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The 8th Chapter
And God remembered Noe and all the beasts and all the cattle that
were with him in the ark. And God made a wind to blow upon the
earth, and the waters ceased: and the fountains of the deep and the
windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain of heaven was
forbidden, and the waters returned from off the earth, and abated
after the end of an hundred and fifty days.
And the ark rested upon the mountains of Ararat, the
seventeenth day of the seventh month. And the waters went away, and
decreased until the tenth month. And the first day of the tenth
month, the tops of the mountains appeared.
And after the end of forty days Noe opened the window of the
ark which he had made, and sent forth a raven, which went out, ever
going and coming again, until the waters were dried up upon the
earth.
Then sent he forth a dove from him, to know whether the waters
were fallen from off the earth. And when the dove could find no
resting place for her foot, she returned to him again unto the ark,
for the waters were upon the face of all the earth. And he put out
his hand, and took her and pulled her to him into the ark.
And he abode yet seven days more, and sent out the dove again
out of the ark, and the dove came to him again about eventide, and
behold, there was in her mouth a leaf of an olive tree which she had
plucked: whereby Noe perceived that the waters were abated upon the
earth. And he tarried yet seven other days, and sent forth the dove,
which from then forth came no more again to him.
And it came to pass, the six hundred and one year and the
first day of the first month, that the waters were dried up upon the
earth. And Noe took off the hatches of the ark, and looked: and
behold, the face of the earth was dry. So by the twenty seventh day
of the second month the earth was dry.
And God spake unto Noe, saying: Come out of the ark, both thou
and thy wife and thy sons and thy sons wives with thee. And all the
beasts that are with thee whatsoever flesh it be, both fowl and
cattle, and all manner worms that creep on the earth, bring out with
thee, and let them move, grow and multiply upon the earth. And Noe
came out, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons wives with him.
And all the beasts, and all the worms, and all the fowls and all
that moved upon the earth, came also out of the ark, all of one kind
together.
And Noe made an altar unto the Lord, and took of all manner of
clean beasts, and all manner of clean fowls, and offered sacrifice
upon the altar. And the Lord smelled a sweet savour and said in his
heart: I will henceforth no more curse the earth for mans sake, for
the imagination of mans heart is evil, even from the very youth of
him. Moreover I will not destroy from henceforth all that liveth as
I have done. Neither shall sowing time and harvest, cold and heat,
summer and winter, day and night cease, as long as the earth
endureth.
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The 9th Chapter
And
God blessed Noe and his sons and said unto them: Increase and
multiply and fill the earth. The fear also and dread of you be upon
all beasts of the earth, and upon all fowls of the air, and upon all
that creepeth on the earth, and upon all fishes of the sea, which
are given unto your hands. And all that moveth upon the earth having
life, shall be your meat: Even as the green herbs so give I you all
things. Only the flesh with his life which is his blood, see that ye
eat not.
For verily the blood of you wherein your lives are will I
require: Even of the hand of all beasts will I require it, and of
the hand of man and of the hand of every mans brother will I require
the life of man: so that he which sheddeth mans blood, shall have
his blood shed by man again: for God made man after his own
likeness. See that ye increase, and wax, and be occupied upon the
earth, and multiply therein.
Furthermore God spake unto Noe and to his sons with him,
saying: See, I make my bond with you and your seed after you, and
with all living things that is with you: both fowl and cattle, and
all manner beasts of the earth that is with you, of all that cometh
out of ark, what soever beast of the earth it be. I make my bond
with you, that henceforth all flesh shall not be destroyed with the
waters of any flood, and that henceforth there shall not be a flood
to destroy the earth.
And God said: This is the token of my bond which I make
between me and you, and between all living things that is with you
for ever: I will set my bow in the clouds and it shall be a sign of
the appointment made between me and the earth: so that when I bring
in clouds upon the earth, the bow shall appear in the clouds. And
then will I think upon my testament which I have made between me and
you, and all that liveth whatsoever flesh it be. So that henceforth
there shall be no more waters to make a flood to destroy all flesh.
The bow shall be in the clouds, and I will look upon it, to
remember the everlasting testament between God and all that liveth
upon the earth, whatsoever flesh it be. And God said unto Noe: This
is the sign of the testament which I have made between me and all
flesh that is on the earth.
The sons of Noe that came out of the ark were: Sem, Ham and
Japheth. And Ham he is the father of Canaan. These are the three
sons of Noe, and of these was all the world overspread.
And Noe being an husbandman, went forth and planted a
vineyard, and drank of the wine and was drunk, and lay uncovered in
the midst of his tent. And Ham the father of Canaan saw his fathers
privities, and told his two brethren that were without. And Sem and
Japheth took a mantle, and put it on both their shoulders and went
backward, and covered their fathers secrets, but their faces were
backward, so that they saw not their fathers nakedness.
As soon as Noe was awaked from his wine, and knew what his
youngest son had done unto him, he said: Cursed be Canaan, and a
servant of all servants be he to his brethren. And he said: Blessed
be the Lord God of Sem, and Canaan be his servant. God increase
Japheth that he may dwell in the tents of Sem. And Canaan be their
servant.
And Noe lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years:
So that all the days of Noe were nine hundred and fifty years, and
then he died.
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The 10th Chapter
These
are the generations of the sons of Noe: of Sem, Ham and Japheth,
which begat them children after the flood.
The sons of Japheth were: Gomir, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tuball,
Mesech and Thyras. And the sons of Gomir were: Ascenas, Riphat and
Togarma. And the sons of Javan were: Elisa, Tharsis, Cithim and
Dodanim. Of these came the Isles of the gentiles in their countries,
every man in his speech, kindred and nation.
The sons of Ham were: Chus, Misraim, Phut and Canaan. The sons
of Chus were Seba, Hevila, Sabta, Raima and Sabtema. And the sons of
Raima were: Sheba, and Dedan. Chus also beget Nimrod, which began to
be mighty in the earth. He was a mighty hunter in the sight of the
Lord: Whereof came the proverb: he is as Nimrod that mighty hunter
in the sight of the Lord. And the beginning of his kingdom was
Babell, Erech, Achad, and Chalne in the land of Sinear: Out of that
land came Assur, and builded Ninive, and the city Rehoboth, and
Calah, and Ressen between Nineve and Calah. That is a great city.
And Mizrim begat Ludim, Enanim, Leabim, Naphtuhim, Pathrusim and
Casluhim: from whence came the Philistins, and the Caphtherines.
Canaan also begat Zidon his eldest son and Heth, Jebusi, Emori,
Girgosi, Him, Arki, Sini, Arvadi, Zemari and Harmati. And afterward
sprang the kindreds of the Cananites. And the coasts of the
Cananites were from Sidon till thou come to Gerara and to Asa, and
till thou come to Sodoma, Gomorra, Adama, Zeboim, even unto Lasa.
These were the children of Ham in their kindreds, tongues, lands and
nations.
And Sem the father of all the children of Eber, and the eldest
brother of Japheth begat children also. And his sons were: Elam,
Assur, Arphachsad, Lud and Aram. And the children of Aram were: Ur,
Hul, Gether and Mas. And Arphachsad begat Sala, and Sala begat Eber.
And Eber begat two sons. The name of the one was Peleg, for in his
time the earth was divided. And the name of his brother was Jaketan.
Jaketan begat Almodad, Saleph, Hizarmoneth, Jarah, Hadoram,
Usal, Dikela, Obal, Abimael, Seba, Ophir, Hevila and Jobab. All
these are the sons of Jaketan. And the dwelling of them was from
Mesa until thou come unto Sephara a mountain of the east land. These
are the sons of Sem in their kindreds, languages, countries and
nations. These are the kindreds of the sons of Noe, in their
generations and nations. And of these came the people that were in
the world after the flood.
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The 11th Chapter
And
all the world was of one tongue and one language. And as they came
from the east, they found a plain in the land of Sinear, and there
they dwelled. And they said one to another: come on, let us make
brick and burn it with fire. So brick was their stone and slime was
their mortar. And they said: Come on, let us build us a city and a
tower, that the top may reach unto heaven. And let us make us a
name, for peradventure we shall be scattered abroad over all the
earth. And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which
the children of Adam had builded. And the Lord said: See, the people
is one, and have one tongue among them all: And this have they begun
to do, and will not leave off from all that they have purposed to
do. Come on, let us descend, and mingle their tongue even there,
that one understand not what another sayeth. Thus the Lord scattered
them from there upon all the earth. And they left off to build the
city. Wherefore the name of it is called Babell, because that the
Lord there confounded the tongue of all the world. And because that
the Lord from there scattered them abroad upon all the earth.
These are the generations of Sem: Sem was an hundred years old
and begat Arphachsad two years after the flood. And Sem lived after
he had beget Arphachsad five hundred years and begat sons and
daughters.
And Arphachsad lived thirty five years and begat Sala, and
lived after he had beget Sala four hundred years and three and begat
sons and daughters. And Sala was thirty years old and begat Eber,
and lived after he had beget Eber four hundred and three years, and
begat sons and daughters. When Eber was thirty four years old, he
begat Peleg, and lived after he had beget Peleg, four hundred and
thirty years, and begat sons and daughters.
And Peleg when he was thirty years old begat Regu, and lived
after he had begot Regu two hundred and nine years, and begat sons
and daughters. And Regu when he had lived thirty two years begat
Serug, and lived after he had begot Serug two hundred and seven
years, and begat sons and daughters.
And when Serug was thirty years old, he begat Nahor, and lived
after he had begot Nahot two hundred years, and begat sons and
daughters. And Nahor when he was twenty nine years old, begat Terah,
and lived after he had begot Terah, an hundred and nineteen years,
and begat sons and daughters.
And when Terah was seventy years old, he begat Abram, Nahor
and Haran.
And these are the generations of Terah. Terah begat Abram,
Nahor and Haran. And Haran begat Lot. And Haran died before Terah
his father in the land where he was born, at Ur in Chaldea. And
Abram and Nahor took them wives. Abrams wife was called Sarai. And
Nahors wife Mylca the daughter of Haran which was father of Milca
and of Iisca. But Sarai was barren, and had no child.
Then took Terah Abram his son and Lot his son, Harans son, and
Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abrams wife. And they went with
him from Ur in Chaldea, to go into the land of Chanaan. And they
came to Haran and dwelled there. And when Terah was two hundred
years old and five he died in Haran.
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The 12th Chapter
Then
the Lord said unto Abram: Get thee out of thy country and from thy
kindred, and out of thy fathers house, into a land which I will show
thee. And I will make of thee a mighty people, and will bless thee,
and make thy name great, that thou mayst be a blessing. And I will
bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee. And in
thee shall be blessed all the generations of the earth.
And Abram went as the Lord bade him, and Lot went with him.
Abram was seventy five years old, when he went out of Haran. And
Abram took Sarai his wife and Lot his brothers son, with all their
goods which they had gotten, and souls which they had begotten in
Haran. And they departed to go into the land of Chanaan. And when
they were come into the land of Chanaan, Abram went forth into the
land till he came unto a place called Sichem, and unto the oak of
More. And the Cananites dwelled then in the land.
Then the Lord appeared unto Abram and said: unto thy seed will
I give this land. And he builded an altar there unto the Lord which
appeared to him. Then departed he there unto a mountain that lieth
on the east side of Bethel and pitched his tent: Bethel being on the
west side, and Ay on the east: and he builded there an altar unto
the Lord, and called on the name of the Lord. And then Abram
departed and took his journey southward.
After this there came a *dearth in the land. And Abram went
down into Egypt, to sojourn there, for the dearth was sore in the
land. And when he was come nigh for to enter into Egypt, he said
unto Sarai his wife. Behold, I know that thou art a fair woman to
look upon. It will come to pass therefore when the Egyptians see
thee, that they will say: she is his wife. And so shall they slay me
and save thee. Say I pray thee therefore that thou art my sister,
that I may fare the better by reason of thee, and that my soul may
live for thy sake.
As soon as he came into Egypt, the Egyptians saw the woman
that she was very fair. And Pharaos lords saw her also, and praised
her unto Pharao: So that she was taken into Pharaos house, which
entreated Abram well for her sake, so that he had sheep, oxen and he
asses, men servants, maid servants, she asses and camels.
But God plagued Pharao and his house with great plagues,
because of Sarai Abrams wife. Then Pharao called Abram and said: Why
hast thou thus dealt with me? Wherefore toldest thou me not that she
was thy wife? Why saidest thou that she was thy sister, and
causedest me to take her to my wife? But now lo, there is thy wife,
take her and be walking. Pharao also gave a charge unto his men over
Abram, to lead him out, with his wife and all that he had.
*dearth (famine)
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The 13th Chapter
Then
Abram departed out of Egypt both he and his wife and all that he
had, and Lot with him unto the south. Abram was very rich in cattle,
silver and gold. And he went on his journey from the south even unto
Bethel, and unto the place where his tent was at the first time
between Bethel and Ay, and unto the place of the altar which he made
before. And there called Abram upon the name of the Lord.
Lot also which went with him had sheep, cattle and tents: so
that the land was not able to receive them that they might dwell
together, for the substance of their riches was so great, that they
could not dwell together. And there fell a strife between the
herdsmen of Abrams cattle, and the herdsmen of Lots cattle. Moreover
the Cananites and the Pherisites dwelled at that time in the land.
Then said Abram unto Lot: Let there be no strife ( I pray thee )
between thee and me, and between my herdsmen and thine, for we be
brethren. Is not all the whole land before thee? Depart I pray thee
from me. If thou wilt take the left hand, I will take the right: or
if thou take the right hand I will take the left. And Lot lift up
his eyes, and beheld all the country about Jordan, which was a
plenteous country of water every where, before the Lord destroyed
Sodom and Gomorra, even as the garden of the Lord, and as the land
of Egypt till thou come to Zoar.
Then Lot chose all the coasts of Jordan and took his journey
from the east. And so departed the one brother from the other. Abram
dwelled in the land of Canaan: And Lot in the cities of the plain,
and tented till he came to Sodom. But the men of Sodom were wicked
and sinned exceedingly against the Lord.
And the Lord said unto Abram, after that Lot was departed from
him: Lift up thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art,
northward, southward, eastward and westward, for all the land which
thou seest will I give unto thee and to thy seed for ever. And I
will make thy seed, as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can
number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.
Arise and walk about in the land, in the length of it and in the
breadth, for I will give it unto thee. Then Abram took down his tent
and went and dwelled in the oak grove of Mamre which is in Ebron,
and builded there an altar to the Lord.
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The 14th Chapter
And
it chanced within a while, that Amraphel king of Sinthr, Arioch king
of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer king of Elam and Thydeall king of the
nations, made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsa king of
Gomorra. And with Sineab king of Adama, and with Semeaber king of
Zeboim, and with the king of Bela which Bela is called Zoar. All
these came together unto the vale of Siddim, which is now the salt
sea. Twelve years were they subject to king Kedorlaomer, and in the
thirteenth year rebelled. Therefore in the fourteenth year came
Kedorlaomer and the kings that were with him, and smote the Raphaims
in Astaroth Karnaim, and the Susims in Ham, and the Emims in Sabe
Kariathaim, and the Horims in their own mount Seir unto the plain of
Pharan, which bordereth upon the wilderness. And then turned they
and came to the well of judgement which is Cades, and smote all the
country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites that dwell in
Hazezon Thamar.
Then went out the king of Sodom, and the king of Gomorra, and
the king of Adama and the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela now
called Zoar. And set their men in the array to fight with them in
the vale of Siddim, that is to say, with Kedorlaomer the king of
Elam and with Thydeall king of the Nations, and with Amraphel king
of Sinear. And with Arioch king of Ellasar: four kings against five.
And that vale of Siddim was full of slime pits.
And the kings of Sodom and Gomorra fled, and fell there. And
the residue fled to the mountains. And they took all the goods of
Sodom and Gomorra and all their victuals, and went their way. And
they took Lot also, Abrams brothers son and his goods ( for he
dwelled at Sodom ) and departed. Then came one that had escaped, and
told Abram the Hebrew which dwelt in the oak grove of Mamre the
Amorite, brother of Eschol and Aner: which were confederate with
Abram. When Abram heard that his brother was taken, he harnessed his
servants born in his own house three hundred and eighteen, and
followed till they came at Dan. And set himself and his servants in
array, and fell upon them by night, and smote them, and chased them
away unto Hoba: which lieth on the left hand of Damasco, and brought
again all the goods and also his brother Lot, and his goods, the
women also and the people.
And as he returned again from the slaughter of Kedorlaomer and
of the kings that were with him, then came the king of Sodom to meet
him in the vale of Saue, which now is called kings dale.
Then Melchisedech king of Salem brought forth bread and wine.
And he being the Priest of the most highest God, blessed him saying:
Blessed be Abram unto the most highest God, possessor of heaven and
earth. And blessed be God the most highest, which hath delivered
thine enemies into thy hands. And Abram gave him tithes of all.
Then said the king of Sodom unto Abram: Give me the souls, and
take the goods to thy self. And Abram answered the king of Sodom: I
lift up my hand unto the Lord God most high possessor of heaven and
earth, that I will not take of all that is thine, so much as a
thread or a shoe latchet, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram
rich. Save only that which the young men have eaten and the parts of
the men which went with me. Aner, Eschol and Mamre. Let them take
their parts.
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The 15th Chapter
After
these deeds, the word of God came unto Abram in a vision saying:
fear not Abram, I am thy shield, and thy reward shall be exceeding
great. And Abram answered: Lord Jehovah what wilt thou give me: I go
childless, and the cater of mine house, this Eleasar of Damasco hath
a son. And Abram said: See, to me hast thou given to seed: lo, a lad
born in my house shall be mine heir.
And behold, the word of the Lord spake unto Abram, saying: He
shall not be thine heir, but one that shall come out of thine own
body shall be thine heir. And he brought him out of the doors, and
said: Look up unto heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to
number them. And said unto him: Even so shall thy seed be.
And Abram believed the Lord, and it was counted to him for
righteousness. And he said unto him: I am the Lord that brought thee
out of Ur in Chaldea to give thee this land to possess it.
And he said: Lord God, whereby shall I know that I shall
possess it? And he said unto him: take an heifer of three years old,
and a she goat of three years old, and a three year old ram, a
turtle dove and a young pigeon. And he took all these and divided
them in the midst, and laid every piece, one against another. But
the fowls divided he not. And the birds fell on the carcasses, but
Abram drove them away. And when the sun was down, there fell a
slumber upon Abram. And lo, fear and great darkness came upon him.
And he said unto Abram: know this of a surety, that thy seed
shall be a stranger in a land that pertaineth not unto them. And
they shall make bondmen of them and entreat them evil four hundred
years. But the nation whom they shall serve, will I judge. And
afterward shall they come out with great substance. Nevertheless
thou shalt go unto thy fathers in peace, and shalt be buried when
thou art of a good age: and in the fourth generation they shall come
hither again, for the wickedness of the Amorites is not yet full.
When the sun was down and it was waxed dark: behold, there was
a smoking furnace and a fire brand that went between the said
pieces.
And that same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram saying:
unto thy seed will I give this land, from the river of Egypt, even
unto the great river Euphrates, the Kenites, the Kenizites, the
Cadmonites, the Hethites, the Pherezites, the Raphaims, the
Amorites, the Cananites, the Gergesites and the Jebusites.
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The 16th Chapter
Sarai Abrams wife bare
him no children. But she had an hand maid an Egyptian, whose name
was Hagar. Wherefore she said unto Abram: Behold the Lord hath
closed me, that I cannot bear. I pray thee go in unto my maid,
peradventure I shall be multiplied by means of her. And Abram heard
the voice of Sarai. Then Sarai Abrams wife took Hagar her maid the
Egyptian (after Abram had dwelled ten years in the land of Canaan)
and gave her to her husband Abram, to be his wife.
And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw
that she had conceived: her mistress was despised in her sight. Then
said Sarai unto Abram: Thou dost me unright, for I have given my
maid into thy bosom: and now because she seeth that she hath
conceived, I am despised in her sight: the Lord judge between thee
and me. Then said Abram to Sarai: behold, thy maid is in thy hand,
do with her as it pleaseth thee.
And because Sarai fared foul with her, she fled from her. And
the Angel of the Lord found her beside a fountain of water in the
wilderness: even by a well in the way to Sur. And he said: Hagar
Sarais maid, whence comest thou and where ever wilt thou go? And she
answered: I flee from my mistress Sarai. And the Angel of the Lord
said unto her: return to thy mistress again, and submit thyself
under her hands.
And the angel of the Lord said unto her: I will so increase
thy seed, that it shall not be numbered for multitude. And the Lords
angel said further unto her: see, thou art with child and shalt bear
a son, and shalt call his name Ismael: because the Lord hath heard
thy tribulation. He will be a wild man, and his hand will be against
every man, and every mans hand against him. And yet shall he dwell
fast by all his brethren. And she called the name of the Lord that
spake unto her: thou art the God that lookest on me, for she said: I
have of a surety seen here the back parts of him that seeth me.
Wherefore she called the well, the well of the living that seeth me
which well is between Cades and Bared. And Hagar bare Abram a son,
and Abram called his sons name which Hagar bare Ismael. And Abram
was eighty six years old when Hagar bare him Ismael.
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