THE 
 
 HISTORY OF JOSEPH, 
 
 CHILDREN AND YOUTH; 
 
 DESIGNED ALSO AS AN AID 
 
 TO FAMILIAR BIBLICAL EXPOSITION IN FAMILIES, 
 SABBATH SCHOOLS, AND BIBLE CLASSES. 
 
 BY REV. T. H. GALLAUDET, 
 
 Late Principal of the American Asylum for the Deaf and Dumb. 
 
 'TYJ 
 
 PUBLISHED BY THE 
 
 AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, 
 
 150 NASSAU-STREET, NEW-YORK 
 
 D* Fanshaw, Printer. 
 
Entered according to act of Congress, on the second day of January, 
 in the year one thousand eight hundred and thirty-four, by T. H. GAL- 
 L&UDET, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the Southern District 
 of New-York. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Preface. page 7 
 
 CHAP. 1. Address to children and youth. 11 
 
 CHAP. 2. Joseph's parentage. Jacob's removal from 
 Mesopotamia. Death of Rachel. Birth of Benja- 
 min. How children ought to treat their mothers. 15 
 
 CHAP. 3. Jacob arrives at Mamre. Description of He- 
 bron. Joseph's character. Jacob's affection for him. 
 His brethren envy him. Sin, if not repented of, in- 
 creases rapidly. 20 
 
 CHAP. 4. Joseph's dreams. His brethren go to She- 
 chem. Description of this place. Joseph sent to in- 
 quire after his brethren. 24 
 
 CHAP. 5. Joseph approaches his brethren. Their great 
 wickedness in designing to take his life. Sin is the 
 cause of misery. It is the greatest of evils. To what 
 it leads, if not repented of. 29 
 
 CHAP. 6. Reuben pleads for Joseph's life. Joseph cast 
 into a pit. His brethren hard-hearted. Judah pleads 
 for Joseph's life. He is sold to the Ishmaelites, and 
 carried to Egypt. The providence of God. 35 
 
 CHAP. 7. Reuben's sorrow at finding Joseph gone. Jo- 
 seph's brethren lead their father to believe that he 
 is dead. Their great guilt. The commission of sin 
 leads to deception and falsehood. 41 
 
 CHAP. 8. Joseph sold to Potiphar. His history given 
 to us to show us the providence of God. Potiphar's 
 great regard for Joseph. Duties to others to be per- 
 formed in the fear of God. 45 
 
 CHAP. 9. Joseph made overseer of Potiphar's house. He 
 is tempted to great wickedness by Potiphar's wife. 
 He fears to sin against God. He is falsely accused, 
 and cast into prison. His good conduct there. He 
 has the whole care of the prison. The great happi- 
 ness of having God with us. 50 
 
 CHAP. 10. The fear of God, what it is; its benefit. The 
 dream of the chief butler. Its interpretation by Jo- 
 seph. 5G 
 
 CHAP. 11. The dream of the chief baker and its inter- 
 pretation. What Joseph foretells comes to pass. Pro- 
 phecy. Sin of ingratitude. GO 
 
 CHAP. 12. Pharaoh's dreams. He sends for Joseph. 
 Joseph's humility. We should not receive the ap- 
 probation which is due to others, or which we do 
 not deserve. 
 
4 CONTENTS. 
 
 Page. 
 
 CHAP. 13. Joseph's interpretation of Pharaoh's dreams. 
 Pharaoh makes him governor of Egypt. Joseph's 
 new name. His marriage. A regard to truth and 
 duty the surest way of securing the confidence of 
 others. 69 
 
 CHAP. 14. Providence of God. Our duty to submit to 
 it, and to trust in it. Joseph lays up the grain. His 
 two sons reasons of their names. The famine 
 begins. 74 
 
 CHAP. 15. The Egyptians regard Joseph as their Sa- 
 vior. Jesus Christ a far better Savior. The Egyp- 
 tians buy grain of Joseph. The famine in Canaan. 
 Jacob sends his sons to Egypt to buy food. 7? 
 
 CHAP. 16. His brethren bow clown before Joseph. Why 
 he did not make himself known to them. He puts 
 them into prison. He tells them they may carry 
 grain home, but one must stay in prison till Benja- 
 min is brought. 84 
 
 CHAP. 17. Joseph affected at what his brethren say of 
 their guilt. Simeon chosen as the one to stay. Jo- 
 seph's brethren set out for Canaan with the grain. 
 Difference bet ween good and wicked men. To which 
 class does the reader belong 1 Let conscience do its 
 work. 89 
 
 CHAP. 18. One of Joseph's brethren finds his money in 
 the sack. All are in great alarm. A guilty con- 
 science. Jacob's distress at what his sons tell him. 
 Reuben's foolish and wicked speech. Jacob cannot 
 let Benjamin go. Judah tries to persuade him tc 
 do this. 95 
 
 CHAP. 19. Jacob consents to let Benjamin go. Gifts 
 prepared to carry to the governor of Egypt. Jacob's 
 sons set out on their journey. They come before Jo- 
 seph. Their great fear. Guilt causes fear. The 
 steward of Joseph allays their fears. 100 
 
 CHAP. 20. Simeon brought out of prison. The brethren 
 of Joseph present their gifts to him. Joseph can 
 hardly restrain his feelings. His brethren dine with 
 him. 'Remarks on temperance, and the duty of pro- 
 moting it. 105 
 
 CHAP. 21. Joseph's brethren again set out for home. 
 His steward overtakes them, and charges them with 
 having stolen the governor's cup. What was this 
 cup 1 The cup found in Benjamin's sack. They all 
 return and come before Joseph. Judah's confession 
 of their guilt. Why did he make itl 111 
 
CONTENTS. 5 
 
 Page. 
 
 CHAP. 22. Joseph still keeps his brethren in suspense. 
 Remarks on his conduct. His reply to Judah. Ju- 
 dah's expostulation. 116 
 
 CHAP. 23. Joseph makes himself known to his breth- 
 ren. His address to them. His forgiveness of them. 
 The duty of forgiveness. Has the reader this 
 spirit? ' 121 
 
 CHAP. 24. Pharaoh and his household glad to hear that 
 the brethren of Joseph are come. Pharaoh tells 
 Joseph to invite his father and all his family to 
 come to Egypt. Joseph furnishes them with things 
 necessary for their removal. His parting advice 
 to them. Peace-making. 127 
 
 CHAP. 25. His sons, on their arrival, tell their father 
 that Joseph is alive. Jacob's joy. They all set out 
 for Egypt. They stop at Beer-sheba. An interest- 
 ing spot, and why. God's promise to Jacob. Their 
 arrival in Egypt. 131 
 
 CHAP. 26. Joseph meets his father in Goshen. He pre- 
 sents five of his brethren to Pharaoh, who grants 
 them leave to dwell in Goshen. Joseph presents his 
 father to Pharaoh. What Jacob says. Life short. 
 What is death 1 Is the reader prepared to die ? 135 
 
 CHAP. 27. Jacob and his family settled in Goshen. 
 God's goodness to them. His goodness to the read- 
 er. Is the reader grateful to God 1 143 
 
 CHAP. 28. The Egyptians give their cattle to Joseph 
 for food. They are again in want, and give them- 
 selves and their land. He gives them seed to sow. 
 A perpetual law that one-fifth of all the produce 
 shall be the king's. Remarks on the conduct of 
 Joseph. 147 
 
 CHAP. 29. Jacob drawing near the close of life. Joseph 
 visits him. What is an oath 1 Its solemn obligation 
 explained. Jacob requires Joseph to swear that he 
 will bury the body of his father in the cave of Mach- 
 pelah. Joseph takes an oath to do this. 152 
 
 CHAP. 30. Joseph goes to be with his father when he 
 dies. He takes his sons with him. Jacob considers 
 them as his own children. He blesses them. Ex- 
 planation of this blessing. 157 
 
 CHAP. 31. Conclusion of Jacob's blessing on the sons 
 of Joseph. Joseph's portion. Jacob's prophecy, and 
 blessing his sons. His death. Does the reader wish 
 to die as Jacob did 1 163 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Page. 
 
 CHAP. 32. Joseph's grief at his father's death. He or- 
 ders the body to be embalmed. Mourning for Jacob. 
 His funeral. He is buried in the cave of Machpe- 
 lah. The fear of Joseph's brethren lest he should 
 punish them. Pains of a guilty conscience. 168 
 
 CHAP. 33. The brethren of Joseph implore his forgive- 
 ness. He is very kind to them, and allays all their 
 fears. Their obligations of gratitude to him and to 
 God. Has the reader done wrong to others 1 How 
 does he feel about it 1 172 
 
 CHAP. 34. Joseph near to death. He makes his breth- 
 ren swear that his body shall be buried in Canaan ; 
 whither he assures them the Israelites shall go. He 
 dies, and his body is embalmed. Why did he direct 
 his body to be kept in Egypt till the Israelites should 
 go to Canaan 1 Wonderful providence of God. 178 
 
 CHAP. 35. The character of Joseph. His strong faith 
 in God. This the foundation of all real excellence 
 of character. Has the reader this faith in God ? 183 
 
 CHAP. 36. Joseph's affection and duti fulness to his 
 father. These traits of character, if real and per- 
 manent, must grow out of faith in God. How does 
 the reader treat his parents 1 Joseph was kind and 
 affectionate to his brethren. Faith in God and 
 Christ produces love to others. Has the reader 
 this love 1 188 
 
 CHAP. 37. Joseph's fidelity in the discharge of his du- 
 ties. Instances of it. It grows out of his faith in 
 God. Has the reader the same fidelity growing out 
 of the same faith 1 193 
 
 CHAP. 38. Joseph's resolution in resisting temptation. 
 It grows out of his faith in God. The reader has 
 his temptations. How to get strength to overcome 
 them. Joseph's dependence on God, and submission 
 to his will. These grow out of his faith in God. 
 Has the reader this dependence and submission ? 197 
 
 CHAP. 39. Joseph's humility. Proofs of it. Humility 
 in good men grows out of their faith in God. Has 
 the reader this humility 1 Without it we can have 
 no interest in Christ. 202 
 
 CHAP. 40. Joseph had general benevolence of charac- 
 ter. This grew out of his faith in God. The read- 
 er can do good in many ways. Has he a desire to 
 do good'? Does this desire lead to action. Where 
 there is no such desire and conduct there is great 
 guilt and danger. 206 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 " Do, tell me a story," said a smiling little boy, who was 
 sitting in his father's lap " do, father, tell me a story." 
 
 So, his father told him one ; and again the request was 
 made " do, father, tell me another pretty story, and a long 
 one too." 
 
 The story was told, and Robert listened to it with the 
 deepest attention and interest. 
 
 " Do, do, father, tell me one more story just, one more, 
 and I will not ask you again." 
 
 11 My son," said his father, " I have told you two stories; 
 and now I wish to talk with you a little about that verse 
 in the Bible which you repeated to me this morning." 
 
 Robert continued to beg for one more story. 
 
 "No, my son," said his father, " I have no more stories 
 to tell you now. Sometimes I must talk to you about God, 
 and our Savior, and what we must do, that we may be pre- 
 pared, when we die, to go to heaven, and be good and happy 
 there, for ever," 
 
8 PREFACE. 
 
 In saying this his countenance became serious, though 
 his look was mild and pleasant ; and his voice had a tone of 
 solemnity, without being harsh or forbidding. 
 
 Robert perfectly understood it. He knew that it was re- 
 quired of him to be attentive. He also became serious, and 
 listened to the instructions of his father with an interest 
 which showed how much parental authority, mingled with 
 kindness, can effect, when the child is accustomed to reve- 
 rence this authority, and to love this kindness. 
 
 Did the father do right 7 
 
 " Certainly," you say ; " it is important that children 
 should be taught, at proper times, to listen to instruction, 
 and to acquire the habit of patient and serious attention to 
 religious truth. It will not do to be always entertaining them 
 with amusing stories." 
 
 Well, if it is important, sometimes, thus to talk to children 
 it is equally so, thus to write for them. If they ought to ac- 
 quire the habit of listening attentively to the good instruction 
 which is given to them in conversation, at home or in the 
 Sabbath school, and in the church ; it is equally important 
 that they should acquire a similar habit of reading attentive- 
 ly such books as are prepared to teach them their duty to 
 God, to their fellow-men, and to themselves. 
 
 If they read none but storybooks, intended almost entirely 
 
PREFACE. U 
 
 to entertain them ; or, if they read so many of these books 
 as to dislike to read those of a more serious and instructive 
 kind then there is very great danger of their acquiring a 
 strong dislike to the reading of the Bible. 
 
 For the Bible is very far from being a book of mere enter- 
 tainment. It is full, indeed, of interesting things ; but to un- 
 derstand them, and to get good from them, requires patient 
 thinking and serious feeling. 
 
 Let parents and teachers beware lest, by indulging chil- 
 dren too much in the perusal of mere books of amusement, 
 they acquire such a fondness for fiction, that it will be diffi- 
 cult for them to read any thing that demands patient and 
 continued attention, and tends to produce serious thoughts 
 and feelings. 
 
 Should this lead to their considering it an irksome and 
 disagreeable task to sit down, at suitable times, to the faith- 
 ful perusal of the sacred Scriptures what an error in their 
 education has been committed what a tremendous evil has 
 been incurred ! 
 
 Books, surely, ought to be placed in the hands of children 
 and youth many more than are now in circulation which 
 will require some effort of mind, on their part; which will 
 demand more or less of continued, patient, and serious 
 thought. 
 
10 PREFACE. 
 
 Truth, too above all, the fads of the Bible should form 
 a considerable part of a child's religious reading, instead of 
 that mass of fictitious narrative which, at present, so greatly 
 abounds. 
 
 Grant that all fiction is not to be discarded ; yet there are 
 limits, surely, to its use, in the religious instruction of our 
 children and youth. Its influence is, just now, immense. It 
 sways the minds of the rising generation, who have access 
 to books, to a vast extent. It is molding their intellectual 
 habits. It is forming their taste. It is influencing their 
 moral feelings. It is training them up, in too many instan- 
 ces, to a loose, desultory, luxurious, and disconnected kind 
 of reading, which will render to them, in maturer life, all 
 our standard works of religious truth, by which the souls of 
 English and American Christians, of earlier days, were nur- 
 tured to deep thought and a vigorous faith insipid, irk- 
 some, revolting. 
 
 In this volume, and also in The History of Jonah, not 
 long since published, the author has made a humble at- 
 tempt to do something to remedy the evils to which he has 
 alluded. 
 
 The success of this attempt awaits the decision of the re- 
 ligious public. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Address to children and youth. 
 
 ONE of the most interesting and instructive histo- 
 ries in the Bible is that of JOSEPH. Children and 
 youth have always heen fond of reading it. I wish 
 to tell it to them in this book in such a way that they 
 may get good from it. 
 
 You have read many books, my dear children, 
 merely to gel amusement from them. You have liked 
 the entertaining stories which they contained. But 
 
12 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 you must read books for instruction also. For you 
 need to learn what is useful ; and what will teach 
 you how yon may grow up to do good in the world, 
 and be prepared to be holy and happy, for ever, in 
 heaven. 
 
 You play sometimes. What fine sport you have! 
 I should like to see you playing. It does you good* 
 It makes you cheerful and happy. It gives you 
 healthful exercise, and helps you to grow strong and 
 active. 
 
 But it will not do to play too much. Something 
 else must be done. You must get ready to be useful 
 as you grow up to be men and women. Boys and 
 girls who play all the time, and do nothing but amuse 
 themselves, will dislike all kinds of labor as they 
 grow up. They will become idle and useless peo- 
 ple ; doing no good to others, and getting none 
 themselves. 
 
 It is just so in your reading. If you read only 
 storybooks, to be amused by them, you will become 
 so fond of this kind of reading that you will dislike 
 instructive and useful books. You will think it a 
 hard task to read them; just as a child who plays 
 all the time thinks it very disagreeable to do any 
 kind of work. Your minds will become weak. You 
 will be able to think scarcely at all about good and 
 important things. And what will be the worst evil 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH* 13 
 
 the Bible, the best of all books, will seem to you a 
 very dull and tedious book indeed. 
 
 I do not mean to say that you should never read 
 any story books that will amuse you ; though I fear 
 many children read such kind of books a great deal 
 more than is good for them. But what I mean is, 
 that you should be more fond of reading books that 
 are useful and instructive ; books that will make it 
 necessary for you to think when you read them 
 sometimes to think hard, so that you may understand 
 clearly what you read, and get good from it. Espe- 
 cially should you be fond of reading those books 
 which are written to lead you to think about your 
 souls, and what you must do to be saved. 
 
 Perhaps some of you, my dear children, will say 
 that this is too long and sober an introduction. You 
 may feel very impatient to have the history of Joseph 
 begin. 
 
 This shows that there is some reason for my 
 thinking that you have been so much in the habit 
 of reading for mere amusement, that you cannot bear 
 to read any thing of a serious and instructive kind, 
 even for four or five minutes. 
 
 If this is really so, you ought immediately to en- 
 deavor to take an interest in that kind of reading 
 which will require you to be fixed in attention, pa,' 
 tient in thinking, and serious in feeling. 
 
 L. j. 2 
 
14 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 If any of you are unwilling to do this, perhaps 
 you had better shut up the book, and not read any 
 farther. For, although there are a great many things 
 in the history of Joseph which are very interesting, 
 and which I shall endeavor to present in an agreea- 
 ble and entertaining manner to my young readers, 
 still I shall, all the while, mingle with these things 
 thoughts of an instructive and useful kind. 
 
 Sometimes I shall go farther than this. I shall 
 be very solemn and serious in what I say to you. I 
 shall talk to you very plainly about your being sin- 
 ners ; and about your guilt and danger ; and about 
 the need of your repentance, and faith in the Lord 
 Jesus Christ ; and of your hearts being changed by 
 the Holy Spirit; and about other things like these, 
 which it is very important for you to know, to be- 
 lieve, and to feel. 
 
 If I thought that you were all quite willing, my 
 dear children, to listen attentively to such things, 
 while we go along in the history of Joseph, with how 
 much pleasure I should sit down, day after day, to 
 write it ! 
 
 Pray that you may feel thus willing ; and I will 
 add my prayer to yours. 
 
 May God enable me so to write this book, and 
 you so to read it, that, with the blessing of his Holy 
 Spirit, it may do good to your souls ! 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 15 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Joseph's parentage. Jacob's removal from Mesopotamia. 
 Death of Rachel. Birth of Benjamin. How children 
 ought to treat their mothers. 
 
 JOSEPH was the son of Jacob. Isaac was his 
 grandfather, and Abraham his great grandfather. 
 It was no small privilege to him to have such an- 
 cestors. For they were pious men, and all in their 
 families were taught what they must do to obtain 
 the friendship of God, and be blessed of him. 
 
 Joseph was born in Mesopotamia, more than three 
 thousand five hundred years ago. His father had 
 lived in that country about fourteen years, with La- 
 ban, a rich husbandman, and assisted him in taking 
 care of his cattle, sheep, and goats. 
 
 Laban was the uncle of Jacob, being the brother 
 of Rebekah, Jacob's mother. He lived in a very fer- 
 tile country, between two fine rivers, the Tigris and 
 Euphrates. He owned a great deal of land, and large 
 herds and flocks, and had many servants to work 
 for him. 
 
 Jacob married the two daughters of Laban, Leah 
 and Rachel ; the latter of whom was the mother of 
 Joseph. Beside these, he had two other wives Bil- 
 hah and Zilpah. 
 
16 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 God permitted men, at that time, to have more than 
 one wife. He had good reasons for doing so ; though, 
 at the present time it is forbidden, and would be a 
 great sin. 
 
 Jacob had a large family while he was living with 
 Laban. I think, it will be well for you to remember 
 the names of his children. For his sons, in their 
 turn, were the fathers of children ; and they, of other 
 children ; and so on, until they made, altogether, a 
 great people, called Israelites, and became a power- 
 ful nation in the land of Canaan. They were called 
 Israelites because they were descended from Jacob, 
 whose other name was Israel ; and his twelve sons 
 are called the twelve patriarchs. 
 
 The names of Jacob's children, in the order of 
 their ages, Avere the following : Reuben, Simeon, 
 Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Ashur, Issachar, 
 Zebulun, (Dinah, a daughter) Joseph, and Benja- 
 min. 
 
 Rachel was the mother of Joseph and Benjamin. 
 All of them were born in Mesopotamia, except Ben- 
 jamin, of whom, before long, I shall tell you some- 
 thing more particularly. 
 
 When Joseph was about six years old, and Reu- 
 ben, the eldest son, about nineteen, their father con- 
 cluded to remove, with his family, from Mesopota- 
 mia, and return to Canaan, his native land. His aged 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 17 
 
 father, Isaac, was still living there. It was a fertile 
 and pleasant country; and Jacob thought that it 
 would be better for himself and his family to go 
 there, than to remain where he was. Besides, God 
 had told him, in a dream, to do it ; and he knew 
 that, in obeying God, he and his wives and chil- 
 dren would be in the way of their duty, and under 
 the protection of the Almighty. 
 
 It was a long and difficult journey, and must have 
 required a great deal of resolution and enterprise. 
 For Jacob was, now, a man of large property. He 
 had goods of various kinds ; many camels and asses ; 
 and numerous herds of cattle, and flocks of sheep 
 and goats. To remove all these, with his wives and 
 children, his man-servants and maid-servants, was 
 truly a laborious undertaking. But God had com- 
 manded it ; and in obeying his commands, remem- 
 ber, my dear children, that no difficulties or dangers, 
 however great, should weaken our resolution, or 
 make us afraid. Who needs to fear when he is in 
 the path of duty, and when the Almighty goes be- 
 fore him, and directs his way ! 
 
 I shall not attempt to describe the setting out of 
 Jacob on his journey, nor the particulars of what 
 happened to him before it was ended. You can read 
 about it, in the Bible. 
 
 One thing, however, I cannot pass over without 
 L. j. 2* 
 
18 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 mentioning; for, young as he was, it must have af- 
 fected Joseph very much, and filled his bosom with 
 the deepest sorrow. 
 
 It was five years after leaving Mesopotamia, hav- 
 ing stopped at one place and another for a longer or 
 shorter space of time, that Jacob was approaching 
 Ephrath, and had come very near the town, when 
 Rachel was taken suddenly sick and died. Just be- 
 fore she died Benjamin was born ; Joseph being 
 about eleven years old. She was buried in the way 
 to Ephrath, afterward called Bethlehem, and her hus- 
 band built a monument of stone over her grave. 
 
 Joseph was just at the age to feel the loss of his 
 mother most deeply ; and no doubt, in the bitterness 
 of his grief, he wept and mourned over her ; and 
 thought of all her tender care of him ; and felt how 
 sad it would be for him to see her face, and hear her 
 voice of kindness no more. 
 
 He loved dearly his little brother Benjamin, who 
 was born under these afflicting circumstances ; and 
 the strength of his attachment you will see in a sub- 
 sequent period of his life. 
 
 My dear children, do you know the value of a 
 good and kind mother ? It is worth more to a child 
 than tens of thousands of gold and silver. Do you 
 .know the value of a pious mother, who prays for and 
 with her child, and endeavors to guide its soul to 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 19 
 
 heaven ? It is worth more to her child than the 
 whole world, with all that it contains. 
 
 Have you such a mother ? O ! love her ; obey 
 her ; listen to her kind advice ; remember all the 
 good instructions she has given you ; do all you can 
 to make her happy. 
 
 Have you had such a mother? Think of her 
 with the warmest affection. Keep near to your heart 
 the memory of all she did for you ; of all her pray- 
 ers ; her admonitions ; her warnings ; her reproofs. 
 
 How are you treating such a mother, if she is still 
 living, or her memory, if she is dead ? Can it be that 
 one undutiful, ungrateful, wicked child shall read 
 these pages, and while stopping for a moment, with 
 Joseph, at the tomb of Rachel not pause, and con- 
 sider, and mourn over that wickedness of heart 
 which can lead a son or a daughter to forget and des- 
 pise the prayers, the entreaties, the tears of a pious 
 and affectionate mother ? 
 
 If living how does such conduct wring her soul 
 with anguish ? If dead can you endure the recol- 
 lection of that look and voice of love, and tender- 
 ness, and pity, and not be melted into deep repent- 
 ance before God ? 
 
20 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Jacob arrives at Mamre. Description of Hebron. Joseph's 
 Character. Jacob's affection for him. His brethren envy 
 him. Sin, if not repented of, increases rapidly. 
 
 NOT long after this, Jacob arrived at Mamre, and 
 found his aged father, Isaac, still alive, although he 
 was more than one hundred and sixty years old. It 
 must have been a very happy meeting ; and Joseph, 
 I dare say, was very glad to see his grandfather, of 
 whom he had heard much, and also the pleasant 
 place in which he lived. 
 
 This place was about twenty-seven miles south of 
 Jerusalem, and was afterward called Hebron. Near 
 it, in the cave of Machpelah, which Abraham pur- 
 chased for that purpose, both himself and his wife 
 Sarah were buried ; and in the same cave Isaac, 
 when he died, at the age of one hundred and eighty 
 years, was laid by the side of his father and mother. 
 
 Travellers, who have not long since visited that 
 part of Palestine, tell us that Hebron is situated on 
 the slope of a mountain, in a fertile valley ; and that 
 the sides of the neighboring hills are covered with 
 the oak, the arbutus, the fir, and a variety of flower- 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 21 
 
 ing shrubs. The adjoining country is better cultivat- 
 ed than that near Jerusalem. The town has a strong 
 castle ; abundance of provisions ; a number of shops 
 and neat houses ; and about four hundred families 
 of Arabs, beside a hundred Jewish houses. 
 
 It was, undoubtedly, a flourishing and fertile coun- 
 try in Isaac's and Jacob's time, or they would not 
 have remained there with such large families, and 
 such numerous herds and flocks, as they had. 
 
 A principal part of Jacob's business consisted in 
 taking care of his herds of cattle and flocks of sheep 
 and goats. His sons assisted him in doing this ; and 
 the first thing which we read in the Bible, of any 
 occupation in which Joseph was engaged, is, that he 
 was feeding the flock with his brethren, the sons of 
 Bilhah and Zilpah. 
 
 He was then seventeen years of age, and be- 
 loved by Jacob more than any other of his children ; 
 for he was the son of his old age, being born when 
 Jacob was ninety years old. Probably, too, Joseph 
 was a youth who conducted well, and showed a de- 
 gree of wisdom that was remarkable for one of his 
 years. His brothers, with the exception of Benjamin, 
 who was yet quite a boy, seem not to have behaved 
 as well as Joseph did. And we find that the sons of 
 Bilhah and Zilpah, with whom Joseph had been 
 while taking care of the flock, either said or did 
 
22 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 some wicked thing, of which Joseph felt it to be his 
 duty to tell his father. 
 
 Being such a son, it was no wonder that Jacob 
 loved him more than he did his brothers, and proba- 
 bly often spoke of him in their presence, as affording 
 an example which they ought to follow. Joseph 
 wore, also, a very beautiful and costly garment of 
 various colors, which his father gave him as a pe- 
 culiar mark of his affection, and, not unlikely, to 
 distinguish him from his brothers, and to show that 
 in some respects he was superior to them ; for after 
 this we do not read any more of his keeping the 
 flocks, and it is supposed that he stayed at home 
 with his father, to aid him in the care of his family 
 and in his other concerns. 
 
 All these things led Joseph's brethren to regard 
 him with great hatred and envy. When they met 
 him they could not speak peaceably unto him. They 
 often passed by him without giving him a single 
 kind look or word ; and sometimes they used to- 
 ward him violent and reproachful language. It is 
 probable, too, that, when alone by themselves, they 
 spoke very disrespectfully of their aged father, com- 
 plaining of his great affection to their brother, and 
 accusing Joseph of meddling in their concerns, and 
 of informing Jacob of what they said or did. 
 
 Have you ever felt so toward any of your bro- 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 23 
 
 thers or sisters, or toward any of your companions 
 at school, because they conducted better than you 
 did, and received the approbation of your parents or 
 teachers, and had something given to them, while 
 you had nothing given to you ? If you have, then 
 you know what envy is, and you ought to know 
 too, and to feel what a base and wicked thing it is 
 to be envious of others. If they are good and happy, 
 and are beloved and esteemed, and have things 
 which you have not, ought you not to rejoice in it, 
 instead of envying them, and wishing to see them 
 deprived of what they have, that you may enjoy it ? 
 ought you not to endeavor to imitate their example, 
 and partake with them of their happiness ? For pa- 
 rents and teachers have esteem, and love, and other 
 things, enough and enough, to bestow upon all the 
 children who conduct well, and deserve their ap- 
 probation. 
 
 You will see as we go on to the history of Jo- 
 seph, to what great wickedness the envy of his bro- 
 thers toward him finally led. Ah ! you know not 
 to what your envy toward your brothers and sisters 
 may lead ! Sin of all kinds may appear small at 
 first, but it grows very rapidly, and soon becomes 
 dreadful indeed. Did you ever think to what your 
 giving one How in anger, if not repented of, will 
 lead ? If you do not repent of it, and pray to God 
 
24 HISTORY OF JOSEPH* 
 
 that you may overcome such a temper, it will lead 
 you, when provoked, to give a still more violent 
 blow in greater anger. And have you thought to 
 what all this may lead? Will it make you shudder 
 when I tell you that it has led -to murder ; that it 
 may lead you to be a murderer ? 
 
 So your envious feelings, if not repented of and 
 overcome, may lead you, as you will see in the case 
 of Joseph's brethren, to do some very wicked and 
 dreadful thing. 
 
 Have you repented of such feelings? Do you 
 now truly repent of them, and beseech God to give 
 you the Holy Spirit, that you may entirely over- 
 come them ? If you have not yet done this, I entreat 
 you to delay to do it no longer. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Joseph's dreams. His brethren go to Shechem. Description 
 of this place. Joseph sent to inquire after his brethren. 
 
 WHILE Joseph was treated with so much hatred 
 by his brethren, he was led by a dream, which God 
 produced in his mind as he was asleep, to expect 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 25 
 
 some future great change in his condition, that would 
 place him very high above them. 
 
 He dreamed that they were all together in the 
 field, binding up the sheaves of grain which had 
 been reaped. All at once, the sheaf which Joseph 
 had bound stood upright of itself, and the sheaves 
 which his brethren had bound stood round about it 
 and bowed down before it. 
 
 He told this dream to his brethren, and their 
 hatred toward him was greatly increased by it. 
 They asked him in a very reproachful way, what 
 he meant by telling them such a dream. They said 
 
 L. j. 3 
 
26 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 to him, Shalt thou, indeed^ reign over us? Shall we 
 bow down before thee, and obey thee, as our ruler or 
 king ? How great is thy folly and pride, a mere youth 
 as thou art, and our younger brother too, to expect 
 that such a dream will ever come to pass ! 
 
 But it was not long before Joseph had another 
 dream, still more remarkable than this. 
 
 He dreamed that the sun, and the moon, and the 
 eleven stars were all around him, and bowed down 
 before him. 
 
 He told this dream to his father, and to his breth- 
 ren ; and they supposed that if it meant to foretell 
 any thing, it was, that not only his brethren, whom 
 the eleven stars represented, but also his father and 
 mother, whom the sun and moon represented, should 
 yet bow down before him, and obey him as their 
 ruler or king. 
 
 Jacob', seeing that Joseph was in danger of grow- 
 ing proud by having such dreams, or perhaps not 
 inclined fully to believe them as foretelling what 
 would really happen, rebuked him : " What is this 
 dream that thou hast dreamed ?" said he. " Shall I, 
 and thy mother, and thy brethren, indeed, come to 
 bow down ourselves to thee, to the earth?" 
 ' Still, he could not help considering it a very re- 
 markable dream, especially as it was so much like the 
 first one which Joseph had ; and he did not forget it. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 27 
 
 This dream had the same effect upon the brethren 
 of Joseph as the former one. They envied and hated 
 him the more. They, no doubt, wished for an op- 
 portunity to do him some great injury. For envy 
 and hatred cannot remain inactive. They are like 
 a flarne which is smothered for a little while, and 
 then bursts out with double violence. We shall see 
 that such was the effect of the evil passions which 
 burned within the breasts of the brothers of Joseph. 
 Not long after this they were sent by their father 
 to feed his flock in Shechem. 
 
 This place was between sixty and seventy miles 
 north of Hebron ; so that it was a considerable dis- 
 tance to drive the large flocks of sheep and goats 
 which Jacob owned. But it was necessary to do this, 
 and to go from place to place, in order to find suffi- 
 cient pastures for them. 
 
 In the valley of Shechem they could find an abun- 
 dance. It was " a field which the Lord had blessed." 
 Modern travellers speak of this part of Palestine 
 as among the most pleasant and fertile. 
 
 The city, now called Napolose, as it is approached 
 from the neighboring hills, appears embosomed in 
 delightful and fragrant bowers, half hid by rich gar- 
 dens, and by groves of tall trees, all around the beau- 
 tiful valley in which it stands. 
 
 On the right and left are the mountains of Gerizim 
 
28 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 and Ebal, whose lofty, craggy, and barren heights 
 are strikingly contrasted with the rich valley be- 
 neath, and with the extensive olive grounds that are 
 spread over its surface. 
 
 Near this place, called, in the time of our Savior, 
 Sychar, was Jacob's Well, where, you recollect, 
 Christ conversed with the Woman of Samaria ; and 
 here, too, Joseph himself was buried, as we shall see 
 at the close of his strange and eventful life. 
 
 To this delightful spot Jacob had sent his sons 
 to find feed for his numerous and increasing flocks. 
 
 Being so far from home, it was not long before 
 their kind father began to feel anxious about them, 
 and directed Joseph to go and see if it was " well 
 with them, and with the flocks, and bring him word 
 again." 
 
 It was a long journey for such a young man to 
 take alone, and on foot. In addition to this, he must 
 have feared not a little, on account of the treatment 
 which he might receive from his brethren. But his 
 father directed him to go, and this was enough for a 
 dutiful son. He cheerfully obeyed ; and leaving his 
 home, in the pleasant vale of Hebron, set out for 
 Shechem, to find his brothers, and to see if they were 
 well. 
 
 He little knew what was before him; through 
 what wondrous scenes he was soon to pass ; and 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 29 
 
 how God was leading him now to take the first steps 
 in that path which would end in his future great- 
 ness, and in the striking fulfillment of his dreams. 
 
 Little, too, did his aged father Jacob, as he gave 
 Joseph his parting blessing, think of the sorrows 
 which were soon to come upon him ; and that many 
 long, long years would pass by before he should 
 again see this dutiful and beloved son. 
 
 They bade each other farewell in peace. What 
 trials each must endure before they shall meet in 
 peace again ! 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Joseph approaches his brethren. Their great wickedness in 
 designing to take his life. Sin is the cause of misery. It 
 is the greatest of evils. To what it leads if not repented of, 
 
 JOSEPH at length arrived at Shechem. As he 
 was walking about the fields and endeavoring to 
 find his brethren, a stranger met him and inquired 
 what he was looking after. He replied, " I seek my 
 brethren : tell me, I pray thee, where thev feed 
 their flocks," 
 
 L. j. a* 
 
30 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 " And the man said, They are departed hence ; for 
 I heard them say, Let us go to Dothan." 
 
 Dothan was still farther north, and more than 
 twenty miles from Shechem. Hither Joseph imme- 
 diately proceeded, and found the place where his 
 brethren were. 
 
 He was, doubtless, glad to arrive at the end of his 
 journey, and hoped soon to be able to return to his 
 beloved father with the good news of his brethren's 
 welfare. 
 
 They saw him approaching at a very consider- 
 able distance ; and how do you think they felt as 
 they caught the first sight of his person, and were 
 sure that it was indeed their brother Joseph ? Were 
 they rejoiced that they should now hear from home, 
 and learn how their venerable father did, and all 
 his family, who were with him? 
 
 You imagine, probably, that you would have felt 
 so had you been in their circumstances. Alas ! you 
 know very little of the deceitfulness and of the wick- 
 edness of the human heart! I told you to what en- 
 vy and hatred, if not repented of and overcome, 
 will lead. You will now see that I told you the 
 truth. 
 
 Neither their absence from home, nor the inno- 
 cent and pleasant occupation in which they were 
 engaged, had any effect to soften their feelings and 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 31 
 
 lead them to forget what they considered the inju- 
 ries which both Joseph and their father had done 
 them. 
 
 They had been wandering in the delightful valley 
 of Shechem, breathing its balmy air, viewing its 
 beautiful and sublime scenes, feeding their flocks in 
 its green pastures, and beside its cooling streams, 
 and reclining under its refreshing shades, with 
 abundant time for calm and serious thought. 
 
 How favorable every thing was to their repenting 
 of their late bitter resentment toward their brother ! 
 How much their peaceful employment, the good- 
 ness of God toward them, and his tender mercies 
 shown forth in all the works of his hands around 
 them ; how much all this ought to have affected 
 their hearts with gratitude to their heavenly Father, 
 and with good will to their fellow-men ! 
 
 It was far otherwise. The first glimpse which 
 they caught of Joseph, perhaps descending a distant 
 hill, and wearing still the beautiful garment given 
 to him by his father, kindled up all the evil passions 
 which were slumbering in their breasts. 
 
 His dreams came to their remembrance, on ac- 
 count of which, above all other things, they hated 
 him so bitterly. " And they said one to another, Be- 
 hold, this dreamer cometh. Come now, therefore, and 
 let us slay him, and cast him into some pit ; and we 
 
32 HISTORY OF JOSEPH, 
 
 will say, some evil beast hath devoured him : am* we 
 shall see what will become of his dreams" 
 
 Pride, envy, hatred these were the wicked pas- 
 sions which led them thus to propose to each other 
 to take the life of their own brother. 
 
 Their pride was sorely wounded ; because, if the 
 dreams of Joseph should come to pass, they would 
 have to acknowledge him as their ruler or king. 
 How could they submit to such a degradation they 
 the elder, to bow down before the younger brother ! 
 
 Their envy was greatly excited. They recollect- 
 ed all the fondness which Jacob their father had 
 shown for Joseph. They saw him still wearing the 
 garment which was the mark of that fondness, and 
 of his superiority to them. They knew that he de- 
 served this distinction, because his character and 
 conduct were so much better than theirs. They 
 longed to see him deprived of all that he had and 
 enjoyed, as if this would increase their own happi 
 ness. 
 
 Their hatred was roused to the highest degree. 
 They were ready to do Joseph any evil, however 
 great. They were ready to take his life. 
 
 I have dwelt a little on this part of the history, 
 that I may lead you to think very seriously of what 
 sin is. 
 
 You see it, and how dreadful it appears, in the 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 33 
 
 wicked thoughts and feelings of Joseph's brethren. 
 
 Have you ever considered your own wicked 
 thoughts and feelings, which you have often had and 
 kept to yourself, or which have sometimes heen 
 shown in your conversation and conduct? Have 
 you thought how they must have appeared in the 
 sight of God, who has seen and known them all? 
 
 If you have never yet truly repented of your sins ; 
 and besought God, for Christ's sake, to forgive you ; 
 and prayed for the Holy Spirit, that you may have 
 strength given you to get rid of all sin ; then you are 
 in the same dreadful condition in which the brethren 
 of Joseph were. Sin was their master; and sin is 
 your master. What I mean by this is, that, while 
 you remain impenitent, you will yield to and obey 
 your wicked passions and desires. They will rule 
 over you, and will lead you continually to say and 
 to do one wicked thing and another, till you know 
 not how great your wickedness may become. 
 
 You may think that your sins now are very small. 
 But it is not a small thing to break the commands 
 of the great, the good, and the just God He is your 
 kind friend. A thankful heart should 7 ead you to 
 remember all his kindness, and to love and obey him. 
 He made you. You are his property. He has a 
 right to your love and obedience. And, beside all 
 this, it is by your loving and obeying him that he 
 
34 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 wishes you to do all you can to make both others and 
 yourself happy. For, just as the love and obedience 
 of children to kind and good parents, makes them- 
 selves and all the family happy, as you well know 
 is the Gasp; so love and obedience to the kinaanc 
 good father of all, would make all the beings in his 
 great family happy. 
 
 Sin is the great cause of misery among all be- 
 ings ; just as you know disobedience to parents, ana 
 wicked conduct, are the cause of wretchedness in fa- 
 milies. 
 
 No sins should be called small. If you do not re- 
 pent of your sins, and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ 
 to be saved, by him, from your sins, as well as from 
 the punishment which they deserve ; all your wick- 
 ed thoughts and feelings will be increasing in num- 
 ber and in strength, as you grow older. 
 
 What a sad prospect ! Where will such a course 
 of sinning end? What may it not lead you to do, 
 even in this life ! Whither will it lead you, in the 
 world to come ! 
 
 " The wao-es of sin is death ; the death the eter- 
 
 O ' 
 
 nal death of the soul ; its being shut out for ever 
 from the joys of heaven ; its being sentenced to that 
 place of awful wickedness and suffering, where "the 
 worm diethnot and the fire is not quenched !" 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 35 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Reuben pleads for Joseph's life. Joseph cast into a pit. 
 His brethren hard-hearted. Judah pleads for Joseph's 
 life. He is sold to the Ishmaelites, and carried to Egypt. 
 The providence of God. 
 
 AND are the brethren of Joseph about to kill their 
 brother ? All bat one have it in their hearts to do this 
 wicked deed. They are planning the mode of doing 
 it, and in what way they will prevent its discovery, 
 and make their father believe that Joseph was de- 
 voured by some wild beast. They are talking of slay- 
 ing him, and of then casting the body into some 
 deep pit, where it will never be seen by any human 
 eye. They are all ready to gratify their wicked pas- 
 sions of pride, envy, and hatred. 
 
 But God will not permit it to be done. He has 
 great things for Joseph yet to do, and his life must 
 be spared. There is one of the brothers not so cruel 
 as the rest. It is Reuben, the eldest. God awakens 
 his conscience to see the dreadful wickedness of 
 what they are about to do, and softens his heart to 
 feel for his brother and aged father. He begs them 
 not to kill Joseph, and advises them to cast him into 
 a deep pit that was near by. This he does, thinking 
 
36 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 that their rage against him is so great that they will 
 not let him entirely escape, and hoping to find an 
 opportunity afterward of rescuing his brother, and 
 of restoring him to Jacob. 
 
 The other brothers are persuaded to follow the 
 advice of Reuben. They probably perceive that if 
 they proceed actually to kill Joseph, Reuben will 
 have nothing to do with it, and that he will tell the 
 whole affair to their father. 
 
 But now Joseph is approaching his brethren, 
 ready to show his affection for them to tell them of 
 their father's welfare, and to inquire kindly after 
 them. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 37 
 
 What is his surprise and alarm, as they seize him 
 roughly and strip him of his beautiful garment of 
 various colors, and cast him into a deep pit ; and leave 
 him there, wondering and trembling, not knowing 
 what they intend yet to do with him. Perhaps they 
 will soon come again, he thinks, to take his life ; or, 
 probably, they mean to leave him there, to perish 
 with hunger. 
 
 And what do his brethren do ? They sit down on 
 the green grass to eat their food, as if nothing had 
 happened. Who would think that they could do this 
 so quietly and comfortably, and so directly after their 
 cruel treatment of their brother ? 
 
 But sin hardens the heart. Hate produces cruel- 
 ty. And even the children of the same father, when 
 they become envious of each other, will soon be pre- 
 pared to act toward each other more like wild and 
 ferocious animals than like human beings. 
 
 Who are those seen at a distance travelling on 
 camels, and coming near the spot where the breth- 
 ren of Joseph are still seated on the ground ? 
 
 They are a company of Ishmaelites and Midian- 
 ites, who have been to a country east of Dothan, 
 called Gilead, where they have bought some of the 
 very precious things that are produced there 
 spices, balm, and myrrh and are now going a great 
 way to another country, called Egypt, to sell these 
 
 L. J. 4 
 
38 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 articles to the people who live there, and who are 
 very fond of using them. 
 
 This is all directed by God, who so ordered it 
 that these travelling merchants should pass by just 
 at this time, that it might be the means of saving 
 Joseph's life, and of bringing about the exact fulfill- 
 ment of his dreams. 
 
 Another brother begins to feel a little for poor 
 Joseph. It is Judah, the fourth son. He says to his 
 brethren, "What good will it do us to kill our bro 
 ther ? We may do it in such a way, indeed, as never 
 to have it known, but it will be of no benefit to us. 
 Why should we wish to kill him ? Let us not do it. 
 He is our brother, the son of the same father. Let 
 us spare his life, and sell him to those merchants, 
 who will soon be here. They will carry him far 
 enough off to prevent him from ever troubling us 
 again with his foolish dreams, or pretending to ex- 
 pect to be a ruler over us." 
 
 Judah prevails with the rest, and they go and 
 draw Joseph out of the pit, hungry, and trembling, 
 and dreading what their cruel hands may do unto 
 him. 
 
 The Ishmaelites approach, and after bargaining 
 with them about the price, just as if they were part- 
 ing with a sheep or a goat, his brothers sell Josephs in 
 spite of his tears and entreaties, to these strangers, 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 39 
 
 for twenty pieces of silver: and they carry him 
 off with them away to Egypt. 
 
 That was the very place to which God intended 
 that Joseph should go. His wicked brethren did not 
 know this. They had no idea that their cruel treat- 
 ment of him would be the very means of defeating 
 iheir own designs, and of preparing the way for 
 their future shame and humiliation before their in- 
 jured brother. 
 
 God over-ruled their wicked designs so as to 
 bring about his own good purposes. His doing this, 
 and indeed his knowing beforehand every thing 
 
40 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 that is to happen, and so planning and ordering 
 what takes place, as to do just what he thinks hest 
 and right with all persons and things is what we 
 call the providence of God. 
 
 It is this providence of God which takes care of 
 you, my dear children, and plans and orders what 
 is to happen, and causes so many comforts and 
 blessings to attend you. 
 
 It was this same providence of God which took 
 care of poor Joseph. You have already seen how 
 one thing and another were ordered, with regard to 
 him, in a very striking manner, to bring about the 
 wise purposes of God. 
 
 You will see the same providence of God bring- 
 ing about still more wonderful things, with regard 
 to him, in the country of Egypt, whither he has 
 gone, far away from his kind father, to he sold as 
 a slave in a land of strangers. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 41 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Reuben's sorrow at finding Joseph gone. Joseph's brethren 
 lead their father to believe that he is dead. Their great 
 guilt. The commission of sin leads to deception and 
 falsehood. 
 
 REUBEN, who proposed to put Joseph in the pit 
 that he might save his life and return him to his 
 father, was absent when he was sold to the Ish- 
 maelites. He returned soon after, and going to the 
 pit, found that Joseph was not there. His disap- 
 pointment and grief at this were very great. He 
 rent his clothes. It was customary at that time for 
 persons in that country to do this, as a mark of deep 
 sorrow ; and Reuben probably intended in this way 
 to let his brethren see how keenly he felt the loss of 
 his brother. He came to his brethren, and broke 
 out in this affecting lamentation : The child is not 
 and J, whither shall I go ? 
 
 Reuben was soon told what his brethren had 
 done with Joseph ; and he saw that it was too late 
 for him to attempt anything for his relief. For, had 
 he pursued the Ishmaelites, it is not at all probable 
 that they would have given up Joseph, even if the 
 money had been given back to them again. It is 
 
 L. J. 4* 
 
42 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 doubtful, too, whether Reuben had money enough 
 of his own for this purpose ; and we cannot suppose 
 that his brethren would let him have the twenty 
 pieces of silver to defeat their own design in selling 
 their brother. 
 
 They had now to devise some way of concealing 
 their guilt, so that their father and his family might 
 be kept in ignorance of it, and of what had become 
 of Joseph. 
 
 One sin is the cause of another. They had done 
 the greatest injury to their unoffending brother, and 
 some deception must be practised by which to im- 
 pose upon their aged parent. 
 
 It is uncertain whether Reuben was concerned 
 with them or not, in the deception. But, at any rate, 
 he did not make it known, and in this way partook 
 of their guilt, and showed that he was afraid to do 
 his duty. 
 
 The deception which they practised was this. 
 They killed a kid or young goat, and dipped the 
 beautiful coat of Joseph in its blood. They then 
 brought it to their father and showed it to him all 
 bloody as it was. " We have found it," said they ; 
 " know now whether it be thy son's coat or no." 
 
 " And he knew it, and said, It is my son's coat , 
 an evil beast hath devoured him ; Joseph is, without 
 doubt, rent in pieces.' 7 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 43 
 
 What an affliction to Jacob ! He could not have 
 had a severer one. Rachel, whom he loved so ten- 
 derly, was gone. He buried her at Ephrath. And 
 now, the next dearest object of his affection, the son 
 whom he hoped to have as the support and solace 
 of his already declining years, is also gone. It would 
 have been a consolation to have laid him in his 
 grave. But this is denied him. 
 
 In the bitterness of his grief, Jacob rent his clothes, 
 and put on sackcloth, and mourned for his son many 
 days. 
 
 " And all his sons and all his daughters rose 
 up to comfort him ; but he refused to be comforted ; 
 and he said, For I will go down into the grave 
 unto my son, mourning. Thus his father wept for 
 him." 
 
 Jacob's sons, trying to comfort him for the loss of 
 Joseph, whom they themselves had sold into bond- 
 age, and sent far away from his affectionate father ! 
 They pretending to mingle their sorrow with his, 
 when they were secretly rejoicing at the event 
 which occasioned it ! They endeavoring to allay his 
 grief, when the deception which they had practised 
 was the reason whv that grief was so excessive ! 
 They calling upon him to dry up his tears, when 
 they had it in their power, by simply telling him 
 that Joseph was yet alive, to furnish a consolation 
 
44 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 which would have turned those tears of sadness into 
 tears of joy ! 
 
 What base deceivers ! What wicked hypocrites ! 
 What ungrateful and cruel children ! How is their 
 guilt increasing; and how great must be the dis- 
 pleasure of God against them ! 
 
 You see in all this your own danger, if you go 
 on indulging sinful thoughts and feelings, and com- 
 mitting sinful actions. Stop and think of this dan- 
 ger. Think especially of one striking thing which 
 marked the 'progress of Joseph's brethren in guilt. 
 I mean their resort to deception and falsehood. 
 
 Remember that those who are guilty of wicked 
 conduct, wish and strive to conceal it. Have you 
 not always found it to be so, when you have said or 
 done any thing which you knew to be wrong ? 
 
 But triose who wish to conceal their evil conduct 
 are strongly tempted to do this by some kind of arti- 
 fice, or even by a downright falsehood. 
 
 You know it is a common saying, that those who 
 steal, will also lie. It is true and it is equally true, 
 that those who commit wickedness, of whatever kind, 
 will practise deception, and tell a falsehood rather 
 than be detected. 
 
 How mean and cowardly, as well as sinful, it is, 
 to be a liar ! " Lying lips are an abomination to the 
 Lord, but they that deal truly are his delight. Liars 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 45 
 
 shall have their portion in the lake that burneth 
 with fire and brimstone." 
 
 Fear then to sin. Fear all wicked thoughts, and 
 feelings, and conduct. For these will lead you to de- 
 ceive, and if, in your opinion, there is great danger 
 of detection to lie. 
 
 There is no security against this, but in loving 
 and obeying God. Have you a heart thus disposed 
 to love and obey him? If you have not think of 
 the sons of Jacob. Think of their very wicked con- 
 duct toward their brother and father. It all proceed- 
 ed from their evil hearts. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Joseph sold to Potiphar. His history given to us, to show 
 us the providence of God. Potiphar's great regard for Jo- 
 seph. Duties to others to be performed in the fear of God. 
 
 IT was a long journey of several hundred miles, 
 from Dothan, the place where Joseph was sold to the 
 Ishmaelites, to Egypt, the country to which they 
 carried him. 
 
 You had better get some one to show you these 
 places on the map ; and also Mesopotamia, from 
 
46 
 
 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 which Jacob came with his family; and Hebron, 
 where he found his father Isaac, and where he 
 lived ; and also Shechem, or Sychar, where the bro- 
 thers of Joseph were keeping the flocks, when he 
 was sent to inquire after them. 
 
 Egypt was a large country in Africa, directly 
 west of the Red Sea. Tt contained a great many peo- 
 ple, and was governed by kings who were called 
 by a name, meaning the same as king, Pharaoh. 
 
 These kings were very powerful. They had many 
 soldiers under them, whom they could command to 
 do as they pleased, and this made the people fear 
 and obey them. 
 
 They kept some of these soldiers always near 
 them, about their house and person ; and they were 
 called the king's guard. They defended the king 
 against any one who might wish to take his life, or 
 do him an injury. Beside this, they were the per- 
 sons who put to death those whom the king sentenc- 
 ed to die on account of any crime; or, as was some- 
 times the case, because he feared them, or was angry 
 with them. The king's guard was commanded by a 
 captain or officer, such as you have seen at the head 
 of a company of soldiers ; and at the time when Jo- 
 seph was carried into Egypt the name of this captain 
 of the guard was Potiphar. 
 
 He was a rich and powerful man, one of the great- 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 47 
 
 est in the whole country, next to the king. He had a 
 large house, and much land, and many persons under 
 him, to do his work. 
 
 It was Potiphar, this captain of the king's guard, 
 to whom the Ishmaelites sold Joseph soon after their 
 arrival in Egypt. We do not know what price they 
 got for him. But it was undoubtedly a good deal 
 more than the twenty pieces of silver which they 
 paid to his brothers. For they bought him to make 
 money of him, just as people do of any thing that 
 they buy to sell again. 
 
 Poor Joseph ! thus to be sold twice as a slave ; 
 and now to a strange master, in a strange land ; hun- 
 dreds of miles from home, from his father, and fami- 
 ly, and friends ! 
 
 But there is reason to believe that he put his trust 
 in God, and prayed to him, and looked up unto 
 him for protection and guidance. And God did pro- 
 tect, and guide, and bless Joseph, as you will see. 
 You will see, too, how it was again ordered by the 
 providence of God, that Joseph should be sold to this 
 very captain of the king's guard, in order to bring 
 about the design of God, and the exact fulfillment of 
 Joseph's dreams. 
 
 I wish, my dear children, that you would keep 
 continually in mind this over-ruling providence of 
 God, as we go along in the history of Joseph. For 
 
48 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 this is one important reason why God has given us 
 this history in the Bible ; and when you come to 
 read about the descendants of Jacob, the Israelites ; 
 and what a great and powerful nation they became ; 
 and how Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, was 
 born among this people, and was one of them, him- 
 self a descendant of Abraham, the grandfather of 
 Jacob ; you will find more strange and wonderful 
 things, connected with the simple fact of Joseph's 
 being sold in Egypt) than you can now imagine* 
 You will find that God, by his providence his plan- 
 ning, ordering, and directing all events is, truly, 
 great in counsel and mighty in work ; and you will 
 be ready to exclaim, as Moses did, " Who is like 
 unto thee, O Lord ; who is like thee ; glorious in 
 holiness ; fearful in praises ; doing wonders ?" 
 
 Joseph had not been long with Potiphar before 
 the latter began to notice that he was a very indus- 
 trious servant, and that he was faithful and upright 
 in all his conduct. He had some kind of labor to do 
 in the house of his master, who saw that Joseph suc- 
 ceeded exceedingly well in doing it ; and that the 
 business in the family which was entrusted to his 
 care was managed with great skill and wisdom. 
 The Bible, in speaking of this, says, " his master 
 saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord 
 made all that he did to prosper in his hand." 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 49 
 
 There was something in Joseph's conversation 
 and conduct which showed that he feared the true 
 God, and which led Potiphar to notice it, and to re- 
 spect him on this account. 
 
 My dear children, pray to God to give you his 
 Holy Spirit, that you may be led to imitate this ex- 
 ample of Joseph. 
 
 You are called upon to perform certain duties, in 
 obedience to the commands of your parents, or of 
 other persons who have the care of you. 
 
 Whatever you thus do, do it in the fear of God ; be- 
 cause he commands you to do your duty ; because his 
 eye is always upon you 5 and because, if you thus love 
 and serve him, he will be your constant protector 
 and friend, as he was of Joseph. 
 
 L. j. 5 
 
50 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Joseph made overseer of Potiphar's house. He is tempted 
 to great wickedness by Potiphar's wife. He fears to sin 
 against God. He is falsely accused, and cast into prison. 
 His good conduct there. He has the whole care of the 
 prison. The great happiness of having Go d willi us. 
 
 JOSEPH conducted so well in every thing with 
 which he was entrusted, that Potiphar continued to 
 place more and more things under his care ; and at 
 length his confidence in him was so great, that he 
 made him "overseer over his house; and all that 
 he had he put into his hand." 
 
 Joseph was now at the head of the whole of Poti- 
 phar's business. Both in the house and in the field 
 he directed all the persons whom Potiphar employ- 
 ed, to do as he wished ; and so entirely did he have 
 the management and oversight of every thing, that, 
 we are told in the Bible, Potiphar knew not even the 
 different kinds of property which he owned, except 
 the food which he saw on his table. Every thing 
 was provided for himself and the family, without any 
 care of his own, by the skill and industry of Joseph. 
 
 In the midst of so much prosperity, Joseph did not 
 forget that he was indebted for it all to the kind pro- 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 51 
 
 vidence of God. He continued to fear and obey God ; 
 and I think so, because he, soon after, was severely 
 tried, and tempted to do evil, but resisted the temp- 
 tation, and showed that he dreaded more than any 
 thing else, to sin against God. 
 
 It was the wife of Potiphar who tempted Joseph 
 to sin. She was a very wicked woman, and began 
 to love Joseph, as if he were her husband. She had 
 a husband already, and she knew how sinful it was 
 to think of having Joseph for her husband, and to 
 try to persuade him to love her as his wife. 
 
 For any married man or woman to do so, with 
 regard to any other person who is not married to 
 them, you know, is to break the seventh command- 
 ment of God, which says, " Thou shalt not commit 
 adultery." 
 
 This means, that a married man shall not live 
 with any woman, as his wife, excepting the one to 
 whom he is married : and that a married woman 
 shall not live with any other man, as her husband, 
 excepting the one to whom she is married. 
 
 Whoever does this, or, as our Savior teaches us, 
 even wishes to do so, has committed adultery, and is 
 a very great sinner in the sight of God. 
 
 Potiphar's wife endeavored to persuade Joseph 
 thus to sin against God, by violating one of his com- 
 mands, in the commission of very great wickedness. 
 
52 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 Her attempts were in vain ; for Joseph was firm 
 in his obedience to God. " How can I do this great 
 wickedness," said he, "and sin against God !" 
 
 The love of Potiphar's wife was turned into 
 hatred, and she sought to do Joseph all the injury 
 she could. She told her husband a very wicked 
 falsehood respecting him. She accused him of wish- 
 ing to have her as his wife, and Potiphar believed it. 
 His anger was roused to a very great degree. He 
 determined to have Joseph in his house no longer. 
 He resolved to inflict a severe punishment upon him ; 
 and he caused him to be shut up in prison. 
 
 It was the same prison in which those persons 
 were confined who had offended against the king, 
 or broken some of his laws. We read in the Bible, 
 that they were bound ; so that it is probable Joseph 
 was also in bonds, wearing them on his arms and 
 legs, and shut up in a gloomy cell or dungeon. 
 
 What a change for this poor young man ! To be 
 taken from the height of prosperity, at the accusation 
 of a false and wicked woman, and, innocent as he was, 
 to lose the favor of Potiphar, and be cast into prison, 
 without any one to be his defender and friend ! 
 
 But if he had no human friend, he had an Almigh- 
 ty one. God watched over him for good. Indeed, it 
 was God himself, by his wise providence, who so 
 overruled the designs of Potiphar's wife to injure 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 53 
 
 Joseph, that his being cast into prison by her hus- 
 band was the very means of his future prosperity 
 and greatness, and of the exact fulfillment of his 
 dreams. 
 
 Many persons, if they were treated as Joseph was ; 
 sold by his own brothers ; a stranger in a distant 
 land ; accused falsely of a great crime ; in prison, 
 and in bonds ; would murmur and complain, and 
 think that God was unkind and unjust, in permit- 
 ting them to endure such sufferings. 
 
 But Joseph did not feel so. He was not made 
 proud by prosperity ; and now, in adversity, he was 
 humble and patient. 
 
 The keeper of the prison noticed how he felt and 
 conducted ; and God, who can influence the hearts 
 of all men, inclined the heart of the keeper to show 
 Joseph great favor and kindness. So much so, that 
 he entrusted him with the government of the pri- 
 soners, and, indeed, with the entire management of 
 the prison. 
 
 This was a new and difficult situation for a per- 
 son so young as Joseph. He is supposed, at this 
 time, to have been twenty seven years of age. But, 
 his wisdom was great for his years, and his upright- 
 ness and firmness were equally so. 
 
 He conducted the affairs of the prison with so 
 much judgment, that we are told, in the Bible, "the 
 
 L. J. 5* 
 
54 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 keeper of the prison looked not to any thing that was 
 under his hand, (that is, the hand of Joseph,) be- 
 cause the Lord was with him ; and that which he did, 
 the Lord made it to prosper." 
 
 The Lord was with him. What a privilege ! You 
 think it a great comfort to have your father or 
 mother with you, especially when you are in diffi- 
 culty, in trouble, or in sickness, and feel the need of 
 some one to advise you, and take care of you. How 
 often their presence has calmed your fears and 
 soothed your sorrows. How have you leaned on 
 them for support, when you felt how feeble you were, 
 and ignorant of what was best to be done ! 
 
 You have a Father in heaven, who is all-wise and 
 all-powerful ! He wishes you to feel toward him as 
 children ought to do toward so kind and powerful a 
 benefactor. He wishes you to love and obey him. 
 He tells you, in the Bible, what you must do to 
 please him, and to make others and yourself good 
 and happy. He, first of all, requires that you should 
 be heartily sorry for all your sins, and forsake them, 
 and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ to save you. He 
 invites you to pray to him for the Holy Spirit, to lead 
 you to do what he requires ; and he promises, if you 
 will thus pray, to give you this Spirit. 
 
 Will you go to this heavenly Father, sorry for 
 your sins and confessing them all ; and beseeching 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 55 
 
 him, for Christ's sake, to forgive you, and to grant 
 you the Holy Spirit, that you may be led to love and 
 obey him ? 
 
 Then the Lord will be with you, as he was with 
 Joseph. He will do a great deal more for you than 
 ever your father, or mother, or any earthly friend 
 has done. 
 
 He will be with you, having you under the pecu- 
 liar care of his providence ; guiding and protecting 
 you; guarding you against temptation in prospe- 
 rity ; supporting you under trials in adversity ; mak- 
 ing all things work together for your good ; and, at 
 last, taking you to heaven, to be with him and his 
 Son, and the spirits of the redeemed, where all are, 
 for ever, free from sin and sorrow, and going on im- 
 proving in knowledge, and increasing in goodness 
 and happiness. 
 
56 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 The fear of God what it is its benefits. The dream of 
 the chief butler. Its interpretation by Joseph. 
 
 PERHAPS you have wondered that so young a 
 man as Joseph, and a stranger too, should so soon, 
 while a servant in the one case, and a prisoner in 
 the other, gain the entire confidence of Potiphar, 
 and of the jailor. 
 
 There is one simple reason for it ; he feared God. 
 
 Wherever he was, and whatever he was doing, he 
 remembered that the eye of God was upon him, and 
 that he would have to render an account to God of 
 all his conduct. 
 
 You have seen a striking instance of this, when 
 Potiphar's wife tempted him to sin. How can I do 
 this great wickedness, said he, and sin against God. 
 
 You will find nothing so effectual to keep you 
 also from falling into sin, and to strengthen you in 
 the performance of duty, as this fear of God. 
 
 It is a fear mingled with love ; such a fear as an 
 affectionate and dutiful child has, of offending the 
 parent who is tender and yet firm, kind and yet 
 strict, in the government of his family. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 57 
 
 Study your Bible, and make it your great concern 
 to learn who God is. Find out all that you can of 
 his greatness and goodness ; and you will see what 
 reason you have both to fear and to love so glo- 
 rious and kind a being. 
 
 Pray that you may fear and love him, and have a 
 deep feeling of his presence, and of your accounta- 
 bility to him, for all that you think, and say, and do. 
 Then, like Joseph, you will be under the constant 
 protection of God. Wicked persons will see what it 
 is that leads you to do right, and they will respect 
 you for it ; and good persons will love you ; and you 
 will be taking the only sure way, as Joseph did, 
 whether you are in prosperity or in adversity, of 
 gaining the esteem and confidence of all. 
 
 We shall see these truths still further illustrated 
 in the history of Joseph. 
 
 Not long after he began to have the management 
 of the prison, there were two persons brought there, 
 of whom I will give you some account. 
 
 One was the chief butler of the king of Egypt. 
 He probably had the care of the wine which the 
 king used, and when the king drank it, handed the 
 cup to him. Sometimes he would take the fine 
 ripe grapes, and press the juice into the cup, and 
 give it to the king to drink. It was common for the 
 kings in Egypt, and in Asia, in ancient times, to 
 
58 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 have such cup-bearers, and the office was consider- 
 ed one of great honor. 
 
 The other person who was brought to the prison 
 was the king's chief baker, who had the oversight 
 of those who prepared his bread and other kinds of 
 food. His office, too, was a very respectable one. 
 Indeed, we have reason to conclude that both these 
 persons were of high rank ; for an ancient historian, 
 Diodorus Siculus, who has written about the Egyp- 
 tians, tells us that the officers of the kings (such as 
 the chief butler, or cup-bearer, and the chief baker,) 
 were selected from the most distinguished families 
 of the priesthood, and were among the nobles. 
 
 It seems that these officers of the king had, in 
 some way, offended him. He was so enraged at 
 their conduct that he put them into the prison in 
 which Joseph was, being a part of the house of 
 Potiphar the captain of the guard, and probably 
 under his general superintendence. 
 
 Potiphar charged Joseph with the care of the 
 chief butler and chief baker, and he saw that they 
 were placed in confinement, and provided with 
 such things as were allowed to prisoners in their si- 
 tuation. 
 
 After having been in prison some time, these two 
 men had each of them a dream the same night, which 
 led them to wonder at it not a little, and to feel very 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 59 
 
 sorrowful. The next morning, when Joseph came 
 in to see them, as he usually did, to find out wheth- 
 er every thing was as it should be, he observed that 
 something had happened, and that they looked sad. 
 He inquired the reason of it, and they told him that 
 they had had two dreams which troubled them very 
 much ; and the more so, because there was no one 
 who could interpret the dreams, or explain their 
 meaning, and what they might foretell. 
 
 " Joseph said unto them, do not interpretations 
 belong to God? Tell me them, I pray you." . 
 
 It would seem, frori this, that Joseph, who had 
 had some very rernarii^ie dreams himself, was one 
 of those that in former times were enabled by God 
 to explain the meaning of dreams, and to tell what 
 future events they predicted. 
 
 The chief butler told Joseph his dream. It was 
 the following : He dreamed that he saw a grape-vine 
 before him, which had three branches. The buds 
 grew, and the blossoms shot forth so rapidly that it 
 produced clusters of ripe grapes in a few moments 
 of time. The king's cup was in his hand, into 
 which, after plucking them, he pressed the juice of 
 the grapes, and gave the cup to the king. 
 
 Joseph gave him this interpretation of his dream. 
 He said that the three branches represented three 
 days, and that within three days the king would 
 
60 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 lift up his head, and restore him to his former place, 
 and that he should again be the cup-bearer of the 
 king, and hand him his wine to drink. 
 
 To lift up the head, was a manner of speaking 
 at that time, and afterward, among the Jews, the 
 meaning of which was, to raise a person to some 
 kind of honor, so that others would treat him with 
 respect, or to restore him to an office which he had 
 before held. 
 
 The chief butler was greatly rejoiced at this ex- 
 planation of his dream, and that he should so soon 
 be removed from his uncomfortable and disgraceful 
 confinement, and experience again the friendship of 
 the king. 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 The dream of the chief baker and its interpretation. What 
 Joseph foretells, comes to pass. Prophecy. Sin of in- 
 gratitude. 
 
 WE do not read in the Bible that the chief butler 
 expressed any thanks to Joseph for the interpreta- 
 tion of his dream ; and we shall find out, after war d* 
 that he was not a man likely to do this. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 61 
 
 Joseph, however, asked one favor of him, when 
 he should be restored to his office, and enjoy again 
 the opportunity of being often with the king. 
 
 " Think on me," said he, " when it shall be well 
 with thee, and show kindness, I pray thee, unto me ; 
 and make mention of me unto Pharaoh, and bring 
 me out of this house: for, indeed, I was stolen 
 away out of the land of the Hebrews : and here, 
 also, I have done nothing that they should put me into 
 the dungeon." 
 
 I will just tell you, as we go along, that the word 
 dungeon here, or rather the word in the Hebrew 
 language, (in which the Old Testament was written,) 
 means any place of confinement. So that Joseph on- 
 ly said that he was in prison. He was not in bonds 
 at that time, nor shut up close in any room or cell. 
 
 Afterward the chief baker told his dream. He 
 had some hopes, from the favorable interpretation 
 which Joseph gave of that of his companion in mis- 
 fortune, that his, also, might foretell good. 
 
 He said he dreamed that he had three white 
 baskets on his head, and that, in the uppermost 
 basket, there was all manner of baked meats for 
 the king. He also dreamed that the birds came 
 and ate the meat out of the basket. 
 
 No doubt he waited, with great anxiety, to hear 
 what interpretation Joseph would give of the dream. 
 
 L. J. 6 
 
62 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 " The three baskets," said Joseph, " denote three 
 days, and within that time the king will lift up thy 
 head from off thee, and hang thee on a tree, (or 
 high gibbet, or gallows,) and the birds shall eat 
 thy flesh from off thee." 
 
 This was a sad interpretation of his dream to 
 the chief baker ; but we are not told the particular 
 effect which it had upon him. 
 
 The third day after Joseph gave these inter- 
 pretations of the dreams, was Pharaoh's birth-day. 
 It was a day of much rejoicing in the king's house, 
 and he made a great feast for all his officers, and 
 captains, and persons who did his business and 
 waited on him. In the midst of this festivity he 
 ordered the chief butler to be set at liberty and 
 restored to his former situation. On that same day 
 he became again the king's cup-bearer, and gave 
 the cup of wine into his hand. 
 
 On that same day, also, the chief baker was hung, 
 and his body left on the gallows, to be devoured by 
 the birds of heaven. 
 
 Thus Joseph proved to be a true interpreter of the 
 dreams which were told him ; which shows that it 
 was God who instructed him how to make the inter- 
 pretations. For no one but God, or some person to 
 whom he sees fit to communicate it, has any certain 
 knowledge of future events. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 63 
 
 There are many prophecies in the Bible, made 
 before the things which they predicted came to pass. 
 The fulfillment of these prophecies, or, what means 
 the same thing, the coming to pass of the things that 
 were foretold, shows, that the prophecies must have 
 come from God, and that the Bible, which contains 
 these prophecies, also came from God, and is all 
 true. 
 
 We are told, that after being restored to his office, 
 the chief butler did not remember Joseph. He quite 
 forgot all his kindness to him while under his care in 
 the prison ; the relief and joy which were afforded 
 him in the interpretation of his dream ; and the re- 
 quest which Joseph made, that he would mention his 
 case, the circumstances of his history, and especially 
 his innocence, to the king. 
 
 This forgetfulness shows the great ingratitude of 
 the chief butler, and how little feeling he had for 
 others, if he himself could only be delivered from 
 trouble and suffering. 
 
 Alas ! how many such persons there are in the 
 world, eager after their own happiness, unmindful 
 of that of others ! Children, too, sometimes forget 
 their own parents, and all their kindness ; and ne- 
 glect them in sickness, or in old age; and show 
 what ungrateful and wicked hearts they have ! 
 
 Can it be, my dear children, that this is true of any 
 
64 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 of you ? Think a little. Are you truly grateful to 
 your parents ? Do you remember all their past kind- 
 ness to you? Do you love and obey them? Do you 
 do all that you can to make them happy ? 
 
 Hear what God says on this subject, in the Bible, 
 and may it sink deep into your hearts. 
 
 " Cursed be he that setteth light by his father or 
 his mother, and all the people shall say, Amen." 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Pharaoh's dreams. He sends for Joseph. Joseph's humi- 
 lity. We should not receive the approbation which is 
 due to others, or which we do not deserve. 
 
 ABOUT two years after the chief butler was restor- 
 ed to his office, and while Joseph, forgotten by him, 
 was still in prison, Pharaoh had two very singular 
 dreams on the same night. 
 
 He dreamed that he was walking by the side of 
 the river Nile, and saw seven fat and good-looking 
 cows come up out of the river, and feed in the mea- 
 dows near its banks. Seven others, miserably poor, 
 and disagreeable in their appearar :e, carne up also 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 65 
 
 out of the river, and stood near the fat ones. And, 
 strange to behold, they soon attacked the fat ones, 
 and entirely devoured them. But notwithstanding 
 this, they seemed just as poor and ill-looking as 
 before. 
 
 The king awoke, but soon fell asleep again, and 
 had another dream quite as strange as the first one. 
 
 He dreamed that he saw seven ears of gram grow 
 out of one stalk, all full and good ; and that imme- 
 diately after, seven other ears, withered, thin, and 
 blasted with the east wind, sprung up, and devour- 
 ed the full ones. 
 
 Pharaoh was much troubled, the next morning, 
 on account of these dreams. For he thought that 
 probably they had some meaning which it was very 
 important for him to understand. 
 
 So he sent for all the magicians of Egypt, and for 
 all the wise men, to see if they could interpret 
 his dreams, which he related to them. 
 
 These magicians and w r ise men were persons 
 who pretended, in some strange* way, to explain 
 dreams, and foretell future events ; though they 
 knew, at the time, it was all a deception. But, often 
 as they had imposed upon others, and made some 
 sort of guessing about what their dreams meant, 
 they did not dare to run the risk of trying to inter- 
 pret those of the king. 
 
66 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 So they confessed that they were entirely at a 
 loss to know what his strange dreams meant, and 
 he was in greater perplexity than ever. 
 
 It was now that, for the first time, the chief butler 
 thought of Joseph, and remembered his request, that 
 he would mention him to the king. 
 
 He seemed to have some faint emotions of grati- 
 tude waked up within his bosom. For, after having 
 said to the king, " I do remember my faults this 
 day," he went on to state the circumstances of Jo- 
 seph's interpreting his dream and that of the chief 
 baker, when they were confined in prison. 
 
 The king was much struck with the account, and 
 with the wisdom of Joseph in understanding so ex- 
 actly what the dreams predicted ; and he ordered 
 Joseph to be brought immediately before him. 
 
 Having prepared himself in a neat and suitable 
 manner, Joseph went to the king's dwelling, and 
 was introduced into his presence. 
 
 He told Joseph about his dreams and that none 
 were able to interpret them, and observed, at the 
 same time, " I have heard say of thee, that thou 
 canst understand a dream, to interpret it." 
 
 The king supposed that it was by his own skill 
 that Joseph could do this ; in some such way as the 
 magicians and wise men often" pretended to do it. 
 He knew not the true God, and that he alone, or the 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 67 
 
 persons whom he instructed, could look into futuri- 
 ty, and foretell what was to happen. 
 
 Joseph might have let the king continue to think 
 so, and thus have acquired great honor and praise, 
 in his estimation, and in that of all his officers, and 
 the Egyptians. But he feared God. He did not dare 
 to let others think that it was by his own wisdom 
 he could interpret dreams, when he knew that it was 
 God alone who enabled him to do it, and that, there- 
 fore, God should have all the glory. 
 
 " And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying ; It is 
 not in me : God shall give Pharaoh an answer of 
 peace." 
 
 It is not in me. Remember this saying of Joseph. 
 It sometimes happens that others may think you 
 have done some good thing, when, in truth, some- 
 body else did it. Or, you may have more praise for 
 doing a thing than you really deserve ; for somebody 
 else may have helped you to do it. Or, you may be 
 supposed to know something, when you are really 
 quite ignorant about it. You are tempted to let 
 others think more highly of you tharf they ought, 
 and -to have your vanity gratified; and thus to be 
 the means of depriving some one else of the esteem, 
 or praise, that is justly his due. 
 
 I have often seen this among children in a family, 
 and among pupils at school. 
 
DO HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 It is all wrong. It is a violation of the tenth com- 
 mandment, which forbids us to covet what belongs 
 to another. It is a violation of the eighth command- 
 ment, which forbids us to steal. For it is truly a 
 kind of theft, a secretly taking away from another 
 that to which he is justly entitled. 
 
 When you find yourself tempted to do so, remem- 
 ber the example and saying of Joseph. Frankly state 
 the exact truth about the matter. Say, it is not in 
 me. Tell just how much you did, and how much you 
 did not do ; how much you know, and how much 
 you do not know; how much you were aided by 
 others, and how much is fairly due to them. 
 
 Remember, that although you may, at such a 
 time, deceive your fellow-men, (as Joseph, had he 
 chosen, might have deceived Pharaoh,) you cannot 
 deceive God. For he knows what is in you ; your 
 most secret thoughts and feelings, as well as all your 
 conversation and conduct. 
 
 " Think not more highly of yourselves than you 
 ought to think. In lowliness of mind, let each esteem 
 other better than themselves." 
 
 " God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the 
 humble." 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 Joseph's interpretation of Pharaoh's dreams. Pharaoh 
 makes him governor of Egypt. Joseph's new name. 
 His marriage. A regard to truth and duty the surest 
 way of securing the confidence of others. 
 
 AFTER Pharaoh had related his dreams to Jo- 
 seph, the latter replied ; " The dream of Pharaoh is 
 one ; God hath showed Pharaoh what he is about 
 to do." 
 
 Joseph then went on to explain the dreams parti- 
 cularly, and to show what they denoted. 
 
70 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 Both the seven good kine, and the seven good ears 
 of grain, represented seven years of great plenty 
 throughout all the land of Egypt. During this pe- 
 riod the earth would bring forth every thing in rich 
 abundance, and much more than would be neces- 
 sary for all the people, and for the animals which 
 they kept. 
 
 The devouring of the seven good kine by the se- 
 ven poor ones, and of the seven full ears by the seven 
 withered ones, denoted that the seven years of plen- 
 ty would be succeeded by seven others of famine ; 
 that the earth, during this period, would yield little 
 or 'nothing ; that the want of food would be very 
 grievous ; and that whatever could be spared from 
 the abundance of the preceding seven years, would 
 all be consumed during those of famine. 
 
 Joseph then added, that the foretelling of these 
 events by two similar dreams, was to show that 
 God would certainly bring it all to pass, and in a 
 short space of time. 
 
 In concluding, Joseph advised Pharaoh to ap- 
 point officers who should have authority through- 
 out the whole country, to take one fifth part of the 
 crops during the seven plenteous years, and lay it 
 up in store-houses in the different cities. Then, 
 during the seven years of famine, there would be a 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 71 
 
 supply for the people, and they would not perish 
 with hunger. 
 
 This advice of Joseph was much approved by 
 the king, and by those who assisted him in carry- 
 ing on his government ; and he observed that he 
 thought a better man to conduct the whole busi- 
 ness could not be found than Joseph in whom, 
 said he, the Spirit of God is. 
 
 " And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as 
 God hath showed thee all this, there is none so 
 discreet and wise as thou art. Thou shalt be over 
 my house, and according unto thy word shall all 
 my people be ruled : only in the throne will I be 
 greater than thou. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, 
 See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt." 
 
 After saying this, Pharaoh took off the beautiful 
 and costly ring which he wore, and put it on Jo- 
 seph's finger, and had him clad in garments of fine 
 linen, and put a gold chain about his neck. All 
 this was to show the great authority which the 
 king conferred upon Joseph, and the respect with 
 which he was to be treated. 
 
 He also ordered Joseph to ride in the second 
 chariot, next his own, and they cried before him, 
 Bow the knee ; and he was made ruler over all the 
 land of Egypt, with authority of a very absolute 
 kind, and second only to that of the king. 
 
72 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 In addition to this, Pharaoh gave Joseph a new 
 name. This was an ancient custom among the 
 eastern nations, when the kings chose any one, and 
 especially a foreigner, to be high in office and honor. 
 
 The name which was thus given to Joseph, was 
 Zaphnath-paaneah. 
 
 There is a difference of opinion with regard to 
 the meaning of this name. Some think that it 
 means, a revealer of secrets, and that it was given 
 to Joseph on account of the great wisdom which he 
 discovered in the interpretation of the dreams, 
 and of his spirit of prophecy in foretelling future 
 events. 
 
 Others think that it was an Egyptian word, 
 meaning, Savior of the world, a high-sounding 
 title, (such as eastern nations are very fond of 
 using,) to shew the great good which a man of 
 Joseph's character would do to the whole nation. 
 
 Pharaoh also provided him a wife from a very 
 distinguished family. Her name was Asenath, the 
 daughter of Potipherah, priest, or prince, of On, 
 which was a famous city in Egypt, over which, 
 and the adjoining country, it is probable he was the 
 ruler. 
 
 In this elevation of Joseph to such great autho- 
 rity and honor, it is worthy of particular notice 
 that Pharaoh approved of him, because the Spirit of 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 73 
 
 God was in him ; and that he considered his ad- 
 vice so discreet and wise, because God had in- 
 structed him. 
 
 Pharaoh knew, indeed, little, or nothing, of the 
 true God in whom Joseph believed ; but he saw 
 something very striking in the character and con- 
 duct of this young Hebrew. He heard Joseph say, 
 It is not in me : God shall give Pharaoh an an- 
 swer of peace. He respected Joseph for this, and 
 felt the greatest confidence in him. 
 
 Remember that nothing gains the respect and 
 confidence of others, and even of the most wicked 
 men, so surely as a strict regard to truth, and to the 
 obligations which we owe to God. 
 
 Let tho.se with whom you have any thing to do, 
 see that you fear God, and intend to look to him for 
 instruction and guidance in the discharge of your 
 duty ; and the more your real character is known, 
 the more you will gain that regard and esteem 
 which will be uniform and lasting. 
 
 Others will be willing to trust you in the va- 
 , rious concerns of life. 
 
 And though you may never be called to stations 
 of great authority and honor, as Joseph was, it will 
 be worth a great deal to you, and a source of the 
 
 I highest inward satisfaction, to have this esteem and 
 confidence of your fellow-men, in the humblest 
 L. J. 7 
 
74. HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 station ; and to know that you have it, because you 
 endeavor, with the aid of his grace, to fear God and 
 keep his commandments. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Providence of God. Our duty to submit to it, and to trust 
 in it. Joseph lays up the grain. His two sons, reasons 
 of their names. The famine begins. 
 
 How wonderful were the steps which raised 
 Joseph from being the son of a husbandman in Ca- 
 naan, and thirteen years in bondage, to the office of 
 governor of Egypt, and next in authority to the 
 king of that great country ! 
 
 In looking back upon these steps, how much we 
 have to admire the providence of God, in bringing 
 good out of evil, and in overruling the wicked pas- 
 sions of man, so as to accomplish his own wise and 
 benevolent purposes ! 
 
 I refer to this subject thus often, my dear chil- 
 dren, that it may be fresh in your minds, as we 
 pass from one event to another in the history of 
 Joseph. For no one truth ought to be more deeply 
 felt by you than that of this overruling providence 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 75 
 
 of God. Study it as you read other parts of the 
 Bible, and the histories of nations and of indivi- 
 duals. Study it in the history of your own lives, 
 and in those of your friends. 
 
 If you truly love God and put your trust in him, 
 this doctrine of his providence will be to you a 
 source of constant comfort and support. 
 
 Knowing that nothing happens without his 
 knowledge and permission, and that his govern- 
 ment reaches to the smallest things as well as to 
 the greatest, you will always feel safe under his 
 care just as a little child feels safe in the arms of 
 a kind father or mother. 
 
 4 We are taught in the Bible, that all things work 
 together for good to them that love God ; all things, 
 prosperity or adversity, health or sickness, life or 
 death. It was so in the case of Joseph. It will be 
 so in yours, if you do, indeed, love God, and put 
 your trust in him. Even in this world you will 
 find many things which at first appear very dis- 
 couraging, and give you much pain and trouble, 
 afterward so overruled by the providence of God, 
 as to work together for your comfort and happiness. 
 And if they do not, and you are still called on to 
 endure various kinds of sufferings and trials, bear 
 them with submission and patience. God sees that 
 his children need such chastisements, just as a kind 
 
76 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 father sees that his sick child needs medicine to re- 
 store him to health. These sufferings and trials, if 
 you beseech God to give you the Holy Spirit, that 
 you may make a wise use of them, will do your 
 soul good. They will work together to increase 
 your love to God, and your faith in Christ, and 
 your imitation of his hlessed example. They will 
 prepare you for a peaceful death, and for greater 
 happiness in heayen. 
 
 Study, then, the providence of God, and learn 
 every day that you live to get both wisdom and 
 comfort from it. 
 
 Joseph, himself, had still further reason to ad- 
 mire this providence of God, and to trust in it. 
 
 When he was made governor of Egypt he was 
 about thirty years old. He soon entered upon the 
 discharge of his arduous duties. He left the king 
 and took a journey throughout the whole land. 
 
 This enabled him to see the condition of the peo- 
 ple, and to do those things which were necessary 
 to prepare for the seven years of famine that would 
 be soon at hand. 
 
 During the seven years of plenty, the earth 
 brought forth every thing in great abundance. 
 God ordered it so, as Joseph told Pharaoh it would 
 be. It was his kind providence which made every 
 thing work together the sunshine and rain, the 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 77 
 
 clouds, and winds, and storms ; the planting of the 
 seeds, their growing up to ripeness, and their in- 
 gathering in the time of harvest ; the health and 
 strength of the inhabitants, and their willing- 
 ness and ability to labor ; it was the kind provi- 
 dence of God which made all these things " \vork 
 together," so as to produce such plenty throughout 
 the whole land, that we are told that Joseph ga- 
 
 thered in the grain " as the sand of the sea." He 
 began to keep an account of it, to find how many 
 bushels there were ; but it came in in such quanti- 
 ties that he left off numbering it. 
 L. j. 7* 
 
78 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 He laid it up in store-houses in the cities, and 
 doubtless, appointed suitable officers under him, to 
 take care of it, that it might be kept in safety for the 
 future supply of the people. 
 
 Before the years of famine came, Joseph had 
 two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. 
 
 Manasseh is a word which means, causing to 
 forget. Joseph gave this name to his eldest son, 
 " for God," said he, " hath made me forget all my 
 toil, and all my father's house;" that is, the va- 
 rious trials and sufferings which I have undergone 
 here, in Egypt, and also those which I endured 
 while at home, from my envious and cruel brethren. 
 
 His other son, Joseph called Ephraim, because 
 this word means-, made fruitful. " For God," said 
 he, " hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my 
 affliction." . 
 
 It was, doubtless, a great comfort to him to be the 
 father of these two sons, and to have a family of his 
 own ; separated, as he was, such a great distance 
 from his father, and from all the delights and privi- 
 leges of his father's house. 
 
 At length the seven years of plenty were ended, 
 and those of famine came. 
 
 This famine extended, not only over all the land 
 of Egypt, but through other lands. Every where 
 else, it was very grievous, and the people found it 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 79 
 
 exceedingly difficult to procure food enough to keep 
 them in life ; but in all the land of Egypt there was 
 enough laid up for the supply of its inhabitants. 
 
 As soon as the Egyptians began to be in great 
 want of food, having consumed all which they them- 
 selves had laid up in their own houses, " they cried 
 to Pharaoh for bread: and Pharaoh said unto all 
 the Egyptians, Go unto Joseph; what he saith to 
 you, do." 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 The Egyptians regard Joseph as their Savior. Jesus Christ 
 a far better Savior. The Egyptians buy grain of Joseph. 
 The famine in Canaan. Jacob sends his sons to Egypt 
 to buy food. 
 
 JOSEPH, at this time, must have been regarded as 
 being, to the Egyptians, what the new name given to 
 him by Pharaoh, probably implied. And as they 
 bowed the knee before him in their necessity, and 
 looked to him for the food which they and their fa- 
 milies so much needed, and addressed him by the 
 title of Zaphnath-paaneah, they might well feel 
 that he was their Savior. 
 
80 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 I do not mean, in the sense in which we call Jesus 
 Christ the Savior of the world ; to save men from 
 their sins, and the eternal death of the soul; and 
 to furnish them with divine truth, and the influences 
 of the Holy Spirit, that heavenly food which will 
 nourish the soul, and cause it to live for ever in a 
 better and happier world. 
 
 Alas ! the poor, ignorant Egyptians, I fear, cared 
 very little about their souls, or to find out how they 
 might be saved, and how heavenly food was to be 
 procured for their nourishment. 
 
 The most, if not all, that they were anxious for, 
 was to be saved from the famine which was so dread- 
 ful ; and when they found that Joseph had the means 
 of saving them from it, they, doubtless, looked up to 
 him as their best friend, their great deliverer, their 
 powerful Savior, their Zaphnath-paaneah. 
 
 Here I would make one single inquiry. Are you 
 as willing and as ready to go to Jesus Christ, to be 
 saved from spiritual famine, from the eternal death 
 of the soul ; as the Egyptians were to go to Joseph, 
 to be saved from the famine which they endured, and 
 from the death of the mere body ? I put the question. 
 You must think about it, and answer it. 
 
 Joseph opened all the store-houses in the different 
 cities in which the grain had been safely laid up 
 during the seven years of plenty, and sold it unto 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 81 
 
 the Egyptians ; so that they could feed themselves 
 and their families. 
 
 How glad many a poor, and almost starving, lit- 
 tle boy and girl must have been, to see their father 
 bringing the grain home, from which their mother 
 could make them some bread ! 
 
 Think of the abundance, my dear children, which 
 you have, and of the store-house from which it all 
 comes, the overflowing bounty of your Father who 
 is in heaven; and show your gratitude to him by 
 your obedience to his commands. 
 
 Not only the Egyptians, but people who lived in 
 other countries where the famine prevailed, came in- 
 to Egypt to buy grain of Joseph. So that, in this 
 way, his wisdom and industry, under the guidance 
 of God, who taught him the meaning of Pharaoh's 
 dreams, were the means of saving the lives of a 
 great many. 
 
 Yes ; in the wonderful providence of God, Joseph 
 was soon to be instrumental in saving the lives of his 
 own beloved father and family, and of the very bre- 
 thren who had treated him so cruelly, and of their 
 families. 
 
 For the famine extended to Judea, the country 
 where Jacob lived, and the people there were suf- 
 fering greatly from it. In the midst of their distress, 
 Jacob heard that grain could be bought in Egypt, 
 
82 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 and determined to send thither for a supply. He 
 called his sons together, and asked them why they 
 looked one upon another in so much sadness and de- 
 spondency, as if nothing could be done for their re- 
 lief. He told them he had heard that grain could 
 be procured in Egypt, and that they must go thither 
 and buy some, to save himself, and all of them, from 
 the death which must otherwise inevitably over- 
 take them. 
 
 It is probable that Jacob and his family, and his 
 sons and their families, all lived, at that time, very 
 near each other, and that they formed, as it were, one 
 great family, of which Jacob was the patriarch, or 
 head. They had one common interest : and suffer- 
 ing together for the want of food, it was necessary to 
 make one great and vigorous effort for their mutual 
 relief. 
 
 It was a long journey of several hundred miles to 
 Egypt, and it would be attended with great inconve- 
 nience for the sons of Jacob to go such a distance. 
 But there was no other way of procuring food; and 
 all but Benjamin concluded to go. 
 
 Benjamin was the younger brother of Joseph, and 
 born, you recollect, just before their mother Rachel 
 died. There were many circumstances, the recollec- 
 tion of which endeared the memory of Rachel to 
 Jacob. He loved her first ; and he loved her the 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 83 
 
 best of all his wives. He had, of course, a great fond- 
 ness for her children ; and as Joseph, as he believ- 
 ed, was dead, he could not bear to have Benjamin 
 leave home, lest some injury might befall him. 
 
 It is not surprising at all, that Jacob should feel 
 thus tenderly toward Benjamin, when we consider 
 that he was now far advanced in life, being nearly 
 one hundred and thirty years old. But a few years 
 before, he had buried his father Isaac, in the cave at 
 Machpelah, by the side of Abraham and Sarah. He 
 was himself drawing- nigh the close of life, and feel- 
 ing more sensibly his feebleness, and the need of 
 some one to comfort him, Benjamin had taken the 
 place of Joseph in his affections, and while he 
 mourned over the loss of the son whom he thought 
 the wild beasts had devoured, he pressed his brother 
 more closely to his bosom, and leaned on him as the 
 support and consolation of his declining years. 
 
 Do you suppose that the brethren of Joseph, 
 on their way to Egypt, thought that, as the Ishmael- 
 ites, to whom they sold him, went to that country, 
 it was possible they might meet him there ? It 
 certainly would not be strange if some such thoughts 
 passed through their minds : though they would ex- 
 pect to find him still a slave, or in some very hum- 
 ble station in life. Should they meet with any one, 
 high in power and rank, who might bear even a 
 
84 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 considerable resemblance to their brother, it is not 
 probable that they would suspect that he was Joseph. 
 For it would seem to them utterly impossible for 
 one sold as a slave, and a foreigner too, in a land of 
 strangers, to rise to such an elevation. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 His brethren bow down before Joseph, Why he did not 
 make himself known to them* He puts them into prison. 
 He tells them they may carry grain home ; but one 
 must stay in prison till Benjamin be brought. 
 
 ON their arrival in Egypt, after making inquiry 
 how they could procure some grain, they found that 
 they must apply to Zaphnath-paaneah, who was go- 
 vernor over the whole land, and had the distribution 
 and selling of the grain entirely under his own di- 
 rection. 
 
 On going to the place of his residence, they were 
 introduced into his presence* As they approached 
 him, they bowed down themselves before him, with 
 their faces to the earth. This they did, as it is still the 
 custom to do among the nations of the east, to show 
 the deep reverence which they felt for one whom 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 85 
 
 they thus acknowledged to be very, very high above 
 them in rank and power. 
 
 The dream of Joseph now received its fulfillment. 
 The sheaves of his brethren had bowed down before 
 his sheaf; and now they, themselves, in like man- 
 ner, bow down in his presence, and are dependent 
 on him, to save them and their aged father, and their 
 whole family, from perishing with hunger ! 
 
 They rose up, and stood before Joseph. They had 
 no thought whatever of his being their brother. But 
 he knew them, and if he had chosen, might have 
 taken the deepest revenge for all the injuries they 
 had inflicted upon him. 
 
 But such was not his disposition. He knew how 
 to return good for evil, and intended to do the great- 
 est kindness to them, and to his aged father. 
 
 In bringing this about, however, he thought it 
 best not to make himself, at once, known to them. 
 He remembered his dreams, and saw now their ful- 
 fillment in part. He expected that, in the providence 
 of God, he was to be instrumental in the accomplish- 
 ment of still further wonderful events, also connect- 
 ed with his dreams. He seems to have wished to try 
 his brethren, and perhaps to prepare them for a more 
 sincere repentance for their former cruelty toward 
 him. In addition to this, he perceived that his young- 
 
 L. j. 8 
 
86 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 est brother Benjamin, whom he loved so tenderly, 
 was not among them. 
 
 He feared, perhaps, that they had conceived a 
 dreadful hatred against him also, as being a fa- 
 vorite son of their father, and had possibly taken 
 his life. He knew that, if they had done this, and if 
 he should make any direct inquiries about Benja- 
 min, they would not tell him the truth, but contrive 
 some falsehood to deceive him, as they had former- 
 ly deceived their father. 
 
 For these reasons, or for some others which we 
 do not fully understand, Joseph not only did not 
 make himself known to his brethren, but acted to- 
 ward them as if he did not know, at all, who they 
 were. 
 
 He even put on a strange and rough manner, 
 that he might the more effectually conceal himself 
 and carry his plans into effect. 
 
 He asked them from what country they came. 
 And when they said, from Canaan, to buy food, he 
 charged them with being spies, and said that they 
 had come to see the poverty and weakness of Egypt, 
 that they might carry word back to some large and 
 powerful people who wished to come and plunder 
 the Egyptians, and perhaps to conquer them and get 
 possession of their country. 
 
 To this the sons of Jacob replied, that they were 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 87 
 
 very far, indeed, from being spies, or from coming 
 to Egypt with any such design. 
 
 " Nay," said they, " my lord, but to buy food are 
 thy servants come. We are all one man's sons ;" 
 as if they had said, we do not belong to any power- 
 ful tribe or nation, but are a small number of peo- 
 ple a single family under one patriarch or head. 
 " We are true men ; thy servants are no spies." 
 
 On Joseph's repeating his former accusation, 
 they again replied, that they belonged to a family 
 of twelve brethren, the sons of one man in the land 
 of Canaan ; that the youngest was at home with 
 their father, and that the other brother was not. 
 
 Whether they meant, by this latter expression, to 
 avoid telling a downright falsehood, it may be dif- 
 ficult to determine. But if they did, it was a poor 
 way of doing it. They must have known that they 
 would be understood to say that their brother was 
 dead : and this made it a falsehood, no matter what 
 the language was. 
 
 Joseph still appeared wholly unwilling to believe 
 what they said, and told them that there was one 
 way by which he would prove whether they spoke 
 the truth or not. 
 
 " By the life of Pharaoh," said he, (or, as sure as 
 Pharaoh is alive,) " ye shall not go forth hence, 
 except your youngest brother come hither. Send 
 
88 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 one of you, and let him fetch your hrother; and ye 
 shall be kept in prison, that your words may be 
 proved, whether there be any truth in you : or else, 
 by the life of Pharaoh, surely ye are spies." 
 
 Joseph then put them all into prison for three 
 days. At the end of that time he said to them, 
 " this do, and live : for I fear God. If ye be true 
 men, let one of your brethren be bound in the house 
 of your prison : go ye, carry corn (or grain) for 
 the famine in your houses (or families:) but bring 
 your youngest brother unto me ; so shall your 
 words be verified, (or be shown to be true,) and ye 
 shall not die." 
 
 Their former guilt now rose up before them, 
 and, although more than twenty years had elapsed 
 since they sold their brother as a slave, the recol- 
 lection of that wicked and cruel transaction began 
 to arouse their consciences, and they felt something 
 of the bitterness of remorse. 
 
 They saw that they were in trouble. They knew 
 not what the result would be. They felt that all 
 that they might suffer would be less than they 
 deserved ; and they feared that God was about to 
 take vengeance upon them for their treatment of 
 Joseph. 
 
 They began to express their feelings to each 
 other. "We are verily guilty," said they, "con- 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 89 
 
 cerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of 
 his soul when he besought us, and we would not 
 hear ; therefore is this distress come upon us. And 
 Reuben answered them, saying, spake I not unto 
 you, saying do not sin against the child, and ye would 
 not hear ? Therefore, behold, also, his blood is re- 
 quired ;" (or God is about to demand of you why 
 you exposed him, perhaps, to an untimely death; 
 and to inflict upon you, for doing so, the severest 
 punishment.) 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Joseph affected at what liis brethren say of their guilt. Si- 
 meon chosen as the one to stay. Joseph's brethren set 
 out for Canaan with the grain. Difference between good 
 and wicked men. To which class does the reader be- 
 long 1 Let conscience do its work. 
 
 JOSEPH heard the conversation of his brethren, 
 and understood it all : though they did not suppose 
 so. For he had been speaking to them by an inter- 
 preter; who explained what Joseph said in the 
 Egyptian language, to them in Hebrew, which was 
 the language they spoke ; and then, what they said 
 
 L. j. 8* 
 
90 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 in Hebrew, to Joseph in Egyptian as if he did not 
 understand the Hebrew language. This he did, 
 lest they might suspect who he was, if he spoke to 
 them in their own language. 
 
 As soon as Joseph heard the conversation of his 
 brethren he was much affected by it, and turned 
 away from them, so that they could not see him, 
 and wept. 
 
 What a difference between the tenderness of his 
 feelings toward them, and their former hard-heart- 
 ed cruelty toward him ! 
 
 He was almost ready to tell them who he was, 
 and to relieve them from their trouble. But he 
 thought that this, on the whole, was not best. He 
 wished still to try their sincerity to know if they 
 really spoke the truth with regard to Benjamin ; 
 and to lead them to a deeper repentance for their 
 guilt. 
 
 After some further conversation with them, 
 through the interpreter, he selected Simeon as the 
 one who should remain behind while the rest were 
 gone to Canaan, and ordered him to be bound in 
 their presence. This he did to let them see that 
 Simeon was to be kept in confinement until they 
 returned and brought back Benjamin with them. 
 
 Joseph then gave directions (without their under- 
 standing what he said) that the sacks which they 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 91 
 
 brought should all be filled with grain ; and that 
 the money which each one had paid for the grain 
 should be put in his sack ; and that they should 
 have provisions enough to last them during- their 
 journey. 
 
 They then put the sacks of grain on their asses, 
 and set out for Canaan ; while their brother, Sime- 
 on, was taken to a place of confinement, to await 
 their return, 
 
 You see, in that part of the history to which we 
 have just been attending, the striking difference be- 
 
92 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 tween good and wicked men between Joseph who 
 feared God and endeavored to do his duty, and his 
 brothers, who had been full of pride, hatred, revenge 
 and cruelty, and who had, probably, as yet, felt no 
 true repentance for their sins, nor desire to love 
 and obey God. 
 
 Now, to which class of persons do. you belong? 
 Do you resemble, in your disposition and conduct, 
 the tender-hearted and upright Joseph, or his hard- 
 hearted and wicked brethren ? Do you fear and 
 love God, and esteem it your greatest happiness to 
 obey his commands, and do good to others ; or, are 
 you thinking all the time about yourself alone, 
 and in what way you can do something, or get 
 something, to gratify your own selfish wishes, and 
 make yourself happy, without caring about the good 
 and happiness of others ? 
 
 You know very well to which class of persons 
 you ought to belong. Your conscience tells you how 
 much better it is for you to be like Joseph than to 
 be like his brethren. Well, what do you mean to do, 
 if you are not yet at all like Joseph if you have no 
 true love to God and trust in the Savior, and no de- 
 sire to imitate his example, in obeying the will of 
 God, and in doing good to your fellow-men ? Do you 
 mean to keep on just as you are ; without repent- 
 ance for sin ; without faith in Christ ; without hav- 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 93 
 
 ing God for your friend, and his Son for your Sa- 
 vior; without any preparation for death; and with- 
 out any hope of happiness beyond the grave ? 
 
 When the brethren of Joseph were brought into 
 trouble, they felt as if the anger of an offended God 
 was resting upon them, to punish them for their 
 guilt. Conscience, after slumbering more than twen- 
 ty years, awoke, and they felt its stings. 
 
 Your past sins may not now alarm you. Your 
 conscience may be asleep. You may not feel your 
 guilt and danger. But God can overtake you with 
 his judgments, even in this life ; and rouse your 
 conscience ; and fill you with remorse and dread ; 
 and make you tremble before him. And in the world 
 to come, ah ! there, conscience will do its awful 
 work most thoroughly; and the impenitent sinner, 
 who is banished, for ever, from the presence of God 
 and the joys of heaven, will find nothing but an- 
 guish, in looking back upon what he has been, and 
 nothing but despair, in looking forward to what he 
 is yet to be. 
 
 Now, then, let your conscience do its work. Think 
 how much, and how often, you have sinned against 
 God. Go to him with sincere sorrow of heart, con- 
 fessing your sins. Beseech him, on account of what 
 Christ did and suffered, to pardon your sins. Trust 
 in this Savior, as your only Savior and hope. Pray 
 
94 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 for the Holy Spirit, which he died to procure, and 
 which he promised that God would give to all who 
 should ask for it in his name. Pray, pray for the 
 Holy Spirit, that it may come down into your soul, 
 and abide with you ; that it may guide you into the 
 knowledge of the truths of the Bible ; that it may 
 lead you to love these truths and obey them ; that 
 it may keep you penitent for sin^ and looking to 
 Christ continually, to be saved from the power of 
 sin ; that it may make you faithful in serving God 
 and doing good to your fellow-men while you live, 
 and prepared, when you die, still to love and serve 
 God, and to enjoy his favor and that of his Son, in 
 a better and happier world. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 95 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 One of Joseph's brethren finds his money in the sack, All 
 are in great alarm. A guilty conscience. Jacob's dis- 
 tress at what his sons tell him. Reuben's foolish and 
 wicked speech. Jacob cannot let Benjamin go. Judah 
 tries to persuade him to this. 
 
 AFTER they had advanced some distance on their 
 journey, the brothers of Joseph, as we read in the 
 Bible, stopped at an inn to refresh themselves, and 
 to give food to their asses. 
 
 Inns, at that time, were very different from what 
 they now are in our country. They were scarcely 
 any thing more than a convenient stopping-place 
 for travellers, where there was a well at which they 
 could procure water, and a few trees, under the 
 shade of which they could repose, and perhaps, in 
 some cases, a rough house or shed, in which they 
 could sleep during the night. 
 
 As one of their number was opening his sack to 
 get some provender for his ass, he saw in it the 
 money which he supposed he had paid to Joseph 
 for the grain. He was greatly surprised, and im- 
 mediately told his brethren of it. They were all 
 much alarmed, and filled with apprehension lest 
 
96 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 even the governor of Egypt himself, or some evil 
 disposed person, had done it, that they might be ac- 
 cused, on their return, of having stolen it. They re- 
 garded it as another proof that ,God intended to 
 bring trouble upon them for their past guilt ; and 
 that it was his over-ruling Providence which was 
 thus so ordering events as to manifest his great dis- 
 pleasure toward them. " Their heart failed them, 
 and they were afraid, saying one to another, what is 
 this that God hath done unto us ?" 
 
 A guilty conscience finds no comfort in consider- 
 ing the providence of God. The All-seeing eye, 
 and the All-ruling hand, are to the sinner a source 
 of constant disquietude and alarm. 
 
 We are not told of any thing else which happen- 
 ed to the sons of Jacob on their way home. 
 
 On their arrival there, they told their father all 
 that befell them in Egypt ; and as they were empty- 
 ing their sacks, "behold, every man's bundle of 
 money was in his sack ; and when both they and 
 their father saw the bundles of money, they were 
 afraid. 
 
 " And Jacob, their father, said unto them, me 
 have ye bereaved of my children : Joseph is not, 
 and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin 
 away : all these things are against me." 
 
 To Jacob's eye it seemed, indeed, as if a dark 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 97 
 
 cloud hung over all the prospects of his declining 
 years. He had already suffered much, but he 
 thought he had still more to suffer. He forgot the 
 providence of God, which can bring good out of 
 evil ; and lamented, in the bitterness of his soul, 
 that all the things which had happened to his sons 
 were against him. He did not know that these very 
 things were about to restore Joseph to his em- 
 braces, and to provide for the comfort of himself 
 and family. 
 
 Reuben, seeing his father's great distress, and 
 anxious to remove his apprehensions with regard to 
 Benjamin's going to Egypt, said to him. " Slay my 
 two sons, if I bring not Benjamin to thee : deliver 
 him into my hand, and I will bring him to thee 
 again." 
 
 This was both a foolish and wicked speech. 
 What right had Reuben to give any permission to 
 kill his sons ; and what satisfaction would it be to 
 Jacob, if he should lose Benjamin, to take the lives 
 of two innocent grandchildren in order to punish 
 their father ? 
 
 This vehement declaration of Reuben had no ef- 
 fect upon Jacob. He could not endure the thought, 
 for a moment, of parting with Benjamin. 
 
 "And he said, my son shall not go down with 
 you ; for his brother is dead, and he is left alone : if 
 
 L. j. 9 
 
98 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 mischief befall him by the way in the which ye go, 
 then shall ye bring down my gray hairs with sor- 
 row to the grave." 
 
 The famine still continued very grievous in the 
 land of Canaan ; and at length Jacob and his sons, 
 and their families, had eaten up the grain which 
 they had procured in Egypt. There was no other 
 resource but to go there again, and Jacob directed 
 his sons to do this. 
 
 They knew, however, that there \vas only one 
 way in which they could hope that the governor of 
 Egypt would furnish them with a supply, and that 
 was, to take Benjamin along with them. Judah re- 
 minded his father of this. " The man," said he, 
 " did solemnly protest unto us, saying, ye shall not 
 see my face except your brother be with you. If 
 thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go down 
 and buy thee food : but if thou wilt not send him, 
 we will not go down : for the man said unto us, 
 ye shall not see my face, except your brother be 
 with you." 
 
 To what a severe trial the venerable patriarch 
 was now called ! Himself, his children, and their 
 families, were in danger of famishing with hunger. 
 If food is not procured, their lives must be sacri- 
 ficed. But Benjamin was as dear to him as his own 
 life. How can he part with this beloved son ! 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 99 
 
 In the anguish of his soul, he reproached his 
 sons with their imprudence. 
 
 " Wherefore," said he, " dealt ye so ill with me, 
 as to tell the man whether ye had yet a brother ?" 
 
 "How could we help doing it," they replied ; " he 
 made very particular inquiries respecting our si- 
 tuation here at home ; he asked if our father was 
 yet alive, and whether we had another brother ; and 
 we felt ourselves obliged to answey these inquiries 
 just as they were put to us. Could we know before- 
 hand that he would say, we must bring Benjamin 
 down to Egypt ?" 
 
 Still Jacob hesitated. The struggle was not yet 
 over in his mind ; and his sons saw that they had 
 still further to expostulate with him, to persuade 
 him, if possible, to give his consent. 
 
 Judah attempted to do this. " Send the lad (so call- 
 ed because he was the youngest son) with me," said 
 he, " and we will arise and go, that we may live 
 and not die, both we and thou, and also our little 
 ones." 
 
 He then said that he would take the particular 
 charge of Benjamin, and be accountable for his 
 safe return ; " if I bring him not unto thee, and set 
 him before thee, then let me bear the blame foi 
 ever." 
 
 He observed, too, that they were losing a great 
 
100 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 deal of time by delaying so ; and that, if they had 
 only started in season, they might already have 
 been to Egypt, and returned again to their home. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Jacob consents to let Benjamin go. Gifts prepared to carry 
 to the governor of Egypt. Jacob's sons set out on their 
 journey. They come before Joseph. Their great fear. 
 Guilt causes fear. The steward of Joseph allays their 
 fears. 
 
 THE entreaties of his children at length prevail- 
 ed; but it was almost in a state of despair that 
 Jacob consented. 
 
 If it must be so now, said he, " if indeed I am 
 driven to such a dreadful necessity that I must 
 either see you all perish with hunger, or part with 
 your brother Benjamin, my youngest and beloved 
 child I will yield. I yield ; go, my sons ; but I 
 wish you to do every thing in your power to se- 
 cure the favor of the governor of Egypt. He may 
 suppose that you stole the money which you found 
 in your sacks ; and you must convince him that this 
 was not the case. Carry down, as a present to him, 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 101 
 
 some of the choicest things that our country pro- 
 duces some halm and honey, some spices, myrrh, 
 nuts and almonds. Take twice as much money as 
 you did before ; and carry back, in addition to this, 
 all the money which was in the sacks. Perhaps it 
 was put in them by some mistake, and no harm 
 will grow out of it." 
 
 " Take also your brother, and arise, go again 
 unto the man: and God Almighty give you mercy 
 before the man, that he may send away your 
 other brother, and Benjamin. If I be bereaved of 
 my children, I am bereaved." 
 
 His sons immediately made the necessary pre- 
 parations for their journey, as Jacob had directed ; 
 and, Judah taking Benjamin under his particular 
 care, they once more set out for Egypt. 
 
 No doubt their farewell was affecting, and pain- 
 ful to their aged parent. After charging them all, 
 especially Judah, to see that no harm happened to 
 Benjamin he gave them his parting blessing, im- 
 ploring for them the guidance and protection of 
 Almighty God. Their wives, too, and little ones, 
 stood around, to receive their affectionate embrace, 
 and to bid them farewell. They still stood, silently 
 gazing after them, as the travellers were winding 
 their way across the distant hills : nor did they 
 separate and return to their respective tents, until 
 
 L. j 9* 
 
102 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 the little band had quite vanished from their sight. 
 
 In the sadness of his heart, we have every reason 
 to believe, Jacob went alone, to pour out his feelings 
 before God to commend his sons to the care and 
 blessing of him who is mighty to save; and to 
 pray that he himself might be sustained in this 
 hour of trial, and be submissive to the will of God. 
 
 Afflicted old man ! God is teaching thee a lesson 
 of patience and resignation, that thou mayest learn 
 how to leave every thing in his hands. The time is 
 not far distant, when the dark clouds which now 
 seem to frown upon thee shall be scattered; and 
 from behind them a bright and cheerful day shall 
 shine upon thy steps, as thou descendest peacefully 
 to the tomb. 
 
 The brothers of Joseph at length arrived in 
 Egypt, and again came into his presence. 
 
 What must have been his feelings at the sight of 
 Benjamin the son of his own mother Rachel 
 with whom he had passed so many happy hours in 
 their boyish days, and whom he had not seen for 
 more than twenty years ! 
 
 The sight of this beloved brother brought to 
 Joseph's mind the recollection of gone-by scenes of 
 the most affecting interest; and it was with dif- 
 ficulty that he could restrain his emotions, and pre- 
 vent his brethren from discovering them. But he 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 103 
 
 was a man of great firmness, as well as of tender 
 feeling. He summoned up his firmness, and still 
 acted as if he knew not who they were. 
 
 We are not told where this interview between 
 Joseph and his brethren took place. We know, 
 however, that it was not in his own house. For we 
 find, that at the same time he directed his steward 
 (the man who provided for his family, and had the 
 charge of all his domestic concerns) to take his 
 brethren home to his own house, and get every 
 thing ready for their dining with him at the usual 
 hour, and to make the dinner a plenteous and 
 sumptuous one. 
 
 The steward did so ; and as the sons of Jacob 
 entered the governor's house, they were afraid, 
 fearing that now they were about to be charged 
 with stealing the money which they found in their 
 sacks, and that all that they had would be taken 
 from them, and themselves be made the slaves of 
 the governor. 
 
 If this had, indeed, happened to them, what a 
 just retribution it would have been to almost all of 
 them, for their having sold their own brother as a 
 slave, and for their deceitful and wicked treatment 
 of their father. 
 
 They knew that they deserved such a punish- 
 ment : and it is not surprising that they feared it, 
 
104 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 and trembled lest the righteous judgment of God 
 should bring it upon them. 
 
 Remember, my dear children, that nothing makes 
 such cowards of men as a guilty conscience. The 
 Bible tells us that " the wicked flee when no man 
 pursueth; but the righteous are bold as a lion." 
 
 They came near to the steward, while they were 
 yet at the door, and began to excuse themselves to 
 him on account of the money which was found in 
 their sacks. They told him the circumstances un- 
 der which they found it, and that they had brought 
 it all back again, to give to the governor. They de- 
 clared at the same time, that they could not possibly 
 tell who it was that put the money into their sacks, 
 or how it got there. 
 
 The steward saw their agitation, and endeavored 
 to allay it. He told them not to be afraid, for that 
 nothing wrong had been done, and that no harm 
 would happen to them. 
 
 It is possible that this steward, being one of the 
 family of Joseph, had been taught by him concern- 
 ing the true God, and was a pious man. At any 
 rate, the language which he used was like that of 
 one who feared and obeyed God. 
 
 "Peace be to you," said he, "fear not: your 
 God, and the God of your father, hath given you 
 treasure in your sacks. I had your money." 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 105 
 
 As if he had said, " Your money was once paid 
 into my hands for the grain ; and my acknowledg- 
 ing that I received it, as the steward of the gover- 
 nor, is sufficient to show that you are honest men. 
 You need not trouble yourselves to ascertain how it 
 found its way into your sacks. Keep it, as a gift 
 from my master, the governor ; or rather as a boun- 
 ty which the kind providence of God the God 
 whom you profess to worship, and in whom your 
 aged father trusts has bestowed upon you." 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Simeon brought out of prison. The brethren of Joseph pre- 
 sent their gifts to him. Joseph can hardly restrain his 
 feelings. His brethren dine with him. Remarks on 
 temperance, and the duty of promoting it. 
 
 SIMEON, who, you recollect, was to be kept in 
 confinement till his brethren returned with Benja- 
 min, was now set at liberty, and brought by the 
 steward to join the rest ; and all entered the house 
 of the governor. 
 
 The steward (as was customary at that time, and 
 is still among the eastern nations) gave them water 
 
106 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 with which to wash their feet; and fed also the 
 asses which they brought with them. 
 
 In the meanwhile, the brethren of Joseph un- 
 packed the precious articles which they intended to 
 offer him as a gift from themselves and their father, 
 and arranged them in order for that purpose. 
 They did this, expecting that it would not be long 
 before he would return, to dinner, and understand- 
 ing that they were to dine there also. 
 
 When Joseph came, they presented him their 
 gifts, and bowed themselves down before him quite 
 to the ground ; and here was another striking ful- 
 fillment of his dream. 
 
 He then, by means of the interpreter, " asked 
 them of their welfare : and said, is your father well, 
 the old man of whom ye spake ? Is he yet alive ? 
 And they answered, thy servant our father is in 
 good health, he is yet alive. And they bowed down 
 their heads and made obeisance." 
 
 Joseph was now directing his attention more 
 particularly to Benjamin, and inquired, as if he 
 were still ignorant of the fact, whether that was 
 their youngest brother, of whom they had spoken to 
 him when they first came down to Egypt. On 
 being told that it was ; he said, in a very tender 
 and affectionate manner, as a kind parent would, 
 God be gracious unto thee, my son. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 107 
 
 He had scarcely uttered those words, when his 
 feelings quite overcame him; so strong was his 
 attachment to Benjamin. He could say nothing 
 more. Indeed, he could remain no longer in the 
 presence of his brethren, but hurried away as quick 
 as possible to his chamber, and there gave vent to 
 his feelings in a flood of tears. 
 
 But he soon returned ; having washed his face, 
 that it might not be known that he had been weep- 
 ing ; and with a good degree of composure gave 
 directions to have the food brought in which had 
 been prepared for them. 
 
108 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 He ate alone by himself, as was the custom for 
 the king, and the governor, and others who were 
 high in office, to do. 
 
 Some of the Egyptians, too, who formed part of 
 his family, or who had been invited to the entertain- 
 ment, ate by themselves ; and also his brethren 
 apart by themselves. 
 
 We are told in the Bible that the reason of this 
 separation was, that it was an abomination (a very 
 disagreeable, and, in the opinion of the Egyptians, 
 wicked thing) for one of their nation to eat with an 
 Hebrew. 
 
 Some think that this arose from the fact of the 
 Egyptians worshipping certain animals, the ox and 
 others, which the Hebrews killed and ate, and also 
 offered up in sacrifice. Others suppose that the 
 Egyptians held the Hebrews in abhorrence because 
 they were shepherds, a class of men who had made 
 frequent incursions into Egypt, and done great in- 
 jury to the inhabitants. Perhaps it is impossible to 
 ascertain what the true cause was, as the thing hap- 
 pened such a long time ago, and the Bible gives no 
 explanation of it. 
 
 When the brothers of Joseph were about to sit 
 down to their meal, they were requested to sit in a 
 certain order, which they did. After they were 
 seated, and began to look round on each other, they 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 109 
 
 were surprised to see that they were seated exactly 
 in the order of their ages, beginning with Reuben, 
 and so down to Benjamin. This appeared to them, 
 indeed, a very strange thing, and they were wholly 
 unable to account for it. 
 
 As Avas usual, there were a great many different 
 kinds of food placed before Joseph, which he sent 
 round and distributed to the rest. As the sons of 
 Jacob looked round again at the quantity of food 
 which was thus sent to each, they were surprised 
 to see that Benjamin's was five times as much as 
 any of their's. 
 
 They enjoyed the entertainment much, and be- 
 came merry, as it is expressed in the Bible, in drink- 
 ing with Joseph. We are by no means to suppose 
 from this that they drank to excess. The word 
 merry, in our translation of the Bible, often means 
 joyful or glad, and this is the meaning which we 
 should give it in this place. 
 
 If I had time I should like to stop here a little, 
 my dear children, and say something to you on the 
 subject of temperance, both in eating and drinking. 
 I hope you have already had instruction and advice 
 from your parents and friend with regard to it ; and 
 that you have thought seriously about it yourselves. 
 
 You have heard of what is doing at the present 
 day to promote the cause of temperance both in our 
 
 L. J. 10 
 
110 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 own and in other countries. What are you doing 
 in this good work ? You can do a great deal, even 
 if you are still quite young, by your oivn temperance, 
 which will give you good health, and good habits, 
 and good resolutions : and so prepare you to be more 
 active in this cause as you grow older. Your ex- 
 ample, too, will have a happy effect upon your bro- 
 thers, and sisters, and companions. And if you are 
 old enough, I hope you have already begun to be 
 active in endeavoring to lead others to promote the 
 cause of temperance, and to remove the curse of intem- 
 perance from the world. 
 
 In Joseph's time they did not see the evil of in- 
 temperance in drinking, as we do. For they had no 
 strong, fiery, intoxicating, and poisonous liquors, 
 made at distilleries, and sold in shops, to ruin the 
 bodies and souls of men. If that had been the case 
 when Joseph lived, I have no doubt he would have 
 been among the first, both by his example and influ- 
 ence, to do all he could to prevent the use of such 
 liquors. 
 
 At his day, and indeed in later times, truly good 
 and pious men were not brought to see and to feel 
 the evils of intemperance so sensibly as to lead them 
 to discover the only true remedy, total abstinence 
 from all spirituous liquors. Their consciences Avere 
 not enlightened and aroused on the subject ; and, as 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. Ill 
 
 you know, it is only within a few years that they 
 have begun to understand and to practise their duty. 
 Had Joseph known all that we know on this sub- 
 ject, he would have taken care to avoid even the ap- 
 pearance of evil. Do you do the same, and you will 
 find in a course of the strictest temperance, and in 
 endeavoring to promote it in others, an amount of 
 health and strength ; a clearness and vigor of mind ; 
 a cheerfulness and sprightiiness of feeling ; and a 
 peace of conscience, which will abundantly reward 
 you for what you may consider some self-denial, 
 and for all your exertions in doing good in this way 
 to your fellow-men. 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 Joseph's brethren again set out for home. His steward 
 overtakes them, and charge? them with having stolen the 
 governor's cup. What was this cup 1 The cup found in 
 Benjamin's sack. They all return, and come before Jo- 
 seph. Judah's confession of their guilt. Why did he 
 make it? 
 
 THE brethren of Joseph intended to set out for 
 home the next morning. In getting ready the grain 
 that they were to carry with them, which was the 
 
112 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 duty of the steward, Joseph directed him to fill their 
 sacks full, as much as they could carry ; and to put 
 every man's money which he had paid for the grain 
 in his sack's mouth. He also directed the steward to 
 take his silver cup (which was considered as be- 
 longing to the government, and for his own particu- 
 lar use) and to put it in the mouth of Benjamin's 
 sack, together with his money. 
 
 All this having been done by the steward, without 
 the knowledge of Joseph's brethren, very early the 
 next morning, as soon as the day began to dawn, 
 they set out on their journey. 
 
 After they had been gone a short time, and were 
 not as yet any great distance from the city, Joseph 
 ordered his steward to pursue and overtake them, 
 and to inquire of them why they had done him evil 
 for the good which he had done them. After thus 
 accosting them, the steward was still further direct- 
 ed by Joseph to charge them with having taken his 
 cup. He was directed to say, " Is not this it in 
 which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he 
 divineth ? Ye have done evil in so doing." 
 
 Some think that the Egyptians, who were a very 
 superstitious people, supposed that certain cups own- 
 ed by some few individuals, or perhaps this cup 
 alone, owned by the governor, had the power of en- 
 abling those who looked into it to see what would 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 113 
 
 happen ; or to find out anything that had happened, 
 and what any person had said or done. This they 
 think is what is meant by divining. But others sup- 
 pose that the Hebrew word which the persons who 
 translated our English Bible have rendered (or put 
 into English) to divine, means also, to search tho- 
 roughly after any thing. 
 
 They think that the steward was ordered by Jo- 
 seph to charge his brethren with having stolen the 
 cup which he valued very highly, and for which 
 (as they might have supposed) he would make very 
 diligent and careful search, and be able to divine^ 
 or think with certainty who had taken it. 
 
 The latter meaning is that which appears to me 
 to be the true one. 
 
 The steward did as he was ordered ; and you may 
 easily conceive that the brethren of Joseph were 
 greatly astonished at what he said to them. 
 
 They expressed their surprise at it : " Wherefore," 
 said they, " saith my lord these words ? God forbid 
 that thy servants should do according to this thing ! 
 Behold, the money which we found in our sacks' 
 mouth we brought back again unto thee out of the 
 land of Canaan : how then should we steal out of 
 thy lord's house silver or gold ? With whomsoever 
 of thy servants it be found, both let him die, and we 
 also will be my lord's bondmen." 
 L. j. 10* 
 
114 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 The steward said that he would take them at their 
 word ; (though he was not so severe as they were 
 willing he should be :) " he with whom it is found," 
 said he, " shall be my servant, and ye shall be 
 blameless." 
 
 They then took down their sacks to the ground 
 and opened them, that a search might be made. The 
 steward began at the eldest, and when he came at 
 last to Benjamin's sack, there to be sure the cup 
 was found. 
 
 On this discovery being made, their consternation 
 and grief were so great that they could scarcely 
 contain themselves; and they rent their clothes, as 
 you have already seen it was customary to do at 
 that time, under such circumstances of affliction. 
 
 After putting back their sacks of grain on the 
 asses, they returned again with the steward to the 
 city. 
 
 On entering the house of the governor, and com- 
 ing into his presence, they all fell prostrate before 
 him on the ground. 
 
 He inquired of them as they arose, why they had 
 carried away his cup, and asked them if they did 
 not suppose that such a man as he was had every 
 means in his power to make diligent search after it, 
 and to divine (or think with certainty) who had 
 taken it. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 115 
 
 To this Judah, in behalf of his brethren, replied; 
 " What shall we say unto my lord ? What shall we 
 speak 1 Or how shall we clear ourselves ? God 
 hath found out the iniquity of thy servants : behold, 
 we are my lord's servants, both we and he also with 
 whom the cup is found." 
 
 It would seem that Judah had scarcely any hope 
 of being able to prove that they were innocent. He 
 might have thought it barely possible that Benja- 
 min had stolen the cup. But, as something of the 
 same kind had happened to them before, it is more 
 probable that he supposed it was all a plan of the 
 governor, or of some other person, to bring them in- 
 to trouble, and to expose them to a severe punish- 
 ment. 
 
 In a sort of despair, therefore, he confessed that 
 they were all guilty. He hoped, probably, in this 
 way, to save the life of Benjamin, for whom he was 
 particularly accountable to his father. And he 
 thought also, that by throwing themselves entirely 
 upon the mercy of the governor, and humbly con- 
 fessing their crime, he might be induced to treat 
 them with less severity ; and instead of putting them 
 to death immediately, keep them in bondage. By 
 this means they might have time, and find out some 
 way of proving their innocence. 
 
116 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 Joseph still keeps his brethren in suspense. Remarks on 
 his conduct, His reply to Judah. Judah's expostu- 
 lation. 
 
 HERE was another occasion on which Joseph 
 had his brethren in his power. He might have ac- 
 quitted them of the particular crime of stealing- his 
 cup ; but he could have reproached them with the 
 deeper guilt of stealing their oicn brother, and sell- 
 ing him as a slave. Had they denied this, and as- 
 serted, as they had done to their father, that Joseph 
 was dead, one Avord of his could have convicted 
 them of falsehood on the spot, and thrown them 
 into the greatest confusion and dismay. 
 
 How he could have overwhelmed them with the 
 most severe and just rebuke ! How he could have 
 taken vengeance on them, and satisfied his re- 
 venge to the full, had such a disposition existed in 
 his breast ! 
 
 But he felt very differently toward them ; and if 
 he still concluded to keep them in suspense, it was 
 to prepare the way for their deeper repentance ; it 
 was to let them see more clearly how forgiving and 
 generous his own character was ; it was to lead 
 them to acknowledge and admire the providence of 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 117 
 
 God in the fulfillment of those dreams that had been 
 so offensive to them, which had, already, been at- 
 tended with so much good to themselves, to their 
 venerable father, and to all their families. 
 
 It is difficult for us to judge of all that Joseph 
 did in his intercourse with his brethren. We do 
 not know all the circumstances of the case. Very 
 many of these circumstances are not stated in the 
 Bible. That Joseph thought that he had good 
 reasons for what he did, and that he really wished 
 to do his brethren and his father all the good in his 
 power, we must conclude, without any hesitation, 
 from what we shall see, as we still farther attend to 
 his history. 
 
 If there was anything which he said or did, ac- 
 companied with such kind of deception as to make 
 it a falsehood ; (or if it amounted to saying that 
 something was, which icas not or was not, which 
 was ;) then, in this respect he did wrong, and is 
 not to be justified. Let us judge him, however, with 
 great candor ; remembering what wicked and per- 
 verse men he had to deal with, and how fearful he 
 was lest their finding out too soon who he was, 
 might defeat all his plans for the welfare of his aged 
 father, of his beloved Benjamin, and, indeed, of 
 themselves, and of the whole family of his kindred, 
 at Hebron. 
 
118 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 We will now see what Joseph's reply was to 
 Judah. 
 
 Judah, you recollect, had told Joseph that they 
 were all his servants ; or that he could keep them 
 all in a state of bondage, as a punishment for their 
 guilt. 
 
 " God forbid," said Joseph, " that I should do so : 
 but the man in whose hand the cup is found, he 
 shall be my servant ; and as for you, get you up in 
 peace unto your father." 
 
 This was truly a severe trial for Judah, who had 
 given such strong assurances to his father that no 
 harm should happen to Benjamin, and that he 
 should be brought back to Hebron in safety. 
 
 What shall he say or do ? To assert the inno- 
 cence of his brother was now too late. He had 
 confessed their mutual guilt ; as well of Benjamin, 
 as of himself, and of the rest. They were all 
 strangers in Egypt ; in the entire power of one 
 who was second in authority only to the king him- 
 self; with no advocate or friend ; and guilty, by 
 their own confession, of an aggravated offence. If 
 this offence should rest, as it was likely to do, on 
 Benjamin alone, it would make him a slave, never 
 more to return to Hebron, and thus bring down the 
 gray hairs of Jacob with sorrow to the grave. 
 
 In the midst of such mingled and desponding feel- 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 119 
 
 ings Judah broke out into this most pathetic expos- 
 tulation : " O my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, 
 speak a word in my lord's ears, and let not thine 
 anger burn against thy servant ; for thou art even 
 as Pharaoh ;" (and having power equal to that of the 
 king, I exceedingly tremble before thee.) 
 
 " My lord asked his servants, saying, Have ye a 
 father, or a brother ? And we said unto my lord, 
 we have a father, an old man, and a child of his old 
 age, a little one ; and his brother is dead, and he 
 alone is left of his mother, and his father loveth him. 
 
 " And thou saidst unto thy servants, Bring him 
 down unto me, that I may set mine eyes upon him. 
 And we said unto my lord, the lad cannot leave his 
 father ; for if he should leave his father, his father 
 would die. And thou saidst unto thy servants, ex- 
 cept your youngest brother come down with you, ye 
 shall see my face no more. 
 
 " And it came to pass when we came up unto thy 
 servant my father, we told him the words of my lord. 
 And our father said, go again, and buy us a little 
 food. And we said, we cannot go down : if our 
 youngest brother be with us, then will we go down : 
 for we may not see the man's face, except our 
 youngest brother be with us. And thy servant my 
 father said unto us, ye know that my wife bare me 
 two sons : and the one went out from me, and I 
 
120 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 said, surely he is torn in pieces ; and I saw him not 
 since : and if ye take this also from me, and mis- 
 chief befall him, ye shall bring down my gray hairs 
 with sorrow to the grave. 
 
 4< Now, therefore, when I come to thy servant 
 my father, and the lad be not with us ; seeing that 
 his life is bound up in the lad's life, it shall come to 
 pass when he seeth that the lad is not with us, that 
 he will die : and thy servants shall bring down the 
 gray hairs of thy servant our father with sorrow to 
 the grave. For thy servant became surety for the 
 lad unto my father, saying, if I bring him not un- 
 to thee, then I shall bear the blame to my father 
 for ever. 
 
 " Now therefore, I pray thee, let thy servant 
 abide, instead of the lad, a bondman to my lord ; 
 and let the lad go up with his brethren. For how 
 shall I go up to my father and the lad be not with 
 me ? lest peradventure I see the evil that shall 
 come on my father." 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 121 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 Joseph makes himself known to his brethren. His address 
 to them. His forgiveness of them. The duty of forgive- 
 ness. Has the reader this spirit 1 
 
 JUDAH did not plead in vain. While Joseph 
 heard him, the most tender recollections rushed 
 upon his mind his mother, his home, his father 
 Ephrath, Hebron, Shechem, Dothan all rose up be- 
 fore him, in quick and melancholy remembrance. 
 
 He could not endure the thought of doing any 
 thing to cause such anguish to his aged parent, and 
 that would bring down his gray hairs with sorrow 
 to the grave. 
 
 He listened with breathless attention till Judah 
 had done speaking. His heart was full. His coun- 
 tenance showed it. His voice showed it, while, 
 being no longer able to control his feelings, he 
 ordered all except his brethren to retire. 
 
 They did so ; and Joseph gave vent to his tears. 
 He wept aloud. He wept so loud that they heard 
 him in the other parts of the house; and in the 
 midst of their astonishment he said to his brethren, 
 / am Joseph. Doth my father yet live ? 
 
 His brethren were too much overcome to make 
 
 L. j. 11 
 
122 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 any reply. They must have been horror-struck to 
 see Joseph standing before them, the governor of 
 Egypt! 
 
 " And Joseph said unto his brethren, come near 
 to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he 
 said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold in- 
 to Egypt. Now therefore be not grieved, nor 
 angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither : for 
 God did send me before you to preserve life. For 
 these two years hath the famine been in the land ; 
 and yet there are five years, in the which there 
 shall neither be earing (planting the seeds) nor 
 harvest. 
 
 " And God sent me before you to preserve you a 
 posterity in the earth, (the descendants, yet to be very 
 numerous, of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,) and to 
 save your lives by a great deliverance. 
 
 " So now it was not you that sent me hither, but 
 God : and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh ; 
 (to advise him, and take a parental care of his con- 
 cerns ;) and lord of all his house ; and a ruler 
 throughout all the land of Egypt. 
 
 " Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto 
 him, thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me 
 lord of all Egypt ; come down unto me, tarry not. 
 And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and 
 thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 123 
 
 and thy children's children, and thy flocks and thy 
 herds, and all that thou hast. 
 
 " And there will I nourish thee ; for yet there are 
 five years of famine ; lest thou, and thy household, 
 and all that thou hast, come to poverty. 
 
 44 And behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my 
 brother Benjamin, that it is my mouth that speaketh 
 unto you. 
 
 " And ye shall tell my father of all my glory in 
 Egypt, and of all that ye have seen; and ye shall 
 haste, and bring down my father hither. 
 
 "And he fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck, 
 and wept ; and Benjamin wept upon his neck. 
 Moreover, he kissed all his brethren, and wept up- 
 on them : and after that his brethren talked with 
 him." 
 
 What an interesting and affecting scene ! God 
 has given it to you, my dear children, in the Bible, 
 for your instruction. And you can, indeed, derive 
 a great deal of instruction from it. 
 
 Mark the conduct of Joseph in it ; for it deserves 
 your imitation. 
 
 There stood his brethren before him, who had 
 done him so many injuries ; and they knew, at last, 
 that in the mighty governor of Egypt they beheld 
 their brother whom they had hated so bitterly, and 
 treated so cruelly. How their guilt must have risen 
 
124 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 up before them in all its enormity ! How mean and 
 degraded they must have felt in his presence ! How 
 justly they must have thought they deserved his 
 severest rebuke ! They probably were expecting it, 
 as the least punishment, even if he did not inflict 
 any other, Avhich was due to their wickedness ! 
 
 But what amazement must have filled their 
 breasts, to see, that instead of all this, their injured 
 brother was about to treat them with the greatest 
 kindness. He does not reproach them at all. He 
 even tries to turn their thoughts from the recollec- 
 tion of their own guilt, to the merciful providence of 
 God, who had over-ruled it for his good, and for 
 that of themselves, and their father, and their whole 
 family. 
 
 Perhaps, in this respect, Joseph may have been 
 too lenient. But he knew there would be another, 
 and probably a better season, for them to think over 
 all that had happened. He wished to show them how 
 freely and fully he forgave them. And, if any thing 
 could lead them to the deepest repentance for their 
 past guilt, it was surely such generous and noble 
 conduct on the part of a brother whom they had so 
 grossly injured. 
 
 How have you felt toward those who have injur- 
 ed you ; and how have you treated them ? No one, 
 I presume, has ever done you an injury any thing 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 125 
 
 like that which the brethren of Joseph inflicted up- 
 on him 
 
 He felt no revenge, no desire to injure those who 
 had injured him. On the contrary, he wished to re- 
 turn them all the good in his power, for the evil 
 which he had received from them. See, too, the 
 kind and affectionate, the noble and generous man- 
 ner in which he showed these feelings. There was 
 no allusion to their cruel and w r icked treatment of 
 him ; no exulting because he had them in his pow- 
 er; no boasting of his being willing to forgive 
 them ; not even a rebuke or a reproach, or a word 
 said to make them feel their littleness and their 
 meanness. 
 
 Have you felt so, and acted so, toward those who 
 have injured you ? Do you not think that the con- 
 duct of Joseph is worthy of your highest effort to 
 imitate it 1 
 
 It is, indeed, so. If you have not felt and acted 
 at all as he did, toward those who have injured 
 you, then you are like his wicked brethren ; and 
 the evil passion of revenge still finds a place within 
 your breasts. 
 
 You have need, then, of sincere repentance before 
 God on this account. And this should show you 
 the exceeding sinfulness of your heart. For you 
 
 L. J. 11* 
 
126 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 have not the spirit of Joseph. You have not the 
 spirit of Christ. 
 
 Christ forgave his enemies, even those wicked 
 and cruel men who nailed him to the cross ! He 
 prayed for them in his dying moments, that God 
 also would forgive them. And he has told us that 
 if we do not forgive our enemies, those who have in- 
 jured us in any way whatever, and pray for them, 
 and return good for evil, God will not forgive us, 
 but banish us, for ever, from his presence. 
 
 Think of all this. And seriously ask yourselves 
 the question, if these things are so, whether you 
 must not become very different from what you are ; 
 whether you must not have your inmost soul renew- 
 ed and made holy by the Spirit of God, before 
 you can hope to enjoy his presence and favor in 
 heaven ? 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 127 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 Pharaoh and his household glad to see that the brethren of 
 Joseph are come. Pharaoh tells Joseph to invite his 
 father and all his family to come to Egypt. Joseph fur- 
 nishes them with things necessary for their removal. 
 His parting advice to them. Peace-making. 
 
 IT was not long before the king of Egypt and all 
 his household heard of the strange things which 
 had taken place, and that the men who had come 
 from Canaan to buy grain were the brethren of 
 Joseph ; and that his venerable father was still 
 living. 
 
 They were all, both Pharaoh and those who 
 were about him, exceedingly pleased to hear it. 
 And to show his strong personal friendship for 
 Joseph, and the deep interest that he felt in the wel- 
 fare of Jacob and the whole family, Pharaoh re- 
 quested Joseph to give this very kind invitation to 
 his brethren. 
 
 44 Say unto thy brethren," said he, " this do ye ; 
 lade your beasts and go, get you unto the land 01 
 Canaan ; and take your father, and your households, 
 and come unto me : and I will give you the good 
 
128 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 of the land of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the 
 land. 
 
 u Now thou art commanded, this do ye ; take 
 you wagons out of the land of Egypt, for your 
 little ones, and for your wives, and bring your 
 father, and come. Also regard not your -tuff," (the 
 furniture, and the various implements and tools that 
 you have, and all things of that description.) 
 
 The brethren of Joseph were overjoyed at this 
 kindness of Pharaoh, and prepared to follow his 
 directions. 
 
 They were furnished with wagons by Joseph, 
 as Pharaoh had commanded, and also with abun- 
 dance of provisions for the journey. Joseph gave 
 them, beside all this, a supply of clothing. 
 
 It was customary for rich men, at that time, to 
 present garments to those whom they intended to 
 treat with peculiar respect and friendship. They 
 usually kept a large wardrobe, or collection of gar- 
 ments of different kinds and sizes, so that they could 
 make these presents whenever they chose, without 
 any delay or difficulty. 
 
 Joseph, in this way, meant to let all the Egyp- 
 tians see with how much respect he wished to treat 
 his brethren, and what an affectionate regard he 
 had for them. 
 
 He gave each of them changes of raiment, or 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 129 
 
 more than one suit ; but to Benjamin he gave 
 three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of 
 raiment. 
 
 He sent also, by his brethren, a present to his 
 aged parent ten asses laden with the good things 
 of Egypt, and ten others laden with grain and 
 bread and nuts, for his father to use on his journey 
 from Canaan to Egypt. 
 
 After all the preparations were made, the sons of 
 Jacob took leave of their brother, and set out for 
 Hebron. 
 
 His parting advice was what they, doubtless, 
 needed. See, said he, that ye fall not out by the 
 way. 
 
 There was some danger, as Joseph thought, of 
 their doing this. They might begin to find fault 
 with each other. Some might charge others with 
 being the first who had proposed to take revenge 
 on Joseph for his offensive dreams. Reuben and 
 Judah might endeavor to free themselves from all 
 guilt in the matter, and cast the severest reproaches 
 upon the rest. 
 
 They might be envious of Benjamin, who had 
 been treated with such distinguished regard by 
 Joseph, and who had received a present so much 
 more valuable than any, or all, of their's. They 
 might not treat him with kindness, and thus pre- 
 
130 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 pare the way for giving trouble to their father on 
 their return home. 
 
 They might dispute, not only ahout what had 
 happened, but about their future plans ; how they 
 should carry their property to Egypt, and how each 
 should retain and have the management of what 
 particularly belonged to him. 
 
 Joseph knew their dispositions, and how much 
 they needed a word of caution ; and he thought, 
 that, under the peculiar circumstances in which 
 they were placed, it would probably be regarded, 
 and do them good. 
 
 " Blessed are the peace-makers," said our Savior, 
 44 for they shall be called the children of God." 
 
 My dear children, in this respect, imitate the ex- 
 ample of Joseph. Do, each one of you, be a peace- 
 maker. Be at peace among your brothers and sis- 
 ters, and among your companions, at all times. Do 
 all you can to prevent disputing and quarreling, 
 and to lead all to love each other, and to do each 
 other good. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 131 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 His sons, on their arrival, tell their father that Joseph is 
 alive. Jacob's joy. They all set out for Egypt. They 
 stop at Beer-sheba. An interesting spot, and why! 
 God's promise to Jacob. Their arrival in Egypt. 
 
 ONCE more the sons of Jacob were on their way 
 to Canaan. What strange news they would have to 
 tell to their father and kindred ; and with what 
 mingled emotions of joy and shame they would re- 
 late the account of Joseph's prosperity, and at the 
 same time expose their former cruelty and false- 
 hood ! 
 
 At length they came to Hebron ; and the deepest 
 anxiety was felt on the part of Jacob and his family 
 to know the result of their late visit, to see if Si- 
 meon was released, and if Benjamin was in safety. 
 
 They soon made it known to their father that 
 Joseph was yet alive, and that he was governor 
 over all the land of Egypt. 
 
 This was too unexpected, and too astonishing for 
 Jacob, at first, to receive as truth. He did not, he 
 could not believe what appeared to him like the 
 returning of his son from the dead ; and his heart 
 fainted within him. 
 
132 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 But when he heard more particularly all the 
 circumstances, and the message which Joseph had 
 sent ; and saw the wagons that were to carry him 
 and all his family to Egypt, his feelings changed. 
 Joy took the place of doubt and despondency, and 
 the venerable patriarch exclaimed, It is enough; 
 Joseph my son is yet alive : I ivill go and see him 
 before I die. 
 
 How the strength of a father's love shows itself 
 in these few, yet affecting words. He thought not 
 of the power and rank of Joseph, of his great 
 wealth, and the splendor in which he lived. He 
 thought merely of the simple fact, that he was yet 
 in life ; and that he should again meet the child of 
 his beloved Rachel, and the solace of his declining 
 age. 
 
 As soon as a few necessary preparations were 
 made, Jacob, and the large family of whom he was 
 the head, commenced their journey to Egypt. 
 
 On their way they came to Beer-sheba, a place 
 quite in the south-western part of Canaan, and about 
 twenty miles from Hebron. 
 
 It was here that Abraham, the grandfather of 
 Jacob, had formerly tarried a short time, and plant- 
 ed a grove, in the shade of which he might en- 
 gage in worship. And it was here that he had 
 offered up his prayers to the ever-living God. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 133 
 
 It was here that the Lord appeared unto Isaac, 
 and said, " I am the God of Abraham thy father : 
 fear not, for I am with thee, and will bless thee, and 
 will multiply thy seed, (or give thee very nume- 
 rous descendants,) for my servant Abraham's sake." 
 After this, and to commemorate the event, Isaac 
 built an altar there, and offered up his sacrifices and 
 prayers to God. 
 
 And it was while residing here, that Jacob, by 
 the direction of his mother Rebekah, and in a de- 
 ceptive and very wicked way, obtained the blessing 
 which Isaac had intended to bestow upon Esau. 
 It was from Beer-sheba also that Jacob, at the 
 command of his father, went on his long journey to 
 Padan-aram, where he married Rachel, and where 
 Joseph was born. 
 
 The recollection of all these circumstances must 
 have deeply affected the mind of the venerable 
 patriarch, as he arrived at this interesting spot. 
 
 No doubt he looked back with shame and con- 
 trition at the wicked deception which he had prac- 
 tised upon his father, and with devout gratitude to 
 God for all his unmerited goodness. 
 
 Since he left Beer-sheba, in how many various 
 forms this goodness had visited him ; and now, to 
 crown it all, Joseph is still alive, and he is on his 
 way to meet him. 
 
 L. J. 12 
 
134 HISTORY OF JOSEPH, 
 
 In what more suitable place could Jacob acknow- 
 ledge the great kindness of God toward him, and 
 pour out his soul before him, in praise and thanks- 
 giving! 
 
 He did this ; for we are told that he offered sa- 
 crifices unto the God of his father Isaac; unto that 
 God who had promised to bless Isaac, and to give 
 him a very numerous offspring, as was already be- 
 ginning to be the case in the family of which Jacob 
 was the head. 
 
 This promise God was now about to renew to 
 Jacob. For " he spoke to him in the visions of the 
 night, and said, Jacob, Jacob." 
 
 " And he said, Here am I. And he said, I am 
 God, the God of thy father : fear not to go down 
 into Egypt ; for I will make of thee a great nation : 
 I will go down with thee into Egypt ; and I will 
 also surely bring thee up again : and Joseph shall 
 put his hand upon thine eyes ;" that is, he shall 
 close thine eyes, as thou art about to die. 
 
 This promise of God was afterward abundantly 
 fulfilled. The descendants of Jacob became indeed 
 a great nation, which returned to Canaan ; and in 
 this sense Jacob himself may be said to have been 
 brought back again. 
 
 And Joseph, too, was permitted to close the eyes 
 of his dying parent ; a mark of affection and respect 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 135 
 
 which Jacob must have anticipated with a tender 
 and melancholy pleasure. 
 
 From Beer-sheba they proceeded on their way 
 to Egypt; "and the sons of Jacob carried their 
 father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the 
 wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. 
 And they took their cattle, and their goods, which 
 they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came 
 into Egypt, Jacob, and all his seed (or descendants) 
 with him," the number of which was sixty-six. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 Joseph meets his father in Goshen. He presents five of his 
 brethren to Pharaoh, who grants them leave to dwell in 
 Goshen. Joseph presents his father to Pharaoh. What 
 Jacob says. Life short. What is death 1 Is the reader 
 prepared to die 7 
 
 JOSEPH had sent word to his father that, when 
 he and his family came down to Egypt, they 
 should dwell in that part of it which was called 
 Goshen. It was on the eastern side of Egypt, ex- 
 tending toward the Red Sea and the borders of 
 Canaan. 
 
136 
 
 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 Judah was sent by Jacob to inform Joseph of 
 his father's approach. 
 
 " And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went 
 up to meet his father to Goshen, and presented him- 
 self unto him ; and he fell on his neck, and wept on 
 his neck a good while." 
 
 What must have been the feelings of each, at this 
 moment, to meet once more, after so long a separa- 
 tion ! Through how many trials they had passed ! 
 What changes had taken place in each ! Time had 
 whitened the locks of the father, and age and sor- 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 137 
 
 row had deepened the furrows in his cheeks, and 
 bowed down his venerable form. 
 
 When they last parted, Joseph was a youth of 
 seventeen, going- to inquire after his brethren, in the 
 valley of Shechem. He was now arrived to mature 
 manhood, a father, and the governor of Egypt. 
 
 Now let me die, said Jacob, since I have seen thy 
 face, because thou art yet alive. 
 
 He could say no more. The last fond wish of his 
 heart was gratified, and he was ready to depart in 
 peace as soon as God should see fit to call him 
 hence. 
 
 Joseph then told them that he would go and in- 
 form Pharaoh of their arrival, and let him know 
 their occupation that they were shepherds, and 
 that they had brought their flocks and their herds 
 with them. He requested them also to say the 
 same thing to Pharaoh, when he should make in- 
 quiry of them, that he might permit them to settle 
 in the land of Goshen. For there they would be in 
 a country, as it were, of their own, and separated 
 from the Egyptians ; and this Joseph knew would 
 contribute greatly to their comfort and prosperity. 
 They would not be exposed to the hatred and 
 vexation of a people who, you recollect, we have 
 before had occasion to observe, held the business of 
 a snepherd in great detestation, 
 
 L. J. *13 
 
138 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 After Joseph had given the information to Pha- 
 raoh, he took five of his brethren and presented 
 them to the king. 
 
 On his inquiring what their occupation was, they 
 replied, " Thy servants are shepherds, both we, and 
 also our fathers." 
 
 " They said moreover unto Pharaoh, For to 
 sojourn in the land are we come : for thy servants 
 have no pasture for their flocks, for the famine is 
 sore in the land of Canaan : now therefore, we 
 pray thee, let thy servants dwell in the land of 
 Goshen." 
 
 The king granted their request, and directed 
 Joseph, if there were any of his brethren who were 
 fitted, by their activity and skill, for the situation, to 
 make them overseers of his cattle. 
 
 Joseph, also brought in Jacob his father, and 
 presented him to Pharaoh; and Jacob blessed 
 Pharaoh. 
 
 On the king's asking Jacob his age, he replied ; 
 " The days of the years of my pilgrimage are an 
 hundred and thirty years : few and evil have the 
 days of the years of my life been, and have not at- 
 tained unto the days of the years of the life of my 
 fathers, in the days of their pilgrimage." 
 
 A pilgrim is a person who has no fixed home, 
 nd who is on a long journey, tarrying a little 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 139 
 
 while here, and a little while there, and travelling 
 on to a distant place which he is very anxious to 
 reach. The whole course of his way is called his 
 pilgrimage. 
 
 Well might Jacob call himself a pilgrim, and his 
 life a pilgrimage. He had been moving from place 
 to place, and through one scene and another ; and 
 now, in his old age, had undertaken another jour- 
 ney, to find another home. He believed, however, 
 that there was still a better home in heaven for all 
 the people of God; and thither he directed his 
 longing eyes ; for there, he trusted, his wanderings 
 and trials would all be over, and that he should 
 find eternal rest. 
 
 Many of his ancestors had lived to a much great- 
 er age than he could expect to reach ; and although 
 he had lived to number one hundred and thirty 
 years, how rapid had been their flight, and how 
 few they appeared to be in comparison with a never- 
 ending eternity ! He might well say that they had 
 been evil ; for God had seen fit, in his wise and 
 holy providence, to try his servant Jacob with 
 trouble and affliction in a great variety of ways. 
 
 Have you ever thought that you, like Jacob, are 
 a pilgrim on the earth ? Ah ! you know not how 
 many changes and trials may await you ! You may 
 have to part with your dear parents and friends, 
 
140 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 and to leave your pleasant home. You may yet 
 have to pass through many scenes of trouble and 
 sorrow. And even if you should have less, much 
 less, of affliction than Jacob had, and be more as 
 he was in his days of comfort and prosperity, re- 
 member, your pilgrimage will soon be ended. 
 Death must come at last, and how quickly you 
 know not. 
 
 How many, much younger than you are, have 
 already ended their 'pilgrimage. Take a walk in 
 some neighboring grave-yard, and examine the 
 tomb-stones, and see how many are buried there, 
 the days of whose pilgrimage have been much 
 fewer than yours. 
 
 But what if you should live to old age. You 
 will have then to say as Jacob did, when you look 
 back upon your past life, few have been the years of 
 my pilgrimage ; they have gone like " a vapor, that 
 appeareth for a little while, and then vanisheth 
 away." 
 
 You will look forward, as Jacob did, into an eter- 
 nity which is never, never to end. 
 
 O to be prepared to go into that eternity, as 
 Jacob was, when, on meeting Joseph, he repeated 
 his readiness to die ! 
 
 Are you ready to die ? It is a solemn thing to 
 die! The hands cease to move, and the lips to 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 141 
 
 speak ; the eyes to see, and the ears to hear. The 
 lungs breathe and the heart beats no longer. The 
 whole body becomes stiffl and cold, and motionless, 
 and it is soon laid in the silent grave, there to await 
 the summons to rise again at the resurrection of the 
 dead. 
 
 But this is a small part of death. To the Chris- 
 tian it should have no terrors. It should seem to 
 him as a gentle sleep, and the grave as a calm and 
 quiet resting-place for his frail and worn out body. 
 So it has seemed to many who have met it in per- 
 fect peace : and to others who have met it with 
 joy. O may it seem so to you when you come to 
 die. 
 
 But the mere dissolution of the body is but a 
 small part of death. 
 
 Death separates the soul from the body, and intro- 
 duce.s it into the eternal world. Yes, this is the 
 most solemn part of dying. Your soul, all that 
 within you which thinks, and feels, and acts, and is 
 capable of enjoyment and of suffering, your never- 
 dying soul, goes into the eternal world. It goes 
 there to be happy or miserable for ever. 
 
 It goes there to spend the long, long ages of end- 
 less existence in the enjoyment of the friendship and 
 favor of God, and of the Savior ; in the society of 
 pure and holy spirits, who all love God and each 
 
142 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 other ; in worshipping and serving the wisest and 
 the best of beings; in admiring the countless ways 
 in which he shows his wisdom and goodness ; in 
 rejoicing to see others good and happy ; and in mak- 
 ing, itself, a ceaseless progress in knowledge, in ho- 
 liness, and in happiness. 
 
 Or it goes there to lose, this ; to be banished for 
 ever from this scene of unmingled delight ; to dwell 
 in a wretched place, with the vilest and most mise- 
 rable beings ; to see and to hear what is most sinful 
 and odious ; to feel the horrors of a guilty and re- 
 proving conscience ; to bewail the folly of having 
 lived and died impenitent, and without faith in 
 Christ ; to look back, and find none but painful re- 
 collections ; to look around, and see no source of 
 comfort or relief; to look forward with no hope of 
 change ; and thus, in gloomy and terrible despair, to 
 pass hour after hour, knowing that all this misery 
 must continue and increase, without alleviation,' and 
 without end. 
 
 Art you prepared to die 1 Do you truly love and 
 trust in the Lord Jesus Christ ? 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 143 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 Jacob and his family settled in Goshen. God's goodness to 
 them. His goodness to the reader. Is the reader grateful 
 to God ? 
 
 JACOB again implored the blessing of God upon 
 Pharaoh, and then left him. 
 
 Immediately after this, Joseph took the proper 
 steps to have his father, and his brethren, and their 
 families, put in possession of the land which Pha- 
 raoh had directed to be given to them as the place 
 of their residence. 
 
 We are told that it was the best of the land, a 
 choice and favored spot ; and there, after all his 
 wanderings and trials, Jacob, in his declining years, 
 was happily settled, with his sons and their fami- 
 lies around him. Joseph, the truly dutiful child and 
 affectionate brother, furnished them with all that 
 was necessary, in the continued season of famine, for 
 their support and comfort; while his situation as go- 
 vernor of Egypt, and the esteem in which he was 
 held by the people, were a sufficient security that 
 his father and brethren should receive nothing but 
 
144 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 kind and respectful treatment from such of the inha- 
 bitants as might have intercourse with them. 
 
 While Jacob and his numerous family were en- 
 joying, in this manner, the blessings of Providence, 
 and were fed from the opening of his bountiful hand, 
 how sensibly they must have felt (if they all felt as 
 they ought) the striking interposition of God in 
 their behalf. In the midst of a most distressing fa- 
 mine, thus to be safely removed to the very country 
 in which alone sustenance was to be found, was in 
 itself a very wonderful deliverance. In addition to 
 this, they were under the protection of the king of 
 this country, and supplied with food from his own 
 store-houses, without any demand being made upon 
 them to pay for it. And then to render this all a 
 most striking illustration of the goodness of God to- 
 ward them, the protection and bounty of the king 
 came to them through the hands of a son and a bro- 
 ther. Nor can we stop here ; this very goodness of 
 God showed how full he was of long-suffering and 
 forbearance toward those whose cruel wickedness 
 and falsehood, over-ruled by his providence, had sent 
 this son and brother into Egypt, thus to be raised up 
 at the very time that they were in extreme need of it, 
 to be their deliverer and friend. 
 
 You doubtless are ready to say that Jacob and 
 his family had thus the most abundant causes of 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 145 
 
 gratitude to God, and that they ought to have show- 
 ed this gratitude by loving him. and obeying his 
 commands. 
 
 And what has God done for you ? Have you 
 ever thought of all his goodness, and his long-suffer- 
 ing and forbearance toward you ? For he has been 
 doing you good, in a countless variety of ways, ever 
 since you were born, notwithstanding you have sin- 
 ned so much and so often against him. 
 
 He has as truly taken care of you, and supplied 
 all your wants by the hands of your parents and 
 friends, as he did the wants of Jacob and his family 
 by the hands of Joseph. 
 
 You have had no famine to distress and alarm 
 you. You have not been obliged to leave your 
 homes, and to go to another country in quest of 
 food. 
 
 You have lived in a land even more to be desired 
 as a place of residence than Goshen. O ! you have 
 had tens of thousands, innumerable comforts, and 
 mercies, and privileges. And you enjoy them in 
 abundance still. 
 
 Are you truly grateful to God for all those bless- 
 ings, and to his Son Jesus Christ, who shed his 
 blood on the cross that all who believe in him may 
 be saved ? Do you show this gratitude by loving 
 and obeying God, by imitating the example of the 
 
 L. J. 13 
 
146 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 Savior, and by doing all you can to make others 
 good and happy ? 
 
 These are serious questions. But it is important 
 that you should think of them, and answer them. 
 How will you answer them? Must you say that 
 you know not what it is to fed grateful to God and 
 his Son, and to seek to do the will of God, and to 
 promote the real good of others, even the good of 
 their souls ? 
 
 How ready you are to say that Jacob and his fa- 
 mily would have shown themselves to be most wick- 
 ed and ungrateful, if they had not felt thankful to 
 God for all his mercies, and endeavored to love him 
 and obey his commands ! How could they be so 
 base and unfeeling ! you would exclaim. 
 
 Cast these reproaches upon yourself. While you 
 think thus of what it seems to you would be so base 
 and unfeeling, had Jacob and his family had no gra- 
 titude toward God ; think of the judgment Avhich 
 Gcod and his Son, and all holy beings must pass up- 
 on your feelings and conduct: and how base and 
 unfeeling, how ungrateful and wicked you must 
 appear in their sight ? 
 
 What have you to do but to humble yourself be- 
 fore God, and to repent of this ingratitude, and of 
 all your other sins ? What have you to do but to 
 confess all these your sins to God ; and to beseech 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 147 
 
 him, for Christ's sake, to pardon you ; and to shed 
 down upon you the Holy Spirit ; that with a peni- 
 tent and grateful heart you may henceforth love 
 him with your whole soul, and seek to do his will? 
 Will you do this, and thus secure the favor of 
 God, the friendship of Christ, the influences of the 
 Spirit, and be blessed in this life, and be blessed for 
 ever ! 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 The Egyptians give their cattle to Joseph for food. They 
 are again in want, and give themselves and their land. 
 He gives them seed to sow. A perpetual law, that one 
 fifth of all the produce shall be the king's. Remarks on 
 the conduct of Joseph. 
 
 THE famine was still very distressing, both in 
 Egypt and in the land of Canaan ; and we read in 
 the Bible, that the people fainted, or were exceed- 
 ingly feeble and disheartened in consequence of it. 
 
 Joseph had continued to sell grain to the inha- 
 bitants of Egypt and of Canaan, and to receive their 
 money in payment, until they had nearly parted 
 with it all. This money he took and deposited in 
 
148 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 the house of Pharaoh, as it was the property of the 
 king. 
 
 When the money was almost all gone, the Egyp- 
 tians came to Joseph in their distress, and said, 
 " Give us bread ; for why should we die in thy pre- 
 sence ? for the money faileth." 
 
 Joseph had some good reason for not providing 
 the Egyptians with grain, without any compensation 
 on their part He might have seen that it would 
 make many of them idle, and that others would not 
 use it in the most prudent and economical way for 
 themselves and their cattle. 
 
 He told them that he would take their cattle in 
 payment for the grain ; and he might thus have 
 found another advantage in this course, that of sav- 
 ing the lives of many of these animals, which would 
 otherwise have perised with hunger. 
 
 So the Egyptians brought their cattle to Joseph, 
 " and he gave them bread in exchange for horses, 
 and for the flocks, and for the cattle of the herds, 
 and for the asses ; and he fed them with bread, for 
 all their cattle, that year." 
 
 But soon all the cattle were, in this way, exchang- 
 ed for the food that the people received from Joseph ; 
 and they were once more in great necessity, 
 
 They had still their lands to offer, and they them- 
 selves, as servants, or bondmen, to the king. They 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 149 
 
 did this : and Joseph gave them food, and thus ac- 
 quired for Pharaoh, as his own property, all the land 
 of Egypt, and the services of the inhabitants to labor 
 for his benefit, and in any way that he directed. 
 
 This happened during the last year of the famine ; 
 so that the people were expecting, the succeeding 
 year, that the earth would begin again to bring forth 
 in abundance, if the seed was planted. 
 
 They begged Joseph therefore for seed, at the same 
 time that they offered him their land, and them- 
 selves, in payment for food ; that they might provide 
 for the coming year ; and that there might be a sup- 
 ply of grain throughout Egypt. 
 
 Before he complied with this request, however, he 
 removed all the inhabitants, from the small towns 
 and the country, into the cities. He did this, proba- 
 bly, because it would be so much easier to deal out 
 their food to them, if they were near the store-houses 
 in which the grain was deposited ; and these store- 
 houses, you recollect, were all in the cities. 
 
 The priests (or princes, as the original word is 
 by some translated) received their supply of food 
 from the king without being obliged to give up their 
 land, as the other inhabitants did. 
 
 They were probably considered as a higher and 
 privileged class of the community. From among 
 them the king chose his chief officers, and other 
 
 L. J, 13* 
 
150 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 magistrates, to assist him in the government ; and 
 their various duties were such that they were all 
 fed, during the famine, at the expense of Pharaoh. 
 
 In due season, before the expiration of the last 
 year of the famine, Joseph distributed seed among 
 the inhabitants. In doing this he said : " Behold, I 
 have bought you this day, and your land, for Pha- 
 raoh : lo, here is seed for you, and ye shall sow the 
 land. And it shall come to pass, in the increase, 
 that ye shall give the fifth part unto Pharaoh, and 
 four parts shall be your own, for seed of the field, 
 and for your food, and for them of your households, 
 and for food for your little ones." 
 
 This giving a fifth part of the annual increase 
 of the land to the king, continued to be a law in 
 Egypt, with regard to all the inhabitants excepting 
 the priests, who paid no tax of this kind. 
 
 At the present day, we should not think it right 
 for one, in the situation in which Joseph was, to 
 oblige those who were nearly perishing with hun- 
 ger, to sell their lands and themselves for food ; or 
 even to accept of such an offer, if it should be made 
 voluntarily on their part. But we know not all the 
 circumstances of the case. If we do not justify 
 Joseph in what he did, let us consider how differ- 
 ent may have been the opinions which prevailed 
 among men at that time on this subject ; and that 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 151 
 
 there was, by no means, the same degree of light 
 that there is now with regard to the rig/Us which 
 each man possesses, and with regard to the duties 
 which we owe to each other. 
 
 Besides, the inhabitants seem, at last, to have 
 had the entire use of the land, and to have enjoyed 
 the entire fruits of their labor, with the exception of 
 a fifth part of the increase, which they paid as a tax 
 to the king. 
 
 While these things were going on in the other 
 parts of Egypt, Jacob and his family were dwelling 
 in Goshen peacefully and safely. Their families 
 increased rapidly in numbers ; and during the years 
 that succeeded the famine, they added to the extent 
 and value of their possessions, and became exceed- 
 ingly prosperous and flourishing. 
 
152 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 Jacob drawing near the close of his life. Joseph visits him. 
 What is an oath 7 ? Its solemn obligation explained. 
 Jacob requires Joseph to swear that he will bury the 
 body of his father in the cave of Machpelah. Joseph 
 takes an oath to do this. 
 
 IT was seventeen years after Jacob was settled 
 with his family in Egypt, and when he was one 
 hundred and forty-seven years old, that he found 
 himself becoming very feeble, and evidently draw- 
 ing near the close of life. 
 
 So he sent for Joseph, that he might see him in 
 season, to make a request of him which lay very 
 near his heart. 
 
 It was an event which Joseph had thought for 
 some time could not be far distant ; yet it was one 
 which affected him deeply, and he went, in sadness, 
 to visit his father, whose dying counsels he now ex- 
 pected to hear. 
 
 Among other things, there was ont, as I have 
 said, which lay very near the heart of Jacob. He 
 had a wish to be buried in Canaan, in the land 01 
 his fathers; and that his body should lie with 
 theirs, in their own burying-place. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 153 
 
 Abraham had bought the cave of Machpelah for 
 this purpose. It was there that his remains were 
 laid by his sons Isaac and Ishmael. It was there 
 that Jacob and his brother Esau had laid the body 
 of his father Isaac. It was there that Sarah, and 
 Rebekah, and Leah were buried ; and it was there 
 that Jacob now desired to be laid, after his decease, 
 by his own children. 
 
 He was so very anxious to have this desire of his 
 heart accomplished, that he would be satisfied with 
 nothing short of a solemn oath from Joseph to that 
 effect. 
 
 An oath is a peculiar way of stating what we 
 believe to be the truth, or of making a promise. It 
 is the same thing as if the person who takes the 
 oath should say, " I believe that God now sees me, 
 and knows all my secret thoughts and feelings. I 
 believe that he will be very angry with me if I do 
 not tell the exact truth ; or if I promise what I do 
 not truly intend to perform. I believe that he will 
 not only be angry with me for doing so, but that he 
 will punish me severely. I believe that there is a 
 future judgment, at which God will judge all men 
 according to what they have done in this world ; 
 and I believe that there is a heaven and a hell ; to 
 the former of which those who love and obey God 
 will be admitted: and to the latter of which those 
 
154 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 who disobey him and die impenitent will he sen- 
 tenced, to endure the terrible expressions of his 
 hatred of sin. 
 
 " Believing this, I give up all my hope in the 
 future mercy of God toward me, if I now say or 
 do any thing which is not exactly and strictly 
 true ; and am willing that God should cast me oft* 
 from his presence, and sentence me to the pains 
 of hell, for ever." 
 
 This is taking an oath, or, as it is sometimes 
 called, swearing. 
 
 I have given you this account of it, that you may 
 always remember what a solemn transaction it is : 
 a transaction, not between men merely, but between 
 the person who takes the oath, and the great God, 
 the supreme Judge of heaven and of earth. 
 
 Many persons, when they are called upon to take 
 an oath, do it without much reflection, arid in a very 
 light and careless manner. And I am sorry to say, 
 that sometimes those who call upon persons to 
 swear, are equally unconcerned. This must all be 
 very displeasing to God. I hope and pray, my dear 
 children, that if you are ever placed in such cir- 
 cumstances, so as either to receive an oath from 
 another, or to swear yourselves, you will not forget 
 how solemn a transaction it is, and that you will 
 act in a very serious and becoming manner. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 155 
 
 Jacob acted in this manner when he required an 
 oath from Joseph. They both felt that it was a very 
 solemn thing, and that God was present with them 
 in the performance of it. 
 
 The mode of doing it was very different from 
 that which is now practised. At the present day, 
 while a person is swearing, or taking an oath, in 
 some places, he holds up his right hand, as a sign 
 of his appeal to God, which appeal I have already 
 described. In other places, as a sign of the same 
 thing, he kisses the Bible. 
 
 The sign of this appeal to God, which Jacob re- 
 quired of Joseph, was a singular one. There have 
 been many things written by learned men to ex- 
 plain it ; but, after all, it is very doubtful whether 
 the reason of it is at all known. At any rate, I shall 
 not undertake to explain it. 
 
 Said Jacob to Joseph, " If now I have found grace 
 in thy sight, (if you truly love me, my son, and are 
 willing to do me a great favor,) put, I pray thee, thy 
 hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly 
 with me ; bury me not, I pray thee, in Egypt : but 
 I will lie with my fathers, and thou shalt carry me 
 out of Egypt, and bury me in their burying-place. 
 And he said, I will do as thou hast said. And he 
 said, swear unto me. 
 
156 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 "And Joseph sware unto him. And Israel (or 
 Jacob) bowed himself upon the bed's head." 
 
 Some learned men. who are well acquainted with 
 the Hebrew language, think that the Hebrew word 
 which is translated, in our English Bible, the bed's 
 head, or the head of the bed, might better have been 
 put into English, thus the top of the staff. 
 
 So that the meaning would be, that Jacob bowed 
 himself down, or worshipped God, leaning, on ac- 
 count of his feebleness, on the top of his staff, to 
 support him. 
 
 This is very probably the meaning; and it 
 shows us how solemn a transaction Jacob thought 
 it was, in which himself and Joseph had been en- 
 gaged, and on which he thus bowed himself before 
 God to implore his blessing. 
 
 After this, Joseph returned home ; expecting, 
 however, very soon to be called again to the dying 
 bed of his venerable parent. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 157 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 Joseph goes to be with his father when he dies. He takes 
 his sons with him. -Jacob considers them as his own chil- 
 dren, He blesses them. 'Explanation of this blessing. 
 
 THE melancholy tidings at length came to Jo- 
 seph, that his father was now very near to the bor- 
 ders of the grave. 
 
 Joseph hastened to see him, that he might comfort 
 him in his last moments, and pay every attention 
 and respect that was due to so good and kind a 
 parent. He took with him his two sons, Manasseh 
 and Ephraim ; the former about twenty-five years 
 of age, the latter a year younger. Their father was 
 now about fifty-six years of age. 
 
 Jacob, at this time, was so feeble that he was con- 
 fined to his bed ; when he was told, however, that 
 Joseph had come to see him, it was such pleasing- 
 news, and revived him so much, that he had strength 
 enough to sit up on the bed to welcome his son, and 
 converse with him. 
 
 He wished to tell him things of the greatest im- 
 portance before he died. He remembered the pro- 
 mises which God had made to Abraham, and Isaac, 
 
 L. j. 14 
 
158 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 and himself ; and desired to have Joseph feel how 
 deeply he and his sons were interested in them. 
 
 He spoke of God's appearing to him in the land 
 of Canaan, and blessing him : and of the promise 
 made to him at that time, that his descendants should 
 become an exceedingly numerous people, to whom 
 God would give the land of Canaan for an everlast- 
 ing possession. 
 
 He then told Joseph that he considered Manasseh 
 and Ephraim as his own children, belonging to his 
 family as truly as his own sons did, and entitled, 
 together with their descendants, to an equal share in 
 all the blessings which had been promised to him 
 and to his posterity. 
 
 His faith in the promises of God was firm* He 
 had no doubt of their fulfillment, and that his de- 
 scendants would return to the land of his fathers. It 
 was this which led him to make Joseph swear that 
 his remains should be carried back to Canaan. And 
 he wished, by having this done, and by what he was 
 now saying, to produce in his son, and in all his chil- 
 dren, and in their descendants, the strongest attach- 
 ment to the country of their ancestors, and the most 
 ardent desire to return there, as soon as Providence 
 should open the way. 
 
 To Canaan his own attachment was strong, even 
 in death. It afforded him a melancholy pleasure to 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 159 
 
 think that it would be the place of his burial. Its 
 past scenes filled his soul with the most tender re- 
 collections ; and he would make yet another impres- 
 sion in favor of his beloved country on the heart of 
 Joseph, by recalling to his mind one of these scenes 
 which a son could never think of unmoved. 
 
 " And as for me/' said the venerable patriarch, 
 "when I came from Padan, Rachel died by me in 
 the land of Canaan in the way, when yet there was 
 but a little way to come unto Ephrath : and I buried 
 her there in the way of Ephrath." 
 
 All nations have loved the spot where the bones 
 of their ancestors repose. The graves of our fathers ! 
 How many affecting thoughts are called up by these 
 words ! Who can think of the place where the re- 
 mains of a parent are laid, of a brother or sister, of 
 kindred and friends, without the deepest emotion ! 
 
 I cannot but suppose that his father's tender men- 
 tion of Rachel, of her death and burial, touched the 
 heart of Joseph with sadness, and that he dropped the 
 tears of filial gratitude to the memory of a beloved 
 mother. 
 
 The advanced age of Jacob had nearly deprived 
 him of sight. He saw a little, but very indistinctly. 
 
 " Who are these ?" said he, as he caught a 
 glimpse of two young men who were standing 
 near his bed. 
 
160 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 " They are my sons," said Joseph, " whom God 
 hath given me in this place." 
 
 "Bring them, I pray thee, unto me, and I will bless 
 them," was the affectionate request of their grand- 
 father. 
 
 On their being brought near to him, he kissed 
 them and embraced them, and observed to Joseph 
 that he once thought he should never see him 
 again ; and yet God had not only permitted him to 
 do this, but to see his children also. 
 
 Joseph then withdrew his sons from the embraces 
 of his father, and bowed himself with his face to the 
 earth. 
 
 He did this to show Jacob and all around him the 
 deep affection and respect which he felt for his ve- 
 nerable parent, and how entirely he forgot that he 
 was the rich and powerful governor of Egypt, when 
 he stood, a son, by the bed of a dying father. 
 
 He arose and again brought his sons near their 
 grandfather, to receive his blessing. In doing this, 
 he wished Jacob, as was customary, to place his 
 right hand on the head of the eldest, and his left 
 hand on the head of the youngest, while blessing 
 them. He therefore took Ephraim in his right hand, 
 leading him toward Jacob's left hand, and Manasseh 
 in his left hand, leading him toward Jacob's right 
 hand. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 161 
 
 But what, was his surprise to see his father imme- 
 diately cross his hands, so as to place his right hand 
 on the head of Ephraim, the youngest ; and his left 
 hand on the head of Manasseh, the eldest ; and pro- 
 ceed to implore the blessing of God upon them. 
 
 " And he blessed Joseph, (for he blessed the fa- 
 ther in blessing his children,) and said, God, before 
 whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, 
 (whom they loved and obeyed,) the God which fed 
 me all my life long unto this day, the angel which 
 redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads ; and let 
 my name be named on them, and the name of my 
 fathers Abraham and Isaac ; and let them grow 
 into a multitude in the midst of the earth." 
 
 It would take a long time to go into an explanation 
 of what Jacob probably intended by the word angel. 
 Many learned and good men think that it was the. 
 Son of God himself, who afterward came down to 
 live and die in our world, even the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, to whom Jacob referred. If so, Jacob might 
 well speak of his having redeemed him from all 
 evil, and pray that his blessing might rest upon the 
 sons of Joseph to redeem them from all evil also. 
 For Christ, you know, is the great Redeemer ; who, 
 having poured out his blood on the cross, to save 
 from sin and from hell all who put their trust in 
 him, will bless them, and keep them from evil, and 
 
 L. j. 14* 
 
162 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 bring them, at last, to be with him, for ever, in the 
 kingdom of heaven. 
 
 In praying that his name and the name of Abra- 
 ham and Isaac might be named on Ephraim and 
 Manasseh, Jacob intended to pray that they might 
 be, indeed, placed by God in the great family to 
 which he and his father and grandfather belonged, 
 and thus have a share in the blessings that had 
 been promised to Abraham, and Isaac, and himself, 
 and their offspring. Jacob's prayer, that the descend- 
 ants of Ephraim and Manasseh might grow into a 
 multitude, was, at a subsequent period, strikingly 
 answered. For in the time of Moses, less than two 
 hundred and forty years afterward, the number of 
 those, among their descendants, who were twenty 
 years of age and upward, and able to go to war, 
 amounted to eighty-five thousand two hundred, a 
 greater number than were found among the de- 
 scendants of any other of the sons of Jacob 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 163 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 Conclusion of Jacob's blessing on the sons of Joseph. Jo- 
 seph's portion. Jacob's prophecy, and blessing his sons. 
 His death. Does the reader wish to die as Jacob did *? 
 
 "WHEN Joseph saw that his father laid his right 
 hand upon the head of Ephraim, it displeased him : 
 and he held up his father's hand to remove it from 
 Ephraim's head unto Manasseh's head. And Jo- 
 seph said unto his father, Not so, rny father : for this 
 is the first born; put thy right hand upon his head. 
 And his father refused, and said, I know it, my sou, 
 I know it ; he also shall become a people, and he 
 also shall be great; (that- is, the descendants of 
 Manasseh shall become very numerous and power- 
 ful.) 
 
 " But truly his younger brother shall be greater 
 than he; and his seed (or descendants) shall be- 
 come a multitude of nations." 
 
 In concluding his blessing on the sons of Joseph, 
 Jacob said, " In thee shall Israel (or my descend- 
 ants, the Israelites) bless, saying, God make thee as 
 Ephraim, and as Manasseh. And he set Ephraim 
 before Manasseh." 
 
 By this Jacob meant that Ephraim and his de- 
 
164 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 scendants (all of whom, as one people, or tribe, were 
 called Ephraim) would become very powerful and 
 prosperous, and that this would be true also of Ma- 
 nasseh and his descendants ; and that the people of 
 Israel, seeing this, when they wished to pray for 
 blessings on any one, would pray that God would 
 make him as prosperous as those who belonged to 
 the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh. 
 
 While pronouncing this blessing on his two 
 grandchildren, and in what he soon after said to 
 his own sons before his death, Jacob was undoubt- 
 edly under a peculiar influence of the Spirit of God. 
 By this he was enabled to look forward and pre- 
 dict many things which would happen to his de- 
 scendants ; and his predictions were afterward ful- 
 filled in a very remarkable manner. 
 
 He spoke now of his approaching dissolution. 
 " Behold, I die ; but God shall be with you, (ad- 
 dressing Joseph,) and bring you again unto the 
 land of your fathers ;" that is, God will bring your 
 descendants, and the descendants of my other sons 
 the whole nation of the Israelites out of Egypt, 
 and carry you back, as a people, to Canaan. 
 
 " Moreover, I have given to thee one portion 
 above thy brethren, which I took out of the hand of 
 the Amorite with my sword and rny bow." 
 
 It is supposed that the portion of land which Ja- 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 165 
 
 cob thus bequeathed to Joseph and his descendants, 
 was in the town of Shechem, and the same which 
 he bought of the sons of Hamor. It is probable that 
 the Amorites took it from him by .force, and that he 
 afterward recovered it by fighting- for it. Here it 
 was that the remains of Joseph Avere finally laid; 
 and this is the place mentioned in the fourth chap- 
 ter of St. John's Gospel, where our Savior is spoken 
 of as coming to " Sychar, near to the parcel of 
 ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph." 
 
 The aged patriarch had one more solemn and af- 
 fecting duty to perform. It was to give to all his sons 
 a prophetic view of what their descendants would 
 be, in their respective families or tribes, when they 
 should be in possession of the land of Canaan. 
 
 " Gather yourselves together," said he, " that I 
 may tell you that which shall befall you in the last 
 days. Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons 
 of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father." 
 
 There they all stood round the dying bed of their 
 beloved parent, twelve in number, not one was miss- 
 ing. What a scene for him to witness, after all the 
 trials and changes through which both he and they 
 had passed ! What affecting counsels, and wonder- 
 ful predictions for them to hear from the lips of one 
 who, about to enter the unseen world, had the vi- 
 sions of futurity spread out before him ! 
 
166 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 It would occupy too much time to go through the 
 particulars of this prophecy of Jacob. You can read 
 it at your leisure ; or rather, you can study it with 
 the aid of your parents and teachers, and of such 
 books as they may provide. For there are many 
 things in it that are difficult to be understood ; 
 though, at such time as your age and capacity may 
 render proper, you will find in it a great deal to 
 lead you to admire the wonderful Providence of 
 God, and to see the truth of the Scriptures, in the 
 fulfillment, years after it was given, of this wonder- 
 ful prophecy. 
 
 After uttering it, and blessing each one of his 
 sons, Jacob charged them, in the most solemn man- 
 ner, to bury him with his fathers in the field of 
 Machpelah, near Hebron. Till this time he had 
 been sitting up on his bed, deriving a momentary 
 strength from the visit of his beloved Joseph, and 
 from the subjects of deep interest which occupied his 
 mind. The spirit of prophecy too, that was shed 
 down upon him, lighted up the faculties of his soul 
 with even 'more than their usual brightness ; and 
 those around him could hardly believe that what 
 they heard came from the lips of one drawing so 
 near to the very close of life. 
 
 But he had now discharged his last solemn du- 
 ties. He had given his sons his parting blessing. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 167 
 
 Exhausted by the efforts which he had made, he 
 found himself sinking away, and about to die. He 
 sought to place himself in a composed posture ; and 
 gathering up his feet into the bed, and reclining on 
 it, he peacefully breathed his last, and resigned his 
 soul into the hands of his Maker. 
 
 Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of 
 his saints. 
 
 Let me die the death of the righteous^ and let my 
 last end be like his. 
 
 Do you wish thus to die ? Trust in God, as Ja- 
 cob did. Trust in Christ, who is so fully revealed 
 to you as the only Savior. Love him. Obey him. 
 Imitate him. Devote yourself to his service, in the 
 delightful employment of doing good to others. Feel 
 that you are a stranger and a pilgrim on the earth, 
 as Jacob did. Love not the world. Fix your hopes 
 on heaven. Live, as Jacob did, by faith. Desire, 
 when all your work is done, to go to the land of 
 promise in the skies to the Canaan of eternal rest. 
 
 Then you may hope to die, as Jacob did, with- 
 out fear or terror, calmly and sweetly ; ready to 
 leave this world of cares and trials, and to go and 
 be for ever with the Lord. 
 
168 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 Joseph's grief at his father's death, He orders the body to 
 be embalmed. Mourning for Jacob. His funeral. He 
 is buried in the cave of Machpelah, The fear of Joseph's 
 brethren lest he should punish them, Pains of a guilty 
 conscience. 
 
 JOSEPH was greatly overcome by the death of 
 Jacob. He fell upon his father 1 s face, and wept upon 
 him, and kissed him. How strong must have been 
 his attachment to this beloved parent ; how deep his 
 sorrow at parting with him ! 
 
 He had just closed his eyes while dying, and now 
 wished to show him every mark of respect, and to 
 bury him in such a manner, that both his brethren 
 and the Egyptians might see how much he loved 
 and venerated his character. 
 
 As was customary at that time, Joseph command- 
 ed his servants, the physicians, to embalm his father* 
 This was a curious process, by which the dead body 
 was secured against putrefaction, and its general ap- 
 pearance and features preserved in such a way 
 that it would remain for a long, long course of 
 years. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 169 
 
 They were employed forty days in completing 
 this process, which, with the previous thirty, occu- 
 pied in the preparatory steps, made, in the whole, a 
 period of seventy days, or ten weeks. 
 
 This was to Joseph, and the family of Jacob, a 
 season of mourning, in which, we are told, the 
 Egyptians united with them; thus showing how 
 greatly Joseph was esteemed by Pharaoh and his 
 people, and how they sought to manifest their 
 esteem by this expression of sorrow for the death 
 of his venerable father. 
 
 At the end of these seventy days Joseph obtained 
 permission of Pharaoh to go to Canaan to bury 
 Jacob, as he had promised him, with an oath, that 
 he would do. 
 
 It was a great funeral. Joseph, and all the sons 
 of Jacob, with their families, excepting the young 
 children, attended it. In addition to this, there went 
 up all the officers of government, (the servants of 
 Pharaoh, as they are called,) and the elders of his 
 house, and the elders of the land of Egypt, persons 
 high in authority and rank. " There went up with 
 him both chariots and horsemen : and it was a very 
 great company." 
 
 The distance which this numerous and solemn 
 procession had to go was some hundreds of miles ; 
 and as they advanced into Canaan, and came to a 
 
 L. j. 15 
 
170 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 place called Atad, they expressed their sorrow, as 
 was customary at that time, with a great and very 
 core lamentation. And they continued their mourn- 
 ing in this way for seven days. 
 
 The Canaanites, who lived in the neighborhood, 
 and who witnessed this striking scene, said, this is 
 a grievous mourning to the Egyptia7is ; and they 
 afterward called the place Abel-mizraim, which 
 means, the place of the Egyptians. 
 
 From this place the procession moved on till it 
 came to Hebron ; and there, in the cave of Machpe- 
 lah, by the side of Abraham and Isaac, of Sarah, 
 Rebekah, and Leah, the remains of Jacob were laid, 
 (as he had solemnly enjoined it upon them to do,) 
 by his own children. 
 
 This last sad office of respect being performed to 
 the memory of their deceased parent, Joseph and his 
 brethren, with those who accompanied them, re- 
 turned to Egypt. 
 
 Now that their father was gone, the brethren of 
 Joseph began to fear that he would no longer have 
 any inducement to treat them with kindness. They 
 did not understand his true character : that he was 
 a man who feared God, and had a benevolent and 
 forgiving spirit. They supposed that he still remem- 
 bered their former cruel and wicked treatment of 
 him with feelings of indignation. They thought 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 171 
 
 that he had restrained these feelings, and kept 
 them concealed, and conducted toward them as 
 he had done, merely out of respect to their father, 
 and because he did not wish to imbitter his de- 
 clining days with the sight of contention among 
 his children. 
 
 Now this restraint upon Joseph's feelings no 
 longer existed. Their protector was gone. There 
 was no one to interpose between them and their 
 offended brother, and they trembled at the expecta- 
 tion of his vengeance. 
 
 You see in this, rny dear children, one more 
 striking evidence of the wretchedness that sin 
 produces. 
 
 Joseph's brethren had still a distinct and vivid 
 recollection of their former guilt. How often, as 
 they saw him from time to time, had the scenes 
 which took place at Dothan risen up before them, 
 and filled them with self-reproach and alarm ! 
 
 They saw him clad in the splendid robes of his 
 office ; but they thought only of his beautiful coat 
 which they had dipped in blood, and with which 
 they had practised such a cruel deception on their 
 distressed father. 
 
 They saw him seated in power and dignity, or 
 riding in his splendid chariot ; but their imagina- 
 tion drew a more striking picture of the pit in 
 
172 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 which they cast him, and of the Ishmaelites, to 
 whom they sold him as a slave. 
 
 So it is that past sins will rise up before the 
 mind, and rouse conscience to inflict its severest 
 tortures upon the guilty breast. 
 
 And conscience will make the sinner feel how 
 justly he deserves to be punished. 
 
 This it was that made the brethren of Joseph so 
 apprehensive that he would inflict the severest pu- 
 nishment upon them. They knew that they deserv- 
 ed it, and that, if all that they had done to their bro- 
 ther were known, the Egyptians, and every one else, 
 would think that they ought not to be permitted to 
 escape from justice. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 The brethren of Joseph implore his forgiveness. He is very 
 kind to them, and allays all their fears. Their obligations 
 of gratitude to him, and to God. Has the reader done 
 wrong to others 7 How does he feel about it ? 
 
 IN order, if possible, to avert the anger of Joseph, 
 his brethren resolved to make a strong appeal to his 
 feelings. They knew the great love which he had 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 173 
 
 always shown toward his father, and the affection- 
 ate respect with which he cherished his memory. 
 
 They sent, therefore, a messenger to Joseph ; fear- 
 ing to go themselves, lest it should be more likely to 
 rouse the displeasure of their brother against them. 
 Perhaps, too, the person whom they requested to go 
 in their behalf, had influence with Joseph, on ac- 
 count of the worth and respectability of his charac- 
 ter, and would be able to procure the entire forgive- 
 ness of their evil conduct. 
 
 But they relied principally on the nature of the 
 message. For they instructed the person whom they 
 sent, to say to Joseph : " Thy father did command, be- 
 fore he died, saying, so shall ye say unto Joseph, 
 Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy breth- 
 ren, and their sin ; for they did unto thee evil. 
 
 " And now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of 
 the servants of the God of thy father." 
 
 It was an appeal to the tender feelings of a son ; 
 of a son who had ever most dutifully obeyed the 
 commands, and complied with the requests of a father, 
 to whom his attachment had been devoted and 
 constant ! 
 
 It was an appeal to the piety of a friend of God, 
 of the God of his ancestors, of the God of his father, 
 of the God in whom his brethren professed to trust, 
 and whose servants they claimed to be. 
 L J. " 15* 
 
174 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 As children of the same father; as worshippers of 
 the same God ; as partakers with him of the bless- 
 ings of the promises which had been made to Abra- 
 ham, Isaac, and Jacob ; they besought him to forgive 
 them. 
 
 Joseph had too many kind and generous feelings ; 
 he was too much above what was mean or revenge- 
 ful : he felt too strongly his obligations to God for 
 all his goodness ; he cherished too deeply the spirit 
 of benevolence toward his fellow-men ; and he was 
 too sensible of his own imperfections and sins, to re- 
 sist this appeal. 
 
 It awakened all the better emotions of his heart. 
 It revived the most grateful recollections of his fa- 
 ther. It enkindled his warmest piety toward God. 
 He was overcome by it, and melted into tears. 
 
 It is probable that he very soon sent for his 
 brethren. For we are told they went to see him, 
 and bowed themselves down, as they had formerly 
 done, in his presence. 
 
 And they said, Behold, we be thy servants. 
 
 And Joseph said unto them, Fear not : for am I 
 in the place of God ? as if he had said, " I am but 
 a man like yourselves. Why do you thus stand in 
 awe of me and my displeasure ? It is God who is the 
 judge of your conduct. It is to him that you are ac- 
 countable for what you have done, It is against him 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 175 
 
 chat you have sinned. Humble yourselves before 
 his presence. With deep repentance implore his for- 
 giveness. So far as I am concerned, let all your ap* 
 prehensions cease." 
 
 " Ye thought evil against me ; but God meant it 
 unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save 
 much people alive. Now, therefore, fear ye not : I 
 will nourish you and your little ones. And he com- 
 forted them, and spake kindly unto them." 
 
 What a relief this must have been to their minds ! 
 What an impression it must have made on their 
 hearts, if they had any such feelings as they ought 
 to have had ! 
 
 Under such affecting circumstances, how they 
 were called upon to exercise gratitude toward their 
 brother, for his generous and kind conduct ; and a 
 still livelier gratitude toward God, for his great for- 
 bearance and long suffering. For it was the gra- 
 cious course of his providence which had over-ruled 
 their wicked designs, and brought out of them so 
 much good to Joseph, the object of their hatred, to 
 their father, and even to themselves and families. 
 
 My dear children, have you ever been placed in 
 similar circumstances ? Have you ever done wrong 
 toward some one ; and afterward had great re- 
 proach of conscience : and feared lest God would, in 
 some way or other, punish you for your guilt ? 
 
176 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 And has it happened that you have been obliged 
 to acknowledge your guilt; and that the person 
 whom you offended has freely forgiven you ; and 
 that, thus far, you have not met with the punish- 
 ment which, you know, your evil conduct de- 
 serves ? 
 
 It is. very probable that all this has happened to 
 some of you ; and how have you felt under such cir- 
 cumstances ? 
 
 Have you felt humbled before God for the sin com- 
 mitted against him ? For, in doing wrong to any of 
 your fellow-men, you break the commands, and des- 
 pise the authority of God. He forbids you to do 
 wrong. He requires of you always to do right. He 
 enjoins it upon you to love your neighbor as you do 
 yourself, as well as to love Him with your whole 
 soul, and strength, and mind. 
 
 Have you felt truly sorry for the wrong done to the 
 individual, and asked his forgiveness, from the heart, 
 intending to feel and conduct toward him as you 
 ought to do ? 
 
 Have you felt thankful to God that you were spar- 
 ed the punishment which you so justly deserved ; and 
 to the individual, for having assured you of his for- 
 giveness and future friendship ? 
 
 Have you resolved, that with the grace of God, 
 through Jesus Christ, assisting you, you will do no 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 177 
 
 such evil thing again, and that you will strive 
 against all sin ? 
 
 If you will stop a little, and think seriously, and 
 /ask yourself the above questions, you will learn 
 something about the real state of your heart. 
 
 You will be in the way of finding out (while you 
 know very well how the brethren of Joseph ought 
 to have felt) whether you have felt as you ought to 
 have done. 
 
 Let your conscience speak. If your heart con- 
 demns you, remember that " God is greater than 
 your heart, and knoweth all things." 
 
 " He that covereth his sins shall not prosper : but 
 whoso confessed! and forsaketh them, shall hava 
 mercy." 
 
178 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 Joseph near to death. He makes his brethren swear that his 
 body shall be buried in. Canaan ; whither, he assures them, 
 the Israelites shall go. He dies, and his body is embalm- 
 ed. Why did he direct his body to be kept in Egypt till 
 the Israelites should go to Canaan 1 Wonderful Prov'- 
 denee of God. 
 
 THE brethren of Joseph returned to their families 
 in Goshen, where they continued to reside. They 
 increased greatly in numbers, and were prosperous 
 in their business, under the protection of the king of 
 Egypt, and the fostering care of their kind brother. 
 
 Joseph, in the meanwhile, as we have every rea- 
 son to suppose, continued to enjoy the favor of Pha- 
 raoh, and of the kings who succeeded him, and to 
 hold his office as governor of Egypt, ruling the 
 people mildly and justly, and esteemed by the whole 
 nation. 
 
 He lived to see the children of Ephraim and Ma- 
 nasseh, in whose education he took a lively interest, 
 and whom he treated with great affection. 
 
 At length the advances of age reminded him that 
 the time of his departure was not far distant. His 
 feebleness increased. He gathered his brethren 
 around him, and told them that he was about to die. 
 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 179 
 
 He spoke to them of the promises of God to their fa- 
 thers, to themselves, and to their descendants. 
 
 " God will surely visit you," said h?, " and bring 
 you out of this land unto the land which he sware 
 to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob*" 
 
 He knew how important it was foi the Israelites, 
 thus to keep their return to Canaan distinctly in 
 view, as the great object of their hopes. 
 
 For otherwise they would consider Egypt as their 
 permanent home, and be in danger of mingling with 
 the inhabitants, of falling into their idolatrous prac- 
 tices, and of forgetting the worship of the true God. 
 
 Joseph took an oath, also, of his brethren, (as his 
 father Jacob had done of him,) that they would carry 
 his body up with them, whenever they should return 
 to the land of Canaan. 
 
 We are not told what other directions or counsel 
 he gave them in his last moments. He soon could 
 speak no longer ; and he died in the one hundred 
 and tenth year of his age. 
 
 His body was embalmed, and kept in a coffin in 
 Egypt until the Israelites left that country. It was 
 then carried with them into Canaan, and buried in. 
 Shechem, in the parcel of ground which Jacob bought 
 of the sons of Hamor ; and which he gave as an 
 inheritance to the children of Joseph. 
 
 It is not improbable that Joseph had a particular 
 
180 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 design in thus directing that his body should be 
 kept in Egypt, until the return of the Israelites to 
 the land of their fathers. His remains would be 
 held by them in great reverence. The place in 
 which they were deposited would often be visited 
 by them, and by their children, and their children's 
 children. For it was nearly one hundred and fifty 
 years after the death of Joseph, before the descend- 
 ants of Jacob were led out of Egypt by Moses, and 
 went to Canaan. 
 
 The spot would be dear to them ; a sacred spot ; 
 one that would keep alive their grateful recollec- 
 tions, both of Joseph and of his venerable father. 
 It would constantly remind them of their being but 
 strangers in Egypt ; of the promises of God to 
 give them a better country ; and of their solemn 
 duty (as soon as Providence should open the way) 
 to carry back with them the body of Joseph. They 
 would recollect, too, the affecting circumstances un- 
 der which Joseph had enjoined the performance of 
 this duty upon his brethren. It was in his dying 
 moments ; and they had bound themselves, in the 
 presence of the Almighty, and under the solemni- 
 ties of an oath, to see that his directions were faith- 
 fully obeyed. 
 
 Though dead, he would yet speak to them ; and 
 from year to year the monitory voice would be 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 181 
 
 heard : God will surely visit you, and bring you 
 out of this land unto the land which he sware to 
 Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. God will surely 
 visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence. 
 
 How wonderful are the Avays in which the pro- 
 vidence of God brings about his wise and holy pur- 
 poses ! He employed Joseph, during his life, to de- 
 liver from famine that peculiar people, who were to 
 preserve the knowledge and the worship of the true 
 God ; and fiom whom, in after ages, was to come 
 forth a mightier deliverer, Jesus, the Savior of the 
 world. 
 
 He employed Joseph, at his death, as one of the 
 means of strengthening the faith of the Israelites in 
 the promise made to their fathers ; arid of keeping 
 alive among them the desire of returning to that 
 land where they were still to be a peculiar people; 
 to that land where Christ was to be born, and 
 suffer, and die ; to that land from which the glad 
 news of salvation was to be proclaimed to all the 
 inhabitants of the earth. 
 
 The singular dreams which Joseph had when he 
 was quite a youth, and which were produced by the 
 influence of God upon his mind, prepared him in 
 some measure for the wonderful dealings of Provi- 
 dence with him. He felt that he was to have an im- 
 portant part to act, though he could not tell what it 
 
 L. j. 16 
 
182 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 would be. This served, no doubt, to elevate his 
 views, and to fit him for the high station in which 
 he was to be placed. 
 
 The fulfillment of his dreams, too, must have ad- 
 ded great strength to his faith in God. At onetime, 
 he saw his brethren bowing down before him in 
 acknowledgment of his superiority and of their 
 dependence. At another, he received such gifts 
 from his father as showed that Jacob and his family 
 intended to treat him with the respect due to his 
 high rank and power. In presenting these gifts, his 
 brethren again bowed down before him ; and in re- 
 ply to his inquiry concerning their father, they 
 spoke of Jacob as the servant of Joseph, and bowed 
 down before him, as if by this name and act of 
 obeisance to show the reverence which the whole, 
 family had for the governor of Egypt. 
 
 At length he saw his father, and his brethren, 
 and their families, settled in the kingdom over 
 which he was exercising the authority of a ruler. 
 They were, in fact, the subjects of his government ; 
 nourished by his bounty, and protected by his 
 power. 
 
 The sheaves of his brethren had, indeed, bowed 
 down before his sheaf; and the sun, moon, and 
 eleven stars had made obeisance to him. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 183 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 The character of Joseph. His strong faith in God. This 
 the foundation of all real excellence of character. Has 
 the reader this faith in God 1 
 
 GOD, as we have seen, had a great work for 
 Joseph to do ; and when it was accomplished, he 
 took this faithful servant to himself. 
 
 He is now, we have every reason to believe, with 
 Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the redeemed 
 of the Lord ; and while his bones are reposing in the 
 land that was promised to his fathers, his spirit is 
 enjoying the bliss and the glory of that better land 
 of promise, the Canaan of eternal rest. 
 
 It is to that heavenly inheritance, my dear chil- 
 dren, that it has been my great object to direct your 
 attention and excite your hopes, while I have been 
 writing this history of Joseph. And before I con- 
 clude, I would lead you, under the blessing of God, 
 to think yet more of the necessity of being prepar- 
 'ed, when your work on earth is done, to enter into 
 the rest of heaven, and be for ever with the Lord. 
 
 The remains of Joseph, while in Egypt, kindled 
 up the desires of his kindred to go to the land of 
 their fathers. 
 
 May the memory of his character, embalmed in 
 
184 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 your hearts, awaken within you a still stronger de- 
 sire to go where he now is to that heavenly country, 
 of which Canaan was but a very faint and imperfect 
 resemblance. 
 
 Let us for a little while attend to some of the 
 more striking traits of his character. And as we go 
 along, consider how worthy they are of your imita- 
 tion, and whether you do in any degree possess 
 them. 
 
 Joseph had a strong faith in God. He did not see 
 God with his bodily eyes, but he believed in his ex- 
 istence, and that he was a Being of infinite power, 
 wisdom, justice, goodness, and truth. 
 
 He believed that God had made communications, 
 at various times, to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob; 
 and that what his father taught him of these com- 
 munications was true. He believed that the promises 
 which God had made to his ancestors, and to him- 
 self, and their descendants, would all be exactly ful- 
 filled. 
 
 He believed that he w r as accountable to God for 
 all his thoughts, and feelings, and conduct ; and that, 
 in the future world, God will receive to heaven 
 those only who love and obey him, and banish, for 
 ever, the wicked from his presence. 
 
 It is not impossible that he had some knowledge 
 of Christ, and looked forward to this coming Savior, 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 185 
 
 as his Savior and hope. For Abraham saw the day 
 of Jesus Christ, and was glad; and it cannot be 
 doubted that he communicated this knowledge to 
 his children, and they to theirs ; and that thus Jacob 
 and his family were in possession of it. 
 
 In the eleventh chapter of St. Paul's Epistle to the 
 Hebrews, you will find that Joseph is numbered 
 among those who were distinguished for their faith 
 in God, and in his promises. 
 
 ' % By faith" it is said, " Joseph, when he died, 
 made mention of the departing of the children of 
 Israel ; and gave commandment concerning his 
 bones." 
 
 He did ihis only because he had an unshaken 
 confidence in the promise of God, that the Israelites 
 should return to Canaan, and enjoy that delightful 
 country as their own. 
 
 But if he had such a confidence in that promise 
 of God to the Israelites, as to feel sure of its fulfill- 
 ment, and to act accordingly ; he had the same con- 
 fidence in all the promises and declarations of God, 
 and acted as if he believed that they also would 
 receive their complete fulfillment. 
 
 This living and active faith was the foundation 
 of all that was excellent in his character, of all his 
 thoughts, and feelings, and conduct, which were 
 right, and in accordance with the will of God. 
 
 t, j. 16* 
 
186 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 Just as the strong and heavy stones, which are 
 laid deep in the ground, and put firmly together, 
 and on which the whole house is built and rests, 
 form the foundation of the house. 
 
 The builders know this very well, and that, if 
 they design to have the house stand, they must lay 
 a strong and solid foundation. 
 
 Faith in God is the foundation of all real excel- 
 lence of character. Without it, there may be an ap- 
 pearance of goodness, an outward propriety of con- 
 duct, but no right feelings in the heart. 
 
 Unless a child believes that his father is a good 
 and just parent, that he governs his family well, and 
 wishes to do all to make them good and happy, and 
 that his commands are right ; unless he believes 
 that the threatenings of this parent will be executed, 
 and his promises fulfilled; unless he thus has faith 
 in the parent, he will have no true love and obedi- 
 ence to him. He may do things outwardly that look 
 like love and obedience, but there will be no corres- 
 ponding feelings in his heart. He will have no right 
 to the character of a dutiful and affectionate child. 
 
 In 'the same way, unless, like Joseph, you have a 
 strong and active faith in God, your Heavenly Fa- 
 ther, you can have no true love and obedience to 
 him ; you can have no right thoughts, and feelings, 
 and conduct ; you can have no true excellence of 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH, 187 
 
 character ; you cannot be prepared to go to heaven 
 when you die. 
 
 Have you this faith in God ? Do you believe all 
 that he has taught you in the Bible, all his com- 
 mands, and promises, and threatenings ? 
 
 If Joseph had believed only the one promise of 
 God, that the Israelites should return to Canaan, 
 this would have been wholly insufficient to lead him 
 to do as we have seen that he did, and to become a 
 truly good man, and to be prepared to go to the 
 heavenly Canaan. 
 
 If you believe all that God has taught you in the 
 Bible, then you believe that unless you truly repent 
 of your sins, and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ; 
 and show your faith to be sincere, by obeying the 
 commands of God, you cannot be saved. 
 
 Do you indeed believe these truths ; do you 
 feel them; do you practise them ? 
 
188 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 Joseph's affection and dutifulness to his father. These 
 traits of character, if real and permanent, must grow out 
 of faith in God. How does the reader treat his parents 1 
 Joseph was kind and affectionate to his brethren. 
 Faith in God and Christ produces love to others. Has 
 the reader this love 7 
 
 ONE consequence of Joseph's faith in God, was 
 his striking affection and dutifulness to his verier a- 
 ble parent ; and this was another conspicuous trait 
 in his character. 
 
 I know that some children, who have a pleasant 
 and amiahle disposition, and yet have no such faith 
 in God as Joseph had, show a good deal of affection 
 and dutifulness toward their parents. 
 
 But do they do this at all times ? Do they do it 
 where the parents are the friends of God, as Jacob 
 was, and instruct their children what his commands 
 are, and require them to obey these commands ? 
 
 Ah ! this makes a great difference. There are 
 parents who have no faith in God themselves, and 
 no trust in Christ; and who live and act as if there 
 were no heaven and no hell; and who consider this 
 world as their home ; and bring up their children to 
 
HISTORY OF 
 
 feel and to act as they do. Now it is not strange 
 that such children should love such parents, and 
 sometimes be very affectionate and dutiful to them ; 
 though this is very far from always being the case. 
 
 But let parents be like Jacob. Let them fear and 
 obey God, and strive to bring up their children in 
 his fear ; and then it will often happen that these 
 children will have no true and lasting affection and 
 dutiful ness to such parents, unless they have also, 
 as Joseph had, a strong and active faith in God. 
 
 It is the duty of children to love and obey their 
 parents as well in their absence as when they are 
 present ; as well in little things as in great ; as 
 well, when to obey may be attended with inconveni- 
 ence, or self-denial, or even suffering, as when it is 
 pleasant and agreeable; as well, with regard to 
 what relates to God and the Savior, to the soul, and 
 to the future world, as with regard to the things of 
 this life. 
 
 Children, too, must hold out in their affection and 
 dutifulness to their parents. These must be perma- 
 nent traits of character. They must last through 
 life. They must lead the child at all times, and under 
 all circumstances ; in adversity as well as in pros- 
 perity, in sickness as well as in health, and especial- 
 ly amid the infirmities and feebleness of declining 
 
190 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 years, to do all he possibly can to make his parents 
 comfortable and happy. 
 
 Now, if these parents have any true love to God, 
 how anxious they must feel to see their children 
 also the friends of God and of the Redeemer ! 
 How unhappy they must feel to see them living in 
 impenitence and sin ! 
 
 Children, then, to make pious parents happy, 
 must be pious themselves. And how often it is the 
 case, that parents who have no love to God them- 
 selves, and no faith in Jesus Christ, still would be 
 glad to see their children among the number of his 
 followers. For their conscience tells them that this 
 is the only true good. 
 
 Compare what I have been saying with your 
 own feelings and conduct, and tell me if it is not 
 all true. Yes, it is true. And you cannot be a truly 
 affectionate and dutiful child, so as to have that love 
 to your parents, and perform those duties toward 
 them which God requires, unless you have faith in 
 God, such faith as Joseph had, and which I have 
 described. 
 
 If you love and obey your parents, in any good 
 degree, as you ought, it is because you have faith 
 in God and in Christ ; and your constant prayer 
 should be, that your faith may be increased ; that it 
 may be, like Joseph's, a vigorous and active faith ; 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 191 
 
 and that it may lead you to be still more affection- 
 ate, and still more dutiful, to those who have done so 
 much for you. 
 
 And if any of you, my dear children, are disobe- 
 dient and undutiful to your parents, which there is 
 reason to fear may be the case, think of the great 
 sinfulness of such conduct. It is not only base and 
 ungrateful in the sight of men. but it is peculiarly 
 hateful in the sight of God. It is a direct violation 
 of one of his commandments. It will, if persisted 
 in, and not repented of, draw down upon you the 
 most terrible expressions of his displeasure. 
 
 It shows that you have no true faith in God, no 
 love toward him, no desire to do his will. 
 
 Can you dare to remain any longer in this 
 state ? 
 
 Joseph's faith in God produced another striking 
 trait in his character kind and affectionate feelings 
 toward his brethren, and a desire to do those good 
 who had done him much evil. 
 
 Nothing but that faith in God and the Redeemer 
 which leads us to believe all that the Bible teaches 
 us concerning the character of God and of Christ, 
 and to love them, and to desire to be like them ; 
 nothing but such a faith can produce in the heart 
 any true love to our fellow-men. And, on the other 
 hand, if we truly love our fellow-men, and desire to 
 
192 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 promote their best good, both in this world and the 
 next, it is one of the best evidences we can have 
 that we truly love God. 
 
 Are you like Joseph in this respect ? Do you 
 feel and conduct toward your brothers and sisters 
 as he did toward his brethren 1 Do you try to do 
 them all the good in your power ? Do you try to do 
 their souls good ? Do you kindly advise them, if 
 you see them doing wrong? Do you set them a 
 good example in your own conversation and con- 
 duct ? Do you pray that you may be enabled to do 
 this ? Do you pray for them, that God would give 
 them his Holy Spirit and make them the followers 
 of Christ ? Are you patient and meek if they say or 
 do any thing to irritate or injure you ? Do you feel 
 no resentment or revenge toward them ? Do you 
 forgive them, and return good for their evil? Do 
 you pray to God to forgive them, and to lead them 
 to better feelings and conduct ? 
 
 Without such feelings and conduct toward your 
 brothers and sisters, you show that you have no 
 true love to your fellow-men, and that you have no 
 true love to God. 
 
 You show that you are quite unlike Joseph ; that 
 you are quite unlike the pure and holy beings with 
 whom he is now so happy in loving and serving 
 God ; and that, continuing as you are, you are 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 193 
 
 wholly unfit to go to that world where all is love, 
 and peace, and joy. 
 
 Into that Avorld none can be admitted whose sins 
 are not forgiven through the blood of Christ. And 
 he himself has declared, that if you forgive not 
 others, you can have no hope of forgiveness from 
 God. 
 
 " If a man say, I love God, and hateth his bro- 
 ther, he is a liar ; for he that loveth not his bro- 
 ther whom he hath seen, how can he love God 
 whom he hath not seen ? 
 
 " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy 
 heart, and soul, and strength, and mind, and thy 
 neighbor as thyself." 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVII. 
 
 Joseph's fidelity in the discharge of his duties. Instances 
 of it. It grew out of his faith in God. Has the reader 
 the same fidelity, growing out of the same faith 7 
 
 JOSEPH had a vigorous and active faith in God. 
 He believed that the eye of God was upon him at 
 all times ; and this led him to great fidelity in the 
 
 L. j. 17 
 
194 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 discharge of his duties toward those who employed 
 him. 
 
 This trait of his character shone forth in all the 
 situations in which he was placed. 
 
 He felt it to be a duty that he owed to his father, 
 to tell him of the wicked conduct of some of his 
 brethren, and he did not fear to discharge his duty. 
 
 He faithfully obeyed his father in going first to 
 Shechem, and afterward to Dothan, to see his breth- 
 ren, notwithstanding he must certainly have had 
 some reason to fear their resentment. 
 
 He was so faithful while a servant, or rather 
 slave, in the house of Potiphar, that he was intrust- 
 ed by the latter with the charge of all his domestic 
 concerns. 
 
 While a prisoner, his conduct in small things was 
 such his faithfulness in complying with all the re- 
 gulations and commands of the keeper that he was 
 intrusted with the care of the other prisoners, and 
 with the management of the whole prison. And 
 doubtless, in this difficult and responsible situation, 
 he showed equal fidelity in the discharge of his 
 duties. 
 
 All this was strengthening his habits, and forming 
 his character, and preparing him to be able to dis- 
 charge still more arduous duties with still greater 
 fidelity and success. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 195 
 
 No doubt Pharaoh had heard of his conduct while 
 with. Potiphar, and in the prison, and he knew that 
 such a man could be trusted. 
 
 He elevated Joseph near to the throne, and made 
 him governor of Egypt. 
 
 In that arduous and laborious station, and in the 
 midst of the most trying circumstances, you have 
 seen with what fidelity he performed his duty. How 
 exactly he carried into effect all the wishes of the 
 king for the relief of the Egyptians, and how faith- 
 fully he fulfilled all his own promises to his father 
 and to his brethren. 
 
 He looked to God, indeed, for his Holy Spirit, that 
 he might be thus faithful. He knew that every good 
 thought, and feeling, and purpose, must come from 
 above. Under all circumstances, he felt the need of 
 divine wisdom, grace, and strength. He prayed for 
 them. And he was a man of prayer, because he was 
 a man of faith. See what it is to be a truly good 
 man. Such an one is faithful in the discharge of all 
 his duties to his fellow-men, as well as those which 
 he owes more directly to God. 
 
 He is faithful in small things as well as in great. 
 He is faithful when removed from the sight of his 
 fellow-men, as well as when in their presence. He 
 is faithful as well in adversity as in prosperity ; as 
 well when he meets with injustice and oppression, 
 
196 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 as when he receives approbation and his due re- 
 ward. 
 
 Such was the faithfulness of Joseph. Is such your 
 faithfulness to your parents, to your instructors, to 
 your employers, to all to whom you have made any 
 promises, or toward whom you have any duties to 
 perform. 
 
 Without such faithfulness, in small things, too, as 
 well as great, your character will be exceedingly 
 defective, even in the opinion of your fellow-men. 
 
 You will fail of securing their confidence. They 
 will not trust you with any business of importance. 
 You will find it very difficult, if not impossible, to 
 succeed in what you undertake. 
 
 But what is worse, your conscience will condemn 
 you. You will feel that you have done wrong to 
 others, that you have not done to them as you would 
 have them do to you, and that you are unworthy of 
 their confidence and esteem. 
 
 You will lose, too, the favor of God. He sees 
 all who are unfaithful, at all times, and in all places. 
 You cannot escape his notice. You will have to 
 render to him a strict account for all your want of 
 fidelity in the discharge of the duties which you owe 
 to your fellow-men. 
 
 Pray ; strive that you may be kept from such guilt 
 and folly. Pray for faith in God, for a deep and 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 197 
 
 constant feeling that his eye is always upon you, and 
 for a willingness and courage to be faithful in the 
 discharge of your duties, and the fulfillment of your 
 promises to your fellow-men ; because it is his will 
 that you should thus show your love to kirn, and obedi- 
 ence to his commands. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVIII. 
 
 Joseph's resolution in resisting temptation. It grew out of 
 his faith in God. The reader has his temptations. How 
 to get strength to overcome them. Joseph's dependence 
 on God, and submission to his will. These grew out of 
 his faith in God. Has the reader this dependence and 
 submission 1 
 
 WE have seen in one event of Joseph's life, how 
 his faith in God enabled him to resist and overcome 
 a temptation to very great wickedness. From his 
 conduct at that time, we have reason to conclude 
 that the strength of his obedience to the commands of 
 God, and his fear of sinning against him, when ex- 
 posed to powerful temptation, was another striking 
 trait in his character. 
 
 That he was often exposed to such temptations, 
 
 there can be no doubt. Living in the midst of an 
 L. j. 17* 
 
198 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 idolatrous and wicked people, and, during the prin- 
 cipal part of his life, with kings, and those who were 
 abundant in wealth and high in rank, he must have 
 had many inducements of pleasure, and allurements 
 of sin, to draw him aside from the love and service 
 of God. 
 
 His whole character, as it appears in the history 
 to which we have been attending, and especially in 
 the latter part of it, shows that he must have resisted 
 many temptations, and manifested his devotedness of 
 heart and life to the God of his fathers. 
 
 Temptations are not confined to the rich and pow- 
 erful. No station or age is free from them. 
 
 You have your peculiar temptations. Some com- 
 panion invites you to go to places, or to do things, 
 which you know to be wrong, and often highly of- 
 fensive to God. Or, some alluring object is present- 
 ed to you, in pursuing and attaining which you 
 are sensible that you will be led to forget God, and 
 your duty toward him. 
 
 Now, under such circumstances, what has been 
 your conduct ? Have you yielded to such tempta- 
 tions, or have you, like Joseph, resisted and over- 
 come them ? 
 
 The oftener you yield, the less and the less will be 
 your power of resistance. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 199 
 
 The oftener you overcome, the easier will be each 
 future struggle and victory. 
 
 But to resist and to overcome temptation, you 
 must have, as Joseph had, a vigorous and active 
 faith in God. You must feel that he is near you, 
 noticing all that you say and do, and looking into 
 your inmost thoughts. You must feel, that it is 
 great guilt and folly to offend so good and just a 
 Being, that his displeasure is to be dreaded as the 
 worst of evils, and the preservation of his favor as 
 the only true happiness. 
 
 How can I do this great wickedness and sin 
 against God ! was the pious exclamation of Joseph, 
 when exposed to temptation. 
 
 Let it be yours, when you are tempted. It is your 
 only safety. Without it, and without that faith in 
 God from which it proceeds, you are in the midst 
 of dangers, in this wicked and ensnaring world, 
 which you may little suspect or fear, but which may 
 prove your ruin, both in this life and that which is 
 to come. 
 
 Go to Christ. Trust in him. Pray, in his name, 
 for strength from above to resist temptation, and it 
 shall be given you; and you shall triumph over the 
 enemies of your souK 
 
 Neglect to do this, and you will yield to on 3 
 temptation after another, till you become tkt 'lave 
 
200 HISTORY OF JOSEPH, 
 
 of sin, with no hope of escape from its dreadful 
 bondage. 
 
 Another trait in the character of Joseph, and inti- 
 mately connected with the one which we have been 
 considering, was his feeling of dependence on God, 
 and submission to his will. 
 
 This too, like all his other good traits of charac- 
 ter, grew out of his faith in God. This faith led him 
 to have a deep and abiding conviction of the provi- 
 dence of God, extending to all events, the most mi- 
 nute as well as the greatest. 
 
 He felt that he was continually under the care 
 and direction of this providence of God, and that, 
 without it guiding and sustaining him, he could of 
 himself do nothing. 
 
 This feeling of dependence on God produced, in 
 the mind of Joseph, submission to the will of God. 
 
 He felt that God had a right to do with him as 
 he deemed best ; and we find that, in the most try- 
 ing and distressing circumstances, Joseph had a pa- 
 tient and uncomplaining spirit. 
 
 Have you this feeling of dependence on God, and 
 submission to his will 1 
 
 Ah ! how prone you are to rely on your own 
 strength, and to feel as if every thing must yield to 
 your will ! 
 
 " You can do this, and you can do that," you say 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 201 
 
 * you know you can. You are not afraid of falling 
 .nto such and such disgraceful and wicked conduct." 
 
 And then, how often your will has resisted the 
 will of your parents, and of others whom God has 
 commanded you to obey ; while in this, and in vari- 
 ous other ways, you have resisted the will of God 
 himself. 
 
 How many times, too, you have shown a fretful, 
 murmuring and complaining spirit ; discontented 
 with what your parents and friends thought best for 
 you, and dissatisfied with the dealings of God's pro- 
 vidence toward you. 
 
 Has it not been so in too many instances ? And 
 does it not all show how much you need to humble 
 yourself before God ; to repent of these and all your 
 other sins ; to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for for- 
 giveness, and acceptance with God; and to pray 
 earnestly for the Holy Spirit, that you may be led to 
 feel your dependence on God, and to have an entire 
 submission to his will. 
 
202 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIX. 
 
 Joseph's humility. Proofs of it. Humility in good men 
 grows out of their faith in God. Has the reader this hu- 
 mility 1 Without it we can have no interest in Christ. 
 
 Humility I think deserves to be noticed as a trait 
 in the character of Joseph. It is not so striking, per- 
 haps, as some others, and yet it would seem that he 
 possessed it in no inconsiderable degree. 
 
 If he had been a proud person, and inclined to 
 think highly of himself, there was much in his ele- 
 vation to the entire charge of Potiphar's domestic 
 concerns to awaken such feelings within his breast. 
 
 And if he had been thus puffed up by his eleva- 
 tion, is it at all probable that he would have had 
 such faith in God, such a fear of sinning against 
 him, and such strength to overcome a powerful temp- 
 tation ? 
 
 " God resisteth the proud, but givcth grace to 
 the humble" Would Joseph have had this grace 
 given to him, if he had not been humble ? 
 
 There was much in the circumstances attending 
 his being brought before Pharaoh to excite his 
 pride, if he had not been, on the whole, and habitu- 
 ally, a person of humility. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 203 
 
 The wise men of Egypt, many in number, and 
 greatly respected both by the king and people, in 
 vain attempted to interpret his dreams. Joseph, a 
 young man, was sent for, and requested to do what 
 all these wise men had confessed was far beyond 
 their skill. 
 
 Pharaoh addressed him, as if he thought Joseph 
 himself had the power of making the interpretation. 
 
 What a strong temptation to conceal the truth, 
 and to excite toward himself the admiration and re- 
 spect of the Egyptian monarch, and his whole cir- 
 cle of wise men, and officers, and men of high rank 
 around him ! But Joseph's faith in God was vigo- 
 rous and active at the time. He knew that all his 
 skill to interpret dreams came from above; and 
 with a becoming modesty, and true humility of cha- 
 racter, he said, "It is not in me : God shall give 
 Pharaoh an answer of peace.' 1 
 
 In his subsequent very high exaltation to be go- 
 vernor of Egypt, and in all his deportment toward 
 his brethren and father, and treatment of them, there 
 is nothing that looks like boasting or pride. On the 
 contrary, his kind and forgiving spirit ; the great af- 
 fection and respect which he manifested toward his 
 aged parent ; his always referring his elevation to 
 the providence of God ; and the memorable words 
 with which he endeavored to allay the fears of his 
 
204 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 brethren, when they dreaded his just resentment, 
 "Fear not; for am I in the place of God?" all 
 these things tend to show that he must have had 
 true humility of character. 
 
 And such is the character of all good men, what- 
 ever their possessions, or learning, or rank, or repu- 
 tation may be. 
 
 They are sensible as I have no doubt Joseph 
 was how very little they know, although others 
 may esteem them wise ; and how imperfect and sin- 
 ful they have been, and continue to be, although 
 others may regard them with approbation and es- 
 teem. 
 
 Their faith in God leads them to look up to him 
 as a Being of spotless purity and perfect holiness of 
 character, and to feel very humble in his presence. 
 And when they look round on their fellow-men, 
 should they see any not loving and serving God as 
 they hope they do, or their inferiors in any respect, 
 they ask themselves, who maketh me to differ ? 
 
 They know that they are naturally no better than 
 others; that if there is a difference, the grace of 
 God has made it ; and that, in their intercourse with 
 their fellow-men, they should cultivate a meek and 
 quiet spirit ; remembering, that " before honor is 
 humility," and that " blessed are the poor in spirit, 
 for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 205 
 
 Are you among the number of those who are 
 thus poor in spirit ? Do you know what it is to feel 
 truly humble in the sight of God on account of 
 your great unworthiness ; that you have sinned 
 against him so often, and so much ; and that you 
 have loved and served him so little, or, perhaps, not 
 at all ? 
 
 How do you feel and conduct toward those 
 around you ? Do you feel proud of your appear- 
 ance and dress ; of the family to which you belong ; 
 of your attainments of any kind ; of your prospects 
 in life ; or perhaps, even of your good feelings and 
 conduct ? 
 
 Do you treat others with unkindness or neglect, 
 with haughtiness or contempt? Do you look on 
 any, even the most degraded and worthless, as be- 
 neath your notice ? 
 
 I propose these inquiries, that you may look back 
 upon your past conduct, and look into your present 
 thoughts and feelings, and see whether you have 
 any true humility of spirit. 
 
 Without such humility you can have no interest 
 in Jesus Christ and his salvation. He was himself 
 meek and lowly in heart ; and such must all his 
 followers be. 
 
 Had he not humbled himself, and been willing to 
 leave the glories of his heavenly state, and lead a 
 
 L. j. 18 
 
206 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 life of reproach, and die a death of ignominy, what 
 would have been our condition? Lost, undone, 
 hopeless, we should have perished in our sins if 
 this Savior had not humbled himself to redeem us 
 from sin and hell. 
 
 And shall we not he humbls; ivc, poor, misera- 
 ble sinners, who have so much that ought to make 
 and keep us humble ! We be proud and haughty ! 
 
 What are we what have we to be proud of! 
 
 CHAPTER XL. 
 
 Joseph had general benevolence of character. This grew 
 out of his faith in God. The reader can do good in many 
 ways. Has he a desire to do good 1 Does this desire lead 
 to action. Where there is no such desire and conduct, 
 there is great guilt and danger. 
 
 FROM all that we have seen of the character of 
 Joseph, we must conclude that it was one of general 
 benevolence. 
 
 Faith worketh by love. In other words, a true 
 faith in God always produces in the heart a desire 
 to do good to others ; and this desire is accompanied 
 by corresponding conversation and conduct. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 207 
 
 Such was the faith of Joseph. It led him to exer- 
 cise good-will toward his fellow men, and to en- 
 deavor to do them good. 
 
 We do not find him laying plans for himself 
 alone, so as to promote his own ambitious views. 
 Throughout the whole course of his life, his eleva- 
 tion and power were brought about by the provi- 
 dence of God, and not by his own seeking. 
 
 The general esteem, too, in which he appears to 
 have been held, both by the king and the whole 
 nation, shows the kind and benevolent character of 
 his conduct. Had it been otherwise, the kindred of 
 Joseph would not have been welcomed so cordially 
 by Pharaoh, nor such striking respect been shown 
 to Jacob in the great attendance at his funeral. 
 
 No other than a kind and benevolent ruler would 
 have received such marks of respect and attach- 
 ment from a powerful monarch and his numerous 
 subjects. 
 
 To endeavor to do good to others; this should be 
 the great object of your desires and your efforts. 
 Even young as you are, there are many ways in 
 which you can do this. 
 
 How often, while with your brothers and sisters 
 and companions, you can say something, or do 
 something in a kind manner, that will tend to make 
 them better and happier. 
 
208 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 Are there no poor persons, also, in your neigh- 
 borhood, to whom your parents or friends are will- 
 ing to give something which you can carry to them, 
 and thus get the habit, in your younger days, of re- 
 lieving the wants of the necessitous ? 
 
 Are you. not old enough to earn something by 
 your own labor, that you can give to some one of 
 the benevolent objects in which good people are en- 
 gaged ? 
 
 Have you not opportunities every day (while you 
 feel for the souls of those around you, and pray for 
 them) of saying something to them that, under the 
 blessing of God, may lead them to the Savior, and 
 to imitate his example ? 
 
 Have you a desire thus to do good to others ? If 
 you have, I rejoice greatly, and pray that it may 
 increase, and that you may live to have such bene- 
 volent feelings form the constant state of your soul, 
 and make you more and more like the inhabitants 
 of heaven, and prepare you to be holy and. happy 
 with them, for ever. 
 
 But remember, that if you truly have such a de- 
 sire, it will manifest itself in action in something 
 that you say and do. 
 
 If you are saying and doing nothing to make 
 others better and happier, then it is certain that you 
 have no feelings of benevolence toward them. 
 
HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 209 
 
 For benevolent feelings will lead to benevolent 
 conduct as surely as a good fruit-tree will bear good 
 tiait, or a pure fountain send forth pure water. 
 
 Have you no such benevolent feelings? Have 
 you no desire to make those around you good and 
 happy ? Do you take no interest in the welfare of 
 their immortal souls ? 
 
 Ah ! my dear children, if such is the case with 
 any of you, you are in a state of great guilt and 
 danger. 
 
 God is love. He is perfectly benevolent. He de- 
 lights in doing good. He is incessantly doing good. 
 
 Jesus Christ is perfectly benevolent. Think of 
 what he bas done and suffered to make you and 
 others eternally happy, if you will but trust in him, 
 and imitate his blessed example. 
 
 The inhabitants of heaven are perfectly benevolent. 
 They delight in loving and serving God ; in pro- 
 moting the holiness and happiness of all around 
 them, and in executing any of the commands of God 
 in his designs of benevolence and mercy. 
 
 And you have no such benevolent feelings ! You 
 do nothing to make others better and happier. You 
 think only of yourself, and how you may have this 
 and the other means of enjoyment. You are willing 
 that your parents and friends and others should contri- 
 bute to your happiness, and yet you regard not theirs, 
 
210 HISTORY OF JOSEPH. 
 
 Does not this show that you are very selfish and 
 sinful ? How can God look on you but with displea- 
 sure ? How can he receive you to heaven, unless 
 there is a great change in your feelings and 
 conduct ? 
 
 You need this change, so that love to God and love 
 to your fellow-men may take the place of your pre- 
 sent selfish feelings and conduct. 
 
 But there will be no such change, you will not 
 even begin to feel and act right, till you do two things; 
 till you feel truly sorry for your selfishness and sins, 
 and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ to save you from 
 all sin. Here you must begin. 
 
 Will you begin now, and humbly confess your sin- 
 fulness to God, and look to Christ for salvation, and 
 pray for the Holy Spirit to be shed down upon your 
 soul, that thus a great change, may take place in it ; 
 a change from sin to holiness ; a change from a sel- 
 fish regard to your own happiness, to an ardent love 
 to God and the Savior, and a desire to do all in your 
 power to make others good and happy ? 
 
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