Chronicles of Jerahmeel, by M. Gaster [1899], at sacred-texts.com
XXXII. (1) I, Jeraḥmeel, have found in the book of Strabon of Caphtor that Nimrod was the son of Shem; and when Noah was one hundred years old a son was born to him in his form and in his image, and he called his name
[paragraph continues] Jonithes (###). His father, Noah, gave him gifts, and sent him to the land of Itan (###), of which he took possession as far as the sea of Eliochora (###). And Nimrod the wicked went to Jonithes to learn of his wisdom, for the spirit of the Lord was with him. But Jonithes foresaw by means of astrology that the wicked Nimrod would come to him to take counsel with him how he could obtain sovereignty; he gave him the explanation of the four kings whom Daniel saw. And Jonithes said to Nimrod that the descendants of Ashur would reign first, i.e., the children of Shem, as it is said: 'And the sons of Shem were Elam and Ashur.' (2) The beginning of Nimrod's reign was in Babylon, and there Nimrod begat Bel. At the time of the dispersion Nimrod departed thence, and allied himself with the children of Ham; therefore it is said, 'And Cush begat Nimrod.' (3) After Nimrod, Bel, his son, succeeded to the kingdom in Babylon, in the days of Serug. And Bel went to the land of Ashur, but did not capture it. When Bel died, Ninus, his son, succeeded him, and, capturing the land of Assur, reigned over it, and built Nineveh and Rehoboth; and the length of the city was a distance of thirty days’ walk; it became the royal residence of Assur. From this land Assur, that is, Ninus, the son of Bel, the son of Nimrod, went forth. (4) Ninus vanquished Zoroastres the Wise, who discovered the art of Nigromancia, i.e., Nagirā, (###). He reigned in Bractia (Bactria), and had written down the seven sciences (or arts) on fourteen pillars, seven of brass and seven of brick, so that they should be proof against the water—of the flood—and against the fire—of the day of judgment. But Ninus vanquished him, and burnt the books of wisdom. (5) And Ninus wrote (?) another book of wisdom. When Bel, his father, died, he (Ninus) made an image in the likeness and form of his father, and called it Bel, after the name of his father; and he was always grieving at the loss of his father. He called all the gods Bel, after his name, as it is said, 'Nebo bowed Bel bent down.' Whosoever Ninus hated was pardoned when he came in the name of Bel and supplicated
him for mercy. Thus, all the world honoured and worshipped the god Bel, and made obeisance to him. Some gods were called Baal, and there is a Ba‘al Pe‘or and a Ba‘al Zebub. (6) In the forty-third year of the reign of Ninus Abraham was born, and on that very day the first King Pharaoh began to reign in Egypt, who was called Tibei (###); and after him all the kings of Egypt were called Pharaoh until the reign of Ptolemy, the son of Lagos, in Egypt, after whom all the kings of Egypt were called Ptolemy (###). All the kings of Assyria were called Antiochus; and all the kings of Rome were called Cæsar, after the name of Julius Caesar, until this very day. (7) When Abraham was ten years of age, Ninus, the son of Bel, died, and his wife, Semēramit, reigned after him in Assyria forty-two years. After her there reigned Shim‘i (###), the son of Ninus, who built the city of Babylon. At that time all the kings were under the king of Assyria, i.e., under Shim i, the son of Ninus, and whoever had greater power than his fellow-man forced the other to serve him (Shim‘i).
