The '''''Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs''''' is an important constituent of the Apocryphal scriptures connected with the Old_Testament, comprising the dying commands of the twelve sons of Jacob. It is part of the Oskan Armenian_Orthodox Bible of 1666 and fragments were found at Qumran. It is considered Apocalyptic_literature. The testaments were written in Hebrew in the later years of John_Hyrcanus, in all probability after his final victory over the Syrian power and before his breach with the Pharisees, in other words, between 109_BC and 106_BC. They are generally agreed to have a single author, who most probably was a Pharisee who combined loyalty to the best traditions of his party with the most unbounded admiration of Hyrcanus. The Maccabean dynasty had now reached the zenith of its prosperity, and in its reigning representative, who alone in the history of Judaism possessed the triple offices of prophet, priest and king, the Pharisaic party had come to recognize the actual Messiah. To this John Hyrcanus, in whom had culminated all the glories and gifts of this great family, the author addresses two Messianic hymns. In the early decades of the Christian era the text was current in two forms. One of these was translated not later than AD_50 into Greek, and this translation was used by the scholar who rendered the second Hebrew recension into Greek. In the second and following centuries it was interpolated by Christian scribes, and finally condemned undiscriminatingly along with other apocryphs. For several centuries it was wholly lost sight of, and it was not till the 13th century that it was rediscovered through the agency of Robert_Grosseteste, Bishop_of_Lincoln, who translated it into Latin, under the misconception that it was a genuine work of the twelve sons of Jacob, and that the Christian interpolations were a genuine product of Jewish Prophecy. The advent of the Reformation brought in critical methods, and the book was unjustly disparaged as a mere Christian forgery for nearly four centuries. In more recent times, approximately 10 passages are regarded as having a clear Christian character, and likely the product of later Christian addition to the text. Amongst these clear Christian additions, for example, is Testament of Levi 4-5, in which Levi tells his sons of a line of priests ending in a Messiah. A copy of the testaments is published in The_Lost_Books_of_the_Bible_and_the_Forgotten_Books_of_Eden. ==The Testaments== To a modern reader, the main value of the “Testaments”, is not in the ranting variations on biblical text, but in their ethical teachings, as amplified by the following citations: • Love the Lord trough all your life, and one another with a true heart • Love yea one another from the heart; and if a man sin against thee, speak peacefully to him, and in thy soul hold not guile; and if he repent and confess, forgive him. But if he deny it, do not get into a passion with him, lest catching the poison from thee he take to swearing, and so then sin doubly … • Love the Lord and your neighbor. • Anger is blindness, and does not suffer to see any man with truth • Hatred, therefore is evil ; etc. (The above cited from The Apocrypha in English. Edited by Rev. R.H. Charles) ===Reuben=== The ''Testament of Reuben'' is predominantly concerned with admonishing Lust, and the sinfulness of Reuben in his having had sex with Bilhah, a Concubine of his father. It is likely that the author wished to cover the topic of Fornication anyway, and assigned it for Reuben to discuss due to Reuben's relationship with Bilhah being recounted in the canonical bible. Additional details to the biblical story are added in the Testament, which appear to derive from a combination of the Book_of_Jubilees and from the biblical account of David and Bathsheba. Reuben is portrayed as having spied Bilhah bathing, and when Bilhah later becomes drunk, Reuben seduces her. The diatribe in the Testament is noticeably Misogynist, portraying women as the cause of the downfall of the Watchers, and of man in general. Joseph is on the other hand portrayed as the ideal, for his resistance against Potiphar's_wife. ===Simeon=== The ''Testament of Simeon'' is primarily a diatribe against Envy. In the Genesis narrative, Simeon is portrayed as having been bound in chains by Joseph, and the author of the Testament argues that Simeon had wanted to kill Joseph due to jealousy, allowing the Testament to continue with a discourse about envy. The narrative of the Testament explains that it was Simeon who had sold Joseph into slavery, and goes on to portray Joseph as the ideal of virtue and generosity. ===Levi=== The ''Testament of Levi'' is an Apocalyptic text that was composed in its final form in the 2nd_century_BC. It is possible that it rests upon earlier accounts that are also authentic. It is one of the longest of the Testaments, and is predominantly concerned with Arrogance. Taking the theme of the Levite_priesthood, the Testament explains how Levi's descendants corrupted the office by their arrogant disregard for the proper regulations. The narrative describes two visions, the first of which involves Levi being taken to heaven and promised the priesthood forever, while in the second Levi is physically given the insignia of the priesthood (as described in Exodus) by angels. The sins of his descendants are then announced, and the promise that at the end there will be a glorious priest who will restore the righteousness of his office. The description of the priest is in terms that most scholars agree was meant to describe John_Hyrcanus. One way in which this testament is distinguished from the others is by the discovery of fragments of its text among the Dead_Sea_Scrolls in the original Aramaic. The find consisted of six fragments in two manuscripts from cave 4 (4Q213-214). These fragments can be matched to a Greek version of the manuscript from Mount_Athos. A small related fragment was also found in cave 1 (1Q21). According to some sources, these scrolls were dated by the Oriental_Institute to between 100-200 BC using Radiocarbon_dating. ===Judah=== The ''Testament of Judah'' is primarily concerned with Courage, monetary Greed, and Fornication. It begins by portraying Judah as idealistically courageous, involving bravery in front of wild beasts, as well as successful military expeditions, sometimes basing the narrative on acts that the canonical bible attributes to Jacob. However, it goes on to present a xenophobic focus, criticising his marriage to a non-Israelite, as well as his sexual activity with Tamar, his daughter-in-law who at that time was ''pretending'' to be a Prostitute. The narrative argues that Judah had sex with Tamar and his wife due to drunkenness, and that he bribed his wife's father in order to be allowed to marry her. It then goes on to instruct that the role of a king is lesser than that of a priest, and that Levi is more important, clearly pointing to the theocratic attitude of the author. ===Issachar=== The ''Testament of Issachar'' predominantly concerns Asceticism, which the text portrays as virtuous. The narrative however begins by retelling the biblical tale of Leah's purchase of Jacob's ''nocturnal services'' by the giving of Mandrakes to Rachel. Rachel is portrayed as virtuous for being more celibate than the randy Leah. In the remainder of the narrative Issachar himself is portrayed as leading a godly and simple agricultural life, indicating that the author based his text on the Septuagint rather than Masoretic_text, since in the masoretic Issachar is condemned to forced labour on the fields, and it is only the Septuagint that portrays him as labouring voluntarily. ===Zebulon=== {{Sectstub}} ===Dan=== {{Sectstub}} ===Naphtali=== {{Sectstub}} ===Gad=== {{Sectstub}} ===Asher=== The ''Testament of Asher'' is the shortest of the twelve and unlike the others does not begin with a deathbed scene. {{Sectstub}} ===Joseph=== The ''Testament of Joseph'' primarily concerns Chastity, and seems heavily to be based on Joseph's resistance against Potiphar's_wife that the canonical bible portrays. The narrative contains a large expansion on the attempts of Potiphar's wife to seduce Joseph, portraying her as first threatening Joseph, then employing torture, then flattering Joseph, then plotting to kill her husband so that Joseph would be able to marry her without Bigamy, then using love potions, and finally threatening suicide. ===Benjamin=== {{Sectstub}} ==Prophecy== The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs contain a substantial amount of prophetically concerning the coming of the Messiah. From a Christian perspective, a number of statments can be associated with events in the life of Jesus. This is significant since, regardless of the original authors, several of the books are generally accepted to predate Jesus. For example, compare the following from the Testament of Levi :''"The heavens shall be opened, and from the temple of glory shall come upon him sanctification, with the Father's voice as from Abraham to Isaac. And the glory of the Most High shall be uttered over him, and the spirit of understanding and sanctification shall rest upon him in the water." (Levi 5:21-22)'' :''"As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." ({{bibleverse||Matthew|3:16-17|NIV}})'' ==References== *{{1911}} *Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs in the 1911 Encyclopædia_Britannica ==External links== *Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs at newadvent.org *Jewish Encyclopedia: Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs Category:Old_Testament_Apocrypha Es:Testamento_de_los_Doce_Patriarcas He:צוואות_השבטים Pt:Testamento_dos_Doze_Patriarcas