Abraham; And Concerning The Arabians, Who Were His Posterity.
1. Abraham now removed to Gerar of Palestine, leading Sarah along with
him, under the notion of his sister, using the like dissimulation that
he had used before, and this out of fear: for he was afraid of
Abimelech, the king of that country, who did also himself fall in love
with Sarah, and was disposed to corrupt her; but he was restrained from
satisfying his lust by a dangerous distemper which befell him from God.
Now when his physicians despaired of curing him, he fell asleep, and saw
a dream, warning him not to abuse the stranger's wife; and when he
recovered, he told his friends that God had inflicted that disease upon
him, by way of punishment, for his injury to the stranger; and in order
to preserve the chastity of his wife, for that she did not accompany him
as his sister, but as his legitimate wife; and that God had promised to
be gracious to him for the time to come, if this person be once secure
of his wife's chastity. When he had said this, by the advice of his
friends, he sent for Abraham, and bid him not to be concerned about his
wife, or fear the corruption of her chastity; for that God took care of
him, and that it was by his providence that he received his wife again,
without her suffering any abuse. And he appealed to God, and to his
wife's conscience; and said that he had not any inclination at first to
enjoy her, if he had known she was his wife; but since, said he, thou
leddest her about as thy sister, I was guilty of no offense. He also
entreated him to be at peace with him, and to make God propitious to
him; and that if he thought fit to continue with him, he should have
what he wanted in abundance; but that if he designed to go away, he
should be honorably conducted, and have whatsoever supply he wanted when
he came thither. Upon his saying this, Abraham told him that his
pretense of kindred to his wife was no lie, because she was his
brother's daughter; and that he did not think himself safe in his
travels abroad, without this sort of dissimulation; and that he was not
the cause of his distemper, but was only solicitous for his own safety:
he said also, that he was ready to stay with him. Whereupon Abimelech
assigned him land and money; and they coventanted to live together
without guile, and took an oath at a certain well called Beersheba,
which may be interpreted, The Well of the Oath: and so it is named by
the people of the country unto this day.
2. Now in a little time Abraham had a son by Sarah, as God had foretold
to him, whom he named Isaac, which signifies Laughter. And indeed they
so called him, because Sarah laughed when God 25 said that she should
bear a son, she not expecting such a thing, as being past the age of
child-bearing, for she was ninety years old, and Abraham a hundred; so
that this son was born to them both in the last year of each of those
decimal numbers. And they circumcised him upon the eighth day and from
that time the Jews continue the custom of circumcising their sons within
that number of days. But as for the Arabians, they circumcise after the
thirteenth year, because Ismael, the founder of their nation, who was
born to Abraham of the concubine, was circumcised at that age;
concerning whom I will presently give a particular account, with great
exactness.
3. As for Sarah, she at first loved Ismael, who was born of her own
handmaid Hagar, with an affection not inferior to that of her own son,
for he was brought up in order to succeed in the government; but when
she herself had borne Isaac, she was not willing that Ismael should be
brought up with him, as being too old for him, and able to do him
injuries when their father should be dead; she therefore persuaded
Abraham to send him and his mother to some distant country. Now, at the
first, he did not agree to what Sarah was so zealous for, and thought it
an instance of the greatest barbarity, to send away a young child 26 and
a woman unprovided of necessaries; but at length he agreed to it,
because God was pleased with what Sarah had determined: so he delivered
Ismael to his mother, as not yet able to go by himself; and commanded
her to take a bottle of water, and a loaf of bread, and so to depart,
and to take Necessity for her guide. But as soon as her necessary
provisions failed, she found herself in an evil case; and when the water
was almost spent, she laid the young child, who was ready to expire,
under a fig-tree, and went on further, that so he might die while she
was absent. But a Divine Angel came to her, and told her of a fountain
hard by, and bid her take care, and bring up the child, because she
should be very happy by the preservation of Ismael. She then took
courage, upon the prospect of what was promised her, and, meeting with
some shepherds, by their care she got clear of the distresses she had
been in.
4. When the lad was grown up, he married a wife, by birth an Egyptian,
from whence the mother was herself derived originally. Of this wife were
born to Ismael twelve sons; Nabaioth, Kedar, Abdeel, Mabsam, Idumas,
Masmaos, Masaos, Chodad, Theman, Jetur, Naphesus, Cadmas. These
inhabited all the country from Euphrates to the Red Sea, and called it
Nabatene. They are an Arabian nation, and name their tribes from these,
both because of their own virtue, and because of the dignity of Abraham
their father.