Lost Books of the Bible (110 page)

44 As God lives who created us in the earth, and as your soul lives, my lord, I did not see your son, neither did I tear him to pieces, but from a distant land I also came to seek my son who went from me this day, and I know not whether he is living or dead.

45 And I came this day into the field to seek my son, and your sons found me, and seized me and increased my grief, and have this day brought me before you, and I have now spoken all my words to you.

46 Now therefore, O son of man, I am in your hands, and do to me this day as it may seem good in your sight, but by the life of God who created me, I did not see your son nor did I tear him to pieces, neither has the flesh of man entered my mouth all the days of my life.

47 When Jacob heard the words of the beast he was greatly astonished, and sent forth the beast from his hand, and she went her way.

48 And Jacob was still crying aloud and weeping for Joseph day after day, and he mourned for his son many days.

CHAPTER 44

1 The sons of Ishmael who had bought Joseph from the Midianites, who had bought him from his brothers, went to Egypt with Joseph.  They came on the borders of Egypt and when they came near to Egypt, they met four men of the sons of Medan the son of Abraham, who had gone forth from the land of Egypt on their journey.

2 The Ishmaelites said to them, Do you desire to purchase this slave from us? And they said, Deliver him over to us, and they delivered Joseph over to them; they observed him that he was a very good-looking youth and they purchased him for twenty shekels.

3 The Ishmaelites continued their journey to Egypt and the Medanim also returned that day to Egypt. The Medanim said to each other, Look, we have heard that Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, seeks a good servant who willl stand before him to attend him, and to make him overseer over his house and all belonging to him.

4 So let us sell him for what we may desire, if he is able to give us that which we shall require for him.

5 And these Medanim came to the house of Potiphar, and said to him, We have heard that you seek a good servant to attend you; here we have a servant that will please you, if you can give to us that which we may desire and we will sell him to you.

6 And Potiphar said, Bring him before me, and I will see him; if he please me I will give to you that which you may require for him.

7 And the Medanim went and brought Joseph and placed him before Potiphar, and he observed him, and he pleased him greatly and Potiphar said to them, Tell me what you require for this youth.

8 And they said, Four hundred pieces of silver we desire for him.  Potiphar said, I will give it if you bring me the record of his sale to you and will tell me his history for perhaps he may be stolen, for this youth is neither a slave nor the son of a slave, but I observe in him the appearance of a goodly and handsome person.

9 And the Medanim went and brought to him the Ishmaelites who had sold him to them, and they told him, saying, He is a slave and we sold him to them.

10 And Potiphar heard the words of the Ishmaelites in his giving the silver to the Medanim, and the Medanim took the silver and went on their journey; the Ishmaelites also returned home.

11 Potiphar took Joseph and brought him to his house that he might serve him, and Joseph found favor in the sight of Potiphar;  he placed confidence in him and made him overseer over his house, and all that belonged to him he delivered over into his hand.

12 And the Lord was with Joseph and he became a prosperous man; the Lord blessed the house of Potiphar for the sake of Joseph.

13 And Potiphar left all that he had in the hands of Joseph; Joseph was one that caused things to come in and go out, and everything was regulated by his wish in the house of Potiphar.

14 And Joseph was eighteen years old, a youth with beautiful eyes and of very good appearance, and no one was like him in all the land of Egypt.

15 At that time while he was in his master's house, going in and out of the house and attending his master, Zelicah, his master's wife lifted up her eyes toward Joseph and she looked at him, and behold he was a youth handsome and well-favored.

16 And she coveted his beauty in her heart, and her soul was fixed on Joseph, and she enticed him day after day, and Zelicah persuaded Joseph daily, but Joseph did not lift up his eyes to give attention to his master's wife.

17 And Zelicah said to him, How goodly are your appearance and form, truly I have looked at all the slaves and have not seen so beautiful a slave as you are. Joseph said to her, Certainly he who created me in my mother's womb created all mankind.

18 She said to him, How beautiful are your eyes, with which you have dazzled all the inhabitants of Egypt, men and women.  He said to her, How beautiful they are while we are alive, but should you behold them in the grave, certainly you would move away from them.

19 And she said to him, How beautiful and pleasing are all your words; take now, I pray you, the harp which is in the house, and play with your hands and let us hear your words.

20 And he said to her, How beautiful and pleasing are my words when I speak the praise of my God and his glory.  She said to him, How very beautiful is the hair of your head, find the golden comb which is in the house, take it I pray you, and curl the hair of your head.

21 And he said to her, How long will you speak these words? Stop uttering these words to me, and rise and attend to your domestic affairs.

22 And she said to him, There is no one in my house, and there is nothing to attend to but to your words and to your wish.  Yet in spite of all this, she could not bring Joseph to her, neither did he place his eyes on her, but directed his eyes below to the ground.

23 Zelicah desired Joseph in her heart that he should lie with her; at the time that Joseph was sitting in the house doing his work, Zelicah came and sat before him, and she enticed him daily with her discourse to lie with her, or even to look at her, but Joseph would not listen to her.

24 And she said to him, If you will not do according to my words, I will treat you with the punishment of death, and put an iron yoke on you.

25 And Joseph said to her, Certainly God who created man loosens the fetters of prisoners, and it is he who will deliver me from your prison and from your judgment.

26 When she could not persuade him and her soul being still fixed on him, her desire threw her into a grave sickness.

27 All the women of Egypt came to visit her and said to her, Why are you in this declining state? You lack nothing; certainly your husband is a great and esteemed prince in the sight of the king, should you lack anything of what your heart desires?

28 Zelicah answered them, saying, This day it shall be made known to you from where this disorder comes which you see in me, and she commanded her maid servants to prepare food for all the women; she made a banquet for them, and all the women ate in the house of Zelicah.

29 And she gave them knives to peel the citrons to eat them, and she commanded that they should dress Joseph in costly garments, that he should appear before them, and Joseph came before their eyes and all the women looked on Joseph and could not take their eyes from off him; they all cut their hands with the knives that they had in their hands, and all the citrons that were in their hands were filled with blood.

30 And they knew not what they had done but they continued to look at the beauty of Joseph, and did not turn their eyelids from him.

31 Zelicah saw what they had done, and she said to them, What is this work that you have done? Look, I gave you citrons to eat and you have all cut your hands.

32 And all the women saw their hands, and truly they were full of blood, and their blood flowed down on their garments.  They said to her, This slave in your house has overcome us, and we could not turn our eyelids from him on account of his beauty.

33 She said to them, Certainly this happened to you in the moment that you looked at him, and you could not contain yourselves from him; how then can I refrain when he is constantly in my house, and I see him day after day going in and out of my house? How then can I keep from declining or even from perishing on account of this?

34 And they said to her, The words are true, for who can see this beautiful form in the house and refrain from him, and is he not your slave and attendant in your house, and why do you not tell him that which is in your heart, but allow your soul to perish through this matter?

35 And she said to them, I am daily endeavoring to persuade him, and he will not consent to my wishes; I promised him everything that is good, and yet I could meet with no return from him; I am therefore in a declining state as you see.

36 Zelicah became very ill on account of her desire toward Joseph, and she was desperately lovesick on account of him; but all the people of the house of Zelicah and her husband knew nothing of this matter, that Zelicah was ill on account of her love to Joseph.

37 All the people of her house asked her, saying, Why are you ill and declining, and lack nothing? And she said to them, I know not this thing which daily is increasing on me.

38 All the women and her friends came daily to see her, and they spoke with her, and she said to them, This can only be through the love of Joseph.  They said to her, Entice him and seize him secretly; perhaps he may listen to you and put off this death from you.

39 And Zelicah became worse from her love to Joseph, and she continued to decline, till she scarcely had strength to stand.

40 On a certain day Joseph was doing his master's work in the house, and Zelicah came secretly and fell suddenly on him; Joseph rose up against her, he was more powerful than she, and he brought her down to the ground.

41 And Zelicah wept on account of the desire of her heart toward him, and she begged him with weeping, and her tears flowed down her cheeks; she spoke to him in a voice of pleading and in bitterness of soul, saying,

42 Have you ever heard, seen or known of so beautiful a woman as I am, or better than myself, who speaks daily to you, falls into a decline through love for you, confers all this honor on you, and still you will not listen to my voice?

43 If it be through fear of your master that he punish you, as the king lives no harm shall come to you from your master through this thing; now, therefore do listen to me, and consent for the sake of the honor which I have conferred on you, and put off this death from me, for why should I die for your sake? And she ceased to speak.

44 And Joseph answered her, saying, Keep away from me, and leave this matter to my master; behold my master knows not what there is with me in the house, for all that belongs to him he has delivered into my hands, and how shall I do these things in my master's house?

45 For he has also greatly honored me in his house, and he has also made me overseer over his house, and he has exalted me, and there is no one greater in this house than I am, and my master has refrained nothing from me, excepting you who are his wife.  How then can you speak these words to me, and how can I do this great evil and sin to God and to your husband?

46 Now therefore keep away from me, and speak no more such words as these, for I will not listen to your words. But Zelicah would not listen to Joseph when he spoke these words to her; she daily enticed him to listen to her.

47 It was after this that the brook of Egypt was filled above all its sides, and all the inhabitants of Egypt went forth, and also the king and princes went forth with timbrels and dances, for it was a great rejoicing in Egypt and a holiday at the time of the overflow of the sea Sihor, and they went there to rejoice all the day.

48 And when the Egyptians went out to the river to rejoice, as was their custom, all the people of the house of Potiphar went with them.  But Zelicah would not go with them for she said, I am unable to. She remained alone in the house, and no other person was with her in the house.

49 And she rose up and ascended to her temple in the house, and dressed herself in princely garments, and she placed on her head precious stones of onyx stones, inlaid with silver and gold, and she beautified her face and skin with all sorts of women's purifying liquids, and she perfumed the temple and the house with cassia and frankincense, and she spread myrrh and aloes.  Afterward she sat in the entrance of the temple, in the passage of the house, through which
Joseph passed to do his work, and then Joseph came from the field and entered the house to do his master's work.