Old Testament Legends

Yet Naphtali and Asher murmured against their elder brothers Dan and Gad, saying, "To what purpose are you conspiring again? Did you not sell Joseph for a slave before, and, lo! he is become lord over all Egypt? Now therefore, if you imagine evil against him, he will call upon God, and fire will come down out of heaven and devour you, and the angels of God will fight against you." But their elder brothers were angry and said, "What then would you have? Are we to die like women? Not so!" And the counsel of Naphtali and Asher did not prevail with them.

In the same night the son of Pharaoh rose up and went to his father's chamber with intent to slay him, as he had promised; but when he came to the door the guards stopped him and said, "What is my lord's will?" He said, "I desire to see my father, for I am going away to-morrow to visit my vine-yard which I have newly planted." And they said, "Your father is ill and has not slept until now, and he gave us commandment that no man should come into his chamber, no, not if it were his firstborn son." So he went away in a rage, and took fifty archers with him on horses and went on before, as Dan and Gad had said.

Aseneth also arose early in the morning and said to Joseph, "Lo, I go to the vineyard as you appointed; but my soul is troubled greatly at being parted from you." But Joseph said, "Be of good cheer; the Lord is with you and will keep you as the apple of an eye. As for me, I go to distribute corn to the people of the land, that no man in Egypt may perish of hunger." So Aseneth went her way; and as she came to the place of the ambush by the river, the men that were in hiding rushed out upon her, and slew all the guard that were with her, even six hundred soldiers and fifty runners; and Aseneth fled away upon her chariot.

Now Levi, though he was afar off, saw in the spirit what was being done—for he was a seer—and told his brethren of the peril of Aseneth; and they girded every man his sword upon his thigh, and took up their shields and their spears and ran swiftly after Aseneth.

And as she fled on before, suddenly she saw the son of Pharaoh in the way, and the horsemen that were with him. Then was Aseneth in great fear, and she called upon the name of her God.

But Benjamin was in the chariot with her. Now he was a lad of nineteen years, beautiful exceedingly, and strong as a lion's whelp. And when he saw the men, he leapt down from the chariot and caught up a round stone out of the brook and threw it at the son of Pharaoh, and smote him on the left temple, so that he fell from his horse half-dead.

Then Benjamin leapt up upon a rock by the way-side, and called to the driver of the chariot, "Give me stones out of the river bed." And he gave them; and with fifty stones Benjamin slew the fifty archers that were with Pharaoh's son; every stone smote a man on the temples.

Moreover, the sons of Leah, Reuben and Simeon, Levi and Judah, Issachar and Zebulun, pursued after the men that had laid wait for Aseneth, and fell upon them suddenly and cut them to pieces; but the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah fled before them, saying, "We are undone; and now, behold, the son of Pharaoh is dead, and all they that were with him. Let us at least slay Aseneth and Benjamin, and flee into the woods." So they pursued after Aseneth, and came upon her with their swords drawn and dripping with blood. And she was greatly afraid, and said, "Lord God, who didst save me from false gods and from the corruption of death, and didst say, 'Thy soul shall live for ever,' save me now from the hands of these wicked men!" And God heard her prayer, and straightway the swords of the men fell out of their hands and crumbled into dust.

Then they were very sore afraid, saying, "The Lord fighteth against us." And they fell down on their faces and besought Aseneth, saying, "We have imagined evil against you, and the Lord hath brought it back upon us. But now have pity upon us, and save us from the wrath of our brethren." And she said, "Go then and hide yourselves in the reeds until I appease them and turn away their anger. Only the Lord be judge betwixt me and you." Then they ran and hid among the reeds; and their brethren the sons of Leah came running like harts to overtake them. And Aseneth lighted down from her chariot and fell on their necks weeping and rejoicing; and they said, "Where are our brothers the sons of the handmaids?" that they might kill them. But Aseneth said, "I beseech you, spare them, for the Lord saved me out of their hands and broke their swords, and, behold, there they lie, like wax melted before the fire. Let it suffice you that the Lord hath fought against them on our behalf, and spare them, for they are your brethren and the sons of your father Israel." Then said Simeon, "Why doth our sister say so? Nay, but we will hew them in pieces with our swords, for they have done evil against Joseph and against our father and against thee also this day." And Aseneth took hold upon Simeon's beard and kissed him, and said, "Do not, my brother, in anywise render evil for evil: the Lord shall judge between us; and now, see, they are fled afar off. Forgive them, therefore, and spare their lives." Then Levi came near and kissed her right hand; for he knew that his brethren were in hiding among the reeds, but he would not reveal it to the others lest they should fall upon them; and he loved Aseneth because she would save them alive.

Now the son of Pharaoh, who was fallen from his horse, began to recover himself, and sat up and spat blood out of his mouth, for the blood ran down from the wound on his temple into his mouth. And Benjamin saw it, and ran and drew the sword of the son of Pharaoh (for as yet Benjamin bare no sword upon his thigh), and would have slain him; but Levi hasted and caught his hand, saying, "It is not right for us that fear God to trample upon him that is fallen, or to afflict our enemy to death. Put back the sword into its place and help me, and we will tend his wound, and if he lives he shall be our friend." Then Levi helped up the son of Pharaoh from the ground, and washed the blood from his face and bound up his wound with a bandage, and put him upon his horse and took him to Pharaoh his father, and told him all that had happened. And Pharaoh rose up from his throne and blessed Levi. But on the third day after, the son of Pharaoh died of his wound.

And Pharaoh mourned sore for his firstborn son, insomuch that he fell sick and died, being a hundred and nine years old, and left his crown to Joseph; and Joseph reigned alone in Egypt forty and eight years, and thereafter gave the kingdom to the younger son of Pharaoh, who was a sucking child when his father died. And thenceforth Joseph was called the father of the king throughout all the land of Egypt.

JOB

This is the story of the life of Job, taken out of the book called

The Testament of Job.

There came a day when Job felt that his end was near; and he called together his seven sons and his three daughters, and said to them:

Come near to me, my children, and I will tell you the story of my life, and all the dealings of the Lord with me. You must know, in the first place, that before He gave me a new name, I was called Jobab; and that I come of the family of Isaac—for I am one of the sons of Esau, Jacob's brother. Now, long ago, I used to dwell hard by the temple of an idol, and every day I saw people coming and bringing offerings, and burning sacrifices before it. But as time went on, I could not believe that this idol was indeed the God who made the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and us men. I pondered much, therefore, upon this matter, saying, "How shall I come to know the truth of it?"

Thereafter, as I lay upon my bed, in the middle of the night, a bright light suddenly shone in my chamber, and I heard a voice calling me, "Jobab, Jobab!" (and I answered, "Here am I"). And the voice said, "Rise up, and I will tell thee that which I have to say. Verily, this idol to whom offerings are brought, and wine poured out in libations, is not a god, but is a work of the evil power whereby he deceives the sons of men." Then I bowed myself down and said, "Lord, who hast come to enlighten my soul, I beseech thee, give me leave to go and cleanse this place that is polluted by the enemy, so that offerings shall no more be made to him; but, indeed, who is there that can withstand me, seeing that I am ruler over this country?"

The voice answered me out of the light, "Thou canst indeed destroy that place; but I must forewarn thee of that which will ensue, according as I have in hand to tell thee from the Lord." And I answered, "All that He commandeth thy servant will I hear and do." And the voice said again, "If thou takest upon thee to destroy this abode of Satan's, he will rise up and fight against thee; he will bring upon thee many plagues; he will take away all thy gods; he will slay thy children. Only he will not be able to take thy life. And, if thou endurest to the end, thy name shall become famous among all generations for ever; and I will restore thee to thy former estate, and recompense thee double, and thou shalt rise up again in the resurrection of the just. Be thou therefore like a fighter who giveth blows and endureth them, looking to win the crown of victory; and then shalt thou know that the Lord is righteous, and true, and mighty, giving strength to His chosen."

And I, my children, answered him, "I will verily endure even unto death, and will not draw back." Then the angel set a mark upon my forehead, and departed from me; and in the same night I arose and gathered to me fifty of my servants, and went and destroyed the temple of the idol, laying it even with the ground. Then I returned to my house, and commanded that the doors should be made fast.

Hearken now, my children, and wonder; for as soon as I had come into my house, and had commanded the doors to be shut, and had told the keepers of the doors to say to any that came that I was not at leisure to see them, Satan came, having put on the appearance of a beggar, and said to the maid that kept the door, "Tell Job that I desire to speak with him." She came to me, therefore, and I told her again, "Tell him that I have no leisure to see him."

So Satan departed, and took on him another form, and put a wallet on his shoulder, and returned and said to the maid, "Say to Job, 'Give me bread from thine own hand, that I may eat.'" Then I took a loaf that was burnt black and gave it to the maid to give to him, saying, "Look to eat no more of my bread, for I am become a stranger to you." But the maid was ashamed to give him the burnt bread, for she knew not who he was; she took, therefore, a good loaf of her own and gave it to him. But he was aware of what had happened, and said to her, "Go back, unfaithful servant, and fetch me the bread that was given to you to give to me!" And she wept and said, "You say well that I am an unfaithful servant, for I have not done that which I was commanded." Then she brought him the burnt bread, saying, "Thus says my master, 'You shall eat no more of my bread, for I am estranged from you. This I give you only that you may not have it to say that I refused to give aught to my enemy when he asked of me.'" Satan took the bread, and sent back the maid with this message, "As this bread is burnt and blackened, so will I make thy body; in one hour I will lay thee and thy house desolate." And I answered him, "That thou doest, do quickly; for I am ready to bear whatsoever thou canst bring upon me."

Then Satan went up straightway under the firmament of the heaven, and asked of the Lord authority over me and my possessions. And the Lord granted it to him, but not at that time.

Now I must tell you, my children, of my manner of life, and my goods that I had, before I was despoiled. I had 130,000 sheep, of which 7000 were set apart for the clothing of the fatherless, and widows, and poor; and a pack of 800 dogs guarded them. I had 9000 camels; 3000 to traffic with the cities of the earth, which I laded with good things, and sent them out among the towns and villages, and had their loads distributed to the poor. I had also 130,000 asses; 500 of them were set apart that their foals might be sold, and the price given to the poor.

Also the four gates of my house were always left open to this end, that if any poor man came to beg, and saw me sitting at one of the gates, he might not turn back abashed, but might go round to another of the gates, and enter in and receive what he needed.

Within the house also I had always thirty tables ready prepared for the entertainment of strangers, and other twelve tables appointed for the widows. None left my house with his purse empty, and whenever any came to ask help, he was constrained first of all to sit down and dine. I had fifty bakehouses, and of these, twelve served the tables of the poor.

And so it was that many strangers came to my house, and some of them desired to follow my way of life and minister to the poor, but they were in need of money to furnish them therefor. And to such men I freely lent the money, taking no security of them, but only a written acknowledgment. And sometimes they prospered in their merchandise and gained money to give to the poor; but sometimes they failed and came back to me, saying, "Have patience with us." And thereupon I would destroy the bill of their debt before them, and forgive them that which they owed me.

Sometimes also there would come to me a man of a kindly heart who would say, "I have not wherewith to help the poor, but let me wait upon them to-day at your table." And at evening, when he was departing, I used to say to him, "I know that you are a labouring man, and look to your wages." And so I paid him wages for the day and let him go.

I had also psalteries and a ten-stringed lute, and every day when the widows and the poor had dined I would play to them and put them in mind of God, that they should praise Him. And if ever my handmaidens murmured at the work they had to do, I took a psaltery and sang to them of the recompense of the reward. And they were comforted, and ceased from their murmuring.

As for my children, they took part every day in the ministry, and after that they gathered together in the house of their eldest brother, and feasted there. But every morning I offered up sacrifices for them, even thirty doves, fifty kids of the goats, and twelve sheep, and a choice bullock. All of these, after I had offered up prayer, I caused to be prepared for the poor, and gave to them, saying, "Take these over and above that which you have had, and pray for my children, lest they perchance have said in their hearts, 'We are the children of a wealthy father, and these goods are ours. Wherefore should we wait upon the poor and waste our substance in this manner?'" For indeed pride is an abomination unto the Lord.

Now this was my manner of life for seven years after that the angel had come to me. But when Satan had obtained from the Lord power against me, he came down in great wrath; and first he burnt up the 7000 sheep, and 3000 camels, and 500 asses, and 500 yoke of oxen; and the rest were carried away by the men of the country to whom I had showed kindness, but now they turned against me and spoiled my goods. Then one came and told me, and I gave glory to God, and said not a word of complaint.

Satan therefore, when he saw how I took the matter, devised yet more against me, and took on him the likeness of the King of Persia, and came and spake to all the worthless men of the country, saying, "This man Jobab, who hath consumed all the good of the land, and left nothing, giving it away to the halt, and maimed, and blind, is the same that destroyed the temple of the great god and laid waste the place of offerings. It is time that he should receive the reward of his deeds. Come, fall upon him and spoil his house." But they said, "He hath seven sons and three daughters; what if they escape into other lands and accuse us of violence, and return and slay us?" Satan answered, "Trouble not yourselves for that. See, I have consumed part of his goods with fire; other part have I carried off. I will take in hand his children."

And he departed, and cast down the house upon my sons and daughters, and slew them all. And when the men saw that he had spoken truth, they came and plundered all that was in my house. Mine eyes saw worthless and dishonourable men on my couches and at my tables, and I could not utter a word, for I was stricken weak, as a sick woman. Nevertheless, I remembered the recompense of the reward; and I accounted the loss of my goods as nothing, if I might attain to that city whereof the angel had spoken.

Then there came a messenger and told me, "Thy sons and thy daughters are dead." And verily I was greatly troubled, and rent my clothes. Yet I said, "The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away: as it pleased the Lord, so is it come to pass: blessed be the name of the Lord."

So Satan perceived that, though all that I had possessed was taken from me, nothing could break my spirit or make me rebel against God. He departed, therefore, and asked leave of the Lord that he might afflict my body. And the Lord gave him power over my body to use it as he would, but over my life He gave him no power. Then Satan came to me as I sat upon my throne mourning for the loss of my children; and he came in the form of a great whirlwind, and cast my throne down to the ground, so that I lay for three hours without moving. And he smote me with a sore plague from head to foot, and I was filled with worms and ulcers and corruption. Therefore I arose and went out of the city in great misery and sorrow of heart, and sat upon a dunghill, being severed from the sons of men because of my evil plague. And there I remained many days. And I had no strength to work and earn my bread, so that my wife was compelled to labour as a handmaid in the house of a rich man, and carry water; and for that they gave her bread, and she brought it to me. Then was I cut to the heart, and said, "Alas for the pride of the men of this place! How can they endure to treat my wife as a slave?" Yet after that again I strengthened my soul and was patient.

After some time they refused to give my wife food enough for her and myself, but allowed her only half of what they had given her before: yet this she shared with me. Yea, she was not ashamed to go and beg of the bakers in the market-place, that she might have wherewith to feed me.

When Satan saw her do so, he took upon him the likeness of a seller of bread. And my wife came and begged of him, supposing him to be a man; and Satan said, "Pay the price, and take what you will." But she answered, "Whence should I have money? Have you not heard of all that has befallen us? If you will show mercy, show mercy; and if not, it is your own concern." He said, "If you had not deserved misfortune, I suppose it would not have come upon you; but now, if you have no money, give me the hair of your head, and take three loaves in exchange: it may be that you can live on them for three days." And she thought within herself, "What is the hair of my head to me in comparison with the hunger of my husband?" And she said to Satan, "Come, take it." And he took a pair of shears and cut off her hair, and then gave her three loaves, in the sight of all who were in the market-place. She took the bread and came to bring it to me, and Satan followed after her invisibly, and made her soul heavy within her. So, as she drew near to me she lifted up her voice and cried aloud, "Job, Job, how long wilt thou sit upon the dunghill waiting and expecting thy deliverance, while I wander about from house to house and labour as a slave? Behold, my sons and my daughters, whom I brought up with labour and pain, are perished and gone, and thou sittest under the open heaven filled with corruption, and I have to work day and night to get bread to keep thy soul in thy body. Lo, now have I sold the hair of my head for bread. Who would believe that I am Sitis, the wife of Job, who was clothed in fine linen woven with gold, that washed her feet in basins of silver and gold, that lay softly and was nurtured in plenty; but now I go barefoot, in rags, and sell my hair for bread. One thing only remains, for my bones are broken with very weariness of spirit. Arise and eat this bread, and satisfy thy hunger, and then speak a word against the Lord, and die; and I shall be freed from my misery and labour, and have rest."

But I answered her, "Lo, now these many years have I been set in the plague, enduring sickness of body and grief of heart, but my soul has never been so heavy in me as when I heard thee say, 'Speak a word against the Lord, and die.' Shall we have borne the loss of our possessions, and the death of our children, and at the end lose the true riches? Remember all the good things which we enjoyed aforetime. Shall we receive those at the hands of the Lord, and not bear to receive hard things likewise? But I perceive now why thou so speakest. Come forth, thou that standest behind her to pervert her heart and make her speak as one of the foolish women. Hide thyself no longer; come forth and withstand me to the face." Then Satan came forth from behind my wife, and stood before me ashamed, and even weeping in the bitterness of his heart; and he said, "Job, thou hast prevailed: thou art flesh and I am a spirit, but I can do no more against thee." And he departed from me in confusion. And I, my children, thought of fighters whom I had seen: one had thrown the other on the ground and filled his mouth with sand, and bruised every limb of his body, yet still he kept his hold; and of a sudden the one that was uppermost could endure the grip no longer, and gave in, so that the undermost won the crown. Thus was it with me and Satan; and, my children, I counsel you to be long-suffering in all that may come upon you; for there is nothing that is stronger than patience.

Now it was not until many years had passed that the tidings of my affliction came to the ears of the kings who were of old time my friends—for Satan caused the matter to be kept from them. But when they heard, they set forth from their countries and came to visit me, even Eliphaz of Teman, and Bildad, and Zophar, and Elihu; all of them with great trains of followers. When they were come into my land they inquired, "Where is Jobab, the ruler of Uz?" And it was told them, "He sitteth upon a dunghill without the city." And they asked what was become of my wealth—for I was aforetime richer than all the princes of the East—and they were informed of all that had befallen me. So they came where I was, and some of the men of the city with them, who showed me to them. But they said, "This is not Jobab." Yet the men of the place affirmed that it was so; and after they had disputed for some time, Eliphaz called to me, "Art thou Jobab, our fellow-king?" And I, weeping and casting dust upon my head, bowed myself in token that it was I.

Then were they stricken with great astonishment and terror, and fell to the ground as it were dead; and they rent their clothes and cast off their armour, and sat down upon the ground. And Elihu lifted up his voice and took up a lamentation over me, calling to mind all the glory of my former state, my sheep and oxen, camels and asses, my golden beds and my jewelled throne, the lamps and perfumes of my palace, and the beauty of my children, and saying, "Where is now the glory of thy kingdom?" And when he had ended his lamentation I said, "Hold your peace and I will tell you."

"My throne is in the region beyond the world, and the glory and beauty of it is at the right hand of the Father.

"This world shall pass away and the glory of it shall perish, and they that pay heed thereto shall be overwhelmed in the overthrow of it; but my throne is in the land of the holy, and the glory of it in the age that hath no change.

"The rivers shall be dried up, and the abundance of their streams floweth down into the depths of the pit; but the rivers of my land fail not, and their streams water it for evermore.

"Kings shall pass away, and rulers be no more seen: their names and their boasting shall be as the image in the glass; but my kingdom abideth for ever, and the glory thereof is as the glory of the chariot of the Most High."

Then Eliphaz waxed very wroth, and said, "Come, and let us leave him to his folly. To what purpose have we journeyed hither to comfort him, if he rails against us and says, 'Your kingdom shall be brought to nought, but mine endureth for ever'?" And he would have gone away in a rage. But Bildad restrained him, saying, "Remember that the man is sick in body and mind; we should not deal harshly with him; it may well be that he is mad." And Bildad and Zophar put questions to me to discern whether I was of sound mind or not, and I answered them soberly. And at last Zophar said, "What shall be done for thee? Behold, we have with us the most skilful physicians that are in our kingdoms. Wilt thou that they shall tend thee? Peradventure thou mayest find relief at their hands." But I said, "My healing and my medicine shall be from the Lord, who is the Maker of physicians and of all their craft."