Testament of Judah 1

¹ THE copy of the words of Judah, what things he spake to his sons before he died. (T12) ² They gathered themselves together, therefore, and came to him, and he said to them: Hearken, my children, to Judah your father. (T12) ³ I was the fourth son born to my father Jacob; and Leah my mother named me Judah, saying, I give thanks to the Lord, because He hath given me a fourth son also. (T12) ⁴ I was swift in my youth, and obedient to my father in everything. (T12) ⁵ And I honoured my mother and my mother's sister. (T12) ⁶ And it came to pass, when I became a man, that my father blessed me, saying, Thou shalt be a king, prospering in all things. (T12) ⁷ And the Lord showed me favour in all my works both in the field and in the house. (T12) ⁸ I know that I raced a hind, and caught it, and prepared the meat for my father, and he did eat. (T12) ⁹ And the roes I used to master in the chase, and overtake all that was in the plains. (T12) ¹⁰ A wild mare I overtook, and caught it and tamed it. (T12) ¹¹ I slew a lion and plucked a kid out of its mouth. (T12) ¹² I took a bear by its paw and hurled it down the cliff, and it was crushed. (T12) ¹³ I outran the wild boar, and seizing it as I ran, I tore it in sunder. (T12) ¹⁴ A leopard in Hebron leaped upon my dog, and I caught it by the tail, and hurled it on the rocks, and it was broken in twain (T12) ¹⁵ I found a wild ox feeding in the fields, and seizing it by the horns, and whirling it round and stunning it, I cast it from me and slew it. (T12) ¹⁶ And when the two kings of the Canaanites came sheathed, in armour against our flocks, and much people with them, single handed I rushed upon the king of Hazor, and smote him on the greives and dragged him down, and so I slew him. (T12) ¹⁷ And the other, the king of Tappuah, as he sat upon his horse, I slew, and so I scattered all his people. (T12) ¹⁸ Achor, the king, a man of giant stature, I found, hurling javelins before and behind as he sat on horseback, and I took up a stone of sixty pounds weight, and hurled it and smote his horse, and killed it. (T12) ¹⁹ And I fought with this other for two hours; and I clave his shield in twain, and I chopped off his feet, and killed him. (T12) ²⁰ And as I was stripping off his breastplate, behold nine men his companions began to fight with me, (T12) ²¹ And I wound my garment on my hand; and I slung stones at them, and killed four of them, and the rest fled. (T12) ²² And Jacob my father slew Beelesath, king of all the kings, a giant in strength, twelve cubits high. (T12) ²³ And fear fell upon them, and they ceased warring against us. (T12) ²⁴ Therefore my father was free from anxiety in the wars when I was with my brethren. (T12) ²⁵ For he saw in a vision concerning me that an angel of might followed me everywhere, that I should not be overcome. (T12) ²⁶ And in the south there came upon us a greater war than that in Shechem; and I joined in battle array with my brethren, and pursued a thousand men, and slew of them two hundred men and four kings. (T12) ²⁷ And I went up upon the wall, and I slew four mighty men. (T12) ²⁸ And so we captured Hazor, and took all the spoil. (T12) ²⁹ And the next day we departed to Aretan, a city strong and walled and inaccessible, threatening us with death. (T12) ³⁰ But I and Gad approached on the east side of the city, and Reuben and Levi on the west. (T12) ³¹ And they that were upon the wall, thinking that we were alone, were drawn down against us. (T12) ³² And so my brothers secretly climbed up the wall on both sides by stakes, and entered the city, while the men knew it not. (T12) ³³ And we took it with the edge of the sword. (T12) ³⁴ And as for those who had taken refuge in the tower, we set fire to the tower and took both it and, them. (T12) ³⁵ And as we were departing the men of Tappuah seized our spoil, and seeing this we fought with them. (T12) ³⁶ And we slew them. all and recovered our spoil. (T12) ³⁷ And when I was at the waters of Kozeba, the men of Jobel came against us to battle. (T12) ³⁸ And we fought with them and routed them; and their allies from Shiloh we slew, and we did not leave them power to come in against us. (T12) ³⁹ And the men of Makir came upon us the fifth day, to seize our spoil; and we attacked them and overcame them in fierce battle: for there was a host of mighty men amongst them, and we slew them before they had gone up the ascent. (T12) ⁴⁰ And when we came to their city their women rolled upon us stones from the brow of the hill on which the city stood. (T12) ⁴¹ And I and Simeon had ourselves behind the town, and seized upon the heights, and destroyed this city also. (T12) ⁴² And the next day it was told us that the king of the city of Gaash with. a mighty host was coming against us. (T12) ⁴³ I, therefore, and Dan feigned ourselves to be Amorites, and as allies went into their city. (T12) ⁴⁴ And in the depth of night our brethren came and we opened to them the gates; and we destroyed all the men and their substance, and we took for a prey all that was theirs, and their three walls we cast down. (T12) ⁴⁵ And we drew near to Thamna, where was all the substance of the hostile kings. (T12) ⁴⁶ Then being insulted by them, I was therefore wroth, and rushed against them to the summit; and they kept slinging against me stones and darts. (T12) ⁴⁷ And had not Dan my brother aided me, they would have slain me. (T12) ⁴⁸ We came upon them, therefore, with wrath, and they all fled; and passing by another way, they fought my father, and he made peace with them. (T12) ⁴⁹ And we did to them no hurt, and they became tributary to us, and we restored to them their spoil. (T12) ⁵⁰ And I built Thamna, and my father built Pabael. (T12) ⁵¹ I was twenty years old when this war befell. And the Canaanites feared me and my brethren. (T12) ⁵² And I had much cattle, and I had for chief herdsman Iram the Adullamite. (T12) ⁵³ And when I went to him I saw Parsaba, king of Adullam; and he spake unto us, and he made us a feast; and when I was heated he gave me his daughter Bathshua to wife. (T12) ⁵⁴ She bare me Er, and Onan and Shelah; and two of them the Lord smote: for Shelah lived, and his children are ye. (T12)