be the ancestor of God's peculiar people. Indeed this promise was fully confirmed; for, as he journeyed from Canaan to Haran, sick at heart, no doubt, and fearful as to his future prospects, he lay down to sleep, and God comforted him by a heavenly vision. He displayed to him a ladder, reaching from earth to heaven, with angels ascending and descending upon it, doubtless to imply that these should be ministering spirits to him through his life, and to his seed after him, and to assure him that God would not withdraw his protecting and guiding hand from him. Moreover, God then, in express words, renewed the covenant that he had before made with Abraham and Isaac, promising that his seed should be as numerous as the dust of the earth, and particularly, that in his seed should all the nations of the earth be blessed.

Thus comforted, Jacob went on his way, having first set up the stone which had formed his pillow, as a monument of that night's vision and covenant; and he called the place Bethel, that is, the house of God. He then proceeded to the country where his uncle lived, and fell in with Rachel, who was his daughter, and therefore cousin to Jacob. Her appearance was so

attractive to him, that he desired to make her his wife, and very willingly consented to serve Laban for seven years that he might have Rachel. Indeed, it is beautifully said, that They seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her."

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He soon found, however, that he was under a hard and covetous taskmaster. When the seven years were expired, and he expected Rachel, as the reward of his faithful services, a deception was practised upon him,-Leah, an elder sister, and a much less attractive person, was given to him in place of Rachel; and he was induced by Laban to serve seven more years, upon condition of obtaining Rachel at once, as well as Leah. Upon the whole he remained twenty years in Laban's family, and had two additional, but inferior wives, the maid-servants of Rachel and Leah. His life does not appear to have been a very happy one; for his favourite wife Rachel had no children at first, and this caused some angry feelings between her and Leah. However, she afterwards had Joseph and Benjamin, who became the favourite children of Jacob, and of the former of whom you will hear a great deal. When Benjamin was born, his mother

died, to Jacob's very great grief; and she was buried at Bethlehem, the same place where our Lord was born. Jacob had in all twelve sons and a daughter: these sons are called the Twelve Patriarchs.

When at length he left Laban, he found him

self very prosperous in cattle; and he could distinctly trace the hand of God in his prosperity; for when Laban, in assigning him his wages, had promised to give him such cattle as were marked in a particular manner, it was found that Jacob had inherited the strongest and most valuable ones, and Laban's covetousness was quite defeated. Laban concealed his mortification at Jacob's success; and when his son-in-law left him secretly, he pretended that he would gladly have sent him away with feasting. But it is plain, from Jacob's strong remarks upon the treatment he had received, that there could no longer be any cordiality between them, and it was better that they should separate.

Jacob then took his journey towards the promised land; and on his way thither he had that memorable interview with an angel by night which is generally termed Jacob's wrestling in prayer; and he was then remarkably blessed,

and his name was changed to Israel, which means, "a prince with God." This name is, however, more commonly known as the one applied to his descendants as a people; and in the remainder of his history the patriarch is still called Jacob. During this same journey he was met by his brother Esau, and he acted towards him with great caution and conciliatory temper, making him a very large present of cattle. Time had softened in Esau's heart the remembrance of the wrongs he had suffered, and he showed every disposition to be friendly, by offering Jacob an escort or guard of four hundred men; but Jacob, with his cautious temper, declined it, though very courteously.

The patriarch's life now went on for some years in an almost uneventful manner, until Joseph grew towards manhood, when his father's partiality became so manifest to the rest of his brethren, that it excited their envy so strongly as to induce them to determine to put him to death.

But as the history of Joseph is a long and very interesting one, I must commence another chapter with it, and in the course of Joseph's history you will read all that remains to be told about Jacob and his sons.

CHAPTER V.

JOSEPH.

You have already learnt that Joseph was his father's greatest favourite, and that he had eleven brothers. Of these there was one younger than himself, named Benjamin, and, like him, the child of Rachel; so that he also was a favourite of his father, and did not join in the cruel conduct of his brothers, about which I am going to tell you.

The hatred that Joseph's brethren showed to him arose from this manifest partiality of his father towards Joseph; but it is not anywhere stated that they suffered any injustice from their father in consequence of this partiality. However, it was very much increased by two circumstances. One was, that Joseph received from Jacob a coat of many colours, as a distinguishing mark of his favour, the very sight of which would always remind them of