Book of Jasher — 1840 English Edition

Book of Jasher — 1840 English Edition 90

CHAPTER XC. 1. At that time in the fifth year after the children of Israel had passed over Jordan, after the children of Israel had rested from their war with the Canaanites, at that time great and severe battles arose between Edom and the children of Chittim, and the children of Chittim fought against Edom. 2. And Abianus king of Chittim went forth in that year, that is in the thirty first year of his reign, and a great force with him of the mighty men of the children of Chittim, and he went to Seir to fight against the children of Esau. 3. And Hadad the king of Edom 264 THE BOOK OF JASHER. heard of his report, and he went forth to meet him with a heavy people and strong force, and engaged in battle with him in the field of Edom. 4. And the hand of Chittim pre- vailed over the children of Esau, and the children of Chittim slew of the children of Esau two and twenty thousand men, and all the children of Esau fled from before them. 5. And the children of Chittim pursued them and they reached Ha- dad king of Edom, who was running before them, and they caught him alive, and brought him to Abianus king of Chittim. 6. And Abianus ordered him to be slain, and Hadad king of Edom died in the forty eighth year of his reign. 7. And the children of Chittim continued their pursuit of Edom, and they smote them with a great slaugh- ter and Edom became subject to the children of Chittim. 8. And the children of Chittim ruled over Edom, and Edom became under the hand of the children of Chittim and became one kingdom from that day. 9. And from that time they could no more lift up their heads, and their kingdom became one with the child- ren of Chittim. 10. And Abianus placed officers in Edom and all the children of Edom became subject and tributary to Abianus, and Abianus turned back to his own land, Chittim. 11. And when he returned he renewed his government and built for himself a spacious and fortified palace for a royal residence, and reigned securely over the children of Chittim and over Edom. 12. In those days, after the child- ren of Israel had driven away all the Canaanites and Amorites, Joshua was old and advanced in years. 13. And the Lord said to Joshua, thou art old, advanced in hfe, and a great part of the land remains to be possessed. 14. Now therefore divide this land for an inheritance to the nine tribes and to the half tribe of Manasseh, and Joshua rose up and did as the Lord had spoken to him. 15. And he divided the whole land to the tribes of Israel as an inherit- ance, according to their divisions. 16. But to the tribe of Levi he gave no inheritance, the offerings of the Lord are their inheritance as the Lord had spoken of them by the hand of Moses. 17. And Joshua gave Mount He- bron to Caleb the son of Jephuneh, one portion above his brethren, as the Lord had spoken through Mo- ses. 18. Therefore Hebron became an inheritance to Caleb and his children unto this day. 19. And Joshua divided the whole land by lots to all Israel for an in- heritance, as the Lord had com- manded him. 20. And the children of Israel gave cities to the Levites from their own inheritance, and suburbs for their cattle, and property, as the Lord had commanded Moses so did the children of Israel, and they divided the land by lot whether great or small. 21. And they went to inherit the land according to their boundaries, and the children of Israel gave to Joshua the son of Nun an inheritance amongst them. 22. By the word of the Lord did they give to him the city which he required, Timnath-serach in mount THE BOOK OF JASHER. 265 Ephraim, and he built the city and dwelt therein. 23. These are the inheritances which Elazer the priest and Joshua the son of Nun and the heads of the fathers of the tribes portioned out to the children of Israel by lot in Sinloh, before the Lord, at the door of the tabernacle, and they left off dividing the land. 24. And the Lord gave the land to the Israelites, and they possessed it as the Lord had spoken to thena, and as the Lord had sworn to their ancestors. 25. And the Lord gave to the Israelites rest from all their enemies around them, and no man stood up against them, and the Lord delivered all their enemies into their hands, and not one thing failed of all the good which the Lord had spoken to the children of Israel, yea the Lord performed every thing. 26. And Joshua called to all the children of Israel and he blessed them, and commanded them to serve the Lord, and he afterward sent them away, and they went each inan to his city, and each man to his inheri- tance. 27. And the children of Israel served the Lord all the days of Jo- shua, and the Lord gave them rest from all around them, and they dwelt securely in their cities, 28. And it came to pass in those days, that Abianus king of Chittim died, in the thirty eighth year of his reign, that is the seventh year of his reign over Edom, and they buried him in his place which he had built for himself, and Latinus reigned in his stead fifty years. 29. And during his reign he brought forth an army, and he went and fought against the inhabitants of Britannia and Kernania,* tlie children of Elisha son of Javan, and lie prevailed over them and made them tributary. 30. He then heard that Edom had revolted from under the hand of Chit- tim, and Latinus went to them and smote them and subdued them, and placed them under the hand of the children of Chittim, and Edom be- came one kingdom witii the children of Ciiittim all the days. 31. And for many years there was no king in Edom, and their govern- ment was with the children of Chit- tim and their king. 32. And it was in the twenty sixth year after the children of Israel had passed the Jordan, that is the sixty sixth year after the children of Israel had departed from Egypt, that Joshua was old, advanced in years, being one hundred and eight years old in those days. 33. And Joshua called to all Is- rael, to their elders, their judges and officers, after the Lord had given to all the Israelites rest from all their enemies round about, and Joshua said to the elders of Israel, and to their judges, behold I am old, ad- vanced in years, and you have seen what the Lord has done to all the nations whom he has driven away from before you, for it is the Lord who has fought for you. 34. Now therefore strengthen yourselves to keep and to do all the words of the law of Moses, not to deviate from it to the riglit or to the left, and not to come amongst those nations who are left in the land ; nei- ther shall you make mention of the name of their gods, but you shall cleave to the Lord your God, as you have done to this day. * N>3r3i N'joia, probably names of places in ancient Greece. 266 THE BOOK OF JASHER. 35. And Joshua greatly exhorted the children of Israel to serve the Lord all their days. 36. And all the Israelites said, we will serve the Lord our God all our days, we and our children, and our chil- dren's children, and our seed for ever. 37. And Joshua made a covenant with the people on that day, and he sent away the children of Israel, and they went each man to his inheritance and to his city. 38. And it was in those days, when the children of Israel were dwelling securely in their cities, that they bu- ried the coffins of the tribes of their ancestors, which they had brought up from Egypt, each man in the in- heritance of his children, the twelve sons of Jacob did the children of Is- rael bury, each man in the possession of his children. 39. And these are the names of the cities wherein they buried the twelve sons of Jacob, whom the chil- dren of Israel had brought up from Egypt. 40. And they buried Reuben and Gad on this side Jordan, in Romia, which Moses had given to their chil- dren. 41. And Simeon and Levi they buried in the city Mauda, which he had given to the children of Simeon, and the suburb of the city was for the children of Levi. 42. And Judah they buried in the city of Benjamin opposite Bethle- hem. 43. And the bones of Issachar and Zebulun they buried in Zidon, in the portion which fell to their chil- dren. 44. And Dan was buried in the city of his children in Eshtael, and Naphtali and Aslier they buried in Kadesh-naphtali, each man in his place which he had given to his chil- dren. 45. And the bones of Joseph they buried in Shechem, in the part of the field which Jacob had purchased from Hamor, and which became to Joseph for an inheritance. 46. And they buried Benjamin in Jerusalem opposite the Jebusite, which was given to the children of Benjamin ; the children of Israel bu- ried their fathers each man in the city of his children. 47. And at the end of two years, Joshua the son of Nun died, one hun- dred and ten years old, and the time which Joshua judged Israel was twenty eight years, and Israel served the Lord all the days of his life. 48. And the other affairs of Joshua and his battles and his reproofs with which he reproved Israel, and all which he had commanded them, and the names of the cities which the chil- dren of Israel possessed in his days, behold they are written in the book of the words of Joshua to the children of Israel, and in the book of the wars of the Lord, which Moses and Joshua and the children of Israel had writ- ten. 49. And the children of Israel bu- ried Joshua in the border of his in- heritance, in Timnath-serach, which was given to him in mount Ephraim, 50. And Elazer the son of Aaron died in those days, and they buried him in a hill belonging to Phineas his son, which was given him in mount Ephraim.