Works of John Bunyan Volume II Part 92

CHAP. XLVIII.

And now when Joseph heard his father lay Even at the point of death he hastes away To visit him, and took along with him His son Mana.s.seh, and's son Ephraim.

Whereof when Jacob heard he strength'ned Himself, and rose and sat upon the bed: And thus to Joseph said, Lo! G.o.d appeared To me at Luz in Canaan, and declared, That he would bless, and make me a great nation, And give my seed that land for a possession: And Jacob said, Behold, these sons of thine As Reuben and as Simeon shall be mine; And all the rest that shall be born to thee Hereafter, shall be thine, and they shall be Call'd by the name of their own family.

Behold thy mother died upon the way, When I from Padan came, near Ephratah, The which is in the land of Canaan, where, To wit, in Bethlem, did I bury her.

And Jacob seeing Joseph's sons were there, He asked of him who the children were.

And Joseph said, My father, lo! these be The sons, G.o.d in this place hath given me.

Then Jacob said, I pray thee bring them nigh To me, and I will bless them e'er I die.

(Now Jacob's eyes, by reason of age, were dim) And Joseph brought his sons near unto him, And Jacob kissed and embraced them: And said, I never thought to see thy face, And lo! the Lord hath shewn me of thy race.

And Joseph from between his knees brought forth His sons, and bow'd himself even to the earth: And in his right hand held up Ephraim, Towards his father's left hand guiding him And in his left hand to his father's right, He held his son Mana.s.seh opposite.

And Isra'l stretching our his right hand, laid It on the youngest, namely Ephraim's head: And laid his left hand wittingly upon Mana.s.seh's head, although the eldest son.

And Jacob blessed Joseph, saying, The G.o.d Of heaven, in whose paths my fathers trod, Who all my life hath nourish'd me, even he Who from all evil hath redeemed me, Bless both the lads, and let them bear my name, And the name of my fathers Abraham And Isaac, and let them multiply In the midst of the earth exceedingly.

And Joseph seeing his father's right hand laid On Ephraim's head, he was displeas'd, and said, Not so, my father, lay this hand upon Mana.s.seh's head, for he's the eldest son: And therewithal attempted to have laid His father's right hand on Mana.s.seh's head But he refus'd and said, I know't my son, I know't full well, he also shall become A people, and be mighty: But indeed His younger brother shall him far exceed, And many nations shall come from his seed.

Thus Jacob blessed them, and said, In thee Shall Isra'l bless, and say, G.o.d make thee be Like Ephraim and Mana.s.seh. Thus did he Prefer the youngest to the first degree.

And Isra'l said to Joseph, Lo! I die, But G.o.d shall visit you, and certainly Shall bring you back unto your father's land.

And thou shalt have a portion from my hand, Above thy brethren, which with sword and bow I took from th' Amorite, my deadly foe.

CHAP. XLIX.

And Jacob called all his sons together, And said, Ye sons of Jacob come you hither: And hearken what your aged father says, Who tells you what shall be in the last days.

Reuben my first born, of my strength the flow'rs, The excellency of dignity and power: Unstable as water, be for ever vile, Because thou did thy father's bed defile.

Simeon and Levi 're brethren. Instruments Of cruelty lodged in their tents.

Come not, my soul, their secret councils nigh, My honour, with them have no unity: For in their wrath they caused a man to fall, And in their self-will digged down a wall.

Curs'd be their anger, fierce, yea cursed be Their wrath, for it was full of cruelty.

In Jacob therefore let their seed be spread, And every where in Israel scattered.

Judah shall have his brethren's praise, and they Shall bow before him; he his foes shall slay.

Judah's a lion's whelp return'd from prey, He stoop'd, he couch'd, and as a lion lay; As an old lion, who shall dare molest, Or rouse him up, when he lies down to rest.

The sceptre shall from Judah never start, Nor a lawgiver from his feet depart; Until the blessed s.h.i.+loh come, to whom The scatter'd people shall from all parts come: Binding his foal unto the choicest vine, He wash'd his garments, all of them in wine: His eyes shall with the blood of th' grapes look red, And milky whiteness shall his teeth o'erspread.

Lo! Zabulon shall dwell upon the sea, And heaven for the s.h.i.+p's security, And unto Zidon shall his border be.

And Issachar is a strong a.s.s between Two burdens crouching, who when he had seen That rest was pleasant, and the land was good, His servile neck unto the yoke he bow'd.

Dan as a judge shall over Isra'l sway, He shall be as a serpent in the way, To bite the horse, and cast the rider down.

O G.o.d! I have look'd for thy salvation.

Gad by a troop shall be o'ercome, but he Shall at the last obtain the victory.

The bread of Ashur shall be fat indeed, And royal dainties shall from his proceed.

Like to a hind let loose is Naphtali, He speaketh all his words acceptably.

Joseph's a fruitful bough, whose branches tall Grow by a well, and over-top the wall: By reason of hatred which the archers bore, They shot at him and griev'd him very sore, But Joseph's bow in its full strength abode And by the arm of Jacob's mighty G.o.d, He was indu'd with strength, from whence alone Is Isra'l's shepherd, and chief corner-stone: Ev'n by my father's G.o.d, who shall a.s.sist Thee, by th' Almighty G.o.d shalt thou be blest, With blessings from above, and from below, With blessings of the breast, and womb also.

Thy father's blessings have prevail'd beyond My ancestors. Unto the utmost bound Of the perpetual hills, yea let them rest On Joseph's head, and let him be possest Of all, who was divided from the rest.

Young Benjamin shall wolf-like take his prey, And part by night what he hath took by day.

All these are the ten tribes of Israel, And thus their father did their fate foretell: And blessed every one of them apart, According to their personal desert.

Moreover he gave them a charge and said, Lo! I shall die, but let my bones be laid Among my ancestors in Canaan, where Of Ephron, Abraham bought a sepulchre, Together with a field, to be a place Of burial, for him and all his race.

(There Abraham and Sarah lie, and there They Isaac and Rebecca did inter, And there when Leah died I buried her.) The field was purchas'd of the sons of Heth.

Thus having said, resigning up his breath To him that gave 't, his feet into the bed He drew, and so was number'd to the dead.

CHAP. L.

And Joseph fell upon his father's face, And did with tears his lifeless lips embrace: And sends for his physicians and advises Them to embalm his father's corpse with spices.

And they did so, and forty days did pa.s.s.

(For so the manner of embalming was) And the Egyptians mourned for the s.p.a.ce Of three score and ten days, which being expired He spake to Pharaoh's servants and desired, That they would please to speak in Pharaoh's ear, And tell him that my father made me swear, That I should bury him in Canaan, where He hath provided his own sepulchre.

I therefore pray thee that I may obtain Thy leave, and I will soon return again.

And Pharaoh said, Since thou hast sworn, fulfil Thy oath, according to thy father's will.

And Joseph went up to accompany His father's corpse with great solemnity.

And with him went up Pharaoh's servants, and The prime n.o.bility of all the land, And Joseph's household, and his brethren all, Only their flocks, and herds, and children small Were left behind. Moreover there went up Chariots and hors.e.m.e.n, ev'n a mighty troop.

And they came up to Atad's thres.h.i.+ng floor Beyond the river Jordan, where full sore They mourned for him till seven days were past, So long their mourning in that place did last.

Which when the Canaanites beheld they said, Surely some eminent Egyptian's dead.

Wherefore they call'd it Abel-mizraim.[12]

Thus did his sons as he commanded them.

For to the land of Canaan they convey'd Him, and in Machpelah near Mamre, laid His body in the cave which Ephron sold To Abraham, for him and his to hold.

And thus when Joseph fully had perform'd His father's will, to Egypt he return'd, Together with his brethren, and with all Them that came with him to the funeral.

Now Joseph's brethren being well aware That they were fatherless, began to fear That he would hate them, and requite them all The evil they had treated him withal.

Wherefore to him they sent a messenger And said, Behold our father did declare Before he died, that we should come and say, Forgive thy brethren's trespa.s.ses, I pray; And their misdeeds, for they have been unkind.

And now we humbly pray thee be inclin'd To pardon our offences, and the rather For that we serve the G.o.d e'en of thy father.

And Joseph wept when they thus spake, and they Came nearer, and before him prostrate lay, And said, We are thy servants all this day.

And Joseph bad them not to be afraid, For in the place of G.o.d am I he said: For though you meant me ill, G.o.d meant it good, And sent me hither to provide you food.

Now therefore trouble not yourselves, for I Will nourish you, and all your family.

After this manner did he satisfy, And treat them with extreme civility.

And Joseph and his father's house remain'd In Egypt, and he liv'd till he attain'd An hundred and ten years, and liv'd to see Of Ephraim's children to the third degree.

And Macher's children of Mana.s.seh's tribe Were also born some time before he died.

Then Joseph said, My brethren, lo! I die, But G.o.d will visit you undoubtedly; And to that land again whereof he spake Unto our ancestors, will bring you back.

And Joseph also made his brethren swear, That they would not inter his body there.

And thus he ended his life's pilgrimage, Being an hundred and ten years of age; And was embalm'd, and in a coffin laid, In Egypt, till he could be thence convey'd.

THE GENERAL EPISTLE OF JAMES

CHAP. I.

Unto the twelve tribes scattered abroad, James, an apostle of the living G.o.d, And of the Lord Christ Jesus, salutation.

My brethren, when you fall into temptation Of divers kinds, rejoice, as men that know From trial of your faith doth patience flow.

But let your patience have its full effect, That you may be entire, without defect.

If any of you lack wisdom, let him cry To G.o.d, and he will give it lib'rally, And not upbraid. But let him ask in faith, Not wavering, for he that wavereth, Unto a wave o' th' sea I will compare, Driv'n with the wind and tossed here and there.

For let not such a man himself deceive, To think that he shall from the Lord receive.

A double-minded man most surely lacketh Stability in all he undertaketh.

Let ev'ry brother of a low degree Rejoice in that he is advanc'd, but he That's rich in being made low, for he shall pa.s.s Away, as doth the flow'r of the gra.s.s.

For as the gra.s.s, soon as the sun doth rise, Is scorch'd by reason of the heat, and dies; Its flow'r fades, and it retains no more The beauteous comeliness it had before, So fades the rich man, maugre all his store.

The man is blest that doth endure temptation For when he's try'd, the crown of G.o.d's salvation, The which the Lord hath promised to give To them that love him, that man shall receive.

Let no man be possest with a persuasion, To say, when he falls under a temptation, That G.o.d's the cause; for with no evil can G.o.d be tempted, nor tempts he any man.

But every man is tempted when he's drawn Away, and by his l.u.s.ts prevail'd upon; Then when l.u.s.t hath conceiv'd, it ushereth In sin, and sin when finished brings death.

Err not, my brethren, whom I dearly love, Each good and perfect gift is from above, Down from th' original of lights descending, With whom's no change, nor shadow thereto tending, According to his own good pleasure, he Begat us with the word of truth, that we Should as the first fruits of his creatures be.

Wherefore, beloved brethren, I entreat You to be swift to hear, and slow to speak, And slow to wrath, for wrath cannot incline The sons of men to righteousness divine.

Wherefore avoiding ev'ry filthiness, And superfluity of naughtiness: Receive with meekness the engrafted word, Which can salvation to your souls afford.

But be ye doers of the word each one, And not deceive yourselves to hear alone; For he that hears the word and doth it not, Is like unto a man that hath forgot What kind of man he was, tho' in a gla.s.s He just before beheld his nat'ral face.

But whoso minds the law of liberty In its perfection, and continually Abides therein, forgets not what he's heard, But doth the work and therein hath reward.

If any man among you seem to be Religious, he deceives himself if he Doth not his tongue as with a bit restrain; And all that man's religion is but vain.

Religion, pure and undefil'd, which is Acceptable before the Lord, is this: To visit widows and the fatherless, In time of their affliction or distress; And so to regulate his conversation, As to be spotless in his generation.

CHAP. II.

Faith of the Lord of glory, Jesus Christ, Doth with respect of persons not consist; For if, my brethren, when there shall come in To your a.s.sembly one with a gold ring, In goodly clothes, and there shall also be Another man that's meanly cloth'd, and ye Shall have respect to him in rich attire, And say unto him, come thou, sit up higher; And bid the poor man stand or sit below, Are ye not partial then, and plainly show, That you do judge amiss in what you do?