one only, he charged us not to eat of it, and through this one we are to die. And the hour drew nigh for the angels who were guarding your mother to go up and worship the Lord, and I was far from her, and the enemy knew that she was alone and gave to her, and she ate of the tree of which she had been told not to eat. Then she gave also to me to eat. CHAPTER VIII "And God was wroth with us, and the Lord came into paradise and called me in a terrible voice and said: 'Adam, where art thou? And why hidest thou from my face? Shall the house be able to hide itself from its builder?' And he saith to me: 'Since thou hast abandoned my covenant, I have brought upon thy body seventy-two strokes; the trouble of the first stroke is a pain of the eyes, the second stroke an affection of the hearing, and likewise in turn all the strokes shall befall thee."" CHAPTER IX As he said this to his sons, Adam groaned sore and said: "What shall I do? I am in great distress." And Eve wept and said: "My lord Adam, rise up and give me half of thy trouble and I will endure it; for it is on my account that this hath happened to thee, on my account thou art beset with toils and troubles." But Adam said to Eve, "Arise and go with my son Seth near to paradise, and put earth upon your heads and weep and pray God to have mercy upon me and send his angel to paradise, and give me of the tree out of which the oil floweth, and bring it me, and I shall anoint myself and shall have rest from my complaint." CHAPTER X Then Seth and Eve went toward paradise, and Eve saw her son, and a wild beast assailing him, and Eve wept and said: "Woe is me; if I come to the day of the Resurrection, all those who have sinned will curse me, saying: Eve hath not kept the commandment of God." And she spake to the beast: "Thou wicked beast, fearest thou not to fight with the image of God? How was thy mouth opened? How were thy teeth made strong? How didst thou not call to mind thy subjection? For long ago wast thou made subject to the image of God." Then the beast cried out and said: CHAPTER XI It is not our concern, Eve, thy greed and thy wailing, but thine own; for it is from thee that the rule of the beasts hath arisen. How was thy mouth opened to eat of the tree concerning which God enjoined thee not to eat of it? On this account, our nature also hath been transformed. Now therefore thou canst not endure it, if I begin to reprove thee." CHAPTER XII Then Seth speaketh to the beast, "Close thy mouth and be silent, and stand off from the image of God until the day of Judgment." Then saith the beast to Seth: "Behold, I stand off from the image of God." And he went to his lair. CHAPTER XIII And Seth went with Eve near paradise, and they wept there, and prayed God to send his angel and give them the oil of mercy. And God sent the archangel Michael and he spoke to Seth: "Seth, man of God, weary not thyself with prayers and entreaties concerning the tree which floweth with oil to anoint thy father Adam. For it shall not be thine now, but in the end of the times. Then shall all flesh be raised up from Adam till that great day - all that shall be of the holy people. Then shall the delights of paradise be given to them, and God shall be in their midst. And they shall no longer sin before his face, for the evil heart shall be taken from them, and there shall be given them a heart understanding the good and to serve God only. But do thou go back to thy father. For the term of his life hath been fulfilled, and he will live three days from to-day and will die. But when his soul is departing, thou shalt behold the awful scene of his passing." CHAPTER XIV Thus spake the angel and departed from them. And Seth and Eve came to the hut where Adam was laid. And Adam saith to Eve: "Eve, what hast thou wrought in us? Thou hast brought upon us great wrath which is death, lording it over all our race." And he saith to her, "Call all our children and our children's children and tell them the manner of our transgression." Eve's Account of her Fall CHAPTER XV Then saith Eve to them: "Hear, all my children and children's children, and I will relate to you how the enemy deceived us. It befell that we were guarding paradise, each of us the portion allotted to us from God. Now I guarded in my lot the west and the south. But the devil went to Adam's lot, where the male creatures were. For God divided the creatures; all the males he gave to your father, and all the females he gave to me. CHAPTER XVI "And the devil spake to the serpent, saying, 'Rise up, come to me and I will tell thee a word whereby thou mayst have profit.' And he rose and came to him. And the devil saith to him: 'I hear that thou art wiser than all the beasts, and I have come to counsel thee. Why dost thou eat of Adam's tares and not of paradise? Rise up and we will cause him to be cast out of paradise, even as we were cast out through him.' The serpent saith to him, I fear lest the Lord be wroth with me.' The devil saith to him: Fear not, only be my vessel and I will speak through thy mouth words to deceive him.' CHAPTER XVII "And instantly he hung himself from the wall of paradise, and when the angels ascended to worship God, then Satan appeared in the form of an angel and sang hymns like the angels. And I bent over the wall and saw him, like an angel. But he saith to me: Art thou Eve?' And I said to him, 'I am.' 'What art thou doing in paradise?' And I said to him, 'God set us to guard and to eat of it.' The devil answered through the mouth of the serpent: 'Ye do well but ye do not eat of every plant.' And I said: 'Yea, we eat of all, save one only, which is in the midst of paradise, concerning which, God charged us not to eat of it: for, He said to us, on the day on which ye eat of it, ye shall die the death.' CHAPTER XVIII "Then the serpent saith to me, 'May God live! but I am grieved on your account, for I would not have you ignorant. But arise, come hither, harken to me and eat and mind the value of that tree.' But I said to him, I fear lest God be wroth with me as he told us.' And he saith to me: ' Fear not, for as soon as thou eatest of it ye too shall be as God, in that ye shall know good and evil. But God perceived this that ye would be like Him, so he envied you and said, Ye shall not eat of it. Nay, do thou give heed to the plant and thou wilt see its great glory.' Yet I feared to take of the fruit. And he saith to me: 'Come hither, and I will give it thee. Follow me.' CHAPTER XIX "And I opened to him and he walked a little way, then turned and said to me: 'I have changed my mind, and I will not give thee to eat until thou swear to me to give also to thy husband.' And I said, 'What sort of oath shall I swear to thee? Yet what I know, I say to thee: By the throne of the Master, and by the Cherubim and the Tree of Life, I will give also to my husband to eat.' And when he had received the oath from me, he went and poured upon the fruit the poison of his wickedness, which is lust, the root and beginning of every sin, and he bent the branch on the earth and I took of the fruit and I ate. |