Page:Suppressed Gospels and Epistles.djvu/138

This page needs to be proofread.

son Joseph, saying; Behold the Lord hath not derived me of seeing thy face, bring me thy sons that I may bless them. And he brought unto his father Manasseh and Ephraim, desiring that he should bless Manasseh, because he was the elder.

6 Therefore Joseph brought him to the right hand of his father Jacob. But Jacob by the spirit foresaw the figure of the people that was to come.

7 And what saith the Scripture? And Jacob crossed his hands, and put his right hand upon Ephraim, his second, and the younger son, and blessed him. And Joseph said unto Jacob; Put thy right hand upon the head of Manasseh, for he is my first-born son. And Jacob said unto Joseph; I know it, my son, I know it; but the greater shall serve the lesser; though he also shall be blessed.

8 Ye see of whom he appointed it, that they should be the first people, and heirs of the covenant.

9 If therefore God shall have yet farther taken notice of this, by Abraham too; our understanding of it will then be perfectly established.

10 What then saith the Scripture of Abraham, when I he believed, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness? Behold I have made thee a father of the nations, which without circumcision believe in the Lord.

11 Let us therefore now inquire whether God has fulfilled the covenant, which he sware to our fathers, that he would give this people? Yes, verily, he gave it; but they were not worthy to receive it by reason of their sins.

12 For thus saith the prophet And Moses continued fasting in mount Sinai, to receive the covenant of the Lord with the people, forty days and forty nights.

13 And he received of the Lord two tables written with the finger of the Lord's hand, in the Spirit. And Moses, when he had received them, brought them down that he might deliver them to the people.

14 And the Lord said unto Moses; Moses, Moses, get thee down quickly, for the people which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt have done wickedly.

15 And Moses understood that they had again set up a molten image: and he cast the two tables out of his hands; and the tables of the covenant of the Lord were broken. Moses therefore received them, but they were not worthy.

16 Now then learn how we have received them. Moses, being a servant, took them; but the Lord himself has given them unto us, that we might be the people of his inheritance; having suffered for us.

17 He was therefore made manifest; that they should fill up the measure of their sins, and that we being made heirs by him, should receive the covenant of the Lord Jesus.

18 And again the prophet saith Behold, I have set thee for a light unto the Gentiles; to be the saviour of all the ends of the earth, saith the Lord; the God who hath re-deemed thee.

19 Who for that very end was prepared, that by his own appearing he might redeem our hearts, already devoured by death, and delivered over to the irregularity of error, from darkness; and establish a covenant with us by his word.

20 For so it is written that the father commanded him by delivering us from darkness, to prepare unto himself a holy people.

21 Wherefore the prophet saith I the Lord thy God have called thee in righteousness, and I will