? The Martyrdom of Isaiah — the Jewish core of the work, translated into Hebrew with cantillation by Isaac Gantwerk Mayer • the Open Siddur Project

Tags: deuterocanonical works, early Judaism, martyrdom, Mäṣḥäf Ḳədus, mytho-historical chronicles, parabiblical aggadah, pre-rabbinic judaism, Yeshayahu

Excerpt: The following is a cnatillated Hebrew translation of the Martyrdom of Isaiah, the Jewish core of the work — 1:1—3:12 and 5. Also included is the corresponding Geʽez text, and the preserved fragments of the Greek text when available. When proper names are mentioned in the text attested in Greek, the translation follows the Greek. . . .

Content:

The book known as the “Ascension of Isaiah” is, in its modern full form, a fundamentally Christian work. But large portions of it — sometimes referred to as the “Martyrdom of Isaiah” cycle — are almost certainly of Jewish origin, and conveniently enough those portions are distinct and relatively easy to separate from the Christian additions. The following is a cantillated Hebrew translation of the Martyrdom of Isaiah, the Jewish core of the work — 1:1—3:12 and 5. Also included is the corresponding Geʽez text, and the preserved fragments of the Greek text when available. When proper names are mentioned in the text attested in Greek, the translation follows the Greek. The legend of Isaiah’s martyrdom by being sawed in half is also found in many other sources. In some, like this, the saw which fells Isaiah is itself made of wood. In others, he is swallowed by a tree and the tree is cut down. I’ve attached some of these other sources in a separate resource.

Source (Greek)	Source (Ge’ez)	Translation (Hebrew)	Translation (English)
	^1:1 ወኮነ፡ በክረምት፡ በ፳ወ፮፡ በመንግሥቱ፡ ለሕዝቅያስ፡ ንጉሠ፡ ይሁዳ፡ ወጸውዖ፡ ለምናሴ፡ ወልዱ፡ እስመ፡ ውእቱ፡ ባሕቲቱ፡ ሎቱ። ² ወጸውዖ፡ በቅድመ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ወልደ፡ አሞጽ:ነቢይ፡ ወበቅድመ፡ ኢዮሳብ፡ ወልደ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ከመ፡ ያወፍዮ፡ ቃላተ፡ ጽድቅ፡ ዘለሊሁ፡ ንጉሥ፡ ርእየ፡ ³ ወኵነኔያት፡ ዘለዓለም፡ ወሥቃያት፡ ዘገሀነም፡ ወዘመኰንነዝ፡ ዓለም፡ ወዘመላእክቲሁ፡ ወዘስልጣናቲሁ፡ ወዘኀይላቲሁ፡ ⁴ ወቃላት፡ ሃይማኖቱ፡ ለፍቁር፡ ዘለሊሁ፡ ርእየ፡ በዓመተ፲ወ፭፡ መንግሥቱ፡ በደዌሁ። ⁵ ወመጠዎ፡ ቃላተ፡ ጽሑፋነ፡ ዘጸሐፈ፡ ሳምናስ፡ ጸሓፊ፡ ወአለኒ፡ ወሀቦ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ወልደ፡ አሞጽ፡ ወለዓቢያትኒ፡ ከመ፡ ይጽሐፉ፡ ወከመ፡ ያገብሩ፡ ንቤሁ፡ ዘውእቱ፡ በቤተ፡ ንጉሥ፡ ርእየ፡ በእንተ፡ ዙነኔ፡ መላእክት፡ ወበእንተ፡ ተደምስሶቱ፡ ለዝ፡ ዓለም፡ ወበእንተ፡ ልብሰቶሙ፡ ለቅዱሳን፡ ወጸአቶሙ፡ ወበእንተ፡ ተወልጦቶሙ፡ ወስደት፡ ወዕርገቱ፡ ለፍቁር።	^1:1 וַיְהִי֩ בִּשְׁנַ֨ת עֶשְׂרִ֤ים וָשֵׁשׁ֙ שָׁנָ֔ה לְמַלְכ֥וּת חִזְקִיָּ֖הוּ מֶ֣לֶךְ יְהוּדָ֑ה וַיִּקְרָא֙ לִמְנַשֶּׁ֣ה בְנ֔וֹ וְה֥וּא הָיָ֖ה יְחִידֽוֹ׃ ² וַיִּקְרָ֣א אוֹתוֹ֩ לִפְנֵ֨י יְשַׁעְיָ֤הוּ בֶן־אָמוֹץ֙ הַנָּבִ֔יא וְלִפְנֵ֖י יָשׁ֣וּב בֶּן־יְשַׁעְיָ֑הוּ לָֽתֵת־לוֹ֙ אֶת־דִּבְרֵ֣י הַצֶּדֶ֔ק אֲשֶׁר־רָאָ֥ה הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ גַּם־הֽוּא׃ ³ וְאֶת־מִשְׁפְּטֵ֥י עוֹלָ֖ם וְאֶת־יִסּוּרֵ֣י גֵּיהִנּ֑וֹם וְאֶת־שַׂר֙ הָאָ֣רֶץ הַזֹּ֔את וְאֶת־מׇשְׁלָ֖יו וְאֶת־חֵילָֽיו׃ ⁴ וְאֶת־דִּבְרֵי֙ אֱמוּנַ֣ת דּוֹדִ֔י אֲשֶׁ֛ר ה֥וּא גַּם־ה֖וּא רָאָ֑ה בִּשְׁנַת֩ חֲמֵ֨שׁ עֶשְׂרֵ֧ה שָׁנָ֛ה לְמַלְכוּת֖וֹ בְּחׇלְיֽוֹ׃ ⁵ וַיִּתֵּן־ל֣וֹ אֶת־דִּבְרֵ֣י הַסֵּ֡פֶר אֲשֶׁ֣ר כָּתַב֩ שֶׁבְנָ֨א הַסּוֹפֵ֜ר וְגַ֣ם אֲשֶׁ֣ר נָתַן־לוֹ֮ יְשַׁעְיָ֣הוּ בֶן־אָמוֹץ֒ וְגַ֣ם לַנְּבִיאִ֗ים לִכְתֹּ֤ב וְלֶאֱסֹף֙ אִתּ֔וֹ אֵ֧ת כׇּל־אֲשֶׁ֛ר רָאָ֥ה גַּם־ה֖וּא בְּבֵ֣ית הַמֶּ֑לֶךְ עַל־מִשְׁפַּ֣ט הַמַּלְאָכִ֗ים וְחׇרְבָּ֤ן הָאָ֙רֶץ֙ הַזֹּא֔ת וְעַל־לְבוּשֵׁ֧י הַצַּדִּיקִ֛ים וִיצִיאָתָ֖ם וְעַל־שִׁנּוּיָֽם׃	^1:1 And it came to pass in the twenty-sixth year of the reign of Hezekiah king of Judah that he called Manasseh his son — now he was his only one. ² And he called him into the presence of Isaiah the son of Amoẓ the prophet, and into the presence of Jashub^[1] Geʽez text: Josab. Referring to Sha’ar Jashub, the son of Isaiah mentioned in Isaiah 7:3 the son of Isaiah, in order to deliver to him the words of righteousness which the king himself had seen, ³ And of the eternal judgments and torments of Gehenna, and of the prince of this world, and of his angels, and his authorities and his powers. ⁴ And the words of the faith of the Beloved which he himself had seen in the fifteenth year of his reign during his illness. ⁵ And he delivered to him the written words which Shebna the scribe had written, and also those which Isaiah, the son of Amoẓ, had given to him, and also to the prophets, that they might write and store up with him what he himself had seen in the king’s house regarding the judgment of the angels, and the destruction of this world, and regarding the garments of the saints and their going forth, and regarding their transformation.^[2] The last clause of the Ge’ez text here reads “and the persecution and ascension of the Beloved.” I have chosen not to translate this seeing as I believe it to be a Christian interpolation into the text.
	^1:6 በዓመተ፡ መንግሥቱ፡ ለሕዝቅያስ፡ ርእየ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ቃላተዝ፡ ትንቢት፡ ወመጠዎ፡ ለኢዮሳብ፡ ወልዱ። ወውእቱ፡ እንዘ፡ ይኤዝዝ፡ እንዘ፡ ይቀውም፡ ኢዮሳብ፡ ወልዱ፡ ለኢሳይያስ፡ ⁷ ይቤሎ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ለሕዝቅያስ፡ ንጉሥ፡ ወአኮ፡ ባሕቲቱ፡ በቅድመ፡ ምናሴ፡ ዘይቤሎ፡ ሕያው፡ እግዚአብሔር፡ ዘኢተፈነወ፡ ስሙ፡ ለዝ፡ ዓለም፡ ወሕያው፡ ፍቁሩ፡ ለእግዚእየ፡ ወሕያው፡ መንፈስ፡ ዘበላዕሌየ፡ ድትናገር፡ ከመ፡ ኵሎን፡ እሳንቱ፡ ትእዛዝ፡ ወአሉ፡ ቃላት፡ ይጸርዓ፡ በኀበ፡ ምናሴ፡ ወልድኪ፡ ወበግብረ፡ እደዊሁ፡ በሥቃዩ፡ ሥጋየ፡ አሐውር፡ እነ፡ ⁸ ወይትለአከ፡ ሰማየል፡ መልኪራ፡ በምናሴ፡ ወኵሎ፡ ፈቃደ፡ ይገብር፡ ወውእቱይከውን፡ ተላዊሁ፡ ሰብልያር፡ እምኔየ፡ ⁹ ውብዙኃነ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ወበይሁዳ፡ ያቀውሞሙ፡ እምሃይማኖተ፡ ጽድቅ፡ ወብልያር፡ ይነብር፡ ላዕለ፡ ምናሴ፡ ወበእደዊሁ፡ አነ፡ እትወስር።	^1:6 בִּשְׁנַ֣ת עֶשְׂרִ֣ים שָׁנָה֩ לְמַלְכ֨וּת חִזְקִיָּ֜הוּ וַיַּ֣רְא יְשַׁעְיָ֗הוּ אֶת־דִּבְרֵי֙ הַנְּבוּאָ֣ה הַזֹּ֔את וַיִּתֵּ֥ן לָהֶ֖ם לְיָשׁ֣וּב בְּנ֑וֹ וְה֣וּא צִוָּ֔ה וְיָשׁ֥וּב בֶּן־יְשַׁעְיָ֖הוּ עָמַ֥ד אֶצְלֽוֹ׃ ⁷ וַיֹּ֣אמֶר ׀ יְשַׁעְיָ֣הוּ ׀ לְחִזְקִיָּ֣הוּ הַמֶּ֡לֶךְ אַ֣ךְ לֹא֩ בִּפְנֵ֨י מְנַשֶּׁ֜ה אָֽמַר־ל֗וֹ חַי־יְהֹוָ֕ה וְחַיַּ֥ת הָר֖וּחַ הַמְּדַבֶּ֣רֶת בִּ֑י כׇּל־הַמִּצְוֺ֨ת הָאֵ֜לֶּה וְהַדְּבָרִ֣ים הָאֵ֗לֶּה לַשָּׁ֤וְא יִהְיוּ֙ מִמְּנַשֶּׁ֣ה בִּנְך֔ וּמֵעֲמַ֧ל יָדָ֛יו אֶפָּטֵ֖ר בְּעִנּ֥וּי גּוּפִֽי׃ ⁸ וְסַמָּאֵ֤ל מַלְכִּירַע֙ יַעֲבֹ֣ד לִמְנַשֶּׁ֔ה וְעָשָׂ֖ה אֶת־כׇּל־רְצוֹנ֑וֹ וְה֤וּא יִהְיֶה֙ אַחֲרֵ֣י בְּלִיַּ֔עַל וְלֹ֖א אַחֲרַֽי׃ ⁹ וְהֵמִ֨יר רֹ֜ב בִּירוּשָׁלַ֤יִם וּבִיהוּדָה֙ מֵאֱמוּנַ֣ת אֱמֶ֔ת וְיָשַׁ֥ב בְּלִיַּ֖עַל בִּמְנַשֶּׁ֑ה וְעַל־יָדָ֖יו אֵחָטֵ֥ב לַחֲלָקִֽים׃	^1:6 In the twentieth year of the reign of Hezekiah, Isaiah had seen the words of this prophecy and had delivered them to Jashub^[3] Find note 1, above. his son. And while he^[4] i.e. Hezekiah gave commands, Jashub^[5] Find note 1, above. the son of Isaiah standing by. ⁷ Isaiah said to Hezekiah the king, but not in the presence of Manasseh did he say to him: “As the Lord lives and the spirit which speaks in me lives, all these commands and these words will be rendered worthless by Manasseh your son, and through the agency of his hands I will depart amid the torture of my body. ⁸ And Sammael Malchira will serve Manasseh, and execute all his desire, and he will become a follower of Belial^[6] Geʽez text: Beliar. Changed back to the Masoretic form. rather than of me. ⁹ And he will make many in Jerusalem and Judah abandon the true faith, and Belial will dwell in Manasseh, and by his hands I will be sawn apart.”
	^1:10 ወስሚዖ᎓ሕዝቅያስ፡ ዘንተ፡ ቃለ፡ በከየ፡ ዐቢየ፡ ፈድፋደ፡ ወሠጠጠ፡ አልባሲሁ፡ ወወደየ፡ መሬት፡ ውስተ፡ ርእሱ፡ ወወድቀ፡ በገጹ። ¹¹ ወይቤሎ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ተፈጸመ፡ ምክሩ፡ ለሰማየል፡ ላዕለ፡ ምናሴ፤ ኢይበቍዐከ። ¹² ወበዝከቱ፡ ዕለት፡ ሐለየ፡ ሕዝቅያስ፡ በልቡ፡ ከመ፡ ይቅትሎ፡ ለምናሴ፡ ወልዱ። ¹³ ወይቤሎ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ለሕዝቅያስ፡ አጽርዓ፡ ፍቁር፡ ሰምከርከ፡ ወኅሊና፡ ልብከኒ፡ ኢይሄሉ፡ እስመ፡ አንሰ፡ በዝ፡ ጽውዓ፡ ተጸዋዕኩ፡ ወበርስቱ፡ ለፍቁር፡ አነ፡ እትወረስ።	^1:10 וַיְהִ֨י כִשְׁמ֤וֹעַ חִזְקִיָּ֙הוּ֙ אֶת־הַדְּבָרִ֣ים הָאֵ֔לֶּה וַיֵּבְךְּ֙ מַ֣ר מְאֹ֔ד וַיִּקְרַ֖ע אֶת־בְּגָדָ֑יו וַיָּ֨שֶׂם אֲדָמָ֧ה עַל־רֹאשׁ֛וֹ וַיִּפֹּ֖ל עַל־פָּנָֽיו׃ ¹¹ וַיֹּֽאמֶר־ל֣וֹ יְשַׁעְיָ֔הוּ עֲצַ֧ת סַמָּאֵ֛ל בִּמְנַשֶּׁ֖ה נִשְׁלָ֣מָה הִ֑יא אֵ֖ין יַעְזְרֶֽךָּ׃ ¹² וּבַיּ֖וֹם הַה֑וּא וַיָּ֤שֶׂם חִזְקִיָּ֙הוּ֙ בְּלִבּ֔וֹ לַהֲרֹ֖ג אֶת־מְנַשֶּׁ֥ה בְּנֽוֹ׃ ¹³ וַיֹּאמֶ֨ר יְשַׁעְיָ֜הוּ אֶל־חִזְקִיָּ֗הוּ דּוֹדִ֨י עָשָׂ֤ה לַשָּׁוְא֙ עֲצָ֔תְךָ וְתַכְלִ֥ית לִבְּךָ֖ לֹ֣א תֵּעָשֶׂ֑ה כִּ֗י בַּקְּרִיאָ֤ה הַזֹּאת֙ נִקְרֵ֔אתִי וְנָחַלְתִּ֖י אֶת־נַחֲלַ֥ת דּוֹדִֽי׃	^1:10 And when Hezekiah heard these words he wept very bitterly, and tore his garments, and placed earth upon his head, and fell on his face. ¹¹ And Isaiah said to him: “The plot of Sammael against Manasseh is completed: nothing will help you.” ¹² And on that day Hezekiah resolved in his heart to kill Manasseh his son. ¹³ And Isaiah said to Hezekiah: “The Beloved has rendered worthless your plot, and the purpose of your heart will not be accomplished, for with this calling have I been called and I will inherit the heritage of the Beloved.”
^2:4 …Μανασσῇ, καὶ κατεδυνάμου αὐτὸν ἐν τῇ ἀποστάσει καὶ τῇ ἀνομίᾳ, ἥτις ἐσπάρη ἐν Ἱερουσαλήμ. ⁵ Καὴ ἐπλήθυνεν ἢ φαρμακεία καὶ ἡ μαγεία καὶ ἡ μαντεία καὶ οἱ κληδονισμοὶ καὶ ἡ πορνεία καὶ ὃ διωγμὸς τῶν δικαίων ἐν χερσὶ Μανασσῆ καὶ ἐν χερσὶν τοῦ Τουβὶ τοῦ Χανανίτου καὶ ἐν χερσὶν Ἰωνὰν τοῦ Ναθὼθ καὶ ἐν χερσὶν Ξαδὼκ τοῦ ἐπὶ τῶν πραγματειῶν. ⁶ καὶ οἱ λοιποὶ λόγοι ἰδοὺ γεγραμμένοι εἰσὶν ἐν τοῖς βίβλοις τῶν βασιλέων Ἰούδα καὶ Ἰσραήλ.	^2:1 ወኮነ፡ እምድኅረ፡ ሞተ፡ ሕዝቅያስ፡ ወነግሠ፡ ምናሴ፡ ወኢተዘከረ፡ ትእዛዛተ፡ ሕዝቅያስ፡ አቡሁ፡ አሳ፡ ረስዖሙ፡ ወንደረ፡ ሰማየል፡ ላዕለ፡ ምናሴ፡ ወጠግዐ፡ ቦቱ። ² ወነደገ፡ ምናሴ፡ ተቀንዮ፡ ለእግዚአብሔር፡ ዘአቡሁ፡ ወተቀንየ፡ ለሰይጣን፡ ወለመላእክቲሁ፡ ወሰንይ፡ ላቲሁ። ³ ወሜጠ፡ ቤተ፡ አቡሁ፡ እለ፡ ኮኑ፡ ቅድመ፡ ገጹ፡ ለሕዝቅያስ፡ እምቃላተ፡ ጥበብ፡ ወተቀንዮ፡ ለእግዚአብሔር። ⁴ ወሜጠ፡ ልቦ፡ ምናሴ፡ ከመ፡ ይትቀነይ፡ ለብልደር፡ እስመ፡ መልአከ᎓ዐመፃ፡ ዘሥልጣነዝ፡ ዓለም፡ ውእቱ፡ ብልደር፡ ዘስሙ፡ መጠንቡኩስ፡ ወውእቱ፡ ይትፌሣሕ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ላዕለ፡ ምናሴ፡ ወድኔይሎ፡ በአግኅሥ፡ ወበዐመፃ፡ ዝተዘርአ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም። ⁵ ወበዝኀ፡ ስገል፡ ወሥራይ፡ ወተጠይሮ፡ ወጸስትቃሥሞ፡ ወዝሙት፡ [ወሐዊረ፡ ብእሲተ፡ ብእሲ]፡ ወስደተ፡ ጻድቃን፡ በእደ፡ ምናሴ፡ [ወበእደ፡ ብለኪራ]፡ ወበእደ፡ ጦብያ፡ ከነናዊ፡ ወበእደ፡ ዮሐንስ፡ ዘእምአናቶት፡ ወበእደ፡ ዘሊቀ፡ ንዋይ። ⁶ ወትራፋተ፡ ሃገር፡ ነዋ፡ ጽሑፋን፡ እሙንቱ፡ ውስተ፡ መጽሐፈ፡ ነገሥት፡ ይሁዳ፡ ወእስራኤል።	^2:1 וַיְהִ֞י אַחַ֣ר הַדְּבָרִ֣ים הָאֵ֗לֶּה וַיָּ֤מׇת חִזְקִיָּ֙הוּ֙ וַיִּמְלֹ֣ךְ מְנַשֶּׁ֔ה וְלֹא־זָכַ֧ר אֶת־מִצְוֺ֛ת חִזְקִיָּ֥הוּ אָבִ֖יו וַיִּשְׁכְּחֵ֑ם וַיֵּ֧שֶׁב סַמָּאֵ֛ל בִּמְנַשֶּׁ֖ה וַיִּֽדְבַּק־בּֽוֹ׃ ² וַיִּזְנַ֣ח מְנַשֶּׁ֔ה אֶת־עֲבוֹדַ֖ת אֱלֹהֵ֣י אָבִ֑יו וַיַּעֲבֹ֧ד אֶת־הַשָּׂטָ֛ן וּמַלְאָכָ֖יו וְחֵילָֽיו׃ ³ וַֽיָּסִיר֙ אֶת־בֵּ֣ית אָבִ֔יו אֲשֶׁ֥ר הָיָ֖ה בִּפְנֵ֣י חִזְקִיָּ֑הוּ מִדִּבְרֵ֥י הַחׇכְמָ֖ה וּמֵעֲבוֹדַ֥ת אֱלֹהִֽים׃ ⁴ וַיָּסִ֨יר מְנַשֶּׁ֣ה אֶת־לִבּוֹ֮ לַעֲבֹ֣ד אֶת־בְּלִיַּ֒עַל֒ כִּ֣י ׀ מַלְאַ֣ךְ הֶחָמָ֗ס שַׂ֚ר הָאָ֣רֶץ הַזֹּ֔את ה֥וּא בְּלִיַּ֖עַל וּשְׁמ֣וֹ מַתַּנְבֹּ֑הוּ וַיִּשְׂמַ֤ח בִּירוּשָׁלַ֙יִם֙ עֲב֣וּר מְנַשֶּׁ֔ה וַיְחַזְּקֵ֙הוּ֙ בִּכְפִירָ֔ה וּבֶחָמָ֥ס הַנָּפ֖וּץ בְּת֥וֹךְ יְרוּשָׁלָֽיִם׃ ⁵ וַיֶּ֙רֶב֙ כִּשּׁ֣וּף וָקֶ֔סֶם וְנָחָ֖שׁ וְעֹנְנִ֣ים וּזְנ֑וּת וְלַ֨חַץ הַצַּדִּיקִ֜ים בְּיַ֣ד מְנַשֶּׁ֗ה וְטוֹבִ֤י הַכְּנַעֲנִי֙ וְיוֹנָ֣ה מֵעֲנָת֔וֹת וּבְיַ֥ד צָד֖וֹק רַב־הַמַּעֲשִֽׂים׃ ⁶ וְיֶ֖תֶר הַדְּבָרִ֑ים הֲלֹא־הֵ֣ם כְּתוּבִ֗ים עַל־סֵ֙פֶר֙ דִּבְרֵ֣י הַיָּמִ֔ים לְמַלְכֵ֖י יְהוּדָ֥ה וְיִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃	^2:1 And it came to pass after that Hezekiah died and Manasseh became king, that he did not remember the commands of Hezekiah his father, but forgot them, and Sammael dwelt in Manasseh and stuck to him. ² And Manasseh forsook the service of the God of his father, and he served Satan and his angels and his powers. ³ And he turned the house of his father, which had been before the face of Hezekiah, aside from the words of wisdom and from the service of God. ⁴ And Manasseh turned aside his heart to serve Belial; for the angel of lawlessness, who is the ruler of this world, is Belial, named Mantanbuchus,^[7] Of unclear origin, suggested to be a cognate of the Zoroastrian evil spirit Angra Mainyu. Here translated as “matan bohu” = gift of chaos. and he delighted in Jerusalem because of^[8] Greek fragment begins here. Manasseh, and he made him strong in apostatizing and in the lawlessness which was spread around in Jerusalem. ⁵ And witchcraft and magic increased and divination and auguration, and fornication,^[9] Geʽez text adds: “and adultery” and the persecution of the righteous by Manasseh and^[10] Geʽez text adds: “Belakira and” Tobi^[11] Geʽez text: Tobiah the Canaanite, and Jonah^[12] Geʽez text: John of Anathoth, and by Ẓadok^[13] Not found in Geʽez text the chief of the works. ⁶ And the rest of the acts, behold, they are written in the book of the Kings of Judah and Israel!
^2:7 …καὶ τὴν πομπὴν αὐτοῦ ἀνεχώρησεν ἀπὸ Ἱερουσαλὴμ καὶ ἐκάθισεν ἐν Βηθλεὲμ τῆς Ἰουδαίας. ⁸ καὶ ἐκεῖ δὲ ἦν ἀνομία πολλή, καὶ ἀναχωρήσας ἀπὸ Βηθλεὲμ ἐκάθισεν ἐν τῷ ὄρει ἐν τόπῳ ἐρήμῳ. ⁹ καὶ Μιχαίας ὁ προφήτης καὶ Ἀνανίας ὁ γέρων καὶ Ἰωὴλ καὶ Ἀμβακοὺμ καὶ Ἰσασοὺφ ὃ υἱὸς αὐτοῦ καὶ πολλοὶ τῶν πιστῶν τῶν πιστευόντων εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀναβῆναι ἀνεχώρησαν, καὶ ἐκάθισαν εἷς τὸ ὄρος, ¹⁰ πάντες σάκκον περιβεβλημένοι, καὶ πάντες ἦσαν προφῆται, οὐδὲν ἔχοντες μετ᾽ αὖτῶν ἀλλὰ γυμνοὶ ἦσαν, πενθοῦντες πένθος μέγα περὶ τῆς πλάνης τοῦ Ἰσραήλ. ¹¹ καὶ οὗτοι οὐκ ἤσθιον εἰ μὴ βοτάνας τίλλοντὲς ἐκ τῶν ὀρέων καὶ… …μετὰ Ἠσαίου οἰκοῦντες. καὶ ἐπεὶ ἦσαν ἐν τοῖς ὄρεσιν καὶ ἐν τοῖς βουνοῖς δύο ἔτη ἡμερῶν.	^2:7 ወኢሳይያስ፡ ወልደ፡ አሞጽ፡ ሶበ፡ ርእየ፡ ዐመፃ፡ ዘይትገበር፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ወተቀንዮ፡ ለሰይጣን፡ ወዘውዖ፡ ተግዏሠ፡ እምኢየሩሳሌም፡ ወነበረ፡ ቤተ፡ ልሔም፡ ዘይሁዳ። ⁸ ወበህየኒ፡ ሀሎ፡ ዐመፃ፡ ብዙን። ወግዒሦ፡ እምቤተ፡ ልሔም፡ ነበረ፡ ውስተ፡ ደብር፡ በመካነ፡ ገዲም። ⁹ ወሚኪያስ፡ ነቢይ፡ ወአናንያ፡ አረጋዊ፡ ወኢዮኤል፡ ወእንባቆም፡ ወኢዮሳብ፡ ወብዙኃን፡ እለ፡ የአምኑ፡ መሃይምናን፡ ዕርገተ፡ ሰማይ፡ ተግኅሡ፡ ወነበሩ፡ ውስተ፡ ደብር። ¹⁰ ኵሎሙ፡ ሠቀ፡ ይትዐጸፉ፡ ወኵሎሙ፡ ነቢያት:እሙንቱ:ምንትሂ፡ እንዘ፡ አልቦሙ፡ ምስሌሆሙ፡ አላ:ዕራቆሙ፡ እሙንቱ፡ ወኵሎሙ፡ ይላሕዉ፡ ላሐ፡ ዐቢየ፡ በእንተ፡ ስሕተተ፡ እስራኤል። ¹¹ ወእሱ፡ አልቦሙ፡ ዘይበልዑ፡ ዘእንበለ፡ ሐምለ፡ ገዳም፡ ይቀነጥሱ፡ እምአድባር፡ ወአብሲሎሙ፡ ይሴሰዩ፡ ምስለ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ነቢይ፡ ወነበሩ፡ ውስተ፡ አድባር፡ ወውስተ፡ አውግር፡ ከልኤ፡ ዓመት፡ መቀዕል።	^2:7 וּבִרְא֣וֹת ׀ יְשַׁעְיָ֣הוּ בֶן־אָמ֗וֹץ אֶת־הֶחָמָס֙ הַנַּעֲשָׂ֣ה בִּירוּשָׁלַ֔יִם וַעֲבוֹדַ֥ת הַשָּׂטָ֖ן וְנִבְלָת֑וֹ וַיַּ֧עַל מִיְּרוּשָׁלַ֛יִם וַיֵּ֥שֶׁב בֵּֽיתָה־לֶ֖חֶם יְהוּדָֽה׃ ⁸ וְגַם־שָׁ֥ם הָיָ֖ה רֹ֣ב חָמָ֑ס וַיַּ֙עַל֙ מִבֵּ֣ית לֶ֔חֶם וַיֵּ֥שֶׁב בָּהָ֖ר בְּמָק֥וֹם שׁוֹמֵמָֽה׃ ⁹ וַיֵּ֩צֵא֩ מִיכָ֨יְהוּ הַנָּבִ֜יא וַחֲנַנְיָ֣הוּ הַזָּקֵ֗ן וְיוֹאֵ֤ל וַחֲבַקּוּק֙ וּבְנ֣וֹ יָשׁ֔וּב וְרֹ֛ב הַחֲסִידִ֥ים הַמַּאֲמִינִ֖ים בַּעֲלִיַּ֣ת הַשָּׁמָ֑יְמָה וַיֵּשְׁב֖וּ בָּהָֽר׃ ¹⁰ וַיִּתְלַבְּשׁ֣וּ שַׂקִּים֮ וְכֻלָּ֣ם הָי֣וּ נְבִיאִים֒ וְלֹא֨ הָיְתָ֤ה לָהֶם֙ מְא֔וּמָה כִּ֥י עֲרֻמִּ֖ים הֵ֑ם וַ֨יְקוֹנְנ֤וּ כֻּלָּם֙ קִינָ֣ה גְּדוֹלָ֔ה עַ֖ל טְעִיַּ֥ת יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ ¹¹ וְלֹא־אָכְל֣וּ מְ֠א֠וּמָה בִּלְתִּ֨י עִשְׂבֵי־בַּ֜ר אֲשֶׁ֣ר אָסְפ֗וּ עַ֚ל הֶ֣הָרִ֗ים וַיִּבְשְׂל֣וּם יַחְדָּ֑ו וְשָׁ֣ם גָּ֗רוּ עִ֚ם יְשַׁעְיָ֣הוּ הַנָּבִ֔יא וַיִּבְלוּ֙ שְׁנָתַ֣יִם יָמִ֔ים בֶּהָרִ֖ים וּבַגְּבָעֽוֹת׃	^2:7 And, when Isaiah, the son of Amoẓ, saw the lawlessness which was being perpetrated in Jerusalem and the worship of Satan and his wantonness,^[14] Greek fragment is missing the first half of this verse. he withdrew from Jerusalem and settled in Bethlehem of Judah. ⁸ And there was also there so much lawlessness, and, withdrawing from Bethlehem he settled on a mountain in a desert place. ⁹ And Micaiah the prophet, and the aged Ananias, and Joel and Habakkuk, and his son Jashub,^[15] Geʽez text: Josab. Referring to Sha’ar Jashub, the son of Isaiah mentioned in Isaiah 7:3 and many of the faithful who believed in the ascension into heaven, withdrew and settled on the mountain. ¹⁰ They were all clothed with hairshirts, and they were all prophets. And they had nothing with them, but were naked, and they all lamented a great lamentation because of the going astray of Israel. ¹¹ And they were eating nothing but wild herbs which they gathered on the mountains, and having cooked them, together there^[16] The Greek text is missing “and having cooked them, together there” they lived with Isaiah the prophet. And they spent two years of days on the mountains and hills.^[17] Compare with II Maccabees 5:27 — ᾿Ιούδας δὲ ὁ Μακκαβαῖος δέκατός που γενηθεὶς καὶ ἀναχωρήσας εἰς τὴν ἔρημον, θηρίων τρόπον ἐν τοῖς ὄρεσι διέζη σὺν τοῖς μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὴν χορτώδη τροφὴν σιτούμενοι διετέλουν πρὸς τὸ μὴ μετασχεῖν τοῦ μολυσμοῦ. (“But Judas Maccabeus, with about nine others, got away to the wilderness, and kept himself and his companions alive in the mountains as wild animals do; they continued to live on what grew wild, so that they might not share in the defilement.” — NRSV translation) — Aharon Varady
^2:12 ἐπὶ τοῦ εἶναι αὐτοὺς ἐν τοῖς ἐρήμοις καὶ… ἐν Σαμαρίᾳ ᾧ ὄνομα ἦν Βελιχειὰρ ἐκ τῆς συγγενίας Σεδεκίου υἱοῦ Χανανὶτοῦ ψευδοπροφήτου ὃς ἦν κατοικῶν ἐν Βηθανίᾳ. καὶ Σεδεκίας υἱὸς Χανανὶ ὃς ἦν ἀδελφὸς τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ, ἐν δὲ ταῖς ἡμέραις Ἀχαὰβ βασιλέως τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ ἦν διδάσκαλος τῶν τετρακοσίων προφητῶν τοῦ Βαάλ, καὶ αὐτὸς ἐράπισεν καὶ ὕβρισεν τὸν Μιχαίαν υἱὸν Ἰεμμαδὰ τὸν προφήτην· ¹³ καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὑβρίσ θη ὑπὸ Ἀχαὰβ καὶ ἐβλήθη Μιχαίας εἰς φυλακήν. καὶ ἦν μετὰ Σεδεκίου τοῦ ψευδοπροφήτου ὄντος· ἦσαν μετὰ Ὀχοζείου υἱοῦ Ἀλὰμ ἐν Σεμμωμα. ¹⁴ καὶ Ἠλείας ὃ προφἤρης ἐκ Θεσβῶν… καὶ τὴν Σαμαρίαν, καὶ αὐτὸς ἐπροφήτευεν περὶ Ὀχοζειου ὅτι ἐν κλίνῃ ἀρρωστίας ἀποθανεῖται καὶ ἡ Σαμαρία εἰς χεῖρας Ἀλνασὰρ παραδοθήσεται ἀνθ᾽ ὧν ἐφόνευεν τοὺς προφήτὰς τοῦ Θεοῦ. ¹⁵ καὶ ἀκούσαντες οἱ προφῆται οἱ μετὰ Ὀχοζείον υἱοῦ Ἀλὰμ καὶ ὁ διδάσκαλος αὐτῶν Ἰαλλαρίας ἐξ ὄρους Ἰσλαλ ¹⁶ καὶ αὐτὸς ἦνο Βεχειρὰ ἀδελφὸς τοῦ Σεδεκίου, ἀκούσαντες μετέπεισαν τὸν Ὀχοζείαν βασίλεα Γομόρρων καὶ ἐφόνευσαν τὸν Μιχαίαν.	^2:12 ወእምድኅረዝ፡ ሀሊዎሙ፡ ውስተ፡ ገዳም፡ ወሀለወ፡ አሐዱ፡ ብእሲ፡ በሰማርያ፡ ዘስሙ፡ ብልኪራ፡ እምአዝማዱ፡ ሰስዱቅያስ፡ ወልደ፡ ከናአን፡ ሐሳዌነቢይ፡ ዘመንበሩ፡ በቤተ፡ ልሔም። ወሕዝቅያስ፡ ወልደ፡ ከናኒ፡ ዘውእቱ፡ እኈ፡ አቡሁ፡ ወበመዋዕለ፡ አካአብ፡ ንጉሠ፡ እስራኤል፡ መምህሮሙ፡ ውእቱ፡ ለ፬፶ነቢያት᎓ዘበዓል፡ ወውእቱ፡ ጸፍዖ፡ ወፀአሎ፡ ለሚኪያስ፡ ወልድ፡ አማዳ፡ ነቢይ። ¹³ ወውእቱ፡ ተጽእለ፡ እምአካአብ፡ ወተወድየ፡ ሚኪያስ፡ ውስተ፡ ሞቅሕ፡ ምስለ፡ ሰይቅያስ፡ ነቢይ፡ ሀለዉ፡ ምስለ፡ አኩዝያ፡ ወልድ፡ አለሜሬም፡ በሰላው። ¹⁴ ወኤልያስ፡ ነቢይ፡ ዘእምቴቦን፡ ዘእምገሰአድ፡ ይጼእል፡ ሰአኩዝያ፡ ወለስማርያ፡ ወውእቱ፡ ተነበየ፡ በእንተ፡ አኩዝያ፡ ከመ፡ በምስካበ፡ ደዌሁ፡ ይመውት፡ ወሰማርያ፡ በእደ፡ ልበ፡ ናስር፡ ትትወሀብ፡ እስሙ፡ ቀተለ፡ ነቢያተ᎓እግዚአብሔር. ¹⁵ ወሶበ፡ ስምዑ፡ ነቢያተ፡ ሐሰት፡ እስ፡ ምስለ፡ አኰዝያ፡ ወልደ፡ አካአብ፡ ወመምህሮሙ፡ ኢያልርያስ፡ እምደብረ፡ ኢዮኤል፡ ¹⁶ ወውእቱ፡ [ኢብፊ፡] እኁሁ፡ ለሰደቅያ፡ ሰሚዖሙ፡ አእመንዎ፡ ለአኩዝያ፡ ንጉሠ፡ አጐሮን፡ ወለሚኪያስ።	^2:12 וְאַחַר־כֵּן֮ בִּהְיוֹתָ֣ם בַּמִּדְבָּר֒ וַיְהִ֣י אִ֣ישׁ אֶחָ֣ד בְּשֹׁמְר֡וֹן וּשְׁמ֣וֹ בְּ֠חִירַ֠ע מִמִּשְׁפַּ֨חַת צִדְקִיָּ֤הוּ בֶּן־כְּנַעֲנָה֙ נְבִ֣יא שֶׁ֔קֶר וּמוֹשָׁב֖וֹ בְּבֵ֣ית עֲנִיָּ֑ה וְחִזְקִיָּ֣הוּ בֶּן־חֲנָנִי֩ אֲחִ֨י אָבִ֜יו בִּימֵ֣י ׀ אַחְאָ֣ב ׀ מֶ֣לֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל מוֹרֶ֨ה הָיָ֜ה לְאַרְבָּ֤עָה מֵאוֹת֙ נְבִיאֵ֣י הַבַּ֔עַל וַיַּ֧ךְ וַיוֹכִ֛יחַ אֶת־מִיכָ֥יְהוּ בֶּן־יִמְלָ֖ה הַנָּבִֽיא׃ ¹³ וְאוֹת֤וֹ אֶת־מִיכָ֙יְהוּ֙ הוֹכִ֣יחַ אַחְאָ֔ב וַיִּתֵּ֥ן אוֹת֖וֹ בֵּ֣ית הָאֵס֑וּר וְעִם־צִדְקִיָּ֧הוּ הַנָּבִ֛יא הָי֛וּ אֶת־אֲחַזְיָ֥ה בֶּן־אַלְאָ֖ם מֶ֥לֶךְ בְּשֹׁמְרֽוֹן׃ ¹⁴ וְאֵלִיָּ֣הוּ הַ֠נָּבִ֠יא הַתִּשְׁבִּ֨י הַגִּלְעָדִ֜י הוֹכִ֣יחַ ׀ אֶת־אֲחַזְיָ֣ה וְאֶת־שֹׁמְר֗וֹן וַיִּנָּבֵא֙ עַ֣ל אֲחַזְיָ֔ה כִּי־יָמ֥וּת בְּמִטָּת֖וֹ מֵחֹלִ֑י וַיֻּתַּ֤ן שֹׁמְרוֹן֙ בְּיַ֣ד שַׁלְמַנְאֶ֔סֶר‎ כִּ֛י נְבִ֥יאֵי אֵ֖ל הָרַֽג׃ ¹⁵ וַיְהִ֗י בִּשְׁמֹ֙עַ֙ נְבִיאֵ֣י הַשֶּׁ֔קֶר אֲשֶׁ֥ר הָי֖וּ אֶת־אֲחַזְיָ֣ה בֶּן־אַלְאָ֑ם וּמוֹרָ֥ם יַלָּרְיָּ֖הוּ מֵהַ֥ר אִסְלָֽל׃ ¹⁶ וְהוּא֙ אֲחִ֣י צִדְקִיָּ֔הוּ וַיְפָתּ֥וּ אֶת־אֲחַזְיָ֖ה מֶ֣לֶךְ עֲמֹרָ֑ה וַיַּהַרְג֖וּ אֶת־מִיכָֽיְהוּ׃	^2:12 And after this, while they were in the desert, there was a certain man in Samaria named Becheira,^[18] This name is found in many different spellings, Some include: Belicheiar, Becheira, Melcheira, Belchira, Bechira, Belkira, Balkira, Melkira, Malkira, Belch, Melchias, and Becheiras. The most common suggested etymology is from the Hebrew בְּחִירַע – chosen of evil – and thus for consistency’s sake I’ve chosen this transcription. of the family of Ẓedekiah, the son of the Canaanite, a false prophet, whose dwelling was in Bethany.^[19] Geʽez text: Bethlehem. Now Hezekiah the son of Hanani, the brother of his father, who had, in the days of Ahab, king of Israel, been the teacher of the 400 prophets of Baal, had struck and reproved Micaiah the son of Jimlah^[20] Greek text: Iemmada. Geʽez text: Amada. But Micaiah and Ẓedekiah are both mentioned in II Kings 22 and I’m following the Masoretic spellings here. the prophet. ¹³ And he, Micaiah, had been reproved by Ahab and cast into prison, and with Ẓedekiah the prophet, they were with Ahaziah the son of Alam,^[21] Possibly a scribal error for Ahab, or alternatively for Jehoram, but found in both text variants. king in Samaria. ¹⁴ And Elijah the prophet of Tishbe of Gilead was reproving Ahaziah and Samaria, and prophesied regarding Ahaziah that he would die on his bed of sickness, and that Samaria would be delivered into the hand of Shalmeneser^[22] Geʽez text: Leba-Nasr. Greek text: Alnasar. Shalmaneser was the king of Assyria who conquered the northern kingdom. because he had slain the prophets of God. ¹⁵ And when the false prophets, who were with Ahaziah the son of Alam^[23] Geʽez text: Joel and their teacher Jallarias of Mount Islal,^[24] Geʽez text: Islal had heard — ¹⁶ Now he was a brother of Ẓedekiah — when they persuaded Ahaziah the king of Gomorrah^[25] Geʽez text: Agwaron. and killed^[26] Geʽez text lacks “killed.” Micaiah.
^3:1 καὶ Βεχειρὰ ἔγνω, καὶ εἷδὲν τὸν τόπον τοῦ Ἠσαίου καὶ τῶν προφητῶν τῶν μετ’ αὐτοῦ. οὗτος γὰρ ἦν οἰκῶν ἐν τῇ χώρᾳ Βηθλεέμ, καὶ ἐκολλήθη τῷ Μανασσῇ. καὶ αὐτὸς ἦν ψευδοπροφητεύων ἐν Ἱερουσαλήμ, καὶ πολλοὶ ἐξ Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἐκολλήθησαν πρὸς αὐτόν. καὶ αὖτὸς δὲ ἦν ἀπὸ Σαμαρίας. ² καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ ἐλθεῖν Ἀλγασὰρ Ἀσσυρίων βασιλέα καὶ αἰχμαλωτίσαι τὴν Σαμαρίαν καὶ λαβεῖν τὰς ἐννέα ἥμισυ φυλὰς ἐν αἱχμαλωσίᾳ καὶ ἀπενέγκαι αὐτοὺς εἷς ὄρη Μήδων καὶ ποταμῶν καὶ Γωζάν, ³ οὗτος ἦν νεώτερος, καὶ ἔφυγεν καὶ ἦλθενεἰς Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἡμέραις Ἑζεκώου βασιλέως Ἰούδα. καὶ οὐκ ἐπάτει εἰς Σαμαρίαν ἐν ὁδῷ τοῦπατρὸς αὐτοῦ, ὅτι τὸν Ἑζεκίαν ἐφοβεῖτο.	^3:1 ወበልኪራ፡ ለበወ፡ ወርእየ፡ መካነ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ወዘነቢያት፡ ዘእለ፡ ምስሌሁ፡ እስመ፡ ውእቱ፡ ይነብር፡ በብሔር፡ ዘቤት፡ ልሔም፡ ወተጸምደ፡ ሲምናሌ፡ ወውእቱ፡ ይትኔበይ፡ ሐሰተ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ወብዙኃን፡ እምኢየሩሳሌም፡ እለ፡ ኀብሩ፡ ምስሌሁ፡ ወውእቱስ፡ እምሰማርያ፡ ውእቱ። ² ወኮነ፡ በዘ፡ መጽአ፡ አለገር፡ ዘጋር፡ ንጉሠ፡ አሶርያ፡ ወዔወዋ፡ ለስማርድ፡ ወነሥአ፡ ተስዓቲሁ፡ ሕዝበ፡ በዔዋ፡ ወወሰዶሙ፡ ውስተ፡ በሓውርተ፡ ሜዶን፡ ወአፍላገ፡ ጠዞን፡ ³ ዝውእቱ፡ ወሬዛ፡ ተንጥአ፡ ወመጽአ፡ ኢየሩሳሌም፡ በመዋዕለ፡ ሕዝቅደስ፡ ንጉሠ፡ ይሁዳ᎓ወኢሖረ፡ በፍኖተ፡ አቡሁ፡ ዘሰማርያ፡ እስመ፡ ሕዝቅያስሃ፡ ይፈርህ።	^3:1 וּבְחִירַ֨ע בִּ֜ין וַיַּ֗רְא אֶת־מְק֨וֹם יְשַׁעְיָ֤הוּ וְהַנְּבִיאִים֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר אִ֔תּוֹ כִּ֨י ה֥וּא יָשַׁ֛ב בְּאֶ֥רֶץ בֵּית־לֶ֖חֶם וַיִּדְבַּ֣ק בִּמְנַשֶּׁ֑ה וַיִּנָּבֵ֤א שֶׁ֙קֶר֙ בִּי֣רוּשָׁלַ֔יִם וְרַבִּ֧ים מִֹבְּנֵי־יְרוּשָׁלַ֛יִם חָ֥בְרוּ ל֖וֹ וְה֥וּא שֹׁמְרוֹנִֽי׃ ² וַיְהִ֨י בְּבִיאַ֤ת שַׁלְמַנְאֶ֙סֶר֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ אַשּׁ֔וּר וַיִּלְכֹּ֖ד אֶת־שֹׁמְר֑וֹן וַיֶּ֨גֶל אֶת־תִּשְׁעַ֤ת הַמַּטּוֹת֙ וְאֶת־חֲצִ֣י הַמַּטֶּ֔ה בְּהָרֵ֥י מָדָ֖י וּנְהָר֥וֹת גּוֹזָֽן׃ ³ וְאוֹת֣וֹ ׀ בִּהְיוֹת֣וֹ נַ֗עַר וַיִּבְרַ֤ח וַיָּבוֹא֙ יְר֣וּשָׁלַ֔יְמָה בִּימֵ֥י חִזְקִ֖יָּהוּ מֶ֣לֶךְ יְהוּדָ֑ה וְלֹא֩ הָלַ֨ךְ בְּדַרְכֵ֤י אָבִיו֙ הַשֹּׁ֣מְרוֹנִ֔י כִּ֥י יָרֵ֖א אֶת־חִזְקִיָּֽהוּ׃	^3:1 And Becheira recognized and saw the place of Isaiah and the prophets who were with him; for he dwelt in the region of Bethlehem, and was an adherent of Manasseh. And he prophesied falsely in Jerusalem, and many belonging to Jerusalem were allied with him, and he was a Samarian. ² And it came to pass when Shalmaneser,^[27] Geʽez text: Alagar Zagar. Greek text: Algazar. Both are probably misreadings of Alnasar, the variant of Shalmaneser found above in note 21. king of Assyria, had come, he captured Samaria and led the nine and a half tribes^[28] Geʽez text lacks “the nine and a half tribes” into captivity to the mountains of the Medes and the rivers of Gozan;^[29] Geʽez text: Ṭazon. See II Kings 17:6. The word “mountains” here, harei, is very close to II Kings 17:6’s “cities” — ‘arei. ³ This one,^[30] i.e. Becheira while still a youth, had escaped and come to Jerusalem in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, but he did not walk in the ways of his father the Samarian; for he^[31] The father. Interestingly enough for a Jewish text, Becheira’s Samaritan ancestry is not considered an explanation for his behavior, but rather his father is said to walk in good ways. Archaeological evidence shows large numbers of refugees from the Northern Kingdom did, in fact, move to Judah after the Assyrian conquest. feared Hezekiah.
^3:4 καὶ εὑρέθη ἐν τῷ χρόνῳ Ἑξεκώυ λαλῶν λόγους ἀνομίας ἐν Ἱερουσαμήμ, ⁵ καὶ κατηγορήθη ὑπὸ τῶν παίδων Ἑζεκίου καὶ ἔφυγεν εἰς τὴν χώραν Βηθλεέμ. καὶ ἔπεισαν.	^3:4 ወተረከበ፡ በመዋዕለ፡ ሕዝቅያስ፡ እንዘ፡ ይትናገር፡ ነገራተ፡ ዐመፃ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ⁵ ወአስተዋደይዎ፡ ደቅ፡ ሕዝቅያስ፡ ወተኀጥአ፡ ብሔረ፡ ቤተ፡ ልሔም፡ ወአእመነ።	^3:4 וַיְהִ֖י בִּימֵ֣י חִזְקִיָּ֑הוּ וַיִּמָּצֵ֧א לְדַבֵּ֛ר דִּבְרֵ֥י חָמָ֖ס בִּירוּשָׁלָֽיִם׃ ⁵ וַיַּרְשִׁיע֖וּהוּ עַבְדֵ֣י חִזְקִיָּ֑הוּ וַיִּבְרַ֧ח בְּרִיחָת֛וֹ אַ֥רְצָה בֵּית־לֶ֖חֶם וַיְפַתּֽוּ׃	^3:4 And in the days of Hezekiah he was found to speak words of lawlessness in Jerusalem. ⁵ And the servants of Hezekiah accused him, and he made his escape to the region of Bethlehem. And they persuaded.^[32] Text is defective. ^[33] Where the text is defective there also appears to be a gap in the story — between the days of Hezekiah when Becheira escapes to the region of Bethlehem (where Isaiah and the other prophets reside) and the days of Manasseh (when Becheria betrays Isaiah). Speculating, the reconstructed verse might read as follows: “And [in the days of Manasseh] they [the princes of Judah and Jerusalem] persuaded Becheira to return to Jerusalem and betray Isaiah.” –Aharon Varady
^3:6 καὶ κατηγόρησεν Μελχειρὰ τοῦ Ἠσαίου καὶ τῶν προφητῶν λέγων ὅτι Ἦσαίας καὶ οἱ προφῆται οἱ μετὰ Ἠσαίου προφητεύουσιν ἐπὶ Ἱερουσαλὴμ καὶ ἐπὶ τὰς πόλεις Ἰούδα καὶ Βενιαμεὶν ὅτι πορεύσονται ἐν γαλεάγραις καὶ ἐν πέδαις… ἀπελεύσῃ, ⁷ καὶ αὐτοὶ ψευδοπροφητεύουσιν καὶ τὸν Ἰσραὴλ καὶ τὸν Ἰούδαν [καὶ τὸν Βενιαμεὶν αὐτοὶ μισοῦσιν, καὶ ὃ λόγος αὐτῶν κακὸς ἐπὶ τὸν Ἰούδαν καὶ τὸν Ἴσραήλ.] ⁸ καὶ αὐτὸς Ἠσαίας εἶπεν αὐτοῖς, βλέπω πλέον Μωυσῇ τοῦ προφήτου. ⁹ εἶπεν γὰρ Μωυσῆς ὅτι οὐκ ὄψεται ἄνθρωπος τὸν θεὸν καὶ ζήσεται, Ἠσαίας δὲ εἶπεν εἶδον τὸν θεὸν καὶ ἰδοὺ ζῶ. ¹⁰ βασιλεῦ γίνωσκε ὅτι ψευδής ἐστιν. καὶ τὴν Ἱερουσαλὴμ Σόδομα ἐκάλεσεν, καὶ τοὺς ἄρχοντας Ἰούδα καὶ Ἰσραὴλ λαὸν Γομόρρας προσηγόρευσεν. καὶ πολλὰ κατηγόρει ἐπὶ τοῦ Μανασσῇ καὶ τῶν προφητῶν. ¹¹ καὶ ἐκάθισεν Βελιὰρ ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ τοῦ Μανασσῆ καὶ ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ τῶν ἀρχόντων Ἰούδα καὶ Βενιαμεὶν καὶ τῶν εὐνούχων καὶ τῶν συμβούλων τοῦ βασιλέὡς ¹² καὶ ἤρεσαν αὖτῷ οἱ λόγοι τοῦ Βελχειρὰ καὶ ἀπέστειλεν καὶ ἐκράτησεν τὸν Ἠσαίαν.	^3:6 ወአስተዋደዮ፡ በልኪራ፡ ለኢሳይያስ፡ ወለነቢያት፡ እለ፡ ምስሌሁ፡ እንዘ፡ ይብል፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ወእለ፡ ምስሌሁ፡ ይትኔበዩ፡ ላዕለ፡ ኢየሩሳሌም፡ ወላዕለ፡ አህጉረ፡ ይሁዳ፡ ከመ፡ ይማስና፡ ወብንያምኒ፡ ከመ፡ የሐውር፡ በፄዋ፡ ወላዕሌከኒ፡ እግዚኦ፡ ንጉሥ፡ ከመ፡ በመልገብት፡ ወበመዋቅሕተ፡ ኀፂን፡ ተሐውር፤ ⁷ ወእሙንቱሰ፡ ሐሰተ፡ ይትኔበዩ፡ ለእስራኤል፡ ወይሁዳ። ⁸ ወለሊሁ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ይቤ፡ እሬኢ፡ ፈድፋደ፡ እሙሴ፡ ነቢይ፤ ⁹ ወሙሴስ፡ ይቤ፡ አልቦ፡ ብእሲ፡ ዘይሬእዮ፡ ለእግዚአብሔር፡ ወየሐዩ፡ ወኢሳይያስ፡ ይቤ፡ ጸነ፡ ርኢክዎ፡ ለእግዚአብ፡ ሔር፡ ወነዋ፡ ሕያው፡ አነ። ¹⁰ ንጉሥ፡ አእምርኬ፡ ከመ፡ ነቢያተ፡ ሐሰት፡ እሙንቱ፤ ወለኢየሩሳሌምኒ፡ ሰዶም፡ ሰመያ፡ ወለመላእክት፡ ይሁዳኒ፡ ወኢየሩሳሌም፡ ሕዝበ፡ ገሞራ፡ ረሰዮሙ። ውብዙኀ፡ አስተዋደዮ፡ ለኢሳይያስ፡ ወለነቢያት፡ በኀበ፡ ምናሌ። ¹¹ ወነበረ፡ ብልያር፡ ውስተ፡ ልስ፡ ምናሴ፡ ወውስተ፡ ልሰ፡ መላእክተ፡ ይሁዳ፡ ወብንደም፡ ወዘኅፅዋን፡ ወዘመምከራነ፡ ንጉሥ። ¹² ወአደሞ፡ ፈድፋደ፡ ሃገረ፡ ብልኪራ፡ ወፈነወ፡ ወአሐዞ፡ በኢሳይያስ።	^3:6 וַיְרַגֵּ֣ל בְּחִירַ֣ע אֶת־יְשַׁעְיָ֮הוּ֮ וְאֶת־הַנְּבִיאִ֣ים אֲשֶׁ֣ר אִתּוֹ֒ לֵאמֹ֗ר יְשַׁעְיָ֣הוּ ׀ וְאֵ֣לֶּה ׀ אֲשֶׁ֣ר אִ֡תּוֹ מְ֠נַבְּאִ֠ים עַל־יְרוּשָׁלַ֨יִם וְעַל־עָרֵ֤י יְהוּדָה֙ כִּ֣י יֶחֶרְב֔וּ וְגַ֛ם עַל־בִּ֥נְיָמִ֖ין כִּ֣י יִגַ֑לוּ וְגַ֤ם עָלֶ֙יךָ֙ אֲדֹנִ֣י הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ כִּ֚י תֵּלֵ֔ךְ נֶאֱסַ֥ר בְּחוֹחִ֖ים וּבְכַבְלֵ֥י בַּרְזֶֽל׃ ⁷ וְהֵ֣מָּה ׀ וּמְנַבְּאִ֣ים בְּשֶׁ֗קֶר עַ֤ל יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ וְעַ֣ל יְהוּדָ֔ה וְשׂוֹנְאִ֖ים אֶת־בִּנְיָמִ֑ין וּדְבָר֣וֹ לַשָּׁ֔וְא עַ֥ל יְהוּדָ֖ה וְעַ֥ל יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ ⁸ וִישַׁעְיָ֙הוּ֙ ה֣וּא אָמַ֔ר רוֹאֶ֥ה אֲנִ֛י יוֹתֵ֖ר מִמֹּשֶׁ֥ה הַנָּבִֽיא׃ ⁹ כִּ֚י אָמַ֣ר מֹשֶׁ֔ה לֹא־יִרְאֵ֛הוּ הָאָדָ֥ם אֶת־הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים וָחַ֑י וִישַׁעְיָ֣הוּ אָמַ֗ר רָאִ֙יתִי֙ אֶת־הָ֣אֱלֹהִ֔ים וְהִנֵּ֖ה חַ֥י אָֽנִי׃ ¹⁰ וְיָדַעְתָּ֨ הַמֶּ֜לֶךְ כִּ֣י ׀ מְשַׁקֵּ֣ר ה֗וּא וַיִּקְרָ֤א לִירוּשָׁלַ֙יִם֙ סְדֹ֔ם וּלְשָׂרֵ֤י יְהוּדָה֙ וִיר֣וּשָׁלַ֔יִם מִלֵּ֥ל לִהְי֖וֹת עַ֣ם עֲמֹרָ֑ה וַיָּבִ֨יא דִּבּ֤וֹת רַבּוֹת֙ עַל־יְשַׁעְיָ֣הוּ וְעַל־הַנְּבִיאִ֔ים לִפְנֵ֖י מְנַשֶּֽׁה׃ ¹¹ כִּ֛י יָשַׁ֥ב בְּלִיַּ֖עַל בְּלֵ֣ב מְנַשֶּׁ֑ה וּבְלִבְב֨וֹת שָׂרֵ֤י יְהוּדָה֙ וּבִ֣נְיָמִ֔ין וְהַסָּ֣רִיסִ֔ים וְרוֹאֵ֖י פְּנֵ֥י הַמֶּֽלֶךְ׃ ¹² וַיִּיטְבוּ֙ דִּבְרֵ֣י בְחִירַ֔ע בְּעֵינָ֖יו מְאֹ֑ד וַיִּשְׁלַ֖ח וַיֹּ֥אחַז בִּישַׁעְיָֽהוּ׃	^3:6 And Becheira accused Isaiah and the prophets who were with him, saying: “Isaiah and those who are with him prophesy against Jerusalem and against the cities of Judah that they will be laid waste, and Benjamin also that they will go into captivity, and also against you, o lord king, that you will go bound with hooks^[34] Find II Chronicles 33:11, where Manasseh is, in fact, bound with hooks and exiled. and iron chains. ⁷ But they prophesy falsely against Israel and Judah, and they hate Benjamin, and their word is worthless against Judah and Israel.^[35] Geʽez text lacks everything from “and they hate Benjamin” on. ⁸ And Isaiah himself has said: ‘I see more than Moses the prophet.’ ⁹ For Moses said: ‘No man can see God and live;'^[36] Exodus 33:20, rephrased to be in the third-person. but Isaiah has said: ‘I have seen God and behold I live.'^[37] A purposeful misquote of Isaiah 6:5. ¹⁰ Know, therefore, o king, that he is lying. And he has also called Jerusalem Sodom, and the princes of Judah and Jerusalem he has declared to be the people of Gomorrah.”^[38] Find Isaiah 1:10 And he brought many accusations against Isaiah and^[39] Greek text lacks “Isaiah and” the prophets before Manasseh.^[40] Cf. Yevamot 49b. ¹¹ For Belial dwelt in the heart of Manasseh and in the heart of the princes of Judah and Benjamin and of the eunuchs and of the counselors of the king. ¹² And the words of Becheira pleased him exceedingly,^[41] Geʽez text lacks “exceedingly” and he sent and seized Isaiah.^[42] In Rabbinic sources, Isaiah flees and finds sanctuary in either a cedar tree (Talmud y. Sanhedrin 10:2:13, b. Yevamot 49b) or a carob tree (Targumic Tosefta to Isaiah 66:1). This story is also found summarized in ibn Kathir’s Qaṣaṣ al-Anbiyā’ in the name of ibn Ishaaq.
	^5:1 በእንተ፡ እላንቱ፡ እንከ፡ ራእያት፡ ተምዑ፡ ብርያል፡ ላዕለ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ወነበረ፡ ውስተ፡ ልበ፡ ምናሴ፡ ወወሠሮ፡ ለኢሳይያስ፡ በሞሠርተ፡ ዕፅ። ² ወኢሳይያስ፡ እንዘ፡ ይትወሠር፡ ቆመ፡ መስተዋድዮ፡ ብልኪራ፡ ወነቢያት፡ ሐሰት፡ ኵሎሙ፡ ቆሙ፡ እንዘ፡ ይስሕቁ፡ ወይትፌሥሑ፡ ላዕለ፡ ኢሳይያስ። ³ ወበልኪራ፡ በምኬምቤኩስ፡ ቆመ፡ ቅድመ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ እንዘ፡ [ይስሕቁ፡] ያክምስስ። ⁴ ወይቤ፡ በልኪራ፡ ሰኢሳይያስ፡ በል፡ ሐሰውኩ፡ ኵሎ፡ ዘተናገርኩ፡ ወፍናዊሁኒ፡ ለምናሴ፡ ሠናያት፡ ወርቱዓት፡ እማንቱ፡ ⁵ ወፍናዊሁኒ፡ ሰበልኪራ፡ ሠናይት፡ ውእቱ፡ ወዘእለ፡ ምስሌሁ። ⁶ ወዘንተ፡ ይቤሎ፡ ሶበ፡ እንዘ፡ ይትወሠር። ⁷ ወኢሳይያስ፡ ሀሎ፡ በራእዩ፡ እግዚእ፡ ወከሡታት፡ አዕይንቲሁ፡ ወኢይሬእዮሙ። ⁸ ወበልኪራ፡ ዘንተ፡ ተናገሮ፡ ለኢሳይያስ፡ በል፡ ዘእብለከ፡ ወእመይጥ፡ ልቦሙ፡ ወአጌብሮ፡ ሰምናሴ፡ ወለመላእክተ፡ ይሁዳ፡ ወለሕዝብ፡ ወለኵላ፡ ኢየሩሳሌም፡ ከመ፡ ይስግዱ፡ ለኪ። ⁹ ወአውሥአ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ ወይቤ፡ እመስ፡ እምኀቤየኑ፡ ውእቱ፡ ብሂል፡ ውጉዝ፡ ወርጉም፡ አንተ፡ ወኵሉ፡ ንይላቲከ፡ ወኵሉ᎓ቤትከ፡ ¹⁰ እስመ፡ አልብከ፡ ፈድፋደ፡ ዘትነሥእ፡ እማእሱ፡ ሥጋየ:።	^5:1 וַיִּ֨חַר אַ֤ף בְּלִיַּ֙עַל֙ בִּישַׁעְיָ֔הוּ וַיֵּ֖שֶׁב בְּלֵ֣ב מְנַשֶּׁ֑ה וַיְחַטֵּ֥ב אֹת֖וֹ בִּמְגֵ֥רַת עֵֽץ׃ ² וַיְהִ֗י בַּחֲטָבַ֤ת יְשַׁעְיָהוּ֙ לַחֲלָקִ֔ים וַיָּ֥קׇם בְּחִירַ֖ע וַיְרַגְּלֵ֑הוּ וַיָּקֻ֙מוּ֙ כׇּל־נְבִיאֵ֣י הַשֶּׁ֔קֶר וַיִּשְׂחֲק֥וּ וַיִּשְׂמְח֖וּ עַל־יְשַׁעְיָֽהוּ׃ ³ וַיָּ֥קׇם בְּחִירַ֖ע בְּעֶזְרַ֣ת מַתַּנְבֹּ֑הוּ לִפְנֵ֥י יְשַׁעְיָ֖הוּ לֹעֵֽג׃ ⁴ וַיֹּ֥אמֶר בְּחִירַ֖ע אֶל־יְשַׁעְיָ֑הוּ אֱמֹ֗ר שִׁקַּ֙רְתִּי֙ בְּכׇל־אֲשֶׁ֣ר דִּבַּרְתִּ֔י וְכֵ֛ן דִּבְרֵ֥י מְנַשֶּׁ֖ה טוֹבִ֥ים וִישָׁרִֽים׃ ⁵ וְגַ֛ם דִּבְרֵ֥י בְּחִירַ֖ע וַעֲדָת֑וֹ טוֹבִֽים׃ ⁶ וְכֵ֖ן אָ֣מַר ל֑וֹ בִּתְחִלַּ֖ת חֲטָבָת֥וֹ לַחֲלָקִֽים׃ ⁷ וַיְהִ֥י יְשַׁעְיָ֖הוּ בְּמַרְאֶ֣ה יְהֹוָ֑ה כִּי־עֵינָ֥יו פְּתוּחִ֖ים וְלֹ֥א רָאָֽם׃ ⁸ וַיְדַ֨בֵּר כֵּ֤ן בְּחִירַע֙ אֶל־יְשַׁעְיָ֔הוּ אֱמֹ֛ר כׇּל־אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֹמַ֖ר אֵלֶ֑יךָ וַהֲשִׁיב֣וֹתִי אֶת־לְבָבָ֗ם וְאָנַ֤סְתִּי אֶת־מְנַשֶּׁה֙ וְאֶת־שָׂרֵ֣י יְהוּדָ֔ה וְאֶת־הָעָ֕ם וְאֶת־כׇּל־יְר֥וּשָׁלַ֖יִם לִכְבֹדֶֽךָ׃ ⁹ וַיַּ֥עַן יְשַׁעְיָ֖הוּ וַיֹּאמַ֑ר ע֚וֹד כִּ֣י אֲדַבֵּ֔ר אָר֧וּר וּמְקֻלָּ֛ל אַתָּ֥ה וְכׇל־חֵילְךָ֖ וְכׇל־בֵּיתֶֽךָ׃ ¹⁰ כִּי־לֹ֥א תּוּכַ֖ל לָקַ֣חַת מְא֑וּמָה כִּ֖י אִם־ע֥וֹר גּוּפִֽי׃	^5:1 ^[43] The first clause of the Ge’ez text here reads “ and and therefore, on accont of these visions….” I have chosen not to translate this seeing as I believe it to be a Christian interpolation meant to harmonize the Jewish origin of the text with the Christian apocalypse inserted from 3:13 to the end of chapter 4. Belial was enraged with Isaiah, and he dwelt in the heart of Manasseh and he sawed him apart with a wooden saw. ² And when Isaiah was being sawn apart, Becheira stood up, accusing him, and all the false prophets stood up, laughing and rejoicing because of Isaiah. ³ And Becheira, with the aid of Mechembechus,^[44] Assumed to be the same as Mantanbuchus (2:4 above) and translated in the same manner as matan-bohu. stood up before Isaiah, deriding. ⁴ And Becheira said to Isaiah: ‘Say, ‘I have lied in all that I have spoken, and likewise the ways of Manasseh are good and right. ⁵ And the ways also of Becheira and of his associates are good.’” ⁶ And this he said to him when he began to be sawn apart. ⁷ But Isaiah was in a vision of the Lord, and though his eyes were open, he did not see them. ⁸ And Becheira spoke thus to Isaiah: “Say what I say to you and I will turn their hearts, and I will compel Manasseh and the princes of Judah and the people and all Jerusalem to revere you.” ⁹ And Isaiah answered and said: “As long as I can speak — Damned and accursed are you and all your powers and all your house. ¹⁰ For you cannot take anything but the skin of my body!”
	^5:11 ወአኀዝዎ፡ ወወሠርዎ፡ ለኢሳይያስ፡ ወልድ፡ አሞጽ፡ በሞሠርተ፡ ዕፅ። ¹² ወምናሴ፡ ወበልኪራ፡ ወነቢያተ፡ ሐሰት፡ ወመላእክት፡ ወሕዝብ፡ ወኵሉ፡ ቆሙ፡ እንዘ፡ ይሬእዩ። ¹³ ወበነቢያት፡ እለ፡ ምስሌሁ፡ ይቤ፡ ዘእንበለ፡ ይትወሠር፡ ሖሩ፡ ብሔረ፡ ጢሮስ፡ ወሲዶና፡ እስመ፡ ሊተ፡ ለባሕቲትየ፡ ቶስሐ፡ እግዚአበሔር፡ ጽዋዐ።	^5:11 וַיֹּאחֲז֧וּ וַיַּחְטְב֛וּ אֶת־יְשַׁעְיָ֥הוּ בֶן־אָמ֖וֹץ בִּמְגֵ֥רַת עֵֽץ׃ ¹² וַיַּעַמְד֖וּ וַיִּרא֑וּ מְנַשֶּׁ֤ה וּבְחִירַע֙ וּנְבִיאֵ֣י הַשֶּׁ֔קֶר וְהַשָּׂרִ֖ים וְהָעָֽם׃ ¹³ וְאֶל־הַנְּבִיאִ֣ים ׀ אֲשֶׁ֣ר אִתּ֗וֹ אָמַ֕ר לִפְנֵ֥י נֶחְטַ֖ב לַחֲלָקִ֑ים לְכ֤וּ כֻּלְּכֶם֙ לְאֶ֣רֶץ צוּר־וְצִיד֔וֹן כִּ֨י עָלַ֥י לְבַדִּ֛י מָסַ֥ךְ הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים אֶת־הַכּ֥וֹס הַזֹּֽאת׃	^5:11 And they seized and sawed apart Isaiah, the son of Amoẓ, with a wooden saw. ¹² And Manasseh and Becheira and the false prophets and the princes and the people all stood looking on. ¹³ And to the prophets who were with him he said before he had been sawn apart: “Go, you all, to the region of Tyre and Sidon; for me alone has God mixed this cup.”
	^5:14 ወኢሳይያስ፡ እንዘ፡ ይትወሠር፡ ኢጸርሐ፡ ወኢበከየ፡ አላ፡ አፉሁ፡ ይትናገር፡ ሰመንፈስ፡ ቅዱስ፡ እስከ፡ ተወሠረ፡ ሰከልኡ። ¹⁵ ዘንተ፡ ገብረ፡ ብልያር፡ ለኢሳይያስ፡ በእደ፡ በልኪራ፡ ወበእደ፡ ምናሴ፡ እስመ፡ ሀሎ፡ ስማየል፡ በሀቢይ፡ መዓት፡ ላዕለ፡ ኢሳይያስ፡ እመዋዕለ፡ ሕዝቅያስ፡ ንጉሠ፡ ይሁዳ፡ በእንተ፡ ነገራት፡ ዘርእየ᎓በእንተ፡ ፍቁር፡ ¹⁶ ወበእንተ፡ ሀጕለ፡ ሰማየል፡ ዘርእየ፡ በእግዚእ፡ እንዘ፡ ዓዲ፡ ይነግሥ፡ ሕዝቅያስ፡ አቡሁ። ወገብረ፡ በከመ፡ ፈቃዱ፡ ለሰይጣን።	^5:14 וַיְהִ֞י בַּחֲטָבַ֤ת יְשַׁעְיָ֙הוּ֙ לַחֲלָקִ֔ים לֹ֥א זָעַ֖ק וְלֹ֣א בָּכָ֑ה כִּ֗י שְׂפָתָ֤יו אָמְרוּ֙ בְּר֣וּחַ קְדֻשָּׁ֔ה עַ֖ד כִּי־נֶחְטַ֥ב לִשְׁנַֽיִם׃ ¹⁵ וַיַּעַשׂ־כֵּ֨ן בְּלִיַּ֜עַל אֶל־יְשַׁעְיָ֗הוּ בְּיַ֣ד בְּחִירַע֮ וּמְנַשֶּׁה֒ כִּי֩ חָ֨רָה אַ֤ף סַמָּאֵל֙ בִּישַׁעְיָ֔הוּ מִימֵ֥י חִזְקִיָּ֖הוּ מֶ֣לֶךְ יְהוּדָ֑ה עַל־אֹדוֹת֙ הַדְּבָרִ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר רָאָ֖ה עַל־דּוֹדִי׃ ¹⁶ וְעַ֣ל ׀ חׇרְבָּ֣ן סַמָּאֵ֗ל אֲשֶׁ֤ר רָאָה֙ בְּיַ֣ד יְהֹוָ֔ה בַּמַּלְכ֥וּת חִזְקִיָּ֖הוּ אָבִ֑יו וַיַּ֖עַשׂ כִּרְצ֥וֹן הַשָּׂטָֽן׃	^5:14 And when Isaiah was being sawn apart, he neither cried aloud nor wept, but his lips spoke with the holy spirit until he was sawn in two. ¹⁵ This, Belial did to Isaiah through Becheira and Manasseh; for Sammael was very enraged against Isaiah from the days of Hezekiah, king of Judah, on account of the things which he had seen regarding the Beloved. ¹⁶ And on account of the destruction of Sammael, which he had seen through the LORD, while Hezekiah his father was still king. And he did according to the will of Satan.

Notes

Notes
1	Geʽez text: Josab. Referring to Sha’ar Jashub, the son of Isaiah mentioned in Isaiah 7:3
2	The last clause of the Ge’ez text here reads “and the persecution and ascension of the Beloved.” I have chosen not to translate this seeing as I believe it to be a Christian interpolation into the text.
3	Find note 1, above.
4	i.e. Hezekiah
5	Find note 1, above.
6	Geʽez text: Beliar. Changed back to the Masoretic form.
7	Of unclear origin, suggested to be a cognate of the Zoroastrian evil spirit Angra Mainyu. Here translated as “matan bohu” = gift of chaos.
8	Greek fragment begins here.
9	Geʽez text adds: “and adultery”
10	Geʽez text adds: “Belakira and”
11	Geʽez text: Tobiah
12	Geʽez text: John
13	Not found in Geʽez text
14	Greek fragment is missing the first half of this verse.
15	Geʽez text: Josab. Referring to Sha’ar Jashub, the son of Isaiah mentioned in Isaiah 7:3
16	The Greek text is missing “and having cooked them, together there”
17	Compare with II Maccabees 5:27 — ᾿Ιούδας δὲ ὁ Μακκαβαῖος δέκατός που γενηθεὶς καὶ ἀναχωρήσας εἰς τὴν ἔρημον, θηρίων τρόπον ἐν τοῖς ὄρεσι διέζη σὺν τοῖς μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὴν χορτώδη τροφὴν σιτούμενοι διετέλουν πρὸς τὸ μὴ μετασχεῖν τοῦ μολυσμοῦ. (“But Judas Maccabeus, with about nine others, got away to the wilderness, and kept himself and his companions alive in the mountains as wild animals do; they continued to live on what grew wild, so that they might not share in the defilement.” — NRSV translation) — Aharon Varady
18	This name is found in many different spellings, Some include: Belicheiar, Becheira, Melcheira, Belchira, Bechira, Belkira, Balkira, Melkira, Malkira, Belch, Melchias, and Becheiras. The most common suggested etymology is from the Hebrew בְּחִירַע – chosen of evil – and thus for consistency’s sake I’ve chosen this transcription.
19	Geʽez text: Bethlehem.
20	Greek text: Iemmada. Geʽez text: Amada. But Micaiah and Ẓedekiah are both mentioned in II Kings 22 and I’m following the Masoretic spellings here.
21	Possibly a scribal error for Ahab, or alternatively for Jehoram, but found in both text variants.
22	Geʽez text: Leba-Nasr. Greek text: Alnasar. Shalmaneser was the king of Assyria who conquered the northern kingdom.
23	Geʽez text: Joel
24	Geʽez text: Islal
25	Geʽez text: Agwaron.
26	Geʽez text lacks “killed.”
27	Geʽez text: Alagar Zagar. Greek text: Algazar. Both are probably misreadings of Alnasar, the variant of Shalmaneser found above in note 21.
28	Geʽez text lacks “the nine and a half tribes”
29	Geʽez text: Ṭazon. See II Kings 17:6. The word “mountains” here, harei, is very close to II Kings 17:6’s “cities” — ‘arei.
30	i.e. Becheira
31	The father. Interestingly enough for a Jewish text, Becheira’s Samaritan ancestry is not considered an explanation for his behavior, but rather his father is said to walk in good ways. Archaeological evidence shows large numbers of refugees from the Northern Kingdom did, in fact, move to Judah after the Assyrian conquest.
32	Text is defective.
33	Where the text is defective there also appears to be a gap in the story — between the days of Hezekiah when Becheira escapes to the region of Bethlehem (where Isaiah and the other prophets reside) and the days of Manasseh (when Becheria betrays Isaiah). Speculating, the reconstructed verse might read as follows: “And [in the days of Manasseh] they [the princes of Judah and Jerusalem] persuaded Becheira to return to Jerusalem and betray Isaiah.” –Aharon Varady
34	Find II Chronicles 33:11, where Manasseh is, in fact, bound with hooks and exiled.
35	Geʽez text lacks everything from “and they hate Benjamin” on.
36	Exodus 33:20, rephrased to be in the third-person.
37	A purposeful misquote of Isaiah 6:5.
38	Find Isaiah 1:10
39	Greek text lacks “Isaiah and”
40	Cf. Yevamot 49b.
41	Geʽez text lacks “exceedingly”
42	In Rabbinic sources, Isaiah flees and finds sanctuary in either a cedar tree (Talmud y. Sanhedrin 10:2:13, b. Yevamot 49b) or a carob tree (Targumic Tosefta to Isaiah 66:1). This story is also found summarized in ibn Kathir’s Qaṣaṣ al-Anbiyā’ in the name of ibn Ishaaq.
43	The first clause of the Ge’ez text here reads “ and and therefore, on accont of these visions….” I have chosen not to translate this seeing as I believe it to be a Christian interpolation meant to harmonize the Jewish origin of the text with the Christian apocalypse inserted from 3:13 to the end of chapter 4.
44	Assumed to be the same as Mantanbuchus (2:4 above) and translated in the same manner as matan-bohu.