And there was a man living in Babylon, and his name was Joakim
And he received a wife named Susanna, the daughter of Hilkiah, who was very beautiful and God-fearing
For her parents, because they were righteous, had educated their daughter according to the law of Moses
But Joakim was very wealthy, and he had an orchard near his house, and the Jews flocked to him, because he was the most honorable of them all
And two elder judges had been appointed among the people that year, about whom the Lord has said, “Iniquity has come out of Babylon, from the elder judges, who seemed to govern the people.
These frequented the house of Joakim, and all came to them, who had need of judgment
But when the people departed at noontime, Susanna went in and walked around in her husband’s orchard
And the elders saw her entering and walking around every day, and they were inflamed with desire towards her
And they perverted their reason and turned away their eyes, so that they would not look to heaven, nor call to mind just judgments
And so they were both wounded by the love of her, yet they did not reveal their grief to one another
For they were ashamed to reveal to each other their desire, wanting to lie with her
And so they watched carefully every day to see her. And one said to the other
“Let us go home, for it is lunch time.” And going out, they departed one from another
And returning again, they came to the same place, and, each asking the other the reason, they admitted their desire. And then they agreed to set a time when they would be able to find her alone
But it happened, while they watched for an opportune day, that she entered at a particular time, just as yesterday and the day before, with only two maids, and she wanted to wash in the orchard, because it was so hot
And there was no one there, except the two elders in hiding, and they were studying her
And so she said to the maids, “Bring me oil and ointments, and shut the doors of the orchard, so that I may wash.
And they did as she ordered them. And they shut the doors of the orchard and left through a back door to fetch what she required, and they did not know that the elders were hiding within
But when the maids had departed, the two elders arose and hurried to her, and they said
“Behold, the doors of the orchard are closed, and no one can see us, and we are in desire for you. Because of these things, consent to us and lie with us
But if you will not, we will bear witness against you that a young man was with you and, for this reason, you sent your maids away from you.
Susanna sighed and said, “I am closed in on every side. For if I do this thing, it is death to me; yet if I do not do it, I will not escape your hands
But it is better for me to fall unavoidably into your hands, than to sin in the sight of the Lord.
And Susanna cried out with a loud voice, but the elders also cried out against her
And one of them hurried to the door of the orchard and opened it
And so, when the servants of the house heard the outcry in the orchard, they rushed in by the back door to see what was happening
But after the old men had spoken, the servants were greatly ashamed, for there had never been anything of this kind said about Susanna. And it happened on the next day
when the people came to Joakim her husband, that the two appointed elders also came, full of wicked plans against Susanna, in order to put her to death
And they said before the people, “Send for Susanna, daughter of Hilkiah, the wife of Joakim.” And immediately they sent for her
And she arrived with her parents, and sons, and all her relatives
Moreover, Susanna was exceedingly delicate and beautiful in appearance
But those wicked ones commanded that her face should be uncovered, (for she was covered,) so that at least they might be satisfied with her beauty
Therefore, her own and all who knew her wept
Yet the two appointed elders, rising up in the midst of the people, set their hands upon her head
And weeping, she gazed up to heaven, for her heart had faith in the Lord
And the appointed elders said, “While we were taking a walk in the orchard alone, this one came in with two maids, and she shut the doors of the orchard, and she sent the maids away from her
And a young man came to her, who was in hiding, and he lay down with her
Furthermore, since we were in a corner of the orchard, seeing this wickedness, we ran up to them, and we saw them consorting together
And, indeed, we were unable to catch him, because he was stronger than us, and opening the doors, he leaped out
But, since we had apprehended this one, we demanded to know who the young man was, but she was unwilling to tell us. On this matter, we are witnesses.
The multitude believed them, just as if they were elders and the judges of the people, and they condemned her to death
But Susanna cried out with a loud voice and said, “Eternal God, who knows what is hidden, who knows all things before they happen
you know that they have borne false witness against me, and behold, I must die, though I have done none of these things, which these men have maliciously invented against me.
But the Lord heeded her voice
And when she was led away to death, the Lord raised up the holy spirit of a young boy, whose name was Daniel
And he cried out with a loud voice, “I am clean of the blood of this one.
And all the people, turning back towards him, said, “What is this word that you are saying?
But he, while standing in the midst of them, said, “Are you so foolish, sons of Israel, that without judging and without knowing what the truth is, you have condemned a daughter of Israel
Return to judgment, because they have spoken false witness against her.
Therefore, the people returned with haste, and the old men said to him, “Come and sit down in our midst and show us, since God has given you the honor of old age.
And Daniel said to them, “Separate these at a distance from one another, and I will judge between them.
And so, when they were divided, one from the other, he called one of them, and he said to him, “You deep-rooted ancient evil, now your sins have come out, which you have committed before
judging unjust judgments, oppressing the innocent, and setting free the guilty, though the Lord declares, ‘The innocent and the just you must not put to death.
Now then, if you saw her, declare under which tree you saw them conversing together.” He said, “Under an evergreen mastic tree.
But Daniel said, “Truly, you have lied against your own head. For behold, the angel of God, having received the sentence from him, will split you down the middle
And, having put him aside, he commanded the other to approach, and he said to him, “You offspring of Canaan, and not of Judah, beauty has deceived you, and desire has perverted your heart
Thus did you do to the daughters of Israel, and they, out of fear, consorted with you, but a daughter of Judah would not tolerate your iniquity
Now then, declare to me, under which tree you caught them conversing together.” He said, “Under an evergreen oak tree.
And Daniel said to him, “Truly, you also have lied against your own head. For the angel of the Lord waits, holding a sword, to cut you down the middle and put you to death.
And then the entire assembly cried out in a loud voice, and they blessed God, who saves those who hope in him
And they rose up against the two appointed elders, (for Daniel had convicted them, by their own mouth, of bearing false witness,) and they did to them just as they had wickedly done against their neighbor
so as to act according to the law of Moses. And they put them to death, and innocent blood was saved on that day
But Hilkiah and his wife praised God for their daughter, Susanna, with Joakim, her husband, and all her relatives, because there had been found in her no disgrace
And so Daniel became great in the sight of the people from that day, and thereafter
And king Astyages was laid to rest with his fathers. And Cyrus the Persian received his kingdom