The Book of Jubilees (5) Chaper 35 - 49

The Book of Jubilees (con't) From R. H. Charles (1913). The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament. Oxford: The Clarendon Press. Chapter 35 1 And in the first year of the first week of the forty-fifth jubilee [2157 A.M.] Rebecca called Jacob, her son, and commanded him regarding his father and regarding his brother, that he should honour them all the 2 days of his life. And Jacob said: 'I will do everything as thou hast commanded me; for this thing will be honour and greatness to me, and righteousness before the Lord, that I should honour them. 3 And thou too, mother, knowest from the time I was born until this day, all my deeds and all that is in 4 my heart, that I always think good concerning all. And how should I not do this thing which thou 5 hast commanded me, that I should honour my father and my brother! Tell me, mother, what 6 perversity hast thou seen in me and I shall turn away from it, and mercy will be upon me.' And she said unto him: 'My son, I have not seen in thee all my days any perverse but (only) upright deeds. And yet I will tell thee the truth, my son: I shall die this year, and I shall not survive this year in my life; for I have seen in a dream the day of my death, that I should not live beyond a hundred and fifty-five years: and behold I have completed all the days of my life which I am to 7 live.' And Jacob laughed at the words of his mother. because his mother had said unto him that she should die; and she was sitting opposite to him in possession of her strength, and she was not infirm in her strength; for she went in and out and saw, and her teeth were strong, and no ailment 8 had touched her all the days of her life. And Jacob said unto her: 'Blessed am I, mother, if my days approach the days of thy life, and my strength remain with me thus as thy strength: and thou 9 wilt not die, for thou art jesting idly with me regarding thy death.' And she went in to Isaac and said unto him: 'One petition I make unto thee: make Esau swear that he will not injure Jacob, nor pursue him with enmity; for thou knowest Esau's thoughts that they are perverse from his youth, 10 and there is no goodness in him; for he desires after thy death to kill him. And thou knowest all that he has done since the day Jacob his brother went to Haran until this day: how he has forsaken us with his whole heart, and has done evil to us; thy flocks he has taken to himself, and carried off 11 all thy possessions from before thy face. And when we implored and besought him for what was 12 our own, he did as a man who was taking pity on us. And he is bitter against thee because thou didst bless Jacob thy perfect and upright son; for there is no evil but only goodness in him, and since he came from Haran unto this day he has not robbed us of aught, for he brings us everything in its season always, and rejoices with all his heart when we take at his hands and he blesses us, and has not parted from us since he came from Haran until this day, and he remains with us continually 13 at home honouring us.' And Isaac said unto her: 'I, too, know and see the deeds of Jacob who is with us, how that with all his heart he honours us; but I loved Esau formerly more than Jacob, because he was the firstborn; but now I love Jacob more than Esau, for he has done manifold evil deeds, and there is no righteousness in him, for all his ways are unrighteousness and violence, [and 14 there is no righteousness around him.] And now my heart is troubled because of all his deeds, and neither he nor his seed is to be saved, for they are those who will be destroyed from the earth and who will be rooted out from under heaven, for he has forsaken the God of Abraham and gone 15 after his wives and after their uncleanness and after their error, he and his children. And thou dost bid me make him swear that he will not slay Jacob his brother; even if he swear he will not abide 16 by his oath, and he will not do good but evil only. But if he desires to slay Jacob, his brother, into Jacob's hands will he be given, and he will not escape from his hands, [for he will descend into his 17 hands.] And fear thou not on account of Jacob; for the guardian of Jacob is great and powerful 18 and honoured, and praised more than the guardian of Esau.' And Rebecca sent and called Esau and he came to her, and she said unto him: 'I have a petition, my son, to make unto thee, and do 19 thou promise to do it, my son.' And he said: 'I will do everything that thou sayest unto me, and 20 I will not refuse thy petition.' And she said unto him: 'I ask you that the day I die, thou wilt take me in and bury me near Sarah, thy father's mother, and that thou and Jacob will love each other and that neither will desire evil against the other, but mutual love only, and (so) ye will prosper, my sons, and be honoured in the midst of the land, and no enemy will rejoice over you, and ye will be 21 a blessing and a mercy in the eyes of all those that love you.' And he said: 'I will do all that thou hast told me, and I shall bury thee on the day thou diest near Sarah, my father's mother, as 22 thou hast desired that her bones may be near thy bones. And Jacob, my brother, also, I shall love above all flesh; for I have not a brother in all the earth but him only: and this is no great merit for me if I love him; for he is my brother, and we were sown together in thy body, and together came 23 we forth from thy womb, and if I do not love my brother, whom shall I love? And I, myself, beg thee to exhort Jacob concerning me and concerning my sons, for I know that he will assuredly be king over me and my sons, for on the day my father blessed him he made him the higher and me 24 the lower. And I swear unto thee that I shall love him, and not desire evil against him all the 25 days of my life but good only.' And he sware unto her regarding all this matter. And she called Jacob before the eyes of Esau, and gave him commandment according to the words which 26 she had spoken to Esau. And he said: 'I shall do thy pleasure; believe me that no evil will proceed from me or from my sons against Esau, and I shall be first in naught save in love only.' 27 And they eat and drank, she and her sons that night, and she died, three jubilees and one week and one year old, on that night, and her two sons, Esau and Jacob, buried her in the double cave near Sarah, their father's mother. Chapter 36 1 And in the sixth year of this week [2162 A.M.] Isaac called his two sons Esau and Jacob, and they came to him, and he said unto them: 'My sons, I am going the way of my fathers, to the eternal house 2 where my fathers are. Wherefore bury me near Abraham my father, in the double cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite, where Abraham purchased a sepulchre to bury in; in the sepulchre which 3 I digged for myself, there bury me. And this I command you, my sons, that ye practise righteousness and uprightness on the earth, so that the Lord may bring upon you all that the Lord said that 4 he would do to Abraham and to his seed. And love one another, my sons, your brothers as a man who loves his own soul, and let each seek in what he may benefit his brother, and act together on the earth; and let them love each other as their own souls. And concerning the question of idols, I command and admonish you to reject them and hate them, and love them not, for they are full 6 of deception for those that worship them and for those that bow down to them. Remember ye, my sons, the Lord God of Abraham your father, and how I too worshipped Him and served Him in righteousness and in joy, that He might multiply you and increase your seed as the stars of heaven in multitude, and establish you on the earth as the plant of righteousness which will not be rooted 7 out unto all the generations for ever. And now I shall make you swear a great oath -for there is no oath which is greater than it by the name glorious and honoured and great and splendid and wonderful and mighty, which created the heavens and the earth and all things together- that ye will 8 fear Him and worship Him. And that each will love his brother with affection and righteousness, and that neither will desire evil against his brother from henceforth for ever all the days of your life 9 so that ye may prosper in all your deeds and not be destroyed. And if either of you devises evil against his brother, know that from henceforth everyone that devises evil against his brother shall fall into his hand, and shall be rooted out of the land of the living, and his seed shall be destroyed from 10 under heaven. But on the day of turbulence and execration and indignation and anger, with flaming devouring fire as He burnt Sodom, so likewise will He burn his land and his city and all that is his, and he shall be blotted out of the book of the discipline of the children of men, and not be recorded in the book of life, but in that which is appointed to destruction, and he shall depart into eternal execration; so that their condemnation may be always renewed in hate and in execration and in wrath and in torment and in indignation and in plagues and in disease for ever. I say and testify to you, my sons, according to the judgment which shall come upon the man who wishes to 12 injure his brother. And he divided all his possessions between the two on that day and he gave the larger portion to him that was the first-born, and the tower and all that was about it, and all that 13 Abraham possessed at the Well of the Oath. And he said: 'This larger portion I will give to the 14 firstborn.' And Esau said, 'I have sold to Jacob and given my birthright to Jacob; to him let it be 15 given, and I have not a single word to say regarding it, for it is his.' And Isaac said, May a blessing rest upon you, my sons, and upon your seed this day, for ye have given me rest, and my heart is not 16 pained concerning the birthright, lest thou shouldest work wickedness on account of it. May the 17 Most High God bless the man that worketh righteousness, him and his seed for ever.' And he ended commanding them and blessing them, and they eat and drank together before him, and he rejoiced because there was one mind between them, and they went forth from him and rested that day and 18 slept. And Isaac slept on his bed that day rejoicing; and he slept the eternal sleep, and died one hundred and eighty years old. He completed twenty-five weeks and five years; and his two sons 19 Esau and Jacob buried him. And Esau went to the land of Edom, to the mountains of Seir, and 20 dwelt there. And Jacob dwelt in the mountains of Hebron, in the tower of the land of the sojournings of his father Abraham, and he worshipped the Lord with all his heart and according to the visible 21 commands according as He had divided the days of his generations. And Leah his wife died in the fourth year of the second week of the forty-fifth jubilee, [2167 A.M.] and he buried her in the double cave 23 near Rebecca his mother to the left of the grave of Sarah, his father's mother and all her sons and his sons came to mourn over Leah his wife with him and to comfort him regarding her, for he 24 was lamenting her for he loved her exceedingly after Rachel her sister died; for she was perfect and upright in all her ways and honoured Jacob,and all the days that she lived with him he did not hear from her mouth a harsh word, for she was gentle and peaceable and upright and honourable 24 And he remembered all her deeds which she had done during her life and he lamented her exceedingly; for he loved her with all his heart and with all his soul. Chapter 37 1 And on the day that Isaac the father of Jacob and Esau died, [2162 A.M.] the sons of Esau heard that Isaac 2 had given the portion of the elder to his younger son Jacob and they were very angry. And they strove with their father, saying 'Why has thy father given Jacob the portion of the elder and passed 3 over thee, although thou art the elder and Jacob the younger?' And he said unto them 'Because I sold my birthright to Jacob for a small mess of lentils, and on the day my father sent me to hunt and catch and bring him something that he should eat and bless me, he came with guile and brought 4 my father food and drink, and my father blessed him and put me under his hand. And now our father has caused us to swear, me and him, that we shall not mutually devise evil, either against his brother, and that we shall continue in love and in peace each with his brother and not make our ways 5 corrupt.' And they said unto him, 'We shall not hearken unto thee to make peace with him; for our strength is greater than his strength, and we are more powerful than he; we shall go against him and slay him, and destroy him and his sons. And if thou wilt not go with us, we shall do hurt 6 to thee also. And now hearken unto us: Let us send to Aram and Philistia and Moab and Ammon, and let us choose for ourselves chosen men who are ardent for battle, and let us go against him and do battle with him, and let us exterminate him from the earth before he grows strong.' 7 And their father said unto them, 'Do not go and do not make war with him lest ye fall before him.' 8 And they said unto him, 'This too, is exactly thy mode of action from thy youth until this day, and 9 thou art putting thy neck under his yoke. We shall not hearken to these words.' And they sent to Aram, and to 'Aduram to the friend of their father, and they hired along with them one thousand 10 fighting men, chosen men of war. And there came to them from Moab and from the children of Ammon, those who were hired, one thousand chosen men, and from Philistia, one thousand chosen men of war, and from Edom and from the Horites one thousand chosen fighting men, and from the 11 Kittim mighty men of war. And they said unto their father: Go forth with them and lead them, 12 else we shall slay thee.' And he was filled with wrath and indignation on seeing that his sons were forcing him to go before (them) to lead them against Jacob his brother. But afterward he remem- 13 bered all the evil which lay hidden in his heart against Jacob his brother; and he remembered not the oath which he had sworn to his father and to his mother that he would devise no evil all his days 14 against Jacob his brother. And notwithstanding all this, Jacob knew not that they were coming against him to battle, and he was mourning for Leah, his wife, until they approached very near to the 15 tower with four thousand warriors and chosen men of war And the men of Hebron sent to him saying, 'Behold thy brother has come against thee, to fight thee, with four thousand girt with the sword, and they carry shields and weapons'; for they loved Jacob more than Esau. So they told him; for 16 Jacob was a more liberal and merciful man than Esau. But Jacob would not believe until they came 17 very near to the tower. And he closed the gates of the tower; and he stood on the battlements and spake to his brother Esau and said, 'Noble is the comfort wherewith thou hast come to comfort me for my wife who has died. Is this the oath that thou didst swear to thy father and again to thy mother before they died? Thou hast broken the oath, and on the moment that thou didst swear to 18 thy father wast thou condemned.' And then Esau answered and said unto him, 'Neither the children of men nor the beasts of the earth have any oath of righteousness which in swearing they have sworn (an oath valid) for ever; but every day they devise evil one against another, and how each 19 may slay his adversary and foe. And thou dost hate me and my children for ever. And there is 20 no observing the tie of brotherhood with thee. Hear these words which I declare unto thee, If the boar can change its skin and make its bristles as soft as wool, Or if it can cause horns to sprout forth on its head like the horns of a stag or of a sheep, Then will I observe the tie of brotherhood with thee And if the breasts separated themselves from their mother, for thou hast not been a brother to me. 21 And if the wolves make peace with the lambs so as not to devour or do them violence, And if their hearts are towards them for good, Then there shall be peace in my heart towards thee 22 And if the lion becomes the friend of the ox and makes peace with him And if he is bound under one yoke with him and ploughs with him, Then will I make peace with thee. 23 And when the raven becomes white as the raza, Then know that I have loved thee And shall make peace with thee Thou shalt be rooted out, And thy sons shall be rooted out, And there shall be no peace for thee' 24 And when Jacob saw that he was (so) evilly disposed towards him with his heart, and with all his soul as to slay him, and that he had come springing like the wild boar which comes upon 25 the spear that pierces and kills it, and recoils not from it; then he spake to his own and to his servants that they should attack him and all his companions. Chapter 38 1 And after that Judah spake to Jacob, his father, and said unto him: 'Bend thy bow, father, and send forth thy arrows and cast down the adversary and slay the enemy; and mayst thou have the power, for we shall not slay thy brother, for he is such as thou, and he is like thee let us give him 2 (this) honour.' Then Jacob bent his bow and sent forth the arrow and struck Esau, his brother (on 3 his right breast) and slew him. And again he sent forth an arrow and struck 'Adoran the Aramaean, 4 on the left breast, and drove him backward and slew him And then went forth the sons of Jacob, 5 they and their servants, dividing themselves into companies on the four sides of the tower. And Judah went forth in front, and Naphtali and Gad with him and fifty servants with him on the south side of the tower, and they slew all they found before them, and not one individual of them escaped. 6 And Levi and Dan and Asher went forth on the east side of the tower, and fifty (men) with them, 7 and they slew the fighting men of Moab and Ammon. And Reuben and Issachar and Zebulon went forth on the north side of the tower, and fifty men with them, and they slew the fighting men of the 8 Philistines. And Simeon and Benjamin and Enoch, Reuben's son, went forth on the west side of the tower, and fifty (men) with them, and they slew of Edom and of the Horites four hundred men, stout warriors; and six hundred fled, and four of the sons of Esau fled with them, and left their father 9 lying slain, as he had fallen on the hill which is in 'Aduram. And the sons of Jacob pursued after them to the mountains of Seir. And Jacob buried his brother on the hill which is in 'Aduram, and 10 he returned to his house. And the sons of Jacob pressed hard upon the sons of Esau in the moun- 11 tains of Seir, and bowed their necks so that they became servants of the sons of Jacob. And they 12 sent to their father (to inquire) whether they should make peace with them or slay them. And Jacob sent word to his sons that they should make peace, and they made peace with them, and placed the 13 yoke of servitude upon them, so that they paid tribute to Jacob and to his sons always. And they 14 continued to pay tribute to Jacob until the day that he went down into Egypt. And the sons of Edom have not got quit of the yoke of servitude which the twelve sons of Jacob had imposed on 15 them until this day. And these are the kings that reigned in Edom before there reigned any king 16 over the children of Israel [until this day] in the land of Edom. And Balaq, the son of Beor, reigned 17 in Edom, and the name of his city was Danaba. And Balaq died, and Jobab, the son of Zara of 18 Boser, reigned in his stead. And Jobab died, and 'Asam, of the land of Teman, reigned in his stead. 19 And 'Asam died, and 'Adath, the son of Barad, who slew Midian in the field of Moab, reigned in his 20 stead, and the name of his city was Avith. And 'Adath died, and Salman, from 'Amaseqa, reigned 21,22 in his stead. And Salman died,and Saul of Ra'aboth (by the) river, reigned in his stead. And Saul 23 died, and Ba'elunan, the son of Achbor, reigned in his stead. And Ba'elunan, the son of Achbor died, and 'Adath reigned in his stead, and the name of his wife was Maitabith, the daughter of 25 Matarat, the daughter of Metabedza'ab. These are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom. Chapter 39 1,2 And Jacob dwelt in the land of his father's sojournings in the land of Canaan. These are the generations of Jacob. And Joseph was seventeen years old when they took him down into 3 the land of Egypt, and Potiphar, an eunuch of Pharaoh, the chief cook bought him. And he set Joseph over all his house and the blessing of the Lord came upon the house of the Egyptian on 4 account of Joseph, and the Lord prospered him in all that he did. And the Egyptian committed everything into the hands of Joseph; for he saw that the Lord was with him, and that the 5 Lord prospered him in all that he did. And Joseph's appearance was comely [and very beautiful was his appearance], and his master's wife lifted up her eyes and saw Joseph, and she loved him 6 and besought him to lie with her. But he did not surrender his soul, and he remembered the Lord and the words which Jacob, his father, used to read from amongst the words of Abraham, that no man should commit fornication with a woman who has a husband; that for him the punishment of death has been ordained in the heavens before the Most High God, and the sin 7 will be recorded against him in the eternal books continually before the Lord. And Joseph 8 remembered these words and refused to lie with her. And she besought him for a year, but he 9 refused and would not listen. But she embraced him and held him fast in the house in order to force him to lie with her, and closed the doors of the house and held him fast; but he left 10 his garment in her hands and broke through the door and fled without from her presence. And the woman saw that he would not lie with her, and she calumniated him in the presence of his lord, saying 'Thy Hebrew servant, whom thou lovest, sought to force me so that he might lie with me; and it came to pass when I lifted up my voice that he fled and left his garment in 11 my hands when I held him, and he brake through the door.' And the Egyptian saw the garment of Joseph and the broken door, and heard the words of his wife, and cast Joseph into 12 prison into the place where the prisoners were kept whom the king imprisoned. And he was there in the prison; and the Lord gave Joseph favour in the sight of the chief of the prison guards and compassion before him, for he saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord 13 made all that he did to prosper. And he committed all things into his hands, and the chief of the prison guards knew of nothing that was with him, for Joseph did every thing, and the 14 Lord perfected it. And he remained there two years. And in those days Pharaoh, king of Egypt was wroth against his two eunuchs, against the chief butler, and against the chief baker, and he put 15 them in ward in the house of the chief cook, in the prison where Joseph was kept. And the chief of 16 the prison guards appointed Joseph to serve them; and he served before them. And they both 17 dreamed a dream, the chief butler and the chief baker, and they told it to Joseph. And as he interpreted to them so it befell them, and Pharaoh restored the chief butler to his office and the 18 (chief) baker he slew, as Joseph had interpreted to them. But the chief butler forgot Joseph in the prison, although he had informed him what would befall him, and did not remember to inform Pharaoh how Joseph had told him, for he forgot. Chapter 40 1 And in those days Pharaoh dreamed two dreams in one night concerning a famine which was to be in all the land, and he awoke from his sleep and called all the interpreters of dreams that were in Egypt, and magicians, and told them his two dreams, and they were not able to declare (them). 2 And then the chief butler remembered Joseph and spake of him to the king, and he brought him 3 forth from the prison, and he to]d his two dreams before him. And he said before Pharaoh that his two dreams were one, and he said unto him: 'Seven years shall come (in which there shall be) plenty over all the land of Egypt, and after that seven years of famine, such a famine as has not been in all 4 the land. And now let Pharaoh appoint overseers in all the land of Egypt, and let them store up food in every city throughout the days of the years of plenty, and there will be food for the seven 5 years of famine, and the land will not perish through the famine, for it will be very severe.' And the Lord gave Joseph favour and mercy in the eyes of Pharaoh, and Pharaoh said unto his servants. We shall not find such a wise and discreet man as this man, for the spirit of the Lord is with 6 him.' And he appointed him the second in all his kingdom and gave him authority over all 7 Egypt, and caused him to ride in the second chariot of Pharaoh. And he clothed him with byssus garments, and he put a gold chain upon his neck, and (a herald) proclaimed before him ' 'El 'El wa 'Abirer,' and placed a ring on his hand and made him ruler over all his house, and magnified him, and 8 said unto him. 'Only on the throne shall I be greater than thou.' And Joseph ruled over all the land of Egypt, and all the princes of Pharaoh, and all his servants, and all who did the king's business loved him, for he walked in uprightness, for he was without pride and arrogance, and he had no respect of persons, and did not accept gifts, but he judged in uprightness all the people of the land. 9 And the land of Egypt was at peace before Pharaoh because of Joseph, for the Lord was with him, and gave him favour and mercy for all his generations before all those who knew him and those who heard concerning him, and Pharaoh's kingdom was well ordered, and there was no Satan and no evil 10 person (therein). And the king called Joseph's name Sephantiphans, and gave Joseph to wife the 11 daughter of Potiphar, the daughter of the priest of Heliopolis, the chief cook. And on the day that 12 Joseph stood before Pharaoh he was thirty years old [when he stood before Pharaoh]. And in that year Isaac died. And it came to pass as Joseph had said in the interpretation of his two dreams, according as he had said it, there were seven years of plenty over all the land of Egypt, and the 13 land of Egypt abundantly produced, one measure (producing) eighteen hundred measures. And Joseph gathered food into every city until they were full of corn until they could no longer count and measure it for its multitude. Chapter 41 1 And in the forty-fifth jubilee, in the second week, (and) in the second year, [2165 A.M.] Judah took for his 2 first-born Er, a wife from the daughters of Aram, named Tamar. But he hated, and did not lie with her, because his mother was of the daughters of Canaan, and he wished to take him a wife of the 3 kinsfolk of his mother, but Judah, his father, would not permit him. And this Er, the first-born of Judah, 4 was wicked, and the Lord slew him. And Judah said unto Onan, his brother 'Go in unto thy brother's wife and perform the duty of a husband's brother unto her, and raise up seed unto thy brother.' And 5 Onan knew that the seed would not be his, (but) his brother's only, and he went into the house of his brother's wife, and spilt the seed on the ground, and he was wicked in the eyes of the Lord, and He slew 6 him. And Judah said unto Tamar, his daughter-in-law: 'Remain in thy father's house as a widow till 7 Shelah my son be grown up, and I shall give thee to him to wife.' And he grew up; but Bedsu'el, the wife of Judah, did not permit her son Shelah to marry. And Bedsu'el, the wife of Judah, died [2168 A.M.] 8 in the fifth year of this week. And in the sixth year Judah went up to shear his sheep at Timnah. [2169 A.M.] 9 And they told Tamar: 'Behold thy father-in-law goeth up to Timnah to shear his sheep.' And she put off her widow's clothes, and put on a veil, and adorned herself, and sat in the gate adjoining the 10 way to Timnah. And as Judah was going along he found her, and thought her to be an harlot, and he said unto her: 'Let me come in unto thee'; and she said unto him Come in,' and he went 11 in. And she said unto him: 'Give me my hire'; and he said unto her: 'I have nothing in my 12 hand save my ring that is on my finger, and my necklace, and my staff which is in my hand.' And she said unto him 'Give them to me until thou dost send me my hire', and he said unto her: 'I will send unto thee a kid of the goats'; and he gave them to her, , and 13,14 she conceived by him. And Judah went unto his sheep, and she went to her father's house. And Judah sent a kid of the goats by the hand of his shepherd, an Adullamite, and he found her not; and he asked the people of the place, saying: 'Where is the harlot who was here?' And they said 15 unto him; 'There is no harlot here with us.' And he returned and informed him, and said unto him that he had not found her: 'I asked the people of the place, and they said unto me: "There 16 is no harlot here." ' And he said: 'Let her keep (them) lest we become a cause of derision.' And when she had completed three months, it was manifest that she was with child, and they told Judah, 17 saying: 'Behold Tamar, thy daughter-in-law, is with child by whoredom.' And Judah went to the house of her father, and said unto her father and her brothers: 'Bring her forth, and let them burn 18 her, for she hath wrought uncleanness in Israel.' And it came to pass when they brought her forth to burn her that she sent to her father-in-law the ring and the necklace, and the staff, saying: 19 'Discern whose are these, for by him am I with child.' And Judah acknowledged, and said: 'Tamar 20 is more righteous than I am. And therefore let them burn her not' And for that reason she was 21 not given to Shelah, and he did not again approach her And after that she bare two sons, Perez [2170 A.M.] 22 and Zerah, in the seventh year of this second week. And thereupon the seven years of fruitfulness 23 were accomplished, of which Joseph spake to Pharaoh. And Judah acknowledged that the deed which he had done was evil, for he had lain with his daughter-in-law, and he esteemed it hateful in his eyes, and he acknowledged that he had transgressed and gone astray, for he had uncovered the skirt of his son, and he began to lament and to supplicate before the Lord because of his transgression. 24 And we told him in a dream that it was forgiven him because he supplicated earnestly, and lamented, 25 and did not again commit it. And he received forgiveness because he turned from his sin and from his ignorance, for he transgressed greatly before our God; and every one that acts thus, every one who lies with his mother-in-law, let them burn him with fire that he may burn therein, for there is 26 uncleanness and pollution upon them, with fire let them burn them. And do thou command the children of Israel that there be no uncleanness amongst them, for every one who lies with his daughter-in-law or with his mother-in-law hath wrought uncleanness; with fire let them burn the man who has lain with her, and likewise the woman, and He will turn away wrath and punishment 27 from Israel. And unto Judah we said that his two sons had not lain with her, and for this reason 28 his seed was stablished for a second generation, and would not be rooted out. For in singleness of eye he had gone and sought for punishment, namely, according to the judgment of Abraham, which he had commanded his sons, Judah had sought to burn her with fire. Chapter 42 1 And in the first year of the third week of the forty-fifth jubilee the famine began to come into the [2171 A.M.] 2 land, and the rain refused to be given to the earth, for none whatever fell. And the earth grew barren, but in the land of Egypt there was food, for Joseph had gathered the seed of the land in the 3 seven years of plenty and had preserved it. And the Egyptians came to Joseph that he might give them food, and he opened the store-houses where was the grain of the first year, and he sold it to 4 the people of the land for gold. , and Jacob heard that there was food in Egypt, and he sent his ten sons that they should procure food for him in Egypt; but Benjamin he did not send, and arrived among those 5 that went (there). And Joseph recognised them, but they did not recognise him, and he spake unto them and questioned them, and he said unto them; 'Are ye not spies and have ye not come to 6 explore the approaches of the land? 'And he put them in ward. And after that he set them free 7 again, and detained Simeon alone and sent off his nine brothers. And he filled their sacks with corn, 8 and he put their gold in their sacks, and they did not know. And he commanded them to bring 9 their younger brother, for they had told him their father was living and their younger brother. And they went up from the land of Egypt and they came to the land of Canaan; and they told their father all that had befallen them, and how the lord of the country had spoken roughly to them, and 10 had seized Simeon till they should bring Benjamin. And Jacob said: 'Me have ye bereaved of my children! Joseph is not and Simeon also is not, and ye will take Benjamin away. On me has your 11 wickedness come. 'And he said: 'My son will not go down with you lest perchance he fall sick; for their mother gave birth to two sons, and one has perished, and this one also ye will take from me. If perchance he took a fever on the road, ye would bring down my old age with sorrow unto death.' 12 For he saw that their money had been returned to every man in his sack, and for this reason he 13 feared to send him. And the famine increased and became sore in the land of Canaan, and in all lands save in the land of Egypt, for many of the children of the Egyptians had stored up their seed for food from the time when they saw Joseph gathering seed together and putting it in storehouses 14 and preserving it for the years of famine. And the people of Egypt fed themselves thereon during 15 the first year of their famine But when Israel saw that the famine was very sore in the land, and that there was no deliverance, he said unto his sons: 'Go again, and procure food for us that we die 16 not.' And they said: 'We shall not go; unless our youngest brother go with us, we shall not go.' 17 And Israel saw that if he did not send him with them, they should all perish by reason of the famine 18 And Reuben said: 'Give him into my hand, and if I do not bring him back to thee, slay my two 19 sons instead of his soul.' And he said unto him: 'He shall not go with thee.' And Judah came near and said: 'Send him with me, and if I do not bring him back to thee, let me bear the blame before 20 thee all the days of my life.' And he sent him with them in the second year of this week on the [2172 A.m.] first day of the month, and they came to the land of Egypt with all those who went, and (they had) 21 presents in their hands, stacte and almonds and terebinth nuts and pure honey. And they went and stood before Joseph, and he saw Benjamin his brother, and he knew him, and said unto them: Is this your youngest brother?' And they said unto him: 'It is he.' And he said The Lord be 22 gracious to thee, my son!' And he sent him into his house and he brought forth Simeon unto them and he made a feast for them, and they presented to him the gift which they had brought in their 23 hands. And they eat before him and he gave them all a portion, but the portion of Benjamin was 24 seven times larger than that of any of theirs. And they eat and drank and arose and remained with 25 their asses. And Joseph devised a plan whereby he might learn their thoughts as to whether thoughts of peace prevailed amongst them, and he said to the steward who was over his house: 'Fill all their sacks with food, and return their money unto them into their vessels, and my cup, the silver cup out of which I drink, put it in the sack of the youngest, and send them away.' Chapter 43 1 And he did as Joseph had told him, and filled all their sacks for them with food and put their 2 money in their sacks, and put the cup in Benjamin's sack. Aud early in the morning they departed, and it came to pass that, when they had gone from thence, Joseph said unto the steward of his house: 'Pursue them, run and seize them, saying, "For good ye have requited me with evil; you have stolen from me the silver cup out of which my lord drinks." And bring back to me their 3 youngest brother, and fetch (him) quickly before I go forth to my seat of judgment.' And he ran 4 after them and said unto them according to these words. And they said unto him: 'God forbid that thy servants should do this thing, and steal from the house of thy lord any utensil, and the money also which we found in our sacks the first time, we thy servants brought back from the land of 5 Canaan. How then should we steal any utensil? Behold here are we and our sacks search, and wherever thou findest the cup in the sack of any man amongst us, let him be slain, and we and our 6 asses will serve thy lord.' And he said unto them: 'Not so, the man with whom I find, him only 7 shall I take as a servant, and ye shall return in peace unto your house.' And as he was searching in their vessels, beginning with the eldest and ending with the youngest, it was found in Benjamin's 8 sack. And they rent their garments, and laded their asses, and returned to the city and came to the 9 house of Joseph, and they all bowed themselves on their faces to the ground before him. And Joseph said unto them: 'Ye have done evil.' And they said: 'What shall we say and how shall we defend ourselves? Our lord hath discovered the transgression of his servants; behold we are the 10 servants of our lord, and our asses also. 'And Joseph said unto them: 'I too fear the Lord; as for you, go ye to your homes and let your brother be my servant, for ye have done evil. Know ye not 11 that a man delights in his cup as I with this cup? And yet ye have stolen it from me.' And Judah said: 'O my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord's ear two brothers did thy servant's mother bear to our father: one went away and was lost, and hath not been found, and he alone is left of his mother, and thy servant our father loves him, and his life also is bound up with 12 the life of this (lad). And it will come to pass, when we go to thy servant our father, and the lad is 13 not with us, that he will die, and we shall bring down our father with sorrow unto death. Now rather let me, thy servant, abide instead of the boy as a bondsman unto my lord, and let the lad go with his brethren, for I became surety for him at the hand of thy servant our father, and if I do not 14 bring him back, thy servant will hear the blame to our father for ever.' And Joseph saw that they were all accordant in goodness one with another, and he could not refrain himself, and he told them 15 that he was Joseph. And he conversed with them in the Hebrew tongue and fell on their neck and 16 wept. But they knew him not and they began to weep. And he said unto them: 'Weep not over me, but hasten and bring my father to me; and ye see that it is my mouth that speaketh and the 17 eyes of my brother Benjamin see. For behold this is the second year of the famine, and there are 18 still five years without harvest or fruit of trees or ploughing. Come down quickly ye and your households, so that ye perish not through the famine, and do not be grieved for your possessions, for 19 the Lord sent me before you to set things in order that many people might live. And tell my father that I am still alive, and ye, behold, ye see that the Lord has made me as a father to Pharaoh, 20 and ruler over his house and over all the land of Egypt. And tell my father of all my glory, and 21 all the riches and glory that the Lord hath given me.' And by the command of the mouth of Pharaoh he gave them chariots and provisions for the way, and he gave them all many-coloured 21 raiment and silver. And to their father he sent raiment and silver and ten asses which carried corn, 23 and he sent them away. And they went up and told their father that Joseph was alive, and was measuring out corn to all the nations of the earth, and that he was ruler over all the land of Egypt. 24 And their father did not believe it, for he was beside himself in his mind; but when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent, the life of his spirit revived, and he said: 'It is enough for me if Joseph lives; I will go down and see him before I die.' Chapter 44 1 And Israel took his journey from Haran from his house on the new moon of the third month, and he went on the way of the Well of the Oath, and he offered a sacrifice to the God of his 2 father Isaac on the seventh of this month. And Jacob remembered the dream that he had seen 3 at Bethel, and he feared to go down into Egypt. And while he was thinking of sending word to Joseph to come to him, and that he would not go down, he remained there seven days, if 4 perchance he could see a vision as to whether he should remain or go down. And he celebrated the harvest festival of the first-fruits with old grain, for in all the land of Canaan there was not a handful of seed [in the land], for the famine was over all the beasts and cattle and 5 birds, and also over man. And on the sixteenth the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, 'Jacob, Jacob'; and he said, 'Here am I.' And He said unto him: 'I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham and Isaac; fear not to go down into Egypt, for I will there make of thee 6 a great nation I will go down with thee, and I will bring thee up (again), and in this land shalt thou be buried, and Joseph shall put his hands upon thy eyes. Fear not; go down into Egypt.' 7 And his sons rose up, and his sons' sons, and they placed their father and their possessions upon 8 wagons. And Israel rose up from the Well of the Oath on the sixteenth of this third month, and he 9 went to the land of Egypt. And Israel sent Judah before him to his son Joseph to examine the Land of Goshen, for Joseph had told his brothers that they should come and dwell there that they 10 might be near him. And this was the goodliest (land) in the land of Egypt, and near to him, for all 11 (of them) and also for the cattle. And these are the names of the sons of Jacob who went into 12 Egypt with Jacob their father Reuben, the First-born of Israel; and these are the names of his 13 sons Enoch, and Pallu, and Hezron and Carmi-five. Simeon and his sons; and these are the names of his sons: Jemuel, and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jachin, and Zohar, and Shaul, the son 14 of the Zephathite woman-seven. Levi and his sons; and these are the names of his sons: Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari-four. Judah and his sons; and these are the names of his sons: 15 Shela, and Perez, and Zerah-four. Issachar and his sons; and these are the names of his sons: 17 Tola, and Phua, and Jasub, and Shimron-five. Zebulon and his sons; and these are the names of 18 his sons: Sered, and Elon, and Jahleel-four. And these are the sons of Jacob and their sons whom Leah bore to Jacob in Mesopotamia, six, and their one sister, Dinah and all the souls of the sons of Leah, and their sons, who went with Jacob their father into Egypt, were twenty-nine, and Jacob their 19 father being with them, they were thirty. And the sons of Zilpah, Leah's handmaid, the wife of 20 Jacob, who bore unto Jacob Gad and Ashur. And there are the names of their sons who went with him into Egypt. The sons of Gad: Ziphion, and Haggi, and Shuni, and Ezbon, (and Eri, and Areli, 21 and Arodi-eight. And the sons of Asher: Imnah, and Ishvah, (and Ishvi), and Beriah, and Serah, 22,23 their one sister-six. All the souls were fourteen, and all those of Leah were forty-four. And the 24 sons of Rachel, the wife of Jacob: Joseph and Benjamin. And there were born to Joseph in Egypt before his father came into Egypt, those whom Asenath, daughter of Potiphar priest of Heliopolis 25 bare unto him, Manasseh, and Ephraim-three. And the sons of Benjamin: Bela and Becher and Ashbel, Gera, and Naaman, and Ehi, and Rosh, and Muppim, and Huppim, and Ard-eleven. 26,27 And all the souls of Rachel were fourteen. And the sons of Bilhah, the handmaid of Rachel, the 28 wife of Jacob, whom she bare to Jacob, were Dan and Naphtali. And these are the names of their sons who went with them into Egypt. And the sons of Dan were Hushim, and Samon, and Asudi. 29 and 'Ijaka, and Salomon-six. And they died the year in which they entered into Egypt, and there 30 was left to Dan Hushim alone. And these are the names of the sons of Naphtali Jahziel, and Guni 31 and Jezer, and Shallum, and 'Iv. And 'Iv, who was born after the years of famine, died in Egypt. 32,33 And all the souls of Rachel were twenty-six. And all the souls of Jacob which went into Egypt were seventy souls. These are his children and his children's children, in all seventy, but five died 34 in Egypt before Joseph, and had no children. And in the land of Canaan two sons of Judah died, Er and Onan, and they had no children, and the children of Israel buried those who perished, and they were reckoned among the seventy Gentile nations. Chapter 45 1 And Israel went into the country of Egypt, into the land of Goshen, on the new moon of the fourth [2172 A.M]. 2 month, in the second year of the third week of the forty-fifth jubilee. And Joseph went to meet his 3 father Jacob, to the land of Goshen, and he fell on his father's neck and wept. And Israel said unto Joseph: 'Now let me die since I have seen thee, and now may the Lord God of Israel be blessed the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac who hath not withheld His mercy and His grace from 4 His servant Jacob. It is enough for me that I have seen thy face whilst I am yet alive; yea, true is the vision which I saw at Bethel. Blessed be the Lord my God for ever and ever, and blessed be 5 His name.' And Joseph and his brothers eat bread before their father and drank wine, and Jacob rejoiced with exceeding great joy because he saw Joseph eating with his brothers and drinking before him, and he blessed the Creator of all things who had preserved him, and had preserved for him his 6 twelve sons. And Joseph had given to his father and to his brothers as a gift the right of dwelling in the land of Goshen and in Rameses and all the region round about, which he ruled over before Pharaoh. And Israel and his sons dwelt in the land of Goshen, the best part of the land of Egypt 7 and Israel was one hundred and thirty years old when he came into Egypt. And Joseph nourished his father and his brethren and also their possessions with bread as much as sufficed them for the 8 seven years of the famine. And the land of Egypt suffered by reason of the famine, and Joseph acquired all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh in return for food, and he got possession of the people 9 and their cattle and everything for Pharaoh. And the years of the famine were accomplished, and Joseph gave to the people in the land seed and food that they might sow (the land) in the eighth 10 year, for the river had overflowed all the land of Egypt. For in the seven years of the famine it had (not) overflowed and had irrigated only a few places on the banks of the river, but now it overflowed 11 and the Egyptians sowed the land, and it bore much corn that year. And this was the first year of [2178 A.M.] 12 the fourth week of the forty-fifth jubilee. And Joseph took of the corn of the harvest the fifth part for the king and left four parts for them for food and for seed, and Joseph made it an ordinance for 13 the land of Egypt until this day. And Israel lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years, and all the days which he lived were three jubilees, one hundred and forty-seven years, and he died in the fourth [2188 A.M.] 14 year of the fifth week of the forty-fifth jubilee. And Israel blessed his sons before he died and told them everything that would befall them in the land of Egypt; and he made known to them what would come upon them in the last days, and blessed them and gave to Joseph two portions in 15 the land. And he slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the double cave in the land of Canaan, near Abraham his father in the grave which he dug for himself in the double cave in 16 the land of Hebron. And he gave all his books and the books of his fathers to Levi his son that he might preserve them and renew them for his children until this day. Chapter 46 1 And it came to pass that after Jacob died the children of Israel multiplied in the land of Egypt, and they became a great nation, and they were of one accord in heart, so that brother loved brother and every man helped his brother, and they increased abundantly and multiplied exceedingly, ten [2242 A.M.] 2 weeks of years, all the days of the life of Joseph And there was no Satan nor any evil all the days of the life of Joseph which he lived after his father Jacob, for all the Egyptians honoured the children 3 of Israel all the days of the life of Joseph. And Joseph died being a hundred and ten years old; seventeen years he lived in the land of Canaan, and ten years he was a servant, and three years in 4 prison, and eighty years he was under the king, ruling all the land of Egypt. And he died and all 5 his brethren and all that generation. And he commanded the children of Israel before he died that 6 they should carry his bones with them when they went forth from the land of Egypt. And he made them swear regarding his bones, for he knew that the Egyptians would not again bring forth and bury him in the land of Canaan, for Makamaron, king of Canaan, while dwelling in the land of Assyria, fought in the valley with the king of Egypt and slew him there, and pursued after the 7 Egyptians to the gates of 'Ermon. But he was not able to enter, for another, a new king, had become king of Egypt, and he was stronger than he, and he returned to the land of Canaan, and the gates of 8 Egypt were closed, and none went out and none came into Egypt. And Joseph died in the forty-sixth jubilee, in the sixth week, in the second year, and they buried him in the land of Egypt, and [2242 A.M.] 9 all his brethren died after him. And the king of Egypt went forth to war with the king of Canaan [2263 A.M.] in the forty-seventh jubilee, in the second week in the second year, and the children of Israel brought forth all the bones of the children of Jacob save the bones of Joseph, and they buried them in the 10 field in the double cave in the mountain. And the most (of them) returned to Egypt, but a few of 11 them remained in the mountains of Hebron, and Amram thy father remained with them. And the 12 king of Canaan was victorious over the king of Egypt, and he closed the gates of Egypt. And he devised an evil device against the children of Israel of afflicting them and he said unto the people of 13 Egypt: 'Behold the people of the children of Israel have increased and multiplied more than we. Come and let us deal wisely with them before they become too many, and let us afflict them with slavery before war come upon us and before they too fight against us; else they will join themselves unto our enemies and get them up out of our land, for their hearts and faces are towards the land 14 of Canaan.' And he set over them taskmasters to afflict them with slavery; and they built strong cities for Pharaoh, Pithom, and Raamses and they built all the walls and all the fortifications which 15 had fallen in the cities of Egypt. And they made them serve with rigour, and the more they dealt evilly with them, the more they increased and multiplied. And the people of Egypt abominated the children of Israel Chapter 47 1 And in the seventh week, in the seventh year, in the forty-seventh jubilee, thy father went forth [2303 A.M.] from the land of Canaan, and thou wast born in the fourth week, in the sixth year thereof, in the [2330 A.M.] 2 forty-eighth jubilee; this was the time of tribulation on the children of Israel. And Pharaoh, king of Egypt, issued a command regarding them that they should cast all their male children which were 3 born into the river. And they cast them in for seven months until the day that thou wast born 4 And thy mother hid thee for three months, and they told regarding her. And she made an ark for thee, and covered it with pitch and asphalt, and placed it in the flags on the bank of the river, and she placed thee in it seven days, and thy mother came by night and suckled thee, and by day 5 Miriam, thy sister, guarded thee from the birds. And in those days Tharmuth, the daughter of Pharaoh, came to bathe in the river, and she heard thy voice crying, and she told her maidens to 6 bring thee forth, and they brought thee unto her. And she took thee out of the ark, and she had 7 compassion on thee. And thy sister said unto her: 'Shall I go and call unto thee one of the 8 Hebrew women to nurse and suckle this babe for thee?' And she said (unto her): 'Go.' And she 9 went and called thy mother Jochebed, and she gave her wages, and she nursed thee. And afterwards, when thou wast grown up, they brought thee unto the daughter of Pharaoh, and thou didst become her son, and Amram thy father taught thee writing, and after thou hadst completed three weeks 10 they brought thee into the royal court. And thou wast three weeks of years at court until the time [2351-] when thou didst go forth from the royal court and didst see an Egyptian smiting thy friend who was [2372 A.M.] 11 of the children of Israel, and thou didst slay him and hide him in the sand. And on the second day thou didst and two of the children of Israel striving together, and thou didst say to him who was 12 doing the wrong: 'Why dost thou smite thy brother?' And he was angry and indignant, and said: 'Who made thee a prince and a judge over us? Thinkest thou to kill me as thou killedst the Egyptian yesterday?' And thou didst fear and flee on account of these words. Chapter 48 1 And in the sixth year of the third week of the forty-ninth jubilee thou didst depart and dwell (in [2372 A.M.] the land of Midian, five weeks and one year. And thou didst return into Egypt in the second week 2 in the second year in the fiftieth jubilee. And thou thyself knowest what He spake unto thee on [2410 A.M.] Mount Sinai, and what prince Mastema desired to do with thee when thou wast returning into Egypt 3 . Did he not with all his power seek to slay thee and deliver the Egyptians out of thy hand when he saw that thou wast sent to execute 4 judgment and vengeance on the Egyptians? And I delivered thee out of his hand, and thou didst perform the signs and wonders which thou wast sent to perform in Egypt against Pharaoh, and 5 against all his house, and against his servants and his people. And the Lord executed a great vengeance on them for Israel's sake, and smote them through (the plagues of) blood and frogs, lice and dog-flies, and malignant boils breaking forth in blains; and their cattle by death; and by hail-stones, thereby He destroyed everything that grew for them; and by locusts which devoured the residue which had been left by the hail, and by darkness; and (by the death) of the first-born of 6 men and animals, and on all their idols the Lord took vengeance and burned them with fire And everything was sent through thy hand, that thou shouldst declare (these things) before they were done, and thou didst speak with the king of Egypt before all his servants and before his people 7 And everything took place according to thy words; ten great and terrible judgments came on the 8 land of Egypt that thou mightest execute vengeance on it for Israel. And the Lord did everything for Israel's sake, and according to His covenant, which he had ordained with Abraham that He 9 would take vengeance on them as they had brought them by force into bondage. And the prince Mastema stood up against thee, and sought to cast thee into the hands of Pharaoh, and he helped 10 the Egyptian sorcerers, and they stood up and wrought before thee the evils indeed we permitted 11 them to work, but the remedies we did not allow to be wrought by their hands. And the Lord smote them with malignant ulcers, and they were not able to stand, for we destroyed them so that 12 they could not perform a single sign. And notwithstanding all (these) signs and wonders the prince Mastema was not put to shame because he took courage and cried to the Egyptians to pursue after thee with all the powers of the Egyptians, with their chariots, and with their horses, and with all the 13 hosts of the peoples of Egypt. And I stood between the Egyptians and Israel, and we delivered Israel out of his hand, and out of the hand of his people, and the Lord brought them through the 14 midst of the sea as if it were dry land. And all the peoples whom he brought to pursue after Israel, the Lord our God cast them into the midst of the sea, into the depths of the abyss beneath the children of Israel, even as the people of Egypt had cast their children into the river He took vengeance on 1,000,000 of them, and one thousand strong and energetic men were destroyed on 15 account of one suckling of the children of thy people which they had thrown into the river. And on the fourteenth day and on the fifteenth and on the sixteenth and on the seventeenth and on the eighteenth the prince Mastema was bound and imprisoned behind the children of Israel that he 16 might not accuse them. And on the nineteenth we let them loose that they might help the 17 Egyptians and pursue the children of Israel. And he hardened their hearts and made them stubborn, and the device was devised by the Lord our God that He might smite the Egyptians and 18 cast them into the sea. And on the fourteenth we bound him that he might not accuse the children of Israel on the day when they asked the Egyptians for vessels and garments, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and vessels of bronze, in order to despoil the Egyptians in return for the bondage in 19 which they had forced them to serve. And we did not lead forth the children of Israel from Egypt empty handed. Chapter 49 1 Remember the commandment which the Lord commanded thee concerning the passover, that thou shouldst celebrate it in its season on the fourteenth of the first month, that thou shouldst kill it before it is evening, and that they should eat it by night on the evening of the fifteenth from the 2 time of the setting of the sun. For on this night -the beginning of the festival and the beginning of the joy- ye were eating the passover in Egypt, when all the powers of Mastema had been let loose to slay all the first-born in the land of Egypt, from the first-born of Pharaoh to the first-born 3 of the captive maid-servant in the mill, and to the cattle. And this is the sign which the Lord gave them: Into every house on the lintels of which they saw the blood of a lamb of the first year, into (that) house they should not enter to slay, but should pass by (it), that all those should be saved that 4 were in the house because the sign of the blood was on its lintels. And the powers of the Lord did everything according as the Lord commanded them, and they passed by all the children of Israel, and the plague came not upon them to destroy from amongst them any soul either of cattle, or 5 man, or dog. And the plague was very grievous in Egypt, and there was no house in Egypt 6 where there was not one dead, and weeping and lamentation. And all Israel was eating the flesh of the paschal lamb, and drinking the wine, and was lauding, and blessing, and giving thanks to the Lord God of their fathers, and was ready to go forth from under the yoke of Egypt, and from 7 the evil bondage. And remember thou this day all the days of thy life, and observe it from year to year all the days of thy life, once a year, on its day, according to all the law thereof, and do not 8 adjourn (it) from day to day, or from month to month. For it is an eternal ordinance, and engraven on the heavenly tablets regarding all the children of Israel that they should observe it every year on its day once a year, throughout all their generations; and there is no limit of days, for this is ordained 9 for ever. And the man who is free from uncleanness, and does not come to observe it on occasion of its day, so as to bring an acceptable offering before the Lord, and to eat and to drink before the Lord on the day of its festival, that man who is clean and close at hand shall be cut off: because he offered not the oblation of the Lord in its appointed season, he shall take the guilt upon himself. 10 Let the children of Israel come and observe the passover on the day of its fixed time, on the fourteenth day of the first month, between the evenings, from the third part of the day to the third part of 1 the night, for two portions of the day are given to the light, and a third part to the evening. This 12 is that which the Lord commanded thee that thou shouldst observe it between the evenings. And it is not permissible to slay it during any period of the light, but during the period bordering on the evening, and let them eat it at the time of the evening, until the third part of the night, and whatever is left over of all its flesh from the third part of the night and onwards, let them burn 13 it with fire. And they shall not cook it with water, nor shall they eat it raw, but roast on the fire: they shall eat it with diligence, its head with the inwards thereof and its feet they shall roast with fire, and not break any bone thereof; for of the children of Israel no bone shall be crushed. 14 For this reason the Lord commanded the children of Israel to observe the passover on the day of its fixed time, and they shall not break a bone thereof; for it is a festival day, and a day commanded, and there may be no passing over from day to day, and month to month, but on the day of its 15 festival let it be observed. And do thou command the children of Israel to observe the passover throughout their days, every year, once a year on the day of its fixed time, and it shall come for a memorial well pleasing before the Lord, and no plague shall come upon them to slay or to smite in that year in which they celebrate the passover in its season in every respect according to His 16 command. And they shall not eat it outside the sanctuary of the Lord, but before the sanctuary of the Lord, and all the people of the congregation of Israel shall celebrate it in its appointed season. 17 And every man who has come upon its day shall eat it in the sanctuary of your God before the Lord from twenty years old and upward; for thus is it written and ordained that they should eat it 18 in the sanctuary of the Lord. And when the children of Israel come into the land which they are to possess, into the land of Canaan, and set up the tabernacle of the Lord in the midst of the land in one of their tribes until the sanctuary of the Lord has been built in the land, let them come and celebrate the passover in the midst of the tabernacle of the Lord, and let them slay it 19 before the Lord from year to year. And in the days when the house has been built in the name of the Lord in the land of their inheritance, they shall go there and slay the passover in the evening, at 20 sunset, at the third part of the day. And they shall offer its blood on the threshold of the altar, and shall place its fat on the fire which is upon the altar, and they shall eat its flesh roasted 21 with fire in the court of the house which has been sanctified in the name of the Lord. And they may not celebrate the passover in their cities, nor in any place save before the tabernacle of the Lord, or before His house where His name hath dwelt; and they shall not go astray from the Lord. 22 And do thou, Moses, command the children of Israel to observe the ordinances of the passover, as it was commanded unto thee; declare thou unto them every year and the day of its days, and the festival of unleavened bread, that they should eat unleavened bread seven days, (and) that they should observe its festival, and that they bring an oblation every day during those seven days of 23 joy before the Lord on the altar of your God. For ye celebrated this festival with haste when ye went forth from Egypt till ye entered into the wilderness of Shur; for on the shore of the sea ye completed it.