The ten Commandments

by E.A. Wallis Budge, [1932]

ZADOK the priest gave commands to DAVID the King

ZADOK the priest answered and said unto the young man, “Hearken unto what I shall say unto thee. And if thou wilt performs it thou shalt live to God, and if thou dost not God will punish thee, and thou shalt become the least of all the nations, and thou shalt be vanquished by thy foes. And God shall turn away His face from thee, and thou shalt be dismayed, and sad, and sorrowful in thy heart, and thy sleep shall be without refreshing and health. And hearken unto the word of God, and perform it, and withdraw not thyself either to the right hand or the left, in respect of that which we command thee this day; and thou shalt serve no other god. And if thou wilt not hear the word of God, then hearken to all the curses here mentioned which shall come upon thee. Cursed shalt thou is in the field, cursed shalt thou is in the city. Cursed shall be the fruit of thy land, cursed shall be the fruit of thy belly, and the herds of thy cattle, and the flocks of thy sheep.

God shall send upon thee famine and pestilence, and He shall destroy that whereto thou hast put thine hand, until at length He shall destroy thee, because thou hast not hearkened to His word. And the heavens which are above thee shall become brass, and the earth which is beneath thee shall become iron, and God shall make the rain [which should fall upon] thy land to be darkness only, and dust shall descend from heaven upon thee until it shall cover thee up and destroy thee. And thou shalt be smitten in battle before thine enemies. Thou shalt go forth to attack them by one road, and by seven ways shalt thou take to flight before their faces, and thou shalt be routed, and thy dead body shall become food for the fowl of the heavens, and there shall be none to bury thee. And God shall punish thee with sores (or, leprosy), and with the wasting disease, and with the fever that destroyeth, and with the punishments (i.e., plagues) of EGYPT, and with blindness and terror of heart; and thou shalt grope about by day like a blind man in the darkness, and thou shalt find none to help thee in [thy] trouble. Thou shalt marry a wife, and another man shall carry her away from thee by force. Thou shalt build a house, and shalt not dwell therein

Thou shalt plant a vineyard and shalt did not harvest the grapes thereof. Men shall slay thy fat oxen before thine eyes, and thou shalt not eat of their flesh. Men shall snatch away thine ass, and shall not bring him back to thee. Thy sheep shall run to the slaves and to thine enemy, and thou shalt find none to help thee. And thy sons and thy daughters shall follow other people, and thou shalt see with thine own eyes how they are smitten, and shalt be able to do nothing. An enemy whom thou knowest not shall devour the food of thy land and thy labor, and thou shalt not be able to prevent him, and thou shalt become a man of suffering and calamity. When the day dawneth thou shalt say, ‘Would that the evening had come!’ and when the evening cometh thou shalt say, ‘Would that the morning had come!’ through the greatness of thy fear.—[All these things shall come upon thee] if thou wilt not hearken to the word of the Lord. But if thou wilt truly hearkens unto the word of the Lord—hear thou—the goodness of God shall find thee, and thou shalt rule the countries of the enemy, and thou shalt inherit everlasting glory from the Lord God of Israel, Who ruleth everything. For He honoureth him that honoureth Him, and He loveth him that loveth Him, for He is the Lord of death and of life, and He directeth and ruleth all the world with His wisdom, and His power, and His [mighty] arm.”

The blessing of Kings

“Hearken thou now to the blessing that shall come upon thee, if thou wilt does the Will of God. Thou shalt be blessed in all thy ways, blessed shalt thou be in the city, blessed shalt thou be in the field, blessed shalt thou be in thy house, blessed shalt thou be outside it, and blessed shall be the fruit of thy belly. And those who were gathered together said, Amen. Blessed shall be the fruit of thy land. Amen. Blessed shall be the fountains of thy waters. Amen. Blessed shall be the fruit that thou hast planted. Amen. Blessed shall be thy cattle-runs and the flocks of thy sheep. Amen. Blessed shall be thy granaries and thy barns. Amen. Blessed shalt thou be in thy coming in. Amen. Blessed shalt thou be in thy going forth. Amen.

“And God shall bring to thee thine enemies who have risen up against thee, and they shall be trodden small beneath thy feet. Amen. And God shall send His blessing on thy houses and on everything to which thou hast put thine hand. Amen. And God shall multiply for the good things, namely, children of thy body, produce of thy land, and births among thy flocks and herds. Amen. And in the land which He swore [to give to] thy fathers, He will give thee according to the days of heaven. Amen. And God shall open for thee the storehouse of the blessing of the heavens, and He shall give thee blessed rain, and shall bless the fruit of thy labor. Amen. Thou shalt lend unto many peoples, but thou shalt not borrow. Amen. Thou shalt rule over many nations, but they shall not rule over thee. Amen. And God shall set thee at the head and not at the tail, and thou shalt be at the top and not at the bottom. Amen. And thou shalt gather together of every blessing of the land for thy flocks and herds, and thou shalt take the spoil of the nations for thine army, and they shall bow down to thee to the face of the earth, to thy sovereignty, because of the greatness of thy glory. Thine honor shall rise up like the cedar, and like the Morning Star, the brilliance of thy glory shall be before all the nations of the earth, and before every tribe of thy people Israel.

“For God shall be with thee in all thy ways, and He will perform thy will in everything that thou determinest. And thou shalt inherit the countries of thine enemy, and the greatness of thy people shall be praised because of the greatness of thine awesomeness, and because of the multitude of thy soldiers. And all those who do not perform the Will of God will fear thee because thou dost do His Will, and dost serve Him, and therefore He will give thee great majesty in the sight of those who see thee. Their hearts shall tremble before the bridle of thy horses, and the quiver of thy bow, and the glitter of thy shield, and they shall bow down to the face of the earth, for their hearts shall be terrified at the sight of thy majesty. And when those who are in the mountains see thee afar off they shall come down to the plain, and those who are on the seas and in the deep waters shall come forth, so that the Lord may bring them into thy hand because they have transgressed the command of God.

Thou, when thou doest His Will, shalt receive from Him everything for which thou hast asked; for if thou lovest Him He will love thee, and if thou keepest His commandment He will grant thee the petition of thy heart, and everything that thou seekest thou shalt receive from Him. For He is the Good One to the good and the Compassionate to the compassionate, and He doeth the will of those who fear Him, and He giveth a reward to those who wait patiently for Him. Be patient in respect of wrath, and at the end He will make thee rejoice; love righteousness and He will make life to blossom for thee. Be a good man to the good, and a reprover of sinners. And put aside the wickedness of the evil man by rebuking and correcting him, and condemn and disgrace the evil man who doeth violence to his neighbor in the court of law. And do justice to the poor man and to the orphans, and release them from the hand of him that doeth them wrong. And deliver him that is forsaken and the man who is in misery, and release him from the hand of him that causeth him to suffer. Judge not with partiality, and have no respect of persons, but judge righteously. When thou undertakest to judge, love not gifts (i.e., bribes) and accept not persons. And admonish thy governors (or, judges) that they be free from the taking of gifts, and that they accept not the persons of their friends, or of their enemies, or of rich or poor, in giving judgment; and they shall surely judge their neighbors in righteousness, and with a just judgment.

The Ten Commandments

Hear ye, Israel, that which God commandeth you to keep; He saith, ‘I am the Lord thy God Who hath brought thee out of the land of Egypt and out of the house of bondage. There shall be no other gods besides Me, and thou shalt not make any god that is graven, and no god that is like what is in the heavens above, or in the earth beneath, or in the water which is under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down to them, and thou shalt not serve them, for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God. [I am He] Who visited the sin of the father on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me, and I perform mercy to a thousand (or, ten thousand) generations of those who love Me and keep My commandments.

“Thou shalt not swear a false oath in the Name of the Lord thy God, for the Lord will not hold innocent the man who sweareth a false oath in His Name.

“And observe the day of the Sabbath to sanctify it, even as the Lord thy God commanded. Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day, the Sabbath of the Lord thy God, thou shalt do no work at all, neither thyself, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy nor thine ass, nor any beast, nor the stranger that abideth with thee. For in six days, God made the heavens and the earth, and the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day, and because of this God blessed the seventh day and declared it free [from work].

“Honour thy father and thy mother so that may be good to thee the many days that thou shalt find in the land which the Lord thy God hath given thee.

“Thou shalt not go with the wife of [another] man.

“Thou shalt not slay a life.

“Thou shalt not commit fornication. Thou shalt not steal.

“Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.

“Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his house, nor his land, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his cattle, nor his ass, nor any of the beasts that thy neighbor hath acquired.”

This is the word which God hath spoken, His Law and His Ordinance. And those who sin He rebuketh, so that they may not be confirmed in error, and may restrain themselves from the pollution wherewith God is not pleased. And this is the thing with which God is not pleased, and it is right that men should abstain from it.

“No man shall uncover the shame of one with whom he hath kinship; for I am the Lord your God. The shame of thy father and mother thou shalt not uncover, for it is thy mother. Thou shalt not uncover the shame of thy father’s wife, for it is the shame of thy mother. Thou shalt not uncover the shame of thy sister who was begotten by thy father or thy mother. Whether she was born unto him from outside or whether she is a kinswoman of thine thou shalt not uncover her shame. Thou shalt not uncover the shame either of thy son’s daughter or the shame of the daughter of thy daughter, for it is thine own shame. Thou shalt not uncover the shame of the daughter of thy father’s wife, for she is thy sister, the daughter of thy mother, and thou shalt not uncover her shame. Thou shalt not uncover the shame of thy father’s sister, for she is of thy father’s house. Thou shalt not uncover the shame of thy mother’s sister, for she is of thy mother’s house. Thou shalt not uncover the shame of the wife of thy father’s brother, for she is thy kin[swoman]. Thou shalt not uncover the shame of thy son’s wife, for she is thy son’s wife. Thou shalt not uncover the shame of thy daughter and the wife of thy brother’s son, for it is thine own shame. Thou shalt not uncover the shame of thy brother’s wife, for it is thy brother’s shame as long as thy brother liveth. Thou shalt not uncover the shame of a woman and that of her daughter, nor that of the daughter of her son, nor that of the daughter of her daughter. Thou shalt not cause their shame to be uncovered; it is thy house and it is sin.

“And thou shalt not take to wife a maiden and her sister so as to make them jealous each of the other, and thou shalt not uncover their shame, nor the shame of the one or the other as long as the first sister is alive. Thou shalt not go to a menstruous woman, until she is purified, to uncover her shame whilst she is still unclear. And thou shalt not go to the wife of thy neighbor to lie with her, and thou shalt not let thy seed enter her.

“Thou shalt not vow thy children to MOLOCH to defile the Name of the Holy One, the Name of the Lord.

“Thou shalt not lie with a man as with a woman, for it is pollution.

“Thou shalt not go to a beast and thou shalt not lie with it so as to make thy seed go out upon it, that thou mayest not be polluted thereby. And a woman shall not go to a beast to lie with it, for it is pollution. And ye shall not pollute yourselves with any of these things, for with them the nations whom I have driven out before you have polluted themselves, and with them, ye shall not pollute your bodies.

“Sanctify ye your souls and your bodies to God, for he, is the Holy One, and He loveth those who sanctify their souls and their bodies to Him. He is holy, and to be feared, and He is high and merciful, and compassionate. And to him, praise is meet forever and ever. Amen.”

The men of the Army of Israel received [their] orders

The city rejoiced because the King had made his son King, and had appointed him King from his own territory to that of another. But the city sorrowed also because the King had commanded that they should give their children who were called “firstborn”. And those who were on the right hand should sit in the same way as their fathers sat with King SOLOMON, even so should they sit at the right hand of his son DAVID, the King of Ethiopia; and those who were on the left hand should sit as their fathers sat with King SOLOMON, even so should they sit on the left hand of his son DAVID, the King of Ethiopia; and their rank should be like that of their fathers, and their names should be like those of their fathers. And each should be according to his ordinance, and each according to his greatness, and each according to his position of authority, and each according to his wages, and each according to his rank; in this wise shall they be. As SOLOMON did to his nobles so shall DAVID do to his nobles, and as SOLOMON ordained for his governors so shall DAVID order the direction of his house.

And the names of those who were appointed to be sent away were these:—

’AZÂRYÂS (AZARIAH), the son of ZÂDÔK, the priest, who was the high priest.
’ÊLYÂS, the son of ’ARNΠthe Archdeacon; now the father of ’ARNΠwas the Archdeacon of NATHAN the prophet.
’ADRÂM, the son of ’ARDĔRÔNES, leader of the peoples.
FANḲÊRÂ, the son of SÔBÂ, scribe of the oxen.
’AKÔNḤÊL, the son of TÔFÊL, the youth.
SÂMNĔYÂS, the son of ’AKÎTÂLAM, the recorder.
FIḲÂRÔS, the son of NĔYÂ, commander of the armed men, that is to say, chief of the troops.
LÊWÂNDÔS, the son of ’AKÎRÊ, commander of the recruits (?).
FÂḲÛTÊN, the son of ’ADRÂY, the commander on the sea.
MÂTÂN, the son of BENYÂS, chief of the house.
AD‛ARAZ, the son of KÎRÊM, servant of decorations.
DALAKĔM, the son of MÂTRÊM, chief of the horse-soldiers.
’ADARYÔS, the son of NÊDRÔS, chief of the foot-soldiers.
’AWSTĔRÂN, the son of YÔDÂD, bearer of the “glory”.
’ASTAR’AYÔN, the son of ’ASÂ, a messenger of the palace (?).
ÎMÎ, the son of MATÂTYÂS, commander of the host (?)
MÂKRÎ, the son of ’ABÎSÂ, judge of the palace.
’ABÎS, the son of KÂRYÔS, assessor of taxes (tithes ?).
LÎK WENDEYÔS, the son of NÊLENTEYÔS, judge of assembly.
KÂRMÎ, the son of ḤAḌNĔYÂS, chief of the royal workmen.
SERÂNYÂS, the son of ’AKÂZ’ÊL, administrator of the King’s house.

These are all those who were given to DAVID, king of Ethiopia, the son of Solomon, King of Israel. And SOLOMON also gave him horses, and chariots, and riding-camels, and mules, and wagons for carrying loads, and gold, and silver, and splendid apparel, and byssus, and purple, and gems, and pearls and precious stones; and he gave his son everything that would be wished for in the country of Ethiopia.

Then they made ready to set out, and [though] there was great joy with the nobles of the King of Ethiopia, there was sadness with the nobles of the King of Israel, because through the firstborn son of Solomon, King of Israel, that is to say, the King of Ethiopia, the firstborn sons of the nobles of Israel were given to rule over the country of Ethiopia with the son of Solomon the King. Then they assembled together and wept, together with their fathers, and their mothers, and their relations, and their kinsfolk, and their peoples, and their countrymen. And they cursed the King secretly and reviled him because he had seized their sons against their will. But unto the King, they said, “Because of this thou hast has done well. Thy wisdom is so good that the kingdom of Israel, by the Will of God and by thy wisdom, extendeth to the country of Ethiopia. And God will gather together the other kingdoms [of the world] into thy hand, for thou hast a right mind towards God, and thou wishest that they shall serve the God of Israel and that idols may be destroyed out of the world.”

They praised him and said unto him, “Now know we that God spake concerning thee to our father ABRAHAM [when He said], ‘In thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.'” And they made their faces to appear happy, and they jested before him, and they praised him exceedingly (i.e., fulsomely) because of his wisdom. And when they said these things unto him, he understood them in [his] wisdom, and bore with them patiently; now God beareth with us patiently knowing well all our sins. And the whole earth, and the heavens, and the ends of the world, and the sea, and the dry land are the kingdom of God. He judgeth. And He hath given the earth to the king to be subject unto him, that he may judge (or, rule), as He doth, those who do evil so that he may require them with evil, and those who do well so that he may reward them with good. For the Spirit of God resteth in the heart of the king, and His hands are in his mind, and His knowledge is in his understanding.

How it is not a seemly thing to revile the King

Now it is not a seemly thing to revile the king, for he is the anointed of God. It is neither seemly nor good. If he doeth that which is good he will not suffer a loss in three kingdoms: FIRST, God shall overthrow for him his enemy, and he shall not be seized by the hand of his enemy. SECONDLY, God shall make him reign with Him and with His righteousness, and shall make him sit on His right hand. THIRDLY, God shall make him to reign upon earth with glory and joy, and shall direct his kingdom for him, and shall bring down the nations under his feet. And if he treateth God lightly, and doth not do that which is good, and doth not himself walk in the path of uprightness, God shall work as He pleaseth against him; on earth He will make his days to be few, and in heaven (sic) his place of abode shall be the habitation of SHEÔL with the Devil. And on earth, he shall enjoy neither health nor gladness [and he shall live] in fear and terror, without peace and with perturbation.

It is not a good thing for any of those who are under the dominion of a king to revile him, for retribution belongeth to God. Now the priests are like the prophets, only better than the prophets, for the mysteries are given unto them, so that they may lay hold upon the sun of righteousness, whilst the Seraphim, who was created out of the fire, are only able to lay hold upon the mysteries with tongs. As for the priests, He named them “salt”, and moreover, He named the priests “lamp” and also “light of the world”, and also “the sun that lighteneth the darkness”, CHRIST, the Sun of righteousness, being in their hearts. And a priest, who hath in his understanding, rebuketh the king concerning that he hath seen; and that which he hath not seen God will enquire into, and there is none who can call Him to account. Moreover, the people must not revile the bishops and the priests, for they are the children of God and the men of His house, for which reason they must rebuke [men] for their sins and errors. And thou, O priest, if thou seest sin in a well-known man, shalt did not hesitate to rebuke him; let neither sword nor exile makes thee afraid. And hear how angry God was with ISAIAH because he did not rebuke King ‘ÛZYÂN (UZZIAH). And hearken also concerning SAMUEL the Prophet, how he rebuked Saul the king, being in no way afraid of him, and how he rent his kingdom [from him] by his word; and [hearken also] how ELIJAH [rebuked] AHAB. Do thou then fear not, and rebuke and teach him that transgresseth?

ISRAEL from of old reviled their kings and provoked their prophets to wrath, and in later times they crucified their Saviour. But believing Christian folk dwell in peace, without sickness and suffering, without hatred and offense, with our king. who loveth God and who removeth not from his heart the thing of righteousness, and faith in the Churches and in the believers. And his enemies shall be scattered by the might of the Cross of JESUS CHRIST.

‘PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION’
‘PREFACE TO THE PRESENT EDITION’
The Arrival of Kebra Nagast Manuscripts in Europe’
‘MÂKĔDÂ’
‘The Queen of SHEBA’
‘Legends of Solomon’
‘Arabic Text’ 

‘The Contents of the Kebra NagastT Described [ch1-59]’
‘The Contents of the Kebra Nagast Described [ch 60-117]’
‘THE GLORY OF KINGS’- [ch1-10]
‘The Glory of Zion’-[ch11-20]’
The queen came to Solomon the king’-[ch-21-25]
‘Solomon gave Commandments to the Queen’-[ch 26-29]
‘The King of Ethiopia traveled’-[ch 30-34]
‘They made the Son of King Solomon’- [ch 35-39]
‘ The Ten Commandments’-[ch 40-44]
‘They carried away Zion’-[ch 45-49]
‘The Wagon was given to Ethiopia’-[ch 50-55]
‘The Fall of Zadok the Priest’- [ch 56-60]
‘The sin King Solomon’-[ch 61-65]
‘The Question of Solomon'[ch 66-69]
‘Mary the daughter of David’-[ch 70-75]
‘The King of Persia’-[ch 76-80]
‘Abraham traveled to Egypt’-[ch 81-87]
‘This is what ye shall eat: the clean and the unclean’-[ch 88-91]
‘The first war of the Ethiopian King’-[ch 92-95]
‘Prophecy about Christ’-[ch 96-99]
The Ark of the covenant-[ch100-104]
‘The Coming of Christ”-[ch 105-109]
‘The return of Zion’