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Jubilees

About this book

The Death and Burial of Sarah

Chapter 19

1 And in the first year of the first week in the forty-second jubilee, Abraham returned and lived opposite Hebron, that is Kiriath Arba, two weeks of years. 2 And in the first year of the third week of this jubilee Sarah's life came to an end, and she died in Hebron. 3 And Abraham went to mourn over her and bury her, and we tested him [to see] if his spirit remained patient and he did not speak angrily; and he was found patient in this, and was not disturbed. 4 For in patience of spirit he spoke with the children of Heth, so that they should give him a place in which to bury his dead. 5 And the Lord gave him grace before all who saw him, and he gently pleaded with the sons of Heth, and they gave him the land of the double cave opposite Mamre, that is Hebron,⁠ for four hundred pieces of silver. 6 And they urged him saying, We shall give it to you for nothing; but he would not take it from their hands for nothing, for he gave the price of the place, the money in full, and he bowed down before them twice, and after this he buried his dead in the double cave. 7 And all the days of the life of Sarah were one hundred and twenty-seven years, that is, two jubilees and four weeks and one year: these are the days of the years of the life of Sarah. 8 This is the tenth test through which Abraham was tested, and he was found faithful, patient in spirit.⁠ 9 And he did not say a single word regarding the report in the land that God had said that He would give it to him and to his descendants after him, and he begged a place there to bury his dead; for he was found faithful, and was recorded on the heavenly tablets as the friend of God.⁠ 10 And in the fourth year of it [2027] he took a wife for his son Isaac and her name was Rebekah [the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Nahor, the brother of Abraham] the sister of Laban and daughter of Bethuel; and Bethuel was the son of Melca, who was the wife of Nahor, the brother of Abraham. 11 And Abraham married a third wife named Keturah, from among the daughters of his household servants, for Hagar had died before Sarah. 12 And she bore him six sons, Zimram, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah, in the two weeks of years.

Jacob, Esau, and Abraham’s Blessing

13 And in the sixth week, in the second year of it [2046], Rebekah bore to Isaac two sons, Jacob and Esau, and Jacob was a smooth and upright man, and Esau was fierce, a man of the field, and hairy, and Jacob lived in tents. 14 And the youths grew, and Jacob learned to write;⁠ but Esau did not learn, for he was a man of the field and a hunter,⁠ and he learned war, and all his deeds were fierce. 15 And Abraham loved Jacob, but Isaac loved Esau. 16 And Abraham saw the deeds of Esau, and he knew that in Jacob his name and line of descendants would continue; and he called Rebekah and gave instructions regarding Jacob, for he knew that she (too) loved Jacob much more than Esau. 17 And he said to her: My daughter, watch over my son Jacob, For he shall be in my place on the earth, And for a blessing among human beings, And for the glory of all the descendants of Shem. 18 For I know that the Lord will choose him to be a people for possession to Himself, above all peoples that are upon the face of the earth. 19 And look, Isaac my son loves Esau more than Jacob, but I see that you truly love Jacob. 20 Be even kinder to him, And let your eyes be upon him in love; For he shall be a blessing to us on the earth from now on to all generations of the earth. 21 Let your hands be strong And let your heart rejoice in your son Jacob; For I have loved him far beyond all my sons. He shall be blessed forever, And his descendants shall fill the whole earth. 22 If a person can count the sand of the earth, His descendants can also be counted. 23 And all the blessings with which the Lord has blessed me and my descendants shall belong to Jacob and his descendants always. 24 And in his descendants my name shall be blessed, and the name of my ancestors, Shem, and Noah, and Enoch, and Mahalalel, and Enosh, and Seth, and Adam. 25 And these shall serve To lay the foundations of the heaven, And to strengthen the earth, And to renew all the heavenly lights which are in the vault of the sky. 26 And he called Jacob in the presence of Rebekah his mother, and kissed him, and blessed him, and said: 27 'Jacob, my beloved son, whom my soul loves, may God bless you from above the vault of the sky, and may He give you all the blessings with which He blessed Adam, and Enoch, and Noah, and Shem; and all the things of which He told me, and all the things which He promised to give me, may he cause to cling to you and to your descendants forever, according to the days of heaven above the earth. 28 And the Spirits of Mastema shall not rule over you or over your descendants to turn you from the Lord, who is your God from now on forever. 29 And may the Lord God be a father to you and you the firstborn son, and to the people always. Go in peace, my son.' 30 And they both went out together from Abraham. 31 And Rebekah loved Jacob, with all her heart and with all her soul, very much more than Esau; but Isaac loved Esau much more than Jacob.

Texts in conversation

Compare Jubilees 19:8 and Pirkei Avot 5:3

Pseudepigrapha, Hebrew Bible Expansions · Rabbinic

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Summary

Rabbinic tradition in Pirkei Avot and Jubilees refer to a tradition where Abraham is given ten tests that highlight his faithfulness. This tradition, absent from the Hebrew Bible, interprets Abraham’s life as a distinct sequence of divine trials.

Passages

Jubilees 19:8

Pseudepigrapha, Hebrew Bible Expansions
7 And all the days of the life of Sarah were one hundred and twenty-seven years, that is, two jubilees and four weeks and one year: these are the days of the years of the life of Sarah. 8 This is the tenth test through which Abraham was tested, and he was found faithful, patient in spirit. 9 And he did not say a single word regarding the report in the land that God had said that He would give it to him and to his descendants after him, and he begged a place there to bury his dead; for he was found faithful, and was recorded on the heavenly tablets as the friend of God.
170–125 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Jubilees

Pirkei Avot 5:3

Rabbinic · Mishnah
2 There were ten generations from Adam to Noah, in order to make known how patient He is, for all those generations kept on provoking Him, until He brought upon them the waters of the flood. There were ten generations from Noah to Abraham, in order to make known how patient He is, for all those generations kept on provoking Him, until Abraham came and received the reward of all of them. 3 With ten trials was Abraham, our father, may he rest in peace, tried, and he withstood them all; to make known how great was the love of Abraham, our father, peace be upon him. 4 Ten miracles were performed for our ancestors in Egypt, and ten at the sea. Ten plagues did the Holy One, blessed be He, bring upon the Egyptians in Egypt, and ten at the sea. With ten trials did our ancestors try God, blessed be He, as it is said, "and they have tried Me these ten times and they have not listened to my voice" (Numbers 14:22).
190–230 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Pirkei Avot

References

"... And so, for ancient interpreters, Abraham's "image" was primarily that of 'Abraham the Tested,' the one who had been tried repeatedly by God ... The list in Jubilees above mentions seven tests specifically, but elsewhere it is asserted that Abraham underwent no fewer than ten such trials ..."
James L. Kugel, The Bible as It Was (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1998), 168–169.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Jubilees 19:8 and Pirkei Avot 5:3

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