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The genuine works of Flavius Josephus, the Jewish historian
The genuine works of Flavius Josephus the Jewish historian Author:Flavius Josephus Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: so judged the place to be honourable, and gave it the name of Bethel; which, if explained in the Greek tongue, is the House of God. He then proceeded on his j... more »ourney to Mesopotamia, and at length came to Hitran, and meeting with Shepherds in the suburbs, with boys grown up and maidens sitting round a certain well, he stayed with them, as wanting water to drink; and beginning to discourse with them, he asked them, whether they knew such an one as Laban ? and whether he were still alive ? they all said they knew him, for he was not so inconsiderable a person as to be unknown to any of them; and that his daughter fed her father's flock together with them: and that, indeed, they wondered she was not yet come, " for by her means," said they, " thou mightest learn more exactly whatever thou desirest to know about that family." While they were speaking, the damsel came, and the other shepherds that came with her.— Then they shewed her Jacoh, and told her, that he was a stranger who came to inquire about her father's affairs. But she, being pleased, after the custom of children, with Jacob's coming, asked him who he was? and whence he came? and what it was he wanted, that he came thither? She also wished it might be in their power to supply his wants. Jacob was quite overcome, not so much by their kindred, nor by that affection which might arise thence, as by his love to the damsel, and his surprise at her beauty, which was such as few of the women of that age could vie with. He then said, "There is a relation between thec and me, elder than either of our births, if thou be the daughter of Laban. For Abraham was the son of Terah, as well as Haran and Nahor. Of the last of whom, Nahor, Bethuel thy grandfather was the son: Isaac my father was the son of Abraham and of Sarah, who was th...« less