The archangel Michael went down, and took Abraham upon a chariot of the
cherubim, and lifted him up into the air of heaven, and led him upon
the cloud, together with sixty angels, and Abraham ascended upon the
chariot over all the earth, and saw all things that are below on the
earth, both good and bad. Looking down upon the earth, he saw a man
committing adultery with a wedded woman, and turning to Michael he
said, "Send fire from heaven to consume them." Straightway there came
down fire and consumed them, for God had commanded Michael to do
whatsoever Abraham should ask him to do. He looked again, and he saw
thieves digging through a house, and Abraham said, "Let wild beasts
come out of the desert, and tear them in pieces," and immediately wild
beasts came out of the desert and devoured them. Again he looked down,
and he saw people preparing to commit murder, and he said, "Let the
earth open and swallow them," and, as he spoke, the earth swallowed
them alive. Then God spoke to Michael: "Turn away Abraham to his own
house and let him not go round the whole earth, because he has no
compassion on sinners, but I have compassion on sinners, that they may
turn and live and repent of their sins, and be saved."
So Michael turned the chariot, and brought Abraham to the place of
judgment of all souls. Here he saw two gates, the one broad and the
other narrow, the narrow gate that of the just, which leads to life,
they that enter through it go into Paradise. The broad gate is that of
sinners, which leads to destruction and eternal punishment. Then
Abraham wept, saying, "Woe is me, what shall I do? for I am a man big
of body, and how shall I be able to enter by the narrow gate?" Michael
answered, and said to Abraham, "Fear not, nor grieve, for thou shalt
enter by it unhindered, and all they who are like thee." Abraham,
perceiving that a soul was adjudged to be set in the midst, asked
Michael the reason for it, and Michael answered, "Because the judge
found its sins and its righteousness equal, he neither committed it to
judgment nor to be saved." Abraham said to Michael, "Let us pray for
this soul, and see whether God will hear us," and when they rose up
from their prayer, Michael informed Abraham that the soul was saved by
the prayer, and was taken by an angel and carried up to Paradise.
Abraham said to Michael, "Let us yet call upon the Lord and supplicate
His compassion and entreat His mercy for the souls of the sinners whom
I formerly, in my anger, cursed and destroyed, whom the earth devoured,
and the wild beasts tore in pieces, and the fire consumed, through my
words. Now I know that I have sinned before the Lord our God."
After the joint prayer of the archangel and Abraham, there came a voice
from heaven, saying, "Abraham, Abraham, I have hearkened to thy voice
and thy prayer, and I forgive thee thy sin, and those whom thou
thinkest that I destroyed, I have called up and brought them into life
by My exceeding kindness, because for a season I have requited them in
judgment, and those whom I destroy living upon earth, I will not
requite in death."
When Michael brought Abraham back to his house, they found Sarah dead.
Not seeing what had become of Abraham, she was consumed with grief and
gave up her soul. Though Michael had fulfilled Abraham's wish, and had
shown him all the earth and the judgment and recompense, he still
refused to surrender his soul to Michael, and the archangel again
ascended to heaven, and said unto the Lord: "Thus speaks Abraham, I
will not go with thee, and I refrain from laying my hands on him,
because from the beginning he was Thy friend, and he has done all
things pleasing in Thy sight. There is no man like him on earth, not
even Job, the wondrous man." But when the day of the death of Abraham
drew nigh, God commanded Michael to adorn Death with great beauty and
send him thus to Abraham, that he might see him with his eyes.
While sitting under the oak of Mamre, Abraham perceived a flashing of
light and a smell of sweet odor, and turning around he saw Death coming
toward him in great glory and beauty. And Death said unto Abraham:
"Think not, Abraham, that this beauty is mine, or that I come thus to
every man. Nay, but if any one is righteous like thee, I thus take a
crown and come to him, but if he is a sinner, I come in great
corruption, and out of their sins I make a crown for my head, and I
shake them with great fear, so that they are dismayed." Abraham said to
him, "And art thou, indeed, he that is called Death?" He answered, and
said, "I am the bitter name," but Abraham answered, "I will not go with
thee." And Abraham said to Death, "Show us thy corruption." And Death
revealed his corruption, showing two heads, the one had the face of a
serpent, the other head was like a sword. All the servants of Abraham,
looking at the fierce mien of Death, died, but Abraham prayed to the
Lord, and he raised them up. As the looks of Death were not able to
cause Abraham's soul to depart from him, God removed the soul of
Abraham as in a dream, and the archangel Michael took it up into
heaven. After great praise and glory had been given to the Lord by the
angels who brought Abraham's soul, and after Abraham bowed down to
worship, then came the voice of God, saying thus: "Take My friend
Abraham into Paradise, where are the tabernacles of My righteous ones
and the abodes of My saints Isaac and Jacob in his bosom, where there
is no trouble, nor grief, nor sighing, but peace and rejoicing and life
unending."[317]
Abraham's activity did not cease with his death, and as he interceded
in this world for the sinners, so will he intercede for them in the
world to come. On the day of judgment he will sit at the gate of hell,
and he will not suffer those who kept the law of circumcision to enter
therein.[318]