Tobit and wife worries about Tobias

Tobias was still staying at his in-laws place according to tradition where he must stay for 14 days. In the meantime, his original goal to recover the trust money from Gabael had been completed. Back home, Tobit and his wife was very worried - to the point that Tobit's wife spoke out claiming Tobias has perished. Tobit was a little more hopeful, believing something must have delayed his son Tobias. Finally the 14 days were over and Tobias insisted that he goes home, knowing his parents must be worried. His in-laws Raguel and Edna send them away with blessings and half their possessions given to Tobias as promised.




10 Anxiety of the Parents
Now his father Tobit was counting each day, and when the days for the journey had expired and they did not arrive, 2 he said, “Is it possible that he has been detained?[a] Or is it possible that Gab′ael has died and there is no one to give him the money?” 3 And he was greatly distressed. 4 And his wife said to him, “The lad has perished; his long delay proves it.” Then she began to mourn for him, and said, 5 “Am I not distressed, my child, that I let you go, you who are the light of my eyes?” 6 But Tobit said to her, “Be still and stop worrying; he is well.” 7 And she answered him, “Be still and stop deceiving me; my child has perished.” And she went out every day to the road by which they had left; she ate nothing in the daytime, and throughout the nights she never stopped mourning for her son Tobi′as, until the fourteen days of the wedding feast had expired which Rag′uel had sworn that he should spend there.

Tobias and Sarah Start for Home
At that time Tobi′as said to Rag′uel, “Send me back, for my father and mother have given up hope of ever seeing me again.” 8 But his father-in-law said to him, “Stay with me, and I will send messengers to your father, and they will inform him how things are with you.” 9 Tobi′as replied, “No, send me back to my father.” 10 So Rag′uel arose and gave him his wife Sarah and half of his property in slaves, cattle, and money. 11 And when he had blessed them he sent them away, saying, “The God of heaven will prosper you, my children, before I die.” 12 He said also to his daughter, “Honor your father-in-law and your mother-in-law; they are now your parents. Let me hear a good report of you.” And he kissed her. And Edna said to Tobi′as, “The Lord of heaven bring you back safely, dear brother, and grant me to see your children by my daughter Sarah, that I may rejoice before the Lord. See, I am entrusting my daughter to you; do nothing to grieve her.”

Money recovered and Gabael blesses Tobias at his wedding

Tobias' unexpected wedding also meant that he could not fulfill his original mission of recovering his family's trust money from Gabael in Media. So Tobias made arrangements for Raphael to go instead and also invite Gabael to the wedding feast. Things went smoothly and Gabael released the trust money and also came to the wedding and blessed Tobias.


9 The Money Recovered
Then Tobi′as called Raph′ael and said to him, 2 “Brother Azari′as, take a servant and two camels with you and go to Gab′ael at Rages in Media and get the money for me; and bring him to the wedding feast. 3 For Rag′uel has sworn that I should not leave; 4 but my father is counting the days, and if I delay long he will be greatly distressed.” 5 So Raph′ael made the journey and stayed over night with Gab′ael. He gave him the receipt, and Gab′ael[a] brought out the money bags with their seals intact and gave them to him. 6 In the morning they both got up early and came to the wedding feast. And Gab′ael blessed Tobi′as and his wife.[b][c]

Tobias defeats the Demon and claims Sarah

The night of the wedding came and Tobias had followed Raphael's instructions carefully by burning the heart and liver of the animal to produce the incense. So the evil spirit did come to try to take the life of Tobias on the wedding night, as he did 7 times before. This time, because of the incense, he fled to Egypt and another interesting fact is that an angel caught the demon in Egypt.

We see two wonderful prayers of thanksgiving  in this chapter. The first prayer was by Tobias in the company of his wife. He praised and glorified God, and it was also a very appropriate wedding prayer by a man to God for giving him a wife. The second prayer was by Raguel, the father in law of Tobias, who was very thankful that Tobias survived. It seems that both Tobias and Sarah were the only children in their families. Raguel pledged to eventually give all his possessions to this new couple.





Tobit 8 - Tobias Routs the Demon
When they had finished eating, they escorted Tobi′as in to her. 2 As he went he remembered the words of Raph′ael, and he took the live ashes of incense and put the heart and liver of the fish upon them and made a smoke. 3 And when the demon smelled the odor he fled to the remotest parts of Egypt, and the angel bound him. 4 When the door was shut and the two were alone, Tobi′as got up from the bed and said, “Sister, get up, and let us pray that the Lord may have mercy upon us.”[a] 5 And Tobi′as began to pray,

“Blessed art thou, O God of our fathers,
    and blessed be thy holy and glorious name for ever.
    Let the heavens and all thy creatures bless thee.
6 Thou madest Adam and gavest him Eve his wife
    as a helper and support.
    From them the race of mankind has sprung.
Thou didst say, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone;
    let us make a helper for him like himself.’
7 And now, O Lord, I am not taking this sister of mine because of lust, but with sincerity. Grant that I may find mercy and may grow old together with her.” 8 And she said with him, “Amen.” 9 Then they both went to sleep for the night.

But Rag′uel arose and went and dug a grave, 10 with the thought, “Perhaps he too will die.” 11 Then Rag′uel went into his house 12 and said to his wife Edna, “Send one of the maids to see whether he is alive; and if he is not, let us bury him without any one knowing about it.” 13 So the maid opened the door and went in, and found them both asleep. 14 And she came out and told them that he was alive. 15 Then Rag′uel blessed God and said,

“Blessed art thou, O God, with every pure and holy blessing.
    Let thy saints and all thy creatures bless thee;
    let all thy angels and thy chosen people bless thee for ever.
16 Blessed art thou, because thou hast made me glad.
    It has not happened to me as I expected;
    but thou hast treated us according to thy great mercy.
17 Blessed art thou, because thou hast had compassion on two only children.
    Show them mercy, O Lord;
    and bring their lives to fulfilment in health and happiness and mercy.”
18 Then he ordered his servants to fill in the grave.

Wedding Feast
19 After this he gave a wedding feast for them which lasted fourteen days. 20 And before the days of the feast were over, Rag′uel declared by oath to Tobi′as[b] that he should not leave until the fourteen days of the wedding feast were ended, 21 that then he should take half of Rag′uel’s[c] property and return in safety to his father, and that the rest would be his “when my wife and I die.”

Tobias received Sarah in marriage

The travelers Raphael (the angel) and Tobias arrived at Raguel, the cousin of Tobit. They have obviously not met before and from the introduction, Raguel realized how they were related. We see a summary for Tobit again, who is from the tribe of Naphtali, from the northern kingdom of Israel. Tobit lived in the time when they Assyrians conquered Israel and re-distributed its population, hence Tobit was displaced to Nineveh, the capital of Assyria.

Following the feast, Tobias raised the proposal of his marriage to Sarah, daughter of Raguel. Raguel instantly recognized the right of Tobias to take Sarah as his wife. They discussed the fact that Sarah was married seven times, and the husbands all died on the wedding night. Nevertheless, both parties accepted that, proceeded to seal the marriage and Sarah was given to Tobias that night. Again Raguel, referred to his wife Edna as 'sister', indicating they were at least cousins.





Tobit 7 - Arrival at Home of Raguel
7 When they reached Ecbat′ana and arrived at the house of Rag′uel, Sarah met them and greeted them. They returned her greeting, and she brought them into the house. 2 Then Rag′uel said to his wife Edna, “How much the young man resembles my cousin Tobit!” 3 And Rag′uel asked them, “Where are you from, brethren?” They answered him, “We belong to the sons of Naph′tali, who are captives in Nin′eveh.” 4 So he said to them, “Do you know our brother Tobit?” And they said, “Yes, we do.” And he asked them, “Is he in good health?” 5 They replied, “He is alive and in good health.” And Tobi′as said, “He is my father.” 6 Then Rag′uel sprang up and kissed him and wept. 7 And he blessed him and exclaimed, “Son of that good and noble man!” When he heard that Tobit had lost his sight, he was stricken with grief and wept. 8 And his wife Edna and his daughter Sarah wept. They received them very warmly; and they killed a ram from the flock and set large servings of food before them.

Marriage of Tobias and Sarah
Then Tobi′as said to Raph′ael, “Brother Azari′as, speak of those things which you talked about on the journey, and let the matter be settled.” 9 So he communicated the proposal to Rag′uel. And Rag′uel said to Tobi′as, “Eat, drink, and be merry; 10 for it is your right to take my child. But let me explain the true situation to you. 11 I have given my daughter to seven husbands, and when each came to her he died in the night. But for the present be merry.” And Tobi′as said, “I will eat nothing here until you make a binding agreement with me.” 12 So Rag′uel said, “Take her right now, in accordance with the law. You are her relative, and she is yours. The merciful God will guide you both for the best.” 13 Then he called his daughter Sarah, and taking her by the hand he gave her to Tobi′as to be his wife, saying, “Here she is; take her according to the law of Moses, and take her with you to your father.” And he blessed them.[a] 14 Next he called his wife Edna, and took a scroll and wrote out the contract; and they set their seals to it. 15 Then they began to eat.

16 And Rag′uel called his wife Edna and said to her, “Sister, make up the other room, and take her into it.” 17 So she did as he said, and took her there; and the girl[b] began to weep. But the mother[c] comforted her daughter in her tears, and said to her, 18 “Be brave, my child; the Lord of heaven and earth grant you joy[d] in place of this sorrow of yours. Be brave, my daughter.”

Raphael teaches Tobias how to claim Sarah

In this passage, we continue to see various traditions of the Israelites, even from the time of Abraham. So Tobias continues on the journey with the angel Raphael. On the way, a curious thing occurred, that is a big fish capable of swallowing Tobias had an encounter with them. Raphael warned Tobias in time and he slew the fish. The other interesting thing is that Raphael told Tobias to keep the fish's heart, liver and gall, the first two will be used agains demons.

Next they arrived at Ecbatana, and headed towards the home of Raguel. Raguel is a relative of Tobias' family, and Raguel's daughter is rightfully able to marry Tobias, according to the Law of Moses. Tobias heard that the daughter had seven (7) marriages before but the groom always dies on the wedding night. They believed an evil spirit is the cause of this. The angel taught Tobias to make incense from the heart and gall of the fish, so that the smoke will cause the evil spirit around the daughter to go away. At this suggestion, Tobias agreed to Raphael's plans.



Tobit 6 - Journey to Rages
6 Now as they proceeded on their way they came at evening to the Tigris river and camped there. 2 Then the young man went down to wash himself. A fish leaped up from the river and would have swallowed the young man; 3 and the angel said to him, “Catch the fish.” So the young man seized the fish and threw it up on the land. 4 Then the angel said to him, “Cut open the fish and take the heart and liver and gall and put them away safely.” 5 So the young man did as the angel told him; and they roasted and ate the fish.

And they both continued on their way until they came near to Ecbat′ana. 6 Then the young man said to the angel, “Brother Azari′as, of what use is the liver and heart and gall of the fish?” 7 He replied, “As for the heart and the liver, if a demon or evil spirit gives trouble to any one, you make a smoke from these before the man or woman, and that person will never be troubled again. 8 And as for the gall, anoint with it a man who has white films in his eyes, and he will be cured.”

Raph′ael’s Instructions
9 When they approached Ecbat′ana,[a] 10 the angel said to the young man, “Brother, today we shall stay with Rag′uel. He is your relative, and he has an only daughter named Sarah. I will suggest that she be given to you in marriage, 11 because you are entitled to her and to her inheritance, for you are her only eligible kinsman. 12 The girl is also beautiful and sensible. Now listen to my plan. I will speak to her father, and as soon as we return from Rages we will celebrate the marriage. For I know that Rag′uel, according to the law of Moses, cannot give her to another man without incurring the penalty of death, because you rather than any other man are entitled to the inheritance.”

13 Then the young man said to the angel, “Brother Azari′as, I have heard that the girl has been given to seven husbands and that each died in the bridal chamber. 14 Now I am the only son my father has, and I am afraid that if I go in I will die as those before me did, for a demon is in love with her, and he harms no one except those who approach her. So now I fear that I may die and bring the lives of my father and mother to the grave in sorrow on my account. And they have no other son to bury them.”

15 [b]But the angel said to him, “Do you not remember the words with which your father commanded you to take a wife from among your own people? Now listen to me, brother, for she will become your wife; and do not worry about the demon, for this very night she will be given to you in marriage. 16 When you enter the bridal chamber, you shall take live ashes of incense and lay upon them some of the heart and liver of the fish so as to make a smoke. 17 Then the demon will smell it and flee away, and will never again return. And when you approach her, rise up, both of you, and cry out to the merciful God, and he will save you and have mercy on you. Do not be afraid, for she was destined for you from eternity. You will save her, and she will go with you, and I suppose that you will have children by her.” When Tobi′as heard these things, he fell in love with her and yearned deeply for her.

The angel Raph'ael accompanies Tobias

In the previous chapter we learned that Tobit is a God fearing man and wanted to instill the same on his son Tobias. In this chapter, preparation is made to send Tobias to reclaim his trust money from a man in Media. A few interesting things can be seen here. The trust is being held by a man living in Media. God send his angel Raph'ael to take this journey with Tobias. Tobit is concerned and wanted to ensure the travelling companion, comes from a good family. The currency of the land where Tobit lived is the drachma. Tobit gives the blessing "heaven will prosper your way" - so prosper is used more interchangeably with the word "blessing" in today's terms, rather than "prosperity". Tobit refers to his wife as sister.




Tobit 5 - The Angel Raph′ael
5 Then Tobi′as answered him, “Father, I will do everything that you have commanded me; 2 but how can I obtain the money when I do not know the man?” 3 Then Tobit gave him the receipt, and said to him, “Find a man to go with you and I will pay him wages as long as I live; and go and get the money.” 4 So he went to look for a man; and he found Raph′ael, who was an angel, 5 but Tobi′as[a] did not know it. Tobi′as[b] said to him, “Can you go with me to Rages in Media? Are you acquainted with that region?” 6 The angel replied, “I will go with you; I am familiar with the way, and I have stayed with our brother Gab′ael.” 7 Then Tobi′as said to him, “Wait for me, and I shall tell my father.” 8 And he said to him, “Go, and do not delay.” So he went in and said to his father, “I have found some one to go with me.” He said, “Call him to me, so that I may learn to what tribe he belongs, and whether he is a reliable man to go with you.”

9 So Tobi′as[c] invited him in; he entered and they greeted each other. 10 Then Tobit said to him, “My brother, to what tribe and family do you belong? Tell me.” 11 But he answered, “Are you looking for a tribe and a family or for a man whom you will pay to go with your son?” And Tobit said to him, “I should like to know, my brother, your people and your name.” 12 He replied, “I am Azari′as the son of the great Anani′as, one of your relatives.” 13 Then Tobit said to him, “You are welcome, my brother. Do not be angry with me because I tried to learn your tribe and family. You are a relative of mine, of a good and noble lineage. For I used to know Anani′as and Jathan, the sons of the great Shema′iah, when we went together to Jerusalem to worship and offered the first-born of our flocks and the tithes of our produce. They did not go astray in the error of our brethren. My brother, you come of good stock. 14 But tell me, what wages am I to pay you—a drachma a day, and expenses for yourself as for my son? 15 And besides, I will add to your wages if you both return safe and sound.” So they agreed to these terms.

16 Then he said to Tobi′as, “Get ready for the journey, and good success to you both.” So his son made the preparations for the journey. And his father said to him, “Go with this man; God who dwells in heaven will prosper your way, and may his angel attend you.” So they both went out and departed, and the young man’s dog was with them.

17 But Anna,[d] his mother, began to weep, and said to Tobit, “Why have you sent our child away? Is he not the staff of our hands as he goes in and out before us? 18 Do not add money to money, but consider it as rubbish as compared to our child. 19 For the life that is given to us by the Lord is enough for us.” 20 And Tobit said to her, “Do not worry, my sister; he will return safe and sound, and your eyes will see him. 21 For a good angel will go with him; his journey will be successful, and he will come back safe and sound.” 22 So she stopped weeping.

Tobit instructing son, Tobais, in God's Laws

Tobit calls to his son Tobias and tells him of his wishes when he passes on. Tobit has set aside some money for Tobias in a trust. He tells Tobias to bury him and his mother in the same place.

This is followed by encouragement of how Tobias should live. Firstly he reminds his son to obey God's commandments, live accordingly and also be charitable to those who are less fortunate. Secondly he tells his son to avoid immorality by not marrying a foreign woman. Tobit references his ancestors Noah, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and reminds his son how blessed they were because they married other own people. Thirdly, there is a lot of general advice. All of the encouragement from Tobit are in line with what God expected the Israelites to do.

A few verses that stood out are:
v13 For in pride there is ruin and great confusion;
v19 Bless the Lord God on every occasion; ask him that your ways may be made straight and that all your paths and plans may prosper. 
v19 the Lord himself gives all good things, and according to his will he humbles whomever he wishes.



Tobit 4 
Tobit Gives Instructions to His Son
On that day Tobit remembered the money which he had left in trust with Gab′ael at Rages in Media, and he said to himself: 2 “I have asked for death. Why do I not call my son Tobi′as so that I may explain to him about the money[a] before I die?” 3 So he called him and said, “My son, when I die, bury me, and do not neglect your mother. Honor her all the days of your life; do what is pleasing to her, and do not grieve her. 4 Remember, my son, that she faced many dangers for you while you were yet unborn. When she dies, bury her beside me in the same grave.

5 “Remember the Lord our God all your days, my son, and refuse to sin or to transgress his commandments. Live uprightly all the days of your life, and do not walk in the ways of wrongdoing. 6 For if you do what is true, your ways will prosper through your deeds. 7 Give alms from your possessions to all who live uprightly, and do not let your eye begrudge the gift when you make it. Do not turn your face away from any poor man, and the face of God will not be turned away from you. 8 If you have many possessions, make your gift from them in proportion; if few, do not be afraid to give according to the little you have. 9 So you will be laying up a good treasure for yourself against the day of necessity. 10 For charity[b] delivers from death and keeps you from entering the darkness; 11 and for all who practice it charity is an excellent offering in the presence of the Most High.

12 “Beware, my son, of all immorality.[c] First of all take a wife from among the descendants of your fathers and do not marry a foreign woman, who is not of your father’s tribe; for we are the sons of the prophets. Remember, my son, that Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, our fathers of old, all took wives from among their brethren. They were blessed in their children, and their posterity will inherit the land. 13 So now, my son, love your brethren, and in your heart do not disdain your brethren and the sons and daughters of your people by refusing to take a wife for yourself from among them. For in pride there is ruin and great confusion; and in shiftlessness there is loss and great want, because shiftlessness is the mother of famine. 14 Do not hold over till the next day the wages of any man who works for you, but pay him at once; and if you serve God you will receive payment.

“Watch yourself, my son, in everything you do, and be disciplined in all your conduct. 15 And what you hate, do not do to any one. Do not drink wine to excess or let drunkenness go with you on your way. 16 Give of your bread to the hungry, and of your clothing to the naked. Give all your surplus to charity, and do not let your eye begrudge the gift when you made it. 17 Place your bread[d] on the grave of the righteous, but give none to sinners. 18 Seek advice from every wise man, and do not despise any useful counsel. 19 Bless the Lord God on every occasion; ask him that your ways may be made straight and that all your paths and plans may prosper. For none of the nations has understanding; but the Lord himself gives all good things, and according to his will he humbles whomever he wishes.

Money Left in Trust with Gabael
“So, my son, remember my commands, and do not let them be blotted out of your mind. 20 And now let me explain to you about the ten talents of silver which I left in trust with Gab′ael the son of Gabri′as at Rages in Media. 21 Do not be afraid, my son, because we have become poor. You have great wealth if you fear God and refrain from every sin and do what is pleasing in his sight.”