The Forgotten Books of Eden, by Rutherford H. Platt, Jr., [1926], at sacred-texts.com

CHAP XLVIII.

Fifth apparition of Satan to Adam and Eve.

AFTER this Satan called to his hosts, all of which came to him, and said unto him:--

2 "O, our Lord, what wilt thou do?"

3 He then said unto them, "Ye know that this Adam, whom God created out of the dust, is he who has taken our kingdom. Come, let us gather together and kill him; or hurl a rock at him and at Eve, and crush them under it."

4 When Satan's hosts heard these words, they came to the part of the mountain where Adam and Eve were asleep.

5 Then Satan and his hosts took a huge rock, broad and even, and without blemish, thinking within himself, "If there should be a hole in the rock, when it fell on them, the hole in the rock might come upon them, and so they would escape and not die."

6 He then said to his hosts, "Take up this stone, and throw it flat upon them, so that it roll not from them to somewhere else. And when ye have hurled it, flee and tarry not."

7 And they did as he bid them. But as the rock fell down from the mountain upon Adam and Eve, God commanded it to become a kind of shed over them, that did them no harm. And so it was by God's order.

8 But when the rock fell, the whole earth quaked with it, and. was shaken from the size of the rock.

9 And as it quaked and shook, Adam and Eve awoke from sleep, and found themselves under a rock like a shed. But they knew not how it was; for when they fell asleep they were under the sky, and not under a shed; and when they saw it, they were afraid.

10 Then Adam said to Eve, "Wherefore has the mountain bent itself, and the earth quaked and shaken on our account? And why has this rock spread itself over us like a tent?

11 "Does God intend to plague us and to shut us up in this prison? Or will He close the earth upon us?

12 "He is angry with us for our having come out of the cave without His order; and for our having done so of our own accord, without consulting Him, when we left the cave and came to this place."

13 Then Eve said, "If, indeed, the earth quaked for our sake, and this rock forms a tent over us because of our transgression, then woe be to us, O Adam, for our punishment will be long.

14 "But arise and pray Ito God to let us know concerning this, and what this rock is, that is spread over us like a tent."

15 Then Adam stood up and prayed before the Lord, to let him know about this strait. And Adam thus stood praying until the morning.