11. Septuagint, Ecclesiasticus (Siracides), 1.26, 3.12, 3.17, 4.1-4.10, 4.17, 6.6-6.9, 6.14-6.16, 6.18-6.37, 7.3, 7.7-7.8, 7.10, 7.14-7.17, 7.24, 7.27, 7.29-7.32, 8.1-8.2, 8.5, 8.9, 8.13, 8.18, 9.1-9.2, 9.4-9.18, 10.4, 10.13, 10.18, 10.22, 11.7-11.10, 11.12, 11.14, 11.17-11.22, 11.24-11.27, 12.10-12.12, 13.1-13.4, 13.11, 13.15-13.23, 14.3, 14.5, 14.8-14.11, 14.16-14.17, 19.13-19.17, 22.22, 23.1-23.4, 23.18-23.21, 23.23, 23.26-23.27, 24.1-24.29, 27.16-27.17, 27.21, 31.30, 32.2, 33.1, 36.1-36.22, 36.28-36.29, 36.31, 37.3, 37.27, 39.4, 40.29, 41.20, 42.9-42.14, 44.21, 45.13, 45.18, 47.7, 48.10, 48.15, 50.1-50.24 (2nd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 1.26. If you desire wisdom, keep the commandments,and the Lord will supply it for you. 3.12. O son, help your father in his old age,and do not grieve him as long as he lives; 3.17. My son, perform your tasks in meekness;then you will be loved by those whom God accepts. 4.1. My son, deprive not the poor of his living,and do not keep needy eyes waiting. 4.1. Be like a father to orphans,and instead of a husband to their mother;you will then be like a son of the Most High,and he will love you more than does your mother. 4.2. Do not grieve the one who is hungry,nor anger a man in want. 4.2. Observe the right time, and beware of evil;and do not bring shame on yourself. 4.3. Do not add to the troubles of an angry mind,nor delay your gift to a beggar. 4.3. Do not be like a lion in your home,nor be a faultfinder with your servants. 4.4. Do not reject an afflicted suppliant,nor turn your face away from the poor. 4.5. Do not avert your eye from the needy,nor give a man occasion to curse you; 4.6. for if in bitterness of soul he calls down a curse upon you,his Creator will hear his prayer. 4.7. Make yourself beloved in the congregation;bow your head low to a great man. 4.8. Incline your ear to the poor,and answer him peaceably and gently. 4.9. Deliver him who is wronged from the hand of the wrongdoer;and do not be fainthearted in judging a case. 4.17. For at first she will walk with him on tortuous paths,she will bring fear and cowardice upon him,and will torment him by her discipline until she trusts him,and she will test him with her ordices. 7.3. My son, do not sow the furrows of injustice,and you will not reap a sevenfold crop. 7.3. With all your might love your Maker,and do not forsake his ministers. 7.7. Do not offend against the public,and do not disgrace yourself among the people. 7.8. Do not commit a sin twice;even for one you will not go unpunished. 7.14. Do not prattle in the assembly of the elders,nor repeat yourself in your prayer. 7.15. Do not hate toilsome labor,or farm work, which were created by the Most High. 7.16. Do not count yourself among the crowd of sinners;remember that wrath does not delay. 7.17. Humble yourself greatly,for the punishment of the ungodly is fire and worms. 7.24. Do you have daughters? Be concerned for their chastity,and do not show yourself too indulgent with them. 7.27. With all your heart honor your father,and do not forget the birth pangs of your mother. 7.29. With all your soul fear the Lord,and honor his priests. 7.31. Fear the Lord and honor the priest,and give him his portion, as is commanded you:the first fruits, the guilt offering, the gift of the shoulders,the sacrifice of sanctification,and the first fruits of the holy things. 7.32. Stretch forth your hand to the poor,so that your blessing may be complete. 8.1. Do not contend with a powerful man,lest you fall into his hands. 8.1. Do not kindle the coals of a sinner,lest you be burned in his flaming fire. 8.2. Do not quarrel with a rich man,lest his resources outweigh yours;for gold has ruined many,and has perverted the minds of kings. 8.5. Do not reproach a man who is turning away from sin;remember that we all deserve punishment. 8.9. Do not disregard the discourse of the aged,for they themselves learned from their fathers;because from them you will gain understanding and learn how to give an answer in time of need. 8.13. Do not give surety beyond your means,but if you give surety, be concerned as one who must pay. 8.18. In the presence of a stranger do nothing that is to be kept secret,for you do not know what he will divulge. 9.1. Do not be jealous of the wife of your bosom,and do not teach her an evil lesson to your own hurt. 9.1. Forsake not an old friend,for a new one does not compare with him. A new friend is like new wine;when it has aged you will drink it with pleasure. 9.2. Do not give yourself to a woman so that she gains mastery over your strength. 9.4. Do not associate with a woman singer,lest you be caught in her intrigues. 9.5. Do not look intently at a virgin,lest you stumble and incur penalties for her. 9.6. Do not give yourself to harlots lest you lose your inheritance. 9.7. Do not look around in the streets of a city,nor wander about in its deserted sections. 9.8. Turn away your eyes from a shapely woman,and do not look intently at beauty belonging to another;many have been misled by a womans beauty,and by it passion is kindled like a fire. 9.9. Never dine with another mans wife,nor revel with her at wine;lest your heart turn aside to her,and in blood you be plunged into destruction. 9.11. Do not envy the honors of a sinner,for you do not know what his end will be. 9.12. Do not delight in what pleases the ungodly;remember that they will not be held guiltless as long as they live. 9.13. Keep far from a man who has the power to kill,and you will not be worried by the fear of death. But if you approach him, make no misstep,lest he rob you of your life. Know that you are walking in the midst of snares,and that you are going about on the city battlements. 9.14. As much as you can, aim to know your neighbors,and consult with the wise. 9.15. Let your conversation be with men of understanding,and let all your discussion be about the law of the Most High. 9.16. Let righteous men be your dinner companions,and let your glorying be in the fear of the Lord. 9.17. A work will be praised for the skill of the craftsmen;so a peoples leader is proved wise by his words. 9.18. A babbler is feared in his city,and the man who is reckless in speech will be hated. 10.4. The government of the earth is in the hands of the Lord,and over it he will raise up the right man for the time. 10.4. Do not boast about wearing fine clothes,nor exalt yourself in the day that you are honored;for the works of the Lord are wonderful,and his works are concealed from men. 10.13. For the beginning of pride is sin,and the man who clings to it pours out abominations. Therefore the Lord brought upon them extraordinary afflictions,and destroyed them utterly. 10.13. and raises up his head,so that many are amazed at him. 10.18. Pride was not created for men,nor fierce anger for those born of women. 10.18. There is a man who is rich through his diligence and self-denial,and this is the reward allotted to him: 10.22. The rich, and the eminent, and the poor -- their glory is the fear of the Lord. 10.22. The blessing of the Lord is the reward of the godly,and quickly God causes his blessing to flourish. 12.11. Even if he humbles himself and goes about cringing,watch yourself, and be on your guard against him;and you will be to him like one who has polished a mirror,and you will know that it was not hopelessly tarnished. 12.12. Do not put him next to you,lest he overthrow you and take your place;do not have him sit at your right,lest he try to take your seat of honor,and at last you will realize the truth of my words,and be stung by what I have said. 13.1. Whoever touches pitch will be defiled,and whoever associates with a proud man will become like him. 13.1. Do not push forward, lest you be repulsed;and do not remain at a distance, lest you be forgotten. 13.2. Do not lift a weight beyond your strength,nor associate with a man mightier and richer than you. How can the clay pot associate with the iron kettle?The pot will strike against it, and will itself be broken. 13.2. Humility is an abomination to a proud man;likewise a poor man is an abomination to a rich one. 13.3. A rich man does wrong, and he even adds reproaches;a poor man suffers wrong, and he must add apologies. 13.4. A rich man will exploit you if you can be of use to him,but if you are in need he will forsake you. 13.11. Do not try to treat him as an equal,nor trust his abundance of words;for he will test you through much talk,and while he smiles he will be examining you. 13.15. Every creature loves its like,and every person his neighbor; 13.16. all living beings associate by species,and a man clings to one like himself. 13.17. What fellowship has a wolf with a lamb?No more has a sinner with a godly man. 13.18. What peace is there between a hyena and a dog?And what peace between a rich man and a poor man? 13.19. Wild asses in the wilderness are the prey of lions;likewise the poor are pastures for the rich. 13.21. When a rich man totters, he is steadied by friends,but when a humble man falls, he is even pushed away by friends. 13.22. If a rich man slips, his helpers are many;he speaks unseemly words, and they justify him. If a humble man slips, they even reproach him;he speaks sensibly, and receives no attention. 13.23. When the rich man speaks all are silent,and they extol to the clouds what he says. When the poor man speaks they say, "Who is this fellow?" And should he stumble, they even push him down. 14.3. Riches are not seemly for a stingy man;and of what use is property to an envious man? 14.5. If a man is mean to himself, to whom will he be generous?He will not enjoy his own riches. 14.8. Evil is the man with a grudging eye;he averts his face and disregards people. 14.9. A greedy mans eye is not satisfied with a portion,and mean injustice withers the soul. 14.11. My son, treat yourself well, according to your means,and present worthy offerings to the Lord. 14.16. Give, and take, and beguile yourself,because in Hades one cannot look for luxury. 14.17. All living beings become old like a garment,for the decree from of old is, "You must surely die! 19.13. Question a friend, perhaps he did not do it;but if he did anything, so that he may do it no more. 19.14. Question a neighbor, perhaps he did not say it;but if he said it, so that he may not say it again. 19.15. Question a friend, for often it is slander;so do not believe everything you hear. 19.16. A person may make a slip without intending it. Who has never sinned with his tongue? 19.17. Question your neighbor before you threaten him;and let the law of the Most High take its course. 22.22. If you have opened your mouth against your friend,do not worry, for reconciliation is possible;but as for reviling, arrogance, disclosure of secrets, or a treacherous blow -- in these cases any friend will flee. 22.22. So it is with a woman who leaves her husband and provides an heir by a stranger. 24.1. Wisdom will praise herself,and will glory in the midst of her people. 24.1. In the holy tabernacle I ministered before him,and so I was established in Zion. 24.2. In the assembly of the Most High she will open her mouth,and in the presence of his host she will glory: 24.2. For the remembrance of me is sweeter than honey,and my inheritance sweeter than the honeycomb. 24.3. I came forth from the mouth of the Most High,and covered the earth like a mist. 24.3. I went forth like a canal from a river and like a water channel into a garden. 24.4. I dwelt in high places,and my throne was in a pillar of cloud. 24.5. Alone I have made the circuit of the vault of heaven and have walked in the depths of the abyss. 24.6. In the waves of the sea, in the whole earth,and in every people and nation I have gotten a possession. 24.7. Among all these I sought a resting place;I sought in whose territory I might lodge. 24.8. Then the Creator of all things gave me a commandment,and the one who created me assigned a place for my tent. And he said, `Make your dwelling in Jacob,and in Israel receive your inheritance. 24.9. From eternity, in the beginning, he created me,and for eternity I shall not cease to exist. 24.11. In the beloved city likewise he gave me a resting place,and in Jerusalem was my dominion. 24.12. So I took root in an honored people,in the portion of the Lord, who is their inheritance. 24.13. I grew tall like a cedar in Lebanon,and like a cypress on the heights of Hermon. 24.14. I grew tall like a palm tree in En-gedi,and like rose plants in Jericho;like a beautiful olive tree in the field,and like a plane tree I grew tall. 24.15. Like cassia and camels thorn I gave forth the aroma of spices,and like choice myrrh I spread a pleasant odor,like galbanum, onycha, and stacte,and like the fragrance of frankincense in the tabernacle. 24.16. Like a terebinth I spread out my branches,and my branches are glorious and graceful. 24.17. Like a vine I caused loveliness to bud,and my blossoms became glorious and abundant fruit. 24.19. Come to me, you who desire me,and eat your fill of my produce. 24.21. Those who eat me will hunger for more,and those who drink me will thirst for more. 24.22. Whoever obeys me will not be put to shame,and those who work with my help will not sin. 24.23. All this is the book of the covet of the Most High God,the law which Moses commanded us as an inheritance for the congregations of Jacob. 24.25. It fills men with wisdom, like the Pishon,and like the Tigris at the time of the first fruits. 24.26. It makes them full of understanding, like the Euphrates,and like the Jordan at harvest time. 24.27. It makes instruction shine forth like light,like the Gihon at the time of vintage. 24.28. Just as the first man did not know her perfectly,the last one has not fathomed her; 24.29. for her thought is more abundant than the sea,and her counsel deeper than the great abyss. 27.16. Whoever betrays secrets destroys confidence,and he will never find a congenial friend. 27.17. Love your friend and keep faith with him;but if you betray his secrets, do not run after him. 27.21. For a wound may be bandaged,and there is reconciliation after abuse,but whoever has betrayed secrets is without hope. 32.2. when you have fulfilled your duties, take your place,that you may be merry on their account and receive a wreath for your excellent leadership. 32.2. Do not go on a path full of hazards,and do not stumble over stony ground. 33.1. No evil will befall the man who fears the Lord,but in trial he will deliver him again and again. 33.1. All men are from the ground,and Adam was created of the dust. 36.1. Have mercy upon us, O Lord, the God of all, and look upon us 36.1. Crush the heads of the rulers of the enemy,who say, "There is no one but ourselves. 36.2. and cause the fear of thee to fall upon all the nations. 36.2. A perverse mind will cause grief,but a man of experience will pay him back. 36.3. Lift up thy hand against foreign nations and let them see thy might. 36.4. As in us thou hast been sanctified before them,so in them be thou magnified before us; 36.5. and let them know thee, as we have known that there is not God but thee, O Lord. 36.6. Show signs anew, and work further wonders;make thy hand and thy right arm glorious. 36.7. Rouse thy anger and pour out thy wrath;destroy the adversary and wipe out the enemy. 36.8. Hasten the day, and remember the appointed time,and let people recount thy mighty deeds. 36.9. Let him who survives be consumed in the fiery wrath,and may those who harm thy people meet destruction. 36.11. Gather all the tribes of Jacob,and give them their inheritance, as at the beginning. 36.12. Have mercy, O Lord, upon the people called by thy name,upon Israel, whom thou hast likened to a first-born son. 36.13. Have pity on the city of thy sanctuary,Jerusalem, the place of thy rest. 36.14. Fill Zion with the celebration of thy wondrous deeds,and thy temple with thy glory. 36.15. Bear witness to those whom thou didst create in the beginning,and fulfil the prophecies spoken in thy name. 36.16. Reward those who wait for thee,and let thy prophets be found trustworthy. 36.17. Hearken, O Lord, to the prayer of thy servants,according to the blessing of Aaron for thy people,and all who are on the earth will know that thou art the Lord, the God of the ages. 36.18. The stomach will take any food,yet one food is better than another. 36.19. As the palate tastes the kinds of game,so an intelligent mind detects false words. 36.21. A woman will accept any man,but one daughter is better than another. 36.22. A womans beauty gladdens the countece,and surpasses every human desire. 37.3. O evil imagination, why were you formed to cover the land with deceit? 37.3. for overeating brings sickness,and gluttony leads to nausea. 37.27. My son, test your soul while you live;see what is bad for it and do not give it that. 39.4. He will serve among great men and appear before rulers;he will travel through the lands of foreign nations,for he tests the good and the evil among men. 40.29. When a man looks to the table of another,his existence cannot be considered as life. He pollutes himself with another mans food,but a man who is intelligent and well instructed guards against that. 42.9. A daughter keeps her father secretly wakeful,and worry over her robs him of sleep;when she is young, lest she do not marry,or if married, lest she be hated; 42.9. The glory of the stars is the beauty of heaven,a gleaming array in the heights of the Lord. 42.11. Keep strict watch over a headstrong daughter,lest she make you a laughingstock to your enemies,a byword in the city and notorious among the people,and put you to shame before the great multitude. 42.11. Look upon the rainbow, and praise him who made it,exceedingly beautiful in its brightness. 42.12. Do not look upon any one for beauty,and do not sit in the midst of women; 42.12. It encircles the heaven with its glorious arc;the hands of the Most High have stretched it out. 42.13. for from garments comes the moth,and from a woman comes womans wickedness. 42.13. By his command he sends the driving snow and speeds the lightnings of his judgment. 42.14. Better is the wickedness of a man than a woman who does good;and it is a woman who brings shame and disgrace. 42.14. Therefore the storehouses are opened,and the clouds fly forth like birds. 44.21. Therefore the Lord assured him by an oath that the nations would be blessed through his posterity;that he would multiply him like the dust of the earth,and exalt his posterity like the stars,and cause them to inherit from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth. 45.13. Before his time there never were such beautiful things. No outsider ever put them on,but only his sons and his descendants perpetually. 45.18. Outsiders conspired against him,and envied him in the wilderness,Dathan and Abiram and their men and the company of Korah, in wrath and anger. 47.7. For he wiped out his enemies on every side,and annihilated his adversaries the Philistines;he crushed their power even to this day. 48.15. For all this the people did not repent,and they did not forsake their sins,till they were carried away captive from their land and were scattered over all the earth;the people were left very few in number,but with rulers from the house of David. 50.1. The leader of his brethren and the pride of his people was Simon the high priest, son of Onias,who in his life repaired the house,and in his time fortified the temple. 50.1. like an olive tree putting forth its fruit,and like a cypress towering in the clouds. 50.2. He laid the foundations for the high double walls,the high retaining walls for the temple enclosure. 50.2. Then Simon came down, and lifted up his hands over the whole congregation of the sons of Israel,to pronounce the blessing of the Lord with his lips,and to glory in his name; 50.3. In his days a cistern for water was quarried out,a reservoir like the sea in circumference. 50.4. He considered how to save his people from ruin,and fortified the city to withstand a seige. 50.5. How glorious he was when the people gathered round him as he came out of the inner sanctuary! 50.7. like the sun shining upon the temple of the Most High,and like the rainbow gleaming in glorious clouds; 50.8. like roses in the days of the first fruits,like lilies by a spring of water,like a green shoot on Lebanon on a summer day; 50.9. like fire and incense in the censer,like a vessel of hammered gold adorned with all kinds of precious stones; 50.11. When he put on his glorious robe and clothed himself with superb perfection and went up to the holy altar,he made the court of the sanctuary glorious. 50.12. And when he received the portions from the hands of the priests,as he stood by the hearth of the altar with a garland of brethren around him,he was like a young cedar on Lebanon;and they surrounded him like the trunks of palm trees 50.13. all the sons of Aaron in their splendor with the Lords offering in their hands,before the whole congregation of Israel. 50.14. Finishing the service at the altars,and arranging the offering to the Most High, the Almighty 50.15. he reached out his hand to the cup and poured a libation of the blood of the grape;he poured it out at the foot of the altar,a pleasing odor to the Most High, the King of all. 50.16. Then the sons of Aaron shouted,they sounded the trumpets of hammered work,they made a great noise to be heard for remembrance before the Most High. 50.17. Then all the people together made haste and fell to the ground upon their faces to worship their Lord,the Almighty, God Most High. 50.18. And the singers praised him with their voices in sweet and full-toned melody. 50.19. And the people besought the Lord Most High in prayer before him who is merciful,till the order of worship of the Lord was ended;so they completed his service. 50.21. and they bowed down in worship a second time,to receive the blessing from the Most High. 50.22. And now bless the God of all,who in every way does great things;who exalts our days from birth,and deals with us according to his mercy. 50.23. May he give us gladness of heart,and grant that peace may be in our days in Israel,as in the days of old. 50.24. May he entrust to us his mercy!And let him deliver us in our days! |
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