The Lost Books of the Bible: The Great Rejected Texts

by Joseph B. Lumpkin

  10 Then Satan said to him, "What will happen to you if you were to disappear from them one night, and return to them at break of day?"

  (Author’s note: The assumption here is that he would sneak out after they fell asleep and not tell them.)

  11 But Seth, when he saw how he kept on talking, and that he would not leave him alone, he ran and went up to the altar, and spread his hands to God, and sought deliverance from God.

  12 Then God sent His Word, and cursed Satan, who fled from Him.

  13 But Seth had gone up to the altar, saying in his heart. "The altar is the place of offering, and God is there. A divine fire shall consume what is on it and so Satan will be unable to hurt me, and shall not take me away from here."

  14 Then Seth came down from the altar and went to his father and mother, whom he found on his way and who were longing to hear his voice, because he had been missing a while.

  15 He then began to tell them what had befallen him from Satan, under the form of an angel.

  16 But when Adam heard his account, he kissed his face, and warned him against that angel, telling him it was Satan who appeared to him. Then Adam took Seth, and they went to the Cave of Treasures and rejoiced there.

  17 But from that day on Adam and Eve were never separated from him wherever he went, whether for his offering or for any thing else.

  18 This sign happened to Seth, when he was nine years old.

  Chapter VII.

  1 When our father Adam saw that Seth was of a perfect heart, he wished him to marry; lest the enemy should appear to him another time, and overcome him.

  2 So Adam said to his son Seth, "I wish, 0 my son, that you wed your sister Aklia, Abel's sister, that she may bear you children, who shall replenish the earth, according to God's promise to us.

  3 "Be not afraid, my son; there is no disgrace in it. I wish you to marry, from fear that if you do not the enemy could overcome you.'

  4 Seth, however, did not wish to marry; but in obedience to his father and mother, he did not say a word.

  5 So Adam married him to Aklia. And he was fifteen years old.

  6 But when he was twenty years of age, he had a son, whom he called Enos (Enoch); and then had other children.

  7 Then Enos grew up, married, and begat Cainan.

  8 Cainan also grew up, married, and begat Mahalaleel.

  9 Those fathers were born during Adam's lifetime, and dwelt by the Cave of Treasures.

  10 Then were the days of Adam nine hundred and thirty years, and those of Mahalaleel one hundred. But Mahalaleel, when he was grown up, loved fasting, praying, and with hard work, until the end of our father Adam's days drew near.

  Chapter VIII.

  1 When our father Adam saw that his end was near, he called his son Seth, who came to him in the Cave of Treasures, and he said to him:

  2 "Seth, my son, bring me your children and your children's children, so that I may shed my blessing on them before I die."

  3 When Seth heard these words from his father Adam, he went from him, shed a flood of tears over his face, and gathered together his children and his children's children, and brought them to his father Adam.

  4 But when our father Adam saw them around him, he wept at having to be separated from them.

  5 And when they saw him weeping, they all wept together, and kissed his face saying, "How shall you be separated from us, father? And how shall the earth receive you and hide you from our eyes?" Thus they lamented with words like these.

  6 Then our father Adam blessed them all, and said to Seth, after he had blessed them:

  7 "Seth, my son, you know this world and that it is full of sorrow, and of weariness; and you know all that has come upon us from our trials in it. So, I command you in these words: I want you to keep being innocent, to be pure and just, and trusting in God; and do not believe the words of Satan, nor the apparitions in which he will show himself to you.

  8 But keep the commandments that I give you this day; then give the same to your son Enos; and let Enos give it to his son Cainan; and Cainan to his son Mahalaleel; so that this commandment abide firm among all your children.

  9 "Seth, my son, the moment I am dead take you my body and wrap it up with myrrh, aloes, and cassia, and leave me here in this Cave of Treasures in which are all the tokens which God gave us from the garden.

  10 "My son, after a while a flood will come and overwhelm all creatures, and leave only eight souls out of it.

  11 "But, my son, let those whom it will leave from among your children at that time, take my body with them out of this cave; and when they have taken it with them, let the oldest among them command his children to lay my body in a ship until the flood recedes, and they come out of the ship.

  12 Then they shall take my body and lay it in the middle of the earth, shortly after they have been saved from the waters of the flood.

  13 "The place where my body shall be laid is the middle of the earth and God shall come from that place and shall save all our kindred.

  14 "But now, Seth, my son, place yourself at the head of your people. Tend to them and watch over them in the fear of God. Lead them in the good way. Command them to fast to God, and make them understand they should not to listen to Satan, or he will destroy them.

  15 "I tell you again, separate your children and your children's children from Cain's children. Do not let them ever mix with them, nor come near them either to talk or to work."

  16 Then Adam let his blessing descend upon Seth, and upon his children, and upon all his children's children.

  17 He then turned to his son Seth, and to Eve his wife, and, said to them, "Preserve this gold, this incense, and this myrrh, that God has given us for a sign, because in days that are coming a flood will overwhelm the whole creation. But those who shall go into the ark shall take with them the gold, the incense, and the myrrh, together with my body, and will lay the gold, the incense, and the myrrh, with my body in the middle of the earth.

  18 "Then, after a long time, the city in which the gold, the incense, and the myrrh are found with my body, shall be plundered. But when it is spoiled, the gold the incense, and the myrrh shall be taken care of with the spoil that is kept; and none of them shall perish, until the made man from the Word of God shall come. And kings shall take them, and shall offer to Him, gold in token of His being King; incense, in token of His being God of heaven and earth; and myrrh, in token of His passion.

  19 "Gold also, as a token of His overcoming Satan, and all our foes; incense as a token that He will rise from the dead, and be exalted above things in heaven and things in the earth; and myrrh, in token that He will drink bitter gall; and feel the pains of hell from Satan.

  20 "And now, Seth, my son, I have revealed to you hidden mysteries, which God had revealed to me. Keep my commandment for yourself and for your people."

  Chapter IX

  1 When Adam had ended his commandment to Seth, his limbs went limp, his hands and feet lost all strength, his voice became silent, and his tongue ceased to speak. He closed his eyes and gave up the ghost.

  2 But when his children saw that he was dead, they threw themselves over him, men and women, old and young, weeping.

  3 The death of Adam took place at the end of nine hundred and thirty years that he lived upon the earth; on the fifteenth day of Barmudeh, after the reckoning of an epact of the sun, at the ninth hour.

  (Author’s note: Barmudeh is the third month of the Egyptian calendar. The epact is the number of days into the moon’s cycle that the solar calendar begins. Thus, it is the difference in days between the solar and lunar calendar.) (Adam had to die before his 1000th birthday so that he would fulfill the death curse from God. 1000 years is as one day.)

  4 It was on a Friday, the very day on which he was created, and on which he rested. And the hour at which he died was the same as that at which he came out of the garden.

  5 Then Seth wrapped him up well, and embalmed him with plenty of sweet spices, from sacred trees and from the Holy Mounta
in. And he laid his body on the eastern side of the inside of the cave, the side of the incense; and placed a lamp stand in front of him that kept burning.

  6 Then his children stood before him weeping and wailing over him the entire night, until break of day.

  7 Then Seth and his son Enos (Enoch), and Cainan, the son of Enos, went out and took good offerings to present to the Lord, and they came to the altar upon which Adam offered gifts to God.

  8 But Eve said to them, "Wait until we have first asked God to accept our offering, and to keep the soul of Adam His servant by Him, and to take it up to rest."

  9 And they all stood up and prayed.

  Chapter X.

  1 And when they had ended their prayer the Word of God came and comforted them concerning their father Adam.

  2 After this, they offered their gifts for themselves and for their father.

  3 And when they had ended their offering, the Word of God came to Seth, the eldest among them, saying to him, "Seth, Seth, Seth, three times. As I was with your father, so also shall I be with you, until the fulfillment of the promise I made your father saying, I will send My Word and save you and your seed.

  4 "But as to your father Adam, keep you the commandment he gave you; and protect your seed (offspring) and keep them from that of Cain your brother."

  5 And God withdrew His Word from Seth.

  6 Then Seth, Eve, and their children, came down from the mountain to the Cave of Treasures.

  7 But Adam was the first whose soul died in the land of Eden, in the Cave of Treasures; for no one died before him, but his son Abel, who died because he was murdered.

  8 Then all the children of Adam rose up, and wept over their father Adam, and made offerings to him, one hundred and forty days.

  Chapter XI.

  1 After the death of Adam and of Eve, Seth separated his children, and his children's children, from Cain's children. Cain and his seed went down and lived to the west, below the place where he had killed his brother Abel.

  2 But Seth and his children, lived to the north on the mountain of the Cave of Treasures, in order to be near to their father Adam.

  3 And Seth the oldest (of his people), tall and good, with a worthy soul, and of a strong mind, stood at the head of his people; and tended to them in innocence, patience, and meekness, and did not allow even one of them to go down to Cain's children.

  4 And because of their purity, they were named "Children of God," and they were with God instead of the hosts of angels who fell, for they continued in praises to God and in singing songs to Him in their cave, the Cave of Treasures.

  5 Then Seth stood before the bodies of his father Adam and of his mother Eve, and he prayed night and day and asked for mercy for himself and his children, and that when he had some difficulty dealing with a child, God would give him counsel.

  6 But Seth and his children did not like mundane work, but set themselves to do heavenly things, because they had no other thought other than praises, worship, and psalms to God.

  7 Therefore did they at all times hear the voices of angels, praising and glorifying God; from within the garden, or when they were sent by God on an errand, or when they were going up to heaven.

  8 Because of their own purity, Seth and his children heard and saw the angels. The garden was not far above them, only about fifteen spiritual (heavenly) cubits.

  9 One spiritual cubit is equal to three cubits of man, altogether forty-five cubits.

  10 Seth and his children lived on the mountain below the garden. They did not sow nor reap. They made no food for the body, not even wheat, but only enough for offerings. They ate the flavorful fruit of trees that grew on the mountain where they lived.

  11 Seth often fasted for forty days, as did also his oldest children. The family of Seth smelled the smell of the trees in the garden when the wind blew that way.

  12 They were happy, innocent, without sudden fear, there was no jealousy, no evil action, nor hatred among them. There was no animal passion. No one among them spoke either foul words or curse. There was neither evil intention nor fraud. The men of that time never swore, but when under hard circumstances, when men must swear, they swore by the blood of Abel the just.

  13 But every day they compelled their children and their women to fast and pray, and to worship the most High God, in the cave. They blessed themselves by being near the body of their father Adam, and anointed themselves (with it).

  14 And they did so until the end of Seth drew near.

  (Author’s note: It is unclear what the men anointed themselves with. It could be oil blessed by being left close to the body of Adam. To think that they anointed themselves with the oils from the dead body would violate religious laws that would be established latter than the story, yet far earlier than the writing of this 3rd century text.)

  Chapter XII

  1 Then Seth, the just, called his son Enos, and Cainan, the son of Enos, and Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, and said he to them:

  2 "My end is near, and I wish to build a roof over the altar on which gifts are offered."

  3 They listened to his commandment and all of them, both old and young, went out and worked hard and built a beautiful roof over the altar.

  4 And Seth's thought was that by doing this a blessing should come upon his children on the mountain. And he though he should present an offering for them before his death.

  5 Then when the building of the roof was completed, he commanded them to make offerings. They worked diligently and brought them to Seth, their father, who took them and offered them upon the altar, and prayed God to accept their offerings, to have mercy on the souls of his children, and to keep them from the hand of Satan.

  6 God accepted his offering and sent His blessing on him and on his children. Then God made a promise to Seth, saying, "At the end of the great five days and a half, which is the promise I have made to you and to your father, I will send My Word and save you and your seed." (Author’s note: A great day is 1000 years.)

  7 Then Seth and his children, and grandchildren met together and came down from the altar and went to the Cave of Treasures, where they prayed. And he blessed them in the body of our father Adam, and anointed them with it.

  8 But Seth stayed in the Cave of Treasures, a few days, and then suffered - sufferings to death.

  9 Then Enos, his first born son, came to him with Cainan, his son, and Mahalaleel, Cainan's son, and Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, and Enoch, Jared's son, and with their wives and children to receive a blessing from Seth.

  10 Then Seth prayed over them, and blessed them, and earnestly requested them by the blood of Abel the just, saying, "I beg of you my children, not to let one of you go down from this Holy and pure Mountain.

  11 Do not associate with the children of Cain the murderer and the sinner, who killed his brother. You know, my children, that we flee from him and from all his sin with all our might because he killed his brother Abel."

  12 After having said this, Seth blessed Enos, his first-born son, and commanded him to minister continually in purity before the body of their father Adam, all the days of his life. He also made him promise to go at times to the altar, which he had built. And he commanded him to feed his people in righteousness, in judgment, and in purity all the days of his life.

  13 Then Seth’s limbs went limp. His hands and feet lost all strength. His voice became silent and unable to speak, and he gave up the ghost and died. Seth died the day after his nine hundred and twelfth year, on the twenty - seventh day of the month Abib; Enoch being then twenty years old.

  (Author’s note: There are three separate numbers of significance here. 27 is a gateway number to 9. 2+7=9. Nine is the number of endings. 912 reduces to the number 3, which is number of completeness. Abib is the seventh month of the year in the Hebrew calendar, corresponding to Nisan.)

  14 Then they carefully wrapped up the body of Seth, and embalmed him with sweet spices, and laid him in the Cave Treasures, on the right side of our father Adam's body, an
d they mourned for him forty days. They offered gifts for him, as they had done for our father Adam.

  15 After the death of Seth, Enos was raised to the head of his people, whom he fed in righteousness, and judgment, as his father had commanded him.

  16 But by the time Enos was eight hundred and twenty years old, Cain had a very large number of offspring, because they had sex (married) often, being given to animal lusts, until the land below the mountain, was filled with them.

  Chapter XIII

  1 Lamech the blind lived in those days. He was one of the sons of Cain. He had a son whose name was Atun, and the two of them had many cattle.

  2 Lamech was in the habit of sending them to graze with a young shepherd, who tended them. He was coming home in the evening when he went to his grandfather, his father Atun, and his mother Hazina, and he wept and he said to them, " I cannot feed those cattle alone, or someone may rob me of some of them, or kill me so they can take them." Because among the children of Cain there was a lot of robbery, murder, and sin.

  3 Then Lamech pitied him, and he said, "You may be correct. When you are alone you might be overpowered by the men of this place."

  4 So Lamech arose, took a bow he had kept ever since he was a youth, before he became blind, and he took large arrows, and smooth stones, and a sling, which he had, and he went to the field with the young shepherd, and placed himself behind the cattle while the young shepherd watched the cattle. Lamech did this for many days.

  5 Meanwhile, ever since God had cast him off and had cursed him with trembling and fear, Cain could not be still (settle) nor find rest in any one place, so he wandered from place to place.