Letter of Aristeas

1917 printed page 60 / §§184–188

Printed page 60 Original marginal section labels beginning on this page: §184, §185, §186, §187, §188. The opening continues §183 from the preceding page. make half of the men recline at his _right_ hand, and the remainder behind his own couch, neglecting no means of showing them honour. When they had taken their places, he bade Dorotheus perform the customary rites of all his visitors from Judaea. So he dispensed with the services of the sacred heralds and ministers of the sacrifices and the others who usually offered the prayers, and requested one of those who had come with us, Elisha,{1} the oldest of the _Jewish_ priests, to offer a prayer. And he arose and spoke these memorable words: " May the Almighty God give thee thy fill, O king, of all the good things which He has created, and may He grant to thee and thy wife and thy children and to them that are of one mind with thee continual enjoyment of them while life shall last!" At these words there was a burst of applause with shouting and jubilation lasting for some while; and thereafter they betook themselves to the enjoyment of the banquet which had been prepared. All the attendance at table was undertaken by the staff of Dorotheus, among whom were royal pages and some of those who held places of honour at the king's court. (IX) THE WISE ANSWERS OF THE TRANSLATORS (1) When, after an interval, an opportunity presented itself, the king asked him who occupied the first place at table (they were arranged according to seniority), how he should preserve his kingdom unimpaired to the last. He paused for a moment and replied, " Thou wilt maintain it most securely thus—by imitating the never-ceasing gentleness of God. For if thou shewest longsuffering TRANSLATOR’S NOTES (1917) — printed page 60 {1} So Josephus. The Aristeas MSS call him Eleazar.