conipositijii riiH ( Uim was made foi thcin b\ later copyists. In geneial, the conditions under which tlie\ welt wiitten are those of the period of thirtv jeais between 7il and 40 li c Pom- pev 18 alluded to as ' the niii;ht\ ^tiikrr' vvho coiiits ' fioni the
(2J0 82J J4), but he Mil
iiid mtliotedseiere
sutte^n„'sonltlShnaU^
1 , a shameful death
m i:gjpt(229 30) Aim, 1 1
t J the Roman con-
quest under Pompe^
home older critics read theallusionsaljo\ t
indi. xttd as having
refeience to Herod and his dai s (Mo\ ei s, h
eim) , hw aid saw in
them Antiochus Epiplian. s and his times ,
lilt these identlfica-
tions are manifestly fai UIlIimI Ihi ,„
s.nsus of critics is
now against them. Butii , , ,
s, buch as Franken-
berg, who advocates the i
The original langua„( i 1
liren The radical
diffeience between the t\| i i
1 1 up in 17 and IS
.iiid the eschatology ot 1 1 r
1 ti. n points to a
separate authoibhip of thti tu.i |
i| 11 11 .mthis,
and the antecedent probability tli u 1 i
1 1 e apt to
be independent contiibutions, tli i
iiiids for
asL ribmg pai ticular psalms to ditl i
1 iahor(or
authois) belonged to the Hh msn
£d.(iun^-Hil„enfdl 1/
Pmlter
Salomut,, 11,71 , Fntzs< h
1 9, 689 ;
Pick, ' The Psaltei ol h 1
Rsle and Jamc<i, 7'A, 1
1 0. von
I ^ i iabm of I <J t nocll, 1899. um. * Apocrypha,' (above cited).—
Nazani, i p. Kaulen in Wet:
9 The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs.
— This pioduction was well known to the ancient Patiistiowuteis. It is,,u.,l.d ),\ In n , n^iFiagm. 17, ed. Haivey, 11 4s7i Oiuiit// < / s 15"), and Teitullian (ddi U i, \ li li is n uued in the Synopsis ot psemlo \tli iii isiiis ,iiid m the Stichoiuetiy of Nicephoius. In the 13th cent. Bishop Giosseteste made a translation of it into Latin. It has been veiy frequently translated both in ancient and in modern times.
Contents. — The book extends the idea of Gn 49 to the sons of Jacob. Just as the father had called his .sons together before his death and told them his last thoughts, so each of the .sons is made to summon his own childieii to his dcathlicd and to .Liivetheiii a rctrus[irrti\i' and a iiios|.,.fi i\e view. Mach. buwcvci', centres his discuiusr in a duminant idea or topic. ( I ) Kcuben, uh Thou,//,ts. Tliis Testa- ment begins with the confession by Keuben of his sin and the penance he performed therefor (1). Man has seven spirits given him to perform his work
in the worhl. /.-■. -■ ■■ '■ • -- " -- '"
-^1 ''II. nr.n.l..--
counterfeit eighth (3). Beware of fornication (4). Women have always been seducers. They misled the Uriijui-i, 'watchers' (5). Give heed to Levi,
88 APOCALYPTIC LITERATUEE
APOCALYPTIC LITERATURE
for he shall know the Law (6 and 7).— (-2) Simeon, on Envy. This also opens with a confession, but the sin confessed is envy (1. ■_'). The patriarch warns his children against this sin (3), connnends Joseph, and urges them to imitate him (4-8).— (3) Levi, on the Priesthood and Arrogance. This is the distinctively apocalyptic Testament. After introducing himself, tlie patriarch recounts tlie revelation given him of the seven heavens (1-4); then tells of being ushered into the presence of the Lord, who gave him the command to destroy the Shechemites (5). Contrary to the desire of his father, he executed the command (6. 7). He saw a second vision, in which he was invested with the priesthood and received instructions from his grandfather Isaac (8. 9). He foreshadows the cor- ruption of the priesthood by his family (11. 1-2), instructs them in their duties and again warns against corruption (13. 14); foretells the destruc- tion of the Temple, and indicates from the Book of Enoch that the Captivity will last seventy years (15-17); he announces the Messiah, His rejection and the dispersion of Israel, and closes with an exhortation to choose well (18. 19).— (4) Judah, on Fortitude, Avarice, and Fornication. After intro- ducing himself, Judah gives a glowing account of his physical strength and agility, with many illus- trative incidents (1-9). He tells of how he chose Tamar as the wife of his son Er, of the wickedness of his sons and their death, and of his own relations with Tamar (10-12). Ascribing his fall to drunken- ness and covetousnpss. he warns his children against these vices, as well :i^ ,ii;:iinst fornication (13-17); he foresees f nil II ihc i;(.nk^ ,it Enoch the wickedness into which tlu-y ^li.dl i;ill in the last days, and warns them (ls-:il); lie urges them to love Levi, and jirediets with sorrow their apostasies from the Lord and the wars and commotions until the time of Messias (22-24). This shall be followed by the resurrection of the patriarchs (25). — (5) Issachar, on Simplicity. Beginning with the circumstances of his birth, this patriarch gives an account of his early life and marriage (1-3), and points out his simplicity and singleness of mind as virtues to be imitated (4-7).— (6) Zebulun, on Compassion and Mercy. After naming himself and the prosperous circumstances in whit'ii he was born, he claims not to have sinned except in thought. Only in the affair of Joseph, which he describes at length, lie had conspired with his brothers, but with sorrow and compassion for Joseph (1-5). He was the first to construct a boat and go fishing. He used the fish he caught in feeding the needy (6. 7). He urges his children to be compassionate (8) and united in action (9. 10).— (7) Dan, »» Aiirjrr ^nic! Lying. This patriarch also lifjin- with' :i .on fession. He had planned to slay .lu~r|ili ,,iii ,,i envy, but the Lord had witlihelil' th.- o|.|i(.i i uuiu (1). He warns his children :ij;:iin>t the ^|iiia .if lying and anger (2-4) ; he predicts evil days in the future, of which he hadleariu.l from llic lu.oks of Enoch (5), and exhorts them to stand linn in righteousness (6. 7). —(8) Naphtali, on Nntunil Goodness. This Testament opens with an account of the mother of the patriarch, Bilhah (1). It pro- ceeds with a description of his lleetness of foot, which gives oc.a-i.ni for a vp.-cli .ni tlie fitness of the body to tli.- .Ilh-h t.i ..i ^]„■ ^..ul (2). He ex- horts his chil.li. II II.. I 1.) t..ri.- ih.- ..rderof nature (3. 4), and tells. if n xi-i.iii In' saw wli.'u forty years of age. It was on tlie iMount of Ulive.s, to the la-i of Jerusalem. The sun and moon stood still ; Jacob called his .sons to go and seize tliem. L. \ i took hold of the sun, Judah of the moon ; tli.\ were lifted up. A bull with two horns on its head and two wings on its back made its appearance. They tried to capture it, and Joseph succeeded. Finally, a holy writing appeared telling of the