CHAPTER 11. (continued 4)

CHAP. XLII.

And now, behold, when Jacob had been told That there was corn in Egypt to be sold, He said unto his sons, Why stand ye thus? Go down to Egypt and buy corn for us; That so our craving stomachs may be fed, And not be here and die for lack of bread. Thus Jacob's ten sons were to Egypt sent, But Joseph's brother Benjamin ne'er went. For why, his father said, I will not send him, Lest peradventure some ill chance attend him. And Joseph's brethren came among the rest To buy provision, for they were distress'd. Now he was governor of all the land, And all the corn of Egypt in his hand. Wherefore his brethren, when they came to treat With him for corn, bow'd down e'en at his feet: And he no sooner saw them but he knew them, And show'd himself extremely strange unto them: And very roughly asked who they were, From whence they came, and what their bus'ness there. And they made answer, We thy servants from The land of Canaan to buy food are come. Now tho' they knew him not, yet he knew them, And calling now to mind his former dream, He said, I do suspect ye're come as spies, To see in what distress our country lies. But they reply'd again, My lord, we're come Only to buy some food to carry home. Think not thy servants spies, but true men rather, For we are all the children of one father. Nay, nay, said he, but ye are come to pry Into the nation's great necessity. But they reply'd again, Thy servants are Inhabitants of Canaan, and declare, That we're twelve brethren, whom one man begot, The youngest is at home, and one is not Well then, said Joseph, hereby shall I know, Whether ye're spies, as I have said, or no; Now by the life of Pharaoh do I swear, Until your brother come I'll keep you here. Send one of you and fetch the lad to me, And you shall be confin'd, so shall there be A proof of what you say before mine eyes, Or by the life of Pharaoh ye are spies. Then he for three days put them all in ward, And on the third day said, I have regard To equity, therefore if ye are true And honest men, do this; let one of you Be bound in prison here, and let the other Go carry corn home and bring me your brother; So shall ye be approv'd and shall not die. And they prepared to do accordingly. And as they were discoursing to each other, They said, We were in fault about our brother, In that we saw his soul in great distress, And yet were so exceeding pitiless, As not to hearken to his earnest cries: This is the cause of these our miseries. And Reuben said, You know I did forewarn, And beg that you would do the child no harm; But you would not do then as I desir'd, And now his blood is at our hands requir'd. Thus they discours'd about the cause that brought Their present trouble, but they little thought That Joseph knew of what they did confer, Because he spake by an interpreter. And he being moved at their words withdrew To weep, and then returned to renew His former talk; and choosing Simeon out, Before them all he bound him hand and foot. And gave command to fill their sacks with grain, And to restore their money to 'em again; And for their journey gave them food to eat; In such sort Joseph did his brethren treat. Then with their asses laden towards home They went, and when into their inn they come As one of them his sack of corn unty'd, To give his ass some provender, he spy'd His money in his sack again return'd; Wherefore he call'd his brethren and inform'd Them that his money was returned back. Behold, said he, it is here in my sack. On sight whereof their hearts were sore dismay'd, And being very much affrighted said, What is the thing that God's about to do, That we do thus these troubles undergo? Then coming to their father they related, After what sort they were in Egypt treated: And said, the man that's lord of all the land, And hath the store of corn all in his hand, Spake roughly to us, and affirm'd that we Were come the weakness of the land to see. To whom we said, We are all honest men; We are twelve brethren, whereof here are ten, And two elsewhere, all which one man begot, The youngest's with our father, one is not. Then said the ruler of the land, Hereby Shall I make proof of your integrity: Let one of you continue here with me, And take provision for your family; And get you gone and bring the youngest hither, That so I may be satisfied whether Ye are true men, as you make protestation, Then I'll release him, and give toleration To you to come and traffic in the nation. And now behold as they their sacks unloos'd To empty out their corn, there was unclos'd In each man's sack his money therein bound, As when they came from home, which when they found, Both they and their old father were afraid; And to his sons afflicted Jacob said, You of my children have bereaved me, Joseph and Simeon now do cease to be; And of my Benjamin you would deprive me, These things do ev'n into distraction drive me. Then Reuben said, My father I resign To thy disposing these two sons of mine; Give me the lad, and let them both be slain, If I do not return him safe again. But he reply'd, I will not let him go, For why his brother is deceas'd you know; And if upon the way some evil thing Should happen to the lad, you then will bring These my grey hairs with sorrow to the grave; For he's the only comfort that I have.

CHAP. XLIII.

And now the famine still continuing sore, And having spent all their late purchas'd store, Their father bids them to go down for more To whom when Judah had himself address'd, He said, The man did solemnly protest, If we without our brother came again, To seek his face would be for us in vain: If therefore thou wilt send him, well and good, Then will we willingly go down for food; But if thou wilt not, we must let thee know, We are resolved that we will not go: For, as I said before, the ruler swore Without him we should see his face no more. Then Israel said, Why were you so unkind To say you had a brother left behind? The man, said they, was so inquisitive, He asked if our father were alive, Or if we had a brother, whereunto Accordingly we answer'd, could we know If he would bid us bring the lad or no? Moreover Judah to his father said, If thou wilt but entrust me with the lad, We will begone, that so both thou and we May be preserved with our family: I will be surety for him, if I fail To bring him back, on me the blame entail; For if we had not lingered, we had been By this time here the second time again. Well then, said Isr'el, if it must be so, My sons, take my advice before you go; Provide some of the best fruits of the land, To give the man a present from your hand; Balm, myrrh, and spices, and a little honey, Some nuts and almonds, and take double money, For peradventure it was a mistake, In that our money was returned back. And take your brother Benjamin and go, And God Almighty grant the man may shew You mercy, that you may bring back again Your other brother, and my Benjamin, And if I am bereav'd, so have I been. Then did the men prepare the present, and They took their money double in their hand With Benjamin, and down to Egypt went, Who unto Joseph did themselves present. Who, when he saw that Benjamin was come, Order'd his steward to conduct them home, And to provide a dinner, for, said he, I do intend these men shall dine with me. Then did the steward as his master said, And brought them home, whereat they were afraid, And said, The man hath caus'd us to come in, Because our money was return'd again; To take occasion now to fall upon us, And make us slaves, and take our asses from us. Unto the steward they drew nigh therefore, And thus communed with him at the door: O sir, say they, we came at first indeed To buy provision to supply our need; And in our inn as we our sacks unloos'd, We found our money therein all inclos'd In its full weight, whereat surpris'd with fear, Not knowing who had put our money there, We now have brought it in full weight again, And other money too, to buy more grain. Peace, peace, said he, let not fear seize upon you For I had the disposing of your money: God, unto whom you and your father bow, Hath giv'n you treasure in your sacks I trow. And then releasing Simon, who had been Confin'd in Joseph's house, he brought them in And set them water, and they wash'd their feet; And gave their asses provender to eat. Then they made ready, against Joseph came, Their gifts, in order to present the same At noon; for they were told he did design To have their company with him to dine. And now when Joseph was returned home, Into his presence they with rev'rence come, And brought their presents in and laid before him, And fell down at his feet for to adore him. Then he inquired if they all were well, And said, When you were here I heard you tell Of an old man, your father, how does he? Is he in health, or doth he cease to be? Whereto in humble sort they thus reply'd, Thy servant, ev'n our father, doth abide In perfect health, which having said, They bowed their heads and great obeisance made. And Joseph viewing Benjamin his brother (They being both the children of one mother) He asked if he were the lad of whom They spake, then said, God give thee grace, my son. Then making haste to find a secret place To weep, because his bowels yearn'd apace Upon his brother, to his chamber went, Where having giv'n his troubled spirits vent, He washed his face, and did himself refrain, And to his brethren then came forth again, And bade his servants they should set on bread. At his command the tables were all spread; One for himself, and for his friends another, And for the Egyptians one apart from either, That so they might not eat bread altogether; For it is held a great abomination For them to eat among the Hebrew nation, And they were placed as their age required, The eldest first, whereat the men admired. And from his table Joseph sent them messes; But in a larger manner he expresses To Benjamin his kindness, which was such, That he appointed him five times as much As to the rest: and they drank plenteously, Till they were merry in his company.

CHAP. XLIV.

And to his steward Joseph spake, and said, Give these men corn as much as they can lade; And in their sacks bind each man's money up, And in the youngest's put my silver cup Besides his money: and he made haste and did According as his master had commanded. And in the morning by the break of day, With asses laden they were sent away: And now, e'er they had scarce the town's end pass'd, He sent his steward after them in haste, And said, Go, follow them, and ask them why They have dealt by me so ungratefully? And say unto them, You have done great evil To rob my master, who hath been so civil, And steal the cup wherein he drinks his wine; Is it not it whereby he doth divine?[10] Then he pursu'd and quickly overtook Them, and these very words to them he spoke. To whom they said, Why hath my lord such thought? Oh, God forbid that we should be so naught;[11] Behold, thou know'st we brought the money back The which we found bound up in each man's sack, Which shews that we had no design to cheat; How then should we now steal your master's plate? With which of us thy servants it is found Let him be slain, and we to slavery bound. Now as you say, said he, so let it be, He shall be bound, but you shall all go free. Then they unladed ev'ry man his beast, And to his view expos'd their sacks in haste. And he from first to last them searched round, And lo, the cup on Benjamin was found: Thereat surpris'd, each man his garment rent, And lade his beast, and back again they went. And now when Judah and the rest were come To Joseph's house, (for he was yet at home) They fell before him to the ground, to whom He said, What deed is this that you have done? Are you not sensible that such a one As I, can certainly thereof make trial? Then Judah said, My lord, there's no denial: We cannot clear ourselves. The Lord hath sent, For our misdeed, this heavy punishment. Behold, to be thy slaves we all are bound, Both we, and he on whom the cup was found. Then Joseph said, The Lord forbid that I Should exercise so great severity: For he with whom 'tis found, and he alone Shall be my servant, you may all be gone. Then unto Joseph, Judah drawing near, Said, O my lord! I pray be pleas'd to hear Thy servant speak, and be not angry now, For as King Pharaoh is ev'n so art thou. My lord did bid thy servants to discover Whether we had a father or a brother; And we made answer that thy servants had An ancient father and a little lad, The child of his old age, who was our brother, And he the only child left of his mother, His brother being dead; and that this lad Was all the comfort that our father had. Then thou wert pleas'd to bid thy servants bring The lad, that thou might'st have a sight of him. And we made answer, if the lad should leave His father, it would bring him to his grave: And thou didst then protest it was in vain For us without him to come here again. Then towards home thy servants went their way, And told our father what my lord did say. And in a while, when all our corn was spent, Thy servant, ev'n our father, would have sent To buy more food; to whom thy servant said, We cannot go except thou send the lad. Because the man did solemnly declare, Unless we brought him we should not come there. And then thy servant, ev'n our father, said, Ye know that by my wife two sons I had, And one of them went forth and came no more, Which made me think some beast did him devour. And if I now should also condescend To let this go, and mischief should attend, You will with sorrow bring me to my end. When to my father I shall come therefore, And he shall see that I do not restore The lad again, he certainly will die, (Since in his life my father's life doth lie) And we shall bring him to his grave thereby. For I became a surety for the lad Unto my father, unto whom I said, If I do not in safety him deliver, Then let me bear the blame to thee for ever. I humbly pray thee, therefore, to accept Me in his stead, and let me here be kept My lord's bond-slave, and let the lad go free: For how can I, thy servant, bear to see The evil that shall on my father come, If that the lad return not safely home.

CHAP. XLV.

Then Joseph, who by no means now could hide His brotherly affection longer, cry'd, Put all men forth; and he was left alone When to his brethren he himself made known. Then Joseph weeping lifted up his voice So loud, that Pharaoh's servants heard the noise. And to his brethren did himself discover, And said, Lo! I am Joseph your own brother; And doth my father live? Whereat amaz'd, They could not speak, but at each other gaz'd. Then Joseph said, Come near, I pray, behold, I am your brother Joseph whom ye sold To Egypt, be not grieved now therefore, Nor vex yourselves, for God sent me before To save life; for these two years there hath been A famine, and five more to come, wherein Seed time nor harvest shall at all be seen. The Lord, I say, hath sent me to provide A place, and strangely save your lives beside. So now ye sent me not, but it was rather The Lord, and he hath made me as a father Unto the king, lord of his household, and A ruler over all this spacious land. Unto my father, therefore, go your way, And tell him, Thus doth thy son Joseph say: The Lord hath rais'd me to a high degree In Egypt, tarry not, but come to me, And thou shalt dwell in Goshen and be nigh me, And with provision there will I supply thee; Both thou and thine, flocks, herds, and all thou hast, (For yet these five years will the famine last) Lest otherwise, provision being scant, Thou and thy family may come to want. Behold, both you and Benjamin my brother Do see that it is I and not another. Go tell my father this amazing story, And bring him hither to behold my glory. Then falling on his youngest brother's neck, And he on his, they o'er each other wept. And to the rest he did likewise, wherefore They now were more familiar than before. And now whilst they discoursed, the report Of their arrival came to Pharaoh's court, And he was pleas'd thereat, wherefore he said To Joseph, let thy brethren straightway lade Their beasts with corn, and thus unto them say, Unto your native country haste away, And fetch your father, and your households, and I'll feed you with the good things of the land; And since you are commanded by the king, Take wagons with you hence wherein to bring Your wives, your little ones, and come down hither, Your father, you and yours altogether; And never heed to bring your household stuff, For here in Egypt you shall have enough. Then did the Isr'elites accordingly: And Joseph ordering them a large supply Of necessaries for their journey, sent Wagons according to the king's intent. And to each man he gave a suit of clothes, But on his brother Benjamin bestows Five suits, and as a token of his love, A sum of money over and above. And thus he sent ev'n for his father's use, Of the best things that Egypt did produce, Ten asses load, and ten she asses load Of bread and meat, to spend upon the road. Then sending them away, he said, I pray See that you do not fall out by the way. And leaving Egypt with their num'rous train, Unto their father they returned again: To whom, as soon as e'er they did arrive, They said, Our brother Joseph's yet alive, And lord of all the land, which sore dismay'd Him, for he scarce believed what they said. Then they of all that pass'd gave him relation. And shewed the wagons for a confirmation Which being manifest before his eyes, He rais'd himself, and said, It doth suffice; Joseph my son is yet alive, and I Will go to see him once before I die.

CHAP. XLVI.

Then Isr'el setting forward on his way With all his household, came to Beersheba; And offer'd sacrifice there to implore The God his father Isaac did adore. And in the visions of the night God spake To him, and said, Fear not to undertake This journey into Egypt, for I am The God of thy forefathers, Abraham And Isaac; to the land of Egypt I Will go with thee, and there will multiply Thy offspring, and of thee will surely make A mighty nation, and will bring thee back; And thy son Joseph there thine eyes shall close. After which vision he from thence arose, And in the wagons which King Pharaoh sent, He and his family to Egypt went: His sons, their wives and children, and the rest Of their concerns, whereof they were possest When they in Canaan dwelt, and they were then No more in number but threescore and ten. And when to Egypt Israel drew near He sent before him Judah, to prepare His way to Goshen, which when Joseph heard, Immediately his chariot he prepar'd; And unto Goshen he directly went, And to his father did himself present: And being over-joy'd fell on his neck, And for a good while thereupon he wept. Then Jacob said, Since thou yet liv'st, and I Have seen thy face once more, now let me die. And Joseph said, My brethren I will go Unto King Pharaoh, and will let him know That you, and all my father's house are come; And that your occupation when at home, Hath been in feeding cattle altogether, And that you've brought your flocks and herds all hither. Now therefore when you come before the king, And he should ask you what your trade hath been, Say thus: Thy servants from our youth till now Have dealt in cattle, we and our fathers too, That he may let you dwell in Goshen, for Th' Egyptians do a shepherd's life abhor.

CHAP. XLVII.

Then to King Pharaoh Joseph went and said, My father and his sons, with all they had In their own country, are come down to me, And in the land of Goshen now they be. Five of his brethren also with him went, Whom he unto King Pharaoh did present, And Pharaoh asked them about their trade, And they unto the king reply'd and said: We and our fathers while we were at home Were shepherds all, and now behold, we come With all our flocks, to get some pasture here, For in our land the famine is severe. We therefore pray thee to appoint a portion Unto thy servants in the land of Goshen. And Pharaoh said to Joseph, I empow'r thee To use thy pleasure, Goshen is before thee; Settle thy father and thy brethren there, And if among them active men there are, Commit my cattle to their special care. And Joseph brought his aged father in Before the king, and Jacob blessed him. And Pharaoh asking him about his age, He said, The years of my life's pilgrimage Are but an hundred thirty, very few And evil, nor have I attain'd unto The years of my forefathers longer age, Which they pass'd thro' in this their pilgrimage. And Jacob bless'd the king again, and then Out of his presence he return'd again. And Joseph plac'd his father and relations In Egypt, and appointed them possessions In the best of the land, ev'n in the land Of Rameses, according to the king's command: And there he nourished them with fit supplies Of bread, according to their families. And now the people having spent their store, And famine still increasing more and more, Egypt and Canaan too, for want of bread, Were sore distress'd and almost famished. And Joseph took the money they did bring To buy their corn, and kept it for the king. Wherefore the people came to represent Their case to him, both corn and coin being spent. And Joseph said, If money be grown scant, Bring me your cattle and ye shall not want. And they brought horses, asses, and their flocks And herds of cattle, ev'n all their stocks, And gave to Joseph in exchange for bread, For which the people he for that year fed: And when that year was past, the second year They came again, and said, We can't forbear To let thee know our want, my lord doth know Thou hast our money and our cattle too, And there is nothing left (so hard's our fate) But only each man's person and estate: If thou wilt give us bread, into thy hands Will we resign our persons and our lands: And be the servants of the king for ever. From death therefore our hungry souls deliver, And take some pity on our wretched state, Lest we die, and the land be desolate. And the Egyptians sold each man his field, Because the famine over them prevail'd; And all their lands became the king's possession, And Joseph placed them at his own discretion. But the land of the priests he purchased not, For Pharaoh had assigned to them their lot: And they received their food from Pharaoh's hands, Wherefore they had no need to sell their lands. And Joseph said unto them, Now behold, You and your lands are unto Pharaoh sold: Lo! here is seed to sow in each man's field, And when the land its ripe increase shall yield, A fifth part shall belong unto the crown, And the other four parts shall be your own, For seed to sow your lands, and for supplies Of food convenient for your families. And they said; Thou hast sav'd our lives, my lord, Thy gracious favour unto us afford, And we will do according to thy word. And Joseph made it a decree, to stand Ev'n to this day throughout th' Egyptian land; That Pharaoh should have a fifth part, except The priests' lands, which unto themselves they kept. And in the land of Egypt ev'n in Goshen, Did Isr'el dwell, and therein had possession; And grew and multiply'd exceeding fast. And Jacob liv'd till seventeen years were past: So that the sum of Jacob's age appears To be an hundred forty-seven years. And when the time approach'd that he must die, He called Joseph, unto whom he said, If I Have now found favour in thy sight, I pray, Swear thou unto me that thou wilt not lay My bones in Egypt, for I fain would lie Among my ancestors when e'er I die, And not be bury'd here; therefore fulfil This my desire; and he reply'd, I will: And he said, Swear unto me, which he did: Then Jacob bow'd himself upon his bed.

CHAP. XLVIII.

And now when Joseph heard his father lay Even at the point of death he hastes away To visit him, and took along with him His son Manasseh, and's son Ephraim. Whereof when Jacob heard he strength'ned Himself, and rose and sat upon the bed: And thus to Joseph said, Lo! God appeared To me at Luz in Canaan, and declared, That he would bless, and make me a great nation, And give my seed that land for a possession: And Jacob said, Behold, these sons of thine As Reuben and as Simeon shall be mine; And all the rest that shall be born to thee Hereafter, shall be thine, and they shall be Call'd by the name of their own family. Behold thy mother died upon the way, When I from Padan came, near Ephratah, The which is in the land of Canaan, where, To wit, in Bethlem, did I bury her. And Jacob seeing Joseph's sons were there, He asked of him who the children were. And Joseph said, My father, lo! these be The sons, God in this place hath given me. Then Jacob said, I pray thee bring them nigh To me, and I will bless them e'er I die. (Now Jacob's eyes, by reason of age, were dim) And Joseph brought his sons near unto him, And Jacob kissed and embraced them: And said, I never thought to see thy face, And lo! the Lord hath shewn me of thy race. And Joseph from between his knees brought forth His sons, and bow'd himself even to the earth: And in his right hand held up Ephraim, Towards his father's left hand guiding him And in his left hand to his father's right, He held his son Manasseh opposite. And Isra'l stretching our his right hand, laid It on the youngest, namely Ephraim's head: And laid his left hand wittingly upon Manasseh's head, although the eldest son. And Jacob blessed Joseph, saying, The God Of heaven, in whose paths my fathers trod, Who all my life hath nourish'd me, even he Who from all evil hath redeemed me, Bless both the lads, and let them bear my name, And the name of my fathers Abraham And Isaac, and let them multiply In the midst of the earth exceedingly. And Joseph seeing his father's right hand laid On Ephraim's head, he was displeas'd, and said, Not so, my father, lay this hand upon Manasseh's head, for he's the eldest son: And therewithal attempted to have laid His father's right hand on Manasseh's head But he refus'd and said, I know't my son, I know't full well, he also shall become A people, and be mighty: But indeed His younger brother shall him far exceed, And many nations shall come from his seed. Thus Jacob blessed them, and said, In thee Shall Isra'l bless, and say, God make thee be Like Ephraim and Manasseh. Thus did he Prefer the youngest to the first degree. And Isra'l said to Joseph, Lo! I die, But God shall visit you, and certainly Shall bring you back unto your father's land. And thou shalt have a portion from my hand, Above thy brethren, which with sword and bow I took from th' Amorite, my deadly foe.

CHAP. XLIX.

And Jacob called all his sons together, And said, Ye sons of Jacob come you hither: And hearken what your aged father says, Who tells you what shall be in the last days. Reuben my first born, of my strength the flow'rs, The excellency of dignity and power: Unstable as water, be for ever vile, Because thou did thy father's bed defile. Simeon and Levi 're brethren. Instruments Of cruelty lodged in their tents. Come not, my soul, their secret councils nigh, My honour, with them have no unity: For in their wrath they caused a man to fall, And in their self-will digged down a wall. Curs'd be their anger, fierce, yea cursed be Their wrath, for it was full of cruelty. In Jacob therefore let their seed be spread, And every where in Israel scattered. Judah shall have his brethren's praise, and they Shall bow before him; he his foes shall slay. Judah's a lion's whelp return'd from prey, He stoop'd, he couch'd, and as a lion lay; As an old lion, who shall dare molest, Or rouse him up, when he lies down to rest. The sceptre shall from Judah never start, Nor a lawgiver from his feet depart; Until the blessed Shiloh come, to whom The scatter'd people shall from all parts come: Binding his foal unto the choicest vine, He wash'd his garments, all of them in wine: His eyes shall with the blood of th' grapes look red, And milky whiteness shall his teeth o'erspread. Lo! Zabulon shall dwell upon the sea, And heaven for the ship's security, And unto Zidon shall his border be. And Issachar is a strong ass between Two burdens crouching, who when he had seen That rest was pleasant, and the land was good, His servile neck unto the yoke he bow'd. Dan as a judge shall over Isra'l sway, He shall be as a serpent in the way, To bite the horse, and cast the rider down. O God! I have look'd for thy salvation. Gad by a troop shall be o'ercome, but he Shall at the last obtain the victory. The bread of Ashur shall be fat indeed, And royal dainties shall from his proceed. Like to a hind let loose is Naphtali, He speaketh all his words acceptably. Joseph's a fruitful bough, whose branches tall Grow by a well, and over-top the wall: By reason of hatred which the archers bore, They shot at him and griev'd him very sore, But Joseph's bow in its full strength abode And by the arm of Jacob's mighty God, He was indu'd with strength, from whence alone Is Isra'l's shepherd, and chief corner-stone: Ev'n by my father's God, who shall assist Thee, by th' Almighty God shalt thou be blest, With blessings from above, and from below, With blessings of the breast, and womb also. Thy father's blessings have prevail'd beyond My ancestors. Unto the utmost bound Of the perpetual hills, yea let them rest On Joseph's head, and let him be possest Of all, who was divided from the rest. Young Benjamin shall wolf-like take his prey, And part by night what he hath took by day. All these are the ten tribes of Israel, And thus their father did their fate foretell: And blessed every one of them apart, According to their personal desert. Moreover he gave them a charge and said, Lo! I shall die, but let my bones be laid Among my ancestors in Canaan, where Of Ephron, Abraham bought a sepulchre, Together with a field, to be a place Of burial, for him and all his race. (There Abraham and Sarah lie, and there They Isaac and Rebecca did inter, And there when Leah died I buried her.) The field was purchas'd of the sons of Heth. Thus having said, resigning up his breath To him that gave 't, his feet into the bed He drew, and so was number'd to the dead.

CHAP. L.

And Joseph fell upon his father's face, And did with tears his lifeless lips embrace: And sends for his physicians and advises Them to embalm his father's corpse with spices. And they did so, and forty days did pass. (For so the manner of embalming was) And the Egyptians mourned for the space Of three score and ten days, which being expired He spake to Pharaoh's servants and desired, That they would please to speak in Pharaoh's ear, And tell him that my father made me swear, That I should bury him in Canaan, where He hath provided his own sepulchre. I therefore pray thee that I may obtain Thy leave, and I will soon return again. And Pharaoh said, Since thou hast sworn, fulfil Thy oath, according to thy father's will. And Joseph went up to accompany His father's corpse with great solemnity. And with him went up Pharaoh's servants, and The prime nobility of all the land, And Joseph's household, and his brethren all, Only their flocks, and herds, and children small Were left behind. Moreover there went up Chariots and horsemen, ev'n a mighty troop. And they came up to Atad's threshing floor Beyond the river Jordan, where full sore They mourned for him till seven days were past, So long their mourning in that place did last. Which when the Canaanites beheld they said, Surely some eminent Egyptian's dead. Wherefore they call'd it Abel-mizraim.[12] Thus did his sons as he commanded them. For to the land of Canaan they convey'd Him, and in Machpelah near Mamre, laid His body in the cave which Ephron sold To Abraham, for him and his to hold. And thus when Joseph fully had perform'd His father's will, to Egypt he return'd, Together with his brethren, and with all Them that came with him to the funeral. Now Joseph's brethren being well aware That they were fatherless, began to fear That he would hate them, and requite them all The evil they had treated him withal. Wherefore to him they sent a messenger And said, Behold our father did declare Before he died, that we should come and say, Forgive thy brethren's trespasses, I pray; And their misdeeds, for they have been unkind. And now we humbly pray thee be inclin'd To pardon our offences, and the rather For that we serve the God e'en of thy father. And Joseph wept when they thus spake, and they Came nearer, and before him prostrate lay, And said, We are thy servants all this day. And Joseph bad them not to be afraid, For in the place of God am I he said: For though you meant me ill, God meant it good, And sent me hither to provide you food. Now therefore trouble not yourselves, for I Will nourish you, and all your family. After this manner did he satisfy, And treat them with extreme civility. And Joseph and his father's house remain'd In Egypt, and he liv'd till he attain'd An hundred and ten years, and liv'd to see Of Ephraim's children to the third degree. And Macher's children of Manasseh's tribe Were also born some time before he died. Then Joseph said, My brethren, lo! I die, But God will visit you undoubtedly; And to that land again whereof he spake Unto our ancestors, will bring you back. And Joseph also made his brethren swear, That they would not inter his body there. And thus he ended his life's pilgrimage, Being an hundred and ten years of age; And was embalm'd, and in a coffin laid, In Egypt, till he could be thence convey'd.