1 Meqabyan

1 Meqabyan

Chapter 1

These are the words concerning the kingdoms of Moab and Media which Meqabyan spoke.

There was a man named Tseerutsaydan who loved sin. He boasted in the multitude of his horses and in the strength of the troops under his authority. He had many priests who served the idols before which he bowed, offering sacrifices by night and by day. In the dullness of his heart he supposed that the idols gave him strength, power, and dominion over all his realm.

He appointed priests to serve them. The priests ate from the defiled offerings and told him that the idols had consumed them. They urged others also to sacrifice and eat. The king trusted in things that could neither profit nor save. Satan darkened his understanding, lest he know the Creator who brings what does not live into life.

The people marvelled at the works attributed to the idols and obeyed the deception until they sacrificed their sons and daughters and shed innocent blood. Tseerutsaydan had fifty images made in the form of males and twenty in the form of females. He glorified them morning and evening and commanded the people to eat from their sacrifices.

Five houses were prepared for the images. They were made of iron, bronze, and lead, adorned with silver and gold, and covered with curtains. Keepers were appointed over them. Forty animals were continually offered: ten fat oxen, ten barren cows, ten fat sheep, and ten barren goats, together with winged birds. Fifty baskets of grapes and fifty dishes of grain kneaded with oil were set before them.

The king sent soldiers throughout his dominion to find anyone who would not sacrifice or bow down. Such people were to be seized, punished with fire and sword, their goods plundered, and their houses burned. He said, ‘My gods made heaven and earth, the sea, the sun, the moon, the rain, the winds, and all that lives. Whoever will not worship them shall receive no mercy.’

Chapter 2

There was a man of the tribe of Benjamin named Meqabyan. He had three sons, handsome and mighty in war, beloved among the people in the land ruled by Tseerutsaydan.

The king’s officers said to them, ‘Why do you not bow before the gods of Tseerutsaydan and offer sacrifice? If you refuse, we shall seize you, take you to the king, and destroy your possessions.’

The young men answered, ‘We bow before the Creator of our fathers, who made heaven and earth, the sea, the sun, the moon, the clouds, and the stars. He is the true God in whom we trust.’

The officers were four, with a hundred servants bearing shields and spears. Yet the brothers resisted them. The soldiers could not seize them, and those who escaped returned to the city and threatened the inhabitants, saying that unless the men were surrendered the city would be burned and the country destroyed.

The people cried toward the mountain where the brothers had gone: ‘Do not destroy us and our country.’ The brothers turned eastward, stretched out their hands, and prayed: ‘Lord, shall we yield to men who have broken your command and trusted in silver, gold, stone, and wood? We have no Creator besides you. Give us strength to offer our bodies to death for your name.’

Two men of glorious appearance stood before them. Fiery swords flashed like lightning, and the brothers were struck down; then they arose whole. Their faces shone more brightly than before. Thus they were assured that those who die for righteousness shall rise again.

Chapter 3

Abya, Seela, and Fentos went forth with the men and accepted martyrdom. They prayed, praised, and bowed before God. Neither death nor the king’s punishment terrified them.

They were seized, beaten, bound, scourged, and brought before the king. He said, ‘Why will you not sacrifice and bow to my gods?’ They answered together: ‘We will not bow or sacrifice to defiled images that possess neither knowledge nor understanding. Silver and gold, stone and wood, made by human hands, cannot help their friends or harm their enemies.’

The king threatened to destroy their faces with scourging and fire. They remained steadfast. He ordered them beaten with heavy rods and torn until their inward parts appeared. They were bound and imprisoned for three days and three nights.

On the third day the king assembled counsellors, nobles, elders, and officers. The martyrs were brought before him wounded and bound. He asked whether they had repented. They answered, ‘We have not worshipped the idols you set before us, nor will we forsake the law of God.’

Their wounds were reopened and their blood poured upon the earth. Their flesh was burned with torches. They said, ‘Our reward shall be measured according to the torment you inflict.’ Bears, leopards, and lions were released upon them, but the beasts approached, bowed, and returned roaring against their keepers. Many of the king’s soldiers died in the terror.

[Translation of part of the martyrdom sequence remains uncertain.]

At last the servants killed the faithful ones. Angels received their souls and carried them to the Garden where Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob dwell, where good things are prepared.

Chapter 4

When the king saw that the martyrs were dead, he commanded that their flesh be burned until it became ash and scattered to the wind. Yet the fire could not consume even the hair beside their bodies. They were cast into the sea with stones, iron weights, and a great millstone, but they did not sink, for the Spirit of protection rested upon them.

He then ordered their bodies thrown to beasts and birds. Neither beast nor vulture touched them. Birds covered them with their wings from the heat of the sun, and the bodies remained fourteen days. Their faces shone like the sun, and angels encircled them like light around the Tent.

The king buried them. That night, as he lay upon his bed, the five martyrs appeared before him with drawn swords. He trembled and said, ‘My lords, what do you desire? What shall I do for you?’

They rebuked him for trusting in idols that had no life and for shedding innocent blood. They told him that Satan and the demons dwelt in those images and would repay his devotion by casting him into Gehenna. They urged him to cease from error and worship the Creator.

The king bowed in fear and said, ‘Now I know that those who become dust shall truly rise after death.’ From that day he ceased burning the bodies of those whom he killed. Yet the idolaters continued to mislead many, sacrificing sons and daughters and practising abominations.

A king must fear the judgment of God; a judge must judge uprightly; elders, chiefs, envoys, and rulers must act in reverence. The Lord of heaven and earth makes poor and makes rich, honours and brings low.

Chapter 5

One of the mighty warriors became proud, and God struck his body with swelling from foot to head, and he died in plague. Korah became proud in his strength, and the earth hid him in death. Nebuchadnezzar boasted, saying that there was no king besides him and that he caused the sun to rise; therefore he was driven from among men for seven years until he knew who had humbled him.

O ruler, do not be proud before your Creator, lest he destroy you like those before you and lower you into Sheol, where there is mourning and grinding of teeth. You are mortal and tomorrow shall be destroyed like the kings who left this world.

God brings down the proud and honours the lowly. He strengthens the weary, kills and makes alive, and raises those who lie in the grave. Why then boast in idols that cannot profit? The Lord made heaven, earth, the seas, the sun, the moon, and the appointed times. The stars stand by his word, and nothing is done without his knowledge.

He sends angels to those who inherit life. Raphael was sent to Tobit and delivered Tobias. Michael was sent in the days of Gideon and Moses. Israel crossed the sea by the command of God, and no idol accompanied them. He fed them with grain from heaven and honey from the rock.

The king is a servant of God and must do his will. No one rules God; he rules all. No one appoints him; he appoints all. No one dismisses him; he dismisses all. Nothing is hidden from his face. He sees all, though no one sees him, and he hears the prayer of the one who cries, ‘Save me.’

Chapter 6

God crowns true kings who do his will. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, Solomon, and Hezekiah dwell in the Garden of light. The heavenly dwelling shines beyond human thought; its pavement is like silver, gold, and precious stones. The righteous who remain firm in faith and good works inherit it by mercy.

The beauty and fragrance of that dwelling surpass fleshly understanding. Kings who acted according to God’s will rejoice there. The Lord examines the heart and knows the hidden thought; he hears the one who prays with a pure mind.

God commanded Samuel to send Saul against Amalek. Saul spared Agag and the best of the animals, rejecting the command. Therefore God said, ‘Anoint David the son of Jesse, and divide Saul’s kingdom.’ Samuel came to Saul and said, ‘Why have you ignored the Lord who crowned you over Israel?’ Saul seized Samuel’s garment, and it tore. Samuel said, ‘So has the Lord torn your kingdom from you.’

Samuel killed Agag. Because Saul broke the command, his house was brought low, but the house of David was exalted. God removes the authority of kings who do not fear him; none can remove his authority.

Chapter 7

Whether you are king or ruler, what are you before the One who created you? As you govern your servants, so God governs you. As you punish those who disobey you, so he shall judge you if you refuse his command.

Judge with truth and do not show favour to small or great. Do not accept a bribe to acquit the guilty or condemn the innocent. Keep the worship and commandments of God. The word is not beyond the sea or in the height of heaven; it is near, in your mouth and in your hand, that you may do it.

You have not heard your Creator unless you hear his book, and you do not love him unless you keep his law. Remember that you shall rise after death and stand before him to be examined for every work, whether good or evil.

If you do good, you shall dwell in the Garden where light fills the houses of righteous kings. If you do evil, you shall dwell in the darkness of Sheol and Gehenna with evil rulers. Do not let horses, troops, shields, spears, music, or honour make your heart proud. He who gave authority can give it to another.

Chapter 8

God alone kills and saves. He chastens and pardons; he lowers to Sheol and brings forth toward the Garden. No one escapes his authority.

Earthly kingdoms pass from morning to evening. Therefore keep his order and law, that you may enter the kingdom that remains for ever.

When the soul is separated from the flesh, the elements return each to its nature: earth to earth, water to water, wind to wind, and fire to fire. The soul returns to its Creator until the appointed resurrection. Righteous souls are kept in light in the Garden; sinful souls are kept in darkness in Sheol until the day God wills.

The Lord said to Ezekiel, ‘Call from the four winds, that they may be gathered.’ By one word the scattered parts are reunited, and resurrection is accomplished.

Chapter 9

Sleep is an image of death, and waking an image of resurrection. Night covers all in darkness, but morning light drives darkness away and people arise to their work. So this passing world is like night, and the renewed kingdom is like morning.

The sun rises and shines by God’s command. So shall the Anointed One shine in the kingdom that is new, a light that does not set and a lamp that is not extinguished.

At the trumpet of Michael, chief of the angels, the dead shall rise. Mountains and hills shall be made level, and resurrection shall come to all flesh. Those who denied the rising of the dead shall see it and be convicted.

Chapter 10

The fathers desired burial among their own people so that their bones might be gathered with them at the resurrection and not counted among the bones of idolaters.

Do not say, ‘How can bodies that have rotted and become dust rise?’ Consider the seed. Unless it is buried and decays, it does not grow. God who brought humanity from non-being into life can raise the dead by his word.

Wheat does not rise as barley, nor barley as wheat. A fig does not produce nuts, nor an almond vine-grapes. Each seed yields according to its kind. So each person shall rise and receive according to the work done in the body.

The righteous path is narrow and leads to life, humility, love, prayer, fasting, purity, and obedience. The path of sinners is broad and leads to Sheol and Gehenna.

Chapter 11

[The opening wording of this chapter is uncertain.]

The law of the wicked is like the poison of serpents and vipers. Their works corrupt, and their thoughts are established in violence, adultery, pride, and bloodshed. God shall examine what they have done from youth to old age and shall judge those who broke his law.

Chapter 12

O daughter of Jerusalem, your sin has become like the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah. Pride and adultery have rained upon your heart, but mercy and humility have not rained there. You have shed blood, robbed the weak, forgotten your Creator, and delighted in the work of your hands.

You have not heard the word spoken to you. Therefore judgment shall be multiplied upon you. Woe to Sodom and Gomorrah, and woe also to Jerusalem when she shares their judgment in the fire prepared for those who refuse repentance.

Chapter 13

Israel repeatedly forsook the law and grieved the Lord from ancient days. They rejoiced in idols and in the work of their hands, and they turned from the Creator who fed and protected them.

Yet when distress came, they cried to him, and because of the covenant with the fathers he heard them. When peace returned, they again turned toward sin. Thus they were chastened, delivered, and chastened again.

Chapter 14

When the descendants of Cain multiplied their sins, God cleansed the earth with the waters of destruction. He preserved eight persons and afterward multiplied them upon the earth.

Noah entered covenant with God: the earth would not again be destroyed by the flood, and his descendants were commanded not to eat what died of itself, not to shed blood, and not to worship idols, but to serve the Creator who gives rain, grass, grain, and food in its season.

Those who keep the covenant receive mercy; those who return to violence and idolatry bring judgment upon themselves.

Chapter 15

A mighty king gathered troops from Cilicia, Syria, and Damascus and crossed beyond the Jordan. He demanded tribute from Israel and threatened to seize their goods, wives, sons, and daughters and make them servants.

Israel cried bitterly, but no helper appeared. Then God gave courage to three brothers—Judah, Meqabyan, and Mebikyu—men handsome in form and mighty in strength. They encouraged one another, girded on swords, and went to give their bodies for the people.

They entered the camp while the king sat at table. Mebikyu struck the warrior king and cut off his head. Meqabyan and Judah attacked the soldiers at his right and left. Terror entered the army; they fled, their bows were broken, and they were defeated.

The brothers were preserved from harm. Israel pursued the enemy across the Jordan and took the abandoned spoil. Thus God saved Israel by the hands of the brothers and Mebikyu.

For a little time the people pleased God, but afterward they returned to sin and neglected his worship.

Chapter 16

Tyre and Sidon, those beyond the Jordan and along the coast, the people of Keren and Gilead, the Jebusites, Canaanites, Edomites, Girgashites, and Amalekites—each people stood in its own land and language.

Some among the nations knew God and did works of truth; others did evil and did not know their Creator. Each shall receive according to the work of his hand. God judges not by nation alone but by truth and wickedness.

Chapter 17

[A portion of the chapter’s opening remains uncertain in the accessible witnesses.]

The Lord’s throne is established in truth. The angels stand before him in fear, and the Creator of Israel is praised in his holy dwelling. He repays every nation according to its ways and every person according to the work of the hand.

Chapter 18

The days of the fathers were lengthened because they kept the law and did not grieve God. They disciplined their sons and daughters and taught them from childhood not to break the command.

Children learned good works from their fathers and offered praise to their Creator. God heard their prayer and did not despise their plea. Even when his anger was great, he did not destroy all in his chastisement.

Chapter 19

When the descendants of Cain multiplied, they made drums, harps, stringed instruments, songs, and games. Beauty and desire became occasions for envy, violence, and bloodshed. Cain killed his brother Abel and took what belonged to him.

Those who follow the fathers in faith do not break the command. Their children learn the worship of God and the law from infancy. The Lord remembers the true work of those who do good.

Chapter 20

My brothers, remember what was told from the beginning: God keeps the faithful work of those who do good. He multiplies their children, establishes their name for good, and does not abandon their descendants to hunger.

He is their helper in tribulation. He guards those who love his name, pardons their sins, and delivers them from enemies.

Chapter 21

David trusted in God, and God delivered him from Saul, from Absalom, from the Philistines, Edomites, Amalekites, and the giants who rose against him. Victory belongs to God, not to human strength.

Hezekiah trusted and was delivered from Sennacherib. Manasseh did not trust and was bound and carried away; yet when he humbled himself he learned that authority belongs to God.

The Lord does not favour faces. Those who trust in possessions depart from grace, but those disciplined in worship find refuge in the time of distress.

Chapter 22

The Lord says: ‘I am jealous for my divinity. I avenge those who hate me and reject my word, but I honour those who honour me and keep my command.’

He gives rain, makes the earth fruitful, destroys enemies, and grants peace according to his will. No wealth, strength, or kingdom can stand apart from him.

Chapter 23

Do not remain in the way of Cain, who killed the brother who walked with him in innocence. Envy, betrayal, and violence make a person like Cain.

Abel was innocent like a clean sheep offered with a pure heart. Those who live in innocence follow Abel’s way and are loved by God. The deeds of the wicked are written upon the record of their hearts and shall be read before humanity, angels, and all creation at the judgment.

Chapter 24

[The precise opening of this chapter remains uncertain.]

The Lord commands the serpent beneath the earth, the fish within the sea, the birds of heaven, and the beasts of the wilderness. All creation from horizon to horizon belongs to him. No one in heaven or upon earth can ask him, ‘Where are you going?’ or ‘What are you doing?’

He rules the chiefs of angels and all hosts. He gives grass to cattle, fruit to trees, rain to clouds, and food to every creature that seeks him.

Chapter 25

The south wind arises and drought becomes strong; the sea itself trembles at the coming of the Lord. Saba, Nubia, India, Ethiopia, Egypt, and all their borders are beneath his gaze.

His authority surpasses every authority, and his kingdom every kingdom. He rules the dead and the living. Nothing is impossible for him.

Chapter 26

God feeds not humanity alone. He feeds birds, animals, fish, beasts, flowers, creatures in the water, and those that fly in the air. All belong to him, and he gives to each according to its need.

The rulers do not reign without his permission, nor do the powerful possess strength apart from him. He gives wisdom, lengthens days, shortens days, grants strength, and removes it.

Chapter 27

God formed Adam and placed him in the Garden. He commanded him not to eat from the tree that brought knowledge of good and evil and death.

The serpent deceived Eve, and she ate and gave to Adam. By breaking the command Adam brought death upon himself and his descendants. God sent him from the Garden to earth that produced thorns and thistles, and he ate through toil and weariness.

Yet the Creator did not abandon humanity. He gave the fruits of the earth for consolation and preserved the promise of resurrection.

Chapter 28

Adam’s descendants multiplied. Some praised God and kept his command; prophets spoke of what had been and what would come. Others became sinners and speakers of falsehood.

Cain killed Abel. God asked, ‘Where is your brother?’ Cain answered in pride, ‘Am I my brother’s keeper?’ The earth received Abel’s blood, and Cain was judged.

Through the generations Israel repeatedly sinned, cried out under oppression, and was delivered through judges and leaders: Jephthah, Gideon, Samson, Barak and Deborah, and others. Yet after deliverance they again forgot the One who saved them.

At last, because they continually broke the law, they were carried with their priests into the land of Babylon.

Chapter 29

Samuel was dedicated from childhood to serve in the dwelling of God. He was appointed and anointed to establish the people and to anoint kings according to the will of God.

When Saul rejected the command, the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Go and anoint David, son of Jesse, of the tribe of Judah, for I have chosen him.’

Chapter 30

The Lord said: ‘I have rejected the house of Saul because he broke my word and did not keep my law. I shall not again crown his house. Those who reject my word and order shall lose the kingdom and the gift given to their children.

‘They did not honour me when I honoured them, nor do good to me when I did good to them. Therefore I shall not continue to exalt them. I gave them rule, but they did not acknowledge me as ruler.’

Chapter 31

Kings do not reign without the will of God, and governors are appointed by his command. He gave favour to David, wisdom to Solomon, and added years to Hezekiah. He shortened the days of Goliath, gave strength to Samson, and afterward weakened him.

He delivered David from Goliath, Saul, and every enemy because David kept the command. God loves rulers who keep the law and gives them victory. He grants them the land promised to the fathers when they walk in truth.

Chapter 32

The Lord says to rulers and kings: ‘Hear my word and keep my command. Do not grieve me as Israel did when they worshipped other gods, though I raised them, fed them from infancy, brought them to fertile land, and gave them vines, olive trees, and wells they had not planted or dug.

‘I fed them milk, honey, and the finest grain; I clothed them and gave them what they desired. Yet they forgot me.’

Chapter 33

David said that Israel ate manna, the bread lowered by angels. God gave it that they might worship him truly, but they did not. Therefore he left them to the measure of the sin worked by their hands.

O king, you are a mortal who shall become worms and dust, though today you boast as if you would never die. If you keep the command, you shall inherit honour with kings whose dwelling is light and whose crowns are beautiful. If you work sin, you cannot enter that country.

Chapter 34

The kingdom of Media shall pass, and Rome shall rise over Macedonia; kingdoms shall rise against kingdoms, people against people, and country against country. There shall be disputes, famine, plague, earthquake, and drought, because love has vanished from the world.

The day of the Lord shall come suddenly, like lightning from east to west. Every person shall receive according to the work of the hand. Those who refuse the law shall descend to Gehenna, but all nations shall know that the Lord rules heaven and earth, saves and kills, brings the sun forth and sends it to its setting.

Peoples unknown shall consume flocks and harvests, capture children, and destroy possessions when the Spirit of protection has departed. But the person in whom the Spirit of God dwells understands hidden things, as Nebuchadnezzar said concerning Daniel.

The works of Israel and of all peoples shall be examined like silver and gold in fire.

Chapter 35

Woe to the rulers of Israel who do not judge truth for the orphan. Woe to those who go to the drinking house morning and evening, become drunk, show partiality in judgment, and refuse the plea of the widow and the fatherless.

The Lord says: ‘Unless you remain in my command, keep my law, and love what I love, destruction, chastisement, and tribulation shall come upon you. Your land shall become wilderness; thorns and nettles shall grow upon it, and beasts shall dwell there.’

Those who pass by shall clap their hands and say, ‘Was this not the land filled with abundance?’ The answer shall be: ‘God made it desolate because of the pride and sin of those who lived in it.’

Chapter 36

People of Macedon, do not boast, for God can destroy you. Amalek, do not stiffen your neck. Though you ascend toward heaven, you shall descend toward Gehenna.

Child of Ishmael, why are you proud in possessions that are not truly yours? The Lord shall judge you and repay according to the work of your hand. If you do good and love what he loves, he will hear your prayer, oppose your enemies, bless your children and seed, and multiply your flocks.

But if you do not keep his law and command, the tribulations spoken beforehand shall find you, and you shall not escape his anger.

Do the work that leads from death to life. God kept Job in tribulation, delivered Abraham from kings, and delivered Moses from Pharaoh. Abraham trusted God from childhood and taught Isaac and Jacob to keep the law.

Israel was fed with manna, and their garments did not wear out, but their hearts repeatedly turned away. They sacrificed to Baal, Dagon, and the gods of the nations; they sang, drank, committed adultery, robbed, and practised greed. When distress came they cried, and God remembered Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and forgave them for the sake of the fathers.

God promised Abraham descendants like the stars and like the sand. The righteous are like stars that shine in heaven; the sinners are like sand without number who descend to judgment. Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness. He believed that those who do good shall rise to the kingdom of heaven and that those who work sin shall receive judgment.

Glory and praise belong to God in truth. Thus the first book concerning the Meqabyans is completed.