Annotations on the Pentateuch, Psalms, Song of Songs, Biblical commentary 1 · Chapter 33
CHAP. XXXIII.
1, Iakob goeth before his family, and boweth unto Esau seven times. 4, the kindnesse of Iakob and Esan at their meeting. 6, Iakobs wives and children bow unto Esau. 10, With much intreaty, he receiveth Iakobs present. 12, Offereth to accompany Iakob, but his courtefie is modestly refused. 17, Iakob commeth to Succoth. 18, At the city of Sechem he buyeth a field, and buildeth an altar called El-Elohe-Israel.
ANd Iakob, lifted up his eyes; and saw, and behold Esau came; and with him, foure hundred men: and he divided the children, unto Leah and unto Rachel; and unto the two handmaids. And he put the handmaids and their children, first: and Leah and her children, after; and Rachel and Ioseph, aftermost. And he, passed over before them: and bowed himselfe to the ground, seven times; untill hee came neere to his brother. And Esau ran to meet him, and imbraced him; and fell on his neck, and kissed him: and they wept. And he lifted up his eyes; and saw the women and the children; and said, who are these with thee? and he said, The children, which God hath graciously given to thy servant. And the handmaids came-neere, they and their children, and bowed-themselves. And Leah also came-neere, and her children, and they bowed-themselves: and after, came Ioseph neere, and Rachel, and they bowed-themselves. And he said, what meanest thou, by all this company, which I met? And he said, to find grace, in the eyes of my Lord. And Esau said, I have much: my brother, let that which is thine, be thine. And Iakob said; Nay I pray thee, if now I have found grace in thine eyes; then take my present, at my hand: for therefore I have seene thy face as though I had seene the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me. Take I pray thee my blessing, which is brought to thee; because God hath dealt-graciously with mee, and because I have all: and he urged him, and he tooke it. And he said, let us take our journey and goe: and I will goe, before thee. And hee said unto him, my Lord knoweth, that the children are tender; and the flockes and herds, are with young with me: and if they overdrive them one day, then all the flockes will dye. Let my Lord, I pray thee, passe over before his servant: and I will leadon softly, according to the foot of the worke which is before me, and to the foot of the children; untill I come unto my Lord, to Seir. And Esau said; Let me appoint I pray thee with thee, some of the folke which are with me: and he said, wherefore is this? let me find grace in the eyes of my Lord. And Esau returned, in that day; on his way, to Seir. And Iakob, journeyed to Succoth; and built him an house: and made boothes for his cattell; therefore he called the name of the place, Succoth.
And Iakob came safe, to the City of Sechem; which is, in the land of Canaan; when he came from Padan Aram: and he encamped, before the City. And he bought a parcell of a field, where hee had stretched-out his tent; at the hand of the sonnes of Hamor, the father of Sechem: for an hundred lambs. And he set-up there an Altar: and called it, El-Elohe-Israel.
Annotations.
HAndmaids] in the Chaldee, concubines. So one of them is called, Gen. 35. 22.
Vers. 3. seven] this may be taken for many times: as, the barren hath borne seven, that is, many, 1 Sam. 2 5. seven (that is, many) abominations are in (the hatefull mans) heart, Prov. 26. 25. and sundry the like. Here Iakob doth that himselfe, which God promised should bee done unto him, Gen. 27. 29. But humility goeth before honour. And it is noted by the Hebrew Doctors, as a decree of God, that Esau should be ruler over Iakob, in this world; and Iakob ruler over Esau in the world to come. Pirkei. R. Eliezer, ch. 37.
Vers. 4. kissed him] These were signes of Esaus affections changed from his former hatred, Gen. 27. 41. Luk. 15. 20. and of Iakobs prevailing with men, as he had with God, Genes. 32. 28. for his waies pleasing the Lord, hee made his enemies at peace with him, Prov. 16. 7. Therefore the word kissed is extraordinarily noted in the Hebrew with three prickes over it, as leading the reader to observe well this matter. In the words following the Greeke addeth, they wept both.
Vers. 8. what meanest thou] Hebr. what to thee? company] or camp, the drove sent before, Gen. 32. 16. to finde] that is, that I may finde: the Greek explaineth it, that thy servant may finde grace.
Vers. 9. much] Hereby he may meane, inough, or, a great deale: the Greeke translateth it, many things. Iakob in vers. 11. speaketh more freely, I have all things. Thus Esau had received his blessing; Gen. 27. 39. be thine] that is, keepe it to thy selfe: or, (as the Chaldee explaineth it,) much good doe it thee, that which thou hast.
Vers. 10. therefore] or, because: as this word signifieth in Gen. 38. 26. face of God] that is, honourable and comfortable. The Chaldee for God (Elohim) translateth Princes: as the word sometime signifieth, Psal. 82. pleased] or, thou hast favourably accepted me.
Vers. 11. blessing] that is, the gift, which by the blessing of God I have received, and doe with a willing and liberall heart give unto thee. Hereupon the scripture often useth a blessing for a bounteous gift, or liberality, 1 Sam. 25. 27. and 30. 26. 2 King. 5. 15. and so the Apostle useth it, in 2 Cor. 9. 5. 6. The Chaldee keepeth here the word used in the former verse, the present. all] that is, inough of all: the Greeke turneth it plurally, all things. A more full acknowledgment and contentation then Esaus, who said he had much, vers. 9. he took it] Iakob herein had the preeminence, for it is more blessed to give, than to receive, Act. 20. 35. and Abram would not bee inriched by the king of Sodom, Gen. 14. 23. The Hebrew Doctors in Bresith rabbah here say, that all the gifts which Iakob gave to Esau, the kings of the world shall restore unto the King Christ; as Psal. 72. 10.
Vers. 12. and goe] meaning unto Seir, where hee would lovingly entertaine his brother, and gratifie his kinenesse. By Iakobs answer in vers. 14. it seemeth he did so understand him.
Vers. 13. with yong] or, giving-sucke, as the Chaldee translateth it. The Hebrew may imply both; as 1 Sam. 6. 7.
Vers. 14. will lead on] or, will gently-lead softly. As Iakob here with his flocke, so Christ the good sheepherd, is prophesied to deale with his people, Esa. 40. 11. the foot of the worke] that is, the pace of the cattell, as they are able to goe: called a worke, because about them his labour was imployed. So in Exod. 22. 8. Thus Christ preached as men were able to heare, Mark. 4. 33. & so did his Apostles, becomming weake to the weake, 1 Cor. 3. 2. & 9. 22. Rom. 15. 1. For foot the Greek translateth leisure.
Vers. 15. appoint] or set; and consequently leave, as the Greeke and Chaldee doe translate it. So in Exod. 10. 24. let mee finde grace] that is, grant my desire, and leave none. So to finde grace, is to have a request granted, Gen. 34. 11. and 47. 25. 1 Sam. 25. 8. Or, as the Greeke translateth, it is inough that I have found grace; as being a thankfull refusall: and so the Hebrew phrase seemeth elsewhere to import, as in Ruth 2. 13. 2 Sam. 16. 4.
Vers. 17. an house] in Greeke, houses: they were cottages for present use; for hee stayed not there long. Succoth] that is, boothes, or tents: hereof the place had the name, and so the citie that was after there builded, was called Succoth, Iudg. 8. 15. 16. Likewise the place whither Iakobs sonnes first came, after they went out of Egypt, was called Succoth, Exod. 12. 37. and in memoriall of their dwelling in boothes God appointed a yeerely feast for all the people, called the feast of Succoth; that is, of boothes, or tents, made of green boughes of trees, wherein they dwelt seven daies in a yeere, Levit. 23. 34—42. 43.
V. 18. came safe] or came in peace, sound, & whole, he and all that he had; having got the victory over all troubles and dangers, according to the promises of God, Gen. 31. 3. & 32. 28. The Hebrew Salem is so interpreted here by the Chaldee paraphrase safe, or sound: but the Greeke maketh it the name of a place, to Salem the citie of the Sichimites: Howbeit we finde elsewhere no mention of such a citie. Yet if so it be understood, it is an other then that Salem where Melchisedek raigned, Gen. 14. 18. which was Ierusalem; from which this Salem was 40. miles distant. In Ioh. 3. 23. there is mention of a Salem by Enon, where Iohn baptised; which is thought to bee that Saalim spoken of in 1 Sam. 9. 4. Sechem] or Sychem, as in Greeke it is called Act. 7. 16. called also Sichar, Ioh. 4. 5. Padan Aram] or Mesopotamia of Syria, as the Greeke hath it, See Gen. 25, 20. encamped] pitched his tents.
Vers. 19. he bought] yet was that land given of God to him and his fathers, Gen. 12. 6. 7. but hoc was a pilgrim on it, as were they, Heb. 11. 9. and in hope of that promise in time to be fulfilled, he purchased this field; as Ieremie bought a field, for like signification, Ier. 32. 9. 15. After, it became the portion of Ioseph & his children, Ios. 24. 32. Hamor] or Emmor, as it is written, Act. 7. 16. in Hebrew Chamor. 100. lambs] so the Greek & Chaldee both translate the word. Others thinke they …ere pieces of money, on which the images of lambs were stamped. So in Ios. 24. 32. Iob 42. 11. It hath beene an ancient custome in many nations, to buy and sell, not onelyonly for money, but by exchange of one thing for another, as among the Greekes, Homer. Iliad. 8.
Vers. 20. an altar] for thanksgiving to God, as his fathers had done, Gen. 12. 7. and 13. 18. &c.
El Elohe Israel] that is, God the God of Israel, so named, as a …stimoniall of his faith, and a memoriall of the merciemercy of God, who gave him that new name: Gen. 32. 28. The like Moses did, Exod. 17. 15. calling his altar, Iehovah Nissi. The Greek here translateth, he called upon the God of Israel: also the Chaldee, he sacrificed upon it, before God the God of Israel. About this time, fell out the departure of Iudah from his brethren, and mariage with a Canaanitish woman, mentioned in Gen. 38. 1. &c. see the annotations there.