Ver. 7. And Abraham stood up, and bowed himself to the people of the land, even to the children of Heth.

The politeness of Abraham may be seen exemplified among the highest and the lowest of the people of the East: in this respect, nature seems to have done for them, what art has done for others. With what grace do all classes bow on receiving a favour, or in paying their respects to a superior! Sometimes they bow down to the ground; at other times they put their hands on their bosoms, and gently incline the head; they also put the right hand on the face in a longitudinal position; and sometimes give a long and graceful sweep with the right hand, from the forehead to the ground.-ROBERTS.

Ver. 9. That he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he hath, which is in the end of his field: for as much money as it is worth he shall give it me, for a possession of a buryingplace among you.

This is the most ancient example of a family vault or an hereditary sepulchre in a cave. In the southern mountainous part of Palestine, there are many natural caves in the rocks, which may easily be formed into spacious buryingplaces. There are still found in Syria, Palestine, and Egypt, many such sepulchral caves, which have been frequently described by travellers who have visited those countries. These sepulchres are differently contrived. Sometimes they descend; only those which are made in the declivities of the mountains, often go horizontally into the rock. In Egypt, also, there are many open sepulchres, which run horizontally into the rock, but most of the mummy-pits are open perpendicularly, and you must let yourself down through this opening. In Palestine and Syria, on the contrary, the sepulchres which descend, are provided with steps, which are now for the most part covered with heaps of rubbish. Many of them consist in the inside of many chambers which are united by passages; in some of them the back chambers are deeper than the front ones, and you are obliged to descend some more steps to come to them. These chambers, as they are still found, are pretty spacious; in most of them recesses, six or seven feet long, are made in the walls all round, to receive the dead bodies; in others store slabs of the same length are fixed against the walls; sometimes several, one above another, on which the dead bodies were laid; in some few there are stonecoffins, which are provided with a lid. It is nearly in this manner that the arrangement of graves is prescribed in the Talmud; on'v there is always to be an antechamber and recesses made in the walls of the square sepulchres, the number of which may be different.-BURDER.

Ver. 15. My lord, hearken unto me: the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver; what is that betwixt me and thee? bury therefore thy dead.

Respectable people are always saluted with the dignified title, "My lord," hence English gentlemen on their arrival, are apt to suppose they are taken for those of very high rank. The man of whom Abraham offered to purchase Machpelah, affected to give the land. "Nay, my lord, hear me, the field I give thee." And this fully agrees with the conduct of those, who are requested to dispose of a thing to a person of superior rank. Let the latter go and ask the price, and the owner will say, "My lord, it will be a great favour if you will take it." "Ah, let me have that pleasure, my lord." Should the possessor believe he will one day need a favour from the great man, nothing will induce him to sell the article, and he will take good care (through the servants or a friend) it shall soon be in his house. Should he, however, have no expectation of a favour in fiture, he will say as Ephron, "The thing is worth so much; your pleasure, my lord."--ROBERTS.

CHAP. 24. ver. 2. And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all

that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh: 3. And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell.

The present mode of swearing among the Mohammedan Arabs, that live in tents as the patriarchs did, according to de la Roque, is by laying their hands on the Koran. They cause those who swear to wash their hands before they give them the book; they put their feft hand underneath, and the right over it. Whether, among the patriarchs, one hand was under, and the other upon the thigh, is not certain; possibly Abraham's servant might swear with one hand under his master's thigh, and the other stretched out to Heaven. As the posterity of the patriarchs are described as coming out of the thigh, it has been supposed, this ceremony had some relation to their believing the promise of God, to bless all the nations of the earth, by means of one that was to descend from Abraham.-HARMER.

Ver. 11. And he made his camels to kneel down without the city by a well of water, at the time of the evening, even the time that women go out to draw water.

It is the work of females in the East to draw water both morning and evening; and they may be seen going in groups to the wells, with their vessels on the hip or the shoulder. In the morning they talk about the events of the past night, and in the evening about those of the day: many a time would the story of Abraham's servant and Rebecca, the daughter of Bethuel, be repeated by the women of Mesopotamia in their visits to the well.-ROBERTS.

The women among the orientals, are reduced to a state of great subjection. In Barbary they regard the civility and respect which the politer nations of Europe pay to the weaker sex, as extravagance, and so many infringements of that law of nature, which assigns to man the pre-eminence. The matrons of that country, though they are considered indeed as servants of better station, yet have the greatest share of toil and business upon their hands. While the lazy husband reposes under some neighbouring shade, and the young people of both sexes tend the flocks, the wives are occupied all the day long, either in toiling on their looms, or in grinding at the mill, or in preparing bread or other kind of farinaceous food. Nor is this all; for to finish the day, " at the time of evening," to use the words of the sacred historian, "even at the time that women go out to draw water," they must equip themselves with a pitcher or goat's skin, and tying their sucking children behind them, trudge out in this manner, two or three miles, to fetch water.-PAXTON.

Ver. 16. And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin; neither had any man known her and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher and came up.

The vessel that the Eastern women frequently make use of, for the purpose of carrying water, is described as like our jars, and is, it seems, of earth. Bishop Pococke, in his journey from Acre to Nazareth, observed a well, where oxen were drawing up water, from whence women carried water up a hill, in earthen jars, to water some plantations of tobacco. In the next page he mentions the same thing in general, and speaks of their carrying the jars on their heads. There is no reason to suppose this kind of vessel was appropriated to the carrying water for the purposes of agriculture, it might do equally well when Such seems to have they carried it for domestic uses. been the sort of vessels in which the women of ancient times fetched water, for it is called a kad in the history of Rebecca, Gen. xxiv. 14, &c. and I have elsewhere shown, that the word signifies a jar of considerable size, in which they keep their corn, and in which, at least sometimes, they fetched their water.

Since the above was written, I have observed a passage

in Dr. Chandler's Travels in Asia Minor, that confirms Iand illustrates the preceding account: "The women," says the Doctor, resort to the fountains by their houses, each with a large two-handled earthen jar, on the back, or thrown over the shoulder, for water." This account of the jars made use of by the Greek women of the island of Tenedos may, very naturally, be understood to be a modern, but accurate comment on what is said concerning Rebecca's fetching water. The Eastern women, according to Dr. Pococke, sometimes carry their jars upon their heads; but Rebecca's was carried on her shoulder. In such a case, the jar is not to be supposed to have been placed upright on the shoulder, but held by one of the handles, with the hand over the shoulder, and suspended in this manner on the back. Held, I should imagine, by the right hand over the left shoulder. Consequently, when it was to be presented to Abraham's servant, that he might drink out of it, it was to be gently moved over the left arm, and being suspended by one hand, while the other, probably, was placed under the bottom of the jar, it was in that position presented to Abraham's servant, and his attendants, to drink out of. She said, Drink, my lord: and she hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink. Ver. 18.-HARMER.

Ver. 18. And she said, Drink, my lord and she hasted, and let down her pitcher upon her hand, and gave him drink.

We met on this road (from Orfa to Bir) with several wells, at which the young women of the neighbouring villages, or of the tribes of the Curds and Turkomans, who were wandering in these parts, watered their flocks. They were not veiled like those in the towns. They were well made and beautiful, though tanned by the sun. As soon as we accosted them, and alighted from our horses, they brought us water to drink, and likewise watered our horses. Similar civilities had indeed been shown to me in other parts. But here it appeared to me particularly remarkable, because Rebecca, who was certainly brought up in these parts, showed herself equally obliging to travellers. Perhaps I have even drank at the same well from which she drew water. For Haran, now a small place, two days' journey to the south-south-east of Orfa, which is still visited by Jews, was probably the town which Abraham left to remove to the land of Canaan, and his brother Nahor's family probably remained in these parts. LEONARD RAUWOLF, a German traveller, who visited these countries about two hundred years before, observes, in his Travels, (part i. p. 259,) "This town (Orfa) is supposed by some to have been formerly called Haran, from which the holy patriarch Abraham, with Sarah, and Lot, his brother's son, removed by the command of God; so that the abundant well is still called Abraham's well, at which his servant first recognised Rebecca, when she gave him and his camels water to drink from it. The water of this well has more of a whitish colour than others, and also, as I drank it from the

Ver. 43. Behold, I stand by the well of water; and it shall come to pass, that when the virgin cometh forth to draw water, and I say to her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water of thy pitcher to drink.

It is still the proper business of the females to supply the family with water. From this drudgery, however, the married women are exempted, unless when single women are wanting. The proper time for drawing water in those burning climates, is in the morning, or when the sun is going down; then they go forth to perform that humble office, adorned with their trinkets, some of which are often of great value. Agreeably to this custom, Rebecca went instead of her mother to fetch water from the well, and the servant of Abraham expected to meet an unmarried female there who might prove a suitable match for his master's son. In the East Indies, the women also draw water at the public wells, as Rebecca did, on that occasion, for travellers, their servants and their cattle; and women of no mean rank literally illustrate the conduct of an unfor tunate princess in the Jewish History, by performing the services of a menial. The young women of Guzerat daily draw water from the wells, and carry the jars upon the head; but those of high rank carry them upon the shoulder. bly for the same reason, because she was the daughter of In the same way Rebecca carried her pitcher; and proba

an eastern prince.-PAXTON.

Ver. 47. And I put the ear-ring upon her face, and the bracelets upon her hand.

Nothing is more common than for heathen females tc have a ring in the nose; and this has led some to suppose, that the jewel here alluded to was put into that member, and not on the face. "I put a jewel on thy forehead;" Ez. xv. 11. The margin has, for forehead, "nose." It does not appear to be generally known, that there is an ornament which is worn by females in the East on the forehead. It is made of thin gold, and is studded with nity. Thus, to tie on the Pattam, is to "invest with high precious stones, and called Pattam, which signifies digdignity." Patta-Istere, "is the name of the first lawful wife of the king." In the Sathur-Agaraathe, this ornament is called "the ornament of the forehead." Tyerman and Bennet say of a bride they saw in China, "Her headdress Sparkled with jewels, and was most elegantly beaded with rows of pearls encircling it like a coronet; from which a brilliant angular ornament hung over her forehead, and between her eyebrows."--ROBERTS.

Ver. 57. And they said, We will call the damsel, and inquire at her mouth.

Do people wish to know the truth of any thing which has been reported of another, they say, "Let us go and

Ver. 22. And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden earring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold.

The weight of the ornaments that the servant of Abraham put upon Rebecca appears to us rather extraordinary. Sir J. Chardin assures us as heavy, and even heavier, were worn by the women of the East when he was there. The ear-ring, or jewel for the face, weighed half a shekel, and the bracelets for her hands ten shekels, Gen. xxiv. 22, which, as he justly observes, is about five ounces. Upon which he tells us, "the women wear rings and bracelets of as great weight as this, through all Asia, and even much heavier. They are rather manacles than bracelets. There are some as large as the finger. The women wear several of them, one above the other, in such a manner as sometimes to have the arm covered with them from the wrist to the elbow. Poor people wear as many of glass or horn. They hardly ever take them off: they are their riches."-HARMER.

mouth." Do servants ask a favour of their mistress, she will say, "I know not what will be the birth of the master's mouth; I will inquire at his mouth." So the mother and brother of Rebecca inquired at the mouth of the damsel, whether she felt willing to go with the man. "And she said, I will go."--ROBERTS.

Ver. 59. And they sent away Rebecca their sister, and her nurse, and Abraham's servant, and his men.

How often have scenes like this led my mind to the patriarchal age! The daughter is about for the first time to leave the paternal roof: the servants are all in confusion; each refers to things long gone by, each wishes to de something to attract the attention of his young mistress. One says, "Ah! do not forget him who nursed you wher. an infant:" another, "How often did I bring you the beautiful lotus from the distant tank! Did I not always concea! your faults?" The mother comes to take leave. She weeps, and tenderly embraces her, saying, "My daughter. I shall see you no more;-Forget not your mother." The brother infolds his sister in his arms, and promises soot to come and see her. The father is absorbed in though',

and is only aroused by the sobs of the party. He then, affectionately embraces his daughter, and tells her not to fear. The female domestics must each smell of the poor girl, and the men touch her feet. As Rebecca had her nurse to accompany her, so, at this day, the Aya (the nurse) who has from infancy brought up the bride, goes with her to the new scene. She is her adviser, her assistant, and friend; and to her will she tell all her hopes, and all her fears.— ROBERTS.

Ver. 60. And they blessed Rebecca, and said unto her, Thou art our sister; be thou the mother of thousands of millions.

From the numerous instances which are recorded in the scriptures, of those who were aged, or holy, giving their blessing, may be seen the importance which was attached to such benedictions. Has a son, or a daughter, to leave a father, an aged friend, or a priest, a blessing is always given. To be the mother of a numerous progeny is considered a great honour. Hence parents often say to their daughters, Be thou the mother of thousands." Beggars, also, when relieved, say to the mistress of the house, “Ah! madam, millions will come from you."-ROBERTS.

Ver 64. And Rebecca lifted up her eyes; and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. It was always customary, in all the East, on perceiving a superior, to alight from the animal upon which they were riding. ANDERSON and IVERSON relate, that "when the governor of Mossul and his suite passed our caravan, we were obliged to alight from our horses, mules, and asses, and lead the animals till they had gone by." Even now, women show this mark of respect to men. NIEBUHR says, "that an Arabian lady who met them in a broad valley in the desert of Mount Sinai, retired from the road, and let her servant lead the camel till they had passed.”—BURDER.

Ver. 65. For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a veil, and covered herself.

Rebecca's covering herself with a veil, when Isaac came to meet her, which is mentioned Gen. xxiv. 65, is to be considered rather as a part of the ceremonial belonging to the presenting a bride to her intended husband, than an effect either of female delicacy, or desire to appear in the most attractive form. The eastern brides are wont to be veiled in a particular manner, when presented to the bridegroom. Those that give us an account of their customs, at such times, take notice of their being veiled all over. Dr. Russell gives us this circumstance in his account of a Maronite wedding, which, he says, may serve as a specimen of all the rest, there being nothing materially different in the ceremonies of the different sects.-HARMER.

CHAP. 25. ver. 21. And Isaac entreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren.

Under similar circumstances, the husband and the wife fast and pray, and make a vow before the temple, that, should their desire be granted, they will make certain gifts, (specifying their kind,) or they will repair the walls, or add a new wing to the temple; or that the child shall be dedicated to the deity of the place, and be called by the same name. Or they go to a distant temple which has obtained notoriety by granting the favours they require. I have heard of husbands and wives remaining for a year together at such sacred places, to gain the desire of their hearts-ROBERTS.

Ver. 28. And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison; but Rebecca loved Jacob. Margin, "Venison was in his mouth." Has a man been supported by another, and is it asked, "Why does Kandan love Muttoo?" the reply is, "Because Muttoo's rice is in his mouth." "Why have you such a regard for that man?" .-"Is not his rice in my mouth?"-ROBERTS.

Ver. 30. And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage.

The people of the East are exceedingly fond of pollage, which they call Kool. It is something like gruel, and is made of various kinds of grain, which are first beaten in a mortar. The red pottage is made of Kurakan, and other grains, but is not superior to the other. For such a contemptible mess, then, did Esau sell his birthright. When a man has sold his fields or gardens for an insignificant sum, the people say, "The fellow has sold his land for pottage." Does a father give his daughter in marriage to a low caste man, it is observed, "He has given her for pottage." Does a person by base means seek for some paltry enjoyment, it is said, "For one leaf of pottage, he will do nine days' work." Has a learned man stooped to any thing which was not expected from him, it is said, "The learned one has fallen into the pottage pot." Has he given instruction or advice to others" The Lizard, which gave warning to the people, has fallen into the pottage pot." Of a man in great poverty, it is remarked, "Alas! he cannot get pottage." A beggar asks, "Sir, will you give me a little pottage?" Does a man seek to acquire great things by small means-" He is trying to procure rubies by pot tage." When a person greatly flatters another, it is common to say, "He praises him only for his pottage." Does a king greatly oppress his subjects, it is said, "He only governs for the pottage." Has an individual lost much money by trade-" The speculation has broken his pottage pot." Does a rich man threaten to ruin a poor man, the latter will ask, "Will the lightning strike my pottage pot?"— ROBERTS.

Ver. 41. And Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand.

is at hand."

When the father (or the mother) has become aged, the children say, "The day for the lamentation of our father approaching." If requested to go to another part of the "The sorrowful time for our mother is fast country, the son will ask, "How can I go? the day of sorrow for my father is fast approaching." When the aged parents are seriously ill, it is said, "Ah! the days of mourning have come."-ROBERTS.

CHAP. 26. ver. 15. For all the wells which his father's servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.

To stop the wells, is justly reckoned an act of hostility. The Canaanites, envying the prosperity of Abraham and Isaac, and fearing their power, endeavoured to drive them out of the country, by stopping" up all the wells which their servants had digged, and filling them with earth." The same mode of taking vengeance on enemies, mentioned in this passage, has been practised in more recent times. The Turkish emperors give annually to every Arab tribe near the road, by which the Mohammedan pilgrims travel to Mecca, a certain sum of money, and a certain number of vestments, to keep them from destroying the wells which lie on that route, and to escort the pilgrims across their country. D'Herbelot records an incident exactly in point, nabi, a famous rebel in the tenth century, gathered a numwhich seems to be quite common among the Arabs. Gia

ber of people together, seized on Bassorah, and Caufa; and afterward insulted the reigning caliph, by presenting himself boldly before Bagdad, his capital; after which he retired by little and little, filling up all the pits with sand, which had been dug on the road to Mecca, for the benefit of the pilgrims.. Near the fountains and wells, the robber and assassin commonly took his station; and in time of war, the enemy placed their ambush, because the flocks and herds, in which the wealth of the country chiefly consisted, were twice every day collected to those places, and might be seized with less danger when the shepherds were busily engaged in drawing water. This circumstance, which must have been familiar to the inhabitants of those countries, is mentioned by Deborah in her triumphal song: "They

* It is common to fold a large leaf so as to hold the pottage.

hat are delivered from the noise of archers in the place of the drawing of water, there shall they rehearse the righteous acts of the Lord." But a still more perfect comment on these words is furnished by an historian of the croi ades, who complains, that during the siege of Jerusalem by the Christian armies, numbers of their men were daily cut off, and their cattle driven away by the Saracens, who lay in ambush for this purpose near all the fountains and watering places.-PAXTON.

Ver. 18. And Isaac digged again the wells of water which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them.

This would appear a trifle among us, because water is so abundant, that it is scarcely valued, and nobody thinks of perpetuating his name in the name of a well. But in those deserts, where water is so scarce, and wells and springs are valued more, and as they are there the general permanent monuments of geography, it is also an honour to have given them names.-BURDER.

Ver. 20. And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac's herdmen.

See on chap. 13. 7.

Ver. 31. And they rose up betimes in the morning, and sware one to another: and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from them in peace.

In the same manner, family alliances are frequent among the Arabian shepherds, and indeed rendered necessary, by the state of continual warfare in which they live with the neighbouring tribes. The eighteen Arab emirs of the family which d'Arvieux visited, kept near one another, encamping at no greater distance from their chief than a league or two, and all removing together every month, sometimes every fortnight, as their cattle wanted fresh pasture, that they might be able to assemble with ease. But while Abraham and Isaac cultivated the friendship of their neighbours, entered into treaties of peace and amity with the kings and princes of Canaan, and entertained them in their tents,-Ishmael, animated by different principles and views, commenced a course of action, after leaving his father's house, so new and unprecedented, that it was made the subject of a distinct prediction. Standing on the verge of a burning desert, which he claimed as his proper inheritance, he assumed from the beginning a hostile attitude, spurned the ties of peace and friendship, and laid all the surrounding tribes under contribution. When he drew upon himself and his adherents the resentment of the fixed inhabitants, and was afraid to risk their attack, he withdrew into the depths of the great wilderness, where none could follow him with hopes of success.

In the same man

two last passages are easily reconciled, though honey and fresh oil are by no means live each other in taste, when we consider the cakes of the ancients were frequently a composition of honey, and oil, and flour; consequently, in tasting like one of these wafers or thin cakes, it might be said to resemble the taste of both, of oil mingled with honey. The word = matummecm, then, translated savoury in a confined sense, signifies generally whatever is gustful, or pleasing to the taste, whether by being salt and spicy, which the English word savoury means, or pleasant by its sweetness; or by being acidulated. However, it is very probable, that in this account of what Isaac desired, it means savoury, properly speaking, since though one might imagine, that in so hot a climate, and among people wont to observe so much abstemiousness in their diet, food highly seasoned should not be in request; yet the contrary is known to be fact. Almost all the dishes of the people of Aleppo, Dr. Russell informs us, are either greasy with fat, or butter, pretty high-seasoned with salt and spices; many of them made sour with verjuice, pomegranate, or lemon juice; and onions and garlic often complete the seasoning." As it was something of the venison kind Isaac desired, it is very probable, the dish he wished for was of the savoury sort. Some of their dishes of meat, however, are of a sweet nature. "A whole lamb, stuffed with rice, almonds, raisins, pistaches, &c. and stewed, is a favourite dish with them." It was very just then, in our translators, to render this word by a more extensive term in Prov. xxiii. 3, "When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee," v. 1. "Be not desirous of his dainties, for they are deceitful meat," v. 3. It is translated in much the same manner in v. 6, dainty meats. I would observe further, as to this subject, that there is a great propriety in Solomon's describing these dainty meats as very much appropriated to the tables of rulers, or a few others of the great, since the food of the common people of Aleppo, a large and rich commercial city, is very simple and plain; for Russell tells us, "bread, dibbs, the juice of grapes thickened to the consistence of honey, leban, coagulated sour milk, butter, rice, and a very little mutton, make the chief of their food in winter; as rice, bread, cheese, and fruits, do in the summer." De la Roque gives much the same account of the manner of living of the Arabs, whose way of life very much resembles that of the patriarchs; "roast meat being almost peculiar to the tables of their emirs or princes, and lambs or kids stewed whole, and stuffed with bread, flour, mutton fat, raisins, salt, pepper, saffron, mint, and other aromatic herbs." I would only add further, with respect to the meat Isaac desired, that perhaps his desiring Esau to take his bow and arrows, and to kill him some venison,--an antelope, or some such wild animal, when a kid from his own flock would, as appears from the event, have done as wall,--might as much arise from the sparingness natural to those that live this kind of life, together with the pleasure he proposed to himself from this testimony of filial affection from a beloved son, as from the recollection of some peculiar poignant flavour he had formerly perceived in eating the flesh of wild animals, though now his organs of taste were so much impaired as not to perceive the difference. So Dr. Shaw observes, that "the Arabs rarely di minish their flocks, by using them for food, but live chiefl upon bread, milk, butter, dates, or what they receive in exchange for their wool."-HARMER.

Ver. 19. And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy first-born; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me.

The ancient Greeks and Romans sat at meals. Homer's heroes were ranged on separate seats along the wall, with a small table before each, on which the meat and drink were placed. This custom is still observed in China, and perhaps some other parts of the greater Asia. When Ulysses arrived at the palace of Alcinous, the king displaced his son Laodamas, in order to seat Ulysses in a magnificent chair. The same posture was preferred by the Egyptians and the ancient Israelites. But, afterward, when men became soft and effeminate, they exchanged their seats for beds, in order to drink with more ease; yet

even then, the heroes who drank sitting were still thought entitled to praise; and those who accustomed themselves to a primitive and severe way of living, retained the ancient posture. The custom of reclining was introduced from the nations of the east, and particularly from Persia, where it seems to have been adopted at a very remote period. The Old Testament scriptures allude to both customs: but they furnish undeniable proofs of the sitting posture, long before common authors took notice of the other. It was the custom in Isaac's family to sit at meat; for Jacob thus addressed his aged father: "Arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me." At the entertainment which Joseph gave his brethren, on their return to Egypt, they seem to have followed the custom of their fathers; for they sat before him, the first-born according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his youth." In the court of Saul, many ages after this, Abner sat at table by his master's side; and David also had his place allotted to him, which is emphatically called his seat. As this is undoubtedly the most natural and dignified posture, so it seems to have been universally adopted by the first generations of men; and it was not till after the lapse of many ages, and degenerate man had lost much of the firmness of his primitive character, that he began to lie flat upon his belly.-PAXTON.

Ver. 27. And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the LORD hath blessed.

The Orientals endeavour to perfume their clothes in various ways. They sprinkle them with sweet-scented oils, extracted from spices, they fumigate them with the most valuable incense or scented wood, and also sew the wood of the aloe in their clothes. By some of these means, Jacob's clothes were perfumed. Pliny observes, (Nat. Hist. b. xvii. chap. 5,) "that the land, after a long drought, moistened by the rain, exhales a delightful odour, with which nothing can be compared:" and soon after, he adds, "that it is a sign of a fruitful soil, when it emits an agreeable smell, when it has been ploughed."-BURDER.

The natives are universally fond of having their gar, ments strongly perfumed: so much so, that Europeans can scarcely bear the smell. They use camphor, civet, sandal wood or sandal oil, and a great variety of strongly scented waters. It is not common to salute as in England: they simply smell each other; and it is said that some people know their children by the smell. It is common for a mother or father to say, "Ah! child, thy smell is like the Sen-Paga-Poo." The crown of the head is the principal place for smelling. Of an amiable man, it is said, "How sweet is the smell of that man! the smell of his goodness is universal."-ROBERTS.

CHAP. 28. ver. 18. And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.

One of the idols in the pagoda of Juggernaut is described by Captain Hamilton as a huge black stone, of a pyramidal form, and the sommona codom among the Siamese is of the same complexion. The aycen Akbery mentions an octagonal pillar of black stone fifty cubits high. Tavernier observed an idol of black stone in the pagoda of Benares, and that the statue of Creeshna, in his celebrated temple of Mathura, is of black marble. It is very remarkable, that one of the principal ceremonies incumbent upon the priests of these stone deities, according to Tavernier, is to anoint them daily with odoriferous oils: a circumstance which immediately brings to our remembrance the similar practice of Jacob, who, after the famous vision of the celesial ladder, took the stone which he had put for his pillow, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. It is added, that he called the name of that place BETH-EL, that is, the house of God. This passage evinces of how great antiquity is the custom of considering stones in a sacred light, as well as the anointing them with consecrated oil. From this condest of Jacob, and this Hebrew appellative, the learned Bochart, with great ingenuity and reason,

insists that the name and veneration of the sacred stones, called bactyli, so celebrated in all pagan antiquity, were derived. These baetuli were stones of a round form; they were supposed to be animated, by means of magical incantations, with a portion of the deity: they were consulted on occasions of great and pressing emergency, as a kind of divine oracles, and were suspended, either round the neck, or some other part of the body. Thus the setting up of a stone by this holy person, in grateful memory of the celestial vision, probably became the occasion of the idolatry in succeeding ages, to these shapeless masses of unhewn stone, of which so many astonishing remains are scattered up and down the Asiatic and the European world.--BURDER.

CHAP. 29. ver. 1. Then Jacob went on his journey,

and came into the land of the people of the east.

The margin has," lifted up his feet;" which, in Eastern language, signifies to walk quickly-to reach out--to be in good earnest--not to hesitate. Thus Jacob journeyed to the East, he lifted up his feet, and stretched forth in good earnest, having been greatly encouraged by the vision of the ladder, and the promise, "Thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth."-ROBERTS.

Ver. 2. And he looked, and behold, a well in the field, and lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks and a great stone was upon the well's mouth.

In Arabia, and in other places, they are wont to close and cover up their wells of water, lest the sand, which is put into motion by the winds there, like the water of a pond, should fill them, and quite stop them up. This is the account Sir J. Chardin gives us in a note on Ps. lxix. 15. I very much question the applicableness of this custom to that passage, but it will serve to explain, I think, extremely well, the view of keeping that well covered with a stone, from which Laban's sheep were wont to be watered; and their care not to leave it open any time, but to stay till the flocks were all gathered together, before they opened it, and then, having drawn as much water as was requisite, to cover it up again immediately, Gen. xxix. 2, 8. Bishop Patrick supposes it was done to keep the water clean and cool. Few people, I imagine, will long hesitate in determining which most probably was the view in keeping the well covered with so much care. All this care of their water is certainly very requisite, since they have so little, that Chardin supposes, "that the strife between Abraham's herdmen and Lot's was rather about water, than pasturage;" and immediately after observes, "that when they are forced to draw the water for very large flocks, out of one well, or two, it must take up a great deal of time."--HARMER.

Ver. 2. And he looked, and behold, a well in the field, and lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that well they watered the flocks and a great stone was upon the well's mouth. 3. And thither were all the flocks gathered: and they rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone again upon the well's mouth in his place.

In

To prevent the sand, which is raised from the parched surface of the ground by the winds, from filling up their wells, they were obliged to cover them with a stone. this manner the well was covered, from which the flocks of Laban were commonly watered: and the shepherds, careful not to leave them open at any time, patient y wait ed till all the flocks were gathered together, before they removed the covering, and then having drawn a sufficient quantity of water, they replaced the stone immediately. The extreme scarcity of water in these arid regions, entirely justifies such vigilant and parsimonious care in the management of this precious fluid; and accounts for the fierce contentions about the possession of a well, which so frequently happened between the shepherds of different