Son, thou hast been to me like one who saw his fellow a-shivering. Taking water, he threw it over him.

Son, thou hast been to me like the dog which went into the oven of the potter. When he was warm, he began to bark at the potter.

Son, they said to the cat, Give up thy habitual affair, and the privilege is extended to thee to enter the palace and quit it. The cat said: If my eyes were gold and my paw of silver, I would yet not give up the habitual thing.

Son, thou hast been to me as a snake that wound itself round a bramble and fell into a river. A wolf saw it and said: Lo, the evil is mounted on the evil, and evil is that which drives them along.

Son, thou hast been to me as a mole which came out of its hole and one with another went forth because of their eyes not seeing. And an eagle swooped and seized him; and the mole said: If there had been no senses in my case, I should have remained in my place and lived a peaceful life.

5

Son, they gave teaching to the wolf's cub, and said: Say thou, ayb, ben, gim; and he said ayts, bouts, garhn (i.e., "goat, kid, lamb ").

Son, they took the swine to the bath, and he plunged into it, then rolled himself in the bog, saying: You wash in your own, and I will in mine.

Nathan began to speak and said: My father Ahikar, men sin unto God, and He forgives them, when they say: I have sinned. Father, I have sinned unto thee. Forgive me, and I will be to thee a slave henceforth forever.

And I spake to Nathan thus:

Son, thou hast been to me like a palm-tree which was growing with roots on the bank of the river. When the fruit ripened, it fell into the river. The lord of the tre came to cut it down, and the tree said: Leave me in this place, that in the next year I may bear fruit. The lord of the tree said: Up to this day hast thou been to me useless, in the future thou wilt not become useful.

Son, God hath rescued me because of my innocence, but 5 I.e., the first three letters of the Armenian alphabet.

hath destroyed thee because of thy lawlessness. God passes judgment between me and thee. For the tail of the dog gives bread and his mouth a cudgel.

In the same hour Nathan swelled up and all his body burst asunder, and I said:

Son, he that doeth good, winneth good; and he that digs a pit for others, himself falls into the pit. The good endeth in good and the evil in evil.

Here endeth Ahikar.

THE NEW FOUND ANCIENT BOOK OF AHIKAR

...

... Ahikar was his name, a wise and erudite scribe, who instructed his son He said: The son will be . . . for me before. . . Ahikar . . . the Great Seal of Sennacherib, King of Assyria . . . and there was no son to me . . . and Sennacherib, King of Assyria, had fulfilled his days and Sennacherib died. . . his son, named Esarhaddon, and he was King of Assyria in the place of his father Sennacherib Assyria. Thereupon I took my son. . . and I instructed him and virtue . . . in the Palace along with . . . I presented him before Esarhaddon, the King of Assyria. And wisdom . . . what he had asked him. And thereon Esarhaddon, the King of Assyria, loved him and said, Long life. . . the wise scribe, the counselor of all Assyria, who has appointed as his son, and no son . . . and I bowed down and worshiped, I, Ahikar, before Esarhaddon, the King of Assyria.... Ahikar, and when I saw the face of Esarhaddon, the King of Assyria, favorably, I rose up . . . as I was before, Sennacherib thy father, who was King before thee.

...

I shall not be able to serve the King in the gate of this palace. . . whose name is Nadin, my grown-up son, and he shall succeed me as Secretary . . . and Great Seal shall he be; and also my wisdom and . . . the King of Assyria. And he said to me, like thyself. . . and in thy stead he shall do thy work. . . . I went to my house and I set him in the gate of the palace . . and I said, he will seek after what is good. . . my son Nadin whom I have brought up, think on . . . the King Sennacherib, thy father . . . he is wise and according to his counsel and advice . . . will much disquiet the King. Listen. as a son, who is not my

son; as a son

... Answered Esarhaddon, the King, and said: . . .

whom my father hath made great, who ate the bread of my father... thou wilt seek, where thou canst find . . . that old man Ahikar. He is a wise secretary whether he can corrupt the country against us, after that . . . Assyria; he attached to him two men, in order to see . Nabusumiskun, riding upon a swift horse

that officer

with him

after yet three days . . . and the others who were with him, as I was walking in the vineyards. Nabusumiskun, the officer, rent his garment and lamented

.. the wise Secretary and master of good counsel who . . . by whose counsel and words all Assyria was directed . . . Nadin, thy son, whom thou hast appointed in the gate of the Palace, hath undone thee. Then was I much afeard, even I, Ahikar; and I answered and said to Nabusumiskun . . . am he who aforetime saved thee from undeserved death the father of the present King, Esarhaddon, was angry with thee. I brought thee to my house, thither was I bringing thee ..

And

toward another.

I

Slay me not, but King Esarhaddon He will remember

I treated thee as a man treats his brother, and hid thee from the presence of King Sennacherib. I said, I have killed him, until at another time and after yet many days I presented thee before King Sennacherib, and caused thy sins to pass away before him: and no evil did he to thee. And with me also King Sennacherib was well pleased, because I had preserved thee alive and not slain thee. now do thou also to me in the same fashion as I did to thee. bring me into thy house until other days. is merciful as one. me and will long for my advice. Thou wilt then present me before him, and he will suffer me to live. Thereupon answered Nabusumiskun, and said to me, Fear not, Thou shalt live, Ahikar, the father of all Assyria, according to whose counsel Sennacherib and all the Assyrian army were wont to make war. Nabusumiskun, the officer, spake to those two men, his companions, who were with him: Listen and I will give you a piece of advice, and it is good advice too. The two men answered and said to him, Tell it us then. And Nabusumiskun answered and said to them, Listen to me.

Yonder is Ahikar, a great man. He is the Great Seal of Esarhaddon. According to his counsel and word is the whole army of Assyria governed. Do not let us kill him. There is a eunuch whom I have, and whom I will give you. He must be killed in the mountain; he shall be a substitute for Ahikar . . . other people may come and see the body of yonder Ahikar, for the body of the young man, the eunuch, whom I have

...

... until our brother Esarhaddon shall have regret over our brother and the heart of Esarhaddon . . . I will give you much treasure . . . and the soul of the officer was content with his two companions. And they said, Do as thou counselest ... Thereupon they slew the aforementioned eunuch in the stead of Ahikar At that time report was made in the King's palace, and they said to the King, He hath been slain. Thereupon Nabusumiskun brought me to his house, and he caused to be supplied to me there meat and drink, and said, Let these things be furnished to my lord Ahikar. Likewise he brought much treasure Thereupon Nabusumiskun, the officer, went to Esarhaddon, the King of Assyria, and informed him, saying, I went my way, as directed, and I found Ahikar walking in his vineyards, and I have put him to death. And do thou, O King, inquire of the two men whom thou didst appoint. So spake he . . . until that Esarhaddon believed his words.

[This is all of the narrative which has been preserved: the extant portions of the proverbial and allegorical parts of the book are very fragmentary in character, and uncertain as to their restoration, to order, and sense. The readable parts follow:]

What is stronger than a braying ass? . . .

The son who is instructed and disciplined, and who has on his feet.

Do not withhold thy son from beating, if thou My son, if I beat thee, thou diest not. And if I leave on thy heart..