Joseph and Aseneth

Historical English source page 26

22 JOSEPH AND ASENATH [n Egyptians, but was in all things like the daughters of the Hebrews, being tall as Sarah and comely as Rebecca and beautiful as Rachel ; and the fame of her beauty spread abroad into all that land and unto the ends of the world, so that by reason of this all the sons of the princes and the satraps desired to woo her, nay, and the sons of the kings also, all young men and mighty, and there was great strife among them because of her, and they essayed to fight against one another. And Pharaoh's firstborn son also heard about her, and he con- tinued entreating his father to give her to him to wife and saying to him : " Give me, father, Asenath, the daughter of Pentephres, the '"first man ^ of Helio- polis to wife." And his father Pharaoh said to him : "Wherefore dost thou on thy part seek a wife lower than thyself when thou art king of all this land ? Nay, but lo ! the daughter of Joacim the King of Moab is betrothed to thee, and she herself is a queen and beautiful to behold exceedingly. Take then this one to thyself to wife." The Tower in which Asenath lives is described. II. But Asenath set at naught and scorned every man, being boastful and haughty, and never had a man seen her, inasmuch as Pentephres had in his house a tower adjoining, great and high exceed- ingly, and above the tower was a loft containing ten chambers. And the first chamber was great and 1 Lat. Syr. Slav. " priest " ; in Arm. the sentence is shortened.