Tobit 7

When they came to Ecbatana, they arrived at the house of Raguel, and Sarah met them. After they had greeted one another, she brought them into the house.

1And when they were come to Ecbatane, they came to the house of Raguel, and Sara met them: and after they had saluted one another, she brought them into the house.

NoteEcbatana was the capital of Media, in the mountains of what is now northwestern Iran, several hundred miles east of Nineveh. Israelites deported by the Assyrians had settled in scattered communities across that empire, which is how Tobit's relatives come to be living there.

2Then Raguel said to Edna his wife, "How much this young man looks like Tobit my cousin!"

2Then said Raguel to Edna his wife, How like is this young man to Tobit my cousin!

NoteThe family words in this chapter are loose. "Cousin" here, and "brother" and "kinsman" elsewhere, mean a member of the same extended family or clan rather than a precise degree of relationship. Raguel and Tobit belong to the same tribal kindred.

3And Raguel asked them, "Where are you from, brothers?" They said to him, "We are of the sons of Naphtali, who are captives in Nineveh."

3And Raguel asked them, From whence are ye, brethren? To whom they said, We are of the sons of Nephthalim, which are captives in Nineve.

NoteNaphtali was one of the twelve tribes of Israel, settled in the far north of the land. Assyria conquered that territory and deported its population, which is why these characters are living at Nineveh, the Assyrian capital, and at Ecbatana rather than at home. Addressing strangers as "brothers" marks them as fellow Israelites.

4Then he said to them, "Do you know Tobit our relative?" And they said, "We know him." Then he said, "Is he in good health?"

4Then he said to them, Do ye know Tobit our kinsman? And they said, We know him. Then said he, Is he in good health?

5And they said, "He is alive, and he is in good health." And Tobias said, "He is my father."

5And they said, He is both alive, and in good health: and Tobias said, He is my father.

6Then Raguel jumped up and kissed him and wept,

6Then Raguel leaped up, and kissed him, and wept,

7and he blessed him and said to him, "You are the son of an honest and good man." But when he heard that Tobit was blind, he was full of sorrow, and he wept.

7And blessed him, and said unto him, Thou art the son of an honest and good man. But when he had heard that Tobit was blind, he was sorrowful, and wept.

NoteThe Greek phrase behind "an honest and good man" was a stock expression for a thoroughly respectable person, sound in both character and conduct. It is a general commendation, not a claim about any particular act.

8Edna his wife and Sarah his daughter wept as well. Then they welcomed them gladly. They killed a ram from the flock and set plenty of food on the table. Then Tobias said to Raphael, "Brother Azarias, speak about the things you talked about on the road, and let this business be settled."

8And likewise Edna his wife and Sara his daughter wept. Moreover they entertained them cheerfully; and after that they had killed a ram of the flock, they set store of meat on the table. Then said Tobias to Raphael, Brother Azarias, speak of those things of which thou didst talk in the way, and let this business be dispatched.

NoteKilling a ram from the flock marked the meal as a feast for honored guests; meat was not everyday food, and slaughtering a whole animal was a costly gesture of welcome. "Azarias" is the name Tobias's traveling companion has given him: earlier in the book the angel Raphael presented himself as a kinsman of that name, hired as a guide, and Tobias has no idea he is anything else.

9So he told the matter to Raguel. And Raguel said to Tobias, "Eat and drink and be glad,

9So he communicated the matter with Raguel: and Raguel said to Tobias, Eat and drink, and make merry:

10for it is right that you should marry my daughter. Still, I will tell you the truth.

10For it is meet that thou shouldest marry my daughter: nevertheless I will declare unto thee the truth.

NoteThe Greek says more exactly that Sarah falls to Tobias by right. As her nearest eligible relative he has the first claim on her in marriage. Where a family had no son, marrying the daughter within the clan kept the family's land and property inside the family, the custom set out in Numbers 36.

11I have given my daughter in marriage to seven men, and they died on the night they came in to her. But for now, be glad." But Tobias said, "I will eat nothing here until we make an agreement and swear it to one another."

11I have given my daughter in marriage to seven men, who died that night they came in unto her: nevertheless for the present be merry. But Tobias said, I will eat nothing here, till we agree and swear one to another.

Note"Came in to her" is the ordinary biblical way of speaking of sexual intercourse. Earlier in the book the seven deaths are laid to the demon Asmodeus, who killed each husband before the marriage could be consummated. Tobias's refusal to eat is a recognized gesture: accepting a host's food implied the matter was settled on the host's terms, so a guest with business outstanding declined until it was sworn. Abraham's servant does the same in Genesis 24.

12Raguel said, "Then take her from this time on, as the custom is, for you are her relative, and she is yours. And may the merciful God give you good success in everything."

12Raguel said, Then take her from henceforth according to the manner, for thou art her cousin, and she is thine, and the merciful God give you good success in all things.

13Then he called his daughter Sarah, and she came to her father. He took her by the hand and gave her to Tobias to be his wife, and he said, "Here, take her according to the law of Moses, and lead her away to your father." And he blessed them.

13Then he called his daughter Sara, and she came to her father, and he took her by the hand, and gave her to be wife to Tobias, saying, Behold, take her after the law of Moses, and lead her away to thy father. And he blessed them;

NoteTaking the bride's hand and placing it in the groom's was the formal act that made the marriage. "According to the law of Moses" claims it as a proper Israelite marriage, contracted in exile but by the ancestral rules rather than local ones.

14He called Edna his wife, and he took paper and wrote out a document of agreements, and sealed it.

14And called Edna his wife, and took paper, and did write an instrument of covenants, and sealed it.

NoteThe word rendered "paper" means a writing sheet or scroll; the document is a marriage contract setting out what the two families have agreed. Sealing it, by pressing a personal seal into wax or clay, served as a signature and made the contract binding. Jewish marriage contracts of exactly this kind survive on papyrus from the centuries around this book's writing.

15Then they began to eat.

15Then they began to eat.

16After that, Raguel called his wife Edna and said to her, "Sister, get another room ready, and bring her in there."

16After Raguel called his wife Edna, and said unto her, Sister, prepare another chamber, and bring her in thither.

NoteHusband and wife address each other as "brother" and "sister" throughout this book, a term of affection also found in ancient love poetry; in marriages within the same kindred it is close to literally true as well. The room being prepared is the bridal chamber for the wedding night, the room in which Sarah's seven previous husbands died.

17She did as he had told her, and she brought her in there. And she wept, and she received her daughter's tears, and said to her,

17Which when she had done as he had bidden her, she brought her thither: and she wept, and she received the tears of her daughter, and said unto her,

NoteThe Greek says literally that she received her daughter's tears. It describes sharing the weeping, holding her while she cried, rather than any particular gesture.

18"Be comforted, my daughter. May the Lord of heaven and earth give you joy for this sorrow of yours. Be comforted, my daughter."

18Be of good comfort, my daughter; the Lord of heaven and earth give thee joy for this thy sorrow: be of good comfort, my daughter.