To the extent possible under law, the Text Creation Partnership has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above, according to the terms of the CC0 1.0 Public Domain Dedication (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). This waiver does not extend to any page images or other supplementary files associated with this work, which may be protected by copyright or other license restrictions. Please go to http://www.textcreationpartnership.org/ for more information.
NOw follow the times of Abrahams sonnes, one of Agar the bond-woman, the other of Sara the free-woman, of whom we spake also in the last booke: b•…•… now for this act, Abraham offended not in vsing of this woman Agar as a
concubine: for hee did it for progeny sake, and not for lust, nor as insulting but obeying his wife: who held that it would bee a comfort vnto her barrennesse if she got children from her bond-woman by will, seeing shee could get none of her selfe by nature: vsing that law that the Apostle speaketh of: The husband hath not power of his owne bodie but the wife. The woman may procure her selfe children from the wombe of another if shee cannot beare none her selfe. There is neither luxury nor vncleannesse in such an act. The maide was therefore giuen by the wife to the hushand for Issues sake, and for that end hee tooke her: neither of them desire the effects of lust, but the fruites of nature: and when as the bond-woman being now with child beganne to despise her barren mistresse, and Sara suspected her husband for bearing with her in her pride, Abraham shewed, that he was not a captiued louer, but a free father in this, and that it was not his pleasure, but her will that hee had fulfilled, and that by her owne seeking: that he medled with Agar, but yet was no way entangled in affect vnto her: and sowed the seed of future fruite in her, but yet without yeelding to any exorbi∣tant affection to her: for he told his wife: Thy maide is in thine h•…•…nd: vse her as it pleaseth thee. Oh worthy man that could vse his wife with temperance and his ser∣uant with obedience, and both without all touch of vncleannesse!
Gen. 16.
1. Cor. 7. 4.
Gen. 16. 6.