pot the beare the bed doe note the strength the lust Of Ruben and unconstant head who therefore was accurst The Testament of Ruben THis is the copy of Rubens testament concerning all the things which hee gave in charge to his children before he died in the 125. yeare of his life Two yeares after the decease of Joseph his children and childrens children came to visit him in his sicknesse and be said unto them My children I die goe the way of my Fathers And seeing there his brethren Iuda Gad and Aser he said unto them Lift me up my brethren that I may tell you and my Children the things that I have hidden in my heart for I am henceforth drawing to my long home Then standing up he kissed them and weeping said Harken my brethren and you my children give ear to the words of your father Ruben mark what I give in charge to you Behold I command you this day before the God of Heaven that ye walke not in the ignorance of youthfulnesse and fornication wherein I overshot my selfe and defiled the bed of my Father Jacob For I assure you that the Lord did therfore strike me with a sore plague in my flanks the space of 7 moneths a I had perished if my Father b Jacob had not prayed to the Lord for mee because he was minded to have slaine mee I was thirty yeares old when I did this evill in the sight of the Lord and seven moneths was I sick to the death and with a free heart did I seven yeere penance before the Lord I drank no wine nor strong drink no flesh came within my mouth I tasted not any fine bread but I mourned for my sinne for it was great and there shall none such bee done in Israel And now my sonnes heare mee that I may shew you what I saw concerning the seven spirits of error in my repentance Belial giveth seven spirits against a man which are the welsprings of youthful workes and seven spirits are given man in hâ—s creation wherby all his works are done The first is the spirit of life wherewith is created his being The second is the spirit of seing wherwith cometh lusting The third the spirit of hearing wherwith cometh learning The 4 th is the spirit of smelling wherewith cometh delight by drawing in of the aire and by breathing of it out againe The fift is the spirit of speech wherewith knowledge is made The sixt is the spirit of Tasting whereof cometh the feeding upon things that are to be eatâ—n and drunke and through them is engendered strength because the substance of strengâ—h is in meat The seventh is the spirit of seed and generation wherewith entereth in the lust of pleasure For this cause it is the last of creation and the first of youth because it is full of Ignorance and Ignorance leadeth the yonger sort as a blind body into the ditch and as an ore to the stall Among all these is the eight spirit which is of sleep with whom is created the wasting away of Nature and the Image of Death With these spirits are mingled the spirits of errour Whereof the first is the spirit of lechery who lieth within the nature and senses of man The second spirit of unsatiablenes lieth in the belly The third spirit of strife lieth in the Liver in choler The fourth spirit is of bravery and gallantnes that the party may seeme comely by excesse The fifth is the spirit of Pride which moveth a man to minde over great things or to think well of himself The sixt is the spirit of lying or vain gloriousnesse in boasting a mans selfe and in desire to file his talke concerning his own kindred and acquaintance The seventh is the spirit of unrighteousnesse which stirreth up the affections that a man should perform the lustfull pleasures of his heart For unrighteousnesse worketh with all the other spirits by taking guile unto him Vnto all these spirits is matched the eight spirit which is the spirit of sleep or sluggishnesse in errour imagination and so the soules of young folkes perish because their minds are darkned and hidden from the truth understand not the law of the Lord neither obey the doctrine of their Fathers as befell to me in my youth But now my children love the truth and that shall preserve you Harken to your Father Ruben and let not your eyes 1. run a gazing after women neither bee ye 2. alone with a Woman that is married neither doe ye seeke about 3. what Women are doing For if I had not seene Bilha bathing her selfe in a secret place I had not fallen into that great wâ—ckednes But my mind raâ—so so upon the naked Woman till it suffered mee not to sleepe till I had committed abhomination For while my Father Jacob was away at his Father Isaacks and I in Gader hard by Euphrata a house of Bethlehem Bilha fel 4. drunken and as she lay asleepe uncovered in her chamber I went in so and seeing her nakednesse wrought wickednesse with her leaving her asleepe went my way By and by an Angel of God bewrayed my wickednes to my father Jacob who comming home mourned for mee and touched not Bilha any more Therefore looke not upon the beautie of women neither muse you upon their doings but walke ye with a single heart in the feare of the Lord God busying your selves about some worke and keeping your selves occupied either in learning or about your flockes untill such time as God give you such wives as he listeth lest you doe suffer as I have done I durst not looke my Father in the face to his dying day nor speake to any of my brethren for shame My conscience biâ—eth me even yet still for my sin But my Father comforted me and prayed for me unto the Lord that his wrath might passe away from me as the Lord himselfe shewed unto me Therefore from that time forth I was kept from sinning any more And you my children likewise keepe ye that I shall tell you and you shall not sinne For Fornication is the destruction of the Soule separating it from God and making it to draw unto Idols because it leadeth the minde and understanding into errour and bringeth men to their grave before their time For whoredom hath undone many men although a man be ancient or noble yet doth it shame him and make him a laughing stock both before Belial and the sons of men But Ioseph because he kept himselfe from all Women and cleansed his thoughts from all fornication found favour both before the Lord and men The Egyptian Woman did much so him by using the helpe of witches and by offering him slaubar sauces but the purpose of his mind admitted no noysome desire For this
of the visions that I had seene but he would not â—o with us unto Bethel But when we came to Bethel my father Jacob saw in a vision concerning mee that I should be their priest before the Lord And he arose in the morning and tithed all things to the Lord by me Then came we to Hebron to dwell there and by and by Isaac called me to expound the law of the Lord accâ—rding as Gods angell had shewed it to me and he taught mee the law of Priesthood Sacrifices Burnt offerings â—irâ—â—â—ings Free-will offerings and offerings for health Every day he taught me understanding and called upon me continuâ—lly before the Lord saying My son give no care to the spirit of fornication for he will follow thee and defile the holy things by thy seede Therefore take thee a Wife in thy youth such an one that hath not any blemish nor uncleannesse nor is of the kindred of the Allophytes or of the Gentiles And before thou enter into the Holies wash and likewise ere thou sacrificest also when thou hast done offer unto the Lord the fruites of the twelve trees that are ever green as my father Abraham taught me to do and the fruite of all clean beastes and of clean soules offer thou in sacrifice Likewise offer up thy first-born of all things and the first fruits of thy Vine and sprinkle thy Sacrifices with Salt Now therefore my Sons keep ye all the things that I command you for whatsoever I have heard of my Fathers that have I told unto you I am clear from all the wickednesse and sin which you shall commit to the end of the world Ye shall work wickedness against the Saviour of the world and ye shall seduce Israel stirring up much evill against him from the Lord and dealing wickedly with him so that Jerusalem shall not continue by reason of your naughtinesse The Veil of the Temple shall be rent in sunder to discover your foulnesse and ye shall be scattered as prisoners amongst the Heathen and be scorned cursed and trodden under-foot Neverthelesse the House which the Lord shall choose shall be called Jerusalem as the Book of Enoch the righteous containneth Therefore when I was twenty and eight years old I took a Wife whose name was Melcha and she conceived and bare me a son called his name Gershon because we were but strangers in our land for Gershon signifieth vanishment Now I knew of him that he should not be of the chief degree The second was Caath who was born the five and thirtieth year I saw a vision Eastward how all the congregation stood up aloft and therefore I called his name Caath which signifieth the beginning of greatnesse and learning The third was Merari who was born in the five and fiftieth year of my life And because his mother was hardly delivered of him she called him Merari which is as much to say as my bitterness And in the threescore and fourth year of my life was my daughter Jochebed born in Eâ—â—pt and so was I honorable among my â—rethren Also my son Gershon took him a wife which bare him Lybni and Schimi The sons of Caath were Amram Yshvar Hebron and Uziel and the sons of Merari were Mahali and Mushi An the fourscore and fourteenth year of my life Amram took unto wife my daughter Jochebed because that be and she were born both on one day I was eight year old when I entred into the Land of Canaan and eighteen year old when I entred into the office of Priesthood At eight and twenty yeares 〈◊〉 a Wife and at fourtie yeares â—ld I enâ—red into Egypt and behold ye be â—ow my childrens children in the third generation Joseph died in the hundreth and tenth year And now my Children I warn you feare the Lord your God with all your heart and walke plainely in all thinges according to his Law Moreover bring up your children in learning that they may have understanding by reading the law of God without ceasing all their life long For whosoever knoweth Gods law shall be honoured and go wheresoever he will be shall be no stranger also he shall have more friends than his forefathers had 〈◊〉 many shall be glad to serve him and 〈◊〉 heare the law at his mouth My sonnes deale rightfully upon earth that you may finde Heaven and sowe good things in your minds that you may finde them in your life For if ye sowe evill things ye shall finde and reape all manner of combrance and trouble Get yee wisedome iâ— the feare of God for if captivitie come and Cities and Countries be destroyed gold and silver and all possessions perish but none can take away the wise man wisedome save only the blindnesse of ungodlinesse and sinne For his wisedome shall become a shield to him among his enemies and make a strange countrey to be as his owne home and cause him to find friendship in the midst of his foes If he teach and doe such things he shall sit with Kings as did our brother Joseph And truly my Children I know by the writings of Enoch that in the end ye shall doe wickedly laying your hands most spitefully upon the Lord and through you your brethren shall be confounded and made a scorning stock to all nations Howbeit our Father Israel is cleare from the wickednesse of the high Priests which shall lay hands upon the Saviour of the World The Heaven above the earth is cleane you be the lights of the heathen as the Sun and the Moone What shall all the heathen do if you be overdarkned with wickednesse and bring cursednesse upon your country folke for whose sakes the light of the World is put into you to inlighten all men withal this light of the World shall you most wilfully steal and teach commandements contrarie to the righteousnes of God Ye shall purloin the Lords offering and filch away pieces of it Before you do your sacrifices unto the Lord ye shall steale away the choicest things and eat them disdainfully with Harlots teaching Commandements of covetousnesse Ye shall defile maryed women and inforce maidens in Jerusalem you shall match your selves with whoâ—es and Harlots you shall take the daughters of the Heathen unto wife purifying them with unrighteous purifying and your mingling shall be like unto Sodom and Gomorrha and ye shall be swoln with wickednesse in the Priesthood insomuch that you shall most disdainfully and spitefully laugh the holy things to scorn not only vaunting and boasting your selves against men but also being puffed and swoln up with pride against the Commandements of God For this cause shall the Temple which the Lord shal have chosen be undoubtedly left desolate in uncleannesse and you your selves become captives to all Nations and be loathed and abhord among them and receive endlesse shame and confusion through Gods righful judgement and all that see you shall shun
it to passe The Testament of Neptalim made to his Children at his death concerning goodnes Run Neptalims race but run apace Embrace his goodnesse and trustinesse If your state you see servants to be Then God will you blesse give successe The Testament of Neptalim THe copy of Neptalims Testament concerning the things which he discoursed at the end of his time in the hundreth and two and thirtieth year of his life At the comming of his Children together in the seaventh moneth the fourth day of the moneth he being yet in good health commanded a sumptuous feast and great chear to be prepared When he awoke in the morning from sleep because he was even at deaths doore he praised the Lord that had strengthned him and began to speak to his children in this wise My Children give eare to Neptalim hearken to your fathers words I was borne of Bilha and because Rachel dealt craftily in putting Bilha to Jacob in her owne stead and Bilha was delivered of mee in Rachels lap therefore was I called Neptalim And Rachel loved mee because I was borne on her lap and shee kissed me when I was a little one saying God let me see a brother of thine out of mine owne wombe after thee By reason whereof Joseph was like to mee in all things according to Rachels request Now my mother Bilha was the daughter of Rotheus the brother of Debora Rebecca's nurse and was born the self-same day that Rachel was born for Rotheus was a Chaldean of Abrahams kindred a worshipper of GOD freeborn and a noble man Howbeit forsomuch as he was taken prisoner Laban bought him and married him so a bond-woman of his called Eve who brought him forth a son whom he named Zeliphas after the name of the Castle wherein he was taken Afterward she bare Bilha calling her her new hasty daughter because she was fond of the Dug as soon as she was born And because I was as swift of foot as a Stag my father Jacob appointed me to run of all messages and errands and blessed me by the name of Stag For as the Potter knoweth what his vessel shall contain and tempereth his quantity of clay thereafter so the Lord maketh a mans body proportionable to the spirit that he will put unto it and fliteth the spirit to the ability of the body so as there is no inequality or oddes betwixt them for all the Lords creatures are made by weight measure and rule And as the Potter knoweth the use of every of them to what things they be meetest so the Lord knoweth the body how farre forth it is fit for goodnesse and when it beginneth in evill For there is not any Creature reasonable nor unreasonable which the Lord knoweth not for he hath created all men after his own image and as mans strength is so is his worke as is his will so is his worke as is his forecast so is his doing as is his heart so is his mouth as is his eye so is his sleep and as is his minde so is his talke either of the Law of the Lord or of the Law of Belial And looke what diversity is betweene light and darknesse or between sight and hearing the same diversity is there in man and woman Neither is it to be said that there is any bitternesse in any thing either of the face or of other like things For God hath made all things good in their order or degres he hath set the five wits in the head and knit the head to the neck and covered it with hair for his glory Moreover he hath assigned the heart to wisdome the bellâ— to the avoidance of the stomach 〈…〉 health the Liver to anger the gall to bitternesse the spleen to laughter the kidnies to craftinesse the loins to strength the ribbes to comelinesse the seed to lustinesse and so forth So my children doe all things in order and in the feare of God neither doe ye any thing disorderly in scorn or out of due season For thou canst not command the eye to beare neither canst thou doe the works of light in darknesse Therefore haste you not to marâ— your doings through covetousnesse or to beguile your own souls with fond talke For by holding your peace with a cleane heart ye shall be able to keep the will of God and to cast away the will of the divell the Sunne Moon and Stars break not their order neither break you Gods law in the order of your doings The Gentiles by going astray and by forsaking the Lord have changed their order and followed stocks and stones and spirits of errour But do you not so my children know ye that your onely one God is the Lord in the skies on the earth in the Sea and of all creatures for he is the mâ—ker of them And be not like Sodom which altereth the order of her Nature likewise the waters altered the order of their nature and they whom God cursed in the flood making the earth desolate and fruitless for their sakes My children I say these things because I have read in the holy writings of Enoch that you also shall depart from the Lord and walk in all the wickednesse of Sodome and the Lord shall bring thraldome upon you so as you shal serve your enemies and be pinched with all manner of tribulation and pain till God consume you every one and when ye be made few and small ye shal turn again and know the Lord your God and he shal bring you again into your own land according to his manifold mercy And it shall come to passe that when they shall be come into the countrey of their fathers they shall forget the Lord again and deal wickedly so as the Lord shall scatter them all over the face of the whole earth till in the mercy of the Lord come a man that poureth out mercy and righteousness upon all men both far and neer For in the xl year of my life upon mount Olivet toward the east side of Jerusalem I saw the Sun and Moon stand still and behold Isaac my fathers father said to us Come hither apace and every one of you take hold according to his strength for the Sunne and Moone may be caught And we came running all togethâ—r and Levi caught hold of the Sunne and Juda jumping up caught told of the Moon and were both of them lifted up with them And when as Levi became as the Sunne a certain young mâ—n delivered him twelve boughs of Palm tree and Juda shined as the Moon and twelve beams or rayes were under his feet and Levi and Juda running together beheld one another And behold there was a Bull upon earth that had great horns and Eagles wings upon his backe and we would have caught him but we could not for Joseph stepping before us caught him and mounted aloft upon him And behold there appeared unto us an holy writing
saying the Assyrians Medes Elamites Galathites Caldees and Syrians shall hold the Scepter of Israel in thraldome And again a seven moneths after I saw our father Jacob standing in the sea of Jamma and us his Sonnes with him And behold there came a ship sayling by full of 〈◊〉 flesh without Mariner or Pilate Vpon the ship was written Jacob and our Father said to us Let us go to our ship When we were within it there rose a sore tempest and a mighty gale of winde and our father who held the stern flew away from us and then we being tossed with the storm were carried into the sea and our ship was filled with water and weather-â—eatâ—n and torn on all sides Then Joseph fled out in the boat and we all were divided upon twelve boards and Levi and Juda was among us so were we scattered on all coasts and Levi being clad in sackcâ—oth prayed unto the Lord for us all As soon as the tempest was allayed the ship came quickly to land and behold our Father Jacob came and we rejoyced all together with one minde I told my father these two dreams and he said to me these things must be fulfilled in their time and Israel must indure many things Then said he further to me I believe that Joseph is alive for I see that the Lord doth alwayes number him with us And he said thou livest my sonne Joseph but yet I see thee not neither seest thou Jacob that begat thee truly he made us to weep at these words of his and my vowels glowed within me to bewray unto him that Joseph was sold but I was afraid of my brothers Behold my sons I have shewed you the last times and all things that shall be done in Israel You therefore command your children to be helpfull unto Levi and Juda. For by Juda shall health and welfare spring up unto Israel and in him shall Jacob be blessed For by his Scepter shall God appeare and dwell among men upon earth to save the flock of Israel and to gather the righteous from amongst the Heathen My children if you do well both men and angels shall praise and blesse you and God shall be glorified by you among the Gentiles the Divell shall flâ—e from you the beasts shall stand in awe of you and the Angels shall receive you For like as if a man bring up his children well the child giveth and endeavoureth alwayes to be mindefull and thankfull So of good works there is a good remembrance with God But as for him that doth not good him shall men and Angels curse and God shall be dishonoured through him among the Gentiles and the Divel shall possesse him as a peculiar vessell and instrument and all beasts shall overmasâ—er him and the Lord shall hate him For the commandments of the law are of two sorts and are fulfilled in work For there is a time for a man to company with his wife and a time to forbear her that he may give himselfe to prayer There are two commandements which breed sinne except they be done in their due order and so it is in the rest of the commandments Therefore be you wise and skilfull in the Lord knowing the order of his commandements and the laws of all things that God may love ye Having commanded them many other such things he prayed them to conveigh his bones to Hebron and to bury him by his Fathers And so eating and drinking with a merry heart he covered his face and died And Neptalims children did all things according as their Father had commanded them The Testament of GAD made to his Children at his death concerning Hatred You that excell in Martiall feats Loe Gad but GOD obey Lest in Gads wrath you GOD offend And lose your hoped prey The Testament of Gad. THe Copy of Gads Testament and of the things that he spake to his Children in the hundred and seventh year of his life saying I was Jacobs seventh son and skilfull and strong in keeping of sheep I kept the flocks by night and when there came any Lion Leopard Wolf Beare or other wilde Beast upon our Caâ—tel I ran to it and killed it Joseph also did feed sheep with us about a thirty dayes who being tender fell sick by reason of overmuch heat and went home to Hebron to his father whom he lodged by himselfe because he loved him And Joseph told our father tâ—at the sons of Bilha wasted his goods at Zâ—lpha and made havock of them without the knowledge of Juda and Ruben For he knew that I had rescued a lamb out of a Bears mouth and killed the Bear and that because the lamb could not live which thing grieved me we killed it also and ate it He told our father of it and our brothers were greatly discontentâ—d with his doing even to the day that he was sold into Egypt and the spirit of hatred was in me insomuch as I could not finde in my heart to hear Joseph speak or to see him because he had rebuked us openly for eating the lamb without Juda. To be shorâ— he made our father believe whatsoever he told him But now I acknowledge my sinne my children that I was often in minde to have killed him for I hated him from my heart and I was utterly without compassion towards him and the cause of this my great hatred towards him was his dreams Therefore I would have devoured him as an Oxe eateth up grasse from the earth And for that cause I and Juda sold him to the Ismaelites for 30 gildernes of the which we kept away ten privily and shewed the other xx to our brethren And so covetousnesse perswaded me to wish his death But the God of our Fathers delivered him out of my hands to the intent I should not do such wickedness in Israel and now my children give eare to the words of truth that ye may live righteously and keep the law of the highest and not go astray through the Spirit of hatred for that is evill in all mens doings Whatsoever another man doe hâ— that doth the hater mislike and abhorre If one keep the law of the Lord he praiseth it not if one feare the Lord and deal righteously him he loveth not but dispraiseth the truth he envieth him that ordereth his wayes aright he embraceth backbiting he loveth scornfulnesse and because that hatred hath blinded his minde he doth to his neighbours as we did to Joseph therefore my Children keep your selves from hatred because it committeth wickednesse even against the Lord for it will not hear the words of Gods commandement concerning the loving of a mans neighbour but sinneth spitefully against God If a brother offend by and by it blazeth him abroad and is hastie to have him condemned and killed or punished for his offence And if the offender be a servant or bondman it accuseth him to his master and deviseth all means that may be to persecute