Wonderful was its insensibility in the sons of Jacob — [When they conspired against their brother Joseph, and east him into the pit, that he might perish with hunger, they regarded not the cries and entreaties of the youth, but pro- ceeded in their murderous career without remorse. But the seasonable appearance of a company of Ishmaelites suggested to them somewhat of an easier method of ridding themselves of him. At the suggestion of Judah, " What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood? Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him ; for he is our brother, and our flesh ; " they acceded to it, and " were content." In the first instance, after putting him into the pit, " they sat down to eat bread," evidently without any compunction : but now they were quite " content" applauding themselves for their humanity, instead of condemning them- selves for their injustice and cruelty11.
View next their mode of deceiving their aged father. They took Joseph's coat, and dipped it in the blood of a kid which they killed for the purpose ; and brought it to their father, in order that he might conclude, that an evil beast had devoured his son. (How far God might design this as a just retribution for the deceit which Jacob himself had practised towards his aged father, when he, by assuming Esau's coat, stole away the blessing that belonged to Esau, we stay not to notice : with this the sons of Jacob had nothing to do.) They behold their aged parent overwhelmed with grief, and absolutely incon- solable for the loss of his son : and these detestable hypocrites " rise up to comfort him '." Where is conscience all this time ? Has it no voice ? Is there not one amongst them all that has any compunctious visitings? not one amongst all the ten? Does no heart relent at the sight of the anguish of an aged and pious parent, sitting from day to day and from month to month " with sackcloth on his loins," and " going down mourning to the grave ?" No ; not one of them all, as far as we know, ever " repented, saying, What have I done?" For the space of two and twenty years they all continued in im- penitent obduracy ; and were not made even at last to feel the guilt they had contracted in selling their brother, till they themselves were brought into somewhat similar circumstances with him, and constrained to read their own crime in their punishment. Such was conscience in them /]
Yet this is in reality what we may see in ourselves and in all around us —
[Behold the profane, who have not God in all their thoughts, and who never utter the name of God but to blas-
h Gen. xxxvii. 23 — 28. ' Gen. xxxvii. 31 — 35.