Chapter 3

1 Besides all these there is an eighth spirit of sleep, which produces the trance of nature and the likeness of death. 2 Mixed in with these are the spirits of error. First, the spirit of sexual immorality dwells in the body and the senses; the second, the spirit of greed, in the belly; the third, the spirit of fighting, in the liver and gall. 3 The fourth is the spirit of flattery and trickery, so that by giving too much attention a person may seem good. 4 The fifth is the spirit of pride, which makes a person boastful and arrogant. 5 The sixth is the spirit of lying, paired with ruin and jealousy, leading a person to deceive and hide things from family and friends. 6 The seventh is the spirit of injustice, which brings theft and greed, so that a person may get what his heart wants; for injustice works with the other spirits through bribery. 7 The spirit of sleep is joined to all of these—it is the spirit of error and fantasy. In this way every young man is ruined, his mind clouded from the truth, unable to understand the law of God or obey the warnings of his fathers, as happened to me in my youth. 8 Now, my children, love the truth and it will protect you. Listen to the words of Reuben your father. 9 Do not stare at the face of a woman, do not get involved with another man's wife, and do not get caught up in the affairs of women. 10 If I had not seen Bilhah bathing in a sheltered place, I would not have fallen into this great sin.⁠ 11 Once my mind took hold of the thought of the woman's nakedness, it would not let me sleep until I had done the terrible thing. 12 While our father Jacob had gone to his father Isaac, when we were in Eder, near Ephrath in Bethlehem, Bilhah became drunk and fell asleep uncovered in her room. 13 I went in and saw her nakedness and committed the sin without her knowing, and I left while she was still sleeping. 14 Immediately an angel of God told my father what I had done, and he came and mourned over me, and never touched her again.

Texts in conversation

Compare Jubilees 33:2 and Testament of Reuben 3:10

Pseudepigrapha, Hebrew Bible Expansions · Pseudepigrapha, Testaments

Summary

Jubilees and the Testament of Reuben both retell the story of Reuben and Bilhah with detail not found in Genesis in order to fill a narrative gap. In both, Reuben sees Bilhah bathing, enters her tent at night, and assaults her while she sleeps.

Passages

Jubilees 33:2

Pseudepigrapha, Hebrew Bible Expansions

1 And Jacob went and lived to the south of Magdaladra'ef. And he went to his father Isaac, he and Leah his wife, on the new moon of the tenth month. 2 And Reuben saw Bilhah, Rachel's female servant, the concubine of his father, bathing in water in a secret place, and he loved her. 3 And he hid himself at night, and he entered the house of Bilhah [at night], and he found her sleeping alone on a bed in her house. 4 And he lay with her, and she awoke and saw, and Reuben was lying with her in the bed, and she uncovered the border of her covering and seized him, and cried out, and discovered that it was Reuben. 5 And she was ashamed because of him, and released her hand from him, and he fled.

170–125 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Jubilees

Testament of Reuben 3:10

Pseudepigrapha, Testaments · Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs

8 Now, my children, love the truth and it will protect you. Listen to the words of Reuben your father. 9 Do not stare at the face of a woman, do not get involved with another man's wife, and do not get caught up in the affairs of women. 10 If I had not seen Bilhah bathing in a sheltered place, I would not have fallen into this great sin. 11 Once my mind took hold of the thought of the woman's nakedness, it would not let me sleep until I had done the terrible thing. 12 While our father Jacob had gone to his father Isaac, when we were in Eder, near Ephrath in Bethlehem, Bilhah became drunk and fell asleep uncovered in her room. 13 I went in and saw her nakedness and committed the sin without her knowing, and I left while she was still sleeping. 14 Immediately an angel of God told my father what I had done, and he came and mourned over me, and never touched her again.

100 BCE – 100 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in the Testament of Reuben

References

"... Reuben is most popularly known as the brother who sought to protect Joseph from being killed. However, the Testament dwells entirely on a brief episode recounted in Genesis 35:22 ... Here in his “testament,” Reuben returns to this episode as well. The story is significantly expanded. Reuben sees Bilhah bathing naked, which plants the idea of fornication with her into his mind. When his father, Jacob, is away visiting Isaac, Reuben enters Bilhah’s tent, finds her naked and uncovered (she had apparently been drinking), and has sex with her without awakening her. As soon as the act is done, an angel informs Jacob about what had happened. He mourns over Reuben and has no further relations with Bilhah. Reuben is afflicted with a disease in his genitalia for seven months and nearly dies, but Jacob prays on his behalf, and God spares him. Convicted of his guilt, Reuben does penance by abstaining from meat, alcohol, and pleasant foods for seven years, remaining conscience-stricken throughout his life. This retelling of the story closely resembles the version found in Jubilees 33:1–8. There, too, Reuben sees Bilhah bathing, enters her tent secretly, and lays with her while she sleeps. In Jubilees, however, Bilhah awakens during the act, cries out aloud, and tells Jacob upon his return about what transpired ..."

David A. DeSilva, The Jewish Teachers of Jesus, James, and Jude: What Earliest Christianity Learned from the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha (New York: Oxford University Press, 2012), 177.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

Testament of Reuben7 chapters

Compare Jubilees 33:2 and Testament of Reuben 3:10

Summary

Passages

Jubilees 33:2

Testament of Reuben 3:10

References

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