1
Benjamin, the twelfth son of Jacob and Rachel, the baby of the family, turns philosopher and philanthropist.
THE copy of the words of Benjamin, which he commanded his sons to observe, after he had lived a hundred and twenty-five years.
2And he kissed them, and said: As Isaac was born to Abraham in his old age, so also was I to Jacob.
3And since Rachel my mother died in giving me birth, I had no milk; therefore I was suckled by Bilhah her handmaid.
4For Rachel remained barren for twelve years after she had borne Joseph; and she prayed
the Lord with fasting twelve days, and she conceived and bare Me.
5For my father loved Rachel dearly, and prayed that he might see two sons born from her.
6Therefore was I called Benjamin, that is, a son of days.
7And when I went into Egypt, to Joseph, and my brother recognized me, he said to me: What did they tell my father when they sold me?
8And I said to him, They dabbled your coat with blood and sent it, and said: Know whether this be your son's coat.
9And he said to me: Even so, brother, when they had stripped me of my coat they gave me to the Ishmaelites, and they gave me a loin cloth, and scourged me, and bade me run.
10And as for one of those who had beaten me with a rod, a lion met him and killed him.
11And so his associates were affrighted.
12Do you also, therefore, my children, love the Lord God of heaven and earth, and keep His commandments, following the example of the good and holy man Joseph.
13And let your mind be to good, even as you know me; for he who bath his mind right sees all things rightly.
14Fear you the Lord, and love your neighbor; and even though the spirits of Beliar claim you to afflict you with every evil. Yet shall they not have dominion over you, even as they had not over Joseph my brother.,
15How many men wished to slay him, and God shielded him!
16For he who fears God and loves his neighbor cannot be smitten by the spirit of Beliar, being shielded by the fear of God.
17Nor can he be ruled over by the device of men or beasts, for he is helped by the Lord through the love which he has towards his neighbor.
18For Joseph also begged our father that he would pray for his brethren, that the Lord would not impute to them as sin whatever evil they had done to him.
19And thus Jacob cried out: My good child, you have prevailed over the bowels of your father Jacob.
20And he embraced him, and kissed him for two hours, saying:
21In you shall be fulfilled the prophecy of heaven concerning the Lamb of God, and Savior
of the world, and that a blameless one shall be delivered up for lawless men. And a sinless one shall die for ungodly men in the blood of the covenant, for the salvation of the Gentiles and of Israel, and shall destroy Beliar and his servants.
22See you, therefore, my children, the end of the good man?
23Be followers of his compassion, therefore, with a good mind, that you also may wear crowns of glory.
24For the good man has not a dark eye; for he shows mercy to all men, even though they be sinners.
25And though they devise with evil intent. concerning him, by doing good he overcomes evil, being shielded by God; and he loves the righteous as his own soul.
26If any one is glorified, he envies him not; if any one is enriched, he is not jealous; if any one is valiant, he praises him. The virtuous man he lauds; on the poor man he has mercy; on the weak he has compassion; to God he sings praises.
27And him who has the grace of a good spirit he loves as his own soul.
28If therefore, you also have a good mind, then will both wicked men be at peace with you, and the profligate will reverence you and turn to good. And the covetous will not only cease from their inordinate desire, but even give the objects of their covetousness to those who are afflicted.
29If you do well, even the unclean spirits will flee from you; and the beasts will dread you.
30For where there is reverence for good works and light in the mind, even darkness flees away from him.
31For if any one does violence to a holy man, he repents; for the holy man is merciful to his reviler, and holds his peace.
32And if any one betrays a righteous man, the righteous man prays: though for a little he be humbled. Yet not long after he appears far more glorious, as was Joseph my brother.
33The inclination of the good man is not in the power of the deceit of the spirit of Beliar, for the angel of peace guides his soul.
34And he gazes not passionately upon corruptible things, nor gathers together riches through a desire of pleasure.
35He delights not in pleasure, he grieves not his neighbor, he sates not himself with luxuries, he errs not in the uplifting of the eyes, for the Lord is his portion.
36The good inclination receives not glory nor dishonor from men, and it knows not any guile, or lie, or fighting or reviling. For the Lord dwells in him and lights up his soul, and he rejoices towards all men.
37The good mind has not two tongues, of blessing and of cursing, of contumely and of honor, of sorrow and of joy, of quietness and of confusion, of hypocrisy and of truth, of poverty
and of wealth; but it has one disposition, uncorrupt and pure, concerning all men.
38It has no double sight, nor double hearing; for in everything which he does, or speaks, or sees, he knows that the Lord looks on his soul.
39And he cleanses his mind that he may not be condemned by men as well as by God.
40And in like manner the works of Beliar are twofold, and there is no singleness in them.
41Therefore, my children, I tell you, flee the malice of Beliar; for he gives a sword to those who obey him.
42And the sword is the mother of seven evils. First the mind conceives through Beliar, and first there is bloodshed; secondly ruin; thirdly, tribulation; fourthly, exile; fifthly, dearth; sixthly, panic; seventhly, destruction.
43"Therefore was Cain also delivered over to seven vengeances by God, for in every hundred years the Lord brought one plague upon him.
44And when he was two hundred years old he began to suffer, and in the nine-hundredth year he was destroyed.
45For on account of Abel, his brother, with -all the evils was he judged, but Lamech with seventy times seven.
46Because for ever those, who are like Cain in envy and hatred of brethren, shall be
punished with the same judgment.
2
Verse 3 contains a striking example of the homeliness--yet vividness of the figures of speech of these ancient patriarchs.
AND do you, my children, flee evil-doing, envy, and hatred of , and cleave to goodness and love.
2He who has a pure mind in love, looks not after a woman with a view to fornication; for he
has no defilement in his heart, because the Spirit of God rests upon him.
3For as the sun is not defiled by shining on dung and mire, but rather dries up both and drives away the evil smell. So also the pure mind, though encompassed by the defilements of earth, rather cleanses them and is not itself defiled.
4And I believe that there will be also evil-doings among you, from the words of Enoch the righteous: that you shall commit fornication with the fornication of Sodom, and shall perish, all save a few, and shall renew wanton deeds with women. And the kingdom of the Lord shall not be among you, for immediately He shall take it away.
5Nevertheless the temple of God shall be in your portion, and the last temple shall be more glorious than the first.
6And the twelve tribes shall be gathered together there, and all the Gentiles, until the Most High shall send forth His salvation in the visitation of an only-begotten prophet.
7And He shall enter into the first temple, and there shall the Lord be treated with outrage, and He shall be lifted up upon a tree.
8And the veil of the temple shall be rent, and the Spirit of God shall pass on to the Gentiles as fire poured forth.
9And He shall ascend from Hades and shall pass from earth into heaven.
10And I know how lowly He shall be upon earth, and how glorious in heaven.
11Now when Joseph was in Egypt, I longed to see his figure and the form of his countenance. And through the prayers of Jacob my father I saw him, while awake in the daytime, even
his entire figure exactly as he was.
12And when he had said these things, he said to them: Know you, therefore, my children, that I am dying.
13Do you, therefore, truth each one to his neighbor, and keep the law of the Lord and His commandments.
14For these things do I leave you instead of inheritance.
15Do you also, therefore, give them to your children for an everlasting possession; for so did both Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob.
16For all these things they gave us for an inheritance, saying: Keep the commandments of God, until the Lord shall reveal His salvation to all Gentiles.
17And then shall you see Enoch, Noah, and Shem, and Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, rising on the right hand in gladness,
18Then shall we also rise, each one over our tribe, worshipping the King of heaven, who appeared upon earth in the form of a man in humility.
19And as many as believe on Him on the earth shall rejoice with Him.
20Then also all men shall rise, some to glory and some to shame.
21And the Lord shall judge Israel first, for their unrighteousness; for when He appeared as God in the flesh to deliver them they believed Him not.
22And then shall He judge all the Gentiles, as many as believed Him not when He appeared upon earth.
23And He shall convict Israel through the chosen ones of the Gentiles, even as He reproved Esau through the Midianites, who deceived their brethren, so that they fell into fornication, and idolatry. And they were alienated from God, becoming therefore children in the portion of those who fear the Lord.
24If you therefore, my children, walk in holiness according to the commandments of the Lord, you shall again dwell securely with me, and all Israel shall be gathered to the Lord.
25And I shall no longer be called a ravening wolf on account of your ravages, but a worker of the Lord distributing food to those who work what is good.
26And there shall arise in the latter days one beloved of the Lord, of the tribe of Judah and Levi, a doer of His good pleasure in his mouth, with new knowledge enlightening the Gentiles.
27Until the consummation of the age shall he be in the synagogues of the Gentiles, and among their rulers, as a strain of music in the mouth of all.
28And he shall be inscribed in the holy books, both his work and his word, and he shall be a chosen one of God for ever.
29And through them he shall go to and fro as Jacob my father, saying: He shall fill up that which lacks of your tribe.
30And when he had said these things he stretched out his feet.
31And died in a beautiful and good sleep.
32And his sons did as he had enjoined them, and they took up his body and buried it in Hebron with his fathers.
33And the number of the days of his life was a hundred and twenty-five years.