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The First Book of Meqabyan is a canonical text only in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. Despite its name, it has no direct relation to the books of Maccabees found in the Catholic and Orthodox Bibles, presenting distinct narratives and characters, such as King Tseerutsaydan and the Meqabyan martyrs. The Ethiopian tradition considers it a historical and wisdom text, often cited for its moral laws.

1 Meqabyan

Chapter 3

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Like unto you sight up before you these the Most I JAH slaves - 'Abya - Seela - Fentos who dead and arose - you have that you might arise likewise after you dead - and your faces shall shine like unto the Sun in the Kingdom of Heaven.

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and them went with those men and raceived martyrdom there.

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At that time them begged - them praised - and them bowed to JAH ~ death didn't frighten them and the king punishmant didn't frighten them.

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and them went toward those youths and became like unto a sheep that have no evil - yet them didn't frighten them - and on the time them arrived toward them - them seized and beat them and bound and whipped them - and them delivered them toward the king and stood them before him.

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and the king answered to them sayin - "How won't you stubborn ones sacrifice and bow to mi creators?"

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Those bredren who were cleansed from sin - who were honoured and chosen and Feeling good - and who shine like unto a jewel whose value were wondrous - Seela and 'Abya and Fentos answered to him in one word.

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Them told that king who were a plague - "As to I - I won't bow nor sacrifice to defouled idols that have no knowledge nor reasonin."

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and again them told him - "I won't bow to idols that were silver and gold that a person hand worked - that were stone and wood - that have no reasonin nor soul nor knowledge - that don't benefit them friends nor harm them enemies."

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and the king answered to them sayin - "Why do you do thus - and as them know who insult them and who wrong them - why do you insult the glorified creators?"

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Them answered to him sayin - "As them are like unto a trifle alongside I - as to I - I will insult them and won't glorify them."

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and the king answered to them sayin - "Mi will punish you like unto your Work evil measure ~ mi will destroy your features attractiveness with whippin and firm tribulation and fire.

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and now tell mi whether you will give or won't give sacrifice to mi creators - as to if this didn't happen - mi will punish you by sword and by whippin."

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Them answered to him sayin - "As to I - I won't sacrifice nor bow to defouled idols" - and the king commanded them that them might beat them with a fat stick - and again that them might whip them with a whip - and after it - that them might splinter them up til them inner organs were sight up.

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and after this them bound and made them while in jail house up til him counsel by money that punish and kill them.

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Without niceness them took and bound them a firm imprisonmant in prison house - and them sat in prison house three nights and three daylights.

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and after this third day the king commanded that a Proclamation speaker might turn and that counselors and nobles - country elders and officials - might be gathered.

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and on the time the king Tseerutsaydan sat in square - him commanded that them might bring those honoured ones - Seela and 'Abya and Fentos ~ them stood before him bein wounded and bound.

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and the king told them - "When you sat these three days - are there really the returnin that you returned - or are you in your former evil?"

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and those honoured JAH Souljahs answered to him sayin - "As to that I were cruel - I won't agree that I might worship the idols filled of sin and evil that thou check up."

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and that criminal vexed and commanded that them might stand them up in lofty place and might renew them wounds ~ them blood flowed on Earth.

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and again him commanded that them might burn them with a torch lamp and might char them flesh - and him servants did like unto him commanded them - and those honoured men told him - "Thou who forgot JAH LAW - speak ~ I reward shall abound in the measure whereby thou multiply I punishmant."

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and again him commanded that them might bring and send on them bears and tigers and lions that were evil beasts before them eat them food that them might totally eat them flesh with them bones.

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and him commanded persons who keep the beasts that them might send the beasts on them - and them did like unto him commanded them - and them bound those honoured martyrs feet - and again them maliciously beat and bound them with tentstakes.

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and those beasts were flung over them while them roared - and on the time them arrived toward the martyrs them hailed and bowed to them.

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Them returned toward them keepers while them roared - and them frightened them keepers ~ them took them toward the square up til them delivered them toward before the king.

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and them killed seventy five men from the criminals army there.

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Many persons panicked - the one anguishin on the one in fear - up til the king quit him throne and fled - and them seized the beasts with difficulty and took them toward them lodgin.

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Seela and 'Abya and Fentos two bredren came and released them from the imprisonmant them bound them and told them - "Come make I flee lest these skeptics and criminals find me.

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and those martyrs answered them bredren sayin - "It aren't procedure that I might flee after I set up to testimony ~ as it were you had feared - go fleein."

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and those them little bredren said - "I will stand with you before the king - and if you dead I will dead with you."

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and after this the king were on him lordship hall balcany and sight up that these honoured men were released and that all the five bredren stood together ~ those chiefs who work and punish troops questioned that them were bredren and told the king - and the king vexed and shouted like unto a wilderness boar.

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and up til the king counseled by money that punish all the five bredren - him commanded that them might seize and add them in prison house ~ them placed them in prison house bindin in firm imprisonmant without niceness with a hollow stalk.

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and the king Tseerutsaydan said - "These youths who erred wearied mi ~ what should these men reasonin firm up? and them Work evil are like unto them Power firmness ~ if mi say - "Them will return" - them will make them reasonin evil.

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and mi will bring the hardship on them like unto them Work evil measure - and mi will burn them flesh in fire that it might be charred ash - and on that mi will scattar them flesh ash like unto dust on mountains."

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and after him spoke this him waited three days and commanded that them might bring those honoured men - and on the time those honoured men approached him commanded that them might burn a fire within the great pit oven - and that them might add within it a malice Work that flame the fire and whereby them boil a yat - the fat and soapberries - sea foam and resin and the sulfur.

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and on the time fire flamed in the pit the messengers went toward the king when them said - "We did what thou commanded we - send the men who will be added."

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and him commanded that them might receive and cast them in the fire pit - and the youths did like unto the king commanded them - and on the time those honoured men entered toward the fire them gave them souls to JAH.

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and when the persons who cast them sight up - Angels raceived and took them souls toward the Garden where Yis'haq and 'Abriham and Ya`iqob are - where Feeling good joy are found.

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1 Meqabyan em Português — Bíblia Etíope | Kanon.Bible