of this chapter, or to mark succession. The original expresses only that Abraham conversed with another woman besides Sarah and Hagar, who had been mentioned before; and that he had children by her. From xxii. 19, and xxiii. 2, it should seem that Abraham and Sarah lived apart for some time before Sarah's death. For Abraham dwelt at Beersheba, and Sarah died at Kiriath-arba, which is Hebron; and Hebron and Beersheba, according to Reland, were 20 miles distant. It seems probable that during this separation, Abraham took Keturah to his bed.

Verse 8. -" an old man, and full of years." Rather," an old man and full," not of years only, but of all the blessings of life. Plenus vitæ conviva. CHAP. XXViii. 6, 7, 8.

Verse 6. When Esau saw that Isaac had taken leave of Jacob, and sent him to Padanaram, in order to take him a wife from thence, according to his parting charge; and had enjoined him saying, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan ;

Verse 7. And that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother, and was set out for Padanaram :

Verse 8. Then Esau understood that the daugh

ters of Canaan were in disesteem with Isaac his fa

ther.

CHAP. XXIX. 2.

"three flocks of sheep," "

IN. Perhaps, three shepherds. (See Ken

nicott.)

Verse 8.

-" until all the flocks"-rather, "all

the shepherds. (Sam. LXX. Arab. Houb. Kennicott.) CHAP. XXXI. 38. "These twenty years. Verse 41. "Thus have I been twenty years. Dr Kennicott thinks that different periods of 20 years are mentioned in these two verses, the one composed of the 14 years service for the two daughters, and 6 years service for cattle; and the other a distinct period. Thus the whole time of Jacob's residence at Haran will have been 40 years. Dr Kennicott assigns unanswerable reasons for this opinion. (See the Posthumous Volume of his Remarks.)

CHAP. XXXii. 3.

"unto Esau his brother, un

to the land of Seir, the country of Edom.

It appears from chapter xxxvi. that Esau lived in

the land of Canaan till Jacob's return, and went to settle in Seir afterwards.

CHAP, XXXV. 4.

"all the strange gods,"

rather, "all the gods of the strangers," i. e. of the

captivated Shechemites.

Verse 11. See xlviii. 4. and the note upon that

passage.

Verse 13.

-"in the place where he talked with

him." These words seem of no significance here;

they may

ing verse.

have crept into this place from the follow

Verse 15.

"Bethel." God appeared to Jacob and conversed with him at Luz, on his journey into Mesopotamia, xxviii. 19. And, upon that occasion, and not after his return, he gave the place the name of Bethel. Jacob's name was changed to Israel on his return from Mesopotamia, by the man who wrestled with him by the ford of Jabbok: And Jacob called the place of this extraordinary colluctation, not Bethel, but Peniel, chap. xxxii. 24. Therefore that appearance of God to Jacob, which is related in the six preceding verses, being at the time when Jacob's name was changed, was not at Luz, but by the ford Jabbok. And to this place Jacob gave the name, not of Bethel but of Peniel. I conjecture, therefore, that in this 15th verse, for Bethel we should read Peniel.

Again when Jacob removed from Shalem to Bethel, it was in consequence of a command from God to go and dwell at Bethel, verse 1. Surely then he journeyed not from Bethel after he arrived there; and, in the 16th verse, for Bethel we should again read Peniel.

But why does the sacred Historian, in this place, repeat the narrative of the appearance at Peniel, which he had so distinctly related in its proper place? (chap. xxxii.) My conjecture is this; that having brought down the history of Jacob to his settlement at Bethel, where the Patriarch continued till he removed into Egypt, he goes back to mention some facts which he had omitted; namely, the death of Rachel, Reuben's conversation with Bilhah, and the death of Isaac. The first of these events, the death of Rachel happened upon the journey from Peniel to Ephrath; and therefore to mark the time of it, the Historian resumes the mention of the memorable appearance of God at that place.

Verse 22-26. "Now the sons of Jacob born to him in Padanaram." All this seems out of its place. It should follow the words "These are the generations of Jacob," chap. xxxvii. 2.

CHAP. XXXVi. 6. -"the country." The

name of the country into which he went seems

wanting.

Verse 24,

the mules, &c."

"this was that Anah that found

Rather, "this was that Anah

that fell in with the Emims, &c." (Bochart.) The allusion is to some notable exploit of this Anah against a band of the Emim, which he fell upon unexpectedly in the wilderness. For ", the Sa

האימים maritan has

CHAP. XXXVii. 2. (See xxxv. 22—26. note.)

Verse 3. "Now Jacob loved Joseph, &c." The sacred Historian begins the story of Joseph's life with telling us in the preceding verse, that, in his 17th year he began to take part with his brethren in the business of feeding his father's flock; and that he received ill usage from them, which obliged him to complain of them to his father. In this 3d verse, he goes back to an earlier part of Joseph's life, to explain the ground of the ill treatment which he met with from his brethren, which was his father's partial fondness for him; and his own dreams, which, with the simplicity of a boy he could not refrain from disclosing. This resumptive narrative takes up the 3d and the eight following verses; and, in the 12th,