Page:Apocryphal Gospels and Other Documents Relating to the History of Christ.djvu/150

34 the sacrifice went up to heaven together with the smoke.

Then Joachim cast himself down upon his face, and lay in prayer from the sixth hour of the day until the evening. Now when his servants and hirelings saw, and knew not for what cause he lay there, they thought him to be dead, and, coming to him, almost raised him from the ground. But when he had told them the vision of the angel, smitten with exceeding fear and wonder, they urged him that without delay, he should carry out the vision of the angel, and speedily return to his wife. And when Joachim turned the matter over in his mind, and thought whether he should return or not, it came to pass that he was overcome with sleep, and behold, the angel which had already appeared to him while awake, appeared to him in sleep, saying, I am an angel and am given thee by God as a guardian; go down in confidence, and return to Anna, because the kind acts which thou and thy wife Anna have done are rehearsed in the presence of the Most High; and God will give you such fruit as neither the prophets nor any saint ever had from the beginning, nor shall have. Now when Joachim had awaked from sleep, he called all his herdsmen to him, and told them the dream. And they adored the Lord, and said to him. Take heed not to contemn the sayings of the angel any further. But arise, let us