Book of Jasher — 1840 English Edition

Book of Jasher — 1840 English Edition 55

CHAPTER LV. 1 . And it came to pass after this that Jacob said, I will go and see my son in Egypt and will then come back to the land of Canaan of which God had spoken unto Abraham, for I cannot leave the land of my birth- place. 178 THE BOOK OF JASHER. 2. Behold the word of the Lord came unto hirn, saying, go down lo Egypt with all thy household and re- main there, fear not to go down to Egypt for I will there make thee a great nation. 3. And Jacob said within himself, I will go and see my son whether the fear of his God is yet in his heart amidst all the inhabitants of Egypt. 4. And the Lord said unto Jacob, fear not about Joseph, for he still re- taineth his integi-ity to serve me, as will seem good in thy sight, and Ja- cob rejoiced exceedingly concerning his son. 5. At that lime Jacob commanded his sons and household to go to Egypt according to the word of the Lord unto him ; and Jacob rose up with his sons and all his household, and he went out from the land of Canaan from Beer-sheba, with joy and glad- ness of heart, and they went to the land of Egypt. 6. And it came to pass when they came near Egypt, Jacob sent Judah before him to Joseph that he might show him a situation in Egypt, and Judah did according to the word of his father, and he hastened and ran and came to Joseph, and they as- signed for them a place in the land of Goshen for all his household, and Judah returned and came along the road to his father. 7. And Joseph harnessed the cha- riot, and he assembled all his mighty men and his servants and all the of- ficers of Egypt in order to go and meet his father Jacob, and Joseph's mandate was proclaimed in Egypt, saying, all that do not go to meet Ja- cob shall die. 8. And on the next day Joseph went forth with all Egypt a great and mighty host, all dressed in garments of fine linen and purple and with in- struments of silver and gold and with their instruments of war with them, 9. And they all went to meet Ja- cob with all sorts of musical instru- ments, with drums and timbrels^, strewing myrrh and aloes all along the road, and they all went after this fashion, and the earth shook at their shouting. 10. And all the women of Egypt went upon the roofs of Egypt and upon the w^alls to meet Jacob, and upon the head of Joseph was Phara- oh's regal crown, for Pharaoh had sent it unto him to put on at the time of his going to meet his father. 1 1 . And when Joseph came within fifty cubits of his father, he alighted from the chariot and he walked to- ward his father, and when all the of- ficers of Egypt and her nobles saw that Joseph had gone on foot toward his father, they also alighted and walked on foot toward Jacob. 12. And when Jacob approached the camp of Joseph, Jacob observed the camp that was coming toward him with Joseph, and it gratified him and Jacob was astonished at it. 13. And Jacob said unto Judah, who is that man whom I see in the camp of Egypt dressed in kingly robes with a very red garment upon him and a royal crown upon his head, who has alighted from his chariot and is coming toward us ? and Judah answered his father, saying, he is thy son Joseph the king ; and Jacob re- joiced in seeing the glory of his son. 14. And Joseph came nigh unto his father and he bowed to his father, and all the men of the camp bowed to the ground with him before Jacob. 15. And behold Jacob ran and hastened to his son Joseph and fell THE BOOK OF JASHER. 179 Upon his neck and kissed him, and they wept, and Joseph also embraced his father and kissed him, and they wept and all the people of Egypt wept with them. 16. And Jacob said unto Joseph, now I will die cheerfully after I have seen thy face, that thou art still liv- ing and with glory. 17. And the sons of Jacob and their wives and their children and their servants, and all the household of Jacob wept exceedingly with Joseph, and they kissed him and wept greatly with him. 1 8. And Joseph and all his people returned afterward home to Egypt, and Jacob and his sons and all the children of his household came with Joseph to Egypt, and Joseph placed them in the best part of Egypt, in the land of Goshen. 19. And Joseph said unto his fa- ther and unto his brethren, I will go up and tell Pharaoh, saying, my bre- thren and my father's household and all belonging to them have come unto me, and behold they are in the land of Goshen. 20. And Joseph did so and took from his brethren Reuben, Issachar Zebulun and his brother Benjamin, and he placed them before Pharaoh. 21. And Joseph spoke unto Pha- raoh, saying, my brethren and my father's household and all belonging to them together with their flocks and cattle have come unto me from the land of Canaan, to sojourn in Egypt ; for the famine was sore up- on them. 22. And Pharaoli said unto Jo- seph, place thy father and brethren in the best part of the land, withhold not from them all that is good, and cause them to eat of the fat of the land. 23. And Joseph answered, saying, behold I have stationed them in the land of Goshen, for they are shep- herds, therefore let them remain in Goshen to feed their flocks apart from the Egyptians. 24. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, do with thy brethren all that they shall say unto thee ; and the sons of Jacob bowed down to Pharaoh, and they went forth from him in peace, and Joseph afterward brouglit his father before Pharaoh. 25. And Jacob came and bowed down to Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and he then went out ; and Jacob and all his sons, and all his household dwelt in the land of (loshen. 26. In the second year, that is' in the hundred and thirtieth year of the life of Jacob, Joseph maintained his father and his brethren, and all his father's household, with bread according to their little ones, all the days of the famine ; they lacked no- thing. 27. And Joseph gave unto them the best part of the whole land ; the best of Egypt had they all the days of Joseph ; and Joseph also gave unto them and unto the whole of his father's household, clothes and gar- ments year by year ; and the sons of Jacob remained securely in Egypt all the days« of their brother. 28. And Jacob always ate at Jo- seph's table, Jacob and his sons did not leave Josepii's table day or night, besides what Jacob's children con- sumed in their houses. 29. And all Egypt ate bread dur- ing the days of the famine from the house of Joseph, for all the Egyp- tians sold all belonging to them on account of the famine. 30. And Joseph purchased all the lands and fields of Eygpt for bread 180 THE BOOK OF JASHER. on the account of Pharaoh, and Jo- seph supphed all Egypt with bread all the days of the famine, and Jo- seph collected all the silver and gold that came unto him for the corn which they bought throughout the land, and he accumulated much gold and silver, besides an immense quantity of onyx stones, bdellium and valuable garments which they brought unto Joseph from every part of the land when their money was spent. 31. And Joseph took of all the sil- ver and gold that came into his hand, about seventy two talents of gold and silver, and also onyx stones and bdellium in great abundance, and Joi^eph went and concealed them in four parts, and he concealed one part in the wilderness near the Red sea, and one part by the river Perath, and the third and fourth part he con- cealed in the desert opposite to the wilderness of Persia and Media. 32. And he took part of the gold and silver that was left, and gave it unto all his brothers and unto all his father's household, and unto all the women of his father's household, and the rest he brought to the house of Pharaoh, about twenty talents of gold and silver. 33. And Joseph gave all the gold and silver that was left unto Pha- raoh, and Pharaoh placed it in the treasury, and the days of the famine ceased after that in the land, and they sowed and reaped in the whole land, and they obtained their usual quantity year by year ; they lacked nothing. 34. And Joseph dwelt securely in Egypt, and the whole land was un- der his advice, and his father and all his brethren dwelt in the land of Goshen and took possession of it. 35. And Joseph was very aged, advanced in days, and his two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, remained constantly in the house of Jacob, to- gether with the children of the sons of Jacob their brethren, to learn the ways of the Lord and his law. 36. And Jacob and his sons dwelt in the land of Egypt in the land of Goshen, and they took possession in it, and they were fruitful and multi- plied in it.