of the earth be blessed. And behold I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.

And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place, and I knew it not.

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

Then Jacob went on his journey, and came into the land of the people of the East.

And Jacob abode many years with Laban, his mother's brother, and married his two daughters, Leah and Rachel.

And the Lord said unto Jacob, return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred, and I will be with thee. Then Jacob rose up,

wives upon camels.

and set his sons and his And he carried away all his cattle, and all his goods which he had gotten, the cattle which he had gotten in Padan-aram, for to go to Isaac his father, in the land of Canaan.

And on the way he met his brother Esau, and was reconciled to him.

And God appeared unto Jacob again, when he came out of Padanaram, and blessed him. And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob. Thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name. And Jacob came unto Isaac his father unto Mamre, where Abraham and Isaac sojourned.

And the days of Isaac were an hundred and fourscore years. And Isaac died, and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.

It seems strange that Jacob should have been allowed to deceive his old father, who was almost blind. But yet, having bought the birthright of Esau for a mess of pottage, he had, of course a right to all the privileges that belonged to the elder son. And in those old days, the elder son was thought much more honorable than the younger. If Esau had been good and honest with his father and Jacob, he would have told Isaac what had passed about the birth-right, and then there would have been no deception, But whatever wrong Jacob may have done by his cunning trick, he had to suffer for it in

after years, when he himself was cheated by Laban about his wife, and had many other sorrows to go through, at the hands of his own children, as you will soon hear.

How many sons had Isaac and Rebekah, and what were their names?

Which was the eldest son?

Did Esau value his birthright, and what did he do with it?

How did Jacob act so as to get his father's blessing? What dream had Jacob on his way to his mother's country?

Did Jacob stay long with Laban, and whom did he marry?

What did God say to Jacob on his way home again, and to what was his name changed?

Joseph Sold as a Slave.

ITH twelve fair sons was Jacob blest,
The while he dwelt apart;

But dearer far than all the rest

Was Joseph to his heart.

A coat of many colours bright

He made for Joseph's wear,

And Joseph sometimes dreamed by night
Of honours he should bear.

Then envy swell'd his brethren's hearts:

They sold him far away;

And long in Egypt, like a slave,
Joseph in prison lay.

But God was with him all the time,
And gave him grace with men,
Knowing him pure, and free from crime,
Though classed with prisoners then,

The butler and the baker there

Of Pharaoh's kingly court

As prisoners in the dungeon were

For evil they had wrought.

They dreamed, and Joseph heard their dreams,
And told them all God meant ;

So Pharaoh one from chains redeems,
But one to death is sent.

CHAPTER VI.

Jacob's Sons. Their Envy of Joseph. Joseph is sold into Egypt, and then thrown into Prison.

OW, the sons of Jacob were twelve Reuben, and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali, Gad, and Asher, Joseph, and Benjamin.

And Jacob dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan.

Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren. And Joseph brought unto his father their evil report.

Now, Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age. And he made him a coat of many

colours.

And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren,