1. Septuagint, Tobit, 4.12 (10th cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 4.12. Beware, my son, of all immorality. First of all take a wife from among the descendants of your fathers and do not marry a foreign woman, who is not of your fathers tribe; for we are the sons of the prophets. Remember, my son, that Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, our fathers of old, all took wives from among their brethren. They were blessed in their children, and their posterity will inherit the land. |
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2. Hebrew Bible, Exodus, 33.20 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 33.20. And He said: ‘Thou canst not see My face, for man shall not see Me and live.’" |
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3. Hebrew Bible, Proverbs, 16.19, 29.23 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 16.19. טוֹב שְׁפַל־רוּחַ אֶת־עניים [עֲנָוִים] מֵחַלֵּק שָׁלָל אֶת־גֵּאִים׃ 29.23. גַּאֲוַת אָדָם תַּשְׁפִּילֶנּוּ וּשְׁפַל־רוּחַ יִתְמֹךְ כָּבוֹד׃ | 16.19. Better it is to be of a lowly spirit with the humble, Than to divide the spoil with the proud." 29.23. A man’s pride shall bring him low; but he that is of a lowly spirit shall attain to honour." |
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4. Hebrew Bible, Psalms, 37.3, 37.9, 37.14-37.15, 37.22, 37.29, 37.34, 81.3 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 37.3. בְּטַח בַּיהוָה וַעֲשֵׂה־טוֹב שְׁכָן־אֶרֶץ וּרְעֵה אֱמוּנָה׃ 37.3. פִּי־צַדִּיק יֶהְגֶּה חָכְמָה וּלְשׁוֹנוֹ תְּדַבֵּר מִשְׁפָּט׃ 37.14. חֶרֶב פָּתְחוּ רְשָׁעִים וְדָרְכוּ קַשְׁתָּם לְהַפִּיל עָנִי וְאֶבְיוֹן לִטְבוֹחַ יִשְׁרֵי־דָרֶךְ׃ 37.15. חַרְבָּם תָּבוֹא בְלִבָּם וְקַשְּׁתוֹתָם תִּשָּׁבַרְנָה׃ 37.29. צַדִּיקִים יִירְשׁוּ־אָרֶץ וְיִשְׁכְּנוּ לָעַד עָלֶיהָ׃ 37.34. קַוֵּה אֶל־יְהוָה וּשְׁמֹר דַּרְכּוֹ וִירוֹמִמְךָ לָרֶשֶׁת אָרֶץ בְּהִכָּרֵת רְשָׁעִים תִּרְאֶה׃ 81.3. שְׂאוּ־זִמְרָה וּתְנוּ־תֹף כִּנּוֹר נָעִים עִם־נָבֶל׃ | 37.3. Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land, and cherish faithfulness." 37.14. The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow; to cast down the poor and needy, to slay such as are upright in the way;" 37.15. Their sword shall enter into their own heart, and their bows shall be broken." 37.29. The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever." 37.34. Wait for the LORD, and keep His way, and He will exalt thee to inherit the land; when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it." 81.3. Take up the melody, and sound the timbrel, the sweet harp with the psaltery." |
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5. Hebrew Bible, Isaiah, 57.13, 60.21, 61.1-61.3 (8th cent. BCE - 5th cent. BCE)
| 57.13. בְּזַעֲקֵךְ יַצִּילֻךְ קִבּוּצַיִךְ וְאֶת־כֻּלָּם יִשָּׂא־רוּחַ יִקַּח־הָבֶל וְהַחוֹסֶה בִי יִנְחַל־אֶרֶץ וְיִירַשׁ הַר־קָדְשִׁי׃ 60.21. וְעַמֵּךְ כֻּלָּם צַדִּיקִים לְעוֹלָם יִירְשׁוּ אָרֶץ נֵצֶר מטעו [מַטָּעַי] מַעֲשֵׂה יָדַי לְהִתְפָּאֵר׃ 61.1. שׂוֹשׂ אָשִׂישׂ בַּיהוָה תָּגֵל נַפְשִׁי בֵּאלֹהַי כִּי הִלְבִּישַׁנִי בִּגְדֵי־יֶשַׁע מְעִיל צְדָקָה יְעָטָנִי כֶּחָתָן יְכַהֵן פְּאֵר וְכַכַּלָּה תַּעְדֶּה כֵלֶיהָ׃ 61.1. רוּחַ אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה עָלָי יַעַן מָשַׁח יְהוָה אֹתִי לְבַשֵּׂר עֲנָוִים שְׁלָחַנִי לַחֲבֹשׁ לְנִשְׁבְּרֵי־לֵב לִקְרֹא לִשְׁבוּיִם דְּרוֹר וְלַאֲסוּרִים פְּקַח־קוֹחַ׃ 61.2. לִקְרֹא שְׁנַת־רָצוֹן לַיהוָה וְיוֹם נָקָם לֵאלֹהֵינוּ לְנַחֵם כָּל־אֲבֵלִים׃ 61.3. לָשׂוּם לַאֲבֵלֵי צִיּוֹן לָתֵת לָהֶם פְּאֵר תַּחַת אֵפֶר שֶׁמֶן שָׂשׂוֹן תַּחַת אֵבֶל מַעֲטֵה תְהִלָּה תַּחַת רוּחַ כֵּהָה וְקֹרָא לָהֶם אֵילֵי הַצֶּדֶק מַטַּע יְהוָה לְהִתְפָּאֵר׃ | 57.13. When thou criest, let them that thou hast gathered deliver thee; but the wind shall carry them all away, a breath shall bear them off; but he that taketh refuge in Me shall possess the land, and shall inherit My holy mountain." 60.21. Thy people also shall be all righteous, They shall inherit the land for ever; The branch of My planting, the work of My hands, Wherein I glory." 61.1. The spirit of the Lord God is upon me; Because the LORD hath anointed me To bring good tidings unto the humble; He hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the eyes to them that are bound;" 61.2. To proclaim the year of the LORD’S good pleasure, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all that mourn;" 61.3. To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, To give unto them a garland for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The mantle of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they might be called terebinths of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, wherein He might glory." |
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6. Septuagint, Tobit, 4.12 (4th cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 4.12. Beware, my son, of all immorality. First of all take a wife from among the descendants of your fathers and do not marry a foreign woman, who is not of your fathers tribe; for we are the sons of the prophets. Remember, my son, that Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, our fathers of old, all took wives from among their brethren. They were blessed in their children, and their posterity will inherit the land. |
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7. Anon., 1 Enoch, 5.7-5.8, 25.1-25.7, 96.5, 108.9 (3rd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 5.8. And then there shall be bestowed upon the elect wisdom, And they shall all live and never again sin, Either through ungodliness or through pride: But they who are wise shall be humble. 25.1. And he said unto me: 'Enoch, why dost thou ask me regarding the fragrance of the tree 25.2. and why dost thou wish to learn the truth' Then I answered him saying: 'I wish to 25.3. know about everything, but especially about this tree.' And he answered saying: 'This high mountain which thou hast seen, whose summit is like the throne of God, is His throne, where the Holy Great One, the Lord of Glory, the Eternal King, will sit, when He shall come down to visit 25.4. the earth with goodness. And as for this fragrant tree no mortal is permitted to touch it till the great judgement, when He shall take vengeance on all and bring (everything) to its consummation 25.5. for ever. It shall then be given to the righteous and holy. Its fruit shall be for food to the elect: it shall be transplanted to the holy place, to the temple of the Lord, the Eternal King. 25.6. Then shall they rejoice with joy and be glad, And into the holy place shall they enter; And its fragrance shall be in their bones, And they shall live a long life on earth, Such as thy fathers lived:And in their days shall no sorrow or plague Or torment or calamity touch them.' 25.7. Then blessed I the God of Glory, the Eternal King, who hath prepared such things for the righteous, and hath created them and promised to give to them. 96.5. Woe to you who devour the finest of the wheat, And drink wine in large bowls, And tread under foot the lowly with your might. |
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8. Anon., Jubilees, 17.3, 22.14 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 17.3. and Abraham rejoiced and blessed God because he had seen his sons and had not died childless. 22.14. and may He choose thee and thy seed that ye may become a people for His inheritance according to His will alway. And do thou, my son, Jacob, draw near and kiss me. |
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9. Septuagint, Ecclesiasticus (Siracides), 10.14, 11.12 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 10.14. The Lord has cast down the thrones of rulers,and has seated the lowly in their place. 10.14. Good things and bad, life and death,poverty and wealth, come from the Lord. |
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10. Septuagint, Judith, 9.11 (2nd cent. BCE - 0th cent. CE)
| 9.11. For thy power depends not upon numbers, nor thy might upon men of strength; for thou art God of the lowly, helper of the oppressed, upholder of the weak, protector of the forlorn, savior of those without hope. |
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11. Anon., Didache, 1.5, 3.7 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
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12. New Testament, 1 Corinthians, 13.9-13.10, 15.50 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 13.9. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part; 13.10. but when thatwhich is complete has come, then that which is partial will be doneaway with. 15.50. Now I say this, brothers, that flesh and blood can'tinherit the Kingdom of God; neither does corruption inheritincorruption. |
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13. New Testament, James, 1.9 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.9. But let the brother in humble circumstances glory in his high position; |
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14. New Testament, Luke, 1.52, 4.16-4.30, 6.20-6.49, 7.18-7.23 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.52. He has put down princes from their thrones. And has exalted the lowly. 4.16. He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. He entered, as was his custom, into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. 4.17. The book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. He opened the book, and found the place where it was written 4.18. The Spirit of the Lord is on me, Because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim release to the captives, Recovering of sight to the blind, To deliver those who are crushed 4.19. And to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. 4.20. He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fastened on him. 4.21. He began to tell them, "Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing. 4.22. All testified about him, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth, and they said, "Isn't this Joseph's son? 4.23. He said to them, "Doubtless you will tell me this parable, 'Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard done at Capernaum, do also here in your hometown.' 4.24. He said, "Most assuredly I tell you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown. 4.25. But truly I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the the sky was shut up three years and six months, when a great famine came over all the land. 4.26. Elijah was sent to none of them, except to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 4.27. There were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed, except Naaman, the Syrian. 4.28. They were all filled with wrath in the synagogue, as they heard these things. 4.29. They rose up, threw him out of the city, and led him to the brow of the hill that their city was built on, that they might throw him off the cliff. 4.30. But he, passing through the midst of them, went his way. 6.20. He lifted up his eyes to his disciples, and said, "Blessed are you poor, For yours is the Kingdom of God. 6.21. Blessed are you who hunger now, For you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, For you will laugh. 6.22. Blessed are you when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from them and reproach you, and throw out your name as evil, for the Son of Man's sake. 6.23. Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven, for their fathers did the same thing to the prophets. 6.24. But woe to you who are rich! For you have received your consolation. 6.25. Woe to you, you who are full now! For you will be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now! For you will mourn and weep. 6.26. Woe, when men speak well of you! For their fathers did the same thing to the false prophets. 6.27. But I tell you who hear: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you 6.28. bless those who curse you, and pray for those who insult you. 6.29. To him who strikes you on the cheek, offer also the other; and from him who takes away your cloak, don't withhold your coat also. 6.30. Give to everyone who asks you, and don't ask him who takes away your goods to give them back again. 6.31. As you would like people to do to you, do exactly so to them. 6.32. If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 6.33. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 6.34. If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive back as much. 6.35. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing back; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for he is kind toward the unthankful and evil. 6.36. Therefore be merciful, Even as your Father is also merciful. 6.37. Don't judge, And you won't be judged. Don't condemn, And you won't be condemned. Set free, And you will be set free. 6.38. Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be given to you. For with the same measure you measure it will be measured back to you. 6.39. He spoke a parable to them. "Can the blind guide the blind? Won't they both fall into a pit? 6.40. A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher. 6.41. Why do you see the speck of chaff that is in your brother's eye, but don't consider the beam that is in your own eye? 6.42. Or how can you tell your brother, 'Brother, let me remove the speck of chaff that is in your eye,' when you yourself don't see the beam that is in your own eye? You hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck of chaff that is in your brother's eye. 6.43. For there is no good tree that brings forth rotten fruit; nor again a rotten tree that brings forth good fruit. 6.44. For each tree is known by its own fruit. For people don't gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush. 6.45. The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings out that which is good, and the evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings out that which is evil, for out of the abundance of the heart, his mouth speaks. 6.46. Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and don't do the things which I say? 6.47. Everyone who comes to me, and hears my words, and does them, I will show you who he is like. 6.48. He is like a man building a house, who dug and went deep, and laid a foundation on the rock. When a flood arose, the stream broke against that house, and could not shake it, because it was founded on the rock. 6.49. But he who hears, and doesn't do, is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream broke, and immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great. 7.18. The disciples of John told him about all these things. 7.19. John, calling to himself two of his disciples, sent them to Jesus, saying, "Are you the one who is coming, or should we look for another? 7.20. When the men had come to him, they said, "John the Baptizer has sent us to you, saying, 'Are you he who comes, or should we look for another?' 7.21. In that hour he cured many of diseases and plagues and evil spirits; and to many who were blind he gave sight. 7.22. Jesus answered them, "Go and tell John the things which you have seen and heard: that the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. 7.23. Blessed is he who is not offended by me. |
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15. New Testament, Mark, 6.1-6.6 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 6.1. He went out from there. He came into his own country, and his disciples followed him. 6.2. When the Sabbath had come, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many hearing him were astonished, saying, "Where did this man get these things?" and, "What is the wisdom that is given to this man, that such mighty works come about by his hands? 6.3. Isn't this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? Aren't his sisters here with us?" They were offended at him. 6.4. Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and among his own relatives, and in his own house. 6.5. He could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick folk, and healed them. 6.6. He marveled because of their unbelief. He went around the villages teaching. |
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16. New Testament, Matthew, 5.5-5.8, 5.10, 6.14, 7.1-7.2, 13.53-13.58 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 5.5. Blessed are the gentle, For they shall inherit the earth. 5.6. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, For they shall be filled. 5.7. Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. 5.8. Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God. 5.10. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for righteousness' sake, For theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. 6.14. For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 7.1. Don't judge, so that you won't be judged. 7.2. For with whatever judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with whatever measure you measure, it will be measured to you. 13.53. It happened that when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed from there. 13.54. Coming into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished, and said, "Where did this man get this wisdom, and these mighty works? 13.55. Isn't this the carpenter's son? Isn't his mother called Mary, and his brothers, James, Joses, Simon, and Judas? 13.56. Aren't all of his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all of these things? 13.57. They were offended by him. But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and in his own house. 13.58. He didn't do many mighty works there because of their unbelief. |
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17. Polycarp of Smyrna, Letter To The Philippians, 2.3 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
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18. Irenaeus, Refutation of All Heresies, 3.22.1, 4.9.2, 4.20.5, 5.9.4 (2nd cent. CE - 3rd cent. CE)
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19. Anon., 4 Ezra, 14.3
| 14.3. Then he said to me, "I revealed myself in a bush and spoke to Moses, when my people were in bondage in Egypt; |
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