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II. QUELLENTEXTE
1 DIE NUMMERN 1–4 UND 167–170 (ENDE) DER THOMAS-AKTEN 824
The (first) Act of Judas Thomas the Apostle, when He sold him to the merchant
Habban, that he might go down (and) convert India.
1. And when all the apostles had been for a time in Jerusalem, – Simon Cephas und
Andrew, and Jacob and John, and Philip and Bartholomew, and Thomas and
Matthew the publican, and Jacob the son of Alpheus, and Simon the Kananite, and
Judas the son of Jacob, – they divided the countries among them, in order that each
one of them might preach in the region which fell to him and in the place to which the
Lord sent him. And India fell by lot and division to Judas Thomas the Apostle. And he
was not willing to go, saying: »I have not strength enouhg for this, because I am weak.
And I am a Hebrew: how can I teach the Indians?« And whilst Judas was reasoning
thus, our Lord appeared to him in a vision of the night, and said to him: »Fear not,
Thomas, because my grace is with thee«. But he would not be persuaded at all, saying:
»Withersoever Thou wilt, our Lord, send me; only to India I will not go«.
2. And as Judas was reasoning thus, a certain merchant, an Indian happened (to
come) in the south country 825 from India 826 , whose name was Habban; and he was sent
by king Gudnaphar, that he might bring to him a skilful carpenter. And our Lord saw
him walking in the street, and said to him: »Thou wishest to buy a carpenter?« He
saith to him: »Yes.« Our Lord saith to him: »I have a slave, a carpenter, whom I will
sell to thee«. And he showed him Thomas at a distance, and bargained with him for
twenty (pieces) of silver (as) his price, and wrote a bill of sale thus: »I Jesus, the son of
Joseph the carpenter, from the village of Bethlehem, which is in Judaea, acknowledge
that I have sold my slave Judas Thomas to Habban, the merchant of king
Gudnaphar«. And when they had completed this bill of sale, Jesus took Judas, and
went to Habban the merchant. And Habban saw him, and said to him: »Is this thy
master?« Judas saith to him: »Yes, he is my master«. Habban the merchant saith to
him: »He sold thee to me outright«. And Judas was silent.
3. And in the morning he arose and prayed, and entreated of his Lord, and said to
Him: »Lo, our Lord, as Thou wilt let Thy will be (done)«. And he went to Habban the
824) s. Klijn 1962, 65f. bzw. 153f.
825) ›south country‹ weist nach Klijn 1962, 160 auf das Grenzgebiet Ägyptens zu Palästina (Gen 20,1).
826) Der griechische Text hat »India«. Im syrischen, der Übersetzung Klijns zugrundeliegenden Text
ist das Wort unlesbar, s. Klijn 1962, 160.
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