Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs

1The Testament of Joseph — On Self-Control and Chastity. 2The copy of the testament of Joseph. When he was about to die, he called his sons and his brethren together, and said to them: 3My brethren and my children, hearken to Joseph the beloved of Israel; give ear, my sons, unto your father. I have seen in my life envy and death, yet I went not astray, but persevered in the truth of the Lord. 4How often did the Egyptian woman threaten me with death! How often having given me over to punishment, did she then call me back and threaten me; and when I was unwilling to company with her, she said unto me, Thou shalt be lord of me. 5Wherefore I exhort you, my children, that ye keep the commandments of the Lord, and honor Levi and Judah; for from them shall arise unto you the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world, who saveth all the Gentiles, and Israel. 6For His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom which shall not pass away; but my kingdom among you shall come to an end as a watcher's hammock, which after the summer disappeareth.