t12papocrypha
Testament of Benjamin 4
Benjamin describes the character of the good man as one who operates entirely without envy, jealousy, or malice — meeting the sinful with mercy, the valiant with praise, the poor with kindness, and the God-fearing with active protection. The portrait is structured around the absence of the dark eye, a Hebrew idiom for a covetous or ill-wishing spirit. The good man's mercy is not passive; it overcomes evil by the shield of the One who is good. He who rejects the Most High — El Elyon — is not abandoned but admonished and turned back, naming the full height of the Godhead pattern in the act of correction.
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Know ye, my children, the end of the good man? Be followers of his compassion in a good mind, that ye also may wear crowns of glory. The good man hath not a dark eye; for he showeth mercy to all men, even though they be sinners, even though they devise evil concerning him. So he that doeth good overcometh the evil, being shielded by Him that is good; and he loveth the righteous as his own soul. If any one is glorified, he envieth him not; if any one is enriched, he is not jealous; if any one is valiant, he praiseth him; he trusteth and laudeth him that is sober-minded; he showeth mercy to the poor; he is kindly disposed toward the weak; he singeth the praises of God; as for him who hath the fear of God, he protecteth him as with a shield; him that loveth God he aideth; him that rejecteth the Most High he admonisheth and turneth back; and him that hath the grace of a good spirit, he loveth even as his own soul.
