Book of the Bee

Historical scan page 60

3* THE BOOK OF THE BEE. and ten days — even until the twentieth day of the latter Teshri. The waters began to diminish from the latter Teshri to the tenth month, on the first day of which the tops of the mountains appeared, but until the time when the earth was dry, and the dove found rest for the sole of her foot, was one hundred days. The ark rested upon the top of mount Kardo1. In the tenth month, which is Shebat2, Noah opened the door of the ark, and sent a raven to bring him news of the earth. And it went and found dead bodies, and it alighted upon them and returned not. For this reason people have made a proverb [^] about Noah’s raven. Again he sent forth a dove, but it found not a place whereon to alight, and returned to the ark. After seven days he sent forth another dove, and it returned to him in the evening carrying an olive leaf in its bill; and Noah knew that the waters had subsided. Noah remained in the ark a full year, and he came forth from it and offered up an offering of clean animals ; and God accepted his offering and promised him that He would never again bring a flood upon the face of the earth, nor again destroy beasts and men by a flood ; and He gave him (as) a token the bow in the clouds, and from that day the bow has appeared in the clouds; and He commanded him to slay and eat the flesh of beasts and birds after he had poured out their blood. The number of people who came forth from the ark was eight souls, and they built the town of Themanon 3 after the name of the eight souls, and it is to-day the seat of a bishopric in the province of Suba4. Noah planted a vineyard, and drank of its wine ; and one day when he slumbered, and was sunk in the deep sleep of drunkenness, his naked¬ ness was uncovered within his tent. When Ham his son saw him, he laughed at him and despised him, and told his brethren Shem and 1 nn by = Vnp 'HQ by, Targum Onkelos, Gen. viii. 4, i. e. the Jabal al- Jfidi of the Arabs, on the left bank of the Tigris, over against Jazirat Ibn 'Omar. 2 ‘ The tenth month is Kanun, but I saw Shebat written in the copy which I copied.’ This is evidently the gloss of a careful scribe, which has crept into the text. 3 See Hoffmann, Ausziige aus syrischen Akten persischer Mdrtyrer, p. 174. 4 Suba = ^x.^j Nisibis, from a false identification of the latter with the biblical