you shall be demonstrated; for I know that you are taught by God, and are able to admonish others. Therefore, having paused here in my counsel regarding this matter, I shall take up the customary teaching from the words of the blessed Moses—or rather, from the things said to us through him by the holy Spirit—and, adding a few small things to the subject, I shall set before you today this feast. You heard previously how Jacob, having accomplished everything according to the counsel of Rebekah, drew unto himself the blessing of his father, displaying that praiseworthy theft, A on account of which he enjoyed the cooperation of God, and the object of his zeal was brought to fruition. But since from this a great envy was born in him from Esau, he was henceforth prepared for murder—for such is this deadly passion: it does not stop before it has cast the one caught by the passion down over precipices and driven him to the lawlessness of murder. For envy is the root of murder. Thus it happened from the beginning in the case of Cain and Abel. For even that man, having nothing—neither small nor great—to lay to the charge of his brother, because he saw him held in honor by the Master of all through the offering of his gifts, and himself rejected on account of his own sloth, was immediately aroused to envy, and having conceived the root of murder in his mind, he immediately displayed that deadly fruit and brought the murder to completion. Thus, too, now, Esau, seeing that his brother had received the blessings from his father B and being carried away to murder by anger and jealousy, was meditating the taking off of his brother.
But the wonderful mother, perceiving this, again displays her maternal affection for the child and introduces a counsel capable of snatching him away from the hands of his brother. For she called her younger son, he says, and said to him: "Behold, Esau thy brother threatens to kill thee. Now therefore hearken to my voice." Let experience teach thee, she says, that I counsel thee things that are profitable; and just as, having already hearkened to my voice, thou didst draw unto thyself those great blessings from thy father, so too now hearken to my voice, that thou mightest be able to escape the hands of thy brother. For thus wilt thou free thyself from dangers, and me from mourning. For it is likely that he, if he should dare this, would be called to account for the punishment, and from every side the intensity of pain would be increased for me. Hearken therefore to my voice, and arise, flee to my brother Laban into Charran, and dwell with him for some days, until the wrath and anger of thy brother from thee turn away, and he forget what thou hast done to him; and I will send and fetch thee from thence, lest I be bereaved of both of you in one day. C "Depart," she says, "to my brother Laban, and dwell there with him." It is likely that both the separation and the intervening time will have some further strength to soothe the passion, and for the jealousy to abate, and for him to come to forgetfulness of the things done by thee regarding the theft of the blessing. "And he may forget," she says, "what thou hast done to him." She says it is with good reason that he is angry; therefore it is fitting to avoid his impulse, so that, through the time in which forgetfulness is produced in him, thou mightest thereafter be able to make thy dwelling here in safety. And that the boy might not be distressed by being compelled to go into a strange land, see how she soothes the soul of the young man, first by saying: "Depart to Laban my brother." For am I urging thee, she says, to go off to some stranger? To my brother, and dwell with him for some days. For a short time, she says, a few days, until his anger ceases. For now, she says, his temper is at its peak, and he neither makes any account of his father, being utterly tyrannized by the passion, nor does he take into his mind brotherly affection, but he is concerned with one thing alone: the satisfying of his rage. "And having sent, I will fetch thee quickly," she says, "from thence." I will bring thee back. Depart therefore with confidence, because "I will send and fetch thee"; for the struggle is for everything for me, and I fear for both, lest I be deprived of both. D See the understanding of a mother, how, being moved from within—or rather, even now serving the providence of God—she counsels the child those things which Christ advised His disciples, warning them not to go headlong into dangers, but through withdrawal to soothe the madness of the passion. This, therefore, she also suggesting to the child, having first counseled him and emboldened his reasoning so as not to be distressed at the separation, then also wishes to wrap the departure in a reasonable pretext, so that he might not appear to be withdrawing openly because of the jealousy of his brother, nor the father know the true cause of the departure, nor the indignation of Esau against him. And having entered, she says, to Isaac, Rebekah said: "I am weary of my life because of the daughters of the sons of Heth. If Jacob take a wife of the daughters of this land, what is life to me?"
3. Consider how she found a seemly pretext. For when the right hand from above cooperates with us, even difficult things become easy, and arduous things simple. Since, therefore, she also had the God of all assenting to her intent, she put into her own mind everything capable of contributing to the dispensation that was to come, and to the salvation of the child. "I am weary," she says, "of my life because of the daughters of the sons of Heth. If Jacob take a wife of the daughters of this land, what is life to me?" Here she seems to me to be hinting at the waywardness of the wives of Esau, and that they had become a subject of much unpleasantness for them. For even above, the divine Scripture narrated to us that Esau took wives from the Hittites and from the Hivites, *And they were contending with Isaac and with Rebekah*. Wishing therefore to remind him of this very thing, she says, as it were, these things to him: Thou knowest how the spouses of Esau have made my life bitter, and how, on account of their wickedness, I am henceforth hostile toward all the daughters of the sons of Heth, and for their sake I have hated the whole nation. If, therefore, it should happen that Jacob also takes a wife from them, what hope of salvation will I have henceforth? For why is life to me? For if we are not able to endure those, if he too hastens to take a wife from the daughters of this land, the things of our life are gone. Isaac, having heard these things and coming to a remembrance of their wickedness, called Jacob, he says, and blessed him, and commanded him, saying: "Thou shalt not take a wife from the daughters of the Canaanites; but arise, go into Mesopotamia, to the house of the father of thy mother, and take for thyself from thence a wife from the daughters of the brother of thy mother." And he did not stop until this, but wishing...
to show himself more eager for the travel, and holding the blessings from him in high esteem, he says: 5. "But my God will bless thee, and increase thee, and multiply thee, and thou shalt be for congregations of nations, 4. and He shall give to thee the blessing of Abraham my father, to thee and to thy seed after thee, that thou mayest receive as an inheritance the land of thy sojourning, which God gave to Abraham." See how the righteous man foretells to him everything, and gives him good provisions and comforts; for he foretells to him both his return and the inheritance of the land, saying that it shall come to pass that he will not only increase in a multitude, but also that congregations of nations shall go forth from his seed. As the son heard these things, he fulfilled the commands of his father, and set out into Mesopotamia to Laban, the brother of his mother. And again, when Esau learned this, and that Jacob had been blessed by his father and had received a command not to take a wife from the daughters of the Canaanites, but had hastened into Mesopotamia—as if wishing to correct his own fault and appease his father— 9. "He added," it says, "and took a wife, in addition to his two wives, the daughter of Ishmael, son of Abraham." You have seen, beloved, with what wisdom the most loving mother delivered her son Jacob from dangers, putting forward a plausible excuse for the travel, and neither exposing the malice of Esau, nor rendering an overt cause to the father; but by giving to the son advice appropriate to him, so that he might be brought to embrace her opinion out of fear, while she also suggested to the father a sentiment appropriate for him? Whence the righteous man, offering assent to her words, sent away Jacob instructed with the provision of the blessing.
The Journey of Jacob is Narrated
But if it pleases you, and you are not wearied, let us see how Jacob performed his journey. For we can receive no small fruit from this as well, if we pay attention. For the conduct and life of the righteous contain the teaching of the whole of philosophy. A See, therefore, this young man, who was reared at home, who had never before experienced the danger of any journey, nor had ever lived in a foreign region, nor had experienced anything grave, see how he enters upon his journey, and learn the excellence of that philosophy. 10. "And Jacob went out from the fountain of the oath, and set out for Charran, 11. and he came upon a place, and slept there, for the sun had set; and he took some of the stones of the place, and placed them at his head, and slept in the place." Have you seen the ineffable philosophy? Have you seen how the ancients made their journeys? A man reared at home (for I shall say it again), and accustomed to such service (for "he was simple," it says, "and dwelling at home" [Gen. 25:27]), being about to travel, he was in need neither of beasts of burden, nor of servants, nor of provisions; but having imitated the apostolic manner, he makes his journey; and when the sun went down, he slept there where the night overtook him. "He took," it says, "a stone, and placed it at his head." See the strength of the boy: he used a stone for a bolster, and slept upon the pavement. Therefore, because he had a well-disposed soul, and a manly spirit, free from all worldly vanity, he was made worthy of that admirable vision. For this is the way our Lord acts; whenever He sees a soul well-affected, B not making much of present things, He declares that He has very great care for it.
He is seen, indeed, seeing a vision, or rather, deemed worthy of a vision of the Lord. For He says: "He fell asleep, 12. and behold, a ladder was set firm upon the earth, whose head reached to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending upon it. 13. I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac thy father; do not fear." Consider, I beseech you, this extraordinary care of the merciful God. Because He saw him undertaking the journey according to the counsel of his mother because of the fear of his brother, and as if making the journey like some fugitive, alone and cut off from others and having no consolation from any place, but casting all his hope upon the assistance from above: wishing immediately at the very beginning to confirm his alacrity, He appears to him, and says: "I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac thy father." I raised both the patriarch and your father to such a great splendor. Do not, therefore, fear, but believe in me, who fulfilled the promises to them, and that I will deem thee worthy of my care and providence. C Do not fear, therefore, but have confidence; and having cast off all fear, believe those things which are spoken by me. "For the land upon which thou sleepest, I will give to thee and to thy seed, 14. and thy seed shall be as the sand of the sea." Do not think, He says, because you are now going into an alien land, that you are to be deprived of the land in which you were born, where you were reared, where you grew up. For I will give it to thee and to thy seed, which I shall cause to increase like the sand of the sea. "And it shall be spread abroad to the sea, and to the southwest, and to the north, and to the east": this is, it shall be propagated everywhere. "And in thee shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed, and in thy seed."
How God Exercises the Obedience of the Righteous
See how He already foretells to him everything that was to come to pass after a long time. For this is the custom of the Lord of all, to promise that He will do this to each of the righteous individually, but not to fulfill the promises immediately; but to exercise the obedience and patience of the righteous, and thus to fulfill the promised things with much liberality. Then, when He has promised him future things, since the righteous man was in need, in his present circumstances, of no vulgar consolation: see how the kind Lord promises future things, and through those very things which He currently declares to him, instills confidence concerning them. For He says: "Do not think that I am promising only these things to thee; but even now 15. I am with thee, guarding thee in every way in which thou goest." Do not think, therefore, He says, that you are making the journey alone: you shall have me as a companion of your journey, you shall have me as a guardian in every way, rendering all things difficult for you easy. D Then further increasing the consolation, He now foretells to him his return to his own. "And I will make thee return," He says, "to this land." Do not fear, He says, as if you are going to dwell in a strange land. "And I will bring thee back to this land, and I shall by no means abandon thee, until I have performed all that I have spoken to thee." I shall not overlook you, nor shall I leave you destitute of counsel; but these things, whatsoever I promised thee, I will bring to effect. How would one, in accordance with the dignity of it, wonder at and be astonished at the divine kindness and the inestimable indulgence? For see how great a weight of promises He gives to the righteous man, and how He raised up his mind. Think also of the grateful affection of this righteous man.
and that after so many promises, being afflicted for the number of twenty years with Laban, he did not fret, nor did he grow sluggish at the length of time; but he bore all things A generously, awaiting the end of the promises, and knowing that it is not possible for those things spoken by God to fail, especially when we ourselves are eager to bring our own part: faith, patience, and trusting—just as if they were already brought to pass—in those things not yet come to pass, whenever the Master promises them. For this is truly faith: not to attend to the things that are seen, even if the things happening are contrary to the promise, but to trust in the power of the One who promised.
But for now, let us see the grateful affection of this righteous man. 16. *And Jacob awakened from his sleep, and said, That the Lord is in this place; and I knew it not.* 17. *And he was afraid, and said: How terrible is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.* Struck with awe, he says, the righteous man was afraid of the great kindness of God, and said: *This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.* From now on, this place is deemed by me to be the house of God. B Having been deemed worthy of such an appearing, and having beheld, so to speak, the very gate of heaven, I would be righteous to offer the due thanksgiving here to the Master. *And Jacob rose up, and took the stone that he had placed at his head, and set it up as a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. And Jacob called the name of that place, The House of God.* For the place had a different name before. Since he was deemed worthy of great things through the vision, he wishes to fix the memory in the place by the name, and to make it distinguished for the future. And having set up the stone in place of a pillar, and having poured the oil upon it (for it is likely that he carried this alone, as he was traveling), he offers a prayer to the kind God, which is full of all philosophy.
5. And if you wish, let us listen to the very words themselves. For he offered a prayer, saying: *If the Lord God will be with me, and will keep me in this way wherein I go.* Since He had said, *I am with you, and I will keep you in the way wherein you go,* for this reason he also says: *If those things shall be mine which You promised me.* Then he also offers a petition from his own heart, saying: *If the Lord will give me bread to eat, and a garment to put on.* He did not ask for wealth, nor for any abundance, but bread and a garment—the one for the clothing of the body, the other for the sustenance of his need. See how he hinted to us an apostolic character through his petition; so full of philosophy was the mind of C the righteous man. For what Christ was saying, *Do not possess gold, nor silver, nor two tunics* (Matt. 10:9), this man, not yet taught by any person, but having learned these things from his own heart and from the teacher implanted in our nature, sought to be provided by the Master: bread to eat and a garment to put on. *If these things shall be mine,* he says, *in a foreign land, and He shall turn me back with safety to the house of my father, as He promised; and the Lord shall be my God, and this stone which I set up as a pillar shall be for me the house of God; and of all that You shall give me, I will tithe a tithe to You.*
See the grateful affection of the righteous man. In making his request, he did not deign to ask for anything expensive, but bread and a garment; but while promising his own part to the Master, knowing His munificence in His gifts, and that He exceeds our thoughts in His recompenses, he says: *And I will have this pillar as a house of God, and of all those things provided to me by You, I will tithe the tithes.* Have you seen a God-loving intention? He had not yet received anything, and he promises that he will offer to God the tithes of what was to be given to him. Let us not, beloved, pass over these things lightly, but let us all emulate this righteous man—we who are under grace, the one who was before the Law—and let us not ask for anything worldly from the Master. For He does not wait for our reminder, but even if we do not ask, He grants us the things necessary for our D need. For *He makes His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust* (Matt. 5:45). And let us be persuaded by Him when He counsels and says: *Seek first the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added unto you* (Matt. 6:33). Do you see that He Himself has prepared to provide those things for us, and promises to give these things by way of an addition? Let us not, therefore, ask for those things which you are going to receive as an addition as if they were the primary things, nor let us reverse the order, but let us seek those things, just as He commanded, so that we may come to the enjoyment of both those things and these.
For this reason, even in the words of the prayer, setting down for us boundaries and rules as to how far one ought to make a request for worldly things, He commanded us to say those words, which are full of all philosophy: *Give us today our daily bread,* instead of: "the day's sustenance"—which this righteous man, having heard none of this, prayed for, saying: *If the Lord will give me bread to eat, and a garment to put on.* Let us not, therefore, ask of Him any other of the worldly things. For it is very unworthy to ask of Him who is so munificent and possesses such an abundance of power those things which perish with the present life, and which have much change and shifting; for all human things are of this kind, whether you speak of wealth, or power, or human glory; but let us ask for the things that remain forever, the lasting things, and those which do not know change. And knowing the goodness of our Master, let us make no account of present things, but let us transfer all our eagerness to the longing for heavenly things. For if He makes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust, much more will He not overlook those who abstain from wickedness and flee from injustice, but He will deem them worthy of great providence, and will provide His own care in all things. Knowing this, beloved, let us not disbelieve the promises of God, nor let us work contrary to what He commanded. For the things now being done by us differ in no way from the behavior of those who disbelieve. For when He Himself promises the things to come, and we are not willing to trust in them, but are fixed upon present things, what other proof of unbelief, then, would someone look for, when the facts themselves are sending forth a clear voice? And again, while He commands us to ask of Him nothing of these fleeting and worldly things, but rather those, we come to Him from the opposite direction, and the things He said not to seek, these we seek, and the things He said to seek, these we do not seek. And while doing these things, and thus governing our own affairs so recklessly, and provoking the gentle and mild Master, as if having forgotten the things being done by us, we [look for] the cause...