VERS. IV.
〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, &c.
When his Father was dead, &c.
HERE ariseth a difficulty, and upon that a controversie, which we may take in in the words of R. Salomon upon Gen. XI. And Terah died in Charran, that is, more than threescore years after Abraham had left Charran, and had setled in the Land of Canaan. For it is written, Abraham was seventy five years of age, when he went out of Charran, and Terah was seventy years old when Abraham was born. Behold Terah was one hundred and forty five years of age, when Abraham left Charran, and he had a great many years yet behind. There remained indeed, according to this calculation, sixty years.
I. In that whole Chapter there is no mention of the death of any person there na∣med, before or beside that of Terah. Where by the way we may take notice of the boldness of the Greek Interpreters, who to every one of those persons have annext, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, and he died, directly against the purpose of Moses, and the mind of the Apostle, Heb. VII. 3. Now therefore why, when Moses had past over the death of all the rest that had been reckoned up before in that Catalogue should it be put in concerning Terah only, that he died in Charran, were it not to shew, that Abraham did not re∣move from thence till after his Fathers decease there? This R. Solomon, even while he is defending the contrary, seems something apprehensive of; For thus he expresseth himself; Why doth the Scripture tell of the death of Terah, before it mentions Abrahams removal? viz. lest the matter should be made public, and men should say, Abraham did not give that honour to his Father that he ought to have done, relinquishing him now in his old age, and going away from him; the Scripture therefore speaks of him as now dead, be∣cause the wicked, even while they are alive, are accounted for dead.
How is this Rabbin mistaken? For Terah now is no wicked man nor an Idolater, but converted, and therefore Moses makes him chief in that removal out of Chaldea, that his conversion might be known; although the command concerning the departure from that Country came first to Abraham. And if it was not lawful for Abraham to have forsaken his Father being yet an Idolater, much less was it so, when he was now become a worshipper of the true God.
II. It is indeed said that Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abraham, Nahor, and Haran, but as it is against reason to suppose they were all begot in one year, so there is no necessity to think they were begot in the order they are placed in in the story. Here that common maxim of the Rabbins takes place 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 there is no first and last in the Holy Scripture, i. e. the order of the story does not ne∣cessarily determine the time of it. And the Gemarists themselves, however they sup∣pose that Abraham might be older than Nahor one year, and Nahor than Haran one year; yet do they at length conclude 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 perhaps Abraham was the youngest of his Brethren;m 1.1 which they also confirm out of the order observed in numbring the sons of Noah, where Sem is first in the Catalogue, though he was younger than Japhet.
It is commonly received amongst the Jews, that Sarah Abrahams wife, was the daughter of his brother Haran, and that not without reason 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Jecah (say they) is the same with Sarah, and Josephus, speaks it out, as a thing of antient tradition. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. Haran leaving one Son, Lot, and Sarah and Milcha two daughters dyed in Chaldea.n 1.2 If therefore Sarah who was but ten years younger than Abraham was Ha∣rans daughter (which seems to be in some measure confirmed, Gen. XX. 12.) we can by no means suppose Abraham to have been the first born amongst the sons of Te∣rah, but Haran rather, unless we will trifle with some of the Rabbins, and say that Ha∣ran begat Milcha when he was but six or eight years old. But they conclude at length a little more rationally, if I understand what they mean, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 they reckon them up according to their wisdom.
Conceive Abraham therefore born, not in the seventieth but in the hundred and thirthieth year of Terah, and that these words here recited by Stephen were spoken to him in Ur of the Chaldeans; but those mentioned Gen. XII. 1. spoken in Charran;