Tobit 7
7
At the Home of Raguel
1When they entered the city of Ecbatana, Tobias said, “Azariah, take me straight to Raguel's home.” He did, and they found Raguel sitting beside the gate that led into his yard. They greeted him, and he answered, “I hope you are happy and healthy. Welcome to my home; please come in.”
2Raguel turned to his wife Edna and said, “Doesn't this young man remind you of my relative Tobit?”
3Edna asked Tobias and Raphael, “So, our new friends, where do you come from?”
They answered, “We are from the tribe of Naphtali, and we live in exile in Nineveh.”
4“Do you know our relative Tobit?” Edna asked.
“Yes, we do,” they answered.
“Is he well?” she asked.
5“He is alive and well,” they replied. Then Tobias added, “And he is my father!”
6 #
Gn 33.4; 45.14; Lk 15.20. Raguel jumped up and kissed Tobias and started weeping. 7Raguel said, “I pray that God will bless you. Your father Tobit is a generous and honest man. It's a terrible shame that someone so good has become blind.” Then Raguel hugged Tobias and cried some more. 8Raguel's wife Edna and his daughter Sarah were also crying for Tobit. 9Then Raguel killed one of his sheep, so its meat could be prepared for dinner, and he made Tobias and Raphael feel welcome in his home.
After they had bathed and were eating dinner, Tobias whispered to Raphael, “Ask him to let me marry Sarah!”
10Raguel overheard Tobias and said, “Eat and drink and have a good time. No one except you has the right to marry my daughter Sarah. You are my closest relative, and so I would not be allowed to let anyone else marry her. However, there are a few things I must tell you. 11I have already let Sarah marry seven of my relatives, and each one of them died when he went into the bedroom to sleep with her. So now, Tobias, eat and drink, and the Lord will help you.”
But Tobias replied, “I won't eat or drink anything until you make this marriage official.”
“Then I will make it official right now!” Raguel said. “Tobias, I give my daughter Sarah to you as your wife according to the laws in the Book of Moses. God himself wanted you to marry her, and from this moment you will forever be husband and wife. I pray that the Lord of Heaven will bless the two of you tonight, and that he will be merciful and give you peace.”
12Raguel sent for his daughter, and when she came, he took her by the hand and led her over to Tobias. Then he said, “Tobias, Sarah is now your wife in keeping with the laws and teachings of the Book of Moses. Make sure that she arrives unharmed at your father's home, and I will pray that the God of Heaven will keep you safe as you travel.”
13Raguel asked his wife Edna to bring him something to write on, and he wrote out a contract stating that Sarah was married to Tobias according to the Law of Moses. 14Then they all ate and drank.
15Afterwards, Raguel said, “Edna, please get the other bedroom ready and take Sarah there.” 16So Edna made the bed and brought Sarah to the room. Edna wept for her daughter, then she wiped away the tears and said, “Don't worry, Sarah! Cheer up, because the God of Heaven will soon turn your sorrow into joy.” Then Edna left.
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Tobit 7: CEVDCI
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.