order, God sent Satan on the chase with Esau. He was to delay
him as long as possible. Esau would catch a deer and leave him lying bound,
while he pursued other game. Immediately Satan would come and liberate the
deer, and when Esau returned to the spot, his victim was not to be found. This
was repeated several times. Again and again the quarry was run down, and bound,
and liberated, so that Jacob was able meanwhile to carry out the plan of
Rebekah whereby he would be blessed instead of Esau.

Though Rebekah had not heard the words that had passed between Isaac and Esau,
they nevertheless were revealed to her through the holy spirit,[81] and she
resolved to restrain her husband from taking a false step. She was not actuated
by love for Jacob, but by the wish of keeping Isaac from committing a
detestable act.[82] Rebekah said to Jacob: “This night the storehouses of dew
are unlocked; it is the night during which the celestial beings chant the
Hallel unto God, the night set apart for the deliverance of thy children from
Egypt, on which they, too, will sing the Hallel. Go now and prepare savory meat
for thy father, that he may bless thee before his death.[83] Do as I bid thee,
obey me as thou art wont, for thou art my son whose children, every one, will
be good and God-fearing—not one shall be graceless.”

In spite of his great respect for his mother,[84] Jacob refused at first to
heed her command. He feared he might commit a sin,[85] especially as he might
thus bring his father’s curse down upon him. As it was, Isaac might still have
a blessing for him, after giving Esau his. But Rebekah allayed his anxieties,
with the words: “When Adam was cursed, the malediction fell upon his mother,
the earth, and so shall I, thy mother, bear the imprecation, if thy father
curses thee. Moreover, if the worst comes to the worst, I am prepared to step
before thy father and tell him, ‘Esau is a villain, and Jacob is a righteous
man.'”

Thus constrained by his mother, Jacob, in tears and with body bowed, went off
to execute the plan made by Rebekah.[86] As he was to provide a Passover meal,
she bade him get two kids, one for the Passover sacrifice and one for the
festival sacrifice.[87] To soothe Jacob’s conscience, she added that her
marriage contract entitled her to two kids daily. “And,” she continued, “these
two kids will bring good unto thee, the blessing of thy father, and they will
bring good unto thy children, for two kids will be the atoning sacrifice
offered on the Day of Atonement.”

Jacob’s hesitation was not yet removed. His father, he feared, would touch him
and convince himself that he was not hairy, and therefore not his son Esau.
Accordingly, Rebekah tore the skins of the two kids into strips and sewed them
together, for Jacob was so tall a giant that otherwise they would not have
sufficed to cover his hands.[88] To make Jacob’s disguise complete, Rebekah
felt justified in putting Esau’s wonderful garments on him. They were the high
priestly raiment in which God had clothed Adam, “the first-born of the world,”
for in the days before the erection of the Tabernacle all the first-born males
officiated as priests. From Adam these garments descended to Noah, who
transmitted them to Shem, and Shem bequeathed them to Abraham, and Abraham to
his son Isaac, from whom they reached Esau as the older of his two sons. It was
the opinion of Rebekah that as Jacob had bought the birthright from his
brother, he had thereby come into possession of the garments as well.[89] There
was no need for her to go and fetch them from the house of Esau. He knew his
wives far too well to entrust so precious a treasure to them; they were in the
safe-keeping of his mother. Besides, he used them most frequently in the house
of his parents. As a rule, he did not lay much stress upon decent apparel. He
was willing to appear on the street clad in rags, but he considered it his duty
to wait upon his father arrayed in his best. “My father,” Esau was in the habit
of saying, “is a king in my sight, and it would ill become me to serve before
him in any thing but royal apparel.” To the great respect he manifested toward
his father, the descendants of Esau owe all their good fortune on earth. Thus
doth God reward a good deed.

Rebekah led Jacob equipped and arrayed in this way to the door of Isaac’s
chamber. There she parted from him with the words, “Henceforward may thy
Creator assist thee.”[90] Jacob entered, addressing Isaac with “Father,” and
receiving the response, “Here am I! Who art thou, my son?” he replied
equivocally, “It is I, thy first-born son is Esau.” He sought to avoid a
falsehood, and yet not betray that he was Jacob.[91] Isaac then said: “Thou art
greatly in haste to secure thy blessing. Thy father Abraham was seventy-five
years old when he was blessed, and thou art but sixty-three.” Jacob replied
awkwardly, “Because the Lord thy God sent me good speed.” Isaac concluded at
once that this was not Esau, for he would not have mentioned the name of God,
and he made up his mind to feel the son before him and make sure who he was.
Terror seized upon Jacob at the words of Isaac, “Come near, I pray thee, that I
may feel thee, my son.” A cold sweat covered his body, and his heart melted
like wax. Then God caused the archangels Michael and Gabriel to descend. The
one seized his right hand, the other his left hand, while the Lord God Himself
supported him, that his courage might not fail him. Isaac felt him, and,
finding his hands hairy, he said, “The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands
are the hands of Esau,” words in which he conveyed the prophecy that so long as
the voice of Jacob is heard in the houses of prayer and of learning, the hands
of Esau will not be able to prevail against him. “Yes,” he continued, “it is
the voice of Jacob, the voice that imposes silence upon those on earth and in
heaven,” for even the angels may not raise their voices in praise of God until
Israel has finished his prayers.

Isaac’s scruples about blessing the son before him were not yet removed, for
with his prophetical eye he foresaw that this one would have descendants who
would vex the Lord. At the same time, it was revealed to him that even the
sinners in Israel would turn penitents, and then he was ready to bless Jacob.
He bade him come near and kiss him, to indicate that it would be Jacob who
would imprint the last kiss upon Isaac before he was consigned to the grave—he
and none other. When Jacob stood close to him, he discerned the fragrance of
Paradise clinging to him, and he exclaimed, “See, the smell of my son is as the
smell of the field which the Lord hath blessed.”[92]

The fragrance emanating from Jacob was not the only thing about him derived
from Paradise. The archangel Michael had fetched thence the wine which Jacob
gave his father to drink,[93] that an exalted mood might descend upon him, for
only when a man is joyously excited the Shekinah rests upon him.[94] The holy
spirit filled Isaac, and he gave Jacob his tenfold blessing: “God give thee of
the dew of heaven,” the celestial dew wherewith God will awaken the pious to
new life in days to come; “and of the fatness of the earth,” the goods of this
world; “and plenty of corn and wine,” the Torah and the commandments which
bestow the same joy upon man as abundant harvests;[95] “peoples shall serve
thee,” the Japhethites and the Hamites; “nations shall bow down to thee,” the
Shemite nations; “thou wilt be lord over thy brethren,” the Ishmaelites and the
descendants of Keturah; “thy mother’s sons will bow down to thee,” Esau and his
princes; “cursed be every one that curseth thee,” like Balaam; “and blessed be
every one that blesseth thee,” like Moses.[96]

For each blessing invoked upon Jacob by his father Isaac, a similar blessing
was bestowed upon him by God Himself in the same words. As Isaac blessed him
with dew, so also God: “And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many
peoples as dew from the Lord.” Isaac blessed him with the fatness of the earth,
so also God: “And he shall give the rain of thy seed, that thou shalt sow the
ground withal; and bread of the increase of the ground, and it shall be fat and
plenteous.” Isaac blessed him with plenty of corn and wine, so also God: “I
will send you corn and wine.” Isaac said, “Peoples shall serve thee,” so also
God: “Kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers;
they shall bow down to thee with their faces to the earth, and lick the dust of
thy feet.” Isaac said, “Nations shall bow down to thee,” so also God: “And He
will make thee high above all nations which He hath made, in praise, and in
name, and in honor.”

To this double blessing his mother Rebekah joined hers: “For He shall give His
angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up
in their hands, lest thou dash thy feet against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon
the lion and adder; the young lion and the serpent shalt thou trample under
feet. Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him; I
will set him on high, because he hath known my name.”

The holy spirit added in turn: “He shall call upon me, and I will answer him; I
will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honor him. With long life
will I satisfy him, and show him my salvation.”[97]

Jacob left the presence of his father crowned like a bridegroom, adorned like a
bride, and bathed in celestial dew, which filled his bones with marrow, and
transformed him into a hero and a giant.[98]

Of a miracle done for him at that very moment Jacob himself was not aware. Had
he tarried with his father an instant longer, Esau would have met him there,
and would surely have slain him. It happened that exactly as Jacob was on the
point of leaving the tent of his father, carrying in his hands the plates off
which Isaac had eaten, he noticed Esau approaching, and he concealed himself
behind the door. Fortunately, it was a revolving door, so that though he could
see Esau, he could not be seen by him.

ESAU’S TRUE CHARACTER REVEALED

Esau arrived after a delay of four hours.[99] In spite of all the efforts he
had put forth, he had not succeeded in catching any game, and he was compelled
to kill a dog and prepare its flesh for his father’s meal.[100] All this had
made Esau ill-humored, and when he bade his father partake of the meal, the
invitation sounded harsh. “Let my father arise,” he said, “and eat of his son’s
venison.” Jacob had spoken differently; he had said, “Arise, I pray thee, sit
and eat of my venison.” The words of Esau terrified Isaac greatly. His fright
exceeded that which he had felt when his father was about to offer him as a
sacrifice, and he cried out, “Who then is he that hath been the mediator
between me and the Lord, to make the blessing reach Jacob?”—words meant to
imply that he suspected Rebekah of having instigated Jacob’s act.

Isaac’s alarm was caused by his seeing hell at the feet of Esau. Scarcely had
he entered the house when the walls thereof began to get hot on account of the
nearness of hell, which he brought along with him. Isaac could not but exclaim,
“Who will be burnt down yonder, I or my son Jacob?” and the Lord answered him,
“Neither thou nor Jacob, but the hunter.”

Isaac told Esau that the meat set before him by Jacob had had marvellous
qualities. Any savor that one desired it possessed, it was even endowed with
the taste of the food that God will grant the pious in the world to come. “I
know not,” he said, “what the meat was. But I had only to wish for bread, and
it tasted like bread, or fish, or locusts, or flesh of animals, in short, it
had the taste of any dainty one could wish for.” When Esau heard the word
“flesh,” he began to weep, and he said: “To me Jacob gave no more than a dish
of lentils, and in payment for it he took my birthright. What must he have
taken from thee for flesh of animals?” Hitherto Isaac had been in great anguish
on account of the thought that he had committed a wrong in giving his blessing
to his younger son instead of the first-born, to whom it belonged by law and
custom. But when he heard that Jacob had acquired the birthright from Esau, he
said, “I gave my blessing to the right one!”

In his dismay, Isaac had had the intention of cursing Jacob for having wrested
the blessing from him through cunning. God prevented him from carrying out his
plan. He reminded him that he would but curse himself, seeing that his blessing
contained the words, “Cursed be every one that curseth thee.” But Isaac was not
willing to acknowledge his blessing valid as applied to Jacob, until he was
informed that his second son was the possessor of the birthright. Only then did
he say, “Yea, he shall be blessed,” whereat Esau cried with an exceeding great
and bitter cry. By way of punishment for having been the cause of such
distress, a descendant of Jacob, Mordecai, was also made to cry with a loud and
bitter cry, and his grief was brought forth by the Amalekite Haman, the
descendant of Esau. At the words of Isaac, “Thy brother came with wisdom, and
hath taken away thy blessing,” Esau spat out in vexation, and said, “He took
away my birthright, and I kept silence, and now that he takes away my blessing,
should I also keep silence?[101] Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath
supplanted me these two times.”[102]

Isaac continued to speak to Esau: “Behold, I have made him thy lord, he is thy
king, and do what thou wilt, thy blessings will still belong to him; all his
brethren have I given to him for slaves, and what slaves possess belongs to
their owner. There is nothing for it, thou must be content that thou wilt
receive thy bread baked from thy master.” The Lord took it ill of Isaac that he
cheered him with such kind words. “To Mine enemy,” He reproached him, “thou
sayest, ‘What shall I do for thee, my son?'” Isaac replied, “O that he might
find grace with Thee!” God: “He is a recreant.” Isaac: “Doth he not act
righteously when he honors his parents?” God: “In the land of uprightness will
he deal wrongfully, he will stretch his hand forth in days to come against the
Temple.” Isaac: “Then let him enjoy much good in this world, that he may not
behold the abiding-place of the Lord in the world to come.”[103]