herself with the oil of life eternal. Asenath was about to
set food and drink before her guest, when she perceived a
honeycomb of wondrous form and fragrance. The angel
explained to her that it had been produced by the bees of
Paradise, to serve as food for the angels and the elect of
God. He took a small portion of it for himself, and the
rest he put into Asenath's mouth, saying: "From this day
forth thy body shall bloom like the eternal flowers in Paradise,
thy bones shall wax fat like the cedars thereof, strength
inexhaustible shall be thine, thy youth shall never fade, and
thy beauty never perish, and thou shalt be like unto a metropolis
surrounded by a wall." At the request of Asenath,
the angel blessed also her seven attendants, with the words,
"May the Lord bless you and make you to be seven pillars
in the City of Refuge."