Berean Truth Ministry

If They Can See! If They Can Hear!

Skip to main content
What can we help you with?
< All Topics
Print

Book of Jasher Ch 01-20

Posted
Updated
Views6

THE BOOK OF JASHER

THIS IS THE BOOK OF THE GENERATIONS OF MAN WHOM GOD CREATED UPON THE EARTH ON THE DAY WHEN THE LORD GOD MADE HEAVEN AND EARTH.

Jasher Chapter 1

1. And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness, and
God created man in his own image.
2. And God formed man from the ground, and he blew into his nostrils
the breath of life, and man became a living soul endowed with
speech.
3. And the Lord said, It is not good for man to be alone; I will make
unto him a helpmeet.
4. And the Lord caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept,
and he took away one of his ribs, and he built flesh upon it, and
formed it and brought it to Adam, and Adam awoke from his sleep,
and behold a woman was standing before him.
5. And he said, This is a bone of my bones and it shall be called
woman, for this has been taken from man; and Adam called her name
Eve, for she was the mother of all living.
6. And God blessed them and called their names Adam and Eve in the day
that he created them, and the Lord God said, Be fruitful and
multiply and fill the earth.
7. And the Lord God took Adam and his wife, and he placed them in the
garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it; and he commanded them
and said unto them, From every tree of the garden you may eat, but
from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat,
for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die.
8. And when God had blessed and commanded them, he went from them, and
Adam and his wife dwelt in the garden according to the command
which the Lord had commanded them.
9. And the serpent, which God had created with them in the earth, came
to them to incite them to transgress the command of God which he
had commanded them.
10. And the serpent enticed and persuaded the woman to eat from the
tree of knowledge, and the woman hearkened to the voice of the
serpent, and she transgressed the word of God, and took from the
tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and she ate, and she took
from it and gave also to her husband and he ate.
11. And Adam and his wife transgressed the command of God which he
commanded them, and God knew it, and his anger was kindled against
them and he cursed them.
12. And the Lord God drove them that day from the garden of Eden, to
till the ground from which they were taken, and they went and dwelt
at the east of the garden of Eden; and Adam knew his wife Eve and
she bore two sons and three daughters.
13. And she called the name of the first born Cain, saying, I have
obtained a man from the Lord, and the name of the other she called
Abel, for she said, In vanity we came into the earth, and in vanity
we shall be taken from it.
14. And the boys grew up and their father gave them a possession in the
land; and Cain was a tiller of the ground, and Abel a keeper of
sheep.
15. And it was at the expiration of a few years, that they brought an
approximating offering to the Lord, and Cain brought from the fruit
of the ground, and Abel brought from the firstlings of his flock
from the fat thereof, and God turned and inclined to Abel and his
offering, and a fire came down from the Lord from heaven and
consumed it.
16. And unto Cain and his offering the Lord did not turn, and he did
not incline to it, for he had brought from the inferior fruit of
the ground before the Lord, and Cain was jealous against his
brother Abel on account of this, and he sought a pretext to slay
him.
17. And in some time after, Cain and Abel his brother, went one day
into the field to do their work; and they were both in the field,
Cain tilling and ploughing his ground, and Abel feeding his flock;
and the flock passed that part which Cain had ploughed in the
ground, and it sorely grieved Cain on this account.
18. And Cain approached his brother Abel in anger, and he said unto
him, What is there between me and thee, that thou comest to dwell
and bring thy flock to feed in my land?
19. And Abel answered his brother Cain and said unto him, What is there
between me and thee, that thou shalt eat the flesh of my flock and
clothe thyself with their wool?
20. And now therefore, put off the wool of my sheep with which thou
hast clothed thyself, and recompense me for their fruit and flesh
which thou hast eaten, and when thou shalt have done this, I will
then go from thy land as thou hast said?
21. And Cain said to his brother Abel, Surely if I slay thee this day,
who will require thy blood from me?
22. And Abel answered Cain, saying, Surely God who has made us in the
earth, he will avenge my cause, and he will require my blood from
thee shouldst thou slay me, for the Lord is the judge and arbiter,
and it is he who will requite man according to his evil, and the
wicked man according to the wickedness that he may do upon earth.
23. And now, if thou shouldst slay me here, surely God knoweth thy
secret views, and will judge thee for the evil which thou didst
declare to do unto me this day.
24. And when Cain heard the words which Abel his brother had spoken,
behold the anger of Cain was kindled against his brother Abel for
declaring this thing.
25. And Cain hastened and rose up, and took the iron part of his
ploughing instrument, with which he suddenly smote his brother and
he slew him, and Cain spilt the blood of his brother Abel upon the
earth, and the blood of Abel streamed upon the earth before the
flock.
26. And after this Cain repented having slain his brother, and he was
sadly grieved, and he wept over him and it vexed him exceedingly.
27. And Cain rose up and dug a hole in the field, wherein he put his
brother’s body, and he turned the dust over it.
28. And the Lord knew what Cain had done to his brother, and the Lord
appeared to Cain and said unto him, Where is Abel thy brother that
was with thee?
29. And Cain dissembled, and said, I do not know, am I my brother’s
keeper? And the Lord said unto him, What hast thou done? The voice
of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground where thou
hast slain him.
30. For thou hast slain thy brother and hast dissembled before me, and
didst imagine in thy heart that I saw thee not, nor knew all thy
actions.
31. But thou didst this thing and didst slay thy brother for naught and
because he spoke rightly to thee, and now, therefore, cursed be
thou from the ground which opened its mouth to receive thy
brother’s blood from thy hand, and wherein thou didst bury him.
32. And it shall be when thou shalt till it, it shall no more give thee
its strength as in the beginning, for thorns and thistles shall the
ground produce, and thou shalt be moving and wandering in the earth
until the day of thy death.
33. And at that time Cain went out from the presence of the Lord, from
the place where he was, and he went moving and wandering in the
land toward the east of Eden, he and all belonging to him.
34. And Cain knew his wife in those days, and she conceived and bare a
son, and he called his name Enoch, saying, In that time the Lord
began to give him rest and quiet in the earth.
35. And at that time Cain also began to build a city: and he built the
city and he called the name of the city Enoch, according to the
name of his son; for in those days the Lord had given him rest upon
the earth, and he did not move about and wander as in the
beginning.
36. And Irad was born to Enoch, and Irad begat Mechuyael and Mechuyael
begat Methusael.

Jasher Chapter 2

1. And it was in the hundred and thirtieth year of the life of Adam
upon the earth, that he again knew Eve his wife, and she conceived
and bare a son in his likeness and in his image, and she called his
name Seth, saying, Because God has appointed me another seed in the
place of Abel, for Cain has slain him.
2. And Seth lived one hundred and five years, and he begat a son; and
Seth called the name of his son Enosh, saying, Because in that time
the sons of men began to multiply, and to afflict their souls and
hearts by transgressing and rebelling against God.
3. And it was in the days of Enosh that the sons of men continued to
rebel and transgress against God, to increase the anger of the Lord
against the sons of men.
4. And the sons of men went and they served other gods, and they
forgot the Lord who had created them in the earth: and in those
days the sons of men made images of brass and iron, wood and stone,
and they bowed down and served them.
5. And every man made his god and they bowed down to them, and the
sons of men forsook the Lord all the days of Enosh and his
children; and the anger of the Lord was kindled on account of their
works and abominations which they did in the earth.
6. And the Lord caused the waters of the river Gihon to overwhelm
them, and he destroyed and consumed them, and he destroyed the
third part of the earth, and notwithstanding this, the sons of men
did not turn from their evil ways, and their hands were yet
extended to do evil in the sight of the Lord.
7. And in those days there was neither sowing nor reaping in the
earth; and there was no food for the sons of men and the famine was
very great in those days.
8. And the seed which they sowed in those days in the ground became
thorns, thistles and briers; for from the days of Adam was this
declaration concerning the earth, of the curse of God, which he
cursed the earth, on account of the sin which Adam sinned before
the Lord.
9. And it was when men continued to rebel and transgress against God,
and to corrupt their ways, that the earth also became corrupt.
10. And Enosh lived ninety years and he begat Cainan;
11. And Cainan grew up and he was forty years old, and he became wise
and had knowledge and skill in all wisdom, and he reigned over all
the sons of men, and he led the sons of men to wisdom and
knowledge; for Cainan was a very wise man and had understanding in
all wisdom, and with his wisdom he ruled over spirits and demons;
12. And Cainan knew by his wisdom that God would destroy the sons of
men for having sinned upon earth, and that the Lord would in the
latter days bring upon them the waters of the flood.
13. And in those days Cainan wrote upon tablets of stone, what was to
take place in time to come, and he put them in his treasures.
14. And Cainan reigned over the whole earth, and he turned some of the
sons of men to the service of God.
15. And when Cainan was seventy years old, he begat three sons and two
daughters.
16. And these are the names of the children of Cainan; the name of the
first born Mahlallel, the second Enan, and the third Mered, and
their sisters were Adah and Zillah; these are the five children of
Cainan that were born to him.
17. And Lamech, the son of Methusael, became related to Cainan by
marriage, and he took his two daughters for his wives, and Adah
conceived and bare a son to Lamech, and she called his name Jabal.
18. And she again conceived and bare a son, and called his name Jubal;
and Zillah, her sister, was barren in those days and had no
offspring.
19. For in those days the sons of men began to trespass against God,
and to transgress the commandments which he had commanded to Adam,
to be fruitful and multiply in the earth.
20. And some of the sons of men caused their wives to drink a draught
that would render them barren, in order that they might retain
their figures and whereby their beautiful appearance might not
fade.
21. And when the sons of men caused some of their wives to drink,
Zillah drank with them.
22. And the child-bearing women appeared abominable in the sight of
their husbands as widows, whilst their husbands lived, for to the
barren ones only they were attached.
23. And in the end of days and years, when Zillah became old, the Lord
opened her womb.
24. And she conceived and bare a son and she called his name Tubal
Cain, saying, After I had withered away have I obtained him from
the Almighty God.
25. And she conceived again and bare a daughter, and she called her
name Naamah, for she said, After I had withered away have I
obtained pleasure and delight.
26. And Lamech was old and advanced in years, and his eyes were dim
that he could not see, and Tubal Cain, his son, was leading him and
it was one day that Lamech went into the field and Tubal Cain his
son was with him, and whilst they were walking in the field, Cain
the son of Adam advanced towards them; for Lamech was very old and
could not see much, and Tubal Cain his son was very young.
27. And Tubal Cain told his father to draw his bow, and with the arrows
he smote Cain, who was yet far off, and he slew him, for he
appeared to them to be an animal.
28. And the arrows entered Cain’s body although he was distant from
them, and he fell to the ground and died.
29. And the Lord requited Cain’s evil according to his wickedness,
which he had done to his brother Abel, according to the word of the
Lord which he had spoken.
30. And it came to pass when Cain had died, that Lamech and Tubal went
to see the animal which they had slain, and they saw, and behold
Cain their grandfather was fallen dead upon the earth.
31. And Lamech was very much grieved at having done this, and in
clapping his hands together he struck his son and caused his death.
32. And the wives of Lamech heard what Lamech had done, and they sought
to kill him.
33. And the wives of Lamech hated him from that day, because he slew
Cain and Tubal Cain, and the wives of Lamech separated from him,
and would not hearken to him in those days.
34. And Lamech came to his wives, and he pressed them to listen to him
about this matter.
35. And he said to his wives Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice O wives of
Lamech, attend to my words, for now you have imagined and said that
I slew a man with my wounds, and a child with my stripes for their
having done no violence, but surely know that I am old and
grey-headed, and that my eyes are heavy through age, and I did this
thing unknowingly.
36. And the wives of Lamech listened to him in this matter, and they
returned to him with the advice of their father Adam, but they bore
no children to him from that time, knowing that God’s anger was
increasing in those days against the sons of men, to destroy them
with the waters of the flood for their evil doings.
37. And Mahlallel the son of Cainan lived sixty-five years and he begat
Jared; and Jared lived sixty-two years and he begat Enoch.

Jasher Chapter 3

1. And Enoch lived sixty-five years and he begat Methuselah; and Enoch
walked with God after having begot Methuselah, and he served the
Lord, and despised the evil ways of men.
2. And the soul of Enoch was wrapped up in the instruction of the
Lord, in knowledge and in understanding; and he wisely retired from
the sons of men, and secreted himself from them for many days.
3. And it was at the expiration of many years, whilst he was serving
the Lord, and praying before him in his house, that an angel of the
Lord called to him from Heaven, and he said, Here am I.
4. And he said, Rise, go forth from thy house and from the place where
thou dost hide thyself, and appear to the sons of men, in order
that thou mayest teach them the way in which they should go and the
work which they must accomplish to enter in the ways of God.
5. And Enoch rose up according to the word of the Lord, and went forth
from his house, from his place and from the chamber in which he was
concealed; and he went to the sons of men and taught them the ways
of the Lord, and at that time assembled the sons of men and
acquainted them with the instruction of the Lord.
6. And he ordered it to be proclaimed in all places where the sons of
men dwelt, saying, Where is the man who wishes to know the ways of
the Lord and good works? let him come to Enoch.
7. And all the sons of men then assembled to him, for all who desired
this thing went to Enoch, and Enoch reigned over the sons of men
according to the word of the Lord, and they came and bowed to him
and they heard his word.
8. And the spirit of God was upon Enoch, and he taught all his men the
wisdom of God and his ways, and the sons of men served the Lord all
the days of Enoch, and they came to hear his wisdom.
9. And all the kings of the sons of men, both first and last, together
with their princes and judges, came to Enoch when they heard of his
wisdom, and they bowed down to him, and they also required of Enoch
to reign over them, to which he consented.
10. And they assembled in all, one hundred and thirty kings and
princes, and they made Enoch king over them and they were all under
his power and command.
11. And Enoch taught them wisdom, knowledge, and the ways of the Lord;
and he made peace amongst them, and peace was throughout the earth
during the life of Enoch.
12. And Enoch reigned over the sons of men two hundred and forty-three
years, and he did justice and righteousness with all his people,
and he led them in the ways of the Lord.
13. And these are the generations of Enoch, Methuselah, Elisha, and
Elimelech, three sons; and their sisters were Melca and Nahmah, and
Methuselah lived eighty-seven years and he begat Lamech.
14. And it was in the fifty-sixth year of the life of Lamech when Adam
died; nine hundred and thirty years old was he at his death, and
his two sons, with Enoch and Methuselah his son, buried him with
great pomp, as at the burial of kings, in the cave which God had
told him.
15. And in that place all the sons of men made a great mourning and
weeping on account of Adam; it has therefore become a custom among
the sons of men to this day.
16. And Adam died because he ate of the tree of knowledge; he and his
children after him, as the Lord God had spoken.
17. And it was in the year of Adam’s death which was the two hundred
and forty-third year of the reign of Enoch, in that time Enoch
resolved to separate himself from the sons of men and to secret
himself as at first in order to serve the Lord.
18. And Enoch did so, but did not entirely secret himself from them,
but kept away from the sons of men three days and then went to them
for one day.
19. And during the three days that he was in his chamber, he prayed to,
and praised the Lord his God, and the day on which he went and
appeared to his subjects he taught them the ways of the Lord, and
all they asked him about the Lord he told them.
20. And he did in this manner for many years, and he afterward
concealed himself for six days, and appeared to his people one day
in seven; and after that once in a month, and then once in a year,
until all the kings, princes and sons of men sought for him, and
desired again to see the face of Enoch, and to hear his word; but
they could not, as all the sons of men were greatly afraid of
Enoch, and they feared to approach him on account of the Godlike
awe that was seated upon his countenance; therefore no man could
look at him, fearing he might be punished and die.
21. And all the kings and princes resolved to assemble the sons of men,
and to come to Enoch, thinking that they might all speak to him at
the time when he should come forth amongst them, and they did so.
22. And the day came when Enoch went forth and they all assembled and
came to him, and Enoch spoke to them the words of the Lord and he
taught them wisdom and knowledge, and they bowed down before him
and they said, May the king live! May the king live!
23. And in some time after, when the kings and princes and the sons of
men were speaking to Enoch, and Enoch was teaching them the ways of
God, behold an angel of the Lord then called unto Enoch from
heaven, and wished to bring him up to heaven to make him reign
there over the sons of God, as he had reigned over the sons of men
upon earth.
24. When at that time Enoch heard this he went and assembled all the
inhabitants of the earth, and taught them wisdom and knowledge and
gave them divine instructions, and he said to them, I have been
required to ascend into heaven, I therefore do not know the day of
my going.
25. And now therefore I will teach you wisdom and knowledge and will
give you instruction before I leave you, how to act upon earth
whereby you may live; and he did so.
26. And he taught them wisdom and knowledge, and gave them instruction,
and he reproved them, and he placed before them statutes and
judgments to do upon earth, and he made peace amongst them, and he
taught them everlasting life, and dwelt with them some time
teaching them all these things.
27. And at that time the sons of men were with Enoch, and Enoch was
speaking to them, and they lifted up their eyes and the likeness of
a great horse descended from heaven, and the horse paced in the
air;
28. And they told Enoch what they had seen, and Enoch said to them, On
my account does this horse descend upon earth; the time is come
when I must go from you and I shall no more be seen by you.
29. And the horse descended at that time and stood before Enoch, and
all the sons of men that were with Enoch saw him.
30. And Enoch then again ordered a voice to be proclaimed, saying,
Where is the man who delighteth to know the ways of the Lord his
God, let him come this day to Enoch before he is taken from us.
31. And all the sons of men assembled and came to Enoch that day; and
all the kings of the earth with their princes and counsellors
remained with him that day; and Enoch then taught the sons of men
wisdom and knowledge, and gave them divine instruction; and he bade
them serve the Lord and walk in his ways all the days of their
lives, and he continued to make peace amongst them.
32. And it was after this that he rose up and rode upon the horse; and
he went forth and all the sons of men went after him, about eight
hundred thousand men; and they went with him one day’s journey.
33. And the second day he said to them, Return home to your tents, why
will you go? perhaps you may die; and some of them went from him,
and those that remained went with him six day’s journey; and Enoch
said to them every day, Return to your tents, lest you may die; but
they were not willing to return, and they went with him.
34. And on the sixth day some of the men remained and clung to him, and
they said to him, We will go with thee to the place where thou
goest; as the Lord liveth, death only shall separate us.
35. And they urged so much to go with him, that he ceased speaking to
them; and they went after him and would not return;
36. And when the kings returned they caused a census to be taken, in
order to know the number of remaining men that went with Enoch; and
it was upon the seventh day that Enoch ascended into heaven in a
whirlwind, with horses and chariots of fire.
37. And on the eighth day all the kings that had been with Enoch sent
to bring back the number of men that were with Enoch, in that place
from which he ascended into heaven.
38. And all those kings went to the place and they found the earth
there filled with snow, and upon the snow were large stones of
snow, and one said to the other, Come, let us break through the
snow and see, perhaps the men that remained with Enoch are dead,
and are now under the stones of snow, and they searched but could
not find him, for he had ascended into heaven.

Jasher Chapter 4

1. And all the days that Enoch lived upon earth, were three hundred
and sixty-five years.
2. And when Enoch had ascended into heaven, all the kings of the earth
rose and took Methuselah his son and anointed him, and they caused
him to reign over them in the place of his father.
3. And Methuselah acted uprightly in the sight of God, as his father
Enoch had taught him, and he likewise during the whole of his life
taught the sons of men wisdom, knowledge and the fear of God, and
he did not turn from the good way either to the right or to the
left.
4. But in the latter days of Methuselah, the sons of men turned from
the Lord, they corrupted the earth, they robbed and plundered each
other, and they rebelled against God and they transgressed, and
they corrupted their ways, and would not hearken to the voice of
Methuselah, but rebelled against him.
5. And the Lord was exceedingly wroth against them, and the Lord
continued to destroy the seed in those days, so that there was
neither sowing nor reaping in the earth.
6. For when they sowed the ground in order that they might obtain food
for their support, behold, thorns and thistles were produced which
they did not sow.
7. And still the sons of men did not turn from their evil ways, and
their hands were still extended to do evil in the sight of God, and
they provoked the Lord with their evil ways, and the Lord was very
wroth, and repented that he had made man.
8. And he thought to destroy and annihilate them and he did so.
9. In those days when Lamech the son of Methuselah was one hundred and
sixty years old, Seth the son of Adam died.
10. And all the days that Seth lived, were nine hundred and twelve
years, and he died.
11. And Lamech was one hundred and eighty years old when he took
Ashmua, the daughter of Elishaa the son of Enoch his uncle, and she
conceived.
12. And at that time the sons of men sowed the ground, and a little
food was produced, yet the sons of men did not turn from their evil
ways, and they trespassed and rebelled against God.
13. And the wife of Lamech conceived and bare him a son at that time,
at the revolution of the year.
14. And Methuselah called his name Noah, saying, The earth was in his
days at rest and free from corruption, and Lamech his father called
his name Menachem, saying, This one shall comfort us in our works
and miserable toil in the earth, which God had cursed.
15. And the child grew up and was weaned, and he went in the ways of
his father Methuselah, perfect and upright with God.
16. And all the sons of men departed from the ways of the Lord in those
days as they multiplied upon the face of the earth with sons and
daughters, and they taught one another their evil practices and
they continued sinning against the Lord.
17. And every man made unto himself a god, and they robbed and
plundered every man his neighbor as well as his relative, and they
corrupted the earth, and the earth was filled with violence.
18. And their judges and rulers went to the daughters of men and took
their wives by force from their husbands according to their choice,
and the sons of men in those days took from the cattle of the
earth, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and taught
the mixture of animals of one species with the other, in order
therewith to provoke the Lord; and God saw the whole earth and it
was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted its ways upon earth, all
men and all animals.
19. And the Lord said, I will blot out man that I created from the face
of the earth, yea from man to the birds of the air, together with
cattle and beasts that are in the field for I repent that I made
them.
20. And all men who walked in the ways of the Lord, died in those days,
before the Lord brought the evil upon man which he had declared,
for this was from the Lord, that they should not see the evil which
the Lord spoke of concerning the sons of men.
21. And Noah found grace in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord chose
him and his children to raise up seed from them upon the face of
the whole earth.

Jasher Chapter 5

1. And it was in the eighty-fourth year of the life of Noah, that
Enoch the son of Seth died, he was nine hundred and five years old
at his death.
2. And in the one hundred and seventy ninth year of the life of Noah,
Cainan the son of Enosh died, and all the days of Cainan were nine
hundred and ten years, and he died.
3. And in the two hundred and thirty fourth year of the life of Noah,
Mahlallel the son of Cainan died, and the days of Mahlallel were
eight hundred and ninety-five years, and he died.
4. And Jared the son of Mahlallel died in those days, in the three
hundred and thirty-sixth year of the life of Noah; and all the days
of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years, and he died.
5. And all who followed the Lord died in those days, before they saw
the evil which God declared to do upon earth.
6. And after the lapse of many years, in the four hundred and
eightieth year of the life of Noah, when all those men, who
followed the Lord had died away from amongst the sons of men, and
only Methuselah was then left, God said unto Noah and Methuselah,
saying,
7. Speak ye, and proclaim to the sons of men, saying, Thus saith the
Lord, return from your evil ways and forsake your works, and the
Lord will repent of the evil that he declared to do to you, so that
it shall not come to pass.
8. For thus saith the Lord, Behold I give you a period of one hundred
and twenty years; if you will turn to me and forsake your evil
ways, then will I also turn away from the evil which I told you,
and it shall not exist, saith the Lord.
9. And Noah and Methuselah spoke all the words of the Lord to the sons
of men, day after day, constantly speaking to them.
10. But the sons of men would not hearken to them, nor incline their
ears to their words, and they were stiffnecked.
11. And the Lord granted them a period of one hundred and twenty years,
saying, If they will return, then will God repent of the evil, so
as not to destroy the earth.
12. Noah the son of Lamech refrained from taking a wife in those days,
to beget children, for he said, Surely now God will destroy the
earth, wherefore then shall I beget children?
13. And Noah was a just man, he was perfect in his generation, and the
Lord chose him to raise up seed from his seed upon the face of the
earth.
14. And the Lord said unto Noah, Take unto thee a wife, and beget
children, for I have seen thee righteous before me in this
generation.
15. And thou shalt raise up seed, and thy children with thee, in the
midst of the earth; and Noah went and took a wife, and he chose
Naamah the daughter of Enoch, and she was five hundred and eighty
years old.
16. And Noah was four hundred and ninety-eight years old, when he took
Naamah for a wife.
17. And Naamah conceived and bare a son, and he called his name
Japheth, saying, God has enlarged me in the earth; and she
conceived again and bare a son, and he called his name Shem,
saying, God has made me a remnant, to raise up seed in the midst of
the earth.
18. And Noah was five hundred and two years old when Naamah bare Shem,
and the boys grew up and went in the ways of the Lord, in all that
Methuselah and Noah their father taught them.
19. And Lamech the father of Noah, died in those days; yet verily he
did not go with all his heart in the ways of his father, and he
died in the hundred and ninety-fifth year of the life of Noah.
20. And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred and seventy years,
and he died.
21. And all the sons of men who knew the Lord, died in that year before
the Lord brought evil upon them; for the Lord willed them to die,
so as not to behold the evil that God would bring upon their
brothers and relatives, as he had so declared to do.
22. In that time, the Lord said to Noah and Methuselah, Stand forth and
proclaim to the sons of men all the words that I spoke to you in
those days, peradventure they may turn from their evil ways, and I
will then repent of the evil and will not bring it.
23. And Noah and Methuselah stood forth, and said in the ears of the
sons of men, all that God had spoken concerning them.
24. But the sons of men would not hearken, neither would they incline
their ears to all their declarations.
25. And it was after this that the Lord said to Noah, The end of all
flesh is come before me, on account of their evil deeds, and behold
I will destroy the earth.
26. And do thou take unto thee gopher wood, and go to a certain place
and make a large ark, and place it in that spot.
27. And thus shalt thou make it; three hundred cubits its length, fifty
cubits broad and thirty cubits high.
28. And thou shalt make unto thee a door, open at its side, and to a
cubit thou shalt finish above, and cover it within and without with
pitch.
29. And behold I will bring the flood of waters upon the earth, and all
flesh be destroyed, from under the heavens all that is upon earth
shall perish.
30. And thou and thy household shall go and gather two couple of all
living things, male and female, and shall bring them to the ark, to
raise up seed from them upon earth.
31. And gather unto thee all food that is eaten by all the animals,
that there may be food for thee and for them.
32. And thou shalt choose for thy sons three maidens, from the
daughters of men, and they shall be wives to thy sons.
33. And Noah rose up, and he made the ark, in the place where God had
commanded him, and Noah did as God had ordered him.
34. In his five hundred and ninety-fifth year Noah commenced to make
the ark, and he made the ark in five years, as the Lord had
commanded.
35. Then Noah took the three daughters of Eliakim, son of Methuselah,
for wives for his sons, as the Lord had commanded Noah.
36. And it was at that time Methuselah the son of Enoch died, nine
hundred and sixty years old was he, at his death.

Book of Jasher 6

1. At that time, after the death of Methuselah, the Lord said to Noah,
Go thou with thy household into the ark; behold I will gather to
thee all the animals of the earth, the beasts of the field and the
fowls of the air, and they shall all come and surround the ark.
2. And thou shalt go and seat thyself by the doors of the ark, and all
the beasts, the animals, and the fowls, shall assemble and place
themselves before thee, and such of them as shall come and crouch
before thee, shalt thou take and deliver into the hands of thy
sons, who shall bring them to the ark, and all that will stand
before thee thou shalt leave.
3. And the Lord brought this about on the next day, and animals,
beasts and fowls came in great multitudes and surrounded the ark.
4. And Noah went and seated himself by the door of the ark, and of all
flesh that crouched before him, he brought into the ark, and all
that stood before him he left upon earth.
5. And a lioness came, with her two whelps, male and female, and the
three crouched before Noah, and the two whelps rose up against the
lioness and smote her, and made her flee from her place, and she
went away, and they returned to their places, and crouched upon the
earth before Noah.
6. And the lioness ran away, and stood in the place of the lions.
7. And Noah saw this, and wondered greatly, and he rose and took the
two whelps, and brought them into the ark.
8. And Noah brought into the ark from all living creatures that were
upon earth, so that there was none left but which Noah brought into
the ark.
9. Two and two came to Noah into the ark, but from the clean animals,
and clean fowls, he brought seven couples, as God had commanded
him.
10. And all the animals, and beasts, and fowls, were still there, and
they surrounded the ark at every place, and the rain had not
descended till seven days after.
11. And on that day, the Lord caused the whole earth to shake, and the
sun darkened, and the foundations of the world raged, and the whole
earth was moved violently, and the lightning flashed, and the
thunder roared, and all the fountains in the earth were broken up,
such as was not known to the inhabitants before; and God did this
mighty act, in order to terrify the sons of men, that there might
be no more evil upon earth.
12. And still the sons of men would not return from their evil ways,
and they increased the anger of the Lord at that time, and did not
even direct their hearts to all this.
13. And at the end of seven days, in the six hundredth year of the life
of Noah, the waters of the flood were upon the earth.
14. And all the fountains of the deep were broken up, and the windows
of heaven were opened, and the rain was upon the earth forty days
and forty nights.
15. And Noah and his household, and all the living creatures that were
with him, came into the ark on account of the waters of the flood,
and the Lord shut him in.
16. And all the sons of men that were left upon the earth, became
exhausted through evil on account of the rain, for the waters were
coming more violently upon the earth, and the animals and beasts
were still surrounding the ark.
17. And the sons of men assembled together, about seven hundred
thousand men and women, and they came unto Noah to the ark.
18. And they called to Noah, saying, Open for us that we may come to
thee in the ark–and wherefore shall we die?
19. And Noah, with a loud voice, answered them from the ark, saying,
Have you not all rebelled against the Lord, and said that he does
not exist? and therefore the Lord brought upon you this evil, to
destroy and cut you off from the face of the earth.
20. Is not this the thing that I spoke to you of one hundred and twenty
years back, and you would not hearken to the voice of the Lord, and
now do you desire to live upon earth?
21. And they said to Noah, We are ready to return to the Lord; only
open for us that we may live and not die.
22. And Noah answered them, saying, Behold now that you see the trouble
of your souls, you wish to return to the Lord; why did you not
return during these hundred and twenty years, which the Lord
granted you as the determined period?
23. But now you come and tell me this on account of the troubles of
your souls, now also the Lord will not listen to you, neither will
he give ear to you on this day, so that you will not now succeed in
your wishes.
24. And the sons of men approached in order to break into the ark, to
come in on account of the rain, for they could not bear the rain
upon them.
25. And the Lord sent all the beasts and animals that stood round the
ark. And the beasts overpowered them and drove them from that
place, and every man went his way and they again scattered
themselves upon the face of the earth.
26. And the rain was still descending upon the earth, and it descended
forty days and forty nights, and the waters prevailed greatly upon
the earth; and all flesh that was upon the earth or in the waters
died, whether men, animals, beasts, creeping things or birds of the
air, and there only remained Noah and those that were with him in
the ark.
27. And the waters prevailed and they greatly increased upon the earth,
and they lifted up the ark and it was raised from the earth.
28. And the ark floated upon the face of the waters, and it was tossed
upon the waters so that all the living creatures within were turned
about like pottage in a cauldron.
29. And great anxiety seized all the living creatures that were in the
ark, and the ark was like to be broken.
30. And all the living creatures that were in the ark were terrified,
and the lions roared, and the oxen lowed, and the wolves howled,
and every living creature in the ark spoke and lamented in its own
language, so that their voices reached to a great distance, and
Noah and his sons cried and wept in their troubles; they were
greatly afraid that they had reached the gates of death.
31. And Noah prayed unto the Lord, and cried unto him on account of
this, and he said, O Lord help us, for we have no strength to bear
this evil that has encompassed us, for the waves of the waters have
surrounded us, mischievous torrents have terrified us, the snares
of death have come before us; answer us, O Lord, answer us, light
up thy countenance toward us and be gracious to us, redeem us and
deliver us.
32. And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Noah, and the Lord
remembered him.
33. And a wind passed over the earth, and the waters were still and the
ark rested.
34. And the fountains of the deep and the windows of heaven were
stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained.
35. And the waters decreased in those days, and the ark rested upon the
mountains of Ararat.
36. And Noah then opened the windows of the ark, and Noah still called
out to the Lord at that time and he said, O Lord, who didst form
the earth and the heavens and all that are therein, bring forth our
souls from this confinement, and from the prison wherein thou hast
placed us, for I am much wearied with sighing.
37. And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Noah, and said to him, When
though shalt have completed a full year thou shalt then go forth.
38. And at the revolution of the year, when a full year was completed
to Noah’s dwelling in the ark, the waters were dried from off the
earth, and Noah put off the covering of the ark.
39. At that time, on the twenty-seventh day of the second month, the
earth was dry, but Noah and his sons, and those that were with him,
did not go out from the ark until the Lord told them.
40. And the day came that the Lord told them to go out, and they all
went out from the ark.
41. And they went and returned every one to his way and to his place,
and Noah and his sons dwelt in the land that God had told them, and
they served the Lord all their days, and the Lord blessed Noah and
his sons on their going out from the ark.
42. And he said to them, Be fruitful and fill all the earth; become
strong and increase abundantly in the earth and multiply therein.

Book of Jasher 7

1. And these are the names of the sons of Noah: Japheth, Ham and Shem;
and children were born to them after the flood, for they had taken
wives before the flood.
2. These are the sons of Japheth; Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal,
Meshech, and Tiras, seven sons.
3. And the sons of Gomer were Askinaz, Rephath and Tegarmah.
4. And the sons of Magog were Elichanaf and Lubal.
5. And the children of Madai were Achon, Zeelo, Chazoni and Lot.
6. And the sons of Javan were Elisha, Tarshish, Chittim and Dudonim.
7. And the sons of Tubal were Ariphi, Kesed and Taari.
8. And the sons of Meshech were Dedon, Zaron and Shebashni.
9. And the sons of Tiras were Benib, Gera, Lupirion and Gilak; these
are the sons of Japheth according to their families, and their
numbers in those days were about four hundred and sixty men.
10. And these are the sons of Ham; Cush, Mitzraim, Phut and Canaan,
four sons; and the sons of Cush were Seba, Havilah, Sabta, Raama
and Satecha, and the sons of Raama were Sheba and Dedan.
11. And the sons of Mitzraim were Lud, Anom and Pathros, Chasloth and
Chaphtor.
12. And the sons of Phut were Gebul, Hadan, Benah and Adan.
13. And the sons of Canaan were Zidon, Heth, Amori, Gergashi, Hivi,
Arkee, Seni, Arodi, Zimodi and Chamothi.
14. These are the sons of Ham, according to their families, and their
numbers in those days were about seven hundred and thirty men.
15. And these are the sons of Shem; Elam, Ashur, Arpachshad, Lud and
Aram, five sons; and the sons of Elam were Shushan, Machul and
Harmon.
16. And the sons of Ashar were Mirus and Mokil, and the sons of
Arpachshad were Shelach, Anar and Ashcol.
17. And the sons of Lud were Pethor and Bizayon, and the sons of Aram
were Uz, Chul, Gather and Mash.
18. These are the sons of Shem, according to their families; and their
numbers in those days were about three hundred men.
15
19. These are the generations of Shem; Shem begat Arpachshad and
Arpachshad begat Shelach, and Shelach begat Eber and to Eber were
born two children, the name of one was Peleg, for in his days the
sons of men were divided, and in the latter days, the earth was
divided.
20. And the name of the second was Yoktan, meaning that in his day the
lives of the sons of men were diminished and lessened.
21. These are the sons of Yoktan; Almodad, Shelaf, Chazarmoveth,
Yerach, Hadurom, Ozel, Diklah, Obal, Abimael, Sheba, Ophir, Havilah
and Jobab; all these are the sons of Yoktan.
22. And Peleg his brother begat Yen, and Yen begat Serug, and Serug
begat Nahor and Nahor begat Terah, and Terah was thirty-eight years
old, and he begat Haran and Nahor.
23. And Cush the son of Ham, the son of Noah, took a wife in those days
in his old age, and she bare a son, and they called his name
Nimrod, saying, At that time the sons of men again began to rebel
and transgress against God, and the child grew up, and his father
loved him exceedingly, for he was the son of his old age.
24. And the garments of skin which God made for Adam and his wife, when
they went out of the garden, were given to Cush.
25. For after the death of Adam and his wife, the garments were given
to Enoch, the son of Jared, and when Enoch was taken up to God, he
gave them to Methuselah, his son.
26. And at the death of Methuselah, Noah took them and brought them to
the ark, and they were with him until he went out of the ark.
27. And in their going out, Ham stole those garments from Noah his
father, and he took them and hid them from his brothers.
28. And when Ham begat his first born Cush, he gave him the garments in
secret, and they were with Cush many days.
29. And Cush also concealed them from his sons and brothers, and when
Cush had begotten Nimrod, he gave him those garments through his
love for him, and Nimrod grew up, and when he was twenty years old
he put on those garments.
30. And Nimrod became strong when he put on the garments, and God gave
him might and strength, and he was a mighty hunter in the earth,
yea, he was a mighty hunter in the field, and he hunted the animals
and he built altars, and he offered upon them the animals before
the Lord.
31. And Nimrod strengthened himself, and he rose up from amongst his
brethren, and he fought the battles of his brethren against all
their enemies round about.
32. And the Lord delivered all the enemies of his brethren in his
hands, and God prospered him from time to time in his battles, and
he reigned upon earth.
33. Therefore it became current in those days, when a man ushered forth
those that he had trained up for battle, he would say to them, Like
God did to Nimrod, who was a mighty hunter in the earth, and who
succeeded in the battles that prevailed against his brethren, that
he delivered them from the hands of their enemies, so may God
strengthen us and deliver us this day.
34. And when Nimrod was forty years old, at that time there was a war
between his brethren and the children of Japheth, so that they were
in the power of their enemies.
35. And Nimrod went forth at that time, and he assembled all the sons
of Cush and their families, about four hundred and sixty men, and
he hired also from some of his friends and acquaintances about
eighty men, and be gave them their hire, and he went with them to
battle, and when he was on the road, Nimrod strengthened the hearts
of the people that went with him.
36. And he said to them, Do not fear, neither be alarmed, for all our
enemies will be delivered into our hands, and you may do with them
as you please.
37. And all the men that went were about five hundred, and they fought
against their enemies, and they destroyed them, and subdued them,
and Nimrod placed standing officers over them in their respective
places.
38. And he took some of their children as security, and they were all
servants to Nimrod and to his brethren, and Nimrod and all the
people that were with him turned homeward.
39. And when Nimrod had joyfully returned from battle, after having
conquered his enemies, all his brethren, together with those who
knew him before, assembled to make him king over them, and they
placed the regal crown upon his head.
40. And he set over his subjects and people, princes, judges, and
rulers, as is the custom amongst kings.
41. And he placed Terah the son of Nahor the prince of his host, and he
dignified him and elevated him above all his princes.
42. And whilst he was reigning according to his heart’s desire, after
having conquered all his enemies around, he advised with his
counselors to build a city for his palace, and they did so.
43. And they found a large valley opposite to the east, and they built
him a large and extensive city, and Nimrod called the name of the
city that he built Shinar, for the Lord had vehemently shaken his
enemies and destroyed them.
44. And Nimrod dwelt in Shinar, and he reigned securely, and he fought
with his enemies and he subdued them, and he prospered in all his
battles, and his kingdom became very great.
45. And all nations and tongues heard of his fame, and they gathered
themselves to him, and they bowed down to the earth, and they
brought him offerings, and he became their lord and king, and they
all dwelt with him in the city at Shinar, and Nimrod reigned in the
earth over all the sons of Noah, and they were all under his power
and counsel.
46. And all the earth was of one tongue and words of union, but Nimrod
did not go in the ways of the Lord, and he was more wicked than all
the men that were before him, from the days of the flood until
those days.
47. And he made gods of wood and stone, and he bowed down to them, and
he rebelled against the Lord, and taught all his subjects and the
people of the earth his wicked ways; and Mardon his son was more
wicked than his father.
48. And every one that heard of the acts of Mardon the son of Nimrod
would say, concerning him, From the wicked goeth forth wickedness;
therefore it became a proverb in the whole earth, saying, From the
wicked goeth forth wickedness, and it was current in the words of
men from that time to this.
49. And Terah the son of Nahor, prince of Nimrod’s host, was in those
days very great in the sight of the king and his subjects, and the
king and princes loved him, and they elevated him very high.
50. And Terah took a wife and her name was Amthelo the daughter of
Cornebo; and the wife of Terah conceived and bare him a son in
those days.
51. Terah was seventy years old when he begat him, and Terah called the
name of his son that was born to him Abram, because the king had
raised him in those days, and dignified him above all his princes
that were with him.

Book of Jasher 8

1. And it was in the night that Abram was born, that all the servants
of Terah, and all the wise men of Nimrod, and his conjurors came
and ate and drank in the house of Terah, and they rejoiced with him
on that night.
2. And when all the wise men and conjurors went out from the house of
Terah, they lifted up their eyes toward heaven that night to look
at the stars, and they saw, and behold one very large star came
from the east and ran in the heavens, and he swallowed up the four
stars from the four sides of the heavens.
3. And all the wise men of the king and his conjurors were astonished
at the sight, and the sages understood this matter, and they knew
its import.
4. And they said to each other, This only betokens the child that has
been born to Terah this night, who will grow up and be fruitful,
and multiply, and possess all the earth, he and his children for
ever, and he and his seed will slay great kings, and inherit their
lands.
5. And the wise men and conjurors went home that night, and in the
morning all these wise men and conjurors rose up early, and
assembled in an appointed house.
6. And they spoke and said to each other, Behold the sight that we saw
last night is hidden from the king, it has not been made known to
him.
7. And should this thing get known to the king in the latter days, he
will say to us, Why have you concealed this matter from me, and
then we shall all suffer death; therefore, now let us go and tell
the king the sight which we saw, and the interpretation thereof,
and we shall then remain clear.
8. And they did so, and they all went to the king and bowed down to
him to the ground, and they said, May the king live, may the king
live.
9. We heard that a son was born to Terah the son of Nahor, the prince
of thy host, and we yesternight came to his house, and we ate and
drank and rejoiced with him that night.
10. And when thy servants went out from the house of Terah, to go to
our respective homes to abide there for the night, we lifted up our
eyes to heaven, and we saw a great star coming from the east, and
the same star ran with great speed, and swallowed up four great
stars, from the four sides of the heavens.
11. And thy servants were astonished at the sight which we saw, and
were greatly terrified, and we made our judgment upon the sight,
and knew by our wisdom the proper interpretation thereof, that this
thing applies to the child that is born to Terah, who will grow up
and multiply greatly, and become powerful, and kill all the kings
of the earth, and inherit all their lands, he and his seed forever.
12. And now our lord and king, behold we have truly acquainted thee
with what we have seen concerning this child.
13. If it seemeth good to the king to give his father value for this
child, we will slay him before he shall grow up and increase in the
land, and his evil increase against us, that we and our children
perish through his evil.
14. And the king heard their words and they seemed good in his sight,
and he sent and called for Terah, and Terah came before the king.
15. And the king said to Terah, I have been told that a son was
yesternight born to thee, and after this manner was observed in the
heavens at his birth.
16. And now therefore give me the child, that we may slay him before
his evil springs up against us, and I will give thee for his value,
thy house full of silver and gold.
17. And Terah answered the king and said to him: My Lord and king, I
have heard thy words, and thy servant shall do all that his king
desireth.
18. But my lord and king, I will tell thee what happened to me
yesternight, that I may see what advice the king will give his
servant, and then I will answer the king upon what he has just
spoken; and the king said, Speak.
19. And Terah said to the king, Ayon, son of Mored, came to me
yesternight, saying,
20. Give unto me the great and beautiful horse that the king gave thee,
and I will give thee silver and gold, and straw and provender for
its value; and I said to him, Wait till I see the king concerning
thy words, and behold whatever the king saith, that will I do.
21. And now my lord and king, behold I have made this thing known to
thee, and the advice which my king will give unto his servant, that
will I follow.
22. And the king heard the words of Terah, and his anger was kindled
and he considered him in the light of a fool.
23. And the king answered Terah, and he said to him, Art thou so silly,
ignorant, or deficient in understanding, to do this thing, to give
thy beautiful horse for silver and gold or even for straw and
provender?
24. Art thou so short of silver and gold, that thou shouldst do this
thing, because thou canst not obtain straw and provender to feed
thy horse? and what is silver and gold to thee, or straw and
provender, that thou shouldst give away that fine horse which I
gave thee, like which there is none to be had on the whole earth?
25. And the king left off speaking, and Terah answered the king,
saying, Like unto this has the king spoken to his servant;
26. I beseech thee, my lord and king, what is this which thou didst say
unto me, saying, Give thy son that we may slay him, and I will give
thee silver and gold for his value; what shall I do with silver and
gold after the death of my son? who shall inherit me? surely then
at my death, the silver and gold will return to my king who gave
it.
27. And when the king heard the words of Terah, and the parable which
he brought concerning the king, it grieved him greatly and he was
vexed at this thing, and his anger burned within him.
28. And Terah saw that the anger of the king was kindled against him,
and he answered the king, saying, All that I have is in the king’s
power; whatever the king desireth to do to his servant, that let
him do, yea, even my son, he is in the king’s power, without value
in exchange, he and his two brothers that are older than he.
29. And the king said to Terah, No, but I will purchase thy younger son
for a price.
30. And Terah answered the king, saying, I beseech thee my lord and
king to let thy servant speak a word before thee, and let the king
hear the word of his servant, and Terah said, Let my king give me
three days’ time till I consider this matter within myself, and
consult with my family concerning the words of my king; and he
pressed the king greatly to agree to this.
31. And the king hearkened to Terah, and he did so and he gave him
three days’ time, and Terah went out from the king’s presence, and
he came home to his family and spoke to them all the words of the
king; and the people were greatly afraid.
32. And it was in the third day that the king sent to Terah, saying,
Send me thy son for a price as I spoke to thee; and shouldst thou
not do this, I will send and slay all thou hast in thy house, so
that thou shalt not even have a dog remaining.
33. And Terah hastened, (as the thing was urgent from the king), and he
took a child from one of his servants, which his handmaid had born
to him that day, and Terah brought the child to the king and
received value for him.
34. And the Lord was with Terah in this matter, that Nimrod might not
cause Abram’s death, and the king took the child from Terah and
with all his might dashed his head to the ground, for he thought it
had been Abram; and this was concealed from him from that day, and
it was forgotten by the king, as it was the will of Providence not
to suffer Abram’s death.
35. And Terah took Abram his son secretly, together with his mother and
nurse, and he concealed them in a cave, and he brought them their
provisions monthly.
36. And the Lord was with Abram in the cave and he grew up, and Abram
was in the cave ten years, and the king and his princes,
soothsayers and sages, thought that the king had killed Abram.

Book of Jasher 9

1. And Haran, the son of Terah, Abram’s oldest brother, took a wife in
those days.
2. Haran was thirty-nine years old when he took her; and the wife of
Haran conceived and bare a son, and he called his name Lot.
3. And she conceived again and bare a daughter, and she called her
name Milca; and she again conceived and bare a daughter, and she
called her name Sarai.
4. Haran was forty-two years old when he begat Sarai, which was in the
tenth year of the life of Abram; and in those days Abram and his
mother and nurse went out from the cave, as the king and his
subjects had forgotten the affair of Abram.
5. And when Abram came out from the cave, he went to Noah and his son
Shem, and he remained with them to learn the instruction of the
Lord and his ways, and no man knew where Abram was, and Abram
served Noah and Shem his son for a long time.
6. And Abram was in Noah’s house thirty-nine years, and Abram knew the
Lord from three years old, and he went in the ways of the Lord
until the day of his death, as Noah and his son Shem had taught
him; and all the sons of the earth in those days greatly
transgressed against the Lord, and they rebelled against him and
they served other gods, and they forgot the Lord who had created
them in the earth; and the inhabitants of the earth made unto
themselves, at that time, every man his god; gods of wood and stone
which could neither speak, hear, nor deliver, and the sons of men
served them and they became their gods.
7. And the king and all his servants, and Terah with all his household
were then the first of those that served gods of wood and stone.
20
8. And Terah had twelve gods of large size, made of wood and stone,
after the twelve months of the year, and he served each one
monthly, and every month Terah would bring his meat offering and
drink offering to his gods; thus did Terah all the days.
9. And all that generation were wicked in the sight of the Lord, and
they thus made every man his god, but they forsook the Lord who had
created them.
10. And there was not a man found in those days in the whole earth, who
knew the Lord (for they served each man his own God) except Noah
and his household, and all those who were under his counsel knew
the Lord in those days.
11. And Abram the son of Terah was waxing great in those days in the
house of Noah, and no man knew it, and the Lord was with him.
12. And the Lord gave Abram an understanding heart, and he knew all the
works of that generation were vain, and that all their gods were
vain and were of no avail.
13. And Abram saw the sun shining upon the earth, and Abram said unto
himself Surely now this sun that shines upon the earth is God, and
him will I serve.
14. And Abram served the sun in that day and he prayed to him, and when
evening came the sun set as usual, and Abram said within himself,
Surely this cannot be God?
15. And Abram still continued to speak within himself, Who is he who
made the heavens and the earth? who created upon earth? where is
he?
16. And night darkened over him, and he lifted up his eyes toward the
west, north, south, and east, and he saw that the sun had vanished
from the earth, and the day became dark.
17. And Abram saw the stars and moon before him, and he said, Surely
this is the God who created the whole earth as well as man, and
behold these his servants are gods around him: and Abram served the
moon and prayed to it all that night.
18. And in the morning when it was light and the sun shone upon the
earth as usual, Abram saw all the things that the Lord God had made
upon earth.
19. And Abram said unto himself Surely these are not gods that made the
earth and all mankind, but these are the servants of God, and Abram
remained in the house of Noah and there knew the Lord and his ways’
and he served the Lord all the days of his life, and all that
generation forgot the Lord, and served other gods of wood and
stone, and rebelled all their days.
20. And king Nimrod reigned securely, and all the earth was under his
control, and all the earth was of one tongue and words of union.
21. And all the princes of Nimrod and his great men took counsel
together; Phut, Mitzraim, Cush and Canaan with their families, and
they said to each other, Come let us build ourselves a city and in
it a strong tower, and its top reaching heaven, and we will make
ourselves famed, so that we may reign upon the whole world, in
order that the evil of our enemies may cease from us, that we may
reign mightily over them, and that we may not become scattered over
the earth on account of their wars.
22. And they all went before the king, and they told the king these
words, and the king agreed with them in this affair, and he did so.
23. And all the families assembled consisting of about six hundred
thousand men, and they went to seek an extensive piece of ground to
build the city and the tower, and they sought in the whole earth
and they found none like one valley at the east of the land of
Shinar, about two days’ walk, and they journeyed there and they
dwelt there.
24. And they began to make bricks and burn fires to build the city and
the tower that they had imagined to complete.
25. And the building of the tower was unto them a transgression and a
sin, and they began to build it, and whilst they were building
against the Lord God of heaven, they imagined in their hearts to
war against him and to ascend into heaven.
26. And all these people and all the families divided themselves in
three parts; the first said We will ascend into heaven and fight
against him; the second said, We will ascend to heaven and place
our own gods there and serve them; and the third part said, We will
ascend to heaven and smite him with bows and spears; and God knew
all their works and all their evil thoughts, and he saw the city
and the tower which they were building.
27. And when they were building they built themselves a great city and
a very high and strong tower; and on account of its height the
mortar and bricks did not reach the builders in their ascent to it,
until those who went up had completed a full year, and after that,
they reached to the builders and gave them the mortar and the
bricks; thus was it done daily.
28. And behold these ascended and others descended the whole day; and
if a brick should fall from their hands and get broken, they would
all weep over it, and if a man fell and died, none of them would
look at him.
29. And the Lord knew their thoughts, and it came to pass when they
were building they cast the arrows toward the heavens, and all the
arrows fell upon them filled with blood, and when they saw them
they said to each other, Surely we have slain all those that are in
heaven.
30. For this was from the Lord in order to cause them to err, and in
order; to destroy them from off the face of the ground.
31. And they built the tower and the city, and they did this thing
daily until many days and years were elapsed.
32. And God said to the seventy angels who stood foremost before him,
to those who were near to him, saying, Come let us descend and
confuse their tongues, that one man shall not understand the
language of his neighbor, and they did so unto them.
33. And from that day following, they forgot each man his neighbor’s
tongue, and they could not understand to speak in one tongue, and
when the builder took from the hands of his neighbor lime or stone
which he did not order, the builder would cast it away and throw it
upon his neighbor, that he would die.
34. And they did so many days, and they killed many of them in this
manner.
35. And the Lord smote the three divisions that were there, and he
punished them according to their works and designs; those who said,
We will ascend to heaven and serve our gods, became like apes and
elephants; and those who said, We will smite the heaven with
arrows, the Lord killed them, one man through the hand of his
neighbor; and the third division of those who said, We will ascend
to heaven and fight against him, the Lord scattered them throughout
the earth.
36. And those who were left amongst them, when they knew and understood
the evil which was coming upon them, they forsook the building, and
they also became scattered upon the face of the whole earth.
37. And they ceased building the city and the tower; therefore he
called that place Babel, for there the Lord confounded the Language
of the whole earth; behold it was at the east of the land of
Shinar.
38. And as to the tower which the sons of men built, the earth opened
its mouth and swallowed up one third part thereof, and a fire also
descended from heaven and burned another third, and the other third
is left to this day, and it is of that part which was aloft, and
its circumference is three days’ walk.
39. And many of the sons of men died in that tower, a people without
number.

Book of Jasher 10

1. And Peleg the son of Eber died in those days, in the forty-eighth
year of the life of Abram son of Terah, and all the days of Peleg
were two hundred and thirty-nine years.
2. And when the Lord had scattered the sons of men on account of their
sin at the tower, behold they spread forth into many divisions, and
all the sons of men were dispersed into the four corners of the
earth.
3. And all the families became each according to its language, its
land, or its city.
4. And the sons of men built many cities according to their families,
in all the places where they went, and throughout the earth where
the Lord had scattered them.
5. And some of them built cities in places from which they were
afterward extirpated, and they called these cities after their own
names, or the names of their children, or after their particular
occurrences.
6. And the sons of Japheth the son of Noah went and built themselves
cities in the places where they were scattered, and they called all
their cities after their names, and the sons of Japheth were
divided upon the face of the earth into many divisions and
languages.
7. And these are the sons of Japheth according to their families,
Gomer, Magog, Medai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech and Tiras; these are the
children of Japheth according to their generations.
8. And the children of Gomer, according to their cities, were the
Francum, who dwell in the land of Franza, by the river Franza, by
the river Senah.
9. And the children of Rephath are the Bartonim, who dwell in the land
of Bartonia by the river Ledah, which empties its waters in the
great sea Gihon, that is, oceanus.
10. And the children of Tugarma are ten families, and these are their
names: Buzar, Parzunac, Balgar, Elicanum, Ragbib, Tarki, Bid,
Zebuc, Ongal and Tilmaz; all these spread and rested in the north
and built themselves cities.
11. And they called their cities after their own names, those are they
who abide by the rivers Hithlah and Italac unto this day.
12. But the families of Angoli, Balgar and Parzunac, they dwell by the
great river Dubnee; and the names of their cities are also
according to their own names.
13. And the children of Javan are the Javanim who dwell in the land of
Makdonia, and the children of Medaiare are the Orelum that dwell in
the land of Curson, and the children of Tubal are those that dwell
in the land of Tuskanah by the river Pashiah.
14. And the children of Meshech are the Shibashni and the children of
Tiras are Rushash, Cushni, and Ongolis; all these went and built
themselves cities; those are the cities that are situate by the sea
Jabus by the river Cura, which empties itself in the river Tragan.
15. And the children of Elishah are the Almanim, and they also went and
built themselves cities; those are the cities situate between the
mountains of Job and Shibathmo; and of them were the people of
Lumbardi who dwell opposite the mountains of Job and Shibathmo, and
they conquered the land of Italia and remained there unto this day.
16. And the children of Chittim are the Romim who dwell in the valley
of Canopia by the river Tibreu.
17. And the children of Dudonim are those who dwell in the cities of
the sea Gihon, in the land of Bordna.
18. These are the families of the children of Japheth according to
their cities and languages, when they were scattered after the
tower, and they called their cities after their names and
occurrences; and these are the names of all their cities according
to their families, which they built in those days after the tower.
19. And the children of Ham were Cush, Mitzraim, Phut and Canaan
according to their generation and cities.
20. All these went and built themselves cities as they found fit places
for them, and they called their cities after the names of their
fathers Cush, Mitzraim, Phut and Canaan.
21. And the children of Mitzraim are the Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim,
Naphtuchim, Pathrusim, Casluchim and Caphturim, seven families.
22. All these dwell by the river Sihor, that is the brook of Egypt, and
they built themselves cities and called them after their own names.
23. And the children of Pathros and Casloch intermarried together, and
from them went forth the Pelishtim, the Azathim, and the Gerarim,
the Githim and the Ekronim, in all five families; these also built
themselves cities, and they called their cities after the names of
their fathers unto this day.
24. And the children of Canaan also built themselves cities, and they
called their cities after their names, eleven cities and others
without number.
25. And four men from the family of Ham went to the land of the plain;
these are the names of the four men, Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and
Zeboyim.
26. And these men built themselves four cities in the land of the
plain, and they called the names of their cities after their own
names.
27. And they and their children and all belonging to them dwelt in
those cities, and they were fruitful and multiplied greatly and
dwelt peaceably.
28. And Seir the son of Hur, son of Hivi, son of Canaan, went and found
a valley opposite to Mount Paran, and he built a city there, and he
and his seven sons and his household dwelt there, and he called the
city which he built Seir, according to his name; that is the land
of Seir unto this day.
29. These are the families of the children of Ham, according to their
languages and cities, when they were scattered to their countries
after the tower.
30. And some of the children of Shem son of Noah, father of all the
children of Eber, also went and built themselves cities in the
places wherein they were scattered, and they called their cities
after their names.
31. And the sons of Shem were Elam, Ashur, Arpachshad, Lud and Aram,
and they built themselves cities and called the names of all their
cities after their names.
32. And Ashur son of Shem and his children and household went forth at
that time, a very large body of them, and they went to a distant
land that they found, and they met with a very extensive valley in
the land that they went to, and they built themselves four cities,
and they called them after their own names and occurrences.
33. And these are the names of the cities which the children of Ashur
built, Ninevah, Resen, Calach and Rehobother; and the children of
Ashur dwell there unto this day.
34. And the children of Aram also went and built themselves a city, and
they called the name of the city Uz after their eldest brother, and
they dwell therein; that is the land of Uz to this day.
35. And in the second year after the tower a man from the house of
Ashur, whose name was Bela, went from the land of Ninevah to
sojourn with his household wherever he could find a place; and they
came until opposite the cities of the plain against Sodom, and they
dwelt there.
36. And the man rose up and built there a small city, and called its
name Bela, after his name; that is the land of Zoar unto this day.
37. And these are the families of the children of Shem according to
their language and cities, after they were scattered upon the earth
after the tower.
38. And every kingdom, city, and family of the families of the children
of Noah built themselves many cities after this.
39. And they established governments in all their cities, in order to
be regulated by their orders; so did all the families of the
children of Noah forever.

Book of Jasher 11

1. And Nimrod son of Cush was still in the land of Shinar, and he
reigned over it and dwelt there, and he built cities in the land of
Shinar.
2. And these are the names of the four cities which he built, and he
called their names after the occurrences that happened to them in
the building of the tower.
3. And he called the first Babel, saying, Because the Lord there
confounded the language of the whole earth; and the name of the
second he called Erech, because from there God dispersed them.
4. And the third he called Eched, saying there was a great battle at
that place; and the fourth he called Calnah, because his princes
and mighty men were consumed there, and they vexed the Lord, they
rebelled and transgressed against him.
5. And when Nimrod had built these cities in the land of Shinar, he
placed in them the remainder of his people, his princes and his
mighty men that were left in his kingdom.
6. And Nimrod dwelt in Babel, and he there renewed his reign over the
rest of his subjects, and he reigned securely, and the subjects and
princes of Nimrod called his name Amraphel, saying that at the
tower his princes and men fell through his means.
7. And notwithstanding this, Nimrod did not return to the Lord, and he
continued in wickedness and teaching wickedness to the sons of men;
and Mardon, his son, was worse than his father, and continued to
add to the abominations of his father.
8. And he caused the sons of men to sin, therefore it is said, From
the wicked goeth forth wickedness.
9. At that time there was war between the families of the children of
Ham, as they were dwelling in the cities which they had built.
10. And Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, went away from the families of the
children of Ham, and he fought with them and he subdued them, and
he went to the five cities of the plain and he fought against them
and he subdued them, and they were under his control.
11. And they served him twelve years, and they gave him a yearly tax.
12. At that time died Nahor, son of Serug, in the forty-ninth year of
the life of Abram son of Terah.
13. And in the fiftieth year of the life of Abram son of Terah, Abram
came forth from the house of Noah, and went to his father’s house.
14. And Abram knew the Lord, and he went in his ways and instructions,
and the Lord his God was with him.
15. And Terah his father was in those days, still captain of the host
of king Nimrod, and he still followed strange gods.
16. And Abram came to his father’s house and saw twelve gods standing
there in their temples, and the anger of Abram was kindled when he
saw these images in his father’s house.
17. And Abram said, As the Lord liveth these images shall not remain in
my father’s house; so shall the Lord who created me do unto me if
in three days’ time I do not break them all.
18. And Abram went from them, and his anger burned within him. And
Abram hastened and went from the chamber to his father’s outer
court, and he found his father sitting in the court, and all his
servants with him, and Abram came and sat before him.
19. And Abram asked his father, saying, Father, tell me where is God
who created heaven and earth, and all the sons of men upon earth,
and who created thee and me. And Terah answered his son Abram and
said, Behold those who created us are all with us in the house.
20. And Abram said to his father, My lord, shew them to me I pray thee;
and Terah brought Abram into the chamber of the inner court, and
Abram saw, and behold the whole room was full of gods of wood and
stone, twelve great images and others less than they without
number.
21. And Terah said to his son, Behold these are they which made all
thou seest upon earth, and which created me and thee, and all
mankind.
22. And Terah bowed down to his gods, and he then went away from them,
and Abram, his son, went away with him.
23. And when Abram had gone from them he went to his mother and sat
before her, and he said to his mother, Behold, my father has shown
me those who made heaven and earth, and all the sons of men.
24. Now, therefore, hasten and fetch a kid from the flock, and make of
it savory meat, that I may bring it to my father’s gods as an
offering for them to eat; perhaps I may thereby become acceptable
to them.
25. And his mother did so, and she fetched a kid, and made savory meat
thereof, and brought it to Abram, and Abram took the savory meat
from his mother and brought it before his father’s gods, and he
drew nigh to them that they might eat; and Terah his father, did
not know of it.
26. And Abram saw on the day when he was sitting amongst them, that
they had no voice, no hearing, no motion, and not one of them could
stretch forth his hand to eat.
27. And Abram mocked them, and said, Surely the savory meat that I
prepared has not pleased them, or perhaps it was too little for
them, and for that reason they would not eat; therefore tomorrow I
will prepare fresh savory meat, better and more plentiful than
this, in order that I may see the result.
28. And it was on the next day that Abram directed his mother
concerning the savory meat, and his mother rose and fetched three
fine kids from the flock, and she made of them some excellent
savory meat, such as her son was fond of, and she gave it to her
son Abram; and Terah his father did not know of it.
29. And Abram took the savory meat from his mother, and brought it
before his father’s gods into the chamber; and he came nigh unto
them that they might eat, and he placed it before them, and Abram
sat before them all day, thinking perhaps they might eat.
30. And Abram viewed them, and behold they had neither voice nor
hearing, nor did one of them stretch forth his hand to the meat to
eat.
31. And in the evening of that day in that house Abram was clothed with
the spirit of God.
32. And he called out and said, Wo unto my father and this wicked
generation, whose hearts are all inclined to vanity, who serve
these idols of wood and stone which can neither eat, smell, hear
nor speak, who have mouths without speech, eyes without sight, ears
without hearing, hands without feeling, and legs which cannot move;
like them are those that made them and that trust in them.
33. And when Abram saw all these things his anger was kindled against
his father, and he hastened and took a hatchet in his hand, and
came unto the chamber of the gods, and he broke all his father’s
gods.
34. And when he had done breaking the images, he placed the hatchet in
the hand of the great god which was there before them, and he went
out; and Terah his father came home, for he had heard at the door
the sound of the striking of the hatchet; so Terah came into the
house to know what this was about.
35. And Terah, having heard the noise of the hatchet in the room of
images, ran to the room to the images, and he met Abram going out.
36. And Terah entered the room and found all the idols fallen down and
broken, and the hatchet in the hand of the largest, which was not
broken, and the savory meat which Abram his son had made was still
before them.
37. And when Terah saw this his anger was greatly kindled, and he
hastened and went from the room to Abram.
38. And he found Abram his son still sitting in the house; and he said
to him, What is this work thou hast done to my gods?
39. And Abram answered Terah his father and he said, Not so my lord,
for I brought savory meat before them, and when I came nigh to them
with the meat that they might eat, they all at once stretched forth
their hands to eat before the great one had put forth his hand to
eat.
40. And the large one saw their works that they did before him, and his
anger was violently kindled against them, and he went and took the
hatchet that was in the house and came to them and broke them all,
and behold the hatchet is yet in his hand as thou seest.
41. And Terah’s anger was kindled against his son Abram, when he spoke
this; and Terah said to Abram his son in his anger, What is this
tale that thou hast told? Thou speakest lies to me.
42. Is there in these gods spirit, soul or power to do all thou hast
told me? Are they not wood and stone, and have I not myself made
them, and canst thou speak such lies, saying that the large god
that was with them smote them? It is thou that didst place the
hatchet in his hands, and then sayest he smote them all.
43. And Abram answered his father and said to him, And how canst thou
then serve these idols in whom there is no power to do any thing?
Can those idols in which thou trustest deliver thee? can they hear
thy prayers when thou callest upon them? can they deliver thee from
the hands of thy enemies, or will they fight thy battles for thee
against thy enemies, that thou shouldst serve wood and stone which
can neither speak nor hear?
44. And now surely it is not good for thee nor for the sons of men that
are connected with thee, to do these things; are you so silly, so
foolish or so short of understanding that you will serve wood and
stone, and do after this manner?
45. And forget the Lord God who made heaven and earth, and who created
you in the earth, and thereby bring a great evil upon your souls in
this matter by serving stone and wood?
46. Did not our fathers in days of old sin in this matter, and the Lord
God of the universe brought the waters of the flood upon them and
destroyed the whole earth?
47. And how can you continue to do this and serve gods of wood and
stone, who cannot hear, or speak, or deliver you from oppression,
thereby bringing down the anger of the God of the universe upon
you?
48. Now therefore my father refrain from this, and bring not evil upon
thy soul and the souls of thy household.
49. And Abram hastened and sprang from before his father, and took the
hatchet from his father’s largest idol, with which Abram broke it
and ran away.
50. And Terah, seeing all that Abram had done, hastened to go from his
house, and he went to the king and he came before Nimrod and stood
before him, and he bowed down to the king; and the king said, What
dost thou want?
51. And he said, I beseech thee my lord, to hear me–Now fifty years
back a child was born to me, and thus has he done to my gods and
thus has he spoken; and now therefore, my lord and king, send for
him that he may come before thee, and judge him according to the
law, that we may be delivered from his evil.
52. And the king sent three men of his servants, and they went and
brought Abram before the king. And Nimrod and all his princes and
servants were that day sitting before him, and Terah sat also
before them.
53. And the king said to Abram, What is this that thou hast done to thy
father and to his gods? And Abram answered the king in the words
that he spoke to his father, and he said, The large god that was
with them in the house did to them what thou hast heard.
54. And the king said to Abram, Had they power to speak and eat and do
as thou hast said? And Abram answered the king, saying, And if
there be no power in them why dost thou serve them and cause the
sons of men to err through thy follies?
55. Dost thou imagine that they can deliver thee or do anything small
or great, that thou shouldst serve them? And why wilt thou not
sense the God of the whole universe, who created thee and in whose
power it is to kill and keep alive?
56. foolish, simple, and ignorant king, woe unto thee forever.
57. I thought thou wouldst teach thy servants the upright way, but thou
hast not done this, but hast filled the whole earth with thy sins
and the sins of thy people who have followed thy ways.
58. Dost thou not know, or hast thou not heard, that this evil which
thou doest, our ancestors sinned therein in days of old, and the
eternal God brought the waters of the flood upon them and destroyed
them all, and also destroyed the whole earth on their account? And
wilt thou and thy people rise up now and do like unto this work, in
order to bring down the anger of the Lord God of the universe, and
to bring evil upon thee and the whole earth?
59. Now therefore put away this evil deed which thou doest, and serve
the God of the universe, as thy soul is in his hands, and then it
will be well with thee.
60. And if thy wicked heart will not hearken to my words to cause thee
to forsake thy evil ways, and to serve the eternal God, then wilt
thou die in shame in the latter days, thou, thy people and all who
are connected with thee, hearing thy words or walking in thy evil
ways.
61. And when Abram had ceased speaking before the king and princes,
Abram lifted up his eyes to the heavens, and he said, The Lord
seeth all the wicked, and he will judge them.

Book of Jasher 12

1. And when the king heard the words of Abram he ordered him to be put
into prison; and Abram was ten days in prison.
2. And at the end of those days the king ordered that all the kings,
princes and governors of different provinces and the sages should
come before him, and they sat before him, and Abram was still in
the house of confinement.
3. And the king said to the princes and sages, Have you heard what
Abram, the son of Terah, has done to his father? Thus has he done
to him, and I ordered him to be brought before me, and thus has he
spoken; his heart did not misgive him, neither did he stir in my
presence, and behold now he is confined in the prison.
4. And therefore decide what judgment is due to this man who reviled
the king; who spoke and did all the things that you heard.
5. And they all answered the king saying, The man who revileth the
king should be hanged upon a tree; but having done all the things
that he said, and having despised our gods, he must therefore be
burned to death, for this is the law in this matter.
6. If it pleaseth the king to do this, let him order his servants to
kindle a fire both night and day in thy brick furnace, and then we
will cast this man into it. And the king did so, and he commanded
his servants that they should prepare a fire for three days and
three nights in the king’s furnace, that is in Casdim; and the king
ordered them to take Abram from prison and bring him out to be
burned.
7. And all the king’s servants, princes, lords, governors, and judges,
and all the inhabitants of the land, about nine hundred thousand
men, stood opposite the furnace to see Abram.
8. And all the women and little ones crowded upon the roofs and towers
to see what was doing with Abram, and they all stood together at a
distance; and there was not a man left that did not come on that
day to behold the scene.
9. And when Abram was come, the conjurors of the king and the sages
saw Abram, and they cried out to the king, saying, Our sovereign
lord, surely this is the man whom we know to have been the child at
whose birth the great star swallowed the four stars, which we
declared to the king now fifty years since.
10. And behold now his father has also transgressed thy commands, and
mocked thee by bringing thee another child, which thou didst kill.
11. And when the king heard their words, he was exceedingly wroth, and
he ordered Terah to be brought before him.
12. And the king said, Hast thou heard what the conjurors have spoken?
Now tell me truly, how didst thou; and if thou shalt speak truth
thou shalt be acquitted.
13. And seeing that the king’s anger was so much kindled, Terah said to
the king, My lord and king, thou hast heard the truth, and what the
sages have spoken is right. And the king said, How couldst thou do
this thing, to transgress my orders and to give me a child that
thou didst not beget, and to take value for him?
14. And Terah answered the king, Because my tender feelings were
excited for my son, at that time, and I took a son of my handmaid,
and I brought him to the king.
15. And the king said Who advised thee to this? Tell me, do not hide
aught from me, and then thou shalt not die.
16. And Terah was greatly terrified in the king’s presence, and he said
to the king, It was Haran my eldest son who advised me to this; and
Haran was in those days that Abram was born, two and thirty years
old.
17. But Haran did not advise his father to anything, for Terah said
this to the king in order to deliver his soul from the king, for he
feared greatly; and the king said to Terah, Haran thy son who
advised thee to this shall die through fire with Abram; for the
sentence of death is upon him for having rebelled against the
king’s desire in doing this thing.
18. And Haran at that time felt inclined to follow the ways of Abram,
but he kept it within himself.
19. And Haran said in his heart, Behold now the king has seized Abram
on account of these things which Abram did, and it shall come to
pass, that if Abram prevail over the king I will follow him, but if
the king prevail I will go after the king.
20. And when Terah had spoken this to the king concerning Haran his
son, the king ordered Haran to be seized with Abram.
21. And they brought them both, Abram and Haran his brother, to cast
them into the fire; and all the inhabitants of the land and the
king’s servants and princes and all the women and little ones were
there, standing that day over them.
22. And the king’s servants took Abram and his brother, and they
stripped them of all their clothes excepting their lower garments
which were upon them.
23. And they bound their hands and feet with linen cords, and the
servants of the king lifted them up and cast them both into the
furnace.
24. And the Lord loved Abram and he had compassion over him, and the
Lord came down and delivered Abram from the fire and he was not
burned.
25. But all the cords with which they bound him were burned, while
Abram remained and walked about in the fire.
26. And Haran died when they had cast him into the fire, and he was
burned to ashes, for his heart was not perfect with the Lord; and
those men who cast him into the fire, the flame of the fire spread
over them, and they were burned, and twelve men of them died.
27. And Abram walked in the midst of the fire three days and three
nights, and all the servants of the king saw him walking in the
fire, and they came and told the king, saying, Behold we have seen
Abram walking about in the midst of the fire, and even the lower
garments which are upon him are not burned, but the cord with which
he was bound is burned.
28. And when the king heard their words his heart fainted and he would
not believe them; so he sent other faithful princes to see this
matter, and they went and saw it and told it to the king; and the
king rose to go and see it, and he saw Abram walking to and fro in
the midst of the fire, and he saw Haran’s body burned, and the king
wondered greatly.
29. And the king ordered Abram to be taken out from the fire; and his
servants approached to take him out and they could not, for the
fire was round about and the flame ascending toward them from the
furnace.
30. And the king’s servants fled from it, and the king rebuked them,
saying, Make haste and bring Abram out of the fire that you shall
not die.
31. And the servants of the king again approached to bring Abram out,
and the flames came upon them and burned their faces so that eight
of them died.
32. And when the king saw that his servants could not approach the fire
lest they should be burned, the king called to Abram, O servant of
the God who is in heaven, go forth from amidst the fire and come
hither before me; and Abram hearkened to the voice of the king, and
he went forth from the fire and came and stood before the king.
33. And when Abram came out the king and all his servants saw Abram
coming before the king, with his lower garments upon him, for they
were not burned, but the cord with which he was bound was burned.
34. And the king said to Abram, How is it that thou wast not burned in
the fire?
35. And Abram said to the king, The God of heaven and earth in whom I
trust and who has all in his power, he delivered me from the fire
into which thou didst cast me.
36. And Haran the brother of Abram was burned to ashes, and they sought
for his body, and they found it consumed.
37. And Haran was eighty-two years old when he died in the fire of
Casdim. And the king, princes, and inhabitants of the land, seeing
that Abram was delivered from the fire, they came and bowed down to
Abram.
38. And Abram said to them, Do not bow down to me, but bow down to the
God of the world who made you, and serve him, and go in his ways
for it is he who delivered me from out of this fire, and it is he
who created the souls and spirits of all men, and formed man in his
mother’s womb, and brought him forth into the world, and it is he
who will deliver those who trust in him from all pain.
39. And this thing seemed very wonderful in the eyes of the king and
princes, that Abram was saved from the fire and that Haran was
burned; and the king gave Abram many presents and he gave him his
two head servants from the king’s house; the name of one was Oni
and the name of the other was Eliezer.
40. And all the kings, princes and servants gave Abram many gifts of
silver and gold and pearl, and the king and his princes sent him
away, and he went in peace.
41. And Abram went forth from the king in peace, and many of the king’s
servants followed him, and about three hundred men joined him.
42. And Abram returned on that day and went to his father’s house, he
and the men that followed him, and Abram served the Lord his God
all the days of his life, and he walked in his ways and followed
his law.
43. And from that day forward Abram inclined the hearts of the sons of
men to serve the Lord.
44. And at that time Nahor and Abram took unto themselves wives, the
daughters of their brother Haran; the wife of Nahor was Milca and
the name of Abram’s wife was Sarai. And Sarai, wife of Abram, was
barren; she had no offspring in those days.
45. And at the expiration of two years from Abram’s going out of the
fire, that is in the fifty-second year of his life, behold king
Nimrod sat in Babel upon the throne, and the king fell asleep and
dreamed that he was standing with his troops and hosts in a valley
opposite the king’s furnace.
46. And he lifted up his eyes and saw a man in the likeness of Abram
coming forth from the furnace, and that he came and stood before
the king with his drawn sword, and then sprang to the king with his
sword, when the king fled from the man, for he was afraid; and
while he was running, the man threw an egg upon the king’s head,
and the egg became a great river.
47. And the king dreamed that all his troops sank in that river and
died, and the king took flight with three men who were before him
and he escaped.
48. And the king looked at these men and they were clothed in princely
dresses as the garments of kings, and had the appearance and
majesty of kings.
49. And while they were running, the river again turned to an egg
before the king, and there came forth from the egg a young bird
which came before the king, and flew at his head and plucked out
the king’s eye.
50. And the king was grieved at the sight, and he awoke out of his
sleep and his spirit was agitated; and he felt a great terror.
51. And in the morning the king rose from his couch in fear, and he
ordered all the wise men and magicians to come before him, when the
king related his dream to them.
52. And a wise servant of the king, whose name was Anuki, answered the
king, saying, This is nothing else but the evil of Abram and his
seed which will spring up against my Lord and king in the latter
days.
53. And behold the day will come when Abram and his seed and the
children of his household will war with my king, and they will
smite all the king’s hosts and his troops.
54. And as to what thou hast said concerning three men which thou didst
see like unto thyself, and which did escape, this means that only
thou wilt escape with three kings from the kings of the earth who
will be with thee in battle.
55. And that which thou sawest of the river which turned to an egg as
at first, and the young bird plucking out thine eye, this means
nothing else but the seed of Abram which will slay the king in
latter days.
56. This is my king’s dream, and this is its interpretation, and the
dream is true, and the interpretation which thy servant has given
thee is right.
57. Now therefore my king, surely thou knowest that it is now fifty-two
years since thy sages saw this at the birth of Abram, and if my
king will suffer Abram to live in the earth it will be to the
injury of my lord and king, for all the days that Abram liveth
neither thou nor thy kingdom will be established, for this was
known formerly at his birth; and why will not my king slay him,
that his evil may be kept from thee in latter days?
58. And Nimrod hearkened to the voice of Anuki, and he sent some of his
servants in secret to go and seize Abram, and bring him before the
king to suffer death.
59. And Eliezer, Abram’s servant whom the king had given him, was at
that time in the presence of the king, and he heard what Anuki had
advised the king, and what the king had said to cause Abram’s
death.
60. And Eliezer said to Abram, Hasten, rise up and save thy soul, that
thou mayest not die through the hands of the king, for thus did he
see in a dream concerning thee, and thus did Anuki interpret it,
and thus also did Anuki advise the king concerning thee.
61. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Eliezer, and Abram hastened and
ran for safety to the house of Noah and his son Shem, and he
concealed himself there and found a place of safety; and the king’s
servants came to Abram’s house to seek him, but they could not find
him, and they searched through out the country and he was not to be
found, and they went and searched in every direction and he was not
to be met with.
62. And when the king’s servants could not find Abram they returned to
the king, but the king’s anger against Abram was stilled, as they
did not find him, and the king drove from his mind this matter
concerning Abram.
63. And Abram was concealed in Noah’s house for one month, until the
king had forgotten this matter, but Abram was still afraid of the
king; and Terah came to see Abram his son secretly in the house of
Noah, and Terah was very great in the eyes of the king.
64. And Abram said to his father, Dost thou not know that the king
thinketh to slay me, and to annihilate my name from the earth by
the advice of his wicked counsellors?
65. Now whom hast thou here and what hast thou in this land? Arise, let
us go together to the land of Canaan, that we may be delivered from
his hand, lest thou perish also through him in the latter days.
66. Dost thou not know or hast thou not heard, that it is not through
love that Nimrod giveth thee all this honor, but it is only for his
benefit that he bestoweth all this good upon thee?
67. And if he do unto thee greater good than this, surely these are
only vanities of the world, for wealth and riches cannot avail in
the day of wrath and anger.
68. Now therefore hearken to my voice, and let us arise and go to the
land of Canaan, out of the reach of injury from Nimrod; and serve
thou the Lord who created thee in the earth and it will be well
with thee; and cast away all the vain things which thou pursuest.
69. And Abram ceased to speak, when Noah and his son Shem answered
Terah, saying, True is the word which Abram hath said unto thee.
70. And Terah hearkened to the voice of his son Abram, and Terah did
all that Abram said, for this was from the Lord, that the king
should not cause Abram’s death.

Book of Jasher 13

1. And Terah took his son Abram and his grandson Lot, the son of
Haran, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, the wife of his son Abram,
and all the souls of his household and went with them from Ur
Casdim to go to the land of Canaan. And when they came as far as
the land of Haran they remained there, for it was exceedingly good
land for pasture, and of sufficient extent for those who
accompanied them.
2. And the people of the land of Haran saw that Abram was good and
upright with God and men, and that the Lord his God was with him,
and some of the people of the land of Haran came and joined Abram,
and he taught them the instruction of the Lord and his ways; and
these men remained with Abram in his house and they adhered to him.
3. And Abram remained in the land three years, and at the expiration
of three years the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him; I am the
Lord who brought thee forth from Ur Casdim, and delivered thee from
the hands of all thine enemies.
4. And now therefore if thou wilt hearken to my voice and keep my
commandments, my statutes and my laws, then will I cause thy
enemies to fall before thee, and I will multiply thy seed like the
stars of heaven, and I will send my blessing upon all the works of
thy hands, and thou shalt lack nothing.
5. Arise now, take thy wife and all belonging to thee and go to the
land of Canaan and remain there, and I will there be unto thee for
a God, and I will bless thee. And Abram rose and took his wife and
all belonging to him, and he went to the land of Canaan as the Lord
had told him; and Abram was fifty years old when he went from
Haran.
6. And Abram came to the land of Canaan and dwelt in the midst of the
city, and he there pitched his tent amongst the children of Canaan,
inhabitants of the land.
7. And the Lord appeared to Abram when he came to the land of Canaan,
and said to him, This is the land which I gave unto thee and to thy
seed after thee forever, and I will make thy seed like the stars of
heaven, and I will give unto thy seed for an inheritance all the
lands which thou seest.
8. And Abram built an altar in the place where God had spoken to him,
and Abram there called upon the name of the Lord.
9. At that time, at the end of three years of Abram’s dwelling in the
land of Canaan, in that year Noah died, which was the fifty-eighth
year of the life of Abram; and all the days that Noah lived were
nine hundred and fifty years and he died.
10. And Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, he, his wife, and all
belonging to him, and all those that accompanied him, together with
those that joined him from the people of the land; but Nahor,
Abram’s brother, and Terah his father, and Lot the son of Haran and
all belonging to them dwelt in Haran.
11. In the fifth year of Abram’s dwelling in the land of Canaan the
people of Sodom and Gomorrah and all the cities of the plain
revolted from the power of Chedorlaomer, king of Elam; for all the
kings of the cities of the plain had served Chedorlaomer for twelve
years, and given him a yearly tax, but in those days in the
thirteenth year, they rebelled against him.
12. And in the tenth year of Abram’s dwelling in the land of Canaan
there was war between Nimrod king of Shinar and Chedorlaomer king
of Elam, and Nimrod came to fight with Chedorlaomer and to subdue
him.
13. For Chedorlaomer was at that time one of the princes of the hosts
of Nimrod, and when all the people at the tower were dispersed and
those that remained were also scattered upon the face of the earth,
Chedorlaomer went to the land of Elam and reigned over it and
rebelled against his lord.
14. And in those days when Nimrod saw that the cities of the plain had
rebelled, he came with pride and anger to war with Chedorlaomer,
and Nimrod assembled all his princes and subjects, about seven
hundred thousand men, and went against Chedorlaomer, and
Chedorlaomer went out to meet him with five thousand men, and they
prepared for battle in the valley of Babel which is between Elam
and Shinar.
15. And all those kings fought there, and Nimrod and his people were
smitten before the people of Chedorlaomer, and there fell from
Nimrod’s men about six hundred thousand, and Mardon the king’s son
fell amongst them.
16. And Nimrod fled and returned in shame and disgrace to his land, and
he was under subjection to Chedorlaomer for a long time, and
Chedorlaomer returned to his land and sent princes of his host to
the kings that dwelt around him, to Arioch king of Elasar, and to
Tidal king of Goyim, and made a covenant with them, and they were
all obedient to his commands.
17. And it was in the fifteenth year of Abram’s dwelling in the land of
Canaan, which is the seventieth year of the life of Abram, and the
Lord appeared to Abram in that year and he said to him, I am the
Lord who brought thee out from Ur Casdim to give thee this land for
an inheritance.
18. Now therefore walk before me and be perfect and keep my commands,
for to thee and to thy seed I will give this land for an
inheritance, from the river Mitzraim unto the great river
Euphrates.
19. And thou shalt come to thy fathers in peace and in good age, and
the fourth generation shall return here in this land and shall
inherit it forever; and Abram built an altar, and he called upon
the name of the Lord who appeared to him, and he brought up
sacrifices upon the altar to the Lord.
20. At that time Abram returned and went to Haran to see his father and
mother, and his father’s household, and Abram and his wife and all
belonging to him returned to Haran, and Abram dwelt in Haran five
years.
21. And many of the people of Haran, about seventy-two men, followed
Abram and Abram taught them the instruction of the Lord and his
ways, and he taught them to know the Lord.
22. In those days the Lord appeared to Abram in Haran, and he said to
him, Behold, I spoke unto thee these twenty years back saying,
23. Go forth from thy land, from thy birth-place and from thy father’s
house, to the land which I have shown thee to give it to thee and
to thy children, for there in that land will I bless thee, and make
thee a great nation, and make thy name great, and in thee shall the
families of the earth be blessed.
24. Now therefore arise, go forth from this place, thou, thy wife, and
all belonging to thee, also every one born in thy house and all the
souls thou hast made in Haran, and bring them out with thee from
here, and rise to return to the land of Canaan.
25. And Abram arose and took his wife Sarai and all belonging to him
and all that were born to him in his house and the souls which they
had made in Haran, and they came out to go to the land of Canaan.
26. And Abram went and returned to the land of Canaan, according to the
word of the Lord. And Lot the son of his brother Haran went with
him, and Abram was seventy-five years old when he went forth from
Haran to return to the land of Canaan.
27. And he came to the land of Canaan according to the word of the Lord
to Abram, and he pitched his tent and he dwelt in the plain of
Mamre, and with him was Lot his brother’s son, and all belonging to
him.
28. And the Lord again appeared to Abram and said, To thy seed will I
give this land; and he there built an altar to the Lord who
appeared to him, which is still to this day in the plains of Mamre.

Book of Jasher 14

1. In those days there was in the land of Shinar a wise man who had
understanding in all wisdom, and of a beautiful appearance, but he
was poor and indigent; his name was Rikayon and he was hard set to
support himself.
2. And he resolved to go to Egypt, to Oswiris the son of Anom king of
Egypt, to show the king his wisdom; for perhaps he might find grace
in his sight, to raise him up and give him maintenance; and Rikayon
did so.
3. And when Rikayon came to Egypt he asked the inhabitants of Egypt
concerning the king, and the inhabitants of Egypt told him the
custom of the king of Egypt, for it was then the custom of the king
of Egypt that he went from his royal palace and was seen abroad
only one day in the year, and after that the king would return to
his palace to remain there.
4. And on the day when the king went forth he passed judgment in the
land, and every one having a suit came before the king that day to
obtain his request.
5. And when Rikayon heard of the custom in Egypt and that he could not
come into the presence of the king, he grieved greatly and was very
sorrowful.
6. And in the evening Rikayon went out and found a house in ruins,
formerly a bake house in Egypt, and he abode there all night in
bitterness of soul and pinched with hunger, and sleep was removed
from his eyes.
7. And Rikayon considered within himself what he should do in the town
until the king made his appearance, and how he might maintain
himself there.
8. And he rose in the morning and walked about, and met in his way
those who sold vegetables and various sorts of seed with which they
supplied the inhabitants.
9. And Rikayon wished to do the same in order to get a maintenance in
the city, but he was unacquainted with the custom of the people,
and he was like a blind man among them.
10. And he went and obtained vegetables to sell them for his support,
and the rabble assembled about him and ridiculed him, and took his
vegetables from him and left him nothing.
11. And he rose up from there in bitterness of soul, and went sighing
to the bake house in which he had remained all the night before,
and he slept there the second night.
12. And on that night again he reasoned within himself how he could
save himself from starvation, and he devised a scheme how to act.
13. And he rose up in the morning and acted ingeniously, and went and
hired thirty strong men of the rabble, carrying their war
instruments in their hands, and he led them to the top of the
Egyptian sepulchre, and he placed them there.
14. And he commanded them, saying, Thus saith the king, Strengthen
yourselves and be valiant men, and let no man be buried here until
two hundred pieces of silver be given, and then he may be buried;
and those men did according to the order of Rikayon to the people
of Egypt the whole of that year.
15. And in eight months time Rikayon and his men gathered great riches
of silver and gold, and Rikayon took a great quantity of horses and
other animals, and he hired more men, and he gave them horses and
they remained with him.
16. And when the year came round, at the time the king went forth into
the town, all the inhabitants of Egypt assembled together to speak
to him concerning the work of Rikayon and his men.
17. And the king went forth on the appointed day, and all the Egyptians
came before him and cried unto him, saying,
18. May the king live forever. What is this thing thou doest in the
town to thy servants, not to suffer a dead body to be buried until
so much silver and gold be given? Was there ever the like unto this
done in the whole earth, from the days of former kings yea even
from the days of Adam, unto this day, that the dead should not be
buried only for a set price?
19. We know it to be the custom of kings to take a yearly tax from the
living, but thou dost not only do this, but from the dead also thou
exactest a tax day by day.
20. Now, O king, we can no more bear this, for the whole city is ruined
on this account, and dost thou not know it?
21. And when the king heard all that they had spoken he was very wroth,
and his anger burned within him at this affair, for he had known
nothing of it.
22. And the king said, Who and where is he that dares to do this wicked
thing in my land without my command? Surely you will tell me.
23. And they told him all the works of Rikayon and his men, and the
king’s anger was aroused, and he ordered Rikayon and his men to be
brought before him.
24. And Rikayon took about a thousand children, sons and daughters, and
clothed them in silk and embroidery, and he set them upon horses
and sent them to the king by means of his men, and he also took a
great quantity of silver and gold and precious stones, and a strong
and beautiful horse, as a present for the king, with which he came
before the king and bowed down to the earth before him; and the
king, his servants and all the inhabitants of Egypt wondered at the
work of Rikayon, and they saw his riches and the present that he
had brought to the king.
25. And it greatly pleased the king and he wondered at it; and when
Rikayon sat before him the king asked him concerning all his works,
and Rikayon spoke all his words wisely before the king, his
servants and all the inhabitants of Egypt.
26. And when the king heard the words of Rikayon and his wisdom,
Rikayon found grace in his sight, and he met with grace and
kindness from all the servants of the king and from all the
inhabitants of Egypt, on account of his wisdom and excellent
speeches, and from that time they loved him exceedingly.
27. And the king answered and said to Rikayon, Thy name shall no more
be called Rikayon but Pharaoh shall be thy name, since thou didst
exact a tax from the dead; and he called his name Pharaoh.
28. And the king and his subjects loved Rikayon for his wisdom, and
they consulted with all the inhabitants of Egypt to make him
prefect under the king.
29. And all the inhabitants of Egypt and its wise men did so, and it
was made a law in Egypt.
30. And they made Rikayon Pharaoh prefect under Oswiris king of Egypt,
and Rikayon Pharaoh governed over Egypt, daily administering
justice to the whole city, but Oswiris the king would judge the
people of the land one day in the year, when he went out to make
his appearance.
31. And Rikayon Pharaoh cunningly usurped the government of Egypt, and
he exacted a tax from all the inhabitants of Egypt.
32. And all the inhabitants of Egypt greatly loved Rikayon Pharaoh, and
they made a decree to call every king that should reign over them
and their seed in Egypt, Pharaoh.
33. Therefore all the kings that reigned in Egypt from that time
forward were called Pharaoh unto this day.

Book of Jasher 15

1. And in that year there was a heavy famine throughout the land of
Canaan, and the inhabitants of the land could not remain on account
of the famine for it was very grievous.
2. And Abram and all belonging to him rose and went down to Egypt on
account of the famine, and when they were at the brook Mitzraim
they remained there some time to rest from the fatigue of the road.
3. And Abram and Sarai were walking at the border of the brook
Mitzraim, and Abram beheld his wife Sarai that she was very
beautiful.
4. And Abram said to his wife Sarai, Since God has created thee with
such a beautiful countenance, I am afraid of the Egyptians lest
they should slay me and take thee away, for the fear of God is not
in these places.
5. Surely then thou shalt do this, Say thou art my sister to all that
may ask thee, in order that it may be well with me, and that we may
live and not be put to death.
6. And Abram commanded the same to all those that came with him to
Egypt on account of the famine; also his nephew Lot he commanded,
saying, If the Egyptians ask thee concerning Sarai say she is the
sister of Abram.
7. And yet with all these orders Abram did not put confidence in them,
but he took Sarai and placed her in a chest and concealed it
amongst their vessels, for Abram was greatly concerned about Sarai
on account of the wickedness of the Egyptians.
8. And Abram and all belonging to him rose up from the brook Mitzraim
and came to Egypt; and they had scarcely entered the gates of the
city when the guards stood up to them saying, Give tithe to the
king from what you have, and then you may come into the town; and
Abram and those that were with him did so.
9. And Abram with the people that were with him came to Egypt, and
when they came they brought the chest in which Sarai was concealed
and the Egyptians saw the chest.
10. And the king’s servants approached Abram, saying, What hast thou
here in this chest which we have not seen? Now open thou the chest
and give tithe to the king of all that it contains.
11. And Abram said, This chest I will not open, but all you demand upon
it I will give. And Pharaoh’s officers answered Abram, saying, It
is a chest of precious stones, give us the tenth thereof.
12. Abram said, All that you desire I will give, but you must not open
the chest.
13. And the king’s officers pressed Abram, and they reached the chest
and opened it with force, and they saw, and behold a beautiful
woman was in the chest.
14. And when the officers of the king beheld Sarai they were struck
with admiration at her beauty, and all the princes and servants of
Pharaoh assembled to see Sarai, for she was very beautiful. And the
king’s officers ran and told Pharaoh all that they had seen, and
they praised Sarai to the king; and Pharaoh ordered her to be
brought, and the woman came before the king.
15. And Pharaoh beheld Sarai and she pleased him exceedingly, and he
was struck with her beauty, and the king rejoiced greatly on her
account, and made presents to those who brought him the tidings
concerning her.
16. And the woman was then brought to Pharaoh’s house, and Abram
grieved on account of his wife, and he prayed to the Lord to
deliver her from the hands of Pharaoh.
17. And Sarai also prayed at that time and said, O Lord God thou didst
tell my Lord Abram to go from his land and from his father’s house
to the land of Canaan, and thou didst promise to do well with him
if he would perform thy commands; now behold we have done that
which thou didst command us, and we left our land and our families,
and we went to a strange land and to a people whom we have not
known before.
18. And we came to this land to avoid the famine, and this evil
accident has befallen me; now therefore, O Lord God, deliver us and
save us from the hand of this oppressor, and do well with me for
the sake of thy mercy.
19. And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Sarai, and the Lord sent an
angel to deliver Sarai from the power of Pharaoh.
20. And the king came and sat before Sarai and behold an angel of the
Lord was standing over them, and he appeared to Sarai and said to
her, Do not fear, for the Lord has heard thy prayer.
21. And the king approached Sarai and said to her, What is that man to
thee who brought thee hither? and she said, He is my brother.
22. And the king said, It is incumbent upon us to make him great, to
elevate him and to do unto him all the good which thou shalt
command us; and at that time the king sent to Abram silver and gold
and precious stones in abundance, together with cattle, men
servants and maid servants; and the king ordered Abram to be
brought, and he sat in the court of the king’s house, and the king
greatly exalted Abram on that night.
23. And the king approached to speak to Sarai, and he reached out his
hand to touch her, when the angel smote him heavily, and he was
terrified and he refrained from reaching to her.
24. And when the king came near to Sarai, the angel smote him to the
ground, and acted thus to him the whole night, and the king was
terrified.
25. And the angel on that night smote heavily all the servants of the
king, and his whole household, on account of Sarai, and there was a
great lamentation that night amongst the people of Pharaoh’s house.
26. And Pharaoh, seeing the evil that befell him, said, Surely on
account of this woman has this thing happened to me, and he removed
himself at some distance from her and spoke pleasing words to her.
27. And the king said to Sarai, Tell me I pray thee concerning the man
with whom thou camest here; and Sarai said, This man is my husband,
and I said to thee that he was my brother for I was afraid, lest
thou shouldst put him to death through wickedness.
28. And the king kept away from Sarai, and the plagues of the angel of
the Lord ceased from him and his household; and Pharaoh knew that
he was smitten on account of Sarai, and the king was greatly
astonished at this.
29. And in the morning the king called for Abram and said to him, What
is this thou hast done to me? Why didst thou say, She is my sister,
owing to which I took her unto me for a wife, and this heavy plague
has therefore come upon me and my household.
30. Now therefore here is thy wife, take her and go from our land lest
we all die on her account. And Pharaoh took more cattle, men
servants and maid servants, and silver and gold, to give to Abram,
and he returned unto him Sarai his wife.
31. And the king took a maiden whom he begat by his concubines, and he
gave her to Sarai for a handmaid.
32. And the king said to his daughter, It is better for thee my
daughter to be a handmaid in this man’s house than to be mistress
in my house, after we have beheld the evil that befell us on
account of this woman.
33. And Abram arose, and he and all belonging to him went away from
Egypt; and Pharaoh ordered some of his men to accompany him and all
that went with him.
34. And Abram returned to the land of Canaan, to the place where he had
made the altar, where he at first had pitched his tent.
35. And Lot the son of Haran, Abram’s brother, had a heavy stock of
cattle, flocks and herds and tents, for the Lord was bountiful to
them on account of Abram.
36. And when Abram was dwelling in the land the herdsmen of Lot
quarrelled with the herdsmen of Abram, for their property was too
great for them to remain together in the land, and the land could
not bear them on account of their cattle.
37. And when Abram’s herdsmen went to feed their flock they would not
go into the fields of the people of the land, but the cattle of
Lot’s herdsmen did otherwise, for they were suffered to feed in the
fields of the people of the land.
38. And the people of the land saw this occurrence daily, and they came
to Abram and quarrelled with him on account of Lot’s herdsmen.
39. And Abram said to Lot, What is this thou art doing to me, to make
me despicable to the inhabitants of the land, that thou orderest
thy herdsman to feed thy cattle in the fields of other people? Dost
thou not know that I am a stranger in this land amongst the
children of Canaan, and why wilt thou do this unto me?
40. And Abram quarrelled daily with Lot on account of this, but Lot
would not listen to Abram, and he continued to do the same and the
inhabitants of the land came and told Abram.
41. And Abram said unto Lot, How long wilt thou be to me for a
stumbling block with the inhabitants of the land? Now I beseech
thee let there be no more quarrelling between us, for we are
kinsmen.
42. But I pray thee separate from me, go and choose a place where thou
mayest dwell with thy cattle and all belonging to thee, but Keep
thyself at a distance from me, thou and thy household.
43. And be not afraid in going from me, for if any one do an injury to
thee, let me know and I will avenge thy cause from him, only remove
from me.
44. And when Abram had spoken all these words to Lot, then Lot arose
and lifted up his eyes toward the plain of Jordan.
45. And he saw that the whole of this place was well watered, and good
for man as well as affording pasture for the cattle.
46. And Lot went from Abram to that place, and he there pitched his
tent and he dwelt in Sodom, and they were separated from each
other.
47. And Abram dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and he
pitched his tent there, and Abram remained in that place many
years.

Book of Jasher 16

1. At that time Chedorlaomer king of Elam sent to all the neighboring
kings, to Nimrod, king of Shinar who was then under his power, and
to Tidal, king of Goyim, and to Arioch, king of Elasar, with whom
he made a covenant, saying, Come up to me and assist me, that we
may smite all the towns of Sodom and its inhabitants, for they have
rebelled against me these thirteen years.
2. And these four kings went up with all their camps, about eight
hundred thousand men, and they went as they were, and smote every
man they found in their road.
3. And the five kings of Sodom and Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah,
Shemeber king of Zeboyim, Bera king of Sodom, Bersha king of
Gomorrah, and Bela king of Zoar, went out to meet them, and they
all joined together in the valley of Siddim.
4. And these nine kings made war in the valley of Siddim; and the
kings of Sodom and Gomorrah were smitten before the kings of Elam.
5. And the valley of Siddim was full of lime pits and the kings of
Elam pursued the kings of Sodom, and the kings of Sodom with their
camps fled and fell into the lime pits, and all that remained went
to the mountain for safety, and the five kings of Elam came after
them and pursued them to the gates of Sodom, and they took all that
there was in Sodom.
6. And they plundered all the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and they
also took Lot, Abram’s brother’s son, and his property, and they
seized all the goods of the cities of Sodom, and they went away;
and Unic, Abram’s servant, who was in the battle, saw this, and
told Abram all that the kings had done to the cities of Sodom, and
that Lot was taken captive by them.
7. And Abram heard this, and he rose up with about three hundred and
eighteen men that were with him, and he that night pursued these
kings and smote them, and they all fell before Abram and his men,
and there was none remaining but the four kings who fled, and they
went each his own road.
8. And Abram recovered all the property of Sodom, and he also
recovered Lot and his property, his wives and little ones and all
belonging to him, so that Lot lacked nothing.
9. And when he returned from smiting these kings, he and his men
passed the valley of Siddim where the kings had made war together.
10. And Bera king of Sodom, and the rest of his men that were with him,
went out from the lime pits into which they had fallen, to meet
Abram and his men.
11. And Adonizedek king of Jerusalem, the same was Shem, went out with
his men to meet Abram and his people, with bread and wine, and they
remained together in the valley of Melech.
12. And Adonizedek blessed Abram, and Abram gave him a tenth from all
that he had brought from the spoil of his enemies, for Adonizedek
was a priest before God.
13. And all the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah who were there, with their
servants, approached Abram and begged of him to return them their
servants whom he had made captive, and to take unto himself all the
property.
14. And Abram answered the kings of Sodom, saying, As the Lord liveth
who created heaven and earth, and who redeemed my soul from all
affliction, and who delivered me this day from my enemies, and gave
them into my hand, I will not take anything belonging to you, that
you may not boast tomorrow, saying, Abram became rich from our
property that he saved.
15. For the Lord my God in whom I trust said unto me, Thou shalt lack
nothing, for I will bless thee in all the works of thy hands.
16. And now therefore behold, here is all belonging to you, take it and
go; as the Lord liveth I will not take from you from a living soul
down to a shoetie or thread, excepting the expense of the food of
those who went out with me to battle, as also the portions of the
men who went with me, Anar, Ashcol, and Mamre, they and their men,
as well as those also who had remained to watch the baggage, they
shall take their portion of the spoil.
17. And the kings of Sodom gave Abram according to all that he had
said, and they pressed him to take of whatever he chose, but he
would not.
18. And he sent away the kings of Sodom and the remainder of their men,
and he gave them orders about Lot, and they went to their
respective places.
19. And Lot, his brother’s son, he also sent away with his property,
and he went with them, and Lot returned to his home, to Sodom, and
Abram and his people returned to their home to the plains of Mamre,
which is in Hebron.
20. At that time the Lord again appeared to Abram in Hebron, and he
said to him, Do not fear, thy reward is very great before me, for I
will not leave thee, until I shall have multiplied thee, and
blessed thee and made thy seed like the stars in heaven, which
cannot be measured nor numbered.
21. And I will give unto thy seed all these lands that thou seest with
thine eyes, to them will I give them for an inheritance forever,
only be strong and do not fear, walk before me and be perfect.
22. And in the seventy-eighth year of the life of Abram, in that year
died Reu, the son of Peleg, and all the days of Reu were two
hundred and thirty-nine years, and he died.
23. And Sarai, the daughter of Haran, Abram’s wife, was still barren in
those days; she did not bear to Abram either son or daughter.
24. And when she saw that she bare no children she took her handmaid
Hagar, whom Pharaoh had given her, and she gave her to Abram her
husband for a wife.
25. For Hagar learned all the ways of Sarai as Sarai taught her, she
was not in any way deficient in following her good ways.
26. And Sarai said to Abram, Behold here is my handmaid Hagar, go to
her that she may bring forth upon my knees, that I may also obtain
children through her.
27. And at the end of ten years of Abram’s dwelling in the land of
Canaan, which is the eighty-fifth year of Abram’s life, Sarai gave
Hagar unto him.
28. And Abram hearkened to the voice of his wife Sarai, and he took his
handmaid Hagar and Abram came to her and she conceived.
29. And when Hagar saw that she had conceived she rejoiced greatly, and
her mistress was despised in her eyes, and she said within herself,
This can only be that I am better before God than Sarai my
mistress, for all the days that my mistress has been with my lord,
she did not conceive, but me the Lord has caused in so short a time
to conceive by him.
30. And when Sarai saw that Hagar had conceived by Abram, Sarai was
jealous of her handmaid, and Sarai said within herself, This is
surely nothing else but that she must be better than I am.
31. And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee, for at the time
when thou didst pray before the Lord for children why didst thou
not pray on my account, that the Lord should give me seed from
thee?
32. And when I speak to Hagar in thy presence, she despiseth my words,
because she has conceived, and thou wilt say nothing to her; may
the Lord judge between me and thee for what thou hast done to me.
33. And Abram said to Sarai, Behold thy handmaid is in thy hand, do
unto her as it may seem good in thy eyes; and Sarai afflicted her,
and Hagar fled from her to the wilderness.
34. And an angel of the Lord found her in the place where she had fled,
by a well, and he said to her, Do not fear, for I will multiply thy
seed, for thou shalt bear a son and thou shalt call his name
Ishmael; now then return to Sarai thy mistress, and submit thyself
under her hands.
35. And Hagar called the place of that well Beer-lahai-roi, it is
between Kadesh and the wilderness of Bered.
36. And Hagar at that time returned to her master’s house, and at the
end of days Hagar bare a son to Abram, and Abram called his name
Ishmael; and Abram was eighty-six years old when he begat him.

Book of Jasher 17

1. And in those days, in the ninety-first year of the life of Abram,
the children of Chittim made war with the children of Tubal, for
when the Lord had scattered the sons of men upon the face of the
earth, the children of Chittim went and embodied themselves in the
plain of Canopia, and they built themselves cities there and dwelt
by the river Tibreu.
2. And the children of Tubal dwelt in Tuscanah, and their boundaries
reached the river Tibreu, and the children of Tubal built a city in
Tuscanan, and they called the name Sabinah, after the name of
Sabinah son of Tubal their father, and they dwelt there unto this
day.
3. And it was at that time the children of Chittim made war with the
children of Tubal, and the children of Tubal were smitten before
the children of Chittim, and the children of Chittim caused three
hundred and seventy men to fall from the children of Tubal.
4. And at that time the children of Tubal swore to the children of
Chittim, saying, You shall not intermarry amongst us, and no man
shall give his daughter to any of the sons of Chittim.
5. For all the daughters of Tubal were in those days fair, for no
women were then found in the whole earth so fair as the daughters
of Tubal.
6. And all who delighted in the beauty of women went to the daughters
of Tubal and took wives from them, and the sons of men, kings and
princes, who greatly delighted in the beauty of women, took wives
in those days from the daughters of Tubal.
7. And at the end of three years after the children of Tubal had sworn
to the children of Chittim not to give them their daughters for
wives, about twenty men of the children of Chittim went to take
some of the daughters of Tubal, but they found none.
8. For the children of Tubal kept their oaths not to intermarry with
them, and they would not break their oaths.
9. And in the days of harvest the children of Tubal went into their
fields to get in their harvest, when the young men of Chittim
assembled and went to the city of Sabinah, and each man took a
young woman from the daughters of Tubal, and they came to their
cities.
10. And the children of Tubal heard of it and they went to make war
with them, and they could not prevail over them, for the mountain
was exceedingly high from them, and when they saw they could not
prevail over them they returned to their land.
11. And at the revolution of the year the children of Tubal went and
hired about ten thousand men from those cities that were near them,
and they went to war with the children of Chittim.
12. And the children of Tubal went to war with the children of Chittim,
to destroy their land and to distress them, and in this engagement
the children of Tubal prevailed over the children of Chittim, and
the children of Chittim, seeing that they were greatly distressed,
lifted up the children which they had had by the daughters of
Tubal, upon the wall which had been built, to be before the eyes of
the children of Tubal.
13. And the children of Chittim said to them, Have you come to make war
with your own sons and daughters, and have we not been considered
your flesh and bones from that time till now?
14. And when the children of Tubal heard this they ceased to make war
with the children of Chittim, and they went away.
15. And they returned to their cities, and the children of Chittim at
that time assembled and built two cities by the sea, and they
called one Purtu and the other Ariza.
16. And Abram the son of Terah was then ninety-nine years old.
17. At that time the Lord appeared to him and he said to him, I will
make my covenant between me and thee, and I will greatly multiply
thy seed, and this is the covenant which I make between me and
thee, that every male child be circumcised, thou and thy seed after
thee.
18. At eight days old shall it be circumcised, and this covenant shall
be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
19. And now therefore thy name shall no more be called Abram but
Abraham, and thy wife shall no more be called Sarai but Sarah.
20. For I will bless you both, and I will multiply your seed after you
that you shall become a great nation, and kings shall come forth
from you.

Book of Jasher 18

1. And Abraham rose and did all that God had ordered him, and he took
the men of his household and those bought with his money, and he
circumcised them as the Lord had commanded him.
2. And there was not one left whom he did not circumcise, and Abraham
and his son Ishmael were circumcised in the flesh of their
foreskin; thirteen years old was Ishmael when he was circumcised in
the flesh of his foreskin.
3. And in the third day Abraham went out of his tent and sat at the
door to enjoy the heat of the sun, during the pain of his flesh.
4. And the Lord appeared to him in the plain of Mamre, and sent three
of his ministering angels to visit him, and he was sitting at the
door of the tent, and he lifted his eyes and saw, and lo three men
were coming from a distance, and he rose up and ran to meet them,
and he bowed down to them and brought them into his house.
5. And he said to them, If now I have found favor in your sight, turn
in and eat a morsel of bread; and he pressed them, and they turned
in and he gave them water and they washed their feet, and he placed
them under a tree at the door of the tent.
6. And Abraham ran and took a calf, tender and good, and he hastened
to kill it, and gave it to his servant Eliezer to dress.
7. And Abraham came to Sarah into the tent, and he said to her, Make
ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it and make cakes
to cover the pot containing the meat, and she did so.
8. And Abraham hastened and brought before them butter and milk, beef
and mutton, and gave it before them to eat before the flesh of the
calf was sufficiently done, and they did eat.
9. And when they had done eating one of them said to him, I will
return to thee according to the time of life, and Sarah thy wife
shall have a son.
10. And the men afterward departed and went their ways, to the places
to which they were sent.
11. In those days all the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, and of the
whole five cities, were exceedingly wicked and sinful against the
Lord and they provoked the Lord with their abominations, and they
strengthened in aging abominably and scornfully before the Lord,
and their wickedness and crimes were in those days great before the
Lord.
12. And they had in their land a very extensive valley, about half a
day’s walk, and in it there were fountains of water and a great
deal of herbage surrounding the water.
13. And all the people of Sodom and Gomorrah went there four times in
the year, with their wives and children and all belonging to them,
and they rejoiced there with timbrels and dances.
14. And in the time of rejoicing they would all rise and lay hold of
their neighbor’s wives, and some, the virgin daughters of their
neighbors, and they enjoyed them, and each man saw his wife and
daughter in the hands of his neighbor and did not say a word.
15. And they did so from morning to night, and they afterward returned
home each man to his house and each woman to her tent; so they
always did four times in the year.
16. Also when a stranger came into their cities and brought goods which
he had purchased with a view to dispose of there, the people of
these cities would assemble, men, women and children, young and
old, and go to the man and take his goods by force, giving a little
to each man until there was an end to all the goods of the owner
which he had brought into the land.
17. And if the owner of the goods quarreled with them, saying, What is
this work which you have done to me, then they would approach to
him one by one, and each would show him the little which he took
and taunt him, saying, I only took that little which thou didst
give me; and when he heard this from them all, he would arise and
go from them in sorrow and bitterness of soul, when they would all
arise and go after him, and drive him out of the city with great
noise and tumult.
18. And there was a man from the country of Elam who was leisurely
going on the road, seated upon his ass, which carried a fine mantle
of divers colors, and the mantle was bound with a cord upon the
ass.
19. And the man was on his journey passing through the street of Sodom
when the sun set in the evening, and he remained there in order to
abide during the night, but no one would let him into his house;
and at that time there was in Sodom a wicked and mischievous man,
one skillful to do evil, and his name was Hedad.
20. And he lifted up his eyes and saw the traveler in the street of the
city, and he came to him and said, Whence comest thou and whither
dost thou go?
21. And the man said to him, I am traveling from Hebron to Elam where I
belong, and as I passed the sun set and no one would suffer me to
enter his house, though I had bread and water and also straw and
provender for my ass, and am short of nothing.
22. And Hedad answered and said to him, All that thou shalt want shall
be supplied by me, but in the street thou shalt not abide all
night.
23. And Hedad brought him to his house, and he took off the mantle from
the ass with the cord, and brought them to his house, and he gave
the ass straw and provender whilst the traveler ate and drank in
Hedad’s house, and he abode there that night.
24. And in the morning the traveler rose up early to continue his
journey, when Hedad said to him, Wait, comfort thy heart with a
morsel of bread and then go, and the man did so; and he remained
with him, and they both ate and drank together during the day, when
the man rose up to go.
25. And Hedad said to him, Behold now the day is declining, thou hadst
better remain all night that thy heart may be comforted; and he
pressed him so that he tarried there all night, and on the second
day he rose up early to go away, when Hedad pressed him, saying,
Comfort thy heart with a morsel of bread and then go, and he
remained and ate with him also the second day, and then the man
rose up to continue his journey.
26. And Hedad said to him, Behold now the day is declining, remain with
me to comfort thy heart and in the morning rise up early and go thy
way.
27. And the man would not remain, but rose and saddled his ass, and
whilst he was saddling his ass the wife of Hedad said to her
husband, Behold this man has remained with us for two days eating
and drinking and he has given us nothing, and now shall he go away
from us without giving anything? and Hedad said to her, Be silent.
28. And the man saddled his ass to go, and he asked Hedad to give him
the cord and mantle to tie it upon the ass.
29. And Hedad said to him, What sayest thou? And he said to him, That
thou my lord shalt give me the cord and the mantle made with divers
colors which thou didst conceal with thee in thy house to take care
of it.
30. And Hedad answered the man, saying, This is the interpretation of
thy dream, the cord which thou didst see, means that thy life will
be lengthened out like a cord, and having seen the mantle colored
with all sorts of colors, means that thou shalt have a vineyard in
which thou wilt plant trees of all fruits.
31. And the traveler answered, saying, Not so my lord, for I was awake
when I gave thee the cord and also a mantle woven with different
colors, which thou didst take off the ass to put them by for me;
and Hedad answered and said, Surely I have told thee the
interpretation of thy dream and it is a good dream, and this is the
interpretation thereof.
32. Now the sons of men give me four pieces of silver, which is my
charge for interpreting dreams, and of thee only I require three
pieces of silver.
33. And the man was provoked at the words of Hedad, and he cried
bitterly, and he brought Hedad to Serak judge of Sodom.
34. And the man laid his cause before Serak the judge, when Hedad
replied, saying, It is not so, but thus the matter stands; and the
judge said to the traveler, This man Hedad telleth thee truth, for
he is famed in the cities for the accurate interpretation of
dreams.
35. And the man cried at the word of the judge, and he said, Not so my
Lord, for it was in the day that I gave him the cord and mantle
which was upon the ass, in order to put them by in his house; and
they both disputed before the judge, the one saying, Thus the
matter was, and the other declaring otherwise.
36. And Hedad said to the man, Give me four pieces of silver that I
charge for my interpretations of dreams; I will not make any
allowance; and give me the expense of the four meals that thou
didst eat in my house.
37. And the man said to Hedad, Truly I will pay thee for what I ate in
thy house, only give me the cord and mantle which thou didst
conceal in thy house.
38. And Hedad replied before the judge and said to the man, Did I not
tell thee the interpretation of thy dream? the cord means that thy
days shall be prolonged like a cord, and the mantle, that thou wilt
have a vineyard in which thou wilt plant all kinds of fruit trees.
39. This is the proper interpretation of thy dream, now give me the
four pieces of silver that I require as a compensation, for I will
make thee no allowance.
40. And the man cried at the words of Hedad and they both quarreled
before the judge, and the judge gave orders to his servants, who
drove them rashly from the house.
41. And they went away quarreling from the judge, when the people of
Sodom heard them, and they gathered about them and they exclaimed
against the stranger, and they drove him rashly from the city.
42. And the man continued his journey upon his ass with bitterness of
soul, lamenting and weeping.
43. And whilst he was going along he wept at what had happened to him
in the corrupt city of Sodom.

Book of Jasher 19

1. And the cities of Sodom had four judges to four cities, and these
were their names, Serak in the city of Sodom, Sharkad in Gomorrah,
Zabnac in Admah, and Menon in Zeboyim.
2. And Eliezer Abraham’s servant applied to them different names, and
he converted Serak to Shakra, Sharkad to Shakrura, Zebnac to
Kezobim, and Menon to Matzlodin.
3. And by desire of their four judges the people of Sodom and Gomorrah
had beds erected in the streets of the cities, and if a man came to
these places they laid hold of him and brought him to one of their
beds, and by force made him to lie in them.
4. And as he lay down, three men would stand at his head and three at
his feet, and measure him by the length of the bed, and if the man
was less than the bed these six men would stretch him at each end,
and when he cried out to them they would not answer him.
5. And if he was longer than the bed they would draw together the two
sides of the bed at each end, until the man had reached the gates
of death.
6. And if he continued to cry out to them, they would answer him,
saying, Thus shall it be done to a man that cometh into our land.
7. And when men heard all these things that the people of the cities
of Sodom did, they refrained from coming there.
8. And when a poor man came to their land they would give him silver
and gold, and cause a proclamation in the whole city not to give
him a morsel of bread to eat, and if the stranger should remain
there some days, and die from hunger, not having been able to
obtain a morsel of bread, then at his death all the people of the
city would come and take their silver and gold which they had given
to him.
9. And those that could recognize the silver or gold which they had
given him took it back, and at his death they also stripped him of
his garments, and they would fight about them, and he that
prevailed over his neighbor took them.
10. They would after that carry him and bury him under some of the
shrubs in the deserts; so they did all the days to any one that
came to them and died in their land.
11. And in the course of time Sarah sent Eliezer to Sodom, to see Lot
and inquire after his welfare.
12. And Eliezer went to Sodom, and he met a man of Sodom fighting with
a stranger, and the man of Sodom stripped the poor man of all his
clothes and went away.
13. And this poor man cried to Eliezer and supplicated his favor on
account of what the man of Sodom had done to him.
14. And he said to him, Why dost thou act thus to the poor man who came
to thy land?
15. And the man of Sodom answered Eliezer, saying, Is this man thy
brother, or have the people of Sodom made thee a judge this day,
that thou speakest about this man?
16. And Eliezer strove with the man of Sodom on account of the poor
man, and when Eliezer approached to recover the poor man’s clothes
from the man of Sodom, he hastened and with a stone smote Eliezer
in the forehead.
17. And the blood flowed copiously from Eliezer’s forehead, and when
the man saw the blood he caught hold of Eliezer, saying, Give me my
hire for having rid thee of this bad blood that was in thy
forehead, for such is the custom and the law in our land.
18. And Eliezer said to him, Thou hast wounded me and requirest me to
pay thee thy hire; and Eliezer would not hearken to the words of
the man of Sodom.
19. And the man laid hold of Eliezer and brought him to Shakra the
judge of Sodom for judgment.
20. And the man spoke to the judge, saying, I beseech thee my lord,
thus has this man done, for I smote him with a stone that the blood
flowed from his forehead, and he is unwilling to give me my hire.
21. And the judge said to Eliezer, This man speaketh truth to thee,
give him his hire, for this is the custom in our land; and Eliezer
heard the words of the judge, and he lifted up a stone and smote
the judge, and the stone struck on his forehead, and the blood
flowed copiously from the forehead of the judge, and Eliezer said,
If this then is the custom in your land give thou unto this man
what I should have given him, for this has been thy decision, thou
didst decree it.
22. And Eliezer left the man of Sodom with the judge, and he went away.
23. And when the kings of Elam had made war with the kings of Sodom,
the kings of Elam captured all the property of Sodom, and they took
Lot captive, with his property, and when it was told to Abraham he
went and made war with the kings of Elam, and he recovered from
their hands all the property of Lot as well as the property of
Sodom.
24. At that time the wife of Lot bare him a daughter, and he called her
name Paltith, saying, Because God had delivered him and his whole
household from the kings of Elam; and Paltith daughter of Lot grew
up, and one of the men of Sodom took her for a wife.
25. And a poor man came into the city to seek a maintenance, and he
remained in the city some days, and all the people of Sodom caused
a proclamation of their custom not to give this man a morsel of
bread to eat, until he dropped dead upon the earth, and they did
so.
26. And Paltith the daughter of Lot saw this man lying in the streets
starved with hunger, and no one would give him any thing to keep
him alive, and he was just upon the point of death.
27. And her soul was filled with pity on account of the man, and she
fed him secretly with bread for many days, and the soul of this man
was revived.
28. For when she went forth to fetch water she would put the bread in
the water pitcher, and when she came to the place where the poor
man was, she took the bread from the pitcher and gave it him to
eat; so she did many days.
29. And all the people of Sodom and Gomorrah wondered how this man
could bear starvation for so many days.
30. And they said to each other, This can only be that he eats and
drinks, for no man can bear starvation for so many days or live as
this man has, without even his countenance changing; and three men
concealed themselves in a place where the poor man was stationed,
to know who it was that brought him bread to eat.
31. And Paltith daughter of Lot went forth that day to fetch water, and
she put bread into her pitcher of water, and she went to draw water
by the poor man’s place, and she took out the bread from the
pitcher and gave it to the poor man and he ate it.
32. And the three men saw what Paltith did to the poor man, and they
said to her, It is thou then who hast supported him, and therefore
has he not starved, nor changed in appearance nor died like the
rest.
33. And the three men went out of the place in which they were
concealed, and they seized Paltith and the bread which was in the
poor man’s hand.
34. And they took Paltith and brought her before their judges, and they
said to them, Thus did she do, and it is she who supplied the poor
man with bread, therefore did he not die all this time; now
therefore declare to us the punishment due to this woman for having
transgressed our law.
35. And the people of Sodom and Gomorrah assembled and kindled a fire
in the street of the city, and they took the woman and cast her
into the fire and she was burned to ashes.
36. And in the city of Admah there was a woman to whom they did the
like.
37. For a traveler came into the city of Admah to abide there all
night, with the intention of going home in the morning, and he sat
opposite the door of the house of the young woman’s father, to
remain there, as the sun had set when be had reached that place;
and the young woman saw him sitting by the door of the house.
38. And he asked her for a drink of water and she said to him, Who art
thou? and he said to her, I was this day going on the road, and
reached here when the sun set, so I will abide here all night, and
in the morning I will arise early and continue my journey.
39. And the young woman went into the house and fetched the man bread
and water to eat and drink.
40. And this affair became known to the people of Admah, and they
assembled and brought the young woman before the judges, that they
should judge her for this act.
41. And the judge said, The judgment of death must pass upon this woman
because she transgressed our law, and this therefore is the
decision concerning her.
42. And the people of those cities assembled and brought out the young
woman, and anointed her with honey from head to foot, as the judge
had decreed, and they placed her before a swarm of bees which were
then in their hives, and the bees flew upon her and stung her that
her whole body was swelled.
43. And the young woman cried out on account of the bees, but no one
took notice of her or pitied her, and her cries ascended to heaven.
44. And the Lord was provoked at this and at all the works of the
cities of Sodom, for they had abundance of food, and had
tranquility amongst them, and still would not sustain the poor and
the needy, and in those days their evil doings and sins became
great before the Lord.
45. And the Lord sent for two of the angels that had come to Abraham’s
house, to destroy Sodom and its cities.
46. And the angels rose up from the door of Abraham’s tent, after they
had eaten and drunk, and they reached Sodom in the evening, and Lot
was then sitting in the gate of Sodom, and when he saw them he rose
to meet them, and he bowed down to the ground.
47. And he pressed them greatly and brought them into his house, and he
gave them victuals which they ate, and they abode all night in his
house.
48. And the angels said to Lot, Arise, go forth from this place, thou
and all belonging to thee, lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of
this city, for the Lord will destroy this place.
49. And the angels laid hold upon the hand of Lot and upon the hand of
his wife, and upon the hands of his children, and all belonging to
him, and they brought him forth and set him without the cities.
50. And they said to Lot, Escape for thy life, and he fled and all
belonging to him.
51. Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah and upon all
these cities brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven.
52. And he overthrew these cities, all the plain and all the
inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground; and
Ado the wife of Lot looked back to see the destruction of the
cities, for her compassion was moved on account of her daughters
who remained in Sodom, for they did not go with her.
53. And when she looked back she became a pillar of salt, and it is yet
in that place unto this day.
54. And the oxen which stood in that place daily licked up the salt to
the extremities of their feet, and in the morning it would spring
forth afresh, and they again licked it up unto this day.
55. And Lot and two of his daughters that remained with him fled and
escaped to the cave of Adullam, and they remained there for some
time.
56. And Abraham rose up early in the morning to see what had been done
to the cities of Sodom; and he looked and beheld the smoke of the
cities going up like the smoke of a furnace.
57. And Lot and his two daughters remained in the cave, and they made
their father drink wine, and they lay with him, for they said there
was no man upon earth that could raise up seed from them, for they
thought that the whole earth was destroyed.
58. And they both lay with their father, and they conceived and bare
sons, and the first born called the name of her son Moab, saying,
From my father did I conceive him; he is the father of the Moabites
unto this day.
59. And the younger also called her son Benami; he is the father of the
children of Ammon unto this day.
60. And after this Lot and his two daughters went away from there, and
he dwelt on the other side of the Jordan with his two daughters and
their sons, and the sons of Lot grew up, and they went and took
themselves wives from the land of Canaan, and they begat children
and they were fruitful and multiplied.

Book of Jasher 20

1. And at that time Abraham journeyed from the plain of Mamre, and he
went to the land of the Philistines, and he dwelt in Gerar; it was
in the twenty-fifth year of Abraham’s being in the land of Canaan,
and the hundredth year of the life of Abraham, that he came to
Gerar in the land of the Philistines.
2. And when they entered the land he said to Sarah his wife, Say thou
art my sister, to any one that shall ask thee, in order that we may
escape the evil of the inhabitants of the land.
3. And as Abraham was dwelling in the land of the Philistines, the
servants of Abimelech, king of the Philistines, saw that Sarah was
exceedingly beautiful, and they asked Abraham concerning her, and
he said, She is my sister.
4. And the servants of Abimelech went to Abimelech, saying, A man from
the land of Canaan is come to dwell in the land, and he has a
sister that is exceeding fair.
5. And Abimelech heard the words of his servants who praised Sarah to
him, and Abimelech sent his officers, and they brought Sarah to the
king.
6. And Sarah came to the house of Abimelech, and the king saw that
Sarah was beautiful, and she pleased him exceedingly.
7. And he approached her and said to her, What is that man to thee
with whom thou didst come to our land? and Sarah answered and said
He is my brother, and we came from the land of Canaan to dwell
wherever we could find a place.
8. And Abimelech said to Sarah, Behold my land is before thee, place
thy brother in any part of this land that pleases thee, and it will
be our duty to exalt and elevate him above all the people of the
land since he is thy brother.
9. And Abimelech sent for Abraham, and Abraham came to Abimelech.
10. And Abimelech said to Abraham, Behold I have given orders that thou
shalt be honored as thou desirest on account of thy sister Sarah.
11. And Abraham went forth from the king, and the king’s present
followed him.
12. As at evening time, before men lie down to rest, the king was
sitting upon his throne, and a deep sleep fell upon him, and he lay
upon the throne and slept till morning.
13. And he dreamed that an angel of the Lord came to him with a drawn
sword in his hand, and the angel stood over Abimelech, and wished
to slay him with the sword, and the king was terrified in his
dream, and said to the angel, In what have I sinned against thee
that thou comest to slay me with thy sword?
52
14. And the angel answered and said to Abimelech, Behold thou diest on
account of the woman which thou didst yesternight bring to thy
house, for she is a married woman, the wife of Abraham who came to
thy house; now therefore return that man his wife, for she is his
wife; and shouldst thou not return her, know that thou wilt surely
die, thou and all belonging to thee.
15. And on that night there was a great outcry in the land of the
Philistines, and the inhabitants of the land saw the figure of a
man standing with a drawn sword in his hand, and he smote the
inhabitants of the land with the sword, yea he continued to smite
them.
16. And the angel of the Lord smote the whole land of the Philistines
on that night, and there was a great confusion on that night and on
the following morning.
17. And every womb was closed, and all their issues, and the hand of
the Lord was upon them on account of Sarah, wife of Abraham, whom
Abimelech had taken.
18. And in the morning Abimelech rose with terror and confusion and
with a great dread, and he sent and had his servants called in, and
he related his dream to them, and the people were greatly afraid.
19. And one man standing amongst the servants of the king answered the
king, saying, O sovereign king, restore this woman to her husband,
for he is her husband, for the like happened to the king of Egypt
when this man came to Egypt.
20. And he said concerning his wife, She is my sister, for such is his
manner of doing when he cometh to dwell in the land in which he is
a stranger.
21. And Pharaoh sent and took this woman for a wife and the Lord
brought upon him grievous plagues until he returned the woman to
her husband.
22. Now therefore, O sovereign king, know what happened yesternight to
the whole land, for there was a very great consternation and great
pain and lamentation, and we know that it was on account of the
woman which thou didst take.
23. Now, therefore, restore this woman to her husband, lest it should
befall us as it did to Pharaoh king of Egypt and his subjects, and
that we may not die; and Abimelech hastened and called and had
Sarah called for, and she came before him, and he had Abraham
called for, and he came before him.
24. And Abimelech said to them, What is this work you have been doing
in saying you are brother and sister, and I took this woman for a
wife?
25. And Abraham said, Because I thought I should suffer death on
account of my wife; and Abimelech took flocks and herds, and men
servants and maid servants, and a thousand pieces of silver, and he
gave them to Abraham, and he returned Sarah to him.
26. And Abimelech said to Abraham, Behold the whole land is before
thee, dwell in it wherever thou shalt choose.
27. And Abraham and Sarah, his wife, went forth from the king’s
presence with honor and respect, and they dwelt in the land, even
in Gerar.
28. And all the inhabitants of the land of the Philistines and the
king’s servants were still in pain, through the plague which the
angel had inflicted upon them the whole night on account of Sarah.
29. And Abimelech sent for Abraham, saying, Pray now for thy servants
to the Lord thy God, that he may put away this mortality from
amongst us.
30. And Abraham prayed on account of Abimelech and his subjects, and
the Lord heard the prayer of Abraham, and he healed Abimelech and
all his subjects.

Tags:
Table of Contents

You missed

Berean Truth Series

Berean Truth – God Is Vs Is Not To Be Found In Those That Seek Him

September 24, 2026 BuiltByGod
Berean Truth Series

Berean Truth – God “Is Vs Is Not” To Be Found By Those Who Seek Him

September 24, 2026 BuiltByGod
Berean Truth Series

Berean Truth – God Gives Freely To Those That Ask Vs God Withholds His Blessings And Prevents Men From Receiving Them

September 23, 2026 BuiltByGod
Angels & Spirits Heaven & Hell Nephilim & Watchers

The Teaching Of “The 3 Days Between Cross And Resurrection” (Luke 16 & 2 Peter 2)

September 23, 2026 BuiltByGod

Powered by