2 Baruch: Read Online

[Translated from the Greek into Syriac.]

T—IV.1. Announcement of the coming Destruction of Ferusalem to Baruch.

1 ז‎ And it came to pass in the twenty-fifth year of Jeconiah, king of Judah, that the word of the Lord i-ix. 1 3 came to Baruch, the son of Neriah, and said to him: ‘Hast thou seen all that this people are doing = B" to Me, that the evils which these two tribes which remained have done are greater than (those of) 3 the ten tribes which were carried away captive? For the former tribes were forced by their kings to commit sin, but these two of themselves have been forcing and compelling their kings to commit 4sin. For this reason, behold I bring evil upon this city, and upon its inhabitants, and it shall be removed from before Me for a time, and I will scatter this people among the Gentiles that they may do good to the Gentiles. And My people shall be chastened, and the time shall come when they will seek for the prosperity of their times. 2: For I have said these things to thee that thou mayst bid Jeremiah, and all those that are like you, to retire from this city. 2 For your works are to this city as a firm pillar, And your prayers as a strong wall.’

THE First SEcTION. I-V. 6. The first of the seven sections into which, according to the scheme of the final editor, the book was originally divided by fasts, generally lasting seven days. See v. 7, note ; ix, note.

In this section the word of the Lord comes to Baruch announcing the coming, though temporary, destruction of Jerusalem (i); Baruch is to bid Jeremiah to withdraw (ii); Baruch then asks, Will this destruction be final? will chaos return ? (iii); God answers that the punishment is temporary (iv. 1). Yet even so, Baruch rejoins, The enemy will boast before their idols over God’s own nation (v. 1). Not so, God replies, the heathen will have no cause to glory, as it is not they who will destroy Zion (v. 2, 3). Baruch assembles the people, and delivers the message (v. 5).

I. [Translated from the Greek into Syriac.] These words occur in the Syriac MS., and the statement is supported by (1) transliterations of Greek words ; (2) renderings explicable only on the hypothesis that the translator followed the wrong meaning of the Greek word before him.

I. 1. in the twenty-fifth year of Jeconiah. The reckoning is by the years of Jeconiah’s life, and not of his reign. He was eighteen years old when he began to reign in 599, and thus his twenty-fifth year would be 592, or two years before Nebuchadrezzar’s approach. In vi. 1 only one day, and not two years, elapses between the prediction and its fulfilment. So, too, the siege of Jerusalem is there represented as lasting but one day, whereas it lasted two years. Moreover, Jeconiah was in captivity when the city fell, and Zedekiah was king, as the author was aware (viii. 5). Accuracy of detail is sacrificed to general dramatic effect.

the Lord. This title of God is found in all sections of the book alike. \ Baruch, the son of Neriah. Cf. Jer. xxxii. 121 xxxvi. 4 ; 1 Baruch i. 1. 2. the ten tribes. Elsewhere in this Apocalypse called ‘the nine and a half tribes’. See Ixxviii. 1 note. 3. forced by their kings, e.g. Jeroboam, and other kings of Israel. these two... compelling their kings to commit sin. It was the princes of Judah rather than Zedekiah that resisted Jeremiah’s teaching and prophecy.

4. for a time. This phrase recurs in iv. 1, vi. 9: xxxii. 3. It is thus peculiar to 25, Jerusalem has fallen under the Romans, but the writer of these chapters believes its desolation will be but ‘for a time’. Its future restoration is implied also in Ixxvii. 6, lxxviii. 7, where the return of the ten tribes is foretold. In 135% and B* 1 6. Ixxxv, no such restoration is looked for; Jerusalem is removed, xx. 2 (see note ## /oc.) in order to usher in the judgement more speedily ; in x. 10 the writer abandons all hope of a restored Jerusalem.

do good to the Gentiles. This seems to mean to make proselytes of the Gentiles. Cf. xlii. 5. My people shall be chastened. Cf. xiii. 10, &c. Pss. Sol. vii. 3, &c. the prosperity of their times, a Messianic kingdom or period of blessedness for Israel on earth.

Il. 1. According to Jer. xxxviii. 13, 28 Jeremiah was a prisoner in the court of the guard till the capture of Jerusalem. those that are like you. This phrase recurs in three of the sections of this book. Cf. 4 Ezra iv. 36, &c. retire from this city. Cf. 4 Baruch (‘The Rest of the Words of Baruch’) i. 1. ‘Jeremiah ... go forth from this

city’. The reason for this command appears in the Talmud. In Taanith 19 we are told a house cannot fall so long as a good man is init. In Pesikta 115 > (Buber’s edition, 1868) it is said ‘So long as Jeremiah was in Jerusalem it was not destroyed, but when he went forth from it, it was destroyed’.

thee a tower and a fortress among my people.’ Cf., however, Gen. xviii. 23-33. your works. On the doctrine of works taught in this book see note on xiv. 7. 4 Baruch omits the reference to ‘works’, as it is of Christian authorship. 1108.3 481 li

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1 And I said: ‘O Lorb, my Lord, have 1 come into the world for this purpose that I might see the 2 evils of my mother? Not (so) my Lord. If I have found grace in Thy sight, first take my spirit 3that I may go to my fathers and not behold the destruction of my mother. For two things vehemently constrain me: for I cannot resist Thee, and my soul, moreover, cannot behold the evils 5of my mother. But one thing I will say in Thy presence,O Lord. What, therefore, will there be after these things ? for if Thou destroyest Thy city, and deliverest up Thy land to those that hate 6 us, how shall the name of Israel be again remembered ? Or how shall one speak of Thy praises? 7 or to whom shall that which is in Thy law be explained? Or shall the world return to its nature (of 8 aforetime), and the age revert to primeval silence? And shall the multitude of souls be taken away, g and the nature of man not again be named? And where is all that which Thou didst say to Moses regarding us?’ 1 And the Lord said unto me: * This city shall be delivered up for a time, And the people shall be chastened during a time, And the world will not be given over to oblivion.

2 [- Dost thou think that this is that city of which I said: “On the palms of My hands have I graven 3thee”? This building now built in your midst is not that which is revealed with Me, that which was

prepared beforehand here from the time when I took counsel to make Paradise, and showed it to

Adam before he sinned, but when he transgressed the commandment it was removed from him, as + also Paradise. And after these things I showed it to My servant Abraham by night among the 5 portions of the victims. And again also I showed it to Moseson Mount Sinai when I showed to him 6 the likeness of the tabernacle and all its vessels, And now, behold, it is preserved with Me, as also ל‎ Paradise. Go, therefore, and do as I command thee.’]

Ill. 1. Ο LORD, my Lord. This title of God is confined, except in one instance (xoxxviil. 1), to B? and BY It recurs in xiv. 8, 16; xvi. 1; xxiii. 1; הווטוא‎ 4, 5. While used only of God in this work, in 4 Ezra it is applied to an angel six times (see 4 Ezra iv. 38, &c.), as also אדני‎ in Dan. .א‎ 17,19. The words «5ο Juss are to be rendered *O LORD, my Lord’, as above, and not Dominator Domine, as we find in Ceriani. The suffix is not moribund. The Syriac is a translation either of δέσποτα κύριε µου or κύριε κύριέ µου; and these in turn would point either to אדני יהוה‎ or .יהוה אדני‎

my mother. Cf. iii. 2, 3, .א‎ 16; 1 Baruch iv. 9-16. This was a very natural term for a Jew to apply to Jerusalem, as Isa. xlix. 21. Cf. Matt. xxiil. 37. The writer here (B) uses it as an earthly Jerusalem, as St. Paul in Gal. iv. 26 of the heavenly.

4-lV. 1. Baruch asks God if the end of all things will follow on the delivering up of Jerusalem; will Israel’s name be lost, and students of the law fail? Will chaos return and men die? In iv. 1 God answers that Jerusalem will again be restored, the chastening of its people soon be accomplished, and chaos will not return.

revert to primeval silence. Cf. 4 Ezra vii. 30 for the doctrine of a thousand years’ Sabbath, which may be referred to here and in xliv. 9 (B*) and denied in iv. 1.

rendered. Ryssel proposes Qaok.xo = ‘shall be destroyed’.

IV. 2-7. Apparently an interpolation. The earthly Jerusalem is here derided, and contrasted with the one to be revealed. In vi. 9, Jerusalem, though to be delivered up for a time, as in iv. 1, will be again restored, and that for ever. Further in vi. 7-8, the actual vessels of the earthly temple are committed to the earth to be preserved for future use in the restored Jerusalem.

2. ‘On the palms of My hands.’ Quoted from Isa, xlix. 16, Syriac Version, which alone has ‘palms’. This fuller phrase is usual, e.g. 1 Sam. v. 4.

3. This building ... is not that which is revealed. The growing transcendence and enlargement of the idea of God, combined with the deepened consciousness of sin, and the consequent sense of the unfitness of Jerusalem as God’s habitation, led to the evolution of the doctrine of a heavenly Jerusalem complete in all its parts. Of heavenly antitypes of the Tabernacle and its furniture we are told as early as the Priests’ Code (Exod. xxv. 9, 40; cf. Heb. viii. 5). The purification or even total renewal of the earthly copies is postulated in Isa. Ix; Ezek. xl-xlviii, The first full emergence of the idea of the heavenly city seems to be in 1 En, xc. 28, 29, where the old Jerusalem is removed, and the new is brought απ΄ 561 up by God Himself, though even there no prior existence is assigned to the latter. This would be about 166 μ.ο. But the purification of Jerusalem seems sufficient in Pss. Sol. xvii. 25 (70-40 B.C); 1 En, x. 16-19, xxv. I (180 B.C.), to prepare for the Messianic kingdom. See my Commentary.

took counsel to make Paradise. Which Paradise is this? It may be, like the heavenly Jerusalem, the Paradise kept in heaven, or it may be the earthly counterpart in which Adam was placed at the first.

4- I showed it to My servant Abraham. We are not told so in Gen. xv. 9-21. But in 4 Ezra tii. 13,14 Abraham is said to have been shown ‘the end of the times’, while the Beresh. rabba on Gen. xxviii. 17 tells us that the above vision was accorded to Jacob sleeping at Bethel.

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| 51 And 1 answered and said: | ‘So then I am destined to grieve for Zion, For Thine enemies will come to this place and pollute Thy sanctuary, And lead Thine inheritance into captivity, And make themselves masters of those whom Thou hast loved, And they will depart again to the place of their idols, And will boast before them : And what wilt Thou do for Thy great name?’ 2 And the Lord said unto me : «ΜΥ name and My glory are unto all eternity ; And My judgement shall maintain its right in its own time. 3 And thou shalt see with thine eyes That the enemy will not overthrow Zion, Nor shall they burn Jerusalem, But be the ministers of the Judge for the time. 4 But do thou go and do whatsoever I have said unto thee.’ 5 And I went and took Jeremiah, and Adu, and Seriah, and Jabish, and Gedaliah, and all the honourable men of the people, and I led them to the valley of Cedron, and I narrated to them all 6, 7 that had been said to me. And they lifted up their voice, and they all wept. And we sat there and fasted until the evening.

Jnvasion of the Chaldeans and their Entrance into the City after the Sacred Vessels‏ .דדש דעי were hidden and the City’s Walls overthrown by Angels.‏

61 And it came to pass on the morrow that, lo! the army of the Chaldees surrounded the city, and at the time of the evening, I, Baruch, left the people, and I went forth and stood by the 208%. And I was grieving over Zion, and lamenting over the captivity which had come upon

3 the people. And lo! suddenly a strong spirit raised me, and bore me aloft over the wall of

4 Jerusalem. And I beheld, and lo! four angels standing at the four corners of the city, each of

5 them holding a torch of fire in his hands. And another angel began to descend from heaven,

6 and said unto them: ‘ Hold your lamps, and do not light them till I tell you. For I am first sent to speak a word to the earth, and to place in it what the Lord the Most High has commanded

grieve. MS. reads Qu (=‘guilty’) which 1 have emended into 919 = * grieve’.‏ .1 .ער whom Thou hast loved, Ixxviii. 3, xxi, 20, 21 ; 4 Ezra iv. 23.‏ Cf. 4 Ezra iv. 25.‏ .9 .גוט what wilt Thou do. Joshua‏

Seriah, brother of Baruch and chief chamberlain of Zedekiah with whom he went to Babylon (see Jer. li. 59, 61).

Gedaliah, son of Ahikam (see Jer. xl. 14).

narrated to them, &c. Baruch usually makes known his revelations to his friends and the elders. He is for- bidden to do so in the fourth section, 1.6. xii. 5-xx.

7. fagted until the evening. The other fasts mentioned are of seven days. Of these there are four (ix. 2 ; xii. 55 xxi. 1; xlvii. 2). The scheme of the final editor is first a fast, then generally a prayer, then a divine message or revelation, then an announcement of this either to an individual (e.g. ν. 5) or to the people (e.g. xxxi. 2-χχχῖν), followed occasionally by a lamentation. This scheme is broken through in the fifth section only, 1. 6. in xxi-xlvi, where another fast is required after xxxv. In 4 Ezra there are four fasts of seven days.

THE SECOND SECTION. VI-VIII. This is a short section. After a day's fast Baruch, while lamenting alone, sees in a vision the sacred vessels committed to the earth for a season and the city destroyed by angels lest the enemy should triumph (vi. 3-vii). The realization of this vision follows.

VI. 1. on the morrow, &c. 4 Baruch (iv. 1) reproduces these words. by the oak. This oak is outside the city, probably near or in the valley of the Cedron, where Baruch and the others had fasted. It cannot be the oak at Hebron. It is noteworthy that no mention of this oak occurs in B*. In ית‎ it is found twice (vi. 1 and Ixxvii. 18). A tree is referred to in ΑΣ in lv. 1. 4. Cf. Rev. vii. 1 ‘I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth’; 4 Baruch iii. 2. 5. Cf. Rev. vii. 2; 4 Baruch iii. 4. 6. The office of the angel here is executed by Jeremiah in 4 Baruch iii. 8. the Lord the Most High. This full title occurs here only in this book; the ‘Most High’ is found in xvii. 1, &c., Ixxxiii. 1, and 4 Ezra. 483 12

BARUCH 6. 7—9. 1‏ זז

And 1 saw him descend into the Holy of Holies, and take from thence the veil, and the‏ ,שוח ל holy ark, and the mercy-seat, and the two tables, and the holy raiment of the priests, and the altar‏ of incense, and the forty-eight precious stones, wherewith the priest was adorned and all the holy‏

‘ Farth, earth, earth, hear the word of the mighty God, And receive what I commit to thee, And guard them until the last times, So that, when thou art ordered, thou mayst restore them, So that strangers may not get possession of them. 9 For the time comes when Jerusalem also will be delivered for a time,

Until it is said, that it is again restored for ever.’

And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up.‏ סז

* Destroy, therefore. and overthrow its wall to its foundations, lest the enemy should boast and say :

“We have overthrown the wall of Zion,

And we have burnt the place of the mighty God.”’

2 And Ίγε have seized the 13661 where I had been standing before.

81 Now the angels did as he had commanded them, and when they had broken up the corners of the walls, a voice was heard from the interior of the temple, after the wall had fallen, saying :

2 ‘Enter, ye enemies,

And come, ye adversaries ; For he who kept the house has forsaken (it).’

4 And I, Baruch, departed. And it came to pass after these things that the army of the Chaldees

‘entered and seized the house, and all that was around it. And they led the people away captive, and slew some of them, and bound Zedekiah the king, and sent him to the king of Babylon.

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IX-XII. 4. Ferst Fast of seven Days: Baruch to remain amid the Ruins of Ferusalem and Feremiah to accompany the Exiles to Babylon. Baruch's Dirge over Ferusatem.

9: And I, Baruch, came, and Jeremiah, whose heart was found pure from sins, who had not been

7. take from thence, &c. In 2 Macc, ii. 4-8 there is a very similar tradition. Jeremiah is warned of God to hide in the mountain where Moses climbed up ‘the tabernacle and the ark and the altar of incense’. This place was to remain unknown till God should gather His people again together.

ark. MS. = אפור‎ corrupt for .ארון‎ The converse corruptiqgn of אפוד‎ into ארון‎ is found in 1 Sam. xiv. 18. In 2 Macc. ii. 5 the things hidden are these—riv σκηνὴν καὶ τὴν κιβωτὸν καὶ τὸ θυσιαστήριον τοῦ θυμιάµατος.

According to Bammidbar rabba 15, five things were taken away and preserved on the destruction of Solomon's temple: the candlestick, the ark, the fire, the Holy Spirit, and the Cherubim.

the altar of incense. The Syriac implies θυµιατήριον. In the LXX this word = ‘censer’, but in Philo and Josephus it means not ‘censer’ but ‘altar of incense’. Cf. Heb. ix. 1-5 (?), and 2 Macc. as above (τὸ θυσιαστήριον τοῦ Θυμιάματος) which mention the altar but not a censer. See Appendix to my Commentary, p. 168.

forty-eight precious stones. Why forty-eight? There were twelve on the breastplate (Exod. xxviii. 15-21) and two on the ephod (Exod. xxviii. 9).

Vulg. of that passage; in LXX only twice.

Mighty God. This title recurs in vii. 1, and xiii. 2, 4. Not in 4 Ezra.

guard them until the last times. Cf. 4 Baruch iii. 8, ‘Preserve the vessels of worship until the coming of the Beloved.’

9. restored for ever. A Messianic kingdom of indefinite duration is looked forward to with Jerusalem as its centre, and likewise the temple in which the sacred vessels of the former temple will again be used. During this kingdom the dispersion will again return to Palestine (bxxvii. 6 ; Lxxvili. 7, notes).

1911 (5ο) or) WKAKS? hood ‘the spirit brought me to the place.’ In vi. 3 a strong spirit carried Baruch aloft over the walls for the vision : now he carries him back to the place beside the oak.

\ 111. 2. 4 Baruch wv. 1. He who kept the house has forsaken it. Cf. Tacitus Aésf. ν. 13 ‘Apertae repente delubri fores et audita inaior humana vox excedere 01608 '. 5. The writer knows 01 Zedekiah and his captivity. See note מס‎ 1.

THE THIRD SECTION. IX. 2-XII. 4. After a seven days’ fast amid the ruins of Zion, the word of the Lord bids Baruch to tell Jeremiah to go to Babylon, and promises a revelation of what should be in the end. Baruch tells Jeremiah the message, and laments before the temple gates for Zion.

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2 captured in the seizure of the city. And we rent our garments, we wept, and mourned, and fasted ix. ZOXXV. seven days. / = 1,2 And it came to pass after seven days, that the word of God came to me, and said unto me: ‘ Tell 3 Jeremiah to go and support the captivity of the people unto Babylon. But do thou remain here amid the desolation of Zion, and I will show to thee after these days what will befall at the end of 4,5 days. And I said to Jeremiah as the Lord commanded me. And he, indeed, departed with the people, but I, Baruch, returned and sat before the gates of the temple, and I lamented with the following lamentation over Zion and said:

6 ‘Blessed is he who was not bom, Or he, who having been born, has died.

But as for us who live, woe unto us,‏ ל Because we see the afflictions of Zion,‏ And what has befallen Jerusalem.‏

8 I will call the Sirens from the sea, And ye Lilin, come ye from the desert, And ye Shedim and dragons from the forests : Awake and gird up your loins unto mourning, And take up with me the dirges, And make lamentation with me.

9 Ye husbandmen, sow not again; And, O earth, wherefore givest thou thy harvest fruits? Keep within thee the sweets of thy sustenance.

ιο And thou, vine, why further dost thou give thy wine ;

For an offering will not again be made therefrom in Zion, Nor will first-fruits again be offered.

ΙΧ. 2. The first fast of seven days. : Fasting was the usual preparation for supernatural communications. Cf. Dan. ix. 3, 20-21 ; and see note on v. 7.

Χ. 1. God. This word is found only twice again, i.e. liv. 12; Ixxxii.9. Its use is more frequent in 4 Ezra.

2. We have here a violation of the true historical tradition. According to Jer. xliii. 4-7, both Jeremiah and Baruch were carried down into Egypt. In 1 Baruch i. 1, Baruch appears in Babylon five years after Jerusalem was taken. In 4 Baruch, too, Jeremiah is taken to Babylon, hut by force. The references to Jeremiah in connexion with Babylon probably belong to B®. In Ixxvii. 17-19, &c., Baruch writes to the brethren in Babylon, never to Jeremiah ; while in 4 Baruch he directs his letter to Jeremiah. But later Judaism, according to Pesik. R. 26 (1315 ed. Fried- mano) held that Jeremiah accompanied the exiles part of the way to Babylon.

support. So I render according to a recognized meaning of the Syriac verb .-ם-בן‎ Ryssel thinks that this verb

goes back to b ron, and that לב‎ was to be understood with it. Thus he arrives at his rendering ‘care for’. But this is most unlikely; for in xliii. 1 we have the actual Syriac phrase in full which corresponds to the Hebrew לב‎ Pan, 1.6. od coh. There we should render as in Hebrew, ‘direct thy heart,’ &c. Now it is noteworthy that the clause in our text ‘ go and support’ recurs practically in xxxiii. 2, but there ooh is used instead of po! coh is a Syriac equivalent of P20. Hence there we render ‘make ready’. In Lxxvii. 12 yet another verb, Sus, is used in nearly the

same sense as pol in x. 2. Returning now to xxxili. 2 we recognize at once that there is a slight corruption in the text: ‘make ready the rest of the brethren tint Babylon, against whom has gone forth the sentence that they should be led into captivity.’ Here the brethren are first of all said to be already ‘in Babylon’, and then in the next clause to be sentenced to exile to Babylon. Thus ‘in Babylon’ may be corrupt for ‘for Babylon’. It must be confessed, however, that the original standing behind these words is very uncertain.

5- This lament of Baruch prepares for the third fast of xii. 5.

before the gates of the temple. This is the scene of the following lamentation, and also that in xxxv. 1. A passage in the beginning of 3 Baruch seems to be derived from our text: οὕτως ἐκάθητο ἐπὶ τὰς ὡραίας πύλας ὅπου יצ‎ 2 τῶν ἁγίων ἅγια. Mount Zion, on the other hand, is the scene where revelations are accorded to him (xii. 1, &c.).

6. Blessed is he who was not born, ἅς, -Cf. Eccles. iv. 2-3, from which the text may ultimately have been derived. Cf. 4 Ezra: it is said that it were better man had not been born at all than be born to have to face future torment and judgement (e.g. vii. 66, 116, 117). But it is the present woes of Jerusalem that here are said to make the unborn blessed, and those in Sheol (xi. 7) happy in comparison with the living.

Lilin, night-demons. Male and female demons named Lil and Lilit belong to Assyrian and Babylonian demonology.

The Lilith (לילית)‎ are mentioned in Isa. xxxiv. 14, along with the satyr YY, Shedim, Male demons, to which various origins were assigned. See my Commentary, iv /oc.

dragons. So, too, Pesh. renders Ώ 2Η in Isa. xiii. 22. But the word may mean ‘jackals’. 10. The writer of x. 6-xii. 4 resigns absolutely all hope of the restoration of Jerusalem, as 5° does throughout.

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BARUCH 10. 11—11. 3‏ זז

And do ye, O heavens, withhold your dew, And open not the treasuries of rain : And do thou, O sun, withhold the light of thy rays.

And do thou, O moon, extinguish the multitude of thy light ; For why should light rise again Where the light of Zion is darkened ?

And you, ye bridegrooms, enter not in, And Ict not the brides adorn themselves with garlands ; And, ye women, pray not that ye may bear.

For the barren shall above all rejoice, And those who have no sons shall be glad, And those who have sons shall have anguish.

For why should they bear in pain, Only to bury in grief? Or why, again, should mankind have sons ?

Or why should the seed of their kind again be named, Where this mother is desolate, And her sons are led into captivity ?

From this time forward speak not of beauty, And discourse not of gracefulness.

Moreover, ye priests, take ye the keys of the sanctuary, And cast them into the height of heaven, And give them to the Lord and say:

“Guard Thy house Thyself. For lo! we are found false stewards.”

And you, ye virgins ; who weave fine linen

And silk with gold of Ophir,

Take with haste all (these) things

And cast (them) into the fire,

That it may bear them to Him who made them, And the flame send them to Him who created them, Lest the enemy get possession of them.’

Moreover, I, Baruch, say this against thee, Babylon : ‘If thou hadst prospered,

And Zion had dwelt in her glory,

Yet the grief to us had been great

That thou shouldst be equal to Zion.

But now, lo! the grief is infinite, And the lamentation measureless, For lo! thou art prospered

And Zion desolate.

Who will be judge regarding these things ? Or to whom shall we complain regarding that which has befallen us ? O Lord, how hast Thou borne (it)?

text = ,בתולות‎ corrupt for m3 in the Hebrew original.

18. The priesthood dre found false stewards and resign charge of the temple. Cf. 4 Baruch iv. 3, 4, where Jeremiah casts up the keys ‘before the sun’, and the Ja/:ué Shim. on Isa. xxi, where the flower of the priests cast them up aloft. The same incident is recounted in Taanith 29%; Lev. R. xix. 6, in connexion with the destruction of the first temple. In Ab. R. N. vii the incident is recorded in connexion with the destruction of the second temple.

BARUCH 11. 4—12. 5‏ זז

4 Our fathers went to rest without grief,

And lo! the righteous sleep in the earth in tranquillity ; 5 For they knew not this anguish,

Nor yet had they heard of that which had befallen us. 6 Would that thou hadst ears, O earth,

That ye might go and announce in Sheol,

“Blessed are ye more than we who live.”’‏ ל

OXYRHYNCHUS GREEK FRAGMENT, from Grenfell and Hunt’s Oxyrhynchus Papyr?, vol. iti. 3-7, 1903.

Verso. Verso. 12: But I will say this as I (2-5) 12.1. But I will say this as 1 ) 17 letters αλλα τ)ουτυ12 τ think. think, οιο(ν) And I will speak against And speak against thee, the (οιοµαι ερω και Aady)ow thee, O land, which art land that is prospering. προς ₪6 THY prospering. 2 The noonday does not 2. Not always does the noon- (γην την evodovear ο)υ 2 always burn. day burn, \ παντοτε µεσεμ Nor do the rays of the Nor do the rays of the sun δ(βρια αποκαιε ουδ)ε το sun constantly give light. constantly give light. διήνεκες αι ακτι 3 Donotexpect[andhope] (6-8) 3. And do not thou expect to (ves του ηλιου λαγμπουσιν' 3 that thou wilt always be rejoice, και συ µη προς prosperous and rejoicing. And be not greatly up- Nor fcondemnf greatly. (δοκα | xatpnoev) µήδε lifted and boastful. 6)! טס‎ καταδικα 4 For assuredly in its own (8-10) 4. For assuredly in its season {Ce αλήθως γαρ ev) καιρω 4 season shall the (divine) shall the (divine) wrath be awak- εξύπνισθησεται wrath awake against thee. ened against thee, Which now in long-suf- Which is now restrained by (προς σε opyn η סט עטש‎ fering is held in as it were long-suffering as it were by a t)ys paxpoOup(:) by reins. rein.

5 And when I had said (10-16) 5. And having said these το(ας ws χαλωω κατεχεται 5 these things, I fasted seven things I fasted seven days. και) ειπων ταυτα days.

5-6. In Berakh 18> there is a long legend narrated, the object of which is to teach that the departed know nothing of what is going on in this world.

THE FourTH SEcTionN. XII. 5-XX. After a fast of seven days follows a long revelation to Baruch (xiii. 2-xx. 2). The text is very confused. See next note.

XIII-XXV. The text of these chapters is inexplicable as it stands. The difficulties are due not to corruption, though this exists, but to a recasting of the original text. In this process many passages were torn froin their original contexts and placed in settings which are quite unsuitable. It appears impossible to restore the original order; for not only were the chapters broken up and rearranged, but also mutilated and interpolated. It is only occasionally possible to explain the grounds for such dislocations of the text. But that they occur not infrequently is indubitable. We have it on a large scale in 2 Corinthians which is composed of two letters, and where the later in date is placed before the earlier. Other instances which can be consulted by the reader occur in this volume: see 1 I:noch xii-xvi ; where the dislocation and consequent confusion are almost as great as in our text : Ixxviii-Ixxxii ; xci—xciii.

But let us return and state the chief grounds for regarding this section as disarranged and confused. 1°. In xiii. 4 ‘those prosperous cities’ are represented as speaking without a single note of introduction. Before xiii. 4 probably some reference was made to these cities. 2°. The retribution of the Gentiles referred to in xiii. 4, 5 has not been

487

19 ן‎ And it came to pass after 18.1. And it came to pass (ένήστευσα nuepas 6 וטא‎ 18 1 these things, that I, Baruch, after these things that I, Baruch, εγενετο µε was standing upon Mount was standing upon Mount Zion, (7a ταντα οτι εγω) Βαρουχ Zion, and lo! a voice came and lo! a voice came forth from ἵστηκει” επι To from the height απά said the height and said unto me: (opos Σιων και ιδου φωνη

2 unto me: ‘Stand upon thy 2. ‘Stand upon thy feet, Baruch, εξηλθεν 660

feet, Baruch, and hear the and hear the word of the mighty (ous και ειπε pot αναὺστα 2 word of the mighty God.’ God.’ επι τους πο

15 (δας σου Βαρουχ και ακουε) Tov λογον ἴσχυ {pou 0600

3 Because thou hast been astonied at what has befallen Zion, thou shalt therefore be assuredly 4 preserved to the consummation of the times. that thou mayst be for a testimony. So that, if ever 5 those prosperous cities say: ‘Why hath the mighty God brought upon us this retribution?’ Say

mentioned before, though the text presupposes some such mention. It is intelligible if xxv or xxiv. 4 precedes where Baruch asks what will befall the enemies of Israel. 3°. In xiv. 1 Baruch replies that God has shown him ‘the method of the times’, whereas in xx. 6 this is not yet done; for the promise is there given that Baruch shall receive directions with regard to them. 4°. In xiv. 1 it is said that God has shown to Baruch the retribution that shall befall the Gentiles. But this is not done by God til xxv. 3. The Gentile cities in xiii. 4 sq. complain of it after it has come upon them. Hence xxv. should precede xiii. .טוצ-4‎ 5°. In xxiv. 4” Baruch asks what retribution awaits the enemies of Israel and when would the judgement be. Now the answer to the first question has already been given in xiii. 4-12; and the answer to the second question follows in xxv. Hence xxiv. 4 should precede xiii. 3-12, xxv. 6°. In xiit. 5 the words ‘thou and those like thee who shall have seen this evil’ are unexplained in their present context and are in fact inexplicable, unless xxiv. 2 precedes, in which God tells Baruch that he and many with him should see the judgement of God. But if xxiv. 2 ‘thou shalt see— and the many that are with thee’ originally preceded וא‎ - then everything is clear. Hence xxiv. 2-4 should precede xiii. 3%-12. 7°. Again, there is no adequate explanation of the ‘therefore’ in xx. 1. But if xx is read immediately after xiii. 1~3* the text would at once become clear.

Thus, provisionally, the text might be restored as follows :—xiil, 1-33: xx; xxiv. 2-4 ; xiii, 930-121 xxv.

Now we have to remark regarding these sections that their interest is at once ‘heological and national. To reassure Baruch, who is plunged in grief over Jerusalem (xiii. 38), God declares (xx. 1-2) that the days and years will speed more quickly in order to usher in the judgement, which will right all wrongs, and that even Jerusalem has been removed with this end in view. Baruch is then promised that disclosures shall be made on ‘the method of the times’ (xx. 6) and that ‘ he ‘tand the many that are witht him’ (xxiv. 2) shall witness God’s dealings. Baruch, thereupon, asks two questions (xxiv. 4): (a) What will befall Israel’s enemies? (4) when will this judgement be of which God has already spoken (xx. 2)? The answer to (a) is given in xiii. 45-12. But the first words of this answer are lost, somewhat to the effect that ‘retribution will come upon the prosperous cities of your enemies’. Baruch, moreover, will be preserved until those last days (xiii. 3) in order to testify together withthe surviving righteous (xiii. 5, xxiv. 2) the reason of the retribution that had befallen those cities, and to answer the remonstrances of the tormented Gentiles. In answer to Baruch’s second question, he is informed (xxv. 1-2) that he shall be preserved till the sign of the last days has come. This sign shall be a stupor that shall seize the inhabitants of the earth (xxv. 3, 4). Baruch, thereupon, acknowledges that God has shown him ‘the method of the times’, and told him of the retribution coming upon the Gentiles (xiv. 1). This verse closes the questions of theological and national interest in xiji-xxv. In xiv.

2-xix, which follows, we have a section that is of a purely ¢heo/ogical and individual interest, as will be seen from the summary at the beginning of these chapters (p. 489).

xxi-xxiv. I is mainly of the same theological cast. Their substance, in a word, is that the end cannot come till all souls are born.

_ Thus the original order of xiii-xxv appears to have been: xiii. 1-3% xx, xxiv. 2-4, xiii. 45-12, xxv, xiv—xix, xxi- xxiv. 1. ‘

3. thou shalt therefore be assuredly preserved, &c. This promise recurs twice again in Β3, i.e. in xxv. 1 and Ixxvi. 2. Thus the assumption and preservation of Baruch till the last judgement is the teaching 01 11 Cf. also xdviii. 30 and xlvi. 7. In 135 on the other hand, Baruch is to die a natural death (Ixxviit. 5; Loxxiv. 1), and go the way of all the earth (xliv. 2). This conflict of accounts is due to the transference of a distinct Enochic function to Baruch in Β3. For in Jub. iv. 24 it is said: ‘Enoch was set as a sigz there (in Eden), and that he should testify against all the children of men’ (Cf. also x. 17). Enoth’s acceptance among Christians was the ground for his rejection by the Jews. Though he was second only to Daniel in Jewish Apocalyptic prior to A. D. 40 his functions and achievements were in subsequent Jewish literature assigned to others, e.g. Moses, Ezra, or Baruch. By observing this tendency of Jewish thought we are enabled in lix. 4-11 to conclude that a document, seen to be on other grounds prior to A. D. 70, is later than the rise of Christianity.

be assuredly preserved. The Syriac reveals a Hebraism; lit. = σωσθεὶς σωσθήσει.

4. those prosperous cities. The text preceding these words seems to have been lost; or preferably (see note on xili-xxv on p. 487) we should read xiii. 3-12 after xxiv. 2-4. In any case, xiii. 3°-12 gives an answer to xxiv. 4. ‘The cities here mentioned are Gentile cities. ‘A land’ is referred to as prospering in xii. 1, 1.

brought upon us this retribution. Cf. the phrase in regard to Israel in Ixxvii. 4. Here the Gentile cities suffer as there Israel does. 488

thou to them, thou and those like thee who shall have seen this evil: ‘(This is the evil) and retribution which is coming upon you and upon your people in its (destined) time that the nations 6, 7 may be thoroughly smitten. And then they shall be in anguish. And if they say at that time: 8 For how long? Thou wilt say to them: ““Ye who have drunk the strained wine, Drink ye also of its dregs, The judgement of the Lofty One Who has no respect of persons.”’ 9 On this account he had aforetime no mercy on His own sons, But afflicted them as His enemies, because they sinned, το ©6©Then therefore were they chastened

That they might be sanctified. OXYRHYNCHUS GREEK FRAGMENT.

Recto. Recto. 4 זנ‎ But now, ye peoples and (19-20) 11. (Ye) peoples and... ont ΄ i nations, ye are guilty Because ye have always (Ye) have trodden down the ta εθνη κα 14 letters trodden down the earth, earth καταπα And used the creation And misused thecreated things | 20 τήσαντες την (γην και κα- unrighteously. in it. ταχρησαµενοι 12 For I have always bene- (21-22) 12. For ye were always being τους εν αυτη κτισµίασι 12 fited you. benefited Όμεις yop ευερ And γε have always been But ye were always ungrateful. γετουµενοι αει' ηχαίριστε- ungrateful for the bene- "τε αει ficence.

XIV-XIX. The Righteousness of the Righteous has profited neither them nor their City; Gods Fudgements are incomprehensible ; the World was made for the Righteous, yet they pass and the World remains (ΧΙΝ). Answer--Man knows Goa’s Fudgements and has sinned willingly. This World is a Weariness to the Righteous but the next is theirs (XV), to be won through Character whether a ζωής Time here be long or short (XNI-XVI1). Final Weal or Woe— the supreme Question (ΧΝ ΗΙ- ΧΙΣΧ).

14: And I answered and (23-25) 14. 1. And I answered and και απεκριθην και ειποὺν 14 1 said: ‘Lo! Thou hast said: ‘ Behold, thou hast shown tov απεδει shown me the method of me the methods of the times. fas pot καιρων takers’ κίαι the times, and that which and that which shall be. το μελλον

rendered Oh. ke as ‘have seen’, whereas the context requires that it should be rendered ‘ shall have seen’. The time referred to is in the future—the end of the world : the evil referred to is not the destruction of Jerusalem in the past, but the retribution which should befall the Gentiles in the Jast days. To this time of the end Baruch was to be preserved (xiii. 3) to testify to the Gentiles that full retribution had at last come upon them.

those like thee. These are the righteous who shall be surviving in the last days, and who shail join with Baruch in his testimony. /

5-7. This (is the evil) and retribution, &c. The text in this verse and the next is defective. First of all I have restored with Ryssel ‘this is the evil’, which fell out through hmt., and read ‘retribution’ in the singular, as תו‎ 4. Next the text reads ‘chastened’. But 2. 8 shows that the punishment is not corrective, but vindictive. Text = παιδευθῶσιν. which I take to be corrupt, as in 1 Sam. xxvi. 10, for παισθῶσιν = 15). Next, in v. 6, the text reads * shall expect’, ‘ shall hope "= ἐλπίσουσι = ,יוחילו‎ corrupt for bm = ‘shall be in anguish’. The same confusion is found in Jer. iv. 19, in the Hebrew 1155. Finally, in ₪. 7, the text reads ‘when’ where we require ‘for how long’, i.c. )סם---עד"מתי‎ מתי‎ alone.

XIV. 1. Baruch has not been shown ‘the method of the times’. Chapter xiii has only told us why the retribution has come on the Gentile cities, and when thcir punishment will be consummated. Disclosures about the method of the times are promised in xx. 6, and would seem to be given in xxiv. 2-xxv, taken together with xiii, or else in xxvii-xxx,

489

shall be after these things, and Thou hast said unto me, that the retribution, which has been spoken of by Thee, shall come upon 2the nations. And now I know that those who have sinned are many, and they have lived in prosperity, and departed from the world, but that few nations

And thou hast said unto me that the retribution which was spoken of by thee shall be fen- dured} by the nations.

25 (εσ)εσθαι και ειπες plo) (οτι υπ εθνων υπενεχθῃσείται η סחט‎ σου λεχθεισα πραξις και νυν (οιδα οτι πολλοι ..... εισιν ot “μαρτυρησαιίτες κας εδ εζησαν᾽ και 6700600060 εκ κοσμου 30 ολιγα δε περίεσται εθνη

εν εκεινοις

τοις καιροις᾽ ος... - . >... οὓς ειπες

λογους και τι πλεον εν { τούτω η τινα χει

pova τ(ο)υ τζων

will be left in those times, to whom those words shall be said which Thou didst 3say. For what advantage (32-33) 3. And what advantage (is is there in this, or what there) in this or what worse than (evil), worse than what we (these?) ... have seen befall us, are we to expect to see?

4,5 But again I will speak in Thy presence : What have they profited who had knowledge before Thee, and have not walked in vanity as the rest of the nations, and have not said to the dead: “ Give 6 us life,” but always feared Thee, and have not left Thy ways? And lo! they have been carried off. 7 nor on their account hast Thou had mercy on Zion. And if others did evil, it was due to Zion, that on account of the works of those who wrought good works she should be forgiven, and 8 should not be overwhelmed on account of the works of those who wrought unrighteousness. But who, O 1.012, my Lord, will comprehend Thy judgement, Or who will search out the profoundness of Thy way ? Or who will think out the {weight} of Thy path ? 9 Or who will be able to think out Thy incomprehensible counsel 2 Or who of those that are born has ever found ‘The beginning or end of Thy wisdom ?

10, וז‎ For we have all been made like a breath. Foras the breath ascends involuntarily, and again dies,

so it is with the nature of men, who depart not according to their own will, and know not 12 What will befall them in the end. For the righteous justly hope for the end, and without fear

come upon the nations. This could also be rendered : ‘be of service to the nations.’ But xiii. 8 is against this rendering.

4-19. What has the righteousness of the righteous profited them or their city, though the latter should have profited by it ? (4-7). Man cannot understand Thy judgement (8,9), for he is hut a breath, his end is a mystery (10,11); though for that end the righteous may hope for they have treasures of works in heaven, but for us there is only woe here and hereafter (12-14). What Thou hast done on behalf of Thy servants, Thou knowest, but we cannot discover. Can the world be made for man? We pass away and the world abides (15-19).

7. Cf. Gen. xviii. 23-33. Here, however, the works not the Zersons of the righteous avail for their city. On the question of good works the thought of the writers in this book, 1.6. between A.D. 50 and 8ο is: (a) the righteous are saved by their works (li. 7), and justified by the law (li. 3; Ixvii. 6). (6) They trust in them, and are heard of God, as Hezekiah (Ixiii. 3, 5), and the prophets (laxxv. 2). (ο) These works avail as a defence for their unrighteous fellow citizens (ii. 2), and after their death yive merit to Zion (xiv. 7, Ιχχχν. 10). (6) These works go before them to the next world, and are there guarded in God’s treasure-chambers, till the final judgement (xxiv. 1); hence the righteous hope for the end, and leave the world without fear (xiv. 12). In 4 Ezra we have no parallels to (4) and (c), and only seeming parallels to (a), as 1x. 7, and xiii. 23, where faith is included with works. But to (d) we have good parallels in vii. 77 (Ezra’s ‘ treasury of works laid up with the Most High’) and in viii. 33. For the doctrine of justification see note on xxi. 9.

8. weight (or ‘burdensomeness’). There is some corruption here. I see no obvious explanation. The text seems in some form to go back to דרכך אין חקר‎ =‘ Thy unsearchable paths’. In this case we should have to suppose that חקר‎ was corrupted into “DY =: * weight’, which led to the omission of YX.

12, the righteous justly hope, 1 En. cii. 4.

490

15

BARUCH 14 12—16. 1‏ זז

depart from this habitation, because they have with Thee a store of works preserved in treasuries.

13 On this account also these without fear leave this world, and trusting with joy they hope to 14 receive the world which Thou hast promised them. But as for us—woe to us, who also are 15 now shamefully entreated, and at that time look forward (only) to evils. But Thou knowest

accurately what Thou hast done by means of Thy servants; for we are not able to understand

16 that which is good as Thou art, our Creator. But again I will speak in Thy presence,O Lorp, 17 my Lord. When of old there was no world with its inhabitants, Thou didst devise and speak 18 with a word, and forthwith the works of creation stood before Thee. And Thou didst say that

Thou wouldst make for Thy world man as the administrator of Thy works, that it might be known that he was by no means made on account of the world, but the world on account of him.

rg And now I see that as for the world which was made on account of us, lo! it abides, but we,

on account of whom it was made, depart.’ 1 And the Lord answered and said unto me: ‘Thou art rightly astonied regarding the departure of 2 man, but thou hast not judged well regarding the evils which befall those who sin. And as regards 3 what thou hast said, that the righteous are carried off and the impious are prospered, And as 4 tegards what thou hast said: “Man knows not Thy judgement ”—On this account hear, and I will 5 speak to thee, and hearken, and I will cause thee to hear My words. Man would not rightly have understood My judgement, unless he had accepted the law, and I had instructed him in understand- 6ing. But now, because he transgressed wittingly, yea, just on this ground that he wot (thereof), he shall be tormented. ד‎ And as regards what thou didst say touching the righteous, that on account of them has this 8 world come, so also again shall that, which is to come, come on their account. For this world is to them a strife and a labour with much trouble; and that accordingly which is to come, a crown with great glory.’

16: And I answered and said: ‘O Lorp, my Lord, lo! the years of this time are few and evil, and

who is able in his little time to acquire that which is measureless?’

a store of works, or lit. a* supply’. Cf. 4 Ezra vii. 77 (‘a treasure of works’); Matt. vi. 19,20; Pss. Sol. ix. 9. 13. the world which Thou hast promised. Clearly the spiritual world, ‘which does not die’ (li. 3); cf. xliv. 13, 15, xv. 7, 8. B* promises no earthly felicity, but only spiritual blessedness. 14. evils. What these are is given in xliv. 15; Ίσχχν. 13. ας. what Thou hast done by means of Thy servants, or the Syriac may = ‘ What Thou hast made out of Thy servants’, or, without the diacritic point, ‘ What Thou hast wrought out of Thy works.’ With the rendering in the text, verse 16 comes better before 15, which then runs on naturally to 17 and 18. 17. speak with a word. Cf. Ps. xxxiii.6; Heb. xi. 3; 4 Ezra vi. 38. 18. Thou wouldst make for Thy world man, &c. Cf. Ps. viii.6; 4 Ezra vi. 54. the world on account of him. This view of man’s dignity seems to occur first in the first Century of the Christian era. Why was the world created? (1) Here and in 4 Ezra viii. 1, 44 we are told ‘ for man’; (2) 4 Ezra vi, 55» 50, vii. 11; Ass. Mosis i. 12 say ‘for Israel"; (3) here in xiv. 19, xv. 7, xxi. 24 ‘for the righteous in Israel’. The real Jewish view from the Christian era onwards is (2) or (3). ‘On Israel stands the world’, Shemoth rabba, xxviii. 19. The ‘us’ and the ‘we’ are the righteous in Israel, as xv. 7, xxi. 24. In Pesikta 200 God is said to have created the world on account of Abraham's merit.

5. the law. The law and the Messianic expectation were the two centres round which Jewish thought and life revolved. The law predominated at all times, and in B! where there is no Messiah, but Jerusalem’s restoration is expected, it is supremely exalted (6. ρ. xxvii. 15, 16). In 5 which does not look forward to restoration or Messiah, the law is further glorified (e.g. xviii. 24, 27, li. 3, 7), as also in B® (6. g. lxxxv. 3, 14). On the other hand, in the Messiah Apocalypses A! and 5 we find no mention of the law at all, and only once in A? (xxxviii. 2), though in A® it 11565 again into prominence (esp. Ixvii. 6, righteousness by the law). Thus the Messianic expectation tends to eclipse the supremacy of the law, and after the Messiah’s advent there is no allusion to it (Ixx-lxxiv). For fuller treatment and comparison with 4 Ezra see my Commentary.

shall ... come. Emended according to Ryssel by reading JL instead of 1.

8. this world is to them . . . trouble, &c. Cf. xIviii. 50; li. 14 ; 4 Ezra vii. 3-14; Ps. xc. 10 ‘ yet is their price labour and sorrow’; Rom. viii. 18 ; 2 Cor. iv. 17. B? regards this world as a place of trial, discipline, and sorrow, unlike B’, There is a still more ascetic tone about 4 Ezra, and above all in 1 Enoch cviii. 7, ‘ the spirits of the humble and of those who have afflicted their bodies.’

crown with great glory. Cf. 1 Det. v. 4, In Hebrew we have here a paronomasia, as in Isa. Ixii. 3, .עטרה בתפארה רבה‎

in his...time. For be (=‘this’) read !כ‎ = ‘his time’. Cf. xix. 2. There is no need to add ‘time’, and render ‘this his little time,’ with Ryssel. Text = ‘in this little’. 491

171 And the Lord answered and said unto me: ‘With the Most High account is not taken of much 2 time nor of a few years. For what did it profit Adam that he lived nine hundred and thirty years, 3 and transgressed that which he was commanded? Therefore the multitude of time that he lived 4 did not profit him, but brought death and cut off the years of those who were born from him. Or wherein did Moses suffer loss in that he lived only one hundred and twenty years, and, inasmuch as he was subject to Him who formed him, brought the law to the seed of Jacob, and lighted a lamp for the nation of Israel?’ 181 And I answered and said: ‘ He that lighted has taken from the light, and there are but few that 2 have imitated him. But those many whom he has lighted have taken from the darkness of Adam and have not rejoiced in the light of the lamp.’ 191 And He answered and said unto me: ‘ Wherefore at that time he appointed for them a covenant and said: “ Behold I have placed before you life and death,” And he called heaven and earth to witness against them. For he knew that his time was but short, But that heaven and earth endure always. 3 But after his death they sinned and transgressed, Though they knew that they had the law reproving (them), And the light in which nothing could err, Also the spheres which testify, and Me. 4 Now regarding everything that is, it is I that jadge, but do not thou take counsel in thy soul 5 regarding these things, nor afflict thyself because of those which have been. For now it is the consummation of time that should be considered, whether of business, or of prosperity, or of shame, 6 and not the beginning thereof.

Because if a man be prospered in his beginnings and shamefully 7 entreated in his old age, he forgets all the prosperity that he had. And again, if a man is shame- fully entreated in his beginnings, and at his end is prospered, he remembereth not again his evil 5 entreatment. And again hearken: though each one were prospered all that time—all the time from the day on which death was decreed against those who transgress—and in his end was destroyed, in vain would have been everything.’

20: ‘Therefore, bchold! the days come, A\nd the times shall hasten more than the former, And the seasons shall speed on more than those that are past, And the years shall pass more quickly than the present (years).

2 Therefore have I now taken away Zion, That I may the more speedily visit the world in its season.

111. 1. has taken from the light, i.e. has chosen the light, and not Adam’s darkness.

3. The law is light, and Adam is darkness, the primary source of human transgression. This passage agrees with 2 Enoch, and like it does not teach the doctrine of original sin, any more than A® (i.e. liv. 15, 16). In 1 Enoch and Jubilees human depravity is traced to the angels who sinned with the daughters of men.

6-8. We must consider the end of a man or a matter. Cf. Solon’s saying in Herodotus i. 32.

&. on which death was decreed. See xxiii. 4 (note).

the times shall hasten. Cf. Ixxsiii. 1, 6. ו‎ a fall of Jerusalem prepares the way for final judgement: there is no hope here of its restoration. See 1. 4 (note). .

speedily visit, lit. ‘speed and visit’. ה‎ Hebraisin.

visit, in Baruch in a bad sense, of God's penal visitation. Contrast the N. T- associations of joy, Luke i. 68, &c., and usually in Ο.Τ.

492

II BARUCH 20. 3—21. סז‎

3 Now therefore hold fast in thy heart everything that I command thee, And seal it in the recesses of thy mind.

4 And then I will show thee the judgement of My might, And My ways which are unsearchable.

5 Go therefore and sanctify thyself seven days, and eat no bread, nor drink water, nor speak to

6 anyone. And afterwards come to that place and I will reveal Myself to thee, and speak true things with thee, and I will give thee commandment regarding the method of the times; for they are coming and tarry not.’

ΧΧΙ. 1-11. Fast of seven Days: Baruch’s Prayer: God’s Answer. The Prayer of Baruch the Son of Neriah.

1 And I went thence and sat in the valley of Cedron in a cave of the earth, and I sanctified my soul there, and I eat no bread, yet I was not hungry, and I drank no water, yet I thirsted not, and 2 I was there till the seventh day, as He had commanded me. And afterwards I came to that place 3 where He had spoken with me. And it came to pass at sunset that my soul took much thought, 4 and I began to speak in the presence of the Mighty One, and said: ‘O Thou that hast made the earth, hear me, that hast fixed the firmament by the word, and hast made firm the height of the heaven by the spirit, that hast called from the beginning of the world that which did not yet exist, and 5 they obey Thee. Thou that hast commanded the air by Thy nod, and hast seen those things which 6 are to be as those things which Thou art doing. Thou that rulest with great thought the hosts that stand before Thee: also the countless holy beings, which Thou didst make from the beginning, of 7 flame and fire, which stand around Thy throne Thou rulest with findignationt. To Thee only 8 does this belong that Thou shouldst do forthwith whatsoever Thou dost wish. Who causest the drops of rain to rain by number upon the earth, and alone knowest the consummation of the times 9 before they come ; have respect unto my prayer. For Thou alone art able to sustain all who are. and those who have passed away, and those who are to be, those who sin, and those who are 10 righteous [as living (and) being past finding out]. For Thou alone dost live immortal and past

4. the judgement of My might. Cf. Ixxxiii. 7. 6. that place. See xiii. 1 (note). method of the times. See xiv. 1 note. are coming and tarry not. Heb. ii. 3. Cf. xlviii. 39. THE FIFTH AND SIXTH SECTIONS. XXI-XLVI. The words ‘The prayer of Baruch the son of Neriah’ are found in the MS. The fifth Section ends with .טאאא‎

ΧΧΙ. 1. Cedron. See v. 5. 2. that place. Probably Mount Zion. Cf. xx. 6; or else the temple, x. 5. 3. the Mighty One. This is the first time this title occurs. It is found in B', 35 BS, but not in A}, A?.

4. by the word = J\San5, emended by Ryssel from ככ בצ1[וס‎ (= ‘in its fullness’). This emendation is justified and necessitated owing to the parallel ‘ by the spirit.’ The text, as I pointed out in my Commentary, is dependent on Ps. xxxiii. 6 ‘ By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.

hast called . . . that which did not yet exist. Cf. xlviii.8. We seem to have here creation ex mthilo. Cf. Philo, de Justitia ; which contradicts his usual doctrine. For creation by the word, cf. Ps. cxlviii. §; 2 Pet. iii. 5 ; Philo, de sacréf. Abel ef Cain. 6. hosts that stand before Thee. Cf. xiviii. τος 4 Ezra viii. 21°. countless holy beings. Cf. lix. 11; Ivi. 14. > which Thou didst make from the beginning. In Jub. ii. 2 the angels are created on the first day (so Job XXxvili. 7 is interpreted). 2 En. xxix. 1 says the second day. And 50 Targ. Jer I. on Gen. i. 26.

twith indignation+. Cf. xlviii. 8. JLaa.ss = ‘indignation’ seems corrupt for [103 0! = ‘reproof’. - Ps. cxv. 3, &c.

+ the δουν of rain ... by number. Cf. lix. 5 ; Sirach i. 2; 2 En. xivii. 5 (note).

those who sin, and those who are righteous. The Syriac here and in xxiv. 2; xxi. 11, 12; Ixti. 7 follows a Greek mistranslation of the original Hebrew verb ,צדק‎ which in this context meant ‘to be righteous’, i. 6. δίκαιος εἶναι, and not ‘to be justified ’, δικαιοῦσθαι, though the LXX rendering is usually the latter. The antithesis in our text is actually found in Job x. 15 and xxxv. 36, 37. Hence in all these passages ] have emended the text. Ryssel has accepted this emendation in these five passages, but without acknowledgement.

The doctrine of justification in this Apocalypse differs from that taught in 4 Ezra. (1) In Baruch the law justifies (li. 3; lxvii. 6; bexxi. 7). In Ezra salvation is by works and faith .או)‎ 7 ; xiii. 23). (2) Baruch is absolutely sure of salvation (xiii. 3, &c.). Ezra assumes his future woe till assured otherwise in viii. 47-9, 51-4.

For further treatment see Commentary.

[as living . . . out], bracketed as a dittography of the opening clause of the next verse.

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15

2.

II BARUCH οἱ. 10-23

finding out, and knowest the number of mankind. And if in time many have sinned, yet others not‏ זז a few have been righteous.‏

XNI. 12-18. Beruch’s Depreciation of this Life.

15 Thou knowest where Thou preservest the end of those who have sinned, or the consummation of 13 those who have been righteous. For if there were this life only, which belongs to all men, nothing could be more bitter than this. 14 For of what profit is strength that turns to sickness, Or fullness of food that turns to famine, Or beauty that turns to ugliness. 16 For the nature of man is always changeable. For what we were formerly now we no longer are, 1; and what we now are we shall not afterwards remain. For if a consummation had not been prepared 18 for all, in vain would have been their beginning. But regarding cverything that comes from Thee, do Thou inform me, and regarding everything about which I ask Thee, do Thou enlighten me.

ΧΧΙ. 19-25. Baruch prays to Ged to hasten the Judgement and fulfil His Promise.

ιο How long will that which is corruptible remain, and how long will the time of mortals be prospered, and until what time will those who transgress in the world be polluted with much 20 wickedness? Command therefore in mercy and accomplish all that Thou saidst Thou wouldst 21 bring, that Thy might may be made known to those who think that Thy long-suffering is weakness. And show to those who know not, that everything that has befallen us and our city until now has been according to the long-suffering of Thy power, because on account of Thy name Thou hast called 23 usa beloved people. Bring to an end therefore henceforth mortality. And reprove accordingly the angel of death, and let Thy glory appear, and Iet the might of Thy beauty be known, and let Sheol be sealed so that from this time forward it may not receive the dead, and let the treasuries of

1ο. knowest the number of mankind. Gen. xziii. 4, 5.

12-13. The balance of this life needs re-adjustment in another life.

the text reads ‘ food of fullness’. On two grounds I have changed this into * fullness of food’, First we have ond שבעת‎ in Ezek. xvi. 49, and next the rhyme requires it. The stanza runs thus:

מה יואיל חיל נהפך לחלי או שבע מזון נהפך לחסרון או יופי נהפך לדופי

Instead of yond in the second line we might read לרזון‎ with Ginzberg. As 1 have shown in my edition of this book, the third line of this stanza recurs in xlviii. 35. See lxxxili. 11, 12.

19. How long will that which is corruptible remain? The final editors answer this question in xl. 3; 7 answers it in xxili. 7-xxiv. 1. The writers of this book (esp. the writer of Β3) are impressed with the corruptibility of this present world, the 0/0: hazzeh. It all belongs to the sphere of corruption. So too does the Messianic kingdom if it falls within the o/am hazzeh, as in A}, A’, and A*, In A? it ends corruption, in A® it ends corruption and begins incorruption (Ixxiv. 2). See my Commentary, z# loc.

transgress, or * pass away’, as in verse 9. zo. A prayer for the hastening of the final judgement. 21. The fall of Jerusalem was brought about in God’s mercy to hasten the judgement.

that ... has been. So I have emended 010 (=‘and they have seen’) into Jooy, If the text is correct then it represents a Hebraism, the perfect with strong waw as a continuation of the imperative, and so =‘ and let them see’.

Ὃν onthe other hand, emend the Syriac Wao into wo = ‘restrain *, but the next verse supports the emendation in the text. 23. To hasten the final judgement the writer prays to God to end death, to let his glory appear, and the dead rise.

0 te Sid of death. Cf. Rev. vi. 8. Prominent in later Jewish writings. See Testament of Abraham ed. James).

be sealed. Cf. Isa. v. 14.

treasuries of souls. To these chambers only the righteous were admitted. After his death a righteous man’s soul was permitted for seven days to behold the seven ways of the righteous, and a wicked man’s the seven ways of the wicked. Then his soul entered these chambers, in Sheol (4 Ezra iv. 35, 41 ; vii. 101). They were guarded by angels, and were full of rest (1 En.c.5; 4 Ezra vil. 95). At the judgement they were to restore the oe he Bar. xxi. 2, 3, xxx. 25 4 Ezra vii. 32). There were also treasuries of righteous works (see xxiv.1). Note that the souls of the wicked are not mentioned here.

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24 souls restore those which are enclosed in them. For there have been many years like those that are desolate from the days of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, and of all those who are like them, who

25 Sleep in the earth, on whose account Thou didst say that Thou hadst created the world. And now

26 quickly show Thy glory, and do not defer what has been promised by Thee.’ And (when) I had completed the words of this prayer I was greatly weakened.

XXII-XXIII. God's Reply to Baruch's Prayer: He will fulfil His Promise: Time needed for its Accomplishment: Things must be judged in the Light of their Consummation (XXII). Till all Souls ave born the End cannot come (XXIII).

22: And it came to pass after these things that lo! the heavens were opened, and I saw, and 2 power was given to me, and a voice was heard from on high, and it said unto me: ‘ Baruch, Baruch,

3 why art thou troubled? He who travels by a road but does not complete it, or who departs by sea

4 but does not arrive at the port, can he be comforted? Or he who promises to give a present to

another, but does not fulfil it, is it not robbery? Or he who sows the earth, but does not reap its‏ ה

6 fruit in its season, does he not lose everything? Or he who plants a plant unless it grows till the

7 time suitable to it, does he who planted it expect to receive fruit from it? Ora woman who has

8 conceived, if she bring forth untimely, does she not assuredly slay her infant? Or he who builds

a house, if he does not roof it and complete it, can it be called a house? Tell Me that first.’

31,2 And 1 answered and said: ‘ Not so, O ΤΟΕΡ, my Lord.” And He answered and said unto me: 4 ‘Why therefore art thou troubled about that which thou knowest not, and why art thou ill at ease 3 about things in which thou art ignorant? For as thou hast not forgotten the people who now are

4 and those who have passed away, so I remember those who are appointed to come. Because when

Adam sinned and death was decreed against those who should be born, then the multitude of those who should be born was numbered, and for that number a place was prepared where the living might | 5 dwell and the dead might be guarded. Before therefore the number aforesaid is fulfilled, the

creature will not live again [for My spirit is the creator of life], and Sheol will receive the dead. 6, 7 And again it is given to thee to hear what things are to come after these times. For truly My redemption has drawn nigh, and is not far distant as aforetime.

greatly weakened. Cf. xIviii. 25 ; Dan. x. 17, &c.

3-8. In xxii. 3, 5 God replies, ‘ What is work without the result, and how can it be judged? So this life requires the consummation for its explanation (xxii. 3, 8 answer xxi. 13-17). Again, God replies ‘all in due time’ to Baruch’s plea for haste (xxii. 6, 7 answer xxi. 19, &c.). Moreover, God is bound by His promise (xxli. 4 answers xxi. 25).

! XXIII. 1,2. The future and the end are known only to God, and they alone explain the present. All time is alike to God, and he keeps the due proportion. A reply to xxi.

into volley 2? = who are appointed to come.’

4. when Adam sinned and death was decreed. There are two different views in this work regarding the Physical effect of Adam’s sin on mankind. (1) In B?, i.e. in xvil. 3, xix. 8, xxili. 4, Adam’s sin brought in physical death, otherwise man would have been immortal. Cf. St. Paul. (2) In A’, i.e. liv. 15, lvi. 6, Adam is said to have brought in only premature death.

See my Commentary 2 loc.

the multitude of those who should be born was nonmbered. God alone knew this secret (xxi. 10, xlviii. 46). The number was unalterable, and had to be completed before the judgement could come (xxiii. 5 ; 4 Ezra iv. 33-43).

for that number a place was prepared. Cf. 2 Enoch xlix. 2, lviii. 5. In the Tractate Chagiga, fol. 15, col. 1, it is said a place is prepared for every man either in Paradise or hell.

the dead might be guarded, 1.6. the righteous by angels (1 En. c. 5, &c.; the wicked by the guardians of the gates of Hades (2 En. xlii. 1).

ς. The resurrection cannot come till mankind’s secret number is fulfilled. In Rev. vi. 11 ; 4 Ezra iv. 36 the consum- mation comes with the fulfilling of the number of the saints, not of mankind. According to Jebam. 625 the Messiah is not to come till ‘all the souls have gone forth which are in the chambers’ of souls. This chamber is here called NEM.

Before. I emend JJ) (= ‘unless’ or ‘but’) into Ips.

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24: ‘For behold! the days come and the books shall be opencd in which are written the sins of all

those who have sinned, and again also the treasuries in which the righteousness of all those who have

2 been righteous in creation is gathered. For it shall come to pass at that time that thou shalt

see—and tthe many that are witht thce—the long-suffering of the Most High, which has been

throughout all generations, who has been long-suffering towards all who are born, (alike) those

3 who sin and (those who) are righteous.’ And I answered and said: ‘ But, behold! O Lord, no one

knows the number of those things which have passed nor yet of those things which are to come.

4 For I know indeed that which has befallen us, but what will happen to our enemies I know not, and when Thou wilt visit Thy works.’

XXV-XXVI. 1, ορ of the coming Fudgement.

25. And He answered and said unto me: ‘Thou too shalt be preserved till that time till that : sign which the Most High will work for the inhabitants of the earth in the end of days. This 3 therefore shall be the sign. When a stupor shall seize the inhabitants of the earth, and they 4 shall fall into many tribulations, and again when they shall fall into great torments. And it will come to pass when they say in their thoughts by reason of their much tribulation: “ The Mighty One doth no longer remember the earth ”—yea, it will come to pass when they abandon hope, that the time will then awake.’ 26.1: And I answered and said: ‘ Will that tribulation which is to be continue a long time, and will xxvi = that necessity embrace many years?’

XXVII-AXX. 1. The Tivelve Woes that are to come upon the Earth: the Messiah and the temporary Messianic Kingdom.

271 And He answered and said unto me: ‘ Into twelve parts is that time divided, and each one of xxvii- »them is reserved for that which is appointed for it. In the first part there shall be the begin- 8 3. 4 ning of commotions. And in the second part (there shall be) slayings of the great ones. And in 3, 6 the third part the fall of many by death. And in the fourth part the sending of the sword. And

the treasuries in which. Divine storehouses are a familiar idea in the O.T., e.g. of rain (Deut. xxviii. 12). Again, the idea of laying up spiritual things in store is found in the LXX, Prov. i, 18 @gcavupi{ovow ἑαυτοῖς κακά (cf. Pss. Sol. ix. 9). One may lay up treasures of works or faith (4 Ezra vii. 77, Vi. 5( ; treasures in heaven (Matt. vi. 19, 20); stores of wrath (Rom. ₪. 5). SIN and θησαυρές may mean the treasure itself, and the place where it is stored.

the righteousness Of 311, 6:0. The standard of righteousness was the Law. Tbe legalistic wing of the Pharisees held it consisted first and mainly in fulfilling ceremonial observances. See, e.g. the Book of Jubilees. The prophetical wing, from whom emanated most of the Messianic Apocalypses, understood it primarily as the fulfilling of moral duties.

XXIV. 2-4. Probably followed originally מס‎ xx. See note on xili~xxv. tthe many that are witht thee. See xiii. 5 (note). Read ‘ those like thee’, i.e. the surviving righteous. 3-4. Baruch objects that no man knows when the end may come, and he knows only that Israel is in distress. What will the Gentiles suffer as the penalty (answered xiii. 3-12). When will they suffer it? (answered xxv). 4. us. Text reads ‘me’.

NXVI. Added by the final editor in order to introduce xxvii-xxx. 1; xxv was Originally followed by xiv-xix.

XXVII-XXAX. 1. A fragment of a Messiah Apocalypse, AY. (1) After terrible tribulation over all the earth, imperilling even the elect, a glorious kingdom of joy and plenty was to be established under the Messiah, who afterwards was to return in glory to heaven. The resurrection was to follow. The outlook is thoroughly optimistic. (2) Palestine was to escape the prevailing woes, and since there is no mention of a restoration of Jerusalem or of the setting up of the New Jerusalem, Jerusalem must still have been standing (Contrast B! and 4 Ezra xiii. 36). Thus the events of A. D. 7ο could not have happened as yet. (3) In B! and 2% Jerusalem is destroyed and its people in exile. The law, too, isthe centre of interest and expectation in B! and B%, but the Messiah in A!, which has no allusion to the law, as 131 and Β3 have no allusion to the Messiah.

We have twelvefold divisions in A$ (i.e. lili-xxiv) and 4 Ezra xiv. 11, 12, but there of world-history,‏ .1 ]אא here only of the tribulations preceding Messiah's coming. These travail-pains (ὠδίνες Matt. xxiv. 8) in the Gospels‏ precede Christ’s second coming, and not His first appearance.‏

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7 in the fifth part famine and the withholding of rain. And in the sixth part earthquakes and

8, 9 terrors. [Wanting.] And in the eighth part a multitude of spectres and attacks of the Shedim.

11,12 And in the ninth part the fall of fire. And in the tenth part rapine and much oppression. And in

13 the eleventh part wickedness and unchastity. And in the twelfth part confusion from the mingling

14 together of all those things aforesaid. For }these parts of that time are reserved, and} shall be

15 mingled one with another and minister one toanother. For some shal] leave out some of their own,

and receive (in its stead) from others, and some complete their own and that of others, so that those

may not understand who are upon the earth in those days that this is the consummation of the times.

1,2 ‘Nevertheless, whosoever understandeth shall then be wise. For the measure and reckoning of

3 that time are two parts a week of seven weeks. And I answered and said: ‘It is good for a man to

4 come and behold, but it is better that he should not come lest he fall. [But 1 will say this also : xxviii. 4-5 5 Will he who is incorruptible despise those things which are corruptible, and whatever befalls in the = E

. case of those things which are corruptible, so that he might look only to those things which are not

6 corruptible?] But if, O Lord, those things shall assuredly come to pass which Thou hast foretold

7 to me, so do Thou show this also unto me if indeed I have found grace in Thy sight. Is it in one

place or in one of the parts of the earth that those things are come to pass, or will the whole earth experience (them) ?’

29 : And He answered and said unto me: ‘Whatever will then befall (will befall) the whole earth;

2 therefore all who live will experience (them). For at that time I will protect only those who are

3 found in those self-same days in thisland. And 11 shall come to pass when all is accomplished that

4 was to come to pass in those parts, that the Messiah shall then begin to be revealed. And Behemoth

shall be revealed from his place and Leviathan shall ascend from the sea, those two great monsters

which I created on the fifth day of creation, and shall have kept until that time ; and then they shall

5 be for food for all that are left. The earth also shall yield its fruit ten thousandfold and on each (?)

6, 7. famine . . . earthquakes, as signs of the end. Cf. Ixx, 8; Matt. xxiv. 7, &c.

g- spectres. Or‘portents’. Cf. 4 Ezra vi. 1.

το. the fall of fire. Cf. lxx.8; 4 Ezra v. 8.

| The error can be explained, if we suppose that παραλείψουσε, which has both the above meanings, stood before the translator and that he followed the wrong one here.

4-5. These verses break the connexion of thought, and no account is taken of them in the context. An answer is given to the question in xliii. 2.

found ...in this land. Cf. last note, and 4 Ezra xiii. 48, 49. A special blessing attached to residence in Palestine. It alone was to escape the woes that should befall all the earth besides. But this thought is found only in the sections of this book written prior to A. D. 70. It first appears in Joel ii. 32 in Apocalyptic literature, though it was before for a time, in the eighth century B.C., the belief of the Jews. For the privileges attached to residence in Palestine see my Commentary {η Joc.

The phrase ‘begin to be revealed ’ may be corrected to ‘the principate of the Messiah will be revealed’ (xxxix. 7) or * Messiah the prince shall be revealed’ (Dan. ix. 25).

Whence will Messiah be revealed? Here, and in xxx. 1, it seems from heaven; elsewhere, perhaps, from some place on earth. Cf. John vii. 27 : ‘When the Chnst cometh, no man knoweth whence he is.’ Cf., too, 4 Ezra vii. 28, xiii. 32. ee eee may be already born and yet not know his calling till Elijah comes and anoints him, in Justin’s Dial. >. Tryph. 8.

The 1 states that the Messiah was born at Bethlehem on the day of the destruction of the temple, was named Menahem, and afterwards suddenly carried away by a storm (Jer. Berachoth, p. 5).

Behemoth . .. and Leviathan. See 1 En. lx. 7-9, 24 notes; Targ. Jon. on Gen. i. 21 ‘And God created great beasts Leviathan and his wife which were prepared for the day of consolation’. Also Targum on Ps. I. 1ο.

all that are left. An indefinite statement ; guzbus vis in 4 Ezra vi. 52.

5. We have here another fragment of an old Apocalypse, of which we find a version in Irenaeus, v. 33. Papias is there said to ascribe it to our Lord. Irenaeus preserves a longer and fuller form than our text, and all seeds and fruit- trees share in the miraculous fruitfulness in his quotation. 1 En. x. 19 gives a still more fragmentary quotation,

We have, curiously, three diets provided in our syncretistic text for the members of the Messianic kingdom. In

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31

vine there shall be a thousand branches, and each branch shall produce a thousand clusters, and each 6 cluster produce a thousand grapes, and each grape produce a cor of wine. And those who have 7 hungered shall rejoice : moreover, also, they shall behold marvels every day. For winds shall go forth from before Me to bring every morning the fragrance of aromatic fruits, and at the close of the 8 day clouds distilling the dew of health. And it shall come to pass at that self-same time that the treasury of manna shall again descend from on high, and they will eat of it in those years, because these are they who have come to the consummation of time. זנ‎ ‘And it shall come to pass after these things, when the time of the advent of the Messiah is

fulfilled, that He shall return in glory.

2. Then all who have fallen aslecp in hope of Him shall rise again. And it shall come to pass at that time that the treasurics will be opened in which is preserved the number of the souls of the righteous, and they shall come forth, and a multitude of souls shall be seen together in one

3 assemblage of one thought, and the first shall rejoice and the last shall not be grieved. For they know that the time has come of which it is said, that it is the consummation of the times.

4 But the souls of the wicked, when they behold all these things, shall then waste away the more.

5 For they shall know that their torment has come and their perdition has arrived.’

XXXI-XXXIT. Baruch exhorts the People to prepare themselves for worse Evils.

1 And it came to pass after these things that I went to the people and said unto them: ‘ Assemble 2 unto me all your elders and I will speak words unto them.’ And they all assembled in the valley 3 of the Cedron. And I answered and said unto them:

‘ Hear, O Israel, and I will speak to thee, And give ear, O seed of Jacob, and I will instruct thee.

As to the ten thousand-fold yield of corn and wine Dr. Rendel Harris gives a probable explanation in a misreading of

plenty’ in the blessing of Isaac (Gen. xxvii. 28) as 137 = 10,000.‏ + =וב

each branch, &c. For ‘each’ the Syriac gives * one’ three times over, following the idiom in the Hebrew original.

a cor, about 120 gallons, 6. rejoice. Cf. 4 Ezra vii. 28, xii. 34. behold marvels. Cf. 4 Ezra vii. 27, וא‎ 50; Matt. xi. 4-6; John vii. 31. 8. the treasury of manna shall again descend. In Sibyl. Or. vii. 149 manna is to be the food of the members of the Messianic kingdom. Cf. Rev. Π. 17 ‘hidden manna’. consummation of time, i. e. the Messianic age. Cf. xxvii.15. Inxxx. 3 the phrase has a different meaning, but there we have the work of 5

XXX. 1. when the time of the advent of the Messiah is fulfilled. This seems to mean that after His reign the Messiah will return in glory to heaven. ‘ Advent’ may be rendered ‘ presence’, i.e. visible reign on earth. return in glory, back to heaven, where He was before His revealing on earth. For His pre-existence see 1 Enoch xlvi. 1. 2, .הווטוא‎ 3 (note), &c. In 4 Ezra vii. 29, 30 the Messiah and the righteous die at the close of the Messianic kingdom. Then all who have fallen asleep . .. shall rise again. The resurrection here follows immediately on the Messiah's return to heaven: but on his death in 4 Ezra vii. 29, 30. The words ‘of Him’ spoil the sense, and the parallelism to LXX of Ps. xvi. 9 ἐπ᾽ ἐλπίδι. fallen asleep. We are not told the fate of the living, as A! is fragmentary. 2. Here we return to 135 and resume the text that ended at xxiv. 1. 3. they know. Text reads ‘he knows’.

the consummation of the times. Here = the final judgement. Contrast xxix. 8. 4. waste away. Cf. li. 5; 4 Ezra vii. 87.

NNNI-NNNY. Baruch assembles and addresses the elders of the people. He exhorts them not to forget Zion and its anguish ; the end of all that is corruptible iscoming; the law, if they hold fast to it, will protect them when the whole creation is shaken; they are to grieve for the coming woe more than for the past, when the creation shall be renewed. Thereupon Baruch sends away the people, and when they reinonstrate against his forsaking them, he rejoins that he ας to the Holy Place to seek light from God. There he laments over Zion. (A fast of seven days should ollow here.)

The subject of Baruch’s address is to be found in each instance in the preceding revelation (as in ν. ₪ = 4), but it will be observed that this address, xxxi. 3-xxxi. 6, is out of relation to all that has gone before. The gist of the address is (a) the end of corruption is at hand ; (4) the law will save in the comiug crisis ; (ε) the present creation must give place to a new and incorruptible creation. Now these questions are discussed later in the dialogues between Baruch and God. Thus, for (4) see xlii. 6-8; for (4) see xlvili. 22-4, 38-41; for (c) see xlviii. 49; Iii. 3, 8-9, 16. Thus originally xxxi-xxxv followed ΠΠ. Moreover, xliv. 8-15 really concludes Baruch's address in xxxi, xxxil; 1.6. it follows xxxii. 6. Thats xfviti-lid originally preceded xxxt-xxxv.

all your elders. See xliv. 1, note.‏ .1 .]אאא

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3 τε sumin XXV. 4.

4 Forget not Zion, But hold in remembrance the anguish of Jerusalem.

5 For lo! the days come, When everything that is shall become the prey of corruption and be as though it had not been.

321 ‘But as for you, if ye prepare your hearts, so as to sow in them the fruits of the law, it shall pro- 2 tect you in that time in which the Mighty One is to shake the whole creation. [Because after a 3 little time the building of Zion will be shaken in order that it may be built again. But that building will not remain, but will again after a time be rooted out, and will remain desolate until 4, 5 the time. And afterwards it must be renewed in glory, and perfected for evermore.| Therefore we should not be distressed so much over the evil which has now come as over that which is 6 still to be. For there will be a greater trial than these two tribulations when the Mighty One will 7 renew His creation. And now do not draw near to me for a few days, nor seek me till I come to 8 you.” And it came to pass when I had spoken to them all these words, that I, Baruch, went my way, and when the people saw me setting out, they lifted up their voice and lamented and said : * Whither departest thou from us, Baruch, and forsakest us as a father who forsakes his orphan children, and

departs from them ? 8331 ‘Are these the commands which thy companion, Jeremiah the prophet, commanded thee, and ο said unto thee: “ Look to this people till I go and make ready the rest of the brethren tint Babylon. 3 against whom has gone forth the sentence that they should be led into captivity”? And now if ου also forsakest | us, it were good for us all to die before thee, and then that thou shouldst withdraw

from us.’

XXXIV-XXXV. Lament of Baruch.

84 And I answered and said unto the people: ‘ Far be it from me to forsake you or to withdraw from you, but I will only go unto the Holy of Holies to inquire of the Mighty One concerning you and concerning Zion, if in some respect I should receive more illumination: and after these things I will return to you.’

2 ‘QOthat mine eyes were springs, And mine eyelids a fount of tears.

3 For how shall I lament for Zion, And how shall I mourn for Jerusalem ?

5. shall become the prey of, lit. ‘shall be taken to’. See xxi. 19, note. XXXII. 1. prepare your hearts. An O.T. phrase, and a favourite expression in b' and B*; cf. xlvi. 5, lii. 7, &c. the fruits of the law, i.c. good works. Cf. 4 Ezra iii. 20, Ix. 32. it shall protect. Cf. xlviii. 22-4, xliv. 13, 14. shake the whole creation, i.e. to prepare for new heavens and a new earth. The thought comes originally from Haggai ii. 6; 61. Heb. xii. 26.

2-4. Here it is said that after a /ittle time Zion will be destroyed. But according to xx. I-2, Χχχί. 4, xxxil. 5, Xxxiii. 2-3, xxxv. 1 Jerusalem is already overthrown. These verses also break the connexion of thought between ,וטס‎ 1 and xxxii. 5. The people are to prepare themselves by obedience to the law for the end of all things, אא‎ 1. Compared with this the evils attendant on the fall of Jerusalem are slight. These three verses are closely akin to Tobit xiv. 4-5. Cf. Ber. R. 2 and Pesikta 145 for a similar hope. ‘These verses are an intrusion here.

be built again, i.e. by Ezra and Nchemiah.

ssive.

1 the evil which has now come = Jerusalem’ 5 fall.

renew His creation, i.e. replace the corruptible by the incorruptible world. See further li and 11. It was a current expectation after the captivity (cf. Isa. xv. 17; 1 En. χ]ν. 4, note; 4 Ezra vii. 75; Matt. xix. 28; 2 Pet. iii. 13; Rev. xxi. 1). 7. This verse was originally preceded by xliv. 8-15. for a few days, i.e. for the seven days’ fast, omitted in xxxv. Cf. 4 Ezra v. 18, 19.

XXXIIL 1.2. Seex. 2, note. According to B' Jeremiah does not seem to have zone to Babylon. On ‘make ready ' see note on x. 2. Here the ‘in’ is decidedly corrupt. See note on x. 2. 3. Cf. 4 Ezra xii. 44, 48.

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BARUCH 85. 4—88. 4‏ זז

4 Because in that place where I am now prostrate, Of old the high priest offered holy sacrifices, And placed thereon an incense of fragrant odours.

5 But now our glorying has been made into dust, And the desire of our soul into sand.’

XXXVI-XXXVII. The Vision of the Forest, the Vine, the Fountain and the Cedar.

36 1,2 And when I had said these things I fell asleep there, and I saw a vision in the night. And lo! xxxvi.- a forest of trees planted on the plain, and lofty and rugged rocky mountains surrounded it, and that = A* 3 forest occupied much space. And lo! over against it arose a vine, and from under it there went forth 4a fountain peacefully. Now that fountain came to the forest and was (stirred) into great waves, and those waves submerged that forest, and suddenly they rooted out the greater part of that forest, and 5 overthrew all the mountains which were round about it. And the height of the forest began to be made low, and the top of the mountains was made low and that fountain prevailed greatly, so that it 6 left nothing of that great forest save one cedar only. Also when it had cast it down and had destroyed and rooted out the greater part of that forest, so that nothing was left of it, nor could its place be recognized, then that vine began to come with the fountain in peace and great tranquillity, and it came to a place which was not far from that cedar, and they brought the cedar which had 7 been cast down to it. And I beheld and lo! that vine opened its mouth and spake and said to that cedar: ‘Art thou not that cedar which was left of the forest of wickedness, and by whose means 8 wickedness persisted, and was wrought all those years, and goodness never.

And thou didst keep conquering that which was not thine, and to that which was thine thou didst never show compassion, and thou didst keep extending thy power over those who were far from thee, and those who drew nigh thee thou didst hold fast in the toils of thy wickedness, and thou didst uplift thyself always as 9, סז‎ one that could not be rooted out! But now thy time has sped and thine hour iscome. Do thou also therefore depart, O cedar, after the forest, which departed before thee, and become dust with it, זז‎ and let your ashes be mingled together. And now recline in anguish and rest in torment till thy last time come, in which thou wilt come again, and be tormented still more.’ 37 And after these things I saw that cedar burning, and the vine growing, itself and all around it, the plain full of unfading flowers. And I indeed awoke and arose.

XXXVIII-XL. Juterpretation of the Vision,

38:1 And I prayed and said: ‘O Lorp, my Lord, Thou dost always enlighten those who are led by

2, 3 understanding. Thy law is life,and Thy wisdom is right guidance. Make known to me therefore

4 the interpretation of this vision. For Thou knowest that my soul hath always walked in Thy law, and from my (earliest) days I departed not from Thy wisdom.’

THE SIXTH SECTION. XXXVI-XLVI. We must insert a seven days’ fast after xxxv to keep the symmetry of the book as constructed by the final editor. The structure of this section is then as follows: first, the omitted fast, then a Messiah vision and its interpretation (xxxvi-xl) with disclosures as to apostates and proselytes (xli. 2-xlii. 8), and an announcement as to Baruch’s coming death (xliii), and finally Baruch’s address to the people (xiv—xlvi). This section 15 very composite. xxxvi-xl is a Messiah Apocalypse earlier than A.D. 70; xliii-xliv. 7, xlv-xlvi. 6 belongs to B!; the rest mainly to 5

XXXAVI-XL. The Second Messiah Apocalypse, ΑΣ.

(a) Date of A*—before a. D. .סל‎ Unlike Band B* it has no mention of the Roman destruction of Jerusalem ; nor has it a restoration of the city for the Messiah’s rule, or a return of the dispersion. ΑΣ is optimistic as regards this world, unlike B*; and centres its hope on the Messiah, not the law, unlike Bt and B%

(4) Relation of A? to Α'. In A’ the Messiah has a passive 1016 ; here an active one, destroying the wicked and vindicating Israel.

₪. rooted out. This word עקר‎ is constantly used in the Talmud with reference to the future fate of Rome. 11. in anguish. See xxx. 5, where the intermediate state involves some degree of happiness or pain.

unfading flowers. Cf. Apoc. Pet.‏ .11 טא אא

God Himself interprets this vision for Baruch : but Ramiel the vision in A (see lv. 3).‏ .1 .111 טאאא Thy law is life. Cf. xlv.2; Sir. xlv. 5. Hillel (Aboth. ii. 7): ‘The more law the more life . . . he who gains‏ .2 knowledge of the law gains life in the world to come.’ Also see John vii. 49.‏ Thy wisdom is right guidance. This is based on the Massoretic text of Eccles. κ. 10, where the versions vary.‏ from my (earliest) days. This is the Hebrew idiom 91, as in 1 Kings i. 6.‏ .4

500

391

2

And He answered and said unto me: ‘ Baruch, this is the interpretation of the vision which thou hast seen. As thou hast seen the great forest which lofty and rugged mountains surrounded, this is

3 theword. Behold! the days come, and this kingdom will be destroyed which once destroyed Zion, 4 and it will be subjected to that which comes after it. Moreover, that also again after a time will be

5 6

7 8

40 +

2

3 4

41;

2

3 4

6

2 1, 2

3

destroyed, and another, a third, will arise, and that also will have dominion for its time, and will be destroyed. And after these things a fourth kingdom will arise, whose power will be harsh and evil far beyond those which were before it, and it will rule many times as the forests on the plain, and it will hold fast for times, and will exalt itself more than the cedars of Lebanon. And by it the truth will be hidden, and all those who are polluted with iniquity will flee to it, as evil beasts flee and creep into the forest. And it will come to pass when the time of its consummation that it should fall has approached, then the principate of My Messiah will be revealed, which is like the fountain and the vine, and when it is revealed it will root out the multitude of its host. And as touching that which thou hast seen, the lofty cedar, which was left of that forest, and the fact, that the vine spoke those words with it which thou didst hear, this is the word.

‘The last leader of that time will be left alive, when the multitude of his hosts will be put to the sword, and he will be bound, and they will take him up to Mount Zion, and My Messiah will convict him of all his impieties, and will gather and set before him all the works of his hosts. And afterwards he will put him to death, and protect the rest of My people which shall be found in the place which I have chosen. And his principate will stand for ever, until the world of corruption is at an end, and until the times aforesaid are fulfilled. This is thy vision, and this is its interpretation.’

XLI-XLIT. The Destiny of the Apostates and of the Proselytes.

And I answered and said: ‘For whom and for how many shall these things be? or who will be ת-א‎ worthy to live at that time? For I will speak before thee everything that I think, and I will ask of = B* Thee regarding those things which I meditate. For lo! I see many of Thy people who have with- drawn from Thy covenant, and cast from them the yoke of Thy law. But others again I have seen

5 who have forsaken their vanity, and fled for refuge beneath Thy wings. What therefore will be to.

them? or how will the last time receive them? Or perhaps the time of these will assuredly be weighed, and as the beam inclines will they be judged accordingly ?’

And He answered and said unto me: ‘ These things also will I show unto thee. As for what thou didst say—* To whom will these things be, and how many (will they be)? ”—to those who have believed there shall be the good which was spoken of aforetime, and to those who despise there shall be the contrary of these things. And as for what thou didst say regarding those who have drawn

XXXIX. 3-5. Of the four world-empires here mentioned undoubtedly the first is Babylon (ver. 3), and the fourth Rome (5-7 ; xxxvi. 5-10). The second and third are probably Persia and the Diadochi. The fourfold division of world-empires is due to Dan. vii, where the fourth kingdom is decidedly different, as 4 Ezra χἩ, 11-12 admits.

7. the principate of My Messiah. For owe.) = ‘beginning ’, read olatass = * principate ’, as in xl. 3, Ixxv. 8. See xxix. 3, note. XL. 1. Who is this last leader? Probably Pompey, as ‘his impieties’ suggests (cf. Pss. Sol. ii. 24-35). The Talmud says a single leader, called Armilus, was to unite in himself all hatred and hostility against God’s people. See Weber, 365, 366. My Messiah. In A! (1. 6. xxvii-xxx. 1) God Himself protects Israel and destroys their enemies, and the Messiah only appears after this (xxix. 3). Here the Messiah takes the active part. convict of ... impieties. So Ezra xii. 32; xiii. 37. 2. protect the rest, &c. See xxix. 2, note. 3. for ever, until . . ., or ‘for the age’. Cf. Ixxiili.z. The Messianic kingdom belongs to the olam hazseh (see xxi. 19, note). ΧΙΙ, XLII. These two chapters belong to 25 and originally followed xxx. As in xx, the times are hastened (xlii. 6) in order to usher in the end, the resurrection, and the life of incorruption. The chief topics in these chapters are: (1) the ultimate destiny of tbe apostates ; (2) that of the proselytes.

ΧΕΙ. 1. Baruch’s question goes back to xxx. 2-5 ; which it originally preceded in Β3. For the question cf. Ixxv. 5. 3- These apostates may be Christians, yoke of Thy law. ‘Yoke’ means ‘obligation’. Cf. Sirach li. 26. Cf. for this phrase Pss. Sol. vii. 8, xvii. 32; Acts xv. 10; Gal. v.13. Contrast Matt. vi. 29, 30. 4. The proselytes, i.e. the D3. Cf. 4 Ezra vii. 133. their vanity, i.e. idols (Deut. xxxii. 21). fled for refuge beneath Thy wings. The writer follows the Hebrew text of Ps. xxxvi. 8, as against the LXX and Syriac. The phrase is used of a proselyte in Ruth ii. 12. Cf. Shabbath 31°. 5. the last time, described in xxx. 2-5.

4near and those who have withdrawn this is the word. As for those who were before subject, and afterwards withdrew and mingled themselves with the seed of mingled peoples, the time of these was

the former, and was accounted as somcthing exalted. And as for those who before knew not but‏ ה afterwards knew life, and mingled (only) with the seed of the people which had separated itself, the‏

6 time of these (is) the latter, and is accounted as something exalted. And time shall succeed to time and season to season, and one shall receive from another, and then with a view to the consummation shall everything be compared according to the measure of the times and the hours of the seasons.

For corruption shall take those that belong to it, and life those that belong to it. And the dust shall‏ 8 ,ל

be called, and there shal] be said to it : “ Give back that which is not thine, and raise up all that thou hast kept until its time ”.”

ΧΙ.ΙΠ. Baruch told of his Death and bidden to give his last Commands to the People.

431 ‘But. do thou, Baruch, direct thy heart to that which has been said to thee, αμ And understand those things which have been shown to thee ; 7= B!

For there are many eternal consolations for thee.

For thou shalt depart from this place,

And thou shalt pass from the regions which are now seen by thee,

And thou shalt forget whatever is corruptible,

And shalt not again recall those things which happen among mortals.

3 Go therefore and command thy people, and come to this place, and afterwards fast seven days, and then I will come to thee and speak with thee,

te

44 : And 1, Baruch, went from thence, and came to my people, and I called my first-born son and the aliahs} my friends, and seven of the elders of the people, an said unto them : [the Gedaliahs] my friend d f Id f the peopl d I sai h

‘ Behold, I go unto my fathers According to the way of all the earth.

4. The apostates have only this world. mingled peoples. Jer. xxv. 20, 24. / 5. of the people. The Syriac reads * peoples’, which does not suit Israel, though it does suit the proselytes. separated itself, i.e. the legalistic Israel by the ‘fence’ of the law (cf. xlviii. 23). The * separatists’ are the Pharisees.

the latter. So Kabisch emends. The text reads‘ the former’. Thus the proselytes inherit the world to come. 6. Cf. 4 Ezra iv. 37.

XLIII-XLVI. These chapters belong to B', with the exception of xliv. 8-15. They do not belong to 13% for in xiii, 2, xliv. 2, xxviii. 5, Ixxxiv. 1, Baruch is to die an ordinary death and forget all the concerns of mortals, whereas in B* he is to be preserved till the last day to testify against the Gentile oppressors of Israel, xiii. 3, xxv. 1, xlviii. 30. Again the people are assured of good tidings in store for them xlvi. 6, as in Ixxvii. 12, and bidden to look for the

restoration of Zion (Ixxxi. 1. 4 taken with i. 4, vi. 9), whereas in B? there is no consolation of any kind for them in this world.

XLIV. 8-15 belongs to B*; for the present world is hopeless—defiled with evil xliv. 9, and with its corruption about to pass away xliv. 8 ; it is, moreover, to be given over to oblivion xliv. g—a statement in flat contradiction with iv. 1. Accordingly all hope is to be directed to the world to come xliv. 15, the promised inheritance xliv. 13, the world of incorruption xliv. 12. Zhe original Position of x\iv. 8-15 was after xxxil. 6. These verses presuppose וו[‎ just aS xxxi-xxxv presuppose them ; see note on xxxi-xxxv.

1111. 1. Refers probably to some lost passage of B*.

whatever is corruptible. Cf. xxi. 19, note.

this place. This conflicts with xivii. 0ז--]‎ Hebron.

seven of the elders. Seven only, as the city is now destroyed. In v. 5, before its fall, he summons them all. 2. Contrast xu. 3 (see note).

502

10

2

14

158 45 : 46 +

Il BARUCH 44. 3—46. 1

But withdraw ye not from the way of the law, But guard and admonish the people which remain, Lest they withdraw from the commandments of the Mighty One.

For ye see that He whom we serve is just, And our Creator is no respecter of persons.

And see ye what hath befallen Zion, And what hath happened to Jerusalem.

For the judgement of the Mighty One shall (thereby) be made known, And His ways, which, though past finding out, are right.

For if ye endure and persevere in His fear, And do not forget His law,

The times shall change over you for good, And ye shall see the consolation of Zion.

Because whatever is now is nothing,

But that which shall be is very great.

For everything that is corruptible shall pass away, And everything that dies shall depart,

And all the present time shall be forgotten,

Nor shall there be any remembrance of the present time, which is defiled with evils.

For that which runs now runs unto vanity, And that which prospers shall quickly fall and be humiliated.

For that which is to be shall be the object of desire, And for that which comes afterwards shall we hope ; For it is a time that passes not away,

And the hour comes which abides for ever.

And the new world (comes) which does not turn to corruption those who depart to its blessedness,

And has no mercy on those who depart to torment, And leads not to perdition those who live in it.

For these are they who shall inherit that time which has been spoken of,

And theirs is the inheritance of the promised time.

These are they who have acquired for themselves treasures of wisdom, And with them are found stores of understanding,

And from mercy have they not withdrawn,

And the truth of the law have they preserved.

For to them shall be given the world to come, But the dwelling of the rest who are many shall be in the fire.’

‘Do ye therefore so far as ye are able instruct the people, for that labour is ours. teach them, ye will quicken them.’

For if ye xlv-xlvi.6 = Bb

And my son and the elders of the people answered and said unto me: ‘Has the Mighty One

humiliated us to such a degree

As to take thee from us quickly ?

(CE vi. ο.)

8-15. These verses should be read after xxxii. 6. See note on xliii-xlvi above. 9. corruptible. Cf. xxi. 19, note. 12. the new world. Cf. the new creation (xxxii. 6), and li. 3; lii. 9, 16.

who depart to its blessedness. The text here has ‘on its beginning’, which gives no parallel to ‘to torment’

ας. in the fire. Cf. xlvili. 39, 43, lix. 2, Ixiv. 7, lxxxv. 13. XLV. ו‎ reappears here, and the connexion broken at xliv. 7 is resumed.

593

in the next clause, and no sense in itself. A corruption in the original Hebrew easily explains the difficulty and restores the sense, באשרו‎ for .בראשו‎ Ryssel reproduces this emendation without acknowledgement. 14. This verse presupposes li. 3, 7. The treasures in xxiv. 1 are those of righteousness.

₪

1

ἓ

וש

Il BARUCH 46. 2--48 5

And truly we shall be in darkness, And there shall be no light to the people who are left.

For where again shall we seek the law, Or who will distinguish for us between death and life?’

And I said unto them: ‘The throne of the Mighty One I cannot resist ; Nevertheless, there shall not be wanting to Israel a wise man Nor a son of the law to the race of Jacob.

But only prepare ye your hearts, that ye may obey the law, And be subject to those who in fear are wise and understanding ; And prepare your souls that ye may not depart from them.

For if ye do these things, Good tidings shall come unto you.

[Which I before told you of ; nor shall ye fall into the torment, of which I testified to you before.’ א‎ 6 But with regard to the word that I was to be taken I did not make (it) known to them or to my son.]

And when I had gone forth and dismissed them, I went thence and said unto them: ‘ Behold! וצ‎ I go to Hebron: for thither the Mighty One hath sent me.’ And I came to that place where the word had been spoken unto me, and I sat there, and fasted seven days.

And it came to pass after the seventh day, that I prayed before the Mighty One and said

‘O my Lord, Thou summonest the advent of the times, And they stand before Thee ;

Thou causest the power of the ages to pass away,

And they do not resist Thee ;

Thou arrangest the method of the seasons, And they obey Thee.

Thou alone knowest the duration of the generations, And Thou revealest not Thy mysteries to many.

Thou makest known the multitude of the fire, And Thou weighest the lightness of the wind.

Thou explorest the limit of the heights, And Thou scrutinizest the depths of the darkness.

teachers and obedient servants of the Law. The expression has nothing to do with בר מבילאן‎ as Ryssel suggests.

6c-7. This addition was made by the final editor to adapt the fragment of B! just given to its new Context. Contrast αν]. 1.

6%. the torment. This refers to xliv. 12, 15.

7. 1 was to be taken. Cf. xiii. 3, note, xlviti. 30. The idea of the ascension into heaven of great heroes in Jewish history was a familiar one. See Commentary {η 206. Also N.T. (Mark xvi. 19; Acts i. 2, 11, 22; 1 Tim. iii. 16).

THE SEVENTH SECTION. XLVII-LXXVII. First we have Baruch’s fast of seven days, followed by his prayer (xvii, 2~xlviii, 24). Then in the dialogue ensuing various revelations are made to Baruch touching the coming woes and the judgement (xlviii. 26-41), and the resurrection (I-lii), There follows a Messiah Apocalypse (liii-Lxxiv = A), In Ixxvi Baruch is told of his coming translation, and in xxvii he addresses the people.

, T his section is composite; xlviii-lii is derived from B?; liii-lxxiv from A*; סנ טאצ[‎ from B?; and lxxvii rom Bl

XLV. 1. Why this journey to Hebron? Baruch has received no such command in our text. This verse is probably original to 1(1 or B?; it seems, moreover, corrupt. After dismissing the people, Baruch addresses them ! The ‘gone forth’ and ‘went thence’ possibly refer to ‘the cavern in the earth’ in xxi. 1. As chapters xxi-xxiv. 2 xxx, 3-5, xli, xlii belong to 135, and in some sense form a whole, they may be connected with the cavern as their scene, If so, xlvii. 1 belongs to B?.

z. Conflicts with verse 1, and is due, like xliii. 3, to the final editor.

504

סנ

זז

12

13

14 15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

Thou 681654 fer the number which pass away that they may be preserved,

And Thou preparest an abode for those that are to be.

Thou rememberest the beginning which Thou hast made, And the destruction that is to be Thou forgettest not.

With nods of fear and findignationt Thou commandest the flames, And they change into spirits,

And with a word Thou quickenest that which was not,

And with mighty power Thou holdest that which has not yet come.

Thou instructest created things in the understanding of Thee, And Thou makest wise the spheres so as to minister in their orders.

Armies innumerable stand before Thee

And minister in their orders quietly at Thy nod. Hear Thy servant

And give ear to my petition.

For in a little time are we born, And in a little time do we return,

1ν But with Thee hours are as a time,

And days as generations.

Be not therefore wroth with man; for he is nothing And take not account of our works; For what are we?

For lo! by Thy gift do we come into the world, And we depart not of our own will.

For we said not to our parents, “ Beget us,” Nor did we send to Sheol and say, “ Receive us.”

What therefore is our strength that we should bear Thy wrath, Or what are we that we should endure Thy judgement ?

Protect us in Thy compassions, And in Thy mercy help us.

And destroy not the hope of our people, And cut not short the times of our aid.

For this is the nation which Thou hast chosen, And these are the people, to whom Thou findest no equal.

But I will speak now before Thee, And I will say as my heart thinketh.

In Thee do we trust, for lo! Thy law is with us, And we know that we shall not fall so long as we keep Thy statutes.

Thou carest for. The text here follows a wrong sense of פקד‎ in the Hebrew original, and so gives * commandest’. that they may. Text reads ‘and they are’. The Greek translator appears to have rendered וְישָמַר‎ wrongly.

ο. the spheres ... in their orders. Cf. 1 En.ii 1; 2 En. xxx. 2, 3; Pss. 501. xix. 2, 3.

1ο. in their orders. Jews held there were ten orders; Christians nine. 13. We should expect ‘ time is as hours’, &c.

that draw nigh. Cf. xli. 4, xlil. 3 = proselytes. 20. Cf. xxi. 21 ; 4 Ezra v. 27.

the nation, a necessary emendation (x07 for the unmeaning |se,>.). Ceriani proposes ‘ the servant’.

505

420.

23 34

26

27 28

29

Il BARUCH 48. 21-16

To all time are we blessed at all events in this that we have not mingled with the Gentiles. |

‘or we are all one celebrated people,

And the law which is amongst us will aid us,

And the surpassing wisdom which is in us will help us,’ /

And when I had prayed and said these things, I was greatly weakened. And He answered and said unto me:

‘Thou hast prayed simply, O Baruch,

And all thy words have been heard.

But My judgement exacts its own And My law exacts its rights.

For from thy words I will answer thee. And from thy prayer I will speak to thee.

For this is as follows: he that is corrupted is not at all; he has both wrought iniquity so far as he

8ο could do anything, and has not remembered My goodness, nor accepted My long-suffering. There-

31 32

33

34

36

fore thou shalt surely be taken up, as I before told thee. For,that time shall arise which brings affliction ; for it shall come and pass by with quick vehemence, and it shall be turbulent coming in the heat of indignation. And it shall come to pass in those days that all the inhabitants of the earth shall be moved one against another, because they know not that My judgement has drawn nigh.

For there shall not be found many wise at that time.

Moreover, even those who know shall most of all be silent.

And there shall be many rumours and tidings not a few,

And the doings of phantasmata shall be manifest,

And promises not a few be recounted.

Some of them (shall prove) idle,

And some of them shall be confirmed.

And honour shall be turned into shame,

And strength humiliated into contempt.

ΤΑπά probity 0650060,

And beauty shall become ugliness.

“Where hath the multitude of intelligence hidden itself,

And whither hath the multitude of wisdom removed itself?”

Hartel ti, 190) * sicut Esaias ait, legem inquit in adiutorium dedit.’

31-41. The last woes and the final judgement. Cf. xxvii-xxix. 1; Ixx. 2-10. '

ο. be moved. Text reads \ (= * shall rest’) which I emended in 1896 into \ 1-2 ‘shall be moved ’.

35- Of the four lines in this stanza three give a series of paronomasiae when retranslated into Hebrew, as in xxi. 14. Thus the first, second, and fourth run:

כבוד יהפך לקלון עז Την‏ אל na‏ יופי יהיה. לדופי As regards the third it 1s certainly corrupt. The analogy of the other three leads us to expect a paronomasia here‏ also, The Syriac is Jhasol, 158% where the first word may be corrupt for ολ... The text would then = ‘and‏ understanding would become foolishness.’ This at once gives a good sense and a paronomasia on the Hebrew, i.e.‏ שבל יהיה לבסל On the last line cf. xxi. 14 ; Ixxxiii. 12. \ ᾿ (‏ Cf. 4 Ezra ν. 9-11. Does Cyprian refer to this in his quotation ) 7 25/. iii. 29) :--* Quaeretis me et vos et qui‏ .36 post vos venerint audire verbum sapientiae et intellectus et non invenictis.’‏

5c6

37 And whilst they are meditating these things, Then envy shall arise in those who had not thought aught of themselves (?) And passion shall seize him that is peaceful, And many shall be stirred up in anger to injure many, And they shall rouse up armies in order to shed blood, And in the end they shall perish together with them.

38 And it shall come to pass at the self-same time, That a change of times shal! manifestly appear to every man, Because in all those times they polluted themselves And they practised oppression, And walked every man in his own works, And remembered not the law of the Mighty One.

39 Therefore a fire shall consume their thoughts, And in flame shall the meditations of their reins be tried ; For the Judge shall come and will not tarry.

Because each of the inhabitants of the earth knew when he was transgressing.‏ ס4 But My Law they knew not by reason of their pride.‏

41 But many shall then assuredly weep. Yea, over the living more than over the dead,’

42 And I answered and said : «Ο Adam, what hast thou done to all those who are born from thee 2 And what will be said to the first Eve who hearkened to the serpent ?

4:45 But again I will speak in Thy presence. Thou, Ο LorD, my Lord, knowest what is in Thy

46 creature. For Thou didst of old command the dust to produce Adam, and Thou knowest the number of those who are born from him, and how far they have sinned before Thee, who have

47 existed and not confessed Thee as their Creator. And as regards all these their end shall convict them, and Thy law which they have transgressed shall requite them on Thy day.’

48 [ But now let us dismiss the wicked and inquire about the righteous. 49 Απά I will recount their blessedness And not be silent in celebrating their glory, which is reserved for them. 50 | For assuredly as in a little time in this transitory world in which ye live, ye have endured much labour, So in that world to which there is no end, ye shall receive great light.’]

My Law they knew not by reason of their pride. The Talmud says the Gentiles rejected the law, which was designed for all nations. See, too, 4 Ezra vii. 72, 73.

42-50. What havoc Adam and Eve have wrought by the spiritual death and torments they brought upon their posterity! Yet God, as Creator, knows what is in man; the number of men that are to be, and their sins (42-6). The law and the judgement will give all their due, so let us inquire rather about the blessedness to come for the righteous who now awhile endure labour.

42. The mention of fire shows that spiritual death is here traced to Adam and Eve, whereas in xvii. 3, &c., it is only physical death that is so traced. In 4 Ezra both are always traced to Adam (e.g. ili. 21, 22). But this spiritual death 2 η due to the incapacity of man for righteousness after the fall, but to his following of his own choice in the steps of Adam.

the number . .. born. See xuiil. 5, note.

48-50. A fragment of an address delivered by Karuch to the people, as verse 50 shows, and not to God. Another i aaa 4 this same address, originally preceding 48-50 here, is given in liv. 16 18, and yet another, following 48-50, in lii. 5-7.

5°7

Il BARUCH 49. .51--ז‎ 6

XLIX-LIT. The Nature of the Resurrection Body: the final Destinies of the Righteous and the Wicked.

49: ‘Nevertheless, I will again ask from Thee, O Mighty One, yea, I will ask mercy from Him who made all things. 2 “In what shape will those live who live in Thy day ? Or how will the splendour of those who (are) after that time continue ? 3 Will they then resume this form of the present, And put on these entrammelling members, Which are now involved in evils, And in which evils are consummated, Or wilt Thou perchance change these things which have been in the world As also the world ?"' 501 And He answered and said unto me: ‘ Hear, Baruch, this word, And write in the remembrance of thy heart all that thou shalt learn. 2 For the earth shall then assuredly restore the dead, αν it now receives, in order to preserve them]. t shall make no change in their form, But as it has received, so shall it restore them, And as I delivered them unto it, so also shall it raise them. 3 For then it will be necessary to show to the living that the dead have come to life again, and that 4 those who had departed have returned (again). And it shall come to pass, when they have severally recognized those whom they now know, then judgement shall grow strong, and those things which before were spoken of shall come. 51 1 ‘And it shall come to pass, when that appointed day has gone by, that then shall the aspect of those 2 who are condemned be afterwards changed, and the glory of those who are justified. For the aspect of those who now act wickedly shall become worse than it is, as they shall suffer torment.

3 Also (as for) the glory of those who have now been justified in My law, who have had understanding in their life, and who have planted in their heart the root of wisdom, then their splendour shall be glorified in changes, and the form of their face shall be turned into the light of their beauty, that they may be able to acquire and receive the world which does not die, which is then promised to 4 them. For over this above all shall those who come then lament, that they rejected My law, and stopped 5 their ears that they might not hear wisdom or receive understanding. When therefore they see those, over whom they are now exalted, (but) who shal] then be exalted and glorified more than they, they shall respectively be transformed, the latter into the splendour of angels, and the former shall yet 6 more waste away in wonder at the visions and in the beholding of the forms. For they shall first behold and afterwards depart to be tormented.

L-LI. The nature of the resurrection body. The world in its renewal becomes undying (li. 3), incorruptible (Lxexiv. 2) and invisible to mortal vision (li. 8). This conception of transformation, which is as old as Isa. Ixv. 17-Ixvi, was applied in due course to those who were to live in the renewed world. This is done partially in Isa. xv. 17-25, but fully in Dan. xii. 2. Also in 1 Enoch civ. 4,6, &c. Thus the spiritual transformation was a familiar idea to the Pharisees before the writers of Baruch lived; while 1 Cor. xv. 35-50 is in one of its aspects the logical sequel of Isa. liv. 17. Paul was not altogether an innovator, but an able and advanced expositor of some current Jewish views.

Opposed to this spiritual view of the future life lay the materialistic one prevalent among people and Rabbis alike, which said the blessed should beget children, and eat the flesh of Leviathan. (Weber 383, 384.)

LI. 1. This transformation of the living also is mentioned in 1 Cor. xv. 51. aspect. So Ceriani emends the text. 3. justified in My law. See xv. 5, note. root of wisdom. lix. 7; Sir. i. 6, 20; Wisdom iii. 15. their splendour. Their bodies gradually are assimilated to their new environment. 4. Tejected, i.e. wicked Gentiles as well as Israelites. stopped their ears, follows Hebrew of Zech. vii. 11; not LXX. 5- waste away, not ‘be annihilated’, Cf. 4 Ezra vii. 87.

508

BARUCH 51. 7—52. 7‏ זז

But those who have been saved by their works,‏ ל And to whom the law has been now a hope,‏ And understanding an expectation,‏

And wisdom a confidence, Shall wonders appear in their time.

8 For they shall behold the world which is now invisible to them,

9 And time shall no longer age them.

το ἜΓοι in the heights of that world shall they dwell, And they shall be made like unto the angels, And be made equal to the stars, And they shall be changed into every form they desire, From beauty into loveliness, And from light into the splendour of glory.

For there shall be spread before them the extents of Paradise, and there shall be shown to them the‏ זז beauty of the majesty of the living creatures which are beneath the throne, and all the armies of‏ the angels, who [are now held fast by My word, lest they should appear, and] are held fast by a‏ command, that they may stand in their places till their advent comes. Moreover, there shall then be‏ 12 excellency in the righteous surpassing that in the angels. For the first shall receive the last, those‏ 13 whom they were expecting, and the last those of whom they used to hear that they had passed away.‏ For they have been delivered from this world of tribulation,‏ 14 And laid down the burthen of anguish.‏ For what then have men lost their life,‏ 15 And for what have those who were on the earth exchanged their soul ?‏ For then they chose (not) for themselves this time,‏ 16 Which, beyond the reach of anguish, could not pass away:‏ But they chose for themselves that time,‏ Whose issues are full of lamentations and evils,‏ And they denied the world which ages not those who come to it,‏ And they rejected the time of glory,‏ So that they shall not come to the honour of which I told thee before.’‏ And I answered and said:‏ 52:1 ‘How can we forget those for whom woe is then reserved ?‏ And why therefore do we again mourn for those who die?‏ 2 Or why do we weep for those who depart to Sheol ?‏

34 Let lamentations be reserved for the beginning of that coming torment, And let tears be laid up for the advent of the destruction of that time. 4 [But even in the face of these things will I speak. 5 And as for the righteous, what will they do now? 6 Rejoice ye in the suffering which ye now suffer: For why do ye look for the decline of your enemies ?

7 Make ready your soul for that which is reserved for you, And prepare your souls for the reward which is laid up for you.’]

g. After this verse read probably verses 13 and 14, then 10, 11, and 12 as climax. .סז‎ Note spiritual conception. The risen righteous live in the heights of the invisible world (8, το), and their glory is more than that of the angels (12). equal to the stars. 4 Ezra vii. 97, 125. 11. living creatures ... beneath the throne. Rev. iv. 6. armies of the angels. Cf. 2 Enoch xvii; Test. Lev. iii. 3. The brackets indicate a gloss or dittograph. 13. Cf. 4 Ezra v. 42; also Matt. xix. 3ο. 15. Cf. Matt. xvi. 26. 16. I have added a negative in the first clause, as the sense requires it—an addition accepted by Ryssel. So too in Ivi. 14, where Ceriani also inserts it. of glory. So Ryssel has emended text which reads ‘and glory’.

11]. τ. we. Text reads ‘I’ which Ryssel has emended.

2, 3- We should weep rather for those destined to torments than those who depart to Sheol. 5-7. See note on xlviii. 48-50.

6. ΟΕ lxxxviii. 6; James i. 2. The sentiment looks Christian.

509

Il BARUCH 58 1—54. 3

63:1 And when I had said these things I fell asleep there, and I saw a vision, and lo! a cloud was liii-t:

ascending from a very great sea, and I kept gazing upon it, and lo! it was full of waters white and = A black, and there were many colours in those self-same waters, and as it were the likeness of great 2 lightning was seen at its summit. And I saw the cloud passing swiftly in quick courses, and it 3 covered all the earth. And it came to pass after these things that that cloud began to pour 4 upon the earth the waters that were in it. And I saw that there was not one and the same like- 5 ness in the waters which descended from it. For in the first beginning they were black and many for a time, and afterwards I saw that the waters became bright, but they were not many, and after these things again I saw black (waters), and after these things again bright, and again 6 black and again bright. Now this was done twelve times, but the black were always more numerous 7 than the bright. And it came to pass at the end of the cloud, that lo! it rained black waters, and they were darker than had been all those waters that were before, and fire was mingled ₪ with them, and where those waters descended, they wrought devastation and destruction. And after these things I saw how that lightning which I had seen on the summit of the cloud, seized 9 hold of it and hurled it to the earth. Now that lightning shone exceedingly, so as to illuminate the whole carth, and it healed those regions where the last waters had descended and wrought

10. 11 devastation. And it took hold of the whole earth,and had dominion over it. And I saw after

these things, and lo! twelve rivers were ascending from the sea, and they began to surround 12 that lightning and to become subject to it. And by reason of my fear I awoke.

LIV-LV. Barach's Prayer for an Interpretation of the Vision: Ramiel's advent for this Purpose.

+ Thou alone, O Lord, knowest of aforetime the dcep things of the world,

And the things which befall in their times Thou bringest about by Thy word,

And against the works of the inhabitants of the earth Thou dost hasten the beginnings of the times,

And the end of the seasons Thou alone knowest.

ho

LIWI-LAXNIV. The third Messiah Apocalypse, or Αδ. In date it seems to be prior to A.D. 70 (Ixviii. 5-6), and subsequent to A.D. 50. If this is the date of this section, it is distinct from B! and B*, which were composed subsequently to the fall of the Temple. In B! and B? there is no expectation of the Messiah, whereas in A® the Messiah is the centre of interest. Again, it appears to be distinct from A'; for in Α the Messiah does not appear till the enemies of Israel are destroyed, whereas in A® the Messiah is the agent of their destruction. The relations of A® to A* are doubtful. They could come from the same hand. The warlike character of the Messiah in this section is noteworthy.

LIII. In this vision a cloud rises from the sea with its summit crowned with lightning. After six successions of black and bright waters, comes the blackest shower of all. Then the lightning flashes forth and heals the earth. I. a very great sea. Cf. Dan. vii. 2.

1 cmend 4g into choo. 6. For the twelvefold division of history see 4 Ezra xiv. 11, 12. 7. These black waters are interpreted in Ixix, xx. They symbolize the travail pains of the Messiah. .א‎ The hghtning on the cloud symbolizes the Messiah. The imagery is derived from Dan. vii. 13.

LIV. 1. Before this chapter the MS, inserts the words ‘The Prayer of Baruch’. 2. I have with Ryssel restored ‘ Thou’ at the beginning of verses 2, 3, 4. The context requires this restoration. for whom nothing is too hard. This is a rendering of the phrase found in Gen. xviii. 14; Jer. xxxii. 17, 27. 510

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BARUCH 54. 4-18‏ וז

(Thou) who revealest to those who fear Thee what is prepared for them, That thenceforth they may be comforted.

Thou showest great acts to those who know not ;

Thou breakest up the enclosure of those who are ignorant,

And lightest up what is dark,

And revealest what is hidden to the pure,

[Who in faith have submitted themselves to Thee and Thy law.]

Thou hast shown to Thy servant this vision ; Reveal to me also its interpretation.

For I know that as regards those things wherein I besought Thee, I have received a response, And as regards what | besought, Thou didst reveal to me with what voice I should praise Thee, And from what members I should cause praises and hallelujahs to ascend to Thee.

For if my members were mouths,

And the hairs of my head voices,

Even so I could not give Thee the meed of praise, Nor laud thee as is befitting,

Nor could I recount Thy praise,

Nor tell the glory of Thy beauty.

For what am I amongst men,

Or why am I reckoned amongst those who are more excellent than I, That I have heard all these marvellous things from the Most High, And numberless promises from Him who created me?

Blessed be my mother among those that bear, And praised among women be she that bare me.

For I will not be silent in praising the Mighty One, And with the voice of praise I will recount His marvellous deeds.

For who doeth like unto Thy marvellous deeds, O God, Or who comprehendeth Thy deep thought fof lifet.

For with Thy counsel Thou dost govern all the creatures which Thy right hand has created, And Thou hast established every fountain of light beside Thee, And the treasures of wisdom beneath Thy throne hast Thou prepared.

And justly do they perish who have not loved Thy law, And the torment of judgement shall await those who have not submitted themselves to Thy power.

For though Adam first sinned

And brought untimely death upon ail,

Yet of those who were born from him

Each one of them has prepared for his own soul torment to come, And again each one of them has chosen for himself glories to come.

[For assuredly he who beiieveth will receive reward.

But now, as for you, ye wicked that now are, turn ye to destruction, because ye shall speedily be visited, in that formerly ye rejected the understanding of the Most High.

For His works have not taught you, Nor has the skill of His creation which is at all times persuaded you. ]

ς. in faith. See note on liv. 21. I have bracketed this line as a later addition.

15-19. The two doctrines of fate and free-will, though seen to be mutually exclusive, were accepted ¢heoretically as equally imperative by the Pharisees. St. Paul alone develops them into naked antagonism. The general tendency was to insist on free-will as here, and in the Talmud (Weber, /iéd. 7zeol. 224 sq.). See my Commentary, {2 doc.

untimely. See xxiii. 4, note.

16-18. See xviii. 48-50, note. These verses break the context and are out of place here. They properly precede xIviii. 48-50. A direct address to the wicked could not occur in a prayer to God.

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το Adam is therefore not the cause, save only of his own soul, But each of us has been the Adam of his own soul.

20 But do Thou, O Lord, expound to me regarding those things which Thou hast revealed to me, And inform me regarding that which I besought Thee.

21 For at the consummation of the world vengeance shall be taken upon those who have done wickedness according to their wickedness, And Thou wilt glorify the faithful according to their faithfulness.

551 And it came to pass when I had finished speaking the words of this prayer, that I sat there under

2a tree, that I might rest in the shade of the branches. And I wondered and was astonied, and pondered in my thoughts regarding the multitude of goodness which sinners who are upon the earth have rejected, and regarding the great torment which they have despised, though they knew that

3 they should be tormented because of the sin they had committed. And when I was pondering on these things and the like, lo! the angel Ramiel who presides over true visions was sent to me, and he said unto me:

4 ‘Why does thy heart trouble thee, Baruch, and why does thy thought disturb thee 2

5 For if owing to the report which thou hast only heard of judgement thou art so moved,

What (wilt thou be) when thou shalt see it manifestly with thine eyes ?

6 And if with the expectation wherewith thou dost expect the day of the Mighty One thou art so overcome,

What (wilt thou be) when thou shalt come to its advent ?

7 And, if at the word of the announcement of the torment of those who have done foolishly thou art so wholly distraught,

How much more when the event will reveal marvellous things ? And if thou hast heard tidings of the good and evil things which are then coming and art grieved,

What (wilt thou be) when thou shalt behold what the majesty will reveal, Which shall convict these and cause those to rejoice.’

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LVI-LXXIV. Jnterpretation of the Vision. The black and bright Waters symbolize the World's : History from Adam to the Advent of the Messiah.

561 ‘Nevertheless, because thou hast besought the Most High to reveal to thee the interpretation 2 of the vision which thou hast seen, I have been sent to tell thee. And the Mighty One hath assuredly made known to thee the methods of the times that have passed, and of those that

are destined to pass in His world from the beginning of its creation even unto its consummation,

3 of those things which (are) deceit and of those which (are) in truth. For as thou didst see a great cloud which ascended from the sea, and went and covered the earth, this is the duration

of the world (= αἰών) which the Mighty One made when he took counsel to make the world.

4 And it came to pass when the word had gone forth from His presence, that the duration of the world had come into being in a small degree, and was established according to the multitude of

5 the intelligence of Him who sent it. And as thou didst previously see on the summit of the

cloud black waters which descended previously on the earth, this is the transgression wherewith Adam the first man transgressed.

19. See verse 15, note. Man’s guilt and sin are due to his own action, and are not derived from Adam. The evil impulse is not sin unless obeyed. It is placed in man, say the Talmudists, to be overcome (Weber, 217 sq.). 21. the faithful according to their faithfulness. Here ‘faithfulness’ is contrasted with ‘ wickedness’, so it

= ‘righteousness’ or ‘fidelity to the law’; but elsewhere in this work ‘faith’ = ‘ belief’. Cf. 4 Ezra vi. 5 for the former sense.

LVI. 3. a great cloud . . . this is the duration of the world. The twelve alternate black and bright waters, and the last black water, symbolize the thirteen periods of the world’s history prior to the Messiah’s kingdom, which is foreshadowed by the lightning that shone on the cloud’s summit.

512

BARUCH 56. 6—59. 4‏ זז

6 For [since] when he transgressed Untimely death came into being, Grief was named And anguish was prepared, And pain was created, And trouble consummated, And disease began to be established, And Sheol kept demanding that it should be renewed in blood, And the begetting of children was brought about, And the passion of parents produced, And the greatness of humanity was humiliated, And goodness languished.

| \ 7,8 What therefore can be blacker or darker than these things? This is the beginning of the black g waters which thou hast seen. And from these black (waters) again were black derived, and the το darkness of darkness was produced. For he became a danger to his own soul: even to the angels ,זז‎ 12 became he a danger. For, moreover, at that time when he was created, they enjoyed liberty. And 13 some of them descended, and mingled with the women. And then those who did so were tormented 14in chains. But the rest of the multitude of the angels, of which there is (no) number, restrained 15 themselves. And those who dwelt on the earth perished together (with them) through the waters 16 of the deluge. These are the black first waters. 571 ‘And after these (waters) thou didst see bright waters: this is the fount of Abraham, also his 2 generations and advent of his son, and of his son’s son, and of those like them. Because at that time the unwritten law was named amongst them, And the works of the commandments were then fulfilled, And belief in the coming judgement was then generated, And hope of the world that was to be renewed was then built up, And the promise of the life that should come hereafter was implanted. These are the bright waters, which thou hast seen. 581 ‘And the black third waters which thou hast seen, these are the mingling of all sins, which the nations afterwards wrought after the death of those righteous men, and the wickedness of the land of 2 Egypt, wherein they did wickedly in the service wherewith they made their sons to serve. Never- theless, these also perished at last.

91 ‘And the bright fourth waters which thou hast seen are the advent of Moses and Aaron and 2 Miriam and Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb and of all those likethem. For at that time the lamp of the eternal law shone on all those who sat in darkness, which announced to them that believe the | 3 promise of their reward, and to them that deny, the torment of fire which is reserved for them. But | also the heavens at that time were shaken from their place, and those who were under the throne of > 4the Mighty One were perturbed, when He was taking Moses unto Himself. For He showed him \ many admonitions together with the principles of the law and the consummation of the times, as | also to thee, and likewise the pattern of Zion and its measures, in the pattern of which the

Sheol . . . demanding. For Sheol’s hunger, cf. Prov. xxvii. 20; Isa. v. 14.

14. (no) number. Ceriani restored the negative.

LVII. The first bright period is from Abraham to Jacob. 2. This tendency to trace the observance of the law to the patriarchs had already reached its most extreme expres- sion in the Book of Jubilees. the world... to be renewed. [In A' and Αἱ at the close of the Messianic kingdom, which in A* ends this world and begins the next (Ixxiv. 2). LVIII. 1. the service . . . serve. The text follows the Hebrew of Exod. i. 4, not the LXX. LIX. 2. the lamp . . . darkness. A Rabbinic application of Isa, ix. 2. the eternal law. Cf. xvii. 6; xv. 5, note. torment of fire, i.e. a material fire to torment the wicked after the resurrection. Cf. xliv. 15, &c. 4-law...times. Text reads ‘laws... time’. the pattern of Zion. Cf. Exod. xxv. 4Ο, &c. in the pattern of which . . . made. So by a change of a single letter I have emended the text, which read “which was to be made in the pattern of the sanctuary’, &c. “This emendation is followed by Ryssel. 1108.2 513 Ll

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BARUCH 59. 5--69 6‏ וז

sanctuary of the present time was to be made. But then also He showed to him the measures of the fire, also the depths of the abyss, and the weight of the winds, and the number of the drops of rain: And the suppression of anger, and the multitude of long-suffering, and the truth of judgement :

7.8 And the root of wisdom, and the riches of understanding, and the fount of knowledge: And the

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height of the air, and the greatness of Paradise, and the consummation of the ages, and the beginning of the day of judgement: And the number of the offerings, and the earths which have not yet come:

10 And the mouth of Gchenna, and the station of vengeance, and the place of faith, and the region of

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hope: And the likeness of future torment, and the multitude of innumerable angels, and the flaming hosts, and the splendour of the lightnings, and the voice of the thunders, and the orders of the chiefs of the angels, and the treasuries of light, and the changes of the times, and the investigations of the law. These are the bright fourth waters which thou hast seen.

‘And the black fifth waters which thou hast seen raining are the works which the Amorites wrought, and the spells of their incantations which they wrought, and the wickedness of their mysteries, and the mingling of their pollution. But even Israel was then polluted by sins in the days of the judges, though they saw many signs which were from Him who made them.

- And the bright sixth waters which thcu didst see, this is the time in which David and Solomon were born.

And there was at that time the building of Zion, And the dedication of the sanctuary,

And the shedding of much blood of the nations that sinned then, And many offerings which were offered then in the dedication of the sanctuary.

And the riches of understanding were magnified in the congregations, And the holy festivals were fulfilled in blessedness and in much joy.

And the judgement of the rulers was then seen to be without guile,

And the righteousness of the precepts of the Mighty One was accomplished with truth. And the land [which] was then beloved by the Lord,

And because its inhabitants sinned not, it was glorified beyond all lands,

And the city Zion ruled then over all lands and regions.

These are the bright waters which thou hast seen.

‘And the black seventh waters which thou hast seen, this is the perversion (brought about) by the counsel of Jeroboam, who took counsel to make two calves of gold: And all the iniquities which kings who were after him iniquitously wrought. And the curse of Jezebel and the worship of idols which Israel practised at that time. And the withholding of rain, and the famines which occurred until women eat the fruit of their wombs. And the time of their captivity which came upon the nine tribes and a half, because they were in many sins. And Salmanasar king of Assyria came and led

5-11. Here one of Enoch’s functions is for the first time transferred to Moses. Cf. another such transference to Ezra in 4 Ezra xiv. 50. Enoch, like the LXX, was much appealed to by Christians, and like it, therefore, fell into disuse by the Jews. This aggressive attitude of Judaism cannot be earlier than 5ο A.D., and therefore places this writing (A®) after that date. It is prior to A. D. 70 (Ixviii. 5).

the weight of the winds. 2 Enoch xl. 11. Cf. 1 Enoch xii. 4.

Ixi, 1-45; Ixx. 3, 4. the beginning of the day of judgement. A definite reckoning is given in 2 Enoch xxxil. 2-xxxiii. 2 ; lxv. 7-10; and indefinite measures in 1 Enoch bexxili-xe ; xci-civ.

the station of vengeance. Many places of vengeance are described in the two books of Enoch: 1 Enoch xviii. 12-16 ; xix; וא‎ ; xxii. 10-13; liv. 1-6: xc. 24-7; 2 Enoch x; xl. 2.

| the place of faith, and the region of hope. These seem to be the places of intermediate bliss. Cf. 1 Enoch .ג1אא‎ 5-9.

is. the likeness of future torment. 2 Enoch xl. 12.

lightnings . . . thunders. 1 Enoch xii. 3, &c. the orders of the chiefs of the angels. The Syriac has ‘chief’ (sing.). Cf, xlvill. τος 2 Enoch xx, I, 3.

1.11. 4. Cf. 2 Kings vi. 28, 29.

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It BARUCH 62. 7—65. 2

7 them away captive. But regarding the Gentiles it were tedious to tell how they always wrought 8 impiety and wickedness, and never wrought righteousness. These are the black seventh waters which thou hast seen. 631 ‘And the bright eighth waters which thou hast seen, this is the rectitude and uprightness of 2 Hezekiah king of Judah and the grace (of God) which came upon him. For when Sennacherib was stirred up in order that he might perish, and his wrath troubled him in order that he might thereby 3 perish, for the multitude also of the nations which were with him.t When, moreover, Hezekiah the king heard those things which the king of Assyria was devising, )1.6.( to come and seize him and destroy his people, the two and a half tribes which remained: nay, more he wished to overthrow Zion also: then Hezekiah trusted in his works, and had hope in his righteousness, and spake with 4the Mighty One and said: “ Behold, for lo! Sennacherib is prepared to destroy us, and he will be boastful and uplifted when he has destroyed Zion.” 5 Απά the Mighty One heard him, for Hezekiah was wise, And He had respect unto his prayer, because he was righteous. 6, ך‎ And thereupon the Mighty One commanded Ramiel His angel who speaks with thee. And I went forth and destroyed their multitude, the number of whose chiefs only was a hundred and 8 eighty-five thousand, and each one of them had an equal number (at his command). And at that time I burned their bodies within, but their raiment and arms I preserved outwardly, in order that the still more wonderful deeds of the Mighty One might appear, and that thereby His name might 9 be spoken of throughout the whole earth.

And Zion was saved and Jerusalem delivered : Israel also το was freed from tribulation. And all those who were in the holy land rejoiced, and the name of the 11 Mighty One was glorified so that it was spoken of. These are the bright waters which thou hast seen. 641 ‘And the black ninth waters which thou hast seen, this is all the wickedness which was in the days 2 of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah. For he wrought much impiety, and he slew the righteous, and he wrested judgement, and he shed the blood of the innocent, and wedded women he violently polluted, and he overturned the altars, and destroyed their offerings, and drove forth their priests 3 lest they should minister in the sanctuary. And he made an image with five faces: four of them looked to the four winds, and the fifth on the summit of the image as an adversary of the zeal of the 4 Mighty One. And then wrath went forth from the presence of the Mighty One to the intent that 5 Zion should be rooted out, as also it befell in your days. But also against the two tribes and a half 6 went forth a decree that they should also be led away captive, as thou hast now seen. And to such a degree did the impiety of Manasseh increase, that it removed the praise of the Most High from 7 the sanctuary. On this account Manasseh was at that time named “the impious”, and finally his 8 abode was in the fire. For though his prayer was heard with the Most High, finally, when he was cast into the brazen horse and the brazen horse was melted, it served as a sign unto him for the 9 hour. For he had not lived perfectly, for he was not worthy—but that thenceforward he might το know by whom finally he should be tormented.

For he who is able to benefit is also able to torment. G51 ‘Thus, moreover, did Manasseh act impiously, and thought that in his time the Mighty One would 2 not inquire into these things. These are the black ninth waters which thou hast seen.

3- Hezekiah trusted in his works. See xiv. 7, note. There is a play on Hezckiah’s name in the words when

retranslated into Hebrew by .חזקיה התחזק‎ Cf. Sirach xviii. 22, and 17.

LXIV. 3. he made an image with five faces: four of, &c. 2 Chron. וואצא‎ 7 says ‘he set the graven image of the idol’. The Syriac version, however, gives ‘and he set the four-fronted image’. Cf. the Arabic, and also the Talmud, Sank. 103° ‘ at first he made for it one face, and in the end he made for it four faces that the Shechinah might see and be provoked '.

7- 2 Chron, xxxiii. 11-19, on the other hand, implies that Manasseh was really forgiven on his repentance.

the brazen horse. Cf. the Targum of Chronicles on 2 Chron. xxxiii. 11. Also Apost. Const. ii.22; Anastasius on Ps, vi; Suidas (under Μανασσῆς).

515 15

BARUCH 66. 1—68, 3‏ זז

66: ‘And the bright tenth waters which thou hast seen: this is the purity of the generations of Josiah king of Judah, who was the only one at the time who submitted himself to the Mighty One with all 2 his heart and with all his soul. And he cleansed the land from idols, and hallowed all the vessels which had been polluted, and restored the offerings to the altar, and raised the horn of the holy, and exalted the righteous. and honoured all that were wise in understanding, and brought back the priests to their ministry, and destroyed and removed the magicians and enchanters and necromancers from 3the land. And not only did he slay the impious that were living, but they also took from the 4 sepulchres the bones of the dead and burned them with fire. [And the festivals and the sabbaths he established in their sanctity], and their polluted ones he burnt in the fire, and the lying prophets which deccived the people, these also he burnt in the fire,and the people who listened to them when 5 they were living, hc cast them into the brook Cedron, and heaped stones upon them. And he was zealous with zeal for the Mighty One with all his soul, and he alone was firm in the law at that time, so that he left none that was uncircumcised, or that wrought impiety in all the land, all the days of 6 his life. Therefore he shall receive an eternal reward, and he shall be glorified with the Mighty One 7 beyond many at a later time. For on his account and on account of those who are like him were א‎ the honourable glories, of which thou wast told before, created and prepared. These are the bright waters which thou hast seen.

71 ‘And the black eleventh waters which thou hast seen: this is the calamity which is now befalling Zion.

2 Dost thou think that there is no anguish to the angels in the presence of the Mighty One, That Zion was so delivered up, And that lo! the Gentiles boast in their hearts, And assemble before their idols and say,

* She is trodden down who ofttimes trod down, And she has been reduced to servitude who reduced (others) ” ?

3 Dost thou think that in these things the Most High rejoices, Or that His name is glorified ?

4 [But how will it serve towards His righteous judgement 2]

5 Yet after these things shall the dispersed among the Gentiles be taken hold of by tribulation, And in shame shall they dwell in every place.

6 Because so far as Zion is delivered up And Jerusalem laid waste, Shall idols prosper in the cities of the Gentiles, And the vapour of the smoke of the incense of the righteousness which is by the law is extinguished in Zion, And in the region of Zion in every place lo! there is the smoke of impiety.

But the king of Babylon will arise who has now destroyed Zion, And he will boast over the people, And he will speak great things in his heart in the presence of the Most High.

But he also shall fall at last. These are the black waters.‏ א

68 1,2 ‘And the bright twelfth waters which thou hast seen: this is the word. For after these things

a time will come when thy people shall fall into distress, so that they shall all run the risk of 3 perishing together. Nevertheless, they will be saved, and their enemies will fall in their presence.

6-7. With Jerusalem’‘s destruction godlessness is everywhere triumphant. A*is unaware of the divine interposition to save the sacred vessels and destroy Zion by angels which B! narrates (vi. 4-10; Ixxx. 1-3). Here in A‘, too, the Gentiles (Ixvii. 2) and the King of Babylon (Ixvii. 7) boast over the fall of Zion. Contrast the ideas of B! in vii. 1 and Ixxx. 3, where such boasting is provided against.

EXVIIL. 2, 3. The danger of the Jews according to the book of Esther and their deliverance. This is the second carhest allusion to this Ο.Τ. book. The first is in 2 Macc. xv. 36. :

516

4, 5 And they will have in (due) time much joy. And at that time after a little interval Zion will again be builded, and its offerings will again be restored, and the priests will return to their ministry, and 6, 7 also the Gentiles will come to glorify it. Nevertheless, not fully as in the beginning. But it will 8 come to pass after these things that there will be the fall of many nations. These are the bright waters which thou hast seen. 691 + For the last waters which thou hast seen which were darker than all that were before them, those 2 which were after the twelfth number, which were collected together, belong to the whole world. For 3 the Most High made division from the beginning, because He alone knows what will befall. For as to the enormities and the impieties which should be wrought before Him, He foresaw six kinds of 4them. And of the good works of the righteous which should be accomplished before Him, He foresaw six kinds of them, beyond those which He should work at the consummation of the age. 5 On his account there were not black waters with black, nor bright with bright; for it is the consummation. 1 ‘Hear therefore the interpretation of the last black waters which are to come [after the black]: this 2is the word. Behold! the days come, and it shall be when the time of the age has ripened, And the harvest of its evil and good seeds has come, That the Mighty One will bring upon the earth and its inhabitants and upon its rulers Perturbation of spirit and stupor of heart. 34 Απά they shall hate one another, And provoke one another to fight, And the mean shall rule over the honourable, And those of low degree shall be extolled above the famous.

4 And the many shall be delivered into the hands of the few, And those who were nothing shall rule over the strong, And the poor shall have abundance beyond the rich,

And the impious shall exalt themselves above the heroic.

5 And the wise shall be silent, And the foolish shall speak, Neither shall the thought of men be then confirmed, Nor the counsel of the mighty, Nor shall the hope of those who hope be confirmed.

6 And when those things which were predicted have come to pass, Then shall confusion fall upon. all men, Ard some of them shall fall in battle, And some of them shall perish in anguish, 7 And some of them shall be destroyed by their own. Then the Most High will reveal those peoples whom He has prepared before, And they shall come and make war with the leaders that shall then be left.

8 And it shall come to pass that whosoever gets safe out of the war shall die in the earthquake, And whosoever gets safe out of the earthquake shall be burned by the fre, And whosoever gets safe out of the fire shall be destroyed by famine.

LXIX. 1. last. Syriac = ‘ other’. the last waters, &c. See liii. 7. 2-4. This division recalls Sirach xhi. 24. 3. and. So I emend the Syriac )=* of’) with Ryssel. kinds: or ‘methods’. 4- beyond those which. The travail-pains of the Messiah are developed in Ixx-Ixxii.

LXX. 1. The words bracketed spoil the scheme of the writer. In lxviii the last black waters come after the bright twelfth waters. 2. harvest . . . spirit. In both cases in the plural in the MS. 3-10. For these last woes cf. xxv. 2-4; xxvii; xlviii. 31-9; 4 Ezra v. 1-12 ; Vi. 20-4; ix. 1-9} xiil. 29-31. 3, 5- Cf. xviii. 37, 36. 5. the mighty. I bave here changed the singular into the plural ; in lxx. 2 the plural into the singular. 6. destroyed by their own. Cf. Mic. vii. 6; Matt. x. 45, 36. The Syriac ‘hindered’ is due to a corruption in the original Hebrew, 123) for 1039, 7. whom He has prepared before. Are these the hosts of Gog and Magog 2 8. the earthquake ... fire. Cf. xxvii. 7, 10; 4 Ezra ix. 3 and v. 8. shall be destroyed. So Ceriani cmends text, which = * shall add’. famine. Cf. xxvii. 6.

517

BARUCH 70. 9—74. 4‏ זז

ο [And it shall come to pass that whosoever of the victors and the vanquished gets safc out of and 10 cscapes all these things aforesaid will be delivered into the hands of My servant Messiah.] For all the earth shall devour its inhabitants. 71, ‘And the holy land shall have mercy on its own, And it shall protect its inhabiters at that time.

2,3 This is the vision which thou hast seen, and this is the interpretation. For I have come to tell thee these things, because thy prayer has been heard with the Most High.

7δι « Hear now also regarding the bright lightning which is to come at the consummation after these

2 black (waters): this is the word. After the signs have come, of which thou wast told before, when

the nations become turbulent, and the time of My Messiah is come, he shall both summon all the

3 nations, and some of them he shall spare, and some of them he shall slay. These things therefore

4 shall come upon the nations which are to be spared by Him. Every nation, which knows not Israel

sand has not trodden down the seed of Jacob, shall indeed be spared. And this because some out of

6 every nation shall be subjected to thy people. But all those who have ruled over you, or have

known you, shall be given up to the sword.

οι ‘And it shall come to pass, when He has brought low everything that is in the world, And has sat down in peace for the age on the throne of His kingdom, That joy shall then be revealed. And rest shall appear.

And then healing shall descend in dew,

. And disease shall withdraw,

And anxiety and anguish and lamentation pass from amongst men, And gladness proceed through the whole earth.

פו

4 And judgements. and revilings, and contentions. and revenges, And blood, and passions, and envy, and hatred, And whatsoever things are like these shall go into condemnation when they are removed.

For it is these very things which have filled this world with evils, And on account of these the life of man has been greatly troubled.

nm

6 And wild beasts shall come from the forest and minister unto men, \ \ And asps and dragons shall come forth from their holes to submit themselves to a little child.

And women shall no longer then have pain when they bear,‏ ך Nor shall they suffer torment when they yield the fruit of the womb.‏

74, ‘And it shall come to pass in those days that the reapers shall not grow weary,

Nor those that build be toilworn ; For the works shall of themselves speedily advance Together with those who do them in much tranquillity.

2 Yor that time is the consummation of that which is corruptible, And the beginning of that which is not corruptible.

3 Therefore those things which were predicted shall belong to it: Therefore it is far away from evils, and near to those things which die not.

4 This is the bright lightning which came after the last dark waters.’

ο. An interpolation? Verse 10 is the natural sequel to verse 8. The appearance of the Messiah and the extermination of the Gentiles are at least anticipated if not premature here.

LXNII. 1. the bright lightning. ‘The Syriac has ‘the bright waters’, which contradicts the vision in lili. 7-11. The same emendation is necessary in Ixxiv. 4. The verb must be read in the sing. to agree with its subject.

4-6. The Messiah was to extend his dominion over the Gentiles (Ps. Ixxii. 11,17; Isa. xiv. 23 Ixvi. 12, 19 21: Zech. xiv; 1 En. xc. 20; Pss. Sol. xvii. 32). A harsher view grew up in the first century B.c. In 1 Enoch xxxvii-lxx and Assumpt. Mos. x the Gentiles are to be annihilated: so in q Ezra xiii. 37, 38, 49, and later Judaism. The Messiah here, as in xxxix. [א-7‎ ; 4 Ezra xii. 32, is a warrior who slays Israel's enemies with his own hand. Cf. Isa. xi. 4. Contrast His passive 1016 in xxix. 2 of this book.

LXXIIL 1. Cf 1 Cor. xv. 24, 35.

518

BARUCH 75. 1--76. 4‏ זז

76

‘Who can understand, O Lord, Thy goodness ? For it is incomprehensible.

2 Or who can search into thy compassions, Which are infinite?

3 Or who can comprehend Thy intelligence ?

4 Or whois able to recount the thoughts of Thy mind ?

5 Or who of those who are born can hope to come to those things, Unless he is one to whom Thou art merciful and gracious?

6 Because, if assuredly Thou didst not have compassion on man, Those who are under Thy right hand, They could not come to those things, But those who are in the numbers named can be called.

, But if, indeed, we who exist know wherefore we have come, And submit ourselves to Him who brought us out of Egypt, We shall come again and remember those things which have passed, And shall rejoice regarding that which has been.

g But if now we know not wherefore we have come, And recognize not the principate of Him who brought us up out of Egypt, We shall come again and seek after those things which have been now, And be grieved with pain because of those things which have befallen.’

* And He answered and said unto me: [‘Inasmuch as the revelation of this vision has been in- terpreted to thee as thou besoughtest], hear the word of the Most High that thou mayst know what 15 to befall thee after these things. For thou shalt surely depart from this earth, nevertheless not unto death, but thou shalt be preserved unto the consummation of the times. Go up therefore to the top of that mountain, and there shall pass before thee all the regions of that land, and the figure of the inhabited world, and the top(s) of the mountains, and the depth(s) of the valleys, and the depths of the seas, and the number of the rivers, that thou mayst see what thou art leaving, and 4 whither thou art going. Now this shall befall after forty days. Go now therefore during these days and instruct the people so far as thou art able, that they may learn so as not to die at the last time, but may learn in order that they may live at the last times.’

LXXV-LXXVI. Here B* returns. Baruch addresses God and not Ramiel, who in ly. 4-Ixxiv. has been explaining the vision in iti,

7, 8. We shall come again, i.e. we shall rise and meet with our fate according as we are obedient and righteous or not.

2. thou shalt be preserved until the consummation of the times. The Syriac here has ‘ unto the preservation of the times’, From xxv. 1 we see we must read ‘ thou shalt be preserved unto the times’, or rather the fuller form we find in xiii. 3 ‘ thou shalt be preserved unto the consummation of the times’. Ryssel has adopted this suggestion.

4- forty days. Cf. Exod. xxiv. 18, and 4 Ezra xiv. 23, 42-5.

519

771

3

BARUCH 77. 1-13‏ זז

half tribes in Assyria and the other to the two and a half in Babylon.

And I, Baruch, went thence and came to the pcople, and assembled them together from the Ixxvii- 2 greatest to the least, and said unto them: ‘ Hear, ye children of Israel, behold how many ye are who hoo =

remain of the twelve tribes of Israel. For to you and to your fathers the Lord gave a law more

4 excellent than to all peoples. And because your brethren transgressed the commandments of the

το

12

13

Most High, He brought vengeance upon you and upon them, And He spared not the former,

And the latter also He gave into captivity : And He left not a residue of them, Rut behold! ye are here with me.

If, therefore, ye direct your ways aright, Ye also shall not depart as your brethren departed, But they shall come to you.

For He is merciful whom ye worship, And He is gracious in whom ye hope, And He is true, so that He shall do good and not evil.

Have ye not secn here what has befallen Zion ? Or do ye perchance think that the place had sinned, And that on this account it was overthrown ?

Or that the land had wrought foolishness, And that therefore it was delivered up?

And know ye not that on account of you who did sin,

That which sinned not was overthrown,

And, on account of those who wrought wickedly,

That which wrought not foolishness was delivered up to (its) enemies?’

And the whole people answered and said unto me: ‘So far as we can recall the good things which the Mighty One has done unto us, we do recall them; and those things which we do not remember He in His mercy knows. Nevertheless, do this for us thy people: write also to our brethren in Babylon an cpistle of doctrine and a scroll of hope, that thou mayst confirm them also before thou dost depart from us.

For the shepherds of Israel have perished, And the lamps which gave light are extinguished, And the fountains have withheld their stream whence we used to drink.

LXAVII-LANAVI. These chapters belong to 11 with the exception of Ixxxiti and Ixxxv. The chief differences between B! and B? are: in B? an carthly felicity is looked for, the dispersion is to return, and the earthly Jerusalem to be rebuilt; in B* none of these thmgs are expected. In B! Baruch is to die, in B? to be translated; in B! Jeremiah is not sent to Babylon, in B? he is.

LXXVII. 1. from the greatest to the least. This order belongs to the later books; cf. 2 Chron. xxxiv. 30; Esther i. 5, 20. Contrast Gen. xix. 11; 1 Sam. v. 93 Jer. vi. 13, &c. 4- upon you, i.e. the two and a half tribes =‘ the former ’ in the next line. upon them, i.e. the nine and a half tribes =‘ the latter’. left not a residue. ‘This denies the Samaritan claim. 5. here with me. Cf. 4 Ezra xiv. 43. Ryssel misunderstands and tries to emend. 6. they shall come to you. Seems to include the nine and a half tribes. Cf. lxxviii. 7. 7- do good and not evil. Cf. Jer. xxi. 10; Amos ix. 4. 9. The place itself had not sinned, therefore the angels, instead of the king of Babylon, had destroyed it. Cf. v-Vili ; Ixxx. 10, Note that Jerusalem’s fall is attributed here not only to the sins of the two and a half tribes, but also of the nine and ahalf. Cf. Jer xi. 173; 1 Bar. ii. 26; Ass. Μος. iii. 5. : 12. to our brethren in Babylon, i.e. the two and a half tribes, Cf. verse 19. In 4 Baruch the letter is addressed to Jeremiah ; not so here. See x. 2, note. This letter is lost. depart, i.c. die (xliii. 2, note). 520

24,

14 And we are left in the darkness, And amid the 112665 of the forestt, And the thirst of the wilderness.’

15 And I answered and said unto them: * Shepherds and lamps and fountains come from the law: And though we depart, yet the law abideth.

16 Iftherefore ye have respect to the law, And are intent upon wisdom, A lamp will not be wanting, And a shepherd will not fail, And a fountain will not dry up.

17 Nevertheless, as ye said unto me, I will write also unto your brethren in Babylon, and I will send by means of men, and I will write in like manner to the nine tribes and a half, and send by means of 18 a bird.’ And it came to pass on the one and twentieth day in the eighth month that I, Baruch, came and sat down under the oak under the shadow of the branches, and no man was with me, but 19 I was alone. And I wrote these two epistles: one I sent by an eagle to the nine and a half tribes; 20 and the other I sent to those that were at Babylon by means of three men. And I called the eagle 21 and spake these words unto it : ‘ The Most High hath made thee that thou shouldst be higher than 22 all birds. And now go and tarry not in (any) place, nor enter a nest, nor settle upon any tree, till thou hast passed over the breadth of the many waters of the river Euphrates, and hast gone to the 23 people that dwell there, and cast down to them this epistle. Remember, moreover, that, at the time of the deluge, Noah received from a dove the fruit of the olive, when he sent it forth from the ark. 25 Yea, also the ravens ministered to Elijah, bearing him food, as they had been commanded. Solo- mon also, in the time of his kingdom, whithersoever he wished to send or seek for anything, 26 commanded a bird (to go thither), and it obeyed him as he commanded it. And now let it not weary thee, and turn not to the right hand nor the left, but fly and go by a direct way, that thou mayst preserve the command of the Mighty One, according as I said unto thee.’

578: These are the words of that epistle which Baruch the son of Neriah sent to the nine and a half

2 tribes, which were across the river Euphrates, in which these things were written. Thus saith Baruch 3 the son of Neriah to the brethren carried into captivity : ‘Mercy and peace. I bear in mind, my brethren, the love of Him who created us, who loved us from of old, and never hated us, but above 4 all educated us. <And truly I know that behold all we the twelve tribes are bound by one bond, 5 inasmuch as we are born from one father. Wherefore I have becn the more careful to leave you the words of this epistle before I die, that ye may be comforted regarding the evils which have come upon you, and that ye may be grieved also regarding the evil that has befallen your brethren; and again, also, that ye may justify His judgement which He has decreed against you that ye should be

ttrees = ‘SY, possibly corrupt for עצבי‎ =‘toils’. But whether this is so or not, the general sense is clear. In verse 13 three things have been Jost: shepherds to guide the people, lamps to give light to them, and fountains to satisfy their thirst. Now, owing to the loss of the lamps, the people are ‘ left in darkness’, owing to the loss of the fountains they suffer from the ‘ thirst of the wilderness’. Hence the second line must deal with the evils that followed on the loss of the shepherds, and its restoration must satisfy this requirement. Accordingly I offer the following suggestion : that Jasy 1-6 is corrupt for hos «5 לכ‎ =‘ without pasture’, or * without a shepherd ’.

LXXVIII. 1. The nine and a half tribes. In this book the tribes of Israel carried away by the king of Assyria are always so designated, except in i. 2. Cf. John Malalas 158. In 4 Ezra xiii, 40 they are called ‘ the ten tribes’ in the Latin version, ‘ the nine and a half tribes’ in the Syriac and Arabic versions, and ‘the nine tribes’ in the Ethiopic version.

3- In the genuine parts of B+ Baruch speaks frequently in the first person singular, but not in the interpolated portions.

521

BARUCH 78. 6—82. 2‏ זן

carried away captive—for what ye have suffered is disproportioned to what ye have done—in order 6 that, at the last times, ye may be found worthy of your fathers. Therefore, if ye consider that ye have now suffered those things for your good, that ye may not finally be condemned and tormented, then ye will reccive eternal hope; if above all ye destroy from your heart vain error, on account of 7 which ye departed hence. For if ye so do these things, He will continually remember you, He who always promised on our behalf to those who were more excellent than we, that He will never forget or forsake us, but with much mercy will gather together again those who were dispersed. 1 Now, my brethren, learn first what befell Zion: how that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon caine 2 up against us. For we have sinned against Him who made us, and we have not kept the command- 3 ments which he commanded us, yet he hath not chastened us as we deserved. For what befell you we also suffer in a pre-eminent degree, for it befell us also. ι And now, my brethren, | make known unto you that when the enemy had surrounded the city, the angels of the Most High were sent, and they overthrew the fortifications of the strong wall, and they destroyed the firm iron corners, which could not be rooted out. Nevertheless, they hid all the vessels of the sanctuary, lest the enemy should get possession of them.

And when they had done these things, they delivered thereupon to the enemy the overthrown wall, and the plundered house, and the burnt temple, and the people who were overcome because they were delivered up, lest the enemy should boast and say: ‘ Thus by force have we been able to lay waste even the house of the 4 Most High in war.’ Your brethren also have they bound and led away to Babylon, and have caused 6 them to dwell there. But we have been left here, being very few. This is the tribulation about ל‎ which I wrote to you. For assuredly 1 know that (the consolation of) the inhabitants of Zion consoleth you: so far as ye knew that it was prospered (your consolation) was greater than the tribulation which ye endured in having to depart from it. 2 But regarding consolation, hear ye the word. For I was mourning regarding Zion, and I prayed for mercy from the Most High, and I said : 3 ‘ How long will these things endure for us ? And will these evils come upon us always?’ 4 And the Mighty One did according to the multitude of His mercies, And the Most High according to the greatness of His compassion, And He revealed unto me the word, that I might receive consolation. And He showed me visions that I should not again endure anguish, And He made known to me the mystery of the times. And the advent of the hours he showed me.

₪ שש

82: Therefore, my brethren, I have written to you, that ye may comfort yourselves regarding the

to

multitude of your tribulations. For know ye that our Maker will assuredly avenge us on all our enemies. according to all that they have done to us, also that the consummation which the Most High will make is very nigh, and His mercy that is coming, and the consummation of His judgement, is by no means far off.

5. the last times, 1. 6. the Return, verse 7. 7- those who were more excellent. The patriarchs. with much mercy. In 4 Ezra xiv. 34, 35, after death the righteous obtain mercy. Here Israel obtains it in their Return. gather together . . . dispersed. Cf. Ixxvii. 6; Ixxxiv. 2, 8, 16. For the Return spoken of in the Ο.Τ. and elsewhere, see my Commentary, zz /oc. The return in B accords well with the rebuilding of Jerusalem expected in BY. See i. 4; vi. 9, notes.

LXNIX. 2. chastened. Cf. i. 5; xiii. 10.

7. {the consolation of) the inhabitants of Zion consoleth, &c. Jax requires a subject. In Ixxvil. 12 the people ask Baruch to send to their brethren in Babylon ‘a scroll of hope’. Hence some such word is needed here, 1.6. [1-5 == * consolation’ as in Ixxxi. 1. 4. Ryssel proposes most extraordinarily to insert ‘tribulation’ where 1 have added ‘consolation’. The tribulation of the Jews in Zion is to comfort the exiles in Babylon !

522

5

זז

ו 83

4

8 when all things come to judgement.

10 11

If BARUCH 82. 3—838. 2

For lo! we see now the multitude of the prosperity of the Gentiles, Though they act impiously, But they shall be like a vapour:

And we behold the multitude of their power, Though they do wickedly, But they shall be made like unto a drop;

And we see the firmness of their might, Though they resist the Mighty One every hour, But they shall be accounted as spittle.

And we consider the glory of their greatness, Though they do not keep the statutes of the Most High, But as smoke shall they pass away.

And we meditate on the beauty of their gracefulness, Though they have to do with pollutions, But as grass that withers shall they fade away.

And we consider the strength of their cruelty, Though they remember not the end (thereof), But as a wave that passes shall they be broken.

And we remark the boastfulness of their might, Though they deny the beneficence of God, who gave (it) to them, But they shall pass away as a passing cloud.

[For the Most High will assuredly hasten His times, And He will assuredly bring on His hours.

And He will assuredly judge those who are in His world,

And will visit in truth all things by means of all their hidden works.

And He will assuredly examine the secret thoughts,

And that which is laid up in the secret chambers of all the members of man.

And will make (them) manifest in the presence of all with reproof.

Let none therefore of these present things ascend into your hearts, but above all let us be expec-

5 tant, because that which is promised to us shall come. And let us not now look unto the delights

6 of the Gentiles in the present, but let us remember what has been promised to us in the end. For the ends of the times and of the seasons and whatsoever is with them shall assuredly pass by

7 together. The consummation, moreover, of the age shall then show the great might of its ruler,

Do ye therefore prepare your hearts for that which before ye believed, lest ye come to be in bondage in both worlds, so that ye be led away captive here and be

g tormented there. For that which exists now or which has passed away, or which is to come, in all these things, neither is the evil fully evil, nor again the good fully good.

For all healthinesses of this time are turning into diseases, And ali might of this time is turning into weakness, And all the force of this time is turning into impotence,

And every energy of youth is turning into old age and consummation.

3,4. avapour...adrop. Cf. 4 Ezra vii. 61, vi. 56 (Isa. xl. 15).!

LXXXII1. This chapter seems to belong to B®. The times are to be hastened (Ixxxiii. 1, 6) and everything brought to judgement (2, 3,7) ; let them attend not to the present but to the end and its joys (4, 5(, and hold to their old faith, to avoid torment in the world to come (8), for this world is passing away with its strength, its virtues and its lusts (9-23). There is a close connexion between Ixxxiii and xx. This chapter seems to have formed originally part of Raruch’s address to the people, and to have followed on xliv. 8-15.

4- Let none therefore, &c. Cf. Col. tii. 2 τὰ ἄνω Gpoveire. promised. See xiv. 13, note.

that which before ye believed, refers to apostates, i.e. Christians who had left Judaism. Cf. xli. 3.

3

= וווצצא1 B?‏

22

2

3 4

II BARUCH 83. 11 -δδ. 2

And every beauty of graccfulness of this time is turning faded and hateful,

And every proud dominion of the present is turning into humiliation and shame, And every praise of the glory of this time is turning into the shame of silence, And every vain splendour and insolence of this time is turning into voiceless ruin.

And every delight and joy of this time is turning to worms and corruption,

And every clamour of the pride of this time is turning into dust and stillness.

And every possession of riches of this time is being turned into Sheol alone,

And all the rapine of passion of this time is turning into involuntary death,

dnd every passion of the lusts of this time is turning into a judgement of torment.

And every artifice and craftiness of this time is turning into a proof of the truth,

And every swectness of unguents of this time is turning into judgement and condemnation,

And every love of lying is turning to contumely through truth.

Since therefore all these things are done now, does anyone think that they will not be avenged? But the consummation of all things will come to the truth.]

Behold! I have therefore made known unto you (these things) whilst I live: for I have said (it) שמא‎

that ye should learn the things that are excellent; for the Mighty One hath commanded me to 5 instruct you: and I will set before you some of the commandments of His judgement before I die. Remember that formerly Moses assuredly called heaven and earth to witness against you and said; ‘If ye transgress the law ye shall be dispersed, but if ye keep it ye shall be kept.’ And other things also he used to say unto you when ye the twelve tribes were together inthe desert. And after his death ye cast them away from you: on this account there came upon you what had been

5 predicted. And now Moses used to tell you before they befell you, and lo! they have befallen you : 6 for ye have forsaken the law. Lo! I also say unto you after ye have suffered, that if ye obey those

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things which have been said unto you, ye will receive from the Mighty One whatever has been laid up and reserved for you. Moreover, let this epistle be for a testimony between me and you, that ye may remember the commandments of the Mighty One, and that also there may be to me a defence in the presence of Him who sent me. And remember ye the Jaw and Zion, and the holy land and your brethren. and the covenant of your fathers, and forget not the festivals andthe sabbaths. And deliver ye this epistle and the traditions of the law to your sons after you, as also your fathers

10 delivered (them) to you. And at all times make request perseveringly and pray diligently with

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your whole heart that the Mighty One may be reconciled to you, and that He may not reckon the multitude of your sins, but remember the rectitude of your fathers. For if He judge us not accord- ing to the multitude of His mercies, woe unto all us who are born.

Nay more, we were in our own land [And they helped us when we sinned],

LXXNIV. 1. learn... instruct you. So bdghilWP. ο reads ‘above all things learn the commandments of the Mighty One wherein 1 should instruct you’.

be kept. So all MSS. but 6 which reads ‘ be planted °.

6, The nine and a half tribes must endure chastisement before they could attain to the promised happiness. ‘This chastisement was for their well-being (Ixxviii. 6); was less than they deserved (Ιχχὶχ. 2), and was intended to make them worthy of their fathers in the last days (Ixxviii. 5).

jo. that the Mighty One may be reconciled to you. Cf. 4 Ezra x. 24. The return to Palestine is to follow the reconciliation (Ixxvili. 7).

the rectitude of your fathers. For their merit see xiv. 7, note ; and contrast this next verse. | LXXXV. An interpolation, B®. The restored Jerusalem and the return expected in B! is here implicitly denied, as in B*. This world is lost, and only spiritual blessedness is looked for in the world of incorruption. B® is more individualistic than 125 ind moreover was written outside Palestine (Ixxxv. 2, 3), whereas B? seems to have been written in Jerusalem. = 13* is the most pessimistic part of this book. _ 1-3. In these verses we have a strophe of five lines and an antistrophe. 1 have bracketed two clauses in verse 2 as interpolations,

they helped us. Cf. 4 Baruch ii. 3.

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- 1 [Know ye, moreover, that boxy {n former times and in the generations of old our fathers had helpers, B

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And they interceded for us with Him who made us, % Because they trusted in their works], . And the Mighty One heard their prayer and forgave us.

But now the righteous have been gathered

And the prophets have fallen asleep,

And we also have gone forth from the land,

And Zion has been taken from us,

And we have nothing now save the Mighty One and His law.

If therefore we direct and dispose our hearts, We shall receive everything that we lost. And much better things than we lost by many times.

For what we have lost was subject to corruption, And what we shall receive shall not be corruptible.

[Moreover, also, I have written thus to our brethren to Babylon, that to them also I may attest these very things.]

And let all those things aforesaid be always before your eyes,

Because we are still in the spirit and the power of our liberty.

Again, moreover, the Most High also is long-suffering towards us here, And He hath shown to us that which is to be, And hath not concealed from us what will befall in the end.

Before therefore judgement exact its own,

And truth that which is its due,

Let us prepare our soul

That we may possess, and not be taken possession of,

And that we may hope and not be put toshame,

And that we may rest with our fathers, and not be tormented with our enemies.

For the youth of the world is past, : : 2 And the strength of the creation already exhausted,

And the advent of the times is very short, ,

Yea, they have passed by ;

And the pitcher is near to the cistern,

And the ship to the port,

And the course of the journey to the city,

And life to (its) consummation.

And again prepare your souls, so that when ye sail and ascend from the ship ye may have rest and not be condemned when ye depart. For lo! when the Most High will bring to pass all these things,

There shall not there be again [α place of repentance, nor] a limit to the times,

Nor a duration for the hours,

Nor a change of ways,

Nor place for prayer,

Nor sending of petitions,

Nor receiving of knowledge,

Nor giving of love,

trusted in their works. The dead righteous avail not, only the living. See xiv. 7, note; Ixiii. 3.

3. we have nothing now save the Mighty One and His law. The law was Israel’s everlasting and unconditional possession. Cf. Josephus, 6- Afzon. ii. 38. The land, the sanctuary, and the kingdom of David were conditional (Mechilta, 680). Cf. xlviii. 22. With the law Israel could not fall.

ϱ. that we may possess, &c. Probably corrupt.

rest with our fathers. Cf. xi. 4.

το. the youth of the world is past. Cf. 4 Ezra xiv. 10, 16 ; v. 50-66.

12. [a place of repentance nor]. This phrase is a dittograph of what follows later. The idea is here inits wron, context, whereas it is in its right context later. Finally it is against the parallelisin. τος

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Nor place of repentance for the soul, Nor supplication for offences, Nor intercession of the fathers, Nor prayer of the prophets, Nor help of the righteous. 13 ‘There there is the sentence of corruption, The way of fire, And the path which bringeth to Gehenna.

14 On this account there is one law by onc, One age andan end for all who are in it. 15 Then He will preserve those whom He can forgive, And at the same time destroy those who are polluted with sins. |

861.2 When therefore ye reccive this my epistle, read it in your congregations with care. And meditate 3 thereon, above all on the days of your fasts). And bear me in mind by means of this epistle, as I also bear you in mind in it, and always. Fare ye well.

871 And it came to pass when I had ended all the words of this epistle, and had written it sedulously to its close, that I folded it, and sealed it carefully, and bound it to the neck of the eagle, and dis- missed and sent it.

nor place of repentance. 4 Ezra ix.12. This is the universal teaching in the Books of Enoch and 4 Ezra. intercession of the fathers. Cf. 4 Ezra vii. 102-15 ; 2 Enoch ΠΠ. 1. 14. one law by one. Moses is meant; in the Ass. Mos. 1ii. 12, he is called the mediator of the law. Thus this verse is directed against Christians. It seems out of place. LXXXVI. 3. Fare ye well(abdefghiWP) >a

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