My child, remember night and day the one who is speaking God's message to you. Now you
will honor him as you would honor the Lord. For where the lordship may be spoken,
there is the Lord. Now daily you will seek out the faces of the holy ones, so that you would be
refreshed by their words. You will not want division, but you will make peace with those who
are fighting. You will judge justly. In giving a reproof of a wandering, you will not
respect anyone's presence. You will not be two souled regarding whether or not it
should be. Do not become like one who strecthes out his hands for taking but who
draws them in for giving. If you have, you will give by your hands a ransom for your sins.
You will not hesitate to give, nor will you grumble while giving. For you will know who it is
that is the nice payer of the reward. You will not turn away the one who is needy, but you will
share all things together with your brother, and you will not claim them to be your own things.
For if you are partners in what is immortal, how much more are you partners in what is
mortal?
You will not take your hand away from your son or your daughter, but from youth you will
teach the fear of God. You will not give directives in your bitterness to your slave or
handmaid, these who are hoping in the same God. Otherwise they may not fear the God who is
over both of you. For he is not coming to call people according to
appearance, but upon those whom the spirit has made ready. Now you who are slaves
should be submissive to your lords in sobriety and fear, as to a type of God.
You will hate every hypocrisy and all of what is not pleasing to the Lord. You will by no
means forsake the Lord's precepts, but you will guard what you have received--neither adding
to them nor removing from them. You will acknowledge your wanderings in an
assembly, and you will not come forward to your prayer with an evil consciousness. This is the
way of life.
Now the way of death is this: First of all, it is evil and full of curses: murders, adulteries,
strong desires, unlawful sex acts, thefts, idolatries, magic acts, sorceries, robberies, false
testimonies, hypocrisies, two-heartedness, deceit, arrogance, badness, assumptions, greed,
shameful speech, jealousy, an overbearing nature, loftiness, pride; persecutors of good;
hating truth, loving falsehood; not knowing the reward of what is right, not clinging to good, nor
to just judgment, watching not for good but for evil. Far from these people are
meekness and endurance. They love worthless things, persuing revenge, not showing
mercy to a poor person, not laboring for those who are weary, not knowing the one who made
them, murderers of children, corrupters of molded image of God, turning away those who are
in need,oppressing the afflicted; comforters of the wealthy, lawless judges of the poor;
universal sinners. Children, may you be rescued from all of these.
See to it that no one lead you astray from this way of the teaching, since it does not teach
you without God. For if indeed you are able to bear the whole of the Lord's yoke, you will be
complete. But if you are not able, do what you are able.
Now about food: bear what you are able to bear. But watch out for the idol-sacrifices, for
this is a religious service of dead gods.
Now about baptism, baptize this way: after first uttering all of these things, baptize "into
the name of the Father and of the son and of the holy Spirit" in running water. But if you do
not have running water, baptize in other water. Now if you are not able to do so in
cold water, do it in warm water. Now if you don't have either, pour water three times
on the head, "into the name of the Father, and of the son, and of the holy Spirit." Now before
the ritual cleansing, the baptizer and the one being baptized should fast, and any others who are
able. Now you will give word for the one who is being baptized to fast for one or two
days beforehand.
But do not let your fasts be with the hypocrites. For they fast on the second day of the week
and on the fifth. But you fast on the fourth day and the day of preparation. Neither should you
pray like the hypocrites, but as the Lord gave word in his good message, pray like this: "Our
Father, the one who is in Heaven, your name has been made holy. Let your kingdom come.
Let what you want also be done on earth, as in Heaven. Give us the bread we need today and
forgive us our debts as we also forgive our debtors. And don't carry us into trial, but rescue
us from the evil one. For yours is the power and the glory for the age." Pray this way three
times daily.
Now about the thanksgiving, give thanks this way:
First, about the cup: "We thank you, our Father, for the holy vine of your boy David which
you made known to us through your boy Jesus. Glory be to you for the age.
Now about the broken loaf: "We thank you, our Father, for the life and the
knowledge that you made known to us through your boy Jesus. Glory be to you for the age.
Just as this broken loaf was scattered on top of the hills and as it was gathered together
and became one, in the same way let your assembly be gathered together from the remotest parts
of the land into your kingdom. "For yours is the glory and the power through Anointed Jesus
for the age." Now no one should either eat or drink from your thanksgiving meal, but those who
have been baptized into the Lord's name. For about this also the Lord said, "Do not give what
is holy to the dogs."
Now after you have been filled, give thanks this way: "We thank you, holy Father, for
your holy name, which you made to live in our hearts, and for the knowledge and trust and
immortality which you made known to us through Jesus your boy. Glory be to you for the
age.
"Almighty master, it was you who created all for the sake of your name. You gave both
food and drink to people for enjoyment, so that they might give thanks to you. But to us you
have freely given spiritual food and drink and eternal life through your boy. Before all things,
we are thankful to you that you are powerful. Glory be to you for the age.
"O Lord, remember your assembly, remember to rescue it from every evil and to
make it complete in your love, and to gather it from the four winds into your kingdom which
youprepared for it--it, which has been made holy. For yours is the power and the
glory for the age.
"Let generosity come, and let this universe pass away. Hosanna to David's son! If
someone is holy, let him come. If someone is not, he should change his mind. Marana-tha.
A-mein." Now permit the prophets to give thanks as much as they want.
Therefore, the one who comes and teaches you all of these things which have been previously spoken, accept him. But if he, the teacher, should turn to teach another teaching, so as to release this one, do not listen to him. But if he teaches to promote what is right and knowledge of the Lord, accept him as you would the Lord.
Now about the envoys and prophets, do just as according to the tenet of the good message.
Now each envoy who comes to you, accept as you would the Lord. But he will not
remain for one day. Now if there is need, also the next day. But if he remains for
three, he is a false prophet.
Now when the envoy departs, he should take nothing except bread until he lodges. But if he
should ask for money, he is a false prophet.
And every prophet who speaks with the breath, you will not test or judge, for every sin will
be forgiven. But not everyone who speaks with the breath is a prophet: but if he has the
conduct of the Lord. Therefore, from their conduct, the false prophet and the prophet
will be made known. And no prophet with the breath who orders a meal eats from it, unless
indeed he is a false prophet. Now every prophet who teaches the truth, if he does not do as
he teaches, is a false prophet. But every prophet who has been proved, who is true, who does
things for the kosmic secrets of the assembly but who does not teach to do as he does, will not
be judged among you. For the ancient prophets did it this way also. But whoever says with
the breath, "Give me money (or something else)," you will not listen to him. But if he says
to give on behalf of others who are in need, no one should judge him.
Now everyone who comes in the Lord's name should be accepted. But afterward, you
will examine him to know him. For you will have understanding, right and left. If the one who
comes is a traveller, help him as much as you are able. But he will not remain with you except
for two or three days, if there is a necessity. But if he wants to dwell with you, since he is
a craftsman, he should work to eat. But if he has no craft, provide according to your
understanding, so that no lazy person would be lifing among you as an "Anointed". But
if he does not want to do this, he is one who profits financially from the Anointed One. Be
careful about such people.
Now every true prophet who wants to settle near you is worthy of his wage. In the same
way, a true teacher is also worthy, just as the workman, of his wage. Therefore, every foremost
part of the products of the press and threshing floor, both of oxen and of sheep, you will take
and give to the prophets. For they are your high priests.
But if you do not have a prophet, give these to the poor. If you make baked bread,
take the foremost part and give according to the precept. In the same way, when you open a jar
of wine or of oil, take the foremost part and give to the prophets. Now of money and clothing
and every possession, take the foremost part as you think it right and give according to the
precept.
Now according to the Lord's Lord's day, gather together and break bread and give thanks, after acknowledging your wanderings to one another, so your sacrifice would be a clean one. But each one who has something against his friend, do not let him come together with you until they are reconciled, so that your sacrifice would not be made common. For this is what was declared by the Lord: " In every place and time, carry to me a clean sacrifice. Because I am a great king," says Yahweh, " and my name is a wondrous thing among the nations."
Now hand pick for yourselves overseers and servants worthy of the Lord: men who are meek, not lovers of money, true and proved. For they are giving religious service to you also, as the prophets and teachers are giving religious service.
Now reprove one another, not in anger but in peace, as you have it in the good message. And
no one should speak to each one who misses the mark against another one, nor should he hear
from you, until he changes his mind. But your vows and your charitable works and all your
practices, do these, as you have it in the good message of our Lord.
Be vigilant on behalf of your life. Do not let your lamps be extinguished, and do not
relax your loins. But become prepared. For you do not know the hour in which our Lord is
coming. Now you will gather together often, seeking the things that are appropriate for your
souls. For all the time of your trust will not profit you, if you do not become complete in the
last season.
For in the last days, the false prophets and the corruptors will be multiplied, and the sheep
will be turned into wolves, and love will be turned into hate. For when the lawlessness
increases, they will hate one another, and they will persecute and deliver up, and then the
deceiver of creation will appear as God's son, and he will do signs and wonders. And the land
will be given up into his hands. And he will do lawless things which have never been done
from the age.
Then human creation will come into the fire of examination, and many will stumble and be
destroyed. But those who endure in their trust will be saved from this accursed thing. And
then the signs of truth will appear. First, the sign of an opening in Heaven, then the sign of a
trumpet's sound, and thirdly, a resurrection of dead people. But not of all people; on the
contrary, as it was declared, "The Lord will come, and all the holy ones with him." Then
creation will see the Lord "coming on the clouds of the sky."