Tobit 1-5

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

(a) The books and parts of books from Tobit through 2 Maccabees are recognized as Deuterocanonical Scripture by the Roman Catholic, Greek, and Russian Orthodox Churches.

1 The book of the words of Tobit son of Tobiel son of Hananiel son of Aduel son of Gabael son of Raphael son of Raguel of the descendants^[a] of Asiel, of the tribe of Naphtali, ² who in the days of King Shalmaneser^[b] of the Assyrians was taken into captivity from Thisbe, which is to the south of Kedesh Naphtali in Upper Galilee, above Asher toward the west, and north of Phogor.^(A)

Tobit’s Youth and Virtuous Life

³ I, Tobit, walked in the ways of truth and righteousness all the days of my life. I performed many acts of charity for my kindred and my nation who had gone with me in exile to Nineveh in the land of the Assyrians.^{(B) 4} When I was in my own country, in the land of Israel, while I was still a young man, the whole tribe of my ancestor Naphtali deserted the house of David and Jerusalem. This city had been chosen from among all the tribes of Israel, where all the tribes of Israel should offer sacrifice and where the temple, the dwelling of God, had been consecrated and established for all generations forever.^(C)

⁵ All my kindred and my ancestral house of Naphtali sacrificed upon all the mountains of Galilee to the calf that King Jeroboam of Israel had erected in Dan and on all the mountains of Galilee.^{(D) 6} But I alone went often to Jerusalem for the festivals, as it is prescribed for all Israel by an everlasting decree. I would hurry off to Jerusalem with the first fruits of the crops and the firstlings of the flock, the tithes of the cattle, and the first shearings of the sheep.^{(E) 7} I would give these to the priests, the sons of Aaron, at the altar, likewise the tenth of the grain, wine, olive oil, pomegranates, figs, and the rest of the fruits to the sons of Levi who ministered at Jerusalem. Also every six years I would save up a second tenth in money and go and distribute it each year in Jerusalem,^{(F) 8} giving it to the orphans and widows and to the converts who had attached themselves to the Israelites. In the third year I would bring it and give it to them, and we would eat it according to the ordinance decreed concerning it in the law of Moses and according to the instructions of Deborah, the mother of my father Tobiel,^[c] for my father had died and left me an orphan.^{(G) 9} When I became a man I married a woman,^[d] a member of our own family, and by her I became the father of a son whom I named Tobias.^(H)

Taken Captive to Nineveh

¹⁰ After I was carried away captive to Assyria and came as a captive to Nineveh, everyone of my kindred and my people ate the food of the nations,^{(I) 11} but I kept myself from eating the food of the nations.^{(J) 12} Because I was mindful of God with all my heart, ¹³ the Most High gave me favor and good standing with Shalmaneser,^[e] and I used to buy everything he needed. ¹⁴ Until his death I used to go into Media to buy for him there, and I left in trust bags holding ten talents of silver with Gabael, the brother of Gabri, in the country of Media.^{(K) 15} But when Shalmaneser^[f] died and his son Sennacherib reigned in his place, Median roads became lawless, and I could no longer travel to Media.^(L)

Courage in Burying the Dead

¹⁶ In the days of Shalmaneser^[g] I performed many acts of charity to my kindred, those of my people.^{(M) 17} I would give my food to the hungry and my clothing to the naked, and if I saw the dead body of any of my nation thrown out behind the wall of Nineveh, I would bury it.^{(N) 18} I also buried any whom King Sennacherib put to death when he came fleeing from Judea in those days of judgment that the King of heaven executed upon him because of his blasphemies. For in his anger he put to death many Israelites, but I would secretly remove the bodies and bury them. So when Sennacherib looked for them he could not find them.^{(O) 19} Then one of the Ninevites went and informed the king about me, that I was burying them, so I hid myself. But when I realized that the king knew about me and that I was being searched for to be put to death, I was afraid and ran away. ²⁰ Then all my property was confiscated; nothing was left to me that was not taken into the royal treasury except my wife Anna and my son Tobias.^(P)

²¹ But not forty days passed before two of Sennacherib’s^[h] sons killed him, and when they fled to the mountains of Ararat, his son Esar-haddon^[i] reigned after him. He appointed Ahikar, the son of my brother Hanael,^[j] over all the accounts of his kingdom, and he had authority over the entire administration.^{(Q) 22} Ahikar interceded for me, and I returned to Nineveh. Now Ahikar was chief cupbearer, keeper of the signet, and in charge of administration and accounts under King Sennacherib of Assyria, so Esar-haddon^[k] appointed him as second-in-command. He was my nephew^[l] and so a close relative.^(R)

2 In the days of^[m] Esar-haddon^[n] I returned home, and my wife Anna and my son Tobias were restored to me. At our Festival of Pentecost, which is the sacred Festival of Weeks, a good dinner was prepared for me, and I reclined to eat.^{(S) 2} When the table had been set for me and an abundance of food placed before me, I said to my son Tobias, “Go, my son, and bring whatever poor person you may find of our kindred among the exiles in Nineveh who is wholeheartedly mindful of God,^[o] and he shall eat together with me. I will wait for you, my son, until you come back.” ³ So Tobias went to look for some poor person of our kindred. When he had returned he said, “Father!” And I replied, “Here I am, my son.” Then he went on to say, “Look, father, one of our own nation has been killed and thrown into the marketplace, and now he lies there strangled.” ⁴ Then I sprang up, left the dinner before even tasting it, and removed him from the square and laid him in one of the outbuildings at my home until sunset, when I might bury him. ⁵ When I returned, I washed myself and ate my food in sorrow. ⁶ Then I remembered the prophecy of Amos, how he said against Bethel,

And I wept.^(T)

Tobit Becomes Blind

⁷ When the sun had set, I went and dug a grave and buried him.^{(U) 8} And my neighbors laughed and said, “Is he still not afraid? He has already been hunted down to be put to death for doing this, and he ran away, yet here he is again burying the dead!”^{(V) 9} That same night I washed myself and went into my courtyard and lay down by the wall of the courtyard; my face was uncovered because of the heat.^{(W) 10} I did not know that there were sparrows on the wall; their fresh droppings fell into my eyes and produced white films. I went to physicians to be healed, but the more they treated me with ointments, the more my vision was obscured by the white films, until I became completely blind. For four years I remained unable to see. All my kindred were sorry for me, and Ahikar took care of me for two years before he went to Elymais.^(X)

Tobit’s Wife Earns Their Livelihood

¹¹ At that time my wife Anna earned money at women’s work. ¹² She used to send what she made to the owners, and they would pay wages to her. One day, the seventh of Dystrus, when she cut off a piece she had woven and sent it to the owners, they paid her full wages and also gave her a young goat for a meal. ¹³ When it came toward me, the goat began to bleat, so I called her and said, “Where did you get this goat? It is surely not stolen, is it? Return it to the owners, for we have no right to eat anything stolen.”^{(Y) 14} But she said to me, “It was given to me as a gift in addition to my wages.” But I did not believe her and told her to return it to the owners. I became flushed with anger against her over this. Then she replied to me, “Where are your acts of charity? Where are your righteous deeds? These things are known about you!”^[q](Z)

Tobit’s Prayer

3 Then with much grief and anguish of heart I wept, and with groaning I began to pray:

Sarah Falsely Accused

⁷ On the same day, at Ecbatana in Media, it also happened that Sarah, the daughter of Raguel, was reproached by one of her father’s female slaves.^{(AE) 8} For she had been married to seven husbands, and the wicked demon Asmodeus had killed each of them before they had been with her as is customary for wives. So the female slave said to her, “You are the one who kills^[s] your husbands! See, you have already been married to seven husbands and have not borne the name of^[t] a single one of them.^{(AF) 9} Why do you beat us? Because your husbands are dead? Go with them! May we never see a son or daughter of yours!”

Sarah’s Prayer for Death

¹⁰ Overcome with emotion at that time, she wept and went up to her father’s upper room, intending to hang herself. But she thought it over and said, “Let no one ever reproach my father, saying to him, ‘You had only one beloved daughter, and she hanged herself out of distress!’^[u] I would bring my father in his old age down in sorrow to Hades. It is better for me not to hang myself but to beg the Lord that I may die, so that I will not have to listen to these reproaches for the rest of my life.”^{(AG) 11} At that same time, with hands outstretched toward the window, she prayed and said,

An Answer to Prayer

¹⁶ At that very moment, the prayers of both of them were heard in the glorious presence of God. ¹⁷ So Raphael was sent to heal both of them: Tobit by removing the white films from his eyes, so that he might see God’s light with his eyes,^[y] and Sarah, daughter of Raguel, by giving her in marriage to Tobias son of Tobit, and by setting her free from the wicked demon Asmodeus. For Tobias was entitled to have her before all others who had desired to marry her. At the same time that Tobit returned from the courtyard into his house, Sarah daughter of Raguel came down from her upper room.^(AJ)

Tobit Gives Instructions to His Son

4 That same day Tobit remembered the money that he had left in trust with Gabael at Rages in Media,^{(AK) 2} and he said to himself, “Now that I have asked for death, why do I not call my son Tobias and explain to him about this money before I die?”^{(AL) 3} Then he called his son Tobias, and when he came to him he said, “Give^[z] me a proper burial. Honor your mother and do not abandon her all the days of her life. Do whatever pleases her, and do nothing that makes her unhappy.^{(AM) 4} Remember her, my son, because she faced many dangers for you^[aa] while you were in her womb. And when she dies, bury her beside me in the same grave.^(AN)

⁵ “Be mindful of the Lord all your days, my son, and refuse to sin or to transgress his commandments. Do what is right all the days of your life, and do not walk in the ways of wrongdoing,^{(AO) 6} for those who act honestly will prosper in all their activities. To all those who practice righteousness,^{[ab] 7} give alms according to your circumstances, my son, and do not turn your face away from anyone who is poor. Then the face of God will not be turned away from you.^{(AP) 8} Act according to what you have, my son. If you have much, give alms from it; if you have little, give alms in accordance with what you have. Do not be afraid, my son, to give alms.^{(AQ) 9} You will be laying up a good treasure for yourself against a day of need.^{(AR) 10} For almsgiving delivers from death and keeps you from going into the darkness.^{(AS) 11} Indeed, almsgiving, for all who practice it, is an excellent offering in the presence of the Most High.

¹² “Beware, my son, of every kind of sexual immorality. First of all, marry a woman from among the descendants of your ancestors; do not marry a foreign woman, who is not of your father’s tribe, for we are the descendants of prophets and true-born sons of prophets. The first prophet was^[ac] Abraham, then Isaac and Jacob, our ancestors of old. Remember, my son, that these all took wives from among their kindred. They were blessed in their children, and their posterity will inherit the land.^{(AT) 13} So now, my son, love your kindred, and in your heart do not be so arrogant against the daughters of the members of your people as to refuse to take one of them as a wife. For in arrogance there is ruin and great confusion, and in idleness there is loss and dire poverty, because idleness is the mother of famine.^(AU)

¹⁴ “Do not keep over until the next day the wages of those who work for you, but pay them their wages the same day, and let not the pay of those among you be delayed overnight. Your pay will not be kept over if you serve God faithfully. Watch yourself, my son, in everything you do, and discipline yourself in all your conduct.^{(AV) 15} And what you hate, do not do to anyone. May^[ad] no evil go with you on any of your way.^{(AW) 16} Give some of your food to the hungry and some of your clothing to the naked. Give all your surplus as alms, my son, and do not let your eye begrudge your giving of alms.^{(AX) 17} Pour out your food and your wine on the grave of the righteous, but do not give it to sinners.^{(AY) 18} Seek advice from every wise person, and do not be disdainful, since any counsel is useful. ¹⁹ At all times bless God and ask him that your ways may be made straight and that all your paths and plans may prosper. For no nation has good counsel, but the Lord himself gives it. Whom he wants to, he exalts, and whom he wants to, he casts down to Hades below. So now, my son, remember these commandments of mine, and do not let them be erased from your heart.^(AZ)

Money Left in Trust with Gabael

²⁰ “And now, my son, let me explain to you that I left ten talents of silver in trust with Gabael son of Gabrias, at Rages in Media.^{(BA) 21} Do not be afraid, my son, because we have become poor. You have great wealth if you fear God and flee from every sin and do what is good in the sight of the Lord your God.”^(BB)

The Angel Raphael

5 Then Tobias answered his father Tobit, “I will do everything that you have commanded me, father, ² but how can I obtain the money^[ae] from him, since he does not know me and I do not know him? What evidence^[af] am I to give him so that he will recognize and trust me and give me the money? Also, I do not know the roads to Media or how to get there.” ³ Then Tobit answered his son Tobias, “He gave me his bond, and I gave him my bond. I^[ag] divided his in two; we each took one part, and I put one with the money. And now twenty years have passed since I left this money in trust. So now, my son, find yourself a trustworthy man to go with you, and we will pay him wages until you return. But get back the money from Gabael.”^[ah](BC)

⁴ So Tobias went out to look for a man to go with him to Media, someone who was acquainted with the way. He went out and found the angel Raphael standing in front of him, but he did not perceive that he was an angel of God.^{(BD) 5} Tobias^[ai] said to him, “Where do you come from, young man?” “From the Israelites, your kindred,” he replied, “and I have come here to work.” Then Tobias^[aj] said to him, “Do you know the way to go to Media?”^{(BE) 6} “Yes,” he replied, “I have been there many times; I am acquainted with it and know all the roads. I have often traveled to Media and would stay with our kinsman Gabael who lives in Rages of Media. It is a journey of two days from Ecbatana to Rages, for it lies in a mountainous area, while Ecbatana is in the middle of the plain.” ⁷ Then Tobias said to him, “Wait for me, young man, until I go in and tell my father, for I do need you to travel with me, and I will pay you your wages.” ⁸ He replied, “All right, I will wait, but do not take too long.”

⁹ So Tobias went in to tell his father Tobit and said to him, “I have just found a man who is one of our own Israelite kindred!” He replied, “Call the man in so that I may learn about his people and to what tribe he belongs and whether he is trustworthy enough to go with you, my son.”

¹⁰ Then Tobias went out and called him and said, “Young man, my father is calling for you.” So he went in to him, and Tobit greeted him first. He replied, “Many greetings to you!” But Tobit retorted, “What is left for me to greet any more? I am a man without eyesight; I cannot see the light of heaven, but I lie in darkness like the dead who no longer see the light. Although still alive, I am among the dead. I hear people’s voices, but I cannot see them.” But the young man^[ak] said, “Take courage; the time is near for God to heal you; take courage.” Then Tobit said to him, “My son Tobias wishes to go to Media. Can you accompany him and guide him? I will pay your wages, brother.” He answered, “I can go with him, and I know all the roads. I have often gone to Media, have crossed all its plains, and am familiar with its mountains and all of its roads.”

¹¹ Then Tobit^[al] said to him, “Brother, of what family are you and from what tribe? Tell me, brother.” ¹² He replied, “Why do you need to know my tribe and lineage? Are you seeking an employee or a tribe and lineage?”^[am] But Tobit^[an] said, “I want to be sure, brother, whose son you are and what your name is.” ¹³ He replied, “I am Azariah, the son of the elder Hananiah, one of your relatives.” ¹⁴ Then Tobit^[ao] said to him, “You are very welcome, brother. Do not feel bitter toward me, brother, because I wanted to be sure about your family. It turns out that you are a kinsman and of good and noble lineage. For I knew Hananiah and Nathan, the two sons of the elder Shemeliah,^[ap] and they used to go with me to Jerusalem and worship with me there; they were not led astray. Your kindred are good people; you are of good stock. Welcome!”^(BF)

¹⁵ Then he added, “I will pay you a drachma a day as wages, as well as expenses for yourself and my son. So go with my son,^{(BG) 16} and I will add something to your wages.” Raphael^[aq] answered, “I will go with him, so do not fear. We shall leave in good health and return to you in good health because the way is safe.” ¹⁷ So Tobit^[ar] said to him, “Blessings be upon you, brother.”

Then he called his son and said to him, “Make preparations for the journey, my son, and set out with your brother. May God in heaven bring you safely there and return you in good health to me, and may his angel, my son, accompany you both for your safety.”

Before he^[as] went out to start his journey, he kissed his father and mother. Tobit then said to him, “Have a safe journey.”^(BH)

¹⁸ But his mother began to weep and said to Tobit, “Why is it that you have sent my son away? Is he not the staff of our hand as he goes in and out before us?^{(BI) 19} Do not heap money upon money, but let it be a ransom for our son. ²⁰ The life that is given to us by the Lord is enough for us.” ²¹ Tobit^[at] said to her, “Do not worry; our son will leave in good health and return to us in good health. Your eyes will see him on the day when he returns to you in good health. Say no more! Do not fear for them, my sister,^{(BJ) 22} for a good angel will accompany him; his journey will be successful, and he will come back in good health.”^(BK)