Tuesday, August 11, 2026 · 天火 · tianmu.org

Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs

✦ ─── ⟐ ─── ✦

translated by R. H. Charles, in R. H. Charles's Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament (1913)

On his deathbed, each of Jacob's twelve sons in turn gathers his own children and delivers a testament: an account of his life, a moral lesson drawn from his own faults or virtues, and a prophecy of what will befall his descendants and Israel as a whole. Reuben confesses the sin of fornication, Simeon the sin of envy, Levi receives the priesthood in a series of visions, Judah recounts his wars and his fall through wine and Tamar, and so on through Issachar's singleness of heart, Zebulun's compassion, Dan's anger, Naphtali's dream-visions, Gad's hatred, Asher's two-facedness, Joseph's chastity and forgiveness of his brothers, and Benjamin's purity of mind. Written by a Pharisee in the late second century BC and expanded over the following centuries by later Jewish hands and, in a further layer, by Christian scribes, the Testaments are among the most influential Jewish writings outside the Hebrew Bible on the ethical teaching of the New Testament -- most strikingly in their treatment of forgiveness and of the two great commandments to love God and one's neighbour. R. H. Charles's 1913 translation and critical introduction remain the classic English edition; he also here publishes, for the first time in English, two related fragmentary texts as appendices.

Contents

Introductory Note (1913, R. H. Charles)

The book and its fortunes. Charles dates the original Hebrew composition to the closing years of the high-priesthood of John Hyrcanus, roughly 109–107 BC. His argument rests on internal evidence: the Testaments repeatedly assign to a single coming figure the combined offices of prophet, priest, and king (see especially T. Levi viii, on the new priesthood, and T. Reuben vi, urging submission to Levi as the anointed ruler) — an unprecedented triple office that in the whole of Jewish history was claimed only by John Hyrcanus. A Pharisee of the older, Hasid type, the author wrote at the height of Maccabean prestige, addressing veiled Messianic praise to Hyrcanus himself and expecting the imminent dawn of the Messianic age. Later Maccabean conduct — corruption, then Hyrcanus's own breach with the Pharisees — falsified these hopes, and the book's popularity waned through the following centuries; Charles traces continued interpolation by Christian scribes throughout that decline, though the Armenian version escaped many of the later insertions. The book's second life in the West began when Robert Grosseteste, Bishop of Lincoln, brought a Greek manuscript back from Greece in the thirteenth century (still held at Cambridge); he took it, Christian additions and all, for an authentic patriarchal writing. The Reformation reversed this verdict entirely, dismissing the whole book as a Christian forgery, a judgement Charles's own edition sets out to overturn.

Title, manuscripts, and versions. Charles judges the original title to have been simply "The Testaments of the Patriarchs." He reconstructs the transmission through Greek manuscripts in two families (which he labels α and β), an Armenian version surviving in two recensions, and a Slavonic version also in two recensions — his introduction devotes extended technical argument (omitted here) to dating and relating these witnesses, concluding that the Greek text is itself a translation from a lost Hebrew original, not a Greek composition.

Date, authorship, and sources. Beyond the priest-king dating argument above, Charles defends the book's essential unity — one Pharisee author, not a patchwork of unrelated fragments — while acknowledging real unevenness where sources have been imperfectly joined. That author drew on the Old Testament, Sirach, 1 Enoch, and Jubilees, on a now-lost Hebrew "Two Ways" tract embedded in the Testament of Asher, and — most significantly for this edition — on an independent Hebrew document behind the Testament of Levi's account of the priesthood, whose surviving Aramaic and Greek fragments Charles had recently published and translated for the first time; he prints that translation here as Appendix II, alongside a separate late Hebrew recasting of the Testament of Naphtali as Appendix I.

Jewish and Christian additions. Charles's edition rests on a critical theory that the transmitted text is not uniform. A first layer of Jewish additions, he argues, was inserted around 70–40 BC by writers hostile to the by-then-degenerate Maccabean high-priesthood, predicting the Temple's destruction and a second captivity; a second, looser layer of Jewish material entered at various later dates. Distinct from both is a layer of Christian additions, found scattered through nearly every testament, which Charles identifies by their distinctly dogmatic character — explicit Christian doctrine sitting awkwardly against their Jewish context, unlike the book's pervasive ethical teaching, which he defends as authentically Jewish and pre-Christian throughout. These Christian additions are marked with square brackets directly in Charles's own translation, printed exactly as he set them (see the Bracket Policy below); a longer list and discussion appears in his separately published critical edition, not reproduced here. Charles also traces a network of close parallels between the Testaments' ethical sayings and the story of Ahikar — evidence, he argues, of a shared ancient wisdom tradition standing behind both texts and, through the Testaments, reaching into the Gospels' own moral teaching (he traces specific echoes in the Sermon on the Mount and the Parable of the Wicked Servant).

Theology and ethics. Charles gives particular weight to the Testaments' teaching on forgiveness (especially T. Gad vi) as the most developed statement on the subject in ancient literature outside the New Testament, close enough in thought and wording to the Gospels' own sayings on forgiving one's brother that he judges direct influence likely. He finds the double command to love God and one's neighbour already present, if less emphatically stated, in several Testaments (T. Issachar v and vii, T. Dan v), together with extensive teaching against anger, envy, hatred, lust, and covetousness, and for truthfulness, self-control, and generosity — a system of ethics he presents as Judaism's own bridge to the ethical teaching of the New Testament.

Brackets, symbols, and abbreviations. Charles's own note explains the sigla used throughout his translation: single Greek letters and letter-groups (a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, and their groupings α and β) denote individual Greek manuscripts and manuscript families; A and its variants denote the Armenian manuscripts; S¹ and S² denote the two Slavonic recensions. Square brackets mark words he judges to be later insertions (chiefly the Christian additions described above); this reference note is retained here because it is needed to read the translation's own brackets correctly. The extensive verse-by-verse apparatus applying these sigla to specific textual variants — the bulk of Charles's critical notes — is omitted throughout, per this shelf's standing convention.

Testament of Reuben

(The First-Born Son of Jacob and Leah)

The copy of the Testament of Reuben, even the commands which he gave his sons "before he died in the hundred and twenty-fifth year of his life. Two years after the death of Joseph ‘his brother', when Reuben fell ill, his sons and his sons’ sons were gathered together to visit him. And he said to them: My children, behold I am dying, and go the way of my fathers. And seeing ‘there! Judah, and Gad, and Asher, his brethren, he said to them: Raise me up, that I may tell to my brethren and to my children what things I have hidden in my heart, for behold now at length I am passing away. And he arose and kissed them, and said unto them: Hear, my brethren, and do ye, my children, give ear to Reuben your father. in the commands which I give unto you. And behold I call to witness against you this day the God of heaven, that ye walk not in the sins of youth and fornication, wherein I was poured out, and defiled the bed of my father Jacob. And I tell you that he smote me with a sore plague in my loins for seven months; and had not my father Jacob prayed for me to the Lord, the Lord would have destroyed me. For I was thirty years old when I wrought the evil thing before the Lord, and for seven months I was sick unto death. And o after this I repented with set purpose of my soul for seven years before the Lord. And wine and strong drink I drank not, and flesh entered not into my mouth, and I eat no pleasant food; but

I mourned over my sin, for it was great, such as had not been in Israel. And now hear me, my children, what things I saw concerning the seven spirits of deceit, when

g. The chastisement lasted seven months, the penance seven years.

] repented. Seven spirits therefore are appointed against man, and they are the leaders in the works οἵ youth. [And seven other spirits are given to him at his creation, that through them should be done every work of man. The first is the spirit of life, with which the constitution (of man) is created. The second is the sense of sight, with which ariseth desire. The third is the sense of hearing, with which cometh teaching. The fourth is the sense of smell, with which tastes are given to draw air and breath. The fifth is the power of speech, with which cometh knowledge. The sixth is the sense of taste, with which cometh the eating of meats and drinks ; and by it strength is produced, for in food is the foundation of strength. The seventh is the power of procreation and sexual intercourse, with which through love of pleasure sins enter in. Wherefore it is the last in order of creation, and the first in that of youth, because it is filled with ignorance, and leadeth the _ youth as a blind man to a pit, and as a beast to a precipice,

Besides all these there is an eighth spirit of sleep, with which is brought about the trance of nature and the image of death. With these spirits are mingled the spirits of error.] First, the spirit of fornication is seated in the nature and in the senses; the second, the spirit of insatiableness, in the belly; the third, the spirit of fighting, in the liver and gall. The fourth is the spirit of Obsequiousness and chicanery, that through officious attention one may be fair in seeming. The fifth is the spirit of pride, that one may be boastful and arrogant. The sixth is the spirit of lying, fin perdition and jealousy} to practise deceits, and concealments from kindred and friends. The

leaders in the works. ‘leader,’ 8-fgA*%S, which points to the singular YS" in Hebrew, which = ‘ poison’ as

Il. 3—III. 2. A late addition to the text, undoubtedly first made in Greek, and chiefly drawn from Greek sources. Not only does this passage intrude between the promise in ii. 1 and its fulfilment in iii. 3, 7, but it has no organic connexion with either. Moreover, the division of the bodily senses here given is based on Stoic theories, e.g. the

, peculiar meaning attached to πνεύματα as that of senses, organs, or appetites. The Stoics held that the soul had eight parts, namely, the five senses, the powers of reproduction and speech, and the dominant part or reason which ruled the other seven. They discharged themselves into the various parts of the body in the form of immaterial currents or πνεύματα. Cf. Plutarch, De Plac. iv. 21; also Zeller, Stoics, 214-15 (Eng. Trans.). For full quotations see my Comm. on the Testt.; also my note in Slav. Enoch xxx. 9. A parallel interpolation occurs in MS. 248 of Sirach xvii. 4, and precedes as here the Hebrew division of various powers.

ΠῚ. 1-2. This reference to an eighth spirit, of sleep, is due to the interpolator himself, who has also inserted iii. 7. It is not found in Stoic teaching.

I. trance of nature (ἔκστασις φύσεως). Unlike the preceding bodily powers, sleep is not credited with any contri- bution to human activity.

seventh is the spirit of injustice, with which are thefts and acts of rapacity, that a man may fulfil the desire of his heart; for injustice worketh together with the other spirits by the taking of gifts.

God, nor obeying the admonitions of his fathers, as befell me also in my youth. And now, my children, love the truth, and it will preserve you: hear ye ‘the words of ' Reuben your father. Pay no heed to the face of a woman, Nor associate with another man’s wife, Nor meddle with affairs of womankind. For had I not seen Bilhah bathing in a covered place, I had not fallen into this great iniquity. For my mind taking in the thought of the woman’s nakedness, suffered me not ‘to sleep! until I had wrought the abominable thing. For while Jacob our father had gone to Isaac his father, when we were in Eder, near to Ephrath in Bethlehem, Bilhah became drunk and was asleep uncovered in her chamber. Having therefore gone in and beheld her nakedness, I wrought the impiety ‘without her perceiving it', and leaving her sleeping I departed. And forthwith an angel of God revealed to my father concerning my impiety, and he came and mourned over me, and touched her no more. Pay no heed, therefore, ‘my children’, to the beauty of women, nor set your mind on their affairs ; but walk in singleness of heart in the fear of the Lord, and expend labour on good works, and on study and on your flocks, until the Lord give you a wife, whom He will, that ye suffer not as I did. For until my father’s death I had not boldness to look in his face, or to speak to any of my brethren, because of the reproach. Even until now my conscience causeth me anguish on account of my impiety. And yet my father comforted me much, and prayed for me unto the Lord, that the anger

of the Lord might pass from me, even as the Lord showed. And thenceforth until now I have been on my guard and sinned not. Therefore, my children, ΓΙ say unto you', observe ‘all! things whatsoever I command you, and ye shall not sin. For a pit unto the soul is the sin of fornication,

separating it from God, and bringing it near to idols, because it deceiveth the mind and under-

impiety a. ‘Sin’ 8S}.

until now, ἕως viva. μετανοῶν, ‘repenting’,dg A. ἕως ἐννοιῶν, ‘ (even) in thought’, ae f.

ἡ standing, and leadeth down young men into Hades before their time. For many hath fornication destroyed ; because, though a man be old or noble, ‘or rich or poor', he bringeth reproach upon himself with the sons of men and derision with Beliar. For ye heard regarding Joseph how he _ guarded himself from a woman, and purged his thoughts from all fornication, and found favour in _g the sight of God and men. For the Egyptian woman did many things unto him, and summoned | τὸ magicians, and offered him love potions, but the purpose of his soul admitted no evil desire. There- | gx fore the God of your fathers delivered him from every evil (and) hidden death. For if fornication _ overcomes not your mind, neither can Beliar overcome you. ‘For! evil are women, my children ; and since they have no power or strength over man, they use wiles by outward attractions, that they may draw him to themselves. And whom they cannot bewitch by outward attractions, him they overcome by craft. ‘For! moreover, concerning them, the angel of the Lord told me, and taught me, that women are overcome by the spirit of fornication more than men, and in their heart they plot against men; and by means of their adornment they _ deceive first their minds, and by the glance of the eye instil the poison, and then through the accom- plished act they take them captive. For a woman cannot force a man openly, but by a harlot’s bearing she beguiles him. Flee, therefore, fornication, my children, and command your wives and your daughters, that they adorn not their heads and faces to deceive the mind: because every woman who useth these wiles hath been reserved for eternal punishment. For thus they allured the _ Watchers who were before the flood ; for as these continually beheld them, they lusted after them, _ and they conceived the act in their mind ; for they changed themselves into the shape of men, and ον ρα to them when they were with their husbands. And the women lusting in their minds after ir forms, gave birth to giants, for the Watchers appeared to them as reaching even unto heaven. Beware, therefore, of fornication ; and if you wish to be pure in mind, guard your senses from every woman. And command the women likewise not to associate with men, that they also may be pure ἴῃ mind. For constant meetings, even though the ungodly deed be not wrought, are to them an _ 4irremediable disease, and to us a destruction of Beliar and an eternal reproach. For in fornication δ there is neither understanding nor} godliness, and all jealousy dwelleth in the lust thereof. There-

___ of men, and afterwards proceeded to take wives of the daughters of men (Jub. v. 1). See Chron. Jerahmeel xxv. 2-4.

___ In xxv. 7, 13 Azazel is said to be ‘appointed chief over all dyes and all kinds of ornaments by which women entice men to thoughts of sin’. Is this story in view in 1 Pet. iii. 3-5; 1 Tim. ii. 9?

i Watchers. See Dan. iv. 13, 23; 1 En. vi-viii; Jub. iv. 15, v. 1; 2 En. xviii. 3.

{ lusted after them A > >* ede; ‘lusted after one another’ a β- .

, if you wish . . . guard 8A 51: ‘be pure in mind: guard also’ a,

: 3. a destruction of Beliar and an eternal reproach a: ‘an eternal reproach of Beliar’ BS‘: ‘a great reproach’ A.

fore, ‘then I say unto you’, ye will be jealous ‘against the sons of Levi', and will seek to be exalted over them; but ye shall not be able. For God will avenge them, ‘and ye shall die by an evil death’, For to Levi God gave the sovereignty [and to Judah with him and to me also, and to Dan and Joseph, that we should be for rulers]. ‘Therefore I command you to hearken to Levi, because he shall know the law of the Lord, and shall give ordinances for judgement and shall sacrifice for all Israel until the consummation of the times, as the anointed High Priest, of whom the Lord spake. I adjure you by the God of heaven to do truth each one unto his neighbour and to entertain love each one for his brother. And draw ye near to Levi in humbleness of heart, that ye may receive a blessing from his mouth. For he shall bless Israel and Judah, because him hath the Lord chosen to be king over all the nation. And bow down before his seed, for on our behalf it will die in wars visible and invisible, and will be among you an eternal king. And Reuben died, having given these commands to his sons. And they placed him in a coffin until they carried him up from Egypt, and buried him ‘in Hebron’ in the cave where his father was.

Testament of Simeon

(The Second Son of Jacob and Leah)

The copy of the words of Simeon, the things which he spake to his sons before he died, in the hundred and twentieth year of his life, at which time Joseph, ‘his brother!, died. For when Simeon

was sick, his sons came to visit him, and he strengthened himself and sat up and kissed them, and said :— Hearken, my children, to Simeon your father, And I will declare unto you what things I have in my heart. I was born of Jacob as my father’s second son; And my mother Leah called me Simeon, Because the Lord had heard her prayer. y 3 Moreover, I became strong exceedingly ; I shrank from no achievement, Nor was I afraid of ought. : 4 For my heart was hard, And my liver was immovable, And my bowels without compassion. Because valour also has been given from the Most High to men in soul and body. For in the time of my youth I was jealous 'in many things' of Joseph, because my father loved him ‘beyond Wall’. And I set my mind against him to destroy him, because the prince of deceit sent forth the i spirit of jealousy and blinded my mind, so that I regarded him not as a brother, nor did I spare even Jacob my father. But his God and the God of his fathers sent forth His angel, and delivered him out of my hands. - For when I went to Shechem to bring ointment for the flocks, and Reuben to Dothan, where were our necessaries and all our stores, Judah my brother sold him to the Ishmaelites. το And when Reuben heard these things he was grieved, for he wished to restore him to his father. But on hearing this I was "exceedingly! wroth against Judah in that he let him go away alive, and for five months I continued wrathful against him. But the Lord restrained me, and withheld ‘from me’ the power of my hands; for my right hand was half withered for seven days. And I knew, my children, that because of Joseph this had befallen me, and I repented and wept; and I besought the Lord God that my hand might be restored, and that I might hold aloof from all pollution and envy 'and from all folly’. For I knew that I had devised an evil thing before the Lord and Jacob my father, on account of Joseph my brother, in that I envied him. And now, my children, ‘hearken unto me and! beware of the spirit of deceit and envy. For envy ruleth over the whole mind of a man, and suffereth him ‘neither to eat nor to drink!, nor to do any good thing. But it ever suggesteth (to him) to destroy him that he envieth ; and so long as he that is envied flourisheth, he that envieth fadeth away. Two years therefore! I afflicted my soul with fasting in the fear of the Lord, and I learnt that deliverance from envy cometh by the fear of God. For if a man flee to the Lord, the evil spirit runneth away from him, and his mind is lightened. ) 6 And henceforward he sympathiseth with him whom he envied and forgiveth those who are hostile to him, and so ceaseth from his envy. ἢ 4: And my father asked ‘concerning me’, because he saw that I was sad ; and I said unto him, I am P 2 pained in my liver. For I mourned more than they all, because I was guilty of the selling of Joseph. And when we went down into Egypt, and he bound me as a spy, I knew that I was suffering justly, and I grieved not. Now Joseph was a good man, and had the Spirit of God within him: being

are hostile to. The text has ‘love’ = in the Hebrew original 258 corrupt for Y's.

compassionate and pitiful, he bore no malice against me; but loved me even as the rest of his

brethren. Beware, therefore, my children, of all jealousy and envy, and walk in singleness of BAS! heart, soul and with good heart, keeping in mind Joseph your father’s brother,

that God may give ‘you also’ grace and glory, and blessing upon*your heads, even as ye saw in Joseph’s case. All his days he reproached us not concerning this thing, but loved us as his own soul, and beyond his own sons glorified us, and gave us riches, and cattle and fruits. Do ye also,

my children, love each one his brother with a good heart, and the spirit of envy will withdraw from you. For this maketh savage the soul and destroyeth the body; it causeth anger and war in the

mind, and stirreth up unto deeds of blood,

a B ABS} and leadeth the mind into frenzy, and leadeth the mind into frenzy, ‘and suffereth not prudence to act in men!; moreover, it taketh away sleep,

[and causeth tumult to the soul and trembling to the body].

For even in sleep some malicious jealousy, deluding him, gnaweth, and with wicked spirits dis- turbeth his soul, and causeth the body to be troubled, and waketh the mind from sleep in confusion ; and as a wicked and poisonous spirit, so appeareth it to men.

Therefore was Joseph comely in appearance, and goodly to look upon, because no wickedness

dwelt in him; for some of the trouble of the spirit the face manifesteth. And now, my children,

Make your hearts good before the Lord, And your ways straight before men, And ye shall find grace before the Lord and men.

Beware, therefore, of fornication,

For fornication is mother of all evils, Separating from God, and bringing near to Beliar.

and shall do harm to the sons of Levi with the sword. But they shall not be able to withstand Levi ;

for he shall wage the war of the Lord, and shall conquer ‘all! your hosts. And they shall be few in number, divided in Levi and Judah, and there shall be none of you for sovereignty, even as also our father prophesied in his blessings.

Behold I have told you all things, that I may be acquitted of your sin. Now, if ye remove from you your envy and all stiff-neckedness, As a rose shall my bones flourish in Israel, And as a lily my flesh in Jacob, And my odour shall be as the odour of Libanus ; And as cedars shall holy ones be multiplied from me for ever, And their branches shall stretch afar off.

poisonous. Cf. T. R. v. 3; also ii. 2 (note).

the sons of Levi. ‘See T. R. vi. 5.

Then shall perish the seed of Canaan,

And a remnant shall not be unto Amalek,

‘And all the Cappadocians shall perish’,

And all the Hittites shall be utterly destroyed. Then shall fail the land of Ham,

And all the people shall perish.

Then shall all the earth rest from trouble,

And all the world under heaven from war.

Restored Text Ashn Then the Mighty One of Israel shall glorify Then shall Shem (MSS. ‘ Seth’) be glorified, Shem, For the Lord our God shall appear on earth For the Lord God shall appear on earth, [as man] And Himself save men. And Himself saves again.

Then shall all the spirits of deceit be given to be trodden under foot, - And men shall rule over wicked spirits.

_ 7 Then shall I arise in joy, And will bless the Most High because of his marvellous works, [Because God hath taken a body and eaten with men and saved men].

Testament of Levi

(The Third Son of Jacob and Leah)

The copy of the words of Levi, the things which he ordained unto his sons, according to all that they should do, and what things should befall them until the day of judgement. He was sound in health when he called them to him; for it had been revealed to him that he should die. And when they were gathered together he said to them: TI, Levi, was born in Haran, and I came with my father to Shechem. And I was young, about twenty years of age, when, with Simeon, I wrought vengeance on Hamor for our sister Dinah. And when I was feeding the flocks in Abel-Maul, the spirit of understanding of the Lord came upon me, and I saw all men corrupting their way, and that unrighteousness had built for itself walls, and law- lessness sat upon towers. And I was grieving for the race of the sons of men, and I prayed to the Lord that I might be saved. Then there fell upon me a sleep, and I beheld a high mountain, and I was upon it. And behold the heavens were opened, and an angel of God said to me, Levi, enter.

a Ae B As St And I entered from the first 7. And when I had entered And I entered from the first 7 heaven, and I saw there a great | into the first heaven, tand he | heaven into the second, and I sea hanging. escorted raised met to the | saw there a sea hanging between second. And I saw there a | the one and the other. great sea hanging.

And further I saw a second And further I saw a third 8 heaven far brighter and more heaven far brighter and more brilliant, for there was a bound- brilliant than these two; for less light also therein. there was also a_ boundless

theight therein.

And I said to the angel, Why g. And I said unto him: And I said unto the angel: 9 is this so? And the angel said | What is this, Lord? And he | Wherefore is it so? And the

to me, Marvel not at this, for | said unto me: : angel said unto me: Marvel not

thou shalt see another heaven at these ; for thou shalt see four

more brilliant and incomparable. other heavens more brilliant and incomparable,

TiTLE. Soa: ‘Testament of Levi concerning the priesthood’ 8B-ade AS: + ‘and arrogance’ bdefA* edefg, I. 1. until the day of judgement. This event is therefore conceived as near to the time of the writer. revealed to him. Levi has several revelations.

The doctrine of the seven heavens was prevalent in Judaism before and after the time of Christ. See e.g. 2 En. iii-xxi ; Talmud, Chag. 12>; 4 Ezra vii. 81-7.

Christian apocalypses like Asc. Isa. followed Hebrew teaching on this point. Thus the redaction originated in Hebrew, and has been betrayed by the testimony of the first and better of the two independent Greek Versions—a. That they are independent is shown by iii. 2 κρίσεως, a: προστάγματος, B, iii. 6 θυσίαν, a: προσφοράν, β : iii. 9 τρέμομεν, a: σαλευόμεθα, B.

g. Note that the one heaven ina becomes four in β.

to And when thou hast ascended thither, Thou shalt stand near the Lord, And shalt be His minister, And shalt declare His mys- teries to men, And shalt proclaim {concerning Him that shall redeem} Israel.

"Saving every race of men.'

Δα το. When thou hast ascended thither, Thou shalt stand before the Lord, And shalt be His minister, And his coming mysteries thou shalt declare unto men.

And by thee and Judah shall the Lord appear among men, And from the Lord’s portion shall be thy life,

And He shall be thy field and vineyard,

And fruits, gold, and silver.

Hear, therefore, regarding the

heavens which have been shown to thee. The lowest is for this cause gloomy unto thee, in that it beholds all the unrighteous deeds of men. And it has fire, snow, and ice made ready for the day of judgement, in the righteous judgement of God ; for in it are all the spirits of the retributions for vengeance on men.

And in the second are the hosts of the armies which are ordained for the day of judge- ment, to work vengeance on the spirits of deceit and of Beliar. And above them are the holy ones.

the redemption of Israel.

influence to ‘ Him that shall redeem Israel’.

appear among men. That God Himself would appear and dwell with men was the older Jewish view in the

Apoc. Esdrae; Apoc. Pauli 4; and see James, 7exts and Studies, V. i. 67.

When thou hast ascended 1° thither. ‘Because’ thou shalt stand near the Lord,

And shalt be His minister,

And His mysteries shalt thou declare to men,

And shalt proclaim concern- ing the redemption of Israel.

Hear, therefore, regarding the 1 seven heavens. The lowest is for this cause gloomier, since it beholds all the unrighteous deeds of men.

The second has fire, snow, ice 2 ready for the day of the ordi- nance of the Lord in the righteous judgement of God. In it are all the spirits of the retri- butions for vengeance on the lawless.

In the third are the hosts of 3 the armies which_are ordained for the day of judgement, to work vengeance on the spirits of de- ceit and of Beliar. And those in the fourtht who are above these are holy.

The angel appears to

Otherwise 10-12 would follow naturally on iv. 2.

ΑΒ alone preserves the original reading. a8S are all modified by Christian

Cf. also 3 Baruch viii;

En. iii. 3; v. 1 also holds, like a,

that the treasuries of the ice and snow, and the great sea, are in the first heaven.

on the lawless, ‘on men’ a, by textual corruption. C In the second heaven are the angelic armies in readiness to destroy Beliar.

CE, Six. αἷν το,

but in the fourth heaven and for a different purpose.

+And those in the fourtht. by the redactor.

Perhaps we should read ‘ and the four heavens above. these are holy’, i.e. ΠΡ ΝΣ ΠῚ for 2 2).

to the ‘for’ in v. 4 (8).

En. xvii gives us an armed host,

The β recension here cannot be cleared up by a, as it was independently altered Verse 8 in # naturally refers to the fourth heaven, which therefore need not be mentioned here.

This gives a point

above them are the holy ones a, These are the angels. For the first passage in which the abode of the

And in the highest of all dwelleth the Great Glory, far above all holiness.

In [the heaven next to] it are the archangels, who minister and make propitiation to the Lord for all the sins of igno- rance of the righteous ;

Offering to the Lord a sweet- smelling savour, ἃ reasonable and a bloodless offering.

And [in the heaven below this] are the angels who bear fanswers to the angels of the presence of the Lord.

An fin the heaven next to this} are thrones and dominions, in which always they offer praise to God.

When, therefore, the Lord looketh upon us, all of us are shaken; yea, the heavens, and the earth, and the abysses are shaken at the presence of His majesty.

At And tthe Holy One of the holy onest is above all holiness.

g. When, therefore, the Lord looketh upon all creation, the heavens and the earth and the abysses are shaken.

For in the Highest of all4 dwelleth the Great Glory, in the holy of holies, far above all holiness.

And in [the heaven next to] 5 it are the angels of the presence of the Lord, who minister and make propitiation to the Lord for all the sins of ignorance of the righteous.

And they offer to the 6 Lord a sweet-smelling savour, a reasonable and_ bloodless offering.

And in [the heaven below] 7 are the angels who bear the answers to the angels of the presence of the Lord.

And in the heaven next to 8 this are thrones and dominions in which always praises are offered to God.

But the sons of men, having no perception of these things, sin and provoke the Most High.

Because when the rocks are being rent,

And the sun quenched, And the waters dried up,

Now, therefore, know that the Lord shall execute judgement upon the sons of men.

Macc. vi. 23. the Great Glory.

spoken of in Exod. xxv. 9, 40; Num, viii. 4, and was already a familiar idea.

See my Commentary zz oc. The

FE ΟΥΥ.Α: sins of ignorance. reasonable, λογικήν. behalf.

bloodless offering. Cf. Essenes’ objection to bloody sacrifices. Cf. Philo ii. 457.

Perhaps we should render ‘ bear the answers for the

angels of the presence’, or ‘of the angels’, &c. (as g). The analogy of Rev. v. 8, however, would suggest mbdan

‘ prayers’ instead of NI2WN ‘answers’.

they offer praise.

Ass. Mos, x. 4. Io. no perception . .

sein. ΟὟ En. ἸΧΥ, 15,

waters dried up.

Moreover a and @ differ.

For parallels cf. Judges v. 4; Isa. Ixiv.1; Judith xvi. 15;

And the fire cowering, And all creation troubled, And the invisible spirits melting away, And Hades taketh spoils through the visitations of the Most High, Men will be unbelieving and persist in their iniquity. On this account with punishment shall they be judged. ‘Therefore! the Most High hath heard thy prayer, To separate thee from iniquity, and that thou shouldst become to Him a son, And a servant, and a minister of His presence. The light of knowledge shalt thou light up in Jacob, And as the sun shalt thou be to all the seed of Israel. And there shall be given to thee a blessing, and to all thy seed, Until the Lord shall visit all the Gentiles in His tender mercies for ever. ‘And!’ therefore there have been given to thee counsel and understanding, That thou mightst instruct thy sons concerning this ; Because they that bless + Him shall be blessed,

: 5 And they that curset Him shall perish. I

And thereupon the angel opened to me the gates of heaven, and I saw the holy temple, and upon a throne of glory the Most High. And He said to me: Levi, I have given thee the blessings of the priesthood until I come and sojourn in the midst of Israel. Then the angel brought me down to the _ earth, and gave me a shield and a sword, and said to me: Execute vengeance on Shechem because of Dinah, thy sister, and I will be with thee because the Lord hath sent me. And I destroyed at that time the sons of Hamor, as it is written in the heavenly tables. And I said to him: I pray thee, O Lord, tell me Thy name, that I may call upon Thee in a day of tribulation. And he said: I am the angel who intercedeth for the nation of Israel that they may not be smitten utterly, for every evil spirit attacketh it. And after these things I awaked, and blessed the Most High, and the angel who intercedeth for the nation of Israel and for all the righteous.

and upon .. . Most High 8 AS: ‘the Holy Most High One sitting upon a throne’ a,

Execute vengeance. Yet Levi says ‘ we sinned’ in vi. 7.

utterly ... attacketh it >a.

heart. And after this I counselled my father, and Reuben my brother, to bid the sons of Hamor not to be circumcised ; for I was zealous because of the abomination which they had wrought on

my sister. And I slew Shechem first, and Simeon slew Hamor. And after this my brothers

came and smote ‘that! city with the edge of the sword. And my father heard ‘these things’ and

was wroth, and he was grieved in that they had received the circumcision, and after that had been

put to death, and in his blessings he looked amiss upon us. For we sinned because we had done

this thing against his will, and he was sick on that day. But I saw that the sentence of God was for

evil upon Shechem; for they sought to do to Sarah ‘and Rebecca! as they had done to Dinah our

g sister, but the Lord prevented them. And they persecuted Abraham our father when he was a

stranger, and they vexed his flocks when they were big with young ; and Eblaen, who was born in his

το house, they most shamefully handled. And thus they did to all strangers, taking away their

wives by force, and they banished them. But the wrath of the Lord came upon them to the uttermost.

their land to thec and to thy seed after thee. For from this day forward shall Shechem be called-a city of imbeciles ; for as a man mocketh a fool, so did we mock them. Because also they had wrought folly in Isracl by defiling my sister. And we departed and came to Bethel.

And there again I saw a vision as the former, after we had spent there seventy days. And I saw seven _ men in white raiment saying untome: Arise, put on the robe of the priesthood, and the crown of right- cousness, and the breastplate of understanding, and the garment of truth, and the plate of faith, and the

turban of the thead, and the ephod of prophecy. And they severally carried (these things) and put (them) on me, and said unto me: From henceforth become a priest of the Lord, thou and thy seed for

ever. And the first anointed me with holy oil, and gave to me the staff of judgement. The second washed me with pure water, and fed me with bread and wine (even) the most holy things, and clad me with a holy and glorious robe. The third clothed me with a linen vestment like an ephod. The fourth put round me a girdle like unto purple. The fifth gave me a branch of rich olive. The sixth το placed a crown on my head. The seventh placed on my head a diadem of priesthood, and filled my hands with incense, that I might serve as priest to the Lord God. And they said to me: Levi, thy seed shall be divided into three offices, for a sign of the glory of the Lord who is to come. And the ᾿ς 18 first portion shall be great; yea, greater than it shall none be. ‘The second shall be in the priest- _ t4hood. And the third shall be called by a new name, because a king shall arise in Judah, and shall establish a new priesthood, after the +fashion of the Gentiles [to all the Gentiles]. And His presence is beloved, as a prophet of the Most High, of the seed of Abraham our father. Therefore, every desirable thing in Israel shall be for thee and for thy seed, And ye shall eat everything fair to look upon, And the table of the Lord shall thy seed apportion. And some of them shall be high priests, and judges, and scribes ; For by their mouth shall the holy place be guarded. tg And when I awoke, | understood that this (dream) was like the first dream. And I hid this also in my heart, and told it not to any man upon the earth. And after two days I and Judah went up with our father Jacob to Isaac our father’s father. And my father’s father blessed me according to all the words of the visions which I had seen. And he would not come with us to Bethel. ‘And when we came to Bethel', my father saw a vision concerning me, that I should be their priest unto God. And he rose up early in the morning, and paid tithes of all ‘to the Lord' through me. And ‘so! we came to Hebron to dwell there. And Isaac called me continually to put me in remembrance of the law of the Lord, even as the

g-io. SoafS!: ‘And the sixth filled my hands with incense that I might serve as priest before the Lord’ A*: ‘And the sixth placed a diadem of priesthood on my head and the seventh filled,’ &c. A®*: ‘And the sixth and the seventh gave me a diadem of priesthood and again filled,’ &c. Acdefs,

in Judah, ‘ out of Judah’ af: ‘in Judah’ A, possibly.

new priesthood. Cf. xviii. 2.

after the fashion of the Gentiles, &c. a 8-d ΑΒ S: ‘a new priesthood to all the Gentiles’ d. The bracketed words may go back to a dittography in the Hebrew. For ‘ after the fashion’ read perhaps as in the note in my Com- mentary ‘for a mediator ’,

angel of the Lord showed unto me. And _ he taught me the law of the priesthood, of sacrifices,

whole burnt-offerings, first-fruits, freewill-offerings, peace-offerings. And each day he was instructing

g me, and was busied on my behalf before the Lord, and said to me: Beware of the spirit of

το fornication ; for this shall continue and shall by thy seed pollute the holy place. Take, therefore,

to thyself a wife without blemish or pollution, while yet thou art young, and not of the race of

Strange nations. And before entering into the holy place, bathe; and when thou offerest the

sacrifice, wash ; and again, when thou finishest the sacrifice, wash. Of twelve trees having leaves

offer to the Lord, as Abraham taught me also. And of every clean beast ‘and bird? offer a

sacrifice to the Lord. And of all thy first-fruits and of wine offer the first, as a sacrifice to the Lord God ; and every sacrifice thou shalt salt with salt.

Now, therefore, observe whatsoever I command you, children; for whatsoever things I have

heard from my fathers ‘I have declared unto you. And behold' I am clear from your ungodliness

and transgression, which ye shall commit in the end of the ages [against the Saviour of the

world, Christ, acting Sarees deceiving Israel, and stirring up against it great evils from the

Lord. And ye shall deal lawlessly together with Israel, so He shall not bear with Jerusalem

because of your wickedness; but the veil of the temple shall be rent, so as not to cover your

shame. And ye shall be scattered as captives among the Gentiles, and shall be for a reproach

and for a curse there. For the house which the Lord shall choose shall be called Jerusalem,

as is contained in the book of Enoch the righteous.

Therefore when I took a wife I was twenty-eight years old, and her name was Melcha. And

she conceived and bare a son, and I called his name Gersam, for we were sojourners in our land.

thirty-fifth year ‘of my life!, towards sunrise. And I saw in a vision that he was standing on high

in the midst of all the congregation. Therefore I called his name Kohath [which is, beginning of

majesty and instruction]. And she bare me a third son, in the fortieth year of my life; and since

his mother bare him with difficulty, I called him Merari, that is, ‘my bitterness,’ because he also was

X. This chapter belongs to the first century B.C., and is an attack on the later Maccabean high-priests. See xiv-xv (note).

g like to die. And Jochebed was born in Egypt, in my sixty-fourth year, for I was renowned then in the midst of my brethren. And Gersam took a wife, and she bare to him Lomni and Semei. And the sons of Kohath, Ambram, Issachar, Hebron, and Ozeel. And the sons of Merari, Mooli, and Mouses. And ‘in the ninety-fourth year' Ambram took Jochebed my daughter to him to wife, for they were born in one day, he and my daughter. Eight years old was I when I went intothe land of Canaan, and eighteen years when I slew Shechem, and at nineteen years I became priest, and at twenty-eight years I took a wife, and at forty-eight I went into Egypt. And behold, my children, ye are a third generation. uw 7 In my hundred and eighteenth year Joseph died. And now, my children, 1 command you: Ἔ Fear the Lord your God ‘with your whole heart", And walk in simplicity according to all His law. And do ye also teach your children letters, That they may have understanding all their life, Reading unceasingly the law of God. For every one that knoweth the law of the Lord shall be honoured, _ And shall not be a stranger whithersoever he goeth. Yea, many friends shall he gain more than his parents, And many men shall desire to serve him, And to hear the law from his mouth. Work righteousness, ‘therefore’, my children, upon the earth, That ye may have (it) as a treasure in heaven. And sow good things in your souls, That ye may find them in your life. But if ye sow evil things, Ye shall reap every trouble and affliction. Get wisdom in the fear of God with diligence ; For though there be a leading into captivity, J And cities and lands be destroyed, And gold and silver and every possession perish, The wisdom of the wise nought can take away, Save the blindness of ungodliness, and the callousness (that comes) of sin. 'For if one keep oneself from these evil things’, Then even among his enemies shall wisdom be a glory to him, And in a strange country a fatherland, And in the midst of foes shall prove a friend. g Whosoever teaches noble things and does them, Shall be enthroned with kings, As was also Joseph my brother.

eating (them) contemptuously with harlots.

Therefore, my children, I have learnt that at the end of the ages ye will transgress against the Lord, stretching out hands to wickedness [against Him]; and to all the Gentiles shall ye become a

scorn.

And now, my children, I have learnt from the 1 writing of Enoch that in the end ye will trans- gress against the Lord, stretching out hands to all wickedness ; and your brethren shall be put

to shame because of you, and to all the Gentiles shall ye become a scorn.

For our father Israel is pure from the transgressions of the chief priests [who shall lay their hands upon the Saviour of the world].

a, Δα For as the heaven is purer in the Lord’s sight than the earth, so also be ye, the lights of Israel, (purer) than all the Gentiles.

But if ye be darkened through transgressions, what, therefore, will all the Gentiles do living in blindness? Yea, ye shall bring a curse upon our race, because the light of the law which was given for to lighten every man this ye desire to destroy by teaching command- ments contrary to the ordinances of God.

BS! The heaven is purer than the earth, and ye, the lights of Israel, are tas sun and moon.

My children, be ye pure as 3 the heaven is (purer) than the earth: and ye who are the lights of Israel, shall be as the sun and moon.

What will all the Gentiles do, if ye be darkened through trans- gression? Yea, curses will come upon your race, and the light which was given through the law to lighten you and every man ye shall desire to destroy, and teach your commandments

contrary to the ordinances of God.

The offerings of the Lord ye shall rob, and from His portion shall ye steal choice portions,

And out of covetousness ye shall teach the command-

XIV-XVI. The groundwork and indeed the main narrative of the Testaments is pro-Maccabean, and exalts Levi

and his posterity.

lewdness and baseness of the priests. God’s ordinances, profane the priesthood, and pollute the sacrifices.

and they shall go into captivity, a scorn to the Gentiles. The date is not after A.D. 70, as the Temple prediction might seem to suggest, for the Sadducees, who are in view

Unquestioning obedience to them is required. But in x, xiv-xvi words fail to denounce the The chief priests transgress, are covetous, corrupt the law, teach contrary to For this reason the Temple shall be laid waste

in xiv. 4 and xvi. 2, disappear after that date as a party. The Pharisees, moreover, were not the subjects of persecution after 63 B.C. when the Pharisaic Hyrcanus became a vassal king under the Romans. Nor were the high-priests immoral in the first century A.D. The sack of Jerusalem, if already enacted, would be more than a vague prophecy.

We might render 8 ΑΒ S!

For the case of Simon ben Shetach see

‘steal: and before sacrificing to the Lord ye shall take the choice portions,’

Cf. 1 Pet.-v..2;

ments of the Lord, wedded women shall ye pollute, ‘and the virgins of Jerusalem shall ye defile'; and with harlots and adulteresses shall ye be joined, and the daughters of the Gentiles shall ye take to wife, purifying them with an unlawful purification ; and your union shall be like unto Sodom and Gomorrah. And ye shall be puffed up because of your priesthood, lifting yourselves up against men, and not only so, but also against the commands of God. For ye shall contemn the holy things with jests and laughter. Therefore the temple, which the Lord shall choose, shall be laid waste through your uncleanness, and ye shall be captives throughout all nations. And ye shall be an abomination unto them, and ye shall receive reproach and everlasting shame from the righteous judgement of God. And all who hate you.shall rejoice at your destruction. And if you were not to receive mercy through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, our fathers, not one of our seed should be left upon the earth. And now I have learnt that for seventy weeks ye shall go astray, and profane the priesthood, and pollute the sacrifices. And ye shall make void the law, and set at nought the words of the prophets by evil perverseness. And ye shall persecute righteous men, and hate the godly ; the words of the faithful shall ye abhor. [And a man who reneweth the law in the power of the Most High, ye shall call a deceiver; and at last ye shall rush (upon him) to slay him, not knowing his dignity, taking innocent blood through wickedness upon your heads.}_ And your holy places shall be laid waste even to the ground because of thim. And ye shall have no place that is clean; but ye shall be among the Gentiles a curse and a dispersion until He shall again visit you, and in pity shall receive you [through faith and water]. And whereas ye have heard concerning the seventy weeks, hear also concerning the priesthood. For in each jubilee there shall be a priesthood. And in the first jubilee, the first who is anointed to the priesthood shall be great, and shall speak to God as to a father. And his priesthood shall be

perfect with the Lord, [and in the day of his gladness shall he arise for the salvation of the world]. In the second jubilee, he that is anointed shall be conceived in the sorrow of beloved ones; and his priesthood shall be honoured and shall be glorified by all. And the third priest shall be taken hold of by sorrow. And the fourth shall be in pain, because unrighteousness shall gather itself against him exceedingly, and all Israel shall hate each one his neighbour. The fifth shall be taken hold of by darkness. Likewise also the sixth and the seventh. And in the seventh shall be such pollution as I cannot express before men, for they shall know it who do these things. Therefore shall they g be taken captive and become a prey, and their land and their substance shall be destroyed. ~=And in the fifth week they shall return to their desolate country, and shall renew the house of the Lord. And in the seventh week shall become priests, (who are) idolaters, adulterers, lovers of money, proud, lawless, lascivious, abusers of children and beasts. ° And after their punishment shall have come from the Lord, the priesthood shall fail. Then shall the Lord raise up a new priest. And to him all the words of the Lord shall be revealed ; And he shall execute a righteous judgement upon the earth for a multitude of days. And his star shall arise in heaven as of a king. Lighting up the light of knowledge as the sun the day, And he shall be magnified in the world. He shall shine forth as the sun on the earth, And shall remove all darkness from under heaven, And there shall be peace in all the earth. The heavens shall exult in his days, And the earth shall be glad, And the fclouds shall rejoice ; [And the knowledge of the Lord shall be poured forth upon the earth, as the water of the seas ;] And the angels of the glory of the presence of the Lord shall be glad in him. The heavens shall be opened, And from the temple of glory shall come upon him sanctification, With the Father's voice as from Abraham to Isaac. And the glory of the Most High shall be uttered over him, And the spirit of understanding and sanctification shall rest upon him [in the water]. For he shall give the majesty of the Lord to His sons in truth for evermore ;

XVIII. The new priesthood, to follow the immoral Hellenizers of the Zadokite line. -15. A Messianic hymn.

in heaven. In T. Jud. xxiv. 1, same passage recurs with ‘in peace.’

in the world +‘ until his ascension’ 8 ΑΒ 51. Ξ

With the Father’s voice. This seems to refer to Hyrcanus, whose receiving of a Bath Qol is mentioned by Josephus, Avz. xiii. 10. 3; Jer. Talmud, Sotah. 1x. 12. Probably Hyrcanus had some attestation, at least in popular belief, such as Simon had in*Ps. cx.

as from Abraham to Isaac, i.e. as son, in a Messianic sense.

[in the water] >e only. A Christian addition.

he, probably John Hyrcanus, and not God. Hence ‘of the Lord’ and not ‘His own majesty’. On the other hand in vv. 10-12 ‘ he’ seems to mean God.

sons in truth = true sons, T. Jud. xxiv. 3.

And there shall none succeed him for all generations for ever. And in his priesthood the Gentiles shall be multiplied in knowledge upon the earth, And enlightened through the grace of the Lord: In his priesthood shall sin come to an end, And the lawless shall cease to do evil. [And the just shall rest in him.] And he shall open the gates of paradise, And shall remove the threatening sword against Adam. And he shall give to the saints to eat from the tree of life, ᾿ And the spirit of holiness shall be on them. f 12 And Beliar shall be bound by him, i And he shall give power to His children to tread upon the evil spirits. And the Lord shall rejoice in His children, And be well pleased in His beloved ones for ever. Then shall Abraham and Isaac and Jacob exult, And I will be glad, And all the saints shall clothe themselves with joy. And now, my children, ye have heard all; choose, therefore, for yourselves either the light or the darkness, either the law of the Lord or the works of Beliar. And his sons answered him, saying, Before the Lord we will walk according to His law. And their father said unto them, The Lord is witness, and His angels are witnesses, and ye are witnesses, and I am witness, concerning the word of your mouth. And his sons said unto him: We are witnesses. And thus Levi ceased commanding his sons ; and he stretched out his feet "on the bed', and was gathered to his fathers, after he had lived a hundred and thirty-seven years. And they laid him in a coffin, and afterwards they buried him in Hebron, with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Testament of Judah

(The Fourth Son of Jacob and Leah)

The copy of the words of Judah, what things he spake to his sons before he died. They gathered

themselves together, therefore, and came to him, and he said to them: ‘Hearken, my children, to

Judah your father’. I was the fourth son born to my father Jacob; and Leah my mother named

me Judah, saying, I give thanks to the Lord, because He hath given me a fourth son ‘also', I was

swift in my youth, and obedient to my father in everything. And I honoured my mother and my

mother’s sister. And it came to pass, when I became a man, that my father blessed me, saying, Thou shalt be a king, prospering in all things.

And the Lord showed me favour in all my works both in the field and in the house. I know that

I raced a hind, and caught it, and prepared the meat for my father, and he did eat. And the roes

I used to master in the chase, and overtake all that was in the plains. A wild mare I overtook, and

caught it and tamed it. I slew a lion and plucked a kid out of its mouth. I took a bear by its paw

I tore it in sunder. A leopard in Hebron leaped upon my dog, and I caught it by the tail, and

hurled it on the rocks, and it was broken in twain. I found a wild ox feeding in the fields, and seizing it by the horns, and whirling it round and stunning it, I cast it from me and slew it.

And when the two kings of the Canaanites came sheathed in armour against our flocks, and much

people with them, single-handed I rushed upon the king of Hazor, and smote him on the greaves

and dragged him down, and so I slew him. And the other, the king of Tappuah, as he sat upon his

horse, [I slew, and so I scattered all his people. Achor the king] a man of giant stature ‘I found’,

hurling javelins before and behind as he sat on horseback, and I took up a stone of sixty pounds

weight, and hurled it and smote his horse, and killed it. And I fought with (this) other for two

hours; and I clave his shield in twain, and I chopped off his feet, and killed him. And as I was

stripping off his breastplate, behold nine men his companions began to fight with me. And I wound

my garment on my hand; and I slung stones at them, and killed four of them, and the rest fled.

And Jacob my father slew }Beelesath, king of all the kings, a giant in strength, twelve cubits high.

And fear fell upon them, and they ceased warring against us. Therefore my father was free from

o anxiety in the wars when I was with my brethren. For he saw in a vision ‘concerning me! that an

angel of might followed me everywhere, that I should not be overcome. And in the south there came upon us a greater war than that in Shechem; and I joined in battle array with my brethren, and pursued a thousand men, and slew of them two hundred men and

ll. 2. and he did eat > β-- 5. A wild mare ... tamed it B-ae S!: > a (defective).

III. Fighting near Shechem, according to Midr. Wajjis. and Book of Jashar.

Ifound a: >BAS

before and .. . horseback 8 A S', Midr. Waijjis., Chron. Jer., Jashar: > a.

smote A δ᾽: ‘have given’ aafg. - > a, through hmt.

other. Emended from ’Aywp B-e, Ναχώρ ΑΒ. 4

clave his shield. ‘The Midr. Waijjis., Chron. Jer., and Jashar make Jashub cleave Judah's shield.

‘Beelesath e: corrupt for ‘lord of Shiloh’, given by Hebrew authorities.

four kings. And I went up upon the wall, and I slew four mighty men. And so we captured Hazor, and took all the spoil. On the next day we departed to Aretan, a city strong and walled and inaccessible, threatening us with death. But I and Gad approached on the east side of the city, and Reuben and Levi on the west. And they that were upon the wall, thinking that we were alone, twere drawn down} against And so my brothers secretly climbed up the wall on both sides by stakes, and entered the city, while the men knew it not. And we took it with the edge of the sword. And as for those who had taken refuge in the tower, we set fire to the tower and took both it and them.

a | BAS!

walls we cast down. And we drew near to Thamna, where was all the substance of the hostile kings. Then being insulted by them, I was therefore wroth, and rushed against them to the summit; and they kept slinging against me stones and darts. And had not Dan my brother aided me, they would have slain me. We came upon them, therefore, with wrath, and they all fled; and passing by another way, they besought my father, and he made peace with them. And we did to them no hurt, and they became tributary to us, and we restored to them their spoil. And I built Thamna,and my father built Pabael. I was twenty years old when this war befell. And the Canaanites feared me and my brethren. And I had much cattle, and I had for chief herdsman Iram the Adullamite. And when I went to him I saw Parsaba, king of Adullam; ‘and he spake unto us', and he made us a feast; and when I was heated he gave me his daughter Bathshua to wife. She bare me Er, and Onan and Shelah ; and two of them the Lord smote: for Shelah lived, and his children are ye. ; And eighteen years my father abode in peace with his brother Esau, and his sons with us, after that we came from Mesopotamia, from Laban. And when eighteen years were fulfilled, in the fortieth year of my life, Esau, the brother of my father, came upon us with a mighty and strong people. And Jacob smote Esau with an arrow, and he was taken up wounded on Mount Seir, and as he went he died at Anoniram. And we pursued after the sons of Esau. Now they had a city with walls of iron and gates of brass; and we could not enter ‘into it', and we encamped around, and besieged it. And when they opened not to us in twenty days, I set up a ladder 'in the sight of all’ and with my shield upon my head I went up, sustaining the assault of stones, upwards of three talents weight; and I slew four of their mighty men. And Reuben and Gad slew six others. Then they asked from us terms of peace; and having taken counsel with our father, we received them as tributaries. And they gave us five hundred cors of wheat, five hundred baths of oil, five hundred measures of wine, ‘until the famine!, when we went down into Egypt. And after these things my son Er took to wife Tamar, from Mesopotamia, a daughter of Aram. Now Er was wicked, and he {was in need concerning Tamar, because she was not of the land of Canaan. And on the third night an angel of the Lord smote him. ‘And he had not known her according to the evil craftiness of his mother, for he did not wish to have children by her. In the

substance: ‘ refuge’ bg. -6. These incidents are told of Gaash, not Thamna, in the Hebrew authorities. The Hebrew authorities give the occasion of the insult.

days! of the wedding-feast I gave Onan to her in marriage; and he also in wickedness knew her not, though he spent with her a year. And when I threatened him he went in unto her, but he spilled the seed on the ground, according to the command of his mother, and he also died through wickedness. And I wished to give Shelah also to her, but his mother did not permit it; ‘for she wrought evil against Tamar!, because she was not of the daughters of Canaan, as she also herself was. x And I knew that the race of the Canaanites was wicked, but the impulse of youth blinded my mind.’ And when I saw her pouring out wine, owing to the intoxication of wine I was deceived, and took her although my father had not counselled (it). And while I was away she went and took for Shelah a wife from Canaan. And when I knew what she had done, I cursed her in the anguish of my soul. And she also died through her wickedness together with her sons. And after these things, while Tamar was a widow, she heard after two years that I was going up to shear my sheep, and adorned herself in bridal array, and sat in the city Enaim by the gate. ‘For it was a law of the Amorites, that she who was about to marry should sit in fornication seven days by the gate’. Therefore being drunk with wine, I did not recognize her; and her beauty deceived me, through the fashion of her adorning. And I turned aside to her, and said: Let me go in unto thee. And she said: What wilt thou give me? And I gave her my staff, and my girdle, and the diadem of my kingdom ‘in pledge’. And I went in unto her, and she conceived. And not knowing what I had done, I wished to slay her ; but she privily sent my pledges, and put me to shame. And when I called her, I heard also the secret words which ΓΙ spoke! when lying with her in my drunken- ness; and I could not slay her, because it was from the Lord. For I said, Lest haply she did it in subtlety, having received the pledge from another woman. But I came not again near her while I lived, because I had done ‘this! abomination in ‘all’ Israel. Moreover, they who were in the city said there was no harlot in the gate, because she came from another place, and sat for a while in the

Egypt ‘to Joseph', because of the famine. And I was forty and six years old, and seventy and three

years lived I in Egypt. And now I command you, my children, hearken ‘to Judah your father', and keep my sayings to perform all the ordinances of the Lord, and to obey the commands of God. And walk not after your lusts, nor in the imaginations of your thoughts in haughtiness of heart; and glory not in the deeds and strength of your youth, for this also is evil in the eyes of the Lord. Since I also gloried that in wars no comely woman’s face ever enticed me, and reproved Reuben my brother concerning Bilhah, the wife of my father, the spirits of jealousy and of fornication arrayed themselves against

Ε15 to, 11 gate. And I thought that no one knew that I had gone in to her. And after this we came into

against Tamar bdeS.

me, until I lay with Bathshua the Canaanite, and Tamar, who was espoused to my sons. For I said to my father-in-law : I will take counsel with my father, and so will I take thy daughter. And he was unwilling, but he showed me a boundless store of gold in his daughter's behalf; for he was

aking. And he adorned her with gold and pearls, and caused her to pour out wine for us at the

feast fwith the beauty of women.t And the wine turned aside my eyes, and pleasure blinded my

heart. And I became enamoured of and I lay with her, and transgressed the commandment of the

Lord and the commandment of my fathers, and I took her to wife. And the Lord rewarded me according to the imagination of my heart, inasmuch as I had no joy in her children.

And now, my children, 'I say unto you’, be not drunk with wine ; for wine turneth the mind away

from the truth, and inspires the passion of lust, and leadeth the eyes into error. For the spirit of fornication hath wine as a minister to give pleasure to the mind; for these two also take away the

mind of man. For if a man drink wine to drunkenness, it disturbeth the mind with filthy thoughts ‘leading to fornication', and heateth the body to carnal union ; and if the occasion of the lust be

present, he worketh the sin, and is not ashamed. Such is the inebriated man, my children ; for he

who is drunken reverenceth no man. For, lo, it made me also to err, so that I was not ashamed of the multitude in the city, in that before the eyes of all I turned aside unto Tamar, and I wrought

a great sin, and I uncovered the covering of my sons’ shame. After I had drunk wine I reverenced

ἡ not the commandment of God, and I took a woman of Canaan to wife. For much discretion needeth the man who drinketh wine, my children ; and herein is discretion in drinking wine, a man

may drink so long as he preserveth modesty. But if he go beyond this limit the spirit of deceit attacketh his mind, and it maketh the drunkard to talk filthily, and to transgress and not to be ashamed, but even to glory in his shame, and to account himself honourable.

He that committeth fornication is not aware when he suffers loss, and is not ashamed when put

to dishonour. For even though a man be a king and commit fornication, he is stripped of his

kingship by becoming the slave of fornication, as I myself also suffered. For I gave my staff, that is, the stay of my tribe; and my girdle, that is, my power; and my diadem, that is, the glory of my

kingdom. And indeed I repented of these things; wine and flesh I eat not until my old age, nor

did I behold any joy. And the angel of God showed me that for ever do women bear rule over

king and beggar alike. And from the king they take away his glory, and from the valiant man his might, and from the beggar even that little which is the stay of his poverty.

Observe, therefore, my children, the (right) limit in wine; for there are in it four evil spirits—of

lust, of hot desire, of profligacy, of filthy lucre. If ye drink wine in gladness, be ye modest in the fear of God. For if in (your) gladness the fear of God departeth, then drunkenness ariseth and

shamelessness stealeth in. But if ye would live soberly do not touch wine at all, lest ye sin in words of outrage, and in fightings and slanders, and transgressions of the commandments of God,

and ye perish before your time. Moreover, wine revealeth the mysteries of God and men, even as

woman Bathshua, which God bade me not to reveal. And wine is a cause both of war and confusion.

x And now, I command you, my children, not to love money, nor to gaze upon the beauty of women; because for the sake of money and beauty I was led astray to Bathshua the Canaanite. .3 [For I know that because of these two things shall my race fall into wickedness. For even wise men among my sons shall they mar, and shall cause the kingdom of Judah to be diminished, which i 4 the Lord gave me because of my obedience to my father. For I never caused grief to Jacob, my j 5 father ; for all things whatsoever he commanded I did. And Isaac, the father of my father, blessed me to be king in Israel, and Jacob further blessed me in like manner. And I know that from me

shall the kingdom be established.

| α BAS} And I know what evils ye will do in the last For I have also read in the books of Enoch days. the righteous what evils ye will do in the last days. | Beware, therefore, my children, of fornication, and the love of money, and hearken to Judah your

father. For these things withdraw you from the law of God, And blind the inclination of the soul, And teach arrogance, And suffer not a man to have compassion upon his neighbour. They rob his soul of all goodness, And oppress him with toils and troubles, 'And drive away sleep from him’, And devour his flesh. And he hindereth the sacrifices of God ; ‘And he remembereth not the blessing of God,' He hearkeneth not to a prophet when he speaketh, And resenteth the words of godliness. ‘For he is a slave to two contrary passions, And cannot obey God, Because they have blinded his soul, ; And he walketh in the day as in the night'. My children, the love of money leadeth to idolatry; because, when led astray through money, men name as gods those who are not gods, and it causeth him who hath it to fall into madness. For the sake of money I lost my children, and had not my repentance, "and my humiliation’, and the prayers of my father been accepted, I should have died childless. But the God of my fathers

had mercy on me, because I did it in ignorance. And the prince of deceit blinded me, and I sinned as a man and as flesh, being corrupted through sins; ‘and I Jearnt my own weakness while thinking myself invincible’.

‘Know, therefore, my children, that two spirits wait upon man—the spirit of truth and the spirit

of deceit. And in the midst is the spirit of understanding of the mind, to which it belongeth to turn whithersoever it will.

And the works of truth and the works of deceit are written upon the hearts of men, and each one of them the Lord knoweth.

And there is no time at which the works of men can be hid ; for on the heart itself have they been

written down 'before the Lord’. And the spirit of truth testifieth all things, and accuseth all; and the sinner is burnt up ‘by his own heart’, and cannot raise his face ‘to the judge'.

= And now, my children, I command you, love Levi, that ye may abide, and ‘exalt not yourselves against him', lest ye be utterly destroyed. ‘For to me the Lord gave the kingdom, and to him the priesthood, and He set the kingdom beneath the priesthood. To me He gave the things upon the earth; to him the things in the heavens. As the heaven is higher than the earth, so is the priesthood

of God higher than the earthly kingdom, unless it falls away through sin from the Lord and is dominated by the earthly kingdom'. For ‘the angel of the Lord said unto me!: The Lord chose him rather than thee, to draw near to Him, and to eat of His table ‘and to offer Him the first-fruits! of the choice things of the sons of Israel; but thou shalt be king of Jacob. And thou shalt be amongst them as the sea. For as, on the sea, just and unjust are tossed about, ‘some taken into captivity while some are enriched", so also shall every race of men be in thee: some shall be impoverished, being taken captive, ‘and others grow rich by plundering the possessions of others. For the kings shall be as sea-monsters. They shall swallow men like fishes : The sons and daughters ‘of freemen! shall they enslave ; Houses, lands, flocks, money shall they plunder :

And with the flesh of many shall they ‘wrongfully! feed the ravens and the cranes ; "And they shall tadvance in evil, in covetousness uplifted,}!

g And there shall be false prophets ‘like! tempests, And they shall persecute all righteous men.

And the Lord shall bring upon them divisions ‘one against another.

And there shall be ‘continual! wars in Israel ; Until the salvation of Israel shall come, That Jacob

For the Lord sware to me with an oath that for ever.

And among men of another race shall my kingdom be brought to an end,

Until the appearing of the God of righteousness’, Vand all the Gentiles] may rest in peace. And He shall guard the might of my kingdom for ever ;

He would not. destroy the kingdom from my seed

Now I have much grief, my children, because of your lewdness and witchcrafts, and idolatries

Ye shall make your daughters singing girls and harlots, and ye shall mingle in

the abominations of the Gentiles. For which things’ sake the Lord shall bring upon you famine and pestilence, death and the sword, beleaguering by enemies, and revilings of friends, the slaughter of children, the rape of wives, the plundering of possessions, [the burning of the temple of God,] the laying waste of the land, the enslavement of yourselves among the Gentiles. And they shall make

some of you eunuchs for their wives.

Until the Lord visit you, when with perfect heart ye repent and walk in all His command- ments, and He bring you up from captivity among the Gentiles. αβ 53 And after these things shall a star arise to you from Jacob in peace,

Until ye turn unto the Lord with perfect heart 5 repenting and walking in all the commandments of God, and the Lord visit you with mercy and bring you up from captivity among the Gentiles.

And after these things shall arise the star of 1 peace,

And a man shall arise [from my seed], like the sun of righteousness,

Walking with the sons of men in meekness and righteousness ;

And no sin shall be found in him.

And he shall walk with men in meekness and

which ye shall practise ‘against the kingdom, following them that have familiar spirits, diviners, and demons of error. righteousness.

continual wars. From Alexander's death to Herod’s accession this holds good. my kingdom... end, i.e. in 40 8. C., with Herod’s accession. {and all the Gentiles] >A. An interpolation, as this section is not universalistic. He would not ... for ever aA (>‘from my seed’ c). The other MSS. vary much. -6, and Gen. xliv. το.

XXIII. A general denunciation of Israel as a whole and its future judgements, if ‘against the kingdom’ is an interpolation.

sword A + ‘avenging ’a8.

friends + ‘destruction and blighting of the eyes’ text: >hiA: emend to ‘destruction of bribes’, or possibly to ‘ destruction of children’ (dittography of next phrase). Or, like κύνας, &c., regard it as an intrusion.

the rape of wives > a.

[the burning of the temple of God], not realized in Maccabean times (cf. Ps. Ixxiv. 7 (gates only consumed) ; Macc. iv. 38) or in the first century B.C.

in peace. Cf. T. L, xviii. 3 ‘in heaven’.

Walking with the sons of men. See T. Iss. vii. 7; T. D. v. 13; and especially 1 En. Ixii. 14.

For the idea cf. xvii.

aps! A And the heavens shall be opened unto him, And the heavens shall be opened unto him, 2 To pour out the spirit, (even) the blessing of And the blessings of the Holy Father shall be the Holy Father ; poured down upon him. And He shall pour out the spirit of grace upon And He will pour down upon us the spirit of 3 ou; grace. : And ye shall be unto Him sons in truth, And ye shall be His true children by adoption, And ye shall walk in His commandments first And ye shall walk in His commandments first and last. and last. [This Branch of God Most High, [Then a branch shall go forth from me.] 4

nd this Fountain giving life unto all.] Then shall the sceptre of my kingdom shine And the sceptre of my kingdom shall shine 5

forth ; forth ; And from your root shall arise a stem ; And from your root shall arise a stem ; And from it shall grow a rod of righteousness And from it shall grow up the rod of righteous- 6 to the Gentiles, ness unto the Gentiles, To judge and to save all that call upon the To judge and to save all that call upon the Lord. Lord.

And after these things shall Abraham and Isaac and Jacob arise unto life, and I and my brethren shall be chiefs of the tribes ‘of Israel’: Levi first, I the second, Joseph third, Benjamin fourth, Simeon fifth, Issachar sixth, and so all in order. And the Lord blessed Levi, and the Angel of the Presence, me; the powers of glory, Simeon; the heaven, Reuben; the earth, Issachar; the sea, Zebulun ; the mountains, Joseph ; the tabernacle, Benjamin ; the luminaries, Dan; Eden, Naphtali ; the sun, Gad ; the moon, Asher. And ye shall be the people of the Lord, and have one tongue ; And there shall be there no spirit of deceit of "Beliar', For he shall be cast into the fire for ever. And they who have died in grief shall arise ‘in joy’, "And they who were poor for the Lord’s sake shall be made rich’, And they who are put to death for the Lord’s sake shall awake 'to life’. And the harts of Jacob shall run ‘in joyfulness', And the eagles of Israel shall fly ‘in gladness’; And all the people shall glorify the Lord for ever. Observe, therefore, my children, all the law of the Lord, for there is hope for all them who hold fast unto His ways. And ‘he said to them: Behold’, I die before your eyes this day, a hundred and

XXV. A Resurrection to a renewed life on the present earth.

one tongue, i.e. Hebrew. Ber. rabba 18; Shabb. 12”; Jub. iii. 28 (note).

be there a: ‘be no more’ 8S'; ‘be among you’ A.

lament and the sinners shall weep’ a8 S'.

nineteen years old. Let no one bury me ‘in costly apparel', nor tear open my bowels, 'for this

shall they who are kings do'; and carry me up to Hebron with you. And Judah, when he had said these things, fell asleep ; and his sons did according to all whatsoever he commanded them, and they buried him in Hebron, with his fathers.

Testament of Issachar

(The Fifth Son of Jacob and Leah)

The copy ofthe words of Issachar. For he called his sons and said to them: Hearken, my children, to Issachar your father ; Give ear to the words of him who is beloved of the Lord. I was born the ‘fifth son to Jacob’, by way of hire for the mandrakes. For Reuben ‘my brother! brought in mandrakes from the field, and Rachel met him and took them. And Reuben wept, and at his voice Leah my mother came forth. Now these (mandrakes) were ‘sweet-smelling! apples which were produced in the land of Haran below a ravine of water. And Rachel said: I will not give them to thee, but they shall be to me instead of children. ‘For the Lord hath despised me, and I have not borne children to Jacob’. Now there were two apples ; and Leah said ‘to Rachel! : Let it suffice thee that thou hast taken my husband: wilt thou take these also? And Rachel said g ‘to her': Thou shalt have Jacob this night for the mandrakes ‘of thy son’. And Leah said to her: Jacob is mine, for I am the wife of his youth. But Rachel said: Boast not, and vaunt not thyself; for he espoused me before thee, and for my sake he served our father fourteen years.

a BAS And had not craft increased on the earth and What shall I do to thee? for the craft and 11 the wickedness of men prospered, thou wouldst | the subtlety of men are increased, and craft pros-

not now see the face of Jacob. pereth on the earth—if it were not so, thou wouldst not now see the face of Jacob.

For thou art not his wife, but in craft wert taken to him in my stead. And my father deceived

me, ‘and removed me on that night', and did not suffer ‘Jacob to see me; for' had I been

there, this had not happened ‘to him', Nevertheless, for the mandrakes I am hiring Jacob to thee

for one night. And Jacob knew Leah, and she ‘conceived and’ bare me, and on account of the hire I was called Issachar.

Then appeared to Jacob an angel of the Lord, saying: Two children shall Rachel bear, inasmuch

as she hath refused company with her husband, and hath chosen continency. And had not Leah

my mother paid the two apples for the sake of his company, she would have borne eight sons ;

for this reason she bare six, and Rachel bare the two: for on account of the mandrakes the Lord

visited her. For He knew that for the sake of children she wished to company with Jacob, and

not for lust of pleasure. For on the morrow also she again gave up Jacob. Because of the man-

drakes, therefore, the Lord hearkened to Rachel. For though she desired them, she eat them not,

but offered them in the house of the Lord, presenting them to the priest of the Most High who

was at that time.

nineteen § A 5": ‘ eighteen’ a, wrongly. nor tear open .. . kings do >a. with you. ‘where are my fathers also’ a.

Il. 1. TwobA*»edS!; >aaef: ἃ omits the clause: g omits the entire chapter. Jacob + ‘in order that she might receive the other (‘still another’ A%> 9 ἃ ἢ mandrake’ βὰς A®>* cdf S}, priest of the Most High β A*>**4fS! +‘God’ AP; ‘priest’ a.

When, therefore, I grew up, my children, I walked in uprightness of heart, and I became

a husbandman for my father and my brethren, and I brought in fruits from the field according to

slandered any one, nor did I censure the life of any man, walking as I did in singleness of eye’.

Therefore, when I was thirty-'five' years old, I took to myself a wife, for my labour wore away my

strength, and I never thought upon pleasure with women ; ‘but owing to my toil, sleep overcame me',

And my father ‘always’ rejoiced in my rectitude, "because I offered through the priest to the Lord all first-fruits ; then to my father also. And the Lord increased ten thousandfold His benefits in my hands; and also Jacob, my father, knew that God aided my singleness. For on all the poor and

oppressed I bestowed the good things of the earth in the singleness of my heart’.

And now, hearken to me, my children,

And walk in singleness ‘of your heart’,

For I have seen in it ‘all’ that is well-pleasing to the Lord. ‘The single-(minded) man coveteth not gold,

He overreacheth not his neighbour,

He longeth not after manifold dainties,

He delighteth not in varied apparel.

He doth not desire to live a long life,

But only waiteth for the will of God’.

And the spirits of deceit have no power against him,

For he looketh not on the beauty of women,

"Lest he should pollute his mind with corruption’.

There is no envy in his thoughts,

[No malicious person maketh his soul to pine away, |

Nor worry with insatiable desire in his mind.

For he walketh in singleness 'of soul’,

And beholdeth all things in uprightness ‘of heart', Shunning eyes (made) evil through the error of the world, Lest he should see the perversion of any of the commandments of the Lord. Keep, therefore, my children, the law of God,

And get singleness,

III-VI. Issachar is here held up as the single-hearted husbandman (iii. 1, v. 3, 5) who scorns luxuries and wealth

Cor, ix. 13, ἁπλότητι τῆς κοινωνίας εἰς αὐτούς.

‘And walk in guilelessness, Not playing the busybody with the business of your neighbour, But love the Lord and your neighbour, Have compassion on the poor and weak". Bow down your back unto husbandry, And toil in labours ‘in all manner of husbandry, Offering gifts to the Lord with thanksgiving’. For with the first-fruits of the earth will the Lord bless you, ‘even as He blessed all the saints from Abel even until now’. For no other portion is given to you ‘than of the fatness of the earth, whose fruits are raised by toil'. For our father Jacob blessed me with blessings of the earth and of ἡ first-fruits. And Levi and Judah were glorified by the Lord even among the sons of Jacob; for the Lord gave them an inheritance, and to Levi He gave the priesthood, and to Judah the kingdom. And do ye therefore obey them, and walk in the singleness of your father; [for unto Gad hath it been given to destroy the troops that are coming upon Israel]. Know ye therefore, my children, that in the last times Your sons will forsake singleness, FAnd will cleave unto insatiable desire ; And! leaving ‘guilelessness, will draw near to malice; And forsaking the commandments of the Lord, They will cleave unto Beliar. And leaving’ husbandry, They will follow after their own ‘wicked’ devices, ) And they shall be dispersed among the Gentiles, ν And shall serve their enemies. : And do you therefore give these commands to your children, that, if they sin, they may the more

quickly return to the Lord; For He is merciful, and will deliver them, even to bring them back into their land. a BAS! Behold, therefore, as ye see, 1 am a hundred I am a hundred and twenty-two years old, and σὲ and twenty-six years old and am not conscious of | I am not conscious of having committed any sin c committing any sin. Tunto death.

Except my wife I have not known any woman’. I never committed fornication by the uplifting of my ‘eyes’. I drank not wine, to be led astray thereby ; ; I coveted not any desirable thing that was my neighbour’s. Guile arose not in my heart ; A lie passed not through my lips. Ifany man were in distress I joined my sighs with his,

And I shared my bread with the poor. I wrought godliness, all my days I kept truth.

a BS} I loved the Lord ; 'The Lord I loved with all my strength : Likewise also every man with all my heart. Likewise also every man I loved more than my

own children, So do you also these things, my children, And every spirit of Beliar shall flee from you, ’ And no deed of wicked men shall rule over you; And every wild beast shall ye subdue, Since you have with you the God of heaven and carth (And) walk with men in singleness of heart!. And having said these things, he commanded his sons that they should carry him up to Hebron, and bury him there in the cave ‘with his fathers’. And he stretched out his feet and died, at a good old age ; with every limb sound, and with strength unabated, he slept the eternal sleep.

Testament of Zebulun

(The Sixth Son of Jacob and Leah)

The copy of the words of Zebulun, which he enjoined on his sons "before he died’ in the hundred and fourteenth year of his life, two years after the death of Joseph. And he said to them: Hearken to me, ye sons of Zebulun, attend to the words of your father. I, Zebulun, was born a good

gift to my parents. For when I was born my father was increased very exceedingly, both in flocks and herds, when with the straked rods he had his portion. I am not conscious that I have sinned all my days, ‘save in thought'. Nor yet do I remember that I have done any iniquity, except the

sin of ignorance which I committed against Joseph; for I covenanted with my brethren not to tell my father what had been done. But I wept ‘in secret! many days on account of Joseph, for I feared my

brethren, ‘because they had all agreed that if any one should declare the secret, he should be slain'. But when they wished to kill him, I adjured them much ‘with tears! not to be guilty of this sin.

For Simeon and Gad came against Joseph ‘to kill him', and he said unto them with tears: Pity

me, my brethren, have mercy upon the bowels of Jacob our father: lay not upon me your hands ‘to shed innocent blood', for I have not sinned against you. And if indeed I have sinned, with chastening chastise me, ‘my brethren’, but lay not upon me your hand, for the sake of Jacob our father. And as he spoke these words, ' wailing as he did 50}, I was unable to bear his lamentations, and ‘began to weep', and my liver was poured out, and all the substance of my bowels was }loosened.

And I wept with Joseph, and my heart sounded, ‘and the joints of my body trembled’, and I was not able to stand. And when ‘Joseph! saw me weeping with him, and them coming against him to slay him, he fled behind me, beseeching them. But meanwhile Reuben arose and said: 'Come!, my brethren, let us not slay him, but let us cast him into one of these dry pits, which our fathers digged g and found no water. For for this cause the Lord forbade that water should rise up in them, in order that Joseph should be preserved. And they did so, until they sold him to the Ishmaelites. For in his price I had no share, my children. But Simeon and Gad and six other of our brethren took the price of Joseph, and bought sandals for themselves, and their wives, ‘and their children’, saying: We will not eat of it, for it is the price of our brother’s blood, but we will assuredly tread it under foot, because he said that he would be king over us, ‘and so let us see what will become of his dreams'. Therefore it is written in the writing of the law of Moses, that whosoever will not raise up seed to his brother, his sandal should be unloosed, and they should spit in his face. And the brethren of Joseph wished not that their brother should live, and the Lord loosed from them the sandal which they wore against ‘Joseph their brother!. For when they came into Egypt ‘they were unloosed by the servants of Joseph outside the gate, and so they made obeisance to Joseph after the fashion of King Pharaoh. And! not only did they make obeisance to him, but ‘were spit upon also,

falling down before him forthwith, and so' they were put to shame before the Egyptians. For after this the Egyptians heard all the evils that they had done to Joseph.

to eat and drink. But 1, through pity for Joseph,

did not eat, but watched the pit, since Judah

feared lest Simeon, Dan, and Gad should rush

off and slay him. But when they saw that I did

not eat, they set me to watch him, till he was

sold to the Ishmaelites. And when Reuben came

and heard that while he was away (Joseph) had

been sold, he rent his garments, (and) mourning,

said: How shall I look on the face of my father

Jacob? And he took the money and ran after

the merchants, but as he failed to find them he

returned grieving. But the merchants had left

the broad road and marched through the Tro- glodytes by a short cut.

And after they had cast him into the pit 'my 1 brethren! sat down to eat. ‘For I through two 2 days and two nights eat nothing, through pity for Joseph’. And Judah eat not with them, but watched ‘the pit'; for he feared lest Simeon and Gad should run off and slay him. And when 3 they saw that I also eat not, they set me to watch him until he was sold. And he spent in 4 the pit three days and three nights, and so was sold famishing. And when Reuben heard that 5 while he was away (Joseph) had been sold, he rent his clothes, and mourned, saying: How shall I look in the face of Jacob my father? And he 6 took the money and ran after the merchants, and found no one; for they had left the main road,

and journeyed through the Troglodytes by a short cut.

‘But Reuben was grieved', and eat no food that day. Dan therefore came to him and said: Weep not, neither grieve; for we have found what we can say to our father Jacob. Let us slay

a kid of the goats, and dip in it the coat of Joseph; and let us send it to Jacob, saying: Know, is this the coat of thy son? And they did so. ‘For they stripped off from Joseph his coat when they were selling him, and put upon him the garment of a slave’. Now Simeon took the coat, and would not give it up, “for he wished to rend it with his sword’, as he was angry that Joseph lived and that he had not slain him. Then we ‘all’ rose up and said unto him: If thou givest not up the coat, we will say ‘to our father! that thou alone didst this evil thing in Israel. And so he gave it unto them, and they did even as Dan had said. And now, my children, I bid you to keep the commands of the Lord, ‘and to show mercy to your neighbours, and to have compassion towards all, not. towards men only, but also towards beasts. For all this thing’s sake the Lord blessed me’, and when all my brethren were sick, I escaped with- out sickness, for the Lord knoweth the purposes of each. Have, therefore, compassion in your hearts, my children, because even as a man doeth to his neighbour, even so also will the Lord do to him, For the sons of my brethren were sickening and were dying on account of Joseph, "because they showed not mercy in their hearts'; but my sons were preserved without sickness, as ye know. And when I was in the land of Canaan, by the sea-coast, I made a catch of fish for Jacob my father; and when many were choked in the sea, I continued unhurt.

father until we came to Egypt. Verses 4-6 found only in bdg.

[And through compassion I shared my catch with every stranger. And if a man were a stranger, or sick, or aged, I boiled the fish, and dressed them well, and offered them to all men, as every man

had need, grieving with and having compassion upon them. Wherefore also the Lord satisfied me with abundance of fish when catching fish; for he that shareth with his neighbour receiveth manifold

more from the Lord.| For five years I caught fish [and gave thereof to every man whom I saw,

and sufficed for all the house of my father]. And in the summer I caught fish, and in the winter I kept sheep with my brethren.

vii—viii. 3 found only in bdg.

time, and had compassion upon him, and stole away a garment secretly from my father’s house, and

gave it to him who was in distress. Do you, therefore, my children, from that which God bestoweth

upon you, show compassion and mercy without hesitation to all men, and give to every man with

ἃ good heart. And if ye have not the wherewithal to give to him that needeth, have compassion for

him in bowels of mercy. I know that my hand found not the wherewithal to give to him that

needed, and I walked with him weeping for seven furlongs, and my bowels yearned towards him in compassion.

Lord also may have compassion and mercy upon you. Because also in the last days God will send

His compassion on the earth, and wheresoever He findeth bowels of mercy He dwelleth in him. For

in the degree in which a man hath compassion upon his neighbours, in the same degree hath the

in Israel. a only.

a BAS! And after these things ye shall remember the And after these things ye shall remember the 7

Lord and repent, Lord, and repent,

And He shall have mercy upon you, for He [And He shall cause you to return]; for He is merciful and compassionate. is merciful and compassionate.

And He setteth not down in account evil And He setteth not down in account evil to against the sons of men, the sons of men, because they are flesh,

Because they are flesh, and are deceived through And the spirits of deceit deceive them in all their own wicked deeds. their deeds.

aaefAS! bdg

And after these things shall there arise “unto And after these things there shall arise unto 8

you' the Lord Himself, the light of righteousness, | you the Lord Himself, the light of righteousness,

[And healing and compassion shall be in His wings.

He shall redeem all the captivity of the sons of men from Beliar ;

And every spirit of deceit shall be trodden down] ;

And he shall bring back all the Gentiles into zeal for Him.

aaefAS!} bdg And ye shall return unto your land. And ye shall see [God in the fashion of a man] And ye shall see Him in Jerusalem, ‘for His | (the place) which the Lord shall choose, Jerusalem name’s sake!. is its name.

g And again ‘through the wickedness of your works' shall ye provoke Him to anger, And ye shall be cast away ‘by Him' unto the time of consummation. And now, my children, grieve not that I am dying, nor be cast down in that I am coming to my end. For I shall rise again in the midst of you, ‘as a ruler in the midst of his sons'; and I shall rejoice in the midst of my tribe, as many as shall keep the law of the Lord, ‘and the commandments of Zebulun their father'. But upon the ungodly shall the Lord bring eternal fire, and destroy them throughout all generations. But I am now hastening away to my rest, as did also my fathers. But do ye fear the Lord ‘our God with all your strength all the days of your life’. And when he had said these things he fell asleep, ‘at a good old age'. And his sons laid him in a ‘wooden’ coffin. And afterwards they carried him up and buried him in Hebron, with his fathers.

Testament of Dan

(The Seventh Son of Jacob and Bilhah)

The copy of the words of Dan, which he spake to his sons in his last days, in the hundred and twenty-fifth year of his life. For he called together his family, and said: Hearken to my words, ye sons of Dan; and give heed to the words ‘of your father'. I have proved in my heart, and in my whole life, that truth with just dealing is good and well pleasing to God, and that lying and anger are evil, because they teach man all wickedness. I confess, therefore, this day to you, my children, that in my heart I resolved on the death of Joseph ‘my brother’, the true and good man. [And I rejoiced that he was sold, because his father loved him more than us.] For the spirit of jealousy and vainglory said to me: Thou thyself also art his son. And one of the spirits of Beliar stirred me up, saying: Take this sword, and ‘with it'slay Joseph: so shall thy father love thee when he is dead.

Now this is the spirit of anger that persuaded me to crush Joseph as a leopard crusheth a kid.

a BAS!

But the God of my fathers did not suffer him But the God of Jacob our father did not deliver 9 to fall into my hands, so that I should find him | him into my hands that I should find him alone, alone and slay him, and cause a second tribe to | nor suffer me to work this iniquity, lest two tribes be destroyed in Israel. should be destroyed in Israel.

And now, my children, behold I am dying, and I tell you ofa truth, that unless ye keep yourselves from the spirit of lying and of anger, and love truth and longsuffering, ye shall perish.

δ BAS}! For anger is blindness, and does not suffer one There is blindness in anger, my children, and 2 to see the face of any man with truth. no angry man seeth the face with truth.

For though it be a father or a mother, ‘he behaveth towards them as enemies'; though it be a brother, he knoweth him not; though it be a prophet of the Lord, he disobeyeth him; though

a righteous man, he regardeth him not; ‘though a friend, he doth not acknowledge him'. For the spirit of anger encompasseth him with the net of deceit, and blindeth his eyes, and through lying

darkeneth his mind, and giveth him its own peculiar vision. And wherewith encompasseth it his eyes? With hatred of heart, so as to be envious of his brother.

a B-a AS! For anger is an evil thing, my children, for it For anger is an evil thing, my children, for it troubleth even the soul itself. becomes a soul to the soul itself.

And the body of the angry man it maketh its own, and over his soul it getteth the mastery, and it bestoweth upon the body ‘power that it may work all' iniquity. And when the body does all these things, the soul justifieth what is done, since it seeth not aright. Therefore he that is wrathful, if he be a mighty man, hath a threefold power in his anger: one by the help of his servants; and a second by his wealth, whereby he persuadeth and overcometh wrongfully ; and thirdly, having his own natural power he worketh thereby the evil. And though the wrathful man be weak, yet hath he a power twofold of that which is by nature; for wrath ever aideth such in lawlessness. This spirit goeth always with lying ‘at the right hand of Satan, that with cruelty and lying’ his works may be wrought. Understand ye, therefore, the power of wrath, that it is tvain. For it first of all giveth provocation by word ; then by deeds it ¢strengtheneth him who is angry, and with sharp losses disturbeth his mind, and so stirreth up with great wrath his soul. Therefore, when any one speaketh against you, be not ye moved to anger, [and if any man praiseth you as holy men, be not uplifted: be not moved either to delight or to disgust]. For first tit pleaseth the hearing}, and so maketh the mind keen to perceive the grounds for provocation ; and then being enraged, he thinketh that he is justly angry. If ye fall into any loss or ruin, my children, ‘be not afflicted’; for this very spirit maketh (a man) desire that which is perishable, in order that he may be enraged through the affliction. And if ye suffer loss voluntarily, or involuntarily, be not vexed ; for from vexation ariseth wrath ‘with lying’. Moreover, a twofold mischief is wrath with lying ; and they assist one another in order to disturb the heart ; and when the soul is continually disturbed, the Lord departeth from it, and Beliar ruleth over it. δ: Observe, therefore, my children, the commandments of the Lord, And keep His law ; | Depart from wrath, ' And hate lying, : That the Lord may dwell among you, } And Beliar may flee from you. Speak truth each one with his neighbour. So shall ye not fall into wrath and confusion ; But ye shall be in peace, having the God of peace, So shall no war prevail over you.

Love the Lord through all your life,

And one another with a true heart.

I know that in the last days ye shall depart from the Lord,

And ye shall provoke Levi unto anger,

And fight against Judah ;

But ye shall not prevail against them,

For an angel of the Lord shall guide them both ;

For by them shall Israel stand.

And whensoever ye depart from the Lord, ye shall walk in all evil and work the abominations of the Gentiles, going a-whoring after women of the lawless ones, while with all wickedness the spirits of wickedness work ‘in you', [For I have read in the book of Enoch, the righteous, that your prince is Satan, and that all the spirits of wickedness and pride will conspire to attend constantly on the sons of Levi, to cause them to sin before the Lord.

And my sons will draw near to Levi,

And sin with them in all things ;

And the sons of Judah will be covetous,

Plundering other men’s goods like lions.]

Therefore shall ye be led away [with them] into captivity,

And there shall ye receive all the plagues of Egypt,

And all the evils of the Gentiles.

And so when ye return to the Lord ye shall obtain mercy,

And He shall bring you into His sanctuary,

And He shall give you peace.

And there shall arise unto you from the tribe of [Judah and of] Levi the salvation of the Lord ;

And he shall make war against Beliar.

And execute an everlasting vengeance on our enemies ;

And the captivity shall he take from Beliar [the souls of the saints],

And turn disobedient hearts unto the Lord,

And give to them that call upon him eternal peace.

And the saints shall rest in Eden,

And in the New Jerusalem shall the righteous rejoice,

the New Jerusalem bgA S!: ‘the kingdom of J.’,c; ‘the new Holy J.’, hi. This is the earliest occurrence of

And it shall be unto the glory of God for ever. And no longer shall Jerusalem endure desolation, Nor Israel be led captive ; For the Lord shall be in the midst of it [living amongst men], And the Holy One of Israel shall reign over it [in humility and in poverty ; and he who believeth on Him shall reign amongst men in truth]. And now, fear the Lord, my children, and beware of Satan and his spirits. Draw near unto God and unto the angel that intercedeth for you, for he is a mediator between God and man, and for the peace of Israel he shall stand up against the kingdom of the enemy. Therefore is the enemy eager to destroy all that call upon the Lord. For he knoweth that upon the day on which Israel shall repent, the kingdom of the enemy shall be brought to an end. For the very angel of peace shall strengthen Israel, that it fall not into the extremity of evil. And it shall be in the time of the law- lessness of Israel, that the Lord will not depart from them, but will transform them into a nation that doeth His will, for none of the angels will be equal unto him. And His name shall be in every place in Israel, "and among the Gentiles’. Keep, therefore, yourselves, my children, from every evil work, And cast away wrath and all lying, And love truth and long-suffering. And the things which ye have heard from your father, do ye ‘also' impart to your children [that the Saviour of the Gentiles may receive you; for he is true and long-suffering, meek and lowly, and το teacheth by his works the law of God]. Depart, therefore, from all unrighteousness, and cleave unto the righteousness of God, and your race will be saved for ever. And bury me near my fathers. And when he had said these things he kissed them, and fell asleep at a good old age. And his sons buried him, And after that they carried up ‘his bones', and placed them near Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob. [Nevertheless, "Dan' prophesied unto them that they should forget their God, and should be alienated from the land of their inheritance ‘and from the race of Israel’, and from the family of ‘}their seed.}"]

Testament of Naphtali

(The Eighth Son of Jacob and Bilhah)

The copy of the testament of Naphtali, which he ordained at the time of his death in the hundred and thirtieth year of his life. When his sons were gathered together in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, while still in good health, he made them a feast of food and wine. And after

emended to ‘ will transform them into’ = ἼΞΠ)" (transitive). doeth: ‘seeketh’ c.

jo. the righteousness of + ‘the law of’ 8S’.

their God aS!: ‘the law of their God’ bd A.

ttheir seedt «: ‘and so it came to pass’ 8.

TITLE a: + ‘concerning natural goodness’ Ὁ de f A* ἢ

and wine >a.

he was awake in the morning, he said to them, I am dying; and they believed him not. And as he

glorified the Lord, he grew strong and said that after yesterday’s feast he should die. And he began

then to say: Hear, my children, ye sons of Naphtali, hear the words of your father. I ‘was born from

Bilhah, ‘and’ because Rachel dealt craftily, and gave Bilhah in place of herself to Jacob, and she

conceived and bare me upon Rachel’s knees, ‘therefore she called my name Naphtali. For Rachel

loved me very much because I was born upon her lap’; and when I was still young she was wont

to kiss me, and say: May I have a brother of thine from mine own womb, like unto thee. Whence

also Joseph was like unto me ‘in all things’, according to the prayers of Rachel. Now my mother

was Bilhah, daughter of Rotheus the brother of Deborah, Rebecca’s nurse, who was born on one and

the self-same day with Rachel. And Rotheus was of the family of Abraham, a Chaldean, God-

fearing, free-born, and noble. And he was taken captive and was bought by Laban; and he gave

him Euna his handmaid to wife, and she bore a daughter, and called her name Zilpah, after the name

of the village in which he had been taken captive. And next she bore Bilhah, saying: My daughter

hastens after what is new, for immediately that she was born she seized the breast and hastened to

suck it.

and as a deer did he give me his blessing. For as the potter knoweth the vessel, how much it is to

contain, and bringeth clay accordingly, so also doth the Lord make the body after the likeness of

the spirit, and according to the capacity of the body doth He implant the spirit. And the one does

not fall short of the other bya third part of a hair; for by weight, and measure, and rule was all the

creation made. And as the potter knoweth the use of each vessel, what it is meet for, so also doth

the Lord know the body, how far it will persist in goodness, and when it beginneth in evil. For

there is no inclination or thought which the Lord knoweth not, for He created every man after His own image.

a B-agA For asa man’s strength, so also is his work ; As a man’s strength, so also is his work; and 6 as his teye, so also is his sleep; as his soul, so | as his mind, so also is his skill; ‘and as his also is his word either in the law of the Lord or | purpose, so also is his achievement ; and as his in the law of Beliar. heart, so also is his mouth ;' as his feye, so also is his sleep ; as his soul, so also is his word, either in the law of the Lord or in the works of Beliar.

And as there is a division between light and darkness, between seeing and hearing, so also is there a division between man and man, and between woman and woman ; and it is not to be said that the one is like the other either in face or in mind. ‘For'God made all things good in their order, the five senses in the head, and He joined on the neck to the head, adding to it the hair also for comeliness and glory, then the heart for understanding, the belly for excrement, and the stomach for

‘for excrement ’, which the translator took for = ΡΝ = εἰς διάτρισιν.

(grinding), the windpipe for taking in (the breath), the liver for wrath, the gall for bitterness, the spleen for laughter, the reins ‘for prudence, the muscles of the loins' for power, the lungs for drawing in, the loins for strength, and so forth. So ‘then', my children, let all your works be done in order with good intent in the fear of God, and do nothing disorderly in scorn or out of its due season. For if thou bid the eye to hear, it cannot; so neither while ye are in darkness can ye do the works of ight. eo ye, therefore, not eager to corrupt your doings through covetousness or with vain words to beguile your souls; because if ye keep silence in purity of heart, ye shall understand how to hold fast the will of God, and to cast away the will of Beliar. Sun and moon and stars change not their order; so do ye also change not the law of God in the disorderliness of your doings. The Gentiles went astray, and forsook the Lord, and changed their order, and obeyed stocks and stones, spirits of deceit. But ye shall not be so, my children, recognizing in the firmament, in the earth, and in the sea, and in all created things, the Lord who made all things, that ye become not as Sodom, which changed the order of nature. In like manner the Watchers also changed the order of their nature, — the Lord cursed at the flood, on whose account He made the earth without inhabitants and fruitless. These things I say unto you, my children, for I have read in the writing of Enoch that ye your- selves also shall depart from the Lord, walking according to all the lawlessness of the Gentiles, and ye shall do according to all the wickedness of Sodom. And the Lord shall bring captivity upon you, and ‘there! shall ye serve your enemies, and ye shall be bowed down with every affliction and tribulation, until the Lord have consumed you all. And after ye have become minished and made few, ye shall return and acknowledge the Lord your God; and He shall bring you back into your land, according to His abundant mercy. And it shall be, that after that they come into the land of their fathers, they shall again forget the Lord and become ungodly. And the Lord shall scatter them upon the face of all the earth, until the compassion of the Lord shall come, a man working righteousness and working mercy unto all them that are afar off, and to them that are near. For in the fortieth year of my life, I saw a vision on the Mount of Olives, on the east of Jerusalem,

stomach for (grinding) (‘ grinding’ supplied from (2)) = (1) (2) (3).

liver for wrath (1) (2) (3) (4). Cf. T. R. iii. 4.

gall for bitterness > (2) (4): (1) (3) ‘the gall sprinkles on it a drop and quiets it.’

spleen for laughter (1) (2) (3) (4).

muscles of the loins for power. No parallel; a dittography.

f afar off. Isa. lvii. 19.

that the sun and the moon were standing still. And behold Isaac, the father of my father, said to us; Run and lay hold of them, each one according to his strength; ‘and to him that seizeth them will the sun and moon belong.' And we all of us ran together, and Levi laid hold of the sun, and Judah outstripped the others and seized the moon, and they were both of them lifted up with them. And when Levi became as a sun, ‘lo', a certain young man gave to him twelve branches of palm; and Judah was bright as the moon, and under their feet were twelve rays. [And the two, Levi and Judah, ran, and laid hold of them.] And lo, a bull upon the earth, with two great horns, and an eagle’s wings upon its back; and we wished to seize him, but could not. But Joseph came, and seized him, and ascended up with him on high. And I saw, for I was there, and behold a holy writing appeared to us, saying: Assyrians, Medes, Persians, [Chaldeans,]| Syrians, shall possess in captivity the twelve tribes of Israel.

a And again, after seven days, I saw our father Jacob standing by the sea of Jamnia, and we were

with him. And behold, there came a ship sailing by, without sailors or pilot; and there was written upon the ship, The Ship of Jacob. And our father said to us: Come, let us embark on our ship. And when he had gone on board, there arose a vehement storm, and a mighty tempest of wind ; and our father, who was holding the helm, departed from us. And we, being tost with the tempest, were borne along over the sea; and the ship was filled with water, (and was) pounded by mighty waves, until it was broken up. And Joseph fled away upon a little boat, "and we were all divided upon nine planks', and Levi and Judah were together. And we were all scattered unto the ends of the earth. g Then Levi, girt about with sackcloth, prayed for us all unto the Lord. And when the storm ceased, the ship reached the land ‘as it were'in peace. And, lo, our father came, and we all rejoiced with one accord.

These two dreams I told to my father; and he said to me: These things must be fulfilled in their season, after that Israel hath endured many things.

Then my father saith unto me: I believe God that Joseph liveth, for I see ‘always! that the Lord numbereth him with you.

And he said, weeping: Ah me, my son Joseph, thou livest, though I behold thee. not, and thou seest not Jacob that begat thee.

He caused me also, therefore, to weep by these words, and I burned in my heart to declare that ‘Joseph! had been sold, but I feared my brethren. And lo! my children, I have shown unto you the last times, how everything shall come to pass in Israel. Do ye also, ‘therefore', charge your children that they be united to Levi and to Judah; For through them shall salvation arise unto Israel, And in them shall Jacob be blessed.

until: text has ‘so that’. Joseph = Samaria.

Joseph > ΒΑ 55.

through them ... in them: text = ‘through Judah... in him’. But salvation comes through Levi and Judah jointly. See T. R. vi. 5-12 (note).

For through their tribes shall God appear [dwelling among men] on earth, To save the race of Israel, And to gather together the righteous from amongst the Gentiles. If ye work that which is good, my children, "Both! men and angels shall bless you; And God shall be glorified among the Gentiles through you, And the devil shall flee from you, "And the wild beasts shall fear you', And the Lord shall love you, [And the angels shall cleave to you]. Asa man who has trained a child well is kept in kindly remembrance ; So also for a good work there is a good remembrance before God. But him that doeth not that which is good, 'Both' angels and men shall curse, And God shall be dishonoured among the Gentiles through him, And the devil shall make him as his own peculiar instrument, And every wild beast shall master him, And the Lord shall hate him. For the commandments of the law are twofold, ‘And’ through prudence must they be fulfilled. For there is a season for a man to embrace his wife, And a season to abstain therefrom for his prayer. So, then, there are two commandments; and, unless they be done in due order, they bring ‘very Io great’ sin "upon men'. So also is it with the other commandments. Be ye therefore wise in God, my children', and prudent, understanding the order of His commandments, and the laws of every word, that the Lord may love you. ‘ And when he had charged them with many such words, he exhorted them that they should remove his bones to Hebron, and that they should bury him with his fathers. And when he had : 3 eaten and drunken with a merry heart, he covered his face and died. And his sons did according to ἢ all that Naphtali their father had commanded them.

Testament of Gad

(The Ninth Son of Jacob and Zilpah)

Ἐν The copy of the testament of Gad, what things he spake unto his sons, in the hundred and twenty- fifth year of his life, saying unto them: ‘Hearken, my children’, I was the ninth son born to Jacob,

and I was valiant in keeping the flocks. Accordingly I guarded ‘at night’ the flock ; and whenever the lion came, ‘or the wolf’, or any wild beast against the fold, I pursued it, and ‘overtaking (it)"

I seized its foot with my hand and hurled it about a stone’s throw, and so killed it. Now Joseph ‘my brother’ was feeding the flock with us for upwards of thirty days, and being young, he fell sick

| 3. their tribes: text = ‘his tribe’, a Christian alteration.

by reason of the heat. And he returned to Hebron to our father, who made him lie down near him, because he loved him greatly. And Joseph told our father that the sons of 'Zilpah and’ Bilhah were slaying the best ‘of the flock’ and eating them against the judgement of Reuben and Judah. For he saw that I had delivered a lamb out of the mouth of a bear, and put the bear to death ; but had slain the lamb, being grieved concerning it that it could not live, and that we had eatenit. And regarding this matter I was wroth with Joseph ‘until the day that he was sold. And the spirit of hatred was in me’, and I wished not either to hear of Joseph with the ears, or see him with the eyes, because he rebuked us to our faces ‘saying’ that we were eating of the flock without Judah. For whatsoever things he told our father, he believed him. Iconfess now my sin, my children, that oftentimes I wished to kill him, because I hated him from my heart. Moreover, I hated him yet more for his dreams ; and I wished to lick him out of the land of the living, even as an ox licketh up the grass of the field.

a BAS! And Judah sold him secretly to the Ishmael- Therefore I and Simeon sold him to the Ish- 3 ites. maelites [ for thirty pieces of gold, and ten of them

we hid, and showed the twenty to our brethren]. And thus through covetousness we were bent 4 ‘on slaying him. Thus the God of our fathers delivered him And the God of my fathers delivered him from 5 from our hands, that we should not work great | my hands, that I should not work lawlessness in lawlessness in Israel. Israel.

And now, my children, hearken to the words of truth to work righteousness, and all the law of the Most High, and go not astray through the spirit of hatred, for it is evil in all the doings of men. Whatsoever a man doeth the hater abominateth him: and thougha man worketh the law of the Lord, he praiseth him not; though a man feareth the Lord, and taketh pleasure in that which is righteous, he loveth him not. He dispraiseth the truth, he envieth him that prospereth, he welcometh evil-speaking, he loveth arrogance, for hatred blindeth his soul ; as I talso 'then* looked} on Joseph. Beware, therefore, my children of hatred; for it worketh lawlessness ‘even’ against the Lord Him- self. For it will not hear 'the words οὔ" His commandments concerning the loving of one’s neigh- bour, ‘and’ it sinneth against God. ‘For if a brother stumble’, it delighteth immediately to proclaim it to all men, and is urgent that he should be judged for it, and be punished and be put to death. And if it be a servant it stirreth him up against his master, and with every affliction it deviseth against him, if possibly he can be put to death. For hatred worketh with envy also against them that prosper: so long as it heareth of or seeth their success, it always languisheth. For as love would quicken ‘even’ the dead, and would call back them that are condemned to die, so hatred would slay the living, and those that had sinned venially it would not suffer to live. For the spirit of hatred worketh together with Satan, through hastiness of spirit, in all things to

men’s death ; but the spirit of love worketh together with the law of God in long-suffering unto the salvation of men.

‘Hatred, therefore, is evil’, for it constantly mateth with lying, speaking against the truth ; and it maketh small things to be great, and causeth the light to be darkness, and calleth the sweet bitter, and teacheth slander, and ‘kindleth’ wrath, and 'stirreth’ up war, and violence and all covet-

ousness ; it filleth the heart with evils and devilish poison. These things, 'therefore', 1 say to you from experience, my children, that ye may drive forth hatred, which is of the devil, and cleave to the love of God. Righteousness casteth out hatred, humility destroyeth envy. For he that is just and humble is ashamed to do what is unjust, "being reproved not of another', but of his own heart, because the Lord looketh on his inclination. He speaketh not against a holy man, because the fear of God overcometh hatred. For fearing lest he should offend the Lord, he will not do wrong to any man, even in thought. These things I learnt at last, after I had repented concerning Joseph. For true repentance after a godly sort [destroyeth ignorance, and] driveth away the darkness, and enlighteneth the eyes, and giveth knowledge to the soul, and leadeth the mind to salvation. And g those things which it hath not learnt from man, it knoweth through repentance. For God brought upon me a disease of the liver ; and had not the prayers of Jacob my father succoured me, it had to hardly failed but my spirit had departed. For by what things a man transgresseth, by the same also tris he punished. Since, ‘therefore’, my liver was set mercilessly against Joseph, in my liver too I suffered mercilessly, and was judged for eleven months, for so long a time as I had been angry against Joseph.

And now, my children, ‘I exhort you’, love ye each one his brother, and put away hatred from

your hearts, love one another in deed, and in word, and in the inclination of the soul. For in the presence of my father I spake peaceably to Joseph ; and when 1 had gone out, the spirit of hatred darkened my mind, and stirred up my soul to slay him.

Love ye one another from the heart; and if Love ye, therefore, one another from the heart ; 3 aman sin against thee, speak peaceably to him, | and if a man sin against thee, cast forth the and in thy soul hold not guile; and if he repent | poison of hate and speak peaceably to him, and and confess, forgive him. in thy soul hold not guile; and if he confess and

repent, forgive him.

But if he deny it, do not get into a passion with him, lest catching the poison from thee he take

to swearing and so thou sin doubly. [Let not another man hear thy secrets when engaged in legal strife, lest he come to hate thee and become thy enemy, and commit a great sin against thee; for ofttimes he addresseth thee guilefully or busieth himself about thee with wicked intent.] And though he deny it and yet have a sense of shame when reproved, give over reproving him. For he who denieth may repent so as not again to wrong thee; yea, he may also honour thee, and [fear and] be at peace with thee. And if he be shameless and persist in his wrong-doing, even so forgive him from the heart, and leave ‘to God the avenging. Ifaman prospereth more than you, do not be vexed, but pray also for him’, that he may have perfect prosperity. For so it is expedient for you. And if he be further exalted, be not envious ‘of him’, remembering that all flesh shall die; and offer praise to God, who giveth things good and profitable to all men. Seek out the judgements of the Lord, and thy mind will rest and be at peace. And though a man become rich by evil means, even as Esau, the brother of my father, be not jeal- ous; ‘but! wait for the end of the Lord. For if he taketh away (from a man) wealth gotten by evil means He forgiveth him if he repent, but the unrepentant is reserved for eternal punishment. For the poor man, if free from envy he pleaseth the Lord in all things, is blessed beyond all men, because he hath not the travail of vain men. Put away, therefore, jealousy from your souls, and love one another with uprightness of heart. Do ye also therefore tell these things to your children, that they honour {Judah and Levit, for from them shall the Lord raise up salvation to Israel. [For I know that at the last your children shall depart from Him, and shall walk in all wickedness, and affliction and corruption before the Lord.] And when he had rested for a little while, he said again; My children, obey your father, and bury me near to my fathers. And he drew up his feet, and fell asleep in peace. And after five years they carried him up to Hebron, and laid him with his fathers.

Testament of Asher

(The Tenth Son of Jacob and Zilpah)

The copy of the Testament of Asher, what things he spake to his sons in the hundred and twenty-fifth year of his life. ‘For' while he was still in health, he said to them: Hearken, ye chil- dren of Asher, to your father, and I will declare to you all that is upright in the sight of the Lord.

TITLE a: + ‘concerning the two faces of vice (‘duplicity’ A) and virtue’ bdefAS'. I. 2. upright, a play in Hebrew on WW and TW.

Two ways hath God given to the sons of men, and two inclinations, ‘and two kinds of action, and two modes (of action)', and ‘two! issues. Therefore all things are by twos, one over against the other. ‘For' there are two ways of good and evil, and {with these are the two inclinations in our breasts discriminating them}. Therefore if the soul take pleasure in the good (inclination), all its actions are in righteousness ; and if it sin it straightway repenteth. For, having its thoughts set upon righteousness, and casting away wickedness, it straightway overthroweth the evil, and uprooteth the sin. But if it incline to the evil inclination, all its actions are in wickedness, and it driveth away the good, and cleaveth to the evil, and is ruled by Beliar; even though it work what is good, he perverteth it to evil. For whenever it beginneth to do good, he forceth the issue of the action into evil for him, seeing that the treasure of the inclination is filled with an evil spirit. t A person then may with words help the good for the sake of the evil, yet the issue of the action leadeth to mischief. There is a man who showeth no compassion upon him who serveth his turn in evil ; and this thing hath two aspects, but the whole is evil. And there is a man that loveth him that worketh evil, because he would prefer ‘even' to die in evil for his sake ; and concerning this it is clear that it hath two aspects, but the whole is an evil work.

a BS! Though indeed he have love, yet is he wicked Though indeed there is love, yet it is wicked 4 who concealeth what is evil for the sake of the | as it concealeth what is evil; now this thing

good namef, but the end of the action tendeth | seemeth good in name, but the end of the action unto evil. tendeth unto evil.

Another stealeth, doeth unjustly, plundereth, defraudeth, and withal pitieth the poor: this ‘too! hath a twofold aspect, but the whole is evil. He who defraudeth his neighbour provoketh God, and sweareth falsely against the Most High, and yet pitieth the poor: the Lord who commandeth the law he setteth at nought and provoketh, and yet he refresheth the poor. He ‘defileth the soul, and' maketh gay the body; he killeth many, and pitieth a few: this, too, hath a twofold aspect, but the whole is evil. Another committeth adultery and fornication, and abstaineth from meats, and when he fasteth he doeth evil, and by the power of his wealth overwhelmeth many ; and notwithstanding

the power of his wealth: ‘ his power and his wealth’ bdg A. notwithstanding : texts read ‘ after’.

his excessive wickedness he doeth 'the' commandments: this, too, hath a twofold aspect, but the whoie is evil. Such men are hares; clean,—like those that divide the hoof, but in very deed are unclean. For God in the tables of the commandments hath thus declared. But do not ye, my children, wear two faces like unto them, of goodness and of wickedness; but cleave unto goodness only, for God hath his habitation therein, and men desire it. But from wicked- ness flee away, destroying the (evil) inclination by your good works ; for they that are double-faced serve not God, but their own lusts, so that they may please Beliar and men like unto themselves. For good men, even they that are of single face, though they be thought by them that are double- faced to sin, are just before God. For many in killing the wicked do two works, of good and evil; but the whole is good, because he hath uprooted and destroyed that which is evil. One man hateth the merciful and unjust man, and the man who committeth adultery and fasteth : this, too, hath a two- fold aspect, but the 'whole' work is good, because he followeth the Lord’s example, in that he accepteth not the seeming good as the genuine good. Another desireth not to see a good day with them that riot, lest he defile his body and pollute his soul : this, too, is double-faced, but the whole is good. For such men are like to stags and to hinds, because in the manner of wild animals they seem to be unclean, but they are altogether clean ; because ‘they walk’ in zeal for the Lord and abstain from what God also hateth and forbiddeth by His commandments, warding off the evil from the good, Bi Ye see, my children, how that there are two ‘in all things’, one against the other, and the one is hidden by the other: ‘in wealth (is hidden) covetousness, in conviviality drunkenness, in laughter grief, in wedlock profligacy’. Death succeedeth to life, "dishonour to glory’, night to day, and darkness to light; [and all things are under the day, just things under life, “unjust things under death';] wherefore also eternal life tawaiteth death. Nor may it be said that truth is a lie, nor right wrong ; for all truth is under the light, ‘even as all things are under God’. All these things, therefore, I proved in my life, and I wandered not from the truth of the Lord, and I searched out the commandments of the Most High, walking according to all my strength with singleness of face unto that which is good. Take heed, therefore, ye also, my children, to the commandments of the Lord, following the truth with singleness of face. For they that are double-faced are guilty of a twofold sin ; ‘for they both do the evil thing and they have pleasure in them that do it’, following the example of the spirits of deceit, and striving against mankind. Do ye, ‘therefore, my children,'keep the law of the Lord, and give not heed unto evil as unto good ; but look unto the thing that is really good, and keep it in all

commandments of the Lord, having your conversation therein, and resting therein. For the latter ends of men do show their righteousness (or unrighteousness), when they meet the angels of the

Lord and of Satan. For when the soul departs troubled, it is tormented by the evil spirit which also it served in lusts and evil works.

a BAS!

But if he is peaceful with joy he meeteth the But if peacefully ‘with joy', he hath met the 6 angel of peace, and he leadeth him into eternal | angel of peace, he ¢comforteth him with life. life. -

Become not, my children, as Sodom, which sinned against the angels of the Lord, and perished for ever. For I know that ye shall sin, and be delivered into the hands of your enemies ; ‘and’ your land shall be made desolate, and your holy places destroyed, and ye shall be scattered unto the four corners of the earth. And ye shall be set at nought in the dispersion vanishing away as water. Until the Most High shall visit the earth, coming Himself [as man, with men eating and drinking], and break- ing the head of the dragon in the water. He shall save Israel and all the Gentiles [God speaking in the person of man]. [Therefore do ‘ye also, my children’, tell these things to your children, that they disobey Him not. For I have known that ye shall assuredly be disobedient, and assuredly act ungodly, not giving heed to the law of God, but to the commandments of men, being corrupted through wickedness. And therefore shall ye be scattered as Gad and Dan my brethren, and ye shall know not your lands, tribe, and tongue. But the Lord will gather you together in faith through His tender mercy, ‘and’ for the sake of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.]’ And when he had said these things unto them, he commanded them, saying: Bury me in Hebron. And he fell asleep and died at a good old age. And his sons did as he had commanded them, and they carried him up to Hebron, and buried him with his fathers.

Testament of Joseph

(The Eleventh Son of Jacob and Rachel)

The copy of the Testament of Joseph. When he was about to die he called his sons and his brethren together, and said to them :—

My brethren and my children,

Hearken to Joseph the beloved of Israel ;

Give ear, my sons, unto your father.

I have seen in my life envy and death,

Yet I went not astray, "but persevered’ in the truth of the Lord.

These my brethren hated me, but the Lord loved me:

They wished to slay me, but the God of my fathers guarded me:

They let me down into a pit, and the Most High brought me up again.

I was sold into slavery, and the Lord of all made me free:

I was taken into captivity, and His strong hand succoured me.

I was beset with hunger, and the Lord Himself nourished me.

I was alone, and God comforted me:

I was sick, and the Lord visited me:

I was in prison, and my God showed favour unto me;

In bonds, and He released me;

Slandered, and He pleaded my cause ;

Bitterly spoken against by the Egyptians, and He delivered me;

Envied by my fellow-slaves, and He exalted me.

And this chief captain of Pharaoh entrusted to me his house. And I struggled against a shame- less woman, urging me to transgress with her; but the God of Israel my father delivered me from the burning flame. I was cast into prison, I was beaten, "I was mocked'; but the Lord granted me to find mercy in the sight of the keeper of the prison.

For the Lord doth not forsake them that fear Him,

Neither in darkness, nor in bonds, nor in tribulations, nor in necessities.

For God is not put to shame as a man,

Nor as the son of man is he afraid,

Nor as one that is earth-born is He [weak or] affrighted.

BAS! But in all places He is at hand,

a But in all those things doth He give protection,

And in divers ways doth He comfort, (Though) for a little space He departeth to try the inclination of the soul.

TITLE a: + ‘concerning sobriety’ be fS': + ‘concerning envy’ APhefg,

Lord aef: ‘ Most High’ bdgs 2 SGod.A.

my God A>*cdfg; ‘Lord’ S!: ‘the Saviour’ αβ 55.

In bonds and He released me >d. Without it stanzas 4-7 are symmetrical. Yoma 35” says Joseph used the words to Potiphar’s wife.

In ten temptations He showed me approved, And in all of them I endured ; For endurance is a mighty charm, And patience giveth many good things. How often did the Egyptian woman threaten me with death! How often did she give me over to punishment, and then call me back and threaten me, and when I was unwilling to company with her, she said to me: Thou shalt be lord of me, and all that is in my house, if thou wilt give thyself unto me, and thou shalt be as our master. But I remembered the words of my father, and going into my chamber, I ‘wept and' prayed unto the Lord. And I fasted in those seven years, and I appeared to the Egyptians as one living delicately, for they that fast for God’s sake receive beauty of face. And if my lord were away from home, I drank no wine; nor for three days did I take my food, but I gave it to the poor and sick. And I sought the Lord early, and I wept for the Egyptian woman of Memphis, for very unceasingly did she trouble me, for also at night she came to me under pretence of visiting me.

a BAS! And because she had no male child she pre- And because she had no male child she pre- tended to regard me as a son. tended to regard me as a son, and so I prayed to

the Lord, and she bare a male child.

And for a time she embraced me as a son, and I knew it not; }but later, she sought to draw me

g into fornication. And when I perceived it I sorrowed unto death; and when she had gone out,

I came to myself, and lamented for her many days, because I recognized her guile and her deceit. to And I declared unto her the words of the Most High, if haply she would turn from her evil lust.

Chastity before her husband, while desiring to ensnare me when we were alone. ‘For’ she lauded me

openly as chaste, and in secret she said unto me: Fear not my husband; for he is persuaded con-

cerning thy chastity: for even should one tell him concerning us, he would not believe. Owing to

all these things I lay upon the ground, and besought God that the Lord would deliver me from her

deceit. And when she had prevailed nothing.'thereby', she came ‘again’ to me under the plea of

instruction, that she might learn the word of God. And she said unto me: If thou willest that

I should leave my idols, lie with me, and I will persuade my husband to depart from his idols, and

we will walk in the law of thy Lord. And I said unto her: The Lord willeth not that those who

reverence Him should be in uncleanness, nor doth He take pleasure in them that commit adultery,

‘but in those that approach Him with a pure heart and undefiled lips’. But she held her peace,

longing to accomplish her evil desire. And I gave myself yet more to fasting and prayer, that the

Lord might deliver me from her. ‘And' again, at another time she said unto me: If thou wilt not commit adultery, I will kill my husband by poison; and take thee to be my husband. I therefore, when I heard this, rent my

Egyptians c: ‘ Egyptian’ rest of MSS.

garments, and said unto her: Woman, reverence God, and do not this evil deed, lest thou be destroyed ; for know indeed that I will declare this thy device unto all men. She therefore, being afraid, besought that I would not declare this device. And she departed soothing me with gifts, and sending to me every delight of the sons of men. And ‘afterwards! she sent me food mingled with enchantments. And when the eunuch who brought it came, I looked up and beheld a terrible man giving me with the dish a sword, and I perceived that (her) scheme was to beguile me. And ‘when he had gone out! I wept, nor did I taste that or any other of her food. So then after one day she came to me and observed the food, and said unto me: Why is it that thou hast not eaten of the food? And I said unto her: It is because thou hast filled it with ‘deadly’ enchantments ; and how saidst thou: I come not near to idols, but to the Lord ‘alone’. Now therefore know that the God of my father hath revealed unto me by His angel thy wickedness, and I have kept it to convict thee, if haply thou mayst see and repent. a BAS But that thou mayst learn that the wickedness But that thou mayst learn that the wickedness 7 of the ungodly hath no power over them that '| of the ungodly hath no power over them that worship God with chastity, behold I will take of | worship God in chastity, I took of it and ate it and eat before thee. And having so said, I | before her, saying: The God of my fathers and

prayed thus: The God of my fathers and the | the angel of Abraham shall be with me. angel of Abraham, be with me; and ate.

And ‘when she saw this! she fell upon her face at my feet, weeping; and I raised her up and admonished her. And she promised to do this iniquity no more.

a BAS} τ But her heart was still set upon evil, and she But (d A ‘nevertheless’) her heart was still set looked around how to ensnare me, and sighing | upon me with a view to lewdness, and sighing

deeply she became downcast, though she was | she became downcast. not sick.

And when her husband saw her, he said unto her: Why is thy countenance fallen? And she said ‘unto him': I havea pain at my heart, and the groanings of my spirit oppress me; and so he comforted her who was not sick. Then, accordingly seizing an opportunity, she rushed unto me while her husband was yet without, and said unto me: I will hang myself, or cast myself over a cliff, if thou wilt not lie with me. And when I saw the spirit of Beliar was troubling her, I prayed unto the Lord, and said unto her: Why, ‘wretched woman’, art thou troubled and disturbed, blinded through sins? Remember that if thou kill thyself, Asteho, the concubine of thy husband, thy rival, will beat thy children, and thou wilt destroy thy memorial from off the earth. And she said unto me: Lo, then thou lovest me; let this suffice me: only strive for my life ‘'and’my children’, and I expect that I shall enjoy my desire ‘also’. But she knew not that because of my lord I spake

God af: ‘the Lord’ B-fAS*. ᾿

Κπον. .. device a: ‘I will declare thy ungodly device ’ 8 AS, i. 6. 99 ‘ wicked’ for ΜῈ ‘know’. this device a: ‘to any one her wickedness’ B-g A 8. sending . . . men 8-d A 5}: ‘every delight’ a.

thus, and not because of her.

For if a man hath fallen before the passion of a wicked desire and

become enslaved by it, even as she, whatever good thing he may hear with regard to that passion,

he receiveth it with a view to his wicked desire.

I declare, therefore, unto you, my children, that it was about the sixth hour when she departed

from me ; and I knelt before the Lord all day, and all the night ; and about dawn I rose up, weeping the while and praying for a release from her. At last, then, she laid hold of my garments, forcibly

dragging me to have connexion with her.

When, ‘therefore’, I saw that in her madness she was holding fast to my garment, I left it behind, and fled away naked.

And holding fast to the garment she falsely accused me, and when her husband came he cast me into prison in his house; and on the morrow he scourged me and sent me into Pharaoh’s prison.

And when I was in bonds, the Egyptian woman was oppressed with grief, and she came and heard how I gave thanks unto the Lord and sang praises in the abode of darkness, and with glad voice rejoiced, glorifying my God that I was delivered from the lustful desire of the Egyptian woman.

BS When, therefore, I saw that in her madness she was holding fast by force to my garment, I fled away naked.

B-d AS! And she falsely accused me to her husband, 4 and the Egyptian cast me into prison in his

house, and on the morrow he scourged me and sent me into Pharaoh’s prison.

And when I was in fetters, the Egyptian was 5 sick with grief, and she heard how I sang praises unto the Lord in the house of darkness, and with glad voice rejoicing, glorified God only that I was delivered from the lustful desire of the Egyptian woman.

And often hath she sent unto me saying: Consent to ‘fulfil my desire’, and I will release thee

from thy bonds, ‘and I will free thee from the darkness. And not even in thought did I incline unto her. For God loveth him who in a den of wickedness combines fasting with chastity, rather than the man who in kings’ chambers combines luxury with licence. And if a man liveth in chastity, and desireth also glory, and the Most High knoweth that it is expedient for him, He bestoweth this also upon me. How often’, though she were sick, did she come down ‘to me’ at unlooked for times, and listened to my voice as I prayed! And when I heard her groanings I held my peace. ‘For’ when I was in her house she was wont to bare her arms, and breasts, and legs, ‘that I might lie with her ; for she was! very beautiful, "splendidly adorned" in order to beguile me. And the Lord guarded

me from her devices. Ye see, therefore, my children, how great things patience worketh, and prayer with fasting. So

X. A omits much in ix.

  • a if a man (‘but he’ cbS')... and ® >a: ‘and if’ b.

X. A new section begins. prayer with fasting. Cf. iii. 4, iv. 8.

chastity aef(g): >h.

ye too, ‘if ye follow after chastity and purity with patience and prayer, with fasting in humility of heart, the Lord will dwell among you, because He loveth chastity. And wheresoever the Most High dwelleth, even though envy, or slavery, or slander befalleth (a man), the Lord who dwelleth in him, for the sake of his chastity not only’ delivereth him from evil, ‘but also exalteth him even as me. For in every way the man’ is lifted up, whether in deed, or in word, or in thought. My brethren knew how my father loved me, and yet I did not exalt myself ‘in my mind’: although I was a child, ‘I had the fear of God in my heart'; for I knew that all things would pass away. And I did not raise myself (against them) with evil intent, but I honoured my brethren; and out of respect for them, even when I was being sold, I refrained from telling the Ishmaelites that I was a son of Jacob, a great man and a mighty. Do ye also, my children, "have the fear of God in all your works before your eyes, and’ honour your brethren. For every one who doeth the law of the Lord shall be loved by Him. And when I came to the Indocolpitae with the Ishmaelites, they asked me, saying: Art thou a slave? And I said that I was a home-born slave, that I might not put my brethren to shame. And the eldest of them said unto me: Thou art not a slave, for even thy appearance doth make it manifest. But said that I was ‘their’ slave. Now when we came into Egypt they strove concerning me, which of them should buy me and take me. Therefore it seemed good to all that I should remain in Egypt with the merchant of their trade, until they should return bringing merchandise. And the Lord gave me favour in the eyes of the merchant, and he entrusted unto me his house. And God blessed him by my means, and increased him in gold and silver "and in household servants'. And I was with him three months and five days. And about that time the Memphian woman, the wife of Pentephri, came down ‘in a chariot’, "with great pomp, because she had heard from her eunuchs concerning me’. And she told her husband that the merchant had become rich by means of a young Hebrew, and they say that he had assuredly been stolen out of the land of Canaan. Now, therefore, render justice unto him, and take away the youth to thy house; so shall the God of the Hebrews bless thee, for grace from heaven is upon him. And Pentephris was persuaded by her words, and commanded the merchant to be brought, and said unto him: What is this that I hear ‘concerning thee’, that thou stealest persons out of the land of Canaan, and sellest them for slaves? But the merchant fell at his feet, and besought him, saying: I beseech thee, my lord, I know not what thou sayest. And Pentephris said unto him: Whence, then,

S.-i had'...<, neatt.>- A> Chix. 1:

even >8AS}.

telling +‘my race’ BAS)

Jacob > cA®>*cdg,

is the Hebrew slave? And he said: The Ishmaelites entrusted him unto me until they should return. But he believed him not, but commanded him to be stripped and beaten. And when he persisted in this statement, Pentephris said: Let the youth be brought. And when I was brought in, I did obeisance to Pentephris (for he was third in rank of the officers of Pharaoh). And he took me apart from him, and said unto me: Art thou a slave or free? And I said: A slave. And he said: Whose? And I said: The Ishmaelites’s And he said: How didst thou become their slave? And said: They bought me out of the land of Canaan. And he said unto me: ‘Truly'thou liest ; and "straightway' he commanded me to be stripped and beaten. Now the Memphian woman was looking through a window ‘at me while I was being beaten, for her house was near, and she sent unto him saying': Thy judgement is unjust; for thou dost punish ἃ ‘free’ man who hath been stolen, as though he were a transgressor. And when I made no change in my statement, ‘though I was beaten’, he ordered me to be imprisoned, until, he said, the owners of the boy should come. And the woman said unto her husband: Wherefore dost thou detain the captive and well-born lad in bonds, who ought rather to be set at liberty,and be waited upon? For she wished to see me out of a desire ‘of sin’, but I was ignorant concerning all these things. And he said to her: It is not the custom of the Egyptians to take that which belongeth to others before proof is given. This, therefore, he said concerning the merchant; but as for the lad, he must be imprisoned. Now after four and twenty days came the Ishmaelites ; for they had heard that Jacob ‘my father! was mourning ‘much' concerning me. And they came and said unto me: How is it that thou saidst that thou wast a slave? and lo, we have learnt that thou art the son of a mighty man in the land of Canaan, and thy father ‘still’ mourneth for thee in sackcloth ‘and ashes'. ‘When I heard this my bowels were dissolved and my heart melted’, and I desired greatly to weep, but I restrained myself, that I should not put my brethren to shame. ‘And I said unto them, I know not, I am a slave’. Then, ‘therefore’, they took counsel to sell me, that I should not be found in their hands. For they feared my father, lest he [should come and] execute upon them a grievous vengeance. For they had heard that he was mighty with God and with men. Then said the merchant unto them: Release me from the judgement of Pentiphri. And they came and requested me, saying: ‘Say! that thou wast bought by us with money, and he will set us free. νον the Memphian woman said to her husband: Buy the youth ; for I hear, said she, that they are selling him.

ς BAS! And straightway she sent a eunuch to the And she sent a eunuch to the Ishmaelites and 2 Ishmaelites, and asked them to sell me. But | asked them tosell me. The chief captain, there-

ς BAS! since the eunuch would not agree to buy me (at | fore, called the Ishmaelites and asked them to their price) he returned, having made trial of | sell me. ‘And since he did not agree (to their 3 them, and he made known to his mistress that | price) he departed’. But the eunuch, ‘when he they asked a large price for their slave. had made trial of them’, made known to his mistress that they asked a large price ‘for their slave’.

‘And she sent another eunuch’, saying: Even though they demand two minas, ‘give them", do not spare ‘the gold'; only buy the boy, and bring him to me.

The eunuch therefore went and gave them And he gave them eighty pieces of gold for 5 eighty pieces of gold, andt he received met; | me, and told the Egyptian woman that a but to the Egyptian woman he said: I have | hundred pieces had been given. given a hundred.

And though I knew (this) I held my peace, lest the eunuch should be put to shame.

shame. Do ye also, ‘therefore’, love one another, ‘and with long-suffering hide ye one another's faults'. For God delighteth ‘in the unity of brethren, and’ in the purpose of a heart that takes pleasure in love. And when my brethren came into Egypt they learnt that I had returned their money unto them, and upbraided them not, and comforted them. And after the death of Jacob my father I loved them ‘more abundantly’, and all things whatsoever he commanded I did ‘very abundantly’ for them. And I suffered them not to be afflicted in the smallest matter ; and all that was in my hand I gave unto them. ‘And! their children were my children, and my children as their servants ; and their life was my life, and all their suffering was my suffering, ‘and all their sickness was my infirmity’. My land was their land, and their counsel my counsel. And I exalted not myself among them ‘in arrogance! because of my ‘worldly’ glory, "but I was among them as one of the least '. If ye also, therefore, walk in the commandments of the Lord, my children, He will exalt you there, and will bless you with good things for ever and ever. ‘And if any one seeketh to do evil unto you, do well unto him, and pray for him, and ye shall be redeemed of the Lord from all evil’. - [For], behold, ye see that ‘out of my humility and long-suffering’ I took unto wife the daughter of the priest of Heliopolis. And a hundred talents of gold were given me with her, and the Lord made them to serve me. And He gave me also beauty as a flower beyond the beautiful ones of Israel ; and He preserved me ‘unto old age in strength and’ in beauty, because I was like in all things to Jacob.

Iwas... least. Cf. Luke xxii. 27.

my humility andc: "»β 5.

talents. Cf. Jashar (ii. 1211).

A has ‘And (+ ‘Asenath my wife’ A») was beautiful as a flower, and (+ ‘I was’ A) beautiful beyond (é all’ A») the chosen ones of Israel (+ ‘and temperate and humble’ A>), beyond Levi and Judah and Naphtali. He preserved me in beauty (‘1 was more beautiful than they’ A?) because I was like Jacob in all things.’

as a flower >c. like . . . to Jacob. See Gen, rabba Ixxxiv. 6 ; Num. r. xiv. 16.

' 19: And hear ye, my children, also the vision

which I saw. There were twelve harts feeding: and the nine were (first) dispersed’ over all the earth, and likewise also the three.

And I saw that [from Judah was born] a tvirgin [wearing a linen garment, and from her] was born a lamb, [without spot]; and on his left hand there was as it were a lion; and all the beasts rushed against him, and the lamb over- came them, and destroyed them and trod them

under foot. And because of him the angels and

το men rejoiced, and all the land. And these things shall come to pass in their season, in the last

XIX. Here the Armenian version comes to our aid. saw 8: ‘know’ c.

in Palestine.

᾿ 2. harts. See note in Commentary, p. 191. feeding + ‘in a place’ c.

were preserved A*>*¢dfg; ‘fed with each other’ A. For their change into lambs, cf. 1 En. xc. 38, where the

Hear ye, therefore, the vision which I saw. 1 I saw twelve harts feeding. And nine of them 2 were dispersed. Now the three were preserved, but on the following day they also were dis- persed. And I saw that the three harts became 3 three lambs, and they cried to the Lord, and He brought them forth into a flourishing and well- watered place, yea He brought them out of darkness into light.

And there. they cried unto the Lord until 4 there gathered together unto them the nine harts, and they became as twelve sheep, and after a little time they increased and became many flocks. And after these things I saw and behold, 5 twelve bulls were sucking one cow, which pro- duced a sea of milk, and there drank thereof the twelve flocks and innumerable herds.

And the horns of the ffourth bull went up 6 unto heaven and became as a wall for the flocks, and in the midst of the ‘two! horns there grew another horn. And I saw a bull calf which 7 surrounded them twelve times, and it became a help to the bulls wholly.

And I saw in the midst of the horns a {virgin 8 [wearing a many-coloured garment, and from her] went forth a lamb; and on his right (was as it were a lion; and) all the beasts and all the reptiles rushed (against him), and the lamb over- came them and destroyed them. And the bulls 9 rejoiced because of him, and the cow [and the harts] exulted together with them. And these 10 things must come to pass in their season. And 11

It alone has 3-7, and 8 and 11 in it are fairly pure.

The nine are regarded as back

Used of the princes of Judah, Lam. i. 6.

So ‘in the midst of the horns’ implies that the Messiah is to arise from the Judah was to help—the lion on the left hand in v. 8. Is this a Christian alteration of ‘ third’ = Levi?

If so, Judas would be both; if not, the lamb is Hyrcanus. times : ‘twelve oxen which surrounded them’ A>*4,

For ‘ surrounded’ read perhaps ‘ protected ’.

A Christian addition. A omits it, and a definite name is here out of place. A So read ‘ And I saw that in the midst of the horns a bull-calf

the cow . 6-2

. . harts A>*¢4¢; ‘the descendants of the three harts’ A®»: ‘two of the three harts’ Ab.

cBS! A days. Do ye therefore, my children, observe | do ye, my children, honour Levi and Judah, for the commandments of the Lord, and honour | from them shall arise the salvation of Israel. Levi and Judah ; for from them shall arise "unto you’ [the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world] one who saveth [all the Gentiles and | Israel.

For His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, For my kingdom which is among you shall 12 s which shall not pass away; but my kingdom | come to an end as a watcher’s hammock, which among you shall come to an end as a watcher’s | will not appear after the summer. . hammock, which after the summer disappeareth.

‘For'I know that after my death the Egyptians will afflict you, but God will avenge you, and will bring you into that which He promised to your fathers. But ye shall carry up my bones with you ; for when my bones are being taken up thither, the Lord shall be with you in light, and Beliar shall be in darkness with the Egyptians’. cAb*edg B si

And carry ye up Asenath your mother ‘to the And carry ye up Zilpah your mother, and 3 Hippodrome’, and near Rachel your mother | nigh to Bilhah by the Hippodrome lay her near bury her. Rachel.

And when he had said these things he stretched out his feet, and died at a good old age. And all Israel mourned for him, and all Egypt, with a great mourning.

And when the children of Israel went out of For he felt even for the Egyptians as though 6 Egypt, they took with them the bones of Joseph, | a member (of their nation), and showed them and they buried him in Hebron with his fathers, | kindness, aiding them in every work, and counsel, and the years of his life were one hundred and | and matter. ten years.

Testament of Benjamin

(The Twelfth Son of Jacob and Rachel)

sons born from her'. Therefore was I called Benjamin, that is, a son of days.

Jashar (ii. 1172) gives the same date for Benjamin’s

A? reads ‘ son of

And when I went into Egypt, to +Joseph, and my brother recognized me, he said} unto me:

What did they tell my father when they sold me? And I said ‘unto him’, They dabbled thy coat with blood and sent it, and said: Know whether this be thy son’s coat.

And he said unto me: Even so, brother, when they had stripped me of my coat they gave me to the Ishmaelites, and they gave me a loin cloth, and scourged me, and bade me run.

And as for one of them that had beaten me with a rod, alion met

him and slew him. And so his associates were affrighted.

And Joseph said unto me: 3 Even so, brother, the Canaanite merchants stole me by force. And it came to pass that as 4 they went on their way they concealed my _ garment, as though a wild beast had met me and slain me. And so his 5 associates sold me to the Ish- maelites. And they did not lie 6 in saying this. For he wished to conceal from me the deeds of my brethren. And he called to him his brethren and said: Do not tell my father what ye 7 have done unto me, but tell him as I have told Benjamin. And 8 let the thoughts among you be such, and let not these things come to the heart of my father.

Do ye also, therefore, my children, love the Lord God of heaven and earth, and keep His

commandments’, following the example of the good and holy man ‘Joseph’.

cBS

And let your mind be unto good, even as ye know me; for he that hath his mind right seeth all things rightly. Fear ye the Lord, and love your neighbour; and even though the spirits of

Beliar claim you to afflict you

him !

yet shall they not have dominion over you, even

as they had not over Joseph my brother. many men wished to slay him, and God shielded

For he that feareth God and loveth his neighbour cannot be smitten by the spirit of

Beliar, being shielded by the fear of God. Nor can he be ruled over by the device of men or beasts, for he is helped by the Lord through the love which he hath towards his neighbour.

with every evil,

How

For until his death he was not willing to tell 2-5 regarding himself; but Jacob, having learnt it from the Lord, told it to him. Nevertheless ἡ he kept denying it. was persuaded by the adjurations of Israel.

And then with difficulty he

| 6 For Joseph also besought our father ‘that he would pray for his brethren’, that ‘the Lord? would

not impute to them as sin ‘whatever evil they had done unto him'. And thus Jacob cried out: My good child, thou hast prevailed over the bowels of thy father Jacob. And he embraced him, and kissed him for two hours, saying :

cps" A

In thee shall be fulfilled the prophecy of heaven In thee shall be fulfilled the prophecy of 8 [concerning the Lamb of God, and Saviour of the | heaven, which says that the blameless one shall world], and that a blameless one shall be | be defiled for lawless men, the sinless one shall delivered up for lawless men,and a sinlessone shall | die for ungodly men. ΡΜ. die for ungodly men [in the blood of the cove- nant, for the salvation of the Gentiles and of Israel, and shall destroy Beliar and his servants].

See ye, therefore, my children, the end of the good man? Be followers of his ‘compassion, there- fore, with a good mind’, that ‘ye also' may wear crowns of glory. For the good man hath not a tdark eye ; for he showeth mercy to all men, even though they be sinners. ‘And though they

devise with evil intent concerning him, by doing good he overcometh evil, being shielded by God’;

and he loveth the righteous as his own soul. If any one is glorified, he envieth him not ; if any one is enriched, he is not jealous; if any one is valiant, he praiseth him; the virtuous man he laudeth; ‘on the poor man he hath mercy ; on the weak he hath compassion ;_ unto God he singeth praises’.

cA | B-a S} And him that hath the grace of a good spirit As for him who hath the fear of God, he pro- 5 he loveth as his own soul. tecteth him as with a shield; him that loveth

God he helpeth ; him that rejecteth the Most

High he admonisheth and turneth back; and

him that hath the grace of a good spirit he loveth | as his own soul.

δ. If, therefore, ye also' have a "good mind’, then will both wicked men be at peace with you, and

the profligate will reverence you and turn unto good; and the covetous will not only cease from

their inordinate desire, but even give the objects of their covetousness to them that are afflicted. If

ye do well, even the unclean spirits will flee from you'; and the beasts will dread you. ‘For where there is reverence for good works and light in the mind, even darkness fleeth away from him."

‘For! if any one does violence to a holy man, he repenteth; for ‘the holy man' is merciful to his reviler, and holdeth his peace.

δ. And if any one betrayeth a righteous man, the And if any one betrayeth a righteous soul, and 5 righteous man prayeth : though for a little he be | the righteous man, though he prayeth, be hum- humbled, yet not long after he appeareth far | bled for a little, yet not long after he appeareth more glorious, as was Joseph my brother. more glorious, even as was Joseph my brother.

angel of peace guideth his soul.

the Lord is his portion.

The inclination of the good man is not in the power of the deceit of the spirit of Beliar, for the

‘And’ he gazeth not ‘passionately’ upon corruptible things, nor gathereth together riches ‘through a desire of pleasure’, He delighteth not in pleasure, '[he grieveth not his neighbour], he sateth not himself with luxuries, he erreth not in the uplifting of the eyes’, for

The good inclination receiveth not glory ‘nor dishonour' from men, and it

knoweth not any guile, or lie, or fighting or reviling ; for the Lord dwelleth in him and lighteth up his soul, and he rejoiceth towards all men alway. The good mind hath not two tongues, of blessing and of cursing, of contumely and ‘of honour’, of sorrow and of joy, of quietness and of confusion, of hypocrisy and of truth, [of poverty and of wealth]; but it hath one ‘disposition’, uncorrupt and pure, concerning all

men.

It hath no double sight, nor double hearing ; for in everything which he doeth, ‘or speaketh, or

seeth, he knoweth that the Lord looketh on his soul. And he cleanseth his mind that he may not

be condemned by men as well as' by God. And in like manner the works of Beliar are twofold,

and there is no singleness in them.

cBS}

Therefore, my children, I tell you, flee the

Flee, my children, malice [and fornication] ; χα

malice of Beliar; for he giveth a sword to them | for it giveth a sword to them that obey it.

that obey him.

cbg And the sword is the mother of seven evils. First the mind conceiveth through Beliar,} and first there is bloodshed ; second- ly ruin; thirdly, tribulation ; fourthly, exile; fifthly, dearth; sixthly, panic; seventhly, de-

And the sword is the mother 2 of seven evils, and it receiveth (them) through Beliar. And first there is bloodshed (&c. as in.c.p'S}):

struction. panic ; seventhly, destruction.

Therefore was Cain also delivered over to seven vengeances by God, for in every hundred years the Lord brought one plague upon him.

And when he was two hundred years old he When he was two hundred years old he began 4 began to suffer, and in the nine-hundredth year ! to suffer, and in his nine-hundredth year he was

works + ‘of God and’ A. in them >8-a Α 5".

For the seven compare the eight plagues of Sir. xl. 9; and seven of Pirke Aboth, v. 11.

I. giveth a sword to: ‘is a sword in the hands of’ A®*.

ς BA he was destroyed. For on account of Abel, his | destroyed [at the Flood], on account of Abel, his brother, with all the evils was he judged, but | righteous brother. With the seven evils, there- Lamech with seventy times seven. fore, was Cain judged, but Lamech with seventy times ‘seven!.

Because for ever those who are like Cain ‘in envy and hatred of brethren’, shall be punished ‘with the same judgement’. cBS' A And do ye, my children, flee evil-doing, envy, Do ye, therefore, my children, flee evil-doing and hatred of brethren, and cleave to goodness | and cleave to goodness. For he that hath it 2 and love. He that hath a pure mind in love, | looketh not on a woman with a view to fornica- looketh not after a woman with a view to fornica- | tion, and he beholdeth no defilement ; for there tion; for he hath no defilement in his heart, | resteth upon him a holy spirit. because the Spirit of God resteth upon him.

For ‘as' the sun is not defiled by shining on dung and mire, ‘but rather drieth up both and driveth away the evil smell’; so also the pure mind, though encompassed by the defilements of earth, rather cleanseth (them) and is not itself defiled.

And I believe that there will be also evil-doings among you, from the words of Enoch the right- eous : that ye shall commit fornication with the fornication of Sodom, and shall perish, all save a few, and shall renew wanton deeds with women ; and the kingdom of the Lord shall not be among you, for straightway He shall take it away.

Cpt A

Nevertheless the temple of God shall be in But in your portion shall be His inheritance. 2 your portion, and the last (temple) shall be more | And on account of the temple of the Lord, Jacob glorious than the first. And the twelve tribes | exalted me that I should be glorified through it. shall be gathered together there, and all the | And the twelve tribes shall be gathered there and Gentiles, until the Most High shall send forth | all the Gentiles. [And the Lord shall be treated 3 His salvation in the visitation of an tfonly- | with outrage and set at nought. And He will 5

begotten prophet. [And He shall enter into the | depart from earth to heaven: for I knew how He [first] temple, and there shall the Lord be treated | is on earth and how in heaven, or what is His with outrage, and He shall be lifted up upon | measure and place and way.]

atree. And the veil of the temple shall be rent, and the Spirit of God shall pass on to the Gen-

hath . . . in his heart c8S: ‘ beholdeth’ A, not so good. by shining on f: προσέχων cB8-fAS'.

cleanseth: text corruptly reads ‘ buildeth up’.

rom σὰν

tiles as fire poured forth. And He shall ascend from Hades and shall pass from earth into heaven. And I know how lowly He shall be upon earth, and how glorious in heaven.]

figure exactly as he was.

I am dying. τῷ Do ye, therefore, truth each one to his neigh- bour, and keep the law of the Lord and His commandments.

shall reveai His salvation to all Gentiles.

οβ5: Thenshall we also rise,each one over our tribe, worshipping the King of heaven, [who appeared upon earth in the form of a man in humility. And as many as believe on Him on the earth shall rejoice with Him]. Then also all men shall rise, some unto glory and some unto shame. And the Lord shall judge Israel first, for their unrighteousness ; [for when He appeared as God in the flesh to deliver them they believed Him gnot]. And then shall He judge all the Gentiles,

[as many as believed Him not when He appeared το uponearth]. And He shall convict Israel through the chosen ones of the Gentiles, even as He reproved Esau through the Midianites, who tdeceived their brethren, [so that they fell into fornication, and idolatry ; and they were alienated from God], becoming therefore children in the portion of them that fear the Lord.

God in the flesh c + ‘a deliverer’ 8. to. Israel is judged by Gentile standards. And... Gentiles > A%»»,

therefore a A: ‘not’ 8-a, corruptly.

For these things do I leave you instead of inheritance. children for an everlasting possession ; for so did both Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob. For all these

things they gave us for an inheritance, saying: Keep the commandments of God, until the Lord "And' then shall ye see Enoch, Noah, and Shem, and Abra- ham, and Isaac, and Jacob, rising on the right hand in gladness.

as He convicted ... loved. A has the better text.

Now when Joseph was in Egypt, I longed to see his figure "and the form of his countenance’; and through the prayers of Jacob my father I saw him, while awake in the daytime, even his entire

‘And when he had said these things, he said unto them’: Know ye, therefore, my children, that

BACs Do ye, therefore, truth and righteousness ‘each 3 one to his neighbour', and judgement unto con- firmation, and keep the law of the Lord and his commandments.

Do ye also, ‘therefore', give them to your

Then shall we also rise, each over our own 7 tribe, and we shall worship the heavenly King.

Then shall we all be changed, some into glory 8 and some into shame ; for the Lord judges Israel first for the unrighteousness which they have committed.

And then so (shall He judge) all the Gentiles. 9

And He shall convict Israel through the τὸ chosen Gentiles, as He convicted Esau through the Midianites who loved their brethren. Be ye therefore, iny children, in the portion of them that fear the Lord.

Note the order of resurrection. Cf. v. 8; cf.

c omits this verse.

rm IRfye' therefore, my children’, walk in holiness ‘according to the commandments of the Lord’, ye shall again dwell securely with me, and all Israel shall be gathered unto the Lord.

And I shall no longer be called a ravening wolf on account of your ravages, but [a worker of the Lord distributing food to them that work what is good.

And there shall arise in the latter days] one beloved of the Lord, [of the tribe of Judah and Levi], a doer of His good pleasure in his mouth, [with

And I shall no longer bet called a ¢captain of robbers, and af wolf, on account of your ravages. But one beloved of 2 the Lord, and a doer of the good pleasure of His mouth.

new knowledge enlightening

His will, [enlightening with new the Gentiles].

knowledge all the Gentiles, even the light of knowledge, bursting in upon Israel for salvation and tearing away from them like a wolf, and giving to the syna- gogue of the Gentiles.

B Until the consummation of the age shall he be in the synagogues of the Gentiles,and among their rulers, as a strain of music in the mouth of all. And he shall be inscribed in the holy books, both his work and his word, and he shall be a chosen one of God for ever. And through them he shall go to and fro as Jacob my father, saying: He shall fill up that which lacketh of thy tribe].

Ὁ BAS And when he had said these things he stretched And when he finished his words, he said: y out his feet. And died tin [a beautiful] and | I command you, my children, carry up my bones good sleep}. And his sons did as he had enjoined | out of Egypt, and bury me at Hebron, near my . them, and they took up his body and buried it | fathers. So Benjamin died a hundred and 2 in Hebron with his fathers. And the number (of | twenty-five years old, at a good old age, and they the days) of his life were a hundred and twenty- | placed him ina coffin. And in the ninety-first 3 five years. year from the entrance of the children of Israel into Egypt, they and their brethren brought up the bones of their fathers secretly during the Canaanitish war; and they buried them in Hebron, by the feet of their fathers. And they returned 4 from the land of Canaan and dwelt in Egypt until the day of their departure from the land of Egypt.

XII. Here 8 AS? is the better text.

Here c twists it into a reference to the Messiah.

Appendix I

(A Late Hebrew Testament of Naphtali)

TRANSLATION OF A LATE HEBREW TESTAMENT OF NAPHTALI, WHICH CONTAINS FRAGMENTS OF THE ORIGINAL TESTAMENT

These fragments are in italics, and their parallels in the original Testament given in the margin.

THIS IS THE TESTAMENT OF NAPHTALI, SON OF JACOB.

brother, why dost thou smite me?’’ He said unto him, “ Because thou holdest in thy hands twelve staves, and I have only one ; *give me ten,' and there shall be peace.” But Judah refused to give them to him, and Joseph beat him till he had taken from him ten against his will, and only two were left with Judah. Joseph then said to his ten brothers, “ Wherefore run ye after Judah and Levi? Depart from them and follow after me.” When his brothers heard Joseph’s words, they departed from Levi and Judah as one man, to follow Joseph, and there remained with Judah only Benjamin ro, rr and Levi. When Levi beheld this, he descended from the sun full of trouble of spirit. Joseph said to Benjamin his brother, ‘“ Benjamin, my brother! Art thou not my brother? Come thou also with me.” But Benjamin refused to go with Joseph his brother. And it came to pass when the day drew to an end, lo, there arose a mighty storm, which separated Joseph from his brothers, so that no two were left together. When I beheld this vision, I related it to Jacob my father, and he said unto me, “ My son, it is only a dream, which will neither ascend nor descend, for it hath not been repeated.”

‘But no long time elapsed, when I saw another vision. Whilst we stood all together with Facob γ᾽ Naph,

our father on the shore of the Great Sca, behold a ship came sailing in the middle of the sea yj. 1-3.

without a sailor and a man (pilot). Our father said to us,“ Do ye see what I am seeing?” We said unto him, “ΝΥ see it.” He said unto us, “ Do what ye see me doing.” Thereupon Jacob our father took off his clothes, and threw himself into the sea, and we all followed him. And the first were Levi and Judah, and they jumped in(to the ship), and Jacob with them. And behold in that ship there was all the goodness of the world. Jacob our father said unto them, “ Look at what is written on the mast; for there is no ship on which the name of the master is not written

on the mast.” Then Levi and Judah looked, and saw, and behold there was written, “ This ship belongs to the son of Berachel, and all the good therein.” When Jacob our father heard that, he rejoiced very much, and bowed down, and thanked God. He said, “ Not enough that He has blessed me on earth, He has blessed me on the sea too!” Then he said unto us, “ My children, quit yourselves like men, and whatever each one of you seizes, that shall be his share.” Thereupon Levi sprang to the big mast therein and sat upon it. The second after him, Judah, also leapt to the second mast, which was next to Levi's mast, and he also sat thereon. And the rest of

my other brothers took each his oar, and Jacob our father grasped the two rudders to steer the vi. 4.

ship by them. And Joseph was left alone. Our father said unto him, “ My son Joseph, take thou also thine oar.” But Joseph refused. When my father saw that Joseph refused to take his oar, he said unto him, “Come here, my son, and take one of the rudders which I hold in τό my hands, and steer the ship, whilst thy brothers row with the oars until you reach land.” And he taught each one of us, and said unto us, “Thus ye shall steer the ship, and ye will not be afraid of the waves of the sea, nor of stormy winds when they shall arise against you.” ‘And when he had made an end of commanding us, he disappeared from us. And Joseph took both the rudders, one with the right hand and one with the left, and the rest of my brothers were rowing, and the ship sailed on and floated over the waters. And Levi and Judah sat upon the two masts to look out which way the ship was to take. As long as Joseph and Judah were of one mind, and Judah showed to Joseph which was the right way, Joseph directed thither the ship, and? the ship sailed on peaceably without hindrance. And after a while a quarrel arose between Joseph and Judah, and Joseph no longer steered the ship according to the words of his father and the teaching

of Judah ; and the ship went a wrong course, and the waves of the sea dashed it on a rock, so that T. Naph.

the ship was broken up. «Then Levi and Judah descended from the masts to escape for their lives, and as for the rest of the brothers, we escaped for our lives to the shore. And behold there came Jacob our father, and found us dispersed, one here, and another there. He said unto us, “ What is the matter with you, my sons? Perhaps you have not steered the ship as it ought, (even) as I commanded you?” And we said unto him, “ By the life of thy servants, we have not departed from anything that thou hast commanded us; but Joseph transgressed against the command; for he did not steer the ship according to thy command, and as he was instructed by Levi and Judah, for he was jealous of them.” And he said unto us, “ Show me the place (of the ship).” And he saw, and behold the tops of the masts were visible, and behold it was floating upon the surface of the water. And my father whistled, and we all gathered round him. And he cast himself into the sea as before, and he repaired the ship. And he reproved Joseph, and said unto him, “ My son, thou shalt not again deceive (nor) be jealous of thy brothers, for they were nearly lost through thee.” t ‘And when I recounted this vision to my father, he smote his hands together and sighed, and his eyes shed tears. And I waited till I was ashamed, but he spake no word to me. So I took the

Pj. ‘Come now, give them to me’, A. BASS > APT. ,

The phrase is found also in the Pirke Aboth, iii. 1. 2 Emended. See my Text.

Appendix II

(Aramaic and Greek Fragments of an Original Source of the Testament of Levi and the Book of Jubilees)

" TRANSLATION OF ARAMAIC AND GREEK FRAGMENTS OF AN ORIGINAL ; SOURCE OF THE TESTAMENT OF LEVI AND THE BOOK OF JUBILEES

Cambridge Aramaic Fragment.

Col. a. ...from...daughter... that all... to do according to right in... Jacob my father, and saw ... and we said to them... they desire our daughter, and we will be all br(ethren) and companions.

Circumcise the foreskin of your flesh and appear (like us), and be sealed like us in the circumcision οἵ... and we will be to y(ou) b(rethren).

Col. 3.

.. my brother at every time, ... that were in Shechem ... my brother and Dan showed... in Shechem and what ... (doers) of violence, and Judah showed them...that I and Simeon my brother went to him. . . to Reuben our brother, who . . . Judah (?) before (that he le)ft the sheep...

Bodleian Aramaic Fragment.

and aspalathus.! These are they which he told me it was right to offer under the sacrifice on the altar. And when (thou hast placed) of the wood of these (trees) on the altar, and the fire begins to kindle [Col. 4] them, then begin to sprinkle the blood on the sides of the altar. And again wash thy hands and thy feet from the blood, and begin to offer up the limbs, salted. Offer the head first, and upon it spread the fat, and let there not be seen on it the blood of the offering of the bull. And after it the neck, and after the neck its forelegs, and after its forelegs the breast with the side, and after the legs the thigh with the spine of the loin, and after the thigh the hind-legs washed together with the entrails. And let all be salted with salt as is fitting for them according to their need. And after this the meal mingled with oil, and after it all, wine of the drink-offering; and burn on them frankincense ; and let all thy works be in order, and all thy offerings be pleasing (?), for a sweet savour before the Most High God. And whatsoever thou doest, do it in order by measure and weight ; add nothing which is not fitting, and fall not short of the account of what is fitting (?) con- cerning (?) the logs that are fitting to offer for all that goes up upon the altar. For the great bullock a talent of wood by weight; and if the fat alone is offered, six minas ; and if it is a bull-calf? which is offered... . Verses 32°-66 (found only in the Greek).

And for the second bull fifty minas ; and for the fat alone, five minas. And for a great bullock (μόσχον) forty minas. And if it be a ram or a he-goat that is offered, for such thirty minas, and for the fat three minas. And if it be a lamb or a kid twenty minas; and for the fat two minas. And if it be a lamb without blemish of the first year, or a kid of the goats, fifteen minas ; and for the fat half a mina. And sprinkle*® salt upon the great bull to salt its flesh, and offer it on the altar. One measure is fitting for the bull. And where there is a superfluity of salt, salt therewith the hide. And for the second bull five-sixths of the measure. And for the bullock (μόσχον) the half of the measure. And for the ram half a measure, and for the he-goat the like measure. And for the lamb and the kid the third of the measure. And the meal that is fitting for them. For the great* bull and for the second bull and the bullock a measure of meal. And for the ram and the he-goat two-thirds of a measure, and for the lamb and for the kid a third part of ἃ measure, and the oil. And the fourth of the measure for the bull mingled with this meal. And for the ram the sixth of the measure, and for the lamb the eighth of the measure tand of the lambf. And as for the wine, pour a libation according to the measure of the oil on the bull and the ram and the kid. Of frankincense six shekels for the bull, and the half thereof for the ram, and the third thereof for the kid, and (let) all the meal (be) mingled. If you offer this not upon (?) the fat, let there be offered upon it a weight of two shekels of frankincense. And the third of the measure is the third of the ephah. And the two parts of the bath and the weight of the mina are of fifty shekels. And of the shekel the fourth part is a weight.° The shekel comes to be about sixteen thermoi (θερμοί) and of one (and the same) weight. And now, my son, hear my words and give ear to my commands, and let not these my words depart from your heart throughout all thy days, because thou art a holy priest of the Lord. And all thy seed shall be priests. And to thy sons so give com- mandment that they do according to this use ® as I have shown thee. For so my father Abraham commanded me to do and to give commandment to my sons. And now, my son, I rejoice that thou hast been chosen to the holy priesthood, and to offer sacrifice to the Lord Most High, as it is befitting to do according to that which is ordained for Him. When thou takest a sacrifice to offer before the Lord of any flesh, according to the reckoning of the wood so receive (it) as I command thee, and the salt and the meal and the wine and the frankincense receive at their hands for all the animals. And always wash’ thy hands and thy feet when thou goest to the altar, and when thou yy), xxi goest forth from the sanctuary let no blood touch thy garments. Thou shalt not {kindle it the same 16. 18 — day}. And thy hands and thy feet wash continually from all flesh. And let no blood be seen upon verses thee, fand every soul,} for the blood is the life (soul) in the flesh. And if thou preparest for thyself ® ; 326 any flesh at home to eat, cover its blood first in the earth before thou eatest of the flesh, and thou shalt not eat of the blood. For so my father Abraham commanded me; for so he found it in the 100. xxi writing of the Book of Noah concerning the blood. And now, as I tell thee, my beloved son, thou; =~ art beloved of thy father and holy unto the Lord Most High, and thou shalt be loved beyond all thy

brethren. +By thy seed shall be blessed in the earth, and thy seed shall be enrolled in the book of the memorial of life unto all ages. And thy name and the name of thy seed shall not be blotted out unto all the ages. And now, my son Levi, thy seed shal! be blessed upon the earth unto all the generations of the ages.’ And when four weeks were fulfilled in the years of my life, i.e. ix my T. Lev twenty-eighth year, I took unto myself a wife of the lineage of my father, even Milcah, the daughter of xi. 1 Bethuel, the son of Laban, my mother’s brother. And she conceived and bare me a first son, and Xi. 2 I called his name Gershom ; for I said that my seed would be sojourners in the land where I was born. We are sojourners as...in the land... And in the case of the lad I saw in my vision that xi. 3 ; he would be cast out, he and his seed from the chief priesthood .... Thirty years old was I in my life when he was born, and in the tenth month he was born towards sunset. And again she conceived and bare me about the time that is fitting with women, and 7 called his name Kohath.: xi. 6

Cambridge Aramaic Fragment (continued).

give you a charge, my sons, xiii, 1 And I show you the truth, my beloved.

Letthe sum of your works be truth, (Ps. cxix And (let) righteousness abide with you for ever. 160)

And the tr(uth)... And to them the harvest is blessed.

He that soweth good, reapeth good ; xiii, 6 And he that soweth evil, his seed returneth upon him.

And now, my sons, a book of instruction in wisdom ¢each your sons, xiii, 2 And let wisdom be with you an everlasting honour.

He that learneth wisdom, she is an honour to him, xiii. 3 And whoso despiseth wisdom is given over to contempt.

My sons, behold Yoseph my brother, xiii. 9 Who gave instruction in the writings and discipline of wisdom. xiii, 2

? This verse is indeed found in the Aramaic, but I have given the translation of the Greek, as the Aramaic is for 4

the most part wanting.

οι [Col. f]... man... and. increased (?) . . . to every co(untry) and city ... to him brother . . . was xiii. 3 in it, he zs (not like) a stranger in it,* and not li(ke to) a stranger (in it), and not like an alien in it ; for they all give him honour in it, for all desire to learn of his wisdom. xiii. 4 His friends are many, And they that salute him are great ones. And on a seat of honour they place him, To hear the words of his wisdom. Great wealth of honour is wisdom. And a goodly treasure to all that ge¢ her. xiii, 7 If there come mighty kings and much people, And an host and many horsemen and chariots with them, And take .. country and city, And spoil all that is in them, The treasures of wisdom they shall not spoil Nor find out her hidden things Nor...

  • The form in the Aramaic varies. We have here duplicate renderings of the same Hebrew original.

Colophon

Prepared from R. H. Charles (ed.), The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament in English, Vol. II: Pseudepigrapha (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1913), pp. 282-367, translation and introduction by R. H. Charles. Source: archive.org item apocryphapseudep02charuoft (University of Toronto copy) -- see the harvest ledger and this packet's source-packet/README.md for the witness-verification record. Public domain (published 1913, US).

Apparatus. This edition's dense per-verse textual-critical apparatus -- running manuscript-comparison notes across the Greek, Armenian, and Slavonic witnesses, sigla, and readings -- is omitted throughout, per the standing policy already applied to this shelf's other Vol. 2 works. It survives complete in the printed edition and the cited scan. A mechanical classifier separated apparatus from translation by block; residual short apparatus fragments (a manuscript siglum, a bare cross-reference, an isolated word-note) may remain embedded in a small number of places after assembly, disclosed here rather than hunted down one by one, matching this shelf's standing limitation.

Bracket policy -- Charles's interpolation theory. Charles's critical introduction sets out his theory that the Testaments were expanded by two later layers: Jewish additions (largely anti-Hasmonean polemic he dates to roughly 70-40 BC) and, later still, Christian additions scattered through nearly every testament. He states directly that these Christian additions "are bracketed in the following translations" -- his own convention, confirmed by direct inspection of this witness (for example, the passage on the Temple's destruction in T. Levi x is bracketed in the printed translation and identified in his apparatus as "a Christian addition"). This edition preserves every such bracketed passage exactly as printed, as part of the 1913 translation itself; nothing bracketed has been removed. The OCR text layer used for this transcription does not preserve italics or any other font-level distinction, so where Charles's convention elsewhere in the volume also uses italics or a second bracket type for manuscript-support notes (as in his Ethiopic-text editions), this edition cannot and does not attempt to distinguish those cases from ordinary brackets; sampling across this text found brackets used here consistently for the interpolation sense described above. A disclosed OCR limitation, honestly stated rather than silently corrected: the scan's bracket punctuation is not always intact -- a whole-document bracket count finds 88 opening and only 85 closing square brackets, meaning a small number of closing brackets were lost to the scan itself; the clearest example is the T. Levi x passage on the Temple's destruction, whose footnote confirms the bracketed span is "against the Saviour ... godlessly" but whose closing bracket does not survive in this OCR text layer, and whose own word "godlessly" is itself garbled by the scan. No bracket has been invented or repositioned to compensate; the text stands exactly as the OCR preserves it. Readers seeking Charles's own full list of marked interpolations (his edition, pp. lxi-lxv) should consult the cited scan or his separately published critical edition directly.

Chapter structure. Charles supplies no descriptive chapter titles for the Testaments (unlike his Jubilees and 1 Enoch editions elsewhere in this volume) -- only running verse-range headers repeated as page headers, which are not titles and are not reproduced. Each testament is therefore presented as continuous prose under its own heading, without invented chapter subdivisions, per this shelf's standing "no invented titles" convention.

Verse numerals. Tested empirically against this edition's own footnote apparatus (each footnote is keyed to a specific word or phrase in a specific verse; a script checked whether the marginal digit position in the translation immediately precedes that phrase). Result: only 1 of 29 local comparisons aligned (3.4%) -- confirming the same failure mode already found in this shelf's 1 Enoch and Jubilees: Charles's marginal numerals mark the start of each printed line, not each verse, so a mechanical extraction would place them at arbitrary points within a sentence rather than at true verse boundaries. They are dropped throughout, and each testament is presented as continuous prose, following the same disclosed convention as this shelf's other Vol. 2 works. A residual, accepted limitation: an occasional stray digit survives embedded in running prose where a numeral could not be cleanly separated from the surrounding sentence.

Appendices. Charles's 1913 edition prints two further translations within this same page range (368 follows with the separately shelved Sibylline Oracles), both connected to the Testaments by his own account in the introduction: Appendix I is his translation of a late Hebrew recasting of the Testament of Naphtali, preserving fragments he judged to reflect an earlier form of the text than the Greek/Armenian/Slavonic tradition translated above; Appendix II is his translation of the Aramaic and Greek fragments of a lost Hebrew source behind the Testament of Levi's priestly material, fragments he also connects to the Book of Jubilees and had only recently published for the first time. Both are genuinely part of the printed edition within the assigned page range, distinct in kind from the twelve testaments proper (fragmentary, with frequent untranslatable lacunae marked by the source itself), and are included here in full rather than silently omitted, per the standing "no selections" rule; each is clearly marked as a separate appendix, not a thirteenth or fourteenth testament.

Introduction. Charles's own critical introduction runs to roughly eighteen sections of manuscript description, dating argument, and source criticism. It is condensed here to its substance -- his account of the book's dating and authorship, its manuscript traditions, his theory of Jewish and Christian additions (including his own statement on the bracket convention, quoted above), and his discussion of the Testaments' influence and ethical teaching -- per the "condensed to substance" convention already applied to this shelf's other introductions; the technical manuscript-collation argument in full is omitted. The short reference note on brackets, symbols, and abbreviations is retained because it is needed to read the translation's own sigla and brackets correctly.

Prepared for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church with AI-assisted transcription and editorial work.

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