Lectionary Readings for Saturday, May 18th, 2019

Full Moon, Seventh-Day Sabbath

Book of Wars Against Jehovih Chapters XXVIII and XXIX

Chapter XXVIII

1. On the following day the Gods departed, with due ceremonies, after the manner they
came, and returned to their kingdoms, and thence down to the earth, each one to his own
division.

2. And each of the three Gods went to his own chosen mortal (who had power to see
and hear spiritual things). And the Gods possessed them by their presence, and inspired
them to write the words of Anuhasaj, alias the Lord God, word for word; and they
were so written, alike and like, in the three great divisions of the earth. And copies
of them were made and filed in the libraries, and in the houses of philosophy of mortals.

3. But when these matters were thus entered, in answer to the queries of mortals, as to the
origin of man and his destiny, they were not deemed sufficient by the learned men. Many
of them said: The Lord God hath evaded our questions.

4. Then satan came to each of the three Gods who had the matter in charge, and he said
unto them: Consult with one another as to what shall be done. So Osiris sent
messengers to Te-in and to Sudga, asking them to come to Agho’aden, his heavenly place,
for consultation. And, in due course of time, Te-in and Sudga came to Osiris, to his
throne, where they were received in great honor and glory. And presently Osiris’marshals
cleared the place, so the interview was private, for even the marshals stood afar off.

5. Osiris said: What shall we do without a Creator in fact? I know not if my judgment be
beside itself, for it is said they that lose their reason are the last to discover it. The time
was when De’yus, our much-loved Lord God, said: Whilst ye labor on the earth for me
and my kingdoms, behold, I will reciprocate in all things. Neither shall ye ask for aught
but it shall be granted unto you.

6. Hear me then, O my brothers, in my complaint; mortals have asked us, to know
the origin of man, and his destination; and to know the cause of good and evil.
These things I submitted unto our Lord God, in Hored, to learn his will and decree.

7. Thereupon he sent messengers to me announcing a feast, on which occasion he
would answer the questions of mortals satisfactorily. Ye and I went to the feast,
and De’yus hath furnished us with something, which is nothing. For mortals can also
perceive that what the Lord God hath said is one and the same thing that was said by
the Gods through Zarathustra; and, moreover, that the questions are still unanswered.

8. De’yus is my friend, and I desire not to press him further on the subject; and so I have
called you, to learn of you how ye managed the same issues?

9. Te-in said: Before our heavenly kingdoms were confederated, Anuhasaj professed that
he would announce himself the head and front of all created creations. Shall we say his
courage is less? And so excuse him?

10. Sudga said: When he should have said: I created man in mine own image, behold, he
hath weakly said: LET US MAKE MAN! Is it not clear, then, that he shirketh from the
responsibility, and desireth ourselves commingled in the pitiful story? Hear me, then,
my brothers; I am asked how I have answered the issues with mine own division, and
I say unto you, I have been in the same quandary, and have not answered them at all.

11. Te-in said: Neither have I. But that we may be justified in so doing, behold, the Lord
God said unto us: I bind you not to my words, nor limit you, save that that I have spoken
shall be the foundation. Now, it is clear, that if we admit that sin is in the world, we must
find a way to justify the Lord God, whose servants we are. If he be not justified, then is
sin justified.

12. For mortals perceive good and evil understandingly; but to justify a good God for
permitting evil is not an easy matter. For in the breath we praise him, we must praise his
works; of which sin is apparent; and in the same breath that we condemn sin, how shall
we glorify De’yus? For have we not proclaimed him the foundation of all things; the head
and front, before creation was created? Was not this our battle-cry, to urge our angel
warriors on to overthrow Jehovih? And hath not our loud-praised Lord God said: LET US
MAKE MAN! A child should have more courage than this!

13. Sudga said: It is plain we all understand these issues, and perceive, also, what is
required of us. For since De’yus hath left us liberty to add to his doctrines, according to
our own judgment, is it not well that we agree upon a doctrine, even as De’yus professed
prior to the confederacy? And thus give it to mortals?

14. Osiris said: This is wisdom, O my brothers. To make our Lord God the Creator, we
must account unto him all things, both good and evil. Wherefore we shall give two
masters to man, the one being the serpent, the earth, the lowest inspirer; and the other the
voice of our Lord God.

15. Sudga said: My brother hath spoken wisely. And yet, is the term two masters the
wisest term? For in declaring the Lord God the highest, we must make him master over
the earth also.

16. Te-in said: Why shall we not adopt the E’O’LIN of the ancients, substituting the words
Lord God? And make a commandment over man, forbidding him hearkening to the
serpent, lest he be led away from the Lord God, and throw the cause of sin upon man, for
violating the Lord God’s commandment.

17. Osiris said: Most wisely spoken, my brothers. For by accusing man, through the
serpent, we clear the Lord God unscathed.

Chapter XXIX

THE OSIRIAN BIBLE OF EQUPT, AND VIND’YU, AND CHINA.

1. On the following day the three false Gods, Osiris and Te-in and Sudga, wrote
their account, each in his own way. And when they were read, Osiris’stood clearer
than either of the others’; but nevertheless, Te-in’s and Sudga’s had much of merit.
So it came to pass Osiris’account was adopted, with interpolations from the others’.

2. This, then, is the completed report, to wit:

3. These are the times of earth and heaven when created; the time the Lord God
created them. And the Lord God formed man out of the dust of the earth, and quickened
him through his nostrils with the breath of life, and man became a living creature.

4. And God caused mists to rise up from the waters, and spread over the earth, and
rain upon it. And he caused trees and herbs to grow up out of the ground; everything
that is pleasant for the sight and good for food. Thus out of the ground the Lord
God caused man to come forth, being of the earth, of the land of Eden (Spe-a).

5. To dress the land and keep it pleasant, the Lord God commanded man, saying: This
shall be thy labor, in which thou shalt be perfected unto everlasting life. Of all things in
the land of Eden mayst thou freely take and enjoy.

6. And man prospered on the earth for a long season; and he was naked and not
ashamed. And God planted the tree of knowledge in the land of Eden, and he said unto
man: This tree have I planted; partake thou not of it, for it pertaineth to life and death.

7. And God called the name of the first man A’su (Adam). And the Lord God caused
man to name all things on the earth, and in the waters, and in the air above the
earth, and whatsoever man called every living creature, that was the name thereof.

8. And the Lord God caused A’su to fall into a trance; and an angel of heaven came
and stood by his side. And the Lord God drew from the flesh, and from the bones,
and from the blood of A’su, and thus made woman, and brought her unto A’su.

9. And the Lord God repeated his commandment unto woman, saying: Thou shalt sojourn
for a season on the earth, and cleave unto A’su, for he is thy husband, and thou art his
wife; and thou shalt partake of all things on the face of the earth, save of the tree of
life, which is of both good and evil, for in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

10. But because of the serpent (the earth) of the woman, she hearkened unto him, and he
said unto the woman: I say unto thee, in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt have thine
eyes opened, and shalt become as a Goddess, creating offspring.

11. And the woman was more easily persuaded than man, for she had confidence in the
serpent; and they partook of the fruit thereof; and, of a truth, their eyes were opened, and
they beheld their nakedness.

12. And presently they heard the Lord God walking in Eden, and they hid themselves in
the bushes. And the Lord God said: Where art thou, A’su? And A’su said: Because we
heard thee walking, we hid ourselves, for we were naked.

13. The Lord God said: Who told thee thou wert naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree
whereof I told thee thou shouldst not eat? A’su said: The woman thou gavest me to be
with me, led me, saying: Behold, it is good fruit; and we ate thereof.

14. The Lord God said: Woman, what hast thou done? And the woman answered, saying:
The serpent beguiled me. And the Lord God said unto the serpent: Because thou hast
done this, thou art accursed, and thou shalt not rise up from the earth, but return to dust
whence thou camest.

15. Unto the woman the Lord God said: Because thou hast conceived, thou shalt have
great sorrow; in sorrow bring forth children; thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he
shall rule over thee. And I will put enmity betwixt the serpent and thine offspring; and
the flesh shall call one way, which is unto earth, but the soul of man shall call unto me,
the Lord God. And though the serpent bite, yet man shall bruise him, and subdue him.

16. And God taught man to make coats of skins and be clothed. And the Lord God said:
Lest man partake further, becoming as one of us, he shall go out of Eden, where I created
him. So he drove man out of Eden backward, and gave him cherubims to hold him on
every side, to preserve unto man the tree of life, that man might not only fulfill the spirit,
but the flesh also.

17. When Osiris had gone thus far, Sudga interposed, saying: If we say, Becoming as one
of us, will not man say: Behold, there are more Gods than the Lord God?

18. Te-in said: Because De’yus said: Let us make man, shall we not use US in this
instance?

19. Osiris said: Hear me, my brothers, yet further; for I previously found a way out. For I
have divided the Lord from God; that is to say:

20. And the Lord God said: Because man hath learned good and evil, I am as twain unto
him, for I am Lord of the earth and God of heaven. And that which is on the earth is the
Lord’s, and that which is in heaven is God’s.

21. And A’su called his wife’s name Eve (We-it), for she was the fountain of all men. And
Eve brought forth a son, Cain, saying: I have begotten a son from the Lord. And she
brought forth another son, Abel. And the first-born was begotten in darkness, but the
second of the light of the Lord. And the Lord had more respect unto the second, Abel,
than unto the first, Cain.

22. In course of time Cain brought of the fruit of the ground and offered it unto the Lord.
And Abel brought for the Lord, as his offerings, the firstlings of his flocks. And Cain
perceived that the Lord had more respect for his brother, and Cain was wroth, and his
countenance fell.

23. And the Lord said unto Cain: Why art thou jealous? If thou doest well, shalt thou not
be accepted? And if thou doest not well, sin lieth at thy door.

24. But Cain would not be reconciled (because of the darkness in him), and when
he and his brother were walking in the fields, Cain turned upon Abel and slew him.

25. God said: Behold, darkness is between men; the son begotten in darkness falleth upon
him begotten in the light. And it shall come to pass on the earth from this time forth that
the righteous shall be persecuted by the unrighteous.

26. And the Lord said unto Cain: Where is Abel, thy brother? And he said: I know not.
Am I my brother’s keeper? The Lord said: The voice of thy brother’s blood crieth out unto
me from the ground: Now art thou accursed from the earth, for it hath opened to receive
thy brother’s blood from thy hand. In my sight thou shalt be a fugitive and a vagabond
upon the earth. And because thou hast shed blood, blood shall not cease to flow from thy
sons and daughters forever.

27. Cain said: O Lord, my punishment is greater than I can bear. For I am become the
first foundation of all the wars on the earth; for thou hast hid thy face from me;
and it shall come to pass that every one that findeth of me in them shall be slain also.

28. And the Lord said unto Cain: Whosoever slayeth thee or thine, vengeance shall be
upon him seven-fold. And the Lord wrote upon Cain’s forehead the word Asugasahiben,
signifying, BLOOD FOR SAKE OF SELF, a mark, lest any finding him might kill him.

29. And from this time forth Cain lost the voice of the Lord, because he went off into Nod
(darkness). And Cain took a wife and begot heirs unto himself after his own manner, and
they were called Cainites, and the heirs after them were called the tribe of Cainites, which
survived him nine hundred and ten years, after which they were divided into six and
twenty tribes. (And the name Cain was lost. But the people survived, and are known to
this day as THE WORLD’S PEOPLE.)

30. And We-it bore another son, Seth, in place of Abel, whom Cain slew. And after these
came the generations of men, good and evil. And the Lord God said: Behold, I created
man without sin, and I gave him warning, that he might remain holy on the face of
the earth. But woman hearkened not to my counsel, but to the serpent, and sin came
into the world. Therefore shall woman bring forth in pain all the generations of the earth.

31. Thus it was that the Lord God created man; in the likeness of God created he him.

32. And the sons of Cain were called tribes, even unto this day, but the sons of the
righteous were sons of God; wherefore it was said of old: Behold the sons of earth and the
sons of heaven.

33. And the Lord said: Shall I not accord to myself to choose what I will? For this right I
gave to man also. And from that time after the sons of God were called God’s chosen.

34. And it came to pass that man multiplied on the face of the earth; and the tribes were
mightier than the sons of the Lord God, and the wickedness of man became great in the
earth, and the desires of his heart were evil continually.

35. And the Lord God repented that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at
his heart. And the Lord God said: I will destroy man whom I have created; nor will I
spare beast nor creeping thing in the place I gave.

36. Behold, I will bring a flood of waters upon the lands of the earth, and I will destroy all
flesh wherein is the breath of life. But my covenant is with my chosen, who shall not be
destroyed by the flood of waters.

37. And God’s sons in Noe took with them pairs of the living, of beasts and
birds, according to the commandments of God, to keep the seed alive on the earth.

38. And when the earth was six hundred years in Noe, the flood of waters was come upon
the earth. And for forty days and forty nights the rain fell, and the fountains of the sea
came up on the lands of the earth. And man and beast alike, that drew the breath of life,
died, for the land was no more.

39. But the heirs of Noe suffered not; and the ships of the arc, whither the Lord had
concealed them, rode upon the waters. And God made a wind to pass over the earth: and
the fountains of the deep were stopped, and the rain of heaven restrained, and the ships of
the arc borne upon dry land.

40. And the Lord God said: Behold, I will build a new earth and a new heaven. For these,
my sons, have proven their faith in me. Neither will I again destroy the tribes of men
because their hearts are set on evil. And the Lord God swore an oath by the bow of the
arc, saying: This is the token of the covenant which I have established between me and all
flesh that is upon the earth. And by the sons of Noe was the whole earth overspread, and
the Lord blessed the earth, and said: Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for
man; even as the green herb I have given. But flesh with the life thereof, which is the
blood thereof, shall men not eat.

41. For surely your blood of your lives will I require; of every beast will I require it; at the
hand of every man’s brother will I require the life of man that feedeth on living flesh and
blood.

42. And whosoever sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed; for in my
image made I man. And ye, be ye fruitful, and multiply, and bring forth abundantly in the
earth, and inhabit it, for it is yours for perpetual generations.

43. Thus ended the words of Osiris. Te’in said: Because of flesh blood, thou art wise, my
brother. Sudga said: Hereon hangeth the glory of our enterprise. For man being less
restrained than in the Divan laws, will accept the new readily.

44. After this, Osiris prepared a book of generations of men on earth; and these were the
substance of the doctrines of De’yus and his Gods. And Osiris and Te-in and Sudga
departed, and came down to the earth, to their mortal wards, and by virtue of their
presence inspired they their wards to write them in mortal words, according to the
languages in the places where they lived. And they were so written by these seers; and
copies of them were made and put on file in the libraries of the records of the kings and
queens of the earth, in Arabin’ya, Jaffeth and Shem. And these became the bible of that
day.