[The posts which follow make extensive use of The Acts of the Apostles, by Madame Cecilia, (Religious of St Andrew's Convent, Streatham), with an Imprimi potest dated 16 October 1907 (Westminster); Burns, Oates & Washbourne Ltd. (London). With grateful prayers for the author and her team:
REQUIEM æternam dona eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis. Requiescant in pace. Amen.ETERNAL rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen.]
1 . Age of the Patriarchs Abraham and Joseph,
Acts VII : 1-19
 |
| St Stephen before the Council. Fra Angelico.1448-1450. Cappella Niccolina. |
[2] Who said: Ye men, brethren, and fathers, hear. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charan.
[3] And said to him: Go forth out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall shew thee.
[4] Then he went out of the land of the Chaldeans, and dwelt in Charan. And from thence, after his father was dead, he removed him into this land, wherein you now dwell.
[5] And he gave him no inheritance in it; no, not the pace of a foot: but he promised to give it him in possession, and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child.
[6] And God said to him: That his seed should sojourn in a strange country, and that they should bring them under bondage, and treat them evil four hundred years.
[7] And the nation which they shall serve will I judge, said the Lord; and after these things they shall go out, and shall serve me in this place.
[8] And he gave him the covenant of circumcision, and so he begot Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begot Jacob; and Jacob the twelve patriarchs.
[9] And the patriarchs, through envy, sold Joseph into Egypt; and God was with him,
[10] And delivered him out of all his tribulations: and he gave him favour and wisdom in the sight of Pharao, the king of Egypt; and he appointed him governor over Egypt, and over all his house.
[11] Now there came a famine upon all Egypt and Chanaan, and great tribulation; and our fathers found no food.
[12] But when Jacob had heard that there was corn in Egypt, he sent our fathers first:
[13] And at the second time, Joseph was known by his brethren, and his kindred was made known to Pharao.
[14] And Joseph sending, called thither Jacob, his father, and all his kindred, seventy-five souls.
[15] So Jacob went down into Egypt; and he died, and our fathers.
[16] And they were translated into Sichem, and were laid in the sepulchre, that Abraham bought for a sum of money of the sons of Hemor, the son of Sichem.
[17] And when the time of the promise drew near, which God had promised to Abraham, the people increased, and were multiplied in Egypt,
[18] Till another king arose in Egypt, who knew not Joseph.
[19] This same dealing craftily with our race, afflicted our fathers, that they should expose their children, to the end they might not be kept alive.
[1] Dixit autem princeps sacerdotum : Si haec ita se habent? [2] Qui ait : Viri fratres et patres, audite : Deus gloriae apparuit patri nostro Abrahae cum esset in Mesopotamia, prius quam moraretur in Charan, [3] et dixit ad illum : Exi de terra tua, et de cognatione tua, et veni in terram quam monstravero tibi. [4] Tunc exiit de terra Chaldaeorum, et habitavit in Charan. Et inde, postquam mortuus est pater ejus, transtulit illum in terram istam, in qua nunc vos habitatis. [5] Et non dedit illi haereditatem in ea, nec passum pedis : sed repromisit dare illi eam in possessionem, et semini ejus post ipsum, cum non haberet filium. [6] Locutus est autem ei Deus : Quia erit semen ejus accola in terra aliena, et servituti eos subjicient, et male tractabunt eos annis quadringentis : [7] et gentem cui servierint, judicabo ego, dixit Dominus : et post haec exibunt, et servient mihi in loco isto. [8] Et dedit illi testamentum circumcisionis : et sic genuit Isaac, et circumcidit eum die octavo : et Isaac, Jacob : et Jacob, duodecim patriarchas. [9] Et patriarchae aemulantes, Joseph vendiderunt in Aegyptum, et erat Deus cum eo : [10] et eripuit eum ex omnibus tribulationibus ejus : et dedit ei gratiam et sapientiam in conspectu pharaonis regis Aegypti, et constituit eum praepositum super Aegyptum, et super omnem domum suam. [11] Venit autem fames in universam Aegyptum, et Chanaan, et tribulatio magna : et non inveniebant cibos patres nostri. [12] Cum audisset autem Jacob esse frumentum in Aegypto, misit patres nostros primum : [13] et in secundo cognitus est Joseph a fratribus suis, et manifestatum est Pharaoni genus ejus. [14] Mittens autem Joseph accersivit Jacob patrem suum, et omnem cognationem suam in animabus septuaginta quinque. [15] Et descendit Jacob in Aegyptum : et defunctus est ipse, et patres nostri. [16] Et translati sunt in Sichem, et positi sunt in sepulchro, quod emit Abraham pretio argenti a filiis Hemor filii Sichem. [17] Cum autem appropinquaret tempus promissionis, quam confessus erat Deus Abrahae, crevit populus, et multiplicatus est in Aegypto, [18] quoadusque surrexit alius rex in Aegypto, qui non sciebat Joseph. [19] Hic circumveniens genus nostrum, afflixit patres nostros ut exponerent infantes suos, ne vivificarentur
Notes
1 . Are these things so ? The high-priest, as president of the Council, now calls on St Stephen to answer the accusations brought against him.
2 . Ye men, brethren. The Greek reads “ ye men, who are brethren and fathers” : “ Fathers” was the usual respectful form of address to the ancients and rulers.
God of glory. This is a reference here to the Shechinah, which rested on the Ark of the Covenant between the cherubim. God shewed Himself in glory to the patriarchs and others on several occasions, e.g. —
To Moses at the burning bush. And the. Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush, and he saw that the bush was on fire and was not burnt (Ex. iii. 2. See also Ex. xxiv. 17-18). St Paul speaks of Christ as the Lord of glory (1 Cor. ii. 8).
our father. St Stephen lays claim to the patriarchs as his ancestors, and thus declares himself a true Israelite.
Mesopotamia. Abraham was a native of Ur of the Chaldees (see Gen. xi. 31), which Josue, when addressing the Israelites at Sichem, describes as on the other side of the river (Jos. xxiv. 2), i.e. of the Euphrates. Mesopotamia is a Greek word, and the place was known to the Hebrews as “ Aram of the two rivers.”
Charan. In the Old Testament the place is called Haran (Gen. xi. 32), and also the city of Nachor (Gen. xxiv. 10). This place still exists as a small village, inhabited by Arabs, and is called “ Harran.”
3. Go forth out, etc. This is a quotation from Gen. xii. 1.
which I shall shew thee. Abraham obeyed and he went out, not knowing whither he went (Heb. xi. 8).
4. Chaldeans. The inhabitants of Chaldea, of which Babylon was the capital. The boundaries of this country varied greatly at different periods of their national history.
he removed, — i.e. God removed Moses. The word here rendered “removed” (μετωκισεν ) is the technical term for planting a colony.
5. gave him no inheritance. Yet Abraham was well content, for by faith he dwelt in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in cottages with Isaac and Jacob, the co-heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked for a city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God (Heb. xi. 9~10).
pace of a foot. This expression is found in the Scriptures and in the classics, e.g . —
(а) For I will not give you of their land so much as the step of one foot can tread upon (Deut. ii. 6),
(b) “Pedera ubi ponat in suo non habet” (Cic., ad Att., xii. 2. He has no place of his own where he might put his foot).
The cave of Machpelah which Abraham purchased, and the piece of land which Jacob gave to Joseph, were not considered as gifts from God.
he promised to give it him. This promise was given when circumcision was instituted as a covenant between God and the seed of Abraham. The promise runs thus: To thy seed will I give this land (Gen. xii. 7).
This promise was made to Abraham on several occasions
(а) When he was called to leave Ur of the Chaldees (Gen. xii. 1).(b) When he returned from Egypt. All the land which thou seat, 1 will give to thee, and to thy seed for ever (ibid. xiii. 15).
(c) When God made the covenant of circumcision with him : To thy seed the land of thy sojournment, all the land of Canaan for a perpetual possession, and I will be their God (ibid. xvii. 8),
Note that the promise becomes gradually more explicit.
when as yet he had no child. Some years must have elapsed between the giving of the promise and the birth of Isaac, since Sarai was very beautiful (Gen. xii. 14) when Abraham went to Egypt, and when Isaac was born she was “ grown old and no longer hoped to become a mother (Gen. xviii. 12).
6. That his seed should sojourn, etc. Quotation from Gen. xv. 13.
8. covenant of circumcision. This was made just a year before Isaac’s birth. Circumcision was the outward sign of God’s covenant with Abraham’s seed (see Gen. xvii. 9-14), by which He promised him a numerous posterity and the possession of Canaan.
9. the patriarchs. The heads of the twelve tribes.
through envy. This is the first example St Stephen adduces to shew that the Israelites always rejected the leaders whom God raised up to deliver them. Thus the Jews had delivered up Christ through envy. Cf. For he knew that for envy they had delivered him (St Matt, xxvii. 18).
sold Joseph into Egypt. The incident is thus related in Genesis: And when the Madianite merchants passed by they drew him out of the pit and sold him to the Ismaelites for twenty pieces of silvery and they led him into Egypt (xxxvii. 28). When, some years later, Joseph made himself known to his brethren, he said : I am Joseph your brother whom you sold into Egypt (Gen. xlv, 4).
God was with him. For further details on this point see Gen. xxxix., where this statement is repeated three times (in verses 2, 21, 23). Hence God’s favours to His servants were not restricted to those in Palestine.
10. wisdom. This is evidently a reference to Joseph’s having interpreted the king’s dreams, as well as to his wise government in is high office.
Pharao. This was a title or dynastic name of the ancient rulers of Egypt. The word originally meant ‘‘the sun,” whence the derived meaning “the king.”
The Græco-Macedonian sovereigns bore the name of Ptolemy (a warrior).
all his house. Over the royal palace, “in which, according to Oriental usage, all authority, legislative, judicial, and executive, centred.” Joseph’s position corresponded to that of a Prime Minister with extraordinary powers.
11. all Egypt and Canaan. This happened in accordance with Joseph’s prediction.
Cf. The seven years of scarcity, which Joseph had foretold, began to come : and the famine prevailed in the whole world, but there was bread in all the land of Egvpt (Gen. xll 54).
food. Lit. “fodder” for their cattle (χορτασματα), This word is rarely used of food for men.
The patriarchs’ wealth consisted in flocks and herds, consequently, when food failed for the cattle, famine necessarily ensued.
12. corn in Egypt, In ancient times Egypt was the great granary of the known world ; and later, Rome obtained large provisions of wheat from this country (see infra, xxvii. 6-38).
our fathers, — i.e. ten of the patriarchs only. Benjamin did not go with them on their first visit to Egypt.
13. at the second time. This time they went to release Simeon, whom Joseph had detained as a hostage, and also to purchase more wheat. Benjamin accompanied them on this visit.
17. when the time. Better, “as the time” (καθως .... ὁ χρονος ), i.e. as the time of the fulfilment of the promise drew near. None of the “fathers” saw the final accomplishment of the promises, since all these died according to faith not having received the promises, hut beholding them afar off (Heb. xi. 13).
the people increased and was multiplied. This explains why the king, who knew not Joseph, nor how he had saved the Egyptians from famine, was afraid lest the Hebrews should rise in rebellion.
18. another king. This was Amasis, the first king of the eighteenth dynasty, which reigned after the expulsion of the Hyksos or Shepherd kings.
knew not — i.e. had no esteem for him nor for his services.
19. that they should expose etc. The tyrannical king forced them to expose their children, i.e. to cast out their babes so as to reduce the population as far as the males were concerned. The girls were preserved because they could not take up arms, and also they had a certain value as slaves.
Cf. Pharao therefore charged all his people, saying : Whatsoever shall be born of the male sex, ye shall cast into the river, whatsoever of the female, ye shall save alive (Ex. i. 22).
Totus tuus ego sum
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum semper tutus sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam.
No comments:
Post a Comment