Testament of Judah 8

1And while I was there, Barshaba, the king of Adullam, entertained us and made a drinking feast for us; and when he urged me, he gave me his daughter, whose name was Shua, as a wife.

2She bore me Er and Onan and Shelah. And the Lord killed the first two, for Er was wicked; and Onan, when he had married Tamar, spilled the seed upon the ground, according to the commandment of his mother, and he also died through wickedness.

3And Shelah lived, and I did not give Tamar to him as wife. For I said, "Lest he also die like his brothers." For I did not know that the Lord was judging me because of the things I had done at Timnah to my father Jacob and to Joseph.

4And after these things, while Tamar was a widow, and after two years had passed, there was reported to me that she was going up to shear sheep at Timnah. And I also went to shear my sheep.

5And she, having learned that I was going up, adorned herself in bridal array and sat in the city Enaim by the gate. For it was a law of the Amorites that she who was about to marry should sit for seven days by the gate in fornication.

6Therefore, being drunk with wine, I did not recognize her; and her beauty led my mind astray through the fashion of her adornment.

7And I turned aside to her and said, "Let me go in to you." And she said, "What will you give me, that you may come in to me?"

8And I said, "I will send you a kid from the flock." And she said, "Will you give me a pledge until you send it?"

9And I said, "What pledge shall I give you?" And she said, "Your staff, and your girdle, and the diadem of your kingdom."

10So I gave them to her and went in to her, and she conceived by me. And because of the wine I did not perceive what I had done; neither did I recognize her when I went away.

11And after this I sent the kid, but I did not find her. And I asked the people of the place, saying, "Where is the woman who sat at Enaim by the road?"

12And they said, "There has been no prostitute here, nor any stranger sitting by the gate." And I understood that I had sinned, and I did not make the matter known publicly, because I was ashamed.

13And after three months it was reported to me, "Tamar your daughter-in-law has played the prostitute, and behold, she is with child." And I, being without understanding in the arrogance of my anger, said, "Bring her out, and let her be burned."

14But as she was being brought out, she sent secretly to me the staff and the girdle and the diadem, saying, "By the man to whom these belong I am with child."

15And I recognized them and was ashamed, and I said, "Tamar is more righteous than I, because I did not give her to Shelah my son." And I did not know her again.

16And now, my children, I say to you: do not be drunk with wine. For wine turns the mind away from the truth and inspires the passion of desire, and it leads the eyes into error.

17For the spirit of sexual immorality has wine as a servant to give pleasure to the mind; for these two also take away a person's understanding.

18For if one drinks wine to drunkenness, it disturbs the mind with filthy thoughts and leads the body on to sexual union; and if the occasion of desire is present, he commits the sin and is not ashamed.

19Such is the drunkard, my children. For the one who is drunk does not reverence anyone. For behold, it made me also transgress the commandment of God, and I went in to Tamar, not being ashamed of the multitude in the city, and before the eyes of all I uncovered the shame of my sons, since I went in to Tamar.

20After I had drunk wine, I did not respect the commandment of God, and I took a woman of Canaan as wife. For much discretion is needed by the man who drinks wine, my children.

21And this is the discretion in drinking wine: if a man drinks wine and keeps modesty, and if he does not go astray into shamelessness, he may drink wine.

22But if he goes beyond the limit, the spirit of deceit attacks his mind and makes the drunkard speak obscenities and transgress, and not be ashamed, but even boast in his disgrace and count it glory.

23One who commits sexual immorality does not know when he suffers loss, and he is not ashamed when dishonored. For even if a man is a king and commits sexual immorality, he is stripped of his kingship by becoming a servant to sexual immorality, as I myself also suffered.

24For I gave my staff, that is, the stay of my tribe; and my girdle, that is, my power; and my diadem, that is, the glory of my kingdom.

25And indeed I repented of these things; and wine and meat I did not consume until old age, and I saw no joy.

26And the angel of God showed me that women rule forever over king and beggar alike. From a king they take away his glory, and from a strong man his strength, and from a beggar even the little support of his poverty.

27Therefore keep yourselves, my children, from sexual immorality and from the love of money, and listen to Judah your father.

28For these things draw a person away from the law of God and blind the inclination of the soul, and teach arrogance, and do not allow one to have compassion on his neighbor.

29They deprive his soul of every goodness and oppress him with toils and troubles, and drive sleep away from him and devour his flesh.

30And he is hindered from offering sacrifices to God; and he does not remember blessing God; and when he hears a prophet speaking, he is offended and angered.

31For he is enslaved to two contrary passions and cannot obey God, because they have blinded his soul and he walks in the day as in the night.

32My children, I have shown you that wine leads to sexual immorality, and the love of money to idolatry; and these things turn the mind away from the law of God.

33Therefore, if you do not walk in sobriety in truth and in the fear of God, you will perish through every evil deed and every plague, if you take wives from the daughters of Canaan and are joined to their wealth, being led astray by gifts.

34For I know that after my death you will act lawlessly and contend against Levi, and you will not be able to prevail against him, because the angel of the Lord guides him and me the spirit of deceit has misled.

35And now I command you to love Levi, that you may live, and do not exalt yourselves against him, lest you be utterly destroyed.

36For to me the Lord gave the kingship, and to him the priesthood; and he set the kingdom under the priesthood.

37To me he gave the things on earth; to him the things in heaven.

38As heaven is higher than earth, so is the priesthood of God higher than the earthly kingdom—unless it falls away through sin from the Lord and is dominated by the earthly kingdom.

39For the angel of the Lord said to me, "The Lord chose Levi before you, to be near him, and for you to be king with him, as a lion."

40Therefore be not lifted up over Levi, nor against me, but honor in full the Lord in both, and among men draw near to Levi.

41For because of him the Lord will choose from you the kingship, and from Levi the priesthood, that the Lord may be for all the nations and the race of Israel.

42And now I have commanded you these things, because I have read in the books of Enoch the righteous that your sons will turn away from the Lord, and will commit every wickedness and every affliction before the Lord.