On Joseph (Memra 4)

Memra Four on Joseph Of the holy Mar Jacob, Memra Four on Joseph When he was oppressed by his mistress. The memra of the chaste one, the full one, gave me from his reading: And without descending into the sea of his beauty, he cannot be found. The youth Joseph, who by his chastity took the victory. Again it demands of me that I raise my voice in his songs. That freeborn one who became a slave among the Egyptians. Gather the word so that his beauty may come where it is. The apostle who descended to seal the mystery of apostleship, For the wonder, make me speak concerning his victories. The Lord sent him to cut a path before his descent, And he was a witness to the proclamation of truths. The power of the mystery was bound to him on the path of tears, And in a new language he speaks without having learned. His turn had come that within Egypt he would show forth. From when he descended, he heard a language he did not know. The great path which the apostles trod, he began to mark, That in a new language he spoke in the regions. For the language he did not know is written that he heard, That the entire path of apostleship was depicted in him. In these pains, a ferment was cast for the whole world, And he cast them into the regions and sweetened the taste. He called Abraham from the house of his father to the land of Canaan.

And the young man Isaac fled from the presence of his mother, who was to be a sacrifice. Jacob fled on the road to Harran and left his land. And he arrived in the land of Egypt, where Joseph was sold, as if to give flavor to the lands, that through them the taste might be known, the way of the prudent one. Through them this way of apostleship was made narrow, that sent light to the whole world through the disciples. In these mysteries the form of the Son was being depicted. On the faces and the mountains from her in a schema, a schema. Joseph went down with the merchants as he was sent, and he arrived in Egypt while the governance accompanied him, that it might show the love of the holy man for the chaste one, and that it might change all the hard customs of the land. This servant had come to do among the Egyptians, that he might be like a spectacle for the land and take hold of it. One warrior from that lineage of the house of Abraham went down and gave taste to the elders of Ham the contemptible. The radiant young man was sent from affliction, that he might teach the elders through his vigilance. He was sent to the land of slaves that he might bring good news of salvation, for servitude is not a reproach to the righteous. He was a servant, and he was governed in hardship, that he might bring good news to Ham, who had been sold from his will.

Where is the flavor of the sale of Joseph to be found? He found love for God and for his masters. He offered sacrifice and honored his servitude in the furnace of submission, and while he did not abandon God, he served his servitude. He honored his masters and did not distance himself from God. Servitude and freedom were transformed. In abundance he preserved the mystery of the house of God, and to his masters he showed his love through diligence. Come near and see how he was led among the merchants. And with a freedom that had no change, he went on his way. The Midianites took his price from the Egyptians, and he knew that the Lord was with him and did not grieve. He ran with the merchants and labored throughout his entire journey, and in the midst of Egypt he was again sold and received. His masters were exchanged for him in the lands, but that freedom which he had from God did not change. He was diligent in the service of the Egyptians without interruption, and his heart was simple and vigilant in his work, and he loved his masters. He stood at the service of the Lord, a vessel full of sacrifice, and bound his love in that lordship which is not commanded. He was wise and knew how to see clearly, and he honored the Lord in truth and his masters. The youth was shrewd and gave all that was his. Glory to the Lord and to his masters, the work of his brothers.

He stood in purity before God without blemish, and to the Egyptians he ministered in servitude with diligence. Before God he was chaste and prayed fittingly and was upright, and before his master he was industrious and ready and upright and faithful. He loved the Lord and also did not hate his master. One good will served both sides. In the furnace of slaves, when the sale bound him, he served both God and masters in it. Though he was a free man, he left his father and increased his love. And what he became as a servant in his beauty was revealed to his master; to God, however, both in servitude and in freedom. He loved truly and was compassionate and was honoring. The Lord blessed the work of his hands among the Egyptians, so that he was beloved and was dispensing wisely. Assistance was close at hand for his labors. The Lord made all good things prosper through his hands. He was blessed in the house of his master because of him, and whatever he did was increased and multiplied in his hands. He was honest and upright and was industrious in his master's house, and whatever he did was dispensed with grace. Whether for service in the house or for the field, it was increased. And for the field again, when he went out, many provisions were added. The house of the Egyptian was blessed because of Joseph, and within the house and in the field, nothing that he undertook was lacking.

and the image of the wild ass, the shadow of his prayer fell upon the house of the Egyptians, and it was by his blessings that his labors were supported. He went to the steward and gave wine to those who were thirsty; he went out to the field and multiplied bread for those who were hungry. From that body was born the shadow of the cross in the house of Egypt, and his blessing was in the hands of Joseph. The grace of the wild ass Joseph took when he was sold, and through it he prospered so that he might be successful in his labors. He served his master both within the house and in the field, and he increased everything through his divine gifts. And when he leaned upon that great image of the wild ass, and through his blessings the house of his masters grew wealthy. And everything he did was multiplied and increased, and great things through his hands were beautiful to all around him. And the household was strengthened by the gift of his wisdom, and in every place the work of his hands was blessed. As he resembled the wild ass in his beauty and in his goodness, the envious woman cast a snare upon the beautiful one. His mistress saw the youth who was fair and desired him to death, so that by the chastity of the youth she might be shamed, for she loved him. Behold, how much beauty there is in Joseph compared to the Messiah, for even in the manger he stood like him and was not corrupted.

the sin of Egypt was laid upon Joseph, and he was troubled by the wild ass, the swift and mighty one. His prayer was a snare that trapped its strength, lest it stumble. He broke its horns and all its teeth, and passed through all the snares of the steps, setting a table before him. And by his humility, he abolished all falsehood. For the love of the belly, he fasted and separated himself, and was baptized from it. And by his lowliness, he rejected the love of glory and of authority. In all the wild asses of sin, he was saved from the destroyer. Beautiful was it for Joseph to conquer, for his likeness was that. Even Egypt sought an opportunity for steps, that the wild ass of lust might set a table and approach the beautiful one. He who knew the youth was adorned in holiness, so that the beauty of the image that was shining might not be marred. He saw the vile one, that she set her beauty to approach him, and with severity he raised a wall that could not be broken. By the strong barrier of holiness, he was sanctified against the tremor of lust, a help and a repulse to her. Beautiful was it for him to conquer in the wild ass of youth, so that he might not be like the likeness of the wild ass of that one who conquers all. It is fitting for the word to be adorned, that his many beauties may be seen, for the beloved image that left the house of the readers is very great. He toiled over his story, and in chastity he established his reading.

And the whole contest was a wonder to behold, marvelously. He conquered in the battle that all the mighty ones strove with him, and he reached the crown that even the strong are amazed by. He conquered the one who conquered Samson, who conquered and killed the lion, and the mighty ones, sons of giants, he drowned in the waters. In this snare fell Adam, the head of the generations, and when he trampled it, Joseph broke it and passed by it. A great net was spread over the little one, and he cried out and passed, and his mind did not tremble at its violence. To Joseph's dwelling, even the angels were spectators, for within her bosom, Ephesus descended in his strength. Within the chamber, he wrestled with lionesses, and he did not know that she was a lioness, a eunuch who had reached her. The distinguished ones saw how wondrous was the generation of that chaste one, how and in what way he conquered through his virtue. In his youth, a place of pains and slack movements, with the firmness of a steadfast one, the earth changes for him. Within the furnace that gives a hand to the hidden things, and in the service of the weak, her life passes from the womb, while the burning coal kindles desire in its heat, and she who is a seducer is the mistress who enslaves her. And within her house, she seeks her divorce from her housemate, and it is easy for the earth that the youth fell and did not fall.

In this place, Joseph was strong and contended, yet nothing was found to be weak in his strength. The commanding mistress, and he did not obey her, though he served her. The flame of desire, and he did not burn in it, though he stood in it. The easy contest, and he did not approach it, though it was with him. The ordered service, and all the days he toiled for her. Better than the tremors of desire is the evil service that, through steadfastness, even a trial can be resolved. For the great contest, from the opponent, he was victorious over the flesh. And from the event of battle, his limbs were diminished. For the service, however, which one conquers, it is wondrous that he runs. For Joseph, it is fitting that he conquered through steadfastness and was crowned. Within thought, there was the battle that conceals all day, and in reflection, he was victorious over the flesh and also was condemned. He was where that lofty thought conquers, and because he was cut off from the service that was without victory. And after a time, there came a great contest that was similar to that one and revealed the standing from the falls. The radiant Joseph did not conquer thus through causes, but through truth, victory was a full wonder.

When the temptation of his mistress was daily casting him down, and a single thought without change stood firm in him. When the earth was turning, he was daily with himself, and there was never a time when Joseph descended from victory. While the snare was running at his feet, it was burning to go, and when it pressed him, he did not fall, for he was cunning. The mistress was casting down the servant, and he would not accept. And when she grew weary, all her words did not move him. Gently he was admonishing her, without madness, that she might know by what right she should be served by him. And as these things are said by the wise one, to his mistress daily, when he restrained himself from lust: "Your servant I am, I have not erred from you at any time, nor am I erring. And of the mistress, your command I worship and serve you. To your command I will listen daily; again, set for me, and I will do this which I have heard from you, I cannot do. By those things which are necessary, as to a mistress, I honor you. And of those which are not necessary, when I am persuading, let them pass. Turn away from this word that you seek of me; I will listen to you, and in this also, if I were able, I would be obedient to you. It is not weakness that I should be conquered and deceive my master, and lose my life from God through this wickedness.

And again that contemptible woman said to the chaste Joseph, "Why have you rejected my words, which are weighty? Is it not a small thing for you to do my will, son of the Hebrews? Behold, you have fallen from the freedom that was yours, and become enslaved. For you, greatness will accomplish nothing that I say to you. Behold, the little one who came to your door in distress; behold, the one who descended from the step of greatness to the rear. But you, the youth, have not diminished from your conduct. A little while, and I will ask that from you you do my will. For you, your own step has raised you up from what I heard. Behold, you have escaped from the greatness that held you. But you, the youth, will be lost indeed if you listen to me." Joseph said, "I will not fall from God. And in your freedom, which is yours, I will not place a stumbling block. But in my purity and in my chastity I will guard you, so that the order of beautiful things is not disturbed by my hands. Why do you fall from that love of partnership? And why do you cast away from the mixture of the hunt for God? Remain, you free woman, who guards the truth with her partner. And I will be a servant who does not sin against the Lord in the house of the lords. For you, it is good for you to keep the path with your spouse. And for me, again, this is what will preserve my salvation with God.

To you, a small thing, when you are caught in your partnership, and sin to me when a man passes from his worth. I have chosen freedom and lordship without sin, and I have come to peace and servitude without sin. Do not mingle with that class of adulteresses, nor shall I be the cause of your ruin. For me purity and for you freedom, behold, a man keeps. And because of that which you sought, a man does not accomplish. The contemptible woman says after my will, it is fitting that I be your mistress, and if you do not obey, that is rebellion. I have seen your truth and you have shown your separation well, and that which is my will, that you should obey me, now you cannot. If it is just, my hunt is your share of what I have heard, and if it is folly, it is all mine and you are far off. A man is your oppressor, and without your obeying me there is no opportunity, and what pleases me, it is fitting that you obey what I have said to you. What is this, a mistress who commands in the house and is not obeyed? Or what servant who has not come to his master is not enslaved? See that you do not err from the order of servants in your time, and my words are confused because you were reproached for speaking to you. Joseph says, I have another hidden lord, and when your lordship does not oppress, a man serves that one. In what work does your word err, or does a man err?

But in this matter of the great one, it is both for me and for you. When you transgressed the command of your worthiness, but in this matter of being separated from God, that hidden Lord greatly loves holiness, and he does not fall into the snare of pride that would be set for him. There is a limit up to which you may be enslaved, and for that Lord, in what manner he will serve again, he knows. In everything that follows the custom of the company of servants, he honors you, and whatever path of fear of the Lord you seek, he guards it. The custom of your company is this from eternity, that no man may approach the wife of his companion, neither in this life nor in the next. And how can I transgress the order of my father's house, and sin against the Lord and against the wife of my companion in marriage? A bitter war was waged daily against the zealous one, and with bitter victory he was daily emboldened. The war was stirred up all the days over the steadfast one; he was unable to lay down the armor of his steadfastness. He did not grow weary, nor did he flee from the contest. A creditor in the house, and he the son of the house—what did he do? That which was stirred up, the daily battle, the mistress of the house, and he within the house, enslaved, toiling while being contested. Would the war be arranged, or would it be resolved by his deed? Would he obey his mistress, or would chastity be gained?

A tumultuous battle with all the limbs he would wage, And he would strike down stumbling blocks of gold and not sin. Each single day he would measure all his steps with trials, And little by little he would remove the crown full of victories. With a single pure and firm thought that is unchangeable, He was awake every day and did not err over them when he offered. He did not sin at one time and at another be victorious, So that he might not be found to have given a hand to guilt. Sin was great in his eyes, very much so, when he was serving, And that he might not commit iniquity in secret he was troubled. Hear when he says to his master's wife, "How can I Do this great evil and sin against the Lord?" He called the sin that was great to him "Great evil," "How can I do this great evil?" Sin was difficult for the lover of righteousness, And as if it were not possible to commit iniquity when it was great to him. With truth his will was awake for good things, For that thought which pursues wickedness was asleep in him. And "How can I do this great evil?" As if he were saying, "It is not to be done, for it is very great." He saw sin and compared it to a great pit, And the youth decided that there was no pardon for him if he should fall. He looked at iniquity as at a pit full of serpents, And he fled from it so that he might not fall into it and become agitated.

He saw sin and it seemed to him like the abyss of serpents, And he drew back, the pure one, for if he descended to it he would not ascend. And it appeared to him that this evil was greater than he had said, That he would not do this and sin against the Lord. Not great is the iniquity for the sake of which one serves daily, And not small is the sin for one who serves while serving it. Sin is a habit and not a thing for one who commits it, And because of this he does not even tremble from his practice. When the soul becomes accustomed to evil, it is stained by it, And it takes its pleasure and does not see how much it serves. The one who has a pure eye that sees iniquity, He can see that he serves much and also serves himself. A little more and Joseph, the vigilant one, turned aside, And it appeared to him that this evil was great sin, and he fled. He saw the snare and while he was far off he turned away from it, So that he would not be ensnared in the nets that were spread for him. It appeared to him that this evil was great sin, and he said, That he would not do this and sin against the Lord. Because he saw that this evil was great, he withdrew from it, So that even the hunter who sees the trap does not fall into it. It was good for him that he set the image of the son, That with purity he adorned himself in the place where he arrived. Sin was cleansed from him as from a sick person, And from the contest he came forth victorious and was not stained.

And every day his foot stood upon victory. The temptations of her abyss were renewed daily. And Satan did not flee from the first abyss, Nor from the second did he turn away from it when he was condemned. He saw sin in the first and in the second, And when she was purified in the third, she fled. Also temptation daily saw from the other side, And again over the abyss she was revealed to be renewed. He saw the pure one within the furnace and feared for her, That in that abyss which daily entered, she would be tested. The whole order of the senses she transgressed in her boldness, So that the shame of her desire took her to pass beyond the boundary. And it was not the nature of her flesh to stand in haste, Nor in that order of transgressions that are not to be dared. She seized the youth within the furnace with a shameless boldness, That she might transgress the seal of his chastity slightly. A foul desire was stirred up against David, And the pure Joseph did not sink in her sea. A lioness's hour to be broken quickly and become her prey, And he escaped from between her hands without injury. A she-wolf for a lamb in her den licked so that she might eat his flesh, And he left his dwelling and stripped his body and her flesh and went out. For this abyss were there seers or hearers, That even angels and all demons marveled at him.

In wonder he acted, both to the right and to the left. How many times did he stand against the foul temptation in her place? Here the beauty of the word of that handsome one was broken, And he was not able to reach the limit of his beauties that filled the wonder. The word was perplexed within the contest while it was being tested, And it prepared for him a crown of praises that it would offer to him. And the time of the word here indicates to the hearers That the story of Joseph will again be spoken of at length. He ceased now, and again he is able to speak about his victories. In you, my Lord, the labor of the preacher concerning the handsome one has been pleasing. The end of the fourth memra on Joseph.