1. Hebrew Bible, Job, 26.14, 38.4-38.6 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 26.14. הֶן־אֵלֶּה קְצוֹת דרכו [דְּרָכָיו] וּמַה־שֵּׁמֶץ דָּבָר נִשְׁמַע־בּוֹ וְרַעַם גבורתו [גְּבוּרוֹתָיו] מִי יִתְבּוֹנָן׃ 38.4. אֵיפֹה הָיִיתָ בְּיָסְדִי־אָרֶץ הַגֵּד אִם־יָדַעְתָּ בִינָה׃ 38.4. כִּי־יָשֹׁחוּ בַמְּעוֹנוֹת יֵשְׁבוּ בַסֻּכָּה לְמוֹ־אָרֶב׃ 38.5. מִי־שָׂם מְמַדֶּיהָ כִּי תֵדָע אוֹ מִי־נָטָה עָלֶיהָ קָּו׃ 38.6. עַל־מָה אֲדָנֶיהָ הָטְבָּעוּ אוֹ מִי־יָרָה אֶבֶן פִּנָּתָהּ׃ | 26.14. Lo, these are but the outskirts of His ways; And how small a whisper is heard of Him! But the thunder of His mighty deeds who can understand?" 38.4. Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast the understanding." 38.5. Who determined the measures thereof, if thou knowest? Or who stretched the line upon it?" 38.6. Whereupon were the foundations thereof fastened? Or who laid the corner-stone thereof," |
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2. Hebrew Bible, Isaiah, 40.12-40.13, 55.8-55.9 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 40.12. מִי־מָדַד בְּשָׁעֳלוֹ מַיִם וְשָׁמַיִם בַּזֶּרֶת תִּכֵּן וְכָל בַּשָּׁלִשׁ עֲפַר הָאָרֶץ וְשָׁקַל בַּפֶּלֶס הָרִים וּגְבָעוֹת בְּמֹאזְנָיִם׃ 40.13. מִי־תִכֵּן אֶת־רוּחַ יְהוָה וְאִישׁ עֲצָתוֹ יוֹדִיעֶנּוּ׃ 55.8. כִּי לֹא מַחְשְׁבוֹתַי מַחְשְׁבוֹתֵיכֶם וְלֹא דַרְכֵיכֶם דְּרָכָי נְאֻם יְהוָה׃ 55.9. כִּי־גָבְהוּ שָׁמַיִם מֵאָרֶץ כֵּן גָּבְהוּ דְרָכַי מִדַּרְכֵיכֶם וּמַחְשְׁבֹתַי מִמַּחְשְׁבֹתֵיכֶם׃ | 40.12. Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, And meted out heaven with the span, And comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, And weighed the mountains in scales, And the hills in a balance?" 40.13. Who hath meted out the spirit of the LORD? Or who was His counsellor that he might instruct Him?" 55.8. For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Neither are your ways My ways, saith the LORD." 55.9. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts." |
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3. Anon., 1 Enoch, 22.5-22.7, 38.3, 39.3, 52.2-52.4, 60.2-60.6, 60.8, 60.23, 69.16-69.26, 71.1-71.5, 93.2, 103.2-103.3, 104.10, 104.12 (3rd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 22.5. and his voice went forth to heaven and made suit. And I asked Raphael the angel who was 22.6. with me, and I said unto him: 'This spirit which maketh suit, whose is it, whose voice goeth forth and maketh suit to heaven ' 22.7. And he answered me saying: 'This is the spirit which went forth from Abel, whom his brother Cain slew, and he makes his suit against him till his seed is destroyed from the face of the earth, and his seed is annihilated from amongst the seed of men.' 38.3. When the secrets of the righteous shall be revealed and the sinners judged, And the godless driven from the presence of the righteous and elect 39.3. And in those days a whirlwind carried me off from the earth, And set me down at the end of the heavens. 52.2. I had been carried off in a whirlwind and they had borne me towards the west-There mine eyes saw all the secret things of heaven that shall be, a mountain of iron, and a mountain of copper, and a mountain of silver, and a mountain of gold, and a mountain of soft metal, and a mountain of lead. 52.3. And I asked the angel who went with me, saying, 'What things are these which I have seen in 52.4. ecret' And he said unto me: 'All these things which thou hast seen shall serve the dominion of His Anointed that he may be potent and mighty on the earth.' 60.2. disquieted with a great disquiet. And the Head of Days sat on the throne of His glory, and the angels and the righteous stood around Him. 60.2. And the spirit of the dew has its dwelling at the ends of the heaven, and is connected with the chambers of the rain, and its course is in winter and summer: and its clouds and the clouds of the 60.3. And a great trembling seized me, And fear took hold of me, And my loins gave way, And dissolved were my reins, And I fell upon my face. 60.4. And Michael sent another angel from among the holy ones and he raised me up, and when he had raised me up my spirit returned; for I had not been able to endure the look of this host, and the 60.5. commotion and the quaking of the heaven. And Michael said unto me: ' Why art thou disquieted with such a vision Until this day lasted the day of His mercy; and He hath been merciful and 60.6. long-suffering towards those who dwell on the earth. And when the day, and the power, and the punishment, and the judgement come, which the Lord of Spirits hath prepared for those who worship not the righteous law, and for those who deny the righteous judgement, and for those who take His name in vain-that day is prepared, for the elect a covet, but for sinners an inquisition. 60.8. abysses of the ocean over the fountains of the waters. But the male is named Behemoth, who occupied with his breast a waste wilderness named Duidain, on the east of the garden where the elect and righteous dwell, where my grandfather was taken up, the seventh from Adam, the first 60.23. And the angel of peace who was with me said to me: ' These two monsters, prepared conformably to the greatness of God, shall feed . . . 69.16. And these are the secrets of this oath . . . And they are strong through his oath: And the heaven was suspended before the world was created, And for ever. 69.17. And through it the earth was founded upon the water, And from the secret recesses of the mountains come beautiful waters, From the creation of the world and unto eternity. 69.18. And through that oath the sea was created, And as its foundation He set for it the sand against the time of (its) anger, And it dare not pass beyond it from the creation of the world unto eternity. 69.21. And through that oath the stars complete their course, And He calls them by their names, And they answer Him from eternity to eternity. 69.22. [And in like manner the spirits of the water, and of the winds, and of all zephyrs, and (their) path 69.23. from all the quarters of the winds. And there are preserved the voices of the thunder and the light of the lightnings: and there are preserved the chambers of the hail and the chambers of the 69.24. hoarfrost, and the chambers of the mist, and the chambers of the rain and the dew. And all these believe and give thanks before the Lord of Spirits, and glorify (Him) with all their power, and their food is in every act of thanksgiving: they thank and glorify and extol the name of the Lord of Spirits for ever and ever.] 69.25. And this oath is mighty over them And through it [they are preserved and] their paths are preserved, And their course is not destroyed. 69.26. And there was great joy amongst them, And they blessed and glorified and extolled Because the name of that Son of Man had been revealed unto them. 71.1. And it came to pass after this that my spirit was translated And it ascended into the heavens: And I saw the holy sons of God. They were stepping on flames of fire: Their garments were white [and their raiment], And their faces shone like snow. 71.1. And with them the Head of Days, His head white and pure as wool, And His raiment indescribable. 71.2. And I saw two streams of fire, And the light of that fire shone like hyacinth, And I fell on my face before the Lord of Spirits. 71.3. And the angel Michael [one of the archangels] seized me by my right hand, And lifted me up and led me forth into all the secrets, And he showed me all the secrets of righteousness. 71.4. And he showed me all the secrets of the ends of the heaven, And all the chambers of all the stars, and all the luminaries, Whence they proceed before the face of the holy ones. 71.5. And he translated my spirit into the heaven of heavens, And I saw there as it were a structure built of crystals, And between those crystals tongues of living fire. 103.2. Mighty One in dominion, and by His greatness I swear to you. I know a mystery And have read the heavenly tablets, And have seen the holy books, And have found written therein and inscribed regarding them: 103.3. That all goodness and joy and glory are prepared for them, And written down for the spirits of those who have died in righteousness, And that manifold good shall be given to you in recompense for your labours, And that your lot is abundantly beyond the lot of the living. 104.12. concerning them. Then, I know another mystery, that books will be given to the righteous and the |
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4. Dead Sea Scrolls, Pesher On Habakkuk, 7.4-7.5 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
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5. Dead Sea Scrolls, Community Rule, 4.6, 9.17-9.19 (2nd cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
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6. Hebrew Bible, Daniel, 2.27-2.28 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 2.27. עָנֵה דָנִיֵּאל קֳדָם מַלְכָּא וְאָמַר רָזָה דִּי־מַלְכָּא שָׁאֵל לָא חַכִּימִין אָשְׁפִין חַרְטֻמִּין גָּזְרִין יָכְלִין לְהַחֲוָיָה לְמַלְכָּא׃ 2.28. בְּרַם אִיתַי אֱלָהּ בִּשְׁמַיָּא גָּלֵא רָזִין וְהוֹדַע לְמַלְכָּא נְבוּכַדְנֶצַּר מָה דִּי לֶהֱוֵא בְּאַחֲרִית יוֹמַיָּא חֶלְמָךְ וְחֶזְוֵי רֵאשָׁךְ עַל־מִשְׁכְּבָךְ דְּנָה הוּא׃ | 2.27. Daniel answered before the king, and said: ‘The secret which the king hath asked can neither wise men, enchanters, magicians, nor astrologers, declare unto the king;" 2.28. but there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and He hath made known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the end of days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these:" |
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7. Septuagint, 1 Maccabees, 14.16 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 14.16. It was heard in Rome, and as far away as Sparta, that Jonathan had died, and they were deeply grieved. |
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8. Septuagint, 2 Maccabees, 6.29 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 6.29. And those who a little before had acted toward him with good will now changed to ill will, because the words he had uttered were in their opinion sheer madness.' |
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9. Anon., 2 Baruch, 48.3 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
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10. Anon., Testament of Abraham A, 12 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
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11. New Testament, 1 Corinthians, 15.51 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 15.51. Behold, I tell you a mystery. We will not all sleep, but wewill all be changed |
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12. New Testament, 2 Corinthians, 12.1-12.5 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
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13. New Testament, Acts, 22.17 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
| 22.17. It happened that, when I had returned to Jerusalem, and while I prayed in the temple, I fell into a trance |
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14. New Testament, Apocalypse, 1.20, 6.9, 20.4 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.20. the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands. The seven stars are the angels of the seven assemblies. The seven lampstands are seven assemblies. 6.9. When he opened the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been killed for the Word of God, and for the testimony of the Lamb which they had. 20.4. I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God, and such as didn't worship the beast nor his image, and didn't receive the mark on their forehead and on their hand. They lived, and reigned with Christ for the thousand years. |
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15. New Testament, Colossians, 1.26 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.26. the mystery which has been hidden for ages and generations. But now it has been revealed to his saints |
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16. New Testament, Ephesians, 1.9, 3.3 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.9. making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him 3.3. how that by revelation the mystery was made known to me, as I wrote before in few words |
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17. New Testament, Romans, 11.25 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 11.25. For I don't desire, brothers, to have you ignorant of this mystery, so that you won't be wise in your own conceits, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in |
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18. New Testament, Mark, 4.10-4.12 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 4.10. When he was alone, those who were around him with the twelve asked him about the parables. 4.11. He said to them, "To you is given the mystery of the Kingdom of God, but to those who are outside, all things are done in parables 4.12. that 'seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest perhaps they should turn again, and their sins should be forgiven them.' |
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19. New Testament, Matthew, 18.21 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 18.21. Then Peter came and said to him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Until seven times? |
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20. Lucian, The Passing of Peregrinus, 18 (2nd cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
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21. Anon., 2 Enoch, 7.3-7.4, 10.1, 10.4
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22. Anon., 3 Baruch, 4.4-4.5
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23. Anon., 4 Ezra, 4.21, 12.36-12.38, 14.5, 14.45-14.47
| 4.21. For as the land is assigned to the forest and the sea to its waves, so also those who dwell upon earth can understand only what is on the earth, and he who is above the heavens can understand what is above the height of the heavens. 12.36. And you alone were worthy to learn this secret of the Most High. 12.37. Therefore write all these things that you have seen in a book, and put it in a hidden place; 12.38. and you shall teach them to the wise among your people, whose hearts you know are able to comprehend and keep these secrets. 14.5. and I told him many wondrous things, and showed him the secrets of the times and declared to him the end of the times. Then I commanded him, saying 14.45. And when the forty days were ended, the Most High spoke to me, saying, "Make public the twenty-four books that you wrote first and let the worthy and the unworthy read them; 14.46. but keep the seventy that were written last, in order to give them to the wise among your people. 14.47. For in them is the spring of understanding, the fountain of wisdom, and the river of knowledge. |
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24. Anon., 4 Baruch, 3.7, 3.9, 7.13, 9.13, 9.16
| 3.7. And the Lord said: Speak, my chosen one Jeremiah. 7.13. And he kept silent until Jeremiah came along, for he and some of thepeople were coming out to bury a corpse outside the city. 9.13. And when they heard the voice they did not bury him, but stayedaround his tabernacle for three days saying, "when will he arise? 9.16. And the tree of life planted in the midst of paradise will cause all the unfruitful trees to bear fruit, and will grow and sprout forth. |
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25. Anon., Apocalypse of Zephaniah, 10.1
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