T H E T E S TA M E N T O F

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CHAPT ER 1 1 T he copy of the words o f Levi, the things which he ordained u nto his sons, according to all that they shou ld do, and what things shou ld befa ll them u ntil the day of ju dg ement. 2 He was sou nd in health wh en he ca lled them to him; for it ha d been revea led to him that he sh ou ld die. And when they were gathered t ogether he said to them: CHAPT ER 2 1 I, Levi, was born in Haran, and I ca me with my father to Shechem. 2 And I was you ng, abou t twenty yea rs of age, when, with S imeon, I wrou ght vengeance on Hamor for ou r sister Dinah. 3 And when I was feeding the flock s in Ab el -Mau l, the spirit of u nderstanding of the Lord came u pon me, and I saw all men corru p ting their way, and that u nrighteou sness had bu ilt for itself walls, and la wlessness sat u pon towers. 4 And I was grieving for the race of the sons of men, and I prayed to the Lord that I might be saved. 5 T hen there fell u pon me a sleep, a nd I beheld a high mou ntain, and I wa s u pon it. 6 And behold the heavens were opened, and an angel of God said to me, Levi, enter. 7 And I entered from the first h e a ven, a nd I saw there a great sea ha nging. 8 And fu rther, I saw a second he a ven fa r brighter and more bri lliant, for there was a bou ndless height a lso therein. 9 And I said to the angel, Why is this so ? And the angel said to me, Marvel not at this, for thou shalt see another heaven more brilliant and incompa rable. 10 And when thou hast ascended thither, T hou shalt stand near the Lord, And shalt be His minister, And shalt declare His mysteries to men, And shaft proclaim concerning Him that shall redeem Israel. 11 And by thee and Ju dah shall the Lord appear among men, Saving every race of men. 12 And from th e Lord's portion shall be thy life, And He shall be thy field and vineyard, And fru its, gold, and silver. CHAPT ER 3 1 Hear, therefore, regarding the hea vens wid en have been sho wn to thee. T he lowest is for this cau se gloomy u nto thee, in that it beholds all the u nrighteou s deeds of men. 2 And it has fire, snow, and ic e made ready for the day of ju dg ement, in the righteou s ju dgement o f God; for in it are all the spirits of the retributions for vengeance on men. 3 And in the second are the host s of the armies which are ordained for the day of ju dgement, to work ve ngeance on th e spirits of deceit and of Beliar. And above them are the holy ones. 4 And in the highest o f all dwelleth the Great Glory, far above all hol iness. 5 In the heaven next to it are the

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a rcha ngels, who minister and mak e propitiation to the Lord for al l the sins of ign orance of the righteou s; 6 Offering to the Lord a sweet smelling savou r, a reasonable and a bloodless o ffering. 7 And in the heaven below this are the a ngels who bear answers to the a ngels of the presence o f the Lord. 8 And in the heaven next to this are thrones and dominions, in which a lwa ys they offer praise to God. 9 When, therefore, the Lord look eth u pon u s, all of u s are shak en; yea, the heavens, and the earth, and the a bysses are shak en at the presence of His majesty. 10 Bu t the sons of men, having no perception o f these thing s, sin and provok e the Most High. CHAPT ER 4 1 Now, therefore, k now that the Lord shall execute ju dgement u pon the sons o f men. Becau se when the rock s are being rent, and the su n qu enched, and the waters dri ed u p, a nd the fire cowering, and all crea tion trou bled, and the invisible sp irits melting away, and Hades tak eth spoils throu gh the visitations of the Most High, men will be u nbelieving a nd persist in their iniqu ity. On this a ccou nt with pu nishment sha ll they be ju dged. 2 T herefore, the Most High hath hea rd thy prayer, to separate thee from iniqu ity, and that thou shou ldest beco me to Him a son, and a serva nt, and a minister of His pre sence. 3 T he light of k nowledge shalt thou light u p in Jacob, and as th e su n sha lt thou be to all the seed o f Isra el. 4 And there shall be given to thee a

blessing, and to all thy seed, u ntil the Lord shall visit all the Gentiles in His tender mercies for ever. 5 And therefore there have been given to thee cou nsel and u nde rstanding, that thou mightest instru ct thy sons co ncerning this; 6 Becau se they that bless Him shall be blessed, An d they that cu rse Him shall perish. CHAPT ER 5 1 And thereu pon the angel opened to me the gates of heaven, and I saw the holy temple, and u p on a throne of glory the Most High. 2 And He said to me: Levi, I ha ve given thee the blessings o f the priesthood u ntil I come and sojou rn in the midst of Israel. 3 T hen the angel brou ght me down to the earth, and gave me a shield and a sword, and said to me: Execu te vengeance on Shechem b e cau se of Dinah, thy sister, and I will be with thee becau se the Lord hath sent me. 4 And I destroyed at that time the sons of Hamor, as it is written in the heavenly tablets. 5 And I said to him: I pray T hee, O lord, tell me T hy name, that I may call u pon T hee in a day of tribu la tion. 6 And he said: I am the angel who intercedeth for the nation of Israel that they may not be smitten u tterly, for every evil spirit attack eth it. 7 And after these things I awak ed, and blessed th e Mo st High, and the angel who intercedeth for the nation of Israel and for all the righteou s. CHAPT ER 6 1 And when I was going to my fa ther, I fou nd a brazen shield; wher e-

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fore a lso the name of the mou ntain is Aspis, which is n ear Gebal, to the sou th of Abila. 2 And I k ept these words in my hea rt. And after this I cou nselled my fa ther, and Reu ben my brother, to bid the sons of Hamor not to be circu mcised; for I was jealou s becau se of the abomination which they had wrou ght on my sister. 4 And I slew Shechem first, and Simeon slew Hamor. 5 And after this my brothers came a nd smote that city with the edge of the sword. 6 And my father heard these things a nd wa s wroth; and he was grieved in that they had received the ci rcu mcision, and after that ha d been pu t to death, and in his blessings he look ed amiss u pon u s. 7 For we sinned becau se we had done this thing against his will, and he wa s sick on that day. 8 But I saw that the sentence of God was for evil u pon Shechem; for they sou ght to do to Sara h a nd Rebecca as they had done to Dinah ou r sister, bu t the Lord prevented them. 9 And they persecu ted Abraham our fa ther when he was a stranger, and they vexed his flock s wh en they were big with you ng; and Eblaen, who was born in his h ou se, they most sha me fu lly handled. 10 And thu s they did to all stra ngers, tak ing away their wives by force, and they banished them. 11 Bu t the wrath of the Lord came u pon them to the u ttermost. CHAPT ER 7 1 And I said to my father Jacob: By thee will the Lord destroy the Ca na a nites, and will give their land to thee a nd to thy seed after thee.

2 For from this day forward shall Shechem be called a city of imb e ciles; for as a man mock eth a fool, so did we mock them, 3 Becau se also they had wrou ght folly in Israel by defili ng my sister. And we departed and came to B ethel. CHAPT ER 8 1 And there again I saw a vision even as the former, after we had spent there seventy days. 2 And I saw seven men in white ra iment saying u nto me: Arise, pu t on the robe of the priesthood, a nd the crown o f righteou sness, and the breastplate of u nderstanding, a nd the garment of truth, and the plate of faith, and the turban of the head, and the ephod of prophecy. 3 And they severally carried (these things) and pu t (them) on me, and said u nto me: From henceforth be come a priest of th e Lord, thou and thy seed for ever. 4 And the first anointed me with holy oil, and gave to me the staff of ju dgement. 5 T he second wash ed me with pu re water, and fed me with bread and wine (even) the most h oly things, and clad me with a holy and gl oriou s robe. 6 T he third clothed me with a linen vestment lik e an ephod. 7 T he fou rth pu t rou nd me a girdle lik e u nto pu rple. 8 T he fifth gave me a branch of rich olive. 9 T he sixth placed a crown on my head. 10 T he seventh placed on my head a diadem of priesthood, and filled my hands with incense, that I might serve as priest to the Lord God.

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11 And they said to me: Levi, thy seed shall be divided into three o ffices, for a sign of the glory o f the Lord who is to come. 12 And the first portion shall be grea t; yea, greater than it shall none be. 13 T he second shall be in the priesthood. 14 And the third shall be called by a new name, b ecau se a k ing shall a rise in Ju dah, and shall establish a new priestho od, after the fa shion o f the Gentiles to all the Gentiles. 15 And his presen ce is belov ed, as a prophet of the Most High, of the seed o f Abraham ou r father. 16 T herefore, every desirable thing in Isra el shall be for thee and for thy seed, And ye shall eat ever ything fair to look u pon, And the ta ble of the Lord shall thy seed appo rtion. 17 And some of them shall be high priests, and ju dges, and scribes; for by their mou th shall the holy place be gu a rded. 18 And when I awok e, I u nderstood tha t this (dream) was lik e the f irst drea m. 19 And I hid this also in my heart, a nd told it not to any man u pon the ea rth. CHAPT ER 9 1 And after two days I and Ju dah went u p with ou r father Ja cob to Isa a c ou r father's father. 2 And my father's father blessed me a ccording to all the words of the visions which I had seen. And he wou ld not come with u s to Bethel. 3 And when we came to Bethel, my fa ther Jacob saw a vision concer ning me, that I shou ld be their priest u nto God.

4 And he rose u p early in the mor ning, and paid tithes of all to the Lord throu gh me. 5 And so we came to Hebron to dwell there. 6 And Isaac called me co ntinu ally to pu t me in remembrance of the law of the Lord, even as the angel of the Lord showed u nto me. 7 And he tau ght me the law of the priesthood, of sacrifi ces, whole bu rnt-offering s, first -fru its, freewill-o ffering s, peace-o fferings. 8 And each day he was instru cting me, and was bu sied on my behalf before the Lord, and said to me: 9 Beware of the spirit of fornic a tion; for this shall continu e and shall by thy seed pollu te the holy place. 10 Tak e, therefore, to thyself a wife withou t blemish or pollu tion, while yet thou art you ng, and not of the race of strange nations, 11 And before entering into the h oly place, bathe; and when thou o fferest the sacrifice, wash; and again, when thou finishest the sacrifice, wash. 12 Of twelve trees having leaves offer to the Lord, as Abraham tau ght me also. 13 And of ev ery clean beast and bird offer a sacrifice to the Lord. 14 And of all thy first -fru its and of wine offer the first, as a sacrifice to the Lord God; and every sacrifice thou shalt salt with salt. CHAPT ER 1 0 1 Now, therefore, observe wha tsoever I command you , children; for wha tsoever things I have heard from my fathers rl have declared u nto you . 2 And behold, I am clear from y ou r

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u ngodliness and transgression, which ye shall commit in the end of the a ges against the Saviou r of the world, Christ, acting godlessly, d e ceiving Israel, and stirring u p a ga inst it great evils from the Lord. 3 And ye shall deal lawlessly together with Israel, so He shall not bea r with Jeru salem becau se of you r wick edness; bu t the veil of th e te m ple sha ll be rent, so as not to cover you r shame. 4 And ye shall be scattered as ca ptives a mong the Gentiles, and shall be for a reproach and for a cu rse there. 5 For the hou se which the Lord sha ll choose shall be called Jeru sa lem, a s is contained in the book of Enoch the righteou s. CHAPT ER 11 1 T herefore when I took a wife I wa s twenty-eig ht years old, and her na me was Melcha. 2 And she conceived and bare a son, a nd I called his name Gersam, for we were sojou rners in ou r land. 3 And I saw concerning him, that he wou ld not be in the first rank . 4 And Kohath was born in the thi rty-fifth year of my life, towards s u nrise. 5 And I saw in a vision that he was sta nding on high in the midst o f all the congregation. 6 T herefore I called his name K oha th, which is, beginning o f majesty a nd instru ction. 7 And she bare me a third son, M erari, in the fortieth year of my life ; a nd since hi s moth er bare him with difficu lty, I called him Merari, that is my bitterness, becau se he also wa s lik e to die. 8 And Jochebed was born in Egypt,

in my sixty-fou rth year, for I was renowned then in the midst of my brethren. CHAPT ER 1 2 1 And Gersam took a wife, and she bare to him Lomni and Semei. 2 And the sons of Kohath, Ambra m, Issachar, Hebron, and Ozeel. 3 And the sons of M erari, Mooli and Mou ses. 4 And in my ninety-fou rth year Ambram took Jochebed my dau ghter to him to wife, for they were born in one da y, he and my dau ghter. 5 Eight years old was I when I went into the land of Canaan, and eig hteen years when I slew Shech em, and at nineteen years I became priest, and at twenty -eight years I took a wife, and at forty -eight I went into Egypt. 6 And behold, my children, ye are a third generation. 7 In my hu ndred-and-eighteenth year Joseph died. CHAPT ER 1 3 1 And now, my children, I co mmand you : Fear the Lord you r God with you r whole heart1 , and walk in simplicity according to all His law. 2 And do ye also teach y ou r chi ldren letters, that they may have u nderstanding all their life, reading u nceasingly the law of God. 3 For every one that k noweth the law of the Lord shall be honou red, and shall not be a stranger whithe rsoever he go eth. 4 Yea, many friends shall he gain more than his parents, and ma ny men shall desire to serve him, a nd to hear the law from his mou th. 5 Work righteou sness, therefore, my children, u pon the earth, T hat ye

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ma y have (it) as a treasu re in hea ven. 6 And sow good thing s in you r sou ls, that ye may find them in you r life. Bu t if ye sow evil things, ye sha ll reap every trou ble and affli ction. 7 Get wisdom in the f ear of God with diligence; For thou gh there be a lea ding into captivity, and cities a nd la nds be destroyed, and gold a nd silver and every possession p e rish, the wisdom o f the wise nau ght ca n tak e away, save the blindness o f u ngodliness, and the callou sness (tha t comes) of sin. 8 For if one k eep oneself from these evil things, then even among his enemies shall wisdom be a g lory to him, and in a strange cou ntry a fa therland, And in the midst of foes sha ll prove a friend. 9 Whosoever teacheth noble things a nd doeth them, shall be e nthroned with k ings, as was also J oseph my brother. CHAPT ER 1 4 1 T herefore, my children, I hav e lea rnt that at the end of the ages ye will transgress against the Lord, stretching ou t hands to wick edness a ga inst Him; and to all the Gentiles sha ll ye become a scorn. 2 For our father Israel is pu re from the transgressions o f the chief priests who sha ll lay their hands u pon the Saviou r of the world. 3 For as the heaven is pu rer in the Lord's sight than the earth, so also be ye, the lights of Israel, (purer) tha n all the Gentiles. 4 Bu t if ye be dark ened throu gh tra nsgressions, what, therefore, will a ll the Gentiles do living in blin dness? Yea, ye shall bring a curse

u pon ou r race, becau se the light of the law which was given for to lig hten every man, this ye desire to d e stroy by teaching commandments contrary to the ordinances of God. 5 T he offerings of the Lord ye shall rob, and from His portion shall ye steal choice portions, eating (them) contemptu ou sly with harlots. 6 And ou t of covetou sness ye shall teach the commandments o f the Lord, wedded women shall ye po llu te, and the virgins of Jeru salem shall ye defile; and with harlots and adulteresses shall ye be joined, and the dau ghters of the Gentiles shall ye tak e to wife, pu rifying them with an u nlawfu l purification; and you r u nion shall be lik e u nto Sodom a nd Gomorrah. 7 And ye shall be pu ffed u p becau se of your priesthood, lifting you rselves u p against men, and not only so, bu t also against the co mmands of God. 8 For ye shall contemn the holy things with jests and lau ghter. CHAPT ER 1 5 1 T herefore the temple, which the Lord shall choose, shall b e laid waste throu gh you r u ncleanness, and ye shall be captives throu ghou t all na tions. 2 And ye shall be an abomination u nto them, and ye shall receive r e proach and everlasting shame from the righteou s ju dgement of God. 3 And all who hate you shall r ejoice at you r destru ction. 4 And if you were not to receive mercy throu gh Abraham, Isaac, a nd Jacob, ou r fathers, not one of ou r seed shou ld be left u pon the earth. CHAPT ER 1 6

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1 And now I have learnt that for seventy week s ye shall go astray, a nd profane the priesthood, and p ollu te the sacrifices. 2 And ye shall mak e void the law, a nd set at nou ght the words o f the prophets by evil perverseness. And ye sha ll persecu te righteou s men, a nd hate the godly; the words of the fa ithfu l shall ye abhor. 3 And a ma n who reneweth th e law in the power of the Most High, ye sha ll call a deceiver; and at last ye sha ll ru sh (u pon him) to slay him, not k nowing his dignity, tak ing i nnocent bloo d throu gh wick edness u pon you r heads. 4 And your holy places shall be la id waste even to the grou nd beca u se of him. 5 And ye shall have no place that is clea n; bu t ye shall be among the Gentiles a cu rse and a dispersion u ntil He shall again visit you , and in pity shall receive you throu gh faith a nd wa ter. CHAPT ER 1 7 1 And whereas ye have heard concerning the seventy week s, hear also concerning the priesthoo d. 2 For in each ju bilee there shall be a priesthood. And in the first ju b ilee, the first who is anointed to the priesthood shall be great, and shall spea k to God as to a father. And his priesthood shall be perfect with the Lord, a nd in the day of his gladness sha ll he arise for the salvation of the world. 3 In the second ju bilee, he that is a nointed shall be conceived in the sorrow of beloved ones; and his priesthood shall be ho nou red and sha ll be glorified by all. 4 And the third priest shall be tak en

hold of by sorrow. 5 And the fou rth shall be in pain, becau se u nrighteou sness shall gat her itself against him exceedingly, and all Israel shall hate each one his neighbou r. 6 T he fifth shall be tak en hold of by dark ness. 7 Lik ewise also the sixth and the seventh. 8 And in the seventh shall be su ch pollu tion as I cannot express before men, for they shall k now it who do these things. 9 T herefore shall they be tak en ca ptive and become a prey, and their land and their su bstance shall be d estroyed. 10 And in the fifth week they shall return to their desolate cou ntry, a nd shall renew the hou se of the Lord. 11 And in the sev enth week shall come priests, (who are) idolaters, adulterers, lovers of money, prou d, lawless, lasciviou s, abu sers of children and beasts. CHAPT ER 1 8 1 And after their pu nishment shall have come from the Lord, the priesthood shall fail. 2 T hen shall the Lord raise u p a new priest. And to him all the words of the Lord shall be revealed; And he shall execu te a righteou s ju dg ement u pon the earth for a mu ltitu de of days. 3 And his star shall arise in heaven as of a k ing, Lighting u p the light of k nowledge as the su n the day, And he shall be magnified in the world. 4 He shall shine forth as the su n on the earth, And shall remove all dark ness fro m u nder heaven, And thefe shall be peace in all the earth. 5 T he heavens shall exu lt in his

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da ys, And the earth shall be glad, And the clou ds shall rejoice ; And the k nowledge of th e Lord shall be pou red forth u pon the earth, as the wa ter of the seas ; And the angels of the glory of the presen ce o f the Lord shall be glad in him. 6 T he heavens shall be op ened, And from the temple of glory shall come u pon him sanctification, With the Fa ther's voice as from Abraham to Isa a c. 7 And the glory of the Most High sha ll be u ttered over him, And the spirit of u nderstanding and sanctif ica tion shall rest u pon him in the w a ter. 8 For he shall give the majesty of the Lord to His sons in tru th for evermore ; An d there shall none su cceed him for all generations for ever 9 And in his priesthood the Ge ntiles shall be mu ltiplied in k no wledge u pon the earth, And enlig h tened throu gh the grace of the Lord : In his priesthood shall sin come to a n end, And the lawless shall cease to do evil. And the ju st shall rest in him. 10 And he shall open the gates of pa ra dise, And shall remove the threa tening sword against Adam. 11 And he shall give to the saints to ea t from the tree o f life, An d the spirit of holiness shall be on them. 12 And Beliar shall be bou nd by him, And he shall give power to His children to tread u pon the evil sp irits. 13 And the Lord shall rejoice in His children, And be well pleased in His beloved ones for ever. 14 T hen shall Abraham and Isaac a nd Ja cob exu lt, And I will be glad, And a ll the saints shall clothe the m -

selves with joy. CHAPT ER 1 9 1 And now, my children, ye ha ve heard all; choose, therefore, for you rselves either the light or the dark ness, either the law of the Lord or the work s of Beliar. 2 And his sons answered him, sa ying, Before the Lord we will walk a ccording to His law. 3 And their father said u nto them, T he Lord is witness, and His angels are witnesses, and ye are witnesses, and I am witness, concerning the word of you r mou th. And his sons said u nto him : We are witnesses. 4 And thu s Levi ceased comman ding his sons; and he stretched ou t his feet on th e bed, and was g a thered to his fathers, after he had lived a hu ndred and thirty-seven years. 5 And they laid him in a coffin, and afterwards they bu ried him in H ebron, with Abraham, Isaac, and Ja cob.