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Testament of the 12 Patriarchs

Pseudepigrapha · 100 B.C.E. - 100 C.E.

The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs are accounts of deathbed speeches given by the sons of Jacob, by order of their age. Each ancestor reflects on key events in their life drawing on both the Hebrew bible and later exegetical traditions. While the earliest known forms of these writings reflect Jewish ideas, and were also found at Qumran, the versions of the Testaments we have now were no doubt edited by Christians and injected with Christian themes and motifs.

1The copy of the words of Simeon, the things he spoke to his sons before he died, in the hundred and twentieth year of his life, at which time Joseph, his brother, died. 2 For when Simeon was sick, his sons came to visit him. And he strengthened himself and sat up and kissed them, and said:— 3 Listen, my children, to Simeon your father and I will declare to you what things I have in my heart. 4 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. 5 Moreover, I became extremely strong; I shrank from no achievement nor was I afraid of anything. For my heart was hard, and my resolve unshakable, and I had no compassion. 6 Because courage has also been given from the Most High to people in both soul and body. 7 For in the time of my youth I was jealous in many ways of Joseph, because my father loved him above everyone. 8 And I set my mind against him to destroy him because the ruler of deceit sent out the spirit of jealousy and blinded my mind, so that I no longer regarded him as a brother, nor did I spare even Jacob my father. 9 But his God and the God of his fathers sent out His angel, and rescued him from my hands. 10 For when I went to Shechem to bring ointment for the flocks, and Reuben to Dothan, where our necessities and all our stores were, Judah my brother sold him to the Ishmaelites. 11 And when Reuben heard of these things he was grieved, for he wanted to bring him back to his father. 12 But upon hearing this I was extremely angry with Judah because he let him go away alive, and for five months I stayed angry with him. 13 But the Lord held me back, and prevented me from using the power of my hands; for my right hand was half withered for seven days. 14 And I knew, my children, that this happened to me because of Joseph, and I repented and wept; and I begged the Lord God that my hand might be restored and that I would remain far from all corruption and envy and from all foolishness. 15 For I knew that I had devised an evil thing in the sight of the Lord and Jacob my father, on account of Joseph my brother, in that I envied him. 16 And now, my children, listen to me and beware of the spirit of deceit and envy. 17 For envy rules over a person’s entire mind, and allows him neither to eat nor to drink, nor to do anything good. It always urges him to destroy the one he envies; and as long as the one who is envied prospers, the one who envies wastes away. 18 Therefore, for two years I afflicted my soul with fasting in reverence before the Lord, and I learned that deliverance from envy comes by fearing God. 19 For if a person flees to the Lord, the evil spirit runs away from him and his mind becomes clear. 20 And from then on he sympathizes with the one he envied and forgives those who are hostile to him, and so stops envying.

2And my father asked about me, because he saw that I was sad; and I said to him, ‘I am pained in my liver.’ 2 For I mourned more than everyone, because I was guilty in the selling of Joseph. 3 And when we went down into Egypt, and he bound me as a spy, I knew that I was suffering justly, and I did not grieve. 4 Now Joseph was a good man, and had the Spirit of God within him: being compassionate and merciful, he bore no malice against me; but loved me just as the rest of his brothers. 5 So beware, then, my children, of all jealousy and envy, and walk with sincerity of heart, that God may grant you grace and glory, and blessing upon your heads, just as you saw in Joseph’s case. 6 All his days he did not reproach us about this matter, but loved us as his own soul, and beyond his own sons he honored us, and gave us wealth, and cattle, and produce. 7 You also, my children, must love each of your brothers with a good heart, and the spirit of envy will withdraw from you. 8 For envy makes the soul savage and destroys the body; it causes anger and conflict in the mind, and stirs up violence, and drives the mind into madness, and brings turmoil to the soul and trembling to the body. 9 For even in sleep, malicious jealousy gnaws, and with wicked spirits disturbs the soul, and causes the body to be troubled, and wakes the mind from sleep in confusion; and like a wicked and poisonous spirit, that is how it appears to people. 10 So Joseph was handsome and pleasing to look at, because no wickedness resided in him; for a person’s face shows some of the turmoil of the spirit. 11 And now, my children, make your hearts good before the Lord, and your ways upright before people, and you will find favor with the Lord and others. 12 So beware of immorality, for immorality is the mother of all evils, separating from God, and bringing you close to Beliar. 13 For I have seen it written in the writings of Enoch that your sons will be corrupted by immorality, and will do harm to the sons of Levi with the sword. 14 But they will not be able to overcome Levi; for he will fight the Lord’s battle, and will defeat all your hosts. 15 And they will be few in number, divided between Levi and Judah, and there will be none of you to rule, just as our father also prophesied in his blessings.

3Behold, I have told you everything, so that I may be acquitted of your sin. 2 Now, if you remove envy and all stubbornness from you, like a rose my bones will bloom in Israel, and like a lily my flesh in Jacob, and my fragrance will be like the fragrance of Lebanon; and like cedars, holy ones will be multiplied from me forever, and their branches will spread far off. 3 Then the offspring of Canaan will vanish, and there will be no remnant for Amalek, and all the Cappadocians will perish, and all Hittites will be utterly destroyed. 4 Then the land of Ham will fail, and all its people will perish. 5 Then the whole earth will rest from trouble, and the entire world under heaven from war. 6 Then the Mighty One of Israel will glorify Shem. 7 For the Lord God will appear on earth, and He Himself will save humankind. 8 Then all the deceitful spirits will be trampled underfoot, and people will rule over evil spirits. 9 Then I will arise in joy and will bless the Most High for His marvelous works, because God took a body and ate with people and saved humanity. 10 And now, my children, and Judah, follow Levi and Judah, and do not rise up against these two tribes, for from them your salvation will come from God. 11 For the Lord will raise up from Levi a kind of High Priest, and from Judah a kind of King—God and human—He will save all the nations and the people of Israel. 12 Therefore I give you these commands so you also may command your children, that they may keep them throughout their generations. 13 And when Simeon had finished instructing his sons, he slept with his fathers, one hundred and twenty years old. 14 And they placed him in a wooden coffin, to take up his bones to Hebron. And they took them up secretly during a war of the Egyptians. For the Egyptians guarded Joseph’s bones in the tombs of the kings. 15 For the sorcerers told them that when Joseph’s bones departed, there would be darkness and gloom throughout the land, and a severe plague upon the Egyptians, so that even by lamp a person would not recognize his own brother. 16 And the sons of Simeon mourned their father. 17 And they stayed in Egypt until the day of their departure by the hand of Moses.

4The copy of the words of Levi, the things he commanded his sons, concerning all that they should do, and what would happen to them until the day of judgment. 2 He was in good health when he called them to him; for it had been revealed to him that he would die. 3 And when they were assembled he said to them: 4 I, Levi, was born in Haran, and I came with my father to Shechem. 5 And I was young, about twenty years of age, when, with Simeon, I took vengeance on Hamor for our sister Dinah. 6 And when I was tending the flocks in Abel-Maul, the spirit of understanding from the Lord came upon me, and I saw everyone corrupting their way, and that injustice had built walls for itself, and lawlessness sat upon towers. 7 And I was grieving over the race of humanity, and I prayed to the Lord that I might be saved. 8 Then sleep fell upon me, and I beheld a high mountain, and I stood on it. 9 And behold, the heavens opened, and an angel of God said to me, ‘Levi, enter.’ 10 And I entered the first heaven, and I saw there a great sea hanging. 11 And then I saw a second heaven, far brighter and more radiant, for it also had boundless light. 12 And I said to the angel, ‘Why is this so?’ And the angel said to me, ‘Do not marvel at this, for you will see another heaven even more brilliant and incomparable.’ 13 And when you have ascended there, you will stand near the Lord, and will be His minister, and will proclaim His mysteries to people, and will announce the One who will redeem Israel. 14 And through you and Judah the Lord will appear among humankind, saving every race of people. 15 And from the Lord’s portion will come your life, and He will be your field and vineyard, and fruits, gold, and silver. 16 Listen, therefore, regarding the heavens shown to you. 17 The lowest one seems gloomy to you because it sees all the unjust deeds of humankind. 18 And it has fire, snow, and ice prepared for the day of judgment, in the righteous judgment of God; for in it dwell all the avenging spirits for vengeance on people. 19 And in the second are the hosts of armies that are ordained for the day of judgment, to carry out vengeance on the deceiving spirits and on Beliar. 20 And above them are the holy ones. 21 And in the highest of all dwells the Great Glory, far above all holiness. 22 In the heaven next to that one are the archangels, who serve and make atonement to the Lord for all the sins of ignorance of the righteous. 23 Offering to the Lord a sweet-smelling aroma, a rational and bloodless offering. 24 And in the heaven below this are the angels who carry answers to the angels of the presence of the Lord. 25 And in the heaven next to that are thrones and dominions, where they constantly give praise to God. 26 Therefore, when the Lord looks upon us, all of us are shaken; yes, the heavens, and the earth, and the depths are shaken at the presence of His majesty. 27 But the children of men, having no awareness of these things, sin and provoke the Most High.

5Now, therefore, understand that the Lord will carry out judgment on the children of men. 2 Because when the rocks are torn, and the sun is darkened, and the waters dry up, and the fire hides, and all creation is shaken, and the invisible spirits fade away, and Hades takes spoils by the visitations of the Most High, people will be unbelieving and will persist in their wrongdoing. 3 For this reason they will be punished. 4 Therefore the Most High has heard your prayer, to separate you from wrongdoing, and that you should become His son, and His servant, and a minister of His presence. 5 You will shine the light of knowledge in Jacob, and like the sun you will be to all the descendants of Israel. 6 And there will be given to you a blessing, and to all your descendants until the Lord visits all the nations in His tender mercy forever. 7 And so you have been given guidance and understanding, that you might teach your children about this. 8 Because those who bless Him will be blessed, and those who curse Him will perish. 9 And then the angel opened the gates of heaven to me, and I saw the holy temple, and on a throne of glory, the Most High. 10 And He said to me, ‘Levi, I have given you the blessing of the priesthood until I come and stay among Israel.’ 11 Then the angel brought me down to the earth, and gave me a shield and a sword, and said to me: ‘Carry out vengeance on Shechem because of Dinah, your sister, and I will be with you because the Lord has sent me.’ 12 And I destroyed the sons of Hamor at that time, as it is written in the heavenly tablets. 13 And I said to him, ‘I beg you, O Lord, tell me Your name, so that I may call on You in a time of trouble.’ 14 And he said, ‘I am the angel who prays for the nation of Israel that they may not be destroyed completely, for every evil spirit attacks it.’ 15 And after these things I awoke, and blessed the Most High, and the angel who prays for the nation of Israel and for all the righteous.

6And when I was going to my father, I found a bronze shield; hence the name of the mountain is Aspis, near Gebal, south of Abila. 2 And I kept these words in my heart. After this I advised my father, and Reuben my brother, to forbid the sons of Hamor from being circumcised; for I was zealous because of the disgrace they had done to my sister. 3 And I killed Shechem first, and Simeon killed Hamor. And after this my brothers came and struck that city with the sword. 4 And my father heard about these things and was angry, and he was distressed that they had received circumcision, and afterward had been put to death, and in his blessings he looked unfavorably upon us. 5 For we sinned because we had done this deed against his will, and he was sick that day. 6 But I saw that God’s judgment was against Shechem; for they tried to do to Sarah and Rebecca what they had done to our sister Dinah, but the Lord stopped them. 7 And they persecuted Abraham our father when he was a foreigner, and they troubled his flocks when they were pregnant; and Eblaen, who was born in his house, they treated most shamefully. 8 And this is what they did to all foreigners, seizing their wives by force, and driving them away. 9 But the wrath of the Lord came upon them in full measure. 10 And I said to my father Jacob, ‘Through you the Lord will strip the Canaanites, and will give their land to you and your descendants after you.’ 11 From this day forward Shechem will be called a city of fools; for just as someone mocks a fool, so we mocked them. 12 Because they had acted foolishly in Israel by defiling my sister. And we departed and came to Bethel. 13 And there once more I saw a vision like the former one, after we had stayed there seventy days. 14 And I saw seven men in white clothing saying to me, ‘Get up, put on the robe of the priesthood, and the crown of righteousness, and the breastplate of understanding, and the robe of truth, and the plate of faith, and the turban for your head, and the ephod of prophecy.’ 15 And they each carried these things and placed them on me, and said to me, ‘From now on become a priest of the Lord, you and your descendants forever.’ 16 And the first anointed me with holy oil, and gave me the staff of judgment. 17 The second washed me with pure water, and fed me with bread and wine, even the holiest things, and clothed me with a holy and splendid robe. 18 The third dressed me in a linen garment like an ephod. 19 The fourth wrapped a purple sash around me. 20 The fifth gave me a branch of rich olive. 21 The sixth placed a crown on my head. 22 The seventh set upon my head a priestly diadem, and filled my hands with incense, that I might serve as priest to the Lord God. 23 And they said to me, ‘Levi, your descendants will be divided into three offices, as a sign of the Lord’s glory to come.’ 24 And the first portion will be great; yes, there will be none greater than it. 25 The second will be in the priesthood. 26 And the third will be called by a new name, because a king will arise in Judah, and will establish a new priesthood, in the style of the nations. 27 And His presence is beloved, as a prophet of the Most High, from the descendants of Abraham our father. 28 Therefore, every precious thing in Israel will be for you and your descendants, and you will eat everything pleasant to look upon, and your descendants will distribute the Lord’s table. 29 And some of them will be high priests, and judges, and scribes; for by their mouths the holy place will be guarded. 30 And when I awoke, I realized that this dream was like the first dream. And I kept it also in my heart, and told it to no one on earth. 31 And after two days Judah and I went up with our father Jacob to our grandfather Isaac. 32 And our grandfather blessed me according to all the words of the visions I had seen. But he would not come with us to Bethel. 33 And when we arrived at Bethel, my father saw a vision regarding me, that I should be their priest before God. 34 And he rose early in the morning, and gave tithes of everything to the Lord through me. And so we went to live in Hebron. 35 And Isaac continually called me to remind me of the law of the Lord, just as the angel of the Lord showed me. 36 And he taught me the law of the priesthood of sacrifices, burnt-offerings, first-fruits, freewill-offerings, peace-offerings. 37 And each day he instructed me, and interceded for me before the Lord, and said to me, ‘Beware of the spirit of sexual immorality; for it will continue and through your descendants pollute the holy place.’ 38 So take for yourself a wife without fault or impurity, while you are still young, and not from the offspring of foreign nations. 39 And before entering the holy place, bathe; and when you offer the sacrifice, wash; and again, when you finish the sacrifice, wash. 40 From twelve trees with leaves offer them to the Lord, as Abraham also taught me. 41 And from every clean animal and bird offer a sacrifice to the Lord. 42 And from all your first-fruits and from wine offer the first share as a sacrifice to the Lord God; and every offering you must season with salt. 43 Now, therefore, observe whatever I command you, children; for all the things I have heard from my fathers I have made known to you. 44 And look, I am clear of your wrongdoing and transgression, which you will commit in the end of the ages against the Savior of the world, Christ, acting godlessly, deceiving Israel, and stirring up great evils from the Lord against it. 45 And you will act lawlessly together with Israel, so He will not tolerate Jerusalem because of your wickedness; but the veil of the temple will be torn, so as not to cover your shame. 46 And you will be scattered as captives among the nations, and will be a reproach and a curse there. 47 For the house which the Lord will choose will be called Jerusalem, as is found in the book of Enoch the righteous. 48 Therefore, when I took a wife I was twenty-eight years old, and her name was Melcha. 49 And she conceived and bore a son, and I called him Gersam, for we were strangers in our land. 50 And I saw concerning him, that he would not be in the first rank. 51 And Kohath was born in the thirty-fifth year of my life, at sunrise. 52 And I saw in a vision that he was standing on high in the midst of the whole assembly. 53 Therefore I named him Kohath which means ‘beginning of majesty and instruction.’ 54 And she bore me a third son, in the fortieth year of my life; and since his mother bore him with difficulty, I called him Merari, meaning ‘my bitterness,’ because he was also near death. 55 And Jochebed was born in Egypt, in my sixty-fourth year, for I was well-known then among my brothers. 56 And Gersam took a wife, and she bore him Lomni and Semei. And the sons of Kohath: Ambram, Issachar, Hebron, and Ozeel. And the sons of Merari: Mooli and Mouses. 57 And in my ninety-fourth year Ambram took my daughter Jochebed as his wife, for they were born on the same day, he and my daughter. 58 I was eight years old when I went into the land of Canaan, and eighteen years old when I killed Shechem, and nineteen when I became priest, and twenty-eight when I took a wife, and forty-eight when I went into Egypt. 59 And behold, my children, you are a third generation. In my one hundred and eighteenth year Joseph died.

7And now, my children, I command you: Revere the Lord your God with all your heart, and walk in simplicity according to all His law. 2 And teach your children to read, so they may understand their entire life, reading the law of God constantly. 3 For everyone who knows the law of the Lord will be honored, and will not be a stranger wherever he goes. 4 Indeed, he will gain many friends—more than his parents—and many people will want to serve him, and to hear the law from his mouth. 5 So practice righteousness, my children, on the earth, that you may have it as a treasure in heaven. 6 And sow good things in your souls, so that you may find them in your life. 7 But if you sow evil things, you will reap all kinds of trouble and suffering. 8 Acquire wisdom in the fear of God with diligence; for even if there is captivity, and cities and lands are destroyed, and gold and silver and every possession perishes, the wisdom of the wise cannot be taken away, except by the blindness of ungodliness and the hardness that comes from sin. 9 For if one keeps himself from these evils, then even among his enemies wisdom will be his honor, and in a foreign land his home, and in the midst of foes it will prove a friend. 10 Whoever teaches and does noble things will be enthroned with kings, as was Joseph, my brother. 11 Therefore, my children, I have learned that at the end of the ages you will sin against the Lord, reaching out your hands to evil against Him; and you will become an object of scorn to all the nations. 12 For our father Israel is pure from the transgressions of the chief priests who shall lay their hands upon the Savior of the world. 13 For as the heavens are purer in the sight of the Lord than the earth, so must you, the lights of Israel, be purer than all the nations. 14 But if you become darkened through sin, what then will the nations do, living in blindness? 15 Yes, you will bring a curse upon our race, because the light of the law that was given to illuminate everyone—this you intend to destroy by teaching commands contrary to God’s ordinances. 16 You will steal the Lord’s offerings, and from His portion you will take the best shares, eating them contemptuously with prostitutes. 17 And out of greed you will misuse the commandments of the Lord, you will defile married women, and disgrace the virgins of Jerusalem; and you will be joined with prostitutes and adulteresses, and marry daughters of foreign peoples, ‘purifying’ them by an unlawful purification; and your alliances will resemble Sodom and Gomorrah, 18 And you will be puffed up because of your priesthood, exalting yourselves over others, and not only that, but also over the commands of God. 19 For you will treat holy things with mockery and laughter. 20 Therefore the temple that the Lord will choose will be laid waste because of your uncleanness, and you will be captives among all nations. 21 And you will be loathed by them, and you will receive reproach and everlasting shame from the righteous judgment of God. 22 And everyone who hates you will rejoice at your destruction. 23 And if it were not for mercy through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, our fathers, not one of our descendants would remain on earth. 24 And now I have learned that for seventy weeks you will go astray, and pollute the priesthood, and defile the sacrifices. 25 And you will make the law worthless, and despise the words of the prophets through evil perverseness. 26 And you will persecute righteous men, and hate the devout; you will abhor the words of the faithful. 27 And a man who renews the law by the power of the Most High, you will call a deceiver; and in the end you will rush to kill him, not knowing his greatness, bringing innocent blood through evil upon your heads. 28 And your holy places will be ruined down to the ground because of him. 29 And you will have no place that is pure; but among the nations you will be a curse and dispersed until He visits you again, and in compassion receives you through faith and water.

8And since you have heard about the seventy weeks, hear also about the priesthood. For in each jubilee there will be a priesthood. 2 And in the first jubilee, the first who is anointed to the priesthood will be great, and will speak to God like a father. 3 And his priesthood will be perfect with the Lord, and on the day of his happiness he will rise for the salvation of the world. 4 In the second jubilee, he who is anointed will be conceived in the sorrow of those who are loved; and his priesthood will be honored and will be glorified by everyone. 5 And the third priest will be seized by sorrow. 6 And the fourth will suffer, because lawlessness will gather itself against him excessively, and all Israel will hate one another. 7 The fifth will be seized by darkness. Likewise also the sixth and the seventh. 8 And in the seventh there will be such corruption as I cannot describe before people; yet those who do such things will know it. 9 For this they will be taken captive and become spoil, and their land and their possessions will be destroyed. 10 And in the fifth week they will return to their desolate country, and will rebuild the house of the Lord. 11 And in the seventh week there will be priests who are idolaters, adulterers, lovers of money, arrogant, lawless, lustful, abusers of children and animals. 12 And after their punishment comes from the Lord, the priesthood will fail. 13 Then the Lord will raise up a new priest. 14 And to him all the words of the Lord will be revealed; and he will carry out a righteous judgment upon the earth for many days. 15 And his star will arise in heaven like that of a king. 16 Lighting up the light of knowledge like the sun in the daytime, and he will be exalted in the world. 17 He will shine on the earth like the sun, and will remove all darkness from under heaven, and there will be peace on all the earth. 18 The heavens will rejoice in his days, and the earth will be glad, and the clouds will celebrate, 19 And the knowledge of the Lord will be poured out upon the earth, like the water of the seas, 20 And the angels of the glorious presence of the Lord will be happy in him. 21 The heavens will open, and from the temple of glory sanctification will come upon him, with the Father’s voice as it came from Abraham to Isaac. 22 And the glory of the Most High will be declared over him, and the spirit of understanding and sanctification will rest upon him in the water. 23 For he will grant the majesty of the Lord to His children in truth forever, 24 And there will be none to succeed him for all generations, forever. 25 And in his priesthood the nations will be multiplied in knowledge upon the earth, and enlightened by the grace of the Lord. In his priesthood, sin will come to an end, and the lawless will cease from evil. 26 And he will open the gates of paradise, and remove the threatening sword against Adam, and he will give the saints the right to eat from the tree of life, and the spirit of holiness will be on them. 27 And Beliar will be bound by him, and he will grant his children the power to tread upon evil spirits. 28 And the Lord will rejoice in His children, and be pleased with His loved ones forever. 29 Then Abraham and Isaac and Jacob will celebrate, and I will be happy, and all the saints will clothe themselves in joy. 30 And now, my children, you have heard all; so choose for yourselves either the light or the darkness, either the law of the Lord or the works of Beliar. 31 And his sons answered him, saying, ‘We will walk before the Lord according to His law.’ 32 And their father said to them, ‘The Lord is witness, and His angels are witnesses, and you are witnesses, and I am a witness, regarding what you have said.’ 33 And his sons said to him, ‘We are witnesses.’ 34 And so Levi stopped instructing his sons; and he stretched out his feet on the bed, and was gathered to his fathers, after living one hundred and thirty-seven years. 35 And they laid him in a coffin, and later buried him in Hebron with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

9The copy of the words of Judah, the things he spoke to his sons before he died. 2 So they gathered together and came to him, and he said to them, ‘Listen, my children, to Judah your father.’ 3 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 has granted me a fourth son also.’ 4 In my youth I was swift and obeyed my father in all things. 5 And I honored my mother and my mother’s sister. 6 And it happened, when I became a man, that my father blessed me, saying, ‘You will be a king, succeeding in all things.’ 7 And the Lord showed me favor in everything I did, both in the field and in the house. 8 I recall that I pursued a deer, and caught it, and prepared the meat for my father, and he ate. 9 And I caught roes in the chase, and overtook everything that was in the plains. 10 I overtook a wild mare, and caught it and tamed it. 11 I killed a lion and pulled a kid out of its mouth. 12 I seized a bear by its paw and threw it down the cliff, and it was crushed. 13 I outran the wild boar, and catching it as I ran, I tore it apart. 14 In Hebron, a leopard sprang on my dog, and I grabbed it by the tail, and hurled it against the rocks, splitting it in two. 15 I found a wild ox grazing in the fields, and grabbing it by the horns, and whirling it around and stunning it, I hurled it away and killed it. 16 And when the two kings of the Canaanites came in full armor against our flocks, and many people with them, I alone charged the king of Hazor, and struck him on the shin-guards, and dragged him down, and so I killed him. 17 And the other, the king of Tappuah, as he sat on his horse, I killed, and so I scattered all his people. 18 Achor, the king, a man of gigantic size, I found throwing spears in front and behind as he sat on horseback, and I picked up a stone weighing about sixty pounds, and threw it, striking his horse and killing it. 19 And I fought with him for two hours; and I cleft his shield in two, and cut off his feet, and killed him. 20 And as I was stripping his armor, nine of his companions began to fight with me, 21 And I wrapped my cloak around my hand; and I slung stones at them, and killed four, and the rest ran away. 22 And Jacob my father killed Beelesath, king of all the kings, a giant in strength, twelve cubits tall. 23 And fear seized them, and they stopped fighting us. 24 So my father was free from worry in wars as long as I and my brothers were with him. 25 For he saw in a vision concerning me that an angel of might traveled with me everywhere, so that I would not be overcome. 26 And in the south there came upon us a greater war than that in Shechem; and I joined the battle line with my brothers, and pursued a thousand men, and killed two hundred, including four kings. 27 And I went up on the wall, and I killed four mighty warriors. 28 So we captured Hazor, and took all its spoils. 29 And the next day we set out for Aretan, a strong and walled city on high ground, threatening us with death. 30 But Gad and I approached on the east side of the city, and Reuben and Levi on the west. 31 And those on the wall, thinking we were alone, came down against us. 32 Then my brothers climbed the wall secretly on both sides by stakes, and entered the city, while the men didn’t realize it. 33 And we seized it with the sword. 34 And those who took refuge in the tower, we burned, taking both it and them. 35 As we left, the men of Tappuah took our spoils, and seeing this, we fought them. 36 And we killed them all and reclaimed our spoils. 37 And when I was at the waters of Kozeba, the men of Jobel marched against us for battle. 38 We fought them and routed them; and we also killed their allies from Shiloh, leaving them no power to come against us. 39 And on the fifth day the men of Makir came upon us to seize our spoils; and we attacked them and defeated them in fierce combat, for there were many mighty men among them, and we killed them before they could ascend the hill. 40 And when we came to their city their women threw stones down upon us from the ridge on which the city stood. 41 Gad and I circled behind the town, seized the heights, and destroyed the city as well. 42 And the next day we heard that the king of the city of Gaash was coming against us with a vast army. 43 So Dan and I pretended to be Amorites, and as allies entered their city. 44 And in the middle of the night our brothers came, and we opened the gates for them; and we destroyed all the men and their possessions, taking everything as plunder, and we demolished their three walls. 45 Then we moved toward Thamna, where all the property of the hostile kings was gathered. 46 Being insulted by them, I then became angry, and ran up to the top; and they hurled stones and darts at me. 47 Had Dan my brother not come to help me, they would have killed me. 48 We attacked them then in our rage, and they all fled; and going by another route, they fought my father, and he made peace with them. 49 And we did them no harm, and they became our subjects, and we returned their spoils to them. 50 And I built Thamna, and my father built Pabael. 51 I was twenty years old when this war happened. And the Canaanites feared me and my brothers. 52 I had much livestock, and my chief herdsman was Iram the Adullamite. 53 And when I went to him I met Parsaba, king of Adullam; and he spoke with us, and he prepared a feast; and when I was heated with wine he gave me his daughter Bathshua as a wife. 54 She bore me Er, Onan, and Shelah; and the Lord struck down two of them, but Shelah survived, and you are his children.

10And for eighteen years my father lived in peace with his brother Esau, and his sons with us, after we came from Mesopotamia, from Laban. 2 And when those eighteen years were completed, in the fortieth year of my life, Esau, my father’s brother, came against us with a strong and powerful people. 3 And Jacob shot Esau with an arrow, and he was carried up wounded on Mount Seir, and as he traveled he died at Anoniram. 4 And we pursued Esau’s sons. 5 They had a city with walls of iron and gates of bronze; and we could not enter it, so we camped all around it, besieging it. 6 And when they would not open to us for twenty days, in the sight of everyone I set up a ladder and with my shield on my head I went up, enduring the bombardment of stones weighing more than three talents; and I killed four of their mighty warriors. 7 And Reuben and Gad killed six others. 8 Then they pleaded with us for peace; and after consulting our father, we accepted them as subjects. 9 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 to Egypt. 10 After this my son Er married Tamar, from Mesopotamia, a daughter of Aram. 11 Now Er was wicked, and he was troubled about Tamar, because she was not from the land of Canaan. 12 And on the third night an angel of the Lord struck him down. 13 And he had not been with her, according to the evil cunning of his mother, for he did not wish to have children by her. 14 During the days of the wedding feast I gave Onan to her in marriage; and he, too, in his wickedness never truly knew her, even though he was with her for a year. 15 And when I threatened him he went in to her, but spilled his seed on the ground, according to his mother’s instructions, and he too died in wickedness. 16 And I wanted to give Shelah to her, but his mother did not allow it; for she worked evil against Tamar, because Tamar was not of the daughters of Canaan, just as she herself was. 17 And I knew that the Canaanite race was wicked, yet the impulse of youth blinded my mind. 18 And when I saw her pouring out wine, under the influence of wine I was deceived, and took her, though my father had not advised it. 19 And while I was away she went and found a wife from Canaan for Shelah. 20 And when I learned what she had done, I cursed her in the sorrow of my soul. 21 And she also died through her own wickedness along with her sons. 22 And after these things, while Tamar was a widow, she heard after two years that I was going up to shear my sheep, and she dressed herself as a bride, and sat in the city Enaim by the gate. 23 For it was the law of the Amorites that a woman about to be married should sit in prostitution for seven days by the gate. 24 So, being drunk with wine, I did not recognize her; and her beauty deceived me, through the way she was adorned. 25 And I turned aside to her, and said, ‘Let me come in to you.’ 26 And she said, ‘What will you give me?’ And I gave her my staff, my belt, and the diadem of my kingdom as a pledge. 27 And I was intimate with her, and she conceived. 28 And not knowing what I had done, I wanted to kill her; but she secretly sent my pledges back, and shamed me. 29 And when I summoned her, I heard the secret words I had spoken while lying with her in my drunkenness; and I could not kill her, because it was from the Lord. 30 For I thought, ‘Perhaps she did this with cunning, having received the pledge from another woman.’ 31 But I never came near her again while I lived, because I had committed this disgrace in all Israel. 32 Moreover, those in the city said there had been no prostitute at the gate, because she came from elsewhere and sat for a short time at the gate. 33 And I thought no one knew that I had gone in to her. 34 And after this we went down into Egypt to Joseph, because of the famine. 35 And I was forty-six years old, and I lived seventy-three years in Egypt.

11And now I command you, my children, listen to Judah your father, and keep my words to fulfill all the commandments of the Lord, and to follow God’s commands. 2 Also teach your children not to follow your desires or the thoughts of your imagination in pride of heart; and do not boast in the deeds and the strength of your youth, for that too is evil in the eyes of the Lord. 3 Since I also boasted that in battles no beautiful woman’s face ever seduced me, and I reproached Reuben my brother concerning Bilhah, my father’s wife, the spirits of jealousy and sexual sin opposed me, until I lay with Bathshua the Canaanite, and Tamar, who had been pledged to my sons. 4 For I said to my father-in-law, ‘I will first consult my father, and then I will take your daughter.’ 5 And he was unwilling, but he showed me a boundless store of gold for his daughter; for he was a king. 6 And he adorned her with gold and pearls, and had her serve us wine at the feast with all a woman’s beauty. 7 And the wine led my eyes astray, and pleasure blinded my heart. 8 And I fell in love with her, and lay with her, and violated the command of the Lord and the command of my fathers, and I took her as my wife. 9 And the Lord repaid me according to the intentions of my heart, in that I found no joy in her children. 10 And now, my children, I tell you, do not get drunk with wine; for wine turns the mind from the truth, and stirs up lust, and leads the eyes into error. 11 For the spirit of sexual sin uses wine as its servant to bring pleasure to the mind; for these two together steal a person’s mind. 12 For if a man drinks wine until he is drunk, it confuses his mind with indecent thoughts leading to sexual sin, and heats his body for carnal union; and if an opportunity arises, he commits the sin, and is not ashamed. 13 Such is the drunken man, my children; for the one who is drunk respects no one. 14 For, see, it caused me also to err, so that I wasn’t ashamed of the crowd in the city, in that openly I turned aside to Tamar, and I committed a great sin, and I exposed the shame of my sons. 15 After I had drunk wine I did not respect the command of God, and I took a woman of Canaan as a wife. 16 For great caution is needed by anyone who drinks wine, my children; and here is the caution: a man may drink as long as he stays modest. 17 But if he surpasses this limit, the spirit of deceit attacks his mind, causing the drunkard to speak shamefully, and to transgress without embarrassment, even taking pride in his disgrace, and regarding himself as honorable. 18 Anyone who practices sexual sin is not aware of his loss, and is not ashamed when dishonored. 19 Even if a man is a king but practices sexual sin, he is stripped of his kingship by becoming a slave to immorality, as I myself also suffered. 20 For I gave my staff, that is, the support of my tribe; and my belt, that is, my power; and my diadem, that is, the glory of my kingdom. 21 And indeed I repented of these things; I ate neither wine nor meat until my old age, nor did I experience any joy. 22 And the angel of God showed me that for all time women rule over both king and poor man alike. 23 From a king they take away his glory, and from the strong man his might, and from the beggar even the little that sustains his poverty. 24 Therefore, my children, keep a proper limit with wine; for it brings four evil spirits: lust, fierce desire, recklessness, and greed. 25 If you drink wine happily, do so modestly in the fear of God. 26 For if, in your joy, the fear of God departs, then drunkenness arises and shamelessness creeps in. 27 But if you wish to live soberly, do not drink wine at all, lest you sin by speaking insults, fighting, slandering, and breaking God’s commandments, and perish before your time. 28 Also, wine reveals the mysteries of God and of people, just as I too disclosed the commandments of God and the secrets of my father Jacob to the Canaanite woman Bathshua, which God forbade me to disclose. 29 And wine is a cause of both warfare and confusion. 30 And now, I command you, my children, not to love money, nor to look on the beauty of women; because for the sake of money and beauty I went astray to Bathshua the Canaanite. 31 For I know that because of these two things my descendants will fall into wickedness. 32 For even wise men among my children will they corrupt, and they will reduce the kingdom of Judah, which the Lord gave me on account of my obedience to my father. 33 For I never caused pain to Jacob my father; for whatever he commanded, I did. 34 And Isaac, the father of my father, blessed me to be a king in Israel, and Jacob further blessed me likewise. 35 And I know that from me the kingdom will be established. 36 And I know the evils you will do in the last days. 37 So beware, my children, of sexual sin, and the love of money, and listen to Judah your father. 38 For these things pull you away from God’s law, and blind the desires of the soul, and teach arrogance, and stop a person from having compassion on his neighbor. 39 They rob his soul of all goodness, and burden him with work and troubles, and deprive him of sleep, and consume his flesh. 40 And they hinder God’s offerings; and he does not remember God’s blessing, he does not listen to a prophet who speaks, and is offended by words of devotion. 41 For he is enslaved by two conflicting passions, and cannot obey God, because they have blinded his soul, and he walks by day as though it were night. 42 My children, the love of money leads to idolatry; because, when led astray by money, people call those things ‘gods’ that are not, and it drives the one who has it into madness. 43 Because of money I lost my children, and if not for my repentance and my humiliation and my father’s prayers being accepted, I would have died childless. 44 But the God of my fathers was merciful to me, because I acted in ignorance. 45 And the prince of deceit blinded me, and I sinned as a human, and as flesh, being corrupted through sins; and I learned my own weakness though I thought myself invincible. 46 Know, then, my children, that two spirits are at work in a person—the spirit of truth and the spirit of deceit. 47 And in the middle is the spirit of the mind, which can turn wherever it wills. 48 And the works of truth and the works of deceit are recorded on the hearts of people, and the Lord knows each one. 49 And there is no time when people’s works can be hidden; for they have been written on the heart before the Lord. 50 And the spirit of truth testifies about everything, and accuses everyone; and the sinner is consumed by his own heart, and cannot raise his face to the judge.

12And now, my children, I command you, love Levi, so that you may endure, and do not exalt yourselves against him, lest you be utterly destroyed. 2 For to me the Lord gave the kingship, and to him the priesthood, and He set the kingship beneath the priesthood. 3 He gave me the things of the earth; to him the things of heaven. 4 Just as heaven is higher than the earth, so is God’s priesthood higher than the earthly kingship, unless it departs from the Lord through sin and is controlled by the earthly kingdom. 5 For the angel of the Lord said to me: ‘The Lord chose him rather than you, to draw near to Him, and to eat at His table and to offer Him the first-fruits of the best things of the sons of Israel; but you will be king of Jacob.’ 6 And you will be among them as the sea. 7 For just as in the sea the just and the unjust are tossed around, some taken captive and some enriched, so also every race of people will be in you: some will be impoverished, being taken captive, and others will grow rich by plundering others. 8 For the kings will be like sea-monsters. 9 They will swallow people like fish: they will enslave the sons and daughters of free people; they will plunder houses, lands, flocks, and money. 10 And with the flesh of many they will unjustly feed the ravens and the cranes; and they will advance in evil through greed, and there will be false prophets like storms, and they will persecute all righteous people. 11 And the Lord will bring divisions among them. 12 And there will be endless wars in Israel; and my kingship will end among people of another race, until Israel’s salvation comes. 13 Until the appearance of the God of righteousness, so that Jacob and all the nations may rest in peace. 14 And He will preserve the might of my kingship forever; for the Lord swore to me with an oath that He would not end the kingship from my seed forever. 15 Now I have much sorrow, my children, because of your promiscuity and witchcraft, and idolatries that you will commit against the kingdom, following those who have familiar spirits, diviners, and deceitful demons. 16 You will make your daughters singers and prostitutes, and you will mingle with the abominations of the nations. 17 Because of these things the Lord will bring on you famine and plague, death and the sword, siege by enemies, and insults by friends, the slaughter of children, the rape of wives, the plundering of goods, the burning of God’s temple, the destruction of the land, the enslavement of yourselves among the nations. 18 And some of you will become eunuchs for their wives. 19 Until the Lord visits you, when you repent completely and follow all His commands, and He brings you up from captivity among the nations. 20 And after these things a star will rise for you from Jacob in peace, 21 And a man will come from my seed, like the sun of righteousness, 22 Living with people in humility and righteousness, 23 And no sin will be found in him. 24 And the heavens will be opened to him, to pour out the Spirit, even the blessing of the Holy Father; and He will pour out the Spirit of grace upon you. 25 And you will be His children truly, and you will obey His commandments first and last. 26 Then the scepter of my kingdom will shine forth; and from your root will grow a branch; and from it a rod of righteousness for the nations, to judge and to save everyone who calls on the Lord. 27 And after these things Abraham and Isaac and Jacob will rise up to life; and I and my brothers will be chiefs of the tribes of Israel: 28 Levi first, I second, Joseph third, Benjamin fourth, Simeon fifth, Issachar sixth, and so on in order. 29 And the Lord blessed Levi, and the Angel of the Presence blessed me; the powers of glory blessed Simeon; the heavens blessed Reuben; the earth blessed Issachar; the sea blessed Zebulun; the mountains blessed Joseph; the tabernacle blessed Benjamin; the lights blessed Dan; Eden blessed Naphtali; the sun blessed Gad; the moon blessed Asher. 30 And you will be the people of the Lord, having one language; and there will be no spirit of deceit of Beliar, for he will be thrown into the fire forever. 31 And those who have died in sorrow will rise in joy, and those who were poor for the Lord’s sake will become rich, and those who were put to death for the Lord’s sake will awaken to life. 32 And the deer of Jacob will run in joy, and the eagles of Israel will fly in gladness; and all people will glorify the Lord forever. 33 Therefore, my children, keep all the law of the Lord, for there is hope for everyone who holds fast to His ways. 34 And he said to them, ‘Look, I am dying before your eyes this day, one hundred and nineteen years old.’ 35 Let no one bury me in fine clothing, or cut open my body, for this is what kings do; but carry me up to Hebron yourselves. 36 And Judah, when he had said these things, fell asleep; and his sons did everything he commanded them, and they buried him in Hebron, with his fathers.

13The copy of the words of Issachar. 2 For he called his sons and said to them: ‘Listen, my children, to Issachar your father; pay attention to the words of him who is loved by the Lord.’ 3 I was born as the fifth son to Jacob, in exchange for the mandrakes. 4 For Reuben my brother brought in mandrakes from the field, and Rachel met him and took them. 5 And Reuben wept, and at his voice Leah my mother came out. 6 These mandrakes were sweet-smelling fruit that grew in the land of Haran below a watering ravine. 7 And Rachel said, ‘I will not give them to you, for they will be mine instead of children.’ 8 For the Lord has rejected me, and I have not borne children for Jacob. 9 There were two fruits; and Leah said to Rachel, ‘Isn’t it enough that you have taken my husband? Will you also take these?’ 10 And Rachel said to her, ‘You may have Jacob tonight for your son’s mandrakes.’ 11 And Leah said to her, ‘Jacob is mine, for I am the wife of his youth.’ 12 But Rachel said, ‘Do not boast or exalt yourself; for he married me before you, and for my sake he served our father fourteen years.’ 13 And if deceit had not increased on the earth and the wickedness of people had not prospered, you would not now see Jacob’s face. 14 For you are not his wife, but by trickery you were taken to him in my place. 15 And my father tricked me, and kept me from Jacob that night, and did not let him see me; for if I had been there, this would not have happened to him. 16 Yet for the mandrakes I am hiring Jacob to you for one night. 17 And Jacob was with Leah, and she conceived and bore me, and because of the payment I was called Issachar. 18 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to Jacob, saying: ‘Rachel will bear two children, because she has refused intimacy with her husband, and has chosen self-restraint.’ 19 And if Leah my mother had not traded two fruits for the sake of Jacob’s company, she would have borne eight sons; for that reason she bore six, and Rachel bore two: for because of the mandrakes the Lord cared for her. 20 For He knew that she wanted children with Jacob, and not simply pleasure. 21 For the next day also she gave up Jacob again because of the mandrakes. 22 Therefore, the Lord listened to Rachel. 23 For though she desired them, she did not eat them, but offered them in the house of the Lord, giving them to the priest of the Most High in that time. 24 When I grew up, my children, I walked with a sincere heart, and I became a farmer for my father and my brothers, and I gathered produce from the fields in their seasons. 25 And my father blessed me, for he saw that I lived righteously before him. 26 And I was not meddlesome in my behavior, nor was I envious or resentful toward my neighbor. 27 I never slandered anyone, nor did I criticize anyone’s way of life, since I lived with an honest outlook. 28 So when I was thirty-five years old, I married, for my work wore down my strength, and I never thought of pleasure with women; but because of my labor, sleep overcame me. 29 And my father always delighted in my honesty, because I presented all first-fruits to the Lord through the priest and then to my father as well. 30 And the Lord multiplied ten thousand times His blessings in my hands; and Jacob my father also knew that God aided my sincerity. 31 For I shared the good things of the earth with all the poor and the downtrodden in the simplicity of my heart. 32 And now, listen to me, my children, and walk with sincerity in your hearts, for I have seen that everything pleasing to the Lord dwells in sincerity. 33 The single-minded person does not covet gold, does not cheat his neighbor, does not crave too many delicacies, and does not delight in varied clothing. 34 He does not desire a long life, but only waits for God’s will. 35 And the spirits of deceit have no power against him, for he does not look upon a woman’s beauty, lest he corrupt his mind with defilement. 36 There is no envy in his thoughts, no malicious person makes his soul wither, nor does he suffer uncontrollable desire in his mind. 37 For he walks in single-heartedness, and sees all things with the uprightness of his heart, avoiding eyes that wander into the world’s error, so that he might not see the transgression of any of the Lord’s commands. 38 Therefore, my children, keep the law of God, embrace sincerity, and walk without deceit, not prying into the matters of your neighbor, but love the Lord and your neighbor, be merciful to the poor and the weak. 39 Bend your backs to farming, and work in every kind of agriculture, offering gifts to the Lord with gratitude. 40 For with the first-fruits of the earth the Lord will bless you, just as He blessed all the saints from Abel until now. 41 For you have no other inheritance than the bountifulness of the earth, whose fruit is produced by work. 42 For our father Jacob blessed me with the blessings of the earth and of the first-fruits. 43 And Levi and Judah were glorified by the Lord among the sons of Jacob; for the Lord gave them an inheritance, to Levi the priesthood, and to Judah the kingdom. 44 So you must obey them, and walk in the sincerity of your father; for to Gad it was granted to destroy the troops that are coming against Israel.

14So you must understand, my children, that in the last times your descendants will abandon sincerity and embrace insatiable desire. 2 And forsaking honesty, they will turn to maliciousness; and forsaking the Lord’s commandments, they will join themselves to Beliar. 3 And leaving farming, they will follow their own wicked plans, and they will be scattered among the nations, serving their enemies. 4 Therefore, give these commands to your children, so that if they sin, they may quickly return to the Lord; for He is merciful and will rescue them, even bringing them back into their land. 5 Look, as you see, I am one hundred and twenty-six years old and am not aware of having committed any sin. 6 Except that I have known no woman except my wife. I never acted immorally with a lustful glance. 7 I drank no wine to become drunk. 8 I did not desire anything valuable belonging to my neighbor. 9 No deception arose in my heart. 10 No lie passed through my lips. 11 If anyone was in distress I shared his sorrow, 12 And I shared my bread with the poor. 13 I practiced piety; all my days I preserved truth. 14 I loved the Lord; likewise I loved everyone with all my heart. 15 So you also, my children, do these things, and every spirit of Beliar will flee from you, and no evil deed of others will dominate you; 16 And you will subdue every wild beast, since you have with you the God of heaven and earth and live among people with a sincere heart. 17 And having spoken these words, he commanded his sons to carry him to Hebron, and bury him there in the cave with his fathers. 18 And he stretched out his feet and died, at a fine old age; with every limb healthy, and with vigor undiminished, he fell into eternal rest.

15The copy of the words of Zebulun, which he instructed his sons before he died in the one hundred and fourteenth year of his life, two years after Joseph’s death. 2 And he said to them: ‘Listen to me, you children of Zebulun; pay attention to the words of your father.’ 3 I, Zebulun, was born a good gift to my parents. 4 For when I was born my father was greatly enriched in flocks and herds, at the time he used the striped rods to claim his portion. 5 I am not aware of having sinned all my days, except in thought. 6 Nor do I remember ever committing any wrongdoing, except the sin of ignorance which I committed against Joseph; for I conspired with my brothers not to tell our father what had been done. 7 But I wept in secret for many days because of Joseph, for I was afraid of my brothers, since they had all agreed that if anyone revealed the secret, he should be killed. 8 But when they intended to kill him, I begged them earnestly with tears not to commit this sin. 9 For Simeon and Gad came against Joseph to kill him, and he said to them through tears, ‘Have pity on me, my brothers, have mercy for the sake of Jacob our father: do not lay your hands on me to shed innocent blood, for I have not sinned against you.’ 10 And if I have indeed sinned, punish me with discipline, my brothers, but do not lay hands on me for the sake of Jacob our father, 11 And as he said these things, weeping as he did, I could not bear his cries, and I began to weep, and my heart melted, and my entire body trembled, and I couldn’t stand. 12 And when Joseph saw me crying with him, and they were rushing to kill him, he ran behind me, imploring them. 13 Meanwhile Reuben stood up and said, ‘Come, my brothers, let us not kill him, but let us throw him into one of these empty pits, which our fathers dug without finding water.’ 14 For this reason the Lord forbade water to flow in them so that Joseph would be saved. 15 And that is what they did, until they sold him to the Ishmaelites. 16 Because in his price I had no share, my children. 17 But Simeon and Gad and six others of our brothers took Joseph’s price, and bought sandals for themselves, and their wives, and their children, saying: 18 ‘We will not eat from this, for it is the price of our brother’s blood, but we will certainly tread on it, because he said that he would be king over us, so let’s see what becomes of his dreams.’ 19 So in the law of Moses it is written that anyone who will not raise up offspring for his brother, his sandal should be removed, and they should spit in his face. 20 And Joseph’s brothers did not want him to live, and the Lord removed the sandal that they wore against Joseph their brother. 21 For when they arrived in Egypt they were made to remove their sandals by Joseph’s servants outside the gate, and so they bowed down to Joseph in the manner of King Pharaoh. 22 And not only did they bow, but they were spat upon, falling down before him right away, so that they were humiliated before the Egyptians. 23 For afterward the Egyptians learned of all the evil they had done to Joseph. 24 And after he was sold my brothers sat down to eat and drink. 25 But out of compassion for Joseph I did not eat, and I guarded the pit, since Judah was afraid that Simeon, Dan, and Gad might rush back and kill him. 26 But when they saw that I would not eat, they assigned me to guard him, until he was sold to the Ishmaelites. 27 And when Reuben returned and found that while he was away Joseph had been sold, he tore his clothes, and in mourning said: 28 ‘How shall I look on the face of my father Jacob?’ And he took the money and ran after the traders, but since he could not find them, he came back grieving. 29 But the traders had left the main road and traveled through the Troglodytes on a shortcut. 30 So Reuben was distressed, and did not eat that day. 31 Dan then said to him, ‘Do not weep or be distressed; for we have found a way to tell our father Jacob.’ 32 ‘Let us kill a young goat, and dip Joseph’s coat in its blood; and then send it to Jacob, saying: “Please see if this is your son’s coat.”’ 33 And that is what they did. For they had stripped off Joseph’s coat when they sold him, and dressed him in the garment of a slave. 34 Now Simeon took the coat and would not give it up, for he wanted to cut it up with his sword, because he was angry that Joseph lived and that he had not killed him. 35 Then all of us rose up and said to him, ‘If you do not give up the coat, we will tell our father that you alone committed this evil in Israel.’ 36 So he gave it to them, and they did exactly as Dan had suggested.

16And now children, I urge you to keep the Lord’s commandments, and to show mercy to your neighbors, and to have compassion on everyone, not just people but also animals. 2 Because of such things the Lord blessed me, and when all my brothers were sick, I was free from sickness, for the Lord knows the motives of each person. 3 So have compassion in your hearts, my children, because just as a man does to his neighbor, so also the Lord will do to him. 4 For the children of my brothers were weakening and dying because of Joseph, since they showed no mercy in their hearts; but my sons stayed healthy, as you know. 5 And when I was in the land of Canaan, by the sea, I caught fish for Jacob my father; and when many were choked by the sea, I remained unharmed. 6 I was the first to make a boat to sail upon the sea, for the Lord gave me understanding and wisdom for it. 7 And I put a rudder behind it, and I set a sail upon another upright plank in the middle. 8 And I sailed along the shores in it, catching fish for the household of my father until we went down to Egypt. 9 And through compassion I shared my catch with every stranger. 10 And if someone was a foreigner, or sick, or elderly, I cooked the fish, prepared it well, and offered it to all who needed it, grieving with them and having compassion for them. 11 That is why the Lord satisfied me with plenty of fish whenever I went fishing; for whoever shares with his neighbor receives many times more from the Lord. 12 For five years I caught fish and gave some to everyone I saw, and provided for all of my father’s household. 13 And in the summer I caught fish, and in the winter I tended sheep with my brothers. 14 Now I will tell you what I did. 15 I saw a man suffering from the cold in winter, and felt compassion for him, and secretly took a garment from my father’s house and gave it to the man who was suffering. 16 So you too, my children, from whatever God gives you, show compassion and mercy willingly to all, and give to everyone with a generous heart. 17 And if you do not have enough to give to the one in need, still have compassion for him in your innermost being. 18 More than once I had nothing to give to the one in need, and I walked with him weeping for seven furlongs, and my heart yearned toward him with sympathy. 19 So you also, my children, show compassion to everyone with mercy, so that the Lord will also have mercy and compassion upon you. 20 Because in the last days God will send His compassion on the earth, and wherever He finds hearts full of mercy He will dwell in them. 21 For in the measure that a person shows compassion to others, the Lord also shows compassion to him. 22 And when we went down into Egypt, Joseph did not hold any grudge against us. 23 Paying attention to him, you also, my children, should be free of malice, and love one another; and do not keep a record of wrongdoing against your brother. 24 For this destroys unity and divides all family bonds, and troubles the soul, and ruins the appearance. 25 Observe the waters, and see that when they flow together, they carry along stones, trees, earth, and other things. 26 But if they are divided into many streams, the earth swallows them up, and they disappear. 27 So it will be with you if you are divided. Therefore, do not be divided into two heads, for everything the Lord created has just one head, and two shoulders, two hands, two feet, and all the other parts. 28 For I have learned in the writings of my fathers that you will be divided in Israel, and you will follow two kings, and commit every abomination. 29 And your enemies will take you captive, and you will be harshly treated among the nations, with many diseases and hardships. 30 And later you will remember the Lord and repent, and He will have mercy on you, for He is merciful and compassionate. 31 And He does not count a person’s wrongdoing against them, because they are flesh, and are led astray by their own evil deeds. 32 And after these things the Lord Himself will arise on earth, the Light of righteousness, and you will return to your land. 33 And you will see Him in Jerusalem, for His name’s sake. 34 And again through the wickedness of your deeds you will anger Him, 35 And you will be rejected by Him until the time of fulfillment. 36 And now, my children, do not be distressed that I am dying, nor be sad that I am nearing my end. 37 For I will rise again among you, like a ruler among his sons; and I will rejoice among my tribe, as many as keep the law of the Lord, and the commands of Zebulun their father. 38 But upon the ungodly the Lord will send eternal fire, and destroy them through all generations. 39 But I am now hurrying to my rest, just as my ancestors did. 40 Therefore, fear the Lord our God with all your strength all the days of your life. 41 And having said these things, he died at a good old age. 42 And his sons placed him in a wooden coffin, then later carried him and buried him at Hebron with his fathers.

17The copy of the words of Dan, which he spoke to his sons in his last days, in the one hundred and twenty-fifth year of his life. 2 For he called his family together, and said: ‘Listen to my words, you sons of Dan; and pay attention to the words of your father.’ 3 I have proved in my heart, throughout my whole life, that truth with just dealing is good and pleasing to God, and that lying and anger are evil because they teach a person all kinds of wickedness. 4 I confess to you this day, my children, that in my heart I plotted the death of my brother Joseph, the true and good man. 5 And I was glad that he was sold, because our father loved him more than us. 6 For the spirit of jealousy and vanity said to me: ‘You yourself are also his son.’ 7 And one of the spirits of Beliar stirred me up, saying: ‘Take this sword, and kill Joseph with it. Then your father will love you once he is dead.’ 8 Now this is the spirit of anger that urged me to crush Joseph as a leopard crushes a young goat. 9 But the God of my fathers did not allow him to fall into my hands, so that I might find him alone and kill him, causing a second tribe to be destroyed in Israel. 10 And now, my children, look, I am dying, and I tell you truly that unless you keep yourselves from the spirit of lying and anger, and love truth and patience, you will perish. 11 For anger is blindness, and does not allow a person to see anyone’s face with honesty. 12 Even if it is a father or a mother, he deals with them like enemies; even if it is a brother, he does not recognize him; even if it is a prophet of the Lord, he disobeys him; even if a righteous man, he does not regard him; even if a friend, he does not acknowledge him. 13 For the spirit of anger traps him in a net of deceit, and blinds his eyes, and through lies darkens his mind, and gives him its own distorted vision. 14 And how does it surround his eyes? With hatred in his heart, so that he is jealous of his brother. 15 For anger is an evil thing, my children, for it disturbs even the soul itself. 16 And it takes over the body of the angry man, and dominates his soul, giving to the body the power to do every kind of injustice. 17 And when the body does all these things, the soul justifies what is done, since it does not see rightly. 18 Therefore, if a powerful man is wrathful, he has threefold strength in his anger: one from the support of his servants, second from his wealth, by which he wrongfully persuades and overcomes, and third from his own natural power by which he commits evil. 19 And although an angry man may be weak, he still has double the power that comes by nature; for wrath always helps such a person in lawlessness. 20 This spirit always goes with lying at Satan’s right hand, so that through cruelty and deceit his works may be accomplished. 21 Therefore, understand the power of anger: it is pointless. 22 For it first provokes by words; then by deeds it strengthens the one who is angry, and with harsh misfortunes troubles his mind, and so stirs his soul with great wrath. 23 Therefore, when anyone speaks against you, do not be moved to anger; and if anyone praises you as holy men, do not become proud. Do not be moved either to delight or to disgust. 24 For at first it pleases the hearing, and then it makes the mind eager to find reasons to be provoked; and then, becoming enraged, he believes he is justly angry. 25 If you suffer any loss or disaster, my children, do not grieve; for this same spirit makes a person desire what is perishable, in order that he may become angry through that affliction. 26 And if you face a loss voluntarily or involuntarily, do not be annoyed; for from annoyance arises anger along with lies. 27 Moreover, anger together with lying is a twofold evil, and they assist each other to disturb the heart. And when the soul is continually disturbed, the Lord departs from it, and Beliar rules over it.

18Therefore, my children, observe the commands of the Lord, and keep His law. Turn away from anger, and hate lies, so that the Lord may dwell among you and Beliar may flee from you. 2 Speak truth each one to his neighbor. Then you will not fall into anger and confusion; instead you will have peace, with the God of peace, and no war will triumph over you. 3 Love the Lord throughout your life, and love one another with a sincere heart. 4 I know that in the last days you will turn away from the Lord, and you will provoke Levi to anger, and fight against Judah; but you will not prevail against them, for an angel of the Lord will guide them both; for by them Israel will endure. 5 And whenever you abandon the Lord, you will walk in all evil and commit the same vile acts as the Gentiles, acting immorally with women of the lawless nations, while all the wicked spirits of evil work in you. 6 For I have read in the book of Enoch the righteous, that your ruler is Satan, and that all the spirits of wickedness and pride will band together to constantly watch the sons of Levi, causing them to sin before the Lord. 7 And my sons will join with Levi, and sin with them in all things; and the sons of Judah will be greedy, seizing other people’s possessions like lions. 8 Therefore you will be led away with them into captivity, and there you will endure all the plagues of Egypt, and all the evils of the Gentiles. 9 And so when you return to the Lord, you will obtain mercy, and He will bring you into His holy place, and He will grant you peace. 10 And from the tribes of Judah and Levi, the salvation of the Lord will arise for you; and he will wage war against Beliar. 11 And he will carry out everlasting vengeance on our enemies, and from Beliar he will recover the souls of the holy ones in captivity, and turn disobedient hearts to the Lord, granting eternal peace to those who call on him. 12 And the saints will rest in Eden, and in the New Jerusalem the righteous will rejoice, and it will be for the glory of God forever. 13 And Jerusalem will no longer endure desolation, nor will Israel be led captive; for the Lord will be among them living among humanity, and the Holy One of Israel will reign there humbly and in poverty; and whoever believes in Him will rule among people in truth. 14 And now, fear the Lord, my children, and beware of Satan and his spirits. 15 Draw near to God and to the angel who pleads for you, for he is the mediator between God and humanity, and for the sake of Israel’s peace he will take a stand against the kingdom of the enemy. 16 That is why the enemy is eager to destroy everyone who calls on the Lord. 17 For he knows that on the day Israel repents, the enemy’s kingdom will come to an end. 18 For the angel of peace will strengthen Israel, so it does not fall into utter evil. 19 And it will be, during the time of Israel’s lawlessness, that the Lord will not leave them but will transform them into a nation doing His will, for none of the angels can compare to Him. 20 And His name will be honored everywhere in Israel and among the Gentiles. 21 Therefore keep yourselves, my children, from every evil deed, and cast off anger and every form of lying, and love truth and patience. 22 And what you have heard from your father, teach also to your children, so that the Savior of the Gentiles may receive you; for he is true and patient, gentle and humble, and teaches by his deeds the law of God. 23 Therefore, turn away from every kind of wrongdoing, and cling to God’s righteousness, and your family line will be saved forever. 24 Bury me near my fathers. 25 And when he had said these things he kissed them, and died at a good old age. 26 And his sons buried him, and afterward took his bones and placed them near Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 27 Yet Dan prophesied to them that they would forget their God, and be removed from the land of their inheritance and from the family of Israel, and from the line of their descendants.

19The copy of the testament of Naphtali, which he established at the time of his death in the one hundred and thirtieth year of his life. 2 When his sons gathered in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, while he was still in good health, he prepared a feast of food and wine for them. 3 And after he woke in the morning, he said to them, ‘I am dying,’ and they did not believe him. 4 And as he praised the Lord, he became strong and said that after yesterday’s feast he would die. 5 And he began to say: ‘Listen, my children, you sons of Naphtali, hear the words of your father.’ 6 I was born from Bilhah, and because Rachel acted cleverly, and gave Bilhah in her place to Jacob, and she conceived and gave birth to me on Rachel’s knees, she named me Naphtali. 7 For Rachel loved me very much because I was born upon her lap; and when I was still young she would kiss me and say: ‘May I have a brother of yours from my own womb, just like you.’ 8 From this came Joseph, who resembled me in everything, according to Rachel’s prayers. 9 Now my mother was Bilhah, the daughter of Rotheus, the brother of Deborah, the nurse of Rebecca, who was born on the same day as Rachel. 10 Rotheus was from Abraham’s family, a Chaldean, who feared God, was freeborn, and of noble birth. 11 And he was taken captive and bought by Laban. He gave him Euna his servant as a wife, and she bore a daughter, naming her Zilpah, after the village where he was taken captive. 12 Next she bore Bilhah, saying: ‘My daughter hurries after something new,’ for as soon as she was born she grabbed the breast and hurried to suck it. 13 I was swift on my feet like a deer, and my father Jacob chose me for every errand, and like a deer he blessed me. 14 For just as a potter knows the vessel and how much it can hold, and shapes the clay accordingly, so also does the Lord make the body according to the spirit’s likeness, and according to the body’s capacity He implants the spirit. 15 And one does not lack the other by even a fraction of a hair; for by weight, measure, and rule all creation was made. 16 And as the potter knows how he will use each vessel, so also the Lord knows the body, how long it will persist in goodness, and when it will start doing evil. 17 For there is no desire or thought the Lord does not know, for He created everyone in His own image. 18 As a person’s strength is, so also is his work; as his eye is, so is his sleep; as his soul is, so is his speech, whether it be in the law of the Lord or in the law of Beliar. 19 And just as there is a difference between light and darkness, between seeing and hearing, so also there is a difference between one person and another, and between one woman and another; and it must not be said that one is exactly like another in face or mind. 20 For God made everything good in its order: the five senses in the head, and He attached the neck to the head, adding hair for beauty and honor, then the heart for understanding, the belly for waste, and the stomach for grinding, the windpipe for breathing, the liver for anger, the gall for bitterness, the spleen for laughter, the kidneys for prudence, the hip muscles for power, the lungs for drawing breath, the loins for strength, and so forth. 21 So then, my children, let all your works be done in order with good intentions in the fear of God, and do nothing out of its rightful place or season in disrespect. 22 For if you command the eye to hear, it cannot. So neither can you do works of light while you are in darkness. 23 Therefore do not corrupt your deeds through greed or use vain words to deceive your souls, because if you remain silent in purity of heart, you will understand how to hold fast the will of God and to cast away the will of Beliar. 24 Sun and moon and stars do not break their order; so you too must not alter God’s law by disorderly deeds. 25 The Gentiles went astray, and abandoned the Lord, and changed their order, and obeyed lifeless idols, spirits of deceit. 26 But you must not do so, my children, recognizing in the sky, on the earth, and in the sea, and in all created things, the Lord who made everything, so that you do not become like Sodom, which changed the order of nature. 27 In the same way the Watchers also changed the order of their nature, whom the Lord cursed at the Flood, because of whom He made the earth uninhabited and barren. 28 I tell you these things, my children, because I have read in Enoch’s writings that you too will turn from the Lord, acting according to all the lawlessness of the Gentiles, and you will do the wickedness of Sodom. 29 And the Lord will bring you into captivity, and there you will serve your enemies, and you will be afflicted with every distress and hardship, until the Lord has destroyed you all. 30 And after you become fewer in number, you will return and acknowledge the Lord your God, and He will bring you back to your land, according to His great mercy. 31 And it will happen that once they come into the land of their fathers, they will again forget the Lord and become ungodly. 32 And the Lord will scatter them over all the earth, until the compassion of the Lord comes, a man who does justice and shows kindness to everyone far away and near.

20In the fortieth year of my life, I saw a vision on the Mount of Olives to the east of Jerusalem, in which the sun and the moon stood still. 2 And look, Isaac, the father of my father, said to us: ‘Run and take hold of them, each as he is able; and whoever seizes them, the sun and moon will belong to him.’ 3 And we all ran together, and Levi caught the sun, and Judah outran the others and seized the moon, and both of them were lifted up with them. 4 And when Levi became like the sun, a certain young man gave him twelve branches of palm; and Judah shone like the moon, and under their feet were twelve rays. 5 And the two, Levi and Judah, ran and grabbed them. 6 And look, a bull upon the earth, with two large horns and eagle’s wings on its back; and we wished to seize him, but could not. 7 But Joseph came, seized him, and went up with him on high. 8 And I saw, for I was there, a sacred writing appeared to us, saying: ‘Assyrians, Medes, Persians, Chaldeans, and Syrians will take the twelve tribes of Israel into captivity.’ 9 And again, after seven days, I saw our father Jacob standing by the sea of Jamnia, and we were with him. 10 And look, there came a ship sailing by, without sailors or pilot; and it was called The Ship of Jacob. 11 And our father said to us: ‘Come, let us board our ship.’ 12 And after he had gotten on board, there rose a violent storm and a mighty wind; and our father, who held the helm, departed from us. 13 And we, driven by the storm, were carried over the sea; the ship was filled with water, and hammered by mighty waves, until it broke apart. 14 And Joseph escaped on a small boat, and we were all divided among nine planks, with Levi and Judah together. 15 And we were all scattered to the ends of the earth. 16 Then Levi, wrapped in sackcloth, prayed for all of us to the Lord. 17 And when the storm stopped, the ship reached the land in peace. 18 And look, our father came, and we all rejoiced with one accord. 19 I told these two dreams to my father, and he said to me: ‘These things must happen in their time, after Israel has suffered many things.’ 20 Then my father said to me: ‘I believe God that Joseph is still alive, for I always see that the Lord includes him with you.’ 21 And he wept, saying: ‘Alas, my son Joseph, you are alive, though I do not see you, and you do not see Jacob who begot you.’ 22 He made me also weep by these words, and I was distressed in my heart wanting to reveal that Joseph had been sold, but I feared my brothers. 23 And look, my children, I have shown you the last times, how everything will happen in Israel. 24 So you also, therefore, instruct your children that they may join themselves to Levi and Judah; for through them salvation will arise in Israel, and Jacob will be blessed in them. 25 For through their tribes God will appear, living among people on earth, to save the people of Israel, and to gather together the righteous from among the Gentiles. 26 If you do what is good, my children, both people and angels will bless you; and God will be honored among the Gentiles through you, and the devil will flee from you, and wild beasts will fear you, and the Lord will love you, and the angels will stand by you. 27 Just like a person who has raised a child well is remembered kindly, so also for a good deed there is a good remembrance before God. 28 But anyone who does not do what is right, both angels and people will curse, and God will be dishonored among the Gentiles by him, and the devil will make him his personal tool, and every wild beast will subdue him, and the Lord will despise him. 29 For the commandments of the law are twofold, and by wisdom must they be fulfilled. 30 For there is a time for a man to embrace his wife, and a time to abstain for his prayers. 31 So, there are likewise two commands; and unless they are done in due order, they bring great sin upon people. 32 The same is true for the other commands. 33 So be wise in God, my children, and prudent, understanding the order of His commands and the laws of every word, so that the Lord may love you. 34 And when he had instructed them with many such words, he urged them to move his bones to Hebron, to be buried with his fathers. 35 And having eaten and drunk with a joyful heart, he covered his face and died. 36 And his sons did everything Naphtali their father had commanded them.

21The copy of the testament of Gad, containing what he said to his sons in the one hundred and twenty-fifth year of his life, saying to them: 2 ‘Listen, my children, I was the ninth son born to Jacob, and I was courageous in watching over the flocks.’ 3 So I kept watch at night over the flock; and whenever a lion or wolf or any wild beast came against the fold, I would chase it, and catching it by the foot, I would fling it about a stone’s throw, thus killing it. 4 Now Joseph my brother was with us tending the flock for more than thirty days, and because he was young, he fell sick due to the heat. 5 And he went back to Hebron to our father, who let him lie near him, for he loved him greatly. 6 And Joseph told our father that the sons of Zilpah and Bilhah were killing the best of the flock and eating them, against the advice of Reuben and Judah. 7 For he saw that I had rescued a lamb out of the mouth of a bear, and then killed the bear; but I had also killed the lamb, grieved that it could not survive, and we ate it. 8 And about this matter I was angry with Joseph until the day he was sold. 9 And the spirit of hatred was in me, and I did not want to hear Joseph’s name or see him, because he rebuked us openly, saying we were eating the flock without Judah’s knowledge. 10 For whatever he told our father, he believed him. 11 I now confess my sin, my children, that many times I wanted to kill him, because I hated him from my heart. 12 Furthermore, I hated him even more for his dreams; and I wanted to eradicate him from the land of the living, as an ox licks up the grass of the field. 13 And Judah secretly sold him to the Ishmaelites. 14 Thus the God of our fathers rescued him from our hands, so that we would not commit a great sin in Israel. 15 And now, my children, pay attention to these true words to do righteousness and follow the entire law of the Most High, and do not go astray through the spirit of hatred, for it is evil in every human action. 16 Whatever a person does, the one who hates him despises him; even if a person obeys the law of the Lord, he does not praise him. If a man fears the Lord and delights in what is good, the hater does not love him. 17 He discredits truth, he envies anyone who prospers, he welcomes slander, he loves arrogance, because hatred blinds his soul, as I once looked at Joseph. 18 So be careful, my children, about hatred, for it leads to wrongdoing, even against the Lord Himself. 19 For it does not listen to His commands about loving one’s neighbor, and it sins against God. 20 If a brother stumbles, the hater delights in immediately spreading it to everyone, urging that he be judged and punished or put to death. 21 And if it is a servant, it stirs him up against his master, plotting all sorts of troubles to see if he can be killed. 22 For hatred also works with envy against those who are successful: as long as it hears or sees that they are doing well, it always wastes away. 23 For just as love would even raise the dead and bring back those who are condemned to die, hatred would kill the living, and would not let those who have sinned a little to go on living. 24 For the spirit of hatred cooperates with Satan, through impulsive tempers, for the destruction of humanity; but the spirit of love cooperates with God’s law in patience for the salvation of humanity. 25 Hatred, therefore, is evil, for it always teams up with lying, speaking against the truth; it magnifies small things, turns the light into darkness, calls the sweet bitter, teaches slander, stirs up anger, and incites war, violence, and greed; it fills the heart with evils and devilish poison. 26 Therefore, I speak these things to you from experience, my children, so that you may drive away hatred, which is from the devil, and cling to the love of God. 27 Righteousness casts out hatred, humility destroys envy. 28 For one who is just and humble is ashamed to do injustice, being reproved not by another but by his own heart, because the Lord observes his intention. 29 He does not speak against a holy man, because the fear of God overcomes hatred. 30 For, fearing lest he offend the Lord, he will not do any wrong, even in thought. 31 These lessons I finally learned after I repented concerning Joseph. 32 For true repentance from God destroys ignorance, drives away darkness, enlightens the eyes, gives knowledge to the soul, and leads the mind to salvation. 33 And it knows, without being taught by anyone, the things it has not learned before, through repentance. 34 For God brought on me a disease of the liver; and if not for the prayers of Jacob my father helping me, my spirit would almost have left my body. 35 For in the same things by which a person sins, he is also punished. 36 Because my liver was mercilessly set against Joseph, so also I suffered merciless torment in my liver, and was judged for eleven months, exactly the length of time I was angry with Joseph.

22And now, my children, I urge you: Love each of you his brother, and remove hatred from your hearts. Love one another in deeds, words, and the inclination of the soul. 2 For in the presence of my father I spoke to Joseph peacefully; but when I had gone out, the spirit of hatred darkened my mind and stirred up my soul to kill him. 3 So love one another sincerely; and if someone sins against you, speak peaceably to him, and in your soul hold no deceit; and if he repents and admits it, forgive him. 4 But if he denies it, do not get angry with him, lest by taking on your anger he swears falsely, and you sin twice. 5 Do not let another person hear your secrets when you are in a legal dispute, lest he come to hate you and become your enemy, committing a great sin against you. For often he approaches you with deceit or meddles with you with malicious plans. 6 And though he denies it but shows shame when corrected, stop correcting him. 7 For he who denies may repent so as not to wrong you again; indeed, he may even honor you and fear you, living at peace with you. 8 And if he is shameless and continues in wrongdoing, still forgive him from your heart, leaving vengeance to God. 9 If someone prospers more than you, do not be upset, but pray for him, that he may fully succeed. 10 For this is better for you. 11 And if he is further honored, do not be jealous of him, remembering that all flesh will die. Instead, praise God, who gives good and beneficial things to everyone. 12 Seek to understand the Lord’s judgments, and your mind will be calm and at rest. 13 Even if someone becomes rich through evil methods, like Esau, my father’s brother, do not be jealous; just wait for the final outcome from the Lord. 14 For if He takes wealth unjustly acquired from someone, He forgives him if he repents; but the unrepentant is kept for eternal punishment. 15 For the poor man who is free of envy and pleases the Lord in all things is more blessed than all, because he does not share the troubles of vain men. 16 So rid envy from your souls, and love one another with sincerity of heart. 17 You too, therefore, pass these instructions on to your children, so that they may honor Judah and Levi, because from them the Lord will raise up salvation for Israel. 18 For I know that eventually your children will leave Him, and will live in wickedness and suffering and depravity before the Lord. 19 And after he paused a short while, he said again: ‘My children, obey your father, and bury me near my fathers.’ 20 And he drew up his feet and died peacefully. 21 And after five years they carried him up to Hebron and laid him with his fathers.

23The copy of the testament of Asher, the things he spoke to his sons in the one hundred and twenty-fifth year of his life. 2 For while he was still healthy, he said to them: ‘Listen, children of Asher, to your father, and I will tell you all that is upright before the Lord.’ 3 God has given two ways to people, and two inclinations, and two kinds of actions, and two modes of conduct, and two final outcomes. 4 Therefore, everything is in pairs, one opposite the other. 5 For there are two ways, good and evil, and with them are the two inclinations in our hearts that distinguish these ways. 6 Therefore, if the soul delights in the good inclination, all its actions are righteous; and if it sins, it immediately repents. 7 For having its thoughts set on righteousness, and rejecting wickedness, it quickly overthrows evil and uproots sin. 8 But if it inclines to the evil inclination, all its actions are wicked, and it casts aside the good and clings to evil, and is ruled by Beliar; even though it may do some good, he twists it to evil. 9 For whenever it begins to do good, he forces the outcome into evil for him, since the inclination’s storehouse is filled with an evil spirit. 10 A person may, by words, help what is good for the sake of what is evil, yet the final result leads to mischief. 11 There is a man who shows no compassion to someone who serves his purpose in wrongdoing; and this has two sides, but the whole is evil. 12 And there is a man who loves someone who commits evil, because he would rather die in wrongdoing for his sake; and obviously, it has two sides, but the whole is an evil deed. 13 Even if he has love, he is still wicked who hides evil for the sake of a good reputation, but the end result leads to evil. 14 Another steals, acts unjustly, robs, cheats, yet has pity on the poor. This, too, has two sides, but the whole is evil. 15 He who cheats his neighbor provokes God, swearing falsely against the Most High, and yet pities the poor. He disrespects the law commanded by the Lord and provokes Him, yet he helps the poor. 16 He defiles his soul, yet beautifies his body; he kills many, but pities a few. This, too, has two sides, but the whole is evil. 17 Another commits adultery and sexual immorality, but refrains from certain foods; and when he fasts he does evil, and by his wealth overpowers many. Despite his great wickedness he performs the commandments. This, too, has two sides, but the whole is evil. 18 Such people are like hares, clean, like those that separate the hoof, but truly they are unclean. 19 For God has declared this in the tablets of the commandments. 20 But do not be two-faced like them, both good and evil. Instead, cling only to what is good, for God dwells there, and people desire it. 21 Flee from wickedness, destroying the evil inclination by your good deeds, because those who are two-faced do not serve God, but their own desires, so that they may please Beliar and those like themselves. 22 But good people, those who have a single face, may be seen by the double-faced as sinners, yet they are righteous before God. 23 For many, when killing the wicked, do two works, good and evil. But overall it is good, because he has uprooted and destroyed what is evil. 24 One person hates the merciless and unjust man, and the man who commits adultery yet fasts. This also has two sides, but overall it is good, because he follows the Lord’s example by not accepting what appears good as genuine good. 25 Another person does not even want to see a good day with those who do evil, lest he defile his body and pollute his soul. This also is twofold, but overall it is good. 26 For such people are like stags and hinds, for in the manner of wild animals they may appear unclean, but they are entirely clean, because they act with zeal for the Lord and avoid what God hates and forbids by His commandments, rejecting evil from the good. 27 You see, my children, that there are two of everything, one opposite the other, and one is hidden by the other: in wealth is hidden greed, in feasting drunkenness, in laughter sorrow, in marriage immoral behavior. 28 Death follows life, dishonor follows glory, night follows day, and darkness follows light; and all things on earth are under day, good things under life, wicked things under death. Therefore, eternal life awaits death. 29 Nor can truth be called a lie, nor right be called wrong; for all truth is under the light, just as all things are under God. 30 I have tested all these things in my life, and I did not stray from the Lord’s truth. I searched out the commands of the Most High, living by all my strength with a single mind toward what is good. 31 So you also, my children, pay attention to the commands of the Lord, following the truth with a single heart. 32 For those who are two-faced are guilty of double sin; they do what is evil, and they take pleasure in those who do it, following the example of deceitful spirits and opposing humanity. 33 Therefore, my children, keep the law of the Lord, and do not regard evil as though it were good. Instead, look at what is truly good, and keep it in all the Lord’s commands, living in it and resting in it. 34 For people’s final deeds reveal whether they are righteous or unrighteous, when they meet the angels of the Lord or the angels of Satan. 35 For when the soul leaves in distress, it is tormented by the evil spirit it served in desires and wicked works. 36 But if it departs peacefully with joy, it meets the angel of peace, who leads it into eternal life. 37 Do not become, my children, like Sodom, which sinned against the angels of the Lord, and perished forever. 38 For I know that you will sin, and be handed over to your enemies; your land will be left desolate, your holy places destroyed, and you will be scattered to the four corners of the earth. 39 And you will be regarded as nothing in the dispersion, disappearing like water. 40 Until the Most High visits the earth, coming Himself as a human, eating and drinking among people, and crushing the head of the dragon in the water. 41 He will save Israel and all the nations, God speaking through the body of a man. 42 Therefore, you too, my children, tell these things to your children, so that they do not disobey Him. 43 For I know that you will surely be disobedient, and act in an ungodly way, not paying attention to God’s law, but following human commands, corrupted by wickedness. 44 And so you will be scattered like Gad and Dan, my brothers, and you will not know your own lands, tribe, or language. 45 But the Lord will gather you in faith through His deep mercy, for the sake of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 46 When he had said these things to them, he commanded them: ‘Bury me in Hebron.’ 47 And he lay down and died at a good old age. 48 And his sons did as he commanded, carrying him to Hebron and burying him with his fathers.

24The copy of the testament of Joseph. 2 When he was about to die he called his sons and brothers together, and said to them: 3 ‘My brothers and my children, listen to Joseph, the beloved of Israel; pay attention, my sons, to your father. 4 I have seen envy and death in my life, yet I did not go astray but remained firm in the Lord’s truth. 5 My brothers hated me, but the Lord loved me. 6 They wanted to kill me, but the God of my fathers protected me. 7 They lowered me into a pit, but the Most High lifted me out again. 8 I was sold into slavery, but the Lord of all set me free. 9 I was taken prisoner, but His mighty hand helped me. 10 I was afflicted with hunger, but the Lord Himself fed me. 11 I was alone, and God comforted me. 12 I was sick, and the Lord visited me. 13 I was in prison, and my God showed me favor. 14 In chains, and He set me free. 15 I was slandered, and He defended me. 16 Spoken against bitterly by the Egyptians, yet He rescued me. 17 Envied by my fellow slaves, and He raised me up. 18 And the chief captain of Pharaoh entrusted his house to me. 19 I fought against a shameless woman, who tried to make me sin with her; but the God of Israel my father saved me from the blazing fire. 20 I was thrown into prison, beaten, and mocked; but the Lord enabled me to find mercy in the sight of the jailer. 21 For the Lord does not abandon those who fear Him, not in darkness or chains, or in troubles, or in dire needs. 22 For God is not ashamed like a man, nor is He afraid like a human, nor is He weak or frightened like an earthborn creature. 23 But in all these things He gives protection, and in many ways He comforts, though for a short time He may step back to test the soul’s resolve. 24 He tested me with ten trials, and in all of them I endured; for endurance is powerful, and patience brings many good things. 25 How often did the Egyptian woman threaten me with death! 26 How often did she turn me over for punishment, then call me back and threaten me again, and when I refused to be with her, she said to me: 27 ‘You will be master over me and all in my house if you will give yourself to me, and you will be like our lord.’ 28 But I remembered my father’s words, and going to my chamber, I wept and prayed to the Lord. 29 And I fasted during those seven years, and I appeared to the Egyptians to be living delicately, for those who fast for God’s sake receive a brightness of face. 30 And if my master was away, I drank no wine; nor for three days did I take food, but gave it to the poor and sick. 31 And I searched for the Lord early, and wept for the Egyptian woman of Memphis, for she continually troubled me; even at night she came, pretending to visit me. 32 And since she had no son, she pretended to regard me as a son. 33 For a time she embraced me like a son, and I did not realize it; but later she tried to lure me into immorality. 34 And when I figured it out, I grieved to the point of death. And when she went out, I came to my senses, lamenting for her many days, for I saw her cunning and trickery. 35 And I warned her with the words of the Most High, hoping she might turn from her evil desire. 36 Often, therefore, she flattered me with words like I was a holy man, and slyly praised my chastity to her husband, hoping to ensnare me when we were alone. 37 For openly she praised me as virtuous, and secretly said to me: ‘Do not fear my husband, for he is convinced of your chastity; even if someone told him about us, he would not believe it.’ 38 Because of all this, I lay on the ground and begged God to deliver me from her deceptions. 39 And when she accomplished nothing by that, she came to me again under the pretense of learning the word of God. 40 And she said to me: ‘If you want me to abandon my idols, sleep with me, and I will persuade my husband to give up his idols, and we will follow the law of your Lord.’ 41 And I said: ‘The Lord does not desire those who respect Him to be unclean, nor does He delight in adulterers, but in those who approach Him with a pure heart and undefiled lips.’ 42 But she was silent, still longing to achieve her wicked desire. 43 And I devoted myself even more to fasting and prayer, so that the Lord would free me from her. 44 And once she said to me: ‘If you will not commit adultery, I will poison my husband, and then take you as my husband.’ 45 When I heard this, I tore my clothes, and said to her: 46 ‘Woman, fear God, and do not do this evil deed or you will be destroyed. Know that I will make your plan known to everyone.’ 47 Then she, being afraid, begged me not to report her plot. 48 And she left, trying to soothe me with gifts, sending me every delight of humanity. 49 Later, she sent me food mixed with spells. 50 And when the eunuch who brought it arrived, I looked up and saw a terrible man giving me a sword along with the dish, and I realized her plan was to deceive me. 51 And when he left, I wept, and I did not taste that or any other of her food. 52 So after a day passed, she came to me and noticed the food, and said: ‘Why have you not eaten any of the food?’ 53 And I said: ‘Because you have filled it with deadly spells. How did you say, I am not close to idols, only to the Lord alone?’ 54 Now, therefore, understand that the God of my father made known your wickedness to me through His angel, and I kept it to convict you if you might see it and repent. 55 But so that you may know the wickedness of sinners has no power over those who worship God in purity, look, I will eat some of it right before you. 56 And having said that, I prayed: ‘God of my fathers and angel of Abraham, be with me,’ and I ate. 57 And when she saw this she fell on her face at my feet, weeping, and I lifted her up and scolded her. 58 And she promised never again to do this evil. 59 But her heart was still set on sin, and she kept watch for some way to trap me, sighing sorrowfully yet not truly sick. 60 And when her husband saw her, he said: ‘Why has your face fallen?’ 61 And she said: ‘I have a pain in my heart, and my spirit’s groaning overwhelms me.’ So he tried to comfort her, though she was not really ill. 62 Then she seized an opportunity, rushing to me while her husband was still outside, and said: ‘I will hang myself or throw myself off a cliff if you will not lie with me.’ 63 And seeing that the spirit of Beliar tormented her, I prayed to the Lord and said to her: 64 ‘Why, miserable woman, are you so upset and troubled, blinded by sin?’ 65 Remember that if you kill yourself, Asteho, your husband’s concubine, your rival, will beat your children, and you will erase your memory from the earth. 66 And she said: ‘Then you do love me; let that be enough for me. Just make sure I do not lose my life and my children, and I hope I will have my desire as well.’ 67 But she did not understand that I spoke like this for the sake of my master, not for her. 68 For if someone has fallen to a wicked desire and becomes its slave, as she did, then anything good he hears related to that desire is taken in a sinful way. 69 So I say to you, my children, that it was about midday when she left me; and I knelt before the Lord the whole day and all night, and at dawn I got up still weeping and praying for escape from her. 70 Finally, she grabbed my clothes, forcibly pulling me to have relations with her. 71 When I saw that in her madness she held fast to my garment, I left it behind and fled away naked. 72 Still holding my garment, she falsely accused me, and when her husband returned, he threw me into the prison of his house. On the next day, he whipped me and sent me to Pharaoh’s prison. 73 While I was in chains, the Egyptian woman was worn with grief, and she came and listened to how I gave thanks to the Lord and sang praises in the darkness, and how with a joyful voice I rejoiced, glorifying my God that He delivered me from the Egyptian woman’s lust. 74 She often sent messages to me saying: ‘Give in to my desire, and I will free you from your chains and let you leave the darkness.’ 75 But not even in thought did I yield to her. 76 For God loves a person in a den of wickedness who combines fasting with chastity, more than someone in royal chambers who lives in luxury with indulgence. 77 And if anyone lives chastely and also seeks honor, and the Most High knows it is best, He grants it to him as well. 78 Many times, even though she was sick, she came unexpectedly to listen to me pray. 79 And when I heard her moans, I remained silent. 80 For when I was in her house, she would expose her arms, her breasts, and her legs, so that I might lie with her, for she was extremely beautiful, ornately decorated to seduce me. 81 And the Lord protected me from her schemes.

25You see, therefore, my children, how great the results of patience and prayer with fasting can be. 2 Likewise, if you follow chastity and purity with patience and prayer, with fasting and humility of heart, the Lord will live among you, because He loves chastity. 3 Wherever the Most High dwells, even if envy or slavery or slander comes upon a person, the Lord who lives in that person—because of his chastity—will not only save him from evil but will also honor him, as He did with me. 4 For in every way the man is uplifted, whether by deed, word, or thought. 5 My brothers knew how our father loved me, and yet I never exalted myself in my mind. Though I was a child, I had a reverential fear of God in my heart, for I knew all things would pass away. 6 And I did not rise against them with malicious intent, but I respected my brothers. And out of consideration for them, even when I was being sold, I did not tell the Ishmaelites that I was Jacob’s son, a great and mighty man. 7 You also, my children, must have the fear of God in all your deeds, and respect your brothers. 8 For whoever does the Lord’s law will be loved by Him. 9 And when I arrived among the Indocolpitae with the Ishmaelites, they asked me, 10 ‘Are you a slave?’ And I said that I was a homeborn slave, so I wouldn’t bring shame on my brothers. 11 And the eldest among them said to me: ‘You are not a slave, for your appearance shows otherwise.’ 12 But I still said that I was their slave. 13 When we got to Egypt, they quarreled about who should buy me and take me. 14 It seemed best to all that I remain in Egypt with the merchant of their trade until they returned with their goods. 15 And the Lord gave me favor in the merchant’s eyes, and he entrusted his household to me. 16 And God blessed him because of me, and he increased in gold and silver and servants. 17 And I stayed with him three months and five days. 18 About that time the Memphian woman, the wife of Pentephris, came down with pomp in a chariot, because she had heard from her eunuchs about me. 19 And she told her husband that the merchant had grown wealthy by means of a young Hebrew, and they said he was surely stolen out of the land of Canaan. 20 ‘Now then, see that justice is done to him, and take the young man into your home. Then the God of the Hebrews will bless you, for heavenly favor rests on him.’ 21 And Pentephris was persuaded by her words and summoned the merchant, saying to him: 22 ‘What do I hear about you—that you steal people from the land of Canaan and sell them as slaves?’ 23 But the merchant fell at his feet, begging him, saying, ‘I beg you, my lord, I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ 24 And Pentephris said to him, ‘Where then did you get the Hebrew slave?’ 25 And he said, ‘The Ishmaelites gave him to me until they returned.’ 26 But he did not believe him and ordered him to be stripped and beaten. 27 Although he kept insisting on his statement, Pentephris said: ‘Bring the young man in.’ 28 And when I was brought in, I bowed to Pentephris, for he was third among Pharaoh’s officers. 29 He took me aside and said to me: ‘Are you a slave or free?’ 30 And I said: ‘A slave.’ 31 And he said: ‘Whose slave?’ 32 And I said: ‘The Ishmaelites’.’ 33 And he said: ‘How did you become their slave?’ 34 And I said: ‘They bought me from the land of Canaan.’ 35 And he said to me: ‘You are lying,’ and he immediately ordered that I be stripped and beaten. 36 Now, the Memphian woman was watching me through a window as I was being beaten, for her house was nearby, and she sent a message to him, saying: 37 ‘Your judgment is unfair; you punish a free man who was kidnapped, as if he were guilty.’ 38 And even though I was beaten, I did not change my story, so he had me imprisoned until, he said, the owners of the boy should appear. 39 The woman said to her husband: ‘Why do you keep in chains this boy who is well-born, who should instead be set free and attended to?’ 40 For she wanted to see me out of a sinful desire, though I was unaware of all this. 41 And he said: ‘It is not the Egyptian custom to take another’s property without proof.’ 42 This he said concerning the merchant, but concerning me, ‘He must be kept in jail.’ 43 After twenty-four days, the Ishmaelites arrived, for they had heard that Jacob my father was deeply mourning for me. 44 And they came and said to me: ‘How is it that you said you were a slave? Look, we heard you are a son of a powerful man in the land of Canaan, and your father is mourning in sackcloth and ashes for you.’ 45 When I heard this, my insides were shaken, and my heart melted. I wanted greatly to cry, but I kept myself from doing so, so I would not put my brothers to shame. 46 And I said to them, ‘I do not know; I am a slave.’ 47 Then they decided to sell me, so I would not be found in their possession. 48 For they feared my father might come and take severe revenge on them. 49 They had heard he was mighty with God and with men. 50 Then the merchant said to them: ‘Release me from the judgment of Pentephris.’ 51 And they came and asked me: ‘Say that you were bought by us with money, and he will free us from blame.’ 52 Now the Memphian woman said to her husband: ‘Buy the young man, for I have heard they are selling him.’ 53 Immediately, she sent a eunuch to the Ishmaelites to ask if they would sell me. 54 But the eunuch did not agree with their price, so he returned after testing them, and told his mistress that they demanded a high price for their slave. 55 So she sent another eunuch, saying: ‘Even if they want two minas, give it to them. Do not spare any gold. Just buy the boy and bring him to me.’ 56 Therefore, the eunuch went and gave them eighty pieces of gold, and they gave me to him. Yet he told the Egyptian woman he had given them a hundred. 57 Although I knew this, I kept quiet so the eunuch wouldn’t be shamed. 58 You see, my children, all I endured so as not to shame my brothers. 59 You also, therefore, love one another, and in patience conceal each other’s faults. 60 For God delights in unity among brothers, and in the purpose of a heart that takes pleasure in love. 61 And when my brothers came to Egypt, they discovered that I had returned their money to them, did not blame them, and comforted them. 62 And after the death of Jacob my father, I loved them even more generously, and whatever he had commanded, I carried it out for them abundantly. 63 I did not allow them to be harmed in the least, and whatever was in my power, I gave to them. 64 And their children were as my children, and my children as their servants; their life was my life, all their suffering was my suffering, and all their sickness was my sickness. 65 My land was their land, and their plans were my plans. 66 I did not become proud among them because of worldly honors, but I was among them like the least of all. 67 If you also walk in the Lord’s commands, my children, He will exalt you there, and bless you with everlasting good things. 68 And if anyone tries to harm you, do good to him and pray for him, and the Lord will free you from all evil. 69 For see that because of my humility and patience, I took as a wife the daughter of the priest of Heliopolis. 70 And I received a hundred talents of gold with her, and the Lord caused them to serve me. 71 And He gave me beauty like a flower beyond the beautiful ones of Israel; He preserved my strength and appearance into old age, because in all things I resembled Jacob. 72 And now listen, my children, to the vision I saw. 73 There were twelve stags feeding, and nine of them scattered over all the earth, and likewise the other three. 74 And I saw that from Judah was born a virgin wearing a linen garment, from whom was born a lamb without blemish; and on his left side there was something like a lion. All the beasts rushed against him, but the lamb overpowered them and destroyed them and trampled them underfoot. 75 Because of him, the angels and people rejoiced, and so did all the earth. 76 And these things will happen in due season, in the last days. 77 So you, my children, keep the commands of the Lord, and honor Levi and Judah, for from them will arise the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, the one who saves all nations and Israel. 78 For His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, which will never pass away. But my kingdom among you will end like a watchman’s hammock, disappearing after the summer. 79 For I know that after my death the Egyptians will oppress you, but God will avenge you and bring you into the land He promised your fathers. 80 But you must carry my bones up with you; for when my bones are taken up there, the Lord will be with you in light, and Beliar with the Egyptians in darkness. 81 And carry Asenath your mother to the Hippodrome, and bury her near Rachel your mother. 82 And when he had said these things, he stretched out his feet and died at a good old age. 83 All Israel mourned for him, and all Egypt with great lamentation. 84 And when the children of Israel left Egypt, they took Joseph’s bones with them, and buried him in Hebron with his fathers. He lived one hundred and ten years.

26The copy of the words of Benjamin, which he commanded his sons to observe, having lived one hundred and twenty-five years. 2 And he kissed them, saying: ‘Just as Isaac was born to Abraham in his old age, so I was born to Jacob.’ 3 And because Rachel my mother died giving birth to me, I had no milk; so I was nursed by Bilhah, her servant. 4 For Rachel was barren for twelve years after bearing Joseph; and she prayed to the Lord with fasting for twelve days, and she conceived and bore me. 5 For my father dearly loved Rachel, and prayed that two sons might be born to her. 6 Therefore I was called Benjamin, that is, a son of old age. 7 When I went into Egypt, to Joseph, and my brother recognized me, he said to me: ‘What did they tell our father when they sold me?’ 8 And I said to him: ‘They dipped your coat in blood and sent it, saying, “See if this is your son’s coat.”’ 9 And he said to me: ‘Indeed, brother, when they stripped me of my coat they handed me over to the Ishmaelites, who clothed me with a loincloth, whipped me, and made me run. 10 And as for one of them who beat me with a rod, a lion met him and killed him. 11 And so his associates were terrified. 12 So you too, my children, love the Lord God of heaven and earth, keep His commands, following the example of the good and holy Joseph. 13 Let your mind be toward goodness, just as you know me, for whoever has a right mind sees everything rightly. 14 Fear the Lord and love your neighbor; and even if the spirits of Beliar try to trouble you with all evils, they will not master you, just as they did not master my brother Joseph. 15 How many people wanted to kill him, but God protected him. 16 For one who fears God and loves his neighbor cannot be struck down by the spirit of Beliar, because he is guarded by the fear of God. 17 Nor can he be overpowered by human or animal schemes, because the Lord helps him through the love he has for his neighbor. 18 For Joseph also asked our father to pray for his brothers, that the Lord would not hold as sin whatever evil they did against him. 19 Thus Jacob cried out: ‘My good child, you have won over the heart of your father Jacob.’ 20 And he embraced him, kissing him for two hours, saying: 21 ‘In you shall be fulfilled heaven’s prophecy about the Lamb of God and Savior of the world, that an innocent one shall be handed over for lawless people, and a sinless one shall die for the ungodly in the blood of the covenant for the salvation of both Gentiles and Israel, destroying Beliar and his servants.’ 22 Look, then, my children, at the end result of a good man. 23 So imitate his compassion with a sincere mind, that you also may wear crowns of glory. 24 For a good person does not have a dark eye; he shows mercy to everyone, even sinners. 25 And though they plan evil against him, by doing good he overcomes evil, being protected by God; and he loves the righteous as his own soul. 26 If anyone is honored, he is not jealous; if anyone becomes rich, he does not envy; if anyone is strong, he praises him; if someone is virtuous, he commends him; for the poor he shows mercy; for the weak he has compassion; he praises God in everything. 27 And whoever has the grace of a good spirit, he loves as his own soul. 28 Therefore, if you also have a good mind, wicked people will be at peace with you, and the immoral will respect you and turn to goodness; and the greedy will not only stop their excessive desire but will even give the objects of their greed to those in need. 29 If you do good, even unclean spirits will run from you, and wild animals will fear you. 30 For where respect for good deeds exists and there is light in the mind, darkness flees. 31 For if anyone injures a holy man, he later regrets it; because the holy man has mercy on his attacker and remains silent. 32 And if someone betrays a righteous man, the righteous one prays for him; though he may be briefly humiliated, not long after he appears far more glorious, just as my brother Joseph was. 33 The good inclination in a person is not controlled by the spirit of Beliar’s deceit, for the angel of peace guides that soul. 34 And he does not passionately gaze upon corruptible things, nor gather riches for pleasure. 35 He does not delight in pleasure, he does not hurt his neighbor, he does not indulge in luxuries. He does not sin by haughty eyes, for the Lord is his share. 36 The good inclination does not receive praise or shame from others, and it does not know deceit, or lies, or hostility, or insults; for the Lord lives in him and enlightens his soul, so he rejoices with everyone always. 37 The good mind does not have two tongues: one of blessing and one of cursing, one of contempt and one of honor, one of sorrow and one of joy, one of quiet and one of confusion, one of hypocrisy and one of truth, one of poverty and one of wealth. Instead, it has one unwavering disposition toward everyone: pure and incorruptible. 38 It has no double vision, no double hearing; for in everything he does, says, or sees, he knows the Lord observes his soul. 39 And he cleanses his mind so that he is not condemned by people or by God. 40 Similarly, Beliar’s works are twofold, and there is no sincerity in them. 41 So, my children, I tell you, flee from the malice of Beliar, for he gives a sword to those who obey him. 42 And the sword is mother to seven evils. First, the mind is enticed by Beliar, leading to bloodshed; second, to ruin; third, to agony; fourth, to exile; fifth, to famine; sixth, to panic; seventh, to destruction. 43 That is why Cain was also handed over by God to seven punishments; for every hundred years the Lord brought a plague upon him. 44 And when he was two hundred years old, he started to suffer, and at nine hundred years, he was destroyed. 45 For because of Abel his brother, he was judged with all these evils, but Lamech with seventy times seven. 46 For forever, those who act like Cain in envy and hatred of siblings will be punished with the same verdict.

27So you, my children, run from wrongdoing, envy, and hatred of your brothers, and hold on to goodness and love. 2 Whoever has a pure mind in love does not look at a woman with the intent of sexual sin, for his heart has no defilement, since the Spirit of God rests on him. 3 For just as the sun is not polluted by shining on dung and mud, but instead dries them and removes the foul smell, so too does the pure mind, although surrounded by earthly corruptions, cleanse them and remain undefiled itself. 4 And I believe, from the words of the righteous Enoch, that there will also be evil deeds among you: you will commit immoral acts like Sodom and perish, all but a few, and you will renew immoral practices with women; and the kingdom of the Lord will not be among you, for He will take it away at once. 5 Nevertheless, God’s temple will be in your territory, and the last temple will be more glorious than the first. 6 And the twelve tribes will gather there, and all the Gentiles, until the Most High sends out His salvation in the revealing of His only-begotten prophet. 7 And He will enter the first temple, and there the Lord will be insulted, and He will be lifted up on a tree. 8 And the temple’s veil will be torn, and the Spirit of God will pass to the Gentiles like poured-out fire. 9 And He will rise from Hades and pass from earth into heaven. 10 And I know how humble He will be on earth and how glorious in heaven. 11 Now, when Joseph was in Egypt, I longed to see what he looked like and his appearance, and through my father Jacob’s prayers I saw him while awake in the daytime, exactly as he was in every detail. 12 And when he had said these things, he told them: ‘Know, then, my children, that I am dying.’ 13 So tell the truth each to his neighbor, and keep the law of the Lord and His commands. 14 For I leave these things to you in place of an inheritance. 15 So you also, give them to your children as an eternal possession; for that is what Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob did. 16 For all these things they gave us as an inheritance, saying, ‘Keep the commandments of God until the Lord reveals His salvation to all nations.’ 17 Then you will see Enoch, Noah, Shem, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob rising in joy on the right side. 18 Then we too will rise, each one over his tribe, worshiping the King of heaven who appeared on earth as a humble man. 19 And as many as trust in Him on the earth will rejoice with Him. 20 Then all people will rise, some to glory and some to shame. 21 And the Lord will judge Israel first for their injustice; for when He appeared as God in the flesh to save them, they did not believe Him. 22 Then He will judge all the Gentiles, as many as did not believe in Him when He appeared on earth. 23 And He will convict Israel through the chosen ones from among the Gentiles, just as He used the Midianites to rebuke Esau, who deceived his relatives so that they fell into immorality and idolatry, becoming alienated from God, and thus children in the lot of those who fear the Lord. 24 If you therefore, my children, walk in holiness, following the Lord’s commands, then you will again live securely with me, and all Israel will be gathered to the Lord. 25 I will no longer be called a ravenous wolf because of your destruction, but a worker of the Lord distributing food to those who do good. 26 In the last days, one who is loved by the Lord will arise from the tribe of Judah and Levi, one who does His good pleasure in his words, bringing new understanding that enlightens the Gentiles. 27 Until the end of time he will be among the Gentiles’ assemblies and among their rulers, like music on everyone’s lips. 28 And he will be written in the holy books, both his works and his words, and he will be God’s chosen one forever. 29 Through them he will travel back and forth, like my father Jacob said, and he will complete whatever your tribe lacks. 30 And after he said these things, he stretched out his feet, 31 And died a wonderful and peaceful death. 32 And his sons did just as he directed, taking his body and burying it in Hebron with his fathers. 33 The total days of his life were one hundred and twenty-five years.