Isaac and Jacob abode in Canaan at Hebron, Beersheba, and Shechem. Here Isaac again dug out the wells which Abraham's servants had previously made. The quarrel of his servants about the wells with the Philistines of Gerar is based on the severe battles afterwards fought between the Philistines and Israel. As Abraham had set up pillars, so does Isaac build an altar at Beersheba,[603] and Jacob sets up a sacred stone at Bethel. As Abraham, according to the first text, buys the burying-place at Hebron, so Jacob, according to this same text, bought the field at Shechem, where he had pitched his tent. Thus Isaac and Jacob also have acquired possessions in Canaan, and have rendered services to the land; they also have prepared the way for the rule of their descendants in Canaan, and have consecrated the places at which the Hebrews were destined to worship the gods of their fathers. The three patriarchs strictly carry out the commands of Jehovah, from which their descendants swerved often and long. To the Hebrews they are patterns of the purity of their race; their descendants did not always keep themselves free from mixture with the Canaanites. But they are not only patterns of the fear of God, and piety, of correct faith and right dealing with the Canaanites; they also exhibit to the Hebrews the moral ideal of their conduct. Abraham is distinguished by the virtues of faithfulness, of unselfishness, and friendliness to his brother's family, and, in return, the blessing of Jehovah rests upon him. Other virtues are brought into prominence by the tradition in Jacob, the most immediate ancestor of the Hebrews. If Abraham knew how to raise the sword, and Esau lived a wild hunter's life, Jacob is a peaceable, faithful shepherd, who patiently endures heat and cold, who is ever wide awake, under whose hand the flocks increase, and whose care prevents the sheep and goats from casting their young. When Jacob had served fourteen years for his wives, he still continued to serve six years for hire. Among the Hebrews the life of a hired servant is not considered a degradation; and continuance in service for the sake of hire is not looked down upon with contempt. Jehovah rewards the industrious servant, the active workman. With his staff in his hand Jacob passed over the Euphrates; but he returned rich in flocks and goods, blessed with wife and child. In his pliancy, his quiet, peaceful trust in God, his wrestling for the blessing of God, Jacob is the genuine warrior of God (Israel), who is rescued, and gains the victory. Beside these stand realistic traits peculiar to the East and the Hebrew character. Jacob is a cunning man, who knows how to invent clever devices. With the help of his mother he gains from his brother the blessing of the firstborn. At first Laban outwits him, but in the end Jacob's cunning is victorious. He knows how to pacify his brother by subjection. To bow before the mighty in order to save property and life has not always appeared