CHAP. XXI.
Adam and Eve attempt suicide.
THEN Adam and Eve went in search of the garden.2 And the heat beat like a flame on their faces; and they sweated from the heat, and wept before the Lord.
3 But the place where they wept was nigh unto a high mountain, facing the western gate of the garden.
4 Then Adam threw himself down from the top of that mountain; his face was tom and his flesh was flayed; much blood flowed from him, and he was nigh unto death.
5 Meanwhile Eve remained standing on the mountain weeping over him, thus lying.
6 And she said, "I wish not to live after him; for all that he did to himself was through me."
7 Then she threw herself after him; and was torn and scotched by stones; and remained lying as dead.
8 But the merciful God, who looks upon His creatures, looked upon Adam and Eve as they lay dead, and He sent His Word unto them, and raised them.
9 And said to Adam, "O Adam, all this misery which thou hast wrought upon thyself, will not avail against My rule, neither will it alter the covenant of the 5500 years."
CHAP. XXII.
Adam in a chivalrous mood.
THEN Adam said to God, "I wither in the heat; I am faint from
walking, and am loth of this world. And I know not when Thou wilt bring
me out of it, to rest."2 Then the Lord God said unto him, "O Adam, it cannot be at present, not until thou hast ended thy days. Then shall I bring thee out of this wretched land."
3 And Adam said to God, "While I was in the garden I knew neither heat, nor languor, neither moving about, nor trembling, nor fear; but now since I came to this land, all this affliction has come upon me."
4 Then God said to Adam,
"So long as thou wast keeping My commandment, My light and My grace rested on thee. But when thou didst transgress My commandment, sorrow and misery befell thee in this land." 5 And Adam wept and said, "O Lord, do not cut me off for this, neither smite me with heavy plagues, nor yet repay me according to my sin; For we, of our own will, did transgress Thy commandment, and forsook Thy law, and sought to become gods like unto Thee, when Satan the enemy deceived us."
6 Then God said again unto Adam, "Because thou hast borne fear and trembling in this land, languor and suffering treading and walking about, going upon this mountain, and dying from it, I will take all this upon Myself in order to save thee."
CHAP. XXIII.
Adam and Eve gird themselves and make the first altar ever built.
THEN Adam wept more and said, "O God, have mercy on me, so far as to take upon Thee, that which I will do."2 But God took His Word from Adam and Eve.
3 Then Adam and Eve stood on their feet; and Adam said to Eve "Gird thyself, and I also will gird myself." And she girded herself, as Adam told her.
4 Then Adam and Eve took stones and placed them in the shape of an altar; and they took leaves from the trees outside the garden, with which they wiped, from the face of the rock, the blood they had spilled.
5 But that which had dropped on the sand, they took together with the dust wherewith it was mingled and offered it upon the altar as an offering unto God.
6 Then Adam and Eve stood under the altar and wept, thus entreating God, "Forgive us our trespass 1 and our sin, and look upon us with Thine eye of mercy. For when we were in the garden our praises and our hymns went up before Thee without ceasing.
7 "But when we came into this strange land, pure praise was no longer ours, nor righteous prayer, nor understanding hearts, nor sweet thoughts, nor just counsels, nor long discernment, nor upright feelings, neither is our bright nature left us. But our body is changed from the similitude in which it was at first, when we were created.
8 "Yet now look upon our blood which is offered upon these stones, and accept it at our hands, like the praise we used to sing unto Thee at first, when in the garden."
9 And Adam began to make more requests unto God.
Footnotes
16:1 ORIGINAL OF THE LORD'S PRAYER SAID TO BE USED ABOUT 150 YEARS BEFORE OUR LORD: Our Father, Who art in Heaven, be gracious unto us, O Lord our God, hallowed be Thy Name, and let the remembrance of Thee be glorified in Heaven above and upon earth here below.Let Thy kingdom reign over us now and forever. The Holy Men of old said remit and forgive unto all men whatsoever they have done unto me. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil thing; for Thine is the kingdom and Thou shalt reign in glory forever and forevermore, AMEN.
CHAP. XXIV.
A vivid prophecy of the life and death of Christ.
TEN the merciful God, good 'and lover of men, looked upon Adam and
Eve, and upon their blood, which they had held up as an offering unto
Him; without an order from Him for so doing. But He wondered at them;
and accepted their offerings.2 And God sent from His presence a bright fire, that consumed their offering.
3 He smelt the sweet savour of their offering, and showed them mercy.
4 Then came the Word of God to Adam, and said unto him, "O Adam, as thou hast shed thy blood, so will I shed My own blood when I become flesh of thy seed; and as thou didst die, O Adam, so also will I die. And as thou didst build an altar, so also will I make for thee an altar on the earth; and as thou didst offer thy blood upon it, so also will I offer My blood upon an altar on the earth.
5 "And as thou didst sue for forgiveness through that blood, so also will I make My blood forgiveness of sins, and blot out transgressions in it.
6 "And now, behold, I have accepted thy offering, O Adam, but the days of the covenant, wherein I have bound thee, are not fulfilled. When they are fulfilled, then will I bring thee back into the garden.
7 "Now, therefore, strengthen thy heart; and when sorrow comes upon thee, make Me an offering, and I will be favourable to thee."
CHAP. XXV.
God represented as merciful and loving. The establishing of worship.
BUT God knew that Adam had in his thoughts, that he should often kill himself and make an offering to Him of his blood.2 Therefore did He say unto him, "O Adam, do not again kill thyself as thou didst, by throwing thyself down from that mountain."
3 But Adam said unto God, "It was in my mind to put an end to myself at once, for having transgressed Thy commandments, and for my having come out of the beautiful garden; and for the bright light of which Thou hast deprived me; and for the praises which poured forth from my mouth without ceasing, and for the light that covered me.
4 "Yet of Thy goodness, O God, do not away with me altogether; but be favourable to me every time I die, and bring me to life.
5 "And thereby it will be made known that Thou art a merciful God, who willest not that one should perish; who lovest not that one should fall; and who dost not condemn any one cruelly, badly, and by whole destruction."
6 Then Adam remained silent.
7 And the Word of God came unto him, and blessed him, and comforted him, and covenanted with him, that He would save him at the end of the days determined upon him.
8 This, then, was the first offering Adam made unto God; and so it became his custom to do.
CHAP. XXVI.
A beautiful prophecy of eternal life and joy (v. 15). The fall of night.
THEN Adam took Eve, and they began to return to the Cave of Treasures where they dwelt. But when they nearedp. 18
it and saw it from afar, heavy sorrow fell upon Adam and Eve when they looked at it.
2 Then Adam said to Eve, "When we were on the mountain we were comforted by the Word of God that conversed with us; and the light that came from the east, shone over us.
3 "But now the Word of God is hidden from us; and the light that shone over us is so changed as to disappear, and let darkness and sorrow come upon us.
4 "And we are forced to enter this cave which is like a prison, wherein darkness covers us, so that we are parted from each other; and thou canst not see me, neither can I see thee."
5 When Adam had said these words, they wept and spread their hands before God; for they were full of sorrow.
6 And they entreated God to bring the sun to them, to shine on them, so that darkness return not upon them, and they come not again under this covering of rock. And they wished to die rather than see the darkness.
7 Then God looked upon Adam and Eve and upon their great sorrow, and upon all they had done with a fervent heart, on account of all the trouble they were in, instead of their former well-being, and on account of all the misery that came upon them in a strange land.
8 Therefore God was not wroth with them; nor impatient with them; but He was longsuffering and forbearing towards them, as towards the children He had created.
9 Then came the Word of God to Adam, and said unto him, "Adam, as for the sun, if I were to take it and bring it to thee, days, hours, years and months would all come to naught, and the covenant I have made with thee, would never be fulfilled.
10 "But thou shouldest then be turned and left in a long plague, and no salvation would be left to thee for ever.
11 "Yea, rather, bear long and calm thy soul while thou abidest night and day; until the fulfilment of the days, and the time of My covenant is come.
12 "Then shall I come and save thee, O Adam, for I do not wish that thou be afflicted.
13 "And when I look at all the good things in which thou didst live, and why thou camest out of them, then would I willingly show thee mercy.
14 "But I cannot alter the covenant that has gone out of My mouth; else would I have brought thee back into the garden.
15 "When, however, the covenant is fulfilled, then shall I show thee and thy seed mercy, and bring thee into a land of gladness, where there is neither sorrow nor suffering; but abiding joy and gladness, and light that never fails, and praises that never cease; and a beautiful garden that shall never pass away."
16 And God said again unto Adam, "Be long-suffering and enter the cave, for the darkness, of which thou wast afraid, shall only be twelve hours long; and when ended, light shall arise."
17 Then when Adam heard these words from God, he and Eve worshipped before Him, and their hearts were comforted. They returned into the cave after their custom, while tears flowed from their eyes, sorrow and wailing came from their hearts, and they wished their soul would leave their body.
18 And Adam and Eve stood praying, until the darkness of night came upon them, and Adam was hid from Eve, and she from him.
19 And they remained standing in prayer.
CHAP. XXVII.
The second tempting of Adam and Eve. The devil takes on the form of a beguiling light.
WHEN Satan, the hater of all good, saw how they continued in prayer,
and how God communed with them, and comforted them, and how He had
accepted their offering--Satan made an apparition.2 He began with transforming his hosts; in his hands was a flashing fire, and they were in a great light.
3 He then placed his throne near the mouth of the cave because he could not enter into it by reason of their prayers. And he shed light into the cave, until the cave glistened over Adam and Eve; while his hosts began to sing praises.
4 And Satan did this, in order that when Adam saw the light, he should think within himself that it was a heavenly light, and that Satan's hosts were angels; and that God had sent them to watch at the cave, and to give him light in the darkness.
5 So that when Adam came out of the cave and saw them, and Adam and Eve bowed to Satan, then he would overcome Adam thereby, and a second time humble him before God.
6 When, therefore, Adam and Eve saw the light, fancying it was real, they strengthened their hearts; yet, as they were trembling, Adam said to Eve:--
7 "Look at that great light, and at those many songs of praise, and at that host standing outside that do not come in to us, do not tell us what they say, or whence they come, or what is the meaning of this light; what those praises are; wherefore they have been sent hither, and why they do not come in.
8 "If they were from God, they would come to us in the cave, and would tell us their errand."
9 Then Adam stood up and prayed unto God with a fervent heart, and said:--
10 "O Lord, is there in the world another god than Thou, who created angels and filled them with light, and sent them to keep us, who would come with them?
11 "But, lo, we see these hosts that stand at the mouth of the cave; they are in a great light; they sing loud praises. If they are of some other god than Thou, tell me; and if they are sent by Thee, inform me of the reason for which Thou hast sent them."
12 No sooner had Adam said this, than an angel from God appeared unto him in the cave, who said unto him, "O Adam, fear not. This is Satan and his hosts; he wishes to deceive you as he deceived you at first. For the first time, he was hidden in the serpent; but this time he is come to you in the similitude of an angel of light; in order that, when you worshipped him, he might enthrall you, in the very presence of God."
13 Then the angel went from Adam, and seized Satan at the opening of the cave, and stripped him of the feint he had assumed, and brought him in his own hideous form to Adam and Eve; who were afraid of him when they saw him.
14 And the angel said to Adam, "This hideous form has been his ever since God made him fall from heaven. He could not have come near you in it; therefore did he transform himself into an angel of light."
15 Then the angel drove away Satan and his hosts from Adam and Eve, and said unto them, "Fear not; God who created you, will strengthen you."
16 And the angel went from them.
17 But Adam and Eve remained
p. 20
standing in the cave; no consolation came to them; they were divided in their thoughts.
18 And when it was morning they prayed; and then went out to seek the garden. For their hearts were towards it, and they could get no consolation for having left it.
CHAP. XXVIII.
The Devil pretends to lead Adam and Eve to the water to bathe.
BUT when the wily Satan saw them, that they were going to the garden,
he gathered together his host, and came in appearance upon a cloud,
intent on deceiving them.2 But when Adam and Eve saw him thus in a vision, they thought they were angels of God come to comfort them about their having left the garden, or to bring them back again into it.
3 And Adam spread his hands unto God, beseeching Him to make him understand what they were.
4 Then Satan, the hater of all good, said unto Adam, "O Adam, I am an angel of the great God; and, behold the hosts that surround me.
5 "God has sent me and them to take thee and bring thee to the border of the garden northwards; to the shore of the clear sea, and bathe thee and Eve in it, and raise you to your former gladness, that ye return again to the garden."
6 These words sank into the heart of Adam and Eve.
7 Yet God withheld His Word from Adam, and did not make him understand at once, but waited to see his strength; whether he would be overcome as Eve was when in the garden, or whether he would prevail.
8 Then Satan called to Adam and Eve, and said, "Behold, we go to the sea of water," and they began to go.
9 And Adam and Eve followed them at some little distance.
10 But when they came to the mountain to the north of the garden, a very high mountain, without any steps to the top of it, the Devil drew near to Adam and Eve, and made them go up to the top in reality, and not in a vision; wishing, as he did, to throw them down and kill them, and to wipe off their name from the earth; so that this earth should remain to him and his hosts alone.
CHAP. XXIX.
God tells Adam of the Devil's purpose. (v. 4).
BUT when the merciful God saw that Satan wished to kill Adam with his
manifold devices, and saw that Adam was meek and without guile, God
spake unto Satan in a loud voice, and cursed him.2 Then he and his hosts fled, and Adam and Eve remained standing on the top of the mountain, whence they saw below them the wide world, high above which they were. But they saw none of the host which anon were by them.
3 They wept, both Adam and Eve, before God, and begged for forgiveness of Him.
4 Then came the Word from God to Adam, and said unto him, "Know thou and understand concerning this Satan, that he seeks to deceive thee and thy seed after thee."
5 And Adam wept before the Lord God, and begged and entreated Him to give him something from the garden, as a token to him, wherein to be comforted.
6 And God looked upon Adam's thought, and sent the angel Michael as far as the sea that reaches unto India, to take
p. 21
from thence golden rods and bring them to Adam.
7 This did God in His wisdom, in order that these golden rods, being with Adam in the cave, should shine forth with light in the night around him, and put an end to his fear of the darkness.
8 Then the angel Michael went down by God's order, took golden rods, as God had commanded him, and brought them to God.
CHAP. XXX.
Adam receives the first worldly goods.
AFTER these things, God commanded the angel Gabriel to go down to the
garden, and say to the cherub who kept it, "Behold, God has commanded
me to come into the garden, and to take thence sweet smelling incense,
and give it to Adam."2 Then the angel Gabriel went down by God's order to the garden, and told the cherub as God had commanded him.
3 The cherub then said, "Well." And Gabriel went in and took the incense.
4 Then God commanded His angel Raphael to go down to the garden, and speak to the cherub about some myrrh, to give to Adam.
5 And the angel Raphael went down and told the cherub as God had commanded him, and the cherub said, "Well." Then Raphael went in and took the myrrh.
6 The golden rods were from the Indian sea, where there are precious stones. The incense was from the eastern border of the garden; and the myrrh from the western border, whence bitterness came upon Adam.
7 And the angels brought these three things to God, by the Tree of Life, in the garden.
8 Then God said to the angels, "Dip them in the spring of water; then take them and sprinkle their water over Adam and Eve, that they be a little comforted in their sorrow, and give them to Adam and Eve.
9 And the angels did as God had commanded them, and they gave all those things to Adam and Eve on the top of the mountain upon which Satan had placed them, when he sought to make an end of them.
10 And when Adam saw the golden rods, the incense and the myrrh, he was rejoiced and wept because he thought that the gold was a token of the kingdom whence he had come, that the incense was a token of the bright light which had been taken from him, and that the myrrh was a token of the sorrow in which he was.
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