Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol IX:
The Testament of Abraham.: Version II

p. 185

Version II.

I.  It came to pass, when the days of the death of Abraham drew near, that the Lord said to Michael:  Arise and go to Abraham, my servant, and say to him, Thou shalt depart from life, for lo! the days of thy temporal life are fulfilled:  so that he may set his house in order before he die.

II.  And Michael went and came to Abraham, and found him sitting before his oxen for ploughing, and he was exceeding old in appearance, and had his son in his arms.  Abraham, therefore, seeing the archangel Michael, rose from the ground and saluted him, not knowing who he was, and said to him:  The Lord preserve thee.  May thy journey be prosperous with thee.  And Michael answered him:  Thou art kind, good father.  Abraham answered and said to him:  Come, draw near to me, brother, and sit down a little while, that I may order a beast to be brought that we may go to my house, and thou mayest rest with me, for it is toward evening, and in the morning arise and go p. 186 whithersoever thou wilt, lest some evil beast meet thee and do thee hurt.  And Michael enquired of Abraham, saying:  Tell me thy name, before I enter thy house, lest I be burdensome to thee.  Abraham answered and said, My parents called me Abram, and the Lord named me Abraham, saying:  Arise and depart from thy house, and from thy kindred, and go into the land which I shall show unto thee.  And when I went away into the land which the Lord showed me, he said to me:  Thy name shall no more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham.  Michael answered and said to him:  Pardon me, my father, experienced man of God, for I am a stranger, and I have heard of thee that thou didst go forty furlongs and didst bring a goat and slay it, entertaining angels in thy house, that they might rest there.  Thus speaking together, they arose and went towards the house.  And Abraham called one of his servants, and said to him:  Go, bring me a beast that the stranger may sit upon it, for he is wearied with his journey.  And Michael said:  Trouble not the youth, but let us go lightly until we reach the house, for I love thy company.

III.  And arising they went on, and as they drew nigh to the city, about three furlongs from it, they found a great tree having three hundred branches, like to a tamarisk tree.  And they heard a voice from its branches singing, “Holy art thou, because thou hast kept the purpose for which thou wast sent.”  And Abraham heard the voice, and hid the mystery in his heart, saying within himself, What is the mystery that I have heard?  As he came into the house, Abraham said to his servants, Arise, go out to the flocks, and bring three sheep, and slay them quickly, and make them ready that we may eat and drink, for this day is a feast for us.  And the servants brought the sheep, and Abraham called his son Isaac, and said to him, My son Isaac, arise and put water in the vessel that we may wash the feet of this stranger.  And he brought it as he was commanded, and Abraham said, I perceive, and so it shall be, that in this basin I shall never again wash the feet of any man coming to us as a guest.  And Isaac hearing his father say this wept, and said to him, My father what is this that thou sayest, This is my last time to wash the feet of a stranger?  And Abraham seeing his son weeping, also wept exp. 187 ceedingly, and Michael seeing them weeping, wept also, and the tears of Michael fell upon the vessel and became a precious stone.

IV.  When Sarah, being inside in her house, heard their weeping, she came out and said to Abraham, Lord, why is it that ye thus weep?  Abraham answered, and said to her, It is no evil.  Go into thy house, and do thy own work, lest we be troublesome to the man.  And Sarah went away, being about to prepare the supper.  And the sun came near to setting, and Michael went out of the house, and was taken up into the heavens to worship before God, for at sunset all the angels worship God and Michael himself is the first of the angels.  And they all worshipped him, and went each to his own place, but Michael spoke before the Lord and said, Lord, command me to be questioned before thy holy glory!  And the Lord said to Michael, Announce whatsoever thou wilt!  And the Archangel answered and said, Lord, thou didst send me to Abraham to say to him, Depart from thy body, and leave this world; the Lord calls thee; and I dare not, Lord, reveal myself to him, for he is thy friend, and a righteous man, and one that receives strangers.  But I beseech thee, Lord, command the remembrance of the death of Abraham to enter into his own heart, and bid not me tell it him, for it is great abruptness to say, Leave the world, and especially to leave one’s own body, for thou didst create him from the beginning to have pity on the souls of all men.  Then the Lord said to Michael, Arise and go to Abraham, and lodge with him, and whatever thou seest him eat, eat thou also, and wherever he shall sleep, sleep thou there also.  For I will cast the thought of the death of Abraham into the heart of Isaac his son in a dream.

p. 188 V.  Then Michael went into the house of Abraham on that evening, and found them preparing the supper, and they ate and drank and were merry.  And Abraham said to his son Isaac, Arise, my son, and spread the man’s couch that he may sleep, and set the lamp upon the stand.  And Isaac did as his father commanded him, and Isaac said to his father, I too am coming to sleep beside you.  Abraham answered him, Nay, my son, lest we be troublesome to this man, but go to thy own chamber and sleep.  And Isaac not wishing to disobey his father’s command, went away and slept in his own chamber.

VI.  And it happened about the seventh hour of the night Isaac awoke, and came to the door of his father’s chamber, crying out and saying, Open, father, that I may touch thee before they take thee away from me.  Abraham arose and opened to him, and Isaac entered and hung upon his father’s neck weeping, and kissed him with lamentations.  And Abraham wept together with his son, and Michael saw them weeping and wept likewise.  And Sarah hearing them weeping called from her bed-chamber, saying, My Lord Abraham, why is this weeping?  Has the stranger told thee of thy brother’s son Lot that he is dead? or has aught else befallen us?  Michael answered and said to Sarah, Nay, Sarah, I have brought no tidings of Lot, but I knew of all your kindness of heart, that therein ye excel all men upon earth, and the Lord has remembered you.  p. 189 Then Sarah said to Abraham, How durst thou weep when the man of God has come in to thee, and why have thy eyes 3993 shed tears for today there is great rejoicing?  Abraham said to her, How knowest thou that this is a man of God?  Sarah answered and said, Because I say and declare that this is one of the three men who were entertained by us at the oak of Mamre, when one of the servants went and brought a kid and thou didst kill it, and didst say to me, Arise, make ready that we may eat with these men in our house.  Abraham answered and said, Thou has perceived well, O woman, for I too, when I washed his feet knew in my heart that these were the feet which I had washed at the oak of Mamre, and when I began to enquire concerning his journey, he said to me, I go to preserve Lot thy brother from the men of Sodom, and then I knew the mystery.

VII.  And Abraham said to Michael, Tell me, man of God, and show to me why thou hast come hither.  And Michael said, Thy son Isaac will show thee.  And Abraham said to his son, My beloved son, tell me what thou hast seen in thy dream today, and wast frightened.  Relate it to me.  Isaac answered his father, I saw in my dream the sun and the moon, and there was a crown upon my head, and there came from heaven a man of great size, and shining as the light that is called the father of light.  He took the sun from my head, and yet left the rays behind with me.  And I wept and said, I beseech thee, my Lord, take not away the glory of my head, and the light of my house, and all my glory.  And the sun and the moon and the stars lamented, saying, Take not away the glory of our power.  And that shining man answered and said to me, Weep not that I take the light of thy house, for it is taken up from troubles into rest, from a low estate to a high one; they lift him up from a narrow to a wide place; they raise him from darkness to light.  And I said to him, I beseech thee, Lord, take also the p. 190 rays with it.  He said to me, There are twelve hours of the day, and then I shall take all the rays.  As the shining man said this, I saw the sun of my house ascending into heaven, but that crown I saw no more, and that sun was like thee my father.  And Michael said to Abraham, Thy son Isaac has spoken truth, for thou shalt go, and be taken up into the heavens, but thy body shall remain on earth, until seven thousand ages are fulfilled, for then all flesh shall arise.  Now therefore, Abraham, set thy house in order, and thy children, for thou hast heard fully what is decreed concerning thee.  p. 191 Abraham answered and said to Michael, I beseech thee, Lord, if I shall depart from my body, I have desired to be taken up in my body that I may see the creatures that the Lord my God has created in heaven and on earth.  Michael answered and said, This is not for me to do, but I shall go and tell the Lord of this, and if I am commanded I shall show thee all these things.

VIII.  And Michael went up into heaven, and spoke before the Lord concerning Abraham, and the Lord answered Michael, Go and take up Abraham in the body, and show him all things, and whatsoever he shall say to thee do to him as to my friend.  So Michael went forth and took up Abraham in the body on a cloud, and brought him to the river of Ocean.

p. 192 XII.  And after Abraham had seen the place of judgment, the cloud took him down upon the firmament below, and Abraham, looking down upon the earth, saw a man committing adultery with a wedded woman.  And Abraham turning said to Michael, Seest thou this wickedness? but, Lord, send fire from heaven to consume them.  And straightway there came down fire and consumed them, for the Lord had said to Michael, Whatsoever Abraham shall ask thee to do for him, do thou.  Abraham looked again, and saw other men railing at their companions, and said, Let the earth open and swallow them, and as he spoke the earth swallowed them alive.  Again the cloud led him to another place, and Abraham saw some going into a desert place to commit murder, and he said to Michael, Seest thou this wickedness? but let wild beasts come out of the desert, and tear them in pieces, and that same hour wild beasts came out of the desert, and devoured them.  Then the Lord God spoke to Michael saying, Turn away Abraham to his own house, and let him not go round all the creation that I have made, because he has no compassion on sinners, but I have compassion on sinners that they may turn and live, and repent of their sins and be saved.

(VIII.)  And Abraham looked and saw two gates, the one small and the other large, and between the two gates sat a man upon a throne of great glory, and a multitude of angels round about him, and he was weeping, and again laughing, but his weeping exceeded his laughter seven-fold.  And Abraham said to Michael, Who is this that sits between the two gates in great glory; sometimes he laughs, and sometimes he weeps, and his weeping exceeds his laughter seven-fold?  And Michael said to Abraham, Knowest thou not who it is?  And he said, No, Lord.  And Michael said to Abraham, Seest thou these two gates, the small and the great?  These are they which p. 193 lead to life and to destruction.  This man that sits between them is Adam, the first man whom the Lord created, and set him in this place to see every soul that departs from the body, seeing that all are from him.  When, therefore, thou seest him weeping, know that he has seen many souls being led to destruction, but when thou seest him laughing, he has seen many souls being led into life.  Seest thou how his weeping exceeds his laughter?  Since he sees the greater part of the world being led away through the broad gate to destruction, therefore his weeping exceeds his laughter seven-fold.

IX.  And Abraham said, And he that cannot enter through the narrow gate, can he not enter into life?  Then Abraham wept, saying, Woe is me, what shall I do? for I am a man broad of body, and how shall I be able to enter by the narrow gate, by which a boy of fifteen years cannot enter?  Michael answered and said to Abraham, Fear not, father, nor grieve, for thou shalt enter by it unhindered, and all those who are like thee.  And as Abraham stood and marveled, behold an angel of the Lord driving sixty thousand souls of sinners to destruction.  And Abraham said to Michael, Do all these go into destruction?  And Michael said to him, Yea, but let us go and search among these souls, if there is among them even one righteous.  And when they went, they found an angel holding in his hand one soul of a woman from among these sixty thousand, because he had found her sins weighing equally with all her works, and they were neither in motion nor at rest, but in a state between; but the other souls he led away to destruction.  Abraham said to Michael, Lord, is this the angel that removes the souls from the body or not?  Michael answered and said, This is death, and he leads them into the place of judgment, that the judge may try them.

X.  And Abraham said, My Lord, I beseech thee to lead me to the place of judgment so p. 194 that I too may see how they are judged.  Then Michael took Abraham upon a cloud, and led him into Paradise, and when he came to the place where the judge was, the angel came and gave that soul to the judge.  And the soul said, Lord have mercy on me.  And the judge said, How shall I have mercy upon thee, when thou hadst no mercy upon thy daughter which thou hadst, the fruit of thy womb?  Wherefore didst thou slay her?  It answered, Nay, Lord, slaughter has not been done by me, but my daughter has lied upon me.  But the judge commanded him to come that wrote down the records, and behold cherubim carrying two books.  And there was with them a man of exceeding great stature, having on his head three crowns, and the one crown was higher than the other two.  These are called the crowns of witness.  And the man had in his hand a golden pen, and the judge said to him, Exhibit the sin of this soul.  And that man, opening one of the books of the cherubim, sought out the sin of the woman’s soul and found it.  And the judge said, O wretched soul, why sayest thou that thou hast not done murder?  Didst thou not, after the death of thy husband, go and commit adultery with thy daughter’s husband, and kill her?  And he convicted her also of her other sins, whatsoever she had done from her youth.  Hearing these things the woman cried out, saying, Woe is me, all the sins that I did in the world I forgot, but here they were not forgotten.  Then they took her away also and gave her over to the tormentors.

XI.  And Abraham said to Michael, Lord, who is this judge, and who is the other, who convicts the sins?  And Michael said to Abraham, Seest thou the judge?  This is Abel, who first testified, and God brought him hither to judge, and he that bears witness here is the teacher of heaven and earth, and the scribe of righteousness, Enoch, for the Lord sent them hither to write down the sins and righteousnesses of each one.  Abraham said, And how can Enoch bear the weight of the souls, not having seen death? or how can he give sentence to all the souls?  Michael said, If he gives sentence concerning the souls, it is not permitted; but Enoch himself does not give sentence, but it is the Lord who does so, and he has no more to do than only to write.  For Enoch prayed to the Lord saying, I desire not, Lord, to give sentence on the souls, lest I be grievous to anyone; and the Lord said to Enoch, I shall command thee to write down the sins of the soul that makes atonement and it shall enter p. 195 into life, and if the soul make not atonement and repent, thou shalt find its sins written down and it shall be cast into punishment.  p. 196 And about the ninth hour Michael brought Abraham back to his house.  But Sarah his wife, not seeing what had become of Abraham, was consumed with grief, and gave up the ghost, and after the return of Abraham he found her dead, and buried her.

p. 197 XIII.  But when the day of the death of Abraham drew nigh, the Lord God said to Michael, Death will not dare to go near to take away the soul of my servant, because he is my friend, but go thou and adorn Death with great beauty, and send him thus to Abraham, that he may see him with his eyes.  And Michael straightway, as he was commanded, adorned Death with great beauty, and sent him thus to Abraham that he might see him.  And he sat down near to Abraham, and Abraham seeing Death sitting near to him was afraid with a great fear.  And Death said to Abraham, Hail, holy soul! hail, friend of the Lord God! hail, consolation and entertainment of travelers!  And Abraham said, Thou art welcome, servant of the Most High. God.  I beseech thee, tell me who thou art; and entering into my house partake of food and drink, and depart from me, for since I have seen thee sitting near to me my soul has been troubled.  For I am not at all worthy to come near thee, for thou art an exalted spirit and I am flesh and blood, and therefore I cannot bear thy glory, for I see that thy p. 198 beauty is not of this world.  And Death said to Abraham, I tell thee, in all the creation that God has made, there has not been found one like thee, for even the Lord himself by searching has not found such an one upon the whole earth.  And Abraham said to Death, How durst thou lie? for I see that thy beauty is not of this world.  And Death said to Abraham, Think not, Abraham, that this beauty is mine, or that I come thus to every man.  Nay, but if any one is righteous like thee, I thus take crowns and come to him, but if it is a sinner I come in great corruption, and out of their sin I make a crown for my head, and I shake them with great fear, so that they are dismayed.  Abraham therefore said to him, And whence comes thy beauty?  And Death said, There is none other more full of corruption than I am.  Abraham said to him, And art thou indeed he that is called Death?  He answered him and said, I am the bitter name.  I am weeping.…

XIV.  And Abraham said to Death, Show us thy corruption.  And Death made manifest his corruption; and he had two heads, the one had the face of a serpent and by it some die at once by asps, and the other head was like a sword; by it some die by the sword as by bows.  p. 199 In that day the servants of Abraham died through fear of Death, and Abraham seeing them prayed to the Lord, and he raised them up. p. 201 But God returned and removed the soul of Abraham as in a dream, and the archangel Michael took it up into the heavens.  And Isaac buried his father beside his mother Sarah, glorifying and praising God, for to him is due glory, honor and worship, of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, now and always and to all eternity.  Amen.

Footnotes

“Eyes of the fountain of light” is apparently what the text has.