The Holy Piby 2.3.1

The Holy Law—Commandments I

Love ye one another O children of Ethiopia, for by no other way can ye love the Lord your God.

II

Be thou industrious, thrifty and fruitful, O offsprings of Ethiopia, for by no other way can ye show gratitude to the Lord your God, for the many blessings he has bestowed upon earth free to all mankind.

III

Be ye concretize and ever united, for by the power of unity ye shall demand respect of the nations.

IV

Work ye willingly with all thy heart, with all thy soul and with all thy strength to relieve suffering and oppressed humanity, for by no other way can ye render integral service to the Lord your God.

V

Be thou clean and pleasant, O generation of Ethiopia, for thou art anointed, moreover the angels of the Lord dwelleth with thee.

VI

Be thou punctual, honest and truthful that ye gain favor in the sight of the Lord your God, and that your pathway be prosperous.

VII

Let no people take away that which the Lord thy God giveth thee, for the Lord shall inquire of it and if ye shall say some one hath taken it, ye shall in no wise escape punishment, for he that dieth in retreat of his enemy the Lord shall not hold him guiltless, but a people who dieth in pursuit of their enemy for the protection of that which the Lord God giveth them, shall receive a reward in the kingdom of their Father.

VIII

Thou shalt first bind up the wound of thy brother and correct the mistakes in thine own household before ye can see the sore on the body of your friend, or the error in the household of thy neighbor.

IX

O generation of Ethiopia, shed not the blood of thine own for the welfare of others for such is the pathway to destruction and contempt.

X

Be ye not contented in the vineyard or household of others, for ye know not the day or the hour when denial shall appear, prepare ye rather for yourselves a foundation, for by no other way can man manifest love for the offsprings of the womb.

XI

Athlyi, Athlyi, thou shepherd of the holy law and of the children of Ethiopia, establish ye upon the law a holy temple for the Lord according to thy name and there shall all the children of Ethiopia worship the Lord their God, and there shall the apostles of the shepherd administer the law and receive pledges thereto and concretize within the law. Verily he that is concretized within the law shall be a follower and a defender thereof, moreover the generations born of him that is concretize within the law are also of the law.

XII

O generation of Ethiopia, thou shalt have no other God but the Creator of heaven and earth and the things thereof. Sing ye praises and shout hosanna to the Lord your God, while for a foundation ye sacrifice on earth for his divine majesty the Lord our Lord in six days created the heaven and earth and rested the seventh; ye also shall hallow the seventh day, for it is blessed by the Lord, therefore on this day thou shall do no manner of work or any within thy gates.