Jubilees
51 chapters · 1,267 verses · 52,463 words
Mid-second century BCE. A retelling of Genesis and Exodus 1-14 presented as revelation dictated to Moses on Sinai by the angel of the presence, with all events dated by jubilee periods of forty-nine years. It insists on a 364-day solar calendar, hardens Sabbath and festival law, backdates the festivals to the patriarchs, and sharpens the separation of Israel from the nations. Angels and the demonic prince Mastema act throughout. About fifteen copies were found at Qumran, more than most biblical books. Canonical in the Ethiopian Orthodox tradition; in no other major canon.
Translation: R. H. Charles, 1917, from the Ethiopic. Daggers mark readings Charles judged corrupt; brackets mark restorations.