Selected quad for the lemma: land_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
land_n	egypt_n	joseph_n	pharaoh_n	4,186	5	10.7503	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A09151	The testaments of the [twelue] patriarches the sonnes [of] Iacob: translated out of the Greeke [into] Latine by Robert Grosthed, some[time] Byshop of Lyncolne, and out of his copye into French and Dutch by others: Now Englished by A. G. To the credit whereof an auncient Greeke copye written in parchment, is kept in the Vniversitie Library of Cambridge.; Testamentum duodecim patriarcharum. English.	Gilby, Anthony, ca. 1510-1585.; Grosseteste, Robert, 1175?-1253.; Golding, Arthur, 1536-1606, attributed name.	1576 (1576)	STC 19467; ESTC S113653	69,583	168

meanes of his sonne Ioseph chiefe steward of Pharao his land whome his brethren heretofore had sould Where when he had lyued 17. yeares and seene his family encreased exceedingly to his great ioy and comfort no doubt especially all the other countries about being plagued with a great famine and by Gods mercy not greatly feeling y same perceauyng also his troublesome pilgrimage dra●ing to an ende called his sonne Ioseph vnto him sayd If I haue found grace in thy sight oh put thy hand vnder my thighe for in this order they tooke an othe in Iacobs tyme deale mercifully with me and truely bury me not in Egipt but let me sleepe with my Fathers Where notinge his sure fayth in the promise of God made to his fathers willed hym to looke for Canaan his hoped inheritaūce and not to trust to Pharaos land To which his request whē Ioseph his louing sonne obediently did condescend Iacob taking a little more strength vnto hym and sitting vp desirous also to shew forth the great goodnesse of the Lord in preseruing him and hys sayd God almightye appeared vnto me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me saying Beholde I will make thee fruitfull and cause thee to multiplye and will make a great number of People of thee and will geue this land to thy seede for an † euerlasting possessiō Thy sonnes Manasses and Ephraim I take as mine owne their other brethren shall be called † after their names As I came from Mesopotamia Rachell dyed in the lande of Canaan and was buryed by the way to Ephratha the same is Betheleem Then Iacob albeit somewhat dimme for age beholding Iosephes ii sonnes sayd what are these to whome Ioseph aunswered they are my sonns which God hath geuē me O bryng them to me sayd Iacob and let me blesse them I had not thought to haue seene thy face Ioseph ▪ yet loe God hath shewed mee thy seede God in whose sight my fathers Abraham and Isaac dyd walke God whiche hath fed me all my lyfe long vnt●ll this day and the * Angel which hath deliuered me from all euill blesse these la●de and let my * name ▪ be named in thē the name of my Fathers Abraham and Isaac that they may growe into a multitude in the middes of the earth Then as Ioseph lifted his Fathers hand from Ephra●m to Manas●es the Elder Iacob sayd Let it be I knowe it well my Sonne he shall also be a great people but his younger brother shal be grea●er in thee let Israel blesse say God make thee as Ephraim Manasses 〈…〉 he fainting sayd Behold Ioseph I dye God shal be with you and b●ing you agayne to the land of your Fathers Moreouer I * geue vnto thee a portiō of land aboue thy brethren which I cōquered by sword and bow of the Amorites And come you hether also O my Children that I may tell you what shall come on you in the last dayes Gather ye together and heare ye sonnes of Iacob harken vnto Israell your Father Ruben my first borne my † might my strēgth excellent in dignitie and power vnconstāt as water thou shalt not excell because thou didst defile my couch Symeon and Leuy brethren in euil who in your wrath slewe a man and in your selfe will digged downe a wall Cursed be your wrath for it was shamelesse and your fearcenesse for it was cruell I † wil diuide you in Iacob and scatter you in Israel Iuda Thy. hand shall be on the necke of thine enemies Thy Brethren shall stoope vnto thee as a Lyons whelpe shalt thou come vp from the spoyle Thou shalt couch as a Lyon and as a Lyonesse Who shall stirre thee vp ▪ The Scepter shall not depart from thee nor a lawgeuer from betwene thy feete vntill Shiloh come all nations shall seeke after him Thou shalt binde thy Asse sole to the vine and the Asses colt to the best vine thou shalt wash thy garment in wine and thy cloke in the bloud of grapes thy eyes shal be red with wine thy teeth white with milke Zabulon thou shalt dwell by the sea side and thou shalt be an hauē for ships thy border shal be vnto Zidō Isachar thou shalt be a strong Asse couching downe betwene two burdens And thou shalt see that rest is good and that the land is pleasaunt and shalt bow thy shoulder to beare and shalt be subiect vnto tribute Dan thou shalt iudge thy people as one of the tribes of Israell Dan thou shalt be a Serpent by the way an adder by the path ▪ byting the Horse heeles so that his rider shall fall backwarde Then Iacob foreseyng in his minde the greate calamity that should betide his posteritye cōsorting him selfe resting in Gods promise tryed out with harte and minde O Lorde I haue wayted for thy saluation Gad an host of men shall ouercome thee but thou shalt ouercome at the last And what shall I say to Aser his bread shal be far and he shal giue pleasures for a king Nephthalim is a hinde sent for a present geuing goodly wordes Ioseph is a florishing bough by a well side the small boughes shall run vppon the wall The Archers shot agaynst him and hated him but his bow was made strong and hys armes strengthned by the hāds of the almighty God of Iacob Out of him shall come an Heardmā a stone in Israell All these thinges come frō thy fathers god which hath helped thee blessed thee with blessinges ▪ of the heauē with blessinges of the deepe benea●● wyth blessinges of breastes and wombe The blissinges of me thy Father that I geeue thee are stronger then the blessings that I had of mine elders Vntill the ende of the hilles of the world they shall be on thy head Beniamin shall rauen as a wolfe In the Morning he shall deuour the pray and at night diuide the spoyle And now when I shal be gathered to my people bury me with my father in the caue that is in the field of Ephrō the Hethite in the caue that is in the field of Machpelath which is before Mamre in the land of Canaā which Abra. bought with the field of Ephrō the Hethite for a possessiō to bury in where as were buryed Abraham and Sara his wife and Isaac with Rebecca and there I buryed Lea. The field and the caue that is therin was bought of the Children of Heth. When Iacob had made an ende of cōmaunding all that he woulde vnto his Sonnes hauyng liued a hundreth forty and seuen yeares hee plucked vp his feete into the bed and quietly dyed Then Ioseph falling vpon his fathers face and kissing him with teares caused him to be enbawmed by Phisitions to the space of forty dayes and mourned for him threescore and ten dayes Who departing from Egipt into Canaā with noblemen of

the taile flung hym awaie by and by and hee 〈◊〉 asunder In the borders of Gare a wild Bull was feedyng in the fieldes and I tooke hym by the hornes and swinged hym about and finally killed hym There came twoo Kinges of the Chananites armed vppon our flocke and muche people with them and I alone runnyng to the flocke stept to king Sur and strikyng vp his legs ouerthrew hym and so flew hym Also I killed an other kyng named Thaphes sittyng on his horse and so scattered all their people I ouertooke king Achor a Giant on horsebacke shootyng forward and backewarde and throwyng a stone of threescore pound weight vpon his horse I ouerthrew him and killed hym and fightyng twoo houres with Achor at length I cla●e his shield and maimed his feete and finally ●lew him As I was pullyng of his br●stp●●●● beholde eight of his frendes a●●ailed ●●ee whereupon I filled my handes with stones flinging them at them with a fling flew fower of them and put the other fower to flight Also our Father Iacob slew the Giant Beelisa king of all the Kynges who was mightie and houge of the stature of twelue cubites By reason whereof feare fell vppon them and they lefte their fightyng against vs For thys cause my father was carefull of mee when I was in any battell with my Brethren He sawe in a vision concernyng mee that the Angell of strength followed me euery where to the intent I should not be ouercome The second handsell was a greater battell to vs than that whiche wee had at Sichem in so much that in fightyng valiantly with by Brethren I chased a thousand men and flewe of them two hundreth persons and fower of their Kynges and followyng after them scaled the Wall of their Citie and there slew two kings m● and so we deliuered Hebron and led them all away as prisoners The next daye wee went to a strong walled and vnapprocheable Citie called Areca whiche threatned to kill vs Therefore I and Gad went to the eastside of the Citie and Ruben and Leuy to the West and Southside They that stoode vppon the walles supposyng there had been no mo but Gad and I did set si●rcely vppon vs while in the mean● tyme my Brothers that lay in stale brake but vpon the other two sides and scalyng the wall with Ladders entred the Citie ●re our enemies wist it and so we wonne it by the sword and set fire vpō the tower and burnt it vp with such as were fled vnto it As we returned the men of Thaffie lay in wait for our pray and tooke it with our children But wee followed them to Taffie and slew them and burned the Citie spoyling all that was in it And while I was at the Waters of Gureba wee fell vpon the men of Iobell that came against vs in battell and slewe and spoyled bothe them and also their complyees that came to their ayde from Selon so as wee gaue them no respit to returne again vpon vs The fifth day after there came men from Machir to fetch away our prisoners whō wee met in battell notwithstandyng that they were a might it hoste and slewe them before they could get vp to the place that they came from And when wee came to their Citie their women tumbled downe stones vpon vs from the toppe of the Hill whereon their Citie stoode But I and Sim●on coastyng to the backeside of the towne got to the higher places and destroyed the whole Citie The next daye it was told vs that the Cities of two kings came againste vs with a houge Hoste I therfore and Dan feigning our selues to be Amortheans and fellowes with them went into their Citie and takyng the enterances in the dead time of the night did set the Gates wide open to our Brethren that came after vs by meanes wherof we destroyed them and all that they had and when we had sacked the City one did caste downe the three Walles thereof Then went we to Thamua whiche was the refuge of all the Kinges for their Warres Where being angry for a hurt y I tooke I charged vppon those that stoode aboue me but they threwe downe stones out of ●linges vpon me and shot arrowes at me had killed me but that my brother Dan reskued me Therefore we came runnyng vpon them in a rage and put them all to flight and they passyng by an other waye went and sued humbly to my Father who made a couenaunt with them so as wee did them not any more harme but receaued them into league with vs and redeliuered them al their prisoners Then builded I Chamma and my Father builded Rambahel Twentie yeares olde was I when thys Warre was made and the Chanani●es were afraide of mee and my brethren I had muche cattel and my chief Herdman was Yran of Odellam in whose company I saw Barsa King of Odellam who made vs a feaste and with muche intreatance gaue me his daughter Bethsue to wife whiche brought mee forthe Er Anan and Sylon of which three GOD slewe two childlesse For Sylon lyued of whom some of you be the children My father and wee made eightene yeares peace with his brother Esau and hys Children When the eighteene yeares were past after our comming out of Mesopotamia in the forteth yeare of my life Esau our Fathers brother came vpon vs with a great and strong host and was slaine by the bow of Iacob and conueied awaye dead vnto mount Seir. We also followed vpon the children of Esau but his city was strong with high walles and gates of Yr●n and Brasse so as wee coulde not enter into it howbeit wee did shut them vp within it and besieged it Nowe when they shewed not themselues abroad in twentie dayes together I put my helmet vpon my head and in sight of them all set vp a ladder and scaling the wall slew fower of their noble men with a Stone of the weight of three talentes The next day Ruben and Gad went in and slewe three score other Then they offered peace and we by our fathers aduice receaued them to tribute And they gaue vs two hundred quarters of Corne fiue hundred Bates of Oyle and a thousande and fiue hundred measures of wine vntill we wente downe into Egipt After this my Sonne Her maried Thamar of Mesopotamia the Daughter of Aram. Nowe Her was a wicked I my and doubted of Thamar because she was not of the land of Chanaan Therefore the Angell of the Lorde slewe hym the third night after his mariage when he had not yet companied with her by reason of his mothers subtiltie and so dyed in his naughtinesse for she was loth that hee shoulde haue had any children by he● When Anan was mariageable I gaue Thamar vnto him and hee also of a spite companyed not with her notwithstandyng that hee liued a full yeare with her And when I threatned hym then hee companied with her but yet by hys mothers commaundement

not in God y ▪ came in the 〈◊〉 to deliuer Then shall he iudge all natiōs as many as beleued not in him when he appealed vpō earth and he shall reproue Israell among the chosen of the Gentiles as he reproued Esau in the Madianits that seduced his brethren by fornication Idolatry who were estraunged from God and fell away from the inheritance of the Childrē because they feared not god But if you walke in holinesse before the Lorde ye shall dwell in hope againe in me And all Israell shall be gathered to the Lord and I shall no more be called a 〈◊〉 Wolfe for your robberies sakes but I shall be called the Lordes workeman whiche geueth foode to such as doc good And in my s●ede shal be raysed vp the beloued of the Lorde whose voyce shall be heard vpon the earth and he shall geue ●ewe knowledge inlighten all nations with the light of vnderstanding and shall come vp to saue Israell Hee shall take from them as a Wolfe and geue to 〈…〉 of the Gentiles and continue in the 〈◊〉 of the Gentiles vnto the 〈…〉 He shall be amonge their Princes as musicall melodie in the mouthes of al men and his doinges and sayinges shall be written in holy bookes He shal be the Lordes dearling for euermore And as concerning hym my Father Iacob taught me saying He shall amend the defaultes of thy Trybe And when he had ended these sayinges hee c●mmaunded his Children to carye hys bones out of Egipt and to burye them in Hebron by his Fathers So Benia●●● dyed a hundred and fiue and twenty yeare olde in a good age and they put 〈…〉 and in the foure score 〈…〉 before the departure of the Israelites out of Egypt they and their Brethren conueyed their Fathers bones priuely agayne into the land of Chanaan and buryed him in Hebron at the feete of hys Fathers and returned agayne out of the land of Chanaan and dwelt in Egipt till the day of their departure thence all together FINIS ¶ How these Testaments of the twelu● Patriarches w●re first founde and by whose meanes they were translated out of Greeke into Latine THese Testamentes were hidden and concealed a longe time so as our teachers and the auncient 〈◊〉 coulde not find● them Which thing happened through the spitefulnes of the Iewes who by reason of the most euidēt manifest and often prophesies of Christ that are written in them did hide them a lōg while At 〈◊〉 the Greekes being very narrow 〈…〉 out of auncient writinges ●ought these Testamentes warel● got them more 〈◊〉 translated thē faythfully out of Hebrew into Greeke Neuerthele●●e this writing cōtinued yet stil 〈…〉 because there was not any man to be foūd y was skilful both in y Greeke and Latine nor any interp●●●e● that might procure the translation of this noble work● vntill the tyme of Robert the second surnamed Grosthead 〈…〉 Lincolne who sēt diligent searchers as farre as Greece to fetch him a copie of the sayd wryting without respect of their charges whiche he bare most liberally Therfore to cōtinue the remembraunce of those most lightsō prophesies to y strengthning of the christian faith that reuerend Byshop did in the yeare of our lord 1242. translate thē plainely and faithfully worde for worde out of Gréeke into Latin in which two tounges he was coūted very skilfull by the helpe of M. Nicholas Greeke Parson of the Church of Dachet and 〈…〉 Albōs to y intent that by that mea●es the euidēt prophesies which ▪ shine more brighter thē the day light might the more gloryously come abroad to y greater confusion of the Iewes and of al heretickes and enemies of the Churche of Christ to whom ●e praise and glory for euer Amen ●euy Iacob Ruben Symeon Isachar Zabulon D●n Gad. Neptalim Ioseph Beniamin Eccle. 44. Gene. 25. Simple or 〈◊〉 Rom. 9. Iacob beloued not of ●erite but 〈◊〉 Grace Gene. 25. Gene. 26. Gene. 27. The wicked euer resist gods ●●gemēts Gene. 2● A 〈◊〉 for maryage Gene. 29. Trouble payne are destined to the elect An example for children 〈…〉 ● godly note for seruauntes Mans lyfe is but a pilgrimage God alw●● prouideth for the righteous Parentes ought to tel their children Gods blessinges Uerified in 〈◊〉 carnall Israel to Christ his c●mming in the spirituall for euer ‡ That is 〈◊〉 be vn●●r their 〈◊〉 Christ. 1 Comp●ed as one of his children not that they should pray vnto him b●●ng dead as 〈◊〉 gathered God hath mercye on 〈◊〉 he will. By ●ayth Iacob 〈…〉 the lād as yet but hoped 〈◊〉 * Begotten in my youth * Leuy had no tribe Simeon was vnder Iuda Iudg. Cap. 1. Blessinges of Iuda 1 A worthy cap●ayne 2 A 〈◊〉 Prince 3 A 〈◊〉 land Iudg. 13. 〈◊〉 ▪ 15. 16. The Philistines Iosua 1. 21. Num. 32. Iudg. 45. The blessing of Ioseph 1 Encrease of familie 2 〈…〉 All thinges come of God. Not for the holines of y place but for memory of G●ds promise ● A token of a good conscience Death i● our lon● home Fornication ●la●ned Gene. 35. 49. 1. Cor. 5. * Prayer repentaunce stayeth God his wrath * The blessing and prayer of a father to God for his children of what benefite In repentance the hart is to be considered not externall action The eight instuments whereby man worketh and the effect of them 1 Life 2 Seeing 3 Hearing 4 Smelling 5 Spech 6 Tasting 7 S●●de and of what propertie 8 Sleepe and of what propertie Eight spirites of error and of what propertie 1 Rechery 2 Gluttony 3 Enuy. 4 Brauery 5 Pride of 〈◊〉 propertie 6 Vaine glory in what it cōsisteth 7 Unrigh●●ousne● 8 Wilfull ●gnorance Discommodities of ignorance Ringleaders to fornication 1 ● gredy eye 2 Close cōpany with women 3 Busie questions Gen. 35. 4 Drunk●nesse Nothing so secretly don but it shall be open A godly cou●at Labour a preseruatiue from fornication A gilty cōscience is a great burden ●●norse of conscience slayeth sin The fruite of fornication 1 Destruction of the soule 2 Idolatry 3 Shortness of life 4 Ignominious shame Iosephes chastitie rewarded Gene 9. Looke pa. 5. Properties of v●chast women A note for garish attire wanton lookes An exāple of this 〈◊〉 chief● Gen. 6. 〈…〉 ●eachers Infectious 〈◊〉 corrupteth the ●inde 〈…〉 Gen. 49. He prophesieth of Christ. Faithfull dealing with neighbours Gene. 〈◊〉 Genes 29. Hardines of whom it is Genes 37. Man purposeth God disposeth Gene. 37. Ch●●st after bloud plague● Enuy described 1 Blindeth the minde 2 Hindereth 〈◊〉 susteuaunce 3 ● prouoketh 〈…〉 4 Pineth at mens prosperitie A remedie against enuie Gene. 〈◊〉 Ioseph mercifull to his brethren Gene. 50. Looke page 71. I sure tokē of a good nature Properties of enuie 1 Cor●uptiō of life 2 Distemperature of body 3 Smale sleepe Genes 39. ● token of a quiet mynde Effectes of who●edome Genes 49. Genes 49. * Parentes teachyng not

Let not the spirite of Dan possesse your minde Suffer not the wrath of Gad to settle in your hart for such work with ● perilous instruments bitter speach trechery and violent hands yelding fruit not much vnlyke as you may read as you may see Wylt thou be taught the ready 〈◊〉 to that that thou doost seeke two wayes ther● 〈◊〉 sayth Aser Vice the one the other Vertu● Neptalims race ▪ Embrace the latter eschew the former But he that walketh in them both blyndeth men becemeth himselfe and mocketh God whose double faced dealyng shal be double punished Such are the co●etous such are they y are merciful in naughtines such are they sayth Aser that fast from meates but not frō fornication Haue therfore a simple hart with simple righteous Ioseph the blessed of the Lord the right figure of Iesus Christ for hatred he shewed loue beyng cursed he blessed beyng shot thro●gh he did not so much as bend hys bow albeit his brethren would haue slaine hym albeit they cast him into a wel though they solde hym as a bond sla●e y to straūgers such as hated shepheards to y death of whom he was whipped tormented yet he when they stoode in feare gaue them cōfort when they were well nye famished gaue them foode when by his authoritye myght destroy by his authoritie did preserue beyng their Lord vsing them as his betters being their Brother acceptyng them as his Children their vnkindnes not spoken of their conspiracies forgotten theyr cruel dealing most louingly most mercifully forgeuen You haue heard his loue toward his neighbour harken his obedience toward god When he was miserably afflicted did he rage and swell When he was made a bond●●●ue of a free mans sonne did he cry out of heauen beyng almost vtterly forsaken did he vnpatiently accuse Gods iustice no expectans Expectauit Dominum And at the last the Lord whiche hid his face did shew his countenaunce of a caiti●e in respect makyng him free of a freeman wealthy of a wealthy subiect an honorable personage Lord President of Pharaos land Whom the Egyptians being alyue loued beyng dead loued beyng ●otten loued Whom ●yuing neyther wealth nor woe coulde make to swell neither promise or threats of the Egyptian strumpet could make slyde and therfore beyng dead neither world Deuil nor mans pollicy could make forgotten O that our mortall race might thus begynne thus perseuere might thus thus O Lord most happely finishe The spirit is willing but the flesh is weake Learne therefore of Beniamin to inflame thy hart that thou maist be ready both in body soule Let vs ●ayth Ecclesiasticus cōmende and so say I Let vs behold the noble famous men and the generation of our fore elders For many glorious actes hath the Lord done in them and snewed his great power euer since the begynnyng Upon the consideration wherof and especially for that I would haue nothyng wāting in this booke that might serue thy conte●tation I thought if as well pertinent to deale with the righteous Father as with the godly childrē For to shadow a face onely without a body hath his deserued commendation but who so painteth a legge without a body or a bodye without a head it shall not be amisse as I suppose as well to terme him a foolishe painter as to iudge the thing v●discreetely paynted Wherefore as well to see the head as the legge and to heare the Father as the childrē I haue faythfully drawne out of scripture not according to my fancy fashioned the death and Testament of Iacob that blessed right happy Father added to this auncient monument of the children Therfore to recompence my pay●es reade them but read them diligently neither read onely but cōtēd to follow For the imitation of good and godly men is the direct way course to godlines So may we accompt of Iacobs blessing so may we throughly chalendge to be his Children I meane not by fleshe but spirite The lord which made heauē earth y Lord which gaue his sonne to shed his hart bloud for vs god which disposeth thinges to his pleasure preserue our Queene encrease our fayth ▪ and make vs thankeful for his bene●ites Amen Richard Daye FINIS ¶ The Testament of Iacob that he made at his death to his xij Sonnes the Patriarches concerning what should be●ide them in the last dayes gathered out of Genesis .48 .49 and added to this booke Com● harke my Sonnes two thinges I geue my blessing and my ban The first to them that godly lyue the last to wicked man. IAcob the sonne of Isaac borne of Rebecca the yeare of the world 2108. his Father being three score yeares of age was a perfect man righteous dwelling † in tentes not geuen to pleasure hunting as hys elder brother elder by nature not by grace for the elder shal serue the younger sayth the Lord. Why not for that Iacob had so deserued but because God had so appointed Wherefore whē he thus by the determinate will of God and heauenly disposition which ordereth thinges whatsoeuer had got hys Brothers byrthright and his Fathers blessing his Parentes cons●dering that the slippery dayes of carnall copulation did approach and warely fearing his brother Esaw for y † he conceaued murder in his hart and instituted a byrth day of his deuilishe purpose sent hym from Berseba to Mesopotamia to Laban his mothers brother there honestly to take a wyfe and ●uietly to liue For Matrimony without consent of Parentes and due consideration of either partie cōtracted as it breedeth their disquietnesse so it prouoketh Gods displeasure Iacob therefore after long trauile being placed with his Uncle Laban and seruing hym xiiii yeares in labour payue albeit he was the childe of promise the blessed of the Lord Borne of a free woman and y which is more his Vncles bone flesh and Lord of Chanaā not arguing with hymselfe as the worldly childrē of this earth saying shall I which am a free and wealthy m●ns sonne be made a seruaunt shall I be a drudge in my kinsmans house beyng sent to marry not to serue had † geuen him by Laban to wife for his good seruice by whiche God blessed that little that Laban had before his two daughters Lea first then Rachell with their handmaydes Bilha and Zilpha of whome according to the promise made vnto hym of God in Bethell that his seede shou●● be multiplyed he begat xii sonnes .xii. godly Fathers of the earth Ruben Simeon Leui. Iuda Dan. Neptalin Gad. Aser Isachar Zabulon Ioseph Bēiamin Thus he b●y●g blessed of the Lord as well in Children as in substaūce returned agayne to his natiue countrye he and his Childrē there to lyue there to dy But beholde the diuine prouidence of god After three thirty yeares expired he was remoued frō Chanaan to Gosen in Egipt by

the land in Charets horsemen buryed him in y place which Iacob had appointed ¶ The Testament of Ruben made to his Children at his death concerning the thinges that he had in his minde by the suggestion of the spirite of foreknowledg ▪ Behold the pot the heare the bed doe note the strength the lust Of Ruben and vnconstant head who therefore was accurst THys is the copye of Rubens Testament concerninge all the thynges whiche hee gaue in charge to hys children before hee dyed in the hundred fiue and twenty yeare of his life Two yeares after the decease of Ioseph his children childrens children came to visite him in his sicknes and he sayd vnto them My children I dye and goe the way of my fathers And saying there his brethren Iuda Gad and Aser he sayd vnto them Lift me vp my brethren that I may tell you and my children the thinges that I haue hidden in my hart for I am henceforth drawing to my long home Thē stāding vp he kissed thē and weeping sayde Harken my brethren and you my childrē geue care to the word of your father Ruben mark what I giue in charge to you Behold I cōmaund you this day before y God of heauē that ye walke not in the ignoraunce of youthfulnesse and fornicatiō whereint● I ouershot my selfe and de●●●ed the bed of my father Iacob For I assure you that the Lord did therfore 〈◊〉 me with a sore plague in my flankes by the space of seuen monthes and ‡ I had perished if my father Iacob had not prayed to the Lorde for m●e because he was minded to haue slayne mee I was thirtye yeares old when I did this euill in the sight of the Lorde seuen monethes was I sick to y death and ‡ with a free hart did I seuen yeare penance before the Lord I dranke no wine nor stronge drinke no fleshe came within my mouth I tasted not any fine bred but I mourned for my sinne for it was great there shall none such be done in Israell And nowe my sonnes heare me that I may shewe you what I sawe concerninge the seuen spyrites of error in my repentaunce Belyall geueth seuen spirites agaynst a man whiche are the welspringes of youthfull workes and seuen spirites are géuen man in his creation whereby all hys works are done The first is the spirit of life wherewith is created hys béeing The second is the spirite of séeing wherwith cometh lusting The y spirite of hearing wherew t cometh learning The is y spirit of smelling wherw t cometh delight by drawing in of y ayre by breathing of it out agayn The is the spirit of speech wherwith knowledge is made The is y spirit of tascing wherof commeth y feedyng vpon thinges y are to be eaten drunke through them is ingendred strength because the substaunce of strength is in meate The seuenth is the spirit of séede and generation wherwith entreth sinne through y lust of pleasure For this cause it is the last of creation the first of youth because it is full of ignoraunce and ignoraunce leadeth the yonger sort as a blynd body into the ditch and as an Oxe to the stal Amōg all these is the eight spirit which is of sléep with whō is created the wasting away of nature and the image of death With these spirites are mingled the spirites of error Wherof the first is the spirite of Lechery who lyeth within in the nature and senses of man. The second spirit vnsatiablenesse lyeth in the belly The third spirite of strife lyeth in the lyuer and in choler The fourth spirite is of brauery and galantnesse that the partie may seeme co●ly by excesse The fistbe is the spirte of pride which moueth a man to minde ouer great thinges or to thinke well of himselfe The ●rth is the spirit of Lying or vayne gloriousnes in boasting a mans selfe and in desire to ●ile his talke concerning his owne kin●ed and acquaintaūce The seuenth is the spirit o● vnrighteousnes whiche stirreth vp the affections that a man should performe the lustfull pleasures of his harte For vnrighteousnes worketh with all the other spirits by taking guile vnto him Unto all these spirites is matched the vii● spirit which is the spirite of sléepe or sluggishnes in error and imagination and so the soules of young folkes perishe because their mindes are dar●kned from the truth and vnderstand not the law of the Lord neither obey the doctrine of their fathers as be●el to me in my youth But now my childrē loue the truth and that shall preserue you Harken to your father Ruben and let not your eyes runne gazing after women neither be ye alone with a woman that is maried neither seeke you about what women are a doing For if I had not sene Billa bathing of her selfe in a secret place I hadde not fallen into that great wickednes But my mind ran so vpon the naked woman that it suffered me not to sleepe till I had committed abhomination For while my father Iacob was away at his Father Isaackes I in Gader hard by Ephrata a house of Bethleem Billa fell drunken as shee lay a sleepe vncouered in her chamber I went in and seeyng her nakednes wrought wickednesse with her and leauing her a sléepe went my way By and by an Angell of God bes●rayed my wickednes to my Father Iacob who comming home mourned for me touched not ▪ Billa any more Therefore looke not vppon the be●u●tye of women neyther muse you vpon theyr de●nges but walke ye with a single harte in the feare of the Lorde busi●nge your selues about some worke and keeping your selues occupyed either in 〈◊〉 ▪ or aboute your flockes till God geue you such wiues as he lifteth leaste 〈◊〉 suffer as I haue bone I durst not looke my father in the face to hys dying day nor speake to any of my brethren for shaine My conscience byteth me● euē yet still for my sinne But my father comforted me and prayed for me to the Lorde that his wrath myght passe away from me as the Lorde himselfe shewed vnto me Therefore from that time forth I was kept from sinning any more And you my children likewise keepe ye all that I shall tell you and you shal not sinne For fornication is y destruction of the soule separating it from God 4 making i● to draw vnto Idols because it leadeth the minde and vnderstanding into error and bringth men to their gra●e before their time For whor●●om hath vndone many men And although a man be auncient or noble yet doth it sha●e him make hym a laughingstock both before Belial the sonnes of mē But Ioseph because he kept himselfe from all