II

When everyone else in the tower was asleep, Aseneth, who had remained

weeping on her bed, rose up stealthily and crept downstairs to the

gate of the tower, where the woman who kept the door was asleep with

her children; and as quietly as she could she unhooked the heavy

leather curtain that hung in the doorway, and spreading it out on the

floor, heaped up upon it all the cinders and ashes out of the hearth,

folded the corners together, dragged it upstairs and threw it down on

the floor. Then she barred the door of her room securely, and burst

into bitter weeping. It so happened that the maiden whom Aseneth

loved the best of all her seven companions was awake, and heard the

sounds of crying. She was alarmed, and flew to wake up the other

attendants, and all of them came to the door of Aseneth's chamber,

which was locked and barred. They called to her, "What is the matter,

dear mistress? Open to us and let us come in and comfort you." But

Aseneth answered from within, "It is nothing but a violent headache.

I am in bed, and too tired and ill to get up and open the door. Go

back all of you to your beds. I shall be well to-morrow." So they

dispersed to their rooms.

And when they were safely gone, Aseneth got up and opened the door of

the room in which she kept her dresses and jewels, taking care to

make no noise; and from among all her robes she chose out a black

one which she had worn, years before, when the only son of Potipherah

had died. And she cast off her royal robe and her diadem and veil and

girdle, and put on the black robe and girded it with a rope. Next she

went to the shrine wherein stood all the golden and silver images of

her gods, and took them and threw them out of the window for the

wayfarers to pick up; and she took the supper that had been laid out

for her of all manner of delicate meats, and threw that into the

highway for the dogs to eat. And she emptied the ashes out of the

leather curtain upon the floor; she let down her hair and cast some

of the ashes upon her head; she smote her breast and wept; and thus

she sat in silence and misery till seven days and nights were

accomplished.

And on the morning of the eighth day, when it was just dawning, and

the birds had begun to twitter in the trees of the garden, and the

dogs to bark at the passers-by, Aseneth raised herself a little from

her crouching posture among the ashes and turned herself to the

window that looked towards the east. She was faint and ill and weary

from her long fasting and watching; her tongue was dry as horn, her

eyes were glazed, and her fair face was haggard. She bent her head

down and clasped her hands together, and crouched down again among

the ashes, and said to herself, "It is all over. I have no one to

turn to now. My father and mother will cast me off, for I have

dishonoured their gods; they will say, 'Aseneth is no daughter of

ours.' My kindred will hate me, and all the youths whom I have

despised and rejected will rejoice at my humiliation; and Joseph

will have nothing to say to me because I am a foul worshipper of

idols. Yet," she went on to say, "I have heard that the God of the

Hebrews is a merciful God, long-suffering and compassionate, not hard

upon those that have sinned ignorantly, if they are sorry for what

they have done. Why should I not turn to Him? Who knows if He will

not have pity upon my loneliness and protect me? For they say He is

the Father of the fatherless, and cares for those who are in

trouble." So she rose and knelt upon her knees, with her face turned

towards the east, and looked up into heaven and prayed. "Save me,"

she said, "from those who are pursuing me, before I am caught by them;

as a little child when it is frightened runs to its father, and the

father stretches out his arms and catches it to his breast, so I flee

to Thee. I know that Satan, the Old Lion, is hunting me; for he is

the father of the gods of Egypt, and I have insulted them and

destroyed their images. I have no hope but in Thee. See, I have cast

off all my beautiful robes and ornaments; I sit here in sackcloth and

ashes; I have fasted and wept these seven days, because I know that

I have done wrong in worshipping dumb idols, and in speaking

scornfully against Joseph. But, Lord, I did it in ignorance; save me,

and above all watch over Joseph, whom I love more than my own life.

Keep him, Lord, in safety, and let me be his handmaid and his slave,

if Thou wilt, so that I may minister to him all the days I have to

live."

Much more did Aseneth say in her prayer, but it is not written down

here. When she had ended, the morning star was just coming up in the

east, and Aseneth rejoiced when she saw it and said, "Can it be that

God has heard my prayer, and that this star is the herald of the

light of the great day?" Then, in that part of the sky where the star

was shining, there opened a little cleft in the heavens, and a bright

light shone out of it: so dazzling that she fell on her face upon the

ashes. And in the next instant there stood over her a man who was all

flashing with light; and he called to her, "Aseneth, rise up." "Who

can this be who calls me?" she said; "my door is barred and the tower

is high. No one can have come into my chamber." So she did not look

up; but the man called to her again, "Aseneth, Aseneth!" And at last

she answered, "Here am I, lord: tell me, who art thou?" He

answered, "I am the Prince of all the army of heaven; rise up and

stand on your feet, and hear my words." Then for the first time she

looked at him, and saw that he was in all things like Joseph, with

royal robe, and crown and sceptre; but his face, and hair, and hands

and feet were bright like the sun, and his eyes pierced like

lightning; and again she was afraid, and fell on her face. But he

said, "Do not be afraid; hear what I am come to say to you."

Thereupon she rose and stood up, weak as she was; and he bade her go

into her inner chamber and put off her black robe, and the sackcloth

and ashes, and bathe herself in clear water, and array herself in the

noblest of her robes, and come back to him.

Now when this was done, and she had returned to him, fresh and

beautiful as formerly, he spoke kindly to her, and blessed her and

said, "God has heard your prayer: He has looked upon your sorrow and

tears, and has forgiven your sin. Be of good cheer, for your name is

written in the Book of Life, and shall no more be blotted out. From

this day forth you shall eat the bread of life and drink the cup of

immortality, and be anointed with the oil of joy. And a new name

shall be given you, even the name of the City of Refuge; for as you

have come to God for refuge, many shall in like manner come to Him

through your example by repentance. And now, behold, this day I shall

go to Joseph, and tell him that which has befallen you, and he shall

come to you this very day and make you his bride. Make ready

therefore and array yourself in the bridal robe that is laid up in

your chamber, and put upon you all your elect ornaments, and prepare

yourself to meet him."

When Aseneth heard this joyful news, she fell on her face at the feet

of the messenger and gave thanks to God; and, said she, "My lord,

stay yet a little while, I pray you, and sit upon this couch, and I

will set a table before you, and bread, and you shall eat; and I will

bring you wine old and fragrant, and you shall drink, and so go on

your way." For she did not know that it was an angel who had come to

her. And he said, "I will do so: hasten therefore and make ready."

So first she set before him a table; and as she was going to fetch

the bread he said to her, "Bring a honeycomb also." But at this she

stopped, and was troubled in her mind, for she knew that there was no

honeycomb in her store-room. "Why do you stop?" said the angel.

"Sir," she answered, "let me send a boy to the farm which is near by,

and he shall fetch you a honeycomb in a moment." "No," said he, "you

need only go into your store-room, and you will find one upon the

table; bring that to me." "Sir," she answered, "I know that there is

none there." But he said, "Go and you will find it." She went

therefore and found the honeycomb, as he had said; it was large, and

as white as snow, and full of honey, and the smell of it was as the

breath of life. She wondered greatly, but she would not delay, and

she brought it out and put it on the table before the angel. Then he

called her to him, and as she moved towards him he stretched out his

right hand over her head, and again she was afraid, for she saw

sparks and flashes of fire coming from it, as if it were of heated

iron; so that she gazed upon him earnestly in astonishment. But he

smiled and said, "You are blessed, Aseneth, for you have seen some of

the secret things of God; it is of this honeycomb that the angels eat

in Paradise, and the bees of Paradise have made it of the dew of the

roses of life in the garden of God; and whosoever tastes it shall not

die for ever." Then he put forth his right hand and took a piece of

the honeycomb, and tasted it, and gave a portion to Aseneth, and she

ate it; and he said, "Now you have received the food of life, and

your youth shall know no old age, and your beauty shall never fade."

And again he stretched forth his right hand and drew his finger

across the honeycomb from the east side of it to the west, and from

the north side to the south, and where his finger touched it there

was left a track of the colour of blood. And immediately there came

out of the honeycomb a multitude of bees. They were white like snow,

and their wings were purple and scarlet, and they swarmed about

Aseneth and made honey upon her lips. Among them there were some that

made as though they would have stung her, but these the angel

rebuked, and they fell to the ground dead. But after a while the

angel said to the bees, "Go to your place," and at that they rose up

in a swarm and flew out of the window and up into the sky. Then he

touched with his rod the dead bees upon the floor, and said to them,

"Go ye also to your place," and they came to life and flew out of the

window, and settled upon the trees in the garden of Aseneth. And for

the third time he stretched out his hand and touched the honeycomb

upon the table, and straightway there burst forth a flame, and

consumed the honeycomb--but upon the table it left no mark--and the

sweet smell of the burning filled all the chamber.

Then said Aseneth, "Sir, I have seven companions, maidens who have

been brought up with me, and I love them as sisters: may I not call

them, and you shall bless them as you have blessed me?" So she called

them in, and made them stand before the angel, and he blessed them;

and thereafter he said to Aseneth, "Take away the table." And as she

turned aside to lift it, he was gone. But through the window she saw

in the sky a chariot and four horses shining like fire, going into

the heavens towards the east, and the angel standing in the chariot.

Then she said, "Ah, foolish that I am! I knew not that it was an

angel out of heaven that came into my chamber, and now, behold, he is

going back into heaven to his own place. Pardon me, my lord, and

spare thy handmaid, for it was in ignorance that I spoke so boldly

before thee!"

While she was still wondering, there came in a messenger and said,

"Joseph, the mighty one of God, is on his way hither." And

immediately Aseneth sent for the steward of the palace and bade him

prepare a great banquet, and make all things ready; but she herself,

remembering the words of the angel, went into her inner chamber and

adorned herself as a bride, in shining robes, and upon her head she

put a crown of gold which had in the midst, over her forehead, a

great jacinth stone and six other precious stones round it; and she

covered her head with a veil of wonderful beauty. Then she called to

one of her maidens, who brought her a basin of pure water, and when

she saw the reflection of her face in the water she was astonished at

the beauty and freshness and brightness of it. Just then the steward

of the palace came in to say that all was ready, and he too was

struck with amazement at the sight of her, and said, "Lady, what is

the cause of this wonderful beauty? Can it be that the God of heaven

has chosen you to be the bride of Joseph, His elect?" And while he

was yet speaking, the sound of Joseph's chariot-wheels was heard

without.

Then Aseneth hastened and went down to meet Joseph, and her seven

maidens followed her, and they all stood in the porch of the palace.

And when Joseph saw Aseneth he also marvelled, and said, "Who art

thou, maiden?" And she answered, "Thy handmaid Aseneth; and I have

cast away all my idols and they are gone." And she went on and told

him of the coming of the angel to her. And he rejoiced. Then they

came near and embraced one another, and she led him into her father's

house and made him sit on her father's throne; and Joseph said, "Let

one of the maidens come and wash my feet." But Aseneth said, "No;

from henceforth I am your handmaid: your hands are my hands, your

feet are my feet, and your soul is my soul: none other shall wash

your feet but I." So she compelled him, and washed his feet. And

after that he kissed her again, and made her sit down beside him, on

his right hand.

And as they were talking together, Potipherah and his wife and their

household entered the palace, having returned from the country; and

they were amazed, and rejoiced at the sight of Joseph and Aseneth.

And when they learnt all that had happened, they rejoiced yet more;

and Potipherah said, "To-morrow I will call together all my kinsfolk

and prepare your marriage feast." But Joseph said, "Nay, but I will

first go to Pharaoh and speak to him concerning Aseneth, that I may

take her to wife; for he is to me as a father."

So on the next day Joseph departed to see Pharaoh, and forthwith

Pharaoh sent for Potipherah and his wife and Aseneth; and in their

presence he blessed Aseneth, and joined her hand with the hand of

Joseph, and crowned them with golden crowns, and made a great feast

for them lasting seven days; and all the land of Egypt rejoiced. So

Joseph and Aseneth were married; and after that two sons were born

to them, even Ephraim and Manasseh, in the house of Joseph.