Testament of Solomon

Testament of Solomon

Blessed are You, Lord God, who gave Solomon such authority. Glory and power belong to You through the ages. Amen.

When the Temple in Jerusalem was being built and the craftsmen were working on it, the demon Ornias came among them toward sunset. He took half the wages of the chief craftsman’s young boy, and half his food, and each day he sucked the thumb of the boy’s right hand. Though the king loved the child greatly, the child grew thin.

King Solomon called the boy and said, “Do I not love you more than all the craftsmen working on the Temple of God? Do I not give you double wages and a double portion of food? Why do you grow thinner day by day and hour by hour?”

The child answered, “My king, hear what has happened to your servant. After we are released from work on the Temple of God, when the sun has set and I lie down to rest, an evil demon comes and takes half my wages and half my food. Then he seizes my right hand and sucks my thumb. My soul is oppressed, and my body grows thinner every day.”

When I, Solomon, heard this, I entered the Temple of God and prayed with all my soul, night and day, that the demon might be delivered into my hands and that authority over him might be granted to me. Through my prayer grace was given to me from the Lord Sabaoth by Michael the archangel. He brought me a small ring bearing an engraved seal and said, “Take, Solomon, king and son of David, the gift sent to you by the Lord God, the Most High Sabaoth. With it you shall bind all demons of the earth, male and female, and with their help you shall build Jerusalem. Wear this seal of God. The engraving upon it is a fivefold sign.”

I rejoiced and praised the God of heaven and earth. The next day I called the boy, gave him the ring, and said, “At the hour when the demon comes to you, throw this ring against his chest and say, ‘In the name of God, King Solomon summons you.’ Then run to me without fear, whatever the demon may say.”

The child took the ring. At the accustomed hour Ornias came like a burning fire to take the boy’s wages. The child threw the ring against his chest and said, “King Solomon summons you.” Then he ran to me.

The demon cried aloud, “Child, why have you done this to me? Remove the ring and I will give you the gold of the earth. Only take it away and do not lead me to Solomon.”

But the child said, “As the Lord God of Israel lives, I will not release you. Come.” Then the child ran to me rejoicing and said, “My king, I have brought the demon as you commanded. He stands at the gates of your court, crying out and offering me silver and gold if I will not bring him before you.”

I rose from my throne and went into the court. I saw the demon trembling and said, “Who are you?”

He answered, “I am called Ornias.”

I said, “To what sign are you subject?”

He answered, “To the Water-Pourer. I strangle those who burn with desire for noble young women. [Text damaged.] I take three forms. When men desire women, I become a beautiful woman and lie with them in dreams. Afterward I take wings and ascend toward the heavenly regions. I also appear as a lion. [Meaning uncertain.] I am offspring of Uriel, the power of God.”

When I heard the name of the archangel, I prayed and glorified the Lord of heaven and earth. I sealed the demon and set him to cutting stones for the Temple.

Ornias feared the iron and said, “King Solomon, release me and I will bring you all the demons.”

Because he resisted me, I called upon Uriel. The archangel descended, commanded the creatures of the sea, and cast his appointed power upon the ground. The great and insolent demon was subjected. I gave Ornias the seal and said, “Go and bring me the ruler of all demons.”

Ornias went to Beelzeboul, who rules the demons, and said, “Come. Solomon summons you.”

Beelzeboul said, “Who is this Solomon?”

Ornias threw the ring against his chest and said, “Solomon the king summons you.”

Beelzeboul cried with a mighty voice and sent out a great flame, but he rose and followed Ornias to me.

When I saw the ruler of the demons, I glorified the Lord God, Maker of heaven and earth, and said, “Blessed are You, Lord God Almighty, who have given Your servant Solomon wisdom and have subjected the power of the adversary to me.”

I asked him, “Who are you?”

He answered, “I am Beelzeboul, ruler of the demons. Their chief seats are near me, and I reveal the appearance of each spirit.” He promised to bring all unclean spirits before me in bonds.

I asked whether there were female spirits among them. When he said there were, I commanded that they be brought. Beelzeboul brought Onoskelis, fair in form, with the skin of a beautiful woman. She tossed her head.

I said, “Who are you?”

She answered, “I am called Onoskelis, a spirit formed from [damaged text], lurking upon the earth. I lie in a golden cave, but my dwelling shifts. At times I strangle men with a noose. At times I creep from nature into the arms. My common dwellings are precipices, caves, and ravines. Often I lie with men in the form of a woman, especially with those of dark complexion, for they share my star and secretly or openly worship it, not knowing they harm themselves and sharpen my appetite for evil. They seek wealth through remembrance, and I grant a little to those who serve me faithfully.”

I asked about her birth.

She said, “I was born untimely from a voice, an echo arising from human filth dropped in a wood.”

I asked, “Under what star do you pass?”

She answered, “Under the full moon, because the moon passes over many things.”

I asked, “What angel frustrates you?”

She answered, “The one who reigns in you.”

Thinking she mocked me, I ordered a soldier to strike her. She cried, “I am subjected to you, king, by the wisdom God gave you and by the angel Joel.”

I sealed and bound her and commanded her to spin hemp for the ropes used in the house of God. Night and day she spun the hemp.

Then Asmodeus was brought before me in bonds. I asked, “Who are you?”

He looked at me with anger and said, “Who are you?”

I said, “Being punished, do you answer me so?”

He replied, “How shall I answer you? You are a son of man, but I was born from the seed of an angel through a daughter of man. No word from our heavenly kind addressed to earthborn men is insolent. My star shines in heaven; some call it the Wain, others the dragon’s child. I remain near it. Do not ask me many things, for your kingdom will soon be broken, and your glory will last only a season. Your rule over us will be brief, and afterward we shall again roam among humanity, so that men will honor us as gods, not knowing the names of the angels set over us.”

I bound him more firmly and ordered him beaten with leather thongs. I commanded him to speak humbly and tell me his name and work.

He said, “Among mortals I am called Asmodeus. I plot against the newly married so that they do not know one another. By many calamities I separate them. I waste the beauty of young women and estrange their hearts.”

I said, “Is this your only work?”

He answered, “I drive men into madness and desire even when they have wives of their own, so that they leave them and go to the wives of others by night and day. Thus they sin and fall into murderous acts.”

I adjured him by the name of the Lord Sabaoth: “Fear God and tell me by what angel you are frustrated.”

He said, “By Raphael, the archangel who stands before the throne of God. The liver and gall of a fish drive me away when burned over tamarisk ashes.”

I asked the name of the fish.

He answered, “It is called the glanos and is found in the rivers of Assyria. Therefore I roam in those regions.”

I said, “Is there nothing else concerning you?”

He replied, “The power of God, which has bound me by the unbreakable bonds of the seal, knows that all I have said is true. I beg you, King Solomon, do not condemn me to water.”

I said, “As the Lord God of my fathers lives, I will put iron upon you. You shall also make clay for the whole construction of the Temple, treading it with your feet.”

I ordered ten jars to be given to him for carrying water. He groaned but performed the work. Because he knew things to come, I hung the fish’s liver and gall upon a reed and burned it over him. His fierce strength was subdued.

I summoned Beelzeboul again and seated him before me.

I said, “Why are you alone the ruler of the demons?”

He answered, “Because I alone remain of the heavenly beings who descended. I was first among the beings of the first heaven and was called Beelzeboul. Now I control those bound in Tartarus. I also have a child who dwells in the Red Sea. When opportunity permits, he comes to me, tells me what he has done, and I strengthen him.”

I asked, “What is your work?”

He answered, “I destroy kings and ally myself with foreign tyrants. I set demons upon men so that men believe in them and perish. I stir the chosen servants of God, priests and faithful people, toward evil desires, lawless deeds, and destructive teachings. They obey me, and I carry them to ruin. I inspire envy, murder, wars, sexual corruption, and other evils. I will devastate the world.”

I said, “Bring me your child who is in the Red Sea.”

He answered, “I will not bring him. But another demon named Ephippas will come, and he will bring him from the deep.”

I asked, “How did your child come to be in the sea, and what is his name?”

He answered, “Do not ask, for you cannot learn it from me. He will come by my command and tell you openly.”

I said, “By what angel are you frustrated?”

He answered, “By the holy and precious name of the Almighty God, which among the Hebrews is represented by numbers whose sum is six hundred and forty-four, and among the Greeks is Emmanuel. If one of the Romans adjures me by the great name Eleeth, I vanish.”

I commanded Beelzeboul to saw marble. The other demons cried aloud because their ruler was put to labor.

I said, “If you desire respite, tell me of the heavenly things.”

Beelzeboul said, “If you burn gum, incense, sea bulbs, nard, and saffron, and light seven lamps [meaning uncertain], you shall establish your house. If you are pure and light them at dawn, you will see the heavenly dragons winding along and drawing the chariot of the sun.”

I rebuked him: “Be silent and continue to saw the marble.”

Then another demon appeared. His face was raised high, but the rest of him curled like a snail. He burst through the soldiers, raised a violent cloud of dust, carried it upward, and cast it down to terrify us. I spat upon the ground and sealed the place with the ring of God. The dust-wind stopped.

I asked, “Who are you?”

He answered, “I am the spirit of ashes, Tephras.”

I asked, “What is your work?”

He said, “I bring darkness upon men, burn fields, and ruin dwellings. I am most active in summer. When I find opportunity, I creep into the corners of walls by night and day. I am offspring of a great one.”

I asked, “Under what star do you lie?”

He answered, “At the tip of the moon’s horn when it is in the south. There is my star. I am appointed over the convulsions of a fever. Many pray against that fever with the three names Bultala, Thallal, and Melchal, and I heal them.”

I asked, “By whose power do you harm?”

He answered, “By the angel through whom the third-day fever is quieted.”

I asked the name.

He said, “Azael.”

I invoked Azael, sealed the demon, and commanded him to lift great stones to the workers on the higher parts of the Temple.

Then seven female spirits came before me, bound and woven together, fair in appearance.

I asked, “Who are you?”

They answered together, “We belong to the elements of the ruler of this darkness. We are Deception, Strife, Battle, Jealousy, Power, Error, and the worst of all. Our stars are seven dim lights in heaven. We are called goddesses. We move together and dwell now in Lydia, now on Olympus, now on a great mountain.”

The first said, “I am Deception. I deceive and weave snares. I sharpen and awaken destructive teachings. The angel Lamechalal frustrates me.”

The second said, “I am Strife, strife of strifes. I bring weapons and violence. The angel Baruchiael frustrates me.”

The third said, “I am Battle. I scatter those who live in order and set them against one another. The angel Marmarath frustrates me.”

The fourth said, “I make men forget sobriety and self-restraint. I split them into factions. I separate husband from wife, children from parents, and brothers from sisters. The great angel Balthial frustrates me.”

The fifth said, “I am Power. I raise tyrants and overthrow kings. I give power to rebels. The angel Asteroth frustrates me.”

The sixth said, “I am Error. I will make you err, Solomon, as I made you err when you caused your brother to be killed. I lead men to search graves, teach those who dig there, and draw wandering souls away from reverence. The angel Uriel frustrates me.”

The seventh said, “I am the worst. I shall make you worse than you were and bind you with the bonds of Artemis. The locust will release me, for through it you will accomplish my desire. [Text damaged.] If a man were wise, he would not turn toward me.”

I sealed them and commanded them to dig the foundations of the Temple. Together they murmured and began the work.

A headless demon was brought before me, having all the limbs of a man.

I asked, “Who are you?”

He answered, “I am called Envy. I delight in devouring heads and seek a head for myself. I desire one like yours.”

I sealed him. He leapt and fell, groaning, “Woe to me! Where have I come? Traitor Ornias, I cannot see.”

I said, “How do you see?”

He answered, “Through my feelings.”

I asked, “How do you speak?”

He said, “I am wholly voice. I inherited the voices of many men. In the case of children who become mute, I crush their heads when they reach their eighth day. When a child cries at night, I become a spirit and glide by means of its voice. At crossroads I perform many harmful works. I seize a man’s head in an instant and cut it off as with a sword. I place it upon myself, and the fire within me swallows it through my neck. I cause mutilations, incurable wounds, and sores upon men’s feet.”

I asked, “From where do you send forth your fire?”

He answered, “From the Morning Star. Elburion has not yet been found, the one to whom men pray and light lamps. His name is invoked by the seven demons who came before me, and he cherishes them.”

I said, “Tell me his name.”

He answered, “I cannot, for if I tell it I render myself incurable. Yet he will come in response to his name.”

I asked, “By what angel are you frustrated?”

He answered, “By the fiery flash of lightning.”

I placed him in Beelzeboul’s keeping until Iax should come.

Then a huge hound came before me and said in a loud voice, “Hail, Lord King Solomon.”

I said, “Who are you?”

It answered, “I appear to you as a hound, but before your time I was a man who did many lawless deeds. I was learned in letters and so powerful that I could hold back the stars. I prepared many works. I harm those who follow our star and turn them to [text damaged]. I seize the frenzied by the throat and destroy them.”

I asked, “What is your name?”

It answered, “Staff.”

I asked, “What can you do?”

It said, “Give me one of your men and I will lead him into the mountains and show him a green stone, shaken to and fro, with which you may adorn the Temple of the Lord.”

I sent a servant with the hound and gave him the ring. I said, “When the one who shows you the green stone appears, seal him with the ring, mark the place, and bring the demon to me.”

The green stone was shown, the demon was sealed, and he was brought to me. I bound both the headless demon and the great hound. I commanded the hound to guard the fiery spirit, so that light might shine from its mouth by day and night for the craftsmen.

From the mine of that stone I took two hundred shekels for the supports of the altar of incense. I closed the treasure and commanded the demons to cut marble for the house of God.

I asked the hound, “By what angel are you frustrated?”

It answered, “By the great Brieus.”

Then a lion-shaped demon came roaring.

He said, “I am an invisible spirit. I leap secretly upon men lying in sickness and make their bodies weak. I also cast out demons and rule legions. I dwell in men together with the spirits subject to me.”

I asked his name.

He answered, “Lion-Bearer, of the kind called Rath.”

I asked, “What angel frustrates you and your legions?”

He said, “If I tell you, I bind not only myself but the whole legion under me.”

I adjured him by the God Sabaoth.

He answered, “The great one among men, who will suffer many things at human hands, whose name is numbered six hundred and forty-four—Emmanuel—he binds us and will cast us from the steep into the water. He is proclaimed in three letters [meaning uncertain].”

I commanded his legion to carry wood from the thicket, and the lion-shaped spirit to saw it with his teeth for the furnace of the Temple.

Then a three-headed dragon of fearful appearance came before me.

He said, “I am a spirit whose activity moves in three courses. I blind children in the womb, twist their ears, and make them deaf and mute. With my third head I enter men, strike them in the body, and cause them to fall, foam, and grind their teeth. I am frustrated by Jerusalem written toward the place called the Skull. The angel of great counsel is appointed there and will openly dwell upon the cross. He frustrates me, and I am subject to him.”

He continued, “In the place where you sit stands a purple column in the air. [Text damaged.] Ephippas brought it from the Red Sea, from inner Arabia. He will be shut in a leather flask and brought before you. At the entrance of the Temple there lies hidden much gold. Dig it up.”

I sent my servant and found it as he said. I sealed the demon.

I asked his name.

He said, “I am the crest of dragons.”

I commanded him to make bricks for the Temple. He had human hands.

Then a female spirit appeared, a head without visible limbs, with disheveled hair.

I asked, “Who are you?”

She answered, “Who are you, and why do you wish to hear of me? Go into your storehouse, wash your hands, sit again before your tribunal, and question me. Then you shall learn who I am.”

I did as she said, restraining myself because of the wisdom dwelling in me, so that I might expose her deeds.

I asked again, “Who are you?”

She said, “Among men I am called Obizuth. I do not sleep at night but roam through all the world and visit women in childbirth. I discern the hour, take my stand, and if opportunity allows, I strangle the child. If I fail, I go elsewhere. I do not pass a single night without success. I am a fierce spirit with many names and forms. I wander westward. Though you sealed me with the ring of God, you have done nothing. I am not truly standing before you, and you cannot command me. My work is to destroy children, make their ears deaf, harm their eyes, bind their mouths, ruin their minds, and pain their bodies.”

Her body was darkness, but her eyes were bright and green, and her hair tossed like a dragon’s. Her limbs were invisible, and her voice was clear.

I asked, “By what angel are you frustrated?”

She said, “By the angel of God called Afarof, interpreted Raphael. If a man knows his name and writes it upon a woman in childbirth, I cannot enter her. The number of the name is six hundred and forty.”

I glorified the Lord and ordered her hair bound and her to be hung before the Temple, so that Israel might see and glorify the God who gave me authority by the seal.

Then a dragon-like spirit came rolling before me, with the face and hands of a man, dragon limbs, and wings.

I asked, “Who are you, and from where have you come?”

He answered, “This is the first time I have stood before you. I am a spirit made into a god among men, now brought low by the ring and wisdom given to you by God. I am the winged dragon. I unite with only a few beautiful women who bear the name xuli of this star. I come to them as a winged spirit. The offspring is called desire, but cannot be borne by men. [Meaning uncertain.] Such is my work. The spirits of fire will burn the wood gathered for the Temple.”

As he spoke, fire went out from his mouth and consumed the frankincense wood and the logs laid in the Temple.

I asked, “By what angel are you frustrated?”

He answered, “By the great angel seated in the second heaven, called Bazazath.”

I invoked that angel and condemned the dragon to saw marble.

Then a spirit appeared as a woman with two additional heads and hands upon her shoulders.

I asked, “Who are you?”

She answered, “I am Enepsigos and have countless names.”

I asked, “By what angel are you frustrated?”

She said, “Why do you seek all things concerning me? I change form like the goddess I am called. I dwell in the moon and possess three forms. At times the wise invoke me as Kronos. At other times I descend in another form. The measure of my element is incomprehensible and cannot be restrained. I take the three forms and descend as you see me, but Rathanael, who sits in the third heaven, frustrates me. This Temple cannot contain me.”

[Text damaged.]

She said, “Your kingdom will be broken. In its season this Temple will be torn apart, and Jerusalem will be destroyed by the kings of Persia, Media, and Chaldea. The vessels of this Temple and the jars in which you shut us will be broken, and we shall go forth in power throughout the world. We shall lead the inhabited earth astray for a long time, until the Son of God is stretched upon a cross. No king like him will arise, one who frustrates us all, whose mother will not know a man. Who else can receive such authority over spirits? The first adversary will tempt him but will not prevail. The number of his name is six hundred and forty-four, Emmanuel. Therefore, Solomon, your time is evil and your years are few, and your kingdom will be given to your servant.”

I glorified God. I did not believe the demons until the things came to pass. At my death I wrote this testament for the children of Israel, so that they might know the powers of the demons, their forms, and the angels by whom they are frustrated.

Then a sea-spirit came before me, shaped as a horse in front and a fish behind, with a mighty voice.

He said, “I am a fierce spirit of the sea, greedy for gold and silver. I roll over the waters, trip sailors, become a wave, fall upon ships, and cast men into the sea. I do not covet their bodies but cast them far from the water. Beelzeboul shares rule with us in our works, and I came from the sea to take counsel with him. He bound me and delivered me to you.”

He continued, “I also become waves and rise from the sea. I show myself in human form, and men call me Kynospaston. By entering men I cause nausea. In two or three days I will weaken, for I have no water.”

I asked, “By what angel are you frustrated?”

He answered, “By Iameth.”

I commanded him to be shut in a vessel with ten jars of sea-water, sealed with marble, asphalt, and pitch, and placed in the Temple.

Then a spirit came in human form with gleaming eyes and a blade in his hand.

I asked, “Who are you?”

He answered, “I am a lustful spirit, born from a giant who died in the slaughter in the days of the giants.”

I asked, “What do you do, and where do you dwell?”

He said, “I dwell in fruitful places. I sit beside travelers among tombs and take the form of the dead. If I seize anyone, I kill him with my sword. If I cannot, I cause a demon to possess him, so that he devours his own flesh and the hair falls from his chin.”

I said, “Fear the God of heaven and earth. By what angel are you frustrated?”

He answered, “He who is to become Savior destroys me. If a man writes his number upon his forehead, I retreat in fear.”

I glorified God and shut him up.

Then thirty-six spirits came before me. Their heads were shapeless like dogs, while their bodies were human, with faces of asses, oxen, and birds.

They said together, “We are the thirty-six elements, the world-rulers of this darkness. Because the Lord God has given you authority over spirits in the air, on earth, and under the earth, we present ourselves from the ram, bull, twins, crab, lion, virgin, scales, scorpion, archer, goat-horned, water-pourer, and fish.”

I invoked the name of the Lord Sabaoth and questioned each.

The first said, “I am Ruax. I make men’s heads idle and afflict their brows. If I hear, ‘Michael, imprison Ruax,’ I retreat.”

The second said, “I am Barsafael. I bring pain of the head upon those subject to my hour. If I hear, ‘Gabriel, imprison Barsafael,’ I retreat.”

The third said, “I am Arotosael. I injure the eyes. If I hear, ‘Uriel, imprison Arotosael,’ I retreat.”

[One spirit’s testimony is missing.]

The fifth said, “I am Iudal. I block the ears and bring deafness. If I hear, ‘Uriel, imprison Iudal,’ I retreat.”

The sixth said, “I am Sphendonael. I cause swelling near the ears, inflammation of the throat, and the bending of the body. If I hear, ‘Sabrael, imprison Sphendonael,’ I retreat.”

The seventh said, “I am Sphandor. I weaken the shoulders, make them tremble, paralyze the nerves of the hands, bruise the bones of the neck, and draw out the marrow. If I hear, ‘Arael, imprison Sphandor,’ I retreat.”

The eighth said, “I am Belbel. I distort the hearts and minds of men. If I hear, ‘Arael, imprison Belbel,’ I retreat.”

The ninth said, “I am Kurtael. I bring pains in the bowels. If I hear, ‘Iaoth, imprison Kurtael,’ I retreat.”

The tenth said, “I am Metathiax. I cause pain in the kidneys. If I hear, ‘Adonael, imprison Metathiax,’ I retreat.”

The eleventh said, “I am Katanikotael. I cause strife and wrong in households and send hard temper. If the names Iae, Ieo, sons of Sabaoth, are written on seven laurel leaves with the command of the great God, and the house is sprinkled with the water in which they are washed, I retreat.”

The twelfth said, “I am Saphathorael. I inspire faction and make men stumble. If the names Iaeo, Iealo, Ioelet, Sabaoth, Ithoth, and Bae are written and worn, I retreat.”

The thirteenth said, “I am Bobel. I cause nervous illness. If I hear, ‘Great Adonael, imprison Bothothel,’ I retreat.”

The fourteenth said, “I am Kumeatel. I bring shivering and numbness. If I hear, ‘Zoroel, imprison Kumeatel,’ I retreat.”

The fifteenth said, “I am Roeled. I cause cold, frost, and pain in the stomach. If I hear, ‘Iax, do not remain; Solomon is fairer than eleven fathers,’ I retreat.”

The sixteenth said, “I am Atrax. I inflict harmful and incurable fevers. If coriander is crushed and placed on the lips while the fever is adjured by the throne of the Most High God to depart from the creature God formed, I retreat.”

The seventeenth said, “I am Ieropael. I sit upon men’s stomachs and cast them down in baths, roads, and other places. If the names Iudarize, Sabune, and Denoe are spoken three times into the right ear, I retreat.”

The eighteenth said, “I am Buldumech. I separate wife from husband and cause resentment. If the words, ‘The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob command you: depart from this house in peace,’ are written and placed at the entrance, I retreat.”

The nineteenth said, “I am Naoth. I sit upon men’s knees. If the words ‘Phnunohoel, depart Nathath and touch not the neck’ are written, I retreat.”

The twentieth said, “I am Mardero. I send incurable fever. If the words ‘Sphener, Raphael, retire; drag me not, flay me not’ are written and worn, I retreat.”

The twenty-first said, “I am Alath. I cause coughing and difficult breathing in children. If the words ‘Rorex, pursue Alath’ are written and worn, I retreat.”

[The testimony of the twenty-second spirit is missing.]

The twenty-third said, “I am Nefthada. I cause pain in the kidneys and difficulty passing water. If the names Iathoth, Uriel, and Nefthada are written on tin and fastened around the waist, I retreat.”

The twenty-fourth said, “I am Akton. I cause pain in the ribs and lower back. If ‘Marmaroth, Sabaoth, pursue Akton’ is engraved on copper from a ship that has lost anchor and fastened around the waist, I retreat.”

The twenty-fifth said, “I am Anatreth. I send burning and fever into the entrails. If I hear, ‘Arara, Charara,’ I retreat.”

The twenty-sixth said, “I am Enenuth. I steal men’s minds, change their hearts, and cause bodily affliction. If ‘Allazoel, pursue Enenuth’ is written and worn, I retreat.”

The twenty-seventh said, “I am Pheth. I cause wasting and bleeding. If I am adjured in sweet unmixed wine by the eleventh age and the afflicted person drinks it, I retreat.”

The twenty-eighth said, “I am Harpax. I cause sleeplessness. If ‘Kokphnedismos’ is written and bound around the temples, I retreat.”

The twenty-ninth said, “I am Anoster. I cause madness of the womb and pain in the bladder. If three laurel seeds are ground into pure oil and the words ‘I adjure you, Anoster; stop by Marmarao’ are spoken while it is applied, I retreat.”

The thirtieth said, “I am Alleborith. If someone swallows a fish bone, let him take another fish bone and cough; then I retreat.”

The thirty-first said, “I am Hephesikireth. I cause lingering illness. If salt is rubbed in the hand, cast into oil, and applied while saying, ‘Seraphim, Cherubim, help me,’ I retreat.”

The thirty-second said, “I am Ichthion. I paralyze and bruise muscles. If I hear, ‘Adonaeth, help,’ I retreat.”

The thirty-third said, “I am Agchonion. I lie among swaddling clothes and near precipices. If ‘Lycurgos’ is written on fig leaves and reduced letter by letter—Lycurgos, ycurgos, kurgos, yrgos, gos, os—I retreat.”

The thirty-fourth said, “I am Autothith. I cause resentment and fighting. Alpha and Omega, when written, frustrate me.”

The thirty-fifth said, “I am Phthenoth. I cast the evil eye upon every man. The image of the suffering eye frustrates me.”

The thirty-sixth said, “I am Bianakith. I bear hostility toward the body. I devastate houses and cause flesh to decay. If ‘Melto, Ardu, Anaath’ is written on the door, I flee.”

I glorified the God of heaven and earth and commanded the spirits to fetch water for the Temple. Some I condemned to heavy labor. Others I shut in prisons. Others I ordered to work with fire in the making of gold and silver and to prepare places for the confinement of other spirits.

I had peace throughout the earth and lived in quiet, honored by men and by those under heaven. I completed the Temple of the Lord God, my kingdom prospered, and Jerusalem rejoiced. Kings came from the ends of the earth to see the Temple and the wisdom given to me. They brought gold, silver, precious stones, bronze, iron, lead, cedar, and incorruptible woods.

The queen of the south also came. She bowed before me, tested my wisdom, and glorified the God of Israel.

In those days an elderly workman fell before me and said, “King Solomon, pity me. I have one son, and he insults and beats me, pulls the hair from my head, and threatens me with death. Avenge me.”

I called the son and questioned him.

He said, “I am not so mad that I would strike my father. Have mercy on me, king. I have not done such impiety.”

I urged the father to accept his son’s answer, but he refused and demanded death. As I was about to judge, I saw Ornias laughing.

I said, “Accursed one, why do you laugh?”

He answered, “Not because of you, king, but because of this unfortunate father and son. In three days the son will die before his time, yet the father seeks to destroy him.”

I asked, “Is this true?”

He said, “It is.”

I reconciled the father and son and told them to return after three days.

Then I asked Ornias how he knew.

He said, “We demons ascend to the firmament and fly among the stars. We hear the judgments spoken concerning human souls. We come and carry them out through influence, fire, sword, accident, or violence, hiding our work. If a man does not die by violence or disaster, we transform ourselves and appear as men, and thus are worshiped.”

I said, “How can you ascend among the stars and holy angels?”

He answered, “As the heavenly realities are fulfilled, so their patterns are fulfilled on earth. There are rulers, authorities, and world-powers. We fly in the air, hear heavenly voices, and observe the powers. But because we have no firm place on which to rest, we lose strength and fall like leaves. Men think stars are falling, but it is we who fall like lightning in the night. We set cities and fields on fire. The stars themselves stand upon firm foundations like the sun and moon.”

After five days the old man returned in mourning.

I asked, “Where is your son?”

He said, “I am childless. He has been dead two days.”

Knowing Ornias had spoken truth, I glorified the God of Israel.

The queen of the south saw these things and marveled. She gave gold, silver, and bronze and looked upon the Temple, its altar, lamps, stones, vessels, coverings, and pillars. Peace remained throughout my kingdom.

Then Adares, king of Arabia, sent me a letter:

“To King Solomon, greetings. We have heard throughout the earth of the wisdom granted to you, and that the Lord has given you understanding over spirits of the air, earth, and underworld. In Arabia a spirit blows from dawn until the third hour. Its blast is harsh and kills men and animals. No spirit can stand against it. Send a man able to capture it. If you do this, I, my people, and my land will serve you, and Arabia will be at peace with you. Do not despise our prayer.”

I read the letter and said, “Remind me after seven days.”

At that time the Temple was nearly complete. A great chosen stone lay there, which I wished to place at the head of the corner, but neither the workers nor the demons could move it.

After seven days I called a servant and said, “Prepare your camel. Take a leather flask and this seal. Go to Arabia where the spirit blows. Place the flask on the ground and hold the ring at its mouth toward the blast. When the flask swells, the demon is inside. Tie the mouth quickly, seal it, place it on the camel, and bring it to me. If it offers gold or treasure for release, do not be persuaded. Mark any place it reveals and bring the spirit.”

The servant went. At dawn he placed the flask before the wind and held the ring at its mouth. The demon blew through the ring into the flask, and the flask swelled. The servant seized and sealed it in the name of the Lord God Sabaoth.

He remained three days, and the destructive wind no longer blew. The Arabs honored him and praised the God of Israel. He returned and laid the flask in the Temple.

The next day I entered the Temple distressed about the cornerstone. The flask stood up, walked seven steps, fell upon its mouth, and bowed before me.

I commanded it to stand, and it stood swollen.

I asked, “Who are you?”

The spirit answered, “I am Ephippas, the demon of Arabia. Wherever I alight, I burn and kill.”

I asked, “By what angel are you frustrated?”

He answered, “By the only-ruling God, who has authority over me—the one to be born from a virgin and crucified by the Jews, whom angels and archangels worship. He frustrates me and weakens the power given to me by my father, the adversary.”

I asked, “What can you do?”

He said, “I remove mountains, overthrow royal oaths, wither trees, and make their leaves fall.”

I said, “Can you lift this stone and place it at the corner of the Temple?”

He answered, “Not only this. With the help of the demon who rules the Red Sea, I will bring up the pillar of air and set it wherever you wish in Jerusalem.”

I placed the flask beneath the stone. The spirit lifted the stone upon the flask, carried it up the steps, and set it at the entrance of the Temple.

I said, “The word is fulfilled: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the head of the corner.’ This is not my power but God’s, who made the demon strong enough to lift the stone.”

Ephippas brought the demon of the Red Sea with the column. Together they raised it from the earth. I sealed them so they could not shake the earth and commanded, “Hold it.”

They remain supporting it. The great pillar hangs in the air, upheld by the spirits, slightly inclined.

I questioned the demon from the Red Sea.

He said, “I am Abezithibod. I descended from an archangel. I once sat in the first heaven, called Ameleouth. I was a fierce winged spirit with one wing, plotting against spirits beneath heaven. I was present when Moses stood before Pharaoh, and I hardened Pharaoh’s heart. I am the one invoked by Jannes and Jambres when they opposed Moses with signs.”

I asked, “How were you found in the Red Sea?”

He answered, “I hardened Pharaoh and his servants so they pursued Israel. When Israel crossed, the water returned and covered Egypt’s host. I remained in the sea, held beneath this pillar, until Ephippas brought me up.”

I adjured both spirits not to release the pillar.

They swore, “As the Lord your God lives, we will not release it until the end of the world. On the day it falls, the end will come.”

I adorned the Temple and rejoiced in my kingdom. I took wives from many lands.

I went against the Jebusites and saw a Jebusite woman whom I desired. I asked their priests to give her to me.

The priests of Moloch said, “If you love her, worship our gods, Raphan and Moloch.”

I feared the glory of God and refused.

They told the woman not to lie with me unless I sacrificed. Then desire deceived me. She brought five locusts and said, “Crush these in the name of Moloch, and I will be yours.”

I did so. At once the Spirit of God departed from me, and I became weak and foolish. She compelled me to build shrines for Baal, Raphan, Moloch, and other idols.

I followed her counsel, and the glory of God departed from me. My spirit was darkened, and I became the sport of idols and demons.

Therefore I have written this testament, so that those who receive it may pray, attend to the final things rather than the first, and find grace forever and ever. Amen.