The Lost Books of the Bible: The Great Rejected Texts

by Joseph B. Lumpkin

  2 Abraham called the name of the son which Sarah gave birth to him, Isaac.

  3 And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac at eight days old, as God had commanded Abraham to do to his descendants after him; Abraham was one hundred and Sarah ninety years old when Isaac was born to them.

  4 The child grew up and was weaned, and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.

  5 Shem and Eber and all the great people of the land, and Abimelech king of the Philistines and his servants, and Phicol, the captain of his host, came to eat and drink and rejoice at the feast which Abraham made on the day of his son Isaac's being weaned.

  6 Also Terah, the father of Abraham, and Nahor his brother, came from Haran, they and all belonging to them, for they greatly rejoiced on hearing that a son had been born to Sarah.

  7 They came to Abraham, and they ate and drank at the feast which Abraham made on the day of Isaac's being weaned.

  8 Terah and Nahor rejoiced with Abraham, and they remained with him many days in the land of the Philistines.

  9 At that time Serug the son of Reu died, in the first year of the birth of Isaac son of Abraham.

  10 And all the days of Serug were two hundred and thirty-nine years, and he died.

  11 Ishmael the son of Abraham was grown up in those days; he was fourteen years old when Sarah gave birth to Isaac to Abraham.

  12 And God was with Ishmael the son of Abraham, and he grew up, and he learned to use the bow and became an archer.

  13 When Isaac was five years old he was sitting with Ishmael at the door of the tent.

  14 Ishmael came to Isaac and seated himself opposite to him, and he took the bow and drew it and put the arrow in it, and intended to kill Isaac.

  15 Sarah saw the act which Ishmael desired to do to her son Isaac, and it grieved her greatly on account of her son; she sent for Abraham, and said to him, Cast out this bondwoman and her son, for her son shall not be heir with my son, for thus did he seek to do to him this day.

  16 Abraham listened to the voice of Sarah, and he rose up early in the morning. He took twelve loaves and a bottle of water which he gave to Hagar, and sent her away with her son, and Hagar went with her son to the wilderness. They lived in the wilderness of Paran with the inhabitants of the wilderness; Ishmael was an archer, and he lived in the wilderness a long time.

  17 He and his mother afterward went to the land of Egypt, and they lived there; Hagar took a wife for her son from Egypt, and her name was Meribah.

  18 And the wife of Ishmael conceived and gave birth to four sons and two daughters. Ishmael and his mother and his wife and children afterward went and returned to the wilderness.

  19 They made themselves tents in the wilderness, in which they lived, and they continued to travel and then to rest monthly and yearly.

  20 And God gave Ishmael flocks and herds and tents on account of Abraham his father, and the man increased in cattle.

  21 Ishmael lived in deserts and in tents, traveling and resting for a long time, and he did not see the face of his father.

  22 Some time later, Abraham said to Sarah his wife, I will go and see my son Ishmael, for I have a desire to see him, for I have not seen him for a long time.

  23 Abraham rode on one of his camels to the wilderness to seek his son Ishmael, for he heard that he was dwelling in a tent in the wilderness with all belonging to him.

  24 Abraham went to the wilderness and reached the tent of Ishmael about noon, and he asked after Ishmael; he found the wife of Ishmael sitting in the tent with her children, and Ishmael her husband and his mother were not with them.

  25 Abraham asked the wife of Ishmael, saying, Where has Ishmael gone? And she said, He has gone to the field to hunt. Abraham was still mounted on the camel, for he would not get off to the ground as he had sworn to his wife Sarah that he would not get off from the camel.

  26 And Abraham said to Ishmael's wife, My daughter, give me a little water that I may drink, for I am fatigued from the journey.

  27 And Ishmael's wife answered and said to Abraham, We have neither water nor bread. She continued sitting in the tent and did not notice Abraham, neither did she ask him who he was.

  28 But she was beating her children in the tent, and she was cursing them, and she also cursed her husband Ishmael and reproached him. Abraham heard the words of Ishmael's wife to her children, and he was very angry and displeased.

  29 Abraham called to the woman to come out to him from the tent, and the woman came and stood opposite to Abraham, for Abraham was still mounted on the camel.

  30 And Abraham said to Ishmael's wife, When your husband Ishmael returns home say these words to him,

  31 A very old man from the land of the Philistines came here to seek you, and thus was his appearance and figure; I did not ask him who he was, and seeing you were not here he spoke to me and said, When Ishmael your husband returns tell him thus did this man say, When you come home put away this nail of the tent which you have placed here, and place another nail in its stead.

  32 Abraham finished his instructions to the woman, and he turned and went off on the camel homeward.

  33 After that Ishmael came from the hunt by him and his mother, and returned to the tent, and his wife spoke these words to him,

  34 A very old man from the land of the Philistines came to seek you, and thus was his appearance and figure; I did not ask him who he was, and seeing you were not at home he said to me, When your husband comes home tell him, thus says the old man, Put away the nail of the tent which you have placed here and place another nail in its stead.

  35 Ishmael heard the words of his wife, and he knew that it was his father, and that his wife did not honor him.

  36 And Ishmael understood his father's words that he had spoken to his wife, and Ishmael listened to the voice of his father; Ishmael cast off that woman and she went away.

  37 Ishmael afterward went to the land of Canaan, and he took another wife and he brought her to his tent to the place where he then lived.

  38 And at the end of three years Abraham said, I will go again and see Ishmael my son, for I have not seen him for a long time.

  39 He rode on his camel and went to the wilderness, and he reached the tent of Ishmael about noon.

  40 He asked after Ishmael, and his wife came out of the tent and said, He is not here my lord, for he has gone to hunt in the fields, and to feed the camels. And the woman said to Abraham, Turn in my lord into the tent, and eat a morsel of bread, for your soul must be wearied on account of the journey.

  41 And Abraham said to her, I will not stop for I am in haste to continue my journey, but give me a little water to drink, for I have thirst; the woman hurried and ran into the tent and she brought out water and bread to Abraham, which she placed before him and she urged him to eat; he ate and drank and his heart was comforted and he blessed his son Ishmael.

  42 He finished his meal and he blessed the Lord, and he said to Ishmael's wife, When Ishmael comes home say these words to him,

  43 A very old man from the land of the Philistines came here and asked after you, and you were not here; and I brought out bread and water and he ate and drank and his heart was comforted.

  44 And he spoke these words to me: When Ishmael your husband comes home, say to him, The nail of the tent which you have is very good, do not put it away from the tent.

  45 Abraham finished commanding the woman, and he rode off to his home to the land of the Philistines; and when Ishmael came to his tent his wife went forth to meet him with joy and a cheerful heart.

  46 And she said to him, An old man came here from the land of the Philistines and thus was his appearance, and he asked after you and you were not here, so I brought out bread and water, and he ate and drank and his heart was comforted.

  47 And he spoke these words to me, When Ishmael your husband comes home say to him, The nail of the tent which you have is very good, do not put it away from the tent.

  48 Ishmael knew that it was his father, and that his
wife had honored him, and the Lord blessed Ishmael.

  CHAPTER 22

  1 Ishmael then rose up and took his wife and his children and his cattle and all belonging to him, and he journeyed from there and he went to his father in the land of the Philistines.

  2 Abraham related to Ishmael his son the transaction with the first wife that Ishmael took, according to what she did.

  3 Ishmael and his children lived with Abraham many days in that land, and Abraham lived in the land of the Philistines a long time.

  4 And the days increased and reached twenty six years; after that Abraham with his servants and all belonging to him went from the land of the Philistines and removed to a great distance, and they came near to Hebron and remained there. The servants of Abraham dug wells of water, and Abraham and all belonging to him lived by the water. The servants of Abimelech king of the Philistines heard the report that Abraham's servants had dug wells of water in borders of the land.

  5 They came and quarreled with the servants of Abraham and robbed them of the great well which they had dug.

  6 Abimelech king of the Philistines heard of this affair; he with Phicol the captain of his host and twenty of his men came to Abraham, and Abimelech spoke to Abraham concerning his servants; Abraham rebuked Abimelech concerning the well of which his servants had robbed him.

  7 Abimelech said to Abraham, As the Lord lives who created the whole earth, I did not hear of the act which my servants did to your servants until this day.

  8 And Abraham took seven ewe lambs and gave them to Abimelech, saying, Take these, I pray you, from my hands that it may be a testimony for me that I dug this well.

  9 Abimelech took the seven ewe lambs which Abraham had given to him, for he had also given him cattle and herds in abundance; Abimelech swore to Abraham concerning the well, therefore he called that well Beersheba, for there they both swore concerning it.

  10 And they both made a covenant in Beersheba, and Abimelech rose up with Phicol the captain of his host and all his men; they returned to the land of the Philistines, and Abraham and all belonging to him lived in Beersheba and he was in that land a long time.

  11 Abraham planted a large grove in Beersheba, and he made to it four gates facing the four sides of the earth; he planted a vineyard in it, so that if a traveler came to Abraham he entered any gate which was in his road, and remained there and ate and drank and satisfied himself and then departed.

  12 For the house of Abraham was always open to the sons of men that passed and returned, who came daily to eat and drink in the house of Abraham.

  13 Any man who had hunger and came to Abraham's house, Abraham would give him bread that he might eat and drink and be satisfied; any one that came naked to his house he would clothe with garments as he might choose and give him silver and gold, and make known to him the Lord who had created him in the earth; this did Abraham all his life.

  14 Abraham and his children and all belonging to him lived in Beersheba, and he pitched his tent as far as Hebron.

  15 And Abraham's brother Nahor and his father and all belonging to them lived in Haran, for they did not come with Abraham to the land of Canaan.

  16 And children were born to Nahor which Milca the daughter of Haran, and sister to Sarah, Abraham's wife, gave birth to, to him.

  17 These are the names of those that were born to him: Uz, Buz, Kemuel, Kesed, Chazo, Pildash, Tidlaf, and Bethuel, being eight sons; these are the children of Milca which she gave birth to, to Nahor, Abraham's brother.

  18 And Nahor had a concubine and her name was Reumah, and she also gave birth to, to Nahor: Zebach, Gachash, Tachash and Maacha, being four sons.

  19 The children that were born to Nahor were twelve sons besides his daughters, and they also had children born to them in Haran.

  20 And the children of Uz the first born of Nahor were Abi, Cheref, Gadin, Melus, and Deborah their sister.

  21 And the sons of Buz were Berachel, Naamath, Sheva, and Madonu.

  22 And the sons of Kemuel were Aram and Rechob.

  23 And the sons of Kesed were Anamlech, Meshai, Benon and Yifi; the sons of Chazo were Pildash, Mechi and Opher.

  24 And the sons of Pildash were Arud, Chamum, Mered and Moloch.

  25 And the sons of Tidlaf were Mushan, Cushan and Mutzi.

  26 And the children of Bethuel were Sechar, Laban and their sister Rebecca.

  27 These are the families of the children of Nahor, that were born to them in Haran; and Aram the son of Kemuel and Rechob his brother went away from Haran, and they found a valley in the land by the river Euphrates.

  28 And they built a city there, and they called the name of the city after the name of Pethor the son of Aram, that is Aram Naherayim to this day.

  29 The children of Kesed also went to dwell where they could find a place, and they found a valley opposite to the land of Shinar, and they lived there.

  30 There they built themselves a city, and they called the name of the city Kesed after the name of their father; that is the land Kasdim to this day, and the Kasdim lived in that land and they were prolific and multiplied greatly.

  31 Terah, father of Nahor and Abraham, went and took another wife in his old age, and her name was Pelilah, and she conceived and gave birth to him a son and he called his name Zoba.

  32 Terah lived twenty-five years after he had Zoba.

  33 And Terah died in that year, that is in the thirty-fifth year of the birth of Isaac son of Abraham.

  34 The days of Terah were two hundred and five years, and he was buried in Haran.

  35 Zoba the son of Terah lived thirty years and he had Aram, Achlis and Merik.

  36 Aram, son of Zoba son of Terah, had three wives and he had twelve sons and three daughters; the Lord gave to Aram the son of Zoba, riches and possessions, and abundance of cattle, and flocks and herds, and the man increased greatly.

  37 Aram the son of Zoba and his brother and all his household journeyed from Haran, and they went to dwell where they should find a place, for their property was too great to remain in Haran; for they could not stop in Haran together with their brothers the children of Nahor.

  38 Aram the son of Zoba went with his brothers, and they found a valley at a distance toward the eastern country and they lived there.

  39 They also built a city there, and they called the name thereof Aram, after the name of their eldest brother; that is Aram Zoba to this day.

  40 Isaac the son of Abraham was growing up in those days, and Abraham his father taught him the way of the Lord to know the Lord, and the Lord was with him.

  41 When Isaac was thirty-seven years old, Ishmael his brother was going about with him in the tent.

  42 And Ishmael boasted of himself to Isaac, saying, I was thirteen years old when the Lord spoke to my father to circumcise us, and I did according to the word of the Lord which he spoke to my father, and I gave my soul to the Lord, and I did not go contrary to his word which he commanded my father.

  43 Isaac answered Ishmael, saying, Why do you boast to me about this, about a little bit of your flesh which you did take from your body, concerning which the Lord commanded you?

  44 As the Lord lives, the God of my father Abraham, if the Lord should say to my father, Take now your son Isaac and bring him up an offering before me, I would not refrain but I would joyfully accede to it.

  45 And the Lord heard the word that Isaac spoke to Ishmael, and it seemed good in the sight of the Lord, and he thought to try Abraham in this matter.

  46 The day arrived when the sons of God came and placed themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with the sons of God before the Lord.

  47 And the Lord said to Satan, Wherefore do you come? Satan answered the Lord and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.

  48 And the Lord said to Satan, What is your word to me concerning all the children of the earth? Satan answered the Lord and said, I have seen all the children of the earth who serve you and remember you when they require anyt
hing from you.

  49 When you give them the thing which they require from you, they sit at their ease and turn away from you, and they remember you no more.

  50 Have you seen Abraham the son of Terah, who at first had no children? He served you and erected altars to you wherever he came, and he brought up offerings on them, and he proclaimed your name continually to all the children of the earth.

  51 And now that his son Isaac is born to him, he has forsaken you, he has made a great feast for all the inhabitants of the land, and the Lord he has forgotten.

  52 For amidst all that he has done he brought you no offering; neither burnt offering nor peace offering, neither ox, lamb nor goat of all that he killed on the day that his son was weaned.

  53 Even from the time of his son's birth till now, being thirty-seven years, he built no altar before you, nor brought any offering to you, for he saw that you did give what he requested before you, and he therefore turned away from you.

  54 And the Lord said to Satan, Have you thus considered my servant Abraham? for there is none like him on earth, a perfect and an upright man before me, one that fears God and avoids evil; as I live, were I to say to him, Bring up Isaac your son before me, he would not withhold him from me, much more if I told him to bring up a burnt offering before me from his flock or herds.

  55 Satan answered the Lord and said, Speak then now to Abraham as you have said, and you will see whether he will not this day go contrary to and cast aside your words.

  CHAPTER 23

  1 At that time the word of the Lord came to Abraham, and said to him, Abraham. And Abraham said, Here I am.

  2 He said to him, Take now your son, your only son whom you love, even Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there for a burnt offering on one of the mountains which shall be shown to you, for there you will see a cloud and the glory of the Lord.

  3 And Abraham said within himself, How shall I separate my son Isaac from Sarah his mother, in order to bring him up for a burnt offering before the Lord?