Legends Of The Patriarchs And Prophets - free ebook by S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould

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Legends Of The Patriarchs And Prophets

S. (Sabine) Baring-Gould

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LEGENDS OF THE PATRIARCHS AND PROPHETS.

LEGENDS OF THE PATRIARCHS AND PROPHETS.

LEGENDS OF THE Patriarchs and Prophets AND OTHER OLD TESTAMENT CHARACTERS FROM VARIOUS SOURCES BY THE REV. S. BARING-GOULD, M.A. Author of “Curious Myths of the Middle Ages,” “The Origin and Development of Religious Belief,” “In Exitu Israel,” etc. NEW YORK: AMERICAN BOOK EXCHANGE, 764 Broadway . 1881....

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PREFACE.

PREFACE.

An incredible number of legends exists connected with the personages whose history is given in the Old Testament. The collection now presented to the public must by no means be considered as exhaustive. The compiler has been obliged to limit himself as to the number, it being quite impossible to insert all. He trusts that few of peculiar interest have been omitted. The Mussulman traditions are nearly all derived from the Talmudic writers, just as the history of Christ in the Koran is taken from

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Chapter_I

Chapter_I

In the beginning, before the creation of heaven and earth, God made the angels; free intelligences and free wills; out of His love He made them, that they might be eternally happy. And that their happiness might be complete, He gave them the perfection of a created nature; that is, He gave them freedom. But happiness is only attained by the free will agreeing in its freedom to accord with the will of God. Some of the angels by an act of free will obeyed the will of God, and in such obedience fou

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1. THE CREATION OF MAN.

1. THE CREATION OF MAN.

Certain of the angels having fallen, God made men, that they might take their vacated places. According to the most authoritative Mussulman traditions, Adam was created on Friday afternoon at the Assr-hour, or about three o’clock. The four archangels—Gabriel, Michael, Israfiel, and Asrael—were required to bring earth from the four quarters of the world, that therefrom God might fashion man. His head and breast were made of clay from Mecca and Medina, from the spot where later were the Holy Kaaba

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2. THE PRE-ADAMITES.

2. THE PRE-ADAMITES.

In 1655, Isaac de la Peyreira, a converted Jew, published a curious treatise on the Pre-Adamites. Arguing upon Romans v. 12-14, he contended that there were two creations of man; that recorded in the first chapter of Genesis and that described in the second chapter being distinct. The first race he supposed to have peopled the whole world, but that it was bad, and therefore Adam had been created with a spiritual soul, and that from Adam the Jewish race was descended, whereas the Gentile nations

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Chapter_III

Chapter_III

That man was created double, i. e. both male and female, is and has been a common opinion. One Rabbinical interpretation of the text, “And God created man in His own image, male-female created He them,” is that Adam and Eve were formed back to back, united at the shoulders, and were hewn asunder with a hatchet; but of this more presently. The Rabbis say that when Eve had to be drawn out of the side of Adam she was not extracted by the head, lest she should be vain; nor by the eyes, lest they sho

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Chapter_IV

Chapter_IV

What was the tree of which our first parents were forbidden to eat? In Midrash, f. 7, the Rabbi Mayer says it was a wheat-tree; the Rabbi Jehuda, that it was a grape-vine; the Rabbi Aba, that it was a Paradise-apple; the Rabbi Josse, that it was a fig-tree: therefore it was that, when driven out of Paradise, they used its leaves for a covering. The Persian story, adopted by the Arabs, is that the forbidden fruit was wheat, and that it grew on a tree whose trunk resembled gold and its branches si

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Chapter_V

Chapter_V

When Adam reached the earth, the Eagle said to the Whale, with whom it had hitherto lived in the closest intimacy, “Now we must part, for there is no safety for us animals since man has come amongst us. The deepest abysses of ocean must be thy refuge, and thou must protect thyself with cunning from the great foe who has entered the earth. I must soar high above the clouds, and there find a place of escape from him who is destined to be my pursuer till death.” 81 According to certain cabbalistic

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Chapter_VI

Chapter_VI

After that the child given to Satan died, says Tabari, Adam had another son, and he called him Seth, and Seth was prophet in the room of his father, after the death of Adam. Adam had many more children; every time that Eve bore, she bare twins, whereof one was male, the other female, and the twins were given to one another as husband and wife. Now Adam sought to give to Abel the twin sister of Cain, when she was old enough to be married, but Cain (Kabil, in Arabic) was dissatisfied. 105 Adam sai

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Chapter_VII

Chapter_VII

According to a Mussulman tradition, Adam was consoled for the loss of Abel by the discovery of how to make wheat-bread. The story is as follows:— The angel Gabriel was sent out of Paradise to give him the rest of the wheat-grains Eve had plucked from the forbidden tree, together with two oxen, and various instruments of husbandry. Hitherto he had fed on roots and berries, and had known nothing of sowing grain; acting under Gabriel’s directions, he ploughed the land, but the plough stuck, and Ada

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Chapter_VIII

Chapter_VIII

When Seth had ascended the throne of his father, says Tabari, he was the greatest of the sons of Adam. Every year he made the pilgrimage to the Kaaba, and he ruled the world with equity, and every thing flourished during his reign. At the age of fifty he had a son; he called his name Enoch, and named him his executor. He died at the age of nine hundred. 142 Seth and the other sons of Adam waged perpetual war against the Dives, or giants, the sons of Kabil, or Cain. Rocail was another son of Adam

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Chapter_IX

Chapter_IX

“ And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos: and Seth lived after he begat Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters: and all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died. And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan. ” 152 Alexander wrote many epistles to Aristotle, his preceptor, in which he narrated what had befallen him in India. Amongst other things he wrote: “After I had entered the Persian region, which is a province of India, I a

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1. THE TRANSLATION OF ENOCH.

1. THE TRANSLATION OF ENOCH.

Enoch, or Edris, 154 as he is called by the Arabs, was born in Hindostan, but he lived in Yemen. He was a prophet. In his days men worshipped fire, being deceived by Eblis. When God sent Enoch to his brethren to turn them from their false worship, they would not believe him. Idolatry began in the times of Jared, son of Mahalaleel, and it spread to such an extent that, when Noah was born, there were not eighty persons who worshipped the true, and living, and only God. Jared fought Satan, the prin

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2. THE BOOK OF ENOCH.

2. THE BOOK OF ENOCH.

The Book of Enoch, quoted by S. Jude in his Epistle, and alluded to by Origen, S. Augustine, S. Clement of Alexandria, and others of the Fathers, must not be passed over. The original book appears from internal evidence to have been written about the year 110 B. C. 156 But we have not the work as then written; it has suffered from numerous interpolations, and it is difficult always to distinguish the original text from the additions. The book is frequently quoted in the apocryphal “Testament of

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Chapter_XI

Chapter_XI

The Giants, say the Cabbalists, arose thus. Aza and Azael, two angels of God, complained to the Most High at the creation of man, and said, “Why hast Thou made man who will anger Thee?” But God answered, “And you, O angels, if you were in the lower world, you too, would sin.” And He sent them on earth, and then they fell, as says the Book of Genesis, “ And it came to pass that the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair, and they took them wives of all which they chose. ” After

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Chapter_XII

Chapter_XII

“ Methusael begat Lamech. And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah. And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle. And his brother’s name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ. And Zillah, she also bare Tubal-cain, an instructor of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah. And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my vo

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Chapter_XIII

Chapter_XIII

It is related that an angel appeared to Methuselah, who was then aged five hundred years, and lived in the open air, and advised him to build a house. The Patriarch asked how long he had to live. “About five hundred years more,” answered the angel. “Then,” said Methuselah, “it is not worth taking the trouble for so short a time.” 177 “Methuselah,” says the Midrash, “was a thoroughly righteous man. Every word that fell from his lips was superlatively perfect, exhausting the praises of the Lord. H

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Chapter_XIV

Chapter_XIV

The earth being filled with violence, God resolved on its destruction, but Noah, the just, He purposed to save alive. On the words of Genesis, “ All flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth ,” the Rabbi Johanan taught that not only was the race of men utterly demoralized, but also all the races of animals. 182 Noah and his family, and one pair of all the beasts of earth, were to be saved in the ark, but of every clean beast seven were to enter in. Falsehood hastened to the ark and asked to be

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Chapter_XV

Chapter_XV

Ararat has borne this name for three thousand years. We read in the Book of Genesis that “ the ark rested, in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat .” In passages of the Old Testament, as in Isaiah xxxvii. 38 and 2 Kings xix. 37, mention is made of a land, in Jeremiah li. 27 of a kingdom, of Ararat; and we are likewise informed by Moses of Chorene, the first authority among Armenian writers, that an entire country bore this name after an ancient Arm

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Chapter_XVI

Chapter_XVI

Bowed under his toil, dripping with perspiration, stood the patriarch Noah, laboring to break the hard clods. All at once Satan appeared and said to him,— “What new undertaking have you in hand? What new fruit do you expect to extract from these clods?” “I plant the grape,” answered the patriarch. “The grape! proud plant, most precious fruit! joy and delight to men! Your labor is great; will you allow me to assist you? Let us share the labor of producing the vine.” The patriarch in a fit of exha

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Chapter_XVI

Chapter_XVI

Ham, the accursed, the third son of Noah, was the inventor or the preserver of magic. As we have already seen, he buried the books of magic which existed in the world, before the Deluge swept over the globe; and when it abated he exhumed them. Cerco d’Ascoli, in the fourth chapter of his “Commentary on the Sphere of Sacrabosco,” declares that he had seen a book of magic which had been composed by Ham, “which contained the elements and practice of necromancy.” Certain it is that apocryphal books

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Chapter_XVIII

Chapter_XVIII

We have already seen that Berosus relates how in his time portions of the ark were removed, and used as amulets. Josephus says that remains of the ark were to be seen at his day upon Ararat; and Nicolas of Damascus reports the same. S. Epiphanius writes: “The wood of the ark of Noah is shown to this day in the Kardæn (Koord) country.” 261 And he is followed by a host of fathers. El Macin, in his History of the Saracens, relates that the Emperor Heraclius visited the relics after he had conquered

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Chapter_XIX

Chapter_XIX

We shall follow certain Mussulman traditions for what follows. Ad, son of Amalek, therefore grandson of Ham, established himself in Arabia, where he became chief of the tribe of the Adites. He fell into idolatry. He had two sons named Schedad and Scheded, who reigned over numerous subjects—one for two hundred and fifty, the other for three hundred years. They built a superb city, where houses were of sumptuous magnificence; the like of this city was never seen before, nor will be seen again. Thi

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Chapter_XX

Chapter_XX

“ And Eber lived four and thirty years, and begat Peleg. “ And Peleg lived thirty years, and begat Reu. And Reu lived two and thirty years, and begat Serug. And Serug lived thirty years, and begat Nahor. ” 266 Serug is said to have discovered the art of coining gold and silver money. In his days men erected many idols, into which demons entered and wrought great signs by them. Samiri was king of the Chaldees, and he discovered weights and measures and how to weave silk, and also how to dye fabri

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Chapter_XXI

Chapter_XXI

“ Unto Shem, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born. “ The children of Shem;—Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad and Lud and Aram. “ And the children of Aram;—Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash. “ And Arphaxad begat Salah; and Salah begat Eber. ” 269 According to some Mussulman writers, Oudh (Lud), the son of Shem, had a son named Ad; but, according to others, Ad was the son of Aram, son of Shem. The tribes of Ad and Thamud lived near o

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Chapter_XXII

Chapter_XXII

The prophet Saleh was the son of Ad, son of Aram, son of Shem, and is not to be confused with Saleh, son of Arphaxad. The Mussulmans say that he was sent to convert the Thamudites. The Thamudites were in size and strength like their brethren the Adites, but they inhabited the rocks, which they dug out into spacious mansions. They had in the midst of their land an unfailing supply of sweet and limpid water. They were idolaters. Saleh came armed with the command of Allah to these men, and he preac

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Chapter_XXIII

Chapter_XXIII

First we will take Jewish traditions, and then Mahommedan legends. The Rabbis relate as follows:— After the times of the great Deluge, men feared a recurrence of that great overthrow, and they assembled on and inhabited the plain of Shinar. There, they no longer obeyed the gentle guidance of Shem, the son of Noah; but they cast the kingdom of God far from them, and choose as their sovereign, Nimrod, son of Cush, son of Ham. 279 Nimrod became very great in power. Having been born when his father

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1. HIS YOUTH AND EARLY STRUGGLES.

1. HIS YOUTH AND EARLY STRUGGLES.

Abraham or Abram, as he was first called, was the son of Terah, general of Nimrod’s army, and Amtelai, daughter of Carnebo. He was born at Ur of the Chaldees, in the year 1948 after the Creation. On the night on which Abraham was born, Terah’s friends, amongst whom were many councillors and soothsayers of Nimrod, were feasting in the house. On leaving, late at night, they observed an unusual star in the east; it seemed to run from one quarter of the heavens to another, and to devour four stars w

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2. THE CALL OF ABRAHAM, AND THE VISIT TO EGYPT.

2. THE CALL OF ABRAHAM, AND THE VISIT TO EGYPT.

For three years Abraham dwelt in Charan, till God called him to go further with his wife Sarah, and to take up his abode in Canaan; but Terah and Lot remained at Charan. Abraham reached Canaan and pitched his tent among the inhabitants of that land; and on the spot where God promised that He would give him all that pleasant country for his inheritance, he erected an altar to the Eternal One. For fifteen years he had dwelt in Canaan, and Abraham was now aged 70, when, on the 15th day of the first

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3. THE WAR WITH THE KINGS.

3. THE WAR WITH THE KINGS.

After the failure of the Tower of Babel, and the people had been scattered over the whole earth, Chedorlaomer, one of Nimrod’s chief captains, had left his service, and had established a kingdom of his own in Elam. He speedily brought into subjection all the Canaanitish peoples that dwelt in the fertile valley of Jordan,—Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zebojim, and Zoar, and made them tributary to himself. These cities bore his yoke for twelve years, and then they rebelled. Five years after did Nimrod,

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4. THE BIRTH OF ISHMAEL.

4. THE BIRTH OF ISHMAEL.

Ten years passed, and yet Sarah was barren. Abraham, in sore distress, prayed to God, and reminded Him of His promises. Sarah then said to Abraham, “God has refused me children, therefore take Hagar to wife, the daughter of Pharaoh, who was given to be my servant; I give her thee in all good-will, that my reproach may be taken away, and to her I give her freedom.” Abraham consented; but Hagar, who had been virtuously brought up by Sarah, objected modestly, till Sarah pointed out to her how great

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5. THE DESTRUCTION OF SODOM AND GOMORRAH.

5. THE DESTRUCTION OF SODOM AND GOMORRAH.

At noon on the 15th Nisan, the third day after the circumcision of Abraham, as recorded in the Book of Genesis, the heat of the sun was so great that Gehinom (Hell) was penetrated by it. And Abraham had not recovered the administration of the rite, which had been performed by the hands of Shem, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God. Abraham was wont every day to go forth and invite any travellers he might see to feast with him. But this day, owing to the heat and to his being in pain, he se

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6. THE BIRTH OF ISAAC.

6. THE BIRTH OF ISAAC.

The country was wasted; travellers were few; those who passed by, and accepted Abraham’s hospitality, spoke with scorn of the sin of Lot, his nephew; and the neighborhood became intolerable to the patriarch, who resolved to change his place of residence for a while. He therefore went south, between Kadesh and Sur, and dwelt in Gerar. Now Sarah had bloomed again as fair as in her youth, as the angel Michael had foretold; and Abraham persuaded her to pretend again to be his sister, though Sarah, r

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7. THE EXPULSION OF HAGAR AND ISHMAEL.

7. THE EXPULSION OF HAGAR AND ISHMAEL.

Ishmael grew up, and became skilful with his bow; he was rough and undisciplined, and he occasionally lapsed into idolatry, but without his father knowing it. But Sarah was aware of his sin, and was grieved thereat. Ishmael often boasted, “I am the eldest son, and I shall have a double portion of my father’s inheritance.” These words were reported to Sarah, and she hated Ishmael for them in her heart. One day when Isaac was five years old, but others say fifteen, Ishmael said to him, “Come forth

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8. THE STRIFE BETWEEN THE SHEPHERDS.

8. THE STRIFE BETWEEN THE SHEPHERDS.

Abraham lived twenty-six years in the land of the Philistines; then he went to Hebron, and there his servants dug wells, and there they encamped. When Abimelech’s servants heard of these wells that they had dug, they came with their flocks, and desired to use them also, and the largest of the wells they claimed as their own. But Abraham’s shepherds said, “Let the well belong to those to whom it gives water. The Lord shall decide between us!” To this the servants of Abimelech agreed. And when the

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9. THE GROVE IN BEER-SHEBA.

9. THE GROVE IN BEER-SHEBA.

“ And Abraham planted a grove in Beer-sheba, and called there on the name of the Lord. ” 325 The reason was as follows:— Once Abraham asked Shem the son of Noah, otherwise called Melchizedek, king of Salem, what service he and his father and brethren rendered to the Lord in the ark, which was so acceptable to God that He preserved them alive and brought them in safety to Ararat; and Shem answered, “The service we rendered to God, all the time of our sojourn in the ark, was charity.” And when Abr

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THE_OFFERING_OF_ISAAC

THE_OFFERING_OF_ISAAC

Abraham loved the son of his old age, and Isaac grew up in the fear of God, and his good conduct heightened the love Abraham bore him; but the Patriarch thought in his heart, “I prepare gifts to give of my abundance to every man that asks of me, and to every passer-by; but to my Lord and God, the Giver of all good things, have I given nothing!” There was a day when the sons of God (the angels) stood before the Eternal One, and amongst them was the accusing angel, Satan or Sammael. The Lord asked

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11. THE DEATH OF SARAH.

11. THE DEATH OF SARAH.

Sarah,—who, as we have seen, accompanied Abraham and Isaac part of the way to Moriah,—on her return to the tent, found an old man awaiting her. It was Satan. He greeted her with profound respect, and asked after her husband and son. She answered that they had gone forth on a journey. “Whither have they gone?” asked Satan. “My lord has gone to visit the school of Shem and Eber, our grandsires, there to leave my son Isaac to be instructed in the law of God.” “Alas! alas!” exclaimed the Apostate An

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12. THE MARRIAGE OF ISAAC.

12. THE MARRIAGE OF ISAAC.

After the death of Sarah, say some, Abraham had a daughter named Bakila, by Hagar, who returned to him now that her enemy was dead; but, according to others, the great blessing of Abraham consisted in this, that he had no daughters. Ishmael abandoned his disorderly ways, and loved and respected his brother. Isaac mourned his mother three years. When this time was elapsed, Abraham called to him his faithful servant Eliezer, and said to him, “I am old, and I know not the day of my death; therefore

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13. THE DEATH OF ABRAHAM.

13. THE DEATH OF ABRAHAM.

Abraham, after the death of Sarah, had brought back Hagar, and she was called Keturah, which signifies “the Bond-woman,” and this she was called because she had ever regarded herself as bound to Abraham, though he had cast her away. But others say that Keturah was not Hagar, but was a daughter of one of Abraham’s slaves. She bare him six sons, 342 all strong, and men of clear understandings. According to Mussulman traditions, she was the daughter of Jokdan, and was a Canaanitish woman. Abraham s

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Chapter_XXV

Chapter_XXV

We have seen that, according to Jewish traditions, Melchizedek is Shem, the son of Noah, whom God consecrated to be a priest forever, and who set up a kingdom on Salem. 346 It is also said that, before he died, Lamech ordered his son, Noah, to transport the body of Adam to the centre of the earth. Now the centre or navel of the earth is Salem, afterwards called Jerusalem. Lamech also bade Noah confide to one of his children the custody of the body of Adam, obliging him to remain all his life in

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Chapter_XXVI

Chapter_XXVI

The Arabs call Hagar, Hagiar Anaï, the mother in chief, because of Ishmael her son. They do not suppose that she was the bond-servant of Sarah, but that she was the legitimate wife of the patriarch; and she bore him Ishmael, who, as his eldest son, had the birthright, and obtained, as his double portion of Abraham’s inheritance, the land of Arabia, whereas to Isaac was given the inferior land of Canaan. They say that Hagar died at Mecca, and that she was buried in the exterior enclosure of the K

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Chapter_XXVII

Chapter_XXVII

There are few Oriental traditions, whether Rabbinic or Mussulman, concerning Isaac’s life after he was married and his father died. Those touching his birth, early life, and marriage, have been given in the article on Abraham. We proceed therefore, to his history as connected with Esau and Jacob. Isaac, says Tabari, lived a hundred years after Ishmael. God granted him the gift of prophecy, and sent him to the inhabitants of Syria, in the country of Canaan, for he could not change his place of ab

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Chapter_XXVIII

Chapter_XXVIII

Joseph’s story is too attractive not to have interested intensely the Oriental nations in any way connected with him, and therefore to have become a prey to legend and myth. Joseph, say the Mussulmans, was from his childhood the best loved son of his father Jacob; but the old man not only loved him, but yearned after the sight of him, for he was dedrived of the custody of Joseph from an early age. Joseph had been sent to his aunt, the sister of Isaac, and she loved the child so dearly, that she

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Chapter_XXIX

Chapter_XXIX

The “Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs” is one of the seventy-two apocryphal books of the Old Testament which were at one time in circulation, and, according to Epiphanius, it formed one of the twenty-two canonical books sent by the Jews to Ptolemy, king of Egypt. 433 It was a work of Jewish origin, which has been tampered with and interpolated by Christian copyists. S. Augustine numbers it with the Apocrypha; he says, “There are the apocryphal books of the Old Testament: the works falsely att

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Chapter_XXX

Chapter_XXX

Job was the great grandson of Esau. He was the son of Amos the son of Zara, the son of Esau, and he had to wife Rahma, daughter of Ephraim, son of Joseph. Ephraim left two sons, who were prophets after him; but amongst the children of Esau there was no prophet, saving Job. Job was more patient than any other prophet; therefore it is said of him in the Koran, “Certainly we have found this excellent servant patient.” 440 The Rabbis say that Job, Jethro, and Balaam were King Pharaoh’s three council

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Chapter_XXXI

Chapter_XXXI

As has already been related, Jethro formed one of the council of Pharaoh till he found that his incantations had no effect on the Israelites. He escaped from Egypt before Job; for he had found in the palace of the king the staff of Joseph which had been cut from the Tree of Life, and therewith he hied him into the land of Midian, along with his daughter Zipporah. According to Mussulman tradition, Jethro, whom the Arabs call Schohair or Schohaib, was a great prophet; and he was sent by God to the

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1. ISRAEL IN EGYPT.

1. ISRAEL IN EGYPT.

After the death of Jacob, his descendants were drawn into servitude by soft and hypocritical speeches. Fifty-four years had passed since the death of Joseph. Joseph had had the good fortune to acquire the favor of Mechron, the son and successor of that Pharoah who had raised him from the dungeon to be second in the kingdom. Almost all the inhabitants of Egypt had loved Joseph; only a few voices were raised in murmurs at a foreigner exercising such extensive powers. The successors of the patriarc

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2. THE BIRTH AND CHILDHOOD OF MOSES.

2. THE BIRTH AND CHILDHOOD OF MOSES.

Kohath, son of Levi, had a son named Amram, whose life was so saintly, that death could not have touched him, had not the decree gone forth, that every child of Adam was to die. He married Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, his aunt, and by her he had a daughter Miriam; and after four years she bore him a son, and he called his name Aaron. Now when it was noised abroad that Pharaoh would slay all the sons of the Hebrews that were born to them, Amram thrust away his wife, and many others did the sam

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3. THE YOUTH AND MARRIAGE OF MOSES.

3. THE YOUTH AND MARRIAGE OF MOSES.

Moses, as he grew older, distinguished himself from all other young men of Egypt by the conquest which he acquired over himself and his youthful passions and impetuous will. Although the life of a court offered him every kind of gratification, yet he did not allow himself to be attracted by its pleasures, or to regard as permanent what he knew to be fleeting. Thus it fell out, that all his friends and acquaintances wondered at him, and doubted whether he were not a god appeared on earth. And, in

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4. MOSES BEFORE PHARAOH.

4. MOSES BEFORE PHARAOH.

One day that Moses was keeping sheep, his father-in-law, Jethro, came to him and demanded back the staff that he had given him. Then Moses cast the staff from him among a number of other rods, but the staff ever returned to his hand as often as he cast it away. Then Jethro laid hold of the rod, but he could not move it. Therefore he was obliged to let Moses retain it. But he was estranged from him. Now Pharaoh was dead. And when the news reached Moses in Midian, he gat him up, and set his wife Z

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5. THE PASSAGE OF THE RED SEA.

5. THE PASSAGE OF THE RED SEA.

The Israelites had made their preparations to depart out of Egypt a month before the call came to escape. And when all was ready, Moses called together the elders of the people and said to them, “When Joseph died, he ordered his descendants to take up his bones, or ever they went out of the land, and to bear them to the cave of Machpelah, where lie the bones of his father Jacob. Where are the bones of Joseph?” The elders answered him, “We do not know.” Now there was an old Egyptian woman, named

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6. THE GIVING OF THE LAW.

6. THE GIVING OF THE LAW.

As long as Moses was with them, the Israelites did not venture to make idols, but when God summoned Moses into the Mount to talk with Him face to face, then they spake to Aaron that he should make a molten god to go before them. Aaron bade them break off their earrings and bracelets and give them to him, for he thought that they would be reluctant to part with their jewels. Nevertheless the people brought their ornaments to him in great abundance, and one named Micah cast them into a copper vess

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7. THE MANNA. (Exod. xvi.)

7. THE MANNA. (Exod. xvi.)

All the time that Israel wandered in the wilderness they were given manna, or angels’ food. This food is ground by the angels in heaven, as Moses saw when he was there. For when Moses was in heaven, he knew not when it was night and when it was day, till he listened to the song of the angels; and when they sang “Holy God,” then he knew it was morning below on earth; and when they sang “Blessed be thou,” he knew it was evening below. Also he observed the angels grinding the manna and casting it d

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8. THE SMITTEN ROCK. (Exod. xvii. 1-7.)

8. THE SMITTEN ROCK. (Exod. xvii. 1-7.)

And all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed from the desert of Sin and encamped in Rephidim, a place where their hands were idle in the commandments of the law, and the fountains were dry, and there was no water for the people to drink. And the wicked of the people contended with Moses, and said “Give us water that we may drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why contend ye with me? Why tempt ye the Lord?” But the people were athirst for water, and the people murmured against Moses and s

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9. MOSES VISITS EL KHOUDR.

9. MOSES VISITS EL KHOUDR.

One day, say the Mussulmans, Moses boasted before Joshua of his wisdom. Then said God to him, “Go to the place where the sea of the Greeks joins the Persian Gulf, and there you will find one who surpasses you in wisdom.” Moses therefore announced to the Hebrews, who continued their murmurs, that, in punishment for their stiffneckedness and rebellion, they were condemned by God to wander for forty years in the desert. Then having asked God how he should recognize the wise man of whom God had spok

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10. THE MISSION OF THE SPIES. (Numb. xiii. xiv.)

10. THE MISSION OF THE SPIES. (Numb. xiii. xiv.)

And the Lord spake with Moses, saying, “Send thou keen-sighted men men who may explore the land of Canaan, which I will give to the children of Israel; one man for each tribe of their fathers shalt thou send from the presence of all their leaders.” And Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran; all of them acute men, who had been appointed heads over the sons of Israel. And Moses said to them, “Go up on this side by the south, and ascend the mountain, and survey the country, what it is, and t

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11. OF KORAH AND HIS COMPANY. (Numb. xvi.)

11. OF KORAH AND HIS COMPANY. (Numb. xvi.)

And the Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the sons of Israel, and bid them make fringes not of threads, nor of yarn, nor of fibre, but after a peculiar fashion shall they make them. They shall cut off the heads of the filaments, and suspend by five ligatures, four in the midst of three, upon the four corners of their garments, and they shall put upon the edge of their garments a border of blue (or embroidery of hyacinth).” 555 But Korah, son of Ezhar, son of Kohath, son of Levi, with Dathan and Abir

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12. THE WARS OF THE ISRAELITES.

12. THE WARS OF THE ISRAELITES.

The children of Israel had many foes to contend with. Amongst these were the Amorites. They hid in caves to form an ambuscade against the people of God, intending, when the Israelites had penetrated into a defile between two mountains, to sally forth upon them and to overthrow them. But they did not know that the ark went before Israel, smoothing the rough places and levelling the mountains. 561 Now, when the ark drew near the place where the ambush was, the mountains fell in upon the Amorites,

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13. THE DEATH OF AARON. (Numb. xx. 22-29.)

13. THE DEATH OF AARON. (Numb. xx. 22-29.)

Moses was full of grief when the word of the Lord came to him that Aaron, his brother, was to die. That night he had no rest, and when it began to dawn towards morning, he rose and went to the tent of Aaron. Aaron was much surprised to see his brother come in so early, and he said, “Wherefore art thou come?” Moses answered, “All night long have I been troubled, and have had no sleep, for certain things in the Law came upon me, and they seemed to me to be heavy and unendurable; I have come to the

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14. THE DEATH OF MOSES.

14. THE DEATH OF MOSES.

When the time came for Moses to die, the Lord called Gabriel to Him, and said, “Go and bring the soul of My servant Moses to Paradise.” The angel Gabriel answered in astonishment, “Lord, Lord, how can I venture to give death to that man, the like of whom all generations of men have not seen?” Then the Most High called to Him Michael, and said, “Go and bring the soul of My servant Moses to Paradise.” The angel Michael answered in fear, “Lord, Lord, I was his instructor in heavenly lore! How can I

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Chapter_XXXIII

Chapter_XXXIII

Hitherto Israel had required a lawgiver, and they had been given one in Moses; now they needed a general, and they were provided with one in Joshua. After the death of Moses and his brother Aaron, the children of Israel remained seven years in the wilderness, till the forty years were accomplished. Then God conferred on Joshua the function of prophet, and ordered him to lead the chosen people out of the desert and to attack the three cities of the giants. Joshua was of the tribe of Joseph. He wa

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Chapter_XXXIV

Chapter_XXXIV

If Joshua, the first of the Judges, has, to a great extent, escaped the hands of legend manufacturers, the same may be said of his successors, Phinehas, Othniel, Ehud, Deborah and Barak, Gibeon, Abimelech, Tola, Jair, Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon. Even Samson has not been surrounded by such a multitude of traditions as might have been expected. The Mussulmans have little to say of him, and the Jewish legends are not numerous. The Rabbi Samuel, son of Nahaman, said that Samson once took two m

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Chapter_XXXV

Chapter_XXXV

Gjalout (Goliath) was king of the Philistines. He was of the race of the ancient giants, the Adites and the Themudites, who were from fifty to a hundred cubits in height. The children of Israel were grievously oppressed by him, and they besought God to send them a prophet who would reinstruct them in the law of Moses, and in the true religion. For thirty years they besought God, but no prophet was given to them. In the meanwhile, the Philistines oppressed them more and more, and whenever the Isr

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1. WAR WITH THE PHILISTINES.—GOLIATH SLAIN.

1. WAR WITH THE PHILISTINES.—GOLIATH SLAIN.

Samuel ordered Thalout (Saul) to make war upon Gjalout (Goliath), and to assemble the fighting men of the tribes of Israel. Saul summoned all the men and they numbered eighty thousand. Samuel gave Saul a suit of mail, and said to him, “He who can wear this coat with ease will decide the war, and Goliath will perish by his hand.” Saul started with his army; his way led through a desert, a day’s journey across; and it was very hot weather. On the other side of the desert was a broad river, between

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2. SAUL’S JEALOUSY OF DAVID.

2. SAUL’S JEALOUSY OF DAVID.

Saul had promised his daughter to the man who should slay Goliath. When the Philistines had been routed, Saul told Samuel all that had taken place; and the prophet exhorted the king to fulfil his promise, and to give to David his daughter in marriage. To this Saul agreed, and he gave David his ring, and made him manager of all his affairs, and he exalted him to be his son-in-law. Several years passed, and Saul became envious of David, whose praise was in everybody’s mouth. He sent David into the

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3. THE DEATH OF SAUL.

3. THE DEATH OF SAUL.

Now when Saul had gone forth against David, the wise men of Israel had gathered themselves together, and had remonstrated with him. But Saul was wroth at this interference, and he slew them all, and there escaped none of them save one wise woman, whom his vizir spared. This vizir was a good man, and he took the woman into his own house, and she lived with his family. Some time after that, Saul had a dream, and in his dream he was reproached for having slain the wise men. And when he awoke he was

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Chapter_XXXVII

Chapter_XXXVII

David says of himself, “ Behold, I was shapen in wickedness; and in sin did my mother conceive me. ” 620 The Rabbis explain this passage by narrating the circumstances of the conception of David, which I shall give in Latin. The mother of David they say was named Nitzeneth. “Dixerunt Rabbini nostri beatæ memoriæ, quod Isai (Jesse) habebat ancillam, eamque sollicitabat ad turpia; quæ, cum esset pudica et fidelis uxori Isai, eidem retulit; quæ seipsam aptavit (loco ancillæ) et congressa est cum Is

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1. HOW SOLOMON OBTAINED POWER.

1. HOW SOLOMON OBTAINED POWER.

After Solomon had executed the last offices for his father, he rested in a dale betwixt Hebron and Jerusalem, and fell asleep. As he returned to himself, there stood before him eight angels, each with countless wings, diverse in kinds and colors; and the angels bowed themselves before him three times. “Who are ye?” asked Solomon, with eyes still closed. “We are the angels ruling over the eight winds of heaven,” was their reply. “God hath sent us to give thee dominion over ourselves and over the

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2. HOW SOLOMON FEASTED ALL FLESH.

2. HOW SOLOMON FEASTED ALL FLESH.

When Solomon returned home, he placed the four stones, which the angels had given him, in a ring, so that he might at any moment exercise his authority over the realms of spirits and beasts, the earth, the winds and the sea. His first care was to subject the Jinns. He made them all appear before him, with the exception of the mighty Sachr, who kept himself in concealment on an unknown island in the ocean, and the great Eblis, the master of all evil spirits, to whom God had promised complete libe

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THE_BUILDING_OF_THE_TEMPLE

THE_BUILDING_OF_THE_TEMPLE

When Solomon returned from the sea-shore to Jerusalem, he heard the noise of the hammers, and saws, and axes of the Jinns who were engaged in the building of the temple; and the noise was so great that the inhabitants of Jerusalem could not hear one another speak. Therefore he commanded the Jinns to cease from their work, and he asked them if there was no means whereby the metals and stones could be shaped and cut without making so much noise. Then one of the spirits stepped forth and said: “The

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4. THE TRAVELS OF SOLOMON.

4. THE TRAVELS OF SOLOMON.

Whilst the palace was being built, Solomon made a journey to Damascus. The Jinn, on whose back he flew, carried him directly over the valley of ants, which is surrounded by such crags and precipices, that no man had hitherto seen it. The king was much astonished to see such a host of ants under him, which were as big as wolves, and which, on account of their grey eyes and grey feet, looked from a distance like a cloud. The queen of the ants, who, till this moment, had not seen a man, was filled

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5. THE HISTORY OF THE QUEEN OF SHEBA.

5. THE HISTORY OF THE QUEEN OF SHEBA.

“Sheba,” said the peewit, “is the name of the king who founded the kingdom; it is also the name of the capital. Sheba was a worshipper of the sun, Eblis having drawn him from the true God, who sends rain from heaven, and covers the earth with plenty, and who reads the thoughts of men’s hearts. “A succession of kings followed Sheba: the last of the dynasty was Scharabel, a tyrant of such dissolute habits that every husband and father feared him. He had a vizir of such singular beauty that the dau

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6. SOLOMON’S ADVENTURE WITH THE APES.

6. SOLOMON’S ADVENTURE WITH THE APES.

On one of his journeys, Solomon passed through a valley which was inhabited by apes which dressed themselves like men, and lived in houses, and ate their food in a way wholly superior to other apes. Solomon descended from his carpet and marched at the head of his soldiers into the valley. The apes assembled to resist him, but one of their elders stepped into the midst of them and said, “Let us rather submit and lay down our arms, for he who comes against us is a holy prophet.” Then three apes we

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7. SOLOMON MARRIES THE DAUGHTER OF PHARAOH.

7. SOLOMON MARRIES THE DAUGHTER OF PHARAOH.

The throne of Solomon had four feet. It was of red ruby, and of the ruby were made four lions. None but Solomon could sit upon the throne. When Nebuchadnezzar came to Jerusalem and sought to ascend the throne, the lions rose and struck at him, and broke his legs. He was given remedies, and his legs were reset. No one after that ventured to sit on the throne. 674 Djarada was the daughter of King Nubara, of an island in the Indian Sea, according to the Arabs; of King Pharaoh of Egypt, say the Jews

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8. HOW SOLOMON LOST AND RECOVERED HIS RING.

8. HOW SOLOMON LOST AND RECOVERED HIS RING.

One day that Solomon retired to perform the necessary functions of nature, he placed his ring in the hand of Djarada; for on such occasions he was wont to remove the ring from his finger. For the first time he forgot the advice of the queen of the ants, and gave no praise to God as he committed the signet to other hands. Sachr, the mighty Jinn, 678 took advantage of this act of forgetfulness, and, assuming the form of Solomon, came to the Egyptian princess and asked her for the ring. She, nothin

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9. THE DEATH OF SOLOMON.

9. THE DEATH OF SOLOMON.

When Solomon had recovered his throne, he reigned twenty years. His whole reign was forty years, and he lived in all fifty-five years. 684 He spent these years in prosecuting the building of the temple. Towards the end of his life he often visited the temple, and remained there one or two months plunged in prayer, without leaving it. He took his nourishment in the temple. He even remained a year thus; and when he was standing, with bowed head, in an humble attitude before God, no one ventured to

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Chapter_XXXIX

Chapter_XXXIX

When the prophet Elijah appeared, idolatry was general. God sent him to Balbek (Heliopolis), to persuade the inhabitants to renounce the worship of Baal, from whom the city took its name. Some say that Baal was the name of a woman, beautiful of countenance. The Israelites also adored Baal; Elijah preached against idolatry; and Ahab at first believed in him, and rejected Baal, but after a while relapsed. Then Elijah prayed, and God sent a famine on the land for three years, and many men died. Non

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Chapter_XL

Chapter_XL

The Book of the Ascension of Isaiah has reached us only in an Ethiopic version, which was published along with a translation by Archbishop Laurence, Oxford, 1819. Gieseler translated the book, and gave learned prolegomena, and notes, Göttingen, 1837; and Gfrorer has included it in his “Prophetæ Pseudepigraphi,” Stuttgardt, 1840, pp. 1-55, with the Latin translation. It must have existed in Greek and Latin, for fragments of the Latin apocryphal book remain, and have been published by Cardinal Mai

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Chapter_XLI

Chapter_XLI

The work entitled De Vitis Prophetarum , falsely attributed to S. Epiphanius, contains some apocryphal details concerning Jeremiah. It is said that he was stoned at Taphens in Egypt, in a place where Pharaoh formerly lived. He was held in great honor by the Egyptians, because of the service he had rendered them in taming the serpents and crocodiles. The faithful who take a little dust from the spot where he died, are able to employ it as a remedy against the bites of serpents, and to drive away

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Chapter_XLII

Chapter_XLII

Ezekiel, whom the Arabs call Kazquil, was the son of an aged couple, who had no children. They prayed to God, and He gave them a son. Ezekiel was a prophet, and he exhorted the men of Jerusalem to war, but they would not go forth to battle. Then God sent a pestilence, and there died of them every day very many. So, fearing death, a million fled from the city, hoping to escape the pestilence, but the wrath of God overtook them, and they fell dead. Then those who survived in the city went forth to

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Chapter_XLIII

Chapter_XLIII

Cyrus, in the year 537 before Christ, put an end to the captivity of the Jews in Babylon, as had been foretold by Daniel; and not only did he permit the Jews to return to Jerusalem, but he furnished them with the means of rebuilding their city and temple. The Oriental writers, to explain the motive of Cyrus, say that his mother was a Jewess, and that he himself was married to the Jewess Maschat, sister of Zerubabbel, a granddaughter of the king Jehoiakim. In 523 before Christ, Cambyses, having r

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Chapter_XLIV

Chapter_XLIV

Sozomen 702 relates that the prophet Zechariah appeared to Colomeras, a farmer of the village of Chupher, in Palestine, and revealed to him his tomb; and on excavations having been made on the spot, an ancient Hebrew book was discovered, which, however, was not regarded as canonical. Nicephoras repeats the story after Sozomen. 703...

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