Testament of Naphtali 1

Pseudonymously presented as Naphtali's deathbed testament, one of the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs; actual author unknown and date debated (proposals span the 2nd century BC to the 2nd century AD). Teaches on living according to the natural order God intended, illustrated through dream visions.

1THE copy of, the testament of Naphtali, which he ordained at the time of his death in the hundred and thirtieth year of his life.

Ἀντίγραφον διαθήκης Νεφθαλεὶμ ἧς διέθετο ἐν καιρῷ τῆς ἐξόδου αὐτοῦ ἐν ἔτει ἑκατοστῷ καὶ τριακοστῷ τῆς ζωῆς αὐτοῦ. (12477)

2When his sons were gathered together in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, while still in good health, he made them a feast of food and wine.

Συνελθόντων τῶν υἱῶν αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ ἑβδόμῳ μηνί, μιᾷ τοῦ μηνός, ἐποίησε δεῖπνον αὐτοῖς. (10546)

3And after he was awake in the morning, he said to them, I am dying; and they believed him not.

Καὶ τὸ πρωὶ μετὰ τὸ ἐξυπνισθῆναι αὐτὸν εἶπεν αὐτοῖς ὅτι Ἀποθνήσκω· καὶ οὐκ ἐπίστευσαν αὐτῷ. (9833)

4And as he glorified the Lord, he grew strong and said that after yesterday's feast he should die.

Καὶ δοξάζων τὸν Κύριον ἐκραταιώθη καὶ εἶπεν, ὅτι Μετὰ τὸ δεῖπνον τὸ χθὲς ἀπέθανεν ἡ σάρξ μου. (7157)

5And he began then to say: Hear, my children, ye sons of Naphtali, hear the words of your father.

Ἤρξατο δὲ λέγειν· Ἀκούσατε, τέκνα μου, υἱοὶ Νεφθαλείμ, ἀκούσατε λόγους πατρὸς ὑμῶν. (7485)

6I was born from Bilhah, and because Rachel dealt craftly, and gave Bilhah in place of herself to Jacob, and she conceived and bare me upon Rachel's knees, therefore she called my name Naphtali.

Ἐγὼ ἐγεννήθην ἀπὸ Βάλλας, καὶ ὅτι ἐν πανουργίᾳ ἐποίησε Ῥαχιήλ, καὶ ἔδωκεν ἀντ' αὐτῆς Βάλλαν τῷ Ἰακώβ, καὶ συλλαβοῦσα ἔτεκέ με ἐπὶ τῶν γονάτων τῆς Ῥαχιήλ, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἐκάλεσε τὸ ὄνομά μου Νεφθαλείμ. (16675)

7For Rachel loved me very much because I was born upon her lap; and when I was still young she was wont to kiss me, and say: May I have a brother of thine from mine own womb, like unto thee.

Ἡγάπησε γάρ με Ῥαχιήλ πάνυ, ὅτι ἐπὶ τῶν γονάτων αὐτῆς ἐγεννήθην, καὶ ἔτι ἁπαλὸν ὄντα με κατεφίλει λέγουσα· Δοίη μοι ἀδελφόν σου ἐκ τῆς κοιλίας μου κατὰ σέ. (11817)

8Whence also Joseph was like unto me in all things, according to the prayers of Rachel.

Ὅθεν καὶ ὅμοιός μου ἦν κατὰ πάντα Ἰωσὴφ κατὰ τὰς εὐλογίας Ῥαχιήλ. (5756)

9Now my mother was Bilhah, daughter of Rotheus the brother of Deborah, Rebecca's nurse, who was born on one and the self-same day with Rachel.

Ἡ δὲ μήτηρ μου Βάλλα ὑπῆρχε θυγάτηρ Ῥουθαίου, ἀδελφοῦ Δεβόρρας, τῆς τροφοῦ Ῥεβέκκας· ἥτις ἐν μιᾷ ἡμέρᾳ ἐτέχθη ἐν ᾗ καὶ Ῥαχιήλ. (10462)

10And Rotheus was of the family of Abraham, a Chaldean, God-fearing, free-born, and noble.

Ὁ δὲ Ῥουθαῖος ἐκ τοῦ γένους ἦν Ἀβραάμ, Χαλδαῖος, θεοσεβής, ἐλεύθερος καὶ εὐγενής. (5606)

11And he was taken captive and was bought by Laban; and he gave him Euna his handmaid to wife, and she bore a daughter, and called her name Zilpah, after the name of the village in which he had been taken captive.

Καὶ αἰχμαλωτισθεὶς ἠγοράσθη ὑπὸ Λαβάν· καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ Εὐνὰν τὴν παιδίσκην αὐτοῦ εἰς γυναῖκα, ἥτις ἔτεκε θυγατέρα, καὶ ἐκάλεσεν τὸ ὄνομα αὐτῆς Ζέλφαν, ἐπ' ὀνόματι τῆς πόλεως ἐν ᾗ αἰχμαλωτίσθη. (17327)

12And next she bore Bilhah, saying: My daughter hastens after what is new, for immediately that she was born she seized the breast and hastened to suck it.

Καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο ἔτεκεν τὴν Βάλλαν, λέγων· Καινόσπουδός μου ἡ θυγάτηρ· εὐθὺς γὰρ τεχθεῖσα ἐπιλαβομένη τοῦ μαζοῦ ἔσπευδεν θηλάζειν. (10482)

13And I was swift on my feet like the deer, and my father Jacob appointed me for all messages, and as a deer did he give me his blessing.

Ἐγὼ ἤμην κοῦφος τοῖς ποσὶν ὡς ἡ ἔλαφος καὶ ἔταξέ με ὁ πατήρ μου Ἰακὼβ εἰς πᾶσαν ἀγγελίαν, καίγε ὡσεὶ ἐλαφόν με ηὐλόγησεν. (10506)

14For as the potter knoweth the vessel, how much it is to contain, and bringeth clay accordingly, so also doth the Lord make the body after the likeness of the spirit, and according to the capacity of the body doth He implant the spirit.

Καθὼς γὰρ οἶδεν ὁ κεραμεὺς τὸ σκεῦος πόσον χωρεῖ, καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸ φέρει τὸν πηλόν, οὕτω καὶ ὁ Κύριος πρὸς ὁμοίωσιν τοῦ πνεύματος ποιεῖ τὸ σῶμα, καὶ πρὸς τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ σώματος τὸ πνεῦμα ἐπιτίθησιν. (20970)

See also: Jeremiah 18:6

15And the one does not fall short of the other by a third part of a hair; for by weight, and measure, and rule was all the creation made.

Καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἐνλείπον ἐν ἐκ τοῦ ἑνὸς τρίτον τριχός· σταθμῷ γὰρ καὶ μέτρῳ καὶ κανόνι πᾶσα ἡ κτίσις ἐγένετο. (9101)

16And as the potter knoweth the use of each vessel, what it is meet for, so also doth the Lord know the body, how far it will persist in goodness, and when it beginneth in evil.

Καὶ καθὼς οἶδεν ὁ κεραμεὺς ἑνὸς ἑκάστου τὴν χρῆσιν ὡς ἱκανή, οὕτω καὶ ὁ Κύριος οἶδε τὸ σῶμα, ἕως τίνος διαρκέσει ἐν τῷ ἀγαθῷ, καὶ πότε ἔρχεται ἐν κακῷ. (16110)

17For there is no inclination or thought which the Lord knoweth not, for He created every man after His own image.

Ὅτι οὐκ ἔστι πλάσμα καὶ πᾶσα ἔννοια ἣν οὐκ ἔγνω Κύριος· πάντα γὰρ ἄνθρωπον ἔκτισεν κατ' εἰκόνα ἑαυτοῦ. (8381)

18For as a man's strength, so also in his work; as his eye, so also in his sleep; as his soul, so also in his word either in the law of the Lord or in the law of Beliar.

Ὡς γὰρ ἡ ἰσχὺς αὐτοῦ, οὕτω καὶ τὸ ἔργον αὐτοῦ· ὡς ὁ ὀφθαλμὸς αὐτοῦ, οὕτως καὶ ὁ ὕπνος αὐτοῦ· ὡς ἡ ψυχὴ αὐτοῦ, τέχνη αὐτοῦ· καὶ ὡς ἡ προαίρεσις αὐτοῦ, οὕτω καὶ ἡ πρᾶξις αὐτοῦ· ὡς ἡ καρδία αὐτοῦ, οὕτω καὶ τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ οὕτως καὶ ὁ λόγος αὐτοῦ, ἢ ἐν νόμῳ Κυρίου, ἢ ἐν νόμῳ τοῦ Βελίαρ. (39751)

19And as there is a division between light and darkness, between seeing and hearing, so also is there a division between man and man, and between woman and woman; and it is not to be said that the one is like the other either in face or in mind.

Καὶ ὡς κεχώρισται ἀνάμεσον τοῦ φωτὸς καὶ ἀνάμεσον τοῦ σκότους ὁράσεώς τε καὶ ἀκοῆς, οὕτως κεχώρισται ἀνάμεσον ἀνδρὸς καὶ ἀνδρός, καὶ ἀνάμεσον γυναικὸς καὶ γυναικός, καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν εἰπεῖν ὅτι ἐν τῷ ἑνὶ τοῖς προσώποις ἡττόμενον ἦν. (23711)

20For God made all things good in their order, the five senses in the head, and He joined on the neck to the head, adding to it the hair also for comeliness and glory, then the heart for understanding, the belly for excrement, and the stomach for grinding, the windpipe for taking in the breath, the liver for wrath, the gall for bitterness, the spleen for laughter, the reins for prudence, the muscles of the loins for power, the lungs for drawing in, the loins for strength, and so forth.

Πάντα γὰρ ἐν τάξει ἐποίησεν ὁ Θεὸς καλά· τὰς πέντε αἰσθήσεις ἐν τῇ κεφαλῇ καὶ τὸν τράχηλον συνάψας τῇ κεφαλῇ, προσθεὶς αὐτῇ καὶ τρίχας εἰς εὐπρέπειαν καὶ δόξαν· εἶτα καρδίαν εἰς φρόνησιν, κοιλίαν εἰς διάκρισιν, στόμαχον εἰς . . . κάλαμον πρὸς ὑγείαν, ἧπαρ πρὸς θυμόν, χολὴν πρὸς πικρίαν, καὶ σπλῆνα πρὸς γέλωτα, νεφροὺς εἰς πανουργίαν, ψύας εἰς δύναμιν, πλευρὰν εἰς τὸ καθεύδειν, ὀσφὺν εἰς ἰσχύν, καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. (31438)

21So then, my children, let all your works be done in order with good intent in the fear of God, and do nothing disorderly in scorn or out of its due season.

Οὕτως οὖν ἔστωσαν, τέκνα μου, πάντα τὰ ἔργα ὑμῶν ἐν τάξει εἰς ἀγαθὸν ἐν φόβῳ Θεοῦ, καὶ μηδὲν ἄτακτον ποιήσητε ἐν καταφρονήσει, μηδὲ ἔξω καιροῦ αὐτοῦ. (15130)