Show Wi)t foetal osttton of ebreto Women By LEONARD DAVIDSON Women as a whole were not given themuch consideration early Hebrew peo- among ple but were looked upon more as a means of increasing the numbers of the race and as things to be bought and sold at will Of course as soon as women became more numerous laws were made governing them and their work The daughter was purchased from the father for a certain amount of money or other commodity by the man who desired her as a wife as in the case of Rebekah’s being purchased for Isaac Abraham had sent a servant to his owTn people to get a wife for his son Isaac All are familiar with the story of Rebekah at the well Rebekah finally consented probably due to her father’s wishes to go to to Isaac and finally became his wife The marriage w’as usually of the lleena form the man going to live with his wife’s people instead of his own His family including his sons and daugh- ters and their children wras not regarded as the descendants of his father but as the descend ants of his wife’s father As an example of this the case of Jacob would show this Jacob after working for his two wives Leah and Rachel for fourteen years and also earning a part of Laban’s flocks after another six years attempted to leave his father-in-lawith his wives sons and daughters Laban followed When he overtook Jacob he said “These daughters are my daughters and these children are my children and these cattle are my cattle and all that thou seest is mine and what can I do this day unto these my daughters or unto their children wThich they have borne If thou shalt afflict my daughters or if thou shalt take other wives besides my daughters no man is with us” Jacob agreed to this and Laban wrent back to his w home A man wras allowed to have more than one wife and some of them had a great many It seems however that the custom wTas such that the wife whom the man already had must give her permission In some cases the man was not w’edded to the several w'omen who bore him children but they were merely concubines Solomon w'as said to have had seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines Is it any w’onder that Solomon should |