The Epistle of
Barnabas
Barnabas, an apostle of Christ, bid you
greetings to the sons and daughters in the
name of the Lord, with the blessings of
Peace and Love.
2 Having received an exceedingly great
abundance of knowledge of the ordinances
of God which now work in you, therefore I
exceedingly rejoice in your blessed and ad-
mirable state of your souls, because you
have so worthily received the Grace of
Jesus Christ which was grafted into you.
3 For this reason I must congratulate myself
hoping to also be saved; inasmuch I truly
see the Spirit of Salvation working in you
which was produced by the confession of
the Word in your mouths and the greatness
of joy of that Word you have received
which flows in you like water from the
Fountain of God. So great was the much
desired effect of His Word in you that was I
not astonished in respect of you?
4 Being therefore persuaded by this, and
being aware of that which I have said much
among you I know that the Lord has jour-
neyed with me on the way of righteousness,
and I have fully constrained myself to this,
to love you more than my own soul (for
great faith and love dwells in you through
the hope of the Eternal Life which is His)
5 --considering this therefore, that, if it shall
be my care to communicate to you some
portion of that which I received, it shall re-
turn to my reward for having ministered to
such good souls, for I was eager to write a
few words to you, that along with your Faith
you might have your knowledge also perfected.
6 Well then, these are three ordinances of the
Lord -the hope of Eternal Life, which is the
beginning and end of our Faith; and secondly
Righteousness through Him, which is the be-
ginning and end of Judgment; and lastly Love
shown in gladness and exultation, and is the
testimony of the works of Righteousness.
7 For the Lord was made known to us by His
prophets these things past and present, giving
us likewise the first fruits of the taste of things
to come. And seeing each of these things con-
tinuously coming to pass, according as He
spoke, we ought to offer a richer and higher
offering to the fear of Him. But I, not as though
I were a teacher, but as one of yourselves, will
show forth a few things, whereby you shall be
gladdened in the present circumstances.
2 Seeing then that the days ahead are exceed-
ingly full of evil, and that the Adversary him-
self has the power of this present World, we
therefore ought to take heed of ourselves and to
seek out the ordinances of the Lord.
2 The aids of our Faith then are godly fear and
patience, and our allies are long-suffering and
self-restraint.
3 While these abide in a pure spirit in matters
relating to the Lord, wisdom, understanding,
logic, and knowledge rejoice with them.
4 For He has made it known to us by all the
prophets that He wanted neither sacrifices nor
whole burnt offerings nor oblations, saying at
one time:
5 “To what purpose is the multitude of
Your sacrifices to Me? Says the Lord.
“I am full of the burnt-offerings of rams
And the fat of fed cattle.
“I do not delight in the blood of bulls,
Or of lambs or goats.”
6 “When you come to appear before Me,
Who has required this from your hand,
To trample My courts?
Bring no more futile sacrifices;
Incense is an abomination to Me.”
7 “The New Moons, the Sabbaths,
And the calling of the assemblies-
I cannot endure iniquity
And the sacred meeting.
Your New Moons
And your appointed feasts
My Soul hates.”
8 These things therefore He annulled, that
the new law of our Lord Yeshua Ha’Mashi-
ach, being free from the yoke of constraint,
might have its oblation not made by human
hands.
9 And He said again to them:
“For I did not speak to your fathers,
Or command them in that day that I
brought
Them out of the land of Egypt, to bring Me
Whole burnt offerings and sacrifices?
10 Nay, this is what I commanded them, say-
ing,
‘Let none of you bear a grudge of evil
Against his neighbor in his heart,
And do not love a false oath.’”
11 So we ought to come to the realization of
that being said, unless we are without under-
standing, and consider thereby being mindful
of the goodness of our Father; for He has spo-
ken to us, desiring us not to go astray like them
but to seek how we may approach Him.
12 Thus therefore He bespeaks to us
“ The sacrifices of God is a broken heart which
offers up tears, and the smell of a sweet savor
unto the Lord is a heart that glorifies and sings
to its Maker.”
We ought to therefore, brethren, learn and be
grounded accurately concerning our Salvation,
lest the Evil One having deprave us should
cause us to be cast away from our Eternal Life.
3 He spoke again therefore to them concern-
ing these things:
Why do you fast for Me?
Is it to make so that your voice is heard on
High?
This is not the fast which have chosen, says the
Lord
2 Nor have I chosen a day for a man afflict his
soul;
As though you should bend your neck as a
bulrush,
And put on sackcloth and make your bed of
ashes;
Would you call this a fast, and an acceptable
day to the Lord?
3 But based upon this He therefore says to us:
“Is this not the fast that I have chosen:
To loosen the bonds of wickedness,
To undo the heavy burdens,
To let the oppressed go free,
And that you break every yoke?
4 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,
And that you bring to your house the poor who
are cast out;
5 When you see the naked, that you cover
him,
And not hide yourself from your own flesh? Then your light shall break forth like the
morning,
Your healing shall spring forth speedily,
And your righteousness shall go before you;
The glory of the Lord shall be your rear
guard.
Then you shall call, and the Lord will an-
swer;
You shall cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’
6 “If you take away the yoke from your
midst,
The pointing of the finger, and speaking
wickedness, If you extend your soul to the hungry
And satisfy the afflicted soul,
7 Then your light shall dawn in the dark-
ness,
And your darkness shall be as the noonday .
8 To this end therefore, my brethren, God
has shown that he is long-suffering, foresee-
ing that the people ( both Jew and Gentile )
whom He had prepared in His well-beloved
Son would believe in simplicity of His
Word, manifested to us beforehand concern-
ing all things, that we might not become as
proselytes shipwrecking ourselves upon
Jewish law.
4 Seeing that it behooves us to investigate
deeply concerning this present world, and to
search out the things which have the power
to save us. Let us therefore flee altogether
from all the works of lawlessness, least the
works of the Lawless One overpower us;
and let us loathe the errors of this present
time, that we may be happy in that which is
to come.
2 Let us give no relaxation to our soul that
it should have liberty to consort with sinners
and wicked men, least we haplessly become
like them.
3 The consummation of sin is at hand, concern-
ing which the Scripture spoke, as Enoch said,
“For to this end the Master has cut the seasons
and the days short, that His beloved might has-
ten and come to His Inheritance.”
4 And the prophet also spoke on this subject,
saying, “Ten reigns shall reign upon the earth,
and after them shall arise another king, who
shall bring low three of the kings under one.”
5 In like manner Daniel spoke concerning the
same thing:
“After this I saw in the night visions, and be-
hold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, ex-
ceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was
devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling
the residue with its feet. It was different from
all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten
horns.
6 I was considering the horns, and there was
another horn, a little one, coming up among
them, before whom three of the first horns were
plucked out by the roots. And there, in this
horn, were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a
mouth speaking pompous words.”
7 Therefore you ought to understand this. For
moreover I ask you this one thing, as though
being one of you and loving you more particu-
larly than all my own soul; to give heed to
yourselves now and not become like certain
persons who pile up sin upon sin, saying that
our Covenant remains to them also.
8 Ours is the one true Covenant of God, but
they lost it in this way forever, when Moses
had just received it. For the scripture says,
“And Moses was in the mountain fasting forty
days and forty nights, and he received the Cov-
enant from the Lord, even tablets of stone writ-
ten with the finger of the hand of the Lord.
But they lost it by turning away to idols. For
thus said the Lord,
“Go, get down! For your people whom you
brought out of the land of Egypt have cor-
rupted themselves. They have turned aside
quickly out of the way which I commanded
them. They have made themselves a molded
calf, and worshiped it and sacrificed to it,
and said, ‘This is your god, O Israel that
brought you out of the land of Egypt!’”
10 And Moses understood, and threw the
two tables from his hands; and their cove-
nant was broken in pieces, that the covenant
of the beloved Jesus might be sealed upon
our hearts in the Hope which springs from
Faith in Him.
11 But though I would gladly write many
things, not as a teacher, but as to become
one who loves you nothing short of that
which we possess, it was my anxious desire
to write to you, being your devoted servant.
Therefore let us give heed to these last days
that are coming because the whole time of
our Faith shall profit us nothing; unless we
now in this season of lawlessness and in the
days of offenses which are come, become
sons of God and offer resistance to sin so
that the Evil One may not overtake us and
rob us of our Eternal Life.
12 Let us flee from all vanity, let us entirely
hate the works of the evil way. Do not with-
draw yourself from others, as if you were
already justified; but coming altogether into
one place, inquire what is agreeable to and
profitable for the Beloved of God.
13 For thus the Scripture says:
Woe to those who are wise in their own
eyes,
And prudent in their own sight!
Let us become spiritual, let us become a
perfect temple to God. As much potential as
we have which lies in us, let us exercise
ourselves in the godly fear of God, and let
us strive to keep His commandments that we
may rejoice in His ordinances.
14 The Lord will judge the World without re-
spect of persons, and each man shall receive
according to his deeds. If a man shall have
goodness in his heart, his righteousness shall
go before him; if wicked, the reward of wick-
edness shall follow him.
15 Take heed therefore that we are not sitting
idle now that we have been called by God, least
we should fall asleep in our sins, and the Prince
of Evil receive power against us and thrust us
out from the Kingdom of the Lord.
16 Consider this also, my brothers, which you
have seen so many signs and wonders done
among the people of Israel, even though they
have abandoned their Messiah, let us give
heed, least we carelessly be found in error, as
the scripture says, “many are called but few are
chosen.”
5 For this reason did our Lord vouchsafe to
us by giving up His body to destruction, that
through the forgiveness of sins we might be
sanctified; that is, by the sprinkling of His
blood.
2 For the Scripture concerning Him contained
some things relating to Israel, and some things
relating to us. And it spoke as thus:
“Surely He has borne our grief
And carried our sorrows;
Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted.
But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
3 And by His stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
We have turned, every one, to his own way;
And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of
us all.
4 He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He opened not His mouth;
He was led as a lamb to the slaughter,
And as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
So He opened not His mouth.”
5 Therefore we ought to be very thankful to
the Lord, for that He both revealed to us
those things past, and made us wise in the
present day in regards to the future and has
not made us to suffer without knowing
those things to come. 6 But to them have not turned from evil He
says:
“Surely, in vain the net is spread
In the sight of any bird.”
7 He meant by this that a man shall justly
perish, who having the knowledge of the
way of righteousness has not refrained him-
self from the way of darkness.
8 There is this also, my brethren, for if the
Lord was content to suffer for our souls,
although He be the Lord God of the whole
Earth; to whom the Father said before the
foundation of the World, “Let us make man
after our image and likeness, how then did
He endure to suffer at the hands of men?
9 Understand this, brethren, which the
prophets having received the Spirit of Grace
from Him, prophesied concerning Him. But
He Himself endured that He might destroy
Death and make known the resurrection of
the dead; being content, for as it was neces-
sary, to appear in the flesh,
10 that at the same time He might make
good on the Promise made to the fathers,
and thereby preparing Himself a new people
in the Earth; where He might demonstrate to
them while He was upon the earth that He
would after His resurrection come to judge
the World. 11 And finally teaching the people of Israel,
and doing many signs and wonders among
them; He preached to them, and showed the
exceeding great Love of God which he bore
towards them.
12 And when He chose His own apostles
who were to proclaim His Gospel, He took
men who had been very great sinners that
He might show that, “I came not to call the
righteous but sinners to repentance.”, then
He manifested Himself to them to be the
Son of God.
13 If He had not come in the flesh neither
would men have looked upon Him and be
saved, they would have beheld him as though
they looking upon the sun and they would have
cease to be, which is the work of His own
hands, for they could not endure to face the
light of its rays.
14 To this end therefore He endured. For God
said of the wounds of His flesh that they came
from them:
“When they shall smite their own shepherd,
then shall the sheep of the flock be lost.”
15 Thus He Himself desired so to suffer, be-
cause it behooved Him to suffer on a tree. For
he that prophesied said concerning Him,” Deliv-
er me from the sword, my precious life from the
power of the dog,” and, “For dogs have sur-
rounded Me; the congregation of the wicked
has enclosed Me.
They pierced My hands and My feet; I can
count all My bones. They look and stare at
Me.”
16 And again He said:
“I gave My back to those who struck Me,
And My cheeks to those who plucked out the
beard;
I did not hide My face from shame and spit-
ting.”
6 And when He had fulfilled the command-
ment of God. What says He?
For thus He says:
“He is near who justifies Me;
Who will contend with Me?
Let us stand together.
Who is My adversary?
Let him come near Me.
Surely the Lord GOD will help Me;
Who is he who will condemn Me?”
2 And again the prophet said, seeing that as a
hard stone He was ordained for crushing:
“Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a founda-
tion,
A tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure
foundation;
He will be as a sanctuary,
But a stone of stumbling and a rock of of-
fense
To both the houses of Israel.”
3 Then again what did He say, was it, “And
whoever shall believe in His Word and hope
in Him, shall live forever?” Is our hope
then set upon a stone? Far be it. But it is be-
cause the Lord has set His flesh in Strength.
For He said, “And He set Me as a hard rock.
4 Then again what did He say, was it, “And
whoever shall believe in His Word and hope
in Him, shall live forever?” Is our hope
then set upon a stone? Far be it. But it is be-
cause the Lord has set His flesh in Strength.
For He said, “And He set Me as a hard rock.
5 I write these things all the more plainly to
you that you may understand. For indeed
my love is great for you, and I would be
content even to die for your sakes.
6 But what does the prophet again? Thus it
is written, “The assembly of wicked has en-
closed Me, they surrounded Me as bees sur-
round a comb,” and; “For My garment they
cast a lot.”
7 Forasmuch then as He was about to appear
in the flesh and be made to suffer, His suf-
fering was manifested beforehand. For the
prophet said concerning Israel:
“Woe unto their soul, for they have coun-
seled an evil counsel against themselves,
saying, ‘Let us bind the Righteous One, for
he is unprofitable for us.’”
8 What does Moses say to them?
“Behold, these things said the Lord God;
enter into the good land which the Lord
swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and
inherit it, a land flowing with milk and hon-
ey.”
9 Now what is the spiritual meaning of this,
listen and learn; it is as if it had been said, “Put
your Hope and Faith in Jesus whom you have
not seen yet, who shall be manifested to you in
the flesh. For a man is of the Earth having suf-
ferings, inasmuch as out of the substance of the
Earth that Adam was formed.”
10 What therefore does He mean when He says,
“Go into the good land, a land flowing with
milk and honey?” Blessed is our Lord, breth-
ren, who established among us wisdom and
understanding of His secret things. For the
prophet spoke a parable concerning the Lord,
“Who shall understand the hard sayings of the
Lord?
But he that is wise, and intelligent and that
has love for his Lord?”
11 Seeing therefore He has renewed us by the
remission of our sins, He has made us like new
children of God; that we should have souls like
those of children who above all things at first
are innocent, trusting, and mirroring their par-
ents as they grow thereby He is also being
formed in us.
12 For the Scripture said concerning us, how He
said to the Son:
“Let Us make man in our image, according to
Our likeness; let them have dominion over the
fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and
over the cattle, over all the earth and over eve-
ry creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
And the Lord said when He saw the fair crea-
tion of us men:
“Increase and multiply and fill the earth.”
13 These words refer to the Son. Again I will
show you how the Lord spoke concerning us.
He made a second creation at the last, for the
Lord said. “Behold I make the last things as the
first.” In reference to this the Prophet then spoke, “Enter into a land flowing with milk and honey, and be lords over it.”
14 Behold then we have been made new crea-
tures, as He said again to another prophet;
“Behold, said the Lord, I will take out from
these,” that is to say, from those whom the
Spirit of the Lord foresaw their stony hearts,
and I will put into them the hearts of flesh;
for He Himself was to be manifested in the
flesh and to dwell in us.
15 For a holy temple to the Lord, my breth-
ren, is the abode of our heart.
16 For the Lord said again:
“For wherein shall I appear to the Lord my
God and be glorified? I will make confes-
sion to You in the assembly of my brethren,
and I will sing to You in the midst of the as-
sembly of the saints.”
We therefore are they whom He brought
into the Good Land.
17 What then signifies the milk and the hon-
ey? Because as the child is nourished first
by honey, and then by milk. So in like man-
ner are we also, being kept alive by the be-
lief in our Faith in the Promise and by the
Word, shall live and be lords of the Good
Land.
18 Now we have already said above, “And
let them increase and multiply and rule over
beasts, fowls, and the fishes.” But who is
there now that is able to rule over beasts and
fishes and fowls of the heaven; for we
thought to perceive that to rule implied
power, so it is that one who should give or-
ders and have dominion.
19 If this then does not come not to pass
now, then assuredly He spoke to us for the
hereafter, when we ourselves shall be made
perfect so that we may become heirs of the
covenant of the Lord.
7 Understand this, my beloved children,
which the good Lord manifested all things
to us beforehand, for so we might know to
whom we ought to give thanksgiving and
praise to Him.
2 If then the Son of God, being Lord and
future Judge of the living and dead, suffered
that His wounds might give us Eternal Life,
let us therefore believe that the Son of God
could not have suffered except for our sakes.
3 But moreover when crucified, He was given
vinegar and gall to Him to drink. Let us hear
how on this matter that the priests of the temple
foreshow this also. Seeing that there is a com-
mandment in Scripture,, “Whatsoever shall not
observe the fast shall surely die,” the Lord
commanded, because He was in His own per-
son about to offer the vessel of His Spirit as a
sacrifice for our sins, that spiritual type was
also given which was in Isaac who was offered
by Abraham upon the alter that a final sacrifice
for the people should be fulfilled.
4 What then did He say to the prophet?
“And let them eat of the goat that is offered at
the fast for all their sins.” Followed carefully
by; “And let all the priests alone eat the en-
trails unwashed with vinegar. “
5 Take heed diligently, my brethren, for all the
priests, and they shall not only eat the flesh but
the inwards as well washed with vinegar.
6 Why is this so? Because I know that when He
had offered His flesh for the sins of a new peo-
ple, they gave Him vinegar to drink mixed with
gall; therefore not only do you eat he flesh but
the inwards as well while the people fasted and
lamented in sackcloth and ashes.
7 And this was done that He might foreshow
that He was to suffer for them, hear then how
He appointed it.
8 Pay attention to the commandments which He
gave, “Take two goats, fair and alike, and offer
them, and let the priest take the one for a whole
burnt offering for sins. “
9 And what must be done with the other?
“Accursed,” says He, “is the one.” Consider
how this is the spiritual type of Lord Jesus that
is revealed.
10 “And let all the congregation spit upon it,
and prick it; and put the scarlet wool about its
head, and thus let it be carried forth into the
wilderness.” And when it is so done, he will
take the goat into the wilderness thereby lead-
ing it, and take off the scarlet wool, and put it
upon the branch of a plant which is called
gooseberry, it is a bush whose spouts are prick-
ly and we don’t eat of them when we find them
in the countryside. But this bush alone pro-
duces much fruit that is sweet.
11 What then is meant by all this? Consider
this, “The one was offered at the altar, and
the other accursed.” And why was the one
which was the accursed crowned? For they
shall see Him in that day wearing the long
scarlet robe about His flesh, and shall say,
“Is not this He, whom we once crucified
and having despised and spat upon Him;
certainly this was He who then said that He
was the Son of God.
12 For how is He like the goat? For this rea-
son it says, “the goats shall be fair and
alike,” that He being neither extraordinary
nor marvelous but fair; they shall when they
see Him coming again, may be astonished at
His fairness in the likeness of the goat.
Therefore the goat is a spiritual type of Je-
sus that was to suffer.
13 But what is the meaning that they place
the scarlet wool in the midst of the thorns?
It is a spiritual type of Jesus set forth for the
Church. For whoever should desire to have
the scarlet wool taken away must undergo
many difficulties, because those thorns are
very sharp, it therefore behooved the Messi-
ah to suffer many things for the debt due to
the terrible nature of the thorns, and through
affliction He won the mastery over it. Thus,
He said, they that desire to see Me, and to
inherit My kingdom, must also suffer for
Me through tribulation, persecution and af-
fliction.
8 But what do you suppose it is meant by
this spiritual type? Where the command-
ment is given to Israel that those men,
whose sins are full grown, offer a heifer and
slaughter and burn it; and then that the chil-
dren take up the ashes, and cast them into
vessels, and twist the scarlet wool onto a
tree (see here again is the type of the cross
and the scarlet wool), and the hyssop. And
when that this done the children sprinkle the
people one by one, that they may be puri-
fied from their sins. 2 Consider this, how in all plainness it is
spoken to you; the calf is Jesus, the men that
offer it, being sinners, are they that offered
Him for the slaughter of the crucifixion. After-
wards they have no more to do with Him, for
sinners have no more honor in the handling of
the slaughter.
3 The children who sprinkle are they that
preached to us the forgiveness of sins and the
purification of our heart, they to whom, being
twelve in number for a testimony to the tribes
(for there are twelve tribes of Israel), He gave
authority over the Gospel, that they should
preach it.
4 But why were there three children appointed
to sprinkle? For a testimony to Abraham, Isaac
and Jacob, because these men are mighty be-
fore God.
5 Then there is the placing the wool on the
tree. This means that the Kingdom of Jesus is
on the cross, and that they who set their hope
on Him shall live forever. 6 And why was there the scarlet wool and the
hyssop together at the same time? Because in
His Kingdom there shall be evil and foul days,
in which we shall be saved; for he who suffers
ailment in the flesh is healed of the foulness
through the hyssop. 7 Therefore these things being thus done, for
so are to us indeed evident, but to the people of
Israel they are obscure: because they hearkened
not to the Voice of the Lord .
9 So furthermore He said concerning our
ears, how it is our heart which He circumcised.
The Lord said to the prophet, “With the hearing
of the ears they listened to Me.”
And again He said:
Hear, you who are afar off, what I have done;
And you who are near, acknowledge My might.
And:
“Circumcise yourselves, and take away the
foreskins of your heart,” says the Lord.
2 And again He said:
“Hear, O Israel,” for thus said the Lord your
God. “Who is he that desires to live forever,
let him hear with his ears the voice of My
servant.”
And again He said:
“Hear, O heaven, and give ear, O earth, for
the Lord has spoken these things for a testi-
mony.”
And again He said:
“Hear the words of the Lord, you princes of
this people.”
And again He said:
“Hear, O my children, the voice of one cry-
ing in the wilderness.”
Therefore He circumcised our ears so that
we should in hearing the Word of God
might believe.
3 But as for the circumcision in which they
have confidence, it is abolished; for He has
said that a circumcision not of the flesh
should be practiced. For they have trans-
gressed His commandments, because the
Evil One has deceived.
4 He said to them:
“Thus said the Lord your God, ‘Break up
your fallow ground, and do not sow among
thorns, circumcise yourselves to your
Lord.’”
And what said He? “Circumcise the hard-
ness of your heart, and harden not your
neck.”
Take this again:
“Behold,” says the Lord, “all the Gentiles
are uncircumcised in their foreskin, but this
people is uncircumcised in their hearts.”
5 But will you say that in truth all the peo-
ple of Israel have been circumcised as a
sign? But so likewise is every Syrian, Ara-
bian and even the Egyptian and all their priests
of the idols thereof are also included among the
circumcised. But do they also belong therefore
of the covenant of Israel?
6 Understand therefore, my children, these
things more fully, that Abraham who first ap-
pointed circumcision, looked forward in the
Spirit to Jesus, when he circumcised having
received the ordinances of three letters.
7 For the Scripture said:
“And Abraham circumcised eighteen males
and three hundred of his household.”
What then was the knowledge given to him?
Understand this that He said “the eighteen”
first, and then after an interval “three hundred”.
In the eighteen 'I' stands for ten, 'H' for eight.
Here you have JESUS (IHSOYS). And because
the cross in the 'T' was to have Grace, He said
also three hundred. So He revealed Jesus in the
two letters, and the remaining one in the cross.
8 He who has put the engrafted gift of His
Covenant within us, knows that I could never
taught to anyone a more certain Truth than this;
therefore I trust that you are worthy of it.
10 But why did Moses say this? :
“Y ou shall not eat of the swine, neither eagle
or falcon; nor the crow; nor any creature of
the water that has no fins or scales upon him,”
The answer is this, which he received in his
spiritual understanding, he gathered compre-
hension of the three ordinances. 2 Besides which He further said to them in
Deuteronomy:
“And I will lay as a covenant upon this people
My ordinances. Therefore be careful to observe
them; for this is your wisdom and your under-
standing in the sight of the peoples who will
hear all these statutes, and say, ‘Surely this
great nation is a wise and understanding peo-
ple.’”
So then it is not a commandment of God
that they should not physically bite with
their teeth, but Moses spoke it in Spirit.
3 Accordingly he mentioned the swine with
this intent that, ‘You shall not join yourself
to such persons who are like swine; for
while they live in pleasure, and wallow in
filth and decadence they forget the Lord
their God’; but when they are in want they
recognize the Lord, just as the swine does
when it eats therefore forgets his lord, but
when it is hungry it cries out, but when it
has received food it is silent again.
4 “Neither,” says he, “shall you eat of the
eagle nor the falcon nor the kite nor the
crow,” that is, ‘You shall not keep company
with such men who are not known by others
to labor and sweat get food for themselves,
but injuriously ravish away the things of
others.” But in their lawlessness seize what
belongs to others, and as if they were walk-
ing in guilelessness; they watch and search
about for someone to rob in their rapacity,
just as these birds alone do not provide food
for themselves, but sit idle and seek how
they may eat the meat that belonged to oth-
ers, being pestilent in their evil-doings.
5 “And you shall not eat,” said He,
“lamprey nor octopus nor cuttlefish;” that
is, ‘You shall not, He means, become like
such men, who are exceedingly wicked, and
have already condemned themselves to
death, for they swim in the depths of iniqui-
ty,’ For so as those fishes are accursed, and
wallow in the mire, not swimming on the
surface like the rest, but dwell on the
ground beneath the deep sea.
6 But he also adds, “Neither shall you eat of
the hare.” To what end? To signify this to
us, ‘You shall not be an adulterer, nor liken
yourself to such persons.’ For the hare mul-
tiples the places of its copulatory every
year; and for so many years as it lives, so
many places it has multiplied itself.
7 “Neither shall you eat the hyena,” that is,
again, be not an adulterer or a fornicator,
nor corrupter of unnatural affections of oth-
ers; neither liken yourself to such. Why so?
Because this animal changes its natural de-
sire and manner from year to year, and be-
comes at one time male and at another fe-
male.
8 For this reason He has hated the bat also and
for good reason. You shall not, He said, be-
come as such men who we hear working with
their mouths performing unclean acts, neither
shall you seek impure women who work iniq-
uity with their mouths. For this animal con-
ceives with its mouth.
9 Concerning meats, Moses therefore received
three decrees to this effect and uttered them in
a spiritual sense; but they accepted them ac-
cording to the lust of the flesh, as though they
referred to eating in a literal sense.
10 And David also received knowledge of the
same three decrees, and said, “Blessed is the
man who has not gone in the council of the un-
godly”--even as the fishes go in darkness into
the depths; “and has not stood in the path of
sinners”--just as they who pretend to fear the
Lord but sin like swine; “and has not sat on the
seat of the destroyers”--as the birds that are
seated for prey. You have now the complete
lesson concerning eating.
11 Again Moses said, “Y ou may eat whatever divides the hoof, having cloven hooves and chewing the cud.” What did he mean? He that
received the food knows Him that nourishes
him, and being full of knowledge they rejoice
in him. And in this he spoke well, having re-
spect to the commandment. What therefore, is
it that he says? That we should hold steadfastly
with those who fear the Lord, with those who
meditate in their heart on the knowledge of the
Word which they have received, with those
who tell of the ordinances of the Lord and keep
them, with those who thereby know that medi-
tation is a work of gladness and who chew the
cud of the Word of the Lord. But why that
which divided the hoof? Because the righteous
man both walked in this world, and at the same
time looks for the spiritual things of the holy
world to come. You see how wise a lawgiver
Moses was 12 But how should they thus not know all this,
and therefore perceive not to understand them?
We, therefore, understanding aright the com-
mandments have perceived thereby tell them as
the Lord willed. To this end He circumcised
our ears and hearts, that we might understand
these things.
11 Now let us inquire whether the Lord
took care to signify beforehand concerning
the water and the cross. Now concerning the
water it is written in reference to people of
Israel, how that they would not receive the
baptism which brings confirmation of the
remission of sins, but they shall institute
another for themselves.
2 For the prophet said:
“Be astonished, O heavens, at this,
And be horribly afraid;
Be very desolate,” says the LORD.
“For My people have committed two evils:
They have forsaken Me, the fountain of liv-
ing waters,
And hewn themselves cisterns—broken cis-
terns that can hold no water.”
3 “Is My holy mountain Zion, a desolate
wilderness? - For you shall be as a wander-
ing bird casted out of its nest.”
4 And again the prophet said:
“I will go before you, and level mountains
and crush gates of brass and break in pieces
bolts of iron, and I will give you treasures
hidden in darkness, concealed, unseen, that
they may know that I, the Lord God who
brought out and called you by your name,
am the God of Israel.”
5 And: “Y ou shall dwell in a lofty cave of a
strong rock.”
And: “He shall dwell on high: his place of
defense shall be the fortress of rocks; bread
shall be given him, his waters shall be
sure.”
6 And again He said in another prophet:
He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.
7 “The ungodly are not so, but are like the
chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore
the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the right-
eous. For the LORD knows the way of the right-
eous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish.”
8 You perceive how He pointed out the water
and the cross at the same time. For this is the
meaning:
“Blessed are they that set their hope on the
cross, and go down into the water; for He
spoke of the reward at ‘his proper season;’
then, said He, I will repay. But now what said
He? ‘His leaves shall not fall off;’ He meant by
this that every word, which shall come forth
from you through your mouth in Faith and
Love, shall be for the conversion and hope of
many believers.
9 And again another prophet said: “And the
land of Jacob was praised above the whole
earth.”
He meant this- He glorifies the vessel of His
Spirit.
10 What next said He? “And there was a river
streaming from the right hand, and beautiful
trees rose up from it; and whoever shall eat of
them shall live forever.”
11 What next said He? “And there was a river
streaming from the right hand, and beautiful
trees rose up from it; and whoever shall eat of
them shall live forever.”
12 In like manner again concerning the
cross He is determine to show them in another
prophet, who said:
“And when shall these things be accom-
plished?” The Lord answers, “When the tree
that has fallen shall rise, and when blood and
water shall drop from the tree. Again you have
learned concerning the cross, and Him that was
to be crucified.
2 And yet further He says again by Moses,
when war was waged against Israel by men of
another nation, and that He might remind them
when the war was being waged against them
that for their sins they were delivered to
death; for the Spirit said to the heart of Mo-
ses, that he should make a type of the cross
and of Him that was to suffer, that unless, He
said, they shall set their hope on Him, so that
they might know that if they did not believe
in Him, they would be forever overwhelmed.
So when Moses’ hands became heavy, they
took a stone and sat him upon it in the midst
of the encounter, and standing on higher
ground than anyone he stretched out his
hands, and so Israel was again victorious.
But whenever he lowered them, they were
slain with the sword.
3 Therefore why was this? That they might
learn that they cannot be saved, unless they
should set their hope on Him.
4 And again in another prophet He said:
“I have stretched out My hands all day long
to a rebellious people,
Who walk in a way that is not good,
According to their own thoughts”
5 And again Moses makes a type of Jesus, to
illustrate that He must suffer, and that He
Himself whom they shall think is dead shall
be made alive in an emblem of the cross
which was to give Eternal Life to others, in
those that fell in the Good Land of Israel.
For the Lord caused all manner of serpents
to bite them, and they died; since it was by a
serpent that transgression began in Eve,
therefore it was so that He might convince
them that by reason of their transgression
they should be delivered over to the afflic-
tion of Death.
6 Furthermore Moses who then them gave
the commandment, “Y ou shall not have a
molten or a carved image for your god,” yet
he himself made one that he might show
them a type of Yeshua. So Moses makes a
brazen serpent, and set it up high conspicu-
ously, and summoned the people by procla-
mation.
7 When therefore they were assembled to-
gether they entreated Moses that he should
offer up intercession for them that they
might be healed. And Moses said to them,
“Whenever,” said he, “one of you shall be
bitten, let him come to the serpent which is
placed on the tree, and let him believe and
hope that the serpent being himself dead can
make you alive; and here forth he shall be
saved. And so they did. Here again you have in
these things also the Glory of Jesus shown,
how that in Him and to Him are all things.
8 Again what does Moses say to Jesus, that is,
Joshua the son of Nun, when he gives him this
name; for being a prophet that all the people
might give ear to him alone, because the Father
manifested all things concerning His Son Jesus
in Jesus the son of Nun, and gave him that
name when he sent out to spy out the land of
Canaan.?
9 Moses therefore said to Jesus the son of Nun,
giving him this name, when he sent him as a
spy on the land, “Take a book in your hands,
and write what the Lord says, how the Son of
God shall cut up by the roots all the house of
Amalek in the last days.”
10 Behold again it is Jesus, not a son of man,
but the Son of God, as He was revealed figura-
tively in the flesh. Since then men will say that
Christ is the son of David, he himself prophe-
sied being afraid and understanding the error of
sinners; “The Lord God said to my Lord, ‘Sit at
My right hand, until I make your enemies for a
footstool,’” said David.
11 And again thus says Isaiah:
“The Lord God said to the Anointed One my
Lord, of whose right hand I laid hold that the
nations should give ear before Him, and I will
break down the strength of kings.”
See how David called Him Lord, and not called
Him Son.
13 Now let us see whether this new people
or the first people of the covenant has the in-
heritance, and whether the covenant had refer-
ence to us or to them. 2 But first, concerning the people, hear then
what the Scripture said:
“And Isaac prayed concerning Rebecca his
wife, for she was barren. And she conceived.
Then Rebecca went out to inquire of the Lord.
And the Lord said to her, ‘Two nations are in
your womb, and two peoples in your belly,
and one people shall vanquish another peo-
ple, and the greater shall serve the less.’”
3 You ought to understand who Isaac is,
and who Rebecca is, and in whose case He
has shown that the one people is greater
than the other.
4 And in another prophecy Jacob spoke
more plainly to Joseph his son, saying:
“I had not thought to see your face;
But in fact, God has also shown me your
offspring!
Bring them here to me that I may bless your
sons.”
5 And he brought Ephraim and Manasseh,
desiring that Manasseh should be blessed,
because he was the elder; for Joseph led him
by the right hand of his father Jacob. But
Jacob saw in the spirit a type of the people
that should come afterwards. And what said
He? And Jacob crossed his hands, and
placed his right hand on the head of Ephra-
im, the second and younger, and blessed
him. And Joseph said to Jacob, ‘Father, not
so, transfer your right hand to the head of
Manasseh, for he is my first born son.’ But
Jacob said to Joseph, ‘I know that, my son, I
know that all too well; but He shall become
a people, and he also shall be great; but
truly his younger brother shall be greater
than he, and his descendants shall become a
multitude of nations. Yet therefore they also
both shall be blessed.’”
6 You see of whom He appointed it, that
they should be ordained as the first people
and the greater shall serve the lesser, and
become also heirs of the covenant.
8 If we know therefore that God has taken
this yet further, for He recorded it through
Abraham; then our understanding of it will
then be perfectly established. What then
says the Scripture about Abraham, when he
believed, and it was accounted to him for
righteousness? For thus says the Scripture:
“As for Me, behold, My covenant is with
you, and you shall be a father of many na-
tions. No longer shall your name be called
Abram, but your name shall be Abraham;
for I have made you a father of many na-
tions. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and
I will make nations of you, and kings shall
come from you. And I will establish My covenant between Me
and you and your descendants after you in
their generations, for an everlasting covenant,
to be God to you and your descendants after
you.
14 Yes, assuredly, but as regards to the
covenant which He swore to the fathers to give
it to the people let us see whether He has actu-
ally given it. For you see that He has given it,
but they themselves were found not worthy to
receive it by reason of their sins.
2 For the scripture said:
“And Moses was fasting in Mount Sinai forty
days and forty nights, that he might receive the
covenant of the Lord to give to the people. And
Moses received from the Lord the two tables
which were written by the Finger of the Hand
of the Lord.”
3 And the Lord said to Moses:
“Go, get down! For your people whom you
brought out of the land of Egypt have corrupt-
ed themselves. They have turned aside quickly
out of the way which I commanded them. They
have made themselves a molded calf, and wor-
shiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, ‘This is
your god, O Israel that brought you out of the
land of Egypt!’” And Moses turned and went
down from the mountain, and the two tablets of
the Testimony were in his hand. So it was, as
soon as he came near the camp, that he saw the
calf and the dancing. So Moses’ anger became
hot, and he cast the tablets out of his hands and
broke them at the foot of the mountain.”
4 Moses received them, but they themselves
were not found worthy. But how did we re-
ceive them? You see whom He appointed this.
Moses received them being a servant, but the
Lord himself gave them to us to be the people
of His inheritance, having endured patiently for
our sakes.
5 He was therefore made manifest to them, that
at the same time in order that he might fill
up the measure of their sins in Him, and we
might receive the covenant through Him
who inherited it; even the Lord Jesus, who
was prepared beforehand as heir of the Cov-
enant, that having appeared in person He
might redeem us out of darkness of our
hearts which had already been given over to
Death and delivered Himself up for the iniq-
uity of our error, and thus establish the cov-
enant in us through the Word.
6 For it is written how the Father charged
Him to deliver us from darkness, and to pre-
pare a holy people for Himself.
7 Therefore said the prophet:
“I, the Lord, have called You in righteous-
ness,
And will hold Your hand;
I will keep You and give You as a covenant
to the people,
As a light to the Gentiles,
To open blind eyes,
To bring out prisoners from the prison,
Those who sit in darkness from the prison
house.”
We perceive then where we were ransomed.
8 Again the prophet said:
“ I have set you to be a light to the Gentiles
that you should be for salvation to the ends
of the Earth.”
9 Again the prophet said:
“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is on Me, be-
cause He has anointed Me to bring good
news to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the
brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the
captives and freedom to the prisoners; To
proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord,
and the day of vengeance of our God; to
comfort all that mourn.”
15 Furthermore it is written concerning
the Sabbath it is written in the Ten Com-
mandments, in which He spoke to Moses face
to face on Mount Sinai, “Sanctify the Sabbath
of the Lord with clean hands, and with a pure
heart.”
2 And in another place He said;
“If your children shall keep My Sabbaths, then
I will put My mercy upon them.”
3 Of the Sabbath He spoke in the beginning of
the creation, “And on the seventh day God end-
ed his work which he had done; and he rested
on the seventh day from all his work which he
had made.”
4 Consider, children, what this means, “He
ended in six days.” The meaning of it is this
that in six thousand years the Lord shall bring
all things to an end; for with Him one day is a
thousand years
as He Himself has testified, saying, “Behold,
the day of the Lord shall be as a thousand
years.” Therefore, my children, in six days that
is in six thousand years everything shall come
to an end.
5 “And He rested on the seventh day,” by this
He means that when His Son shall come, and
shall abolish the time of the Lawless One, and
shall judge the ungodly, and shall renew the
Earth and change the sun, the moon and the
stars, then shall he truly rest on the seventh
day.
6 Furthermore He said, “Y ou shall sanctify it
with clean hands and with a pure heart.” If
therefore we being greatly deceived by think-
ing that we can imagine that anyone now sanc-
tify the day which God has sanctified, though
he be pure in heart, then we have gone utterly
astray.
7 Behold, the time will truly come and not un-
til then that we shall rest and sanctified it; for
when we shall ourselves be able to do so only
after having being justified by Him and receiv-
ing the Promise; when iniquity is no more and
all things have been made anew by the Lord,
we shall be able to sanctify it then, because we
ourselves shall have been sanctify by Him first.
8 Finally He said to them:
“Bring no more futile sacrifices;
Incense is an abomination to Me.
The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the call-
ing of assemblies—
I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred
meeting.
Your New Moons and your appointed feasts
My soul hates;
They are a trouble to Me,
I am weary of bearing them.”
9 Consider what He means by this. It is
your present Sabbath that is not acceptable
to Him, but the new Sabbath which He will
make, in the which having created all things
anew; when the Lord has set all things in a
new Earth and a new heavens at rest, He
will make a beginning of the eternal eighth
day which will be the beginning of new uni-
verse.
10 For which we will also keep the eighth
day for rejoicing, in which also Jesus rose
from the dead; and having been manifested
Himself to His disciples, ascended into the
heavens.
16 It remains yet that I speak to you
concerning the temple, how these miserable
men being deceived by out their trust in the
house, and not in their God that made them,
as though it being the habitation of God.
2 For being almost like the Gentiles, they
consecrated Him in the temple. But what
said the Lord about abolishing the temple?
Learn this:
“’Who has measured the heaven with a
span, or has measured the Earth with his
hand? Was it not I?’”, says the Lord? The
heaven is My throne and the earth the foot-
stool of My feet. What manner of house will
you build for Me? Or what shall be my rest-
ing place?”
You perceive that their hope is vain.
3 Furthermore He said again:
“Behold they that destroy this temple,
Even they shall again themselves shall build
it.”
4 And so it comes to pass; for through their
wars it is now destroyed by their enemies; and
now the very servants of their enemies shall
build it up.
5 Again, it was revealed how the city and the
temple and the people of Israel should be be-
trayed. For the scripture said;
“And it shall be in the last days that the Lord
shall deliver up the sheep of the pasture and
the fold and the tower thereof to destruction.
And it came to pass as the Lord spoken.
6 But let us inquire whether there be any tem-
ple of God. And there is, in the place where he
himself undertakes to make and finish it.
For it is written:
“And it shall come to pass, when the week has
been accomplished, the temple of God shall be
built gloriously in the Name of the Lord.”
7 I find then that there is a temple, but how
then shall it be built in the Name of the Lord?
Understand this. Before we believed on God,
the abode of our heart was corrupt and weak, a
temple truly built by corruptible hands; for it
was full of idolatry of self-worship and was a
house of demons, because we did whatever that
was contrary to God.
8 “But it shall be built in the Name of the
Lord,” therefore consider then that the temple
of the Lord may be built gloriously.
9 How? Understand this. By receiving the re-
mission of our sins and hoping in the Name we
have become renewed in Him, being again cre-
ated as it were from the beginning. Therefore
God truly dwells within our habitation, that is,
in us. How? The Word of His Faith, the Calling
of his Promise, the Wisdom of the Ordinances,
the commandments of His teaching. For Him
prophesying in us, He Himself dwelling in us,
opening for us who had been in bondage of
Death the door of the temple, which is the
mouth, and giving us repentance by which we
confess Him as God and ask for the for-
giveness of sins has lead us to the incor-
ruptible temple.
17 For he that desires to be saved looks
not to a man, but to Him that dwells within
and speaks to him, being amazed at this that
he has never at any one time heard these
words of the mouth of the speaker from
without, nor has he himself ever desired to
hear them. This is the indwelling of God
within the spiritual temple built up to the
Lord.
2 So far as it was possible with all simplici-
ty to declare it to you, my soul hopes that I
have not omitted anything of the matters
pertaining to salvation and in so failed in
my desire. 3 For if I should speak further of the things
that now are, and of those things that are to
come, you would not yet understand them,
seeing they lie in parables. This therefore
shall suffice as to these things.
4 But let us pass on to another lesson and
teaching. There are two ways of teaching
and of power, the one of Light and the other
of Darkness; and there is a great difference
between the two ways. For over are appoint-
ed the angels of God, followers of the Light;
whereas on the other is the followers of
Darkness, the demons of Satan.
5 And the one is the Lord from everlasting
to everlasting, whereas the other is Lord of
the time of unrighteousness that now is.
18 This then is the Way of Light, if
anyone desiring to travel on the way to his
appointed place would be zealous in his
works. The knowledge then which is given
to us whereby we may walk therein is as
follows.
2 You shall love Him that made you, you
shall fear Him that created you, you shall
glorify Him that redeemed you from Death;
you shall not be arrogant but rich in dis-
pensing knowledge; you shall not associate
with those who walk the way of Death; you
shall hate everything that is not pleasing to
God; you shall hate all hypocrisy; you shall
never forsake the commandments of the Lord.
3 You shall not exalt yourself, but shall be
humble in all things. You shall not take honor
for yourself. You shall not enter wicked coun-
sel against your neighbor; you shall not be over
-confident in your heart.
4 You shall not commit fornication, “you shall
not commit adultery”, and you shall not com-
mit pedophilia or any other sexual perversion.
You shall not misuse the Word of God for im-
purity, and to deceive and mislead. You shall
not accept any man’s person when you have
reprove him for a transgression. You shall be
meek, you shall be quiet, and you shall fear the
words of the Lord which you have heard. You
shall not bear a grudge against your brother.
5 You shall be optimistic and not doubt wheth-
er a thing shall be or not be. “Y ou shalt not
take the name of the Lord in vain.” You shall
love your neighbor more than your own soul.
You shall not murder an unborn child by abor-
tion or cause a miscarriage, nor again shall
commit infanticide when it is born. You shall
not withhold the disciplinary hand from your
son or daughter, but from their youth you shalt
teach them the godly Fear of God.
6 You shall not be found coveting your neigh-
bor’s goods; neither shall you extort for per-
sonal gain. You shall not join yourself with
those who are proud, but shall walk with those
who are humble and righteous. Whatever evil
that befalls you shall accounted as good, know-
ing that nothing is done without God. You shall
not be double minded nor double tongued.
7 You shall be subject to your masters as you
would of your Lord God in reverence and fear.
You shall not be bitter in your commands to-
wards any of your servants who set their hope
on the same the Lord God; but rather set at lib-
erty least they should cease to fear God who is
over both of you. He came not to call with re-
spect of persons, but to call those whom the
Spirit has prepared.
8 You shall communicate your neighbor and
ask what he has need of, and share and help
him with the blessings you have received. For
if you are fellow partakers in that which is per-
ishable, how much more rather shall you be
in those things which are imperishable. You
shall not be hasty and control your own
tongue, for the mouth is the snare of Death.
So far as you are able, you shall be pure for
your soul's sake.
9 Don’t be holding out your hand to receive
for what you need not, only to give away or
squander what you have received. You shall
love as the apple of your eye everyone that
speaks to you the Word of the Lord.
10 You shall remember the coming Day of
Judgment night and day, and you shall seek
out day by day the saints of Righteousness,
both of you shall consider and go about to
extort others by the Word, and mediate how
may save a soul, or you shall work with
your hands for an atonement for your sins.
11 You shall not hesitate to give, neither
shall you murmur when giving, but you
shall know who the Good Paymaster of
your reward is. You shall keep those things
which you have received from God, neither
adding to them nor taking away from them.
You shall utterly hate the Evil
One. You shall judge righteously.
12 You shall never cause divisions, but shall
make peace between those that are at vari-
ance, bringing them together. You shall
confess your sins daily. And do not come to
God without doing so, and praying with an
unrepentant heart. This is the Way of Light
19 But the Way of the Dark One is
crooked and full of a curse. For it is a way
of Eternal Death with punishment; in which
they that walk meet those things that de-
stroy men's souls--idolatry, over-
confidence, the pride of power over people,
hypocrisy, double-mindedness, adultery,
murder, plundering, pride, transgression,
treachery, malice, stubbornness, witchcraft,
magic, covetousness, absence of the fear of
God;
2 persecutors of good men, hating the
Truth, loving lies, not perceiving the reward
of Righteousness to be of worth, not adher-
ing to the good nor to the righteous judg-
ment, paying no heed to the widow and the
orphan, watching to do wickedness, having no
fear of God but having regard for that which is
evil; men from whom gentleness and forbear-
ance stand aloof and far off; loving vain things,
pursuing a recompense, not pitying the poor
man, not toiling for him that is oppressed with
toil, ready to slander, not recognizing Him that
made them. Murderers of children, destroyers
of the creatures of God, turning away from him
that is in want, oppressing him that is afflicted,
advocates of the wealthy, unjust judges of the
poor, sinful in all things.
20 It is therefore good to learn the ordi-
nances of the Lord, as many as have been writ-
ten above, and to walk in them. For him that
does these things shall be glorified in the King-
dom of God; whereas he that chooses their op-
posites shall perish altogether with his works.
For this cause there shall be both a resurrection
and a recompense.
2 I beseech those of you who are in a higher
estate, if you will receive any counsel of good
advice from me, keep amongst you those to
whom you may do good, therefore do not for-
sake them.
3 For the day is at hand, in which all things
shall be destroyed together with the Evil One.
The Lord is near, and His reward is with them.
4 I beseech you again, therefore, be good law-
givers one to another; and continue to be faith-
ful councilors to one another, and remove from
you all hypocrisy.
5 And my God, who is Lord of the whole
world, give you wisdom, judgment, learning,
knowledge of His ordinances with all patience.
6 And may you be taught by God, seeking dili-
gently what the Lord requires of you, and in
doing it; that you may be saved in the Day of
Judgment.
7 And if there be among you who have any
remembrance of good, think of me when you
practice these things; for these things are both
my desire and my watchfulness that may lead
to some good result. I beseech you as if asking
it as a favor of you.
8 So long as you dwell in the good tabernacle
of the body, be not lacking in none of these
things; but search them out constantly, and
fulfill every commandment. For these things
are fitting and worthy to be done.
9 For this reason I was the more eager to
write to you so far as I was able, that I
might give you joy. Farewell, my children
of Love and Peace. May the Lord of Glory
and the Grace of the Lord be with you.
Amen.