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[210]
A man whose name was Amram, one of the nobler sort of the Hebrews,
was afraid for his whole nation, lest it should fail, by the want of young
men to be brought up hereafter, and was very uneasy at it, his wife being
then with child, and he knew not what to do. Hereupon he betook himself
to prayer to God; and entreated him to have compassion on those men who
had nowise transgressed the laws of his worship, and to afford them deliverance
from the miseries they at that time endured, and to render abortive their
enemies' hopes of the destruction of their nation. Accordingly God had
mercy on him, and was moved by his supplication. He stood by him in his
sleep, and exhorted him not to despair of his future favors. He said further,
that he did not forget their piety towards him, and would always reward
them for it, as he had formerly granted his favor to their forefathers,
and made them increase from a few to so great a multitude. He put him in
mind, that when Abraham was come alone out of Mesopotamia into Canaan,
he had been made happy, not only in other respects, but that when his wife
was at first barren, she was afterwards by him enabled to conceive seed,
and bare him sons. That he left to Ismael and to his posterity the country
of Arabia; as also to his sons by Ketura, Troglodytis; and to Isaac, Canaan.
That by my assistance, said he, he did great exploits in war, which, unless
you be yourselves impious, you must still remember. As for Jacob, he became
well known to strangers also, by the greatness of that prosperity in which
he lived, and left to his sons, who came into Egypt with no more than seventy
souls, while you are now become above six hundred thousand. Know therefore
that I shall provide for you all in common what is for your good, and particularly
for thyself what shall make thee famous; for that child, out of dread of
whose nativity the Egyptians have doomed the Israelite children to destruction,
shall be this child of thine, and shall be concealed from those who watch
to destroy him: and when he is brought up in a surprising way, he shall
deliver the Hebrew nation from the distress they are under from the Egyptians.
His memory shall be famous while the world lasts; and this not only among
the Hebrews, but foreigners also: - all which shall be the effect of my
favor to thee, and to thy posterity. He shall also have such a brother,
that he shall himself obtain my priesthood, and his posterity shall have
it after him to the end of the world.
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