Thirdly, he presenteth him with a large present, and set a space betwixt drove and drove, commanding them to answer his brother with all submissness; saying when they should be asked, Whose are these before thee? They be thy brother Jacobs. It is a present sent to my Lord Esau, and he is behind us: and so the second and the third, and all that followed the droves, saying, I will pacify him with a gift that goeth before me, and afterwards, I will see his face, peradventure he will accept of me, and then having wrestled with God, Chap. 32. he saw his brother coming, and divided his children to Leah and Rachel, and the young maidens, and setting the hand maids first, then Leah, then Rachel, himself went before them, and fell on the ground seven times, and did obeisance, and so caused the handmaids and his wives to do the like, and so by his submissive carriage he pacified his brothers anger, and God working with his prudence, found him exceeding kind and loving: and when he would have gone before him, excuseth himself by the pace of the young Infants and cattle, he avoided his company, and by pressing caused him to receive the gift, and in very modest manner refused the train which his brother left with him, and escaped his hands. So he proved that to be true, which after Solomon told, That a gift in the bosom pacifieth great wrath, Prov. 21.14. And a gift is as a precious stone in the eyes of him that hath it, and it prospereth whithersoever it goeth, Eccles. 10.4. Yielding pacifieth great offences. Thus Jacob carried himself prudently, and escaped his brothers fury. Let us learn of Jacob, by liberality and submissiveness to appease the fury of unreasonable men: We must not yield so far as to sin, but to yield in all meek and lowly gestures even to worthy men, is not a sin but a virtue. So likewise Bribery is naught, that is, to seek to turn a Governor from justice by gifts, and hire him to do wrong; but by gifts to pacify an angry man, and hire him to forbear sinning, that is a lawful use of gifts, and to practise liberality in so due a season, to redeem the life by the goods, and to make them quiet that were enraged, is a very good thing.
Thirdly, he presenteth him with a large present, and set a space betwixt drove and drove, commanding them to answer his brother with all submisnesse; saying when they should be asked, Whose are these before thee? They be thy brother Iacobs. It is a present sent to my Lord Esau, and he is behinde us: and so the second and the third, and all that followed the droves, saying, I will pacifie him with a gift that goeth before me, and afterwards, I will see his face, peradventure he will accept of me, and then having wrastled with God, Chap. 32. he saw his brother comming, and divided his children to Leah and Rachel, and the young maidens, and setting the hand maides first, then Leah, then Rachel, himself went before them, and fell on the ground seven times, and did obeisance, and so caused the handmaids and his wives to do the like, and so by his submissive carriage he pacified his brothers anger, and God working with his prudence, found him exceeding kinde and loving: and when he would have gone before him, excuseth himselfe by the pace of the young Infants and cattell, he avoided his company, and by pressing caused him to receive the gift, and in very modest manner refused the traine which his brother left with him, and escaped his hands. So he proved that to be true, which after Solomon told, That a gift in the bosome pacifieth great wrath, Prov. 21.14. And a gift is as a precious stone in the eyes of him that hath it, and it prospereth whethersoever it goeth, Eccles. 10.4. Yeelding pacifieth great offences. Thus Iacob carried himselfe prudently, and escaped his brothers fury. Let us learne of Iacob, by liberality and submissivenesse to appease the fury of unreasonable men: We must not yeeld so far as to sin, but to yeeld in all meek and lowly gestures even to worthy men, is not a sin but a vertue. So likewise Bribery is naught, that is, to seek to turne a Governour from justice by gifts, and hire him to do wrong; but by gifts to pacifie an angry man, and hire him to forbeare sinning, that is a lawfull use of gifts, and to practise liberality in so due a season, to redeeme the life by the goods, and to make them quiet that were inraged, is a very good thing.
